"Mugetsu."
Ichigo monotoned and slashed down with the blade of reiatsu he had created with his right hand. He solemnly watched as a massive wave of pitch black reiatsu that went straight towards the former 5th Division captain and currently Hōgyoku-infused Sōsuke Aizen, who was too stunned to do anything, and was quickly engulfed by the wave of reiatsu. The entire sky seemed to turn black for a couple of seconds before it became to change back to its original bright blue.
He then flew down and landed on one of the very few mountains that were not destroyed in their battle, looking at the rocky environment below as the mask he was wearing became to crumble, all its pieces disappearing into the wind as the rest of bandage-like armor began to follow. He knew that his powers were going to leave him soon, but he didn't feel sad or angry or any type of negative emotion. Instead, he felt calm, content in that if this was the price to pay when protecting those he cared about, he would gladly do it over and over again.
A loud "thud" was heard not far from where he was standing, the dust momentarily covering the object that caused that noise. As it settled, it revealed a white creature that had a Hollow mask fragment on the right of its face, long brown hair, eyes that were not the same; one was completely white while the other was purple with a white iris and a long, deep wound was stitching itself back to normal.
And it was glaring up at him as it tried to stand up.
The long black haired young man narrowed his blood red eyes as he realized that Aizen was still alive.
"You're still regenerating?" Ichigo asked, but he received no response; either Aizen did not hear him or he didn't want to respond. Nevertheless, Ichigo Shunpo'ed down to the ground and stood a couple of feet away from Aizen, intending to finish him off...
...only to feel his Shinigami powers disappearing at a rapid pace. His black hair disappeared and his armor crumbling faster, he fell down to his knees, barely holding himself up with his hands as the last of his armor that was on his hands crumbled and disappeared.
'Crap!' He thought. 'My Shinigami powers... are disappearing.'
"My, my Ichigo." The traitor spoke with some effort as he coughed up blood. "That was a really powerful attack just now, stronger than anything I've ever felt before. Had I not implanted the Hōgyoku in me, I most likely would have died." He rose to his full height and stared down at him, Kyoka Suigetsu in his hand and the Hōgyoku still embedded in his chest.
"Unfortunately, it would appear that you no longer have any Reiryoku in you. It seems that you 'becoming Getsuga' as you say, has made you lose your Shinigami powers." He then gestured to his zanpakutō. Ichigo looked at it and saw that it was crumbling, just like his Mugetsu armor. "My Zanpakutō is disappearing. You know what this means."
The blade continued to crumble until the guard and the hilt remained.
"The Hōgyoku has determined that I no longer need a Zanpakutō!" He yelled. "I am like you now! I am one with my Zanpakutō and its powers! No! I will reach heights higher than you now that you have lost your powers!"
Ichigo was on the verge of panicking right now. This was really, really bad. Damnit! If only he didn't use the Saigo no Getsuga Tenshō so soon! He should have weakened Aizen to the point where the move would kill him instantly. He stared at Aizen in anger, knowing that there was nothing he could do.
"IT'S OVER! ICHIGO KUROSAKI!"
A red light suddenly erupted from Aizen's chest, shocking both him and Ichigo. Circles of red began appearing across his chest and on his chest down to his stomach creating a T-shape, and Ichigo knew that this was not the next evolution as his opponent's face dictated.
"What?! What the hell is this?!" Aizen shouted. "A Kidō?! When did you-!?"
"It finally started working, huh?"
Both men turned to look at the source of the voice. Shock, anger and confusion were shared between the two men as Kisuke Urahara walked up to them and stood besides Ichigo.
Aizen glared at Urahara. "Kisuke Urahara! This is your doing!"
"It is." Kisuke admitted. "This is a special Kidō that I created just for you. I fired that Kidō into you in a separate Kidō before your metamorphosis was complete. When you were at your most vulnerable."
"Impossible! Even if what you say is true, when did you-!"
"Hadō #91, Sēnju Kōten Taihō." He breathed. "When I unleashed it on you, I hid that special Kidō inside it. If you fused with the Hōgyoku, I knew that it would be nearly impossible to kill you. So I developed this new Kidō to seal you up. The only way it would activate was when you would be weakened exponentially."
The former captain of the 5th Division widened his eyes in shock.
"You mean..."
"Yes, that is exactly what I mean. Luckily for me, the only one who could beat you or fight you to a draw," he glanced at his student. "was Ichigo right here."
