Chapter 14 - Sorcery and Armies
The path was a long dark one. For the likes of these travelers it'd take little time to be transported to their desired destination. The eerie emptiness of an eternal black was pierced by a door on the far horizon. White cloaked persons finally drew to a slower gait, approaching it with dignity and professional calm. Breaching through the white door way, one hand slid over the surface, causing bars to rise as much as they fell. Their eyes hardly blinked as the Sun of the Material World came into focus from the grips of the Garganta's crooked mouth.
But not just any sunlight, but that of Karakura Town, the World of the Living's most spiritually ripe ground that Sōsuke Aizen has set his eyes upon. That is, if this truly was the plot of spiritually enriched land he was seeking. With a sweeping look one could immediately tell it was exactly like the human inhabited city. But with his experienced gaze and senses, he could tell just as his two commanders could that one foreseen possibility had come to pass.
"So, they did it, after all?" Sōsuke Aizen queried aloud in a rhetorical fashion, his eyes closing with a sigh released from his nostrils. "Well, this just pushes the timetable back by an acceptable margin. We'll still make do."
"I sense no humans lingering about," Kaname Tōsen graveled out with a clear tone of displeasure, blind eyes furrowing down with a look of disdain. "But I also cannot sense the Shinigami. What is the meaning of this?"
Only Gin Ichimaru could laugh, a thin smile stretched passively over his face as his chuckles caught the attention of his peer and superior, "It seems we've fallen into a trap."
Before even what his colleagues could ask what trap he meant, a pulse of force was felt by their feet. While it was initially heavy and constricting, the two men flanking their leader were able to leap to the side at the last instant. Within the center was a flashing cacophony of rays mingled of multifaceted hues that entwined, pulled and swirled around the infamous usurper's form. With eyes widened with surprise they slowly became calmed when a hint of a smile of contentment was felt. Not even his words could be heard as his whole form was enveloped and then trapped within a suspending prism of glowing refracting hues.
"Lord Aizen-!"
"-looks like he was the primary target," Gin finished Kaname's sentence, much to the latter's chagrin. Choosing to open his azure eyes to lock onto the now shimmering silhouette that came from behind the collapsing Garganta the former Captain couldn't be more pleased. Either that or his ability to mask his fear was stellar compared to his comrade's cold indifference being mingled with contemptuous rage. "I assume you're the one who tried to seal us with Captain Aizen?"
"Unfortunate," Was a simple word echoed by a low, smooth voice. A rattling clank as if striking wood despite it being the sky itself, revealed the figure in question. An eerie wind blew back a fog of vapor, layering the figure with mystery as the apparel draping around it gave one a look of regal importance and ceremonial protocol.
Thick open sleeves of violet-black and cobalt outlined on the surface of a sweeping robe. On the shoulders wore a pair of onyx pauldrons of gleaming half moons with one open eye on the right contrasting the closed one on the left. A square straw hat to obscure deep lavender eyes with barely visible olive complexioned skin with a strong jaw and nasal structure, hidden behind a black veil outlined by purple with prayer beads as large as a man's hand wrapped around the neck.
With a standard monk staff in her right hand, only one delicate hand held the intricate ceremonial tool utilized by only one known user. "I had intended to capture you both with that spell, one of which I assure could entangle the Captain Commander. A shame I had to focus much of my power in just subduing him, though the effort was worth it."
"That voice...is that a woman under all that drab garments?" The silver haired man inquired with a wolf whistle. "Man, no wonder you caught Aizen by surprise. You were so undetectable, my man Kaname couldn't even feel ya. And believe me, he's good at that too."
"Don't rub it in, Gin," The dread-locked commander sneered as he withdrew his sword in a smooth stroke.
"You intend to fight me?" The robed woman declared without much movement on her part. Hidden eyes glared at the pair with a sharp observation. While the slyly grinning man made no threatening gestures it just made him more cagey and dangerous. The other had drawn his sword and seemed to be inclining his head in different directions. Neither seemed to pay attention to the floating crystal seal that kept their superior suspended in the air. "Or are you simply stalling to find a way to free your master?"
In an instant, they moved without bothering to retort, having given no indication they would prior.
Gin's sleeve barely moved as a blur of steel flashed forth, crashing into a swiftly erected barrier. The edge cracked its center but didn't move any closer, giving way for the sorceress to simply gesture at the suspending square of transparent emerald. Flying forth like a cannon shot wall, it was enough for the gray-tress commander to vault over it in a bout of dexterous motion. As he rose up at a higher altitude, the Shinigami's colleague made his own move with a semi-circle of blades manifested around his middle.
"Suzumushi Nishiki: Benihikō!" He intoned gravely, swinging his blade to send a chorus of wide sweeping blades. What made the Kidō Master more curious was the sight of it not being shot directly at her but in the distant horizon. She noticed that it was also laced with a silently laced spell, using it to be guided and accelerated to the far-off area.
