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"Rukia" – Normal Speech

'Ichigo' – Thoughts

*Kaien-dono* - Zanpakutō speech/thoughts

"Bankai!" – Spiritual Technique

Chapter 27: Danger in the Kurosaki Clinic: Ban And Hō Strike Back

Minutes Later

Ichimaru Gin's Hideout, Kasazaki District, Karakura Town

The place that Ichimaru Gin eventually led her was in Kasazaki, nearly on the opposite side of Karakura from the Minamikawase ward where the Kurosaki Clinic and home was located; near where the border where the Mashiba, Sakurabashi, and Kasazaki wards met. The hideout itself was a very plain-looking single bedroom apartment, utterly bare of anything barring a pair of comfortable armchairs facing each other in the living room.

"How the hell did you set up this place right under Aizen's nose?" Kirika asked, looking around the empty apartment.

"I didn't. He was the one who had me set this place up in the first place in case we ever had need ta use it. Aizen-taichō's the type that likes to have a hundred little backups ready and waiting to correct for 'minor' disruptions in his plans. That man's th' type that hates whenever something happens that he ain't ready ta react to or take advantage of, as ya probably already noticed." Ichimaru replied absently, taking a seat in one of the armchairs. "It's actually on th' books back in the Seireitei as well, just 'misfiled' in the midst of a hundred-odd pages of minutia. Livin' fer so long means usually means that Soul Reapers pick up quite a few hobbies, and figurin' out creative ways to hide things right under the Seireitei's nose was one of Aizen's.

Kirika could only roll her eyes at the sheer idiocy of it all. Seriously, why didn't they have an entire division dedicated to keep all the damn paperwork the Goteijūsantai created organized? She didn't include the idiots of the stupid Daireishokairō (Great Spirit Book Gallery) that was under the sole jurisdiction of the Central 46, since it was technically little more than a spiritual computer and database. Honestly, even just having a dedicated subdivision (that wasn't a part of Squad 4!) that was tasked with auditing and ensuring all the paperwork was in the right place would have made things a lot harder for Aizen and his plans.

At the very least, it would have forced him to spread the effects of Kyōka Suigetsu a lot farther.

The sole survivor of one of Aizen's damnable experiments did not believe for an instant that Aizen's Zanpakutō was anywhere near as powerful and godlike as he liked to make it seem, particularly when it was only in its Shikai form. Yes, it had proven already that it could entrap and hypnotize all five senses of anyone who had seen it being released, but so far, Aizen had only ever used it on either individuals or on small groups at most, never using it on a large crowd. In fact, Aizen was rather famous for rarely using his Shikai in public. That spoke of some kind of weakness or limit to Kirika; a limited number of people that it could ensnare at once or maybe even a limit on just how many people he could keep locked under his 'Absolute Hypnotism' at once.

It was just a question of finding some way to prove it or figure more of it out…

"So? What exactly did you want from me?" Kirika asked, refocusing on the matter at hand as she sat down opposite of Ichimaru and crossed her legs. "We've been a bit preoccupied dealing with the Bount."

"Ah…them." the snakelike man smirked slightly. "Seems like all the past sins and dark, deep, and dirty secrets of the Central 46 are suddenly comin' back ta haunt the Seireitei now that the idiots that caused 'em are gone. Aside from the creation of the Visored 'bout a century ago, this is the weakest the Goteijūsantai's been since they were founded. So it's not really a surprise that the Bount are making their move now, Kariya Jin is a canny character and he'd not let that kind of opportunity pass him be.

"You know him?" Kirika asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Not personally, he was in the wind long before I even joined the Goteijūsantai." Ichimaru denied simply. "I know 'bout him because Aizen-taichō researched him, and several others, to see if he'd make a good pawn for his plans. Afraid it didn't pan out cause old Jinny-boy's got more screws loose that a run-down mental asylum. The man is utterly obsessed with his revenge and is nutty enough to bring about doomsday to get it. Aizen-taichō discarded the idea after he realized the man would be too unpredictable to properly control."

