Chapter: 28

Unlike Shinji, his Hollow didn't plan out his attacks. He was more reckless. They had two different fighting styles. His Hollow held off on using his Zanpakuto's ability as long as he could, preferring to use actual swordplay instead.

Hissing, Shinji attacked. His sword collided with Yagi's Seele Schneider and canceled each other out. Shinji pulled back and swung again. Yagi blocked and then threw his weapon at Shinji.

"Stupid fool!" Shinji easily dodged. "Tossing your weapon at me will do nothing. Not only did you miss but now you have no weapon!"

Yagi drew another from his belt and blocked Shinji's attack. "Don't forget I have others."

"It won't matter." Shinji kicked Yagi in the stomach and pursued him when he staggered back. He swung and Yagi swung back. They were holding their weapons with one hand. Shinji kept his eye on Yagi's free hand, knowing he would try something. Shinji used his other hand to grab Yagi and hold him in place as he swung, hoping to cut him. Even in Shinji's grasp, Yagi still managed to evade his swings. Yagi spun his body, pulling Shinji's arm backwards. Shinji spun with him, refusing to let go. He stepped to the side, blocking Yagi's path with his foot. Now their legs were tangled. Shinji pulled himself in, wrapping his body close to Yagi's. He raised his sword and stabbed Yagi's left arm.

Somehow, Yagi had managed to pull his arm back, preventing the cut from being worse than it was. It was enough to draw blood but it saved him from losing an arm like his partner. He took up his Seele Schneider and threw it at Shinji's head. Shinji tilted his head to one side, letting it pass by his right ear and into the ground.

"Pharaoh doesn't need to be bothered with you. I can do this myself. There's no need."

"You are one cocky Hollow," remarked Yagi.

"I'm not cocky. I'm just that good. Besides, you're the cocky one here. Stupid, too. You keep throwing your weapons away like a fool. No wonder you stay out of the fight and just stand there. You really have no idea what you're doing."

Yagi brought his knee up quickly, kicking Shinji between the legs. Taking advantage of his weakened grip, Yagi shoved him away and retreated to a safe distance, drawing another weapon.

"Cheap shot." Shinji straightened up with a snarl. His face still looked pained, but he looked more angry than hurt.

"Whatever works." Yagi threw his weapon at Shinji who dodged again. He drew another.

Crying out, Shinji charged at Yagi. Again they swung their weapons at each other, dodging and blocking. Shinji pushed and Yagi pushed harder. Shinji raised his free hand and tried to grab onto Yagi's black hair. Yagi pulled away and threw his weapon again. Shinji knocked it aside with his sword and stepped to the right as another one came at his chest.

"Sooner or later you're going to run out of those things."

"Not before I end you."

"Shinji!" Ichigo yelled.

He turned. "I'm not Shinji. I'm just borrowing him."

Ichigo ignored him. "Get out of there! Quick!"

"Get out of..?" He looked down. The weapons Yagi had thrown were sticking up in the ground in a circle pattern which Shinji happened to be standing in the middle of. "Wait a minute." It wasn't a circle. It was a trap.

Yagi tipped the bottle in his hand over onto one of the weapons nearest to him. "Sprenger."

Shinji's shoulders dropped. "Damn, I'm an idiot." Yagi had thrown those weapons on purpose but not to injure him. He threw them in specific locations just for this attack.

Rukia turned away from the blast but Ichigo couldn't take his eyes off Shinji as he was engulfed in a flaming electric light. He could hear Shinji screaming in agony but could do nothing to help.

The light and screaming stopped. Shinji stood in the center of the smoking blades, his clothes tattered and his skin charred. He wobbled and swayed and finally tipped over. He fell on his back, smoke escaping from his open mouth.

"Captain Hirako!" Rukia stood up and ran to his side.

Halfway there, she stopped and turned. Yagi was coming closer to Ichigo. She had to go back. Ichigo couldn't defend himself.

As she started to turn back, someone grabbed her arm and held her back. "Leader is losing patience and so am I."

