Reaper of Rome chapter 7- final clashes
this chapter will cover roughly the events of episodes 51-59
but I will only cover the content Ichigo and Rukia directly view.
there will be lots of battles that the characters will only be able to see the start of but not know how they end.
Ichigo pov
It was while I slept, I woke up in my inner world with a strange visitor. It was a girl that looked younger than I did and said, "do you know who I am Ichigo?" I didn't know but felt like I should know who she was, and I said "I am your mother Diana at least one of your mothers. I have some good news for you. When you are ready to save Rukia at least half the captains will be on your side for one reason or another. But you will still have to defeat that man who is at least as stubborn as my father. Your friends are all alive and free and I can say that Zaraki and his two underlings are very funny and very insane. But he is fighting two very strange warriors. I can't say how strange they are, but I will show you the fight. You won't need to wake up so watch some battle tv with your mom."
It was then a round tv, and a couch showed up as I help old man Zangetsu staring in the background while seemingly avoid my mother's gaze. I wondered why as we saw Zaraki tank the first attack from a masked man. It was then another round tv showed up and showed Renji and his battle against Rukia's brother. But my mother said "pineapple head can't win. but you need to see this fight. Even a little edge will prepare you."
I saw Renji escape the man's first attack with ease and then Renji revealed his bankai as my mother said, "he hasn't had the time to master it, you barely had time either but yours isn't that complex." Said bankai took the form of a giant skeletal snake and said snake did lots of damage but wasn't enough to fight a more complex zanpakuto than Byakuya's but Renji was able to counter in his own ways. But the captain's mastery of quickly turned the tide of battle then when Byakuya revealed his bankai and how it ripped Renji to shreds I knew I would have to find a way to counter. I was also shocked by the fact Renji was still able to make one last attack after his skin was ripped by all the blades. Renji managed to make the man bleed, but I knew I would need to be more and do more. I wasn't completely sure how my bankai worked other than I would have a vague idea when I did. It was then she told me "my brother is hiding among the Seireitei healing soul reapers, I wouldn't be shocked if he knows I was watching and healing Renji up."
Rukia pov
It was as I was being moved, I could tell Renji had lost his battle against my brother. It was when I tried to reach him, captain Ichimaru came to talk to me. I remembered how much I disliked him in the past and about our first meeting. He seemed to bring out primal fears in me. He then told me Renji was evil but not in good shape. It was then Gin said he would save me and took it back at the last second. That gave me hope and instantly shattered said hope all over again.
Ichigo pov
It was then I saw Zaraki battle and demolish the two other captains, and then asked them to show off their bankais. It was after that the captain of African origin explained how to become a captain and with that, I was sure I could become one if I managed to save Rukia and convince the others I wasn't a problem. I also learned Zaraki got his job by defeating the previous captain of his squad. The captain named Kaname seemed to hate everything Zaraki stood for. It was after that I saw his bankai and then the screen went dark. As my mother said "sadly his bankai is soon kind of dark field we can't investigate. Well, I guess you need to get up and have a good breakfast."
It was then, I woke up with a pack of ambrosia and a bento box shaped like a crescent moon next to me. The woman that could change into a cat said, "I have no idea how either of those showed up, but I didn't make them." I then told her about how my mother did it and how she wasn't the only roman god wondering about the soul society right now. It was then we began running at high speed to the site to save Rukia.
Rukia pov
It was a little later that I finally made it to the site and saw all the captains watch on as I was about to be executed. But I and at least one other captain noticed there were a few captains missing that should be watching as well. As things were about to begin, I saw my brother arrive. Then the captain commander asked about my last words, and I said "yes, just one." I asked him to return my friends home unharmed and with that I resigned myself to death.
It was then he ordered the Kido corpse to release the seal on the weapon that would be my death. I then gave everybody silent thanks as I rose above the ground. I then watched in awe as the spear turned into a flaming bird. as it was about to attack, I only regretted not hearing an answer from Ichigo. I then closed my eyes as the bird was about to devour me. I then closed my eyes waiting for it to end but before it did, I saw Ichigo and heard his voice say "hey, I love you stupid so you can't die now. Just give me answer when this is over." I then called him and idiot and told him he can't defeat my brother, but he replied with "my mother just told me I could." I then remembered how he battled over his mother's grave, part of me needed to live just to know who talked to him. as all the captains stared in awe as he blocked and then was about to stop the flaming bird.
But then my captain and captain Kyoraku used a strange object to bind the flaming bird and from the sounds of captain Soifon said they were about to destroy the bird. Then the device shattered it to piece and Ichigo used his zanpakuto to free me from the stand. He then said, "when I win you will give me your answer, I wont here anything else until then." I then asked, "how do you plan to get out of here?" He said "we will run all the way to camp Jupiter if I have to and I will kick as many asses as I need to. It was then Ichigo tossed me like a screaming missile toward Renji as I had to think how I felt about Ichigo. When he landed Ichigo told Renji to protect me with his life. Renji then ran with me as others were about to make chase.
Ichigo pov
As three lieutenants tried to stand in my way, I quickly defeated the three with silver knuckles and blocked Rukia's brother as he tried to attack me. I knew from that point how much I grew in so little time, just by being able to track his movements and I knew from the battle with Renji how to counter it.
