The throne room was dark, darker than most of Las Noches.
The Arrancar did not know why their lord kept it so. He did not need the dark to instill fear.
Perhaps, after over a century of pretending to live in the light, Aizen Sosuke was simply savoring the opportunity to show his true colors.
When the mighty doors of the throne room opened, the area was bathed in the bright light of the hallway outside. Several Arrancar, including a few of the powerful Espada, shielded their eyes from the sudden brightness.
Aizen turned to those who had entered and smiled as if there had been no change in the room's lighting.
"Ulquiorra, Yammy, welcome."
He turned away again as the two Espada entered. They saw that they were the last to arrive.
The doors closed, bathing the throne room in darkness again.
Aizen stood in front of a small figure covered from head to toe in bandages.
"It won't be long now," he said in a slow, deep voice.
The Espada had become used to the tone Aizen always used when addressing them, a tone of satisfaction, as if everything was going according to plan.
He held out a small crystal ball, the same device he had ripped from Rukia Kuchiki's body the day he left the Soul Society.
"The Hogyoku will awaken exactly when the Soul Society expects it to. But it has abilities they don't know about. I doubt even Kisuke Urahara, the man who invented it, knows about it."
The Hogyoku began to glow. "If someone with twice the spirit energy of a captain were to join with it, the Hogyoku's full power would be awakened for a brief period, even if it is still in a dormant state."
The bandages on the creatures were suddenly torn apart, revealing a new, fully formed Arrancar.
Aizen put the Hogyoku away and addressed the small figure sitting on the floor in front of him.
"Can you tell me your name, new comrade?"
The new Arrancar turned his head slightly in confusion, but it answered.
"Wonderweiss … Wonderweiss Margela."
Aizen smiled and turned his head to Ulquiorra.
"Do you remember the order I gave you approximately one month ago?"
"Of course, Lord Aizen," Ulquiorra responded.
"The time has come to carry it out. I will even give you the choice of taking whomever you like with you."
"Thank you, sir."
Aizen walked away from Wonderweiss and towards his throne. He stopped and looked at a figure who sat apart from the Espada.
"Would you like to go as well, Grimmjow?"
The blue-haired former Espada hissed.
Rukia did not come to school that day.
It was to be expected. Captain Ukitake had summoned all of the Shinigami under his command for special training, and Rukia would not disobey a direct order.
But with Toshiro still replaced by Zilla and Uryu still absent altogether, only Orihime and Chad were left in their class from those who had been in the Soul Society and knew about the Arrancar.
Orihime and Chad decided not to sit together for lunch. They did not want people assuming they were a couple, and the school rumor mill already had enough to say about their little 'club.'
Orihime sat down next to Tatsuki, who looked away with an awkward expression.
"So, um, "hi?" Orihime said nervously, trying to start up a conversation.
"Hi," Tatsuki responded. Orihime could tell she was still upset about their last conversation.
"Listen, do you want to go with me to the mall after school?" Orihime asked.
Tatsuki turned to look at her.
"You're not to 'busy?'"
"Nope!" Orihime declared. "I've got a day off."
Orihime smiled and assumed the cheerful, fast-paced tone which had been her default mode of communication before she had been drawn into the world of Shinigami and hollows. "This is a one-time offer. I can't be sure when I'll have free time like this again."
Tatsuki smiled. "All right. I'll meet you at the mall after I've dropped my stuff off at home."
"Great! I wonder if they've got any new stores, or maybe the arcade has some new games!"
"I'm bored!" Mashiro complained.
"What's there to be bored about?" Shinji asked her in a bored tone of voice himself. "It's not like you've been doing anything other than sitting there when we train."
"But watching you guys fight is exciting, at least! Now there's nothing going on, and I'm so bored!"
Shinji looked over at where Toshiro and Hachi were talking. 'Nothing indeed,' he thought.
"As I'm sure you're aware from your own zanpakuto," Hachi was explaining to the boy, "a chain requires a throwing motion to wrap around its target. You should think of it as a solid object, subject to the same laws of physics."
"I think I understand," Toshiro responded. He looked at a dummy Hachi had set up for practicing.
He began to slowly recite the incantation before thrusting his arm at the dummy.
"Bakudo Number 63: Sajō Sabaku!"
A chain of yellow energy burst forth from Toshiro's palm and wrapped itself around the dummy many times.
