Well, here it is, the conclusion of the fight and the arc. Not much to say at this point, but there is a big note at the bottom, for now though, just enjoy the chapter.
SSJ3 Kyuubi Gohan.
Disclaimer – I don't own anything from the Bleach anime/manga. All I own are my original characters and plot twists.
'Talking'
"Thinking"
'Hollow, Inner Hollow or Zanpakutou talking'
"Hollow, Inner Hollow or Zanpakutou thinking"
*expression*
Flashback
Chapter 11 – Plans Change
Toshiro Hitsugaya had been having an interesting week. First, he had heard a conversation between Gin and Sosuke, which had piqued his attention. Then, Captain Aizen had been murdered, during an invasion by a group of Ryoka, to stop the execution of Rukia Kuchiki, who was accused of giving Shinigami powers to a human. Add to that, a new Ryoka had shown up and at the same time, Momo, had apparently read a letter from Captain Aizen, in which he declared Toshiro to be his murderer.
Quite a week indeed.
Then though, the Ryoka had revealed himself to be the son of his former Captain. The validity of this still needed to be assessed, but it had made Toshiro very leery of Rukia's Kuchiki's execution. Having set out with his Lieutenant to investigate this turn of events, they had only one goal in mind. However, something caused Toshiro to give pause. The short, white haired Captain of Division Ten, glanced back, upon feeling the Ryoka's Reiatsu output easily eclipse an average Lieutenant's maximum potential, before continuing to skyrocket.
'Captain, shouldn't we keep moving.' Said Rangiku, observing her Captain, as he stopped just outside the halls of the office of Central Forty-Six.
'Yes, you are right, come Matsumoto.' Agreed Toshiro, before regaining himself.
"Something is not right here." Thought Toshiro.
-line break-
'If you want to make this a two-on-one match, I'll deal with both of you!' Roared Ichigo.
"What the hell, Kisuke never said the kid had this much power?" Thought Yoruichi in shock, before Ichigo vanished from her sight.
Byakuya suddenly keeled over, as a fist was planted into his gut, before he was kicked in the side harshly, sending him flying.
Both stealth fighters looked on in shock, before one of them was suddenly face to face with Ichigo. Ichigo's palm thrust sent Soi Fon flying as well, but she quickly disappeared, avoiding a collision with the rocky outcropping she was approaching.
'How uncouth.' Muttered Byakuya, as he suddenly appeared inside Ichigo's guard.
'Hadou #4. Byakurai.' Intoned Byakuya, as he sent a piercing beam of lightning through Ichigo's upper left torso, launching him back.
'Damn it Ichigo, don't lose focus now!' Shouted Zangetsu.
Ichigo crouched down slightly, right hand over his fist sized wound, as his high speed regeneration kicked in.
'Foolish peasant.' Said Byakuya contemptuously, before he was kicked away by the dark skinned ninja.
'Oi, Ichigo, are you alright?' Asked Yoruichi quickly.
'I'm fine.' Growled Ichigo, as he stood up and revealed his wound, which was completely healed.
"Why the hell was healing from that so tiring? I've regrown arms and it didn't take that much out of me." Thought Ichigo in confusion.
'Kidou contains the Reiryoku of a Shinigami and it interferes with your own, slowing your healing down and making it consume more energy.' Explained Y.
Ichigo quickly ducked, as a kick was launched at his head, before grabbing the leg of his lithe attacker as she passed him and swung her down to the ground. Soi Fon grunted in pain, before grappling Ichigo's arm and pulling it, bringing him down, before she flipped over him and launched an axe kick into his back, causing him to cough out blood.
'So mean Little Bee, ignoring me like this.' Commented Yoruichi, causing Soi Fon to growl, before the dark skinned assassin leapt back quickly, to avoid a stream of pink petals.
'You are both in no position to ignore me.' Said Byakuya simply, as he reformed his sword and held it downward.
'Bankai: Senbonzakura Kageyoshi.' Said Byakuya, as he dropped his sword, before it disappeared into the ground.
-line break-
'Captain… Aizen.' Gasped Momo, as she saw her Captain standing before her, alive.
'It's been a while, Hinamori.' Said Aizen, as he gave his Lieutenant a kind smile.
