I wus playing Okami yesterday, and this is like the third time I've gone through the entire game lol… (If you don't kno the game this isn't gonna make any sense to you) but I finished the last demon gate trial and got the last stray bead, so now I am INVICIBLE! It. Is. Great. The ink bottles and health things just go away and attack power is x10. I kicked yami's butt so quickly and I had an EXTREME power rush. Lol probably not good for me.

Well that wus my story, and I must say I can't wait to write the next chapter becuz by then we're all done with this battle and we'll b back in the soul society being all kool. Yupppp CAN'T WAIT

Enjoy the chapter!

Toshiro's hands shook uncontrollably as he struggled for breath, collapsed once more and unable to move.

"You have served your purpose well, Hitsugaya."

His consciousness fading, the boy could hardly believe his failure. Hopelessness washed over him, and as Aizen stepped towards him, his heart was so torn with shame he forgot his hatred.

"For this power…" As Aizen spoke again, Toshiro could sense the man's glee at his newfound energy. "For this power, I am truly grateful."

Laying on his stomach, his face in the rubbled ground, Toshiro felt exhaustion chewing on his heart, but the presence of such strong reiatsu forced his instincts into becoming alert. He wished only that he could fall asleep, to fall asleep and never wake up. He thought that releasing the Hogyoku's seal would kill him, no, he had hoped it would kill him. That way, even if he did fail, he wouldn't have to feel the shame of it. He was being a coward, and he knew it. But after everything that had passed, he couldn't bear living anymore.

"Now then, Hitsugaya," Aizen continued to speak as Toshiro was lost in his thoughts. "In gratitude for your assistance, I will allow you…. To be the first to feel its power."

Toshiro closed his eyes and breathed deeply. He didn't care. As Aizen raised his zanpaktou in preparation to bring it down on him, all the boy could do was hope his enemy intended to end him.

Kyoka Suigetsu came down. Toshiro relished in the whistle through the air as he awaited the blade sinking into his neck.

The fatal blow never came. As the boy's eyes widened, the whistle was replaced with a clash of metal. Before he could move, a hand grabbed Toshiro by the shoulder and the air rushed by him. Barely breathing at all, Toshiro's head pounded in confusion when the world suddenly stopped blurring.

"What the hell is wrong with you, Toshiro?"

Toshiro looked up in shock. As the teenager stood, leaving the boy on his knees by his side, Ichigo Kurosaki stared at him angrily.

"Why? Why were you just laying there? Why wouldn't you defend yourself?"

Taken aback by the intensity in Ichigo's eyes, Toshiro was left speechless.

"How could you just give up?" Ichigo yelled.

The boy couldn't answer. He stared, wide-eyed, at the teenager standing above him, until his gaze finally fell.

"I… I just…" Glancing to the side, Toshiro still couldn't find the words to continue. After a moment, noticed other figures approaching from a distance. Unlike Ichigo, though, they kept their distance.

His energy still drained, Toshiro caught eye of a small brown haired girl, holding her hands to her chest and her eyes wide.

Momo… He closed his eye painfully. His mind and body worn, Toshiro somehow found himself accepting what Ichigo had said. Dying would've meant abandoning her, and everyone else. Their efforts to rescue him would've been for nothing, and Aizen would simply kill them.

Idiot… Why am I such an idiot? I should be doing everything I can to stay alive! To protect them!

The boy gazed forward sullenly. His eyes were heavy, but he forced himself to stay awake.

"You are merely delaying the inevitable." Aizen voice spoke calmly in response to Ichigo's interruption.

Grabbing his zanpaktou from beyond his shoulder, Ichigo dropped into a battle stance, his eyes fixed on the enemy.

"No, Ichigo, don't bother." Toshiro meant to speak the words aloud, but they came in a mere whisper. Even as he spoke them, the boy felt a wave of nausea, and fell to the side.

"Toshiro…" Abandoning his intent to fight, Ichigo caught the boy before he hit the ground. His eyes fading, Toshiro continued hoarsely.

"You… have to get everyone away… Aizen… you can't… defeat him now…"

Just as Toshiro spoke, Aizen took a step forward. Raising his zanpaktou out to his side, the man began to glow a golden aura.

Toshiro's eyes narrowed As Ichigo gripped his shoulder tighter, the smaller soul reaper couldn't blame him when the teenager subconsciously began to shiver. The spiritual pressure coming from Aizen was overwhelming, so much so that…

It wavered.

Toshiro's eyes widened in unison with Aizen's, Toshiro's out of a sudden burst of hope, the other's out of horror.

As a blast of spiritual pressure suddenly exploded from Aizen, the man's mouth opened in a scream that could barely be heard over the rushing reiatsu. Not far away, Ichigo had no way of escaping the flowing light. Still relying only on chance, the teen turned his back on the flow, and held the tiring boy in front of him.