She had intended to stop him, until she noticed the shine of silver bearing straight towards her head. Twisting her staff around to catch the hyper extending blade while side-stepping away, she evaded without injury but her hat was shredded off her ebony colored hair letting loose into a braided ponytail; one that that billowed out before every band after one foot with purple rings till the last bit rested upon her calves. As it was tossed into the wind, her violet eyes were seen glaring at the Shunpo employed Gin that appeared with his weapon retracted.
"Tenran," She exhaled, her veil lifting up to show pursed lips spewing out a torrent of wind that blew back a surprised Gin. On par to that of a hurricane it blew even Kaname back several dozen meters with his sprawling comrade. As they began to get their bearings in the unforgiving spell, she swiped her stave into the wind, unleashing a blue flame to spread widely thanks to the prior Kidō utilized. "Sōkatsui!"
"Bakudō #71, Kensho," The blind commander chanted aloud with clasped hands, rapidly creating a palace keep with hues of sparkling gold. It enraptured the pair within its epicenter, as the violent waves of fierce fiery wind corroded it, already cracking the infrastructure within seconds of making contact. With a sweeping hand gesture, the two were enveloped in darkness, leaving the crumbling palace as it was burned away by the power of their enemy.
They'd reappear seconds later as the Garganta Kaname opened and closed reopened not too far away from the robed woman.
"To think you have enough skill to cast spells that can stand against my own speaks volumes of your skill, Kaname Tōsen," The veil-faced woman acknowledged with a turn to look at them fully with staff in hand. "Though I did not know you have the power to open Garganta. It also is telling of how far you've fallen, errand of justice."
"I will not be lectured by a woman whose purpose is to be smothered in darkness, never to see the light of day unless brought out like a collared animal," The Commander of Aizen's Army declared with a sneer. "But of course you'd speak in such a pretentiously omnipotent manner. It's only fitting for someone who can command spells of such power while barely uttering a word. You really are Captain of the Kidō Corps, the newest replacement are you not?"
"To fill the void left by my predecessor was a daunting task, but one can accomplish much with a hundred years of dedication," She acknowledged with sober words, her eyes turning away to observe the distant horizon. What was once a serenely quiet visage of the World of the Living's duplicated city was now visibly surrounded by four auspiciously immense towers. Scowling she returned to look at the blind-man once more whom seemed to bear a taunting smile on his face. "So, that was the purpose of your earlier technique. You silently employed Shou to speedily launch your attack too fast to be deflected and hit the desired targets you were looking for."
"You forced our hand when you camouflaged the entire city, including its defenders and yourself. Not even my keen Reikaku could detect the environment," Kaname explained as he raised his sword upright, his body producing a potent Reiatsu from his form in the color of bright opaqued purple. While his comrade simply stood to the side with a silent smile, the dread-locked visor-adorned Shinigami swung the blade down in a bold proclamation; cemented by his quiet words. "Now that I've found our primary targets, all we need to bring the Reishi infused land back to the World of the Living is to destroy these towers."
"Kagizaki Tenkyū!"
With the latter words spoken, the Kidō Captain witnessed an enormous sword shaped tear within the firmament of the heavens above the city. Splitting open, an immense release of Reiatsu followed by the roars of many billowed out and shook the sky. Descending from the opening was the masses of Hollows, numbering in the likes the sheltered Shinigami had never seen before. Ranging in all shapes and sizes, grotesque in every way imaginable, the entities flowing down in a swarm that could be mistaken for blotted clouds.
Swinging her staff up to cast a spell, she was suddenly attacked by the blind man up front, forcing to employ Shunpo to avoid his thrust while she deflected a blurred form of Gin that came in from the side. Her blunt tool parried the pair's choreographed attacks, working in synchronous pattern with each other to push her back with swordsmanship alone. But while her hands were occupied, the rest of her body was still available.
Blowing out from her mouth through the veil's rivulet, a Sekienton cloud of crimson smoke clouded the air with spell cast gas. In the midst of their harry of attacks Kaname found himself surprised when he witnessed her form vanishing within the fog, just as Gin halted his own attack as the Bakudō spread around them. A palm thrust at one while the staff swung at the other, producing two simultaneous effects.
One caused Kaname to be wrapped in a constricting film of crimson light by the swing of the spell's catalyst. With a downward turn he'd be hurtled downward till impacting the ground far below with a destructive impact.
The other was Gin being pushed back by a jolting shockwave. His body thrown with the push of the kinetic discharge wasn't able to halt his momentum after half a minute. By the time he reacclimated himself he noticed he was a good kilometer away from his opponent; an observation that made him whistle lowly, "Phew, you sent me a good ways. Nice work, Kidō Captain."
"By the light of the ether, swim forth in a furious torrent. Constrained not by time or age, leap forth and obliterate. Beseeched by the anchor of the present, I pull forth the chariot of the beyond," The Sorceress declared as her clothes billowed, burning by the light of a chorus of crackling mantle of electricity. Just as the first wave of Hollows descended upon her altitude, aiming specifically for her delicious amount of Reiatsu, she raised the staff upward with a violent snap. "Hadō #88, Hiryū Gekizoku Shinten Raihō!"
