Disclaimer: …

You know what. I own Naruto and Bleach now. Yeah. You heard me. What you gonna do about it?

These disclaimers are a joke.


Chapter 8 - War and Training

"Enter!"

The powerful voice of the Captain Commander echoed through the first division barracks. The two lines of captains stood stoically side by side, the lieutenants mirroring their superiors half a step behind them. At the sound of a door opening, everyone shifted their attention to the end of the hall.

"Today we welcome two new officers to the rank of captain." The leader of the Gotei 13 continued. "Captain of the 5th division, Amagai Shūsuke. Step forward."

The man who entered held himself high, back straight and face formed in a stiff mask. Although his eyes betrayed a nervousness that was almost endearing, he nonetheless exhibited a presence that was undeniably powerful. His reiatsu was tightly controlled, habitually suppressed to a level only the Onmitsukidō regularly practiced. Although he made no attempt at truly hiding its impressive potency. The most interesting fact however, was the second weapon bound to his obi. It was clearly not a Zanpakuto. It's shape and presence was all wrong for that.

"By recommendation from Captain Soi-Fon, Amagai Shūsuke passed the captain proficiency test with flying colors. Captain Amagai has been leading the Patrol Corps of the Onmitsukido for 14 years now. Gaining valuable experience in leadership, and producing excellent results. Wielding a powerful fire-based Zanpakuto, he will now lead the 5th division." The Soutaicho finished, rapping his staff once against the floor.

Amagai bent in a shallow bow. "Pleased to meet you all. I will do my best." He turned and found his place in the row of captains.

After a few seconds of respectful silence, Yamamoto's voice rang again through the hall. "Captain of the 3rd division, Nara Shikamaru. Step forward."

Shikamaru did as asked, walking in a way that was just the tiniest bit disrespectful. With a gait that was just short of a slouch, he made his way towards the middle of the room. Unlike Amagai, Shikamaru had almost no presence, his posture was relaxed, and his reiatsu was a lazy thing, easy to overlook, at least in a room filled with other captains. But his eyes were clear, with no hint of hesitation or nervousness.

Yamamoto opened his eyes slightly, and although no words were said, Shikamaru reluctantly straightened.

After an uncomfortable amount of time in complete silence, Yamamoto eventually found the Nara's posture satisfactory.

"With a recommendation from me and Captain Hitsugaya, Nara Shikamaru passed the captain proficiency test. Captain Nara has been with us for three centuries. With control over shadows, he will lead the 3rd division." The Captain Commander declared, once again letting the dull thud of his staff end his announcement.

Shikamaru shrugged and turned towards his own place in the row, but a glance at his childhood friend made him freeze. He coughed awkwardly. "Right… eh… I'll try not to suck, I guess."

A crack resounded through the hall as everyone's attention shifted to the pink haired lieutenant of the fourth division.

Sakura smiled sweetly as she slowly unclenched her fists.

Amagai raised an eyebrow, but no one else reacted much to the outburst.

The ceremony lasted a few minutes longer, although only a handful actually paid it any attention.

As they were all filing out of the room, Ukitake led Amagai away with a friendly smile. Shikamaru was about to escape into a Shunpo when something grabbed the collar of his new captain's haori.

He croaked indignantly as he was lifted into the air with little effort. Being forcefully turned around to face his assailant, the Nara shivered at the look on Sakura's face.

"What the hell was that, Shikamaru!" She demanded, dropping him to his feet again. A couple of the other officers smiled bemusedly at them, but they soon shuffled past. All except Kira - who waited patiently for his new captain.

"Look-" The Nara began, but he was silenced by Sakura's infamous glare.

"I don't care if you didn't want the position. You have it now. So act professional and deal with it."

The Nara sighed tiredly. "You know-"

"No excuses! Deal with it!" Sakura shouted in his face. Then she threw the newly instated 3rd division captain over the first division's meeting hall.

Kira gaped at her, inching away as the pink haired girl turned her glare towards him. His self-preservation instincts won out, and the lieutenant jumped after his captain.


The Origin

Ori watched carefully as Urahara's scanners recalibrated themselves and went through yet another analysis of the broken masked Hollow before him.

"Remarkable." The blond haired scientist exclaimed, looking over his computer screens with glee.

Ori hummed. She knew what he was talking about, of course. Her eyes had seen it the moment she had gazed upon him.

Yammy Llargo had a lot more going for him than was first apparent.

For one, he had the ability to draw on energy sourced from emotions. Rage, most prominently. Giving him a near limitless capacity for reiatsu output.

For another, his Resurrection was remarkably powerful. To such an extent that his final release would give him reiatsu levels dwarfing all but two of the current Shinigami captains.

For all that power, he was still an Adjuchas.

He had 9.780.043 souls within himself, which was impressive for an Adjuchas, but a far cry from the Vasto Lorde he'd arrived with, who held within himself 243.006.507 souls. That was almost 20% more than Stark had originally had.

As Ori had long since extracted them all, her friend was now back to one. Or rather two split souls, counting Lilynette. Which… well that was still two souls.

Split souls or no, once a part of a soul had achieved independence, they were for all intents and purposes a different person. Though their connection to what had once been a part of them was still very powerful.

Ori should know. She was speaking from personal experience.

Thanks to his massive soul reservoir, and the strength of his primary soul, Ulquiorra was one of the most powerful Hollows Ori had ever seen. But despite such a massive gulf in their supposed rank, age, and skills. Yammy would have had a decent chance if the two were to come to blows. His unique ability and Resurrection would make him a titan on the battlefield. An inexhaustible, ever regenerating juggernaut with more power than he had any right to have.

A miniature of what Ichigo would one day become, actually.

All that taken together, Yammy was a fascinating specimen, especially for someone that revelled in new data like Urahara.

The scanners hummed to a finish, and Ori stepped forwards.

"Wait! Don't take him yet, there's still-" Urahara protested, sounding a little panicked.

"You have gained as much data as possible considering the time allotted to you. Not without resorting to destructive testing, anyways. I'm on a time limit. I'm taking him now." Ori replied.

Yammy disappeared into a timeless pocket dimension as she waved her hand. Though the gesture was more as a courtesy to those around her than any real need for them.

Urahara sighed. "Oh very well. I have so much other stuff to work on anyways. See you later Naruto-chan!" He waved at her.

Ori gave him a serious nod and a small smile, then moved through kilometers of space as easily as most walk through a door.

She appeared above Karakura, her attention shifting to all the people that had their souls sucked out of them yesterday.

As fresh as their corpses were, she wouldn't have any problem fixing them up to top shape before she was done. Most of them at least.

Half a dozen had gotten caught in the crossfire of the park fight. She'd have to fix their bodies before restoring them. The most serious of these issues had but evaporated in the aftereffects of one of Yammy's attacks.

Not an insurmountable problem.

Some drops of his blood was left, DNA and the psychometric memories within the blood would be sufficient to reconstruct the body from scratch.

Summoning the Arrancar in front of her, she let her power seep through him, unmaking everything that he was on a fundamental level.

More on a whim than anything, she examined the nature of his emotional power-up a little closer. Finding nothing she didn't expect, she shrugged it away. Its not like she hasn't seen similar things before.

Then she purified every single soul within him, removing every scrap of corruption that threatened to linger.

Mostly for traditions sake, Ori clasps her hands. "Gedou: Rinne Tensei."

All the souls that still had bodies to go back to did so, the memories of their short time dead having already been removed. As had everyone's in the city. No news of the incident happened, and so the world was none the wiser.

Even the effect of being part of Yammy had been all but completely removed from the victims' souls. There might be a small chance that a couple of fullbringers would develop among them, but it wasn't terribly large.

She'll keep an eye on them regardless. No need to be irresponsible.


Tatsuki Arisawa

Tatsuki looked nervously at the blond sitting across from her. Her head swivelled from side to side, taking in the exotic forest around them. She had never seen trees like these before, and the tiny animals also looked unfamiliar. Were they even on earth anymore?

"How do you want to do this?" Naruto asked, smiling kindly at her.

Tatsuki frowned. "Aren't you supposed to train me? That's what you said, right?"

Naruto nodded. "Yes, but there are different ways to go about doing that. If you seek power, there are many roads you can take. Some doors close others, while some you can revisit at a later time. I know this is a bit early to be choosing things like this, but there's not really much of an alternative."

The karate champion raised an eyebrow, trying to make sense of what her new teacher was saying.

"Let me explain." The blond began, holding out an arm. Tatsuki suddenly felt a heavy weight settle over her shoulders and the air became much harder to breathe in. Simultaneously, the blond's arm began burning with an otherworldly purple flame.

"This is reiatsu. It is the energy the Shinigami and the Hollows use. It is what all your friends are using to power their techniques. It is the power of the Soul, of death."

Tatsuki swallowed at the ominus description.

Then the immortal's other hand also caught fire as he held his arms side by side. This was a different kind of fire than the first. It was more substantial, easier to see. It flowed over Naruto's hand almost like a liquid.

"This is chakra. It is the energy of both the spirit and the body combined. Yin and Yang molded together in the power that gives life. Most living beings have chakra, but few can use it for more than simple survival." Naruto finished, looking from one hand to the other. He clenched them both, extinguishing the flames.

"You have to choose. I can teach you to use one of them, but not both. Each has advantages and disadvantages, but both are means to the same end. Power."

Tatsuki blinked, scrounging her face together as she thought.

"Why can't you teach me both? You can use them."

Naruto smiled. "Yes. But I have also had centuries to practice. Each one is an entire discipline in itself, requiring lifetimes to master. Even that isn't really adequate. Had it been that easy, I could have taught you a technique here and a technique there, working with what each type of energy is good for. But no, once you learn to use your energy a certain way, it is almost impossible to make it move differently. If you were to learn reiatsu, it would be extremely difficult for you to mould chakra afterwards. The latter requires balance between physical and spiritual energy, while the former is purely the energy of your spirit grown great enough to affect the World." The blond explained.

"And although I say chakra is the physical and spiritual energies combined. It is not simply the same type of spiritual energy that reiatsu, or reiryoku, constitutes. They have different emphasis, for one thing. Yin energy is more mental, while spiritual energy, like your friends uses, is more emotionally based. It hinges a lot on will and determination. The two grow very differently and aren't completely compatible." Naruto smiled at her. "Did you get that?"

Tatsuki nodded slowly. "Yeah… I think."

Naruto beamed at her. Snapping his fingers, a blackboard appeared behind him in a burst of white smoke.

Tatsuki jumped in surprise.

Ignoring her reaction, Naruto took out a piece of chalk from somewhere and began to write. He made two tables, labeled chakra and other category was listed as pros and cons. He began talking again as he filled out the blackboard.

