A/N: An important note. You may have read my other fanfic, "Reasons", which gives various hypotheses on why Aizen's subordinates joined up, and finally, why Aizen himself did what he did. I characterize each person in a unique way in the fanfic.
I may or may not through these characterizations out the window for this fanfic. So don't rely on that one.
Snakebite
"Gin, could you check this script over for me to make sure I haven't left any plot holes open?"
The silver haired man looked up from his work. Dark circles lined his eyes. It was obvious Gin had not slept for some time.
"Sure, Tosen," Gin mumbled.
Because Aizen had to coordinate a war on the Shinigami, the task of writing a decent script for Aizen to translate into illusion for Hinamori fell onto Gin and Tosen. It was a tedious job.
Gin quickly scanned the extensive sheet of paper Tosen had given him. His eyes alighted on a rather interesting passage. Gin's eyes widened in surprise.
"Is Aizen confessing to Hinamori in this part?" Gin asked, incredulous.
"I thought it would be more effective if the fantasy contained a 'happy ending', so to speak," Tosen explained.
Gin snorted. "Do you honestly believe the girl will buy that?" he asked.
"She's bought everything Aizen's fed her so far," Tosen pointed out. Gin nodded, considering Tosen's point. "True, true," he said.
"I heard that a new Espada joined the ranks," Tosen said. "Is it true?"
Gin smiled. "Yep," he said. "Saw him lop of Nnoitra's head myself. He seems strong."
Tosen nodded, unperturbed. He never liked Nnoitra very much at all. Excessive bloodshed was unnecessary and stained Aizen-sama's noble cause.
"What is this newcomer's name?" Tosen inquired.
"Alacran Clon," Gin responded. "The new Quinta Espada. He was one of the warriors Aizen sent to Karakura."
Tosen's interest was piqued. Aizen was either testing out his new Espada's strength or was planning to get rid of him from the start.
"Who else has been sent to Karakura?"
"Uliquorra, Yammy, and Grimmjow," Gin responded. "But they were all ordered not to engage in lengthy battles and only to observe."
"I doubt Yammy or Grimmjow will follow those orders," Tosen replied drily.
Gin frowned. "You're not very nice, are you?" he commented.
"Neither Yammy nor Grimmjow have much of my respect," Tousen countered.
"But you like Uliquorra," Gin mentioned.
"He shuts up and doesn't disturb me," Tosen pointed out.
"Fair enough."
----
Ichigo's eyes widened as he sensed the reiatsu that suddenly swept through Karakura town.
"What is that?" he gasped.
Shinji's eyes widened. "Arrancar," he hissed.
"What?" Ichigo asked.
Shinji didn't have much time to elaborate. "Menos that have removed their masks," he quickly explained. He was met by a blank look by Ichigo.
Mashiro jumped in front of Ichigo. "They're sorta like Vizards, just flip-flopped."
"Ah," Ichigo said. "I get it now."
Love and Rose quickly shunpoed next to the gathered Vizards. "I sense four of them," Rose noted. "Not too many, but they seem powerful."
Ichigo quickly noted the reiatsus of Rukia, Chad, and Orihime rush towards the arrancar. He couldn't sense Uryuu, which was odd.
Shinji stood up, smiling, as Hiyori, Lisa, and Kensei all arrived at the scene. "Let's go," he said.
----
"Gon-"
"What, Yammy, are you too weak to hunt other hollows?" Grimmjow taunted. "Or are you plain fucking stupid?"
Yammy growled at Grimmjow. "Why you!-"
Uliquorra glared at the two lower ranked espada. "Stop arguing," he commanded. "Or else I will report this to Aizen-sama."
Alacran had long, white hair. The standard arrancar uniform was wrapped tightly around his torso, not revealing any skin or muscle, yet he still gave off an impression of power. He wore a ring around his right middle finger, and had an impassive facial expression. He remained silent throughout the exchange. Suddenly, he spoke up. "I sense the presences of the hollowfied Shinigami Aizen-sama informed us of," he declared. "However, there are several other… rather strange reiatsus approaching us."
