Next morning, everyone was reunited at the infernal gate,with the exception of Orihime, who didn't want to worry anyone with her sudden change.
"So, Kurosaki-san, who's gonna be in charge?" Urahara asked.
"Nageki. Why?" Ichigo asked in reply.
"Cause I need him to do a little something" The man got a small antenna with a red tip out of his pocket. "Nageki-san, could you please put this somewhere inside the grounds? If possible, in a place that you can easily check"
"Sure, Urahara-san" The Arrancar agreed.
"What does that do, Urahara-san?" Harribel inquired.
"Oh, nothing much. It's just a checkpoint in case some friends want to join us" He simply replied, not revealing who would it be. "We can't wait any longer, so they'll have to get there on their own"
"I see. We'll gladly show them the way" Nageki said.
"Thank you"
Grimmjow eagerly gazed at the ominous entrance.
"So... This is it" He braced himself. "It's payback time!"
"Yes" Harribel agreed. "All the suffering they dealt this world will have its well-deserved retribution"
"Though we mustn't be blinded with those thoughts" Nel added. "But we won't let them get away with anything. We'll do justice"
"Well said" Ichigo agreed. "We must keep our cool and act cautiously. There's no need to lose our heads over what's already lost, but whenever you need more strength, you will remember all those things we set aside and let them fill our hearts. That's a given" He concluded.
Everyone nodded accordingly.
"Well, what are we waiting for?" Hiyori inquired. "Let's kick some ass!"
"Not too fast, Hiyori" Yoruichi replied. "Let's check the basics one last time"
"Right" Urahara nodded. "They will clearly separate us so that we have no other option but to fight, so we'll both support Kuchiki-san and Abarai-san with whoever gets in their way..." He said.
"And I'll lend a hand to Grimmjow and Harribel. It will be fun, since we never really fought together" Gin recalled. He had an attire that looked the same as the one he used to wear under Aizen's command, perfectly hiding his Zanpakutou.
"Oi, I know you were strong back then... But are you sure you're up to the task now? I mean... We both know Segunda Etapa" Grimmjow told him.
"I appreciate that you worry about me, but rest assured: I will not lose" The last part was said in a serious way, strange in him.
"Well, continuing" Love said. "We four fight together once again, so there shouldn't be a problem..."
"And we three go straight for Yama's head" Ichigo declared along Nel and Ulquiorra. "Though it's clearly not gonna be as simple as it sounds. Most likely, we'll find that sadow creep along the way" Ichigo remembered Kurokage with a hateful expression.
"If that's the case, do your best" Urahara replied. "But don't waste energy in that. Wait for me to arrive and I'll take care of it"
"You have a way to deal with him? Even with his ability?" Ulquiorra asked surprised.
"I've been working on something for a while, though I don't know if it's gonna be the solution" He clarified. "Still, it's worth the try"
"That means we cannot waste even a second against whoever appears in our path" Rukia commented. "Otherwise, we'll be complicating them"
"Don't worry about that, Rukia-san" Nel replied. "We will endure for as long as needed. Please don't risk yourself unnecesarily for trying to help us"
"That's true" Renji agreed. "There won't be a point in all this if one of us dies"
"Right. Sorry for saying something so careless" Rukia apologized.
"It doesn't matter, Rukia" Ichigo smiled at her. "Everyone has to do their best. That's all you have to worry about, and this applies to the ones who stay here as well" He looked forward and staryed walking. "Let's do it"
"Yes!" Everyone present agreed.
He was about to cross the gate when he wast stopped.
"Wait, Ichigo!" It was Nageki.
"What's wrong?"
"It's about the Heart. Are you sure that you want to leave it in my care?"
"You guarded it for ages, I can't see why not" Ichigo said in reply. "Unless you feel troubled for some reason..."
"No, not really... I designed the black box for that reason, but... Being the objective of Yama, I imagine that he already foresaw this"
"If it's really that way... Then I'll have to stop him before he gets the chance" Ichigo assured.
"Oh, and..." Nageki remembered something important. "You see..."
"Is there something else?"
Nageki looked worried as he tried to find the right words, glancing at a cheerful smiling Nelliel in the background.
"Maybe it's all just my imagination..." He finally thought, discarding his previous idea. "Good luck. Do your best! Haha..."
"Thanks, I guess..." Ichigo replied, though the way in which Nageki said it seemed strange. Like there was something more important he decided not to tell. "Now for real, let's go"
The alliance went through the Kimon without any second thoughts. They had an objective, they had a plan and they had the strength. There was no reason to hesitate at this point.
They came out on the other side, standing in a red rocky platform that had different paths, each with a Kanji that showed the element of the enemy they would face.
"It is most definitely a trap" Urahara said. "Otherwise, they wouldn't make it so easy for us"
"But in this situation, we don't have much of a choice" Yoruichi replied.
