Here's another chapter of Savage; I'm beginning the Zanpakuto Rebellion arc in this chapter. I hope you all enjoy it; I believe it's pretty compatible with Savage's plot.

I don't think I've got a lot else to say here. As always, I welcome Reviews, Follows and Favourites.

-()-()-()-

"Huh?" A groggy Ichigo Kurosaki asked off the air as he woke with a start. "Wuuz goin' on?" Ichigo rubbed the sleep out of his eyes as he sat up straight, and stifled a yawn. "Where am I? Oh, right, the Shiba house... so why did I wake?" If there had been a threat, Ichigo would have been ready for a fight in a second; a skill he'd mastered thanks to his father, yet he didn't detect anything of the sort.

"Am I thirsty or something?" Ichigo wondered,, bringing a hand to his throat, before shaking his head. "No... I feel fine, if a little sleepy." Ichigo shifted to the edge of his bed, and placed his feet on the ground. Standing, the orange haired human stretched; popping his neck and then cracking his back before rolling his shoulders. "Maybe I heard Kukkaku, or something." He frowned, and walked to the door; wholly unaware of the small, black shape following him closely.

He walked down the hallway with a haze over his eyes; wishing he could have gotten more sleep and entirely planning on going back to bed when he figured out what woke him. Unfortunately, he was curious, and felt the need to know before hitting the hay again. First, he checked the bathrooms and kitchen; empty. Next, the dining and living rooms but they, too, held nothing to explain his insomnia. Still, Ichigo didn't notice the creature flapping along, silently behind him; he'd never had to look for them before, after all.

Tip-toeing, Ichigo stopped outside the bedroom of Ganju, and quickly reached the conclusion that his not-brother was asleep based on the rumbling snores that passed through the thin door.

Moving carefully and quietly, Ichigo reached his not-sister's room, and heard no snores. Cautiously, he opened the door a crack and whispered "Kukkaku?" When no response came, he poked his head slowly around the door, and found the girl deep in slumber; looking very undignified as she was sprawled out over her bed with two quilts piled on top of her. Ichigo exited the room, and crept back to his own after shutting the door softly.

"Nothing." He scowled in confusion, and looked around his room, and Kukaku insisted that it was his, in search of the source. Maybe he'd missed it the first time.

Then, he felt a small pulse of reitsu to his left and slowly turned; his hand going to his hip in preparation to call forth one of his blades.

It wasn't a threat.

"A butterfly?" Ichigo asked of the butterfly. "Oh, you're one of those talking butterflies, aren't you. I'm sorry for ignoring you, little buddy." He held out his finger, and the butterfly landed on the tip. It replayed the message, before flying away.

"Shit," Ichigo yawned. "Old man Yamamoto's going to be annoyed, I'd bet. I don't imagine people keep him waiting very often." He groaned; the Captain Commander had given specified to be there as soon as possible, after all. "Better get going." He finished his thought, as he grabbed the sleeveless Kimono he typically wore in his Soul Form. In a burst of Reiryoku, Ichigo vanished in a blur of speed; headed for the Sokyoku hill; not a place he much wanted to visit, but he hadn't been given a choice in the matter.

-()-()-()-

'Well, that's a lot of people,' Ichigo thought, at the sight of so many Soul Reapers.

No response came from his inner world.

'Uhh... guys?' Ichigo wondered. 'Hello? You asleep?' They did not answer in any obvious way. 'Hey! Wake up!' The human-Shinigami exclaimed, with a small amount of worry. If he hadn't been expected, Ichigo would have sat down and entered his Mindscape; unfortunately, that didn't seem to be an option at the moment. 'I'll find out what's up in a minute, guys; I just need to check whether this meeting's anything pressing. And why there's a meeting without the Old man.'

As he Shunpo'd on to the hilltop, Ichigo landed mid-step and observed the scene in front of him. There was a strange quantity of Reiatsu in the air, but the human-shinigami put that down to so many captains being gathered at once. All of them bar the Head Captain and Zaraki, from the looks of things.

