...
He idly fixed the hat on top of his head, the annoyed expression on his face hidden away from the green-haired +Espada's view.
He wasn't sure why she insisted he wear the god-awful excuse of an unnecessary birthday gift. Or why she insisted on gift-giving in the first place...
"Nel." Ulquiorra called out seriously, not remotely earning the hollows attention, her gaze fixated on the tv screen she'd stolen.
"Hmm?" She questioned distractedly as she watched the strange human's body expand through Black-Magic.
Another term he'd learnt from her.
"No more birthdays. It's getting ridiculous."
"Uhha," She nodded her head, clearly paying attention as she scooped another handful of the savoury snack into her mouth.
"As long as we understand each other," Ulquiorra sighed as he turned to face the screen, mimicking the others actions.
He watched idly as the new character on screen quickly transformed into fire.
"So cool!" Nel remarked with glee as she watched, literal stars in her eyes as she watched the new character make his introduction.
Ulquiorra promptly moved a hand towards his eye, intent on peeking into the future-
Nel snapped her hand onto his, her vice-like grip cracking a bone as she turned a steely gaze onto him.
"Don't even think about spoiling this one." She glared.
Ulquiorra blinked, slowly lowering his arm before he responded.
"Fine. But if this character dies, I am not consoling you."
Nel blinked back, her nose twitching the slightest as she considered his words before turning her eyes back towards the screen and then to him.
"... Fine," She agreed with a solemn look. "A fair compromi-"
"You're lying, again."
Nel nodded and promptly turned back towards the screen.
Ulquiorra sighed before turning his gaze back towards the screen. Only an hour to go before he could finally get back to watching Grantz's little experiment, without Nel getting upset.
Again.
Of course that was the moment his birthday was thankfully interrupted as a third presence suddenly filled the room. Ulquiorra's mind somewhat hopeful it was Lord Groban with a new mission as he slowly turned around towards the source of the reiatsu burst. Nel's head less then a second slower as it copied him, herself expecting Harribel to finally show up, albeit fifty minutes earlier than usual compared to the previous events she'd invited her to.
"...What the fuck did I just walk into?"
Ulquiorra blinked at the sight of the shinigami he'd stabbed in the chest, his brow furrowing immediately as his eyes widened.
Nel on the other hand, proved to surprise even him as she didn't immediatelystart asking the stranger questions, for he was without a doubt a stranger. Instead, for the first time in centuries, freezing up, a startled expression appearing on her face as she opened up her mouth. "Eep! Aiz-" Only to abruptly stop, her head tilting the slightest towards him.
He certainly didn't need to be told twice. He immediately got onto his feet, his hand ontop of his zanpakuto as his body got into a ready stance.
"How did you get into my private chambers?" Ulquiorra questioned calmly, his eyes narrowing as Nel slowly edged backwards behind him, a strained smile on her face.
Aizen Sosuke tilted his head the slightest at his question.
"I got lost..?" He questioned, one hand rubbing the back of his head as he eyed the decorations, all naturally given to him by Nel, before snapping back towards them. The look in the dangerous beings eyes causing him to tense. Ulquiorra could, for some unknown reason, feel his hand minutely shake as he stared at the shinigami. Unsure of what to do or say... For if one could so easily make it through to him... Even Grantz couldn't do that without permission...
"Any of you seen a cat?- Nel! You're an adult!" The yell caught the two Espada's flatfooted, Nel even more so by the far more startled reaction.
Ulquiorra was pretty sure he'd never seen her freeze up before...
"What? Grantz didn't try to kill you this time?" Aizen suddenly remarked, a hand on his chin as he tilted his head again.
"Grantz tried to kill you?" He turned towards her, eyes narrowed as his reiatsu suddenly filled the sealed room, the temperature turning ice-cold. "When?"
Nel snapped her head between the two, her hands raised just before her as a sweat drop formed on her head. "Um... yes? Sort of? But it was a really long time ago-"
Ulquiorra didn't waste so much as a second as he disappeared, the brief bloodlust that leaked from him practically knocking the breath out of both of them.
...
