Hitsugaya spent several days in solitude. He knew the Head Captain was giving him a chance to see things his way– to accept a thousand years worth of decisions as necessary and to swear to keep them secret.
But he couldn't, he could never forgive the things he knew, and he could never serve the man who had committed them. The truth had to be told– he would never be allowed to live.
Seven days passed until the head captain finally came.
"Have you made your choice?" Was all he said as Hitsugaya, now significantly weakened by the seki seki stone, came down the spiralling stairs to meet him.
"You know that no matter how much time I think about it, I won't forgive you."
It has only been a week, a thousand years worth of memories should not be treated so lightly."
"Neither should my resolve or my honour."
"Very well."
"What will you tell the others?"
There was a silence. Then, "Do you expect me to kill you, child?"
Toshiro was taken aback, of course he did.
"Ah, you see, even with all my memories you do not understand me. You must know the other option."
Toshiro stood rooted, his mind racing, then he found it.
"You'll erase my memory."
"It is a simple option."
"Its dangerous, you could wipe out everything."
"Its better than the alternative."
"No. They deserve to know. Everyone deserves to know what you've done."
"And what would that serve? Would you have me executed Toshiro Hitsugaya?"
Toshiro looked at him long and hard.
"No. But you must stand trial. A new central 46 must be assembled– "
"But who would form it? You think too rashly, you are very young."
"I know that I won't let you wipe my memories."
"There is no choice."
The old man advanced.
"You can't do it here. The seki seki will block that technique."
"You are right."
The two faced each other.
"Will you fight me Hitsugaya?"
"No, I am not a fool. I know your powers– all of them, and I know that even seki seki cannot stop your flames." he rubbed his still bandaged arms. Due to the seki seki they had not properly healed.
"You think you will have better chances outside?"
"We'll see."
"Very well." The Head Captain turned, Toshiro followed him out of the building.
The second they were outside their battle began. Toshiro had no weapon but he had the advantage of knowing the Head Captain's every strength and every weakness. The flames surrounded him but he repelled them with powerful kido spells– ones no soul reaper had been taught in hundreds of years.
As much as he wished he had Hyorinmaru, these spells provided him with a whole new arsenal. Their battle ranged from the bridge to Sokioku hill. The Head Captain was clearly annoyed that he had not been able to subdue Hitsugaya right away and now other captains were approaching. Hitsugaya could see no one past the flames.
"Yield child, before you burn!"
"I won't let you do this."
"Then you must be willing to kill me."
"No!"
The old eyes widened a little.
"Then what?"
"I'll erase your memory instead. Just enough so you don't know that I know."
"Clever child, but you'll have to reach me first."
Toshiro grit his teeth and strengthened his kido barrier, inching closer to the Head Captain. The man's eyes narrowed, he was perturbed by the boy's power. Toshiro shot kido after kido, trying to land some sort of blow, protect himself, and inch forward all at once.
"Enough!" The Head Captain roared when a yellow beam of light tore through his robes. Suddenly the weight of his bankai was overwhelming. Toshiro put all of his energy into the shield but it was an ancient kido he'd never practised and his power was already weakened. The flames closed in, the shield cracked.
"Do not say I am not merciful." The Head Captain said, his flames had dissipated the moment Toshiro's shield failed and he knelt exhausted, his head bent forward. He knew all the other captains were there now. He was angry, humiliated, defeated.
The Head Captain sheathed his sword and took one of Toshiro's small wrists in each of his aged hands. He barley spoke a word but yellow glowing shackles formed around each wrists, another forgotten kido spell that only the master and the child knew. Hitsugaya could already feel them sucking what was left of his soul reaper powers out of him. Yamamoto stood, and Hitsugaya looked up at him, his face covered in sweat and soot, his body shaking in exhaustion.
"Will you do it here, in front of everyone?"
"It would not have been my choice, but too much has been revealed to them already. They might as well see."
