Author's Note:
Some of the info here are based from either the anime, manga, or the expansions from the light novels. So yeah.
Chapter 1: Intrusion
It had been almost one century since the last incident within Soul Society. The losses that were suffered that day had already been recovered somewhat. The shoes of the captains for the several divisions within the Gotei 13 that were empty that day had already been filled.
Aizen Sosuke had filled in the shoes left by Shinji Hirako as the Captain of the Fifth Division. His position as the Lieutenant of the Fifth Division has been given to Hinamori Momo after she graduated from the Shin'o Academy.
Kurotsuchi Mayuri had taken over the Twelfth Division with his "daughter", Kurotsuchi Nemu, as his Lieutenant, sometime after Urahara Kisuke escaped into the World of the Living following being charged by Central 46 for the supposed crime he committed (and was subsequently declared to be exiled).
Ichimaru Gin and Kaname Tosen had taken the reins of their respective divisions, the Third and Ninth, as the Captains of their division, after the losses of Captains Otoribashi Rojuro and Muguruma Kensei, respectively. Izuru Kira and Shuuhei Hisagi were appointed into the position of Lieutenant respectively after the two graduated from the Shin'o Academy.
Sui-Feng had taken the rein of the Second Division, and by extension, the Omnitsukido, the intelligence division of the Gotei 13, following their abandonment by the previous captain, Shihoin Yoruichi, who left to assist Urahara Kisuke. The Lieutenant, Omaeda Marenoshin, had long since retired from that position, and his son, Omaeda Marechiyo, took over his position.
Following the loss of Aikawa Love (or Aikawa Rabu), Komamura Sajin took over the position of the Seventh Division's Captain after he graduated from the Shin'o Academy. Tetsuzaemon Iba took over the position of Lieutenant, sometime after he transferred from the Eleventh Division to the Seventh and Kotsubaki Jinemon's retirement from the position.
While it has been confirmed that the shoes of the Chief and Vice Chief of the Kido Corps has been filled, following the dishonorable discharge (and subsequently rogue) of Tsukabishi Tessai, and the loss of Ushoda Hachigen, their identities remain unknown since rarely anyone has ever seen any of them, as remarked by the Captain of the Thirteenth Division, Ukitake Jushiro, following the "Hollowfication Incident".
Now, however, the fates decide to throw a wrench into the mix. The future that was supposed to be… Shall be changed. Whether it is for the better, or worse, remains to be seen. For the one who shall bring the change, is soon to arrive.
Far above the Seireitei lies the Soul King Palace. Within it, resides the sole ruler of the entire Soul Society, and the lynchpin for every realm within the reality: The Soul King.
The man, even being sealed and maimed by the ancient ancestors of the Shinigami millions of years ago, was still, in fact, alive and conscious, albeit in a limbo between life and death. Feeling the encroaching change that has entered Soul Society, he mused over the irony of it.
'For the fates shall be broken, and the one heralding from a broken world shall bring about change.' He thought.
Hyosube Ichibe, the leader of the Zero Division, or the Royal Guards as it is alternatively known, was summoned by his will into the palace.
"I heed thy call, Your Majesty." Ichibe bowed.
'Pay heed of what shall transpire in the Seireitei, for it shall bring about change that will truly makes things… Interesting.' The Soul King mentally said.
Ichibe was slightly taken aback by the Soul King's words. Mind you, the Soul King is known for his almost nigh-omnipotent powers, even so far as being capable of foreseeing the future to the extent of seeing even his own death, even taking into account his current status as but a sealed being and a powerless king in terms of Soul Society's politics. Hence, Ichibe's slight surprise at the King's words.
"I shall do as you ordered, Your Majesty." Ichibe bowed before leaving.
The Zero Division soon began to monitor the Seireitei, in accordance with the Soul King's will. For they too shall bear witness to the coming change, and they are powerless to stop it. The Soul King, on the other hand, stays his hand and decided to simply observe in amusement.
'May this break their arrogance, and a small retribution given to them for the numerous transgressions they've made.' He mentally chuckled as he foresees the events unfolding, and its conclusion in the far future.
