Here's the next chapter of To My Death I Fight and I would like to announce that it's NOT a flashback. There are no flashback scenes in this chapter. With that said, I would like to say I've wanted to write what happens in this chapter for a very long time. But pacing and proper character development forced me to wait. And that's a good thing, because it allowed the Bleach manga to finish (that's another topic I don't want to discuss) and showcase a lot of new and interesting abilities for shinigami.
So check out my story's tvtropes page and I hope you enjoy the chapter!
...
Chapter 55 – Laughter in the Rain
"Round five starts now!"
Yasutora Sado darted backwards, the motion aggravating his broken shoulder, when Moe Shishigawara shouted at the top of his lungs and slammed his fist against the street. Quickly twisting to the right upon noticing the dangerous smirk stretched across the other teenager's face, the shattered pieces of his shoulder screaming loudly in agony, sweat trickled down Chad's back as Moe's punch blurred through the rain only a few inches from his jaw.
"What's the matter, Chad?"
Moe Shishigawara's disappointment at failing to shatter his opponent's jaw like glass vanished when Chad attempted to return the favor with interest. Grinning haughtily as he slipped away from the teenager, his head bobbing left and right as he dodged punches powerful enough to send anyone else to the morgue, he couldn't help but boast, "Yo! I thought you said you were goin' to stop me! At this rate kickin' your ass will be a piece of –"
"El Directo!"
Spiritual energy exploded from the wing-like extension jutting from his right shoulder as Chad stoically answered Moe Shishigawara's comment with a powerful haymaker, the attack eliciting a shocked expression in the other teenager's grey eyes. Frowning when his opponent dodged at the last second, an embarrassed gasp leaving the Xcution member's mouth as he scrambled back onto his feet, Chad slowly lowered his arm as the building he unfortunately punched collapsed in an expanding cloud of smoke, "…sorry about that."
"Huh?"
Moe blinked in confusion as he leapt away from Chad, his recent embarrassment already forgotten, "Why the hell are you apologizin'? I'm tryin' to kill you, you know!"
Chad ignored the debris falling onto his shoulders as he turned around to face the Xcution member. Experimentally clenching his hand, the red and black armor covering his right arm glistening in the rain, he shifted stances as spiritual energy erupted from his broken shoulder, "…it took some time but I think I've figured out your raiment's ability."
Stomping his foot against he ground at the response, the Life Fiber bandages wrapped around his forearms crackling with spiritual energy, Moe angrily pointed a finger at Chad, "Like hell you did!"
His Loterie Raiment shone with a familiar multicolored radiance as he rushed Chad with the singular purpose of breaking every bone in the guy's body. So what if the guy thought he figured out his raiment? It wasn't going to save him from getting his ass beaten into the ground! Undeterred in the slightest when the black and red armor covering the other teenager's right arm abruptly liquefied, flowing outwards before changing into something even more monstrous, Moe couldn't help but whistle. All right. He had to admit that Chad's armor was pretty awesome.
"Heh…you think that fancy shield's goin' to stop me?!"
Moe grinned savagely as multicolored spiritual energy gathered between his fingers, "Tough luck! Because it ain't going to stop me from kickin' your –"
His taunt was interrupted when Chad punched him squarely in the nose.
"God…damn…shit!"
Blood oozed from Moe Shishigawara's broken nose as he staggered backwards, one hand tightly gripping his face. As the taste of copper grew increasing prevalent in his mouth, Moe angrily glared at Chad. God damn it, the guy could throw one hell of a punch! The pink haired Quincy bitch at Honnouji Academy hadn't given him this much trouble, leaving only a few light bruises before he stomped her face into the ground. And she could punch straight through solid concrete! Chad wasn't anywhere close to superwoman's level of strength yet he managed to flat-out break his nose with only one punch?
And how the hell did he suddenly get faster?
"I'm done messin' around, Chad!"
He slipped through the other teenager's guard in a burst of speed, one arm cocked over his shoulder. Sneering as the multicolored light radiating from within his raiment grew in both brightness and intensity, Moe shouted passionately while sucker punching Chad in the stomach, "Météore Grève!"
Spittle flew from Chad's mouth as a shockwave of multicolored spiritual energy exploded from his back, shattering every window on the street. Hunched forward as Moe smirked and casually withdrew his arm, he grimaced at the excruciating pain radiating from his stomach. Several ribs were broken, possibly more, and it hurt to breath, but he refused to let Ichigo down. Looming over the teenager, spiritual energy crackling on his fingertips as his Brazo Izquierda del Diablo flowed into existence, Chad pushed through the pain as power coursed through his transformed arm.
"La Muerte!"
A resounding crack echoed alongside the concurrent pealing of thunder as the spiritual technique slammed into Moe Shishigawara's hastily risen guard, the outpouring of energy both shattering the pavement and gouging the image of a skull on the building across the street. Curses flowing profusely from his mouth as he skidded down the road, his sneakers leaving trails of smoking rubber in their wake, Moe froze in wide-eyed astonishment when the building behind him exploded into dust. Holy crap…was that the technique Chad was planning on using at Honnouji Academy? Staring at the damaged stated of his raiment, rips and tears covering the Life Fiber bandages and jacket, Moe felt a flash of instinctive panic.
The Grand Couturier was going to be seriously pissed when she found out a human scratched one of her tailor-made raiment!
"Now that's more like it!"
Moe disguised his nervousness at the thought of showing the Grand Couturier his damaged raiment with false bravado, "La Muerte? That's Spanish, right?"
Rubbing away the blood oozing from his nose while countless explosions illuminated the skies above Karakura Town, Life Fibers floating in the rain as Nudist Beach decimated Lady Ragyo's army of COVERS, Moe Shishigawara sneered confidently, "I guess I'm real lucky you were holding back at Honnouji Academy! You could have kicked my ass if you used that attack when I was poundin' superwoman into the dirt! But don't think I'm going to give you another chance, Chad! Humans like you only get one lucky shot!"
Chad tensed when Moe Shishigawara smashed his fists together, disturbing multicolored light leaking from within his raiment. Pushing spiritual energy through his Brazo Derecha de Gigante as he rushed the member of Xcution, who briefly shadowboxed in place before doing the same, his eyes widened when someone unexpectedly landed on the street directly in front of him, sending out a large shockwave that dispelled the surrounding storm.
"What the hell?"
Moe was surprised when someone crashed into the middle of the street, his arms flailing unceremoniously when the subsequent shockwave nearly knocked him off his feet. Pointing a finger at the figure crouching within the smoke rising from the newly formed crater, his anger rising at the unexpected interference, he furiously demanded, "Yo! Who the hell do you think you are interruptin' my fight?!"
The midnight black over coat clasped around her shoulders fluttered dramatically in the pouring rain as Mako Mankanshoku energetically leapt onto her feet. She couldn't believe her good luck! Adjusting her black and gold cap as the familiar crimson glow of Life Fibers shone from within her Goku Uniform, the normally carefree and cheerful girl matched Moe's accusatory pose before shouting in return, "Mako Mankanshoku is here to save everyone!"
"…Mako?"
"I'm sorry for interrupting your super important rematch!"
Mako motioned awkwardly with her hands as she pivoted around to face Chad, fully ignoring the confused member of Xcution staring blankly in her direction. Shifting poses with all the grace afforded to her by Mother Nature, she continued without missing a beat, "Lady Satsuki's friend stopped by this morning around breakfast with my new Goku Uniform! But the instructions were really hard to understand! So I decided to just throw them away and hope for the best!"
Chad listened patiently to Mako's…explanation…as flashes of lightning arced overhead, "…so everything worked out then?"
"That's right! My shirt's no longer inside out and I remember to wear underwear this time!"
Her geta stomped against the street as she turned around to Moe Shishigawara, the green reed in her mouth shifting with every overdramatic syllable. Folding her arms over her chest, the golden brass knuckles emblazoned with her name glistening in the rain, she huffed at the confused member of Xcution as thunder rolled through the skies, "Mako Mankanshoku is fully dressed and ready to fight! With my new and improved Goku Uniform I will save Ichigo's hometown from Ryuko's mom!"
"HA! This is some kind of joke, right?"
Moe Shishigawara couldn't help but mock Mako for her fearless stupidity in the face of overwhelming odds. It was incredible. She actually believed her Two-Star Goku Uniform had the slightest chance of standing against his raiment, stitched personally by the Grand Couturier? It would take someone wearing a Kamui or Yoruichi Shihoin, who somehow managed to fight the Grand Couturier and live, to kick his ass! Smirking as the abrupt change in fortune, he shifted into another kickboxing stance.
It seemed luck was finally back on his side.
"Yo! Unless that ugly as hell Goku Uniform is actually a Kamui, you don't have a chance of defeatin' me," Moe boasted confidently, jabbing a thumb against his chest, "But consider yourself lucky! Right now I'm busy settling the score with Chad. So why don't you run away and maybe I won't kick your ass."
"Mako Mankanshoku refuses to run away!"
Mako motioned enthusiastically to herself, Chad and finally the surrounding buildings as she ignored every word that came out of Moe Shishigawara's mouth, "I refuse to let Ryuko's mom destroy Ichigo's hometown! He lives here! And it's a really nice place! My family has a house with a working refrigerator and everything! That is why I will step in for Chad! I won't let you hurt any more of Ichigo's awesome friends! Not when they spent most of their time rescuing each other over and over again!"
The green reed falling out of her mouth as she posed dramatically in the rain, Mako finished her speech by pointing at her increasingly perplexed opponent, "So a delinquent like you, who is working for a horrible woman like Ryuko's mom, cannot defeat me! Not when I have a date with Gamagori at the movies tomorrow!"
"Hey! You take that back about Lady Ragyo!"
It no longer mattered if Mako Mankanshoku's cheap and second-hand Goku Uniform couldn't measure up to his Loterie Raiment. He didn't even care that she called him a delinquent right to his face. Nobody, especially not a human, walked away after calling Lady Ragyo such demeaning names! Maybe a few broken bones and ruptured organs would teach Mako a lesson about respect.
Multicolored spiritual energy gathered around his fist as he furiously rushed Mako, intent on transforming the girl into a bloody smear on the ground, "Take this! Météore Grève!"
"MAKO CATCH!"
With an almost casual display of reflexes bordering on indifference Mako caught Moe Shishigawara's haymaker, her Goku Uniform rustling heavily as the subsequent explosion tore through the street. Holding onto her black cap for dear life as the super powerful punch sent tickling shivers racing down her spine, the street under her feet shattering in a cute pattern that reminded her of Art Club, she ignored her opponent's astonished expression to focus on something more interesting. Such as whether she was always this strong. Mako blinked in confusion as Moe pushed more spiritual energy into his punch, desperately trying to break her hand. She remembered Ryuko putting up a better fight when she went nuts with power at Honnouji Academy. But Ryuko hadn't been using Senketsu's full power at the time. But on the other hand…
"The hell…"
Moe's mind screeched to an undignified halt when Mako Mankanshoku caught his punch like it was nothing. His eyes widening in astonishment when he tried breaking every bone in her hand only to realize he couldn't, he bent over nearly to the ground when Mako pulled a golden wrench out of her Goku Uniform and threw it at his face. All right, he remembered reading about that little ability of the Fight Club Goku Uniform. But how the hell did she block a punch from his Loterie raiment without breaking any bones in her arm? It would take someone wearing a Kamui to negate the special ability of his raiment. Even Chad's awesome armor couldn't withstand his punches! And she stopped his Météore Grève without even breaking a sweat?
"Damn it…I guess you hit the jackpot…"
Snorting as the multicolored light permeating his raiment intensified, Moe didn't give Mako Mankanshoku time to argue before unleashing a rapid series of punches and kicks. Maybe he was exaggerating the issue. After all, a lot of people at Revocs said he tended to get overexcited. Besides, the Grand Couturier managed to block his punches all the time when she tested his raiment. There was not a chance in hell a Goku Uniform could stand against something woven by the Grand Couturier. The girl was probably just lucky, nothing more. But everyone's luck had limits. He just needed to keep up the pressure.
It was the perfect –
"ATATATATATATATATATA!"
The repetitive sound echoed through the drenched streets as Mako Mankanshoku countered his punches and kicks, her shouting only stopping when she declared, "Ryuko and Ichigo are counting on Lady Satsuki to protect this town! And Lady Satsuki actually asked me – Mako Mankanshoku – to help out! So I won't let you or Ryuko's mom destroy this town!"
Moe Shishigawara's eyebrow twitched in growing frustration as the other teenager continued matching him blow for blow. What the hell was going on? The information Lady Ragyo downloaded from the Sewing Club said that Mako Mankanshoku's uniform granted her superior strength and speed compared to every other Two-Star Goku Uniform, maybe enough to fight against regalia. But this power was unreal! It was absurd that she was still standing against him! If he didn't know better, he would almost think Mako was wearing something greater than regalia. But that was freaking impossible!
"Alright! Now I'm seriously pissed off!"
Stumbling when Mako jumped into the air, her spiked geta digging into his shoulders, Moe spun around and shouted, "What kind of Goku Uniform are you wearing? How the hell are you counterin' my Loterie Raiment?!"
