Sup everybody, Inhuman here! Enjoy the Show!
"TEAR THE HEAVENS ASUNDER, TENSA ZANGETSU!"
That howl sent shivers down the spines of every spiritually aware being within a block radius. But for the unlucky few that shared a battlefield with the owner of the voice, they weren't able to focus on it for long, as almost everyone was blown away by the mirror dome Ichigo had been inside exploding violently. The captain of the 4th and ex-captain of the 2nd were both able to successfully kneel down and anchor themselves to something, and they traded a look of worry at recollection of what it meant. But even with that awareness, they were thrown off just like the assassins and the bodyguards when the dust cloud was swept away to reveal the orange haired protector.
Instead of the lone horn of pointed ivory that spawned from Ichigo's forehead, there was now a complete set curling out from a mask of bone set in a vicious snarl. The black markings that had gone over his eye and upper torso were similarly mirrored, this time erupting from an actual hole that pierced through his heart instead of a circle of black. His skin had paled to white, accented only in fur of bloody red around his collar, wrists, and ankles. His hands ended in sharp claws, and his talons had ripped apart his sandals. Finally, his hair had grown out to his lower back, and behind the eyeholes of his mask, eyes of seething yellow burned through. Just as the Shinigami worried, held within the beast's right hand was the gigantic blade of Tensa Zangetsu, its chain rattling softly in the wind. Yoruichi was the one to follow his line of sight towards the designated 'Mirror Blade Guy'.
"DIIIIIIEEEEEEE!" The Goddess of Flash was the faster of the two, by the smallest, thinnest hair. She felt the cool metal brush against the bottom of her foot as it crushed the earth beneath it, and she immediately called upon her Shunko. She felt adrenaline flood her body in full force as she ran as fast as she possibly could, her legs crying at her instantly as she hauled the body of Ichigo's target over her shoulder. And with every step she took, with every use of Shunpo, with every mile she crossed, she felt the ground rumble with the stomps of the hollow, never more than a single step behind. "YORUICHI LET ME KILL HIM!"
"WHAT THE HELL DID HE DO?!"
"HE MADE ME KILL THEM! HE MADE ME DO IT AGAIN!"
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN, 'HE MADE YOU KILL THEM'?! KILL WHO?!"
"I'LL KILL HIM!" Ichigo howled. "I'LL RIP HIS GODDAMN HEAD OFF!" No matter how sharply she darted down alleys, or under tunnels, or wove between buildings, he was a step behind. She knew the only reason he hadn't attacked was out of fear of hitting her, but the instant he was able to rip Mirror Blade Guy off her shoulder, the assassin would undoubtedly cease to be. She felt a tug at the back of her mind.
"Yoruichi, what's going on?!" Unohana demanded.
"Ichigo's mad as hell and going on a rampage!" She had to pull in a breath of air so fast that it hurt as she ducked under a swipe from the time-traveler. "I'm heading back to you!" She shot across Karakura, feeling the quakes of Ichigo's furious steps and the thundering pounds of his Sonido. Her heart hammered inside of her ribs as the town reduced to a blur around her, and she reached the Kasumioji house. Unohana already had an idea in mind, it seemed, lunging through the air along the path the werecat was moving in. The captain missed her, but successfully latched onto the orange haired berserker, who roared and reached up to pull her off, only for her to release a sonic kido into his ear. That caused him to stumble, and a furious bash from her hilt to his other ear slowed him down. However, it wasn't enough, as he quickly returned to his current max speed while fending off the medic's attempts to distract and stop him. The werecat did not waste the newfound space, flinging her phone up to her ear with the only speed dial contact ringing.
"Ur-"
"Kisuke I need the Vizard and a Garganta right fucking now!"
"That's not-" The Shihoin Princess threw herself to the left to dodge out of the way of the cero. A quick analysis helped her understand it was incredibly underpowered, meant to do nothing more than get her to stumble so he could close the gap.
"RIGHT FUCKING NOW!" She screamed with panic dusting her tone, already mentally thanking Unohana for screwing with his aim as he continued to fire at her.
"Vizard Warehouse! I'll need 30 seconds for an emergency portal!" That was approximately 40 seconds she didn't have. She immediately darted down to street level. It would slow her down, but Ichigo wouldn't risk hitting bystanders. A bullet of violet reiatsu slammed into her ankle, sending her and Mirror Blade Guy tumbling across the asphalt. By some stroke of luck, she managed to maintain her hold on the assassin. A heavy crash rumbled from her left, and she snapped to find that Unohana was pulling against Ichigo's horns with her sheathed zanpakuto. She had sent him off course. As thanks, the werecat dug her fingers into the ground and hurled herself as powerfully as possible in the direction of the Vizard warehouse.
