Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach!
yonda: Ofcourse, Aizen's final goal hasn't changed. However if he will choose to achieve it by creating another key or possibly by other means will be for you to find out and for me know.
Getsuga Tensou: There's no such thing as a review that sucks (Well except perhaps those that critisize without being constructive about it). Any words of praise or encouragement are more then welcome! So thank you!
hellzanetruesdale: I have no answer to that question as of yet I'm afraid. They will inevitably run into eachother eventually but wether that will turn into a confrontation remains to be seen.
X009: As for the Kidou thing. Yes I agree, Raikouhou is pretty much useless for an Arrancar however you should keep in mind that they will inevitably have to learn the lower level (Well maybe considering a lvl 63 spell isn't exactly lower but you get the point) to arrive at the higher ones featuring for example Danku, Kurohitsugi, Kin and Bankin.
Now regarding the Vaizards. Yes they will show up at one point or another but for now they will remain in the shadows and I believe they will continue doing so for quite a while to come.
Other then that I can guarantee that, atleast for now, Ichigo will be the only Arrancar to learn Kidou. The reason for this being that Aizen has and to an extent, still is, molding Ichigo into his perfect soldier. Plus the fact that Aizen believed Ichigo would do well in it because he had a remarkable good control of his reiatsu.
DarkJason: Once again yes. The Vaizards will be revealed in the story, eventually. But they will remain the shadows for quite a while to come.
As for Inoue. I'm not sure yet but right now I am leaning to eventually having her captured yes.
RyumaOmega: Well, seeing as it'll all be revealed in this chapter. You pretty much figured out the reason why I ended up writing Szayel owe Ichigo a favor. Nonetheless even knowing that you'll be up for a surprise or two concerning him.
Chapter 8: A Conspiracy Unraveled.
The person that stood on the other side of the door was none other then Szayel Aporro Granz, the Octava Espada.
"I believe I have something for you, to repay your little...favor."
Ichigo in turn was quite surprised by this. He'd encountered Szayel just a day earlier and already said Arrancar had found a way to repay his debt? The truth was that he honestly believed it would be some kind of small favor that didn't even compare to what Ichigo had done for the Espada.
Nonetheless he motioned for him to come inside. As Szayel sat down on the large sofa, Nel entered the room and when she noticed the pink-haired Arrancar sitting on the couch she looked at him oddly.
"Szayel?" She asked in a somewhat sleepy voice. Ichigo was amazed at how fast she could apparently switch between modes. She'd gone from angry to embarrassed and back to sleepy again in less then two minutes.
"Nelliel? What a coincidence to find you here as well." Szayel said suggestively. "It just so happens I have come to speak with Ichigo about something...important. Though it does sort of concern you so perhaps you should listen to what I have to say as well."
At this Ichigo's expression darkened. "Why does it concern her?" He asked, obviously not trusting the Espada one bit.
Szayel for his part merely chuckled. "Don't worry, I have no ill intentions towards her. Though you did take away an opportunity for me to test a new device I've been working on."
Ichigo sighed. He'd have to sit down for this. So when Ichigo sat down, Nel instantly joined him and lay down on the sofa, resting her head on his lap. The truth was the both of them had gotten into the habit of it. Ichigo would sit down and Nel would lie down, her head resting on his lap. Admittedly Ichigo had complained about it at first but after a while he'd begun to find it strangely comfortable.
Right now however Ichigo wasn't so sure if it was a good idea. He never did show much emotion in public. Atleast, not compared to what he showed in private with Nel and even her Fracción around. Not that he was anything like Ulquiorra of whom one could truly say he didn't even have any emotion to begin with.
Nel however didn't seem too concerned with it. At first she'd laid her head facing towards Szayel studying him for a short while. But seeing as no one attempted to get any conversation started just yet she proceeded to bury her nose in Ichigo's stomach.
Looking over at Szayel, Ichigo noticed the man was smirking. Now that was something he didn't like. But he would show no outward sign of emotion. It was better if said person believed Ichigo didn't care that Szayel saw him like this.
"Out with it, Szayel." Ichigo all but commanded.
"My, my, so rude." Szayel commented, getting on Ichigo's nerves even further. "But alright. Seeing the two of you here together so...comfortable makes me quite certain this will be enough to repay my debt to you."
Ichigo quirked up his eyebrows at this. Which Szayel took as a sign to continue with his explanation.
"Yesterday evening I got a visit. From Nnoitra Jiruga." Szayel started. "He pretty much threatened me into cooperating with him on a certain matter. I didn't like the way he asked but I did like the opportunity he gave me to test out the new device I spoke about earlier. He demanded to know if I had anything that could create an opening on an enemy. He wouldn't say who it was untill I had agreed but I think we all know who he intends to use this on."
Ichigo knew ofcourse who he planned to create an opening on. It was Nel and it appeared as if Ichigo had just gotten the perfect opportunity to get rid of Nnoitra. The only problem was that he wasn't sure if he could trust Szayel.
Nel who had appeared to be sleeping just a minute earlier was wide awake now, although her head was still lying on Ichigo's lap it was now facing Szayel and she was paying close attention. Nel never liked Nnoitra, the words she had spoken to him after she defeated him for the third time in a row were true. It was exactly how she thought of him. Nonetheless she knew that if Ichigo were to work together with Szayel on this Nnoitra would without a doubt be killed by him. She didn't want Ichigo to stain his hands for her sake. Because that is what it was, he probably wasn't even aware of it himself, but she knew, she knew the only reason he hated Nnoitra as much as he did was because he bothered her.
"First things first Szayel. Can I trust you?" Ichigo asked warily.
Szayel only chuckled at the question. "Normally, no you couldn't. But since you are right about the fact that I owe I suppose you can, on this subject atleast. I wish to get rid of our little debt and you wish to make sure Nnoitra is no longer a threat to you, or perhaps to Nelliel who is too kindhearted to finish him off." He told them adding a suggestive wink.
"Very well. I suppose that's as good as I'm going to get. Now let's get this over with then." Ichigo said.
Together they spent rougly forty-five minutes going over the details of what would happen tomorrow. The truth is they didn't need a plan. Szayel would do all the work. And so when he had told them everything he intended to tell Nnoitra he would help him.
=0=
"Ichigo," It was Nel's voice, he was pretty sure what this was going to be about. He turned around to look at her and found that she was looking at him with a sad expression in her eyes.
"Do not stain your hands with blood for my sake, Ichi," She said softly as she moved closer. "Do not become an animal such as he by lashing out at all that threatens you. Do not fight for the sake of killing or I guarantee you Ichigo you will lose yourself along the way." Nel finished softly. She stood right in front of him by now, looking up at his face with a sad expression. She unzipped the collar of his vest, exposing his face and neck. She then wrapped her arms around his neck and looked at him intently. "Please, Ichigo." She whispered into his ear as she buried her nose in the crook of his neck. "If you want to fight, fight for that which matters to you. If you want to kill, kill those deserving of your blade. And if you want to bleed, bleed for those worth bleeding for." She finished softly, her head buried into his neck with silent tears streaming down her face.
Ichigo was shocked. He hadn't thought it would be such a big deal. He had intended to kill Nnoitra as soon as he engaged Nel. He had even gone as far as to look forward to it. But now, as he felt wet tears run down the crook of his neck, he wasn't so sure anymore. He felt a pang of regret and what he thought was guilt. It was a feeling he had never felt before. Always had he been sure of his actions, always had he done what he thought was right. Or had he? No, thinking about it now, he had not always done what was right. He had done what was easy. Never before had he felt this bad. And it was all because of the woman sobbing into his shoulder. He realised though, that he didn't mind, no he didn't mind at all. He'd do anything for her, he was sure of it indeed.
"Nel," He spoke up. Causing her to look up at him with red eyes surrounded by the wetness of recent tears. "You're right, I'm terribly sorry."
Nel's teary eyes widened at this. Ichigo was never one to apologize for his actions. He hadn't done it often and never before with such sincerity as he had now.