Mordere was still alive. He wrapped his stubby arm around Rukia's chest and held her arm with his only hand. Blood from his wounds smeared and dropped onto Rukia's clothes making her feel sticky. She thought with him being so severely injured it would be easy to break free but she couldn't. From this position she couldn't break away and his strength was astounding. Mordere was on his last legs and he still possessed this kind of strength.

Yagi stepped closer and Ichigo tried to stand to defend himself. His legs weren't working. What little strength he had was quickly draining out of him. He couldn't stand.

"No!" Rukia shouted, pulling against Mordere's grip. "Get away from him!"

Shinji's eyes opened. They were his again. He winced, his body in terrible pain. "What the hell happened to me?"

"Get away from him!"

He heard Rukia's voice and turned his head to the right. She was being held back by a terribly injured Mordere. Yagi was closing in on Ichigo who didn't have the strength to run away or to fight. Shinji was in no better position himself. His body couldn't move either. Seeing what was happening around him, he knew he had to do something.

Maybe he had enough strength for just one last attack. It was about all he could do now. He gripped his Zanpakuto tightly with his right hand. "Collapse, Sakanade."

Yagi stopped, standing in front of Ichigo. He smiled at him as if he were watching a baby attempt to crawl for the first time. His pleasant expression brought Ichigo no comfort. He knew it spelled nothing but trouble for him.

"Look at you. Pathetic. What a shameless display you are."

Ichigo growled at him.

"Ooh, touchy. Did I say something to upset you? You shouldn't be so sensitive."

"Screw you."

Yagi laughed. "Reduced to such words. How amusing. But I suppose you can't do much else at this point. You can't even move. Maybe I should just put you out of your misery now."

Rukia pulled against Mordere to get to Ichigo but it was no use.

"But I would much rather have them do the job for me." Yagi conjured up a bow from his hand. "However, getting you into Hollow form won't take much. Just a little pain should do the trick. If I injure you, something might take place. I'd like to see that."

Ichigo crawled backwards but his arms were so shaky he couldn't get far. They couldn't support his weight and kept slipping out from under him.

"Pain might cause the Hollow to take control again or it just might weaken you enough to make it easier for it to take over again. Either way works for me." He took aim at Ichigo. "Again, you brought this on yourself. If only you had just given up when you had the chance and not bother fighting. See what your resistance has brought you?"

Ichigo kept his eyes on Yagi, refusing to look away. If Yagi was going to attack him, he wanted to see it coming.

Yagi released his arrow but it didn't hit Ichigo. "What?" Yagi stepped forward but when he did, Ichigo got further away rather than closer. "What? What is this?" No matter where he stepped, something was off. It didn't make sense. Now it looked like Ichigo was upside-down. The sky was under him and the ground was above.

There was a sweet scent on the air.

Yagi growled. "Is this your doing, Captain?"

Shinji twirled his weapon around his hand, his arm raised off the ground. He was targeting only Yagi with his ability. No one else was effected. "Just thought I'd give you a little bit of a challenge."

"Confusing my senses. Very cute." Yagi turned to face what he thought was Shinji. It was hard to tell at this point what was real and what wasn't. "You've tried this before to no avail. Do you really think this will be enough to stop me?"

"Not for long, but it will do the trick."

Yagi scoffed. "What if I fire in all directions? Something is bound to hit Ichigo." Yagi held up his index finger, as if to silence Shinji before he could answer. "Ah, but wait. Isn't it true that your ability can also confuse what I interpret to be one direction or the other? So if I aim in what I think is the opposite of where I want, it won't necessarily be what I think. Everything is screwed up, isn't that right?"

"Do you always ask questions you know the answer to?" asked Shinji from the ground.

Yagi shrugged. "I've managed to see through your deception before. This time is no different. Even if that were so, there is always a way around it. If you were taken out of the picture, then everything will go back to normal." Yagi snapped his fingers. "Mordere, take care of that troublesome Captain so we may move on."

"Yes, sir." Mordere was not effected by Shinji's Zanpakuto so he knew exactly where he was. All he had to do was keep Rukia from attacking.

Coming up with a fast solution, Mordere tossed her in Shinji's direction, hoping she would land on his sword and stop its rotation. Rukia was thrown but she didn't land where he thought. She landed on Shinji's legs instead.

