"What?"
Renji was taken aback by what Rukia just said. Currently, it was just the two of them at the base of the tower, fighting off the Arrancars that were trying to get in the way of them going after. Renji was about to climb the tower with Ishida and Chad when they were surrounded by the Arrancars. And then, Rukia and Inoue caught up with them after a while. And in a hurry, Rukia decided that Chad, Inoue and Ishida proceed forward without much explanation while she and Renji blocked the rear. But hearing the urgency in her voice made them chose not to question it and move on. But with Renji, she was able to tell him what happened to her and what she recalled once she came to.
And much like her, he couldn't believe it.
"Are you sure?"
"I know I was not completely conscious, but I know what I felt!"
After slashing away his opponents, Renji jumped back and paused to look up at the hole in the ceiling, The three humans were still on their way up to join Ichigo.
The Lieutenant found the sinking feeling in his gut utterly discomforting.
…
…
…
Ulquiorra was the very definition of despair and defeat. Above Las Noches, under the black sky and white moon, he stood atop a giant tower with his tail around Ichigo's throat, holding his body up towards the moon. His opponent looked nothing short of battered and powerless in comparison.
But his eyes retained the way they always looked: determined to win.
Something that Ulquiorra was confounded about.
In his mind, Ichigo was telling his body to keep moving. He couldn't stop moving forward. If he stopped, there was no way he could win. He needed to move his body. He needed to keep on fighting. If he kept fighting, he believed that there would always be a chance at victory. He just needed to keep moving!
As Ulquiorra apathetically bore at Ichigo, he felt a presence appear behind him along with a cheerful greeting. Ichigo's brown eyes landed on the figure standing behind Ulquiorra. Another enemy. Matching hair and matching hue as the one holding him up. But his skin tone and playful tone gave away his identity just as fast as the presence of his soul.
"Still not done?"
"Why are you here?"
"Why are you playing with your food? Get on with it. I've been watching you with Sousuke in the monitoring room. I was getting bored of watching you play."
Ulquiorra slightly stole a glance at Noctter who stepped closer to Ulquiorra to look at Ichigo's face. The two Soul Reapers didn't say anything as their eyes met. Ichigo could see amusement dancing across his features. But his crystal green eyes seem to contrast it by looking… duller. No, they had that pitying look. He didn't need his pity.
"Will you land the finishing blow?"
"I was about to."
This immediately changed Noctter's demeanour, making him look surprised almost comically with the way he jumped. He quickly backed away as if to give Ulquirra some space. "Oops! I must be in the way then! Pay no mind to me!" He stepped away a few steps and held up his hands as if to create a picture frame. "I'll just sit back and photograph this sight in my mind!"
Typical Noctter behaviour. Always the odd one, that one. This desire to see Ichigo get killed in front of his eyes was cruel. Ulquiorra focused back on Ichigo with no hurry. He wasn't going anywhere with that tail coiled around his throat anyway.
The Espada didn't waste any time and pointed his finger at Ichigo's left breast.
A hole in his chest like last time should do the trick.
"There was no victory for you here. You continued to seek a pointless goal… and the result has you paying the ultimate price. Like I told you, your quest was meaningless from the very beginning, and you couldn't defeat me no matter how hard you tried."
Ichigo clenched his sword, willing his arm, his body, anything at all to move.
I need to move!
Move, damn it!
Tensa Zangetsu made a light rattling sound.
Ulquiorra's finger glowed green.
Noctter's grin widened while his fingers adjusted his imaginary frame for this illustration.
Title: Thanatos Under The Moon
Author: Unknown
…
…
…
The death was quick.
Ulquiorra's tail uncoiled from Ichigo's neck.
Noctter calmly lowered his hands with an icy stare.
Ichigo gasped and fell to his knees.
Ulquiorra's head bounced as it landed at Noctter's feet. His dark green eyes fixed those crystal green eyes that eyed him apathetically. Those crystal-like eyes looked at him as if he was dirt beneath his feet, insignificant and unworthy of sparing any more effort to deal with.
"Why?"
Ichigo was the first to utter a word. The shock after witnessing such a brutal death before his eyes took some time to swallow. Noctter didn't answer right away. His head tilted back to stare at the white moon.