"Yeah, his ex-wife seems to agree with him on that." the girl offered dryly.

"Ha. Nah, that lady is only workin' with half of th' picture." the traitorous former Captain offered with a smirk. "See, he ain't just after revenge on the Seireitei; Kariya Jin got another target he's gunning for…he wants his revenge against his fellow Bount as well."

"Hah?!" Kirika couldn't stop her jaw from dropping slightly. "Why!?"

"From what Aizen-taichō managed to dig up on him, it's 'cause he was the very first Bount to awaken his Doll. He was apparently ostracized by the rest of 'em for that even while they were being hunted down by the Goteijūsantai and had to deal with the Hollows constantly hunting them." Ichimaru informed the New Soul blandly. "He apparently dreamed of using his newfound power to lead the Bount and have 'em create a separate, hidden civilization somewhere in the Human World, but apparently his fellows refused to listen to him. The man doesn't give a care about any of the Bount, humans, or really anything anymore except for his grand scheme of revenge. As to exactly what that plan is…I haven't got a clue. All I know is that it involves somethin' in the Seireitei called the Jōkaishō (Emblem of a Buddha-Field), which was apparently involved in how the Bount were originally created in some kind of accident centuries ago."

"A blast from just one of those things going critical destroyed a full tenth of the entire Seireitei." Kirika stated, worrying at her lip. "Depending on how many of them are left, if he can somehow harness all of them and have them build up to that same level, he could theoretically wipe the entirety of the Seireitei out of existence at once."

"And that right there is probably his big endgame move, but how he plans to get to it is anyone's guess." Gin agreed with an absent nod. "But in order to do anything, he would have to get himself and his minions inta the Soul Society itself. Don't have a clue how he hopes to do that without one of Kisuke's little inventions, but given that Kariya is basically a small-scale version of Aizen-taichō, I don't doubt he's got somethin' in mind. He wouldn't make a move like this if he didn't. Right now, the current stage of his plan seems to focus on gatherin' power and getting' his hands on whatever materials he needs to create whatever tool or method he has for getting into Soul Society."

"Ishida and Sōma Yoshino…" Kirika breathed out in realization. "Both times that the Bount were specifically targeting people, they were after those two. But…how could a Quincy and Bount with a fire-controlling Doll possibly…?"

"'Fraid I don't know, that's up to you and the rest of the kiddies to find out. Talkin' 'bout the Bount ain't why I'm here anyway." Ichimaru stated, leaning back. His eyes, almost always half-closed, slowly opened fully to reveal ice-blue irises. "Aizen-taichō is quite pissed at ya right now, kid. Ya've manage to give him a permanent scar, somethin' that's never happened before and, despite how well he hides it, it's got him furious."

A vicious smirk formed across Kirika's face at the news. "Good!" she growled out. "That's just a small down-payment for all the pain and suffering he's caused me, my friends, and all of the other people you and he have manipulated and murdered over the past century and change."

"Keep your cool, kid. Remember, this ain't any other Captain you're dealing with. This is Aizen." the traitor reminded her blandly. "Even with all of the spanners that you and yours managed to throw into his works, he still managed to fulfil nearly every one of the objectives that he had set for yer little invasion. The only real upset was that Kuchiki-chan actually managed to survive and that Momo-chan didn't fall off her rocker like she was supposed ta."

"Considering that I was forced to mostly stay in the shadows and not act as myself for the majority of it, except for at the very end, that doesn't really surprise me." the redhead responded dryly. "So what exactly has he been up to since he buggered off to Hueco Mundo?"

"Biggest thing has been stabilizin' the combined Hōgyoku he created by mergin' Kisuke's and his own attempt." Ichimaru answered. "Aside from that, the thing I mostly wanted yeh to know about was that he's been gatherin and raisin' a buncha Hollows there and removin' their masks."

"Arrancar? Urahara explained those to me a while ago." Kirika frowned in thought. "According to his own research, the Arrancar have pretty much been plateaued in power for centuries. Wait…he's been using HIS Hōgyoku to create more powerful ones, hasn't he?"

