A.N: Slowly but surely, we are working our way to the end of this story. I had a little spare time with my currently busy schedule and a lot of inspiration involving this story, so I figured what the hell. Now, let's just kick right into this one. Chapter 21 of Endgame has now begun!

Chapter 21: Tercera Etapa

The sudden burst of ungodly power almost immediately wiped the buildings nearby out of existence. Rukia Kuchiki gaped in horror and disbelief as she suddenly found herself experiencing what was akin to her throat being constricted. "What…is this?" Rukia wondered.

"This is the Spiritual Pressure of an Arrancar," Neliel Tu Odelschwank spoke up, "but…no one Arrancar should have this kind of power. It's…too great for one man to contain."

And yet somehow, Benito has done it. Neliel thought to herself. He is truly Espada Infinity. The man who continues growing and growing in power.

Tia Halibel, still trapped in grief and self-loathing, sighed in resignation. I was a fool to think we had a chance. She thought. Push him into a corner, and Benito will simply give himself even more power. He is invincible. He is a god. We can't win, not against him. A man with immeasurable power, combined with immeasurable rage. Forgive me, Ichigo. If only I had noticed his rage sooner, I could've tempered it. I take full responsibility for this genocide.

Retsu Unohana coughed up blood as she continued to treat Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, desperately trying to keep him alive long enough for Akio to return and say goodbye to his adopted father. Her coughing was a result of Benito's power and her diverting most of her power—which could have been used to defend herself—to treating Yamamoto.

Such incredible power. She thought, overcome with a mixture of terror and eagerness to go out and fight Benito herself. However, she knew that would be an empty gesture. Even she was not strong enough to fight Benito as he was now.

"Captain Unohana…" Yamamoto said weakly.

"Don't speak, Sir," Unohana wheezed, "I swear, I will keep you alive long enough that you can say goodbye to your son."

Ichigo…this may be too much to ask, even of you, but you must defeat that monster. Unohana thought to herself. We can't let everyone's death be in vain. You must find some way to win…for all of us!

While Unohana made her passionate declaration, Ichigo Kurosaki, Isshin Kurosaki, and Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez all stared in shock at the new form of their enemy. Benito Muerta had taken the form of an angel, a fallen one with black wings.

"What the hell is this all about?" Grimmjow asked in disbelief. "Tercera Etapa? This can't be freaking real! A form like that shouldn't even exist!"

Isshin narrowed his eyes. "Yeah, well it does, so you might want to get over your shock and attack!"

"Getsuga Tenshō!" Isshin yelled, firing a powerful Getsuga.

"Uh, right, Gran Rey Cero!" Grimmjow fired a powerful Cero in conjunction with Isshin's Getsuga.

Ichigo narrowed his eyes and made it a three-way attack. "Getsuga Tenshō!" He yelled, firing his own Getsuga.

The attacks combined into one incredibly large energy attack. An attack this strong should injure even him. Isshin noted.

Then, much to their collective shock, Benito flapped his black, angelic wings and dispersed the energy attacks with the combined force and godlike Spiritual Pressure. "No way…" Grimmjow muttered fearfully.

Benito Muerta finally spoke. "What is with those frightened looks on your face?" He inquired curiously before realizing why. "Oh wait, I get it."

The King of Arrancar smiled darkly. "That was supposed to be your killing blow, right? How disappointing; I guess that means this is going to end with a whimper, instead of a roar."

With that, Benito started flapping his wings with greater power than before. Isshin, Ichigo and Grimmjow all gasped in surprise as they were flung through multiple buildings by the sheer force of Benito's movements. Benito's eyes widened in slight surprise and glee at his tremendous power. "What power!" He said gleefully. "I've never truly had a chance to test this form in the field! I never realized I would be this strong!"

With that, Benito flew towards the three bodies of his opponents. Meanwhile, Ichigo, Isshin and Grimmjow struggled to their feet. "What the hell!" Girmmjow yelled in disbelief. "Did we just get sent flying by a guy flapping his freaking wings? There's no way he can be this strong now!"

