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 has reached its climax. After the phoenix crash into the Citadel of Heavens, Ichigo, Rukia, Renji, Ishida, Sado, Lisa, Ryuken and the 5th and 8th divisions begin their assault on the citadel itself. Urahara and Hiyori stay behind to fight Hikifune, whilst Sado is soon confronted with the Royal Guard who had kept him incarcerated in his four years of imprisonment. Renji, Lisa and their division infiltrate the undergound caverns for any signs of Hitsugaya's division, but are greeted with a chilling surprise when the Royal Guard Tsukuyomi, member of the Royal family, ambushes them from the shadows. Using their combined powers, Renji and Lisa suceed in defeating Tsukuyomi. At the other end of the citadel, Ishida and Ryuken engage in a titanic battle against Tsukuyomi's brother Susanoo to allow time for Ichigo and Rukia to run to the top of the tower. In a climatic finish, Ryuken gives Ishida the remainer of his powers, making Ishida strong enough to defeat Susanoo in one strike. Now, Ichigo and Rukia have reached the top of the citadel. Aizen's throne room awaits...
Chapter 37: Sun Princess Awakening
Ichigo and Rukia smashed open a trap door and arrived at what appeared to be the roof of the citadel. Gale force winds blew across the surface, making it a struggle just to stay upright.
"This can't be the top of the citadel! Where's the entrance to Aizen's throne room?" Ichigo asked. He looked around the surface of the roof but found nothing.
"Ichigo, look up there!" Rukia exclaimed. She pointed her hand upwards. Ichigo lifted his head and gasped in shock. Floating about a hundred feet above them and gradually ascending higher into the sky was an enormous floating castle, miles wide in diameter. It tapered at the bottom to a gigantic semicircular dome with a circular platform at the very bottom.
"There's an entrance in the middle of that dome that we can use to get in," Ichigo said.
"But how will we get up there? Even if we Shunpo upwards there doesn't appear to be a surface we can grab hold to," Rukia expressed her concern.
"Don't worry, I've got it covered," Ichigo smiled. He unsheathed his sword and spoke the command "Shine your light, Zangetsu", transforming his Zanpakto into the familiar man-sized cleaver. Swinging his sword using the cloth wrap, he activated Chouseki Hadou, charging his blade with raw spirit energy. Once the blade was fully charged, Ichigo swung his blade upwards using the wrap. The cloth extended more than a hundred feet, carrying Zangetsu all the way to the bottom of the platform. The blade penetrated through the steel and lodged firmly in the walls surrounding dome.
"Grab hold of me Rukia, we're going straight up!" Ichigo exclaimed. Rukia wrapped her arms tightly around Ichigo's chest. With one hand around Rukia's back and the other holding the wrap, Ichigo Shunpo-ed upwards, winding back the cloth wrap as he went. Within seconds he had touched his foot upon the cold steel and hung upside down.
"Can you swing me to the right just a bit Ichigo?" Rukia asked.
"Sure thing," Ichigo obliged. He shifted his body weight so that Rukia's right hand was directly over the embedded platform hidden in the walls.
"Hadou 35, Kantsuu Kiri!" Rukia shouted. A foot long metallic drill sprouted from her hand and started cutting into the steel. Once it had penetrated through all of the layers of the wall, Rukia then moved the drill in a circular arc, creating a three foot wide opening in the platform itself. As soon as she was finished, the part of the platform she had cut open fell cleanly to the ground below.
"Is the hole big enough for us to fit through?" Rukia asked. "I don't think there's room enough for-" before she had finished speaking, Ichigo flung her right through the opening. He then swung himself into the opening, withdrawing Zangetsu as he did so. As he touched down on a solid floor, Rukia kicked him in the shin.
"Hey, what was that for?" Ichigo asked.
"Next time you do a stunt like that on me, give me prior warning!" Rukia scolded him.
"Okay, okay, I'm sorry about that," Ichigo blushed embarrassingly. He returned his Zanpakto to its sealed state and sheathed it.