"I see." Aizen spoke as he raised his hilt and guard. "I'm sorry but I'm afraid your plan has failed. I am about to evolve even further and-"
"Look at yourself." Kisuke interrupted. Confused, the former captain did just that and to his shock, he saw that his pale white skin was crumbling to reveal his normal skin. Furthermore, the Hōgyoku was no longer on his torso.
"What's happening to you now is the will of the Hōgyoku." Kisuke explained. "The seal that I fired into you is now taking affect because has been weakened thanks to Ichigo over there."
"The Hōgyoku is saying... it no longer recognizes you as its master."
"That's not possible! Its impossible, I tell you!" Red cross shaped spikes began to erupt from his body. Realizing he lost, he yelled, "Kisuke Urahara! I despise you! With a mind as brilliant as yours, why do you accept the status quo!? Why?! How can you let yourself be controlled by 'that thing'?!" Aizen yelled as he desperately tried to remove the red spikes that kept erupting from his chest with no succession.
Kisuke narrowed his eyes in realisation. "'That thing?' You must be talking about the Reiō. So you've also seen it." The light blonde haired man shook his head. "Here's something that you just don't understand, Aizen. The Reiō is the cornerstone of existence itself. Without that cornerstone, the structure that is existence will be rent asunder. That is simply... the way of the world."
"Preposterous!" Aizen shouted. "That is the reasoning of a loser! Victors must always speak of the way the world should be and not the way it is! I-" He didn't get to finish his statement as he was completely sealed by the Kidō.
Silence ensued for a few moments as the men continued to stare at the seal. Kisuke watched as the Substitute Soul Reaper stood up on his feet and continued to watch the seal. Mr Hat-and-Clogs walked up to Ichigo and stood next to him.
"Ichigo."
Ichigo turned to look at his mentor, who had a serious face for once. He knew the question that he was going to be asked before it was asked.
"Where is the Hōgyoku? It was not embedded in Aizen's chest."
Ichigo looked at Kisuke for a few moments before raising his left arm and unclenching his fist, revealing a small blue orb that pulsated in his hand. Moments earlier, it had just appeared in Ichigo's hand.
Kisuke spoke, "It seems like the Hōgyoku has chosen you as its new master." When the orange haired young man didn't respond, the scientist softly sighed and extended his arm, opening his hand. "Please give it to me so I can seal it away, or destroy it if the first option doesn't work. I have to make sure that it is not used for evil ever again."
The orange haired boy just nodded and Kisuke carefully took the Hōgyoku off Ichigo's hand and put it in his pocket. Kisuke noticed that his student had reverted back to looking at the seal that held the man who was responsible for basically EVERYTHING that happened in his life.
'I'm surprised that he didn't tell you. He hid the truth from you, all the way until the end. He could have told you at any point in time, but he kept quiet. I wonder why?'
"I'm sorry."
The sudden apology made Ichigo turn his attention to the man next to him.
"Why are you apologizing?" Ichigo asked in a monotone voice that didn't go unnoticed by the sandyw blonde haired man.
Kisuke seemed to hesitate for a moment, but continued, "I'm apologizing because I am the one responsible for your predicament right now."
"Kisuke-"
"Please, let me finish." Kisuke interrupted. "If I was not so selfish, you wouldn't be involved with the war with Aizen." To the Substitute's surprise, Kisuke got on both knees and bowed his head, his hair covering his eyes.
"If it wasn't for me, you would still have your powers right now. If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't come across death and nearly escape multiple times. Because of me, you had to fix the mess that I created a hundred years ago. So from the bottom of my heart, I truly am sorry for all that has happened to you." The battlefield became quiet for what seems to be the longest time as Kisuke waited for Ichigo to speak.
On the other hand, the hybrid was blinking multiple times at the sight of the shopkeeper on his knees and asking for forgiveness. Up until this point, he had never thought of the man as the apologetic type, but now seeing Kisuke on the ground stunned him. 'I guess the saying "Don't judge a book by its cover." might be true after all.'
"Look at me, Hat-and-Clogs." Kisuke did just that and was surprised to see a hand in front of his face. He looked up at Ichigo, only to see a small but sincere smile on his face. "I don't know why you're apologizing to me for. Even though the path was chosen for me, I don't regret walking on it. I knew what would happen if I used the Saigo no Getsuga Tenshō, but I did it anyway. I don't regret losing my Shinigami powers, and if given the chance, I would do it again in a heartbeat." His smile grew a little wider. "You have nothing to apologise for, so please stand up."