An ominous thunderclap would follow the light show that'd come. A bright flash of azure bordered white ripped across the skyline, tearing the flesh off Hollows before their bones were reduced to ash. Despite the horde's giant mass its vanguard were ripped apart by a surge of lightning that spelled forth doomed for thousands in a single erect line. Within the tower of Reishi that was cast, it funneled into the gateway itself and eliminated all of the approaching Hollows.
But the bulk of the Hollows had yet to be routed and still came in droves.
"I'm sorry, Captain Commander," She apologized mentally, her mind stretching out to one particular individual hidden within the cityscape of their large trap. "I can't manage more than a single spell of this scale at the moment. Aizen's Commanders are sure to come back with retaliation."
"Do not worry yourself, Tanrei Kakushi. You've done a commendable job, sealing our enemy's general and occupying its commanders. If you can keep them distracted, we will dispatch the army while it is leaderless."
Kidō Captain Kakushi could only solemnly bow her head at this comforting thought. The fact she had succeeded in her gambit to seal Aizen at all was comforting. He was the real wild card in this whole war they were intending to fight. With him out of the picture and their commanders focused on her, she'd do all she could to best them both to the utmost of her ability.
As Gin and Kaname, both none worse for wear, came back to bear upon her she released a mighty gale of Reiatsu as the pair once more engaged her in combat.
"If I am to fall," Tanrei declared, swinging her staff to clash with both of their blades, a vicious glare aimed at them. "I intend to take you with me!"
Just as before, an enormous swarm of Hollows descended down from the sky. With familiar destructive forces combating nearby, they'd ignore what was before it and home in on the structures below. With only a mind to scour out and destroy all that stood to the outskirts where the towers stood, they'd complete their objective less efficiently but quickly if none opposed them.
Unfortunate for them, they had more than enough to contend with.
Within the center, a film of invisibility was lifted, spreading out to show over two hundred Shinigami with weapons drawn and their officers possessing released Zanpakutō. From sickles and chain, to axes, to erroneously long Nodachi or Zanpatō they possessed a wide variety of melee types. At the forefront of these combat specialists, of course, was the Eleventh Division's pride and glory, Kenpachi Zaraki.
"YEHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! IT'S LIKE A BUFFET OF BLOOD AND GUTS! EAT UP EVERYTHING YOU CAN BOYS, CAUSE I INTEND TO FEAST FOR A WEEK ON THESE SMALL FRY!" The 11th Division's Captain declared in a raucous shout as he bowled through dozens of Hollows, swinging his blade with precision and empowered by maddening blood fury. Just like he had spoken, blood and flesh spewed into the air, dissolving after the severed limbs or body parts were sent sprawling from dying, maimed or killed Hollows. With their Captain occupying up to hundreds of them with his attacks, the Officers were led beneath him and stayed in an upright formation resembling an arrow that attacked the surge Hollows.
As the numbers piled up in the thousands, many Hollows spread out to split away from the mountain that was being annihilated.
"Oi! They're getting away!" One Officer declared with annoyance.
"Hold your position!" Ikkaku declared as he swung his three-part pole in an eloquent dance of bashes and cutting jabs. "We're here for a reason. Keep the horde funneling at the center. The other Divisions will handle the rest."
"B-But what if they all start running away?!" Another Unseated member declared as he tackled one worm-looking creature, ripping it apart with his impressive strength.
"Then we shall look beautiful when we cut them down from behind," Yumichika declared as he fluffed his hair as he slashed more with his own uniquely shaped blades. "Just keep close to the Captain until we're ordered otherwise and we will be guaranteed to kill many more."
Before another could retort, a giggling pink-haired child seemed to vault weightlessly from shoulder to back and then to shoulder again. With the wheel-attached sealed sword being held by a strap, she swung it around like a blunt whip, crashing into the masks of many Hollows within reach. Without even drawing her sword the munchkin showed why she was the Lieutenant of the Division and how she stayed ever-so closely to her father figure.
"Look Kenny! I've got so many already!" She piped up as she fired off a series of kicks on a crying Hollow's face, smashing its mask to pieces.
"Keep up, Yachiru," Kenpachi let out a barking laugh as he stabbed one through another and then tore through its grey matter till he unleashed a fissure of yellow to obliterate another line of unfortunate targets. "I'll get three times your kill if you're not careful!"
"Not! For! Long!~" She sang out as she kept swinging her sheathed sword around to batter more entities within reach.
The bloodshed continued, but the masses indeed spread out. What new foes awaited them would only make them regret their mistake of departing from the city's center.
"Sir! They're coming this way!" A messenger Shinigami announced, departing as quickly as he came as hundreds of Hollows approached to the western side. From there lied two Divisions in particular. The 10th and the 7th. With the horde's detachment being at its bulkiest during the movement, they utilized park clearing as a gathering point for their enemies to gravitate to while the middle school was occupied by a number of Kidō Corps and Kidō fluent Shinigami.
Once they got close, a barrage of firepower after incantation was released at the first line of abominations. Red cannon balls, blue gouts of flame and azure lightning bolts lit up the sky, forcing a great deal of them to either evade to best of their ability or become grounded. Some slithered swiftly and others embedded into the earth or darkness. Drawn in close they'd be met with the nasty surprise of the strongest members of their forces.