"Why, indeed."
Noctter stepped on Ulquiorra's head and rocked it under his foot gently. He placed his hands in his pockets while watching the rest of the body fall limply on the hard floor.
The death was quick.
All it took was for the space to rapidly twist at the base of Ulquiorra's neck, twisting his head and letting it spin off his body like a toy springing away. The blood splashed on them like a violently burst of a leaky pipe.
"I guess…" Noctter tilted his head as he stared at Ichigo with a melancholic look. "I just felt like it."
There was just some strong sense of urgency… this itch to stop Ulquiorra from proceeding. What other way to stop him but to kill him on the spot? It did the job. Was it because he wanted to be the one to kill Ichigo after he tried to kill Grimmjow? Was it because he was so annoyed about how Ulquiorra didn't outright kill the boy?
He wasn't sure.
But he did what Aizen told him to do.
He followed his heart.
Ichigo remarked how quickly the melancholia disappeared from Noctter's eyes, replaced by irritation as if he was now properly looking at Ichigo. His face then carried a scowl as he took off his foot from Ulquiorra's head. He uttered a small 'bof´ when he kicked away the Arrancar's head, sending it flying down to the ground below. The second he made a move to walk towards the human, Ichigo was starting to move his arm while pushing himself up.
He managed to swing at Noctter.
But the enemy Soul Reaper didn't even lift a hand to stop the sword from reaching him. As if it touched an invisible wall, it stopped an inch away from his arm that was already grabbing Ichigo's hair harshly, forcing him to look up as he towered over him.
"You little cockroach. Why do you keep fighting so hard? Fighting for one person… how unrealistic. Come on, just admit you came here looking for a fight. You enjoy the thrill of battle. A masochist, perhaps?"
Ichigo glared at him. "I think you're just talking about yourself." He moved away his sword when he understood he couldn't strike him now.
His reply only made Noctter frown deeply and lean closer to him.
"It must be the same as last time when you saved Kuchiki Rukia. You fight because you have to win. If you win, there's nothing you cannot do." Noctter looked genuinely confused despite his irritated expression. The way he spoke gave it away. "You don't win to survive, nor do you survive to win… You fight to show off, I guess."
Ichigo was able to smack away Noctter's hand and stand back up, glaring at the man who remained crouched on the tower. "I have to win to protect Katsuko."
Wasn't that obvious from the very beginning they encountered each other?
This brought Noctter up to his feet, glaring equally hard right after he heard his response. "And yet you get those around you involve. How is that protecting?" Noctter's hands flickered with dangerous black red light. "People aren't your toy soldiers!" Screaming, he raised his hands and leaped forward.
Ichigo brought his sword to his center to absorb the blow. Once his hands made contact with the blade, they shot off the tower at full speed.
There it is again…
This hatred I'm sensing…
Where does it come from?
He didn't understand why Noctter kept bringing up this particular subject, sounding so irritated by what looked like Ichigo's lack of awareness and care. What was his deal? With a grunt, Noctter flicked his hand and pushed him back, making him gasp in surprise when his momentum picked up as he fell.
"I will fight to kill you for existing!" Noctter flash stepped after him.
Even though Ichigo was in no condition to fight, he did his absolute best to fight back against the lunatic dancing under the white moon. Their rapid blows were creating shockwaves. And the resilience that Ichigo pushed out was beginning to aid Noctter in understanding why he was able to keep standing against Ulquiorra.
But even so, he wouldn't last forever against Noctter.
"All this fighting to win and protect one girl?! You're obsessed!"
Noctter sent Ichigo crashing to the ground.
"Forget that girl and get on with your mundane life!"
Ichigo forced himself to push up his heavy body and flash step away from the impact of Noctter's blows. It made rubble and smoke soar high in the air. Amidst the raining fragments of rubble, Noctter leaped out of it and finally took out his Zanpakuto to swing at Ichigo. The orange haired parried his blade and quickly guarded when Noctter didn't waste another second to swing at him again.
The sparks of their blades flickered and danced.
