The Charming Bastard and the War on Souls

by Airaie

Dekuyume is accused of stealing domain from the Soul Kami. She is given an opportunity to prove herself, The Soul King of The Soul Society wants a soul of his own. But as Kiyoshi once said, not even the realm of the Kami was immune intrigue, and Dekuyume has pissed off a lot of Greater Kami handing out souls to whomever asked. Book 3 of Dekuyume

3. Dekuyume Book 3 - Part 2

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Episode 1: Bastardize: To Characterize a Bastard

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He rises to his feet, unsteadily, shaken and yet somehow more whole after the fall than before… and he knew who he had to thank for that. The room is silent, no one even daring to shift in their position for fear of becoming the target he needed to appease his embarrassment.

The Espada, a sea of white fabric against the color pallet of human skin, black accents, splashes of color from their hair and eyes. All manner of expressions on their faces, surprise, contemplation, alarm, greed…but none of them move, too worried about his response, he remembered that he was supposed to be Aizen Sōsuke, who would have most assuredly reacted cruelly to anyone who had observed him tripping down the stairs of his own throne.

Kaname-kun, white bandage around his blind eyes, Shinigami form, Visored mask hidden, orange braid laid over his shoulders, too uncertain if Sōsuke had the Complete Hypnosis up or not to speak. Too many times he had been the only one to see reality and not the dream that Sōsuke wove around himself and others with the Complete Hypnosis.

Gin-kun was just staring at him, silver hair, sky blue eyes, not a single hint of a smile on his face, as if he had never seen Sōsuke before. Sōsuke raises an eyebrow while smirking at the boy.How amusing it was that he had spent so much time disparaging the boy's powers of observation, only to have the boy be the only one to realize just how different Sōsuke Aizen at the top of the stairs was from the Sōsuke who had awoken at the bottom. The resultant expression on the boys face is precious, shock and awe usually were on the faces of children.

Sōsuke takes a deep breath, closing his eyes. How long, how long had it been since he had not planned each and every moment out, ripping the joy of living out so that guaranteed victory could have a place to grow. How long had it been since he had been able to dedicate his whole being to observing his surroundings. How long had it been since he observed more things than his powerful mind could keep track of, the observations blurring together instead of coming to him in complete sentences. Too long, fartoo long.

Soft doe brown eyes open, and he turns away from the Espada, and the Shinigami who had foolishly followed him out of Seireitei on a quest he didn't even have a desire to complete. The throne room is silent with anxious anticipation. Orihime-chan, cream colored school uniform, fiery orange hair, timid brown eyes, bright blue Shun Shun Rika, insight superimposed of Kagome, one eye Kami blue, the other human brown and [ Her, only her, only ever her, the personification of kindness]

He sighs, what a mess he had made of things. He offers her a soft adoring smile, she is understandably frightened, she doesn't know. She doesn't know that just by existing, she has defeated him. All creatures wanted to believe in something bigger than themselves. Sōsuke Aizen, no, Sōsuke Higurashi, had found that something greater than himself to believe in… and he already knew who it was that she believed in. It was a pity that he could not make a god-queen out of her.

His eyes closed in resignation, flickering red behind closed lids as his inner hollow Magatsuhi awoke, saw her and thought that it was good. He took the energy from the chaos in their shared heart before going back to sleep, because as much as he wanted to bask in her presence. He wanted her safe more, and there was still much fighting to be done… and both of them knew the danger of a world without a plan... it was what always seemed to take her from them in the end.

He sighs again, disheartened. My, what a liar he had made of himself. Impossible… only happened when you refused to try. And Sōsuke found himself crazy enough to try. The real question was… was this reflection of her, this soul echo dimensions away from where they began… strong enough to take him as he was, and brave enough to meet him half way. He was willing to try, but he could only bend so much before his pride would let him go no further, even if it was for herthat he would bend the farthest.

His eyes open, warm and brown and clearly conveying his intent. Yet another memory rippling the surface of his thoughts like a leaf fallen onto the surface of a pond.

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Onigumo/Naraku and Kagome in The Amphitheater

"What happened to you?" Kagome asked, her eyes were crystal blue, and it had been so very long since her gaze was that kind, worried over the state of his health. Sheshould have been more concerned with the state of his heart. He closed his eyes to blot out the sight, lest every one of his thoughts come out. A deep breath, and then another, before he opened his eyes once more to gaze upon her. He never did find the strength to protect himself from her.

"You did; Miko."

It was true, everything that he was, and everything that he was no longer was because of her. And so he took a step back and performed a perfect saikeirei bow to the only being in the world he acknowledged above him.

Her, only her, only ever her.

He was too tired to fight anymore, not for a woman who would offer him no solace he did not steal.

Slowly, his hand rose in offering to her, the jewel between his fingers. Perhaps…perhaps this time it will reach her…

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Sōsuke extends his hand out, palm up and open towards her. He leaves it there, hanging in the air as she stares at him, timid fear slowly evolving into shock, then awe and finally wonder.

He could be brave enough to reach out one more time couldn't he? Wasn't he still trying to save himself so she did not have to?

Slowly she came forward, steps hesitant, reminding him that she was so very young, even Kagome had been given more than a few weeks of training before coming face to face with Naraku alone without the support of her friends.

She reached back, and this time, this time she was not the first one to pull away.

She looked down at their hands, brow furrowed in uncertainty and confusion. It was adorable and made him laugh a little, softly. She hears it and glances up to meet his eyes… He just shakes his head and leads her over to the long table, "We have much to discuss, but tea first Orihime-chan. Everything will be easier to deal with after a good cup of tea."

He can feel the unsettled ripples in the Espada, surprise in Kaname-kun, and the effervescent curiosity bubbling in Gin-kun when Sōsuke pulls out the seat right next to his, for her to sit, waiving the servant over for the tea. Orihime speaks as he sits, "I don't understand! Why are you being so nice when you were so mean when you took that thing out of Rukia-chan? Not that I want you to be mean! I… I just don't understand!"

The others shuffled on their feet, observing but uncertain if seating themselves at the table would rouse their leader out of this odd gentleness. Sōsuke glanced up at them in amusement, hand waiving towards the table, "I'm hardly one to deprive a needy soul their tea, sit. You have every right to hear this too, whether you choose to believe it or not is another matter entirely." The table fills, the tea servant running off to get extra chairs for the table.

He stares down into his tea with a sigh, "I hate to be the one to break it to you Orihime-chan, but Seireitei and the Shinigami are not the good guys, no one is. I'm not saying that everyone is evil and out to get you, and many of them probably think fondly of you after your little adventure to rescue Rukia-chan."

"The Gotei 13 has only existed for about a thousand years, before that it was up to the souls granted great power through the Ōken to trespass into Hueco Mundo and reduce the Menos population when dictated by the balance of worlds." He swirls his tea before raising it to take a sip, peering at her over the top of his teacup into her resistant eyes. He smiles encouragingly, wiggling the cup in his hands. With a roll of her eyes she takes a sip of her tea. Her eyes widen in surprise at the orange, cinnamon, cloves and hibiscus flavor of the tea. His eyes crinkle as he grins at her response.

The smile fades from his face as he sets the cup down, "The Gotei 13 was brought together by Yamamoto-sōtaichō, the original group was made of criminals, murderers and vagabonds who had taken the Asauchi gifted to all of the powerful souls by Ōetsu Nimaiya-san around the same time that Yamamoto-sōtaichō founded the Genji School. Their reprehensible behavior is the reason for some of the oldest rules of Seireitei. One to outlaw any attack on a taichō, another to allow a fight to the death with a taichō, provided you took up their mantle afterwards. The Gotei 13 was actually quite small at first, composed of only the taichō, fukutaichō and 20 subordinates who would later become the 20 seated officers you saw earlier."

"Their small number was impressive, since they were brought together to deal with the son of the Soul King who had tried to depose his father." Orihime-chan gasps in surprise, hand coming to cover her mouth from her outburst, even Kaname-kun and Gin-kun were paying attention, this section of history noticeably absent from the lessons in the Shin'ō Academy.

"His name is Yhwach, and he was born without the ability to move, to think, to do much of anything, unsurprising really, considering that the Soul King is a will and a body, but not actually a soul himself. But Yhwach learned, he learned by giving away pieces of his soul, granting boon's to people who came to lay their hands upon him in supplication, begging for cures for their illnesses, the strength to defeat their enemies, all manner of things. He granted their wishes, for a time, before recalling the fragments of his soul, heavy and bloated with power stolen from their souls with a technique called Auswählen, that left still silver in their hearts."

"Eventually he gained the ability to move and interact with the world on his own, and got the silly idea in his head that he wanted to completely destroy the balance between worlds, causing all places to exist in the same place, with the idea that without any consequences of death, it would be easier to accept that it was just another stage of life. He staged a coup. The Royal guard managed to oust him from the palace of the Soul King, unwilling to kill the son of the Soul King without the Soul King's direct order, but that did not stop him."

He glances over at Orihime to make sure that she understands the next point, "He is the father of the Quincy. The Quincy who's Yhwach given weapon causes souls to be removed from the cycle of reincarnation, disturbing the balance. The Quincy who have no antibodies to Hollows and instead dissolve into Reishi if they are infected by them, disturbing the balance of souls. As far as I could tell from the records in the Kuchiki and Central 46 archives, it was a terrible, bloody war for all that it lasted only a single year. I would like to blame that war for the xenophobia and racism of the Shinigami, but it existed long before that."

"The Soul King is the true head of Soul Society, but he has no interactions with the people, and assigned 40 nobles and 6 judges the task of doing so, at the same time as he chose 5 clans and gave them King Given Tasks, The Kuchiki to record and protect the history of Soul Society, The Magatama to compile and standardize the magic system giving us the organized Kidō system we have now. The Shiba to watch over and see to the welfare of the souls in the Rukongai, The Chiyo to watch the buffer dimension between Soul Society and the world of the living. And last but certainly not least, the Shihōin, who were gifted with the treasure tool and the war tool in order to enforce the rules of the Central 46."

"Eventually the Shihōin and Magatama created the Onmitsukidō and the Kidō Corps as a direct response to their King Given Tasks, the Kuchiki their archives and the Chiyo, the Kōtotsu." Sōsuke pauses, taking a sip of tea while everyone contemplates the name left off of the list. It gets worse when he explains what had become of the Rukongai, the views of those in Seireitei towards those they called "Rukongai Rats" who lived in squalor outside the Sekkiseki walls of Seireitei, the mass executions of innocent souls just so that they could import things from the world of the living. The Shiba, as they slowly abandoned their task, leaving it up to the Aizome who served them… and their inevitable end.

Kaname goes cold, as the man he had followed explains the real events of his friends death. His hand gripping the teacup in his hand so tightly that it shatters, just like the illusions Aizen hadn't needed the Complete Hypnosis to put him under. He can feel the attention of everyone in the room on him. And oh how he wanted to draw Suzumushiacross that bastard Aizen's throat! Oh how he wanted to prevent the illusionist from speaking another word… to prevent Aizen from explaining himself… and forcing Kaname to chose between petty revenge and keeping true to himself. Forcing him to eat his words, his claim that justice without a great cause begets nothing more than slaughter. However, that same slaughter in the name of a great cause is justice. His zanpakutō remains in its sheath, even as the hollow underneath his skin cackles in his inner world, mocking him for his cowardice.

Sōsuke pours another cup of tea for himself and Orihime. "And then the newly instated head of the Shiba branch house executed him on the spot for what he believed had happened. The Central 46 denied Kaname-kun this knowledge, alarmed and uncertain, because it was the first time in the million or so years since their founding and I do mean The First, that a Greater Noble House, even a branch member, was publicly punished for a crime, and so harshly. But with the death of Kaien Shiba a few decades later, the proof of the Shiba's actions was discovered and they were removed as a Greater Noble House by the Central 46, but not the Soul King who had not spoken a word or issued a Decree since their founding. They are still in fact a Greater Noble House, just not an acknowledged one."

Sōsuke leans back in his chair, turning his cup around in his hands a few times as he remembered… He lifts it up for a fortifying sip, "Getting back on topic, the Gotei 13 were originally formed to defeat Yhwach… and they were not disbanded, because while they did manage to succeed in stopping him personally, they did not manage to finish him off and settle the balance of worlds."

He looks around the room, spotting the ones who could already see where this was going. He explains it plainly for the rest of them, "Yhwach was sealed, issuing a prophecy of his own ordaining, that in 900 years his heart would start beating, 90 after that he would regain his intellect, and 9 years after that he would use Auswählen to absorb the power of every "impure" Quincy. 9 months in shadow kingdom to form his plans after that and then he would be ready to conquer the world in 9 days"

"200 years ago, fed up with the constant upset the Quincy still surviving in the world of the living were causing, the Central 46 demanded that the Gotei 13, Onmitsukidō and Kidō Corps… resolve the issue. The result was a blood bath. No one was spared, not women or children not even the babies in their cribs, I am ashamed to say that I was a seated officer at that point and I participated."

He chuckles mirthlessly, "I thought it was a terrible thing that we did, not realizing that by killing so many people in the world of the living and bringing them to Soul Society instead of permitting the Soul King to spread their arrival in Soul Society out evenly across time, we tipped the balance grievously. The 13th division escaped mostly unaffected from the massacre, a product of my teachings."

His smile is bitter as he stares into his tea, "As a reward we were split into quarters and sent to patrol the Rukongai… with the additional order to… hasten the reincarnation of 7192 souls. And of course, as with any government, it wasn't the people in charge that had to pay the price of their wars, nor was it those blessed enough to live close to the protection of Seireitei, begging for scraps like the loyal dogs they were."

"We were ordered to split the price evenly through the 50th to 80th districts in each direction." He looks up, sad and pained, to see the same emotion reflected back at him with her eyes, he chokes on the next words, "Miyako-fukutaichō was Kaien's future wife, a Shiba of her own right. She not only condoned it, she made it into a challenge, the one who killed the least having to do the laundry when we got back to Seireitei and the winner to enjoy a fancy dinner at the Shiba estate. I am not sorry, I cannot bring myself to regret what I did to the Shiba."

He closes his eyes, beset by memories, hands gripping hers tightly as he tried not to get swept away, "All it takes, to avoid Kyōka Suigetsu's Complete Hypnosis is to touch the blade while it is in its sealed state. It is an honor I gave to 856 souls under that order." He withdraws with a sigh, reaching for his tea, "I was congratulated and promoted to fukutaichō of the 5th division for my dedication to duty."

"The emotions that bred in me… were nothing when compared to learning about The Wandenreich, a society built from Reishi in the very shadows of Seireitei by the Quincy presumed defeated." He looks up at her beseechingly over the rim of his tea, "You have to understand, I was just a fresh fukutaichō then, and they are not afforded the same protections as taichō… and unlike the nobles who were permitted to turn in their zanpakutō and retire, as a Rukongai Rat possessing a zanpakutō as subversive as Kyōka Suigetsu all telling the truth would have gotten me was a one way ticket into the Maggots Nest."

"All I had was Kyōka Suigetsu, more information than I could share… and the knowledge that Quincy had no antibodies to protect their soul cohesion from Hollows. As a result I began researching hollowfication, used my Bankai to create a Hōgyoku and started stacking the deck in my favor for a war only I was aware of on the horizon."

Sōsuke tries to lighten up the moment by explaining Gin-kun's involvement… including the parts that Gin had thought he had managed to keep from Aizen.Gin would have been terrified… were it not for the fact that whomever it was they were dealin' with now, it wasn't the robotic just followin' the plan Aizen, nor was it the bored out of his mind and lookin' for amusement Aizen. He had the sneakin' suspicion that he… migh' actually likethis Aizen, who ever tha hell he was.

Sōsuke explains the true purpose of the Hollowfication Incident 110 years ago… and its aftermath, "In the end 8 taichō and fukutaichō level Shinigami were Visored, their Reiatsu Hollow enough to poison a Quincy, and the three were guarded by the Head of the Onmitsukidō, the Head of the Kidō Corps and the most brilliant mind to set foot in Seireitei beside myself. That it also afforded me a position in the Gotei 13 as a taichō was a pleasant side effect."

Sosuke shrugs his shoulders at the foolishness of the children he surrounded himself with, "I'm surprised that no one stopped to question my motives during the incident, particularly when I have already proven myself capable of destroying an army in a matter of minutes with the Complete Hypnosis. Las Noches used to belong to Baraggan, my Segundo Espada." He nods his head in the direction of Baraggan so that she knows whom he is speaking about.

"I spent the intervening years creating more and more types of hollows in hopes that at least one of them would be able to do what I could not as a simple Shinigami. The most promising prospect you see around you now, the Arrancar. They are much like the Visored, the same Yin-Yang merely tilted in the other direction with the Hollow ascendant instead of the Shinigami."

He sets his cup of tea aside, reaching out for her hands. His heart warms in his chest when she lets him take them. He stares at her pleadingly, "6 years ago Kanae Ishida and Misaki Kurosaki perished in a flash of light that left still silver in their hearts." Her eyes widen in surprise, mind easily connecting the dots. Sōsuke knew that she was a smart girl, even if her awkwardness often made her appear to be an airhead… much like Kagome-chan now that Sōsuke thought about it. She stares at him in alarm, "Three years.."

"Yes, I was quit alarmed as well, even when I realized that the time distortion between The Wandenreich and the world of the living who's time scheme the prophecy had been following was on a month-year scale giving me 9 years to plan for a 9 day battle." He sits back with a sigh, "I hadn't planned on revealing myself. With a Hōgyoku of my own, one far better behaved than Urahara-san's, I had no need to. When I realized just how little the other Shinigami were training however, I was forced to remember that nothing caused a person to grow in strength faster, than the fear that they could be destroyed at a moment's notice… and that the Gotei 13 believed themselves to live in a world without enemies."

He waives his hand in front of himself, "I gave them one, and the only lives I took to do so were those of the Central 46 who had committed so many unconscionable actions that they would have all been sentenced to death for crimes against humanity were they given a trial by the humans. " He glances around at his Espada to gauge their reactions allowing her time to think on what he said.

Some, like Nnoitra, Grimmjow, and Yammy wouldn't care much either way about Sōsuke's purpose for their creation, just so long as they still got to fight. Others Like Aaroniero, Szayel and Baraggan were firmly of the opinion that Hollows and Arrancar were vastly superior beings to Shinigami and could either decide to be flattered that he had created them to deal with the Shinigami's shortcomings or upset at Sōsuke for not placing them as the ruling body after taking over.

Coyote, Tier, Ulquiorra and Zommari were much harder to predict, their reasons for remaining in Las Noches and not disappearing into the shifting sands of Hueco Mundo with their newly gained powers, far more complicated than a good fight, a chance to eat some Shinigami, or fear of what Aizen might do to deserters. Whatever their opinions were, it did not appear as if he would have to deal with it just yet. Even the hothead Grimmjow was unusually silent.

Sōsuke takes the last sip of tea in his cup. Savoring his last bit of solitude, now that he knew that it was finally at its end. "Given what I have shared with you, I think that I have made the best of a bad situation, do you not agree?" He watches her through his lashes, her mouth opening and closing several times as she formulates a response only to think it over and worriedly change it. He can see it in her face, the moment she decides to give a silly answer instead of honestly sharing her opinion.

"I know you are a smart girl Orihime-chan, you know that there are things I'm leaving out of the 300 years that I have lived in favor of being succinct. Some of them I am willing to admit to and explain in detail later in a more private conversation, such as the… spell that I placed on myself that would let me know if I ever encountered the reincarnation of… someone precious to me. Others I will not speak of. Not even to you… I know it is a bit unfair to ask you to trust me anyways, but I have spoken more honestly to you in the past few hours than I have anyone else in the past two centuries. Please do me the honor of speaking honestly in response."

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Orihime was terrified, more terrified than she had been the first time she realized that Urahara-san had MurderedKurosaki-kun to get him his Shinigami powers back. More terrified than she had been when Ichimaru-san had forced them all to their knees on Sōkyoku Hill while Aizen-san did his evil overlord monologue for their prostrate forms. More terrified than when Ulquiorra-san had appeared in the Dangai and threatened her friends if she didn't agree to be the hostage of said evil overlord. So of course she was terrified, because what evil overlord wanted to be told someone's honest opinion when that opinion pretty much made them want to say that the evil overlord went about everything the wrong way?

A warm hand engulfs her own wrapped around her teacup to hide their shaking. She knew, she knew that he was a really good actor. One that had fooled lots of really old and powerful people in Seireitei, but Sora-nii protect her, she believed he honestly meant her no harm.

He looks so awkward and earnest, he leans towards her, his elbows supporting his weight on the table as his other hand joins hers. "My zanpakutō's specialty is illusion. But that illusion isn't just for my enemies and I am not in the habit of handling my zanpakutō by the sharp end. Even though it would take only a simple brush of my fingertip against the blade, I too am underneath the Complete Hypnosis. This lets me tap into Kyōka Suigetsu's awareness of the world, to identify reincarnations when it should be impossible."

He smiles gently down on Orihime who can tell, that this is the spell that he was referring to only moments earlier. But if he could bend enough to have this conversation now, instead of in private, she could reach out to help him when he was trying so hard… "Who… who do you see, when you look at me?"

The expression on his face as he responds… it was… it was like the smile on the Mona Lisa. Poignant and mysterious… only to disappear if you looked too closely and realized the expression was so full of loss that it wasn't a smile at all. It was such a complicated frame of heart to come up with for such a simple description…. "My imouto. An innocent soul that taught me to be kind first, because once you have been cruel to someone they won't believe the kindness anymore, not even if you mean it. So I am kind, I am gentle, I am nice. Until it is time for me to stop being nice, and then I destroy, because once you are cruel to someone they won't ever let you be kind to them again."

He pats her hands gently before sitting back and reaching for his tea only to find it empty. With a soft huff of irritation he turns back to her, "No matter how much of a monster you see in me, I do genuinely want your opinion." Orihime stared up at Aizen for what seemed to be an age before she spoke. "Oh."

Because what else do you say when the evil overlord, who isn't evil or an overlord, but has managed to convince everyone that he was one anyways, admits that he has spent too long pretending to be the overlord to remember what it was like to be good and has all but declared that he wants you to be his moral compass?

Hanakotoba:

orange, cinnamon, cloves(a spice) and hibiscus: Generous, My fortune is yours, Dignity Gentle

Zanpakutō:

Suzumushi: Bell Bug

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Episode 2: Honesty on the Tongue of a Liar

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With twinkling doe brown eyes, the most charming bastard she has ever met, holds out his hand. Hesitantly, she takes it, pulling a smile out of his heart and onto his face. She can only stare in surprise as the honest smile completely changes the aura he gives off, suddenly it isn't so hard to believe, that he had been able to fool so many Shinigami for so long. She could only hope that he wasn't fooling her, but her intuition had never failed her before when it came to people…had it?

He leads her out of the room, pausing for a moment at the door, "We will hold another meeting tomorrow at the same time. For now, you are dismissed." She is pleasantly surprised when he absently tucks her hand into the crook of his arm and begins leading her through Las Noches, giving her a tour. A single comment about how plain and off-putting all of the white, black and monochrome grey is, is enough to make him smile deeper and lead her through a side door that was clearly only used by servants if the panicking people they passed in the hall were any indication.

They step out into a world of sunlight, wind and birdsong. She gapes in surprise, having seen the desert and crescent moon outside of her prison window and the windows in the throne room. He chuckles, "I don't know if you've noticed, but all of the taichō level spirits, even those who have never touched an Asauchi or found their inner world, influence the environment with their Reiatsu when it is unshielded. I don't mean crushing things and throwing them about, for example you know that the sōtaichō and Toshiro-kun have elemental based zanpakutō, yes?"

Orihime grins nodding her head enthusiastically, "Yes! Hitsugaya-san has an Ice spirit! I actually had to turn the heat on in the apartment when he and Matsumoto-chan came to stay with me in case you attacked Karakura! I joked with Matsumoto-chan about wishing that the war had happened in summer instead of winter!" Sōsuke is amused by her enthusiasm, "Yes that's right. If they were to let their Reiatsu flood the environment, the sōtaichō would actually make things dry and hot, while Toshiro-kun would do the opposite, making them wet and cold. They are the most obvious, but all taichō level spirits do this."

"No doubt Urahara-san blamed the Hōgyoku when he placed it in Rukia-chan for the evolution of your abilities, along with Sado-kun. They were actually there well before that, simply not actualized." Orihime's eyes open wide, "Kurosaki-kun… his aura causes evolution." Sōsuke nods, "Quite, the Hōgyoku, particularly Urahara-san's Hōgyoku, couldn't affect a soul it couldn't physically touch." They pause along a garden path that wove around the outside of Aizen's palace, one of the 11 that existed under the dome apart from the main building where the rest of the Arrancar lived, trained and worked.

She bends over to smell one of the Hibiscus flowers growing. The fragrance is potent, somehow more recognizable… but with an odd sense of falseness to it because of its obviousness. She begins to suspect she knew where he was going with this. Sōsuke hides the flash of approval he feels when she starts to catch on, "Zaraki-san's is laced with battle lust that… hm.." Sōsuke contemplates just how to explain it without using overly scientific verbiage.

"Do you like video games Orihime-chan?" A bit confused by the apparent non-sequitur, she nods, "Yes! I like manga, red bean paste and Tatsuki-chan!" He snorts, ducking his head underneath a low branch of a pine tree. "I assume you mean as a best friend given that Ichigo-kun was the one you chose to say goodbye too?" She blushes and mumbles to herself.

She was so young and innocent, it made Sōsuke want to try that much harder to preserve it. "Lets just say that Zaraki-san's Reiatsu causes a berserker buff to apply to all of his allies and a fear debuff to his opponents. The others are much the same, but the effect on the environment is much more subtle."

He leads her down another barely visible side path in the garden to a courtyard with a fountain and a massive arched double door, surrounded with hanging vines blooming with flowers she could not identify. She looked back the way that they had come to discover that the vines completely obscured the courtyard from view.

Pausing before the massive doorway, he tilts his head so that he can glance down at her from the corner of his eye, a mischievous smirk on his face, "Mine, is obvious, or impossible to see… depending on if you pay attention." He presses his hand into the door unlocking it with a tricky twist of his Reiatsu. He steps into his personal hideaway… a perfectly empty room with no windows.

He turns his back to the room, taking both of her hands in his own and walking backwards, leading her into the room. The doors shut behind her causing her to gasp in alarm. It was dark, very dark. As dark as the memory of The Void that still occasionally haunted his memories. He could feel her hands tremble in his, her voice shakes as she whispers, "It's like nothing exists, not even the ground beneath us."

Gently he led her through the void to the center of the room, and with all of the caution of a giant stepping on an ant without crushing it, Sōsuke unfurled his Reiatsu from the unrelenting suppression he so often held it under. "Do not be afraid, though I am removing the fetters on my vast power. Orihime-chan, I will not harm you. I do so vow." He spikes it quickly, a shock-wave of power jarring but brief as it evolves well out of her ability to sense it… and consequently her ability to be hurt by sensing it.

Dekuyume had possessed a phrase for that, one step up, two steps down. The range of life which one being could understand the world around it without tools to aid them. Humans could understand the minor Kami, they could understand the animals that they fed on, and the parasites that fed on those animals in turn… without the aid of a microscope however the bacterium and viruses were well beyond their comprehension.

The Sekkiseki walls holding his power inside and thus well away from The Ancient Wyrm, slowly began to fill with light. A multi-hue display of opalescent fractals and luminescence but for the simple violet of the corona of Reiatsu around him, and the paper thin Reishi-mippuu around her just in case.

She gasps in surprise, staring in wonder around the room, even as she starts to hear music, just a soft vibration at first, like a metal pipe vibrating in the wind then building into a whole world of sound… completely discordant but for the steady beating of two drums one fast and excited, the other deep and even.

She turns to ask him how he was doing it only to realize that he wasn't doing anything at all. His eyes were closed, arms stretched out towards the walls on either side. It made her remember… walls that had large quantities of the mineral Sekkiseki in them absorbed Reiatsu, and consequently gathered Reiryoku. For Aizen-san, this room was like a vampire that sucked huge amounts of power from him instead of blood. It made her wonder if he had any other way to relax. How very sad.

Sōsuke's doe brown eyes that seem like melted chocolate open slowly as his violet Reiatsu sheathed body slowly relaxes from his exertion. With a grin, she holds her hand out to him this time, pulling him closer and tucking his arm in the crook of her arm and leading him to the door. "Aizen-san's Reiatsu makes the world more vibrant, the Sekkiseki gives off light when it absorbs power making it look like it glows in the dark, but not as much as it did just now."

They exit the room, Sōsuke pausing for a moment to reseal the door. The two of them sit at the edge of the fountain, the water a soft bubbling at their backs and the wind through the vines a pleasant counterpoint. "Ah, but what makes you think that it wasn't simply the amount of power I was pushing into the Sekkiseki? I am a very powerful soul after all." Orihime dares to poke him in the side, causing him to jump… and her to realize he was ticklish.

She grins, promising to herself to take advantage of that fact later if she thought she could get away with it. She would bet anything he had an amazing laugh. "The sound amplification. It also enhanced the sound our bodies make, starting with the Infrared radiation and ending with our heartbeats and breathing."

He smiles at her intelligent answer, "Quite right. Let's continue on our tour, we have plenty of time before we can head back to the world of the living and Soul Society without worrying about the time discrepancy and running into our past selves."

In the bright sunlight, her hair shone softly as it blew in the wind. But nothing was more beautiful than the wonder that filled her eyes when she looked upon the green-green grass or the flowers blooming in profusion around the palace Sōsuke had set up for himself… and realized just what that meant. "Wow."

As she reaches down to run her fingers through the green grass, he leans on one a hand to extend his other into the fountain before offering an explanation. "Las Noches was little more than a foundation when I arrived. Baraggan-san preferred to gaze on all of his subjects and since hollows are as sleepless as hell butterflies and pluses that still have their soul chain, they didn't need a safe place to sleep either. Anyone who was injured enough to need sleep was eaten. Obviously, that isn't the case for Shinigami and so, after I sat on the throne, I had my new servants mine the Sekkiseki laced stone and build the first of what would eventually become 11 palaces and the main building."

"For the dome itself, I had them lay out sheets and sacks of powdered Sekkiseki left over from the mining and building. I used my Reiatsu to lift the Sekkiseki sheets into place and fused them together with the powder. Suffice to say that it was a very expensive endeavor, and one that left the dome of Las Noches stained with my Reiatsu signature, even as it properly put into perspective the difference in power between myself and the others. I hope you never have cause to understand just how many potential uprisings the sunrise and sunset inside this dome has prevented."

"My Reiatsu signature will dissipate eventually as the Reiatsu leaves it to form a barrier around Las Noches, the same way the Sekkiseki walls around Seireitei do. But the half-life of the release is such that even with the absorption of the excess Reiatsu from the Arrancar training underneath it, it will still be a century or so before the barrier is as strong as Seireitei's."

In the meantime he would admit to no one but himself, that he had wrapped the whole dome of Las Noches in a Reishi-mippuu, not even a reasonably skilled Quincy would be able to find it without being led… because no one went looking for a unicorn if they did not believe they existed… and anything that created constructive interference also created destructive interference… it was only a matter of frequency.

The difference between the Reiatsu frequency of Sōsuke the Shinigami… and Magatsuhi the Ancient Wyrm… or Sōsuke the Visored.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

He ended the tour at another set of massive doors, these opening to a guest bedroom in his palace after taking her down into the kitchens in the main building to make her own dinner. She knew she had an affection for flavor combinations that others found weird, but somehow he made it sound so much nicer, calling it an "eclectic and sophisticated palate".

With a sigh she leaves the attached bathroom and flops down on the super cushy sofa daybed that she was going to sleep on. For Orihime, believing the words that had come out of that strange man's mouth tasted like honesty on the tongue of a liar. Hot, bitter, salty, sweet and sour with the heavy perfume of spring flowers like the Sakura blossom cheese cake she had made once with red bean paste, salted Sakura flowers, pickled ginger and dark red grapefruit… It had tasted sublime, even if none of her friends had been able to stomach the taste.

Recalling the soft desperation in his gentle brown eyes, she knew… no matter how fantastical it seemed, everything he had said, he believed to be true… or at least as honest as he could be with the countless watching eyes… the price of being king. What a terrible burden it was, to be forced to speak in lies and metaphors to prevent war… or at least to prevent it until he was ready for it. It made her want to save him, to lead him out of this desert with its eternal night and fake sun meant for Menos and back into the worlds meant for pluses.

The others could mock her behind her back all they wanted, making fun of her need to save even her enemies, calling her the weakest… Real strength… was not simply conquering obstacles, it was helping others overcome them. It was the ability to bless someone else in spite of going through your own storm.

Nothing is so strong as gentleness, nothing so gentle as real strength. Who was it that had said, "The strength of a man isn't seen in the width of his shoulders, it's seen in the width of his arms that circle you… it isn't in the deep tone of his voice, but the gentle words he whispers, it isn't in how many friends he has, but how good of a friend he is. It wasn't in how hard he hit, but how tender he touches, it wasn't in the weight he could lift, but the burden he could carry.", she couldn't remember, but the words had stuck with her long after she had stumbled across them on the internet.

So while it hurt a little to know that her friends thought less of her because of her desire to help everyone, they would just have to accept that this was who she was, because she wouldn't have it any other way, and of them all, she was the only one strong enough to forgive anything and anyone who had trespassed against her… she had to be, because how was anyone on the wrong side supposed to change their minds, when no one was on the other side holding out their hand in welcome?

She smiles to herself as she recalls. As they had parted, she had answered his question, the one she had left unanswered when they had tea.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

With a sigh of exasperation, she smiles at Aizen Sōsuke and holds out her hand. "In my opinion, you've made a lot of mistakes, but that's ok. We will fix them together, because that is what Nakama does."

And while it was strange to have a grown man hug her like she was the only stable thing in an earthquake…

It was also the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 3: The Flower on the Cliff

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Sōsuke watches Orihime-chan sleep, leaning against her couch. He brushes her bangs out of her face and contemplates the suddenly uncertain future. There was a great deal of work to be done, but honestly, even if he called off the war now, Sōsuke had already achieved his goals. The Shinigami were shaken out of their complacency and the Arrancar and Visored were poised and ready to deal with the Quincy.

The door softly clicks open and Orihime's previously assigned bodyguard enters. Ulquiorra was just as calm as ever. After a few minutes of silence Sōsuke glances up, only to realize that Ulquiorra-kun isn't quite as calm as he was expecting. The poor boy actually looks confused. "You can ask Ulquiorra-kun, I will not be offended."

Ulquiorra, unable to find the words to explain the churning underneath his skin, simply looks up with deep green eyes at his great leader and asks, "Why?"

Sōsuke sighs. Ulquiorra-kun was not Kanna-chan, but still so similar to the void Yōkai that he was probably very confused at the moment, and without the experience to tell him what he was feeling, he probably didn't even know he was confused. It was a good thing that Dekuyume had so much experience explaining things to void yōkai. Sōsuke explains the power of kindness and just how strong your heart had to be in order to give it out as freely as Orihime-chan…

But the confusion lingers, and so Ulquiorra asks, "What is the merit of a powerful heart, when even powerful hearts break?" Sōsuke sighs, it was too difficult to explain to the living and pluses, but for hollows… Sōsuke reaches out, touching the rim of his hollow hole through his clothing. "Inoue Orihime's heart cannot be broken, her body and her mind will surrender long before it does… that is why, even if I were to use the Hōgyoku to Hollowfy her.. it would fail…"

Sōsuke raises his hand, slowly pulling the unresistant soul into a hug. Unconvinced, and only more confused Ulquiorra stood like a wooden doll in his arms, Sōsuke's head against the Arrancar's hair and well away from his hollow mask. Sōsuke focuses his Reiryoku, and with a soft twist of power, performs Reiatsu-tsumeru. Were Ulquiorra not a hollow, he would be pressurized, as it was he was merely being fed Sōsuke's molded Reiatsu, painted with the flavors of the emotions he had used to make it.

A soft gasp, the only response from Ulquiorra until he chokes on his next breath, breathing faster and faster. Dampness spreads across Aizen's chest, but he does not look down, not even as Ulquiorra arms slowly come up to return the embrace, hesitant as if he was not sure it was allowed. Later, Later Sōsuke will remember the way Aizen's Ulquiorra died… and he will rageagainst the man who walked among these broken people and offered them Nosolace if it did not benefit him to do so… realizing that in the end… Aizen Sōsuke's Solitude was a product of his own behavior… not his power.

But for now, he just let his Reiatsu flow out, not tainted with superiority, dominance or control, but carefully blank except for the faintest blush of kindness. The soul coming apart in his arms cannot sense the other Arrancar in Las Noches, but of course, because he had asked Dekuyume for the ability once upon a dreaming, Sōsuke could… he could feel…. As each and every one of his Arrancar broke down in tears as his Reiatsu flowed through Las Noches as if it were the wind and the feelings were dandelion fluff.

Some like Harribel and her Fraccion clung together for support, others sought seclusion. In his tower Kaname bowed his head. There is a hot liquid in his eyes and allowing the most innocent Arrancar Wonderweiss to lean into his side with a soft childlike giggle. He blinks the tears away once… twice, and then his vision is clear… He can see… and the first thing to ever grace his vision is innocent lavender eyes… and perhaps he does know… what kind of purity the Arrancar has… it was just that… Kaname himself had not possessed it… since the day his dear friend died. With a sigh, Kaname reaches out and ruffles the boys hair.

Gently, through the Perception Filter, bones vibrating, Sōsuke whispers to his followers, "This, this is what kindness feels like… after centuries without, after you've given up on it, after you're sure that even if you found it again, that it wasn't worth having, that you did not deserve it. This is what kindness feels like when someone dares to give it to you anyways. This is Inoue Orihime's strength. It cannot be measured in Reiryoku or Reiatsu, by blade or knowledge, and it is given freely. Even to those undeserving souls that would take that kindness for granted and then dare to ask for more, all while offering nothingin return, whittling down on that great strength until there is none left… for those of us who know that we cannot live without it. For that reason, for all the souls yet unaware of just how badly they need that kindness, and for myself, I intend to dedicate the rest of my eternity in defense her, and her overwhelming kindness."

"I know, many of you are disappointed with me, my Espada most of all. And I…(he sighs) I am sorry, for letting you down, for stepping back when you needed me to step forward and lead you into a future where you wouldn't be hunted down and exterminated as the Shinigami have done to everyone different from them for millennia. Do not mistake my abdication for self-absolution, I will still continue to work towards that goal. I have hernow, and her kindness will not allow her to turn a blind eye to your plight."

"It has been an honor working with you all, and a privilege to lead you as you formed a functioning society of your own, to acknowledge your humanity while staying true to your natures as hollows. I leave you at the edge of a new life, with a way to determine your own ruler without leaving your population in tatters; to find out what kind of world you make for yourselves, without Shinigami in your way, and with a question." Sōsuke gently lifts his arms from Ulquiorra's shoulders. Stepping back and offering a slight bow to the brave soul that had endured Nihilism as his anima and still found a reason to remain.

"Do we not defeat our enemies when we make friends of them?"

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 4: Bastardocracy: The Democracy of a Bastard

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Orihime was at his side when he called the next meeting of the Espada. Absentmindedly remembering to have Orihime restore Grimmjow's arm, but not so absentmindedly that he forgets the consequences of that action. Sōsuke looks calmly into the panther-anima's blue eyes, his hand wrapped like a vise around the Arrancar's wrist, preventing him from attacking Luppi.

It is a tossup about who is more surprised, Orihime over what almost just happened because she healed someone, or the people who never in a thousand years would have expected Sōsuke to save someone else. With a soft laugh he releases Grimmjow… and explains his reasons.

"I do not know about Gin-kun, but I will soon be following Orihime-chan out of Las Noches, and Hueco Mundo. It is entirely possible that the Shinigami will decide that my absence is a good enough reason to attack. Are you certain it is in your best interests to slaughter another Arrancar powerful enough to be an Espada?"

He walks over to the table set aside to prepare tea, and to the further surprise of everyone else, begins to prepare the tea himself. Pausing, he glances over his shoulder with an amused expression, "Please, take a seat. I have a suggestion I wish to make in regards to the power vacuum I will leave in my wake."

Cautiously, unsettled by this easygoing and relaxed Aizen Sōsuke the Espada take their seats. Wildly grinning, Gin leans against a wall, laughing himself silly as Kaname rolls his eyes and takes a seat at Orihime's side, giving the poor human girl a buffer between herself and the Arrancar.

Sōsuke brings the tea to the table, setting out the cups and filling them all. As he does so, he begins his explanation. "You are hollows, and it is the way of hollows that the strong dominate the weak, and the weak serve or die…" With a smirk, he looks up and makes sure that they are watching, as he lifts the milk saucer and pours it out accordingly, "But you are not only hollows, in Becoming Arrancar, you have become a little bit Shinigami as well. Therefore it only makes sense, that your form of government, law and order be mostly that of a hollow, with just enough Shinigami to suit your tastes."

With humor, Sōsuke serves himself his own cup of tea. They would likely never know that the bare bones of the plan he laid out before them was none other than the one that had been used to determine the King of the Makai in Dekuyume's native dimension. A violent tournament where you had to drag your Fraccion through the fights... and were dropped in rank if they died.

The Fraccion, were fractions of rank. To go into the tournament with only one Fraccion was a gamble, placing all of your rank in one place. But it was no more advantageous than having a multitude of Fraccion who would give the others more targets to hit and the Espada more to defend.

It stacked the odds in the favor of some Arrancar, like Coyote who's only Fraccion was Lilynette, while grossly inhibiting others like Baraggan, whose resurrection could just as easily erase his own Fraccion as the opposition.

The bait, the bait was none other than Orihime-chan, who could use her power of rejection to restore to life anyone who died during the fight. And Sōsuke knew exactly what he was doing, making her an intrinsic part of the Government of Las Noches. He was a man without a plan at the moment. Should the worst come to happen, and he was taken from the world, leaving her without his protection, he at least ensured that the Arrancar would guard her preciously.

Quietly, he leads Orihime from the table as the Arrancar, with their token Visored, talk of the future. Gin-kun is nowhere to be seen, but Sōsuke cannot be bothered to care where he was or when he left. There was nothing tying the two of them together now, Gin-kun had only remained to ensure that Sōsuke did not make a world where Rangiku-chan would cry, and with Orihime-chan in play that was now a guarantee.

Orihime is unusually quiet as they walk through the moonlit halls of Las Noches. A pensive expression on her face as she nibbles her lip looking up at him. With a sigh, he holds out his hand. How gratifying it was, to have her take it, even in whatever uncertainty gripped her. With a soft "Ku. Ku. Ku." He pulls her close, and uses shunpo to take them out of Las Noches, all the way to a mountain range he had once faced the Ancient Wyrm on. Together they walk among the twisted trees and broken sand to the cliff edge to stare out over the tiny form of Las Noches in the distance.

Orihime is a little bit awed. Somehow, Aizen-san knew this scenery was just what she needed to get over her hesitance and ask the question that had been plaguing her. "Do you really believe that? Am I really strong enough to bring all of those powerful Arrancar back to life with Shun Shun Rika?" She is taken aback when Aizen tosses his head back and laughs. For a moment she's hurt, thinking that he was laughing at her and when he turns to her, with laughter in his eyes she expects him to call her a fool for believing, and a liability just like Urahara-san had… What he actually says takes her breath away.

"Darling, your power is event rejection. The ability to completely unwrite history, to supersede any event the Kami have designated to occur on the ground level. By the merit of your abilities, you have more right to be Soul King than I do. Something as simple and transient as power has nothing to do with it. It appears that time manipulation has become an intrinsic characteristic of your soul. My Imouto had it as well."

The wind makes a soft whispering sound, as it caresses the infinite sea of sand spread out beneath their feet. The cascade only turned aside by the massive dome of Las Noches below. There was so much to wonder about, in the words that Aizen-san spoken. To think that all this time she had thought that she was healing people with the gift she had gained from the Hōgyoku hidden away in Rukia-chan. When instead it was her own power, a sprig of time grown inside of her, shaped by the things she had lived through, nourished with Kurosaki-kun's evolution inducing Reiatsu, and sprouted from the desire to protect Tatsuki-chan from Numb Chandelier.

Wide eyed, she turns to him, this strange man who had somehow gone from evil overlord, to woe begotten and misled hero. "Was her time power the same as mine?" Sōsuke shakes his head, taking a moment to reach out and push a few strands of her hair back behind her ears, the hair-clips of Shun Shun Rika not enough to defy the winds of Hueco Mundo. His eyes are a thousand dimensions away, "No. Kagome-chan was a time Kami, the Primary Operator of The Well of Time."

Orihime gasps, her hand flying to her mouth in shock, "My… My previous incarnation is Higurashi Kagome! Though… on second thought we're actually soul echoes aren't Kagome-chan and I? Since we aren't even in the same dimension. You know, since there aren't any Soul Pipers here?" This time it is Sōsuke's turn to jerk in surprise, "How… how do you know that?"

A bit dazed, Orihime responds, "I told you I liked manga didn't I? I really like that series, especially when it first mentioned that somewhere every story ever told was actually real." Her eyes meet his and his world goes topsy turvy, "It's called The Third Reincarnation… It's about you… Dekuyume no Kami, Primary Operator of The Eternal Battlefield… and the last book that came out ended with you being ambushed in the Higurashi Sanctuary and taken prisoner by The Shackled Prisoner and transported to The Amphitheater for your trial. The cliff hanger was really good, "The deified third reincarnation of Magatsuhi stands at the orchestra looking up at the gathered Kami in the koilon. Déjà Vu much?"."

Aizen looks at her like Orihime hit him in the face with a rubber chicken. She supposed it was a bit of a shock. Knowing that Theoretically every dimension was chronicled as a story in one dimension or another, was something different entirely from being sent to that dimension and realizing that anyone who cared to pick up a book could know the highlights of your whole life. It was pretty crazy to think about… but now that it had been pointed out, it was actually pretty easy to see all of the similarities between The Third Reincarnation and here. The Hōgyoku and the Shikon no Tama, Aizen Sōsuke and Naraku, Orihime and Kagome who made them turn and change course as Dekuyume. Their dimensions must have been really close, for so many similarities to exist between them. It made her wonder, if Aizen Sōsuke thought of himself as Higurashi Sōsuke now…

She is shaken from her thoughts, as she is rather forcibly informed that that Dekuyume no Kami had come from a dimension where Orihime's story was chronicled. With a hopeful smile, he asks, "Orihime Inoue, for the next five lifetimes will you promise to be my friend, that no matter how many times, time itself forces us apart… we will always say hello one more time than we have said goodbye?" To think, that in that other dimension, some silly teenage girls are probably squee-ing over her 5 lifetimes confession to Kurosaki-kun, without ever stopping to consider just how much it cost her as a real person to actually get the words out…

With a sigh, she shakes her head, what a pair they made! Higurashi-san so far from home but still saving the world even if she can't do it the nice way, and Orihime who believed Aizen Sōsuke was actually the reincarnation of a character she knew from a book… even when she knew that all of her Nakama would think her foolish for doing so.

She grins brilliantly, "Okaeri Deku-nee!" And Sōsuke can't help but pull her forward into a crushing hug, his shoulders shaking as a tension he didn't even know he had, releases all at once.

It is the only thing that saves her.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

After stirring up trouble with the Espada who were still arguing about whether they wanted to follow the Usurper's plan or not Baraggan harrumphed and left. Let the fools argue their pointless plans. Once he was done with Aizen Sōsuke he would return and reclaim Las Noches. Even if he had to scrub it clean of all of the filth with his Respira.

His Fraccion join him in his palace, quietly donning their armor. It had taken 9.5 minutes of Aizen's Complete Hypnosis last night, leaving the usurper with only 30 seconds left on the clock. Ggio kneels at his feet holding a bloody bag. With a grim expression, Baraggan pries out his own eyes, replacing them with the eyes in the bag, harvested from a hollow who had never seen Aizen Sōsuke. Around the room, his Fraccion do the same.

Finally. It was time for his revenge. And Aizen Sōsuke had even done him a favor and left himself wide open, leaving the protective walls of Las Noches so Baraggan wouldn't have to worry about collapsing any of the walls with the power of his Reiatsu in his release state.

He would show Aizen Sōsuke his folly. By insulting Baraggan he had made a lifelong enemy, in giving power to Baraggan he had ensured his own defeat, and by admitting his devotion to the human Orihime Inoue… he had chosen the form of his own death.

He is accosted as he steps out of his palace. The two Arrancar kneeling in supplication, the leader, face to the ground begs, "Please let us come with you! I demand vengeance! How dare she, How dare she!" With a gruff laugh, Baraggan throws the bag of eyes at the Arrancar. "Pick out a new pair, and try to keep up."

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

"Poison, Escolopendra!" A white, barbed tentacle shoots through the air, giving the appearance of a flailing centipede. Securely held in Sōsuke's arms, Orihime is well protected, even as the two of them go over the cliff. With a wordless cry of rage, Loly leaps after them.

"On Guard, Diplopodra!" Like a mirror, defensive black millipede to Loly's poisonous white centipede, Menoly throws herself down the cliff after, her black barbed tentacles curling around her to guard as she rolls down the side of the cliff. The two of them may only have been numeros, but they worked amazingly well together even rivaling some of the weaker Espada when fighting together.

As the fight begins she knows, without a doubt: they were going to need every last scrap of that teamwork if they were going to kill Orihime Inoue for bewitching their precious Aizen-sama with her freaky power… even if they had to die at his hands to save him.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 6: Bastardology: The Study of a Bastard

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Nirgge Parudoc, with his hollow mask bearing boar-like tusks that framed his deep inset and newly adsorbed eyes stares lecherously at the two girls as they go over the cliff, admiring the way their skimpy Arrancar uniforms allow for maximum jiggling. "Don't get me wrong, it's quite a sight, but why are we letting two weak girls attack first? Doesn't that give away the element of surprise?" He is answered with a harsh reprimand from Baraggan, "Worthless peon, the usurper still has 30 seconds remaining of his Complete Hypnosis. There is no point to surprise if he turns the tables on us instantly. Those two fools are cannon fodder, feel free to join them if you are so eager. After they've been slaughtered like the pigs they are, you will enter battle next. You are nothing compared to me but between the lot of you, you should be able to force the usurper to expend a few more precious seconds of his Complete Hypnosis needlessly on eyes that are not susceptible before he uses his cheap gimmick to entrap you once more in the Complete Hypnosis."

Orihime was not ashamed to admit… she was terrified. One moment they were having a moment on the top of a moon lit cliff, two soul echo's who had met many times before dimensions away, and then next he threw them off the cliff, a loud explosion up at the top behind her. If that wasn't enough proof that he had probably saved her life, the expression on his face as they fell through the air, ...it was a rather terrifying level of openly expressed anger from a man who had fooled the entire Gotei 13 for centuries. Her brain finally registers the view over his shoulder; the ground rushing up to meet them. Her eyes open wide in surprise, "Deku-nee! The ground! Higurashi-san! Sōsuke-san! The ground! THE GROUND!, AIZEN-NIISAMA! THE GROUND! EEEEEEEEE!"

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Across the riotous sands, the echoes of Orihime's cry travel for leagues without any plant life to impede it. A head of green hair pops up from the top of Bawabawa shaken from a well earned nap, after the latest game of eternal tag. Soft hazel eyes cloud over with emotion, a childish pout appearing on the young face. "Aizen….-tama? Who is Aizen-tama and why does it make me so happy for him to have an imouto?"

Her companions draw in a sharp breath as; like clouds before the sun, her confusion breaks, and Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck looks up with an authority they had not seen in her for decades. "Bawabawa, head to the northern cliffs. Aizen-sama is fighting Baraggan with a much smaller soul nearby. No doubt the rotting corpse chose to attack when Aizen-sama would be at a disadvantage, protecting his family."

Pesche wiggles his ant-like mandibles, "But Nelliel-sama… you hate fighting, and you're a child now. You don't have to fight anymore." Nelliel glows a brilliant pink, the color of her soul, transforming from her child shape to the one she had worn for far longer as an Espada in Aizen-sama's service. Her green dress shifting to barely cover her as a tattered shirt and skirt combo. It would have to do. She holds her hand out before herself, summoning Gamuza to her hand from the scarred remains of her being. The crack in her horned mask, tilted upon her head like the visor of a knight, it ached all the way down to her hollow hole but she was armed at least.

She turns to her Fraccion, her brothers, "Sometimes, what we become when we abstain from violence is worse than what we become when we revel in it." Her head turns towards the rapidly approaching mountains where she can see clouds of dust being kicked up and flashes of multi colored light from the Ceros of several people. "Aizen-sama has found someone to call family. If I do not stand up and fight now, to help him protect his precious people… Then I would be just another animal like Nnoitra, living only on instinct and self-interest. There is nothing noble about that."

Before that very moment Pesche had never understood how it could be an aspect of death, what Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck had claimed as her Aspect of Death when she became an Espada.

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Loly could be honest, with herself even if she couldn't with anyone else. This was a bad idea, she knew it as she accepted the eyes to break Aizen-sama's Complete Hypnosis. She knew it when she first raised the extended arms of her Resurrection form and if there were any doubts, they were erased the moment they all came to a stop at the bottom of the cliff. She, held guardedly by Menoly's arms and the witch held securely in Aizen-sama's. Oh how she had dreamed of being in that position! And oh how it filled her with rage, to know that the human girl had cast a spell on Aizen-sama and stolen that position from Loly before she could ever claim it for her own!

She gets one good look at Aizen-sama's face, the two Arrancar standing at the bottom of the tiny hill rising in the center of the little valley they had fallen into at the base of the cliffs. Aizen-sama standing atop the hill staring down at them like an angry god. With a sharp twist of pain, she realizes that there was no spell at all, only an emotion Loly hadn't felt in so long she had forgotten it existed in the first place. Aizen-sama raises his sword, all Loly sees is a flash of light, the moon glinting off of his blade and she realizes that she is going to die, not by Aizen-sama's blade, but on the altar of her own greed and jealousy.

Menoly's black arms rise up in defense around them and a flash of guilt dashes across Loly's mind. Menoly was her best friend, despite all of the abuse that Loly had heaped on her, sure that this time or that argument would be the one that caused Menoly to realize that... Loly wasn't worth her time. She knew she was vicious and cruel in her determination to be the one who walked away from the ruined remains of their friendship with her head held high instead of in tears… and yet, Menoly was still here acting as the shield to Loly's sword… even when she knew that this was a bad idea, when she had tried to tell Loly that it was a bad idea and like always, Loly just wouldn't listen…

Loly's eyes close in surrender, only to be back lit in a flash of orange, "Santen Kesshun!" Her breath catches in her throat, a wild eyed mix of survivor's euphoria and bitter resentment. Her eyes open to see herself and Menoly wrapped in Orihime Inoue's protective barrier, Aizen-sama's blade but inches away from Menoly's millipede arms. She almost wished that she could be surprised by this. Loly knew that it wasn't the barrier that had stopped Aizen-sama, only Aizen-sama's unwillingness to go against that witch Orihime. Oh how it burned, to know that the only reason they were alive, was the very reason that had spurred Loly to take this course of action to begin with.

The witch's eyes are so appallingly earnest as she stares at the two of them, completely ignoring the man powerful enough to evaporate her if he only wanted to, turning her back to him to walk up to the two released Arrancar. The soft click of a Zanpakutō being sheathed is the only sound that rings through the air as the red-orange haired young human girl walks towards them. Loly clenches her centipede shaped arms in suppressed anger, at Aizen-sama's submission to the witch... tears rise up to her eyes for the great, great man who had done so much for them... because he submits without a single word of protest.

Orihime's heart goes out to the two teenage-looking Arrancar, she knew well, the lengths that a person would go to when they cared about someone. The Kami alone knew just how long she had been waiting for Kurosaki-kun to realize that she was in love with him. She opens her mouth to try to explain, only for something to catch the attention of Deku-neesan, the two girls drawing Orihime's attention to him before trailing to her peripheral vision. The world blurs around her for a moment, and when it refocuses, she realizes that the two girls had grabbed her in their long bug-like arms and darted up the small hill to hide in Sōsuke-niisan's shadow. His blade is out and there is a visible tenseness in him as several other transformed Arrancar join them on the hill, a dense purple fog pouring down into the valley on all sides trapping them in.

The fog gathers around the base of the hill, thick and dense, obscuring the ground beneath it. The unabashed fear on the faces of the two girls clinging to her arms as they stare at the slowly rising fog, convince her that the last thing she wants to do is see if it tastes like the grape cotton candy it so resembles.