"I wanted to kill Nnoitra for you Nel. Not because you couldn't do it yourself but more so because you wouldn't, despite his attitude." Ichigo started. "I realise now that, not once have I asked what you wanted but the truth is that I knew what you wanted all along. I was just too blind to see it."
She smiled a true smile at him. Ichigo thought it looked a bit ironic. A true smile on her red-eyed face. Her tears had hardly dried up yet.
"From now on," He continued. "I will fight for you. Because you are what matters to me. I will kill those who have done wrong and thus deserve to be struck down. And I will bleed for you, because you are worth bleeding for."
After hearing this, Nel's eyes instantly watered up again. It appeared he had finally embraced some of the emotion she knew was in there. He'd slowly started to show more and more over the weeks but right now, he'd certainly had a breakthrough. She smiled at him genuinely.
Ichigo in the meantime was amazed at himself for a change. The amount of emotion he had just displayed was life changing he was sure. But he knew it would be worth it. He had never wanted to hurt Nel. She was his only true friend ever since he died. She would never forsake him he was sure and so he would not forsake her either. He returned her smile in kind.
As Ichigo turned to take a seat in the couch he was stopped by a hand that grabbed his wrist. Turning around he noticed Nel looking at him intently. Before he knew what was going on she had leaned in and given him a soft but lingering kiss on his lips. As she turned to lie down on the couch, he could only stand there, wondering what had just happened.
On second thought though. He should have expected something along those lines. Nel was never one to express her thanks in words. She usually expressed it in the form of a smile, a hug or in this case a kiss. That was all there was to it, right? Ichigo couldn't help but doubt himself on that subject. After a while though he guessed he shouldn't worry about it too much, it wasn't as if he didn't like it.
And so he turned to lie down on the same couch Nel was currently located in. Motioning for her to scoot up she did just that. When he lay down, she looked at him once, their eyes locking and no words needed to be spoken. They understood eachother completely and perfectly. Those were the last thoughts that ran through her head as she lay her head down on Ichigo's chest and sleep claimed her.
=0=
When Ichigo woke next it was to the noise of one Pesche Guatische and Dondochakka Bilstin. Groaning he opened his eyes and found said Fracción were laughing at him hysterically. Curious as to what was so funny he attempted to sit up only to find that his arms and legs were constricted tightly to his side.
Looking up he found that Nel was clinging to him tightly. Her arms wrapped around his waiste, her legs wrapped around his and her head resting on his chest. It seemed as if it was turning into a habit, waking up with her constricting his movements in one way or another.
Carefully disentangling himself from her he stood up at which Pesche and Dondochakka stopped laughing. Ichigo silently walked over to them.
"Does she always sleep through such noise?" He asked silently.
"Ah! Nelliel-sama could sleep straight through a hurricane as long as she had a comfortable place to sleep on!" Pesche shouted suggestively, before bursting out into laughter again.
Shaking his head Ichigo said he was going to take a shower and did just that.
=0=
When Ichigo stepped out of the bathroom, the first thing he noticed was Nel animatedly chatting away with her Fracción. He had to admit that Nel had a lot of fun with them and even he could enjoy their good company. Unlike most of the other Espada Nel saw her Fracción as friends more then anything.
Sitting down next to Nel, he sighed contendly before leaning into the armrest of the couch.
"Ne, Ichi," Nel's voice rang out. "I was just wondering. I know I've asked before but why won't you take a Fracción, come on I know it'd be fun."
Ichigo smirked, he hadn't expected the question to be dropped now but he had expected her to bring it up again at one point or another. "I've been thinking about it actually. There is this one Numerós I've run into a couple of times and he seems interesting. Definitely powerful as well, for a Numerós ofcourse. It's not like he compares to any of the Espada though. And well, truth be told I need a training partner. We've got a war on our hand and apart from the training I've had with Aizen I haven't really done much. Hell, I haven't even used my resurrección yet." He explained.
Nel grumbled something. Ichigo could guess what it was. She was probably annoyed at his reasons for wanting a Fracción for despite how much he'd changed over the weeks he was still nowhere near as easygoing and carefree as Nel usually was.
"But Ichi, wouldn't you wa-" Nel started however she was instantly cut off again by Ichigo.
"Nel, I know what you're going to say. I want a training partner. I know I can train with you as well but some variaton never hurts. Besides the truth is that I don't think he could teach me all that much. But he'll definitely be improving from training with me." Ichigo started.
"I'm not planning to treat him as a slave either, you know that was my original argument for not taking a Fracción. I won't say he'll be my best friend or anything like that but I'll definitely be interested in knowing more about him." He finished.
At this, Nel smiled. It seems Ichigo didn't just want to train himself. He wanted the soon-to-be-Fracción to increase his chances at living through this war as well.
Nel instantly shot up from the couch and dragged Ichigo towards the door, attempting to exit his leaving quarters in search of this mysterious Arrancar.
"N-Nel-" Ichigo tried to resist.
"Where can we find this Arrancar of yours Ichi? It's about time you got one of your own!" She shouted excited.
Ichigo grumbled something. He should've kept his mouth closed. 'Oh well, no use resisting now. She'd kick my ass if I tried.'
=0=
A mere fifteen minutes later the pair of them along with Pesche and Dondochakka appeared at the largest training ground in Las Noches. Being the largest it was also the most popular and at this time of the day it was very crowded. Numerós and Fracción of any kind and level could be seen training individually, in pairs or in small groups. Some had released their Zanpakutou and others hadn't.
As Ichigo and Nel made their appearance on the training ground however. Everyone instantly stopped what they were doing. It was funny, how each and every Numerós somehow managed to know exactly who the Espada were and which numbers they held.
It was also very unusual for any of the Espada to appear on a public training ground such as this one. The Espada had several smaller training grounds assigned only for them and on occassion their Fracción after all.
When Ichigo started making his way through the crowded training ground looking for the Arrancar that had piqued his interest people instantly moved out of his way. Some of them going as far as to bow or kneel down for him, muttering words of 'Ichigo-sama' or 'Kurosaki-sama' as they bowed their head.
Ichigo could hear the whispers all around him and Nel, who was still by his side. Her Fracción had taken to standing at the edge of the training ground, watching the proceedings in silence. It was rather amusing how some of the newer Arrancar would ask who 'these two' were. Only for the older ones to shut them up instantly, explaining to him that even though they didn't often make public appearances, the orange haired man was the Primera Espada, Kurosaki Ichigo. The green haired woman in turn was the Tercera Espada, Nelliel Tu Oderschvank. The majority of the new Arrancar had paled instantly as they realized they had adressed two senior Espada members with 'these two'.
As Ichigo and Nel reached the far end of the training ground they had seen the majority of Arrancar gathered here already and had not found the one they sought just yet. But Ichigo had known where he was from the very first moment he entered these training grounds and had walked in his direction in a straight line. It appeared that said Arrancar had noticed this as well as he kneeled down onto the ground instantly the moment they got close to him.
"Ichigo-sama, Nelliel-sama," He said, bowing his head in a sign of respect towards the two Espada.
"Rise, Arrancar," Ichigo said calmly. Said Arrancar obeyed instantly. "I have taken an interest in you. You are hardworking and you have potential to become a powerful warrior. Above that you were once fiercely loyal back when you were still a Fracción."
The Arrancar meanwhile, appeared lost for words. "M-Me?" He stammered out. It was a widely known fact that Kurosaki Ichigo, the Primera Espada had taken not even a single Fracción. It wasn't that unusual for an Espada not to have any. But among the senior members of the Espada more then half of them possessed atleast one.
"Tell me. Why did Barragan discard you so thoughtlessly, Ggio Vega?"