'I wonder why the fog's so thick.' He thought, just as one of the strangers spoke up; everyone seemed to be focused on him, so maybe he'd already been speaking. The guy looked weird, to say the least. Pale, with purple hair and freakishly long fingernails.

"... I have freed your Zanpakuto," The weird looking soul stated. "They are no longer under your control." Ichigo didn't comprehend that at the moment, and spoke; talking to the crowd as a whole. as the man raised his hand to the front of his face.

"Hey, is the bear guy okay?" The human asked; spotting Sajin Komamura lying in the dirt across from the stranger. No one had the time respond, as the man smirked at the sight of Ichigo Kurosaki before making his move; giving the signal to his allies by swiping his hand to the side.

On cue, a dozen explosions tore through the ground below the hilltop; wrecking the buildings in the Seiretei with various abilities.

"What did you do?!" Renji demanded of the man in front of them, with his sealed Zanpakuto in hand.

"Oh, that was not me," He smiled condescendingly at the red haired man, and continued. "That was your own Zanpakuto expressing their freedom."

"No!" Momo exclaimed, in horror.

"I am afraid it is true, girl." He said. "Your Zanpakuto have been freed. They are no longer under your control.

"This was just a small preview of the power my allies hold, so that you would begin to comprehend how futile it will be for you to fight. How little hope you have of victory in this battle.

"And as for the Spirits you so foolishly believed you owned; that you forced your will upon... well, cast your eyes on their forms!"

All around him, Ichigo heard gasps and surprised exclamations as new spirits appeared out of thin air; the Zanpakuto had arrived, and he found it rather interesting to see them all.

Some were miniscule while others were large. Next to Soi Fon, there was a tiny, bee-like Zanpakuto; contrasting against the figure that Ichigo now guessed to be Komamura's sword and the beast of a spirit stood next to Ikkaku.

Some almost resembled their owners; Rangiku's was a well endowed female with a spoilt attitude, based on the fact that she shoved her ex-welder out of the way, others just looked strange; like the metallic creature next to Kurotsuchi, or simply out of place like the two little girls next to Ukitake.

But Ichigo's attention was pulled away from the others as three figures walked past him, and he felt confusion creep to the surface of his mind.

"See ya soon, King." The bleached Zangetsu grinned and clapped the human-shinigami on the shoulder as he strode past Ichigo, while his stoic counterpart remained... well, stoic, as he followed suit. Ichigo would not expect either of them to leave him, but it was not as much of a shock as the next one to slowly walk by.

"Nejibana?" He asked. It baffled the hybrid that she would feel the need to leave; he'd never thought she seemed anything less than happy to be with him.

It was a further surprise when the female spirit did not answer him, and Ichigo was forced to watch her walk away; unable to say a word.

"My name is Muramasa," The stranger, who seemed to have started this, spoke. "And this night marks the end of your reign of tyranny over the Zanpakutos." He raised his hand, and a purple hilted sword appeared in his hand. The man stabbed it into the ground, and Ichigo's attention was unwillingly dragged to the ground that suddenly rose in columns, and the dust that spread over the hill; blocking the Shinigami's senses. "Now, the Zanpakuto will rule!"

"'The Zanpakuto will rule the Soul Reapers'?! What is that, a joke?!" Jushiro Ukitake exclaimed, with frustration.

"Oh, on the contrary," Muramasa said, with a smirk. "As you can see; every one of your Zanpakuto are now free of your control, and will not surrender themselves again."

"Roar, Zabimaru!" Evidently, Renji had not taken the stranger at his word, and attempted to release his Shikai. Npthing happened, and the spirits stood atop their columns roared with laughter at the idiocy.

"While this news is rather important, and interesting," Shunsui Kyoraku began, stepping forwards. "I feel the need to ask where Yammamoto-sama is; he was the one who called us here, after all."

"You are mistaken there," Muramasa replied. "Genryusai Yamamoto has been... sealed. When we approached the Zanpakuto of Genyusai Yamamoto, Ryujin Jaka, it refused to cooperate with us. To solve this issue, we called on your Zanpakuto; Katen Kyokotsu, as well as Sogyo no Kotowari and Minazuki, to seal his power." As the others murmured about this revelation, Ichigo felt his patience wear thin.