Kisuke was shocked at the response that he got and stared at Ichigo as if he was a different person but eventually grabbed Ichigo's hand and hoisted himself up.
'I was expecting a rant or a speech about how mad he was about losing his powers, but certainly not that. He continues to surprise me and exceed my expectations.' He inwardly chuckled. 'I wonder what Isshin would think about his son now. Although knowing him, he would probably jump around and yell about how smart Ichigo is now.'
He opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted when they were surrounded by the captains of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads excluding the captain of the 11th Division Kenpachi Zaraki, his lieutenant and adopted daughter Yachiru Kusajishi, 3rd Seat Ikkaku Madarame and and 5th Seat Yumichika Ayasegawa. Renji, Rukia, Isane and Sasakibe (who was carrying Yamamoto's cane) had arrived with the captains. Ichigo frowned when he saw some of them were seriously injured, particularly Hitsugaya, but he was glad that they were alive, albeit barely.
Captain Commander Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, the oldest Shinigami in the Soul Society who surprisingly had one of the most muscular bodies in all of the Soul Society, had scars all over his back and no longer had a left arm thanks to the usage of the forbidden Kidō spell; Hadō #96: Ittō Kasō, looked at the two in front of him, more particularly Ichigo as he felt nothing coming from him.
"Ichigo Kurosaki, why do I not feel any spiritual pressure from you?" The old man gruffly asked.
"Ichigo no longer has his powers, Captain Commander." Kisuke answered for him. "He lost them during the battle with Aizen." Upon hearing this, the Captain Commander slowly opened both his eyes.
'Very interesting.' He thought. 'If what Kisuke Urahara says is true, then this is going to make things a lot easier.'
Yamamoto looked at the boy and almost felt pity for what he was about to do, the key word here being almost. At the end of the day, even if it meant killing the man who saved the Sereitei time and time again in order to preserve the peace and prosperity of the Soul Society while also eliminating a potential threat at the same time, then he would gladly do it, over and over again. He glanced at everyone standing around the boy and all but Rukia Kuchiki and Renji Abarai and Mayuri Kurotsuchi glanced back, two being ashamed of what they were about to do and one not caring about any of the events that were about to occur.
They were ready.
"Kisuke Urahara, you are to return to your shop and work on sealing or destroying the Hōgyoku." The Captain Commander barked with full authority. "Ensure that it must not fall into the wrong hands ever again." Kisuke nodded once and quickly used Shunpo to head back to the shop. Yamamoto then turned his attention back to Ichigo, who had turned his head to look at the seal that held the biggest threat they had ever faced.
"Ichigo Kurosaki." He began. "We of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads extend our gratitude to you. I-"
"No need, Yamamoto." Ichigo interrupted the old Shinigami. Everyone except Yamamoto, his former students Shunsui Kyōraku, Jūshirō Ukitake and the 6th Division captain Byakuya Kuchiki widened their eyes in shock while the four men just shook their heads.
The hybrid continued, "There is no need to thank me, Gramps. I'm a protector. It's in my nature to protect those I care about. That's all there is to it."
Upon hearing this, everyone except Yamamoto, a bored looking Kurotsuchi and a stone faced Suì-Fēng looked down at the ground or looked somewhere else, something Ichigo immediately noticed, but whether it was from fear or something else entirely, he wasn't able to put a finger on it.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
Yamamoto took a deep breath and sighed. Once he did this, there was no turning back. "Alas, Kurosaki, it seems there is one more threat that must be taken care of."
That statement really confused Ichigo, causing him to fully turn around and face the aged captain. He thought that every single Arrancar and rouge Captain that came to the fake Karakura Town was defeated and judging by the fact that Byakuya, Mayuri and Unohana were right in front of him when they were at Hueco Mundo, it seems like all the threats had been taken care of over there.
So what or who was the old man talking about?
"Okay, who is it?'' Ichigo asked, thinking that it was an Arrancar that the Gotei 13 could handle. The answer that he received was not only the most unexpected, it also shocked him to his core.
"You."
Before Ichigo could even react, he suddenly felt intense pain all over his body. His eyes widened to the point where it looked like they were going to come out of their sockets when he saw that almost all the captains had stabbed him all around his body and punctured most of his organs. His mind was racing at a hundred miles an hour, trying to process what was currently happening.
