Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach. Considering the mess I made of Seireitei, I'm sure the Shinigami in canon are very grateful for that.
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#140: blackgetsuga
#150: Akatsuki Leader 13
#160: Chash123
#170: animecollector
#180: EVA-Saiyajin (you were also #500 in NQaP, so if you have a question, feel free to ask it)
Ladies and gentlemen, before we begin, I would like to address an incredibly common error on this site that I have become aware of. Even very good authors with a good grasp of the English language seem to be making this mistake. It's the difference between "cannon" and "canon".
"Canon", when referring to a work of fiction, is the conceptual material accepted as "official" by the fiction's fan base or declared so by Word of God.
A "cannon" is a ballistic weapon that fires large, heavy balls of metal.
Now, I love cannons as much as the next guy, but please don't mix them up. Are we clear? Okay, on with the show!
The instant she felt that terrifyingly familiar reiatsu, Rukia dropped everything and dashed out of the warehouse, ignoring the Vizards' exclamations and questions about where she was going. She shed her Gigai and took to the rooftops, Shunpoing toward an all-too-familiar cemetery.
Grand Fisher…
She shivered as she recalled the last time Ichigo had tangled with the deadly Hollow. The encounter had nearly ended in death for both combatants.
But it wasn't Ichigo's death she feared this time. After all, he was far stronger than he was all those months ago. But if Ichigo lost his head in rage like he did last time, with his instincts as an Arrancar…
Please, Ichigo! For your mother's sake, keep it together!
-x-
"I see you've gone through some changes, Kurosaki," Grand Fisher chuckled. He glanced at the purple-haired Shinigami standing beside his hated foe. "Your taste in company hasn't changed though. Another weakling Shinigami bitch." He stepped forward. "Oh well. She'll make a decent meal after I pay you back for my humiliation."
Kurosaki stood still, head down. His mask fragment and bangs hid his eyes in shadow.
"What's wrong, brat? Afraid of my new power? How wise of you." Grand Fisher drew his gigantic Zanpakuto as he stepped forward. "While your death is inevitable, you should at least see it coming. You are an Arrancar like myself now. You might as well die with some dignity."
Kurosaki didn't move.
Grand Fisher shrugged. "Fine. Have it your way." He swung with all his might, intending to start and end the encounter with one attack.
"Ichigo, move!" the Shinigami cried, jumping out of the way herself.
Grand Fisher's Zanpakuto came down like a guillotine, dead on target. The impact shattered the ground and threw up a massive amount of dust.
"Hmph. How pathetic. Killed in one move," Grand Fisher snorted. He turned his attention to the woman, who raised her staff in a futile attempt to defend herself. The Arrancar licked his lips at the thought of the coming meal. Women and Shinigami were delicious enough on their own; together was sure to be ambrosia. He lifted his Zanpakuto from the space Kurosaki had occupied.
Huh?
His Zanpakuto wasn't budging. Had it gotten stuck in the ground? He pulled harder. Still no movement.
Grand Fisher looked back to the dissipating cloud obscuring his weapon. His eyes widened when he caught a glimpse of orange hair and a red and white mask fragment.
Impossible.
Kurosaki's hand was clamped on the edge of Grand Fisher's Zanpakuto, the sharp blade failing to penetrate his Hierro.
His face still in shadow, Kurosaki smirked. "Is that it? That's the best you have? Rukia's hit me harder than that."
Grand Fisher put all his weight into yanking on his Zanpakuto. Kurosaki's iron grip never wavered.
"You had me worried when you showed up. But it looks like you're all size and no substance." Kurosaki looked up, his yellow eyes gleaming menacingly. His smirk grew into a sadistic smile. "Sucks to be you."
The resistance on his sword vanished and a blow like a cannon shot blew Grand Fisher off his feet.
-x-
As the white Shinigami look-alike started beating the huge Hollow like a drum, Riyan struggled back to his feet. He looked at his battered companions. Jai had a broken arm and probably some cracked ribs too. Mue's ribs were likely similarly damaged. Bau had been knocked upside the head with his own weapon. Benin had a lovely bruise already forming on her face. And all of them were battered and bruised from getting tossed around by their target's Zanpakuto.
"What do we do, Riyan?" Benin asked, nursing her abused jaw. "Should we grab her while her bodyguard is distracted?"
Riyan considered it then winced as the large Hollow howled in pain. He shook his head. "We're withdrawing for now. With the ease he's handling that thing, that Shinigami look-alike will be on us the instant we try to subdue her." Keeping one eye on the battle, he heaved the unconscious Bau onto his shoulders. "I don't want to try taking that thing on outside the Valley without a good amount of preparation and a lot more Blanks. We'll report back to Lord Ganryu and let him decide our next course of action.
The group of banished Shinigami limped away as stealthily as possible.
-x-
"What's the matter, Fisher?" Ichigo crowed, delivering a haymaker to the Grand Fisher's face. "Where's that lure of yours?"