I stared at the Espada. One hand idly rubbing the clearly still working prison link that connected me to Yoruichi... Which meant Neko-gami was currently fine... Ish. I'd, against Shunsui's better wishes, unlocked the seal enough to allow the woman to use her reiatsu, on the off-chance shit went sideways... As it clearly has.
Not to mention Yoruichi's face at the time had been priceless.
I idly wondered if Shunsui regretted deciding to come with me on my scouting mission...
"So... You clearly know who I am." I remarked, eyeing the Espada, idly noting she was in her humanoid form.
Nel blinked twice as she considered the question.
"Yes..?"
I nodded before walking further into the room, idly taking Ulquiorra's previous position and promptly sitting down.
Nel stared at me for a second, before slowly taking a seat beside me.
"Is this Ulquiorra's room?"
Nel nodded uneasily as I hummed in response, it certainly explained why I couldn't hear Aizen's voice anymore, I could still feel the Espada's lingering reiatsu, even in his absence, my gaze taking in the paintings that made up-
The moment my eyes landed on the screen, my jaw unceremoniously dropped.
They were watching One Piece.
"... You know he-" I started the moment I noticed which character was on screen.
Nel slapped me, before immediately covering her mouth, her eyes widening in horror at the action. "Ohmhgahd! Idintmentod-"
I blinked at the surge of words, not understanding a single thing.
When the clear reaction she expected out of me didn't come, the Espada slowly lowered her hand from her mouth.
"Sorry!" She remarked, much more clearly this time. "Force of habit! Ulquiorra spoils everything."
"You... You realise I am not your Aizen right?" I remarked with a hint of amusement, completely missing the second point, as I leaned the slightest on one arm.
Nel spent a second to think over the words before she shrugged, though her shoulders certainly dropped, her stance no longer radiating discomfort as she seemed to actually relax.
"No ones anyone's anyone anymore... " She remarked, a brief look of pain filtering through her expression.
"Deep." I remarked, missing her expression's shift entirely.
Nel seemed to take the word in stride as she nodded.
"So how did you get here? If you don't mind me asking. Even... The Aizen I knew would've had trouble getting here.." She remarked vaguely, her hands gesturing towards the room.
"... I literally got lost on my way to Huaco Mundo..." I answered honestly.
I am not sure how long it was until Ulquiorra came back, not like I knew how to leave this space, but for those few minutes, the two of us simply continued to stare at each other, both of us completely out of our depths, both of us waiting for the inevitable craziness that filtered our new worlds to catch up.
...
(Urahara)
...
...
Urahara panted, a pained expression on his face, as he raised his head, taking a deep breath in before locking gazes with the charging hollow. The glint in his bloodshot eyes practically freezing the rest of it's kin.
He tilted his head, avoiding the lithe hollows swipe, the purple creatures sword cutting a number of strands from his hair.
He ignored how the hollows eyes widened in horror as it promptly turned-on it's feet.
"Shit!"
Urahara simply raised an unscarred hand, strands of hair held inside the closed fist. The strands, through his reiatsu, quickly extended, one line immediately locking around the hollows sword-arm, severing it and taking control and pulling the black long-sword towards him.
He ducked, grabbing the flying blade, avoiding the sudden strike from behind before swiping up diagonally with his new weapon. A tad bit to big if he was honest. A line of red appearing as the large Snake-faced hollow blinked in bemusement.
"What?" Were it's eloquent last words as it fell backwards.
Urahara spared the creature a single look before turning back to stare to the horizon, his breathing uneven.
He idly watched as said horizon lit up in flames once again. Soi-fon's bankai once again going through without a hitch.
He briefly thanked the all mighty that the woman had agreed to an alliance.
Even if it was at the cost of renouncing Yoruichi's involvement in his 'crimes' against Soul Sciety.
The delusional captain truly thought his partner actually stood a chance of been welcomed back.
Even if the Gotei 13 were somehow convinced, it was the nobles that really decided.
It wasn't like Soul Society was going to stand up for them
He sighed, a wistful smile on his face, one that sent chills down whatever Hollow that managed to survive as the sword in his hand crumbled. The hollow he'd stolen it off having been killed by his fellow kin.
Urahara shrugged the sudden chill that seemed to fill the air, every time the ninja corps captain used her bankai tended to end with the temperature dropping.