Slowly, he turned his head to look at the people who didn't participate in this assassination. Unohana and Isane instantly found quite an interest on the ground when they saw that he was looking at them. Captain Hitsugaya, even though he was too injured to move to begin with, refused to make eye contact with him. His eyes finally darted over to Rukia and Renji, the former had tears in her eyes and the latter was looking at him with guilt. The captains removed their zanpakutō from his body and stepped back, letting his body fall as he muttered one word.
"Why?"
At first, a couple of raindrops hit the ground, then they quickly increased until they all became drenched as a heavy downpour, as if the sky itself was crying over this betrayal.
"Ichigo Kurosaki, for the safety, peace and security of the Sereitei and the Soul Society as a whole, we the Thirteen Court Guard Squads have deemed you a potential threat and must be put down. Rukia Kuchiki, as the Third Seat of the 13th Division and the one who is the closest to the boy amongst all of us, it will be you who shall deliver the final strike." The old Shinigami ordered, masterfully ignoring the piercing glares he received from Renji, Byakuya, Ukitake and surprisingly Unohana.
Rukia looked at the Captain Commander with eyes filled with shock, disbelief and unshed tears, and immediately looked down when Yamamoto's ancient eyes stared at her, daring her to disobey. Out of all the people who were here, why did he choose her, knowing their history together?! Why?! Hell, even Captain Suì-Fēng would do it in an instant!
Nonetheless, she hesitantly and painfully unsheathed her zanpakutō and slowly walked towards Ichigo, who was struggling to get to get to his knees and looking at everyone he thought would stop the Captain Commander's order with a certain amount of rage and hatred that he never knew he possessed.
Why were they just standing there?
Why were they doing nothing?
Why were they betraying him in the first place?!
He knew that Kurotsuchi, Suì-Fēng, Ukitake, Kyōraku and Unohana were loyal to the the old man and would follow the orders that they were given, no matter what they are. Those people however were not relevent at the moment. The only person that was relevent at the Shinigami-Hollow hybrid was the one standing in front of him.
The woman he had saved again and again.
The woman he deeply cared for.
Rukia stepped back in alarm when she saw Ichigo stare at him with different emotions fighting within his eyes: rage, shock, disbelief and confusion. Eventually, only one remained.
Sorrow.
"Rukia. Don't do it."
She didn't respond, merely looking at him with the most pained expression on her face and her hands were shaking, causing Sode no Shirayuki to shake.
"Don't listen to him. Don't do this to me! You CAN'T do this to me!" His voice then changed into a whisper, "After everything we have been through, are you really going to turn your back on me?" he gasped, desperately hoping and praying that this was all a dream, and that he will wake up soon. The pain he felt however was slowly shattering that illusion.
He looked at Byakuya and Renji, who looked down. Well, the red haired man looked down while Byakuya merely closed his eyes.
"Byakuya! Renji! Say something! ANYTHING!!" He yelled, but regretted it as he began hacking up blood.
The tattooed man opened his mouth as if he was going to speak, but then quickly closed it, shaking his head. Byakuya, however, didn't hesitate to speak. "When we met on Sōkyoku Hill for the third time on the day of Rukia's execution, I told you that I would always uphold the law of the Soul Society."
He then opened his eyes and Ichigo no longer saw Byakuya the stoic noble, but Byakuya the merciless killer.
"You are no exception, Ichigo Kurosaki."
The orange haired teenager then desperately turned to Yamamoto's former students, hoping that they would stop this madness.
"Guys! Talk to him! Don't let him do this to me! PLEASE!" He pleaded, coughing up blood in the process as he felt the weakest he had felt in his life.
Ukitake continued to look down with shame all over his face, clearly against the assassination while Kyōraku lowered his hat to cover his eyes. In a somber tone, he said, "I'm truly sorry, kid. I really am. But Yama-jii's words are final."
Ichigo could not believe what he was seeing and hearing. The same organization that he had saved multiple fucking times had betrayed him. After everything that they had put him through!
Muramasa. He only wanted to reunite with his master, even though he did not need to control all the zanpakutō and his goal proved to be useless when Koga Kuchiki turned his back on him.
The Bount. They were created by the Research and Development Institute and ordered by the Central 46 to be destroyed. It was Soul Society's mess to fix, but he stepped in to help anyway.