"Because the numbers don't make sense!"
Mako darted forward in the middle of her defiant proclamation and smashed her emblazoned brass knuckles against Moe Shishigawara's hastily crossed arms. One foot tucked against her back, tongue pressed against the inside of her cheek when the Xcution member remained standing, she was completely oblivious to the spiritual pressure tearing through the street as she pushed even more power into her punch.
"And everyone knows that luck fails against math!"
A resounding bang rang loudly in her head when Moe Shishigawara suddenly went bouncing down the road, his raiment cracked and damaged. Huffing proudly at the results from her hard work, she raised her fist and announced, "The proof stands for itself! Luck is for idiots who don't know how the world works!"
"…the hell's going on?"
Moe sneered as he deftly leapt back onto his feet, the cracks spreading across his raiment's armor glowing with a dangerous multicolored light. All right, he was done messing around with this girl! Dealing with Chad could wait. Right now all he wanted, needed, to do was beat Mako Mankanshoku's ass halfway to Honnouji Academy! Smirking when Mako rushed forward, a golden wrench held firmly in her fingers, he braced himself for the attack. He just needed to wait for the brief opening in her defenses, the one moment when her guard was done. The instant she swung that wrench at his face would be when he –
"MAKO HOME RUN DERBY!"
Every pane of glass in a three-block radius shattered when Mako passionately swung a golden baseball bat squarely into Moe Shishigawara's left temple, the resulting impact sending an explosive boom ricocheting across Karakura Town. His vision swimming from the blow in the brief moment before he was sent flying upwards into the rain, his body crashing into and through several dozen COVERS, Moe gnashed his bloody teeth when Mako appeared overhead, her left leg extended nearly to her shoulder.
Like hell he was going to let her pull off a combo!
Although his left eye was forced closed by the blood oozing down his face, the splitting headache disrupting his concentration, Moe Shishigawara wasn't down for the count! He took more damage sparring against the Grand Couturier than anything this…human…could dish out! Sneering viciously as he prepared to counter her attack, his entire body froze when he noticed the three additional stars stitched across the back of her Goku Uniform.
She was wearing a fucking raiment?!
Stiffening when Chad appeared out of nowhere, crackling arcs of electricity gathered in his left hand, Moe cursed under his breath.
"Oh shit…"
...
"Then by all means try to kill me."
Whatever amusement Ragyo Kiryuin still felt vanished at the boorish man's frustrating boast. Was he purposely attempting to provoke her into ending his pathetic life? Yet it was the growing disgust in the back of her mind that currently preoccupied her attention. For some inexplicable reason she had the strangest desire to savagely tear the man apart, to watch his blood mix with the falling rain. But Ragyo refused to listen to her instincts. This insignificant man was nothing more than a pest, an ant compared to giants. Giving him the pleasure of eliciting such an embarrassing reaction would be tantamount to declaring they were equals.
It was a ludicrous notion.
But that didn't mean she would allow his foolish taunts to go unpunished.
"La vie est drôle. You seem to be under the assumption that you have the ability to defeat me."
Despite her opponent's wry smirk Ragyo found her attention flickering toward her petulant daughter crouched against a fallen tree. That was another reason she despised the man. His interference in their private, familial matters prevented her from Mentally Refitting both Satsuki and Junketsu, molding their minds to her will before unleashing them upon Karakura Town. Watching her eldest daughter destroy her allies, ripping them apart without hesitation, would have been marvelous. Yet the man's offhanded mention of Kisuke Urahara ruined that transitory period of boredom, replacing it with unadulterated hatred.
Merely thinking about that blasphemous man, who dared to enter the Original Life Fiber's sacred chamber, made her briefly reconsider whether she should have personally dealt with him instead of sending dearest Nui and Amu.
"Which is why I must question your sanity," Ragyo's heel clacked loudly against the air when she stopped across from the man, her fingers caressing the hardened Life Fiber weapon she confiscated from Isshin's clumsy hands. She might loathe Kisuke Urahara with every fiber of her being for having the audacity to create a Kamui and thinking he could seal away the Original Life Fiber, but Ragyo refused to underestimate the shopkeeper. Not again. His ability to weave Life Fibers made him one of the most dangerous people on the planet.
Caution was required when dealing with anything involving Kisuke Urahara, a man who learned the deepest secrets of Life Fibers.
"For just how do you plan on stopping me?"
Ragyo snarled at her opponent's utter lack of concern, his tenuous connection to Kisuke Urahara the only thing staying her hand, "Contrary to what you might believe, I can feel your disgusting and abominable, not to mention weak, power. You're not human…nor are you a Quincy. And you're certainly nothing like that annoyance of a vampire."
Bright flashes of lightning illuminated the park in shifting hues of white and purple as her tone darkened, "From your suicidal fermeté I presume Kisuke Urahara invented yet another annoying Anti-Life Fiber weapon, created when he wasn't busy defiling Life Fibers."
"That's an interesting choice of words, Ragyo Kiryuin."
Sosuke Aizen wasn't perturbed in the slightest by Ragyo's monstrous spiritual energy. While stronger than anticipated, which was yet another consequence of Isshin Kurosaki's abject failure to put aside emotions and save humanity, fretting over something so trivial was nothing more than a waste of time. Beads of water dripping from Kyouka Suigetsu's blade, he looked at the pinpricks of crimson light floating over Karakura Town, "Defiling, that is. A man like Kisuke Urahara, who created both Kamui and hardened Life Fiber blades, isn't the sort of person to defile Life Fibers. Rather, he did far more with them than you believed possible, simply because his research was approached from a philosophical point of view. He didn't understand the underlying truth behind Life Fibers nor their connection to the Original Life Fiber, which allowed him to achieve remarkable feats."
"But perhaps I'm reading too much into your response," Aizen swept his arm forward and smirked at the Kiryuin matriarch's darkening expression, "It's equally likely your disdain is the result of nothing more than envy."
"Envy?"
Isshin's blade quivered between Ragyo's fingers at the flagrant insult. How dare this insignificant speck of a man suggest she was envious of Kisuke Urahara! That shopkeeper might have stumbled across the secret to weaving Kamui, a feat her failure of a husband couldn't achieve without copying Junketsu, but that was nothing compared to the divine knowledge possessed by those chosen by the Original Life Fiber!
"Hardly."
Ragyo accentuated the word with an arrogant scoff, her demeanor returning to relative normalcy at the lies spewing forth from the man's mouth, "While his knowledge on Life Fibers far exceeds my pathetic husband's, it still pales in comparison to my own."
"Now back to the matter at hand…"
The pealing of thunder deafened Karakura Town as Ragyo raised her sword until it was perfectly mirroring her opponent's stance, "I'm quite the busy woman, so I'm afraid whatever you're planning is doomed to fail. Please give my regards to Kisuke Urahara…after dearest Nui and Amu send him to the deepest reaches of Hell."
"Since when were you under the assumption that my plan hasn't already started?"
Aizen swept his arm outward, the gesture obtaining the desired result when Ragyo Kiryuin's expression tightened fractionally, "You're already aware of Kisuke Urahara's intelligence and abilities. What makes you believe all of this isn't part of his plan? Your monstrous power is well known, after all. So perhaps you are correct, Ragyo Kiryuin. Perhaps I was given an Anti-Life Fiber weapon created to kill a Life Fiber Hybrid of your caliber. Or maybe I'm simply stalling for time, waiting until the proper moment to unleash my full power."
Lightning flashed across the skies as Aizen finished with a calm flourish, "On the other hand, perhaps my objective is convincing you I'm not worth the effort, leaving you vulnerable to the Anti-Life Fiber countermeasures I activated before arriving. "
Ragyo's eyes narrowed as she searched for any sign of deceit from the boastful shinigami. She highly doubted even someone like Kisuke Urahara could have anticipated her actions to such an extent. It was far more likely the shopkeeper placed Anti-Life Fiber traps throughout Karakura Town in preparation for any number of scenarios, which meant this annoyance of a man was either a terrific liar…or he wasn't bluffing. But a simple sweep of the burnt landscape, wisps of white smoke still rising despite the pouring rain, assuaged any lingering doubts that the man wasn't lying.
There were only a handful of things that could withstand the destructive power of a Bleach Bomb…and crude inventions made by human hands weren't on that list.
"It's insulting that you thought I would fall for such an obvious bluff," Ragyo closed her eyes and chuckled, the corners of her mouth curling into a sadistic smirk, "But I'm afraid that your excuses hold no weight. You claim that Kisuke Urahara buried Anti-Life Fiber traps throughout Karakura Town? While that may be true…nothing created by human hands could survive the full majesty of a Bleach Bomb. Now…"
Spiritual pressure exploded from Ragyo as she opened her eyes, "…I think you've wasted just about enough of my time."
In a single step she closed the distance between herself and the man, Isshin's hardened Life Fiber sword arcing towards his neck. Yet to her astonishment not only did the shinigami's own weapon interject itself at the last second, it also stopped her attack without shattering. As her arm quivered from the unexpected arresting of her momentum, multicolored sparks of spiritual energy dancing through the rain, Ragyo glowered when the man spoke with only the barest traces of strain.
"How disappointing…"
Aizen smirked at the Kiryuin matriarch despite the bead of sweat dripping down his cheek. With one hand pressed against Kyouka Suigetsu, the additional strength helping to counter the power of her hardened Life Fiber blade, he strategically retreated when his opponent angrily increased her spiritual energy. Bounding away from the woman, his boots stepping on platforms of solidified air, he ignored the minute cracks tarnishing his zanpakuto, "Did you believe such a shallow strike would be enough to –"
Ragyo Kiryuin was upon him before he finished the question.
Blood sprayed through the rain when her initial strike cut deeply into his shoulder. Zanpakuto clashing fervently against hardened Life Fiber blade as he parried and countered Ragyo Kiryuin's assault, every ounce of his concentration focused on deflecting her attacks, Aizen was forced to constantly use Shunpo to stay ahead of her movements. He couldn't help but feel as if he underestimated the woman, a notion bolstered by the growing cracks across Kyouka Suigetsu. The Kiryuin matriarch was a much different…and stronger…woman from seventeen years ago.
This…might be a problem.
"You seem fond of that particular style of swordsmanship, Ragyo Kiryuin."
Aizen grunted when the Kiryuin matriarch slammed the appropriated weapon against Kyouka Suigetsu, the force immediately shattering the ground underneath his feet. Subtly noting Satsuki Kiryuin standing some distance away, her attention focused entirely upon her mother's ferocious assault, he pleasantly inquired, "I'm assuming from your current posture and altered stance you're aware of the three openings in your guard?"
"Au contraire, my dear man..."
Ragyo smirked as she flexed her fingers around the hardened Life Fiber blade, more than doubling the strength pressing against the man's sword. It was time she finished this farce of a fight. Her silver hair shimmering brightly when the shinigami's guard collapsed under the strain, spurts of blood spraying in the rain from the wound cutting across his chest, Ragyo took sadistic pleasure at the insolent man's pathetic attempt to escape before vanishing. One leg arcing gracefully upwards as she reappeared in front of the shinigami, hints of concern in his eyes, she frowned when he leaned sideways, the fingers on his left hand gently pushing against her ankle.
Maroon eyes narrowing when the man used his annoying technique to disappear into the wind, Ragyo waited until the tip of his blade was pressing against her spine before pirouetting around and catching his zanpakuto in her hand. Drawing pleasure from her opponent's astonished expression, his disbelief at failing to scratch her skin causing a shiver to race down her back, Ragyo smirked savagely before smashing her knee straight into his stomach.
"…I have no openings against someone as weak as you!"
There was a tense moment of absolute silence before a deafening boom reverberated across what remained of Tsubakidai Park. Multicolored stars twinkling brightly in the rain as his body contorted painfully around Ragyo Kiryuin's knee, Aizen's vision briefly faded to darkness when he found himself propelled skyward by the sheer physical strength contained in the attack. Forcefully snapping his attention downwards when he sensed a massive amount of spiritual energy collecting at one point, the traitorous shinigami stiffened at the rainbow light coalescing above the Kiryuin matriarch's finger.
"Lumière Divine."
Ragyo's silver hair whipped frenziedly as the gathered energy enveloped the petulant man, wiping him from existence in an explosion of multicolored light. Smoothing a small crease on her dress when a supersonic blast echoed throughout Karakura Town, dispelling the hazy smoke and allowing her to see that the shinigami was indeed dead, she sighed deeply and in great contentment, "Only a fool would dare stand against one chosen by the Original Life Fiber."
Her smirk widened maliciously when she sensed Satsuki approaching, the emotions coursing through Junketsu's Life Fibers a welcome change of scenery, "Don't think I've forgotten about you, Satsuki. There's still just enough time to properly introduce you and Junketsu to the pleasures of Life Fibers…"
"Have you forgotten something, Ragyo Kiryuin?"
"What?!"