"Are you deaf? I said forget her and go home." Noctter hissed, mildly annoyed by Ichigo's persistence. He was different from the first time they fought. His cheerful disposition was replaced by utter ire. And his words were contradicting his previous declaration.
"I can't do that." Ichigo finally replied to his annoying attempts to persuade him.
This caused a twisted grin to appear on the black haired reaper's face.
"It's called moving on."
"You're asking the impossible!"
Katsuko was like the stars in the sky. You can either miss them or see them depending on the circumstance. But they're always there in the back of your mind, impossible to forget.
It was impossible to forget the darkness that cloaked Noctter's face when he responded.
"You vex me so very much."
Chad, Ishida and Inoue finally arrived at the top. They were quick to run forward to locate Ichigo. They knew he was fighting a battle against an Espada followed by Noctter Grandett. The spiritual pressure above them on the way there was pure chaos. They couldn't imagine what kind of sight they would be greeted with once they arrived. The only thing they were aware of was that Ichigo's spiritual pressure was dwindling rapidly.
Inoue let out a frightened gasp when she saw an Arrancar's beheaded head just staring directly at her on the ground. It made her pause for a second as if to register the sight that felt so foreboding for whatever lay ahead. If she looked up from the head, she had a feeling she would see something horrifying.
Chad's yell for Ichigo's name gave her a hunch that her feeling would be proven correct.
A few meters away, Tensa Zangetsu was pierced into the ground.
A few feet away, Ichigo was on his back.
And Noctter aggressively stabbed his own Zanpakuto into the boy's throat.
This triggered a horrified scream of the boy's name to erupt from the girl's throat. Confused, Noctter lifted his head, tearing his gaze away from Ichigo's shocked face, to look at Inoue who was dashing towards them without caring about the danger.
The danger that was Noctter Grandett.
"Ah, the rejecting girl." Noctter identified lamely while removing his right hand from the sword that was still embedded in the boy's throat. His hand glowed a blue light. "Are you here to watch a show?" He teased the girl.
The light from his hand was gathering light that turned into a ball which instantly shot downwards on Ichigo's right side, effectively removing his right arm and ultimately crushing his right torso and blasting it through. It looked like Seki but tweaked enough to cause damage this time, just as he imagined it.
Thanks to the sword in his neck, Ichigo could barely make a sound. His body just spazzed. There was also a small indent just beneath that spot where his arm previously was, prompting Noctter to shove Ichigo's body away so that he wouldn't sink awkwardly in it.
Seeing the damage and the blood, Inoue released her powers and quickly had them racing to heal the boy. The image of Ichigo's wide eyes that looked at her when his body tilted into the uneven floor for a second was harshly burned into her mind.
However, they all stopped as if an invisible wall stood in their path. Then, it blasted them back with a shockwave. Inoue, who was running, stumbled and rolled back on the ground. The sight made Noctter whistle in amusement and take a seat on Ichigo's chest, not caring about the side that would soak a part of his coat in his blood.
"Get off him!" Chad shouted, preparing to attack the man who watched him boringly. The attack created a lot of smoke when it made contact. But instead of waiting for the smoke to blow away, Noctter used Kido to wave it off to reveal his position still seated on the boy whose life was slowly slipping away from him. Chad's eyes widened in shock. His body then flew back from a pressure that had him rolling back just like Inoue, but more aggressively from how far and fast he flew.
A twisted smile came on his face when he noticed the Quincy aiming Licht Regen at him and failing just like Chad. It just created a giant cloud of smoke. "Why bother? It's hopeless." He used the back of his left hand to pat Ichigo's cheek. "The boy is just waiting for death to claim him."
Inoue had gotten back up and was trying to get through the wall. The attempts at pushing through proved to be useless. But she kept banging on it which created white ripples. "Kurosaki-kun!"
"Your desperation is because he's your friend, right? And you don't like me because of what I just did."
The girl could barely focus on his words as she kept staring at the blood dripping into the crater. Tears were immediately streaming down her face when she began to feel hopeless. To frighten her, Noctter casually picked up Ichigo's arm and tossed it towards her, dropping it at her feet. She gasped and took a step away from the severed arm.
