This place inside my mind

A place I like to hide

You don't know the chances

What if I should die?

The walkie-talkie plummeted to the floor after Trunks finished his conversation with Vegeta. He always believed that his father and Goku would protect Earth. After Aizen's invasion left no one but Gohan, a sudden wave of fear gripped him.

With enough power to best Goku, as well as having their three strongest fighters under hypnosis, the situation seemed hopeless. Only Ichigo, Goten, and Trunks remained as the only people to not witness Aizen's Shikai, but their combined strength didn't stand a chance against multiple foes of that caliber. This meant that an unfathomable amount of people, including his mother and sister, would be lost forever. Aizen had all but guaranteed his own victory. All who opposed him were condemned to death.

Hot flashes radiated throughout his body, and his chest had tightened in on itself. With clammy palms and tunneled vision, he grabbed onto the top of a nearby shelf. He tried to compose himself, but when he leaned on the shelf, he knocked it over and tumbled down with it.

Soi Fon entered the room from the entrance to the basement and gasped at the sight of candy and products scattered on the floor. A frantic Trunks spun around and stared at her from the ground.

"What the… what happened up here?" she asked. "And what's the matter with you?"

"Stay back!" he yelled. "Please, I just… I need air!" Trunks leaped to his feet and sprinted out the door.

Soi Fon chased after him. "Hey! Where are you going!?"

Trunks raced past Jinta and flew into the distance. From the porch, Soi Fon watched him soar out of sight.

What the hell got into him? He was fine a minute ago, and then he lost his mind and ran away? What happened?

His erratic energy signal stopped moving. At least he didn't get too far.

He isolated himself into an alleyway. With his hands pressed against a brick wall, he failed to regain his sanity. Though he no longer gasped for air, his body continued to tremble. Trunks turned and slid down the wall. With his head between his knees, he gripped the roots of his hair and shut his eyes.

Only a fool would believe they could make it out unscathed. The fate of the universes depended on him, and it would only be a matter of time before he failed. He couldn't take it. Now that his worst nightmare came to light, he wished he no longer existed. He hyperventilated again as the weight of expectations became overbearing.

Soi Fon watched from a rooftop above and observed his behavior. Whatever happened did a number on him. He's in the middle of a breakdown. Maybe I can…

She used to spy on Trunks when he first arrived but stopped when Yoruichi scolded her about it after the fifth day. Since then, she came to accept that Trunks was not hostile, but she still had grown none fonder of him. His relaxed personality reminded her of Kisuke Urahara. She brushed him aside on every time they came into contact, but he wouldn't go away. When she was avoidant to anyone else, they would avoid her. When Trunks didn't, he failed to understand why.

Seeing him in this state, however, piqued her curiosity. If she waited, Kurosaki would come and allow her to overhear their discussion.

She turned and walked away. Soi Fon wouldn't break her promise to Yoruichi. It was none of her business, anyway. And yet, she stopped once she reached the edge of the building. She wrestled with the idea for another minute, then sighed.

If I do this, I better approach him with caution. Who knows the Hollows he'll attract if I drop in on him when he's like this? Soi Fon fell from the roof and walked around to the alleyway where Trunks sat.

Trunks continued to sink into despair, but when she walked in his direction, he wiped his sweat onto his shirt and turned away.

Once she stood over him, a smile forced itself onto his face. "Hey. I didn't mean to-"

"Are you feeling better now?" she asked.

He allowed his mouth to ramble. "Oh yeah, definitely better now. Sorry about all of that. I uh… had a bit of claustrophobia, that's all. Tight spaces, ya know?"

"Tight spaces? Are you-" A loud sigh left her lips before she leaned against the wall opposite Trunks. "Listen, I don't have time for lies, so don't bullshit me. The next time you do, you'll be holding your tongue in your hands." The façade on his face faded away, along with his gaze. "You just had an anxiety attack, a major one at that. Tell me what happened."

Trunks bit his lip, but answered. "Aizen invaded the Earth in my universe. There's no one left on the planet except for Goten's brother. My mother, my sister, my friends... they're all gone." The resting scowl on Soi Fon's face eased away. "One of Aizen's men defeated Goten's father, too, meaning that Aizen is a lot more powerful than we thought he could be."

"Who was it?"

Trunks looked up at her. "Huh?"

"The person who defeated his father, who was it?"

"I don't know his name, but my dad told me he was a pale guy with green eyes."

Her eyes shot open. "Ulquiorra?!"

"Who?"

"Ulquiorra Cifer, the Fourth Espada. I never encountered him, but I read his file. Kurosaki killed him in Hueco Mundo, so how could he be alive?"

"It must've been the Super Dragon Balls. They have the power to grant any wish across the multiverse. That must've been the wish Aizen made before he destroyed them."

"So all the Espada are alive again? Dammit."