"Marvelous!" Hachi yelled happily. "You've done it!"
Toshiro closed and opened his hand several times. Unlike the chain of his zanpakuto, the kido did not require him to hold onto the end of the chain to keep his opponent trapped. While it meant that he could not pull or throw them, it also meant that he could use the spell from a greater distance and that it could not be used against him the way Renji had used Hyorinmaru's chain to spin Toshiro around and throw him into a wall.
"Now let's see if I can do it without the incantation," he said.
Shinji turned away from watching them. Heyawned and decided to lie down.
'I guess I know how he skipped two years of school and still remained top of his class,' he thought. 'Kid doesn't know how to stop working for two seconds.'
No one could train all day, every day. Toshiro had trained like that in order to achieve Bankai, but that had been for only three days, and he had pushed himself to the absolute limit doing so. His training with the Visoreds had lasted a full month so far, and would presumably have another three months to go before the final confrontation.
They needed to take extended breaks after several hours of fighting. The body had limits beyond which there was no point in pushing. It was an aspect of training all Shinigami knew.
But Toshiro was not content to simply rest during those periods between hollowification training sessions. He had found in Hachi another way in which he could improve his skill by furthering his mastery of kido.
The former second in command of the Kido Corps was happy to teach his craft to another.
It was not the most well-rounded education, as Hachi specialized in Bakudo and healing spells. He was not comfortable with purely offensive kido. In addition, Toshiro found that he was not good at casting healing spells.
Over the previous month Toshiro had learned Bakudo spells of increasing level and power and was now practicing sixties-level incantations. And as his understanding of the theory behind kido grew, so too did the power of his hado spells and the control he had over them.
In Shinji's opinion, Aizen had made a grave mistake in setting the time for his battle with the Shinigami. Four months was an eternity for someone as young as Toshiro Hitsugaya to improve his skills. There was no telling what the boy would be capable of if he kept going at the same pace after another few months.
"Aaaawwaaaa!"
Yumichika was screaming and cursing as he repeatedly struck a large stone sticking out of the ground with his zanpakuto.
"What's the matter?" Renji asked him.
"My Fuji Kukaku is such an obnoxious snob! He's so bossy and he thinks that he's the best looking guy in the whole world! I hate him!"
"Join the club," Renji said. "My Zabimaru is an arrogant, stubborn prick who won't take no for an answer and is constantly insulting me."
Rukia opened her eyes where she had been meditating. "Didn't you achieve Bankai, Renji? And you still can't get along with your zanpakuto?"
"Lucky for me Zabimaru is as obsessed with strength and fighting as I am," Renji responded. "He's still a pain in the ass though."
Of all the Shinigami gathered in the park, only Captain Ukitake did not have any problems with his zanpakuto or react to those who did.
They were attempting to commune with the spirits in their swords, to strengthen the bond between warrior and weapon. A zanpakuto's personality usually reflected the personality of the Shinigami who wielded it, a fact which often led to conflict between the two.
Ukitake seemed completely at ease despite the shouts of his subordinates. So Ikkaku was surprised when the captain suddenly opened his eyes and looked at the sky with a troubled expression.
"What is it, sir?"
"Something's wrong," Ukitake said. "There's a disturbance in the air."
The Shinigami stopped their arguments and looked at the sky as well in apprehension.
A tear appeared in the sky, at first forming a horizontal black line.
"A garganta!" Ukitake yelled, causing the Shinigami to assume their battle stances.
The tear in the sky began to rip itself open vertically, revealing a black void.
Four figures dressed in white stepped into the mouth of the void. The force of their power instantly caused the air to become heavy across the whole of Karakura town.
"Four Arrancars?" Yumichika asked in trepidation. "They're a little early, aren't they?"
"They are," Ukitake agreed. "But we don't have time to wonder about why right now. All that matters is that we stop them."
The reiatsu passed through Chad and Orihime like a shockwave, even though they were both in their homes, far away from where the Arrancar had appeared.
Chad wiped away the sweat which had just formed on his forehead and ran out of his house.
Orihime put down the purse she had just prepared for her trip to the mall and looked at it sadly.
'I'm sorry, Tatsuki,' she thought. 'Looks like I won't be able to make it.'
Yammi smiled as he looked out over the edge of the garganta.
