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Chapter 4

=DA=

Part 1

=DA=

Meeting Hall

Division One barracks

Soul Society

A second explosion shook the floor lightly, this one was a bit closer. I had the sneaking suspicion that most of Aria's hard work tonight just went up in flames.

"Urahara, the hell did you just do?" I asked aloud. "Let me rephrase." I spoke formally. "Former Twelfth Division Captain Kisuke Urahara, to the best of you knowledge what is the location of former Kido Corps Commander Tessai Tsukabishi? Did you order or personally arrange these two explosions, which I suspect to be the Central 46 compound and the archives?"

"Captain Aizen." Urahara folded in his fan and smiled. "I did not use Kido, explosives nor did I cause those two explosions with mine two hands, neither did I use my Zanpakuto or another device to cause them. I did not order them. To the best of my knowledge, Tessai is at my residence back in the world of the living, where I left him when I headed this way earlier tonight. I didn't tell him to cause any mischief, I didn't suggest it, I didn't write to him, I didn't use spells to make him commit any crimes. To the best of my knowledge, he is back in the world of the living and is not the one who caused these two explosions. That said, considering that you just all but confessed to terrible crimes, its most convenient what we both suspect – that Central 46 just went up in fire and that the second explosion was the archives."

"Most inconvenient, you mean. So it was your Vizard friends carrying their grudge." I stated. Well played, Urahara.

"I wouldn't know. I haven't seen them in years. I didn't contact them, neither did I ordered anyone to contact them." He stated pleasantly.

Of course not, he merely ensured they heard about what was happening tonight, obviously someone made a few excellent conclusions about my plans and here we are, I was sure of it.

"Captain Komamura, Captain Kurotsuchi, investigate." Yamamoto ordered. "Captain Aizen, answer plainly, did you have anything to do with those two explosions?"

I threw Kisuke's words back at him, confirming that I didn't arrange for the building we were all but certain just went up, to blow up, and added: "However, obviously I am the reason for their destruction. I repeat again, both the murder of Central 46 and the destruction of said buildings is most inconvenient for me. Let me ask you something, Kisuke Urahara. What is the plan? What do you hope to achieve tonight? Theoretically speaking, if I'm the monster you believe me to be, what do you think would happen? And if I am not, if all I did was merely follow orders and did what I was authorized to do, do you really think I will roll over and quietly fall upon my sword like a good little trooper after your Vizard friends torched all the orders authorizing my past actions?"

"You did say you're loyal to Soul Society." A cold smile stretched Gin's face. "That's what good little soldiers are meant to do, fall on their swords when the situation calls for it. Like right now." He didn't bother hide his glee.

"I am loyal, yet I am no longer ready to lay down my life for a government that gives no fucks for the soldiers protecting it. In life I died protecting such a government, I am not eager to fall on my sword again. However, as I said, I will risk life and limb to uphold the balance and I will aid Soul Society against external threats wishing its destruction. This is my truth. What is yours, Kisuke Urahara?"

"My truth? You're a monster Sosuke Aizen. The day you are utterly annihilated would be celebrated for centuries to come. Perhaps you had orders, perhaps not. We might never know, now. What I know is that you were the one behind my exile, you tore apart the lives of eight of our comrades, infecting their very souls with Hollows. It was because of your crimes that Central 46 ordered them hunted down like animals and killed, and they weren't the only ones you experimented on, were they? How many souls did you ravage in the pursuit of your insane goals? How long have you been deceiving everyone in Soul Society? You weren't ordered to lie about the nature of your Zanpakuto. It most certainly is no water type but instead the most powerful Illusion based Zanpakuto in the history of Soul Society."

"Captain Aizen, answer the question. What type is your Zanpakuto? How long have you been deceiving us?" Yamamoto demanded and focused his full might upon me. It was hot enough that my clothes began to smoke.

"Kyoka Suigetsu?" I asked, keeping my resignation to myself. If Urahara had revealed it earlier, it might have been better. Now that he ensured that any evidence Aria planted was gone, the best I could realistically hope was a long incarceration with my powers bound until a proper investigation could be carried out. That was not something I would allow for Gotei 13 to subject me on, no matter the ultimate outcome. Still, it wasn't over yet, hopefully. Still, this was question that no matter if I was Sosuke Aizen or Delkatar Veil, I could answer only one way. "She is an Illusion type." I admitted. "I've kept her true nature to myself ever since the day I achieved Shikai."