"Wait, who are the Espada?"

"The Espada are Aizen's ten strongest soldiers. They number from zero to nine. Zero being the strongest, and nine the weakest."

"So Goku was… beaten by the fourth-strongest?" Soi Fon nodded, and Trunks' head sunk. "I guess that's it then. We're done for."

"Why are you so quick to give up?" Soi Fon stood up. "Get up off your ass and start training harder. Just consider what happened as more motivation to reach Bankai." She reached out her hand, and Trunks grabbed it to pull himself up.

"But what if it's not enough? What if we can't stop him?"

"If you don't trust in your abilities, you'll die. Aizen is powerful, yes, but he's also a master at psychological warfare. If you let him live in your head, he's already beaten you. So keep getting stronger and fight for what you want to protect."

She was right. Failure may have terrified him, but all he could do was try. That's what Goten was doing, it's what Ichigo was doing, it's what his father was doing, and it's what his future self did. With his spirits lifted, he smiled at Soi Fon.

"Huh?" she asked. "What's the matter with you now?"

"Nothing. I just wanted to say thanks for being here when I needed somebody."

Soi Fon crossed her arms and averted her stare. "I've witnessed plenty of Soul Reapers go through this type of ordeal, obviously not on a universal scale. Consider it repayment for helping me earlier."

"See, I knew you weren't as cold as you let on. There's a heart under that shihakusho."

Her glare returned in full force. "You're a fucking idiot, did you know that? Get the hell out of here before I split your head open."

"Alright, alright, I'll go, but before I do, I'm gonna need those files on the Espada. Make three copies and give one to Goten. I'll take the other two. Also, make sure the Soul Society knows that Aizen probably collected the souls for the Oken, and let Goten know about Earth. He won't take that well, either."

"Anything else?"

"Nope. I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"Actually, you might not. I think I'll be taking the day off from training."

"Too much gravity, huh? Well, if you're feeling sore, I'd be happy to give you a massage that'll fix you right up."

She reached behind and grasped the handle of her Zanpakuto. "So, you wanted to have your head split open. Would you like me to cut vertically along the part in your hair, or horizontally across your eyes?"

Trunks let out a nervous chuckle. He couldn't tell if she was joking or not. It became more unclear once she exposed part of her blade. "Uh, neither. Guess I'll get outta your way. See ya later!"

Trunks darted into the sky and smacked his forehead over and over. Stupid, stupid, stupid! A massage?! Who says that?! A creep! A creep says that! What the hell is wrong with me?!

Soi Fon sheathed her sword. "He's as strange as they come, but... at least he's interesting. I have to give him that"

Trunks landed back at Urahara's and opened the door into the shop to find Tessai, Kisuke, and Jinta cleaning the items from the floor. "I'll get all of that! Sorry about this, guys. I just-"

Jinta halted and bared his teeth. "First you come in and mooch, then you drop everything on the floor and run out like a crazy guy on fire. What's next-"

Tessai interrupted him. "Thank you for your help, but we'll take it from here."

Jinta grunted and walked towards the door. "Fine, I didn't wanna pick up this crap anyway."

"Hey," Trunks said. "How about we do some BP tomorrow?"

Jinta stopped. "And why would I wanna practice with you?"

"Well, I throw a mean curveball, and I've seen your batting, and I think your form needs a little work."

A fire blazed in Jinta's eyes. "You, me, tomorrow at noon. We'll see who needs a little work."

The door slammed shut behind him. Trunks turned back to Urahara, but Kisuke spoke before a word left his open mouth. "Trunks, you can take the rest of the day off, if you'd like."

"I'm okay now," Trunks said. "I-"

"There's no need to explain. I heard everything; you bounce back pretty quickly under the circumstances. Lovers have a way of lifting each other from the depths of despair, don't they?"

"Yeah, well, we can't get around it, so we- Wait, lovers?"

The door flung open, and Ichigo stood at the entrance in his school clothes, covered in sweat. "Trunks! You alright?"

"I'm fine. Aren't you supposed to be at school?"

"I'm on my lunch break. Your spiritual pressure was all over the place, so I ran over here. What happened?" Ichigo raised his eyebrows to the mess below. "And what the hell kinda tornado hit this place?"

"I'll clean this up and then I'll tell you."

"Let me help. It'll be faster that way." After the group cleaned up the mess and placed the shelf upright again, Urahara, Trunks, and Ichigo sat down to listen to Trunks explain the situation. When Trunks spoke about Goku's defeat at the hands of Ulquiorra, Ichigo almost jumped out of his skin.

"Ulquiorra's alive?!" he asked. "No way. Orihime and I saw him turn to dust right in front of us! And there's no way he could be that strong!"