"Exactly" Ichigo agreed. "The best we can do is beat them in their own game"
"Our path is clear then" Ulquiorra said. "Yama's element is Aether"
"Should we go right away?" Nel asked.
"It is the deepest part of Jigoku" Ulquiorra replied.
"So we better start moving" Nel understood. "Are you ready, Ichigo?"
"Yes. I'm ready to end this, once and for all" He said determined. "All the sacrifices we've made... All the corpses we carry... Are not something to take lightly. We... must take responsibility, and I over everyone else"
He once again was feeling a heavy weight constantly on top of him, though at least he had managed to sleep well after Nel's efforts.
"That might be true, but don't feel forced to solve everything in a single fight, Kurosaki-san" Urahara stopped him for a bit. "For what I've heard, the Demons have been planning this from before the existence of anything we know, actually. Even if they make a mistake, I doubt they don't have countermeasures, so don't be too hard on yourself if things turn out to be more complicated. If we fail, we can regroup and try again. There's no reason to take unnecessary risks, okay? And this goes to everyone"
"Yes..." Ichigo agreed, a bit doubtful, as he always risked himself for the sake lf everyone else.
"I know that you feel responsible for the deaths of those Arrancar, and probably of the Demons we killed before too, and it's understandable. You're not a mere Substitute Shinigami anymore. You're the King of Hueco Mundo" Urahara continued. "In spite of that, you're not alone. Everyone here is strong enough to support you, so please, believe in us" He put his hand on Ichigo's shoulder.
"I understand" Ichigo smiled, feeling calmer. "All I'm gonna ask... Is that you all return safely. I promise to do so myself if you can assure me that much"
"Sure" Renji replied. "I'll show you that all that sparring with Grimmjow wasn't child's play"
"Hmph..." Grimmjow chuckled a bit with his arms crossed.
"And I control my Bankai a tad better as well" Rukia added.
"We trained our Segunda Etapa to the fullest" Harribel spoke for her and Grimmjow. "So you can rest assured"
"We all learned a lot from our previous fights, and have designed quite a few combos to deal with these monsters" Love told him as the other Vizards nodded in agreement.
"We will do everything in our power... Which is something none of you have seen anyways" Yoruichi smirked, boasting about her and Urahara's potential.
"I... Became a Whole, and mastered my Etapa Final" Ulquiorra declared, proudly showing the golden-yellow mark on his Hollow Hole. "I don't intend to be accepted as a friend, but I do hope you can trust me as an ally"
"And finally... I..." Nel muttered. "I continued surpassing my own limits, in hope of being worthy of fighting by your side, Ichigo. There's no need for you to contain yourself anymore. My scars have healed..." She spoke of both her emotional and physical wounds. "...And I am ready to face anything that could take you away from me"
"Nel..." He sweetly smiled at her, to which she instantly replied by wrapping her arms around him.
"I love you, Ichigo, and I will do anything in order to protect you" She kissed him for a couple seconds, feeling a soothing warmth in her Whole Link, reflected in Ichigo as well.
"There you have it" Urahara finished. "There's no way in Hell any of us dies. Do your best, and so will we. That's all you need to know"
"I can see that" He replied, feeling a lot better. "Thank you. Now I can turn my back knowing that everything will be okay" He entered the path of the Aether without having a single doubt in his heart.
Ulquiorra and Nelliel followed him without another word, though she gave them all a final nod with a smile before leaving them.
"Ichigo really won the lottery with that girl, didn't he?" Yoruichi commented. "Ever since I met her, I've never seen her heart wavering once when it's about him"
"Tch... Tell me about it..." Hiyori spat. "It's her fault that Lisa started writing some ero-themed Light Novel about-"
"Sh-Shut up..." Lisa covered her friend's mouth. "More importantly... Where will everyone go for each fight?"
"Good question, but I already have the feeling that we'd do better in that path" Rukia pointed the water trail, which went to the depths of Jigoku, but surrounding the main abyss. "At the very least, I'll handle better with a water enemy"
"If I'm not mistaken, that would be the wielder of Leviathan" Urahara said. "Not much is known about the weapon, and Ulquiorra said that he never saw it in action, but the beast that gives its name is known for having dominated the seas in ancient times. Maybe it would make an interesting opponent"
"Now that I think about it... Didn't we fight a Duke that was born directly of a Prince?" Hachigen remembered Hoji, the 6th Duke.