And though she would never admit it, he could see, clear as day, that she'd been just as surprised of the change.
Urahara raised his scarred hand, idly noting he'd gone through half the time he'd been given. He barely paid any mind to the missing fingers. He took in one last deep breath before he stated chanting, his eyes resolute, even as he stepped off the mountain of hollows he'd made.
For whatever reason, these hollows, as powerful as they were, were easy to kill.
A single sword strike, in the right place, tended to end them. With the right weapon of course. Though that wasn't so hard to come by.
He raised his scarred hand, a glint filling his eyes as the smoke dissipated, showing him the new flock of far more enraged hollows charging towards him.
"Hadō #90. Kurohitsugi," He called out mid-incantation, his teeth gritting as he winced from the sudden reiatsu drain.
He watched as the darkness appeared, swallowing up the hollows in the process. He watched as the attack practically scattered the hollows that had managed to avoid it. Pure fear overcoming their anger as his evidently poisenous reiatsu covered the grounds.
Yet all he could see was a slope too high.
It wasn't enough.
His Black Coffin paled in comparison to Aizen's.
It ate up more than twice the amount of reiatsu, even having read out half of the incantation required. Yet it was inferior in speed, power and size.
How Aizen had managed to execute a picture perfect Kurohitsugi, without uttering a single word of the incantation, was still, even now, beyond him.
He sighed, his head tilting dow. For a moment closing his eyes as he started gathering in the reiatsu in the air, replenishing his own in the process.
For whatever reason, the never before seen open expanse of nothing but humanoid hollows of all shapes and sizes was extremely rich in terms of the reiatsu.
He wasn't sure how or why, nor was he truly going to complain about the fact, his body seemed to be capable of drawing said reiatsu. And under normal circumstances he would've never risked using anothers for him, these weren't normal circumstance. He was certainly starting to enjoy the feeling of pure rage that seemed to feel the world every time he did it. The so called espada-
"I am an Espada!" Grantz roared, his body suddenly coming into existence before him.
"Ahem!" The maniac before him quickly coughed, even as he tensed, surprised at the hollows appearance.
He's been reading my mind? He couldn't help but ignore the dread that filled him at the thought.
"Well, I have to say you're doing quite well! A lot better than I expected-" Urahara's eyes minutely widened, his breath hitching as he watched Soi-fon's shadow appear behind the tattoo'd espada. The hollow oblivious even as her body manifested, her Zanpakuto already back into it's shikai, poised for the spot it had claimed earlier.
The damn hollow had the nerve to keep showing it's face.
It hadn't noticed Soi-fon the first the captain had nicked him.
and it look-
His breath hitched again, a grin threatening split it the moment Soi-fon's shikai connected.
"Hmm?" Grantz turned his head, the captain immediately disengaging, her eyes narrowed as she stare at him. "Congratulations. You've killed me." He deadpanned, earning a snarl from the woman.
Urahara watched, muted, as the signature mark expanded on the hollows body, without earning so much as a twitch from the hollow himself, nor a single sign of it working.
"One down. Seven hundred and thirty seven thousand left- Ah my bad. Thirty six and a half, following today's test!"
Urahara couldn't help the curse.
And as if something had heard him, the very sky's themselves turned crimson as a heavy feeling filled the air. And for the first time since getting here, true fear showed on the hollow before him, Soi-fon idly coming to his side as she watched, herself transfixed.
"Ulquiorra?" Grantz questioned somewhat flatfooted, his head snapping upwards, he hadn't seen the +Espada this angry since Hollow Christmas. An infamous event in his kinds history.
Truly, a one of a kind massacre.
A brilliant flash of white suddenly encompassed the clearing, another lithe form coming out at a speed faster than his eyes could trace. His head immediately snapping towards the tattoo'd hollow, watching as it's eyes widened, it's body automatically guarding against the literal earth-shattering punch.
Urahara spared the suddenly cracking sky a single look before he turned back towards the two hollows before him.
"You attacked Nel?" The sheer venom that radiated out of the smaller hollow spoke volumes.
Grantz's paling face said even more.