"It must've been the Hogyoku," Kisuke said. "Aizen desired the strength that the Saiyans had attained. It granted his desires, slowly, but surely. I'm sure that's why it's taken him a couple of years to come out of hiding. That and tracking down those planet-sized orbs you spoke about, Trunks."

Trunks nodded. "On that subject, Aizen must've used the Super Dragon Balls to revive the Espada, or even his entire army. He knows you can't use the Universe Seven Dragon Balls for Universe Six, so that confirms the wish he made with that set. But the Earth ones… I've been thinking that one wish was used to create whatever device he's stealing souls with, but I can't figure out the other one."

"Could it have been for immortality?"

Ichigo gasped. "You can wish for that?"

"Yeah," Trunks said. "I've been leaning towards that, but I wanna keep all options on the table. That would be the worst outcome."

"Well, it wouldn't be the best, but it's not as bad as you might believe," Kisuke said.

"Huh?" Trunks sat forward in curiosity. "You know how to beat someone who's immortal?"

Ichigo leaned back into his palms. "Of course he does. This is Kisuke we're talking about."

"It's not impossible to beat immortality," Kisuke said. "But I think it'd be better to discuss that later. Right now, I think it's time for you to form a relationship with your Zanpakuto."

"You read my mind on that one," Ichigo said. "I've been waiting till you got used to swinging your sword, but it's time you met Old Man Zangetsu."

Trunks turned his head to Ichigo. "Yeah, but you can't skip class for this."

"Oh, I won't. I'll show you, and then I'll come back later and we'll keep training." Ichigo turned to Urahara. "Hell, if he gets the hang of Shikai fast enough, we can use that doll again and he'll learn Bankai in no time, right?"

"Wait," Trunks interjected. "I thought Bankai took a while to master."

"It does," Kisuke replied. "And I think it would be better that it does." Kisuke addressed Ichigo. "The Tenshintai that you used to attain Bankai helped in the short term, but from what you told me, your nearly died in your fight against Byakuya because your Bankai was too much for you to handle. That's one of the adverse effects of the Tenshintai."

"But we still have six months," Ichigo said as he sat forward. "We can train after so that he doesn't have that happen."

"That may be, but a Zanpakuto prefers for its wielder to establish a rapport with it before you force it into submission. I've learned the hard way with Benihime, and I'm sure you've had a rocky relationship with your Zangetsu, Ichigo."

Ichigo groaned. "So, we just have to cross our fingers and hope he'll learn Bankai in time?"

"If not, we'll force it out. But Trunks is a fast learner, so it shouldn't be a problem. Now, head to the basement and get started."

Trunks and Ichigo went down training grounds below. Once there, Ichigo turned toward Trunks. "Alright. So first, get out your Zanpakuto."

"Got it," Trunks said. He summoned his sword and drew it from his back.

"Now, you're gonna sit down, put your Zanpakuto on your lap, and meditate."

"That's all?"

"Yup, that's the way my dad showed me."

Trunks did just as Ichigo said, but before he shut his eyes, Trunks looked up to Ichigo. "So, what should I expect?"

"He's… I guess he's fine. lf you're lucky, you'll learn the Getsuga Tensho today. Anyway, I'm gonna head back to school. I'll see ya later, alright?"

"See you later."

Once Ichigo departed, Trunks closed his eyes and tried to clear his mind. He breathed through his nose and relaxed in the quiet space.

Within a minute, he opened his eyes to find himself seated on the side of a building.

"What the hell? Why am I-" Before he finished, he plummeted toward the street below. He saved himself by flying. "Why does nobody give me a heads up on these sorts of things?"

In front of him, a cityscape stretched as far as his eyes could see. Below, the skyscrapers stood in a few meters of water, and above his head rested a deep blue sky with few clouds. At the top of the building beside him, something black waved in the wind. Trunks flew up to the roof and landed in its center. Planted on a pole that protruded from the building, a raven-haired man gazed at the city.

"You've finally come, Trunks," the deep voice said.

"Are you Zangetsu?" he asked.

"I am. Welcome to your inner world."

"Thanks. It's nice to meet you. You don't look as old as Ichigo said you did."

"Why have you come?"

"Huh?"

"What are you doing here in this world?"

"Well, I came to meet you, of course."

"But what is your purpose in meeting me?"

Trunks paused, then walked toward Zangetsu. "I came here because I need the power to beat Aizen. I need your help."

"If you want to request my help, then prove you are worthy."

Before Trunks replied, a sword swung at the side of his head. He ducked under, then dodged a strike that came from above by somersaulting over Zangetsu's head. Zangetsu turned and lept from the pole and onto the rooftop.

"Are warnings not allowed in this universe or something?!" Trunks yelled.

"Do you think your enemy will warn you when they will attack?" Zangetsu said.

"That's… a fair point, but I wasn't considering you my enemy when I met you for all of thirty seconds."

