Aspect of Blades
A Bleach fanfic
Chapter 50
Ichigo's POV
-zanpakuto speaking in the inner world
-zanpakuto speaking outside the inner world
-Ichigo's Thoughts or speech in the inner world
"Yamamoto-taicho!" A messenger calls, bursting into the room. The sun had just set on a day that was far too long, and I was about to go get some sleep. My party ended not an hour ago, Aizen proving himself to be a very interesting person to talk with. "The soutaicho has requested your immediate presence on Sokyoku Hill for a meeting," he pants, clearly having run this whole way.
"I'll grab Aizen, the Arrancar he summoned, and Tousen and go to the meeting," I say wearily, exasperated. Some of my zanpakuto have been slow to respond at times recently, so I'm irritated and just want a good night's sleep. I grab my armor, robes, haori, and zanpakuto, and begin donning my armor over the modified Onmitsukido uniform I now wear. "On second thought, send Nanao to go grab Aizen, messenger-san. I'm going to get some tea before I go, and I'll arrive in an hour or so," I say.
"But..." The messenger trails off at my death glare. "Yes sir. Of course sir. I'll get it done immediately, sir," He says, and vanishes out the door.
An hour and a half later, on Sokyoku Hill
"Well, about time you arrived, Ichigo," Zaraki says.
"I'm tired, I just finished hosting a party, and I sense a trap in this meeting. Ryujin Jakka was silent when I attempted to speak with him, and I had to use my understanding of him to access his power, rather then him freely lending the power to me. Judging from Yama-jiji's list of all time dangerous criminals who could do such a thing as silence a zanpakuto, which he told me about as his potential successor, I'm guessing either Juhabach or Muramasa, and Muramasa is the likely one. No one is to use Bankai that was forcibly attained, and be wary about using Shikai," I command. I had been wary about this from the start, and took my time making sure all my weapons would be at the ready to deal with this trap. Yama-jiji is a great believer in places being used for their intended purpose. He would never call a captain's meeting on Sokyoku Hill.
"Muramasa," Kyoraku hisses, blades at the ready in a heartbeat as he, Ukitake, and Byakuya are instantly on guard. They know who Muramasa belonged to and what he is apparently, so also know that we must be ready for battle. The other Shinigami here take our example and draw their blades, though those in Aizen's service, as well as Aizen himself, do not, even as the Arrancar in service to the Seireitei draw their zanpakuto, taking their lead from me.
"What is Muramasa?" Hitugaya-sempai asks.
"A rogue zanpakuto spirit with the ability to control other zanpakuto. He can force their spirits to manifest and turn against their masters," I inform him, wary and ready for battle.
"What about Yamamoto-soutaicho? Shouldn't we be able to sense him fighting if an enemy is in the Seireitei?" Soi Fon reasons.
"If Muramasa caught him by surprise, and chose the right zanpakuto to aid Ryujin Jakka in his fight against his Shinigami companion, they could have won that battle. Yama-jiji is missing, presumed dead," I respond. Ryujin Jakka's silence can only be explained by his being controlled. "Yama-jiji is one of the few who could be a viable threat to Muramasa and whatever allies he has without Shikai or Bankai. To keep Muramasa from affecting a zanpakuto, the wielder must close their heart, and in that case, they cannot use Shikai or Bankai."
"Understood," Soi Fon responds as Aizen and his servants draw their blades, now wary. The bridge is creaking as someone crosses it, and I prepare for battle. "Yamamoto-soutaicho, what are your orders?" She asks.
"Prepare for battle. Avoid Shikai if possible, do not use Bankai under any circumstances. If it's Juhabach instead of Muramasa, the situation is much worse, and we must not use Bankai. Juhabach's forces have the capability to steal Bankai and use them themselves," I say.
"As ordered, Yamamoto-soutaicho," Soi Fon says.
"I have not been confirmed, and experience is needed in a soutaicho, not just raw power," I reproach her for unilaterally promoting me without consulting the other captains.
"Right now, we need power, a clear declaration that we are strong, rather then just experience, Yamamoto-soutaicho," Kyoraku says seriously. "Experience can be gained with time. But until we know Yama-jiji's fate, you are acting soutaicho, sir." Chojiro stumbles onto the hill, revealing himself as the person who was crossing the bridge, and collapses. Unohana immediately moves to him, hands glowing green as the mist on the hill clears.
