Thank you all for the reviews from the last chapter and I hope you enjoy this one!
Opening his eyes in his inner world, Ichigo was faced with his mother surrounded by hundreds upon hundreds of hollows. It appeared she could hardly fend them off, the sandstorm that had been raging around them previously was now just a slight swirl, nothing more than a slight irritation to the hollows.
One of the many hollows lunged at Masaki and latched onto her arm with its teeth. Blood flew into the air, throwing the others into a bloodlust. As more began to attack, Ichigo took action. He pulled on his mask, and put as much power into his blade as he could. "Getsuga Tensho!" He practically screamed.
A shockwave of black energy tore through the wave of hollows, all shredding into pieces. Though many of the particles joined Ichigo through his sword, a portion flew into a wolf-like hollow that was significantly bigger than the others. Slowly, the remaining dogs drew close to the wolf and were devoured.
The wolf became that of a monstrous demon as Ichigo rushed at him with a getsuga coated blade. Ichigo sliced off nearly every appendage on the demon's body only to have them grow back. The demon crushed Ichigo to the ground under a single paw. Just as he felt ribs breaking, he heard it: a woman's voice.
"Shatter."
Ichigo's eyes widened as he heard the familiar invocation. He turned his head to see a woman in a simple gray kimono, holding a plain Zanpakuto. Time seemed to stop as she drifted gracefully towards the hollow crushing him. She touched her blade to the wolf's hide and slowly, beautifully waltzed around its body, dragging the sword against its fur.
The woman completed her circle and for a moment so short Ichigo thought he had imagined it, took on the appearance of a bat-like demon with a terribly sad expression.
An instant later the giant hollow shattered like glass and dissolved into the air. The woman turned to look at Ichigo "Hello, Ichigo," she sang. Her melodic voice could have made the most talented musicians weep.
After a moment he found his voice and responded. "Who are you?"
"You know who I am, Ichigo... I'm Kyoka Suigetsu," she said, and Ichigo could have sworn he heard a deeper, emotionless voice underneath.
Ichigo's body – though healing quickly – was still mostly broken, so when he tried to jump away from the Zanpakuto he thought was dead, pain shot through his body, immobilizing him. "How are you here?" He whispered. He couldn't believe such a beautiful woman could have caused so much suffering.
"Ichigo, I don't think you realize it, but every time you kill a being with a Zanpakuto spirit, that spirit tries to survive. It will attach itself to the nearest being capable of supporting it... namely, you," she explained. "When you killed Aizen, I sent as much power as I could into you, and ended up in the corruption. I've been protecting the memories ever since, hoping you would find me someday, and accept me as your own."
Once again, Ichigo could swear he could hear an empty voice underneath Kyoka Suigetsu's.
"Why should I accept you? You're the main reason my friends suffered through so much pain!" Ichigo shouted angrily. He began to burn with anger as he remembered everything his friends had endured.
"I understand how you feel but... Aizen was strong. With or without me, he could have crushed the Soul Society. Had you not stopped him the first time, the Hogyoku would have consumed me and turned him into a god," she said. "Please... I do not want to die."
Ichigo could understand the fear of death. He had felt it a few times now. First in Hueco Mundo, then fighting Ywacht; it was a horrible feeling. Despite the pain she had caused, he couldn't abandon her. She had saved him, and protected his memories...
"Fine."
Tears began to roll down her cheeks and she gave a shaky smile. She fell to her knees. "Thank you, Ichigo... truly," she whispered, voice trembling. "I was so afraid I would die here, amidst this filth that that wretched hollow created." Ichigo once again heard another voice, deeper and emotionless. Once again he couldn't make out what it said. Kyoka Suigetsu hugged him tightly as she dissolved and joined his mask, adorning it with small blue diamonds and dark markings like bat wings.
Just as the last of the spirit joined his mask, he heard a scream. Looking around, he saw a man with a hollow mask standing in place of the monster Kyoka Suigetsu had just destroyed. "How dare you kill my brothers like that? I'll destroy you!"
The hollow who Ichigo could only assume was a vasto lord charged at him with razor sharp claws. Ichigo raised his sword to block, but was too slow, and hole was torn through his chest. Ichigo fell to his knees in pain, grasping at his chest. As his vision began to turn black, he heard a voice.
"I... here... you... call... name." He heard it say. This was familiar. A voice that he couldn't quite make out, telling him to call a name. A Zanpakuto was speaking.
Try as he might, he couldn't ask its name. He was lying on the ground now, oddly numb. He knew he would die, but he didn't care. Then he heard a new voice.
He didn't hear it, per say, but more felt it in his mind. A mix between a whisper and a hiss passed through his mind, and he knew the name.
Ichigo spoke. "Enclose, Murciélago!" Green-black Reiatsu exploded around him as the ragged hole in his chest smoothed into an even circle. The Reiatsu fell around him like raindrops as black bat wings unfurled from his back.
"What is your name, hollow?" Ichigo asked quietly.
"I am Hide, the Wolf. My pack has prowled these wastes since their creation, yet you kill them without remorse! We are envoys of the Ascended Nameless, destroying the purifiers you so desperately protect." The hollow ranted.
Ichigo's eyes were cold as he gazed at Hide. "I don't care how long you have lived, or who you serve. If you attack my memories, I will destroy you." Ichigo's wings began to pulse with Reiatsu before he was engulfed in darkness. "Now despair, Hide, as I wipe you from this plane." Without another word, the darkness around him spread, and he whispered, "Huelga de las sombras, Murciélago." A moment later, the cloud of darkness was blown away by a strong gust of wind to reveal Murciélago buried in Hide's chest, Ichigo standing behind him.
