Chapter 72: One More Secret

The fake Karakura Town designed to protect the real one from Aizen had well and truly become a battleground. Each of the remaining Arrancar, Espada and otherwise, was locked in battle with both Shinigami and Vizards, including the last member of Barragan's Fracción, Seoane.

A cold, heavy sensation rolled through the Arrancar's body, causing him to shudder uncontrollably. He glared furiously at Kirara, whose Shunko swirled around her arms and legs while crawling up her back, giving her an ominous appearance as it seemed as if the shadows were trying to swallow her up.

Kirara was relentless in her attacks, refusing to give him the chance to allow for High-Speed Regeneration to take effect, and it was starting to take its toll on Seoane. She could see him breathing heavily, looking more and more annoyed as the fight went on.

"You're not too bad," Seoane spoke up as they fought. He'd noticed that Kirara never spoke first, and he couldn't help but compare her to Natsuki, who was still watching from where she was protecting the injured Lieutenants and the man tending to them. Unlike the blonde Shinigami, Kirara didn't seem to enjoy what she was doing, and her use of the shadows on her body made her far harder to predict than someone who only fought with their own power.

"Gee, thanks," Kirara's response was bored, and was followed up by another kick that he barely managed to block. Pain was mixed with the strange cold that came with contact from the shadows, and Seoane cursed as he jumped away, finding himself entirely on the defensive.

"I've never had to do this twice in one day, but I think I've recovered enough," when his power started to grow steadily, Kirara slowed and watched him carefully. It reminded her of the blue-haired Arrancar, who had almost released a new power before being stopped. "Balance, Otroyo!" Seoane shouted the command for his Zanpakuo, and bright light burst from it.

"He's splitting in two!" Natsuki's warning came as a shout as Kirara raised her Zanpakuto.

"It really is like a Shikai. Interesting," she murmured, watching as the light faded. In Seoane's place stood Rafael and Arceo, who looked as battered as Seoane had done. Kirara looked from one to the other, noting their mirrored appearances. Only Arceo held the Zanpakuto, his cruel smile back on his face as he studied her.

"Twice in one day. This truly is fun," he chuckled. Rafael only shrugged, looking indifferent. Kirara's eyes focused on Arceo, cold and focused.

"Let me guess, you're the fighter?" she asked, and he beamed.

"Oh, you're much sharper than the last one," he told her. Kirara didn't so much as blink. "My, you really are the stoic type!" Arceo exclaimed, as if happy. Kirara snorted.

"I'm gonna have to tell people you said that," she said, moving back into a fighting stance. Kensei was going to cry laughing at the very notion.

"You could, if you weren't about to die," Arceo chuckled. Kirara just rolled her eyes and moved first, ready to strike him.

"His sword explodes!" the warning reached Kirara just as she saw Arceo's sword start to glow, and she moved at the last second to dodge. The blade hit the ground, causing a small explosion that threw Kirara backwards. The shadows swirled, threatening to die out as her focus was temporarily broken.

"Shit…" she cursed, landing and shaking out her arms. Her Shunko steadied and Kirara huffed. "Thanks for the warning!" sarcasm dripped from her words as she glanced at Natsuki.

"I didn't think you'd just attack him like that. That's something I'd do!" Natsuki exclaimed. Kirara just rolled her eyes, and looked up to see Arceo emerge from the smoke looking like he hadn't escaped the explosion either.

'I see. The explosions are close range, so he gets caught in the crossfire. So what about his moody other half?' Kirara wondered, aware that Rafael was nearby.

"Don't let the moody one get their sword. He can heal the creepy one," Natsuki explained, as if reading her mind.

"Hey, don't be giving away all our secrets now," Arceo complained, turning to her. "Either join in the fight, or stay out of it," he told Natsuki, who smirked.

"I would, but I'm only interested in fighting you. The moody one is boring," she said, and Rafael bristled as Arceo sneered at her.

"If you're going to be fighting with more power, I suppose I will too," Kirara's words earned his attention again, and he turned just as she raised her hand and pulled it over her face. Her Reiatsu took on a darker, more Hollow-like feel as her Mask materialised over her face. Instantly the cruel sneer vanished from Arceo's face, and Rafael stood straighter as they stared at her.

"What the hell are you?" Arceo demanded. Seoane had been fully focused on healing after his two halves had almost been destroyed in the earlier explosion, and hadn't seen just what Kirara and the others were capable of.

"I'm a Vizard," Kirara said simply, as if that was enough of an answer. Her voice was warbled and pitched higher as the power of the Mask changed it. "And I've been wanting to know who would win in a fight," her words were followed by Arceo suddenly being kicked from behind, and he crashed against a wall hard enough to cause it to crumble on top of him.