"Looks like we picked a good place to show up. There are a bunch of people with strong reiatsus down there."
A smaller Arrancar with black hair bent down to get a better look. "Those are Shinigami. They must be the reinforcements from the Soul Society Mr. Six told us about."
He looked back at Grimmjow. "Right?"
Grimmjow ignored him and looked to the side. His torso was covered in scars from the burns he had suffered in his last fight, and his left arm was missing, having been cut off in punishment for his earlier willful actions.
"Oh, right. I'm sorry. I meant the former six," the small Arrancar taunted.
"Watch it, Luppi," Grimmjow growled.
"Besides," he said, "the guy I'm looking to kill isn't even down there with them."
Grimmjow leapt out of the garganta and shot forward to search the town for his prey.
As he left, the other Arrancar could see what remained of the number six tatoo on his back, and how it was mostly covered by burn scars.
Once Grimmjow was gone, Yammi clenched his fist in frustration. "The guy I want to kill isn't down there either?"
"And which one was that?" Luppi asked. "The one who tore off your arm or the one who broke your jaw?"
Yammi grinned. "Both of them."
The large Arrancar leapt at the Shinigami. Ukitake rose to meet him, and the two locked blades.
"I'm Jushiro Ukitake, Captain of Squad Thirteen," the white-haired captin told his opponent.
"A captain, huh? I'm Arrancar Ten, better know as Yammi."
Ukitake's eyes widened. "Ten? Then that means you're an Espada!"
The other Shinigami surrounded Lupi, who had emerged from the garganta in a slower manner than his comrades.
"What about you?" Yumichika asked. "Are you also an Espada?"
"That's right," the black-haired Arrancar answered. "My name is Luppi. I'm ranked number six."
As the garganta closed behind him Rukia noticed a fourth figure emerge. The blonde Arrancar ignored them, becoming distracted by several passing birds.
"Hey, you see that one?" she said softly to Renji.
"Yeah. What do you suppose up with him?"
"I don't know, but his power seems to be around the same as these two. We'd better keep an eye on him in case he tries something while we're fighting the others."
"So there's five of you, huh?" Luppi said, looking at all the Shinigami. "I hope at least one of you can put up a decent fight."
Kensei, Love, and Rose were blocking the exit to the Visored's hideout.
"You are not leaving in the middle of your training again," Kensei declared.
"I don't have time for a debate," Toshiro said angrily. "Get out of my way or I'll make you move."
"This is what your friends from the Soul Society are here for!" Love yelled.
"And they only brought one captain. That will never be enough against four enemies like these. I've fought two of these powers before. I know just how powerful they are.
"If you're so worried about me," Toshiro said, "why don't you all come out and help?"
"I'm afraid we can't do that," Shinji said.
Toshiro turned around. "What?"
Shinji put his hands in his pockets and leaned back against a large boulder as he explained.
"We hate Aizen, but we also hate Shinigami. We have no beef with the Arrancar, so there's no reason for us to get involved now.
"Sorry to disappoint you, kid, but we're not risking our necks for anyone who isn't one of us."
Toshiro glared at Shinji for what seemed an eternity.
"Then I guess I'm not one of you," he said at last.
Shinji nodded. "Let him go," he told his fellow former captains.
"Are you nuts?" Kensei yelled.
"You heard the man," Shinji said. "He's not one of us. There's no reason for him to be here any longer."
Kensei scowled, but he and the others parted, allowing Toshiro to run past them.
Toshiro flash-stepped across the city.
One of the Arrancar had broken away from the others and was heading for more populated areas. That alone would have compelled Toshiro to go after him even if the substitute Shinigami did not recognize his foe's reiatsu.
Grimmjow turned and began heading in Toshiro's direction soon after the boy had emerged from the Visoreds' hideout.
They met in the air over a residential neighborhood.
"There you are, Shinigami," Grimmjow said. "I've been looking for you."
The first thing Toshiro noticed were the scars on Grimmjow's torso. He had not seen a healer after their last encounter, allowing the burns to fester until they became a series of scars.
The next thing Toshiro realized was that the Arrancar's body had become asymmetrical, with the left sleeve of his jacket flopping uselessly in the air.
"What happened to your arm?" Toshiro asked. "Was Aizen really that angry you disobeyed his orders last time?"
