Chapter 43
Battle of Karakura part 1

"Welcome home"

Welcome home, those words rang in Kuroda's ears like a great bell. Was this his home? Was this where he belonged? This desolate plain, filled with countless graves. Where the sun never shone and every moment the great fire of the sky rained down and threatened to destroy all that was left.

Yes, given what he had done perhaps this was where he belonged.

His own personal little hell

Forever in the company of murderers and savages

This was home.

"What's the matter?" asked the Other, breaking Kuroda's thoughts, "Is it so hard for you to see me with this?"

The Other raised AnShen, Kuroda's prized weapon. His tool for dealing out death to countless individuals and his lone companion for many years. It did indeed irk Kuroda to see it in the hands of the Other but then again, the Other's hands were his own. So in a way, it irked him to see it in his own hands.

Such irony.

"Don't you worry about AnShen, I'll put him to good use" assured the Other as he stared at the blade appreciatively.

"With me, he'll never be hungry. I'll gorge him on blood and flesh every hour of the day. I'll feed him so much that this little graveyard you've got here will look minuscule compared to what I'll make." The Other ran a finger along the back of the blade, caressing it with delicate care. "Oh yes, now this is a fine weapon. It belongs in the hands of someone who can use it properly, someone like…me!"

Kuroda remained silent

"But, you didn't come here to hear me talk about my brand new sword. You came here to die. Well, I'll be happy to oblige", smiled the Other.

Kuroda could feel his opposite's murderous intent. It seeped out of him like an ocean being held back by a dam made of simple twigs and rocks. It could not be held back no matter how hard he tried and soon it would burst out fully and flood out into the open.

"But this would be no fun if only I'm doing the cutting" realized the Other. He reached behind himself and tossed out a simple katana, it spun through the air and sunk itself into the dirt by Kuroda's feet. "Here, you can have my old one."

Kuroda stared at the blade blankly, his eyes devoid of even the slightest emotion as he gazed upon the weapon.

"Go on now, don't worry. It won't bite"

The Shinigami reached out for the katana's handle and yanked it from the ground.

"Good! Now, let's get-" The Other lost his sentence when Kuroda suddenly tossed his weapon over his shoulder.

"Hey! Come on! Pick up your damn weapon! Don't think I won't kill just because you're unarmed. The only reason I gave you that old thing in the first place was because I like to work for my meals."

"Would it really matter if I had the sword or not?" asked Kuroda, "with AnShen, you'd just slice right through it."

The Other contemplated Kuroda's words for a moment then smiled, "I suppose you're right. But I know you, you've got a plan don't you? Some trick that you're going to use. So, what is it?"

"Nothing"

"Pardon?"

"There is no plan, no trick. Just me and you"

The Other furrowed his eyebrows and lowered AnShen, clearly confused. This wasn't Kuroda accepting death nor was this him defying it. This was something else a sort of in between that couldn't be put into words.

Apathy maybe?

"Then tell me" started the Other, "what's gonna happen in the next five seconds?"

Kuroda smirked just a little, "you're gonna put your sword down."

"And why the hell would I do that?"

"Because I want you and me to have a nice heart to heart chat."

The Other's eyes became as wide as possible, as though such an idea were the most ludicrous thing in the world. But then, the strangest thing happened. The surprise began to wear off and a smile began to spread across his face.

Talk?

That was a new one.

"HehehehehHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Talk! Ha! A nice heart to heart chat!" laughed the Other, "Oh, this is rich! Ha! Alright then."

The Other spun AnShen and sunk it tip first into the ground, then released his grasp on its hilt.

"I've got to see this," decided the Other,

Two chairs made of pure dull granite suddenly raised themselves from the dirt and offered themselves to the two.

The Other fell into one, crossed his legs, and propped his chin on his knuckles.

"Come on now, let's talk."

#

Over Fake Karakura Town

"Reduced all creation to ash: Ryuujin Jakka!"

Fire erupted from the Captain Commander as he unsheathed his incredible zanpaktou. The heat was so intense that those who stood near him, both friend and enemy, turned away from the near unbearable heat.

It was like standing inside of a massive fire without being able to move. Such power could only be expected of a man like Yamamoto.

Slowly, the elderly Shinigami raised his flaming sword and set his sights on his target: Aizen, traitor to all of Soul Society.

"Everyone get down!" warned Shunsui

With a single swing of his blade, Yamamoto sent a massive wave of fire rolling towards the enemy. The head of the wave coursed directly for Aizen but moments before it could touch the man, it split itself and continued on passed its target.

Gradually, the flames formed themselves around Aizen into a massive ring. But they continued even further, obscuring both the sky and the town below from their prisoner. When the flames finally stopped moving, every Aizen looked he could only see the inferno created by Ryuujin Jakka.

"Lord Aizen!" cried Tosen upon seeing his beloved leader trapped,

On the inside of his prison, Aizen simply smiled.

Yamamoto sheathed his weapon and in an instant, the air was one again breathable and dulled into a more refreshing temperature.

"Joukaku Enjou" announced Yamamot, "not even Aizen will be able to escape from that blazing prison for a while. That will allow us time to deal with the rest of these rabble."

"Wow, the Captain Commander sure is playing rough," whispered Captain Ukitake like a young boy in school,

"He must be in a bad mood," joked Captain Kyoraku,

"Hmm," The most elderly Arrancar observed the massive ball of fire that his leader had just been captured in and correctly deduced that Aizen would not escape.

"It seems we have a bit of a dilemma," he said with a hint of scarcasm, "our leader is indisposed of at the moment and there are numerous enemies standing before us."

"You're being disrespectful of Lord Aizen, Barragan," said a blonde female Arrancar, "you should watch how you speak."

"Just as you should watch how you speak to me Harribel," Barragan shot back then snapped his fingers haughtily.

One of the six Arrancar surrounding him, the largest, pulled out a rolled up rug and laid it out on the solid air. Two others pulled on the rug, unrolling it and revealing a massive black hole in the middle. The hole spewed out a collection of bones that amazingly reorganized themselves into what looked like a throne for Barragan to sit on.

And sit down on it he did.

"Seeing as Lord Aizen is unable to order us at the moment," said Barragan, saying lord with a bit of mockery, "I will be taking over. I will not tolerate any objections."

"How dare you!" growled Tosen, his hand falling to his sword. "Insolent Arrancar, if you will not listen to Lord Aizen's orders then I will-"

"Stop it! Both of you!" ordered a new voice,

Every single Arrancar and traitor shinigami looked up to see the source of it: Tyran the Cero Espada.

"Lord Aizen's orders were for me to take charge if he should become unable to," reminded the purple haired Espada, "remember Barragan, you may fancy yourself a King. But even Kings can die."

Barragan glared at the Cero Espada with barely contained anger, his hands wrapped around the skull ornamentations of his armrest and nearly shattered hem.

"But you know what? You amuse me, so I'll let you do as you please for now. Just don't go around ordering me," decided Tyran, "all of you on the other hand, do as he says. Put on a little play for me."

"What a snobbish bastard," whispered Mila Rose,

"Whatever," muttered Coyote Starkk,

"What do you mean whatever?!" yelled a new voice, the owner of which decided to kick Starkk in the stomach, "don't just let him roll over you! Stand up for yourself!"

"Cut it out Lilynette!"