Ragyo gasped when the blade of a man who should already be dead pierced straight through her heart. Wheezing in disbelief as blood spurted from the fresh wound, staining both the ground and her dress crimson, she gnashed her teeth when the foreign object tore itself from her body, cutting open what used to be her lungs in the process. One hand pressed against the gaping wound as she lurched forward, one foot almost touching the muddy soil, the Kiryuin matriarch furiously stopped the embarrassing behavior with a determined clack of her heels.
She refused to grant this insignificant speck of a man any satisfaction.
An intrigued smile stretched across Sosuke Aizen's features when the woman's body knitted itself back together, normally lethal wounds regenerating in seconds. Calmly flicking the blood staining Kyouka Suigetsu onto the drenched soil, the traitorous shinigami ignored the copious amount of crimson oozing from his stump of a left arm, "I didn't anticipate such a powerful technique. Without my zanpakuto's special ability I would have lost more than simply my left arm."
"Zanpakuto?"
The splatters of blood tarnishing her immaculate dress vanished as Ragyo gracefully stood at her full majesty. Slowly turning around to face the shinigami, she purposely downplayed her irritation with his continued survival under an annoyed scoff, "The Grand Couturier mentioned Kisuke Urahara's weapon transforming into a more powerful state. Shall I presume your zanpakuto can do the same?"
Aizen shrugged at the question, his eyes never leaving the Kiryuin matriarch, "It's an admittedly pretentious name for a weapon but one that successfully encompasses its purpose."
"Your delusional hopes of victory are refreshing."
A disappointed scoff left Ragyo Kiryuin's slightly parted lips as she tucked a strand of silver hair behind her ear, "However your prétendu zanpakuto appears to be damaged. Did you honestly think your inferior weapon could stand against a hardened Life Fiber blade? Your words are nothing more than empty threats. So I'm afraid despite your admittedly amusing efforts this battle has just about come to an end…"
Heels clacked sharply against platforms of spiritual energy as Ragyo sauntered away from the shinigami, her attention momentarily falling upon her rebellious daughter. There wasn't any reason to continue wasting time fighting the annoying man. His strength might have been more than she expected from someone not blessed by the Original Life Fiber but he was an insect compared to her greatness. He could stab her heart hundreds…no, thousands…of times with his zanpakuto, yet the result would never change. While he might have survived the glorious power of her Lumière Divine, a feat she still couldn't comprehend, it was only a matter of time until he bled to death.
Which meant she could focus her attention upon more important matters.
"Your tenacity is impressive but I've lost any interest in continuing this farce of a battle."
Ragyo punctuated her response by casually flicking Isshin's sword lengthwise across her body, removing the last traces of the man's filthy blood from the beautiful weapon. Noticing her daughter's expression of utmost fury, deep blue eyes burning with unbridled hatred, she nearly sighed at the unfolding tragedy. She had so been looking forward to spending some quality 'mother and daughter' time with Satsuki, "But I do have a schedule to keep…and killing a half-dead man and my failure of a daughter is rather low on the itinerary."
"This rain is quite nostalgic, Ragyo Kiryuin…"
A thin stream of blood oozed from Aizen's mouth as he stared into the pouring rain, his smirk widening when the Kiryuin matriarch stopped midstride, "Most people would find such weather boring and meaningless. Yet I cannot help but reminisce about a particularly tempestuous evening seventeen years ago."
Spiritual pressure, far more than anything previously unleashed, blanketed the decimated park, driving the air from Satsuki's lungs while subsequently forcing her onto her knees. The multicolored light radiating from her silver hair dimming slightly, Ragyo Kiryuin's hate-filled eyes were focused completely upon the shinigami as a single word escaped her clenched lips.
"What?"
"I was present the night you kidnapped Ichigo Kurosaki, transforming him into an artificial Life Fiber Hybrid," Aizen motioned with his remaining hand, entirely unconcerned by the oppressive spiritual pressure, "I witnessed everything that transpired…including your fascinating battle with Masaki Kurosaki."
Flashes of lightning illuminated Tsubakidai Park as Ragyo clenched her twitching hands, perfectly manicured fingernails threatening to pierce her skin, "Anecdotal evidence suggests your disdain for the woman arose from losing Isshin Kurosaki. But I find such an explanation insufficient. Your hatred of Masaki Kurosaki cannot be attributed to affection. That you lost the only man who could possibly understand your feelings was merely an excuse to conceal the true motivations behind your contempt."
"So one must ask – why do you loathe Masaki Kurosaki?"
The traitorous captain's condescending smirk widened with every word, "By all accounts the woman was friendly and understanding. Why would the CEO of Revocs, known through the world for her patience and self-control, focus her efforts upon something so trivial?"
Ragyo furiously gnashed her teeth when the man had the audacity to close his eyes, the damnable smirk never faltering, "I'm sure you know the reason, Ragyo Kiryuin. On that night seventeen years ago, hours after you kidnapped Ichigo Kurosaki, Masaki Kurosaki not only fought you…she defeated you."
"That seemingly ordinary woman destroyed the feelings of superiority woven into your mind by the Original Life Fiber," Aizen calmly observed the blood oozing from the upper half of his missing arm before continuing, "After all, a resounding defeat at the hands of someone you considered completely powerless is quite humbling. But that's still not why you hate Masaki Kurosaki. You despise her because she permanently scarred your otherwise flawless body."
"Ichigo's mother was the cause?"
The auburn Scissor Blade stabbed deeply into the muddy soil as Satsuki Kiryuin watched the shinigami slowly circle counterclockwise around her mother. Two months ago she would have thought such an assertion ludicrous, the unsubstantiated product of an unstable mind. Yet everything she witnessed since Ichigo and Ryuko arrived at Honnouji Academy – from the events of the Raid Trip to the unique abilities possessed by Ichigo's allies – had forced her to discard that limited point of view. She was intimately aware of the seven star-shaped scars marring her mother's back, their origin a point of interest since the day she grew aware of Ragyo Kiryuin's inhuman madness.
To think the woman Ichigo's father constantly recounted with reverence was the source of her mother's only shame.
"It must be a terrible feeling, Ragyo Kiryuin," Aizen grinned as he stood across from the barely contained woman, "To know the immense strength bestowed upon you by the Original Life Fiber wasn't enough to best a single Quincy. Even now, with your spiritual pressure leagues greater than seventeen years ago, that ignominious defeat still dictates your every –"
"You insolent man…"
Kyouka Suigetsu shattered, splinters of metal shimmering madly in the rain, when Ragyo closed the distance to the treacherous shinigami in a single step, hardened Life Fiber weapon cleaving through both flesh and zanpakuto with very little effort. As an astonished gasp escaped Aizen's mouth at the sight of his severed right arm, the limb cleanly sliced just below the elbow, he lurched forward when the Kiryuin matriarch stabbed her left hand through his heart.
An eruption of spiritual pressure momentarily dispelled the rain as Ragyo callously hefted the skewered shinigami into the air. Glaring venomously at the defeated man, his disgusting blood dripping from her splayed fingers like water, her sneer lessened into a cruel smirk, "Did you honestly believe I would allow to you bluster without consequence?"
Twisting her arm inside his body, which elicited a pained grunt from the man, she chuckled as lightning flashed overhead, "I'll admit your psychological ploy nearly worked but what did you really accomplish? You sacrificed your life to waste several minutes of my valuable time. And now you're nothing more than a broken and dying man, unable to stand against the power of Life Fibers. There is still more than enough time to retrieve what I came to this pathetic city for in the place."
"So that's the reason you attacked Karakura Town…"
The agonizing pain in Aizen's voice disappeared as he smirked at the Kiryuin matriarch, "How truly…fascinating."
Ragyo's eyes widened in disbelieving shock when the wounded shinigami shimmered before shattering, leaving her standing alone in the middle of Tsubakidai Park. What was going on? Focusing her attention upon her arm, which lacked the slightest trace of the man's filthy blood, the Kiryuin matriarch found herself at a loss for words when she attempted sensing his disgusting power only to realize it was gone. She couldn't detect anything! But that was impossible! She severed both his arms…destroyed his pretentiously named zanpakuto! For the man to have vanished he would need to –
A pulse of spiritual energy drew Ragyo from her thoughts.
How had she missed that as well?
Heels clacking loudly upon platforms of solidified spiritual energy as she turned around, lips pulled into a frustrated snarl, Ragyo froze when she saw a perfectly healthy and uninjured Sosuke Aizen standing across the scorched field, "How did…"
"You seem flustered, Ragyo Kiryuin."
Aizen's cloak rustled chaotically as he pointed his left arm at the Kiryuin matriarch, palm held perpendicular to the ground, "But I suppose that's the expected reaction. Hado Number Ninety Nine – Goryutenmetsu."
Ragyo took an uncharacteristic step backwards when an ephemeral dragon composed of blistering spiritual energy burst out of the ground, flashes of intense lightning arcing violently from its snake-like body. Scoffing under her breath as the ground shattered around her feet, pillars of unstable earth rising upwards, she stared at the insignificant man as multicolored spiritual energy enveloped her body. While the attack didn't possess even the slightest chance of killing her, only a fool would allow their opponent to hit them with something of that magnitude.
As she prepared to leap away, to wait in the shadows until the man exhausted himself on this pointless attack, the Kiryuin matriarch was caught completely off guard when twin bands of yellow light encircled her ankles, forcibly preventing her from moving.
"What is this?!"
"Those are special Anti-Life Fiber anklets, created by weaving several high-level Bakudo into their design," Aizen replied without hesitation, a sense of nostalgia in his voice, "But if you're looking to blame someone, might I suggest Kisuke Urahara? After all, they are his invention."
Ragyo didn't have the chance to respond when the spiritual dragon rushed forward with a deafening roar, its body curling through the rain. Raising Isshin's hardened Life Fiber blade just before the technique slammed into her body, she screamed as the subsequent explosion enveloped Tsubakidai Park in a burst of light.
...
"Hup!"
In a flurry of nearly imperceptible strikes the entrance to the Urahara Shop exploded inwards, showering the front of the store with large splinters of wood. Singing softly to herself as she cheerfully sauntered into the abandoned building, streams of water dripping from her blonde pigtails with every bouncing step, Nui Harime stared in disappointment at the rows of familiar merchandise lining the darkened shelves, "Golly, I was expecting something new and exciting. But it looks like absolutely nothing has changed!"
The floorboards creaked underneath her pink boots as the Grand Couturier stood in the middle of the empty store, inquisitive sapphire eyes searching for anything strange or out of the ordinary. Looking curiously over her shoulder when Lady Ragyo's presence pulsed through Karakura Town, her emotions as apparent as her beautiful hair, Nui Harime was torn from her boredom by a very interesting question, one that required her full and undivided attention.
"Gee…now who could be stupid enough to seriously annoy Lady Ragyo?"
Nui curled her manicured fingers through the handle of the Needle Blade as she pondered the abstract question. There were very few people on this miserable planet that Lady Ragyo would give the time of day, let alone use anything close to her full strength. The first person that came to mind was the old goat…but that was impossible! She not only watched the Bleach Bomb stitched into Hououmaru's raiment with love by Lady Ragyo explode point-blank in his face – she also felt it! No way the old goat was recovering from a blast like that any time soon! That left only Satsuki…
She nearly slapped herself for even thinking something so utterly ridiculous. As if Lady Ragyo would ever waste the time and effort killing someone so pathetic!
"I wonder where that cowardly shopkeeper could be hiding…"
With a cute yet dignified pout the Grand Couturier returned her attention to the task at hand, blonde pigtails bouncing with every step. She didn't have any time to daydream about the fun and interesting punishments Lady Ragyo was giving Satsuki and Junketsu. There were far more important things to worry about…such as torturing Kisuke Urahara for kidnapping Amu and brainwashing her into believing she was nothing more than a pathetic and worthless human.
The nerve of some humans!
Tucking the purple Needle Blade behind her back as she walked down an aisle, eyes scanning every darkened corner for the source of her irritation, Nui hummed thoughtfully, "Could he be…huh?
The front half of the Urahara Shop disintegrated in an explosion of crimson red flames when the Grand Couturier stepped into the middle of the intricate seal carved into the floor. As pieces of smoldering wood and metal rained down onto the drenched neighborhood, car alarms merged into an incoherent cacophony from the shock wave, Nui Harime emerged from the sneak attack smiling widely, not a single speck of dirt blemishing her cute pink dress.
"Now that was new and exciting!"
One leg curled against the hem of her dress when rain began pouring through the new hole in the ceiling, Nui giggled softly at the intimately familiar presence tickling in the back of her mind, "This might actually be interesting, don't you think?"
Puddles of water splashed beneath purple boots, identical in almost every fashion to her sister's, as Amu Harime walked into the partially destroyed store. Her duplicate Needle Blade held delicately in her fingers, she looked silently around the burning building before setting upon the floor, "I can sense Kisuke Urahara. He's…"
"…right underneath our feet," Nui finished with a cheerful flourish, sapphire eyes focusing on the somehow intact door leading to the back of the store, "It's really polite he's waiting for us in his super secret laboratory, you know! I thought we'd have to chase him down…getting involved in boring and predictable fights in the process…"
"…and upsetting Lady Ragyo when he fakes his death a second time," Amu concluded, ignoring the rain trickling down the back of her neck. It would be troublesome if they allowed Kisuke Urahara to escape, especially after all the horrible things he did to Lady Ragyo and the Original Life Fiber. A small tremor coursing through her fingers as lightning flashed in the heavens, Amu Harime looked at her sister and asked, "So what do you want to do to him first?"