"Whatever, let's get to the throne room as quickly as we can," Rukia said. She and Ichigo started Shunpo-ing up a long flight of stairs from the base of the platform, arriving at a hallway filled with pillars, and going through a corridor with doors on both sides. At the end of the corridor was a bluish-grey steel gate that appeared to be locked. Ichigo and Rukia simply burst through the door using Soukatsui spells. Without breaking a stride they charged through the doorway-and stopped in their tracks. In front of them was the woman they had gone to Hueco Mundo and back to retrieve, and the one they and all of their nakama has sworn to rescue: Inoue Orihime.
She was wearing a sparkling golden dress studded with diamonds, a low cut strap that revealed some of her cleavage. Upon her head was a diamond and ruby etched golden tiara; long golden earrings dangled from her ears. She looked every inch like a royal princess, with a far more confident and elegant demeanor. Ichigo and Rukia were utterly stunned to see her like this.
"Inoue…" Ichigo stuttered.
"You've come at last, Kurosaki-kun," Orihime spoke in an almost condescending sort of way. "And I see you've brought Kuchiki-san along." Ichigo and Rukia hesitated in responding. They looked around and noticed the room they were in. It was an immense chamber, about two hundred yards in length and width. The floor was covered with an ornate carpet, a set of recliners lay on one side, with a desk, a piano and some drawers on the other. Meticulous paintings hung along all of the walls.
"Are these your living quarters, Inoue?" Rukia asked. Orihime didn't respond. "It's a nice place to live." Ichigo walked up to Orihime and placed his hands on her shoulders.
"I'm glad you're okay Inoue. I was worried that Aizen brainwashed you," Ichigo said.
"Brainwashed me?" Orihime asked. She glared at Ichigo. "What are you talking about?!" In a shocking move, Orihime punched Ichigo in the face, knocking him to the ground. Ichigo managed to get up quickly.
"What was for Inoue? I thought we were nakama!" Ichigo exclaimed.
"Nakama? I have no right to call you and Kuchiki-san that, not after you betrayed me!" Orihime shouted. Ichigo was stunned at the ferocity of her voice. "I thought you were going to save me, right after Aizen-dono took me here. But you never came. For years I waited, wondering when you would come. I began wandering if you had forgotten me, or worse that you didn't care about me anymore. When Aizen-dono told me you had gone back to the real world and went into hiding, my fears had come true. You didn't care one bit about me!"
"That's not true Inoue! We were always thinking about you! If there was a chance to enter this realm before and rescue you, we would have," Ichigo realized his protest sounded hollow. He had forgotten about Inoue during the four years of exile; only after he fought Ishida did he remember his promise again.
"Ichigo, let me deal with Inoue," Rukia stood beside him. "Aizen's your number one priority right now. Pay him back for whatever he did to her."
"Alright, Rukia," Ichigo nodded. "Please try to save Inoue." He Shunpo-ed towards the other side of the room, but before he reached the door, his path was blocked by Orihime.
"Where do you think you're going?" Orihime asked. Her reiatsu began to increase.
"I'm going after Aizen, and I'm going to kill him," Ichigo replied.
"I won't allow you to go after him!" Orihime shouted. She summoned all six of her Shun Shun Rikka, surrounding herself with their presence. "Aizen-dono is my beloved king! If you try to do anything to him, I will kill you!"
Ichigo hesitated to respond. He sensed the killing intent in Orihime's reiatsu, but his moral conscience prevented him from even unsheathing his sword. Ichigo was saved from making a tough decision when Rukia suddenly plowed into Orihime, knocking her away from the door.
"Go Ichigo!" Rukia shouted. Ichigo nodded and Shunpo-ed through the doorway. As soon as he was gone from sight, Orihime kicked her hard in the face. Rukia skidded along the floor. She grunted in pain as she stood up again. She unsheathed her sword and held it with both hands.
