Count The Moments We're Apart

Chapter Two: Make It Quick, Grimmjow - Ichigo's POV.

"Are you crazy, Kurosaki?!"

Renji's word ran through Ichigo's ears like a phone that never stopped working, and someone was always trying to call. In his eyes, Renji was trying to call him to stop him from doing something stupid. But it was quite the opposite. Within the two or three day period in which Orihime had left the Human World, Ichigo had trained himself to exhaustion. He was waiting for this moment, ever since the second his mask broke in their last fight. He had to pay Grimmjow back. For everything that happened that day.

He turned his head to Renji, a wind of reiatsu blowing his Shinigami robes around a bit as he held onto Zangetsu as it leaned onto his shoulder. The Substitute Shinigami smiled at his comrade, and his eyes closed in excitement.

"Hey, I'll do just fine. I'm the one who's going to save Inoue, anyways." His smile. It was reassuring. He made sure it was; because he knew he was going to win.

At least I hope I do...

"I tend to feel better when there are spirit particles around. Quincys fight using the spirit particles around them, you know. I'm actually stronger here."

"So that's how this thing survives without eating souls?" Ichigo asked, holding a lizard hollow by its tail as if it were a dead animal.

Uryu fixed his glasses, grunting by Ichigo's display of disgust, "Yes. He most likely can survive just off breathing the spirit particles."

"That's pretty cool. He doesn't have to eat." Ichigo stated triumphantly, as he tossed it to the side and watched it burrow.

"Yes, but the Arrancar most likely have this as a strength advantage too."

Once Renji stopped calling the phone, Uryu began to call back from earlier.

Those words rang in his head, and he noted at Grimmjow looked much stronger than back in Karakura. His grin was wider, his eyes were more blood thirsty as ever, and he was twitching with excitement. Ichigo looked down at himself.

So was he.

"What, Shinigami? Feeling second thoughts?" Grimmjow asked, speaking up with his bloodthirsty tone.

Ichigo looked up with a smile, "Just the opposite. I've been waiting for this!" Zangetsu's wraps fell off retracted from the pile on the sand, and it glowed brilliantly in the moonlight.

"Fear, and you will die, Ichigo."

Alright, Old Man Zangetsu. Let's do this!

"Oh? So I guess we can go all out this time?" Grimmjow asked, taking his hands out of his pockets. He reached for the hilt of his Zanpakutou gracefully, and pulled it out without making any noise, "Kurosaki..."

The blade of Zangetsu flew forward, pointing directly at Grimmjow, the Arrancar he hated so damn much, "Grimmjow..."

Grimmjow's free hand flew over his blade, the noise of his hand coming down on it resembling a chalkboard, "Grind. Pantera!"

A wonderful array of lights covered Grimmjow as smoke flew everywhere and covered him. The clouds of white smoke flew past Ichigo and covered his eyesight and a majority of his other senses as well.

It's now or never!

"Bankai!" Zangetsu glowed blue and shot a beam of reiatsu out at Grimmjow's location, and smoke emerged from Ichigo as well.

Ichigo had to do this. He had to defeat Grimmjow, so he could save Orihime. It was the first priority on his list. But why? Why did he feel like he had to save Orihime? There was five of them, and it was most likely one of them could do it while he fought...

The orange-haired Shinigami wanted to be the one to save her, and no one else. But why?

Why him?

Before Ichigo was ready, he was broken out of his thoughts into a sword clash. Only, he wasn't clashing against a sword. The power from the blade that hit Zangetsu was immense, and he was struggling to stay on his feet. Grimmjow had arm blades, one on each arm, and he was pushing Ichigo back at an incredible rate.

The beam had missed him by an inch.

The new armor that coated Grimmjow was breath-taking. Every inch of his body, save his face, was covered in what seemed to be an armor made of Hollow masks. His claws were as sharp as any Zanpakutou, and his ears were equally as sharp. He has a long panther-like tail, and his hair had finally left its loose state to recover into a state of spikes. The two arm blades were enough to deal with, but his feet has become just as sharp as his ears and claws. And he looked as much as a maniac as ever.

I'm in trouble...

Ichigo was flying back wards at a rate he couldn't even hope to run. The sheer pressure that Grimmjow was exerting was amazing, and in awe, Ichigo couldn't move his hand to his face. He would die if he did so.

