TTGL: So this is the Heavens
Chapter 16: Say hello to my little friend.
"Your zanpakuto!" chorused Kamina, Ikkaku and Yumichika as one. They looked upon the demon before them, felt its cold malice seeping into their skin.
Kenpachi held out his sword towards the monster. "I still don't know his name, but that is his shape. I've seen him, he's just ignorant and won't ever respond to me."
The zanpakuto roared, making a sound like two swords scraping against one another. Its mouth opened wide and between its row of shark like teeth a blade slid out from down its throat. With another ear-splitting roar it fired the blade down upon the group. Kamina, Ikkaku and Yumichika threw themselves aside as the slab of sharpened metal hurtled toward them. Kenpachi stood his ground, locking eyes with the demon. The blade passed over his head, missing him by a mere inch. The draft that it caused made the bells in his hair rattle.
The blade hit the sand with such force that it completely disappeared, leaving only a gouge across the dunes. Kenpachi spat into the hole. "Is that all you've got?"
The demon sprang forward, the physical force of the movement causing the earth to shake. It swiped at Kenpatchi with its claws, claws that Kamina now realised were identical to Kenpachi's zanpakuto. The captain blocked but the power of the attack sent him spiralling into the far wall. With a snarl it turned on the remaining three shinigami.
"Hey hey hey hey hey hey hey! Shut that ugly mouth of yours. Nobody snarls at the mighty Kamina and gets away with it! Just who the hell do you think I am!" announced Kamina without fear.
"Yeah, nobody throws my captain around either. I'm gonna teach you what happens when you mess with Squad Eleven!" Ikkaku threatened. In a blur, the demon stomped on them.
Yumichika ran, dragging the two thick headed shinigami behind him. Looking back he saw that the pressure of the monsters foot combined with its suffocating reitsu had turned the sand where his fellow shinigami had been stood into glass.
"What the hell are you doing?" roared Ikkaku as he tried to free himself from his friend's grasp.
"Real men don't run from fights." Shouted Kamina in a tone that suggested that this was a law of physics and couldn't be broken.
Yumichika continued to run. "I'm all for a good fight but anything that can fling the captain through a wall with that much ease is something I don't want to fight head on."
There was a burst of smoke from the wall. Kenpachi shot out from a hole like a bullet, aimed straight for his zanpakuto's head. As he sped above Kamina, a black strip of material fell to the ground beside Kamina's feet. He looked down quick to see that it was Kenpachi's eye patch.
The sudden increase in reitsu nearly forced Kamina to blackout. He watched Kenpachi smash into the demon's face but even as his sword made contact the monster head butted him. The force battered Kenpachi deep into the sand below. There wasn't even a scratch on the demon's forehead.
Kenpachi was back on his feet and on the attack again without pause. Again and again he attacked with all of his force only to be swatted away like a fly each time.
"I've got an idea." said Kamina. He turned from the battle. "Feather eye, try and keep him tied up with your vines. Baldy, get your best attack ready." He sprinted to the current crater that Kenpachi had formed. Walking through his spiritual pressure was like wading through water. "Kenpachi, throw everything you've got at its foot. Feathers, now!"
Vines of energy lashed out, weeding their way across the colossus's body. They looked immensely scrawny compared to the bulky limbs of the beast.
"Give it hell!" Kamina roared as he leapt toward the monster, Kenpachi and Ikkaku at either side of him. The demon struggled against its bonds, trying to crush the oncoming shinigami. It was slowly succeeding, but too slowly.
"HEAVEN SHATTERING ULTIMATE GIGA SHADE BREAK!" Kamina's entire right arm became armoured in the same material as his sword shade. Rather than the normal three shades that formed his special attack, dozens formed around his hand and wrist, each one blaze with azure flames.
The three shinigami hit the demon's foot in unison. The combined power of the attacks shook Hell to its core, causing mass earthquakes above ground. The indestructible walls that surrounded them shattered and the sand dissolved.
The beast screamed out, its foot a ragged mess. Unable to keep its balance, it crashed to the now much lower stone floor. The group didn't have time to rest though. The beast didn't get back up but neither did it fade away. The flesh became unstable then liquidated. Huge waves of golden fluid poured out.
"Get out of the way. Run!" bellowed Yumichika forcibly. "That's spirit lava. One drop contains as much spiritual energy as a captain. If it touches you, you'll instantly soak up more energy than anything can handle. You'll explode!"
Kamina could feel the power. Just being near to the strange liquid was spiking his energy levels. It felt good. If he could just get a little close then he would become all powerful. The energy pulled him forward.