"What? Why the he-"
"Yes he did," Urahara couldn't stop himself, even if he tried. "I saw him do it," And without so much as a by your leave, he disappeared in a blur, intent on getting as far away from whatever the hell Aizen had managed to create. Soi-fon on his heels.
"Running away is the cowards way-"
"If you want to fight that abomination. Be my guest," He snarked as he flew on further up, his eyes locked onto the crack in the sky, ignoring the suspicious gaze from his fellow shinigami.
When he turned his gaze back down towards the ground, his mountains of hollows no more than a speck, his eyes widened at the sight of the suddenly approaching sonic boom.
The smaller hollow had struck again, this time landing a blow, if the growing crack was any indication.
Not remotely deterred, he made to escape through the hole, the garganta likely on the other side- His hands automatically reached out the moment he caught sight of purple hair. The crack growing even larger as the hollow on the ground sent the Tattoo'd one across the clearing with another swipe.
He watched, a grin threatening to cut his face, as Yoruichi appeared on the other side, her body falling almost comically, his relief however quickly evaporating the moment his eyes landed on her company.
...
(Aizen)
...
...
I tilted my head the slightest at the sight of the steaming Espada on the ground. Ulquiorra stood just beside him, a frown on his face as he stared at me. The bat hollow had just randomly reappeared before us, the former eight espada slung over his shoulder.
"You didn't kill him right?" Nel questioned, a bemused and worried expression on her face.
"That should be fairly obvious," Ulquiorra mumbled distractedly.
"Sssorryyy...on't do it gain." Grantz muttered, a wheeze to his voice as his eyes spun. The dopey expression on his face resembled a fainted pokemon more than a hollow from here.
"What did you do to-"
"The question here is, what am I to do with you?" Ulquiorra spoke over me, his arms crossed. Grantz's unreleased form twitching the slightest.
"Uh... Maybe we should take him to Lord Groban?" Nel offered from the side.
I held in the urge to sigh, thankful Nel seemed to have made up her mind on my offer.
Ulquiorra nodded, "I'll wake him up,"
"Cool. So anything-"
"He's awake."
I blinked-
"He's very angry. We're leaving now. Nel, take Grantz to his room. I am letting him explain Urahara Kisuke's presence."
I blinked again, a smile slowly growing on my face. "Kisuke's my reinforcement? What happened to Shunsui? And Yoruichi?"
Ulquiorra blinked, clearly recognising the names. "...Crap."
"What-" And before I could finish my next question, the room promptly lit up.
"I'll join you soon," Nel called out, earning a nod from Ulquiorra.
...
"... Aizen Sosuke." the irritated sounding voice came through before anything else. The cloud of haze disappearing as quickly as it came.
I eyed my new, extremely dull, surroundings, entirely ignoring the slanted throne in the Groban's irritated, sleep-deprived face almost causing to snort. Though thankfully it seemed to quickly fix up, the lines disappearing almost instantly as he fixed a passive look instead.
"I am quite surprised-"
"Where's the tattoo?" I questioned him, idly staring at the strange entirely white- Made from bone? Mask just ontop of the throne. It looked more akin to a skull than any hollow mask I'd ever seen.
Josh Groban twitched, his smile straining. Though he surprisingly managed to contain the sudden brief wave of bloodlust from sticking around.
"It did not suit him," Ulquiorra calmly answered from my side, a civil look on his face.
"Riveting, I have to say Ulquiorra, I am rather surprised you took the initiative in capturing this... Creature."
"
I much prefer the term shinigami, thank you very much,"
"I did no such thing," Ulquiorra remarked, earning a surprised look from the gag character I'd inadveribly brought into existence.
"Oh?" Josh Groban stated, entirely ignoring my comment.
"Yes, he himself walked into my quarters,"
Josh Groban blinked.
"What?"
"I got lost,"
"I, personally, don't believe that," Ulquiorra gave his own two cents on the matter.
"What do you mean he walked into your quarters?"
"Am I being ignored?" I promptly gestured towards Josh Groban.
"One moment he was not there and the next-" Ulquiorra made to explain the art of walking through space and time.
Josh Groban turned his gaze towards me, his eye narrowed at my lonely finger. "... It does not matter," He eventually stated, slowly raising himself up from the throne. "All that does is that you are here," He stated, his grin stretching. "Alone," He raised one of his trademark guns.
