Bleach Fanstory: After the War
Bleach Fan story: After the War
By Michael Xu
Initial Comments:
Bleach is owned by Tite Kubo
This is purely a fan story and I don't own any of the characters in it, apart from OC I may create.
Summary
Aizen Sousuke has succeeded in creating the King's key, and has taken his place as God of all Dimensions. The Soul Society is in ruins, with Karakura Town completely obliterated. The survivors of Karakura Town and the Gotei 13 have retreated back to the real world, merging into normal society, in the hopes that one day; they may truly overthrow Aizen for good. The story begins four years later, with Ichigo continuing his double life as a substitute Shinigami.
Story so far: The Great Heavenly War rages on. Having invaded the King's Realm, the Gotei 13 use a gigantic phoenix construct made from the remnants of the Sokyoku to penetrate the Palace Walls. After the Royal Guards defending the outer city are eliminated, Urahara sent down Isshin to lower the drawbridge into the Citadel of Heavens. Isshin defeats the Royal Guard who was defending the drawbridge, but in the process demolishes half the drawbridge. With nowhere to land, Urahara makes a final move to crash the now separated Phoenix head into the Citadel itself. He, Ichigo and the remainder of the Gotei 13 still on board survive the crash largely unscathed, but are confronted by the former captain of 12th division, now Royal Guard, Hikifune Kirio. Telling Ichigo and the others to go on ahead, Urahara takes on Hikifune with Hiyori by his side. In an emotional battle that pushed each of them to their limits, Urahara and Hiyori narrowly suceed in defeating Hikifune, but at great personal cost. Shortly afterwards, Ichigo, Ishida, Rukia, Sado, Ryuken and the fifth division are confronted by the Royal Guard Hotei halfway up the citadel. Sado orders Ichigo, Rukia, Ishida and his father to move on, as he and the fifth division fought all out to defeat the man who had been Sado's master during his four years in captivity. With only two Royal Guards left, Ichigo is closing in on Aizen...
Chapter 36: Light and Darkness
Renji and Lisa ran down a long flight of stairs, followed closely by the rest of their division. They had gone past several floors already, and with every floor they descended, the lighting began to dim. Now, every single Shinigami was running with a miniature light source in front of them, trying to see in what was nearly complete darkness.
"Damn, it's almost pitch black down here," Renji complained. "One wrong step and we're likely to fall to our deaths."
"Isn't that obvious captain?" Lisa asked, pushing up her glasses. A few minutes later they arrived at what appeared to be the very bottom floor of the citadel, the underground chambers. The area was somewhat better lit than the stairs they had gone down, with torches illuminating a substantial open area.
"Alright, let's try to find where Hitsugaya's team went," Renji said. He and his division started walking through the underground chambers, adopting a rectangular formation. Renji was extra careful to ensure their flanks were well protected. Every now then they heard an ominous echo in the distance. Renji ordered his men to a halt and made sure they were silent.
"Do you hear that?" he whispered to Lisa.
"Sounds like footsteps," Lisa replied. "Perhaps we're being followed."
"We should stay alert. Who knows what's down here?" Renji asked. His division continued to walk along the underground chamber, making sure to check any nook and crannies along the wall. Some time later, the underground chamber widened out into an enormous cavern with literally hundreds of pillars. Renji ordered his division to stick together and slowly advance forward.
"Captain, I've found something!" One of Renji's men exclaimed. He was pointing at the body of a person lying on the floor. Renji and Lisa bent down and checked it. They realized what it was.
"It's a body of a Shinigami, most probably from the tenth division," Lisa said.
"Then Hitsugaya's division did make it down here," Renji said. "What the hell happened to them?"
"Tee hee hee, want to know?" a creepy voice echoed throughout the chamber, causing everyone to unsheathe their swords in fright.
"Who goes there?" Renji asked in a loud voice that appeared to echo across the entire cavern. The unknown voice began to laugh in maniacally.
"My, my, you Shinigami really are stupid. I can't believe you fell for the same trap again," the voice said. In an instant the underground cavern lit up in a flash and Renji's division found themselves surrounded by over a hundred Tengu and Akuma soldiers. Leading this group was a dark-haired man wearing a black trench coat and matching pants. The most unusual aspect of his appearance was his eyes. One pupil was blue, the other was brown. In addition, he appeared to have a monocle over his left eye.