'Is it really you…Captain Aizen? I thought… you were dead.' Said Hinamori hesitantly.
'It's okay, as you can see, I am well.' Said Aizen reassuringly.
Momo approached Aizen, still in shock. As he placed his hand on her head, she was filled with the same comforting warmth she always felt around Sosuke Aizen.
"It really is him." Thought Hinamori, before beginning to cry into Aizen's robes.
'Sorry for worrying you, Hinamori. I'm sorry for making you suffer this much, but I hope you can understand, it was something that had to be done without you. That's why I had to hide myself from you and fake my death.' Explained Aizen.
'It's okay… it's already enough. You're still alive.' Said Hinamori.
'Thank you Hinamori.' Said Aizen, before feeling a spike of Reiatsu at Soukyoku Hill.
"Although, after I reveal the truth, perhaps it would help to have someone defend my image to young Ichigo." Thought Aizen, instantly rethinking Momo's fate.
'Thank you for everything Hinamori. I have one last instruction for you, however, consider it a request.' Said Aizen, confusing Gin.
'What is it Captain?' Asked Hinamori curiously, as she looked up into the warm eyes of her Captain.
'Certain events will occur from this point on, events which will shine a negative light on me, something which can easily construe the opinions of others.' Started Sosuke, getting Gin's eyes to widen slightly.
"How crafty can you be?" Thought Gin, in equal parts shock and awe.
'You see, one of the Ryoka, Ichigo Kurosaki… I have shared some of my plan with him previously, however, in light of what will happen today, he may come to doubt my trustworthiness.' Continued Aizen, with Momo hanging off his every word, causing him to smirk internally.
'For this reason, I would appreciate someone presenting an unbiased opinion on me to him, to ensure he doesn't become blinded by illusions and misconceptions. Can you do this for me, Hinamori?' Asked Aizen.
Gin barely managed to reign in his scoff of disbelief at Aizen's words and felt some nagging pity for the poor girl, who was completely expendable in the eyes of her hero.
'Of course Captain Aizen.' Agreed Hinamori easily.
'Thank you and I am sorry about this, but for now, this is goodbye.' Said Aizen, much to Hinamori's confusion, before Aizen gently chopped her neck and knocked her out.
'I see you changed your plans for Hinamori there, didn't ya, Captain Aizen?' Said Gin playfully.
'Well, she can still be of use to me.' Retorted Aizen calmly.
'You sure don't like being wasteful, do ya?' Commented Gin, with a grin.
-line break-
Ichigo watched as Byakuya dropped his sword, which phased into the ground, as though it were a pool of water. Energy ripples expanded out, turning the surrounding area dark, and within seconds, two rows of a thousand giant blades rose up from the ground.
'Shit, Ichigo, I'm leaving him to you!' Shouted Yoruichi, before seizing on the momentary distraction to tackle Soi Fon off the hill, leaving only the two older brothers still on the execution point.
"You better not die kid, but being distracted against Byakuya's Bankai won't end well. I hope this doesn't backfire though." Thought Yoruichi, with a grim expression.
'You, who come into this place and make a mockery of law and order… I will see to it that you be put down here by my own blade.' Said Byakuya contemptuously.
'Mockery? The only mockery here is you. What kind of brother tries to kill his little sister?' Growled Ichigo, tightening his hold on his blade.
'I wouldn't expect a lowly commoner like yourself to understand the woes of a noble. You can't teach a dog to fly after all. As intelligent as they may be, there are some things they can never fathom.' Retorted Byakuya calmly.
'I'd rather be a dog, than a snake who tries to end the life of his own family.' Said Ichigo calmly.
'I grow tired of your barking, fall to my Bankai. Scatter.' Declared Byakuya, before the two rows of numerous giant blades, shattered, breaking apart into numerous pink petals.
Ichigo looked on calmly as thousands of tiny blades floated in the air, before suddenly being launched at him. Ichigo used Sonido to leap into the sky, only to find the petals already closing in on him, causing him to quickly Sonido again, this time appearing far off to the right and found the petals had not yet reached him.
'Getsuga Tenshou!' Shouted Ichigo, as he launched his crescent shaped energy attack at the petals, dispersing them momentarily.