"Tengen!" Sajin Komamura shouted as he swung an ethereal giant arm across the close ranks of Hollows, not even scratched by the Kidō crossfire that connected with it. The blade's immense length swiped at the horde moving towards them. Alternating between using various body parts to keep them at bay with relative ease due to their collective strength being not withstanding and the support fire of Kidō from below. His other Officers were on stand by, awaiting the moment any Hollow passed through or tried to sneak up.
Lieutenant Ibe had a solemn look of duty that steeled himself in the face of so many enemies, reinforced that his Captain would see them through this battle.
"Reign over the Frosty Heavens, Hyōrinmaru!" Cried out not too far away, followed by a large wave of ice cast by a sword stroke of the released Zanpakutō of Captain Hitsugaya. The young prodigy had cast a storm cloud above their heads, manipulating the weather to make an optimum condition to use his power at a lower level. Despite his cautious behavior he knew he needed to give it his all to prevent the wave of Hollows from spreading beyond this western perimeter of the city's center.
Rangiku had released her own ash cloud form of Haineko, allowing the minute grains to carry the multiplied impact of her sword strokes among a large berth. Every slash of her blade as it swept in the wind cut down many Hollows in her vicinity, one in a while mixing her technique up with a physical jab, a Shunpo and a Kidō blast of her own. Holding her own relatively well within the park as trees were shattered or uprooted, the howling wind of weather based attacks sent by the Captain at the forefront who aimed to kill as many without catching his men in the crossfire.
"Don't worry about us, Captain. We'll do what needs to be done in order to win this war. Make sure you do this same without hesitation."
She remembered speaking those words not but hours before the mission. With hundreds of Hollows within arms reach, she knew that even the lowliest of scum could get in a lucky hit. But if they maintained formation as the Captain Commander planned, they just might make it without a high casualty rate.
"Hopeful thinking coming from an old traditionalist. I wonder if its that strawberry's fault," Rangiku thought with a wry smile in the midst of battle, garnering the idea that the Substitute Shinigami had influenced their superior in ways he had yet to understand.
Hollows swept across the land in opposing cardinal directions as time went on. Despite the vocal shouts and cacophony of explosions occurring in the sky from the battle of the Kidō Captain and Aizen's two Commanders, the horde kept pushing on. While the Eleventh Division stood their ground and kept swathing through hundreds, the other tens of thousands had not just moved west but also north, east and south; some even swept around the perimeter of the center-west battlefront.
It was up north, occupying an abandoned hospital replica, was the camouflaged members of the 4th Division. With its members tasked with moving under the cover of Kidō given to them by the Kidō Corps they'd take any wounded they are able to reach and bring them back for emergency medical treatment. Under Unohana's watchful eye, they'd be seen that if they are capable of fighting, they'd rejoin the war effort.
Despite Hollows seeming to sweep the land in multiple directions, the vast majority were too caught up with the center with three fully functioning Guilds operating there.
"Remember! Be prepared to enter the thick of it at any given moment!" Yasochika Iemura, the third Seat declared to his team while Unohana just stared out the window. Even as the monsters crawled up the infrastructure and curiously peered in, they wouldn't see a single Shinigami that nervously glanced back at them. Passing on the Officer continued to get them steeled for the future. "Remember, the Gotei 13's lives are in our hands! We will save them if we can! IS that clear?"
"Sir, yessir!" Cried out the Shinigami, even Hanatarō's shaking leaf frame. Despite himself, he was still feeling afraid. But he slapped his own cheeks and looked to his Captain's stoic frame for inspiration.
"We'll do our best, for the Captain," He thought with a brave smile.
"Here they come," Omaeda gulped, grouped up with the Patrol Corps gathered around their seemingly rotund and bumbling leader. Discreetly they were hidden in the shadows in the east. The sheer mass of them was intimidating even to him, who had done his share of Hollow slaying. He never saw so many in a single spot before; he just hoped he'd do a good job and not get berated by his superior. Unsheathing his sword, he gallantly declared as planned to get the eyes of Hollows aimed at them. "HEY! LOOKING FOR US!"
With a good number of Hollows descending down upon them, he instantly released Gegetsuburi. Swinging his flail he crashed through a good few of them before his Corps began engaging them outright. Better handled at more frontal confrontations he was used for bait as the combating Hollows lured more and more till the eastern surge bore directly towards them.
The new 3rd Seat, Sayuri Mai, a brunette with a sleek metal mask in the form of an open oni jaw with a body conforming suit that hugged her curvaceous and generously scaled chest had the task of supporting them once they were on the ground. With nothing but metal gauntlets wrapped around her hands up from the elbows, she leaped forth like a streak of night, smashing the vital points of many monstrous creatures. Corpses dissipated seconds after her rampage ensued along with the rest of her Detention Unit followed her example.
The Fourth Seat, Banfeng, head of the Espionage Unit kept watch from the shadows for anything unusual. His crew were meant to scatter around the Fake Karakura Town, using special metal swords to conduit their transmissions far more effectively within the heat of battle. Using this they could gather intelligence and new data as it sprung up over various battlements set up.