"I really don't want to hurt you Inoue, but it seems I have no choice in that matter," Rukia said. Orihime got into an uncharacteristic martial arts pose, with her Shun Shun Rikka surrounding her.
"To tell you the truth, I hate you Kuchiki-san," Orihime said. "I've hated ever since you entered Kurosaki-kun's life. For ages I wanted to tell Kurosaki-kun how I felt about him, but I never had the opportunity to do so. Whenever you were around him, he never paid any attention to me. I wanted to be there beside Kurosaki-kun, to help him when he was down, but you stole that role from me!" Rukia was disturbed by Orihime's diatribe. She never thought Orihime hated her that much.
"You've got it all wrong Inoue," she stammered. "I never tried to steal Ichigo from you. He and I are just nakama, the same as for you and him."
"Liar! I know you're in love with Kurosaki-kun!" Orihime screamed. "Koten Zanshun, I reject!" She fired Tsubaki at Rukia, aiming for her head. Rukia dodged to the side, and gasped when she the damage that Orihime's attack had done. A three foot side section of the wall had literally been evaporated. All that was left was a black void.
"Holy shit, if that had hit me directly, I'd be a goner," Rukia thought to herself. "Inoue's power has grown far more than I could have imagined. I can't afford to hold back against her." Rukia held her Zanpakto upside down. "Dance, Sode no Shirayuki!" With a flourish and a swirl her sword turned complete white and grew a dazzling tassel.
"So that's what your Zanpakto looks like," Orihime said. "It looks truly amazing. But, it's no match for my Koten Zanshun!" Orihime fired Tsubaki at Rukia again. Rukia swung her sword in a semicircular arc in front of her, shouting "Bakudou 81, Danku!" as she did so. She cast a white barrier with an eight-pointed star in front of her. Tsubaki slammed into the barrier and stopped dead in his tracks.
"Tsubaki, no!" Orihime shouted. Rukia lowered the Danku and Shunpo-ed right beside Orihime. She slashed at Orihime's waist. In an instinctive reflex Orihime shouted "Santen Kesshun!" and surrounded herself with a giant orange barrier. Rukia's sword bounced off the barrier, knocking Rukia herself away. Rukia landed on her feet and smiled at Orihime.
"You've gotten really strong, Inoue," she praised. "I'm proud of you. However, you haven't experienced as much combat as I have. That is a big weakness of yours. First dance, Tsukishiro!" Rukia swung her Zanpakto in a semi-circular arc in front of her, creating a ten foot wide white circle on the ground. She directed it towards Orihime, who jumped when she saw that the circle was freezing everything it touched. As soon as she was in the air, Rukia held her sword with both hands and began charging it with spirit energy. Streams of snow rose from the ground.
"Second Dance, Hakuren!" Rukia shouted. She fired a massive beam of ice at Orihime. Orihime tried to dodge it, but her right arm was frozen. The beam of ice knocked her backwards. This allowed Rukia to Shunpo beside her.
"Final dance, Shirafune," Rukia muttered. She hit Orihime with her extended Zanpakto's blunt end, sending her towards a wall. Before Orihime slammed into it, Rukia sheathed her released Zanpakto and slammed her palms together.
"Bakudo 62, Hyappo Rankan!" she shouted. A long blue spear extended from her hands. She threw the spear at Orihime just as she hit the wall. The spear separated into numerous glowing spikes and surrounded Orihime's body, pinning her to the walls.
"I, I can't move!" Orihime exclaimed. She struggled to break free, but the spikes had actually pierced her body. Rukia Shunpo-ed right in front of her.
"Let's not fight anymore Inoue," Rukia said. "Struggling will only make it uncomfortable for you. I know that Ichigo and I are ashamed to have not come after you sooner, but here we are now. We're not the only ones who've come. Ishida and Sado are here as well. And you know what, your former nakama from Karakura are waiting for you back in Soul Society. So once Aizen is defeated, we can all go back home and live happily ever after. What do you say, Inoue?" Rukia extended out her hand. Instead of warmly accepting it, Orihime slapped it away.