"Yeah, that brutally strong Demon..." Love recalled. "I believe he said something about some Kachiki-sama"
"Ulquiorra said he was the strongest one, I believe" Harribel commented. "Back when we planned the assault, he told us the names, as well as their basic abilities. That one controls two elements, Earth and Fire"
They all had a little flashback to their strategy meeting:
"The three Princes have weapons that hold the spirits and power of three Ancient Beasts that used to rule the Earth before mankind. Leviathan in the seas, Behemoth in the land and Ziz in the skies. Said Beasts were only controlled by Angels in the past, but those Angels decided to follow Yama's steps, falling into the darkness of Jigoku, and becoming some of the first Oni, denominated Majin.The most powerful one is by far Kachiki, wielder of Behemoth, as he has control over both Earth and Fire. Mizuwari only has water and Kazenawa, obviously, the wind"
"If that's the case, we should finish what we started" Hiyori deduced.
"Are you sure, Hiyori?" Hachi asked her, a bit unsure.
"Yeah. Last time, we merely got through cause we had never used the skills we developed in battle. Now, we have the experience and means to go all out. We got better at our full Hollow transformation and, even in case we become Hollowfied..." She got serious. "...I don't know about you, but I'd have no regrets. Ichigo can turn us into Arrancar and we go from there. But something is clear, I won't be hating myself later cause I didn't do everything in my power to win"
"Does anyone object against Hiyori's proposal?"
The other Vizards shook their heads.
"Then it's decided. We shall face the strongest of the Princes..." Love sighed.
"Hey, you don't really have to" Grimmjow refuted. "If it bothers you, leave it to us. For me, the stronger an enemy is, the better"
"Sorry, kitty but we'll be taking the big prize!" Hiyori mocked him.
"Oh, really?!" He grinned angrily as he contained his urge to punch her. "Well, it looks like kids these days are really greedy, aren't they?"
The two were face to face, looking at each other with a defiant look, ready to beat the other to a pulp.
"Enough you idiots!" Yoruichi punched them in the head. "Leave that for the actual enemy"
"Tsk...! I get it..." He murmured pissed.
"One day you'll see..." Hiyori menaced. "Let's not waste any more time, let's go!"
"Wait, Hiyori... I think we are forgetting something" Lisa stopped her.
"And what would that be?" The girl asked obliviously.
"What happens if we come across the missing Duke" She reminded. "You know, the one that ran away"
Once again, they took another look back into Ulquiorra's description:
"Ah... So you met V... Well, there's not much I can say about it to be honest. All I know is that it's a being that doesn't breathe, speak or show signs of being a conventional lifeform. All it does is feed from other Reiryoku-based beings, and deploy clones of it like there's no tomorrow. While they can be dissolved and disintegrated, if you were to do this to the actual Duke, another clone would take its place, receiving the tattoo and advanced abilities. No one knows what that thing is for certain, with the exception of Yama, of course, but it's certainly a troublesome being and one you should try to avoid at all cost"
"If we encounter that thing, I doubt we'll have any chance of beating it" Lisa said with a hint of fear.
"Oi, you didn't think about anything that can help us deal with that thing?!" Hiyori spat at Urahara.
"Sorry, sorry... But unfortunately, yours' and Ulquiorra's description is not nearly enough for me to work on something, so you're on your own" He raised his shoulders in sign of ignorance.
"Tch... As useless as ever I see" She spouted. "Guess all we can do is pray that we don't come across it"
"And if we do, it might be better just to run away" Love declared. "There's no point in fighting it, that's for sure"
"Right. For now, let's just hope that doesn't happen" Lisa agreed.
"With that out of the way, we should get going" Hiyori concluded, walking towards the Earth and Fire path.
"Alright. Take care, everyone" Lisa bid them farewell.
"Yeah, good luck" Love said, raising his hand and following the two girls.
"W-Wait up...!" Hachigen clumsily followed.
With the Vizards gone, the two remaining groups decided to go to their respective battles as well.
"So, you'll be heading for the water Prince, right?" Gin asked them.
"It looks like it" Renji nodded. "Our powers should do well against that Demon"
"Then we'll take care of the wind bastard" Grimmjow replied.
"We will be rooting for you" Urahara told them. "Too bad that I won't be able to witness your abilities, Ichimaru-san"
"Oh, they're nothing out of the ordinary, I swear" He giggled. "But that's gonna be all it takes to finish it..."
"In any case, we should start moving now. We'll make a strategy on the way there" Harribel assured.
"Sure, we'll be doing the same on our end" Yoruichi replied in a friendly way. "Once this is all over we could go have a drink, what do you say?"
"A... Drink? As in... Alcohol...?" Nel had told her about it.
"Yeah, you're always so serious and uptight. You should hang with us sometime!" She put an arm around her. "Nel had a blast when we did a girls evening a couple weeks ago"
"I'll... Think about it..." Harribel seemed flustered. "Now... I'm sorry, but I can't allow myself to be distracted"
"I understand. Do your best" She left her.
"Yeah..." She nodded. "Well, I'm not a Queen anymore... Maybe I could try being a normal girl once we're done here" She thought.