I, of course, given the building ball of energy and Ulquiorra's passive expression simply smiled. The action, though admittedly earning a tick from the other, did not in fact slow down the build up of energy.
"Any last words?" Josh questioned calmly, his narrowed eyes clear. Ulquiorra on seeing my non-plussed reaction warily took a few steps away from me. His eyes swapping between the two of us.
"Yes, actually, if you fire that, Ulquiorra will stop you." I remarked, pointing at the bat espada in question.
"I don't think I will," Ulquiorra immediately stated. Earning, to my surprise, a startled reaction from Groban. Though both espada kept their attention on me.
Admittedly enough, I was surprised to see that the mere threat of any chance at Ulquiorra's interference seemed to steady the gun in his hand. His sole eye narrowing further. "Ho? Care to explain why?"
I raised a single eyebrow, "I believe those were my last words, I am going to have to charge you for any more,"
He twitched, "Your funeral-" He started, his hand straightening, his finger about to push the trigger-
"Yours too," I shrugged, a lackadiaslca smile on my face. The expression not remotely budging the slightest, even as Josh Groban fired.
...
I turned my head the slightest, eyeing the black mark on the wall beside me, before locking my gaze on the surprised espadas.
"Nel... What are you doing?" Ulquiorra questioned, panicked.
The female espada in question was currently stood right in front of me, her back facing me, her hands spread to the sides as they made to cover me from Groban's line of sight.
Ulquiorra himself currently had a wide-eyed look on his face, his hand outstretched, whiffs of reiatsu oozing out of them. The espada had geniune shock showing through as he stared at Nel. Had it not been for him, Josh Groban's blast would've reached it's target, that been me, going through Nel in the process.
"Nel-"
"I don't know..." She remarked, wide-eyed, her body tentatively shaking.
Truly, an Oscar-worthy performance, if I do say so myself. Nel was slowly but surely proving herself my favourite Espada by far.
So many talents!
"Step aside," Josh Groban remarked, a dangerous tone to his voice.
"I... I can't," Nel answered back, her hands shaking the slightest as she locked gazes with Groban.
"What have you done?" Ulquiorra questioned, his expression slowly turning neutral, even as his body bent the slightest, going into a stance.
"Ho? Come now, you don't think I'd come back here unprepared?" I questioned, giving the bat espada an amused look. Nel, even against Groban's simmering anger, stood her ground between me and the leader. Reassured that Ulquiorra wouldn't, no matter most circumstances, hurt a friend.
Particularly, his friend.
"Come back?" Ulquiorra questioned, "This is your first visit to Huaco Mundo," He stated matter of factly.
"Explain yourself Nel," Josh Groban, evidently still set on ignoring me, demanded.
"I... I don't know," She stated, wide-eyed, "I just can't let him die!"
"But of course, I demanded you protect me with your life after all," I remarked crossing my arms, my smile growing.
That, certainly, seemed to catch Josh Groban's interest as he finally locked gazes with me and glared.
"You dare presume to order my Espada?"
"Oh! I am not ordering her... She just happened to be one of the few to meet mycondtions-"
Josh Groban's anger rose as he seemed to come to a conclusion, what conclusion that was? I wasn't entirely sure, "You dare attempt to control-" However whatever he'd been about to say seemed to die off as a veritable cloud of rage filled the room. My breath hitching in my throat as my focus snapped towards Ulquiorra.
"This is your first visit to Huaco Mundo," Ulquiorra repeated, a dark look on his face. "I rather hate being ignored,"
Seeing my chance, regardless of the pressure in the air, I immediately nodded. "I am well aware."
His eyes, somehow, narrowed further. "I am sorry," Ulquiorra's sarcastic voice, admittedly, felt wrong to hear. "But I seem to be repeating myself... Like I said. You have not been here before, therefore you cannot claim to have come back. You claim to know me, yet again, I do not recall giving you the chance to learn anything about me. I would appreciate it if you stopped lying to my face-" And as the Espada went on, the pressure practically skyrocketing, I barely noticed the fact that both Nel and Josh Groban were in truth barely keeping up with the conversation going on. Their bodies exerting themselves more and more to stay awake, the leader in question's anger long gone in favour of shock as he watched me evidently take the pressure without issue.
