Chapter 16: Within Me The Beast Starts To Roar
"Speech"
'Thoughts'
"Zanpakutō"
"Hollows/Vizard"
"[Reading/listening to a message/letter]"
"{Speaking a different language}"
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Soul Society, Sōkyoku Hill
The Hollow controlling Ichigo's body didn't waste another moment. With a pulse of power, it fired a dark purple Tenka-Ichiken towards Yachiru, one that dwarfed any but Ichigo's final attack. Even as she dodged, the creature rushed her, moving much faster than Ichigo himself had managed. Its downward slash was deflected into the ground, only for it to plant Eikō no Yari and use it as a pivot to kick her in the chest with both feet! Minazuki came up, aiming to slice off the Hollow's feet, only to futilely scrape against its skin. As its feet hit the ground, the creature brought Eikō no Yari over its body, spinning 180 degrees as it went, and carving deep into Yachiru's torso with the spear! The captain's counter slash once again skittered across the teen's skin. "My, that wouldn't be Hierro, would it?" Yachiru questioned. Without waiting for a reply, she intoned, "Ikkotsu!" A fist buried itself in the Hollow's stomach with enough force to launch it backwards dozens of meters, taking its Zanpakutō along with it.
In her brief respite, Yachiru noted how badly broken the bones of her striking hand were. Rather than wait for them to mend, she quickly sliced off the mangled hand, letting a new one form in its place. Almost before her new limb finished forming, half a dozen spear wielding enemies swarmed her. Curiously, the duplicates were indistinct humanoids of dark purple Reiryoku rather than the previous armored forms. Meanwhile, the Hollow's mask had spread further, covering all of Ichigo's upper face and extending down towards his jaw. All six wielded their spears with considerably more skill than Ichigo had, not only performing complex strikes, but using their weapons as leverage to strike with their fists and legs as well.
As Yachiru lost her last "original" limb (at least for this fight. She couldn't count how many times she lost each limb in her lifetime) to a golem's spear, she impaled another through the center of its chest. With a brutal swipe, she cleaved downward at an angle through half of its ribcage and hewed off the legs of another. Both golems instantly dissipated into nothingness, showing they too had grown more fragile with their transformation. The remaining four opponents each impaled her body in different locations. One in her remaining thigh, one in her shoulder, and the final two in her stomach and pelvis. The sheer power behind their strikes blew Yachiru's body apart! All that remained was a single arm, her upper torso, and her head. Yet, even as she collapsed to the ground, her Zanpakutō lashed out! Three figures shattered like spun glass while the fourth found a sword deep inside its gut. "What?! How could you-" The Hollow exclaimed in shock. It couldn't believe she had so easily pierced its Hierro when she had been unable to even scratch it before.
On the ground, the captain smugly smirked. "I've gotten used to your hardness." The Hollow snarled furiously at her, outraged at her response. Suddenly, the blood beneath them moved on its own for the first time since the battle had begun. The surface bubbled beneath the pair ominously before erupting upwards like a geyser, engulfing both of them! Like a cloudburst, the blood rained down upon them. The Hollow whirled around, trying to see its opponent in the sudden downpour. But no matter where it looked, all it could see was a crimson mockery of rain. Then, from within the torrential downpour arose Yachiru, her nude form completely healed and soaked to the bone in blood. Her enemy whirled around, slicing straight through her body from shoulder to groin and splitting her in two! Yet the wound was already healing before Eikō no Yari had fully passed through! Before it could try again, a deep slash opened up its thigh. Another raked its remaining flesh and blood arm. Minazuki nailed the creature's foot to the ground, only to be harshly yanked out and impaled through its shoulder. Again and again, Yachiru circled around the Hollow, slicing and hacking and stabbing and impaling its body over and over! Its attempts at defense were brushed aside as it was killed by inches!
A swing of Eikō no Yari briefly dispersed the bloody rain in one direction, but the ravenette butcher was nowhere to be seen. Several rapid swings in random directions proved equally fruitless, accomplishing little more than earning additional injuries from the first Kenpachi's Zanpakutō. 'Damnation! My wounds are healing too slowly.' The Hollow knew it was a combination of factors. Besides how quickly it was gaining new injuries, it was starting to run low on Reiryoku to fuel its regeneration and its main form of defense was its potent Hierro, leaving its regeneration to atrophy. "You wretch!" It roared in frustration as another blow carved open its back. Pointing Eikō no Yari skyward, it shouted, "Tenka-Ichiken!" A dark purple orb of power formed at the spear's tip before rapidly expanding in every direction! The energy forced the blood away both on the ground and in the air, allowing the creature to spot the monster that had made her home within the bloody field. The blast slammed into Yachiru, carving up her body like a storm of razor blades! When the wave passed, she appeared more like a badly mangled corpse than anything living, despite still standing on her feet. Yet, to the Hollow's dismay, the passing of its attack caused the blood to come rushing back along the ground and continue raining from the sky, quickly regenerating even such grievous wounds. She didn't even allow her wounds to finish healing before resuming her offensive.