I couldn't allow them to figure out that I could say some creative truths under the spell currently binding me due to my unique nature, otherwise I would damn myself even worse than I was currently doing.

"I rest my case." Kisuke declared. "Could you really trust someone who has been deceiving you for centuries?"

A lot of confused, pained and even angry looks converged on yours truly.

"I am no traitor, Urahara. No matter what I did in the past, I haven't betrayed Soul Society yet. And I dearly hope that I won't have to do so in the future in order to preserve my life and freedom. Tell me, Jushiro, why would I arrange for Orihime to heal you, if I intended harm upon Soul Society in general and Gotei 13 in particular? You're among the most powerful of us and now that you're hale, you and Shunsui are only second to the Captain-General, no contest there. Why would I resolve the invasion Kisuke over here engineered in a peaceful way if I was the traitor he paints me as? Let us not forget that it was his very actions against Rukia Kuchiki that began this sordid affair."

"You believe this to be true." Yamamoto stated, yet the overwhelming pressure trying to both crush and burn me to a crisp didn't rise up. "As Shinigami, there are times we're called to do terrible things for various reasons, some better than others. Your actions do speak for themselves, both what you admitted doing, and what we've seen you do openly." He paused, studying me with a heavy gaze. "Yet you've been deceiving us for centuries as well. We simply can't trust you at this time. You're damned by your own words and the evidence that might exonerate you is missing, presumed destroyed if it existed in the first place."

"Then it is up to you, sir. What are you going to choose, Captain-General Yamamoto?" I stared him down.

"Do you know, youngster, that you aren't the first Shinigami to regain the memories of his past life?" Yamamoto stared straight into my soul as he spoke.

Ah. So this has been a trap since the very beginning, complete with giving me enough rope to hang myself. Well played, old man. Well played.

"Fascinating." That was all I said and despite the burning pressure I managed to put a bemused smile on my face. As scary and powerful as Yamamoto was, the Emperor was so much worse.

Kisuke on the other hand perked up at that and stared at me with vindication shining through his eyes.

"Aria?"

"Everything is in place. I'm pretty sure it was the Vizards who bombed up my hard work. I want their heads for it."

"And I'll gladly help you take them off."

=DA=

Part 2

=DA=

Central 46 compound

Soul Society

The government was dead, had been dead for weeks it seemed. That much was obvious the moment Soi-Fon and Unohana passed through the compound's defenses. The stench of blood and decay were clue enough even before they stumbled upon the first cut down body.

The first thing they did was to hurry up and check for intruders and more or less obvious unpleasant surprises before they began investigating in earnest. It soon became obvious that the murders were all blade-work, no trace of Hado or any exotic Zanpakuto effects, though a proper conclusion would require examining the bodies in depth. Nevertheless, a preliminary observation revealed that the murder weapons were similar to standard katanas, which was to the benefit of the human invaders. While said finding wasn't enough by itself to conclusively prove they weren't directly responsible, none of them had been observed wielding regular sized blades. In fact the only swordsman, well if Ichigo Kurosaki had been involved in this and used his Zanpakuto, it would be obvious, especially when most corpses were stabbed, not cut.

"We need to call for assistance, both to take care of the bodies and hasten the search for any orders that might either help or damn Captain Aizen." Soi-Fon concluded after checking up on the tenth body. Despite her expertise, there wasn't much she could find out without more time and equipment that was back in her Division Barracks.

"I agree…" Unohana said and froze. The Captains shared a glance and ran the moment they felt Hollow energy condensing nearby. Soi-Fon hissed a Bakudo incantation as fast as she could, while the older and more experienced Unohana merely raised a hand to form a shield behind them.

A moment later, before they could properly exit the compound, a beam of crimson malevolent energy struck it from above. The resulting explosion was potent enough to throw the Captains off their feet and demolish the well protected building, leaving an inferno in its wake.

Before they could recover and pursue, the assailant vanished, leaving the distinct buzz of Sonido in their wake, something lost in the echoing roar of the explosion.