A giant callous hand grabbed his shoulder. Kenpachi stared at him with those unreadable eyes. "Get moving, Kid. I can't fight you if your dead."
"That sounds like a challenge!" he answered hotly as he turned and ran.
Behind them, more and more liquid flooded out from where the monster had fallen. Now its body had vanished yet still more of the spirit lava formed, seemingly multiplying as it flowed after the shinigami.
They ran without direction, twisting and turning through tunnels and chambers with the onrushing wave ever behind them.
"Its catching up!" pointed out Ikkaku needlessly.
Kenpachi suddenly jerked his head up. Grabbing the others he pulled them in a different direction. "I can sense her. The way out is this way."
"Captain, your sense of direction is hopeless!" sighed Ikkaku mid stride. "We can't just wander into a dead end!"
Kenpachi ignored him. He led the way through the winding passes without faltering but the tide was right behind them now.
"He's right!" exclaimed Yumichika. "I can smell fresh air. It feels so beautiful in my lungs. We're going the right way."
"We aren't going to make it!" spat Ikkaku. They were all running as fast as they could, even flash-stepping where possible but it still wasn't enough. "Damn it! Keep running, I'll slow this son of a bitch down."
"And how are you planning on doing that. You don't have any ranged attacks." snapped Yumichika. "Where would you be without me, eh?"
Tendrils of light bloomed from Yumichika's sword. Two shot forward and wrapped around Kamina and Ikkaku. Kenpachi looked back. His eyes locked with Yumichika's. He nodded his head and continued running.
"Yumichika!" roared Ikkaku as he fought to free himself. "Don't do it!" The vines reared back and threw him and Kamina down the tunnel.
"I have to preserve my beauty, Ikkaku. Look at it this way, age will no longer ravage my precious skin. Just continue to live, live for the both of us. Make sure to stay beautiful."
Every other vine moved toward the spirit lava. They soaked up vast amounts of the spiritual energy but there was too much for even the parasitic zanpakuto.
Kamina and Ikkaku rolled to their feet without breaking stride. They looked back. The wave was still moving too fast. It had nearly overwhelmed Yumichika but was still threatening to catch them up before they reached safety.
"You damn fool." breathed Ikkaku through clenched teeth.
A resounding voice echoed from behind them. "Bankai!"
The ground shook and all spiritual energy seemed to instantly vanish. Kamina felt his power leave him like a shirt being ripped off. The wave slowed for a second then resumed its prior speed. Kamina felt the power flood back into his soul.
That brief second of respite was enough though. A white speck on the horizon appeared, growing bigger with every step. Then the oppression of Hell was shrugged off like an old cloak as they passed back into the Soul Society.
Into an open expanse…
There was no more ground. Water surrounded them in a torrent. There was a moment of freefall then a splash.
Kamina surfaced, gulping for air. His body felt tingly, like a full body pins and needles. Looking around he saw that they had landed in a pond at the bottom of a small basin. A waterfall cascaded behind him and near its top a dark hole was just visible beyond the water.
A mass of hair bobbed to the surface beside him, followed shortly by a bald head at his other side. Kenpachi's spikes had been flattened by the water, his hair now hanging loosely down his shoulders and back. Ikkaku's red eye makeup had also been washed off.
Kamina moved to console Ikkaku who was looking thoroughly beaten down and deflated when a pink cannon ball rocketed past him aimed at Kenpachi.
"Kenny!" came a girlish squeal as the pink blur landed gracefully upon Kenpachi's shoulder. It was a young girl in shinigami robes with offensively bright pink hair. "Did you tear the Devil a new one?"
"Yachiru, keep your voice down." intoned Kenpachi. He motion toward Ikkaku as he glumly wadded to the edge of the pond.
"What's up with cueball?" the little girl asked, keeping her voice down as Kenpachi had ordered. "He looks constipated."
"Yumichika didn't make it."
Kamina moved to follow Ikkaku, knowing that he was best suited to reignite the third seat's spirit. Kenpachi stopped him though.
"Leave him. He just needs some time to get his thoughts in order. He'll fight harder than ever now, mark my words."
Kamina nodded his understanding. He glanced up at the girl. "Who is she anyhow? Your daughter?"
"No." replied Kenpachi bluntly. "She is my lieutenant."
"Your lieutentant! She looks about five!" shouted Kamina incredulously.
Yachiru snorted. "Don't you know that its rude to guess a woman's age."
"She's older than you." stated Kenpachi absently. "Blame youth kido. It gives her an excuse to act like she did several centuries ago."
"Kenny! I just remembered, we've gotta go. Everyone else was picked up by this gigantic red shoe. Pineapple head, Hisa-Hisa, Shun-Shun, Soi-source and Bya-kun were all on the shoe. They said they were gonna go fight Aizen."
