15 - Death 4

Overwhelming spirit pressure bore down on all the combatants. It was so powerful that it was felt as though their breath was being stifled.

Rukia fell to her knees, Uryu choked while lying on the ground, and Renji was frozen in a mixture of both shock and awe.

Only Ichigo remained standing, but his face was quickly paling.

'The visions didn't prepare me for the real thing…this is on a completely different level! So this is the power of a Captain…' Ichigo thought. He clenched the handle of his sword tightly but stayed still. The spirit pressure had greatly unnerved him even though he withstood it.

Byakuya stood up to his full height, and his spirit pressure was so high that his injuries apparently didn't bother him anymore. Nevertheless, he quickly used some healing Kido to stabilize them so he wouldn't be hindered in combat.

Senbonzakura similarly regenerated its petals with the influx of spirit pressure.

He was annoyed that had to waste spirit pressure on correcting these issues, so he wasn't quite at one-hundred percent, but he had no doubt that he could subdue his opponents now that he was no longer holding back.

It was comical to him that they thought they could force him to use Bankai, when they were struggling against him at a mere twenty-percent of his power.

"You're barely standing now, and you thought you could face my Bankai? Do you understand now how foolishly arrogant you were?" He asked.

Ichigo glanced at Rukia and Uryu, and realized that they wouldn't be of any help. Maybe they could have withstood Byakuya's spirit pressure when they were fresh, but heavily injured and tired after the fight thus far, they could barely move against the mountain of power pressing down on them.

He grit his teeth and prepared to take this to the next level.

Byakuya frowned at the boy's defiance. "Human, why do you still insist on delaying the inevitable? There are thirteen captains in Soul Society, and many of them are even stronger than I am. Your fight is hopeless. Give up already. Surrender yourself, and you may save Rukia's life. If you truly care about her."

"I don't mind dying, if it would save her. But like I said, if Rukia goes back with you, she'll be executed by Sokyoku! I can't let that happen!"

"It seems there is no reasoning with you. So be it," said Byakuya.

"That should be my line!"

Byakuya didn't bother with further banter and simply sent Senbonzakura at Ichigo.

Ichigo flashed away, but the petals were hot on his tail. And this time, Ichigo could feel that if they hit, he would be in big trouble.

His decision made, he gathered his spirit pressure and poured it into his zanpaktou, launching a quick Getsuga Tenshou to blow away the Senbonzakura petals.

"Don't say I didn't warn you Byakuya! You might be too prideful to use Bankai, but I'm not!"

Byakuya scoffed and sent more petals at him. "You speak as if you have achieved Bankai yourself."

"That's exactly what I'm saying!" Ichigo smirked as he drew upon all of his spirit pressure, both Quincy and Shinigami.

He put his left hand onto his right wrist, and pointed Gesshokuro at Byakuya, in a move reminiscent of the Bankai in his visions.

"Bankai! Gesshokuro Zangetsu!" He screamed.

Tremendous winds erupted from his position, blowing away all the petals as his spirit pressure exploded violently.

Rukia, Renji, and Uryu watched in disbelief as Ichigo's spirit pressure grew as high as Byakuya's own.

'Did he actually achieve Bankai already?' Rukia wondered with wide eyes, staring at the spot where Ichigo was obscured by dust, smoke, and energy. 'I thought he had just achieved shikai last night?'

'This is bullshit! Bullshit!' Renji thought. 'He cannot have Bankai! What the fuck have I been doing all these years?'

When Ichigo was finally revealed, holding a huge guardless Khyber cleaver confidently, their doubts disappeared.

Only Byakuya continued to harbor some doubts. The increase in spirit pressure was noticeable, but he knew that his own Bankai and those of the other captains were far more powerful.

But he supposed that it could be that the boy was simply insufficiently trained, resulting in a weak Bankai. Bankai was only one of the requirements to become Captain after all, and normally took decades to master. It was well known that the Gotei 13's newest captain was a prodigy who had attained Bankai in record time, but whose power in that state was limited in many ways.

The sword certainly had undergone a transformation, and was obviously bigger than the Shikai, just as one would expect from Bankai. But if the boy had truly attained Bankai in such a short time, an order of magnitude faster than even that prodigy, it was no wonder that the Bankai was so weak. No amount of talent could substitute for proper training. Often considered a prodigy himself, Byakuya was no stranger to this principle.

Ichigo didn't move to attack immediately. Once again, the release of his Zanpaktou with Shinigami spirit pressure caused his spirit particle armor to scatter, and he quickly started to repair it.

It was a major struggle now that a lot more Shinigami spirit pressure was released and it kept repelling particles away from him.

The only consolation was that his Quincy spirit pressure was equally powerful, so it wasn't like he couldn't use his Quincy powers at all. They were just weakened with the higher amount of Shinigami spirit pressure disrupting it.