The Dark Ones. They wanted revenge against the Soul Society for banishing them to the Precipice World. Again, he stepped in when the fuckers could have solved this by themselves, but part of the reason he did so was because of Senna.
Ulquiorra, Nnoitora Grimmjow. He fought those three Espada consecutively within minutes of each other!
Aizen. The man responsible for Rukia getting hurt and the first time he got Shinigami powers the first time they met.
After all of that, all the hell they put him through, they betrayed him when he was at the most vulnerable.
Ichigo turned to see Rukia and was taken aback by what he saw. The tears on her face were no longer there, although it was hard to tell because of the rain. Her expression however was stone faced, almost perfectly mirroring her adoptive older brother's. She then slowly raised Sode no Shirayuki above her head, looking at Ichigo with ice-cold eyes.
"Goodbye, Ichigo." she said in a tone of finality that eerily reminded the hybrid of a certain noble and sent chills down his spine, although the teen swore he could hear tiny bits of sadness in that tone.
"Rukia-"
"And I'm sorry."
Crimson red liquid flew everywhere as Rukia gave Ichigo two nasty cuts on his torso, creating an X shape. Ichigo looked at the scars and shed tears of blood, his brain still processing the fact that the woman he loved had just wounded him. He then saw her feet turn around and walk to the other direction.
"Rukia."
Silence.
"Rukia, look at me."
No answer.
"LOOK AT ME, DAMNIT! WHY DID YOU DO THIS TO ME?! RUKIA!"
Rukia did not look back. How could she, when she just betrayed the person who had saved her multiple times in the past, the person who was indirectly involved with the reconciliation of her and her brother, and the person who just saved the World of the Living and the Soul Society? It was damn near impossible for her, so she kept on walking back to the place she once stood and once she arrived, she just looked down, tears spilling out and her body shaking slightly as she tried to hold back her sobs. All while ignoring Ichigo's cries of her to answer him.
He was about to call her name once again and actually crawl to her, but Captain Suì-Fēng, a petite woman with one arm, two braids that had rings tied at the back, who was the captain of the 2nd Division and the Commander of the Omnitsukidō, appeared in front of him and with swift and great precision, punctured all the way through his throat with the released form of Suzumebashi, having been annoyed that the boy was still alive after seeing the Kuchiki girl deliver slashes that should have been fatal.
Ichigo didn't move. He didn't choke on his own blood or try to stop the bleeding. He just fell on his face and a pool of blood oozed from under him.
'Finally, the boy dies. Good riddance.' She thought. Suì-Fēng had never liked that boy to begin with. She only tolerated him because they shared the same teacher. Now Suì-Fēng was going to lie, she did have begrudging respect for him for all he had done, but that's where the line was drawn. She always wanted the Ryoka to be eliminated sooner than later before he became an unbeatable threat and turned on them. Suì-Fēng hadn't even talk a step before she felt something loosely grab her ankle. Stunned, she turned, looked down and saw Ichigo grabbing her ankle with a bloody hand.
'Impossible! How in the hell did he survive that?' Her shock quickly passed and she narrowed her eyes in anger as the boy clung onto life with everything he had. 'He truly is a pain in the ass, but Captain Kuchiki did warn us that the boy would be excruciatingly difficult to get rid of.'
Captain Suì-Fēng then forcefully removed her foot with a mixture of shock, anger and disgust evident on her face. While she stared down at him, Captain Commander Yamamoto reached into the pocket of Sasakibe's Haori and pulled out an average amount of Hollow bait, crushing it. Almost immediately, numerous Gargantas opened all around him, and many Hollows, mainly Gillian and Adjuchas, made a beeline for the captains and lieutenants down below.
"It is truly saddening to see you like this, my boy." Yamamoto grunted. "On behalf of the Gotei 13, we thank you for everything you have done for us." Then they all Flashstepped away as the Hollows closed in on them, leaving a defenseless and vulnerable Ichigo alone.
'They betrayed me. After all I've done for them, they betrayed me. Byakuya, Renji... you didn't even try to contest the order. You just stood there and watched. Rukia... after everything we had been through together, why did you do this to me? I thought we were friends! Why, damnit?! Why! Why!? WHY?!'
He clenched his fist with the hand that grabbed Suì-Fēng's ankle.
'Those bastards! After everything I have done for them! They turned their backs on me! I hate them! I hate all those fucking Shinigami! I HATE EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THOSE MOTHERFUCKERS!!'