Ichigo took the brief opportunity afforded to him and shot forward, intent on piercing Byakuya. Metres away from reaching him, he quickly shot up, avoiding a storm of tiny blades.
'You cannot hope to beat me as you are. Bankai amplifies one's power ten times more than in Shikai. Even in Shikai you couldn't defeat me. I feel ashamed almost, that I am using my Bankai against a commoner like you.' Said Byakuya coldly, as Ichigo appeared across from him, once again in his initial position before Byakuya had attacked.
'I see… I really am no match for you. Hahaha, here I thought I had gotten stronger!' Laughed Ichigo dryly.
'Have you finally seen how foolish your actions are? Are you going to come quietly now then?' Asked Byakuya coolly.
'No, not a chance. Instead, I guess I need to use everything at my disposal to beat you.' Said Ichigo, as his sclera started to turn black and his pupils turned yellow, while the blood vessels on his arms, neck and chest started to glow.
'I'm going to go all out here, so you better prepare yourself.' Said Ichigo, his voice turning warbled towards the end.
Byakuya's eyes widened, before he leapt back, suffering a thin gash across his torso, from right shoulder to left hip, courtesy of a menacing looking Ichigo.
-line break-
'Ichigo… that's Ichigo.' Said Orihime suddenly.
Chad nodded after a moment, taking the time to confirm Orihime's words with his tenuous sensing abilities.
'So Kurosaki did manage to escape.' Commented Uryuu, pushing his glasses up.
'Well come on then brats, let's go!' Cheered Kenpachi, with a bloodthirsty grin.
'Who is this guy anyway?' Asked Yumichika, a somewhat effeminate Shinigami.
'Who cares, as long as he can fight?' Commented Ikkaku, a bald Shinigami.
'Icchi is the guy who fought Kenny before.' Explained Yachiru cheerfully, from atop Kenpachi's shoulder.
'Wait… that insane Reiatsu from before was from one of your friends?' Aske Ganju Shiba, the self-proclaimed "Number One Hater of Shinigami".
'Yes.' Said Yasutora simply.
'Kenpachi, so you finally showed your true colours, not only as a beast, but also as a traitor.' Said Kaname Tousen, a blind Shinigami, with dark skin and dark brown braids.
'Have you sunk so low that you would free prisoners, who assaulted this very place, which we swore to protect?' Questioned Sajin Komamura, a large behemoth clad in gloves, bracers and a helmet.
'Why don't you kids move on? I'll deal with things shortly… and messily.' Said Kenpachi, as he turned a bloodthirsty grin on the two Captains.
Ganju, Yasutora, Uryuu and Orihime nodded and took off, leaving the three Shinigami behind.
'You two can deal with the Lieutenants.' Said Kenpachi carelessly, as Ikkaku and Yumichika eyed off the Lieutenants of the two opposing Captains.
'I'll go help them find Icchi, Kenny. Have fun.' Said Yachiru, before hoping off Kenpachi's shoulder and sprinting off after the three humans and Shiba Clan member.
Tousen frowned imperceptibly.
'Komamura, I leave the brute to you, I must ensure justice is upheld.' Stated Kaname, somewhat apologetically, before disappearing in a burst of Shunpo.
'Aw man, what a coward.' Groused Kenpachi, causing Sajin's blood to boil.
'Oh, I like that look, well, bring it on then!' Roared Kenpachi, before charging at Komamura.
-line break-
As the three humans and soul ran, they felt one of the two Captains approach them, before he changed course.
-line break-
Renji had been carrying Rukia for close to half an hour now and didn't know where to go. Suddenly, a blind man appeared in front of the duo.
'Captain Tousen.' Muttered Renji carefully, as he gazed at the impassive expression of the Captain.
Kaname made to speak, only for an absolute eruption of Reiatsu to explode from Soukyoku Hill.
-line break-
Three of the four oldest Shinigami Captains in Soul Society, paused as they felt a dark, ominous power, waft from Soukyoku Hill.
'Well that can't be good.' Muttered Kyouraku.
-line break-
As former student and teacher concluded their battle. Soi Fon tearfully knelt before Yoruichi.
