Bleach 1. The kiss

_**Disclaimer:** Meesa don't own so yousa don't sue. _

_Bleach is the property of Kubo Tite_

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_**The return of the moon fang. **_

_**Chapter one…**_

_To you I make the solemn vow, _

_Let me return to the dawn of my fight, _

_Endowed with the strength I hold this night, _

_This life in payment, soul entrusted to the younger self. _

_Zangetsu, you and I _

_Will rise once again before our time…………_

_--------------------------_

"Ichigo, its time to go back to class!" Mizuro spoke softly.

"Huh?" the orange haired boy asked as for some reason he had taken a nap there against the wall, after concluding his meal.

He opened eyes upon a world he had already seen once before.

It worked…

The entire universe had been rewound, but this time, he could be the author of the story, he knew its plot, its frame and its scope. In a single breath, he could feel his strength it was beyond captain level. The old man was with him to, and the hollow as well.

His second breath brought the presences of every hollow on earth, he could feel the bounto, the Vizard, and the lingering presences of other shinigami.

Another breath brought sights he wasn't really prepared for, one of his old friends was standing just before him, Keigo, Mizuro, Chad, and ishida. The sight of all his old friends and his two brothers in arms, was almost enough to bring tears to his eyes.

"Mizuro, is that you?" Ichigo couldn't believe his eyes, there was the young friend he had watched be consumed by a hollow. A friend he had not long after been forced to liberate to soul society by means of his blade.

The others stared at him blankly, at which Ichigo noticed his unusual behavior, and wiped the sleep out of his eyes, and stood upright, brushing off things with simply "sorry, just a bad dream."

"That's not like you Kurosaki, you been up all night with Kuchiki-san?"

Ichigo smacked the auburn haired boy "shut up."

Walking back to class, Ichigo couldn't discern exactly what time he had returned to, so he asked the old man, cautiously, though, not wanting the appearance of talking to himself. It wasn't normal for a young man to be seen in conversation with open air. The last thing he wanted was having to break out of a loony bin.

"I cannot place a finger on an exact moment, but it's the day after your encounter with that Menos Grande. My younger self still bares the scars of the power you wielded."

It was the day he lost her. As he walked slowly back to class amidst the heckling crowds and random conversations, his eyes started to water. He could feel her presence, she was still here.

As he entered the room, there she was. Ichigo stopped, as if time had physically stopped his advancement, he froze. Her raven hair glistening in the light, her dark eyes staring right into his very soul.

Rukia.

The one he had died for, become a hollow for, started a war against heaven to save. The one he had lost to the arrancar who masqueraded as Shiba Kaien. The one he loved more than anything in the known universe.

His future self, the self that had never told her he loved her, took the reigns, pushing against the endless gravity of doubt holding him in place. He did this without any outward signs of struggle yet he was fighting against the weight of the world, he walked right up to her.

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Rukia had spent most of the day wrestling over the agony of remaining in the mortal world. She was starting to fall for him, the way he smiled, never gave up, it reminded her of the one she loved who bore his likeness. Ichigo was different than Kaien though, he was someone that could be hers, if she ever let it happen.

It would be any day until Soul Society came for her, and her luck it would be sooner rather than anytime distant.

She regretted having changed his life so drastically, if ever discovered, he would be killed just the same as any rogue shinigami.

When she saw him this time, it was different, there was something different about Ichigo, his presence wasn't like a sprinkler spraying everywhere, it was compressed, contained.

He was staring at her so fiercely, that she became lost in the depths of his eyes.

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He leaned in close as if to whisper something private, or at least offer the appearance of such. His eyes narrowed, and closed as he continued lowering his lips until they met hers.

Rukia had lifted her head up expecting some joke or secret, what she received was something entirely unexpected, the greatest gift she could ever receive.

Her heart beat faster than it had ever before, the sketch pad in her mind was illustrating the moment, not as artistically of course, but she wanted to remember this moment until the end of time. She imagined herself a block of ice melting from the warmth of his heart. The darkness and arctic façade she had worn was also failing. At the realization she was in love with him she started to cry at which he separated their lips.

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Tatski and Inoue instantly blushed, wondering if Ichigo wasn't sick again as he had been when he kissed them. But the two of them knew within a moment that it was real. Their own hearts ached from wanting to be on the receiving end of his kiss. Tatski had always imagined their relationship would evolve to this, Inoue had only recently started to fall.

All the others gasped and blushed fiercely, laughing in the remark that they had just asked Rukia about her relationship with Ichigo, and though she denied it, there was something between them after all.

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The bell rang and everyone collected their seats, but Rukia just stood there frozen in disbelief that it had actually just happened. Rukia eventually sat down as the sensei entered. The class was unusually quiet, she normally had to tell the lot to shut up.

She however noticed Rukia's dumbstruck appearance, the tears and the fact her face was fire engine red, her eyes shifted over to Kurosaki, every other moment. Ichigo bore an all encompassing shit eating grin… _(the irony of such a phrase meaning great but worded oddly made her laugh internally.) _He likewise couldn't help but catch her eyes and return with his own.

_That cold shouldered fool must have kissed her_… the sensei thought.

The rest of the day passed in a blur, neither of them heard much of the remaining lessons, each focused solely on the other.

tbc

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A/N: This my first published fan fiction so don't go crazy on me, I was inspired by the Naruto time travel fiction:

_**For the love of my friends **_by **Foxie-sama**, hers is fifty chapters I doubt mine will be that long, but who knows it could be.

This will be a completely unique take on the story of bleach, and unlike other time travel fictions which have the main character contain the knowledge and power of his former self, I will not have him follow the main storyline but my own ideal. It may work out and it might not, we'll just have to see.

Thanks and please review…


	2. The Pact

_**Disclaimer: **__Bleach not mine, got it? _

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_**Return of the moonfang**_

_II The Pact_

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A lone shinigami knelt against a crimson smeared stone, having bathed himself the essence of yet another in an endless line of meaningless skirmishes. Desolate, he reflects the nightmare that is his existence.

-------0-------0-------

These are days where he is the last example of the coined phrase 'captain level', even though he surpassed that might ages ago.

Such a peak that was the ultimate dream of most death gods, he attained it far swifter than most. Perhaps it was an omen of things to come, that things normally acquired with time and patience could be subverted by a singular or forceful will.

His was to save Rukia from an undeserving fate. A task he was proud to have taken alone, but even prouder to find companions who would shoulder such a burden with him.

His destined rival sought to use said girl in a plot to obtain the means to supersede his own limits. His plan was executed with the sort of precision that constructed the heavens. His dreams always painted himself in such grandeur ironically.

Both would later conclude that their respective will clashed in that moment. In a singular instance a rivalry was born, but not the one born of friendship, seeking to surpass the other. It was a kill or be killed, annihilate or annihilated kind of tryst. The hands of fate were guiding them inexplicably together. They were the intersection of day and night. Every world of existence was shaped due to their presences. Ambitions would rise in the night, only to be slain by day. It was an endless waltz of chaos destruction and momentary peace.

-----0-------0--------

He sat there, in the ruins of a fallen city, in the rubble of the place he once called school. Not far in fact from the placement of his old seat, had he been ten feet or so higher.

------0--------0-------

It was the conclusion of history. The rapture never came, innocence wasn't whisked away to the heavens while the earth burned, for the heavens themselves were the first victim, pillaged by the armies of the space between.

Sereitei fell within a single day. When four hundred Menos Grande led by fifteen arrancar descend upon a place, fate has decided to cut its string. Sadly, the attack was not even a singular action, but a diversion to allow the ceremony of achieving the key to go without any disturbances.

The espada stood before their lord as he prepared to enter the gateway of true heaven, when an orange haired shinigami blocked his path…

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He never truly saw himself as a shinigami, whose meaning didn't really reflect what ideals they held themselves to. They were warriors, yes, but most couldn't see beyond their own noses, focused solely on their own greed. If they were truly the gods of death, the guider of souls and protector of those who had crossed over, such an accomplishment of giving a living soul the power to save his family would've been honored rather than scorned. Her sacrifice was demeaned by those who would follow a rule that such a thing was wrong.

To this day, he still couldn't believe how blind Soul society was about the defection, illusionary techniques cannot hide everything. The fourth division captain detected something close, but she like most of the shinigami lacked a will that would naturally doubt a strange situation and pursue it relentlessly. She did uncover the plot, but not without due signs of abnormality. Hindsight is always referred to as crystal clear, but such a statement is as useless as observing a blue sky one day and predicting it would be orange the next.

From the bottom of his heart, he hated soul society. He loathed them for different reasons than the Vizard or the Bounto, whose hatred was simply based on existence. Disliking a person for existing was a common trait of most shinigami. While it was never clearly defined as such, their laws and rules subtly supported the ideal of indifference.

He hated them for being so swift to execute one of their own, while being lead by a 'dead' puppet master who had murdered their ruling council. In time however his hatred mulled away under the veil of youthful naivety, he realized that right and wrong choices were never as clearly defined as they appeared initially.

He likewise despised the normal shinigami for remaining normal. There were options for them to obtain higher levels of strength in a short amount of time, the Bankai doll for example. Becoming a Vizard another due course of action. They had months during the absence of the darkness, captain's chairs could've been refilled from their own ranks. Their idea of preparation was idly waiting and watching what the other side would do. By chance, the tenth squad captain had survived an encounter with a gillian ranked Arrancar, yet it appeared that no one could relate the experience to how much trouble they were really in.

Darkness had planed this out for who knows how long, and even with the information of when the end would come, the shinigami did nothing more than stand around and wait for it, rather patiently.

The last of the shinigami discarded the name in dishonor, forming an alliance with the last of the Quincy, the last bounto, and the remaining Vizard and humans with abilities, they were the Paladin. An curious name for those who would be exactly what they claimed to be.

A time came when it was just darkness and the last of the Paladin. Aizen Sosuke and Kurosaki Ichigo.

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A lone shinigami laid next to the fallen shell of his rival, not far from expiring himself. He didn't care what place the remnant of his soul would be discarded to, only the fact that he had lost so much in something so meaningless. The will of man is simply to undo himself. The dreams of evil and good share the base desire. It's merely a matter of the direction they turn: good leads to sacrifice, bad leads to destruction.

Sitting there, growing cold in the absence of the leaking essence, he blinks to find the avatar of Zangetsu before him.

"Zangetsu" Ichi spoke with only a casual acknowledgement, he hadn't smiled since the day he last saw Rukia.

"_Ichigo"_

"_I have a confession to make Ichigo…"_

"We're dying right, I know…"

"_I am the Spirit King…" _

"So I was used by fate then, I guess I'm not surprised, all things considered."

"_I'll ask this once and only once… if given the opportunity to rewrite life, would you?"_

His mind in those last moments shifted to the raven haired girl, the reason why he couldn't smile, not even on a day like this. He hadn't laughed seriously in ages, he was a shell of man, in the absence of her…

Kami himself had just handed Ichigo the book of life, along with his pen, all he had to do was erase Aizen from existence, and none of this would be. He could prevent so much with such a little action.

He could see her again...

that would be enough...

even if he died a moment later...

just to see her face..

he would...

"I will…"

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A/N: Special thanks goes out to Zari for being my first reviewer! Yeah!

I had originally thought I would go straight into the confrontation with Byakuya one of you anticipated, don't worry, I am getting there, I just want to do this properly, and not rush into things. I thought some background was in order. Rather than speak of it later when things get more interesting, I thought It'd be best to get it out of the way.

Thanks again and please review…


	3. The Journey

**Disclaimer: **Lawyers are the scum of this universe, 'sigh' I don't own bleach.

Kubo Tite does, happy now?

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_**Return of the Moonfang **_

III The Journey

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He could see her again,

that would be enough,

even if he died a moment later,

just to see her face, he would.

"I will…"

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"Very well Ichigo, are you ready?"

"Just one question, Shirosaki? Is this your idea?"

The old man flickered briefly before being replaced by the white version of his soul, bloodied up rather similar to Ichi. The drawl of the elder was replaced by the bipolar hollow. His backwards voice was something that Ichigo still hadn't gotten used to, it was so unnatural. It did work rather nicely as a scare tactic when facing enemies though.

"Very clever king, you saw through my deception even in that rattled state."

Ichigo laughed silently for the first time in ages, since she left in fact.

"You wish to lead me back in time to a day when I am weaker, but retain your full power, crushing me would be rather simple wouldn't it?"

The hollow was speechless, which Ichigo enjoyed for a moment.

-------0--------0------

The old man's voice returned…

"**I told you who I was didn't I?" **

"The spirit King right, snap your fingers and undo all this if you actually want me to believe you."

"**What's done has been done, it cannot be restored, the rejection of situations died with your bubbly friend. But I can do this…" **

A snap of a finger restored his life force and spiritual energy, visibly Zangetsu and Shirosaki were both drained, they couldn't have done this. It was real!

"Ok lets say I believe you, why did the hollow distract me?"

"**I used the hollow within you as a guide to higher levels of power that you couldn't have reached as a shinigami. You needed the animalistic instincts of a hollow to survive. He alone pushed you farther than most of the shinigami dared to tread. Save your rival of course. He stepped outside the boundaries I placed on his kind, and even would come as far as replacing me.**

"**You could say I've had a hand in the fate department in regards to you. I knew what would transpire with Aizen's ambition, and it occurred to me what could happen had I made a minor alteration. **

"**Your mother died instead of you…"**

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It all began then, only he hadn't realized it up until he said those words. He had just started noticing ghosts, and saw one about to drown. Using its bait, a young girl, the hollow lured a delicious young soul close enough to strike. His mother was conscious of the nature of his ability to see the undead, and sacrificed herself so her son wouldn't be eaten.

He had suffered for eleven years before learning what he believed at the time to be the truth.

She was killed by a hollow, a hollow which he wounded but could not kill. It fled before a killing blow could be delivered.

The fact that he had been unable to kill Grand Fisher haunted him to the very moment. Ichigo never knew that it was Isshin who served vengeance to the pseudo arrancar.

Ichigo fumed with an anger that surpassed his own dislike of shinigami, this went to the very core of his being. Within him burned a fire that the greatest of volcanoes couldn't hope to match.

-------0----------0----------

The hollow within him began to cower at the killing intent his king was sending at the old man.

Shirosaki didn't even want to trifle with this side of Ichigo. He had hoped he would've been able to persuade Ichi to a moment of weakness where he could pounce and rule. He was capable of doing it even as damaged as they both were. Ichi was content to die and it was Shiro's chance.

He had only felt a taste of the fury of Ichigo in their first squabbles. It was during the invasion of Hueco Mundo that Shiro offered Ichigo the full power of the Vizard, and he took all of it, more power than the hollow had originally intended to offer. That compelled with the desire to save everyone he became nearly unstoppable in regards to the Arrancar. He even managed to fell Ichimaru.

Aizen was not easily toppled. Ichi was not the only one who had powers beyond a shinigami. The fusion of Shiro and Ichigo were humbled and scorned by Aizen's complete power.

That alone burned Shiro to the depths of his being, but even that was inconsequential compared to the anarchy in the eyes of Ichigo at the moment.

If the king decided to take a leap into the past, the horse, his natural legs would follow.

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"**I used you Kurosaki Ichigo, to prevent the end of days. Sadly not even my meddling could prevent such things from coming to pass. That being said, I will not let this game end without a parting gift for you…" **

"A game?" Ichigo's eyes watered with tears for all of those who had fallen, Tatsuki, Inoue, Chad Ishida Renji and Rukia. All of the countless others he had befriended or tolerated for the sake of training. They were pieces of him that he was without, an uncompleted puzzle made so by the creator.

"How heartless are you?"

"**Excuse my wording, I have a habit of being rather insensitive, being absolute does that to a person. I am absolute but not perfect. My inability to see the outcome of this gambit proves this more than anything else. I can forgive, and I have the ability to change it." **

"**Kurosaki Ichigo, I cannot give you any more power than you already have, but if I place you correctly, say the day you lost her the first time, You should be more than capable of handling your rival." **

"Very well send me back to undo your mistakes."

"**Repeat after me:" **

_To you I make the solemn vow, _

_Let me return to the dawn of my fight, _

_Endowed with the strength I hold this night, _

_This life in payment, soul entrusted to the younger self. _

_Zangetsu, you and I _

_Will rise once again before our time…………_

Ichigo repeated quietly as he began to take an eerie white glow, much as his reiatsu did in times past.

"**Complete the chant with:" **

_Art of supremacy: role reversal transcendence _

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Ichigo did as requested, being motioned to stab himself with Zangetsu he cautiously did, ushering forth a brilliance he had never seen before.

All of time ceased in that instant, the clouds stopped, the world was mid breath. As the sun concluded its fall only to rise again in the opposite direction, Ichigo concluded that time itself would reverse while he remained still. It wasn't a matter of placement, he would remain while the world would reset.

Fights days nights, ages flashed by in minutes…

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He found himself once again among his 'chums' including two of his trusted companions. They were all alive!

Ichigo watched as he was unstuck from his safe dimension, moving by a higher will not affixed to his own, until he stood before his younger self. His younger self had leaned back against the wall to take a slight nap. The others failed to notice the subversion for reasons they at the moment were not capable of explaining later on.

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A single eye popped open gazing at his older self.

"Did Rukia just hit me? My shinigami soul is outside my body, and yet why am I able to talk in this body?" The sitting Ichigo spoke to the ears of himself and his reflection and no one else.

"No she didn't". It wasn't his voice it was an uncharacteristically darker tone. Like those who had visited a distant battlefield, it carried an unbelievable depth and lack of innocence.

"Pop out by mistake?" the younger Ichi replied.

The older Ichigo sat down legs crossed in the style of his younger self, sighing immensely.

"You could say that…"

"Don't mind if I return do you?"

"Just don't let it happen again, these guys will get suspicious."

"Got it," he spoke phasing himself back into 'his' body.

Initially his younger self began to notice changes in himself and the world he viewed as the soul had half way returned at which point he became alarmed!

"What's going on who are you?"

"I am you Ichigo, what you will become."

Halfway into his response the reasoning behind such words were suddenly inserted into his consciousness. Images flashed like a highlight reel, reviewing the course of things for his younger self.

"I understand, do what you can…"

"We will…"

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**A/N: **Well Now I've completed the sequence of the return, still no Byakuya I know you're crushed, he's coming but I'm not sure to be exact which chapter he may pop up in. Thanks to all those who have reviewed, I'm shocked I've gotten so much support in less than a day! You guys rule…

Review and I'll try to input your ideas as best as I can.

Peace and have a nice day! -CH


	4. The reaction

**Disclaimer: **Allergen Information:

Product contains bleach

Not to be consumed,

if you do,

Sue Kubo Tite

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_**Return of the Moonfang**_

**IV** the reaction

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Tatsuki walked silently with Inoue at the conclusion of their school day, bag draped over her shoulder as a title fighter would wear their belt. Inoue ambled along with a pout a mile wide and visible from space. The normally air headed girl was still dumbfounded at having watched such a display. Tatsuki knew exactly where things were going from the start.

Inoue had told her that Kurosaki was walking with Kuchiki-san the first day. Her Initial impression of Rukia was that Ichigo had become rather fast with his hands, something uncharacteristic of him. She couldn't help but feel similar feelings in this instance as if something was off with ole strawberry head.

An Ichigo that would kiss Rukia so publicly, so unexpectedly was not the Ichigo she had known from their childhood karate classes. Romance was not something he reveled in, he'd no sooner kiss a girl then wear something Ishida designed. It didn't make sense to her.

'why was it Rukia and not me' she paused suddenly catching Inoue's attention. Her empty hand drifted up to her lips wondering what the sensation felt like.

"What's wrong Tatsuki-chan?"

"Ichigo is what's wrong, if he thinks I'm going to let him…" she was caught suddenly by Inoue.

"Inoue?"

"We don't have the right to interfere in this Tatsuki-chan, you saw them kiss same as I, he loves her."

"Inoue!" Tatsuki watched as tears welled in her orange haired companion, such a statement hurt her just as much to speak it as for her to hear it.

"No amount of seduction or three-way offerings could separate them."

Tatsuki stared at her for a moment, the first statement was beautifully spoken, but the second was back to her usual insanity. Though she wasn't totally averse to the three way idea.

Inoue was right though, and Tatsuki would sooner break her fist before admitting defeat, however there are some battles which can never be won, even from the start.

She sighed before continuing the course home. Maybe she'd call Ichi later on and see what the hell he was thinking.

-----0-------0------0-----0------

Ishida walked perfectly upright as would one of noble stature and grace. If he were wearing a suit, you'd call him a prince, his mannerisms were well refined. His still bandaged arm stuck out rather conspicuously throwing off his perfect appearance.

Ishida had been eating lunch with the lot that Ichigo considered friends. He was rather surprised by the shinigami's lunch invitation and even more so that he accepted. Ichigo was not the stereotypical god of death he had been told about by his grandfather. Neither did he fit the image burned into his mind due to the loss of Ishida Souken. Ichigo was unique. He could respect that. Therefore he found himself able to tolerate the shinigami even though he was his mortal rival.

Ichigo had always been a sprinkler of spiritual energy since the day he became a shinigami. He had noticed the influence of constantly being dampened by reiatsu in the big Mexican as well as the girl whose hair color he shared.

What had always leaked like a broken faucet stopped abruptly near the end of their meal. In an instant it went from full pour to trickle then ceased. In those moments Ishida was taken aback, the power level he sensed in those moments brought a chill.

He had used an enormous amount of power the day before, defeating the giant hollow, so much in fact he nearly died.

Yet a day later said power had returned and increased by a scale he couldn't discern.

Ishida was not naïve enough to conclude that such a change would come through emotional entanglement, even though his own grandfather tried to teach him the strength of having those to protect. But such a change couldn't have come from love. He didn't care about Ichigo's exploits, just so long as he didn't hurt Inoue-san, he might just resend his policy of neutrality with the strawberry shinigami.

Ishida noticed the change without any facial expressions, maintaining the appearance of an intelligent student was his sole task these days, a mask he wore to please his arrogant father. To a student, such things as level of strength were irrelevant, to a Quincy it was the source of his pride. Compared to Ichigo in those moments the vastness of his pride shrunk inexplicably, he had a long way to go before he could stand up to Ichigo. He wasn't averse by the challenge either.

If he was truly that strong along, Uryuu didn't stand a chance. He wouldn't yield though, their rivalry had only just begun. There was the glove, the last resort his grandfather had left. With that he could stand upright again.

'strange though' he thought 'how did he suddenly gain control?' he showed no physical signs of change, only a few mental alterations he could detect from the disrupted movements of his closed eyes. His grandfather had mentioned something about conversing with a Zanpakuto, perhaps that was the source, but even still, the blade was nowhere near, he reckoned.

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Uryuu stiffened suddenly, there was an ill feeling woven into the wind, an irregularity not born of a hollows presence. It was the very thing he loathed more than hollows, Shinigami, not the run of the mill sort either. They were Quincy murdering type.

Enormous presences, ranked officers perhaps, his experiences hadn't involved any of these sort since the days of his grandfather. They were bound to hear of his exploits from the day before, but such a swift response he wasn't expecting.

'No' he thought, they were a good ways off to the east. Normally he wouldn't go looking for this sort of trouble, but something about this presence seemed out of place. He remembered the situation with Kuchiki-san, perhaps they had come for her.

Knowing Ichigo as he came to today, Ichigo wouldn't give her up without a fight. The likelihood of him using his new power was greater than he had anticipated, which meant he wouldn't have to force it out of him, if he could obtain a measuring of where his rival stood, he would have an idea of how much he had to grow. Then again, these sort of presences were on the same plateau as the orange haired boy. He'd rather have an injured heartbroken rival than a dead one.

Uryuu stumbled forward, cursing his own lack of training, being a student was really cutting into his mission as a Quincy. He didn't quite have the knack of flying legs screen yet, the Quincy version of faster than sight travel, he could do a burst or three on a good day. Uryuu hoped this was a good day as he vanished from sight…

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**A/N: **Four chapters in one day, I ended this one a little early as the screen is getting rather blurry, I'm happy with where it leaves off though. Number five will be solely about Rukia and Ichi definitely, and maybe ole pale face will be in around number six. That all depends on how I feel tomorrow.

I owe Mr. T.D.H.V. for the initial plot of this chapter, I hope I was able to fulfill his wish for a reaction from Tatsuki and Inoue.

Thanks and please review, peace - CH


	5. The anticipation

_**Disclaimer: **__Damn i forgot this the first time i posted this chapter, baka CH indeed!_

_(me don't own you don't sue can i make this any clearer?)_

_**Return of the Moonfang**_

_**V **_The anticipation

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'what in the name of soul society just happened to me?' Rukia thought as she was walking in the dim lighted hallway. Having forgotten her backpack she had retraced her steps to the classroom where it happened. Strawberry offered to go back and retrieve it like the puppy he was, but she wanted to see the place one more time. To stand just where he kissed her.

'he kissed me'

"Kurosaki Ichigo, the most annoying fool I've ever met just kissed me" she said aloud as if the manner of speaking it could somehow be the means of disproving it.

Rukia had never been kissed before. Though she'd never admit it, least of all to him. When she stated her age that first night it conveyed a tone of experience with a mild tint of mocking insolence. How such a vision could be undone by just a little kiss. A little senbon poking the bubble thin illusion she came to see her life as up to the moment.

She read of how a kiss could be used as a greeting, and that it also lead to moments of extreme passion. Rukia was a shinigami, and of the Kuchiki nobility, she was above such things, at least in her mind.

Ever since the day she left Renji standing there, he was so happy for her, he couldn't see what such happiness would do to them, they would never be the same. Being of nobility she couldn't consort with those of lesser blood. How could he have not known.

All he could see was that she'd finally have a family like she wanted. Like most of the shinigami she had met in her time, he was just as shortsighted. He couldn't see beyond the moment.

Accepting nobility meant she had to shun her best friend. The only one in heaven she could've ever thought of settling down with. Now that dream had come and gone in the instance he pushed her headfirst into the very thing that would keep them apart.

She walked away from Renji in that moment, her streaming tears placed between them as she passed, a momentary gasping chain for him to notice and latch onto as a means of ceasing, but he never caught on. She was Kuchiki Rukia from then on, a noble of Sereitei, above such things as emotional entanglement.

Nobility was the furthest thing from Rukia's mind, in that moment, for she was in love.

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Ichigo remained in the courtyard silent and impassive as the flagpole, shifting occasionally in the afternoon breeze. His mind wrestled with the desire of obsessing on Rukia while maintaining the need to script out his actions so she didn't become suspicious.

He meant more suspicious, his own actions that day were a huge leap out of bounds.

Within his mind, fear arose trying to weaken him, it was not the work of Shirosaki, the hollow had already been put in his place back in the future. Being apart of Ichigo, the orange haired boy was able to pick up on the inner thoughts of his tenant.

He couldn't shake this sense of foreboding, it was something he wasn't used to. Ichigo's eyes widened slightly at the placing of a face with the name of his uneasiness, the pale face of the sixth squad captain.

'Byakuya' he had nearly forgotten about Kuchiki Byakuya, affliction began to manifest itself in the doubt of how could he script the encounter with a captain. His journey through time would've been for naught if he lost his complete power with a single stab. Could he gamble on the fact his power would be wise enough to conceal itself as it did last time?

Ichi couldn't take that chance, the future rested upon his shoulders to author.

A mental back hand came out of nowhere, knocking the hell out of him. This line of thinking wasn't Ichigo. Least of all not the Ichigo that had killed Aizen. The fusion with his innocent younger self must've conflicted with his memories of the past.

Nothing else mattered, he had Rukia…

Moreover he had the power to protect her from those she couldn't stand against herself. The rest would come in due course, and he would script it as best as he could to allow the transition of things so that he could still have a step ahead.

-------0---------------0----------

Rukia had recovered her briefcase like book-bag with its chappy ornament hanging from the belt loop like any other charm of any other girl, to most it was just a bunny.

Just as he was a boy and she was just a girl in the world. Her fears of home's reaction ceased the moment his lips collided with her own. It was as perfect a moment as any she could've read. It was better than any description said story could offer, there truly were no words that could best it.

Her eyes watered at such a thought, she laughed at the picture of her being so emotional. It wasn't scorn just disbelief, that she could be so happy with something so small as a kiss in reference to the universe. Her reality had restructured around that moment.

Overwhelmed by these new sensations her mind still had a voice, a minute existence whispering doubt of what pale face would think of her choices. She knew instantly he would resent her for such a thing. He'd spout on about rules and other nonsense. He was in love once, perhaps he could see that in her eyes.

Nope, not a chance in hell.

Another voice came in the form of Ichigo's, he had changed. could it have been the defeat of the Menos? Such a thing would make her a little prideful but not change her so drastically she considered.

How did he gain control of his power, was it the momentary influence of Ishida the prior day when their energies collided, could he have learned suppression? Such a thing had never been spoken of, but then again it wasn't unheard of for strange occurrences to happen to shinigami. Their place in the encyclopedia of the universe wasn't complete.

The fact that Ichi had taken all of her power was a unique instance. Her intentions were only half, just enough to destroy the hollow, but he took every drop.

Her eyes widened in the thought that the reason she couldn't detect the hollow that day was his own spiritual power. When collided with her own in the form of that blade it awoke, drawing its first breath, collecting whatever power into itself.

She also laughed at the inability of her power to recover. She should've been distraught by the situation. Urahara had given her a faulty gigai, she should've been strangling the geta sandal fool.

Rukia was content with her weakness, love gave her a power she never thought was possible. If it was her destiny to become a normal human again she would accept it, cause she had him. Nothing else mattered. Could love really change a person this much? It didn't make sense while at the same time making more sense than any other choice she had ever made.

For all she cared, the details and consequences of her actions could go fly a kite.

------0--------0-----------0----------

Rukia's pace swiftly increased to a run as she nearly tripped down the stairs to him. She hadn't ran like this since the days she would run to train with Kaien. The level of happiness she was experiencing she could only relate to achieving the level of captain. It was absolute and intense in a manner she had never thought possible.

She loved him and promised herself she would tell him, if she could ever separate herself from his lips and warm embrace.

That would be around two-thousand never.

She ran all the same to the strawberry head which had just come into view at the entrance to the academy leaning up against the brick wall, staring right back.

-----0--------0-----

Ichigo watched as his Raven haired princess approached, fully aware of the fact the hairs on the back of his neck were beginning to rise…

They were here already...

It couldn't be helped, well that's not exactly true, he would help it as much as he could without appearing too strong.

He anticipated the reaction of pineapple head when he would her kissing him.

Rukia still hadn't noticed, 'man do I really have that much effect on her? I should've kissed her sooner.' Ichi concluded.

This was more of a parting gift than he had imagined the return would yield. If he fell today this would be more than enough to make up for the years of sorrow.

-----0----------0-----

Rukia charged into him like a bull, pressing him against the wall further, wrapping her arms around the neck of the boy she loved, pulling herself upward.

"I love you, baka!" She whispered as she leaned up close.

------0---------0--------

That was all he could handle, he didn't care about the goons of heaven breathing down their necks as they most assuredly were. He had her at least for the moment, and he would take advantage of it.

Ichigo lowered his lips down to hers igniting once again in a world pausing embrace.

----0-------------0---------

The sounds of a clearing throat preceded an incredible burst of reiatsu. Reality around them blurred, she became heavy but he endured. He wouldn't let her go even at this moment, a well of reversed gravity with the weight of the world wouldn't force him to let her go.

-----0-----------0----

Rukia's eyes widened as she broke their kiss, instantly aware of just who the hell dared to interrupt them.

The raven haired girl looked over his shoulder to find two interlopers she would have never bet on coming to get her.

"Ni-sama?"

----0--------0----

Captain pale face remained silent for the moment, debating on whether or not to actually address her by name. The sight of her consorting with a human was a dishonoring shade of disgusting he wasn't quite prepared for.

His subordinate on the other hand was seething, Byakuya noted that he wasn't over his sister after all, the fool was still pining away, much like his dream of surpassing his captain…

An impossibility…

--------------------------------------

**A/N: **I take use of Lifethane's _Evil cliff hanger no-jutsu _at this moment, oh how I was anticipating the usage of this. I know I changed the recovery time but it just seemed to click into place in this moment rather than after another fabricated instance. I'm finally here at the point I've been leading towards all this while.

Thank you so much for your support and I'll try to write something you'll enjoy as much as I do writing it. Peace and have a great day! -CH


	6. The assembly

_**Disclaimer: **__CH don't no nuthin bout ownin no bleach_

-------------------------

_**Return of the Moonfang**_

_**VI **_The assembly

---------------------------------

Rukia's eyes widened as she broke their kiss, instantly aware of just who the hell dared to interrupt them.

The raven haired girl looked over his shoulder to find two interlopers she would have never bet on coming to get her.

"Ni-sama?"

------0----------0----------

Ishida developed from the veil of reiatsu that increased his movement beyond normal sight. He dropped to the ground panting severely, he had done four complete bursts of flying legs screen, a new record for him. Sadly it had drained a good deal of his power.

Such exertion would be a breath had he completed the glove training. Hiding the Quincy glove was rather difficult as it was rather conspicuous most of all to his father. There were the sort that would consider such an accessory the mark of musician, he was already viewed as weird. Furthermore, he didn't want to be associated with that _kind_ of weird.

Snapping back to reality, Ishida's eyes bulged at the level of power the two shinigami he had been trailing were releasing. These weren't the type to hunt down a Quincy, these were the lot that would come after rogue or exiled members of their own race. The shinigami were not fond of those who had different ideals.

Case in point, the Quincy.

Ironically enough, the power level of the two troublemakers was exactly the level of power he sensed from Ichigo earlier that day. It seemed as if fate had drawn them together, leaving him a witness to it. His pride had suffered quite a deal this day. If the situation warranted his assistance, perhaps it might recover a little.

----0-------0------

It was Inoue's turn to stop unexpectedly, this time not with words but with the simplest of feelings within her heart…fear…

It was a single outstretched hand on Tatsuki's shoulder which stopped her friend. The dark haired boxer turned to gaze on Inoue who bore a wide eyed expression of rather vast affliction.

Everything in her heart screamed that Ichigo was in danger. It could've been an instinctual reaction to the burst of reiatsu which struck them like a wave seconds later, gathering the chilling attention of her friend as to why she stopped.

Inoue, what is this feeling?

"Tatsuki-chan, it's…"

Her mind recoiled to the words of the strange sandal man…

'Kurosaki-kun is a shinigami who fights hollows'

Inoue started walking back to school as if in a trance when Tatsuki appeared in front of her.

"Inoue what's wrong?"

"Kurosaki-kun's in trouble…" she laid it all out, what had happened that day when her powers awoke, some of which Tatsuki expected and sort of remembered. Also what the shopkeeper had spoke of, what Ichi had become, and how he and Ishida destroyed that huge monster.

"This was the decision he mentioned, to cross through the gate to the other side. We have to help Kurosaki-kun!"

"You have powers but what about me, what can I do?" Tatsuki asked, expecting to be left behind…

"Tatsuki-chan, you're the strongest girl in Japan, I'll be your shield, you be my fists, and together we'll save the one we care for!"

The dark haired girl had been brought to tears by her friend, tears of happiness, in all the insanity that was rapidly popping up around them like her own ability to see ghosts, Inoue was the one thing which could calm her down.

"Let's go Inoue", she began to run with Inoue, their hands together, drawing forth Tatsuki's courage, and Inoue's heart.

-----0--------0----

Kurosaki Ichigo stood still against the wall with his eyes closed, trying to give off the appearance of annoyance at having been interrupted during his precious moment. He didn't even have to try, it was more difficult suppressing the will to reverse their own deadly reiatsu back onto them. He breathed in and out a few times trying to suppress the rising anger at the sight of them. His mood seemed to calm in the fact that his plan of irritating Renji had gone off without a hitch 'mission accomplished' he thought.

What to say, what to say…he reckoned for the moment it was better off to play dumb.

"You know these guys Rukia?"

At the recognition of their existences, the two shinigami focused their gazes solely on him.

----0-----------0-----

Byakuya stared at him with what could be considered a meager interest. He should've killed him outright for touching his sister in such an unsavory manner, but he wasn't impulsive like that. He would rather let him squirm. His ability to notice them proved that he wasn't just some punk kid. He also toyed with the possibility the kid knew nothing at all and was going on nothing more than a chill and strange reaction from Rukia.

His first conclusion was more logical, and his second was one of those strange thoughts you get when something is unexplained, a failed stroke of the mental brush.

"Rukia, do you understand what you've done? " Byakuya whispered in his usual tone of being above all things.

---0-------------0------

Ichigo laughed confidently "I find it strange that two men would interrupt another when he's kissing his girlfriend."

-----0-----------0--------

Rukia blushed for a moment at the sound of his words, surprised she could act so nonchalantly even in their presence.

Everything in her mind and soul screamed to her to get Ichigo away from the real shinigami. Rukia knew how strong they both were, and irregardless of Ichi's ability to control his own reiatsu output it was insignificant. There was too far a distance, too much ground to cover.

'there's no way-'

Her train of thought was interrupted by Ichigo turning to face the night robed warriors, but not before mentioning to Rukia to get the glove ready.

'he was going to fight them, was he insane?' she thought searching for the crimson glove within her bag.

---0---------0-----

Renji was in complete and utter dismay, having Rukia appear so out of the stoic character he had come to tolerate, here she was the girl he loved back in Rukongai.

In time he came to realize the lunacy of his own actions in regards to pushing her to Byakuya. He was such an idiot for not realizing the cost of having that family. Indifference in replacement of your heart is a price he couldn't have possibly fathomed.

This guy, the lines of his face reminded him of another shinigami. The hair wasn't citrus, but auburn. Renji's gaze stayed solely on Ichigo for a moment before he realized who it was he saw in the boy, a mirrored silhouette of Shiba Kaien appeared next to the normal clothed kid.

He was the only aside from this guy who could make the adopted nobility disappear in place of her true self.

He wondered if this kid was Kaien reincarnated.

"Taicho, he looks familiar does he not?"

----0-----------0----

"Clever Renji, I wouldn't have thought you would notice that, very clever. However, this kid is not to whom you refer, such a thing is not possible. The resemblance is remarkable though."

------0---------0-------

Ichigo dismissed the reference to Shiba Kaien, but tucked that knowledge into the back of his skull for a later date. If they considered him very similar to the former fuka-taicho of the thirteenth division, oh the fun he could have with that. He decided on a more tactical approach.

"You're Rukia's brother right, did you come to save her? It's not necessary, you have my word, I'll always protect her, not that she needs it. Once her powers return she'll be stronger than me."

"If you want to be mad at someone, go after that geta sandal fool, he gave her a faulty gigai, her power's have been getting weaker rather than stronger. Don't you guys have some kind of business bureau?"

----0---------0---

Byakuya laughed at the insanity of such things. Laughter was a rarity for the noble, Rukia had never even heard him chuckle, losing Rukia's sister had done that to him.

"Irrelevant, she subjugated a human family in her own weakness, giving you her power, and has had repeated contact with humans. What's far worse is she has consorted with exile trash. Refuse such as yourself."

----0---------0-------

Kurosaki Ichigo had been rather patient with the whole situation, he was trying to keep things within the realm of believability. The more he restrained himself, the harder and harder the world kept pushing him to release it. A good percentage of him wanted to just use the final release and sort out the pieces later. The faction of his mind still in favor of taking it easy was about fifty five percent and dropping fast.

Taking a deep breath, he walked over to Byakuya with his arms out open, indicating he had no weapons and was non-combatant.

----0-----------0-----

"You're making a grievous error in judgment, underestimating an elite!" Byakuya watched intently as the boy he had rightfully labeled trash stepped to within a foot of him.

----------------------

"Can we be civilized for a moment, Kuchiki-sama?"

"I wouldn't have thought you capable of such things…"

"I wish to tell you why I will die to protect her…"

"Why is irrel…"

"Stop right there, decide rather or not it is relevant after I've told you please!" he said appearing somewhat forceful.

----0-----------0-----

Byakuya wasn't expecting this approach, but he would humor the boy for at least a moment. It wasn't in his nature to kill someone trying to resolve a conflict peacefully, even though he knew there was no chance of him being dissuaded. He respected the boy for having the courage to take such a road, even though it was futile. The fact the kid was man enough to admit that he stood no chance, was somewhat respectful, earning him some points.

"Thank you. Now you claim Rukia has broken the laws of your kind by giving her power to me, do you refute anything about that claim?"

"No, that is correct."

"Did you ever pause to consider why or are you not capable of staring outside the frame of things."

