"Now, now…..did you really think you can leave Hueco Mundo without me knowing?" Aizen said, smiling.
Nnoitra laughed, "We've come to pick up our little run away dog."
"I won't let you!" Ichigo yelled as he jumped at them through the window.
"Ichigo!" Rukia exclaimed as she followed him through the window.
"Haha, they're actually trying to protect that piece of shit? Can I kill them?" Nnoitra asked Aizen.
"I don't care. But bring back Ulquiorra," Aizen said, and left through a Garganta.
"Wha-? You're gonna leave me here by myself?" Nnoitra looked at Tosen as he followed Aizen. "Then why did you even come here in the first place if yo-! Hey Listen to me when-!" he yelled as the Garganta closed. "Damn you, leave me to do all the dirty crap. Ulquiorra! Get your ass out here! Make this easy!" Nnoitra yelled down at the window. Ichigo came through the window with Rukia on his trail.
"I won't let you take Ulquiorra," he said, getting ready to fight. Nnoitra looked at them, then threw his head back and laughed, a maniacal laugh.
"And you're gonna stop me?" he said, sarcasm and amusement tainting every word. "I'll let you know," he lowered his voice a pitch, "I'm the strongest. I won't lose to the likes of you." Nnoitra narrowed his eyes.
Ichigo lunged forward, causing Nnoitra to block with his double-bladed scythe, stopping Ichigo's Zangetsu between the two crescent-shaped blades. Nnoitra pushed Ichigo back, as he glared at the arrancar. Ichigo lunged again and again, each time Nnoitra blocked and shoved him away. Then Rukia disappeared and appeared next to the arrancar, aiming for his head. Nnoitra turned to block with his arm, leaving an opening for Ichigo to cut the tall arrancar across his side.
"You son of-!" Nnoitra's curse was cut off by Rukia's sword cutting deep into his flesh. "You-!" Ichigo took the opportunity to leave a deeper wound on his side. Nnoitra turned towards the orange-haired boy, furious. Rukia brought her sword down, hoping to leave another fatal wound. Nnoitra turned and crushed her side with his blades. Rukia was flung hard and crashed into the tree below.
"Rukia!" Ichigo yelled, moving to help his fallen comrade, but was knocked down by the force of Nnoitra's blade forced into his side. As Ichigo plummeted to the ground below, Ulquiorra climbed out of the window in an attempt to stop Ichigo's fall. It was futile, Ichigo all ready hit the ground by the time Ulquiorra's foot barely got over the sill.
"Ichigo," Ulquiorra whispered, as he looked at the unmoving body on the ground. Ulquiorra looked on with concern. Ichigo's arm slightly lifted. Nnoitra saw Ulquiorra outside the window and grabbed the pale arrancar around the waist.
As Nnoitra threw Ulquiorra over his shoulder, he called down to Ichigo, who had somehow lifted himself into sitting position, "You said you won't let me take this piece of shit. Looks like you're wrong. He's coming back to Hueco Mundo." Nnoitra turned.
Ichigo jumped and slashed Nnoitra's arm, causing the arrancar to turn, nearly dropping Ulquiorra. "Ichigo! Don't-!" Ulquiorra yelled as Nnoitra hit the soul reaper in the head. Ichigo barely blocked it, and shoved back with what strength he had. He brought his sword down on Nnoitra's all ready wounded shoulder. He turned; swinging his double-bladed scythe. The metal connected with flesh and bones, causing one of the two to crack and break. Ichigo doubled over, coughing up blood. He fell, landing like a bag of clothes. "Ichigo….." Ulquiorra whispered.
"You actually care about that weakling? You're a joke," Nnoitra chuckled. "You really are something. Wait till you get back. Aizen has a surprise for you." As he talked, Nnoitra opened up a Garganta and stepped through. "Later, you weak son of-," His last remark cut off by the closing of the opening.
Ichigo stared up at the last place the arrancars were standing, holding his side with an expression of pain and sadness. "Damn it," he said as he collapsed.
xXxXxXxXxXxXxXx
Ichigo look up at the ceiling of his room. He sat up, and doubled over again. He was back in his body. Even his ribs weren't broken, they still hurt like hell. "Look he's awake." Ichigo turned to the voice.
Renji, Ikkaku, Toshiro, Orihime, Rangiku, Yumichicka, Rukia and Uryu stared at Ichigo. Ichigo blinked. "Wh-what are you guys doing here?"
Toshiro spoke up, "We felt the spiritual pressure Aizen, Tosen, and the arrancar gave off." Ichigo looked around as some nodded in reassurance. "Rukia told us they came for Ulquiorra, she tried to stop the arrancar but was knocked out; and when she came to you were on the ground holding your side. What happened after Rukia was hit?" he asked, staring intently, waiting for an answer.
Ichigo told them about how the arrancar threw Ulquiorra over his shoulder and that he tried to stop him but was hit in the side and fell while the arrancar left to Hueco Mundo.
"Hmmm. Why did he come here? And why would they want him back? Did he mess up on a mission?" Toshiro wondered out loud.
"After you guys left, Ulquiorra told me that he ran away," Ichigo said, not really wanting to. He didn't think he should say something like that, but Ichigo hoped it would help bring Ulquiorra back. He kept the bit about Ulquiorra possibly running away because he was beaten.