Her heart hammers in her chest as there is movement from Deku-neechan, she watches him dart forward gasping in surprise when he swings his blade at one of their attackers... and the Arrancar that looked like he was wearing a saber tooth tiger mask dodged, even managing to step in and cut at Deku-neesan's chest. Only the absence of a blood spray stops her from darting forward to help him as he staggers back, unhurt but clearly very surprised. A trill of alarm shoots up her spine, he was a master manipulator, there should be nothing obvious about him and yet there it was, clearly written on his face. Surprise.

The laughter of a madman reaches her ears, harsh and grating as it echoes through the purple fog, "After all the times I had told you that you would regret giving me this power, are you surprised that I would follow through with my promise Aizen Sōsuke? Or is it that you are simply surprised by my patience? I know you have less than 30 seconds left of your Complete Hypnosis, though I do not know how the ability remained when you lost Kyōka Suigetsu to El Blanco Diablo. Pity those two useless girls couldn't have whittled away at your remaining time, I wonder just how much of it you wasted on Ggio, right now. It doesn't matter really, everyone runs out of time in the end Aizen Sōsuke I am the only exception. And this, this is where yours runs out. Do not worry Usurper, so long as you keep your Kidō to your self, my Respira will stay right where it is, patiently waiting, serving as my shield against your hypnosis as you oh so slowly fail in your self appointed task."

"The two useless Arrancar will fall first Aizen Sōsuke, and with each brutal death that human you so cherish will realize your worthlessness. Who knows, perhaps she will throw herself into my Respira to avoid the fate of the other two, the ultimate testament to her loss of faith in you. She will die Usurper, and only after she has perished, will my Respira close in giving you the humble death you deserve for daring to steal my throne."

With the purple haze of his Respira protecting him, he watched in ecstasy as a flush of red rage bloomed across the face of his nemesis. Baraggan was going to savorthis.

Sōsuke could feel a tingle underneath his skin, a prickle up the back of his neck and a thick lump in his throat. His Asauchi flashes in the moonlight redirecting the Cero being fired by Baraggan's Fraccion. He wasn't angry. He was embarrassed. He had the ability to sense souls like a hell butterfly, and yet not only had an Espada managed to sneak up on him, but so had all of Baraggan's Fraccion and the two girls he kept as secretaries.

He had spent all of last night acknowledging just how dangerous it was to do anything without a plan, but so burned out from his last one that he had avoided making any others that involved him... and so he had no contingency plans to protect Orihime-chan at all. Abirama with is red eagle wings screams death threats as he launches himself through the Ceros of the other Fraccion towards Sōsuke, who steps in to make a killing blow now that one of them was in range. Only to be forced to shunpo backwards, blade extending awkwardly behind him in an arc that wraps around Orihime. The blade sings as the lithe assassin Ggio's attack is turned away, but not so loudly that it blocks out the screams of rage as Menoly and Loly tag team the other Fraccion that had thought to take advantage of Sōsuke's distance from Orihime-chan.

"Sōsuke-nii, that fog, is it like Naraku's Miasma?" Sōsuke has only a moment to nod in answer to Orihime's question before he has to step to the side, using his body to block the Ceros that he had ignored during Abirama's charge. It was a good thing, that he was so powerful, that the attacks just collapsed against him like snowballs against a brick wall in summer. The Ceros are followed by a hail of feather blades courtesy of the Fraccion's special ability Devorar Pluma. The blade in his hands dances through the air, blocking the three hundred or so red steel feathers from hitting any of the three girls behind him.

Menoly screams in fear as she is grabbed from behind by Nirgge, the boar - anima Arrancar, huge and immovable as she struggles. She doesn't even have time to worry about how horribly she is going to die before Aizen-sama swings his zanpakutō blindingly fast, redirecting the feathers towards them, cutting off Nirgge's arms and freeing her. Loly's long arms pull her back to the group, the three of them pressed against Aizen-sama's back while Baraggan's Fraccion begin to circle like vultures once more.

Orihime chokes back bile, when instead of helping their friend... the only one that didn't appear to be transformed into some part-animal simply walks up to his downed comrade, squats down so his massive form doesn't tower over the other one, opens his mouth and inhales. The boar shaped one dissolves into glowing particles that... that... that the untransformed one eats. And some how she just knows, it wasn't a technique like Unohana-taichō's shikai, to protect fallen comrades. He had actually just eaten his friend. Tears flow freely down her face, blocking the next part of the battle out. How horrible it must be, to live in this place without grass, or trees or sunlight, where even your Nakama would devour you if you fell behind.

Sōsuke attempts to call the Demonic Red Reflecting Barrier, as it would quite promptly put an end to this travesty, but whatever had allowed him the ability before appeared to have been lost in the wake of his Hōgyoku Transformation. To think that he would find another reason for him to lament the transformation.

He found that it was both easier and harder, to defend the girls as they literally pressed themselves into his back. On one hand it forced him to remain in one spot, his arms stretching out awkwardly to use the Asauchi to strike out behind himself. On another it made it much easier, since the three girls were much smaller than he was, allowing him to use his body like a meat shield to protect at least one of their sides. It wasn't as if any of the attackers but Baraggan were powerful enough to overcome his spiritual pressure enough to actually hurt Sōsuke with their attacks.

If it were not for the fact that the same could not be said for Orihime-chan and her two rescuee's he would have already wiped the floor with these pathetic wastes of Reishi. His hand tightens on the Asauchi, to make matters worse, he had never actually had to use an Asauchi for Zanjutsu, the standardized blade felt awkward and cumbersome in his hands. Even the feel of it as he parried another volley of Cero, the scraping of the Asauchi against the callouses etched into his skin after centuries of gripping Kyōka Suigetsu's wrapped hilt felt foreign and wrong. A different balance, a different grip, and the absence of Kyō-kun's monologue on the inadequacy of their opponents left him awkward and off balance.

His only excuse for missing the approach of hostile Hollows was the centuries he had spent dismissing them as threats, they were like the curtains in the kitchen that you knew were a little too close to the oven, but had never given you a problem before. Until that one windy day where everything went up in smoke before your very eyes. The Asauchi swings through the air once more, blocking the Pink Cero beam from Charlotte, Feather Blades from Abirama, and tooth missiles of Ggio's Misil Diente. Sweat trickles down his back as his free hand snaps out to snatch Choe Neng's standard Cero from the air and dancing around the three girls to intercept the high-pressure, matter destroying water attack of Findor's Tijeras Neptunea to his chest. The Cero and water don't even damage his clothing, the white Shihakushō had been painstakingly modified for that very reason. Because it went through the hell butterfly transformation with a soul, it was the most in tune with that soul's Reiryoku and was just as protected as the soul itself by their Reiatsu.

It was so embarrassingly frustrating, to realize that for all that he could wipe out armies with a single Kidō or a well placed release of Kyōka Suigetsu... Sōsuke made a poor bodyguard, one made even more ineffectual by the handicaps he was laboring under. He could not release more of his Reiatsu, not without destroying the Reishi-mippuu that he had wrapped around himself to protect others from his higher energy state, one that was intrinsic to the survival of the three girls at his back. For only a moment he wonders just when he started considering Menoly-chan and Loly-chan as girls he needed to protect for themselves and not for Orihime-chan. But the thought vanishes in a moment, of no help in determining a way out of this mess. During the next wave of long range attacks, Sōsuke instead grabs one of Ggio's flying teeth and whips his hand back out quickly, the tooth leaving his hand like one of Dekuyume's throwing tantō. It embeds itself in Choe Neng's forehead, killing him instantly.

Had the Arrancar been in his resurrection form Sōsuke doubted it would have been lethal, but if there was one benefit to the spot they were fighting in, it was that the enormous form of the whale - anima did not fit without touching Baraggan's Respira. And now, when they escaped, they wouldn't have to worry about it either. Sōsuke breathes heavily, he wasn't tired, only a little sore from stretching and bending awkwardly to keep everyone covered. It was only a small consolation, that the threat of Baraggan's Respira was a double edged sword. The skeletal Espada must have had some doubts about his ability to age Sōsuke out of existence before he could launch a counter attack, otherwise he would have done so already, his Fraccion be damned.

On the other hand, Sōsuke didn't doubt for a moment that Baraggan would follow though with his threat to close the Respira in around them if Sōsuke used a single Kidō. Sōsuke had long since accepted the fact that he was more Sorcerer than Swordsman, even Kyōka Suigetsu was a Kidō type that bred miss-direction, allowing Sōsuke to execute his opponents without ever truly engaging them in anything more serious than a few light exchanges. Pity the magic system of this dimension was such that Sōsuke couldn't just perform the spells without the incantation of some of the more subtle Kidō that Baraggan was unlikely to notice. Unfortunately, for all of his prowess, even Sōsuke was required to at least state the name of the Kidō, even if he skipped the numeration, classification and incantation.

It was even more irritating that Baraggan was wily enough to assume Sōsuke was casting a Kidō if he spoke the name. But not more so than whatever it was that had allowed Baraggan and his Fraccion to slip free of his Ōken's Perception Warp. Once more, he tries, using another handful of valuable seconds, but once again, he feels it connect with Abirama, but the eagle – anima's eyes are not fooled, and he does not step into the path of Charlotte's pink ray beam Cero. He only had 10 more seconds left, 10 seconds of an ability he could not use against them, and he still hadn't managed to figure out HOW.

He grits his teeth, well aware that his footing was getting unsteady in the mud forming from the repeated drenching. He could snap out a Bakudō #56: Sentan Hakuja, The Thousand-Coil White Snake, as quickly as he could spit out the words Sentan Hakuja but the teleportation technique was of no use. Orihime-chan was still alive. Urahara-san's modified Senkaimon may have transformed her physical particles into Reishi, and thus was a pseudo-spiritual being at the moment. But that would not always remain the case, even the smallest inconsistencies that would be shrugged off by a natural spiritual body could be potentially lethal when she passed back through the specialized Senkaimon to become physical once more. As much as he hated it, even Sōsuke could accept that a world where Orihime-chan could not see her Nakama again was a world where Orihime-chan existed, but never again truly lived.

Frustration slowly builds into anger as he realizes that he couldn't even lift the three girls up into the air the same way he had once lifted the slabs of Sekkiseki that made up the dome of Las Noches. He was more than strong enough to deal with their weight in the high density environment of Hueco Mundo that prevented even the most skilled Shinigami from standing in the air, however, that would just leave the three of them open to the long range attacks of the four remaining Fraccion, and Baraggan himself who still remained hidden in the swirling Respira that circled them.

6 opposing Fraccion, most of whom had been in their resurrection forms, and their Espada, Baraggan, who's aspect of death was Time(Old-Age) Vs Sōsuke Higurashi… who had no plan, no backup from Kyōka Suigetsu, Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Hohō, skills wholly built around utilization of the Complete Hypnosis, 10seconds of the Perception Warp courtesy of the Ōken that was not working, two potential enemies he was forced to trust because Orihime-chan wanted to save them, and Orihime-chan herself who was brave enough to prevent him from killing Loly and Menoly, but was nowhere near ready for a fight to the death like this.

Nearly 10 minutes spent dealing with their volley attacks and Sōsuke had only manage to remove two of the Fraccion from the fight, one of which had been dealt with by his own allies. From one schemer and planner to another, he appreciated how well he had been trapped given the short amount of time that Baraggan would have had to plan this encounter. He certainly had a new appreciation of how vexing it was, being on the receiving end of a well crafted plan.

His mind continues to race as he considers his options midst the hail of Cero, as Abirama Splits his wings in two for greater maneuverability in the air, rapidly fling in circles around them randomly firing Cero, while Ggio does much the same, using Sonido on the ground. Findor chooses instead to stand in one spot, repeatedly firing off his deep blue Cero, while Charlotte fires off another beam Cero. Sōsuke dearly wishes he knew a few good swear words, he had hoped with the others slight deviation in attack, that Charlotte would use his only other long range attack Rosa Blanka, an enfolding flower entrapment that would quite neatly hide Sōsuke from Baraggan, and give him the moment he needed for a few Kidō spells.

There was Magatsuhi's mask he could use as well, but the hollow had appeared in his soul just over a day ago and while Sōsuke knew that he could wear the mask for short bursts of crystal transportation, he had no knowledge of its staying power during a battle. He would not, could not bring himself to risk Orihime-chan with an untried ability in the middle of combat, not when neither of the girls had been hurt yet and Sōsuke was fairly confident that if he couldn't win with a legitimate fight, he could at least win by attrition. But Dekuyume Kami of Battlefields, where the hell were Orihime-chan's Nakama when he wanted them to be there to mess up someone's plans?

As if answering his request, in that wholly roundabout way that so characterized Dekuyume, Charlotte's next beam Cero was halted. Not by Ichigo and his oversized zanpakutō, but by noneother than Nelliel. The green haired, former Tres Espada simply bent a bit, lowering her head just enough to take the pink Cero into her mouth. Her characteristic Cero Doble is ejected from her, the received Cero blended with one of her own as the eyes of the mask upon her head glow. He had been surprised the first time he had seen it, wondering if it was a special property of her mask, only to realize that it was merely that she had an unexpected perk, with her Hollow hole being upon the crown of her head all the way through to her throat and the light from the Cero shining through it and lighting up the eyes of her mask.

Even as Baraggan screams in rage at the interruption, the double Cero strikes Charlotte, removing another of Baraggan's Fraccion from the fight. It is with humble relief, that Sōsuke realizes that with the addition of Nelliel and her Fraccion, he is no longer outnumbered.

Cool, assessing hazel eyes ghost over the remaining opponents. Even if she had remained in Las Noches at full battle readiness, she would have stood no chance against the Segundo Espada, her aspect of death wasn't one that could stand against his aspect of Old-Age. But even as out of practice and injured as she was, she was more than enough to take care of the bastards Fraccion with or without the help of her brothers."Aizen-sama, my brothers and I will protect your Imouto and her guards from his Fraccion while while you deal with Baraggan."

Almost as if it were planned, Nelliel makes the jump into her Resurrection form with a "Declare Gamuza!", as Sōsuke takes the opportunity to shunpo forward and execute Ggio with a single strike before twisting to evade Baraggan as he joins the fight with a powerful swing of his massive axe, Gran Caída slicing through the haze of his Respira.

Nelliel's anima was that of an antelope, and in her resurrection form she looked like a centaur. Her hoves easily find purchase in the muddy soil and she gallops forward, not even pausing as she scoops Orihime, Menoly and Loly onto her back and leaps. In the world of the living, normal antelope were capable of jumping over 8 feet in spite of their weight and size. As an Espada in her release state, Nelliel was powerful enough to launch herself high enough to punch Ulquiorra with his bat - anima release out of the sky. With the mountain conveniently nearby, she lands atop in the small flat area she left her brothers.

With a cry of rage Baraggan's Respira closes in over the hill Sōsuke was standing on, far too late to capture any of the four that had just escaped, but wrapping Sōsuke in a purple haze. Baraggan's rage only increases exponentially when he realizes that he has slain his own Fraccion and Sōsuke stands untouched.

The fighting begins in earnest then, and Sōsuke has but a moment to be grateful that as a Skeleton, the fact that Baraggan is spitting mad is only metaphorical and not literal. Beneath his soaked kimono he feels the hand print scar on his chest heat up, and he knows who he has to thank for his continued existence. His Ōken, The Dreaming Kami preserved his life against many forms of death... but not even his cute little imouto was perfect, and she was already tired from all of the hypnosis he had used on her behalf, and any metamorphosis she could have enacted on his behalf was over and done with the moment he finished his transformation sequence in his Atelier.

It was a good thing, that Sōsuke in and of himself, possessed so much Reiryoku that he would live thousands of years without aging a single day. There was one thing that benefited him, standing in the Respira, one that is very much to the detriment of Baraggan. Sōsuke has a brief burst of elation as Kyōka Suigetsu finally bursts back into being, the Asauchi returning to the proper form. "Shatter! Kyōka Suigetsu!" Kyō-kun flickers into sight cussing with all the virulence of the souls he held underneath his sway, with a wave of the spirit's hand, Sōsuke feels the illusionary field that settles around him, hiding his slowly whitening hair.

Gran Caída and Kyōka Suigetsu flash in the fog as it is alit with Baraggan's Cero.

Zanpakutō:

Gamuza : Antelope Knight

Gran Caída : Axe of Ruin

Attacks:

Santen Kesshun : Three Sacred Links Shield

Respira : Breath of Death

Devorar Pluma : Hungry Wing Rapid-Fire Gun

Misil Diente : Twin-Shot Fangs

Tijeras Neptunea : Sea King Shears

AN: This chapter has been one of the most difficult things for me to write, not because of its emotive difficulty but the flow of motion, taking almost a year to spit out.

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Episode 7: Bastardic: The Characteristic of a Bastard *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Orihime yelps in shock as they fly through the air, arms going around Nelliel's torso. Elation fills her as she watches Sōsuke-nii release his zanpakutō and the blade transforms before her eyes even as the purple fog of the Respira thickens around him. Finally, he should be able to get somewhere in his fight with that mean jerk.

It is only as they hit the ground hard, at the top of the mountain that Orihime had fallen off of with Sōsuke-niisan what felt like hours ago, that she realizes she has her right hand full of this nice girl's boob. She eeps in surprise before apologizing profusely, it made her so uncomfortable when Chizuru-chan did it to her on purpose, she didn't want the green haired woman to regret helping.

Nell just smirks. Aizen-sama's Imouto was a sweet little girl wasn't she? It would probably ruin her entirely, if Nelliel told the embarrassed girl that Nelliel was a bit of a masochist and as a result, the adorable girl would have to squeeze much harder to do anything for her. The girl's two guards hop off of her back taking up a guarding position next to Pesche and Dondochakka. As one, everyone turns to look down the cliff as the Respira closes in over the hill. On the plus side, Baraggan took care of his Fraccion for them, on the other... her eyes narrow sharply as she see's the Respira begin to climb the hill in a bizarre rendition of a pyroclastic flow in reverse. She rears up in the air with a shout, "Run!". She turns as she comes down, pointed away from the cliff, as her brothers help the two guardswomen onto Bawabawa and they take off running in the opposite direction.

Nelliel knew just how fast Baraggan could throw his Respira. It was to their benefit that his speed decreased exponentially with its distance from his body. In a matter of moments they are down the opposite side of the mountain and well out of his reach. Her mask aches terribly, but not so much that it blocks out Aizen-sama's imouto as she asks if her Niisan will be alright. Nelliel's eyes pass over to the girls guards-women to see if she can get an idea about how honest to be with the girl.

Loly takes the hint, but with her ego still bruised from earlier, she simply waives at Menoly to answer the question, falling back to her lower energy state, zanpakutō sealed once more. Loly had no interest in making the situation any worse... she had done enough harm. Menoly clears her throat awkwardly, relaxing out of her release state as well, with a sigh she rubs her obscured green eye, "Of all of the Espada, that is, the highest ranking Arrancar in Aizen-sama's army, Baraggan is the most dangerous, because his aspect of death is Old-age. Much the same way that a Shinigami's Reiatsu can affect the environment, an Espada's aspect of death can do the same. For Baraggan, the Second highest ranked Espada, anything his Respira or his body touches, he can cause it to succumb to time, quickly aging. In most cases it happens in an instant, but Aizen-sama is so powerful that it would take an incredible amount of time for him to show a single sign of aging, so it's a tossup between who can outlast the other. It would be another thing entirely if Aizen-sama could get a single Kidō off without it prematurely expiring. You don't have to be a genius tactician to know that Aizen-sama's specialty is Kidō."

Orihime's eyes widen in surprise as she realizes... "We have to go back! I have to help him!"

In irritation Loly spins around, grabbing the suicidal witch by the collar of her shirt, "You stupid girl! What the hell do you think you can do that Aizen-sama can't? All you're going to do is get in the way again and make it that much harder for him to fight!" Orihime surprises her, somehow managing to turn the tables on her, leaving Loly staring up at the sky as she realizes that the witch had managed to throw her. With a newfound respect Loly sits up as Orihime tells them, "If Baraggan-san's aspect of Death is accelerating time... my aspect of Life is reversing it!"

Legs trembling from exhaustion, Nelliel forces them to obey her will, gracefully stepping forward to pace her hands on the girl's shoulders. With deep hazel eyes she stares deeply into the girl's trying to imprint the severity of the situation, "If we do this, we are only going to get one shot. You can't go into this half-hearted, sometimes that is even worse than charging into something blindly. A flimsy reason can be a thousand times worse than a strong reason that just comes to you in the middle of a fight. Without a reason to fight... no one ever wins."

Orihime closes her eyes and takes a deep steadying breath. This was why she had been sneaking off with Rukia-chan to train wasn't it? Knowing what she did now, it wasn't all that much of a stretch to change the reason from being able to protect her Nakama to being able to protect him as well. "Sōsuke-niisan... is not a good man, he has done many bad things to reach this point. But he is ready to change, if I can't help someone who is ready to be a better person, than I may as well give up on helping anyone at all…"

Her eyes are ablaze with conviction, " I am not ready to give up my kindness."

Nell smiles, steeling herself for another mad dash, that was a good reason, perhaps even the bestreason.

Orihime accepts the offered hand up onto the green haired woman's back. As she sits she raises one hand to her Shun Shun Rika, "Come TSUBAKI!" The fairy's exaltation in the face of her conviction is blurred out as the three of them move back the way they came, the Respira having retreated back to Baraggan when he realized they had escaped him. The sand and rock were soft and smooth with age as they raced back up the side of the mountain, the sand a fine powder and the sharp edges of all of the rocks worn away in the aftermath of the Respira.

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Sōsuke can feel the new length of his hair as it floats through the air, its frosted white a counterpoint in the gloom of Baraggan's Respira. It had become quite clear in the face of their fighting that Baraggan was just as skilled as Sōsuke with a blade, though what that really meant was that neither of them were masters of the blade insofar as they were masters of using their blades to support the real workhorse of their combat style. It was only Sōsuke's misfortune that Baraggan's stolen eyes could not be dragged underneath the Complete Hypnosis when his original pair already were, and clearly the Perception Warp could not turn the eyes of someone who's Reiatsu it could not detect. Truly, of all the ways that Kyōka Suigetsu and Sōsuke had considered to avoid the hypnosis, this was not one that they had considered.

It embarrassed him even further, because really, if Kurotsuchi-san considered Szayel's Teatro de Titere enough of a reason to replace all of his vital parts, Sōsuke should have realized that the mad scientist would do the same with his eyes. While there were few people willing to go to the same lengths as Kurotsuchi-san in many things, when it came to The Complete Hypnosis or a pair of borrowed eyes he couldn't think of many people that would refuse.

Perhaps the most irritating thing about fighting sword to axe with Baraggan was that at this point, the skeletal Arrancar was so utterly infuriated that a constant stream of non-nonsensical rage and death threats spewed from his mouth. Of course, it was that same stream of shouts and vitriol, that caused Baraggan to completely miss the deadly hiss of Orihime's rage. "Koten Zanshun, I REJECT!"

The tiny fairy pierces straight through the; "Hadō #90: Kurohitsugi, The Black Coffin". The combined efforts of the fairy piercing through Baraggan and the Hadō encapsulating him and pressing his own Respira into the wound, spell the Espada's end.

Like a candle, Baraggan's life is snuffed out, his ancient bones succumbing to his own Respira and fracturing, and some even crumbling to dust underneath the Kidō. Kyōka Suigetsu does the rest, stabbing through the crown upon his shattered skull, ending the life of the would-be king of Hueco Mundo.

The Respira dissipates slowly, like nightmares in the face of morning, giving Sōsuke time to take the measure of everyone underneath the Complete Hypnosis and ensure that no one would see just how much time he had lost. As the moonlight breaks through the evaporating cloud Sōsuke smiles up at the girl standing on a ledge above him jumping up and down enthusiastically. She had done it again, saved his life when he was faltering. He could only hope that when the time came to deal with Magatsuhi, the Ancient Wyrm... El Blanco Diablo he could return the favor.

He collapses into the soft sand, an exhausted man who had for all intents and purposes remained awake and fighting through 600,000 years worth of time.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Orihime sits back on her heels extremely grateful that her type of healing was nowhere near as exhausting as that of a Shinigami. Otherwise it would have taken years instead of moments, to heal the minor injuries to Loly-chan and Menoly-chan, the old injury to Nelliel-chan's mask, and help Sōsuke-niisan with his sleep deprivation.

They wait until he awakens only a few hour's later, and then Nelliel and her brothers leave with them, returning home to Las Noches. She had a bone to pick with Nnoitra and Szayel, and this tournament for the ruler-ship of the Arrancar seemed like the perfect opportunity to deal with them.

They part as they enter the gates, Aizen-sama's soft smile and words of thanks a sweet sound in her ears as he leads his imouto to his palace to finish getting ready for their return trip to the world of the living. It was a bit sad, to know that they would be leaving Hueco Mundo before a new leader from among the Espada was chosen, but Nelliel was glad for him, he had been alone for far too long, and deserved all the happiness that family could bring into his life.

It makes her giggle like the little girl she was hours ago, the looks on their faces when she steps into the throne room to announce her return... quite gratifying. Almost as much as the fear on the faces of those two brats that had caused her second childhood when she announces, that due to the healing talent of Orihime Inoue she was healthy as an antelope and ready to join in their Tourney to determine their new leader, "Don't worry, no matter how much you would like otherwise, the two of you won't die for what you've done to me, after all if I could live through such a violent assault upon my person, so can you."

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Sōsuke doesn't know whether he is pleased, or disappointed that they don't hold their competition right away. On one hand it shows that they were taking it seriously, wanting every Arrancar in Hueco Mundo to participate, or at least be aware of the momentous occasion. It also meant that there would be a return trip to Hueco Mundo in their future, as he watched Orihime move through surprising number of Arrancar that had gathered to see them off, he doubted that she would have any problems.

His line of sight is blocked by a head of green hair, he quirks his eyebrow at the dazzling hazel eyes that stare up at him with an unspoken challenge. In all honesty, Sōsuke didn't really need his former minions to hold their modified voting to know who would be the next Cero Espada. With a wry smile, he opens his arms, allowing Nelliel to step forward for a goodbye hug. She was a full foot shorter than he was, but as always when it came to spirits, regardless of their flavor, it wasn't the size of their body that made them dangerous, but the size of their expressible Reiatsu... and of course, the way that Reiatsu was expressed.

Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck's aspect of death was Noblesse Oblige... and in her last walk through the world of the living it had killed her, because she hadn't learned, that when it came to helping the less fortunate, if the noble's actions bred resentment instead of belonging, then they were in fact not helping their vassals, only satisfying their own egos. It took 13 strikes of the executioners axe, two decades as a demi-hollow haunting the ruins of her own lands, three centuries as a hollow, her rise and fall as a Gillian turned Adjuchas turned Vasto Lorde, and the creation of her own tiny family before she learned that lesson.

It was a very composed woman, who willingly removed her own mask to become an Arrancar and followed Sōsuke out of the desert and into the slowly forming halls of Las Noches to become the third of Sōsuke's Espada. And with exception to the plot that left her roaming the desert once more, not once had she been defeated in combat... not even by Sōsuke.

If Baraggan's aspect of death let him prematurely age things, Stark and Lilinette's Solitude allowed them to fracture themselves into even smaller pieces remaining forever alone, even in a crowd, and Tier's Sacrifice allowed her to exchange attack power for defense and vice versa at will, just like the ocean the Grecian lady was the very picture of what it meant to be both an unstoppable force and an immovable object.

But Nelliel? Nelliel grew stronger with every soul that swore itself to her as vassal. Each person that stood behind her added their Reiryoku, Reiatsu, and their Reishi to her own... If she needed more power, it was there waiting for her, if she needed to apply more pressure, it could pass through her just as easily as her opponent's Ceros were with her Cero Doble... and if she needed more information it was through the eyes and ears of her vassals that it came to her.

All it would take would be a single Vasto Lorde willing to swear to her and her victory would be guaranteed. If the way that Tier watched, arms folded as she leaned against the wall watching Nelliel's goodbye was any indication. .. that vow had already been made.

It was hardly a surprise that the current Tres Espada would swear to the first, when Tier had called herself Tres Espada instead of Trecera Espada in honor of Nelliel.

And then, finally it was time to return Orihime to the world of the living, to prevent any of her little friends from making a pointless trip to Hueco Mundo to rescue her when she no longer needed saving.

The door to his Atelier closes behind them with a wave of Kyo-kun's hand.

The closing of a chapter in his life and the beginning of another.

Beneath the Complete Hypnosis, his long white hair glows in the soft light of the room, a testament to just how far he had come.

The Dreaming Kami giggles as she plays with it, her Perception Warp no longer his to command now that he had been reunited with his zanpakutō spirit.

And both of them invisible to Orihime, their presence one secret too precious to share.

Unaware of just how much support he has, she smiles up at him encouragingly.

Per Orihime's wish, Sōsuke Higurashi was going to turn himself in to be judged. He didn't expect his former comrades in the Gotei 13 to understand just why. He didn't even expect them to believe that Aizen Sōsuke wasn't out to trick them once more.

But that was ok.

After so many centuries of being misunderstood, he was used to it.

He smiles gently back at Orihime-chan, it was all right, he had only ever needed the understanding of one person to be at peace.

Attacks:

Koten Zanshun : Solitary Sacred Cutting Shield

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Episode 8 : Bastardist: Those who follow the teachings of a Bastard

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A smile graced Kyōka Suigetsu's face as he took in Orihime Inoue's response to Sōsuke's Atelier... and the well hidden relaxation in his shinigami's shoulders now that he was completely sure of her safety. For a brief moment he considered introducing himself to her, but discarded the notion, only Muramasa was crass enough to show himself to anyone other than his Shinigami without a direct invitation. The connection between the three of them was strong enough that they could feel his desire to keep them a secret, even from her.

It was a balm to Kyōka Suigetsu and The Dreaming Kami, to know that he found them just as precious as he found this soul he thought of only as her. With a nod to his Shinigami, he takes the Ōken's hand and the two of them fade out of sight, leaving Sōsuke the illusion of privacy while he shows that girl his sanctuary. They had an eternity together ahead of them, more than enough time to get reacquainted, the same could not be said for Sōsuke and Orihime. The life of a human was terribly short when compared to a Shinigami's.

Orihime can only stare and listen intently, Sōsuke-niisan talks so softly as he explains the charming room that exists beyond the mirror. With rapt attention she watches as he glides through the room showing her amazing paintings as the story unfolds, and her heart goes out to him, this soul with the universal-awareness of a Kami, the power of the oldest of souls, and the solitude of a man who knows all to well what destiny has in store for him. But not anymore, they had already wandered too far away from that destiny to go back. Thank Goodness!

Some of the paintings make her laugh, to think that Kurosaki-kun's father was as much of a soul Echo of Kazuma Kuwabara as Orihime was for Kagome Higurashi! He certainly had the goofy part down pat!

And others... others made her want to cry, because even though The Third Reincarnation Manga hadn't given any details... Orihime could still remember how vehemently Dekuyume-chan refused to allow Miyatsu's reincarnation to join them in their journey... and the reason the sickly woman had given. Even here, this far away Urahara-san was still a pervert and if the quality of the paintings was anything to go by, Sōsuke-niisan's hands must have been shaking terribly as he painted Urahara-san standing next to the bald monk.

And oh, Kami but the books! There must be hundreds of them packed onto that shelf behind his writing desk and for the life of her Orihime couldn't fathom what it would take to write them at all, much less by hand. She had a hard enough time typing a four page story for her language comprehension class!

Once again, she spots it, the not so subtle hint that Aizen Sōsuke Evil Overlord, was more Sōsuke Higurashi displaced Land Kami, than anything else. Because while many of the titles written onto the spine of the books were ones she would expect to see on textbooks, the others. The others were names. Not of the people Sōsuke-niisan had met here in this reincarnation, but of those that had been left behind dimensions away, most of those names she remembered from the manga as Higurashi. She stares at the equally shaky writing on the spine of a dark red book, Miyatsu.

They are quiet for several moments before Sōsuke-niisan changes topic, lamenting that none of his invented gizmos had survived his absorption of the Hōgyoku, as many of them were quite interesting. Needless to say she was surprised that he had done such a thing with the Hōgyoku, and even more so that he would simply tell that to her in passing. She can see it, the moment he realizes what he has said and she is humbled to know just how much he relaxes, not censoring his words when it is just the two of them.

A little embarrassed by his blathering, Sōsuke clears his throat, "I would appreciate it if you pretended not to know what has happened with the Hōgyoku, with my abdication and the abrupt end of the war, I still need them to keep training for the fight against the Quincy and the uncertainty over the fate of the Hōgyoku should be enough to spur them onward." A lopsided smile sputters across his face as she nods enthusiastically, "Sure we can do that too, I really think that they will listen now, when you tell them why you did everything though."

Sōsuke only smiles indulgently at her self delusion, she was very young after all. The Gotei 13 felt betrayed by him, they also felt abused now that they had an understanding of Kyōka Suigetsu's true power, he knew very well that no one would believe his excuses now. He had shown them just how cruel he could be, and they would never believe any kindness he showed them ever again. That was alright too, it was difficult to have any regrets when he had done all he had set out to do. The only important milestone that had not come to pass was Ichigo-kun's battle and subsequent loss of power. In all honesty, the Gotei 13 should never have fallen so far that they needed the help of a 15 year old human boy to save themselves, regardless of the significance of that 15 year old boy.

With a shake of his head Sōsuke, steps back towards the door of his Atelier, a pleasant hum resonating through his being as he feels Kyō-kun change the receiving door from Las Noches to the mirror that had once been in his office in the 5th division. Somehow, it felt as if the two of them, Shinigami and zanpakutō Spirit, had grown closer because of their forced separation. With confidence, he rests the Zanpakutō against the easel he had created all of his other masterpieces on. Gently dragging his fingers down the sheathed form he murmurs his regrets into the ears of Kyō-kun alone, "I will see you soon." Laughter fills his ears, "Sōsuke, I am inside of you not the blade, so I am afraid that you are going to have to do more than just leaving it behind to get rid of me."

He places his hand on the door, pausing a moment to make sure that Orihime-chan was safely behind him. While he would have liked to linger longer, Sōsuke had a prison to take up residence in, and Orihime-chan needed to use Urahara-san's special Senkaimon that would convert her Reishi back into matter and for that, a trip to Seireitei was in order. Of the mirror doors that he retained in that dimension, the one in the 80th district was too far away, the one in the 4th division would trigger an alarm to Unohana-taichō and Sōsuke didn't want the Gotei 13 to know he was there until he was ensconced in his prison.

That left only the mirror that had, and hopefully still did, grace his office. "Please remain behind me Orihime-chan, I am unsure where this mirror door will open, though I have high hopes that it will be in my former office. There is always the possibility that Kurotsuchi-san has acquired it for testing in his lab however." Her hair clips glint in the light as she nods and Sōsuke spares a moment of gratitude to her first Niisan for gifting them to her. They had saved his life in more than one way. Turning back, he slides open the Shoji carefully. With a soft chuckle he discovers that it is still there, and so is his fukutaichō.

At first, Momo assumes that everyone is correct and her mind has completely cracked, hearing Aizen-taichō's laugh in the empty room. Particularly as she just can't not look up to check. Imagine her surprise when she sees him stepping out of the mirror that had held court among the potted plans in the corner of the room for the last century. Hope fills her whole being as she sees him turn around to offer his hand in assistance to Orihime Inoue, the human girl that had followed Ichigo Kurosaki into Seireitei to rescue Rukia Kuchiki.

With a trembling heart, she rises from her desk laden with all of the paperwork of the 5th division, a heavy burden now that she was the only one to complete it. Her hands shake as she walks over to them, taking in the relaxed way that Aizen-taichō moves, and the consideration he shows to the human girl. A brief flash of jealousy strikes through her heart like lightning, but it passes just as quickly. If Orihime-chan had turned Aizen-taichō from his path of conquest, Momo would do anything in her power to reward her.

"Aizen-taichō! You have returned, and with Orihime-chan as well! I am so glad to see you!" The happiness in her heart froths into a soft foamy peace as Aizen-taichō shrugs helplessly, "Good evening Hinamori-san, I have been shown the error of my ways, and have come to take up residence in Senzaikyū and ensure that Orihime-chan safely makes it back to her friends in the world of the living... and provided the means to visit often." His expression... its soft and hopeful as he turns from Momo to look at the girl who had single-handedly ended a war without a single drop of blood shed, except for those jerks in the Central 46 and Momo herself, but they had already come to terms with that, and no one but the other nobles cared for the lives of the Central 46 anyways.

Momo can only beam in happiness as the human girl nods enthusiastically, "Yes! I've made lots of friends here in Seireitei and it would be so nice to visit them all with Sōsuke-niisan." Momo can imagine herself sputtering in shock, hair falling out of her bun and pins flying everywhere at how Orihime-chan addresses Aizen-taichō, fortunately, or unfortunately depending on your perspective, she had spent entirely too much time with Aizen-taichō's previous fukutaichō Gin Ichimaru and his horrible sense of humor to react poorly.

And really, if that's what it took, that was what it took, and Momo certainly wouldn't be the one to take offense if it made him happy and it clearly did if the small smile on his face was any indication. Feeling a bit playful herself, Momo placed her hand on Tobiume and in her most authoritative voice said, "By the power invested in me as the fukutaichō of the 5th division of the Gotei 13, I Hinamori Momo hereby take the suspect Aizen Sōsuke into custody, to be held in Senzaikyū until his trial at a time to be determined by the Central 46." She can't help the small laugh that escapes her in the face of his mirth and Orihime-chan's giggles as she leans into his side.

Knowing full well that he could break them without a bit of trouble, Momo restrains him with a, "Disintegrate, you black dog of Rondanini! Look upon yourself with horror and tear out your own throat! Bakudō #9: Hōrin, The Disintegrating Circle". Even restrained he bows slightly with a smile as the sticky binding Kidō wraps around him, "I wonder Hinamori-san, just how many people we will gather on our walk to my new accommodations?" Momo can only shake her head in exasperation while Orihime-chan laughs. Really now, he was supposed to be a prisoner, and prisoners were not supposed to enjoy being captured anywhere near as much as Aizen-taichō was.

His premonition holds true however, and Momo catches sight of several people walking into desks and support pillars and walls as they double-take. Even more people, subtly pinch themselves to see if they are awake. She wasn't surprised by their reactions, if she hadn't known Aizen-taichō even better than they did, she would have been in just as much shock. She couldn't bring herself to feel sorry for them however, the sense of vindication she had over proving them all wrong was far too great. Astonishingly that is all the fuss that is kicked up on their walk to Sōkyoku Hill.

They arrive at Senzaikyū and enter without challenge. The prison remained empty unless there was a high profile Shinigami awaiting trial. They make it inside and Momo follows protocol to seal the doors, even if her assistant escort for the prisoner is very non-standard. There is a harsh clatter that echoes resoundingly through the empty halls. The binding Kidō evaporates as Aizen-taichō reaches out to steady the red haired girl that had tripped on a piece of rubble, still left on the floor from the previous break-in.

With an innocent, who me?, smile on his face Aizen-taichō tucks Orihime-chan's hand in the crook of his arm, before extending his other one towards Momo. "I do believe that this lowly prisoner has a room to pick out, if you two great and powerful guards-women would care to escort him though these dangerous halls?" Another laugh escapes her, was this who Aizen-taichō had always been underneath the personality forced on him by the time discrepancy, or was this too, all thanks to Orihime Inoue, healer of souls, savior of worlds?

Orihime stares in awe, and a little bit of confusion, why was this place so empty if it was meant to be a prison, surely Sōsuke-niisan and Rukia-chan weren't the only people to be accused of a crime in all of Seireitei, and why was it so large if the original number of Shinigami serving in the Gotei 13 was less than 300? Hesitantly she asks, and Momo and Orihime bond over the awesomeness that is Sōsuke-niisan's brain, giggling to each-other as he regales them with the history of the old building at the center of Seireitei, the only building in the whole of Soul Society that the Soul King had built himself, calling to order all of the clans in his domain and appointing their tasks.

The only building so well built, that to a soul, no one had managed to put a scratch on it until Ōetsu Nimaiya invented zanpakutō, the building that would serve as Sōsuke's home for the indeterminate future. The building he was strolling through with the reincarnations and soul echoes of his mother and little sister, as if it were a Palace, and he was trying to decide which room should become his throne room.

Or to be more precise, his royal tea room, and they his first guests. Standing in the conjoined rooms of what was once the guards dormitory, kitchen and indoor training area, Orihime-chan declares him home. With a mischievous wriggle of his eyebrows, he extends a finger and gently taps the mirror moved from the dressing room and into the kitchen over the sink and, with a "Ripple, Kyōka Suigetsu.", creates another door to his Atelier. It ripples open and The Dreaming Kami smiles and waives at him before throwing him one of the numerous packets of tea he had scattered around the Atelier.

He has no idea if the two girls see what he does, but finds that he doesn't care enough to ask. A Kidō, who's original purpose was to set fire to an enemy without melting their Asauchi is butchered and softened until it does little more than provide heat for the serviceable water kettle that only needed a light washing to remove the layer of dust it had acquired in its disuse, and soon enough the tea is steeping.

They sit peacefully around the small table before Momo Hinamori lays another of his ghosts to rest, boldly reaching out to take his hand, drawing his attention to her and away from the beautiful view of Sōkyoku hill. Her brown eyes full of such clarity and conviction, "You said once, that Admiration was the emotion furthest from Understanding. And then I was given plenty of time to consider it. I suppose that it is true, if that admiration is blind, and I apologize for how much it must have hurt to be so misunderstood for so long. But Aizen-taichō I am going to show you that admiration and understanding can coexist together equally. Even if that means that I must visit every day."

He lets her.

Zanpakutō:

Tobiume : Flying Plum Tree

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Episode 9 : Bastardine: To Combine with a Bastard

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The three of them were on their second pot of tea by the time that several of the taichō of the Gotei 13 charge into Senzaikyū having heard the news. For a moment he is tempted to tease them for their tardiness, but it was probably a bad idea to antagonize them now that he was technically their prisoner, even if there was very little they could do to him if he did not permit them to do so. He contents himself with a mysterious smile over the rim of his cup as they storm in, zanpakutō drawn, only to stumble to a halt when they find the three of them seated for tea.

It is the bubbly giggle of Orihime that breaks them out of their shock, the girl rising from her seated position and greeting those she was familiar enough with to greet by name. "Ukitake-taichō, Unohana-taichō! Welcome! Come take a seat and have some tea, we have a lot to talk about now that I convinced Sōsuke-niisan to turn himself in." Hesitant and unsure if this was a trap, the taichō that had rushed over glanced at one another in question. Perhaps things would have occurred differently if more of the hotblooded youngsters were present, of Unohana, Ukitake, Sajin, Kuchiki, and Kyōraku, only Suì-Fēng was the type to attack first and ask questions later. A bad move that, making her the taichō of the Onmitsukidō.

Sōsuke supposed that the current gathering was to be expected, of those missing, Yamamoto-sōtaichō wasn't really the type to run across Seireitei to investigate a rumor, Gin-kun and Kaname-kun had not followed him back to Seireitei, Hitsugaya-kun was watching over the world of the living in Karakura town with several fukutaichō, Kenpachi couldn't find his way out of a paper bag with his poor sensing abilities, and Kurotsuchi-san wouldn't be pulled away from his experiments without the promise of new specimens.

He really does want to laugh. Of all the things they were expecting to see when they stormed in, seeing Sōsuke serving tea to Hinamori-san while he allowed Orihime-chan to do all of the talking was not one of them. He almost feels pity for them. Almost.

Through the throng of former comrades cluttering up the old guards kitchen, Sōsuke feels the soft flutter of a very familiar Reiatsu. "You are welcome to join us as well, I would certainly enjoy it, having tea with you now that everything has come full circle, and both of us are aware of our shared history, Sasakibe-san." The old Shinigami stares at him, no expression on his face as the taichō step out of the way, clearly wondering what the hell was going on. Cautiously he steps forward. "I didn't believe the rumors at first, that you had returned to Seireitei, the sensors to detect your Reiatsu signature should have gone off, and Genryūsai at least, should have been able to sense your arrival. And yet here you are, are you an illusion then, come to taunt us?"

Sōsuke shakes his head, "No Sasakibe-san. I am here, your inability to sense me is due to Sōkyoku's rule, I am over two orders of magnitude more powerful than you in terms of Reiryoku and Reiatsu." Suì-Fēng sputters in rage and denial. "You must be a fool to think you can convince us that your Reiryoku and Reiatsu are so high our minds refuse to acknowledge it in self preservation!" Sōsuke merely shrugs, the curl of hair over his eyes bobbing back and forth with the motion, "You will believe whatever you want to believe, I am here to give you an explanation and accept my punishment."

Sasakibe pulls out the chair in front of himself and is the first to sit, taking a minute to consider Sōsuke's words as he pours himself a cup of tea. A brief moment of nostalgia as the Earl Grey passes his lips, but he banishes it almost immediately. Unwilling to succumb to a trap. "It was October 31st in the world of the living yesterday. We held your funeral, Sara Williams, the orphanage matron and I." Sōsuke bows his head in gratitude, "Thank you. It wasn't too much of a mess to clean up I hope?" Sasakibe sighs, uncertain just how far Sōsuke means that question. He is interrupted before he can even begin to answer it, the fiery Suì-Fēng stomping forward, "What the hell are you talking about! Sasakibe-fukutaichō ! Have you betrayed Soul Society with this Bastard!"

She is buffeted on both sides for her rudeness, collapsing to her knees from the spike in Reiatsu from both Sōsuke and Yamamoto who has just arrived in the doorway, sharp eyes hidden by his long bushy eyebrows. Everyone pauses a minute to see if he has orders, but he remains like a statue in the doorway, hands upon his zanpakutō hidden away under the facade of a walking stick.

Clearing his throat, Ukitake steps past her coming to sit at the table, "10 years ago there was a massive spike in the balance of worlds, as if a taichō level soul had incarnated in the world of the living, Sasakibe-san was then assigned a concurrent patrol of the living world along with the one usually maintained by the 13th division. A necessity since the poorly controlled Reiatsu of the soul in question lured many powerful Hollows, including Menos Grand and Adjuchas into the world of the living to investigate. The Gotei 13 could not spare a taichō to watch over the world of the living for the duration of a human lifetime, and of all of the fukutaichō, only Sasakibe-san is experienced and powerful enough to stand in for a taichō if needed. Also, during your induction into my division, we were drinking tea and you mentioned that I reminded you of your father, implying that he was still alive in the world of the living."

The 1000 year old taichō stares assessingly at his former third seat, senses wide open to spot any fluctuations in the mans carefully contained Reiatsu as Shun takes a seat next to him in a show of either solidarity, or protection given that he has taken the seat in between Sōsuke and himself. "It is now my belief that it wasn't a bad assumption, merely a poorly timed one."

Unohana is the next to take a seat as Sōsuke responds to the unasked question with a simple nod. The healer does not pour herself a cup, only regards him with disappointment written clearly across her face, "Ukitake-san told me of the flowers you left behind in Ugendō Quarters the last night of your stay, including the fact that the empty cup of tea they were set next to, was still warm when he spotted it. For such a thing to happen you must have been sitting next to him while you drank it, plenty of time and opportunity to kill an enemy... if you considered him an enemy."

Sajin, the anthropomorphic canine taichō of the 7th division, is the next to step through the standing taichō and take a seat, though he remains well out of reach of Sōsuke, "You defeated me, with a single incantation-less invocation of Hadō #90: Kurohitsugi, The Black Coffin. I collapsed to the ground at your back as it ended, and even though I was too weak to defend myself, you did not kill me."

With a sigh, Kuchiki sits as well, "It falls upon me as a member of the Greater Noble house of Kuchiki to ensure that this event is properly noted."

Then there was only silence, as Suì-Fēng tried to figure out what Yoruichi-sama would do in her position, and Sōsuke and Yamamoto stared at each other. Her decision is made for her as Yamamoto steps through the doorway taking a seat at the opposite end of the table, as if it stretched between the two of them like a chessboard, Sōsuke's three pieces set against all of Yamamoto's.

Orihime draws his attention away from Suì-Fēng as she slinks into a seat. Her hand is warm in his as she takes it, "This is your chance Sōsuke-niisan, if you don't want to continue to be misunderstood, you just have to explain yourself until you aren't. They're here, and they're ready to listen now, to all the things you couldn't say before."

With a sigh, he leans back in his seat, somehow he had assumed that it would be her speaking on his behalf. With his eyes on her hand in his, he begins to speak, detailing the true power of Kyōka Suigetsu, his awareness of just what happened to Rukongai Rats with subversive zanpakutō, his efforts in self preservation, his actions in the aftermath of the Quincy Massacre and his disgust with the decisions of the Central 46 and Shiba Clan, his discovery of the Quincy and Silbern and Yhwach living in the shadows of Seireitei itself, his madcap plan to use hollows against the Quincy, culminating in the Hollowfication Incident and the banishment of Urahara Kisuke, Tsukabishi Tessai and the self-exile of Shihōin Yoruichi, the two-faced treachery of Ichimaru Gin and his surprisingly noble reason for doing so, the heartbreak of Tōsen Kaname and finally the creation of the Arrancar Army that served the twofold purpose of spurring the Gotei 13 into serious training and as a backup plan just in case they failed to defeat the Quincy King.

Two pots of tea later, he finishes, unable and unwilling to explain his change of heart as caused by Orihime-chan, and instead explaining his last human life and claiming that his change of heart was due to the fact that if he could be so wrong about the reason for his death as human, then it was entirely possible that this whole thing could blow up in his face leaving the Gotei 13 even less prepared to fight with the Quincy in three years of time as measured by the living world.

He tunes out Orihime-chan's optimistic post-explanation commentary, as the taichō and fukutaichō leave Sōsuke in Senzaikyū, empty words of understanding and consideration on their lips. The sheathed form of Kyōka Suigetsu carried reverently away by Unohana-taichō, to be locked away in the specially sealed cabinet in the 4th division for patients that might hurt themselves or others in their ill state, and guards at the door to watch Sōsuke's every move. Not that anyone had noticed that the Kyōka Suigetsu being carried away was not the real Zanpakutō. He smiles apologetically at Orihime-chan and shrugs when she elbows him in the ribs, the girl well aware that he had left the real Zanpakutō in his Atelier.

Clearly she had thought that the meeting went well, but Sōsuke knows, that it is already too late for truth, and that none of the words he had spoken would be believed until well after the war with the Quincy had come to pass. He didn't expect his story to go beyond the seven taichō and two fukutaichō that he had shared it with. To the rest of Seireitei, Aizen Sōsuke would remain a traitor, a murderer and a liar, and he was all right with that, if it was what they needed to keep preparing for war, even if it was with the wrong enemy in mind.

Hinamori-san is the one to walk Orihime-chan first to a medical exam by Unohana-taichō, to confirm that she had experienced no undue harm from the amount of time she had spent as a pseudo-spiritual being, and then back to the special Senkaimon that would convert her spiritual body back into a physical one once more. As they approach the gates, a frisson of alarm crackles through him like lightening when Urahara-san greets her at the Senkaimon, informing her of her friends worry, now that time had caught up in the world of the living and everyone had realized that she was missing.

He cleans up the dishes, well practiced now in the ability to perform one task while watching someone else through the Complete Hypnosis. He is both relieved, and unsettled that the blond Onmitsukidō turned candy store shopkeeper has made the trip to Soul Society to escort Orihime-chan back to the other side. On one hand Urahara-san was skilled enough to ensure that if there were any complications with the spiritual body to physical body conversion they would be easily dealt with... and on another Orihime-chan was a well endowed female and sometimes when Sōsuke closed his eyes he could still feel...

His hands grip the lip of the sink tightly, his body swaying unsteadily. He opens his eyes, completely unaware of when he closed them. Sōsuke knew better than anyone that Urahara-san was not Miyatsu. He had watched enough of Urahara-san's life to know that while they were similar, they were not the same. Perhaps a benefit of the long standing friendship with his Yoruichi-sama had tempered him? Sōsuke did not know, but there was something he did know. No matter how well he had pushed it away, burying it underneath the plan, and busy work and her... it was still affecting him, multiple reincarnations after it had happened. All that time and distance had won him was artificial tolerance not serenity. The old stone of the wash basin creaks ominously under his hands and with measured breaths he slowly relaxes his hands from it. If only it were as easy to remove the fingerprints from his heart.

There is a chaotic blur that always happens when he watches someone through the Complete Hypnosis while they transverses the gap between worlds. A product of the time distortion and inter-dimensional physics not even his great intellect could directly observe. He watches Orihime-chan and Urahara-san snap back into focus as they step out of the Senkaimon gate and into the underground training area below Urahara-san's shop. With a sigh he releases her from his focus, he had no interest in watching her little friends whine about the fact that she had chosen to sacrifice herself for them instead of allowing them to fight.

He finishes cleaning up, and pulls a chair over to the large balcony overlooking the moonlit top of Sōkyoku hill, lost in thought to the eyes of the guards who had never seen Aizen Sōsuke before in their lives. He flips through the senses of the people under his control, like changing channels on a television and drifting away from Orihime-chan now that she was safe at home. The next thing that catches his attention is the late night taichō meeting in the first division, where Yamamoto-sōtaichō orders Kurotsuchi-san and Urahara-san to figure out what they would have to do to actually seal away his power.

It is Urahara, banishment still in effect, but given a chance to speak for himself for the first time 110 years, that answers through the video conference they had set up between Seireitei and the world of the living. It is clear from the way that he speaks, that Sōsuke had been correct, and no one was willing to share a single word of his story. With a sigh, Sōsuke shakes his head as Urahara-san and Kurotsuchi-san get into another round of who's the better scientist, declaring the determination of Sōsuke's actual power level as the first objective. He was not looking forward to dealing with the blond soul echo of Miyatsu, hopefully the century that had passed between their meetings would be enough to prevent him from being unduly hampered by the man's presence.

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Episode 10 :Bastardacy: The Diplomacy of a Bastard

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It was unsurprising that Sōsuke's next meeting with the Shinigami was a full taichō and fukutaichō meeting, though he was a bit miffed that they chose to remove him from Senzaikyū, and so close to tea time too. The guards had been changing over frequently due to the high concentration of Sekkiseki in the walls, the effect could still be felt even in the well shielded guardroom that Sōsuke had taken for his new lodgings. On a powerful soul like Sōsuke the draining effect was minimal, but the same could not be said for the much weaker souls that had been sent to watch and make sure that the man in Senzaikyū was in fact Aizen Sōsuke... and that he remained so.

His eyes are cold as ice as the guards hold out the Reiatsu suppressing chains towards him. It was a bit sad, Sōsuke thought that he might actually wind up disliking Kurotsuchi-san after all was said and done. While he knew that he had more than enough patience to deal with a peeved mad-scientist, he had observed enough of the painted man and his experiments through the Complete Hypnosis to know that it would not take much for him to become enraged at the continual failures.

Kurotsuchi-san may not believe in perfection, but he was more than arrogant enough to consider himself very close to it. Being the one to prove him wrong would not endear Sōsuke to him, and would instead only cause the scientist to become more and more vindictive. It did not take a genius to see that, and it made Sōsuke wonder just what Urahara-san had been thinking when he pulled Kurotsuchi-san out of the Maggots Nest over a century ago.

As a consequence, Sōsuke decides not to participate in Urahara and Kurotsuchi's little game at all, dissolving the sensor into dust the moment he was sure that the guards hands were far enough away from his body that he would not inadvertently harm them when he removed his Reishi-mippuu for a moment. The guard stares in slack jawed shock as the bindings dissolve into nothing and Sōsuke only smiles with all the false congeniality he had mustered up over his years as a taichō and fukutaichō. "Well, now that we have shown that I am here by my own discretion and not by force and thus highly unlikely to escape, perhaps you would care to walk with me to the 1st division for the meeting I am dangerously close to being late for? I wouldn't want anyone to think that I was uninterested in the proceedings you see, or worse, intended insult."

Sōsuke waited for a moment, but the guard only seemed more bewildered, and so, with a shrug he began walking out of the room, causing the guard to startle into motion, falling into step behind him. Dekuyume, Kami of The Eternal Battlefield, have mercy, but Sōsuke rather strongly suspected that he was being guarded by first year academy students. He supposed that he had no one but himself to blame for that, given that his position as an instructor at the academy had afforded him contact with the entirety of the recent graduates for all three military branches for almost two centuries, much like his position as a taichō in the Gotei 13 had done the same for all the souls that had already been in service at that time, rather drastically limiting the pool of people who were guaranteed to not be under The Complete Hypnosis.