The Inner Court Troop, commanded by 5th Seat Jirai, kept sending urgent messages directed by various other Divisions. While the secret intel provided by the Espionage Unit was to be shared with only upper ranked officers and Captains, their task was simply to inform and spread the word over immediate developments. Staying out of the fight as much as possible, they were to help keep stability in the chaos of the battle.
Suì-Fēng herself led the Executive Militia, those of ninja attire and completely secretive. Using their advanced prowess in Shunpo and Hakuda, they would strike silently within the flanks of their enemies to create undue confusion among their enemy. The Horde wouldn't have any idea what was hitting them until it was far too late. Between her silent approach and utilizing the two other Corps to distract them she could fight within the shadows with her colleagues as much as she pleased.
"Keep this up, Omaeda," Suì-Fēng thought as she cast a rare glance and a subtle smile as she cracked the neck of a behemoth proportioned Hollow. "And I may actually compliment your credible use on the battlefield."
Down South was an assemblage of forces. Along the railroad tracks, led by Jūshirō Ukitake, rallied the 13th Division without its two 3rd Seats while holding the 6th Division's entirety within its ranks without its own Captain or Lieutenant to be commanded by. But given the 13th's superior being charismatic and compassionate, they rallied behind him well enough as the horde came upon their ranks. Using a combination of Kidō barriers, sharpshooters and melee specialists they were able to hold a decent formation while drawing in the enemies below into their midst.
Those that didn't take the bait flew straight towards the park bordered tower, concealing the Kidō practitioners that kept it shielded and guarded all the same.
Seeing this, Shunsui tipped his hat up as he stopped leaning on the tower. The line of Hollows was an assuredly nasty thing for his trained eyes to see. Salivating, snarling and making their iconic howls in that echoed one after another was something he never cared to sense. Looking to his 4th Seat, Rokuō, a lovely blonde with generous assets and a released sai in her grip; with her attention gained, he mentioned Tatsufusa Enjōji, his 3rd Seat, with a casual wave of his hand.
"Keep an eye on him. Don't want him getting riled up and charging the enemy too soon. We're protecting after all," He mentioned as he began to walk forward, away from his men and the tower.
"W-Where are you going, Captain?!" She inquired with a bubbly, nervous voice. It was then she was answered with the form of him drawing his long sword of the two katana he kept sheathed. The fact he only drew one puzzled her, and then she understood. "Captain-"
"I'll only be gone for a sec, darling," Shunsui waved with a flirtatious grin, just before he blinked out of view. Suddenly, the cloud of advancing Hollows seem to explode into a shower of gore and body parts. Not but several seconds later he was back, not a fleck of blood on him as he sheathed his sword. Shrugging with a wry smile he nodded to her as he went back to lean on the tower. "See. Only a sec."
"Then, why did you even bother to...to...UGH!" Flabbergasted she turned around in a huff to return to a waiting position. She had a feeling the fighting was far from over and that this was just the tip of the vanguard. When the enemy shows its true forces, then even they wouldn't be left out of the chaos.
The Northern Front was one with two purposes. One was the protection of the Northern and Eastern towers respectively, with only a small detachment of capable officers to join up with skilled members of the Kidō Corps backed up by the Onmitsukidō. The other was to be the only assemblage of Shinigami that lacked a Captain. But it was also the largest gathering of able bodied men and women at the forefront.
Among them was the 3rd, 5th, and the 9th Divisions of Shinigami who were bereft of Captains who turned traitor. Eager to prove themselves despite the scrutiny they've faced since the coup placed months ago, the 3rd Seat of the 5th Division stayed back among the Kidō Corps as a defensive party while the two "Substitute Captains" took their men to form their battleground. With the horde strewn across the sky and the earth, rampaging towards them, Izuru could only sigh with a weary smile.
"It seems we get the hardest job, don't we?" Lieutenant Kira queries his stone faced colleague.
"Doing what? Killing Hollows? It's not like we haven't done it before," Shūhei Hisagi retorted with his thumb pushing the blade out of the sheathe, but not quite unsheathing it. He wanted to be ready but not too eager; being bloodthirsty wasn't in his nature, just like enjoying battle wasn't in Izuru's.
"I mean we're the strongest Shinigami here. Without Captains, I think the bigger numbers doesn't nearly compensate for that power loss," Izuru answered with a solemn tone.
"I don't plan on dying to foot soldiers," The Lieutenant sneered, his teeth grit as his hand gripped the handle of his weapon tightly. "Not until...I've shown him the error of his ways."
"Ah," Izuru sighed with a smile, unsheathing his own sword slowly as the first line of Hollows neared. They'd surely arrive at any moment as his revealed eye looked up at the monsters calmly. "It's unfortunate that I don't have your zeal of reuniting with my departed superior. If he didn't even bother telling me what his aims are, I'm sure he has no intention of talking it out or let alone have a heart to heart with me. I envy your strength, Shūhei."