In a desperate move, it allowed one of her attacks through completely and took the opportunity to counterattack in turn. Both combatants impaled upon the other's weapon, Yachiru through the heart and the Hollow through its stomach. But where Yachiru's healed over almost as fast as Eikō no Yari passed through her organs, the creature controlling Ichigo faltered. Suddenly, it shouted out, "No! You couldn't handle it, you fool! I don't care! Give back my body! I won't let you kill us both! Get lost!" His voice switched rapidly between the chilling reverb and his own natural tones. Yachiru watched in interest as Ichigo's form twitched as he apparently warred against himself. 'Or perhaps, something inside himself.'
Ichigo's left hand came up and smashed into the mask on his face! The bone-like substance shattered beneath his fist. "You fffoooooool!" As the voice faded away entirely, the mask adorning Ichigo's face evaporated into stray bits of Reishi. His skeletal arm likewise dissipated, leaving behind a stump. Holding Eikō no Yari in his remaining hand, Ichigo asked, "Now, where were w-" only to collapse mid-sentence, his injuries catching up to him.
"You were dying," Was the simple reply.
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Within the Central 46 Compound, Tōshirō and Rangiku were approaching the Underground Assembly Hall when a third set of footsteps rapidly approached. Both reached for their Zanpakutō, only for Kotetsu Isane to appear from the shadows. "Hah, hah. I finally, hah, caught up to you two," the tall woman said, panting for breath. 'For being the Central 46, you'd think they'd be closer to the center of Seireitei.' She mentally grumbled. Taking a deep breath, Isane continued, "Captain Unohana sent me to help. She says the person behind everything might be hiding here." Though surprised at receiving aid, Tōshirō certainly welcomed it. That another captain had come to the same conclusion he had also bolstered his confidence in said belief. With a wordless nod, he turned back towards the doors into the hall and pushed them open.
Inside was a charnel house. The Central 46 had been slaughtered to a man, their blood staining nearly every surface. Worse was the smell. The sickly sweet stench of rot filled the air. Tōshirō's eyes widened in shock while the two lieutenants covered their mouths in horror. With a short Shunpo, the young prodigy appeared in front of one of the bodies. Curiously, he dabbed at a bloodstain. "The blood's dried and flaky. They weren't killed recently."
Entering a more professional mindset, Isane checked a corpse for herself. Rather than check the bloodstains, she focused on the cadaver itself. "The flesh is liquifying. And the hair and teeth are beginning to fall out. Given the darkened room and slightly humid air, they've probably been dead for nearly a month. Maybe more."
While both of her comrades were rattled by the timid woman's almost nonchalant assessment of a room of corpses, they had bigger things to consider. Rangiku offered her own insight as well. "Given that they're all still seated, either they were killed too fast to react or their killer left them unable to flee somehow."
Suddenly, a fourth voice spoke up, "My, you all figured it out so quickly. How scary." Up above, standing in front of the door leading to the private residences of the Central 46, was Ichimaru Gin. Despite being found among the bodies of Soul Society's dead rulers, he was as laidback as ever, his constant smile still in place.
"Gin/Ichimaru/Captain Ichimaru!" Three different voices called out in varying degrees of shock and outrage. Tōshirō demanded an explanation, "Are you responsible for this treason?! What's your goal here?!" Without another word, the apparent traitor vanished via Shunpo, heading deeper into the compound. All three officers immediately gave chase, wanting answers for his crimes. But no matter how fast they followed, he always remained well ahead.
Eventually, their chase took them to the residential area of the Central 46 Compound. To their shock, when they entered, Gin was nowhere to be found. Instead, standing before them was a dead man. Hale and hearty, Captain Aizen Sōsuke smiled calmly at the dumbfounded trio. Remembering her captain's words, Isane gasped. "C-captain Aizen?! You're the mastermind?!"
Tōshirō and Rangiku whipped their heads around to stare at her in shock, but Aizen merely chuckled. "Oh, and how did you figure it out? No, wait, don't tell me. It was Unohana, wasn't it? I can't say I'm too surprised she found a flaw in this." He raised his hand, and suddenly there was a duplicate of his corpse in his hand.