Ggio never did like thinking about why his previous master had discarded him. He had found him too weak and thus threw him aside. He told him he could come back once he had found power that was worth guarding his majesty with. And so Ggio had trained, day in, day out he had trained and vowed to become powerful enough to once again be able to reclaim his position. Among Numerós it was a sign of status to be a Fracción to one of the Espada. The higher the number of the Espada the higher the status you gained as a Numerós. It was an unspoken rule. And so the chance that was offered to him now was one he would not have imagined even in his wildest dreams. Barragan-sama had not respected his fierce loyalty and had in the end discarded him. Ichigo-sama however had seemingly just complimented him on his loyalty.
"He thought me too weak to be his Fracción, Ichigo-sama." Ggio said, trying to hide the bitterness in his voice.
Ichigo however, still seemed to notice as he chuckled at this. "Then Barragan was a fool." He stated, before turning around and walking off.
Ggio was amazed. He knew ofcourse, that Kurosaki Ichigo was the Primera Espada. But he had not expected him to so boldly voice his opinion of Barragan-sama. Barragan-sama may have only held the number four but he was extremely powerful and if Ggio was to believe him then no one in Las Noches except Aizen and Barragan suspected Nelliel knew of Ichigo's true power. Regardless, Barragan had stated that this Ichigo could not possibly surpass his own powers.
"Come with me." Ichigo's voice rang out as he walked out in front of Ggio, making his way back inside the fortress of Las Noches.
Ggio ofcourse wasn't one to obey an order like that and so he followed.
=0=
Fifteen minutes later they had arrived back at Ichigo's living quarters and as they entered Ichigo motioned for them all to sit down.
Ggio did so, hesitantly, he wasn't used to being shown any form of hospitality by Barragan.
"Ggio, I'll be frank, as you have most likely guessed by now I have selected you to become my Fracción." He started. "However I will not order anyone to become a Fracción of mine. Even more so I will only accept you as one if you truly want to be one yourself. So feel free to think it over for a while." He explained.
Ggio was officially confused. Had Kurosaki Ichigo, the Primera Espada just given Ggio an actual choice? He could choose to follow Ichigo or not, he wasn't even ordered to like he had been with Barragan? It was strange but Ggio was glad, he never did like to be ordered around. The role of servant only suit him well as long as he gained something in return. In the case of becoming a Fracción it meant status and proper training often supervised by their masters.
Barragan had been a harsh Espada though. Never once did he comment anyone on that which was good and whenever he spoke it was often to complain about one thing or another. Ichigo on the other hand seemed friendly, which was quite uncommon in Arrancar generally.
The truth was Ggio wasn't too happy with Barragan. He never had been and after the way he'd been discarded he'd never become happy with him to begin with. Ggio had merely wanted to prove Barragan wrong, that he too could be strong. Ichigo had given him a golden opportunity, and who would he be to turn down an offer made by the Primera himself. Besides, it would be the ultimate payback against Barragan and his remaining underlings to become a Fracción of the Primera Espada, Kurosaki Ichigo.
"No." Ggio stated causing Ichigo to frown. "I don't need to think it over, I accept, Ichigo-sama."
=0=
Later that night Ichigo could be found once more in the lower levels of Las Noches, in Rukia's cell. He had just finished his most recent and apparently last of his talks with her.
Which would mean that after he woke up tomorrow his memory would be partially complete again. It was at the very least the part that mattered most to him that he would remember again. His time in the world of the living starting from when he became a Shinigami and ending at when Rukia was taken back to Soul Society. The only other part he truly missed was the part that showed him how he had become a Hollow. He vowed he would find that missing part but regardless he was very grateful to Rukia. She had selflessly helped him rediscover himself and had done more for him then she could ever truly imagine. If there was ever anything at all he could do to repay her then he would. It wouldn't matter what it was, he would do it regardless.
"I forgive you," The words had left his mouth before he got a chance to think about it, but he knew they were true. Rukia had been wallowing in guilt for a long time now. It was about time she found peace with herself. And even though Ichigo knew he couldn't grant her complete peace with her past as by now, he knew everything about her life, starting from when she had entered Soul Society and ending with her being capture by Aizen and taken to Hueco Mundo so that he could extract the Hougyoku from her soul. Thus he also knew of the incident with Shiba Kaien, her Vice-Captain at the time.
Rukia in the meantime was shocked. Her eyes had visibly widened. She had thought he would've forgotten by now that she had begged for him to forgive her after she had explained everything to him. She had however not expected him to actually forgive her. She had hurt him badly and she had done so intentionally. Tears started to slowly leak from her eyes. He had forgiven her! He truly had! She had no way to repay him for the burden he had just lifted off her shoulders. And so she did the next best thing she could think of.
She stood up as fast as she could, nearly falling over again because of the haste in her movement. As soon as she stood on her feet again however she stumbled over to him and threw her arms around his neck mumbling words of thanks into his chest.
Ichigo for his part was surprised as well. Never before had Rukia shown such boldness in her actions. And as far as he could gather she never had done anything as such ever since she had been adopted into the Kuchiki Clan either. This showed him more then anything, how much it had meant to her to be forgiven. Maybe he had already repaid her. But for him, it could never be enough. He would still do anything she desired just to pay off the debt he certainly owed her, no matter her own thoughts on the subject.
"T-Thank you so much, Ichigo." She stammered. "You don't know how much this means to me and you might never find out. Thank you so much. I'm in your debt."
Ichigo could appreciate her words, but not the last part. "No, Rukia." He said, wrapping his arms around her in return. "You're not in my debt. I am in yours. There's no other person, in life or death that could've shown me what you have. It is I, that is in your debt. And I promise you here and now that if there is anything you desire, I will make it happen, at the cost of my own life if I have to." He explained to her. "I may be a Hollow, but next to Nel you are the most important person to me. You were important to me before I died, and you are again now, after my death."
Rukia's eyes softened at this and she couldn't help but chuckle through her sobs. "Baka, that's just like you isn't it? It still amazes me how gradually you are turning much more into the Ichigo I knew. I never thought it was possible for-" And that's where she stopped, realising that it would ruin the moment to say such words. It was incredibly thoughtless of her. She'd let her mouth run away with her, something she'd often done in a past long gone.
"A Hollow," Ichigo finished for her. "Don't worry Rukia, I am a Hollow. You shouldn't be ashamed to say it, it's not like I'll get mad about it or anything. But I do realise it may have been a bit hard for you to get used to."
She smiled at him. "Ah. It was, but it doesn't matter. You're much the same person you were already. What I was saying was that I never thought I'd see myself befriend a Hollow much less see a Hollow actually show any kind of emotion other then perhaps anger."
He smiled at her in return. "I have to get back though Rukia. Ggio must be getting impatient, I doubt he's very comfortable currently with Nel and her Fracción, " Ichigo and Rukia both grinned at that, "it'll take some time to get him to adjust to his new surroundings and lifestyle."
And so he released her and walked over to the door. But as he was about to pass through it he stopped, a question occurring in his head, one he had been curious about but had never actually asked her after all. "Rukia," He started again, causing her to look up, not realising he was still there. "Why have you never tried to escape from Las Noches? I know for a fact that since you entered Hueco Mundo it didn't take you more then a week or two to fully regain your spiritual powers."
At this question, she looked down towards the ground. "You're right, I have been able to rematerialize my Zanpakutou for quite a while now." She started. "But I have to pay for my sins. So I accepted all the beatings I got and was glad with the disgusting piece of bread I was given daily. And helping you regain your memories was another part of paying off my sins. I'm glad I did it though, not just for paying off part of my sins but because I once again got to know you, and in the end you even forgave me for what I have done to you during your life."
Ichigo had expected an answer like that. But he was sure she wasn't finished yet, so he stayed quiet and waited for her to continue.
"Other then that, there was ofcourse the most obvious of reasons. Las Noches is a fortress is it not?" She asked him rhetorically. "I do not know my way around here and while I can probably beat the standard Numerós level Arrancar, I know I don't stand a chance against the Espada that you spoke of. And that is without taking into account that I do not even know my way around this place."