"Bingo. The current line-up of his Espada (Swords), Privaron Espada (Deprived Swords) and Números (Numbers) are all far more powerful than any natural occurring Arrancar that has appeared in centuries. There are a number of powerful and dangerous warriors among them and their elites, the Espada themselves, were made with Menos Grande Hollows; Gillians, Adjuchas and Vasto Lorde." the traitor elaborated. "There might be quite a few dangerous ones mixed in, but the remaining Captains, and even some of your own little group, should be able to grind them down if it came to a full-on war. No, the Arrancar were always meant to be just disposable weapons to buy Aizen-taichō time and to create an opening for him to get what he's really after. He is planning on getting his hands on an Ōken (King's Key)."

"Ōken? I've never even heard of that before. What is it and why does he want it so badly?" the far younger Soul asked.

"It's somethin' that ya need in order ta reach another dimension linked to the Soul Society, called the Reiōkyū (Soul King Palace), the home of the Rei-Ō (Soul King)." Ichimaru elaborated. "There's literally no other way to get into that realm than by either having the door opened for you from the other side or using an Ōken unless yer a member of the Royal Guard that serve the Rei-Ō directly. Thing is, creatin' one ain't an easy process. In order to make a single one, ya need to sacrifice the current Jūreichi, and everythin' on it, which is one spiritual li wide in diameter. Just so happens that that current Jūreichi is this lil' place right where we're standin'…Karakura Town."

An ugly expression formed on Kirika's face as she processed that. A mixture of shock, horror, anger…and a hatred hot enough to rival the flames of Ryūjin Jakka itself.

"So, it isn't enough for him to have stolen me from my parents as a newborn!" she ground out, pale jade eyes alight with a vengeful flame. "It isn't enough for him to have experimented on me for three kami-bedamned years! It isn't enough that he murdered my friends in a pointless and cruel experiment! It isn't enough that Shiba Kaien died a horrible death to another of his experiments! Oh no, for Aizen Sōsuke, that isn't anywhere close to enough, it seems! No, this time he wants to murder everything and everyone I love in the fucking WORLD! No, I refuse to permit that to happen!"

Ichimaru was honestly more than a bit impressed with the control the girl was showing at this moment, considering that he wasn't feeling so much as a whiff of Reiatsu from her. She had to be consciously keeping her Reiryoku from forming into Reiatsu as it would naturally attempt to do in reaction to her heightened emotions. Even most Lieutenants had a hard time exercising that kind of control when their emotions were running hot, yet this little girl, less than two decades old and currently boiling over in a ferocious and unholy rage, was keeping her own Reiryoku perfectly stable and controlled rather than exploding outward in a frothing torrent of destructive Reiatsu.

'The self-possession and self-control that you'd need for that kind of control…it's almost inhuman.' the silver-haired man thought, a faint bead of sweat falling down his face, unnoticed by the raging child opposite him. 'Only Aizen-taichō himself had ever managed that kind of control at anything when they were still so young, aside from some of the old legends about the Sōtaichō. Well, well, Kisuke, it looks like you managed to raise up quite the scary little monster here. Looks like I made the right call to come here and rile her up a bit.'

He had been simultaneously disappointed and impressed with what he'd seen of the girl back in the Seireitei. Her skills, powers, and drive had been more than laudable, but that was all she had. The girl had shown no signs of any special abilities…until she had been forcibly unmasked by Aizen. Then he'd seen a flicker of adamant will that rivalled his own, a determination to kill Aizen at any cost to themselves.

Coming here today had shown him that that moment of insight had not been the result of mere wishful thinking. This New Soul and he were indeed kindred spirits. They both had lost something dear to them, or to the people they cared for, and were determined to exact revenge on the cause of that suffering, Aizen Sōsuke himself.

Of course, there were a few very sharp differences too. Ichimaru sought to take back the power that Aizen had stolen from Rangiku; while Kurosaki Kirika was determined to simply murder Aizen, Tōsen, and himself in as painful a manner as she possibly could. The girl was far more volatile than he was, less controlled and reserved. Far more willing to sacrifice herself.