"Who are you?" Renji asked. "Are you a Royal Guard?"
"Of course. Did you expect I was someone else?" the man replied smugly. "I am Tsukuyomi, son of Izanagi, Guardian of the King."
"So, you're the son of the former Spirit King," Lisa said. "Why then do you serve Aizen? Your father is imprisoned at the moment. Am I correct?"
"That hardly matters. He and I were never very close. Amaterasu was his favourite and I always resented the attention he focused on her. He practically disowned me after I accidentally killed a fellow royal guard. At least Aizen-dono treats me as a valued servant."
"Is that so?" Renji asked. "You must be delusional if you think Aizen treats you as anything other than a worthless underling." He unsheathed his sword. "Regardless, I'm not here to talk. Did your men slaughter a group of Shinigami who came down here earlier?" Tsukuyomi snickered, finding amusement in Renji's ire.
"Why are you surprised? The underground chamber is my domain. Anyone who trespasses my territory will be dealt with extreme prejudice," he replied.
"If that's the case…" Renji Shunpo-ed into the air. "I'll deal with you the same way!" He released Zabimaru without chanting, extending his Zanpakto out and slashing downwards at Tsukuyomi. The Royal Guard calmly blocked it with his Zanpakto.
"Lisa, tell the others to confront the enemy soldiers!" Renji ordered.
"Right on!" Lisa replied. She led the eighth division members on a furious charge into the ranks of the Tengu and Akuma, engaging them in a blood battle.
"Hey, shouldn't you be paying attention to me?" Tsukuyomi asked with a grin. He punched Renji hard in the face with his left hand, sending him flying into a pillar. Renji quickly got onto his feet again and stared at Tsukuyomi. What a punch! My cheek bone's almost fractured. Renji gritted his teeth. He knew he couldn't win using straight forward attacks. He pointed his left hand at Tsukuyomi and shouted "Hadou 31, Shakaho!" He fired a red ball of energy at Tsukuyomi. The Royal Guard jumped up to avoid the blast, allowing it to explode against a pillar. He failed to notice Renji, who had jumped in the air at the same time. Renji thrust his whip at Tsukuyomi's chest. Tsukuyomi managed to block the attack and deflect the sword away. Renji however, had a surprise. He managed to turn Zabimaru in mid air and strike at Tsukuyomi's back. The Royal Guard failed to dodge in time and was sliced across the back. Renji returned Zabimaru to normal as he saw blood flow down Tsukuyomi's back. Tsukuyomi was not amused.
"You're the third person to have hurt me after my father and brother," he said.
"Is that supposed to be a compliment?" Renji grinned.
"No, it's a warning. Apart from my father and brother, anyone who injures me will be certain to die a horrific death chosen by me," Tsukuyomi stated.
"Oh, am I supposed to be scared by it? I wonder if you can actually follow through on that threat," Renji tried to goad him.
"Prepare to die!" Tsukuyomi yelled. "Stalk and Consume, Yamikage!" A blob like entity, completely black in colour, rose out of his Zanpakto and dropped to the ground. It skited across the ground until it was beside Renji's feet.
"What the hell is this?" Renji asked, noticing that his shadow had seemingly been overtaken by the dark shape. He tried jumping up and to the side, but the shape followed his every movement.
"I'm glad you asked," Tsukuyomi grinned. This is my Zanpakto. When I release it, it takes the form of a shadow demon that attaches to an enemy's shadow and starts consuming them." Renji screamed as he felt the dark shape crawl up his body. As it did so, he felt his spirit energy disappear. Shit, he's devouring my reiatsu! I'd better do something quickly! He pointed his left finger at the floor. "Hadou 21, Kuro Enkou!" A beam of black fire shot out. It touched the portion of the dark shape that was still on the ground and set it alight. Renji jumped into the air as the fire began to spread, completely incinerating the dark shape. Unfortunately, a remnant of the dark shape was still crawling up his body, draining his energy as it went. Renji tried getting it off, but it was hopeless. Just as it was about to reach his neck, he heard a voice shout, "Dominate, Sureibu Okami!"
