Angina/Symphony

Chapter 37

Devil's Chess Game

Part XII:

Black Coffin

Another night, another demise

Cadaverous wind blowing cold as ice

I'll let the wind blow out the light

Because it gets more painful

Every time I die.

-Every Time I Die, Children of Bodom

This was certainly getting interesting.

Aizen waited. He wanted to see how Amane Renata was faring today, and he'd chosen to attend her little impromptu sparring session.

Ilforte Granz was standing not too far away, arms folded, a scowl on his face. 'If she can't be bothered showing up, I'm going to find something better to do,' he muttered.

Grimmjow glared at him. 'You're my Fracción. You'll leave when I say you can.'

Next to Aizen, Ichimaru Gin's smile widened.

Aizen thought back to the previous day. He had been waiting for Renata to leave her room as soon as he'd given Ulquiorra his orders, and had recognised the use of Kyokko when her door had open and shut by itself.

It was impressive that she'd managed to advance so far in a relatively short amount of time. If Aizen had been less observant, less intelligent even, the spell might have escaped him entirely.

But he had noticed the movement of the door. Kyokko was a tricky spell, certainly. Normal camera footage and even reiatsu detection wouldn't pick up someone who was using it.

Unfortunately for Amane Renata, Kyokko's 'Curved Light' technique didn't shield heat signatures. Aizen had switched the cameras in and near his room to infrared, and seen the trio sneak in.

He had put on an award-winning performance for his young protégée. Doubtless she now believed he had forsaken her for Inoue Orihime. The trouble with the infrared cameras was that they couldn't pick up facial expressions as normal footage could. So Aizen had come here today, not only to see how far his student had progressed on her own, but to see the effect his display of affection for Orihime had had on her.

Footsteps approached, and Amane Renata appeared. She seemed composed, a little more pale and withdrawn than usual perhaps.

'I'm sorry if I kept you waiting,' she said. Her eyes moved over to Aizen, and instead of blushing and looking down as she usually did, she regarded him with a cool, steady gaze.

'No apologies are necessary,' Aizen said lightly. 'Please, commence. I would like to see your progress, Amane-chan.'

Renata inclined her head. 'Of course, Aizen-sama.' She glanced at Ilforte, who stepped forward.

'I'll let you attack first,' the Arrancar said, more than a little patronisingly.

Renata didn't waste time, moving forward to match him. 'Disintegrate, you black dog of Rondanini,' she recited. 'Look upon yourself with horror and then claw out your own throat. Bakudou number nine, Geki!'

Ilforte was enveloped in a halo of red light. It clung to his limbs, and Aizen could see the paralysis beginning to take hold.

It stood to reason, he supposed. She had taught herself Kyokko, after all. It was logical to assume she'd learnt other Bakudou as well.

Ilforte raised an eyebrow, smirking. 'Cero.'

Renata only just managed to move out of the way. She half-stumbled, breathing heavily, as the roar of red energy consumed the space where she'd been standing less than a second ago.

'Is that all you've got, human?' Ilforte taunted. 'You must be soft in the head, using a binding on someone whose reiatsu is stronger than yours.'

Renata's eyes narrowed. She was frustrated, Aizen observed. That wouldn't serve her well, even in a mock battle.

'Ye lord, mask of flesh and bone, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man,' Renata snapped. 'Inferno and pandemonium, the sea barrier surges, march on to the south. Hadou number thirty-three, Shakkahou!'

Red flame seared past Ilforte, who'd had more than enough time to evade the attack. That was the trouble with Kidou, Aizen knew. He himself had learnt Eishouhaki - Incantation Abandonment - as soon as possible. Kidou was a powerful method of combat, but the time taken to recite an incantation was a major weakness.

'Cero,' Ilforte responded.

Renata shouted an incantation, raising her arms. 'Bakudou number thirty-nine. Enkosen.'

The circular reiatsu shield only just held. You would have been served better with your own ability, Aizen noted. The Cero dissipated, leaving Renata standing. Her hands were shaking, but that tremor didn't extend to her eyes. She was glaring fiercely at Ilforte.

'You're trying to kill me,' she accused. 'That was a full-strength Cero. I felt it.'

Ilforte laughed. 'So what if I am? I don't need to expend any energy trying. You're not even worth a Resurreción, human.'

Aizen watched, intrigued. He could see where this was going to go. Luppi hadn't been the only Arrancar who'd resented having to take orders from a human.

'Is that so?' Renata replied, composing herself.