Ichigo looked towards his feet. He knew of a way to repay Rukia, but he wasn't sure how to make it happen. He would have to think of it, for now he needed some information out of her though.
"Tell me Rukia," He started again. "How powerful are you? Have you achieved Bankai or atleast Shikai?"
This question startled her. He knew about Shinigami Zanpakutou's? What more did he know? Was this information ordinarily shared among all of the Arrancar in Las Noches?
Her surprise was visible on her face apparently as Ichigo reassured her worries almost instantly.
"Not to worry. I am one of the only ones that know as much about Shinigami as the Shinigami themselves. Most of the information Aizen-sama has shared with me, he hasn't even told the rest of the Espada."
Rukia could feel relief flood her system at this. But, wait? The rest of the Espada? Ichigo was an Espada? And he had been one all this time without her even knowing or him telling?
"Y-You are an Espada, Ichigo?" She asked, dumbfounded.
Ichigo frowned at this. Had he never told her before? Thinking about it, no he didn't think he had. He'd just mentioned that he was instantly turned into an Arrancar after becoming a Vasto Lorde and he had told her a lot about the Espada but he hadn't actually told her he was a part of it. God, he could be so stupid sometimes.
"Eh, I just realized I never actually told you. Yes, Rukia, I am part of the Espada, and so is Nel." He started. "But you haven't yet answered my question."
"R-Right," She had forgotten about his question. "I have attained Shikai a long time ago and am past the point of materializing my Zanpakutou spirit," She said before halting, awaiting his reaction. He showed no visible sign of confusion or surprise so she assumed he was aware of even how to achieve the two different released states of their Zanpakutou. "I have started to the task my Zanpakutou has given me in order to attain Bankai but only just. I haven't gotten far with it yet."
Ichigo sighed at this. He'd hoped she'd have had Bankai, it would've made things a lot easier. But then again he shouldn't have expected it. Aizen had told him that only barely one out of seventy-five Shinigami would ever in their lifetime, achieve Bankai. That and Rukia had said she expected not to stand a chance against the Espada, she wouldn't have said that had she achieved the pinnacle that was a Shinigami's strength, the pinnacle that was Bankai.
"I see. Regardless, I will be back with you in a day or two Rukia. I am sorry but I expect some trouble tomorrow atleast. Remember the offer I made you, it goes for absolutely anything." Those were the last words Ichigo said before he left to make his way back to his own quarters and save Ggio from the obvious embarrassment that was Nelliel and her Fracción.
=0=
As Ichigo entered his living room the next morning he was instantly greeted by a kneeling Ggio Vega.
"Ichigo-sama!" The Arrancar said as he bowed his head. Truth be told, the whole 'Ichigo-sama', Ichigo could understand, in the end it was a fact that Ggio was his underling, but to go as far as to kneel everytime he was greeted, that wouldn't do, it annoyed him.
"Ggio," Ichigo started. "I appreciate the gesture but there is no need to kneel before me. A standard wave as a greeting will do just fine."
Ggio's eyes widened at this. When he was the underling of Barragan-sama he had to kneel down and bow as a manner of greeting. He was uncomfortable with the idea of merely waving at the strongest Arrancar in all of Las Noches but he had to admit he didn't particularly dislike the idea.
"H-hai, Ichig-sama." Ggio said.
"Ggio, you are aware of what is going to be happening today?" He asked the Arrancar.
Ggio nodded instantly at his question. Nel had informed him of today's events just yesterday. He had hoped he could witness the event but fate didn't seem to be on his side today. Nel had told him that Ichigo wouldn't be there either. Both her and Szayel thought it better. Nnoitra might not even approach her with Ichigo at her side. But he had been hoping to see Nelliel who was supposed to be more powerful then his previous master Barragan in action. He was sort of dissapointed he was now going to miss that opportunity.
"Alright, it is up to you if you wish to follow me today and witness the battle between Nel and Nnoitra," Ichigo started, "However I advise you to stay out of the way of a fight between two Espada."
Ggio was confused at this. Nelliel had informed him that both Szayel and her thought it better if he stayed well away from her today. His confusion obviously showed on his face as Ichigo smiled.
"Nelliel is important to me Ggio," He started. "I don't trust Szayel and I need to know if everything goes according to plan. If it does, no one will know you and I were ever there, that is assuming you can properly hide your reiatsu. If you can't, I can't take you with me."
Luckily for Ggio he was quite proficient in that aspect. He would definitely come along, he wouldn't miss this for the world but nonetheless Ggio decided to heed his master's advise. He had seen friendly spars between Espada that looked like the most fierce battles he had seen among Numerós. He couldn't possibly imagine what a real battle between Espada would look like.
Ggio thought the plan had been pretty ingenius. Nnoitra had asked for Szayel's help in 'exiling' Nelliel from Las Noches it appeared. Szayel would give him a device that would inevitably create an opening for Nnoitra. He had not however told Nnoitra that the device he had given was one of the failed prototypes in the early stages of his experiment.
Apparently Ichigo thought otherwise though. Or perhaps not exactly. The plan was pretty solid, the only problem was as Ichigo according to Ichigo that he didn't trust Szayel.
Ggio had to admit though he had been quite honored that the Tercera had immediately shared their plan with him. He would in no way betray their trust, he would prove his worth no matter what it took.
=0=
Nelliel was silently meditating out in one of the open plains of Las Noches. She had ordered her Fracción to stay away from her today and thus told them to stay in their quarters. They had reluctantly agreed when Nelliel brought up the argument that Ichigo would still be with her when everything went down. What they hadn't known though, was that that had been a lie. Both Szayel and her had thought it better if he weren't around. Nnoitra would be hesitant to seek her out with him around her all the time.
So, right now she was waiting on Nnoitra to make his move. Meditating just to pass the time. She had to admit, she wanted Nnoitra out of the Espada as bad as Ichigo did. She did not however want him to die without good reason and this she had made perfectly clear to Ichigo the other day. Perhaps a bit too clear she reasoned but they had understood eachother in the end and had only grown closer because of it.
Ichigo had quickly informed her of what had went down when he had gone to see Rukia last night and she was glad. He had regained the most important parts of his memory and according to Rukia he was more like his former self then he had ever been before. Ichigo however had subtly informed her of the favor he owed her and she had a pretty good idea about what he was going to do for her. She did not however have any idea as to how he was going to make it happen and if his moody attitude last night was any indication she didn't think he had either.
"Yo," An all too familiar voice rang out. Looking up Nel found Nnoitra standing before her, just as she had thought, he had interupted her from her thoughts far sooner then she had thought he would though. Nonetheless, it didn't matter.
"What is it you want, Nnoitra?" She asked him.
"Tch. Isn't it obvious, Nelliel? Fight me! And finish our battle this time, don't walk away like a coward again!" He started calmly but was all but shouting at the end.
"I told you before. I have no reason to fight you, you're nothing but an ani-" She was cut off as Nnoitra threw his weapon at her and she just barely managed to get up and step to the side.
"Your Fracción weren't so hesitant to fight me when I told them I was on my way to kill you, Nelliel." Noittra stated, smirking.
Nel froze at this. Her Fracción were safe in her quarters weren't they? She had made sure of that. Nnoitra couldn't have known. He couldn't have known unless...had Szayel double-crossed them? Had he been in league with Nnoitra from the start, not caring to repay the favor he owed Ichigo at all?
"What did you do to them?!" She yelled at him, a feeling of uncertainty overtaking her.
"Nothing much, why don't you take me out quickly and go find out? Who knows, you might just be fast enough to save them." Nnoitra taunted her.
At this Nelliel drawed her sword and dissapeared in a buzz of sonido reappearing on his left side and thrusting her sword in the direction of his side. Nnoitra however made no move to defend himself against it and Nelliel wasn't sure how she should feel about this, she just wanted to make sure Pesche and Dondochakka were okay.