He tried to get up and defend himself against the Hollows but it was useless. He had no powers and he was slowly losing consciousness, so there was nothing he could do. Very quickly, he was surrounded by a LOT of Hollows who were looking at him hungrily, waiting to devour him, devour his soul. Knowing he was going to die, he began to think about his friends and family, the last thought being his mother.
'Everyone, seems like I won't be able to protect you guys anymore. Please forgive me.'
An actual tear fell down his face as he stared at the horde of Hollows that was practically racing each other to get to him.
'I'll see you soon. Mom.'
As the Hollows charged towards him, his vision changed and he began to see blackness covering them. Thinking it was because of him losing consciousness, he blinked. If it were not for the huge amount of blood he was losing, his eyes would have widened at the fact that everything he was seeing; the destroyed landscape, the blood, the Hollows; began to be shrouded in a sea of black. Very quickly, he now found himself floating in a black void, staring into the darkness, no light coming in or out.
He wanted to investigate his whereabouts and see where the hell he was or why he was here in this pitch black void, or how the hell did he even get here in the first place, but he quickly found himself in another pitch black void.
This time, he had really fallen unconscious.
XXXXXXXXXX
In the Soul Society, there exist a dimension that the Shinigami were not aware of. A dimension that was created by a race thought to be extinct aside from the few exceptions that resided in the World of the Living, and was currently sitting within the literal shadows of the Soul Society. The thought to be extinct race gave this dimension a special name: Schatten Bereich.
In the dimension, there was a wide, two-tiered building. The bottom tier was supported by six thick columns, while the upper tier was roughly half as wide and long, instead being held up by pillars; it also featured windows consisting of two thin slats in the wall on either side. The ground below it had a set of stairs leading up to the lower tier, and the entire complex was surrounded by an angular barrier with octagonal building was framed by two gutted, curving, tusk-like structures arching toward each other in front of it, and was dwarfed by a large, rectangular tower with a cross on each side rising up behind it. The entire area was covered in varying amounts of ice, giving every surface a jagged look with dozens of stalagmites. Surrounding it was an entire city of frozen buildings that were designed in a European style.
This was Silbern.
When someone entered the building, they would find that the rooms within Silbern varied drastically in size and purpose, ranging from spacious assembly halls to training rooms and private quarters. There was one room that was different from the rest. In a dark medium-sized throne room, sitting on a throne was a man. He was tall with a long face, broad chin, and pronounced cheekbones. He had long black hair, reddish-brown eyes with thin eyebrows and a thick mustache. He also wore a tattered, ankle-length maroon-black cloak, which had a red ribbon near the neck and was fastened to the left with a single large button.
This was the progenitor of the Quincy and the Reiō's son.
Yhwach.
The Kaiser Gesang: The Sealed King of the Quincy. After nine hundred years, he would regain his heartbeat. After ninety years, he would regain his intellect. After nine years, he would regain his strength and after nine days, he would regain the world from the power of all Gemischt Quincy in the world. Right now, he was just shy of 5 years before accomplishing the second to last and final verses. He was currently watching the assassination of Ichigo Kurosaki using devices to watch his enemies, the Shinigami quite literally from the shadows. He didn't know how to feel about the sudden development.
On the one hand, he was genuinely surprised when the assassination occurred as he did not think that the current Thirteen Court Guard Squads would have the gall to do this, weak and soft as they were. On the other hand, he was definitely looking forward to the future, because now he would be able to talk to his 'son borne in the darkness' and perhaps take his power, making it his if the boy was useless down the road. In a way, he was relieved that the Thirteen Court Guard Squads had some of the first generation in them, and thankful to them for giving him the ultimate weapon for his goals and greatest hindrance to his plans.
He looked up at the ceiling as he thought about the very first Thirteen Court Guard Squads.
He very much respected the very first Gotei 13 because they were Balancers in name only. In reality, they were a bunch of ruthless thugs and killers who would do anything in order to win, even willing to sacrifice their own family members for victory. He truly despised the current version of the Gotei 13 because it was disgustingly weak, especially from the following members:
A prodigy whose power was immature.
A kind woman who hid her very dark past very well.
A Shinigami who disowned his entire clan because of how he looked.
An adversary who sat around and did nothing for so long, he became rusty.
A sadistic and immoral scientist who sat in his lab all day and used poisons to win battles.
