Chapter 24: Road to Redemption (Nullifying the threats)
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach.
"Normal speech"
'Inner speech/thoughts'
'Inner Quincy/Yhwach speech'
'Inner hollow/Zanpakuto speech'
xxx
Laboratory of the Captain of the 12th Division
Staring at a small red light blinking in the corner of his computer screen, Mayuri felt a twitch coming to his lower eyelid. He called out to his Vice-Captain.
"…have you checked these data?"
"Yes, Mayuri-sama."
"Double-checked?"
"Triple-checked, Mayuri-sama."
That clearly wasn't the answer the Captain was waiting for as his expression turned so sour, not even the eccentric paint covering his face managed to hide it. Raising his hand, Mayuri reached for the computer keyboard and pressed a single key.
"Unpleasant. Very unpleasant." He muttered and then turned around, to the door leading away from his laboratory.
"Mayuri-sama?"
The man briefly looked back.
"I'm left with no other choice. I am going to the Commander. Encrypt and back-up everything."
…
With Ichigo
Stupefied by the sudden development, Yamamoto, Ichigo and Amagai stared at the phenomenon in utter silence. Not one of them had expected it to return so soon. Now, it caught them unprepared.
"...not now, damn it..."
Amagai's whisper cut through the silence like a hot blade, drawing the attention of both Ichigo and Yamamoto in. But, despite the dire situation, the two of them kept silent. Words no longer mattered. It was up to Amagai to decide what was going to happen.
For more than just one reason, Ichigo hoped it wouldn't be a fight to the death. While pissed at Amagai for the whole conspiracy matter, deep down, the teen felt like he could understand the man's pain and the driving force behind his actions. The loss of family was something that could easily tear a person into pieces.
Ichigo knew it.
He knew it very well.
'…too well…'
A bitter taste filled the inside of his mouth and urged him to forcefully push his thoughts back into the deepest parts of his mind. He needed to focus.
However, Amagai didn't seem like he was about to end the silence. As much as he had looked determined just a minute ago, he now looked hesitant and such a detail didn't go unnoticed for long.
"Lower your weapon, Captain Amagai."
The sound of Yamamoto's voice immediately woke the man from his thoughts but before he could retort, the Commander surprisingly decreased his reiatsu.
"You are far too young, far too foolish and far too valuable to the Gotei, Captain Amagai. I cannot let you do more harm, else even I won't be able to grant you a pardon."
When the Commander lowered his zanpakuto as well, both Ichigo and Amagai blinked in surprise.
"…what are you talking about? I'm no longer a Captain, it was just a pretense, a role I played in order to get closer to you, so I could kill you, Genryūsai Yamamoto! So I could send you to hell!" Amagai exclaimed, anger quickly returning to his voice.
With his zanpakuto lowered, Yamamoto briefly brought his immense reiatsu back and pinned the man with a piercing glare.
"Silence you foolish youngling! I-"
But Yamamoto couldn't finish his thought as another voice rudely entered the fray.
"Yes, yes, just shut up."
Ichigo, Yamamoto and Amagai swiftly turned around to see a man with a painted face landing at the corner of the battlefield. It was the Captain of the 12th Division.
"Kurotsuchi Mayuri…" Amagai growled.
Giving him a slight mocking glare, Mayuri grimaced but then turned to the Captain Commander.
"You really shouldn't keep so many secrets, Commander. Why not just go ahead and admit the truth? Or do you like to play the martyr so much?" He said with a malicious smirk, causing the Commander to look away and close his eyes. Then the scientist took several steps towards him and continued in a lowered voice.
"Or maybe… you feel ashamed?"
"That's enough, Captain Kurotsuchi." Yamamoto finally replied, giving the man just a short, but intense glare that seemingly caused Mayuri to stiffen.
"Hmph, maybe it-" He started, but a whisper, as well as a pulse of reiatsu coming from behind him immediately silenced him.
"Leave."
It was Amagai and he seemed to have shaken off his fleeting hesitation and was burning with anger yet again. His zanpakuto was raised and already beginning to brim with energy.
However, the Captain of the 12th Division just snorted.
"I thought you would be a bit different, Amagai, but I guess you are just like the most of Gotei 13. A monkey that doesn't bother to use its brain and instead just brute-forces its way through."
Ichigo, standing a bit on the sideline, paled.
'Seriously? He's mocking him?' He thought in panic, expecting Amagai to explode any second.
To his surprise, Mayuri's words had completely opposite effect on the revengeful man. He visibly blinked and the anger in his eyes was once again mixed with a hint of uncertainty.
"Oh? Maybe there's still some hope for you?"
This time, Amagai ignored Mayuri's remark and aimed his sight at the Commander.
"…what is he talking about?"
The muscles on Yamamoto's face twitched, but he refused to reply. For a few seconds, nobody spoke a word, until irritation crossed Mayuri's features and the scientist released a groan.
"For the devil's sake… you really want me to say it for you, huh?"
Mayuri sighed and then, briefly glancing at the phenomena in the sky, shook his head.
"Since we have much more important things to discuss and since I really don't care about you, I'll keep it short and simple. Amagai Shūsuke, the notion that the Commander murdered your father, is false. It seems you have some information about the matter, but they are painfully insufficient. For example, your father's, Shin'etsu Kisaragi's, last mission was to act as a spy within the Kasumiōji Clan."
Amagai's reiatsu sharply rose.
"What?!"
"Even I don't know everything but, as far as I do, he was supposed to determine whether the Kasumiōji Clan was a threat. Mainly, their research in the 'Bakkōtō project'. However, Shin'etsu Kisaragi was caught, forced to use experimental Bakkōtō that corrupted his mind and then ordered to kill whoever sent him. So, in a way, the Commander did kill him, but it was an act of mercy…"
*CLANG*
A loud, metallic sound echoed through the battlefield as Amagai's zanpakuto slipped from his hands and fell on the ground. His whole body shaking, the man blinked, as if suddenly waking up into his worst nightmare. His reiatsu dropped.
"…no." He whispered. Several times, he mouthed the same thing over and over until a faraway look settled in his eyes. He lowered his head and slowly swallowed.
"...it can't be. No, you are lying. You must be lying!" He suddenly exclaimed and sent a hateful glare in Mayuri's direction.
The scientist rolled his eyes and turned to the Commander who had no other choice, but to finally respond.
"No… he speaks the truth."
Amagai visibly tightened the grip on his Zanpakutō and redirected his glare at the Commander, as if wordlessly asking for more answers.
