Chapter 50 – Master of Puppets (S&M)

Ichigo knew that using his Shikai was a bad idea, especially with how inexperienced he was with it. Using the Bankai was even worse, but he found himself feeling the moment against Ulquiorra. Regardless, he should have never lost focus against the former Shinigami captain.

That was his fault. He wasn't going to make excuses.

The training that he underwent with his father was meant to teach him better Reiatsu control, so he could preserve whatever lifespan lost to a better degree. That got tossed out the window the minute he entered the dense hell hole know as Las Noches. The fighting didn't really help either.

Ulquiorra was his first mistake. Ichigo couldn't beat him without his Shikai, for sure, but there was absolutely no need to use his Bankai, outside of his emotions getting the better of him. What's worse is that the feeling that he took more from that fight than he came in with.

Gin was his second mistake, and possibly his most grave. The former captain wounded him, and rather badly. His left arm was still numb, even though his accelerated healing had covered the open wound, and stitched the cut ligaments back together. Luckily, he was right arm dominant, but against Aizen, he was sure he would need the use of both.

What might have been worse than that blunder was the overuse of his power? It took him a lot of effort to get Gin into a defensive posture. He expected Aizen's dragon to be stronger than what he had fought beforehand, but not by that wide margin. It wasn't the secure feeling, knowing that Gin served someone stronger than him.

This did not matter. In death or not, Ichigo had a purpose. And for that, he needed to move.


Aizen Sōsuke sat upon his throne. He knew who was coming his way, and for that, he was glad. He no longer needed to stir. He had accomplished his purpose. For that, there was only need for one to exist.

"It's been a long time..." he said, with a smirk on his face, "This world is just too filthy..."


Hayato had met Aizen only once before. Neither of them knew or recognized the other. A rather casual experience, Aizen passed by the blindfolded Quincy, in the middle of the small Rukongai village. While Aizen did not seem to notice him, Hayato was perturbed by what he felt from the Shinigami.

Hayato did not believe in coincidences. There was something off about the man. And when there was smoke, there was certainly a fire.

So Hayato waited. Patiently. To see what made Aizen Sōsuke so bizarre. Why was such a man so different?


"Oh, it's you..." Ichigo groaned, seeing his estranged uncle leaning against the wall, in front of a grand white door. The Quincy waved a hand, as he kicked himself from the wall and stood up straight.

"Nephew, it's been too long. This event has been delayed far too much. It's finally time for you to put your worth to the test," Hayato said, smirking, "I never doubted that you would make it this far."

"Why are you even here?"

"Several reasons," Hayato replied, sharply, "This is the primary one, however. Aizen Sōsuke is a threat. A grand one. Such a grand importance for such a tiny shard. And you are the one that's here to end this particular brand of nonsense." Ichigo narrowed his eyes, suspicious.

"You're not telling me the whole story," he stated, bluntly. Hayato chuckled in response.

"What more do you need? He's the bad guy, you're the hero. He stole your princess, so you end his life. That's how all the stories go, right?" Ichigo sighed.

"Stop avoiding the question. What more do you know?"

"I know everything you know if you just piece things together..." A portal opened from underneath the Quincy's feet, and metal chains wrapped around his body.

"Now go, nephew! Find the answers you seek so desperately! They're right behind the door..." The chain drug the Quincy away, his laughs echoing through the hallway. Ichigo clenched his fist.

"What an amazing family I have..." he said, with a wry smirk as he approached the door.


The door opened with a loud creak as if it had not been touched in centuries. And upon entrance, Ichigo felt something tingling in his chest.

Fear? Nervousness? Perhaps. Amazement? Most definitely.

The room was circular, mostly empty enclosure. The walls were the purest tone of white the teen had ever seen in his entire life. The room seemed almost too immaculate for anyone to have ever actually existed inside the room.

"Of course, it would be Aizen's," Ichigo said, with a small chuckle. As if he was waiting for his cue, Aizen emerged from his seat, which crumbled away into dust the moment his weight was lifted. Aizen held his back toward Ichigo.

"I've been waiting for this Ichigo. I've finally accomplished my purpose. And now it is time to return..."

"Return? What are you even...Oh, I get it now." Aizen smiled, turning to face Ichigo.

"Now you see..." Ichigo sighed. Of course, that's what he was.

"A shard...You're a piece of Geninnam's soul..." Aizen closed his eyes, and raised his head, smiling at the mention of the name.

"That is a name that I have not heard in a very long time..." he said, voice full of eerie bliss. The tyrant's eyes opened, revealing his eyes as clouded, pupils gone.