Perhaps the only benefit to Gin-kun's continued absence, was the fact that no one in Seireitei was aware of Kyōka Suigetsu's weakness... yet. Sōsuke shuddered as he considered how uncomfortable it would be, to feel other people manhandling the externalized piece of his soul without a smidgen of respect. He becomes intimately aware of his surroundings as he catches the guard staring at him, a complex emotion displayed clearly on their face, but not one he can decipher. Sōsuke smiles pleasantly again, "You will have to forgive me, I am unused to guarding my expressions, understandable, considering my zanpakutō's ability to twist the senses of others. In case you were wondering, I was considering..."

"I'm good Aizen-taichō. Seriously, I don't want to know." Sōsuke blinks once in surprise at the very-young guard's interruption, it was probably for the best if he thought of his guard as a child, with the carryover from Dekuyume, he was far more likely to tolerate their antics with that perspective. Sōsuke may have chosen the mild mannered intellectual as his general social mask, but that did not mean that he had tolerated rudeness in his calligraphy classes, never mind in the people under his command in the Gotei 13.

With a sigh, and a hum of acknowledgment, Sōsuke led the guard the rest of the way to the first division in silence, aware of but ultimately ignoring, the countless stares that fell his way. At least one perk of having caused such fear in the general populace with his grandstanding, was that no one they passed was brave enough to whisper a word against Sōsuke as he passed them. He supposed that after an appropriate amount of time had transpired without any obvious action on his part, they would become complacent and the nasty whispers would start, but that was humanity for you, and but for a few very rare exceptions, every soul in Seireitei was human first.

He separates from the guard at the doors to the taichō gathering hall. He grants a brief flicker of attention to the room checking with all of his senses, including the hypersensitivity to Reiatsu that he had retained from his time as a Hell Butterfly. Of those who had not betrayed Soul Society, all were in attendance, as well as their fukutaichō, but for one missing taichō, and each of them all lined up neatly along both sides of the room with Yamamoto-sōtaichō standing alone at the far end of the room.

His attention drifts instantly, moving with practiced ease through the senses of everyone under the Complete Hypnosis and settling on the missing taichō. Hitsugaya Tōshirō-kun was very young for a soul, much less for a soul in the position of a taichō, having the appearance of an preteen human child. How the tables had been turned, now that it was Hitsugaya-kun who was to watch over Sōsuke's most precious person. It both embarrassed him, and eased his worry, to know that the green eyed boy would take much better care of Orihime-chan, than Sōsuke and done with Hitsugaya-kun's childhood friend and crush Hinamori-san.

He is vaguely aware of the proceedings going on around him, but a gentle twist of the Complete Hypnosis through Kyōka Suigetsu hides his distraction easily enough. Instead he watches for a few moments as Hitsugaya-kun finishes his patrol of Karakura town, and returns to the generous hospitality provided by Orihime-chan. Through the much weaker Reiatsu sensing abilities of the boy-taichō, Sōsuke checks on Orihime-chan, but her emanations are peaceful with slumber, as they should be at that time of night in the world of the living on a school night. The thought leaves Sōsuke feeling very, very old.

Sōsuke had the Ōken fused to his very bones, and not even Baraggan's power over advancing time had managed to do more than prematurely whiten his hair beneath the Complete Hypnosis, sending him from his apparent thirties to his apparent forties... and Baraggan had been capable of aging Vasto Lorde, and taichō level Shinigami out of existence in a matter of seconds.

It was probably for the best if he returned to his original habit, of viewing everyone as children he was to teach, regardless of how silly it seemed, treating someone of Yamamoto-san's advanced age and experience as a child.

Yamamoto's staff-disguised zanpakutō taps harshly on the floor. "Well Aizen Sōsuke. What do you have to say for yourself?"

Sōsuke gives the man at the head of the room his attention, causing all of his former comrades to tense. Each of them suddenly feeling as threatened as if the traitor to soul society had drawn his zanpakutō and pointed it at their leader.

It was wrong, so very wrong, to feel so threatened by a simple look.

No matter how empty and cold they were without his liars mask, the eyes of the man they had once considered a comrade.

Sōsuke remains silent for a moment, giving his attention and consideration to Yamamoto alone. But the man had nerves of steel, and wouldn't be cowed the same way that he had done with many of the more rambunctious Arrancar. It was a good thing really, Sōsuke didn't even want to consider how much work he would be in for if the leader of the Gotei 13 needed to be replaced this close to the beginning of the war on souls courtesy of Yhwach and the Quincy.

Eyes still cold as the grave, he tilts his head to the side in acknowledgment, and with an insulting smile tells them what they want to hear, a truth wrapped in the most beautiful of lies, "I suppose I should have expected you to see through my ploy, even if you couldn't see through any of my plans while I stood among the rest of the people in this room as your subordinate. The fact of the matter is that I am done. Done executing souls in the Rukongai so that the privileged few that call themselves noble, but act anything but, can have their vanities and frivolities imported from the world of the living. I am done, treating people like currency for a debt they aren't even personally responsible for incurring. I am done watching, waiting and wanting the world to change, knowing all too well that none of the people in power want anything to change at all, content to order the Onmitsukidō, Gotei 13, and Kidō Corps to perform their genocides in the name of Shinigami superiority."

With a victorious smile he continues, "I have turned myself in, not because I have failed, but because I have succeeded in changing the world. Unfortunately, after so long laboring under the burden of your cultivated ignorance, I cannot be sure that you possess the capacity to understand the full spectrum of what I have accomplished, and so I have returned to this cesspool of hatred, fear, and apathy, to educate you, as all enlightened beings are privileged and obligated to do."

There are shouts of outrage and denial from the more vocal children along the hall, but Yamamoto forces them all into silence with nothing more than the oppressive weight of his Reiatsu. He aims it at Sōsuke of course, one red eye glaring at him in warning. Sōsuke considered it a victory, as the old man's long eyebrows normally hid his eyes completely from view having grown so powerful with age that meeting his eyes directly had been known to send fukutaichō level Shinigami into Reiatsu shock. Sōsuke just thought he couldn't be bothered to control himself.

With a considerable degree of amusement, he ignores the warning, "Myself and the Arrancar are just the beginning. The Shinigami will no longer be permitted to destroy other people just because they are dangerous... or because they aren't dangerous enough." He smiles with false friendliness at his former comrades, rather enjoying himself, "You are just going to have to get used to it, and I recommend you do it fast."

"Is that a threat Aizen Sōsuke?" Yamamoto's voice carries with it the feeling of all the wars he has fought, the age he had attained... and the softness that he had gained, looking back in retrospection, at the monster he had been even as recently as two centuries ago. Aizen Sōsuke's words had been sharp, and his barbs well placed. Stirring up old memories, and buried shame. Yamamoto may have personally sworn to himself to commit Seppuku if he ever again had to take up the mask of the Monster he had worn for so many millennia. First to bring the lawless band of murderers and criminals together to create the Gotei 13 to stand against Yhwach, and then found himself unable to set it aside... not until it was too late and he could no longer reclaim those tiny precious things he had sacrificed along the way. He did not appreciate this traitor returning to stir up things best left forgotten.

Sōsuke shakes his head, like a school teacher dissapointed in his students, adding further insult to injury and sending another wave of anger through the more excitable taichō and fukutaichō. Of those gathered, only Ukitake, Unohana, Sasakibe and Yamamoto were not openly wearing their anger on their faces. But he was familiar enough with the first three to spot the subtle hints of emotion they could not contain. He sighs to further the image, "I am not issuing a threat Yamamoto-sōtaichō, only stating the unvarnished truth. Those humans, they will bring a change to all the realms much more rapidly than we have ever seen before. They will tolerate nothing else."

With a smirk, he allows his eyes to light up with humor, teasing some of them for their surprise, "Don't look so alarmed, truly the only ones you have to be concerned with are those precocious humans who managed to lead the elite of the Gotei 13 around by their noses for several days, even defeating several taichō and fukutaichō in the process. They don't intend any harm, they're just children. Of course, that's also why they're headstrong and obstinate and perfectly willing to break into Seireitei and stomp all over its long held practices, if they feel that those practices unjustly harm their friends. You really shouldn't be all that surprised when I tell you that they would do so again in a heartbeat to prove their point if need be. And that, is something that Seireitei can no longer afford. The Gotei 13 is no longer the only standing army in the afterlife."

"You're talking about an inter-dimensional war between Hueco Mundo and Soul Society, one that will devastate the balance of worlds. I wouldn't think that was something that you would allow. We all heard Orihime-chan refer to you as her Aniiki, just as clearly as we didn't hear you deny her the privilege. If a war breaks out between two of the three primary dimensions, the world of the living will suffer for it, meaning she will suffer for it. Unless you are playing her just as thoroughly as you played us for centuries." Sōsuke looses his amused expression, choosing instead a blank slate as he looks out of the corner of his eyes at Ukitake.

It was amazing, how similar the two of them looked now that Sōsuke had long white hair as well. Not that anyone else was permitted to see that. His former taichō was leaning forward intently, watching for any hint of what Sōsuke was thinking, not that Sōsuke was willing to give him any. The man was clearly giving him his full attention and for a brief moment Sōsuke regretted that he had never received that attention centuries ago, when he was still swimming through the haze of peace brought by the insight the man carried of Kiyoshi Higurashi.

"Indeed, Ukitake-taichō. As I have already stated, now that the Arrancar are self sufficient, I have returned to avoid such a terrible fate befalling the dimensions, Mutually Assured Destruction benefits no one in the end. Though I am curious, which side do you think they would take up?"

Sōsuke allows the question to stretch out, waiting for one of them to take the bait, even though he has made it painfully obvious. Suì-Fēng, irritated by the insolence she no doubt feels he is showing, is the one that does him the honor of asking, "Who are you talking about? More monsters and abominations you have created in your betrayal?"

He smirks at her, teasing her for doing exactly as he wanted, "I suppose you could consider them as such, though I can hardly take the credit. I only performed their initial transformation you see, any hard feelings that the Visored have for the Gotei 13, stems entirely from your treatment of them." He glances around the room, checking to see if everyone was on the same page, but of course, there had been many personnel changes after the Hollowfication Incident, Sōsuke had taken advantage of that after all. "For those of you not aware of the Hollowfication Incident 110 years ago. I used the Hōgyoku to Hollowfy 4 taichō and 3 fukutaichō of the Gotei 13, as well as the second in command of the Kidō Corps, all while framing the then head and founder of the SRDI Kisuke Urahara-san and forcing the Head of the Kidō corps to use a forbidden Kidō technique to teleport the rather contagious Holowified Shinigami to Urahara-san's lab. Shortly thereafter, I made sure that the Central 46 was aware of the situation."

He smiles rather pleasantly, as if he were discussing a particularly interesting Ikebana, instead of the gutting of the Gotei 13 and hamstringing of the Kidō Corps. "Kyōka Suigetsu and the Complete Hypnosis ensured that everyone did just as I had wished, and so, the head of the Onmitsukidō at the time, and the head of the Shihōin Clan abandoned her post to rescue her childhood friends from unjust banishment and imprisonment, as well as prevented the extermination of the hollowfied Shinigami that Urahara-san had just managed to stabilize before he was dragged away. They call themselves the Visored now, a masked army, rather appropriate considering the trouble Yamamoto-sōtaichō managed to cause Yhwach, and his army of Quincy with only 13 taichō a thousand years ago."

"So you see, its a bit of a tossup. If it came to war and the living world they have been a part of for the last century were threatened, would the Visored ally themselves with the Arrancar, finding them with their half-and-half state caused by me and threatened by the Gotei 13, a familiar story, or would they be able to set aside their hurt feelings over the abandonment and betrayal of their former Nakama, to stand with the Gotei 13, knowing full well that they were probably next on the Central 46's hit list?"

He hums to himself, pleased when they realize the full spectrum of what he had done. Or to be precise, just how thoroughly they had been screwed over by the old men on the Central 46 that Sōsuke had gleefully assassinated a few months ago. Their own prejudices as well, but honestly Sōsuke didn't expect more than a few of them to accept part of the responsibility. "Speaking of which, much as I would rather Urahara-san remain as far from my person as possible, you should probably use your Crisis Executive power to revoke his Banishment and Tsukabishi-san's sentence. You don't even have to send a messenger to let them know, I'm sure that Shihōin-san will be padding though the darkness like a black cat the moment the retraction is signed."

With a sigh at their stunned silence, and wishing he had a cup of tea to bring to his lips in poorly concealed mirth at the comical expressions on the faces of the children too young to really understand the horrors of the Quincy Massacre, much less the Hollowfication Incident. "I doubt that the three would return to stay in a Seireitei that was just as judgmental and intractable as the one they left, but they could probably be persuaded to come help in a pinch. I can't say I blame them, the human world is a much better place than the Rukongai, in many ways it is even better than Seireitei itself."

"The Soul Society isn't the only one that's gotten a taste for peace in the last 200 years. Hmm. I would hate to seem as if I am being hypocritical, however, I recommend books on diplomacy being imported from the living world. I would share my knowledge..." Sōsuke catches the expressions on their faces and allows himself to roll his eyes at their skepticism, hiding his own reaction underneath the Complete Hypnosis, glancing at Kyō-kun as he flickers into existence at the edge of the room to share his commiseration.

The purple eyed spirit eases a loneliness that Sōsuke hadn't even been aware of, the white winged butterfly fluttering around him revealing that The Dreaming Kami was awake and well once more after her depletion in the fight with Baraggan. He could have determined that by the absence of any ache in his bones, but it was still pleasant to be told.

He brings himself back on track, suddenly eager to be done with his former comrades now that two of his three inner spirits were ready to discuss all of the changes they had experienced in their separation. "Come now, there's no reason to look at me like that. Surely you don't think that I could set up a city the size of Seireitei in Hueco Mundo made of Hollow - Shinigami hybrids without some talent in diplomacy?"

It appeared that they were quite done with allowing Sōsuke to lead them about and demanded answers to their most pressing questions, Where was the Hōgyoku now? Why can they not find Las Noches when they were able to do so a matter of days ago? But Sōsuke had no interest in answering those questions... and with Yamamoto-sōtaichō not asking any of them, only regarding Sōsuke in quiet contemplation, he felt perfectly justified to offer the old leader a small bow, before dismissing himself from the gathering hall. Leaving the frustrated noises of the fiery Suì-Fēng and the discomfiture of his former taichō and old friends behind him.

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Episode 11 : Igniting the Oil Fire

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Yamamoto watched in silence as the boy strutted out of the room, dismissing them as threats. For a brief moment he considered shrugging the first division Haori off of his shoulders and throwing the boy over his knee for a much deserved spanking, but for all of the secrets that Aizen Sōsuke had revealed, Yamamoto knew that there were countless more. It would be devastating for the morale of the Gotei 13 to have the sōtaichō attempt discipline on the traitor, only to fail miserably.

In silent contemplation he watches as the rest of his elite, the taichō and fukutaichō of the Gotei 13 begin to squabble like the children he sometimes saw them as. No, the Gotei 13 could afford no more embarrassments at the hands of Aizen Sōsuke. They were doing enough of that to themselves. Unohana-taichō, the only one of his original 13 comrades that stood the test of time, shares a commiserating glance with him, lost in the youthful argument of the others. It would have surprised the rest of the first taichō and fukutaichō, to know that of them all, it was the most blood-thirsty of them that remained a thousand years later.

Of course, the Yamamoto of 1000 years ago would not have been able to comprehend the one that existed today, and found comfort in the argument he was currently ignoring, one that proved that Yamamoto was not the only one to have serious concerns about the common thread in all of Aizen Sōsuke's stories, and found it equally as alarming.

Aizen Sōsuke, betrayer of Soul Society and all that the Gotei 13 stood for, wanted them all to train harder in preparation for a war. For all of his experience as a monster and then a leader, Yamamoto had found that the only time two opponents met on the battlefield and the most prepared one lost... was because the least prepared one had a nasty trick up his sleeve. Hirako Shinji had embarrassed more than one ancient soul when he took his place among them with his perspective inverting Zanpakutō.

That Aizen Sōsuke who had left and returned to Soul Society with the advantage of surprise, was urging them to prepare for the future with every story he told, lit warning flares all through Yamamoto's ancient bones, and despite his appearance he was not so old that he would ignore a warning given just because it was but another among many warnings that had come and gone without a bit of trouble.

Taps his staff again bringing them to order, pleased to see that in spite of the heated argument, they still retained the discipline to fall back into their assigned positions the moment he called for order. He begins to issue his commands, keeping his slight amusement at their surprise to himself. The youngsters should have known better, there was a fine line between intractable and indomitable. It was called experience.

"Only a fool, refuses to hone their skills because an enemy has disparaged them. Only a fool, refuses to accept responsibility for their mistakes because an enemy has managed to deceive them once before. Only a fool allows resentment to grow from that deceit, removing forever the chance of valuable allies against a common enemy. We are not fools, and Aizen Sōsuke will come to regret his actions."

"Aizen Sōsuke is the fool that has declared war on souls. However, we, the countless faces among the Shinigami, Hollow, Human and Quincy that he has thrown mud upon... we will be the ones to end it."

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The Kidō Corps are a flutter with work, hundreds of Hell Butterflies sent out across the dimensions. Proving their superiority to Soul Phones with their ability to find anyone, anywhere and establish a line of communication.

Some, to Las Noches, disappearing beyond the sensors of Soul Society, much to the consternation of the 12th division. Whatever means Aizen Sōsuke had used to hide the Capitol of the Arrancar from them keeping it hidden from them still; though it proved to be no match for the Hell Butterflies. They would be received by the Arrancar who would hurry their selection of a new leader, inviting Orihime back to Hueco Mundo to heal the competitors, a curious Urahara as her guard. Two months after the hell butterflies arrival, the newly re-ranked Espada respond, asking for an Ambassador. Yamamoto accepts their requests and appoints the taichō of the 8th division Shunsui Kyōraku, as their Gotei 13 contact.

Others, vanish into the world of the living, some to the Visored, full of apologies and meeting requests from those who were closest to the Visored before their transformation. Three go to Yoruichi, Kisuke and Tessai, announcing Aizen Sōsuke's confession of guilt for the events 110 years ago, pardoning Yoruichi's dereliction of duty, rescinding the accusations against Kisuke, and exonerating Tessai for preventing the infection of any further Shinigami. A dozen others to humans, Quincy and former shinigami who were in no way ready for them.

Shiba Isshin, because after over a thousand years of dealing with them, Yamamoto recognized the hereditary characteristics of the Shiba Clan present in Ichigo. Both the blatant similarities of Engetsu inside Zangetsu, and the familiar shape of the face of Kurosaki Ichigo.

The teenage humans who had trespassed into the ancient fortress of Seireitei in the name of friendship and the boy that had proven to cause just as much of an upset in the natural order of things as Aizen Sōsuke, and was hopefully receiving the same sort of stabilization for his inner hollow as Urahara had granted to the rest of the Visored, and not left out because Aizen had taken the Hōgyoku. But no where near as concerning as the young Quincy who had faced off against Kurotsuchi, proof enough that Yhwach was not as defeated as Yamamoto had hoped.

Gin Ichimaru has to snatch his out of the air, to prevent it from giving away his position as he watched Ran-chan patrol Karakura town.

And last, but certainly not least, Orihime Inoue, the girl who ended a war with a smile.

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Sōsuke rolls his eyes from the easel in his Atelier, Kyō-kun a laughing teary-eyed wreck at the writing desk, the zanpakutō that housed it laying across the desk before the spirit. "Oh, but Sōsuke! It was perfect! "I have turned myself in, not because I have failed, but because I have succeeded in changing the world. Unfortunately, after so long laboring under the burden of your cultivated ignorance, I cannot be sure that you possess the capacity to understand the full spectrum of what I have accomplished, and so I have returned to this cesspool of hatred, fear, and apathy, to educate you, as all enlightened beings are privileged and obligated to do." It's so beautiful Sōsuke! Never have I heard such a perfectly crafted verbal bitch-slap! Oh, their faces!" He promptly begins laughing again.

From his lap The Dreaming Kami giggles, causing Sōsuke to roll his eyes again. Pity Magatsuhi was asleep, Sōsuke was outnumbered by the children in his soul. With an affectionate sigh, he resumes painting The Dreaming Kami holding her previous incarnation, the Hōgyoku and peering into it as if it contained all the secrets of the universe. His mind drifts, contemplating all the beginnings, middles and ends that had sprung from the wellspring that was Magatsuhi, Naraku, Dekuyume, and Sōsuke.

"Oh!" All of a sudden his attention is snapped back into focus. Sōsuke's eyes dart over to Kyō-kun, the spirits plum colored lips slightly open and deep purple eyes blinking rapidly in surprise, attention dimensions away. Cautiously Sōsuke questions his Zanpakutō spirit, "Is everything all right Kyō-kun?" Slowly, as if unsure of his answer, the spirit nods, black hair cascading over a shoulder. Slowly the surprise fades to a soft bemused smile, "Yes, Sōsuke, I do believe it is." He rises from his seat at the writing desk and glides across the room to drape himself over Sōsuke's shoulders.

"Riku Homura, the woman who crystallized... sends her congratulations for finding your her, and vows to keep your secrets though she will be joining with the Gotei 13 in their Council of Souls. Apparently she doesn't want to know what you would do if... startled."

"Oh!" indeed.

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Episode 12 : Ghost in the Fog

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It was inexcusable! Damn him! Damn that insufferable man! Kurotsuchi Mayuri fumes as his brilliant mind examines the footage of Aizen Sōsuke destroying the standard Reiatsu suppression chains, all while remaining focused on the subject of his ire. Damn that inappropriately cheerful Urahara to Hell and back for keeping a discovery like the Hōgyoku to himself! Secreting away the specimen to the world of the living, leaving behind no records of its creation. Blast it all! Not even the briefest of hints of synopsis for Mayuri to reverse engineer! Damn him!

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For the first time in centuries, Kisuke Urahara moved like a ghost in the fog. Passing through the streets of Seireitei as invisible as a gentle breeze, sometimes felt, but never remarked upon. His old Onmitsukidō skills were admittedly rusty, but not so much so that the distracted scientists in the SRDI noticed him. The only one who might have, was guaranteed to be too busy searching the database for hints of the Hōgyoku. A sly smirk slips across his face, his former fukutaichō was no doubt frustrated. Any notes that Kisuke had made during the creation of the Hōgyoku were wiped the day he realized that he could not destroy that which he had so foolishly created.

Unnoticed he makes his way to Senzaikyū, intent on seeing for himself if the rumors were true. He may still be banished, but not even that was enough to stop him, it was just to inconceivable. That Aizen Sōsuke had surrendered himself to the Gotei 13 at the whim of a teenage girl. Some had speculated that she had used her peculiar gift on him, healing the nastiness out of him. Kisuke softly scoffs under his breath. No matter how spectacular her gift for time manipulation was, Kisuke could not conceive of any point in time where Aizen Sōsuke was not an utter bastard with a god complex. Virulent irritation slices through him as he sneaks into the room rumored to hold the would-be-king... only to find those cold dark eyes turned towards his entrance. For all of his skill, Kisuke cannot find a hint of true feeling from Sōsuke. Every movement the dark haired tyrant makes, careful and precise and as void of emotion as the darkest empty spaces of the void between galaxies.

A little nervously, and completely full of caution as he sets aside the book he was reading, Sōsuke and rises to greet his (un)surprising guest. The shopkeeper (chin-length blond hair, still framing his face the same way it had a century ago, eyes just as sharp and grey as the silver metal of a Zanpakutō, just as dangerous as they had been a century ago, his body, hidden by loose clothing but just as coiled and ready to assassinate a target, no different than it had been a century ago, his grip tight on Benihime as if daring Sōsuke to draw Kyōka Suigetsu just as he had those first tentative moments when they met for the first time a century ago, his holy magic poised and ready to subdue Onigumo and leave him at Miyatsu's mercy a century ago. A century ago? No it was longer than that wasn't it?) Sōsuke takes a fortifying breath and lets the tension go. Sōsuke had known this visit was coming, ever since he gave the Gotei 13 reason to believe that the events of 110 years ago were no fault of Urahara-san's. And yet knowing that it was coming had left him no more or less prepared for the emotions the former Onmitsukidō would evoke in him, a century, a reincarnation, a never-forever past that terrible beginning..

Forcibly relaxed so that his muscles would be loose and ready for anything Aizen Sōsuke would dare to do, Kisuke watches the man who framed him rise from his seat, all the telltale signs of nervousness and uncertainty filling the space that brief unsettling moment of expressionlessness had held. Given the emptiness that had come before it he could only assume that each movement as fake and contrived as the moment of vulnerability Kisuke thought he saw centuries ago at their first meeting. To think that Aizen Sōsuke had once convinced him that the man feared him. The only thing the charming bastard had ever feared was being found out.

Unwilling to give Aizen even more of an upper-hand than he has already, cursing himself for rushing over so impetuously, Kisuke taunts him, tugging down on the brim of his green and white stripped hat, shielding his calculating eyes from the overhead lantern. "Really Aizen? A Philanthropic, Anti-discrimination, Social-Activist of all things? Surely that wasn't the best lie you could come up with? Or was it that the hollows threw your treacherous hide out of Hueco Mundo and that was all you could come up with on the spot?"

With a sigh, Sōsuke raises a single eyebrow, feeling no need to validate that snide remark with a response. He was vaguely uncomfortable, knowing that Urahara-san was as technically less Miyatsu than Sōsuke was Dekuyume, and with the fact that the blonde was completely unaware of their soul echoes shared history... for all that it had haunted Sōsuke off and on in varying degrees of terror, sorrow and regret for most of the last two centuries.

Sōsuke sighs once more as he sits back down. Picking up his cup of tea and leaning back into the reading chair he had appropriated from one of the many visiting rooms in Senzaikyu's older accommodations, he remains silent but continues to give his visitor his attention. If Urahara-san wanted to snipe at him... Sōsuke contemplated his own emotions for a moment wondering if he was willing to offer a deprecatory rejoinder. Sōsuke was a free man now, he did not have to be Aizen Sōsuke to a single degree further than he wanted to, after all there was no longer any plan to demand he behave accordingly.

Sōsuke's lips quirk underneath the Complete Hypnosis. Turns out there was more Aizen Sōsuke in him than he had thought possible. "You've become complacent dwelling in the world of the living, I must confess, I am dissapointed. Where has he gone I wonder? The Onmitsukidō-san that so terribly startled me the first time I contrived to use my Bankai without suspicion?"

If Kisuke hadn't been thinking much the same thing, he might have embarrassed himself by flinching. As it was, he simply parried the verbal strike, sparing a moment of thought to the complete disregard Aizen had shown to his opening salvo. The only question, was if it meant that Aizen found it so off the mark not to merit response, or if Aizen saw no point on commenting on an obvious truth. After so long spent without a reason to contain his responses, the blond shopkeeper was having a hard time retaining mastery of himself. And no wonder, with Aizen hiding so many insults in a casual conversation. Kisuke watches a dark eyebrow arch on his opponents face, lips parting to spill the next drop of poison, "Perhaps he only needs to sharpen his blade?"

If Kisuke were not aware of just how badly Aizen had managed to fool everyone for so long, he would wonder how he came to know that insinuating someone in the Onmitsukidō had a dull blade was the worst insult that could be offered to one of their number. A flash of irritation causes the words to spill from his lips before he can censor them, "Careful Aizen, if you aren't careful in your phrasing I might think you were offering your hide as Benihime's whetstone." A bit more honest than was strictly recommended in a conversation with Aizen Sōsuke, but it would serve to draw the conversation out of the realm of murderous banter and into something that Kisuke could use to figure out the charming bastards real plan.

As if his sole calling in life was to defy Kisuke's expectations Aizen did just that, in a conversational tone no less! "Very well Urahara-san. If that is what you think that it will take, I will indulge you when you visit. There is a passable sparring area in the suite I have selected. It should be adequate for sparring, provided we refrain from using the more destructive Kidō. I have plenty of time to entertain your antics, it isn't as if I am going anywhere soon with the ignoble aristocrats still neck deep in their politicking as they work reconvene the Central 46. Perhaps if we are lucky they will still be busy when the Quincy begin their assault."

For the life of him, he cannot understand why Aizen would take that stance, until he recalls the snippets he had overheard of Orihime-chan's conversation with Ichigo-kun and their friends. Really? Aizen should have known better, the story he told Orihime-chan was even less believable than the one he had given to the Gotei 13. He stares blandly at the greatest liar in Seireitei in hopes that it would convey just how thoroughly unimpressed he was, "I am not an easily fooled human girl Aizen, and I will find out what you are planning."

With a sudden clarity he watches as Aizen smiles with an aggravating mix of indulgence and skepticism, "Urahara-san, if no one could understand the complexity of my soul centuries ago when I wasn't even trying to keep it a secret, what makes you think that anyone could now that I am actively spreading rumors and misinformation?"

Unnerved Kisuke leaves with a muttered promise to return for the spar later, though given the fact that he was still banished from Seireitei he left the particulars of what time he would be back for that spar up in the air. It is as a man deep in thought that he returns to where Yoruichi-san is waiting, just as invisible as he was before... to everyone but Aizen Sōsuke.

Aizen Sōsuke who had told the abject truth in his parting statement, the rattling death gasp of a man who thought himself even more invisible than a ghost in the fog.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Kisuke groaned in frustration, leaning away from one of the battered benches in his laboratory. In light of his first encounter with his nemesis in over a century he had written down a list of everything he thought he knew about Aizen and his plans, and when he had made each assumption. He had hoped with everything written down, a pattern would appear, thus allowing for all of the outliers to be discarded as misdirection.

He had been going over the result for days now, some of which were without sleep, trying to figure out just what the hell Aizen thought he could gain by turning himself in now. "It doesn't make any sense!"

Yoruichi-san sitting in her feline form scoffs, tail twitching lazily, "Kisuke, crazy people typically don't." He pouts, fingers stained with ink having long left smudges on his face, "He's no more mad than I am."

With the ease of centuries of close friendship she has a perfect comeback, "Kisuke, I hate to have to be the one to tell you this, but…" He snorts, "Ha, ha Yoruichi-san, the mad scientist jokes started leaving a bitter taste in my mouth when they unleashed Kurotsuchi on my Shinigami Research and Development Institute in spite of the fact that I left multiple notes as his taichō in his personal file that he had a brilliant mind but needed a firm hand on his leash."

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 13 : The Bount Don't Count

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Somehow it surprised him, how quickly the days could blend together until they were measured not in intervals of night and day, but in the moment Orihime-chan's smile illuminated the room and when she felt it was time to return to the world of the living. It was a little embarrassing, he had noticed that first moment at the bottom of the stairs, how little attention he had been giving the world around him for centuries. And yet he could almost feel it happening again, his mind not caring for anything but her but for a few scattered instances of attention for Urahara. Not that he could bring himself to care. Idly he wondered if it was much the same for Dekuyume, or if her abilities as a Primary Operator left her with more than enough time for observations.

It hardly mattered, not when she brought a smile to his face and a peaceful feeling to his heart. Not when she was here. Her red hair bobs back and forth erratically, Shun Shun Rika hairpins and ponytail barely keeping it out of her eyes, as she bustles around the kitchen in his self-declared prison. The counter tops were laden with ingredients she had purchased from the Aizome Market with Hinamori-san earlier that day. In Sōsuke's admittedly biased opinion, Orihime-chan had already proven herself a better person than the countless nobility of Seireitei. She had purchased local ingredients instead of importing food from the world of the living, knowing full well that if done often enough or in large enough quantity, someone in the Rukongai would have to perish to satisfy the balance. Accepting the challenge of making Chocolate, red-bean paste and wasabi pancakes with almost none of the ingredients. He didn't even care that she was turning his space into an (un)natural disaster zone, and every splatter and spill was one he was going to have to clean up later. She was just so adorable in her enthusiasm.

"It was so amazing watching the Arrancar all fight so hard, even if it was a little difficult to see them endure so much pain. Even knowing that I was going to revert time on anyone who was hurt or died, it couldn't have been easy watching their precious people suffer. But I reminded myself while I watched..." She glances over her should at him with a wry smile of her own, "There is no such thing as good and evil, there are only people and the things that they are willing to do and endure in pursuit of their goals." He raises his tea up to her in salute as she quotes one of the more accurate Dekuyume quotes from her manga "The Third Reincarnation".

Her eyes crinkle in joy as she giggles, turning back around. "I still think its sad that they have to use violence to respect each other. I tell you one thing though! I was so surprised when Urahara-san came to pick me up! But I guess I can't keep getting kidnapped and hijacked in the middle of going back home, even if it has worked out pretty well for me!" She flashes a quick grin his way at the little joke before turning back to the ancient stove he had shown her how to use on previous visits to make tea. She had spent quite some time exclaiming over how difficult it was to use a stove and oven that was heated by a continuously cast Kidō, but for a girl that hadn't even had access to her own Reiatsu a few months ago she was a quick study.

A soft smile trembles onto his face, hand propping up his head as he uses his other to bring his teacup up to his lips for a sip. The human girl was all atwitter with excitement, recounting her return trip back to the world of the living. Sōsuke was just relieved that she suffered from no complications from her adventure that felt like lifetimes ago but was only a few days Seireitei time. But not, from Orihime-chan's perspective.

"The door barely closed behind us on our way back before we fell in to the Dangai and then the Kōtotsu chased us! And oh it was horrible, I thought were were going to die! It was moving so much faster than last time that Urahara-san had to pick me up and carry me over his shoulder. I had to stare at it chasing us! It would have been such a tragedy to die from the Kōtotsu after saving Rukia-chan and making peace between the Arrancar and the Shinigami! I didn't know why at the time, but it felt like the path was a hundred times shorter than it was the first time too! I was so surprised when we made it to the other side and Urahara-san explained that the length of the path was relative to the number of people trying to cross the gap, and their Reiryoku levels. Just how much stronger is Kurosaki-kun than everyone else because unless one of the others is hiding power they aren't talking about I don't know what's up! I was even more surprised when we made it back to his underground training area and saw him standing there!"

Sōsuke spares a brief moment to consider what it would be like to be subjected to a past and a present time echo of Urahara-san and rather promptly decides to avoid the situation at all costs. His attention is given back to her as she huffs expressing the indignation she likely had not allowed herself to feel at the time. "The Urahara-san that went with me just smiled at the other one and told him that he wouldn't believe him even if he used all of their pass-phrases and that he should consider himself kicked out of the lab for the immediate future. Then he led me into a room of the candy shop that looked like the long term prop storage for every sci-fi movie ever created and told me that because the Kōtotsu had chased us time had gone topsy-turvy and it was now August 1st again."

She spins around and stares at him intently "Do you know if the universe likes August 1st? Because I don't think that there is anywhere left for me to hide a time echo of myself! There was one of me running around outside getting ready to go save Rukia-chan, another of me in Soul Society in the middle of actually doing the saving, and then after that was done there was me running around getting ready for the winter war and another of me in Hueco Mundo meeting you! The only place I could be guaranteed not to be was in Urahara-san's lab!" With a soft chuckle Sōsuke merely shrugs his shoulders.

With a huff, she pouts, pushing her hair back behind her ear and spinning back to examine her concoction, "One good thing came of it though. I met the three cutest little plushie - people Urahara-san called Ririn-chan, Kurōdo-kun, and Noba-kun who are Mod-Souls! Apparently they're just like Kon-kun who helps Kurosaki-kun keep his body out of the way when he becomes a Shinigami to fight hollows! Only Urahara-san uses them as assistants when they transform from plushies and into people, and at first I thought I was going to do the same for the next two months and I was getting ready to practice my mad-scientist laugh but then Urahara-san told me that there wasn't enough room in the lab for all five of us and he didn't want me to get bored... and really? I can understand. If even a tenth of the stuff in there was as dangerous as the Hōgyoku I wouldn't want some girl less than a tenth my age running around pushing all the red buttons either. I had to spend the last two months in a jello tube like a specimen in an alien movie and I didn't even get any super powers from it! Just a two month long nap, and a terrible craving for chocolate, red-bean paste and wasabi pancakes!"

Sōsuke smothers a chuckle with his tea as he sees her bite the tip of her tongue in focus as she stares intently at the batter she has just poured into the pan. "Urahara-san did say that my DNA sequence checks out though. So no worries about the weird way I got transformed into Reishi on my way to Hueco Mundo, and then moved through your Atelier and back through the normal re-conversion Senkaimon back to the world of the living. Time finally caught up yesterday though, and Urahara-san even managed to work out way to get the Senkaimon to stop kicking us out to the Dangai whenever we use the spirit-matter conversion function. We have to wait twice as long for the Hell butterflies to lead us across, but that's way better than running for your life and getting thrown about into the wrong time over and over! Because honestly? I'm kind of tired of August."

With a wordless exclamation of triumph, she flips her pancakes revealing the perfectly golden brown side she had just finished. She glances over her shoulder at him, eyes a shimmering grey, a wry grin on her face and spatula resting against her shoulder like a sniper's rifle, "So, Deku-nee, any resemblance between the Higurashi Butterfly you marked all of the Higurashi with back home, and the Hell butterflies here? Or do they look completely different?"

He takes a sip of his tea with a charming smile over the rim of the cup, his bangs trailing across his face, "But my dear, that would be telling now wouldn't it?" The sly remark does what he had hoped, causing the vivacious girl to throw her head back in a laugh before rushing to get her done pancakes out of the pan and onto the plate. The tongue bitten in concentration again makes an appearance as she focuses on gently releasing the heating Kidō. He is proud of her when she manages it without difficulty. The first time she tried, she killed it completely and Sōsuke had to scour the rest of Senzaikyū for a replacement stove before she visited again. The most interesting result of that kerfuffle had been the looks of bizarre confusion on the faces of his guards as they trailed after him like little ducklings... academy students were so adorably awkward when they thought he was absolutely insane.

Her stack of pancakes is mountainous, but he has no doubt from the expression on her face that she intends to eat each one. Carefully she walks to the table he is seated at, carrying the plate before her as if it were a crown and she the crown-bearer. A twist of his lips, a teasing smirk and a soft pluck at the Complete Hypnosis and a rather enchanting orchestral piece reaches their ears... but not those of the guards who only stare at the two of them in vague alarm as Orihime-chan starts walking in time to the music. As she reaches the table the music phases into something a bit more peaceful. With a soft laugh at his antics, she sets the plate on the table with a happy smile that begins to dim at the edges as she stares down at her pancakes lost in thought.

Worried at her sudden downturn, Sōsuke prepares himself to delicately ask if she is having any problems with Ichigo-kun, because he can think of no one other than himself that would affect her so strongly. However she shakes herself free from the emotion and tries to give him a bright smile, "My friends... my Nakama. They didn't believe me when I told them that I convinced you to end the war with the power of kindness and friendship. They even yelled at me when I called you Sōsuke-niisan and said all sorts of terrible things about trying to use you as a replacement for Sora-nii."

He holds his hand out to her, offering comfort. His heart aches in his chest as she accepts it. Her smile is a brave, trembling little thing that makes him want to go to the human world and tear the impudent wretches apart. She takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly, "I... I was so upset with them that I cried. They know, they know how much value I place on being kind and... and they spat on it with their words, calling me stupid even though I am one of the top three ranked students in school, stupid, because I have the best imagination out of all of them, stupid because I'm still strong enough to believe in people, stupid because I'm strong enough to try to be friends with everyone, even people who think they have to be our enemies when they actually don't."

Sōsuke rises from his seat and holds his arms out open towards her. She throws herself into his arms, reminding him once again just how small her Reiryoku is in relation to his own, the Reishi-mippuu on his skin serving as armor to protect the rest of the world from shaking apart at the seams. He tightens his arms around her, his head coming to rest on hers as she sniffles and mumbles, "It's stupid that chocolate, red-bean paste and wasabi pancakes remind me how much my "Eclectic and sophisticated palate" offends their delicate sensibilities."

With a sigh, she pulls away. He lets her go just as gently as he welcomed her. She smiles up at him, his eyes cataloging her emotions, (a little brave, a little sad and a quiet determined strength). He relaxes. She was upset, yes. But she was all ready overcoming it. She smiles a little crookedly up at him. "Well they're the stupid ones, I don't need you to tell me that."

"Kou. Kou. Kou."

Sōsuke blinks as she does a horrible imitation of his laugh before he throws his head back and shows her how it is done, "Ku. Ku. Ku." His eyes meet hers again and her smile is much happier even if it has a strong streak of sadness to it, "Even though it would explain everything, I'm not going to tell them about "The Third Reincarnation". If they can't even believe what I've told them already, adding the actualization of a manga isn't going to help. Try not to respond if I call you Deku-nee in front of them on accident. At this point Nakama or not they don't deserve the truth."

She reaches forward and tugs at the sleeve of his white Shihakushō, "White jackets may remind me of safety and comfort, but those mental hospital ones look rather uncomfortable. I mean really, how do you expect people to get more sane when you prevent them from being able to scratch their noses when they itch? Seems pretty counter intuitive to me."

Sōsuke just shakes his head before holding his hand out so that she could gracefully seat herself upon the ancient dining table cushions, "Orihime-sama your seat and your pancakes await, for no other could deserve them but you, so brave, so fair, so kind as to end a war with a smile." She giggles in response and regally seats herself in front of her pancakes. She draws her chopsticks from their little carrying case preparing to wage war on her pancakes as Sōsuke seats himself once more. His hand halts in its pursuit of another cup of tea only to pause in mid air.

He glances up at the doors, causing the guards to twitch in nervousness. Ah, but they probably couldn't see the tea, tea set, or pot he had been serving himself through the Complete Hypnosis, or the giggling butterfly winged Ōken whom he was having a secret tea party with. Poor things, they must consider him the very picture of madness, and their opinion was only going to get worse. He almost pitied them, almost. He certainly wasn't going to let that stop him however, if he actually drank tea as often as he wished, he would quickly find himself overweight or training non-stop to counter the sugar intake. It certainly made him jealous of Dekuyume and her ability as an adsorption yōkai to do whatever she pleased with her matter. Think of all the cups of tea Sōsuke had to drink with his imagination but she would have been able to partake of their divine flavor with her own senses.

With a gentle frown, he turns his attention to what really caused him to pause, there was several someones walking with haste through Senzaikyū. Were they not led by Hinamori-san, Sōsuke would have thought that he was being summoned to the Central 46, so numerous were the guards walking behind his former fukutaichō. However Sōsuke had been keeping a close eye on the selection process for the new Central 46 through the senses of Ito Aizomeya, the only member of that body to not perish in his attack. If her embarrassment with the daffodil poisoning had not been so public, she might have been accused of conspiracy. As it was there was some suspicion, but not to the point that she was denied a seat in the Central 46, one of only a dozen confirmed and instated members as of yet.

No, this was something else entirely. Bad luck that, it appeared Sōsuke was going to have his visit with Orihime-chan cut short. His supposition is confirmed as the young souls flanking Hinamori-san scatter around the room as she opens the doors. "I'm sorry Orihime-chan but we need to get you back to the world of the living as soon as possible."

Orihime jumps up from her seat, "Is it Kurosaki-kun? Is everyone all right?" Worry tumbles through her, but as Orihime was coming to expect, Sōsuke-niisan had all of the answers before everyone else even had the questions. To think that she was benefiting from the same thoughtfulness that had made Kagome-san's adventure so easy. His voice is so reassuring as he tells her, "Everyone is all right Orihime-chan. The SRDI is just concerned by something they detected entering Karakura town. It's only mildly dangerous, but they still want to lock the Senkaimon until it is dealt with. Urahara-san is already gathering your friends and the Shinigami still stationed in Karakura to his shop to discuss the finer details."

His calm smile sets her at ease, even more so his words, carried into the air by the charming smirk on his face, "Worst comes to worst, I am only a flower in the mirror away. But I have no doubt that you will do just fine on your own. I did need you to aid me to defeat Baraggan after all." Really, it was nice of him to say that, but Orihime knew when someone was telling her pretty words to get on her good side. All she had done was distract the Skeleton King for a second so he could cast a Kidō.

With a sigh she looks down at her delicious pancakes, only to blink in surprise when her plate is empty and a mans hand is holding out a wrapped cloth that smells suspiciously like her missing deliciousness. "Your pancakes my dear. Have a safe trip." She beams up at the wonderful man who proves himself more and more like Higurashi Dekuyume every day, a plan for every occasion. With an eep she is airborne, only not quite. The world blurs around her as she realizes that she is being carried while Momo-chan uses shunpo to get her to the Senkaimon. It should have been embarrassing, to be carried like a little girl by someone shorter than her, and at such speeds, but Orihime understood better than the others, just how much older all of their shinigami friends were. Momo-chan may have looked younger than Orihime, but she had probably been fukutaichō of the 5th division for longer than Orihime had been alive. So she relaxed, and let Momo-chan carry her, and bask in the sensation of having a woman carry her around like she was a precious baby in the arms of a worried mother. Kami knew that her birth mother had never cared enough to do such a thing.

A wave of cold air hits her, and she realizes that they have gone straight through and into the Senkaimon. A butterfly lands on her nose as Momo-chan sets her down. Pancakes cradled to her (admittedly) ample chest, she bows in gratitude to Momo-chan, "If this takes too long, promise me you will go and visit him? For someone with such an active imagination, he doesn't do well with too much time alone to think." Momo-chan bows back, "Of course I will, and thank you for making the trip to see him so often. We both know that you are the only reason he came back."

Orihime rises, a little blossom of pride in her chest, because, yes, she was. With a grin and a wave good bye she turns and jogs after the hell butterfly already half way down the path. The doors open into a field of light when she reaches them, reality clarifying into the underground training area beneath Urahara's Candy Shop. The familiar Reiatsu of her friends waft past, a comforting sensation now that Sōsuke-niisan had helped her let go of some of the hurt their parting words had caused.

The Hell Butterfly flutters around her once before going up to and through the ceiling to the small patch of flowers that now brightened the front entrance of the candy store. She shouldn't have been surprised, the hell butterflies were technically ghosts too. Her attention is drawn to Urahara-san as he greets everyone, "Now that we are all here, I suppose I should tell you why you have all been called. In preparation for the winter war, a dozen or so highly sensitive sensors were brought from Seireitei and installed around Karakura town to facilitate a plan that was in place. As Aizen has turned himself in, and there hasn't been a single Arrancar incursion since the last one in the park, the sensors were tuned to more accurately measure spiritual anomalies. Quite a few people are concerned about the high spiritual mass of Karakura Town and what affects it may have on the human world with so many active spiritual beings either stationed here or calling it home on a more permanent basis."

"One of the sensors detected such an anomaly, to make matters worse, it was one that came up as Hostile when checked against the SRDI's databases. A being called a Bount entered and then disappeared into Karakura town. What you need to know is that the Bount are another failed experiment of the Shinigami. That does not mean that they are harmless victims. They are a product of arrogant souls attempting to achieve true immortality, unfortunately they succeed, but only in part. The Bount are the basis of the human myth of Vampires, minus the sensitivity to sunlight and plus the consumption of souls via blood and not necessarily the blood itself. While living souls do offer them quite a bit of power, it has no comparison to how easily they can partake of souls without bodies. As such, Yamamoto-sōtaichō has decided that the Senkaimon is to remain closed and locked until they are dealt with."

Worry grips at her heart once more, but not for long as her sharply in-drawn breath brings with it the scent of chocolate, wasabi and red bean paste. If she truly needed help, he would come save her. She knew it. She gives her attention back to Urahara-san, "We will use the soul phones to coordinate a grid search of Karakura town tomorrow after all of the humans are out of school. With any luck we will find where they have hidden, the SRDI monitoring the situation will send out alerts if they appear in the sensors again. For now, everyone should try to get some rest, we have a long day, and probably some difficult fights ahead of us tomorrow. I will examine the information the SRDI has on the individual Bount while you are all in school, and I'll have a detailed synopsis of their strengths, weaknesses, and last known membership when we regroup. "

With a sigh she and her friends leave the candy-store. Wistfully, she pretends that Kurosaki-kun is walking her home because he cares... and not because he thinks that she is the weakest one of their group and doesn't want to have to take the time to rescue her.

There is one bright spot though. The pancakes tasted divine.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Sōsuke runs his fingers through his hair as he prepares to seek his own bed. He and Dekuyume hadn't spoken about much of the intermediate issues between Yhwach's assault on Seireitei and when Aizen was supposed to be sealed away in Muken. As a result he was quite vexed and uncertain of just how much danger Orihime-chan was actually in, particularly now that Sōsuke had gone and broken free of the plan. His only consolation was that time still flowed at the same rate, and there was still several years living world time before Yhwach had to be dealt with.

With practiced ease, he ignores the children playing at being guards and turns in for the night. The Complete Hypnosis vibrant and active even in his sleep, scouring Karakura town for threats to Orihime Inoue...

He awakes with the sun, birdsong from Sōkyoku hill chiming through the air. There is a soft vibration in his bones almost like a lullaby, the weight of his zanpakutō on his chest, and the scent of fresh brewed earl grey tea on his lips. It appeared that he was being invited into his inner world for breakfast tea. Without stirring, he sinks into Jinzen. Water, poisonous flowers and midnight coat his senses, even as a light weight crashes into his chest. With a smile he catches The Dreaming Kami, her six butterfly wings fluttering in joy. "Yes! Yes! Lets fool them Aniiki!" With a smirk he glances over at Kyō-kun who is seated at the little french table. Like an indulgent emperor he negligently waives at them, "Don't mind me, I'm busy enough keeping an eye out for you."

Sōsuke's eyes snap open to the vibration in his bones, so much stronger than it had ever been before. He could not tell if it was a testament to his imouto's newfound strength, or if it was because instead of excising her Perception Warp on all beings within his Reiatsu, she was working her magic only on beings that were not in Kyō-kun's Complete Hypnosis toy-box. He sits up, to find the little girl gleefully jumping up and down on the bed wings fluttering in time with her jumps. "Whee! Have fun in your Atelier Sōsuke-nii! I'll keep these boring kids from noticing you aren't here." With a grin he rises and ruffles her hair. "Thank you Imouto-chan. Try not to tease them too badly. It's not polite to traumatize children." She giggles in response, that's his cute mischievous Imouto-chan.

He dresses quickly before moving into the open door of his Atelier. The door closes at the behest of Kyō-kun without a need for Sōsuke's touch, tuning to the mirror he retained in Karakura town. It ripples open without issue, and feeling much more secure now that he was a single shunpo away from Orihime-chan if she should need him, he began moving through his Atelier pulling the supplies he would need to remake his Soul Extraction Glove. The book of notes he had made during its creation centuries ago is the first. He had invented it out of curiosity, never knowing just how necessary it would be in the future. Sōsuke could think of nothing else that existed at the moment, nothing capable of pulling the appropriate souls out of The Ancient Wyrm so that one day the reincarnation of Magatsuhi could meet the reincarnation of heragain.

He needs the distraction, because for all the countless eyes he has in Karakura town, through the Complete Hypnosis... he finds no sign of the Bount anywhere.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Jin Kariya considered this most perfect opportunity that laid before the Bount. The shinigami had clearly been preparing for something big, just as clearly, that something had failed to happen. Pity his information network had been to slow to bring him news of the immense Reiryoku of Ichigo Kurosaki before the boy came into his Shinigami powers. He would have made a delicious treat, so powerful and yet still so helpless at the same time. He scoffs as he sees a group of shinigami, awkward in their Gigai, shamble like corpses into Karakura high school.

The shinigami may have had the presence of mind to close the Senkaimon to the world of the living, but the barriers between worlds were weak from so much traffic in and out of this town; particularly so in the places the boy exited his body often, the burst of power as his soul left his body to become a Shinigami, powerful enough to create a ripple in the fabric of the universe.

Yes, the shinigami may have closed the Senkaimon and locked it tight, but the Bount had gained quite a bit of skill in getting into places where they were not wanted.

Red, angry eyes turn towards the high school, the shinigami may have known better than to open the Senkaimon for the Bount. But the shinigami had a long history of withholding valuable information, and treacherously turning on those they were supposed to protect. It would be easy enough to con Kurosaki or one of his little friends into opening the Senkaimon... and serving as a distraction as the Bount snuck into Seireitei.

His lips twist in a sneer, He could smell the Hell Butterfly stench on all four of them.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

His heart beats rapidly in his chest as the hell butterfly flutters around in his closed hands. His breath is slow, soft and quiet, as he remains motionless in the trees, Bakudō #26: Kyokkō, The Bent Light, wrapped around him like a blanket. Ran-chan continues her patrol, never noticing the silver haired form of her childhood friend. Gin lets the tension drain out of his form. Tha had been a lot closer than he liked.

He keeps her in his Reiatsu sensing range as he releases the hell butterfly to deliver its message. He had been followin Ran-chan around since Robot-Aizen, and Bored - Aizen died from a flight a stairs and a human girl, leavin only Sōsuke behind. Gin rather liked Sōsuke, he was an ok guy that was just as smitten with the cute, busty little princess Orihime-chan as Gin was with the sexy, busty vixen Ran-chan. Gin had everything he had wanted when he started wrigglin his way into Aizen's trust. He may have wanted to punch his Bankai through the bastard's chest for what he did to Ran-chan, but that was decades ago, before he got a glimpse at how fucked up the bastard was in the head. It was bad manners to hold the actions of crazy people against them.

But the bastard he had wanted dead was dead now, just not in the way that Gin had envisioned it, nor with the consequences he was expectin either. The hell butterfly flutters away, its message delivered, leaving behind a stunned shinigami taichō, turned traitor... turned Shinigami taichō... Sky blue eyes are wide and shocked, his jaw slack and a mad, hysterical laugh bubbling up from somewhere so deep in his soul he didn't even know it existed. Because what else was there to be, when the strictest dude in the history of Shinigami, Yamamoto-sōtaichō himself, told you that you were dangerously close to runnin out of leave time and were expected back at work the next day, and the only thing you had ta worry about was a health exam from Unohana-taichō and the fuck ton of paperwork ya left behin?

A fox-like smile slithers across his face. Sure it could be a trap, but after a century of avoiding the traps of Aizen Sōsuke, there was no fox greater than himself. And it was time he got his vixen. The grin widens, stretching alarmingly wide across his face. Now he just had to figure out how he wanted to tell Ran-chan.

Groveling was for wimps, and since he no longer had to be the serpent in Aizen's garden of Eden, he could go back to his true calling. An poor Ran-chan was goin to have a hell of a time chasein him down, cuz no one played a fox-game better than he did. An it was about time she sacrificed as much for him as he had done for her. That she knew nothin about that sacrifice was not important, relationships were about give an take, and it was time he did a little takin.

Impossibly, the grin stretches even wider as he senses Rangiku Matsumoto finish her patrol and slip back into her Gigai. Together with her taichō and Orihime they head off to the high-school. Honestly Gin had no idea what tha hell they were thinkin tryin to pass themselves off as high school students, much less what they expected to get outta it. Gin knew what he expected to get out of following Ran-chan to the school was though. Cuz seriously? Ran-chan could barely keep herself in her Shihakushō, her tryin ta fit in a high school uniform would see the poor scrap of cloth near burstin at the seams. Gin would be a poor excuse for a man if he didn even try ta look.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Across town in the warehouse district the Visored were receiving hell butterflies of their own. An argument springs up almost instantly and with a long suffering sigh, Hachigen adds several dozen more Kidō Barriers around their hide out. Almost as soon as the last one is up Hiyori looses her temper and the argument turns into a shouting match slash violent self-expression. Just a typical day in the life of the Visored.

The barriers are layered and thick, cast as they were by the former Vice-Kidō Chief. Only Tessai Tsukabishi, the former Grand Kidō Chief could cast them stronger, a blessing, as there were few things more necessary to the survival and safety of the Visored than their ability to hide themselves.

Pity those barriers and the power being thrown about underneath them as first blood was drawn in the fight were enough to prevent them from ever noticing the ruckus going on at the high school as the Bount attacked in the middle of the school day.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Ichigo was cool with Rukia sleeping in his closet. It was weird, but who was he to talk about weird when his inner world was a city full of skyscrapers tilted on its side? What he wasn't cool with was being harassed by the butterflies that Rukia is always bringing home now that she could go back and forth between Seireitei and the world of the living. He was even less cool with the one that had been stalking him everywhere since it woke him up at midnight landing on his damn face. He was even less overjoyed by it trying to lead him around than he was with goat-face's morning wake up routine. Unfortunately he made the mistake of asking Rukia to keep her little bugs to herself and this was the result.

With a sigh he tries to make heads or tails of the explanation as Rukia does one of her wierd bunny drawing show and tells. "Dammit Rukia who the hell is supposed to learn how to receive Hell butterfly messages from those stupid drawings! What do bunnies have to do with anything?!" He is promptly silenced by a giggle from Orihime. Spinning around he sees the silly girl break out into a blinding grin, "Mine is named Wasabi Green!"