"Reiatsu is a fickle thing. How much you have depends on the amount of reiryoku you have, and your mental state. Your reiryoku is the inherent well of spiritual energy within you, and is relatively constant. You can make the amount grow through training, but only up to a certain point. How much you can draw on and how quickly it is produced varies greatly depending on how you are feeling. Learning to fight with reiatsu is very much about intent. You aren't trying to hurt someone. You are going to hurt someone. Things like that. It is less dependent on your physical condition, but if your body can't channel anymore reiatsu, you can't use it anymore." Naruto scratched his head for a few seconds before he amended. "Or at least, that would normally be the case. But with reiatsu, determination could force the energy going until you literally burn your body to ashes. There's an advanced Quincy technique that uses that phenomenon."

Tatsuki nodded to show she understood.

"Chakra, by comparison, is easier to relate to. Every person has a certain amount of chakra they can use. Correlating with their physical and spiritual condition. Using it tires you out, using too much leads to chakra exhaustion tapping into your muscles and necessary energy storages, which eventually leads to death. Reiatsu generally doesn't have this problem."

Continuing his explanation, Naruto held up one finger. "As a rule of thumb, chakra is more versatile than reiatsu. It is easier to control and form into desirable forms. And although reiatsu can give you access to a huge amount of techniques and abilities, it is generally more specialized than chakra. Both could theoretically do almost anything, but it is easier to learn large amounts of techniques with chakra."

"Reiatsu is more… how should I describe it… potent, I guess. The same amount of reiatsu can generally do more than the equivalent amount of chakra. Although there are exceptions to this."

Still writing, Naruto continued his explanation for more than two hours, until Tatsuki's head spun with concepts completely new to her. Afterwards they took a lunch break, and Naruto started on his lecture again. The teenager wondered if she should be taking notes, but Naruto was a great teacher, and every time she had a question, he managed to answer her in a way that was both concise and easy to understand.

At the end of the lecture she sat in the clearing thinking about her choice. Naruto had given her some space and vacated their little part of the forest. He'd been gone for almost half an hour now.

Looking down as she heard the undergrowth rustle, Tatsuki was surprised to see a squirrel. Or at least something that looked like a squirrel, it was almost completely red and had two tails. It gazed up at her with wide eyes, sniffing the air curiously. Like every other animal she had seen here, it didn't seem afraid.

Holding out a hand, Tatsuki let the animal get a better look. The small critter wrinkled it's nose from side to side before bolting up her arm, causing the teenager to jump in surprise.

Tatsuki laughed. Playing with the animal as it ran around on her shoulders. A smile spread across her features as she managed to catch it.

The 'squirrel' laid in her hand, its two tails dusting across her knuckles. It still didn't seem afraid. In fact, it barely reacted at all, only gazing at her with the same curiosity as before.

"Why…" She trailed off, letting the little guy go. It stayed where it was though, just gazing at her with a curious look in its eyes.

"They have no predators." Naruto's voice came from behind her.

Tatsuki jumped again, turning around, she scowled at the blond.

Naruto shrugged unapologetically. "Neither are they really competing for food or mates, or much of anything. The life in this forest is simply here. Natural selection plays no part in it."

Scrunching up her face in thought, Tatsuki watched as the 'squirrel' bounded over to Naruto, running up his leg like it would a tree. Naruto smiled and fed it something from his pocket.

He sighed. "They barely have a concept of what fear is. It seemed cruel to give them one."

Eyes widening in understanding. Tatsuki opened her mouth to say something. Nothing came out though. What was there to say?

"Have you come to a decision?" The blond asked, switching the topic back to their purpose.

"Yeah…" Tatsuki bagan. She went over the chain of logic for her decision one more time. "I think… I think I'll go with chakra."


Minato Namikaze

Minato held out a hand as they crested a particularly large sand dune. There, stretching across the horizon, was a large structure with cylindrical towers and a massive dome. It was almost like a mountain in the distance, and if it hadn't been for the complete lack of any other landmarks in this dessert and it's abnormal shape, he might have mistaken it for one.

The group came to a halt beside him, staring silently at the massive structure. Nel shivered. "That's it. That's Las Noches." Her squeaky voice noticeably more lucid than before.

Minato nodded. "Right. It's still a while until we reach it. But we have technically fulfilled our mission."

Looking around at the group around him, Minato nodded to himself. Walking over to the lone Shinigami in their group, Minato reached out a hand. "Thank you, Kanō Ashido. You've been a great help."

Ashido hesitantly accepted his hand, shaking it slowly.

"We'll stop here for a while. I still want to get closer, but I think the guests can… get someplace safer."

"What?" Pesche looked at him, completely baffled. "What do you mean safer?"

Minato only smiled at the nervous looking Hollow. "I'll set you up with a place in the living world. Don't worry. You'll get enough reiatsu to survive. That is what we agreed to after all."

"B-but..." The Hollow trailed off, looking between Nel and Minato.

"Can we play eternal tag there Mio?" Nel asked, staring almost hungrily up at him.

Minato felt a drop of sweat slide down his neck. "I'm sure I can find some time in my schedule." Looking towards his fellow Guardians, Stark and Lilynette nodded.

The teenaged Arrancar frowned in concentration as she ripped a hole in reality. The Garganta wobbled, but quickly stabilized. Stark examined it with a critical eye before smiling down at his partner. "Good job, Lilynette."

Ashido studied the portal as well. An impossible expression on his face. Without saying a single thing. The redhead vanished. Surging through the portal with supernatural speed.

Stark looked curiously at the four strange Hollows they had picked up, then he opened his own Garganta. Unlike Lilynette, he simply kicked the air in an almost contemptuous gesture, like the portal had better open, or else.

The Vasto Lorde gestured to his fellow Hollows. "To the Living world. Everyone aboard." He drawled, a small smirk on his face.

The three Hollows and their massive pet looked uncertainly at each other. The portal was massive enough to encompass even Bawabawa. If Minato's senses were correct, it should deposit them in the agreed upon location in the middle of Urahara's basement. Although he didn't think the shopkeeper would appreciate the surprise all that much. He didn't think Kisuke liked surprises.

As a rule, assassins generally didn't.

Minato coughed slightly, willing a shadow clone into existence beside himself. The clone crouched down next to Nel, scuffling her hair affectionately. "It's nothing to be worried about, ok? I'll go with you."

Nel stared wide eyed at the clone, but nodded. At the child's acceptance, the other Hollows quickly acquiesced as well.

Then Dondochakka proceeded to swallow Bawabawa whole.

The entire group stared at him.

The Arrancar burped. Not the least bit bothered about swallowing the massive serpentine Hollow almost five times his own size.

Pesche and Nel seemed unaffected.

"Let's go!" Nel shouted excitedly jumping into Stark's Garganta.

And almost fell into the void between worlds.

Minato's clone snatched her green rags just as she began to fall. The child laughed, completely unperturbed.

"Ehh… perhaps I should go first." The clone suggested. Forming a perfect road beneath his feet, the Minato clone settled the excited Hollow on the energy construct. Her two partners quickly joined them. Nel turned around and waved as the portal closed.

"Bye, bye Lilly! Play with me later? Kay'?"

Lilynette blinked, hesitatingly waving back at her fellow Arrancar.

Then the Garganta closed, and the bizarre Hollows were gone.


Eugene Currier

Jin Kariya stared into the fireplace, transfixed by the orange flames that licked at the atmosphere surrounding it. It lit up the study he was in with an almost ghostly shine.

"Kariya-sama, it is ready." Ugaki's voice echoed from the shadows.

Nodding once, the leader of the Bounts slowly rose to his full height. Leather clothes creaked as the flames cast disturbing shadows across his face.

Following a clearly remembered path through the underground complex, Kariya entered a darkly lit room. Six blue-burning candles formed a hexagon around a steel table, the woman laying naked upon its surface was bolted fast with steel beams, suppression sigils were drawn in her own blood across all five of her extremities. As she saw him, she struggled weakly against her bonds, eyes lighting up in a thousand emotions at once.

Five other Bounts was also in the room, each centered behind one candle. Kariya took the place behind the last.

"Jin…" Yoshino finally managed to utter. Her voice was barely above a whisper.

Jin Kariya, Eugene Currier, leader of the Bounts, progenitor of the Doll spell system looked down at his ex-wife. He pitied her a little, he realized with some surprise. The shred of ambition and individuality she had managed to scrounge up towards the end of her life had been quickly stamped out. Now she was nothing more than a sacrifice for his own.

He smiled at his once beloved. "Nothing personal Yoshino."

Then he began chanting in German. The other five joined him shortly thereafter.

The spell took barely more than a minute. Indeed, such ritualistic magic was massively overkill for the intended effect. But he wanted 100% efficiency for this, a bit of preparation was a small price to pay.

As Yoshino screamed, her body, mind and soul was converted into a red ball of energy.

From its light emerged the new insect-like dolls he and Ugaki had designed a few decades prior. The first batch of Bitto had been born.

Kariya let a small melancholic smile stretch his mouth. Even if he had pitied his ex-wife for a moment. The jealousy far outweighed such a feeble emotion.


Tatsuki Arisawa

Tatsuki stared nervously at her sensei as his presence transformed. He was no longer the mysterious gym owner, the goofy shinobi, or the knowledgeable teacher.

It was nothing physical. He was still clothed with the same orange jacket and stylized white t-shirt he had always worn. The only thing that she could really put her finger on was his posture. His back was a little straighter, his eyes a little more serious. He held himself slightly more regally.

But she knew… The being that stood before her was completely different to the one she had been talking to just a few seconds ago.

He nodded once, then his eyes twisted into a bizarre purple shape that looked more like an artistic painting than a pair of eyeballs. He brought his palms together like a prayer and his arms burst into flames once more. One was purple, or- no, it was orange-pink-green-grey-yellow, Tatsuki shook her head. It was impossible to focus on it, it shifted every time it flickered. Colours Tatsuki was sure she shouldn't have been able to see. The other flame was a deep red. A very deep red. It was a more vivid colour than she had ever seen before. It looked more real than reality itself. She could stare at the flame forever and never come to the bottom of it. And as the fires mixed, they produced a muted light that shone out from the blond's hand.

Cupping them both as if he was holding onto water, Naruto held it out, presenting it to her. "Take my hands. The process is a bit uncomfortable, but it doesn't hurt. Your chakra pathways should be finished forming within 3 days."

Tatsuki hesitated, looking up at the otherworldly eyes of her teacher, she almost collapsed at what she saw there. Superimposed upon the blond was a three-headed figure with six arms and a serene expression. An almost palpable aura of holiness surrounded him.

As the figure opened its six eyes to look at her, it... smiled? It's voice echoed through the world and into her very Soul. "You're right to hesitate. Power like this has led many civilizations to their ruin."

Tatsuki swallowed heavily. Steeling her nerves. She grabbed her teachers glowing hands with hers. The light flowed from him towards her, crawling along her arms and seeping into her skin.