Luckily, it seemed Kisuke had immediately contacted the Vizard, as she saw the kido barrier open up. She didn't have the time to wait, and flipped to get her feet to slam through the metal door inside.
"MOVE!" She screamed at the startled Rose, then finding he was too slow, she chose to alter her path to kick off the support pillar and fling herself down into the basement. "SHIT!" They hadn't opened the door to the basement yet, and thus she had no choice but to take advantage of Mirror Blade Guy's armor. The poor soul cried in pain as he was used as a battering ram, which lead to Yoruichi immediately hating the Vizard for demanding stairs instead of Kisuke's ladder. The doors slammed into the steps, all but erasing any traction she could have had and leaving her helpless but to slip and try for some horrible, painful, chaotic mess of an attempt to maintain speed by pushing off of any surface she could. Kisuke was down already, standing in front of a pair of pillars with his hands out. She heard the distinct sound of the Vizard flipping out as Ichigo hurtled through both the kido barrier and the warehouse wall like it was made of tinfoil.
"PORTAL!"
"10 more seconds!"
"WE HAVE TWO!" There was an eruption of reiatsu, she was going to say it was upstairs, but it was sent to join them in the basement before it even finished rising. Ichigo had Kensei pinned by the throat, Unohana still pulling on the berserker's horns with every muscle in her body. Kensei was clad in the purple armor of his bankai, beating uselessly against the hollow's hierro. Lisa zipped onto the scene with a cry, her shikai already active as she spun to bash the side of Haguro Tonbo into Ichigo's ribs. He tried to swing Kensei into her, but the man caught onto his intent and wrapped his leg around Ichigo's, effectively preventing him from completing the action without breaking the ex-captain's leg.
"KISUKE!"
"GO!" She was off like a shot, flying through the opening void with her Shunko leaving burns on the assassin's armor. A howl like a demon from Hell filled the emptiness and she did everything she could to move faster, faster, faster! The end of the Garganta came after an eternity and in no time at all. She nearly had a panic attack at the recollection that it was a desert and she would have to change how she ran, but muscle memory kicked in and she was launching small mountains of dust in her wake as she sought out some sort of shelter.
"What the hell is up with that guy?!" Mirror Blade Guy shouted finally, which only caused a vein to pulse in her head.
"You tell me! What the hell happened in that dome you put him in!" Ichigo tore through the exit, Unohana saving them once again by ripping at his horns to force him to the side. He fell on the sand, tumbling through a hill. He skipped once, but curled onto his feet, only for Kensei to rocket a fist into his face, aided by Unohana keeping him as steady as she could. He hardly even flinched, retaliating with a clawed punch to the silver-haired man's head. The man maintained his grip, blood spilling through his lips as he spit in Ichigo's eye, who howled and dropped Tensa Zangetsu to clutch at his face. Lisa managed to come through, and whacked her zanpakuto into his shins, only successfully sliding one foot back as he dug his talons into the sand before grabbing the shaft and beating Kensei off his back. He threw Lisa and her weapon away as he sought out Yoruichi and her charge, only to be blindsided by a blast of kido to the head. The rest of the Vizard left the Garganta, all of their masks on with Love, Rose, and Hiyori having already activated shikai. As soon as they locked eyes onto Ichigo, they lunged, synchronizing perfectly as they attempted to take him down and succeeded only in distracting him. Yoruichi took this time to throw Mirror Blade Guy off her shoulder and into the sands in front of her, a hill luckily mostly keeping them from sight.
"I'm only gonna repeat myself once: What the hell happened in that dome?"
"Saiga's ability is to reflect moonlight. In its weaker stages, it causes temporary paralysis, but at its most powerful, it possesses the ability to trap an opponent in an illusion."
"Well, it was clearly not a happy one, so what type of illusion are we talking about?"
"It's supposed to be from their memories, a time when they felt the most despair."
"…Fuck."
A Few Minutes Earlier, Inside Mirror Dome
"No…" I couldn't help but whisper, shock and anger and dread flashing through my mind as I stared at the sight before me.
"Hiyya, Berry-kun~" Giselle Gewelle, Sternritter 'Z' giggled with a mock salute.
"Don't you dare say that name!" I snarled.
"But this little lady here calls you a berry all the time, doesn't she?" The Quincy wondered as she draped her hands over the shoulders of the grey skinned Rukia.
"DON'T YOU FUCKING TOUCH HER, YOU DISGUSTING PIECE OF SHIT!" I howled, my hands shaking on the hilts of Zangetsu.