'Yeah.' Ilforte folded his arms. 'Go on. Give me your worst.'

'As you wish.' Renata straightened. 'Sprinkled on the bones of the beast,' she began, brow wrinkling as if she was trying to put as much energy as she possibly could into the spell. 'Sharp tower, red crystal, steel ring. Move and become the wind, stop and become the calm. The sound of warring spears fills the empty castle!' She threw her arm forward. 'Hadou number sixty-three, Raikouhou!'

Yellow flame spurted from her hand, burning an arc towards Ilforte. It looked impressive, but there was no real strength behind it. She would have needed to be third seat strength or greater to effectively perform a sixty-level Hadou, and Aizen knew it.

'Don't make me laugh, human!' Ilforte threw out his own hand, almost casually. The Hadou burned itself out up against his palm. 'As if I'd even bother blocking that.' He turned away. 'This is a waste of time. I don't care what you say, Grimmjow, I'm -'

Renata's reiatsu flared. It pushed against Aizen's own. 'Seeping crest of turbidity, arrogant vessel of lunacy.' Her voice was low.

'What's that, human?' Ilforte didn't bother to turn around, still walking away from her. 'Trying to insult me? Don't bother.'

'Boil forth and deny, grow numb and flicker, disrupting sleep.' Darkness flickered fitfully around Renata's hands, both closed into fists. Her reiatsu had definitely increased. Aizen could feel it. She was angry, but not close to losing her temper. This was no flash of hotheadedness like that of Grimmjow. This was cold-blooded rage.

'Crawling queen of iron,' Renata snarled. 'Eternally self-destructing doll of mud. Unite, repulse. Fill with soil, and know your own powerlessness.'

'Huh.' Gin tilted his head. 'Is she tryin' ta throw what I think she's tryin' ta throw, Aizen-sama?'

Aizen didn't answer.

'Hadou number ninety, Kurohitsugi!' Renata bellowed.

The darkness flared, erupted, surged.

Ilforte turned partially, looking back. 'What -'

The darkness encased him. Aizen noticed immediately that it wasn't the usual shape of a Kurohitsugi. It certainly looked nothing like the Kurohitsugi he'd used on Komamura Sajin on Soukyoku Hill.

Renata's Kurohitsugi was oddly blob-shaped, concealing Ilforte Granz in a gelatinous mass of blackness. It wasn't anything like as strong as Aizen's own Kurohitsugi had been. That was understandable. Hadou in the nineties were difficult to cast even for captain-level Shinigami, let alone young human women.

The Arrancar screamed in rage, right before lances of darkness ran him through from the outside.

Renata's face was no longer twisted with anger. The cool steady look was back. As Kurohitsugi faded away, leaving a panting, bloodied - and possibly mortally wounded - Ilforte, Renata regarded him dispassionately.

'Kill me, bitch!' Ilforte rasped. 'At least -' He stopped mid-sentence, coughing. Dark blood dripped out sluggishly from between his lips. 'At least have the decency to finish it!'

'I was actually thinking about leaving you alive as punishment.' Renata moved towards him. 'You were quite rude to me. And besides, I don't wish to kill any of Aizen-sama's subordinates.'

She glanced at Aizen then, a calm smile on her lips. Aizen realised that the shy half-child who'd first come to Hueco Mundo on her own had almost entirely disappeared.

When he looked into her eyes, it was like looking into a mirror. If she had any tender feelings for him still, she was keeping them well hidden.

Aizen certainly hoped that was the case.

Looking at her, standing there with that dark intelligence and challenging look in her eyes, Aizen felt desire spear straight through his body. It was ironic, really, that her mental agility and ability to manipulate just as he did was inducing such a physical reaction in him.

She regarded him as an opponent now, he knew. That meant that by Aizen's own standards, he hadn't won this game. Nevertheless, the end result was far more satisfactory than he'd ever thought it would be.

'You have my permission to grant Ilforte's wish, should it please you to do so,' he said pleasantly.

Renata nodded. 'I suppose he's been humiliated enough.' She strode over to Ilforte, and spoke the incantation for Haien.

When she was done, Aizen looked at her. 'Kurohitsugi,' he said. 'An ambitious choice. I can't help but feel you tried to run before you could walk.'

'Forgive me, Aizen-sama,' Renata replied, looking completely unapologetic. 'I forgot myself for a moment. Besides, I would argue that any technique that provides that sort of result is a good one, even if it's performed poorly.' With that, she left the room.

Aizen watched her go, smiling to himself.