"Muramasa," I say, making the word into a curse as I see who is revealed by the clearing mist. I feel reiatsu flare in the Seireitei, his army clearly making its presence known. He can only affect those who have Shikai at least to create useful soldiers for his army, so the Eighth Division will produce a lot of soldiers for his army.
"Indeed, Yamamoto-soutaicho," he says calmly.
"Raise your head, Wabisuke," I say, and his blade takes on its angled form.
"Wabisuke, stop him using Shikai," Muramasa commands as zanpakuto spirits begin to arrive, some hovering in the air as there isn't room on the hill. All the captain's and lieutenant's zanpakuto are behind Muramasa, blades ready.
"You who are arrogant and proclaim your strength to the world, bend the knee and prostrate yourselves," I proclaim, revealing his true Shikai.
"How do you have my blade?" Wabisuke questions, and I curse Muramasa as everyone on the hill except for Kira and Wabisuke himself is slammed into the ground or forced onto their knees. This Shikai is an indiscriminate one indeed, affecting an area rather then a specific person. "My true Shikai? How?" He asks, shocked. Clearly Muramasa can remove memories, which means trouble for me.
"I wield it because I understand the source of your power, and take pride in that power, Wabisuke," I respond calmly.
"Prove it. Prove that you understand me," Wabisuke hisses at me, clearly disturbed by this revelation that I bear his blade. I decide to prove this in the one way that cannot be denied, bringing the stave in my hands level. I nod slowly, and concentrate as I gather reiatsu.
"So be it. I will provide the proof you desire," I say slowly as an aura appears around me. "Bankai," I declare, my voice even, unhurried. Power erupts around me, a maelstrom destroying everything nearby, but I remain entirely calm as the stave in my hands transforms, taking on a shape much like that of Tensa Zangetsu's guard, made of two crossed staves, a blade at both ends of each staff. Two of the blades are gleaming silver, the other two a deep black, the kanji for earth, heaven, penance, and pride on each of the blades. "Hazukashime no Ten Kyou, (Celestial Lord of the Shamed)" I declare, spinning my weapon in one hand, a lightless void appearing at the middle of each blade's top section, drawing in small rocks, light, and anything else that will fit in the newborn singularities as they begin to grow and merge, a black hole beginning to form in front of me. I end my Bankai before it can properly form and seal Wabisuke completely. "Is that sufficient proof, Wabisuke?" I ask him pointedly.
"Yes. Yes, it is proof. But how did you have a chance to gain this understanding?" Wabisuke asks almost frantically.
"I have an immense hole bitten out of my soul due to a Hollow attack. You were one of the zanpakuto that established your realm there as well not so long ago, Wabisuke," I reply. "I refused to attain Bankai through combat, so I worked to understand you, and succeeded," I say, justifiably proud of this.
"And when Muramasa called me forth, I forgot you. I forgot the master who readily gave up swift power in favor of attaining my voluntary aid," Wabisuke says. "I am shamed by this. I am shamed beyond any redemption for this. Master, I must serve Muramasa since he called me forth, but I beg of you to not force me to cross blades with you," he says pleadingly, dropping to one knee.
"Raise your head, Wabisuke. Meet my gaze," I command him sternly.
"I cannot. My shame is too great for me to do so, master," he responds, and I grimace, then turn towards the Shinigami behind me, who have drawn blades and are quietly preparing Kido.
"Retreat. We will not be fighting here today," I order them. A couple open their mouths as if to protest, members of the thirty ninth combat team of the Eighth, but I raise one hand and they fall silent. "That is an order, not a request. I am acting soutaicho, and you will obey, am I understood?" I snarl. We need discipline to deal with this problem, and it needs to be handled immediately.
"Yes, Yamamoto-soutaicho, sir!" Every Shinigami responds, and crackles of sonido and flashes of shunpo fill the area as we vanish from the Hill.