"What the…" Rafael stared. Neither had seen Kirara move; her afterimage lasting a moment after she'd moved. The rubble then shattered as Arceo burst free with a yell, launching at her with his sword glowing. Kirara easily moved out of the way, dodging the explosion as her speed allowed her to get well out of range by the time his Zanpakuto hit something.

"She's so fast," Kira murmured, watching with Natsuki. Kirara then jabbed out, and the shadows collided with Arceo's chest and knocked him off balance so that she could throw him into another building.

As Kirara turned to pursue Arceo, she paused, feeling the shadows starting to fade. She cursed, never having needed to use them in such a way. She and Kensei had fought hard when they'd trained, but this had gone even further, and she was starting to reach her limit with Shunko.

"Well, guess I'll need to try something else instead," Kirara decided quietly, letting the shadows fade.

"What's wrong?" Arceo called as he smashed his way through. His cruel smile was more forced now. "Think you don't need as much power to defeat me? That's a mistake," he warned her, and heard Kirara's weary sigh.

"No," she said shortly. "I just can't use it for very long. It's a very temperamental power, and it's done its job," she told him, and instead drew her Zanpakuto. Natsuki's eyes went wide as she watched.

"I'm finally worth you using your Zanpakuto on?" Arceo's smile started to become more of a sneer again.

"It's not all about you, you know," Kirara replied. "I'm just taking stock of my abilities, and this is the most effective way to destroy you without wasting all my power," she said shortly, pointing her Zanpakuto at him as she channelled her powers. "Confuse My Enemies, Kokoro no Kage!" with the chant, she threw the blade into the air. Arceo followed its path as it began to change shape, and when it reached its apex in the air, Kirara leapt up and caught it before vanishing.

"A distraction?" Arceo demanded, looking around. He could feel her presence, even if he couldn't see her, and followed quickly. He wasn't as fast, but he let his power charge in his own sword so the moment he reached where Kirara seemed to be hiding, he swung down to cause another explosion. It was only at the last second that her presence moved, and Arceo's eyes widened before his sword hit the ground and exploded.

"Arceo!" Rafael ran towards him, only for Kirara to appear beside him. With the power of her Mask, her kick was powerful enough that when her leg slammed into his gut, Rafael choked and hurtled down the street, stopped only by a house that he smashed into.

"I don't think so," Kirara murmured, and vanished as Arceo swung down behind her. He cursed as it missed, this time without any power charged in it. He then yelled in pain as she cut up his back with her Zanpakuto, her eyes narrowing a little. He was tougher than he looked, and her blade hadn't cut as deeply as she had expected.

"You-" Arceo turned quickly, but Kirara vanished again. This time he detected her moving behind a house, and with a yell he smashed through it, finding nothing there. Kirara then appeared, kicking him hard.

"I think I get what she's doing," Kira's words earned Natsuki's attention, and she tore her gaze from the fight to turn to him. Kira was kneeling beside Iba, healing the injured Lieutenant.

"Really? Because I've been on the receiving end of her Shikai and a spectator, and I still don't get it," Natsuki complained. She looked up, and saw Kirara dance away before Arceo could catch her. He was still fast, and could respond to a lot more of her attacks than she expected.

"Her Reiatsu is separate from her, like she's puppeteering where it is. Or at least, she's altering our perception of where we think her Reiatsu is. And since we're so in tune with that power…"

"We can't help but react. She's messing with one of our senses," Natsuki realised, sounding awestruck. Kira nodded. "Damn, Kirara. No wonder you kept that shit secret," she murmured to herself.

"I don't know what you're doing, but I will beat you," Arceo promised her as he got to his feet again. He was weary and bleeding badly, but he refused to back down. Kirara sighed, before freezing. He didn't have his sword. Arceo's smirk returned as he saw her reaction, knowing that she had realised. He held out a hand, catching his Zanpakuto as it returned to him.

"That's the thing with Arceo. You get so focused on fighting him…you tend to forget I'm here," Rafael emerged from the shadows where he'd been waiting. Kirara swore as she watched Arceo healing; the fruits of her efforts wasted. His smirk widened as the pain vanished, and transferred to Rafael as he winced and stumbled.

"All I had to do was lead you to this spot. You did a good job slowing Rafael down, but in the end…worthless," Arceo taunted. "I take it back. You're not that much sharper than the last one," he mocked her. Kirara groaned, and let her head fall back.

"Fine," to his surprise, her Mask vanished as she spoke. "I'm not going to waste my time and energy doing this over and over again, so there's only one thing for it," Kirara decided.