Our battle then started with a clash of ideals about why I had to save Rukia and why her own brother wouldn't. he then tried a spirit burst attack but I countered him as he promised to kill me then kill Rukia himself
Rukia pov
As Renji ran with me in his arms, I wanted to go back and help but he then asked me "are your powers back yep? Because I am in recovering from the beating your brother gave me and if that strange man did patch up my wounds, I would be dead." I then asked, "what strange man and what he did say to you?" Renji replied with "don't let her die a second time around." He then said the man also told him "No time to talk, I have more people to heal." As we ran, I thought about Ichigo saying he loved me, and I was starting to plan on what to say back. I knew if he came back alive, I would have to give him an answer. I knew I loved him the same way but wasn't sure if dating would work between a human and a soul reaper. It was as we ran, I felt three other powerful being come down close. Then I felt two more power fall as well. I just hoped they weren't all coming toward us.
I then felt many soul reapers clashing all around us, so many huge powers clashing I could only tell Renji "Keep running, we don't want any of these people to catch us." it took me a little to figure out my captain was in a battle with the captain-commander. I only knew the man was the oldest soul reaper in the Seireitei and extremely strong but knew nothing about his zanpakuto. But to be fair, due to his constant attacks on illness, I never got to see my captains release zanpakuto. I just knew it was one of the two dual zanpakuto and that meant their personalities had two sides. At least that was the running theory behind double zanpakuto. I didn't even know what their zanpakutos did since they rarely had a need to go into battle.
The other soul reaper I had no idea of was soifon, the rumor about her was soifon was just a code name and she wasn't going by her given name. I knew her division had merged with the stealth force, and they used to manage a prison but that's about it. I just heard about her clan being a vassal clan to another clan. I also heard she changed after the incident that happened a little before my adoption into the Kuchiki clan but never had time or desire to look into what happened. I heard my brother was married but I didn't know much beyond that fact. I knew if this problem was resolved in a peaceful way I was going to have lots of questions for him.
Ichigo pov
I was sure the entire soul society could feel the exchanges between the two of us. I could tell in the early stages of our battle that Byakuya wasn't taking me seriously and I wanted him to use that bankai against me. but he just tried his shikai which I quickly countered with the spirit burst attacked I now knew was called Getsuga Tensho, to blow away the first wave of petals and damage the soul reaper more than Renji ever could. When I told my mother its name, she liked its meaning.
It was then the man unleashed his bankai and I prepared to counter as I said, "I saw this and how to counter it." but the waves of blade petals were harder to counter than I guessed. But at least I faired better than Renji did, and I knew I would need to go to the next stage as I revealed to the man before me, "I mastered by bankai yesterday." He didn't believe I had mastered my bankai so fast. It was when I did activate my bankai, even I was shocked by how much spirit power, I called to me and compressed. But as I did, Byakuya stared at me in awe. The release expelled power in his direct and then turned all the compressed spirit power into knew robes for me. The release was called Tensa Zangetsu and when my opponent saw it, he guessed it was just a normal blade, since it looked like a plain katana but didn't guess my bankai wasn't just the sword but my entire outfit. It compressed my spirit power to enhance my abilities.
Byakuya still couldn't accept what my bankai was but as I was about to dodge the petals of his bankai effortlessly, the man kept trying to strike me. but in time I was able counter this blade with my zanpakuto and then get in a good stab. It was then he figured out the nature of my bankai and accepted what it was. but it was then he prepared his own counter for me.
Rukia pov
It was as Renji carried me, I could feel my brother and Ichigo clashing spirit pressures and with that figured he had gained bankai in such a short time. Renji even asked me "is this kid some kind of Hitsugaya level prodigy?" I just said, "he may be even better, given his growth rate I would say Ichigo could be stronger than our youngest captain in less than a year." He then asked me "do you like him as more that a friend?" i felt my face flush as he said that and didn't respond leaving him to guess he likely didn't match up.
Ichigo pov
It was after that last attack, Rukia's brother revealed his bankai's true form, it was like a relam full of blades. He then revealed it would let him make as many more powerful swords as liked to take me down with his own hands. It was then we clashed blades over and I started to tell my body hadn't caught up to my bankai as I started to slow down, and my opponent managed to pin me down and then hit me with a lightning hado. I then thought it was over with that attack as Byakuya confirmed my body would need to adjust to using my bankai a little more. It was then he was about to do a finishing attack on me when my vision went blank in the need win. I then watched thought my eyes as my body attacked and the distorted voice of the white version of me explained what I had guessed as he used a black spiral Getsuga to counter the captain.
It was before the one controlling my body could fully defeat Rukia's brother that I took back control and forced the half mask off myself. With that we both knew we had one last attack in each of us and as we prepared to end this, I asked "why didn't you save Rukia?" he replied with "if you win this, I will tell you." With that he formed white wings as I compressed my remaining power with the little power, I could draw from the daytime moon and used that in one last attack to take down strike then told myself up. but the captain didn't have nearly as much resolve left. He then told me "He followed the law to its letter." It was then he promised to no longer chase his sister down as he walked away. It was then my friends showed up behind me as I fell. Then I heard my former opponent fall as well. it was then I wondered who was really behind all of this.
Chapter end
Next chapter Ichigo will learn the true reason for Rukia's execution, and they will both finally get all the answers they want. And set to the path of their next journeys.
But first Katerina will have a little more peace before being drawn into something even dangerous for a Campione.
For updates
week of 7/30/23 the hero becomes the villainess or not
week of 8/6/23 reaper of Rome [end of SS arc]
week of 8/13/23 the hero becomes the villainess or not [ end of season 1]
week of 8/20/23 reaper of Rome
week of 8/27/23 the hero becomes the villainess or not
dates subject to change
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