Ichimaru Gin had done a great number of reprehensible and contemptible things since he had 'joined' Aizen, and he regretted each and every one of them. But this, right here? Turning a girl who was less than a tenth of his age into little more than a weapon that would gladly break itself in pursuit of their shared goal, that struck him particularly deeply. It was the kind of thing Aizen happily did, which only added fuel to Gin's sense of self-disgust. Even if he hadn't already promised his neck to the girl in front of him after this was all over, he would have likely offered it up anyway.

"Good." None of his inner-loathing was visible on his face, his mask firmly in place. "That is the kinda determination ya'll need to get through this mess. If we wanna put Aizen-taichō in a position where he's vulnerable enough to be put down, if we want to get his guard to drop completely, we need ta ensure that no one else other than the two us knows that we're cooperatin'. That still the case on your side."

"As if Urahara would trust me if he knew that I had a connection with you." Kirika spat out bitterly. "That man barely trusts me as it is."

"Given that Aizen-taichō royally screwed him over a century ago, that ain't all that suprsin'." Gin offered with a casual shrug. "Once bitten, twice shy and all of that. If that man wasn't keepin' you at arm's length, I'd be wondering just what exactly he was plottin'."

The redhead wrinkled her nose in annoyance at that, but had to agree that Aizen's manipulations had indeed turned Urahara into a very cautious and paranoid man. Him NOT acting like that would have likely set off alarm bells for her as well.

"But yeah, no one knows that you saved my skin all those years ago, rather than tried to kill me." she offered with a huff. "And Yoruichi-sensei's too busy working on preparations against Aizen and the Bount to have followed me. Urahara already deactivated all of the tracking and monitoring stuff in my Gigai under threat of Yoruichi-sensei giving him a first-hand demonstration of what happens when she uses Shunkō in her cat form."

"Jeez, never would have thought I'd ever feel sorry for old Urahara-san…" Gin offered with a slight wince, imagining just how painful cat scratches reinforced with the condensed Kidō aura created by Shunkō would be. "Anyway, that's good to hear, keep it that way. Keep actin' the way ya have been whenever we meet up openly, and nobody will be the wiser of our plans. We'll only get a single chance to land a decisive blow, and most of that is because Aizen-taichō told me the weakness of Kyōka Suigetsu."

"I knew it! I fucking knew that stupid 'Absolute Hypnotism' BS had to have some kind of weakness." Kirika grinned viciously. "What is it?"

"It won't be much of a help to ya, but the 'weakness' is that, if someone is touchin' Kyōka Suigetsu, before the illusion is cast on 'em, they aren't affected by the Zanpakutō's powers." Ichimaru offered with a shrug. "It took me decades to get Aizen-taichō to reveal that much to me, so there are likely other weaknesses and restrictions. It does explain why Aizen-taichō prefers ta use Kidō in combat; Zanjutsu's too inefficient fer usin' his Zanpakutō's power."

"It's more than that…Aizen likes to win without having to do much of the legwork himself…" Kirika offered slowly as she put her own thoughts in order. "He's a natural at manipulating people and events, even without making use of Kyōka Suigetsu, whether it's by playing with their emotions, showing them what they expect to see or hear, or even just tricking them with words like poisoned honey. He's reached a level of strength where only the Sōtaichō and some of the other senior Captains can really stand as an equal to him, perhaps…perhaps he considers fighting those he considers 'lesser' than him to be beneath him, more-so than is normal."

"…that's a scary level of insight." Ichimaru observed. "Ya have it nailed down pretty tight there. That's another reason, aside from that love-tap ya gave him, that Aizen-taichō is so furious with ya, girlie. Ya forced him ta actually step onto the battlefield and do far more than what he estimated ta be necessary in order ta get his plan movin' in ta right direction again. That's never happened before, just so ya know."

"Good." Kirika said coldly, pale jade eyes flashing with contempt. "His frustration is as fine wine to me."