As soon as the light left him, Naruto returned to normal, laughing slightly as he rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry about all the melodrama. It's hard to impart the power of chakra without getting into the atmosphere. It's kind of a big deal in my culture."

Tatsuki nodded numbly, feeling her insides itch, she imagined she could feel her cells shifting beneath her skin.

"As I said, the process will be finished within the next three days. Don't do any training during that time. In fact, I recommend staying away from any strenuous physical or mental activity." Naruto said. "It's not dangerous or anything. But it might interfere with the creation of your coils, and then I'd have to fix them. Deformed coils are a pain." He amended.

Tatsuki nodded absentmindedly, glad she didn't have any matches scheduled within the next three days. A thought suddenly struck her.

"I can't do karate with this, can I?" She asked, her stomach dropping.

Naruto frowned as he mulled over the question. "It would be kind of unfair, yes. But there are seals designed to completely suppress or freeze your chakra. With that, you shouldn't have any unfair advantages."

Tatsuki beamed. Happy she didn't have to give up her favorite hobby. "So… what now?"

Naruto shrugged, beginning to walk back the way they had come. "You watch any Disney movies? Mom and I were going to watch Beauty and the Beast. You're welcome to join us if you want."


Ichigo

Ichigo exhaled deeply as he sunk into the sofa. Isshin had insisted on watching a movie, and there was no dissuading him. Not like he had protested that much. He did want to relax a bit. After the crazy pace of the last week, he felt it was well deserved.

Karin and Yuzu were sitting on the floor in front of him, idly chatting about their classes and devouring the popcorn Yuzu had prepared. Or rather, Karin was. Yuzu was still stubbornly holding onto her 'proper lady' mask and admonishing her twin for eating too much. He knew that wouldn't last long. When the bowl was half empty, her desperation would force her to try and one-up Karin in her pop-corn consumption.

As Isshin barged into the room, holding three bottles of soda and a bowl of chocolate, Ichigo couldn't help but smile.

Things had been… strange between them since the talk two days ago. They had barely looked at each other for the rest of that day, and yesterday had been far too strange for him to do anything but processing it all.

And suddenly Isshin had demanded a family movie night in the middle of the week. It wasn't completely out of character, but Ichigo couldn't help but read more into it.

Their training had also abruptly halted. Naruto had all but demanded they all take a break after the battles yesterday. And Urahara and Yoruichi had refused to go against it. It rankled him. That his teachers thought this was a good time to take a break. He wasn't nearly strong enough yet. If anything, yesterday should have proven that.

He had to get stronger. Kariya had danced around him without any apparent difficulty, and Ulquiorra had beaten him without even drawing his sword. So even if he had been told to take a break, he'd still planned to train by himself, or with old man Zangetsu if he managed to figure out how to enter his inner world voluntarily.

But then his father had grabbed him as soon as school ended and that had been that.

He was beginning to suspect it was all a big scheme to get him to relax, but that couldn't be anything but paranoia. He was pretty sure the world wasn't conspiring against him. At least 90% sure. Ok, maybe 80. Or 75. Yeah. He was almost 70% sure the world wasn't out to get him.

But as he leant back to enjoy Disney's animated retelling of Beauty and the Beast, he stiffened. Shinigami were flowing into Karakura. He could feel at least four or five different Senkaimon open and close. The Shinigami themselves were too far away and too well hidden for him to notice, but the reiatsu signature of a Senkaimon was anything but subtle, and there was nothing else interesting for his senses to focus on.

What was going on?

As the movie went on, Ichigo spread his awareness wide, but nothing stuck out to him. There were no fights. Ririn hadn't moved from her place on the kitchen table either, so it wasn't the Bounts. At least not in a way that she could feel.

His phone rang, and Ichigo nearly jumped up from the sofa in his haste to take it. His nerves were becoming alarmingly short. As he excused himself, he quickly retreated to his room, where he wouldn't be overheard.

"Kurosaki, you felt it too right?" His shoulders slumped as he heard Uryū's voice from the electronic device.

"Yeah… No idea what's going on though. I'm guessing you don't either?" He trailed off, unsure of how to continue. Uryū was his cousin. He wasn't entirely sure how to act around his reluctant friend anymore.

"Have you talked to any of the others?" Ichigo asked, trying to silently explain the situation to a frustrated Kon. Unfortunately, none of them knew sign language, so it was a lost cause.

"Not yet. I talked to Naruto though. He said I shouldn't worry. I called you afterwards. I thought you might know something."

"Sorry, but no. Should we…" He trailed off.

"Call Chad. I'll call Inoue, we'll meet at the community park."

It was strange how only one adventure together had granted them the ability to read each other's mind.

He was about to say goodbye when the call abruptly disconnected. Grumbling to himself, the teen quickly selected Chad off his favorites list. He was a bit sad for the lost evening, but he was glad to actually be doing something. He had felt supremely useless lately.


Tatsuki Arisawa

Tatsuki watched with mild concern as her friend stormed up the stairs. Then again, it wasn't really her business. Heck, she was violating his privacy more than enough as it was.

She wasn't entirely sure how to feel about her current predicament. When she had been invited to watch a movie, she hadn't thought it would be in Ichigo's house together with the rest of his family. Worse. None of them had even noticed that they were there. She was currently stuck hanging from the roof behind their sofa. Completely invisible to anyone but her two partners in crime.

Kushina and Naruto had turned out to be unrepentant pranksters. Who would have guessed? Not only had they filled Isshin's bed with itching powder, for whatever reason they had also switched out any respectable meal in the cupboards for instant ramen, generally making themselves at home like pranking ghosts in a household who normally had no problem detecting such entities.

She had tried to warn her friend, but neither mother nor child had taken particularly well to her interruptions. So now she was tied tightly in wire and stuck to the roof, completely unable to move anywhere, mute and invisible to all but her two tormentors. And now Ichigo had left the room.

The karate champion let out a sigh. No, she had no idea how she should react to this situation.


Ichigo

As the four teenagers closed in on Urahara Shoten, a black cloaked figure materialized before them.

"Halt. Access to this area is restricted upon further notice. Return whence you came." The voice was deep and authoritative. It also didn't help that any of the teenagers could barely sense the man even if he was standing right in front of them. His disposition positively screamed 'ninja'.

Ichigo looked over at a scowling Ishida and resigned himself to take the lead. But he'd barely even opened his mouth before another voice cut through the night air.

"It's fine Tomoko. Let them pass."

The man before them, Tomoko apparently, instantly snapped into a salute. "Yes, Yoruichi-sama." He disappeared just as the ex-captain strutted onto the street.

Yoruichi shook her head almost despondently as she watched them. "Really now? Why are you here?"

Ichigo frowned. "Something's happening. We came to help."

The shapeshifter's mouth quirked upwards. "That's not necessary. We have everything handled. Go back home. Sleep. We'll resume your training in a couple of days."

"Yoruichi-san. There has to be something we can do. We can't just sit back and do nothing." The proclamation from the normally quiet Orihime did have some impact. Perhaps it was the sheer determination rolling off her in waves, maybe something else, but eventually the ex-captain sighed.

"Come on then. I'll show you what we're dealing with."

It wasn't complete capitulation, but it was better than nothing. And Yoruichi was as good as her word. Within a couple of minutes they were led into the space before Urahara's shop.

The area was completely transformed. Previously it had just been an open space meant to be a parking lot (though Urahara had far too few customers to ever use it like that), now it was filled with tents and people moving around with purpose. Shinigami clad in the same clothes as the security guard were everywhere, but there were also people in lab coats, normal shinigami garb, and people Ichigo was sure came from the fourth division.

In short, it looked like a forward base had been established right outside Urahara's shop.

Yoruichi didn't stop for any of them though, leading them through the throngs of people as they entered the building proper. Inside was an assortment of people the substitute recognized. Soi-Fon, the second division commander was arguing with their blond teacher. Urahara, Tessai and about half a dozen other shinigami watched them intently as a holographic map of Japan hovered above the table.

The room went quiet as the four teenagers and Yoruichi entered the room. Naruto raised an eyebrow questingly at their escort.

"They wouldn't take no for an answer. I figured it best to explain the situation to them before they went and did something stupid." Yoruichi shrugged.

Naruto sighed, but a smile stretched his mouth before his face settled into a serious mask. "While I appreciate the sentiment. This situation isn't really something four more people could help with."

Ichigo scowled again, squaring his shoulders as he prepared himself for the argument to come.

"Perhaps we should hear what the problem is first, sensei." Ishida said, as he adjusted his glasses in the dim light. His gaze was fixed on the holographic projection that dominated the room.

Naruto nodded thoughtfully, gesturing towards the national map where several red spots were shining. As they watched three new spots bloomed to life, while two others were distinguished.

"Japan is under attack." The blond declared, his gaze drawn to the sea of red dots covering the island.

"What! Who is- Aizen?" Ichigo's fists clenched so hard he could hear his joints pop.

The blond shook his head. "No…" He trailed off, something indescribable flitted across his expression.

"It's the Bounts." Soi-Fon finished instead. Giving the orange-clad shinobi a harsh glare. "They have some sort of new Doll that attacks humans, and there are thousands of them. They're attacking all over the country, appearing and disappearing through portals positioned all over the countryside."

Naruto took over again, not reacting to the Shinigami captain's hostility. "We're currently trying to exterminate the dolls and close the portals, but this is a full scale offensive. It has obviously been set up years in advance. We have hundreds of operatives spread all throughout the country, four more isn't going to make much difference."

Ishida nodded thoughtfully as he analyzed the projection before them. Ichigo wasn't as easily swayed however. "If they're attacking people then we want to help. We can still fight." Orihime and Chad nodded resolutely behind him.

Soi-Fon scoffed. "You're still children. The shinigami have this handled. It is our job to protect the living from threats like this."

Ichigo gritted his teeth at the overbearing tone in the woman's voice, but forced his anger down. That wouldn't help him persuade them, instead he looked towards his teachers, his eyes filled with determination. "You know we can help. Just send us out. It's better than being stuck here."

He'd at least hoped Naruto would listen, but the blond just shook his head. "This isn't your fight. We're not hurting for numbers at the moment. The enemy relies on stealth, finding them is the largest hurdle, and none of you are particularly well suited in that regard. You still have school in the morning, just focus on your studies and your training. Let us do our jobs, as you do yours, and I promise everything will be solved eventually."

Ichigo took a deep breath as he scrambled for a counterargument. Anything.

Uryū's hand on his shoulder stopped him however. "When you say 'solved' what do you mean by that?" The Quincy started. "You said they attacked people. What are they doing exactly? Isn't every little bit of help a good thing? If we could prevent even one death, isn't that something we should strive towards?"