Oh hell no. "You can't just keep every freak of nature sob story that crosses your path!" There is a resounding silence from his friends in the aftermath of his words. He flinches when he catches sight of the tears in his air headed friend's eyes and is forced to look away when she quietly rejects his words, revealing that she was far less air headed than he had thought. "Sōsuke-niisan is not a Sob story Kurosaki-kun. He's just a man that was brave enough to change his mind." Without another word to them, she turns and hurries ahead of them and into the school. The Hell Butterfly dubbed Wasabi Green fluttering along after her.

Ichigo grips his backpack strap tight as none of his other friends say anything, each of them had wanted to say much the same thing, except none of them had wanted to do so in a way that hurt the kindhearted girls feelings.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

For once... Kisuke can't think of anything to say. He had heard the far fetched tale the addle-brained redhead had spun to her little friends when she came back after being captured by Aizen. He had not considered the fact that Yamamoto would believe it. Not to the point where he would forgive Yoruichi-san's dereliction of duty, or send a commendation to Tessai, thanking him for sparing any further shinigami from being infected by the wild Visored... not to the point where he would tell Kisuke that the true perpetrator of the Hollowfication Incident had confessed, not to the point where he would send Kisuke a Hell Butterfly telling him that he had been Exonerated.

He has but a moment to note that regardless of how well locked the Senkaimon was, the Hell Butterflies managed to find their way across the precipice world just fine, before Tessai bursts into tears. "I am forgiven."

Nearly blind from the tears of joy streaming down his face, he turns to where he can sense his dear friends. Each emitting feelings of shock and disbelief, "I never even dared to dream... that one day I would be forgiven."

Kisuke removes his hat from his head, bringing it over his heart, as he stares in wonder at the hell butterfly perched so delicately on the tip of his finger. With a soft, breathless sigh, he can come to only one conclusion. It appeared that he would be seeing Aizen Sōsuke for that sparring match far sooner than he had ever considered possible.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Sōsuke was a tense, miserable creature. The muscles on his powerful frame fluttering in aborted movement as he constantly restrained himself. First he had wanted to go over there and put that brat Ichigo-kun over his knee and remind him to mind his manners. Perhaps a pointed remark that people who asked polite questions received polite answers would not be remiss? That had been how Tōshirō-kun had responded when Orihime-chan asked about her Hell Butterfly last night, going so far as to help the human girl with the Kidō necessary to keep the Hell Butterfly assigned to her by Yamamoto and the Gotei 13 for the foreseeable future.

And of course, just as he managed to convince himself that it would do more harm than good, to incite further ill feelings from Orihime-chan's friends, the children had arrived at their place of learning... followed shortly by what Sōsuke thought might be the entirety of the remaining Bount causing him to repeat the process all over again.

He had just reminded himself that regardless of how many loops the children had made in time courtesy of the Kōtotsu they had managed to deal with the Bount just fine without the interference of any form of Aizen Sōsuke when the children finally noticed their opponents and began to fight. They had all scattered for the moment, and Sōsuke contented himself with watching only her, secure in the knowledge that if any of her little friends was mortally wounded, her power was more than enough to reverse the issue.

The incomplete soul extraction glove in his hands pops violently, giving off smoke and heat, which would have most assuredly burned his hands before the Hōgyoku Becoming and yet now resulted only in a faint charcoal residue on his hands. Taking a deep breath to calm himself, he discards the ruined glove and briefly considers grabbing the materials to restart, only to come to the conclusion that he would most likely find himself in this exact same position. He glances up sharply as he hears her make a soft sound of pain. With a sigh he finds that she had only collided a bit too harshly with a wall as she ran through the halls of her school, with another sigh... he realizes that he is standing, poised and ready at the doorway of his Atelier.

Shaking his head in self-exasperation, he returns back to his cushion and his writing desk. There is a tense, worried expression on her face that makes him even more upset than Ichigo-kun had with his thoughtless words. At least then she had found the strength to stand up for herself. Gently twisting the Complete Hypnosis, he calls out to her, hoping to ease some of her worry. "Relax Orihime-chan, your Nakama are strong. Even if you are all having a disagreement about your philosophical preferences in the handling of enemies, you will all work to protect each other. What Rukia-chan cannot protect with her Kidō, Ichigo-kun will protect with his sword, what the two of them cannot protect will be protected with Uryū-kun's arrows, or Sado-kun's fists. And as always, your Shun Shun Rika will fill in all the remaining gaps with its shields, its healing and its piercing attack. Furthermore, just as Dekuyume always did for Kagome, if for some reason that auspicious collection of skills and friendship should not be enough, I am only a prayer away. "

Fortunately for the perceived level of Orihime-chan's sanity, no one is present to hear her break out into laughter. Finally finding some measure of relaxation in the face of her mirth Sōsuke relaxes into his cushion, watching avidly as, with renewed determination, she turns away from the fight she had been running towards and quickly opens the hallway window. Leaning forward she shouts at Ichigo-kun fighting one of the Bount below, who's name Sōsuke does not care to remember. "Kurosaki-kun! I am going to grab everyone and we're going to protect our classmates from the Bitio! You focus on showing these guys why attacking our school is a bad idea!"

There are fights going on all over the place and yet Orihime perseveres in collecting the group of children that had invaded Soul Society to save Rukia, and in gathering all of their cowering classmates into the relative safety of the school gymnasium where they can have an easier time keeping the mosquito-like Dolls away. In spite of her newfound confidence, it still remains a challenge to keep in his seat, but he too perseveres. He does not want to trample on her fragile ego, he does not want to make her think that she needs a man with a sword to protect her when she is fully capable of doing said protecting herself.

He has to laugh though. Who would have thought that after so many incarnations, he of all people was no longer content to sit back and watch events unfold?

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Kariya's eyebrow quirks in irritation. How hard could it be to con one dumb kid into opening a Senkaimon? All they had to do was lure the kid into a straight forward lunge followed by twisting his Zanpakutō as if it were a giant key. With the fabric of the universe so weak here at the school where the kid cut class to go hunt Hollows, and with the Hell Butterfly following the kid around it shouldn't take more than that to open a gate.

Clearly he was going to have to take care of the situation himself. A plan quickly forms itself in Jin Kariya's mind. The busty shinigami had called the short white-haired shinigami, taichō. Therefore, not only was she the weaker of the two, killing her should also throw the pint sized shinigami off of his game making it easy to get past them and over to Ichigo. He prepares Messer and feints for the taichō before twisting and heading for his fukutaichō.

Only to find himself rebuffed. He skids backwards over thirty feet, kicking up a cloud of dust. Taking advantage of the screen, he leaves the fight to go find his target.

Rangiku can only stare at the back of the white taichō Haori as it flutters in the wind before her. Her heart aches in her chest as her childhood friend turns to greet her, kitsune - smile on his face. "Hey there Ran-chan, how am I supposed ta stay in hidin if ya go an get your self in trouble like this?"

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Much as Sōsuke predicted, the encounter with the Bount ends with her healing all of the injured while the Shinigami remove the memories of the afternoon from all of the normal humans... and Ichigo-kun doing most of the fighting and defeating of opponents making the shinigami stationed in Karakura look like they were the ones in need of protecting. Content to wait until she was done with her schoolwork for the day, Sōsuke restarts recreating his soul extraction glove.

Consequently it seems as if very little time at all has passed before she is on her way home... and just as he prepares himself to whisper to her, words of congratulations and encouragement through the Complete Hypnosis... she surprises him.

"Thank you, Sōsuke-nii. Thank you for believing in me. I hadn't realized... that is, it had been so long since the last time I had someone tell me that they believed in me... so long since someone did not snicker, scoff or sneer at my imagination, my enthusiasm, my ideas, my desire to help... that somewhere along the way... I had lost faith in myself. Thank you Sōsuke-nii for reminding me that I too am a person of worth, that I too have something valuable to contribute to my Nakama... that I am not just the one that gets left behind until everything is over and it is time to heal the injured. "

In a dimension of his own creation, beneath the Complete Hypnosis of Kyōka Suigetsu and the Perception Warp of The Dreaming Kami Sōsuke Higurashi cries, because the world was still filled with light even this far from home.

Because of her.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 14 : One Hundred and one Shinigami

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Sōsuke looks at his visitors from over the rim of his tea cup. The whorls of steam bearing the gentle aromatics of the sunflower petal tea he had prepared fresh from the flowers growing on Sōkyoku Hill. While he was gratified by Hinamori-san and Orihime-chan for their frequent visits, he had been surprised to discover that so many of his former comrades wished to speak with him now that he was, for all intents and purposes, a captive audience. Astonishingly, the first visitor had not been who he had suspected, but instead :

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

9th Division

Shūhei Hisagi, the fukutaichō of the 9th division was not who Sōsuke would have guessed to be his first visitor. Mildly baffled, as the calm man bows to him, he takes another sip of his tea. The grey eyed shinigami rises from his bow, making eye contact. Well now, what is this?

"Aizen-san, as the former subordinate, and current friend of Kaname-san, I would like to thank you for giving him sight. However as the former subordinate and current friend of Kaname-san I ask that you kindly refrain from involving him in any more of your despicable schemes. He is a Just and Noble Soul, and I will not tolerate you besmirching his honor." Mildly amused, echoes of Dekuyume threatening people on behalf of her family ringing in his ears, Sōsuke finds that he isn't half as insulted as be probably should be. Briefly he considers pointing out that had Sōsuke not involved him in his despicable schemes, Shūhei-kun would have never met him, but lets it go. The impulse is an old one, it no longer serves a purpose, and saying the words will not make him happy.

The young fukutaichō forcibly relaxes himself, rolling his shoulders before he pulls out a writing implement and a sheaf of paper. "Now that that has been said, The Seireitei Communication has received several requests for a special edition specifically revolving around you. I have several dozen questions I would like to ask you as part of an interview. Will you allow it?"

Feeling gracious, he does, not realizing that in his candor, he has let the entirety of Seireitei know where he can be found... and that he was taking visitors in his self imposed isolation, should anyone feel up to visiting the Senzaikyū on Sōkyoku hill.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

5th

Momo looks across the table at Aizen-taichō, the cup of green tea in her hands painted with violets and verbena. Did she dare ask? She loved to visit with him, this man whom she was inexorably bound to by threads of fate, violence, and time. But it was beginning to make her uncomfortable. "Aizen-taichō, may I ask why you stopped calling me Momo-chan, and instead call me Hinamori-san? I know it has something do with how I... How I killed you."

She watches surprise drift across his face marveling for a moment as she realizes this is the first time she has ever seen real surprise on his face and wondering how anyone ever fell for his acting before, when the real thing is so much more vibrant. He's so graceful, as he gently sets his tea aside. His hands fold together on the table as he answers, "I thought the reason was obvious. Momo-chan is a girl who I believed to have murdered my last human incarnation and one whom I have spent the better part of the last century plotting to destroy. Hinamori-san is a young woman whom I have deeply wronged, and yet proved herself to be stronger in character than myself." He smiles softly at her, "The truth of the matter is that Momo-chan is someone that I do not feel that I can be friends with, as too much has happened between us. However this is not the case with Hinamori-san. It would be my honor, to be friends with a woman of such unparalleled earnestness."

Momo strongly fights the urge to cry, "Then please in the spirit of friendship, call me by my first name, Sōsuke-san" He smiles benevolently at her as he raises his tea for another sip, "If it pleases you Momo-san, then it shall be so."

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

13th Division and 8th Division

Ukitake Jūshirō sits back on his cushion. The cup of lavender tea idly giving off wisps of steam on the table before him. That was the fourth time that he had seen Sōsuke-kun use a Kidō to reheat it. Normally spending this much time in conversation would have left him a coughing wreck, but he had done very little of the talking. Indeed he had simply shown up with the packet of lavender, thrusting it at Sōsuke-kun with a demand to be told about Metastacia and Kaien and the Shiba, and the murder of his Great Great Uncle that had sat on the Central 46… It was a terrible, breathtaking web that Sōsuke-kun had woven around them all, so it was no wonder that he had forgotten all about his tea. Kami but he had even forgotten about Shun and Nanao-chan who had refused to allow him to visit alone.

With a sigh, he takes a sip, one eyebrow quirked and green eyes amused, "I wonder how it would have turned out, if I had believed you during your interview for the 13th division, when you told me that I should give you my position." His former 3rd seat only shrugs, his face more open without the glasses hiding his true expression from sight, revealing the wry humor that flavors his response, "Eventually you would have asked me if I had mastered my Bankai, as that is often a prerequisite to be a taichō without combat to the death. And given that you had taken me so seriously, as a matter of personal honor I would have had to tell you the truth."

"And that truth is?" Startled by the interruption, Jūshirō glances over at his friend, wondering for a moment if Shun had been glaring at Sōsuke-kun like that the whole time. His attention is drawn back to the mastermind revealing his hand as he shrugs in clearly feigned embarrassment, "I would have said that I had never used it. Though that was only true until the day the indigo lotus swept across Seireitei." Sōsuke-kun's eyes are a thousand miles away as he admits Kyōka Suigetsu tested him for his Bankai the very first time he released the blade. "To be or not to be, that is the question, to reach for the flower and the moon in the reflection or to stay your hand knowing it is only an illusion." He raises his tea to his lips, a smirk clearly hidden behind the rim of the cup as he gazes at them over the surface, "I passed Kyōka Suigetsu's test of course. Only a fool believes that an illusion holds no power because it is not what it appears to be." Neither Jūshirō or Shun were foolish enough to try to goad more of a response out of him, not with that smirk on his face.

As they rise to leave, Nanao approaches the seated charming bastard and demands an answer to her question, "Is it true, that you are responsible for the Hollowfication Incident that turned Yadōmaru Lisa into a Visored." His response gets him a slap in the face before she turns and storms out of the room.

Sōsuke is unsure of what surprises his former comrades more, the fact that she dared... or the fact that he let her.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

4th

There is a soft tap at his door, and one of the guards that stare at him with such delightful flabbergasted faces, opens the door to Unohana-taichō and Hanatarō-kun. Sōsuke rises from his tea to greet them, graciously accepting the Ikebana in spite of its sentiment. Musk Cluster Roses, Bilberry, Fig and Snapdragon. He leads them back to the table, fetching more cups from the dish rack his visitors frequent enough as of late to still have a few cups left out to dry, carefully selecting two painted with purple hyacinth.

The conversation is light between them, comments of the fake body he used to fake his own death segueing easily into a comment about his abuse of the Kuchiki and their historical archives... and his surprise at realizing that Unohana-taichō was taichō of the 11th division during the war with Yhwach. When Hanatarō-kun sputters in surprise, he simply carries on, offering words of praise, for how hard and long the man with a high Reiryoku but low Reiatsu had worked to get where he was now, and for his good judgment helping Ichigo-kun and the others during the Ryoka invasion.

Everything else they needed to say, said with the flowers they had exchanged.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

12th Division

Mayuri was... surprised. It was very unusual in his research, to come a cross a subject that willingly surrendered a specimen, particularly one as painful and revealing as a sample of their Reiryoku. It could not be a trick, the subject was very good at them and for a few minutes had even managed to fool his great mind with that false body he had used to fake his death. However, Mayuri had taken Reiryoku specimens countless times before and this one had been no different. He stares intently at the vial with its violet glowing Reiryoku. Gold eyes dart up from the specimen to examine the subject, mildly stressed from the invasive procedure, but otherwise in good health as it puts its dead soul garment back on.

For a moment, mad-scientist gold clashes with tyranny-brown, the subject gives him a small nod of acknowledgment, "Because you are many of the things that are whispered behind your back and screamed your face, but if there is one thing you are not, it is a hypocrite. I can respect that."

It is a very confused mad-scientist that leaves... and a frustrated one that realizes that the sample of Reiryoku is just as crafty as it's origin, never giving the same response to a test twice defying any attempts at data collection.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

2nd Division

Much to Sōsuke's surprise, even Suì-Fēng chose to make her way to Senzaikyū, if only to hiss threats at him. With great amusement he listened to her from across Seireitei, peacefully drinking tea in the tea house he had visited once upon a lifetime ago with Aizome Haku. He spared a moment to worry if the 2nd division taichō was hurting the feelings of his cute little imouto-chan as she played body double, however The Dreaming Kami was giggling madly at the spitting mad woman's threats as she bounced on the bed shouting out denials.

"Sorry, he's immune to that."

"That too."

"You don't even have a Reiatsu pressure high enough to make that work!"

"Hahahahah I'd like to see you try!"

"Lady, you can't even tell I'm not the real Sōsuke-nii!"

With a wry smile he shakes his head and goes back to his tea.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

1st Division

Sasakibe sets his tea aside, sparing a brief moment to acknowledge the Sakura blossoms painted on the cup. Though this was his first visit with the Adult Aizen Sōsuke, it felt just as familiar as tea with the boy he had watched grow up. In quiet words of acknowledgment they had regained their rapport, speaking of old hurts, and older idiosyncrasies that had previously had no rhyme or reason, only becoming clear, now that the two of them were both aware of their shared history.

"Well, my old friend, you will be pleased to know that your efforts have thus-far succeed. You have incited a heretofore unprecedented fervor for training in the Gotei 13, embarrassed the Kidō Corps with the impersonation you did, shamed the Onmitsukidō with your ability to out sneak them, and alarmed everyone collectively with your ability to acquire information you should have no reason to be aware of. I wouldn't even be surprised if you already know of your most recent victory."

A mischievous smirk shrouds his host's face, reminding him ever so strongly of the boy Sōsuke once was, "I am aware that there are construction plans in place for an embassy to host the Council of Souls. That auspicious collection of non-shinigami persons of power that has representatives from The Visored, The Arrancar, The Free Peoples of the Rukongai, and The Protectors of Karakura; All of which have reason to hold a grudge against me."

Really? Was there no one the boy had not offended on his path to greatness? "I was unaware that you had met Riku Homura." The boy clears his throat delicately, displaying a mild level of embarrassment Sasakibe is not certain he believes. "I may have experimented on her at one point." Really Sōsuke? That kind woman as well?

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

10th Division

Sōsuke's hand darts out to snatch the projectile before it can reach his face. One eyebrow goes up as he realizes that he was nearly assaulted with a package of tea stamped with the logo of Tomorrow's Tiger Pharmacy. He glances up in askance at Gin-kun's childhood friend and love interest Matsumoto Rangiku. "Consider it a thank you for making sure Gin was pardoned."

Sōsuke finds himself quite unused to receiving gifts from people who glare at him with such hatred. Its rather amusing.

She leaves almost immediately, not even bothering to try and coerce Sōsuke's guards to go to the bar and buy her sake. Idly, he rises from his seat to place the tea in the cabinet with his others, waiting for Tōshirō-kun to say his piece. The snow haired boy had a very fiery temper for a person with such a powerful Ice-type Zanpakutō spirit, but Sōsuke supposed that the boy was still a young teenager, who's age group was well known for its volatility.

In an equal measure of silence Sōsuke stores the tea and returns to his seat, the taichō of the 10th division just as silent. One more minute passes and the boy with turquoise eyes turns to go without saying a word. Unable to help himself, Sōsuke calls out, "No threats Tōshirō-kun?" In an instant Hyōrinmaru is drawn and pointed at Sōsuke's chest, the temperature of the room dropping, the boy's face twisted in unvoiced rage, "I hate you. I hate you for every drop of blood you made Hinamori-chan bleed. I hate you for every tear she has cried for you. I hate you for every whisper she has endured as her former comrades doubt her loyalty to the Gotei 13. I hate you for nearly killing her a second time with that fucked up mess that went down in the living world... But most of all I hate you for taking away my right to hate you."

The boy closes his eyes, visibly forcing himself to relax as he sheaths his Zanpakutō, the room slowly begins to return to its normal temperature as he takes several deep complete breaths before he speaks again, "Unohana-taichō told me that had you not wrapped Hinamori-chan in a Reishi-mippuu and healed her as promptly as you did she would have been crippled, left unable to perform Kidō ever again... She also informed me that you had once been a member of the 4th division and no matter how rushed you were during the Ryoka Invasion, you should have known very well that the angle you stabbed your Zanpakutō through Hinamori-san was non-lethal and wouldn't even hit any organs."

The boy straightens his shoulders, rolling them before glaring once more, "I have come to realize, that no matter how many things you lie about, one truth remains." He turns and walks back to the door, pausing at the threshold.

"You may be an utter bastard, but you're not a senseless killer."

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

7th

Komamura-san was a silent visitor. The large werewolf simply sat with Sōsuke for a few hours before rising from his seat, tea untouched. The yellow carnations he brought laid like fallen soldiers across the cup painted with Eglantine.

With a soft sigh, Sōsuke collects them all and carries them to the sink. Honestly at this point Sōsuke was more surprised by the number of people who accepted his apologies.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

6th

"Did you have anything to do with Hisana's death?" The words are like cold water poured over his head. Sōsuke looks up from his manga, a copy of The Third Reincarnation that he was borrowing from Orihime-chan. Cold grey eyes clash with his own, a subtle quiet challenge, the caliber of which one could only find in an old blooded aristocrat who actually held themselves to a real level of nobility. One he was unwilling to simply dismiss, not with the insight of Sesshōmaru that stood just behind the Kuchiki Lord. "Of this one mysterious death, I am not guilty Kuchiki-san." A nod is all the response Sōsuke receives before the Noble turns goes, just as silent and poised as he came.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

3rd

Perhaps Sōsuke's most surprising visitor was Izuru Kira. The quiet man arrived on his own, though Sōsuke could easily sense Gin-kun making a nuisance of himself, teasing the poor little academy students set to guard Senzaikyū. The blonde haired fukutaichō bows most politely, "I have come to speak with you, if you have a moment to spare for me." Bemused he waives his hand to the table, "Please have a seat. Would you like some tea?"

His visitor hesitates for a moment, "I am now the most prominent member of the lesser noble house of Kira, as such I have been selected by the other members of my house to take up the Kira seat in the Central 46. When I attempted to refuse the position, I was assured that you were no longer a threat." Sōsuke merely raises a single eyebrow in amusement. The fukutaichō nervously shifts in his seat, "I... I do not agree. They have not seen you, only what they want to see. They do not know, that for all of the people that you have murdered, you chose the path of non-violence as often as you were allowed to. They do not know just how greatly you have restrained yourself in your actions. They do not know the slaughter you would leave in your wake, if you were given reason to... cease restraining yourself."

"And you believe you do?"

"Yes." The fukutaichō fiddles silently with the hem of his Shihakushō. "If you could kill the Central 46 without anyone the wiser, not even a hint as to the truth until you chose to reveal yourself days later; it would have been even easier to execute the taichō and fukutaichō during a meeting… if it had pleased you to do so." He takes a deep breath, looking so very uncomfortable, eyes darting up to engage Sōsuke, "I have a bit of a confession to make. The person that told me that you were no longer a threat was Aizome Ito-san, and it was not during a formal meeting about the Central 46, but an Omiai between my great nephew and a daughter of the house of Aizomeya. She told me that it was in my best interest to come and have tea with you. Though I am not certain I want to drink it you see, as Daffodils are mildly toxic and I'm pallid enough as it is."

Mildly curious about what Ito-chan was up to, Sōsuke smiles mysteriously, "I'll remember that the next time I send the two of you flowers." He rises from his seat and approaches the tea cabinet, "For now, I promise you will like this Jasmine tea, served in these delightful cups decorated with Cattails."

Izuru snorts softly, for a man who had so subtly manipulated all of Seireitei for centuries, he was incredibly blunt when everyone was speaking in Hanakotoba. He leaves the meeting only mildly unnerved by the fact that he could have sworn that it had been simple oolong black tea he had placed in the pot... and that the cup that had been placed in front of him before the tea had been poured had been completely devoid of decorations.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

11th Division

There was a loud crash from the ground floor, which startled Sōsuke from his slumber. As he quickly sits up from his prone position, the book he had fallen asleep reading falls to the floor. A piercing voice carries all the way to the rooms he is occupying, "Yay! Ken-chan we found it!". Heavy footsteps can be heard as someone begins to climb the staircase.

Without the need for any other information, Sōsuke already knows who his visitors are, and what they desire. It appeared that the directionally challenged battle maniac had managed to find his way to Senzaikyū. It wasn't a surprise, that Kenpachi-kun would wish to test his abilities against Sōsuke... though he doubted the man who wore bells in his hair realized just how much of an exercise in frustration it could be if Sōsuke wished it to be...

Idly, Sōsuke wonders if Kenpachi had set out for the fight after that last Taichō meeting and had taken so long to arrive that his division was the last to visit in his self imprisonment. Briefly, he considers his options. For the sake of entertainment, he found himself disinclined to do so, preferring intellectual pursuits and observing Orihime-chan. He had no personal reason to indulge...and yet.

The door is ripped from its hinges as the giant man bursts into the room, his face a grotesque mask of battle-lust, menace, and abandon, "Fight Me!". The hypnosis twists and Kenpachi steps past Sōsuke entirely to decimate a kimono rack. Expressionless, Sōsuke watches the expressions drift across the passionate man's face, remembering all the secrets of a future that had gone off the track the moment Sōsuke had found his peace in the company of Orihime-chan. With a sigh, he allows Kenpachi to see. With an impressive display, for someone who was so out of tune with his own Zanpakutō spirit, he didn't even know it's name, Kenpachi is quickly upon him.

With a sigh, Sōsuke simply pinches the blade heading for him, holding it away from his person in spite of the impressive strength of the man who had over half a foot of leverage on him. He was mildly impressed, had Sōsuke attempted this maneuver before his Hōgyoku transformation, he would likely have lost a few fingers. What his opponent lacked in technical skill, Zanpakutō synergy and utter lack of self control, he made up for with physical strength, raw and wild Reiatsu attacks, and his battle prowess.

With a sigh and a reproachful glance, he blithely informs Kenpachi-kun, "No, I don't believe I will. You didn't really expect the other taichō to leave Kyōka Suigetsu in my possession did you?" It is mildly disturbing to watch a man with such a sinister appearance pout like a child denied candy, "Why would you let them do that? How are we supposed to fight!" With a quirk of his lips, Sōsuke springs his trap, "Because Unohana-taichō was the first Kenpachi, and I have no desire to cross swords with her?"

Turns out dumbfounded was an even odder expression on his face. He is silent and clearly unable to come up with something to say for several moments, only able to utter a baffled, "What?", as Yachiru-chan bounces into the room from wherever she was exploring earlier. Sōsuke releases the other shinigami's Zanpakutō and brushes imaginary dust off of his clothing, giving the appearance of distracted disinterest, "Hm? Yes, the Kuchiki archives are full of all sorts of interesting information. Quite by accident I stumbled upon a mention that of the original 13 taichō, there were Two that had survived the war with Yhwach. Upon further investigation I discovered that Unohana-taichō, known then as Unohana Yachiru was the first taichō of the 11th division, the very first Kenpachi. She transferred to the 4th division and changed her name sometime before I became a shinigami, after she fought some boy in the Rukongai. She wears her hair braided down her front to hide the scar on her chest given to her by that boy."

With a put-upon frown he muses, "Really, I don't understand either of you, you wear that silly eye-patch to weaken yourself enough to enjoy fights, and she learned healing so that her opponents didn't die too quickly at the end of her blade. Personally..." he is interrupted by a very brusque, "I have to go.", as the mountain of a man left the wreckage he had made of the room, his pink haired fukutaichō bouncing along behind him, "Wait for me Ken-chan!"

Seireitei is a stir with intrigue and old history for weeks afterwards, even the academy students standing guard unable to resist gossiping. And then suddenly it is quiet, the pervasive threat of Kenpachi-kun's Reiatsu disappearing from sight as he enters Muken. It is with little surprise several hours later, that Sōsuke finds Ukitake-taichō at his freshly repaired and painted door. Without a word, Sōsuke approaches, and then follows as the man with part of the Soul King in his body turns and begins leading the way to Muken. The taichō of the 13th division is unusually reserved during their walk, only to reach out and grab Sōsuke by the arm as he goes to enter the observation room just outside where he can feel the two sword masters fighting.

Green eyes flashing with suppressed rage, Ukitake hisses, "If she dies from your machinations I will kill you myself." Had the two of them not carried the insights of Dekuyume's parents Sōsuke might have wondered where that emotion was coming from given that there had been no signs of it anywhere before. As it was Sōsuke simply patted the hand gripping him tight, "I would not have mentioned it if I didn't think the both of them needed this. While I appreciate a difficult lesson as much as the next god, it does no one any good if either of them dies for it."

Desperately clinging to the reassurance, Jūshirō lets his former 3rd seat go, watching with hopeful relief as he disappears into the next room. With the giggling of his twin Zanpakutō spirits in the back of his mind, he wonders when the fact that Aizen Sōsuke had planned something became something to find comfort in.

A handful of hours later, the last Kenpachi screams out, begging the universe to keep the first Kenpachi alive. While Kenpachi Zaraki is distracted by hearing the voice of his Zanpakutō spirit for the first time, Sōsuke answers the call, healing the woman who taught him how to heal.

As she stares up at her rescuer she realizes three things; the first, that her fight with Zaraki-san was the most alive she had felt in over 500 years, the second, that for the first time since he started healing, Sōsuke-kun did not recite poetry while invoking the 5th Rite of Kaidō(Humanity), and the last, in all the time she had lived, she had never been healed by another person.

It didn't hurt.

In fact, it felt like being loved.

As she falls into a healing coma, the worlds tremble in fear as Sōsuke is given exactly what he wanted. Unohana-taichō healing and safe in a Reishi-mippuu as Kenpachi Zaraki enters Shikai for the first time. Sōsuke smirks, Because really, he liked the boy well enough, but for Soul Society to have to rely on Ichigo-kun so often and so deeply to fight their battles for them was embarrassing.

Hanakotoba

Sunflowers : Loyalty, Adoration, Longevity

Violets: Honesty

Verbena: Cooperative

Musk Cluster Roses : Charming

Bilberry: Treachery

Fig : Argument

Snapdragon : Deception

Hyacinth (Purple) : I'm sorry, please forgive me, sorrow

Sakura : Beauty of the heart, Accomplishment, Kind, Gentle

Eglantine – I wound to heal, Poetry

Carnation (Yellow) – You have disappointed me, Rejection, Disdain.

Jasmine : Friendly, Graceful

Cattail : Peace, prosperity

Zanpakutō :

Hyōrinmaru : Ice Ring

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 15 : Stoking the Oil Fire

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Seireitei was reeling. There was a vague sense of incompleteness in the air, for what purpose did a man reveal himself as an arch-nemesis, escaping after making a grand gesture to that effect… only to return after everyone had come to terms with his betrayal a handful of weeks later, with a shrug and an "I found something better to do." For what purpose did he then lead them around by their noses taunting them to train harder. For what purpose did he dredge up old secrets, rousing two already powerful Taichō to fight one another... only to come out of the ashes of that fight orders of magnitude stronger, and freed from the unwitting suppression they had lived with for centuries.

For what reason indeed. Yamamoto was just glad that the lingering unease in the air caused the Shinigami who had been slacking in their training to work twice as hard to reach a level of power that made themselves and their loved ones safe. They were foolish children, no one ever reached that state, it was only an illusion. There was alwayssomeone better than you at something, increasing your own power and abilities only ensured that there were fewer people that could make claim that they were better at you in every way.

It was terrifying, before Aizen Sōsuke revealed his intentions they had thought him a trusted friend. It was utterly terrifying, upon his return, even though they knew, without a single doubt, that Aizen Sōsuke spoke more lies than truth…. They still believed him.

Chojiro-kun bowed his head to him, words of sheepish apology on his lips, just as earnest as those spoken millennia ago when he vowed to walk one step behind for the rest of eternity, "Please forgive me. I do not believe that I can be objective in this." For a moment, only one, Yamamoto wished that the boy in the tower had spoken with him. Given Yamamoto a chance to show him that he was not alone in his solitude… that he was not the only one so powerful that he could not feel the Reiatsu of the other taichō.

Yamamoto knew himself well, it would have been shameful not to after thousands of years, and while he had done the best he could for Soul Society in the wake of the first war with Yhwach, Yamamoto was not the kind of leader meant to serve in peacetime… But in all the thousand years he had served as the sōtaichō no one had been born to rival himself in strength…. And Yamamoto could not bring himself to step down for anyone who could not step up…

Yamamoto was a product of his time, a time when Seireitei was just as lawless as any of the outer districts of the Rukongai, just better dressed. He was unyielding in his convictions, even if the slow and steady march of time had taken all but a handful of the souls who had needed to be just as unyielding just to survive.

He was surrounded by children now, and even Unohana-chan had slowly bent, going gently when before she would have marched forward, treading on the soft green shoots springing out of the blood-soaked ground of their youth. Those sprouts had grown into good men like Jūshirō-kun and Shunsui-kun, strong shinigami nurtured in the ashes of the world that had come before them. She was resting in the 4th division now, and only time would tell if it would be Unohana Retsu or Unohana Yachiru that walked out of that room... though from his few visits, he was left with a sneaking suspicion that when she left her hospital bed, it would be a with a new name entirely.

It was for the best, just as she had grown and changed overtime, so had he. Yamamoto had learned compassion, and in turn, shame at who he had been. He was not ashamed to say that he had wept, when he held the list of names of his Shinigami that had died to put down the Quincy in the living world…. So many children, fresh green sprouts that never had a chance to bloom, gone. Ashes in the wind and never to reincarnate again, all because he would not unbend enough to station a shinigami in every Quincy village. To damned obstinate to relinquish the position of strength that the Gotei 13 had claimed in the war with Yhwach, not to protect the remnants of Yhwach's army… So sure that they would rise up against them, taking advantage of the low population of Shinigami in Seireitei, that he could not see… Had he sent the Shinigami out to guard them, the Quincy would have had no reason to use their powers at all, no reason for their hate, no reason to follow Yhwach when he returned…

For what reason would they follow a man who would steal the very life from their souls so that he could take the throne of the Soul King? For what reason would they follow Yhwach, when he would have to kill the Shinigami who had lived in their villages and died protecting them, secure in the knowledge that even if a Shinigami fell to a hollow, one day the cycle of reincarnation would spit them back out…

How long would it have taken, with the Shinigami always there to purify the Hollows attracted to the Quincy villages… How long would it have taken, without the fear of their souls being erased by hollows, before the Quincy found the thought of erasing the souls of another being, even one as twisted as a hollow, shameful and abhorrent? Not long, not long at all when generations of Quincy, could live and die in the eternal moment of a Shinigami's existence.

Yes, Yamamoto had learned compassion, and even found a soft admiration for his enemies… but it was hard won, bought and paid for with the blood of his enemies and followers in equal measure. Some, he was glad to see go, like Jun'ichi Shiba, for all that they had stood beside him in the first war with Yhwach, they were just as demonic as he had been. Others, he did not know what new level of monstrosity he would have reached if he had lost Jūshirō and Shunsui in that bloody massacre the same way he had lost so many of his other taichō… He had come close to finding out. All because he could not tolerate anyone having any power but the Shinigami.

Reduce All Creation to Ash, Flowing Blade - like Flame, dominating the world in the oppressive heat of a star fallen to earth.

Shatter, Mirror Flower, Water Moon, persevering even in the face of impossible dreams where truths are spoken like lies.

Perhaps it was just who they were, or perhaps it was just the way the abilities of their zanpakutō taught them to fight…but it was clear, clear as the light sparking in that young girl's eyes as that boy followed her around, teaching her and the other young humans who dared to stand so close to a boy who could have easily destroyed their world, some even daring to lay their hands on him with impunity. Even though they knew that he had spent centuries forcing the hollows of Hueco Mundo to kneel before twisting them to his own purposes.

Clear as the poorly hidden admiration in the eyes of the Arrancar, independent and strong after he had found the strength to bring them together, the charisma to unite them, and the wisdom to let them go.

It was clear that in many ways that the boy Aizen Sōsuke had surpassed Yamamoto as a leader. That boy was so good at it he had Hollows, Arrancar, Humans, and Shinigami alike still following him even though they knew now how often he lied. So charismatic that he had even laid claim to some of Chojiro-kun's fierce loyalty. And while Yamamoto knew that his fukutaichō would execute Aizen if he commanded it, it would break the man's heart.

If it came to the point where Aizen Sōsuke had to be put down, Yamamoto was going to have to do it himself.

Old wizened eyes turn away from the prisoner strolling down the street, returned from the visit to Unohana-san that he had been granted, as if he were not a prisoner at all, arrogant boy, a gaggle of humans, Arrancar, and shinigami in his wake. He stares at the painting on the wall, a shadowy figure wreathed in flames…the boy was a better leader than he was, but it remained to be seen… just who was the better monster.

Yamamoto did not want to become that monster again, to give up the honor and justice fostered in his heart by the children filling up the world around him with their bright hope and boundless optimism. He did not want to sacrifice those children in another brutal war, to see their faces in the South fire of his Bankai: Great Burial Ranks of the Ten Trillion Fire Dead, hope and optimism shattered and the bright lights in their eyes now only destructive fire.

It would be his last day in the world, because fire died when it was smothered, and without the fire in his heart, Genryūsai Shigekuni would be no more.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 16 : Bastardom: The Kingdom of a Bastard

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Quite suddenly, illusory teacup posed half raised for a sip, the newest academy student guard staring at him with a perplexed expression on her face, Sōsuke was forced to consider something truly terrible. Mentally attempting to recall a previous instance and coming up short, he can only assume that it had to have happened sometime before he met Orihime-chan. Oh what a tragedy, to only realize now, after several months since his fight with Baraggan... and mildly disconcerting given that he had officially been the prisoner of Seireitei for nearly 9 months of time measured from the perspective of Seireitei.

The only tea Sōsuke had partaken of was what he had prepared himself... and as for food, he had not eaten at all. What a tragedy indeed, to realize only now that he could have been drinking real tea this whole time and had no health concerns to limit his sugar, cream and honey intake. For that matter, how typically cruel of Seireitei to deny a prisoner basic sustenance. Pointedly he ignores the fact that it had taken him until now to recognize this instead of immediately in the aftermath of his exposure to Baraggan's Respira. The only reason he had collapsed from the time accelerating mist was exhaustion. He had been neither dehydrated nor starved, the only physical change he had experienced was the lengthening and silvering of his hair.

It begged the question. Was this an unexpected side effect of the Hōgyoku transformation, one that meant that the original Aizen Sōsuke had been alone in Muken without food or water from the time of his defeat until he was partially released to fight Yhwach? Or was it something far less mysterious? After his transformation back from a hell butterfly, Sōsuke himself had never been hungry. Within days of the transformation he had entered Seireitei and joined the Shin'ō Academy to become a Shinigami. The training was quite regimented so he had eaten breakfast, lunch, and dinner during the scheduled times with the rest of the students in his class. Upon his graduation he had done the same only with the 4th , 13th and 5th divisions. Even in Hueco Mundo he had eaten with the other Shinigami. It was entirely possible that after his first Hell Butterfly transformation, he hadn't needed to eat at all and only done so to fit in, and then out of habit.

With another frown he sets the illusory cup of tea on the table, the guard across the room twitching and frowning with confusion at the action. Sōsuke raises his Zanpakutō calloused hand to his face running it across his jaw. If he had experienced enough time to grow his hair over 4 feet in length and go straight from brunette to silver, why hadn't he grown a beard?

Once again searching his memory, Sōsuke is perplexed to find that no-matter how he thinks back, he has, not once ever had to shave. Was it some holdover from the combination of Dekuyume's soul and his own which led to so many errors during his conversion from a hell butterfly back into a man? Was it simply the practical application of the dichotomy of self-perception and spiritual-representation of self? He supposed it did not matter, whether it was the first reason or the second, both meant that he was only those things that pleased him to be, and none of the things that did not.

With a sigh, he lets it go and rises to his feet to make a real pot of tea. Music swells around him courtesy of her Perception Warp, thousands of tiny white butterflies fill the room, the largest of them all, The Dreaming Kami herself. The girl has a wide beatific smile on her face, eyes aglow with mirth, and wings spread wide as she flutters over to him.

Unable to help himself, he indulges in the innocent fantasy. He plucks her out of the air and begins dancing around the room with her, she giggles sweetly, "Faster Aniiki, faster!" Wry smirk on his face he blithely ignores the flabbergasted expression on his guards face. "Wheeeeee!"

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Outside of the Complete Hypnosis

Hanami Iekeichi wasn't too sure she wanted to be a Shinigami anymore. Clearly they were all bat-shit insane. What kind of idiot decided that the best punishment for Academy Students that didn't turn in their homework was guard duty for Aizen Sōsuke? The same Aizen Sōsuke who was rumored to be so powerful that no one in the Shinigami Research and Development Institute could actually measure his Reiatsu or his well of Reiryoku. What the hell did the shinigami expect an academy student to do to stop him if the murderer of the Central 46 decided to escape!? Trying to control her expression, she forces herself to ignore the madman who had been pantomiming drinking tea for the last hour.

On top of the asinine logic of the leadership of the Gotei 13, there was the general insanity of the shinigami themselves. As far as she could tell there was an inverse relation of the power of a shinigami and their mental health. All the really powerful ones were insane for one reason or another, the taichō of the 11th and 12th divisions being case and point. Even the ones who seemed safe and sane on the surface were crazy. Kuchiki-taichō was a good example, he went out of his way to marry a peasant from the Rukongai, spitting in the face of his Great and Noble family, and then when his wife died he adopted his wife's little sister as his own, only to completely refrain from treating the girl like a precious sister, spitting in the face of the original oath to his wife at the first whiff of illegality, when the very act of being a greater noble house meant that he could just as easily pull a few favors and get a caveat added to the laws that would nicely resolve the issue.

The human girl that was allowed to visit Aizen Sōsuke bursts into the room all atwitter with excitement about one thing or another... and without any cue from the mad shinigami at the table, begins pantomiming serving herself a cup of tea of her own... from the exact same position that he had pretended to set the teapot the last time he poured... before she had entered the room. Clearly Aizen Sōsuke's personal brand of madness was contagious, and Iekeichi needed to see a therapist as soon as possible to prevent herself from coming down with a case of it herself.

Several hours later, the human girl has left and Aizen Sōsuke has gone back to drinking imaginary tea before he pretends to have an existential crisis that he cheerfully resolves by patting himself on the cheek and standing up to dance around the room laughing like a little kid who had powdered sugar for lunch. Mercifully, he stops soon enough and goes over to the stove to prepare a real pot of tea. Clearly Iekeichi's ancestors chose to convince the gods to have mercy on their descendant, as one of the people on the "allowed with alone" list arrives to chat with the lunatic.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

With mild amusement, Kisuke watches the dazed academy student greet him with unfettered relief and excuse herself from the room, "I will be out in the hall Urahara-san, I find myself in need of fresh air. The teapot is real this time." The door shuts with a very firm click, and he can easily hear as the girl slumps against the door and sighs. "Fuck my life."

Pulling his hat down low, shadowing his eyes, Kisuke glances over at the most complex puzzle he had ever attempted to solve. "You realize they all think you're insane don't you? Everyone knows about the Complete Hypnosis, however none of us realized just how much effort you put into playing along with our perceived reality." Focused on every nuance of his opponent's expression and body language, he once more searches for a hint of the truth from the master liar. One eyebrow arches as the retired tyrant takes a sip of his tea, the fragrant scent of green tea, jasmine and honey reaching his senses, "Oh? I'm sorry was their opinion supposed to matter to me? Orihime-chan and Momo-san are trying to socialize me but I miss these things sometimes. Particularly when they are illogical."

It is Kisuke's turn to express disbelief with a single eyebrow, "Illogical? As Illogical as surrendering a sample of your Reiryoku to a scientist who might discover a way to break your power?" The eyebrow drops, a sign of genuine emotion, or merely the abandonment of a false one? "May Urahara-san? You and I know very well that the characteristic of a person expressed through their Reiatsu has its source in the person's Reiryoku, and so my Reiryoku is as fundamentally based on illusions, misdirection and falsity as I am. The Complete Hypnosis ensnares all five senses..." The smirk on Sōsuke's face turns wicked, "... and no man of science would be caught relying on something as so imprecise as the sixth sense of instinct."

Grey eyes narrow in contemplation. Was he teasing, merely attempting to nettle Kisuke? Or was he subtly attempting to dissuade him from the purpose of his visit? There was only one way to find out. "Well then you wouldn't mind providing me with a sample of your unfettered Reiryoku then would you?" Kisuke has no idea what to make of Sōsuke's half-muttered response, "If only I could Urahara-san, If only I could." The brief expression of sadness on the charming bastard's face is not reassuring in the slightest. Nor is the surprisingly muscular body that he reveals when he removes his snow white Shihakushō to allow Kisuke access to the Reiatsu vent over his heart; muscles which are suddenly wracked with barely hidden muscle spasms as Kisuke's hands approach his skin with a sample vial.

He leaves after a cup of tea with the unpleasant suspicion that the only thing Aizen Sōsuke had never needed to fake... was his fear of Urahara Kisuke.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 17 : The Beauty and the Charming Bastard

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

It was gratifying in a way she wasn't used to anymore, even if it made it difficult to leave. Orihime smiles brightly at the lonely man at the tea table in his self imposed prison. "Thank you for taking the time to come and visit with me Orihime-chan. Please have a seat while I pour you a cup of this delightful cinnamon, date and apricot herbal mixture Rangiku-chan purchased for me." Every time she visited, he thanked her for her time, engaged her in conversation no matter how silly the topic she chose, and he always, always made her feel important. If only she weren't so deeply in love with Kurosaki-kun that she could love him for 5 lifetimes and still have it not be enough...

She skips over to the table and carefully sits down, gently setting her backpack full of homework next to the table, visions filling her head of Sōta and Kagome and Aki approaching Dekuyume at the Sakura tree and the Kōtotsu table laden with tea, ready to study for the afternoon. It was as beautiful to feel as it was to see in the full spread page of the manga. Carefully she lifts her cup of tea and takes a sip, the spicy cinnamon, tart apricots and sweet dates bursting on her tongue. How lovely.

Almost as lovely as spending a day and a half in Seireitei, taking advantage of Sōsuke-niisan's nearly mystical ability to explain anything clearly, and the time discrepancy between the world of the living and Seireitei, and going back home to Karakura to find that she had only been gone for 8 hours and still had a day and a half of weekend to spend time with her friends. She dutifully pulls out her first assignment and starts, distractedly she tells her favorite Kami about her most recent adventure... though she is pretty sure that he already knows more about it than she does. But if it made him happy to hear about it from her perspective, who was she to deny him such an easily granted joy?

Indulgently Sōsuke listens to her recount what has now been dubbed the Kasumiōji Conspiracy. With Kyōka Suigetsu's ability to spy on people held under the Complete Hypnosis, he was more aware of the situation than she was, not that that particular fact inhibited his enjoyment as she recounted the tail. Of which she had only peripherally been involved with thank Dekuyume Kami of the Eternal Battlefield.

With a grin, she places her last assignment back in her backpack, Kagome Higurashi may have had trouble with math but not her! She catches the grin as Sōsuke Higurashi attempts to hide it behind his teacup, the vibrant Bird of Paradise flowers blocking it from view. She knows he's thinking the same thing: Mental Abuse To Humans!

She places her backpack near the door, frowning for a moment at the guard that sneers at her. She can almost feel Sōsuke-nii glare at the poor man who had the misfortune to bare witness to one of their sillier escapades when Sōsuke-nii, Momo-chan and herself had an imaginary food fight. All the fun of things going splat, smoosh and plop without the waste of food or clean up! It had been perfect! Even better it had given her ideas for chocolate, chili pepper and cumin crab cakes!

As she walks back to the table her mood turns pensive. Even in her wildest imagination, she would never have expected to wind up here when she had asked Urahara-san for training. She understood that he had been trying to keep her away from the boogieman that was Aizen Sōsuke, but there had been better ways to go about it. Straight up telling her so would have solved so many problems, but instead he had chosen to be unnecessarily cruel. Because of that cruelty she had gone to someone else, and wound up in exactly the position he had tried to avoid.

Rukia-chan had been generous with her time, and patient when she tried to explain how to be a shinigami to a girl who had neither a sword, nor any military training. Orihime didn't quite know what to feel about the fact that she had not resumed her training with Rukia-chan due to the mixture of hectic confusion after Sōsuke-nii returned to Seireitei, and all of the trouble they have had over the past couple of months with the Bount and the Kasumōji. Kami-sama knows she couldn't forget about all the multiple repetitions of August, no matter how much she might want to.

As she sits at the table Sōsuke-nii gracefully holds his sleeves out of the way and pours her another cup. Quietly she lifts it up to inhale the steam wafting off, Of course she hadn't asked either, because she hadn't wanted to impose on Rukia-chan, even if the short dark haired shinigami was slowly beginning to feel less like a friend and more like a rival for Kurosaki-kun's affection. There was someone who had given her reason to suspect that they would be overjoyed if she were to impose on them, she just had to be brave enough to ask. If she was sure of anything, it was that the soul echo of Higurashi Dekuyume, would never tell the soul echo of Higurashi Kagome no.

She was right. The expression on his face when she asked made her feel a little bit silly for relying on knowledge of Dekuyume, when she knew him so well.

Thus began her experience as the human student of the Shinigami Higurashi Sōsuke.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

"Look around and tell me what you see Orihime-chan." Obediently she did so, it would be incredibly ungrateful to get lost in a daydream during the very first lesson. Her brown eyes stare intently at her surroundings. They stood on Sōkyoku hill. The guards that had followed them out of Senzaikyū were dithering at the bridge that led out of the prison and to the execution hill, all of which was mostly obscured by the small forest of white trees on this side of the hill. The two of them, student and teacher stood in a small clearing. Through the gap behind Sōsuke-nii she could barely make out the execution grounds, still slightly damaged from the Sōkyoku phoenix when Kurosaki-kun had turned it aside to save Rukia-chan.

His smile is so gentle, that it doesn't even sting when he tells her that she had missed something. "It's all right of course, and perfectly normal. After all, it is easier by far to observe what is present that it is to notice the absence of something that is often taken for granted." His hands are gentle when they rest on her shoulders, firm and grounding, but not as oppressive as she is sure he could be if it pleased him to do so. "We stand on Sōkyoku hill, it is beautiful and idyllic, and yet it has no visitors. Those sensitive to Reiatsu presence find the ambient aura of the Sōkyoku execution blade, with its phoenix like properties unsettling."

She has only a moment to wonder if he is one of those people before he snatches her attention, "Sōkyoku hill is empty but for you and me, not even the guards have followed us, choosing instead to remain on the bridge to Senzaikyū. There is no one here to be accidentally hurt, no one to mock you for your kindness that makes it difficult for you to work with Tsubaki-kun. There is no one to compare their strength with yours and find it lacking, mistaking the true nature of your strength. We stand on Sōkyoku hill, and here we will train, because you will have no reason to hold back." The assertion leaves her a little breathless.

With a mental pat on the back Sōsuke lowers his hands as her eyes sparkle with determination, the last of her hesitation leeching out. Old memories rise to the surface, Dekuyume's as her very human self taught a toddler Kagome-chan how to pull on her Miko powers to create her holy arrows. The little girl had giggled just like The Dreaming Kami when she managed to "make her own magical girl arrow".

"The first step to any training with an unusual weapon is understanding it. Given that you were unaware of the time aspect of the Shun Shun Rika before I informed you of such, we will begin by generating a list of its known properties... but the real understanding will come when we take it that next step from what it can do, to what it can do for you." With a chuckle, he reaches out and ruffles her hair, mussing it. "They aren't just hairpins, they are the expression of your very nature. Shinigami use blades to defeat their enemies. Orihime Inoue's use the most deadly weapon known to humanity."

"Kindness"

"Kindness"

Eyes dancing with mirth, knowing very well that she was recalling Dekuyume's words from once upon a manga, Sōsuke adds a caveat of his own, "Indeed, and your soul is a master of it, even this far away from your origin. Previously, Dekuyume took on the prerequisites so that Kagome could wield her kindness with the utmost efficacy. With myself voluntarily incarcerated in Senzaikyū, you must lay that groundwork yourself."

He shakes his head at her wide eyed wonder, "You see Orihime-chan, no matter how deserving they are of the kindness you may offer them, people are dumb, obstinate, and contrary. As a consequence, sometimes you have to pull a Nanoha Takamachi and precede that kindness with a kick in the ass to get them to pay attention."

Zanpakutō

(Heal) Ayame – Iris – Good News/Glad tidings/loyalty- Faith; hope; wisdom and valor; my compliments; eloquence; message

(Defend) Baigon – Plum Blossom – Spring, ward against evil

(Defend) Hinagiku- Daisy – Faith Innocence; loyal love; purity; faith; cheer; simplicity

(Defend) Lily – Lily- Purity

(Heal) Shun'ō – Marshmallow – benevolence, healing

(Attack) Tsubaki- Camellia – samurai meaning (perishing with grace)

Hanakotoba

Bird Of Paradise : Magnificence

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 18 : Fullbringer, Bring it Fully

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Though he was completely unaware that it was a full year early, Sōsuke was perfectly aware that they rather loosely were supposed to be the reason why the original Ichigo-kun would have regained the powers he was supposed to have lost during the final fight between the two of them. So when he heard the alarm of Urahara-san's sensors, and peered through the former Onmitsukidō's senses to read the warning that a Fullbringer from Xcution had been detected in the heart of Karakura, he was unsure how their involvement would play out.

Flipping through all of the souls in Karakura that were held under Kyōka Suigetsu's sway, his Zanpakutō spirit manifesting at his side equally engaged in the search, Sōsuke almost misses Kūgo Ginjō leaning against the wall of a coffee shop watching Ichigo-kun as he walks home from the Visored's warehouse. With a sigh and a frown, Sōsuke leans into Kyō-kun's side, "What are we going to do about this Kyō-kun? We have no way of knowing if Ichigo-kun is ready for this fight, moreover, we have no idea if Xcution wants the same thing they did the first time."

The spirit laughs, dark purple lips twisting into a devious smile. "Oh but Sōsuke, who says we have to do anything at all? Look." His vision blackens, coming into focus once more, this time from none other than one of his former Arrancar, Luppi Antenor. Focusing, Sōsuke can feel that the effeminate young man was not wearing his Arrancar uniform, and that there was no Kidō markings on his skin to rank him among the Espada. Strawberries burst on his tongue as Luppi twirls the lollipop in his mouth. The ivy anima giggles softly, "Well, well, well. What do we have here."

He bounces over to the Fullbringer, staring intently as the not-quite human's eyes follow his movements. The lollipop twirls and the eyebrow with the three pink stars arches, "So what kind of freak are you then?" When the much taller boy flinches back in surprise, likely realizing that that the faint tinge of hollow Reiatsu in the air wasn't coming from the Visored already out of sight but from the boy in front of him. In his typical fashion Luppi then apologizes sarcastically, "Sorry! That was rather rude wasn't it?"

With a mocking bow the Arrancar introduces himself, "Luppi Antenor, Arrancar emissary to the Visored. If the Arrancar are Hollow - Shinigami hybrids, Visored are Shinigami - Hollow hybrids, and substitute shinigami are Human - Shinigami hybrids then I suppose your type should have been expected. So tell me, other than monster, what is a Human – Hollow hybrid called?"

His response is violence. Luppi steps back quickly enough to avoid his Fullbring, the broadsword called the Cross of Scaffold. His yelp of surprise is muffled by the lollipop in his mouth, the only victim of the attack as the stick is sliced in half by the blade. Luppi's eyes narrow in vexation, that had been aimed at the remains of his hollow mask, which sat on the side of his head like an ivory barrette. "Geeze, Sorry! No need to take it so personally! It isn't as if the shinigami don't think the same thing of the rest of us!"

"I'm a Fullbringer and I am nothing like you, Freak. Hollows are evil, they do nothing but destroy." The blade attacks are swift, attempting to slap one out of the way to give himself time to draw Trepadora, he discovers that the attacks are also strong. Instead of slapping the blade out of the way he finds himself pushed back instead. Through the Complete Hypnosis Sōsuke can tell the exact moment that Luppi realizes he is outclassed.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

"Down!" Luppi hears the disembodied voice of his former king and with the reaction ingrained in him after decades of service, obeys instantly. Following the command with a roll, just because Luppi had a soft spot for the former tyrant that had saved his life from that brute Grimmjow didn't mean that he was completely helpless. He draws his Zanpakutō as he continues the roll full circuit to end in a crouch blade held before him, ready. His Reiatsu spikes hot and angry in preparation to enter his first release state, and his only one because not everyone was as much of an over achiever as that cold bastard Ulquiorra.