Now he just had to keep up this charade of "Bankai" until the right moment to suddenly suppress his Shinigami spirit pressure and switch to Quincy powers when Byakuya was least expecting it.

He could only hope that he would be able to survive Byakuya's Bankai or otherwise take him out before he used it.

"To have achieved Bankai in so little time is indeed impressive. Had you been born in Soul Society, you would surely have made history. Sadly, a human is not permitted to possess such power, and you are still not strong enough to defeat me," said Byakuya, with a measure of respect for his young opponent.

"Oh yeah? We'll see about that. You keep saying I'm not strong enough to defeat you, you keep questioning why I'm even bothering, but you know what Byakuya? That doesn't matter. Who cares if you're strong than me? The hell are you fighting for? To incarcerate your own sister because you think the laws of Seireitei are more important than family? Fuck that."

Ichigo growled and took up a stance. "You're a stubborn fool, but I know you care about her deep down. I can feel the hesitation and weakness in your sword when we match blades. That's why I'll make you understand. I can't lose here! I won't lay down and die when there's someone that needs me! I'm going to win because I have a real reason to fight, because I won't let you or anyone take Rukia away! I don't give a damn about making history or impressing anyone! I obtained this power for one reason and one reason only, to protect the people I love!"

His voice ended in a powerful shout, and he flashed forward faster than ever.

"Where did you find this idiot, Rukia? What's wrong with him? You only knew each other a couple of months! Don't tell me you two are really in love?" Renji asked with a dark scowl.

They had quietly crawled away from the epicentre of the battle, and lost any will to fight. Renji knew he couldn't defeat both Rukia and Uryu, and they didn't see any need to wound Renji even more when he couldn't even stand thanks to the arrows that struck his legs. It was also painfully obvious that they wouldn't contribute much by trying to get in the fight between Ichigo and Byakuya.

Rukia blushed and couldn't meet Renji's eyes. "I-it's not like that. Ichigo is just a protective person. It's in his name, he who protects."

"Seriously? I thought it meant strawberry, like his hair."

"No, his father told me so," said Rukia.

'…you've even met the parents already?' Renji realized with shock. 'Have I lost my chance already? No…from the moment you entered the Kuchiki house, and I chose to stay away, thinking I wasn't good enough as a lowly Rukongai rat…damn it all…what am I doing now? I wasn't there for her when she needed me, I didn't even know about what happened to Lieutenant Shiba to make her stop using Shikai.'

Byakuya blocked and was pushed back from Ichigo's wild assault. Repeated clangs reverberated in the air as the gigantic cleaver met the thin sword.

Byakuya tried to call Senbonzakura's petals over but Ichigo's slashed furiously and blew them away with Getsuga Tenshou before renewing his relentless attack.

There was no time to even prepare a Kido.

'I can't believe this…he's actually winning, he's pushing Byakuya-aniki back!' Rukia thought joyfully.

'How long have I dreamed of surpassing Captain Kuchiki one day? To be able to stand against him as an equal, and prove myself worthy enough to stand at Rukia's side…I was elated to receive this promotion to become his lieutenant, thinking I was one step closer…but this damn rookie…in two months he's accomplished more than I have in a whole century!' Renji silently fumed. 'How can the world be so unfair?'

"It's too late to regret it, Byakuya, I'm going to finish you off before you even have a chance to use Bankai!" Ichigo yelled as he poured spirit energy into his zanpaktou.

Byakuya's eyes widened as he sensed the build up of spirit pressure and knew what would happen next. Each swing would extended by the boy's energy attack, and given that the boy had implied his true Getsuga Tenshou was much more powerful than he had previously shown, the captain knew he couldn't afford to carelessly let himself get hit, nor could he afford to just block the swings anymore.

Suddenly the sword in his hands scattered into a mass of Senbonzakura petals as well, and flew at Ichigo's face, while Byakuya himself flashed back rapidly to make distance.

'Shit! I'm screwed if that hits me!' Ichigo cursed as sensed the density of the spirit pressure and he was suddenly caught in a triple pincer attack, petals coming from in front and behind him, and there were so much more than before, while Byakuya's hand was obviously preparing a powerful Kido too.

He was being assailed from all sides. There was no escape.

'I have to do it! It's now or never!'

In an instant, Ichigo's spirit pressure shifted. His Shinigami spirit pressure was suppressed to almost nothing and he threw his sword.

The bandage on the handle wrapped around his arm while the cleaver spun diagonally in a large circle up into the air even while Getsuga Tenshou was unleashed.

The wave of energy lashed out in 180 degrees, blowing away many of the petals, though Byakuya himself narrowly dodged to the side, and many petals coming from other spherical directions still managed to strike Ichigo.

