AN: Hey everyone, hope you're all doing well! Things are moving along a bit. The vocabulary terms list has grown a bit...but I hope you guys find it helpful.
Anyways, as always, thanks for your continued support!
Vocabulary Terms:
*Baka (Bakamono) = Fool/Idiot
*Onii-sama = Big Brother
*Obasan = Aunt
*Chappy = Most popular soul candy with a cutesy personality and depicted as a bunny.
*Ryoka = Traveling Evil(s)/ outsiders not associated with the Seireitei
*Senzaikyu = Palace of Penitence/Repentance Palace
*Sekkiseki = Spirit reducing stone, a special mineral with properties that allows it to repel all reiryoku.
*Shakonmaku = Soul-Warding Membrane. A large spherical barrier surrounding the Seireitei that vaporizes any reishi that tries to pass through the barrier.
*Sokyoku = Twinned Punishment. A giant halberd currently sealed on the Sokyoku Hill and used to execute nefarious criminals of the Soul Society.
*Seijotokyorin = Tranquil Forest of Residential Towers. The living quarters of the Central 46 members that is completely forbidden to all except the members of the Central 46.
*Daireishokairo = Great Spirit Book Gallery. A repository of all the knowledge and history of the Soul Society with restricted access to very few. Even many Captains are unaware of its inner workings.
Reading the story:
-Scene change: "888"
-Rated M Scene: "XXX"
-Hello, how are you? (Someone in their own thoughts)
-Hello how are you? (Zanpakuto Spirit speaking in a Shinigami's mind)
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Bleach.
Chapter 30
TapTapTapTapTap!
The sound of running footsteps echoed in the streets of Seireitei as Kishin dashed towards the Senzaikyu. He had to see Rukia. He had to tell her that he wasn't going to let her die. He needed to let her know that everything was going to be alright. He couldn't help feeling guilty inside as he recalled how he had told her to leave everything to him. How he had told her that everything was going to be fine. That he'd protect her. That he'd keep her safe. And yet the situation changed to where she was now imprisoned in a dark cold cell.
Just as he completed climbing the long flight of stairs that led to the center of the giant white tower that was the Senzaikyu, he halted and paused taking note of Renji who was standing at the bottom of the entrance. Renji scowled and angrily strode over to Kishin immediately gripping him by the collar and shouting, "You bastard! Didn't you promise that Rukia would be safe with you?! Look what happened! Now she's being sentenced to death with Hinamori! Where were you huh?! Why weren't you by her side all this time?! Now she's being accused of sheltering those damn Ryoka and she's being treated as a criminal of the highest order!"
Kishin frowned and shoved Renji off of him. "I know! You don't think I'm agonizing over this?"
Renji clenched his hands into fists while gnashing his teeth. He furrowed his brow and frustratingly said, "Do you know how much trust and faith Rukia's put in you? Do you know how much she cares about you? Did you know that she went willingly to prison because she didn't want to implicate you? When she was accused of helping the Ryoka she didn't even deny it! Don't tell me, did you have something to do with it?!"
Kishin gritted his teeth as he instantly understood why Rukia didn't fight back. It was because she knew the real reason why the Ryoka went missing. Renji had hit it on the mark. It was because of him. She was taking the blame in his place so that all eyes would be drawn to her instead of him. She didn't want him to be the one imprisoned.
Renji gripped Kishin by the collar once more and angrily growled, "What do you have to say for yourself?! Huh?! Lieutenant Chigetsu!"
Kishin brushed Renji's hands off of him and simply walked past, but not before saying, "I'm not going to just sit around blaming myself. I agree, this was my fault. I was negligent, but at the same time I've already saved her."
Renji frowned in confusion. "What are you talking about?"
Kishin just continued walking on. "I promised Rukia that I'd protect her. Just wait and see. I won't let her get executed." He didn't waste any more words on Renji and walked up to the long wooden bridge that connected to the Senzaikyu. Before he could keep going however he was stopped once more. This time he ran into Byakuya.
Byakuya also took note of his presence and stared indifferently at him. "Lieutenant Chigetsu. Why are you here?" He asked in his emotionless tone of voice.
Kishin simply stared back with a look of indifference as well. "Isn't it obvious? I'm here to see Rukia."
"For what reason?"
"For what reason does there need to be?"
"Rukia is a prisoner of the highest order. If you don't have a legitimate reason for needing to see her then I suggest you return to your quarters."
Kishin furrowed his brow at Byakuya's poor attitude. "Did you even fight for Rukia's innocence?"
"There was no need. She did not deny her involvement in the disappearance of the Ryoka."
"That doesn't mean that she WAS involved."
Byakuya's eyes glowered. "She did not fight for her own innocence. That is as good as claiming her own involvement." He then said with a hint of a suspicious undertone, "Unless of course...she was merely trying to mask the tracks of the true accomplice."
Kishin narrowed his eyes at Byakuya's perceptiveness and replied, "And what if she was?"
Byakuya's hand lightly rested against the hilt of his Zanpakuto. "If she was then she would still be labeled an accomplice for not coming forward when she had such knowledge."
Kishin frowned. "You're quite adamant about keeping her in prison."
"I will do what the law requires of me. Even though we are of the Great Noble Clans we are not above the law."
"Is that so? And what if this law that you uphold so dearly to turns out to be nothing but a corrupt game that others use to manipulate and play around with?"
Byakuya's hand slowly began to enclose around the hilt of his Zanpakuto as he replied, "It appears you do not think highly of our laws, Lieutenant Chigetsu. Perhaps you feel as if you stand above them."
Kishin just scoffed. "Laws are mere guidelines Captain Kuchiki. They are hardly absolute."
"And what would you know about laws? You who rarely obey the rules in the first place."
Kishin smirked as he stared at Byakuya with a complacent look in his eyes. "Of all people I thought you'd understand where I'm coming from the most."
"Of all people you say? What makes you think I need to lower myself to your standard of thinking?"
"Lower your standard? You insult yourself Captain Kuchiki."
"What are you talking about?"
"Isn't it obvious? Didn't you go against your own clan's wishes and marry Hisana who came from Rukongai? I reckon your own clan has its own set of rules and laws. That's why I figured that you'd be able to understand what I'm saying."
Byakuya's heart clenched up for just a split second in wariness. "What do you know about Hisana?"
"It doesn't matter what I know. Don't you think that you're being overly dramatic with the whole rules and regulations thing?"
"Without rules and regulations there would be chaos."
"And who do you think created those rules and regulations and by extension, the laws in the first place?"
Byakuya slightly frowned. "You think you can sway me with your words?"
Kishin ignored Byakuya's comment. "Tell me Captain Kuchiki, are we Shinigami perfect beings?"
Byakuya simply remained silent and didn't answer so Kishin just continued, "That's fine. You don't have to say it, but you already know the answer. We aren't perfect. And who creates the laws? Us flawed beings. We are imperfect flawed creatures and so too are our laws by nature. This absolution you obsess about upholding the law is just an illusion you're creating for yourself so you don't have to personally make the hard choices and decisions. Why don't you think for yourself for once instead of running around acting like Soul Society's loyal dog."
Byakuya was inwardly enraged as his reiatsu began to leak out from his body. "Careful what you say to me, Lieutenant Chigetsu."
Kishin didn't break eye contact as he raised his own reiatsu to match Byakuya's. "You think I'm afraid of you?"
"You talk too much."
"You just can't accept the truth. You're only acting this way because you know what I said is true."
"You know nothing about me."
"Is that so? Then how dare you presume to know things about myself."
"Are you the one harboring the Ryoka?"