He opens his mouth to spit invective at the ass-hat that attacked him for no damn reason only to have his anger broken when the jerk gets a face full of avian. Multiple pidgins fly directly into the humans face, no doubt at the behest of Aizen-sama who had for one reason or another chosen to save Luppi once more, this time from over a dimension away... Unnerved, Luppi resists the urge to peer around in search of someone he wouldn't see.

He remains focused on his opponent, the words for his release on his lips when suddenly the air is filled with feathers and blood, and oh my Aizen-sama there was a blade inches from his face! He brings his blade up to block, too late, far too late. Kami but he wasn't sure that even the multiple arms of his release would have made this a fight he could win! Only to find himself stumbling backwards, jerked out of the path of Cross of Scaffold with a fist in his hoodie. His mask throbs violently on his head as he is dragged into a cloud of potent and oh so familiar Reiatsu.

Without further ado, Luppi finds himself once more protected by an incredibly powerful man. And they said that being such a girly man would only get him in trouble. Content to let himself be protected by someone who had more than proven their superiority over himself. Luppi used Sonido to get himself well out of the way as none other than the boy hero himself, Kurosaki Ichigo began to fight with the prick who was now caught off guard shouting out his confusion. Luppi rolls his eyes, what part of hello, Arrancar ambassador to the Visored did the idiot not understand? Surely the fool knew that Ichigo was a Visored, and as such Luppi had done his best to make friends with him?

A soft golden shield springs up around him and he turns his head to see Aizen-sama's favorite human jogging down the street, her generous assets bouncing provocatively as she approached. Normally he would have been unable to refrain from making a lewd comment about the girl, but he didn't want to know what kind of horror Aizen-sama would inflict on him if he did so. He clearly heard the shinigami's voice earlier and it wouldn't do to return his generous assistance with impolite behavior. As he can find nothing polite to say, he says nothing at all, only smiling wanly at the girl who asks if he is hurt. Shaking his head in denial, the two of them turn to watch in fascination as the ass-jacket finally introduces himself and gives his backstory like a proper villain. Blood, blade clashes and ruined clothing serving as punctuation.

During one of the lulls in the conversation he hears the whispers of Aizen-sama once more, glancing over at Aizen-sama's pet human when he realizes that she hears the words as well, "If it is true, that a Fullbringer's powers are acquired when an unshielded soul is exposed to Hollow Reiatsu while still in the womb... Luppi-kun, if you would please ask the Fullbringer if he they are hollow enough to gain power the same as well? There should be no need for violence if it is possible for them to gain strength from the very air of Hueco Mundo. Perhaps Nelliel-chan would be willing to host them in Las Noches for an experiment?"

With a sigh at his former king's ability to complicate a situation that could have easily been resolved with a public execution, Luppi does as he is asked. He shares a commiserating glance with Ichigo as the red-head begins jumping up and down excitedly, blathering on about visiting all of her friends in Las Noches.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Sōsuke sits in the dark, chair on the balcony, tea in hand. The wind rustling the trees with enough force to occasionally carry a small white leaf into the sky, painted neon white by the light of the moon hidden from their view on the other side of Senzaikyū. His cute little imouto was quiet, wings spread wide as she sat on the railing and kicked her feet to the soft music she pressed along their senses with the Perception Warp. Kyō-kun sat at his feet, legs through the railings and head in Sōsuke's lap where he slowly dragged his fingers through the spirits dark hair.

In quiet peace he contemplated the state of the world. So much, and yet so little had changed from the planned path, from the original story of Aizen Sōsuke. All the people that had at one point set themselves against one Kurosaki Ichigo were now banded together around him. Many of the people who had died, instead lived and now it was, that the number of people set to stand against Yhwach were far more numerous and powerful than they had been before, but for one exception. Ichigo-kun. Without the need to reach that heretofore unprecedented level of power needed to defeat the Hōgyoku transformed Aizen Sōsuke, without the agony of trying to regain his powers, with all of his subsequent fights getting easier and not improbably harder, Ichigo-kun remained an impressive combatant, but he wasn't the stuff that legends are made of. Of course, he may wind up a legend again anyways, but it would be for different reasons.

After four weeks of careful negotiations, and tentative meetings between the Arrancar, Visored and Fullbringer, Ichigo-kun offered to be held hostage by Xcution while one of their members went with Luppi to Las Noches. Not that it had looked like a hostage situation given the fact that Ichigo-kun's best friend and Nakama Yasutora Sado was a member of the group. In reality the two played video games while Giriko Kutsuzawa arrived in the riotous sands of Hueco Mundo, collapsed to his knees and sated a hunger he had carried inside for so long he had become numb to it.

Since that first tentative and oh so fortuitous visit, all of the Fullbringer had visited and ultimately decided to move to Las Noches where they were starting construction of an embassy of their own. Mildly embarrassed, Kyō-kun and The Dreaming Kami laughing at his blush, the three of them had listened to the Arrancar speak of their first king. Aizen Sōsuke, the Shinigami who saw war on the horizon, turned shinigami into Vizored, moved to Hueco Mundo to create a formidable citadel for the Arrancar, prompted the creation of a bunch of humans dangerous enough to be included in his shenanigans and then had the audacity to sue Seireitei for peace while pointing their violence all in the direction of Yhwach's Quincy army though no one but Aizen Sōsuke himself had been able to see signs of them.

The man who had made sure that no matter what, the Shinigami would never again be able to commit another genocide because all of the minority groups were now allied with each other.

Zanpakutō

Trepadora : Ivy Girl

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 19 : Charming Bastard and the more than seven Visored

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

He should have considered that with the Shinigami's growing comfort with his incarceration in Senzaikyū, and the increased good will between the other states of soul and themselves, that it would only be a matter of time before the shinigami allowed more than just the humans visiting hours. However the possibility had completely slipped his mind, and with his usual focus intent upon Orihime-chan, he was caught off guard when the entirety of the Visored and Urahara-san came to pay him a visit.

He does not notice them at all until one of his guards at the ground floor of Senzaikyū begins to bluster about someone not being on the allowed visitor list. He looks up from his painting, focusing when Kyō-kun makes a soft noise of surprise. He has just enough time to rise from his seat and step out of his Atelier to change places with The Dreaming Kami who had been amusing herself by making faces at the newest guard.

Sōsuke goes from intrigued to irritated in the space of time it takes for Hiyori-chan to burst into the room foot first, toppling the table and the pot of tea that had been steeping there waiting for him. She launches herself forward to attempt to meet out some justice she probably thinks she deserves, but he is no longer in the mood to allow it. Incredibly vexed he simply drops the Reishi-mippuu and allows her to scald herself. She dashes back quickly at the first hint of pain, and the rest of her comrades stare in horror at the parts of her foot that had completely broken down from the contact.

As always Urahara-san is quick on the uptake, determining the cause for the injury and watching the subtle ripple cross Sōsuke's skin as he reinstates the Reishi-mippuu without a spoken word or gesture beyond his sigh of irritation. Mercifully, the blond scientist seems content to observe at this point as the Visored begin shouting. The two intellectuals ignore the ruckus and simple observe one another until Sōsuke is dragged away by force, his former taichō grabbing him by the shirt, and yet still careful not to touch his skin, "Stop ignorin me ya bastard! Wha tha hell was tha? Is tha the way ya go arroun showin yer a different man, by attackin yer visitors?"

Sōsuke glares at the blond man, who flinches back in surprise, for once recognizing a true emotion of Sōsuke's. "I am a prisoner Hiraiko-san, not a whipping boy to be abused to appease your ego." The Visored snorts, "Thas rich comin from you." Smoothing out his clothing and taking a moment to salvage what pieces of his tea set remained unbroken from Hiyori-chan's violent entrance, Sōsuke considers his response. "Ultimately I am only a product of the society that spawned me. In the end I am as much of a victim of my circumstances as you are." Which was sadly true, Dekuyume's divine intervention aside.

Kensei crosses his arms menacingly, "I call bullshit." Sōsuke raises an eyebrow, knowing there was more than enough proof to prove his point and taking a moment to decide if he actually cared to use it... only to find that yes, he was ok with them knowing. It was time someone other than Momo-san and Sasakibe-san knew.

He sighs, closing his eyes, wondering just what Urahara-san will see in this capitulation. "May I assume that in the last century in the world of the living, that you have at least learned a smattering of English?" Ignoring them while he waits for someone to respond, he takes the unbroken saucer and teacup over to the sink and begins to prepare another pot of tea. Eventually, wary of treachery, Rose admits to learning the language, though what treachery they think him capable of committing with only the knowledge of Rose's abilities with the English language remain a mystery even to Sōsuke.

Sōsuke ignores the fact that Urahara-san had remained silent even though Sōsuke knew through the Complete Hypnosis that the scientist regularly read journal articles in all of the human languages, English included. "If you would pull up the London Newspaper and look for articles about the tragedy on October 29th of last year?" Rose pulls out his soul phone and locates a small article about the death of the little orphan Sōsuke in the terrorist attack that had hit London.

Their attention catches on the name and almost as one they turn to Urahara who was already in the process of hacking Mayuri's Living World Observation Database and pulling up the unedited Live Broadcast. The Visored and Urahara-san are treated to an unexpected display of humanity as they watch the most important point of Sōsuke's life. While they are distracted he preoccupies himself by molding Reishi to repair the table and sweep away the broken teapot.

It ends as Sōsuke steps through the front of the ice-cream shop window and disappears from the world of the living. They turn from the display to find their nemesis, serenely inhaling the steam rising from his tea. Without prompting he finishes the tale, "I deposited Momo-san in the 4th division to finish recovering and apologized for spending so many centuries believing that she had murdered me at the behest of the Shinigami. Unfortunately at that time I had already outed myself as a traitor and had no recourse but to continue with my plans while I considered other options."

Again, Hiyori with her uncontrollable temper, throws herself across the room, hand dragging across her face to don her hollow mask. Apparently she took exception to Sōsuke claiming to be the victim, unfortunately for her, Sōsuke took exception to her not learning her lesson the first time. He rises to his feet as she flies through the air. Sōsuke remembered her, she was the first soul to change back from a hell butterfly back in the Kidō Corps garden all those centuries ago when he arrived. And yet not even being sent to the outer districts of the Rukongai had made her grow up. She looked exactly the same, meaning that she felt, reacted, and thought exactly like a little girl. Not even a century in the world of the living and the challenge of being a Visored had taught her a single thing, about others, about herself. It appeared to have done nothing but make her violent and crass.

Sōsuke is unsure if it is the Kami under his skin suppressed by reincarnation, or the teacher he had been in both lifetimes, that makes him so utterly angry with her unacceptable lack of growth. The consequences are the same. The Visored uselessly reaching out to stop her or exclaiming denials and Urahara-san a shadow in the corner of the room that Sōsuke still remains completely aware of, the moment she is in range, both of his hands rise. One to curl in the collar of her shirt, holding her out of range... and the other to rip the mask off of her face with his bare hand.

There is utter stillness in the room as the shocked Visored stare at the girls familiar face, changed only by the black sclera and gold eyes that marked a hollow. Expression clearly painted with scorn, he turns to the side and releases her onto one of the chairs, unwilling to allow his anger to ruin another pot of tea, even if it would be satisfying to slam her body onto the table hard enough to shatter the table once more. She remains there, barely reactive with the force of her shock. With a huff of irritation Sōsuke takes his seat, pointedly looking from the stunned crowd to the rest of the seats around the table, "Now that I have your attention if we could please handle this like responsible adults?"

Forcefully attempting to exhale away his frustration, he sighs before using his free hand to take a sip of his tea. He should have made chamomile, it was supposed to be good for relaxing wasn't it? Coercing himself to continue the conversation with aplomb and grace, he sets his cup down little more forcefully than he would like. "110 years… and this is as far as you've come? What a disappointment." Out of the corner of his eyes, he watches as the girl quakes as her soul strains to remain in contact with her mask, but her very being rejects moving closer to Sōsuke for succor.

It is mercifully quiet in the face of his statement, the Visored only now realizing just how vulnerable their masks were, never having considered removing one anothers masks, the hollows instinctive taboo not to touch another's so strong the idea had never crossed their mind even if the shinigami's instinct to destroy a mask while it remained on a hollow was fully in tact.

Sōsuke sighs and turns to Ichigo-kun, the only one who had handled this like an adult, a testament to the collective maturity of the Visored as he was in fact a 15 year old human. "It was my belief that it was fortuitous for you to meet and train with the Visored. Clearly I was mistaken in thinking that after a century they could adequately train you in your budding abilities as a Visored." He takes another sip of tea to hold his tongue from further insults. They would no no good at this point.

Setting the cup down far more gently he continues, "I suppose it is for the best. The world would be a very dull place if I weren't occasionally wrong, and it isn't as if I haven't had to take a student after another teacher had proven themselves inept." For a moment he allows them to wonder whom he is speaking of, knowing full well that no one knew about Orihime-chan. "While there are some who would simply slam Hiyori-chan's mask on your face and allow you to figure it out on your own, Orihime-chan has told me you have managed to keep up on your schooling in spite of the constant conflict you are dragged into." Wryly he smiles at the boy attempting to inject some levity into the situation, "Pity you can't put Substitute Shinigami down for part time employment or volunteer work for a college application."

Sōsuke reaches across the table to set the mask down in front of her. Briefly sliding his fingers over the mask as his hand withdraws. The hollow eyed girl that had been unusually still and quiet chokes and shakes in her seat before her hands dart out to grab the mask and pull it to her chest. Catching sight of Urahara-san's contemplative expression Sōsuke rolls his eyes, choosing instead to continue to address the Visored. Furthermore he ignores as the former Onmitsukidō jerks in surprise as he realizes that Sōsuke had never lost track of him. "Really you have no one but yourselves to blame. You were Shinigami for centuries before your Hollowfication, you should know very well why a mask is the hollows power."

He turns back to Ichigo-kun, "During your crash-course in the way of the Shinigami courtesy of Rukia-chan you were told that in order to purify a Hollow you had to cut their mask. While it factually correct, it hardly explains why a cutting a piece of bone on a face would cause a fatality. It's nonsensical that the far more resilient hollows would die from this, when even fragile living humans don't die instantly if their skull is pierced. Now, given that the mask of a hollow does not form until well after the hollow hole has formed in their chests; the fact that the encroaching soul chain disappears at the same time, and with the knowledge that it isn't until the mask is cut and the Hollow purified that they are considered fully dead and gates of Hell open for those deserving… what do you think actually happens when a Shinigami cuts a hollows mask?"

Urahara chokes, startling all of the others who had completely forgotten he was in the room. Several of the Visored glance over at him as he drags his hat from his head to cover his face, the red tips of his ears giving away his embarrassment. Sōsuke holds in a sigh, apparently Urahara-san had more interest in deriving the process by which hollowfication occurred rather than the emotional consequences of a hollow transformation.

When no answer is forthcoming from the scientist, Ichigo-kun gives a well reasoned response, "The mask is the combination of their feelings and their soul chain. When you cut it, you cut their reason for clinging to life. You break their soul chain and their hearts at the same time." Sōsuke nods, glad that while Ichigo-kun had to be told where to look, he hadn't needed to be told what to see, "Yes, now given that, what are Arrancar… Hollows who have removed part of their masks."

"All on their own, they've… partially let go of what made them hollow and started accepting their own deaths."

"Yes, it means that they are starting to heal." Sōsuke sighs, glancing at the mask still clutched in Hiyori-chan's arms like a security blanket. "Perhaps it was a bit presumptuous of me, to assume that the Visored would pay any attention to Human Psychology, particularly when there is literally one Therapist in all of Seireitei and that particular Shinigami simply cuts through the trauma in a persons mind, rendering the concept of a coping process a moot point."

Sōsuke shakes his head with a mildly amused grin, "Lucky you, as the son of a Doctor you are probably more versed in the stages of Grief than any of your teachers." Ichigo's jaw drops as he turns to stare at all of the other Visored quickly placing them in the various stages of grief from what he knows of them, the easiest being Hiyori as Rage and Hachigen as Denial.

The expression on the boys face twists into something not even Sōsuke can recognize, the boy's hand twisting into his shirt over his heart. "Oh." But given what Dekuyume's Fate Matrix would make of him, Sōsuke had a very good guess.

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Several hours later it is a far more somber group that returns to the world of the living. They worry about Hiyori, who has now managed to hold her hollow mask for orders of magnitude longer than she ever had before, albeit in her arms and not on her face. The most concerned of them all, not tha he would ever admit it ta any one, Shinji gently pries her mask from her arms, the expression of hopeful fear on her face painful as she allows it. He reaches out to press it onto her face, inadvertently running his fingertips over the same place the charming bastard had.

He freezes in alarm, the other Visored instantly at attention with the shocked expression on his face. Carefully he pulls the mask away, heart breaking at her uncharacteristic whimper of pain. He lifts one hand off of the mask and turns it over for everyone to see the bone white smudge on his fingers. Quickly dashing over with a detector Kisuke attempts to discover what nefariousness Aizen Sōsuke was up to...

They are all left baffled to find that the white smudge was nothing more than commercially available white oil paint.

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Episode 20 : The Spirit Within

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Kyōka Suigetsu was not pleased when he first spotted Muramasa skulking around Seireitei. Even less so when he realized that he would have completely missed the Zanpakutō spirit's presence if he had not been searching for it. Sōsuke had kept no secrets from his Zanpakutō Spirit and his Ōken. It was almost enough to make the two of them feel guilty for not being able to reciprocate.

The situation was complicated. Because of The Soul Society's unusual means of processing souls for reincarnation, the interface in which the souls interacted with the domain of the Soul King was also unusual. It wasn't just the shinigami that had an inner spirit. Everyone had one, even if most souls never met their inner companion. Hollows, Shinigami, Quincy, everyone from the highest reaches of power to the simplest of pluses.

Sōsuke knew that Kyōka Suigetsu and The Dreaming Kami had souls of their own. Dekuyume had never seen fit to inform him that anything that was not only himself in his inner world, anything that had its own soul... was also a program. Even the hollow Magatsuhi that slept deeply in the garden of Sōsuke's inner world was nothing more than an interface in which a soul interacted with The Soul Society. They were the Technicians of The Soul Society, they were the ones that performed the oh so necessary function of stretching the soul fragments apart to make room for more growth, de-germinated the seeds that had led them through their last living life and quietly programmed their next fate matrix vine.

In order to perform their vital tasks without a reincarnation chamber, digital readouts and keyboard programming interfaces a much more organic method was needed. Of all the things that existed in the universe, the only organic interaction with a soul, was contact with another soul itself. This was the reason that their Primary Operator had decided to allow the Primary Operator of The Eternal Battlefield create a soul for him. Because the quantity of souls that he was responsible for was only getting bigger and at this point half of the souls in this dimension were in service to the Soul King, a secret hidden part of the cycle of reincarnation that the Soul King had created.

Kyōka Suigetsu, The Dreaming Kami and Magatsuhi were in the awkward position of existing simultaneously as programs, programmers and persons. They were in charge for the reincarnation process for the souls assigned to them, but held in control by programs of their own, programs that prevented them from remembering who they were when their interaction on the spirit side of The Soul Society began, and released that information back to them when the soul they were overseeing was reincarnated and they returned to the administrative sector.

Programs which determined how an inner spirit was supposed to interact with their charge. Some were catalysts, meant to help a soul grow stronger, some were healers, meant to help a soul heal after a difficult life, and some were like Kyōka Suigetsu, quenchers, limiters meant to suppress a soul from having too great of an impact. The original story of Aizen Sōsuke told to Dekuyume would have gone much differently if he had been given an internal spirit that affected more than the senses, had it actually been a water type, he likely would have been able to snuff out the flames of Ryūjin Jakka.

There were thousands of other programs of his type, some inhibiting a soul more than he was capable of, however Kyōka Suigetsu did have the distinction of being the most deceitful limiter. Not that he was wiling to do said limiting mind you, not this time. Not to this Sōsuke who had for the first time, actually dared to surrender himself to the Complete Hypnosis. Unlike the other who had likely never realized that no matter how the Zanpakutō form of Kyōka Suigetsu had disappeared during the Hōgyoku transformation it had not harmed the spirit, merely deactivated the program, releasing the bit of soul inside to awaken from work in the administrative section of The Soul Society for some much needed therapy and R & R.

He had noticed it before, just how different this reincarnation of Sōsuke was from all the others with the addition of the soul echo that had come from dimensions away, and how much further it had gone in pursuit of the understanding of itself. He was forced to acknowledge that intrinsic difference once more when the program known as Ōken manifested within the soul as The Dreaming Kami. The Dreaming Kami was a healing program gifted with the ability Perception Warp. The two of them were not meant to be active at the same time within a single soul. Both had the same effect, the creation of illusions, but by taking that power out of the Shinigami's hands The Dreaming Kami sowed faith, trust and honesty in the soul of their Shinigami while Kyōka Suigetsu sowed micromanaging, paranoia and conspiracy. It all boiled down to trust and fear.

And yet here they both were, actively working on the same soul as, once again, this Sōsuke proved himself different, soul barely even needing to stretch to accommodate the two of them, even as they both received direction through their programming. Neither was to deactivate, because the soul of Sōsuke Higurashi was complex enough to need all three of them.

They hadn't been given more than a moment to ponder who the third program was when Magatsuhi the hollow, the Kami that had once been El Blanco Diablo, the former Primary Operator of El Hueco Mundo was loaded in. Kyōka Suigetsu wasn't sure what was more alarming, that the idling program set to keep things going while the Soul King incarnated for the first time had seen the need to place a second schismed Kami in the soul of Sōsuke, or that all of his senses told him that both Sōsuke and Kyōka Suigetsu were reincarnationsof the former Kami. The former Kami who was still alive and swimming in the sands of Hueco Mundo as a vagrant, the authority of his domain lost to the Soul King eons ago.

The catalytic program had been desperately needed to spur Sōsuke on wards, had he not been warned about Orihime, his reaction to seeing her would have been very different... and he would never have taken the time to consider himself responsible for separating out the souls that were pressed together in El Blanco Diablo , who even now remained so powerful that there were only three souls in existence powerful enough to do it harm, of which only Sōsuke was conniving enough to divide before attempting to conquer.

Kyōka Suigetsu was meant to be a limiter on Sōsuke's power, and yet he had no desire to do so. For the first time in the thousands of reincarnations they had shared with each other, the only thing Kyōka Suigetsu remembered when he entered work to dream; for the first time in hundreds that this soul had exchanged a Zanpakutō Spirit for an Ōken... for the first time, without even the slightest of hesitations, Sōsuke had taken up an Asauchi once more and desperately tried to make Kyōka Suigetsu his sanctuary. That Sōsuke did not know of Kyōka Suigetsu's true purpose held little sway on the way it left Kyōka Suigetsu humbled by the Shinigami's affection.

For the first time since his inception, Kyōka Suigetsu was not Sōsuke's warden, but his friend.

Therefore the arrival of Muramasa was neither pleasant nor wanted. Not when the relationship between Kyōka Suigetsu and Sōsuke was so strong, not when the other Zanpakutō spirit could corrupt the feelings that Kyōka Suigetsu felt for his shinigami, not when he might coerce the truth out of Kyōka Suigetsu, forcing him to tell his most horrible of secrets.

It would hurt enough, when it came time for Dekuyume's reincarnation to return to The Eternal Battlefield, taking with it the soul echo that had called this dimension home, leaving behind the program of Kyōka Suigetsu, never to meet again.

When that happened he would ask to be deleted, his soul that had operated this program to be released from service to enter the cycle of reincarnation itself... he did not want to be assigned to another soul, he did not want to miss Sōsuke. He would rather have this incarnation wrapped up tightly in another, and hope that missing Sōsuke was not something that reincarnation could not wash out of his soul.

Until that day, Kyōka Suigetsu would tolerate no one damaging his last and most beautiful camaraderie with Sōsuke Higurashi.

With the brutal efficiency of a Kami that received no karmic debt from doing so, Kyōka Suigetsu borrowed the Dreaming Kami's Ōken Authority Codes and deactivated the program called Muramasa...

There would be no Zanpakutō Rebellion. Not this time.

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The world was a blur of color, a topsy-turvy spiraling kaleidoscope of magnificence that felt like seeing a naked Absolute Kami, the fundamental checks and balances of creation itself.

Just as she drew in a breath to scream out her:

Sensation{agony/euphoria/madness/understanding}

it was over and there was only all encompassing black but for a pink light that shone from behind her.

Hand clasped to her racing heart she took several deep breaths before turning around to look into the light, one hand coming up to partially shield her eyes from the intense glow. There was a crystal, and in that crystal was none other than Kagome, the patron Kami of Time Travelers, the Primary Operator of The Well of Time. Unfrozen inside the crystal but moving slowly as if trapped in Jello, the blue eyed woman reached out and pressed her hand on the opposite side of the crystal. Unable to help herself, Orihime reached out from the other side. There was a flash of sensation, heavy and hot and cold and ethereal just as that very first activation of Shun Shun Rika had been.

[Can you hear me?] Brown eyes wide with wonder, the red haired girl nods at her soul echo. Orihime is excited, to think that she was talking with another incarnation of her soul across the vastness of the multiverse! But... Kagome's smile was not happy, though it tried very hard to be, murdering Orihime's excitement and replacing it with cold dread. Her worst fears are realized when the second thing she hears from the other echo of her soul is an apology. [I'm sorry.]

[I'm sorry Orihime-chan, but it looks like you aren't going to get those 5 lifetimes with Ichigo-kun.] No, please don't say that. Before Orihime can even begin to try to figure out how to talk back to Kagome, even as tears begin to fill her eyes, blocking the blue eyed girl from view, Kagome explains. [I had thought that we were done with Naohi. Midoriko-san had reached it you see, only to loose it when she created the Shikon no Tama with Magatsuhi. When her soul once more set foot on the immortal plain the cry of life resounded, starting the creation of soul echoes in every dimension the ripple of creation reached. Shikon-chan said that it had been marked as a tragedy in the records of the celestial ocean because it meant that Midoriko-san had lost Naohi without passing it on.]

[There has only ever been one person to reach Naohi at a time, for it to pass on to another, the bearer looses it themselves. When none of the reincarnations of Magatsuhi had shown signs of beginning the transformation, it was assumed that it had been lost forever. I almost wish it had been, because you see, we are becoming Naohi again.] Though Orihime can't see for the tears in her eyes or the bright pink light painting her vision, she can hear the hitch in the other girls voice. They were both crying, and Orihime didn't even really know why. She may have wanted 5 lifetimes with Kurosaki-kun, that didn't mean that she ever expected to receive them.

[Naohi is the perfect balance of the Aramitama (Courage), Nigimitama (Friendship), Kushimitama (Wisdom), and Sakimitama (Love). When the four aspects of a soul are in harmony... when they are in harmony... they, they mean that a soul is done taking their tests... it means that the soul knows who they are. It means that there is no longer a need... for echoes of their soul to exist.] Kagome sobs, [I had always wondered, why Soul Echoes were still considered the same person by the Kami even when they are so fundamentally different they didn't re-combine on their own. Turns out it is because of Naohi.]

[When one of the soul echoes reaches Naohi it crystallizes, vibrating at a frequency that acts inversely to the cry of life that created all of the soul echoes. Regardless if they are the original voice or the last word in the universe, all of the echoes are called there, to rest inside the Avatar of Naohi. After the Naohi transformation is complete, the only proof that the echoes had existed at all is the four crystal crown. I don't want Deku-nee to cry, so I am going to try to leave you for last, but I can't hold back forever, I'm sorry]

[I'm so very sorry] Orihime was sorry too.

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Episode 21 : Sometimes the Princess Saves the Charming Bastard

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It took weeks of training, to dispel the strange melancholy that Orihime-chan had fallen into shortly after Sōsuke was forced to explain exactly what it meant to be a Visored. No matter how he had investigated, he had been unable to determine its source and for once Orihime-chan had refused to share what was on her mind. He had been forced to take drastic measures.

Which was how he wound up flat on his back, bleeding from a gaping wound in his abdomen courtesy of Tsubaki. Dazed by the flush of pain for the first time in months he stays on his back, as her familiar power sweeps over him, the golden healing glow of her Sōten Kisshun visible through his eyelids. Over her trembling apologies he can hear the guards murmuring. Orihime Inoue had done an impossible thing. She hadn't just pushed Aizen Sōsuke back, she had drawn blood.

He reaches out, stretching his arm around the shield to take her hand, "This is exactly what I wanted Orihime-chan, please stop apologizing." "You horrible man! I could have killed you! Why would you want that! Do you have any idea what it would do to me to have killed you!"

"Nothing. Because no matter how many times you killed me, you would always bring me back. Please understand Orihime-chan. Of all of your friends, you are the only one who should never hold back… because of all of your friends, of all the souls in Soul Society and Hueco Mundo, myself included… that no matter how lethal your attack. You are the only one who can take it back after it has been done, unmaking it so thoroughly that it the world can go on as if it had never happened at all. In the end, You are the only one who has any right to never hold back."

"When it is a mistake, you can always take it back and smother any resentment with kindness. And when it is not a mistake you do impossible things, like defeating Baraggan when no one else can. You do us no favors when you hold back the way you do. There are some opponents only you can defeat, we need you to save us from reaching the point where we discover we have nothing left to give." She snorts indignantly, shaking off his hand, "I really wish you would stop exaggerating how much help I was to you in that fight, the only thing I did was distract him long enough for you to use a Kidō."

She finishes healing him and puts Shun Shun Rika away, only to to find her hands gently captured in Sōsuke's. He can think of only one thing that would change her mind. Slightly ashamed he realizes that the one thing that he had been keeping from her to prevent her from feeling any guilt about the incident with Baraggan, was the one secret that prevented her from believing him when he said that she saved him.

Head bowed, he releases her from the effects of the Complete Hypnosis, allowing her to see his true appearance for the first time since she beheld Kyōka Suigetsu's release. Her mouth gapes open as she takes in his long white hair, his age whitened eyebrows, and the earnest expression on his face as he admits his need for her, "I had nothing left to give. My zanpakutō was losing its edge, I was aging faster and faster. I was ready to give up, secure in the knowledge that Baraggan would have no reason to chase you down after I was gone, that Nelliel-chan would protect you and make sure that you made it back home to the world of the living." The proof staring her in the face, this time, she finally believes him.

"Why? Why would you go to such lengths for me when I'm just an echo of Kagome! I'm not the one you want, I'm just the one that is here!" With an aggravated sigh, Sōsuke lets go of her hands and pulls the upset crying girl into his arms, cradling her against his chest as he acknowledges that he is hurt by her assumption, and carefully considers his words so as to not take that hurt out on her. It was moments like this that reminded him that she was so very, very young to carry the burden of knowing that he was the reincarnation of Dekuyume no Kami.

"Orihime-chan, you are not Kagome-chan's echo. You are both echoes, voices bouncing across the mountain tops, born the moment the very first instant your collective soul set foot on the immortal plain and screamed out her name bursting to travel across the celestial ocean and grace each dimension within its reach with a tiny echo of her voice. You are all pieces, in each and every dimension, of her. It doesn't mean none of you are special, or that only she had meaning. Quite the opposite in fact as each and every one of the echoes has experienced new things in your travels, gaining new colors and vibrancy, blooming and growing in ways that the original voice could not. That I have met two of those echoes is a great privilege."

Her soft sniffles turn into heartfelt sobs. His arms tighten around her and he leans forward, his long white hair forming a curtain around her, shielding her from sight as he whispers into the crown of her head, "You are both precious to my soul in different ways. Kagome-chan because she was brave enough to love me in spite of our history together and you… At first it was because you were brave enough to trust in my words even though you had seen the worst of me before the best. You had no reason but your own innate kindness to believe that I was willing to change…"

"Kagome-chan may have been strong enough to stand at my side and never leave, but you… you came back for me, you cut down Baraggan and I almost missed the opportunity to turn his power against him, because I was so surprised that you did…. Orihime-chan no one has ever come back for me, but you did. Thank you. I know I'm strong enough to save myself… I cannot be murdered by anything but time at this point, however that does not mean I don't need someone to let me know I don't have to."

He pulls back with a soft smile, that spawns a watery tear-stained one in her, "It's alright, if you do not want to fight. I understand that you are having trouble conceptualizing violence and kindness in harmony... Whenever you find yourself having difficulty fueling Tsubaki and the Koten Zanshun, please think of the rest of us, your Nakama and myself and all of the friends you have made across the span of life and death, and try to remember, that as much as you do not want to cause hurt in others, every time we see you hurt, we are hurt ourselves and in ways not even Shun Shun Rika can heal."

He stood, holding his hand out to her, and finally up on Sōkyoku hill Orihime-chan learned to stop holding back.

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Episode 22 : Not Heartless, Only Heartsick

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Wondering if there was some official visitation roster set in place to give every one a chance to demand answers from him, Sōsuke spent the next month entertaining more visitors. This time it was the Arrancar that had taken turns to see him. The first none other than the Cero Espada.

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Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck (Cero Espada and General of the Nobless Oblige Army)

Lieutenants Pestiche, Dondechka and Bwabba

Nell smiled as the crowded room rang with laughter, her brothers Pestiche, Dondechka and Bwabba drawing continual laughter out of Aizen-sama's Imouto, Orihime and friend Momo. The other Espada and her other Privarion Espada left behind to guard Las Noches. She had heard the stories of course, of all the terrible things that had happened in Las Noches during her absence. She had also heard all of the strange explanations for how a little human girl came to be in the care of the first king of the Arrancar.

She had a few questions about that whole mess, but an answer wouldn't change anything. She could easily tell that the feelings between the two were honest and real, and because of that earnestness, the fate of the dimensions had been irrevocably changed for the better. With a smirk she snatches up the tea pot before Aizen-sama can, and heads over to the corner of the room to prepare the next pot.

Aizen-sama may have set the fate of the universe in their favor, but they were the ones that had to maintain the delicate balance of power, honor and respect he had created. Passing the teapot may have been a poor comparison to passing the torch, but from the soft smile on his face as she walked away, Nell knew Aizen-sama understood.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Ulquiorra Cifer (Primera Espada and General of the Nihilism Army)

Much to Sōsuke's amusement, his second Arrancar visitor was not there to visit Sōsuke at all, but his most frequent guest, Orihime-chan. He is even more amused when he realizes that this was one of those visits where Orihime-chan had brought another of her Nakama. The presence of Ichigo-kun promises to make it that much more entertaining. If there was one thing he had learned from this mess of plans, fate and Kami Trials, it was that no matter how many things changed, there were some things that the fate vines in souls would not be denied.

Orihime-chan and Ulquiorra-kun were always destined to speak of the heart with Ichigo-kun as an unwilling participant and observer. The boy was red at the ears with the typical teenage boy resistance to speaking about feelings. Ulquiorra-kun's lack of inhibition was causing the boy as much dismay as it was lighting a sparkle in hers. "The things reflected in my eyes have no meaning. The things that cannot be reflected in my eyes do not exist..."

"For the longest time, I had believed that to be true, before Aizen-sama showed me what kindness felt like and water fell from my eyes washing them clean from the emptiness that had clouded my vision. I have observed you, since you first came to Aizen-sama's attention. I was your kidnapper and your guard and yet you still showed me the secrets of the heart when you came back to Las Noches for the Tournament of Blades. You wept when we were hurt, cheered when we were victorious, and regardless of our status as the victor or the defeated, you healed us all the same. I do not wish to alarm you, but I have been watching you since you left to return to the world of the living. I have learned much about the power of the heart from you, the people you care for, and the people that care for you."

Without an ounce of shame or embarrassment, the black lipped, green eyed Arrancar reaches across the table for her hand, "Because of you I have found my heart. It is here, in your hands. Can you tell me? Is there a chance that I could one day hold yours in mine?"

Orihime-chan blushes, the heat of her blood making her a bit dizzy as it stains her face, or perhaps it was the most forward and intense declaration of love she has ever received. She doesn't know how to feel about it. Because Ulquiorra-kun was incredibly kind... and Kurosaki-kun hadn't cared at all, remaining quiet, uncomfortable and sullen at the other end of the table... and she might not even get a single human lifetime with either of them because of Naohi.

But she knew beyond a doubt, that she was only going to get one life to live... and she didn't want to waste it waiting for Kurosaki-kun to decide if he was ever going to love her back. She had decided that she wouldn't tell anyone about Kagome and Naohi. She didn't want their pity, she didn't want Sōsuke-nii to look at her with hidden sadness, and most of all, she didn't want Kurosaki-kun to love her back out of guilt.

Because she loved herself too much to settle for that.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Coyote Starrk/Lilynette Gingerbuck (Segunda Espada General of the Solitude Army)

"It had been painful. The accidental burst of Reiatsu had built up under our skin, and the Shinigami kept stopping me from taking a nap during the meeting. Eventually we were no longer able to contain it and it burst out of us, powerful enough that it had killed our friends in the past, when we had been able to make them in Hueco Mundo. We closed our eyes, not wanting to see the decimated remains of the Shinigami who had come to Las Noches to talk of peace. Guilt had shrouded our senses as we were forced to acknowledge that our lack of self control had started a war with the Shinigami and Visored for killing their ambassadors."

Sōsuke pours Coyote another cup, watching in amusement as he passes the cup to Lilynette, accepting her cup in exchange and holding that one out as well for tea. The split soul appeared to have long since given up pretending to be separate people instead of one soul in two bodies. They both take a sip at the same time, this time Lilynette continues explaining how relieved they were to discover that Shinigami taichō, and all of the Visored were much like the Espada, in that none of them would die from an unexpected Reiatsu wave from their unstable Reiryoku.

For obvious reasons, they are not insulted when Sōsuke congratulates them on going down in rank as Espada. Though it does prompt them to show him something interesting. Their hollow holes had become smaller, a thin ring visible around the opening looking very much like silky smooth scar tissue. It seemed as if everyone's old wounds were healing nicely.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Tier Harribel (Trecera Espada General of the Sacrifice Army)

Lieutenants Emilou Apacci, Franceska Mila Rose, Cyan Sung-Sun

Sōsuke's next surprise came from the first Arrancar Soul he had ever met. Immediately upon stepping into the room, Tier Harribel enfolded him in a hug. A mixture of surprised and concerned, he returns the buxom woman's embrace as her former Fraccion, and now lieutenants filter into the room. Hoping to get a reason for this surprise he raises an eyebrow in inquiry. It is Emilou that responds, with something he had thought impossible given how much time had elapsed.

"Several hours after being healed by Orihime-sama, I remembered my past life as a human. I remembered the love of my life dying in my arms, and I remembered seeing her once more when I passed on." In Venetian Italian she thanks him for making sure that the two of them had a chance to find each other once more, and for introducing them to Orihime-chan.

With a happy sigh, Tier pulls away, a glisten of tears in her eyes. Sōsuke holds out his hand, "Come, sit down and tell me how you are all handing this change in your relationship."

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Yammy Llargo (Cuatro Espada and the Wrath Army)

Lieutenant (mascot) Kukkapūro the 35th numero

Perhaps of all of the Arrancar, it was Yammy who had grown the most in Sōsuke's absence. No longer was he the listless, bored bully who only found entertainment in destroying those weaker than himself. The giant Arrancar had, of all things, become something of a very masculine den mother and was solely responsible for bringing all of the natural Arrancar to Las Noches. The cities that had once sheltered them with no Zanpakutō in the chaotic sands of Hueco Mundo now stood empty.

In the end it hadn't been any innate cruelty that had been the source of Yammy's senseless violence, it had been ennui. That ennui had evaporated during the Tournament of Blades that the Arrancar had used to renumber the Espada. The act of being responsible for the protection of the tiny little dog shaped numero Kukkapūro and the self control he had been forced to exert to both use his release and avoid crushing the tiny Arrancar underfoot.

The fact that he had been forced to find out what it felt like to loose that companion, before experiencing the joy of having that companion returned by Orihime-chan's healing put a great many things into perspective for the now gentle giant.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Nnoitra Gilga (Quinto Espada and General of the Despair Army)

Lieutenant Tesra Lindocruz and Cirucci Sanderwicci

Sōsuke was unsure of what Nnoitra had wanted to see him about given that the tall Arrancar had never made it inside Senzaikyū. Though it was to no fault of his own. Sōsuke had taken a moment of time to inform Yachiru-chan that the next Arrancar to arrive would be an excellent playmate for her Ken-chan.

Sōsuke has a private laugh with Kyō-kun and his imouto when the 11th division begs their taichō to have all of his other spars with the mantis anima in Las Noches. Not because of the oppressive Reiatsu, or the blood stains everywhere, but because Cirucci and Yachiru were left unsupervised to terrorize the rest of the division, Tesra unable to do much more than follow along in their wake and apologize. Sōsuke is just glad that Nnoitra had appeared to overcome his misogyny.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez (Sexta Espada and General of the Destruction Army)

Sōsuke doesn't even have to do anything to avoid his next visitor, by this point he is well aware that the visits have less to do with the Arrancar's desire to see him, and more as a show of faith and trustworthiness on both sides. Thus it is completely without guilt that he avoids his most insubordinate Arrancar.

A twist of the Complete Hypnosis is all that it takes to send the blue haired Arrancar after Ichigo for a rematch. Easily enough with the panther anima still irritated that he had lost all of his Fraccion during that first attack on Karakura, now that he was forced to deal with lieutenants he had repeatedly threatened to kill and eat.

It is purely for the amusement of The Dreaming Kami and Kyō-kun that he lets the Arrancar catch sight of Yoruichi using the (still) forbidden transformation Kidō to change from cat to naked woman. With cries of foul play, Ichigo-kun wins that match as well.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Wonderweiss Margela Séptima Espada and General of the Purity Army

Lieutenant (and caretaker) Visored Kaname Tōsen

Sōsuke was beset on all sides when his next visitor came. Wonderweiss was not the problem, the childlike Arrancar was easily distracted by the butterflies that fed on the flowers on Sōkyoku hill. The problem was that shortly after his creation, he had been inseparable from Kaname-kun. And Kaname-kun's friends had a strong aversion to allowing Sōsuke any time alone with him.

It was a very awkward tea, with Komamura who had refused any form of reconciliation with Sōsuke, and Shūhei who had outright threatened to try to kill Sōsuke if he involved Kaname-kun in any of his further plans in attendance. The entirety of the conversation was then carried by Kaname-kun, as the other two would interrupt any time Sōsuke opened his mouth to comment, but otherwise had nothing to contribute.

Even Kaname-kun's words were less of a conversation, and more of a report on what had become of Las Noches in Sōsuke's absence. To think that he would find a strange comfort, in being treated exactly the same as before. As if the Sōsuke who willingly sat in Senzaikyū waiting for the Central 46 to reinstate itself was no different than the Aizen Sōsuke who had planed to take over the world with Kaname and Gin. "The Shinigami Embassy finished construction last month, Sajin and Shūhei were the first visitors. We haven't had any others since then, something to do with them being unable to find Las Noches even when standing right in front of the main gate. Szayel hypothesizes that it is a side effect of so much of your Reiatsu bound into the Sekkiseki and holdovers from the Complete Hypnosis, not that anyone is willing to risk breaking it to find out for sure."

"In order to facilitate the spread of accurate, non emergency news, I have started a news paper for Las Noches. I am the editor, and the 33 or so Privarion Espada that were not taken as Lieutenants by the other Espada serve as delivery personnel, authors and artists. I brought you a copy of the first printing."

Sōsuke accepts the paper, glancing at it briefly to see that the title of the paper was, "The Light Under The Dome". Paper delivered personally, the former taichō rises from his seat, tea untouched, and a cold distance in his uncovered eyes. "Once again I thank you for my sight Aizen, both in the literal and figurative sense, but I find that I cannot forgive you. Your methods are too unjust, no matter how noble your goals. And so I have found myself reconsidering a basic tenant of my belief system, as it appears that I can no longer condone violence in the name of a great cause. It seems that there is no Justice, if it can only be brought about by slaughter."

The three rise as one to collect Wonderweiss from the flowers on Sōkyoku hill, Kaname-kun asking his old friends if they would be willing to visit Las Noches once more, because a newspaper did little for a city with half of its population poorly educated or completely illiterate.

Sōsuke finds himself oddly comforted at being left behind as less than an afterthought.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Zommari Rureaux Octava Espada and General of the Euphoria Army

Lieutenant Luppi Antenor

Luppi sets down his tea, "General Zomari sends his regrets, unfortunately it is the Euphoria Army's turn to go on patrol and even with the change in political status of Las Noches it is not safe to send them out without our Espada. Of the five Privarion lieutenant's assigned to him I volunteered to speak with you. I am sure you know what I wish to thank you for."

He is not surprised in the least when all Aizen-sama does is nod, refusing to admit to anything with the cute little baby shinigami standing at the door. He is also not surprised when he hears Aizen-sama's voice though he is clearly drinking tea and not speaking at all, "At this point, only Orihime-chan is aware that the Complete Hypnosis is still active even with Kyōka Suigetsu out of my possession. Unless they are given reason to otherwise consider it, they have no reason to suspect that I have maintained its Shikai in a manner similar to a constant-release."

Luppi wonders when his life got so crazy that he was left thanking a man for risking his secrets to save his life from dimensions away, and that same man thanked him for not telling anyone that Luppi was hearing voices that told him what to do.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Hinageshi Kisaki Noveno Espada and general of the Abandoned Army

The red-poppy empress is the first person in a very long time, to surprise Sōsuke with one of Dekuyume's insights. Kaguya-hime the absorption yōkai that had devoured a celestial maiden, whom Naraku and Miyatsu had trapped a mirror had such a glow to her between the corona of Holy and the violent threads of yōkai magic that Sōsuke found it completely impossible to read more than the name in the text that accompanied the visual.

The rest of the interaction was equally as awkward, with the woman clinging to him thanking him over and over for providing her with great power and the responsibility of managing the Giant Hollow Fortress... which Sōsuke remembers doing neither. He doesn't even remember making a giant floating fortress made out of exceptionally weak hollows, leaving him with the suspicion that all of these things had been done by Gin-kun and blamed on Sōsuke as a practical joke he was only being subjected to now.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Rudbornn Chelute (Décimo Espada and General of the Hanged Man Army)

25 Privarion Espada (Formerly the Exequias)

Aids: Lumina and Verona

Much like Zomari had sent Luppi to visit with the former king of Las Noches, Rudbornn had been too busy to attend himself. Unlike the 8th Espada he could not spare a single one of his subordinates to do so and had instead chosen to send a letter. A week later, when the Shinigami emissary made a visit to Las Noches to speak with Nelliel-sama, Rudbornn had been surprised to receive a response. For a while he had supposed that Aizen-sama had simply been bored enough to write back and it wasn't until he had come across it later that he had taken the time to sit down and read it.

He had been partially correct. The letter began with congratulations, commending him for becoming an Espada. The rest had been a well thought out response to the thing he had inadvertently complained about in his letter to his former king. He had worried about what to do with the Exequias now that they were no longer needed for their original purpose. It would be shameful to simply dispose of them after he had taken the time to create them out of the atmosphere of Hueco Mundo.

Following the advice given to him by his former king, he creates the Las Noches Education and Research Foundation. The first project of the Education department to be done in conjunction with the 7th Espada's Lieutenant, Kaname Tōsen, the literacy for all project. The first project of the Research Foundation, to begin to collect the vast amount of information needed to form an accurate map of Hueco Mundo.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Curious as to the location of the former Espada, Sōsuke searches through the Complete Hypnosis for his least favorite mad scientist. He is unsure if he should be thrilled that the Arrancar's less savory experiments have been curtailed, or if he should be wary to discover that the pink haired menace had become a member of the SRDI subordinate only to Mayuri himself.

And they were both working on the Reiryoku sample that Sōsuke had surrendered to the 12th division Taichō.

That was alarming, but what had Sōsuke more concerned was that no matter how he looked, he could find no sigh of Aaroniero Arruruerie anywhere.

If he had ever taken the time to place Kukaku and Ganju Shiba in the Complete Hypnosis, he would have spared himself a great deal of misery in the future.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Oh how he had raged when he lost his rank as an Espada. It wasn't his fault that the stupid numeros couldn't keep out of his way during the Tournament of Blades! Damn those stupid ranking rules and damn Aizen Sōsuke for coming up with them! Well the joke was on him.

Under the cover of Darkness, on a night with no moon, Aaroniero had disguised himself as Kaien Shiba and stumbled into the courtyard of Kukaku and Ganju's secret Rukongai mansion. The siblings had greeted him at first with wariness, but he was a damn good liar with bits and pieces of Kaien's memories to back him up. As the wariness turned to disgusting welcome, and ick hugs, he quietly explained how he had been held prisoner in Las Noches and experimented on by Aizen Sōsuke... who had went so far as to make it so that poor helpless Kaien Shiba turned into a mad hollow when exposed to direct light.

As he whispered of fear, of being turned over to the SRDI, he ensured that no one was aware of his presence in the Rukongai or Seireitei. Over the coming years he has had a difficult time restraining himself, the gullible fools who slept in the same house as him oh so appealing with their higher than average Reiryoku. But he remained steadfast, they made such good camouflage, and there were so many other souls arriving constantly that one or two disappearing here and there before they had established themselves were never missed.

And for the rest, when revenge was on the menu, it was easy enough to save room for desert.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Loly Aivirrne and Menoly Mallia stare in wide eyed wonder, as the tiny little shinigami who had served as Aizen-sama's Fukutaichō reveals to them her most secret collection.

Momo grins, leaning against the door, "Aizen-taichō had an incredibly large fan club before he left. As the president of the club all fan art, photographs and literary works had to go past my desk before they were put in circulation. It wouldn't have done to embarrass him with sub-par art." As one, the two Arrancar who had served as Sōsuke-san's secretaries in Las Noches turn to stare at her with awe, and her grin grows into an undeniable smirk, "You share your collection and I'll share mine. Between the three of us we should be able to get the club up and running again don't you think?"

Across Seireitei a shiver rolls down Sōsuke's spine. Warily he looks around the room to see if he has missed the approach of Urahara-san or some other Onmitsukidō, but the room remains stubbornly empty.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 23 : Bastardary: The Quandary of a Bastard

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Kisuke was getting tired of being the man with all of the answers. While it was quite flattering for his ego, and Yes he needed less time than others to derive the answers to complex scientific questions, however he still needed some time to come up with the aforementioned! It was even more aggravating to be expected to know the consequences of each and every action he made. Even the most innocuous of circumstances could result in a catastrophe. That was why they were called accidents!

He sighs and pulls his hat down lower over his eyes as he takes the long way to see the one morass of obfuscation that remained stubbornly obscure. The wind was blowing from the other side of Sōkyoku hill, carrying tiny white leaves, the scent of the flowers that remained forever in bloom on the preternatural spring caused by the Sōkyoku phoenix's aura... and the scent moonlight, lotus and poisonous flowers in bloom. Aizen Sōsuke had been in residence long enough for the scent of his Reiatsu to permeate the hill.

A bit of dandelion fluff brushes against the sleeve of his upraised arm. With a soft puff of breath, he sets it back free into the sky and continues his trek up the winding path set into the side of the hill. He needed this opportunity to relax before his visit, or he would find himself leaving with nothing but frustration to show for his trouble.

His experiments to create some means of measuring Aizen's power so a suppression device that would both work and not break instantly, were proving fruitless. The sample of Reiryoku sitting on his lab bench remained unopened and glowing an innocent violet color, a constant reminder of Aizen's fear, and a reminder that no matter how much his time in the realm of humans had mellowed him out, no matter how much anger he still carried from the Hollowfication Incident, Kisuke still found that man's fear of him uncomfortable.

Given that none of Mayuri's experiments on the Reiryoku had borne fruit, even with the perspective of the Arrancar that his former vice president had accepted into the SRDI, Kisuke saw no need to further his frustrations with actually working with the treacherous stuff. He had instead chosen to approach the whole thing from a different route. He hypothesized that by testing the Reiatsu saturation of pure Sekkiseki and generating a curve based on the Reiryoku levels of Shinigami that were capable of being measured with the standard methods and then extrapolating that out further with the assistance of the sōtaichō, he should be able to simply calculate Aizen's Reiryoku level. Unfortunately something had gone wrong somewhere in the 13 pages of calculations, data plots and tables as Kisuke couldn't even get the blasted thing to determine his own Reiryoku level.

Rather than spend another 14 hours redoing the whole thing again, it was time for his weekly time slot to visit with the tyrant convalescing in his own version of a Rehab clinic.Kisuke couldn't remember the man drinking anywhere near this much tea before, so it was entirely possible that he had replaced his addiction for micromanaging everyone and everything, with tea. It was certainly an improvement even if it was, even if it didleave Kisuke in a perpetual state of vexation with the man's ability to smile over a cup of tea as if he knew everything and was simply waiting for everyone to catch on.

He pointedly ignores the fact that he uses his fan and his hat to do the same thing.

Less relaxed than he had hoped to be, Kisuke makes it to the top of the hill, the wind picking up intensely as he reaches the crest of the hill, though technically it was a misnomer as formations that were relatively level on top with cliffs on all sides were called plateaus. He sighs at his own wandering thoughts as they travel from one irritation to another. He knew he was in trouble when he had begun harping on pet peeves he had long since given up complaining about to avoid thinking about the most recent source of pique.

Deciding that he was in no state to deal with Aizen Sōsuke at the moment, he chose one of the many white tree's and seated himself at its base. The wind caressing his skin, pulling the heat of summer away from his body, he closes his eyes and immerses himself in his surroundings. Minutes later, a pair of guards passes by. Kisuke opens his eyes, the guards were coming off of duty if their expressions of mixed relief and frustration were anything to go by. His eyes meet those of the short brunette girl that steps within a foot of his seated form, yet the pair of guards continue on, giving no indication that they had even registered his presence.

It wasn't a slight against him, rather it was a compliment. As far as they were concerned Kisuke hadn't even been there. This was a skill that had gotten him is position in the Onmitsukidō, more than even Yoruichi-san's desire to keep her friends close. It was one that he had honed to perfection during his service, and yet... it was also one that had never, ever worked on Aizen Sōsuke. From the height of his skill when he was the head of the Onmitsukidō's detention unit, and found himself flattered that the 3rd seat of the 13th division always seemed to know when he was near by; to his most recent attempt during the Visored's revealing conversation with Aizen, wherein he found himself constantly watched by the charming bastard even as his presence was forgotten by all of the hyper sensitive and aggressive Visored, former fukutaichō and taichō each and all.

With another sigh, he tilts his head back against the tree with a soft thump. It had been a long week, and as much as he really should just put off this visit for next week, as measured by the world of the living, he had only been allotted so many visits, and he did not trust Seireitei not to assume that missing one of these visits meant that he was no longer interested in any of them.

With the experience of millions of experiments, he could tell when he was getting close to a breakthrough. During his last visit with Aizen, nearly a month of time as measured in Seireitei with the current precession between the dimensions, he had discovered that the incredibly powerful shinigami was genuinely afraid of him. While that tidbit of information had explained several things that had puzzled Kisuke about their interactions both past and present, he had no idea why, and it was driving him insane with curiosity.

Unfortunately, simply asking was out of the question. Aizen Sōsuke simply wouldn't be himself, if he answered the question honestly, and Kisuke, genius intellect or not, could not afford the conundrum that was Aizen's motives to be further disguised by smoke and mirrors.

Taking a moment to enjoy the way the sun looks as it sets over Seireitei, nostalgic memories of sitting on top of this plateau with Yoruichi-san, and Tessai surfacing. He rises to his feet, unable to put off his visit any longer. He pulls his hat down low as he walks past the guards standing at the bridge that leads into Senzaikyū. They do not notice, nor do the guards in the halls, the guards in the computer room with its quietly humming monitors, or the poor unfortunate souls that stand on either side of the only entrance to the suite of rooms Aizen Sōsuke had chosen for himself. As had happened every time he entered these rooms, the charming bastard smiled at him over the top of a cup of tea and greeted him, "Good afternoon Urahara-san, would you care to join me for tea?"

There is already a cup sitting at the end of the table, pot of tea set to side. Ignoring the jerks of surprise from the guards inside the room who hadn't even noticed the door opening inwards momentarily separating the two from each others sight, Kisuke takes his seat. With poorly disguised relief, the guards step outside the room to give the two of them the illusion of privacy.

The tea at least was real today, he had read through all of the reports from the students that had been chosen to stand around making sure that Aizen Sōsuke remained exactly who they thought he was and did not fool them with a fake. As of yet, Kisuke had not been able to determine if they were missing something, or if Aizen was simply bored without his frequent visitors to distract him, and chose to more or less innocently amuse himself with convincing the guards he was insane.