She quickly stood up and drew her sword to stop him. Mordere was getting closer. She looked to the side and saw Yagi getting dangerously close to Ichigo. Shinji's ability had done little to slow him down. He was still going for Ichigo. Confusing his senses wasn't enough.

"Let's get this over with."

Rukia had an idea. If she attacked Mordere directly, their battle could go on just like it did with Veneno. She didn't have time to waste on him when Ichigo was seconds away from serious injury. Mordere could keep going despite his injuries. He was also fiercely loyal to Yagi. This plan could work.

"Tusgi no mai, Hakuren!" She aimed not at Mordere but at Yagi.

Mordere watched the attack and called out a warning to his leader.

Yagi saw the attack coming and stepped aside, thinking it was coming from the opposite direction he perceived. If it looked like it was coming from the front, it was actually coming from behind. Everything was reversed. He had Shinji's ability all figured out.

That was what he thought up until he saw that Shinji was no longer using his Zanpakuto. It lay motionless beside him. This wasn't a trick. Yagi had stepped directly in its path, thinking it was coming from somewhere else.

Then something else caught his attention. A cero following close behind Rukia's attack. Veneno was right behind her, propping himself up on both arms. He was still alive. She gave her sword another swing and more ice followed in the cero's path. Yagi grit his teeth at the combined attack.

"Leader!"

Mordere came running from where he stood and threw himself into Yagi's side. He pushed Yagi out of the way and took the attack himself. Mordere was swallowed up by the triple attack and disappeared. At the same time, Yagi escaped unharmed.

Rukia shielded herself from the blast with her arm and Veneno fell back onto the ground, hiding behind his pincers. Shinji turned his head away as ice shards and rocks pelted him. Ichigo watched woozily from where he sat. He could barely remain upright from the blast and from the weakness in his arms.

When the smoke and dust settled, Mordere lay on the ground, his already battered body mangled from the attack. He was dead.

Yagi sat on the ground, staring at the body of his companion. He was alive thanks to Mordere. If it weren't for him, Yagi was certain he would not have survived. He couldn't escape the attack in time. Mordere had saved his life.

Despite this, Yagi didn't look the least bit emotional over Mordere's death. He looked shocked when Mordere had pushed him out of the way but that was about it. Even seeing Mordere's dead body laying at his feet brought him no tears or a look of anger.

Yagi turned back to the others. "Looks like I'm still here."

"Not for long!" Veneno fired another cero.

Rukia ducked seeing it sail over her head and straight at Yagi. It was going to be a direct hit.

Yagi grabbed Mordere's body and held it in front of his own, using his corpse as a shield.

Ichigo watched open-mouthed. Yagi was the shameless one. His ally was already dead and now he used his body to take the brunt of the blast for him.

Yagi hid himself behind Mordere's corpse and let the cero come. When it was over, Mordere's body was obliterated. There was barely anything left. Yagi dropped hm like a sack of trash and when Mordere's charred arm hit his shoe, he kicked it aside. The hand broke apart and crumbled away like a burnt piece of wood.

"Is that all you've got?" he asked them.

Ichigo remained upright from sheer anger alone. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

Yagi turned to him. "Wrong with me?"

"He was loyal to you! Mordere sacrificed himself for you! And you treat him like that?!" Ichigo's head started to spin. He braced himself on his right arm, trying not to fall over. "What are they to you? What the hell..?"

Yagi gave him a cold look. "I didn't ask him to do that. He did it on his own. What would you have me do? It doesn't make him any less dead. I'm sure he wouldn't mind. He used his body to protect me willingly, so he shouldn't have a problem if I use it for the same thing after he's dead."

"Have you no respect?"

"He's dead. Who cares? So long as I'm alive, who cares what happens?"

Ichigo wanted to punch him. He wanted to stand up and attack him. He wanted to wipe that smug look off his face and shut him up for good. Even if they were his enemy, he still had a sense of respect. He never attacked someone who couldn't fight back and he never attacked someone when they were down. He would never use his friends as a shield nor would he do that to an opponent. Not in the way Yagi just did. Yagi wasn't honorable at all. What Mordere saw in him was beyond Ichigo.

