Near the edge of the city, Isshin and his army of Red Samurai continued to cut down a steady stream of LeBlancs. They kept coming and coming until finally they stopped charging forward and suddenly ran backwards away from the Samurai. Isshin paused and slowly lowered his Zanpakuto. The Samurai also stopped and regrouped behind him. Isshin's eyes were fixed on something, something hidden to the naked eye in the smoke from one of the burning buildings.
Suddenly a large axe blade on a long black chain flew out of the cloud, straight at him. The edge of the blade was glowing bright blue. One of Isshin's Samurai quickly blocked the attack with its sword, but quickly dissipated in a small burst of red smoke as the axe blade suddenly started retracting back into the smoke. Soon its wielder emerged, holding the chain in her slender yet bone armored hands. It was the Executioner.
"So, one of you finally decided to join me on the battlefield. I thought for a moment that you weren't going to come say hello. I would have been deeply hurt if you didn't." Isshin said calmly.
"Silence Soul Reaper. You may have fooled these simpletons into letting the rest of your pathetic little band slip past them but we have already taken care of that. Even as we speak the Sept Gardeur lies in wait for your friends to arrive closer to the castle." The Executioner said as Isshin smirked.
"You gravely underestimate us. You just let a Captain level Soul Reaper along with three additional Soul Reapers, two of whom have achieved Bankai, plus three humans with powerful spiritual abilities and even a Quincy who has sworn to destroy you all, get past you. They'll make short work of anyone you send at them. At the very least, they'll give your henchmen a fight to remember." Isshin said.
"Even if they get past the Sept Gardeur, my fellow Guerre Maitrise will stop them. If you're counting on the girl to be of any use to you, then she'll need her Zanpakuto which I doubt you have." The Executioner chuckled. Isshin's smirk only grew into a Kenpachi styled grin as he raised his Zanpakuto.
"You're right on that one. I'm not the one who has it." Isshin said as he started chuckling and the Executioner's eyes widened. Soon Isshin's chuckle had evolved into an insane laugh.
"Now REAP CHUUSHUUNOMEIGETSU!!!" Isshin shouted as he quickly swung his Zanpakuto, sending a pure white Getsuga Tensho at the Executioner. She quickly grabbed the axe blade where the chain connected to it and swung it across her front, just in time to disperse the Getsuga Tensho. She then quickly attempted to bleu saunter but suddenly…
"Bakudo number four! Hainawa!"
…Her arms were bound in a golden Kido based rope that was attached to the ground. She quickly spun around to see only Isshin standing there with his grin still clear on his face.
"I've discovered that the Bakudo spells are handy when you want to keep your target from running away." Isshin grinned.
"You think this will stop me?!" the Executioner roared.
"No. But the barrier that those guys made on the other hand…will." Isshin said as he pointed his thumb over his shoulder. The Executioner looked back to see Kisuke Urahara along with Tessai, Ryuken Ishida, the Visoreds and the Arrancar.
"Sorry we're late. It couldn't be helped." Kisuke said with a smirk.
"Late?! Hell Kisuke you're all early!" Isshin replied.
"So that means we get first dibs on these pathetic weaklings eh?" Grimmjow asked with a grin.
"Looks like." Shinji said as he and the Visoreds drew their Zanpakutos and donned their masks.
"Then let's have some FUN! Grind Pantera!" Grimmjow shouted as he released his Zanpakuto. The other Arrancar, except for Stark, Lilynette, Loly, and Menoly, started following suit as well.
"Attack, Tiburon!" "Bite off, Tigre Estoque!" "Thrust, Cierva!" "Devour, Leona!" "Strangle to Death, Anaconda!" "Crush, Verruga!"
"That fight is between Isshin and his friend there only. The rest is for us!" Shinji shouted as he and the others launched into battle. Tessai, Hachigen, Kisuke, Ryuken, and Stark remained behind to watch the fight. The Red Samurai quietly sheathed their swords and dropped to one knee with their heads bowed slightly.