Naruto's gaze took on a considering quality as it shifted to the archer, quirking an eyebrow in surprise at the line of reasoning. "Hmm… Normally you'd be correct. The Bitto are large wasp-like creatures that suck out the life-force of their victims and consume their soul. Carrying both back to their masters. Since the Bounts have the ability to consume life-force and living souls in order to grow stronger. They are preparing for an offensive."

Orihime looked a little green at the description.

"Then why-" Ichigo began, but he was interrupted as Naruto held up a hand.

"The Bounts can survive on nothing more than the remnants of a person. Consuming wraiths that have not yet left the mortal plane. But by consuming still living people, they are able to take within them their life-force and supercharge their own abilities. Although it is only a temporary boost, it also has substantial side effects. The victim's body completely decomposes and is left as nothing more than dust of its component elements. It is an extremely thorough procedure. Far more complete than a Hollow's technique, as they only take the spirit, leaving the body whole, and in some cases still breathing." Naruto's voice was completely without inflection as he spoke, and even Chad looked a little disturbed by the description.

"But their spirits are not lost. Their bodies may have perished, but their souls will stay within the Bounts until they die. Even their minds are left relatively intact. Unlike with Hollows, that warp any spirit they consume until they have to be purified before they can be reborn. The Bounts' victims do not have this problem. All we need is to get the victims souls back, and I can reconstruct their bodies. They will not be gone forever." The blond said it with a finality that was striking. As if that was the only possible outcome. Nothing else would be satisfactory.

"Uzumaki! I told you, you can't bring those people back to life! The balance has to be upheld, they'll pass on to Soul Society after the Bounts are dead." Soi-Fon insisted, glaring at the blond immortal.

Naruto's eyes were like glaziers as he looked back at her. "And I told you. Their spirits have not yet left the mortal plane. Their life-force is not yet lost. Their Chain of Fate is not yet broken. By your own definition, they are still alive."

Sparks were practically flying between the pair as they stared each other down.

"Your defense is paper thin. I have no proof that their Chains are whole, but even if they were, their bodies is naught but dust. Their souls would only need an instants exposure to the world, and they would pass on." The Onmitsukidō commander insisted.

It was clear that their previous argument had started up again. After the short reprieve the explanation had taken.

Urahara's smile was positively malicious as his favorite hat cast his face in shadows. "Why are you so eager to deal out the death sentence to those who did nothing to deserve it? If Uzumaki-san says he can piece them back together, then the Soul Society shouldn't have a problem with that, should they? After all, they are alive. And the death gods' authority only extends to those that are dead. Why, you would think the Seireitei would have some vested interest in more souls cluttering up their afterlife, but that's just ridiculous. The districts are already overflowing as it is."

Soi-Fon stared wide-eyed at the shopkeeper before her eyes narrowed. "Urahara Kisuke." The woman ground out. The name sounded like a curse as it passed her lips, every syllable dripped with venom and disdain.

Every grown-up in the room in the room, even Yoruichi, stared at Urahara as if he'd just told them an armed nuclear bomb was currently in his cellar.

All except Naruto. The blond only nodded in acknowledgement as the shopkeeper defended his stance.

"Oh, sorry. It seems my tongue slipped. I sure hope it won't happen again." The ex-assassin chirped.

Ichigo looked between the arguing adults. It felt like he was missing half the conversation.

Ishida sighed. "If the victims will be restored to their previous states, then I guess there's no need to rush…"

Naruto beamed at him. "Yup. The best thing you can do right now is to go home and get some rest. We will take care of the Bounts."

The only thing to do was wait.


The next day was an agonizing exercise in patience.

Ichigo woke early, and though helping Yuzu with breakfast was a nice apology for skipping the movie last night, he still felt frustrated by the whole Bount situation. He could feel a myriad of weak signatures scuttling around Urahara's now that he knew where to look. And the knowledge of what they were doing did not help his mood at all.

"Ichi-nii, are you alright!?" Yuzu's horrified voice filled the kitchen as the older brother blinked down at her.

Following her eyes, he saw that his fingers were bleeding. He had cut himself on the kitchen knife. How embarrassing.

"Ah… sorry about that. Yeah I'm fi-"

"Don't!" The blonde shouted.

Ichigo froze, his hand inches from his shirt.

"You can't get blood all over your clothes, Ichi-nii. That just won't do."

Ten minutes later his fingers were taped together with cotton soaked in disinfectant. Having their house double as a professional health clinic did come in handy from time to time.

At the same time though, he couldn't help but feel out all the forigen signatures that kept appearing. They were all playing at the edge of his senses, reminding him repeatedly of the hidden war going on beneath everyone's noses.

The day seemed to go by in bursts. The breakfast was almost agonizingly slow, but he barely registered the walk to school. Only vaguely noting that Chad had joined him on the way there.

Uryū wasn't at school for some reason, and when called he wouldn't pick up his phone. Not that Ichigo was all that concerned. He could still feel the archer somewhere up in the mountains, his energy burning with the slow flame constant exertion signified. Training. Ishida was training.

As Ichigo should be. His teachers being too busy was not a good excuse to stop now. Especially now.

First period flew by. He vaguely recalled something about a concerned Kiego, and a twitching Tatsuki.

Second period crawled onwards agonizingly slowly, and just as it finished Ichigo burst from his seat and simply... left.

School just wasn't a good enough reason to stay anymore. It just felt so inconsequential.

As he walked, Ichigo had a very specific warehouse in mind.


"So… What do we have here? I thought the answer was no." Shinji called from the other side of the room. Ichigo scowled at him.

The Vizards were… not what he had expected.

"I'll use you to get stronger." Ichigo declared, glaring the group down. The midget bristled. Shinji smirked.

"I did offer you that." The blond replied, a cheshire grin forming on his face. "In order for us to agree to teach you however, you have to become one of us. One of the Visored."

Looking around at the sparse but surprisingly homely warehouse, Ichigo scowled. "What? Do I have to sign a waiver or something?"

Shinji burst out laughing. Slapping his knee as he brushed a tear from the corner of his eye. "Nothing so formal. Just a few rules you have to promise to follow."

Scrounging his face in thought, Ichigo hummed his confirmation. He could at least hear them out.

"First. Don't tell the Shinigami about us. We've been hiding from them for quite some time. It would be… unpleasant if we were to meet again."

Mulling it over for a few seconds, the substitute agreed.

"Second. Do not bring anyone else here, not unless one of us greenlights them first."

Ichigo nodded. That was even easier than the first.

"Lastly. Until your training is finished, you live here. You won't be allowed to leave. You're ours." Shinji's smirk was positively creepy.

The orange haired teen scowled. That was… not ideal. He didn't doubt Karakura could get by without him for a few days, but he couldn't just disappear. His friends would go looking for him for one thing.

But… He needed to get stronger. Not just for his friends either, but for his own sake. He refused to stand by as others fought his battles. "If I just disappear, my friends will find me eventually. If I could tell them I'm training, that would probably be better."

Shinji nodded once.

After a few minutes of back and forth texting with Chad, and a message to his dad. Ichigo nodded. "Then I'm ready."


"Now what?" Ichigo asked, looking up at the barrier between himself and Shiro.

The Hollow's mouth pulled back in an expression that could almost be called a smile. "Now you open the barrier, and I take the body."

"No. You won't." His answer was as sure as he could make it, but Shiro didn't seem to care. The expression on his face only became sharper.

"The Visoreds said I had to beat you in order to call upon your power." Ichigo tried again.

"You'll never beat me King. I am the source of your powers. You can't beat me." The Hollow sounded completely sure about this.

Ichigo scowled and looked over at Zangetsu. "I thought you were the source of my powers."

The old man inclined his head, the dark cloak and hair whisked around him, ruffled by winds that only affected him. "I am part of it, Ichigo. But the Hollow has always been more than me. In the beginning, it was not so much that I couldn't oppose him as long as you didn't give in. But he has grown stronger. Now…"

Ichigo swallowed, a drop of sweat running down his neck. Then his eyes hardened.

He would not die here. He would not lose.

But still...

"What would you do… if you won?" Ichigo asked, meeting his inverted copy's eyes head on. He knew Shiro was part of his soul. Part of him. That was the reason he was the single most terrifying thing Ichigo had seen since he met Rukia and this new world opened up for him.

"What?" Shiro blinked at him. As if he could barely understand the question.

"You said you wanted my body. For what? Do you just want to live your own life? Doing what, exactly?"

His white copy sneered at him. There was no answer.

"No. That's not it, is it?" The orange-haired teenager pondered. "Urahara said that all Hollows consume souls to soothe their hunger. A hunger left by the inversion of their hearts."

A spark of insight was lit within Ichigo's eyes. "You want my heart."

Even Shiro seemed surprised by this conclusion, his face losing almost all of its malice in favor of complete bafflement.

Then he scoffed.

"Hardly. I am not like other Hollows. My heart is very much intact."

As Ichigo processed this. He took another look at his copy. Indeed, Shiro lacked something every other Hollow he had ever seen had. A Hollow hole.

"Are you even a Hollow at all then? But you have a mask…" As Ichigo tried to puzzle out the nature of his own power, he grew more and more frustrated. He knew Shiro was a Hollow. His reiatsu was like a Hollow's, he acted like one, he had a Hollow mask (although he only sometimes chose to use it), but the thing that really sealed the deal where his eyes. The black and yellow gaze that screamed of insanity. It was the same feeling he had gotten from every other Hollow, with the sole exception of Orihime's brother after Ichigo had destroyed his mask.

It was there even now. Lurking just beneath the surface of his own face. That look alone had given him more nightmares than anything else in this new world. Even the encounter with Grand Fisher, and the resurrection of his old dreams from 6 years ago hadn't been as bad.

Looking up at his doppelganger again, Ichigo had another question.

"What is a Hollow?"

"Instinct."

The reply was instantaneous. As soon as the last word left the teenagers mouth, Shiro answered.

There was clearly more to it than that, but the answer was enlightening all the same.

"So… survival is what you wish for?" Ichigo mused. Food, warmth, air. Survival instinct, probably the strongest one there was. "Women?" He grimaced. "Children?" A contemplative expression spread across his face. "Although these are the body's instincts. And you are a spiritual entity. So what would be the difference?"

That was definitely shock on his Hollow's face. Even Zangetsu looked surprised.

Ichigo didn't philosophize all that much. He knew what he wanted, and anything more was just a waste of time. That didn't mean he was bad at it though.

"So you want to take over my body because you think I'm weaker than you? And you believe your chance of survival is greater than mine? But you still want a heart. And your heart is my heart. So you need me."

Narrowing his eyes, the teenager's gaze bored into his Hollow.

"But what will you do once you have my body? Consume my loved ones, like other Hollows? Or…"

He had a feeling that wasn't what Shiro would do.

"Of course not." The white spirit scoffed. "Although they would be safer within us. They would be just as safe if all our enemies were dead."