"A little late for that, Berry-kun~! I touched her a lot. Just like how I am right now!" She brought a single hand down to squeeze Rukia's breast once, and I wanted to break every bone in her hand individually. "She's almost as fun as this one has been!" I didn't get the chance to ask before Rangiku stepped out from behind some rubble, slightly to my right. "She's been so fun these past few weeks. She's so delicious, her chest is amazing, but it's like everyone forgets about her butt!" I felt Shiro writhe inside of me, dripping with hatred and waiting for the exact moment we were in position to throttle The Zombie and make her experience every ounce of pain she's given us. "But we can't forget the oldie-but-goodies!" Rocks shifting behind me to my right brought me to look at its source, and I almost felt nauseous. Sasakibe had been dead for three years at this point. Fear for what they had done to him in that time coursed through me, but I quickly found myself distracted by the all-consuming silence that emanated from the Old Man. It was a full thing, emotion permeating every part of it without him needing to utter a single word. I turned back to the sternritter, my eyes narrowed as we all united under a perfect clarity of mind in our newfound single-minded goal to eviscerate the woman in front of us. "Oh, you look mad. Is it because you forgot about him? A lot of people forgot about him. Which is kinda weird, since he was the lieutenant to the first division and all. According to our records, he could probably have taken out several of the weaker captains if he wanted to!"
"You shut up."
"But then who will talk for Mr. Angry-Drill-Sergeant?" My blood chilled, while I felt Shiro burn white hot. "You can't be an angry drill sergeant if you don't yell at people." I didn't glance behind me to my left when I heard the distinct sound of boots crushing pebbles underfoot. I refused to look. I knew exactly what I would find and I would not give her the satisfaction. She pouted, and I wanted to grab those lips and rip them off with my hollow form's claws. "It's no fun if you give me the cold shoulder. That's really rude, you know! Isn't it rude, 'Shiro-san?" What.
In front of me to my left, so that I was now fully surrounded, Toshiro walked forward. The prodigy was a true friend, having started with general annoyance towards me, relief towards Ossan, and extreme caution towards Shiro. But over time, Momo had helped him accept Shiro, and he slowly grew fond of my antics. It was sickening to see all these people I called friends under the control of that horrid bitch Zombie.
"You let them go!" I demanded, only to be met by her god. Damn. Giggle.
"You've been trying to stop us for so long, you should know by now that's not how my power works!" Her smile only ever grew. "There's only one~ way to stop them, Berry-kun, and you know what it is~." She sang. Like it was some sort of goddamn game.
"Yeah." My right leg broke from the Shunpo, but it was worth it as I appeared behind her with Zangetsu halfway to her neck. "KILLING YOU!" A wall of sapphire blue locked my blade in place. Before I could even turn, a cloud of ash slammed into my chest and threw me back into a fist that struck me in the spine. I tumbled forward, my neck aching for a moment from the whiplash, and lunged at my sword to pull it from the ice. There wasn't a moment to do anything but block the rapier that swung at me.
"Shatter Fate and Tear the Heavens Asunder, Zangetsu!" The explosion of reiatsu threw everyone but the captains back, but even they stumbled. I took the opportunity to spin towards the Quincy, but a circle of frost appeared under me before a pillar of white engulfed my form. My hollow strength broke it a moment later, but it was enough time that I now saw Giselle sitting happily upon Kensei's left shoulder, his arm hugging her thighs to keep her steady with his right fist at the ready with Tachikaze. I wanted to vomit and carve her to pieces at the same time.
"You get him to put you down right now!"
"But I like it up here! The view is so nice!"
"Bakudo 61: Rikujokoro!" Shiro's blade swept out with a narrow Getsuga her way while Kensei was paralyzed.
"Hado 31: Shakkaho!" Rangiku's shot managed to divert the course just enough to miss, and before I was able to try again, lightning coursed through my body while a crescent moon on a chain whipped at my head. I was able to force my body just enough for the end to sink through my cheek and into my jaw. My scream was muffled due to the moon keeping it shut. Without hesitation, I brought Shiro's blade down over the chain, ripping the piece of metal out from my mouth, only for another grunt to escape me as a blade of snow pierced through my gut. I braced my left arm against Rukia's chest and threw her off, Sode no Shirayuki's glowing beauty now dulled with the blood of one of her friends. A turn to search for The Zombie only worsened the strike Kensei drove into my still-bleeding jaw. The force sent me stumbling back a few feet, which Rangiku capitalized on by bringing Haineko around to push me further back. My right foot managed to stomp back to stabilize me, Ossan's blade coming up to deflect the rapier only for more lightning to tear through my body.