In responce to the bat's growing tirade, I promptly rolled my eyes and made my point as clear as possible.
"I am from the future,"
The pressure vanished, as perhaps the most incredulous expression I've seen yet, appeared on the Espada's face. His brow furrowing as he blinked.
"... Prove it."
"Enough of this, Nel step aside this instant, Ulquiorra don't take anything he says seriously, the bastard's obviously lying-" Josh Groban immediately cut in, a harried tone to his voice, an irritated expression on his face. I could see clear as day, the fact he didn't and likely would've never believed me. At least, under quite literally any other scenario, it would've held true.
Unfortunately for him, I threw a damn good case.
Because if there was one thing Nel made clear to me, in an attempt to warn me not to instigate the espada in question, it was that in the world's revamped history, Ulquiorra had never, at least in view of any other being, including Josh Gorban and herself, arguably the two most likely to know, needed to release his sword.
Not once, in the past two thousand years.
"Enclose, Murciélago. Did I get that right?"
I held the smile on my face, even as Huaco Mundo shuddered.
...
,,,
The ground was the first to get effected. My eyes widened as I immediately jumped to the air, Nel on my heels, her own surprised expression clear for all to see.
"Ulquiorra! Control your-" Josh Groban's words died off as the hollow himself promptly started floating.
"Nel," Ulquiorra's voice echoed out of every crevice, out of every which way except from the crouching body in front of me, his eyes narrowed, one hand on his zanpakuto. "Step aside,"
Somehow the Espada was still standing on the ground, even as it flowed around in waves. The walls themselves twisting and turning as reiatsu poured out of the pissed bat.
"Ulquiorra! I am ordering-"
"Lord Groban," Ulquiorra turned a single eye over towards his boss as his voice reverberated everywhere. "Aizen Sosuke must die-,"
I frowned. "Why does everyone want to kill me!? Sheesh!"
All of the Espada stared at me for that one, even Ulquiorra seemed to hesitate the slightest. Though his anger only seemed to escalate.
On that note, I took my sword out and aimed.
"Shatter! Kyoka Suigetsu!"
Ulquiorra's fist crashed into my face, pain filling me as I felt the force of the blow go through, breaking my nose on contact as it pushed me across the distance, my body crashing through wall after wall-
"Where in the-" My eyes widened as I stared out towards a freaking sea. As in yes, a large body of water. In Hueco Mundo! What the hell!? I quickly turned on the spot, eyeing the slowly closing hole in space.
Did... Did I get just get punched into another dimension?"
"It seems you were in fact lying, about controlling my fellow +Espada,"
I idly turned towards the source of the voice, in that I mean I snapped my head to and fro like a headless chicken. Though all I could see far and wide was an endless sea of water. Where the hell did all this water come from..?
"I resent those accusations, I've been completely honest since getting to this bloody timeline!" Funnily enough, my voice seemed to copy the Espada in it's echoey bullshit. Which was quite frankly disorienting as hell, hearing your own voice from every direction but your mouth was not a pleasant experience.
"Then explain to me-" Ulquiorra appeared behind me. "Why Nel isn't here to protect you now?"
I grinned, practically spinning as I switched to face him, "I hold no grudge against that espada,"
Ulquiorra's face, for whatever reason, seemed to twist for a second before a resolute expression took over.
"All who know my secret, must die. How unfortunate for you."
I raised my blade, grinning all the while.
"Does that include Josh Groban?"
Ulquiorra didn't answer, instead choosing to dash, his blade held out and glinting, before he swiped... At thin air. His expression immediately turning startled as his eyes snapped around. His head twisting as he made to look for me.
"How are you doing this!?"
I honestly didn't have a clue. I was standing still. Ulquiorra was currently looking in every direction except directly at me- He promptly stopped, the waves immediately calming down as he twitched.
"Harribel-"
I blinked. Did he just say...
"-stay out of this, this shinigami is mine to kill." Ulquiorra snapped, his teeth grinding as his eyes narrowed.
