Toshiro sat on the floor of Orihime's living room.
"Four of us went up against the whole Soul Society, and we won without losing anyone. This time we'll have a whole army of Shinigami fighting alongside us, and we've got four months to prepare instead of just ten days like last time."
"We're gonna work and train as hard as we can so that when Aizen and his Arrancar show up, we'll make him regret the day he decided to mess with us."
That had been his promise to Orihime. But in a matter of hours, Aizen had somehow undone it all. From an army, they were reduced to two, Toshiro and Chad.
'What now?'
Were it not for the bars on the window, there would be nothing to suggest that the room was in fact a prison cell.
The room was spacious, about as large as a small house. But besides for the fancy red carpet and the bed it was completely empty.
It was also dark, with the only light coming through the window.
Orihime knelt in the crescent moonlight beneath the window.
'I was told to stay quiet in here,' she thought, 'but there's nothing for me to do. And I'm so hungry.'
She recalled the horror on Toshiro's face when he saw her appear to save Grimmjow, the way his little body shook as he struggled to comprehend her actions.
'I can't help but wonder if it was a good idea for me to come here. But I couldn't let them …'
She shook her head. 'No. I have to make them think that I'm of use to them. At least until everyone is prepared for the coming battle.'
"Orihime Inoue."
Orihime gasped and turned around. Ulquiorra Cifer was standing in the doorway to her cell, holding a white dress.
"I have brought you new clothes," the pale Espada said. "Now that you are one of us, you should dress the part."
"One of you?" Orihime whispered in fear.
Ulquiorra entered the cell and set the dress on the bed. He then turned to look at Orihime again.
"I thought you should know, we've received intelligence from the world of the living."
Orihime took a deep breath to keep herself from trembling.
"It seems that the Soul Society has withdrawn all Shinigami from Karakura Town, leaving Toshiro Hitsugaya all alone."
Orihime gasped. "No."
"Now that boy's defeat is certain,"Ulquiora declared, "and it's all thanks to you."
Toshiro had no idea how long he just sat there. For all he knew it might have been days. He remained motionless, going over the last battle in his head to tr to see what he had missed.
He almost didn't notice when the front door to Orihime's house opened and a short-haired girl entered.
She turned to enter the living room and stopped.
"Why am I not surprised?" she said, glaring daggers at him.
"Tatsuki?" Toshiro asked in surprise. His eyes widened at the site of the neck brace she wore.
"Where's Orihime?" Tatsuki demanded.
"So you can see me," Toshiro observed softly, ignoring her question.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Tatsuki yelled.
"Tell me what the hell is going on, Toshiro. I was on my way to meet Orihime when that pale freak from the park grabbed me by the neck."
Toshiro gasped.
"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.
"Tatsuki!"
Ulquiorra was holding an unconscious Tatsuki by the neck.
"You will come with me, or this girl dies."
Toshiro's hands clenched in anger.
"Ulquiorra …" he said, drawing out the last syllable.
The temperature in the living room dropped significantly and the walls became covered in a layer of frost as Toshiro finally stood up.
Tatsuki shivered, but she refused to back down. "I woke up in the hospital with this neck brace, but I can feel it. Orihime's gone."
Toshiro closed his eyes and replayed his fight with Grimmjow in his mind. He could picture Ulquiorra standing behind a corner with his reiatsu hidden, still holding Tatsuki as Orihime carried out his orders.
"I know you're involved somehow, Toshiro. I've seen you and Orihime fighting those things together. Now tell me everything!"
"Why didn't I see it sooner?" Toshiro said, becoming angry at himself as he opened his eyes again. "The hostage ploy is the oldest trick in the book."
"Hostage?" Now Tatsuki was shaking with rage in addition to shivering. "You mean they used me to get to Orihime? Why?"
Toshiro looked up with her. For the first time since Orihime's abduction, his face showed resolve.
"I'm getting her back," he declared.
"Fine," Tatsuki said. "And I'm coming with you."
"No you're not."
"Come on! You know how tough I am! I can help!"
Toshiro's eyes narrowed. "The fact that you're still alive can mean only one thing. They wanted you to tell me this now. It's a trap, and Orihime's the bait."
'And I've got no way of contacting the Soul Society to tell she's not a traitor,' he realized.
Tears began to gather in Tatsuki's eyes.
"Even if you weren't already hurt, it's far too dangerous for you."
He began to walk past her. "I will get Orihime back."
"Wait!" Tatsuki yelled. "Orihime's my fr-"
She grabbed Toshiro's shoulder as he passed and immediately collapsed to her knees. She clutched her arm which had gone numb from cold.
Toshiro looked down at her with a sad expression. "That was a tiny fraction of my power. If you can't stand up to that, you won't be able to survive even being in the presence of the people who took Orihime."
"And Orihime?" Tatsuki asked. "She can survive that?"
"She's a lot tougher than you think," Toshiro said before walking out.
'I'd hoped never to see this place again,' Toshiro thought.
He sighed as he approached the store. It looked just like he remembered it.
"Well, well, look who's come back," a familiar voice said.
"Betrayed by his friend, abandoned by his allies, all alone, the Heavenly Guardian now seeks the help of the person he hates most in the world."
"Aizen has overtaken you in that regard, Urahara," Toshiro said. "As have some of his flunkies. But I wouldn't be here if I had any other choice."
The man known as Mr. Hat and Clogs stepped out of his shop.