"I advise you to think the entire situation through, Captain Kuchiki."
"Are you the one harboring the Ryoka?!" Byakuya asked again, but with a fiercer undertone, but Kishin simply dismissed it. "I'm going to see Rukia, Captain Kuchiki. Since you won't stand up for her then I. WILL."
Byakuya frowned. "Stand up for her you say. And what are you planning to do for her?"
"I will save her somehow."
"Can I take your words as future acts of rebellion against the Soul Society?"
"Take them how you will. You're the one assuming things, not me." He then rested his own hand against the hilt of his Zanpakuto. "If you draw your sword against me right now then I wonder which of us will be in violation of the laws? Captain Kuchiki."
Byakuya inwardly cursed and stared down Kishin for several more minutes before he finally reigned in his reiatsu and eased up his hand on his sword. Without exchanging any more words with Kishin he turned around and blurred into the distance.
Kishin scoffed before a concerned look found its way back to his face. He dashed towards the cell door at the end of the bridge where two Shinigami guards with frightful expressions were standing. Those two guards had witnessed the entire scene with Byakuya and Kishin and they felt just how terrifying the force of both of their reiatsus were. It was so powerful that if Byakuya and Kishin didn't control the majority of their spiritual pressure to surround just them, the two guards would have definitely been instantly crushed under the weight. So when Kishin stood in front of them they nearly fainted on the spot.
Kishin just pointed to the door and said with a commanding tone of voice, "Open it."
"Y-Y-Y-Y-Yes s-s-sir!" One of the guards fearfully saluted and took out the key to unlock the prison cell. In mere seconds the stone door opened revealing a dark circular room with a cement floor and a small winding staircase leading up to a slitted window that looked out towards the Sokyoku Hill. The prison cell wasn't empty however as two individuals sat near that slitted window. One was wearing an all white colored robe which was Hinamori whilst the other was wearing a standard Shinigami shihakusho.
"Rukia!" Kishin anxiously shouted which immediately caught her attention.
"Kishin?" She responded almost disbelievingly as she stood up from Hinamori and ran down the stairs to meet him. The moment she reached the bottom of the stairs she was whisked off of the ground and into Kishin's strong warm arms. She told herself that she wasn't going to get emotional because this was a choice she deliberately made to protect him, but in the end she couldn't help but let a tear fall from the corner of her eyes as she snuggled deep into the comfort of his chest. He held her tight and took in her scent. "You idiot. Why didn't you plead innocent?"
"Baka...you know why."
"Tch. I promised that I would protect you. Why are you trying to act like the hero now senpai?"
Rukia just smiled and relished the feeling of his presence. "Hmpf. It's called heroine! I'm a woman you know."
Kishin just smirked and kissed the top of her head.
Muah!
"Sorry sorry. Heroine." He then noted that she didn't seem too haggard or frightened at all. Instead, she was rather relaxed. "Uh...senpai, you do realize the situation you're in right?"
She stared up at him with her cute violet eyes and nodded. "Uh-huh. I know."
"Err...then how come you don't look like a person who's about to be executed?"
"Hehe, that's because I trust you."
"Hm? And what does that mean?"
She pressed her lips to his ear and softly whispered, "You said that you wouldn't let Hinamori get executed and you said that you had a plan to help Ichigo and the others. Since it's you, I know you have some sort of mischievous plot brewing in the dark. Since I was under house arrest anyways I figured I'd help take some heat off of your back."
Kishin just blinked a few times before giving her a blank stare. "Senpai...you voluntarily came in here to take away the suspicion from me and prevent a full scale investigation?"
She nodded. He let out a sigh and shook his head. "You're unbelievable. You were supposed to call me if something happened, remember?"
She simply gave him an innocent look and awkwardly turned her head. "Haha...I forgot."
He furrowed his brow and continued, "And the necklace. Where is it?"
She pouted and huffed. "Hmpf. You were tracking me with it huh?"
Kishin felt his heart clench up in guilt as he nervously coughed. "Ahem. W-What makes you say that?"
A triumphant look flashed in her eyes as she lightly patted him on the head. "I found out a while ago. Urahara-san made a comment about my necklace one day and asked if he could see it. He then told me about it and asked who gave it to me. It was too late for him to keep quiet about the necklace after he found out that you gave it to me since he already told me what its use was for."
"Wha- ...that...damn him! How could he do that…" Kishin grumbled unhappily.
Rukia just smirked and let out a sigh. "I'm happy that you want to ensure my safety, but Kishin. I'm a Shinigami too. It's inevitable that I'll be placed in a dangerous situation one day."
"Tsk. Fine. I know, but why did you have to take it off? At least keep it on so that if you ever DO need my help and you're far away then I can at least find you."
"I know I know. I just wanted to teach you a lesson."
Kishin pouted and tickled her sides.
"Ahahaha wai-ah! Hahaha Kishin stop! Hahaha no-hahaha no more! Please!" She laughed and cried and squirmed at his ministrations.
He just grinned and continued for several more seconds as he replied, "This is your punishment for worrying me senpai. I almost fought your brother just now to get to you."
Rukia immediately sobered up and turned serious at his comment. "W-What?! Nii-sama?"
Kishin realized he made a mistake in telling her that and quickly attempted to rectify his words. "I mean, we talked for a bit and he got mad that I didn't protect you well and I apologized and blah blah blah. Anyways, long story short nothing happened. At most he's slightly displeased with how I handled things." He gave her his best convincing smile to which she gave him a suspicious stare.
In the end she nodded and hopped out of his arms.
Plop!
The sound of her feet hitting the cement floor echoed in the dark prison cell. Kishin furrowed his brow and stared at Hinamori who remained unmoved the entire time.
"How's she doing?" He ventured to ask.
Rukia just shook her head. "Not well. I try talking to her every so often, but she only tells me that Captain Aizen will come rescue her."
Kishin silently nodded having expected this sort of result. He then noticed the two guards nervously pacing back and forth by the prison door occasionally popping their heads in to see if Kishin was finished with his visit. They were simply too scared to say or ask anything of him. Kishin just let out a sigh and lightly brushed his fingers over Rukia's soft cheeks. "I think my visitation time is up. The guards are getting antsy. Actually, I'm pretty sure prisoners in the Senzaikyu aren't even supposed to get visitors so…"
Rukia just nodded. "I understand. Go before you get in trouble and locked up in here too. If you do then what I did will be for nothing."
He smirked and quickly bent down to steal a kiss from her lips before pausing by her ear and whispered, "Whatever you hear or sense, don't worry about it. It's just part of the plan. Even if you hear something as drastic as I died or something."
Rukia immediately had a concerned look on her face after hearing his words. "Don't! ...Don't joke about you dying…"
He lightly smiled and poked her cheek. "It's not a joke. I'll save you. I promise." He then straightened up and gave her a playful wink before taking his leave. His heart and mind now at ease knowing that Rukia was doing just fine.
Alright, Aizen should have his eyes trained on Ichigo for now, but I doubt that guy is gonna leave things be. I bet he was hoping I intervened so he'd have an excuse to break his promise and mess with me. And if I'm right then I bet he'll pin some sort of scandal on me sooner or later, but that's fine. I've set up the important pieces already anyways. I just need to keep him away from Hinamori.
Just as he got to the bottom of the long stairwell he paused and noted a familiar face. "Captain Unohana?"
Unohana smiled and lightly nodded towards Kishin. "Lieutenant Chigetsu. It's good to see you again after so long. How are you?"
"I'm fine, though the entire situation that's currently happening is being blown out of proportion."
"Oh? What makes you say that?"
"Rukia is being sentenced to be executed. I'm upset."