"'Whatever' my ass!" she growled, continuing her assault,

Barragan sat back down in his chair and ignored the childish antics of the two Arrancar. He was in charge now, that was all he cared about right now.

"You said that the town below us is fake correct?" he asked the Shinigami gathered before him, "you switched the real town with a replica. Aizen said that he could just infiltrate Soul Society and destroy the real one there. But I personally don't see the point of going through so much trouble."

"I have a theory based on what you said earlier. You set up four pillars around the town and used them to facilitate the switch. Now what would happen if we were to destroy those pillars?"

No response

Barragan smiled, having gotten his answer.

"Findor!"

"As you command," said a blonde Arrancar. He raised what looked to be a knife, grafted to his right forearm and brought it to his mouth. Findor then blew on the blade and created a sound not unlike a whistle and like a whistle, the hounds it was meant for came running to find it.

Suddenly, at four different places in the artificial town, massive tears in the sky appeared.

"We already know where the pillars are," announced Barragan, "devices like this are always placed on the cardinal directions. It's the most common setup."

From out of those four tears, massive monsters, hollows, climbed on out. Each one of them immediately found the invisible towers that held the fake town in place and began tearing away at the structure.

Yamamoto simply snorted out of amusement.

"Fool, do you really believe that we would allow such important pieces of our plan to be unprotected?"

Suddenly the hollow attack each of the pillars had their lives swiftly ended, revealing the protectors of each tower.

"We have some of our most powerful Shinigami protecting each tower," grinned Yamamoto

"What the?! Ikkaku?! Yumichika?! Izuru?! Shuhei?! What the heck! Weren't they supposed to stay back in Soul Society and hold down the fort?!" asked the very surprised Lieutenant of the 2nd division, Marechiyo Omaeda, "they weren't at the meeting so I felt like I was better than them! 'Take that you losers!' At least that's what I thought! Why didn't I know about this?! Was everyone else in on it?!"

"Of course," said Shunsui as innocently as possible

Omaeda turned to his fellow lieutenant, Rangiku Matsumoto.

"Hey, don't put me in the same boat as you," she said, turning away.

Omaeda then turned to his Captain, Soi Fon.

"I already told you about them, you were probably just too busy stuffing your face to hear what I was saying," she said condescendingly,

"That must be it," decided Rangiku, "you're always so busy stuffing your own face. It's no wonder, zoning out when listening is important just so you get the last crumbs of whatever food you're eating.

"B-b-b-but…"

"Hmmm, maybe I actually didn't tell him," Soi Fon whispered to herself.

On the opposite side, Barragan smiled.

"Four guards for four towers. Good, I would have been horribly disappointed if it was as easy as simply sending a few low level hollow to get the job done. But still, if all you have are four ants to protected you're towers then we'll merely send four dragons to crush them."

"Poww! Cuuhlhourne! Avirama! Findor! Deal with them."

"Yes my lord!"

#

Kuroda found himself sitting across from the Other, a cold dreadful wind blowing through the air, caressing his already cold skin.

"So? How does this work?" asked the Other,

"I was hoping you would know," admitted Kuroda, "I'm not quite sure I how it works myself."

"Heh, that's a laugh. If you don't know how to talk, then why bother even trying?"

Kuroda shrugged, "can't beat you, can't run from you, and can't hide from you. This is the only other option."

The Other smiled.

"Though, I suppose there is something I would like to know," said Kuroda, "what are you?"

"Hmph, isn't it obvious?"

"I want to hear it from your mouth,"

The Other's smile widened, "I am you."

"Yes you are, but you are only a piece of a larger puzzle. A shard amongst many," Kuroda shot back, "I guess the real question is, which piece are you?"

"I am murder, I am blood lust, I am insanity," replied the Other, "I am what you always wanted to be."

"A crazed psychopath? You'll have to forgive me if I remain skeptical."

"Oh yes, it's much better to be the cold calculating assassin like you, isn't it?" taunted the Other, Kuroda winced.

The Other leaned forward, eyeing Kuroda like a predator does his prey. Then he spoke in a low voice, "but I'm not just those things Kuroda. I'm more, I am what you want but know that you can't have. I'm the thing that if you ever possessed, you would become everything that you hate."

"And what's that?"

The Other's smile was now showing teeth and then he mouthed a word.

Kuroda furrowed his eyebrows and leaned in closer, "what?"

The Other said it again in the most quietest voice possible.

"What?"

"Freedom! Freedom, Kuroda! Unbridled, unrestrained freedom!" roared the Other, bursting up from his chair.

Kuroda remained stoic, "I am free, I chose the way I live and the people I associate with. I have freedom."

"Do you really?" the Other raised an eyebrow, "how many things that you have are things actually wanted to do?"

Kuroda had no answer.

"I am rebellion, the part of you who wants to say 'fuck it all' and simply leave the others to deal with their problems."

"You're irresponsibility," countered Kuroda,

"Oh maybe, but perhaps you can't have one without the other."

"I respectfully disagree,"

#

"They're dead, all of them" whispered one of King Barragan's two remaining Fraccion,

"Idiots," muttered the other,

On his throne, the King of Hueco Mundo felt anger creep into his veins. This time, his throne's ornamentation broke between his fingers. Then he stood to his full imposing height and glared at the Shinigami in his presence.

The two remaining Fraccion immediately fell to their knees.

"King Barragan, you highness!" said the smaller one, "we are incredible sorry, please, sit back down. We will do away with these Shinigami immediately."

Across from them, Soi Fon smiled.

As though an unheard cue was given, both Shinigami and Arrancar suddenly burst into silent action. Their feet moving so quickly that to the untrained eye they were gone within a blink.

At the end of the shuffle, each group Shinigami and Arrancar had paired off against their decided opponents for the battle.

Starkk and Lilynette stood facing Captain Kyoraku and Captain Ukitake

Tia Harribel and her Fraccion stood against Toshiro Hitsugaya and Rangiku Matsumoto

Braggan's Fraccion, Ggio Vega and Nirgge Parduoc, jumped to meet Soi Fon and her Lieutenant.

But then there was a blur of black that jumped in between them, causing both parties to pause for a moment and stare.

The Black Ops squad and entered he battlefield.

#

Kuroda shifted his eyes to the sky and saw fire rain down and scorch the already decaying earth. Strangely enough all the gravestones were left untouched by the fire.

Suddenly the ground shook and the dirt beneath their feet cracked from despair. The two of them however, remained unmoved.

"Looks like someone's moved my body," said Kuroda,

"I wonder who"

#

There, standing before the Arrancar were three figures clad in black. Cloaks hiding their forms, an aura of deadliness hanging around each of them.

Even the Shinigami, who were supposedly their allies, took a moment to take notice.

Soi Fon immediately recognized the one standing at the head of the group. A tall blonde man with thin glasses.

"Rajin," she whispered, her boyfriend.

The man turned to look at Soi Fon out of the corner of his vision. There eye's met and he gave her a small smile followed by a charming wink, before turning back to the two Arrancar in front of him.

To his right stood a taller, dark skinned man wearing a plain rice hat and rosary prayer beads around his neck. The Black Ops squad's Kido expert: Teruno.

To his left stood a shorter man, skinny, and with short spikey hair. Though not as intimidating as his two companions, there was a certain preparedness about him. The way he held himself that broadcasted the message: do not mess with me. The Black Ops squad's 6th seat: Keiji.