Nine whip-like ropes shot out and latched onto the dark shape. With a great heave, Lisa pulled it off Renji's neck and flung it onto the ground. She cast Hadou 21 upon the remaining portion, incinerating it completely.
"Thanks Lisa, you saved my life," Renji complimented her.
"No need to thank me. I was just doing my job," Lisa replied. "The Tengu and Akuma have all been disposed of. Only ten of our members were injured" Renji nodded.
"Did you hear that?" he asked Tsukuyomi. "Your men are all dead, and we've trashed your shadow demon. What other tricks do you have up your sleeve?"
"Huh, don't get cocky yet. My Zanpakto can generate more shadow demons. Like this!" He emitted five more dark blobs and directed them to attack Renji and Lisa. Before they even got within ten feet of them, Renji shouted "Bankai!" A giant sphere of red reiatsu surrounded his body, obscuring it from view. A few seconds later the sphere turned into a cloud of smoke that slowly dissipated. When it cleared, Renji was revealed holding a gargantuan skeletal snake in his right hand. He had discarded his captain's haori during the process, resorting to just his normal Shinigami robes covered by his trademark baboon cape. "Hihio Zabimaru," he said.
"So that is your Bankai," Tsukuyomi said. "Not bad at all. But what can it do to my shadow demons?" He ordered his dark blobs to strike out. Renji sent his snake forward, attacking Tsukuyomi directly. Tsukuyomi hastily tried to pull his shadow demons back, but it was too late. The giant snake slammed into him, sending him flying into a pillar. Renji then split his snake into its component segments and concentrated them around the fallen Royal Guard.
"It's over!" Renji shouted. "Higa Zekko!" In an instant the individual segments slammed down upon Tsukuyomi in a thundering explosion, demolishing numerous surrounding pillars. When the smoke cleared however, Tsukuyomi's body was nowhere to be seen. Renji and Lisa looked around, trying to sense where he went.
"Looking for me?" Tsukuyomi asked, appearing right behind Renji. Renji quickly Shunpo-ed away, hastily reforming Zabimaru.
"How did you escape my Higa Zekko? I was certain I had you," he said.
"I thought it was obvious. I merely used Bakudou 85, Denkou Garandou, to teleport to a different place," Tsukuyomi replied. Despite the failure of his attack, Renji had clearly succeeded in wounding Tsukuyomi. The Royal Guard was bleeding profusely from his forehead and left cheek, and had sustained a serious bruise in his right shoulder.
"For the damage you've caused me, I shall deal all of it, and twice more back to you!" Tsukuyomi shouted. "Bankai!" In an instant the entire underground cavern was covered in darkness. Then a bright circular light shaped like the moon suddenly appeared in the ceiling of the cavern, casting an eerie glow throughout the cavern. In addition the flat-shaped moon emitted a singular beam of light down to the ground, from which Tsukuyomi suddenly appeared, much to the shock of Renji and Lisa.
"Surprised? This is my Bankai, Kokudo Getsu, Yamikage," Tsukuyomi explained. "You may have not noticed it but I used it before to cover the underground level in darkness. That however, was just a mere child's play compared to the show I'm going to put on for you. Arise, Shadow demons!" With a swing of his arms, he summoned a swarm of tiny malevolent black imps by his side. Renji, Lisa and the eighth division members tensed at the sudden appearance of these creatures.
"So that's what the shadow demons really look like," Renji said.
"Indeed. You're in my world now, and we play by my rules!" Tsukuyomi shouted. The shadow demons rushed in a frenzied state at Renji and Lisa, thirsting for their flesh. Renji swung Zabimaru in a horizontal arc in an attempt to smash the imps in one swoop, but to his surprise they easily avoided the giant bone snake's movements and got within an arm's length of his body. Renji realized he had left himself wide open.
"Shit!" he yelled as nearly a dozen of the demons jumped onto him and began tearing away at his face, chest and limps. "Lisa, are you there? I'm in trouble here!"
"I've got problems of my own!" Lisa responded. She was busy trying to fling off a pair of demons that had bitten onto her legs and were now chomping through her skin. She heard a chorus of screams as the remaining demons attacked her fellow eighth division members, devouring a few unfortunate souls within minutes.