Byakuya's Byakurai beam struck Ichigo fully through the chest, but he ignored the pain, and organized spirit particles into his blood pathways. This was an advanced Quincy technique that had the potential to increase their offensive or defensive capabilities to incredible levels, depending on whether it was deployed in the veins or arteries.

Although he was not yet skilled enough to form the full body Blut Vene technique that included blood vessels in this low spirit particle environment, he was able to concentrate the particles into his major vein pathways, especially in his chest area. It was enough to stem the bleeding and allow him to fight without being bothered by the wound.

Gesshokuro Zangetsu landed and dug into the ground, the bandages on the sword acting like an elastic band, pulling him forward in a slingshot.

The Captain of the sixth division saw Ichigo coming and thought the boy intended to engage in a fist fight. Given that they were both without weapons now and the boy just suffered a major injury, it seemed obvious who would win such a reckless encounter, especially when Byakuya was also a master of Kido who could shorten his spell incantations to single words.

Therefore, instead of dodging Ichigo's charge, he merely shifted into a Hakuda stance, prepared to end this battle in a decisive strike.

However, in that instant, a longsword of light suddenly formed in Ichigo's hand, and his Blut flow changed directions, moving into his arteries instead, funneling into the lightsword edge and vibrating at an extremely high frequency.

Even as Byakuya's eyes widened in surprised and he tried to adjust his position, Ichigo's blow landed first with the advantage of reach.

Byakuya cried out in pain as the spirit sword stabbed cleanly through his gut and Ichigo body slammed into him.

Senbonzakura petals appeared at the points of contact, revealing that they had covered Byakuya's body, but apparently their defense was no match for the offensive power of Blut Arterie.

The captain tumbled to the ground several metres away face up while Ichigo collapsed not far from him face down.

Blood pooled around both of them on the ground, severely wounded from the last exchange, though the pool around Ichigo was growing three or four times as fast.

With the reversal of Blut Vene into Arterie, the temporarily halted bleeding erupted. Even when he reactivated the technique, it was an uphill battle.

Unfortunately, he also couldn't use healing Kido on himself, because after using Blut, there were spirit particles in his circulatory system, and using Shinigami spirit pressure internally could risk scattering the particles in a way that harmed him. The particles had to be carefully removed—but it would take time, and he couldn't afford to let himself bleed out while he did that, so it was better to just maintain Blut.

Byakuya struggled shakily with his hand toward the spirit sword that was still stuck in his abdomen.

Then it dissipated before he pulled it out.

After nearly a minute of silence while Rukia, Uryu, and Renji waited with bated breath to see who the winner was, Byakuya slowly pushed himself back up, then coughed out blood and held his abdomen with one hand while he rested on a knee.

Ichigo similarly tried get up, but seemed to be having a lot more trouble, barely able to get his face off the ground. The damage from the Senbonzakura petal storm and the Byakurai beam that went through his right lung was much more severe than the one stab he managed to get through to Byakuya. His clothes had been shredded and his limbs were covered in cuts that were bone deep.

Gesshokuro Zangetsu morphed back into its thin black sword form, lodged into the ground a few metres to the side.

Byakuya noticed this, and recalled his Senbonzakura petals to him. They gathered and some of them reformed his zanpaktou sword form, while the rest swirled over Ichigo.

The captain stood up fully after healing his wound to an adequate level. "It's over, Kurosaki Ichigo," he said, using the boy's full name as a sign of respect. "You have fought well, but you have lost. You have a truly unique Zanpaktou, that it can allow you to manipulate spirit particles as Quincies do. However, when a Bankai reverts back into Shikai by itself, it means that the wielder is on the brink of death. In recognition of your efforts, I will allow you this mercy. Stop struggling and just savor your final moments. Perhaps you will live with those healing powers of yours, if you do not waste your energy. If you survive, after I report your death, cease interfering with the affairs of Soul Society, and you may still live quietly as a human."

'Even after all that, it wasn't enough…' Rukia thought with a pained face.

"You see, Rukia, it was hopeless from the beginning. Like he said, Captain Kuchiki didn't need to use Bankai. It's over," said Renji.

"No…Ichigo…" Rukia whispered, tearing up.

"Kurosaki! Get up! Don't tell me you're going to lose even after that passionate speech!" Uryu shouted.

Byakuya flashed over and slammed the butt of his sword on Uryu's head, knocking him out. He turned his attention to Rukia, even as he grabbed Renji and supported his lieutenant captain upright. "Come Rukia. We're returning."

When Byakuya's spirit pressure was controlled to the point where Rukia could stand again, her face was one of despair as she walked behind him lifelessly.

As they passed by Ichigo's body, she took one last glance at Ichigo, and hesitated.