"I just got rid of it," Grimmjow retorted. "I only need one arm to beat the likes of you."
"Is that so?" Toshiro could feel Hyorinmaru growing restless on his back. The sword was practically begging to have another go at the hollow who defeated them before.
'Just a bit longer, Hyorinmaru,' he thought.
"Tell me something. This time, are you actually following orders?"
"Lord Aizen did order this mission," Grimmjow said. "But he didn't order me to come along. I'm here to finish our fight from last time."
"I see."
Toshiro drew his sword.
"Bankai!"
Grimmjow grinned as his jacket and hair rustled in the wind produced as powered up.
Toshiro's ice wings glistened in the sunlight as he glared at Grimmjow with cold determination.
"You seem awfully confident for someone who went down after a single blow the last time we tussled," Grimmjow observed. "Did you hit your head when I smashed you into the ground?"
"A lot of things can change in a month," Toshiro responded. "This time you'll be the one who goes down after a single attack."
"Pretty big talk coming from such a weak little runt."
Toshiro raised his hand over his face.
'I can't sustain my hollowification for even a minute,' he thought, 'which means I can't give him any opportunity to counter-attack.'
He dragged his hand across his face, summoning his hollow mask.
Grimmjow gasped as he sensed both the surge in Toshiro's power and the change in its composition.
"What the hell is that?" he demanded.
Toshiro glared at him with eyes which glowed red behind a white mask. Two horns, each about an inch long, struck out of the forehead, while blue markings lined both sides of the mask.
"I wouldn't explain it to you even if I had the time," the boy said in a distorted, almost demonic-sounding voice.
In a movement which was almost to swift for Grimmjow to see, Toshiro's sword went from being held at his side to being pointed directly at the Arrancar's chest.
Grimmjow had no time to even draw his sword as his world went completely white.
A tremendous torrent of lightning burst forth from the tip of Hyorinmaru, striking Grimmjow with its full intensity.
The previous times Toshiro had used his lightning attack, it had been a single bolt launched in the blink of an eye, and over just as quickly. This attack was larger, being powered by his hollow form, and sustained.
As Grimmjow screamed in agony, the bright lightning could be seen across Karakura Town, by Chad and Orihime, who were each several blocks from their houses, and by the Arrancar and Shinigami fighting over the park.
Orihime stopped when she saw the bright light.
'That's where Toshiro is,' she thought.
'What do I do? Do I go over to where he is to try to help him? Or do I go to where everyone else is fighting?'
"Come with me, Orihime Inoue."
Orihime froze. A lump formed in her throat as she slowly turned to face the figure which had appeared behind her.
'The one from before,' she realized, remembering the day Yammi beat them all up in the park.
"No one is coming to help you," Ulquiorra Cifer said. "I have kept my reiatsu hidden, and your friends are all busy with their own battles."
The Espada was partially hidden in shadow as he spoke. He stepped forward, and Orihime's eyes widened in shock and terror at what she saw.
Toshiro's lightning lasted a little over fifteen seconds, but it seemed an eternity to Grimmjow.
When at last the onslaught ended, smoke and steam rose from his torso, which was burned beyond recognition.
He let out a soft moan and collapsed backwards, plummeting to the street below.
Grimmjow landed on his back in the middle of the street. He took several deep breaths before his eyes opened as wide as they could as Toshiro descended towards him at high speeds with a large spear made of ice in his left hand.
Toshiro stabbed the ice spear into Grimmjow's palm, pinning the Arrancar's one remaining arm to the pavement. Grimmjow let out a soft scream, being unable to raise his voice with the damage to his lungs and vocal cords.
Toshiro followed up by pointing his sword at Grimmjow's legs, unleashing a torrent of ice which bound the Arrancar's remaining limbs to the ground.
Toshiro then raised his hand to his face and withdrew his mask. He allowed his Bankai to dissipate and sat down. He was breathing heavily after using his Bankai and mask together for the first time.
"What the – " Grimmjow croaked. He strained to make his voice audible. "Why aren't you finishing me off?"
"I thought about it," Toshiro answered, "and if you still had both arms, I would have. But when I saw I only needed to worry about one arm, I figured capturing you would be the better option."
"I think the Soul Society could learn a lot from having a live Espada to study."
Luppi continued to stare at the site of the lightning even after it faded.