"An out and out fight with Aizen, eh?" Kenpachi's face began to grin savagely. He had lost his eye patch so his power oozed unrestrainedly. "I've been waiting centuries for some action. Ikkaku, we're moving out! Yachiru, lead the way!"
The group had to back track several times while Yachiru directed them backwards and forwards. Kenpachi smashed through trees and rocks to avoid having to make unnecessary turns. After several hours of this, Kamina gave up following them and climbed to the top of a tree.
Far off in the distance he could just make out the shape of the Dai-Gurren above the treetops. It seemed to be heading straight north. After a brief argument with Yachiru about changing direction, he managed to convince Kenpachi and Ikkaku to head north. With a clear direction in line, the one man wrecking ball tore his way through the forest at a sprint.
"Come on, run faster. Faster baldy, faster Semi-smurf!" chided Yachiru from Kenpachi's back.
"Semi-Smurf?"
"Yeah, you're half blue." giggled the girl. "Now run faster or we're gonna leave you behind."
"That's easy for you to say. You're hitching a ride!" raged Ikkaku.
They ran for a solid day. As night fell the reverberations of the Dai-Gurren's steps became apparent beneath their tired feet.
Kamina wasn't designed for this long distance running. Underground there had been little room to run and as soon as he hit the surface he was always busy kicking Beastmen ass. Other than charging at an enemy, he had never had to run.
By the early hours of the morning they had finally got the giant mecha in their sights. It's building sized feet crashed through the forest just ahead while its tall crimson body was visible between the leaves far above them.
Yachiru flash stepped away. Moments later the battleship came to a halt. A rope ladder was thrown down and with Kamina at the lead, the three men ascended the Dai-Gurren. Once aboard they were greeted by a vast cheering crowed that had tripled in size from when Kamina had left.
Renji stepped forward. "Welcome to your new army." he beamed. "The remnants of squads Two, Eight and Eleven have joined us. Captain Kuchiki finally woke up and we've managed to find Captain Soifon too. With Kenpachi, that is five captains."
"Where is Aizen now?" asked Kamina.
A petit woman with short black hair stepped forward. One of her arms appeared to be made from metal. "I am Captain Soifon of Squad Two. My Intel places his attack in to far north. We believe that Captain Commander Hitsugaya pulled back there and that Aizen seeks to destroy him before we can regroup." Next to her was another slender woman with a lieutenant sash.
"How far are we?"
"About another solid day's walk. At this pace we'll arrive at the ice cap tomorrow night." Soifon informed crisply. "The ship has provided us with suitable attire for the snow."
"Snow?" questioned Kamina. It was one of the many things he had never had the chance to experience in life.
"It's a white powder that covers everything and its damn cold." grumbled Renji. He threw Kamina a thick fur coat. "You'll need this."
Kamina eyed it sceptically. "The great Kamina doesn't need a coat! Real men don't fear the cold!"
Twenty three hours later. Everything was a harsh white. The wind bit at any exposed skin. The Dai-Gurren was already plastered with snow. Even the thick coats did little to prevent the shivering of the shinigami.
Kamina sat upon the prow of the ship, his skin a pale blue colour and his body racked with shivers. Renji sat beside him in the thickest clothes that he could find.
"You sure you don't want a coat, or even just a shirt?"
"N-n-n-n-n-o-o. I-i-i-m-m-m f-f-i-i-i-n-n-e." Kamina stuttered, wrapping himself further into his cape without making it look too desperate.
Yachiru skipped up to him, a large bag of sweets in her hand. She was wrapped up in so many layers that she looked rather like a fur ball. "Hehehe. You really are a smurf now!"
Kamina growled. "Where the hell did you get sweets anyway?"
"Engine room. There is a whole bunch of sugar there."
"Yeah, well if we run low I'm throwing you in. your blood sugar levels should be enough to keep the Dai-Gurren moving for a while."
She stuck her tongue out at him then skipped away humming.
Nobody else dared to brave the cold. Kamina and Renji were left alone on the outside. Renji removed a flask of heated saki from his robes. "Did it help? Your time in Hell."
Kamina thought in silence for a few moments. "Yeah. I feel like a different person, which isn't necessarily good, but I feel stronger. The ill effects will wear of but the new power of my mind and body will remain."
"You think you can fight Aizen?"
"I'd have said yes even before this. I'm a fool at heart, but then again, so are all heroes."
"Kamina-sama." said a female voice beside him. He turned to see Nemu stood at his side. He hadn't heard her approach. Evidently neither had Renji. "A large amount of spiritual energy is being picked up nearby. We believe that the battle has already begun."