Uliquorra nodded his head in concurrence. So far, the new Quinta had been much more likable than Nnoitra. He wasn't as violent, didn't speak out of turn, and respected his superiors. It was good enough for Uliqourra.
Grimmjow frowned, also letting out his Pesquisas. Suddenly sensing the abnormal reiatsu, Grimmjow smiled. He smiled even wider when he felt the reiatsus of assorted Shinigami pour in from above.
"We're outnumbered," Alacran pointed out. "We might want to send a request to Aizen for a few of our fraccion to come over-"
Yammy had already gone off to battle the Vizards, and Grimmjow had headed off in the direction of the Shinigami.
"Send one," Uliquorra ordered. "Just to make sure nobody dies. We only have to observe their strength. We're not here to kill them, so don't ask for excessive force."
Alacran nodded his head in understanding. He opened a miniature garganta in the palm of his hand. Aizen's face appeared on the other end.
"Alacran," Aizen said. "Is there a problem?"
"There are more enemies than expected, sir," Alacran responded. "Requesting reinforcements. Grimmjow's fraccion will do."
Aizen smiled. "Very well," he said. "I will send them."
"Thank you, Aizen-sama," Alacran said. He terminated the garganta connection. Alacran turned to Uliquorra. "They're coming."
"El Directo!"
Chad's energy blast exploded between the two espada, throwing them backwards. Uliquorra noted the human that stood before them.
Alacran was surprised by Chad's appearance. "A human," he muttered. "How does a human have these powers?"
"Spiritual pollution," Uliquorra responded. "The Substitute Shinigami in the area has no idea how to control his spiritual energy. And so, people like these happen."
An orange haired girl appeared next to the human, as did a short raven-haired girl, who was obviously a Shinigami.
The Shinigami spoke up. "Arrancar," she observed. "What do you want with us?"
Alacran silently blessed whatever gods there were that the Shinigami had decided to direct the question towards him, and not Yammy or Grimmjow. That might prove disastrous.
"The Shinigami have ruled for far too long," Uliquorra said. "We are here to overthrow Soul Society."
Alacran noticed the Shinigami grip her sword tightly. He chuckled to himself. Shinigami were truly easily influenced.
Chad didn't care for the pre-battle chit chat. He charged forwards toward Alacran immediately.
Steel flashed and Chad's right arm flew off. His armored left arm melted away into nothingness. "Weak," Alacran muttered, as Chad fell to the ground.
"Sado-kun!" Orihime screamed. Rushing forward, she knelt over Chad. "Soten Kisshun!"
Uliquorra's interest was piqued by the strange shield. He was further intrigued when the boy's arm healed itself. The girl was rejecting events… she was rejecting time itself. Aizen-sama would want to know.
"Interesting," Uliquorra murmured.
"We should inform Aizen about this," Alacran muttered, just loud enough so that Uliquorra could hear. The other Espada nodded in agreement.
"You bastards!" Rukia screamed, charging forward. "Mae, Sode no Shirayuki!" (Dance, Sleeve of the White Snow!)
Alacran watched, uninterested, as the Shinigami unleashed Shikai. He had a creeping suspicion that this one was weak as well.
"Some no Mai, Tsukihiro!"
A glowing white circle surrounded the two Espada. Neither was fazed. Alacran raised a finger as Uliquorra pointed his blade downwards.
"Cero!" Alacran shouted. Rukia's eyes widened. She was obviously unaccustomed to Ceros that required no charging. Besides Stark, Alacran had the fastest Cero of all the Espada.
Right before the Cero hit Rukia Tsukihiro activated, sending a pillar of ice rocketing towards the heavens. It shattered instantaneously as Uliquorra swung his blade.