"It's not over yet..!" Ichigo growled suddenly as he rose once more like a zombie. His Blut Vene had expanded across his body, and cast it in an eerie light, though it was not concentrated enough as to be visible as lines on his skin yet.

His spirit pressure was noticeably weaker, having expended too much and he couldn't recover spirit particles fast enough.

Two spirit swords began to form in his hands as he took a step forward, but he swayed on the ground. His eyes showed the defiance that his body posture couldn't.

Byakuya sighed and turned around again, leaving Renji on the ground.

"When will you understand, boy? If you insist on throwing away your life foolishly, then I suppose I can show you just how outmatched you really are and give you the satisfaction of witnessing my Bankai before you die," he said.

He dropped his sword on the ground, and it sank into the concrete.

"Bankai: Senbonzakura Kageyoshi."

Two rows of humongous blades emerged from the ground, walling off the area.

Countless petals swirled in the air, promising a storm of destruction.

The captain's spirit pressure reached unimaginable levels.

Rukia and Renji could barely move a finger or even breathe. It was like the life was being crushed out of them.

Ichigo was similarly almost forced to his knees, his face in shock. He struggled to stand upright, but found the task incredibly hard, perhaps because of his wounds.

'This…this is his Bankai? It's…too strong!'

He had no time to think on it before the petals came down on him.

An explosion of blood spurted out from every inch of his body, his clothes becoming little more than rags.

He stumbled back with an uncomprehending face, then fell to his knees, and collapsed completely.

Byakuya watched with a hint of pity.

Rukia screamed Ichigo's name.

He heard her voice and the world seemed to slow down. He suddenly felt like a prisoner in his own body, being forced to watch as events replayed themselves as if they were just recordings.

'No! I can't die…! I can't lose…not here! Not again!'

With half open eye lids, he saw Rukia trying to run towards him and getting grabbed by Renji.

'Stop bleeding…!'

But it was too much. He couldn't deal with the catastrophic damage he had suffered, with either healing kido or his current skill in Quincy techniques.

Rukia's tearful, sobbing face was even worse than the cold visage she showed him in the visions.

After giving her hope, after persuading her to fight with him, how could he let her down like this?

'Move damn it!'

Time slowed to a crawl, until it seemed to be frozen, and the world lost all color.

In front of him, a cloaked figure appeared with a solemn face. Gesshokuro's mouth moved, but he couldn't hear the words, they just sounded like indiscernible gibberish.

Then, all he knew was darkness.

When Ichigo forced his eyes open, it was to a world submerged in water.

The pressure of the water was unimaginable, much like the pressure he faced in reality, whether it was Byakuya's spirit pressure, or the mental pressure of having to fight against all of Soul Society and twelve other captains on Byakuya's level.

Even though he knew he could breathe, his body couldn't stand the billions of tons of heavy mass.

He fell deep into the depths, pulled by gravity.

The fall seemed endless, for there was no bottom.

From the beginning, his world was sideways. How could he possibly fall to the bottom?

It was an infinite abyss.

"Wh-what's h-happening? G-Gesshokuro…! Zangetsu! H-help me!"

O O O

A/N: Oh no! Resisting canon was futile! Or was it? Now for review responses:

Emrys Akayuki: Yup, Aizen's pretty cautious and often has lots of backup plans.

Antex-The Legendary Zoroark: It was a close fight with the limiter released, but once Byakuya used Bankai, there was no contest. We will see Shirou again at some point...maybe soon.

Kaiya Azure: That's true. But that type of thing would probably be fairly hard to pull off, his power's range isn't unlimited, I think. It's why he had to leave Kyoka Suigetsu behind as his corpse.

thekingofdrizzy: Eventually, yes.

Edocsiru: Lol. It feels even slower to Ichigo, now that time seems frozen from his POV.

Guessing Soul: I didn't really think too much about who else were main characters. Maybe I should tag Rukia, given the focus of this first part. Not much point in including anyone else though, there aren't enough main character tags go around. For Orihime's power, I think there's more to it than just time. I think it depends on the nature of the injury. I think she can restore any physical injury, but she can't restore "spiritual" injuries, in line with Unohana's comment about Ichigo's clothes. He got healed by Orihime, but his spirit pressure didn't recover. The Asauchi soul thing was in the manga too, actually. The Arrancar, yea, it's a difficult problem. I don't know too much about the fragments, but I do plan to use some of it. Not all though.

Exodus12345: His growth is already pretty fast. It was mentioned in the story that growth requires certain catalysts as well, not just time/talent.

Pikanet128: Sorry, here's another one!

Murderleo38: Don't worry, you'll see him soon enough.

777torn777: They certainly do need help...

Guest: It's not me, it's Byakuya who thinks so. There's some things he's not aware of, but everyone knows that Jushiro and Shunsui are the oldest and the Captain Commander's students.

And thanks to everyone else who reviewed!