"Ha, ha, ha, what a miserable fate! To be torn to shreds like this!" Tsukuyomi laughed maniacally. "It brings tears to my eyes." His laughter was cut short when the pack of demons that had been feasting on Renji were suddenly blown into a million pieces. Renji emerged from the carnage, torrents of blood flowing down his face and his now bare chest, but he was still standing. His appearance had dramatically changed. The huge baboon snake he had been holding was gone. In its place were two sharp metallic claws attached to Renji's hands. His baboon fur coat had enlarged to cover his entire back, most of his chest, all of his arms, and also formed a hood over his head
"If seeing people get eaten brings tears to your eyes, then what about this?" Renji asked. "Prepare to taste the wrath of my Bankai's second form, Kyousei Saru!"
"As if I'd be afraid of a monkey man!" Tsukuyomi insulted Renji. "Try to find me in complete darkness!" With a click of his fingers the cut-out of the moon disappeared and the entire cavern was now truly pitch blank. Renji however was far from deterred.
"As if I can't see in the darkness," he said. "Hihi Joukei!" In an instant his eyes turned a bright red and now he could see everything around him in an infrared tone. He spotted where Tsukuyomi was and Shunpo-ed right in front of him. Tsukuyomi didn't even have time to raise his sword before Renji slashed across his chest with his right claw. Blood spurted out his body, splattering across the ground. The omnipresent darkness that had drenched the cavern shattered, replaced by a naturally ambient light that illuminated the shadows. Tsukuyomi Shunpo-ed away, trying to keep his distance from Renji.
"Damn you!" he swore. "No one has been able to see through the darkness!"
"That makes me the first one to do so," Renji said nonchalantly. He glanced at Lisa, who winked at him. She took out her Vizard mask, nearly doubling her reiatsu. Still trying to stem the bleeding, Tsukuyomi started walking backwards, knowing that he was now seriously outmatched.
"What's the matter? Are you too afraid to fight us? Or maybe you've realized that you stand no chance?" Renji asked. Tsukuyomi glared at Renji with the frenzied expression of a madman.
"What the hell are you talking about? I'm not fucking afraid of you guys!" he shouted. Taking up his sword, Tsukuyomi Shunpo-ed into the air. Renji and Lisa simply smiled; Tsukuyomi had given them the perfect opening. Renji charged up a gigantic energy ball with both palms; Lisa charged a cero blast from her index and middle fingers. As Tsukuyomi realized his fatal error, both Renji and Lisa unleashed their attacks. Tsukuyomi screamed as he was engulfed by the energy blasts. The resultant explosion shook the foundations of the citadel, carving an immense hole in the ceiling of the cavern, along with a five hundred yard crater in the ground.
With most of their spirit energy spent, Renji and Lisa returned to their unreleased states and took a breather. Both of them had suffered grievous flesh wounds from being mauled by the shadow demons. Before he joined the rest of his division, Renji, walked to where Tsukuyomi's body lay and was surprised to discover that he was still breathing.
"How is he?" Lisa asked, crouching down beside Renji.
"He's barely clinging to life, but I think he'll survive," Renji said. "Let's have a rest now. We've fought long enough."
Ichigo, Rukia, Ishida and Ryuken had finally reached what appeared to be the very top of the stairs. They took a brief moment to catch their breaths, after going up a seemingly endless series of floors. The corridor in front of them opened out into a vast circular chamber, topped by a magnificent glass ceiling. Etched into the ceiling's surface were sparkling colored murals resembling legendary figures or mythical beings. The entire chamber resembled a temple of sorts, broken only by two sets of stairs that ran along the sides of the walls and linked up with the ceiling.
"Are you sure this is the very top of the tower?" Ichigo asked.
"I don't know. It looks like there's a set of stairs that lead up to the ceiling," Ishida pointed with his fingers.
"Check it out, someone's been waiting for us to come up here," Rukia said. They stared at the man who was standing in the centre of the chamber. He was a blonde-haired, quite dashing young man with blue eyes. He was wearing a blue overcoat with a raised collar. Around his neck was a bright blue diamond embedded in a necklace. A standard sword with an antique guard hung loosely by his side. Ichigo was concerned about the spiritual pressure that was emanating from him even in such a relaxed state; it was incredibly high. Ichigo quickly unsheathed his sword just in case.
