Chapter 43: Human World

Minata's POV

"Hey Minata!"

As soon as I hear my name, I turned to see Rangiku and Renji looking at me as we continued to travel through the Dangai. The small group that was traveling to the Human World turned out to be a large party, with Captain Hitsugaya and Captain Soi Fon leading the excursion. Captain Kurotsuchi had managed to figure out a way to stop Muramasa's brainwashing, so everyone's respective zanpakuto spirits had been un-brainwashed and were finally back on our side.

"Yes Rangiku?" I ask with an eyebrow raised. "Is there something on your mind? You look a little troubled."

"I was just wondering, how you've been doing, you know, with the recent events that've occurred," she tells me with a rare unsure look on her usually confident face. "It's not every day when the person you consider your closest friend decides to jump ship to join the dark side, especially when you just started a relationship with him."

I could see it in her eyes that she was thinking about Gin and what happened during the previous war. It must have shocked her to the bone when she found out that the former 3rd Division captain was working as one of Aizen's most loyal subordinates. To this day, no one knows the real reason why Gin became a turncoat, and I doubt he would ever tell if he was still alive.

Ichimaru Gin wasn't one for explaining his reasoning behind his decisions.

"Yes, it's definitely a shocker when a person you've known for years decides to forsake one side to join the other," I tell her with a small shake of my head, even though I didn't put much emphasis in my words.

Unlike everyone else, Mizukiri and I knew the full explanation as to why Byakuya sided with Muramasa in the first place. For the sake of his mission, he had to do the unthinkable in order to get it done, and if I have to lie in order to help him succeed, then so be it. "I always believed in the idea of everyone having a reason behind their actions, and that includes Captain Kuchiki. He must have a reason for his."

"Minata, may I ask you something?" Renji quickly asks before Rangiku could say anything else. "Did Captain Kuchiki act strangely before he defected? Was there anything off about him in the days prior to Muramasa making himself known? I asked Rukia this question already, but she told me that her brother acted completely normal, well, normal for him that is."

"If you were hoping for a different answer Renji, I'm sorry to disappoint you," I say as I see the exit appearing in the near distance. "I never saw Byakuya acting strange or doing something unusual. He seemed perfectly fine to me."

"Well that's just great. I figured if anyone would notice any strange behavior from Captain Kuchiki, it would be you," Renji replies in defeat as brushes a hand across his forehead. "I just don't get it. Why would Captain Kuchiki betray the Soul Society? It's unusual for someone like him to do such a thing. He's all about law and order and society, not breaking the rules and going rogue!"

"I don't get his logic either," I lie with a thoughtful look on my face. "Hopefully, we'll get some answers from him once this is all over."

"Well, if he decides to give us answers . . ." Renji mumbles as he starts to run ahead of me, his zanpakuto following closely at his heels. When we entered the Human World, the dimensional portal dropped us off in the air above the park. Gilians were walking about all around us, paying us no mind for the moment.

"Well that's a lot of Hollows!" Shika says with an annoyed hiss as we take in our surroundings. "Where did they all come from?"

"Who knows?" Soi Fon quickly says with an irritated look. "Right now, let's try to find the others. They should be with Captain Kuchiki, and they are our best shot at finding answers. Now move!"

Byakuya's POV

Who knew one zanpakuto spirit could cause so much trouble?

It was all I could think about as I look at the spirit-turned-Hollow before us. His reiatsu was unpredictable at best, fluctuating all over the place as Hollows and Gillians begin to pour out of a Garganta in response to it. In the span of just mere minutes, Muramasa had fused with a large number of those Hollows to become a large dome-like structure. Senbonzakura and I have managed to eliminate a number of Gillians, but they continue to appear due to the open Garganta, and with the number advantage being on the Hollows' side, it'll be a hard task to defeat them all with the small number on our side.

As soon as I felt the spike in Rukia's spiritual pressure, as well as the multitude of spiritual pressures that have suddenly arrived on the scene, I turn to see shinigami from most of the divisions standing in the sky with their zanpakuto spirits side by side with them.

"It appears that Muramasa no longer has control over the other spirits," Senbonzakura says for me as we look at the others. "There's more numbers on our side. That should better our odds now."

"True, but we have something else to worry about," I tell him as I turn my gaze toward the opening. "There will be no end to this battle as long as that Garganta remains open. We need to seal it."

"That will require a huge amount of spiritual power," Senbonzakura says with mild worry in his tone as we shunpo closer to the opening. "An amount that we may not be capable of together, especially since we haven't replenished our full power just yet."

"I understand your worry Senbonzakura, but we have to do this," I tell him with a stern look on my face as I start to raise my spiritual pressure. "Besides, I don't see you thinking of any other suggestions."

"That's because I don't have any at the moment . . . If you excuse me, I'll start sealing the Garganta from the other end."

And with that, Senbonzakura quickly reappears at the other end of the Garganta, his spiritual pressure rising to reach my level. We simultaneously launch our strongest attack at the portal, and it starts to seal upon impact. However, from the get go, I knew it would be a slow process. At this pace, both mine and Senbonzakura's spiritual pressure will become depleted before the Garganta is finally sealed.

I realize that the only way the Garganta would be sealed is if more spiritual pressure was added on to the mix. Unfortunately, I have too much pride to ask the others for help. Some of them may not want to help me anyway, considering my actions in the Zanpakuto Rebellion. I do not blame them for the opinions they may have of me right now. If they do not want to help, I understand . . .

Master, can you sense that? Can you sense the spiritual pressure?

The sound of my zanpakuto speaking to me catches my attention just as I realized that the Garganta was now closing even further that I had anticipated. I did not need to turn my head to see what was happening. I could simply feel it; the flow of spiritual pressure from the other shinigami. Captain Hitsugaya . . . Abarai . . . I could even feel Mina's spiritual pressure in the mix.

I do not show it on my face, but I am happy.

I guess the sense of duty really can bring people together.

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