"How pathetic," Uliquorra observed.
Alacran's Cero hit Rukia square in the chest, knocking her backwards several feet. "That seems to be all the combat oriented enemies in the area," Alacran observed.
A sudden flare of reiatsu drew the Espada's attention towards a different area. The enemies over there seemed much more powerful than the human and lone Shinigami Alacran and Uliquorra had encountered.
Alacran raised his eyebrows. "Yammy seems to be getting fairly involved in the fight."
---
Tatsuki watched, amazed, as monsters landed in front of her. She was even more shocked when Chad, Orihime, and Rukia went out to combat them. "What… is this?" she thought, numbed with fear.
Then Yammy knocked her out and prepared to eat her soul. His reiatsu flared as he thought about how she would taste like.
"Getsuga Tensho!"
The blue crescent of reiatsu slammed into Yammy, blasting him off his feet. When the dust cleared, it was evident that Ichigo's attack had done a lot of damage.
"Damn…," Yammy murmured. A huge cut had been carved in his torso. It dripped blood profusely. "Damnit!"
Yammy's arm flew off. "Don't touch her," Ichigo growled.
Shinji appeared behind Yammy. His sword, embedded through Yammy's gut, soon followed. The large arrancar fell to the ground.
Alacran landed gracefully next to Yammy's unmoving body. "Oh, what a pity. I don't think he's dead, though," he muttered. He turned towards Ichigo and his companions. "Karakura's defenders, if I'm not mistaken. The information Aizen gave us mentioned Karakura as the key to creating the Ouken. It was only natural, I suppose, that it would be heavily defended."
Ichigo's eyes narrowed. Urahara had found out about Aizen's research in the Seiretei libraries concerning the Ouken and had informed the Shinigami and Vizards. The idea of killing a hundred thousand souls and wiping Karakura off the face of the earth did not go well with Ichigo. "Aizen allied himself with you?"
Alacran smiled. "But of course," he explained. "After all, a garganta was supposed to evacuate him."
Ichigo charged, and Zangetsu almost tore off Alacran's head. "My, my," he murmured. "What an unrefined boy."
Alacran easily sidestepped Ichigo's next strike. Ichigo swung his gargantuan sword again, and Alacran blocked the strike with his bare hand.
Ichigo growled. "Bankai: Tensa Zangetsu!" The black sword appeared in Ichigo's hand, accompanied by a sudden increase in reiatsu.
Alacran noted the sudden pressure put on his hand. He quickly swept up his foot and kicked Ichigo in the face.
Ichigo flew backwards into the air, but quickly recovered, stopping his body in midair. His hand groped the air above his forehead, as if grabbing something that was there but could not be seen.
Alacran showed little signs of shock as Ichigo's mask came down. "The opposite of an arrancar," Alacran observed. "A hollowfied Shinigami. Aizen's notes contained some information about them. Who are you?"
Shinji flew up next to Ichigo, also bringing his mask down. "We," he explained. "Are the Vizards."
----
"Bankai: Senbonzakura Kageyoshi!"
Giant swords surrounded Kuchiki Byakuya. They exploded simultaneously, releasing the captain's deadly Bankai.
Grimmjow shunpoed out of the way of the first torrent of deadly sakura petals. He narrowed his eyes, assessing the captain's reiatsu. Raising his sword, he quickly blocked Kenpachi Zaraki's sword.
Kenpachi grinned. "You seem strong, dontcha?"
Grimmjow frowned. He was upset. Aizen had given him orders not to engage in fights for a long time, yet in front of him stood two captains, both of which seemed strong enough to have an enjoyable fight with.
Grimmjow suddenly smiled. "But since when did you ever give a fuck to what Aizen ever said?"
"Bring it on!"
Kenpachi smiled even wider. He liked this arrancar.
"Stay out of this, Kuchiki," Kenpachi commanded. Then he charged Grimmjow.