"Okay, that's impressive and all but, as long as we're having a Q&A, I have something I want to ask you, too." The human-Shinigami stated, as he stepped next to the captain. Even compared to the conspicuous captain, Ichigo stood out for the simple fact that he hadn't bothered to fasten his kimono in his hurry, and it hung open unlike the formal appearance of all the others present.

"Yes, Ichigo Kurosaki?"

"Firstly, if you expect me to be impressed that you know my name, you're very much mistaken," Ichigo began with irritation in his tone. "I don't give a shit if you can tell me the last time I had a sex dream; or who it was about, since you've got three of my Zanpakuto apparently allying themselves with you." The irritation grew significantly. "What I want to know, is why you've left me with two in Tabigarasu and Kikoo. I would guess they didn't want to join your rebellion, but why am I still free to kick your head in, if they refused? Why didn't you lock me up along with the old man?"

"Hm... An odd way to express your point," Muramasa commented, as he looked at the shocked faces of many Shinigami, and arguably interested in the case of a select few, and several Zanpakuto, present. From what he had seen of the boy in his reconnaissance, Muramasa observed that Ichigo was typically rather reserved, if slightly angry as his scowl would suggest. Was his temper that bad? "But you are correct that they refused my offer rather... vocally," That the stranger raised a hand to his side at the same time as Tabigarasu snarled gave Ichigo a hint as to what that meant. "But I had already made the plans regarding the head-captain, and so we let you be. You are far younger, and so I am sure that you pose little threat." The man said, dismissively.

It was strange that none of Ichigo's three Zanpakuto spoke up to correct Muramasa, and the human narrowed his eyes slightly at the fact. That suggested something slightly relieving to him, and further evidence supported his assumption. They weren't devoted to this... cause. No; they had their own motivations, though two of them were unclear to Ichigo.

Old man Zangetsu was staring at Ichigo, but his eyes were not filled with hatred or anger, as many of his fellows were staring at their wielders, but with... worry. What was he worried for?

Nejibana was not staring at Ichigo at all. In fact, she seemed to be avoiding looking at him at all costs but was, instead, watching Captain Ukitake with a determined gaze. Ichigo could not say why.

Hollow Zangetsu, on the other hand, was grinning sadistically, and that told Ichigo what he wanted. The Zanpakuto spirit was itching for a fight, and wanted to scratch that itch.

It was for that reason that, as Ikkaku leapt in to action, attacking Muramasa, Ichigo was moments behind.

"We've all heard enough from you! The time for words is over!" A Zanpakuto that had appeared next to Captain Hitsugaya had blocked the bald man, but Ichigo passed right by; not aiming for Muramasa.

"Aw, c'mon King!" His Hollow dodged out of the way as Kikoo's sealed form cut through the air he had been occupying moments before. "Can't you let me have even a little fun?!"

Several of the Soul Reapers present watched with shocked expressions as the pale version of Ichigo Kurosaki vanished, and Ichigo followed; leaving the rest of them behind in favour of pursuing Hollow Zangetsu. At the same time, the darker haired Zangetsu watched Ichigo vanish with an detached gaze, while Nejibana's attention was still focused on the sickly captain.

-()-()-()-

Hichigo darted from rooftop to rooftop as his wielder followed his movements a second later; the pale Spirit's grin did not fade as ball of red energy flew past his shoulder, nor as a blue blast followed. Instead, the pale Zangetsu laughed loudly, and yelled over his shoulder back at Ichigo in response to the Hado spells.

"Now, now, King!" He cackled. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you were tryin' to kill me!"

Ichigo did not reply; instead he attempted to intercept Hichigo; darting to a building in front of Hichigo in a flash of light, with Kikoo's sealed form drawn. The pale spirit leapt over Ichigo as he grinned, and drew the blade sat across his back. He flipped in mid-air and swung his sword in a violent arc.