"Who the hell are you?" growled Ggio.

"Assassins," replied Rajin, "who have come for the head of the King."

"Ha!" laughed Nirgge, "you wish to assassinate the King of Hueco Mundo?! You will have to kill us first!"

Rajin turned to Teruno and gave him a slight nod. The tall man returned the nod and disappeared in a flash of Shunpo.

The two Arrancar tracked the man's movements and saw go towards the only two Shinigami on their side. Turning their attention back to Rajin, they saw he was beginning to walk calmly towards them.

They prepared themselves, confident that they best a single Shinigami.

"Keiji," whispered Rajin, "take care of them."

The shorter Black Ops member suddenly appeared before them, his weapon already drawn.

"What is this? You're sending one man against us?!" asked Ggio, "Ha! How laughable! You would've been better of sending the tall one against us!"

"This shrimp will be crushed beneath our feet!" agreed Nirgge, "why don't you face us yourself, or perhaps you should face us together. Then you'll at least have a small chance of-"

And then, Rajin was no longer there.

It took them both a moment to realize that Rajin had already passed them and was calmly walking towards King Barragan.

"What the-" Ggio's sentence was quickly cut off when Keiji sprang forward.

"Foresee with Clarity: Yami no Washi"

Keiji's Kodachi suddenly disappeared into black smoke. That same smoke began to warp itself around Keiji's right hand, forming a golden gauntlet claw.

Ggio, the first to notice the incoming Shinigami, prepared himself.

"Hemataito no Tsume" whispered Keiji.

Black and red streaks of reiatsu began to swirl around his gauntlet, clothing it in extra killing power and imbuing his eyes with extensive knowledge on how best to lacerate his coming victim.

Ggio did not expect Keiji to come in so fast and so he was unprepared when the twin claws mounted on Keiji's forehand sliced through his stomach, allowing his intestines to spill out. He was also unprepared for the second strike when Keiji twirled himself around and dragged his claws up the Arrancar's spine.

In a span of two seconds, Keiji had brought Ggio to his knees and dragged him to the brink of death. The Arrancar had long since gone into shock from the pure speed and brutality of what had happened to him.

It was almost pitiful watching Ggio desperately attempt to push his intestines back into his body.

Keiji ended those attempts by sinking both of his blades into the back of Ggio's skull, instantly killing the Arrancar.

"Ggio!" called out Nirgge,

Keiji disappeared, leaving Ggio's body to fall to the fake town's streets below.

"Wha- where'd he go?"

Nirgge suddenly felt cold hands wrap around his head.

"Hey? Aren't you the one who called me a shrimp?" asked Keiji, Nirgge's eyes turned back to see the Shinigami on his back.

"I don't like it…when people make fun of my height!" with surprising strength, Keiji jerked Nirgge's head into an unnatural position. It only took a moment for the large Arrancar's eyes to roll into the back of his head and for his heart to stop beating.

Keiji let his corpse fall down to the town's streets as well.

Without even pausing to appreciate his victory, he quickly joined Teruno in standing before Aizen's lieutenants.

Seeing that his backside was secure, Rajin continued his walk forward and turned his gaze upon the Arrancar sitting on a throne of bones.

It was time to kill a king.

#

"Wow, that was pretty brutal," observed Gin as Keiji joined Teruno in staring down the two traitor Shinigami.

"But I guess that's what is to be expected from your squad, hmm?" smiled the former Captain of the 3rd division, "and now you're after us."

"Do not talk so much Gin," spoke Tosen as he drew his sword, "let us swat these flies and be done with it. The faster we kill all these Shinigami, the quicker we can proceed with Lord Aizen's plan."

"Oh come on Tosen, you're in too much of a rush. Can't ya see what these boys are doing? Their cutting off the head of the snake, goin for the leaders first."

"It matters not," assured Tosen, "the end result will be the same."

"I'll be sure to fight with a handicap for you blind man," smiled Keiji, "I'm sure you'll need it."

"Is that a challenge? Very well 6th Seat, I will be your opponent for this fight,"

"NO! I SHALL!" roared a new voice,

A shadow suddenly fell upon the four combatants as a massive sword came down upon its intended target.

Bankai! Kokujo Tengen Myo!

Keiji, Teruno, and Gin managed to jump out of the way. But Tosen was caught by the full force of the giant Samurai's sword and sent crashing down into the buildings below.

"Fight me Kaname!" ordered Sajin Komamura, Captain of the 7th division, "fight me here and now!"

The traitor Captain pulled himself out from the rubble, managing to come out with only superficial wounds.

"Sajin, I see. I should have known you would seek me out on the battlefield. Very well then, Gin, you fight those two. I must attend to my own matters."

"Okay!" Gin called back, then turned to face his two opponents and smiled, "guess I'ts just us three then, hope you're both ready to die."

#

"Hey! That kid," started Shunsui, "would you mind sending her away please?"

Starkk tilted his head to the side, "Why?"

"I don't really like fighting in front of kids," replied Shunsui, "unless you send her away, I can't really fight for real."

"What?!" roared Lilynette indignantly

"Settle down Lilynette," ordered Starkk,

The young Arrancar turned to her older counterpart and was about to chew him out when she spotted the serious glint in Starkk's eyes.

"You can't fight for real if she's around? That's fine," he replied "I don't really want to fight either of you for real. Truth be told I don't really want to fight for real myself."

"Huh? Why?" asked Captain Ukitake,

"I just really don't want to, it doesn't suit my personality I guess you could say," admitted Starkk, "how about we just pretend like we're fighting till the others finish their fight?"

Shunsui actually laughed, "Ha! I'd love to Arrancar but unfortunately, I'm afraid I have an obligation to fight for real today. My sincerest apologies."

Starkk sighed in disappointment, "I see, no way around this then."

The Espada reluctantly drew his sword.

#

Rangiku Matsumoto, Lieutenant of the 10th division stood back to back with her Captain. Gone was the usually ditzy and rather self-serving attitude she usually carried, replaced by one more calculating and alert.

She took stock of the three Arrancar that surrounded her.

All women of varying shapes and dispositions

One was a slender, petite, and proper looking girl with long hair and a long sleeved dress. Another was a towering amazon of a woman with dark skin with clothing that somewhat resembled a two piece bathing suit. The final one had short blue hair and seemed rather tomboyish in her manner, the way she wore a sleeveless vest and baggy pants.

Passed them stood the Espada, a blonde woman the others had referred to as Harribel.

"Captain, I'll handle these three while you take on the Espada," she said

"Are you sure?" asked Captain Hitsugaya,

She nodded, "Yes,"

A moment passed before he said, "Alright, I'll leave them to you then."

Hitsugaya suddenly disappeared in a blur of Shunpo, bypassing the circle of Arrancar.

"Hey! Not so fast you stubby little-"

"Wait Apacci," spoke the blonde Espada as Hitsugaya appeared before her.

The Captain took a moment to size up his opponent and the Espada did the same. Slowly, carefully, she reached up to the sword strapped on her back and pulled it out with a loud resounding ring.

#

Not having moved a single step, the Captain Commander slammed the tip of his cane into solid air.

"Protectors of Soul Society! Give no quarter on this battlefield today! Put your entire being into this fight and crush them here and now! Even if your flesh is torn from your body, use pieces of your bones to form an ironclad wall! Do not let them put even one foot into Soul Society!