The two swords clashed, and Grimmjow felt himself being pushed back. "Damn," he thought. "I might even need to release to fight this guy!" Growling, the Espada released a bit more of his reiatsu.
Kuchiki observed the ongoing battle impassively. His Bankai continued to swirl around in the air, as its wielder was on alert for more arrancar.
The captain suddenly felt a presence behind him. Turning around, he was faced with another arrancar. This one had black hair, and his eyes had green markings under them.
"Who are you?" Kuchiki asked.
"My name is not important," Uliquorra responded. He drew his sword and attacked Kuchiki.
Sakura petals swirled around the captain, guarding him from the Espada.
Uliquorra charged up a cero, firing it at the captain. The faint hum of a shunpo was heard. Out of his peripheral vision, Uliquorra saw Kuchiki appear behind him, petals surrounding his body. Kuchiki waved his hand, and the petals charged forwards.
One petal managed to graze Uliquorra's body, but it glanced off harmlessly. Uliquorra dodged all the others.
The proud captain's eyes widened as the Espada raised his sword to impale him.
Kuchiki only managed to dodge half of Uliquorra's blade. The other half cut through his stomach, severely wounding him.
"Hado Number 4: Byakurai!"
The kido spell skimmed past Uliquorra's thigh, slightly burning it.
"He actually managed to injure me," Uliquorra mused. "The higher numbered espada might have a little trouble with this one."
Uliquorra extended his Pesquisas, observing the battle going on between Alacran and the Vizards. Grimmjow's fraccion had already arrived at the battle and engaged in combat with some of the weaker Vizards. Uliquorra trusted Alacran's ability to accurately evaluate his opponent's strength as well as determine if the Vizards were a major threat to Aizen's plans.
"Come on, Grimmjow," Uliquorra called out. "We're done here."
Grimmjow growled. "Already?"
Kenpachi suddenly halted the swing of his sword. "You're retreating?"
Grimmjow snorted. "If I had a choice, one of us would be lying dead on the ground right now. If you want to continue our fight, come to Las Noches and look for the Sexta Espada, Grimmjow Jaegerjaques!"
Alacran and Grimmjow's fraccion joined the two Espada. Alacran had the massive Yammy hefted over his shoulder. None of Karakura's defenders noticed as Alacran let a small butterfly loose from his hand.
It was a variation on the Shinigami hell butterfly. This particular butterfly contained some video information for Aizen-sama, and a small suggestion, made by Alacran himself, at the end.
Aizen-sama would be coming soon.
---
Aizen observed as the girl healed the boy using some space-time ability. Aizen smiled. He would have to acquire the girl.
In approximately two and a half seconds, he figured out to do so in five different ways. He chose the best one just as Alacran's face appeared in the butterfly's transmitter screen.
The Espada repeated exactly what Aizen had been thinking. The leader of the arrancar smiled in amusement.
Really, how stupid did his subordinates think he was?
---
"Orihime, no!" Ichigo shouted. "Get back!"
"Why?" Orihime asked. "Why can't you just leave us alone?"
Di Roy chuckled. "This is why!" Grimmjow's fraccion shunpoed behind Orihime and stabbed her in the stomach.
"Because you're all weak, and yet you still hunt us down, and treat us like animals! That's why!"
Aizen watched as his illusion played out before the assembled Shinigami's eyes. Really, it was the best he could think of on the spur of the moment. It didn't matter. The Shinigami were too stupid to question the credibility of the events.
The girl watched, stunned, as her own body fell to the ground, dead.
Grimmjow approached Aizen. "Di Roy's lines were a bit fake, weren't they? They sounded straight out of a comic book."
"Well," Aizen said, mildly irritated. "What do you suggest?"
Orihime backed up in fear. "You-you're the Shinigami- you were killed!"
"Your misconception is that I was killed," Aizen corrected. "And we could fill libraries with your misconceptions. Let's go."
Review, please.