The next day, at the Fourth Division
"We have three division buildings undamaged right now. The Fourth, the Eighth, and the Twelfth. The Eleventh and First suffered minor damage, which can be repaired in a few days," Soi Fon reports. The Second was assigned to covertly assess the status of the Seireitei, so as to give us a better idea of what is salvageable here. "Kuchiki-taicho is confirmed missing, presumed dead, after a battle with Senbonzakura. Kuchiki Rukia has been found, wounded, and considering the nature of her injuries, it is presumed that she fought Sode no Shirayuki. Other Shinigami with Shikai or Bankai have been found wounded from battles with the rogue zanpakuto, Shinigami lacking Shikai have been found dead. It is presumed that those with Shikai were left for dead, but the kill wasn't confirmed. Attaining Shikai will make a Shinigami more resistant to damage, and much harder to kill, as their soul becomes closer to whole, their zanpakuto's power, born from the Shinigami, merging with their own. I presume that the zanpakuto are unaware of such a thing occurring, seeing as they usually aren't the ones fighting, and so have no way to gauge how resistant to damage someone should be," Soi Fon continues.
"Understood. Repair the First and Eleventh. First is our command and control, and Eleventh is the armory, after all. We store all our weapons that aren't zanpakuto at the Eleventh, and a few of those weapons could be extremely useful in this case. Has the armory been raided though?" I ask cautiously, anger filling me at the report about Byakuya.
"No, the armory is fully intact, sir. The rogue zanpakuto have no use for those weapons," Soi Fon reports.
"Understood. I want no one leaving here without being part of a squad. First priority has to be to retake any buildings that have been capture, and figure out why Muramasa has become active. Yama-jiji explained who Muramasa was, but never explained his priorities or reasons for being and enemy to me. We need to find out why he's attacking, and who he once belonged to. We also need to know how he has survived so long without a master. Also, commission proper armor like mine for every Shinigami, though the Second will be wanting lighter gear I'm guessing. Any extra defense is priceless right now, when we need every Shinigami we have," I command.
"Yes sir. The Third and Thirteenth have been captured, and Ichimaru-taicho is currently trying to muster support for an effort to retake her division," Soi Fon replies. "I will see about getting proper surveillance on Muramasa and identifying his command structure so it can be disrupted. I will dispatch Onmitsukido agents to commission the armor the moment a proper design can be decided, and I take it the money for the armor comes out of each division's budget?" She asks. I nod, and we both rise a moment later, report made, tasks decided, and moving to deal with the problem. I'll join the effort to retake the Third, supported by whatever Ichimaru-chan puts together. Soi Fon will likely be hunting down any dissenters to the policy I've instituted of fighting this foe. Aizen approaches as I leave the sealed room where the meeting had been carried out.
"Yamamoto-soutaicho. My own zanpakuto, as well as those of my Arrancar, currently serve this Muramasa. We are not helpless though, and place all our strength at your disposal in an effort to deal with these irritations," Aizen states.
"Excellent. I have several uses for that executioner of yours, if he can still make those servants of his," I say.
"He can. I take it you need disposable troops to weaken the zanpakuto so they are easier to defeat?" Aizen asks carefully. I nod in reply, and he grins, turning around. "I hate the idea of sitting around doing nothing. At least now my servants have something to do, and since you are the one with the most knowledge of how to deal with these foes, I will await my own orders, sir," he says.
"Very well. I'll have a role for you soon, once you regain your Shikai," I respond.
"Understood. I too will be working on regaining Shikai," Tousen says, and I turn to glare at him. "I understand your animosity for me, but you do need all the warriors you can get, Yamamoto-soutaicho," he says.
"Fine. But one warning. You once fought Kenpachi Zaraki, and vowed to end him. If you had, you would have become him. A Kido bound curse upon all Kenpachi," I tell him, and he goes pale with horror.
"I see. So should I defeat the demon, I will become the demon," Tousen says gravely. "I must consider this carefully," He decides, and vanishes into sonido.
"Well, he didn't waste any time in getting himself Hollow powers," I observe sarcastically. I am extremely unhappy with Tousen over this. First he torments two zanpakuto, then he takes on Hollow powers and abandons them entirely, even after they served him well?
"He uses Suzumushi for Resureccion," Aizen comments offhandedly. Chi no Te no Megami is suddenly in my hands, and instantly enters Bankai as I stalk towards Tousen. How dare he defile Suzumushi in such a manner.