Isshin was in complete disbelief. He never showed this kind of power when we fought. We were lucky to have the time we did…but now that he's unleashed his full power…I don't think we stand a chance anymore.

Benito then appeared, flapping his wings like an actual angel. "I see the looks of doubt on your face." He noted. "I promise you all this is no dream. What you are experiencing right now is my real, full power."

"Although," Benito continued, "now that I think of it, what you are experiencing is probably more of a nightmare than anything else. The nightmare of sheer helplessness against a form you cannot hope to surpass."

"But, this nightmare is more than you fools deserve!" Benito declared. "Think of this as divine punishment! Think of this as justice! For you see, weak little maggots, my form is justice! My form is holiness incarnate! Revere me! Praise me! For I am the Arrancar God, the ruler of Hueco Mundo! Soon to be ruler of all!"

"Dream on, jackass!" Grimmjow yelled, preparing another Gran Rey Cero. "I refuse to bow to another psycho with a god complex! You will die by my hands!"

"Gran Rey Cero!" Grimmjow fired again.

Benito smirked as the attack quickly dispersed into nothingness upon coming close to him. Grimmjow's eyes widened in horror. "Oh, Grimmjow, do you not understand?" He inquired mockingly. "My power is so great, that you and your attacks cannot even hope to come lose to me. In fact, with the amount of power I have, I think you'd cause yourselves great pain if you actually tried to get close to me."

He's probably right, Isshin noted, if we tried to come anywhere near him, his Spiritual Pressure could actually physically harm us, maybe even kill us! That's how powerful he has begun!

Benito laughed. "I've never felt so amazing before in my life! This is a high that even I have never experienced before! I'm bursting with so much power that I'm actually a bit frightened I might explode! I might actually be too strong!"

Benito then swung his longsword out in front of him in a horizontal manner. The sudden shockwave from the swing destroyed the area in front of him and sent his three opponents flying once more.

Benito gazed at his sword in surprise. "Even my swings are destructive? Just how much power do I have now?" He wondered, before deciding to test his newfound strength. "Let's find out."

Ichigo, Isshin and Grimmjow struggled to get up as Benito turned his attention away from them. He pointed his finger far off into the distance, right at one of the many Rukon districts. Ichigo's eyes widened as Spirit Energy began to gather around his finger, realizing what Benito was up to. "Stop, Benito!" He yelled, speaking up for the first time since Benito had taken this new form of his.

Benito ignored him. "Gran Dio Cero," he said, firing a new variation of a Cero that was a hundred times more powerful than the simple Gran Rey Cero.

Off in the distance, the residents of the Zaraki District watched as a light brightly shone in front of them like a star. Then, the Gran Dio Cero struck and almost instantly, they were all vaporized by the attack.

"Oh my God," Grimmjow muttered, genuinely fearful now, "if he had aimed that at us…we'd be dead."

"Interesting," Benito gazed at his finger, "it appears I've underestimated myself. Good thing I caught on and tested my power. If I had let out an attack like that near me, I would've even put myself in danger."

"Benito!" Isshin yelled. "Do you even realize how many lives you just took with that attack?"

"Hmm?" Benito raised an eyebrow at his name being called before turning to the trio. "Oh? Are you three still here?"

Ichigo narrowed his eyes. It's like the longer he stays in this form, the more his god complex increases. He noted.

"Admirable," Benito spoke up as he slowly floated to the ground, "by now, I expected at least one of you to turn tail and run. Nobody would've held it against you, if you had. Frankly, even I'm a bit frightened at how much power I have. I would've run if I were you. Why don't I reward you for your bravery…or rather, punish you for your stupidity?"

With that, Benito flew forward and grabbed both Grimmjow and Isshin by the heads with both hands. "Grimmjow, Dad!" Ichigo yelled in worry as Benito took them and flew away.

Benito grinned sadistically as he lowered the two bodies he held and dragged them across the ground, reveling in the yells of pain he elicited from both men. He then flew up in the air and gazed at the both of them.

First, he addressed Isshin. "Once upon a time, you were one of the few Soul Reapers who could truly push me in a fight," Benito admitted, "I truly respected you. Now, when I look at you, I see nothing but an ant that needs to be crushed!"