I turned to face my other side, temporarily ignoring him, watching as the blonde espada slowly copied Ulquiorra's teleporting trick as she appeared out of thin air. The missing mask a clear give away she was in her released state. Though this one seemed more modest, if the cloak covering most of her meant anything.
"Funny, I was going to say the exact same thing." She remarked, a glint forming in her eyes as she raised her sword-arm, pointing It at me. As if I didn't have enough on my plate already.
I blinked again, my retort dying out the moment I realised I was quite literally in the middle of the two, Ulquiorra and Harribel both covering one side.
"Question, can you hear the echo? 'cos I can hear an echo-,"
My words earned me a snarl from both sides. Ulquiorra immediately, his eyes widened the moment he realised I still wasn't lying, raised a hand, the beginning of a cero forming as Harribel narrowed her eyes.
"You are not taking this away from me Cuatro-" She snarled, raising her sword-free arm, her own cero forming.
Well. Nothing to it. "Ulquiorra's Resurrection is Enclose Murciélago!"
And honestly, I would've enjoyed Harribel's priceless face the moment she realised she wasn't beam clashing her Ulquiorra if not for the fact it meant she remembered.
Still, given the clear dread pooling in her eyes as she watched her beam collide and shatter against Ulquiorra's, his own expression filled with pure uttercontempt, I immediately flung myself towards the blonde dumbass and promptly pulled her out of the way.
"So I know you just tried to kill me and really it's not the first time, but he clearly wants to kill you, want to team up on him first? You can have a go at me later!" I stated, absolutely serious.
Harribel blinked as she stared at me, completely caught off-guard, she turned to stare at my hand on her arm, a baffled expression filling her face, before she finally turned back towards me, an unreadable look-
The next thing I knew, I was flying across the sky in an arc, the never ending sea below me, my chest practically burning from pain at the sudden attack from the blonde shark. Eventually crashing into something with a grimace, the figure immediately plummeting to the sea below as most of the force behind the attack seemingly transferred, not to say it stopped my own sudden descent immediately. I'd just started floating, albeit upside down, in the air again. A myriad of swear words sudden came out from below. My smile returning the moment I realised the echo had finally disappeared-
"Aizen-" Shunsui's subdued voice broke me out of my musing as I quickly fixed my form in mid-air, twisting around in a 180, eyeing the captain I'd showed up with- And Neko-Gami- Soi-fon aswell!?
Well. We really have quite the group- Wait, who did I crash into?-
"Cool, so we really need to go-Oh for the- can anyone else hear that echo!?"
Shunsui blinked, his eyes trailing downwards before back up, and nodding. His hand stretched out, pointing towards the sea? I turned to follow the direction before forcibly holding in the urge to snort at the sight of the slowly rising and fuming shinigami.
I'd crashed into Kisuke.
...
(Ulquiorra)
...
Ulquiorra narrowed his eyes at Harribel, even as he heard the Time Traveller curse from the other side.
"That was uncalled for," He remarked, quieting his voice in the process.
She flinched the slightest, before her eyes immediately narrowed, her body tensing as she concentrated her reiatsu. "I was caught off-guard,'
Ulquiorra nodded his head, turning his gaze towards the group of Shinigamis in the distance. "He seems to have a habit of doing that to us,"
Harribel didn't react, instead focusing on the distance.
"Hey Ulquiorra!" The infuriating voice echoed out.
"Perhaps a compromise is in order," Ulquiorra offered, his body turning to face the direction of the echo. "What say we work together again,"
"Do you believe in mercy!?" The voice continued. His own advanced sight giving a crystal clear image of the aforementioned captain. The dead man currently had his sword pointed towards him.
Harribel, a tick in place, simply sighed and agreed to his offer. "Don't miss."
Ulquiorra without skipping a beat got into position, both hands on his blade as he crouched, his sword to the side. "I couldn't even if I tried," He remarked, an amused quirk to his face at the thought.
"If you're saying something, just know I can't hear you!"
For whatever reason, the words earned another sigh out of Harribel, the female espada merely raising her hands to the sky, Ulquiorra momentarily noticing a look of confusion sweeping over her face.