"Justification is irrelevant, laws are broken, a punishment must be carried out or the law is useless. Such is the way of order, such is the way of this world, yours and ours."

"Were you there that night Kuchiki-sama? Did you see the hollow that nearly tore apart my little sister Yuzu?"

A trace of humanity came to Byakuya's face, a but of regret at having forced up such a thing.

"Did you see how it nearly crushed my other sister Karin in the palm of its hand?"

"I tried to save them, much to my own stupidity. This in course caused Rukia to be injured. She gave of herself, giving me the ability to save my sisters, how is that not relevant?"

Byakuya's will was starting to crumble, as he went to speak, to try and calm his rising guilt he was met by the hand of Ichigo…

"Through her sacrifice of power I was able to find and wound the hollow that killed our mother, how is that not relevant?"

---0----------0-----

His eyes never wavered, or looked aside, they bore into his own with a fury he had only seen in his commander, the boy was being honest. The kid had seen more, experienced more of their world than a normal human was meant to.

Furthermore, Rukia's sacrifice was relevant, incredibly so. She was so much like Hisana that Byakuya clenched his chest in that instance. It hurt him irrevocably to see her standing there. It was such a selfless act, just as he had witnessed his wife's frantic search for her abandoned sister, even to the point of collapsing in the street from her illness. She went out every day, without regard to the consequences, Hisana might've lived longer had she remained in bed.

In his life, he had broken so many promises of late, marrying a commoner, then allowing her sister to become a part of the clan. He had vowed on his parents grave to never waiver from the laws again. Byakuya wanted to more than anything in the world, but if he the greatest of the nobility couldn't uphold a promise, enforce a law then what good was order?

Regaining his composure, Byakuya sighed in a vain measure of expelling the remains of his heart. In a moment he was straight faced and more rigid than the side of a mountain.

----0-------0---

Kurosaki's defense of Rukia was rather well thought out and capable of winning any jury, Ishida reasoned to himself. He didn't think that Ichigo was that intuitive to take things to such a level of discussion, all he had ever managed to get out of the boy were simple words or declarations of anger.

Then it hit him, the approaching energy signals… including his own which had spiked as he touched the other presences.

'Impossible, it was all a trick! That bastard!' It was the sort of subversion he would think of. Ishida fumed at having been outpaced by a shinigami.

----0------0-----

Ichigo was rather surprised by even the expression of feeling from the normally stoic statue of a captain. He wasn't really expecting Byakuya to waiver, he only did after he managed to defeat him the first time. He hated that it had to come to this, he so didn't want to fight an ally.

Eye to eye even still, he spoke again.

"Fine then, if I have to pound some humanity into you, the so be it. I'm not above fighting the brother of my girlfriend for being an idiot." With that he turned and walked back to Rukia who had removed the glove and put it on her hand.

----0--------0----

Any measure of respect for the boy vanished in that instance. As such he felt little pity about unleashing his subordinate on the boy with his back turned to a captain.

Rukia screamed to Ichigo to watch out, but it was futile, he would die and this disgraceful operation would come to an end.

-----0-------0----

She couldn't understand why he was smiling, when Renji was just moments from striking his backside.

The reason became evident when a translucent orange triangular shield appeared out of nowhere rejecting the attack. Emitted by three winged points, the barrier knocked the vice captain back with a burst of energy.

'I was waiting for you, Inoue…' Ichigo smirked to himself.

-----0------------0--------

Almost as swiftly as it had appeared, the shield fractured in which the winged pieces didn't fly directly into the hairpins. Nor did they resolve to their complete forms alongside their kin resting on the girl's shoulder. The three had reformed covering the right fist of Tatsuki as she delivered a knockout punch to the man who had just attacked, but having little effect.

Ichi couldn't believe his eyes, Inoue had figured out how to let Tatsuki use her power! Furthermore, Inoue hadn't yet collapsed under the strain, in fact her power seemed to be growing stronger, Tatsuki appeared to be radiating within her own abilities at having been influenced by the orange haired girl.

'I wasn't expecting this' his smirk grew even bigger.

"Thank you Tatsuki, Inoue!"

---0------------0-----

Before their dumbfounded mouths could utter a reply, a dawn like light erupted from the right, lead by the roar of a tiger. A furious wave of reiatsu crashed upon the shinigami, Byakuya extending a hand to deflect it with kidou while his subordinate could only look on in disbelief at the sight of such a thing. The same girl had erected a third shield to protect the teenage group from the blast as well.

It came from a tall man of Latin features, oddly enough he was adorned in a flowered button up shirt. What stood out more than he did was his smoldering right armored extension. His low drawl of a voice uttered a greeting.

"Yo Ichigo!"

'thank you brother, you've come to my aid again' his mind conceived as he answered,

"Yo Chado"

---0---------0---

"Taicho, who are all these cockroaches?" Renji pleaded in disbelief.

"Fools trying to delay the inevitable" Byakuya felt the boy's reiatsu on all of them, evidence of their closeness to him, companions perhaps.

'Kurotshuchi-Taicho would have a field day with these kids' Renji grinned almost like the scientist captain, well aware of the madman's reputation.

Their tone paused when they noticed Rukia placing a red glove upon his shoulder, pulling back a fourth shinigami.

Chains of reiatsu disconnected the vessel and the soul exposing a black and white warrior with a standard Zanpakuto on enhancement drugs. Its irregular size threw Renji in a strange place knowing what a large sword symbolized.

---0--------0----

Inoue, Tatsuki and Chad stared in complete shock as another Ichigo stood outside himself. Both of the girls commented on how there was no more Kurosaki-kun inside the original.

Ichigo laughed at the candy box reference for the second time. It was time to introduce himself to the world, and in the presence of the others he struggled not to speak his more modern name. He decided to go with something simple yet to the point.

"Gotei 13, substitute shinigami Kurosaki Ichigo, pleased to meet you."

----0-------0----

Byakuya's eyes widened as the boy labeled himself as a member of the protection squads. He wore the shinigami uniform, the white robe superceded by the black, the sandals and even a zanpakuto… His eyes drifted over to Rukia who was equally in dismay, it became clear to him exactly what was going on here, Rukia had no idea how much she had sinned.

Speaking of the divisions was illegal to any outsider, it was given as a title to an enemy that was about to die, but for her to release this much certainly didn't look good for her.

He should just kill her now to save her from the torture of being executed, he couldn't do it, he Kuchiki Byakuya was conflicted. She had dishonored his name to the point of dragging it through mud the moment she gave him power, then stomped on nobility with the touching of his lips with her own. She had to pay, but why couldn't he do it?

It was an war between the rules and his heart. The rules won no contest every time. This was different, this was his Hisana's sister, to strike her down would be like killing Hisana. Such was something he could never forgive himself for.

If done through the means of justice though, he could wash his hands of the situation. He wasn't really surprised his thoughts had drifted to such a place, but it did make this job a whole lot easier.

----0-----------0-------

Ichi made his debut with the huge fang shaped blade resting on his shoulder, in its pre released form. He kept a tight lip on his power, letting only about the equivalent of a fourth seat appear. Not very much in power terms, but just enough to be interesting he figured.

Ichi almost made the mistake of not using the substitute shinigami title rather than his normal title:

"Kurosaki Ichigo, of the Paladin."

----0----------0-------

Renji intuitively decided to lead this game in a direction he could handle, he'd berate the kid for being an overnight shinigami, he'd humble with trash talk and then destroy.

Then Rukia would be his again. Oh how he was going to enjoy this!

"What's the name of your Zanpakuto, Kurosaki-kun?"

----0---------0-----

Ichigo smirked for a moment, portraying the kind of impression of stupidity, while wondering himself if he should let the name just slip out. He could do the name, but no more, Bankai was definitely out of the question.

Having achieved Shikai would explain his sudden control of his power, but releasing too much wouldn't be explainable.

Ichi stole the ball from Renji's hands and ran with it.

"name?"

"You guys name you're swords?"

----0-------0---

"Heh, just as I thought, a kid like you is a thousand years too young to fight against us! Roar Zabimaru!"

Pineapple head's blade glowed green for a moment as his hand slid down from the hilt, as it passed the blade became segmented, appearing like a spinal column of pointed pieces that with a single flicker of his hand extended like a whip of individual connected fang like blades. The disturbing released form of the blade came down with the intent of tearing citrus boy's unoccupied arm off.

The girls cowered in fear while Chad ran to cover Ichigo's back, while shielding them from any damage.

Ichigo made the appearance of struggling to life the mammoth blade up and over but did so remarkably fast, shielding himself from the strike.

He stared at the blade for a moment, making the visible appearance of having seeing a connection between knowing the name of a blade and having it transform.

"So that's where that voice kept coming from…"

Shirosaki appeared within his mind's eye, 'that's it old king just take it easy, you don't want them to be too suspicious…' Ichigo took one look at his tenant with an expression of 'don't you even dare show you're face, I'm pushing the limits of believability here I don't need you mucking things up' knowing the boy's rage the hollow subsided and returned to whatever hole he crawled out of.

"Seriously though, I was starting to think I was hearing voices, perhaps even the men in white coats would be after me soon."

Renji stared at him blankly, unable to make the proper correlation, when he spoke, his commander nearly face vaulted.

"Captains? What are you talking about kid, for the likes of you?"

Byakuya knew the proper reference, but the statement of his subordinate did strike him as rather ironic, given the fact the boy had stolen his sister's power and apparently had quite a bit of it on his own. It was no where near such a height mind you, one that would warrant such a response.

Ichigo was capable of laughing at such a reply, an oddly similar reference as Shirosaki was on the floor having no difficulty of doing it.

"All brawn and no brains huh? I'll spell it out for you." Ichi struck him with a literal jab.

"What did you say?" Renji growled.

"Those caught speaking to themselves are often labeled as mentally challenged and thus are taken by men in white coats to an insane asylum. It's pretty common knowledge like the sky is blue, but maybe that's too generic for you?"

"Bastard!" he roared, knowing fully that his own game had been turned on him without any chance of recourse.

----0---------0-------

Even in the presence of Renji and her brother, Rukia couldn't help but laugh at the way Ichigo had defeated Renji intellectually, but she couldn't discern where Ichi was taking this, and was his sword really talking to him already? This was unusual, but it did clear up the matter of him learning suppression.

------0---------------0--------

"_**Intersect the middle distance between heaven and earth…Zangetsu!" **_Ichigo roared.

The huge unwieldy blade erupted with a furious thunderstorm of Reiatsu swirling around him. Bursts of static broke through the clouds of energy striking all around like lightning. The blade had dissolved, all he had was a hilt within his trembling hand.

"What on earth did he just do Kuchiki-san", Inoue asked expecting her to know.

The girl took little comfort in the realization that Rukia was just as terrified by this situation. Rukia couldn't believe her eyes.

It came just as it did the first time, with a heavenly crescent of energy preceding it. The dancing particles around him were severed by an even brighter light coursing through the ground tearing the pavement and forcing the shinigami to vanished sideways in a manner of avoidance. A thin canyon remained in the wake of the light, and there he stood with a newly released Zanpakuto.

----0--------0---

'What the hell?' was the collective opinion, between the three observing shinigami and the Quincy still in hiding and the assortment of other companions.

"He just used Shikai?" Rukia managed to stammer out.

"This is a zanpakuto release!" Ishida concluded, having seen a few before. It was time he entered the fray, having felt sort of left out.

---0--------0----

Like a steak knife without a handle of respective size to the blade. Zangetsu had no hand guard. The base metal that became the blade always surged upward from an ornamental cross guard. The shape befit the type and class of every Zanpakuto. There wasn't even a hilt. While this wasn't totally unusual given the non-sword weapons that a zanpakuto evolved into. For it to be a sword but still lacking the usual components of said weapon was an irregularity, just like the boy.

His hand connected to the blade with a sleeve like cloth wrapped loosely around the lower extension, draping down the ground. It rested, against the crossing of his shoulder blades, its dull side against his body while its business end was star bound.

----0---------0----

The sixth squad captain couldn't believe his eyes, Rukia had told him about even the initial release, how could she have betrayed soul society so completely, this would further her sentence, something which a rapidly diminishing piece of him still conflicted with internally given that promise. A promise he had promised not to fulfill.

----0--------0----

Ichigo removed the blade from his shoulder, holding it before Renji with a single hand initializing his desire to fight with the pineapple head. But before they could begin, something interesting happened.

A bright sky blue arrow of reiatsu struck out from the horizon, intercepting the distance between Ichi and Renji's blades, with a smirk of a smile he declared his intentions.

"I don't usually like to get involved in a shinigami fight, but I can't have my rival defeated by someone other than me."

Byakuya had seen an attack like this before, the outfit was flashy and elegant, there was only one group that used that weapon."

"Who are you?" he asked.

"Ishida Uryuu, the last of the Quincy."

----0--------0-----

Inoue, ran up to the Quincy giving him a hug that earned her a scarlet blush from the boy.

"Ishida-kun, you do care about Kurosaki-kun I knew it!"

Ishida tried to brush off the fact he was pleased with the attention from her. She returned to Tatsuki who couldn't take her eyes off of the bookworm who was holding a bow made of glowing light. He took up a defensive position with his bow drawn next to Chad, who had taken form in front of the girls, equally surprised.

Uryuu was the final recovered piece, Ichigo's division was complete. Ichi couldn't have been more happier, his eyes glistened with that realization. He felt stronger in their presences as he always did. They were his support mechanism until the very end.

Ichigo and the last of his friends and allies were the thorn in the side of Aizen for at least a year before the conclusion of time.

You couldn't take the smile off his face with a blow torch, the five founding members of the Paladin had assembled once again…………

Tbc

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**A/N:** I know you guys are going to murder me for interrupting this, I could have stopped this so many times and broken it up into two separate chapters but then you'd really kill me. This was such an exciting chapter for me to write, its my favorite thus far…at this point Ichi has developed a plan to end things.

_No more spoilers, no more lies, if you don't review I'll surely cry!!!! _

_Peace -CH _


	7. The fall

_**Disclaimer: you know the drill I don't own bleach, I do own the kind that you put on your clothes…**_

_**(updated 10.09.07)**_

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_**Return of the Moonfang **_

VII The fall

Of all the nuisances Lord Aizen had to deal with, he loathed the Paladin. Even more than the Shinigami or the Vizard, who swiftly joined forces even against orders for some out of the sheer reputation of their leader, Kurosaki Ichigo. Zaraki Kenpachi was the first of the shinigami to defect. With him naturally came Ikkaku and Yumichika. The eleventh squad captain was itching for a fight, and as a Paladin he wasn't disappointed.

Since the Paladin existed as an ally of Soul Society, such disregard for the rules was ignored.

Even one of Aizen's precious Espada defected, turning spy for the group. It was that day that he had lost something even more precious than the espada. He had lost Hougyoku. You could say it was rejected away. With its creator having been sent to the grave at the hands of the former fifth captain, there was no one who could fashion another one. Number six had become an invaluable member of the Paladin, even though he did it just because he respected their leader, not out of any desire to be friendly.

The remaining Vastolords attached to Aizen were either wiped out or scared into hiding. This startling change of events made the remaining Arrancar and Espada incredibly more valuable. If only he had known, he would have severed that boy's head then and there, before he left soul society, if only he had known.

Of all the Shinigami it was the son of an exile, not even a true death god who became his ultimate rival. There was the Mexican and the Quincy who were his right and left hands, equally as strong as the shinigami in question. Then came the girl he had captured, what a fool that was, he was so arrogant to think she wouldn't try to undo the Hougyoku. That boxer friend of hers had protected her; no assassin could get within a mile of Inoue without being taken out. Even Grimmjow went out of his way to protect her; he actually gave her to Ichigo.

It was this that changed the time of death for the Shinigami. It was pushed back for several years, as Aizen and Gin struggled to create a new race of hollow titans.

It wasn't unusual for Aizen to kill a few Gillians a day out of frustration. The only hidden ace he had on the boy was the remains of Rukia he had turned into an Arrancar. It was like Shiba Kaien all over. That was his one measure of leverage, until Ichigo killed her.

Such a thing changed him forever. It made him serious. Up until the moment in question he had never been a true warrior, he kept trying to fight as if tomorrow he could go back to just being a boy. When Ichigo was serious, achieving Bankai was nothing; waging war with heaven was nothing, conquering his inner hollow was nothing. A serious Ichigo was the one thing Aizen hadn't anticipated, and likewise underestimated, a mistake that cost him.

He became a demon that day, nearly obliterating all of Las Noches in the process, they were still rebuilding around the time of the end. Aizen didn't really need a desert fortress, once he became god, he just didn't like an untidy house. To say he wasn't a perfectionist would be to say that Kuchiki Byakuya was a slob.

In retrospect maybe making the girl into an Arrancar wasn't the best of ideas, Ichigo wouldn't have risen to a point that made each battle with Aizen a draw.

Despite his desperate need to kill the boy, the exiled captain couldn't help but respect him. He was of course fighting for the wrong side, that was a given. Aizen never considered himself evil, more like justification of existence. The whole point of life is to get stronger until you die; it's a contradiction, that's why he set out to change things.

Ichigo never even once for a second respected Aizen; he knew that, it was the nature of the hero to hate the villain.

To say he was impressed with the kid's progression would've been an understatement, it would've almost appeared as if he was the patron deity Aizen himself was trying to become. Such a thing was impossible, that the spirit king could exist within a mortal form…a mortal form that had never been killed. He had come so close to dying so many times that the actual state known as close for him would have been pushing up daisies for most people several times over.

No matter what he tried, Aizen could not kill the bastard.

He killed his friends, a good deal of them in fact, until Ichigo was the last of his Paladin lot. He took pleasure in watching the pain their deaths inflicted on the boy, but it only made him stronger, an infuriating reality.

When Aizen had opened the door, Ichigo was waiting for him. The king was home and ready to take out the trash.

------0----------0-------

Rukia was left without the ability to form words. Almost every one of Ichigo's companions had come to his aid, and were thus able to render it.

She wasn't really surprised by the presence of Ishida; they had sort of formed a partnership, which for a Quincy and Shinigami was unbelievable. Rukia sort of expected him to be here, it was all the others that threw her in a strange place.

The normally shy and timid Inoue had stood up to a shinigami vice captain. She appeared to have zanpakuto like hairpins that released fairy manifestations of shielding power. When the hell did she get power?

Her friend Tatsuki was just coming into her own, yet she had used Inoue's power as a weapon. The dark haired girl much like her own was glowing then within a near third seat level power. Its true nature had yet to be revealed.

Then came Chad. He had been quite helpful during the mission involving the bird soul Yuichi, and it appeared as though he had some sensory ability when it came to hollows.

It occurred to her then, yesterday had seen more hollows ever-recorded in one place at time. Ichigo's companions had been around him long enough to be influenced by his uncorked reiatsu. Their abilities must have just manifested themselves in their owner's defenses.

The orange haired baka was the biggest mystery, one does not go from an initiate within two months and know shikai, it just doesn't happen.

She could only stammer out a simple statement, it was all her mind could allow. It was all too much.

"What in the stars is going on here baka?"

------------

"Ah Rukia, I was wondering when you'd chime in."

"This isn't the time for jokes!"

"There's always time for a joke, a man walks into a bar…" Rukia slapped him upside the head, which for her was rather difficult due to her size, but with the aid of her drawing pad it was accomplished.

"Owie that hurt, that wasn't nice… back to your question, what in the stars is going here, right?"

"I knew they would come. Don't ask me how, I mean its almost as if they have a piece of me within them, except for Ishida cause that would be just weird."

Ishida grimaced for a moment, which was the intention of the orange head.

'It's the piece of his power within his friends that allowed for such influence of thought patterns, sending them a signal they would respond to as the need for aid. '

"Before I learned suppression, its likely my power influenced latent abilities within them, giving them strength which arose uniquely in them."

'So he was able to conceive it' Rukia thought.

"You're hardly the one to speak of unusual behavior Kurosaki, did destroying that huge menos or whatever it was give you that new power?" Ishida verbally reasoned.

----------------

Renji had lost to the boy mentally; his best effort of wearing down the boy had been decimated, and the mentioning of him defeating a Menos was the last straw.

"A kid like you destroying a Menos, did it chop its own head to within a millimeter of complete severing?"

-----------------

"Would you like to know what severed the spine of that monster? The fangs of your little blade are insignificant compared to the fang of the moon." Ichi growled as he held his blade upright with a single hand, his eyes already taking a white glow.

Reiatsu swirled around him in a circular pattern, in which a column of pale light began to appear out of the compression of energy molecules in the air.

Ichi didn't have to tell Ishida the moment he fired the blade that they would definitely be open. The Quincy had seen the blade attack he believed the boy was speaking of, in which he nodded to Chad. The Latin man nodded as well, without alerting that he too knew of the attack's nature. Uryuu assumed his knelt stance already drawing back an arrow, Inoue stood in defensive stance ready to shield any reaction from the two. Tatsuki held guard behind her, ready to knock the hell out of anything that dared to touch Inoue.

Tatsuki had noticed that her senses suddenly took a huge jump in sensitivity, she also felt lighter, she could feel the miraculous feeling of adrenaline yet it wasn't that, it was reiatsu coursing through her veins, increasing her strength to untold heights. With a simple growl on her part, the pavement underneath fractured as a white aura danced around her, she was on fire.

She wouldn't need protection from Inoue this time.

--------------------------

Byakuya watched girl and the others with callous interest, they were nothing compared to him, but his subordinate might have difficulty of fending off all of them combined. He reasoned Ichigo would come after him, his focus had been on him the whole time, he knew that it would come down to the two of them.

Renji really was insignificant. It was painfully obvious that Byakuya needed a stronger vice captain. Abarai was about as smart as a monkey, which given the nature of his sword wasn't a surprise. A complete idiot when it came to Kidou, more likely to blow himself up then his opponent. He should've been able to wipe out the instigator and capture his sister with one swift stroke yet he had acted just like brainless moron trying to belittle rather than just do it.

No, Byakuya realized, he had been trying to do that this whole time, but the kid had been avoiding even Renji's taunts, his blade attacks were useless against Ichigo, and even his intellectual abilities had been surpassed by the citrus haired kid. Had it been for difference circumstances, Ichigo would've made a fine vice captain.

'Such a pity, such a waste of potential…'

He felt the need to warn his adjutant, "Looks like these kids are serious Renji, don't hold back…"

--------------------------

'Zangetsu, you know what to do right'

'I think I understand where you're taking this, I'll try to make it a shallow wound…'

'Not too shallow or he might not take it seriously!'

'Of course'

The sight of everyone working so hard on Rukia's own behalf nearly brought her to tears. Nevertheless it made her worry that her brother would do to them when Ichi was defeated, shikai or not she knew it was a matter of moments, and then he'd be gone. If it were just he, she'd go down fighting to the death. Holding her right pointer and middle fingers together she began covertly charging all the spirit power she had left, it would be a final strike and it would most likely kill her or have her end up being killed just prior to it.

Rukia didn't want the others to pay for her mistake, they didn't have to go that far for her just because of Ichigo, but she knew Ishida and Chado would without regret, he didn't know the others well enough to make that call, but they wouldn't have come had they not shared some thought of it.

Everything she had ever been taught about Kidou was that if a charge is held through a chant it grows exponentially rather than without the chant. All a chant achieves is not a magical requisite; it's a means of concentration. If you are a natural kidou expert as Rukia was, the need for a chant is irrelevant because your own mental powers are strong enough to do without the extra words.

Byakuya had no idea that she had secretly entered his Kidou spell library and had read on all the attacks he used normally. Rukia sought his brother's approval by learning all of his abilities as a sort of expression of imitation flattery.

Her favorite was the Byakurai -white lightning; it could be done with one finger and was more elegant for a woman, and a noble to use a single digit rather than a whole palm as a commoner would. After numerous tries, she concluded that using two fingers, and using them as a tuning fork like extension could summon more power. The reference had nothing to do with musical terms but was of a nature that two fingers could control twice the power within the space between.

With time and concentration she could summon a blast strong enough to stop a large hollow. Such a thing required a team tactic, numerous members using offensive and defensive means to subvert the attention of the hollow while she stood there charging peacefully, observing and waiting for the opportunity to strike.

Rukia had lost Kaien because she was weak. Here it was the same situation all over again. The man she loved was in dire straights and she couldn't do a damn thing but stand and watch.

If Byakuya dared to hurt Ichigo she would kill him. Or at least make the attempt. She could die knowing she tried to save Ichigo.

Ichigo had rescued her the moment he placed his lips on her own. Her life was cold and callous, much like the man who had adopted her. She never knew the kind of warmth he had given her with something so small. She wanted to spend the rest of her life with Ichigo, a life that was about to be extinguished.

Before he could take flight, she had to say it aloud, so that the world would know it. Not playfully as she had done some time ago, but truthfully.

"Ichigo…If we come to an end here, I wanted you to know… I truly, deeply, love you."

-------------------------

Her words tore open a hole in Ichi's chest, as if a blade had stabbed him. The desperation and pain in her voice was evident, she knew the end was nigh. Rukia would go down fighting alongside him, as she was unable to do with Kaien.

The end was near; his patience had almost been obliterated. Ichi was inches from ceasing his attack, throwing his blade horizontal and screaming the one word he couldn't. Not if he wanted to get to soul society and have a clear opportunity at Aizen. He could injure these two clowns so easily and swiftly. But that would've risen too much of an alarm. There was still so much that had to be done, he couldn't risk it.

Zangetsu didn't bother to mention that time wasn't reset so Ichigo could fall in love; it was so Aizen's ambition could be ceased.

The fact that the two of them before him were fulfilling that ambition without even knowing it made him go nearly insane.

He had a plan at this point, and it had to work precisely for Rukia to be taken without the loss of his abilities. He could feel her charging an attack, something he likewise hadn't expected. She wasn't lying about her feelings she was ready to die trying to fight alongside him to the end.

Having to give Rukia up a second time was just as hard as the time he killed her.

---------------------------------

Rukia had become an Arrancar. One of Aizen's clever tricks at getting an advantage on the boy who had managed up until that moment to kill three of the espada, numbers ten, seven and four.

Ulquiorra was like a son to him, and the amount of anger he felt as a result of the young one's death was catastrophic. He had managed to have Gin collect the girl's remains and put into stasis for no other means that the possibility of explotation.

Aizen knew it was possible to make an Arrancar out of a dead shinigami due to his success with Shiba Kaien. It was fate he reasoned, she killed him then he killed her, then Ichi would be forced to kill the one he loved, it was too beautiful for words.

Usually when a zanpakuto's user dies the sword being a part of their soul goes with them. Nejibana was the exception to this. The blade remained because Kaien hadn't completely died. Apparently there was some piece of him inside her or some rubbish to that effect. Her own zanpakuto rejected the newly minted Arrancar version of its former master. So she used Nejibana.

Its released form was an elegant water based trident. The new Espada number ten took to Nejibana as if it were her lover. He assumed on some level it was like her accepting that she could finally be with Kaien. The irony of it was almost sidesplitting at times.

Her being a natural ice type, having water was like giving a constant source of fuel to a fire type. The trident didn't assume the natural arrancar relationship with its user, but Aizen didn't really care about that matter of appearance.

An arrancarized Rukia had one purpose in life, to kill or would Kurosaki Ichigo.

It was the greatest masterpiece of Ichimaru Gin. The new Rukia was more machine than human, due to the extensive amount of time until her body had been collected and sealed. Her blood was reformulated to contain metallic enzymes and nano-machines, which kept her body in complete health while slowly repairing the functions that Gin, had neither the skill nor time to do himself. It could also regenerate lost limbs. Since the Hougyoku had been destroyed Rukia was transformed into a Vastolord and then altered mechanically to become an Espada.

She had become a machine of battle. Rukia was still very much human mentally, except her brain had been inserted into a computer that analyzed opponents strength and weaknesses and directed her in the proper form of battle to take and crush said opponent. Infused with a Reiatsu generator she could fire almost limitless kidou blasts. For some reason her natural kidou abilities should have made her able to fire Cero like no other, yet she couldn't.

Rukia was set lose on Kuchiki Byakuya and her startling likeness to his dead wife made dispatching the sixth squad captain an far easier task than Aizen had ever thought possible. For every slice a senbon leaf would make, the body would heal itself instantly. For all his kidou and even his Bankai, the strongest and most renown of all shinigami fell within thirty minutes. Rukia didn't even have to use the trident; well she did when she carried his head back to Aizen stabbed through with its staff end. She destroyed the greatest wielder of kidou with his own medicine. A part of her subconsciously enjoyed it, for having him not even attempt to save her from the execution.

The fact that Rukia was still alive and had been turned into a monster for sport sickened those she once considered companions.

Ichigo selected himself for the job of taking her out. It wasn't even an order, Ichi left the day he heard of the death of Byakuya. It wasn't like her. To kill her brother, he wanted to try and save her if he could, as only he could.

Aizen knew this would transpire sure as he knew sharks would come to a bleeding wound. He had it staged within the realm of Hueco Mundo, in a collisseum of rocks and steel he had fashioned for just the occasion. Arrancar guarded the exits and no hollows menos or anything of the sort were allowed within a mile of the facility. He set to watch the beautiful dance of lovers meant to kill each other.

They fought for three hours straight. Aizen watched and loved every minute of it. Every slice she inflicted, every time he observed the boy's face at the fact he was reminded almost every minute of who he was fighting. Rukia was relentless, but even with all her kidou and the trident, she couldn't stand against the then ultimate power of Ichigo, the unification of himself and Shiro.

Naturally, one would consider a Vizard's usage of hollow powers as being the same as fusing together with it. Most would be incorrect by this assumption, it was an offer Shiro had slid across the table, when they were both against the ropes.

Considering the analogy of the horse and the king, when the king wields the power of the horse or grants the horse momentary reign, it is only a reversal of station, never a complete alliance. They in the purest form change from king and horse to a centaur, metaphorically of course. A centaur is the fusion of a man and a horse, thus a complete being rather than two separate halves.

This union of opposites, filled in the gaps and weaknesses all around, if one half was poor with kidou manipulation, it instantly gained the concentrative abilities. The advantages continued all around, until the two sides had become nearly a perfect being.

-------------------------------------------------

Defeat was imminent, like the harmonic tremors that precede an eruption, a solitary thumbs down was given by Aizen, the call sign of "finish him".

Much to their grand dismay, a tattered and nearly destroyed Ichigo arose once more, and would not fall again.

Using a tactic employed with Grimmjow, Ichigo vanished only to appear behind Rukia, imperceptive moments before her own senses could register it. Unleashing a furious crimson and black fang of light, that had been unlike any other he had ever fired, she was finished.

The part of them that was still Ichigo, couldn't stand the sight of watching her as he ended it. The mere aspect of recording her facial expression might've killed him in that instant. He instead focused on the light of her smile, and the warmth of her existence, knowing she would not have wanted to linger after death in such a ghastly manner.

From the ashes of the hellish body she had been given, a ghost arose; a last gasp of all her energy before she was gone forever.

It was the girl he loved, a solitary flower in a world of pure darkness. He told her he loved her, and she smiled. Kuchiki Rukia ceased to exist.

He had saved Rukia, in a way different than the first time. It became brutally clear to him in those final moments, just how much Aizen had taken from him?

Holding the trident of Kaien, he remembered how she used to talk of the man she had once crushed on, who resembled Ichigo. How he had fought valiantly against a hollow that had killed his wife and then possessed him. Rukia had to kill the one she cared for, the one who had taught her how to use her zanpakuto. He was Ganju's brother, and his death was the source of his scorn for all shinigami. Kukuku also left the Gotei thirteen because of her brother's death. They had never known the true reason of his death.

Ichigo let himself go. He destroyed anything that got in his way from that moment forward. He fought as Haiiro, or the fusion of black and white. His life had been reduced to being the definition of gray, and his complete alliance only confirmed it, he who lived but fought in the form of the dead.

Haiiro, while being nearly omnipotent, had one distinct disadvantage. Ichigo was never a truly instinctual fighter, he had been at times, but with Shiro integrated into himself, that flaw reversed itself from the other spectrum, he became so focused that he couldn't tell friend from foe. Any obstruction, regardless of the facts was taken out without mercy.

Ichigo feared the likelihood of killing his sisters in the later months of the war, after everyone else had fallen, they were the last, so he sent them into exile, into the furthest reaches of the world.

When Sereitei fell, Ichigo stayed behind, Zangetsu had told him the more necessary fight remained in human world, so that when Aizen opened the door, Ichigo was waiting for him, waiting to end it, once and for all.

---------------------

In Rukia's eyes in that present moment, Ichigo saw the same innocent girl that existed in the ghostly form.

He spoke the truth of his heart to her, as much as he could without revealing too much.

"Rukia, I love you with all my heart. Even in death I will never stop loving you. If this fails I'll come for you…I promise…"

"I know you will, you wouldn't be the man I loved if you didn't."

With those words he was gone, and it had begun, the finale of the encounter.

Byakuya followed the boy's movements in shock; he was using a generic form of shunpo. Using only short bursts he danced around looking for the means to strike with his energy attack, having held it charged after all this time.

Ishida let loose an arrow, Sado a cannon blast of reiatsu; each Renji was able to step aside and dodge. With his accordian of death Renji attacked the group with his full force only to be met by another orange shield and a furious energy laced punch, this one did hurt.

Renji grabbed his jaw spitting out a tooth and grimacing in pain. Ishida led the others in battle, using his means of faster than sight travel to appear behind the shinigami unleashing arrow after arrow each time he reappeared. Sado and Tatsuki pounced on him during the moments he was exposed, and was starting beat him up pretty badly. Inoue was rejecting Renji's blade until it returned to a temporary stasis in its original form.

He was screwed now. He couldn't stand up to the unbridled power of Tatsuki. She had pummeled him at least twice with a shotgun barrage of fists. Sado and Tatsuki took their turns on the red pineapple, until a well placed energy burst in his stomach and a charged punch to the chin knocked out the vice captain.

Byakuya couldn't believe his eyes. Children had defeated Abarai Renji; the one who vowed to surpass him.

'Looks like I'm in the market for a new subordinate, damn this kid would be perfect, too bad I have to kill him." His usage of Shunpo was impressive, for an initiate. Then it came, a heavenly blue fang of energy sprung out of nowhere, with the appearance of coming from all sides. Ichi was dancing around the captain while releasing it. While confused he would dash in and stab the captain to death.

Only when he had made the lunge forward blade in both hands the captain wasn't there. He had vanished appearing sword drawn right above the kid. Senbonzakura tore into the boy's side as one would pick up a piece of trash with a stick. Zangetsu had cast an illusionary technique over Ichi's body; his usage of Getsuga Tenshou was the catalyst for the trick. When he stabbed, the blade actually sliced at the skin near his spiritual organs, not through them.

His reiatsu vanished entirely; the technique was flawless.

The screams could be heard for miles

"KUROSAKI-KUN!" Inoue roared.

"ICHIGO!" Rukia cried.

Ichi was down and out, dead…

Tears streamed as Inoue tried to rush to his side, and heal him, but Tatsuki held her back in fear of the other one. She didn't cry as often as Inoue, but such a situation had the same effect on her. The two of them couldn't keep their eyes off of the assumed dead form of Ichigo, images were flashing in their minds, anger was building, and so was reiatsu as a result.

Sado found himself equally becoming irate, he had failed in his promise to watch Ichigo's back, had he done so, Ichi would still be alive. His monstrous right fist was slowly gathering energy, and much to his dismay, and that of the others, his left armor took shape. It was a shadowy transformation; much in the way a hollow enters the world, in a black distortion. Byakuya noted this, concluding that to be the nature of the man's abilities.

It wasn't as large as the other one though, a fang like upward claw grew out of his left shoulder, and likewise spread a thin claw shaped plate over his left breast, in protection of his heart. Reiatsu burst from him like a geyser, piercing the sidewalk and obliterating the ground encircling him.

Byakuya had expected some resistance, but not this. The Mexican's abilities had just shot up three fold. The kid was still not enough to be a serious threat to him. If any Shinigami came to these areas on missions, they wouldn't stand a chance.

The Quincy remained still, drawing in energy into a singular arrow, his abilities didn't skyrocket like the others did, his relationship with Ichigo wasn't that close and thus not able to change him that much from witnessing his death. Ishida was also channeling energy into his silver tubes; if he could bind the stronger shinigami somehow he knew Sado and the others could injure him enough to get Ichigo and Rukia away. Nevertheless, any hope of them surviving the encounter at all was close to none. A Quincy never surrendered. His grandfather sure as hell never did.

Rukia stood there reliving all the moments she had shared with the baka. Much in the way Tatsuki and Inoue were, but for her it was different, it wasn't just some random guy who killed the man she loved, it was her own adopted brother.

She knew this was coming sure as if she knew the sun would rise in the morning, it still didn't hurt her any less. Once they appeared it would be a futile dance of words and blades, eventually Ichigo would fail. Ichigo had been smart enough to by time until the others arrived, but it made little difference. Just as it would no matter what they tried.

Even in the face of such thoughts, Rukia didn't give up. She wouldn't let herself fail this time.

Seeing Ichigo laying dead her mind recoiled and placed an exact image of Shiba Kaien lying there next to her dead love.

Her jaw lowered in disbelief at the fiction her mind was weaving, tears burned her eyes like waterfalls of fire, as she watched as her brother confidently strolled towards the group, smiling that arrogant I'm better than you trash sort of smirk.

Her attack was coming along quite well, and she had enough to take down most hollows, but she couldn't get it out of her head why she was so weak. The damn gigai it was supposed to restore her power not drain it. Her power had to be somewhere within the damn thing she just couldn't reach it…

She just couldn't reach it…the glove…was still attached to her opposite hand.

Placing her hand on her chest, Rukia pulled forth with all her might, yet she wouldn't appear. What had she done to deserve such a cursed fate, was she destined to always lose the ones she loved in such situations of futility?

All she wanted was to be in love, as she had from the moment he kissed her lips, what was so wrong about that choice?

Why did the man labeled as her brother stand there and make her force to chose Soul society over love, she gave Ichigo her power of her own free will in a sacrificial act, why was she being punished for doing what was right?

The insanity of it all drove her to the edge of madness, as she plunged her own hand into her own stomach tearing a hole in the gigai and tearing her an exit.

Screaming in agony Rukia's aura emerged a white brilliant cloud of reiatsu, from which the last shinigami present appeared in true form, zanpakuto in all. With her full power restored she didn't even reach for the sword; she shifted all of it to her glowing opposite fingers. The tiny spark exploded into a humming sphere of light the size of a golf ball.

Byakuya was astonished by the valiance of his sister; he was impressed even though it was an utterly futile action.

Rukia raised her glowing fingers up to her brother, with a heartfelt expression turned cold. This time she wasn't powerless; her love wouldn't be in vain. She would fight and die for the one she loved.

This drew a curious expression from the captain "Oh, you think you can beat me with simple kidou, stupid girl."

"You and soul society have taken so much from me, the debt you have is beyond payment, and your verdict is death!"

Rukia vanished from sight appearing knelt before her brother, holding the two fingers right up to his face, the opposing arm supporting the raised weapon.

At point blank range she fired it. Byakuya couldn't believe this was the same timid girl he had under his roof all these years. The fire in her eyes was just like her sister. Unrelenting.

"Hadou number 4: Byakurai!"

It wasn't a simple thunderbolt, which struck out from her fingers; it was a freight train of awesome power, spiring from a single point in a pure beam of iron willed precision. A vortex of white fury instantly burned Byakuya in the face and he recoiled in horror, as it didn't cease in intensity.

Rukia roared with all the fury of her heart, trying to blow away the 'beautiful and resentful face of nobility' she had lived in fear over all these years.

Ichigo's companions had watched in utter dismay as the girl had torn her body apart to release her in the warrior form only to attack the stronger of the two head on. What was even more staggering was the fact she was winning…

It was time they finished this.

Ishida cried out to the others that he was open, and let his arrow of destruction fly.

Sado and Tatsuki rushed forward on either side, Sado the left with his new arm, and Tatsuki aready holding a charged fist.

Inoue fired Tsubaki and released her healing powers onto Ichigo.

Byakuya wasn't humbled much as the way Abarai had been, he had been completely underestimated and what was worse, he underestimated them even more. His own sister had damn near blown his face off, the Quincy had managed to strike and burn a crater in his chest, and the other two struck down upon his sides like guillotines. The girl's little fly hadn't done much more damage than slice at the side of his neck.

His arms weren't severed, but he was badly damaged. He had little recourse but to wipe them all out.

The Quincy had fired again, and the others had regained a fighting stance then leapt again, Rukia's attack continued to burn him in white fire, a fire he had directed with his right hand and was holding at bay for the moment.