With that, Benito violently tossed Isshin into the ground. He then turned a hate-filled expression towards Grimmjow. "You traitor," he snarled, "don't bother speaking, you have already doomed yourself. There is nothing you will say that will stay my hand!"

Before Grimmjow could react, Benito drove his longsword into Grimmjow's stomach. Grimmjow screamed in pain as Benito violently removed the blade from his body. "And I promise you, even with how much I intend to drag this out, it will still end far too early for you. You deserve far worse for committing the worst crime imaginable!"

Benito slowly pulled his blade out of Grimmjow's stomach and then let him drop to the ground. He then flew up into the sky, wanting to keep himself safe from his own power. "Burn," he commanded the two men, "Bala Ilovizna!"

With that, Benito started firing Balas at an incredibly rapid rate that struck the ground Isshin and Grimmjow, enveloping both men in multiple explosions. Benito gazed down at them with a cold expression, showing that his malice for his enemies has truly reached its peak. There was no mercy left in his heart, only a dedication to the complete and utter destruction of his foes.

"Benito!" Ichigo appeared, having sped to the area Benito had taken them as fast as he could via Flash Step.

Benito barely turned his head to acknowledge Ichigo's presence. Right now, even Ichigo was nothing more than an annoying flea. He continued firing Balas down at Grimmjow and Isshin, uncaring of the fact that Ichigo was watching him do it and would stop him at any moment.

Ichigo glared at Benito, realizing that the man was drunk on his own power and resolved to stop him. "BENITO!" He yelled, coating his Tensa Zangetsu in Spirit Energy to enhance his strikes.

Ichigo gritted his teeth in pain, immediately feeling Benito's overwhelming presence beating down on him, like the pressure of the ocean floor. He had to be careful, the longer he stayed close to Benito, the greater the chance he had of actually dying just from getting near him.

Sighing in annoyance, Benito raised his longsword and casually parried Ichigo's vicious assault, stopping his Bala Ilovizna on Isshin and Grimmjow in the process. Unfortunately, it was already too late for the both of them. Neither Isshin nor Grimmjow were going to be getting up for awhile. With only a few brutal strikes, Benito had incapacitated both of them. Now, it was just Ichigo and Benito.

Benito kept a cold but impassive look on his face as he matched Ichigo's attacks with the greatest of ease. It was soon becoming clear that Ichigo being alone to fight Benito was not a good situation for him to be in. "Ichigo," Benito finally spoke up, "I'm going to be frank. This is incredibly boring now. With the amount of power I have now, not even you are a match for me. In fact, the famed Squad 0 is no match for me anymore."

Ichigo glared at Benito for his statement. Benito seemed genuinely upset at something as he continued. "It's so irritating, really. Having to waste all of this time just because of certain factors that could make my plans more difficult than they need to be." Benito noted. "For example, the amount of power I required to effectively poison and kill Genryūsai without exhausting my own power. Do you have any idea how infuriating it is to actually have to hold back to make sure everything goes according to plan?"

"I had to sacrifice my own men, take blows I could've easily avoided, and even waste time on tasks like absorbing Sōsuke's very being into my blade for more power." Benito explained in annoyance. "All of that could've been avoided if I had just used all of my power from the very beginning."

"However, that would've been unwise," Benito revealed, "I knew that the more I showed the full extent of my power, the greater the chance there would be for someone to come up with the appropriate countermeasures. I'm sure that Urahara would've come up with something eventually. Sōsuke feared his brilliance for a reason, after all."

"So, I focused my efforts on weakening the Thirteen Court Guard Squads with constant assaults and dividing their forces by making them constantly change their focus." Benito explained. "And then, once everything was in place, I had to take special care to make sure that I had a power supply at the ready on the off-chance that something happened. And to be fair, with the technique I used to kill Genryūsai, Sōsuke did ultimately serve his purpose to rejuvenate me after all the power I used in that move."

"But I still had to hold back. I knew that my power was more than enough as it is to lay waste to the Seireitei, and that would've brought Squad 0. After that, I would reveal the upper limits of my power, and destroy them as well. If I had shown everything, I'm sure they could've come up with something like Urahara could've."