"Shall we go, then?" Gin smiled, walking to the Wind trail.
"Yeah, let's wreck 'em up!" Grimmjow braced himself for a real battle, readying his muscles.
"See you all later" Harribel bowed politely a bit and left.
The four remaining, all Shinigami, decided to start their journey into the Water Prince's lair, which was actually a princess.
"Who are we fighting? I think Ulquiorra mentioned it but..." Renji asked as they advanced.
"Don't worry. I think the name was Mizuwari, a sea-snake humanoid that apparently is a female" Urahara replied. "I'm quite interested in knowing just what we're going to find"
"You're not expecting her to be a gorgeous woman you can drool to, eh Kisuke?" Yoruichi teased.
"Of course not, Yoruichi-san" He chuckled. "With you I've got more than enough"
"Eh...? Don't tell me you two...!" Rukia blushed as soon as she realized the closeness between the two renegade Shinigami.
"Kisuke is... Just playing around!" Yoruichi replied, dismissing such a 'silly' idea.
"Eh? No, I'm not..." He denied. "Actually... You're the only woman I care about. At least in that way, Yoruichi-san" He looked at her in a way that a mature husband would behold his wife.
"Yeah, right..." She chuckled nervously.
"But I'm serious, Yoruichi-san! I thought it was obvious after all the time we've been together..."
"Now call it off, Kisuke! You're making me really uncomfortable..."
"Why? Because I'm showing my feelings for you in front of other people?" He digressed. "I'm sorry, but I just can't help myself. I love everything about you: Your figure, your dark skin, your dazzling yellow eyes, your free way of life, mischievous yet playful nature..."
"W-What...? What are you...?" Yoruichi blushed, getting all nervous. "Do you really???"
"We might not be married but... You're the closest thing to a wife I have, and you are most certainly the only partner I could wish to have in this and any other life..." He held her hand gently.
"Kisuke..." She muttered his name in a delicate tone, falling for him.
Yoruichi was never the sentimental type, but Urahara's words seemed so serious that she couldn't take it all so lightly anymore.
The fact that Urahara was her childhood friend as well as her first love did not help at all.
Rukia and Renji stared amused as they witnessed a side in the Shunpo Master probably a handful had ever seen.
"Pfffft... Ahahahahaha! That was so funny..." Urahara laughed. "You wanted to tease me, so I just played along but... Damn, you fell for it completely!"
"Eh...?" A drop appeared on her head as she realized her defeat.
"I never thought this would happen actually... After all, you always said that the mere idea of marriage made you vomit, as being tied to a single person all your life didn't suit you. I didn't have a problem with that, even when we were going out so, I just let it be. I had no idea that you still held such strong feelings for me... I was beginning to feel like a toy in fact, only useful when you wanted to play... Oh well, it makes me happy to see that I'm still someone special in your heart" Urahara said delighted.
"Hrngh..." Yoruichi growled, pissed off beyond repair as she realized it was all a farse. "Kisukeeeee!"
The woman punched him in the head with full force, making a large bump that grew in seconds.
"Owowow..." Urahara agonized. "Why? I just followed your little game..."
"You went too far, that's why" She coldly replied, crossing her arms as she continued the path. "That idiot..."
They kept moving forward, not looking back.
The path seemed to go really deep, but in the end, it didn't get to the Throne Room. They arrived at a mass of fierce waters surrounding the entrance to the real abyss.
It was a dark blue sea of constant crashing waves and whirlpools. There was, however, a bridge-like path that went through the middle of the waters and lead into a large temple, inviting them.
"Looks like we arrived" Renji commented.
"Inside that structure must be the wielder of Leviathan" Urahara added.
"What are we waiting for? Let's finish this so you can go help Ichigo with the Shadow Demon" Yoruichi said in reply. She still seemed a bit pissed.
As soon as they set foot in the stone bridge, two giant waves formed on both sides, menacing to slam them into nothingness.
They all noticed that immediately and quick-stepped as fast as they could into the palace.
Yoruichi got first, followed by Urahara, Rukia and finally Renji, who entered just in time before the waves destroyed the bridge.
"Shit... That was a close one" Renji panted.
"We should've known it was a trap..." Rukia said.
"Still, the true battle hasn't even began" Urahara said as he walked further inside the temple.
They all followed into what seemed to be the main chamber.
Inside, there were statues of various mythological beings that were related to water: Selkie, Kelpie, Scylla, Charybdis, Pegasus, Bellerofon, Triton and, of course, Poseidon.
"These Demons have better taste than I thought" Rukia pointed out. "Though my brother clearly surpasses their artistic sense" She proudly concluded, remembering the breathtaking image of Ambassador Seaweed.
"Whatever you say, Rukia..." Renji chuckled, knowing about it first-hand.