"More tricks up your sleeve? Give it up, Vizard. We'll keep this dance going until you run out of energy and collapse, helpless as I kill you," Arceo told her, assured of his win.

"I just have to destroy you quickly, then," Kirara replied, lifting her Zanpakuto. Arceo looked entertained at the idea.

"I thought that's what you were trying to do already," he taunted.

"This time it'll be faster," Kirara said, and his smile lessened as he felt her power start to rise again. Her Zanpakuto started to glow in her hands, and her bright blue eyes shimmered with power. "I'm not going to waste my time with small fry while my family put their lives on the line," she declared.

On the sidelines, Natsuki stared as she felt the weight of Kirara's power over her. Despite the darkness lurking in it, her Reiatsu was a bubbly, cool feeling that reassured Natsuki, reminding her of the past and giving her a nostalgic feel for how things had been a hundred years ago. She didn't dare speak, wondering just what power Kirara was pulling out now.

Tipping back the glass, Kirara finished the gin she had been drinking and immediately reached to refill her glass.

"Don't you think you've had enough? We're not slacking on training tomorrow just because you're hungover," Shinji warned, and earned a glower in response. He didn't try to stop her, his own face flushed from drinking so much as well.

They had all been drinking for a few hours now, and even though they'd returned to their room with the intention of passing out after a long day, Shinji and Kirara had instead continued to talk and drink.

"It never stopped me before, it won't stop me now," Kirara said, her words slurring a little as she poured the pink liquid into her glass and topped it up with lemonade. Her legs were slung over his lap as they had been downstairs on the sofa, staying close even as the others - Hiyori especially - had complained that they were being too affectionate in front of them.

"Stop you from what? Passing out in a tree? Curling up on Rose's couch?" Shinji listed, and Kirara nudged him.

"Oh please, you were just as bad for sneaking off to recover from your own hangovers," she retorted, remembering the few times she'd found him. "But I'm not going to slack off, especially now," Kirara grew serious, and took another drink.

"Don't start acting like you're useless again," Shinji warned as he finished his own drink. He went to set down the empty glass, but Kirara took it from him and poured another for him. "Trying to get me drunk, Princess?" he asked, and grunted when her elbow dug into his side.

"I don't need to try. You're already there," Kirara pointed out, handing him the drink. "And I'm not saying that I'm useless. I've been training my Shunko with Kensei, and my Shikai with you," as she spoke, Shinji leaned in and pressed a kiss to her temple. "And then I have-" Kirara stopped abruptly.

"Oh?" Shinji noticed the look on her face, his eyes flashing. "Princess, are you hiding even more from me?" he asked, leaning closer. His close proximity made Kirara's features, already flushed from the alcohol, grow redder, and she refused to look at him.

"No. That's all I have," she said stubbornly, but when Shinji kept her close, Kirara let out a frustrated sigh. A drunken slip of the tongue. Nobody truly knew - Yoruichi suspected, but had never confirmed it. She looked up, meeting Shinji's gaze. It was sharp, despite being drunk too, and the warmth in his expression made Kirara relax. The walls she normally kept up around her secrets crumbled around him, and she didn't mind that at all.

Kirara took another deep drink, and set the half-full glass down before turning back to him with a small smile. "There's one more thing I have…"

Kirara met Arceo's gaze, a look of utter confidence on her face as she finally spoke a word that carried power and weight all by itself.

"Bankai."

Instantly power exploded from Kirara as a powerful burst of wind, blowing Arceo and Rafael backwards. Natsuki dug her heels in, raising her hand to shield herself from the winds, her heart racing as she was unsure if she believed what she had just heard. When the winds began to die down, she lowered her hand to see Kirara standing in the same place, and for just a moment, Natsuki wondered if it had been a bluff. "Cloak and Shield from their eyes, Kokoro no Kage," Kirara whispered, trailing her fingers along the curved blade.

"Was that it?" Arceo called as he recovered and stood tall again, sneering at Kirara with that same self-assurance.

"A bit of power and some wind isn't going to take us down," Rafael agreed with the sour look still on his face.

"Who said that's all I did?" they whirled around to see Kirara standing behind them. Her Zanpakuto had grown longer, and the curved blade that had been her Shikai glinted in the light. Arceo's eyes widened, as he realised that the Kirara still standing in front of them wasn't an afterimage, as she seemed to stand in two places at once.

"How-"

"What, you're the only one who can split in two?" Kirara asked, that same innocence to her tone that only served to frustrated the Arrancar halves.

"Damn you!" Arceo swung down, and he gasped as his Zanpakuto cleaved through air. The Kirara he had cut through vanished into wisps, and another appeared beside him.