"Bankai: Tekken Tachikaze."
"Bankai: Daiguren Hyorinmaru." Both captains released their bankai while I was still convulsing, the lightning only stopping because of Kensei's gauntleted fist planting itself in my stomach. My immediate instinct was to kick and punch and find some way to separate myself, only for light blue ice to freeze us together. My vision began to swim as the explosions erupted continuously, slowly but steadily blasting through my Hierro. I managed to panic-fire a Getsuga into the ground, the ice shattering and Kensei being thrown a few feet back. A sonido brought me out of the way of the immediate flurry of snow, and I caught my breath just in time to sidestep Gonryomaru.
"Stop hiding behind my friends, you bitch!"
"But I'm not hiding behind your friends!" Her voice seemed to echo across the battlefield, I couldn't tell where its origin was. I was quickly remembered Toshiro's ice mirrors. "I'm watching you and your friends kill each other!"
"I'm gonna find where you're watching this from and drag you to Hell kicking and screaming!"
"As long as it's after you finish killing your friends, fine by me! I won't be kicking though, but from what I heard about you, you can probably get me to scream!" Utter revulsion crawled up my throat. I wasn't able to dwell on it too long, as Toshiro's ice rain soon locked onto me. A flurry of arrows pelted them to nothing, but I soon discovered it had only been a distraction for a cloud of ash to surround me before electricity flowed across the zanpakuto into my body. Blut Vene dulled the effects, but I still wasn't able to properly block Kensei rushing in with a haymaker. My heels skid along the ground for too many feet before I planted myself, with the Captain of the 9th battering at Zangetsu's crossed blades the whole way. I went to throw him off to the side, only to find my right leg frozen to the ground. There wasn't enough time to break it before a rapier lodged itself through one of my lungs from behind. I coughed blood and pulled up Blut Vene in a panic as lightning pounded through my veins. Having not been stopped like I intended, Kensei was able to shift his stance and hammer at my openings while I was paralyzed. Several of my bones cracked and I knew I had begun bleeding internally, but I could do nothing but fire a cero from my horn at the boxer. He was tossed away, and I screamed as I fought through the volts to donkey kick Chojiro off me. Gonryomaru remained through my lung, and I was left unable to pull it out thanks to a glacier of turquoise rushing at me. A Getsuga crushed it, but I was painfully reminded that I had yet to break out of the ice trapping my right leg when it exploded outwards in an attempt to consume the rest of my body. Shiro's blade was enveloped immediately, but thankfully a bala from my hand destroyed the cage. A dragon of ice howled towards me, myself barely able to catch its jaw with Ossan's blade and my left foot. I was forced back into a wall, a cry ripping out from my throat as Gonryomaru was driven deeper through my back.
A cero from my horn blew apart the creation, but Kensei appeared in its place immediately. He aimed for the blade through my chest, punching at its sides to cause it to shift violently inside of me. My vision swayed, before the Vizard began to alternate between the weapon lodged in my ribs and potshots at my face and body. I barely was able to fling Shiro's blade up and fire a Getsuga point blank into his chest. He was whipped back as I collapsed onto my hands and knees, my regeneration working on the injuries as I struggled to breathe through a lung filled with blood.
"Great job, Berry-kun!" My eyes widened in horror and my head snapped up, hunting through the battleground. Kensei was already getting up, using some rubble to pull himself. A bloody gash that spread from his hip to his shoulder soaked his clothes in crimson. I didn't have the chance to even yell back at The Zombie as a wave of snow dropped upon me. A cero blew the mountain I was trapped under apart, though a new weight shot onto my back before I could get my frozen body to move. A pained noise gurgled out my mouth as the rapier was pulled out from me. Before I was able to catch a breath, a lightning bolt rocked my body so fiercely I smelled my skin begin to burn. As soon as it ended, another struck me, melting my clothes to my skin. A third cracked a few bones. The fourth made my organs feel like they were about to explode. Pure adrenaline got me to hurl my left arm back and fire some sort of energy attack at the vice-captain. I wasn't really able to think clearly enough to pick and choose. I vomited blood onto the ground as I crawled again onto my hands and knees, the wound from the rapier having healed, but my body otherwise having no way to eject the blood in my lung. My head rose to have a steel-toed boot slam into my chin. My body rag-dolled across the rubble before coming to a stop against a wall. With no injuries keeping me down, I climbed to my feet relatively quickly. In front of me, Kensei was ignoring the wound in his chest, and Chojiro was standing with three Helig Pheil speared through his upper torso. Rukia, Toshiro, and Rangiku were closing in, their weapons all at the ready.