As her sword reached Nnoitra however, he dissapeared in a cloud of dust and a feeling of dread came over Nelliel. An opening. She could just make out the sound of a weapon slicing through the air behind her and she knew it was over. Szayel had played them like a fool.
When no pain came she slowly opened her eyes again and turned around. As she did this she found the figure of Ichigo standing right before her, his hand stopping Nnoitra's huge cleaver, keeping it from reaching her. His other hand in the pocket of his Arrancar uniform.
He turned his head for a brief second and smirked at her, before turning back to Nnoitra and sending him flying with a kick straight to the chest.
"Tch. I knew Szayel couldn't be trusted." He stated, matter-of-factly.
=0=
Meanwhile, Ggio Vega was watchin the events proceed from the roof of a nearby tower of Las Noches. Ggio and Ichigo had been unable to hear anything from the moment Nnoitra encountered Nelliel as they wanted to remain undetected.
As soon as Ichigo had seen Nnoitra dissolve in a cloud of dust when Nelliel stabbed him, his master dissapeared. Ggio had barely been able to catch a glimpse of him before he was already standing in between the two Espada. Stopping Nnoitra's cleaver from hitting Nelliel with his bare hand. Ggio for one knew that Nnoitra had the toughest Hierro among the Espada. But Ggio was definitely starting to doubt that theory, it took an amazingly strong Hierro to stop a swing of a weapon like that without so much as flinching let alone without receiving any sort of injury.
Another thing that was noticeable about his master was his speed. Never before had Ggio seen someone move so fast. Ggio hadn't even heard a buzz signifying he'd used sonido so he was left to assume that the speed he had just displayed was actually his natural speed. Already, Ggio started to doubt Barragan's words more and more. He could hardly imagine a man such as Ichigo had gained his rank for any other reason then his power.
When he looked back towards the ground he saw Nnoitra lying in a heap as if he'd been knocked backwards. Ichigo was slowly walking towards him.
=0=
As Ichigo started walking towards Nnoitra he was actually considering to kill the man once more. It was hard to supress the urge and it only kept getting harder. But he couldn't outright kill him, he'd promised and so he wouldn't.
He was quickly brought out of his thoughts by the sound of an iron chain. Looking up he could see Nnoitra's weapon speeding towards him. Ducking he let the large weapon pass over his head before stepping to the side and grabbing the chain. Yanking on it he instantly sent the weapon speeding back towards Nnoitra who jumped over it to avoid being wounded by his own weapon. As he landed however a buzz of sonido sounded behind him and he could hear someone whisper in his ear.
"Let me let you in on a little secret, Nnoitra," Quickly turning around and swinging his weapon at the spot where he supposed Ichigo should be standing he found there was no one there.
"Bakudou #61 - Rikujyoukourou," A voice Nnoitra knew all too well spoke up behind him. Nnoitra however had no idea what it was Ichigo had just said and cried out in pain as six rods of light slammed itself shut in his waist, obstructing his movement in every possible way.
"It's over, Nnoitra." He could hear Ichigo call out. No more but a second later he could feel a blinding pain originating from his back and his world went black.
=0=
Aizen was sitting in his throne room, hearing Ulquiorra's latest report concerning Hueco Mundo. It was a positive one at that as well. Ulquiorra had found two more Adjuchas with some interesting abilities that could prove usefull. He would even go as far as to say they could become potential members of the Espada.
Looking over the other occupants of the room Aizen noticed he had quite the crowd today. First of all there were Gin and Kaname at his right and left respectively.
What was surprising was that there were actually a rare amount of Espada present in the throne room. They seemed to merely be lounging about but nonetheless it was quite the rare sight.
It was on the table in the corner of the throne room that they were all seated, some chatting about some seemingly interesting subjects. Others dozing off and surprising there was one that almost seemed nervous.
The Espada in question were Starrk who was rather close to falling asleep with his head on the table, Aizen guessed. Barragan, who appeared as grumpy as ever and wasn't really speaking to anyone either, he was ofcourse, sitting in his makeshift throne. Then there was Szayel Aporro who appeared to be nervous for reasons Aizen couldn't fathom. Szayel Aporro was hardly the type to ever be nervous and Aizen had never seen him in his throne room before, he was always stuck in his lab doing one experiment after the other. Some at the request of Aizen and others of his own accord. The last two members seated at the table were Yammy and Grimmjow who seemed to be having quite the time. Whatever it was they were discussing, Aizen was sure it contained plenty of violence and bloodlust.
Aizen was broken out of his thoughts however by a loud bang and as he looked up the doors to his throne room were blasted of it's hinge. This would prove interesting, was what Aizen thought as he looked at his door lying somewhere halfway his throne room.
Tousen instantly shot up and put his hand on the hilt of his Zanpakutou as he looked at the intruder. Ichimaru merely seemed amused.
Looking towards his Espada Aizen saw each of them had stood up except for Barragan and Starrk. They were all watching what was happening carefully. Szayel however seemed even more nervous then before.
As Aizen turned his gaze back at whoever had blown away his doors his eyes actually widened. Kurosaki Ichigo was walking towards Aizen's throne, a seemingly unconscious body on his shoulders with Nelliel Tu Oderschvank and Ggio Vega both at his side. A furious expression was etched in the very features of his face.
"Ichigo, would you care to explain why you found it necessary to blast off the doors to my throne room?" Aizen calmly asked the Espada. Ichigo meant a lot to Aizen, he was his most powerful weapon and had even gone as far as to change his plans concerning Soul Society so that he could obtain and mold Ichigo into the perfect weapon. It had certainly worked for he was powerful beyond comparison. Now however, Aizen had to admit he felt a slight pang of worry, if Ichigo had betrayed him, all that would have been for nothing.
Meanwhile, Ichigo ignored Aizen's question and shoved Nnoitra's body unceremoniously over the ground towards Aizen. He then turned on his heels and marched over towards the table where the Espada were seated just a moment ago.
Looking at Szayel, Ichigo could tell said man was actually afraid. He knew that he was in trouble and yet Ichigo couldn't help but wonder. How stupid exactly was Szayel? Did he truly believe Nnoitra could've beaten both Nelliel and Ichigo himself with merely the help of a little device. The fool, he obviously overestimated his pathetic inventions.
Reaching the pink haired Arrancar he grabbed him by the collar and turned around again. Dragging him with him back towards the throne. As he reached it he threw Szayel on the floor next to the prone body of Nnoitra.
Ichigo then kneeled and quickly indicated at Ggio he should do the same. He bowed his head at Aizen and started speaking.
"Aizen-sama," Ichigo spoke respectfully. "I have brought these two Espada before you for they have collaborated together to take the life of the Tercera Espada and I suspect they intended to take down myself, the Primera Espada as well." Ichigo explained.
Aizen raised his eyebrows at this. Now this isn't what he expected. But it appeared that Ichigo had remained loyal to Aizen after all. He had merely been overtaken by anger after another attempt on Nelliel's life. Aizen was actually surprised it hadn't succeeded, with a genius such as Szayel and his inventions working together with a powerhouse like Nnoitra.
Raising his reiatsu and with it pressing Szayel flat to the ground he locked eyes with the pink haired man. "Szayel, is this true?" He asked calmly.
Szayel closed his eyes at this. He knew there was no way he could talk himself out of it. And he it's not like he would gain anything from explaining it to Ichigo and Nelliel. So he yielded himself to his fate and could only hope he would live to see another day.
"Ah. Aizen-sama. It is true." Szayel said resigned.
Aizen closed his eyes at this for a moment. To outsiders it seemed like he was thinking as to what he should do with these two. On the inside however, he already decided the moment Ichigo told him what had happened. He knew Ichigo wouldn't lie to him, not to Aizen. For it was Aizen that had granted him the power he had sought.
"Ichigo," Aizen started. "Wake Nnoitra please."
Ichigo smirked at the order. Aizen could be quite the generous one at times. And so Ichigo walked over to Nnoitra's prone form and instantly kicked him in the stomach causing him to roll over onto his back and start coughing vehemently.