"Why can't we get close to them?" Ishida clenched his bow. It was as if a spatial wall was keeping them away. He looked at the ripples created by Inoue's banging, trying to search for a weak point to exploit. If he could destroy it, then Inoue could hurry and heal Ichigo and save his life. His eyes landed on Ichigo when he could see the weak intake of breaths he was taking.
They were pressed for time.
"Ichigo, hang on!" Chad yelled at him, hoping that would buy them some time. Ichigo's will was always so strong. If he could just hang on…
Noctter sighed and reached back to aggressively rip out the blade from his throat, allowing the blood to flow freely, granting slight freedom to make more audible sounds, and giving his oxygen a route to escape and avoid his brain, hastening his death. The weak gasp and the free flow of crimson had Inoue desperately calling Ichigo's name while trying to force her powers through the wall. This loud screaming that Inoue had done until now, Noctter found it excessive and annoying. The quickness at which his body stood and lunged to grab Inoue surprised everyone. She was pulled into the wall and slammed on the ground by his hand. She grunted when he replaced his hand with his foot.
"Inoue!" Chad tried making it through the wall, but he couldn't get through.
"Let her go!" Ishida tried destroying the wall by force.
"Why should I? Just because she's a girl, I should treat her nicely? Normally, I think I would… but she's a healer, isn't she? If she makes your life easier in a fight, I should kill her, no?"
Paying no mind to herself, Inoue was relieved to have found the opportunity to use her powers to help Ichigo. Quickly, she used Souten Kisshun to come to Ichigo's aid.
But a wide Danku, just like Chisaki's, appeared to stop Inoue's powers from getting closer. Her eyes widened. She was this close to helping him. The foot on her throat shifted and pressed harder to force her to look up at Noctter. She grew frightened by the twisted crazy smile on Noctter's face, reserved for her eyes only. His green eyes seem to glow eerily.
"What, did you think I'd let you heal him?"
"Guhh…" Inoue gasped. The suffocated sound made him smile cheerfully.
"Good. Pipe down."
Noctter finally did it.
He basically killed Ichigo.
And he was letting everyone watch him take his last breath.
A fair exchange for what happened to Grimmjow.
"The burden, the broken shield, and a Quincy with no talent whatsoever." Noctter listed them down with a cheerful tone. "All of you followed him around like toy soldiers. You should be grateful he's dying because you won't have a reason to fight against impossible odds."
Ignoring him, Chad clenched his fists, still trying to get through, desperate. "Ichigo! You can't die! Katsuko is still waiting for you to save her! You said that you would! Don't die!"
"Kurosaki Ichigo earned what he got." Noctter's tone shifted into one of hate. "He tried to kill my ally who almost didn't make it. I'll fight and protect him in my way. Just like all of you." He looked at Ishida with a crooked smile.
Ishida paused when he saw the look on Noctter's face.
Why do you look like that…?
The single tear that escaped his right eye reflected the split second brokenness in his eyes.
…
…
…
A surge of spiritual pressure rose, making everyone freeze.
Chad, Inoue, and Ishida stared in shock as a being in white rose and flash stepped behind Noctter. The Soul Reaper barely had time to look over his shoulder before a hand collided with his face, sending him flying and rolling away at high speed. The spatial wall disappeared, allowing Chad's fist to pass through.
Noctter forced himself to stop rolling by using Kido, positioning himself in a sitting position in pure confusion.
He held up a hand to his face.
I didn't even realize he was behind me…
I let my guard down.
"You hit me…" Noctter muttered to himself and took a good look at what hit him. The creature that hit him had long orange hair and had black hakama pants. It also held Tensa Zangetsu in his hand as if it owned it. Those pieces were enough to help Noctter fix the puzzle. The wounds he brutally gave him were gone too.
This was Ichigo.
His Hollow.
With an ear piercing roar, it lunged at him.
Noctter jolted and hurriedly forced himself back up on his feet.
…
…
…
"Kuchiki-san! Lieutenant Abarai!"
The two looked down and found Chisaki leaping up to join them on the higher platform they were situated on. Her Zanpakuto was in Shikai mode. The Arrancars directed their attention towards her, and their blades were quick to point at her.