Unohana was the first to recover and she jumped in the air looking around for any traces of the attacker. Soi-Fon followed moments later chanting the Kido to call a Hell Butterfly in existence. They needed to make sure the perpetrator didn't get away.

Then a second explosion shook Soul Society.

=DA=

Meeting area

Las Noches

Hollow World

For the third time since their creation, it wasn't Aizen who summoned them to gather. It was certainly the first time it the order came requiring utmost haste. Only two of the Arrancars were glad to see the one who summoned them. The one was obvious, their notable leader when Aizen wasn't around, Coyote Stark. He had been fascinated with Aria since the moment he met her, because she was the closest thing to his own Lilynette, even if they were mirror images of each other. During his release, Lilynette became sealed in his pistols, while during Aizen's Bankai, Aria was released to have a body outside the Shinigami's inner world.

The second person who greeted Aria cordially was Tier Harribel, the Third Espada, the only one of his fellow Arrancar Stark could tolerate.

"You're all here, good." Aria declared in a tone she had never used before. It was no nonsense, cold and to the point. It demanded their attention as well. "There have been complications in Soul Society."

"Did Aizen finally mess up?" Grimmjow sneered.

Aria raised a hand and the blue haired Arrancar found himself pulled in the air and clawing at his throat. Aizen's Zanpakuto turned her wrist and Grimmjow bowed back, his bones audibly cracking from the pressure she was somehow exerting upon him.

"Do I have your undivided attention?" Aria demanded.

"You do." Cifer spoke for them all. While the armoured woman got more than a few dirty looks, no one else dared disrespect her.

"Good. My Master might require extraction depending on how tonight's events turn out. Either that or he'll succeed in convincing the Shinigami that he is loyal, thus when the time comes we'll be able to strike at them with no one being the wiser about our existence. As you know, at this time we lack a good contingency to deal with the Captain-General in straight up combat, which makes anything but a raid against Soul Society a bad idea."

"Some of us are aware of the realities of the situation." Harribel allowed.

"And more than a few of you believe that as you are you can win a straight up fight against Gotei 13. I know for a fact that you'll lose such a confrontation." Aria countered. "Its a good thing that Aizen doesn't require that you commit an expensive suicide."

"What does he require of us?" Ulquiorra inquired.

"First a diversion to facilitate his extraction if needed. Stark, Cifer, you'll be required to buy him enough time for the Negation to take a hold of him. Harribel, you have a different mission – an extraction of a vital asset, perhaps two." Aria raised a hand and an image formed in front of the Third Espada. "This is Orihime Inoue, a human with the impossible ability to reject reality. This makes her the best healer in all known dimensions. We need her retrieved intact if the situation in Soul Society deteriorates. In that case you're to ask her nicely to join you. If possible I'll provide you with distraction so anyone watching believes that she has joined us of her free will. Second," another image formed, this time of a dark haired Shinigami, "this is Momo Hinamori, my Master's Lieutenant. She should be with your primary target. You're to make her an offer – to join Aizen in exile so he could explain everything to her…"

=DA=

Meeting Hall

Division One barracks

Soul Society

Yamamoto stared down his reincarnated Captain, trying to figure him out. In his long years as a member of Gotei 13 he had encountered an even dozen of reincarnations where a Shinigami regained the memories of his previous life, something that more often than not affected their soul, reshaping it to reflect those experiences. What that meant in practical terms was simple, yet troublesome. There could be a disconnect between the Shinigami people knew and the new personality, the reshaped soul.

Such a disconnect might mean that what such a Shinigami knew as a truth, what was truth for their very soul and any objective truth, especially about anything they had done before the reincarnation, could differ. That in practice meant that everything Aizen, or whatever the boy wanted to call himself since the events of earlier tonight, said even under the influence of the interrogation Kido, could not be necessary trusted. As far as his soul was concerned, what Sosuke Aizen had done, and what the person he was now had done, could be very different things. Sosuke Aizen might have slaughtered Central 46 with his own two hands, yet the person currently bound in the Kido circle hadn't one it as far as they were concerned. While they might have been Sosuke Aizen before this night, they were not necessary Sosuke Aizen right now. On the other hand, when asked if he was loyal to Soul Society, that man did tell the truth as he knew it. While conditionally he was loyal, he hadn't betrayed Soul Society.