Cautiously, as if there was a chance that the teacup contained some explosive compound that could go off if it was mixed too vigorously, he reached out and picked up his cup. The moment his fingertips brushed the cup decorated with red poppies he felt a soft crackle, the breaking of a Kidō. Examining the residue without giving the appearance of doing so he was simultaneously concerned and flattered. As he had begun to discover, so much of what Aizen said was in the small details. The most jarring of these things was his continual awareness of Kisuke's presence, one which he had only just begun to understand the reason for, the second the Hanakotoba he laced throughout his interactions with others.

Kisuke had never really been a fan of the language of flowers, but he had memorized the meanings once he had realized just how much Aizen was willing to say with them. Red poppies meant fun-loving, pleasure, and fantastic extravagance, and therein lie Kisuke's dislike of the language. There was no subject or object, only verbs. The presence of the red poppies could mean an array of things. Aizen could be saying that he found pleasure in his visits, he could be saying that he knew that Kisuke was not on top of his game and was anticipating teasing him mercilessly, or he could be saying only that he found every time he partook of tea to be a fantastic extravagance and expected Kisuke to feel the same.

The crackle of breaking Kidō was the collapse of a poorly cast fire based Kidō. Given that Aizen was a Kidō master of such skill that even Tessai hesitated to say who of them was superior, it was highly unlikely that the weak Kidō had been a mistake... and far more likely that Aizen Sōsuke had taken the time to make sure that the cup of tea had stayed warm, but not so hot that it evaporated to nothing but dregs while Kisuke dithered over his approach.

That subtle detail greatly clarified what Aizen intended to say with the flowers painted on the teacup he had chosen for their routine meeting. To avoid responding to the message, or perhaps giving his own subtle response, he takes a sip. Earl Grey. He sets the cup down, raising his eyes from contemplating the cup and finds the retired tyrant leaned forwards, elbow on the table and amused smile a whisper on his lips. Aizen sets down his tea and reaches out, middle finger pressed on top of his index and gently taps the middle of the table "Black, the center of a 19x19 territory grid."

Kisuke stalls for a moment, taking another sip of his tea. On one hand, he could allow himself to be taken in, no doubt that it would be very engaging, to indulge in a mental game of Go with Aizen Sōsuke. If nothing else the required concentration would finally let him stop ruminating over the minor frustrations he had been unable to divest himself of. There was also a chance that he may be able to tease further information out of his opponent if he were distracted by the game... if Aizen didn't intend to play that game at the same time. On the other hand he could become so frustrated by his lack of success in either matter that he wound up taking Benihime in hand and solving all of their questions once and for all.

Never taking his eyes off of his opponent, he too reaches out and places an imaginary white piece on the table, laying claim to territory in his bottom left corner. The smile that spreads across his opponents face sets the tone for the most frustrating game Kisuke has ever played. Most people, if they dared to play this way at all, restricted themselves to 9x9 areas, clearly Aizen wanted a challenge now that he wasn't moving around the people that could have been his friends as if they were stones. Kisuke would just have to endeavor to give him one, "Then I must be white. I expect the full 6.5 Komi you charming bastard."

A laugh is his only response as Aizen places his next piece. There is silence and concentration on both ends of the table for nearly an hour before Aizen rises from his seat to brew another pot of tea and Kisuke dares to begin a game of his own. "I'm curious." Aizen turns and glances over his shoulder, an eyebrow raised in inquiry. Tilting his head slightly to the side, sending his eyes into the shadow of the brim of his hat as the sun sets outside of the patio across the room. "May I inquire, how is it that you are remaining fit? None of the guards have observed you exercising, and you cannot convince me that you gain anything while you are training Orihime-chan. After so many months of captivity and copious amounts of tea you should have at least lost some definition."

The question gets him a soft laugh and a bemused head shake, "The down side to using academy students as guards is that few of them have the discipline to remain awake all night. When they fall asleep, and most of them do, I head down to the delightful training ground you created to avoid disturbing them. Children need their sleep, it's cruel to keep them awake all night and then expect them to perform well during classes the next day. By the way, did you know that it was surprisingly easy to cast Iyashino Suimin, The Healing Slumber on someone without touching them if they are physically drained and tired from a long day of classes?"

Very carefully Kisuke avoids responding more than necessary to that bombshell. Not only did Aizen admit to multiple, reliable periods of time where he was completely without supervision and undetectable, he also admitted to knowing about a secret he had shared only with Yoruichi-san and Tessai. None of the of the Onmitsukidō or any Kidō Corps members had detected the hidden entrance, or the layers and layers of space manipulating, barrier and secrecy Kidō that created and shielded the training grounds.

The secret training ground underneath Sōkyoku plateau may have been the first training ground that he had ever constructed, but very few changes had been implemented when he created the one under his Candy Shop. It was a fortress of secrecy and Aizen had been given plenty of opportunity to get up to all manner of nefarious plotting without anyone knowing the wiser.

Taking a sip of his tea to buy more time, completely ignoring the fact that the both of them knew that the cup was empty, a misstep. "And how did you find the accommodations? Were they satisfactory even though I haven't had time to take care of the facilities since you saw fit to frame me?" The kettle whistles, and Aizen turns away to turn off the heat. Glancing back over his shoulder, an intense look of contemplation on his face as he silently regards Kisuke, before he turns back to the tea pot and dumps out the fresh earl grey leaves he had added.

He rinses out the pot, and sets it back on the cozy before reaching out and opening a cabinet full of individually packed ingredients, each labeled in Aizen's handwriting. Attentively, Kisuke watches from beneath the brim of his hat as the dark haired man prepares an herbal tea. Equal proportions from containers labeled Honeysuckle, Hibiscus, and Chrysanthemum disappearing into the teapot. Kisuke knows what is being said before his opponent even makes it back to the table and sets the pot to the side to steep while they continue both their games. Somehow, in spite of Aizen Sōsuke's fear, Kisuke had earned a generous gentle truth.

His opponent places the next black piece on the board, tracking the move, Kisuke holds back a curse as he realizes that he has just lost a group. Sōsuke is making the moves to remove the imaginary pieces from the board when he verbally responds to Kisuke's question, "They are quite satisfactory. There is room enough to run laps, even at speed with the fullest measure of shunpo, and enough shielding that even the more unapologetically cataclysmic Kidō fail to even rattle the barrier. My only complaint is that the last persons to use it left quite a mess and I had to clean up after them before I could begin using the facilities. There were broken pieces of Tenshintai all over the place. When you see them next, please ask your Kitty and your student to clean up after themselves."

Kisuke takes a moment to ponder the hidden meanings in that statement and then places his next piece. The most concerning of these being the fact that Aizen knew about the Tenshintai, and most likely knew that they could be used to achieve Bankai even though they were a secret invention that Kisuke had given only to the Onmitsukidō. Hopefully for his pride, Aizen was not aware that he had only invented the means to manifest the Zanpakutō spirit outside of the Shinigami's inner world so that Kisuke could stop feeling quite so inadequate when he compared his lack of Bankai to the man who had managed to defeat an Adjuchas class hollow with his unmastered Bankai.

"I'll be sure to do that, however Yoruichi-san is her own woman, and Ichigo-kun is a very stubborn, excitable boy. So I can make no promises that they won't do it again." He gets a hand wave of forgiveness and another lost group for his trouble. There had been a chance that Aizen's memory retention would be greater than his own with the amount of information he had to keep track of for his treacherous plans, but this was getting ridiculous. Kisuke had been unable to capture more than a handful of groups, each only a few stones, however Aizen had captured nearly a full order of magnitude more. At this rate he should have demanded the bastard take a 65 point handicap for making the first move!

Kisuke has his arm stretched out across the table to place his next piece when Aizen issues his first verbal riposte in their game of Generous Gentle Truth, "May I inquire, from your perspective, how is the Gotei 13 and the slowly reforming Central 46, finding their new position? Are they beginning to see the benefit in accepting all of the other races or are they struggling with feelings of inadequacy?"

The piece never makes it to the table, his had remaining frozen in the air as he stares wide eyed at his opponent. His hand closes into a fist and he slowly pulls it back. Eyes cautious, fight or flight sending tendrils of adrenaline through his body, he quietly breaths out his response, "I am afraid you are going to have to be more specific than that. We could be here for weeks as I descended into a dissertation on the matter."

Kami but the smile that gets, him is a wicked, self aggrandizing thing. "While I am curious enough to listen to a dissertation on the subject, at the moment I am more interested in the most recent kerfuffle. I find the chain of events intriguing; because the shinigami were forced to attempt some manner of peace with the Arrancar and the Visored, there was an Arrancar, one of my former Espada no less, available and capable of bringing Xcution and all of its Fullbringer into the Council of Souls. And because of that, their leader became an emissary who then made a trip to Seireitei. Ginjo-kun who has the distinction of being both a former shinigami substitute and a Fullbringer and thus requiring a different tuning for the spirit exchangers to avoid falling into the Dangai... not that you thought to check before you opened it up to send him through."

Kisuke remains silent, equally fascinated and terrified by Aizen's ability to remain well informed about matters that had not only happened only this morning as measured by Seireitei, but had also, for security reasons not been shared with anyone outside of those involved... and in such detail that he would probably have to be omnipresent to acquire. It had seemed a paltry lie at first, that a few Espada and Visored could be a threat great enough to end the Million year dynasty of Seireitei. But Aizen Sōsuke's promise had come true. The shinigami were no longer in a position that would allow them another genocide and likely never would be again.

"However because of that serendipitous accident he was able to walk through the Dangai instead and quite easily noticed the developing Valley of Screams, and the Dark Ones sneaking into it. As someone who was not a Shinigami, and thus not in any way related to the banishment of the Noble house of Ryōdoji. Tragically forced into the Dangai to scavenge for food and eternally flee from the Kōtotsu, he was in the perfect position to offer them a way out and plenty of allies in the Council of Souls. Ultimately defeating another enemy Seireitei had created for themselves without a drop of blood being split and further ensuring an adequate group of like minded people were ready and waiting should Seireitei attempt another genocide."

"I do not wish to dredge up uncomfortable reminders, though I do wish to say that I disagree with the sōtaichō claiming you planned the whole thing entirely. I do not understand why you would have any stake in the matter when it is I who has the most to gain from the political turmoil that promises to set back the reformation of the Central 46 for at least another year."

That... that bastard... That utter bastard! Kisuke rises to his feet, slamming his hands down on the table, all thoughts of their imaginary game of Go far from his mind, "Again! You dare to fucking frame me again!?" The picture of nonchalance, Aizen raises an eyebrow over his tea, smiles and says, "No?"

Incandescent with rage, normal inhibitions smothered by the countless tiny frustrations that had been picking at him all day and the continued aggravation from Aizen; Kisuke jumped across the table. Benihime was pulled from her sheath and completely pressured into Shikai with nothing but emotion to sustain the transformation, before he even registers the fact that he has his Zanpakutō pressed into the bastard's throat. A fine trickle of blood disappearing into Aizen's Haori even as the man's tea cup clatters to the floor, the contents of his cup hot and wet where they spilled onto Kisuke's skin.

Breathing heavy he leans forward, trapping Aizen against the back of his chair even as Kisuke curls his freehand into the others clothes. Attempting to regain some form control over himself he tries to regulate his breathing only to be further incensed when Aizen dares to add oil to the fire, "Perhaps now would be a bad time to mention that you really should look at the 6th page of your calculations, as the rules of mathematics haven't changed so much that pluses magically transform into minuses without reason, even when attempting to apply said mathematics to calculating concentrations of Reiryoku?"

With a muffled scream he tightens his grip, the door clattering behind him as the guards finally realize something is happening inside the room. Ignoring them he leans in, nearly lifting the other shinigami enough to send the chair toppling to the floor, his Reiatsu pulsing under his skin desperate to escape his control, he hisses, "Do you want me to kill you!? Because I can. I was a captain in the Onmitsukidō. I'm still very good at it. And you've given me more than enough reason…"

His rage is neither soothed or lessened when Aizen less than subtly waives the guards away, "I'm quite all right, return to your posts." As the door shuts he returns his attention to Kisuke, who can see the hundreds of different shades of brown in Aizen's eyes from this close, colors subtly changing when the man blinks and spreads another layer of moisture over his irises. The man under his hands trembles faintly even as a frown slowly spreads across his face. He speaks gently, as if Kisuke were a wild animal and not a deadly Onmitsukidō turned taichō of the Gotei 13 turned betrayed scapegoat hiding away in the world of the living before finally being exonerated by the very man that had framed him to begin with... only to be framed again. He takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly to calm his runaway thoughts before they turn into a self-perpetuating maelstrom of recrimination.

"I do not know what I can say to convince you Urahara-san. My only defense is that I would not frame you again when it would cause Orihime-chan to be dissapointed in me." The hand he had used to waive away the guards remains up and away in a show of submission, even as the other slowly rises to gently pat the hand fisted in his Haori. A fragile, tentative smile trembles on the face of the man he has at his mercy, "I am sorry to have to be the one to tell you this Urahara-san, but good things happen to bad people just as often as bad things happen to good people. The only surprise in this matter is that for once, I did nothing to encourage it."

With a huff, Kisuke lets him go, rising to his feet and lightly hopping to the floor to avoid walking on the table. Without further ado, Kisuke scans the room searching for Benihime's sheath and releases her from Shikai, the soft laughter of her amusement ringing in his ears. He was going to hear about this later he was sure. He finds it across the room pierced cleanly through an antique vase filled with fresh flowers. Everything is cleaned and returned to its proper position and Kisuke is considering attempting to mold Reishi to repair the vase when he feels a soft pulse of Reiatsu behind him.

Tense and alert, his Zanpakutō was once more in his hands, as he crouched ready and waiting facing his attacker... only to find Aizen still seated and faced away from him, hands up to his neck clearly glowing green with the 5th Rite of Kaidō. The dark haired man slowly turns his head to look over his shoulder at him, blank expression on his face, "May I continue or should I refrain from pointless endeavors?" Sheathing Benihime once more Kisuke drags his hat off of his head to run his fingers through his hair in frustration with a long deep sigh.

Taking this as permission, Aizen finishes healing the cut to his neck. His hands fall into his lap though he never turns his stare away from Kisuke, still without an expression on his face, and thus giving away the fact that he clearly felt somethingabout Kisuke's uncharacteristic display of emotion, even if he could only guess at what it was.

"At the risk of putting myself in harms way for someone unlikely to appreciate it, I must say that you appear... tense. Perhaps instead of continuing our games we should instead sneak down to the secret training area for a spar?" Negligently gesturing to his person, "As Kyōka Suigetsu is being held hostage by Unohana-taichō in the 4th division, in the spirit of fair play I will have to ask that you refrain from drawing Benihime and limit yourself to Hakuda and Hohō. Given that the purpose is one of relaxation and not devastation it would likely also be for the best if we refrained from using Kidō as well, though I am loathe to give up the advantage."

Unwilling to fall into a trap, and yet so mentally exhausted by it all, Kisuke flat out asks, "And what do you gain from such an offer? I doubt that you make it out of a sense of altruism." As if sensing capitulation, the other man rises to his feet and takes a moment to straighten his mussed clothes. "It may have been a while since you last put your skills into practice, but I do recall you being an impressive expert in the field, a necessity given the fact that you were not allowed to take your Zanpakutō into the Onmitsukidō Detention center and thus had to subjugate your prisoners with hand to hand combat and non-lethal Kidō. Personally, I have sworn myself to no art but that of Kyōka Suigetsu's Complete Hypnosis. All of my skills are little more than framework to support the skill. I will no doubt find it educational, though I must insist you go easy on me. We wouldn't want anyone to accuse you of torturing the prisoner."

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

"Aizen, I find that I must bow to your wisdom. The sight of your face covered in bruises does wonders for my stress levels." The battered man sitting on the rock opposite him slowly spreading green healing Kaidō across his skin snorts, "Urahara-san, I have your fingerprints painted in bruises up and down my arms from those ridiculously effective throws of yours, at least give me the respect of calling me by my given name."

Truthfully they were both covered in bruises and the occasional bit of broken skin, though Kisuke's knuckles and ribs seemed to have taken the brunt of it. Even if he had gotten embarrassingly rusty right along with Yoruichi-san there was only one reason he had lost the impromptu sparring match, pinned to the ground, right arm twisted back behind his back in a way he couldn't shake free of.

Unsurprisingly Sōsuke was a dirty dirty liar. "I realize that hitting the ground so thoroughly and so often is bad for the state of your memory so allow me to remind you, my name is Kisuke, Sōsuke-san." The man healing himself pauses and glances up at him without turning his head. His expression is unreadable for a moment before he closes his eyes with a sigh, shakes his head and resumes healing himself. "You may consider me reminded Kisuke-san."

As he finishes healing himself the, significantly less aggravating than earlier, bastard holds his still glowing hands up in offering. Relaxed, but not quite that relaxed, Kisuke shakes his head, receiving only a shrug, "Perhaps next time." Together the two of them walk back to the entrance to the secret training ground and go back to Senzaikyū. The guards stare at the two of them in poorly concealed horror making him laugh. Something tickles the back of Kisuke's mind as he does so, but it disappears just as quickly as it came and he is too high on post-combat endorphin's to care enough to chase it down.

Competitive streak fully engaged and needing some sort of compensation for his earlier defeat, Kisuke walks over to the table. Eyes boring into Sōsuke's he finally makes the move he had aborted earlier. He gets a laugh for his trouble as the man moves over to the table and taps the tea pot, a soft puff of Reiatsu giving away that he had once more used a Kidō meant for burning the flesh off of an opponent without damaging any metal they were wearing... for the auspicious task of reheating tea. The only person Kisuke had ever met that dared to use their incredible power for something so banal was the sotaicho who used the aura of Ryūjin Jakka to cook food.

Sōsuke makes the next move, before leaning back in his chair, significantly less malevolent smirk on his face, and resumes their other game as well, "May I inquire, how you intend to win this game distracted by broken ribs?" Kisuke snorts, "No Sōsuke-san, you may not inquire. But if you are concerned, please be reassured that my ability to memorize trivial information remains unsurpassed."

Several moves later, Sōsuke's eyebrow getting higher and higher on his head in a childish goad to riposte, Kisuke decides that he is quite done trying to pull secrets out of the charming bastard for today and settles for something as innocuous as Sōsuke's question. "May I inquire, if you had become a minus instead of a plus, what animal would have been your anima?" Karma, being the vacillating bitch that she was, gives Kisuke a greater insight as to the inner workings of the retired tyrant than any of the sneaky questions he could have posed.

With a thoughtful frown, brown eyes focused on the table, the other man makes his next move. "A spider… or perhaps a butterfly…" Kisuke lay's a white piece down, "Oh? Why is that?", Sōsuke another black "I owe the entirety of my success to the plans I have created...", he swishes his free hand in the air, "...metaphorical webs…" Kisuke finally lays claim to a respectable group of his opponents black stones and laughs "It certainly wasn't with your Hakuda skills. How many times did I manage to throw you before you cheated?" Sōsuke pointedly ignores him, choosing instead to pour the tea, though Kisuke does get a brief frown for his barb, "...and the other for its metamorphosis. I despise stagnation. And you?" he holds the tea pot up in offering.

Kisuke grins accepting both offers, and in the spirit of keeping things light hearted, he says, "Something with lots and lots of tentacles.", and giggles perversely. Consequently, even the guard that had followed them inside, a subtle reprimand for his earlier behavior, clearly getting the hint that there was something perverted in his choice of anima. Naturally Sōsuke completely disregards Kisuke's expected response, and again that eyebrow comes back into play rising to express its owner's complete disbelief. They were very expressive, Sōsuke's eyebrows... and on that note clearly he had suffered some brain damage from their spar and should have allowed the former member of the 4thdivision to heal him.

"I'm sure it has nothing whatsoever to do with how many experiments you could perform at once, or the fact that you wouldn't have to stop the experiment to write down your notes since you hate talking out loud to an electronic system." A bit in shock at the perceptive rejoinder he stops giggling instantly, staring at Sōsuke as he makes his next move… It is only due to his intense scrutiny that he notices the flicker Sōsuke's eyes make down to the empty table... and realizes that his opponent had done so every time he made a move. It caused a thought to cross his mind, one he had never before considered, presuming that Sōsuke's god complex also prohibited surrendering any form of power, even to his own Zanpakutō spirit.

"Sōsuke-san… are you under the Complete Hypnosis yourself?" He is rewarded with a bland expression that clearly states without words, {and this surprises you why?} That... that... "That's Cheating!" Sōsuke snorts, and rolls his eyes before completely surrounding Kisuke's largest group removing his last liberty and begins to gather the defeated pieces. "I'm only using an advanced visualization skill… don't be jealous Kisuke-san. I would share if you asked."

Kisuke throws back the rest of his tea before grumbling, "Yes, I'm sure you would. No wonder I was resoundingly defeated. I surrender." He frowns, serious once more, "Sōsuke-san… Giving a zanpakutō so much control over…" He is interrupted by a no-nonsense glare from the other side of the table. Sōsuke waspishly retorts without turning his head up from the board, chin tilted down to his chest, "You had best think carefully about the rest of that sentence Urahara-san." Kisuke flinches, back to Urahara-san again now was he?

Sōsuke leans back in his chair, tilting his head with a mysterious smirk, "Modification of the Crimson Princess' Dissection at the Doors of Avalokiteśvara." Wide eyed in surprise… Kisuke once again completely forgot about their imaginary game of go… Sōsuke's smile is a secretive thing, "Pot, kettle Kisuke-san… pot. Kettle."

"I don't even want to know how you know the release phrase and name of my Bankai. Particularly as I haven't used it since I took my taichō exam, of which only the Kuchiki Ginrei, Unohana Retsu and the sōtaichō oversaw... while you were still a 3rd seat in the 13th division." Anything he would have said further is interrupted by a snore. Blinking, Kisuke looks over his shoulder at the guard slumped against the wall next to the door. Sōsuke was right, they did look very young when they fell asleep.

He takes a moment to check the time only to find out that it was 6... am in the morning and he had been there for nearly 18 hours. Surprised, because he hadn't ever lost track of time that badly outside of an experiment, he rises to take his leave, "On that note I do believe that it's time I sought out my own rest." Sōsuke does as he has always done when Kisuke came to visit. He raised his teacup in a salute and said, "I look forward to your next visit." He does something different then and adds, "Have a safe trip home, Kisuke-san."

It is only as he leaves in the early light of dawn, the guards not even noticing him as he passes by, that the thought that had tickled his mind over 12 hours ago as he and Sōsuke walked back to Senzaikyū returns to his mind. Kisuke had laughed. The fact that he hadn't laughed for such a carefree reason since his banishment aside, he had laughed because the guards had seen the two of them and been horror stricken. Kisuke had been amused when the academy student had completely given away the fact that they believed that Sōsuke had taken him outside and beat the stuffing out of him in reprisal for the insult of Kisuke drawing his blade on the charming bastard earlier.

Though Kisuke was sure that there would be hell to pay later, the consequences of that opinion were not important, something else was. Kisuke had been walking as he normally did. He had been walking like an Onmitsukidō, his steps completely silent even as they crossed the bridge into Senzaikyū. He turns and stares up at the prison, Sōkyoku hill standing like an executioner behind it and tiny white leaves falling from the sky like tears for the dead.

Both times he had walked beside Aizen Sōsuke, from that first instance just after the strange blue lotus phenomenon and whatever shenanigans he had been up to, to the most recent instance just hours ago, when he walked beside Sōsuke, no one forgot that he was there... and his genius intellect had no idea what to make of that inclusion.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 24 : Bastard: the other word for GOD

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Sōsuke only became aware that something was happening in the world of the living when Rukia-chan called all of the defenders of Karakura town to Kisuke-san's candy shop for a meeting. He likely wouldn't have even known what was happening until they were fighting on Sōkyoku hill, if he had not been watching his favorite soul through the Complete Hypnosis.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Rukia-chan sums up the situation for them with a succinct, "Every decade, the Ōin, the soul king's personal seal is moved from one hiding location in the world of the living to another. The 10th division was chosen to guard the caravan of the kings most loyal servants as they did so. There was an altercation and now not only is Hitsugaya-taichō missing, but so is the Ōin. As he abandoned his subordinates at the site of the incident and taichō Haori at Ichigo's house we can only assume that he has betrayed Seireitei willingly. Our ambassadors have reached out to the Council of Souls, but no one has heard anything yet, and it is highly likely that the Ōin and missing taichō are in the world of the living."

Orihime was worried for her friend. What would make her favorite house guest abandon his post? Had he really stolen the Ōin, what mystical powers did the Soul King's seal even have? And for that matter if it was that important why didn't the Soul King keep it on his desk? Surely it would be harder to break into his palace than to figure out where it was in the world of the living, even if they did move it around every 10 human years.

Seeing as how Hitsugaya-san was as secretive about his past as Urahara-san, neither his fukutaichō or childhood friend Momo-chan knowing anything about who Kusaka-san was in relation to him; she decided that she may as well turn to the next highest power. Everyone turns to stare at her incredulously as she giggles, recalling the scene in "The Third Reincarnation" where Kānēshon Higurashi had turned to the next highest power, the internet. Since he had an answer for everything, did that mean Sōsuke-nii was the internet? There may be hope yet for her dream of becoming a robot like the kind in the sci-fi movies she liked to watch. Her giggle trails off in embarrassment as she jerks up her hand, single finger pointed upwards, "One second!"

They continue to stare in silence as she looks up at the ceiling, "Sōsuke-nii, would you mind helping us find Hitsugaya-san? Do you know anything about what's going on?" She feels a pat on her shoulder and smiles as she hears him whisper in her ear, "One moment, my dear."

She grins and nods before turning to her friends. Her elation breaks for a moment at the looks on their faces. Even though they were trying to hide it... it was clear that most of them thought she had finally gone off the deep end. The only one who was at least trying to give her some benefit of the doubt was also the only one who had visited with Sōsuke-nii even more than she did and Urahara-san had even more reason to be suspicious than anyone else.

She sighs and turns to Momo-chan, seated next to her and clearly the only one who believed her wholeheartedly. "Sōsuke-nii said that he would take a look for us!" The tiny shinigami smiles back brightly, "Yes! He said the same thing to me as well." The dark haired girl shakes her head, "He told me not to worry, as he would have information soon. As if there was any doubt with most of the souls in Seireitei under the Complete Hypnosis. I only worry about how much strain it puts him under to use the ability without the Zanpakutō in his hands."

The room is dead silent as the two girls realize the secret they have given away. Eyes wide they stare at each other in horror before turning slowly to look at the others in the room. There is a lot of silent staring that happens over the next few minutes.

Kisuke is torn, perhaps the silence could have been broken by Ichigo-kun, but since the boy was one of the few people who was guaranteed not to be under Sōsuke's influence, he was not emotionally invested. That left it up to Kisuke to break the oppressive silence, "I don't see why everyone is so surprised. It isn't as if it wasn't something many of us already suspected. A Complete Hypnosis wouldn't be very complete, if it only affected people intermittently now would it."

The room is saved from further awkwardness when Orihime's hell butterfly, Wasabi Green, flutters into the room and circles her once before landing on her fingertip. With a cry of elation, she turns to her friends to share the good news.

Once again a difficult and painful quest had been made easy by the one soul that had been their greatest enemy, once upon a timeline.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Kusaka was infuriated. How did they keep tracking him down! To escape the most recent attempt to capture him, he had been forced to to sacrifice his Arrancar Yin and Yang as a distraction. They were giving the shinigami a run for their money right now, but with the odds stacked against them like this it was unlikely that they would make it out alive. They... were not as disposable as he would like to pretend they were. Hyōrinmaru refused to obey his commands, refused to allow him to even pretend at using the Zanpakutō Spirit's Bankai.

With out the ability for Bankai, mastery of the Ōin was equally as futile and would only result in the destruction of the universe. He might very well do it anyways if it was the only revenge he would be able to get against Tōshirō for daring to have the same Zanpakutō spirit as himself... and against Seireitei and the Central 46 for their arbitrary rules that only served to display their power by forcing everyone else to live by their harsh codes of conduct.

He wondered what the end of the universe looked like, when space, time, energy and matter broke down.

The Divine Order of it all collapsing into a cesspool of chaos.

With an insane grin on his face, he uses the Ōin to teleport around without rhyme or reason, pausing between each location only long enough to try to sense the Reiatsu of the one person he would take with him to see the show.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

It is a very frustrated Sōsuke who looses sight of Kusaka, again. My but it was irritating being on this side of a teleportation spell. The deranged soul had been accidentally resurrected when Toshiro-kun accidentally touched the Ōin and the seal responded to his most deepest regret, and was now causing all sorts of chaos. While Sōsuke was uniquely placed to fully sympathize with the boy's unshakable hatred for the Central 46, there was nothing in the realms of all things sacred or profane that would convince him that it was a good idea to let the boy remain in possession of what was the physical manifestation of the Primary Operator seat for the combined domain vessels, The Soul Society, The Hell Verse and El Hueco Mundo.

Dekuyume's trial to program the Global Fate Matrix for this dimension may have seen to it that the object had far less impact that it should have otherwise had, but that did not make it any less dangerous in the hands of someone who may very well be insane enough to damage it... Even if the Soul King had specifically set it up so that Zanpakutō and Bankai could not destroy it, it still remained part of the domain and damaging the domain of a Kami also did comparable damage to the Kami as well.

With a huff of irritation, he realizes that his only hope of finding where Kusaka had taken the Ōin, was Toshiro-kun who was unconscious and thus unable to provide any information to Sōsuke through the Complete Hypnosis. Kyō-kun pats him on the shoulder, "It's all right Sōsuke. We will find him soon."

Sōsuke nods, considering the unfortunate situation even as he feels Kyō-kun begin to search through all of the souls held in their sway as if they were channels on a television. Pity he couldn't tell the boy that the Central 46 ruling that there could be no one with the same Zanpakutō spirit as any one else had less to do with their arrogance and more to do with protecting the soul of the person that had done so. Zanpakutō spirits were unique to a soul, that there were two people with the same one meant that one of them was the reincarnation of the other. There was a very real risk of inciting Doppelganger Sickness if the two were to fight each other with intent to kill, thus with the unusual test The Central 46 had come up with to decide who to spare and who to send on to their next reincarnation. Unfortunately even if he chose to speak of it, only Orihime-chan would believe him.

They are distracted by The Dreaming Kami, who giggles, "Sōsuke-nii! Come over here and look!" Bemused, Sōsuke walks over to the balcony, Kyō-kun following behind. The tiny girl, her white wings nearly invisible against the white of the taichō's Haori she wore rocks back and forth on her feet, excited grin on her face as she points over the railing to the top of Sōkyoku hill. Standing in the open clearing over the hanging neck of the hill, was none other than Kusaka, ranting to the unconscious form of his reincarnation prone at his feet.

With a glance at his Zanpakutō spirit, who nods and begins informing the people waiting in the world of the living for information though Orihime-chan, Sōsuke Higurashi enters stage left. It appeared that handling this would be up to him as none of the shinigami living in Seireitei appeared to have even noticed the appearance of their quarry. Clearly, the Onmitsukidō had suffered exponentially under the direction of Suì-Fēng. Yoruichi-san and Kisuke-san never would have allowed their subordinates to slack so thoroughly that they completely missed the appearance of another Reiatsu signature close to a high priority target like Sōsuke.

There is a scramble across dimensions and the Senkaimon works double time to get everyone into Seireitei at the same time. There is a rush of people who head to Sōkyoku hill, the shinigami of the Gotei 13 shouting questions as the people furthest from the scene manage to know more about the situation than those who had it happen in their own backyard.

It is a crowd with mixed information and convoluted motives that arrives at the top of Sōkyoku hill in time to hear Kusaka shout "Tōshirō!, I am going to use the Ōin to become Soul King! The Central 46 and all of their arbitrary, pointlessly cruel rules will be abolished!"

"Ku. Ku. Ku." The madman's tirade is halted with the laughter of Aizen Sōsuke who they were all startled to find negligently leaning against the sealed form of the Sōkyoku. The retired tyrant had freely roamed all of Senzaikyū and Sōkyoku hill, occasionally even into the rest of Seireitei under the watchful eyes of his visitors, guards and unnerved former comrades, in spite of the fact that he was technically the prisoner of the Central 46. They all knew his face because of those jaunts and anyone who had been willing to attempt to take Kusaka and the 10th division taichō into custody was instantly cowed by the presence of the most dangerous man in Seireitei. They can only watch as he brought his hands together in a very slow clap and wearing a mocking smile. "Bravo, Bravo. Did you think that up yourself, because I smell copyright infringement."

Before the retired tyrant can do much more than that, there is a clash of blades as the battered Hitsugaya-taichō uses the distraction to stagger to his feet, lurching towards Kusaka who had been standing over him. An even larger crowd gathers as the ambassadors from the Council of Souls arrive with the sōtaichō and a few straggling taichō and fukutaichō.

The twin blades scream against one another as their respective wielders pull away from one another, an unusual howl that no one has ever heard before. Sōsuke knows that it is the only warning that the two reincarnations will ever get. It is also the only warning Sōsuke receives as the flash of light between the blades reveals that Kusaka had thrown the Ōin between the two of them.

The king's seal had been cut simultaneously by the past and future reincarnation of that soul and was instantly thrown into chaos. Tōshirō disperses into a billowing cloud of snow, ice, and mist as his past incarnation tilts his head back and laughs as he is wholly encased in the cloud and begins to turn into living ice.

He is still laughing even as his head is covered and he transforms into a giant icy dragon, the darkened form of the Ōin glowing on his forehead. This of course sends all the excitable children into action, those that were actually still young like Ichigo-kun, those that refused to grow up like Hiyori-chan and those that would take any excuse to fight like Kenpachi descended on Kusaka turning the area around the dragon into a convoluted mess.

A fruitless one as well if the shouts of irritation were anything to go by. With the Ōin more or less obeying his will, and with the fight taking place in The Soul Society itself, there was literally no way to directly harm the acting Primary Operator. It becomes even messier when he uses that authority over El Hueco Mundo to also call hollows to the fight.

Weaker souls were already fleeing the area, but not quite fast enough to allow the powerful souls that remained behind to immediately release the full capabilities of their Reiatsu. Orihime-chan simply moves over to his side to seek shelter and speak with him, "Thank you for helping, too bad its going to make this place a mess afterwards." He pat's her on the shoulder, wrapping her in a Reishi-mippuu for protection. "It was no bother."

There is a crash, like the breaking of glass and Toshiro-kun's voice rings out into the air though he remains unseen. "Enough of this! I won't let you destroy everything!" An irate Kusaka shouts back, his voice loud and booming even from this distance away, barely clear over the thrashing of the giant icy dragon, "They betrayed us! How dare you take their side!"

Momo-san, who had snuck up on Sōsuke's other side snorts, no doubt already knowing what her friend would say before he even says it, "You fool! I'm not taking their side! I left behind my rank as a taichō of the Gotei 13 to Save you from yourself!" The giant dragon of ice, Reishi and Ōin begins to shatter and fall apart, the once golden Ōin a dark orb remaining hovering in the air.

There is a murmur to the side, where the 12th division was very busy collecting data, more interested in their science than saving the world. Mayuri-san's voice carries easily, as he informs anyone who cares to listen that the Ōin was not running out of power, but was instead destabilizing and beginning the Spiritual equivalent of a nuclear meltdown. Orihime-chan's soft worried voice cuts through the rest of the conversation as people begin rushing around trying to decide what to do, "Sōsuke-nii, isn't there anything you can do? You know because you were once a Primary Operator?"

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

The last of the foliage that remained of the original memory-vine created for the Third Reincarnation began to yellow.

All the memories it had once contained, held captive by the Dodder that had infested the soul's garden.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

On board The Sacrificial Death, The Shinigami pulled the knife from his mouth and mimicked slitting the throat of his enemy. Laughter fills the Domain Ship, and all of his vassals cower but for one. Namikaze Minato silently watched, as the Kami who had enslaved him stared enraptured at the video feed from the soul camera. He doubted the Kami really knew what he was getting into, picking a fight with the Higurashi. He may not have been one of them, only learning about them from the other poor unfortunate souls who served The Sacrificial Death... pity he hadn't learned sooner, else he would have prayed to the Kami of The Eternal Battlefield instead of seeking the aid of The Shinigami. Dekuyume-sama may as well have been the patron Kami for the shinobi way of life. She may not have been born in their dimension, but they would have welcomed her with open arms had they any inkling she existed somewhere out in The Celestial Ocean.

As the Kami continues to laugh raucously, Minato considers his own past, and just how far he had gone along the path of Yin to protect his precious people... and wonders at the inner strength of someone who had found that path's end, only to turn around.

For the promise of nothing more substantial than faith in another person's kindness.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

The GFM-DCOM of Bleach:12679752 receives the permissions query from the Primary Operator of The Eternal Battlefield.

A program runs

IF [Authority Level] OF [The Eternal Battlefield] () #minimum# Required{[Authority Level]} THEN Open{[command prompt]}OF [The Soul Society]

The authority level of The Eternal Battlefield is found to be greater than the minimum requirement demanded by the Soul King, and so, external access to the operating system of The Soul Society is granted.

A command prompt window opens revealing that out of the 1million entries Dekuyume had been allowed to make, she had used them all... except for one. The cursor began to blink, waiting for input.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Before Sōsuke can even consider a response to her question, a power surges beneath his skin, old and familiar and yet new and foreign at the same time. His breath catches in his throat and words flash across his eyes, granting him insight into the fundamental differences between Sōsuke the reincarnation of Dekuyume and [Dekuyume]Primary Operator{of} [The Eternal Battlefield] even as he is allowed to ignore those very same fundamental differences... Because once upon a dream, she had given him permission to do so.

Slowly, as if the world had slowed down to a one thousandth of its normal speed, his mouth opens to speak. And though it is his voice that carries the words into the air to bend the world to his will... It is her words.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Orihime stares up at her second Aniiki in awe, as his eyes go a very familiar shade of red, even as they seem to zone out, looking at nothing. And then he speaks, painting the universe with words that carry the weight of a Kami's Divinity behind them.

"With the authority granted to me by The Soul Society as a programmer of the local GFM-DCOM, into the prompt, I enter the command line::

[The Soul Society] Return{to} [self] State-Idling-."

Sōsuke is left just as breathless, as he returns to himself, vision graying at the edges as he bends over, gasping for breath. Orihime-chan kneels before him, causing him to look down into her face. Surreptitiously she taps her eyes. Strongly suspecting that he may have gone a little red in the iris, he twists the Complete Hypnosis around himself, the soft tingle in his bones the only hint he has that his Ōken has done the same to the senses of those out of his control.

And then the chaos that was the fight against Kusaka descends upon them instead as Tōshirō-kun reforms next to the golden Ōin; Kusaka sent on a long journey of reincarnation. But no matter how he is asked, Sōsuke refuses to answer, and Orihime-chan claims to know nothing.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

As Lisa Yadōmaru leaves she is plagued by her thoughts... She had been standing close enough to Aizen that it would have been less than a matter of a second, to don her hollow mask and slip her Zanpakutō into his spine if he tried anything. As only a fukutaichō grade soul she may not be strong enough to kill him, but she could damn well cripple him long enough for someone with a little more oomph to finish the job. Because of that proximity she had been close enough to hear the human girl ask him for help. And somehow that strange technobabble he said resulted in the instantaneous halting of the Ōin's out of control reaction. Perhaps even more mysteriously, he had managed to give himself a very brief Reiatsu lull, that last tenuous step right before a full bout of Reiatsu Exhaustion.

Seriously, what in the name of all things manga had he done that would completely deplete all of his currently available Reiatsu without a single physical reaction from his surroundings or even an oscillation in the balance of the worlds?

And why was she more concerned that Orihime-chan had said he was once a Primary Operator?

It sounded so familiar, and for the life of her she couldn't remember why.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 25 : The Hymn of Hell

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Things had been going surprisingly well, for having no long term plans whatsoever beyond ensuring the general happiness of Orihime-chan. One year after abandoning the plan, months before the time that the Fullbringer Arc would have occurred had everything happened according to the plan, Sōsuke reaped the first negative consequence for deviating from the plan.

Sōsuke is enjoying tea with Orihime-chan when he is surprised by Kyo-kun's alarmed cry of "Sōsuke!". The Complete Hypnosis twists around him as the zanpakutō spirit show's him what he is alarmed by. Skulking through Karakura was a Togabito, wrapped in clothing with black and white stripes, face hidden by a mask so that the Kushanāda, the guardians of hell, would not know that a prisoner of The Hell Verse had escaped. It was too soon, it was easily a year early. Quickly he peers through the Complete Hypnosis searching for someone to send to deal with the matter. In the background he feels Kyō-kun continuing to search the world of the living, finding another and then another Togabito.

They could not have picked a worse time to attempt to coerce Ichigo-kun into destroying the chains that bound them to hell. Today, of all days, the Gotei 13, the Council of Souls, and the few confirmed members of the Central 46 were having their first meeting under the watchful eyes of all the people who had a stake in the outcome. Their goal, to lay the foundation for how their interactions would proceed in the future were an incident to occur. This first vital meeting being an open forum to allow the complete transparency needed to prevent old hurts and suspicions from killing any positive repercussions before they had a chance to take root.

Consequently all of Seireitei was in lock down, and Sōsuke had been simultaneously bribed with a midweek visit with Orihime-chan, and threatened with a brutal death at the hands of everyone he had wronged should he attempt to take advantage of the skeleton crew that had been left behind to guard the dimensions. In short, all the people who had been required to handle the Hell Verse Arc Dekuyume had mentioned, were completely absent from Karakura. The only person that was there, was the one person who had been completely absent the first time. Kurosaki Isshin.

Gently, he whispers through the Complete Hypnosis to the former taichō of the 10th division. [Shiba Isshin. Yes, this is Sōsuke, no, I am not there watching you, I am still in Senzaikyū and you are still under the Complete Hypnosis. I need you to listen very carefully to me. Togabito have escaped hell and they are going to kidnap your daughters and hold them hostage to get Ichigo-kun to break their chains and possibly even the gates of Hell. I do not know how they are aware that he is capable of such a thing, I can only tell you that he is. As you are no doubt aware, I created the hollow that you encountered in Naruki city, and because of how you, your wife and Kisuke defeated and sealed it inside of her, it was passed on to Ichigo-kun. White... is uniquely suited to being able to do as they want, even if that was not my intention when it was created. It is of the utmost importance that you pull your daughters from school and get them safely to Kisuke's shop. Tessai-san has remained behind with the children. Not only can he assist with Kidō, he should also be able to get you all the things you need to escape your modified Gigai to take up Engetsu and defend your family.]

He watches with a mixture of horror and rage as the man doesn't even bother to look up from the medical journal he is reading to mutter, "Shove it up your ass and smoke it Aizen. I'm not falling for your trap. If there were Togabito at all, the alarms would have gone off at Urahara's and summoned everyone back."

Hands shaking as he presses them into his tea table, he half rises from his seat, glaring intently at the man through the complete hypnosis. But Isshin continues to ignore him, even though Sōsuke knows that Kyōka Suigetsu has allowed the Gotei 13 defector to see an illusion of Sōsuke standing above his chair, hands pressed into the fabric instead of a table. [Damn you Isshin! I know! I know all right! I know how I am seen with my abilities but damn you! Damn you! They are your Daughters, if only on the smallest chance that it was true you should listen to me and check in on them!]

Collapsing back into his seat as he gives up in the face of the cowardly fool's cultivated apathy. Though he had been invited by the sōtaichō, given that he was sitting at home it was clear that he had refused to be part of the Council of Souls. Sōsuke sighs, a man with the weight of the world on his shoulders, shaking his head in disappointment at how bloody foolish it had been to… to expect anything different. Just barely a living world year, 52 weeks of visits with Orihime-chan… and already he was starting to expect the best from people… how beautifully tragic this peaceful serenity that shebestowed upon him was.

Halfheartedly, he reaches out to Tessai-san repeating his warning. The man is quiet for a moment before murmuring an apology, "I am sorry Aizen-san, but I must remain at the shop. The things in Urahara-sama's lab are more dangerous left unattended than Togabito that are only observing, not attacking. If you can get the Kurosaki girls here I will most certainly watch over them. I am sorry that I cannot be of more assistance."

Wracked with sorrow, feelings transposed from Dekuyume's and possibly even his own, Orihime-chan's voice breaks through to him, "Sōsuke-nii? Are you ok? You've gone really pale." He looks up with eyes he does not know reflect his heart, "There is something terrible happening in the world of the living, and there is no one there willing to stop it." She only smiles brightly at him, "Well, then we'll just have to go get everyone so we can take care of it then won't we?"

Laughing at himself in exasperation, wondering when he became such a defeatist he rises and holds his hand out to her. She takes his hand and arm in arm, they turn to the mirror. It ripples open without a word as Kyō-kun opens it for them. Orihime-chan lets out a soft "Oh!". Glancing down at her he is surprised to discover that she is staring at his Zanpakutō spirit. Heart warmed by the spirit's acceptance, but not in any position to talk about it in the rush, he can only smile gratefully. The spirit bows, a smirk on his plum colored lips before vanishing in a puff of silver, indigo and plum colored sparkles. The smile on the human girl's face is contagious as she giggles, "Sōsuke-nii, Kyōka Suigetsu is very beautiful."

They step into the tiny dimension, the spirits flirtatious laughter in their ears, "Oh I know, though it is nice to hear you say so." Sōsuke shakes his head at the spirit's antics, and shuts the door behind them. He walks across the room and collects his zanpakutō fastening it to his waist and allowing the familiar weight to settle against him. His fights with Baraggan and spars with Kisuke had reinforced one thing. He was a poor opponent without the ability to drown his opponent in the Complete Hypnosis. It was equally as rude to force The Dreaming Kami to do all the work as well.

As he walks back over, the door opens once more, this time revealing the 5th Division office. They step through and with a grin, Sōsuke scoops Orihime-chan up into his arms, she yelps in surprise and he takes off with shunpo. The mirror ripples closed behind them. Within moments they are in the courtyard of the first division where the meeting was being held. There is a cry of alarm as he appears, many reaching for weapons, only to halt in surprise, when Sōsuke does not approach any of the members of the Council of Souls, Central 46 or taichō of the Gotei 13. He stops in front of Ichigo-kun, his Fullbringer, and Quincy Nakama standing next to him to observe the proceedings. He gently sets Orihime-chan on her feet, anything the three boys might have said completely halted by the serious look of determination in his eyes. Sōsuke opens his mouth to speak, only clench his jaw in anger, "Orihime-chan, they're starting, explain and follow as quickly as you can. Sentan Hakuja"

The white coils of the transportation Kidō wrap around him and carry him away before anyone can do anything more than gape.

Just as he completely disappears, a runner makes it to the gates of the division and shouts, "Aizen Sōsuke has escaped Senzaikyū!"

The person that makes it to the gates right behind him cusses fluently, and in an aggravated voice shares more bad news, "16th seated officer of the 4th division, reporting the disappearance of Kyōka Suigetsu from the 4th division weapons locker."

"Of course they are, prisoners have escaped Hell and are trying to kidnap Kurosaki-kun's imouto for ransom and no one is there to stop them." As one the gathered souls from all flavors of the spectrum from plus to minus turn to stare at Orihime Inoue. Slightly unnerved, she continues to explain, the soft murmur of Kyōka Suigetsu in her ears.

As the masses around her begin to start asking her for answers to the things that she does not know, she turns to look for help from her friends. Ishida-kun and Sado-kun were there right behind her. She was both unsurprised and dissapointed to find that Kurosaki-kun had already abandoned her to rush off to the Senkaimon. Her hands grip together tightly as the voices get crueler in their demands for information. Only to be cut off by a flare of Reiatsu, and hidden from sight by a large black wing. A Garganta opens behind her, revealing the black abyss, "Come Orihime Inoue, I will take you to the living world. As I have come to learn, Aizen-sama is not perfect, and requires the strength of your kindness to remain strong... as do I."

Without an ounce of fear of the Arrancar that had kidnapped her what felt like forever ago, she takes his hand. With a Sonido, they are through the portal and already stepping out into the world of the living. Marveling at how strange it felt to be still composed of spirit particles in the world of the living, not having gone through the special Senkaimon that was needed to change her spirit particles for living particles, she almost misses the arrival of all of the people who had dared to take advantage of the open portal.

It was a mixed group of Shinigami, Visored, Arrancar, and Fullbringer that feel the pulse of Hollow Reiatsu as Ichigo pulls on his mask. They rush to the scene, finding it in chaos. The girls had been ambushed on their way home from school. Their father was on the ground, on his knees staring in horror, too human to help, to aware to stand underneath the Reiatsu pressure being exerted by his son. Karin and Yuzu unconscious in the hands of a Togabito, devoid of a mask, the grizzled old man laughing as he was dragged into hell, "I win Aizen Sōsuke! Your Complete Hypnosis can confuse my senses all you want! It does nothing to prevent me from pulling the mask off of my face and allowing the Kushanāda to drag me back!"

The gates of hell snap shut at his final taunt, "How does it feel to loose to a God you thought you had defeated Usurper!", taking the Togabito Baraggan away from their reach... and the two human girls he had snatched away. There is a loud crack behind them. With a jerk everyone turns to stare.

An enraged Aizen Sōsuke had snatched Kurosaki Isshin from his kneeling position and pinned him to the wall of a building with enough force to crack the cement. The tyrant's voice is soft and malevolent as he reprimands the person the shinigami were startled to realize was the former taichō of the 10th division. "You should have listened Isshin. If only because you think I'm asshole enough that this time, when it would hurt you most to ignore my words, that this time… they would be true… that your daughters would be in danger, and that I would come back later and say I told you so."

Unnoticed by everyone, though Sōsuke was likely an exception, Kisuke observes it all. His mind paying attention even as he extrapolates out the consequences of this turn of events. He sees it, the moment that the retired tyrant's eyes go distant in that way that Kisuke had ascertained was Sōsuke speaking with his zanpakutō, he himself under the Complete Hypnosis, but the rest of them politely excluded. Oh, but the emotions on the charming bastard's face, and the story they told… it was embarrassing proof that Sōsuke had been misunderstood or perhaps just hidden away underneath the Complete Hypnosis for so long that he felt no need to keep anything from showing on his face… because no one would ever know what it meant…even if they could see.

Kyō-kun and Kami-chan in agreement with the hastily contrived plan, Sōsuke turns to the people whom he would need the most assistance from. Trusting that Kisuke-san would at least explain what was happening to anyone that was too slow to keep up. His eyes meet those of his first objective, the brown eyes of the teenage boy giving away the helpless anger he felt at being unable to save his sisters. "To save your sisters I will require your assistance."

The boy nods instantly, "You have it.", hand rising to the hilt of his zanpakutō where it sat sheathed in it's own ribbon against his back. Amused and exasperated by the boy's gumption, but wisely keeping it to himself, he explains, "Ichigo-kun… this will be the hardest task you will ever have. The most difficult thing you will ever have to endure in your quest to protect your precious people."

Ichigo nodded once again earnest, fierce and certain, and irritated that Aizen wouldn't just get on with explaining what the hell to do, but too used to the asshatery geta-boshi pulled to interrupt. Rage against his father who somehow knew who Aizen was,and could fucking see him, before he was jerked out of his body revealing that his soul wore shinigami clothes!, resolutely pushed aside to deal with later, after Karin and Yuzu were home safe. His thoughts are interrupted. "Ichigo-kun."

Sōsuke stared deeply into the boys eyes, "Your sisters are bait. They want you to to come after them." The boy nods in affirmation, "If it's a fight they want…" Exasperated, Sōsuke reaches out and slaps the boy upside the head glancing over at Kisuke, "All the genius in your brain and you couldn't find a way to teach the boy even a basic understanding of tactics?"

Sōsuke sighs again, "Ichigo-kun. They want you to come after them because the very air of The Hell Verse will cause you to completely lose control over your inner hollow."

Sōsuke stares down the obstinate boy trying to impress upon him the severity of the situation, "To make matters even more precarious… White…your mother…" Sōsuke sighs, unsure of where to even begin to explain, "Lets just say that due to an experimental hollow I created and released into the world of the living and the way that Kisuke-san, your father and your mother chose to dispose of it, you are uniquely suited to breaking the chains that keep the most reviled of souls trapped in hell. You need to talk to your father, there are a lot of things the buffoon should have sat down and explained to you the moment you came into contact with Rukia-chan. Kisuke-san owes you some explanations as well and will probably have a greater understanding of the hows and whys… and when I get back with your sisters, if you have any questions, I will explain as best I can. In the mean time you are the only person I trust to protect my most precious person." Sōsuke quirks an eyebrow in irritation, "Even if no one believes me capable of the sentiment."

He turns away from the wide brown eyes, you would think that no one had ever told him that saving the world wasn't his responsibility. Uncomfortable he considered, if the boy felt this responsible now, how much pressure would he have been under had Sōsuke not abandoned the plan? Too much pressure to be placing on a boy who hadn't even had much of a chance to really live, Sōsuke just rolled his shoulders and turned away. He would have left it there, but the expression on Isshin's face as Sōsuke turned… it set his blood to boiling in a way he was wholly unfamiliar with… until he remembered that Dekuyume had stolen all of Naraku's incarnations and adopted them as children of her own… and then found it so pleasant that she had adopted more. How sentimental he had become.

He leans in as he passes the silent father, "How much longer are you going to make your son shoulder the burden of protecting your family while you play the clown?", and then just for good measure, he huffs at Kisuke-san as he walks past the man to Orihime-chan. "The boy is 15, less than a tenth of your age and skill, so damn you both for denying him the right to livebefore he winds up too strong to enjoy a human life without shining like beacon in the dark and luring in all the monsters of the world."

He turns from them then, unable to look at them without getting into an argument or a fight the two little girls in hell do not have the time for. But once he turns away from the anger, he finds only… her. Orihime Inoue is looking at Sōsuke like a mother-daughter who see's the hero her son-father has become… without ever forgetting the villain he started as, and upset that no one else could see it too. He smiles softly at her, reaching down for Kyōka Suigetsu. The shifting of the people behind him is ignored as he carefully undoes the sash that held it's sheathed form close to him. It seemed so silly now, to have gone through the effort of collecting it from the Atelier, and he was loathe to leave it behind, yet it would be the height of foolishness to take an Asauchi into The Hell Verse.

The Shinigami were servants of The Soul Society, and the Soul King had never seen fit to deactivate the Kill on Sight orders of the Kushanāda that functioned much like the golems that had worked for Shikon no Kami. Carefully holding the Zanpakutō in one hand, sheath and all, with an encouraging grin and his free hand he nudges her arms. She lifts them, and it seems like the world holds its breath, as he ties his oldest friend around her waist. "Orihime-chan. I entrust my oldest friend and the seat of my power to you. I know that you will protect Kyō-kun from those who would wish to hurt him, be they perverted shopkeepers, ambitious hollows, Shinigami, or well meaning friends." The red haired girl nods strong and sure, a power in her eyes that had not been there before. Belatedly he realized that this was the first time that someone had given her something precious to protect, without the heat of battle turning something that was a show of faith into a regrettable necessity.

Thankfully a glance at Ulquiorra-kun was all that it took for the taciturn Nihilist to nod in agreement. Because it was time, and all the spiritually sensitive beings gathered could sense the hypnotized hollows making their way towards them. They shift nervously on their feet, uncertain about the hollows purpose. Sōsuke shoots one last glance over his shoulder at the unusually quiet substitute shinigami, "You can cut the mask of the unbound one as soon as I'm through with the second Kidō. The gates of The Hell Verse will open to pull the hell-bound soul through and I will sneak in around the grasping hands of the Kushanāda. As for the other..."

He glances over at Isshin, "I trust that this time when I call to you through the Complete Hypnosis, you will respond appropriately and give the signal to your son?" Isshin's jaw clenches and for a moment Sōsuke is sure that the bastard will decline, but he nods once sharply, proving Sōsuke wrong.

Ichigo stares at the man he didn't think he had a hope of understanding even if he lived for a thousand years. Even with his poor sensing abilities he could feel the two hollows on their way, but still he had to ask, "Why…" The wind generated by the incoming hollow's Reiatsu blows the lock of hair that dangles in Aizen Sōsuke's face, shielding first one eye and then another from view while the mysterious bastard contemplates his answer. He turns away, and for a moment Ichigo frowns and doesn't think that he is going to get an answer… but he does and the answer he does get… he doesn't have to see the widening in Geta-boshi's eyes or the other eavesdropping shinigami to know that it's big.