"Yeah, I can imagine, 'cept he's plannin' on payin' ya back for that." the traitor said seriously. "I dunno how, but he's got a plan in mind. Keep yer guard up and yer eyes open."

"If my guard got any higher, I'd be locking my family up at home, behind the strongest barrier Kidō I can cast." the redheaded pseudo-Soul Reaper snorted. "Not only do I have to worry about Aizen, I have to keep an eye out for the Bount, random Hollows, and for the Visored. Trust me on this, I'm paranoid enough to keep things on an even keel."

"Trust me, ya ain't." Gin warned her. "Even multiplyin' all of yer lil' plans by a hundred and they ain't enough."

"I know, but acting calm and pretending that I have things under control is what's stopping me from turning into a paranoid, gibbering wreck." Kirika replied faux-serenely.

Ichimaru nodded. "Fair enough, suppose we've all got our copin' mechanisms. Now, listen up, kid; the basics of the plan I've come up with is this…"

Later

Kirika's Room, Kurosaki Clinic, Minamikawase District, Karakura Town

While Kirika's room in the Kurosaki home was rather small, barely large enough for a bed, a desk and a chest of drawers, Kirika herself preferred to think of it as nice and cosy. Isshin kept promising to have the house expanded one day, but Kirika figured that she'd be moved out and living in her own apartment by the time it actually happened. Besides, whenever she started to feel suffocated in here, she could just slip into Karin and Yuzu's room and shared the bed with one of them.

Mostly Yuzu rather than Karin, but the older twin got grumpy if Kirika didn't spend some time with her. She could be such a tsundere. So cute.

As she was meditating, Isshin stuck his head in without knocking, as per usual. "Hey, Kirika- OW!"

The yelp of pain came from Kirika having beaned him on the forehead with a ball of wood that she kept next to her bed for just this purpose. He was such an idiot…!

"Goat Face, I've told you not to come in without knocking first!" the redhead growled at her adoptive pain-in-the-ass. "What if I'd been naked or something? Jeez, I've told you this for three years and you still refuse to learn…"

Rubbing his forehead in a pitiful way, the overgrown man-child that was Kurosaki Isshin pouted at her. "Now really, was that necessary?" he whined.

"What did you come in here for, old man? I hope it was for something other than witty repartee." Kirika got up and glared at him.

"Ah, right. I need to make a house call, one of my patients, Yamada-baa, has taken a turn for the worse and can't make it to the clinic on her own." Isshin said, going into 'serious doctor mode' like a switch had been flipped. "Ichigo's out doing some kind of training with that martial arts instructor of yours, so you're in charge while I'm out. Help Yuzu with dinner, and make sure to lock up the clinic when I leave."

"Oh. Alright, will you be out all night?" Kirika said, blinking slightly in surprise. She hadn't honestly expected her dumbass of an adopted dad to actually have a legitimate reason to bother her. "Do you want us to put a plate in the fridge for when you get back?"

"Nah, I'll probably be out for most of the night on this one so don't trouble yourselves with it. I'll just grab a bentō and maybe some onigiri from a convenience store to tide me over for the night." Isshin stated with a shake of his head. "I'll call in by nine or so to let you know for sure if I'm going to have to stay over at my patient's house, though from I've heard it sounds likely."

"Don't worry, the house is in safe hands with me." the eldest daughter of the Kurosaki household promised.

"I know it will be." the rough-faced doctor nodded, patting her on the head. "Well, I'd best be off. Yamada-baa is always a crochety one and I can't imagine being bedridden is helping her usual attitude at all."

Kirika snorted. Yamada Sanae was a tiny old lady that was rapidly pushing ninety, but with a mind and tongue just as sharp as when she was in her twenties. Her back was the main problem, as was the fact that she kept dislocating her kneecaps, and was a bit too fond of good sake, which had done more than a bit of damage to her poor liver. While she had no clue what was up, the redheaded girl suspected that Yamada-baa had dislocated both of her kneecaps yet again. She always wanted round-the-clock care whenever that happened.