Once they entered the final room, they encountered a more shocking sight.
"What the...?" Renji muttered as they witnessed a great amount of randomly placed statues.
Some seemed to be Arrancar, a couple humans and other had Soul Reaper clothes.
They had two things in common: All of them seemed to be good-looking and all of them were either screaming or in a state of shock.
"My... I hadn't noticed that I had guests" A woman spoke, echoing in the room.
Despite there being a throne in the back of the chamber, it was apparently empty, so she had to be lurking somewhere else in the room.
"We don't have much time" Rukia said pissed. "Show yourself!"
The Princess of water slithered to her throne from one of the dark corners.
"What a party crasher... That's why I prefare males... ~fufufu~" The Demon laughed. "Though I have no trouble fooling around with females either, it depends on the day..." She maliciously licked her lips. "I, Mizuwari, welcome you to the temple of Leviathan"
Her lower body was completely like a snake's, having beautiful scales of different tones of blue. She also had pale blue-ish skin and a really well-developed chest, probably comparable to Rangiku's, which she proudly displayed with a dress of the same tone as the deep blue gem that was in her collar. She also happened to show off a mane of curly orange hair, vivid yellow eyes and lips with an electric blue makeup lipstick.
"You seem to be quite carefree, considering the fact that we're gonna kill you" Yoruichi said.
"Oh dear... If only you knew how many times I've heard words like those" She replied. "You're not the first to enter Jigoku in an intent to defy Yama-sama. The most common thing, however, is to find powerful prisoners who get tired of being punished and try to abolish the system... To no avail, of course"
"Look, don't act like you don't know what you're doing" Rukia refuted. "The past is one thing, but right now, you are attacking other worlds in order to get the power to conquer Takemagahara"
"Oh... You've been doing your homework, I see" She got up from her throne. "Then I guess there is nothing left for us to discuss..."
"Don't lower your guard" Urahara whispered to all, making them use Shikai just in time.
Mizuwari disappeared from their sight in less than a second, at the same time as pressurized water lances and shots attacked them from every possible angle.
"Dammit!" Renji cursed, evading the water with difficulty, since some of the attacks managed to cut him a bit.
Rukia on her end, was freezing everything that attempted to touch her, but even then, there were so many attacks in so little time that she needed a lot of concentration to be able to protect herself flawlessly.
"Tch... Yoruichi-san, could you...?" Urahara asked his friend.
"I'll do it, but don't you dare activate that thing!"
"Okay, okay..." Urahara replied, elegantly dodging a torrent of water. "As long as we're not in danger, of course..." He crossed his fingers.
Yoruichi didn't even throw away her clothes as she activated her special ability.
"Shunkou: Raijin Senkei!"The electric God's drums formed on her back and her bangs rose to form horns, as a tremendous amount of Reiatsu was released in the temple.
"Is this... Yoruichi-san...?" Rukia wondered in disbelief.
"Holy..." Renji felt the same.
In a flash, Yoruichi grinned as she caught up to the speed of the Princess. She was really quick, but nowhere near the Shunpo Goddess.
"What?" Mizuwari muttered to herself as she saw Yoruichi passing by her side.
"Time for some grilled Unagi!" She replied, grinning as she punched the Demon with a paralyzing surge of electricity.
Mizuwari was sent flying backwards and easily crashed into one of the temple's walls, hissing in pain.
"Tssssss!!!" Her proud look was completely disfigured by Yoruichi's assault. "You... Whore...!"
"Ahahahaha!" She proudly laughed at the Demon. "Is that all you got? Man, and here we were squishing our brains out to find a way to beat you all..."
"Oh, you'll see! I never thought you would leave me no other choice but to release it... But here goes! I'll enjoy seeing your faces of despair as you join my collection!" She broke free from the wall and threw a large torrent of water in all directions, preventing Yoruichi from stopping her.
"Fuck!" She cursed, unable to pass without taking serious damage. "I can't risk myself to make such a sacrifice in vain" She thought.
"Enrage the seas... Leviathan!"
And the Majinbuki was activated.
The temple reacted to the weapon's release, and an abysmal sound deafened the four Shinigami.
"What is that?!" Rukia asked worried as they regrouped.
"It sounds like... The seas are rising" Urahara replied. "And we along with them"
And just like he predicted, the roof of the temple crumbled as the temple floated above the dark sea of monstrous currents and waves.
"Mwahahahahahaha!" Mizuwari laughed, now with a distorted sissing voice. "Ssso... Are you ready to drown in dessspair?!"