A bloodthirsty psychopath who subconsciously made himself weak just for enjoying the fight.
He turned off the monitor because he didn't need to see what happened when someone gets devoured by a Hollow, and turned another one with a list called the Special War Threats. He decided to change it because of the recent events and a gut feeling that told him that even though victory was certainly guaranteed, it was not wise to underestimate his enemies.
The original list was as followed:
Special War Threats:
Sōsuke Aizen (War Power: Reiatsu)
Ichibē Hyōsube (War Power: Wisdom)
Ichigo Kurosaki (War Power: Latent Abilities)
Kisuke Urahara (War Power: Resourcefulness)
Kenpachi Zaraki (War Power: Combat Prowess)
The list now looked like this.
Special War Threats:
Sōsuke Aizen (War Power: Reiatsu)
Yoruichi Shihōin (War Power: Speed)
Tessai Tsukabishi (War Power: Kidō)
Ichibē Hyōsube (War Power: Wisdom)
Kisuke Urahara (War Power: Resourcefulness)
Kenpachi Zaraki (War Power: Combat Prowess)
Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto (War Power: Offensive Strength)
The moment he finished updating the list, the door and in walked a tall, young-looking man with a thin build and long blonde hair, which descended past his shoulders, and blonde attire was a variation of the typical white uniform, consisting of the order's signature hooded-cloak, a calf-length trench coat commensurate of his rank with dark green fur running down from his left collar to the front of the coat, a green belt with a golden belt buckle, along with white trousers and shoes. This was the second-in-command of the Wandenreich and Yhwach's 'other half.'
Jugram Haschwalth.
Haschwalth bowed his head upon reaching the throne.
"Your Majesty."
"Haschwalth." The elder grunted. "I have updated the list of the Special War Powers. Memorize the list and tell the other Sternritter."
"Has the boy arrived?" Yhwach spoke as Haschwalth walked over to the monitor to memorize the new list.
"Yes, Your Majesty. However, I fear that he has lost too much blood and therefore won't be waking up any time soon." The blonde man monotoned.
"It matters not."
"Your Majesty?"
The Quincy King's smirk only grew. "It matters not." He repeated. "If the doctors are unable to save his life, there are a few Sternritters who can do so with my command. Once he is fully recovered, bring him to me immediately."
Haschwalth opened his mouth to say something when it suddenly clicked. Indeed they were a few Sternritters who could save his life, and one's imagination could make it seem like it never happened. Haschwalth bowed and went to do his task while Yhwach shifted his attention to the two girls who were sleeping in that woman's home.
'Soon.'
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Ichigo couldn't breathe.
He had no idea where he was or why he was there. As of that moment, all that mattered to him was getting air into his lungs, and he wasn't able to do that. He tried opening his eyes, but it was if they were glued shut. He tried yelling but no voice was coming out, not even a whimper. He tried to move his body, but no matter what he did, his body felt like a brick wall and couldn't move an inch. He began to panic, which in turn only made his situation worse.
He couldn't breathe.
He opened his eyes in a panic and sat up, mind moving at a hundred miles per hour. He was breathing heavily so he took deep breaths, eventually calming himself down to think clearly. The first thing he did was look at what he was sitting on. He was a little surprised to see a very big king-sized bed with white sheets that were stained with blood. He also found it to be quite comfortable.
His eyes rose upwards and quickly scanned around. He saw that he was in a dark room that was fairly large and dimly lit with blue flames that were fixed on small pillars. Upon looking closely around the room, he saw that the only furniture in the room was a wardrobe, a small table, chair, the king-sized bed he was sitting on, and the pile of clothes at the far end of the room.
"You're finally awake." A female voice that was dripping with boredom echoed from behind him.
The teenager turned and struck at the air behind him, only to find nothing there.
"Down here, idiot."
He blinked and looked down and saw a girl that had blonde hair, a white military uniform that vaguely reminded him of Ishida for some reason, and eating a lollipop staring up at him with purple eyes. It was silence for a few moments before the girl averted her gaze and looked at Ichigo's waist. She tilted her head to the side.
"So you weren't overcompensating with that ridiculous sword after all." She watched with hidden amusement as he screamed and backed away from her, almost tripping and falling on his head. "Took you long enough."
"What do you mean it took me long enough?!" He shouted as he put his hands on his penis. "Where am I? Who the hell are you?!"