Unohana nodded in understanding. "Of course. It would be strange if you weren't. I'm sorry that there wasn't anything I could do for Ms. Kuchiki-san."
Kishin just shook his head. "It's fine Captain. Are you here to check on the prisoners?"
"That's right. I'm just checking the status of their health. Although they are sentenced to be executed, the least I can do for them is make them more comfortable before the time comes. They were, after all, once important members of the Gotei 13."
Kishin nodded and continued on his way but not before Unohana called out to him. "Lieutenant Chigetsu."
Kishin paused and turned around. "Yes?"
"Ar-hm?" Unohana didn't have a chance to finish her sentence as dashing past the top of the stairs and onto the open spaced tiled floor were three haggard looking individuals. They were precisely Orihime, Ganju, and Sado. Kishin mentally slapped his palm to his face.
What the hell are they doing here? And wait...how'd they get here so fast? Where's Ishida?
The sound of the three Ryoka's loud and heavy panting could be heard as they struggled to catch their breath from running all the way up the long flight of stairs.
Huff. Huff. Huff. Huff.
"See! I...huff...knew...huff...this was the way to come. All we needed to do was sense where Ki-Mmpf!" Sado immediately covered Orihime's mouth to stop her from finishing her sentence as he noted the murderous look in Kishin's eyes that was telling them to shut up.
"Mmmpfff! Pah!" Orihime finally struggled out of Sado's grip and gasped for air. "Sado-kun? What's wrong?"
A nervous bead of sweat fell down from the side of Sado's head as he gave Kishin an apologetic look whilst Ganju's legs began to quiver fearing the dark glint in Kishin's eyes. It was then that Unohana ventured to ask, "Ahem. Lieutenant Chigetsu, have you encountered these Ryoka before?"
Kishin immediately shook his head. "Of course not Captain. How could I have had the chance to encounter these Ryoka before. It's my first time seeing them. I never imagined that they'd disappear for two entire days and make it this far inside the Seireitei."
Unohana gave a suspicious glance but decided not to pursue the matter. Kishin took a step forward towards Orihime and the others while saying, "I'll take care of this Captain."
"Oh? I see...very well. Are you planning to kill them?"
Kishin mentally cursed but he answered Unohana straightforwardly. "No. I'll capture them and imprison them in the 13th division barracks. Captain Ichimaru said that there were a total of four Ryoka, however there seems to be one here that doesn't match the description of one of the Ryoka that Captain Ichimaru described. That means Captain Ichimaru never encountered this person." He said whilst staring at Ganju. "That means there are still two Ryoka missing. It's probably best to capture them alive and gather information from them first before killing them."
Orihime, Sado, and Ganju felt their spines shiver in nervousness at how calmly and coldly Kishin spoke the words of killing them. Unohana simply stared at Kishin's back for several long moments before she closed her eyes and nodded. "I see. Then as you proposed, I shall leave this matter to you. Judging by their reiatsu the matter should be easy enough for you to handle."
Kishin nodded in agreement as he watched Unohana continue on her way towards the Senzaikyu. Just as she disappeared beyond their sight he glowered at the others and said beneath his breath, "Where the hell is Yushiro? He should have known better then to let you guys come confront me when I was near another Captain."
Ganju awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck as he was the first to reply, "Yaaa...hahaha...well you see something unexpected happened and we ran into this crazy Captain named Kurotsuchi. Ishida distracted him so we could leave and Yushiro followed him to help guide him to a safe escape route."
Sado and Orihime nodded as Orihime continued to explain, "W-We're sorry Chigetsu-kun. We didn't mean to cause you trouble it's just...with Yushiro gone we were wondering where we should go next. We felt your reiatsu earlier and so I thought that it was probably best to come find you."
Kishin pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed.
What the hell...why didn't they just stay put until Yushiro got back? If they felt my reiatsu from earlier then it was when I was talking to Byakuya. That means they felt his reiatsu too. Did they really think it was a good idea to come find me while I was clashing reiatsus with someone like Byakuya?
They noted the stressed look on Kishin's face so Sado ventured to ask, "Are you alright?"
Kishin couldn't even glance at them and just let out a long drawn out sigh. "Look, you can't do much given the current situation so it's probably best if you just stay jailed up. You'll be safe in the 13th division prison for the time being."
Ganju put up his palms and questioned, "Wait wait wait! You actually want to throw us in jail? Can't you just pretend like we escaped or something?"
Kishin had an indifferent look in his eyes as he responded, "Really? Me? Failing to capture the three of you? With my strength? What's more believable after Captain Unohana already felt the level of your strength? Me capturing all three of you or all three of you somehow miraculously surviving and escaping me?"
...
A moment of still silence loomed in the air as Ganju thought it over before scratching his head in awkwardness. "Haaah...right right...if only you weren't such a monster then you can play it off like we got lucky or something...tch."
Orihime simply tilted her head in confusion. "Hm? But can't we still play it off like we got lucky? I mean we are technically lucky right? Because we know Chigetsu-kun and so couldn't Chigetsu-kun just let us go?"
Sado felt another bead of sweat drip down the side of his head as he elected not to reply. Kishin again pinched the bridge of his nose trying not to lose any braincells from listening any further. Instead of trying to explain himself he simply commanded, "Look at me." As if on cue they all turned their focus back on Kishin, however the moment they made contact with his eyes their pupils dilated and darkened as black cherry blossoms began to fall around them. Thud. They fell to the ground completely unconscious under the influence of Kishin's Hakufuku. He shook his head and picked up their bodies.
I should have just told them to remain in the training ground. Aizen's interest is with Ichigo anyways, not these guys.
Whoosh!
It wasn't long after that he brought them back to the 13th division and locked them in the prison barracks. Their unconscious bodies laying next to one another.
"Just stay put and don't leave." He said to no one in particular.
3 Days Before The Execution
Kishin wandered around the Seireitei pretending to look for the Ryoka when in reality he was simply waiting for the day of the execution to arrive. He watched as tens and dozens and hundreds of Shinigamis grouped up patrolling the streets of Soul Society. Every so often when a group passed him by they would respectfully salute him before going on their way. He merely nodded his head and kept to himself deep in thought.
There's no way Aizen expects the Sokyoku plan to go well so he definitely has the second method to extract the Hogyoku from Hinamori. I just need to make sure that he doesn't get his hands on Hinamori in the end, but at the same time I need Aizen to reveal his true nature to the Gotei 13. I already gave Yushiro the Shihoin Shield to prepare. So far everything is going as planned, but why hasn't Aizen made any more moves? Maybe I intervened too much?
He slowly made his way towards the direction of where the Lieutenants were hosting a meeting by the eastern wall of the Seireitei. As he neared closer and closer he noticed something odd. The presence in the air was too heavy. He frowned and slightly halted his steps staring at the corner of a building that led to an open area by the eastern wall.
"Why are all of the Lieutenants gathered by the wall? And...why do I feel the presence of four Captains?"
The frown on his face became even uglier as he took note of who the four Captains were.
Captain Ichimaru, Captain Tosen, Captain Komamura, and Toshiro…
"Well...this can't be good." Just then a light bulb clicked in his head.
Wait...don't tell me that Aizen-
He never got a chance to finish his thoughts as someone appeared right in front of him.
Fwish!
Kishin took note of the all black uniform that distinguished them as a member of the Onmitsukido, however Kishin obviously recognized who this person was.
"Yushiro?" He curiously inquired, noting the panicked look on Yushiro's face.
"Something wrong?" He asked.
Yushiro immediately gripped Kishin by the shoulders and quickly said, "Get out of here! Go hide somewhere!"