The problem was that Sosuke Aizen might have done it and with Central 46 and the archives being attacked, there might not be a way to determine if what Aizen had been doing over the past centuries was a genuine treason or done under the shield of lawful orders. No matter who exactly was the Shinigami bound in the circle, he wasn't going to take the fall for Aizen's actions if he had anything to say about it, he would fight, he would rebel if it came to that, of that much Yamamoto was certain.

On the face of it, the Captain-General's path was clear – get Aizen under lock and key, then investigate and if there was not enough evidence to confirm that Central 46 authorized Sosuke's actions, condemn him for good. On the other hand, the Shinigami's actions ever since his reincarnation were to the benefit of Soul Society, which was more than could be said about the stunts some of the other youngsters did over the past few weeks. The way they handled this invasion for example was nothing less than a complete disgrace. Gotei 13, outwitted and often outfought by literal infants…

The truthof the matter was simple. Could Yamamoto trust this reshaped Sosuke Aizen? Would this man betray them? The answer of the second question was obvious, for a simple reason, the Captain-Commander was sure what Central 46 would order after reforming. They would never trust someone who might have engineered the annihilation of their predecessors and at that point, Gotei 13 will receive orders to either arrest Aizen and throw him in the Maggot's Nest or terminate him outright.

Obviously, the man would resist. In the end, the real question was simple, was it worth it to let Aizen potentially further compromise Soul Society in general and Gotei 13 in particular, when they were all but certain to clash in the future? Should Yamamoto sanction the boy here and now, when he was still recovering from his reincarnation and it would be the best possible time to take him in or out depending on how much he resisted? Or perhaps he should try to keep Aizen in the fold and hope that whatever he does in the future, under the closest possible supervision and observation of course, would be enough to convince the next government to be lenient…

In reality, the decision was anything but simple. Intentionally or not, Aizen's action this night earned him a lot of goodwill with many Captains and Lieutenants. The interrogation and the Exile's performance convinced others that Aizen was an enemy, that much was painfully obvious, while a number of the present Captains were deeply unsettled by tonight's events. No matter what happened, Yamamoto's decision was going to sunder Gotei 13, perhaps for a long time to come.

He was getting too old for this.

"Captain Aizen…" He stared at the reincarnated boy.

=DA=

It's not often that I've been played in such a way. Yamamoto allowed me to offer him all the rope he needs to hang me and the fucking Vizards ensured that the pillar supporting my strategy for remaining within Soul Society was now nothing but ashes.

"Sleeping crest of turbidity!" I sub-vocalized while waiting for the Captain-General's verdict. Best case scenario? I would be incarcerated for the longest of time while people searched for no longer existing evidence that might get me off the hook. "Arrogant vessel of lunacy!" Worst case? Yamamoto will do the practical thing and order my execution here and now. "Boil forth and deny!" This really wasn't the outcome I wanted. The war that would likely result from tonight's actions would be a damn waste. "Grow numb and flicker! Disrupt sleep!" And when all was said and done, it was all because of Urahara's and his fucking Vizard friends and their thirst of vengeance. As a Sith, I should be impressed by what they did tonight.

In reality, I was furious. "Crawling queen of iron!"

"Captain Aizen…" Yamamoto began and I was pretty sure a message flickered between him and Shunsui.

"Eternally self-destructing doll of mud! Unite!"

Shunsui's Reiatsu vanished from the seal. "Repulse!" I didn't need to voice my orders to Aria. The bond we now shared put any Force Bond that had ever existed to shame. She was now part of my very soul after all. "Fill with soil and know your own own powerlessness!"

"You're under arrest…" Shunsui Flash-Stepped behind me, placing his blades at the sides of my neck just as I spiked up my Reiatsu as much as I could. Even with my reserves down to fifty percent, it was going to be enough. I was in Bankai, Shunsui was not. I dumped a ton of Spiritual Power into the Hado while forming an armoured shell of energy around my body.

"Hado 90, Kuroshitsugi." I uttered clearly and all hell broke loose.