'Why… why didn't you take me with you?' Cried Soi Fon, worn out from the battle she had just fought against her old mentor, who, much to her ire, had proved herself as the superior fighter, still, even after all this time.
'I'm sorry Soi Fon, there wasn't a lot of time and we needed to move fast. In addition to that, I didn't want to force you into a life of running. If, for whatever reason, you were prevented from coming with us, Soul Society would have ended you. I needed to make a choice and I chose what I thought was best for you.' Explained Yoruichi tenderly, a sad smile on her face, as she looked at the woman who idolised her.
'But what about what I wanted?' Asked Soi Fon tearfully.
Yoruichi sighed, before leaning down and hugging Soi Fon, who stiffened at the contact.
'I'm sorry, please forgive me.' Said Yoruichi quietly.
Soi Fon sniffled and returned Yoruichi's hug.
The tender moment was interrupted, as the two felt an ominous aura, from the hill not too far away from them.
-line break-
Ichigo clashed with Byakuya furiously who was finding it difficult to keep up. He had quickly resorted to Senkei, the true form of his Bankai, as he had been struggling to keep up with Ichigo. Now, Byakuya had gained numerous wounds, while Ichigo continued to regenerate from any damage inflicted on him.
'What's the matter, can't keep up anymore?' Taunted Ichigo, laughing as he slashed Byakuya's left arm deeply.
Letting out a grunt, the noble lashed out with the blade in his right hand. His blood having mixed with the petals of his Bankai, which were actually tiny blades, causing them to solidify into a mass of pink swords, which formed four rows. The rows of blades floated just above each other and circled around Byakuya and Ichigo, in a continuously moving, column-like array.
Ichigo gave a small grunt, as he felt Byakuya stab a blade into his foot, but didn't let it deter him as he grabbed the blade, quickly wrenched it out of his foot and threw it to the side, before stepping into Byakuya's guard and running him through the gut. Ichigo was alarmed though, when Byakuya gripped the blade tightly, took his own blade and ran it through Ichigo's gut in turn.
'You might heal fast, but not if I keep this blade inside you.' Said Byakuya.
'We'll see.' Said Ichigo, with a smirk as his regeneration kicked in.
Ichigo's smirk quickly morphed into a look of pain, as he found the sword was interfering with his healing.
Byakuya released his blade and used Shunpo, to step back a good ten metres, as he saw Ichigo clutch his head and release a roar. The same ominous aura currently felt by all, was wafting off Ichigo in waves.
"Guys what's happening?" Asked a panicked Ichigo, as the sword started to crumble away.
'Shit, that sword has the Shinigami's Reiryoku in it and it is messing with your own! Take it out, quick!' Shouted Zangetsu in alarm, but it was too late.
'What's happening to Ichigo?' Demanded Masaki.
'I'm not sure, but…' Started Zangetsu, only to suddenly keel over and roar as well.
Y frowned at the turn of events, mind racing at all the possibilities.
Zangetsu gave another roar, before suddenly looking up at Masaki and lunging for her, only to find himself launched to the side, by an arrow, courtesy of Y.
'I am guessing a lot here, but I believe the interference of Ichigo's own Reiryoku with that of another's, a Shinigami's, to be precise, has altered the balance in his powers and caused his Hollow powers to destabilise.' Said Y, as he stood to the right and slightly in front of Masaki, as both faced Zangetsu.
'What do you mean? The counter to a Hollow is supposed to be a human and Shinigami powers are allowed to coexist with Hollow powers.' Asked Masaki, remembering the explanation she had once received from a certain dodgy shopkeeper.
'Indeed, that is normally the case. Ichigo however, is not a simple human though. The foreign Shinigami Reiryoku is not balanced with both Hollow and Quincy energies, therefore, I believe the extra Shinigami energy has clashed with his Quincy energy, which was balancing his Hollow powers and now, they have unbalanced, causing his Hollow powers to dominate over his others.' Said Y quickly, as he launched a multitude of arrows at Zangetsu, who snarled in response, as he dodged by leaping to the side.
'What are we supposed to do to fix it then?' Asked Masaki, as she raised her own bow.