Kamina stood. "Good, I hate to wait." His eyes took in Nemu, she was still just wearing her usual cut short uniform. "Aren't you cold?" he asked. He was freezing but didn't want to show any signs of weakness.
"No. Mayuri-sama designed me to be unable to feel elements such as heat and cold."
"Don't talk like that! You are your own person, not some lifeless puppet!"
"It is a simple fact. I am a body created to serve my master in whatever way he choose. That is my existence." responded the girl sadly.
"That's bull!" said Kamina angrily. "We are all created by another, are all shaped by their own shape, personality and beliefs. You say you are just a doll with no independent thought? Then tell me what do you think when you look at me?"
Nemu analysed him. "My thought process is that you are a strong man who is a good leader and is kind but stubborn."
"Well, did that clown tell you to think that?" countered Kamina.
"He did not. That was a logical interpretation though and he did programme me with logic."
Kamina sighed. "Looks like I have no choice." without turning he stepped backwards into the air, falling from the ship's prow.
A jolt ran through Nemu. Without thinking she launched herself from the ship, hit the floor as Kamina still fell and caught him. Slowly she placed him on the ground.
"Why did you save me?"
Nemu's voice faltered. "It was the logical thing to do. To save the leader."
"Why are you here? If you exist to serve your master, why are you here with us instead of searching for him?"
Nemu had no idea how to answer. It had seemed the logical thing to do, to unite the shinigami and defeat Aizen rather than hunt for one man. But that went against Mayuri-sama's command to serve him. Was it her logic overriding her other brain commands, or was it her own thoughts seeing a way to escape the constant beating, insults and abuse by staying with Kamina and his army?
"Do you get it now?" asked Kamina. "Anyone can be brainwashed by their authority figure. You're body may have been built in a lab, you soul may have been artificial, but they are still real, they still feel. How are you any different than me? You were born differently and lived differently, but here and now, we are both human, we both see the same things, hear and smell the same things! Right here you have the choice to be free or to go crawling back to that clown, just as I have the choice to run and be safe or stay and fight my enemies. To run would be easier, would be more logical! But here, with me and my Dai-Gurren family, we kick logic to the curb and do the impossible!"
For the first time that she could ever remember, tears came to her eyes. She didn't know why, nor did she really understand anything at the moment, but their, stood in the snow, she felt the fire of defiance burning within her soul, even though she didn't know that that was what the strange sensation was at the time.
"I shall…kick logic to the curb…and do the impossible." Nemu said after a brief mental struggle.
"That's more like it! Now let's get back aboard, I think my nipples have frozen." Kamina muttered, his face cast between a grin and a grimace.
A piercing spiritual pressure suddenly struck Kamina. Motion took over. He climbed back onto the Dai-Gurren's deck to the sight of a frantic bustle of shinigami who had also just felt the overpowering reitsu. Kamina jogged back to the prow where all of the captains had gathered to peer into the snow laced wind.
"Any visual?" he asked as he joined them.
"No, there are lots of powerful people out there though." answered Shunsui.
The Dai-Gurren took another step forward and the prow exited the harsh winds and into view of an area of relatively calm weather. There were several visible figures. Many were clustered together at one side while a single man stood opposing them. Another few steps and the details became more apparent.
The lone man was Aizen. He stood confidently, his sword held loosely. The group was composed of shinigami. At their head was the white haired Captain Commander Toshiro Hitsugaya.
The Head Captain stepped forward, brandishing his blade. "You're madness ends here, Aizen. I never got the chance to repay you for what you did to Momo. She never really recovered from your betrayal. She couldn't cope with being a shinigami after you was defeated. You took away the passion of her life!"
The Dai-Gurren came to a noisy stop. Every head turned in shock to gaze dumbly at the humongous walking ship. Kamina stood heroically on the prow, shades on and cape billowing. He pointed down at Aizen.
"Aizen! I have travelled this vast land, gathered an army and fought my way through Hell itself to face you! Quake in fear, 'cos mine are the fists that are gonna pummel you into the dust!"
Kamina turned to his crew. "Ready the cannons. Fire everything we've got at that bozo."
Dozens of weapons began to charge, lighting up the entire ship with various different coloured glows. There was enough firepower charging to destroy a small country. Every one was pointed at Aizen's face.
"I wouldn't do that if I was you." chided Aizen. He clicked his fingers and a black hole appeared in front of him. It quickly faded away, leaving a large cage positioned between him and the Dai-Gurren. Inside the cage was Captain Ichigo Kurosaki.
