Chapter 14: History's Strongest Crew vs. Hollow of the Sand

"Do you understand now?" Ulquiorra asked. "You can't win. It's pointless to even continue to fight a losing battle."

"So what if it's pointless." Luffy said. "I'm not going to stop fighting until I get my friend back. Either I would have to fight you or Aizen, it doesn't matter. I won't stop until my crew is back together again."

"Very well then…" Ulquiorra said, narrowing his eyes at Luffy. "You shall die." Ulquiorra sonidoed in front of the pirate and attacked, causing an explosion.

"Luffy!" Chopper shouted. Luffy jumped out of the smoke, slightly from Ulquiorra's attack, skidded back a few feet.

Luffy quickly recovered and charged towards the espada. "Gum-Gum…" Luffy then started to fire a barrage at Ulquiorra. "…Gatling!" Ulquiorra sonidoed out of the way of Luffy's attack, and appeared behind the captain swiftly. As Ulquiorra was about to strike, Luffy turned around and punched the espada in the face, putting him through one of the columns. Ichigo and Orihime widen their eyes, seeing the pirate attack Ulquiorra and did damage to him. Ulquiorra got up to one knee and saw his blood on the ground and his clothes. He returned to his feet and glared at the straw hat boy.

Meanwhile outside of the tower, Chad, Renji, and the Straw Hats felt the ground starting to shake.

"What's that?" Renji asked as a mountain of sand of came up behind him and subsiding. It revealed the same sand guarding that Ichigo and the others fought on the way to Las Noches. Usopp and Brook screamed in terror and the other straw hats widen their eyes since it's the first time they've seen this monster.

"What is that thing?!" Usopp shouted scared.

"This one…looks kind of familiar." Renji said.

"I'm taking it that you've fought this creature before." Robin said to the soul reaper.

"That's right." Chad remembering the same hollow but it was in a different form.

"Yeah." Renji said. "Come to think of it, I know this one's weakness. It can't defend against water attacks." He looks behind him. "Hey, Rukia…" He looked around and saw the Straw Hats but no Rukia.

"She's not here." Chad said, making Renji sweat drop.

"Chad, you're able to do a water attack and take this guy out. Aren't you?" Renji nervously asked.

"No, I can't." Chad answered. Then Renji looked towards the Straw hats.

"Say, Are one of you able to do any water attacks?" Renji asked, hoping for them to say yes.

"Sorry, I'm afraid we can't a water attack as well." Robin said.

"Well then, screw it!" Renji shouted. "I guess I just have to beat him down myself!" Renji charged towards the hollow and stretched his zanpankuto at it but it caught its body. "What the hell?" Renji pulled on his sword out but couldn't. In fact, he was being dragged slowly towards the hollow. "I can't pull it out. In fact, it feels like I'm being sucked in." Renji's eyes widen when the hollow's mouth completely and charged up a cero. "Damn!"

"What is that?!" Usopp shouted in fear.

"Everyone move!" Sanji shouted but it was too late. The hollow fired the cero at the group, causing a huge explosion. When the smoke cleared, a creator was made in the sand. The group remained unharmed due Chad using Brazo Derecha de Gigante.

"Thanks." Renji said as Chad's armored arm returned to its original state.

"When its mouth opened…" Chad said when he grabbed the hilt of Renji's zanpakuto and helped him pull it out of the hollow. "…I figured it would be an attack."

"Would it you hurt to give me a head's up next time?!" Renji shouted as the two got Renji's sword out of the hollow's body.

"Ha, ha, ha, I was going to swallow that sword if you didn't retrieve it." The hollow said.

"That thing can talk?" Franky asked.

"My body is protected by many dense layers of sand. You are wasting your time if you think a tiny weapon like that will bring me harm."

"What?!" Renji said.

"I thought as much." Chad said. "Given its size, I suspected that…"

"Can you try and tell us this stuff sooner?!" Renji shouted at Chad, the group turned to the sand hollow. "Damn! How do we get to him?"

Inside of the tower, Ichigo and Orihime looked at Luffy in disbelief, wondering how strong Luffy and his crew are. The both of them, especially Ichigo, were wondering that when they saw Chopper fight Tesla, Zoro defeating Nniotra, and now from what they just saw Luffy did to Ulquiorra.