"You see, Ichigo," Benito gestured to the destruction around him while he continued to hold off Ichigo's swings, "where Sōsuke failed, I had succeeded. I understood the importance of patience, even when victory was in sight. He became far too eager to test his own limits, and it allowed you to find a way to surpass him. I, however, know what it takes to get the job done; I do not fall for such a trap."

"Now, having said all that," Benito glared at the Squad 9 Captain, "I admittedly failed to account for your growth rate. I knew of it, but like Sōsuke I underestimated it. It's vexing, especially now that you've forced me to reveal all of my power. Now I have to account for the fact that Squad 0 has seen my power and I have yet to see their's."

"However, this is only a minor setback," Benito concluded, "my power grows with every moment. Such is the power of the Arrancar with infinite power. And it will grow to incomprehensible levels by the time Squad 0 arrives."

"And why is that?" Ichigo demanded.

"Because I intend to absorb the souls of the Rukon District, of course!" Benito said darkly. "I will absorb every single soul into my being, reaching a brand new level. Who knows, maybe I'll even achieve a brand new transformation, I don't know, it's exciting, really!"

"Do you hear yourself?!" Ichigo yelled. "What kind of peace is that?"

"My peace, Ichigo," Benito responded.

"Well, it's not mine!" Ichigo yelled. "Nor is it the rest of the world. I won't let you drag all of Soul Society into this nonsense!"

"Nonsense?" Benito frowned as he pushed Ichigo off of him. "Creating a peaceful world is never nonsense, Ichigo. To be sacrificed for such a greater good…there could be no greater honor than that!"

"Is that what you're telling yourself now?" Ichigo demanded. "That's pretty damn easy for you to say when you're not the one dying!"

"I speak the truth," Benito said, "have you never once considered why absolute kings remain in power as long as they do? Why their kingdoms are so peaceful? It's because they fear disrupting that peace! As the Espada of fear, I understand this better than anyone. People naturally want to see the world around them in peace, so they don't have to live in such fear. Absolute kings give this to them! And I shall become the undisputed king that will fill this universe with fear so great, they will never want to try and disrupt the peace I have created. And once they realize how peaceful the universe is, they will honor those who were sacrificed to make it happen!"

"What's the old saying? You can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs? Well, I'm making quite the omelet, and those who are still left to enjoy it will love it regardless of how many eggs had to be broken!"

Ichigo glared at Benito for how easily he was justifying all of this. "Don't you get it, Ichigo?" Benito demanded. "This is just the responsibility for someone with power such as mine! I am going to drown this universe in the fear of disrupting the peace and dishonoring the sacrifice of those who made that peace happen! I will become the god that people will be far too afraid to anger! That is peace!"

"And you," Benito pointed at Ichigo, "you will go down in history as the villain who tried to disrupt it! All because of some misguided sense of responsibility towards a few insignificant fools! Even if by some miracle you manage to defeat me, the universe will see you as a villain when they see conflicts continue and realize how much more peaceful their lives could've been had you never interfered with my plans!"

"Face it, Ichigo, no matter what you do here today, the world will eventually grow to despise you, just like the universe will eventually grow to despise all who bear the title of Soul Reaper!"

Benito started to flap his wings, which were beginning to shine brightly with Spirit Energy. "Cero Alas!" Benito yelled, firing a massive blast of Spirit Energy from his wings that rapidly grew in size.

Ichigo's eyes widened in horror as both him, and the area around him was enveloped in the attack. Benito's mighty attack continued onwards, eventually tearing right through a part of the wall made of Sekiseki Rock and destroying one of the nearby Rukon Districts, killing everyone inside of it.

Benito took notice of this and frowned slightly. "Oh dear," he said, "I need to be more careful of what attacks I use. I can't afford to kill anymore souls, considering my plan to absorb them."

Benito then stared down at the charred and motionless Ichigo Kurosaki and sighed in disappointment as he gently floated to the ground. "Perhaps out of respect for you and your conviction, I can at least ease the public's imminent hatred for you." He noted as he landed on the ground and started walking towards Ichigo's body.