The light engulfed both of them, and though it burned slightly, it brought them to no harm. Toshiro was quiet as the air rushed by, but a silent hope came into the boy when he heard the screams of agony not far off.

He had taken a gamble, one that weighed the lives of many people, and he had thought the chanced of it succeeding were minimal, if even existent. He had agreed to the risk only because it was his only course f action. If he resisted Aizen, the man would only torture him until the boy didn't have enough sanity left to disobey.

Clutching the remnants of his clothing in anticipation, Toshiro found the energy to sit up and look over Ichigo's shoulder as the blinding light faded. After blinking a few times, the boy finally got a good look at the scene.

Aizen stood, his eyes incredibly wide, his mouth agape, and his hair falling into his face. His back was arced in shock, until he finally crumpled to the ground.

"What… what the hell…?" Aizen's mouth formed the words slowly, disbelieving his own failure.

Trembling, Toshiro slid one foot forward, and then another, until he forced his protesting body to walk forward. Ichigo made a motion to stop him, but one look in the boy's eyes and he stopped short.

Picking up Hyourinmaru from where it had fallen not long ago, the boy advanced unsteadily towards his arch nemesis, his eyes glistening.

"You… WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO?"

Toshiro stopped a yard away from the man, who had barely found the energy to get to a kneel. Looking down to Aizen he beheld the sight before him. His enemy's eyes reflected none of the calm arrogance they had before. Instead, they were filled with anger and disbelief.

"I didn't do anything, Aizen." The boy spat. "You did it to yourself."

His words came clearly this time. Something in seeing Aizen so power less brought a rush of energy to the boy, and stood firmly.

"How… what…"

"Arrogant bastard." Toshiro raised Hyourinmaru as he continued, spite and hatred clear in him. "You never thought for one second that the Hogyoku might not accept you. You always believed that your body was strong enough to hold it's power, and your soul was prepared for that rush.

You were wrong."

Blood trickled down Aizen's neck as Toshiro held his sword to the man's neck.

"The unsealed Hogyoku is much too strong for any being to hold in his soul. In trying to do so with such effort, it rejected you. But you aren't any normal soul reaper. Your spiritual pressure clung to the Hogyoku, and it began to pull back and forth. Both grips were so hard that, eventually, you destroyed each other. Both the Hogyoku and your spiritual pressure, they're so strong that it is still taking progress, but, within a few moments, they'll both be consumed into nothingness."

Aizen glared at Toshiro in utter hatred. "Well then," the man growled. "aren't you going to finish me off? Aren't you going to take your revenge?"

The boy didn't respond. His eyebrow twitched, and he shivered as he couldn't help but remember the dark, nasty feeling that came through him earlier. And Hyourinmaru's advice to stay away from the evil that was taking him over. To not give in to his sadistic desires.

The zanpaktou shook from where it was at the man's neck, and Toshiro wanted now more than ever to be able to speak to his zanpaktou, to have Hyourinmaru's comfort and advice. But, deep within his soul, the zanpaktou was much more exhausted then even Toshiro himself, and there was no word from him.

Wavering, his eyes tightening and doing everything to control himself, Toshiro took his sword away from Aizen's throat.

"No. No, I won't become like you. I won't lose myself to this. Never."

The man's eyes grew wide in rage. "HITSUGAYA!"

"Anyway," Toshiro ignored the man's shriek. "I think if I let you live, you'll go through more suffering. You don't have any power over anyone anymore, Aizen."

Aizen's breath came sharply and unsteadily. He stared at the ground, his eyes still wide. "How… how dare you…" Something stopped any other words for coming from his mouth. He caught his breath as he felt a wrenching in his soul, and gazed downwards until he saw his own zanpaktou, Kyoka Suigetsu, slowly disappearing from his hands.

Bowing his head down and releasing his ire, Aizen screamed wretchedly.

Toshiro turned the other way, and began walking away, though he couldn't help but feel a slight pleasure in his enemy's agony.

Behind him, Kyoka Suigetsu vanished as both it and the Hogyoku's power disappeared.

The boy's eyes suddenly widened in shock as he finally tasted blood in his mouth. His breath stopped as all the nerves that where delayed from sending their message to Toshiro's head all continued their course at once. Fresh blood covered almost every part of the boy's body, and his exhaustion was only increased tenfold.

"TOSHIRO!" Ichigo rushed forward, catching the not breathing boy as the soul reaper's eyes faded.

I can't wait to write the next chapter! Teehee… Yayyyy Aizen's insane now…. Somebody's a bad sport. I'm really tired and I still have a bunch of things to do so I'm gonna go, PLZ REVIEW ME! PLEASE tell me what you thought of Aizen's demise? Did I drag the battle out enough chapters? Did I rush it? Well? Plz ! I wanna kno wut u thot!