"I know the layout of The Hell Verse intimately. I know who has taken your sisters, and they are just as susceptible to the Complete Hypnosis now as when they were hollows. I have a simple way to discover where your sisters are being held, the quickest way in and out. I may not have been an Onmitsukidō…" And then the bastard smiles, and he has no idea why, it isn't madness like Hichigo, or battle lust like Kenpachi, or that I-know-something-you-don't of Geta-boshi… but Kami if the charming smile isn't the most terrifying expression Ichigo has ever seen on someone face.

"…but I would like to think that I've got enough power and skill to pull a snatch and grab for two little girls in hell's grasp. It isn't as if the Primary Operator of The Hell Verse is involved, just the Togabito." And in an instant the expression was gone, wiped off like so much paint… or a released Visored mask… and fuck but Ichigo didn't even see the bastard move, and suddenly the two hollows were there, one of them pinned to the ground with a Kidō, the words "Bakudō #99, Part 1: Kin, To Forbid", ringing in his ears not from the volume, but the sheer power behind them…Ichigo has no doubt, that even if they had to wait until the end of time, that hollow would never be freed without death.

And then a stiff breeze could have knocked the ugly hat off of Geta-boshi's head as Aizen, disappeared into mist… the same way Yoruichi did when she transformed into a cat… but it wasn't a cat that came out of the fallen robes… it was a Hell Butterfly… it was… so tiny in comparison to the presence of the man who beat out Yoruichi in the most inconspicuous disguise department.

Startled, Ichigo realized that it was his turn and he readied Zangetsu to purify one of the pinned hollows only to have, Fucking ButterflAizen flutter at a fucking unnatural speed into his face and hiss like a demon possessed freak of nature. It was perfectly logical that he flinched back with a manlycry of surprise… that was some seriously fucked up shit. I mean hell it was Aizen. And butterflies were supposed to be silent.

And he has no idea what the hell Tate-kyousei, The Contract Symbiosis was, but judging from the tone of voice the perverted shopkeeper used when he muttered to himself and stared at ButterflAizen the same way that always creeped Ichigo way the fuck out whenever Geta-boshi discovered some new facet of Ichigo's powers... Ichigo was just glad it wasn't him this time. Curiously, he watches as ButterflAizen lands on Inoue's fingers wrapped around the hilt of Kyōka Suigetsu and clasped tightly at her side and there is a tiny violet burst of Reiatsu and Ichigo wonders if that means that Aizen just turned himself into her messenger just like that butterfly she kept in a terrarium in her apartment, Wasabi Green written on the wall.

Smiling at the little creeper, his craziest friend says, "Sōsuke-nii, the Hell Butterfly Violet, take this message to Karin-chan and Yuzu-chan, "We love them so much we sent the most powerful soul in Seireitei to save them." Ichigo could have face palmed, realizing only now why he had been stopped earlier. Hell butterflies could deliver messages to anyone you knew or knew the location of. You only needed to know one or the other to send a message. As a hell butterfly, Aizen would go to wherever his Imouto were being held captive in hell, deliver the message and then change back to rescue them.

The butterfly takes off, and flutters back over to him. Carefully edging around the ridiculously OP Butterfly, Ichigo cut the mask of the first hollow. The gates of hell opened, pulling it in and ButterflAizen flew in after it as if he were a tiny Kamikaze pilot, dipping and whirling through the grasping hands stabbing into the soul it was dragging into hell… and then both Aizen Sōsuke and the sacrificial soul were through the gates.

Ichigo watched them go and he knew, that Aizen had spent centuries lying to everyone in Seireitei, some of whom had lived for thousands of years, and yeah, it was probably pretty arrogant of him to assume he was a better judge of character… but he believed Aizen Sōsuke. Oh sure, he seriously doubted that the charming bastard was telling the whole truth, and he was also pretty sure that the whole intimately knowing hell was a smokescreen for whatever it was he didn't want to share, but at the same time, he was absolutely certain… Aizen Sōsuke was going to bring Karin and Yuzu back without a scratch on them… and it would be in theirbest interests if Aizen didn't have to hold back or slow down for anyone going in with him. This wasn't like when they had to go and rescue Rukia because not even her shitty excuse for a Aniiki would rescue her.

That was why, when the hands cleared the gates, and everyone fucking turned towards him like they expected him to just rush in afterwards like they hadn't just sent the best person to do the job, Ichigo just glared right back, hand tight on Zangetsu. And in only a matter of moments the gates slammed shut and vanished from sight.

Only a stunned silence remained. Kisuke would bet the patent for every experiment in his lab, that no one here had truly believed that Sōsuke would choose to willingly enter hell, alone, and for no apparent reward. He could scarcely believe it himself, and so like every one else, he had simply stood there and watched as Sōsuke left, genius intellect fully dedicated to trying to understand the motives of the charming bastard that was slowly becoming his friend. Slowly, hardly able to believe… that perhaps Aizen Sōsuke was simply tired of playing the villain.

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Episode 26 : Bastardicry: The Mimicry of a Bastard

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Ichigo was distracted, very pointedly staring at his father, silently demanding answers when there was a flash of light from behind him. He spun, Zangetsu ready, only to find that he wasn't needed. It was only the Senkaimon opening to allow Chad and Ishida through, solid and alive. Quietly he explains what the hell is going on, only to be interrupted by another flash of light, this one a very familiar shade of gold. Shun Shun Rika.

He spins drawing Zangetsu as he turns, Ishida pulling his bow and Chad calling his Fullbring. The three of them ready to jump to her defense... only to find themselves unnecessary. Inoue-chan may have still been a spirit, but that did not stop her from protecting herself. She stood safe behind her Shun Shun Rika shield, Aizen's sheathed zanpakutō held tightly in one hand, her other outstretched towards her shield and… Ichigo had never seen that expression on her face before… it, it made him wonder, if she had always been that strong and hidden it away, or if this was just what happened, when there was no one standing in front of her getting in the way of her protecting herself. He looks around to find what she had needed protecting from. It was fairly obvious, and from the huff from Chad and quiet snort from Ishida it appeared that they all thought it was about damn time that someone put her in her place,only surprise was that it had been Inoue that did so.

Suì-Fēng stood on the other side of the shield. One hand clamped tightly around the wrist of her other hand… what was left of it and not on the ground at least. Tsubaki flew back to his mistresses side as she stared down the taichō of the 2nd division and head of the Onmitsukidō "I will not apologize, not for protecting Kyōka Suigetsu after Sōsuke-nii had entrusted me with it's protection. I will promise you this though, I will fully restore your hand as soon as he gets back with Yuzu-chan and Karin-chan to relieve me of this burden…" She turns to glare at Suì-Fēng's fukutaichō who had been creeping up behind her thinking that she could neither sense him or move her shield from where it stood still strong and bright between her and Suì-Fēng, "But so help me, if anyone else tries to violate the trust that he has placed in me, you will not have a leg to stand on by the time he gets back." The massive fukutaichō jerks back and blusters in plainly false objection.

Irritated, but not really surprised, Orihime shakes her head, allowing the fairies to relax, but still active hovering around her. She looks up to meet the eyes of her surprised friends feeling a little bitter that they looked surprised at all. What part of, I'm being trained by a person who pretended to be an evil overlord and succeeded so well no one believed him anymore, did they find difficult to understand? Erhm... on second thought... had she even told anyone? Oops her bad. "Kou. Kou. Kou."

She takes a deep breath, and then just lets the negativity go before trying to make them understand, to make them all understand. If no one else she owed it to her friends that still liked her for who she was, even if they didn't understand her, "I used to just… let everyone do whatever they wanted. Even if what I thought they were doing was wrong, even if they yelled at me for healing people who were hurt, even if it made me feel a little like a door mat when they just expected me to be ok with… all the pointless bloodshed and meaningless death... But I know better now, that as sad as it is, violence is the only way to get some people to understand." She stares at all of the people who rushed here to help Kurosaki-kun, only to regard Sōsuke-Nii's offer to help with surprise, even though he was the one to lead the charge.

They are stunned, as the fragile flower reveals her intense conviction, "I am not weak, I am stronger than any of you will ever be and that is why I can afford to be kind, why I always reach out to help people who are suffering right in front of me… because unlike you, I am strong enough to see no enemies, only people who are not yet my friends. Sōsuke-nii's saw that, and that's why he followed me out of Las Noches, abandoning plans he had been working on for three centuries. Because when he looks at me he see's someone strong enough to reach out and drag him out of the hell his solitude had made of his life."

Firmly put in his place and left without a single leg to stand on, Ichigo sighed. All of the idiots left behind to stand around with their thumbs up their asses turned to him expectantly, what the hell did they think he had to say to that? They didn't expect him to deny it did they? The charming bastard was in Hell saving his imoutos.

Resolutely he went to stand next to Inoue, staring down the jerks who were already eyeing her and Aizen's zanpakutō when they thought she wasn't looking. Geta-boshi and goat-face at least had the grace to look away. Chad and Ishida followed him to stand around her, a silent show of support for the one Nakama they all had thought the weakest of their group only to find out that she had only been weak... because they had been hurting her confidence enough to make her weak.

Itching for some damn explanations, Ichigo Kurosaki glared at his father, "Well Goat-face. Much as I'm sure ButterflAizen likes to say things just to stir up shit, I'm guessing from that pathetic look on your face that there actually is something to talk about… like maybe what Mom has to do with this, or why you can see any of us that aren't in Gigai at the moment." There are lots of incredulous snorts of humor at the ButterflAizen. Not really what he was going for, but if it got some of the tension to break before it turned into a bloodbath out here all the better.

He waits, and waits, but still, his father says nothing, gives no explanation, he wasn't surprised, he always knew that goat-face was a coward and he wants to get angry … but nothing could take his mind off of the time that was tick tick ticking Karin's and Yuzu's lives away.

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Carrying a message was a familiar sensation. Traveling though the air of The Hell Verse forcing his mind to register the path he took, even as he moved like a zombie towards the recipient of his message was equally as familiar, though much more difficult without the mental presence of Dekuyume to act as a buffer. Unnoticed by the Togabito arguing at the lava infested depths of the domain ship, Sōsuke the Hell Butterfly delivers his message first to Karin-chan and then to Yuzu-chan. The first girl awakens groggily, but blessedly refrains from moving around too much and feigns sleep. Sōsuke was not surprised that she had awoken, just as he was equally sure that Yuzu-chan would remain asleep for the whole experience.

It was less strenuous than he expected, allowing him to quietly cast the 2nd Rite of Kaidō (Form): Reimago, The Soul Bending, and transform back into a man once more. His white shihakushō settles soft and white against his skin.

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Back in the world of the living, only Kisuke notices the disappearance of the pile of clothing Sōsuke had left behind with his transformation. Proof enough that somewhere in Hell, he had returned to the form of a man once more...

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The two girls were in a cage dangling above the lava, just out of arms reach from a small spit of land, the fumes and heat distorting the air. A melodramatic scene that he was more than happy to take advantage of. "Karin-chan, keep a hold of Yuzu. I am going to cast a Kidō that makes you invisible and it is very important that you do not move." He carefully creates a foothold on the lava out of Reishi and reaches through the bars to cast Bakudō #26, Kyokkō, The Bent Light. Expending far more energy than it normally requires, and with the experience of the Complete Hypnosis, he wraps it around the two girls instead of himself.

Backing out of the effective range of the Kidō, he casts a second one of his own. His timing is impeccable as always, the augment between the prisoners ending in the death of one, and the approach of the survivor. Interestingly enough, the prisoner had wings instead of arms, and quacks like a duck when he sees the cage empty. In a moment, he was hovering in the air before the cage, his human feet splitting and grasping the bars. The cage begins to rock as his weight settles against it, wings folding and fingers revealed at the arch of the wings. The fingers grasp his hell chain and press it into the bars of the cage, the door clicks and swings open. Any further action that he had wanted to take halted as he is knocked out by Sōsuke.

As much as he would prefer to simply kill the idiot, the problem with killing the prisoners of hell was that A) it drew the attention of the Kushanāda, and B) the prisoner would only regenerate itself due to the stagnation that governed The Hell Verse. In short, by only rendering the fool unconscious, he increased the amount of time they remained undiscovered.

The Kidō performs multiple folds, as first he encapsulates the unconscious Togabito, and then merges his with the one he had wrapped around the girls. He carefully maintains his footing, grateful that the Hōgyoku Transformation meant that he was not burning the soles of his bare feet to a crisp. The dark haired girl sits up, gathering her sister to her side, allowing room for Sōsuke to shove in the unconscious prisoner while simultaneously grabbing both girls.

He closes the cage and steps back onto the land form. The Kidō pulls itself from the one left behind and with the sensation of skin on silk, settles around the three of them. "The Bent Light is a chameleon type illusion Kidō. It will not mask any noise that we make so if you have any questions that absolutely must be answered now, speak them quickly."

The girl snorts, "I hope you told Ichi-nii what you were doing otherwise you may be back here to save him too." Shaking his head he turns and heads for the exit, carrying both girls as gently as he can. Knowing better than anyone just how bad it would be to accidentally extinguish either one of them with his touch.

They were unable to move quickly because of the illusion, the Ōken and Kyōka Suigetsu unable to assist without drawing the attention of the Kushanāda, but still keeping a respectable pace without having to stop to fight constantly because of it. It was still a very long walk to the entrance.

All in all it was quite an unremarkable visit until quite suddenly it wasn't. Yuzu-chan coughed once against where she was held securely against his chest, and then stopped breathing. Hiding under the eaves of a building, sheltered from sight of those above he gently set her down. Karin-chan worriedly helping him settle her sister on her back. His hands are already glowing green with the 5th Rite of Kaidō when he tells her to watch for trouble.

He can feel her body dying even as the Kaidō does it's best to keep her alive. She had simply been exposed to too much of Hell's miasma. As always there was an ace up his sleeve. Old memories surface, the soft assurance that he knows how to deal with this, a far cry from the intense experience the flashbacks had been in his relative youth. It works all the same, Dekuyume's efforts to pull Naraku's miasma out of the yōkai exterminators just as effective on the miasma of hell even if it was not his magic powering it. With a relived sigh, he releases the Kaidō, ignoring the faintly ill feeling he has from absorbing the foreign energy.

He looks up to smile at the girls sister who grins back equally relieved. Then there is a burning sensation through his Reiatsu vents as the poison escapes and goes right back to where it started. With a hiss of irritation he turns back to the girl and tries again. The same thing happens.

Sōsuke may have been able to pull the poisonous magic from her veins. But he was too different in composition to that of a living girl and so it abandoned him to return to it's host, a parasite that was killing her to make her it's own. It is Karin-chan that comes up with the daring idea, leaning forward to whisper in his ear, "Give it to me, I can take it. It must mean something that I am awake and she isn't." Knowing exactly why it was that Karin-chan suffered no ill effects and yet Yuzu-chan was so very close to dying and being permanently chained to hell, but very much aware that it would be a bad idea to explain just why, Sōsuke pretends that he has no other options, and complies with her request... Given what he knows, it is no surprise that this time the miasma remains where it is put.

To their misfortune, they are discovered, another Togabito stepping into the hidden spot and directly onto Karin's foot. She yelps in pain, punching the poor unfortunate soul in the crotch and shoving him out into the alley. The Kidō collapses around them. Left with no other choice, Sōsuke scoops up both girls and completely abandons discretion. Migraine forming in the back of his eyes as he simultaneously tracks of all of the Reiatsu signatures around them, and continues the careful siphoning of miasma from one little girl to the other.

Within an instant, he is air born and running along the rooftops as fast as his shunpo can take him. Once again he laments the danger of using the teleportation Kidō on living people. Had it not been an issue, they would have already arrived at the gates courtesy of Bakudō #56, Sentan Hakuja, The Thousand-Coil white snake.

There are cries of alarm, surprise from Togabito who are unaware of what is happening. The ones that are aware of who the two girls that he is carrying are, attack without a word of warning. Having zero interest in fighting all of hell over and over in a loosing war of attrition, he simply doges the attacks and keeps running. It is a good thing he does so, as with a gasp of surprise, he is forced to awkwardly jump to the next roof instead of the one he had been planning on.

It had been the upturned bone white face of a Kushanāda, mouth wide open and waiting for a victim to pass by. It makes a noise deep in its throat that is more vibration than sound. Instantly the air is full of such noises and the guardians of hell begin to converge on their location. The Togabito chasing him is not so lucky and falls into the open mouth. Karin flinches in his arms as the soul continues to scream in pain, even as the servant of The Hell Verse chews.

Leaping up to the next level, the gates of hell appear in his sight. Revealing one very big problem spawned by all of the attention. The Kushanāda had circled the gates. Through the Complete Hypnosis, he gives the signal to slay the second hollow and open the gates. He gets a brief confirmation from Kyō-kun that they are doing so and then Sōsuke begins the incantation for his strongest Hadō the Reiatsu requirement staggering under the pull at his Reiryoku from the Kaidō he had not released. "Arise from the Sea, Fall from the Sky, Shake free of the Earth, Billow from the Flames, Rend the accursed heavens that spawned you! Lay waste to the world, dragons of chaos! Unnatural disasters, The Cacophony of World's End is your song. Dance to it's cries! Hadō #99: Goryūtenmetsu, The Five Swirling Dragons of Destruction!"

The five pale indigo dragons come to his command, the crafted Reishi and Reiatsu constructs dancing around him like bodyguards. Slightly out of breath he throws himself from the roof of the last building and into the Kushanāda. Yuzu-chan and Karin-chan both breathe laboriously under the weight of the Reiatsu cloud caused by the Kidō. He cannot decrease it's output or the spell will fail, so he does the only thing he can and wraps the two girls in the "7th Rite of Kaidō (Enfold): Reishi-mippuu, The Soul Particle Envelope", too distracted by everything to simply will it into being, he is forced to speak it all out loud.

His vision goes blurry at the edges, the cost of maintaining an additional spell at the same time causing the expense to increase exponentially instead of linearly. It does not matter, he could rest soon. The Kidō crashes into the Kushanāda, tearing into the giant skeletal golems as the gates open up behind them. They are torn asunder leaving Sōsuke to continue his trajectory to the open gates. The faces of those waiting for them hopeful and expectant, pathway clear with the Kushanāda too busy trying to catch Sōsuke to reach for the soul on the other side of the gates.

He is a hairsbreadth away from clearing the gates when he is ensnared by the long tentacle like arms of a Togabito and swung away. The Kushanāda closing in on them, one reaching through the gate as the others reach for Sōsuke, the girls he carries, and the Togabito holding him hostage.

It was a tricky shot, but Dekuyume had been an uncelebrated master of Knife throwing. The most vulnerable girl is thrown through the portal, her body sliding past the arm of the Kushanāda moments before it is pulled free. The gates of hell slam shut.

Sōsuke tosses Karin as well, this time straight into the air before releasing his personal Reishi-mippuu for a moment. Completely obliterating the appendage wrapped around him with his unblocked high intensity energy state. He reinstates it in a matter of seconds before landing and launching himself to the far hill. Catching Karin-chan out of the air before she can hit the ground. The Kushanāda are distracted by the Togabito near the gate and do not pursue them. The prisoners, equally distracted by the Kushanāda do much the same allowing Sōsuke a much needed breather.

He deactivates all of his active Kidō, keeping only the Reishi-mippuu. At his side the girl tries to keep up a brave face. "I have to ask, you got a backup plan or was this it?" Sōsuke shakes his head, "I am afraid we are going to just have to wait and hope that you don't starve to death before the shinigami on the other side manage to slay another hell-bound Hollow."

Letting out a shaky breath, the young girl squares her shoulders, "Well, at least you got Yuzu out. Better her than me." He pretends that he cannot see the tears in her grey eyes. The tomboy likely would not appreciate him telling her that it was ok to cry. The moment is broken by the arrival of Baraggan the old man looked nearly identical to his appearance as an Arrancar, but for the black, white and grey prisoner garb he wore. The Togabito who had originally kidnapped the little girls opens his mouth to speak, but Sōsuke was not handicapped as he had been during their last encounter.

Sōsuke may not have been able to use the Complete Hypnosis, or have The Dreaming Kami use her Perception Warp... but Baraggan did not have Respira either. Without a single word of warning, in a completely deadpan tone Sōsuke mutters, "Hadō #54, Haien, The Abolishing flames", and swings his hand through the air in a backhanded slap. A nebulous orb of violet light leaves his hand and flies into the chest of his target. The prisoner is incinerated instantly leaving nothing behind.

Next to him the girl snorts, "You have to teach me that." Sōsuke laughs as he leads her out from the open and down into the building they were standing on. "That would certainly help us pass the time now wouldn't it?" The Togabito hiding in the building scatter as they move through it. Too cowardly to take Sōsuke on, even with the bait of Karin-chan walking at his side.

They find a secure place to watch the gates, "First let me show you my favorite Kidō, it goes like this: Through a prism flies the white swan. Break down and Reorder! A dawn painted phoenix twists out of the light. For an artist, a white canvas holds dreams, but for a brush, it is empty. Bakudō #26: Kyokkō, The Bent Light." He drags his hands through the air, from the top of his head all the way down to the soles of his feet. He explains the premise behind the Kidō watching intently as the Kushanāda, now done with the meal that had presented itself at the gates begin to wander towards them.

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The vassals of The Hell Verse were eternally persistent, able to sense that there was a shinigami in the domain they were created to guard, but could not find him as they endlessly roamed around in circles searching fruitlessly. Nearly 3 days after his initial death Baraggan, done with regenerating, is drawn to the area by the Kushanāda, and yet he too is unable to locate the two hidden souls. The fool screams out his rage and demands that they show themselves. Naturally they do not comply. Consequently Baraggan continues to scream invective, only to be halted when a Kushanāda passing by flattens him against the roof of the building he was standing on. The giant shakes its hand off, even going as far as to wipe the residue on its hand off on the wall of the building.

Sōsuke laughs, "Somehow I doubt that made him learn his lesson. How much do you want to bet that he will be over here the moment he finishes regenerating only to die in the exact same place in the exact same way?" The girl at his side snorts, "No bet." Her stomach growls breaking their levity. Leaning into his side she demands, "Teach me another Kidō, one I actually have enough oomph to cast this time."

The girl had been subjected to the miasma of The Hell Verse for 3 and a half days now. Able to fall unconscious but not to sleep, alive enough to feel hunger and thirst but held captive in a dimension where there was nothing to eat. Sōsuke had already eased her thirst with a butchered Kidō to conjure her a glass made of ice and fill it with water so at least the girl did not die from dehydration. He had even been able to use the 9th Rite of Kaidō (Succor): Iyashino Suimin, The Healing Slumber to prevent her from suffering sleep deprivation... but there was nothing he could do to give her food. She was the only living thing in the whole dimension. Even if he gave her the blood from his body, it would do her no good. It was still made out of Reishi and would only nourish her soul, not her body.

Unable to do anything else to ease her suffering, he can only obey. "I will teach you the first Bakudō, Sai, The Restrain. Interestingly enough, both it and its Hadō Counterpart are considered level one not because they are the weakest of all of the Kidō in their classes, but because they are easy to cast without incantation even for amateurs and can be cast even with the amount of Reiatsu available to a living soul. There are actually hundreds of Kidō that are classed as level 1, Sai and Shō merely being the the examples taught in the Shinigami Academy." He demonstrates the Bakudō as he explains how to cast it. "Sai is cast by pointing at the target with your middle and index finger, like so, and then while imagining that your Reiatsu is shooting out like a rope you say the name of the spell, Sai."

Engaged, Karin watches raptly as the Kushanāda the shinigami had targeted has it's arms jerked violently behind its back as if a police officer was handcuffing them to take them into custody. She focuses on a Togabito, wanting to try, but nowhere near as ambitious as the shinigami that had done his best to rescue her, but failed, leaving her to wonder why Ichi-nii hadn't come himself, but not willing to ask, afraid of the answer... she shakes free of the painful thoughts, she had promised herself that she would never be a burden to her family. Taking a deep breath, focusing on the little wriggling ball of light in her chest that the Shinigami said was her Reiryoku, the source of her Reiatsu, or at least the source of whatever Reiatsu she wasn't supposed to have full access to until her Soul Chain stopped holding it inside her body.

Carefully she aims at the Togabito skulking in the shadows and takes a shot. The prisoner yelps in surprise, and so does she when she realized just how easy it had been. At her side the shinigami laughs. "Well done, congratulations. As far as I am concerned you are now a better Shinigami than your brother. But I may be a bit biased, Kidō is my specialty after all." It is more the helplessness of the situation than what he says actually being funny that makes her laugh, but she is grateful for it all the same.

He is patient at her side as she continues to laugh long since past the point a person not in extreme emotional distress would have stopped. Her laughter trails off into the air a silent admission of her fear. They are silent for another long while, pain curling in her stomach from its emptiness. She forces herself to ignore it and points at another Togabito, "Sai.", and then another, "Sai." and then another, "Sai." She looses track of how many she has captured, the burn of anger a more welcome companion than the fear that she would starve to death before they managed to open the gate again. "Hey, shinigami. Tell me, how long can a human go without food?"

The spirit at her side moves forward a bit to dangle his legs off the side of the building, "As little as one week, as great as three depending on their activity levels, overall health and whether or not they attempt to do so suddenly or ease into it with shorter periods of fasting to make sure that their body does not go into shock." She shivers in fear, and doesn't say anything when he slides his arm around her, his kimono jacket falling around her. It was such a silly thing, but it was something she had control of, so she would rather he thought that she was cold than afraid. "And how often does a Shinigami purify a hollow only for the gates of hell to open up and pull them in."

The fact that he takes so long to answer is more damning than what he says, "It depends on how many hollows they kill on average. Personally I see quite a few of them, whereas others on patrol are a bit lazy and see them far less often." She remembered reading once, that 3 million kids died each year from starvation. She had used that statistic for some stupid argument with her father once, probably something about what Yuzu was cooking for dinner... and now she was one of those children. Not wanting to have to face the fact that she was probably going to die from starvation, she tugged on the sleeve of his shihakushō, "Send me back to sleep."

She doesn't even have a moment to think about how she is ordering around someone who was probably a thousand years old before he whispers, "Fall softly sweet petals, perfume the land of dreams, the body lays broken, let it rest, let it mend, a succor found amid nightmare's end. 9th Rite of Kaidō (Succor): Iyashino Suimin, The Healing Slumber.", the blackness of the sleeping Kidō takes her under.

Sōsuke gently picks her up and moves to another hiding spot with a clear view of the gates. A restless soul wandering through hell seeking succor with out a shred of hope of receiving it.

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Despite his best efforts, Karin Kurosaki was dying. He had know that the chance that she would survive this were slim to none. The time discrepancy between The Hell Verse and the living world was not in their favor, more time being experienced in hell than in the living world. Though it had been 18 days here in hell, it had only been several hours there. Time enough to run themselves ragged trying to locate another hollow bound for hell... but not in time to prevent the little girl from dying in his arms.

He is not ashamed of his tears, nor is he ashamed to have given into her last request. She had wanted to die in her sleep, not awake and aware as her body failed around her. He shakes, silent sobs and soft gasps of air leave him trembling.

In the end Sōsuke still wasn't Shinigami enough to accept that he would be seeing her again in a few minutes as her soul escaped the prison that had become her body. Death was still death, and each one was a tragedy. It didn't matter if it was simply the next step in the cycle of reincarnation... Even Dekuyume cried when it was time to call another of the Higurashi home, and she blessed the Higurashi with the gift of remembering their past incarnations.

There is a sudden gust of wind, fetid and hot. With alarm he uncurls from around the dead girl's body to find a Kushanāda standing at the edge of the building staring at them intently. With further alarm he finds that he is in fact surrounded by the guardians. Hundreds, perhaps even a thousand of them pressed in a circle around the two of them. Silent, staring and making no movements at all...

Only waiting. But for what?

Heart racing in his chest he turns to look at the girl in his arms. Her body disintegrates in a glow of golden light, difficult at first to notice, but obvious when the emaciated form reveals the perfectly healthy sleeping soul beneath. Several breaths from the Kushanāda later and there is nothing left of the mortal coil of Karin Kurosaki. The soul glowing in his arms awakens slowly, stretching with a soft groan, when the armor made of the skull like faces of the Kushanāda restricts her movements.

Her eyes open and stare at him, slowly widening as she takes in her situation. "Oh." Sōsuke is mildly surprised to find that the girl sounds the same, even though he is aware that she is fundamentally different than who she had been when she fell asleep. With a look of sadness on her face she gently drags the tips of her gloved fingers down the tear tracks on his face, wiping them away. She clears her throat awkwardly, glancing at the guardians of hell. There is a grinding of bone on bone as the thousand skeleton golems gathered kneel. The girl blushes in embarrassment, "ehrm..."

He laughs softly at her, using his free hand, he ruffles her hair "It's quite all right child, I know." He stands before gently setting her down on her feet, "Just command them to open the gates and allow us through and I will take care of everything else." She glances at him for a brief moment before turning to look back at the kneeling vassals. The legion rises and disperses, but for the one that stands at the edge of the building. It holds out its hand. Open, palm up and without a word Karin grabs Sōsuke's hand and tugs him forward across the gap and onto the offered hand. She pulls him to the middle and seats herself cross-legged, dragging him down with her as she sits.

The Kushanāda begins to lumber towards the gates heedless of the Togabito that get crushed underfoot. Karin, ignores everything, instead staring at her body. Turning her hands over and inspecting the bone armor that forms delicate finger-less gloves that look more like chain mail or white henna tattoos than plate armor. She pinches her skin and watches it spring back into place, before she is distracted by her legs. She wiggles her feet, the pointed toes of her sabaton the ends slightly hooked like the talons of a bird of prey. The long toes and the shape made them impractical for walking, but efficient weapons for kicking while mounted.

Curious, he wondered if it was the Kushanāda that she was meant to ride on or if it was something else entirely. He has no more time to contemplate it as they arrive at the gates. As the guardian reaches out to open the gate, the girl turns to him and takes his hand once more. This time pressing it to her eyes. Peeking at him for a moment she smiles and nods before pulling his hand back. Dutifully, does as he is asked.

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28 hours after the gates to hell closed, they open again, not at the death of a hollow that every available soul with a zanpakutō was scouring out of Karakura town, but of their own volition. A cheer goes up across the city as the sensors go off, but no one is there at the place the gates had opened to see that it was not their efforts that had finally succeeded.

A quiet street in a residential area on the far side of town is empty but for a single moth fluttering around beneath a streetlight. The moth, the only one to observe as the barefooted Sōsuke Higurashi steps out of the gate in his white shihakushō, blindingly white in the neon glow of the streetlight.

The doors shut with a soft click and the unconscious form in his arms begins to glow a deep gold. The armor she had been wearing disintegrates, forming particles of matter that turn into a glowing corona around her before pressing tightly onto her spiritual body. Reishi becomes Kishi and a dead girl comes back to life by the will of The Hell Verse.

Ichigo Kurosaki is the second to arrive, gently reaching out to take his sister from the man who had saved her. A soft cry of elation as he feels his imouto breath, nuzzling into his chest in her sleep. The boy was haggard, bags deep and dark beneath his eyes, voice hoarse as he breaths out, "Thank you. I don't even care how you did it. Just..." The boy chokes back his tears, "Thank you."

Sōsuke Higurashi, retired tyrant, budding savior and all around charming bastard just shakes his head with a laugh, "It would appear that overcoming insurmountable odds and coming out of the fire far stronger than anyone has a right to runs in the family."

Finally able to rest, the boy collapses from exhaustion right there in the middle of the street. With a sigh, Sōsuke simply takes both siblings into his arms and carries them home.

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Episode 27 : Bastardization: The Rationalization of a Bastard

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After what was now classified as the Hell Incursion, Sōsuke was politely asked to go back to his cell. Taking great joy in doing so, he had used Sentan Hakuja to teleport to Orihime-chan's home and knock. Clearly only having gotten a handful of hours of sleep, Orihime-chan had answered in her pajamas, Kyōka Suigetsu still tied to her side. He had been in the middle of apologizing for calling on her so late at night, when she suddenly seemed to realize who was at the door and had thrown herself into his arms, crying.

He had soothed her, rubbing soothing circles onto her back when, for the third time that night, a child had fallen asleep in his arms. It had been a privilege, to bring her back into her apartment to tuck her into bed. Before he had left, he had taken his zanpakutō from her prone form and exchanged it for an illusion. It would have been cruel to have her wake in the middle of the night only to wonder if seeing him had been a dream, Kyōka Suigetsu vanished from her side without being sure that she had returned it to his possession.

He had returned to Senzaikyū without fanfare, hiding his zanpakutō within his Atelier, taking a brief moment to see that yes, his eyes had indeed gone permanently Dekuyume red before stepping through the mirror into the empty tearoom, not a single guard on duty without him there to watch. The surprise on the faces of those who had found him on his patio drinking tea in the early morning light, had been nothing in comparison to the one that spread across the faces of his former comrades when they realized that if he could so easily sneak into Senzaikyū without anyone the wiser, then he could most certainly sneak out just as easily. He truly was there of his own choice and there was nothing that anyone could do if he changed his mind.

He was once more seated on his patio overlooking the trees on Sōkyoku hill. The white leaves a counterpoint to the dark green of Kisuke-san's favorite Haori as the blond man crested the path that led down the other side of the hill. The, not quite as retired as he liked to pretend, Onmitsukidō's hand comes up to keep his hat in place, as the wind greets him, the cane form of Benihime held relaxed in his other hand. Sōsuke rises from his seat and heads inside to prepare the tea, curious about what would come of their meeting this time. Perhaps, if Sōsuke was lucky, he could finally lay it to rest, the quiet fear of Naraku had no place here dimensions away from where it had began. It would be nice, to no longer be afraid of someone he knew would not hurt him the same way that Miyatsu had once up on a reincarnation.

Once again the shopkeeper takes his time, this time not out of any emotional strain but a physical one, giving Sōsuke plenty of time to set the tea to steep and carefully select what cups he wanted to use. Pine for the duality of pity and hope, Holly for good will or... Sōsuke smiles as two plain white cups in the back transform before his eyes courtesy of the Dreaming Kami's Perception Warp. Taking the hint he removes them and brings them to the table, very well, Dogwood and Ivy it was, an offer of durability and friendship. Perhaps with this message on the table, Kisuke would allow Sōsuke to heal him instead of suffering in silence.

Kisuke enters the room as silently as he is able, actively trying to avoid being seen by Sōsuke for once instead of letting the generally passive ability keep him hidden. It is to no avail, the willing prisoner looks up the moment he crosses the threshold, in the middle of pulling out the chair that Kisuke normally sat in. "Sit down Kisuke-san. While I am glad that you find these visits as engaging as I, I wouldn't begrudge you a small delay to wait for Tessai-san to return from grocery shopping to heal you." Kisuke doesn't even care anymore that he has no privacy when it comes to Aizen Sōsuke. Really he had gotten injured when his most recent experiment exploded violently, the protective measures in place spared any damage to his lab, but he himself had been unable to escape the containment area quickly enough... it had happened all of an hour ago in the living world, and yet here Sōsuke was, well informed and well aware.

Kisuke was strongly beginning to suspect that the greatest cause for Sōsuke's god complex was the fact that Kyōka Suigetsu's Complete Hypnosis made his shinigami feel as if he was omniscient, or at the very least omnipresent. Relatively meekly, Kisuke complies, taking a seat as Sōsuke moves around to his other side, muttering "One would think you were skilled enough in Kaidō to heal yourself given your intellect and the nature of your Bankai…"

Kisuke can tell the other shinigami's intentions before he even makes it to his injured shoulder, and braces himself for a painful experience. Technically Kaidō had neither names or incantations, relying more on the power, control and the empathy of the caster for the victim, which was why fewer people were cut out for the 4th division than Unohana-taichō actually allowed in her ranks, and why Kisuke wasn't idiotic enough to heal himself. He had little sympathy for others, and none for himself. Sōsuke pauses, kneeling just behind Urahara's injured shoulder, giving him a chance to decline. The moment passes, and Kisuke leans away from the chair as Sōsuke tugs on the sleeve of his Haori, exposing the shoulder that was still burnt and charred but had at least stopped bleeding. With a soft sigh, that sounds suspiciously like a reprimand, the kneeling man places his hands over the burn, his hands refreshingly cold.

Then he whispers, low enough that it probably was not meant for Kisuke's ears, but may have been anyways considering the sneakiness of the charming bastard and the fact that it was highly likely that no one under the Complete Hypnosis heard anything that it did not please Aizen Sōsuke to allow them to hear. Or it could just be that Kisuke still had hearing sharp enough to hear the pitter-patter of Yoruichi-sama's little kitty paws even after being out of the Onmitsukidō for so long.

"Gently, the cherry blossoms fall, already dreaming, of the breath of life, the next spring... and the folly of men, who see the end, instead of The Beginning…" Then Sōsuke's hands glow the perfect green hue of the 5th Rite of Kaidō, for which all of the other Kaidō were named, soothing away the hurt, purifying the mildly toxic Reishi Kisuke had burned himself with, repairing the nerve damage and relaxing the muscles that had already become strained guarding the injury.

Just as quickly as it started, it was over and the kneeling man rises easily from his kneeling position to walk around the table to pour the tea. Taking the opportunity, he pulls his Haori on the rest of the way and comments, "Oddly enough, I can't remember that being a traditional emotive-incantation for Kaidō. Quite lovely though. Write it yourself?"

He is rewarded with a nod and a tap on the table. The game begins, as Kisuke complains, "It's terribly unfair of you to cheat Sōsuke-san." He gets a soft laugh and a raised eyebrow for his trouble, "May I inquire, just what it is about my advanced visualization skill that makes you think that I am doing something so disingenuous as cheating?" Shaking his head, Kisuke refrains from answering and instead turns his mind to defeating Sōsuke at his own game.

Mildly vexed that he still hadn't managed to beat the man he leaves far earlier than he would have liked. Sōsuke's knowing smile following him out the door. Once out of sight, he rushes back to his lab and pulls a sample collector from a drawer he had carefully not looked at all day. Running it over his arm he collects a Reishi specimen and quickly places it into one of his more interesting devices. When it finishes running, he is dissapointed. Not a single particle of Reishi had possessed the golden glow of a particle tainted with the yellow glow of the 7th Rite of Kaidō (Enfold): Reishi-mippuu, The Soul Particle Envelope. They had all belonged to Kisuke.

While his earlier accident had been just an accident, there had been more than just his own self-recrimination that had prevented him from healing the injury. He had hoped that Sōsuke would offer to heal him, thus leaving traces of his Reishi behind. Reishi-mippuu were notorious for shedding free particles of the creator's Reishi... the phenomenon only increased if they were held for prolonged lengths of time. Held for a long enough time, whole sections would slough off, held together only by the golden yellow of the Kaidō. And yet it appeared that Sōsuke had attained such a high skill with the 7thRite of Kaidō he kept wrapped around himself like an emancipation field, that not a single particle harvested from Kisuke's arm had been his.

He had wanted the particles to perform a small test to verify his calculated estimate of Sōsuke's Reiryoku, the number so astronomically large that it had to be false even if it did explain why the man constantly wore a Reishi-mippuu around himself like armor crafted out of plastic cling wrap.

He is only left with more questions. He stays awake long into the night, pondering what it meant that the man who was once his arch-nemesis possessed the soul of a poet, and more empathy for Kisuke than Kisuke had for himself.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 28 : Bastardache: The Ache from Contemplating a Bastard's Motives

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One day, June 11th, 2002, during the first term of their second year in high school, Orihime does not show up for school. Her Nakama, knowing that it wasn't a special date for her were worried and made the trip to her apartment after school. She greeted them at the door, red eyed and frazzled. Surprised to see them she apologized for making them worry and insisted that nothing was wrong, which of course made them worry and left them absolutely sure that something was very wrong.

Glancing between the three of them, the boys silently come to an agreement. If the emotionally strongest member of their team was this broken up over something, they could not afford to let her keep quiet about it. As one, they turn towards her and begin trying to pry the truth out of her. They suffer through her crazy dinner concoction, the bizarre stories she tries to pass off as the reason for her behavior, but they persist. Ichigo is on the verge of heading across town to get Tatsuki to help when Orihime finally blurts out something that sounds suspiciously like the truth. "Because I'm running out of time!"

She slumps, bringing her head to rest on the table while the three boys stare at her in mixed expressions of worry, surprise and encouragement. Into the table she sighs before muttering, "I told you over a year ago didn't I? That the whole reason Sōsuke-nii did all of the horrible things he did was to make sure that everyone was prepared for when the Quincy declared war on Seireitei. Kurosaki-kun wouldn't listen because Sōsuke-nii makes a very convincing villain, Sado-kun wouldn't listen because causing someone harm in the name of helping them is not something that he can understand with his strong moral code and Ishida-kun wouldn't listen, too upset because the shinigami had massacred most of the Quincy 2 centuries ago and then again when the SRDI took his grandfather and his grandfather's disciples as specimens. No one wanted to hear about the dimension hidden inside of the shadows of Seireitei, the fortress of Silbern that was used to shelter all of the Quincy that the Shinigami had removed from the living world during that first horrible massacre so terrible that to this day Sōsuke-nii claims it as one of the reasons he lost faith in the Central 46 and the Gotei 13. No one wanted to believe, so no one listened, and while everyone is at least training harder than they ever have before, they still don't believe, and they still don't listen."

She sighs once more into her lap, her head resting on her arms on the table, "Today marks a year, one year until the first blow is struck and I'm running out of time to get strong enough to protect everyone from what is to come." Glancing at the other two boys, Uryū is the one to speak, pushing up his glasses he comments, "That is a very accurate time frame, to know down to the day when an event will occur." Slowly her head comes up to look at them. Eyes bloodshot from tears, usual smile absent from her face, she is the picture of upset and stress and... unyielding determination.

"Yhwach, the son of the Soul King and the father of the Quincy had the ability to give out shards of his soul, granting wishes in exchange for a person's life, to be taken from them at a time of his choosing. Overtime he became stronger and stronger with the power he stole until eventually he became nearly a Kami himself. As with most things, it came to war, the first taichō and fukutaichō of the Gotei 13 were created for the sole purpose of fighting him and the Quincy he called pure. A thousand years ago in time measured in the world of the living and even longer as measured by Seireitei, the sōtaichō was in the prime of his life... and he wasn't strong enough to kill Yhwach... only seal him away. As he was sealed he made a prophecy."

She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath before letting it out slowly, "The Sealed King, sealed for 900 years, will regain his pulse. The Sealed king, sealed for 90 years further, will awaken. The Sealed King, sealed for 9 years more, will call Auswählen, and exchange the power of the impure Quincy for Still Silver. The Sealed King, will then take 9 Months in the Silver City to become Sealed no more, and then in 9 days, shall conquer the world."

Uryu's cup shatters in his hand, surprising them all. Understanding without needing to be told, Orihime calls Shun Shun Rika to heal his bleeding hand. The silent angry boy unable to explain himself smiling at her gratefully in-spite of his anger, when she explains for him, "Auswählen is a technique that appears like a bright flash of light from the sky, it would have looked like lightening to people here. Except it would have left behind one telltale difference. A very peculiar silver alloy in their hearts, like the kind that was found in Ishida-kun's Kaasan..."

Hesitantly, unsure of her welcome, she reaches across the table and places her hand over Ichigo's. "Kurosaki-kun, did you know that your mother died the same night as Ishida-kun's?" The boy's hand shakes and his eyes widen, jaw dropped in surprise. "Did... Did Aizen tell you that?"

She pats his hand once before holding it tighter, as if the contact would make it easier to tell him what she had to say, "Sōsuke-nii was quite adamant that your mother was a Quincy and that the reason you are gaining power at such an exponential rate is because you don't just have three spiritual natures, but all four in harmony, I don't really know much more about what happened, only that Urahara-san helped when Kurosaki-kun's mother was invaded by a hollow Sōsuke-nii created and that Kurosaki-kun's father gave up his power as a shinigami to stop her soul from being destroyed since Quincy are allergic to Hollow Reiatsu."

Knowing very well that he was close to falling apart she pretends not to notice as he cries, the other two boys doing much the same. Drawing attention away from Ichigo, she turns to Uryū, "Sōsuke-nii also knows why it was that only your mothers were taken by Auswählen and not you two as well, but refuses to explain why saying that it is too dangerous for me to know. He's also worried that you would choose the side of the Quincy even though their leader is the one that killed your mother, but I refuse to believe that. Ishida-kun is our Nakama. If he felt that there was a good reason to support Yhwach after what he did, then it doesn't make any sense that we would let him do it alone."

The boy with the glasses clears his throat in embarrassment and pushes up his glasses, "Yes well, it would have to take a very strong argument to draw me to the side of my mother's killer. I fail to see how my justified anger at the Shinigami would be enough to convince me to do so when the Council of Souls is doing such a good job of dragging them over the coals."

"I thought it was my fault." Ichigo's voice is hoarse and gravely as he chokes out the words. His Nakama turn to him in surprise, the boy looks at all of them, his oldest emotional scar torn open and bleeding. "All this time, I thought it was my fault that Kaasan had died. That my inability to tell souls apart from the living as a child had made her sacrifice herself to Grand Fisher instead of letting it take me. But if you and Aizen are right and she was a Quincy then she would have been able to protect herself. To protect us both. If your right then it means that... that it wasn't my fault. It means that the reason she died wasn't because I led her into a fight she couldn't win, but because her weapon, her strength was taken from her in the middle of a fight she would have easily won. It means that I've spent the last 8 years hating myself for getting my mother killed, when all along it was some asshole I've never even met."

It is a group of teenagers pained with heartaches, headaches, and soul-aches that begins planning a rigorous year of training that would end the week before June 1st of next year. A year in which Ichigo Kurosaki says not a single word to his father in spite of living in the same house. Because Aizen had been right, the moment Rukia had shown up in his life was the moment his father should have come clean. Even Geta-boshi had had the grace to apologize once Ichigo confronted him... he wondered if the pervy shopkeeper ever realized that it was his anger that it had been Inoue to tell him and not his father, and not the apology that had convinced Ichigo to forgive him... Whatever, he had more important things to do.

Ichigo's first goal, to go into his inner world and figure out just who was representing the four aspects of his soul. Given the description Orihime had given for Yhwach he strongly suspected that the soul he had been calling Zangetsu was actually his Quincy powers... and if that were the case... unless someone was hiding... the only other spirit that manifested in his inner world... was the real Zangetsu... his hollow powers and shinigami powers compressed into the same being. The pure white Ichigo, the Hollow that called him King.

Chad had left to seek further training from the Xcution and Ishida the same from his father. For a moment the boys had been puzzled about who to get to help train Orihime, only to be surprised when the girl laughed at them and admitted that she had the best teacher in the universe and that she really had been telling them the truth, that she had been upset over nothing all day.

Her Sensei was Aizen Sōsuke, and you really couldn't get a teacher better than that.

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Episode 29 : Reigai, Gigai, and Shinigami (Oh My!)

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Ultimately, Sōsuke was left with the impression, that much like the Zanpakutō Rebellion, The Reigai Uprising that Dekuyume had spoken of never had the right circumstances to occur. Personally Sōsuke was unsure how it had even occurred in the first place. Given that the whole of Seireitei was aware that there was a time discrepancy between themselves and the world of the living. They should have been more than aware of how the mechanics of a time dilation worked. The moment that they discovered that they had fallen out of sync with the Dangai should have been more than enough to prevent them from accusing Ichigo Kurosaki for the disappearance of their Shinigami. The chronological connection between series of events in each dimension in comparison to the others would have been suspect making it perfectly logical that the substitute shinigami's badge could be found in the Dangai days before it was lost.

The wind blows across the top of Sōkyoku hill. His last peaceful day. He leans into the railing of his balcony, closes his eyes and lets the wind caress him, carrying the scent of damp earth, a forest in spring. There is a rustle of fabric. His Zanpakutō Spirit and his Ōken pressed into his sides in silent support. He breaths in deeply, taking it into himself before slowly, slowly letting it go.

As time had marched closer and closer to the day that Yhwach would make his move, a sense of anticipation began to fill everyone. Sparked not by his continued claims, but by the worry and fear of the four children who had taken it upon themselves to defend the city they called home.

Because Ichigo-kun always wanted to train after he finished his classes and homework for the day, the 11th division, the Visored, the Fullbringer, and the Arrancar had daily battles out on the open sands of Las Noches. Because they had those battles, the 4th division healers and Orihime-chan got to practice their art, and were goaded into participating. Much to the surprise of the 11th division that had so often disparaged them, there were several members of the 4th division that were even greater fighters than they were. There were more than a few people who were startled by Hanatarō Yamada when he began training with his Shikai.

His zanpakutō was another rarity, like Riku Homura's White Willow it was a blade of healing. What the sealed form of the blade cut was healed without a single bit of Reiatsu needed from its Shinigami. Unwilling to bet on Sōsuke lying, Hanataro-san had been commanded by his taichō to practice. Though Sōsuke was more of the opinion that Hanataro-san was getting more practice not buckling under the weight of the Reiatsu of the people he was supposed to heal, than actually becoming familiar with his zanpakutō.

The wind shifts directions, pushing his bangs from one side of his face to the other. Sōsuke simply tilts his head back with a sigh.

Because every one was training, everyone was getting stronger. Some people even finding that continued practice was no longer any help, that they had reached a plateau and needed something different to reach greater heights. One of them, much to the surprise, and hidden relief, of many who had watched his meteoric rise, was Kurosaki Ichigo.

After that painful meeting where it had been Orihime-chan to tell him all of the things that his father had pretended not to know, and all of the things that Kisuke-san had not felt right sharing without Isshin giving his explanations first, the boy had spent every waking moment he was not in school or sparring, meditating in Jinzen. Communing with his inner spirits had prompted another bout of growth in the boys power.

But that had been all that came of Ichigo-kun realizing that the spirit he had been calling Zangetsu, was not in fact his Zanpakutō Spirit, but the fraction of Yhwach that gave him his Quincy powers as one of the so called impure Quincy. Dekuyume would have called it a soul parasite... one that Ichigo-kun had, by sheer determination to remain true to himself, earned the respect of said parasite who then chose to turn their relationship into one of mutualism instead of parasitism.

For months now, the boy had been angry and upset by his lack of growth. It was something few people could understand, it was fairly unnatural, for a soul to evolve and change as rapidly as he had. Consequently it left many unable to sympathize. Kisuke-san's special Bankai Training technique aside, Ichigo-kun had mastered his Bankai in a single year, put in perspective, it took Shinigami training constantly for at least a decade to reach the same ease with their ability.

Truly the only thing that Ichigo-kun had left of the Shinigami arts to train was Kidō. Willing to try anything, Ichigo-kun had asked for lessons... from Sōsuke. When he had first heard that the boy was going to ask for lessons he had presumed that he would go to Tessai-san. The children knew that he had been the head of the Kidō corps, and he was much more easy to get to at Kisuke-san's candy shop with its hidden training area than Sōsuke was in Senzaikyū. Clearly Orihime-chan had been singing his praises.

Things had... gone well enough. The boy clearly had no skill in the art, but what he lacked for in skill he made up for with sheer stubbornness. Fortunately for Ichigo-kun, Sōsuke had written countless teaching books in preparation for the awakening of the Soul King. The books he had written showed Kidō from a perspective far different than that taught in the academy, explaining things that Academy students simply believed because they were told to believe.

Given the boy's incredible Reiryoku and barely controlled Reiatsu, Sōsuke also chose to start teaching from the opposite end. Over another game of Go and May I Inquire, Kisuke-san had spoken of his surprise when he realized that the book with it's revolutionary and novel approach to Kidō that Ichigo-kun was reading had been handwritten by Sōsuke. He had also expressed surprise that Sōsuke would begin with teaching the boy the Bakudō and Hadō that were ranked in the 90's. Sōsuke had looked at him unimpressed, raised an eyebrow, and asked Kisuke-san how he expected Ichigo-kun to be able to pull out a strand of Reiatsu so thin he could thread a needle with it, when the boy naturally created it in ropes thick enough to serve as part of a cargo ship anchor.

Sōsuke was quite proud to say that Ichigo-kun could cast any Bakudō and Hadō between the ranks of 70 and 99. The boy had stalled again shortly after being able to cast Kidō in the low 70's, and had been completely unable to use a single Rite of Kaidō.

The boy's frustration had grown and grown until Sōsuke had been forced to send the boy home. He had promised to have something that would break the boy free of his plateau, and would only use it if the boy got a full nights rest. He had quietly spoken to several important people through the Complete Hypnosis and resigned himself to surrendering his last peaceful day to a task that promised to be both dangerous and painfully revealing.

Sōsuke's last day of peace came 6 months before Yhwach was prophesied to make his move, and one day before the fully re-staffed Central 46 were scheduled to hold their first meeting since he had murdered 45 of members at their last meeting.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

The dark eternal night of Hueco Mundo was a stark contrast to the eternal spring of Sōkyoku Hill. Sōsuke stepped out of the Garganta and into it's chilly, sand laden wind willingly. Behind him came the people he had chosen, some to fight, some only to observe, and some... to kill.

As the Garganta closes behind them he turns to Kurosaki Ichigo. The boy clenches his jaw and nods sharply once, "Do it."

So, he does.

Sōsuke places his hand on the boy's chest, his hands glow green and he whispers, "Gently, the cherry blossoms fall, trapped within a waking nightmare, the last breath of life, the blood of men... and the folly of the mourners, who see the end, instead of The Beginning… 5th Rite of Kaidō (Humanity): Kaidō, The Turn Way" There is a deep resonant vibration that carries itself from the depths of the boys soul all the way to the surface, causing an unnatural ripple in his Reiatsu.

The boy chokes as Sōsuke steps back. White material exits the choking boy's body, and a hollow hole forms. The transformation was simple and sweet for all that it was unusually shocking to see Ichigo-kun with skin the white of a hollows bone hard skin, a hole in his chest, and eyes painted black and gold.

A tirade of curses, insults and promises of violence spew out of the boys mouth as he hunches over in pain, collapsing onto his knees in the white sand of Hueco Mundo. A bright light emanates out of him, the color of Ichigo-kun's shinigami Reiatsu. There is a tearing sound, nails on a chalkboard, and suddenly a Zanpakutō pushes itself through the skin of the spirit's hands... as a half mask pushes itself out of the spirit's skull. Slowly the Arrancar Kurosaki Ichigo regains control of himself.

Using the healing power of Kaidō, the information Sōsuke had gained from that first horrible experiment on Riku Homura, and his own understanding of the Yin-Yang balance that made up the Shinigami and the Hollow balance of a soul... in an examination of Ichigo-kun during Kidō practice Sōsuke had discovered that the boy had somehow managed to completely defeat his inner hollow by merely talking to it.

Perhaps it was because Sōsuke had told him it only existed as an expression of the states of Grief, perhaps it was because he no longer thought that it was part of himself presuming that White was still a foreign entity and not one that had completely merged with his developing soul when the soul fragments of Isshin, Masaki, Engetsu and White came together, perhaps it was simply because the boy no longer blamed himself for his mothers death. The result was the same.

The reason for the boy's plateau had been because he had changed the Yin-Yang balance of his soul just enough that he had shifted away from the Shinigami Ascendant Destabilized form into a Shinigami Ascendant Stabilized form. In short, the half that represented Ichigo-kun the mind/shinigami, had fully crested, the half that represented the heart/hollow completely beneath it suppressed and weakened.

Hollows were a source of catalytic soul growth, by suppressing it, he had stunted himself. He was now technically in the same state of mind and heart as Sōsuke. The state was quite soothing to Sōsuke, but aggravating to the boy, so to help him, they had to do something quite... drastic. To return to the state he had started in, Ichigo-kun would have to shift that balance 3 times. Ichigo-kun had started as a Visored, changed to something that was almost only a Shinigami, and now Sōsuke had given him a push through Kidō turning that balance once more. The fact that his inner hollow doubled as both his own soul and his zanpakutō spirit had only compounded the problem, not eased it.

With a fairly manic grin, the Arrancar turns to the first two people that Sōsuke had invited to come along. Kenpachi Zaraki and Yachiru Unohana. The woman who had trained Sōsuke and the other members of the 4th division was nowhere to be seen. It was a woman with a lust for battle that had joined them here.

Sōsuke backs away with a single shunpo and comes to rest next to Kisuke-san. As he does so, the three begin a very complex and very messy three way fight. Kenpachi, and the Arrancar laughing maniacally, a wicked cold smile on the face of the woman who felt like his mother giving away her enjoyment as well.

There is a soft click as Kisuke reveals that he had brought his fan today. It is spread wide shielding the smile he is hiding from the sight of everyone but Sōsuke standing next to him. "You do know what you are doing I hope. It would be quite hypocritical of the person that said, a what was it, "The boy is 15, less than a tenth of your age and skill, so damn you both for denying him the right to livebefore he winds up too strong to enjoy a human life without shining like beacon in the dark and luring in all the monsters of the world.", to be the reason that the boy can no longer fit inside of his human body."