One thing remained clear, that was not Byakurai, and least not the one he knew of.

He didn't give himself the time to think as his left hand pulled out his sword and threw it spinning overhead.

Byakuya looked them dead in the eye as they came in on him with the same sort of don't you guys know you're dead kind of smirk on his face.

Two words ended it for the companions of Ichigo.

"Scatter Senbonzakura."

The blade separated into thousands of pink sakura blossoms; thrust down by his will like a pouring waterfall. The cherry blossoms spread over him not inflicting damage to the user. Its splash darted outward with at the speed of sound obliterating anything fool enough to collide with it.

The attacks ceased, the attackers fell, and their bodies cut to pieces, painting the corner crimson with their essence.

It was over at last.

---------------

Byakuya had taken more damage than he had in years of fighting. No one had ever gotten close enough to fire such a blast or inflict him so many times. He was startled with how scary these kids were. The fact that they would go so far because of the son of Isshin was near them, but something about this wasn't right.

He suspected foul play, and foul play tapped him on the shoulder.

He turned wided eyed to find Kurosaki Ichigo standing upright and undamaged before him. There wasn't time to utter a response; rather the ability to speak had been removed from him by a singular grip of the boy's hand around his throat.

"Byakuya, take her and go."

The level of power the boy was releasing pummeled his senses; it was far beyond captain level, almost to the outer limits of captain commander level!

"Take time to compose yourself and go, and tell no one of what you've seen here!"

"Why should I?"

"Because I've authored this whole moment from the second you laid eyes on us. You are not an enemy Byakuya, had you been I wouldn't have taken the time to carefully script this. I would've annihilated you the second you interrupted us. You sense my power and know I am capable of this.

"What is going on here, you know something you're not telling me."

Ichigo sighed in disbelief. "Open your eyes you fool, a shinigami captain should be able to see beyond the veil of order and rules to what's underneath, a will that wants Rukia destroyed for their own ambitions! Her actions were sacrificial, I know you felt the same, I saw it in your face when I told you the truth."

"Having her there will expose those who want her dead. I will end them as only I can."

His eyes stared into the unyielding gaze of a man who was in fact far stronger than him. He wasn't a boy, nor was he a man; he was a pure warrior of unparalleled cognitive ability. Byakuya hadn't even conceived of an alterior motive behind the recall of Rukia.

"Take her and go now before the others awake."

He released the captain only to watch him rub his neck intently searching for damage but found nothing new.

He lifted up Rukia with one arm and Renji with the other, summoning a gate he stared back at the boy who had humbled all of soul society by humbling Kuchiki Byakuya.

"I'll say this to you Byakuya, you'll see my signs in a few days time, death will rise again to seek vengeance upon those who have incurred it. Stay out of my way and see that Rukia is tended to and protected. Just a warning, your Bankai is nothing compared to mine. If you cross me Kuchiki-sama, your head will go one way and your body will go the other!"

The kid was deathly serious. Byakuya nodded to the greater of them, uncharacteristically even in his own eyes, the presence of the warrior that day was greater than anything he had or would ever see. Slowly and deliberately intending not to drop Rukia he carried the two of them until the doors and the gateway vanished from sight.

Ichigo dropped his power level to find two suspicious figures staring at him suspiciously. One in shinigami garb, a white captains robe hung over his left shoulder pinned from his chest. Its numeral was unrecognizable in its folded up state. He held a drawn zanpakuto and held it intently.

To his right stood a man in a reversed colored captain's jacket, black with white diamons along the lower edges. Wearing his signature geta sandals and hat which concealed most of his eyes, he too held a zanpakuto.

The looks on their faces were ones of complete exasperation.

Ichigo didn't even regard the sandal man; he may as well have not even been there. For reasons all his own, Ichigo wondered if he would ever speak to Urahara Kisuke ever again. By his own right and that of the universe, he could've just killed him then and there. Such a course of action though would've alienated his companion and Yorichi. He sighed, putting that card back into his hand for a later date.

The other man he had known all his life, and had raised him not so much as a normal father but as a rival, always squabbling in useless skirmishes of brutality. It was humerous as much as it was sad. If he had to choose a better father he could look in every other house but his own. He loved the old fool, cause he was just like him.

To him he smiled, speaking as if they hadn't met in such a scene, where four of the Paladin laid in a scene that a horror filmmaker would grow sick from the sight of. It was just an ordinary day to him.

"What's up father?"

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_**A/N: **So what did you guys think of my Byakuya encounter? It changed shape there in the last minutes as I was struggling to piece together the exit scene. It came to me to just let out a warning to ole captain pale face that he had been toyed with. I don't intend to have Ichi face him again, when there are so many other big fishes to fry. _

_This chapter was updated primarily because it deals with an encounter that will be explained later on in the story, but it also gave me an opportunity to set the stage for one of Ichigo's higher forms of power. A power which shows itself in later chapters but never really had a name until I just made it. _

_Haiiro is the term for Gray, and Kuroi and Shiroi are black and white, if you don't know. They are used in shorter forms because of their usage in Ichigo's last name, Kurosaki, Shirosaki (being the hollow side). _

_Anyways, thanks for playing along! _

_-CH _


	8. The rouse

_**Disclaimer: **__It's been a week already with 8 chapters haven't you gotten the idea yet? Me don't own you don't sue…_

_**-------------------------**_

_**Return of the Moonfang **_

_**VIII **_The rouse

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To him he smiled, speaking as if they hadn't met in such a scene, where four of the Paladin laid in a scene that a horror filmmaker would grow sick from the sight of. It was just an ordinary day to him.

"What's up father?"

-----------------------------------

Kurosaki Isshin stared back at the thing, which had taken control of his son. There was no way in hell that could be Ichigo. Ichigo couldn't have survived against Byakuya unharmed. Ichigo couldn't have held Byakuya by the throat demanding anything of him; he should've been in worse shape than his friends.

"Oh excuse me," the kid spoke as he held the dinner knife like blade upright, speaking to it… "Zangetsu, restore…"

A hissing reiatsu rushed from the blade dissolving into the air and reassembling as circular columns of light around each of those who had fallen. In an instant the light was gone and they were whole again, healed but in need of dire rest. This fit Ichigo's plan perfectly, he could speak freely with his father for some time before the others would awaken.

---------------

Urahara took leave of the boy for a second walking over to inspect the kids, and to his complete dismay found them completely healed, their pulses not erratic but calm as if nothing had ever happened. Kisuke noted the irregular way that Ichigo didn't even speak to him as he had in times past. He didn't even regard him, it was almost as if he wasn't even there or likewise couldn't even be seen.

From what he could tell, the boy's aura was agitated by his presence, it didn't reflect badly on his father but something, for some reason it peaked with him around.

"Zangetsu, return…" Ichi spoke in which the shikai disappeared returning to its pre-released state. Sheathing it, Ichi placed the blade on his belt, but not before revealing his other one, held in placement just under his primary sword.

"Father, help me carry my friends back to Urahara's shop." Ichigo spoke as he lifted up Chad with little difficulty placing him on his right shoulder, then he took Ishida on his left, both slung over revealing just the orange haired boy's face.

Isshin stared at him and for the moment wasn't entirely sure that was his son. He had just healed them, and was attempting to carry two of them at once.

"Are you really Ichigo, or some monster in his place?"

Ichigo vanished from sight, resolving in front of the store, placing Sado and Ishida calmly in the care of Tessai who bore the largest what the hell kind of expression the kids had ever seen him wear. Carefully he placed the friends of Ichigo inside and the kid was off again to retrieve the others.

Developing before their eyes only to grab the girls and vanish again was a starling feat in itself.

When he reappeared the last time he dusted himself off before reentering his body by lying down upon it.

The real Ichigo arose and cracked his joints, before dusting himself off yet again, and casually walking over to his father and his associate who still had their swords drawn.

Ichigo could see the distrust in his father's fact he needed proof.

"Old man, when did you have the time to become a shinigami, I thought idiot was a full time job? More importantly though, are Yuzu and Karin safe?"

"I left them with that soul candy friend of yours, the one in the lion doll."

"Is that your definition of safe, oh wait that sounds like you…"

"Whoever you are, you have Ichigo's sense of humor, but your power level and abilities are no where near his…"

"I shouldn't have shown this much, but it was necessary to keep Byakuya from taking my powers."

"Why do you need power, is it to save that girlfriend of yours, the one that's been living in your closet?" Urahara picked up from Isshin's line of questioning much as the man had wanted him to.

In which Isshin would pounce on Ichi and find out whether or not he was real, the reaction to his question would prove it.

"You've had a girl in your room all this time, don't tell me you've been…"

He was interrupted by a flying smack which could have knocked him out had the kid used more of his might. A red glowing handprint was imprinted on the right side of his face, the mark of a pervert.

This was Ichigo, a radically strong Ichigo, but his son all the same. In the face of the proof he couldn't believe his eyes, and his attitude, it was so straightforward and precise, his eyes never wavered as if the simplicity of staring at something could erase it. It was the sort of gaze a true warrior had.

The kid had some explaining to do, or not for that matter, he didn't really have to say anything if he didn't want to. None of them had the strength to force the issue.

When Ichigo answered it was cold and callous, but utterly serious, his reiatsu spiked as he spoke more vehemently.

"I have this power, rather I had to protect this power because I received it from Rukia. Its value to me is beyond words, I'll cherish it as I cherish her."

Urahara's answer was swift and to the point, if Ichigo was that strong why didn't he just kill Byakuya, it was the loudest voice in his head. Why the subversion?

"If you cherished her, why did you let her go Kurosaki-san?"

Ichigo barely stomached his contempt for the sandal man, it tore at his very soul every second the man continued to exist, but he had to let him have the chance of making things right. Urahara Kisuke to a person like Ichigo was too valuable to kill.

"The streets aren't safe, Kisuke-san, heaven has eyes in this area and will for sometime after tonight. The ears of the Gotei 13 cannot hear what I must speak to you of."

'More importantly, what Aizen cannot hear me say'?

---------------------

A partially healed Kuchiki Byakuya emerged from the spirit gateway, much later than expected. He had taken the time in the middle distance to heal himself and his subordinate so they didn't appear quite as drastically damaged. He likewise tended to Rukia more out of fear than brotherly desire. It was uncharacteristic of him to follow the orders of a kid, even he thought of what the hell he was doing.

He couldn't deny the fact that the kid was remarkably talented, and his insight as to why such a degree would be taken for Rukia struck him very eerily. Laws were laws, but why were they: a captain and sub captain chosen to recover her, which was the one irregularity. It would've been the rogue shinigami hunter's job, not a captain of all people.

He still couldn't believe how far Rukia went in defiance of the laws. He thought he had pounded into her skull the laws of the world and never to defy them. Ichigo had really changed her, far more than he could have thought.

If his intentions were true to uncover a hidden plot, Byakuya seriously considered stepping aside and letting him decipher it. If he proved weaker than he earlier surmised, Byakuya could just step in and finish it as an error of judgment on his part.

-----------------

Soul society had been briefed about the contact Rukia had with the humans, and therefore it was logical there would be resistance, so members of the fourth squad were waiting at the arrival gate, the fourth fuka-taicho couldn't believe her eyes…

Renji was out cold still, Rukia was partially scratched up, equally unconscious and Byakuya's signature crown had been disintegrated along with some of his hair and his face was rather scarred.

Noticing the lateness which wasn't a normality for the head of the Kuchiki, Isane assumed they had some resistance and called in her captain in case of serious injury in the unlike event of, said call was a proper one in this case.

Byakuya laid Rukia and Renji out, before walking up to the fourth captain, smiling his normal greeting smile and walked past her before she could even speak.

"What…what happened Kuchiki-Taicho?"

"Rukia resisted, we underestimated her resolve to stay with the one she loved."

"How horrible" Isane muttered, not referring to the girl's plight but the fact she had fought against one of their own. Shinigami were commonly single-minded in this manner.

"Is that all the happened Byakuya?" Retsu asked.

'All that I dare admit' Byakuya hesitated for a moment before vanishing from sight via shunpo. He didn't need to tell Unohana to hold the girl in guarded care, she knew well enough. Byakuya should've mentioned something about Renji, but he was so far down the list of people the captain wanted to see and tell what the hell had happened, but that list shrunk to a single person, a single place…

Without the need or care of changing clothes or repairing his appearance, he went to see Hisana.

-----------------

Safely within the lower bowls of the Urahara shoten, Ichigo could at last stretch his arms out and relax for the moment. He had carefully scripted and executed a plan against one of the most formidable minds in soul society. Much to his mixture of surprise and joy he was able to accomplish it.

His orchestration of the Byakuya encounter was performed beautifully, had Yumichika been present, Ichi had been sure he would've agreed.

It remained to be seen whether or not Byakuya would heed his warning. That was another concern for another moment, but the newly sunburned captain would know he was speaking the truth when death arose again. The second Zanpakuto was the symbol of 'death'.

----------------

Byakuya sat upon the bench overlooking Hisana's grave, set within a hidden alcove of the Kuchiki residential compound. He came there seeking moments of solace; otherwise he would stare at her picture, and even refer to her as if she were still living in that manner, as if her spirit occupied the photo.

What would become of a Kuchiki Byakuya who could be felled by a bunch of children, nearly having his own head blown off by his own adopted sister?

Byakuya would come to this place in times of extreme mental distress, and often times it would calm him enough to retrace his steps in the hopes of attaining clearer views.

For several moments he breathed in and out, breathing in the smell of the cherry blossoms, from the lone tree planted near her grave.

His mental distress stemmed from Kurosaki Ichigo, the kid was an enigma, a mystery so vast that even his mind struggled to comprehend the outer lying edges of his existence.

Kurosaki Isshin wasn't known for being legendarily smart. He was when teamed with Urahara Kisuke; he would play the idiot, which wasn't stepping too out of bounds on his part. Isshin would bait the trap and Kisuke would set it. Their subterfuges were more renown than they themselves were. Anytime else, Isshin would be a hotheaded frivolous womanizer. Not unlike the current eighth squad captain.

That query lead to a dead end, at least on the part of his father being an influence to produce such a mind that could outwit his own.

The potential source had to be Kisuke.

It was rumor among many of the captains of the Gotei 13 that Kisuke had raised from initial to complete release within three days; furthermore it was also considered that he had the capability to allow others to do so.

That was the first piece that started to fit correctly, a source to his mythical strength, or at least the illusion of power, he had used an artifice of light to allude that the captain had destroyed his power yet it remained, burning even stronger afterward.

If Urahara had governed the boy's progress, then it also would've explained why a boy who became a shinigami only two months earlier would even know of Bankai, and likewise have tactical knowledge to compare to his own.

'Your Bankai is nothing compared to mine' the boy had said that night.

For what reason would Kisuke have to train the boy, at least to such a height?

Was it revenge for his exile? Urahara Kisuke was many things, and exile, an easygoing spirit, but he was not the type to hold a grudge over something like being banished.

While the possibility of a rouse still existed, he couldn't deny the fire in the boy's eyes, it wasn't one of one being controlled but a controller. His puppetry of their encounter proved that much.

Killing hollows and dueling a Quincy didn't produce such an advanced mind.

His second step backwards leading nowhere, he continued on the journey, coming onto the sequence in which he was referring to the sins that Rukia had committed.

Isshin had married a human woman from which two girls and a boy came. The woman died by shielding her son from a hollow attack.

'Through her actions I was able to wound' not kill 'the hollow that killed my mother. What level of strength could that hollow have been at to be unable to be killed by a titan like Ichigo?

Again could it have been an act?

No, the boy's diversion allowed for timely reinforcements.

Reinforcements that was capable of handling the sealed versions of the best of the sixth squad. Regrettably a girl with shielding powers had humbled them, a brawler, a Mexican with unusual hollow based powers, and the 'last of the Quincy' as he had so labeled himself.

Children had stood up to Kuchiki Byakuya and Abarai Renji, and nearly managed to win, another volley and he too would've been sidelined.

What was their secret, how was it that children could act as if they weren't even afraid. They stood up against a seemingly greater force yet they operated by a defiant unstoppable will…INSTICT!

They acted in full knowledge they would fall, even pushing themselves to new heights instinctively wanting to hold on to their friend.

Against the strongest Captain of the Kuchiki line, they acted with a will that could not be broken; they would fall long before their wills would ever fail.

If Renji had even half of their will, he would've been formidable…

Byakuya grew sick to his stomach, his eyes widened in complete and utter fear, a fearful respect for the boy crept into him in that moment, realizing that Ichigo had deliberately wanted or had even called for the kids to be there, to humble Renji and himself to illustrate their own flaws!

Byakuya's flaw was being a commander who didn't care enough to manage the progression of his own subordinates.

In addition, Renji's flaw became evident that he couldn't bullshit his way into defeating Kuchiki Byakuya.

Kurosaki wasn't one who might be a captain commander; he would be a captain commander one day. Only one who had lead warriors into battle would think in this manner. For him to be able of consciously erecting a situation that could perform and complete so many goals was mind-boggling.

He had taught Rukia to stand up on her own, and fight for what she believed in to the very last stitch of power. To even go as far as tearing herself out of a gigai! Likewise, she wielded a class of Kidou he had never even conceived of before. It took the form of Byakurai but its power was almost in the realm of the forbidden techniques.

Ichigo had managed to rally his comrades into fighting against an opposing force, all the while allowing for the development of their abilities through combat.

All the while using those allies to humble and belittle their opponents by illustrating the flaws of those they fought against. He had even gone as far to label Byakuya and Renji as not one he considered and enemy, an ally possibly. How could he have known that they hadn't been among those who wanted Rukia dead?

According to Ichigo, there was a plot in heaven, which wanted Rukia dead for some to achieve some purpose. His mind wasn't capable of even fathoming what reason a dead Rukia could serve.

'I will end them as only I can' that means he has a connection to those who want Rukia dead. Again how could an initiate have ties to such ties to soul society? A simple-minded subordinate couldn't have conceived such a multifaceted plan.

Kurosaki Ichigo was as much an enigma as anything the pale faced captain had ever seen, it was painfully obvious that he would get nowhere at this point and closed his eyes attempting to soothe his screaming head.

Coming upon a final realization he shuttered, knowing he damn sure didn't want to be worthy of being labeled an enemy by the son of Isshin!

-------------

Ichigo treaded carefully around Isshin and Urahara, they seemed rather curious of the fact he left his body upstairs upon their immediate arrival. Down in the city sized dungeon, the three of them began to converse.

"Who are you really Kurosaki-san?"

"Who I am isn't quite important at this moment, Kisuke, I'm afraid that you have just as much explaining to do as I have."

'Damn, how much does he know?' Kisuke thought looking over at Isshin, whose facial expression centered around the question as well and furthermore intended a 'how do you want to handle this' kind of glare.

Ichigo could see that this wasn't going now he wanted it to initially. From their constant glances at each other, they were already planning something. In order to take direction of the situation he decided to be honest on one nature of his ability.

"I assume you heard my conversation with Kuchiki Byakuya, as I held him by the throat?"

Who the hell could forget such a thing, no one held Byakuya in that manner, not unless they were at or beyond his level of power, which from what they could tell, he was.

"I knew they would come for Rukia as surely as I knew the sun would set today."

Kisuke decided to be honest for the moment, relaying his own tactical information. "I only just found out this morning that soul society was coming to get her."

"From Yorichi?"

'Damn it, this kid must be psychic!'

"I knew it would be Byakuya and his subordinate Abarai. But what possible reason would soul society send two of its elite in place of the normal hunters?"

'Kisuke, do you think he knows of it?' Isshin's glare caught the sandal man who stared back mentally replying 'we'll have to see'

"I entered conversation with the shinigami under the impression I could talk our way out of it, unfortunately I could not dissuade them. About half way through the conversing, I felt the approaching reiatsu of Ishida, Chad, Inoue and Tatsuki. So while being completely honest with Byakuya telling him why Rukia gave me her powers, not the fabricated lie that I had stole them I was in course buying time for their arrival. "

The two of them appeared rather surprised, at the tactics of the orange haired kid, neither of them replied alluding to his need to continue. The only strange thing was that Arisiwa Tatsuki wasn't among the lot Urahara had concluded would be going with Ichigo.

"Naturally I knew they stood no chance of defeating the pair from the sixth division squad. I needed them to isolate and distract or even disable the subordinate while I positioned myself to be taken out by Byakuya. From there he could in turn take Rukia. I unveiled information little by little that the captain could only infer I obtained from the mouth of his sister, thereby increasing the amount of her sins. I showed him Shikai, which he was not expecting. At which time, Ishida arrived and a thought came to my head, as I surveyed everyone and their reflective abilities. The four of them had the ability to take down Abarai, at least in his sealed state."

"They performed their task more admirably than I could've ever imagined, instinctually they wiped the floor with Abarai, illustrating one of his weaknesses, and furthermore one of his commander. Make no mistake, those two are not my enemy, they are if anything allies in the coming war."

"At which point I fell against Byakuya, but I used an illusionary trick to make him think he destroyed the power that Rukia had given me, thereby wiping me out and as such I timed it so that my power would vanish all together upon his slice."

"The death of Kurosaki Ichigo sent the power levels of my friends through the roof, Tatsuki and Sado wielded more power than I thought they had, and Rukia, and there are not words for what she did."

"She tore herself out of that gigai, which restored her shinigami powers, and had likewise been charging an advanced form of Kidou, with her power restored was enough to be a threat to Byakuya. She attacked him, nearly blowing his face off, to think she would attack her own brother like that, I had never even considered the possibility of it!"

"Still, it was enough to have Byakuya suspicious, as he has no doubt by now rendered the truths of my actions. I showed too much of myself too early, it couldn't be helped though, I couldn't start over from scratch and still hope to make a difference.

"You're alluding to something greater than yourself aren't you kid, you mentioned a war. Is a war coming?" Urahara's voice broke the silence like a blade through a window.

"Yes, a war sprung from your very mistakes Kisuke-san."

"To further illustrate this, I think its time I show you some of my power, to prove that I am not some delusional kid. When you learn the truth, it will carry more weight than just being informed."

He drew out the upper sword from his collection of two, holding it out for his father and Urahara to inspect.

"This is my zanpakuto, Zangetsu."

Their minds clicked on the name, 'cutting moon?'

"Its shikai is the oversized steak knife you saw earlier, to assume its form it requires no phrase of intended action or name of its ability."

"Byakuya's Senbonzakura requires the call phrase of scatter Senbonzakura."

"I created a catch phrase so that during my encounter with captain pale face, he wouldn't become suspicious by me just saying the name."

"Zangetsu" Ichigo spoke as the blade transformed from a simple katana to the giant blade.

"Steak knife huh?" Isshin replied, "I'd hate to see the size of the steak that would require that thing, heh…"

"You spoke of Bankai, have you obtained it?"

Ichigo held the blade horizontal both hands supporting its weight, instinctively, his hands shifted back, holding the blade as if he were a batter, up upon a plate ready to strike a ball into hell.

In times past, Ichi often had to assume Bankai and attack all in the same move, because some of the arrancar never even gave the boy a chance to transform, knowing his reputation it was better to kill him off early.

Ichi thrust the blade down and out as he screamed the code for the final release, uttering a Getsuga Tenshou at the very same moment.

The moon fang initially screamed to life in its regular blue form, then altered to black with red outlines as it bore down upon an unassuming rock piling with the force of a pyroclastic flow.

The two former captains couldn't find the strength to lift their jaws off the floor, their eyes bulged at the level of power the boy had just released without even gathering it, as if he didn't even need to, it was the level of power he had available at all times. It was at least twice their strengths, collectively!

Their eyes caught a black flicker drifting in and out of the shrouds of dust in the remains of the piling, a shinigami wearing a solid black skintight cloak, which spread out like the lower extensions of a trench coat. His hands held a solid black zanpakuto; with a black four pointed cross guard, spinning horizontally atop a night woven hilt with red diamond jewels. The lower end of the hilt contained a broken black chain, an ornament of some sort. It was no larger than a normal zanpakuto, and appeared more like a normal one than his shikai.

"Tensa Zangetsu"

'Heavenly chains slice the moon' they thought in retrospect to the name.

"Had I shown this to Byakuya, heaven would have most likely found out, which at this point would've been disastrous."

"My own actions would've kept Rukia within this world, and it would've undoubtedly flushed out the one who wants her dead, but even by going there to face him on his terms, I'd still have the advantage."

His thoughts shifted over to Urahara, and it surprised him the level of calmness he was able to maintain in the presence of such a person. It defied everything he ever told himself if he had happened to be in a place of existence with the sandal man again, he was going to suffer.

'Time to let the games begin'

"You've been quite the playwright these days Kisuke, much like myself as you might've noticed. You've been paying attention to things more than I could've noticed. It was quite clever of you to heal Inoue and Chad after they awakened their powers, to have them in position to watch Ishida and I battle that Menos?

You staged them, or at least was in the process of staging them to be ready to join me in Soul Society after I regained the powers I lost to Byakuya.

"Yorichi would've trained them to handle their powers, but I doubt that's necessary at this juncture. They need the ability to move forward. Their actions tonight proved they already obtain knowledge of their might, they just need experience."

Ichigo thought a visual aid was required at that moment to further illustrate the gap in their abilities, and if possible inspire a little fear. He vanished from sight, swinging Zangetsu around to strike Kisuke in the neck, just enough to draw blood.

Urahara instinctively tracked the boy's progress, he began to lift Benihime upright to dodge the attack, but he was too short, the blade made contact with his neck in the fraction of a second.

Isshin placed his hand on Ichigo's shoulder as a means of dissuading the situation but found himself on the receiving end of a glare that could stop a train. His eyes radiated with a will that could summon a roadblock the size of a bus to stop said train.

Returning his head to inches from his ears, it was not the lover or the fighter that spoke to Urahara, but the sum of all fears.

"I should kill you Kisuke, kill you slow, perhaps through atonement can this world ever be at peace."

Urahara wasn't prepared for this, a death threat from the one he expected to be near death himself. Yet the boy defied the diamond perfect senses of a captain. Furthermore, ascertaining his true power was something of an impossibility. He kept his surface power at a controlled level. No one but the orange haired boy knew how deep his reservoirs were.

Then again, how could such a thing be possible? Urahara mulled. His assumption was based upon the level of killer intent; it rivaled a war veteran, which for the newly minted shinigami was a mystery in and of itself. Could it be that somehow the boy had discovered the secret of the gigai? No way, Urahara thought, he wasn't the sharpest knife, and nowhere near that inquisitive.

A well-placed verbal jab at his pride should be enough to dislodge the truth, he thought.

"What have I done to you that would warrant such an effect?" he probed.

Ichi was beyond the ability to speak, he fumed in anger. Aside from the truth, Kisuke didn't know the real reasons, only the knowledge and dishonor of the original mistake, upon which an entire world fell.

His expression was one of both a person ready to go berserk and tear the sandal man limb from limb and equally one whose stomach and throat was filling with bile.

Kisuke noted the effect his jab was having on the orange haired boy, he was visibly fuming. He expected the beans to be spilled any time now, which is as long as he remained as he was read. Nevertheless, the glass that was knocked over in anger was swiftly caught by an iron will, setting upright once again.

Urahara noticed this concluding he wasn't the type to be easily controlled.

Calmly and instinctually, he began…

"When I speak of transgressions against myself, I speak for Rukia, who has no ability to speak for herself in this manner.

"You gave her that Gigai!"

'What the hell' he said mentally, had he really underestimated the boy, was the callous idiot just for show, or was this something else all together.

Urahara knew where this was going instantly but had to be sure, he was in complete shock the boy could've even guessed this, but like himself, the possibility he too was fishing for answers couldn't be overlooked.

"By that I mean the very sort that would cause its inhabitant to lose their shinigami abilities, and become a normal soul. Such a thing shouldn't be possible, and rather what idiot would make such a device? An idiot with something to hide, something of such value that the loss of power and transition to normal soul would be of necessity to hide said treasure.

He inserted that last word, a part of the orb's name as bait.

"Something of such value that heaven would send a captain to retrieve.

The unexpectedly accurate line of statements from the citrus haired boy struck him in a rather unique way, the next line would utterly confirm or deny his growing suspicion, was the boy psychic or did he have otherworldly knowledge?

"That which you must consider your deepest regret."

'He definitely knew it…' he thought but was unprepared for the next line.

"Next, you planned to have me and my friends rescue that under the veil of rescuing Rukia. A feat we would have stumbled into without fear or doubt, certainly ill prepared."

All signs pointed to psychic, it was as though he opened up Kisuke's head and read aloud his deepest secrets, and even the rescue plan. Such a thought was only in its infantile stages, he had yet to conclude its strategic points before he ran it by the boy who he was sure would agree.

"If you think I'm going to be your errand boy, I will not." he vanished from the backside of the sandal man to stare at him straight.

"I'm not going to clean up your mess Kisuke. I will save Rukia, because I love her. The hand of the man or woman that tries to stop me will be severed as a prelude to the death of its owner."

It wasn't a psychic ability, by that moment the boy would've made light of it; his construction of sentences would have already supported such a revelation. If he wasn't psychic then what could it be?

--------------------

Ichigo continued "You will have Yorichi train Tatsuki, her fighting abilities are hand to hand, therefore she'll need the speed and power of Shunpo and Shunko, to make up for her groundspeed weakness."

"Inoue will fight and heal the both of them, increasing her battle abilities as well as her healing abilities."

"I will train Chad with my Bankai, only through fighting can he improve, and the nature of our abilities are similar, therefore I am the only one who can train him properly."

"I don't care if it takes the both of you, drag Ishida Ryuuken here, do anything short of killing him. If he can get off his 'I hate my father for making my son a Quincy' rear for five seconds perhaps he can be of some help. If I know Uryuu, he's going to undertake the glove training, and while it'll make him strong, he'll be nothing against a captain, and that glove has a flaw, if removed, he'll gain unwieldy strength, but at the cost of his own abilities."

A flashbulb went off inside Urahara's head, such detailed knowledge of training between the others he was planning to usher to Ichigo's side and the fact he could discern a captain's strength vs. their own. How else could a boy who only just met a captain, without seeing the full might at its disposal have any fathom of what true might is.

"They say knowledge of a situation prior to its occurrence is impossible. Yet you seem to have it. Kurosaki-kun. To script an encounter with Kuchiki Byakuya that not only completes several goals but informs him of a weakness exists within the realm of what cannot be."

"You understand the distances between your friends and those who line the upper echelons of heaven. You yourself don't fear them, naturally so as you appear to be at least twice as strong as the one from sixth squad, how such a thing can be is equally outside the state of impossibility. Furthermore, your ability to conclude my actions following such a display is formidable, and directly accurate. You read me just as easily as I was expecting to be able to do to you."

-----------------

"Just as I expected of you Kisuke, your creative abilities are matched solely with the mind that conceives them. I have a question for you, it relates to where I need to go.

"Do you know who Shiba Kaien is?"

'The brother of Kukuku, how the fuck does he know him?'

"The one Rukia was forced to kill, the man she admired who resembles me?"

Ichigo drew out his second Zanpakuto, and held it laterally examining the hilt.

"He was killed by the very same ambition that wants Rukia dead."

"What do you mean by ambition?"

"There is much still that we must discuss Kisuke-san, for the time being, please watch over my friends as they sleep through the night. I'll be back by morning, I promise. Please find and request the assistance of those I mentioned, we'll begin tomorrow."

"Where are you going?"

"To the place that Shiba Kaien resides, I need his help. For some reason, Nejibana will not listen to me. That can only mean he is alive out there in some form. The very place I need to destroy is the only place I can find him.

Ichigo sheathed the secondary blade, and reached out a finger into open air, dragging down he activated the sequence of Gargantua. A black and white mouth opened as a dimensional gateway extending into the realm of the hollow. Holding his black katana firmly he stepped towards the open mouth, staring into his throat.

'It's time to start the return of death'

Ichigo leapt into the demonic mouth portal, leaving Isshin scratching his head, they were even worse then than when they started. Ichigo's cognitive mastery was even greater than theirs; he had unveiled so much but left out the only reason how he could've known all that.

The very thought in their heads made them somewhat sick to their stomachs, it was the only other thing that could've produced this result. Ungodly power and knowledge of what will transpire…

He was from the future…

-------------------

**A/N: **Yeah, yeah I know I'm a day late, but considering I've done this much in the span of a week you guys should be grateful, Hehe just kidding. My insane update speed has labeled me the **king of updates**, we'll I'm just a prince not a king just yet. Luckily this story has given my mind something to focus on during the days and hours I'm away from my computer.

I know I mentioned that we'd all see Ichi's full power in this chapter, but as I've come to notice things I mention always happen to be pushed back by something else all together. So we'll cross that bridge when we come to it ok!

-CH


	9. The traveler

**Disclaimer: **_Kubo owns bleach, Clorox owns bleach, and CH doesn't! _

**_---------------------_**

_**Return of the Moonfang**_

_**IX **_The traveler

**_------------------------_**

Ichigo leapt into the demonic mouth portal, leaving Isshin scratching his head, they were even worse then than when they started. Ichigo's cognitive mastery was even greater than theirs; he had unveiled so much but left out the only reason how he could've known all that.

The very thought in their heads made them somewhat sick to their stomachs, it was the only other thing that could've produced this result. Ungodly power and knowledge of what will transpire…

He was from the future…

**_------------------------_**

Kurosaki Isshin and Urahara Kisuke had retreated upstairs to do the only thing that one would do when discovering someone they knew was actually from the future. Urahara had come up with the idea of killing some brain cells. So they downed a bottle of sake.

Sake is the only thing that can take your mind off the fact that your son is actually an older version of himself within his younger body.

Urahara downed more than Isshin, regardless of whatever the kid may be, he couldn't help but feel an overwhelming sense of guilt.

'You gave her that gigai! Which contained that which you must consider your deepest regret'

The kid's words echoed in his head. In trying to dispose of his greatest mistake, Urahara Kisuke had made an even greater one.

Someone in Soul society knew of the crumbling orb, and no doubt had ideals to use it in some fashion, to either increase their own might, or raise an army. The fact that Ichigo spoke of having to destroy something in Hueco Mundo, and having to speak with Shiba Kaien could refer to only one thing.

Someone wants to create an army of Arrancar, from Las Noches.

It had to be that, but what course of horrors could cause such a character like Ichigo to take shape?

Among the current Gotei Thirteen, he knew of all of them, but some more intimately from his past experiences. There was only a handful he'd consider even closely ambitious, mainly through what he had been told more than personal contact.

Ichimaru Gin was a possibility, his snake like appearance struck most to wonder whether or not he was in fact human. Moreover when conversing with the young lad, the current fifth squad Fuka-Taicho he never opened his eyes. You could never get a reading on what he was truly thinking or feeling, his face always was enamored with that mysterious smile. It were almost as if he had an aura of darkness, in which countless snakes would reach out and grab you if you ever got too close.

From what he had heard from traveling Shinigami, it was a consensual opinion. Gin was a mysterious man; it didn't necessarily mean he was overly ambitious.

Secondly Kisuke's mind drifted to the current eleventh squad captain, the one from Zaraki who had named him as the strongest shinigami of a generation

'Kenpachi' now there was someone with an ambition that could fill all of Sereitei. From what Urahara had heard again from passing travelers from the other side, Kenpachi had decimated the former captain without taking any injuries. A bloodthirsty warrior who could discern a weakness in any attacker yes he was ambitious to the death. Likewise he didn't seem to possess a legendary mind when it came to thinking and planning.

Someone capable of retrieving the treasure had to be uniquely intelligent, to be able to conceive how to obtain it first and foremost, through whatever means of puppetry. Next, one would have to spend many hours in the forbidden libraries, and not many of the captains could just stroll in there. He doubted whether or not Zaraki had ever been to a library. So that pretty much ruled him out.

A sickly evil grin came to his eyes, of the one that had surpassed him as commander of his division. Kurotshuchi Mayuuri. A chill came to his body as he realized the great and equally horrible thought that of all those he had known, or known by reputation, the one who had taken his squad was more ambitious than Zaraki could ever be! Who else would want to surpass their own limits than someone who had made alterations to his own body already? He had earned himself the nickname of the mad scientist, and he certainly had the appearance down without a doubt. Like all those who had ever garnered such a name the man had even built him a vice captain out of a gigai and his own genetic material!

If a ryoka or any other intruder/prisoner happened to come upon the captain, he'd study them until they were nothing more than a streak of blood and ooze. Even after that, he'd still continue to poke and prod the poor soul, unlucky enough to become his test subject. Mayuuri was in this manner more sadistic and brutal than the captain of the division below his. The monster that had taken over his division and his presidency of the research department was a humiliation to all that Kisuke had built.

It had to be Mayuuri! He was the only one so evil that to take Hougyoku and use it to further him didn't seem to far a stretch. His ability to conceal his physical form within walls would allow for his entry into the forbidden library under the central 46. From there he could've learned of the technique to remove the capsule.

He was sickened by such a thought, that his own division's current leader, could be responsible for such a horrible future.

However, he couldn't help but feel as though something was out of place, Mayuuri was notoriously evil, but something about him didn't seem to be that extreme. Sure he would test someone to death on any given day almost joyously. To be able to destroy Sereitei, that just seemed a little too far fetched for even the greatest of all mad scientists.

Urahara didn't even want to fathom it, for it was his entire fault whatever or whomever the cause.

**_----------------------------_**

A single black paw scratched at the sliding door just then, catching Urahara's attention.

"Oh, there she is" he exclaimed as he rose, rather wobbly after drinking a third of the bottle. Lifting up the black cat he twirled her around the room, as he would normally do in the presence of his old friend, until she nearly scratches his eyes out.

"Are you drunk Kisuke?" the cat's voice though being female in nature sounded more male.

"Just a little smashed, boy have we got a tail for you, not that you don't already have one…"

Yorichi resisted the urge to paw him real good, but she decided to be serious for a change. She complied with his erratic swinging of her, until he eventually put her down. Yorichi sat in perfect triangular form with the other two around the circular table as he eventually stumbled back to his seat.

Yorichi assumed her human form in all its glory. Which naturally left her without any sort of clothing, had there been anyone younger in the room she would have received an embarrassed reaction, but she sighed knowing she would get nothing of the sort from these two.

Isshin glared over at the gorgeous form of the woman next to him, a woman nearly if not older than him.

"Well skin me alive and wear me as a coat; you look damn good Yorichi." Isshin smirked.

It wasn't what she had hoped for but at the same time it wasn't too bad.

Then he crossed the line.

"Have you put on a few pounds?

She was angered just a little bit but her revenge would be even sweeter. She climbed up on the table -still without wearing any clothes, drawing a 'must you do this' kind of sigh from Kisuke-as she crawled in all her naked infamy over to Isshin, purring.

"When have you been close enough to make a distinction such as that Isshin-kun?"

"Well there was that time you were passed out, you didn't seem to mind it."

Yorichi knew full well what had happened and among friends she didn't really care, but she made an appearance of not knowing, anger rose to her face as her cheeks blushed and she pulled her head back, revealing more of her chest. As he stared blankly at the gorgeous orbs, the thought 'target is acquired' came to her. With all her speed she delivered a massive head but to the idiot. Such a strike sent him spiraling back against and through the rear wall.

As Isshin trembled to crawl back to the table, a huge swelling bruise had appeared on the point of impact, and blood drained from it.

"Seriously Isshin-kun, you'd think I'd remember it, drunk or not, you must not have been able to rise to the challenge." She inserted that little jab to salt the wound.

Urahara while certainly amused, realized there were certainly more important things to be discussing then whatever they may or may not have done in the past. The boy had made a request of them before leaving, and some preparations were in order.

"Ok, ok you've had your fun would you please return to your seat once you put some clothes on, I wouldn't want young Sado or Ishida to come wandering in here to see a sight such as yourself.

Yorichi stared at him for a moment, "the Quincy is here too?"

"Yes, including another of Ichigo's friends, one we hadn't originally been aware of. One whose abilities require your special attention Yorichi-san."

"Oh, you've found someone who would benefit from shunpo?"

"Yes, a young girl whose talents are primarily in hand to hand fighting and boxing. Her power was strong enough to knock out a sealed vice captain."

"I could see where shunpo could increase her abilities, but who told you of her abilities, or did you witness them yourself?"

She became serious then, crawling back over to her spot and donning the clothing. Taking a sip of her sake dish, she leaned back on her arms for a moment. Realizing neither of them had said a peep; she went on to her next thought.

"Did he tell you this, the son of idiot over there?"

"So you know of his strength?"

"Not in so many words, I wasn't there, I surely felt it."