"…the Kasumiōji clan is, and always was, responsible for special techniques used for the casting of royal swords. A long time ago, I became aware of misuse of those techniques. It appeared that the clan's steward, Gyōkaku Kumoi, wanted to exploit them for something that later became known as 'Bakkōtō'. However, I was denied the investigation because of the immunity extraterritoriality. Your father, one of my fine students, found out and persuaded me into letting him act as a spy. Acting in secret, he managed to infiltrate the Kasumiōji compound but was ultimately discovered. At that time, the Bakkōtō project advanced into prototype testing and your father was forced to try one of them. The Bakkōtō completely devoured his mind and left him a mindless beast. It was my responsibility to free him of such fate. I owed my student at least that much." Yamamoto slowly explained.
"Officially, the mission never happened and so everything concerning the death of Shin'etsu Kisaragi was covered up."
Once Yamamoto finished, he finally opened his eyes and looked at Amagai, who looked as if struck by a lightning. When he stayed silent for too long, Yamamoto added one more thing.
"It may not seem much, coming from me, the one who ended his life, but you remind me of him. Despite everything you did, you are a strong-willed, responsible and just individual, Amagai Shūsuke."
It didn't look like Amagai heard him. Still frozen in the same pose, his mouth began to move only after he blinked.
"…beware the Bakkōtō…" He muttered and then renewed the grip on his sword.
"Those were the last words my father said to me…"
His voice slowly became raspy and the expression on his face turned from angry into one of sorrow, shame and self-disgust.
"…and I completely misunderstood him."
In that moment, his reiatsu that previously dropped to the point of being barely palpable, exploded and enveloped him in a circle of blazing flames, entwined with cackles of electricity.
"I was a fool and I… apologize for what I have done, sir."
Letting out a quiet, remorseful chuckle, Amagai closed his eyes and allowed the ring of deadly flames to crawl upon him.
It was his last decision.
To die by his own hand.
…
Ichigo heard everything.
But he didn't understand any of it.
Standing on the sideline, he was a silent audience. A witness of something outrageous. With all the words spewed out to the wind, he became a part of it.
He wondered, though.
Could he have prevented this from happening?
Could anyone?
He blamed Amagai for everything Rurichiyo had to go through. After all, if not for him, maybe she could have had a normal childhood. Normal for an aristocrat, at least. He blamed him.
But he couldn't hate him.
Ichigo knew what the thirst for revenge, the pain of losing the loved one could do to a person. Outliving your loved ones was fate worse than death. Ichigo himself would have given anything to undo the past. But he couldn't.
Because it was the past.
The only thing one could do was to move forward. It could take courage, determination, and years of guilt and loathing to do so, but the alternative was always worse.
Ichigo knew.
And because of that, when he saw the cackling flames gnawing at Amagai, he felt something within his very soul. He couldn't define it or name it. It just appeared there and attacked him like a surprise strike that came from behind. But it allowed him to understand one thing.
'Like hell I'll let you do this.'
…
Not even a second after Amagai disappeared behind his fire, a pulse of heavy reiatsu blew the sorrowful scene, as well as the flames itself, away.
"Is that really who you are, Amagai-san? A SELFISH COWARD?!"
Before he could react, Amagai received a powerful punch to the guts. Instead of blowing him away, though, the attack simply forced him to bend forward. A moment later, the one who punched him retracted his hand and let the man fall on his knees, gasping for breath.
"Ack…guh, K-Kurosaki…?"
It was Ichigo.
Looking at him from above, the teen formed a furious grimace and threatened him with a trembling fist.
"Stop screwing around! Do you think after everything that has happened, you can just throw all of it behind you and simply be done with it?! Do you think you have the luxury to act like a selfish coward?"
For the moment, Ichigo tried to ignore the fact that he was making a scene in front of the Commander. Instead, his sole focus was on the man kneeling in front of him. And he saw Amagai's face twist into angry snarl.
"Y-You…"
Ichigo's fist trembled one more time before he lowered it and replaced his grimace with a somber expression.
"I know that right now, I'm the one who looks selfish. I know that sprouting noble but empty words makes me look like an asshole, brat and a plain naïve idiot. But that's all I can do. Speak empty words in hope the other guy is a bigger idiot."
Amagai blinked in surprise, giving him the chance to continue.
"In your eyes, I may look like a snotty child but I just want you to ask yourself this, Amagai-san. Do you think ending your life now will solve anything? Sure, it'll ease your pain but think about how much pain and harm you'll bring to others. To all those men and women that came to see you as their new Captain. As someone, they could maybe trust again. To Gotei 13 that is still recuperating from the massive betrayal. To all those Shinigami who decided you are somebody they would want to fight with. To all those who came to see you as a comrade."
Despite his best attempts, Ichigo felt a bit of heat creeping into his face.
'This is way more embarrassing than I thought it would be.' He thought dryly. Obviously, he believed his own words but it was one thing to think about them and something completely different to actually say them out loud.
"… I…"
Swallowing his embarrassment, Ichigo focused back on Amagai.
"You dragged so many people into your own personal vendetta that living for a bit longer and trying to gain forgiveness is the most forgiving punishment you could hope for. Moreover, you may have faked many things but I think being just isn't one of them. Think about how many people you can save with all of your abilities. So they won't suffer like you did." He added and then let the man digest everything he had said.
Amagai lowered his head and was silent for a whole minute.
"…you are an unfair one, Kurosaki." He finally muttered.
Then he raised his head.
"You are not wrong, though… I bet my father would have punched me even harder than you did." He said while slowly standing up. One of his hands immediately went to his abdomen and he lightly massaged it.
"So…" Ichigo began and Amagai shook his head.
"Don't worry. Your words were a harsh wake-up call but I deserved it. I won't think about doing something stupid like killing myself again. Though I'm not sure I will be allowed to live for long." He said and then glanced behind Ichigo, at Yamamoto. Ichigo, widening his eyes, turned around and glanced at the Commander as well.
For just a split second, Ichigo felt as if the head of the Gotei 13 gave him a tiny nod but then Yamamoto spoke to Amagai.
"Since the Central 46 still isn't functional, it is my decision that matters. Ordinarily, you would be sentenced to either life in prison or worse but the current state of affairs eliminates such options. I already mentioned this, but you are a valuable asset, Captain Amagai, and I cannot afford to lose yet another Captain. I will decide upon your punishment based on whether your actions directly caused death of others but, at the very least, your life will not be forfeit."
Both Ichigo and Amagai let out a drawn-out sigh of relief. They were aware that the Commander was being extremely lenient.
"Good decision, Commander." The cynical tone of Mayuri's voice that came from behind caused the others to turn around and look at him. The scientist made a grimace.
"Not that I agree or disagree with you, Commander. I just think that, for the sake of the Soul Society, you made a good choice. Especially when you consider the reason for me being here." He said and raised the index finger of his left hand. Pointing it upwards, the others followed the direction, until their sights fell on the phenomena in the sky, still looming over the Soul Society.
