Chapter eight
Promised in an A.N. that I'd have one soon. Sorry that I went away for a while life just sort of carried me away. Anyway, on with the story.
In a hidden room, in a secret part of a colossal palace in the middle of the most desolate of the three realms and hell stood fourteen of the most powerful beings ever to walk the ground of the soul society. And currently all but one was cowering in fear of a woman that would never have thought two of the inhabitants of the room would ever have planned to kill the soul king.
Five minutes earlier.
As a portal opened in the middle of the castle out stepped the three soul reapers. As the smallest of the party got a grasp of the size of the halls she was residing in her two escorts walked straight ahead.
"So, where exactly are we?" She asked a sense of distrust oozing from her voice.
The larger man turned around, looking down at the woman with the intention of making her squirm under his gaze achieved.
"We're in a palace, a big fucker 'n all"
"What my large friend means is we are in an elegant castle hidden away from prying eyes, and currently residing in a pocket dimension off of hueco mundo." The smaller one quickly amended, before looking at his companion in disgust. "Honestly, do you have any manners?"
The larger soul reaper just shrugged at this, walking further ahead of his two companions and towards a door that the small woman felt an odd sort of energy coming from.
As they got closer it slowly went from being a little pressing, to like carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders, the spiritual pressure being emitted was crushing.
As they got to the door the big man stopped, turning his head slightly to the others "They're in a meeting, be quiet" before he opened the door allowing Soi Fon to see the nineteen people in the room. She didn't recognise many of the faces that she saw, but did see the two she had come looking for. "Lady Yoruichi!" She shouted, hurling herself at her dark skinned mentor. "Thank goodness you're okay" she muttered against her chest.
Unfortunately for the petite captain she hadn't recognised her position or her company.
"Captain Soi Fon?" the man at the end of the table spoke, his white yutaka raising with his arm, gesturing to the small soul reaper "Please remove your face from miss Shihoins chest. I fear that this meeting has stalled."
Soi Fon recoiled like a gun away from her trainers chest. "My apologies Yoruichi-sama, I simply couldn't contain my emotions." Soi Fon rushed out, head down, blush fighting its way to the surface of her face before finding herself on her back, staring at the ceiling.
"Lighten up Soi, I was fine, just looking after Ichigo and his sister." Yoruichi, clearly the one who had pushed her old apprentice over, nonchalantly spoke.
Obviously surprised by the new information she was given, the captain of the second Division got herself back to her feet "That idiot Ryoka boy has a sister? Great because one hot-headed kurosaki wasn't enough." Soi Fon was becoming quite acquainted with the floor at the moment as said sister landed a punch to the side of the petite captains head sending her spiralling back down.
"If anyone has a problem with me or my brother I'll do the same to every one of you!" Tatsuki yelled, and aura of fire surrounding her body sending the strongest of soul society history to hide behind their chairs.
"Tatsuki, control yourself" Masaki chastised her daughter instantly bringing her back to heel "I'm sure the captain didn't mean what she did about my children did she Ms Fon?" A venomous yet sweet smile plastered on her face.
'She's putting Yachiru to shame there" Aragorn spoke from his chair, the rest of the captain's also returning to their seats.
"Now that that minor disaster has been avoided I'd like to invite Ms Fon to be made aware of our plans." The king spoke rising from his seat, white robe fluttering as he moved. "As we can't have two of a person in the plains of existence at the same time we'll have to go to the point where none of us are in contact with the soul society before we launch our attack. And as Captain Fon left just as the four most powerful Quincy not including yhwach and his little codpiece cleaner, assailed soul society and the soul king's palace not long after we should be able to form a sort of preemptive strike against them. Is everyone following so far?" Nods followed from all those who were aware of the realm they resided in barring of course Soi Fon.
"Excuse me, but what do you mean by two people, are you saying this place allows for travel through time? And who are you all anyway for me to trust?" Her curiosity matched only by her distrust of the people she was stuck in this room with.