"Go back home? You must be joking!" She yelled. "This place is my home now! How can I live happily ever after when Karakura Town no longer exists, and all of friends are dead? I'd rather die here than be held prisoner in Soul Society!" With a deafening scream she snapped off the spikes one by one. Each time she did so, blood spurted from her body. As all of the spikes were torn off, Orihime fell thirty feet towards the ground.
"Inoue!" Rukia called out. She was too late to save her. Orihime landed on hard on her back. Rukia landed beside her and hastily checked her life force. It was non-existent. Then Rukia saw the weird position her head was in. Oh no, she must have broken her neck! Tears started flowing down her face as she wondered how she was going to tell Ichigo. Before she could be any more depressed, Rukia sensed a sudden spike in reiatsu. It was coming from Orihime. A second later, Rukia was blasted into a wall by a powerful aura. She winced as her right shoulder was dislocated. When she opened her eyes, she was amazed at what she saw. Orihime was now on her feet, with a golden aura surrounding her body. The injuries she had suffered were now nonexistent. What was more, her face had completely changed. Despite the anger she was expressing towards Rukia and Ichigo, she was still at least the same recognizable Orihime. Now her facial structure was far more mature, resembling a much older woman instead of the girlish expression she once had. Her hair had lengthened and became wavy in appearance. Her pupils were now bright yellow.
"What's happened to you, Inoue?" Rukia asked. She didn't know what to make of her extraordinary new appearance.
"Who are you calling Inoue?" the woman who was once Orihime responded. Her voice was much deeper than Orihime's former voice, and had an air of regality about it. "I am the Sun Princess Amaterasu, and I have finally broken free of the accursed mortal shell that held me captive. As an intruder in my living quarters, I will exterminate you!" She pointed her right hand at Rukia and fired a beam of light. Rukia just managed to avoid being hit by the beam, but the resulting explosion knocked her to the ground. As she tried getting up Amaterasu shot a finger beam into her left knee. Rukia screamed in pain and desperately tried to stand up using her Zanpakto. Amaterasu flexed her aura, pinning Rukia down with her reiatsu. In an act of desperation, Rukia clasped both of her hands and pointed them at Amaterasu's face.
"Hadou 73, Souren Soukatsui!" she shouted. A giant blue blast of spirit energy shot out of her hands and engulfed Amaterasu. It demolished a hundred yard section of the opposite wall, and blew away all of the furniture in the room. What it failed to do was to injure Amaterasu; when the smoke cleared the Sun Princess emerged completely unharmed. Rukia could not believe her eyes.
"That was a captain level Kidou spell," Amaterasu said. "Very impressive indeed. But that's nothing compared to my Amatsu Tekkai." She held out both hands and charged them with spirit energy. "Ranpu Joukai!" She fired twin beams of intense solar radiation. Rukia managed to dodge the beams just before they hit the ground, but the sheer heat they emitted was enough to burn the skin around her ankle. She also left herself wide open for an attack. Amaterasu seized the opportunity to shoot beams from her eyes. They punctured Rukia's stomach, and slammed her against a wall. Rukia coughed up a load of blood and struggled to get up again. Amaterasu was hovering above her, an aura of light surrounding her head.
"Prepare to die, Shinigami," Amaterasu said. "You are just a lowly member of the Gotei 13, whilst I am the daughter the Spirit King himself. For even attempting to wound me, you deserve to be executed." Rukia spat on the floor.
"You have not idea do you?" she asked. "Your father's not the Spirit King anymore. Aizen is! He's holding your father in captivity!"
"How dare you say that?!" Amaterasu screamed. "My father is sitting on the throne at this moment!" She fired another beam at Rukia, but Rukia managed to block it with her sword. This is bad, she has no idea what happened to the old Spirit King, or about Aizen. Inoue was far easier to handle compare to he. Rukia sighed deeply.