"Wh-what?!" Tōshirō exclaimed. "Where were you hiding that? And where is Ichimaru?!" The young prodigy's whole world was being flipped upside down and he found himself struggling to keep up.
"You mean you haven't figured it out? I've been holding it this entire time. It's only now that I've elected to let you see it. As for Gin, he was never here. He's off dealing with another task for me." His normal gentle smile turned into a smug smirk. "Shatter, Kyōka Suigetsu." At his words, the corpse suddenly shattered like glass, replaced by Aizen's Zanpakutō. "Kyōka Suigetsu allows me to ensnare the senses of anyone who sees its release. Furthermore, seeing it just once leaves you vulnerable to its illusions forever."
"But wait!" Rangiku exclaimed. "Your Zanpakutō is a water type that uses mists to confuse enemies! You showed it to the officers back when… I see. That's when you entrapped all of us, isn't it? And if someone has to see your release to be affected by it…"
Her answer was a sarcastic clap from the treasonous captain. "Indeed. I see why you rose in rank so quickly, you even figured out I had a second accomplice in Tosen. It's a shame I never scouted you; you might have been worth something with my guidance." Addressing all three, Aizen explained, "I slaughtered the Central 46 and issued the orders for Kurotsuchi Nemu to be arrested and executed. I even faked my death to destabilize the situation further." At that, he perked up slightly, "That reminds me, how did Momo handle my death? I had hoped she'd stumble across my corpse. I'm sure her breakdown would have been magnificent."
On hearing that the traitor willingly traumatized his oldest friend, Tōshirō snapped. Drawing his Zanpakutō, he snarled, "Don't you dare speak her name, you bastard! Bankai!" A river of ice flowed up Tōshirō's right arm and quickly engulfed his body, freezing his surroundings. When it shattered, his Zanpakutō remained unchanged but his limbs were engulfed in ice shaped like claws. A pair of draconic wings and a tail, also made of ice, sprouted from his back. "Daiguren Hyōrinmaru. I'll kill you, Aizen!" With a flap of his wings, Tōshirō was airborne, soaring straight at Aizen and seeking to run him through. Before Aizen could react, he was impaled through the heart, Tōshirō's Bankai causing his body to near instantly be engulfed in ice from the inside!
"You shouldn't make threats you can't deliver on," Aizen's frozen corpse spoke, "It makes you appear weak." The Aizen within the ice vanished, and Tōshirō fell to the ground as a Zanpakutō suddenly appeared within his chest. "I warned you, didn't I? You're already under my perfect hypnosis." The two lieutenants watched in horror as Tōshirō collapsed, critically injured, and Aizen simply appeared behind the boy. "As entertaining as this has been, and honestly this has been the most entertainment I've had in days, I'm afraid I must be going." Then, in a swirl of white cloth, he vanished.
Isane was the first to snap out of her frozen state. "Matsumoto-san! Quickly, find where Aizen went and alert all the officers while I try to stabilize Captain Hitsugaya!" Shaking herself slightly, Rangiku rushed to do as Isane instructed. Removing a pouch of black powder from her robes, she drew the necessary circle and symbols before casting Bakudō #58 Kakushitsuijaku and beginning her search. Meanwhile, Isane drew her own Zanpakutō. Holding it horizontally before her, one hand on the tip and the other on the pommel, the silver-haired lieutenant slammed her palms together and declared, "Fracture and shine, Kesshōgiri!" Isane's Zanpakutō broke into tiny motes of light which then floated around her and coalesced into a dozen jade crystals, each twice the size of her fist. The crystals slowly orbited around the woman, moving from in front of her waist to above and behind her head. She swiftly grabbed two crystals and stabbed them into Tōshirō's gaping chest wound. Even as the healing energy of Kaidō flowed into him, she grabbed a third crystal and stabbed it into his heart. Once all three were pouring their stored Kaidō into his body, she placed her hands over his body and began channeling her own healing energies into the young captain.
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Elsewhere, Tatsuki ran through the Seireitei's streets, heading for the rendezvous point with Nemu in her arms. While she'd have preferred not to use a bridal carry so her arms would be free, Nemu's weakness from prolonged exposure to Sekkiseki and being considerably larger than Tatsuki made most other positions impractical. As she leapt over a wall in the way, she heard her passenger speak up, "Arisawa-kun?" Tatsuki made an inquisitive grunt, showing she'd heard. "Thank you. All of you. Thank you for saving me."