The year in the Human calendar is 1980 AD. Akon, the third seat of the Tweflth Division, just got his coffee as his breakfast. He was walking towards the monitoring room, a cup of coffee in hand, and the other hand carrying an empty report book for the day.
"Morning, people…" He yawned as he arrived at the door and it opened automatically.
"Mornin'…" Hiyosu, the department head of the Shinigami R&D Institute, or the S.R.D.I., greeted back lazily.
"Good morning, sir." Kuna Niko, a member of the S.R.D.I., greeted.
"G-good morning." Tsubokura Rin, a fellow Department Head of the S.R.D.I., meekly greeted.
The place was reasonably large enough to house several monitors. Each monitor shows different things, such as the airspace around the Seireitei, the situation in the World of the Living, or even the Reiatsu (or Spiritual Pressure) levels at the Rukongai and the occasional Hollows that might pop up over there.
The day was pretty much less than hectic, with the usual readings of Hollows appearing in the outskirts, the dispatch of Shinigamis to the affected areas… Or that was how it was supposed to be for the day.
Somewhere, in the infinite unknown, the fates observing this one universe snickered in amusement, and said to itself: "Let there be change…"
Coinciding at the same time as it said those words, the Reiatsu detector went off. To be precise, it was going beyond anything that has been recorded in its known history. Tsubokura was already panicking at the sight of this.
"S-sir! W-we have a massive Reiatsu reading coming towards t-the Seireitei! it's beyond any m-measured levels!" Tsubokura reported in a panic.
"Shit. Do we have any visuals on this thing?!" Hiyosu barked.
"Nothing yet! Visuals should be up… Now!" Kuna replied after redirecting the "cameras" to the incoming foreign object.
"By the Soul King…" Akon guffawed.
"Reishi readings indicates it's… We have no idea what it is!" Kuna reported in shock.
"Separate the readings between pure reishi and possible life-signature!" Hiyosu ordered.
Akon gripped his coffee cup hard. This really messed up his day. 'So much for another easy day…' He lamented, before he contacted his Captain, Mayuri.
"Captain, we've got an incoming. It's massive, and we have no idea what in the Soul King it is." He calmly reported.
"I know! I'm heading over there now!" Mayuri retorted in an annoyed tone before he closed the call.
True to his words, Mayuri soon entered the monitoring room, accompanied by Nemu who followed behind him.
"Trying to, sir! But I cannot detect anything! It's too damn dense!" Kuna stressed.
"Sigh… Let me do it myself." Mayuri said as he pushed away Tsubokura and began inputting the necessary algorithm.
"Filtering natural reishi from scans… Acquiring possible signatures of life… Discarding noises from impure reishi readings… Done." Mayuri muttered after typing in furiously and pressed the enter button.
The giant monitor showing the incoming object soon cleared up of the obstacles and showed the true content within that massive reiatsu readings.
"It's… A person?" Akon raised his brow.
"Yes, and it would seem that this visitor of ours is not even conscious, judging from the lack of active reishi within his body." Mayuri rubbed his chin.
"Cap'n, can we do anything to stop that?" Hiyosu asked as he pointed at the foreign object.
"The Seireiheki should be able to reduce the power of the impact. But I would say it will breach the wall's barriers and head straight down, with only a reduce in energy potential by at least 30, with 40% at best" Mayuri conjectured.
"W-wouldn't that be b-bad, s-sir?" Tsubokura asked with fear.
"Yes. But we can only hope to reduce the damage to the surrounding area. Akon, calculate the trajectory, and find out where it will land." Mayuri immediately barked.
"Sir." Akon replied as he began crunching down the numbers on the computer in front of him.
"You there, sound the alarm. Alert the divisions and tell them to erect defensive barriers." Mayuri ordered Tsubokura.
"Y-yessir!" Tsubokura agreed in panic and began activating the alarms.
Soon, every section within the Seireitei was blaring with an emergency alarm.