"Well well well. So, you're the master with my Shikai," Chi no Te no Megami says as she appears out of nowhere. "Bankai too it appears. How...nice. I finally have a master who listens to me and is worth something," she says almost seductively. "Tell me of the foes we've slaughtered, and maybe I'll let you beat me so I can fight alongside you again. You beat me, I revert to blade form, freed from Muramasa. You get that one for free," she tells me.
"Very well. Foes we've slaughtered or foes we've defeated, because there are a lot of both," I say, and she laughs delightedly.
"Excellent. Tell me all, my master, the partner of my soul, my other half, the bloody hand god who revels in death, my lord," she says in a tone half seductive, half vicious, all dangerous. I grin. Where's the fun without a little danger, after all?
"We'll start with Ikkaku..." I say, beginning the tale that will take hours to tell properly.
Eight hours later, at seven 'o clock that night
"Well, that's the saga entire so far," I say, and Chi no Te no Megami laughs delightedly.
"Covered in blood. A lord of the battlefields most delightful to me," She says. " We will fight together again. Muramasa has no desire to make the rivers run red and stain the dawn with blood," she says, grabbing my hand with her blade in it, which was never resheathed, and thrusting it through her heart, dragging herself up it and kissing me before she fades, and a blade is left in her place. The tie to Zaraki remains within her, but she has very clearly made her preference known. It matters little though. Defeated by me or the original wielder, the spirits of the zanpakuto will still return to both of us. I manifest Chi no Te no Megami with a thought, and she grins.
"I'm throwing a little party tonight as usual. I take it you regained your memories?" I ask, and she nods in reply, heading inside, towards the rooms I claimed for myself here. "I'll see you at the party in an hour then," I say, rising, armor plate clanking as I do so. My own armor was replaced with a heavier, stronger version I had commissioned some time ago. The Onmitsukido returned with it not an hour ago, and I wasted no time donning it.
"Orders sir?" Soi Fon asks, appearing at my side.
"Find where each zanpakuto is. Get a positive ID, and find their wielder to get information on them. Then put together a hunting team that includes the wielder," I say, deciding the course of action quickly.
"As ordered. I'll dispatch the teams immediately. We are preparing to retake the Third tomorrow at noon, with your approval, Yamamoto-soutaicho," she says. I nod, giving my approval to the planned assault, then reach out one hand to grab the scroll she hands me, which details the plans for the attack.
"I will personally see to the success of this assault," I tell her as I go over the plans, which are mostly sound. "I will lead it myself."
"Excellent. I like a commander who leads from the front," Kyoraku says as he comes up beside me. "I picked up traces of Byakuya-chan's reiatsu. I think she's alive, and I believe I know where she is. Muramasa's master was a Kuchiki Kouga. He was sealed away some time ago, but Muramasa has probably found a way to unseal him, and wants us out of the way to guarantee his success. Byakuya probably wants Muramasa to lead her to Koga," Kyoraku reasons, and I groan inwardly. Byakuya and her pride. I'll let this pass, but I am not happy about the fact that she prioritized pride over the Gotei 13. I'll have to correct this. If she had asked me for permission to do this, I would have granted it and gotten Yama-jiji to agree as well, but she cut out the Gotei for the sake of herself.
"I'll deal with this," I state calmly, betraying no trace of my fury over this problem Byakuya has created.
"Yes, Yamamoto-soutaichou," Kyoraku says in an amused tone. "Now, please control your curse. It's getting a bit hard not to be consumed by hallucinations of a very gruesome death, since your curse is acting up and filling the air with latent murder," he informs me, and I rein in my wrath through pure will. Soi Fon is curled up, shivering. "Soi Fon doesn't have any experience with the Kenpachi's curse, and it hits hard if you don't know how to block it out," Kyoraku explains. I nod, accepting this reason for Soi Fon's terror, then grab her and throw her into one of the nearby ponds.
"I can't afford for you to be unaware right now, Soi Fon," I say calmly. She drags herself out of the pond, dripping wet and beginning to shake as the chill of the night reaches her. I might be nice and warm in my armor, but she has only a modified uniform of the Onmitsukido to keep her warm. I draw Ryujin Jakka, and casually ignite the blade, drawing on the heat of the flames to warm the area up a little.