"You must be a royal guard," he said to the blonde man.
"That is correct," the man nodded. "I am Susanoo, Guardian of the King, eldest son of Izanagi."
"Izanagi…wasn't he the former Spirit King?" Rukia asked. "That must mean you're part of the Royal Family. Why then do you serve Aizen instead of your own father?"
"I got sick of his powerlessness. He was nothing more than a figure head," Susanoo shrugged. "In the two hundred years since we were cast into a separate dimension, Soul Society decayed into a festering sore. Aizen has promised to change it and bring it back to what it once was."
"So that's your reason for serving him. I hate to say this but you're another victim of Aizen's lies," Ichigo said. "I don't know what you think but the truth is he's nothing more than a tyrant who deserves to be toppled!" Ichigo was about to charge at Susanoo when Ryuken suddenly pulled his collar.
"Wait Kurosaki, let me and Uryu deal with him," Ryuken said. "You and Kuchiki have bigger fish to handle, like Aizen and your former friend Orihime." Ichigo and Rukia nodded. They started Shunpo-ing up the stairs, but were stopped by Susanoo.
"Where do you think you're going?" Susanoo asked.
"To kill Aizen and rescue Inoue of course!" Ichigo exclaimed. Susanoo smiled.
"You'd be too late. As we speak, Aizen-dono is preparing to ascend to a higher plane, taking my dear sister Amaterasu with him. His throne room has now detached itself from the rest of the citadel. Even if you get past me, which you won't, how do you expect to gain entry?" Ichigo was unmoved by Susanoo's taunt.
"I'll find a way," Ichigo replied. Just as Susanoo was about to unsheathe his sword, his right hand was struck by two arrows. He glared down at Ishida and Ryuken, his face contorted in rage. In an instant he Shunpo-ed to the ground and charged at the two Quincies.
"Go Kurosaki! We'll hold him off!" Ishida exclaimed. He and his father avoided Susanoo's initial slash and jumped towards the stairs.
"Okay, take care of yourselves!" Ichigo called out. He and Rukia Shunpo-ed up the stairs and disappeared into the ceiling. Ishida had a small grin on his face.
"What's so funny?" Susanoo asked. "Are you happy that you allowed your nakama to escape? They stand no chance against Aizen. You've just sent them to their deaths. Likewise, the two of you have sealed your fates…by challenging me!" Susanoo Shunpo-ed in front of Ishida and thrust his sword forwards. Ishida narrowly avoided being stabbed in the chest, but Susanoo's blade still managed to tear across his left arm. Ishida performed a series of somersaults and landed on his knees, breathing heavily. Susanoo followed up by swiping at Ryuken, who leaped clear of the blade and shot a hundred arrows within ten seconds at Susanoo's head. All of them were easily parried away. Susanoo retaliated by pointing his left hand at Ryuken and shouted "Hadou 59, Hishou Kakei!" A foot long wooden stake shot out of his hand and impaled Ryuken's right left. Ryuken gasped and fell to the ground. He quickly staunched the bleeding around his wound, before pulling the stake out in one clear motion. As Ishida and his father patched themselves with Ransotengai, they tried to think of a way to defeat Susanoo.
"I recognize that technique," Susanoo commented. "Ransotengai isn't it? A move that Quincies use to keep on fighting even when their limbs have been shattered. I take it the two of you must be Quinicies."
"What do you know about the Quincies?" Ishida asked. Susanoo smirked.
"Oh I know a lot about them. Two hundred years ago I slaughtered hundreds of Quinicies when they tried to kill all of the hollows in existence, a stupid move that almost caused the collapse of the universe," he explained. Susanoo's words triggered a deep seated emotion within Ryuken. He fired a powerful arrow that succeeded in grazing Susanoo's cheek.
"So you're the one who was responsible for the great massacre," Ryuken said. "I've heard stories passed through the generations about that event, and I could never forget the image of the seemingly noble Shinigami who gleefully murdered my fellow Quinicies with ruthless abandon. That person was you then."
"What do you plan on doing about it?" Susanoo asked. "Despite my appearance I've lived for hundreds of years, and the blood of Izanagi runs strongly in my veins. You mortals stand no chance against me."
