DARKNESS DESCENDS
The victory was short-lived. Though the hollow may finally have been defeated, its master was still alive. There was a menacing feeling given off by the odd blank-eyed man.
Sven carried Eve back to others and they regrouped for the next battle.
The man descended from the sky, a patronising clap going throughout. As his feet touched ground he stopped clapping and set his vacant gaze on the assembled warriors who opposed him.
"Well done. I must commend you on your ability to defeat my prototype. I truly believed he would be invincible, but it seems that your combined strength exceeded my expectations."
"What are you planning?" Ichigo roared. "Why are you experimenting on hollows? What is it for?"
The man gestured for silence. "My intentions are for the greater good. Hollows are hunted to near extinction now. All I am doing is equipping these majestic creatures with the power to defend themselves. Is that truly a crime?"
"Yes! Hollows are monsters! They kill innocent people!"
"So do sharks. So do lions and crocodiles, but we protect them nonetheless. How is this any different?" The man reasoned. "Can you not see the beauty behind those cruel red eyes? Under the claws and fangs beats the heart of a kind soul. They are merely carrying out natures plan, to hunt and feed. You cannot blame them for what was bred into their minds, surely?"
Ichigo bowed his head. It seemed he could not win this argument. In fact he did not want to admit it, but this man's words were beginning to sway him.
"Eve saw the true plight of the hollows. That is why she agreed to help us." That sinks in like a knife.
Sven's eyes narrow and he instantly draws his pistol and fires. The bullet makes it within two metres of the man before it is sliced into tiny pieces by the woman beside him. She produces two swords and uses them to render the bullet harmless. She glares at Sven and looks to her master for guidance.
"Patience Tenshi. The time shall soon come."
"But Gaichu-sama-"
"I said be patient!" Gaichu snarls. Tenshi places her swords back in their scabbards and remains kneeled beside her leader.
Sven curses and puts the gun down, knowing full well that it is hopeless trying to take down these foes with a mere handgun.
"So, why would I protect the hollows? Well, they are a perfect weapon if they are harnessed properly. You see, hollows are quite mindless. Lead them to lambs and they will slaughter, as instinct demands. That is why I have decided to make them stronger. If the hollows are strong enough to protect themselves against their hunters, then nothing can stop them. The world is theirs...Or the one who commands them. With an army of unstoppable killing machines I can rule over all. Each world shall fall until all that is left is destruction. Anything that survives the slaughter will be enslaved and will rebuild my paradise! Ha ha ha!"
"You evil bastard!" Ichigo growled. "You act like you care about them when you're only using them as tools! You're a manipulative piece of trash, I'll give you that."
Gaichu chuckled. "Your arrogance is misplaced young shinigami. Even without my army, I am more than enough to destroy you all."
Ichigo smirked. "I'd like to see you try. Every captain in the Gotei 13 is here right now and even the Chronos numbers. There are too many who oppose you!"
Gaichu seemed unfazed by this. "The Gotei 1 and Chronos were threats to me, but their foolish inner turmoils brought both organisations to their knees. They are nothing but trash now! They brought each other down without my interference and gave me a perfect chance to strike." Gaichu smiled wickedly, his lips curving upwards in a sinister expression of manic glee. "And I have you to thank for it Miss Kuchiki."
All eyes fell on Rukia.
"Her? What did she do?" Train asked.
"The urgent need to bring her to execution made the Gotei 13 paranoid. Not only did they exhaust themselves in trying to find her, but the discrepancy about her crimes brought on the civil war between the allied forces." Gaichu sneered. "I could even use you to create stronger hollows...that is if the rumours are true.
"What rumours?" Ichigo gasped.
"You don't know? I thought all shinigami were told about the Hogyoku."
"Hogyoku?" Byakuya repeated, more affected than the others.
"Nii-sama, what is it?" Rukia asked her brother.