'I don't know, but we need to be careful with Zangetsu. If he was pure Hollow, temporarily downing him now would solve the issue for now, but since he is also comprised of Ichigo's Shinigami powers, taking him out now would cause Ichigo to transform into a raging beast. While Zangetsu is currently unstable, he is the only one holding Ichigo's mind together right now.' Explained Y, as Zangetsu launched at Cero at the two Quincy, causing them to leap to opposite sides.
'Got it, try to survive and hope Ichigo snaps out of this.' Said Masaki quickly, before unleashing a rain of arrows at Zangetsu.
-line break-
Byakuya backpedalled quickly. Things had gone terribly wrong in the past few minutes. He thought his attack would end this battle, but, it had in fact tipped the scales against him. Ichigo Kurosaki was rampaging now and Byakuya was hard pressed keeping up. Bone white had started to bleach Ichigo's visible skin and two bone-like structures had started to erupt from his head. Similar flecks of bone-like material were slowly creeping over Ichigo's face as well. As of now, his left cheek and right eye were covered and his chin was following suit as well.
Ichigo gave a mighty roar as he swung his blade at Byakuya, launching a dark crescent shaped attack at Byakuya.
'Bakudou #61. Rikujoukourou.' Said Byakuya, as six wide beams of light slammed into Ichigo's midsection, restraining him.
Byakuya gave a small exhale in relief, before his eyes widened, as Ichigo broke the Kidou and unleashed a Getsuga Tenshou at the Kuchiki Captain, launching him back roughly.
Ichigo gave another roar, as Byakuya's Bankai faded. The wielder of said Bankai had taken heavy damage to his midsection, having been wholly unprepared for the attack and was now bleeding rather badly.
"Rukia, just who is this person that would lose themselves to try and save you?" Thought Byakuya in slight awe.
'Ichigo!' Shouted a few new arrivals.
They were clad in Shinigami attire, but Byakuya could plainly feel that one of them was a Quincy.
"The first group of Ryoka." Guessed Byakuya.
'Kurosaki, snap out of it!' Shouted Uryuu, which drew Ichigo's attention to him.
Ichigo roared and lunged at Uryuu, only for Sado to intercept the attack with his right arm, which had taken the form of a shield.
'Don't be rash, Uryuu.' Chided Sado, with a grunt, as he pushed Ichigo back.
Ichigo stumbled, somewhat surprised that he had been stopped, before letting out another roar, before being pelted with arrows.
'Very well, I shall help you subdue Kurosaki.' Said Uryuu calmly, before launching another wave of arrows at Ichigo, who dodged as best he could.
'Hmm, something's wrong with Icchi?' Commented Yachiru, before walking over to Byakuya.
'Hi Byakki, finished playing with Icchi?' Asked Yachiru cheerfully.
Byakuya merely stared at Yachiru with a stony expression, trying to appear dignified, which was ruined when she slapped him on the forehead.
'Wakey, wakey!' Cheered Yachiru uncaringly, despite the battle occurring very close to them.
'Desist at once.' Ordered Byakuya stiffly.
'Okay, but tell me what happened to Icchi.' Agreed Yachiru.
'For some reason, when I stabbed him with my blade, he tried to heal with it still lodged in him. The blade shattered, but Kurosaki became unstable after that.' Explained Byakuya.
Orihime had been watching the fight intently, raising shields to protect Sado and Ishida from any particularly damaging blows, but had also been listening to the conversation between the two Shinigami.
Orihime searched Ichigo's body quickly and noticed a glowing pink section in his gut.
'Guys! Distract Ichigo for me so I can get close!' Shouted Orihime.
'Are you nuts?' Shouted Uryuu, turning to face Orihime as he did so, only to have Yasutora tackle him out of the way of another Getsuga Tenshou.
'No problem.' Said Yasutora calmly.
The Quincy looked at the two humans in disbelief, before sighing.
'Fine.' Muttered Uryuu, before raising his bow again.
Ichigo's face was nearly completely covered now, his left eye being the only thing left to be covered. Luckily, Ichigo's Hollow hole was hidden under his Shinigami robes though.
Uryuu launched a wave of arrows that forced Ichigo to the left, whereupon Chad set upon him and shoulder barged him. Ichigo quickly flipped over, using the momentum of the attack to propel him, before another barrage of arrows was launched at him, causing him to backpedal further. Ichigo was suddenly accosted from behind as he felt someone slam into his back.