Toshiro's hands were not bound, the glowing shackled were attached to nothing, yet he did not have the strength to fight anymore. He scanned the faces of the other captains, but it was too late, they would never know the truth.
The Head Captain's hand slid through Toshiro's sweat-slicked hair and took a forceful grip of his head. Their eyes were locked on one another.
"I don't have to tell you that if you resist, you only increase the risk."
"I know."
"Then good luck, Toshiro Hitsugaya."
He would not shut his eyes. He knew the damage that could happen but he was prepared to resist, he would fight to the end.
The surge in his mind only lasted a second before Toshiro felt himself pulled free of his commander. He blinked, his head spinning but he seemed to remember everything. His vision was blurred, he was on his hands and knees but someone else was standing before him, warding off the Head Captain's attacks.
Aizen.
Toshiro knelt in Aizen's shadow as he traded blows with the Yamamoto. Where had he come from? He felt hands on his shoulder and suddenly felt Gin holding him. They were both shielded from the flames by Aizen's hogyoku-infused power.
"I am afraid I can't let you erase the boy's memories. He now holds all the secrets of the soul society. I might never get them out of you, Yamamoto, but I'm sure I can get them out of him."
"No..."
Toshiro ripped out of Gin's grasp. The flames receded, Aizen and Yamamnoto were now fighting with steel against steel.
Toshiro backed away from Ichimaru. "Get back!" He raised his hands to perform a kido but even more energy was sucked from him from his shackles. He stumbled and fell backwards.
"Poor boy, trapped between a rock and a hard place aren't cha? Might as well come with us, we won't erase your memory."
Toshiro had a hand over his head, trying to make everything stop spinning. Gin advanced.
"Ichimaru!" The voice was calm and cool. It was Byakuya.
"Hmmm, I never really wanted to fight you, Byakuya, how about little soifon instead?" Byakuaya ignored the comment and engaged the enemy.
Toshiro could do nothing more than try to run, as pathetic as it made him feel. He was stopped first by Kurotsuchi.
"You are still under arrest." The mad captain said, his long nailed fingered gripping Hitsugaya's upper arm. The little captain looked up into his face and saw all Yamamoto's memories of him– every new face– every vile experiment. He tried to jerk away.
"You don't understand. I have his memories– there are things he doesn't want you all to know–"
"Well of course we've all figured that much out already."
Toshiro's eyes widened.
"And you were going to let him get away with it?"
"What good would it do?" The voice was Komamora's. "Aizen has already put us in turmoil, we can't turn against our Head Captain."
"But you don't understand!" Toshiro screamed in frustration but now he was trapped between the two.
"The information is simply too much for your puny brain to process." Korutsuchi snarled
"You bastard."
The black and white face was poised to hiss something back but then a look of shock rippled over his features. Toshiro couldn't see but he felt Komomora stiffen behind him and draw his zampakuto.
"Sorry." said a harsh voice as Kurotsuchi crumpled and suddenly there was a sword thrust above Toshiro's head and into Komomora. "But I'll be taking this one with me."
He couldn't defend himself, Grimmjow had his clawed finger around his throat and was hauling him away. The following sequence of battles was a blur. He thought Soifon then engaged Grimmjow, at some point he was tossed to the ground. Arancars and captains battled over him but eventually he came back to where he started– the battle between the Head Captain and Aizen. Each had wounds but Aizen was clearly winning.
"You can end it all now, Toshiro, just come over to me and we'll leave in peace."
Toshiro stood on trembling legs just a few feet from the battle. Everyone one else was either injured or engaged in battle.
"I can't let that information fall into your hands."
"Then you will go back to him, lose your memory? Let him get away with his sins?"
Toshiro was silent. Aizen dealt a powerful blow and Yamamoto staggered. Another, and another, and the Head Captain was on the ground.
"Don't worry Toshiro, I'll protect you." Aizen said with a dark irony as he stood over the head captain, sword raised.