"What? Why?"
Yushiro just started pushing Kishin away as he continued, "Hurry! Something happened this morning."
Kishin smirked and said nonchalantly, "Don't tell me...Aizen's dead?"
Yushiro's entire body shook in shock as he stared wide-eyed at Kishin. "H-How'd you know? Wait...you didn't actually kill Aizen did you?"
Kishin raised his eyebrow curiously at the way Yushiro worded his question. "What do you mean by that? You make it sound like I'm the suspect."
Yushiro didn't beat around the bush and nodded. "Well you are! Aizen left a letter in his office last night and your name was mentioned. The letter states that you had wanted to talk to Aizen regarding Hinamori and Rukia's execution. Something about Rukia being wrongly accused and something about you having information about the Ryoka. Since you were the last person mentioned on the letter you're the prime suspect. Not to mention that the letter states you have something to do with the Ryoka!"
Kishin glanced around the corner and relaxedly said, "Then...around the corner on the eastern wall...don't tell me. The reason I feel the presence of four Captains and the other Lieutenants in one spot is because-"
Yushiro cut him off and nodded. "Yeah! Aizen's dead body is currently impaled on the eastern wall!"
"Oh? Haha, well shit." Kishin amusedly cursed aloud.
He immediately turned around to leave when he heard Tosen speak his name. "I thought I felt your presence nearby, Lieutenant Chigetsu. No. With how the current situation stands, perhaps I should refer to you as simply Chigetsu Kishin."
Kishin scoffed, noting the mocking undertone in Tosen's words as he recalled that he stated something similar to Tosen back when they fought in Hueco Mundo. Without batting an eye he nonchalantly waved his hand in the air and greeted the blind Captain. "Yo! Captain Tosen. I didn't take you to be such a petty person. Did I hit a nerve the last time we fought?"
Tosen's hand slightly twitched at the comment.
Fwish! Fwish! Fwish! Fwish!
Soon after the others by the eastern wall appeared and surrounded the area. Yushiro who still had his hands gripped on Kishin's shoulders quietly whispered in the space between them. "I have orders to arrest you Kishin. Do something. I already have my hands on you so knock me out or something and get out of here. Pretend we're fighting."
Kishin inwardly sighed and stared Yushiro in the eyes as a red light flashed by in his irises. Yushiro instantly felt his mind grow drowsy. Black colored cherry blossoms slowly fell around him and his pupils dilated several times before he fell unconscious on the ground.
Thud.
Gin smirked nearby and commented, "Yaaa, not bad not bad. Your skill with Hakufuku is pretty good, Lieutenant Chigetsu. The Onmitsukido has orders for your capture. Can we take it that you putting up a resistance against the Commander of the Punishment Force as admission of your guilt for colluding with the Ryoka and killin' Captain Aizen?"
Kishin didn't respond while Toshiro clenched his fist feeling guilty. Toshiro felt that it was his fault in wanting to save Hinamori that led Kishin into this mess. He knew and trusted that Kishin wasn't the culprit, but as matters stood he had no way to prove Kishin's innocence. Just as he wanted to step forward and defend Kishin he paused and noted the look in Kishin's eyes that told him that everything was still fine and that this matter didn't affect the overall plan.
The next to speak out was a large burly man standing at a whopping 288cm in height. They wore bronze plated armor and bracers over their shihakusho. A bucket-like helmet was worn over their head. This person was the Captain of the 7th division, Komamura Sajin. "Lieutenant Chigetsu. To collude with Ryoka and kill a Captain of the Gotei 13. This is an inexcusable crime. What do you have to say for yourself?"
…
Silence.
A palpable tension was growing in the air as all the Lieutenants stared with both disbelief and wariness at Kishin. Kishin however didn't feel any tension at all as the aura around him was completely relaxed. He had wondered if Aizen was going to fake his death. In fact the outcome that was currently happening was one of the situations he had been prepared for. To him it didn't matter whether or not he was labeled as the killer because he was still going to wait for the day of the execution. The original plan of destroying the Sokyoku didn't change at all since he already had those pieces in place. While things were going to get a bit more dramatic, at least he no longer had to pretend to be looking for the Ryoka around Seireitei for the next few days.
Since Kishin remained silent this entire time Komamura rested his hand on his Zanpakuto and said, "Everyone, arrest Lieutenant Chigetsu."
Kishin smirked and shook his head. "Captain Komamura. I see you are good friends Captain Tosen."
Komamura slightly frowned beneath his helmet. "So you do have something to say, Lieutenant Chigetsu."
Kishin nodded. "I have just one thing to say."
"And what would that be?"
"Keep your friends close but your enemies closer. Are you familiar with this phrase, Captain Komamura?"
"Yes, I am. What about it?"
Kishin shrugged and pointed his chin at Tosen. "Nothing really. It's just that you have undoubtedly kept your enemy close to you all this time."
Tosen's finger slightly twitched and interjected before Kishin could say too much. "Enough. Arrest him."
All the Lieutenants were hesitant at first, however they steeled their resolve soon after since they were in the presence of four Captains. Just as Iba took a step forward he stopped and widened his eyes in shock and fear. The pressure in the atmosphere had suddenly increased dozens of times over causing the surrounding floors and walls to crack and quake under the violent rumble of Kishin's reiatsu. Instantly all the Lieutenants present knew that they stood no chance. The reiatsu leaking from Kishin's body wasn't at some ordinary level of strength, it wasn't even at an ordinary Captains level of strength. No, his reiatsu was shaking and weighing down on everyone with such ferocity that if they didn't personally know Kishin, they would have thought he was some old monster who had lived for hundreds and hundreds of years.
Kishin simply smirked at everyone's stunned reaction and commented, "Well then, Lieutenants, Captains, if you don't mind I'll just take my leave."
However, before he could take one step forward he heard Komamura shout, "With such a violent reiatsu, perhaps you truly did kill Aizen! You hid your true strength well Lieutenant Chigetsu, but don't think that you can perturb a Captain with just your reiatsu alone! HAAAAA!" Komamura dashed forwards and punched out with his fist aiming straight for Kishin's head.
BAM!
The floor where Kishin was standing moments prior was instantly smashed through creating a giant gaping hole in the ground, however Kishin was already on the roof of a nearby building.
"My apologies Captain Komamura, but with a speed that slow you won't be able to catch me. Oh, and allow me to add some words of advice. That thing on the wall may look like Aizen, but maybe you're all just under an illusion. Some food for thought."
TING!
Kishin smirked and blocked a sword strike to his back with his Zanpakuto.
"A cheap trick Captain Tosen, but you'll have to do better than that. Figures that a blind person would aim for a blindspot." He mocked and taunted attempting to rile Tosen up.
Tosen furrowed his brow and dashed back just as Komamura appeared in the air and slashed down with his Zanpakuto. Kishin stood completely unperturbed and slashed upwards to block, however he didn't miss the fact that Tosen dashed back in to strike him from the side.
WHOOSH!
BANG!
At the last second he blurred away with Shunpo at a speed faster than Tosen and Komamura could react to, causing their attack to destroy the roof of the building.
Komamura frowned and curiously inquired, "Captain Hitsugaya, Captain Ichimaru, why haven't you both acted?"
Gin just waved his hand in the air. "Ah? Me? No no, two on one is already unfair dont'cha think? We're giving a Lieutenant enough face already letting him fight two Captains of the Gotei 13 don't ya agree?" He then turned to Toshiro and playfully said, "Don't ya think the same, Captain Hitsugaya?"