"Don't mention it," Was her gruff reply. The tomboy didn't know Nemu all that well, having only seen her once or twice outside of class. But that wasn't what mattered. What mattered was, "Ichigo decided you needed help. That's enough for us." The young woman rounded a corner, only to skid to a stop at what awaited her. "Well, shit." Mere meters away stood Captain Ichimaru, the same bastard who had manhandled all of them little more than a week ago.
Gin drew a length of white cloth from within his robe and flung it outwards. "Run," Nemu pleaded. But it was too late. The cloth swirled around all three present rapidly. Moments later, it drew tighter then gave off a bright flash of light. When it faded, all three were back atop Sōkyoku Hill, which was in considerably worse condition than before. The cliff was flat-out gone and it was raining blood! Worse, nearby were two more men Tatsuki thought she recognized as captains.
Just then, a voice rang out, seemingly coming from every direction at once. "[Attention all officers of the Gotei 13! Captain Aizen is still alive and faked his death! He, along with Captains Ichimaru and Tosen, have killed the Central 46 and conspired against Soul Society! Captain Hitsugaya has been critically injured trying to arrest Captain Aizen! I repeat, Captains Aizen, Ichimaru, and Tosen are traitors to Soul Society!]" The three traitors looked up in mild curiosity, Tosen's arms still in casts. "Well, I didn't expect to have much time anyway. But for you Ryoka, I'll make this offer," Aizen said to Tatsuki, "Hand over Kurotsuchi and you'll live."
Charging up her Dragon's Roar, Tatsuki retorted, "How about I fry your ass instead?" She opened wide to blast the man, only for him to appear in front of her and flick her mouth closed with a single finger. Despite the casualness of the motion, her mouth snapped shut with enough force to break her teeth along with her jaw. A simple shove sent her flying backwards with broken ribs, landing next to Ichigo's downed form (and damned if she didn't kick herself for not noticing him earlier). Just before she lost consciousness entirely, she saw the blood staining the ground suddenly disappear and a large green creature moving towards them.
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Unohana didn't bother to watch as her Shikai swallowed both of the Ryoka and flew away. They'd be safe within its stomach while its restorative stomach acids worked on healing them. Instead, she focused on the three traitors before her. "I must admit, I didn't expect you to be a part of this, Captain- no, Tosen. Didn't you always profess a love of justice and a desire to 'follow the path of least bloodshed'?"
"The path I follow is the path of least bloodshed! And that makes it just!" The blind traitor insisted.
Unohana fought the urge to roll her eyes. This was hardly the first time she'd heard someone claim to be acting for "justice" or "the greater good" or some such when they rebelled against Soul Society. Once in a while, those saying it actually meant it. But the only one who wasn't delusional at best was one who wanted to have an army of Shinigami march on Hueco Mundo and wipe out all Hollows entirely. That one was merely short-sighted rather than irrational. Still, she was without her Zanpakutō and more drained than she'd care to admit. Tosen wasn't a threat at the moment, but she still had two Captains to contend with. With a stomp of her foot, the ravenette declared, "Bakudō #21, Sekienton." As a red cloud of smoke exploded from her location, she silently cast Bakudō #26, Kyokkō, causing her to fade from view. Unohana used Shunpo to appear behind Aizen, lined up so she would hit Ichimaru as well with her next attack. "Limit of the thousands hands, respectful hands, unable to touch the darkness. Shooting hands unable to reflect the blue sky." Before she could finish, she found herself engulfed in Kurohitsugi for the second time that day, this time cast by someone else. Spears penetrated her flesh over and over within the darkness. As it dispersed, she collapsed to the ground, too injured to keep fighting without her Bankai's regeneration.
"My, a level 90 Hadō without incantation? That's awfully scary, Captain Aizen," Gin commented lightly. Inwardly, he was relieved Aizen had managed to take out Unohana. He wasn't even aware of where she was before Aizen had attacked.
Aizen shook his head as he moved to pick up the still weakened Nemu. "No, it was a failure. I barely managed a third of its power. Still, sufficient to accomplish what it had to." He roughly lifted Nemu by her robe as he took a capsule out of his pocket. "You know, this would have been much easier for me if you had just been executed. I wouldn't even have needed to expose myself. Your soul would have been destroyed utterly and the Hōgyoku undamaged. Thankfully, I had a contingency." Aizen crushed the capsule and a strange brownish substance flowed over his arm. He thrust his hand into her chest and watched in fascination as her body simply… flowed away from it, leaving a perfectly round hole, an unassuming marble sitting within. "So this is the Hōgyoku. Such a simple vessel for such a magnificent device," Aizen mused. He was slightly surprised to see the hole in Nemu's chest sealing up, leaving behind only unmarred skin. "The extraction process doesn't even harm the vessel? Urahara truly was a genius, I must say. Still, I suppose I don't need you anymore." The bespectacled man considered her for a moment. He could easily kill her; it'd require less effort than stepping on an ant. Alternately, he could have Gin do it. On the other hand… He negligently tossed her aside in the direction of the downed Unohana. "When he wakes up, tell Kurosaki it was nothing personal."