About half an hour later, Kirika was cooking alongside Yuzu, the younger girl happily chatting with her about the twins' day. While she wasn't a naturally talented cook like Yuzu, Kirika was a fast learner and was always willing to learn something from her younger sister, so when they cooked together it tended to be a harmonious collaboration.

"Oi, 'Rin-chan, dinner's up!" Kirika called up the stairs.

"Coming, Kiri-nee!" Karin replied a moment later.

Dinner at the table was lighter than normal, without the usual father-son wrestling match happening before, during and/or after it. Seriously, those two needed a break from one another, or Kirika was certain that Ichigo would one day punch Isshin through the wall without meaning to.

After the meal was over, Kirika sat and watched her little sisters, a smile on her face. The twins were so darn adorable that she had once followed them during the school day because she was worried that they were being hit on by their classmates.

They hadn't been, but she had stopped a punk from going after them due to their relation to her and Ichigo.

"What's up, Kiri-nee?" Yuzu asked as she gathered up the plates.

"Just thinking how utterly adorable the pair of you are." Kirika answered honestly, enjoying the synchronized blush coming from the twins.

"Kiri-nee, we're gonna be twelve soon!" Karin replied in mild annoyance. "You can't just up and call us 'adorable' like that!"

"Your birthday is in May, 'Rin-chan, and it's currently September. You're going to be eleven for quite a while yet." the older sister reminded the youngest Kurosaki before walking over and hugging her. "Let your big sister baby you once in a while."

"Ack. Gerrof." Karin complained half-heartedly, not really resisting the hug at all, and making her older twin giggle at how she was never honest with herself. Karin adored Kirika and loved it when she was affectionate, but was too proud to be the one to initiate things.

Still giggling to herself, Yuzu picked up the dishes and took them into the kitchen. She loved her family, even when they were being silly. Kiri-nee was an older sister to be proud of; all the girls in class were jealous of Karin and Yuzu because they wanted a 'cool onee-san' too.

Placing the dishes in the sink, Yuzu squirted some cleaning liquid into the basin and started the water running. Humming to herself as she started washing the dishes, Yuzu turned her thoughts to the bentō boxes that she was going to make tomorrow for herself and her siblings the next day. She always did the prep for it the night before so she wouldn't have so much to deal with in the morning. Yuzu was very efficient like that.

She was so lost in thought as her body automatically washed the dishes that she didn't see the water rising up until it cast a shadow over her. Gaping in shock and disbelief for a moment, Yuzu let out a shriek as the water washed over her, trapping her head in a bubble.

Clamping her mouth shut and holding her breath, the girl felt panic starting to take over. What was going on?! Why was this happening?! HOW was this happening?! 'Kiri-nee, help me!'

Just as she reached the point where her lungs felt like bursting, a hand plunged into the water pooling in the sink and abruptly, the bubble of water around Yuzu's head vanished, letting her fall back, and caught in the arms of Kurosaki Kirika, who looked down worriedly at her, protective fury in her eyes.

"Yuzu! Yuzu! Are you OK?!" Kiri-nee demanded anxiously.

"K-Kiri-nee…" Yuzu coughed, suddenly tired. "Wh-what happened?"

"We can talk about that later, the danger's still here." Kirika shook her head, a swell of righteous fury, burning rage, and churning fear chorusing within her. How dare the Bount attack here, attack her home, attack her family?! That did it, Ban and Hō were going to die tonight!

"Tch." the redhead clicked her tongue as the water started to rise up again, forming into the familiar form that had attacked Ishida earlier on in the month. She had wanted to grab the 'core' of the Doll, but she'd refrained as Yuzu's life was at risk. 'I can't fight here, not in the house; this is the kind of place where their Dolls have all of the advantages.'

Sōma Yoshino had been very open with the abilities of her fellow Bount, especially emphasizing how dangerous the Dolls of the twins Ban and Hō could be inside a house or worse, a large building like a hospital. They could manipulate every tap and water dispersal source to provide as much water as they needed.