"Oh yeah, we'll see about that!" Ishida exclaimed. He glanced in the direction of his father. Both of them agreed it was time for action. In a simultaneous display they summoned their familiars beside them, Ishida with Kojaku and Ryuken with Washi.
"Ah, the Quincy familiars," Susanoo grinned evilly. "It's been a long time since I've seen them." Ishida and Ryuken were surprised that he knew about them.
"Is that so? Then perhaps you're familiar with what they can do!" Ryuken shouted. He commanded his eagle to fly at Susanoo and attack him. Susanoo easily avoided the eagle's beak, but failed to see Ishida's Kojaku fly in front of his face. Ishida ordered his sparrow to temporarily blind Susanoo's eyes. This allowed Ryuken to order his eagle to send a hail of razor-sharp feathers directly at Susanoo, impaling him with thousands of tiny blades. Susanoo blasted all of the blades out with a flaring of his reiatsu, but this action made him vulnerable to attack from behind. Ishida took the opportunity to slash across his midriff with a Seele Schneider, stealing valuable spirit energy from him. In a rage, Susanoo tried to slash at his head, but Ishida easily dodged it and landed beside Ryuken.
"You fucking Quincies!" Susanoo swore. "I've had enough of your annoying tricks and gadgets! Let me show you what real power is. Gather the clouds of heaven, Kusanagi!" His Zanpakto glowed a bright blue, emitting sparks of pulsating yellow energy. The bare metal that formerly made up the blade became liquid-like plasma, seemingly solid and liquid simultaneously. Ishida and Ryuken stared at it in awe.
"This is my Zanpakto. I obtained it by slaying the legendary Vasto Lorde, Yamata no Orochi, countless centuries ago. No other Zanpakto, let alone a mortal blade, compares to it in sharpness or cutting power," Susanoo explained. Ishida noticed the worried look on his father's face, and realized he was trembling.
"What's wrong father?" he asked.
"I've heard about that sword. It was the weapon he used to massacre hundreds of our race," Ryuken spoke nervously. "Even our sharpest Seele Schneiders were no match for it." Susanoo was amused at Ryuken's expression.
"So, you've heard about the power of my Zanpakto, eh? Well then I shall give you a taste of it first hand!" he exclaimed. Susanoo Shunpo-ed in front of Ishida and slashed at his waist. Ishida blocked using his Seele Schneider, but like his father said, his fighting tool was no match for the Kusanagi, easily snapping in half. Ishida screamed as Susanoo slashed a deep wound across his waist, causing massive amounts of blood to spill out. Ishida collapsed onto his knees, clutching his stomach in an attempt to staunch the bleeding.
"Uryu are you okay?" Ryuken asked, tending to his son.
"I'm alright. I can patch up this wound using Ransotengai," Ishida said.
"Hey, you should be worrying about your own safety!" Susanoo exclaimed. He thrust his sword at Ryuken's face, cutting a deep wound across his cheek. Ryuken somersaulted backwards and barely managed to land on his feet again. He applied a patch to his face to stem the bleeding. Susanoo raised his sword in the air and fired what appeared to be a blast of pure energy. Ryuken and Ishida both dodged the attack, allowing it to slam against the walls of the chamber in an explosion.
"Damn, our current strength is no match for him," Ishida swore. "I have no choice but to go all out." He thought about going final form, but he realized he wasn't wearing Sanrei gloves.
"Wait, Uryu, let me handle him," Ryuken said. "Final form is still too much for you."
"But what will you do? You can't go Final form either," Ishida said,
"Don't worry about me. I have something up my sleeve," Ryuken replied. He whispered to his eagle, Taishita Washi and spoke the command "Eintracht aus Geist". The great eagle dissipated into spirit particles, which subsequently bonded with Ryuken. His body shimmered as it was engulfed with reiatsu. Spirit threads appeared and joined together, solidifying until they formed shining blue breast plate that covered his entire torso. His bow changed into a cannon that started drawing in spirit particles from the chamber walls. Susanoo was astounded at the sight of Ryuken's transformed state.
"What the hell is this?" he asked.
"This is Obliterator, my most powerful technique," Ryuken explained. "Quincies who have mastered final form can achieve this state where they can channel a limitless amount of spirit particles into their bodies."