"Hmm…"
Nui blinked owlishly at the question, one finger tapping cutely against her chin despite knowing exactly what her sister was thinking. Boy, sometimes she could be awfully envious of her sister's vivid imagination. Tilting her head sideways, blonde pigtails bouncing from the movement, she lowered her hand and smiled, "That's a really good question! Do you think we should start with his arms or legs?"
"Legs," Amu answered, her attention briefly drawn towards a burst of spiritual pressure in the distance, "We don't want him running away again."
"Good point!"
The Grand Couturier swept the Needle Blade around her body, the hardened Life Fiber weapon effortlessly slicing through several shelves, and pouted, "But I don't think Lady Ragyo wants us to waste too much time torturing Kisuke Urahara. While I really want to make him suffer, there are other things we need to do before leaving!"
"We should be careful," Amu stoically chastised her sister, who stuck her tongue out childishly in retaliation, "His knowledge on Life Fibers is dangerous. He did weave a Kamui like Junketsu, after all. Kisuke Urahara might be an annoying man but…"
"…underestimating him would be really stupid. Gosh, it's almost like you forgot what happened the last time I fought the man," Nui joked as she skipped behind the register, gripped the door with her manicured fingers and ripped the reinforced metal off its hinges, narrowly missing her unflinching sister as the bent frame crashed into the building across the street.
A tense breath left the Grand Couturier's lips as she cautiously strolled into the former living quarters, the bedrooms and kitchen having long been converted into a storage facility for Nudist Beach's Anti-Life Fiber weaponry. She couldn't believe her sister once lived in such squalor. It was disgusting! Frowning as she lightly kicked a metal box, the power enough to send it flying across the room, Nui's fingers curled tightly into a fist. That settled it! She was going to torture Kisuke Urahara until he couldn't even scream for mercy. And then she would make him suffer.
Nobody treats her sister like a pathetic human.
"This is new…"
Amu, only superficially aware of her sister's rampaging emotions, stared inquisitively at the elevator sitting in the middle of the living room. How odd…Nui hadn't mentioned this in her report to Lady Ragyo. Perhaps Kisuke Urahara constructed it after her sister nearly killed him? Her expression etched into an emotionless facade as she effortlessly sliced through the equipment, shards of metal and plastic bouncing harmlessly against her skin, she watched the lift fall into the dark abyss stretching below and muttered, "I can sense him…"
The Grand Couturier entwined her fingers with Amu's, an unnerving smile on her face, "So let's not keep that annoying man waiting even a second longer!"
Without another word the sisters leapt into the darkness, drill-like pigtails fluttering lightly in the rushing wind as they breached the secret underground training room. Simultaneously holding one hand against the hem of their dresses for decency as the ground rapidly approached, pupils dilating in the artificial sunlight permeating the chamber, they waited until the last second before flipping forward, Needle Blades flashing into existence as their boots tapped softly against the floor with nary a sound.
"How odd…"
Nui Harime ignored the expensive equipment scattered across the newly converted Nudist Beach underground base as she searched for Kisuke Urahara, her expression growing darker when she couldn't sense the man. Looking over her shoulder at Amu, who was equally annoyed with the shopkeeper's cowardice, she pouted, "Can you sense –"
"Greetings and salutations, valued customers!"
Sitting comfortably in a very familiar chair perched upon one of the few remaining outcroppings of rock he successfully convinced Olivier Mira Armstrong not to destroy, megaphone in one hand and Benihime's released form in the other, Kisuke Urahara waved enthusiastically at the two slightly annoyed teenagers. Raising the megaphone back to his mouth when the spiritual pressure began increasing, he cheerfully continued without missing a beat, "If I knew the Grand Couturier of Revocs wanted to pay my humble shop another visit I would have ordered Yoruichi to clean up the place. And it looks like you brought a new friend! How very interesting…not to mention exciting! But I'm afraid your rambunctiousness is too much for me to handle! So please vacate the premises or I'll be forced to call the police!"
"Humph! We weren't born yesterday, you know!"
Nui smirked at the atrocious man despite the undying hatred bubbling deep within her soul, "As if we're just going to let you escape! Not when…"
"…you need to die," Amu stoically finished the moment her sister trailed off, lips curling into a smile at Kisuke Urahara's growing frown, "Do you think your tricks are going to work this time? It took everything you had to escape my sister. And we've gotten a lot stronger thanks to Lady Ragyo. So there's only one thing we're really curious about…"
The Grand Couturier grinned at the shopkeeper, purposely drawing his full attention, before vanishing in a burst of speed alongside her sister. Crossing the immense distance between them in the blink of an eye before a flash of purple severed Kisuke Urahara's right arm, the limb flying away in a spray of blood, Nui laughed sadistically when Amu stabbed her own weapon into the annoying man's chest, "Did you honestly believe we'd let you sit around and think of a plan? We're not –"
She blinked in confusion, a surprised gasp leaving her mouth, when the dying shopkeeper's body suddenly inflated before popping, showering them with pieces of colored plastic and clothing. Her ears ringing when the sudden shift in momentum caused the Needle Blades to scratch against the chair, the hardened Life Fiber weapons leaving jagged streaks of sparks yet failing to damage the strange material, Nui furiously gnashed her teeth. What just happened?! There's no way that annoying man managed to avoid their attacks! She saw muscles and bone when she severed his arm!
So why…why did he explode like an overinflated balloon?!
Blonde pigtails bouncing as she landed next to Amu, her sister's growing frustration with the shopkeeper added to her own tempestuous emotions, the Grand Couturier twitched when a familiar voice yelled encouragingly in the distance, "Great coordination! If I wasn't this handsome and smart I surely would have been killed by your impressive teamwork!"
The former exiled shinigami didn't react when the two sisters launched into another attack. Waiting patiently when the Grand Couturiers charged forward with apparent recklessness and insanity, Kisuke grinned when a crimson barrier of rapidly circulating Life Fibers spun into being repelling their weapons in a display of vibrant colors. Holding a hand against his forehead when the synchronized twins crashed into the ground, their simultaneous impacts kicking up large quantities of dirt and smoke, the shopkeeper couldn't believe his luck.
And to think Isshin said his invention only had a ten percent chance of working!
Walking forward until he reached the edge of the Life Fiber barrier, one hand pressed firmly against the side of his mouth, Kisuke waited until the Grand Couturier emerged relatively unscathed from the rubble before shouting, "I know this might sound cliché and totally familiar…but did you honestly believe I'd let you attack me without having a plan in mind?"
Nui Harime sneered murderously at the shopkeeper as the abrasions blemishing her prim and proper appearance regenerated. She wasn't going to fall for his stupid tricks! Puffing her cheeks at the ridiculousness of the inverted situation, she stabbed the purple Needle Blade into the ground and pouted.
"Gosh! That sounds like something a nerdy know-it-all like you would say!"
She giggled excitedly when an extremely loud boom echoed in the background not a moment later, one leg curled backwards as the Life Fiber barrier protecting Kisuke Urahara from their attacks flickered out of existence, "But it looks like your little barrier wasn't any good! Breaking down after one measly little attack? And you call yourself a scientist?"
"Now that wasn't very nice," Kisuke sighed at the smoking remains of the Life Fiber emitter. It appeared miniaturizing the technology necessary to weave a stable personal Life Fiber barrier remained outside the realm of possibility for the time being.
"After all, I'm just a handsome candy-store owner who researches Life Fibers as a hobby," he ran a hand through his light-blond hair, the familiar bucket hat absent, "But it was still a good test run!"
Kisuke clapped his hands together before looking over his shoulder at the stoic visage of Ururu, a goofy smirk on his face, "So I'm curious about its effectiveness. When you attacked just now, did you experience any negative side effects?"
The subsequent silence, broken only by the dusty wind blowing through the mostly empty underground room, was all he needed to understand how much his deliberately childish and annoying mannerisms bothered Nui Harime and Ururu. From a cursory examination of their spiritual pressure, which possessed a quality unlike anything else, it appeared his previous hypothesis concerning Nui's psychological desire for a family, a dependency that could be attributed to her connection with Ururu, was completely on the mark. His lips pursed into a frown as he tapped Benihime against the ground, priming the Anti-life Fiber explosives throughout the underground base, Kisuke sighed under his breath.
"But I think that's enough fooling around…"
A serious glint appeared in the shopkeeper's eyes as he focused his attention upon Nui Harime. As the Grand Couturier's expression tightened, rage and fury building underneath her saccharine façade, he slowly raised his zanpakuto, "When Orihime healed your eye back to its original state it appears she also restored your mind and spiritual pressure. Fighting both you and Ururu will be difficult, if not impossible. In fact, I dare say this battle might actually be too much for Benihime to handle."
"However…"
Kisuke didn't flinch when the Grand Couturier stiffened, her fingers twitching at her sister's other name, "I've seen both your fighting style and technique. During our last battle I not only memorized how your doppelgangers fought but also the movements required for summoning them. Every subtle twitch of your muscles when using the Scissor Blade was broken down and studied. Your body might be comprised of Life Fibers but you still move like a human. I've even accounted for the distinct possibility you possess abilities similar to Ragyo Kiryuin – including Mental Refitting."
Staring coldly at the Grand Couturier, her face hidden in shadows, he finished, "This is reality, Nui Harime. There is nothing you can do to surprise me. So I strongly recommend you surrender."
"That was a great speech…"
The shopkeeper frowned when Ururu appeared next to the Grand Couturier, her emotionless sapphire eyes staring into his soul as her sister finished with a condescending smirk, "But gosh, do you hear yourself when you talk? Surrender to you? Boy, you sure have the annoying ability of knowing just how to piss us off! Especially when you're bluffing, you know!"
Leaning against Amu, their cheeks pressed tightly together, she stared intensely at Kisuke, "Like you really intend to use those pesky Anti-Life Fiber bombs on us! There's no way you would dare harm a single hair on my adorable sister's head!"
Kisuke tensed when the Grand Couturier cheerfully called his bluff, an unfortunate reaction that wasn't missed by either sister. As identical smiles pulled at the corners of her lips, the Needle Blades shining brightly in the artificial daylight, Amy tilted her head curiously at the shopkeeper, "We've learned a lot from Lady Ragyo over the last few weeks…"
"…just to kill you!"
Nui Harime laughed as they dashed across the underground chamber towards the infuriating man, his transforming blade ready to counter their attacks. How cute! He honestly thought his strange weapon could stand against Lady Ragyo's special Needle Blades! Leaping upwards while Amu continued forward, their eyes locking for a fraction of a second, she smiled manically at the shopkeeper, "So try not to die too quickly or this won't be fun at all!"
...
Satsuki Kiryuin couldn't restrain herself from grimacing as the massive eruption of spiritual energy shook the entirety of Tsubakidai Park, the immense shockwave nearly sending her flying backwards. Yet as she stabbed the auburn Scissor Blade into the ground, armored fingers curled around the weapon's handle while Junketsu's heels dug sharply into the muddy soil, the intelligence her mother praised, the mannerisms she was forced to learn, focused upon one point of contention. It was a simple notion, born out of necessary paranoia.
What abilities did this shinigami's zanpakuto possess?
Her brow creased into a perplexed frown at the pertinent question. The proper name of the weapon used by shinigami – the spiritual soldiers protecting the Soul Society and World of the Living from Hollows and other supernatural creatures – was familiar, a foregone conclusion given the unique population of Karakura Town. Kisuke Urahara had demonstrated the initial release of his zanpakuto during their single training session, a phrase he called 'Shikai.' Zanpakuto were truly remarkable weapons. And given their versatility, the shopkeeper's detailed explanation of their abilities and the events that recently transpired, only one conclusion explained her mother's erratic behavior.
His zanpakuto could confound one's senses, tricking them into attacking illusions.
What else could explain why Ragyo Kiryuin, a woman capable of detecting a single errant stitch in an otherwise perfect article of clothing, attacked and conversed with someone who didn't exist?
Scowling when she attempted to contact the Elite Four only to realize the receiver in her ear was gone, destroyed during her mother's assault, Satsuki reflexively removed the Scissor Blade from its unconventional scabbard when the shinigami appeared at her side, his body blurring into existence. As lightning flashed through the skies, painting the rain with streaks of purple, she held her tongue when he politely inquired, "Your Kamui is rather extraordinary. From the subtle distinctions in its spiritual presence I'm assuming Ragyo Kiryuin's Life Fibers were used to create it?"
An unexplainable sensation of disgust pulsed through Junketsu's threads at the man's close proximity, the intensity of the emotions enough to penetrate the barrier between the Kamui and her mind. Noting the Kamui's rampant distrust of the shinigami, the minute writhing of her Life Fibers growing somewhat uncomfortable, Satsuki begrudgingly responded, "Your assistance against my mother is appreciated…Sosuke Aizen."