They almost forgot about it.
"Go on then, Captain Kurotsuchi." Yamamoto said.
Mayuri made an unpleasant smile and opened his mouth.
…
15 minutes later
Mayuri's long explanation was met with a brief but deafening silence. Amagai stared at the Captain of the 12th Division in disbelief. Then Ichigo quietly cursed, prompting Amagai to open his mouth.
"So… wait. Let me get this straight. The central Valley of Screams contains an incredibly powerful source of energy and when it collides with the other Valleys of Screams and with Soul Society at the same time, it will result in a cataclysm that will obliterate most of the Soul Society? And there is no way of stopping it?"
"…not to mention it will happen in a few hours…" Ichigo added quietly.
"The Kidō Cannon…" Yamamoto began but was quickly interrupted.
"Is not viable. Only if you are willing to irreparably disrupt the connection between Soul Society, Dangai and the Human World. Not to mention cause the Kōryū to lose its stability and potentially flow into Soul Society and the Human World." Mayuri said with a sarcastic grin to which Yamamoto responded with narrowed eyes.
"...yet your grin tells me we are not going to die, Captain Kurotsuchi."
Mayuri chuckled. It made Ichigo's skin crawl.
"Well, this is where you two fools come into play." The scientist stated and turned to Amagai and Ichigo. Both of them raised their eyebrows. Even Yamamoto seemed surprised. Mayuri payed their reactions no heed and quickly continued.
"Without telling you all the scientific details you wouldn't even comprehend, you two are the keys we need to access the Valley of Screams."
Seeing their blank expressions, Mayuri rolled his eyes.
"You two have accidentally entered one of the Valley of Screams before and I stress the word accidentally one more time. That means I cannot bridge the two words like I did when I pulled the two of you out again. Or so I thought. While in the Valley of Screams, you both let out a sizeable amount of spiritual energy. That energy still exists there in the form of residual particles. I've been able to track and lock onto them and so now, wherever the Valley is, I can create a bridge between it and the Soul Society."
"That's great news, right?" Amagai said expectantly.
Mayuri glanced at him and shook his head.
"There is a problem. The person who goes through the bridge has to be in sync with the residual particles. Simply said, the only ones who can use this bridge are you and the boy." He explained and alternated his stare between Amagai and Ichigo.
Amagai just blinked several times, while Ichigo couldn't help himself and cursed.
"…damn it."
Then, all of a sudden, Amagai growled.
"Why didn't you say so sooner?! I almost killed myself and the Soul Society would have been doomed!"
Mayuri raised his right hand and opened it to show all of them a small syringe.
"This would have prevented you from doing so but, alas, the boy acted before I did."
Letting out another growl, Amagai took a deep breath to calm himself down. When he did, he turned to the Commander.
"I'll gladly go. This is the perfect chance to start making amends for what I have done. Just give the order and I'll go."
"…you meant we'll go." Ichigo said, causing all of them to look at him in surprise.
"Kurosaki Ichigo, you are not a member of the Gotei 13 and s-"
"Sir, if I may."
Interrupted yet again, Yamamoto slowly turned to Amagai.
"Yes?"
Amagai felt the heated gaze but didn't back down.
"Sir, I think I know what you're about to say and I wholeheartedly agree. Kurosaki is still a student and has no business in such an important matter. Also, knowing the enemy strength, this is a mission I may not return from. Having said that, young Kurosaki is anything but an ordinary student. If he's willing to go, I'd say let him. He's as much a valuable asset as I am. Considering his age, maybe even more." He said.
"Is that so?" Yamamoto muttered.
Ichigo felt embarrassed and bit of surprised that Amagai would say such things about him but the feeling lasted only until cold sweat appeared on his forehead and he felt a shiver running down his spine. Looking away from Amagai, he noticed a long and unsettling stare coming from the Captain of the 12th Division.
'This guy… creeps the hell out of me.'
"Kurosaki… Kurosaki, you here or what?"
Ichigo shook his head.
"Yeah, sorry."
Amagai narrowed his eyes a bit.
"I was asking if you are serious about this. I won't try to convince you but you have to be sure. Even with the two of us, this is going to be incredibly difficult."
Ichigo met his gaze and, for a few seconds, remained silent.
'You sure about this?'He heard his Zanpakutō ask him.
'Yeah. If he goes alone, Amagai-san is as good as dead.'
'He's the one who made the Rurichiyo girl suffer.' His other spirit calmly retorted. A small wrinkle formed on the teen's forehead and his facial muscles twitched.
'I know. But that's over. She won't suffer anymore. I managed to save her. Now, it's Amagai-san's turn.'
'Why? I remember you saying that you are not a hero, Ichigo. Why do you want to be one now?'
Ichigo quietly formed a fist.
'I don't! I just… deep down, I believe Amagai-san is not a bad person. Is it so wrong that I want to help him? That I don't want him to die? When I can prevent it from happening?' He thought a bit angrily.
'No, Ichigo. It is not. If this is your reason for doing this, then I won't complain.'
Blinking, the teen felt confused.
'What's that supposed to mean. What other reason I could have?' He asked but, this time, his spirits didn't answer.
He let out a short sigh. Sometimes, despite being parts of him, parts of his soul, his own spirits confused the hell out of him. He focused back on Amagai's face in front of him and gave a short nod.
"I'm sure."
In that moment, somebody with a powerful reiatsu landed just a few meters behind them.
…
Several minutes before
"Yes, sir! The Kasumiōji compound is clear of resistance. Gyōkaku Kumoi's men have all but fallen and we are now rounding them up. Some of them fought to the bitter end but we managed to capture quite a few of them alive. The rest of the Kasumiōji clan barely put up any fight and surrendered rather peacefully. End of report! What are your orders now, sir?"
Deep in thought, the Captain of the 10th Division had to blink to clear his mind in order to focus his attention back at his officer. Rubbing his chin, he gave the man a short nod.
"Continue rounding them up and then report to the 2nd Division. They'll take care of the captured. Once you're finished, return to the barracks. I'll need the report in written form by the morning."
The officer saluted.
"Yes, sir!"
Then he hurried back to the inner parts of the Kasumiōji compound, leaving his Captain, Isshin, alone with his thoughts.
'…why can't I shake off this bad feeling?' He thought worriedly, once again returning to the image of his son's upset face, back when Isshin had told him about Gyōkaku Kumoi's death.
'Because your instincts are almost always right, Isshin.'
The Captain of the 10th Division lowered his gaze and looked at the palms of his hands.
'Engetsu… yeah.'
He closed his eyes and concentrated on his spiritual energy. It took him only a second to do what he wanted to do.
His eyes snapped open and he felt like cursing.