Toshiro gritted his teeth hating the current situation. He didn't really like the vibe that Gin gave off, but he had to admit that Gin gave him a way out so he coughed and commented, "Ahem, Captain Ichimaru has a point. Four Captains against one enemy would be a disgrace to the title given to us of the Gotei 13. We'll leave it to the two of you, Captain Komamura, Captain Tosen."
Meanwhile Kishin had an amused look in his eyes as he continued to dodge, parry, and block the combined attacks of Tosen and Komamura while listening to Gin and Toshiro's excuses. Just as Komamura was about to retort, Kishin slashed with his blade right at the bronze bucket helmet.
KLANG!
Bam!
"Ugh!" Tosen groaned out as Kishin kicked him in the stomach after Tosen had blocked the sword strike to Komamura's head.
"Tosen!" Komamura shouted in alarm.
"Don't lose focus, Komamura." Tosen replied.
"He's right 7th division Captain." Kishin interjected nonchalantly as he slashed at Komamura's arm.
TING! CLANG! CLING!
He continued his onslaught at a leisurely pace simply taking his time. Taking on both Tosen and Komamura to him was no trouble at all. It had been awhile since he last tested his strength in a true battle and so he took this time to warm-up a little. There wasn't a Captain in the current Gotei 13 that he didn't dare take on except perhaps the Captain Commander himself and possibly Aizen if he didn't have to.
I wonder if I should take this chance to kill Tosen? After all, if Aizen's gonna frame me for his death then I might as well kill an actual Captain.
A diabolical look flashed by in his eyes as he glanced over at Tosen. Tosen immediately felt his heart increase in palpitation as a foreboding sense of danger descended on him. He had no idea why, but he felt that he was in danger of losing his life.
CLANG!
Kishin defended a strike to his leg from Komamura before ducking his head feeling the back of his hair rustle in the wake of the wind left behind from dodging Komamura's arm swipe.
"Keh!" Komamura grunted in frustration at being unable to land a successful hit on Kishin the entire time. After exchanging dozens and dozens of blows with Kishin alongside Tosen he had finally realized just how skilled Kishin truly was. No matter what the two Captains did and no matter how they coordinated their attacks they never even placed any pressure on Kishin.
Just as Komamura was about to go in for his next attack he paused and widened his eyes in shock. He had instantly lost sight of Kishin.
FWISH!
Kishin shook his head and rested his palm against Komamura's back while saying nonchalantly, "Captain Komamura. I hold no grudge against you, but I want you to remember this for future references. You attacked me first."
"GRRRR!" Komamura growled and attempted to twist his body to counter, however Kishin just smirked and said, "Hado #71: Sodai Sho."
BOOM!
"ARRRRRGGGH!" Komamura's loud shout was heard in the wind as he was blasted through the sky by the powerful force of Kishin's Kido spell. Kishin then turned his attention to Tosen and tilted his Zanpakuto towards the light of the sun letting it gleam off the edge of his blade. "If you thought you could use Captain Komamura to help kill me then you were too naive, Captain Tosen. Not holding a grudge over our fight from a while back now are you?"
Tosen gritted his teeth feeling a bead of nervous sweat drip down his back. "Chigetsu Kishin. I will cut you down here and now to rid Soul Society of a stain amongst its ranks."
"Ha! Hahahaha! That's a good joke. I guess we'll see in the end exactly which of us is the stain."
Whoosh!
Kishin arrived before Tosen with such speed that Tosen barely had time to react. By the time Tosen registered Kishin's presence he had already lost wind of him again. This time Kishin was right behind Tosen.
"Slow." Kishin remarked as he slashed with his Zanpakuto.
PSH!
A large gashing wound ripped down from Tosen's right shoulder across his back and down to his lower left waist.
"Ugh!" Tosen groaned in pain. He tried to turn and slash to get his own hit in, however Kishin simply kicked him in the head before he could even finish his movement.
BAM!
The force of the kick sent Tosen crashing down into a large tall building nearby. A contemptuous look was the current expression that Kishin was making as he glanced at Gin from the corner of his eye. Gin merely watched with an amused expression on his face, however he definitely wasn't feeling at ease. Toshiro watched with wide-eyes in shock as he felt conflicted. Obviously because he didn't know the truth about Tosen so he couldn't quite understand why Kishin had actually stuck around to fight and injure Tosen and Komamura.
If the two Captains watching everything were having mixed feelings then there was nothing much to say about the Lieutenants watching the whole ordeal. They were simply dumbstruck and scared at how easily Kishin was tossing around Captain Tosen and Captain Komamura like they were two plastic ping pong balls. It was only now that they realized that the limits of Kishin's abilities were already far beyond that of a Lieutenant.
"K-Kishin…" Toshiro finally managed to say, though with great difficulty.
Kishin just waved his hand and gave Toshiro a reassuring glance. "I know what I'm doing. Trust me." His eyes didn't hide his murderous intent when he said those words as he took a step forward in Tosen's direction. It was then a loud shout could be heard in the distance. Everyone recognized it as Komamura's voice.
"BANKAI! Kokujo Tengen Myo'o!" An immense amount of reiatsu erupted into the air before coalescing into a giant titan-like humanoid golem hundreds of meters tall. It took on the form of a black armored samurai that had a red cloth covering its face. The giant held a large black and white katana in its hands and mirrored every move of Komamura's.
Kishin raised his eyebrow curiously at the giant completely unfazed in the face of Komamura's ability. "Ehhhh? To think a Captain of the Gotei 13 would release their Bankai against me? A mere Lieutenant. I'm honored."
Komamura frowned, noting how unperturbed Kishin was in the face of his ultimate weapon and growled, "Any last words, Lieutenant Chigetsu?"
A mischievous glint sparkled in Kishin's eyes as he said, "Actually yes." Without warning he quickly chanted, "Bakudo #61: Rikujokoro!"
"Uh!" Komamura's eyes widened in shock as he attempted to slash down with his sword, however it was too late. The six rods of yellow light appeared around his waist binding his body in place. He was no longer able to move, rendering his Bankai useless.
"Bakudo #63: Sajo Sabaku! Bakudo #62: Hyapporankan!"
Whoosh! Cling!
In mere seconds four yellow chains of Kido wrapped around Komamura's body further restraining him before several rods of white blue Kido embedded themselves in the joints of his body making it even harder for him to move his limbs. Kishin took a moment to appreciate his handiwork before pointing his finger at Komamura's hand and finally said, "Hado #1: Sho."
PANG!
The power of Kishin's simple Kido spell was enough to force Komamura to unclasp his hand around his Zanpakuto causing it to fall to the ground. His Bankai mimicking his actions also dropped its large samurai sword causing a giant dust cloud to rise in the air as the giant weapon fell to the ground.
"Captain Komamura. I ask that you wait there and not pursue me any further. Though I didn't kill Aizen, that doesn't mean that I won't kill anyone."
Komamura growled and raised his reiatsu attempting to break free of Kishin's Kido with spiritual and brute force, however no matter how hard he tried he remained completely stuck. He glared at Kishin with anger and frustration. "Damn you Lieutenant Chigetsu! Just why are you doing this?! Why did you kill Aizen?! Why have you decided to rebel against Soul Society?! Answer me!"
Kishin just sighed and shook his head. "Weren't you listening to anything I said before Captain? I told you, I didn't kill Aizen. Well, not that me saying that will change anything. You'll get it, sometime soon probably."
Just then Iba snapped back to his senses and pulled out his Zanpakuto. "CAPTAIN!" He shouted in panic and worry, however before he could move an inch from his spot Komamura shouted back, "STOP! Iba, don't yet throw your life away. You aren't his match."