"I guess I have no choice but to use it for the first time," she said. "I've trained long and hard to obtain it, so this will be a chance to test it in battle. Bankai!" An immense sphere of snow and white energy engulfed Rukia's body, obscuring her from view. The sphere glowed brightly, before slowly dissipating. When the smoke cleared, Rukia emerged completely changed. She was covered by a dazzling white robe, covering her Shinigami uniform. Her forehead was crowned with a white tiara, a white scarf hung around her neck, and her feet were now covered by elegant white shoes. Her body was surrounded by a dense shield of snow, and Rukia herself was standing upon a snow cloud several feet above the ground.
"This is my Bankai, Sode no Shirayuki, Yukihime," Rukia said. "It's a complete manifestation of my Zanpakto." She pointed her hands at Amaterasu and summoned a literal wave of snow. Amaterasu jumped into the air to dodge the wave, but Rukia used her hands to direct the wave to follow the Sun Princess. Amaterasu activated her Amatsu Tekkai again, surrounding herself in a barrier. After the snow had completely engulfed the shield, Rukia clenched her hands and made the snow harden into solid ice. She continued to apply pressure upon the barrier, hoping to crush Amaterasu beneath it. The effort was in pain, for Amaterasu blasted the snow and ice apart with a sudden flare of her reiatsu. The energy she expended to break out of it however, left her wide open for attack, an opportunity that Rukia seized upon. She pointed her right index finger at Amaterasu.
"Bakudo 61, Rikujokorou!" she shouted. Six golden rods slammed against Amaterasu's waist, immobilizing her.
"You bitch! Do you really think this will hold me down?" Amaterasu asked, furiously trying to tear the rods off.
"Of course. I know that Bakudou is easily breakable," Rukia said. "But it's given me enough time to do this!" Rukia hardened her snow into a swarm of icicles. With a wave of both hands, she sent them flying at Amaterasu. Unable to form a barrier in time, Amaterasu screamed in pain as dozens of icicles pierced her torso. She hastily tried to tear the icicles off, with torrents of blood spurting out of her body as she did so. Rukia walked towards her gathering a fair portion of her Bankai into a solid ice sword. She stopped a few feet away from Amaterasu and looked into her eyes.
"Why do you hate the Gotei 13?" Rukia asked. "You were once part of Soul Society too, and the Shinigami were your servants." Amaterasu glared at her.
"You want to know why? It's because Soul Society betrayed me and my family!" Amaterasu shouted. "You said it yourself; my family once lived in Seireitei and was served by the Shinigami. Back then, I could freely wander around the streets of the Spirit Court and intermingle with fellow nobility without restrictions. Nor did I was constrained in my responsibilities towards the general wellbeing of Soul Society. But then the Gotei 13 forced us to move to this wretched dimension, and when we were gone, they took over Soul Society and governed it like we didn't exist!"
Rukia wasn't sure if Amaterasu had a complete grasp of her sanity. Rukia was well aware of the assassination attempt on the Royal family, so for Amaterasu herself to forget was disturbing. Surely she couldn't have forgotten the exact details of what happened back then, Rukia thought.
"Amaterasu, what if I told you that the Gotei 13 were not responsible for what happened to you and your family," Rukia tried to reason with her. "They were forced to respond to an attempt on your life. In order to protect you, they had to move your family to this dimension."
"That's a pitiful excuse," Amaterasu shook her head. She the then closed her eyes and smiled. "Still, I find it funny that a mere Shinigami would want to convince me to change my opinion." As she spoke the wounds she had suffered gradually healed, due to the healing barrier she had erected around her body.
"Why wouldn't I try to?" Rukia responded. "Despite your current appearance, I know that a part of you still contains the soul of my nakama Inoue. Like it or not, she's become part of the very core of your being. Whatever my feelings for you are, I still want to save her." Amaterasu started giggling.