As Nnoitra's coughing subsided he instantly shot up started cursing loudly, not realising where he was. When he took in his surroundings however, he paled. Looking up, he locked eyes with Aizen who smiled at him.
"Nnoitra," Aizen spoke. "You are charged with the attempted murder of two fellow Espada, how do you pleed?"
Nnoitra's eyes narrowed at this. "Tch. Who gives a shit." He said.
Aizen seemed to smile even wider at this, if that was at all possible. "If that's all you have to say for your self." Aizen started. "Very well."
"Szayel Aporro Granz, you are hereby removed from the Espada untill further notice. Your actions have shown a complete lack of respect for your fellow Espada. I never asked you to be friends, I did however ask you to work together as comrades. As long as you are unable to do this you will never become a part of the Espada again." Aizen words rang out throughout the throne room.
Szayel's eyes closed briefly but he quickly nodded his understanding. He appeared to be relieved, which wasn't odd considering the fact that he could just as well have been scheduled for execution a couple of days from now.
"Nnoitra Jiruga, you-" But that is as far as Aizen got.
"Aizen-sama, excuse me my rudeness, but if I may?" Ichigo interupted him, however still remained respectful in his question and adressing of Aizen.
Aizen nodded briefly at Ichigo, curious as to why he would have interupted him.
"Nnoitra's attempted killing of myself and Nelliel is without a doubt a grievous crime," Ichigo started. "However I would prefer to discard the image of weakness the majority of the people gathered here seem to hold over me by fighting Nnoitra in a battle. If I lose I will willingly give up my rank to Nnoitra, however if he loses he will lose his rank and if you so desire he will be executed." Ichigo stated.
Aizen looked thoughtful at this for a moment. Before he turned to look at Nnoitra.
"Nnoitra Jiruga," He started. "My original idea was to have you executed as you have been warned before. Seemingly you have ignored my warning and thus your punishment would've been death. Do you want to save yourself the humiliation of getting annihilated in battle by Ichigo by accepting your execution. Or, do you accept Ichigo's offer for a battle between the two of you." Aizen asked him.
Nnoitra didn't hesitate for a second before answering. "Tch. I'll fight the brat. He just took me by surprise the last time we fought. I'll show him and take his position as Primera for myself after I beat him." Nnoitra shouted at no one in particular, obviously looking forward to fighting Ichigo.
Aizen closed his eyes briefly before opening them again and looking at both Ichigo and Nnoitra. "Very well. We shall meet a mile outside out of the northern walls of Las Noches in thirty minutes time, so as to allow both Espada to fight at their full potential. Any Arrancar willing to spectate is welcome to join us."
=0=
Twenty-five minutes later both fighters were standing on top of a mountain platform a little more then a mile outside of the northen walls of Las Noches.
The rumor of a battle possibly to the death between two Espada had quickly spread throughout Aizen's fortress.
Currently all of the remaining eight Espada including their Fracción were standing at a several hundred yard distance from the two combatants. Other then the Espada and their underlings the rumor had spread so fast that several dozen of Arrancar had gathered as well. Standing a bit farther away from the Espada so as to not get caught up in a battle that would undoubtedly be unlike anything they'd ever witnessed before.
Standing among the Espada were Nelliel, Pesche and Dondochakka. Nelliel had been relieved to find that when she had left Aizen's throne room to look for them before Ichigo had to fight his battle they'd already come running towards her. Tears had started to form in her eyes but she'd quickly brushed them off. It appeared as if Nnoitra had been bluffing about that part, or more likely, he'd been trying to get a rise out of her and had succeeded in that aspect.
To Nelliel's right stood Ggio Vega. Ggio was aware of the fact that Nelliel was a person who was important to Ichigo and so he stayed close to her. Not that he would be able to protect her from something she couldn't best on her own but he would still have tried regardless. He was looking forward to seeing Ichigo in action. No one in Las Noches except Aizen and Ggio believed, Nelliel knew of Ichigo's true powers. And now, they would finally be revealed.
Standing on Nelliel's right was Starrk, together wit his Fracción Lillynette. Starrk was curious to find out just how powerful Kurosaki Ichigo truly was. Starrk was among the few people who believed Ichigo was deserving of his position. Aizen wasn't the kind of person who would give the position of his strongest soldier to someone who hadn't earned it. Anyone who would logically think about this would know as much. But today they would all find out.
"Ne Starrk," Lillynette's voice rang out next to him. "Who do you think'll win? I know Ichigo's the Primera but everyone keeps saying he got that position because-" And that was as far as she got.
"Lillynette," Starrk started. "You should realise Aizen-sama would not give such a position to someone undeserving of it. I believe the outcome of this battle is obvious. The only question is, will this battle even be enough to show us the extend of Ichigo's powers." Starrk said.
Lillynette, meanwhile was quite surprised. Starrk hardly ever spoke more then a few words at a time. He really was a lazy git. But nonetheless, the two of them were a force to be reckoned with if they got serious. Starrk giving such a serious and elaborate answer to her question told her all she needed to know.
"You are more perceptive then you are given credit for," A high pitched voice on Starrk's right called out. Turning his head around he looked into the face of Nelliel Tu Oderschvank. He merely shrugged at her, indicating he didn't care much what people thought of him.
Just as they were wondering when the show was going to get started three figures appeared amidst the Espada. Aizen, Ichimaru and Tousen had finally arrived.
Aizen ofcourse, looked as calm and collected as ever. It was hard to tell wether he was looking forward to this or not. If things got out of hand he might lose a powerfull Arrancar today.
Ichimaru on the other hand, was grinning widely. Then again, a grin was always sported on Ichimaru Gin's face. So one could argue that it was just his natural expression.
Tousen merely looked impassive. It didn't seem as if he had an opinion on the matter at all and if he had he clearly didn't show it. Aizen had decided, maybe that was enough for the former Shinigami.
=0=
Ichigo stood on top of the mountain platform just outside of Las Noches. Nnoitra several yards in front of him, his face grinning widely. It appeared Nnoitra was looking forward to this after all, Ichigo thought, despite the beating he got no more then an hour ago. Perhaps he was nothing more then an animal in the end indeed, Ichigo thought, recalling Nel's words.
"Ya scared yet, Primera?" Nnoitra's voice rang out, mocking him by putting emphasis on the last word. As if the title was already his.
Ichigo's face remained impassive and he didn't bother to respond to Nnoitra's words. He was an animal after all, one does not speak with beasts for the only reply you would get is either a bark or a bite.
As Nnoitra opened his mouth to speak once more however he was interupted.
"Sixty seconds," Ichigo stated, causing Nnoitra to frown, "You will release within sixty seconds from the start of the fight, that much I promise."
Nnoitra didn't even get a chance to retord as Ichigo dissapeared and Nnoitra lost sight of him for only a moment. That was all Ichigo needed however. Nnoitra could feel a flash of steel pass in front of his face and a moment later blood spurted from his chest. He cried out in pain and lashed out in front of him only to find that Ichigo wasn't even there.
Quickly turning around he came face to face with a charging Ichigo and they instantly locked blades. Each trying to overpower the other. Ichigo had to admit though. Nnoitra wasn't weak, his strength at the very least was commendable. But Nelliel had told him many times before that his general strength, while certainly high was not as high as it could be.
He doubt he could beat Nnoitra in a battle of strenght alone and so he did the next best thing. He removed his left hand from his pocket and pointed his index and middlefinger at Nnoitra who's eyes visibly widened at this. He instantly pushed Ichigo back several yards and backed off but not before Ichigo's Cero fired and came at him from a dangerously close distance. Nnoitra, having no chance to dodge the attack chose the next best thing and put his giant cleaver in front of his body. Shielding himself from the attack as best as possible.
20 seconds.
Ichigo meanwhile, was merely staring at the cloud of dust that had risen up and obstructed Nnoitra from view. He could still sense the Espada though and he knew that, while he was hit, he had blocked the majority of the attack.