"Looks like Grimmjaw bit off more than he could chew. Oh well, it's no big loss."
Rukia and Rangiku attempted to attack him while he was distracted, but the Espada just swatted them away with one hand.
"This is boring. You're all so weak."
"Try this on!" Renji yelled. "Roar, Zabimaru!"
He launched the many-sectioned blade at Zuppi, but the Arrancar batted the attack away.
Renji cursed under his breath. The last one of Aizen's Arrancars he had faced had done the same thing to his Shikai, but that had been when he was fighting with his energy sealed to 20%. This Arrancar had done the same thing when Renji was fighting at full power.
"Are you really all just going to attack one or two at a time?" Luppi complained. "This will be so much less boring if I just took out all five at you at once."
"Did he say means to take us all out with one attack?" Rukia asked nervously.
Luppi reached for his sword.
"Strangle, Trepadora."
Not far away, Captain Ukitake continued his fight with Yammi.
Ukitake was faster than the large Espada, but Yammi's sheer physical strength was keeping the captain on the defensive.
Ukitake blocked a powerful overhand blow. The impact sent him sliding back almost ten meters.
Yammi grinned and raised his fist. Sparks of energy crackled between his fingers and his entire fist began to glow red.
Ukitake's eyes widened as Yammi unleashed the attack in an unbelievably fast projectile. He just dodged it.
"What was that?" Ukitake demanded. "That wasn't a cero."
"That was a bala," Yammi exclaimed excitedly. "It's not as strong as a cero, but it doesn't need to be, because it's twenty times faster!"
He launched another bala, and immediately had to shield his face from another energy attack.
Yammi lowered his singed arms and glared at Ukitake, who had summoned his double-bladed shikai.
"What was that?" the Arrancar demanded.
"Care to try again and find out?" Ukitake taunted him.
"All right," Yammi said, firing off a third bala. This time a similar attack struck him directly in the face.
"I've had it," Yammi growled. He opened his mouth and began to power up a cero.
When he fired the blast, it too was redirected back at him. The larger, more powerful attack completely enveloped the tenth Espada.
Ukitake watched as the smoke around Yammi slowly dissipated. The Arranca's clothes were torn had he had suffered numerous burns.
"I'm impressed," Ukitake said. "Your hiero must be something else to have taken so little damage from that cero."
:Why you – are you saying you can fire ceros?" Yammi yelled in frystration.
Ukitake pointed his sword at him. "Maybe. One thing is certain. You'll never beat me with those projectile attacks."
Luppi's Resurrección had formed eight long, white tentacles which emerged from his back. He immediately launched all eight tentacles at the five Shinigami.
Renji grabbed Rukia and leapt out of the way of the tentacles with her. But Ikkaku, Yumichika, and Rangiku were all captured by Luppi's tentacles.
"That's too bad," Luppi said, grinning maniacally. "I'd hoped to catch you all in that first move. But it really doesn't make a difference. You never stood a chance with odds of eight against five."
Rukia held out her palm. "Hado number 33: Sokatsui!"
Luppi held out one tentacle to block the kido spell.
"Why did the Soul Society even bother sending people as weak as all of you?" he wondered.
"Renji," Rukia said. "I've got an idea, but for it to work I need you to keep him distracted with your Bankai."
"I think I can do that," Renji said.
"If this works, you'll have a few seconds in which to hit him with everything you've got."
"Right." Renji raised his sword and yelled "Bankai! Hihiō Zabimaru!"
"A Bankai, huh?" Luppi asked. "Maybe you will be a little fun after all."
Luppi launched all five of his free tentacles at Renji, whose skeletal snake weapon was forced back by the onslaught.
Renji was forced the surround himself with his Bankai to keep the tentacles out.
"Come on!" Luppi yelled. "Is this all a Shinigami's Bankai is capable of?"
In his focus on Renji and his Bankai, Luppi had completely forgotten about Rukia, who slipt behind him.
"Tsugi no mai: Hakuren!"
Luppi turned his head just in time to see a wave of ice strike him from behind. The attack froze the base of the tentacles on his back, limiting their movement.
"Now! Rukia yelled.
Renji threw his sword forward.
"Hikotsu Taiho!"
Red energy traveled up Zabimaru's body, becoming visible between the joints. The snake baboon skull opened its mouth, releasing a massive energy beam directly at Luppi.