Mordere had told him that he was loyal to Quincies because he was one himself. He would always take their side no matter what. Even to a man like Yagi. As far as Mordere was concerned Yagi could do no wrong. Being a Quincy justified everything he did. Every action was good in his eyes. To Mordere, Yagi was worth saving simply because he was a Quincy. As far as Ichigo was concerned, Yagi had no redeeming qualities. Mordere was just blind and deaf to anything else. Anything and anyone who was not a Quincy was an enemy, no matter their character.

"Even someone like you..." Ichigo struggled to get up but couldn't. His body was weakening again. "He was working for the enemy but he couldn't see that because you were a Quincy like him. He was..."

"You pity your enemy?" scoffed Yagi. "How pitiful."

"Shut the hell up." Ichigo tried to stand. "I'll kill you. I swear I will. The way you treat people, even your own men... The things you've done... I'll-"

Ichigo fell over. His body had given out on him. He couldn't move.

Taking advantage of this, Yagi started to approach. He stopped when he saw Veneno stand and scuttle over to him, still in his release form. Rukia had her sword at the ready and wasn't injured. Shinji was still able to move his arm and Yagi knew there was another Captain hiding somewhere with Linnette. Without Mordere, he was alone.

Yagi knew he was outmatched and fled. He gave them a warning look and flashed away. He would attack later when there were less of them or when he had someone else willing to fight at his side.

Rukia lowered her sword, letting out the breath she had been holding. She didn't expect Yagi to give up so easily but it was possible that he knew he was outmatched, even with so many of them down. He was a coward. She knew it was true after seeing him hide behind his fallen friend rather than attempt to get out of the way of an attack. He was despicable.

"Ichigo, are you ok?" she asked, seeing him sitting weakly on the ground further away.

"I'm fine. Is Shinji?"

She turned back to check.

"You're an idiot," he told her before she could ask. "Why the hell did you come over here when you know you should be protecting Ichigo? He can't defend himself. Why the hell would you leave his side, even to check on a fallen Captain?"

Rukia realized he wasn't talking about this moment. He was referring to before when Mordere had a hold of her. "You were conscious when that happened?"

"I pieced it together. I'm not an idiot. But you are. You should know better than that. Think! Ichigo's in a vulnerable state. He can't-"

"You're lucky to be alive!" Rukia scolded. "When I saw that attack hit you, I was worried we had lost a Captain. Besides, the way Yagi's acting, I knew he wouldn't kill Ichigo. Not after all this trouble."

"But any injury to him could be deadly now that he's this weak. Even if Yagi only injures him to invoke the Hollow form, he could end up killing him without meaning to. He's already in a weakened state. It won't take much."

"I get that. But I-"

What stopped her from continuing was a strange crackling sound from Shinji's left. She looked up and saw Veneno's release form begin to crack. Fissures traveled up his pincer and fragments started to crumble to dust. Steam hissed, escaping from the cracks in his armor and within seconds, Veneno was engulfed. By the time the steam cleared, Veneno was standing in his original form. He took one step then toppled over onto the ground.

Rukia stepped over Shinji and over to Veneno. "Are you ok?" She was worried his injuries were far worse than Shinji's.

To her relief, Veneno's injuries had healed. He was just weakened from the battle and needed rest.

He turned his head to look at her. "How do I look? Am I bleeding? Missing anything important?"

"No, you seem fine."

Veneno rested his head on the ground. "That's good," he said to the dirt. "What I wouldn't give for a sandwich."

Rukia couldn't help but laugh. "Really? That's what you're thinking about now after that fight?"

"I could also use a massage, but I didn't think you'd volunteer. Ichigo might get jealous, seeing his girlfriend touching me like that."

Rukia slapped the side of his head. "Stop saying that!"

"The more you deny, the more it's true." Veneno chuckled to himself. "Then could I at least get some juice?"

Rukia was smiling again. Veneno had a way of easing the tension of the moment. He had been furious a few minutes ago and now he was cracking jokes and asking for a snack. Rukia had been worried about him a moment ago and now all she could do was smile and shake her head, no longer concerned. Now there was a sense that everything was going to be alright.

"Veneno... Thank you."

He lifted his head again. "For what?"