"…Please, stop." I begged. A sadistic giggle bounced off the walls.
"Now, now, Berry-kun, you know that just makes me wetter~!" The Zombie purred before my friends all lunged at me simultaneously. I prioritized, blocking Hyorinmaru and Sode no Shirayuki while leaning out of the way of Kensei's fist. Chojiro had to run behind me to get an angle, and Haineko swirled atop my skin, unable to pierce my Hierro. I swiped Toshiro's blade outward, ducking under another punch from Kensei as I turned back to snap a bala into Chojiro's chest. The bullet of reiatsu crushed one of the arrows sticking through him, and he was sent through a wall.
"Bakudo 4: Hainawa!" Rangiku's spell was disregarded as it shattered against my left arm, myself more focused on keeping the ice creeping along my zanpakuto from reaching my body. I shoved my foot into Rukia, launching her back, before I howled as I beat the side of Shiro's blade into Kensei. He unfortunately only stumbled back, before he hunched forward and sent a series of quick jabs at me. Ossan's blade was sufficient for knocking them aside as I brought my right blade around to get him to retreat, but he only bobbed under it. I brought the blade downwards, but he shifted to the right and wrapped his arm around it, gripping the top of the hilt to lock it in place. He then immediately readied his left arm, switching straight into beating me now that he was so close. I shifted to dodge out of the first strike, only for my focus to be shattered by turquoise racing up by back. Kensei's fist met my face, breaking the ice for me. He pulled me back by my zanpakuto before I could get too far, striking me again, this time following through and driving me into the ground with the rapidly increasing force. My horn broke from how heavily I was slammed into the stone. A scream ripped out my throat as the explosions rocked from the side of my head, spots sparking in my vision as my brain rattled inside of my skull. Sheer survival instinct whipped my left arm around, striking something I couldn't even know, but it was enough to get Kensei's attack to stop. I felt him let go of Zangetsu, and I rolled to attempt to stand only to receive a blast of pearl that trapped me under a dome. I ripped a Getsuga out from my left blade, the wave of black arcing across the ground in the direction of the ice attack. Experience taught me to search the battlefield for the next attack, only for my eyes to freeze at the sight of what happened to Kensei. His left arm had been cut off just below the shoulder, blood pouring from the open wound as he stumbled around. His right hand was clutching uselessly against his neck, a veritable waterfall of blood spilling down his chest and between his fingers from the slanted cut that went halfway through his throat.
"NOOOO!" I cried.
"YEEESSS!" The Sternritter cheered. I ran to attempt to heal him, only for ice to trap my feet. Lightning then coursed through my body, my hands and feet growing numb from the repeated blasts. I was helpless to watch as Toshiro came flying around to impale me through the stomach, and I coughed blood into his face after he generated a spike ball of ice inside of me. My forehead met his, causing him to stumble back in a daze, significantly less durable than Kensei.
"Bakudo 61: Rikujokoro!" The captain was instantly struck by the beams of light, and I broke out of the ice encasing my feet as I bashed the end of Shiro's blade against the ice in my stomach, it breaking apart enough for my regeneration to push the shards out of the way. My rush towards Kensei, who was on his knees at this point, continued. Another bolt of lightning brought that to a hold, my body seizing. Tears formed at the corners of my eyes as I watched the Vizard fall forward, his body limp. My mouth opened in a cry I couldn't hear as I forced through the electricity to tear a Getsuga out in the direction of Chojiro. I realized my mistake the moment the attack left my blade, the tidal wave of ebony undoubtedly enough to kill a captain-class fighter like the lieutenant of the 1st division. An incoherent shout ripped at the inside of my throat as I tried to outrun the blast and rescue Yamamoto's most loyal partner. His reiatsu signature was snuffed out before I could get anywhere near close enough.
I stood frozen in place after the fact, more than long enough for glaciers of white and blue to meet with me in the middle. For a long moment, I didn't even bother breaking out, the cold seeping into my bones. I remained within, as it settled into my mind that I had killed two of my friends. My eyes closed tightly, as I fought against the pain and the hatred and the urge to beg the Sternritter to revive them. A flare of reiatsu blasted the glaciers apart and reentered me to the fight the instant I had cleared my mind even the slightest, refusing to give myself the chance to backtrack. Toshiro came at me first, doing everything he could to freeze my blade in place every time we clashed. He was still in his incomplete bankai, so it was more than easy enough to just let the ice coat Ossan's blade until I could break it against his head. A blast of snow came in from my left side while my arm was still outstretched, thick enough that I couldn't just force it apart. The prodigy captain swiped upwards, an arc of ice following along the ground before it exploded outward once it was close enough to me. A spike of ice speared through my stomach, breaking through the shell Rukia had created atop my back.