"Ichigo!" shouted Renji. Several of the other shinigami looked traumatised over seeing one of their strongest captains beaten up and imprisoned. Kamina's plans were quickly derailing.
"We still outnumber you so screw you!" retorted Kamaina.
Aizen clicked his fingers again causing thousands of the black holes to materialise. From these swirling abysses emerged an uncountable number of souls and black hollows. Even with the new shinigami under the Dai-Gurren flag, they were still vastly outnumbered.
"Ah…" mused Kamina. "Yeah, well we have five captains, at least three lieutenants, several seated officers and the mighty Kamina! What chance to your petty cronies stand."
The fingers clicked again forming ten new portals. A crushing spiritual power belched out from the dark voids as seven men and three women stepped out. They were all at captain level power and looked pretty badass.
Kamina took another step forward, his eye twitching. "…Regardless, our manly spirit far surpasses anything in your arsenal and-"
Renji muted him. "Shut up or he'll click his fingers again, dumbass."
"This is it!" Kamina roared to the men and women around him. "Fight with all of your spirit and we cannot lose! Let's make them grit their teeth, Gurren, everybody! Team Dai-Gurren for the win!"
Kamina leapt into the air without any sign of fear of the masses of foes he was plummeting toward. A Kenpachi like grin covered his face. This was what he lived for.
"Manly star smash!" he shouted mid drop. Holding Gurren high, a bright light formed at the upper tip of the glasses like a star. Flares streaked out from it like fireworks. With all of his strength he smashed Gurren into the ground as he landed, creating a massive crater that sent out a wave of rock and bone breaking sound.
Even before the explosion of bodies hit the ground, Kamina was off at a dead sprint toward Aizen. Behind him was a near solid wall of rampaging shinigami infused with Kamina's epicness.
Gurren cut out in all directions, cleaving a straight path through to Aizen. The man watched him in an amused fashion. As Kamina approached, Aizen simply held out a finger, and pointed at the cage. It clicked open.
Ichigo stepped out, his head drooped. For the first time, Kamina got a good look at him…and the black gear embedded into his chest.
"Kamina, he's mine!" came a savage growl from behind him. Kenpachi barrelled past him. "I've been looking forward to this fight. Ichigo has been avoiding me for years. Now I can finally let loose! Make sure to give Aizen a punch from me, I'm taking my time with Ichigo."
"On it!" said Kamina, dashing sideways as the two captains clashed with terrifying force. Aizen was close now, almost in attack range. He pulled his arm back ready to swing, mustered all of his strength then drove the shades forward.
They clanged against steel. Aizen watched him passively, like Kamina was some kind of animal. Between them was one of the men that had come from the last set of black holes. He was tall with flowing silver hair. His features were sharp, almost hawk like. Golden eyes stared outward. He wore a white jumpsuit with black belts crisscrossing the different sections. His sword was longer than the average zanpakuto but was also narrower. His strength was easily that of a high level captain.
Kamina launched a barrage of shade duplicates at his new foe's face but the man raised a hand which deflected the attacks.
"I am Zarando Eclipse, and I am your death. You are strong, but against my level, strength is meaningless. Now watch as I wash you away!" the man sneered. His sword began to generate water around it until a layer of rapid moving liquid surrounded the blade.
Kamina laughed aloud. "I don't have time to waste on you. I've gotta kick Aizen's ass before Kenpachi or one of the others steals all of my fun. I'd have rather have kept this back a little longer, but under the circumstances it can't be helped." Kamina pointed Gurren forward and assumed his most heroic stance. "Say hello to my little friend. BANKAI!"
A/N: Hey hey. Hope you're all enjoying things so far and I'm sorry for the cliffhanger bit it felt so right lol. Anyway, I have a fair bit to say this week.
Firstly, the month of June is the first one for me to break the thousand hits line so thank you all for reading. Its not much when you look at some other stories but its my personal best and I'm pretty happy. If I could have a thousand visitors in a month though, that would be a whole new barrel of fish lol. Cheers!
Secondly, despite this record breaking amount of hits, I did only receive one review for the last chapter. Again I stress how much feedback means for this story as I strive to make it as good for you all as I can. It also makes me feel happy lol. To encourage constructive review I'm introducing a new policy, the best review for each chapter will receive a unique Omake (short story) relevant to this fanfic.
By best review though I don't necessarily mean full of praise (although that is always nice) but rather something that I feel is helpful. This can include creative criticism as well as stuff that I have done well, anything that you think will help me better this story. This policy starts this chapter so review, and in a week's time you may have your very own, never seen before omake.
Again, hope you all enjoyed. Next chapter should be up Thursday/Friday time. Everybody have a good week.
-FWF