Her blue eyes narrowed in annoyance.
While racing up the side of the tower, she pierced the structure and lunged at them at full speed, leaving behind a trail of light that exploded behind her, blasting the Arrancars away. Seeing the confusion in the ones that remained, Renji and Rukia used this opportunity to send them all flying down towards the brown haired noble. Chisaki quickly readied her blade like last time and sped past them with the same attack. With her help, they were able to defeat numerous Arrancars that stood in their path.
"Naogoma-san." Rukia spoke her name when Chisaki ran towards them. She was surprised when she placed a frantic hand on her shoulder.
"Kuchiki-san, have you encountered Noctter Grandett again after last time?"
Rukia blinked once in a pause before nodding once. "Yes… and even though I wasn't fully conscious, I was sure there were two people near me."
Chisaki's eyes grew immensely conflicted with her answer. Grimmjow's tale was carrying more credit now than ever. Chisaki met Renji's gaze when she looked away from Rukia, he looked equally concerned now that Chisaki had brought up Noctter Grandett.
"Is it true…? I mean, do you think it's possible?"
Chisaki nodded. "The Arrancar that acted as Katsuko's warden told me everything. Right now, it's imperative that we find Kurosaki-san and—"
They jolted when they felt dark spiritual pressure surging above them, forcing them all to look at the hole in the ceiling. In addition to that, Noctter Grandett's spiritual pressure was also raging above them.
Chisaki grew pale. "Oh, no. No, no, no." She didn't waste another second and started heading up to the ceiling with Renji and Rukia in tow.
…
…
…
A scream tore its way out of Noctter's throat.
A Cero nearly decimated his whole body if he didn't use last minute Kido to reduce forty percent of the damage. He coughed and struggled to get up as he quickly used his Kido to rejuvenate his body. He couldn't focus on blocking off the attacks if this Hollowfied Ichigo was too fast for him to keep track of, leaving him the only option on focusing all of that effort into healing himself instead.
Ishida, Chad, and Inoue could not do anything but watch the fight between Noctter and Ichigo. It made them question whether that was truly Ichigo or not… This way of fighting… the brutality of battle, it was unlike him.
The pure violence clashing between the lunatic and the monster was unlike they'd ever seen before.
Noctter was using every violent Kido in his arsenal against Ichigo. At first, it was easy to stop Ichigo from getting closer by putting up those invisible walls. But it looked like Ichigo decided to move faster to avoid being stopped, successfully catching Noctter off guard several times.
Ichigo was proving to be far superior now.
Noctter dodged the swing of his blade and used his free hand to conjure up a blue light. It knocked away his black sword. His blade whirled away. But it didn't get far once Ichigo spun around his heel to snatch it with his other arm. Noctter instantly saw the tip of the blade aimed at his throat. It ran through until he reached the center of the blade. His wide crystal green eyes met the dark holes of Ichigo's Hollow mask, rasping little breaths to try and breathe through his surprise.
The monster then lifted his leg and tore out the blade downward when he kicked away Noctter with immense force, sending him flying at least a block and a half away.
"No…" Inoue voiced her disbelief.
"That can't be Kurosaki…" Ishida spoke.
From his throat down to the center of his torso, he bled on the floor with no delay. Noctter's mouth stayed open as he struggled to breathe, allowing more blood to drip out of his mouth. His crystal green eyes watched the splashes of blood from his mouth appear in his sight. The sound of his blood splattering… the struggle to breathe… the utter confusion while being left in this state…
It was all…
Noctter flopped on his back. The pain flared in his body as he stared up at the moon.
The moon was out like this…
Like static, the view of the sky shifted and blurred until it became dark blue. He could picture his hand outstretched to the sky above.
Yes… it was like this.
That was the night…
The night when I started using it…
He could recall the feeling of his body getting pierced… his throat getting sliced…
And that one blade that rammed into his brain.
They left him to die from those attacks, thinking he would certainly die. However, they were unaware of how much his soul was determined to survive and give them retribution for ever thinking their tiny little existence could even best him. Him, of all people? It was laughable.
Yes, that's when he started using it.
It was from there.
How could he forget?