"Bankai," As soon as I heard Rukia speak, absolute panic flooded my mind. Both of Zangetsu's blades exploded with reiatsu, the storm of black, red, and blue already mixing and practically disintegrating the ice covering me. "Hakka no-"
"GETSUGA JUJISHO!" The hurricane of energy was made in an attempt to cancel out the flash-freeze of Rukia's Bankai. It did more. I fell to my knees, hearing the faint clatter of my swords slipping from my hands.
"Aw, man!" The Sternritter whined. "Rangiku-chan and 'Shiro-san aren't enough on their own. You can stop them way too easily." Ice cracked. My eyes widened, and I pulled my hollow hearing up to maximum. "Rankigu-chan can't even hurt you, and 'Shiro-san would get overwhelmed by you immediately if there wasn't a distraction. Well, I could have Rangiku-chan flash you, but I think that would only distract me, hehe." Found her.
Zangetsu was back in my hands, Shiro's blade being flipped around as I twisted on the balls of my feet. As soon as I was at the right angle, I sent the hollow blade flying through the air with all the strength I could scrounge up, wind whipping at my clothes. It was on a direct path towards The Zombie, moving far too fast for her to step out of the way. Which meant of course, she had already prepared by having Toshiro close enough to step into the way. He had been mostly sideways when he was struck, the blade stabbing through his right bicep and sinking through until the hilt was halfway through his arm. His left arm had been at an angle that it was undamaged, but the blade had pierced through his torso, cutting through both of his lungs and most likely cleanly severing his heart in two based on the width of my zanpakuto.
I choked at the sight, my legs locking up from the shock.
"Silly Berry-kun! I told you that I'm just here to watch you kill your friends! Two-well, one of them now-is still alive! That means the show isn't over!"
"Y-" My throat was tight, and hard to speak through. "You can't make me kill Rangiku." I stated. "You said it yourself, she can't hurt me. A strong enough bakudo and she won't be able to free herself."
"You're right! To be honest, I figured she would die first. Kinda awkward that she's the last one alive." With my limbs numb from the electricity, it took me too long to notice. "That's why I came up with a new idea!" Rangiku stepped forward from my immediate left, her hands wrapped around my wrist. I was too stunned to react as she pulled my quincy blade into her chest, right where her heart was, before collapsing. I couldn't do anything but follow her body drop to the floor, the action having wrenched the sword from my hand and leaving it inside of her chest. "Yay!" The Sternritter cheered. Her footsteps hopped closer in excitement, but I was unable to shift my gaze.
"That was so much fun! You look so sad, I wanna make you hurt more! But I don't have any other of your friends for you to kill, so I don't know what to do." She snapped her fingers in some sort of revelation. "Oh, wait! I'm so silly, I forgot; I can just zombify them again and make you kill them all a second time!"
Searing, white-hot rage erupted inside of me, every atom in my body screaming to end the life of the woman in front of me as I lunged, my hands successfully closing around her neck as my reiatsu surged.
"TEAR THE HEAVENS ASUNDER, TENSA ZANGETSU!"
Current, Hueco Mundo
"Unohana, I just talked to Mirror Blade Guy. Apparently, Ichigo was exposed to an illusion while in that Mirror Dome. It showed him a memory of his, one in which he was in despair." The First Kenpachi growled as she grappled the hollowfied time-traveler, trying to trap one of his arms.
"Excuse my rudeness, but that doesn't exactly narrow it down!" Love's zanpakuto caught aflame as he swung it at the orange haired berserker, only for his claws to darken to a black as he caught it. The former captain yelped as he was tossed aside, Mashiro darting in only for the hollow to deflect and parry all of her kicks. A jolt from Unohana caused his attempt at a grab to miss, the verdette taking the opportunity to backflip, a cero firing from one of her feet into his chest. He didn't react, the attack having had no apparent effect.
"He was shouting earlier about how he 'made him kill them' and implied it wasn't the first time. That ring any bells?"
"That sounds like he at one point killed someone he didn't want to! Perhaps a-" Her eyes widened.
"Friend." The mourning in Yoruichi's voice was palpable. "…He mentioned that The Zombie turned some of his friends and made him kill them."
"So then we remind him that those friends are still alive."
"We don't know who it was she turned. Do you think we could ask Zangetsu?"