Orihime gripped Ichigo as tightly as she could.
'Soten Kisshun, I reject!' Cried Orihime, as she wrapped her arms around Ichigo to hold him in place, her hands resting just above the entry point of where Byakuya had stabbed Ichigo.
As the pale orange shield that was Orihime's power engulfed Ichigo, along with Orihime, he slowly started to calm down. His ferocious snarls were being reduced to weak pants, his muscles stopped straining against Orihime and relaxed. Suddenly, a single petal was expelled from Ichigo's wound and fell to the floor, before dissipating. Orihime's magic set about healing the wound to his abdomen, giving the spirits inside his mind a breather.
-line break-
A panting Masaki and ruffled Y, stared as Zangetsu froze in place. The mask which had engulfed his face was gripped tightly by the spirit, before being pulled harshly and breaking away.
Zangetsu gasped and fell to his knees, taking deep breathes as he regained himself.
'New rule… balance is key.' Uttered Zangetsu tiredly, before collapsing to the floor, unconscious.
-line break-
Ichigo followed his spirit's example and tore his nearly fully formed mask off his face, before gasping and slumping to the ground. Orihime went with him, holding him against her body firmly. As Ichigo took deep laboured breathes.
'Thanks *pant* Orihime.' Said Ichigo tiredly.
'Oh it was nothing, don't mention it.' Said Orihime happily.
'You too Chad… I guess you as well Ishida.' Said Ichigo, as he looked at his other two human companions.
Chad merely gave a nod while Uryuu huffed.
'Consider us even for before.' Said Uryuu stiffly.
'Don't push it.' Growled Ichigo weakly.
"People who would throw themselves in harm's way just to save a friend. People who would risk their lives to help another. Rukia… you have made truly good friends." Thought Byakuya, as he watched the humans interact.
Suddenly, numerous people appeared on the hill. Renji, who was carrying Rukia, had appeared in front of the group, in front of him was Kaname. A little off to the side were Gin Ichimaru and the supposedly dead, Sosuke Aizen.
Aizen quickly usurped Rukia from Renji, who was quickly knocked down by Gin, who had in the blink of an eye, shot his sword right into Renji's shoulder and propelled him back.
'Normally, I would prefer a little more fanfare, but the timeline has been irreversibly sped up, so, without further ado.' Said Aizen simply, as he removed something from his robe, which quickly moulded over his hand, before plunging it right through Rukia.
There were a few gasps of shock at this, before Aizen withdrew his hand, holding a small sphere, no bigger than a large marble. He then dropped Rukia and the hole that had formed in her chest closed up.
'Not even a single scratch.' Said Aizen seemingly to himself, but he had glanced over to Ichigo briefly after he finished his statement.
Ichigo got the message, but he didn't like the way things had looked. In a few seconds though, all Captains and Lieutenants that were still conscious, had appeared and surrounded the trio of Aizen, Ichimaru and Tousen.
The only people absent for a complete gathering of Captains and Lieutenants were Momo, Toshiro, Kenpachi and the three Lieutenants that Ichigo had knocked out, along with the Captain who took them. Yoruichi and Soifon held their blades against Sosuke, Rangiku held hers to Gin and Kaname's Lieutenant held his blade against his Captain.
'Ah, how nice of all of you to join us.' Said Aizen amicably.
'You are too calm for a man who is about to die, Aizen.' Growled the wizened old man; that was the Captain Commander.
'You are blind to the truth, even when it is right in front of you it seems.' Quipped Aizen, with a smile.
'Hmm? Explain yourself Aizen!' Demanded Yamamoto.
'None of you even realised that Central Forty-Six has been deceased for a while now and that the orders you have been receiving were from yours truly. So yes, you are blind.' Explained Aizen calmly.
Ichigo's eyes widened at this, before narrowing his gaze on Aizen intently.
'You shall pay for your crimes, Sosuke Aizen!' Declared Yamamoto in a loud booming voice.
'I think not.' Said Aizen, with a smirk, before the two Shinigami holding him in place quickly retreated, as a yellow beam of light shone down on Aizen and his two associates, Kaname and Gin.