Ichigo blinked. "You want to protect them?"

A flash of actual rage flashed across Shiro's face then.

"OF COURSE I DO!" The world shuddered as the Hollow threw himself against the golden barrier, unheeding of his smoking flesh.

"I told you! I am instinct. I am your instinct. That includes your instinct to protect."

Ichigo staggered back, getting to his feet as Zangetsu grunted in obvious exertion.

"BUT YOU ARE TOO WEAK!" The skin around his hands were peeling away, even as it healed. "TOO WEAK TO PROTECT YOURSELF! TOO WEAK TO PROTECT OUR SISTERS! TOO WEAK TO PROTECT ANYONE!"

Ichigo's face showed only shock. It took several seconds for him to even form a coherent response. "But… you're weak too. Naruto locked you up. Aizen would destroy you."

Shiro smirked as he sat down again. "Not for long."

Ichigo frowned as he tried to parse that.

"He would go to Hueco Mundo." Zangetsu answered Ichigo's spiraling thoughts.

"Why?" Ichigo asked, as a sinking feeling settled in his stomach.

"To eat."

Ichigo turned to look at his double in horror.

Shiro's grin was an answer all to itself.

Ichigo's face slowly settled into an immutable look of determination. The same one he had worn when he invaded the afterlife.

The Hollow sneered at him. "And that is why I need the body. You have too many inhibitions. You are too scared to do what must be done. You turn to training when there is a much faster way for us to gain power. Once all the threats are gone, maybe I'll let you have it back." The look in Shiro's eyes didn't exactly instill much confidence however.

Taking a deep breath, Ichigo held out his arm. Old man Zangetsu melted into Reshi and formed the sword Ichigo used in Shikai.

The time for talking was over.

Shiro grinned with anticipation as a similar sword manifested itself in his hand out of nowhere. It's colors were inverted, but otherwise it was a perfect copy of Ichigo's.

This would be a battle for his soul. A battle for his mind. A battle for his body.

Raising his hand in a gesture that resonated deep within him, Ichigo tore down the wall separating him and his Hollow.


Naruto

Conversation quieted as Naruto walked through the massive hall. Thousands of faces turned towards him. The immortal sage sighed as the cheery mood dimmed.

So much suspicion. He would much rather they continued their feast. Not that they lacked for those around these parts.

In the halls of Valhalla, there was always a party.

Stopping before the head table, Naruto lowered his head in a shallow bow. "Lord Odin. I've come to ask forgiveness for my daughter's actions."

When the old god in the center of the table focused his single eye on him, Naruto felt the weight of the world settle upon his shoulders. Refusing to let the strain show, the blond met the white haired god's gaze evenly.

The massive redhead at Odin's right snorted. "That was you? Pfft… We should be thanking you. It's been a long time since I've seen the Giants that upset."

As Odin shifted his attention towards his son. The blond was allowed to relax. Jeez, the old geezer could do well with being a little more laid back. Thankfully Naruto hadn't immediately been skewered by Gungnir, so that was a plus.

"While the situation is less than ideal, it is of little importance in the long run. Jotunheim is not part of our domain. As long as the Shinto does not push its luck any further, we will allow this transgression." Odin's voice was hoarse and scratchy, but still deep and echoing. Every word rang with power, and the air shifted to accommodate the sounds more than they would for others.

"That being said…" And the weight was back, twice as strong as before. Naruto had to flush his body with chakra just to be able to stand.

Odin's eye shone with an unearthly light, and Naruto felt an alien presence surrounding his mind. It didn't attack, just squeezed it with enough intent that the blond felt the threat.

Having no intention of allowing his mind to be popped like a grape, Naruto allowed the real reason he was sent here to float to the forefront. Odin tore away the memories with extreme prejudice. Naruto winced.

A few seconds later the ancient being in the shape of a man leaned back in his throne. Studying the smaller immortal before him.

"You really allowed yourself to Transcend on Gaia's soil?" The question was harsh. A barking sound that demanded clarification.

This time, Naruto really did bow, going down on one knee and everything. "And I ask permission to do so again. You are the ninth council member I have asked. If you agree. I only need three more."

Odin stayed silent as he mulled over the request. "This Sousuke Aizen. Is he truly such a threat?"

As Naruto looked up from his position, he saw the other gods staring at him with a mixture of expressions. Thor looked positively delighted, while the others wore a mixture of surprise, distrust, amusement, and even boredom .

"He may not be so yet, but he has the potential to initiate the Coalition ahead of schedule. And if he wins the coming war, he could become a second Jadel." Naruto answered.

Eye narrowing in thought, Odin nodded. "Then I will allow three instances. Any more, and you will need a better excuse."

Taking a deep breath, Naruto rose from his kneeling position. Nodding to each of the assembled gods and goddesses, and sharing a smile with Thor, the blond popped out of existence in a burst of white smoke.


Ichigo

Skyscrapers shuddered and glass shattered. It hadn't been long before Shiro had gone into Bankai, and Ichigo had been forced to imitate him just to keep up.

The battle was a close one. Fighting Shiro was like fighting a more aggressive, more intense version of himself. They had the same level of reiatsu, and the same techniques. Except- "Cero." -that.

Ichigo barely managed to twist away as the red beam seared away part of his bankai coat. He felt the loss to his reserves immediately, but thankfully they weren't debilitating. Turning upside down, he utilized a Shunpo technique Yoruichi had shown him. Two copies of him materialized beside his Hollow half. One was an illusion, the other real. Unfortunately, Shiro also knew that technique. And therefore also how to spot the real him.

Completely ignoring the copy, Shiro blocked the black Daito with his white one. The gathering of hollow reiatsu into a massive Getsuga left Ichigo scrambling to do the same.

Just as the world exploded in red and black, Ichigo felt something echo deep within his mind. A kind of… resonance? Unfortunately, he had no time to think on it as another Cero blasted through the resulting smoke. Taken off guard. Ichigo raised his reiatsu to its maximum and braced for impact.

The attack hurt. His arms and legs were left smoking, his skin was blistering, and he could feel burns frying nerves all across his body.

Gritting his teeth, Ichigo located his counterpart. Preparing for another rush attack. But instead of the aggressive push he had been expecting, Shiro just stood back, twirling Tensa Zangetsu on its chain and acting far too nonchalant.

"Is that all you got King? If that's it, then you're even more disappointing than I expected."

Ichigo showed his teeth. It was not a smile.

Spitting out a glob of blood. He prepared to charge. Even if he lost. He'd be damned if he didn't go down without a fight.

But just as he was about to engage his double, an unbidden thought entered his mind. No. Not thought. A memory. A memory of a technique. A technique he himself had never used. Looking down at his Zanpakuto with wide eyes, Ichigo's expression hardened. That was right. He wasn't fighting alone. Not now. Never again.

Slipping into Hirenkyaku, Ichigo appeared behind his Hollow's back. Zangetsu passed through flesh and muscle, the extreme resistance when he met bone was the only reason his blade didn't pass all the way through. Ichigo grinned.

Shiro snarled as he burst backwards. His left arm hanging uselessly from his shoulder. "What the hell was that!?"

Ichigo's smile grew wider. "Did you forget already? Mom was a Quincy. That means I am too."

That said, a massive amount of blue reiatsu gathered around his blade and was fired off towards his Hollow.

Shiro snarled and ripped it to pieces with his own blade. The black and red energy easily overpowering the white and blue attack.

"You think your Quincy heritage will save you? Fool. You've never even used those techniques. How do you think some half-assed speed move will help you against me!?" The madness lurking just beneath the surface seemed to bubble up as the Hollow's reiatsu skyrocketed.

Ichigo's eyes widened as he witnessed Shiro's arm healing itself. All the cuts and scrapes he had accumulated over the battle also disappeared. Only the damage to his white Bankai coat indicated that he'd even been in a fight.

Raising Tensa Zangetsu is a desperate defense, Ichigo managed to parry half a dozen attacks in less than a second. The speed they were fighting at had suddenly gotten much higher. And even though he managed to block most of the blows, some managed to slip in.

But as the white Daito sneaked its way through Ichigo's defense, sparks flew from the point of contact. The blade hadn't had the best angle of attack, but it should still have left a nasty cut across his ribs. Somehow though, Shiro's Zanpakuto only glanced off, cutting into his clothes but unable to deal a serious wound.

Shiro snarled angrily as he doubled down on attacking. But his berserker state left openings, and Ichigo had no compunctions of taking advantage of them.

Blood flew from both of them, as minor cuts and open wounds were created at a frightening pace. Neither were bothering much with defense any more, just cutting into each other and deflecting the obviously mortal blows.

And while their attacks were equally brutal, the outcome was decidedly unbalanced. Only half of Shiro's attacks managed to pierce Ichigo's skin, and among those that did, only a few managed to dig any deeper than the first few layers of muscle. And even amongst the wounds he did manage to cut. After a few seconds, they all stopped bleeding.

Ichigo didn't notice, but his skin was criss-crossed with blue veins, burning with reiatsu and intent.

The Hollow eventually disengaged, flesh and muscles hanging from his form like some sort of grotesque zombie. That he managed to move at all was a testament to his inhuman nature.

As Ichigo watched, Shiro's body started to heal itself. It was slower than last time. The wounds were more extensive, and Shiro had already spent a good portion of his reiryoku.

Instead of letting him finish, Ichigo fired off a Getsuga. Then another. And another. And another. All the attacks were blue and white, utilizing the reshi in the air around them rather than his own depleted reserves. Pulling on it was so easy, the teen wondered why he hadn't done it before. It was almost as if… Ichigo wanted to slap himself. Of course it came easily. This was his inner world. The reshi in this place was already his. He could probably do this even if he wasn't part Quincy.

As a red and black torrent of energy exploded in front of him. Ichigo got a good look at Shiro. He had healed most of the wounds he had accumulated in their earlier scuffle. But new burn marks and tears had opened themselves across his body. None of them were serious, but they had to be annoying. More than annoying, if the expression on his double's face was anything to go by.

Shiro looked livid. The rage and madness that Ichigo had always seen there were bubbling over into something the teen could only describe as hatred. Ichigo squared his shoulders and prepared for his doubles attack while trying not to smile.

"You…" The Hollow began, but then had to stop. It seemed that speaking wasn't easy for him. Not because of his wounds, but because he was just that angry. "You think you can beat me with the help of the old man?" He spat. Black and gold eyes burning with an intensity Ichigo could barely begin to describe. "Don't you know?! That lying usurper isn't your Zanpakuto Spirit! I am! I am the source of your Shinigami powers! He is nothing but a fake! Something that shouldn't even exist! I am Zangetsu! He is just the tiny figment of Quincy powers your mother passed on to you!"