"And how do you propose we do that?"
"…Well, I can see his Bankai sword from where I am."
"Then make the attempt quickly, I fear that Ichigo will soon overwhelm the Vizard!"
Swiftly as she could, Yoruichi crouched down and Shunpo'ed over to the large sword, grabbing it under her arm and returning back to the spot behind the hill she had been hiding in. A cloud of dust rose from where she let it fall, startling Mirror Blade Guy.
"Why do you have his sword?!"
"I'm hoping I can talk to his zanpakuto. We have no idea how to get through to him otherwise."
"You can talk to someone else's zanpakuto?"
"His sword is pretty friendly, if it is possible, they'll respond."
"They?" She ignored him at this point as she laid her palms against the metal.
"Shiro, Ossan, if you two can hear me, we need your help calming Ichigo down. I need you to tell me who it was that The Zombie turned and made Ichigo kill." The sword immediately glowed a rageful violet, the chain rattling at the mention of that particular event. A startled shout from Mirror Blade Guy brought the werecat's gaze up, and she found someone she had never seen before crouched in front of the weapon opposite her. It was a young man, skin as pale as Shiro's with shaggy white hair and a white long coat with black furred trim. He wore white pointed boots, and at the top of the left side of his head sat a segment of Ichigo's hollow mask, though inverted in color. The man's eyes were heterochromatic, the left being snow white enveloped by black with the right being a gentle blue.
"Greetings, Yoruichi. It has been a long while since the last time I've seen you." The man announced. "You can call me Tensa." The chocolate skinned beauty blinked.
"I'll process you later. Right now we're kind of in a situation." The zanpakuto spirit nodded.
"Yes, Ichigo's rampage. What exactly is your plan?"
"Remind him that whoever it was that he killed in that illusion is alive again. Please tell me one of the people that Sternritter zombified is easily accessible." The man nodded once more.
"That might work. Luckily, one of the ones the Zombie used to attack us is currently punching Ichigo in the face." The werecat stilled for a moment before lifting her head to catch sight of the time-traveler. With his right arm wrapped around the berserker's throat and his left furiously beating against the bone of Ichigo's mask, Kensei's face was twisted in panic and determination.
"…I'll take it. Thanks!"
"You are welcome."
"Unohana, Kensei was one of the zombies!" She announced through the kido that had yet to be canceled.
"Muguruma-san, I need you to do something friendly to Ichigo!"
"YOU NEED ME TO DO WHAT?!" The man's voice was layered from the effect of having called upon his mask.
"Ichi-" Shinji's eyes popped out in shock. "That thing is the guy Kisuke told us about?!"
"We can discuss the logistics later, but our best option for calming him down is if Muguruma-san acts friendly with him!"
"How does that track?!" Love shouted.
"We can discuss this later!"
"FINE!" The silver haired man screamed. "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU EXPECT ME TO DO THEN?! YOU WANT ME TO SPLIT A BEER WITH A GODDAMN HOLLOW?!"
"What do you do with friends?!"
"HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO ANSWER THAT?! I HANG OUT WITH THEM, WATCH A MOVIE OR SOME SHIT!"
"Maybe try giving it a hug!" Lisa offered.
"YEAH, SURE, THAT WILL CALM HIM DOWN!"
"It won't hurt to try!" Yoruichi shouted. The man growled incoherently, before his mask glowed and dissipated.
"I SWEAR, IF I DIE, I'LL COME BACK TO KILL ALL OF YOU!" Rose's zanpakuto wrapped around the wrist of Ichigo's right arm, which Unohana had been trying to hold back. Love quickly dashed around to grab along and the three worked together to prevent the berserker from pulling forward his arm. In the same manner, Hachi summoned forth several chains of kido that latched onto the hollow's left arm in over a dozen places, connecting to the ground. As soon as the chains appeared, Ichigo brought his arm forward, over half a dozen chains snapping immediately. Hiyori and Mashiro lunged at the broken chains, doing their best in assisting to hold back the time-traveler. Once he was as secured as they could get him, Kensei hopped over Ichigo's head from his position atop the man's back and wrapped his arms around the horned beast's chest.
"CALM DOWN, YOU PIECE OF SHIT!" The boxer screamed. "I THINK THIS IS THE DUMBEST PLAN WE'VE EVER COME UP WITH BUT I'LL BE DAMNED IF I DO THIS FOR NO REASON!" The pale-skinned man continued to growl and snarl as he fought against the group trying to keep him from moving. When a shift of his shoulder dragged Hiyori and Mashiro a few inches forward, Lisa jumped out, wrapping several of the broken chains around the shaft of her spear and stabbing the tip into the ground. Witnessing the lack of reaction from the hollow, Kensei stepped it up a notch.