Komamura then turned to look at Gin and Toshiro as he questioned, "Captain Ichimaru, Captain Hitsugaya, I understand where you're coming from. It is true that it is dishonorable for a Captain of the Gotei 13 to stoop so low and gang up on a Lieutenant, HOWEVER, Lieutenant Chigetsu is no longer a Lieutenant. Surely you can see that. And while it may also be disgraceful to gang up on an enemy, that is only if the enemy is of equal strength to oneself. Rather, when an enemy is greater in strength then there is nothing disgraceful about attacking in numbers. It is a testament of that person's might. We must not fail in capturing or killing such a dangerous criminal in the Soul Society!"
Kishin listened at Komamura's attempt to enlist the help of Gin and Toshiro with an amused grin on his face. He already knew that no matter what, Toshiro and Gin had no interest nor the desire to fight. Or rather, he knew that Toshiro had no desire to fight. Gin on the other hand he didn't quite know, after all he and Tosen were taking orders from Aizen. It's possible that Gin was ordered to help if Tosen was on the verge of dying.
Bam!
The sound of rubble being shifted around echoed on the air as Tosen finally re-emerged from within the building he had crashed into earlier.
"Oh? Captain Tosen, you're still alive? You should have ran away when you had the chance. Coming back out here and showing yourself to me was a bad move."
Just as Kishin turned to fully face Tosen he paused and took note of the new person standing in the way. They were male with fair skin and dark gray eyes. They were approximately 181cm tall and had a lean built body. Their hair was short and colored black. Three scar lines ran down the right side of their face while the number 69 was tattooed on the left side of their cheek. Another tattoo in the form of a blue horizontal line also ran across the left side of their face crossing the bridge of their nose. A black choker was laced around their neck with matching armbands around both of their upper arms. They wore a sleeveless shihakusho with the Lieutenant's emblem wrapped around their left arm.
Kishin narrowed his eyes with an unappreciative look as he said with a dark murderous undertone, "Lieutenant Hisagi. Move."
Hisagi gulped in nervous fear and shook his head. "No. I won't let you kill Captain Tosen!"
Kishin took a step forward with an indifferent expression on his face. "Last chance. I'll kill you myself if you won't move."
Even though Kishin's tone of voice was emotionless when he said that, to Hisagi it felt as if a knife was being held to his throat the entire time. Every step Kishin took made Hisagi feel like he was that much closer to death.
Toshiro couldn't bear to watch anymore as he didn't want Kishin to do anything that he'd regret. No, rather he couldn't bear to watch Kishin do something that might implicate his future when he knew that Kishin hadn't done anything wrong yet, so he stuck out his hand and shouted, "KISHIN!"
Kishin paused and felt his mind return to reality. He had momentarily entered his killing mode and was simply about to slaughter everyone who stood in his way without a second thought, however Toshiro's voice brought him back to the bigger picture.
Toshiro also took notice that the look in Kishin's eyes returned to those that he was familiar with instead of the demonic ones Kishin had when wanting to kill everything in his path. He let out a deep sigh in relief before continuing, "Kishin, ju-just think about this. Think about what you're doing. Don't do something that'll cause some major problems later on for yourself. What about Rukia?"
Kishin immediately retracted his killing intent at the mention of Rukia's name and let out a sigh. He stared at Tosen before glaring at Hisagi. "Tch. You really aren't going to move are you?"
Hisagi took a step back and held out his Zanpakuto in front of him. "Like I said. I won't let you k-UH!" Hisagi never got to finish his sentence as he instantly lost sight of Kishin.
Kishin didn't care for someone like Hisagi. Someone of Hisagi's level could never have stopped him from fighting Tosen in the first place so he merely blitzed the Lieutenant and arrived before Tosen.
"Wha-!" Tosen couldn't even get in his involuntary exclamation before he was hit.
SCHLICK!
Blood spurted out as Kishin's Zanpakuto pierced right into the right side of Tosen's waist greatly impeding his ability to maneuver around. Kishin smirked and retracted his blade before swinging it once more going in for the kill.
BAM!
Tosen dashed back just in time managing to avoid a fatal blow, however he was severely injured as he crashed down into the ground below.
PSSSHHH!
The sound of blood spewing into the air and onto the ground filled the deathly still silence in the area from everyone's stunned expressions. Tosen groaned and panted struggling to stand as he used his right hand to cover the left side of his shoulder, the shoulder that was now missing a left arm.
"TOSEN!" Komamura shouted in alarm. His shout was soon followed by Hisagi's. "CAPTAIN!"
Hisagi angrily turned towards Kishin blinded in rage and hate as he took one glance at the ground where Tosen's chopped arm laid before glancing at Tosen's left shoulder spewing blood on the ground. Without being able to form any rational thought he brandished his Zanpakuto and dashed right at Kishin.
SWOOSH!
Hisagi dashed so fast with his Shunpo that he left a powerful wind in his wake. In mere moments he arrived by Kishin's side and struck out with his Zanpakuto aiming to kill with all his might.
"AHHH!" He shouted in anguish, however Kishin never even glanced at him.
Swat.
BOOM!
In but a mere fraction of a second, before Hisagi could even swing his Zanpakuto 1cm from its original position he was slapped into the distance by the back of Kishin's hand as if he were a fly being swatted out of the sky. Kishin simply stood on the rubble of the building completely unfazed and faced Tosen acting as if nothing had just happened whilst he nonchalantly commented, "You shouldn't have joined Captain Komamura in attacking me. I might have simply left then. Clearly you didn't learn your lesson from our last fight."
Everyone but Gin was confused as Kishin kept mentioning something about him fighting Tosen before, however no one ever elaborated and Tosen never commented on it. Just as Kishin was about to attack once more and land the finishing blow on Tosen, he paused and noted several more Captain signatures heading his way.
"Tch." He clicked his tongue and sheathed his Zanpakuto. "Just know Captain Tosen, had I really wanted you dead, then you'd be dead, but I digress." He gave Gin a curious look and Toshiro an encouraging one before he disappeared, Shunpoing off into the far distance leaving everyone stunned and dumbfounded at what they just witnessed.
It wasn't long before he arrived back inside the secret training grounds beneath the Sokyoku Hill. To his surprise he found that he wasn't the only one here. "This reiatsu. Yoruichi and Ichigo?"
He slowly walked over to where he felt the spiritual pressure of a battle happening and found Yoruichi in her Human form standing nearby watching Ichigo battle what appeared to be the manifested spirit of his Zanpakuto. Yoruichi immediately took notice of his presence and gave him a questioning glance. "Kishin? What are you doing back here?"
He awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged. "Things got a bit too crazy up top so I decided to wait things out down here."
"Hm? Exactly what happened?"
"Ah nothing much. Aizen framed his death on me and now I'm a wanted criminal of Soul Society. What's up with you? I see that you started Ichigo on his Bankai training."
Yoruichi was too shocked to care about explaining Ichigo's progress in Bankai training and instead questioned him about Aizen. "Y-You're a wanted criminal of Soul Society now? What the...and Aizen faked his death? For what purpose does that serve? Where's he going to go for the next 3 days?"
Kishin took a seat on the ground and placed a reigar between his lips before answering nonchalantly, "Pretty much, but it's not anything to worry about. I figured this might happen. Anyways my guess is that Aizen's hiding himself in the Seijotokyorin."
"Eh? Seijotokyorin? The residential district of Central 46? I see...that place is forbidden for anyone to enter regardless of who they are. That would make sense. Why go through the trouble though?"
"I've got two guesses. One, to mess with me because I slightly intervened in his little plan. As for the second, to passively watch over everything happening in Soul Society for fun."