"Hmmm, that explains why they decided to come and get him. That still leaves the question of 'Why did he run?' in the first place," Uryu said. He rubbed his chin lost in thought. Toshiro closed his eyes, while everyone started talking through possibilities with each other.
Rukia inched closer to Ichigo and said, so no one could over hear, "Why didn't you tell them about him being beaten?"
"I might be wrong. I was just wondering out loud. Ii means nothing," Ichigo replied.
"You sounded so sure," Rukia said, turning to Renji to discuss what he thought. Ichigo was left alone to his thoughts. 'What is happening to Ulquiorra? Is he OK? What am I to do now?'
XxXxXxXxXxXxXx
Laughter rang throughout the empty hall. CRACK. Ulquiorra's scream. More laughter. Another scream. Nnoitra comes out of the room, not because he's disgusted, but because he got bored. There was no blood involved. Nnoitra walked down the hall as another scream echoed down the deserted hall.
xXxXxXxXxXxXxXx
"Is that really what were going to do?" Renji asked, concern on his features.
"Yeah, it seems like the only way," Toshiro answered, nodding. "I can't think of any other way."
"Oh, ok," Rukia said.
"We set out tomorrow morning. Get enough rest. You need all of your strength for tomorrow. I'll get everything ready for tomorrow. Meet at Urahahra's," Toshiro advised as he got up to leave the room with everyone but Ichigo.
"OK," Ichigo said with a smile on his face, that suddenly turned to one of pain. His side sill hurt some, maybe he should sleep it off.
XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX
Aizen left the room. A moan of pain soon follows. Aizen walks away, he has a meeting to hold. Only one isn't attending.
Ulquiorra laid on his stomach, on the table. The same table that had once been covered in his own blood. Now it was clean of evidence. It didn't see any of Ulquiorra's blood today, but it heard the breaking of bone. Ulquiorra laid there, unmoving.
Ulquiorra's finger twitched, the only sign of life from the otherwise still body. A few minutes pass, then Ulquiorra's arms slowly bend and just as slowly lifted his torso. He fixed himself into sitting position about ten minutes later. He tried to close his hands, but grimaced in pain. Each finger was broken in one spot or another. Ulquiorra know no one would help him fix his bones so they can heal properly. He gripped his index finger between his teeth and pulled.
There was a sicken crack. A scream escapes through Ulquiorra's lip. He takes a few deep breaths, tears at the corner of his eyes. Ulquiorra takes the next finger in his teeth, and does the same thing again. Another scream.
XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX
Ulquiorra finished pulling the last bone in his hand into place, when Aizen walked back in from the meeting that Ulquiorra was suppose to attend.
"Why weren't you at the meeting?" Aizen asked coolly, knowing the reason.
"I-I-I was realigning my bones….Lord Aizen," Ulquiorra answered. Aizen turned, to him.
"Couldn't you fix them at the meeting?" Aizen said, staring at his 'pet'.
"I didn't want to interrupt your lecture," Ulquiorra said, feeling a little braver.
"Oh….I see," Aizen said, as he walked around the table and grabbed Ulquiorra's hair, pulling his head back. "I guess you have more punishment to endure. You know what the punishment is." Ulquiorra was silent. "Don't you?" Aizen whispered in his ear, his breath brushing across his ear. Ulquiorra remained silent.
Aizen let go of his hair and walked back to the front of the table. He leaned down, his face so close to Ulquiorra's that he can feel his breath on his lips, as he said, "What is your punishment, Ulquiorra?" Aizen smiled, showing all his teeth as he stood up again, then he laughed.
xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx
"What the hell is that!" Ichigo said, looking up at this huge door frame looking thing. It had paper around the wood beams, making it look like a horrible art project.
"Why I'm glad you asked Ichigo!" a man in a green and white striped hat said, as he waved his fan around, " I found a way to recreate the portal the arrancars came through when they came to retrieve your friend Ulquiorra."
"It looks like crap," was Ichigo's reply.
"But I worked reeeeaaaalllllyyyy hard on it, don't be so cruel, or I won't let you go get your friend," the man said, waving the fan in Ichigo's face. Ichigo was about ready to tear that stupid fan from his hand when the rest of the group showed up.
"I presume you have completed the task, Urahara?" Toshiro asked.
"Why of course!" Urahara flapped his fan around. Ichigo watched as Urahara started an incantation. 'We're coming Ulquiorra. Don't worry.'
Ulquiorra screamed in pain as Aizen thrusted into him.
'We're coming.' was Ichigo's last thought as he jumped through the opening.
KYO: I end this chap on a nicer note….cause you deserve some hope in this story. I do want to hear what you think of my fight scene. Please tell me if it was bad, horrible, decent, good. I have no confidence in it, and I can't think of any other way of rewriting it. And I'm really sorry I'm such a slow updater. I hope I didn't disappoint you. I feel like I did. And thank you for your review, I greatly appreciate it! *bows* I really do! Even though I feel like it meant hurry your ass up! Stop procrastinating! I promise in a week I should be able to update faster. Too many projects at the moment, again I apologize.