Byakuya fell silent and closed his eyes, appearing calm. He vanished and moments later he was behind Gaichu, sword drawn and poised above his head. Gaichu blocked the sword with a bare hand and glanced over his shoulder at the attacker.
Byakuya cursed under his breath and glared at his foe. "If the Hogyoku is truly within Rukia, then I must kill you before your tainted hands get any closer to it!"
Gaichu grinned. "You think you alone can stop me?"
"I will not let you harm Rukia. My honour shall not allow it!"
"Very well..." Gaichu sighed. "Tenshi, deal with the rest of them. I have no more need...But keep the Kuchiki girl alive."
The woman nodded and flash stepped in the middle of the group. Everyone rushed to defend themselves, either diving out of the way or drawing their weapons and blocking the oncoming blades.
Meanwhile, Gaichu reached into his cloak and revealed a hidden sword. It gleamed in the firelight. Byakuya wrenched his sword free and stepped back, assuming a battle stance. Gaichu merely remained in his relaxed state, the sword held loosely.
"Come. Show me the strength you value so highly."
Byakuya did as asked and charged in again. This time Gaichu guarded with his sword. As the blades crossed he raised a hand and began to chant. Byakuya flash stepped out of the way just before a large red fireball shot forth from the opponent's hand. He then countered by dashing around behind Gaichu and launching a surprise attack.
The enemy raised his forearm and blocked the blade and then thrust his sword at Byakuya's chest. The sixth squad captain backed away before the sword could dig too deep, but he did not avoid the strike completely. He panted as blood spurted from the deep gash, but he did not let it wear him down.
He charged in once again and the two men crossed swords in a rain of sparks. Byakuya smirked and his lips parted to reveal his secret plan. "Scatter..."
Gaichu merely stared at the blade which shattered. He was not sure whether his strength had broken the blade or it was some other factor, but he was still wary. He eyed the floating shards suspiciously but soon disregarded them and went for the defenceless captain. His mistake was soon made clear. The swarm of floating shards surrounded him and Byakuya leapt out of the way as they all shot inwards, shredding the man trapped within.
Byakuya let them cut him into mincemeat for a while longer before summoning them back into his sword. As they floated away from the foe it was revealed that he was still on his feet, albeit badly wounded. His entire body was lacerated and blood soaked into his cloak.
Gaichu staggered forward and let out a light-hearted chuckle. "Impressive! I should have expected as much from a captain."
Byakuya tensed himself, ready to fight again.
"So. This is the strength required to become a captain nowadays? My, how it has changed...Back in my day a captain had to be powerful!" The evil smile returned and Gaichu charged. His sword crashed down on Byakuya's and the force threw him several metres back. Gaichu did not relent, immediately launching another attack.
Byakuya blocked again but was shaken from the impact. The strength behind this man's swings was incredible. If the hits had landed he would be in serious trouble, but thankfully he was able to read the assailants movements.
Gaichu seemed to predict Byakuya's rising confidence and decided to shatter it and end the games. With one swift slash Byakuya was sent hurtling through the air, eventually colliding with a chunk of concrete. He grunted as his body slammed into it with crushing force.
Gaichu lifted his sword to point to the heavens and stared straight ahead. "Open your eyes, Yuki-buraindo!" Gaichu's sword became enveloped in a light blue aura. His blank white eyes flickered and a cruel smile crossed his lips. The ground around him became covered in a thin layer of snow. His sword disappeared and now a large razor edged snowflake was within his grasp.
Byakuya stared at it, unsure what its powers were. To him it seemed as if it would be harder for Gaichu to fight now. This could turn in his favour, but he would have to be careful not to get too confident. Gaichu would not release his sword if it would inconvenience himself. It would be too foolish a move for one such as him to make.
Byakuya walked forward, slowly building into a run. He brought his blade around in a horizontal arc but Gaichu blocked it with the bladed snowflake which he held by a handle in the centre of it. Gaichu sneered and thrust outward, pushing Byakuya back.