Ulquiorra felt something running down on the side of his face onto his neck. He touched the top of his and felt something wet. He looked his hand and saw blood, his own blood. He turned to Luffy and said, "How surprising. To think you manage to cause this damage. You have gotten stronger since the last time we met. Is it due to confidence, knowing your crew were able to defeat some of the espadas? Is it for vengeance after what happened to you in Sabaody? Is it for your friends are who continued to fight below this tower? Or is it because your reason for coming to Hueco Mundo is similar to Ichigo Kurosaki, saving your friend?" Luffy narrowed his eyes when Ulquiorra when he made reference to Chopper. "That pirate is one of us now, just like that girl. Even if you and your crew are able to take them away from here, that fact won't change. You can't save your friend. It's pointless."

Luffy narrowed his eyes at the espada. "That's not a decision for you to make." He said.

"It isn't. Lord Aizen will be the one to decide that."

Back outside of the tower, Chad fired a huge blast from his armored arm and hit the hollow in the shoulder, destroying its arm.

"Did that work?" Renji asked. Then the hollow's destroyed arm regenerated itself and hit Chad, knocking him into Renji.

Zoro drew his three swords and charged towards the sand hollow. "Three Swords Style: 108 Caliber Phoenix!" Zoro fired three projectiles at the hollow and the hollow blocked with its hand. "What the hell?!" The hollow hit Zoro and knocked him into Chad and Renji. Then the hollow lowered his hand, trying everyone but they all moved of the way. The hollow looked around and found nowhere in sight. Renji, Chad, and the Straw Hats were hiding behind a sand hill, catching their breath.

"That was close." Brook said. "I thought I was going to die. Although, I'm already…"

"Now it is not the time your jokes!" Usopp shouted at the musician.

"Robin, are you alright?" Sanji asked.

"Yes, thank you for your concern." Robin said.

"Working with you isn't easy you know." Renji said to Chad. "I'm pretty exhausted."

"Sorry." Chad said.

"Now what do we do?" Franky asked. "We can't lay a single scratch on him."

"Yeah." Renji said, as he got back up. "It's tough fingering out of how to fight him. But what really sucks is that our attacks aren't working. Oh well." Renji walked towards the hollow. "I got this he's mine now." The hollow noticed Renji's presence and looked towards him. "I didn't want to waste energy but I have no choice. Bankai!" Smoke surrounds Renji. "Hihio Zabimaru." He lashed his zanpakuto at the hollow and it went through him. The hollow collapsed and crumbled in the sand. "Well so much for him."

The hollow came back up from the sand, unscathed. "What?!" Chad said shocked.

"Damn it! What the…"

"I must say that move was a surprise." The hollow said. "But I thought you would've realized by now that I have much more strength than the likes of Ruruganga." The hollow opened its mouth and charged up a cero.

"Not again." Usopp said as the hollow fired the cero. Chad and the Straw Hats took cover and Renji jumped back.

"You alright, Renji?" Chad asked.

"You bet." Renji answered

"That cero is close to an arrancar's and to the guardian that we faced before." Chad said looking the hollow.

"That thing looks no different to an ordinary hollow. So how come it's such a pain to beat it?"

"Wait, what did you just say?" Chad asked looking at Renji.

"Huh, how come it's such a pain to beat it?"

"No, before that." Renji tried to think to what he said.

"Uh, I don't know. What did I say?"

"You said something about it not being different from an ordinary hollow." Robin said.

"Well if you were listening, why the hell are we playing guessing games here?!" Renji shouted. "Alright so what about it?"

"My attacks put force into a single strike." Chad explained. "I was look for an opponent's weak spot. The whole time we've fighting, I've been trying to figure this one."

"Go on."

"Its abilities may be close to an arrancar but since it looks like an ordinary hollow…"

"If we cut off its head in the way, it's the same we beat any other hollow." Renji finished as he got up. "Let's do it."

"Wait I'm not really sure about that yet." Chad said.

"Just watch, I'm going to test out your idea right now." Chad looked at Renji and saw an image of Ichigo and smiled. "What was that? Were you just laughing at me?"

"No." Chad said with a sweatdrop. "Not at all."