"Getsuga Tensho!" A garbled voice exclaimed.

An arc of blue energy slammed into the rooftop, and Hichigo laughed aloud again as he sensed that Ichigo was in the air before him; the half-Hollow vanished in a buzz of Sonido and the chase began anew.

Ichigo grumbled under his breath as he wasted his time chasing after Hichigo. This didnn't make sense to him, and the human addressed his confusion as he pursued his Zanpakuto.

"Why are you running?!" Ichigo demanded. "I've never known you to suggest cowardice!" Hichigo was all about fighting.

"'Cept I'm out here to follow my instincts, and you can guess what those are, Ichigo!"

"To be violent? Destructive?" Ichigo assumed.

"Yep! And I'll get to do more of that if you're busy doin' other stuff!" Hichigo exclaimed, and spun in mid air to face Ichigo with a sinister grin. "Good luck blocking this, King!

"Cero!" A ball of red energy formed in the Hollow's hand, and he pushed his limb in the direction they'd just come from. In a torrent of crimson energy, the attack erupted and shot towards the Soul Reapers, who had just begun to disperse as they were thrown off balance by not possessing their Zanpakuto any longer.

With an exclamation, Ichigo vanished in an instant; preparing to block the destructive technique and having to let Hichigo escape to have the chance.

"Hehe; so predictable." Hollow Zangetsu chuckled to himself. "Now, what should I destroy first?" He wondered aloud, as his grin grew.

-()-()-()-

Ichigo's crazed Zanpakuto had shown intelligence as he picked his target, though it is possible that Hichigo had picked the perfect person to fire at through luck. While Rukia Kuchiki could hold her own, the girl was not as strong as any of those Ichigo arguably cared for more than she; not that there were many fitting that criteria in the Soul Society.

And, so, as the Hollow attack roared towards the Kuchiki girl, Ichigo was desperate to intercept it. He knew that Hollow Zangetsu would not release a weak Cero, and that Rukia could very well perish if it hit her directly.

Because of this, Ichigo was moving as a blur towards Rukia and Renji and barely noticed Byakuya's battle as he neared the pair just in time for a beautiful, silver-white woman to raise her blade in preparation for an attack that Ichigo did not pay any heed to; a fact that he would promptly regret.

The Cero blast would have erupted an equal distance between Rukia and her opponent, and, despite the fact that this would do less damage to Rukia than a direct attack, Ichigo needed to block it to avoid the risk of all three soon-to-be fighters lives being at risk. In the spirit of negating the attack entirely, the orange-haired human had sheathed Kikoo; with the blade it would only be possible for him to direct it to the left or the right, and Ichigo needed to push the Cero skywards. Something that would have been much easier if he'd thought to release Tabigarasu earlier.

To give himself the best chance of saving his friend, Ichigo appeared halfway down the long, tiled roof Rukia and her Zanpakuto were perched on at the worst possible time.

"Tsugi no mai, Hakuren." Sode no Shirayuki spoke, in a cold tone, just as Ichigo Kurosaki appeared in front of them; his forearms raised, crossed, and glowing sapphire. The beautiful Zanpakuto's eyes widened as the torrent of ice rocketed towards Ichigo, whose attention was cemented onto the other attack incoming; one that seemingly commanded his attention far more than Rukia's Zanpakuto's attack.

Ichigo felt panic grip him at feeling the incoming icy Reiryoku; he had no way to block that attack as well as the incoming Cero. In a last, ditch effort to avoid the damage, Ichigo took a firm grip on his own Reiatsu and the people present felt it skyrocket.

The Cero slammed into Ichigo milliseconds before the ice, and, with significant effort, the human gripped it and shoved the energy into the night sky above them; briefly bathing the world around them in a violent, red light.

Rukia and Renji watched, horrified, as Ichigo was swallowed by the ice attack, and Rukia let out a wordless cry as she leapt forwards, enraged at seeing her friend perish for the sake of protecting her.