"Catch!" Gaichu roared as he hurled the weapon at his foe. Byakuya brought his sword down on it, forcing it to the ground. He was about to attack the defenceless master when the weapon began oscillating like a circular saw. Byakuya turned back as the weapon shot off towards him again. He tried to dodge but the blade cut through his shoulder.
Gaichu caught his blade and cleaned the blood from its ornate white surface. "Impressed. Most opponents see this weapon as merely a little frisbee, but it is more than that. It is an excellent ranged weapon."
Byakuya flash stepped beside him and slashed across his side. Gaichu blocked the attack with his smaller weapon.
"All I have to do is fight you close up. Now you can't throw your silly toy!" Byakuya drew his sword back and prepared to fight but he was suddenly stabbed by a pure white blade. He stared down at it with a looks of pure shock.
Gaichu snarled. One of the points of the flake had extended to the length of a sword blade. "Surprised, I'm sure." Gaichu wrenched the blade free and struck Byakuya with the back of his hand, knocking him to the ground. "They always assume the same thing. If I can throw it then it must only be a ranged weapon, but they are so very wrong. Yuki Buraindo excels at all forms of combat be it close of long range!"
"Damn! How foolish of me." Byakuya growled.
"Most opponents don't survive this long. I commend you for that, but this has gone on for long enough. It is time to destroy you."
Byakuya raised his sword with a shaking hand and then dropped it. Gaichu burst out laughing, unaware that the sword was sinking into the ground which rippled around it like the surface of a pond. It was only when Byakuya spoke that he realised what had happened.
"Bankai." The sixth squad captain whispered.
Gaichu's eyes narrowed and his body tensed in preparation as great blades rose on either side of them. "What is this?" Gaichu asked calmly.
"Scatter, Senbonzakura Kageyoshi." Each of the giant blades shattered like Byakuya's shikai, only with ten times worse. "You shredded corpse shall fall to the earth as you much loved snow." Byakuya rasped. "Now die!"
The swirling steel shards surrounded their opponent and entrapped him within a sphere of flying blades. Gaichu's agonised cries could be heard as the ball collapsed in on itself, each blade moving in for the kill.
Byakuya cradled his wounded arm and sat down to rest.
Meanwhile, Tenshi fought against Ichigo and Train simultaneously. Train would sneak around behind her and fire while Ichigo gave a fierce frontal offensive.
The girl's reflexes were incredible. She was able to guard against all of Ichigo's hits while dodging the oncoming bullets she could not even see.
It seemed things were not going too well so Train and Ichigo doubled their efforts in an attempt to wear her down until she was easier to beat.
After a while she was beginning to show signs of wear. She had to escape from the two opponents using Shunpo rather than block and duck. Her counter-attacks were beginning to get sluggish. She was getting tired.
Train winked at Ichigo and loaded a single bullet into the chamber of Hades. He then lined up a shot and waited for the right moment.
Tenshi crossed her tow swords together and caught hold of Zangetsu. She struggled to keep the larger sword trapped and her arms were shaking form the stress. Ichigo pressed down as hard as he could to distract her, drawing her full attention to the sword hovering above her head.
Train grinned and aimed for her spine, a definite end to the fight if he could make it. He closed one eye and stared down the sights, making sure he had it perfect. When he was satisfied he pulled the trigger.
...And that was when Tenshi somersaulted over the top of Ichigo, allowing him to take the bullet full in the chest. The cartridge exploded inside the wound and blood sprayed out from the large hole created by the blast.
"Ichigo!" Train roared.
Ichigo's eyes widened and he stared at the smoking hole in his chest. Tenshi twirled her swords around and then thrust the both of them through his back so that they protruded from his front.
"ICHIGO!" Rukia cried from the sidelines.
Tenshi yanked the blades out and watched with grim satisfaction as Ichigo crumpled in the dirt. She then set her gaze on Train.
As Byakuya gains the upper hand on Gaichu, it appears that the other resistance has been crushed. the score is even for now, but who will win in the end? Read on to find out!
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