Aizen's body started to glow a powerful golden color, as his body started to raise as if a wire was taking him to the heavens above. Bizarrely, Ichigo could have sworn he heard a choir singing in his head. Sounded a bit like "Introitus: Requiem Aeternam"...

"I'm going crazy..." Ichigo whispered. The room started to shake violently, and the air became difficult to breathe. Ichigo's already present headache was quickly turning into a migraine right before his eyes.

Then nothing. The shaking stopped. The air became tolerable. The choir hushed. Aizen did not stop glowing, but Ichigo could no longer feel anything radiating off of him.

Ulquiorra, at his mightiest, put out one of the most suffocating pressures he had ever felt, yet he could no feel a single thing coming from Aizen. No Reiatsu. No signs of life...

A massive white wing sprouted from the back of the right collarbone of Aizen. His clothing had changed to an ornate white garb, with golden chains wrapped around it. In his right hand was a simple long sword, with some words written in Latin that Ichigo could not decipher. One of them was "laudem", something those pretentious Latin dictionaries that he felt compelled to buy taught him.

"Maioris dextro laeuoque cornu..." Aizen whispered, voice ethereal, "I rise once more, to stake my claim in this filthy world. Prepare yourself, disciple of the dark, heir to the shade." Ichigo drew his sword and took his stance.

"Ichigo..." Kamen or more properly known as Zangestu said, softly.

'I know I'm nervous...This is new for us to both acknowledge fear, isn't it?' Kamen chuckled, realizing that his lecture no longer needed to be heard.

"You can do this, my liege. My power is yours."

'My liege? You're sounding pretty flowery, Kamen.'

"Even now, you won't recognize my name. Woe is I..."

'Alright, I need to focus now. Gripe at me about your damn name later, alright.'

"You got it, boss."

There was no reason to pretend that he could beat Aizen with just his Shikai. That's why he prepared for this. He knew the pressures, challenges, and threats that awaited him. And he was prepared to conquer them all.

And this was the last enemy.

He was ready.

"Bankai!" he shouted, vibrant crimson energies exploding off of him. The color drained from his uniform, and his hair spilled out from the back of his bull mask. Black filled his eyes, and anger burned his pupils.

"I will break you," Ichigo said. Aizen grinned.

"Then come."

Ichigo dashed at the being of light and slashed down at him. However, he never felt his blade connect. Instead, all he felt was a searing pain scorch throughout his body. Before he could instinctively react, he has pushed away, crashing into the door that he came through. He slid to the floor, blood staining the white walls.

"Poor effort, Ichigo. You need to try a bit harder." Ichigo grits his teeth, rising back to his feet.

"It is going to be fun killing you."


Rukia stirred in her unconsciousness. Having the greatest severity to her wounds, she took the great focus from Orihime to repair. Neliel could only do so much to preserve her life. Luckily, now that the situation had calmed, she finally received the attention she so desperately needed.

"Is she waking up?" Renji asked, arms crossed. Orihime did not reply.

"She's doing much better," Sado said, "She'll be awake soon Abarai-san." Renji sighed, and returned to watching Rukia's reactions.

A single violet eye opened slowly. Orihime exhaled in relief.

"Ori...hime...You're back..." she said, strained. Renji almost reached out for her, but Sado grabbed his shoulder, communicating restraint through contact. Rukia turned her head slowly and softly.

"...Where's Ichigo?" she asked.

"Deeper in the castle," Uryū said, distanced from the group, "He had things to do."

"...What?"

"Don't worry. He'll take care of it." There was something about Uryū's voice that echoed bitterness.


Ichigo could not believe how much stronger Aizen was. Everything that he had attempted had ended up in failure. The former captain neutralized every single offensive approach that he had taken. And now...

He could try using Shunko, but that wasn't going to make him stronger. With the massive gulf between them already present, there was very little tapping into his full potential would do but tire him out faster. There wasn't any Quincy technique that he knew of that would help him...

Well, there was one thing...

Ichigo regathered himself, bloody cuts and scars all over his body. Breathing labored by his injuries, he slowly, keeping a close eye on the angelic being, distanced himself from the wall. Aizen, sweeping the blood from his blade and then pointed it at him.

"You disappoint me so," Aizen said, "I figured you would put up a better effort than this..." Ichigo smirked, summoning his black claymore.

"Sorry, I can't perform to your standards. I'll try harder now."

Aizen, perfectly clean, dashed at Ichigo, hovering off of the ground, and slashed at his neck. Ichigo' reactions were good enough for him to protect himself, but the force was too great, and he was sent sliding across the floor. Before Aizen could continue his assault, Ichigo rolled back to his feet, firing a Getsuga Tenshō into the floor, not as an attack, but mostly a deterrent. Despite not doing much, the explosion was a temporary reprieve, enough for Ichigo to not only retreat, but plan his next motion.