"Emergency alert! All division members are to conjure defensive barriers! I repeat- "The emergency alert blared continuously.
The entire Seireitei was in a full uproar. Such a reaction was never warranted before. Nobody had dared to invade the Seireitei, so who was mad enough to cause such a reaction? The mechanisms of the Gotei 13 soon moved into motion.
Within the Fifth Division's Headquarters, Aizen was amused. He certainly had felt that massive reiatsu pressure.
'I know not of its intentions, but it's certainly an interesting one.' He bemused.
In the meantime, Momo entered the room. She looked extremely disturbed by the alert.
"Captain Aizen, we should erect a barrier! The alerts said that- "Momo said before Aizen sighed softly and stopped her.
"I know, Hinamori. I shall handle it." He said with a smile as he began casting various barrier Kido spells.
"Accha… This could be a problem…" Gin aloofly remarked.
"Captain, we still need to erect the barriers." Kira said.
"I know, already… Also, stop being so gloomy, wouldn'ccha?" Gin sighed with a grin.
Soon, the Third Division had their barriers up.
'Whatever this is, I feel it shall bring the winds of change… I know not of which it shall go, however…' Kaname mused in his meditation.
He may be blind, but he was still aware of the happenings on the outside. He heard the alert, and thus had begun casting several Kido barriers over the entire Ninth Division's headquarters. His Lieutenant, Hisagi, however, was busy ordering the men around to setup the barrier.
"Captain, I've calculated the trajectory." Akon said.
"Hmm? Then speak up." Mayuri raised a brow.
"It's… Heading towards the vicinity of the Fourth Division." Akon reported.
"Fourth? Of all the places… Why won't it fall to ours?!" Mayuri lamented.
"I-isn't that good, s-sir?" Tsubokura muttered.
"No, it's not, my silly subordinate! I want to examine this intruder! No one can emit such a massive reiatsu without repercussion! I want to dissect, research, and catalogue this being!" Mayuri was already on his maniac switch.
Akon sighed helplessly at the sight of his superior being like this. Knowing the man for well almost a century, he is one of the two people that could break his calm.
"Kuna send a message to Captain Unohana. I believe she should know of this." Akon ordered, pinching his brow.
The girl nodded and contacted the Fourth Division's Headquarters, notifying them of the incoming object more than likely landing near them.
Kotetsu Isane ran through the halls within the Fourth Division's Headquarters. The entire division was scrambling, either to erect barriers or to evacuate essential objects to a safer location, such as the underground sewers that they often use for supply distribution.
"Captain, have you heard?!" She came into Unohana's room.
"Yes, Isane. I have already been notified by Ms. Kuna of the Twelfth Division." Unohana replied with calmness.
"Then we should- "Isane said before Unohana interrupted her.
"Don't worry, Isane. Everything will be fine." Unohana said with a smile.
"If you say so, Captain…" Isane muttered.
A massive barrier had been erected above the Fourth Division's location. Whether it will suffice or not, only time will tell.
"The object is about to impact the Seireiheki! Start the countdown!" Mayuri barked.
"8…
7…
6…
5…
4…
3…
2…
1…" Akon counted before there was a massive blast impacting the Seireiheki.
KABOOM!
The blast shook the Seireiheki so violently, it was like there was an earthquake of a 9.0 in magnitude. Within several seconds of impact, the Seireiheki slowly cracked under the sheer pressure of the incoming object.
Crack… Crack… Crack…
And not long after…
CRAAANNGGGG!
The barrier of the Seireiheki broke. This was an unbelievable sight. Not even the strongest Hollow or any sort of invasion by other parties have ever breached the Seireiheki. But now, the reality was unfolding in front of them. Their vaunted barrier, known to stop everything in its tracks before anything could harm the Seireitei… Was shattered, for all to see.
To be precise, it did not shatter the whole barrier per say. It broke through, yes, but the barrier that was farther from the original point of impact was still intact. But still, it shattered the myth of its invincibility.
Even the Captain-Commander, Yamamoto Genryuusai, who was observing from his headquarters, his eyes widen at the sight. The old man sighed in disbelief of the events happening right in front of his eyes.