With that, the real battle began.

#

"What else do you want to talk about?"

Kuroda shrugged, "I'm not sure."

The Other sighed ,"what was that Yoruichi said about you? You never know what to say?"

Kuroda frowned and turned his vision down to his feet. Yoruichi, he hadn't thought about her until now, nor had he thought about her confession.

"She said she loves me," he whispered,

"You believe her?"

"She doesn't have any reason to lie to me," said Kuroda, "I don't see why I shouldn't."

"Interesting and how does that make you feel?" the Other was very interested,

"Confused," decided Kuroda, "shocked,"

"Hmm, makes me horny" said the Other, "if I had been in your shoes I would have grabbed her right there and gotten my rocks off."

Kuroda raised an eyebrow and stared at his opposite distastefully.

"I have fewer inhibitions Kuroda and let me tell you it makes things so much more fun. But you wouldn't know what that is would you Mr. Stick in the Mud. Maybe I'll pay Yoruichi a visit when I take over," the Other licked his lips hungrily,

Kuroda scowled.

"Don't act like you've never wanted her," sneered the Other, "you held your attraction to her at arms length when you were kids. Then when you made me you took it and shoved it into the smallest box and threw it into the darkest hole you could find. Now that you know how she feels you don't know how to respond, it's pitiful really."

"I don't deserve her"

"Oh cry me a river. I'm a horrible person, I'm a monster, wahwahwah!" mocked the Other "I swear sometimes you act like a broken record player. Have you seen us man? We are the shit! Girls ought to be lining in front of our door for a chance to get with us!"

Kuroda sighed, not wanting to encourage the Other's antics. Instead he stared into his own hands and remembered the moment when he had grabbed Yoruichi's hands and held them in his own. They had felt so warm, so soft, so different from his own.

He felt a wanting come with the memory.

A need, to feel that warmth, that softness, again.

Yet another part of him pushed such needs away and told him he didn't need such things.

"It feels good doesn't it?" asked the Other,

"What?"

"Human contact,"

Kuroda smiled and stared at his hands again. So wonderful, yet so hard to embrace after so many years of keeping away from it, it hurt. His heart hurt.

"When I take over, I'll treat her right. I'll give her the love that you wouldn't, that you couldn't."

"You think you can?" challenged Kuroda,

"I know I can" replied the Other without hesitation, "because with freedom comes confidence."

"There's a fine line between confidence and stupidity,"

"Ah, but I am you. I know how to walk that line and stay on the right side." The Other suddenly left his chair and began to circle Kuroda like a wild predator. He noticed that everywhere the other stepped, fire followed.

"I feel like you still haven't realized this fact. So I will tell it to you again. I am you, I am you and so much more. I have your determination, your skills, your mind, and more. I possess the savagery that makes me a better fighter, the love of battle that makes it easier for me to kill, I am simply better."

"I'm afraid I have to disagree," said Kuroda,

Both of the Other's hands came crashing down on either side of Kuroda's head and their faces were suddenly inches apart.

"And why is that?" asked the Other,

"You lack discipline. Savagery is all well and good, love of battle as well. But it can hinder someone just as much as it can help. Discipline reals it in from doing that harm and that's what I have. Discipline, self-control."

The Other smiled again, "self-control is overrated"

"You say that, but do you believe it?"

The smile faded.

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying, I'm better than you at something."

#

Rangiku was seriously starting to rethink her belief that she could take on all three of these Arrancar by herself. After exchanging a few blows with them, then taking advantage of their habit to bicker amongst themselves, she had managed to position them into the perfect opportunity to utilize Haineko.

She had managed to catch them in a vortex of ash and even managed to cut the blue haired one, Apacci, across the arm.

Unfortunately for her, they managed to break out by firing three Cero.

Now she found herself on the defensive and struggling just to keep herself alive.

Already she had taken half a dozen minor wounds and was breathing heavily, the three Arrancar on the other hand were uninjured for the most part and still fresh.

"Here I come!" announced Mila Rose, striking out with her sword.

"Haineko!" called Rangiku, summoning her cloud of ash to envelop the Arrancar. Unfortunately, the Arrancar quickly sliced her way through the ash and resumed her charge towards Rangiku.

"Still trying that old trick?"

Rangiku swung her hilt and the ash responded to her will. It formed a thin wall between her and the Arrancar's blade, temporarily stopping the attack.

"Pardon me" said a voice,

Rangiku whipped around to see Sung-sun thrust at her with a Sai. On pure reflex, Rangiku threw up her bare arm to protect herself while at the same time pushing off her left foot to get away.

The three pronged dagger pierced her flawless skin and she growled with pain.

Suddenly Apacci was behind her, taking advantage of her opening. She attempted to react but was too slow, the blue haired Arrancar landed a powerful kick across her face.

Somehow the Lieutenant managed to land on her feet and stand back up.

All three of the Arrancar looked at her smugly. All of them knew that at this rate, Rangiku would soon be dead.

#

In the Dangai Precipice world

"Come on you giant fur ball! Get your ass moving or we're going to be late!"

"I will move at whichever speed I like,"

"You keep moving that slow and you won't get any meat. Now either get moving or starve."

A low growl, "what is the prey we have today?"

"Fresh meat"

#

By now all three of the Arrancar were looking quite bored. Rangiku just wasn't providing them with a proper fight, Apacci had even begun to clean her ears.

"Ugh, you know what," she started, "I think I'll just go sit down over there."

"Excuse me?" asked Mila Rose

"What are you deaf? You heard me," replied Apacci, "this Shinigami is a total loser. Three on one is hardly a fair fight to begin with. It was funny at first, but now this is just ridiculous."

"Don't be lazy," scolded Sung-sun

"I'm not lazy! I'm just bored," groaned Apacci, "Hey! Shinigami, why don't you just call your Captain back? We won't hold it against you, two against three is more of a match."

Suddenly Rangiku burst forward, the move caught Apacci off guard but even then the Shinigami moved too slow. She caught the Lieutenant by the scarf and roughly tossed her away.

As she flew back, Rangiku summoned her ash cloud to attack Apacci from behind. The Arrancar quickly noticed and almost casually fired a bala, dispersing the cloud.

"Pathetic!" spat Apacci with disgust,

Mila Rose sped after the Shinigami, sword held out in front.

"You better call for help quickly, cause your no match for even one of us!"

Rangiku prepared to summon her cloud once again but from out of nowhere a ball of fire struck Mila Rose in the side.

Both Shinigami and Arrancar were caught by surprise. While Rangiku wasn't one to question good luck, she wondered who had intervened. Her answer came when she felt a presence behind her, she turned around and saw the last person she expected to see back on the battlefield.

"Momo!"

Lieutenant Momo Hinamori of the 5th division, last Rangiku had known Momo had still been confined to the hospital. But here she stood, her Shikai smoking from its latest discharge.

She walked, almost daintily, toward Rangiku. Upon first glance no one would have believed such a sweet innocent looking girl to be a warrior or unstable but Rangiku knew better.

"Momo, are you…alright now?" she asked as carefully as she could,

Momo nodded cutely and replied, "Yes, I'm fine now. Thank you for asking Rangiku."

Upon seeing that Rangiku still looked skeptical, Momo continued.