"For fighting as hard as you did. And for combining your attack with mine. You did very well. We couldn't have done it without you."

Veneno smiled. "Of course. But I didn't do it for praise. I did it for Ichigo and the rest of my friends." Veneno rested his head on the ground again. "Thanks to you guys, I finally understand why you would fight like this for each other. I know how you feel. Now I feel it myself. And I like this feeling. I finally understand." His let out a sigh and said, "Thanks for that."

Rukia stroked the top of his head in gratitude and understanding. Then she turned back to look at Ichigo. He was still sitting there, watching them like a cat on a stoop.

If it weren't for Ichigo, Veneno would most likely not be the person he is now. He would have never understood friendship or become an ally.

She turned and looked at Linnette crouched over Rojuro's body.

The same was true for her. If Ichigo hadn't given her a chance and done what he did for her, she might not be here as a trusted friend and ally.

Now they were both here fighting their hardest for Ichigo. Rukia herself was fighting for him and so was Shinji. Everyone was here fighting for Ichigo because of what he did for them. Because they trusted and cared for him. His friends were here to help him because he did everything he could to help them. Now they were returning the favor.

Rukia stood up and went back to help Shinji. With two Captains down and now Veneno exhausted from fighting, Rukia and Linnette were the only ones left who could still move. Rukia was the only one who could still fight. It was a heavy burden but she would have to do it. She had to look after them all.

With the lock-down still in place, she knew no one was coming to help them. She couldn't take the injured back to the Seireitei on her own. Linnette wouldn't be able to carry anyone back so Rukia couldn't ask her to help. Even if she could, Rukia couldn't bring Ichigo with them. The whole point of this was to keep him away from the Seireitei. She couldn't leave him alone so she would have to take him along which defeated the purpose. The only other option was for them to split up and have someone stay behind with Ichigo while the rest went back to the Seireitei. The only problem with that was who would stay behind. If Rukia left Linnette, she couldn't fight to protect Ichigo and everyone else was too injured to assist her. If Rukia stayed behind, who would bring the injured to the Seireitei? This was a conundrum.

"Just give him to me."

Rukia spun around. Yagi was back. He was standing right behind her. She fumbled for her sword, but Yagi grabbed her wrist.

"Did you really think I left?" Yagi wasn't smiling. He was glaring at her.

He had lost his patience and no longer found humor in taunting them. He knew time was running out and didn't have time to play with them anymore. He had to take this seriously.

"Who would I bring with me? One of my men is dead, the other is a traitor and the other two are already launching an attack on your beloved Seireitei."

"What?"

"I couldn't wait around for Ichigo forever. Something had to be done. I gave them the ok to move in and begin."

Rukia tried to pull her hand free but he had a solid grip on her. "There's no way they'll get in. The gate is closed. No one is allowed to leave..." Rukia realized the loophole. "But anyone can get in. They'll only open the gate to let someone inside."

"Exactly."

Rukia shot him a look. "But there's a reason for that. If the gate is open, they'll have lots of guards there to defend it. Strength in numbers. They'll see who's coming in and be able to stop them. Sending in just two against our numbers... They won't stand a chance. There will be too many for them to handle. It will be heavily guarded."

"Exactly." Yagi's smile was back. "The two I sent do well against large numbers. Send all the men you want at them; it will just make their jobs easier. The more you send, the quicker they'll win. We'll have the Seireitei in no time at this rate."

Rukia tried to think of the remaining men Yagi had left. Mordere was dead, Sharif was part Hollow and had decided to rebel. The only two remaining were...

"The blood-user Zalya," Rukia gasped.

"Right again, girl. All he has to do is cut them and it's all over. Or cut himself. Blood is power to him. Yaku is with him."

"The man with the mirror."

"Yes. Face it. They are too powerful for any of you to handle. Keep sending men at them. They'll be slaughtered in droves."

Rukia thought of the people back at the Seireitei who would be caught in the attack. Soul Reapers who were already injured would be prime targets. Too many Soul Reapers hadn't recovered yet from past fights with these Quincies. There were many other unprepared Soul Reapers who would walk right into their trap. She pictured Renji and Byakuya attempting to fight these men and being overwhelmed within seconds. She couldn't see her brother being so easily defeated but either of these two men would be able to render him powerless with their abilities. One could make him too depressed to move and be no longer willing to defend himself. The other... Byakya's weapon cuts. It drew blood. How would he be able to defeat Zalya? Not even Kido worked on him. What could he do?