The formerly unnamed shinigami smirked at the suspicious undertone, "Oh? I'm honestly surprised Ichigo Kurosaki told you about me."
Satsuki frowned at the smugness permeating Sosuke Aizen's incendiary comment. Closing her eyes and breathing deeply as Junketsu reverted from Zenkan in a flash of brilliant blue stars, the exhaustion of maintaining the advanced configuration abating, she ignored Junketsu's unending disgust for the shinigami, "Ichigo and his friends spoke in great detail about his time as a shinigami, including the battles against your arrancar army in Hueco Mundo…"
Pointing the Scissor Blade at the man, its auburn surface shimmering wetly in the rain, she defiantly shouted, "So explain your presence in Karakura Town, Sosuke Aizen!"
"Do you need to ask such a simple question?"
Aizen continued smirking despite the hardened Life Fiber weapon aimed at his heart, "We share the same objective – destroying both Ragyo Kiryuin and the Original Life Fiber. Any reprehensible actions I might have done in the past have no bearing on the present. All that matters is preventing the Celestial Cocoon Seed Planet from commencing. This, of course, requires your cooperation."
"You may have a point. Perhaps we do share the same goal," Satsuki suppressed an imperceptible shiver when Junketsu's disgust for the shinigami intensified, her Life Fibers rippling against her skin, before steeling her gaze, "But I do not trust you! It does not matter if you're cooperating to defeat my mother! One false step and I will personally end your life!"
"Of course."
The treacherous shinigami smiled at the teenager's spiritual energy – its potency comparable to Ichigo Kurosaki's after preventing Rukia Kuchiki's execution. Returning his attention to the smoke and dust obscuring the Kiryuin matriarch, he brushed imaginary dust off his clothing before calmly adding, "But your trust is not required, Satsuki Kiryuin. Simply know that I have no intention of betraying Nudist Beach or your childhood allies. Furthermore…"
His smirk broadened at the familiar shade of sapphire in Junketsu's multicolored eyes, "It appears Ichigo Kurosaki's Life Fibers have grown quite powerful."
Satsuki stiffened at the underlying meaning behind the shinigami's comment, his condescending expression hinting at the full breadth of his knowledge. But as she pointed the Scissor Blade at his face, Junketsu's shifting emotions pressing against her mind, a familiar voice drew her complete and undivided attention.
"Merde…"
Ragyo Kiryuin staggered forward, wisps of smoke rising from her burnt body. Gasping deeply, bringing air into her non-existent lungs, the Kiryuin matriarch's fingers trembled at the state of her flesh. Her favorite dress was tattered, reduced to mere scraps of burnt cloth barely covering her damaged body. And her left arm was simply gone, blasted into oblivion by the man's attack. Glaring venomously from her single remaining eye at the source of her current appearance, blood oozing from her right eye socket, her breathing steadily improving with every passing second, "How dare you! You insignificant speck of a man!"
"It's fascinating you're still able to speak, Ragyo Kiryuin."
A hint of genuine disappointment crossed Sosuke Aizen's face at the woman's injuries. He honestly believed Goryutenmetsu would inflict significantly more damage, enough to force the Kiryuin matriarch onto the defensive. Shrugging his shoulders at the completely infuriated woman, Kyouka Suigetsu gently dragging across the surface of a puddle as he marched across the destroyed landscape, Aizen smirked pleasantly, "A truly remarkable feat. I suppose I'll just have to stop holding back during my next attack."
Ragyo laughed at the empty threat, a menacing sound that sent shivers down her daughter's spine, as the damage to her body regenerated, flesh and clothing stitching themselves back together out of nothingness. Sighing as she folded her arms, the posture accentuating her bosom, Ragyo glared suspiciously at the approaching shinigami, her intense gaze never once shifting to her rebellious daughter. She had already underestimated his intelligence and cunning, a tragic mistake that cost her no small amount of pride.
But his psychological tactics would only work once.
"I'll admit the breadth of your scheme was surprising," Ragyo's lips curled softly into a smile, hatred and disdain bubbling just beneath the surface, "But do you believe illusions cast by your zanpakuto will be sufficient to defeat me?"
The arrogant man's perturbed expression caused a pleasurable shudder to ripple down her spine, "Dearest Nui reported extensively on Kisuke Urahara's weapon. But I assumed some of the more fanciful details were the result of an artiste's imagination. Clearly I owe the Grand Couturier an apology…"
Aizen felt a hand clamp around his face, the soft fingers digging harshly into his skin, when Ragyo Kiryuin crossed the vast distance between them in a single step. His eyes widening at the Kiryuin matriarch's sadistic smirk, her expression twisting malevolently at his surprise, he felt gravity temporarily invert itself when the woman pushed spiritual energy through the palm of her hand, sending him soaring backwards with a supersonic eruption of rainbow light. Crashing through one building after another as his trajectory sent him flying across Karakura Town, Aizen stiffened at the sound of a heel clacking against solidified air.
Looking over his shoulder in mild bewilderment at the Kiryuin matriarch, her heels clacking loudly with every purposeful step, he wheezed when she spun around and drove her hand into his stomach. His body bending around the outstretching limb from the sudden shift in momentum, several ribs breaking or shattering from the physical force, Aizen momentarily hovered in the rain before crashing into the middle of Karakura Community Park, his impact kicking up a large cloud of dust.
"How annoying."
Ragyo quirked an eyebrow when the dust dissipated, revealing the shinigami standing in the middle of a crater appearing little worse for wear. This was starting to get ridiculous. The man was persistent in his efforts, she would grant him that, but his illusions were the current problem. It was frustrating knowing she couldn't trust her eyes, ears, and, if his technique was as thorough as she assumed, the rest of her senses. But that wasn't what she loathed about the man. His zanpakuto might not possess the slightest chance of ending the fight in his favor – a victory impossible even if she allowed him to attack dozens of times – but the embarrassment of letting him blemish her appearance was unforgivable.
There was only one man allowed to caress her skin. And this annoyance …this insignificant and disgusting human…was not Isshin.
"That was the second time someone threw me across Karakura Town using nothing but physical strength," Aizen backhandedly complimented. Turning his attention back to Ragyo as lightning flashed through the skies, illuminating the outline of her body against the clouds, he brushed dust from his sleeves, "It's a rather ugly way to fight."
"Fitting words…"
Multicolored spiritual energy coalesced around her outstretched fingers as she scoffed at the shinigami's unimaginative critique. It didn't matter if the man could weave illusions from nothingness, confusing her senses with basic tricks. If she was unable to trust her eyes or ears, than she simply needed to destroy everything. And for that, she was immensely grateful the man was currently standing to the south, "But I'm afraid these games, as fun as they might be for you, must come to an end…"
"Does something feel off to you, Ragyo Kiryuin?"
A sensation best described as vertigo overwhelmed her senses when the world abruptly inverted, leaving her floating in the air upside-down above Karakura Town. Looking around in utter amazement, maroon eyes desperately trying to comprehend the bizarre situation, she stiffened when the shinigami took advantage of her confusion, appearing in front of her with Shunpo, standing upside-down by her perspective.
"Welcome to the Inverted World."
Ragyo raised her stolen sword to counter the man's painfully obvious strike only to gasp wetly when her neck was sliced open, blood spurting through the rain. Gasping as the wound regenerated, leaving her skin once more perfectly flawless, she sneered venomously when she noticed the bastard out of the corner of her eye, his mouth curled into an arrogant smirk before turning around. Rushing forward in a burst of speed, Isshin's blade aimed squarely at the shinigami's neck, she twitched angrily when her attack passed through empty air.
"Up is down…left is right…back is front…"
Aizen concisely reiterated Shinji Hirako's boast as he stabbed the Kiryuin matriarch, his zanpakuto cleanly piercing her throat, "But that's not all to the Inverted World. Not only are your senses of direction reversed, so are your reactions and movements…"
He leaned to the right, avoiding Ragyo Kiryuin's leftward swing, before firing a Byakurai through the woman's heart. As the smoking wound regenerated seconds later, but not before causing her to stagger backwards, Aizen finished, "How do you intend to fight me in your condition, Ragyo Kiryuin? Your power as a Life Fiber Hybrid is formidable but within the Inverted World all of that is meaningless. The skills and techniques you've learned – all to fight Isshin Kurosaki – are useless."
A strike at his neck, lethal in any other circumstance, was easily dodged when he reverted left and right back to normal in the illusion. Smirking in response to the unadulterated anger in Ragyo Kiryuin's eyes, the multicolored radiance from her hair shining ominously, he deftly leaned away from her second swing, "And in the likelihood you grew accustomed to the Inverted World, it's a simple matter to reverse individual directions."
Ragyo remained silent while the man explained his abilities, her lips pulled into annoyed snarl as the wounds adorning her flesh regenerated. His condescending behavior was starting to grow intolerable. Did he truly believe his so-called Inverted World was the perfect trump card? That it would turn the tides of battle in his favor? How foolish. There was nothing in his repertoire – no secret techniques or abilities – that granted him the capability to defeat one blessed by the Original Life Fiber. That he managed to extend the battle this long was a miracle.
But miracles, as they say, only happen once.
"An appropriate name for a fanciful technique."
Her breath hitched when the world shifted once more, up and down reverting back to normal without warning. Immediately concealing her surprise at the sudden inversion underneath annoyed indifference, Ragyo sighed wistfully as the streets of Karakura Town were once more underneath her heels, "But your constant posturing has grown tedious and boring. I did not willingly move this farce of a battle away from my foolish daughter only to fight a coward who relies upon illusions and tricks."
"A coward, you say?"
Aizen vanished in a step of Shunpo, his zanpakuto cleaving through Ragyo's taut stomach as the woman twisted in the opposite direction. Frowning imperceptibly at the angle behind her counterattack, how she swung upwards rather than downwards, he watched the blood coating Kyouka Suigetsu dissolve into its composite Life Fibers before inquiring, "What an oddly hypocritical observation, Ragyo Kiryuin."
He accentuated his response by severing the Kiryuin matriarch's right arm several inches above the elbow, blood spurting through the rain before multicolored Life Fibers stitched the limb back together. Propping a hand against Kyouka Suigetsu's blade when Ragyo countered with an ominously accurate strike, sparks flashing from the point of contact as he gently redirected her sword's momentum, Aizen retreated with Shunpo before continuing, "After all, the action you took regarding Isshin Kurosaki displayed a level of cowardice far beyond anything I could have possibly achieved."
An incredulous scoff escaped Ragyo's throat at the asinine comment, "How I chose to deal with Isshin is hardly any of your business."
"Now that's an interesting answer…"
The treacherous shinigami's smile broadened at the minute fluctuations in Ragyo Kiryuin's spiritual energy, "How long did it take you to decide to nearly kill the only man you loved with the most powerful Anti-Life Fiber weapon on the planet?"
A sound akin to cracking glass pierced through the deafening storm when the illusion controlling the Kiryuin matriarch's senses shattered, the subsequent backlash of spiritual energy burning his exposed skin. Immediately leaping away at the subtle twitches in Ragyo's muscles, a jagged tear opening across his uniform when the woman covered dozens of meters in a single step, he expertly parried the succeeding thrust to the heart, his mouth pursed into a grimace at the unfortunate turn of events. His expression twisting into a frustrated scowl at the ferocity behind Ragyo's emotional yet focused assault, her unrelenting attacks preventing him from countering, Aizen waited until she extended her arm backwards before silently rereleasing his zanpakuto.
The manipulation of Ragyo Kiryuin's human senses held momentarily – just long enough to confound her into believing he would counter her subsequent assault through an elaborate series of parries instead of strategically retreating – before shattering in a vibrant display of multicolored light. Surprised by the suddenness of the failure, Aizen's head snapped to the right when the Kiryuin matriarch's foot smashed into his cheek.
"How tragic."
Crimson momentarily stained her exquisite attire when Isshin's hardened Life Fiber blade blurred around the man's nearly perfect guard, cutting deeply into his forearm. Chuckling as she gracefully leaned around his vicious counterattack, lips twisted into a pleased smile when the shinigami's zanpakuto passed harmlessly several inches from her face, Ragyo's eyes widened sadistically at his frustrated expression, "It would appear you're nothing without those annoying –"
A thick gurgle prematurely ended the Kiryuin matriarch's comment when the man's zanpakuto sliced deeply through the side of her neck, torrents of pressurized blood spraying from the gaping wound. Glowering in disbelief at his audacity as her Life Fibers rapidly knitted faux flesh and muscle back together, Ragyo didn't hesitate to return the shinigami's flagrant blasphemy with interest, the shocked expression in his previously condescending eyes causing her heart to skip a beat. Caressing her cheek when the annoying excuse for a man leapt away in a burst of speed, one hand tightly gripping the tattered shreds of the uniform covering the bleeding wound on his chest, she removed his filthy blood from Isshin's sword with a flick of her wrist and sighed pleasurably.