"I've come to help my fellow Shinigami as the Lieutenant of the 5th division and a person who cares about those she loves. Not as Captain Aizen's subordinate. I now see that he is…my enemy."

"I see," said Rangiku, "that's good."

Momo

"Let's do this together!"

You may have just not noticed it

"Right!"

But you called him Captain Aizen

"Done with your stupid conversation yet?" Mila Rose suddenly came bursting out of the smoke, burned and injured, but still able to swing her sword.

Rangiku was the first to act, calling Haineko's ash cloud to her and blocking the incoming strike. Upon failing to score a blow, Mila Rose retreated. But Momo would not allow her to get away unscathed.

"Tobiume!" she called, swinging her sword and letting loose another ball of fire.

Before it could reach her target a projectile intercepted her own and caused it to explode prematurely.

"So that's what it was," said Apacci, the chakram returning to her wrist, "that explains what hit Mila Rose. Not bad I suppose, but still, having two of you won't make a difference. Come on girls! Let's finish off these bitches and go help Lady Harribel!"

Together, the three of them charged, intent on ending the lives of the two women.

Then they found, they couldn't. Because try as they might, they couldn't get themselves out of what appeared to be a web of metallic wires.

"What the hell?! What is this?" cursed Apacci,

Sung-sun attempted to free herself from the wires but as she did, the wires wrapped around her tighter and began to dig into her skin. Mila Rose acted even more brashly, attempting to free her limbs through brute force.

As a reward both she and Apacci were cut by the wires.

"Damn it you big Gorilla! Stop moving! You're cutting me too!" growled the blue haired Arrancar,

"Well I don't see you trying to get free!" Milar Rose shot back.

"I wouldn't struggle anymore if I were you," said a new voice causing all of the women to pause, "when a fly is caught in a spider's web, its struggling only makes it get tangled even worse. By the time it realizes how hopeless it is, the web will have completely immobilized it. In this case, unless you three would like to live without your limbs for the rest of your lives, I suggest you all stop moving."

The new comer floated down to their level. She was, much to all their surprise save Momo, only a young teenage girl.

"Who the hell are you?" growled Mila Rose,

"Mei Ryou, 3rd Seat of the 8th division," answered Mei, "and daughter of the most dangerous man in all of Soul Society."

"You're just a little brat," realized Sung-sun, "shouldn't you be off in school or some other thing?"

Mei remained as stoic as her father would have in the face of such insults. And like her father instead of repaying insults with insults, she repaid insults with threats.

"I would watch how you talk to a 'little brat' like me," advised Mei, raising her left hand and revealing the numerous wires attached to her fingers, "especially when a little brat like myself can move her pinky…"

Mei did so, the result was immediate with one of the wires suddenly tightening itself around Sung-sun's throat, drawing a thin line of blood.

"…and lop your head off."

The young girl turned her usually cold murderous eyes upon Lieutenant of the 5th.

"Don't do that again Momo, you're only out here because Soul Society is having me watch you. If you continue to run off like that, I'll be forced to restrain you and put you back in prison."

"Yes…o-of course Mei," Momo replied shakily,

Rangiku, who had never seen Mei in battle, was startled by the young girl's new disposition. Where was the cute little one who liked to skip around and act silly all the time?

Mei turned her eyes to Rangiku and smiled sweetly, "Hi Rangiku! Seems you had a rough time out here didn't ya?"

"Uh…y-yes,"

"Don't worry, we'll have this wrapped up real soon."

"Hey!" roared Apacci, "you little brat! Don't dismiss us so quickly!"

"Now Momo!"

"When we get out of here! We're going to rip all three of you limb by limb!" yelled Mila Rose,

"Snap!" Momo touched her weapon to one of Mei's wires "Tobiume!"

The wires suddenly became alit with fire, an explosion that enveloped all three Arrancar followed.

Mei smiled with grim satisfaction.

"Did we get them?" asked Rangiku hopefully,

Mei's smile suddenly disappeared as she felt something pull on her wires.

"No," she said, "not yet"

"Thrust: Cierva!" yelled Apacci,

"Devour: Leona!" roared Mila Rose,

"Strangle: Anaconda!" hissed Sung-sun,

With the increase in power provided by their Resurrection, the three Arrancar blew away the smoke that had previously obscured them.

Their transformations had changed each of their physical appearances dramatically.

Sung-sun had come to resemble a naga, her body from the stomach down having become a slender anaconda's tail.

Apacci's body had become covered in brown fur and she now sported deer-like anlters above her eyebrows. In addition her feet had been replaced with hooves.

Mila rose had come to resemble an Amazon warrior even more, with twin bone claws holding her breasts, an armored thong and neck collars, a pair of boots that extended up to her thigh, and a long golden mane falling down from her helmet.

They were now even more powerful than before

Yet despite all that, Mei smiled.

#

Kuroda smiled

"You feel that?" he asked the Other,

"Yeah, I do. It's Mei"

"Brilliant little girl," said Kuroda appreciatively, "out of all the Shinigami I've trained, she is without a doubt the most talented."

"Hmm, tell me, what was it like becoming a father without a wife?" asked the Other,

"Shouldn't you know?"

"I only get patches of the picture, once I take over, I'll have all of it. But since we're just talking right now, I want to hear it from you," explained the Other,

Kuroda took a moment to think, "It was fulfilling. I got to watch her grow. I got to direct her towards her own path."

"So like having a puppy?"

Kuroda chuckled, "it's better than having a puppy. Having daughter you actually get to talk, to develop a relationship."

"Develop a relationship eh? That's the last thing that I thought I'd hear from you,"

"Well, if there is one thing I kept from my father, it was his parenting skills," Kuroda observed his hand, "you know, for the first month she tried to run away, usually taking a whole bunch of food with her. I caught her each time and dragged her back but I never punished her for it, nor did I ever bring it up."

"Is that a good way to teach her not to run?"

"Probably not but in the end you can't argue with the result"

#

Mila Rose lashed out with her large broad sword, intent on cleaving Momo in half. But the Lieutenant of the 5th raised her weapon at the last second and managed to parry the attack, but the force of the blow sent her skidding through the air.

"You're not getting away that easily!" roared the Amazon as she charged,

"Tobiume!" Momo swung her sword and let loose a ball of fire that struck the charging Arrancar head on. For a brief moment the Lieutenant thought she might have injured her opponent, but Mila Rose came bursting out of the smoke a second later, completely unharmed.

Caught off guard, Momo was defenseless against the incoming strike.

But just as Mila Rose's sword was about to hit, it came to a stop. Looking up the Arrancar saw the flash of those annoying metal wires holding her sword back.

With a jerk of her hands, Mei yanked the Amazon back and sent her crashing into an incoming Apacci.

"Ah! Damn it Mila Rose! Stop getting in my way you damn cow!"

"What did you call me you?!" growled Mila Rose,

"Haineko!" a cloud of ash suddenly enveloped the two.

Then out of nowhere, Sung-sun came slithering around the cloud weaving through the air like a giant snake. She fired a bala from her concealed hand at Rangiku's flank only for it to be intercepted by another one of Momo's fireballs.

The resulting explosion however still knocked Rangiku away, temporarily disorienting her. Disorientation that Sung-sun immediately took advantage of, rushing through the smoke to strike her opponent.