"What is she-" Rafael jumped as another version of Kirara appeared beside him. Three now stood around the Arrancar, all tilting their head in the birdlike motion that was entirely Kirara. "How are you doing this?" the black haired Arrancar demanded, throwing a punch at the one closest to him. She jumped back, and for a moment he thought he had found the right one, before he was kicked from behind by another Kirara.

"What the hell…" Arceo snarled as he followed Rafael, keeping a close eye on him as more versions of Kirara popped up.

"You hit harder than that man did, at least," Rafael spat out blood, and Kirara raised an eyebrow. "He was decently fast, but pathetic. Went down from one explosion," he said mockingly, and Kirara thought about Haruki's own injuries. They had been somewhat healed, but she still recognised burns when she saw them.

Kirara's grip on her Zanpakuto tightened as anger welled up inside her at the thought of them hurting Haruki. Fighting Natsuki was one thing; she was used to fierce, damaging battles. Haruki was a healer, but he wanted to fight, to help keep everyone safe.

"I don't want to just be a healer. I don't want to just heal people after the fact," Haruki's embarrassed but determined declaration was something that Kirara still remembered, even now. "If I can be good at Hakuda and Shunpo, maybe I can help more people. That's why I want to be good at both," he had said.

For a moment, Kirara's senses sharpened into something cold. She could pick up on everything around her; the slightest movements from Arceo and Rafael, Natsuki watching nearby, and even the fighting going on in the distance.

'No,' Kirara realised, shaking her head quickly and fighting the anger. 'I can't let that rule me,' she fought the berserker trait that tried to take over. She had no idea how to control it; she would risk using it now.

Snapping back to reality just in time, she raised her Zanpakuto and blocked Arceo's strike, causing the sound of ringing steel to echo around the damaged streets. As he pushed against her, trying to overpower her, Kirara kicked him in the stomach and leapt away.

"Fight me, damn you!" Arceo started to follow, he found himself surrounded by multiple copies of Kirara. In his hesitation, the one behind him cut up his back, and Arceo swore loudly as blood spurted from the wound. "You gave yourself away!" he spun and attacked her, only for his Zanpakuto to cut through another illusion. "What?" he gasped, and Kirara landed a kick to his back, striking the wound she had just inflicted.

"Arceo!" Rafael caught him, but the various copies surrounded them and stopped him from healing his other half.

"I think this is everyone's greatest fear," Natsuki couldn't help but quip as she watched multiple forms of Kirara standing around the two Arrancar.

"I heard that," they chorused at the same time, making it impossible to tell which was the real Kirara.

"Rafael, get back!" Arceo shouted, and his other half cursed before flinging himself away. "If I can't tell which is the right one, I'll just destroy you all!" he declared as his Zanpakuto began to glow with his power. He swung it at the closest double, and the explosion swallowed Arceo and all of the Kiraras up.

"Kirara!" Natsuki shouted as she lifted her arm again to shield from the debris that was blown towards her. For a moment, there was a quiet that made her think that Kirara had been caught up in the blast, and the smoke began to lessen. Arceo stood in the centre, breathing heavily as he looked around for any sign of Kirara. A look of disbelief settled on his face as he realised he was the only one there.

"At what point did I say any of those were me?" Kirara's voice was cold, and Arceo's breath caught.

"Rafael!" he yelled, but it was too late. Kirara's Zanpakuto burst through Rafael's chest, and his dark eyes went wide.

"One thing I know about High-Speed Regeneration, is that it's limited when it comes to your internal organs," Kirara's voice was cold as Rafael struggled to breathe.

"I'll kill you!" Arceo roared, throwing himself at Kirara as his Zanpakuto began to glow brighter than before. Rafael choked as Kirara yanked her sword free, and he fell forwards as Arceo reached them. This explosion was stronger than even the one Arceo had tried to use against Natsuki, and the buildings around them crumbled as Natsuki couldn't remain standing.

Kirara cursed, hit by the shockwave of the explosion, and it slammed her against a building hard enough for the wall to shatter. Barely managing to hold onto her Zanpakuto, she coughed violently, winded from the hit.

'Damn…' she cursed as she continued to cough, forcing herself back to her feet. 'That explosion was bigger than I expected, I didn't move fast enough,' Kirara berated herself, and instantly moved again as she saw Arceo emerge rapidly from the smoke straight towards her. He was slower than before, and one of his arms hung uselessly from his side as he looked worse for wear.

Any taunts or mockery seemed gone from Arceo's mind as a look of utter fury settled on his face, and he continued to follow Kirara with a furious screech. She could feel his power dwindling, and he didn't seem to planning on using his power to cause more explosions. Not that Kirara was surprised. Between his weakening state and his injuries, another would likely be the end of him.