"Yuzu, hang on. I'll get you out of here." she said, easily picking up her younger sister in a bridal carry and fleeing into the living room, where Karin was waiting.

"Kiri-nee, what's going on?" the black-haired girl asked.

"No time right now. It's too dangerous inside, we have to get out!" Kirika said brusquely, handing over their sister to the youngest in the family. "Take Yuzu and run, now!"

"But-!" Karin started to protest, but then water started pouring down the stairs, even as a giant moving mass of water emerged from the kitchen. "What the hell?!"

"MOVE!" Kirika shouted, the command in her voice making Karin's body move before her conscious mind could think about disobeying. She held her twin tight and ran through the hall, scrambling to open the door as Kirika protected her from the water…somehow.

'It's a good thing this Gigai can turn off its pain synch.' Kirika thought as she batted away another tendril of water. Had she kept the pain synch on, it would have likely felt like she'd just knocked aside a rubber-covered metal pipe. She had also turned off the bruise simulation section of the Gigai so she didn't worry her sisters.

Karin finally got the door open and rushed outside with Yuzu, Kirika following them. Once they were out of the house, they would be safer…or so she hoped.

Minutes Earlier, Outside

With Ban and Hō

"Tch, the first brat survived." Ban grumbled. "I told you we should have dehydrated her instead of trying to drown her, it's faster!"

"It also takes a lot more energy! How was I supposed to know that the redhead would be able to fight even in her Gigai?" Hō protested. The twins were perched atop a building across from the Kurosaki Clinic. Their ambush should have gone off without a hitch, but the damned redhead was a pain. She knew Guhl and Günther's weakness in their bottle cap cores, and had punched Guhl's away to save her sister.

That wasn't as easy as it might sound, as the water that made up the bodies of their Dolls was completely infused with their Reiryoku, which made trying to move against it the equivalent of trying to punch through thick molasses. That she was able to fight with such strength inside a Gigai was concerning.

"Dammit! Ban, time to go to strategy three." Hō said with a scowl as he saw through Guhl's perspective.

"You sure? She knows fire type Kidō." his twin questioned.

"In front of two civs that have no clue about her being a Soul Reaper?" Hō scoffed. "She won't risk it until it is too late. Even if she does, a single fire spell can only evaporate so much water at once, and from only one direction. We'll attack the sides that she can't defend from."

"Right." Ban nodded. Currently, the only Doll inside the Kurosaki Clinic was Guhl. Günther's core and water bottle were near the water pipes beneath the street. By rupturing the pipes and flooding the street, Guhl and Günther would have unlimited water and be able to form their largest avatars, free from having to worry about their bodies being disintegrated.

"Ziege dich, Günther!" he hissed, just as the three Kurosaki children burst from their home.

With Kirika

The three Kurosaki sisters had just reached the road when the muffled sound of tortured metal shrieked out from beneath the road, and the drains at the sides of the road started rapidly filling up with water.

"Get away from the roadsides!" she ordered Karin, who was still carrying Yuzu.

They just managed to make it before walls of water erupted from beneath the drains, ripping apart the concrete water drains and cutting off any escape from those directions.

As Karin and Yuzu, who was on her feet again now, huddled together, scared, Kirika closed her eyes. 'There's no other choice at this point. I have to leave my Gigai.'

Undoing her usual braid, Kirika easily caught the Gokon Yubiwa that was hidden within her tresses at the end. Grasping it tight, she agonized for one final moment before committing.

"Karin, Yuzu." her voice was grim, making the twins look at her in surprise. "I'm sorry you got caught up in this, but I promise you…no matter what, neither of you will be harmed. This I swear on my soul!"

Before her sisters could do more than gape at her, or she could second-guess herself again, Kurosaki Kirika pressed the Gokon Yubiwa to her forehead.

In an explosion of Reiryoku, the Soul contained within the Gigai exploded out of its prison… and the Reiryoku spiked, turning into Reiatsu. The pale green eyes of the pseudo-Soul Reaper were blazing with fury as her energy whipped her hair like it was caught in a fierce wind. Her family had been threatened, her baby sister had almost been killed! Ban and Hō were going to learn one final lesson before they were returned to the wheel of reincarnation, a lesson that every thug, gangster and even yakuza in Karakura Town had long since been painfully educated in.