Almost immediately afterwards, captains and lieutenants arrived on the scene in bursts of Shunpo. Rangiku held the blade of Haineko to Gin's throat, one of his wrists gripped by her other hand. Meanwhile, Tosen found himself surrounded by the blades of Senbonzakura, its wielder having left the 4th Division as soon as he heard the announcement. Finally, Yoruichi and Soifon appeared beside Aizen, each pinning one of his arms to his side. Yoruichi held a dagger to Aizen's throat while Soifon had lightly pierced his chest just above his heart with Suzumebachi, a Hōmonka blooming over his robes. "Make a move and you die, traitor," Soifon threatened coldly.
"Game over, Aizen," Yoruichi uttered. She was actually mildly surprised things had gone as well as they had. Aizen was a proven traitor, he and his cohorts were trapped, and she could see about getting that pesky exile lifted soon enough. At the same time, Yamamoto arrived with his two students and his lieutenant. Moments later, Komamura appeared along with the remaining ambulatory lieutenants: Nanao, Renji, Izuru, Tetsuzaemon, Omaeda, and Momo. The last of whom was struggling to stay standing and had to be quickly supported by Renji.
Head Captain Yamamoto, looking none the worse for wear despite fighting both his students, demanded, "Surrender, traitors! You three must answer for your crimes!"
"I'm afraid I can't do that, Head Captain," Aizen refused. Right as he spoke, a massive spiderweb of cracks appeared in the sky directly overhead. The cracks widened, forming a colossal hole from which spilled forth over a dozen Gillian class Menos. Behind them was what appeared to be a massive purple eye, still half closed. From within the hole came three beams of light, each shooting towards one of the traitors. Rangiku, Soifon, and Yoruichi all quickly leapt back to avoid being caught within the beams. Though Byakuya commanded Senbonzakura to scatter as well, a few blades were trapped and instantly fell to the ground as they were cut off from their wielder.
Gin turned back to look at Rangiku as the beam enclosed him. "It's a shame," He told her, not smiling for once, "I did offer to let you come with us." All three captains rose into the air along with the very ground they had been standing on. Everyone stared in shock at what they were witnessing. Not only were the three traitors, but they had apparently sided with the Hollows they had sworn to purify.
"Truly Aizen? Allying with the Menos?" Ukitake called, his voice calm yet reproachful. The white-haired man seemed less stunned and more scolding. "Have you fallen so far?"
Down below, Momo shouted desperately up to the man she idolized, "Why?! Captain Aizen, why?!" How could her captain have done such things!? Killing the Central 46, injuring Shiro-kun, the man she'd known for so long wasn't like that! It couldn't be true! It just couldn't!
Removing his glasses, Aizen coolly answered, "Because no one else would. The rest of you were content to kneel before an empty throne atop the heavens. But no more; that intolerable vacuum shall come to an end… as I stand alone atop the heavens." With that, the traitors finally reached the opening in the sky and disappeared inside the Garganta, leaving behind their former comrades to pick up the pieces.
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AN: I had to look up human decomposition timelines (including pictures) to get that Central 46 scene done properly. And then I had to take a shower. Way worse than moving a fresh corpse. Less of a headache than trying to make a fake address for a completely unfamiliar mailing system though.
But anyway, yeah, Ichigo lost.
Isane's Shikai: Kesshōgiri (Crystal Cutter). We don't know what her canon Zanpakutō does although the name (Itekumo aka Running Snow) implies it's an ice type. We've already got two of those so I gave Isane an original Zanpakutō. The crystals are shaped like pentagonal trapezohedrons (aka a D10 but more elongated). As seen here, Isane can store various Kidō in the crystals for later usage, perfect for when she's low on energy or dealing with some serious shit. It also has other uses, which we'll see later.
There is one more chapter for the Soul Society Arc, a little wrap-up to manage loose ends, then two chapters (three at most) that will act as a transition into the Arrancar Arc.
Next time on Vow of the King! Kūkaku takes a big load and Nemu gets everything that's coming to her.