"No!" Though weak, his powers drained, Toshiro could still hold a sword. Ryku Jakka hummed in his hands with the shock of meeting Aizen's sword. The small captain stood astride the body of his commander, doing his best to hold back the traitor.
"Still the loyal son, after all that?" Aizen said grinning down on him. "You could have made it easier on yourself."
"I will never help you."
"Oh?" Aizen hammered down on him, again, his hands trembled. Aizen smiled, he was just drawing it out. One, two, three more blows and he had the boy on his knees. A final strike, Hitsugaya could only half counter and Ryku Jakka fell from his hands, blood dripped from his shoulder.
Aizen grabbed him by the arms and raised his bandaged and shackled wrists before his blurred eyes. "See what your own commander has done to you?" Toshiro's eyes focused on the yellow rings. "He's delivered you to me and sealed his own fate. And yet you still defend him?"
"I am not a traitor like you Aizen."
"You're just a fool."
"No..." The hiss came from Yamamoto who rose slowly to his feet, his zampakuto back in his hands.
"Give up old man."
There was no word but a dark beam shot forth, striking Aizen's arm. He dropped Hitsugaya and stummbled back. Then the flames came again, and Toshiro felt the flowing robes of the Head Captain brush against his face in the dirt and knew that he would be protected from the heat.
"You made the right choice, Captain Hitsugaya."
"Don't think I've changed my mind." He sputtered, pulling himself to his feet next to the commander.
"Never the less, I am proud that you chose to defend me."
Toshiro looked into the wall of flames. "All those things you did...they were wrong, but I will not let him kill you." Toshiro raised his teal eyes to his captain. The flames danced in them but there was no mistaking his sincerity. He raised his shackled wrists.
"I must still take back those memories."
"And you know I will still resist, but right now–" Their words were cut short, the hogyku infused Aizen leapt through the flames as if they were nothing.
"How touching, but you really are a fool Hitsugaya."
A dark spiritual pressure enveloped them. The flames died and Aizen seemed to be pouring all his malice into Yamamoto simply through his outstretched hand. The Head Captain was fighting back with his own spirit and Hitsugaya was drowning in the middle. He collapsed, the air crushed from him, until he felt the pressure lessen again and he was in the shadow of the Head Captain.
But that had been Aizen's plan.
Sparing just that much spiritual pressure to save the young captain made him the weaker party in the battle. Aizen flash stepped forward and Yamamoto was slowed by the dark pressure. Hitsugaya felt the blood drip onto his face, looked up and saw the blade protruding out his commander's back. It ripped out again and Yamamoto was on his knees, but it would take more than that to kill him.
"You may have a warrior's death." Aizen said, picking up Yamamoto's zampakuto while sheathing his own. "And why not by your own sword?"
Toshiro didn't have much strength left, but his instincts told him what to do. The moment the sword fell he was there. He had his arms raised, crossed above his head and felt the bone shattering impact but nothing more.
The golden shackles could not be broken by a sword, he knew, and so, they were his shield.
Aizen looked down at him in shock and rage.
"What is this?" he said, grabbing Toshiro's hand once again to inspect the kido he'd never before seen. The boy gasped, the impact had indeed broken many bones in his wrist. Aizen yanked him closer to his face. "Oh the secrets you are going to tell me."
He tossed Ryku Jakka to the ground and knotted his hand in Hitsugaya's hair, forcing his head back to look him straight in the eyes. Aizen smiled with satisfaction at the look of pain on his face. "All those secrets, trapped in that genius brain of yours– it will be so fun to extract."
"Hado–" The Head Captain's words stuck in his throat, the light of the Hokyoku emenated from Aizen and struck Yamamoto like no other force in the universe. The man fell limp– dead or unconscious, Toshiro could not tell.
"No..." He whispered.
"Yes!" Aizen roared, tightening his grip around Toshiro's wrists. "Gin! Its time to go!" The other flash stepped next to them in a second. There was no need for a gate way, Aizen had the power of the gods. A yellow light enveloped them, they disappeared.