"You already know why I'm here. I need to get into Hueco Mundo, and you're the only one who can get me there."
"I can," Urahara admitted. "But are you sure about this? It will be incredibly difficult and dangerous."
"I was willing to take on the entire Soul Society to rescue Rukia," Toshiro said. "I can't do any less for Orihime. It's the right thing."
"Very well."
Urahara turned around and Toshiro followed him into the shop.
"There is a difference between this situation and Rukia's" Urahara said as they walked. "Rukia was going to be executed for her crime. But Orihime will be useless to them if they kill her. Bait is worthless dead. You're risking your life to save someone who may not need saving."
"I've considered that," Toshiro replied. "The first thing Aizen did after he got the Hogyoku from Rukia was order one of his men to kill her. He disposes of people the moment they're no longer of any use to him. If I don't go, eventually he'll decide Orihime is useless as a hostage and just kill her."
"Very well," Urahara said, opening the trapdoor to his underground training room. "But you won't be going alone."
"What?"
Toshiro leapt down the ladder to find Chad waiting for him.
The two comrades smiled at each other.
"I thought I'd find you here," Toshiro said.
Urahara climbed down the ladder. "Chad came here straight from Orihime's house. He's been waiting for you this whole time."
"I knew you'd come here eventually," Chad said.
"And there's one other person here," Urahara said.
Toshiro turned and his eyes widened.
Sitting on a rock in his familiar white uniform was Uryu Ishida.
"It's been a long time, Toshiro," the Quincy said.
Toshiro laughed a little and sat down.
"What's the matter?" Uryu asked. "Is it that surprising that I'd be here too?"
"I'm sorry," Toshiro said. "It's just – after everything that's happened it's great to finally have some good news."
Uryu's eyes narrowed. "You knew. You knew all along I had lost my powers, but you didn't say anything out of respect for my pride as a Quincy."
"But it seems you've got them back," Toshiro observed.
"Indeed, and not a moment too soon, it would appear."
Toshiro stood up, his expression turning serious. "I'm grateful for the help, but this is going to be much more dangerous than when we went to the Soul Society. Then we were dealing with people who were misguided, but basically good. They could be reasoned with, even if it required bashing their heads in first. The people who have Orihime are not like that. They are truly evil, and they can't be reasoned with."
"We both understand that," Uryu said.
"Orihime is our friend," Chad added. "As are you. That's all that matters. You can count on us."
"All right," Toshiro said. "There's one other problem."
He scowled, remembering how it was Orihime who brought the issue to his attention.
"Oh, it wasn't that hard. I just looked for the coldest reiatsu in town."
"I have a very distinctive reiatsu. Even when I'm hiding it, I give off a cold presence that will be felt by anyone looking for it. Knowing this I was not going to sneak around, but take a direct approach to challenging the Espada. But if we're going as a group, that is not an option."
"Do you really think you can take on all ten Espada at the same time?" Uryu asked.
"Under the right conditions," Toshiro said. "Even then, the risk to Orihime might be too great. As it is right now, neither option is viable."
"I may have something that can help with that," Urahara said.
Tessai approached, holding several grey items of clothing.
"These are special cloaks I developed over a century ago. They completely hide a person's reiatsu, even one as large as yours, Toshiro. With this you should be able to move about and even fight without anyone being able to sense you."
"I see," Toshiro said, taking the top cloak. "That's – that's a tremendous help."
Uryu and Chad also took a cloak for themselves and put them on.
"We should take an extra one for Orihime," Toshiro said. "With these we might be able to sneak in and out of there without needing to fight anyone."
"Why don't you take an extra three?" Urahara asked. "In case one of the ones you're wearing now tears."
"I can carry the extras," Uryu said.
"I have just one word of caution," Urahara said gravely. "The cloaks have been tested in a variety of conditions, but they have not been tested for Bankai or Hollowiification. I can't guarantee that they will work if you use any form above your Shikai."
"Understood," Toshiro said. "If that's everything, then I think we're ready to go."
"Right." Urahara led them to a pair of cliffs with large wooden beams sticking out of them.
"It's time," he said, leaping on the top of one of the beams.
He put his cane on the wooden surface of the beam and knelt down on one knee. The cane began to glow with a blue light.
"Here in my right hand the stone that connects the worlds. In my left hand the blade that binds existence. The shepherd with black hair. The chair of the noose. I strike the abyss where the clouds gather."
The blue light enveloped the beam Urahara was kneeling on completely before shooting out to the other beam. A tear formed in the fabric in reality between the two beams, revealing a black, formless void.
"This hole that the Arrancars come and go through is known as the Garganta," Urahara explained. "There is no solid ground beyond this point, only a chaos of reishi. Each of you must create his own path out of that reishi. Go towards the darkness and we will arrive in Hueco Muendo."
Toshiro looked up at him.
"Urahara, I still haven't forgiven you for what you did to Rukia," he said, "but I am grateful for the help you've provided us today."
"Don't mention it," Urahara said. "Just make sure you come back alive. We're all counting on you."
Toshiro looked into the Garganta with a steely expression. "I will. We all will."
"Let's go!"
Toshiro, Uryu and Chad leapt through the portal and into the void.
Author's note: Sorry for the wait with this chapter. There was a long period where I couldn't write because of a move and because I didn't have access to the episodes anymore, and when I was able to write again I got major writers block for this chapter. But it's back again now. I'll try to update all my stories regularly for the foreseeable future.