"At least that makes one of us," He grimly muttered, leaping up with a preemptive Shunpo to perform an Iaido slash upon the first Hollow across his eyes. Even as blood flared up he coldly moved onto the next monster and then the next. With his sword cutting them down next to his blonde haired friend, they'd concentrate on the bulk and only let the stragglers come to the gathering of Officers and Unseated members.
None of them would even let them get near the tower. Not until stronger enemies breached their perimeter; something both Lieutenants wanted to avoid if they could help it.
In the vicinity of the Western Tower stood the most competent member of the Kidō Corps under the Captain, Lieutenant Ryūten Kyōkō crossed her legs in a passive stance of meditation. The sheer chance of them being attacked was nary compared to the easier targets of interest but she wanted to be sure. Unlike her predecessor she wanted to not be fallen to a Hollow virus by becoming targets of a conspiracy.
The younger woman was draped in a violet colored Shikhakushō, its deep hue revealing her allegiance to the Kidō Corps as a high ranking officer. Sleeveless up to protective bands around her elbows and Sun emblazoned dark gloves around her hands, she'd wear nothing else other than a loose fitted black high collar coat with the mark of the Sun among clouds on its back. Her pale complexion with blue eyes was complemented by pair of half moon head pieces keeping her dark green hair in a pair of curled twin-tails laid over her shoulders.
"Not to mention," She inferred as she felt a bead of sweat crawl down her neck at just feeling a certain man standing in front of the tower's wall with a cane gripped with both hands. "The Captain Commander chose to stand here of all places. Anyone attacking this tower has a death wish if they assault him outright. Not sure if he'll save us if we get ourselves killed but...Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto has a reputation of slaying for over a thousand years. No one can match him in conventional combat, let alone his ruthless tenacity."
She had wondered why he didn't bring the 1st Division, said to be the strongest Shinigami of all skills and abilities, to the battlefield. Reasoning would conclude that he left them to guard the Seireitei in case enemies tried to take advantage of the combat placed here. It'd be even more likely that, with the military's bulk holding elsewhere, the Academy students would be kept under protective quarantine within the school grounds while Noble Houses mobilized to help establish security further. It was only through her studies that it'd be the most thought out way of keeping peace and defense while the army was used in war.
With the sounds of her superior clashing with the enemy's commanders it took all of her composure to not look up, let alone attempt to leave her post. The woman had helped nurture her talents and had chosen her to be her Lieutenant from being a lowly unseated member. One hundred years of her council had led her to this very battle, one the Kidō Corps had experienced in centuries.
"Please survive," She prayed beneath a grimacing visage. "Lady Kakushi..."
The battle raged on as all fronts combated the enormous body count of Hollows. Shouts, explosions and the dead piled up even from the skyline view of the cityscape that many had to contend with. Only thanks to strategic planning and the leadership of the Captains to Officers stationed with hundreds of unseated members did they keep the staggering death toll largely on the abominations and less their own comrades.
It was a feeling that gave Tanrei hope and courage to keep fighting her current opponents.
"HRAH!" She let out a shout as her stave slashed into Gin's blade, releasing a compressed blast of Kidō in a flare of rose hue. Sending the grey-haired man reeling back she twisted her blunt instrument around to block a handful of sword swipes aimed by Kaname, utilizing a bout of Shunpo to appear above him and unleash a barrage of Shakkahō. With his own quick muttering use of Haien to abolish the group of cannonballs, he received a surprise crack of the staff in his backside. Crying out with pain he grunted as he somersaulted across the air before rejoining Gin in a speedy charge.
"Secret Bakudō," She murmured as she spun her staff around, creating a perfect mirrored surface that reflected the space of both Commanders crashing their blades against it. When the appearance of both Shinigami was reflected, they leaped out with the same ferocity and repelled both men back with a shower of sparks from clashing steel. Duplicated in a sense they mirrored the exact same power and reactions as they did, one could only stare at the mirror that now was angled in their direction. "Daienkyōchi!"
With a mere glance aimed at each other, Gin smiled as he parried with his copy and moved in the opposite angle to round away from the mirror's gaze. Simultaneously Kaname whispered his release command, "Cry, Suzumushi," and unleashed a high pitched chirp that rendered his copy unconscious before he could do the same.
At the same time, Commander Ichimaru side-stepped a vicious stroke towards him while also extending Shinsō to lunge at the Kidō Captain. To his surprise the blade simply bounced off as a purple wreathed Reiatsu overtook the mirror erected and a distortion wave of pressure passed by both of them. It was alarming enough that the aforementioned Captain took up a posture just as his comrade did, as an explosive blast of blackness overtook their vicinity.
"Hadō #90, Kurohitsugi!" Through the growl of the enormous erecting a towering coffin, a thuum of power resonating as it easily dwarfed the size of Aizen's own casting on Sokyoku Hill. Standing just a handful of feet away from the deep onyx laced prison, she only had a few seconds to observe before a glint of metal flashed before her eyes. Her Kidō suddenly became shattered and blown away, revealing a smiling Gin with his blade held at his side with an entertained glint in his blue eyes.
"You shattered my Kidō," She observed aloud in a calm tone, not betraying the level of surprise and fear she felt in equal amount.