"Alright." Renji jumped towards the hollow and lashed his zanpauto at it. "Hikotsu Taihon!" Renji fired a blast at the hollow's head. The hollow opened its mouth and fired a cero at Renji's attack, causing an explosion. Renji jumped out of the smoke and saw the hollow charged up another cero. "No, Chad!" The hollow fired at Chad and it hit him. When the smoke cleared, Chad was unharmed and revealed his Brazo Derecha de Gigante.

"Brazo Izquierda del Diablo!" Chad's left arm is covered a white liquid which solidified into a white armor with a red stripe running down the length and a spike coming out of his shoulder.

"Hey Chad, let me help you out." Sanji said, lighting a cigarette and Chad nodded. Sanji spun around until his leg started to light up. "Diable Jambe…"

"La Muerte!" Chad's fist hit the base of the hollow's body, make on its body.

"…Flambage Shot!" Sanji's flaming leg hit where Chad's fist connected, causing the crack to grow. The hollow growled hit Chad and Sanji, knocking them back.

"Sanji!" Usopp shouted. Renji jumped in the air and caught the both of them before skidding on the sand.

"Thank you." Chad said.

"No problem." Renji said. "I'm use to it." Then he looked Chad's changed arm. "But what is with that arm of yours?"

"Oh this? This is the first time seen it. It's my new power."

"With that new power, you and Sanji nearly cut that thing in half just now."

"You might have come close but now it's time all of you off." The hollow said as the crack disappeared. The hollow then opened its mouth and charged up a cero.

"Oh no, you don't!" Renji lashed his zanpakuto at the cero and fired a blast at canceling both attacks out. "Leave the cero to me." Renji said to Chad. "Give it another taste of that arm."

"You got it." Chad said as he charged the hollow. "La Muerte!" Chad's fist hit the base of the hollow's body, causing to form. But the hollow stood its ground.

"Heh, did you think I wouldn't see that coming the second time?" The hollow smirked. It opened up its mouth and charged up another cero.

"I'm not the one you should be worried about."

"What?" Chad pointed up and the hollow saw Renji with Zoro on top of his zanpakuto, ready to strike.

"Guess you thought we won't see that coming either!" Renji shouted.

"Bastard, you weren't the decoy!"

"Now Zoro!" Renji stretched his zanpakuto at the hollow's head.

"Right!" Zoro drew Wado and prepared to attack. "Let go, Wado Ichimonji." And Wado started to glow. "Single Sword Style: Sword Draw…" Zoro looked at the hollow and Renji's zanpakuto get closer. "…Lion's Strike!" Zoro cut through the head as Zabimaru destroyed the hollow completely.

"Yes, we did it!" Renji shouted as he and Zoro landed on the sand. Chad gave them a thumb up. "Hey, sorry I used you as a decoy without telling you. But it did work."

"It's fine." Chad said to Renji. "I had a feeling that you would pull a risky maneuver like that this time. I kinda reminded me of Ichigo."

"Huh?" Renji said confused. "Why did you say that?" Then Renji looked at the Straw Hats. "Hey thanks for your help."

"Ah, it was nothing." Usopp said for them, taking the credit.

"What are you talking Usopp?" Zoro asked irritated. "You didn't do anything." Then hollow started to come out from under the sand and surround the group.

"Looks like we're not done yet." Sanji said. Then the group heard an explosion coming from the tower Ichigo went into.

"Ichigo." Chad said, knowing Ichigo is fighting inside that tower.

"No way, Luffy has gotta be in there too." Usopp said.

"Hey, go find your captain." Renji said to the pirates. "We'll handle thing here."

"Are you sure?" Robin asked.

"Yeah, we'll catch up with you later." Chad said.

Zoro looked at the two and nodded. "Let's go." He said as he and the other headed for the tower while Chad and Renji charged towards the hollows.

Back in the tower, Luffy was struggling to his feet after he was hit by Ulquiorra's cero. His clothes were torn up and blood came out his head, nose, and mouth.

"Luffy." Chopper said with tears threatened to fall from his eyes.

"Damn it!" Ichigo cursed, ready to jump in and take over. Orihime looked at the straw hat boy worried with her hand covering her mouth.

To be continued…

Next Chapter: Jet Pistol of Anger! Luffy vs. Ulquiorra!