"Fighting you has been an interesting experience…"
Ragyo's heels clacked loudly as she purposely turned away from the wounded shinigami, her attention drawn toward the thousands of brilliant explosions showcasing Nudist Beach's ongoing battle against her magnificent COVERS, "But I do have a schedule to keep…and it unfortunately does not involve continuing this farce of a battle."
"It appears my initial assessment was mistaken."
Aizen ignored the subtly threatening undertone in the Kiryuin matriarch's response as he held the tattered edges of Kisuke Urahara's specialized cloak over his chest, rivulets of blood seeping from between his fingers, "A naïve underestimation. But I suppose that's really my fault. Once I released my zanpakuto it was simply a matter of time before your Life Fibers adapted to Kyouka Suigetsu's perfect hypnosis. There was nothing I could have possibly done to prevent this inevitable outcome. Yet I'm still disappointed."
Ragyo frowned at the nonsensical statement, "Disappointed?"
"It took your Life Fibers approximately five minutes to adapt themselves to Kyouka Suigetsu's illusions," Aizen pleasantly explained without the slightest trace of concern. Allowing his focus to momentarily be drawn towards Kisuke Urahara's residence, the familiar spiritual energy escaping from the cracks in the man's nearly perfect barrier bringing a smug grin to his face, he turned back to Ragyo Kiryuin when her spiritual pressure pulsed with annoyance, "I projected at least ten minutes before immunization. Oh well…"
Rain dripped from Kyouka Suigetsu as he shifted stances, crimson staining the front of his uniform, "I'll simply need to defeat you the hard way."
"How amusing," Ragyo deadpanned, any lingering interest in the conversation disappearing under the weight of her busy schedule. There was no doubt in her mind the shinigami was planning to continue opposing the Original Life Fiber despite the grievous wound barely concealed beneath the tattered pieces of his atrocious uniform. But she would not succumb to any further embarrassing taunts.
Not even about that woman.
"But let's be honest…"
Ragyo's voice was frigid, containing the sum total of her overwhelming disgust for the shinigami, as she raised her left hand, multicolored spiritual energy rapidly coalescing between her outstretched fingers. Smiling coldly as shadows danced across her body, painting her immaculate dress in shades of violet and green, she chuckled at the man's silence, "This fight won't end until someone is dead. And despite your best effort, a truly laudable performance, you simply cannot compare to someone blessed by the –"
She was unprepared when it pulsed through the deepest recesses of her mind – an overbearing sensation that caused her Life Fibers to shiver in absolute disgust. Mouth slightly agape when the man's bloodstained cloak fluttered open in the wind, exposing the glowing multicolored sphere embedded in his sternum, Ragyo felt the Original Life Fiber's inhuman anger permeate every thread of her body, twisting her shocked surprise into unadulterated hatred.
"What…is…that…thing?"
Rendered speechless by the disgust radiating from the abhorrent object, quivering manicured fingers clenched furiously around Isshin's blade, Ragyo watched in complete bafflement when the sphere pulsed with tainted energy. How dare he! Restraining herself from immediately destroying the shinigami when multicolored cracks spread across his body, flesh and muscle regenerating and leaving his skin unblemished, she furiously gnashed her teeth.
"You…insolent…man!"
The shinigami's startled expression when she vanished, multicolored spiritual energy enveloping her body in a brilliant aura as she stepped between successive raindrops, brought the Kiryuin matriarch neither comfort nor pleasure. Human emotions could not convey her unmatched loathing for the profanely insulting man. Perfectly manicured fingers curled around Isshin's shimmering blade as she smashed her knee into the shinigami's exposed stomach, her body twisting counterclockwise as the subsequent explosion of spiritual energy repulsed the surrounding storm, Ragyo ignored the zanpakuto slicing diagonally down her chest. Pirouetting as the wound regenerated in a flash of rainbow light, Isshin's sword arcing through the rain with the intent of severing the man's head, she scowled when he ducked and pressed a hand against her stomach.
"Bakudo Number Seventy Nine – Kuyo Shibari."
Her muscles convulsed when nine spheres of pulsing spiritual energy flickered into existence, the high-level Bakudo completely arresting her ability to move. Fingers tightly gripping Isshin's sword as she strained against the invisible bonds, indignant fury causing the multifaceted brilliance from her silver to exponentially multiply, Ragyo focused her unadulterated hatred upon the muttering shinigami, "How dare you tarnish the Original Life Fiber! Do you think this will –"
"Bakudo Number Sixty One – Rikujokoro."
An exorbitant amount of blood spewed from between her clenched teeth when six thin shafts of golden light skewered her waist at alternating angles. Loose bangs of silver hair falling over her face as she hunched forward, large blotches of crimson staining her flaunting dress, Ragyo felt an eldritch rage building in the depths of her soul. Her plans…dealing with the Grand Couturier's artistic whims…none of that mattered. All she wanted to do…all the Original Life Fiber wanted to do…was tear this abhorrent man to pieces. And as multicolored light enveloped her constrained form, bathing Karakura Town in ominous colors, Ragyo's heel clacked as she took a single step toward the shinigami.
"How did you obtain my Life Fibers?!"
Ragyo Kiryuin's regal voice warbled, the distinctly inhuman tone causing her opponent to stiffen when it shifted, "I remember you! You…who interfered with the sacred ritual! What did an insignificant creature like you do to my Life Fibers?! Something like that shouldn't exist by human hands! Tell me how you stole –"
"Bakudo Number Ninety Nine, Part One – Kin."
His hands clasped together, fingers intricately interlocked despite the modest desperation when the Kiryuin matriarch shattered through the first two Bakudo, Aizen grimaced from the strain on his soul as cords of spiritual fabric spun into existence. Weaving more spiritual energy into the technique when Ragyo's movement was arrested, her stolen blade halted only inches from his heart, he watched as her arms were painfully wrenched behind her back, muscles quivering against the unnatural constriction. An uncomfortable coldness racing down his spine at the expression in the Kiryuin matriarch's eyes, the inhuman hatred and loathing disturbing on several levels, he deliberately raised a finger skyward as an aura of darkness surrounded his body.
"The oozing crest of corruption! The arrogant vessel of madness! Deny the seething urge to let things stun and flicker! Disrupt the sleep! The crawling princess of iron!"
"YOU DARE!"
An aura of multicolored light flared brilliantly from Ragyo as she tore through the spiritual constraints, the scraps of fabric previously binding her limbs disintegrating underneath the sheer majesty of her spiritual pressure. Steam wafting from Isshin's sword as she crossed the vast distance to the shinigami within a single flash of lightning, her departure kicking off multiple consecutive supersonic explosions, Ragyo snarled at the serene expression in his eyes. Her fingers twitching as she vertically bisected the man before he could react, the force behind her fully-powered swing carved a massive trench across the streets of Karakura Town hundreds of feet below, the Kiryuin matriarch gasped when the shinigami burst apart in a shower of colored plastic.
"The eternally self-destruction doll of mud! Unite! Repulse! Fill the earth and know your own powerlessness!"
Looking over her shoulder, eyes fixated upon the man standing unharmed in the rain, Ragyostiffened when he dramatically declared, "Hado Number Ninety – Kurohitsugi!"
The already tumultuous skies darkened when gravity flexed, pulling simultaneously on her body in multiple directions. Staggering heavily under the immense pressure as thousands of shadowy boxes coalesced into existence, space and time warped by their very presence, Ragyo slammed a defiant heel against the air with a resounding clack. Her mouth twisted into an infuriated snarl as she swung Isshin's sword, intent on destroying the technique before it could form, she gasped in astonishment when her arm disintegrated upon touching one of the walls, dissipating in a spray of blood.
"Farewell, Ragyo Kiryuin."
Aizen smirked in mild amusement at the Kiryuin matriarch's furious expression as the obscenely difficult Kurohitsugi enclosed around her body, dozens of spiritual lances perforating the enclosed space. It had been concerning when Ragyo Kiryuin – or rather the Original Life Fiber – reacted poorly to the Hogyoku, granting her enough spiritual energy and strength to finish the battle, an ending that could not be allowed. However, the primal hatred displayed by the eldritch creature controlling the Kiryuin matriarch's body like a puppet gave him an advantage he used to devastating effect – clarity of mind.
Still, it wouldn't be acceptable to become complacent simply because he momentarily stalled Ragyo Kiryuin. Even a fully incanted Kurohitsugi lacked the necessary requirements for destroying someone twisted by the Original Life Fiber. It would take a more…direct approach.
But unfortunately he remained unable to properly wield hardened Life Fiber weapons.
Winding streaks of white and purple illuminated the overcast skies as he patiently awaited Ragyo Kiryuin's emergence from the Kurohitsugi, senses strained to their absolute limits to prevent any surprises. It took an exorbitant amount of spiritual energy for high-level Hado to overwhelm the natural absorption of the woman's powerful Life Fibers. But with her Life Fibers having adapted to Kyouka Suigetsu's illusions, more brutish tactics were necessary. And if that failed? If Ragyo Kiryuin's synchronization with the Original Life Fiber proved more than tactics and countermeasures could handle?
Well…he could always release his Bankai.
Strategically furthering himself from the constrained woman when minute cracks began spreading across the Kurohitsugi, thin clouds of water splashing beneath his boots with every step, he only had a moment to comprehend the Hado shattering like glass before a hand was thrust into his chest.
"W-What?"
Ragyo breathed heavily, her blood-filled mouth clenched tightly, as she plunged her sole remaining hand into the abhorrent man's sternum. She couldn't remember experiencing such humiliation! It almost put that woman's actions to shame! But as she stood before the shocked shinigami, more than half of her body simply gone and blood dripping from what limbs and faux organs remained intact, the Kiryuin matriarch allowed a brief but tense smirk to grace her bloody lips.
"La vie est drôle…"
Multicolored spiritual energy flared brightly in the rain, blinding anyone foolish enough to witness their battle, as Ragyo callously removed her arm from the shinigami's body.
The Hogyoku clasped possessively in her fingers.
...
"MEN! DOU! KOTE!"
Uzu Sanageyama shouted passionately at the top of his lungs as he attacked Yukio Hans Vorarlberna's final remaining Life Fiber creation, his shinai smashing into the wyvern's head, claws and stomach. Steam blasting forth from the cracks covering his Blade Regalia Mark III as he continuously attacked the creature, its scales and bones shattering under the intense assault, he promptly jumped away when jets of crimson flames erupted from the wyvern's jaws, the heat transforming the pavement into molten tar. Armored fingers tightly clenching the shinai when the creature growled, the damage to its body regenerating, he clenched his teeth as emerald light shone from his regalia.
"Shingan…TENSENZUKI!"
The former Athletic Committee Chair's body shimmered brightly before vanishing, leaving the wyvern looking around in confusion before thousands of lightning-fast blows slammed against every visible inch of its body. Pushing his Blade Regalia even further beyond its limitations when the Life Fiber creature weathered the storm, its claws cutting through several afterimages while leaving a series of rending trenches in the ground, Sanageyama avoided another blast of superheated flames and cursed. Damn it! This wasn't working! But like hell he was going to let an overgrown lizard beat him!
"I'm not done with you yet!"
Leaping high into the rain as lightning flashed overhead, Sanageyama slammed his arms together and shouted, "TAKE THIS! Hissatsu: Isshin Zenzanken!"
The two-handed strike tore through the Life Fiber creature's incredibly tough defenses without slowing down, first shattering its skull into dust before severing it completely down the middle. Panting heavily from exhaustion as he landed back on the ground, the shinai in his hands shattered down to the hilt, Sanageyama grinned when the wyvern collapsed with one last defiant roar, its body dissolving into Life Fibers.
Whoever said regalia couldn't stand against raiment was talking out of their ass.
Sanageyama's mood soured as he tossed aside his shattered shinai, the wooden blade bouncing against the street. It was sheer luck that his Blade Regalia was still in one piece, minus several cracks and scratches. Nobody, especially Jakuzure, could know an overgrown fire-breathing lizard had almost eaten him…twice.
"You sure took your sweet time…"
An eyebrow twitched when Yoruichi Shihoin playfully bypassed his Shingantsu like it was nothing. He could sense spiritual pressure now, damn it! So how the hell did Yoruichi still manage to slip through his guard? His Blade Regalia creaking as he faced the woman, her confident posture and cocky attitude saying enough, Sanageyama grumbled when a group of nudist soldiers appeared carrying Yukio's unconscious naked body, "Come on! Don't tell me you already beat that snot-nosed punk!"
"Ha!"
Yoruichi leaned back and laughed, "After all the times I've beaten you into the ground you think an overconfident brat wearing fancy clothes could take me down?"
The former Athletic Committee Chair refused to fall for the woman's painfully obvious taunt. He couldn't let Yoruichi Shihoin get under his skin, especially after what happened last time. Flicking his wrist as Jakuzure flew overhead, dozens of musical explosions singing in his ears, Sanageyama hefted the newly formed shinai onto his shoulder, "Tch…like there's anyone in Xcution that could kick your ass! You went toe-to-toe with the freaking Grand Couturier!"