'You see, I have grown bored of waiting for this abhorrent system to change. For that reason, I will ascend to the heavens and change it to the way it should be.' Said Aizen calmly, as he and his allies started to rise into the air.
'Trying to run? You...' Exclaimed the shade wearing Lieutenant, before Yamamoto sharply ordered for him to stop.
'That beam of light is called Negación. Menos use it to rescue their comrades. Once that light is cast… the area inside becomes a completely separate dimension and impenetrable from the outside. Everyone who has fought Menos before knows this. From the moment that beam of light came down… Aizen has gone… out of our reach.' Said Yamamoto calmly, before opening both eyes in shock at what he witnessed.
'You… if this Central Forty-Six is dead… then you were the one who ordered Rukia's execution.' Declared Ichigo, pupils yellow and sclera black, as he plunged his hand through dimensions, to reach the currently ascending Aizen.
'Indeed, however, I will explain it all to you when you come for the boost to your abilities by the enhancer, as promised.' Said Aizen calmly.
'Yeah, as promised.' Said Ichigo, as he discreetly glanced at Rukia.
'This has been an enjoyable conversation Ichigo, but I'm afraid you must let go now Hadou #1. Shou.' Said Aizen coolly, as he aimed a finger at Ichigo, who was suddenly sent rocketing away, crashing into the cliff and becoming embedded into the ground.
Ichigo heard a few exclamations of shock and surprise, before he passed out and knew no more.
Now, since I am going to give this story a rest for a couple of weeks, let me address some things now, at the end of the arc. Firstly, to get the harem stuff out of the way. Nel, Rangiku and Riruka are in, everyone else is not… yet. I've said this before, but when I planned this story out, close to two years ago, I planned for a massive harem, however, after much reading and writing, I realised this would make for a poor story.
What I am doing currently, is keeping multiple options open. Everyone I push, can be in it, but they may not be. For instance, Lisa might get in and Soifon won't, it is entirely undecided now. I'll simply keep writing the story for now and see how people fit in. As things stand, two people I am leaning strongly towards adding, are Orihime and Soifon. However, that is not to say that someone like Momo won't be in. Like I've said, I'm keeping my options open. Feel free to recommend people, but, and this is another thing I've come to understand after almost five years of writing, if someone won't fit, they won't get in, as it makes the story unrealistic, in terms of character development.
If I decide to add someone from the beginning, for instance, Rangiku, I take steps before even writing, to plan out how they will fit. I mean, for my newest DxD story, I planned on how to make Serafall and Grayfia work, who are much more uncommon, before writing a single word.
Moving away from the harem now, let me move on to the plot. From this point on, things are going to deviate a lot from canon. I'm pretty sure I mentioned it earlier somewhere, but the Fullbringers are coming into the story much earlier, much, much earlier in fact, especially Riruka.
This is mainly plot related (I had an excellent idea and quickly typed it before I forgot, something I learned from Heart of a Dragon), as Riruka will have a very crucial role in the story, as far as Ichigo's powers are concerned. Another reason though, is because a pairing needs time to develop. Love at first sight pairing stories usually skip a lot of development, which also makes the story unrealistic. This may be fanfiction, but that doesn't mean you just need to make things happen, to make them happen. At least build towards them and have them be somewhat logical/explainable, rather than a massive glute-grab.
Another thing I've mentioned, but the Zanpakutou arc for this story will be huge and have a great deal of meaning, and not just for Ichigo. It is by far my favourite filler arc and I like that Kubo, is in fact, using some of the Zanpakutou characters in canon.
That's basically it. The only other thing I have to say though, is the next 10-15 chapters will be a massive amalgamation, as it will have movies, filler arcs and canon arcs mashed together. I will keep things easy to follow though, but a lot will be happening in a very short time. There will also be my own original stuff thrown in as well.
For now though, I'll shift my focus to my other stories a bit and if you are wondering, I am still working on a new chapter for All Hail The New King, so I'm not leaving the Bleach archive just yet. I'm just trying to give all my stories a nice 5K+ update, since some have gone without being updated for over six months and want to give them a quick boost, before I drop back down to 3-4K+ chapters with quicker updates.
Thanks for all the support.
SSJ3 Kyuubi Gohan.