Had Renji struck a second later, Luppi would have been able to free himself from Rukia's ice and block the attack with his tentacles. But he reacted fast enough that his attack struck true. Luppi screamed as he was enveloped in a massive explosion.
The tentacles let go of Ikkaku, Yumichika, and Rangiku.
"Thanks Renji," Rangiku said.
"Don't mention it," Renji said, looking at the smoke cloud his attack had created.
"THAT HURT!"
All the Shinigamis' eyes widened in fright as the smoke cleared.
Luppi was leaning forward and clutching his chest. Blood was dripping from the corner of his mouth. But all eight tentacles spun around wildly, and he glared at the Shinigami with an intense hatred.
"You-you'll pay for that! You'll all pay!"
"You're kidding me," Renji said. "He's still alive?"
"Die!" Luppi yelled.
Toshiro stayed by Grimmjow to ensure that he could not escape.
"You don't really think you've won, do you?" Grimmjow asked, speaking so softly that Toshiro had to lean closer than he would have liked to hear him.
"Go ahead. Bring me to the Soul Society. Let them dissect me and learn whatever they want. In the end, you're still gonna die."
"You're not exactly in the position to be making threats," Toshiro said.
"Oh, it's not a threat. Just a fact. You haven't seen me at my full power yet, and I was only the sixth Espada. If I'd released my zanpakuto, you'd already be dead.
"And even if you still somehow beat me, one of the other Espada would still kill you. We've got a recent recruit who's way stronger than I am, and also wants you dead way more than even I do. That Espada is obsessed with killing you."
"Why?" Toshiro asked.
Grimmjow grinned despite the agony he was in. "I'm not really sure. Seems you two know each other from somewhere."
'He's got to be trying to get in my head,' Toshiro thought. 'There's no way any Espada could hate me that much. Only the Grand Fisher wanted me dead that badly, and I killed him.'
"And Aizen, his power is beyond your comprehension," Grimmjow continued. "Why do you think hollows as powerful as the Espada serve him in the first place? It's because he's stronger than all of us combined."
"No matter how strong you get or who you beat, there will always be someone stronger."
"Maybe," Toshiro said, "but you won't be there to see it."
A bright light suddenly made Toshiro squint, and the ice holding Grimmjow's hand and legs shattered. Something small and fast shot past his face.
Reacting on instinct, Toshiro raised his sword -
And found himself pointing his blade directly at a teenage girl with long, strawberry blonde hair.
"Orihime?" he asked in shock.
'Oh my god,' he thought. 'If I hadn't stopped myself in time … '
He looked at his shaking sword hand, which was still pointed directly at his friend.
'Come on. Why won't you go down?'
Hyorinmaru would not budge. It wanted to attack Orihime, thinking she had attacked them first.
Toshiro looked up at Orihime, who was walking up to him and Grimmjow, ignoring the way her friend kept his sword pointed at her chest.
"What are you doing here, Orihime?" Toshiro asked. It was taking all of his willpower to keep Hyorimaru from launching an ice dragon at her.
Ignoring him, Orihime looked down at Grimmjow with a sad expression.
"Shun'ou…Ayame. Soten Kishun. I reject."
An orange energy field enveloped Grimmjow. Almost immediately, the burns Toshiro had inflicted on him began to heal and disappear, and the hole in his hand began to close.
"What are you doing?" Toshiro yelled.
Grimmjow chuckled as he slowly regained the strength to sit up. "Well, well," he said, his voice having returned to normal. "Looks like what was yours is now ours."
Toshiro stared in shock and horror as Orihime healed every injury Grimmjow had received that day.
As soon as Grimmjow was able to stand, a beam of yellow light show down from the sky, enveloping both the Arrancar and Orihime.
Elsewhere, similar beams of yellow light enveloped the other Arrancar, ending their fights prematurely.
"No … " Toshiro said softly. He reached out, but he knew there was no way he could reach Orihime when she was within the negacion.
As she and Grimmjow were slowly lifted into the air, Orihime finally turned to look at Toshiro.
"I'm sorry" was all she said, silent tears running down her face.
Toshiro watched as they were lifted into a tear in the sky. He dropped his sword as the tear closed.
They were gone.
Toshiro fell to his hands and knees. He was breathing heavily and his eyes stayed wide open.
"Orihime ... "