Messing with a Kurosaki brings forth the rage of another Kurosaki.

Karin and Yuzu had sunk to their knees, Kirika's unrestrained Spiritual Power washing over them for the first time. For Yuzu, who had always had the weakest level of Spiritual Awareness among the family, Kirika's Reiryoku poured inside of her like a waterfall, rapidly filling a space within her that had only been filling slowly. In a flash, she had progressed past the ability to see ghosts and directly into the realm of being able to see Soul Reapers and Hollows, just as Karin also ascended to that level.

The sight before them was startling to behold: the unmoving body of their beloved older sister lay on the ground, while yet another Kirika stood above it, radiating such pressure that the twins were surprised to still be conscious.

Kirika withdrew a pot of ink from her shihakushō and ritually drew symbols on her arms as she muttered an incantation under her breath.

"Kokubyaku no ami! Nijūni no kyōryō, rokujūroku no kantai. Ashiato, enrai, senpō, kaichi, yafuku, unkai, aoi tairetsu. Taien ni michite ten o hashire! (Silken net of black and white! Twenty-two bridges, sixty-six crowning sash. Footprints, distant thunder, pointed peaks, revolving grounds, nightly prostrations, sea of clouds, the pale ranks of troops. Complete the grand circle and surpass the heavens!)" Kirika incanted. "Bakudō #77, Tenteikūra! (Way of Binding Number Seventy-Seven, Heavenly Rickshaws in Silken Air!)"

All across Karakura Town, numerous individuals paused in what they were doing as Kirika's spoken words were transmitted to them.

"The Kurosaki Clinic has just been attacked by the Bount, specifically the water manipulating Dolls controlled by Ban and Hō." she stated plainly, anger very present in her words. "The Kurosaki Twins are scared, but unharmed. Yuzu was almost drowned. I'm going to purge Ban and Hō from the world immediately. If you want to get here to stop me, please do so with all haste. Urahara, if you try to use the Kikanshinki on my sisters, so help me I will end you with extreme prejudice, consequences be damned!"

Ending the Bakudō, Kirika, glanced around to check on her sisters. She'd managed the difficult feat of not directing any of her angry Reiatsu towards them, but they could still likely feel it.

"Don't worry. Things'll be fine." Kirika smiled at them. "Onee-chan's going to go kick ass, and then we'll sit down and I'll explain everything about what's going on, and we can decide what to do in the future. But for now…be good girls and stay put."

Just then, a water golem emerged from the side of the water wall and lurched towards Kirika.

"Shakkahō." Kirika intoned, raising her left hand towards it negligently. A wave of red fire erupted from it and slammed into the large mass of moving water, almost instantly evaporating it into steam.

"Tenran." the red-haired girl said flatly. A miniature hurricane erupted from her still-raised hand that pierced through the cloud of steam and drew it along with it, up into the air to harmlessly dissipate.

Then she glared up, right at where Ban and Hō were hiding, before turning her attention back to Karin and Yuzu. Reaching into her memories from Shiba Kaien, she started chanting again.

"Suishō no kabe, yon-bai suru. Tsumi no nai hitobito o kigai kara mamoru tame ni yama o tanjō sa seru! (Walls of crystal, multiply by four. Birth a mountain to protect the innocent from harm!)" she incanted. "Bakudō #73, Tozanshō! (Way of Binding Number Seventy-Three, Inverse Mountain Crystal!)"

A square of blue light appeared above the twins before becoming a full shield, reaching under the surface of the road to form an upside-down pyramid that completely encased and protected the twins. Oh, the Dolls COULD break through it…eventually…but not before Kirika killed their masters.

"Now then…" Kirika breathed, looking up at where her two targets hid, eyes screaming with the urge to kill. "…let us start the execution, shall we?"

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Next Chapter: Innocence Lost

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