Aizen stood alone on the Sokyoku Hill, looking down over all of Seireitei. The Court of Pure Souls indeed, it had not taken much to bring about absolute chaos. The shinigami and their Gotei were so much weaker than they imagined. They were not a united force, but a discordant assembly, run more by the personal charisma of various captains than any unifying structure. It had taken so little effort to fracture the web of loyalties that held the Gotei together. The lieutenants, especially, were in chaos. Young and powerful was a dangerous combination, and the damage they were doing to the city and the people who depended on them, citizens and unranked shinigami, alike would take years to undo, but every last one of them was far too wrapped up in their own personal conflicts to notice.
It was, all in all, a beautiful sight, but, still, he was annoyed. Tosen was late. He should have brought Rukia to the hill by now, but instead he was playing with Ukitake's protege. Only while Aizen was watching did Tosen finally used his bankai to trap Shiba in darkness.
Kaien was lost the moment the darkness fell and he knew it. He could not fight someone he could not see or hear or sense in any way. All he could do was stand there and patiently wait for the end.
The fact that he felt each blow and was able to counter as it landed was only slowing the inevitable. He was bleeding from half a dozen different strikes, and, as the blood loss slowed his reflexes, each new wound was deeper, closer to the final fatal blow.
Finally, he could no longer maintain shikai, and Nejibana returned to its katana form. This was his end, separated from the entire world, even from his own senses. All that remained was pain. He almost laughed; so much for not dying alone.
His knees gave out, and he sank to the ground.
The cry, "Getsuga Tensho!" Might have filled him with hope, but he heard nothing, and he lost consciousness before the wave of power shattered Tosen's cage of darkness.
Toshiro noticed nothing until Unohana's hand was on his shoulder, pulling him away from his father's blood-drenched body. He looked up at the captain as she knelt beside him and tried to speak, but he had no words left.
"Captain Ichimaru," she said, meeting his eyes with her steady gaze. "Soul Society needs you now. Leave your father to me and go. Aizen must be stopped."
His eyes dropped to Gin. He really couldn't believe his father was still alive; there was so much blood.
"I will save him, Toshiro," Unohana said. "But you must save Rukia. If you don't, all of Soul Society may be destroyed."
Her words finally reached him through the shock. Toshiro staggered to his feet. He looked from his father to Hinamori, where Lieutenant Kotetsu was already at work. "I will stop him," Toshiro said firmly.
He turned and vanished from the room.
This is Lieutenant Kotetsu, speaking to all shinigami at the command of Captain Unohana. Aizen Sosuke is alive. We discovered him within the Assembly Hall of Central 46, surrounded by the bodies of every member of the assembly. They had been massacred days ago, and Aizen has been issuing false orders in their place.
He has exited the Hall, and Captain Unohana believes he is headed for Kuchiki Rukia. Her death is somehow instrumental to his plans. All Gotei forces must turn all efforts to stopping Aizen Sosuke.
Aizen frowned. Time was up, and Tosen did not have his hands on Rukia. He had been stopped by Ichigo of all people. Yoruichi had done her job well. The boy's bankai was impressive. He was moving at an incredible speed, easily avoiding Tosen's attacks and driving the captain further and further away from Rukia with attacks of his own.
Currently only Abarai Renji stood guard over the girl herself, but he could see multiple captains racing to converge on her location. Kyoraku and Ukitake were nearly there with Kurotsuchi's lieutenant in tow. Soifon had been momentarily distracted by Yoruichi, but Kotetsu's announcement had brought her to her senses and both women could reach Rukia in seconds.
Even Gin's boy was going to protect her. He was racing across Seireitei almost parallel to the General, himself, who had not even left his division until Kotetsu's announcement.
Aizen smiled. That would do for a distraction.
Kyoraku stopped and Ukitake beside him. Nemu looked from one captain to the other, picking up their sudden increase in tension.
"What's his next move?" Kyoraku asked, turning slowly, trying to take in as much of the city as possible.
Ukitake was still looking toward the place where Tosen's black dome had been. "He needs Rukia," he answered.
"Yes, but he's patient," Kyoraku answered, "And he likes his games. He'd rather pull a fast one than take us on face to face, make it look like he's always a step ahead, even if we're catching up."
He was looking back toward the center of the city when suddenly a wall of flames cut across a thousand yards of one district, instantly charring dozens of buildings. A second later a wall of ice met the flames and both vanished in a billowing steam.
-While this can be done fairly easily visually, I'm not absolutely sure I can pull it off in writing. I'm going to switch back and forth between what Toshiro and General Yamamoto are seeing. I hope you can follow it-
Toshiro barely managed to jump back as a wall of fire cut across his path. The heat alone was nearly enough to crush him. The force of it, radiating out from the flames, was unbearable. He couldn't breathe; it was too hot. He felt it scalding his lungs.
He drew Hyorinmaru in desperation, sending a wall of ice into the flames to quench the unbearable heat.
A wall of ice tore across the road, shattering buildings in its wake. It was an awesome display of the power of Hyorinmaru, the strongest ice zanpakuto in Soul Society, but it did not impress General Yamamoto.
He turned to the source of the destruction; a small boy, standing less than a hundred yards away. Hyorinmaru was in his hands, and his eyes shown cold and hard, with absolute and unbreakable determination.
"I have no desire to kill a child," Yamamoto said, turning slowly to face Toshiro. "Did your father send you here to stop me? I do not doubt he serves Aizen most gladly, but you, Toshiro, you do not have to follow them. Today they both will pay for their treachery, but you still have hope. You are young. You can still choose a righteous path."
Toshiro watched the General approach him with growing fear. The force of the old man's reiatsu was almost as unbearable as the heat of his fire, and his words were devastating.
"Today Seireitei will be cleansed. All traitors will die, and, for the purity and preservation of the Gotei, all who share their blood must be eradicated."
Kinta and Yukiko, that was who the General meant, not just Toshiro, but his little brother and sister as well. Yamamoto saw them as unclean, corrupted by Gin's blood. Toshiro had felt that way himself, sometimes, like there had to be something wrong with all of them because of their father, but it wasn't true, and even if it was, he couldn't allow them to be harmed. It was his responsibility; he had to protect his siblings, no matter what. He had to stop Yamamoto.
Toshiro threw his arm up, holding Hyorinmaru straight up, pointing to the heavens. "Bankai: Tenso Jurin!"
The sky churned in immediate response to his call. Dark clouds blocked out the sun and a chill spread across all of Seireitei.
Yamamoto had no choice but to react. Toshiro could freeze half of Seireitei to death with that one power