"Thank you Yamamoto-soutaicho," Soi Fon says once she dries a bit, and starts heading inside away from the cold night.
"It was no trouble. I need all my captains in top shape right now," I tell her as I join her in heading inside, armor plates clanking against each other, as I need to get used to the new armor before I can move soundlessly again in full plate. I allow the flames to die, resealing Ryujin Jakka and sheathing the blade.
"Yes sir. I will do my best to avoid being incapacitated, though these rogue zanpakuto might make that a bit difficult," Soi Fon says with a bit of sarcasm in her last words. I turn, my face a study in shock, fortunately hidden behind my helm.
"Did Soi Fon just make a joke?" Kyoraku asks, his shock clear. He doesn't have a helm, which is unlucky for him. Everyone gets to see him break his usual demeanor of carelessness as he stumbles back in his shock, falling into one of the ponds himself. He rises from the water, shaking his head, then gets dragged under again, his head appearing above water a moment later as he struggles. I hear laughter beside me, and see Unohana beside me, having appeared almost out of nowhere. Tentacles are seen wrapped around one of Kyoraku's arms as it is raised from the water, and I hear the screams of a man violated.
"That pond contains an octopus one of my subordinates encountered when she went to retrieve the souls of several drowned sailors and she brought it back as well. It was spiritually aware somehow, and I swear the thing is half tentacle demon. He will use his tentacles on anything that enters the pond, male or female," Unohana explains, and I whimper. "Your armor would protect you. He never figured out how to remove such things, so you could go in safely. Anyone who isn't in fully sealed armor had best beware him though," Unohana declares. I say a silent prayer for Kyoraku's sanity, then draw Zangetsu. "Take care not to be caught. It regenerates tentacles, and is good at keeping people from using their zanpakuto," I am cautioned by Unohana. "Also, don't try and kill it. Just rescue Kyoraku-taicho. I'll explain why later."
"Understood. There is only one response to this thing," I say. "BAN-KAI!" I gather immense amounts of power forth from within my soul as I enter Bankai, more then I could ever have wielded with only a single zanpakuto so long as I was not using my zanpakuto's final technique, and it is compressed and magnified, as Zangetsu becomes Tensa Zangetsu, the dark moon bound by the chains of heaven.
"Tensa Zangetsu," the venomous whisper escapes my lips, filled with fury as the shadows gather to my call. I am wrapped in a shroud of darkness, shadows coalescing, forming a veil of impenetrable darkness around me, only a single pair of burning eyes glaring forth from within. I roar, and the roar is reinforced with reiatsu, a shockwave of power annihilating every building for five kilometers in the path of the shockwave created by my roar. I move, and a sonic boom is left behind as I casually disregard the existence of the sound barrier, reappearing at the pond, not twenty meters away, and strike, a blade darker then darkness, an absolute void where life, where existence, where all things of the material world are denied. Zangetsu protects...by destroying everything that could harm me, even the world itself. It brings forth this absolute void should it be needed, and the more power I put into Bankai, the closer the blade comes to reflecting that void. Getsuga Tenshou is Zangetsu's technique in truth. He is the one that technique was born for, regardless of what lesser zanpakuto should think to use it as their own. "Getsuga...Tenshou," I hiss, and absolute darkness consumes the first of the four tentacles binding Kyoraku as I sever two others with a sweep of the blade, then unleash the moon fang once more to free Kyoraku.
I grab him and vanish, reappearing with another sonic boom at Unohana's side. I just drew on justified male wrath, the masculine version of righteous feminine fury, so that I could deal with that abomination. I realize this a moment after the job is done, and silently congratulate myself on drawing on this for the first time in my life. I set Kyoraku down in front of Unohana and leave Bankai. Or try to. I can't leave Bankai. I panic slightly.
"What the hell!" I scream. "I can't leave Bankai!" Soi Fon trips over a rock, Kyoraku falls flat on his face, and Unohana's jaw drops as they hear this declaration.