"That's so touching," she grinned. "But too bad. I've buried the human part of me deep into my soul forever. I'm going to do the same to you. Now taste the power of my ultimate attack! Taiyou Furea!" She placed her hands around her forehead and emitted an all consuming light that scorched everything in its path. Rukia hastily surrounded herself with a sphere of snow, and gritted her teeth as the heat from the light started burning her skin. With iron determination she slowly pushed forward, closing the distance between herself and Amaterasu. Using nearly all of her spirit energy, Rukia extended two massive tendrils of snow that slammed into Amaterasu, pinning her against a wall. The snow quickly hardened into solid ice, making it impossible for Amaterasu to break free.
"Urgh, what is this? I can't move!" Amaterasu exclaimed in frustration.
"Ultimate Dance, Howai Kangoku," Rukia explained. "This traps the enemy under a solid block of ice that is virtually impossible to break apart."
"No! I will not be defeated by a lowly Shinigami!" Amaterasu yelled. She opened her mouth and shot a powerful ray of light directly into Rukia's eyes. Rukia gasped as she was blinded by the sheer brightness of it. That did not stop her from fighting. Using her other senses, most importantly her reiatsu sensors, she Shunpo-ed towards Amaterasu. In desperation, Amaterasu intensified the ray, but Rukia ignored the painful brightness and plunged her ice sword into the Sun Princess' soul chain. In that very moment the energy of the light and the power of the ice merged together, triggering a cataclysmic explosion that engulfed the entire room, and reduced an entire wall to rubble. When the smoke cleared, Rukia was lying in the middle of a crater a hundred yards wide. Half of her top and most of her lower robes had been blasted off and her skin had been severed scorched. Blood trickled into a pool under her body. Using what was left of her strength, she crawled on her belly towards the body of Amaterasu lying face down a dozen yards away and turned her onto her back. Rukia noticed immediately that there was something different about her; Orihime's spirit had regained consciousness.
"Kuchiki-san?" Orihime asked. For the first time in years she looked into Rukia's eyes with a clear mind.
"I'm here Inoue," Rukia replied. "I'm glad you're back to normal."
"I'm so sorry!" Orihime started sobbing. "I've been such a big idiot! I've should have kept my trust in you and Kurosaki-kun to come and rescue me, and not listen to Aizen's lies. I can never forgive myself for the hurt I've inflicted upon you!" Touched by Orihime's show of emotion, Rukia wrapped her arms around her head.
"Don't be so hard on yourself," Rukia consoled her. "Ichigo and I have been fools as well. We shouldn't have waited as long as we did." She stared into the doorway that Ichigo disappeared through. I hope you're alright, Ichigo, she thought to herself.
Ichigo burst through a set of heavily reinforced steel doors and found himself in the middle of a truly gargantuan chamber. From one end to another the entire 'room' was more than five hundred yards across, and was roughly circular in shape. A huge domed ceiling covered the chamber, making it appear like the interior of a temple. Lavish red, gold and white curtains draped from the walls, alongside several large paintings depicting mythical scenes from Soul Society's history. In the middle of the chamber was a rectangular table, about forty foot long and ten foot wide. Two dozens seats surrounded it. The table was dwarfed however, by the flight of steps that lay beyond it. Each step was nearly a hundred yards across, and like a stairway to heaven, the hundred or so steps led to a raised platform. Upon that platform were two ornate chairs, sculpted entirely in gold, with arcane markings and jewels engraved upon all sides.
What attracted Ichigo's attention however was the man who was sitting upon the chair in the middle; the man who was responsible for the horrors that Soul Society and the real world had suffered in the last four years, Aizen Sousuke. He looked even more pompous than the last time Ichigo had seen him. A golden cape hung over a set of expertly crafted robes, pure white in colour. A golden crown studded with a radiant diamond rested upon his forehead. His slicked back hair and calm, supremely confident look had not changed one iota since the day of his ascension.
"Well, well, at last we meet again, Substitute Shinigami Kurosaki Ichigo," Aizen said. He stood up from his throne and took off his crown.