"Don't act put out, Miss Kidō Captain," The Former Captain remarked with a casual shrug, waving his sword for emphasis. "It's not like I did it without effort. I even went to the trouble of releasing my Bankai to break it. After all, had I not seen the spell myself when Captain Aizen used it I might not have been clued in on what you were planning."
"You really are a terrifying man, Gin-" Tenrai began to intone, breaking off as the familiar ripping sound commenced from behind. Turning around she swung her staff around as she backpedaled, feeling a bite of pain across her midsection before she saw the blade. To her credit she had cracked her instrument across his jaw, evoking a gasp of pain as blood flecked out with spittle from the man exiting the Dangai. Reaching up to immediately place a sealing barrier across her open wound, sewing it shut while also ceasing the bleeding. She grimaced with aggravation more than the flesh wound she received. "As are you, Kaname Tōsen."
"I had intended on cutting through your spine and sever you from the waist," He growled, raising a hand up to feel the bruise that had formed across his face from the impact. "Your reflexes are above what I'd expect from a Captain of the Kidō Corps. You continue to surprise me how you can hold your own against the two of us."
Silently stewing at her predicament at having yet to do a single credible thing to truly halt their progress, Captain Kakushi began scheming a new plan of attack. As she did so a rumbling roar was heard along with an ear grating rip. All three combatants turned to witness a Garganta begin to emerge along the horizon, this one seeming to dwarf the sky emergence that Kaname had been responsible for. A single figure walked forward, eerily moaning out as he looked over his shoulder.
"An Arrancar?" The Kidō Captain thought as she saw the long-sleeved uniform wrapping around the mask fragment crown on the blonde boy's brow with eerie rose colored eyes. An immense purple claymore latched onto his back that was longer than he was tall. With what lurked behind him was what sent chills down her spine. A complete unknown and gargantuan in sheer mass. "W-What is that thing?!"
"So, he brought his pet," Gin commented with a chuckle. "That kid sure took his time getting here..."
"It can't be helped. Hooleer is a cumbersome creature that can't be rushed," Commander Tōsen replied casually as a calm smile stretched across his face. It widened when he saw the look of stark alarm on his opponent's face. "Do not worry for your sake. Hooler won't target you, nor will our comrade Wonderweiss. They're practically inseparable when together."
The grey-skinned creature with Gillian masks for finger nails and an enormous glowing yellow eye looked so enormous that it looked like only half of his body stuck out of the Garganta, clinging to the sky for support with Reishi. Disgusting convulsions wracked its body as its body compressed and billowed, soon showing bulges across its form. When a large mouth opened, a pool of blackness dropped from the sky onto the ground below to form a sea of ichor. Within it were the masks of dozens of Menos, their pointed noses acting like pyramid crests as they began to swim around. Erecting, the skyscraper Hollow amalgamations presented themselves with a chorus of thunderous roars as they turned towards the south and west towers.
"It puked up Menos?! This creature must be stopped-!" She thought just before witnessing another surprise slash by her enemy. Parrying the blunt tool she noticed Gin didn't even bother intervening this time. Turning to face Kaname with her hands gripped over her staff, she felt as much as saw a sudden cacophony of dark doorways open across the model city. Fake Karakura was holding its own against the Horde, but now what appeared out of every door from oblivion's fore came white cloaked figures of similar Reiatsu all across. "It's not just them...the Arrancar have arrived as well!"
"Be still, Kidō Captain," Kaname whispered, his blade pulling back as she withdrew with a backpedal as he raised his blade's hilt next to his cheek with his other hand posturing next to its raised edge. "I'd rather not take too long. Lord Aizen demands a satisfying victory and I shall give it to him."
"Not before I annihilate you both, traitor!" Tanrei Kakushi declared as her body became a glistening halo of light. Reiatsu swirled around majestically as her pauldrons glistened upon her shoulders, soon departing from her person to combine in a metallic circle behind her head. An audible clack and click later, the disc spun wildly until it produced a lunar disc of light that hovered behind her. With her robes enamored by her luminescence, hair waving with animated motion, and eyes becoming a pupiless violet as she held a lunar glowing staff before her enemy. "Tsukuyomi!"
The journey ahead felt abysmally long. Despite Ichigo's desire to make haste walking through an empty void wasn't something to be done lightly. With Byakuya at the head of the pack, with a trotting Crisol and Nemu behind holding the enormous cart full of scientific plunder that Mayuri sat atop cross-legged. The other officers ran ahead with Renji at the back, just up ahead of Aaron-Rukia, Ichigo, Nelliel, Aaron-Chad and Orihime...along with the two Fracción of Nel's.
"Why didn't you guys just stay behind?" Ichigo inquired dryly as he looked behind at Pesche and Dondochakka. "You know we're heading into a warzone, right?"
"Where Nel, goes, so do we!" Pesche responded seriously, his zeal felt through his mask in the open dim air. "Even if we have to fight Aizen's army, we'll stick by her side no matter what."
"Just be careful and don't get separated," Nelliel admonished with her own head turning to look back at them. "I'd hate for you to get hurt."