"…damn it Ichigo. What have you gotten yourself into this time?" He muttered and, in the next moment, vanished in a burst of Shunpo.
When he finally came to a stop, he ignored the rubble and debris all around him and, instead, focused on the voices coming from a short distance, from behind a large wall in front of him. Walking towards it, he heard the voice of the Captain of the 12th Division and froze in his tracks. He remained in the same pose until the voice briefly died down. A feeling of dread washed over him.
"I'm sure."
When he heard his son saying that, Isshin couldn't help himself.
He let his feeling out in a form of reiatsu. Jumping in the air, he vaulted over the wall and landed right behind it.
…
With Ichigo
When he recognized the reiatsu, Ichigo felt his throat drying up. Years had passed since the last time his father got angry enough to scare him but, in that very moment, it was as if the past caught up to him.
"Hey Dad." He muttered and, along with everyone else, slowly turned around.
"Captain Shiba… wait, did you just say… what?" Amagai wanted to greet Isshin only to realize what Ichigo said and it left him speechless.
"Oh great, another fool." Mayuri quietly grunted.
"Captain Shiba, I guess you heard everything?" Yamamoto asked.
Taking several deep breaths, Isshin faced their stares with a tightened jaw.
"No, but I think I heard enough." He replied and focused his sole attention at Ichigo, who somehow felt a bit smaller, as if he briefly returned to being a kid again. With his mouth twitching, Isshin pinned the teen with a piercing glare.
"If you think I'll let you go on a suicide mission just like that, then you're about to find out the true meaning of 'got shit beaten out of him'." He growled.
Ichigo tried to retort but, with a pulse of reiatsu, Isshin quickly shut him up. The angry Captain then glanced at Mayuri.
"Which means I'm going with them."
In that moment, Ichigo was not the only one caught by surprise.
"…wait, you're not going to…" Ichigo began only to see Isshin shaking his head.
"Do what? Spank you on your butt and then tie you to your bedpost? No, you are not a kid anymore, Ichigo. If I wanted to, I could prevent you from going, but I think that would only add wood to the fire." He explained.
"Not to interrupt your family dispute, but if you heard what I had said, then you know you-" Mayuri butted in, only to get interrupted right away.
"Only those who are in sync with the residual particles can use the bridge, yes. However, Ichigo is my son, so I think my spiritual energy is compatible enough." Isshin said, causing Mayuri to grimace.
"That still doesn't mean you'll be able to use the bridge."
Isshin briefly glanced at Ichigo and then at Yamamoto, who raised one eyebrow. Letting out a sigh, Isshin shook his head again.
"Ichigo, what is the name of your Zanpakutō?"
Surprised by the question, Ichigo narrowed his eyes.
"Zangetsu, why?"
Isshin looked back at Mayuri.
"Mine is Engetsu."
Briefly at a loss for words, Mayuri raised both his eyebrows and let out a short snort.
"I stand corrected; you may be able to use the bridge after all."
…
Rushing towards the Senkaimon gate, Ichigo kept giving his father curious gazes until the man gave up and sighed.
"Go on."
Ichigo pressed his lips together.
"Should I be worried that our Zanpakutō names are so similar?"
"Not really. It's just very unusual."
Even though Isshin's answer sounded honest, Ichigo wasn't sure he felt convinced.
"Really?
"Yeah, but because it's unusual, it most likely sparked Captain Kurotsuchi's interest in you so... watch your back." Isshin said in a lower tone, so that the man in front of them wouldn't hear their voices. The teen grimaced.
"Great."
Just then, they finally arrived to their destination and the Captain of the 12th Division turned around to face them.
"Now listen. I'm not sure if it crossed your little minds, but the Valley of Screams you'll travel to through the bridge most likely won't be the central one you need to go to. Therefore, I'm giving you this." He said and handed Amagai a small electronic device.
"This device is set to locate the unknown source of energy and so it will lead you straight to the central Valley. Right now, the Valleys are all connected with each other, so travel through them should be possible. In case you couldn't pass through their walls, use Amagai Shusuke's Bakkōtō."
"A Bakkōtō?" Isshin asked in surprise and looked at Amagai. For a moment, he stared at him with unreadable expression.
Ichigo mentally cursed.
Amongst all of them, Isshin was the only one who didn't know the truth about Amagai. He immediately opened his mouth to try and explain it to him but Isshin quickly raised one of his hands.
"Don't bother, Ichigo. I don't know and, right now, I don't care. It seems you all are fine with it and that's all I need to know."
Isshin wasn't the only one who spoke, though. Looking at the Bakkōtō in his hand, Amagai grimaced.
"This... thing can help us?" He asked, a hint of disgust creeping into his tone. Mayuri put his index finger on the base of his jaw and paused.
"Hmm, it should. I managed to get a glimpse of its abilities in your little fight with the Commander and I also have some simplistic data from your visit in Dangai, when you stopped the Cleaner. I assume you used your Bakkōtō for that?"
Amagai blinked.
"Yeah?"
Mayuri nodded.
"Then my deductions must be true. As of now, I don't understand the base principles behind it, but I suspect your Bakkōtō is capable of more than just disrupting Shinigami abilities. Therefore, I'm quite convinced it should also be capable of disrupting the walls of the Valleys. In light of that, I advise you to survive and return back to Soul Society so I can study your Bakkōtō from up close." He said with a tiny spark of interest that caused Amagai to shudder. Mayuri didn't notice it and turned back to the others.
"Once the Senkaimon gate glows, you need to hurry. I can keep the bridge opened just for a few seconds. When you are finished 'saving the world', one of you three needs to push some of his reiryoku into the device I gave Amagai and wait for another bridge to open. Now, if you'll excuse me…" He explained and then prepared to leave, only to be stopped by Yamamoto, who closed the distance between them and asked him in a quiet tone.
"One thing, Captain Kurotsuchi. There should be no records of what happened between me and Shin'etsu Kisaragi."
Mayuri looked over his shoulder and gave Yamamoto a short glance.
"When I became the Captain of the 12th Division and Head of the Shinigami Research Institute, I made sure to get rid of most of the things my predecessor left there. I only kept the interesting stuff and, believe me when I say so, some of his stuff really was interesting. For example his entries about the members of the Gotei 13." He said before leaving.
…
Mayuri's laboratory – 10 minutes later
Watching the screen in front of him, Mayuri slowly twisted a small control knob until red color filled all columns displayed on the monitor.
"That's 100%. Readings?"
A voice came from behind him not even a second later.
"Everything normal, Mayuri-sama."
The scientist nodded to himself and moved his hand from the knob to a push button. Without hesitation, he pushed it. In response, a warning popped up on the screen, while the columns started to quickly lose their red color.
"Good, good. They should be crossing it about now. Nemu, what are the Hyperion readings?"