"He spoke of your specialty by name, likewise he spoke of Quincy training techniques that would lead to the loss of one's powers-the glove-if broken. Ichigo also went into how the Mexican's power was similar to his own, yet we have no way of knowing what he meant by that."

"So what you're telling me Kisuke, is that we have a kid with the power of a captain and tactical knowledge of something you yourself don't even have. Either he's intuitive like none other, or he's from the future."

"That's Yorichi for you, always lightning quick on the uptake, unlike this character here" Isshin pointed at Urahara. One of his games was making fun of his ridiculously smart friend by labeling him an idiot. He did this regardless of the fact that name was always given to him rather than Kisuke.

"He spoke of a coming war, one that revolves around the crumbling orb." Isshin continued as Kisuke could do little more than stare at his hands, wondering again 'what the hell have I done?'

"And at this moment, you've sent that treasure of yours right into the hands of the one who wants it, by putting it in that girl."

"That kid of mine has the final release Yorichi, a release that's beyond both of us collectively! That's just the tip of the iceberg from what we can discern, he didn't mention facts, but we could tell from the nature of his reiatsu it maybe wasn't even a third of his true power." Isshin delivered the boom to the girl but wasn't finished.

"That such a power would be necessary to win a war spiraling from your mistake Kisuke, it must've been a dark time like none we've ever known. He is not the son I've always known, he's not the moody fool I can scrapple with anymore."

"Ichigo has the eyes of a veteran, and the power to match it. He's had to endure far more than any of us could imagine. I can tell from the way he stares at the world, its almost like he's lost the love of his life. It must've been that girl, Rukia. In such a time he's lost many if not all of his companions, against whomever I can't for the life of me discern." Isshin had one last thing to say, something he could feel was weighing on everyone's mind.

"It was a war he was able to finish at the cost of everything, or it was one he was unable to finish. Either way, it's our fault."

Kisuke's head rose at the mentioning of what his friend said; the blame was his and no one else's.

"We should've destroyed it when we had the chance Kisuke."

Yorichi suddenly noticed the absence of the time traveler.

"Where is the kid, I don't sense his reiatsu?"

"Hueco Mundo, Ichigo said he had some business with Las Noches. Not to mention the deceased son of the Shiba clan."

Her eyes widened as a furious chill came over her when she realized by business he meant he was either going to destroy it or mess it up real good. Either way it required someone of strength beyond the current supreme commander. The last part confused her as much as anything, leaving her to only wonder what kind of business he also had with Kaien, if he even still existed in any form.

"He's that strong?" Disregarding the second in place of the more relevant.

"Yes, Yorichi, and that brings me to his other request, he wishes us to summon Ishida Ryuuken."

This received one of those 'you've got to be kidding me' sort of stares.

"Killing him is the only way you'd get that fool here."

"Stay here in case one of the kids awaken, we're going to get him."

"So is that why you guys are drunk?"

"Getting hammered is the only way to talk to Ryuuken without wanting to kill him." Isshin and Urahara rose slightly wavering and upon acquiring their bearings walked out of the shop and into the night.

**_-------------------_**

"_So what you're telling me Kisuke, is that we have a kid with the power of a captain and tactical knowledge of something you yourself don't even have. Either he's intuitive like none other, or he's from the future." _

Tatsuki heard through the paper-thin walls as she had crawled to the door to possibly find out what the hell was going on. She couldn't believe what she just heard; they thought he was from a distant future.

One of them sounded like Isshin, Ichigo's father. Slowly and carefully sliding the door, Tatsuki confirmed it. He was wearing a black kimono and hakuma with a white undershirt, just like Ichigo. Likewise, he also had a katana lying near him. Did that mean Kurosaki Isshin was a shinigami also? Could that have been where Ichigo suddenly got that power?

Was it possible that a later version of Ichigo had retraced his steps in time? Could he have come from such a future that to join forces with his younger self was to be capable of saving himself from a grim fate?

The words of Isshin rang in at that moment:

"_That such a power would be necessary to win a war spiraling from your mistake Kisuke, it must've been a dark time like none we've ever known. He is not the son I've always known, he's not the moody fool I can scrapple with anymore."_

"_Ichigo has the eyes of a veteran, and the power to match it. He's had to endure far more than any of us could imagine. I can tell from the way he stares at the world, its almost like he's lost the love of his life. It must've been that girl, Rukia. In such a time he's lost many if not all of his companions, against whomever I can't for the life of me discern."_

'That was it!' Tatsuki had noticed earlier in the day the change in him, uneasiness compounded with darkness she had never felt in him. A changed Ichigo had walked right up to Rukia and kissed her as if he hadn't seen her in years.

A startling chill crept upon her at that realization, furthermore that she herself couldn't even fathom the scope of such a destiny.

Tatsuki loved him even more in that moment in spite of everything. To think that Ichigo could've come back to redo everything and save those he cared for? There were not words for it.

All she was able to speak was his name, "Ichigo?" a friend that had come so far from such a time only to die. Tears welled like a waterfall as she felt the earth shattering sadness that he must've known only to fall short of achieving his goals.

"_Where is the kid, I don't sense his reiatsu?" _

"_Hueco Mundo, he spoke of having business with Las Noches." _

Her eyes widened as she realized they were speaking of Ichigo, and he was alive! She fell back into her bed, overwhelmed with relief.

If there were anything she could do for him, she would do it. If he journeyed anywhere from that moment on, then she would go with him at all costs. Such a burden was not something he had to shoulder alone. Nor would she let him by any means.

Regardless of whatever Ichigo felt for Rukia, Tatsuki would not yield, she never yielded. If Rukia were incapable of truly loving him then she would certainly grasp the opportunity.

**_---------------------_**

Inoue had awoken due to her stirring friend. Her mind instantly raced to the fact that she was all healed. She wasn't destined to die in the school courtyard, not far in fact from where the fairies first showed themselves.

'Did the fairies do this?' did her powers instinctively heal her body when she blacked out after seeing that wave of pink? She had so many questions, but even the fact that her own clothes were restored left her to understand that no answers could be found readily.

Her eyes drifted over to the tangled mass of black hair surrounding the sleeping face of her best friend. Tatsuki was next to her.

Inoue overjoyed in the fact that Tatsuki had abilities as well. This alone meant she would never be left behind. Nevertheless, Inoue would never let Tatsuki remain behind; she'd drag the strongest girl in Japan anywhere.

She noticed the presences of Ishida and Sado, knowing fully she had never slept with boys in the same room. A furious blush came to her face, which only subsided after realizing they were sawing logs, figuratively.

Her thoughts drifted to the absences of Kurosaki-kun and Kuchiki-san, and lead to the only logical conclusion was that they had died or been taken hostage by those two men.

Inoue had put on a brave face in regards to the love life of Ichigo, telling Tatsuki it was not there place to interfere. While that was true to some extent, she couldn't get over the breathlessness she'd feel whenever he was near, or even to be kissed as he had done to Rukia earlier that day. Inoue had never been in love before, and neither did she think it would be the boy with the scary face she'd often bump into.

It was the time that he had saved her brother that showed Inoue a side of Ichi she never knew of or cared to see. In spite of the absurdly weird memories her and Tatsuki had of the night she couldn't shake the image of Ichigo in the black kimono and hakuma. Ichigo looked like a knight and Inoue often dreamed of being rescued by him. Sadly such things never came true, as they were most of the time replaced by another silly sort of daydream.

The absence of Ichigo was like a knife in her heart, something not even the fairies could heal. Inoue began to sob like she hadn't cried in quite a while.

**_-------------_**

She awoke from her fit of crying to find Tatsuki with her strong arms holding the girl's shoulder, trying to get her to stop.

"Inoue, what's wrong?"

"What do you mean what's wrong, Kurosaki-kun is dead!"

"Is that what you think? Come on, Ichigo wouldn't die from such a little thing…"

Inoue realized the smirk in her friend's face, as she knew something that she herself didn't know.

Tatsuki laid out the finer points of what she had heard from Isshin, that Ichi was alive and from the future. At the moment, he was on a mission in some place called Las Noches.

**_---------------_**

Inoue was a loss for words, but she continued crying this time out of happiness and her grim frown was replaced with a dawn like smile that almost blinded Tatsuki.

"That's so noble of him, just like the knight in my dreams" Inoue let slip out. Tatsuki gave her an 'looks like we're love rivals' sort of glare. She did this without letting her face betray anything other than the level of happiness her friend was displaying.

Inoue felt the glare and returned with her own, normal smile while hinting 'you may have fists but I've got a shield now, so if you think I'm going to let you win, you're mistaken'.

Inoue suddenly perked up and stabbed a question into the uneasiness that had crept around them both realizing they both loved Ichigo.

"What does Las Noches mean? Isn't that like another language?"

"It's not one I'm familiar with."

The low drawl of Chado scared the living hell out of them when he spoke "It's Spanish, it means The Nights".

Inoue rushed over to him and hugged the big man, drawing a curious blush as she said, "Sado-kun you're alive also!"

From that moment on, neither of the girls seemed to care what it really meant, they were just exclaimed beyond belief that Ichigo was alive and that's all that really mattered.

Sado remained silent for the rest of the evening as the girls continued to talk about what Tatsuki had heard, he paid close attention to the references of Ichigo being from another time, it did explain the level of strength he hadn't yet shown in his presence before.

Sado couldn't help but laugh as Ishida remained in a rather dead like sleep, while Inoue and Tatsuki drew funny pictures on his face… They both knew that Ichigo had a thing for girls who could draw, so they relished in being able to apply themselves in a way to better get his attention.

**_------------------_**

Ichigo descended from the horizontal column of dark swirling energy, stepping into a desert of pure white sand.

The air was like an ocean of spirit particles, he had almost forgotten, the nourishment of the air in this place made him even stronger when he had fought here. A tone of terror sang in the emptiness of the flipside of the world. The moon hung in its natural place, its shadow of earth casting the opposite direction, as per the norm. It almost appeared like the signature hole of a hollow, had it been more centered and not the dark edge of a white crescent.

With a single breath, all the energy he had exerted in the performances of the day had been restored. In his hollow form he knew the exchange rate was even greater. It was this process that allowed him to maintain such a fight with the arrancarized Rukia.

Ichi noticed a red streak against the pale white earth, leading towards a limping figure in the horizon. His senses registered it as a weakened hollow, not a threat by any means.

Curiously, Nejibana was starting to pull against its restraints, attempting to will itself to its owner. It pulled him in a direction away from the palace, and naturally being one of his goals here, if Kaien was nearby, he would rather see him first.

Ichigo vanished into the middle distance between them a blur of reiatsu. From dune to dune he leapt crossing huge spans of desert in no more than a single step respectively.

From what he remembered, Las Noches had a signal beacon, which stretched out to most of Hueco Mundo; it was a calling song to hollows and their more advanced cousins. Strength could be obtained there and as with anything there came a price, some chose not to pay it, while others flocked to it. The hollow inside him trembled at such a song, it was almost too much for him to handle.

It was like a dinner bell, a bleeding torso in the water and a wandering soul. Ichigo was above such kinds of lures, but it amused him to think that as advanced of a being as his hollow was, it still couldn't resist the most simple of its animal urges.

Nejibana quivered excitedly within its scabbard. Ichigo could tell that Kaien was near. Las Noches was out in the distance, but the gateway had brought him much closer to the most unexpected of places. The most fated of places, as he stepped into the canyon sized hole, where he had fought Rukia to the death while Aizen watched.

Of all the places Nejibana would direct him to happened to be the very place it had been used in combat against him once before.

Ichigo noticed a dark skinned man lining the wall of the lower stadium floor as it had come to be known. Still holding his black katana firmly, he leapt into the stadium, stomaching the rising bile in his throat; at the realization he was here again.

He appeared before the man a flash of black distortion, not unlike the entry of a hollow into human world.

The being before him sat on a rock, with his head knelt down staring at the ground; he initially didn't even acknowledge the presence of the shinigami. He could feel the presence of his sword; it was calling out to him.

Ichigo was unsure the person's identity, if it was the person he sought or the being that had absorbed him. He remembered how the hollow could manifest the shapes of whomever it had consumed, but only in areas of extreme darkness. There was more darkness in that pit than in most of Hueco Mundo.

The man's face revealed the similar lines to that of the orange haired kid, except his hair was blackened and his skin bore the same kind of burnt shading. His skin was so dark that the outline of his clan's swirling symbol couldn't be seen upon his left arm. His eyes were also shaded but with yellow irises. His head rose to stare at the being before him as if he were staring at a mirror of his past.

"How are you, brother of mine?" Kaien spoke in a tone that was devoid of its signature cheeriness as if it were the absence of life itself.

**_--------------------------------_**

_**A/N: **_This is the true ninth chapter of my story. The other was a mistake that I have come to regret deeply and hope that this chapter can be some means of an apology. I want to make this a story you'll want to read over and over again, and what I did yesterday was a careless mistake as many have let me know. I try to abide by the general consensus of your thoughts and if you're all telling me I'm screwing up its not a good thing, so I changed it. I'm not mad in anyway, in fact I'm relieved you guys care enough to let me know if I've taken a wrong step. Thank you as always, I do this for you…

- CeriaHalcyon


	10. The brothers

_**Disclaimer: **__No bleach for me, no bleach for you; cause bleach owned by Kubo. _

_**Return of the Moonfang**_

_**X **__The brothers _

_**--------------------------------**_

_The man's face revealed the similar lines to that of the orange haired kid, except his hair was blackened and his skin bore the same kind of burnt shading. His skin was so dark that the outline of his clan's swirling symbol couldn't be seen upon his left arm. His eyes were also shaded but with yellow irises. His head rose to stare at the being before him as if he were staring at a mirror of his past. _

"_How are you, brother of mine?" Kaien spoke in a tone that was devoid of its signature cheeriness as if it were the absence of life itself. _

**----------------------------------**

"I'm afraid we're not of relation, despite the stunning resemblance." Ichi illustrated.

The voice of Kaien lightened and became freer like a dry streambed suddenly alive with flowing water. It was as though he hadn't spoken in a frame of time long enough to damage his voice.

"We are kin brother, you have the spirit of my heart within you, as it was passed on to Rukia. Therefore you must have hers as well. I don't know whether to thank you or point out the irony that while she received my heart, someone so similar to me received hers."

"I wasn't there when she died the first time", the thought of such a thing brought a slight sparkle to his eyes. Ichigo wasn't one to normally show this kind of weakness, but given the person, it would reflect his feelings towards Kaien's old subordinate.

Kaien observed the effect of such words before he replied.

"Yet oddly enough she found you, which means of course she was in love with you", he smiled as he spoke.

Ichigo felt the rising lovesickness want to overtake him, but he suppressed it with the memory that he had been the one to end her, he weighed the possible reaction the hollow might have in regards to whether or not he would mention it.

"Our connection it seems is multifaceted, beyond the strand that was Rukia. My Nejibana disappeared from me yesterday, during a battle no less. Yet here you stand returning it to me. I regret that I am unable to ascertain the meaning behind such an occurrence, it would appear as Nejibana is acting as a connector between our strings, bringing us to an intersection."

'Damn', Ichigo thought 'looks like there's no holding back with him'.

"There is something I have to tell you, but I have to know who you are before I can continue", Ichigo began.

"What do you mean, my brother, I am Shiba Kaien."

"While it is possible that you are Kaien, it is also more likely that you are either Metastacia the hollow that consumed you, or rather Aaroniero, the arrancar that furthermore consumes him?"

"My young brother, you are marvelously well informed. Metastacia and I are one being, just as you are with your inner tenant."

Ichigo bore a smirk of 'what the hell' before remembering that while in Hueco Mundo, those who have hollows within them cannot suppress the reiatsu of their tenants.

"As are you brother" Ichigo replied, "You still haven't replied about the other."

"I know of his reputation, he is one of the many arrancar who know of my presence here and make sport of hunting me."

Ichigo sensed no deception in his tone, while such a thing is easy for a hollow to conceal, he also didn't have anything to fear from this form of Kaien, if things became unpleasant, he could end it.

"It's true that while I have the spiritual heart of yourself and Rukia that I was not present at her death."

"Then how did the transference happen?"

"It happened when I killed her the second time."

**-------------------**

Kaien's eyes widened even further than before, and then narrowed seriously. He reached down for Nejibana and retrieved it. Tossing the scabbard aside he withdrew his zanpakuto and held it out before Ichigo, intentions shifting to deadly.

"Then I guess that means I have to end you brother, to reclaim that which doesn't belong to you."

"_**Uncoil the liquid heavens: Nejibana"**_ Kaien continued, taking a path that Ichi was hoping the situation wouldn't be reduced to so quickly, he hadn't even finished what he was saying.

Swirls of water began to snake around his zanpakuto, until a body sized trident emerged from the water encasing it. It appeared crystalline in nature and more ornate than just a standard pitchfork styled tool. If Ichi had to guess he reckoned it would be a fusion of the weapon of Neptune with the weapon known as halberd. It possessed five spokes, three along the top and two more dripping down the sides of the outer two points.

It was truly a beautiful weapon, said to be among the most noble of all the water-based zanpakuto. When he wielded Nejibana in the future, Yumichika would always make sport of him saying the trident was far more beautiful than Ichigo was.

Ichigo sighed as he picked up his black Nodaichi.

Kaien noted the appearance of the long sword and commented "You've released your zanpakuto already, did you come seeking this fight?"

"You're mistaken if you think I came to fight you Kaien, I knew when I entered this place I wouldn't have a moments warning if I needed to go all out."

"This is my zanpakuto Zangetsu."

"He is unusual in many respects, much like myself, in that I unlike a normal shinigami am not dead but actually alive."

"What the fuck, how can that be, you're a death god yet you're alive?"

"Zangetsu when he assumes Shikai doesn't have a hand guard or even a hilt, just a white cloth which is woven into the metal shaft."

"I've never seen a zanpakuto like that which had yet to assume Shikai?"

Ichigo laughed confidently, "This is my Bankai…"

Before Kaien could respond, Ichi had dissolved from sight, moving beyond the man's ability to render reality. He redeveloped behind Kaien with the unsharpened side of his blade resting against the front of his torso.

Shiba Kaien couldn't believe the trap he had fallen into, this kid was way beyond his ability to even see.

Ichi removed the blade and then danced around him a little slower so that his 'brother' could see the progression.

"If you let me finish Kaien, I will fight you without holding back if that's what you deem the situation warranting."

The oldest son of the Shiba clan remained standing as Ichigo stepped back without turning; he leaned up against the adjacent wall as if he needed the support of something other than his own legs.

"When I speak of killing Rukia, I refer to not killing the shinigami who was once your subordinate. I mean the artificial android created by Ichimaru Gin using her remains as a proxy of weakness against me."

Kaien couldn't believe the complete absurdity of such an answer, but he let the boy finish.

"To understand this, I will start from the beginning."

"My name Is Kurosaki Ichigo. I am the son of Kurosaki Isshin, a former captain of the Gotei 13."

A flashbulb went off in Kaien's mind as he pictured the bearded man.

"It was not from my father that I received the power of the shinigami. It was from Kuchiki Rukia. She gave me the power to save my sisters and myself from a hollow. Through her influence, I was able to discover the hollow that killed my mother."

Kaien smiled knowing he had taught Rukia well.

"Soul society as usual didn't like this turn of events. After about two months, her brother was sent to retrieve her."

'Byakuya just for a runaway, sounds suspicious' Kaien thought.

"I can see the look of suspicion. It is relevant, due to the fact that a triad of traitors had murdered the central 46 and used genjutsu to hide that they were the one's giving the orders."

"As much as it is their faults, blame lies with another soul, who saw an opportunity to hide his greatest regret, something of inexplicable value. It was hidden within Rukia, thus their desire to obtain her so forcefully."

"My friends and I journeyed to Sereitei where we managed to rescue Rukia. I progressed to Bankai during my time there. I was able to defeat two of the thirteen captains before being humbled by the true mastermind, Aizen Sosuke."

"So that's what the hell he's doing here!" Kaien exclaimed. "I had heard his name from other hollows and thought they spoke of him out of hatred, but some of them referred to him as a master. It didn't make sense to me, but it clicks into relevance now."

"To him, my rapid progression was a subject of his amusement. He kidnapped one of my closest friends and a member of my Ryoka group who had unique healing powers. As such, with Rukia's help we came to Las Noches to save Inoue. It was here that I lost Rukia to the hollow that had consumed you, Aaroniero. She managed to kill the ninth espada but was likewise killed in the process. I know of this because she was skewered by Nejibana."

The thought of such a thing made Kaien appear as though Ichi's words had punched him in the stomach, he was out of breath.

"Through the aid of the spirit king, reality was reset for me, so that I could end Aizen before he became too strong this time around."

"That's why you kept referring to everything in the past tense. Why you Ichigo, why did he choose you?"

"One of his personal guards is the soul of my zanpakuto."

"That makes you far more special than anyone else, no wonder why you were chosen"; Kaien replied really having been forced to scratch his head on this one.

"My rapid progression was obviously assisted by Zangetsu, who was in turn a hand of the king, as I became an instrument. Sadly such an indirect manner of action could not fell a man who wanted to be king. This time, I am the hand, and the instrument. I know what will transpire and that is just like having another sword."

Kaien was in complete dismay, upon which Ichigo mentioned to his trident, to reveal the past transgressions as recorded memories.

Countless images flashed through his mind, the monster Arleri fighting Rukia, and her death, then revival only to die again at the hands of the man before him. His unoccupied hand rushed to stop the bile that was trickling from his mouth. He recovered slowly, emptying his mouth as he turned aside, keeping one eye on Ichigo at all times, coughing he spoke again.

"How did you get Nejibana to do that?"

"The Nejibana that was yours has molded with the future self of your blade. That trident is the Nejibana I brought back with me. Your blade shared kinship with Rukia; mainly I believe to the presence of your heart within her, naturally she was able to use it. I claimed ownership of it when her heart transferred to me. I used it in honor of you and all the others who had fallen at the ambition of a fools dream to become god."

"You are my brother then, Ichigo. I should've known someone like me could never kill Rukia."

"But I just said…" he was cut off.

"That wasn't the Rukia we know, you were rescuing her more than actually killing her."

"You know, I think she'd like to see you Kaien".

"She's still alive?"

"Yes, and I am going to Soul Society in ten days, I'm asking you brother, if you want to take revenge upon the one who put you in this mess?"

A sudden shift and gravitational pressure reversed the polarity of the pit, causing gravel and bits of dust to rise unexpectedly.

A shrill of a voice echoed down into the canyon.

"So this is where you've been hiding Kaien-kun, oh and what's this, I didn't realize you had a twin brother."

**--------------------**

Ichigo noticed the vibrations of the air as the being descended down the pit landing right behind Kaien. Within half a second the creature was breathing down the next of his twin. It was a humanoid, possibly an arrancar or vastolord. A glass tube rested upon the mantle of his shoulders, with a singular sphere of a head floating in a gravitational void.

"He's a lot stronger than you, maybe I'll consume him too, heh, heh, heh." a humanoid arm suddenly reverted to a glistening tentacle that instantly wrapped around Kaien.

The mentioning of the word consume brought a singular name to the mind of Ichigo…Aaroniero Arleri.

The warrior within Ichigo suddenly took action instinctively, throwing his Bankai at the arrancar like a javelin. Zangetsu pierced the hollow just below the neck. He squirmed frantically, releasing Kaien who stumbled along the ground to stand alongside his brother in complete shock.

"Kaien are you all right?'

"Yeah Ichigo, but you just threw him your sword."

"No I just anchored him to the wall. That is Aaroniero Arleri, the being that will kill Rukia while masquerading as you!"

Kaien leveled his blade realizing that it was in fact one of the ones who had been hunting him, the face had changed, as he remembered was never the same.

"How interesting, you seem to know of me, and you likewise seem to have knowledge of the future, oh I will benefit greatly from absorbing you young man!"

"The only thing you're about to taste, arrancar, is your own death."

Kaien watched as Ichi's eyes suddenly turned yellow like his own. Upon the temple of his forehead Ichigo scratched with his left hand pulling back a veil of black and red reiatsu, in which a white mask began to materialize. Instantly the mask of a hollow was covering his facial features except for the glowing yellow eyes.

Furthermore, Kaien couldn't help but be humbled further by the hollow transformation of Ichigo; the air around him grew denser, harder for his lungs to process. Ichigo's form was way too relaxed in the presence of this arrancar. He had just thrown Zangetsu into the chest of the being, yet the hollow didn't seem slightly phased, other than the inability to move. Ichigo kept his hands at his sides, as if he were just a pedestrian walking through some random street.

'Was he really that much stronger than Arleri?' Kaien thought. That such a calm and uncaring stature could be taken against someone so strong, 'he was either stupidly inexperienced, or over experienced as his tale of stepping back through time had inferred'.

Arleri laughed arrogantly at the sight of a masked Ichigo, making Kaien thing perhaps the true nature of the Arrancar's abilities would surface, and Ichigo would be the one to be humbled.

"What's so funny Arrancar?" Ichi asked mildly amused. A backwards-hollow voice came from his mouth, surprising the hell out of Kaien who slowly backed away.

"This situation has shifted to my favor Vizard, and you cannot attack me."

Ichigo stared at him blankly for a moment as if it were some sort of jest.

"Aizen-sama has a treaty of neutrality with the Vizard, which means you must not interfere in my consuming of Shiba Kaien here. I am forbidden from attacking you as well, but I don't mind if you watch."

Ichigo couldn't believe the insanity of such a thing.

"Man, I knew Hirako was a blockhead but this is just too much," Ichigo started laughing maniacally. His laughter shifted in tone to radiate a sinister coldness.

"Sorry I'm not much into politics, or rather being restricted by them."

"But it's Aizen's law!" Arleri whimpered seeing death in Ichigo's eyes.

"Aizen's law is meaningless to the Paladin."

Using the same hand from which brought out the mask, Ichigo was already preparing a glowing red ball of light.

The hollow knew what a red light from a Vizard symbolized, and it was not something he wanted to take part of, but regardless of his struggling he couldn't free himself from the nail that held him in place.

Ichigo dissolved from sight to appear inches from the near crucified hollow. His voice had a tone of darkness not even Kaien could match, it sang of unspeakable horrors.

"You're the first Arleri, and Aizen will be the last!"

"You're insane!" the hollow replied as Ichi thrust the glowing red light into the hollow's chest. Arleri had recourse, and in implementing it, his body began to bulge outward from all appendages. A growth of skin began to slowly slide over Ichi's extended arm, its touch rather close to sandpaper. The further its reach, the sharper it got, until Ichi could tell his hand was probably bleeding after a second or two of contact.

'Arleri was using his means of consuming hollows' Ichi thought, as he stared into the floating eyes of the hollow, his own not even showing the tiniest inkling of fear or even remorse.

"You're mine now Ichi-kun, to think I'll have a sword with Bankai…"

"Goodbye" Ichigo spoke as a red volcanic light pulsed outward from his fist, spreading and displacing the movement of skin along his arm. Fire exploded from his newly exposed skin, vaporizing Arleri's newest growth.

There wasn't even time to utter a reply on the hollow's part, as a brick wall of glowing furious power erupted out of nowhere pushing his remnant against the wall and burning it until there was no more than a little bit of scored flesh entombed within the rock wall.

The attack sent a red flash into the horizon in the form of a column like explosion.

Kaien had backed up against a wall in partial fear that Ichigo had been lying to him.

Ichigo noticed the change in Kaien and walked over calmly to retrieve Zangetsu who lay partially submerged within the sand.

Speaking to his sword he laughed "sorry bout that ole buddy…" His hand upon touching Zangetsu shifted from crimson to completely healed without any notion.

**---------------------------**

He looked at Kaien's terrified face for a moment before realizing "Oh, restoration is one of Zangetsu's abilities." He turned to gaze at his unscarred hand, it was definitely a sensation he didn't want to encounter again, when he looked back up he noticed the fear still in his brother's eyes and then two and two became four…the mask.

"This mask you see here is the nature of my tenant's abilities". Ichi removed the mask and with it went the yellow eyes. He tossed it to Kaien who caught it respectively.

"This is cartilage, a material similar to bone yet it forms through Reiatsu?" Kaien asked after carefully examining the mask.

"As you might've noticed Kaien, is that I assume a masked form, what Arleri referred to as being a Vizard. As a masked warrior, I can use Cero, a technique that the arrancar are capable of. That is because the nature of my hollow has to due with the way in which I received shinigami power. I lost the abilities that Rukia had given me due to a swift stab from her brother, which destroyed my spiritual organs. In order to regain the power of the death god I had to become a hollow. This of course left me with a split personality that was constantly trying to get control of me."

"How did you overcome and gain control Ichigo?"

"Initially I tried forcing it, but unfortunately could only wield the power for about twenty seconds at the most."

"You used it for a little more than that just now."

"The nature of the dual personalities is the example of the king and his ride. Unfortunately under this way of thinking, the role of the king and the horse can change at any given time."

"That doesn't sound good…"

"You must enter into an agreement with your hollow that allows you to work peacefully together, but it doesn't come through peaceful measures, you must obtain a will greater than that of the hollow. So that no matter what it does it must accept you as the king permanently. I bartered an agreement that allows Shirosaki to come out in partial control during my battles, I can flip the switch at any time to shift me back though."

"Incredible."

"We get along great now, even though Shiro occasionally likes to step over the line, and I always have to check him-" Ichigo smacked his fist into an open palm, "-back to his station. It's a habitual problem, but it's a small price to pay for his abilities."

"If you can obtain this bond with Metastacia, it will make you far stronger than you can imagine."

"I guess that our similarities in having these tenants also make us similar."

"Will you come with me?"

**--------------------**

Kaien closed his eyes and imagined himself within his mental domain.

He stood on the horizontal skyscrapers; he had been here before during his initial conversations with Nejibana. Across from him stood the humanized form of Metastacia, his mask resting on his shoulder, him baring the same face. He held a black Nejibana. Kaien was of his normal human form, he stared down at his normal skin color almost aghast at the thought he'd never see it again.

Unlike Ichigo, Kaien didn't need to have the notion of fighting instinct drilled into his mind by faces of the past, he knew it, and he breathed it. Crushing a hollow and regaining the throne was nothing for him.

Before the one who had murdered then consumed his wife and himself, there was no mercy, no regrets. Using a lightning quick dash of shunpo, Kaien Impaled the opposite version of himself horizontally, the ornamental trident driving completely through until the hollow began to slide down the shaft towards him.

"You defeated me, I guess that makes you the king."

Alabaster engulfed the midnight, reverting the former king to the ride. His last words were not a declaration of mental war, but rather surprising.

"I don't mind the change, in time you'll learn my tricks and those of your brother there. Being the horse won't be so bad as long as I get to see some nice scenery."

Kaien didn't even reply, just stared at him with a look of pure elevated arrogance.

**-------------------**

Ichigo watched astonished as color returned to his brother's face and all manner of characteristics about him manifested their original appearance. A twin of Ichigo molted out of a shadow with the exception of retaining the nighttime hair.

'Two seconds, he decimated the hollow in two seconds! Goddamn, he really does look like me'.

**-----------------------**

"Kaien, how do you feel?" He asked ironically just as Hirako had asked him after he conquered Shiro for the first time.

Ichigo extended his hand out to Kaien, who took it and him into a casual embrace.

"From now on, we are brothers' Ichigo."

"Alright, though you know this is going to take a whole hell of a lot more explaining than me being from the future."

"I guess we could be referred to as the _twins with the aura of intrigue_?" Kaien asked clearly having returned to his cheerful self.

"Too over the top?" he asked again as Ichigo grabbed him by the shoulder motioning him to "Come on, there's still work to be done."

Kaien became serious for a moment, remembering what Ichigo had told Arleri in reference to him being above the laws of the fifth captain.

"Ichigo, what is the Paladin? Is that a nickname? The destroyer? What are you a wrestler?" Kaien laughed at the vision of an Ichigo in tights, before being slapped by said wrestler.

"Paladin is the name of my division of the Gotei 13, it was a separate entity of soul society in that after its creation, many of the members of the protection squads joined, including a captain or two. Being an ally, it was granted official membership into the divisions. Although it bares no official numbered rank. I am its commander. At its height it contained representation of every race of this world, humans. Shinigami, Quincy, Bounto, Vizard and even an Arrancar. We were the elite, who openly assaulted Aizen rather than cower as most of the protection squads did."

"That's quite a feat", Kaien's mind was already pondering what photo of the group would look like, 'like a Halloween party!' He laughed at that thought, though disguising it as a cough.

"The Paladin shall return to heaven, but this time not before we alert Aizen of our presence. He'll have no where to hide once we return."

"How the hell do we do that, he's in Sereitei?" Kaien asked.

"Take out a few of his cronies in Las Noches."

"Damn, I was afraid you were going to say that." Kaien grumbled before he suddenly looked up with his eyes wide.

"Ano, Aniki, I hate to be the bearer of inconvenient truths, have you considered the damage that going to Las Noches could cause to your will?"

"What do you mean Kaien?"

"Your orange hair isn't exactly inconspicuous, if he uncovers who you are and more importantly what your goals are, wouldn't that just throw your sword of knowledge out the window?"

"That's not even the most important truth, what if you're killed there, who will be here to protect the future from Aizen? Who will save Rukia?"

Ichigo stared at him with a profound look on his face, surely he had pondered all of these things earlier, but to hear them again from another point of view, set things into the area of relevancy.

"I understand what you're referring to, but this is something I have to do. I don't want the task of destroying the espada to fall on weaker shoulders, not when I have the ability to end it now."

"That's exactly what I would do, future knowledge or not."

"Come on," Ichigo directed as he and Kaien emerged from the pit, locating the signal beacon and dashed into the horizon.

_**--------------------**_

A smiling portrait hung against an adjacent wall within the throne room of the Las Noches palace. Three of the current arrancar lords: the Espada, sat quietly while a horned subordinate was knelt before the conversing image. The flickering frame held the bust of a man with auburn hair, his trademark glasses had been set aside. His eyes never wavered, never betrayed any sense of emotion or doubt, they were in essence perfect. More than anything his tone was gentle and partially excited but equally harsher than the worst the deserts could yield.

"Our business in Sereitei is almost concluded, in the outside of a month, I shall have burnt all bridges leading to my past. That which lies beyond heaven is so close to us now. Five, three and nine shall be ready for retrieval shortly, prepare a Gillian and bring a few of your brothers, Ulquiorra, just in case. I doubt it will come to such measures of extremity, as there is no one capable of standing against us here. If they require further humbling, I wish to have the means to."

A young voice spoke from underneath the bowed horned mask, "As you command Aizen-sama".

"My precious Espada, protect my palace at all costs. We re so incredibly close to achieving our goals, I would hate to have to re-staff my best due to a lack of judgment."

With a solitary flicker, the lord of the night castle vanished from sight.

In the absence of his true master, the green-eyed vastolord exited through an adjacent door, not even bowing or speaking to the current espada.

_**----------------------**_

"Damn it, you'd think he was already Espada the way Aizen fawns over young Schiffer", the espada most resembling a devil spoke.

A female voice from a purple haired Espada replied, "Alessandro, Mosqueda, I think its finally time we face the facts. Once Aizen comes with the crumbling orb, we the natural espada will be replaced by those created artificially. We'll be lowered so much in station that the very one within the room just now could step on us and possibly not even notice it."

The orange haired espada Mosqueda replied, "What exactly do you have in mind Cirucci?"

With her right thumb, the espada drug it halfway up her neck from one side to the other. This to anyone's eyes was simply but not the most eloquent way of signaling the death of another.

The third espada, Alessandro couldn't believe the very symbol she had implied, and looked at her wide-eyed and pale faced.

She didn't wait for the others to even make a sound, "We should eliminate the vastolords!"

"Aizen would murder us in our sleep, Cirucci."

"I don't think so, we could claim it as initiative, and rather self preservation."

"What would Aizen be more impressed by, us slipping into obscurity without any fight, or at least attempting to keep ourselves by his side?"

Mosqueda remained conspicuous in his silence, but eventually found the will to speak, "Only Ulquiorra and a few others are even remotely nearby, once he descends from Soul Society, they'll come out of the woodworks."

"Not if we can scare them into hiding by taking out those that are here."

"What the?" A distant object caught the attention of the female Arrancar, a distant video screen that had painted two Vizards standing outside their front door.

"Vizards, one with a Nodaichi and another with a trident."

"Trident eh?" Alessandro mentioned before continuing, "wasn't there a rumor about a rogue shinigami living nearby who fought with a trident?"

"His power level is rated a tenth above captain."

"What of the other one?"

"The one carrying the long sword is whoa!" Mosqueda gasped before stuttering, "he's beyond Vastolord!"

The female smiled, realizing fate had played right into their little scheme, and a proxy had just arrived to keep their hands clean.

"Yammy!" Alessandro yelled in which a low and wide Adjucha entered the room.

"What is your desire, Espada Lords?"

"Yammy, go to the entrance, you'll find two Vizard, bring them here to us unharmed if at all possible."

"As you command."

"Upon exiting the room, the lieutenant ranked hollow mumbled something under his breath to the Vastolord standing also just outside the door.

"Damn Vizard, I can't wait till the day we'll be able to wipe out that shinigami- hollow masquerading trash."

Ulquiorra was not attentive enough to hear the grumbling of a subordinate, all that mattered to him was that Aizen was coming, and sooner rather than later.

_**-------------------------**_

Ichigo and Kaien stood outside the gargantuan fortress, each wearing a black hooded cape and a hollow mask, both of them wearing identical copies of Ichigo's simple mask which had been embedded within the cloak, to completely conceal identity.

"Zangetsu can use alterations of light and shadow to create images to deceive. With his help, we'll be able to slide right in knock out the leadership and be home in time for breakfast."

"How can you be this confident Ichigo? Are you really that strong?"

"You'll see soon enough brother."

"Hmm, I just thought of something, why is everything in this world named in Spanish, it's like they force you to take a class before even stepping foot here."

"Who knows, its one of those mysteries, like why Utitake-Taicho is always sick."

Kaien actually knew the answer and began to reply "Oh that's because…" when a short and wide hollow had come to meet them, uttering only "come this way".

Ichigo and Kaien followed the hollow that was traveling via their means of transportation known as sonido. Flash stepping easily took the time out of a journey that might've taken several days just walking.

Upon arriving at the top row of pinnacle towers, Ichi met Ulquiorra once again.

The emerald eyes and horned mask set a fire within the base of his soul.

Shiro kept hounding him to be released, but ushered a warning _'kill the espada first, kill the espada first; you can always find him later'. _

Ichigo heeded the warning for a moment passing by the hollow but not before locking his eyes on and never averting. Strangely, the hollow's eyes met his own, and trailed him until he entered.

When he entered the room only three were present, the devilish looking one he recognized. The two to his left and right were the ones taken out by Sado and Ishida. He was severely disappointed; there were only three of the ten present at the moment.

'_Damn it' _

_**---------------------------**_

"Who does a guy have to kill to get a job around here?" Ichigo piped up amidst the tone of silence.

It were as though he read the very thought off their lips, they couldn't believe that someone so strong and so willingly able to kill could've ever walked right into their hands.

"Ulquiorra"

"What do you wish of me?"

"Kill him, Vizard!" they pointed to the green eyed Vastolord.

Ichigo was aghast, and an eerily smile came across his lips even though it was concealed by the mask, he would get to kill Ulquiorra!

The hollow was in complete shock, had they the soon to be Privaron Espada just given a Vizard a command to kill a Vastolord? It was absurd. It wasn't absurd, it was preservation, and they knew the end for their kind was coming. It's what he or any other would've done in their shoes. As a vastolord he was at the moment nothing compared to the current espada. He couldn't even outrun them, but he could take out the Vizard.

"Fine then, if I have to kill this one, then it makes no difference, but Aizen Sama will hear of this and you will die at my hands."

"That's some confidence you have there, Schiffer-kun, you have no idea the nature of my abilities", 'or the knowledge and complete hatred I have of you', Ichigo thought.

"It's fine then, I've already annihilated one Arrancar today, what's a vastolord, nothing more than a speed bump."

"What?"

"Aaroniero Arleri, he made the mistake of trying to consume my friend over there, I can see your kind doesn't hold any sort bond as hollows, but Vizard stick together."

"Touching, but utterly meaningless, once the true Espada are reigned in, you and your kind will be the first to die."

Ulquiorra dissolved from sight, lunging forward with almost a speed beyond sight, with his right hand hardened into a blade form.

Ichigo remained still and held the sword blade down, so that his blade interconnected with the approaching hand.