She had turned into a complete monster. A bestial reptilian creature of gigantic proportions was upon them. Her tail had grown to a size of 20 meters, and was as wide as an old tree-trunk. Her scales now had green and aquamarine tones as well, and her upper body was naked, but not alluring in any way, and had the blue stone that was in her collar embedded in the center of her chest. She was holding a giant golden trident in one of her abnormal muscular arms. The most prominent change though, was how her beautiful hair had changed into a living mess of red snakes that threatened to attack them.
"I might be wrong..." Urahara started. "...But I think she will turn us into stone as soon as we stare directly into her eyes"
"No way! Like... That Greek legend?" Rukia asked back.
"I think so, otherwise, those poor statues over there wouldn't exist in the first place"
"Diluvium!" The serpent attacked.
Cyclones of water fell from the sky, pursuing each of the four around the crumbling temple.
"So this is the real power of a Prince of Hell..." Yoruichi thought.
"Bankai: So-Oh Zabimaru!" Renji decided to go all out, helped by a large monkey's arm to escape the attacks.
"Aquariusss!" Mizuwari said as she directed the trident at them, shooting waves of pressurized water.
Urahara cut the waves in pieces with Benihime, while Rukia froze them with Sode no Shirayuki.
Yoruichi simply evaded everything thanks to her godspeed ability. She was like a lightning as she moved through the temple.
"Over here!" She teased Mizuwari as she kicked her in the face, electrifying some of her snakes.
"RRRAAAGGGHHHH!!!" She screamed in pain, crumbling in the temple. "I'll make you pay! You ssslut!"
Mizuwari fought back, trying to hit Yoruichi with her tail as she threw more waves at her.
"Why?!" Leviathan screamed. "Why are they so happy?! Why are they so pretty?! While I rot in this Hell with this mortal glare!!!"
A disgusting dark aura started emanating from the Demon's body.
Suddenly, Renji felt a great rage emanating from the deepest parts of his heart.
"Hihioh! Orochioh! Hihioh!" He attacked relentlessly, losing his mind.
On the other end, Rukia was feeling really blue, to the point her body was heavy and her mind had lost all will to fight.
"What...? What's going on?" She muttered as tears escaped her eyes.
Yoruichi on her part, became suddenly afraid, to the point in which she stopped moving.
"Why? Move... Move...! MOVE!" She screamed, but her limbs would not respond and her mind couldn't think clearly.
"Now you're mine!" Mizuwari spouted triumphantly. "Gorgon Eye!"
A beam of white light was shot from Mizuwari's eyes directly to Yoruichi.
The cat-woman saw her life flashing before her as the light threatened to turn her into lifeless stone.
The sound of metal, woke her up from her vision.
"Ki... Kisuke...!" She managed to murmur as she saw the man who saved her.
"What? Why are you not affected by the Majin Aura?!"
"So that's what you call this... I thought it was strange how I suddenly felt so much disgust for your kind..." Urahara carelessly muttered. "Or maybe I was feeling that way ever since Yadomaru-san told me how she felt an inexplicable darkness rising inside of her. Manipulating other's feelings is most certainly awful, but amplifying the darkness inside of their hearts, for as little as it is... Yeah, it makes me wanna destroy you!" Urahara slashed his way to Mizuwari, not wasting any time as he thought the fastest way to obtain victory. "I'm sorry, Yoruichi-san, but I'm gonna need your other self for a bit"
~~~~X~~~~
"This is the old entrance to the Throne of Jigoku" Ulquiorra explained as they were in front of a colossal metal gate with unknown runes carved in it. "Yama's lair is just ahead"
"Great. I find strange that no Demons were blocking our path, however" Ichigo commented.
"Maybe we killed them all in Hueco Mundo" Nel replied innocently.
"No, Ichigo is right" Ulquiorra denied. "The Reiatsu of the personal army of each Prince is missing, as well as Yama's Guard. Something is weird"
From the gate's shadow, a presence rose in the blink of an eye, kicking Nel and Ulquiorra behind the gate as it closed, impenetrable.
"Ichigo!" Nel and Ulquiorra yelled from the other side.
Kurokage clashed his blade against the Hollow King, preventing him from letting his Espadas support him.
"What did you do to them?!"
"Don't worry, they're safe there..." The plague-mask Demon replied. "I told you last time, I want your head. I'll kill them as soon as I finish with you, so you should be grateful that I'm sparing them for a bit"
"You piece of shit!" Ichigo insulted as he remembered the way in which he killed the Arrancar village. "Why did you have to do that? You could've just attacked me!"
"Why? Because it's fun. For us, you're nothing, not insects, not trash... Your lives are not even worth naming, yet you proudly do so. If you only considered how ephemereal your existence is, you would probably get a notion of this"
"I don't give a shit about what an empty being like you thinks" Ichigo replied. "All I know is that I'm done giving chances to enemies of your kind. You will pay for everything you've done, with your blood!" Ichigo blasted a black and red Cero from his finger at Kurokage. "Void... Las Noches!"