"Ah yes, I remember them now," Susanoo smiled. "I encountered loads of these super-powered Quincies when they tried to storm the Soul Society. It's a shame that they all died in vain." Ryuken charged up his cannon before firing a concentrated beam of energy direct at Susanoo. The Royal Guard blocked it with his Kusanagi, but the beam, instead of rebounding off, started pushing him backwards. Susanoo tried to deflect the beam in another direction, but this merely made the beam much wider. Ryuken continued to continuously fire his energy beam, he motioned to Ishida. Ishida nodded, knowing the strategy he had been told to execute during their planning sessions. Using Hirenkyaku to teleport across the chamber, Ishida planted his Seele Schneiders in a pentagram surrounding Susanoo. The Royal Guard, despite knowing that Ishida was behind him, failed to realize what he was doing until Ryuken stopped firing. Susanoo gripped his Kusanagi tightly and tried Shunpo-ing forward, but to his utter shock, his entire lower body was immobilized.
"What the fuck? I can't move my legs!" Susanoo exclaimed.
"Of course you can't," Ishida smirked. "As you were distracted by my father's attack, I took the opportunity to enclose you inside a Quincy pentagram. With the Seele Schneiders in position, all I need to do is to pour some of my spirit energy in and it will initiate Sprenger." Susanoo's eyes widened at the mention of that name. He had seen Quincies use it in the past and knew know devastating it could be. He tried to escape the lock, but Ishida was too fast. He poured a ginto tube of liquid into one of the Seele Schneiders. A second later the entire pentagram was engulfed by a mushroom-cloud shaped explosion powerful to shatter the entire glass ceiling. When the smoke cleared, Susanoo emerged with half of his coat and pants burnt off and his skin severely singed. He coughed up blood from his mouth.
"Damn you Quincies! Were it not the Danku I erected at the last minute, I really would have been dead," Susanoo growled. "Now you shall taste the full extent of my wrath! Bankai!" In an instant he was surrounded by an immense aura of blue reiatsu, completely obscuring him from view. Ishida and Ryuken covered their eyes as the aura emitted a blinding light. After the aura faded, Susanoo was revealed again. This time in addition to his Kusanagi sword he was holding a four foot long shield covered in a shimmering blue mirror. His entire body was now covered in what resembled blue plate armour.
"This is my Bankai, Kusanagi no Tsurugi, Yata no Kagami," Susanoo said. I hold in my hands two of the most legendary weapons in Soul Society; the ultimate sword and the ultimate shield. Neither of you stand a chance against me."
"We'll see about that!" Ishida shouted. He took a Seele Schneider from the ground and fired it at Susanoo. The oversized arrow easily bounced off the mirror shield.
"Let me do this," Ryuken said. He supercharged his cannon and fired a concentrated beam of energy at Susanoo. Susanoo blocked the beam with his shield. To Ryuken's amazement, the beam was absorbed by the shield, causing Susanoo to increase his reiatsu.
"Ah, what a delightful boost that was," Susanoo crowed in ecstasy. "I shall use the energy you've given me to destroy you!" He Shunpo-ed in front of Ryuken and slashed him across the torso. Ryuken's chest plate armour was no match for the Kusanagi, easily shattering into pieces. Ryuken gasped in pain. Blood spurted from a gaping wound to his torso as he toppled onto his back.
"Father!" Ishida screamed. He tried firing another Seele Schneider at Susanoo, but the Royal Guard easily avoided the arrow and batted him to the floor with the shield.
"It's over," Susanoo said. "Father and the son, the last of the Quinicies. Be proud that you died by my hands." As Ishida crawled on his hands and knees beside his father, Ryuken used what was left of his strength to hand his son something.
"Take this Uryu. It is time for you to unlock the weapon I told you about during our training session," Ryuken croaked. Ishida nodded. He looked at the item his father had given him. It was a diamond crystal, shaped into a Quincy Cross. Ishida knew what to do with it. As Susanoo brought his sword down upon Ishida's head, Ishida fused the cross with his body. In an instant he was engulfed an immense sphere of reiatsu that literally blasted Susanoo into the walls of the chamber. As Susanoo got to his feat, he looked up and gasped in astonishment. Ishida was standing upright, wearing a similar blue breast plate that his father had worn. In addition, two giant angelic wings sprouted from his back, gathering spirit particles from the walls around him. His head was covered by a helmet with a black visor. His bow had grown in size; now it was over seven foot in length. Ishida turned his attention to Susanoo, who was shaking in his boots.