The amount of power released broke the tiles in a crater around the two of them. It was as though an invisible hammer had just flattened the ground.

"That it?"

The hollow grumbled arrogantly as he used sonido to skirt the ground around Ichigo hunting for an opening, but whenever he dared to make a strike, the boy instantly reacted, shifting the blade to the exact direction he intended to strike.

What began as a standoff swiftly became a dance of two warriors moving just under the limits of normal sight, a shadow would fall for a second, a blade clink would be heard as it collided with a reiatsu hardened arm.

In a rather absurd line of thinking, Ichigo couldn't help but notice how this Ulquiorra just didn't look right without the hole just below the neck, therefore he decided to change that fact.

Ichigo vanished from sight, leaving behind a temporary translucent afterimage. Ulquiorra dove directly into the shadow but as such hit noting. Ichigo slid along the ground, much like an ice skater, and drove his Nodaichi directly into the base of the vastolords neck, right where his Espada hole would've been. Scarlet splayed out before his green eyes as a black line intersected his view of the world.

"There I think that hole suits you a lot better, Ulquiorra-chan!"

Switching sword hands in a furious flash, the blade was retrieved only to be inserted in a tornado of diagonal cuts some in through the arms some through the lower and upper parts of the torso, within seconds, number four was a colander.

Ichigo spoke in a very low tone, one so soft that only he and his prey could hear it.

"I am one who has come to end the one who wants to be god."

Eyes widened as the hollow struggled to turn his head to stare into the eyes of the creature that dared to threaten Aizen. Ichi withdrew his blade to a squelch of a gasp of the hollow as he staggered, blood pouring profusely from his wounds. A solitary finger lifted up from his side, as it traveled crimson energy began to gather around it, it was his way, of using Cero. Reiatsu collected at the base of his extended finger, forming a sphere just above the recoiled fingers.

Ichigo could tell it was the kid's last gasp of power, his body having gone into shock from such mortal wounds. He could barely stand, and Ichigo continued to bait him.

"Is this the level of your love for Aizen-sama?"

"How sad…"

His emerald eyes disappeared as the boy used a burst of sonido, appearing not in front of Ichigo but above him, looking down as if he were a lord who had happened to gaze upon a peasant. His final words spoke of his undying love for his master, and the contempt he had for anyone who dared to raise a hand to him:

"If you go after the one without fear, you shall succumb to it."

A single glowing finger erupted like a volcanic geyser, a tremor and then unwieldy scorching power!

Compressed into a minute beam it tore away from its intended form into a massive fireball of reiatsu, which ironically enough had been fired at point blank range. Ichigo knew in that moment he might've been in trouble, had Byakuya been in his shoes, number six would've been dead.

A spherical explosion immersed the Vizard and thrust itself and its contents upon an adjacent wall, tearing it open to the night.

Kaien was worried at this point, he couldn't even sense his brother, who had by all accounts thus far due to lack of visibility, had been reduced to ash.

'What the fuck, I'm dead either way, I might as well go down fighting' he thought as he leapt forward, trident leveled to pluck the Vastolord as if he were a fish from a stream.

Emerald eyes detected the movement and vanished to land atop the cruising weapon only to find himself a target.

Like a great shark that was chasing a momentarily airborne seal, Ichigo leapt out of the fire with all his might and speed, both hands firmly holding the hilt of Zangetsu as it struck the hollow in the face, annihilating him!

The espada gasped astonished, as Ulquiorra was dead in an instant. He hung there lifeless, his face bearing a look of pure dread and equal terror.

The citrus haired warrior wasn't complete, he pulled back his blade and Kaien pulled the trident back letting the kid fall.

He never hit the ground.

"_**GETSUGA TENSHOU!" **_was the last words the boy might've heard, had he still been alive. A dragon of black and red lifted him from the clutch of gravity and drove him into the opposite wall vaporizing him in a fiery hell.

"Thanks for the setup there Kai, our tactic worked just as I thought it would."

Kaien couldn't believe his ears, his brother had been aware of his actions while he was still amidst that nightmare of a cero blast.

_**-----------------------**_

The tiles were effectively soaked in the blood of the highest non-arrancar hollow.

The Privaron quivered in fear, a Vizard had just dispatched a Vastolord without taking any damage! It was with good reason that they remained allied with the masked shinigami. If a single one could dispatch an arrancar like Arleri and then a vastolord in such a manner, then they were doomed. A sigh of relief in the fact that they were allied came across the three of them.

Kaien was furthermore in a redoubtable sense, Ichigo his brother danced around the vastolord as if he were standing still. He had used only Zanjutsu, cutting attacks, and rudimentary moves at that. Ichigo didn't even need to use Cero, though as Kaien came to suspect he didn't actually have to use it on Arleri either.

'Is this the level of strength he obtained from the future. Beyond his notion of strength, was Aizen truly at such a level that such would be likewise necessary to combat him?'

Kaien wasn't afraid, he just had to up his game, considerably. But as a Vizard he had taken a serious step towards getting stronger, he still had Bankai he could go after, and then perhaps he could stand in the same room as Ichigo.

_**-------------------------------------**_

It was time to end the others, and Ichigo knew exactly how to set them into the palm of his hand.

"Come on, if that's the level of work I can hope to find here maybe I should go somewhere else."

"That was pathetic, I hope you guys have someone greater for me to kill, and that was a vastolord, he didn't even scratch me. I'm disappointed."

A light bulb went off in Ichi's head, as he made the appearance of having just thought of something clever, while he was in fact polishing the scripts for their end.

"Lets see, how bout a go kill a shinigami captain?"

"What?" they asked curiously as if the boy was fool enough to just stroll into Sereitei and just pick off a captain.

"Eleven would be a good fight, but no, um, Seven would be another hard fight, I've already defeated Six and don't even get me started about Twelve. I've seen some shit now, but that bastard just scares the hell out me!"

"Something about that clown suit…" Ichigo shivered. He was indifferent to such things, but it was really the only weakness of Shirosaki. If he fowled up a mission, Ichigo would have the hollow playing a clown in his dreams. When the king dreams, the horse is his puppet.

"Let's see, weak captains, weak captains, Ten's a child and I don't kill Children, one's not far from pushing up daisies, and I don't kill the elderly."

"Oh I know, what about Three Nine or Five, those are real chumps! I'll catch them and clean them for free!"

The tone of somewhat amused shifted to a serious killer intent upon that last reference.

Kaien was about to fall on the floor laughing at his brother's reference to the three captains as trout one could easily catch and clean.

"Oh yeah I forgot nine is blind so I guess I can't really harm him under my conscious of not killing the helpless."

The three espada were seething, but equally terrified, the Vizard before them had just mocked their lord in referring to the defeating of him as a minor task. They feared the kid cause he just dispatched a vastolord in under a few minutes. No one aside from the lord could fell one that quickly.

_**------------------------**_

Ichigo had already gotten them agitated; it was time for the conclusion.

'_Shirosaki it's time' _Ichigo thought to himself, calling out his hollow. Closing his eyes for a second, he stared back at the white copy of himself.

'_What do you want of me king?' _

'_I'm letting you out to play'. _

'_YYYYESSSS! I finally get to kill someone!' _

'_Listen Shiro, if you hurt Kaien, you'll be doing birthday parties, and you'll be the piñata!'_

'_No, not the clown suit, you promised!' _

'_Heh heh heh, muck this up and you'll wear it from now on!'_

'_Hai, I submit to your ruling king!' _

Opening his eyes Ichigo departed the mental world, his lips primed to utter the one phrase his earlier self thought he'd never have the gall to say out of fear he might not be able to revert it.

"_**Role reversal art: intersection of king and ride…"**_

_**------------------**_

Within the realm of their mind, Ichigo who had been wearing the king's robe shaded in the color of night instantly became white. Shiro's coat instantly became black.

The distortion that was covering the face of Ichigo couldn't sustain itself any longer, and the will of the hollow didn't care about hiding. He had hid most of his life within the inner bowls of Ichigo. At last he was free. The cloak and mask vanished to reveal startlingly bright orange hair, with a face still concealed; sunlight eyes were glowing as a surge of gravitational pressure erupted from him. It spread in a column like a falling shadow, tearing ripping and shredding anything within its path. His hair and robes danced in inexplicable directions under the windstorm of power that was being released.

Shirosaki dropped the Nodaichi into the tiled floor; it pierced through the stone enough to keep itself upright. Ichigo stood within the shadow of Zangetsu as his body was beginning a rampage.

The mask that had been no more than a party favor began to cover the head completely, with thread like extensions spreading until they had formed a complete shell. The signature of a hollow began to appear within the chest cavity of Ichigo, as a line was cut into his skin from which no blood exited, only a canyon of black opened up and connected with the other side.

The shin of Ichigo molted from tan to black red and white, his hair had grown exponentially to almost a lion's mane.

With thunderous drumming, Shiro's transformation was complete. He had in essence become the perfect blend of human and hollow. His lower extensions remained the same in the nature of wielding a weapon was easier with a hand unflawed. The weight distribution of a tail was irrelevant, he wasn't such a weakling to require such a trait.

Tensa Zangetsu in terms of power was captain level X 2. Shiro's power complete was Captain level X 2. When the hollow assumed his form, and used Bankai, this was effectively two thirds of the full power of the time traveler.

In relative terms, Aizen's initial power from the moment he left soul society was the level of power Shirosaki was releasing. Having been a master of all four types of shinigami advancement, it was only logical to conclude he would be that strong. Ichigo still had a third of power distance remaining between him and the great lord.

Kaien had been understandably humbled, he couldn't even stand under the weight of such reiatsu, he held himself upright by leaning on Nejibana. He was notoriously happy though, if this were a level of power that was available to a Vizard, then he would push himself until he had died again to obtain such a height.

Shirosaki never believed in subtlety, at the very moment, within Sereitei, Aizen detected the power level of a hollow that was as strong as he was. Scrambling he assembled the others, not out of fear, but curiosity as to whom could summon such ungodly power.

_**---------------------------**_

The portrait of the auburn haired captain once again appeared hovering in the thin space that existed between the rear wall and the throne block.

An unruly orange haired hollow stood before the three espada, and his throne room had been somewhat disrupted. Skylights that had never been installed had been torn on either respective side of the hollow, obviously when someone had been thrown or burned through them. A black Zanpakuto was lifted up from its perch in the tiled floor, only to be laid against the shoulder of said hollow.

_**------------------**_

The Espada were screwed.

Aizen had just appeared and would in moments learn of the fall of his favorite, but he was the least of their worries, the god of all hollows stood between them and their lord.

Shirosaki lifted the blade and crossed in in an x right in front of the Espada, who inexplicably found their heads and bodies traveling in different directions. Energy had extended from the blade to cut them into pieces without the blade ever really touching them. They were deli meat in seconds. Smoldering just as all dead hollows, they were eviscerated into nothingness.

Shiro turned to face Aizen with mild interest; he had just wiped out the three leaders of the castle without so much as touching them.

The two titans stared at themselves for a moment before he spoke.

"I do not fear you hollow, you should revere and respect that as all of your kind do."

"You should, I crushed your little friend Ulquiorra with not much more than a breath. These pawns of yours as you've just seen fell with less than even that. I think I'll make it as simple for you as I can, you rule heaven, I rule Hueco Mundo. If we clash, this world will be destroyed. Can we reach an accord?"

"What of those loyal to my side?"

"What do I care, if they get in my way they're dead, take them."

"Who are you?"

"I am Shiro, Aizen, and the next time you see me you will die."

"To you I extend the same courtesy, Shiro." Aizen replied.

Shirosaki laughed as the pale faced captain flickered then dissolved.

'_White' _Aizen mumbled to himself _'an ironic name since everything in Hueco Mundo is white. Mysteriously vague. There is more to this, and you can better believe I'll find out what it is.'_

"What should we do Aizen-sama?"

"We rule from Sereitei."

"Hai!"

_**-----------------------**_

Dawn had come and gone and yet Ichigo had not returned.

Everyone had assembled per the young man's request within the lower basement of the candy store. Most were talking idly with the shirtless father of Ichigo resting in the onsen. He was recovering from injuries sustained while trying to kidnap the elder Quincy.

It was almost noon when Tessai and the kids had descended down the forever ladder each carrying a bag of Bento lunchboxes. They had almost consumed their meals before it happened.

A black rippling line of energy caught their eyes. Inoue jumped up from her knelt position in fear as a giant black mouth with white human-like teeth appeared out of thin air.

"It's a monster!" she cried only to be comforted by Tatsuki who was under the same impression.

Two figures leapt from the mouth, which began to close immediately, slowly backing away like a servant without turning its back. Within a second or so later it had dissolved into normal space.

The collective group, young and old stared blankly at two twin teenage boys. Almost completely the same aside from their hair, one black and glossy while the other was of ripened citrus. They respectively held different weapons, one a black Japanese long sword, and the other a majestic pale-blue trident.

The ability to speak or even render a thought of doing so had been consumed by the retreating mouth; it was nonexistent.

The general consensus stated the obvious. One Ichigo had departed, and two had returned.

Kurosaki Isshin was the first to speak of any respective age group. Of the elders only Ryuuken was the only one not completely astonished. The look on his face held orbit somewhere between annoyed and slightly curious, he had known of Isshin to have only one son, the orange haired rival of his own. Who was the second one holding a trident?

The other three elders were of the same mind in recognizing the 'twin'. When he finally spoke, it bore the collective will of astonishment combined with overall confusion in a singular statement that stabbed the silence like a blade.

"Mother of god!"

_**----------------------------------------**_

_**A/N: **_How's this for a long chapter? I decided this being the tenth chapter, I wanted to go all out and combine two chapter lengths into one. Twenty-seven pages is a record for me. I've taken the first major step in preparation for Sereitei.


	11. The rumor

_**Disclaimer: **__if bleach was mine, then my hands would stink. _

_**Return of the Moonfang**_

_**XI **_The rumor

**------------------**

Through the empty corridors of Sereitei, a lone shinigami captain strolled in the moonlight. One of the oldest in the current ranking divisions, he held an unprecedented amount of influence within the courts and divisions. An easygoing soul by most accounts, which being of nobility would be a far stretch. He wasn't the unmovable sort, as the current head of Kuchiki. He could be seen as capricious at times, and overly euphemistic. The captain commander always referred to him a heavy intellectualist, though it was a side he had rarely shown to anyone. His moral ethics allowed him to act impulsively at times, focusing on the basic truth of a situation rather than the confliction of a law.

When he was so inclined to look outside the box, he had little difficulty in doing so. It confused him why others were so rigid in seeing only the surface levels of reality, because under or above the straight and narrow, anyone could do anything. Sadly as such, the majority of society wouldn't even notice it.

A sinister wind glides through his clothing, blowing his flowered haori from side to side, striking him cold to the bone.

It was with good reason that he walked alone that night. It was as though the wind were laughing at him, laughing at all of them. Something was moving out there, using the imprisonment of a poor girl as a proxy for evil. The eighth captain could see the means in which the girl was obtained as possibly the beginning strokes of something unnatural. The air itself seem to furthermore carry an aura of warranted uneasiness, as if the minute features of nature could detect something was out of place.

It was something he had to confirm with the captain of said girl.

**-------------------------**

_Being the eyes and ears of the world, the technological division unintentionally became the source of rumors and gossip. Rightfully so, they were tight lipped about the finer details, but it had spread as gossip that two of the sixth division had been humbled by children. The popularity of Kuchiki Byakuya allowed for the rapid and unedited form of gossip to spread like an oil spill, tarnishing his name. _

_Vastly surpassing anything else was Kuchiki Rukia's defiance of Byakuya. When asked of such, the head of Kuchiki would dismiss the matter altogether. He scorned those who would spread such frivolous information. Society was natural in their love of celebrity, but even more so they loved to watch them fall. Rukia's attack would be viewed and related as a puddle of mud he could never escape from. _

_A girl, who had never been more in anyone's eyes than a noble pet kitten, had become a snarling tiger within a single day. Her actions were glamorized in the aspect that a group of reiatsu charged children had come to her aid, willing to die to save her as if she were their commanding officer. _

_What could've happened to Rukia to cause such a change of personality, she had even been reported of giving her power to a human, a serious crime yet she didn't even mind furthering her sins for the person in question, and even struck against the hands of Sereitei when they tried to take her from him. _

_A shinigami scout had been reported of saying Rukia had fallen in love with the boy. Nevertheless, to do what she had done was not without the weight of responsibility for her actions. _

_Most were astonished when those two were sent after her. It brought a level of suspense to the situation, an implication of something a lot higher than her having broken a simple law. It was as though a hand was reaching out from the distance to obtain her, a flower, but for what sort of bouquet? _

**---------------------**

It was this reason that he walked alone to consort with his oldest friend.

Approaching the gateway to the last of the divisions, the captain was greeted by two guards.

If there ever was a captain in the thirteen who closely resembled the savior of the western world, it was he. At times when facing his opponents there were moments when some would consider the straw hat slid back that resembled the signature halo that some of the earliest artwork depicted. The fact that he wore a pencil thin beard, and bore a strikingly similar face to said savior almost always carried the weight of such an impression.

Softly walking through the halls, he was met by the acting vice captains, Sentarou and Kiyone.

"Good evening Kyoraku-Taicho, how may we be of assistance?"

His tone was smooth and quiet, as always.

"Please take me to Ukitake-Taicho".

"Hai".

**-------------------**

Jushiro Ukitake sat alone within his chambers, the thirteenth crest emblazoned upon the wall over his head.

Ill faced, he is not commonly seen among the other divisions. The captain was known to suffer from fits of coughing blood from over exertion, and would often eat quite a bit but remain rather thin, both usual effects of Tuberculosis.

In spite of such a flaw, he as well held as much respect as his eighth squad counterpart, having existed as a captain also for more than two millennia.

A dark cloud seemed to follow the thirteenth division wherever it went, aside from his illness. The division had lost its third seat and vice captain to a singular hollow, and more recently the disappearance and recapturing of Kuchiki Rukia.

There were not words for what she had done. At least none could escape his lips at the moment, they remained vigilant within his mind, and he smiled that even in spite of the cause, she had regained a piece of her old self somewhat.

He was not naïve enough not to notice the way she acted around Shiba Kaien, the way she admired his wife, and was always not far behind the vice captain in any instance. Through Kaien's influence, Rukia had learned shikai and some of her own abilities. Her progression was amazing; she'd be a seated officer in no time at all.

In having forced Rukia to kill Kaien, Ukitake could see that part of her died that day in his arms.

But no one could replace Kaien, and he wouldn't even attempt to. Ukitake had even considered giving her the position as a means of honoring Kaien, as she had been the recipient of his heart as he had come to say.

She'd accept the position without incident but Rukia wasn't the same girl she was when he was around, she had acquired the Kuchiki cold shoulder. He couldn't tell if it was the will of her brother that she maintains such an existence or her true self hid behind the arctic walls created when Kaien died. In the presence of the vice captain of the sixth division, he would see her blossom for a moment or so but then swiftly wilt as the icy will replaced the fire.

He had heard the rumors that the legendary callous Kuchiki Rukia had been seen consorting with a human boy, befriending a young man, and giving him her powers for some reason that had yet to be discerned. Having been returned only hours prior, she had already gained legendary status through her unbelievable actions. He would go to see her in the morning, and perhaps learn why she had done such a thing.

Ukitake was happy though, that perhaps he would get to see the old Rukia in place of the colder than winter noble.

His train of thought was interrupted by a knock on the chamber door, in which his two assistants introduced the arrival of the eighth squad captain. Motioning for them to allow him in, the flamboyant captain slid right in and assumed a seated position right in front of him.

His normal smiling face was unusually serious, and Ukitake wasn't without the ability to see why he would be in such a mood. His own thoughts were not far from trailing to that direction.

**----------------------**

"Yo pretty boy, you feeling better at all?" Kyoraku asked smiling for a moment and then reverting back to seriousness.

"Yeah, at times Kyoraku."

Kyoraku got right the to the point, there wasn't any need in their useless banter, he hated being so serious, it was totally uncharacteristic of him, but he had to speak what his mind was conjuring, if Ukitake wasn't even on the same page he would be surprised, but dismiss it as a mis-step.

"What are we going to do, old friend?"

"What do you mean?"

"About Kuchiki Rukia?"

"I've heard from some of the 46, that they are considering the death penalty."

Ukitake's eyes widened and his face grew even paler, he hadn't been aware of this information, given his reclusive-ness he was normally the last to know anything. Given it was a member of his own squad he should've known first.

"I can't help but sense that all of this is a rouse for something more sinister. You know that girl; she'd never give up her abilities for an undeserving reason. If we can learn of it perhaps it can be used as a bargaining chip. The 46 are not above listening to reason, though their actions of late have not reflected this. Byakuya was sent to collect her. The most noble of captains being directed to collect a fugitive seems drastically out of order."

"You know me, I don't care about such things as status or ranking in the world, and his involvement in this has brought a level of curious suspense that I wouldn't have thought possible."

"That struck me as a little curious as well," Jushiro pointed out before number eight could continue.

"Even with the report that she had fallen for the kid she gave the powers to, she was apprehended like a murderer. There was obviously a good reason for her doing so, perhaps she was injured; perhaps she gave the kid the ability to save her or his own family. At the moment we can only draw straws, and hope that those drawn can help us in some manner."

"Kyoraku" Ukitake spoke in complete and utter astonishment, they were of the same mind.

"I agree with your observations old friend, they are right on as always."

"I'm going to converse with her in the morning, perhaps we can find the means to help her."

"Don't think you have to shoulder this alone Jushiro, I'm sending one of my division to human world, to converse with him."

"Who?"

"The one who had fallen at the hands of Kuchiki Byakuya, he hasn't crossed over so therefore he must still be alive. I've heard he is the son of Isshin."

Jushiro was once again left in a redoubtable sense, as it was another piece of information that had yet to reach his ears.

"If he is in fact the son of Isshin, that will prove most troublesome. To give power to the descendant of an exile carries an almost unprecedented amount of weight, irrelevant as such things are as long as the cause was just. There is another angle to look at this Kyoraku, the son of Isshin exile or not is nobility. I hate to operate in the supporting of such an angle but it may be our only avenue. Being a pureblood he would've attained our power naturally if he didn't have it already. Rukia's intervention could've been a catalyst for it to surface."

Kyoraku was stunned at the ability of his friends reasoning, this in fact was another card they could play if they were so inclined to.

"The question remains, how on earth will they be able to find him?"

"I'd bet a month's salary on the fact he's been collected by Urahara Kisuke, and is undergoing training to come here. Kurosaki Ichigo was reported as having felled a Menos Grande that appeared the day before Byakuya's arrival."

"Incredible, a kid like him being capable of that…"

Kyoraku picked up the line from Ukitake "Is to say that he would be capable of coming here to save her."

Jushiro stared at him blankly for a moment, completely astonished by his reasoning. Kyoraku continued after a second or two, "As captains, we cannot openly act against the thirteen, but if this kid were to come to her aid, I would surely stand beside him, indirectly at least."

"As would I Kyoraku, but we must be careful, whomever is orchestrating this might've already planned for his arrival just as we are hoping to now. I'm not dissuading you from acting; in fact, I'll send one of my own with your emissary. We must use this as a means to uncover the reason why she acted as such. It may be seen as irregular, but we are known for seeking the truth at any cost. I further think that if anyone were to try and stop them, it might reveal said conductor prematurely."

Kyoraku flashed his normal smile, "that's the man I came here to see".

"I'll send Nanao-chan here in the morning to collect your officer."

"I'll instruct them to speak of this to no one."

"As will I, with Nanao."

"Goodnight old buddy, hope you sleep well." Kyoraku nodded before rising to walk out the door.

He stopped just before exiting, saying some parting words. "Yama-ji won't be too happy about this, I pray to Kami that we're wrong Jushiro, I don't think that even we could weather the storm these actions might befall on us."

Even in spite of such words, he closed the door and walked into the night with a clear heart and mind.

**------------------**

"Kiyone, were you listening?"

The short yellow haired girl stammered in red from ear to ear in a blush of embarrassment at having been caught eavesdropping.

"I'll overlook this infraction if you promise not to tell anyone, not even Sentarou, who I have no doubt was standing right next to you."

Said subordinate shivered at the calling of his name.

"You'll go under the command of the vice captain of the eighth squad, if asked by anyone you are to say you are collecting evidence for the defense of Kuchiki Rukia. I doubt that anyone would stop you under such a pretense, to do so would be utterly suspicious."

"You are to proceed to the store owned by Urahara Kisuke, the former twelfth division captain. Ask him what he knows of the situation regarding our squad member, and even ask to speak to Kurosaki Ichigo, if you can. Likewise speak of what you find to no one other than myself or Kyoraku-Taicho."

"As you command Ukitake-Taicho."

Grim faced, but equally happy to be given a personal assignment over the block head she worked with, Kiyone smiled eventually upon exiting and wishing him a goodnight.

Ukitake took a sip from his dish of Sake and continued on with his thoughts, hoping as well to Kami that they were wrong about a hidden plot.

**------------------**

Byakuya sat in the presence of the captain commander, who respectively sat alone as well. His vice captain was visiting Rukia, so the commander had his wait outside. Rumors of the encounter regarding Rukia were abounding like locusts, burning their way through the fields and ears of whomever happened to be near.

Byakuya sat before him ready to unveil his hand in asked, but in fact his hand was incomplete. He kept the hidden aces within his cloak, and knew that they alone could support the others when asked about the finer details. Byakuya also suspected that such information would undoubtedly lead to the alerting of whomever the kid suspected of being behind the irregular capture of Rukia. He didn't like the thought of being played, and furthermore by an unknown player, who at the very moment could be counting on the fact he would unveil everything. Inserting him into a pile of discarded cards the player would move on undetected still.

He remembered being held there by a boy twice his own strength; his neck still bore the bruises of the encounter. If what he said was true then they were in fact all in trouble. If he couldn't tell anyone then surely the commander was the only one he could tell. But then again what if said person was one of if not the conspirator. This was the problem with doubt, he reckoned, it sprouts up like a weed through a beautiful walkway, disrupting the tiles. Distrust is its weapon and it spreads quicker than any fire, as to who allowed said plant to grow beside them.

He still couldn't help but sense that perhaps the boy was the conspirator. That he was using Rukia for some means to enter and engage the members of Sereitei. It was more logical than any other thought his mind had rendered that day.

His mind flashed back to him being held, and it gave him the sickening thought not to unveil his complete hand. To do so would've been a service to himself and his honor, but it could likewise be a detriment to all of Sereitei. Angering someone as strong as Ichigo, who could have crushed him within his grip but resisted would be a critical error.

Therefore, Kuchiki Byakuya outlined the entire event, confirming the rumors that he and Renji had been humbled. An orange haired shinigami representative led a squad of reiatsu charged children futilely but spectacularly well. Even his own sister rose up against him at the sight of her fallen love. He did this in his usual cold tones and mannerisms. Byakuya's performance was flawless.

He was sick to his stomach for not telling the truth, but Byakuya had bought himself the chance to help Soul society by keeping a closer watch.

**-----------------------**

Within the fourth division barracks, a recovering soul lie awake, a second comes to comfort her.

"Ne, Rukia, are you awake?"

"Hai, Renji, want to gloat some more?"

"No, you baka, I want to know if you're alright?"

"What was that, I couldn't hear over the sound of you being beaten up by all those kids."

"Why you little!"

"Ne, Renji, what do you think will happen to me, will I be killed?"

"I wouldn't thought so prior to things, had you not attacked him that is. Why did you do something so crazy, was it because of that kid. The one that resembles Kaien."

"I love him."

"You mean loved?"

"I use the present tense because he is still present."

"There's no way, I saw him killed by Kuchiki-Taicho."

"Dead or alive it makes little difference. Ichigo told me he wouldn't falter, so neither must I. Something happened to him Renji, Ichigo wasn't like this before."

"It's pretty clear to me Rukia, you happened to him."

Rukia blushed at the thought, Abarai smiled at this, knowing he could still pick on her even in the state of things.

"Did you teach him about Shikai, or all the other things?"

"That's what I mean, Renji, I never mentioned a word about any of that to him. Instinctively Ichigo knew it, perhaps being psychic is apart of his sword's abilities. He as a shinigami, was able to call forth his cutting moon within two months, how many of us can claim that? Two months and we'd still be in school."

"Where did that level of intelligence come from? That boy had always been more of a baka then you. Yet he navigated the situation with Ni-sama with the sight of a tactician. When Inoue and the others assembled around him, he was joyously happy, it was like a side of him awakened before me."

"They fought with a level of might I wouldn't have thought possible. Furthermore, since when did they even have spirit abilities? Its like I'm watching a kabuki play but haven't seen the previous acts. I may have been blind to his progression, but I can't say I wasn't inspired by their actions. Instinctively they stood up to the best of heaven and didn't waiver. To some extent I think it developed within me, that will of his."

"I'll say Rukia, I haven't seen you like this since Shiba was still around."

"It was my first time being kissed, but somehow I could tell it wasn't his. It wasn't awkward or abrupt it was supremely passionate. He kissed me as if I were the only one in that room; as if I were the only one in the universe he wanted, as if he had wanted to his entire life. How could such a thing be possible, is it really love? I've only known him for a few months yet I feel utterly and completely lost without him. We had gotten close he and I but I never imagined it would evolve to this. It was so unexpected."

Renji was sickened at that point; he didn't really want a blow-by-blow description of her first kiss, and the one he had wanted to give her. His sense of pride and manhood shrunk dramatically, knowing he couldn't ever live up to that kind of kiss.

"I knew eventually I'd have to stand accountable for my actions, right or wrong in any case I would be retrieved and Ichigo would suffer for it."

"To stand up to Ni-sama like that, I still shiver at the thought of me being capable of doing just that. I could've killed him and yet I didn't even care. All I wanted was to grasp the happiness I had finally obtained and hold onto it for as long as I could."

"You have changed Rukia, for the better I see."

"You don't know what it means to me, Renji, to still have you _as a friend _after all of this."

Renji frozen, his eyes had glassed over and a chibi version of him was thrown against the wall, she had killed him with three words. Furthermore, he had been reduced to the status of '_girlfriend!_' the next thing he knew he'd be sitting at that table having joined the shinigami women association under the name of Abarai Renjina. Yachiru would be welcoming him personally as the newest member. Mentally he screamed an eternal 'noooo!' he tried to get up but his rear was glued to the table as they started talking about something inappropriate….

Rukia noticed that her pineapple haired friend had grown rather quiet. She wasn't expecting that reaction. Some people never really understand the kind of damage those three words have on a person's world, unless they've actually experienced them.

"Ne, Fuka-Taicho-chan, you alright?"

Renji instantly sighed, realizing it was just a dream. He was still a man! He would be sure to get smashed tonight, hopefully to kill those brain cells that had just stored _that_ information.

"I wasn't expecting you to say you and me and friends in the same sentence." _'I was hoping for lets forget about citrus boy and have you and me in a love hotel somewhere?'_ A chibi Rukia slapped him into next week for just that kind of thought.

"Can't handle just being my friend Renji, you were for all those years?"

'How the hell am I going to ever get her away from him? Even after he's surely been killed she just keeps going on like he's alive and coming to get her no less, why can't I find a girl that devoted to me' Renji thought, as he grumbled.

"I'll manage" he managed to let slip as he started to walk away.

**-------------------------**

A roseate haired girl ran through the halls of her division, she had a bit of gossip so juicy that no amount of candy could persuade her from telling her captain.

Pachinko head had heard from someone that children had defeated pineapple head and Bya-chan.

'Where the heck is he', she thought as she ran and ran and couldn't find any trace of her porcupine haired captain.

"Ken-chan, where are you?" Yachiru screamed so loudly that the entire division and probably most of the surrounding others could hear her.

"KEN-CHAN!!!!!!!!"

A voice rougher than a gravel road intercepted her words and attention.

"Yachiru, damn it, how many times must I tell you not to yell so loudly at night." his ears were still ringing from the last time she bellowed.

"Ken-chan, Bya-chan and pineapple head were beaten up!"

"Oh, by whom?"

"Whom didn't do it, a bunch of kids did?"

Kenpachi sighed knowing how single-minded his 'daughter' could be at times. Nevertheless, she did provide him with some rather useful information, perhaps with it he could provoke pale face into a fight, he'd been so bored as of late.

'What to do with Yachiru, oh I know!' he thought.

"Yachiru, go tell Yumi to give you as much candy as you want ok!" This was normally the last thing he'd ever tell her, she'd be bouncing off the walls for days, but he didn't care; he would finally get a chance to use 'it'.

The sixth squad captain was someone worthy enough for him to use his newly acquired skill.

"Yay! Ken-chan says I get to get hammered!"

"Nani? Who told you about getting hammered?"

"Maki-maki, he was stumbling around the other day and I asked what was wrong he said he was hammered, and if I eat so much candy, maybe I'll be the same way!"

A shade of horror crept into the face of Kenpachi, knowing full well what a Yachiru in the bag, was capable of.

A requisite for being a member of the eleventh squad was one you had to love to fight, two you had to be strong, and three you had to be a drunk or at least have a love for sake. Kenpachi had managed to keep the third trait of their division hidden from Yachiru, not that she wouldn't understand it mind you, but she had once gotten into some sake and had been on a candy buzz at the time…

Kenpachi prefers that people don't talk about that day, even going to the extent of threatening death upon anyone who'd dare to mention it to Yachiru, who for maybe good reason couldn't remember the night she painted the town red, or pink in this case. It would've made Ichigo's initial incursion into soul society appear not much more than a punch in the stomach.

"On second thought, you're allowed to have one piece of candy, Yachiru."

"Ken-chan that's not fair, you told me all I wanted!"

She looked at him with the puppy dog eyes that he couldn't resist, and faster than superman on laundry day, Kenpachi folded, she was his one weakness.

"Oh alright, just don't go getting 'hammered' tell Yumi and Ikkaku they have to watch you, I'm going out to have some fun!"

"Can I come with you Ken-chan?"

"You're telling me you'd rather not have any candy…"

His vice captain didn't have to think about it for even a second; she was off in the distance a flash of pink dust.

"Alright, alright" he groaned, "now where is that pretty boy?" Kenpachi dashed off into the horizon, running as fast as he could, but not using shunpo. Flash step was not the trick he was thinking of in regards to Byakuya…

**---------------------------**

Aizen sat alone recollecting upon his earlier actions and words. His white castle lie under siege at the moment, by all accounts missing a part of itself by then. A Vizard of incredible power had appeared almost out of the air itself. There were no Vizards that were even in the same state as him ability wise. He formulated their strength to be around what the next generation of Espada would be, but nowhere near his own.

What was going on, he had a signed treaty with the Vizard, so why would one of them attack and kill a vastolord? Then said being annihilated three of the original espada with nothing more than an exertion of energy.

'Shiro' he recoiled his original thoughts prior to the event. '_An ironic name, everything in Hueco Mundo is white'_. Could it be code for someone's name, or reference to hidden power? Aizen didn't like where his reasoning was leading him, it were almost as if he feared the hollow.

Such a thing was impossible.

Remaining in Sereitei though, would make Aizen appear as if he was afraid. He was known as the man without fear; it was why hollows born of it dared to follow a man. Being without fear to a hollow was something to love and revere. If he were shown as weak through this hesitation, Aizen would lose all credibility.

Aizen's initial idea to rule Sereitei was the wrong course of action; he wasn't blind to see the ideas floating around in the heads of his subordinates. Naturally, they wouldn't dare speak of it, but their attitudes were just as forceful as a spoken word.

To change the nature of the game thus far into it would've been to invite disaster. The trial of the girl was beginning, as were the rumors that the shinigami that had fallen was coming to save her. Under orders, the two subordinates started the rumors, to further inspire a sense of fear for the kids capable of humbling Byakuya. The tactic of fear would allow the three of them to move so easily and undeterred.

But that was based upon the ability to obtain the orb, crush the opposing captains and then ride off into the sunset on a negation horse.

Aizen laughed maniacally, in his head at least, to utter such a thing among present company was totally out of character, and a role he was sick of playing. He would have Shiro bow before him, as a prelude to the death of the fool who thought he could order Aizen Sosuke, the future god of the world…

**------------------------------------------**

**A/N: **I know you guys wanted to see the reaction, but its still evading me at the moment, I want it to be perfect so I came up with an alternate approach. I thought it was time for the reaction of Sereitei. It also occurred to me I had made a critical error in terms of Aizen's character. Being without fear, such that he appears to be, for him to remain in soul society would've been seen as being afraid of Shiro. I'm surprised no one mentioned that. Oh well, be sure to have a nice day! -CH

I'm taking suggestions for Kenpachi's 'it'!


	12. The reflection

_**Return of the Moonfang**_

_**XII **_the reflection

------------------------

_Kurosaki Isshin was the first to speak of any respective age group. Of the elders only Ryuuken was the only one not completely astonished. The look on his face held orbit somewhere between annoyed and slightly curious, he had known of Isshin to have only one son, the orange haired rival of his own. Who was the second one holding a trident?_

_The other three elders were of the same mind in recognizing the 'twin'. When he finally spoke, it bore the collective will of astonishment combined with overall confusion in a singular statement that stabbed the silence like a blade. _

"_Mother of god!" _

-------------------------------------

From the mouth of darkness, two young men had materialized. One man of citrus hair with auburn eyes, stood before them, and another with, raven hair and eyes of a Caribbean sea. The younger walked confidently, while the older walked with a little bit of doubt in his step, doubt that he was actually in the living world once again.

Having been informed via eavesdropping, the younger generation present knew that the possibility of Ichigo not being their Ichigo was a good bet. He was supposedly from the future, having come back to save his friends and loved ones from death. It explained a few things, at least to the two males in the younger group, his unusually high strength, for one, and his unusually vast tactical abilities, the other. The two girls on the other hand couldn't be more in love with the boy because of it. It was such a noble sacrifice thought the denser of the two, while the one he had known since their early karate days couldn't believe the change in demeanor that came from such a possible revelation.

Their collective sights were of course thrown off by the appearance of another Ichigo!

The possibility of him being from the future still fresh in their minds, it wasn't too far of a guess to consider that the younger form of Ichigo was just a façade, and the older form walking next to him was in fact a reflection of how he probably appeared naturally. The elder of the two bore a time refined face, eyes that no longer had their glowing innocence, they were paler, more ashen, having seen the end of his world or god knows what else.

In some respects, the youngest could've been a ghost for all they knew. His journey could have leaded him to a place where his true form had been torn free from its restrictive younger shell. It furthermore could've been an illusionary tactic all along, and he walked in this manner to illustrate such a feat.

The elder generation knew better, they knew more of the older twin then they did of the younger. In the presence of the elder twin though, their minds were capable of finishing off where the children's mind had stopped short. The image of a battle-hardened warrior was finalized by the touches of long hair tied back into a ponytail possibly. A captain's haori, hung in a fashion similar to his father, but pinned to the base of both shoulders, much like the sort of form Roman general's cape would take. Both the white cloak and the uniform would've shown a jagged edge, much like the blade of the warrior Kenpachi. Two zanpakuto would've hung on the lower side, had one the swords not been released in the hands of the other man… Upon a second glance, Kisuke realized there was a third zanpakuto among them, the empty scabbard of his cutting moon, and another conspicuous sword.

If the theory he had considered was true, it couldn't be Nejibana, because Nejibana had merged with its younger self much as Ichigo had himself and his sword as well. There were more important things for his mind to be weaving, so he let the mysterious sword drop for a moment.

They of course had no possible idea of fathoming or comparing what he might've actually looked like, seeing as though they had yet to hear a definitive answer on whether or not he really was from the future. At this moment, it was all a guess.

In regards to the elder, they knew exactly who he was the moment he stepped out of gargantua. Their minds not withstanding, were not capable of processing the images of him reappearing before their eyes. For the life of them, they couldn't discern the ramifications of bringing a man back from the dead, yet the kid was able to. He walked along the pathway to the crowd conversing slightly with his older twin, their respecting weapons laid against their shoulders.

Their minds recoiled to his earlier release of _'having business with Shiba Kaien_'; the only logical conclusion to having the need to speak with a dead man would be the usage of Nejibana. A zanpakuto had remained while its user was clearly dead, or in this case not clearly enough. If the zanpakuto remained, then it meant its user was alive in some fashion, but as a shinigami being killed by another zanpakuto, what form of existence had the other taken. It was a mystery as vast as time itself, even more so then the navigator of said stream standing next to said dead man.