His forehead rocked into the chin of the time-traveler's bone mask, blood immediately starting to pour down the boxer's face. The hollow stumbled back half a step, clearly not having expected the attack. He was further surprised by the vizard reaching up, grabbing one of his horns, and pulling his head down so the two were eye to eye.
"LISTEN HERE, MOTHERFUCKER! I HAVE A RESERVATION AT THIS BARBEQUE I'VE BEEN WANTING TO TRY OUT FOR A WHILE AND I AM NOT GOING TO MISS IT BECAUSE SOME BRAT WITH AN OVER-FUCKING-POWERED HOLLOW BROKE DOWN MY GODDAMN WALL AND DRAGGED ME THROUGH A GARGANTA INTO HUECO FUCKING MUNDO! SO WHOEVER THE FUCK IS IN THERE THAT CAN HEAR ME BETTER HAVE YOUR FIGHT SOME OTHER GODDAMN DAY SO I CAN HAVE SOMETHING NICE FOR A CHANGE!" The rest of the Vizard stared in shock as the ex-captain panted, his fist still tightly clasped around the mask's horn.
Their collective shock changed to disbelief as the hollow's body glowed red and dissipated, revealing the stunned face of the teen Kisuke had informed them of.
"Did…" Shinji's mask also glowed and broke away, displaying his open jaw. "Did that actually work?!" With a relieved sigh, Unohana allowed herself to slip off the boy's back onto the sand.
"You stay here." Yoruichi ordered Mirror Blade Guy while gathering the dual blades of Zangetsu and making to join the rest of the group. The boxer's bankai also returned to its knife-like state as he crossed his arms over his chest.
"Tell your hollow that the next time he wants to fight you for control, to not do it on a Wednesday. Those are the nights I treat myself." A light snort escaped the dual-wielder, it slipping into a chuckle after a moment.
"Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt your plans. I'll come around the warehouse on Saturday." The ex-captain nodded in approval.
"That lines up well, Saturdays are our free days." The boy's lips curled up in a shaky smile, his gaze moving around to the oncoming werecat. With much more ease than she was having with carrying them, he picked up his weapons and sheathed them. After that, he passed a hand through his hair with a self-depreciating sigh.
"Sorry for blowing my top like this. Things ended up not going according to plan tonight."
"Inner Hollows kind of have a knack for doing stuff like that." Shinji stated as the rest of the Vizard came closer.
"Don't blame yourself for that, Ichigo." Yoruichi soothed. "You didn't know that was going to happen."
"I…really should've." He argued. She shook her head.
"What were you expecting to see when you stepped into that illusion?" The time-traveler scratched the back of his head.
"Last time, I saw my mom. I knew you guys would be able to handle the other assassins, so I was hoping to just chill out in there with her."
"Wait, hold on." Lisa's brow was furrowed. "I have no idea what happened before you slammed through our wall, but it's kinda sounding like you invited this to happen."
"We were defending a noble clan head from some assassins coming for her, and Mirror Blade Guy can make illusions. Last time he trapped me in them, I saw my dead mother. So, when he went to put me in another illusion, I let it happen because I thought I would see her again and spend some time with her. Instead, I relived a…really bad memory."
"So when you came out of it, all you could think of was going for the guy's throat, and your hollow took advantage of it." Shinji nodded in understanding, having reached the conclusion anyone would if they weren't aware of Ichigo's status.
"Something along those lines." The orange-haired man semi-agreed.
"So, what's the plan now?" The chocolate skinned goddess wondered.
"Well, initially, the plan was to go to Soul Society after we finished with the assassins and more or less laugh in Amagai's face for thinking he could kill Yama just by sealing away his zanpakuto." The bark of laughter from Hiyori more than spoke of the Vizard's thoughts on the matter. "But now I'm just tired." The man once more rubbed at the back of his head, this time in thought. "I'm probably just gonna go over there, kill him, and let the Gotei deal with the rest of it."
"What about dealing with your hollow?" Love questioned. "Being brutally honest, I'm pretty damn sure that the only reason the rest of us aren't dead is because you were more focused on someone else." You know what, it would be a much-needed laugh if they didn't find out yet.
"I already arranged it with Kensei that I'm gonna visit you guys on Saturday."
"You know Kisuke is gonna wonder what the hell just happened?" Yoruichi announced, a light smirk on her face.
"…I'll deal with him later. I'm heading to bed."
Next Chapter: Over And Done With