"Oh, what that horrible Szayel Apporo Grantz did will easily be worse than anything these other Numeros can do, Lady Nel," Dondochakka replied with tears over his bulging eyes. "I-I'll try not to be a burden this time!"
Nelliel could only smile endearingly at the two. Somehow she felt more assured that her chances of victory were greater with those she cherished were nearby. With such thoughts in her mind caused her cheeks to flush red with a likely bout of bashfulness. Reaching out with her hand, she snaked it out to grasp Ichigo's, almost causing him to stop in mid-sprint.
"N-Nel-?"
"Just let me hold your hand," The Former Tres Espada pleaded quietly, her eyes shining as they looked at him endearingly. "It makes me feel...more confident knowing there's someone I love nearby."
He was left awestruck at her forward nature. Having remembered their brief bout of intimacy after he spoke with her about his past, he couldn't help but smile back as he kept up his run. Entwining his fingers with hers he nodded looking forward. As he kept his gaze ahead he barely noticed a look of longing sent his way by Orihime, something that Uryū had glanced over and looked at him with a curious stare of his own. It was only thanks to Chad's silence that he could just let the issue slide off.
"Ichigo."
"Yeah?" He asked without turning.
"Was your sword...always wrapped with chains?" Nelliel inquired with a casting look at the weapon on his back.
Turning to look at the protruding cloth wrapped hilt, sure enough his cleaver seemed to have changed shape since he last saw it. He could only speculate this had something to do with his agreement with cooperating with Zangetsu...rather, the Hollow who embodied his real Shinigami powers.
"I can't tell what shape it has but I can definitely feel a difference. It's almost like the blade got lighter," He thought with a furrowed look as Nelliel just glanced at it with curiosity. "What level of power has my ordinary abilities have risen to?"
Up ahead, Aaroniero had felt a distinct lack of refinement in her current form. She had half expected her outward appearance to be questioned when removed from her cocoon. But now she felt as if nothing significant had transpired other than a complete adaptation to the Aspect ratio with her own Reiryoku. Feeling as if her power could be multiplied far beyond what 'Rukia's limit' should be but still be tangible in her feeling, she wondered how much attention people could pay on the battlefield?
"I may be a free agent when containing the situation, but I'd at least like to add some style," She mused to herself with a toothy grin. Silently releasing her Zanpakutō she touched the collar of her desert cloak connecting to her Shinigami uniform. All at once a dramatic change occurred in her visage; one that Renji turned to notice with wide eyes.
A glistening pale hue overlapped her coat, making it look like a cape of ice crystals that was opaque in its translucence. A violet sash replaced her white one followed by a crystalline kimono dyed of snow while a ice circlet crowned the top of her head as if she was a princess. With her Shikai in hand, she continued her walk that caught the noticeable eyes of Uryū and Orihime foremost.
"H-Hey? What didja do?" Renji inquired skeptically which only a few officers turned and gaped while trying to keep a consistent trot.
"I just used my Zanpakutō's core with my Kidō to give me a better style in appearance," Aaron-Rukia replied with a sly smile. "What? If you had skill in Kidō you could manipulate it in a way just like this..."
"Eh...eugh," Lieutenant Abarai grimaced while blushing at the beautiful dress that replaced her old uniform. "Still...it looks good on you, Rukia."
Blushing at the compliment she felt her heart skip a beat; a feeling she suppressed with a slight laugh. Pressing a hand on her chest with a look of concern on her face she wondered why she was being tricked into these sensations. Was it going to be an issue in the future?
Shaking her head, Aaroniero sprinted on, with a renewed stoic gaze as she walked upon the light in the darkness, "I don't care what awaits me. I'll see my goals to the end, no matter the cost!"
A/N: Well, this is a nice start to the war.
Please take a quick moment to thank Firegod00 for helping proof this Chapter to be in tip-top shape for your reading pleasure ^^
As you can see, I'm not leaving Aaroniero completely out. I at least want to give a distinct showing of progression of the Main Cast heading to the battlefield (even though they're coming far later than what's being shown.) With Ichigo's powers seeming to show a sign of evolving while Aaroniero just wants a new choice of fashion (let's be honest, if he really hated his choice in clothing, he wouldn't have kept wearing it throughout the whole fight against Rukia; obviously another lie to show how much 'Kaien' he is.) NellielxIchigo continues to sail onward while Orihime continues to feel conflicted. Will she move on or will she try to win her man over? Such a nail biting dilemma compared to the war going on...
Oh yeah, that happened this Chapter XD
If you haven't noticed, I have a thing for Kidou (or rather, expand on the lack thereof). So what better way to keep Gin and Kaname occupied while also sealing Aizen away? Have the new Kidou Captain combat them of course! Went the extra mile to make her a legitimately skilled and powerful Shinigami, while doing likewise to showcase Gin and Kaname's prowess as Aizen's commanders. With droves of Hollows fighting across the Fake Karakura Town, their numbers have been butchered away only to reveal Menos and Arrancar!
How will our heroes fair against them? Find out on the next Chapter of A Predator Among Us!