As he spoke, the Hollow's reiatsu rose and rose. The power he was emitting bent the world to his will. The sky darkened, and a blood red moon manifested itself in the sky. "I am the source of your powers! And I hold the most of it out of any of us!" The red and black reiatsu exploded out of him in a Getsuga that absolutely dwarfed anything that had been used previously in the battle. In fact, Ichigo didn't think he'd ever used a Getsuga this strong before. How did his hollow have this much power left?

Ichigo took one look at his fear and nervousness, and then discarded them. They were of no use to him now.

Instead, he let his own power explode outwards. His reiatsu was the same color as his Hollows, except it was also suffused with the blue and white he now knew belonged to his Quincy side.

A laugh pressed itself across his lips. And even though his voice shouldn't have been audible across the rush of sound hammering on everything, he somehow knew his double would hear him. "Yeah. I kind of figured. I'm sorry Zangetsu. I'll make it up to you later."

He could feel Zangetsu falter. But the hesitation was only there for a fraction of a second. Then his Zanpakuto spirit's massive Getsuga Tenshou bore down on him, and Ichigo answered in kind.

And there was the weird echo again, stronger than before. And Ichigo knew what it was.

He reached, and the world twisted. This was his world. This power was his. All the energy in the air was his.

Bending the world to his will, Ichigo took one small step forward, covering dozens of meters in the process. Then he reached out and plucked Zangetsu's blade from his hands. "I'm sorry Zangetsu. But this blade is mine. This body is mine. And you can't have them."

Shock spread across his double's face. He seemed unable to respond as Ichigo stabbed him with his own blade. And as he held it, the white of the sword was overtaken by the black that dominated Ichigo's normal Tensa Zangetsu.

His Hollow's face slowly shifted from shock, surprise, and then to satisfaction as his form slowly melted away. "Heh. Well then King. Seems like we'll do it your way. Don't get too comfortable though. If your resolution falters for even a second, I'll be here again. This trick won't work a second time."

Ichigo grinned back at him. "Good fight."

The surprise was back. Then Zangetsu smiled as well. It was a much more genuine smile than any Ichigo had seen him make before. "Yeah… Good fight."

Then he was gone.

Ichigo stood alone in a landscape of toppled skyscrapers and shattered glass. The world slowly transitioned over from night to day.

The teen took a deep breath. Landing awkwardly on one of the skyscrapers, he sat down in an exhausted slump. Turning his head from side to side. He studied the two identical Daito in his hands. Their power thrummed through him, and Ichigo couldn't help but smile.

Something felt right in a way it hadn't since he was 9. He couldn't quite put a finger on it, but his entire soul resonated with the feeling.

Looking down at his right arm, and the sword that lay there, he scowled at it. "You and I have a lot to talk about." He couldn't help but snort at the nervousness he felt coming from the blade. "Yeah, yeah. Suck it up. Anyway, we'll have to do that later. First I'll have to talk to the Visored."


Kisuke Urahara

Kisuke stifled a jawn. The coffee on his desk steamed invitingly, and the shopkeeper eagerly took a sip. He groaned as the last drop disappeared.

Staring longingly into the dark interior of the cup, he mournfully put it down again. "Ururu! Refill!" He shouted out towards the rest of the house. A faint 'coming' could be heard, and he reassured himself that he didn't have to wait long for more brain fuel.

Getting back to the project at hand, Urahara frowned as he tried to expand the five dimensional matrices he had been working on for two days now. It wasn't going so well, unfortunately. He started with over two dozen of them, and now he was left with only a couple that may hold some promise. Glaring at the numbers, he let his computer run a new analysis before he shuffled over to the experimental gigai in the corner.

Studying it intently, he was tempted to curse aloud. He knew he was close. This breakthrough has been a long time coming, but the last piece had only come to him a few weeks ago.

His computer pinged, and Kisuke looked over curiously. Over already? That had to be some mistake. It was never this- doing a double take. He almost crashed into the screen as he tried to use Shunpo. Bad idea. Too little sleep. Too much coffee.

Wide eyes studied the numbers on the screen before a smile slowly spread across his face.

"Here's your drink Urahara-san." Ururu announced as she entered the room.

She barely had time to put the mug down before Urahara swung her around, grinning like a lunatic. "Ha! I knew it wasn't so difficult! I knew it! Stupid Naruto and his stupid chakra!"

Ururu barely blinked at him before she patted his head like an indulgent mother. "That's nice Urahara-san."

Kisuke barely even noticed. Taking the mug and gulping down a huge portion of the black liquid, he cracked his knuckles.

He wasn't done yet. Not by a long shot. Now was the time for initial implementation, and then the game of bug whack-a'-mole that was the prototyping stage. But now there was just a matter of time before his new baby was ready for the field. Not that he had ever doubted he could do it, of course, but he'd had so many missteps with this project already. 70 years was a long time to fail at something. But as any half decent quack knew, failure is the lifeblood of science.

Sitting down at his computer, he began booting up one of his many simulation programs before an alert stopped him in his tracks. Looking over at one of his monitoring stations, he squinted as he tried to make the screen come into focus.

Maybe he should actually go to sleep? Coffee could only take you so far.

Shaking off that momentary bout of blasphemy, Kisuke staggered over to the screen to get a better look. Ah. That was Minato's team. The signal seemed a bit off, guess he'd have to adjust the wave frequency of his scanners again. Scowling in annoyance, he fished out the shogi piece Minato had thrown him. Forcing his reiatsu into an unfamiliar spell he let the magic seep through the game piece. A few knobs turned here, a few buttons to start up the machine, and the scanner once again began picking up the subtle values of the game pieces energy emissions before he threw the Knight back into the black hole that was his work tray.

It was annoying. He had no instruments that could directly communicate with the seals on that game piece, so he'd had to jury rig a system from scratch. If his other project hadn't taken up so much of his time, that wouldn't have been a problem, but now the amateur setup just chafed at him without actually giving him enough motivation to do anything about it. The worst of both worlds.

As he skimmed through the updated log of their progress, his eyebrow raised a few inches.

It seemed like they'd gotten rid of their vagabond Arrancars. Curious specimens, those. He wondered how the girl's reiatsu would compare- A new alert diverted his attention to an extended message. Wait… They were coming here? Together with the Arrancar with the broken mask?

Kisuke grinned with anticipation. Minato sure knew how to reward his cooperation.


Tatsuki Arisawa

Tatsuki tried not to fidget as she filled out her science test. Constantly itching for hours on end was more than just uncomfortable. It was infuriating. She'd barely gotten any sleep last night. And she was supposed to live like this for two more days?

Scowling down at her answer sheet, she wondered if she would ever be capable of setting it on fire with her glare alone. That sounded kind of cool. She should ask sensei if she could learn that.

It didn't help that she now doubted everything she had ever learned in school. Everything from science to history had to be… if not directly wrong, then at least seriously lacking. And how come no one was aware of this? People had to know right? Did the government know? What about the UN? Was she just crazy and imagining everything? For all she knew, she was now sprawled across a bed in some psychiatric hospital babbling about ghosts and demons.

She sighed, looking over at Orihime a few seats in front of her, she mulled over their conversation two days ago. It had gone… better than she'd thought. Although most of it had consisted of Orihime cheering her up after her major fuck up in the fight against the Bounts. In the end, she had been worse than useless. But she should have expected that. She had no experience in fighting like that, and no special abilities to make up for it. Hopefully, that would change on Sunday, but for now she would have to resign herself to staying on the sidelines.

Ishida had been cool though. She studied her black haired classmate. Never in her life would she have thought the antisocial goody two-shoes was fighting demons and vampires on the side. But everyone had to have a hobby, right?

A shout came from the other side of the classroom, causing the teacher to forcibly calm down. It seemed like Ichigo had once again tried to flirt with one of the girls in class.

The only reason she didn't come over there and kick his ass personally was because she knew it wasn't her old friend. It was just an artificial soul inhabiting Ichigo's body. A perverted artificial soul, apparently.

And though Tatsuki found that fact creepy as hell. Orihime seemed undisturbed with whatever this 'Kon' did in Ichigo's body. She seemed to have completely internalized that he was a different person. She treated him like someone she vaguely knew, and there were no signs of her crush.

Thankfully for her sanity. Yasutora seemed just as disturbed as she was. "Do you know when Ichigo will be back?" She asked him hesitatingly. She didn't know Sado very well, but as fellow people 'in the know', it felt appropriate to ask.

Sado blinked over at her, looking honestly confused for a second before his gaze cleared up. "He's training. It will probably be a while."

Sighing, Tatsuki leaned her head on her knuckles. She wondered what would happen to his grades. He was technically skipping school, after all. Even if it was for a good reason. Though Ichigo had always scored highly. It might not be too bad.

"Then why aren't you guys? I thought you were in the same boat as him?" She asked, keeping her voice low as to not attract the teacher's attention.

Again, Sado looked unsure for a few seconds before he responded. "Oh. You think I'm the real Yasutora Sado?"

Tatsuki blinked at the large boy. Then she blinked again as her brain processed his sentence.

Wait… If this wasn't Sado… then who was she speaking to?

As she watched the expression on not-Sado's face transformed from the vaguely sleepy and confused look into a clearer more living expression. The-Thing-that-was-pretending-to-be-Sado nodded. "Yeah. Uryū, Hime-chan and Chad have all left to train together. They're up in the mountains now, an old training ground of Uryū's."

Hime-chan? Wait a second.

"Naruto!?" Her voice was far too loud, almost a shout. Ochi-sensei looked over at them with a scowl as half the class turned her way. But Sado/Naruto just waved his hand and everyone went back to what they'd been doing.

Then Sado burst into a cloud of smoke, and in his place was her would-be-teacher. Grinning from ear to ear at the prank he just pulled. He placed a single finger over his mouth in the universal gesture for silence, and then the smoke cloud occluded her senses again, and Sado was once again sitting at the same place.

"Please wait until after the test to ask questions Tatsuki-chan. I shouldn't be messing with the class's perception too much, and I prefer not to sit through another round of high-school. The clones are mostly on standby mode until I need them. Well, except Orihime. She's a bit too social to just leave as brain-dead. It's a good thing Chad only interacts with Ichigo, and Uryū is such a nerd. Nobody notices if those two have the brain capacity of a particularly tame goat." Having said his piece. The Sado/Naruto clone regained its lost expression and resumed staring into space.

Tatsuki looked back at her test. Reconsidering every choice that had led her to this point.


Uryū Ishida

Uryū pulled back his drawstring again, his mind and soul straining under everything he was demanding of them.

Slowly, painfully slowly, an arrow manifested itself on the bow before him. Five seconds later, the arrow finished forming. Uryū blinks in astonishment. He can't quite believe he'd succeeded.

Sure, this was what he'd been working on for days now, but it always seemed like a goal he would never reach..

"Ah! You did it! Congratulations Ishida-san!" Inoue exclaimed, running over and scrutinizing the arrow on his bow.