The twins to both sets of collective eyes bore a strangely similar reiatsu signal, it was a mix of the sort felt the prior night of the heavenly warriors, yet it was also dark and sinister as they had come to know from several of the hollow race. Was it just a byproduct of wherever they had come from or was it, (especially in the eyes of the older group) something far more troublesome. It was a sort of troublesome that would have every captain in soul society after their heads. To obtain a level of power that exceeds the natural limitations of a shinigami is one of the ultimate crimes. Assuming a hybrid form of hollow and shinigami bridges the distances between the two sides, allowing for anyone to become stronger than a captain, if they were so inclined. In addition, unlike the standards of shinigami abilities, there were no limits to the maximum power a Vizard could obtain. Vizards were said to be capable of whatever ability their base hollow could perform, most abilities were of an unnatural and furthermore illegal sort.

Hougyoku in its purest essence was a man-made bridge to an island of existence that no living being was ever meant to step foot on. It could take a shinigami and turn it into a hollow, forming a Vizard. It could also take a hollow and turn it into a shinigami, thus creating an arrancar. Hougyoku is only a ferry to the island, while in the past some have been capable of swimming across. The usage of the orb rewrites a soul's maximum abilities, and therefore can supercede anything naturally obtained.

It was clearly obvious to Kisuke at least, that Kaien had struck some deal with his inner hollow or had conquered it somehow. That was only a partial answer though, if both he and the hollow had been killed then how did they end up back in Hueco Mundo?

Ichigo on the other hand was different than Kaien, or was he? Did Ichigo lose to a hollow that likewise consumed him? Or had he used the orb in the future to advance artificially. There also existed the third possibility that he had lost his abilities at some point and in order to regain the shinigami might've had to become a hollow. The mind of the sandal man seemed to dwell on the third idea, it being more logical.

Ichigo's friends were incapable of even distinguishing the differences between a hollow's aura and a shinigami's, in regards to the others who were not a Quincy. Nevertheless, their minds appeared more focused on the probability of the rumor the adults had let slip unintentionally.

Kisuke could see the renderings of endearment on the younger faces, as they wrestled with the endless weights of why he had come from the future. He knew very little of them personally and in that assumption believed them to be naïve when it came to the pain of loss. When in fact three of them knew it instinctively and were capable of coping with it. Selfishly, they glowed in the hope that their apparent respective ends had been the catalyst for his journey.

Kisuke wasn't a fool; he was the catalyst. From his singular mistake, all manner of horrors exploded into being. He had spent the better half of the previous night wrestling with whom. Well aware of the why, his mind was free to channel his thoughts into the avenue of how.

Amongst the shades of gray, another hue of possibility existed. To revert the natural order of progression while maintaining an older, wiser, untouched form could only be achieved by divinity. Confirming it was the undoing of death; only a god could obtain and reshape a soul once destroyed. Shiba Kaien's return was an example of divinity!

Mortals speak of reverting time as something commonplace to accept an unfair fate. The enormity of slicing the chains of fate and destiny, only to reconnect them into their past linkages is beyond even the most advanced mind to even formulate. Even more than the notions of fate and destiny the burden of reversal would be to say that said being was capable of carrying everything therein. The sum of existence and destruction purposefully stopped and rewritten was beyond impossible.

Furthermore, those who are not immortal seem to categorize the reversal of time as something attainable, like controlling the weather. Weather is comprised of simple components: water, air, temperature and pressure. While more simple than time, weather is enormously more complex than a simple person wishing to make a day cooler fails to grasp. Through technology it is likely to become possible.

The same could be said for time travel, but unlike weather, its components are too abstract for even the most advanced mind to conceptualize. In this instance, it might be possible for a person to slip into time and go backwards, thus being able to subtly change events to suit a desire. Changing the causes and likewise effects of events are the limit of what mortals could ever hope to attain from becoming a steward of time.

In undertaking even the idea of ceasing and reversing time; not even the method of achieving it, a person must understand and accept that the possibility that time has to be capable of undergoing such a change. Through people and events, the invisible hands of order and balance connect the world. A person must accept this fact foundationally, even if it is not visibly apparent. If everything is random and chaotic, there cannot be any fate or destiny for all the souls that intermingle in the world. Without the notion of order, who's to say that if a person reverted their reality one year, that said person might not be where they were a year prior and not two miles down the road? In acceptance of the order, the attempter must also accept there is a divine being who would be capable and thus responsible for said order.

There were too many variables to consider: If one had the ability to sail the rivers of time and could stop and redirect its flow to an earlier passage; to respectfully be capable of restarting it; how would they know when and where to cease and redirect? Kisuke doubted the likelihood of there being road signs in such a place. Only a being with sight beyond sight could discern a year prior from ten minutes prior.

The complexity of time is in itself an enormity that even the greatest shinigami mind, if given all of time couldn't properly discern the method of obtaining or even attempting control of it.

Only the hands of god could reshape the sand castles of the universe. Only a god would have the power to knock them all down in the first place to start over.

Ichigo was unnaturally strong and wise beyond his surface years, but had yet to show such a divine presence…the younger self could've been a means of grounding his immortal abilities into a weaker form capable of not destroying everything in a misstep!

Currently occupying a state of existence where he was the catalyst to the end of all things, Urahara wondered what a random soul would do in his shoes. To be told a past action of yours had undone the fabric of existence, causing god to descend and reset reality in his mind had two possible outcomes. Suicide out of utter and complete shame was a possibility. Urahara wasn't that weakly willed. The second and more human outcome would be the inflation of pride at having bested the master of the universe.

While Kisuke wasn't about to go jump off a cliff in fear, or grow wings of pride to fly above the gods, he existed firmly on the ground. In lamentation it destroyed him to think he was the mathematician who completed the sum of all fears. When in reality all he had ever wanted was to make the shinigami stronger. He could've never fathomed that his tool in the wrong hands could be capable of such devastation. The same could be said for any tool or weapon once it's left the creator's hands; he has no say in how it's used or why it's used.

--------------------

As the two late arrivals approached the respective groups, the only person who remained separated from any particular age group began to slowly and confidently walk forward, removing his glasses to clean them and reinsert them to obtain a clearer view.

Ichigo observed the elder Quincy with one eye and instinctively held out his hand stopping Kaien. Citrus boy knew a showdown with the elder was inevitable; he'd start babbling something about being summoned by a shinigami and how his pride was yada-yada-yada. It would start with Ichigo having to defend himself mentally and spiritually as the doctor would start attacking and he would have to humble Uryuu's father, and sadly he didn't care enough at the moment to just stomach the arrogance. Like Urahara, Ishida Ryuuken was someone too valuable to kill at the moment.

---------------------------

Ryuuken began to speak, in his usual tones of being above all things.

"I know of the rumors about you Kurosaki Ichigo. Assume for the moment that I know where you've come from and ultimately why you're here."

'This is certainly not what I had expected', Ichigo thought.

"The sort of correction you aim for is utterly troublesome, but not without its inherent nobility. I can respect a man for having the will to undertake such a gambit, even if said man is a shinigami. "

"Nevertheless, I am not without the ability to see why someone like you has summoned the last of the Quincy to this place. I can see you're not a weak minded fool, but from what I've heard a clever strategist, its why I even allowed myself to be carried here."

"All things being relative to my assumption, you should know the level of contempt I hold for my father and likewise my son who followed in his footsteps rather than my own. I despise the shinigami, while he was taught to accept. Is it natural to accept the race that killed your father, and even want to save it from destruction at the hands of one of its own? Personally I would naturally want to watch Sereitei burn, and even throw a gasoline can upon its funeral pyre. I mention this not out of justifiable revenge, but the principal."

"What I want from you is not knowledge of what will come to pass, even though that will be shortly irrelevant as I can no doubt infer, I just want a definite answer, no more rumors guesses or lies."

-------------------

Ichigo swallowed his astonishment of the tactical abilities of the elder Quincy, and took a deep breath, and began to answer.

"Ishida Ryuuken, I likewise know of your reputation as a doctor and exile Quincy. While I may not like the disdain you have for your family, I am not unsympathetic to your views. You and Uryuu being the last of your kind should naturally hate those like myself and my brother here. You should also loathe my father and his friends, yet you remain with him at least out of your companionship, much as Uryuu and I have. We are more similar than you think, but make no mistake about it, I am shinigami, but I have never killed a Quincy, nor will I ever. Regardless about how I may feel about your lack of tact in regards to family, you like Urahara Kisuke are too valuable for me to kill at any rate. Though you've done nothing to me personally, Urahara is one of the reasons I've returned, for he is the catalyst for the end of my world!"

Ichigo's eyes glowed yellow for a moment as a little bit of Shiro's power began to surface. In anger this sort of demonstration was common of him, much like a burst of harmonic tremors before a volcanic eruption, sometimes it meant imminent destruction, others it meant sometime soon. Ichigo fumed as Uryuu noticed the change in eye color and the resulting shift of gravitational power.

"Kurosaki, what's with your eyes?"

"In order to understand the eyes, I have to show you this…" Ichigo reached up to the flat surface above his eyes known as the temple of his head, scratching down upon its face like nails on a blackboard but without leaving any marks. This action drew forth an aura of dark red and black light ironically resembling the energy released from the Bankai version of Getsuga Tenshou. From the action of assuming the aura, a white hollow mask came into view, with red and black streaks adorning its surface side.

The moment the mask had surfaced, a brilliant dark surge of power erupted from Ichigo, a swirling thunderstorm of light danced around him, and he was on fire!

His Bankai was a joke compared to this power, it left everyone with a vehement gasp of astonishment.

Isshin was the first to respond, feeding off of the thoughts of Yoruichi and Urahara. "You're a Vizard!"

A voice of reversed tones spoke out to them, it was just like the sound of hollow. The younger ones stepped back in fear, the elders remained firm, having seen this before, they were not afraid initially, but they did fear the likelihood of this becoming ugly.

"Yes father, but I am not a member of their ranks, nor have I ever been. I used the Vizard solely for the ability to control the hollow, much to their dismay. I'm sure they can probably sense me at this point."

"This power of the Vizard is both a blessing and a curse. With it I can stand against the highest levels of arrancar, something no shinigami with exception of the architect can boast. Using this power earlier this morning, I destroyed an arrancar, a vastolord and three espada. Even though I have control, the horse likes to think he can unseat the king at any moment."

The three elders including the Quincy took a step back mentally in fear, the sort of power he implied meant he was capable of crushing them all with not so much more than a tightening of his fist.

"The reason I have this power, Kisuke, is your fault. You should've known that Byakuya's presence in this world could only mean the someone had their sights on your regret and you are stronger than the sixth captain, why didn't you intervene? In his sealed state, you could've killed him just as easily as I could've this time around. Rukia would've still been here. Your regret would've still been here in your hands, just as you've had all of us in the palm of your hands. I let her go this time out of the necessity to flush out the hands that want your regret, so I can sever their ambitions."

"I fought valiantly the first time, and managed to humble his subordinate only to have my power stolen from me by Byakuya. I regained it, but not without the cost of having an alternate hollow ego within me fighting constantly for control."

"Do you know the fear that resides with a spirit trying to consume you from within? During my final fight with Byakuya it first appeared. Each and every time it appeared, I was narrowly able to regain control. Though I am in control now, there were many days I was so close to losing it all."

"Like always Kisuke, you leave the matters of cleaning up your mistakes to others, you left the disposing of Hougyoku to Rukia just as you would've left its retrieval under the veil of rescuing her to me once again."

"Make no mistake Kisuke, when this is concluded, when the ambition ceases to exist, you will die by my hands. I will do it then rather than now, so you can see the extent that was necessary to extinguish your mistake, something that you should've taken back with your own hands rather than force the task to another."

----------------------

His eyes didn't even widen, nor did he tremble, it was what he knew he deserved. There no words of condolences he could speak to the boy, Kisuke didn't even dare to try.

Removing the mask with his left hand, the aura and the eyes vanished. Pushing the mask upon his right fist, he crushed it into dust.

Ichigo turned to Ryuuken who bore a somewhat humbled and ghastly expression on his face.

"As you might've already inferred, your thoughts and latter assumptions are incredibly accurate Ryuuken, I hope you see some value in having my respect, in spite of our natural stations. I am honored to stand in the presence of the greatest of the Quincy race. It is my wish that you transfer some of that greatness of yours to Uryuu."

---------------------

Eyes widened and everyone shook quietly fear, completely in a state of bewilderment, he had just confirmed it, he was from the future.

A startling chill came over Kisuke as he instinctually felt the need to bow before the orange haired kid, as if he was a true god. His mind had concluded that only a divine lord could cease and reverse it all, only to restart existence. There was no other possible explanation, least not one he could infer at the moment. There were other causes, but they escaped him at the moment.

Ryuuken didn't let Ichigo speak another word as he had pulled Uryuu by the closest shoulder towards the door.

Ichigo wasn't at all surprised by this turn of events; the Quincy had actually stayed longer than he thought he would.

Uryuu began to protest, wanting to stay and learn the further truths but his father waved it off.

"He's already confirmed our suspicions, there would be some value in the hearing of how, but unfortunately as mortals it would be beyond ourselves, and ultimately futile."

--------------

Ichigo could see the torn reality in his rival's eyes; therefore he placed his hands on friend's shoulders staring him directly in the eye.

"Ishida, I know your pride has dropped to an all time low, and to you having to accept the wisdom of your father, an out in out racist in regards to the Quincy would be to destroy it. Things such as pride are irrelevant my friend, but if its what you need to help you get through the moment, then I urge you to grow or obtain a new confidence. Get it from the training that your grandfather would've given you had he still been alive. Remember who took him from you, and what you want to take from them. Humble and crush the mighty shinigami to regain your pride if you must."

Ryuuken stepped forward to ascertain the timeline he had for the training of his son.

"How long?"

"Ten days, not including this one. We leave on the morning prior the annual summer celebration." Ichigo leaned in closely to the elder Quincy, until he was in whispering range, so that only he could hear.

"Teach him in the usages of the SS blade, Ryuuken, he'll need it."

Ryuuken stared at him for a moment, realizing that the kid had used the training advise to be further means of identifying his level of being knowledgeable.

"Kurosaki?" was all that Uryuu could say, there were not words for what he had just learned of his rival, but the charismatic tone therein, restored his hope of regaining pride. Without looking back, Ishida, father and son walked confidently and proudly like a Quincy until they reached the exit, ascending into the blue sky and into the rising day.

-------------------

Internally, Ichigo thanked Ryuuken for realizing all his son needed was just a simple push. The others however, to his own assumption would require the full weight of things in order to affirm their wills or rally them into it. He continued walking closer to the group that stood frozen in fear. The darkness surrounding him had vanished, but they couldn't forget it, the terror that sang from his presence was still an elephant in the room.

Tatsuki and Inoue couldn't believe how much of a polar shift Ichigo had endured, he at the moment appeared somewhat amused with himself, having just threatened the sandal man, and directed Ishida's father to train him.

What remained in the room even larger than the elephant of his presence was the thought of what sort of regret could be the cause of it all. Tatsuki could see the interlacing fault lines that connected everyone in the room to the sandal man. Ichigo and his twin were linked together; even she and Inoue were linked to him.

-----------------

Kaien's mind decided it would be an acceptable time to acknowledge the presences of the two captains before him. As up until a moment ago his brother was quite annoyed with one of them. Kaien still couldn't believe that three of the most prominent captains were standing here, in mortal world apparently, right before him.

"Kurosaki-Taicho, Urahara-Taicho, Shihouin-Taicho what in the world are you three doing here, is this some sort of mission?"

"The same could be asked of you Shiba Kaien," Isshin responded.

'Shiba Kaien' everyone thought, 'he appeared just like Ichigo but he wasn't a Kurosaki? It was very strange'.

Inoue was the first to pipe up and speak the boy, only to embarrass herself horribly. "Cheyenne, can I call you pepper-kun?" She laughed at her own stupidity while not even realizing she had ushered forth an enormous sweat drop on everyone nearby.

Kaien leaned over to Ichigo whispering, "I know I've been dead a long time but did I just hear her refer to me as a Cheyenne pepper?"

"Don't mind Inoue, perhaps she was making a reference to how hot you are?" Tatsuki whispered while blushing at the same time. The mysterious twin wasn't Ichigo from what she could discern, but he wasn't bad to look at either.

Ichigo tried to hold it in, but with Inoue and Tatsuki's team attempt at flattering his twin, it was too much, he burst out laughing also.

Kaien leaned over again, whispering "are these two of any relation to Kiyone or Sentarou?"

---------------------

In Sereitei, two young women approached the exit gate when the shorter of the two suddenly sneezed.

"Bless you!" the taller one spoke while the yellow haired girl blushed for a moment, "oh, a cute guy must be thinking of me…"

"Come on", she dragged the enamored girl as she thought 'why did Kyoraku-Taicho get me into this mess, this is not going to be pretty'.

Slipping into the wall of light, the two seated officers vanished into sight, while completely unaware that their departure had not gone unnoticed by Ichimaru Gin.

His face showed no diversion from its usual slanted eyed smile. His mouth opened slightly as he started to laugh sinisterly, another card of opportunity had fallen into their hands. It would be a waste for them not to use it, especially against those who are already moving against them.

-----------------------

"Is this what you meant by business with Shiba Kaien, Kurosaki-san?" Yoruichi pondered, returning the situation to the level of gravity it deserved.

"Not entirely Yoruichi-san, I was not expecting to find my twin in a position where he could be redeemed. I thought most likely I would have to duel and destroy the monster he had become, not that he would be capable of crushing said monster and gaining control of himself, much as I have…"

Ichigo twirled Zangetsu around until he thrust the tip into the ground to use as a leaning post, he was notably exhausted by that point was due for a day of rest. He would continue though, telling his friends all he needed to.

"My friends, my name is Kurosaki Ichigo, the same name of the boy you've always or up until recently known. I however am not the same Ichigo you've always known. I cannot express myself other than in this manner of speaking, as I know what sort of whimsical conclusion my words will draw. I believe you all recognized a change within me yesterday, a change that gave me the strength to walk up and kiss Rukia. A revelation that gave me the will to stand and maneuver successfully against two of the best warriors of heaven. I knew you would come to my aid, not so much all of you though. You stood beside me even though we knew it was futile."

Ichigo sighed heavily before continuing. His eyes already glistening with tears that began to stream down his face. This was completely uncharacteristic of him, and the sight of such a thing was shattering.

"I've retraced my steps much as I told Ishida's father; from a place of existence where all of you were lost to me. Standing here now is like a dream I can't believe I haven't awakened from. I cannot relate in words the sadness I had to endure in watching you all get hurt again, and even worse, to let go of Rukia after finally finding her again. Rukia was taken from me long ago, without ever knowing how much I truly loved her."

"I was given the chance to return, upon the sunset of the world's destruction. Through my sword I was able to navigate the stream of time reversing the damage while retaining my abilities. I was not given this chance so that I could fall in love, or even save you all. Make no mistake, I am not an immortal deity, even though I realize the weight of my actions could only confirm this."

----------------

His words spoke of infinite sadness, a level of pain that radiated through the others like an ill wind.

Ichigo had lost his voice at that moment, wiping his eyes at the thought of what he had said. Kaien was so incredibly moved by the softness of his brother he decided to continue on for him, to carry some of the burden, if his shoulders could support it.

The moment he began to speak, the eyes and hearts of everyone including his younger twin shifted to him.

"Ichigo returned to destroy the architect of our misfortune. While that may not be as endearing as to say he returned to save you, the goals are closely linked. Having not been there personally I cannot relate anything to which you may be feeling at this point, I have only been around my brother for a short period of time, he found me in a state of existence that was much like his own future self; helpless. If it were not for Ichigo, I would've already started down the path which would've lead to Rukia's death, by my own hands."

Ichigo had recovered at this point and began to rise before them.

"I have no means to prove this, beyond the knowledge of what will transpire. I can show you power, I can give you power, but it is up to you ultimately what course we take."

"In ten days time Kaien and I will return to heaven to save Rukia, I will not force you to come, and most likely it would be for your own good not to. If you decided to stay or go it will not change how much I love and respect you all. If you decide to come I will lend you all of my knowledge to make you as strong as I can, I don't want you to come to relive the mistakes of what we did the first time around."

"What happened Ichigo?' Sado pondered. He would follow this Ichigo or any other without fail. He was unsure about the others though, through his questioning he wondered whether or not the others could be persuaded as well.

"Chado, you fought valiantly against numerous opponents, but were ultimately felled by a captain level warrior. I don't think that will happen this time, your abilities have advanced much higher than they did the first time around. You didn't even have the second arm until the beginning of the second war.

"Inoue, you came with us to help Rukia, your healing abilities were a great help to us. Nevertheless in spite of how much you helped us, your self-esteem dictated that you didn't even do anything, leaving you to suffer more than any of us. You are the strongest of us, you have the most potential, and we just let you slide to the rear. It is that potential that the architect saw in you, and had you abducted from us, which set the stage for the death of Rukia."

"Tatsuki, you weren't even there, your powers had yet to even surface. It didn't appear until long after we saved Inoue. Nevertheless, you weren't completely unaware of things; you could see me, as I stand now in this uniform. You could likewise see when I fought against monsters. When Inoue was taken, you confronted me about it. You were powerless to do anything to help her. The fact that you came to her aid this time, that you even stand among us now, astonishes me more than anything I've ever seen. It makes me think we have a chance of avoiding unnecessary suffering."

Kaien regarded Ichigo as if he were a real vice captain. The passion he spoke with was truly centered to the well being of a subordinate. With those words alone, he knew these kids would follow Ichigo anywhere.

'Hell I would too, having heard a speech like that', he thought. It occurred to him in that moment that orange head had yet to give him a proper introduction, he said his name but nothing more in fact, so he decided to do it.

Raising his right hand in a two fingered salute that was his norm, he spoke "Gotei 13, thirteenth squad vice captain, Shiba Kaien."

His thoughts immediately shifted to the clear truth that someone had to have replaced him by now, and he bowed his head a little in shame.

"I've been replaced haven't I brother?"

"No Kaien, you haven't."

"WHAT!!!"

"Ukitake-Taicho has yet to replace you and I doubt the likelihood that he ever will, the third seats Kiyone and Sentarou have taken the place of you business wise as they clamber to try and get the captain to make one of them your replacement."

"Those drunk idiots are trying to claim my position?"

----------------

Ichigo hated to point out the obvious but he felt as though he had to in this case.

"Kaien, you do realize that you can't just walk in there and go back to things as usual. If everything works out, you might be able to. You're still going to earn yourself one hell of a curious stare, and more than just the fact you're my apparent twin."

"I know, I'm dead and it doesn't happen all the time, but there's one thing they won't have to worry about, I cannot die."

"What do you mean, Kaien-kun?" Isshin asked.

"You see, I was consumed by a hollow a long time ago, and I was killed by Rukia who was forced to watch as the hollow masqueraded as me and attempted to hurt her. When my spirit body disintegrated, it returned to Hueco Mundo, the world of the hollows with me attached to it. There we reassembled ourselves and I imagine that if it happened once it would happen each and every time I happen to die in the future."

"So I guess you could say in my regard, what does kill me will make me stronger!"

-------------------------

The sight of a red haired boy dashing towards them swiftly obtained their attentions. His mind was racing in the thoughts of trying to prevent the sights of two of the same person at one moment, when he witnessed it again in the form of Ichigo and Kaien.

"Manager, we have a problem."

"What is it Jinta?"

"The sisters of Idiot boy over there are here, it seems something happened to their father. I tried to stop them but they followed me down the stairs, they'll be here any minute."

"That certainly is a problem, did they say what happened?"

"Their father was arrested for peeping in a woman's bathhouse. He resisted arrest and it got rather nasty."

Kaien chuckled, "even with your soul out of your body, you still can't help but revert to your old flaws Isshin-san, I thought my sister cured you of that disease."

Ichigo was too irritated to laugh at the sight of Kukuku knocking the hell out of his old man, "It was Kon, I can't believe you left him with the twins!"

Urahara had walked over to Isshin and pulled his kicking and screaming self behind a rock, one pair of twins was enough for the girls to have to deal with at any rate. He didn't want to have to see the explanation of why their father is here while their father is also in jail at the same moment.

A dark haired girl arrived a moment later, her brown haired twin a step behind. Karin shuddered at the sight of Ichigo in a kimono and hakuma, holding a blade in his hands. Beyond the sight of her older brother, she noticed another Ichigo, a dark haired one with teal eyes, likewise holding a rather elaborate pitchfork.

Yuzu caught her breath before returning a similar gaze of complete astonishment; she could only utter a single phrase…

"Oni-chan's?"

---------------------------

_**A/N: **_This one was a bastard to write, sorry about the delay.

I can't believe that no one gave me any suggestions for Kenpachi's shikai, its what I meant by (it), and I even went as far to say it wasn't shunpo. No big deal, I already got a cool idea, but my lips are sealed...

One of my reviewers asked for the opinion of the younger twins in regards to the appearance of Kaien, I hope I was able to satisfy your curiosity in some respect.


	13. The mistake

Disclaimer:

_**Return of the Moonfang**_

_**XIII **_the mistake

----------------------

_Urahara had walked over to Isshin and pulled his kicking and screaming self behind a rock, one pair of twins was enough for the girls to have to deal with at any rate. He didn't want to have to see the explanation of why their father is here while their father is also in jail at the same moment._

_A dark haired girl arrived a moment later, her brown haired twin a step behind. Karin shuddered at the sight of Ichigo in a kimono and hakuma, holding a blade in his hands. Beyond the sight of her older brother, she noticed another Ichigo, a dark haired one with teal eyes, likewise holding a rather elaborate pitchfork. _

_Yuzu caught her breath before returning a similar gaze of complete astonishment; she could only utter a single phrase…_

"_Oni-chan's?" _

---------------------

"Yuzu, Karin…"

It had been a year since he had seen his twin sisters, a year since Ichigo had sent them into hiding. The one charged with their protection, had fallen in combat. Kurosaki Isshin died with a smile on his face, as he wanted to, knowing he was taking two of the espada with him to the grave. For their own protection, Yuzu and Karin had reluctantly gone into hiding. It was not as though the twins needed constant protection, Karin had become a shinigami of vice captain strength, Yuzu was never a fighter, but she could be found on the front lines anyways. She was a doctor as well as a chef, helping as much as she could. Without Isshin around them constantly, Ichigo couldn't bare the thought of them being killed or use against him as proxies of vengeance.

He had already learned that lesson once, with Rukia, he'd be damned if he let his sisters suffer such a fate.

"Yuzu, Karin" Ichigo mumbled again, for some reason he felt he should've remembered something in their presence…

His mind was as clear then as it had ever been and he started to shake out of fear. It was the clear forms of his sisters staring back at him that made him realize his greatest mistake.

Ichigo dropped to his knees suddenly, as if he could apologize to their younger forms in the hope of atoning for what he had done to their older forms. Tears welled in his eyes, he couldn't believe how stupid he was, he acted like such a tactician the face of Byakuya and the others, how could he have not foreseen such a mistake…

He had left Yuzu and Karin alone in the future…

'I have to return, and bring them back; if anyone deserves a second chance it's those two. A chance to be happy.'

"Ichi-ni what's wrong?" Karin asked, as Yuzu walked up to the other Ichigo regarding him for a moment.

"Are you our Oni-chan also?"

Kaien laughed at her for a moment, "Yeah, I'm Kaien."

Something was wrong with his younger brother, Kaien could feel a storm of sorrow had encased him at the sight of his younger sisters; perhaps it was the sight of them being alive again.

"Ichigo?" Kaien could feel the sorrow radiating from him vastly surpassing his earlier emissions of pain; countless blades of despair were striking him repeatedly.

'What did Ichigo ever do, to earn so much hardship?' Kaien thought.

Ichigo's tone reversed from sorrowful to serious, it was as though he wasn't in pain just a moment ago, and the warrior had come to the surface.

"Kaien, I'm asking you as your brother, protect our sisters with your life."

Kaien took a step back, but not before muttering "ah, sure…" his eyes widened instantly his mind connected where Ichigo had left off, he was leaving…

Ichigo arose from the pit of aversion, which had encircled him, not entirely at full power, still somewhat drained from his earlier efforts. The traveler Ichigo wasn't in charge at the moment, instinct was holding the reigns.

"Where are you going Ichigo?"

"If I don't return, disregard our earlier plans, please never leave their side."

"What are you thinking Ichigo, disregard Rukia?"

Kaien couldn't believe his ears, what on earth was so important to just drop everything in case he didn't return.

"I left them Kaien," the sorrow returned to the surface for a moment only to be knocked away.

"I left Yuzu and Karin alone…"

Kaien stood there stuttering for a moment before his mind could insert the pieces he had been fed, 'protect the girls in case he doesn't return, return from the place he had left them, the future!'

"We're right here Ichi-ni, what's wrong?" Karin continued, growing worried, she had never seen Ichigo this upset, but her mind wasn't capable of ascertaining neither the level nor the reasoning behind his abrupt actions.

Tatsuki could see the level of seriousness in his eyes, it was not a matter to joke with him about, and he was going back, for the them he left behind. Tatsuki grabbed Inoue's shoulder and drug her back upstairs, this was not something they were supposed to witness, and it was between the members of his family.

Sado noticed their retreat and followed suit, but not before staring at the man Ichigo had become one last time, in case he should never see him again.

------------------

Ichigo raised Zangetsu, only to thrust him into the ground as if he were driving it into a stone pedestal.

The avatar of Zangetsu appeared instantly holding onto Ichigo's shoulder, as a means of dissuading him.

"You can't Ichigo, I will not allow it."

Tears welled in the eyes of Ichigo as he regarded the old man.

"I didn't allow you to come back so you could fall in love, save your friends or family. Didn't I tell you already!"

Ichi was firm in his pride and resolve, this and only this time he would stand up to the lord of the heavens.

"It is my cost."

The lord's eyes widened, as if the boy could subjugate him. He however, was not unsympathetic, the king had forced so much upon the shoulders of Ichigo, and to not allow him a simple wish would be unforgivable. He had hoped that his actions would allow him to retain the friends he had while still achieving their overall goal. He was predicting things would come to a head in this manner, he hoped Ichigo wouldn't be that troublesome.

It was the sort of troublesome that made him so valuable, it was the disregard for the rules of the universe that made Kurosaki Ichigo who he was.

"You are aware of the unlikelihood of that place even still existing? It is worn away with each second you exist here, each action erodes the future that was and shapes it into what will be."

"So there's no guarantee they'll even be there, right?"

"I have to go, I promised them."

"Very well Ichigo, I will allow this one infraction. You'll have to travel without me, I must remain a signal beacon, and so you'll know your way home."

"Without a zanpakuto how can I?"

"I see you still haven't noticed the other sword clipped to your side."

Ichigo fumbled for a moment before realizing he spoke the truth, he was so used to having Nejibana with him that he forgot that the trident was with Kaien, then what or who was this zanpakuto?

"I had hoped you wouldn't come to this conclusion, it was both our mistakes, I should've let you take them with you initially. I obtained that sword as means of achieving your goals, it should be able to guide you to the ones you love."

"Its name is Sode No Shirayuki!"

Ichigo and Kaien stared blankly at the old man, thinking in unison he had to be joking. Their eyes widened as both realized the raven-haired girl the white sword belonged to.

Ichigo drew out the plain unreleased blade, staring at it intently.

"This is Rukia's zanpakuto, how Zangetsu, how is this even possible?"

"Her powers transferred to you remember, from it we came into being. I can't let you go to the future unprotected Ichigo, what kind of friend would I be if I let you get killed there. Rukia will watch over you, use this blade just as if it were me, to the fullest extent."

"Dance, Sode No Shirayuki…"

The air suddenly grew tense and cold, the normal silver blade shifted in hue to white. The hilt and cross guard also appeared in alabaster form. Attached to the end of the hilt was a white silk ribbon that formed the pommel charm.

Ichigo couldn't believe he was holding that sword in his hand; it was like having Rukia's intertwined with his own. It was the same white blade he had seen her use against that weak arrancar.

--------------

Kaien, observed Ichigo with a curious stare, there was a shinigami who could control multiple zanpakuto other than his own, with little more than a familiar connection between their users. In his case, the connection was third party, in the form of Rukia. Rukia's case was different; Ichigo was in love with her. She must've likewise had some feeling for the boy, or else the sword wouldn't respond to him as if it were she.

This whole experience was far beyond anything he thought was possible, to find Ichigo and so many interesting things wrapped up along with him was quite surprising. He wondered if he could go back to things as they were before he died, they were so boring compared to that moment.

-------------

"Ichi-ni, don't leave us!"

"You see, that's the problem, I did leave you Karin, yesterday I left you in a period of time four years from now. I came from the future to rewrite it, in the matter of returning; I had forgotten that I had left you two behind. I can't start this whole thing over again without the sisters I loved by my side. Am I supposed to just forget about them, forget about the older forms of you as though they never existed?"

"Kaien, you promised me, guard them always, if you can find a way to soul society, directly or not, tell Rukia I'm sorry, and that I love her."

"Tell Rukia yourself brother, if you don't come back, I won't rest until I tear all of existence apart, in order to find you. Then I'll beat you up for making me get my hands dirty."

"Since I don't want an eternal monkey on my back slapping me, I guess that gives me all the incentive to return."

Kaien laughed at his brother's words, "yeah, we still have so much left to do, brother, don't forget about us."

"Ichigo, are you ready? Repeat after me…" Zangetsu spoke inside his head, in which he repeated the lines just like last time.

"_Zangetsu be my anchor, _

_I the vessel,_

_Shall return to port, _

_Ever connected to the sea, _

_I shall remain… _

_Lest I fail,_

_Return me home,_

_Clenching the treasure,_

_Return me to the sea…"_

Ichigo's eyes glowed white in that instance as Reiatsu began to dance around him as he held Rukia's blade aloft, pointing forward. He began to scream as he gathered as much energy around him as possible. He never thought he'd be going back there, but there was one thing he had left undone.

"_**Art of supremacy: retrace the steps along the crumbling path"**_

"_Yuzu, Karin, wait for me, I'm coming…" _

The storm of reiatsu that cascaded around him enveloped the orange haired boy in a solid white column of energy, which narrowed to a fine point at its tip. A dimensional ripple appeared at the tip of the cone, sending waves of barely visible energy out from its point. It were as though someone turned on a vacuum as the light was siphoned into the dimensional portal like a liquid, materializing Ichigo into itself as it was lifted out of this world.

Ichigo was gone.

Dashing at a speed countless times beyond shunpo, Ichigo raced back to the time he had left, well aware of the fact it might not be there when he arrived.

---------------------

_**A/N: **_Some of you might be thinking that I was going this way from the start; I had Urahara notice the third zanpakuto Ichi was carrying. I didn't plan this, it just happened to fall together.

Thanks for the ideas on Zaraki's shikai; at the moment I'm leaning towards a huge blade like an enormous zanbatou. I'm also thinking of making it a pair of roman spatha blades, attached to an arm shield that increases Kenpachi's reiatsu each time he gets stabbed?

Yes, I take usage of the **sinister-laugh-no-jutsu**, for having made this a short chapter and left you guys screaming no, I want more!


	14. The wings

_Disclaimer: Clorox and Kubo, not CH, own Bleach! _

_**Return of the Moonfang**_

_**XIV **__The wings_

----------------------

"_Zangetsu be my anchor, _

_I the vessel,_

_Shall return to port, _

_Ever connected to the sea, _

_I shall remain… _

_Lest I fail,_

_Return me home,_

_Clenching the treasure,_

_Return me to the sea…"_

_Ichigo's eyes glowed white in that instance as Reiatsu began to dance around him as he held Rukia's blade aloft, pointing forward. He began to scream as he gathered as much energy around him as possible. He never thought he'd be going back there, but there was one thing he had left undone._

"_**Art of supremacy: retrace the steps along the crumbling path"**_

"_Yuzu, Karin, wait for me, I'm coming…" _

_-------------------_

Kurosaki Karin stood atop a broken building; well aware of the fact she was the last shinigami alive in the universe.

Her senses, unlike her peach haired brother, were razor sharp.

Soul society was burning, but she didn't need her senses to obtain that jewel of information, she could see it. The dimensional middle distances had been destroyed; life death and limbo were exposed in a manner best described as disembowelment. Windows in the sky, separated from the air by only minute rippling disruptions, Hueco Mundo and Sereitei were all visible from the living world, and visa versa.

A short time ago, the menos had turned on their arrancar lords, when Aizen was destroyed. As if possessed, the walking skyscrapers fired cero after cero, eviscerating all traces of their leaders, themselves and their world. A few had crossed over to their side; any that were fool enough to approach them were dispatched without mercy. Everything was crimson, rather it be blood, fire or hollow flash.

----------------

Without any care for the feelings of her brother or father, Karin had become a bloodthirsty warrior, much like her older brother. When Isshin died, the side of her that would show a partial smile that could still be kind and friendly passed on with her father.

During the days when Sereitei still existed, Karin had received special training, by Kyoraku-Taicho, due to the fact she had double zanpakuto just like he did. She was also strong enough to slap him around in case he got any perverted ideas, given the fact she had matured rather nicely in his opinion.

Her swords were a pair of scimitars, much like the released blades of her teacher, but her blades were not as elaborate. They were not much more than Nodaichi that had been curved upward like a question mark, but without the downward spiral. They appeared very much like the claws of a falcon.

Karin's blades were known as _**Sandaabaado**_: (legendary-thunderbird, a lightning based zanpakuto.)

Its released form gave Karin a pair of wings, whose feathers were each scimitar blades resembling the initial pair. They were held together by the will of the girl and her swords, giving her flight. Karin could fire blades from the wings in the form of bursts of wind, her reiatsu would then in turn rain lightning upon the places that the blades had cut. Its power was even more intense in a thunderstorm or where water was present. Karin's shikai resembled an Arrancar's zanpakuto release more than anything else, Kyoraku theorized it was Ichigo's Vizard power which may've conflicted with her own reiatsu, but it was really anyone's guess.

No one could take advantage of Kurosaki Karin, or try to harm Yuzu without having to rethink their career choices. Isshin had also formulated it could've been the presence of both himself and Ichigo under one roof that could've attributed to why Karin was so strong. Then again, Yuzu wasn't even affected by it. She could see shinigami and hollows, but that was about the extent of her abilities.

----------------

"Karin-chan", Yuzu screamed as the building they were standing on began to fissure, breaking apart from its base.

"Sandaabaado" Karin screamed, in which her wings appeared, Yuzu instinctively grabbed on to her twin's waist as they ascended into the fractured sky.

'What in the hell had happened?' Karin thought as she watched the massacre unfolding before her eyes, it were as though the world was murdering itself, everything was breaking, rifts began appearing consuming matter veraciously.

Hollows spilled out of their homeland like a surge of crimson ants, feeding on the souls that remained, only to have them severed by the spatial rifts. Holding onto her sister tightly, the dark haired twin soared hoping to find a new perch, one not quite so unstable.

Wherever she attempted from then on crumbled before she could set down. Karin thought at one point she'd have to cross over to Soul society in order to find a building that wasn't ready to collapse. She kept her reiatsu burning as high as she could as a means of signaling out to her brother, in the hope he was searching for them. Even though she knew it was futile.

'Where on earth was Ichi-ni?' Karin worried. Orange head had told her he would come when Aizen had been defeated, but in all of existence, she couldn't sense his reiatsu anymore. They had felt the death of the architect, and then a blinding flash of light erupted from the same place, and Ichigo was gone. From that moment the world began to break.

What had become of their brother, and furthermore what would become of them in a world that was breaking into pieces minute by minute. Her eyes widened as she could see the horizon before her being broken down into spirit molecules, being smoldered away just like a dead hollow.

The sky, the clouds the earth below were burning itself into its final night.

_--------------------------_

A yellow light averted their attention from the vaporizing horizon. A soul had just crossed over from Sereitei and was coming towards them. It was a familiar presence, not one of the most welcome in their opinion, but he was better than having no one left to talk to, even if they were about to die in a short time.

A tall man with long black hair appeared before them, he wore a tattered shinigami uniform, whose white haori had all but been destroyed, it remained not much more than a strand of white here and there, glued into his body on a few open wounds. His pirate styled eye patch was gone, just like the days when he felt the need to hold back.

His hair no longer was pointed, nor had his signature bells. He wore it was down, much like the day he had first met his third seat.

His voice was darker than the growing end of the world. His gravel road tones had sharpened to the sound of stepping on broken glass, due to the fact his throat was almost to the point of him choking on his own blood. He had taken so much damage in the final battles of Sereitei it was a wonder he could still even move around.

"So its you two, where's Ichigo?"

"He's no longer alive Ken-san!"

Zaraki looked stunned, like one of the girls had just punched him in the stomach and he was out of breath.