Ichigo was brought out of his musings by the sound of a chain ringing, signifying Nnoitra must have switched to attack while he still had the element of surprise. As if on cue Nnoitra's weapon came flying out of the smoke. Ichigo merely ducked under it letting it pass over him once again. He Grabbed the chain once moreand this time pulled the other end towards him, remembering how Nnoitra had the chain tied around his waiste.
When Nnoitra came flying out of the smoke however Ichigo's eyes widened when he saw a Cero was charging on the tip of his tongue. Realizing he didn't have enough time to dodge he quickly ran out of options as the Cero was released and rapidly approached his position.
When the Cero reached it's destination and caused a large explosion Nnoitra cackled maniacally obviously satisfied with his victory. As he turned around to walk away however, he came face to face with a smirking Kurosaki Ichigo who instantly impaled his chest which caused Nnoitra to cry out in agony.
Ichigo pulled his sword back out of Nnoitra's body causing the latter to grit his teeth in pain, not wanting to show any more weakness. Nnoitra at the same time was surprised to find that Ichigo was completely uninjured. Seeing the expression of disbelief on Nnoitra's face Ichigo decided to elaborate.
"You pride yourself in having thickest Hierro out of all of the Espada." Ichigo started. "I beg to differ. I know mine is thicker then yours, that, and I added a layer of reiatsu to cover my entire body which took the majority of the impact for me. The rest of the impact was obviously absorbed by my Hierro."
As Ichigo turned to look at Nnoitra and took in his appearance he shook his head. Nnoitra had blood flowing like water out of his chest from the two wounds caused by Ichigo. There was no way he was going to survive another hit if he didn't release soon.
"You don't stand a chance against me Nnoitra. Give up, before you get hurt." Ichigo taunted, intending to enrage Nnoitra so as to release his Zanpakutou.
And it worked. Nnoitra roared in anger realising just what he had gotten himself into. Yellow reiatsu started to form around his body and Zanpakutou and started to leak out into the open air.
Ichigo could feel Nnoitra's power increasing and had to admit it wasn't all bad. Not that he was getting anywhere close to Ichigo's own level, no, not just yet Nnoitra.
When Nnoitra locked eyes with Ichigo next he smirked as he raised his Zanpakutou high above his head with one hand.
45 seconds.
"Inore, Santa Teresa!" Nnoitra yelled out for all to hear. As soon as the words had left his mouth cracks started to form around the mountain platform and sand was blown away in all directions at a violent speed, thus obstructing both fighers from view.
=0=
Back among the ever growing crowd of spectating Arrancar loud murmurs were heard throughout the crowd. Nelliel heard several Arrancar claim this to be a battle among titans. They didn't even know half of it yet, Nelliel thought.
Several of the Espada however, Nelliel noticed were quietly talking to one another. It had been obvious how surprised they were when Ichigo had gotten Nnoitra to release without receiving a single injury on his end. The only ones who hadn't been surprised had been Starrk, Ulquiorra and surprisingly Barragan. Nelliel guessed that Barragan had known all along that Kurosaki Ichigo was more then powerful enough to claim the spot of Primera Espada, he just didn't like to admit it.
But even Nelliel had to admit she was curious as to how the battle would proceed now that Nnoitra had released. Would Ichigo be forced to finally reveal his resurrección? It would be quite ironic, none of them had seen it before. Not even Ichigo himself. The latter for reasons she could not possibly fathom. He'd have to get used to fighting in his released form eventually, that is what she kept reminding him of as well. But he said he couldn't be bothered to travel all across Hueco Mundo to find a safe spot to practise with it. Told her he knew several things about it without ever having released it anyway. She was curious as to how he found out, but Ichigo could be quite the mystery man when he wanted to be.
Turning to look back at the platform she saw the dust had almost cleared and the attention of all spectators was once again turned towards it.
=0=
Ichigo meanwhile was getting excited and it was showing. A wide grin was etched in the very features of his face. It had been a long time ago since he had fought properly. As a matter of fact he hadn't had a proper battle ever since he had been an Adjuchas. He was looking forward to it, he hoped Nnoitra would push him far enough so that he would be forced to release his own Zanpakutou as well. Ichigo could barely contain his excitement, oh how he loved battle.
As the dust cleared the sight that greeted Ichigo however was quite disturbing. In front of him stood Nnoitra, his injures healed with four bone-covered arms sticking out of his body. Each holding a large scythe-like weapon. He had two large horns on his head, the left larger then the right and together they seemed to form a crescent-moon shape. Another change was the golden marking that extended from his forehead all the way down towards below his right eye and his Hollow mask which Ichigo had seen only once before, had become torn and the teeth extended all over the hole in his left eye socket.
Nnoitra smirked at Ichigo and he in turn smirked right back at him.
"I hate to say I told you so," Ichigo started, rather amused. "But, I told you so." He stated, leaving the comment hanging in the air for just a second.
"Forty-five seconds."
At this Nnoitra's grin dissapeared and was replaced by an expression of anger as his ultimate form his resurrección was brushed off so lightly.
Nnoitra instantly charged towards Ichigo who mimicked his action. Nnoitra, raising two out of his four scythes prepared to slam them down on Ichigo.
Ichigo however was prepared. He had known Nnoitra would attack this way. Two scythes used for attack and two used for defense. Despite being more of a berserker Nnoitra knew one couldn't ignore defense. And so Ichigo knew exactly how to counter.
Grabbing the hilt of the scythe being held by Nnoitra's most lower right arm he directed the scythe directly into the path of his two upper arms preparing to crash down at him, essentially blocking the attack with Nnoitra's own weapon. Simultaneously Ichigo blocked the last scythe, which was being held by his lower left arm and seemed to have switched to attacking as soon as Nnoitra noticed his other three arms being locked in place.
Smirking at Nnoitra, Ichigo pointed his index finger of the hand holding his Zanpakutou at Nnoitra and softly whispered, so as not to let any spectators hear.
"Bakudou #1 - Sai."
Instantly all four of Nnoitra arms were bound behind his back by a strong force. Ichigo instantly switched to the attack grabbing his Zanpakutou with both hands for a change he sliced off both of Nnoitra's right arms, which were closest to Ichigo, at the shoulder joints before removing one hand from the hilt of his weapon and slashing a deep horizontal cut in Nnoitra's chest.
Causing him to cry out in pain from both the loss of his arms and the cut across his chest.
Just as Ichigo made to cut off the other two arms however they managed to release themselves from the Bakudou spell and made to slash at him vertically. Blocking both of them with his Zanpakutou Ichigo pointed his middle and index finger at Nnoitra's chest once again. A Cero could be seen charging on top of his fingers and as Ichigo looked at Nnoitra's face he noticed the smirk planted on his face just in the nick of time.
For instantly four more arms shot out of Nnoitra's body. One on the left side and three on the right side. Replacing the ones he had lost and adding another two on top of it. All four of them holding the same scythe-like weapons. Jumping back one of the weapons grazed Ichigo's cheek. Intending to stop charging his Cero Ichigo noticed Nnoitra charging one of his own just in time and continued adding more reiatsu into his before the both of them released their attacks simultaneously. As the attacks collided, sand obscured both fighters from vision once more.
Slowly the sand cleared once more and revealed the forms of both Ichigo and Nnoitra. Admittedly, Ichigo's clothes were singed and several burn marks were sported on them, but otherwise, he himself appeared unharmed.
Nnoitra on the other hand had a large burn mark formed from his throat all the way untill his waiste. One of his arms was blackened by the explosion and his breathing was ragged. His expression, was one of distaste.
"Nnoitra," Ichigo's voice called out. "Do you realise now, that you stand no chance against me? You are well aware of the fact that I have not even used my resurrección yet."