"You are asking the wrong person those questions." A voice monotoned as a tall man with blonde hair and blue eyes entered the room. Ichigo quickly noticed the girl backing away and he began to suspect that this man was someone who was important in... wherever he was.
"There is no doubt in my mind that you have many questions circulating in your head." The blonde man continued. "Who are we? Why are you in this room? How come you are already fully healed even though you suffered fatal injuries?"
Ichigo, upon hearing the last question, immediately looked at himself and saw, to his surprise and relief, that all of the injuries he sustained at the hands of the Gotei 13 were gone. That hadn't been one of the questions currently buzzing in his mind, but now he got the answer as to why he no longer felt any pain.
"There are a bunch of fresh clothes in there." The girl gestured to the wardrobe.
"When you are finished, Lamperd will accompany you to His Majesty's Chambers." Finished with saying his piece, the blonde man simply turned and walked out of the room. The hybrid turned to look at the girl, who was now eating a bag of chips that appeared out of nowhere.
"Lamperd?"
"Lamperd is my surname. My full name is Liltotto Lamperd." She monotoned. "Sternritter G of the Wandenreich."
Ichigo was confused. "Sternritter? Wandenreich? What are those?"
"His Majesty will probably explain everything to you. Now hurry up and dress before the other girls see you like this." She spoke and continued to eat her bag of chips. Wondering who 'His Majesty' was, he went to the wardrobe and opened it. Inside were a bunch of white cloaks, shirts, trousers, and boots. Even underwear.
"Why is everything white?" He deadpanned. Receiving no response, he rolled his eyes and quickly got dressed. He was not going to wear the cloak, but something told him that it would be a wise idea to do so. After he finished, he turned and saw Liltotto eating an even bigger bag of chips.
"Where did you even get them?" Ichigo asked as he pointed at the chips.
"You're done. Good." She spoke, purposefully ignoring his question. "Let's go while all the others are still asleep." She suddenly grabbed his arm and damn near dragged him out of the room and across the entire building. As he was being unceremoniously dragged by this girl, he began to look at his surroundings. He noticed that almost all of the windows were way too high to look outside, you had to literally create a reishi platform and go up to look outside. The interior of the building was grey and the hallways were long and wide enough for entire rows of people. Ichigo's curiosity about this place was slowly growing inch by inch. The color of the walls reminded him of the Seki-Seki wall that surrounded the Sereitei. Suddenly feeling homicidal, he quickly and forcefully pushed to the very depth of his mind and took a good amount of deep breaths, missing the brief glance by Liltotto.
They finally arrived at a room with double doors where the blonde man was standing outside, patiently waiting for them.
"Your services are no longer required, Lamperd. You may leave." The man monotoned as soon as they reached him. As Liltotto was leaving, he turned to look at Ichigo, who was staring at him as if he was trying to figure out something. "Behind these doors sits His Majesty. He has been waiting for you for quite a while. However, I leave you with this warning," he narrowed his blue eyes, "I know that you have a tendency of not addressing others with respect, but don't do that with His Majesty. He will kill you without a second thought."
Haschwalth was obviously lying. He knew that His Majesty viewed the boy as a valuable asset and he would not harm him for the foreseeable future, but what Ichigo Kurosaki didn't know couldn't hurt him, right?
After a few tense moments, Ichigo nodded. They had been watching him? For how long, and more importantly, why? His gut feeling told him he was about to find out.
With his own nod, Haschwalth pushed open the doors and led him towards a man sitting in the middle of the room. As they got closer and closer, Ichigo's eyes got wider and wider as he recognized who this man was. By the time he reached him and the blonde man went to stand at his side, his eyes were damn near bulging out of their sockets.
The cloak might have been different and the moustache might have grown, he definitely didn't see any dark sunglasses, but that didn't change the fact that he knew who this man was.
"Ichigo Kurosaki." The man grunted with a slight smile.
Even his voice was the same.
"Welcome to the Wandenreich, my son borne in the darkness."
While he was speaking, Ichigo only had one thought in his mind.
'Old Man Zangetsu!?!'
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A/N: What do you guys think? Like it, hate it? Let me know. BE CONSTRUCTIVE. Don't read if you don't like it. There are other fics similar to this one out there, one of them being The Blind Sage (I highly recommend that one).
While you're at it, what arc should I do after the Thousand Year Blood War on my other fic?
Hell
Fullbring
Ichigo's Journey
(The mystery person in the ninth chapter will appear in the sequel).