A rising kick to the chin.
"Where are your claws?"
A one-two punch to the body.
"Come on! Bind me with your fur!"
A double fisted hammer blow to the top of his head.
"Pierce me with your claws! Look into my heart!"
A low-powered Cero threw him across the cemetery, reducing a number of graves to rubble.
"Show me the face of the one I can't cut, you son of a bitch!" Ichigo roared. He leaped and came down on the prone Arrancar's body. His raised his leg and brought it down in an ax kick that smashed Grand Fisher down into a half-meter-deep crater. He felt a burst of satisfaction when his mother's killer coughed up blood.
Ichigo walked up Grand Fisher's body, making sure to dig his feet in with every step. Once in reach, he grabbed the lower half of Fisher's mask and yanked him up, forcing him to meet his eyes.
"Does it hurt?" Ichigo asked, still smiling. Grand Fisher groaned. "Good. I've got six years of aggression to work out here." He drew his fist back for another blow. "I want to make this last."
-x-
Rukia propped herself against a tree as she fought to catch her breath and clutched at a stitch in her side. She was out of Karakura proper and had covered a fair distance between the city and the cemetery.
Still not at full strength…Damn it, this is not the time for this!
She caught her breath and started moving again, jogging as quickly as she could toward the graveyard Ichigo was battling Grand Fisher.
Her run was interrupted by a black, cursing meteor crashing to the ground in front of her, missing her by inches.
"Goddammit! I'm so out of shape!" the meteor yelled, popping out of his impact crater.
Rukia blinked. She recognized the voice of that "meteor". "Mr. Kurosaki?" she asked, staring at the black shihakusho and what seemed to a Captain's haori wrapped over his left shoulder.
Ichigo's father looked up at her and blinked. "Do I know you?"
Rukia opened her mouth, but another burst of Ichigo's reiatsu interrupted her. Deciding explanations could wait, Rukia grabbed the collar of Isshin's shihakusho and started dragging him toward the cemetery.
"Ow! Hey! Take it easy, girl!" he yelled as he was dragged over roots and rocks.
"Then stand up and walk! We don't have any time to be wasting!"
-x-
This is…brutal…
Senna cowered behind a tree as Ichigo's decimation of Grand Fisher continued. Half the graveyard had been trashed by the battle.
The Shinigami winced as a sickening crack and anguished scream echoed through the night air.
She had never thought that she would feel sorry for a Hollow.
Grand Fisher screamed again, accompanied by Ichigo's manic laughter. Senna clapped her hands over her ears.
This wasn't a battle. This was torture.
And there was nothing she could do to stop it. Ichigo obviously had a personal vendetta against this Hollow. There was no telling what would happen to her if she tried to interfere.
All she could do was hunker down and pray that it ended soon.
Footsteps caught her attention, and she looked up to see two more Shinigami enter the cemetery.
-x-
"Puh…puh…ple…ase…muh…mer…cy" Grand Fisher spluttered through bloody lips and broken teeth.
"I wonder how many of your victims said that same thing," Ichigo mused, flicking his wrist to rid his Zanpakuto of blood.
Grand Fisher lay on his side, his right arm and leg resting a dozen feet away. His body was covered in purple and black bruises. His remaining limbs were broken in multiple places.
And it wasn't enough.
Ichigo flipped his Zanpakuto over and stabbed down into Grand Fisher's leg. The scream was music to his ears. He twisted the blade. He wanted this bastard to suffer.
Ichigo yanked the sword out and stared at the broken form of his mother's killer.
Maybe…
"I've got an idea…" Ichigo purred. "I'm going to let you experience exactly what your past victims did." He palmed the upper half of Grand Fisher's mask and pressed his head against the ground. Fisher groaned as Ichigo started to increase the pressure. "I'm getting hungry anyway…" The orange-haired Arrancar licked his lips. Grand Fisher yelled in pain as the force on his head grew.
"Ichigo, stop!"
Ichigo turned his yellow-on-black glare to the new arrivals. "The hell are you doing here, Rukia?" He blinked at the tall, bearded figure standing behind her. The surprising sight of his father in the garb of a Shinigami caused some of the bloodlust to recede from Ichigo's mind and he let up on the pressure slightly.
Rukia stalked over to him, drew back her arm, and slapped him across the face with all her strength.
The unfazed Arrancar stared as she collapsed on the ground, clutching her abused hand.
"You okay?"
"F-fine… But you - !" She glared up at Ichigo. "Have you completely lost your mind? You were going to eat him!"
Ichigo's eyes narrowed. "Seems like fitting revenge to me," he growled.
"And what would happen to your mother's soul?" Rukia yelled.
Ichigo started as Rukia's words penetrated through his bloodthirsty instincts to reach the rational mind beneath.