This time, however, his Vice-Captain did not answer. Immediately, Mayuri pursed his lips.
"Nemu!"
"…I think you need to see this, Mayuri-sama."
Mayuri blinked. It was almost as if there was emotion in his Vice-Captain's voice. Quickly, he turned around and walked to the other screen, in front of which his Vice-Captain was standing. Giving Nemu only a short glance he looked at the screen.
"What is so…"
When he saw the readings, he went silent fast. Hurriedly, he began pounding several buttons at once, until a different reading came up on the screen. An error. For a few seconds, Mayuri simply stared at it.
"Nemu."
"Yes, Mayuri-sama?"
The scientist reached for the hat on his head and slowly took it off.
"I didn't think it would come this soon but it's time to begin with modifications."
"Yes, Mayuri-sama."
…
With Ichigo
It didn't take long before the Senkaimon gate truly glowed and once it did, the three of them immediately jumped in. Almost immediately, a sensation as if being squeezed through a tube assaulted their senses. But, whatever it meant, it lasted only for a second. When it passed, they found themselves in a land, quite familiar to Ichigo and Amagai, but foreign to Isshin.
"Yeah, this is definitely not the Valley we are looking for." Amagai stated while giving the device in his hand a close look.
"Well then, lead the way." Isshin said encouragingly.
With a nod, Amagai looked at the device one more time. After a short pause, he looked to his left.
"This way."
From that point onwards, the three of them traveled in almost complete silence, with the only sound being the noise of their Flash Steps. As it was a race against the time, Ichigo had to push himself really hard in order to keep up with the pace of two Captains. And so, when they reached the bizarre-looking wall between the two Valleys, the teen was almost out of breath. Though the Captains themselves seemed winded as well.
"Now… for the miracle." Amagai muttered and reached for his Bakkōtō. A moment later, when the sword glowed green, he plunged it into the dimensional wall. Twisting it around, he made a downward slash that allowed for a narrow rift to form.
"Well what do you know, it actually worked." He muttered. Then he noticed the rift was already beginning to close.
"Quickly!" He exclaimed and fearlessly jumped in it. Following his suit, Isshin and Ichigo were right behind him. The odd sensation briefly returned, even if it felt less intense. Once their feet touched a solid ground, Amagai looked at the device again.
He shook his head.
"Still not the right one. We are getting close, though."
It took them another five travels before the device began flashing red.
Readying his Bakkōtō one more time, Amagai glanced at Ichigo and Isshin.
"This is it. Somehow, I don't think they will be happy to see us." He said. Then, with a slash, he created another rift.
"Captain Shiba, Kurosaki… if it's possible, let me fight their leader."
When both Ichigo and Isshin gave him a questioning gaze, Amagai shrugged.
"Redemption, remember? Besides, I think my Bakkōtō may tip the scales in my favor." He explained and then jumped. Ichigo and Isshin followed right after.
They knew it really was the central Valley even before they landed. The odd reiatsu that immediately pressed on them, without mistake, belonged to their enemies.
"Well, well. So you two came back. But you only brought one additional Captain with you? Now, aren't you underestimating us, Shinigami?"
The three of them grimaced. Just as they suspected, their enemy was not pleased to see them. Just a quick glance around also told them one more thing.
The enemy expected them to come, as they were all in position and ready to fight.
"You said you managed to take one out so there should have been only four of them." Isshin whispered to Amagai, who wrinkled his nose.
"One of them must have been hiding." He curtly responded, before looking up at the enemy's leader, Ganryū.
"Maybe it's you who's underestimating us." He exclaimed.
Ganryū narrowed his eyes at him. For a few seconds, he looked over Amagai.
"The look in your eyes changed, Captain."
"So?"
Forming a derisive smirk, Ganryū shrugged.
"So you are no longer interesting." He stated and then looked at his subordinates.
"Kill them."
Instantly, Amagai flashed forward and, with a fast strike, forced Ganryū to draw his own blade to block it.
"Captain Shiba, Kurosaki! Good luck!"
…
Ichigo and Isshin
Standing side by side, the father and son had only a split second to decide on their actions. Once Amagai declared his intention by jumping at Ganryū, it was just a matter of time before the rest of the enemies would swarm at the two of them. Neither of them wanted to face such adversity and so, without even needing to exchange a single word, they both simultaneously raised their swords up high and exclaimed the same thing.
"Getsuga Tenshō!"
Two energy strikes, both shaped like a crescent moon yet different in color or size, emerged from their respective Zanpakutō like beacons of light and did not allow any enemy to get close to them.
"Even split?" Isshin asked, loudly enough so Ichigo could hear him over the rumble coming from their attack. In response, the teen gave a short nod.
"Sure, I'll take the two on my side. Fought them before."
Isshin formed a small grin.
"Fine by me."
However, before they rushed at their opponents, they both raised their Zanpakutō once again.
"Burn, Engetsu!"
"Bleach their souls, Zangetsu!"
Torrents of dense reiatsu shot from them and up to the sky.
…
Ichigo
Closing in on his opponents, Ichigo recalled the last time he was in the Valley of Screams. Specifically, he dug up the memory of him fighting the enemies he was facing now.
'The big one fights with chakram blades while the pale one mainly throws projectiles that can explode. I got to get rid of the ranged one first.' He thought but, before he could get to fighting distance, an onslaught of shuriken forced him to halt his Shunpo.
He kicked of the dirt and into the sky. Spinning around he reflected a single chakram blade flying at his sternum and raised his left hand. Pointing it at the bigger man, he channeled his reiryoku into his arm until it began to cackle and turn yellow.
"Bakudō #4. Hainawa!" With a flick of his wrist, he hurled the energy, now in form of a rope at his opponent, binding both his arms and body in a matter of a second.
"Damn you!"
Pulling at the rope, he smashed the man into a nearby boulder while also propelling himself towards the other guy. He pushed through yet another barrage of shuriken until he landed right in front of him. Silently ignoring the burning sensation of having multiple cuts all over his body, he made a horizontal slash with his khyber-like sword.
"Kuh!" The man quickly blocked the strike with his unusual, thick-bladed sword but was pushed backwards. However, he caught Ichigo off guard when he pulled the hilt out of the blade and revealed another, a thin golden blade that had been hidden inside of it.
Barely ducking under a fast swipe, Ichigo heard a ripping sound coming from behind him and hurriedly flashed away. A single chakram blade hit the place where he had just stood.
'He broke Hainawa already?'
The second chakram blade flew straight at him and so Ichigo used his other, smaller sword to block it. What he didn't expect, though, was the owner of the blade to appear right in front of him.
A hard punch to the abdomen blasted him backwards. Right before his back crashed into a stone wall, he saw the other guy pointing his thin golden blade at him like it was a gun.