'Maybe this will convince those Central 46 bureaucrats and the Noble houses to improve the Seireiheki or just even better detection…' He thought.
His Lieutenant, Sasakibe Chojiro, simply waited by the side. He trusts fully in his Captain, for he is THE Yamamoto Genryuusai Shigekuni, the Captain-Commander of the Gotei 13, and one of the strongest Shinigami in Soul Society's history.
"Send word, prepare for disaster response near the Fourth Division." Yamamoto's vigorous voice echoed.
"Sir." Chojiro bowed dutifully before Shunpoing away to do his orders.
The journey beyond space-time, dimensions, and realities is one that is rarely traversed. Most of the time, only beings with powers beyond comprehension could do such a thing. And thus, those that attempted such a thing while still within the comprehension of only one universe will have no idea what will happen next.
Although Venat had guaranteed that the travel will bring him far, and yes it did, however… Nobody told him that he will feel something like being stretched almost infinitely before feeling like being scanned and suddenly dispersed for some reason, only to still feel yourself being there.
'I suppose this will take a while…' Shugo thought.
So, he decided to enter a sort of "deep sleep", since the journey would take time, and he is still suffering due to the wounds from his final battle with Zenos. Make no mistake, his wounds are very grievous, though the only reason he is still alive is because of his strong life force.
In the time since, he had travelled through an unknown number of places for who knows how long and how fast he went. It was all dependent on Venat's remaining power as Hydaelyn's host that was used to propel him in the first place.
As time continued to pass, the light eventually brought him upon a certain reality. After breaching the initial barrier between realities, it continued unhindered as it descends upon the dimension within said reality. And after breaching the dimensional barrier, it arrived upon the place that was located within the dimension.
Its descent was without any opposition. However, it would soon meet its first obstacle. A massive barrier made of unknown materials blocked its way. However, it took but a few seconds and a certain amount of energy to break through said barrier.
It continued to descend upon the inside of the barrier. Its shadow loom over whoever or whatever that is below it. And then, it met another obstacle. Multiple barriers protecting whatever is inside it. Soon, it impacted the barrier.
And currently, Shugo was still in a deep slumber.
"S-sir, the object has impacted the b-barriers o-on the Fourth Division!" Tsubokura reported stuttering.
"I can see that! How long until it will breach the barriers by Captain Unohana?" Mayuri asked.
"Estimating… Within the next three seconds!" Akon said.
"Nemu, contact the capture units! Send them to the location after it has landed on the ground!" Mayuri barked.
"Yes." Nemu curtly replied before leaving.
"Huhuhu… I shall find out whatever secrets you're having, o mysterious friend-kun…" Mayuri chuckled menacingly.
"Captain, we've finished the evacuations!" Isane reported after hearing from her subordinates.
"Good. Now, get behind me, Isane." Unohana nodded.
Isane paused for a moment before realizing what she meant with that words. She ran to Unohana's back, barely in time before the barriers set up above the 4th Division's complex was breached. In only three seconds, a dozen barriers made by a Kido Master, were breached.
Soon, the object landed at the courtyard of the 4th Division, and the explosion caused by the impact nearly destroyed the entire complex, save for some parts and Unohana's office that was protected by another multitude of barriers.
KABOOM!
A mushroom cloud emerged into the air, almost as if there was a nuclear explosion there. The barrier protecting Unohana's office soon began to shatter, one by one.
Crack! Cling! Crack! Cling! Crack! Cling!
But before the last two was shattered, the energy caused by the explosion of the impact had already dispersed.
Thus, the catastrophe that might have threatened the Seireitei as a whole, ended with a massive crater that devastated what once was the Fourth Division's Complex.
"All personnel prioritize removing the debris! Extinguish those fire at the front! Check if there are any casualties! Report back as soon as we have the tally!" Isane barked her orders in distress.
This… Thing. It had destroyed much of the Fourth Division's home. So much destruction… She gnashed her teeth in anger. However, the same cannot be said for her captain, Unohana Retsu.