"Captain Fon, we are the head captains of all thirteen divisions as well as the soul king's, soul society had been told we betrayed and killed the soul king but instead we just left and allowed a poorer soul king and the captain of squad one to rule the land with help from the central 46." Lee stood speaking to what was basically his inferior officer "however given the current events and shambolic running of the soul society, we've decided with help from young Ichigo to return and cleanse soul society of the terror of yhwach. And as the head captain of squad two, a direct superior to yourself and lady Yoruichi you are under my executive orders, understood?" His voice turning more authoritative as he droned on.
Soi Fon looked to her teacher for guidance before receiving a relaxed nod indicating to do as instructed. "Yes head captain" she answered, her typical tone of voice responding.
"So here's the plan…"
-
"Scatter, Senbonzakura" Byakuya uttered finishing off his Quincy, sick of all the mind tricks Nodt had played on him. His sister finally flanking him.
"Brother, are you injured?" Rukia uttered, fear evident in her tone.
"No Rukia, I can continue to fight." Byakuya sounded resilient, though Rukia was aware even he had never thought something like this, the winter war not even coming close to how this felt. Sure the older captains; Kyoraku, Ukitake, Unohana and even Kisuke to an extent had all been through a lot but nothing quite like this.
"Brother if I may confide in you" Rukia started, receiving a look from Byakuya to continue "I am afraid, I fear the battle may be lost and without Ichigo and the help he is supposed to bring I fear we may lose." Emotions fighting in her voice, her strength and will clashing with fear and logic, the Quincy had had 26 sternritters equal to captains and whilst there were only 6 Quincy's remaining they were down captains Komamura, Soifon, Mugamura and Rose. There forces were scattered and the strongest Quincy still lived, they needed help.
The sky began to crack, a star of pure black forming above the battlefield. The Quincy were meant to be assailing the royal realm but the power signatures this was giving off were very different to that of a Quincy, it felt different, as if it was just pure reishi that had formed it. The battle halted, the blood war seeming brought to an abrupt stop, some would say divine intervention, others that it all seemed off and insecure but the silence was broken by a loud cry.
"Cease this folly!" the booming voice called through the astrological shape. "This war will bring nothing but destruction. Shinigami we are fighting a losing war, for every Quincy takedown we lose numerous of our own forces. Quincy you are merely puppets for your 'father' Yhwach, he wishes to cast you aside the moment his victory is confirmed even those most loyal to him."
The Quincy turned to their master, Bazzard being the one brave enough to talk eye to eye with the Quincy ruler.
"Is this true father?" His voice tinged heavily with sarcasm " you would simply cast aside all those who care for you like mere cannon fodder?"
Haschwalth moving in front of his lord facing down his long term friend. "You dare to stand against our master, when his moment of triumph is upon us?"
Bazz-b snarled at his friend "If he means so much to you then do his dirty work and run me through!" He said tearing his jacket and exposing his naked chest.
Haschwalth wasted no time in swiftly depositing his sword in his friends heart. Before quickly blocking a strike from second division captain, struggling against her shikai as she fought back against his superior strength.
Soifon stopped her assault, going limp feeling a trickle going down her back, arms falling beside her, a faint chuckling from behind her belonging to the quincy king.
"Foolish one you thought you could simply take on myself and my most loyal servant? Pathetic." He withdrew his sword and removed Soi Fons shoulders of the burden of her head.
Suddenly her body disintegrated into reishi, reforming a few hundred feet away in a cluster of 21 other forms all seemingly having just appeared.
The Quincy king having instantly identified the war potential Ichigo Kurosaki, his mother Masaki and his sister Tatsuki. The hollow wasn't anything he was concerned with and Yoruichi Shihoin wasn't anything to be too frightened about, but the sixteen others were a different story, he knew who they all were and was frankly surprised they had decided to show up.
"Thank you for the distraction Miss Fon, your assistance has allowed us to be up close with this monster." Mahatma spoke his arms folded but stare fixed on the Quincy ahead of them.
"I'll be honest" The Quincy king started "I expected you to have all stayed out of this or even being dead by now. I'm most surprised that three of my own children would so willingly stand against me." He now focused solely on the Kurosaki's present "To think such a formerly staunch supporter of the Quincy in your house should stand with the very people who wiped out so many of our own, I'm disappointed."