"That's right," Yoruichi proudly folded her arms at the compliment, "But you've gotten better, Sanageyama. Your speed is far above the average lieutenant shinigami."
He smirked beneath his regalia's enclosed helmet at the hard-earned praise only for Yoruichi's next words to completely shatter the mood, "But Ichigo's at least six times faster."
"Like hell he is!"
Sanageyama pointed his shinai at the dark skinned shinigami, the subtle threat only causing her cheshire grin to broaden, "Ichigo Kurosaki is the final stepping stone! The last person I need to defeat before facing Lady Satsuki! There's no way I'm slower than him! Not after your training, Yoruichi Shihoin!"
"That's the spirit!"
Yoruichi chuckled at the teenager's easily manipulated frustration when it came to Ichigo's rate of progress, her smile only faltering when something flickered across the periphery of her senses. That was Junketsu's strange spiritual pressure, which could only mean Satsuki was fighting her mother. This was bad. She might have trained under Isshin, learned how to work alongside her Kamui, but Satsuki didn't have the slightest chance of defeating Ragyo Kiryuin.
She was going to die…or worse.
"Sanageyama…"
The teenager frowned at the unusual seriousness in her voice, "Don't let a single COVERS into Karakura Town. Understood?"
An excruciating long moment passed in absolute silence, broken only by the pattering of rain upon the drenched cityscape, before everything was illuminated beneath an intense burst of light. Time screeching to a halt as she looked over her shoulder, amber eyes narrowing to pinpoints, Yoruichi stared in astonishment at the serpentine spiritual dragon coiled through the skies to the west. Goryutenmetsu? But that was impossible! There wasn't anyone in Karakura Town remotely capable of casting that Hado!
Yoruichi quickly braced herself, arms crossed over her face, when the crackling technique roared loudly over the torrential downpour and slammed into the ground, its impact sending a shockwave rippling across the city. Did the Soul Society finally arrive to deal with Ragyo Kiryuin? Could Kisuke have discovered why they hadn't stopped her sooner? As the light from the Hado lessened, bathing the city in a temporary glow, the familiar spiritual pressure accompanying the technique caused her stomach to sink. No…it couldn't be! How did he escape from Muken? But more importantly…
Why was he fighting Ragyo Kiryuin?!
"What the hell was that?"
Sanageyama's mouth hung open beneath his Blade Regalia's helmet, a single bead of nervous sweat sticking to his cheek at the monstrous spiritual pressure washing across Karakura Town. He hadn't the slightest clue what the hell just happened but it was powerful enough to overwhelm his Shingantsu, leaving him effectively blind. His jaw clenched tightly in pain as his enhanced senses slowly returned, driving what felt like nails into his skull, he staggered backwards when Yoruichi Shihoin's cell phone rang, the piercing ringtone agony to his eardrums.
Searching through her pockets as the teenager cursed profusely, an eyebrow twitching as his opinion of her ringtone, Yoruichi raised the cell phone to her mouth before shouting at the top of her lungs, "What the hell were you thinking?!"
"I take it things are going well?"
Kisuke Urahara grimaced comically at the sharp ringing deep within his ear, courtesy of Yoruichi shouting directly into the phone. Now that was quite rude. Preemptively holding the phone at arms length when she furiously rebutted his question, her annoyance echoing across the underground chamber, he patiently waited until she finished before replying, "I have no idea what you're talking about, Yoruichi."
A conniving grin stretched across his face at Yoruichi's flustered response. Sitting with his back propped against an overturned Nudist Beach truck, columns of smoke rising from the burning vehicle, he ignored the blood oozing from his grievously wounded shoulder and chuckled cheerfully, "Goryutenmetsu, you say? I'm flattered, but you're looking at the wrong guy! Right now I'm playing a high-stakes game of hide and seek with Nui Harime and Ururu. And let's just say they don't play fairly…"
"You know that's not what I meant!"
Yoruichi resisted the desire to crush the phone in her hand at Kisuke's half-hearted excuse. Stiffening when another eruption of spiritual pressure caught her attention, she caught only a glimpse of flickering rainbow light beyond the rooftops before shouting into the phone, "Why is Sosuke Aizen fighting Ragyo Kiryuin?!"
"Oh…that…"
Kisuke scratched his chin at the question, one finger tapping against the phone as he looked around the back of the burning truck, "Well…it's actually very simple. It was obvious that Ragyo Kiryuin would use a Bleach Bomb against Isshin. But luckily I planned for this scenario the moment I learned of his relationship with the woman! So relax, Yoruichi! If there's anyone that hates Ragyo Kiryuin more than her own daughter…it's Aizen."
It took Yoruichi a moment to process the absurdity behind her friend's reasoning. She'd known Kisuke for hundreds of years, fought alongside him through thick and thin, but freeing Sosuke Aizen, one of the worst criminals in the history of the Soul Society, made no sense! Angrily turning around when she noticed Sanageyama eavesdropping on her conversation, she lowered her voice to a hushed whisper and seethed, "Why didn't you get the Gotei 13? The Captain Commander would have –"
"The Gotei 13 won't be coming to the rescue."
"It's quite difficult to explain over the phone," Kisuke momentarily paused, his attention shifting towards something in the background, before continuing, "But something's stopping the Soul Society from moving against Ragyo Kiryuin or Life Fibers. And it works both ways. If I hadn't installed a secret backdoor into Muken, freeing Aizen would have been all but impossible."
Yoruichi stiffened at the explanation, the reflexive tightening of her fingers further cracking the phone. Isshin had known about the Soul Society's problem from the very beginning. It made perfect sense. His warning when she attempted to investigate the Soul Society, why she hadn't sensed any shinigami for several months and why the Gotei 13 refused to respond against Ragyo Kiryuin had been suspicious at the time. But if Life Fibers somehow severed the World of the Living and Seireitei, preventing the Jigokucho from traveling through the Senkaimon, it was possible the Gotei 13 were fully aware of Revocs…
She disappeared in a flicker of Shunpo, Sanageyama dodging in the opposite direction, when a massive white fist smashed into the ground, the impact sending a large plume of smoke rising above the skyline.
Reappearing moments later on a building down the street, the eight nudists she rescued disoriented but otherwise fine, Yoruichi glowered at the colossal COVERS looming above the rooftops. Her mouth twisted into a disgusting sneer when the Life Fiber creature turned around, displaying the thousands of innocent victims fueling its power, she raised the phone to her ear when another two COVERS landed nearby, their attention completely upon her.
"I'm going to kick your ass for this, Kisuke."
Kisuke's mood soured despite Yoruichi's playful, and expected, death threat. The inhuman roar in the background was far more important and concerning. He might have utmost faith in her fighting prowess but one shouldn't become complacent when dealing with Life Fibers. That was simply asking for trouble. Ragyo Kiryuin's monstrous spiritual pressure, which he could sense through the barriers built into the underground chamber, was proof that releasing Aizen from Muken, thereby earning the Captain Commander's legendary wrath, was the pragmatic and right decision.
It was necessary if humanity and the World of the Living were to survive.
Still, it wouldn't hurt to research whether normal Life Fibers could withstand Ryujin Jakka's flames.
He sighed in resignation when the proximity Bakudo centered on his current location detected two sets of synchronized moments. It appears his belligerent guests already learned how to partially suppress their spiritual pressure, which complicated things. They should have fallen for a few more of his tricks before reaching this point. Tucking his phone away before vanishing in a flash of Shunpo, his body flickering away moments before the purple Needle Blade cleaved through the burning vehicle, Kisuke grumbled at the subsequent eruption of spiritual energy tearing lengthwise across the ground.
At this rate his candy store would be destroyed!
Frowning slightly when a twisting crescent of purple spiritual energy exploded from the flames, a dull thump reverberating across the underground chamber when he redirected it back towards the Grand Couturier using the Anti-Life Fiber material coating his geta, Kisuke grunted when another Needle Blade slashed deeply into his leg. As he retreated away from his daughter, Benihime lightly cracked from extensive contact with the hardened Life Fiber weapon, he pondered how Ururu slipped through his guard so easily. Contrary to expectations he wasn't playing with Nui Harime or Ururu. Yet strangely he hadn't sensed her spiritual pressure until after she attacked.
Grey eyes narrowing when Ururu spun the Needle Blade around her wrist, the purple weapon twisting around Benihime in a shower of sparks, he promptly ducked and placed his left hand against her stomach, "Hado Number One – Sho."
A concussive explosion of kinetic energy accompanied Ururu's involuntarily descent, her body first slamming into the ground before crashing through several vehicles. Staring grimly at his daughter when she leapt out of the smoke and dust, her appearance unblemished despite the intensity of the impact, Kisuke quickly switched Benihime to his left hand and spun around, parrying Nui Harime's weapon in a flash of light. His arm quivering from the superhuman strength coursing through the Grand Couturier's Life Fibers, the strained saccharine smirk twitching at the corners of her mouth somewhat unsettling, he attempted to strategically retreat only for the teenager to immediately close the distance.
"Gosh, you don't look so good!"
Nui Harime laughed at the shopkeeper's cowardly behavior, the sound hollow and mirthless, as she struck his zanpakuto again and again, sparks illuminating her manic eyes in shades of purple. Smiling psychotically at the visible cracks adorning the man's blade, she leaned forward and exclaimed, "And your sword seems awfully fragile, you know! It looks like it's about to shatter in your hand!"
"Oh…you think so?"
Kisuke braced his left hand against Benihime, the additional leverage halting the Grand Couturier's relentless advance, "It's hard to compare Benihime to your Needle Blade. But she still has a few tricks up her sleeves. Nake, Benihime."
"Golly, you don't need to tell me twice," Nui giggled as she twirled around the crimson wave of energy, manicured fingers curled through the Needle Blade's handle. Humming softly when the technique collided with the ground, creating a massive explosion that rustled her blonde pigtails, she tilted her head to the side and pouted, "But that sure was unexpected!"
"Why thank you," Kisuke smirked, traces of crimson clinging to Benihime, "Now if it's not too much trouble, could you apologize to Benihime? Your comment hurt her feelings."
"You've got quite a few screws loose, you know!"
Nui clapped her hands together at the shopkeeper's audacity, the Needle Blade awkwardly propped against her shoulder. Pursing her lips cutely, the façade of mirth barely concealing the utter contempt she felt, the Grand Couturier mulled over the comment before smiling darkly, "But non!"
Pain blossomed through Kisuke's body when the muscles and ligaments in his right shoulder were severed. Staring in disbelief when he noticed Ururu standing at the periphery of his vision, blood dripping from her Needle Blade, he grimaced as everything came together, seemingly uncorrelated pieces of evidence making perfect sense in his mind. At their level of synchronization Nui Harime and Ururu possessed identical spiritual pressures. There was no distinction between them, making it impossible to sense Ururu whenever he was fighting the Grand Couturier and vice versa.
But in his defense, most of what he knew about Twin Life Fiber Entanglement came from second-hand sources.
"Kamisori, Benihime."
An arc of wavering crimson energy exploded against the twin sisters as Kisuke took advantage of their childish delight at rendering his right arm useless. Immediately retreating from the Grand Couturier using Shunpo, his body flickering with every step across the underground chamber, Kisuke frowned when he touched down on the ground only to noticing Ururu and Nui already waiting for him.
"Gee, just how many attacks do you have up your sleeves?"
Nui Harime giggled at the shopkeeper's bloody condition, his ragged appearance causing her heart to flutter, "Because your sword is just full of surprises!"
"Don't sell yourself short, Nui Harime."
Kisuke sighed dramatically while switching Benihime to his other hand, "Twin Life Fiber Entanglement is a rather useful ability. It's virtually impossible for me to tell you and Ururu apart."
"Flattery will get you nowhere!"
Nui entwined her fingers with Amu's, their Life Fibers pulsing in synchronization as she cheerfully threatened, "But calling Amu by that ugly and atrocious name is just rude! It's like you didn't kidnap her! So if it's not too much trouble…"
"…could you just shut up and die?" Amu finished, her mouth twisting into a faint scowl, "It's really annoying listening to you talk…"
"…but we should be super careful," Nui interrupted with a dramatic flourish. Smiling widely while pointing the Needle Blade at Kisuke's heart, its purple coloration shimmering with a bright metallic luster, she enthusiastically added, "Giving this guy any time to think is just asking for trouble!"
Amu looked off into the distance, dulled eyes focusing on Lady Ragyo's moving presence, "This has been a lot of fun but we should just kill him. I'm sure Lady Ragyo will be happy when we bring back his head."
"I'm starting to think you two don't like me very much…"
A breeze gusted through the underground chamber as Kisuke collapsed onto the ground, the apparently defeatist behavior causing the Grand Couturier to blink in confusion. Stabbing Benihime between his feet despite the threat poised by the sisters, he raised a finger in front of his face and smirked, "But you shouldn't celebrate just yet, Nui Harime. There's quite a lot you don't know about me…including the secret behind my zanpakuto."
"That's really interesting."