"Substitute Shinigami? Sorry, that moniker is totally outdated," Ichigo remarked with a sly attitude. "Didn't you see my new clothes?" Aizen raised his eyebrows slightly as he began walking down the steps.
"I see. The Gotei 13 have saw fit to promote you to the highest echelons of Soul Society. What a wonderful achievement," Aizen pretended to congratulate Ichigo.
"Thanks for the compliment. Just to let you know, I've taken over as captain of the 5th division." Ichigo's statement made Aizen grin slightly.
"Ah, how ironic. Have my shoes been too big for you to fill?" he asked. "I wonder what's happened to my beloved Hinamori-kun. I hope she's doing alright." Ichigo spat on the ground in disgust.
"Filling your shoes my ass. Shinji was a far better captain than you ever were. And as for Hinamori, she's been moved to Hitsugaya's division," Ichigo replied. Aizen regarded his response with a slight amusement.
"So, Hinamori-kun is in the hands of Toshiro. Just as I expected," Aizen closed his eyes and smiled. "Still, I'm surprised you know what happened to my incompetent former superior. Does that mean he also told you of my past history?"
"Indeed he did, and I must say, after hearing everything Shinji and Urahara-san revealed to me about you, there's no way I'm going to let you live, you despicable monster," Ichigo glared at Aizen, with pure hatred in his eyes. Aizen however, regarded Ichigo's threat with mere indifference.
"I can see why you would think of me this way," Aizen said. "Urahara and Hirako must have told you a biased account of my actions, in order to make you hate me. After all, you are nothing more than a pawn that they have used to fulfill their own grand plans."
"You're wrong," Ichigo spoke with a strong conviction in his voice. "Shinji and Urahara-san didn't just use me. They helped me because they knew I was the one who could change Soul Society for the better. Without their help, I couldn't have gotten his far, but you're mistaken if you think I didn't choose to come here from my volition. I didn't need their words to make me hate you even more. The pain and suffering you've inflicted upon my nakama is enough reason for me to kill you!"
"My, my, how stubborn of you," Aizen shook his head. "If you knew me better, you wouldn't be so quick to assume that I am just a mass murderer or a tyrant. The truth is, my motives are the same as yours. We both want to change Soul Society and the universe, for the better. I too, thought the laws of Soul Society were unjust and that the system itself was corrupt. Just like you, I set about overturning the rules of Soul Society." Aizen finally walked to the bottom of the steps. "Becoming the Spirit King is only a means to an end. If you were in my position, I'm sure you would be thinking the same way."
"Well then, you don't know much about me do you?" Ichigo asked. "It's true that I fought against the laws of Soul Society, but I never sought to completely overturn it and remake it as I saw fit, as you have done. If my motives are the same as yours, then surely the means I used to achieve those motives couldn't be any different from you!" Shortly after he finished speaking, Aizen started to laugh.
"Such an interesting fellow! I can see why Urahara and Shinji sought to use you. Your very existence challenges the nature of Soul Society itself," Aizen said. He pondered for a moment, and then he extended out his right arm. "Why don't you join me and stand by my side? Together, we can rule the universe together. My former subordinate Ichimaru Gin has gone and killed himself, so the spot it vacant for someone like you to assume his place as my loyal servant." Ichigo was utterly repulsed by the idea. He spat on the ground right in front of Aizen's feet to show his disgust.
"I'll tell you where I'll be standing. Between you and the rest of humanity," Ichigo said. "I'm not going to let a maniacal being like you get away with all of the atrocities you've committed!" At last, the expression on Aizen's face was something other than mere amusement. Now he was annoyed by Ichigo's attitude.
"Don't kid yourself, boy. Do you really think you have the power to stop forces that are beyond your comprehension?" Aizen asked. "I've crushed Soul Society beneath my feet, destroyed its noblest defenders. The brainless humans of the real world worship me as a god. What chance do you have against me, when not even Urahara Kisuke could stop me from carrying out all of my plans?"