He could feel the blades scratching and slightly impaling Zangetsu. It was giving his goosebumps. He couldn't react whatsoever, and Grimmjow had the entire advantage to himself.

"Damn it, Kurosaki! If this were going to be so easy, then I wouldn't have released Pantera!" He called out, backing his blade away from Zangetsu to land a kick against Ichigo's side. The kick was made of sheer power, and Ichigo fell against the sand as he flipped around like a rag doll.

I can't regain my balance... Damn it!

His hands flew out, trying to grabbed a hold onto something. He could feel Grimmjow approaching quickly; had he gotten faster too?! He had no time to think such thoughts!

He tried grabbing onto the sand to stop his movement, to no avail as well. He reached for one of those quartz trees, and it broke off instantly. He tried to gather reiatsu at his feet into order to stand up, but his momentum was to great to even stop flipping. He was open to any attack. This was bad. Very bad.

At this rate, he wasn't going to save anyone.

Grimmjow connected another kick, this time against the bottom of his jaw. Ichigo flew up into the air, where he was met by Grimmjow from behind.

So... fast...

Another kick his Ichog's back, and he flew straight into the sand below, causing a great deal of damage to both the sand and Ichigo's body.

"Y'see, Kurosaki... That sand is so condensed with spirit particles that when two really strong people fight..." He started, the grin widened as he began to have fun with his prey, "It becomes as hard as concrete."

Ichigo could feel that being true, and he had trouble rising to his feet. Blood was seeping form his forehead, and he could feel like a few of his ribs had broken form those powerful kicks. His arms were numb, and they were almost stuck to Zangetsu's hilt. So much pain.

"I don't wanna fight you, Kurosaki. I wanna fight the other you. The one that caused me to go on the defensive."

Coughing. Blood. Not good. Ichigo fell to one of his knees, noting what Grimmjow said. If he wanted that, why did he hurt him so badly before he could go into that form? Why?

Is he toying with me?!

"Bring him out, Shinigami!" Grimmjow taunted out, as he shot two darts from the back of his blade. They each hit a tower in the distance, and they both exploded into bits. The explosion was bigger than any of his Getsuuga Tenshous could do.

He's so powerful...

"Bring him out now!" He called, shooting one lone dart at Ichigo.

I can't move...

The dart was flying at Ichigo's head with incredible speed.

Is this fear...?

The dart exploded on contact, and the sand perished into a torrent of the sand flying up wards, "What a waste of time." The Espada said, spitting to the side. He was about to leave, when he suddenly felt a strange pressure behind him.

The pressure was unlike Ichigo's, or any Shinigami to be precise, and seemed more like a powerful Hollow. The reiatsu he felt was so sinister that it surpassed his own in how intimidating it was. The Espada's eyes widened as his head turned slowly. He saw such a silhouette in the torrent of sand, that he swore he'd have nightmares for weeks to come.

He stared at it with such surprise that he swore he was going to die right then and there. He knew it wasn't Ichigo.

"The First Espada..." Grimmjow muttered, his eyes narrowing from the bad vibe he got. "You're here to kill me for defying, Aizen, huh?"

A voice rang out of the sand, it being so familiar, yet coated with a second voice that sounded more like himself. The reiatsu wasn't the First Espada.

There he was, Zangetsu in one hand, and a mask behind his other. The other hand was, of course, covering half of his face. His eyes were intensifying. His pupils went from brown to yellow, and his eyes changed from white to black. He had the reiatsu of an Espada.

He was a demon... "I'm not no Espada. Don't get me mixed up with your kind, Grimmjow."

"Tch, you're alive. And you certainly brought out the guy I wanted to fight, too. This'll be fun."

Ichigo's eyes narrowed, and the pressure increased to the point that Grimmjow had trouble standing on his reiatsu while in the air.

"No, this will be quick."

"Are you asking me to make your death quick?! Hah! How lame!"

"Wrong again, Grimmjow. I'm telling myself..." He began, while Grimmjow became nervous at the chill that emitted from his voice, "To end this quickly."

I've got someone to save.

Ah, another chapter complete. Makes me feel good, y'know? I personally like this chapter.

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