"What the hell is this? I've never seen a Quincy have so much power in my life!" he exclaimed. He raised his shield as he saw Ishida charge a gigantic arrow in his right hand.
"I'll tell you what this is," Ishida explained. "This is Gotterdammerung, the ultimate manifestation of a Quincy's power. With it, I have complete command of all the spirit particles in this realm. And I will use them all to defeat you!" He drew in a truly immense amount of spirit particles from the walls, almost stripping the chamber bare, and formed a compact but immensely powerful arrow. He pointed it at Susanoo and fired it. The Yata no Kagami shield was no match for the power of the arrow, shattering into a thousand pieces. Susanoo screamed as he was pierced through his soul chain, collapsing onto his stomach. The arrow smashed right through the walls of the citadel and exploded in a spectacular fireball high above the palace.
Having spent all of his spirit energy, Ishida lost his supercharged bow and armour and returned to his normal state. He then knelt beside his father. Upon checking Ryuken's pulse, he realized he wasn't breathing
"Father, are you alright? Speak to me!" Ishida shouted. He hastily applied Ransotengai and other Quincy healing techniques in an attempt to revive his father, but they failed. "No, this can't be happening. He couldn't possibly be dead!" For the first time since the death of his grandfather, Ishida Uryu sobbed uncontrollably.
The last of the Royal Guards has fallen, and now nothing stands between Ichigo and Rukia from Aizen and Orihime. The climax of the Heavenly War draws near!
Notes: This was both a difficult and interesting chapter to do, as it not only provided a showcase for the all the moves and powers Renji, Lisa, Ishida and Ryuken have demonstrated in the story so far, but it also featured two characters who are named after two of the most famous Japanese gods, as well as being two of the most infamous moves in Naruto. I had to tread carefully with Tsukuyomi and Susanoo so that I avoided any explicit references to Itachi's MS moves.
Tsukuyomi: Based on the Japanese God of the moon. Like the god he is named after, he had a difficult relationship with his father and despised the way he treated his sister. His Zanpakto, Yamikage (Dark Shadow in Japanese), was drawn from a number of references, including the Tsukuyomi featured in Naruto, and surprisingly enough both Blackbeard and Moria's devil fruits from One Piece, in that it essentially consists of a shadow demon that can devour the spirit energy of other souls. His Bankai, Kokudo Getsu (Nightmare realm in Japanese) is a more literal interpretation of the god Tsukuyomi's association with the moon and the underworld, creating a pitch black dimension similar to Tousen's Bankai, except that instead of taking away the senses, it just sucks up all the light in a place.
Hadou 21, Kuro Enkou: This is one of the Kidou spells I made up myelf. Its Japanese for Black flames
Bakudou 85, Denkou Garandou: Another of one of the Kidou spells I created. It means Lightning Void in Japanese.
Hihi Joukei: Means Baboon Sight or eyes in Japanese. This is one of Renji's abilities when he is in his Second Bankai form. It allows him to see in the dark using infrared vision. I sort of based it on how some monkeys have excellent night vision.
Susanoo: Based on the Japanese god of the sea, I stuck much closer to the mythology associated with the god, not only in terms of his relationship to his father and siblings, but to his lergendary deed of killing the Yamata no Orochi, which I presumed was a Vasto Lorde of incredible power. His Zanpakto is directly based on the mythical items the god Susanoo is associated with. His Shikai, Kusanagi, resembles the mythical sword of the same name. His Bankai adds on the other notable legendary item Susanoo is associated with, the Yata no Kagami mirror.
Gotterdammarung: Meaning 'Twilight of the gods' in German, the name obviously comes from Wagner's Niebelung Saga. I thought for ages trying to think up an ultimate move that Ishida could use to defeat Susanoo, but I eventually settled pretty much on a named version of Ishida's Final form. The name and the image of the Valkyrie wings is a nice link to the german and norse style of both Ishida and Ryuken.
Finally, I thank everyone who has sent in reviews so far. For those who have stuck with this story, the climax is just around the corner. Stay tuned!