"You don't mind if we provide moral support do ya Isshin?" Kisuke asked as Isshin gave him a thumbs up.
"Looks like it's just you and me." Isshin said as he and the Executioner stared at each other.
Meanwhile…
"RUKIA! TATSUKI!" Ichigo shouted as the smoke from the explosion impacted against the barrier but didn't pass through.
They couldn't tell what was going on but then they were able to see the piercing blue eyes from within the smoke. The dust then cleared to reveal Rukia and Tatsuki still standing along with Eppilihp. Eppilihp's bola however was shattered into a thousand pieces of rock and stone. All that was left of it was the handle and a single yet broken black chain link.
"What the-?! How is this possible?!" Eppilihp asked confused.
"The combination of my ice based Zanpakuto's abilities and her fire based powers resulted in the two elements becoming solid rock. The combined strength from both attacks is what destroyed your weapon, and it will destroy you too!" Rukia explained as she flash stepped in behind him.
"Some no Mai, Tsukishiro!" Rukia shouted as the white circle appeared beneath her and Eppilihp. She quickly flash stepped away just as the column of ice formed around the massive LeBlanc. She reappeared back near the barrier wall where Ichigo and the others stood waiting. Soon enough the ice column started to crack and sure enough Eppilihp broke free.
"Did you really thing that would hold me forev-UGH!!!" Eppilihp grunted in pain. He stood quaking for a moment as an orange glow appeared from within his stomach. Suddenly he threw his head back and screamed as flames erupted from his mouth, nose, and eyes before he finally exploded and Tatsuki flew through with her right arm extended. She landed in a painful skid across the cobblestone floor.
"I really need to work on my landings." She grunted as the barrier collapsed.
"Nice work Tatsuki!" Yoruichi praised.
"Yeah, when did you get that powerful?!" Ichigo asked as they gathered around. Orihime immediately set about healing Tatsuki's injuries from the skid.
"I think I might as well tell you. Orihime and I, on Nel's suggestion, went to the Arrancar to see if they could help with developing my powers. The Espada, Halibel and her Fraccion, helped me a lot." Tatsuki said as Nel looked over her shoulder, towards the edge of the city where a battle waged.
"Speaking of which, the Arrancar and Visoreds have arrived." Nel said calmly.
"Huh?" Ichigo asked confused.
"She's right. The Arrancar and Visoreds are here and are fighting the LeBlancs as we speak. Kisuke and Tessai are here as well. I can still sense Isshin but…he's facing one of the Guerre Maitrise." Yoruichi explained.
"What?!" Karin exclaimed.
"We've got to go help him!" Orihime added.
"No, he doesn't need our help. He can handle himself." Yoruichi replied as Ichigo nodded in agreement.
"You're right. Dad's not going down without a fight, and even if he fails, the Espada and the Visoreds can finish off whichever one of those bastards he's fighting. Besides, they're the distraction. Our job is to rescue Yuzu." Ichigo said as the others nodded.
"Alright. Let's go then." Rukia said as they all fell in step and quickly ran on towards the castle.
Meanwhile...
Chuushuunomeigetsu's blade struck the axe blade of the Executioner. Isshin kept his Kenpachi grin the entire time.
"There's no escape except going through me!" Isshin shouted as he continued his fierce attack.
"I've had enough of this! Time for me to end this fight!" the Executioner roared as she raised her weapon with the blade dangling down towards the ground.
"Fracture! Je Suis Gretchen!" the executioner yelled as she exploded in a burst of blue light and a white cloud of dust. When the dust settled and the light faded, the Executioner had her head covered in a simple white cloth with a single slit for the eyes. She was also wearing a white cloth around her chest, covering her breasts while a pair of baggy white pants covered her legs. Her feet were bare. On her back were a number of chains that were attached to her back. The chains ran down into the ground behind her.
"Now you will surely die, Soul Reaper." The Executioner said as Isshin's grin returned.