Sarcasm dripped from the Grand Couturier's voice as she marched towards the shopkeeper, "But nothing you say will –"
"Every zanpakuto possesses a Shikai - initial release – which gives their wielder access to several unique abilities. I'm sure you're more than familiar with Benihime by now," Kisuke motioned to his zanpakuto as a faint crimson aura caused his coat to gently flutter, "But shouldn't something with an initial release also have a final release?"
Nui and Amu vanished before the enigmatic shopkeeper finished speaking, the ground cracking beneath their feet. They refused to let Kisuke Urahara pull another cowardly trick! Not when they were so close to making him pay for everything! Her mouth twisting into an ugly expression of utmost hatred, the Grand Couturier felt her sister's Life Fibers resonating in her soul when they attacked the man, Needle Blades shining brightly in the artificial daylight. Sapphire eyes, which previously gleamed with an unholy mirth, widening when spiritual pressure exploded from his body, Nui froze when Kisuke Urahara grabbed his zanpakuto.
"Sorry, but you had your chance," Kisuke somberly muttered, the crimson aura surrounding his body growing deeper, "Bankai: Kannonbiraki Benihime Aratame."
...
Ragyo callously tore her sole remaining arm out of the shinigami's chest in a shower of blood, the multicolored sphere of Life Fibers glowing brightly in her charred fingers.
"La vie est drôle…"
The phrase contained not a trace of mirth, emerging from her bloody lips with a snarling lisp. Panting heavily as the battle arrived at the predestined conclusion, the burns and wounds adorning her flesh glowing with multicolored radiance, she smirked haughtily at the man's agonized expression. How appropriate. Already she could feel the righteous anger and fury at his blasphemous transgressions against the Original Life Fiber fading away, replaced with simple indignation. Standing tall as her body regeneration, flesh and clothing weaving out of nothingness, Ragyo narrowed her eyes when something emerged from the sphere clenched in her fingers.
"Quelle..."
Confusion etched itself upon her features at the white material flowing from the Life Fiber sphere, coating her fingers and hand in skin-tight clothing that accentuating every curve. As the substance moved towards her wrist, flowing like water across her skin, Ragyo's bewilderment was rapidly replaced by fury and loathing. How dare something so ugly and tainted adorn her! Her lips twisted into a snarl at the sphere's arrogance, that it dared cover one blessed by the Original Life Fiber with such atrocious and grotesque clothing, her eyes briefly flashed before the clothing shattered into dust.
"Nothing so unseemly has the right to adorn my body."
She sneered at the Life Fiber sphere, its multicolored luster dimming beneath her willpower, before returning her attention to the heavily injured man standing at death's door. That he was still standing despite the gaping wound in his chest was impressive. But his refusal to die was beginning to wear on her nerves. Heels clacking softly as she folded her arms under her bosom, Isshin's sword momentarily misplaced following the shinigami's previous technique, Ragyo smirked condescendingly, "As for you…it's remarkable you were able to use this thing's power, however corrupted and vile it may be. So I suppose congratulations are in order…"
Smug arrogance crept into her voice at the shinigami's defiant expression, a stark contrast to his current condition. Momentarily glancing at the three massive COVERS attempting to deal with Yoruichi Shihoin, the woman's power and ability deserving no less, Ragyo chuckled with barely repressed pleasure before continuing, "Yet you never stood a chance. This thing was the only reason you managed to last so long. But much like someone passing off faux designs as Revocs' latest fall fashion apparel, the power you stole was a pale mockery of someone blessed by the Original Life Fiber!"
Her fist smashed against Aizen's face before the shinigami could muster a defense, the manic look in her eyes noticeable within the accompanying flash of lightning.
"SO HOW…"
She punched him in the nose, breaking cartilage in a spray of blood.
"…DARE YOU…"
Ragyo shouted at the top of her lungs as she kept punching the shinigami, droplets of blood intermingling with the falling rain.
"…USE SUCH A THING…"
The multicolored undertone shining from her hair brightened immensely when she grabbed the shinigami's face and squeezed.
"…AGAINST ME!"
Her mouth twisted into a snarl as the man was sent spiraling to the ground in an eruption of power, his undignified impact kicking up an enormous plume of smoke that rose above the rooftops of Karakura Town. Streams of water trailed down Ragyo's face as she stared at the destruction far below, her exasperation at the man's blasphemy slowly abating. Grimacing at the Life Fiber sphere resting in the palm of her hand, the dulled orb desperately trying to shimmer with its previous radiance, she sighed deeply and flicked her right hand outwards, multicolored Life Fibers weaving from her fingers.
A pleased sigh escaping her throat when Isshin's sword returned to her grasp, Ragyo glowered at the shinigami standing in the devastated park, "And with that being said…"
Ragyo crossed the distance separating them as she trailed off, her heels clacking next to the shinigami in the blink of an eye. Holding Isshin's blade directly above the annoying man's neck, the sword poised to skewer his throat from back to front, she grinned sadistically, "Give my regards to Kisuke Urahara when –"
She effortlessly dodged the concentrated bolt of lightning fired from the shinigami's finger, the corners of her mouth twitching at being interrupted by someone who didn't know their place. Glaring at the man when he leapt off the ground faster than someone with lethal wounds had any right to move, electricity crackling sharply around his zanpakuto while another annoying spell formed on his opposite hand, Ragyo patiently waited until the very last second before raising her forearm, the blade shattering against bare flesh.
"Pathetic…"
Sadistic amusement flashed through Ragyo's eyes as she smashed her heel into the shinigami's torn stomach, the accompanying pulse of spiritual energy sending him bouncing out of the crater. Would he ever learn? Running a finger down her dress, the living fabric responding perfectly to her touch, she slowly marched after the shinigami, "But you brought this on yourself. Your blasphemy against Life Fibers…against the Original Life Fiber…for daring to create something so abhorrent and vile cannot be tolerated. And while I certainly enjoyed our time together I do have a schedule to keep…"
The surrounding storm vaporized as multicolored spiritual energy enveloped Isshin's sword. She was finished fooling around with the shinigami. Every time she gave the man an inch he took a mile and then some. Which is why she decided to simply destroy every trace of his miserable existence. It would be a poetic and ignominious death for someone who defiled the Original Life Fiber, "Of course, you could continue your futile resistance. But I'm afraid without your tiresome illusions you're nothing more than another pathetic human."
"What a fascinating statement…"
Aizen chuckled despite his broken nose as he slowly staggered back onto his feet, the limp from his fractured leg barely noticeable. As the laughter reached a crescendo, he smirked at the bemused matriarch, "…Ragyo Kiryuin."
Blood sprayed through the rain before Ragyo could comprehend the familiarity of the phrase, maroon eyes widening as Satsuki severed her left arm with the Scissor Blade. Staring at her daughter crouched at her side, Junketsu's advanced configuration once more adorning her undeserving flesh, Ragyo snarled when Satsuki reached for the Life Fiber sphere. Heels clacking as she quickly recovered from the dismemberment, Isshin's blade arcing towards her surprised daughter's neck, Ragyo stiffened when a light green hexagonal barrier formed in front of Satsuki.
"What!?"
Her arm quivered under the abrupt resistance when the barrier expanded, its surface pulsating as the immense energy coiled around Isshin's blade was dispersed away from her foolish daughter. Glowering at the shinigami's satisfied grin, the amusement in his pained expression annoyingly obvious as the surrounding landscape was enveloped in a massive explosion of light, Ragyo's eyebrow twitched when he had the audacity to speak.
"You seem shocked, Ragyo Kiryuin," Aizen smirked pleasantly at the infuriated woman, "Did you believe my repertoire was limited to illusions and a few offensive techniques?"
Ragyo snarled at the condescending explanation, annoyance in her eyes when Satsuki retreated with the Life Fiber sphere moments before the hexagonal barrier shattered beneath her power. This was getting ridiculous. Staring at her daughter in frustration as her arm was drawn back into proper alignment with a wet squelch, blood and visceral blemishing her dress rapidly vanishing, Ragyo frowned at the shinigami's smug arrogance, a bloody grin that should be ground into the mud. Of course the man placed an illusion on Satsuki. Why on earth wouldn't he?
It certainly explained why she hadn't felt Junketsu until after Satsuki severed her arm.
"This is quite the surprise."
She quirked an eyebrow curiously when her daughter landed next to the insignificant speck of a man. Illusions or not…annoying abilities that could destroy her flesh aside…there was nothing to worry about Satsuki's sudden interference. Chuckling as she brushed aside a strand of loose silver hair, the amused laughter gaining her daughter's attention, Ragyo folded an arm across her chest, "A few weeks ago you would have severed my head without hesitation, allowing thoughts of petty revenge for Souichiro's death to cloud your judgment. But I'm curious…just what do you intend to do now?"
The brief hesitation in Satsuki's eyes, the subtle tensing of her taut muscles beneath Junketsu's fabric, warmed Ragyo's heart, "You must realize the Life Fiber sphere you risked your life stealing is completely worthless. It wouldn't dare allow a human to use its power against the Original Life Fiber's chosen servant. It knows its proper place in the grand scheme of things…unlike you."
Ragyo shook her head, "If only you were more like Ryuko…"
Satsuki snarled in righteous fury, her mouth twisting into a sneer at her mother's tainted words, "What did you say?"
The Kiryuin matriarch smirked arrogantly at her eldest daughter's hate-filled expression, the loathing everything she hoped to accomplish with such an incendiary statement. Placing a hand against her cheek, eyes briefly focusing on the shinigami bleeding to death several feet from Satsuki, Ragyo sighed in mock disappointment, "It should be obvious, Satsuki. As a Life Fiber Hybrid, Ryuko is capable of making that sphere obey her fanciful teenage whims. You, on the other hand, are nothing more than a confused little girl who has forgotten her place."
"You only survived this long because of Junketsu, not the other way around," Ragyo basked in Satsuki's growing anger, the trembling of her daughter's muscles filling her heart with pleasure, "Which is highly disappointing. To think I raised such a rebellious and disrespectful daughter."
She turned her attention to Junketsu, the Kamui's multicolored eyes quivering slightly under her gaze, "It's honestly embarrassing that Isshin, despite his childish mannerisms, taught Ichigo proper discipline. Mais telle est la vie. Now…I think it's time I –"
"HOLD YOUR TONGUE!"
Satsuki shouted passionately over the torrential downpour, sapphire light blazing into existence as the force of her willpower and spiritual pressure overwhelmed her mother's derisive mockery, "Your words mean nothing to me, Ragyo Kiryuin!"
The intense aura enveloping Satsuki's body, tinting Junketsu a vivid shade of azure and causing the Kamui to tighten, pulsed when the Hogyoku clasped in her fingers burst back into life, shining with a familiar shade of sapphire that immediately caught both Aizen and her mother's attention. Unconcerned when the Scissor Blade slowly shifted colorations, auburn replaced by brilliant cerulean, Satsuki felt a mote of pride at Ragyo's shocked expression. She could feel Junketsu's child-like presence in her mind, the previously inaudible whispers now understandable in a way that defied comprehension.
"All of my mistakes…"
Satsuki's hair whipped frenziedly within the intense aura as she pointed the Scissor Blade at her mother, "Every decision that harmed others in the name of stopping you…of stopping the Original Life Fiber…will need to face the light of day! There's not a trace of doubt or indecision in my mind about such things! I will gladly face judgment for my actions! But at this moment that does not matter! Everyone in Karakura Town is fighting against you, Ragyo Kiryuin! They are risking everything to destroy Xcution and your COVERS! To destroy Life Fibers and shatter their hold upon humanity's fate!"
"AND THAT…"
Junketsu's eyes widened as the aura exploded into a beacon of light visible across Karakura Town, "…IS WHY I WILL DEFEAT YOU…RAGYO KIRYUIN!"
"No! This cannot be…"
Ragyo couldn't understand the event transpiring before her eyes. No…she adamantly refused to believe it! Such a thing was impossible! Yet a cold shiver raced down her spine when thousands of inaudible roars merged into a cacophony, the result of her COVERS simultaneously disintegrating into their constituent Life Fibers.
"Comment pourriez…"
She involuntarily stepped backwards, mouth slightly agape in growing shock and disbelief, when the countless Life Fibers floating above the city streamed towards her daughter. Lips quivering in unadulterated loathing at Junketsu absorbing her COVERS, making their power and strength her own, Ragyo clenched her teeth in mounting frustration! This couldn't be happening!
"Impossible!"
Multicolored spiritual energy exploded from the Kiryuin matriarch's body, bathing the surrounding landscape with enough light to rival her foolish daughter, as she shot forward with all the speed she could muster, "You are unworthy of wearing such clothing!"
Satsuki watched her mother's inhuman breakdown with passive detachment as she calmly placed her left hand upon the cerulean Scissor Blade, the Hogyoku clasped firmly within her fingers. She could feel Junketsu transforming, immersing her body with the strength of every COVERS in Karakura Town. Breathing deeply as Junketsu's synchronized power pulsed outward, dispelling the surrounding rain and causing Ragyo Kiryuin to momentarily falter, Satsuki scowled before shouting at the top of her lungs.
"JUNKETSU…SHINZUI!"