"Gah!" The impact knocked some wind out of him but he knew he had just a fragment of a second to defend himself. Pushing through the pain, he made a weak slash across the air.
"Getsuga Tenshō…"
The energy beam almost immediately collided with something and resulted in a series of small explosions. His body being hurled away, Ichigo gritted his teeth. A tiny hint of anger flowed into his veins.
'That's it. I'm so done with this.'
Using both his swords, he controlled the flight of his body until he managed to flip himself over. Despite his limited sensory ability, he instinctively felt one of his opponents approaching him fast and raised both his sword. Placing them one at the other in a form of a x-mark, he poured his reiryoku into them.
"Getsuga Tenshō!" Releasing the blast from both swords at the same time, he watched in satisfaction as the blasts made direct contact with the man, blasting him away in a shower of blood. The only thing left were two arms and two legs that hit the ground once Ichigo released his breath.
He didn't get the chance to celebrate his victory for long, though, as a shower of golden projectiles flew at his position like a swarm of hornets.
'You're getting annoying as well.' Ichigo thought in mild irritation.
Forced to continuously evade the barrage with his Flash Step, the teen slowly advanced towards his other opponent until he was close enough to see the man's desperate expression. A moment later, he reached him and the two of them crossed their swords once again. When Ichigo pushed, the man jumped backwards.
It was only when Ichigo saw the man's changed expression that he noticed a thin thread attached to his Zanpakutō. His opponent smirked.
The end of the thread on Ichigo's side exploded.
…
Isshin
Unlike Ichigo, Isshin didn't charge his opponents right away. As it was his first time facing the enemy from the Valley of Screams, he decided it was in his best interest to study their actions first.
"Let's see what you got." He muttered to himself.
The response came soon enough. One of his opponents, a woman with lavender colored hair and a fairly exposed cleavage, a detail that didn't go unnoticed by Isshin, reached for her crossbow and fired off a fast moving arrow that urged Isshin to quickly change his position. Using Shunpo to do so, he noticed the other opponent firing a volley of rocket-like projectiles from his back, where he carried something that looked just like a rocketpack.
'Hmm, so they are trying to keep me away from them. Smart, but not good enough.' Isshin thought to himself in mild amusement. With a firm grasp on his Zanpakutō, enveloped in bright blue energy, he sliced the air in front of him. Some of the energy tore itself off the sword and collided with the projectiles, causing all of them to explode.
Isshin flashed towards the man. Landing right before him, he raised Engetsu above his head and resolutely swung it down.
"Oomph." He let out through closed mouth.
By hair's width, his opponent managed to avoid being cleaved in two but was still blasted backwards from the sheer force behind the strike that demolished the ground beneath them.
"Gah! Don't underestimate me, Shinigami!"
A barrage of throwing knives coming from left side stopped Isshin from continuing his attack and allowed the man to recover. With an angry snarl, he crouched and prepared to shoot another group of missiles. Watching him from afar, Isshin noticed a trail of translucent energy flowing from the environment and straight to the man's rocketpack.
Isshin narrowed his eyes.
'That looks like reishi absorption of some kind. The reishi itself feels odd, though. Is he breaking down the very structure of the Valley?'
The man arrogantly laughed.
"You chose a wrong place to fight us, Shinigami! Your energy won't last forever. I just need to tire you out!"
Batting away another set of throwing eyes, Isshin narrowed his eyes even further.
'Does it mean he can use the reishi as energy for himself?'
The man finished absorbing the reishi and fired off his rockets once again. Without missing a beat, Isshin flashed away. Repeating the same action three more times, he felt a bit of ire rising within him. The man's attack pattern was getting stale and predictable. His rockets were fairly fast, but Isshin was faster. However, when he briefly stopped flashing, he felt something else approaching him from behind at a very fast pace. Hurriedly, he leaned backwards and watched as a thin arrow barely missed his abdomen.
Flashing away from the continuous barrage of rockets, he managed to take a glance over his shoulder. There, the woman seemed to be using her crossbow as a sniper rifle, sniping him from a distance. With a click of his tongue, Isshin swiftly changed the direction of his Shunpo and increased its speed to the point where he was able to get close to the woman before she could jump away.
"Sorry lady, you're much too annoying." He muttered and raised his free hand. Flicking his middle finger in her direction, the woman was blown away just when she was about to escape. Intent on immobilizing her, Isshin almost missed the rockets homing on him.
'I should wrap things up.'
Just after he flashed away and turned his attention back to his other opponent, he saw an explosion engulfing Ichigo and a single muscle in his arm twitched. Forcefully, he looked back at man with rockets and formed a serious expression.
"I think I saw enough. Getsuga Tenshō." Unlike Ichigo's version of the energy blast, the Getsuga released from Isshin's sword seemed to illuminate almost the whole battlefield. Immense in size and dense with reiryoku, the wave of energy flew at Isshin's opponent like a tsunami of destruction.
…
Amagai
"It's pointless to even try to fight me. The destruction of Soul Society is imminent and inevitable. Nothing you can or will do will prevent that."
Amagai ignored the taunt and, once he closed the distance between him and Ganryū, tried to slash the man's chest open. His Zanpakutō clashed with Ganryū's sword and the Captain immediately found himself being pushed back.
"Sever, Raika!"
A sound similar to a trumpet resonated through the battlefield as soon as Amagai's Zanpakutō changed its form. Quickly twisting it, the Captain aimed the flames that shot out from a shell-shaped hilt at the enemy leader and momentarily succeeded in blinding him.
"Ahh!"
Jumping backwards, Amagai swung his blade forward and released a newly-formed fireball straight at his opponent.
"Raikakyū!"
"Aaaaaahh… just joking."
Caught off-guard, Amagai barely managed to block a volley of daggers. However, on impact, the daggers changed their form and turned into some kind of adhesive mass that pinned him to the wall behind him. Right after that, he saw another set of daggers flying at him. This time though, he was sure the daggers wouldn't change into something else.
"Hnnngh!" Under the mass binding him, Amagai struggled to move his Zanpakutō. It was only thanks to his blade being blazing hot that he was able to cut through the mass and pry himself from the wall before the daggers could impale him.
"Lucky. Not for long."
Amagai narrowed his eyes.
'Barely any damage, huh? I guess I shouldn't hold back… still, I'd like to avoid using Bankai if possible.' He thought to himself and tightened the grip on his zanpakuto. Interestingly enough, the enemy leader didn't seem to be in any rush and was just watching Amagai with impassionate eyes.
"Like I said, pointless. My revenge… our revenge, will come to happen."
Amagai couldn't help but to chuckle. That got him emotional response as Ganryū's jaw tightened.
"You find it funny?!"
Amagai shrugged.