"I wouldn't be too sure about that, and don't call me Shirley." Isshin said as he gave the "Bring it on" hand sign, while he tapped the bottom of his Zanpakuto on the ground once.
"Suit yourself." The Executioner said as the all of the chains on her back started rattling and instantly a massive swarm of axe blades erupted from the ground and started rocketing at Isshin who simply stood casually holding onto his Zanpakuto. The blades all hit in a massive explosion.
"Is he...dead?" Stark asked curiously as Kisuke lowered his hat slightly with a smile on his face.
"Oh you haven't seen anything yet my friend. Isshin's just getting warmed up." Kisuke replied.
"What do you mean?" Stark asked curiously. He then saw fifty or so of the Red Samurai stand up and approach the barrier. Their armor then turned sky blue and they vanished into clouds of blue smoke which drifted through the barrier and towards where Isshin was standing.
"Fifty three blades...impressive." Isshin's voice said as the smoke cleared, revealing him completely unharmed. The blue smoke was drifting right into his Zanpakuto as it glowed with red light.
"How...how are you still alive from that attack?! How are you still in TACT?!?!" the Executioner asked in disbelief.
"Dunno...perhaps you missed." Isshin said with a smirk.
"Impossible! I felt them all make contact! I hit you!!!" the Executioner roared.
"Then perhaps if you tried again?" Isshin suggested as the Executioner growled and the blades started spinning around her like a giant spinning top. The blades then started colliding into Isshin, one by one, resulting in a massive explosion each time until all fifty three blades had hit at least once.
"Thanks for the suggestion, Soul Reaper." The Executioner said with a menacing chuckle. At that, another fifty three Samurai turned blue and dissolved into blue smoke.
"You know this is getting boring right?" Isshin asked as the smoke cleared. Behind him were only sixty Samurai exactly.
"Fine then!!!" the Executioner roared as she drew a pair of smaller axe blades in both hands and four smaller chains from around her waist raised up from the ground with equally sized blades at the ends of each. The blades then all rose directly into the air, then pointed straight down towards Isshin.
"This is my ultimate attack, my Guillotine attack!" the Executioner roared.
"Hey why don't you add one of those arrow beams while you're at it. That should finish me off." Isshin said as the Executioner smirked beneath her cloth mask. She then ripped the mask off, revealing her core on her forehead. What really surprised them all was that she was bald as a melon.
"Thanks for the suggestion." The Executioner said as she took a deep breath. The axe blades then started to drop fast, down towards Isshin at one time just as the Executioner unleashed a Fleche Vent at him. The resulting explosion could be seen from all across the city. The barrier even collapsed as a result.
"So long Soul Reaper...it's been fun." The Executioner said with a smile as the axe blades retracted back towards her. She didn't notice as the rest of the Samurai turned blue and dissolved into blue smoke. She then glared at Kisuke, Stark, Tessai, Ryuken, and Hachigen.
"Were I not in a hurry, the four of you would be my next victims but unfortunately I need to stop that Zanpakuto from reaching the Key girl." The Executioner said as she turned to leave.
She then heard a familiar chuckling sound coming from behind her. Her glowing eyes widened as she spun around to see Isshin less than an inch from her.
"Bye-bye." Isshin said, Gin Ichimaru style, with his Kenpachi grin.
"Reap what has been sown, Chuushuunomeigetsu!" Isshin said as he swung his Zanpakuto across as if threshing wheat. There was a pregnant pause before suddenly the Executioner exploded in an even more massive explosion than before. When the smoke cleared, there was nothing left of her except a few broken chains which quickly rusted and crumbled into dust.
Isshin then turned towards the five behind him.
"So...how are things?" He asked casually.
"Not bad. I'd never seen your Bankai before but your sister did explain it to me once." Kisuke said as Isshin chuckled.
"I had heard through Shinji that you believed in fair fights. That didn't seem at all fair." Stark said as Isshin shrugged.
"This was a special situation. She helped kidnap my daughter so that gave me enough reason to use my full power...or in the case of my Bankai's abilities, use her full power." Isshin said.