…
…
…
The three humans watched as Noctter's body glowed a bright blue as he easily pushed himself up. They could see his wounds quickly disappearing as if the clock on his body turned back.
"Ahhh…." Noctter threw his head back to look at the moon.
The adrenaline pumping through his body was immaculate.
He felt so high.
"This is so nostalgic!" Noctter exclaimed with joy, arching his back even further as he stretched his arms out to the orb in the sky.
The Hollow suddenly appeared behind him mid-swing. Noctter vanished when he swung, and he reappeared in the air. He was pointing his index, middle and thumb towards the three humans huddled together. Ishida saw how his eyes were wide with concentration, his previous obvious ecstasy now calmed in favour for absolute control over his next moves. Ishida's eyes widened Noctter's hand flicked to the side followed by a bright light that shot towards them. He barely had time to Grab Inoue and Chad and move them away with Hirenkyaku.
Inoue groaned when she was clumsily put on the ground after Ishida's sudden escape. She looked at the spot they were previously standing in and noticed a large hole in the ground.
"What…" Chad muttered.
…
…
…
"Watch out!"
Renji grabbed both girls and quickly pushed them all out of the way of the light that literally brushed past his arm and pierced the ground below, leaving a giant hole inside. Chisaki and Rukia stared at the hole in silent shock. It looked like that stray attack could erase them if they stood in it.
"What was that…? That wasn't a Cero, was it?" Rukia looked at Renji's arm which had a minor gash. He paid no mind to it since it wasn't lethal.
"That was illegal Kido." Chisaki breathed in disbelief. She moved away from Renji and hurriedly went to cover the rest of the way up.
There wasn't any more time to waste.
Grimmjow sighed and leaned his head on the wall behind him to look up at the ceiling.
"She returned to Las Noches after her final attempt to escape. That Aizen ordered me to stop her. I didn't understand what he meant by stop. But, I didn't care. The order wasn't to retrieve, so I tracked her down. And then, I found her standing above that idiot Luppi after what looked like a merciless beating. She looked at me with that same quiet look when she got her eye messed up, as if she was asking for help."
Grimmjow looked down and looked at Chisaki who didn't utter a word.
"She would teeter between two different personalities. And it looked like Aizen knew exactly what was happening to her. As for herself, she would rather stick with me. But as the other, she would act all chummy with Aizen. That is until she showed up like that."
The Hollowfied Ichigo fired off a Cero and turned his head to move the beam like a moving laser to catch. Noctter. But the Soul Reaper leaped above him and swung down his blade. The monster effortlessly parried his blade and pushed him away, kicking up a giant cloud of smoke which flew away with another stroke.
The fight was becoming even more dangerous now that Noctter awakened something from within. As if sensing this, the Hollowfied Ichigo fought back even more savagely. Inoue had to put her shield to protect herself and her allies from the stray attacks that would highly destroy them. Seriously, it almost seemed like a miracle that Noctter was keeping up with the pace. But that was only because he could effectively block Ichigo with those walls after something clicked in his brain. It made the fight incredibly easier.
Noctter grinned and skidded to a stop. His arm swung down his sealed Zanpakuto to ready himself.
"I'm starting to get the hang of this."
The Hollow dashed forward and leaped above Noctter. With another roar, with swung down and created a shockwave that had the humans lifting their arms to cover their faces from the smoke. At the same time, Chisaki jumped through the hole in the ceiling and landed on the surface above. Rukia and Renji followed after her. They were just in time to see Noctter lunge forward and grab one of Ichigo's horns.
Renji's eyes landed on Ichigo's form. "Wait… is that—"
Chisaki's eyes widened. A point blank range!
The Naogoma was running.
…
…
…
"She took on the appearance of Noctter Grandett. Aizen gave that name to her. He said it was something that would represent her making this endless night in Hueco Mundo so grand."
…
…
…
"Katsuko! Shisugu!" Chisaki shrieked to stop Noctter.
If you do that, you'll regret it!
The next voice came out very distorted.
"StOP iT! IcHiGo! CoME BaCK!"
Chisaki stopped in her tracks upon hearing her voice mixed with Noctter's. That was a desperate cry mixed with distinctive anguish, it struck her in the heart.