Uryū tries not to blush as her breasts brush against his arms.

He's a 15 year old boy. He's not gay or asexual. It's a futile effort.

"Hmm? You succeeded? Congratulations Ishida." Sado comments from his place on the ground. He's doing sit-ups, of all things. Uryū has no idea how that is actually considered training, not against the foes they are preparing for anyways. But he figures the half-mexican has his own methods. A relaxing exercise after all the strain they put their souls through perhaps?

Uryū allows himself a small smile as he looks down. The solid arrow resting on his bow glints in the fading light, the silver metal reflecting the rays of the sun beautifully..

It is a reshi construct far more concentrated than his normal arrows. It should have an order of magnitude more power than them as well. But other than that, it is not particularly fancy. Nothing like the over designed masterpieces and rune inscribed bullshit Naruto can pull out. But… he'll get there eventually.

He'll master this technique, and any other Naruto could show him. He'd relearn all the lost arts of the Quincy, and reclaim their glory. He would remake his clan! And kill his bro- wait… what?


Yasutora Sado

Chad can feel the power flowing into his left arm. His skin prickles as flecks of white appear all over his tanned skin.

It's not enough however. Without a proper emotional catalyst, the next level of his powers doesn't want to manifest themselves.

He'd gotten farther this time than ever before, though. So he knows what he's doing is working at least.

After one too many sparring matches, it was clear to him that he wouldn't grow stronger fast enough with that method. Not if he wanted to keep up with Ichigo.

So he'd gone to his teacher for help.

Naruto's answer?

Meditation.

Spirit meditation to be precise. A method utilizing reiatsu and mental energy to explore his own soul and psyche. Getting to know himself better through supernatural training, in other words.

He'd been sceptical at first, but it seems to be working.

Didn't hurt that Naruto had told him of the true origin of his power either.

They were Hollow in origin, a leftover imprint left on his soul after his pregnant mother was attacked by a Hollow. His still forming soul forever changed by the experience.

His power was the same as a Hollow's, to draw out the inherent powers within souls. Except in his case, the power was directed outwards and not inwards. That he drew out the power of his arms was a bit bizarre, but nothing impossible. With training, he should be able to draw out the power of other objects too.

That was still a ways off, however. For now, he should focus on evolving his current powers as much as possible.

His right arm is his will to protect. The manifestations of the teachings his Abuelo left him.

His left arm - he was pretty sure - is his will to attack. The urge he'd suppressed for years, and was now needed once again.

He knows that if he can get the powers in his second arm to manifest, he'll be able to watch Ichigo's back for a little longer.

All he has to do is unlearn habits ingrained within his very soul for over half a decade.

He wouldn't abandon his Abuelo's teaching of course. He would always use his strength to protect those weaker than himself. But against his future opponents…

Defending isn't good enough. He'll need to attack. And attack hard.

He would never use his left arm against someone weaker than himself. Even now, when he wasn't yet certain of what it could do, he was sure it'd be deadly. If he ever used its powers on someone weaker than him, they'd be guaranteed to die.

The only acceptable targets in that case would be Hollows, but if he'd need such a weapon against those, he was either fighting someone significantly stronger than himself, or an army of weaker monsters. Both events could be construed as not breaking his oath.

No. His left arm was only for desperate situations, or for those few he'd condemn to death.

Sinking into another sit-up, he allowed the physical exertion to soothe his tired mind. Then he began the mediation exercise again. Never once stopping his repetitions.


Orihime Inoue

Orihime giggled as a golden fox nuzzled her face. Its body was made of a transparent energy that reminded her of Naruto's super form. It wasn't like that though. This fox, like the rest of her spirits, were made of reiatsu.

Unlike what she'd first thought, it wasn't actually an ability Naruto had granted her. Not directly at any rate.

The golden orb Naruto had placed inside her soul was nothing as complicated as this. Indeed, other than giving her more power to work with, it was just a way to contact Naruto. It couldn't do anything as complex as this.

This fox came from her own powers. Spirit Materialization, the same ability that had created the fairies of the Shun Shun Rikka.

The first time she had called upon the spirit fox, it had been a complete accident. But the time she'd actually needed it, it hadn't manifested. Now she knows why. This new spirit, unlike her original six, was not sapient. Those had been created from the hairpin gifted to her by her elder brother. They had been by her side for years and meant the world to her. In comparison, Naruto's power had only been added to her soul last week.

Their compatibility was weak. The only reason it could manifest at all was due to how the orb had wrapped completely around her soul. Such a close proximity created a satisfactory bond pretty much immediately.

But since the fox wasn't as smart as a human, and had practically no ability to sense the outside world, it wouldn't come out by itself. No. She had to consciously summon it (outside its awakening anyways).

She knew that now, and it only took a bit of practice to call it out. Either for protection, or cuddling. Orihime was pretty sure she'd use it a lot more for the last option. Her fairies were cuddly too, but a bit small to return the affection.

"Ayame, Shun'ō, Tsubaki, Baiagon, Lily, Hinagiku." She called out to her friends, feeling them all manifest themselves from her hairpin.

She beamed at them all, scratching the fox behind its ears. "Meet Haru, he's a new friend!"

Tsubaki, of course, took exception to this. He humphed and complained, but he didn't actually do anything.

Ayame nodded demurely, and disappeared into her dress, peeking out shyly from the fold of cloth.

Shun'ō beamed at the fox, flying down to land on its muzzle before introducing himself and all the others.

It was a happy scene, and it filled Orihime with joy that all her friends got along so well.

Haru barked and wagged its tail, acting more like a dog than a fox. Though it's 'bark' was very strange. She supposed it was a fox's cry. It was not a sound she'd ever heard before.

The next hour or so was spent training in the form of a game. Just maintaining all 7 spirits at once was taxing for her. For this game of tag to work, she had to sustain 7 separate flows of reiatsu with the same magnitude of energy as before. Too little, and they'd return to their inanimate form. Too much, and she'd tire herself out too fast.

The piece of Naruto's power she'd been granted helped with the last issue, but it didn't eliminate it. Her soul could only take so much strain before it was too tired to continue, complex metaphysical energy transfers aside.

She used the forests in Uryū's training ground to hide in as Lily searched for everyone. She was always the first to be found, as all her spirits could instinctively tell where she was, but she didn't mind. That just meant that none of the others had to lose the game.


Tatsuki Arisawa

Tatsuki breathed a sigh of relief as she entered the Uzumaki Gym. Her chakra coils had settled, and so her life would no longer be accompanied by constant itching.

More importantly was that she could now begin to train for real. To be an asset in the fights her friends so eagerly threw themselves at.

Walking into the cellar and entering the pocket dimension within, the girl blinked dumbfounded up at the massive tower that hadn't been there the last time she had been here. Considering that was three days ago, and this building reached so high she literally couldn't see the top of it, that was saying something.

"Welcome, to the Tower of Babel." Naruto said as the two central doors swung open in a dramatic fashion.

"The… what?" Tatsuki blinked up at the structure, first now noticing the intricate carvings and incomprehensible symbols upon its surface.

"It's not the original, unfortunately. That one was obliterated by the gods. It's just a very well made replica. Now repurposed as your new training ground." The blond grinned a smile full of teeth. Tatsuki shivered, she knew that smile.

"As you are determined to go up against high level spirits, you'll have to become their equal. Get to the topmost floor of this tower, and you will be strong enough to fight side by side with Ichigo and your friends." Grin growing warmer, he tossed her a backpack that she caught reflexively.

"That should have everything you need. The time within this tower flows 3 times faster than in the real world. I have a clone standing in for you at school, home, and any other responsibilities you may have." The blond continued, causing Tatsuki to feel cold sweat running down her neck.

"You have three months to reach the top. Good luck." Then Naruto disappeared in a cloud of white smoke.

Tatsuki gulped, shouldered her backpack and took her first steps within the tower.

Immediately, the massive stone doors behind her slammed closed and the air became hard to breathe. A clammy feeling settled over her as weak orange light from innumerable torches lit up the stone floor.

In the middle of the floor was an area, sat up very much like a tournament ring so similar to what Tatsuki was used to seeing in Karate tournaments.

Scaling the stairs to the top of the stage, she saw the middle was occupied by a short old man with gray hair and a manchu mustache. He wore exercise clothes and sunglasses, sitting sprawled across the stage and eating rice balls. When he saw her, his face lit up and he jumped to his feet. The action was far too smooth to belong to such an old man.

"Ah, you're here. Naruto-sama told me you wanted to know how to fight. The name's Chen. Chen Godō. The 243rd Elemental Guardian. I'll be your instructor in hand to hand fighting. Come at me with all you've got." The old man smiled wickedly as Tatsuki's still developing senses picked up the edges of the old man's power.

Taking a deep breath, and forcing her legs not to give up on her, she put away her backpack and stepped forwards to meet the challenge.


Minato Namikaze

Namikaze Minato had good senses.

Indeed, there were few he that had better. He prided himself on being able to pick up every movement of air for kilometers around him, for being able to feel every footstep on the ground for miles.

Though he never got the time to truly master senjutsu in his first chance at life, his second had been much, much longer and he had gotten ample time to learn everything his heart desired. If the list hadn't expanded towards infinity by now he would actually have finished it, impossible as that would seem to his teenage self.

So when three enormous energy signatures appeared only a short distance before him, Minato was worried. Very worried.

"What do we have here? Rats scuttling around Aizen-taicho's territory? That's not nice at all." A voice like slithering snakes, cold as ice.

Minato's gaze snapped up, settling on the three figures standing on the dunes to their right. Itachi and Stark stopped at the same time, turning in the same direction.

Three men stood before them, two Shinigami and one Hollow. The two Shinigami were easy enough to recognize from their briefing. Aizen Sosuke and Ichimaru Gin. The Hollow though... The Hollow was a redhead clad in the same clothes as his companions, but Minato recognized him as well. It had been five millennia since he last saw him, but like his colleagues, his memory was nigh flawless. And even if it hadn't, he doubted he would forget someone as distinctive as- "Gaara? What-" Minato started, but he was interrupted as his instincts screamed at him to dodge.

Disappearing in a flicker of movement, Minato skidded backwards. Feeling a drop of cold sweat trace down his neck, it mixed with the blood trailing from the nick he hadn't managed to avoid.

"Hmm… I'm impressed. The same speed cut Uzumaki's body in half. You two look remarkably similar. Brothers perhaps?" The sweet baritone of Aizen's voice cut through the small shock that had begun to settle over Minato. It had been centuries since he had seen anyone that fast. And although Naruto had warned him, his son had also been severely limited when he visited Soul Society.

Letting his mind seep into the infinite calm that had always come so easily to him, Minato considered his options.

"Retreat. We have nothing to gain by fighting here." He ordered, his gaze flickering to Stark.