Nnoitra for his part remained silent. He had a bitter looking expression on his face. "I...I...I..." Nnoitra stammered out, his breathing labored but he continued nonetheless. "I...I...cannot die!" Nnoitra shouted as his expression turned to one of anger. Attempting to regenerate his wounds his breathing became more and more labored by the second, an obvious sign that it was too taxing on what few reiatsu he had left.
Ichigo shook his head. This guy was impossible, didn't he ever get a hint. He'd long since lost the will to kill Nnoitra. No, he pitied the man now. But as a last sign of respect for his powers he would grant Nnoitra one final favor.
"You have lost, Nnoitra." Ichigo started. "but I will, as a sign of respect for your powers in battle, show you my resurrección. It is the first time ever that I am using it, so watch out, my control over it might not be too good."
Nnoitra's eyes widened in obvious fear at this point. It was understandable.
Red reiatsu started leaking out of Ichigo's body forming a cocoon-like figure all around him. The cocoon slowly started whirling and turning into a giant monstrosity much resembling a true devil. The ground of the platform started to shake with the heavy pressure of his reiatsu and spectators several hundred yards away could only gape at Ichigo in awe.
"Shimasu, Atrevico!"[1]
As Ichigo said these words the reiatsu seemed to retract back into himself and the shaking of the earth stopped, almost instantly.
Just as people begun to wonder why nothing had happened a violent explosion of red and this time, black reiatsu too was pushed in every direction. It had been the calm before the storm.
Cracks formed in the mountain platform the combatants were standing on and the edges were starting to crumble and fall apart crushing to the ground in a violent shower of rocks and stones.
Meanwhile the majority of the Numerós spectators were having trouble breathing due to the incredible amount of reiatsu released by one person, to others however it appeared as if he merely had trouble controlling it. Which made sense in the end, this being the first time ever he released.
Nnoitra meanwhile had to slam one of his scythes into the ground to keep himself firmly in place. Sand and dust was being forced into his eyes untill slowly the pressure of the reiatsu started to subside as if it was being sucked back into the source.
As the dust cleared however, Nnoitra couldn't help but gasp.
Half of Ichigo's upper body was exposed as one half of his vest was ruined by the spikes having sprouted from his left shoulder. Several tall spikes were running from the top of his back up untill they reached the top of his shoulder. The rest of his shoulder was covered in a bone like substance much resembling a shoulder pad. From what could be seen of his chest it was covered in intricate red markings that originated from his Hollow hole and ran all the way up to his shoulder and presumably to the other shoulder as well where it would form a mark much resembling a large intricate cross.
His right shoulder on the other hand was covered in large white ragged clothing that ran from his right shoulder to his left hip and hung loosely to his right hip. The cloth on his right shoulder seemed to be held in place by bolts that were sticking out of it. How the cloth on his left and right hip were kept in place remained a mystery though.
With part of his vest torn to pieces due to his transformation a large number 1 became visible tattooe'd on the left side of his throat. And looking at his hands people noticed the same bone-like substance that was on his left shoulder had formed on the top of his fingers as well, seemingly protecting them and possibly to reinforce the impact of punches.
Next his Zanpakutou had turned completely black as well as grown close to a foot longer. The entire part from the guard untill the end of the hilt was wrapped in the same ragged white cloth that was wrapped around Ichigo's shoulder and a small piece of cloth fell down at the end of the hilt. Thus the cloth also prevented one from seeing the actual shape of the guard.
The last of the changes in Ichigo's appearance was his hair which had become rather ragged and more dirty-looking as well as longer reaching slightly past his shoulders now. And the last changes were his eyes, his eyes had become bright yellow with a dark black pupil inside of it. His eyes were possibly the most frightening of the entire transformation.
=0=
As Nelliel looked at the back of Ichigo's released form she couldn't help but be reminded of the way he looked as an Adjuchas, except he stood a little straighter now. Ofcourse it was only the left shoulder that resembled it, even if only slightly but nonetheless she could see the resemblance. She had felt the reiatsu release when Ichigo had uttered those two words. His reiatsu felt almost exactly like the reiatsu he'd emitted as a Vasto Lorde.
Looking to her right she could see Ggio standing there, mouth agape and his eyes wide. He almost seemed...afraid. Neliel however decided to reassure him.
"Ggio," She started. "There is no need to be afraid. Ichigo is powerful, exceptionally so but I understand now why he has refused to release up untill now. He dreads bringing up the primal instincts of a Hollow. He sealed all but a fraction of his Hollow powers in his Zanpakutou. The only reason he has used it now is to pay his final respects to Nnoitra in battle so as not to humiliate him if he ends up losing his life."
Ggio looked at her for a few moments before closing his eyes briefly. Opening them again, he smirked. "I can imagine now why Aizen-sama chose to give Ichigo-sama the position of Primera Espada." Ggio said.
And Nelliel found she couldn't agree more. By taking in Ichigo, he had created the most powerful soldier he would ever have under his command.
=0=
"Let us finish this battle, Nnoitra," Ichigo told him
Nnoitra for his part smirked. But Ichigo understood now, he truly understood. He didn't smirk because he expected to win. He smirked because he would enjoy what could be the last of the battles he enjoyed so much. He smirked so he could enjoy what could be the last moments alive.
When Ichigo dissapeared Nnoitra could hardly keep track of him. The only thing he noticed was that something was approaching him quickly. And so he did the best thing he could. He held all six of his weapons in front of him so as to defend himself from the attack he knew was coming.
As Ichigo approached Nnoitra he raised his sword above his head with two hands, seeing Nnoitra bring up all six of his weapons to defend against the attack Ichigo slammed down a vertical strike with as much power as he could muster. Nnoitra grinned at him as he blocked the attack. Ichigo however, merely grinned back.
"It's over, Nnoitra!" He started, before softly whispering two words. "Kuroi Getsuga!"[2]
A black reiatsu engulfed in a line of red reiatsu appeared out of the tip of his Zanpakutou causing Nnoitra's eyes to widen. As Nnoitra opened his mouth to scream the attack completely engulfed him and the resulting explosion once again covered the platform in sand and dust obstructing the both of them from view.
When the dust cleared, a few moments later however a large gap ran from the middle of the platform all the way untill the end, basically splitting the platform in two. Nnoitra could be seen lying on the ground just a few feet to the right of the gap. He'd lost his three right arms and his body was covered in burns. His eyes were closed and while he was certainly in bad shape he could still be seen breathing, he appeared to be unconscious. Ichigo bowed his head once towards Nnoitra, before slowly turning around and walking away.
"Arrigatou, Nnoitra Jiruga."
=0=
Shimasu, Atrevico : Literally translates as Mutilate, Daredevil.
Kuroi Getsuga : This one I have basically stolen from the internet. When Ichigo's Hollow would take over and fire a Getsuga Tenshou in the anime people would often refer to it as Kuroi Getsuga or Black Moon Fang. I have decided to grant Ichigo this ability because despite the fact that he is a Hollow his soul remains the same and as far as I know Shinigami Zanpakutou spirits are bound to souls that resemble their own. Thus, since Ichigo's soul has basically remained the same since becoming a Hollow I believed it possible for him to gain a similar ability.
=0=
And so we have finished another chapter. I have to admit this chapter has grown a lot larger then I orignally intended, getting close to 13,000 words without reviews or author's notes. Nonetheless I'd rather have a chapter be too long then too short.
I am curious to know what people think of my choice of Fracción. I know atleast one person had suggested it before although I cannot exactly remember who without looking it up, so I'm sorry for that! You should know that while I appreciate hearing what you think of my choice I will not change it merely because you think it should be someone else, whatever the reasons may be.
Next I am, once again. Interested to find out what people thought about the fight scenes. I personally have no idea if they are well written or not as I merely write untill I am personally satisfied about them. Which doesn't necessarily mean they are either good or bad.
And lastly I would like to know what people thought of Ichigo's resurrección. To tell you the truth it surprised me greatly that noone thus far had even asked for it. Not that I am complaining as I intended to keep it hidden for a while, which means, untill now! I am curious though, let me know what you think about it.
R&R!