Ichigo jumped to the wall opposite the door and placed his left hand onto it. When Aizen finally emerged from the smoke stack, he, using a Cero as a boost, accelerated off of the wall, toward him, like a rocket. The shard of the great soul rose his blade, in a rare defensive posture for him.

"Getsuga Tenshō!" Ichigo shouted, the crimson blast surging from within the blade escaping when steel met steel. The attack's bottom fell through, and the ground beneath the might Aizen absorbed the impact, a grand crater growing from where he stood. Unperturbed, Aizen turned his wrist, to bring Ichigo a step close, then with the left arm, plunged it directly into the center of his chest.

Self-sacrifice was one of Ichigo's many techniques he was willing to deploy in such a time of need. Clutching the arm with his left hand as well, the teen rose his blade to his shoulder line.

"Eat this," he said, through his teeth, as a thin beam launched from the blade, piercing Aizen cleaning through the trachea. He fell backward, not in obvious pain, but rage was painted on his face. Ichigo thought to celebrate the minor victory, and retreat, but he felt the only way he was going to win this is if he found a weakness stat, so he kept up the pressure, slashing across the angel's chest with his nameless spirit weapon.

Ichigo quickly found himself double guessing his aggression, as he blade could not clear the skin of Aizen.

'Fuck, it's Kenpachi all over again!'

"There has to be something we can do..."

The former substitute bit down harshly, using Hirenkyaku for a hasty getaway. Using his weapons was completely out of the question now. Accepting this, Ichigo tossed his claymore away, taking an open palm karate stance. A thin red membrane surrounded his body, and his top starting falling to pieces.

"Is this what Shihōin-dono called Shunkō? I was unaware that you knew it," Aizen said, with a wry smile, "But I fail to see how this improves your situation, young one, swathed in darkness." Ichigo exhaled deeply, letting the energy course it's way throughout his body.

"One shot," he whispered, before disappearing, and subsequently reappearing right before Aizen's eyes, and delivering a heavy, Kidō fueled kick to the abdomen. Aizen attempted to recover and counter, but Ichigo's current mastery of the speed arts had him in place for another strike, this time, an elbow to the neck. Aizen fell backward, clutching at his numb neck, as the current aggressor cocked back his right arm.

Aizen's grand white wing expanded, catching his momentum, and before Ichigo could attack, flew back into his personal space bubble, the straight sword was drawn and ready for blood. Ichigo covered his vitals to the best of his abilities, but Aizen's expertise in the art of the sword was too much for his barehanded defense. After taking three direct blows to the arms, an opening formed, and Aizen was quick to exploit, stabbing his blade, a couple of inches below the previously formed open wound. Ichigo lurched forward, feeling his stomach drop.

This was far worse than his fight with Kenpachi. Even when he was losing, he still felt that something could have been done to turn the tables. But there was nothing here. No hope. No speck of false gold.

At the Sōkyoku Hill, he could feel that Aizen was on a completely different plane of power level than his fellow captains, but it was nothing like this.

One fifth of a Great Soul was this strong? That was a rather unpleasant realization...

Geninnam...Ichigo tried to recall everything that he knew about him. He was a Great Souls of light, created a massive church, was destroyed and apparently split into five pieces. He never found out who destroyed him, or how, so he couldn't find a weakness from that...

"Fuck this..." Ichigo growled, the external blood on his body starting to shimmer, "Nothing else has worked." Aizen cleaned his blade once again. It was quickly becoming his go-to maneuver.

Ichigo burst off the ground, summoning whatever strength he had left to dash for the former captain. Aizen prepared his stance, but before Ichigo made contact, he dashed to his back and rushed him with his shoulder. Aizen stumbled forward for a feel steps.

"Cero Grados de Fuga!" Ichigo shouted, his blood turning a bright red color, as the Cero formed, and promptly exploded in the side of the angelic being, shaking the room violently, and engulfing everything in a thick, black haze.


"Master of Puppets (S&M)" by Metallica and The San Francisco Symphony

Author's Note – Alright kiddies, I'm not here to make excuses. It's been far too fucking long since I updated, and I apologize greatly. What is done is what is done, so whatever. It's fine.

Anyway, I have a new posting schedule. Every Friday, there will be a new chapter. No exceptions. If a chapter comes out before Friday, that doesn't matter. There still will be a new chapter released on Friday.

For me to keep this momentum, I will be writing in advance. I strive to be four chapters ahead of the last uploaded chapter, so I'm going to be working very hard to do so. In the meanwhile, thank you for being patient. C'est la vie.