~~~~X~~~~
Urahara grinned as the giant princess slashed the Demon relentlessly.
"YEEEAAARRGHHH!" She screamed loudly, as Urahara had guided her syraight into Renji's berzerk attacks.
"How do you like that, Mizuwari?! Is my Benihime playing to rough with you? Or maybe Abarai-san is? In any case, this should serve as an example as to why it is a bad idea to get the worst of a person out during a battle" Urahara coldly stated, enjoying the way in which the giant monster had to 'dance' in order to escape death.
"Hissssss...! You... Mortal Sssoul!" Mizuwari screamed. "Don't think you are ssso high and mighty becaussse you overcame your own darknesss. Thisss battle isss far from over!"
The water Majin attacked Benihime with her trident. Mizuwari was stronger, but even so, the attacks had left her tired and out of focus.
In a desperate intent to win, the Demon decided to use her strongest attack.
"Capsssizsing The Sseasss..." She hit the ground strongly with Leviathan.
The waters around them started rising again, but instead of elevating the temple, they started engulfing it.
"This is bad..." Urahara instantly noticed.
"Fufufufuf... Ahahahahahaha!" Mizuwari laughed madly. "You'll be drowning in the flood in the nexsst minute! There'sss no way you can posssibly save yourssselvesss, and if you think I'm done, think again!" She pointed her trident at the sky. "In Wavesss!"
From every direction, a monstrous mass of water was rising, attempting to end their lives in a single second when the moment came.
"I see..." Urahara muttered, pulling his hat down, shadowing his eyes.
"Hahaha! Have you given up?!" Mizuwari triumphantly spat.
"Heh... Do you really think that I would dare give up after seeing everything my pupil has done?" He asked mockingly.
"What?!" Mizuwari's face shook, unable to underdtand how that Shinigami could still fight.
"It's true... I might not be his only teacher, and I didn't even try to build a close relationship" Urahara admitted. "But to see that kid growing is a most fascinating thing... And I'm not the only one who thinks so"
"Nyyyaaaahhh!" Neko Yoruichi scratched Mizuwari's body in a flash.
"AAARRGGHHH!"
"We won't be leaving this world behind anytime soon, as we want to keep seeing his accomplishments and enjoying the fact that we taught him all the basics" Urahara knocked out Renji, who was still attacking the air, blinded by rage. "The main reason no one can defeat Kurosaki Ichigo is most certainly his own heart, but the ones who gave him the weapons and training to use that heart..." Urahara ordered Benihime to slash Mizuwari another time. "...Was us"
Urahara released 'Shunkou: Raiju Senkei: Shunryū Kokubyō Senkei' on Neko Yoruichi.
"Nyah! Nyah! Nyah! Nyaaaahhhh!" The cat woman attacked, frenzied.
"And we'll keep going further to see what kind of world he shows us... What balance Can he bring to this reality? Ahahahaha..." Urahara chuckled just by the fascination that thought gave him. His smile turned into a dead serious face as he finally decided to finish it. "End it, Benihime"
"NOOOOOO!!!" Mizuwari screamed in pain as Yoruichi's cat form and Urahara's Bankai teared her into pieces. "All my beauty... All my being... All my life... Ended when I decided to follow the one who defied the gods" She thought in her final moments. "I'm sorry, Sorayama... In the end, I couldn't protect you for all eternity... But at least... I can assure you... My love... Will never leave you..."
A flashback showed her in her angelic form, taking care of a young God back in Takemagahara. She had blue eyes and hair, and her skin was white as snow.
She would always console the young God when he was feeling blue, and he called her Mizu-nee as she was always there for him.
As the God matured, she saw how his heart was tainted by the envy other Gods had of him and the disdain many others shared as he was born from a long banished male God. Even his mother seemed to feel disgusted every time she looked at him as a young adult, as it reminded her of the father.
Mizu-nee, like always, continued supporting him and swore to always be by his side, to which the God vowed to always love her, be it in the light of the Heavenly Garden... Or in the darkness of The Abyss.
"I lve you too, Sorayama!" She hugged and kissed him, although such a thing was strictly prohibited.
"You'll always be with me... Right?"
"Always, young Lord..." She bowed, blushing.
"Good... Cause you see, I'm getting tired of this place..." The God confessed, setting his plan for vengeance in motion.
Back in the present, Mizuwari's roasted reptile body was dissassembled by Urahara's Bankai in uncountable ashes.
"Now... Let's see how we get out of this" Urahara said as he bestowed upon the gigantic tsunami that was about to swallow them.
Rukia woke up from her trance as soon as the life of Mizuwari disappeared, realizing the danger they were in.