Yoruichi slightly frowned. "He's gone through this much trouble to set everything up. You don't actually believe that he'll sit around and let us succeed in rescuing Hinamori and Rukia do you?"
Kishin smirked and nodded. "Actually I do. Extracting the Hogyoku from Hinamori by using the Sokyoku is just his first plan. He never actually banked his chances on it working in the first place."
"Just his first plan? Then what's the second? Isn't the Sokyoku the only method to remove the Hogyoku from Hinamori's soul?"
Kishin furrowed his brow and shook his head. "Seems like Urahara didn't tell you. There's actually a second method."
"What?! Damn Kisuke. Why didn't he say anything?"
"I don't know. Ask him yourself, but if I had to guess then it was probably because he didn't expect that Aizen would actually find the second method. And now that you mention it, that's probably the third reason why he faked his death to hide beneath the Central 46 Compound in the Seijotokyorin."
"And what exactly is this second method you speak of? Are you implying that it can be found within the Central 46 Compound?"
"Well, to answer your questions I'm not really sure what the second method is. At least I can't really tell you in great detail. I only know that it has something to do with Urahara's research that was sealed away deep within the Daireishokairo. With that information Aizen can personally remove the Hogyoku from within Hinamori as long as he gets his hands on her. After that he probably intends to spend the remaining days until the execution in the Seijotokyorin."
"Tsk. Then we need to ensure Hinamori's safety above all else once Yushiro and Kinji destroy the Sokyoku."
"I know. That's why I'm having Yushiro and Kinji assist Toshiro in protecting Hinamori."
"I see, but what about Rukia? What exactly are you going to be doing?"
Kishin frowned and seemed to stare off into space a bit before taking a quick glance down at Ichigo who was still in the middle of fighting his Zanpakuto spirit. "I'll...entrust Rukia's safety to Ichigo."
Yoruichi narrowed her eyes, focusing her complete attention on Kishin. "You still haven't answered my question. What will YOU be doing?"
He sighed and took a whiff of his reigar. "Well, someone's got to stop Aizen or he'll just go after the Hogyoku."
"Eh?! You're planning on taking on Aizen?"
"Unfortunately I'm the only one that can."
"But by yourself?"
"It has to be by myself."
"But why?"
"Because I'm the only one not affected by his Kyoka Suigetsu."
"Still, to take him on by yourself? At least having others with you will help distract him."
Kishin laughed and shook his head. "Yoruichi-san, you're smarter than that."
Yoruichi frowned at his remark. "What? You thi-" she paused in her retort as realization struck her.
Kishin took another smoke of his reigar and grinned at her reaction. "Seems you finally realized. That's right. As long as I fight alongside someone who has been affected by Kyoka Suigetsu, then I'd be fighting a losing battle from the very start."
Yoruichi clenched her hands into fists as she understood what would happen. "You're right...most likely he'd have his Kyoka Suigetsu affect your allies in making them think that you are him and have them attack you instead."
"And that's why for right now, only two people stand a chance against him."
Yoruichi let out a sigh and glanced down to where two beings were locked in a fierce battle. "I see. So it's down to you and Ichigo huh…"
"That depends."
"Hm? What do you mean?"
"For right now Ichigo would be of no help at all. He's too weak. Even if he learns how to utilize his Bankai before the execution date the level of strength he would possess at that time would amount to nothing against Aizen. In essence, it's really down to whether or not I can stop Aizen. If I can't, then yeah. Ichigo can have a turn at him in the future."
Yoruichi gave Kishin an odd look as she curiously inquired, "Exactly what are your chances against him?"
Kishin let out a conflicted sigh. "Haaah...forty percent? I can't really say. Aizen is a bit hard to gauge since I've never seen him actually fight."
Yoruichi narrowed her eyes deep in thought. "Forty percent huh? That's still pretty good. In that case you should be able to stall him long enough for us to return to Karakura Town with Hinamori and have Urahara do something about the situation."
"Hahaha, you have too much confidence in me. Aizen is a tricky opponent. Not sure what he's got planned. And does Urahara have a plan? What's he going to do? Lock her up in a cell with a powerful barrier until all of her reiryoku completely dissipates turning her into a Human? Then what? Alter her memories and have her live life as a regular Human? How long will that last for? Unless Urahara relocates entirely there's no way he can keep Hinamori completely hidden away. Besides, there's also Toshiro..."
Yoruichi just shrugged her shoulders. "Well, I'm not the one with the plans. Leave that to Kisuke. By the way, I thought you wanted to wait until Aizen revealed his true nature to the Gotei 13? If you confront him beneath the Seijotokyorin then what happens after?"
"That's easy enough. He already faked his death and pinned it on me. When he finds out that the execution failed he'll attempt the second method in extracting the Hogyoku, but I'll stall him and if I'm lucky, I'll kill him. Then I'll simply make his framed death a reality. Oh, by the way I hope you guys didn't touch my room back at the Urahara Shop because I'll be living with you all if I'm actually lucky enough to kill the bastard."
Yoruichi smirked in amusement. "Oh? Is that so? Well if you can kill Aizen then there wouldn't be a need for Hinamori to carry the Hogyoku inside of her and become a Human."
Kishin just waved his hand in the air dismissing Yoruichi's comment. "Just stick to the plan. If I don't show up in an hour in this place after the execution then that means I failed at stopping Aizen...or that I'm dead."
"Dead? That's pretty extreme don't you think? I thought you wouldn't leave Rukia so easily."
Kishin furrowed his brow. "I'm not...honestly what I'm doing goes against what I would originally have done, but Aizen's too annoying to leave alone so it leaves me no other choice really. Tch. If only I never got involved with Toshiro, Yushiro, Kinji, Rukia, and Captain Ukitake."
Yoruichi glanced down at Kishin's sitting form as a look of appreciation flashed in her eyes. "Kishin, I realize that you're sacrificing a lot. I know this might not mean too much to you but...thanks. Aizen won't likely be able to obtain the Hogyoku because of you."
Kishin smirked as he watched his reigar completely disintegrate into pure reishi particles. "You're right. Your thanks doesn't mean anything to me."
Yoruichi blinked a few times a bit speechless, but in the end she let out a loud boisterous laugh. "Pffft! Ha! Hahahaha!"
Kishin just glanced at her with a curiously raised eyebrow. "What?"
"Hahaha! Haaaah..." She wiped away a tear from the corner of her eye before responding, "Nothing. It's nothing. That's just a very Kishin-like answer that I had expected from you."
"Well I am the guy in question."
"Hahaha! I know I know."
Kishin shook his head at Yoruichi before changing topics. "By the way Yoruichi-san, I have a question."
"Oh? What is it?"
"You said that you brought everyone to see Kukaku before leaving with Yushiro right?"
"That's right. What about it?"
Kishin furrowed his brow as he recalled his conversation with Isshin a long while back. "Regarding their demotion from being one of the Great Noble Clans...did Kukaku happen to mention anything?"
Yoruichi narrowed her eyes suspiciously at Kishin. "What are you implying?"
Kishin felt a tension build up within Yoruichi and immediately knew that she knew something. "Did they happen to lose a mirror?"
Yoruichi widened here eyes in shock and quickly inquired, "What do you know about that item?!"
Now Kishin was curious since Yoruichi had such a strong reaction from just him mentioning it. He put up his hands defensively and nonchalantly replied, "Calm down. I don't know much. I only know as much as Isshin told me."
A look of understanding flashed by in her eyes at the mention of Isshin's name. "Haaah...I see. So that idiot was the one who told you. That makes sense."