"No matter what the situation, you must always stay on your guard. Draw your Zanpakuto and prepare for battle."

"Sure." Trunks summoned his sword and drew it to his side, as he stepped back and readied himself to fight. He made the first move, charging at Zangetsu and feinting a head-on attack for a slash to his side. Zangetsu parried and launched a series of high-speed strikes at Trunks. He had no time to do anything but block.

Goddammit! Ichigo couldn't at least tell me this guy's a master fucking swordsman?! When he get's back, I'm gonna beat his ass.

Once he picked up Zangetsu's patterns, Trunks slipped past a vertical swing and created distance between them.

Zangetsu stood straight. "Why are you hesitant to strike me?"

"Well, I'm trying," Trunks said. "But you're pretty good at this."

"That's not what I meant. You had multiple chances to cut me, but you chose not to take them. What is holding you back?"

Trunks' eyes lit up. "But… how'd you know that?"

"I know you, Trunks, just as you should know me. Why do you hesitate?"

"Because… why would I cut you when I'm trying to make you my ally?"

"Do I not stand in your way to power? Is that not the entire reason you have come here? If you want to prove your resolve and attain more strength, then come at me and don't restrain yourself."

Trunks nodded, as he powered up to his maximum at Pseudo Blue. "I hope you're ready for this." He lunged toward Zangetsu and distracted him with a series of afterimages. He then appeared behind him and placed the blade on his neck.

"I can give you a clean shave if you wanna keep going," Trunks said.

"That won't be necessary." Zangetsu lowered his sword. "You have shown me you are ready." Trunks powered down and placed his sword back in its scabbard. "Before I teach you anything, tell me, what is it you're afraid of?"

Trunks sighed. It was pointless to hold back. "I guess… I'm afraid of losing it all, and I guess I'm afraid of dying, too."

"Trunks, if you place your trust in me, I will not let you fall. Abandon your fear and move forward."

"Thanks, Zangetsu." Trunks shook hands with the man before he teleported out of the world. With Trunks gone, Zangetsu leaped back onto the pole he had perched on before.

A presence emerged from the shadows. "So, what do you think?"

Zangetsu continued to face outward. "He must grow more, but there is promise in him. As long as he does not give in to his despair, he will gain a great deal of power."

"Hmph, but he already has. It's looking like that body's gonna be mine soon enough."

"That may be. It's already begun to rain."

Trunks jolted himself out of his meditation and found himself back inside of Urahara's basement.

"Well, that was fun." He grabbed his Zanpakuto from his lap and stood. It was as if Zangetsu imbued his mind with knowledge after their handshake.

"Might as well try this now." He pulled his sword behind his shoulder and channeled his energy through the blade. "Getsuga, Tensho!"

He swung his Zanpakuto downward and launched a slash of energy towards a boulder.

"Aw, yeah. I did it!" The minor damage inflicted on the boulder tapered his excitement. "But why is mine so small? Guess I gotta practice before Ichigo tries to clown me."

On the Squad Ten training grounds, Goten's eyes scanned through a file delivered by a member of the Stealth Force.

"So, what does it say?" Toshiro asked from behind.

Without turning around, Goten handed him the file. "Here, read it for yourself."

Toshiro took it for himself. Once he read through the details, his eyes lit up.

"Goten, I'm-" Goten's pronounced breath stopped him. His hair spiked up, and violent bioelectricity surrounded the area.

"My mom, my niece, my friends. They're all gone! And they beat my brother and my dad. Dammit!"

Toshiro didn't know what to say to him, but soon enough, the electricity receded. Goten took a deep breath, then turned back to Toshiro.

"Sorry about that," he said. "I just needed to let off a little steam."

"It's okay, I understand. I'm sorry, Goten."

Goten's smile made a partial return. "It's fine. Now I have a little more skin in the game."

"We can take the rest of the day off if you want to."

"No sir, I'll go back to my inner world in a second. But first, you still have to show me that energy ball."

Toshiro clasped his hands together, then separated them. A yellow energy ball the size of an orange appeared between them.

"Hey, we got a fast learner over here," Goten said.

Toshiro held the ball up with one hand. "Well, it's not that difficult."

"Then I guess you're ready to learn how to fly, and if you learn that fast enough, I can teach you a bunch of things you can do with energy."

"Hmph, it's almost like you forget you're the one that came to train."

"Don't worry, I'm getting my training in. I think Hyorinmaru likes me... anyway…" Goten's voice trailed off as the energy Toshiro held became unstable. "Wait, stay focused or you'll-"

The ball exploded in Toshiro's and Goten's faces. Hitsugaya's mouth fell open, but Goten gripped his sides and dropped to the ground in laughter.

"I uh… didn't think that would happen," Toshiro said with smoke in his face.

Goten controlled himself. "Guess we both got our work cut out for us."