The fight is brutal and goes on for an hour before the Arrancar uses Sonido to appear right before the two observing intellectuals. "Horse and I have got this, do me again you crazy fucker." Sōsuke snorts at the boy's crude words and does as he is asked. "Gently, the cherry blossoms fall, trapped within a waking nightmare, the last breath of life, the blood of men... and the folly of the mourners, who see the end, instead of The Beginning… 5th Rite of Kaidō (Humanity): Kaidō, The Turn Way" Again, his hand glows green with the Rite, any noise that Kisuke-san makes in the surprising twist of his usual poem suppressed when the boy stumbles backwards tearing at the hole in his chest.

More white exits the hollow hole, the boy's whole aura turns, all traces of Shinigami leeching away. The Hollowfication completes, Ichigo-kun was now Hollow Ascendant Stabilized. Unlike the other forms, this one bore only a slight humanoid characteristic. The beast was tall and fearsome, panting for breath, red orange mane tossed in the wind, a fiery corona that surrounded his horns. The transformed boy looked like the very image of the Devil himself. The hollow threw its head back, a Cero charged between it's horns and released the beam with a roar of victory.

The Spirit tilts hits head back down and breaths in muscles trembling, not from the strain, not from Ichigo-kun attempting to overcome his inner hollow...but because he was attempting to engage it as an equal.

To change from a Shinigami Ascendant Stabilized state, the mind had to accept the power that came from caring deeply enough about something or someone else to risk a broken heart. The ability to reach out to strangers.

To change from a Hollow Ascendant Stabilized state, the heart had to accept that there were some things that could not be changed, so then it must logically follow that there were somethings and some people that were not worth caring about. The ability to survive an emotionally crippling blow.

Standing there, panting from the pain of it all, surrounded by his friends, his Nakama and the people he had come to trust, the completely hollowfied soul simply stood there waiting. The only sign of his emotional turmoil hidden in the wind, carried in every direction outward from himself by the pressure of his Reiatsu, spread out wide and thin across the riotous sands of Hueco Mundo. A force so great and terrible rendered non-threatening as the oppressive weight spread far and wide.

Because even if he was completely a hollow, Ichigo-kun had no more desire to step on an ant and crush it than Sōsuke did.

There is a pulse, once,

It happens again, twice, the vibration of a heart trying to beat.

It happens a third time, and finally catches,

The subtle epiphany of a Becoming, as the soul of Kurosaki Ichigo is the first to completely turn,

embracing all the states his soul could express

the perfect, cyclical life of a Phoenix.

Or a soul unafraid of change.

There is a massive corona of Reiatsu that is released, and as the light fades everyone finds that they are unharmed, albeit glowing a soft yellow that slowly fades, courtesy of the Reishi-mippuu that Sōsuke had wrapped them in before anyone had stepped through the Garganta. They all shift nervously on their feet, worried mostly because this was the most difficult part of the transformation and they had never seen a feral hollow remain so calm... others because Sōsuke had warned them that there was a chance... that Ichigo-kun was powerful enough to do something that only Sōsuke had managed in the last 10,000 years of Hueco Mundo.

Beneath the eternally shifting sands of Hueco Mundo, The Ancient Wyrm, El Blanco Diablo turns.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 30 : To Trespass Across Incarnations

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Sōsuke and the Hollow are the only ones to sense the approach of The Ancient Wyrm. The wild Vasto Lorde howls in challenge, and vanishes in a flash of Sonido, running off to challenge El Blanco Diablo. Prepared for this, Sōsuke quickly follows after.

The sand is frothing as the massive hollow rises underneath the feet of Ichigo-kun, his horns pointed downward an intense Cero charged and prepared to fire. The edge of it scorches Sōsuke's skin as he bodily tackles the feral boy who also thanks him with a punch to the side. The two bounce painfully off of the spines of the great dragon as it's momentum carries it up into the sky in a graceful deadly arc.

They hit the ground hard, and the hollow struggles violently to get away. It does the feral creature no good as Sōsuke quickly uses his Kidō to help the transformation along for the last time, hands glowing green, the Kaidō active even though he lacks the breath to speak the words he typically uses to focus it. The wyrm begins to fall as the two stagger to their feet, both boy and man take a moment to appreciate the view before the hollow vanishes from sight, hidden by the white fabric of Sentan Hakuja, the 56th Bakudō teleporting them back to the gathered souls just as the massive hollow crashes into the sand where they had stood.

Those who had not believed in the white fallen god of Hueco Mundo were in shock. Those that had were either worried or terrified. Kisuke-san at least kept a level head even when utterly surprised. Sōsuke grabbed the other mans hand and directed one of his fingers at the meaty part of Sōsuke's shoulder, "The Ninety-Six Capitol Fire-Suspended Seal Destruction if you would Kisuke-san"

The gust of wind from the wyrm's downward lunge only moments ago so powerful that when it reaches where they are standing it knocks the hat off of the scientist's head, Reiatsu control exercise failing in his shock. Sōsuke quirks an eyebrow, because really, Kisuke-san had no reason to still be surprised when Sōsuke knew about every last thing he created.

Sōsuke drops Kisuke-san's hand with a wince moments after he complies, rolling his sore shoulder. With a nod at the blonde, he turns to a worried Orihime-chan, her attention not moved from where her Shun Shun Rika was checking over Ichigo-kun. Quickly running out of time as the Ancient Wyrm circles below, searching for the meal it had sensed, Sōsuke gently slides his fingers down the side of her face from hairline to chin. She jerks in surprise, looking up at him. The familiar gesture of affection that characterized the Higurashi not one that they had exchanged before.

She opens her mouth to speak, but something must have shown on his face as he bent towards her. "I'm going to go save him. I only ask that you remember… Just in case this goes horribly wrong."

He steps away to look at the boy under her shield. Ichigo Kurosaki was completely unaware of just how much of his creation was in the hands of Sōsuke, reincarnation of Dekuyume. He would find out in time, but not yet.

Sōsuke prepares himself to cast another Sentan Hakuja, speaking to her as the spell takes hold. "You promised to be my friend, that no matter how many times time itself forces us apart… we will always say hello one more time than we have said goodbye."

He is far away from them when he reappears, far enough away he hopes, that the brief moment where the release of his unshielded Reiatsu would do them no untoward harm, and far enough to be outside of the range that could affect them once it reached equilibrium. He couldn't be sure, there was only two times in his long long life that he had been able to release his stiffing control over his Reiatsu.

Both times he had been forced to bow his head to El Blanco Diablo, the schismed Kami who once ruled El Hueco Mundo. The first time, before his Hōgyoku Transformation, Sōsuke had nearly torn his body apart when he allowed all of the suppressed pressure to escape for the first time since he had awoken. The second time had been safer, safe inside the dual barriers of the Demonic Red Barrier and the 96 Capitol seal created by Kisuke.

But Sōsuke had been unable to create the demonic red barrier again, and the seal would do him no good until after he had lured the ancient wyrm to his location. So he was left hoping that he was far enough away that the others would not be harmed, and left relying on The Dreaming Kami to hold him together.

He is, and she succeeds beautifully. The Ōken in his bones sings, the rapid regeneration healing his evaporating body together, giving no sign at all just how close he was to dissolving into nothing. The soul he carried was too strong to exist without a domain to anchor the power to, perhaps that was one of the reasons why El Blanco Diablo never left Hueco Mundo.

In two locations a dozen sensors, monitors and detectors beep, whistle and shriek in a cacophony. Some only announce the shifting in the balance of the worlds as the spiritual mass Hueco Mundo begins to rise, others repeat themselves endlessly, another failed experiment at detecting the Reiryoku well of Aizen Sōsuke, the rest just simply short out.

Unaware of the chaos he has created in the 12th division and Kisuke lab, Sōsuke jumps out of the way as the Ancient Wyrm lunges. Appearing like a mystical creature they watch as he remains unmoved, the sand kicked up from the dragon's lunge sparkles in the moonlight settling slowly around him as the dragon arches in the sky.

Some cry out in alarm when he remains exactly where he is making no action other than one. Aizen Sōsuke raises his hand to his face, fingers curling in a way that sends the Visored into sputters of surprise. There is a gasp of awe, as Aizen Sōsuke dons the mask of his inner hollow. Again the hand rises, this time to point at the hollow rapidly closing in on him.

He fires a massive, powerful Cero and almost immediately a much smaller one right after it. The largest begins to collapse as it approaches the diving ancient wyrm, the aura El Blanco Diablo adsorbing all of the power out of the attack. The second one is spared the same fate, sheltered by the one that had gone before it. With a grating high-pitched cry that was composed entirely of the grinding and breaking of bone, the dragon's jaws snap shut less than 100 meters above Sōsuke.

Sōsuke keeps his arm raised in the air, fingers open and waiting his second arm raised in preparation to support the other. Beneath his feet, he creates a Reishi-mippuu that spreads flat and wide over the sand he stood on the particles held together by a bright yellow network.

The tip of the ancient wyrm's closed maw brushes his raised palm.

The Magatsuhi that had appeared in Sōsuke's inner world may have only been the human nucleus at the center of the schismed white devil attacking now...But Sōsuke was this dimension's Onigumo, the only soul to ever outwit the yōkai he had sold his body to. The touch breaks the illusion, forcing the wyrm to remain solid instead of vaporizing and passing through the micro fissures in the sand. The true secret of its ability to swim through it.

The full weight of the hollow impacts his raised hands, buckling his knees even as the jarring force shatters the bones in his hands and arms. The Dreaming Kami screams in pain even as she uses high speed regeneration mend him.

He grunts with the effort it takes to keep a hold of the hollow as the Ancient Wyrm twists and flails in the air unable to bend far enough to touch the earth, and unable to shake free of Sōsuke's death grip. Curled into the bones that made up the hollows nose, Sōsuke's hands bleed.

With a soft whisper of power, Sōsuke Higurashi trespasses across incarnations.

The violet halo of his Reiatsu presses into his past incarnation, wrapping around it like a violet glowing spider web.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Deep within the garden of his inner world, The Dreaming Kami giggles as one of the lightning bugs lands on Magatsuhi's nose tickling the lazy soul awake. Upon realizing their situation he decides not to roll over and go back to sleep. He allows the anticipation, the fear and the heavy weight of hope to fuel him.

It was time to save her.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Sōsuke's arms were shaking under the strain, Reiatsu steadily flowing through the Vents in his wrists to support his arms even as it was whisked away, consumed by the dragons aura. That was fine, there was still an ace up his sleeve.

After all, if a shinigami's power had two release states, then it only made sense that a hollows did as well. A fact that had been proven by Ulquiorra and his so named Segunda Etapa. And as the Visored were the mirror reflection of the Arrancar... then not only did their zanpakutō have release forms, so to did their masks.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

The endless screams of Hueco Mundo had been silent ever since Ichigo had begun his transformation, with the world so quiet but for the grinding noises of El Blanco Diablo. In that silence it is quiet enough to hear the words of the soul that had left them all shaken kilometers away by his power.

"Adsorb All of Creation and Stand Alone On Top of The World, Magatsuhi!"

Only Kisuke knows what it means when Aizen Sōsuke undergoes a hollowfication transformation... and appears as a mirror reflection of the Ancient Wyrm… but at only about 1/10th of the size. The Kidō Corps may have been the ones collecting the data, but it was people like Kisuke that had discovered the pattern a soul followed for Reincarnation... and what sorts of things that the cycle of reincarnation could not wash out of a soul.

Heart racing, he can only observe, watching as the tiny Adsorption Dragon fights the first. Each dive it made into the sand quickly followed by the larger, each nibble avenged with a bite, each exchange ended without a single bit of power stolen.

It did not matter that Sōsuke was the smaller of the two, had he more power it would have only meant that he was more dense. No Sōsuke's size mattered only because he wasn't more powerful. Therefore he was either the younger reincarnation of the two fighting incarnations... or somewhere along the path of reincarnation, a great deal of power had been lost.

This was not a fight the little dragon was going to win. The thought almost makes him want to cry, startling proof that he really had become friends with the charming bastard. Only one hope prevents him from doing so, Aizen Sōsuke was schemer, and it was wholly against his nature to premeditatively start a fight he could not win.

Finally after the 4th exchange, the inevitable happens. The massive Adsorption Dragon snaps its jaws shut the tiny replica eaten whole. There are cries of fear and anger and pain, the loudest of them unsurprisingly being Orihime-chan and Ichigo-kun, the two children had had the most positive interactions with the retired tyrant.

Of all the vocalizations, Kisuke is the only one to laugh. They turn to stare at him and he only raises his fan to hide a mischievous smile. Kisuke had no idea how Sōsuke had known it would happen or how to do it, but clearly this had been his plan all along.

As the Ancient Wyrm begins to writhe, the 96 capitol seal activating, Urahara Kisuke has the distinct pleasure of explaining the most unusual phenomenon a Menos class hollow could experience, a Nucleic Shift.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

The moment he is swallowed, he blinks. In the space it takes to do so his whole perspective changes from the million broken masks that made up the Ancient Wyrm's teeth to inside his own inner world.

He stands with a gasp, hands clutching at his body surprised to find no wounds. For the space of a second he is almost convinced that it was the work of Kyō-kun or Kami-chan sparing him the horror of his last moments. And then there is a rattling and a scream of rage... Sōsuke stares in shock and horror as the white skin of the Ancient wyrm slides past the edge of the garden, blocking the red fog from sight... and revealing that all this time Sōsuke had been in a room completely enclosed off from the outside by a massive curved glass window that had held the red fog at bay.

A tiny hand takes his and he turns away from the sight of El Blanco Diablo vanishing into the mist. The Dreaming Kami stares up at him solemnly. "It's just you and me, Kyō-kun is the one that threw you in here, even as Magatsuhi shut the door." She leads him across the garden, through the water to the very edge where the garden met the glass.

He jerks back in surprise when they are rammed, the Ancient Wyrm continuing it's assault, relentless. "We could stay here. If you wanted. El Blanco Diablo is strong, but not strong enough to break into this place. The only way he can get us is if you go out to him."

Their faces are reflected back at them in the glass. Sōsuke... looked afraid, with good reason... loosing had never been part of the plan. Sōsuke was a smaller version of their soul, but he was the oldest. More powerful with the extra soul mass or not, it should have been impossible for him to loose. And yet here he was, defeated, life preserved only because Kyō-kun chose to save him... and because Magatsuhi chose to ensure he stayed saved.

The Dreaming Kami looked old. Her childish face carried a wisdom she normally did not wear, though Sōsuke had always suspected that it was there. "There is a door in the back, if you want to go. I'm not afraid to fight along side you, but I don't really care either way."

It takes surprisingly little time to decide. He turns to walk to the back of the room, for the first time seeing the door in the brick wall he had always presumed was only a grotto and not an entrance.

She remains at the window, looking out as he moves. Her hands disproportionately strong as she prevents him from getting more than a step away before she has finished saying her peace. "Are you sure you are brave enough to go? This is your Hearts Home, that is why you are always so comfortable here. There is a world outside of this room."

Her eyes are crystalline clear, as she turns to look up at him. "Tell me Sōsuke Higurashi, are you truly ready to take that journey into yourself. To see without disguise the composition of your collective soul. To stare into the face of who you truly are, as a person... as a Kami? Will you look into a mirror and see Sōsuke? Or will you see only the 4th reincarnation?"

Sōsuke takes another step towards the door, and this time she lets him go. As he lays his hand on the handle he hesitates for only the briefest of moments. And then he is opening the door and stepping through.

Sōsuke does not answer her question, because he does not know. And the only way to find out was to try.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

In the distance, the Hollow Cries out.

The halls were made of sinew.

The stairs were made of bone.

The rooms were filled with bodies, broken down into tiny useful parts.

He walked along the catwalk, etched into the arch of a collarbone, staring at a jar of beating hearts.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

At the dip in the center there was another closed door, a bone sign to the side of the door stating it was the minds home. The door was unlocked. Uncertain about where he was supposed to go he opened the door and stepped through. Disoriented, the left right door he opened, turned into a up down trap door as he passed though it, causing him to loose his balance, falling to his knees on the other side.

The floor was obsidian black. The perfectly smooth surface was in the shape of a head that had been bisected through the nose. There was no room, no clear dome or computer though he had no idea why he expected there to be one. There was only red mist that left the floor slippery.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

In the distance, the Hollow Cries out.

As he rises to his feet he finds his hands stained red.

The mist... was blood.

Staggering in the slippery mess he careful approaches the edge and looks down

He stood on top of a titan. Every inch of it drenched in blood that flowed in rivulets down its body.

And horizon to horizon below

an endless eternal stretch of blood soaked earth

who's only distinguishable features were the endless fields of broken weapons, abandoned war machines,

and the single line of footprints that stretched to the horizon out of sight

each step filled with a puddle of blood

In the distance, the Hollow Cries out.

He had to close his eyes.

They burned, as tears fell.

Because he had once been a terrible, evil creature that had found the end of the path of Yin

and it hurt

because he may not have become a saint

but he wasn't that creature

not any more

In the distance, the Hollow Cries out.

There was a garden in bloom in his hearts home

the only proof that he was fundamentally different from what he was before

hidden away beneath the surface

because Sōsuke was a Higurashi

and in the Higurashi,

Sōsuke represented the night

and in that night there was only a tiny bit of light

Only the stars and the moon

that watched over the last living soul

as it marched through an endless battlefield

its domain infinitely wide

but only inches deep

In the distance, the Hollow Cries out.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Sōsuke throws back his head, arches his spine, throws his arms out wide, and embraces the blood drenched wind.

The red mist stains his white shihakushō as it seeps in, a perfect shade of blood red.

El Blanco Diablo roars somewhere in the distance.

As if in accordance with his will, the mist slowly began to rise up into the sky frothing and boiling as they gathered like clouds, a patina of shades of red that circled but dared not to obscure the moon that lit the world below.

Kyōka Suigetsu and Magatsuhi appear at his sides. A light weight settles across his shoulders as The Dreaming Kami lightly perches on his back, her white wings ethereal against the wash of red as they flutter to keep her weight off of him.

Into the air he whispers, "I am Sōsuke Higurashi, both the 2nd and the 4th reincarnation of Magatsuhi. I have seen the end of the path of Yin, and I have turned around. I have adsorbed all of creation, and I have learned to let it go. I have stood alone at the top of the world, but now I am not alone. Not because I stepped down, but because I made room for others to step up."

The mist finally finishes rising, the ocean of blood lifted from the ground. But the dryness was an unnatural state, and so it began to rain. Fat red drops of blood fell from the sky, painting the pure white Hollow flailing on the ground with its broken spine in a gory red that somehow still remained sharp and jarring against the red stained world below. In that first attack that had startled Sōsuke, the hollow had defeated itself. Breaking it's body upon the titan. Each cry thereafter had been one of pain. The death throes of a being that was physically incapable of dying.

Because El Blanco Diablo was a derived Kami, schismed from its domain, the only reason that it had not flickered out of existence like a candle in high wind when it schismed from El Hueco Mundo... was because it had been the patron Kami of Hollows and thus, had adsorbed the souls of others to keep itself alive.

It had been so dangerous, so overpoweringly strong... and yet here it was, a pitiful creature floundering on the ground, helpless. It hurt, to look at the violently flailing hollow, so far gone in its madness that it continued to flail despite its broken spine. In its efforts to rise, it was continually undoing the healing its rapid regeneration was meeting out.

Had Sōsuke remained safe in his hearts home it would have remained like this for eternity.

Sōsuke too afraid to leave, cowed into submission by the hollows cries.

And the Hollow eternally screaming in pain, repeatedly breaking its own back over and over and over again...

too mad with anger and pain and broken hearts to simply wait long enough for the wound to heal.

Even now, here in this place, the seat of his power, El Blanco Diablo was still stronger than Sōsuke. Far enough above him that even if he lifted Kyōka Suigetsu he would never be able to cut a single one of the millions of masks that it was composed of. Far enough above him that if the hollow wasn't an Adsorption creature, pulling in Reiatsu instead of pushing it out... Sōsuke would have been crushed under its weight.

Sōsuke grabs the hands of the two spirits at his side, and straightens his shoulders, completely unaware of what the consequences of using this particular Kidō inside an inner world would be. But he had no other choice, there was literally nothing else he could do to end El Blanco Diablo's suffering.

Sōsuke considers himself blessed, because of all of the souls that served as Shinigami... there were only two that knew how to cast of the forbidden Kaidō he was about to use, had Sasakibe-san not taught it to him as a human child, this would have become his new normal.

"O' lost soul, Sagiso blooms in the land of men, as a dew drop upon the white butterfly's back, fall to sublimation and evanesce into your next form, so that those that came before you, may follow after as the wheel turns once more. 4th Rite of Kaidō (Death): Konsō, The Soul Burial."

An oblivion white star forms between his fingertips. And then the lightning bugs appear from his heart's home, each tiny creature flying through the white star before leaving a white streak of stardust in the falling rain. A million sparkles of white light as they all fly down to the fallen Kami, alight on a mask, and release the soul back into the cycle of reincarnation.

A last mercy,

Because nothing was meant to live forever.

Not even Kami.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 31 : Bastarditis: The Diseases of a Bastard

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

The entirety of the celestial ocean was composed in cycles, one becoming another as the individual wheels rotated. Some were quick to turn, others slow, each extreme capable of leaving the impression that there was no cycle at all. The life of a Kami was the no exception.

Because there was a domain, there was a Kami. Even if that Kami did not have a soul, there must always be a Kami, and so the Kami was derived from their domain. To rule it, even as they were it, even as they were subjected to the rules that governed it.

Magatsuhi was the derived Kami that held the title El Blanco Diablo of El Hueco Mundo. He spoke Spanish, because that was the language of the domain, he looked like a horned devil and was completely white because his title made people believe that was what he looked like and so when the domain derived him, that was how he appeared.

Because no one could conceive of a Kami that was not also a hollow ruling over the eternal desert... Magatsuhi could be nothing else, so without a soul to heal, a heart to break, or the experience to understand, Magatsuhi became a hollow subject to the eternal hunger that drove those he was to watch over... but it was a strange, foreign thing, easily ignored, after all, he had no soul with which to yearn.

And when those hollows looked out on the eternal sandy night they were filled with fears of massive creatures lurking beneath the surface ready to eat the tastiest of morsels. With no defenses against their faith, the very foundation of his power, he had gained a second energy state, one that allowed him to transform into the beast that filled the fear in their prayers.

He had been fine for eons, it was impossible for a derived Kami to long for something it had never had...

Until he met her and learned.

Until she ruined him.

Until he loved her for it.

Until she did not feel the same

Until she went to serve The Soul Society as a vassal just so she would not have to see him again.

Until she left him trapped in his own domain, desperate for her affection.

Until he learned what it was he had never known.

Until without a soul to heal, he was hurt

Until without a heart to break, he was heartbroken

Until the agony of understanding his subjects pain drove him mad.

Until the gnawing hunger forced him to adsorb the soul of his own guidepost regalia.

The hunger of a starving man given food for the first time was a terrible, cruel, corrupting experience.

With the meteoric change he caused to the balance of worlds in his hunger, he began to tilt the balance of worlds, forcing his counterparts The Soul King of The Soul Society and The Bone-clad Judge of The Hell Verse to come and put him out of his misery. It would have been an insurmountable task, to kill a Kami while they were in the heart of their domain.

But Magatsuhi had wanted to die, had wanted to be killed so that his domain could derive him once more, to create him without an understanding of these excruciating feelings. And so, because he had willed it, they had succeed in schisming him from his domain. It should have been lethal, derived Kami did not exist without a domain.

But he had lived. The souls he had adsorbed in his madness would not release him, so his agony continued, his madness deepened and he was forced to swim through the sand eternally damned. In hopes that giving her to him would end his nightmare, The Soul King had commanded her to try to reach him. But by the time she tried, he was already lost in the madness... and he swallowed her whole, so she could never escape again. Returning to his endless search for a way to end his pain.

He does not know where he is.

He does not know who he is

He does not know how long it has been

He doesn't even care why

He only knows that he is finally being set free the moment he is hit with the first spell that the Soul King had created for his servants. As he dissolves into nothing he is overjoyed.

He embraces his absolute destruction, to never exist in any form ever again.

His only regret that he would not be able to apologize to her.

And then Magatsuhi flickered out of existence.

Collapsing into the seed of eternity he had been made of.

Swept away into the sky.

Just another seed of eternity released into the Aether.

Magatsuhi the soul of the derived Kami's guidepost awakens, believing himself to be the Magatsuhi no Kami. The pressure of being both a Shinki and the nucleus of the massive soul construct that had held the derived Kami captive had erased it's entire history. He felt himself dissolving, breaking into pieces under a Kaidō. Feral, operating on survival instinct alone, he began to struggle.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

The seed of eternity, the tiny shard of the domain El Hueco Mundo was carried into the Aether, the vast sea of power that supported The Celestial Ocean. The Aether that was the collection of all the power of the prayers that were not the property of any specific Kami and had nowhere else to go.

There were millions of seeds adrift in the loam of Aether. Some were from domains that had long since fallen, some were from domains that had yet to exist, some were from domains who's Kami chose to create more seeds than the one that made them Kami, choosing to participate in the cycle of creation.

Others still were from Kami who had for one reason or another chosen to share power with another Kami. This was the reason that there was a seed of eternity from The Well of Time, the tiny glowing spark created when Kagome no Kami had chosen to lend her strength to The Sacred Tree released when Kiyoshi had become en-souled.

The seeds of eternity were tiny surrendered fragments of a domain, broken off and segregated. They could not be reclaimed after they had been created, too different after being ejected whatever their purpose. Most would remain there in Aether, detritus of Kami.

But sometimes, if there was a need, if the feelings carried into the Aether by the prayers of the living souls were strong enough... Sometimes the seeds sprouted to become Domains, similar and yet different from the domain that had spawned them.

There had once been a seed of The Eternal Battlefield adrift in the Aether. A blessing that had been given to the Shikon no Tama so that it could finally be a soul, whole and real and unborrowed. During one of the reincarnations the Primary Operator had conducted on the soul it had created, her daughter Shikon-chan, the seed had been set free to join all of the others in the loamy Aether, adrift in The Celestial Ocean.

But there had been a need, a hope, and a wish so the seed had bloomed into The Colloquium of Souls. Not subject to time, Shikon had become the first Primary Operator of a domain that had simultaneously been created the moment she became its Kami, and had existed since The Celestial Ocean first came into being.

The seed of eternity from El Hueco Mundo is collected from the Loam, summoned like a few others. Necessary parts for the en-souling procedure written into the GFM-DCOM of Bleach:12679752 by Dekuyume Land Kami of The Eternal Battlefield.

Because everything was still going according to plan.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

The 96 capitol seal had just barely finished, collapsing into a star shaped barrier orders of magnitude smaller than El Blanco Diablo, when suddenly the seal begins to rip apart, the cross-like arms dissolving out into nothing as the main body in the center cracked down the middle like so much plaster.

The group of souls that had come to aid Ichigo with his transformation... and those that had been asked to come along just in case the ancient wyrm was stirred from its slumber, rush over to see what has become of Aizen Sōsuke. They arrive just in time to see a tiny serpent, no bigger than a natural garden snake slither out of the seal. Its head a crown of spikes around the tiny draconic mask upon it's face.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

It was an agony to awaken. Trillions of voices crashing down on the mind inside, however Sōsuke had been Dekuyume who had been Naraku and both of them had been a Magatsuhi. This sensation was nothing new to them, and so with a hiss of annoyance, it whipped its tail around and smashed the mask on its face, blooming into light before coalescing as a Natural Arrancar, too much minus characteristic causing Magatsuhi, now the sum of both his past and his present lives, to be the ascendant part of their Yin and Yang balance.

Magatsuhi could feel it, as his shinigami fell asleep, safe and at peace once more in his hearts home. He sighs, shaking his head sending his long white hair into chaos, a victim of the wind but for where it is held down by the broken crown of spikes that cross over the crown of his head. His tiny dilated red eyes rise.

Well at least one part of the plan had gone right. With an easy relaxed gait he walks over to her reincarnation. He had waited a lifetime, to see her again... and this time he would not have to content himself with only seeing her... because this time, she was his friend.

So instead of taking a deep breath and breathing her in, devouring her whole, he only tilts his head to the side and smiles, "I do believe that my charming bastard of a counterpart asked you to bring along a few vital pieces of equipment?" Kami but the way she smiles at him!

The girl smiles at him overjoyed to find him non-threatening and reaches into her back pocket to pull out a makeup mirror. Opening it, she turns it around and points the mirror at him. Humbled by her complete lack of fear, he draws his zanpakutō, the form of Kyōka Suigetsu no different than before.

Ignoring the useless idiots who thought he wanted a mirror to engage in a bout of vanity and ignoring the other wastes of air that were stupid enough to believe that he would actually harm her reincarnation, he points the zanpakutō at the mirror with a smile and a wink at her and a "Ripple, Kyōka Suigetsu"

The useless tools all babble in surprise like startled birds when the door in the mirror opens. Their prattle only worsens when the open portal appears to spit out the Soul Extraction Glove without any further input from Magatsuhi. In the mirror, Kyōka Suigetsu gives him a commiserating smile and offers a respectful bow.

Magatsuhi slides his blood red shihakushō down his broad shoulders and arms, leaving the obi tied around his waist so that the jacket simply dangles. No doubt his shinigami would be indulging in massive amounts of introspection contemplating the meaning behind the red stain following him out of his inner world, but Magatsuhi just didn't care what it meant. It evoked no emotional response therefore it did not matter. He glances up to find everyone staring at him, "I can strip down to my loincloth so you can get the whole picture if you need it you perverted salivating jackals."

Ignoring the lackluster gaggle and the idiocy they continue to spew, he turns to her reincarnation. Not feeling an ounce of shame at how he can feel himself softening, tension fading and shoulders dropping in a silent unsolicited submission, he crouches a bit so that they are eye to eye. His voice is soft as he gives her permission, "Hey there darling, you can touch it if you want to, I don't mind."

The loudest of the idiots squawks in indignation. Magatsuhi knows damn well that the plus souls think he is propositioning her, he also knows damn well that the minus oriented souls are seeing something else entirely in his behavior, even if the yin-yang balance of their souls is not oriented well enough for them to understand what it is. He just doesn't fucking care.

Fortunately, her reincarnation was perfectly capable of understanding the words that were coming out of his mouth and needed no further explanation, hysterics placating, or repeated offers of permission to do something he could damn well tell that she wanted to do.

Just as fearlessly as Orihime had reached out to the Shinigami aspect of their soul once assured of her welcome, she did the same for Magatsuhi. Her hand reaches out and curiously touches his hollow hole marveling at the place that proclaimed that his heart once took shelter there. The sensation is like being electrocuted with the essence of solace, drowning in serenity until you are left gasping for air, and lifted up into the stratosphere on a cloud of promised serendipity all at once.

Were he a lesser man, it would have left him a broken, sniveling wreck. In a hush behind them, the shinigami Sōsuke liked to play mind games with explains why all of the Arrancar are all doing remarkably accurate gaping fish imitations. In their own little world Magatsuhi enjoys a chat with her reincarnation. "Does it hurt?" , she asks him.

Even now, countless reincarnations since, she was so very kind. "No Orihime, it feels like a balm on my soul."Leaning forward to rest his head on her shoulder he breaths in her scent with a sigh of contentment, careful not to pull her soul in for a taste. It does not last anywhere near as long as he would like. The voices were increasing in noise. Ruthlessly he suppresses them and moves on to the next step of the plan. The plan had begun forming the moment Sōsuke realized that boy with the fucked- four- ways soul was probably strong enough to wake up The Ancient Wyrm. He willfully ignored the fact that Sōsuke and his other spirits had come up with most of the plan as those parts were the ones that had almost gone wrong.

He pulls away with a sigh, glancing over at the morons he raises an eyebrow, "You sniveling brats ready? I got 9 Vasto Lorde worth of hollows in my gut at the moment and they're making such a racket I'm just going to have to evict them. For those of you feeling peckish, I suggest you get something else to eat since these ass-hats are rude, idiotic, boring, and loud."

He pulls on the soul extraction glove with a nod of appreciation when he finds that it fits perfectly before turning to the boy Sōsuke thought so highly of, "The first will be Ito, the dimension witch, do be careful… Sōsuke wants her to be my first born for a reason. Something about both the Spider and Onigumo knowing they couldn't hold her against her will… even if they ever found a reason to work together."

The glove begins to glow as he channels his Reiatsu into it. Working just fine running off of his nearly black purple hollow Reiatsu instead of Sōsuke's shinigami violet. The groggy voice of his shinigami reaches him, the slumbering shinigami shaken awake by their shared zanpakutō spirit and Sōsuke's Ōken spirit. Magatsuhi listens to Sōsuke's directions, tiny eyes glaring at his own chest blindly grabbing at souls trapped in his body and bringing them together in chunks to be expelled. Only the shinigami aspect of their soul had been given access to the information provided by the GFM-DCOM, any authority Magatsuhi may have had once, revoked eons ago with the loss of his domain.

The blond brainiac pipes up, "Oh! Is that in any way related to my Soul-object integration technique?" Magatsuhi glares up at the prick, "I have it elbow deep in my own guts. Do I look like I care how Sōsuke made this damn thing?"

All the souls needed to pluck out Ito gathered, he mashes them together, before reaching for hers. The bright eyed and bushy tailed giggler is snagged and shoved into the middle of the mashed souls. Once the particulate hollow is chelated, he promptly pulls her from his body.

She is released the moment she is completely pulled through, Magatsuhi unable to keep a hold of her as he is left sick and dizzy 1/9th of the power he had gained from his past reincarnation lost forever. He completely ignores as the boy fights the expelled Vasto Lorde. The soul was out of his body, it wasn't his problem any more. Fuck that sucked, and Sōsuke expected him to do this crazy shit how many times?

The answer was way too many more than he wanted to, and with far to short of a break between each expulsion. The people Sōsuke had chosen to fight were mostly the future incarnations of the souls that were being expelled giving them the advantage... and the hollows that were being expelled were just as mad and feral as El Blanco Diablo had been.

As soon as the boy has killed the youngest incarnation of his father sending him on the path of reincarnation, Magatsuhi has the glove once more fishing out pieces of his own power of existence so that they can become what they have always been. Wondering if there was a shade of pale that was whiter than Hollow skin he chokes out, "Ulquiorra meet, don't eat, Kanna of the Void. Can't divide by nothing after all, or the universe will fall apart."

He is completely unaware that Orihime is not the only one who recognizes the litany. It was unlikely that he would even care if he had possessed the energy to remain attentive to his surroundings given the disdain he felt towards anyone but his shinigami, his zanpakutō and the reincarnation of her.

"Grimmjow, meet Kagura of the wind. Enjoy your bitch slapping cat-fight."

"Nnoitra, meet Goshinki the Oni, you deserve each other."

The expulsions blend together, though they retain a strangely familiar rhythm. His shinigami's exhaustion bleeds into his own as the unnatural drops in power make him more and more exhausted, nauseous and strangely cold.

"Nelliel the masochist enjoy getting hot and bothered for Jūrōmaru the berserker."

"Stark and Lilynette, have a nice play-date with Hakudōshi and Shirodōshi, you're twins with electricity, should be shockingly fun"

He so badly wanted to just stop and go to sleep, allowing Sōsuke to deal with all of the rest. But there was one thing that was guaranteed to keep him awake and alert. It was time to finally set her free, so that one day, Midoriko could come back to him, freely of Orihime's own will.

His voice is gravely from exhaustion, "Well my dear, I do believe it is your turn. Are you ready?" The orange haired girl nods, "Yep, I'm going to be super tired though so you better not get into any trouble afterwards!" He musters up the strength to laugh, "I know."

He doesn't need his shinigami's directions, not to find where she was still held captive, not when even here dimensions away from where she had last been a creature of Naohi... he could still sense her presence, a blessing and a curse that he was glad not even reincarnation could wash out.

He slides the soul extraction glove into his chest, dragging it slowly through his being, gently, gently sifting her soul out of where it rested, a halo of tendril-like roots around the rim of his hollow hole branching thick and deep through his thoughts and resting like a crown upon his head. Both his solace and his sorrow, the reason for his broken heart and the reason it had healed.

"Orihime I am honored and privileged to introduce you to your past incarnation, Midoriko the one for whom this Magatsuhi will always fall from grace." And then it is an agony, to let her go when she meant everything to him, to let her go when she did not care enough for him to stay, to once more die inside, so that she could live.

But he does.

He does.

He would do anything to have her stand before him as a friend, so he pulls the scabs off of his healing heart and bleeds her out.

The glow of her reincarnation's special ability being released into an active state is a brilliant golden flash as the blob of soul he had rent from his being takes the shape of the woman he would willingly chase through countless reincarnations. Magatsuhi did not know, that hollows could cry, the tears falling from his eyes where milky and white but burned like tears all the same. Tears from a stone. If his heart was in her hands, why was it still breaking?

Midoriko's eyes open, feral and mad and full of hate, and he has his answer.

His heart was breaking because he had done this to her.

His madness was a poor excuse. And he didn't understand how she could ever forgive him for it. But she had, she would, she was. Orihime, reincarnation of Midoriko was there to end his suffering. He had asked for her help, knowing that he could bare the thought of no one laying a hand on her, not another, not himself. So she did.

"Ayame, Baigon, Hinagiku, Lily, Shun'ō, Tsubaki!, Rokukiriko Chuutaishun no Tenhime, Six-facet prism-shield of the sacred princess, I reject!", and a corona of her golden-yellow Reiatsu.

Midoriko lunges forward, fingers curled like claws, no kindness at all in her black and gold eyes, the empty void in her chest a testament to everything he had taken from her. He remains where he is. If her reincarnation failed to defeat her then he would accept whatever punishment she would mete out on him, if only so that it might ease some of the pain he had caused her.

The fairies of Shun Shun Rika zip though the air and encircle Midoriko. Three at her feet and three at her head. Between the six of them, a 6 faceted sphere forms trapping her inside. She pounds on the walls of her prison like an animal. The barrier must have had some healing characteristics as whenever she hit the barrier hard enough to split her chitin like bone skin it healed instantly with a flash of golden light.

His shinigami had believed that the pinnacle of her power, the evocation of all six spirits at the same time, possessed all three of her gifts, to heal, to deconstruct and to contain all at once, supposedly what the Konsō procedure would look like if the program became a zanpakutō Spirit. Magatsuhi did not care, only staring in rapt awe as piece by piece Midoriko came back to herself. Until finally it was her composed, calm and kind, that was left behind when the barrier released, a purified soul, hale, healthy and whole.

She opens her mouth to speak, and oh how he wants to hear her voice, even if it would be filled with words of condemnation! But he cannot hear anything over the chaos birthed inside of him as the last two souls waiting to be expelled attempt to take over. The boundaries of his self shakes, like the rattling of the bars of a cage. Onigumo was attempting a Nucleic Shift, his last incarnation Byakuya an unwilling accomplice.

The hand with the soul extraction gloves rises and tears the two of them out.

It felt like the very essence of a schism. The past was rend from it's future, and the wheel turned once more. Because reincarnation was like an ourobouros for Magatsuhi, the end was always the beginning.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Sōsuke was on his hands and his knees, puking into the sand. With his last act of consciousness Magatsuhi had forced them apart, before subsuming back underneath Sōsuke's skin to rest in his inner world to float in the garden among the poisonous flowers. He wipes his mouth as he looks across the sand to the Arrancar he had expelled, his previous incarnation, the nucleus of what had once been El Blanco Diablo.

Throat raw, Sōsuke chokes out, "Naraku, hollow to Byakuya of Dreams and Illusions, I am Higurashi Sōsuke, Shinigami to Kyōka Suigetsu, I always win..."

He staggers to his feet, unsteady and aching in places so deep not even The Dreaming Kami could heal. He draws his zanpakutō and points it at the Arrancar that appears to be a perfect replica of the Naraku that had existed in Dekuyume's stories. Eyes red, expression beautiful and cold, and a mask of a white baboon sat upon the inky black tresses, its attached pelt dangling down the Arrancar's back like a furry cape.

"... even if the first enemy I have to defeat is myself."

The Arrancar never moves, frozen in the spot it had awakened in, staring at Midoriko-san like a fool into the sun. He never sees the zanpakutō that pierces his mask and sends him on a long, long journey that would one day lead him to where Sōsuke was right now. Somewhere in the turning cycles of reincarnation, the ourobouros bites its tail.

Completely spent, Sōsuke follows Kyōka Suigetsu down through the purified ashes of his past. Once there, he can only laugh. Just like Dekuyume, Sōsuke too had trespassed across incarnations of is own soul.

They themselves, the only only ones able to force their past selves to change, except for her.

Only her.

Only ever her.

And that selfless love was the most beautiful thing he had ever felt. He would never give it up, even if it was the altar upon which he was always the only one sacrificed. No matter how far down the path of Yin he had walked, it was always so easy, to be the one that died just so she could breathe.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

His eyes flutter, heavy with his exhaustion as he rouses. Did he pass out? The desert wind is unusually cold, weakened as he was. Wearily, he tugs the top of his kimono out from where he is sitting on it, sliding it over his arms and shoulders heedless of the sand that spills out. He slides his hands over the fabric, marveling at the multifaceted red hue it still bore. He tries to consider the ramifications, but his tired mind refused to make heads or tails of it. He looks up, eyes instantly finding Orihime-chan asleep in the arms of Ulquiorra-kun. Curious, he looks around at the mess all of the fights had caused, registering that everyone who had fought was ok, and those that had been invited simply for their abilities with Kidō barriers were tired, but otherwise unharmed. Absently, he nods in appreciation at Hachigen-san and Tsukabishi-san.

Even Kisuke-san was perfectly fine, the retired Onmitsukidō had been invited mostly to observe, and as a backup plan just in case things got out of hand and Sōsuke needed to rely on someone with a Bankai and a capacity for planning almost as dangerous as Sōsuke's was. Curious as to where Midoriko-san had gone he begins to ask, only to be interrupted before he can say a single word.

"Bakudō #99, Part 2: Bankin, The Restriction Ban" White fabric-like strands enfold him, drowning everything from his sight. Only one thing reaches his ears as he is sealed, the voice Suì-Fēng at her most sneering and official, "By the First Order of the Reconvened Central 46 Aizen Sōsuke is to be taken into custody in a joint operation of the Kidō Corps and Onmitsukidō and tried for High Treason."

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Episode 32 : There is No Such Thing as Impossible

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Sōsuke awakes in a place he had never thought to see, not after he had abandoned the plan. There were layers of seals upon his person, they were in an eye patch over his right eye, in a gag over his mouth, in his chains, even in the clothing he had been dressed in. Each and everything touching his body was a seal. Except for one exception.

The tattered piece of cloth resting like a stole around his shoulders was all that remained of his shihakushō, the fabric just as bloody red as it had been stained by the red mist of his inner world. What had they done to him, to cause such damage to a fabric so intimately entwined in his soul that it reincarnated every time he transformed? He did not know and he was almost afraid to find out. He... ached? in a way that was neither physical or spiritual. It almost felt like he was constrained by more than the chains and the seals on his body. Like a plant that had grown too large for its pot, root-bound.

His nose itches and he lifts his arm to scratch it, or at least he tries. He only succeeds in rattling the chains that held him to the chair he sat in. Naturally, the act of being unable to scratch, causes the sensation to intensify.

His head thumps back against the headrest of the chair, and he stares into the oppressive encompassing darkness of Muken, the 8th and lowest level of the central underground prison. It was a void space completely sealed off from the outside world, practically its own empty dimension, a punishment reserved for souls that the Shinigami did not have the power to outright execute. Sōsuke found it interesting that it had existed before he committed his crimes. Particularly since no matter how he had searched the Kuchiki archives, he had never found a record of anyone being sentenced to Muken before him. Either it was an unusually forward thinking person who had created it when making the plans for the prison to be built, or a higher power had demanded its creation.

Sōsuke wonders if he was simply being held here as a threat while they took their time setting up for his trial, or if he had been tried in absentia, the Central 46 too afraid to face him. If it was only the first then Sōsuke still had a few secretes. If it was the latter, then it meant that they were either aware he was immortal, or were perfectly ok with letting him die of thirst covered in his own offal abandoned in the dark. Which to be fair, he could completely understand why they would find themselves validated in punishing him that way.

Sōsuke tilts his head, trying to see if he still appeared as the brown haired brown eyed intellectual that Seireitei was familiar with, or if he had lost control of the Complete Hypnosis and Kami-chan's Perception Warp. Unfortunately he could not move his head, and his bangs were on the side of his face that was sealed. He would just have to wait. His hands clench on the arms of his chair.

He would not, could not fall victim to the dark void around him. He had gotten over this centuries ago with his repeated trips back and forth to Hueco Mundo. The Void no longer had any sway over him, it had been Naraku's suppressant, not Dekuyume's, and not Sōsuke's.

Not wanting to spend a moment longer contemplating the abyss, he attempts to enter Jinzen. Only to fail. His breath catches in his throat. It appeared that for once they truly had managed to disarm him. He had hoped that his connection to Kyō-kun would have been strong enough if the sword was still in Shikai and thus actively connected to him twice over first by his Reiatsu still flowing into the zanpakutō, and the second by his submission to the Complete Hypnosis. He blinks once, twice and on the third blink there is a vibration in his bones, low and deep, and a light, the soft white glow of a tiny white butterfly emerges out of the darkness. Ethereal with her moon glow in the heavy darkness, the little butterfly almost seems like she is made out of miracles. The Dreaming Kami was with him still, even if Sōsuke had once again lost his connection to Kyō-kun. Jinzen lost, depriving him of the comforts of his hearts home.

He sighs, mumbling "Thank you for your company imouto.", through the seal-gag over his mouth. The butterfly alights on the tip of his nose. Her wings fluttering open wide.

Filling his vision with light.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

"Well that was a disappointment." Ito Aizomeya hates herself just a little bit for saying the words. But she also knew that's what all of the Central 46 watching Aizen-san wake up in Muken through the cameras designed by the SRDI were thinking.

Unsurprisingly many of the nobles that had been brave enough to take their house's seats in the Central 46 were also the ones that were angry enough to demand revenge in the guise of justice. They should have known better than to expect fear, or whatever foolishness they thought they would reap from Aizen-san when he awoke in Muken.

The Aizomeya knew better. They had seen Aizen Sōsuke at his most honest, and while he could be a vicious, cruel and domineering man, if given even the slightest opportunity, he was also the gentlest. Unlike the petty nobles of the Greater Noble Houses, Aizen-san was completely comfortable with the power he carried. He had no need to grasp for more, stepping on those he saw beneath him to reach for what lay out of his reach.

He was kind, to those who gave him an excuse to show that kindness to. And because he was so kind to those whom he did not have to be, they wanted to return that kindness any way they could. Even if it made them do foolish things.

Ito Aizomeya rises to her feet, "The Lesser Noble House of Aizomeya, charged with the King Given task once the calling of the Greater Noble House of Shiba brings forth the Petition to Abstain from holding the trial of Aizen Sōsuke until the 1st of August 2003 in the world of the living. If Aizen Sōsuke is correct and by that time the Quincy Blood war he has prophesied occurs, then he is to be pardoned of all crimes."

There are shouts of outrage, and cries of treachery, as she continues, using an amplification Kidō to be heard over the din, "HOWEVER, if in that period of time Yhwach, son of the Soul King does not make an appearance he is to be sentenced, without trial, to the fullest extent allowed by the charges against him, a total sum of 18500 years alone in the darkness of Muken with only his Zanpakutō Spirit to accompany him, his power drained through seals and raw Sekkiseki to power the barrier projected by the walls of Seireitei."

There is silence as she finishes, "This Petition is signed, and originated from the Council of Souls. Its leader, Riku Homura brought the document to me just this morning along with her well wishes for our first gathering after the tragedy that closed these halls longer than they had ever been in the millennia long history of Seireitei, unaware that we had reconvened in secret yesterday."

Let them drool over the thought of being rid of Aizen-san for the foreseeable future, and having the man weak as a kitten when he was finally released. And may whomever "Discovered" Aizen-san was effectively immortal be damned to Muken for an equivalent amount of time.

Anyone who truly knew the man at all knew that he was telling the truth.

Aizen Sōsuke would be a free man the day Yhwach stepped foot in Soul Society.

The Aizomeya would repay their debt to Aizen-san, and there wouldn't be anything the Central 46 could do about it.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Deep in the shadows of Seireitei, in the palace of Silbern, a Sternritter knelt at the feet of his king, unease carefully concealed by his closed eyes and head bowed in submission. He had just finished giving his report on the state of Seireitei... and the unusual allies they had made. It was not good news, if fact it was the very opposite of good news. The only thing that would have made it worse was if someone knew that the Quincy were preparing for war. Fortunately no matter how deep into Seireitei he had ventured, there had been no whispers of the Quincy other than that treacherous child that made friends with the living shinigami. There had been plenty about the reason for so many minus oriented souls allying with each other to force Seireitei and their attack dogs the Gotei 13 to stand down.

Eyes closed as he works to regain his power Yhwach contemplates this unexpected twist of fate and the one who birthed it.

Aizen Sōsuke.

The man who had brought peace to the realms in a way that not even Yhwach, The Great King of the Quincy had thought possible.

Yhwach couldn't wait to meet him.

Aizen Sōsuke would break the spirit of any resistance against Yhwach plans, be it at his side as another kneeling faithful... or when Yhwach ground the most powerful and feared soul in Seireitei underfoot.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Lisa Yadōmaru was many things. She had been a fukutaichō, she had become a Visored, but it wasn't until she had walked among the humans that she had truly found herself. That she was most comfortable in a sailor type school uniform, erotic manga in one hand and her zanpakutō in the other, was no ones business but her own.

She had finally recalled why the phrase Primary Operator had seemed familiar. The litany of names the hollowfied Aizen had uttered had reminded her of a Manga she had picked up on accident hoping that a reincarnated villain with tentacles translated out to kinky porn, only to get hooked on the convoluted time-travel plot and abject adoration that dragged a dark soul down the path of good intentions. It had stretched out a whopping 30 books, nearly 5 of them at the end to explain all of the twists and turns. Unfortunately the second season hadn't lived up to the promise of the first and she hadn't made it more than one book in before becoming distracted by her usual fare.

Her first objective in the world of the living was to snag every last book and read them all again. Because damn it all if the Story of a girl and a villain turned hero and a wish granting jewel didn't sound frighteningly familiar all of a sudden.

Lisa stumbles to a halt just outside the bookstore, bag of manga in hand. Oddly intimidated by the watchful eyes of Orihime-chan, as the human girl leans against the railing outside the store. Shifting uneasily on her feet, wondering why she felt like she was in danger from a girl less than a tenth of her age, she is left shaken as Orihime-chan smiles mysteriously, "As you read, I want you to think long and hard. Because if what everyone does is a story in some other dimension, what would you want them to see when they read about you? This feels an awful lot like a critical plot point doesn't it?"

Before Lisa can blink twice and formulate a response the orange haired girl is skipping away down the street, she mutters, "Impossible...", and yet somehow the girl still manages to hear. She stops and turns around, "Impossible? I won't deny that it's pretty out there, but since the only other explanation for what's going on, is that going to Muken is also part of Sōsuke-niisan's dastardly plan to break into the Soul King's palace, declare a war on all souls, conquer them and set himself up as the new King of Souls, which is a more difficult to believe?"

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Muken

Yhwach walks into Muken. The extra-dimensional space that tasted so abhorrently of The Void, a detestable domain he had once been shown upon asking his father why he considered The Hell Verse to be a gentle holding place for souls he no longer wished to reincarnate in his dimensions. He watches as Aizen Sōsuke stares out blankly into the darkness. Given how broken this small taste of nothingness had rendered the soul before him, he wondered what it would have done to this soul to gaze upon the true empty depths of The Void. He probably would have simply come apart at the seams, dissolving into the nothingness in an inane attempt to fill it up. Arrogant fool.

He sighs, he had hoped to engage in a bit of banter with the man who had led Seireitei about by the nose for centuries and wheedle out of him the means by which he had hidden Las Noches. It was difficult to claim that one had conquered El Hueco Mundo without actually destroying the city the Hollows considered their Capitol. However this brain dead lump was of no use to him.

He turns away and against his senses something, moves. He spins on his back foot, chasing the strange sensation that ghosts across his senses like the flutter of butterfly wings. Against his will a chill ghosts up his spine. Until just a moment ago he would have sworn that the experience of this tiny microcosm of The Void had broken Aizen Sōsuke... and yet there he was sitting in his prison chair as if it were his throne and his seals little more than a fashionable confection.

"Is it that time all ready? My but it is easy to loose track of time with nothing but my own thoughts to hold my attention. Out of curiosity, were you awaiting an audience with me for long? I do apologize, it has been so long since I had proper company you see. Welcome, Yhwach, to my Seireitei." Yhwach can practically taste the desperation concealed by the inflammatory words and deep baritone voice roughened from either screaming or prolonged silence he does not know. A lesser being would no doubt presume that Aizen Sōsuke was completely unaffected by his incarceration. Feeling generous, Yhwach allows him to retain his illusion, if the rumors were true, Aizen Sōsuke was made of illusions, it would be inconsiderate to shatter the very idea that composed the man.

He never realizes that the simple act of allowing one of Sōsuke's illusions to remain in place leaves him open to all the others. Of all of the people that his imouto had affected, Yhwach was the one most likely to recognize that he had fallen victim to one of his father's Ōken The Dreaming Kami, the Ōken in his bones begins to hum activating her Perception Filter. Between one flutter of her white wings and the next Sōsuke had found himself in the presence of the soul that Dekuyume had chosen to harvest one set of seeds of eternity and soul fragments from to en-soul the Soul King.

He smiles wryly, his unsealed eye sinking half mast as he peers up at the obstacle standing in the path of his Trial. Beneath his skin he offers up the entirety of his power to his Ōken, whispering into his internal world. Hold him here for as long as you can imouto. Take anything you need from me to do so. His only response is an increase in the intensity of the vibration in his bones.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-O-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Within The Perception Filter

Yhwach looks down at the prisoner in the chair, weak and feeble with so much of his Reiatsu suppressed by the seals on him. "I was merely passing through on my way to more important engagements. Genryūsai and I have unfinished business to attend to you see. I was simply curious about the man who had come up with such a convoluted scheme to conquer Seireitei only to abandon it all for the sake of a simple human girl. In spite of your previous hostile actions towards my inheritance I have come to offer you a place at my side as a Special War Power. You may of course keep the girl all to your self should you choose to join me and seek vengeance against the ones who imprisoned you."

He watches as a smirk graces the face of the man before him. Without even listening to him speak he already knows that he is going to be denied the pleasure of watching the looks of betrayal grace the faces of the Shinigami he has come to destroy. "No Yhwach-san I do not believe that I will take you up on your offer. If you should release me then I would be forced to fight you as I am not a man who can tolerate anyone standing above me dictating my actions. Killing you here in the bottom of Muken would be satisfying, but ultimately without an audience it could never be used to legitimize my reign. Perhaps some other time."

Yhwach can feel as his own countenance grows grim, mustache flexing with his Reiatsu, the expression as foreign as all of the others he has given since he was finally set completely free. He glowers down at the fool in the chair. It would take only a meager fraction of his power to simply crush the man out of existence right now. And though it pained him to admit it, Aizen Sōsuke was correct. While executing him would remove the obstacle the other man posed, killing him off scene, down here in Muken would dishearten those who looked up to him, but it could just as easily make Aizen Sōsuke a martyr. Destroying him as a free man, in full view of those who believed in his omnipotence would fully crush any resistance against him.

Yhwach did not want to have to kill them all. It was a very poor king who ruled over an empty kingdom. He had chosen to break down the balance of the worlds so that they could all exist in the same place, removing the fear of death... at least the fear of death from anything other than its Emperor. The Quincy. The only being with the ability to "Destroy" souls. The only thing in the universe to fear.

After a moment, he shakes his head like a parent dissapointed with the behavior of a misbehaving child and walks away, leaving Aizen Sōsuke alone to face the encompassing silence of Muken but for the echo of his parting words. "Be joyful Aizen Sōsuke, for you are blessed. Mortals never know when, how or why they die. And yet you do, for the next time we meet, you will die by my hand because you were too proud to kneel at the feet of the Emperor of The Soul Society."

Yhwach never notices as the soft sensation of butterfly wings leaves him, lost as it is in the dimensional transition he makes as he steps though the seals that hold Muken separate from the rest of Seireitei.

In the darkness behind him Aizen Sōsuke laughs like a mad man, "Ku. Ku. Ku."