Ichigo motioned to talk but the soul king moved his arm in front of the young man, Ichigo looking up to the soul king, his appearance again changing to that of an older man, definitely 50, hair now short and orange like the kurosaki before him. "I think your mother has this Ichigo."
As Ichigo looked to see his mother, she was striding ahead of the rest of the captain's who had finally been joined by all those still defending the soul society, Captain, Ryoka and Vizard.
"Who is that woman, who would be foolish enough to stand face to face with that bastion of power?" Byakuya asked all those present, not directed at anyone specifically.
"That dear Byakuya, is Masaki Kurosaki, our own substitutes dear mother. Although how she's here will need some questioning won't it my lord?" Unohana asked, the first time she had seen these people in centuries.
Masaki strode into no man's land, slowly covering the distance between the defenders and the seven Quincy who would still stand against them; One hooded, one who would pass for a arrancar, another that she guessed was the horse god Thor, a military man bearing a sniper, Yhwach himself, haschwalth, and most surprising an Ishida she guessed was Uryu.
"Masaki Kurosaki." The Quincy king spoke "how nice of you to come back to the living, however you must know that this is only temporary, as I will finish you and your children as well as the rest of the accursed soul society."
"Hello Uryu, my you look so much like your father" the kurosaki matriarch started, ruffling the boys hair. "I know Ryuken and he'd be worried if his son was in danger, come on let's get you back to where it's safe" she put her arm round the boy and coerced the baffled Quincy to come with her to the soul reapers, her sweet happy smile never once faltering.
"You think you can so willingly ignore me?!?" Yhwach shouted as she kept walking with Uryu. The quincy king drawing his sword, rushing towards Masaki before his blade was blacked by one surrounded by fire.
"How nice of you to show up dear." Masaki smiled at her husband's appearance as well as his accomplice. " And Ryuken, it's been too long. Uryu here is a lovely boy, hold onto him will you?" she continued her warm demeanor as she escorted Uryu to his father, the older man putting a reassuring hand on his son's shoulder.
"Thank you for coming back to us Uryu. Now stay behind us as we handle this." Ryuken dropped into stance besides the front line of Ichigo, Isshin and Masaki. The four of them staring into the eyes of the Quincy king, who still remained baffled and infuriated at the actions the foursome were causing him.
"You would all stand here, standing ahead of the strongest beings across the three realms! So be it, if you all wish to so willingly die then let that be it!" The 6 remaining Quincy drew their swords all ready to remove the issue of these four troublemakers.
"Ichigo" Isshin spoke first, attracting said person's attention. "You handle Yhwach, Masaki you go for his second in command, Ryuken and I will take two each."
Ichigo nodded to his father before looking to his mother and received a stern look, not angry but confident, as if egging Ichigo on to go. He smiled at his mother. "Stay safe" being his last words to them before he strode towards Yhwach, swords drawn.
The four Quincy generals rushed Ichigo, bows and swords directed towards the boy, before Isshin and Ryuken blocked the attacks Isshin picking up the Thor looking one as well as the hollow feeling Quincy, with Ryuken taking the sniper and the cloaked Quincy. Haschwalth drew his sword and was about to move before turning to block the arrow destined for the back of his head, courtesy of the Kurosaki matriarch dashing away as she fired a torrent of arrows at the Quincy lieutenant. Leaving two people on the previously packed battlefield.
The two beings always destined to fight, Aizen was a stepping stone for Ichigo to get to this stage. To be able to face of with the truest threat to the universe. A man blinded by hate, by revenge, a desire to be above, not equal and not below. But this immovable object met it's unstoppable force in Ichigo, trained by the strongest warriors ever produced and educated by the soul king himself.
However the strongest ability Ichigo had was his resilience and his determination to protect everyone, he had a purpose to fight, something that was worth all of this that didn't benefit him.but everyone. And that was why he could hold his head high as he positioned his swords in front of him.
"Protect those around you and abandon your fear, be the shield of the weak and the sword to the strong. Let your heart guide you and never hesitate, Zangetsu!"