She was, in contrast, calm and serene. Her eyes looked around for any possible fatalities and found none. She could sense that while some were wounded, none were fatally injured or even killed. It was a miracle that nobody died. She walked upon the crash site and went down.
"Wait, captain! We don't know if the ones inside whatever that thing is, is friendly or not!" Isane went over worryingly.
"Calm down, Isane. Look." Unohana said glancing over the pit of glass and coal.
At the center of the pit, lies a man. His clothes were in tatters, soaked in blood, but it was still recognizable to be like those of the nobility. His eyes were closed, but still visibly breathing, albeit very slowly.
Cuts were visible from the exposed parts of his clothing. There was a small train of blood dripping from his mouth, though the said blood drop has long since dried. His hands were still bleeding visibly, albeit slowly. The same can be said for his legs that is not covered by his "shihakusho". He was also visibly sweating, perhaps from a fever.
She looked to his hand and saw what remained of his supposed weapon. His right hand was holding a bladeless sword grip, with its guard still attached. While there were some evidence that there was a blade, it seemed that it was all but shattered. The sheath, placed at his left side, showed quite the damage as well, but compared to the broken blade, it was relatively light.
"By the Soul King…" Isane gasped.
"Isane, get some healers over here. I will try to stabilize him." Unohana ordered as she went down.
"But captain- "Isane was about to protest before Unohana denied her.
"No buts, Lieutenant. We have a heavily wounded here, and he is not conscious. Now!" Unohana slightly shouted.
"Y-yes!" Isane straightened herself up before jumping out of the pit.
'Whatever this man has just went through, it is certainly no small matter. Not with these kinds of wounds' She thought as she opened his clothes.
His body was filled with numerous injuries and scars. His face was relatively uninjured, save for the small cut on his cheek that was relatively still fresh. She sighed in distress upon the man's sheer number of injuries. Casting a Kaido, she began to slowly heal the injuries on the man, while detecting for any more within the body.
To her unpleasant surprise, however, she found more injuries inside of him. His left arm is broken, some of his ribs are broken, and there is a crack on the bone of his legs. Not to mention, he is suffering significant blood loss, judging from his blood-drenched clothing.
Not long after she started his treatment, Isane came running, with some healers in tow.
"Captain, I've brought some healers to help. How is he?" Isane asked, no longer being angry at the man and instead worried for him.
"I've stabilized him, but we are not out of the woods yet. His wounds are too severe to be handled here. We need to give him proper treatment, else he will perish." Unohana sighed.
This encounter with the man, whether they realize it or not, have already changed their fate. The machinations of fate have moved into motion, and the future that was once clear, has now been muddled by the arrival of this man.
"Reporting, Captain-Commander." A Kido Corps member appeared at a distance behind Yamamoto.
"You may speak." The old captain gave his permission.
"Sir. The object impacting the Fourth Division's complex has devastated the place. Most of the complex is all but rubble. Reportedly, they have suffered 10% casualties, though none are fatalities." The member reported.
"Furthermore, there was a man found in the center of the crash site, possibly the one that was within the object. The man was reportedly unconscious and was already suffering from grievous injuries, according to Captain Unohana." He further elaborated.
"I see…" Yamamoto stroked his beard in contemplation.
"Currently, the man is under surgery by Captain Unohana and several members of the 4th Division." He ended the report.
"Good work. I shall visit the Fourth's complex myself. I want to see the source of this whole… Debacle." Yamamoto grunted.
"Sir." The member bid his farewell and left with Shunpo.
"Chojiro." Yamamoto called.
The Vice-Captain, who was waiting near the door, came to his side.
"Yes Captain." Chojiro bowed.
"Come with me. We shall visit this… Ryoka." Yamamoto said as he slowly walks towards the door.
"Yessir." Chojiro obliged and followed behind him.
The two exited the Captain's room and left towards the Fourth Division's complex with Shunpo.