Mei stepped in between them and formed a barrier of wires, able to slice to pieces anyone foolish enough to traverse it. But Sung-sun moved through it with ease and fluidity, weaving her slender body through the wires as though they were as visible as the sun in the sky.

Not one to have her plan foiled, Mei crossed her arms and in turn tightened the web of wires. Sung-sun found herself caught by the wires just a few meters from her target and while her hierro prevented her from being cut, she still was unable to move.

Mei smirked but Sung-sun remained unworried.

Unexpectedly Sung-sun managed to move her arms just enough so that the openings of her sleeves were pointed at the Shinigami. At first Mei was confused, that confusion disappeared when from out of the Arrancar's sleeves a pair of white snakes came slithering out towards them.

"Hado No.31 Shakkaho!" yelled Rangiku

A red ball of energy struck the pair of snakes, allowing Mei to move.

From inside the cloud of ash two beams, one orange and the other red, fired and dispersed the annoying substances.

Apacci was the first one to come charging out, head lowered and moving at full speed. She struck Mei with her horned head in the side, causing the young girl to yell out in pain and free Sung-sun.

"Here I come again you little brat!"

This time however, Mei turned herself to face the Arrancar and held out her hands in front of her. Just as Apacci's horns were about to strike again, a crisscross of wires caught her head like a net, stopping the charge.

Mei then pulled back her right foot and shot it out, striking Apacci right on the nose. The Arrancar recoiled and stumbled back.

"Tobiume!"

Momo fired off another ball of fire from her sword, sending it right towards Apacci. But Mila Rose came to her comrade's defense at the last second and struck the ball of fire with her sword, batting it away and making sure it harmed no one.

Mei however took advantage of having all three Arrancar near each other. Throwing her hands around she commanded her wires to ensnare all of them.

"Little brat! Think this can hold us?!" growled Apacci as she and her fellow Arrancar began to struggle against the wires.

It was true, with all three of them Mei knew she could only hold them for so long. However, she didn't need to hold them indefinitely, only for a few seconds.

"Rangiku!" she called,

"Haineko!" the Lieutenant of the 10th commanded her cloud of ash to once again encircle the three Arrancars in the form of a tornado. Once done she began to wildly slash the air with her sword hilt.

A few times yelps of pain could be heard from inside the cloud.

"Momo!"

"Tobiume!"

The Lieutenant of the 5th began to wildly swing her sword, firing ball of fire after ball of fire into the cloud.

"You bitches!"

Three distinct colors suddenly became visible inside the cloud. A moment later three cero of those same colors burst out of the cloud, dispersing it and loosening Mei's wires.

"Damn it," muttered Apacci, "this is taking too long."

"You getting tired Apacci? Losing you're nerve?"

"Shut it Mila Rose, I just don't like wasting any more time with these three Shinigami!"

"You're both acting so uncivily, if it weren't for you two charging in head on all the time I would have already kill all of them."

"Shut it Sung-sun," growled both of them,

Turning their attention back to the battle, they glared murderously at the three who had caused them so much grief.

"You know what? I say we take them all down in one go," said Apacci,

"For once I agree, if this goes on any longer it could get troublesome," said Mila Rose,

"What do you suggest we do then?" asked Sung-sun,

"If we use 'that', then we can take them all out at once then move on to bigger fish," answered Mila Rose.

"Hmph, to think we're pulling out our best attack to deal with these three small frys," muttered Apacci as she lifted her right hand to her left arm, "puts a bad taste in my mouth."

"Get over it," growled Mila Rose as she did the same,

"Indeed," said Sung-sun as she mimicked the other two.

"Looks like they're about to try something," said Mei, "get ready"

"Right!" the other two Shinigami said, preparing themselves.

"Quimera Parco!"

All three of the Arrancar's left arms began to glow a crimson red, then brutally they all ripped of that same arm. The Shinigami were horrified at the self mutilation, what could it possibly achieve?

But then the severed arms began to lose their form, becoming what looked like pure energy. They shot out from their former owner's hands and met together in the sky, fusing together.

Gradually the fused life energy began to grow, but more interestingly it began to pulse. Almost like a heart beat.

"W-what the?" Rangiku said, bewildered by the display.

Inside the still growing fusion of energy, she began to see something inside. Some sort of form that was slowly taking shape. Soon she could hear the sound of bones breaking and resetting, of flesh tearing only to be mended.

It was like something inside was being created by a mad scientist.

Then came the reiatsu, incredibly large amounts of it. So dark and foreboding it made even Mei shiver with fear. Momo was so terrified that Tobiume shook in her hands.

With a final pulse, the orb of energy dissipated, revealing its Chimera creation. It was a creature unlike any all three of them had ever seen before.

It was a tremendous humanoid being with a white deer skull at the center of its large head, a great dark brown mane obscuring its face, reaching down to its waist. On its forearms and the entirety of its legs was a lighter brown fur much like that of a deer's. Then there was the long greenish-white snake tail extending from below the mane, which turned out to be an actual snake.

This thing was a monster.

A monster that the three Arrancar's called…

"Ayon, he'll make short work of them," smiled Apacci,

All three of the Shinigami were stunned silent and immobile by the sight of this horrible beast.

'What is this feel?' Rangiku asked herself, 'It's like I'm peering into a deep bottomless pit.'

Mei somehow managed to move herself, bring her hands up and thereby raising her wires. The lieutenant of the 10th was amazed that this young girl could find the courage to move. But she could see the slight shaking in Mei's form, her trembling lip, her eyes darting around like a scared rabbit. She was just as afraid as the rest of them.

But after tears of living with Kuroda Ryou, the Commander of Seireitei's Black Operations, she knew how to push fear down if only for a little while.

The beast stared at them through its long mane.

Suddenly the legs in its muscles bunched up, its back began rippling.

Mei recognized the signs immediately, it was going to charge.

"Rangiku! Momo! Run!"

Too late, Ayon charged them and before any of them could move, Lieutenant Matsumoto was falling. Standing behind them, Ayon looked curiously at its now bloodied fist.

"Rangiku!" the two remaining Shinigami cried out,

Momo immediately went after her cormade's falling form. Mei turned to the source of it, the beast Ayon. Anger welled up inside of her as she stared upon its back, years of living with Kuroda had taught her what to do with anger as well: unleash it.

Below, Momo finally managed to grab Rangiku.

"Bakudo no.37: Tsuriboshi!"

Immediately a ball of blue energy manifested itself below them and fired out six ropes from the center, attaching themselves to the surrounding buildings. The energy then solidified itself into a flat elastic cushion that caught the two shinigami like a safety net.

"Don't worry Rangiku! I'll heal you right away!" assured Momo as her comrade screamed from the pain. The damage done by the beast was horrifying, everything from below her ribs to her intestines had been badly injured. Multiple lacerations covered her once perfect stomach.

Rangiku gasped for breath, her injuries impairing her lungs from delivering air. Momo realized she had to work fast.

Then a shadow descended down upon her.

She looked up to see Ayon, the beast staring directly at her. Momo felt her stomach fill with dread as she shakily reached for her zanpaktou.

Ayon raised a fist and prepared to strike…itself?

Momo felt a moment of confusion as the monster punched itself in the face, then caught the slight glint of sunlight of a web of wires wrapped around Ayon's arm.

The beast moved its fist away from its face, confused.