"Of course you can't leave Bankai, Ichigo," Tensa Zangetsu says as he materializes himself. "I am partially responsible, but so too is the power you gathered before you entered Bankai. I don't wish you to be harmed, so I am protecting you by increasing your power. My abilities are slightly unusual. Instead of draining power from you to maintain my Bankai, I increase your power as my Bankai is held. I magnify your power, then compress it, then magnify once more. As I compress your power, you have more reiryoku available to produce reiatsu with. I magnify your reiatsu, then compress it into your body. The longer you have my Bankai active, the stronger you get, and your body becomes more able to handle the power. I will not let you leave Bankai until you are so strong you enter this state of my Bankai naturally, where my true nature is expressed, rather then the usual state you enter. Your additional power will remain once you leave Bankai, so there is no worry about becoming unable to do so. There is a certain percentage of your power that you instinctively put into Bankai. Until that amount is sufficient to achieve your current state, you are not leaving Bankai. It will only take half an hour or so to do this. My ability to increase your power was increased as you merged with other zanpakuto, and I gained one other ability in Bankai. The ability to compress others' reiatsu into your own. If I compressed Byakuya's reiatsu into your own while she used Bankai, I could use the abilities of Senbonzakura to scatter, my blade becoming many smaller blades, and even replicate the techniques of Senbonzakura. Once I am finished strengthening you, I will answer Muramasa's call to me, and we will see who is the stronger of us two,"Tensa Zangetsu declares.
"Understood. I look forward to our battle," I calmly respond, now resolved, my fury contained. I turn and stalk into the building, wrapped in shadows.
"A warning...Muramasa has sent some of his forces to the Otherworlds. Seek them out, and defeat them, Ichigo," Tensa Zangetsu says. "They are sent to destabilize the balance. Any who would call that a good thing must be defeated, destroyed. They are controlled, and must be dealt with. You know where they have gone. Or you can find out from your Senkaimon. However, you must be the one to deal with them. No other will be able to deal with this problem. These zanpakuto, their wielders have only Shikai. However, their wielders will not survive the transit that must be made to the Otherworlds. You will have to use the captain's passage, created by Kido, rather then the Dangai. The Dangai is dangerous, the Valley of Screams is beginning to form."
"Understood, and my thanks for your aid," I say to Tensa Zangetsu, having turned to face him. "Kyoraku, go and get the party set up. I need to review Senkaimon transit records. Soi Fon, gather our Kido masters, get them to begin to opening of the tunnel that will let me pass into the Otherworlds. Also collect all information on the Otherworlds that can be found that I will need for my mission. Unohana, slow down the formation of the Valley if at all possible. Aizen, I know you're listening in on this. Prepare your own forces to contain the Blanks should it be needed, and see if you can figure out any way, along with Kurotsuchi and Urahara, to stabilize the Dangai. Ichimaru, we're moving up our plans to strike. We get this done tonight, right after the party is over. Tensa Zangetsu, keep that to yourself if you have any loyalty at all," I snap orders to my subordinates and allies. Tensa Zangetsu nods in response to my command, and nods also come from Aizen, Unohana, and Kyoraku. Soi Fon snaps a salute and vanishes into shunpo, beginning her mission immediately, as Unohana heads to the nearby Senkaimon gate of her division to begin work with her Kido. Kyoraku heads inside as I head over to Ichimaru, who just appeared at the door of the Fourth with a few members of her strike team. She salutes as well, a grin on her face.
"Well, Yamamoto-soutaicho, looks like you're taking to your new role like a fish to water," Ichimaru-chan says. "I'll get my team ready immediately," she continues as she vanishes inside the building and begins to give orders to her strike team. I head towards the building myself, finally getting to go inside and get a little rest before everything is cast into chaos as plans are put into action.
Sorry, sorry, sorry. A thousand apologies for this very late update, but school, work, and a lot of other stuff have gotten in my way. It's my senior year, and I have a lot to do before I graduate. I will be more attentive to my writing now that a lot of the needed work is done, and will be updating more quickly. We're about to start seeing the Otherworlds, which will hopefully be interesting to the lot of you, and I can finally bring all the ideas I have for them into play. The rebellion has begun in this chapter, Yama-jiji's fate is unknown, Ichigo is acting soutaicho, and Chi no Te no Megami is back in his arsenal. I have reached chapter 50 at last. I don't have a lack of ideas for further writing, just a lack of motivation, a.k.a. writer's block, and a lack of time to write. Reviews motivate me to write, so please read and review, thank you.