"Well it's your call Isshin. Do ya want to join Ichigo and the others or do you want us to keep up the distraction?" Kisuke asked as Isshin smirked.
"I was having too much fun before she showed up and Ichigo and the others can handle themselves. Let's go kick some ass." Isshin said casually as he and the others raced into battle.
On the top of the Castle...
The Collector and the General were overseeing the creation of a strange device that looked like a large drill aimed towards a large metal ring with straps near the upper part of the ring. Suddenly a smaller LeBlanc appeared behind them.
"My lords, the Executioner has fallen in battle!" the LeBlanc said as the two turned and gaped at each other in shock.
"I suspected as such. No matter, we will continue with the construction. It only requires one of us to be alive to activate it after all." The Collector said as the General nodded in agreement.
"Yes...soon the passageway to the Soul King's realm will open wide to us and we will finally reign supreme!" the General said.
"Make sure the Key Girl is locked in her room and ready for procedure." The Collector said to the twin LeBlanc women who bowed and then headed down the stairs.
"We should probably hasten the creation of the device. Those are not Soul Reapers down there. They're those Arrancar that attempted to stop us." The General said as the Collector remained silent.
"That won't be necessary. They cannot stop us." The Collector said finally.
"But what if the Soul Reapers arrive? What will happen then?!" the General asked as the Collector turned towards him.
"They won't. They will be too busy building the defenses to the World of the Living and the Soul Society to come here." The Collector said as the General crossed his arms over his chest.
"Then forgive me if I don't share your confidence." The General said.
Meanwhile...
Ichigo and the others finally reached the castle gates, but there was something in their way. It wasn't a LeBlanc but a moat and a large metal portcullis gate behind the drawbridge. The water in the moat was glowing with bright blue energy.
"Great...how do we get across?" Ichigo asked as Uryu pushed up his glasses.
"It looks like the drawbridge is held up by those metal chains on the ends there. If we could cut them, then perhaps we can lower the bridge. Getting through the gate will be a different story however." Uryu said as he primed an arrow in his bow.
"You think you can hit it?" Ichigo asked as Uryu let the arrow fly, scoring a direct hit on the chain but to no effect.
"Hit it yes, damaging it is a different issue." Uryu said as he reached for a Steele Schneider but remembered something and groaned in frustration.
"What's the matter Uryu?" Ichigo asked.
"I forgot to bring any of Steele Schneiders. They're the only thing I can use to cut through those chains." Uryu grumbled.
"YOU FORGOT YOUR STRONGEST WEAPONS?!?!" Ichigo shrieked.
"IT'S NOT MY FAULT!!! We were in such a hurry to get to the Soul Society that I didn't have time to go home and get them!" Uryu yelled.
"Um...can I give it a try?" Orihime asked as she interrupted.
"Uh...okay." the two said as Orihime walked up to the edge of the moat and pressed her hands to her hairclips.
"Koten Zanshun, I reject!" Orihime shouted as Tsubaki launched from her hairclip and arced up towards the chain only to bounce off and fly right back at Orihime. Tsubaki then stopped glowing and slapped Orihime across the face.
"You stupid girl! You could have warned me before doing that!" Tsubaki growled as the other five Shun-Shun-Rikka appeared.
"Hey! It's not her fault! She didn't know!" Shun'o said as Tsubaki rolled his eyes.
"Shun'o is right! There was no way she could have known!" Lily added.
"Oh come on! If that chain was a bit weaker then I could do something! But it's not so what the hell am I supposed to do?!" Tsubaki argued.
"Wait, I might have an idea." Rukia said as she drew her Zanpakuto again.
"Dance, Sode no Shirayuki! Some no Mai, Tsukishiro!" Rukia shouted as she flash stepped into midair over the moat as the white circle formed beneath the drawbridge. She then flash stepped back onto the ground as the pillar formed and encased the chain in ice as the pillar shattered.
"Now, Orihime!" Rukia said as the Shun-Shun-Rikka returned to Orihime's hairclips.