"Her - ? I…" His eyes wide in shock, his gaze shifted back to the beaten monster beneath him. "Oh god…" Ichigo stumbled back, trying to put as much distance between himself and Grand Fisher. His back hit a gravestone, halting his retreat. When the full ramifications of what he had nearly done hit him, he rolled to the side and threw up. "Mom… Shit…What kind of monster am I turning into!"
"Doctor Kurosaki Style: Anti-Angst Blow!"
Unlike Rukia's effort, Ichigo felt this one full force. Dumbfounded, he pressed a hand against his throbbing cheek, while Isshin shook his hand out.
"Get your head out of your ass, boy! You think something like this makes you a monster?" Isshin crossed his arms over his chest. "If I had been here first, I likely would not have remained rational either! So what if you are an Arrancar? You are also human, and above all, you are a son who loved his mother!" He knelt before his son and placed a hand on his shoulder. "No one can blame you for reacting like you did when faced with her killer."
Ichigo hung his head. "I just…" His eyes prickled and he furiously scrubbed his face with the back of his arm. "I miss her so much, Dad…"
Isshin dropped down next to him and slung an arm over Ichigo's shoulder, pulling him into a one-armed-manly-hug. "I know. So do I."
The Kurosaki men sat in silence, their hearts full of wishes for what might have been.
-x-
Rukia sighed as she looked at her friend and his father. She felt a slight twinge in her chest. She chalked it up to the touching father-son scene in front of her.
Then the twinge became a sharp pain. Rukia gasped and her hand flew up to grasp the shihakusho over her heart.
Behind her, she heard Grand Fisher gasp and choke.
Then the pain returned even worse than before, driving her to her knees. A scream passed her lips.
Her suffering drew Ichigo and Isshin's attention, and the two were quickly at her side.
As suddenly as it started, the pain receded. Rukia took a few shuddering breaths, but the pain did not return.
"I'm okay…I'm okay…" the Shinigami insisted as Ichigo hovered over her while Isshin ran her through a quick physical.
Isshin cupped his chin. "I can't find anything overtly wrong…Still, I'm giving you a room at the clinic tonight, just in case. Help her up, Ichigo." He turned around and drew the Zanpakuto hanging at his side. "I'm just going to finish this…" He trailed off when he saw the spot Grand Fisher had occupied was vacant. "Bullshit."
Senna poked her head out from behind her tree. "Is it safe to come out yet?"
-x-
Grand Fisher sighed in relief as he finally hauled himself out of the Garganta and into the desert just outside Las Noches. Dragging himself through the space between worlds with his broken arm had been excruciating, but you do what you have to in order to survive.
And what the hell had that been? He'd been halfway into the Garganta when he felt more pain than he'd ever felt before, even including the beating Kurosaki had just handed him. For the first time since he became a Hollow, he'd felt like throwing up.
"This isn't the end, Kurosaki. I'll get healed up. I'll gain even more power. And I'll come kill you, you little shit!"
"I'm afraid that won't be happening, Grand Fisher."
Grand Fisher turned around, saw a flash of steel, felt something pulling at him, then everything went dark.
-x-
Aizen sheathed his sword, the remains of Grand Fisher vanishing into the depths of the Hogyoku.
"What a waste…"
This was becoming very inconvenient. He had hoped to get some kind of information out of Fisher about the current situation in Karakura. But no, the Hogyoku had woken up and he had lashed out at the first thing he could to appease it.
Aizen glared down at the orb in his chest.
This situation cannot continue. As things stand, I'm at the mercy of the Hogyoku. I need to assert control.
He also needed to send someone reliable to do some recon in Karakura.
Preferably someone who won't spontaneously decide turn the place into a smoking crater…
Was anyone else really disappointed with Grand Fisher's defeat in canon? While Isshin showing up and killing him in one shot was awesome, I thought it deprived Ichigo of some much-needed closure. Plus there's no indication Isshin ever told Ichigo about killing him, so as far as Ichigo knows, his mother's killer is still at large, luring more spiritually sensitive people to their deaths. Not to mention Ichigo's the type of person to blame himself for those further theoretical deaths because he failed to kill Grand Fisher when he had the chance. Yeah, Kubo kinda dropped the ball there in my opinion…
What did you think of the fight (slaughter)? I actually felt a little sorry for Grand Fisher while I was writing it. Meh, I'll get over it.
Once again, Ichigo's instincts get the better of him. Good thing Rukia and Isshin showed up, huh?
I thought of two ways I could end this chapter. I went with the one that I felt was best for the plot (which, unfortunately, was the worst for Ichigo). Rant and rave at me all you want (I certainly didn't enjoy writing it). Just please trust that I have good reasons for what happened.
Now then, something a little less full of gloom and doom! Namely, everyone's favorite psychopathic badass, Kenpachi Zaraki! I've got the main points of Kenpachi's relationship with his Zanpakuto planned out, but I'm having trouble deciding when you, the readers, will get your first look at it. So, I've decided to let you all decide! The poll's on my profile. Go and vote!