"No. I just thought it is quite ironic of fate to make the two of us face each other."
Ganryū raised one eyebrow.
"Oh? Why is that?"
Lowering his knees, Amagai shrugged again.
"You see, I recently gave up on my revenge, so, going against you, a person who's so hell-bent on revenge you are willing to sacrifice even innocents, feels like I'm being mocked by fate itself. But I guess that's the punishment for my blindness." He replied and rushed forward.
"…what nonsense." Ganryū muttered distastefully and the two of them clashed again. This time, however, Amagai was the one who pushed harder. Putting a lot of strength behind his blade, he slowly drove his opponent to the edge of a cliff. There, he pushed even more and left the man with no other choice but to leap backwards. He quickly formed and fired another fireball, bigger and hotter than the last one.
"Raikakyū!"
However, before it could strike Ganryū, the fireball collided with something translucent, something that Amagai wasn't even sure was there, and scattered in every direction.
"What…?"
Smoothly landing on the cliff, Ganryū formed a smirk of disdain.
"Don't understand what's going on, do you? Here, let me help you with that."
A bad feeling in his gut alerted Amagai of a vague movement on both his sides. Squinting his eyes, he spotted a swarm of translucent shapes closing in on him and cursed. He raised his Zanpakutō and resolutely spun around. His blade barely met any resistance but when he stopped, he saw the number of shapes dwindled.
"What the hell was that?"
"Still don't understand? Hmm, and here I thought you'd know by now what the Valley of Screams actually is."
Amagai fought the urge to reply. Indeed, because of Mayuri and Yamamoto, he already had some information but he decided to play dumb.
"Well, I've been a Captain only for a short time."
Ganryū's smirk widened.
"I see. Well then, since you are going to die, I may as well tell you. A Valley of Screams is a pocket of space, composed of souls ejected from reincarnation cycle." He paused and Amagai watched as a translucent shape at Ganryū's side slowly turned into reishi and then into a dagger that Ganryū grabbed afterwards.
"Yes, these things you perceive as barely visible shapes are actually those ejected souls. For why I can use them like this…" Ganryū said and his smirk suddenly vanished, replaced by an angry grimace.
"We are the remnants of the Ryōdoji Family, banished from the Soul Society a thousand years ago." His voice then got louder.
"For a millennium, our clan was forced to scrape out an existence surviving only by concealing ourselves in the dank crevices of the Precipice World, in these Valleys of Screams. Our hatred for the Soul Society was the only fuel that drove us to endure that living hell! Then we discovered how to avenge this injustice and obliterate those who condemned us to this wretchedness. Now the moment is at hand. No one is going to stop us!" He exclaimed and the dagger in his hand multiplied. Right after that, all of them shot at Amagai with incredible speed.
Reacting instantly, Amagai plunged his Zanpakutō into the ground and caused large flames to erupt from a fissure, effectively stopping the projectiles in mid-air.
"You must pardon me for not feeling sympathetic. You brought this fate upon you by yourselves." He said loudly.
Ganryū's grimace darkened.
"You arrogant fool. Do you even know why we were banished?!"
Amagai gave a short nod.
"Yes. High treason for collaboration with the enemy of Soul Society."
A burning yellow-green reiatsu began to seep from Ganryū.
"Enemy?! Nonsense! But it's pointless to debate this with a Gotei Shinigami. Soul Society is finished. My revenge will be done!"
Several fireballs made their way towards the enemy leader and forced him to back again. When Amagai saw him land, he noticed the man's expression underwent another change.
"You…" Ganryū muttered and briefly looked over his shoulder, then back at Amagai.
"Yes, I realized it. You are using the energy of these ejected souls to move the whole Valley of Screams and are planning on crashing it into Soul Society. And, because you sapped most of the energy from other Valleys, yes, I noticed the lack of weird presence in them, and put it into this one, you caused them to gravitate towards it in an attempt to use all of them as potential bombs. I'm not sure how you're doing it, but I'm sure I'll understand it once I get to the place where most of the energy is concentrated." The Captain replied with serious gaze.
For a moment, Ganryū stood still. However, ever so slowly, his whole face began to twitch so much, it almost looked as if he got a stroke. Then, as if time skipped a few moments, it all stopped and a smirk returned on his face.
"Aren't you a clever one. But it doesn't matter. Even if impossible happens and you defeat me, a mere Shinigami won't stop this."
Giving a short glance to his other sword, Amagai felt like smirking too.
"Good thing I'm not just a mere Shinigami."
…
Ichigo
The cloud of smoke from the explosion lasted only for a few moments. When it completely dissipated, Ichigo's opponent stopped smirking.
"…damn it."
Not only was Ichigo still conscious, the explosion barely slowed him down. His singed skin and partly burnt clothes gave off a bit of smoke, but it seemed like the teen didn't mind. Already moving towards his opponent, Ichigo let some of reiryoku enter the blade of his Zanpakutō and stroke. The man's attempt at parrying the strike didn't pay off and he was blown away.
A small movement caught Ichigo's attention. He glanced in its direction only to become stunned. His other opponent, whose limbs sailed through the air just minutes ago seemed to be still alive. Translucent mass was slithering onto his bleeding stumps, causing his limbs to slowly regrow. The sight reminded Ichigo of one of his past enemies.
'Not this crap again. I hated fighting Bounts.'
In one large Shunpo, he crossed the distance between him and the large man and raised his Zanpakutō .
'Still, it seems there is a difference. Bounts regenerated a lot faster than this guy.'
"D-Damn you, Shinigami!"
Ichigo pinned the defenseless man with a hard stare.
"You first."
With one swipe, Zangetsu's blade cleanly bifurcated the man in two like a guillotine. There was surprisingly little blood. Instead, the man's body began to turn into some kind of a dusty reishi. Once the man lost his consciousness, the wind scattered his corpse into nothingness. Ichigo gave the flowing reishi one more glance.
Then he heard a volley of shuriken gliding through the air. Utilizing his Shunpo, he flickered out of existence and rushed at the place from where they came from.
'Seems like he'll never run out of them.' He thought in mild irritation. When he had to evade shuriken two more times, his ire rose and a burst of reiatsu erupted from him.
"…gh!"
Ichigo quickly turned in the direction of the voice and swung down his Zanpakutō.
"Getsuga Tenshō!"
The wave of mostly black energy demolished the landscape and forced the teen's enemy to come out of hiding. As soon as Ichigo spotted him, he charged him. Keeping up a steady amount of reiryoku in and around his blade, he appeared in front of him before the man could raise his sword high enough to parry.
"C-curse you!"
"Get your soul bleached."
One slash later, the man's body began to turn into reishi dust. Ichigo watched it until he was completely sure of his opponent's departure. Turning away, he took a deep breath and tried to locate his father.