"Koten Zanshun, I reject!" Orihime yelled and Tsubaki launched forward again. This time Tsubaki smashed through the frozen chains before returning to the hairclip. The drawbridge then fell forwards and crashed onto the ground.
"If they didn't hear that, they're deaf." Uryu said.
"No time to talk, LOOK!" Ichigo said as he pointed towards the gate. It had been frozen as well from Rukia's Sode no Shirayuki.
Chad instinctively raised his right arm which morphed into its second form. The three extensions on his shoulder immediately opened up and glowed with blue spirit energy.
"El Directo." He said calmly as he fired a powerful blast of spirit energy at the gate, which shattered it effortlessly.
"Nice job Chad." Ichigo said. They then heard a strange clapping sound, they looked up over the gate and saw a single LeBlanc standing at the top clapping as he stared down at them.
"Yes, nice job Chad. I must say that the entire lot of you is more trouble than you're worth. But where are my manners? Allow me to introduce myself." The LeBlanc sneered as he slowly glided down to their level. The LeBlanc was very thin and had very spindly bone armor and its mask looked like an insect's head.
"I am the Tierce Gardeur, Wedyenoh." The LeBlanc introduced.
"If you believe that you're getting into the castle then you are surely mistaken. You have gotten as far as you are going to today." Wedyenoh said as he raised his arms.
"Je Suis, Honeydew." He said as a large shell grew over him like a cocoon for a moment before it cracked open revealing a hideous hybrid between a Praying Mantis and a Wasp.
The Soul Reapers had stumbled upon another road block.
End Chapter 52.
The Black Wrangler: Behind the Scenes...
The camera switched on and revealed Aizen, Gin, Momo, and Izuru sitting at a booth in a nearby diner. Aizen was wearing his glasses again and they were all wearing casual street clothes.
"Oh, if it isn't the Tatsuki Cam we've heard about. Hello Tatsuki-san." Gin greeted with a wave as the others noticed.
"Don't mind us; we're just taking a lunch break." Aizen said.
"I am too but I thought I would get some good footage." Tatsuki said from behind the camera.
"Then perhaps you would like to join us? We can stick a chair on the end here." Gin said as Aizen and Momo scooted closer to the window.
"Or you can just sit here?" Momo suggested as Tatsuki appeared to sit down.
"Now don't take this the wrong way but this probably seems very strange to the readers right now, seeing the four of you together and all." Tatsuki said as Aizen chuckled.
"Only on set are we enemies, the rest of the time we're just good friends. Hope that clears things up for you." Aizen said as Gin nodded in agreement.
"Of course we will be a bit more apart when the sequel starts up." Gin said as Izuru nodded with a hopeful smile.
"Yes, here's hoping to my getting more screen time next story." Izuru said as the other four laughed.
"Don't laugh, I'm serious. At least I might be allowed to use Wabisuke or something." Izuru said.
"Hopefully I'll be able to use Tobiume more effectively." Momo said from off screen as Izuru glared at her.
"Says she who got more screen time then me." Izuru growled.
"Hey-hey! No fighting at the table." Aizen said with a swish of his hair. (Fangirls suddenly become hyper-hormonal.)
"Yes with any luck, Aizen and I will both get a prominent role in the next story." Gin said.
"What about Tosen?" Tatsuki asked.
"Psh, we could do without that constant fount of justice. Perhaps we should cut him loose." Gin said as Aizen sighed.
"We can't do that Gin. People expect Sosuke Aizen, Gin Ichimaru, and Kaname Tosen to be the main villains of the Bleach franchise." Aizen said as Gin shrugged.
"Oh well it was worth suggesting." Gin said as the camera started beeping.
"Oh great! Of all the cameras in the world I get the one with the battery that can't hold a charge!" Tatsuki grumbled.
"Oh well. Maybe you can get your money back." Izuru said as Gin waved at the camera.
"Bye-Bye." Gin said as Tatsuki shut the camera off.
End