"Why you hitting yourself you big dumb animal!" yelled a familiar voice,

"Mei!" realized Momo,

"Concentrate on healing Rangiku Momo! I'll deal with this thing!"

Ayon grabbed the wires encircling its fist and yanked them off, snapping them as though they were but string.

"Come on ugly!" yelled Mei, "come and get me!"

The beast whirled around and began moving towards the small little fly that was taunting it with mean words. Mei swallowed her fear and threw out her hands, sending wires into the buildings around them.

Momo mean while stared in horror as this girl, younger than even her, bravely faced down the beast. A gasp from Rangiku below her, refocused her attention on what needed to be done.

"Stay with me Rangiku, stay with me!"

Mei felt her wires lock themselves firmly into the buildings, Ayon was nearly upon her. With a hard yank, she brought her arms over one another. The surrounding buildings followed, their walls coming off and striking the beast.

It roared with annoyance, when the barrage was over it began smashing its fists into the buildings surrounding it, blaming them for attacking it.

"Ayon you stupid animal!" yelled Apacci, "those buildings aren't the problem! It's the brat in front of you!"

"Give it a rest Apacci," ordered Mila Rose, "Ayon never listens to us anyway."

"So what? We should just let him be stupid?"

"No," said Sung-sun this time, "wish should just let him work, don't worry, Ayon will kill them soon enough."

With her opponent distracted, Mei weaved her wires again, this time faintly wrapping them around Ayon's entire body.

"Hado No.11: Tsuzuri Raiden!"

An current of electricity ran out from her fingertips into her wires, it traveled along them till they reached Ayon. There they entered the monster's body and made it jerk uncontrollably.

Unfortunately in the way of damage, the attack had little effect. Thinking quickly, Mei wrapped her wires around Ayon's legs and gave them a hard jerk.

Still confused and dazed, the monster was swept right off its feet and face planted right into the concrete below.

"Bakudo No.4: Hainawa!"

A golden rope of reishi shot out from Mei's hands and wrapped it around Ayon's body, temporarily immobilizing it though Mei knew it would not be for long.

She then placed her hands together and began to chant, "Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! On the wall of blue flame, inscribe a twin lotus. In the abyss of darkness, wait at the far heaven! Hado No.73: Soren Sokatsui!"

Mei pushed out her hands, glowing with blue energy. A concentrated blast fired out from her outstretched hands and struck Ayon right in the back, bathing him with blue fire.

When the blue light died away, Mei squinted to try to see through the smoke.

"Did I get him?" she wondered, the wires on her fingers tugged back.

Apparently not.

A second later, Ayon came bursting through the smoke and threw a backhand at Mei. The attack was too fast and Mei had not time to throw up a defense. She was sent flying straight into a building and did not come out.

Not bothering to check, Ayon turned its sights back on Momo.

"Oh no" she whispered, realizing what had happened. She was only half finished with Rangiku and that still wasn't enough to move her at the moment. If she just had a little more time they could escape together.

Ayon lumbered towards the two and Momo prepared to fight.

But in a flash Ayon's fist collided with her small body. It happened so fast that Momo hadn't even gotten to feel how many bones in her body had broken.

In the corner of her vision, she saw a small glint.

Then she was no longer moving. Something soft and small was carrying her.

Painfully she turned her head and to her amazement she saw Mei, bruised and bloodied but still alive.

"Mei," she whispered weakly, "how did you-"

Flash Back

Mei saw Ayon's fist coming in. It was fast, too fast for her to move out of the way. She would have to accept the blow, but doing so would be suicide.

Thinking quickly, she threw up her arms and whispered, "Bakudo No.8: Seki"

An orb of light blue energy formed in front of her. Ayon struck it, causing it to burst and sending Mei crashing into the building.

Flash Back end

"Quick thinking," answered Mei, it had saved her life but she could still feel half her ribs break as well as a dislocated right shoulder which she was currently using to support Momo.

Ayon noticed the return of the little figure that had caused it so much harm. For the first time since the battle began, it roared, revealing its massive slobbering maw.

Mei thrust out her still useable left arm and created a barrier of wires between them and the monster. Ayon began jog forward, completely ignoring the wires that only held it back briefly before snapping.

Mei weaved her wires again, creating barrier after barrier that were promptly torn down by the unstoppable juggernaut.

"Damn it!" she cursed as she continued to try and hold Ayon back.

In the end however, it was futile. Ayon towered over them, it raised its fist back and struck at them.

Mei raised one last barrier, using all her wires to create a single small net to catch the fist. She caught Ayon's attack but its till progressed forward regardless with enough speed to do serious damage. Mei closed her eyes and awaited death.

It did not come.

"You stupid little brat," spoke a new yet familiar voice, "if you're dad knew you were out here, he'd put across his knee and spank you till your butt glowed red."

Mei opened her eyes and saw who her savior was.

"Kaito!?"

"In the flesh," smiled the Black Ops squad's 3rd seat, his hand casually holding back Ayon's much larger fist.

"Looks like you got yourself into quite a bit of trouble," observed the man, "guess I should lend you a hand, its what your dad would want."

With a roll of his shoulders, Kaito carelessly shoved back against Ayon's fist and sent the monster tumbling backwards. Kaito suddenly disappeared, then reappeared next to a near unconscious Rangiku.

He quickly picked her up bridal style and disappeared again before Ayon came crashing down on where they had just been.

"Kaito," she whispered weakly.

"Shhhh," spoke Kaito gently, bringing up a hand to lovingly caress her cheek, "I'm here beautiful, you're knight in shining armor has arrived. Itsumi!"

"Here!" the purple haired 5th seat of the Black Ops squad as well as Mei's grandmother and Kuroda's adoptive mother appeared.

Kaito set Rangiku down and Itsumi came rushing over and immediately began doing her work. Mei soon joined them on the roof top and laid Momo down next to her fellow Lieutenant.

"Mei, look at you. You're all beaten up," scolded Itsumi,

"I'm fine grandma," assured Mei though she clearly was not.

"Don't you lie to me young lady, lay down and I'll get started on you right away,"

Rangiku felt someone grab her hand, she opened her eyes to see Kaito smiling down at her. He lowered himself down and planted a rather chaste peck on her lips.

"I'll be right back, I've got to kick somebodies ass," he whispered before standing up, "I'll leave her in your capable hands."

"of course," nodded Itsumi.

With that, Kaito disappeared.

By now Ayon had managed to get back up.

"Jeez, help for these Shinigami just keeps rolling in," complained Apacci,

"Where did that other one go? The one who knocked Ayon down?" asked Mila Rose,

"I think the better question is, how did he knock Ayon down? Doing so is no small feat," said Sung-sun,

"Ah, it was a fluke. Nothing more," assured Apacci, "hey! There he is!"

The other two looked to see where Apacci was pointing. The Shinigami had reappeared right in front of Ayon, a suicidal move.

"Ayon! Finish that guy off and find the rest of them," ordred Mila Rose,

Ayone of course did not understand the command but it understood that the figure in front of it needed to die. With a roar it charged Kaito, both of its hands reaching out to grab the man.

"What a fucking retarded animal," muttered Kaito with contempt, "something like you isn't worthy of seeing my zanpaktou."

Ayon slammed its palms together like a man trying to squash a fly.