Surprisingly enough, it seemed Isshin was finished with his fight too and was on his way towards him.
"I guess we really are related."
…
Isshin
Just before his Getsuga could hit its target, Isshin's opponent took out his sword and placed it in front of himself, using it as a shield. Its blade opened and split into pieces that made the sword look like a fan. True to their appearance, the blades began to rotate at high speeds and caused Isshin's attack to scatter into every direction. However, the amount of force and energy behind the Getsuga eventually proved too much for the sword to handle. The remaining reiryoku washed over the man and dealt his body heavy damage.
Isshin was unable to finish hm off yet, though, as a single throwing knife crossed his path and pressured him into changing his position.
'He's already trying to heal using the reishi.' Isshin noted to himself and, for a split-second, analyzed the situation. With narrowed eyes, he let the man be and flashed towards his other opponent, the woman.
Already in the process of creating a distance, she was barely able to deflect the first Isshin's attempt at her side but it left her open for the second one. A pained grimace formed on her face just as Isshin's blade dug deeply into her body and almost split her into two halves.
"Argh! E-even if you kill us, lord Ganryū will avenge us…" She uttered through gritted teeth.
Isshin gave her an almost sad stare and then brought his Zanpakutō on her once more. This time, she immediately lost her consciousness and her body turned into reishi dust.
"May your soul rest in peace."
Then he flashed away. He stopped only when he was already above his second opponent. Resolutely, he performed a drop-kick to the man's head and buried his Zanpakutō in his torso. Just before the strikes hit him, the man managed to yell one last time.
"…Shinigami scum!"
Once the man's body fully turned into reishi dust, Isshin turned his attention towards his son that had been fighting in a distance.
"Seems like he's finished too." He muttered and flashed towards him.
When he reached him, he noticed the teen's appearance.
"Seems like you had it rough."
Ichigo's narrowed his eyes at him.
"Seems like you didn't."
Isshin shrugged.
"What can I say. From your and Captain Amagai's description, I expected them to be stronger. I even regret releasing my Zanpakutō for them."
"Then why did you?"
Sheepishly, Isshin rubbed the back of his head.
"I thought it would be a nice father-son moment?"
Ichigo sighed in exasperation and lowered his swords.
"Ignoring the last bit, it's probably because we fought them fairly fresh. When I and Amagai-san first encountered these guys, it was only after we spent several days here and it drained a lot of our energy. Honestly? I think they were more annoying than strong."
Isshin was already opening his mouth to make a retort when a strong reiatsu pressed on them and, somewhere in a distance, an explosion went off.
…
Amagai
Amagai saw the enemy leader scoff.
"So arrogant of you to say that but I guess that's to be expected from a Gotei Shinigami."
Then the man scoffed again.
"Not just a mere Shinigami… such nonsense…"
A moment later, a heavy strike of the man's sword forced Amagai to strain his muscles. All of a sudden, Ganryū felt like a different person. Not just his attack, but his reiatsu too, became stronger and more robust. With some difficulty, Amagai pushed him back and vaulted over the man's head. His mid-air slash was intercepted, though, and a kick to the abdomen sent him flying.
"Omph…"
Amagai let himself sail through the air as far as he could. In the last moment, just before impact, he flipped himself over and landed on one knee. Rapid flashes of red color were visible through a pocket in his clothes. Coughing a bit from the kick, he quickly studied his surroundings.
There, one his right side, in a distance, a thick construct seemed to be etched in a cliff wall. Myriads of ejected souls slowly strode towards it, looking as if hypnotized by it.
'Bingo.'
A dagger painfully dug deep into the back of his shoulder and almost caused him to spin around and stumble.
"Ah, damn it…"
Like a yellow-green flash, Ganryū landed right in front of the construct.
"You must be thinking how fortunate you are, being able to finally find what you were looking for, am I right?"
Amagai twisted his arm and reached for the dagger still embedded in his body and, without hesitation, yanked it out. A bit of blood spurted from the wound. He mentally cursed. The dagger managed to cut through some muscles, making it quite difficult to move his arm properly.
"Y-yeah, kind of."
Ganryū formed a terrifying smirk. Taking a few steps backwards, towards the mass of ejected souls, that smirk widened even further.
A realization hit Amagai as soon as a great amount of ejected souls suddenly stopped moving towards the construct and turned to Ganryū. Then they charged the man and glued themselves to his body.
"In that case, I'm afraid you are very much mistaken. You are not fortunate. You are quite unfortunate."
The ejected souls turned into reishi particles and seemingly joined together with Ganryū's body, causing his reiatsu to explode like a small bomb. An amazing yellow-green torrent of energy instantly destroyed a portion of environment around him.
The whole Valley of Screams shook.
"It's time for you and the Soul Society to die."
Amagai's throat got a bit dry. He could almost hear the time ticking.
End of chapter 24.
April fool's day!
Not. No, this is not a joke, I really did update this story. I don't like apologizing over and over, so let me just say that while I'm sorry it took me this long to update, I couldn't help it. Outside factors did not allow me to write anything. With that said, 3 months took their toll and so my writing may not be up to its standard just yet.
Also, looking back, I realized I spent too much time on this Kasumioji + arc. Therefore, I rushed things a little bit so expect the beginning of the next chapter to end these arcs. I don't regret adding them, though, as they allowed me to put much details into the story that will be used later. With that said, I'll try to make more time for writing so you won't have to wait as much as you did for this chapter.
About the chapter itself... not much can be said from my side. It's your side I expect reactions from.
For the reviews:
*MugetsuIchigo - I listen to them while writing too so it makes sense.
*Guest - I already decided on which division Ichigo will join. You'll be surprised. Ganju didn't appear so far simply because I don't have any plans with him as of yet. He may or may not appear.
*xXBlackDragonXx - the Hogyoku as been mentioned several times over the course of the story. Directly and indirectly. If you're talking about Aizen's Hogyoku, he has it. If you're talking about Urahara's Hogyoku, well, Urahara has it.
*kevban - I'm always happy to see a review but, in the future, just look at my profile page. Whenever I write a chapter, I also update my progress of it on my profile.
All of you who thought Ichigo would have to use his hollow or Quincy powers to stop Amagai... I decided I wouldn't go this way. I think of Amagai as a good man swayed by his emotions of revenge. In light of the unexpected danger for Soul Society in form of Valley of Screams, I think it makes sense he would hesitate. So far, I portrayed him similarly as anime did, but I also put emphasis on his sense of justice. While he wanted revenge, he also cared enough for the rest of the Soul Society that he would be willing to protect it with all of his power.
At least that's my Amagai.
Anyways, I'm out. Hope you liked the chapter. Look forward to the next one. See ya!