"Damn, it, if he were here I could get one last fight before the world ends."

"So the world is ending?" Yuzu asked as her voice quaked a little.

Zaraki got a little choked up as he spoke, the sensation of it was difficult due to the extremity his body was in, and he had lost the person he was about to speak of.

"Yachiru said she thought all the reiatsu in the world was being destroyed, she could feel everything slipping away."

Karin and Yuzu noticed the absence of the roseate girl who was normally always affixed to his shoulder. Kenpachi noticed their stares at his Yachiru-free shoulder, and spoke before they could question her absence.

"She was caught by all those damn menos as they started going berserk."

Yuzu started to cry as she had lost yet another close friend. Karin no longer had the ability to cry, so she just hugged her sister until she stopped weeping.

She then noticed the other irregularity; his zanpakuto had assumed a strange shape.

------------------

The lord of Zaraki held an unfamiliar sword, one that was neither his Shikai nor the Bankai he had shown versus his first duel with Grimmjow. When Kenpachi joined the paladin he requested one thing, almost constant duels with Ichigo. Kurosaki would have none of it, but when Ichigo got the former number six to join, he bartered a deal with the hollow that likewise sought out a decent fight.

Number six was quite emaciated in the fact that no matter what he tried, he could not kill Zaraki Kenpachi. Not that Ichigo really wanted Zaraki dead, it was the cost of having him around though, if he happened to die, then there was nothing he could do about it.

His Bankai appeared, by its own will, not from Zaraki's control, his blade was tired of being used by the pointy-headed fool without respect, so she gave him something to respect. It became a foot-long column of a hilt, from which a circular disk held a zanbatou. It wasn't a claw or even a fang in shape, it was a giant kite that was stretched vertically, so that the half, which bore the shortest sides, struck into the hilt while the longer side acted as the cutting surfaces. Everyone was astonished when they saw it, but not as much as Zaraki, the blade had taken the form of the cross guard of his shikai, but stretched from the diamond into the kite shape. The release also contained two arm bound shields.

The shields assumed the same form as the released blade, twin stretched kites, offering him an enormous amount of cutting surface. He could cut with his arms, and then finish with the blade. Oddly enough the shields seemed to act much like the energy absorption ability of his fifth seat's zanpakuto. Nevertheless, it wasn't a reiatsu-based zanpakuto. For every wounding strike inflicted upon its user, his Bankai would give half the energy to Zaraki so that no matter how hard you cut him he would only get stronger. Instinctively, the shields prevented him from loosing limbs by channeling all the obtained power into a barrier protecting an area vulnerable to being severed.

This of course is the only weakness of the Bankai; it does it on its own without his command. So if he wants to be severed in a place in order to gain a holding on a quicker opponent, he has to shift strategies.

The kite blade was not the form in front of the eyes of Karin; it was a long thin knightly blade, a claymore.

Did he steal another zanpakuto? Was his old one destroyed? Given the end of the world was upon them, she should've been thinking about something else, but it was nice to focus not on the fact you were about to be eviscerated.

--------------------

"Ken-san", she spoke grabbing his attention away from the fact Yachiru wasn't around.

"What sword is that, its not your huge Bankai so what could it be?"

"This bitch just loves to surprise me," he laughed for a moment, as Karin should've been appalled at his use of language in front of two innocent girls, or at least one innocent girl. If it were Isshin, he would've been knocked across the room by then, missing a few teeth.

"_**Zakkuri-taikou-saiki" **__(Cutting empress of restoration) _"is the final release of my zanpakuto, and when Yachiru died I kind of lost control and took a vast amount of damage, more than I've ever taken in one sitting. It seems when the empress here yields more energy than I can safely hold onto: it changes shape. I was restricted by having to use that huge sword when so many menos were upon me, so it altered itself in a final form, which is this thin blade. Much like my shikai, this blade allows me to use the full power the Bankai gives me, in addition it increases my speed much like the sword of orange boy."

"Within minutes there were no more menos to speak of in soul society. Nor was there a soul society to speak of."

"That reminds me Kurosaki-Karin, we've never fought before, I've heard you're quite strong for a little girl, want to give it a go before we die?"

------------------

Karin looked over to Yuzu, who sighed real warily, but not before motioning with her hands for her sister to go on with it.

Karin smiled as she cracked her knuckles.

"Old man, you may have Bankai, but you've also got a foot in the grave, and I'm at full power", she roared as her wings rose and expanded to show their true anarchy.

Zaraki watched in awe as twin wings of waves and waves of blade like feathers were exposed to him, he salivated at the thought of being cut by them. Karin appeared to him like a winged goddess of death.

"Had you only been a few years older, Karin-chan we could've gotten along quite nicely,"

"Don't flatter yourself, I only go for real men!" She trumpeted as she pulled back her wings, which pushed a dozen cutlasses like missiles out of their formations.

She watched in utter surprise as Kenpachi stood there as she unleashed a volley of sabers. He danced around the blades that would've struck critical areas but allowed him to be stabbed in the legs, shoulders and one of his arms. In this form, his sword didn't have the shielding ability; it was all-offensive.

"Hiraishin!" (Lightning rods) Karin's high pitched voice echoed into the distance as her winged blades spread as the reiatsu supporting them channeled into numerous lightning bolts. The bolts struck Kenpachi on each of the lightning rods attached to him, burning him alive.

In all of the excitement, he started to laugh maniacally. A sound, which chilled Karin to her bones, it was demonic, as if he had enjoyed the process of being fried by her lightning.

Due to Ichigo's presence, Karin had never faced a captain level warrior before, but even one as nearly destroyed as Kenpachi shouldn't have survived that.

"Was that it? I've never been hit by lightning before; of all the elements I've never felt I was hoping that would've been the one to finish me. Oh well, I guess its my turn little lady", Zaraki grumbled as he shifted in and out of sight.

'Where the hell did he go?' Karin thought as she instinctively shifted her wings inward to protect her.

------------------------

The orange haired fool grew more and more nervous the longer and longer his journey lasted, until he was a wreck. His mind was incapable of ascertaining the exact moment he had left, but it was clear the world he had departed from wouldn't be partially stable for much longer.

The remnants of his old reality were melting away quickly out of spite having sensed his return. Time appeared as a tunnel of flashes of light, moments having passed by, ages long gone, everything just a mass of images. Ichigo could see the smoldering horizon as he approached the last stop of the subway of future events.

The light column transporting him ceased into the world he had left behind, more than half of it had been vaporized, had he waited much longer there might not have been a here to return to.

He locked on to Karin's reiatsu, which had spiked for some reason; another massive power was nearby…she was fighting someone!

Worry and despair melted away as Ichigo regained his drive. Thrusting Sode forward, he dove into the heart of her battle, appearing right before Karin, white blade raised in a defensive stance.

------------------

Kenpachi didn't even see the white blade appear, nor did he feel the presence, he too had just dived forward executing a direct cut. His claymore was stopped by a pure white katana. Then he saw it, the orange hair.

Karin and Yuzu saw the orange hair before they even felt his presence; it was so subdued that they didn't even notice his approach.

"Ichi-ni, Oni-chan!" the twins spoke as the younger started to cry again, this time out of happiness. Karin's eyes grew moistened, she hadn't cried since her mother died, yet in that moment with him there, she couldn't hold back.

"Ichi-ni", she screamed as she leapt unto his back, weeping into his clothes. Her loss of control phased her zanpakuto back to its normal pair of twin blades.

Yuzu couldn't believe the sight that lay out before her, Karin never cried, so what was this? She dried her eyes and hugged her twin sister, returning the favor she was never able to give.

---------------

"Ichigo?" Kenpachi started laughing again in that his final wish had been granted, his former commander had come back from the death for one last hurrah".

"Kenpachi, if you care to explain yourself, I might take you back to the past with me, or I could just leave you here." His brazenness had returned, or rather he forced it to, the soft Kurosaki Ichigo of the past couldn't speak to Ken without enduring some wrath.

Karin released herself from his duly tear soaked back while she wiped her eyes, hoping to hear those words again.

Without exposing his rear to the only captain remaining, Ichigo spoke to his sisters.

"Yuzu, Karin, words cannot explain how sorry I am for having left you, the king offered me the chance to go back and rewrite everything. I should've remembered you were still here; I didn't until just a moment ago. If you want to come back, you'll merge with your younger selves, but you'll retain full knowledge and abilities."

Karin teary-eyed once again hauled off and hit Ichigo in the back, sending him spiraling forward. Ken-chan stepped aside as he went flying into and through a tattered skyscraper. Even though the girl's attacks had done almost nothing to him, he had a newfound respect for the strongest girl of his clan.

"Now that you've been punished for your grievous actions, we can go, but just one thing, why do you have Rukia's zanpakuto?"

"Yeah, Kurosaki, that is a rather girly sword!"

"Shut up you all, there isn't time for this!"

They grew tightlipped as Ichigo grabbed on to Karin's hand and motioned Yuzu to hold on to his shoulders.

Kenpachi was feeling a little left out when Ichigo regarded him, with a question.

"Do you promise not to get into any fights until I return to Sereitei, Ken-chan?"

The ground beneath their feet began to shift and shudder, it was almost over, the burning horizon was less than a mile away, and everything around them was being disturbed by the absences of the grounds nearby.

Kenpachi realized the gravity of the situation and as he latched his free hand onto Ichi's shoulder he muttered "yeah sure…"

Ichigo's legs burned as he leapt with so much weight as the ground collapsed. They began to fall down towards the emptiness of a world destroyed as Karin asked him if they needed he needed her wings, but he shrugged it off by screaming for the old man,

"_Zangetsu: _

_Anchor recall, _

_The vessel, _

_To the sea..._

_**Return to the restarted existence**__!"_

The four of them ceased to be physical in a world that was no longer such. Like the proverbial tomb raider, the four of them dashed out of sight while a boulder the size of an exploding world was right on their coattails. The column of light enveloped all of them as they returned to the stream and back to the sea…

-------------------

_Kaien watched as the storm of reiatsu that cascaded around Ichigo enveloped the orange haired boy in a solid white column of energy, which narrowed to a fine point at its tip. A dimensional ripple appeared at the tip of the cone, sending waves of barely visible energy out from its point. It were as though someone turned on a vacuum as the light was siphoned into the dimensional portal like a liquid, materializing Ichigo into itself as it was lifted out of this world._

In not much more than the span of time absent from a blink of his eyes, the light returned this time like a wave crashing upon the shore in its exhaustion. Four figures were left behind in its wake.

The older forms of his sisters looked once more at their brother before dissolving into the occupation of their younger selves. It wasn't like a possession; it was like waking up from a coma for both of the girls as they initially complained about being so young again. Instinctively they leapt onto Isshin, uncaring about the knowledge he had for some reason been incarcerated.

Karin noticed the other dark haired Ichigo and speaking more like her older self didn't hold back on the language, "Who the hell are you?"

Kaien laughed as he sighed "ah, this again!"

Kenpachi was the last to return to his earlier form, in which Ichigo turned before he dissolved, looking him straight in the eye…

"You promised Zaraki, hold back until I get there, and by no means are you to go after the three, you may be twice as strong in this time, but things must proceed carefully. Perhaps seeing Yachiru again will remind you to remain hidden for the time being!"

The eleventh captain muttered he understood and would abide by the rules of the paladin commander. "If you don't hurry up and come, I don't know how long I'll be able to hold it in!" he snickered as he vanished from sight.

"Oh no," Ichigo thought, "I might've made a horrible mistake."

His legs had grown rather wobbly at this point, making him realize he had understandably reached his limit, and didn't go without a parting word "Now if you all don't mind, I'm taking this elevator to the basement…" his legs collapsed out from under him and he fell forward striking the ground.

Karin ran over to him, only to notice he was out cold asleep. When she realized it, Karin kicked him, which yielded no response.

"Baka, that was for making us wait, and worry. It's good to be home though, thank you Ichi-ni!"

--------------------------

Zaraki Kenpachi stopped cold in the middle of a clear day in Soul society. The merging with his old self had gone rather painless, and an all-encompassing shit-eating grin had come across his lips. Once again he started laughing maniacally, in a sinister manner that would make Mayuuri green with envy.

'My full power is with me, and what's this, I can sense reiatsu too, interesting, interesting, alright Ichigo, I'll hold out, but I cannot guarantee how long…"

Laughter could be heard for miles, but it sounded just like an ill wind…

-------------------------

_**A/N: **_I officially reclaim my title as king of update speed! I wrote this and the latter half of thirteen in one day! I wasn't expecting to write this or I would've left the two connected.

I realize my mistake about Zaraki's Shikai, so what did you think of his Bankai? And what of the Zanpakuto of Karin. I'm unsure if she'll be apart of the new paladin at this point, she may remain behind as a guard only to pop up later on.

I'm not a real good artist, so I'd be honored if someone could draw me a picture of zakkuri for my profile page. If you need further hints I can give them!


	15. Kenpachi in the caribbean

_**Return of the Moonfang**_

_**XV **__Kenpachi in the Caribbean _

--------------------

_Zaraki Kenpachi stopped cold in the middle of a clear day in Soul society. The merging with his old self had gone rather painless, and an all-encompassing shit-eating grin had come across his lips. Once again he started laughing maniacally, in a sinister manner that would make Mayuuri green with envy. _

'_My full power is with me, and what's this, I can sense reiatsu, interesting, interesting, alright Ichigo, I'll hold out, but I cannot guarantee how long…"_

_Laughter could be heard for miles, but it sounded just like an ill wind…_

_-----------------------_

In assuming a younger form, the eleventh captain had just become like Ichigo. He was an older wiser, far stronger warrior in a far less than weathered body. Naturally such a worn vessel would have resulted from said strength and wisdom. Sadly, he noticed that his eye patch was missing. Zaraki had lost it back in the original soul society, and while his aura wasn't leaking like the sprinkler that citrus boy used to be, he could still denote the possibility of it climbing in response to others, he needed a new patch, and this one capable of suppressing a lot more of himself. The bells were still present, something he was very glad had not disappeared during the transfer.

He was a little disappointed in the absence of the patch, not because he had to go see the twelfth division. From where that direction would take him, Kenpachi knew it would be along time before he could taunt Byakuya like he originally wanted to.

Standing atop a tiled roof he regained his bearings, realizing he was just out side twelve, and with a simple exertion flashed out of sight. Kenpachi stopped out of the blue, realizing not a soul in this timeline knew of his ability to use shunpo, and he wished to keep it another advantage over others. From there he was only a stones throw, so he ran at top speed.

Still appearing as something close to flash step, the eleventh captain appeared before the sign whose lower charm resembled the caterpillar like Bankai of its captain.

----------------

Entering the central command center, Zaraki found the room to be dark and quiet for the most part aside from the bantering of those inside. A rather tall man with dark black hair and three spikes in his forehead turned to regard the eleventh captain, who looked rather conspicuous without his eye patch. Furthermore, even though his power was suppressed, from what he could discern, his power level had taken a jump in height, though what level it had actually reached was not attainable.

"Zaraki-Taicho? Looks like you need a new eye patch." 

"Yeah Akon, but I need one with some special modifications." The captain motioned the horned man away from the others; he wanted secrecy in this matter.

Walking outside and into an adjacent room, the two began to converse.

"As you might've noticed, my strength has increased. I need a patch that can suppress more of it, I'd say somewhere around eighty percent."

Akon's eyes bulged which was a normally uncharacteristic thing of him, when surprised he could show a glassy stare but not at the sight of Zaraki wanting so much suppressed, at his power level increased that much?

Akon was the man to go to when a shinigami needed something custom created, Zaraki's eye patch and the bells which could be affixed to his hair points, or even molars if they were lost in combat like Ikkaku was known to lose quite frequently. He for the most part knew how to keep quiet about certain things unlike the rest of his chatty-Kathy division. With the proper lubrication, the horned department head could keep the others quiet.

"I want you to keep quiet about this Akon, and I don't mean like Kuchiki-Byakuya losing to those children kind of quiet!"

Akon was not without the ability to reason why Zaraki would want this quiet; it could be another advantage of his, with him being viewed as one of the weaker captains, in that he was without Bankai.

"Alright, but it'll cost you something extra…"

"The usual?"

"Something rarer."

"Is my gigai ready?"

"Always."

"I'm going to human world, location: the Caribbean, I've been meaning to go see those lousy bums who've been shorting my subordinates. If clown face says anything about it…"

A sinister shrill of a laugh came from behind the door as it slid open revealing the monstrosity in all his glory. Akon instantly bowed, and Zaraki sighed.

"For that little remark it's going to cost you extra Zaraki!"

"How bout an entire case of your usual?"

The captain's face lit up and he tapped his fingers together, turning to leave.

"Why did I come into this room, its apparently empty, nothing going on here in the slightest." he walked out of the room with a smile welded on his face.

"Yachiru knows I've gone to see Byakuya, send her a message that I've gone to Kusajishi, to do some gambling. She's under the watch of my third and fifth seat, probably incapacitated from candy by now."

Akon nodded as the two left the room.

-------------------

Said pink haired vice captain was far from being incapacitated by any rate. Having downed a trash bag worth of candy she was naturally a bit hyper. It were as though she were a ball that was not affected by the weight of gravity, she bounced and bounced all over Sereitei, with the third and fifth seat struggling to keep up with her.

"Do still think giving her that much was a good idea Ikkaku?"

"Shut up, we have to find her, if she causes any trouble, then we are dead!"

"Hai…"

The two shinigami vanished into sight, barely on the coattails of their Fuka-Taicho.

-------------------

A lone shinigami stood amongst the tourist filled walkway of an island town. A spectacle by any means, not withstanding the fact he wasn't in his hakuma and kimono. Standing at well over six foot, he towered over most of the local residents and a good deal of the visitors.

His appearance had been altered to not give away any kind of information as to whom he truly was, if by some chance another death god happened to be nearby. There was at least one shinigami, who watched over this island, but he was on the furthest side, and hadn't noticed him yet, or even cared to notice in that regard, he too had been properly lubricated.

His hair was braided like the captain of the fourth division, yet it was reversed, and likewise reversed in color, pure blond. Gone was the tattered haori, and in its place was a shirt that the eighth captain would've most likely chosen had he come to this place as well. It wasn't pink, but white flowers set against an azure sky. Its floral arrangement would've come across as beautiful to the pretty boy fifth seat of his division, if said captain actually gave a damn about that weirdo's opinion. He was furthermore adorned in a pair of khaki shorts, which stopped just below the kneecap, which was an irregularity on his part, he wasn't used to the feeling of wind against his bare legs. He was still one eyed, but the patch crossing the sight of his right eye was just another attempt at the act of pretending to be a pirate. Numerous children danced around him with fake swords and eye patches assuming imaginary battles of pirates.

There was one reason and one reason only why Zaraki Kenpachi would ever be found on Grand Cayman. He was a pirate!

---------------------

One day it had occurred to the eleventh captain that he was rather sick of always drinking sake. The rice wine made by the locals each had their own distinct charms vs. those made by the shinigami. Zaraki and the rest of his division were connoisseurs of anything alcoholic, and after countless years had pretty much drained the seas of anything liquor oriented. They had become tired of only drinking the rice wine, regardless of whatever spices that were placed in it, or whatever additive was added during its construction, they were bored. A bored alcoholic is the worst kind of sort; it always leads to troublesome situations as said connoisseur tries to expand their horizons.

Initially they tried making moonshine, but for some reason couldn't get past the part of not having their stills explode. While making bootleg liquor products weren't illegal in Sereitei, blowing up pieces of it naturally would be.

One of their division had returned from a mission from a region of teal sea islands that were a haven for all sorts of liquor products, made out of something called barley. Zaraki had once tried a bottle of whiskey and was hooked.

Therefore he began a secret corps within his division, the pirates. They used the roman western word pirate instead of their own which would've been Wokou. The pirate corps journeyed to the island regions of the teal waters on the guise of vacations for some but operating mostly on illegal runs. This of course was made available due to properly greasing some of the twelfth division officials, including their captain whose tastes included many of the special reserve bourbons and whiskies.

The demon corps who controlled the sekaimon gates were furthermore compensated for their time and apparent lack of attention in this situation.

Initially the eleventh division stole all the liquor they could carry, which due to the help of the twelfth, was quite a lot. They created dimensional pouches, which while being the size of a backpack could carry an entire pallet full of liquor.

Aramaki had been 'stationed' in Cayman due to the further greasing of some of the 46 senators. Maki was given a gigai, which altered his appearance as well. It also translated his language to reflect local dialects. With this, he was able to infiltrate a local smuggling cartel as an outside distributor.

The disappearance of so much liquor initially had almost exposed the whole pirate operation. Nevertheless, obtaining liquor products in the islands were free from taxes and restrictive overcharges. Using the shinigami gold currency, Maki had begun a system of bartering. Throughout a given month, as many as five shinigami would come to him and deliver their gold which he would in turn get exchanged for currency. They were careful to use nondescript gold, which bore no lettering or any means of identification. At set locations within the island and its neighboring islands, the shinigami would come and collect numerous bags full of liquor.

It was in turn taken back to the eleventh division warehouse, which was said to contain thousands of various bottled alcohol products.

By word of mouth, their business had spread throughout all but the most respectable divisions.

It wasn't necessarily about the money, just the love of finding new ways to get plastered.

Zaraki had a few customers within the captain ranks, twelve obviously, and eight and thirteen whenever he was well enough. Three and nine visited from time to time but only with excuse to get something for Aizen, which struck them in a brown-noser kind of way. They paid so there was no questions asked, no rumors spread. In regards to the twelfth division, most of the time the place was a flowing river of liquor.

------------------

Zaraki hated heat of the islands. Not having been there more than two minutes he was already ringing wet with perspiration. To be walking idly in such a crowd that wasn't an army of fighting warriors was the same as being dead. The sound of laughter and smiling faces should've been replaced by cries of anguish between two warriors fighting to the death. He loathed the reality that humans were forced into.

Those who rose up and tried to test themselves were labeled as mass murderers and imprisoned. Fighting was almost erased in its purest forms, remaining as 'ultimate fighting or boxing', where competitors dueled in meaningless squabbles where neither warrior died or even came close to it. The human world was a scripted existence, and he wept for the souls like himself who were so restricted.

He walked with his right hand where his sword would've been had he not had it transformed into a cane. They had said that Kisuke had developed the technique to turn a sword into a walking stick for concealment purposes. It worked quite well in that regard.

-------------------

"Oh shit!" Aramaki exclaimed as he realized the presence of doom he was feeling wasn't metaphorical but the actual presence of his captain. The source of the pirate corps booty had deteriorated severely and he had yet to inform his superior of the extent of it.

He wondered if he could act as though he had just found out. He prayed he could, as he dashed off into the horizon, expecting to find the blond giant gigai.

----------------

"Yo Aramaki" He observed the subordinate who was likewise dressed in a flowered shirt and short pants, his gigai had pretty good tan, due to his flagrant disregard for the job of a shinigami. But in a place like Cayman, who could really stop themselves from wanting to lie on the beaches or do something on the water? The liquor here was cheap and it flowed through him by his apparent wobbly stature.

"Zaraki-Taicho" he spoke with his voice muffled by him as he had attained a bowing state.

"I've come to see our friends, I've heard they've been giving you trouble."

"Zaraki-Taicho, yes, our friends are being less cooperative. They say the government has noticed the large amount of money added to their organization and large amounts of liquor having just disappeared. Naturally they can add, but they often times require a kickback, for not noticing. This in turn has raised our prices, it's getting out of hand, the same amount of money last month could've bought a pallet, now it buys half of that."

Zaraki grimaced, 'so it's already becoming like Jamaica, why are these damn people so greedy!' They had originally set up operations in Kingston but while they operated cheaply to the tourists, if anyone tried to set up a liquor piracy within their island, they became less than friendly.

What was wrong with people; Zaraki was a person of an honorable position operating dubiously, but why did that give others the right to rip his head off for engaging in extracurricular activities. It wasn't like they could tell anyone, so they were exempt from being blackmailed, and when the deliveries were made, the pallets just vanished into thin air. Being the drunks they are, who would believe such a tale.

"Then I guess I'll just have to remind them of the nature of our agreement."

Zaraki smacked his cane holding fist into the palm of his hand, releasing a little reiatsu. The tourists around them noted the chill of a strange presence but couldn't see or make any sense of it.

"Let's go!"

"Hai, Zaraki-Taicho!"

The two shinigami in disguise walked into a darkened alleyway before dashing off into the horizon. Having left the capital city, their destination lie in a warehouse just outside the seven-mile beach.

A chain length fence met them at the entrance to the compound; there were no tourists in this area, and fewer police. Sliding back the gate, Zaraki informed his somewhat stammering subordinate to remain.

The sounds of footsteps and the gentle tap of the cane alerted the company of his arrival. A handful of people began to usher outside into the open courtyard, a mixture of white and dark skinned men, surrounding a slightly larger man sporting a black beard, which Zaraki had dubbed him by such a descriptive feature. He had also learned of its historical reference, and being a great pirate he considered it an honor to be doing business with such a name. He spoke in a manner of tone that was referred to as Rastafarian.

"Black-beard?"

"Mr. Z, you are not welcome here." this was the signaling command to all of his subordinates, as a dozen more lackeys flooded the courtyard, each brandishing a handgun.

Zaraki could appreciate the tactic his associate was using; he had to stop himself from licking his lips in excitement, even though he knew it was premature and utterly wasted on such a weak lot such as this.

"As much as I would cherish the opportunity of fighting all of you, I wish to learn the reason why you've changed our agreement?"

A second voice came from behind the black bearded man, who turned surprisingly not that he didn't know of the presence behind him but that said person would actually speak to a commoner was astonishing.

"I was concerned that someone in soul society had gotten wind of our operation."

Zaraki's exposed eye widened as he had just said soul society. The voice was serious yet its tones hinted a bit of familiarity when used in more comical senses. The dialect was Japanese, and furthermore sounded like the tone of the third captain, but he wouldn't be there.

"It occurred to me that even though we were able to use you, the likelihood of you discovering us was too great to be left alone. Eliminate him!" the voice commanded in which a glorious spectacle of flashing lights ushered forth a horizontal rain of spiraling metal projectiles. A charging army of metal collided with the standing figure, which didn't even move yet to shift his lips into a smile.

The still cloaked figure watched in dismay, as their target hadn't fallen, he was standing still and smiling as the entire lot had emptied an entire clip into him apiece. Even more so when the man started to laugh sinisterly.

"So that's what its like getting shot" he cracked his knuckles and his neck as he continued to laugh. "I'm disappointed by its lack of killing power though, not much more than an equal number of archers could've done, how sad."

His voice ceased when a shotgun barrel was placed upon the flat surface of his back, then it was fired.

Scarlet splayed out into the room as his back and chest had suddenly become a colander, a dark skinned man stood behind him with a smoldering barrel of a twelve gauge shotgun. Zaraki had fallen to the floor having never taken so much damage in one direct manner.

In an Rastafarian tone, the man laughed, "hows that for killin power bitch!"

It was as though battle station alarms were going off within the room, as Zaraki suddenly rose up as if he were a rising ballistic missile hatch. It wasn't the gigai that rose, it was a black figure in a white haori, connected to the then empty shell by chains of white reiatsu. His cane instantly materialized into his Nodaichi, and without even a breath, severed the head that dared to shoot him in the back.

The shadowy figure gasped, as he instantly knew that warrior just as clear as if someone had told him it wasn't raining outside or that the sky was azure.

The man had known it was the eleventh division that had entered into an agreement with his lackeys, mainly on his behalf to act as a messaging service. His kind hated shinigami, and had so little contact with them that when they had heard of the piracy arrangement, they couldn't help but use them. Never had the eleventh captain come to call, it was always one of the upper seats above five and sometimes including five.

"What the hell are you doing here, Zaraki Kenpachi?"

"Oh, you know of me, that's interesting, black-beard, stop hiding that man so I can find out just who the hell thinks they can play around with me."

A silhouette of a man came into view, hair split and held firm like a cape wrapping around seventy percent of his head leaving just the face revealed. His attire was nondescript, nothing more than normal human pants and a button up shirt. Nothing out of the ordinary, so how did he know of Kenpachi and likewise soul society?

A pointed face came into view with an enormous toothy grin plastered on it, almost like the twelfth captain but in human form with yellow hair, not blue.

"Hirako! What the fuck are the Vizards doing here?" Zaraki let slip at the sight of the apparent Vizard leader having revealed himself. He didn't intend to blurt that out in such a manner, the sight of the hollow shinigami hybrid was astonishing, but the he of this period should not have known him or of the Vizards, he fucked up big time.

"You likewise seem to know of me and my kind, how strange."

"You said you've been using my efforts to your advantage, what sort of ends have I been taking you to." Zaraki's mind was firing off quick answers in the hope that he could lead Hirako away from the fact of how he knew them.

The irony of his own spoken words became evident the moment he spoke them, 'where had I been taking him…taking his words…messages! They had given shinigami messages hidden on the inside of wrappers, but how could they have taken the chance the bottles might end up to their respective intended recipient?'

"So I've been your message boy, I am curious as to how you planned the recovery of said bottles, and if even your message had been intercepted on my end entirely?"

'Three nine and five were capable of outmaneuvering you old fool! I am surprised though, Zaraki Kenpachi is not known for being this intuitive, and our lines of communication with the white fortress have been severed. Something vastly irregular is going on here, but for the life of me, I can't uncover it. Perhaps a more direct approach might lead me to some answers, though regarding this source, I doubt it,' Hirako reasoned.

"Soul society has obtained our will, even though an interloper has masqueraded as one of us only to form a wall of distrust between ourselves and our allies."

'One masquerading as a Vizard…Ichigo!'

It came back to him then, what he had seen in that cave, there was another Ichigo… from what he remembered, Kurosaki Ichigo was said to resemble the dead vice captain of the final division. Ichigo must have crossed over to Hueco Mundo; it was the only reason why the second Ichigo would've been there.

'An Ichigo of my time would've gone after the initial espada within Las Noches!' It was the same sort of action he would've done, had he thought of it earlier? The challenge of fighting against vastolords made him quiver with delight. But since when had the Vizards been a part of this… 'Aizen, they were allied to Aizen!'

"So you are allied with Aizen-kun, how ironic, his white fortress must've been obliterated by the only man I dare to bow to."

The smile vanished, as Hirako was stunned at the impossibility of receiving such an answer from Zaraki Kenpachi.

He was unable to render a response as the pointed haired captain had vanished from sight, appearing behind Hirako, his blade having left its mark on the once grinning fool. Scarlet screamed from the back of the Vizard as he collapsed, the metal extension of the captain traveled from his backside lower all the way to his shoulders.

It wasn't a killing strike, but a warning. To Hirako as he fell in pain he realized the distances between their powers had reversed or almost become equal. Zaraki Kenpachi couldn't have stood against him in the hollow form, so in order not to show too much of himself, and blow such a cover, the captain had temporarily disabled the Vizard.

Zaraki sheathed his zanpakuto, and calmly walked over to the gigai, returning himself into it.

Dusting himself off, Zaraki picked up his bag knowing full well of the hell that he'd have to pay coming back empty handed. His selfish desires of concealing his power were irrelevant at the moment; he had to tell Ichigo of this. The balance of power had shifted, a quarter of the original paladin were apart of the enemy's will.

After swiping several choice bottles and cases, Zaraki stepped over Hirako who grimaced as he did.

"I'll let you know one thing Hirako, you are not a Vizard! You are a mask wearing schmuck compared to the Vizard I follow. When he learns of your betrayal, he might even hunt you down first, before he goes after your allies. Watch where you step, you might find a fight too great for even your little band of merry masked men!"

Zaraki Kenpachi strolled out the door and back to soul society via heaven gates, which appeared right before him.

Hirako was left with the worlds largest 'what the hell just happened' look drawn on his face. He rolled over onto his wounded back, no longer acting as if he had actually been hurt.

"So, you saw it all didn't you?"

A barrier of concealment vanished at a finger's snap, revealing the full lot of the Vizard Company.

"Should we tell Aizen-sama?" The large man asked of their leader.

"Things have become a little more troublesome than we like Shinji, shouldn't we just sit this one out and let the two sides quarrel and then side with or crush the winner?" Hiyori laughed.

"No, Aizen, would kill us if we broke our pact over something so small as this."

--------------------------------

Appearing within the inner walkway of the sekaimon gate, the eleventh captain dashed over to the twelfth division.

Akon met him in the command center, holding a new patch.

Kenpachi threw down the gigai and the bag, catching everyone's attention as being rather strange.

"Thanks" he said as he placed the new patch over his right eye, noticing the decreasing of his physical power, greatly.

"You remember our deal, not a word about this, and I have another request, order a sekaimon gate to be opened…location: Karakura town."

"You want to go there, now?"

"There's enough in that bag to cover it all, no questions no rumors or you guys will never see a drop of what's in that bag, I'll get it all back one way or another!"

"As you wish, Pirate-Taicho".

"It would seem those days are over for now, until new branches can be constructed, so cherish that rum, and make sure your captain and the gate guards get their share, the rest is yours!"

Zaraki continued not even ceasing his running, if time was on his side, he could alert Ichigo and be back in a few minutes. Dashing through yet another gate, Zaraki descended upon mortal world again…

------------------------

Deep within the bowls of the Urahara shop, numerous paladin were training themselves, while their leader lie incapacitate upstairs having slept the better part of a day…

_A man walks down a suspended walkway. Adorned in an alabaster haori, of top rank he is, but to the guards he is unrecognized. He wears the mantle of the third division, yet he is not the smiling snake. He would rather be dead than wear that haori, it was rank with dishonor. The vermin he had purged from existence no less than an hour prior. He wore it more as a badge of honor, a means of legitimizing his occupation of heaven if the situation deteriorated to politics. Not that he would let it come to that in either case, it was always nice to have a hidden ace._

_He walks with a subordinate, who is not the split haired blond that was the lieutenant of that division. Black hair, with teal eyes his face is sullen, but mainly for dramatic effect, inside he was screaming out with happiness. His captain was of a similar mind, being so close to his secondary objective, which for all intents and purposes was his primary. _

_To the guards, he is assumed to be intruder, they try to move, but are held in place by reiatsu. Respectfully they bow even though they have little choice in the matter. Gravity works against them as the cloaked figure reaches out for the key, of which he is surprised he doesn't have to hammer out of them as one nobly offers it. _

_Out of honor, the cloaked figure releases the guard from the experience of noticing the reiatsu, by knocking him out. Swiftly and unrelenting he disables the other guard, without using so much as a push of his hand, he had once felled three vice captains in this manner, tower guards were nothing. _

_Sliding in the key he pulls back the door that had once been opened by the brother of his subordinate. Said brother had to stand face to face with the very person that had killed the very person that was standing alive that day._

_Into the emptiness of the tower he speaks her name, in which he finds her turning to see his orange hair. For the moment she sees only him and not the subordinate who strikingly resembles him._

_He said he would come at any cost, that he would move time if it meant for him to see her again. He would rip through heaven with only his fingers, he would tear through hell with only his heart. _

_He did come at the greatest of costs; he sacrificed the future to see her face again. He tore through heaven with nothing more than a black finger. He tore through the white hell with nothing more than the will of his heart. _

_He threw aside the white haori, tossing it out the doorway and into the wind. _

_He walked up to the her he's always known, who still can't even speak his name, she knew he would come, but time had forced her to doubt. _

_It was irrelevant, as her brother had so callously coined. _

_The same could be applied in this instance, yet his love was an expanse of sea, a sky full of stars and countless shining days. She was his water, his twinkling lights, and his glowing star. _

_The girl had no idea how much he truly loved her, how much he had sacrificed for her, so much he had to do in her name, so much he had carried, so much pain. _

_What she would never understand, was that just the sight of her standing there, everything that had been before that moment; did not exist. _

_There was no hesitation this time, no weight of the world opposing his body from acting, everything had been tossed aside, and been shown its lack of relevance…' _

---------------------

Zaraki had already entered the shop, having knocked down the children and the rather burly bouncer. A man wearing a black haori and geta sandals stopped him. The blond haired man stared up at the white haori wearing captain in complete dismay. The pointed haired captain was the eleventh division captain, and it astonished Kisuke that the rumors of him being so bloodthirsty to want take on the one who had humbled Byakuya were directly accurate!

Reiatsu thundered from the black-coated man…

"Cute, Kisuke, but I don't have time to fuck with you, I need to see Ichigo now! I have some information he'll require if he is to attempt a heavenly trek sometime in the future."

"You know?"

"You idiot that was me on his shoulder when he returned with his sisters, or were you not capable of noticing that?"

"You're also from the future…he's this way…" Kisuke led the captain around the corner to the room where the initial traveler lie sleeping still.

----------------------

'_It was only him and her, _

_Ichigo and Rukia.' _

_He couldn't describe the look in her eyes, it held orbit between heaven and hell, heaven she couldn't believe he had come, and hell she couldn't believe she had doubted he would come. _

_Nevertheless, as he had reasoned, he didn't care what orbit her mind held, because he was in her pull of gravity, and he was sliding closer and closer to collision. _

_He was covered by a chill he hadn't known the first time around, his mind couldn't escape the fact he was here at the tower with her again. _

_Seconds from truly being one, he felt he had to say something, his chest was on fire with a conflagration that could've burned all of soul society, he had to release some of its warmth, in a place which drained all power, and warmth from its victims. _

"_Why are you so surprised, I told you I would come. I didn't come alone; all of our friends are here, new and old. Ishida, Inoue, Tatsuki, Chado, my father, Urahara, my sister Karin, and my brother Kaien…" _

----------------

A swift stab to the arm broke Ichigo from the heavenly dream he had been completely immersed in. instinctively his hand shifted to zangetsu who raced up to strike against the blade which had poked him not so politely. Yawning he opened his eyes widely to find Zaraki Kenpachi hovering over him.

"Ahh" he screamed clambering to the adjacent wall, thinking it was another dream.

"Zaraki you bastard, what the hell are you doing here?"

"The Vizards are allied with Aizen! Hirako told me himself."

Ichigo came back to reality, remembering his thoughts when dealing with Arleri, he had forgotten about the neutrality agreement the Vizard and arrancar had struck up.

"How?"

"My extracurricular activities, it seems they were spreading messages into Sereitei that the blind snake were intercepting."

'Blind snake: Tousen and Gin'

"I crushed him a little bit, and warned him not to mess with the strongest of the Vizards, he's probably quaking in his little boots since I warned him you'd be likely to come after his lot before dealing with their allies."

Ichigo was fuming, he had told Kenpachi not to engage the three by any means, but from what he could discern there was no dishonesty in the captain's voice, and it was an accidental meeting.

"Did you say anything that could trace back to me? Does anyone know you're here now?"

"The tech division, they've been lubricated of course."

"Thanks Zaraki, I don't really care about the Vizard at this point, I'll crush them afterwards. If they stand up, I'll stamp them out of existence."

"That's the man I came to see! Which reminds me, we still haven't discussed my cost."

"Heh, I figured this was coming, you can't fight me."

"I wasn't referring to you, I want to fight him. The one who isn't five three or nine."

Ichigo's eyes flashed to the reference, and while it wasn't in his plans, it wasn't a bad idea to keep that person distracted.

"Very well, Zaraki Kenpachi, I rename you Paladin Vice Commander." Kenpachi bowed before Ichigo, which Kisuke happened to glimpse at, for someone like Zaraki to kneel before Ichigo, he was truly the real deal, which meant in a short time he would be dead. Kisuke's eyes narrowed as Ichigo slid something within the captain's kimono, an envelope of some kind. The captain was completely unaware of the transaction though, and rose as Ichigo had knighted him. Vanishing before any detection of eavesdropping could be made, Kisuke escorted the eleventh captain to the door.

Ichigo could only laugh at that smiling bastard Hirako, and unlike his disregard for Kisuke, he didn't really want to kill someone he considered a friend.

------------

In a short time, Kenpachi had returned only to find an irritated Sereitei waiting for him; Yachiru had gone wild again on just a candy buzz and terrorized many of the captains. She had stolen the white scarf of Byakuya and dyed it pink. Using said can of paint, she drew smiley faces on numerous walls and numerous subordinates of the other divisions. Everywhere she saw a divisions numbered symbol, she altered it to show eleven. Half of Sereitei had been claimed as eleventh division property before the night was over.

Oh there would be hell to pay in the morning, but Zaraki Kenpachi didn't care, his pirate days might've been suspended, but he had been given something more valuable than any amount of liquor, the chance to fight someone he had wanted to fight against forever. Sitting back with Yachiru wearing the pink scarf, his sinister laugh filled the air again like an ill winded hurricane.