Sui-Feng, head of the Second Division, felt ashamed of herself. For allowing such a thing to occur within Seireitei… Within her watch! It was the worst possible negligence she ever made! At this moment, she is rushing towards the Fourth Division Complex, with her Lieutenant, Marechiyo (who's munching down some potato chips), in tow.
"Cap'n, y'u sh'ldn't b' r'shing. We've alre'dy- "Omaeda said while munching down his potato chips, before Sui-Feng glared at the man.
"Listen here, you useless piece of a Lieutenant… If you got the time to munch those chips down your throat, then use it to learn to do your damn job! If not, I'd be more than happy to have you replaced with someone else more competent!" She angrily retorted.
Omaeda almost choked before gulping down the chips in his throat with some water, before proceeding to plead to her, "Please don't replace me, Captain! My father will disown me if you do!"
"Hmph. Then do your damn job!" Sui-Feng glared angrily at the man again, before continuing with Shunpo towards the complex.
While she has no intentions to replace him (for now), she would be more than happy if there was someone adequate to fill in the shoes, if she ever decides to do so.
"Focus on repairing the bones. After that, we need to stop the bleeding. How is his heartbeat, Isane?" Unohana asked.
"Stable at 120/80, Captain. Blood level is still low. Anesthesia is still in effect." Isane said as she continued to cast Kaido to heal the man's bone.
Currently, the man was on an emergency operating table. Unohana is busy stabilizing him, and Isane's assisting on the side, with the help from several healers that she brought earlier. This has been ongoing for at least two hours now.
"Progress on the bones?" Unohana asked.
"Should be done… Now." A healer responded.
"Good, we need to close the wounds, fast. He's bled too much." Unohana nodded and began to slowly close the many open wounds.
Unohana was sweating, the sheer number of open wounds is simply staggering, even for a supposed mortal. She even doubts that the man was mortal, given that he is still breathing despite all these wounds. Normal humans would already be dead long before even arriving at the operation table.
The operation continues as the captains from the other divisions start to arrive, one after the other, often accompanied by their lieutenants.
"My, my. His wounds are certainly not something to scoff at. Don't you think, Nanao-chan?" Kyoraku Shunsui, the captain of the Eigth Division, playfully asked, though his gaze remains serious.
"Yes, captain. Normal humans would not survive with that amount of blood loss." Ise Nanao replied succinctly, her gaze was also at the man on the operating table.
The infamous playboy-laid back captain of the Eighth Division had arrived earlier than the others, aside from the already-present Captain Unohana and Lieutenant Kotetsu Isane of the Fourth. He was slacking somewhere nearby after the alert went live. Not long after the impact, he went normally towards the complex and saw the man being carried to the emergency operating table.
As another hour passed by, more and more captains arrived. The second to arrive was Sui-Feng and Omaeda, on the latter who was fumbling after seeing the supposed blood-soaked clothes of the man that was hanged at a distance away.
The third to arrive is the Captain-Commander, Yamamoto Shigekuni himself, accompanied by his lieutenant, Sasakibe Chojiro. The old man observed the one on the operating table with scrutiny. To his surprise, however, he could feel the overbearing reiatsu from the unconscious man. However, it was not hostile towards anyone, although it seemed to be wary of the observers.
'Hmm…' He pondered.
More and more captains continued to arrive as time passed. The last one to arrive was Captain Ukitake Jushiro, accompanied by his two Co-3rd Seats, Kotetsu Kiyone and Kotsubaki Sentaro. The sickly captain was the last to arrive due to his health.
The capture units from the Twelfth Division had already arrived after Yamamoto but was strictly forbidden by Captain Unohana from even touching the man, citing that he was in no condition to be transported anywhere, let alone whatever Mayuri had planned to do with the unknown intruder. This was further reinforced even after Mayuri arrived, and Unohana simply gave the man a rather disturbingly friendly smile, to put it in his own words.
Finally, after seven hours of surgery and kido healing, the man was fully healed. However, he remains unconscious, though his condition was stable. He was later moved to a room within the precious few intact "hospitals" within the devastated Fourth Division's complex.