The Arrancar twitched his fingers, but instead of the familiar tearing, a sound like a bell echoed through the desert. The Garganta refused to open.

Aizen's mouth stretched into a smile, but before he could say anything, Minato flickered over to his colleagues, utilizing a tenth of a millisecond to gather them all around him.

The Hiraishin was not an ideal way to go world jumping, it requires exponentially more energy the farther you have to travel, and multiplied by the amount of mass you need to move, summoning was much easier.

But right now, the sheer speed of the technique trumped every other concern. He had enough energy for this at least. Though he would have to tap into his life-force to manage all the way back to the living world.

But… he couldn't. His markers that was spread all throughout the world was completely inaccessible. Even the ones he had planted on his way through this world were gone from his perceptions. Only his friends' markers and a couple very close by were still there.

"What's the matter? Can't use your teleportation technique?" Aizen smiled. "You didn't think I would just let you exploit it did you? I have already seen it twice. That's more than enough to find a counter."

Minato felt his mind slip deeper and deeper into his combat calm. It looked like they were going to fight. And that meant he had to understand his opponent.

"Hmm… and you said I was impressive? Decades of war back in the era of shinobi, and not one person managed to find a counter to it, and yet you managed it in a month?" Minato's voice was casual, but the praise was not unwarranted. If this was their enemy… He was beginning to see why Naruto was so wary of this man.

"Yondaime-sama…" Itachi began. The pinwheels in his eyes spun lazily, but as he locked them with Minato's, the blond felt reality shifting around him. Suddenly there were two layers to everything. One was the dessert as it had been before, and one where their opponents stood just the tiniest bit off center of the other. Itachi's voice rang in his head. "We are under a genjutsu. One of the strongest I have ever seen. It would take too long to unravel. The shadow you see is the real world, projected through my perceptions."

Minato didn't respond. Didn't even twitch, but his mental model of Aizen got another level in its threat assessment. He hadn't even felt the genjutsu take hold. But now that he knew it was there, he could feel it. Rooted deep within his soul, it filtered through his senses. Itachi's genjutsu was also there, tangling and twisting around Aizen's illusion. It effectively gave Minato three worlds to respond to. Aizen's, Itachi's, and what little he could make out of the real world.

It had been a while since he was in a true battle of illusions.

Itachi repeated the same action with Stark, and although he didn't tense. He did lay a hand on Lilynette's head. Transforming her into the twin guns he always used in a serious battle.

Aizen looked intrigued. "A combined transformation? How interesting. Tell me, Arrancar. What is your name?"

"Stark. Coyote Stark." The Hollow answered as his cloak shifted to his transformed apparel.

"Tell me, why are you following this human?" The ex-captain's eyes swept to Minato and back to Stark again. "If you join me. I'll give you enough power to make that form seem paltry in comparison."

Stark snorted. "I have no interest in power. I am here to help my friends. Simple as that."

Aizen raised an eyebrow. "Not really the normal stance for a Hollow to take. But I see… I'll just have to dissect your corpse then."

But as he vanished again, Minato was ready for him.

Sosuke Aizen was sent crashing to the ground, his white robe was ruined and the shallow mark of a spiral was burned into his chest.

In the small opening he had created, Minato scattered three dozen of his Kunai throughout the battlefield, a couple was sent speeding off into the distance, only for him to lose their signal sometime after a few hundred meters.

"Aizen-taichou?" Gin sounded positively puzzled.

The ex-captain took a deep breath and stood up, other than his ruined clothes and the mark of the Rasengan, he looked no worse for wear. Although he was frowning slightly. "That wasn't the Hiraishin." He accused. His eyes narrowed as his eyes sharpened onto Minato.

Minato smirked. "No, but this is."

Then he planted a poisoned kunai in Aizen's stomach.

The kunai broke.


Speed was the name of the game.

In all his five millennia, Minato would be pressed to mention any opponent faster than his current one. Or anyone with half the skill the Shinigami had exhibited in their match so far. Aizen Sousuke was a genius among geniuses.

Then again, so was Minato.

Flying through space faster than relativistic physics would have allowed him, the blond vanished from the area as a massive black box manifested itself from nowhere. Or rather, the shadow of a box superimposed upon his incorrect visage of reality.

As he materialized behind Aizen once again, his fingers flickered across the back of the ex-captain's neck.

The seal died a feeble death before it even had a chance to form, just like all the others except the first. The first Hiraishin seal left after his Rasengan (the only real attack he'd managed to land thus far), had been swiftly sealed within a frozen pocket of space-time right after his opening attack. And any subsequent attempt at placing a seal on the man had been left with nothing but futility.

His will simply wasn't strong enough to overpower the megalomaniac's. It was frustrating, but hardly the first time it had happened.

No, what really frustrated him was his inability to even leave a mark on the man. It was like fighting Achilles. He seemed completely invulnerable to any sort of attack. Well it would have been like fighting Achilles if the Greek hero also had insane super-speed, powerful magical abilities, a frankly unfair ability at illusions, a couple centuries to cultivate prodigious talent, and an ego the size of half the hemisphere.

Perhaps the last one wasn't that far off the mark.

"How is it that you continue to use that technique? The local space-time should be within my control for dozens of kilometers." Aizen questioned, his voice as casual as if he was asking if Minato wanted sugar with his tea or not.

The Fourth Hokage straightened his back and took a deep breath. The reprieve was nice, it allowed him to check up on how his comrades were doing.

Stark wasn't really trying, but the same could be said about his opponent. Gaara was simply blocking or redirecting the casual Ceros Stark kept firing his way. The Guardian being far slower in both draw or charge-up time than Minato knew he was capable of. And Gaara hadn't even released his sword. Nothing to worry about there.

Itachi was another story. He could count at least eight copies of his friend. About half were woven into the illusionary reality Aizen had created, the others were perfectly overlaid within their projected selves, although only two actually had weight that pushed down the sand he was standing on. So the Uchiha was definitely taking this seriously.

Although he had refrained from killing his opponent. Rightly identifying Aizen as the real threat. If he showed his mastery over Aizen's own illusion. His life would likely be forfeit. He couldn't keep up with the speed required to stay alive in Minato's fight. And although Susanoo's avatar was nigh impenetrable for normal mortals, these shinigami was anything but. None of them had truly begun to exert themselves.

After the initial underestimation of their abilities and subsequent attempt at execution, this fight had been barely more than a probing attack to determine their abilities. So far, neither of them had even mentioned Kyoka Suigetsu's ineffectiveness. Or even acknowledged its existence beyond the lump of steel the man kept trying to bisect him with.

Minato's mind raced. His largest problem was obviously his opponents invulnerability, he was the faster of the two (obviously), but like Naruto before him, he couldn't penetrate the skin. He knew the cause, of course. Although Naruto had learned it too late to be of use, Minato had gotten a full dossier on their enemies' abilities. As much as they knew anyways.

The invulnerability lay in one of the most basic rules of combat for these spiritual beings. So basic, in fact, that Naruto had completely overlooked it the first time he'd seen it. Oh, he'd known about it. He'd read about it, but it's implication had only hit him after several days searching for an answer.

A battle against a Shinigami was a battle of spiritual power.

To be able to overpower an opponent's defense, your will and reiatsu has to be sharp enough to overpower theirs.

Therein lies the problem. Minato was not used to fighting with reiatsu. And although he was more than good enough that this shouldn't normally be a problem, even against the strongest of Hollows and Shinigami, Aizen Sousuke proved once again that he was an exception.

This defense wasn't like Stark's Hierro or some other esoteric armor technique Minato could name. Those he would normally just subvert with seals, illusions, or some other esoteric method. This defense seemed absolute. Unless he somehow managed to overcome Aizen's belief that he couldn't be cut by his own insistence that he could, then the Shinigami would remain invulnerable.

"Now if I gave away my technique's secret, it wouldn't be much of a secret, now would it?" Minato returned. His mind going into hyperdrive to find a way around his current problem.

Aizen smiled humorlessly. "Gin, Gaara. Enough playing around. Kill them."

A pause.

Then...

The desert around them exploded as a silver streak shot through one of Itachi's clones, straight for Minato. He didn't have much time to estimate, but that was definitely several hundred times the speed of sound.

He dodged.

As the desert swallowed him whole, Minato immersed himself in the billions and billions of Hiraishin seals around him.

When he'd been 15, Minato could plant a seal with a touch. When he was 16, he could plant them with his feet. A couple of months later, through his sandals. During his second life, when he'd rounded 60, he could plant them over a meter away from himself through nothing but a streak of chakra. Skin contact was still preferable, especially if something interfered with his willpower. Seals was nothing but chakra and will, after all.

Eventually he had learned to spread his will throughout the world around him, claiming a piece of space as his own. Thousands of years ago, he had also miniaturized his Hiraishin seal to the point where it could be written on a single grain of sand.

The entire desert surrounding them was full of Minato's Hiraishin seals.

Minato swam through spacetime as easily as a fish, bursting up for air in the material world only when he wanted to. He flew between three battles in an instant, was at least twelve places simultaneously and had to force time to slow at least twice.

The battle was complete chaos. The sky was filled with a sandstorm kilometers wide, the ground had lost consistency to the point where it practically didn't exist anymore.

Itachi had been forced to call upon one of Susano's armors just to protect himself from the environment. Amaterasu's dark flames danced around him, turning the sandstorm into a firestorm, interspersed with molten glass. The distant sounds of wolves howling echoed within the fabric of reality.

Minato switched out Stark and Itachi when he noticed the latter couldn't keep up with the Shinigami's ridiculously fast sword. Neither combatant hesitated for even a moment and continued to fight. Being inhumanly experienced had its advantages.

He himself was always a hair's breadth away from obliteration, streaks of energy, scathing winds and mystical power threatening to dissolve his fragile human body if only they got a millisecond to connect.

Of course, none of them did.

You did not hit the Yellow Flash if he didn't want to be hit.


Author's note:

I'm sorry about the… delay.

Delay. That's a bit of an understatement.

This thing has been sitting on my computer 3/4ths done about a month after the last chapter was published. Then I went off and did things in real life. Then began writing on other stories, and this sort of just… fell off the priority list.

Even as I'd promised myself, and you, that I'd finishing this story.

If it hadn't been for my father being so supportive of me, and pushing me so hard on actually finishing my projects, then this might very well have languished for 3 more years.

But, yeah. It's done now.

On to the next chapter.

What? You thought I'd abandon it after finally managing to restart it again?

No. I'm doing this. I'm putting on my big boys pants and finishing this infuriating, wonderful "first" real story of mine. Then I'm going to make more fanfictions. Then write my own books and become a real author.

It's time I took this whole writing thing seriously.

For the future, expect shorter chapters. (Though still in the 5 to 10k range.) Chapter 7 is about the halfway point of the story, and I've already written down quite a few future scenes.

Anyways, good to be back!