"Hm? By the sound of it you seem to know what this Dark World Mirror is."
Yoruichi slapped her palm to her face. "Haaaaah...so that idiot Isshin even told you its name."
"Haha, guess I really shouldn't know about it. What's so important about it anyways?"
A blank look appeared on her face as she simply shrugged her shoulders. "Actually I don't know what it is either."
Kishin immediately felt like a bucket of cold water was dumped on him as he was expecting Yoruichi to know more since she had such a strong reaction to him knowing about the item. She just let out another sigh and continued, "I don't know what the Dark World Mirror is, however the less people who know about it the better. Only the head honcho's of each of the Great Noble Clans know about this item. We don't know what its use is, but we do know that its important and dangerous."
"Is that so? Then its true. The Shiba Clan lost the item?"
Yoruichi's look turned serious as she nodded her head. "Yeah. That mirror was currently sealed away with multiple protective barriers and seals. All of them incredibly powerful, however when Isshin disappeared it left the order of things in the Shiba Clan completely in disarray. As you know there aren't many Shiba's left. One day while Kukaku and Ganju were out of their headquarters someone broke into the place and stole the mirror."
"What?! Someone just waltzed into the Shiba Clan headquarters and broke through multiple powerful ancient seals and barriers and took it? How does that happen?"
Yoruichi closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. "I don't know. Kukaku said that there was barely any residual reiatsu left by the thief, however she did say that whoever it was, their reiatsu was incredibly powerful. Almost beast-like. Anyways the trail of the thief's reiatsu didn't permeate beyond the Shiba Clan's headquarters so they must have used a method to conceal themselves when they left so as not to be easily tracked."
Kishin rubbed the bottom of his chin lost in thought. "Will something bad happen now that the mirror is gone?"
"No. Well...not yet. I'm sure Isshin already told you that the Dark Mirror World that the Shiba Clan had sealed away was broken so it can't really be used."
Kishin raised his eyebrow in curiosity as he ventured to guess a theory. "You said that the other Great Noble Clan heads are aware of the Dark World Mirror too right? And the fact that the one that the Shiba Clan was guarding is broken and the fact that you say that the broken piece doesn't pose a threat on its own means...Yoruichi-san, are the other Great Noble Clans protecting another piece of the mirror?"
Yoruichi slightly frowned and sat on the ground with her arms crossed by her chest. "I'm not sure if I should praise you or scold you for your intellect. Don't speak a word about what you know to anyone else got it?"
Kishin was inwardly startled that he actually hit it on the mark. "Then...the other Great Noble Clans really do have another piece of this Dark World Mirror. And the seals..." He recalled a conversation he had with Yoruichi a long time ago and curiously guessed, "The reason why you don't carry around your Zanpakuto...you're using it as a keystone to hold together a seal that locks away a piece of the Dark World Mirror?"
"You?! How did you come to that conclusion?"
"Well, I've come a long way since the last time we talked. I'm quite a master at Kido now you know. I might even be better than Kinji, the current Kido Corps Commander, so I know a thing or two about barriers and seals."
Yoruichi clicked her tongue and shook her head. "Enough of this conversation. I already revealed things that I shouldn't have. Damn Isshin. Even if he left his position he still shouldn't have mouthed off about something like this. That idiot." She then glared seriously at Kishin and continued, "Since you know now you had better keep your mouth shut. Even though I don't know what the Dark World Mirror is the records of our family does mention that it needs to remain a secret and locked away for eternity. So don't go digging your nose in this stuff again okay?"
Kishin awkwardly scratched the side of his cheek and nodded. "Alright alright, got it. Promise." He then coughed and attempted to steer the conversation away. "Ahem, anyways, enough about that. How's Ichigo's Bankai training going?"
Yoruichi sighed and turned her focus back to Ichigo. "He's doing quite well. He fought and surprisingly defeated Kenpachi. Even though he sustained some heavy damage in that fight, after his training with you he was able to come out on top. The problem was we ran into Mayuri afterwards. He took advantage of Ichigo's wounded state and placed a poison on him, knocking him out. Ishida arrived just in time to intervene so I took Ichigo and brought him back here. He was out for a few days before making a full recovery. Seems the drug Mayuri used wasn't life threatening since he most likely wanted to keep Ichigo healthy as a test subject."
Kishin laughed and nodded. "Hahaha, that definitely sounds like Captain Kurotsuchi. So? He woke up and you decided to train him in Bankai?"
"That's right. The drug kept him out for a while. He just woke up a few hours ago. With only three days left until the execution there isn't enough time to storm the Senzaikyu and grab both Rukia and Hinamori and escape. Especially with Ichigo's current level of strength so Bankai training is the only thing left."
"Is that so? Well, it seems he's not doing too horribly. He's managing to hold his own against his Zanpakuto for now. What's your estimate?"
Yoruichi gave a thoughtful look for a moment. "He's a natural talent. After his short time training with you his fighting spirit became even stronger. I think you set a new bar for him. He's aiming to become stronger than you. Probably another day or two and he'll have succeeded in learning Bankai. Either way I'm confident that he'll be able to attain Bankai before the time of the execution."
"Ehhh? That's some high praise you give him Yoruichi-san. So? What do you think then?"
"Hm? What do I think about what?"
"Heh. What do you think about him surpassing me? Any chances?"
Yoruichi gave a hesitant smile and relaxedly leaned back on her hands. "Hard to say. Who knows what the future holds, but presently? It'll be hard for Ichigo to match you in combat. You still outclass him in Zanjutsu, Hakuda, and Hoho. Don't even mention Kido. That kid doesn't have a knack for it. He's more like Kenpachi. He has high spiritual pressure and great physical capabilities, but when it comes to using refined techniques like Kido then he's a lost cause."
"Well, I expected as much."
"Are you really planning to wait here for the rest of the three days?"
Kishin nodded. "I am. If what you say is true and it'll only take Ichigo a day or two before he learns Bankai then that means I've got a little bit of time to teach him how to fight in his Bankai state."
An awkward look appeared on Yoruichi's face as she recalled the time when Kishin first started training Ichigo and how Ichigo suffered greatly at his hands. "A-Are you sure that's a good idea? You aren't going to traumatize the kid again are you?"
Kishin just smirked. "That would depend on his attitude."
MISC.
Great Noble Clans:
1. Kamunushi Clan (Owns a piece of the Dark World Mirror)
2. Tsunayashiro Clan (Owns a piece of the Dark World Mirror)
3. Shiba Clan (Dark World Mirror piece stolen)
4. Shihoin Clan (Owns a piece of the Dark World Mirror)
5. Kuchiki Clan (Owns a piece of the Dark World Mirror)
Komamura's Zanpakuto: Tenken (Heavenly Retribution)
Bankai: Kokujo Tengen Myo'o (Divine Retribution, Black Ropes of Ruination)
-Summons forth a giant black armored Samurai standing at about 100 meters tall that wields a giant blade. There is a red cloth that covers the front of its face. The giant has tremendous physical power and mimics each and every one of Komamura's own movements.
KIDO: (If the spell is underlined then that means it's an original Kido Spell I made that does not exist in canon)
-Hado #1: Sho (Thrust)
-Hado #71: Sodai Sho (Grand Thrust): A much stronger version of Hado #1 that generates a powerful thrusting force from the palm of one's hand.
Unnumbered Kido:
-Hakufuku (White Crawl)
-Bakudo #61: Rikujokoro (Six Rods of Light)
-Bakudo #62: Hyapporankan (Hundred Steps Fence)
-Bakudo #63: Sajo Sabaku (Ethereal Binding Chain)