"Yes, perhaps I'll tell them that you were merely a misguided youth who was far too dedicated to beliefs that are on the wrong side of history. That doesn't make you evil, that just makes you wrong."

Benito stopped in front of Ichigo's body. "That's the least I can do. I guess in the end, I just can't stand the idea of seeing someone I genuinely respect being dragged through the mud."

Benito then pointed his hand at Ichigo. "I can also grant you a painless death." Benito decided, ready to destroy him with a Cero. "Consider it your reward for pushing me further than any other opponent in my life. This was truly enjoyable, Ichigo. Thank you."

Suddenly, Tenza Zangetsu was swung upwards, Benito gasped and leapt away, just barely managing to avoid the swing. He scowled slightly. "What a pain," he said, "my instincts have not adjusted to my power, and so I still feel the need to avoid your sword."

Benito then watched as Ichigo got to his feet. "Unbelievable," he shook his head, "you still feel the need to continue this?"

"Well, what can I say, it would be a waste if the guy who pushed you further than anyone else just died like this." Ichigo glared at him, panting.

"You're wasting your time," Benito told him, "I'm just going to knock you down again. And this time, I intend to make sure you don't get up."

"Yeah, I've heard them all before." Ichigo shrugged off Benito's warnings.

"You're certainly stubborn," Benito shook his head.

"And you're about as twisted as they come." Ichigo shot back. "So fear is peace, huh? I've never heard anything more ridiculous than that!"

"Fear doesn't lead to peace, all it does is scare people into spending their lives in a damn cage! And then when living that cage becomes unbearable, fear scares people into dreading the idea of you living another day, and just like that another conflict occurs!"

"You may think you've got your methods figured out, Benito, but all your scare tactics do is eventually scare people into eventually standing against you because the idea of you running rampant on their lives is even more frightening! Sure, at first they'll be too scared to do anything, but eventually they'll be so scared, they'll feel like they'll have to fight just to survive! And that's what you fail to take into account! That courage also comes from fear, just like many other things!"

"Oh, and the whole 'everyone will hate me whether I win or lose' crap, this may shock you but I don't give a damn!" Ichigo declared. "I could care less whether the world hates me or not! All I care about is whether the people I care about in it, are safe!"

"See, Benito, I haven't been opposing you because I have some sort of strong beliefs as a Soul Reaper." Ichigo revealed. "We've been fighting because you had the nerve to threaten people I cared about. And that's more than enough of a reason for us to fight!"

"If it means protecting them, I'll gladly become the villain that the rest of the world hates!" Ichigo revealed. "Because knowing that at the end of the day they're all safe from harm…that's how I'm able to live in peace!"

"And right now," Ichigo continued as his Spiritual Pressure started to rise, "you're standing in the way of my peace!"

Benito's eyes then widened, taking notice of Ichigo's increase in power. What is this? He wondered. Where is Ichigo drawing on this sort of power?

"Benito," Ichigo said, "you're either going to back down, or I'm going to force you out of my way on my own path to peace!"

"Because I'm not giving my peace up for yours!"

Ichigo's body was then covered in a sort of demonic-looking skin that was colored pale white. Horns sprouted out of his head and black stripes ran down his face. Benito gasped in disbelief when he recognized this particular Spiritual Pressure. The dual Spiritual Pressure of a Soul Reaper and a Hollow? Benito realized. The Vizards are one thing, but they have not achieved a truly perfect fusion of Hollow and Soul Reaper powers. They all lacked the skills to do so, and so it was always an incomplete transformation. Somehow…Ichigo has managed just that and has obtained…

Ichigo grinned confidently as he completed his transformation. "A Resurreción…" Benito said breathlessly.

"Resurreción," Ichigo introduced his new form, "Monsturo de La Luna."

A.N: Ichigo brings how his own final form while Benito reveals a god complex that's comparable to Fusion Zamas (even borrowed some of Fusion Zamas' lines). Next time, the final battle, Resurreción Ichigo vs. Tercera Etapa Benito. Until next time, everyone! Peace out!