"Time to end this," Kirara murmured to herself. Easily keeping out of Arceo's reach, she raised her hand and called on her Mask again. The dark power flooded her body, enhancing her speed and strength as she found herself able to pick up on his movements more easily.

Fury spurred Arceo on, despite his body begging for rest. His injuries made everything burn and throb with pain, but he refused to stop. Rafael was gone, and he wasn't sure what would happen to him without his other half. He didn't know how he could return to being Seoane without Rafael.

He was in so much pain already, Arceo didn't even register that Kirara had sliced up his chest until he was falling forwards, getting one last look at her Mask and the cold golden eyes behind it before he hit the ground.

"Damn…" he murmured, unable to move from the ground. "I'm sorry, my King…I failed you…" Arceo managed to say.

"He'll be joining you soon enough," Kirara's words came out warped, monstrous and almost terrifying. Arceo could only laugh.

"If that's true…then none of us ever stood a chance," he said, closing his eyes as his body began to dissipate in black wisps, vanishing into the air.

"That's Aizen for you…has everyone die for him while he doesn't lift a finger," Kirara muttered, her Mask vanishing. Arceo disappeared entirely, and her shoulders slumped. One down.

"You okay?" Natsuki asked as Kirara turned and walked back towards her. Curiosity burned in her gaze, and Kirara knew she had a thousand questions she was desperate to ask.

"I'm fine," Kirara replied, a smile returning to her face.

"You…you're kind of scary, you know that?" Natsuki suddenly laughed, and Kirara cocked her head. "All those powers, and Bankai? How long has that been in your arsenal?" she demanded, her brown eyes bright. Kirara couldn't help but laugh too.

"I mastered it about a year before Rose became Captain," she told Natsuki, whose jaw dropped.

"You what?" she shouted, which just made Kirara laugh more.

"Did you figure out what it does?" she asked with a teasing look on her face, making Natsuki's eyebrows furrow together in a confused look.

"What do you mean? You just create illusions, don't you?" she asked, but then remembered how Kirara had landed a strike against Arceo, only for his Zanpakuto to pass through her a moment later. "Can you jump between copies?" Natsuki asked, but Kirara just grinned. "Urgh…I forgot how annoying you are," she huffed.

"I don't know how that's possible," Kirara replied. "How are the other fights going?" she asked, looking up.

"I think it's just the one fighting Captain Hitsugaya left," Natsuki replied, looking up as well. "You took ages," she said, and Kirara shot a glower at her. "I'm just saying, you let him heal up like that. It was sloppy," she shrugged, and giggled as Kirara pushed her.

"And you say that I'm annoying," she rolled her eyes.

For just a moment, they watched Harribel struggled against Hitsugaya, Hiyori and Lisa. Then everyone was taken by surprise when Aizen suddenly moved, appearing behind Harribel. She turned to look over her shoulder at him, confused by his approach, before he grasped his Zanpakuto. Faster than she could move, he cut across her chest.

"I'm done with you," Aizen's words were cold as he kept that small smirk on his face. Blood spurted through the air, somehow not landing on his pristine white coat. "It seems you aren't strong enough to fight for me," he said. He returned his Zanpakuto to its sheath as Harribel struggled to stay in the air.

"Aizen!" she screamed, throwing herself at him. For a moment, it looked as if she had struck him, only to be stabbed in the back herself.

"Don't make me go through the effort of swinging twice at the likes of you," he said as he appeared behind her, the illusion shattering like ice.

There was another long moment of silence, as everyone across the battlefield stared at Aizen in disbelief, processing how he'd cut down one of his own, and his smirk widened just a little. "Now, shall we begin?" his call carried for all to hear. "Gotei 13, and you failed mock-Arrancars," anger built in Kirara's chest at the term, grasping her Zanpakuto tighter.

"Natsuki," the blonde glanced to Kira, who looked grim. "Go. I'll handle things here," he told her. For a moment, Natsuki wanted to argue. She had agreed to help keep the Lieutenants safe. Then she saw the look on Kirara's face, as the woman fought anger and more. Even now, she was terrible at hiding how she felt.

"Okay," Natsuki agreed, and reached out to gently touch Kirara's arm. She blinked, snapping out of her thoughts. "Let's go," Natsuki smiled confidently at her.

"Yeah," Kirara nodded, and the two pushed up into the air, ready to continue the fight.

Another secret revealed! I hinted at it once, very early on, and I've been excited to show it off!

Hope you liked it! I'll be aiming to update by the end of the weekend as I'll be away for a week.

Please review!