The three Arrancar cheered upon seeing it, believing Kaito to be crushed now. That soon faded when they realized the man was not yet dead. In fact, he was still very much alive, uninjured, and holding back both of Ayon's hands with his own.

Ayon seemed to struggle as it tried to crush its target but Kaito easily held it back.

"You hurt my girlfriend buddy, that's not something I like to forgive very easily," growled the 3rd seat. Faster than Ayon could react, Kaito shoved both its hands away and shot forward.

Cocking back his own fist, Kaito slammed it into Ayon's face. The result was a roar of pain, followed with a loss of balance as Ayon began to fall back onto the ground.

Without pausing, Kaito caught the falling monster by the bicep and pulled. Ayon began to scream as the foreign feeling of pain entered its body.

The sickening sound of muscles ripping and bones snapping began to fill the air as Kaito pulled with all his might. With a final tug, Ayon's arm came free of his body and a fountain of blood flooded the streets.

"What the-" Apacci gaped, her fellow Arrancar too stunned for words.

But Kaito wasn't done yet, he raised the severed arm up high. Wielding it like a club be brought it down on top of Ayon's head. Again and again and again he smashed the monster's own limb down upon him with savage efficiency.

Bones were heard cracking

The disgusting sound of flesh smashing against flesh filled the air.

Ayon tried to scream but each time it was interrupted by its own arm. Kaito roared like a wild man, blood splattering across his face. Even when Ayon ceased to move he continued smashing the arm down until it finally gave under the pressure and turned into nothing more than a floppy piece of meat.

Only then did Kaito stop, casually wiping the blood off his face with his sleeve and tossing the arm away carelessly.

Ayon did not move.

Kaito turned around and began to walk away.

Ayon's remaining hand twitched.

Kaito stopped mid step.

"Hmm, you're tougher than I thought."

The grievous wounds that Ayon had received from its beating suddenly began to heal. The monster itself started to stand back up and roar an ear shattering cry of anger.

"Ha! Should've known, you can't keep Ayon down," cheered Mila Rose,

A wave of pressure came down around Ayon as its wounds healed and its muscles began to bunch. Kaito stood undaunted and a bit intrigued. It seemed that the beast had snapped.

He watched with a bit of morbid fascination as the arm he had ripped off began to regrow. It only took a few moments for it to exactly resemble the arm he had taken.

Then Ayon began to grow, get taller, become more heavily muscled. Its new arm in particular seemed to be the subject of growth. It became disproportionately large as muscle was pushed into it until it was nearly as large as Ayon himself.

"Now that just gross," observed Kaito,

The arm dropped from the pure weight of its own muscle, leaving Ayon's knuckles to drag across the street. Its eyes bulged out from the long shaggy mane that covered its head, focused entirely on Kaito.

With surprising speed, Ayon lifted his massive arm and swung hit at Kaito. The blow was wide and far reaching, even after it passed over where Kaito had been floating it continued on and smashed into a building in its trajectory.

"And people call me clumsy," joked Kaito, suddenly appearing on Ayon's shoulder, "were you actually trying to hit me? Or did that building insult you?"

Ayon's eyes turned upon Kaito.

"What?!" gasped Apacci,

"When did he move?" asked Sung-sun,

"Looks like I'll have to get my weapon a little dirty," decided Kaito, unsheathing his katana.

"Smash their bones: Gaikotsu!"

The katana was suddenly replaced with a large nightmarish hammer whose handle resembled a human spinal cord and the head of which was large enough to completely smash a full grown man's head.

The head was also decorated with a single skeletal dragon which wrapped itself around rectangular head of steel while terrifying wraiths danced around it.

This was Kaito's zanpaktou, the only zanpaktou in all of Seireitei to be able to command two elements: earth and air.

But for now, Kaito was fine with just using it to smash Ayon in the face. So that's what he did.

The result blow sent Ayon flying down the street, its back digging up all of the pavement, its arms creating massive gashes in the buildings it passed. The blow itself had crushed Ayon's head in, leaving a bloody pulp where it had struck.

Ayon's eyes had rolled to either side of its head.

But Kaito was not done with it.

He raised his hammer and mentally gave it a command. A moment later, massive spikes shot out of the earth and created a line of jagged spears for Ayon to fall onto. The monster unwillingly obliged and was pierced through the back a dozen times by the wrath of the earth.

Three spikes protruded from its chest.

Two jutted out of its engorged arm.

And the largest on had gone right through Ayon's head, splitting it open.

It appeared Ayon had finally died. Then its fingers began to twitch again.

"For fucksake, just stay down you dumb animal. I get bored of having to kill the same thing over and over again," groaned Kaito,

Of course, Ayon did not listen and instead began to bush himself off of the spikes.

"Fine," Kaito drew back his hammer and spoke: "Kaze Bakudan"

Air began to swirl around Kaito's hammer. At first it was gentle but quickly began to build up speed, becoming faster and faster until a beach ball sized orb of rushing wind engulfed the hammer's head.

Kaito swung his hammer and the orb of wind shot towards Ayon.

The monster, still attempting to push itself off the spikes could not avoid the ball of wind from traveling into its throat.

A second later, Ayon exploded.

The explosion had no fire, only wind. The sound was more akin to a balloon popping than that of an actual bomb. Now pieces of the monster were all over the place, chunks of meat fell down around Kaito who admired his grizzly work.

"Come back from that you son of a bitch," Kaito turned his back

"RAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" screamed three Arrancar,

"You bastard!" yelled Apacci,

"We'll slice you up!" roared Mila Rose,

"You'll be dead before you hit the ground!" screeched Sung-sun,

Kaito didn't turn around, he only uttered two words, "Entei, sic'em"

A roar, comparable to even Ayon's suddenly split the air. The three Arrancar were caught off guard and halted their attack.

A shadow descended upon them, they looked up to see the open maw of Entei.

He came down so fast that none of them could move. Apacci was the first one Entei grabbed, he came down on her much like his lion heritage came down on its prey. He carried her all the way down to the street where he gazed into her frightened eyes.

"You better taste good!" Entei opened his mouth full of razor sharp teeth and sank them down onto Apacci's throat. She only screamed for a second.

"Apacci!" Mila Rose eyes widened with horror. Suddenly Entei was in front of her, moth still bloody, a shred of meat still hanging from his teeth.

Out came his claws, he raked them across her stomach, leaving large gashes. Shock took Mila Rose, unable to move Entei grabbed her by the shoulders and tore out her throat with his teeth.

Sung-sun, after having witnessed what had happened to her companions. Reacted purely out of fear, she fired a cero at the beast.

Entei caught it with his hand and threw it away. He then dropped Mila Rose's carcass and charged the snake like Arrancar.

She immediately tried to run but Entei was simply too fast. He pounced down on top of her and grabbed the back of her neck with his mouth. He then lifted her up and shook her violently, throwing blood everywhere.

She died soon after.

Kaito hadn't bothered to watch, he didn't need to.

"War is an ugly business," he whispered, "that is a concept, the Black Ops squad fully embraces. That's what you taught us, Kuroda."

End

Hey, look I'm alive and so is this story.

I hope it was worth the wait, sorry it didn't come earlier I've been busy with work and college. I'll try to get the next one up earlier.

Until then review and favorite this story because it gives me great encouragement.

Bye Bye!

Kaze Bakudan: Wind Bomb