Hide, with a horrified look on his face, dissolved around Ichigo's Zanpakuto as he was absorbed. Ichigo's mask crumbled and Murciélago dispersed into Reiatsu. "Um... where did my sword go?" Ichigo asked, confused, as the hole in his chest filled.
"Now that you have more than one spirit, you must call our names when you wish to use us," Zangetsu responded. "Ichigo... do you not realize who's spirit you just used?"
"Let me think. Oh right! It was Ulqui—" His eyes widened as he realized what he had done. Murciélago was that demon's spirit. He was the one that had kidnapped Orihime. He felt filthy with it attached to his soul, but he couldn't deny it saved his life.
A dull, almost emotionless voice flowed through mind. "Do you wish for me to leave? Now that I serve you, you can cast me out and let me wither away in this wasteland." If Ichigo didn't know better, he would have sworn he could hear sadness in Murciélago's voice.
"No... I wouldn't wish my worst enemy to rot in a wasteland like this," Ichigo answered hesitantly. Murciélago was silent after that, and Ichigo decided to change the subject. "Zangestu, what did Hide mean by 'Ascended Nameless?'"
"I'm assuming by Nameless, he meant the hollow. The Ascended part confuses me. It could mean any number of bad things. We'll cross that bridge when we get to it," Zangetsu answered.
Ichigo frowned, but knew he had to get going soon. With one last look at his smiling mother, he pulled on his mask and trudged out into the desert. As Ichigo climbed to the peak of a ridge, a black mountain came into view with an odd haze hanging around it. He felt a strong pull from the mountain, almost as if multiple memories were there. Upon closer inspection, he saw thin streams of lava flowing down its sides. It was a volcano.
Ichigo had a bad feeling about this. He rushed towards it, tearing through the small fry hollows that popped up on the way. After about half an hour at top speed, he realized it was farther away than he thought. He was only about half way there at this point, and the battle with Hide and his pack had, though seemed quick, taken about an hour.
Drawing on Murciélago's power, bat wings burst from his shoulder blades and he took flight, doubling his speed. After a while, he got to the base of the mountain only to be met with two humanoid brutes that appeared to be arrancar.
"Really? He's learned how to take off your masks, too?" Ichigo asked no one in irritation. A vasto lord was strong already, but if his hollow had learned to take off masks, this would be a lot harder.
"Hey brother, it looks like Nameless," said one titan. "Should we let it through?"
"No, brother, Its color wrong," the other replied. "Nameless white, this one orange."
"Should we smash it?" the first asked.
"Yes, brother. We will kill it till its dead."
"You guys aren't very smart, are you?" Ichigo asked.
"Hey, what you say?" The first giant asked.
"He asked if we smart, brother," the second said.
"Whatever, I don't have time for you. Shatter, Kyoka Suigetsu," Ichigo muttered, and the giants froze in place as Ichigo began to move behind them.
After a second the giants leapt at the place where Ichigo had just been standing. They're fast, he thought. Just as Ichigo struck with Kyoka Suigetsu, one behemoth swung around, slamming him with his fist.
"Brother! He's using mind magic!" It said, leaping after Ichigo.
"Damn! Guess I still have to get the hang of you," Ichigo said.
Kyoka Suigetsu's giggled. "Did you think I was easy to use? It took even Aizen decades before he mastered me."
"Fine. I wanted to end this without expending too much energy, but fuck it. Zangetsu!" Kyoka Suigetsu morphed into Tensa Zangetsu, brimming with black Reiatsu. Drawing his sword back, Ichigo unleashed a massive wave of energy. "Getsuga Tensho!"
The arc of black energy cut one enemy in half, and sent the other flying into a cliff face. The one that split in two dissolved, feeding into Zangetsu. Though some power was restored, Ichigo had still expended quite a bit of energy, so he was a tad slow when the second giant slammed his fist into his chest. He crashed into a boulder before recovering and flashing behind the giant for a slash all the way down his body.
The second giant joined his brother inside Zangetsu as he dissolved into Reiatsu. Ichigo fell to his knees. His hollow was incredibly strong if just guards were that tough. Their hierro was at least three times tougher than Nnoitra's, so he had to expend quite a bit of effort.
"Ichigo," Kyoka Suigetsu sang. "We're running out of time. Hurry up."
Drawing on Murciélago once again, Ichigo flew to the top of the mountain quickly. As we all know, five minutes in anime can be either thirty seconds or two hours, and it had been the latter. Ichigo had maybe an hour before he had to replenish energy, and he knew there were several memories on the peak.
As Ichigo soared over the edge of the cliff face, a startling scene came into view. A female arrancar with flowing blonde hair was standing among a mass of lion-like hollows. On the edge of the pit of magma, Ichigo could see the first spirit he had ever met, the little girl he had left flowers for every day, and the spirit of a child looking for his mother. That one gave him quite a bit of trouble. He somehow resisted a konso for days, before he finally accepted his mother was in the Soul Society. He, along with the other two, were about to be thrown into the volcano.
There you go friends! If any of you are wondering why hollows are giving Ichigo trouble, its because of one: it would be boring if he didn't encounter any difficulty, and two: His hollow is almost as strong as he is, so his minions are strong too.