The illusion broke.
Now, instead of a crazed look of pleasure for battle, it was replaced by a frantic desperate look. It wasn't for herself. It was for the one she was screaming at, the one who she told she didn't want to see become a Hollow. The hand grabbing Ichigo's horn was trembling from how tightly it gripped it. It even made a tug to try and break off the mask in one fell swoop.
"Katsuko!" Rukia exclaimed, running to try and get to the one she could finally see.
Upon hearing the name, Noctter made a move to look at her. But the Hollowfied Ichigo's claws swooped up and clawed up Noctter's face from below. One swing from the black blade fatally wounded Noctter in that moment of unbalance. Chisaki screamed for the girl they were all fighting so hard for. This time, there was no rejuvenating the body. Noctter lied on the ground, facing the group of Soul Reapers with eyes filled with pure shock and disbelief. Chisaki winced at the sight of Noctter's completely disfigured face.
Noctter coughed.
Something white was beginning to profusely leak out of his mouth.
…
…
…
Aizen leaned his hand on his cheek as he kept observing the display before him. The white substance pooling out of Noctter's mouth started solidifying as it began creeping up his face. The Zanpakuto in his hand flashed and had a burst of lightning coming out from it.
This was going to be an interesting watch.
"And now it begins."
The Hollow mask that came out of Noctter's mouth stretched until most of his body became Hollow-like, just like Ichigo. The fight between both escalated quickly and turned violent. Noctter kept roaring angrily at Ichigo while trying to straight up murder him in retribution. His lightning whipped around like a merciless storm.
There was no stopping him now.
The other Soul Reapers watched the fight between the two Hollowfied Soul Reapers take place right before their eyes. It was not something they should carelessly interfere with because of the potential death that could claim them if they got in the way. But on the other hand, these were people they knew and should protect from destroying one another.
"I've never seen anything like that..." Renji muttered. "Is that seriously Ichigo?"
Rukia clenched her Zanpakuto tightly. "I can still sense his spiritual pressure despite how dark it has become... But how do we stop this...?!" She looked at Inoue, Ishida and Chad who looked at them with concern. They all understood the current problems presented to them.
Chisaki lifted her hand to touch her left breast. Underneath the fabric she touched, there was an item stored away. It was trusted to her by Urahara Kisuke in case a certain scenario happened. It was created within the time frame he needed to open the Garganta for Kurosaki Ichigo. He used the data recorded from Hiragi Katsuko's training with Abarai Renji. He used all the information available and inputted them into a formula to deduce a conclusion.
And he had given her some details of his conclusion...
But she didn't think he would accurately predict it.
That man was clearly had an intellect she could never hope to reach.
Chisaki clenched the item inside with a determined look.
Alright, then.
I'm not going to let Aizen toy with her any longer!
...
...
...
The maniacal laughter reverbed around them.
But his laughter gradually changed into pathetic laughing… and then into sobbing.
Ichigo's face twisted when he felt his heart ache from hearing the pure anguish coming from Noctter's distorted voice. The echo of the noise from within. Noctter looked around while moving his feet clumsily to properly take in the sight. His face became one of utter devastation. Like a lost child, he appeared so scared by his surroundings.
"No, no, no, no!" Noctter screamed, throwing down his Zanpakuto to grip his hair. He bent down and screamed loudly. He started heaving breaths with hiccups and sniffles. "Stop! Stop! I don't wanna kill anyone else! It's killing me!"
"Katsuko!" Ichigo called her name amidst the wailing, running to the fallen Zanpakuto to keep it away from Noctter by kicking it away.
【The Truth Of H-K V: Noise of Echo】
Oof...
AnYwaYY, Urahara's big brain coming in clutch?
This chapter was going to be longer... but I'd rather keep it for the next one. Instead, I just added a small preview for next time. I had to keep the chapter in line with 'Noise of Echo'.
That last scene tho... can you make out the scribbles in the new cover? It's a face.
Anyway, Happy New Year! I hope you guys started the new year well! (If not... same... I've gotten hurt a couple of times x_x) Thank you for reading and I hope you have a nice day/night!