"Just make this easy on yourself and hand over Ichigo," demanded Yagi. "I haven't got all day. At the rate he's going, Ichigo won't survive the day."

Rukia's heart sank. Ichigo wouldn't last much longer. He wouldn't make it to this evening.

"Once he becomes a Hollow again, he'll sluaghter you all and I'll be there to see it. If by some miracle he returns to his senses, he'll get to see his good work. I can only imagine what such a sight would do to him. If not, then you have a simple choice. Either you kill him or have yourselves be killed."

"You're cruel!"

"Are you finally getting that? It's only..." Yagi looked over Rukia's head and his face fell in a mixture of shock and confusion. "Where is he?"

Rukia turned around. Ichigo was gone. He wasn't able to stand so it was impossible for him to escape on his own.

Yagi started to crush her hand in his grip. "What is he?!"

"I don't know!" Rukia hadn't a clue.

Ichigo couldn't have become a Hollow again. If he had, he would have attacked them, not run off. He was so weak he wouldn't have been able to get away in his current state. No one could figure it out.

Then they noticed something else. Veneno was also missing.

"That damn little..." Yagi threw Rukia to the ground. "He's taking him away hoping I won't find him. Damn it, I don't have time for this." Yagi flashed away, this time to search for the missing Soul Reaper and Arrancar.

"You have to go after them," said Shinji to Rukia.

"How? I don't even know where they went."

"Veneno knows not to take Ichigo to the Seireitei. So he must be traveling away from there. He's also in a weakened state so he couldn't have gotten far. I can't move right now so it's up to you."

There was no time to waste. Though she had no idea where to begin, she had to choose quickly and go there. Ichigo's life was on the line. "Linnette, watch over these two. I'm going to find Ichigo and Veneno." With one hand on her sword, Rukia took off, hoping the direction she chose was the right one.

The ground moved under him in fading blurs. Ichigo's vision was fading again. He couldn't feel his body moving yet he could see the ground passing under him as he traveled. He tried to turn his head but couldn't. He saw his hand dangling over the ground. His feet were dangling as well. It was then that he realized he was being carried.

His body ached. His limbs were numb. His head was spinning. He felt weak.

His hearing returned and he heard slow footsteps crunching on the hard soil. His head bounced slightly at the slow, careful footsteps. Whoever was carrying him did not want to hurt him. If this person chose to run, his head would have been slammed multiple times by the bumpy ride. Ichigo was too weak to brace himself.

They reached an area with trees and Ichigo felt them come to a stop. The person carrying him stepped down and Ichigo could feel his hands touch his burning body. He was being lowered to the ground.

With arms supporting his head and back, he was set down and gently placed in a lying position. As soon as he was on the ground, he caught a glimpse of the one carrying him.

"Hang in there, Ichigo," said Veneno. "Just hold on a little longer."

Ichigo couldn't answer him. His mouth would not move and his voice had disappeared.

"Just hold on." Veneno put his hand on Ichigo's forehead. His temperature had not gone down. Veneno hated seeing Ichigo like this but there was nothing he could do.

Ichigo wheezed, trying to say something, but Veneno had turned away. He was desperate to help him but was at a loss for how to do it.

Only one thing came to mind. Maybe it wouldn't cure him, but it would ensure he would not be put through this again. Veneno had destroyed the lab. The only thing left to destroy was the scientist. He had to eliminate Yagi. Once he was done away with, he could never hurt Ichigo or anyone else again.

Veneno turned back and placed Ichigo's sword next to his body. "Just hang in there a little longer. I'll be right back. Don't give up yet." Veneno stood up and turned away.

After making sure no one was around, he left Ichigo in what he thought was a safe place and ran off to find Yagi. Even if he was tired from his earlier fight, he had to stop Yagi. He had to stop him once and for all. He felt it would help Ichigo, even if only in a small way.

Yagi had to be defeated.

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