"You want to know what kind of power I have? It's the power to befriend, sympathize and protect," Ichigo said. "Unlike you, I don't treat everything else as a mere pawn that can be disposed of without thought. My nakama have placed their trust in me, and I've sworn that I won't let them down. Urahara-san thought the same way. He entrusted me with the mission to bring you down. He's sacrificed everything to bring me to this point. And you know what Aizen? He's outsmarted you every step of the way. He exposed your conspiracy for the rest of Soul Society to see. He ensured that you wouldn't get your hands on the true Royal Key. And when you ascended to this realm, he made sure that you were trapped here forever. Together with the rest of Soul Society, he and I have taken away everything you worked so hard to achieve."
By now, Ichigo could see that Aizen was seriously angered by his comments. He detected a sharp rise in Aizen's reiatsu, as Aizen sought to crush the life out of Ichigo with mere spiritual pressure alone.
"Like I said boy, don't kid yourself," Aizen growled. "You and the Gotei 13 are like ants beneath my feet. The death of one prominent hero would be all it takes to break the spirit of your pitiful rebellion. And mark my words your death will be at my hands!!" Aizen flared out his reiatsu to maximum capacity, covering the entire chamber in a stifling spiritual pressure. Ichigo however, was hardly fazed at all. He exerted his own reiatsu to match Aizen's, and then unsheathed his sword from his scabbard.
"I'm not going to die so easily, Aizen. I've come here to defeat you, and I swear to my nakama that I will!" Ichigo shouted. He Shunpo-ed towards Aizen.
Ichigo vs Aizen, the ultimate final battle begins!
Notes: Sorry for the delay in getting the chapter up. I was on holidays for three days and sort of lost track of the story towards the end. Ichigo and Aizen's conversation was especially difficult to write. The central focus of the chapter was of course the battle between Rukia and Orihime. This battle is essentially split into two halves. The first half involves Rukia trying to save Orihime. The second half begins when Amaterasu awakens.
Kantsuu Kiri: This is the only Hadou I created myself in this chapter. Its name means Penetrating drill in Japanese.
Orihime/Amaterasu: Orihime's powers have been substantially boosted, but they largely remain the same, the most notable being Tsubaki's increased effectiveness. Amaterasu is based on the Japanese Goddess of the Sun. I've tried to keep as closely to the mythology as possible, not only in the way she seemingly arises from Orihime's body, but also in the nature of her powers, which are all light based.
Amatsu Tekkai: This means Heavenly Barrier in Japanese. It is Amaterasu's version of Orihime's Santen Kesshun shielf, albeit far more powerful.
Ranpu Joukai: This means Light of Heaven in Japanese. It is one of the beams Amaterasu fires from her hands.
Taiyou Furea: This means Solar flare in Japanese. It is Amaterasu's most powerful attack, which basically channels the energy of the sun itself.
Sode no Shirayuki, Yukihime: This is Rukia's Bankai. Many readers will find it extremely contraversial, but I feel that I've presented a logical and consistent growth in Rukia's power throughout the story. Yukihime means White Princess in Japanese, and Rukia's Bankai transforms her into a literal avatar of Shirayuki herself, complete with white robes and sleeves. The snow she controls in Bankai can be formed into number of shapes, including icicles, a sphere of ice and an ice sword.
Howai Kangoku: This is Rukia's most powerful attack, given the moniker of Ultimate dance. It basically imprisons an enemy under a sheer volume of snow that hardens into ice, making it impossible for them to break out.
Ichigo/Aizen's convo: I intended this conversation to pick up the plot threads from Shinji and Urahara's monologues, and obviously set up the impending fight, but I'm not sure if I executed it correctly. I had to rewrite the convo many times, because Ichigo and Aizen both kept getting OOC. I hope I've made their dialogue seem natural and within character.
Finally, a word of thanks to everyone who has posted reviews so far. You have stuck with me all the way, and I can gurantee that the next chapter will truly blow all of you away, :)