"Oh no... Renji! Urahara-san! Youru-"
"We know, and don't worry about him, he's just taking a nap" Urahara said with Renji on his shoulder, while Yoruichi stood in four paws to his side, moving her tail angrily from side to side. "Could you help us, Kuchiki-san?"
Rukia understood what he said immediately, though still afraid of failing.
"I... Need some space" She warned.
"Alright, just make sure you're quick"
Urahara gave her the space as she concentrated in an instant to save them all.
"Bankai: Hakka no Togame!" She turned into a white snow princess as she created a giant pilar of snow and ice. "Climb that for now"
"Alright" Urahara nodded, doing as she told him.
Yoruichi, despite being in cat form, understood that what the man was doing was the safest way to proceed.
Rukia stayed in the temple as the waves came.
"Kuchiki-san...! What are you...?"
"Don't worry" She calmly said. "This is just water"
As soon as the waves crashed the giant pilar of ice shook, breaking into pieces.
"Woah!" Urahara exclaimed, falling into the water below, only to be caught in an ice platform that rose from it. "Huh?"
"Nya?" Neko Yoruichi also made a sound of confusion as she fell on the iceberg.
He left Renji in the floor carefully to have a better look. They were floating in the dark waters, on top of a large piece of ice.
Rukia walked to them, slowly recovering her temperature, as she had to go to the absolute zero in order to freeze those waters instantly.
"You did it, Rukia-san!"
"Y-Yeah..." She replied, exhausted and still a bit confused. "What happened... In the middle of the fight? I feel like my mind is blank"
"Something that has me really worried and that might affect our friends" Urahara replied, looking at the uncoscious Renji. "It seems that they are able to get strong negative emotions out of a person, troubling them greatly during a fight of this caliber. I don't know if it's a completely conscious ability or not, but it's something we must take seriously"
"Nya!" Neko Yoruichi jumped on top of Urahara, licking his face happily as she purred on top of him.
"Also... Is that Yoruichi-san?" She asked amused.
"Well, it is Yoruichi, but it's clearly not her usual self" He answered, petting the Neko girl, who happily cuddled with him.
"She really seems to like you in that form" Rukia pointed out.
"Well, maybe she does have something of the normal Yoruichi in her... She just, expresses it in a pretty more blunt way, hahaha!"
"~Nyaaa~" Yoruichi licked his face a bit more.
"In spite of that... I don't like taling advantage of her in this form" Urahara confessed. "Even if she acts this way now, there might be a reason for her not to do so the rest of the time. Yoruichi-san is really proud, so she might never want to admit that she could be happier if she reconsidered some things... But that's her choice in the end"
"Does that have to do with what you said earlier? That bit about marriage" She asked.
"Yeah. We do not hold a formal relationship nowadays, and she never really says how she feels so, it is quite hard knowing what she really wants, you know?" Urahara smiled as he saw how the Neko girl played with the snowflakes that flew on the iceberg. "But if she ever wants to talk about it... I'll be all ears"
Rukia thought about her own relationship with Renji. She realized that she felt something special for him back in their fight with the 4th Duke, Ichika, but she still hadn't thought much about it.
"If by any chance... I loved Renji... Would I want to hide my true feelings like Yoruichi-san?" She thought. "Or would I rather...?" She remembered how Nel carelessly showed her affection towards Ichigo, blushing. "There has to be another way in the middle between those two!"
"Well, I should be going in order to check on Kurosaki-san" Urahara concluded, inflating a special futton for Neko Yoruichi to lay and sleep. "Don't worry about her, she goes to normal after some sleep, and that thing is specially designed to make her do that"
Neko Yoruichi yawned as she laid on the inflatable futton.
"Ah, okay" Rukia nodded. "Please, don't let anything happen to Ichigo"
"Who do you think I am?" He inquired with a confident smile. "I won't lie... I'm reaching my limit, but if my hunch is correct, I'll be able to put an end to that pesky shadow's life"
"Good luck, Urahara-san"
"Same to you, Kuchiki-san"
After all these years, I finally learned how to put these special lines lol.
Sorry if these first Chapters are a bit shorter, but it is that way cause they are fight-based. That means they are slow to write and not much is happening in reality, but I'm doing my best to make it look cool.
Reviews:
Antex-The Legendary Zoroark: Wow! Great chapter! Man oh man! Love galore in this chapter! ''Twas a beauty to read! And I agree with ya. A simple kiss is the most effective way to show your love/passion/desire/etc.
In any case, continue the good work!
P.S. How much did Parasol Nel cost you? I might buy her myself along with Blue Attribute Nel if I don't get them regularly.
Reply: Good to see that you liked it and that you agree with me on that matter.
In my country, the 'Choose a Seasonal' Pack costed about 66 Dollars (making the comparison between U$ and my local currency).
See you next time! Evhron out.
Glosary:
Diluvium: A flood. Also, an album by Obscura.