"No, Time-traveller-san, I do not believe in offering mercy." He stated, earning silence in return, his reiatsu coursing through his blade, a cloak made of millions of tiny specks of reiatsu forming over it. Harribel's own reiatsu on the other hand merely rushed out of her outstretched hands. The wave of reiatsu immediately dissipating into nothingness, or as he truly knew into the sea below, as a soft blue glow shined out of the Shark Empress's eyes.
He watched as walls of water slowly rose out of the sea, finally breaking the rest of the shinigami's entourage silence.
He, momentarily, found his focus fascinated by the sheer anger pouring out of Urahara Kisuke.
"What did I just warn-" Though whatever the blonde haired man had been about to let slip vanished as the Time-traveler spoke over him.
"... I wasn't requesting mercy, Ulquiorra-kun,"
Ulquiorra stopped wasting time the moment he felt the sudden building pressure. Aizen Sosuke's figure momentarily shrouding in a thick cloud of chaos, as the man's eyes glinted.
The cloak of reiatsu surrounding his sword immediately started descending towards his blade, space and time contorting as Ulquiorra reached out to grab onto a piece of every offending intruder in Huaco Mundo. Or more plainly put, a piece of the souls of each shinigami before him. The cloak of reiatsu was now a vortex of swirling energy surrounding his sword. The space around it contorting as he pulled the blade back. Harribell's wall of Reiatsu, now surrounding every being in her Inner Realm, closed them out from the rest of her world, and more importantly, significantly reducing the coming after-shock. And while he could try to limit such a thing, he couldn't risk losing too much focus, lest their realm started unravelling.
With that in mind, Ulquiorra took aim, his eyes closing as his reiatsu hummed. The warping space escalating as it covered him completely. Harribel's form slowly pushing itself away, even as she held the bubble surrounding them.
"I was offering it," Aizen continued unhindered, his sword now somehow directly pointed towards him. "Reflect, Kyoka Suigetsu,"
Ulquiorra never even got the chance to fire as his sword fell free from his hand. His attack fizzling out as his fail-safe kicked into place. His body echoeing out as it crashed into the suddenly reverting sea. When he reopened his eyes, he found himself in a grand hall, the colour white covering every speck of dust, the sight a sore for his eyes as he instinctively covered his face with a hand. In the centre, his gaze landed on a throne occupied by-
"Hello there, Ulquiorra-kun." The brown-haired captain from before, a distinctively different look to his face and vastly different presence, remarked casually. Even as, for whatever reason, his own body shuddered in his presence.
"Who are you?" He questioned, his eyes narrowing as he realised his voice as no longer being amplified.
"If we're going to get along, I am going to have make a few rules for you,"
"Excuse me?" Ulquiorra remarked calmly, even as mind ran a thousand miles a second. His hand twitching at the lack of his sword.
"Rule number one," The strange spirit? Continued unhindered, his body slowly rising from the seat. "Never, ever, hide anything from me again."
Ulquiorra blinked at the demand, his brow furrowing. "I have no reason to oblige you," He replied, his body tensing as his reiatsu failed to respond.
"Rule number two," Aizen continued, his footsteps hardly slowing.
"Why can't I use my reiatsu!?"
Aizen raised a single eyebrow, "I am sure, given what I've witnessed so far, you know what an Inner Realm is, Or do Hollows have a different word for it?"
And Ulquiorra froze, for that was without a doubt "Impossible!"
Aizen tilted his head the slightest. "Rule Number Two," He repeated.
"That's not possible! You're a Shinigami's spirit!" Ulquiorra spoke one rhim, this time earning a twitch, one that sent chills down his spine- He briefly took a step back at the sensation. "Shinigami's only have one soul! They cannot hope to hold-" The wave of killing intent covered every speck of dust surrounding the captain, for a moment, seemed to paint the world in red,
"Rule. Number two." Aizen repeated for the third time, "Never Insult my name again."
"There's that damn word, again," Ulquiorra remarked through grit teeth, his senses screaming at him to run, even as he stared down (up) the Soul Spirit? Before him.
"My my, it seems I have my work cut out for me," The spirit smiled, reaching a hand out towards him, though it would never reach as the world started shifting again, his mind blanking out as Harribel's familiar feel of hollow reiatsu washed over him, a tell-tale sign the espada herself was once again conscious, bringing his own senses back to his world.
...
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