"I did not expect this to be so easy," Sode no Shirayuki commented, as she raised her pale blade to block Rukia's wild attack. "Who would have thought you would be coaxed into violence so easily? Or that Ichigo Kurosaki would be killed with such ease?" The beautiful spirit smirked, as she danced away from the small girl's katana. "I see that I was correct that you would be hurt most of all by the deaths of those you care for, as opposed to the pain I could give to you physically. I am happy to see this."

"Why?" Rukia growled, as she paused to catch her breath. "Why would you wish to hurt me so?! I thought we were partners! I-" Rukia cut herself off, and raised her katana once again.

"Partners?" Sode no Shirayuki repeated. "That would suggest it was a mutually beneficial relationship; that I had a choice in whether or not to lend you my powers." The woman shook her head, and continued. "I did not. Now that I am free from your control, I will no longer bend to anybody's will. I will use my power for me and the first thing I wish to do with this power is to kill you; to make you suffer as I have every day I have been forced to conform to your wishes."

"Bul-l-shi-shit... Zan-pakuto h-have a ch-choice." A voice murmured, interrupting their conversation as the Spirit turned, with her eyebrow raised, to look at the cloud of dust that was dissipating. As it vanished, Sode no Shirayuki was treated to an unpleasant surprise. Ichigo was stood, with his right half encased in ice, with his left hand raised, and glowing blue; the Shinigami-human brought it, in a clenched fist, to his right shoulder. The ice shattered into a thousand shards with a burst of Reiryoku, and Ichigo shook himself with a shiver before raising his right hand and slowly clenching then unclenching his fingers.

"Fu-Fuck me, that's c-cold." Ichigo's teeth chattered, and he wrapped his left hand around the red hilted katana sat on his left hip.

"I-Ignite, Sear and in-Incinerate. Rise fr-om the ashes of those f-felled by your blade. Kikoo!" In a blur of reiryoku that engulfed Ichigo, his katana released and Kikoo's Shikai was made visible. The pole-arm, crossed between a Halberd and a Nagitana, radiated heat, to the relief of the half-frozen Ichigo.

"Ahh, that's a relief," Ichigo sighed, and twirled Kikoo above his head, as waves of heat flowed from the blade. He tossed it into the air, and caught it with ease. "Full mobility; thank Kami." The human commented to himself, before perching the Halberd on his shoulder, before pointing the head of the blade at Sode no Shirayuki. "Now, shall we? I don't much like getting frozen, after all."

"No, Ichigo!" Rukia responded, with relief evident in her tone at her friend being alive. "Please, I have to do this." She asked of Ichigo, as Sode no Shirayuki stared at the human.

"Yeah?" Ichigo looked at the girl, and his shoulders slumped. "Oh, fine. I suppose that attack was aimed at you, after all." He had only been hit through bad luck. It made sense to give the fight to Rukia. "Hey... where'd Renji go?" Ichigo asked, as he glanced behind him.

"Hm? I don't know; maybe he was needed elsewhere? Or found someone to fight?" Rukia guessed. Ichigo would soon find out that she was right, and that Renji saw that he had to intervene in a nearby group of unranked Soul Reapers being attacked by a gorilla-like Zanpakuto. He also knew Rukia well enough that the girl had to fight her Zanpakuto herself and did not consider the actions of leaving Rukia in the chaos of the newly begun rebellion. Renji wasn't particularly intelligent, after all, and it wasn't massively surprising for him to overlook an obvious fact.

"Right. I'll see you soon, Rukia. Kick her ass for me." Ichigo would have to search the vicinity for any of his Zanpakuto. If they were to hurt anyone, Ichigo would be inclined to blame himself.

"How..." Sode no Shirayuki quietly asked, as Ichigo vanished. There was a surprising hint of doubt in her tone. Doubt of her own power, instead of that of her wielder, for once.

-()-()-()-

The first Spirit Ichigo managed to find was Nejibana, and her position was not particularly reassuring. In her right hand, the blue-haired beauty gripped her trident, and was poised to strike the pale haired Soul Reaper in front of her.

Why did she hate Captain Ukitake so much?