----------------

A black butterfly appeared in Rukongai, materializing into a pale-faced boy with dark hair. Wearing pure white, his dark emerald eyes were a contrast of colors between the newspaper like appearance his corresponding hues allowed. He wasn't one to laugh even in this case; heaven had given him the chance to serve his master even though a soul slayer had killed him.

"Shinigami and their weaknesses", he mumbled, walking through the crowded shopping distract, passing soul and shinigami alike. There was only one the boy would dare to regard or speak to, his name was Aizen Sosuke.

-----------------

The smiling face of Hirako vanished from sight as Aizen sat rather uninterested in his chair.

While his outside appearance showed no remark of caring, his mind was processing the new information.

'Zaraki Kenpachi had grown stronger than he should've normally been. Zaraki had knowledge of Hirako and his lot. He likewise knew of 'Shiro' and claimed that the hollow was someone he bowed to.'

Aizen smiled for the first time in a long while, he finally had a key to uncovering the identity of Shiro: its name was Zaraki Kenpachi.

Another shrill of a sinister laugh filled the air, or at least would have had it not raised too much of a red flag seeing as though he never laughed in such a manner. A smile had been welded on his face though…

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**A/N**: Sorry bout the update delay, I guess I can't still maintain my rule of being the update king; it's been a rough week. This originally started as just filler, but swiftly became plot oriented. You were probably thinking 'you bastard, you tricked me.'

Assumes the crossed hands of Kanonji "Bohhahahaha!"

- Peace and as always thanks for playing along! -CH


	16. The extension

_**Return of the moonfang **_

_**XVI**__ The extension_

_---------------------------------_

_A black butterfly appeared in Rukongai, materializing into a pale-faced boy with dark hair. Wearing pure white, his dark emerald eyes were a contrast of colors between the newspaper like appearance his corresponding hues allowed. He wasn't one to laugh even in this case; heaven had given him the chance to serve his master even though a soul slayer had killed him. _

"_Shinigami and their weaknesses", he mumbled, walking through the crowded shopping district, passing soul and shinigami alike. There was only one the boy would dare to regard or speak to, his name was Aizen Sosuke. _

_---------------------------------_

A figure of tattered white walks along amongst the countless masses of the redeemed. Each step bore the taste of a blasphemy that was not beyond his ability to reckon. The fact that he could even grasp the notion of taste, sight or smell, had surpassed his understanding. Initially there were not words that could describe such an irregularity. As intuitive as he was on any other given occasion, he had no explanation for why he was alive and well.

Ulquiorra Schiffer had been killed. He knew it; he was there when it happened!

Making a wild stab in the dark, he could only go on the essentials; he was a hollow who had been liberated by a zanpakuto. He hadn't been a particularly evil hollow so he wasn't just discarded into hell, his sins had been cleansed.

His form had materialized from a black butterfly, yet it wasn't the body of a vastolord, it contained not the helm mask, as a quick pass of his hand over his head allowed him to analyze a single strand of midnight hair. He had a full head of black hair, without a bone or anything resembling his former self. His hollow chest was conspicuous in its absence, much like mask.

It would've seemed illogical for him to arrive in such a manner. Ulquiorra had crossed over into soul society, but how was that even possible? He had been vaporized, not given soul burial.

It were almost as if he had obtained a spirit body, the foundation of a shinigami, a basic nondescript soul. Ulquiorra was a vastolord, the supreme hollow, yet his status had been reduced to a basic ordinary soul.

A startling realization came to him in that moment, which ushered forth a world pausing chill. In death by soul slayer, Ulquiorra had become a proto arrancar. A simple tightening of his fists brought forth a surge of power greater than a captain's might. He stood upon the plateau of a vastolord in the body of a shinigami initiate.

Without the signature traits of a hollow, the hole and mask remnant, he theorized that he could become a unique form of arrancar, one capable of using a zanpakuto as a shinigami uses one, and have two higher levels of power available to him, without the solitary form of a sealed state of existence.

Naturally only a theory, Ulquiorra had to test the limits of himself to see if he still had the burning hollow flash.

Leaving the main path, he walked until his earth bound extensions had brought him to open forest, where he could test himself to see what limits or limitations the new form contained. His movements had been lightning quickly, so sonido was still available to him, yet in this place it would've most likely been referred to as shunpo.

In extending his right finger, Ulquiorra blinked for a moment as he thought his eyes rendered a vision of the one who had killed him.

His attention shifted to the fact that he the greatest of the vastolords in the service of Aizen had fallen to that hybrid trash.

Vizard and arrancar were of the same idea, just a reversal of process. Each were able to branch out to the other respective side, take its strongest attributes while retaining themselves.

Ulquiorra at the moment was neither Vizard nor arrancar. He couldn't quite perceive of a name for himself, irrelevant as the subject may be, what he had become was neither the shinigami who donned the mask, or the hollow that had obtained a sword. He was a vastolord encased within a normal mortal soul.

Regardless of whatever Ulquiorra had become, it shamed him to think he could be felled so easily.

'_I have come to kill the one who is without fear' _the Vizard had illustrated the will to kill his master.

Ulquiorra thought of killing himself for having failed to survive. He decided against it, for it was not his judgment that discerned when his time was up.

He decided to enter Sereitei and confess and atone for his failure. If he were to be killed by Aizen as a result, he could die content knowing his master would be aware of the one who wants to end him.

Particle strands of light began to spin around his extended finger, as the former hollow envisioned the one who had felled him. A sky blue sphere emerged at the tip, with four strands of light cascading into it. 'It's acting like cero, yet it's in the form of kidou?' Ulquiorra theorized as he released the charged sphere whose exit from his control acted not as an explosive kidou burst, but a barreling horizontal column of surging light…it was cero, just without its crimson calling card. The attack had nowhere near the level he had used against the Vizard, but it was capable of wiping out a few trees, which he was careful to note for anyone watching.

Before the words of the victorious Vizard, he laughed.

'_I've come to kill the one who is without fear!' _His mind recoiled the reversed hollow voice, which oddly enough was a trait that the arrancar didn't share with the Vizard.

"Not if I kill you first!"

Ulquiorra Schiffer returned to his original path, but not before picking off a random shinigami, and obtaining a uniform. The stolen zanpakuto was useless, but he held it for appearances. With shunpo, he was a mass of charged reiatsu unable to be seen. Each step brought him upon a tiled roof as he leapt over miles in a single stride. Schiffer traveled from his current position in west Rukongai to the southern gate, where if he remembered correctly, his master had the guard in his pocket.

A knight of indiscernible value, Ulquiorra knew his master would cherish the new form he had obtained, rather than kill him for failing. He could've never imagined that his own death would bring him so much closer to the side of Aizen-sama. He would be sure to thank the masked fool if he ever got the chance, by returning the favor.

**---------------------------**

Kurosaki Isshin sipped from a glass of tea, as he sat upon a small rock, watching the children below him training. He felt out of place, seeing as though three of his children were from another time, and his newly added son was in fact dead and gone by most accounts, yet there he was fighting with Ichigo's Mexican friend. It surprised him most of all, that Karin had become a shinigami! Even more so was the fact that when she transformed, an older Karin came out of her body.

The Karin of tomorrow was drastically different, she was stronger than most of the vice captains he had ever seen, and bore a strange zanpakuto release. It acted like the reported Bankai of the new tenth captain but she had said it was only the first level. The scimitars that the wings had originated from were not released blades but the way she found them sort of deal.

As Karin flew…since when did a zanpakuto's initial release offer such ability, it was very similar to the sealed state of an arrancar. Even still, she had a higher level available, or so she thought. Her wings were terrifying, a hundred scimitar blades woven together with nothing more than he will and its reiatsu.

Nevertheless, even her speaking of its name required not a catch phrase, it was simply put "Sandaabaado" a legendary thunderbird as its name implied. Simply put but seriously an understatement. As he himself had said earlier he didn't have a call phrase for his zangetsu. It was highly irregular. It appeared as though she received the Kurosaki-irregularity gene from her brother more than from him.

As Yorichi trained with Tatsuki her footwork became swifter and swifter and Isshin's daughter trained with Inoue, whose shielding techniques were among the strangest things he had ever seen. In a manner of a solitary day, Inoue was no longer shocked by Karin's Hiraishin technique; she even had the ability to dispel an attack before it struck her.

At one moment prior, Isshin had the chance to converse with Karin about the nature of her brother's plight, and found it most curious.

'Unlike Ichi-ni, I have no need to conceal my true age or form, he also didn't have shikai in those days, wouldn't it look irregular if he popped out with his released blade affixed to his back instead of the huge original blade?'

From what he had learned from Karin, Ichigo had stormed soul society going after Rukia much as he was planning to at this point in time. With only shikai, he managed to defeat a vice captain, and the pointed haired captain that had just been by a short time ago. In receiving the three day training, he accomplished something not even Kisuke could boast, he did it in two.

It was only a third hand account, but she had heard from Kyoraku that he had stopped the phoenix with not so much as an extension of his blade. His will was so powerful, that with a single zanpakuto, he could stop the one praised at being stronger than a million of them! Using his newly acquired skill, he fought valiantly against the best of the sixth division. He came so far only to have the girl of his dreams injured by the one he hunts now.

Karin didn't say exactly who the architect was, perhaps out of her brother's instruction. It made sense; Ichigo wouldn't be exactly sure who's on his side in this time or on that of his enemy. This time around, he had knowledge of what would transpire on his side, and apparently more strength than he did the first time around. Even with the colossal power at his disposal, and the help of a Zaraki Kenpachi from the future as well, he could still see his son's mind wrestling with doubt.

'Was the architect and his allies really so strong?' Isshin wondered as he likewise realized the likelihood Ichigo might not have survived his first encounter had the enemy not spared him.

His mind shifting away from the abstract, he focused on the youngest of the twins, who didn't appear to have any shinigami powers. Yuzu wasn't disheartened by it, she seemed happy enough just to be by her sister and brother's side and to tend to injuries of others if she could.

Had it not been for the shinigami lineage of his family, Yuzu might've lived a normal life without the burden of knowing about heaven.

Yuzu was happier than Ichigo and Karin combined to discover she had another brother. While he appeared so much like Ichigo in appearances, and from what he had heard similar attributes, he was nothing like Ichigo. Kaien had endured almost the same levels of hell as Ichigo yet he was still joyous and comedic rather than always callous with a mild bit of softness here and there. In him, she found a playmate more like Ichigo had been in his younger years.

He still couldn't get over their reaction when they saw Tatsuki and Inoue (again) after apparently losing them. It was the first time he had ever recalled seeing Karin's eyes water, he could tell his daughters saw Ichigo's friends as older sisters.

**------------------**

"Nanao-Fuka-Taicho, is this the place?" asked the yellow haired Kiyone at the entrance to the building that clearly said: Urahara shop in kanji style.

'_Ray Charles could've seen that!!' _she sighed. Nanao hoped the rest of the trip wasn't going to be this troublesome, she had already drug Kiyone away from numerous clothing stores that she kept Implying "oh this must be it!"

Her captain's directions were impeccable: _'an Edo era house with a tiled roof, hidden in an alcove behind a multistory building'_. He could be a total and complete blockhead most of the time, but when you needed him, Kyoraku-Taicho was very reliable.

Outside, they found a boy with a flame of red hair taunting a girl with purple-black hair split like two falls, they were supposed to be sweeping yet the boy taunted the girl mostly, and she did little in return.

Rather remarkably in their opinion, the children noticed the presence of the shinigami, the boy ventured inside while the girl bowed respectfully.

Kiyone walked up to the small girl, waving her hand in front of her face, implying that perhaps she couldn't be seen.

"I can see you shinigami, welcome to the Urahara shop!" Ururu spoke eloquently, in their presence.

"I find it strange that you can see us, unless you have abilities?" Kiyone queried.

"Is Urahara Kisuke in at the moment?" Nanao asked the girl.

Ururu had no time to respond as her caretaker spoke through the sliding door. "Ah what a treat, two young shinigami women, I've never seen you two before, but then again, how can I be of help to you?"

"Are you really the former captain of the twelfth division?"

Urahara cleared his throat for a moment, visibly not expecting that line of questioning.

"Guilty as charged" he regarded the one wearing the vice captain's badge on her shoulder, as if he had seen her once before.

"I am Nanao Ise, eighth division vice captain. She bowed before the former captain respectfully." Nanao couldn't get past the irony of his attire, it was exactly like a captain's haori yet the colors were reversed, and it was black with white diamonds along the lower edges. The geta sandals and the bucket hat were totally unique in the fact he had never worn a hat or such ornate sandals in Sereitei. Implying he was of an older age, he walked with cane, which the vice captain wondered if it was really his zanpakuto, much as the captain commander's was hidden in such a fashion.

He turned to the shorter of the two, as if asking her name without physically doing so.

"Kotetsu Kiyone, thirteenth division, third seat" she replied in a similar bowing fashion."

'Eight and thirteen', Urahara's mind was reeling for a moment as he recalled the visions of the white haired captain, and the flowery haori. 'Kyoraku and Ukitake, since when had they been this fast?' his mind jumped at after remembering what division Rukia belonged to. If thirteen was moving this quickly, there was no doubt eight would be with them.

This in fact, was the last thing Kisuke expected to find on his door, that and Kuchiki-Byakuya. The fact that these two had been sent by their respective captains meant either they were a part of the faction of conspirators that Ichigo had inferred to, or they were just as confused by the situation and hoped to attain a foothold on the truth.

Urahara knew how to tread in the waters of intrigue that had surged around him, he could navigate it smoothly to see if his initial suspicions were correct or the latter proved to be.

"What do Kyoraku or Ukitake want from me?"

'He is the real deal, only he could've known the first names of two captains, and only a captain, exile or current would speak of them on a first name basis' Kiyone concluded.

"We've been sent to ascertain the situation involving Kuchiki Rukia and Kurosaki Ichigo. It is rumor that he is currently under your care preparing for a mission in Sereitei? Are we close?"

Urahara dipped his hat for a moment to hide his enlarged eyes, only Kyoraku was this quick on the uptake, and Ukitake would've been the last to know of this. 'This is Kyoraku's doing, and Ukitake is along for the ride', he figured. Pulling back the door with his right hand, Kisuke ushered them inside, to dissuade the possibility they were being watched.

"If you will, please enter."

They entered peacefully, casually walking through the cramped candy store and into an adjacent room.

Sliding the door behind him, Kisuke was well aware of the fact his sudden move indoors was raising some flags in the mind of the vice captain…

----------------

'Mother of god, Kaien is here! Oh, that's an awkward breakfast' he thought and likewise sweat dropped at the feat of explaining his existence. He instantly remembered that it was of the thirteenth division of which he used to belong. He wasn't one to normally step down from a mental challenge, of trying to keep the boy hidden, but he felt it best to consult with the orange haired boy on this one.

Kisuke rose for a moment, not trying to alert them to his sudden disheveled mental state.

"If you don't mind, I'll be right back, I must inform my assistant that I will be occupied, respectfully of course."

Bowing, he dipped out of the room, sliding the paper-thin wall shut.

-------------

"Something's suspicious is going on here," Kiyone piped up, which surprised Nanao that the girl was able to notice, she thought she'd have to make another blind musician reference, mentally at least.

"Yes, I can't help but feel a sense of uneasiness in his presence around us."

"Could it be that he wasn't expecting to see us, or that he had something to do with Rukia's crimes?"

"Do you think he's really here, the one Kuchiki-san was said to be in love with?"

"I don't know, I mean, she's been so cold since Shiba Fuka-Taicho passed on, I wouldn't have thought her possible of falling for someone, not since he left."

"The rumor is that Kurosaki resembles Kaien-kun."

"Then perhaps there is some validity to it after all", Kiyone sighed.

-----------------

Ichigo observed the gallery before him with curious interest, even though another feeling was drawing some of his attention away, the thought of what to do about Hirako.

Zaraki had encountered him during one of his beer runs, and his lot were apparently using his enterprise as a means of transferring messages to Aizen. But since when had they been allied to the fifth captain?

'We know all about Aizen sosuke, and Hougyoku…known about them for years.' the words of Hirako sang to him in that moment, the words he had initially spoken to Ichigo when he was attempting to learn the suppression technique.

"So they were allied to Aizen, and upon his capture of the orb realized their fate and broke away?" Ichigo questioned the air.

At any rate, the Vizards were too far away for Ichigo to deal with at the moment. As he said, he'd crush them in time, if it truly came to that. He knew it would, because Kenpachi had informed their lot of the 'greatest' of the Vizards.

He would have to train his friends harder if the hybrids managed to show up in heaven, as it would be by the time of their departure, captains would be just a touch higher than them, with the little bits of separation their tasks to uncover. The Vizards however were a great deal stronger than his friends.

It made him worry about taking them. His father and his associates could deal with them, just as Kaien and he could. He'd have to trust the junior members of the paladin not to get themselves killed.

With so much going on in this timeline, Ichigo doubted for the first time his ability to successfully navigate the situation. The amount of variables were becoming too vast and equally just as unpredictable.

Aizen…Gin…Tousen…the Vizards and hollows still under his control…not to mention all the shinigami he had bewitched…

It was Ichigo…Kaien…three former captains…four children who would be captain level…even with Kenpachi and his lot on their side, it wasn't looking good.

Ichigo realized he'd need Kyoraku and Ukitake on his side again, but last time it had happened by chance, how could he recreate the magic that brought those two to his aid through Rukia?

There was the possibility of using Kaien to bridge such a gap, but that would be a weak path of alliance, the doubting factor of the whole situation was the very bridge builder he hoped to employ. They would suspect a trap, and would most likely be the ones to spring one of their own.

'How can I reach out to eight and thirteen, my hands are so restricted on the part of not wanting to alert Aizen'.

His answer came to him in the form of Kisuke, who had appeared rather swiftly behind him.

"Kurosaki-sama, if you will, a moment of your time."

'If you think addressing me formally will buy you any slack you're…' his mind was quick to go into a threatening ramble, but he cut himself off, by noticing Kisuke's presence might've been a response to those others he noticed upstairs.

----------------

"WHAT?" Ichigo exclaimed as he had heard of Nanao and Kiyone were just a few hundred feet above him.

A Hirako caliber smile came across his lips, as he started to chuckle slightly,

'Fate is on my side this time, eight and thirteen have come to me… but how to script this even with their swift movement, that's the question?'

"I can see you are as well surprised by the rather quick movement of Kyoraku and Ukitake, I take it you were not expecting this."

"You're right, they didn't side with me until almost the very end, they appeared to save Rukia, and happened to act in my behalf by destroying the phoenix. They could see the value in what I was trying to accomplish, and they were also capable of seeing the outlines of dark hands moving conspicuously. Many of the captains like one, two, six and seven were so shrouded by their wills of obeying the law that they couldn't see beyond their own blinders.

Eleven was with me just on the side of him wanting to fight against me again, and helping my friends was a means of achieving it, even though it never came to pass.

Ten and I never had contact; he was closely imbedded within the plot of the architect and was used to distract subordinates from what was really going on.

"Was twelve the architect?" Kisuke asked, hoping he was wrong.

Ichigo looked at Kisuke for a moment as if he were likely to knock him into next week for uttering such a stupid remark. In retrospect in regards to the clown, he was someone capable of such an ambition; his experimental nature would have easily drawn anyone to that conclusion…

It just further illustrated the architect's mastery of mind games, even someone like Kisuke couldn't discern who he truly was.

"I can see how an intuitive path might've led you to that conclusion Kisuke, but Mayuri, he's pretentious alright, but he's an amateur compared to the puppet master of my time. I hope you can understand my reluctance in relaying the truth to you in this regard. I have no idea what relationship you may have or may have had with the architect, or even if he's conditioned you to act in his behalf with the simple mentioning of his name." Kisuke didn't even take the time to notice that his mouth had lowered a little bit, Ichigo while having full knowledge of what would transpire, couldn't take the chance of it getting out prematurely, and he shuddered to think said architect might even have ears in this place, or within him as it were.

"Naturally, Zaraki knows of him, and while I admit I didn't realize the fact of him knowing everything when I brought him back, I know he wouldn't engage him until I got there. He knows it's my place to end him, and I made a deal with Kenpachi just before he left to ensure his hesitation."

"You gave him the authorization to fight the one who isn't nine three or five?'

Kisuke didn't even have time to react as Ichigo was on his feet holding the sandal man by the neck. Ichigo held him just as he did Byakuya, with his hand bent upward so that he could look him squarely in the eye as he choked the life out of him. The look on both of their faces was grim, the strangler and the strangled.

"I hold you now as I did the sixth captain Kisuke, all I have to do is close my fist and you're dead. I should've known you'd eavesdrop on my conversation with Zaraki. While I was at fault in that regard, you have uncovered something I didn't want you to know just yet. Just so you know, the architect is one of those three."

Kisuke's eyes widened even further, even in spite of the fact he was having his life choked out of him.

"You're insane, it has to be twelve. He's the only one capable of entering the restricted archives undetected. His thirst for torturing research subjects has to be some measure of ambition. He even altered his own body, what further proof do you need?"

"Even after killing him in the future, I continue to be humbled by the mastery of his illusionary techniques. The proverbial grizzly bear has all of soul society conned into thinking he's a kitten. Even staring square into the face of the man whose choking you to death, you still deny what I've said. There are not further words for it, none that I can think of. As a being of fate, even with the knowledge, he still has the advantage. I thought this would be easier this time around, hah, it's just as hard if not harder."

Ichigo dropped Kisuke whose hands clambered up to his neck, inspecting damage to find very little. Urahara's next thoughts shifted to what the boy had said, it really wasn't twelve.

"Kisuke, I am taking Kaien upstairs, I will lay as many cards as I have on the table, it's the only course I can think to take at this moment, get my father and Yoruichi-san, follow me please."

Kisuke didn't even object even though he clearly wanted to.

Ichigo grabbed Kaien abruptly from his training, the dark haired twin thought he had screwed up big time, almost as if he was expecting a spanking he kicked and screamed most of the way. Climbing up the vertical walkway, Ichigo unveiled it all to Kaien.

Kaien was without the ability to speak for a moment, before questioning his brother's actions.

"It's alright Kaien, its better to be honest with them, even if it appears like a fabrication. Even if you appear like a fabrication, when we get there things will not change, Aizen will still be there, Rukia will still be there, the only thing that will change is that he will not leave there alive."

"So that's where you're going with this, you plan to tell them about Aizen?"

"Not in so many words, I will simply confirm their fears about a conspiracy, while I'll claim not to know of its leader, which in some ways would be considered the truth, my younger self would be capable of grasping some irregularity while at the same time not being capable of knowing its name. When it comes out that I knew, I could claim secrecy. Don't worry, I've got this."

"That's what you said when we entered Las Noches, see how that turned out."

"You don't have any confidence in your brother Kaien, I'm shocked! To think of all people I'd hear those words from you?"

"All things aside, I can't wait to see the looks on their faces."

Kaien laughed at his brothers ability to comically brush off a potentially world changing situation.

"If you must…" He finished as they walked down the hall.

-------------------

The fifth captain sat before a table, sipping from a cylinder of tea, while itching his thoughts upon a scroll. It was almost time to begin the final sequence, yet he didn't have a new escape planned. It had all been set on the shoulders of Ulquiorra to organize, a subordinate now long gone. He furthermore had no idea the condition of his fortress. His ambition lie outside of Sereitei, the remaining credibility he had with the hollow race would all but dry up.

The only option at the moment was to make a less than dramatic exit. This of course would change the overall plan, all of which relayed on the fact he would raise the curtain on the coming war and then exit stage left. If the proxy of Kisuke proved to be of any use, he knew his plans would go much smoother.

His plan aside, there were more important matters for him to consider. That matter was Shiro. Straight from the lips of Hirako, he had denied any knowledge of a Vizard of that name appearance or strength. Aizen considered the possibility he was lying, but he didn't detect any sign of subterfuge.

The Vizard had also reported that Zaraki Kenpachi had come to their island, on one of his extracurricular activities. The eleventh captain dispatched Hirako rather swiftly, which he should not have been able to.

'You're a mask wearing schmuck compared to the Vizard I follow… Shiro' Aizen thought as he replayed the very words spoken from Kenpachi to Hirako.

Aizen wanted to just walk over and torture the information out of the captain, and kill Zaraki for having some hand in a plot against him.

Doing such a thing at such a premature juncture would be like springing a trap before it had ever been set. Without the ryoka in the picture it would make things rather awkward without a viable scapegoat. He needed a worthwhile subordinate; he needed Ulquiorra.

Fate it seems is not without a sense of humor or irony. Aizen felt a familiar presence, one that existed in the realm of that which couldn't be. It felt like a shinigami, but one with the strength of a high ranking hollow. His eyes shifted to the sliding door, in which a medium sized young man with dark black hair had knelt.

"Is this some artifice, a comedic musing to the plight of things?"

The emerald eyes of the young man shined back in the candlelight, as he smiled confidently.

A silhouette of the horned vastolord knelt next to the humanized boy. The standard shinigami attire replaced his standard white haori and hakuma. The eyes were the same, the curvature of his face, the tear streaks, into his skin instead of into the form of his mask.

The same voice echoed sentimentally "I've returned Aizen-sama."

"Ulquiorra?"

"I have failed you master. I was killed by a Vizard; one who aims to take you out. He told me so himself just prior to finishing me. As a hollow I have been purified to stand before you now. I am a vastolord in the body of a shinigami. I've become a being more advanced than one created from the orb, by something so little as a technicality. I put myself at your mercy, even in spite of my luck, my life is yours to dispose of as it will always be."

"Ulquiorra?"

Aizen could say little more than just his name, he had to hold in his laughter, a comedic sickness was coming over him, he asked for a subordinate and the gods had given him one. More than a simple subordinate, this Ulquiorra was the perfect extension of Aizen. As an agent, his new right hand could do anything within Sereitei, without his immediate presence. Ulquiorra could even kill the supreme commander if he'd ask him to. More than anything else, god now had an appropriate enforcer.

"Ulquiorra, you mentioned you were still a vastolord, are the implied abilities still within your grasp?"

"They have assumed forms more respectful to this vessel of mine, Cero is kidou and Sonido is shunpo."

"I am intrigued Ulquiorra, you mentioned the theorized attributes of using a zanpakuto, do you have one."

The hollow pulled out the sword he had stolen. He felt no power within it; it was just a random blade.

"I have one, but I am uncertain as to whether or not it can be of any use."

"That's fine, I'm sure you'll uncover its truth in time, but you'll need a sword at any rate, appearances must be maintained, fate it seems had that very thought in mind when it recreated you. Will you follow me still?"

Ulquiorra looked shocked and could only stutter a reply "What do you mean?"

"I too, have lost to a Vizard, and I would not expect you to be so willful to end your restored life after being vanquished. You call me master still, but seeing as though you've been given a second chance, I will extend to you the same courtesy, follow me or don't its entirely your choice."

"I am lord, but not yet an absolute, currently restricted such as I am. I will give you the choice to act in my service or not to at all. All the same, I do not wish for a mindless subordinate, you have returned to me perfectly…" the lord was cut off, respectfully of course.

"While I'm not incapable of appreciating those kind words my lord, you must surely see, in death I serve you still."

"I knew Ulquiorra, but as I asked you once before, I felt the situation warranted a proper query once again. For the time being, I think I'll place you as my third seated officer, of whom I know is very much alive, I leave the disposal of him to you. Remember that while I dispose of these subordinates like the trash they are, never consider yourself in the same lot, you are a son to me."

Ulquiorra looked up at him in complete dismay, without the ability to render speech, smiling he politely entered the room as per the lord's beckoning hand.

"We have much to discuss my young friend…"

"As you wish Aizen-sama."

-------------------------

"What in the world is going on, why are we being forced to wait like this?" Kiyone whined.

"It does seem to intensify the suspiciousness." Nanao pointed out.

"Do you think Urahara-san went to get Kurosaki Ichigo?"

"If I strain myself I can sense he's still here, even with so many other power levels bouncing around. The sandal man that is." Nanao continued.

A different voice echoed from behind the sliding door, gathering their attention. It opened upon the orange haired boy who resembled Kaien.

"Urahara asked me to speak to you so I thought I would do so privately."

Kiyone gasped as did Nanao, "Kaien?"

"Kurosaki Ichigo, pleased to meet you, shinigami."

Ichigo laughed at their response, and then turned his head to a yet to be disclosed figure, "We really do look alike; don't we brother?"

"Brother, what in the world are you talking about?" Kiyone whispered, "He…" her voice was severed as a black haired silhouette moved behind the orange one, and they both stepped into the room, the younger sliding the door behind them.

Both Kiyone and Nanao's lower jaws held respectful distance from their normal places, their eyes had likewise grown larger in response to the sight of a man not apparently dead as history had spoken. Black hair teal eyes, orange hair brown eyes, aside from those two features, they were perfect twins.

The questions that abounded from such a revelation filled the room within an instant, yet none were spoken, none had the ability to even render the thought of speaking.

Kiyone rose like a comet and leapt into the un-expecting arms of her former vice captain, as a means of confirming for herself whether or not he was an illusion she could dive right through. Her arms met at the other side surrounding the object that really was a living being.

Kaien patted her on the head, "Looks like you've grown a little taller Kiyone, stronger as well, I'm so glad." Kiyone looked up at him through watering eyes, his presence was the same as it was back then, and sadly she had never had him in such a predicament as she did in that moment so she couldn't compare that.

"Kiyone", Nanao motioned for her to come back as Ichigo and Kaien began to sit down once she respectfully let go.

"I can no doubt infer you have some questions regarding my motives in this, and other things."

"I'll start with the most weighed subject, my brother."

"To say that he is my brother, you must understand that though we look identical, we were born of different sets of parents. If you wish, I can summon my father, he can confirm this."

Kaien continued where Ichigo was leading as if they fell into the same sequence. "He is my brother because of his connection to me through Rukia. He also saved my life."

"But you're dead Kaien?" Nanao spoke in a low tone.

"I was killed, Nanao-chan, that is correct, but the hollow that consumed me had a unique ability, when killed, he would be sent to Hueco Mundo to reform. I naturally went along for the ride. While attending to business of his own, Ichigo found me and managed to rescue me from another hollow that sought to consume me yet again. When I learned of his connection to Rukia, I came with him without hesitation. I could feel her presence within him, I had later learned she had given him her powers so that he could save his family from a particularly strong hollow she was unable to defeat."

"Ichigo and I will cross over to soul society to save Rukia."

Ichigo took the ball from Kaien who respectfully let it go.

"The reason you two are here must infer that your commanding officers are aware of the irregularity of the case against Kuchiki Rukia, much as I came to grasp when her brother came to steal her from me. His reports say I too like Kaien have passed away. His blade destroyed my shinigami abilities, but my natural abilities hid themselves from his sights, I have only now recovered. You see, I am pureblood. While not being a noble like Kaien here, my father used to be the tenth captain."

"Onto Rukia as I relayed my thoughts of noticing an irregularity, it has come to my knowledge, much as the thoughts of your own captains have lead you to this point, that a force exists within heaven that will have Rukia killed for their own benefit. I cannot say exactly what motive or ambition it has taken the form of, perhaps it's concealment, to cover up a wrongdoing or to steal something of value. What remains are the fact that Rukia's actions were at the very least sacrificial, and do not in any manner of speaking deserve imprisonment.

"Rukia gave me the power of the shinigami, which Byakuya confirmed is a crime. There are exceptions to everything in this world and yours; the sacrifice of power was to aid me in the survival of my family while she had been injured. As she began to recover, I destroyed the hollows and purified the souls she was incapable of doing due to her sacrifice.

"I was furthermore blessed with finding and wounding the hollow that killed my mother, you know him as Grand fisher."

"There are some that might consider such a gift as a means of entrapment. I have no doubt that your captains learned of Rukia's plight from the secret service agent who discovered our predicament. At no time have I ever tried to bewitch her, she's not the weak minded fool that everyone claims her to be. She fought against Byakuya with her bare hands, even tearing herself out of a gigai, a faulty one that the sandal man had given her."

Nanao took everything in as easily as it was spoken, her zanpakuto was the large encyclopedia which lie right next to her, his verbal expressions assumed a permanent existence upon one of the blank pages. They had no idea of it, that the entire encounter was being recorded.

'Be careful to note their impressions facial and verbal', Kyoraku had told her prior to her departure from the division. Ichigo wasn't lying, he did seem to have further he wished to say; yet she couldn't discern if he would actually speak of it.

"As Kaien mentioned, we will be journeying to Soul society in a short time. I am fully aware of the ramifications of telling you two this, knowing it might hurt my plans. The architect of misfortunes is aware of my timely arrival; he however doesn't know how much I know of him. Furthermore he is unaware of how close to him I am in terms of strength…"

"I thought it would be in our allied interest if you had some of this knowledge just as he does."

Stretching out, Ichigo's eyes turned white as he channeled a portion of himself into the room, it was in any case a deafening gravity surge of at least captain level.

Kaien laughed at his brother's exertion "show off!"

"How can you be this strong, you're at least captain level?"

"If you want a measure of my strength, I am the reason why Kuchiki Byakuya came back so roughed up, why he has had to fight off so many rumors of being humbled, because he knows I am the one who humbled him."

"Don't tell me you're trying to imply you were this strong all along, that you let Rukia be captured as a means of fishing out the architect as you name him or her?"

"You are very perceptive, much as your captain I can infer?"

Kiyone asked the most obvious question, "Kaien, are you this strong as well?"

His reaction surprised the both of them, "Sadly, I'm only a quarter of what my brother is, but I am not deterred, I will get stronger!"

"Make no mistake Nanao, Kiyone, I am not your enemy, my enemy is the architect and those who follow him. Naturally I cannot relay who I know him to be out of fear of his learning of it. My knowledge of him relays the concrete fact that I know he would torture you for information, much as I suspect him planning to do upon your return."

"He knows of us?" Kiyone gasped.

"You can consider this a fear tactic on my part, if you still don't trust me, keep in mind that he has eyes and ears everywhere, even within the 46."

'The very 46 which he now controls' Ichigo thought to himself, knowing that the architect had ascended to the builder.

"I wish to form an alliance with your captains, only in their presence can I unveil who I suspect the architect to be."

Nanao realized of all the people who would need to be in this alliance it had to be Aizen-Taicho.

"I know someone else who would want to join with you, Kurosaki-kun?"

"Whom?" Kaien responded.

"Aizen-Taicho would definitely want to join this."

Kaien's eyes shifted over to Ichigo instinctively wide.

Ichigo was fuming with anger but trying desperately not to show it. He wasn't succeeding too well.

"Please, we'll regard the subject of others when the two of us meet with your captains", Kaien grasped their attentions away from the troubled Ichigo. Nanao was not incapable of noticing his reaction, he was somewhat troubled by the name of the fifth captain.

It were almost as if he…

Such a thing wouldn't be possible, least of all in her mind. Aizen would be the furthest one someone would suspect.

She began to see the outlines of a vendetta. Aizen-Taicho could've wronged this boy in someway or he had assumed the captain at fault for something.

Nanao was also capable of reasoning that the last person she'd naturally suspect would be just as capable of deception.

Nanao rose and bowed before the twins, reaching out her hand to Kiyone.

"Come one Kiyone, we must return."

"But Nanao Fuka-Taicho, what about Kaien?"

"We must keep his presence quiet more than anything else."

Turning to the twins she spoke respectfully, pulling Kiyone by the arm as if she were a little child, even in spite of what their relative size difference might've inferred.

"It was an honor to meet the two of you, we shall relay your words to Ukitake and Kyoraku. Hopefully they will agree with you, and together we can help Rukia."

"I do all of this for her, do not mistake my actions or words. I love Rukia. By now I wonder if she's started to doubt, if you can find some way, send my love to her!"

Nanao gasped internally, 'where the hell did this Ichigo come from?'

She had been dealing with a deathly serious warrior, and then out of nowhere a calm and innocent boy whispered out of a broken iron shell. Everything up until the moment had been a veil, Nanao was staring right into the eyes of the true Kurosaki Ichigo.

A starling feeling came over her, one she was not entirely capable of identifying, and she thought it was perhaps pure charisma and confidence.

'No wonder those kids fought so bravely for him, he was as loving as he was fierce', Nanao thought.

Nanao unstuck herself from the apparent frozen moment, dragging Kiyone who clambered to try and give a hug to Kaien but she wouldn't get any satisfaction so settled with just a joyful wave.

As the two shinigami closed the door walking into the night, Kaien leaned back onto his hands, carefully retracing the steps of the encounter, searching for any mistake.

Ichigo could only think of her for the moment. While the king had his own reasons, Rukia was his only reason. The rest was irrelevant.

"The ball's no longer in our hands brother!" Kaien mumbled.

"Its in theirs, as they carry it into heaven. If he gets his hands on it, it'll make little difference right?'

Kaien stared back before nodding in agreement.

-----------------

"Did you here, he has returned?" a random shinigami asked another within the fifth division walls.

"You-lick-her-a lot?" the initial speaker slapped his comrade knowing full well he hadn't seen or heard from the last one to call that boy in such a manner.

"I think its Ulickuorra?"

"Boy what a strange name, I'd hate to have to spell that!"

"But what's he doing back, I thought he was on assignment deep within the outer edges of soul society?"

"Maybe his mission's complete."

-------------

A bonnet-wearing officer strolled through a nondescript corridor of her division, she was joyously enamored.

One again, she had woken up after drinking with her captain, to find herself all flustered and worn out. Oddly enough just as each and every other time, she was wearing a hollow mask. It was strange, the first time it had hurt and she was bleeding from a location she'd never disclose, but since then, she rather enjoyed the circumstances, utterly confusing as they were.

She couldn't explain the mask though, why would she be wearing a mask during these moments?

"Maybe I'll ask Ranqiku-san, I wonder if she knows."

She turned a corner to find two subordinates conversing who upon her presence stiffened quickly and assumed a bowing form.

------------

"Hinamori Fuka-Taicho, good evening."

"Good evening" she replied, joyously as ever, like she was walking on clouds. She loved the feeling she got after drinking with Aizen-Taicho.

"Have you heard, Ulquiorra's back!"

"U-chan's back, yeah" she exclaimed as she ran off in search of the tar haired boy she loved talking to.

-------------

"What are we going to do, Nanao-Fuka-Taicho? What if there really is someone waiting to torture information out of us when we return."

"Don't worry, my zanpakuto will shield our memories from being tampered or forced out of us, even against our own wills."

"It can really do that?"

"Of course" 'how else do you think I made Kyoraku-Taicho forget about the night I gave myself to him when I was drunk?'

'This life sure is troublesome…'

The two-shinigami women departed living world via the sekaimon gate. Firmly in their hands and hearts the very ball the twins spoke of. It held the weight of Rukia's future, combined with the future of existence; they really had no idea of its true scale…

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_**A/N: **__Whew, that was a tough one, but its finally over for now, I used my whole vacation day and several other nights to write this. The ball's beginning to roll. _

_In my country it's our independence day. I'm happy to be able to release this chapter on this day! These are my fireworks. _

_It's been a month since I started this, I would've never thought I was capable of this much had someone told me a while ago. I know you guys want me to update sooner, but I don't like forcing myself, it makes everything not turn out right. _

_A side note, I am proud to say I am a supporter of Grimmjow's super-saiyan 3 transformation! _


	17. When dreams become reality

_**Disclaimer: Just because I've forgotten this a couple times, it still doesn't change the facts, I do not own bleach, do I have to get a skywriter and spell it out for all the world to know? **_

_**Return of the Moonfang **_

_**XVII **__When dreams become reality_

_**--------------------------------------------------------------------**_

"_What are we going to do, Nanao-Fuka-Taicho? What if there really is someone waiting to torture information out of us when we return." _

"_Don't worry, my zanpakuto will shield our memories from being tampered or forced out of us, even against our own wills." _

"_It can really do that?" _

"_Of course" 'how else do you think I made Kyoraku-Taicho forget about the night I gave myself to him when I was drunk?' _

'_This afterlife sure is troublesome…' _

_The two-shinigami women departed living world via the sekaimon gate. Firmly in their hands and hearts the very ball the twins spoke of. It held the weight of Rukia's future, combined with the future of existence; they really had no idea of its true scale…_

--------------------------------

A slender man waited patiently, leaning up against one of the colossal entry doors. A pair of stone and metal gate doors intersects the frame of space that exists at the entrance to soul Sereitei, while its other respective side has no tangible form. It is essentially a vortex of controlled reiatsu acting as a go between, a translator, taking shinigami to earth, and souls to heaven.

A man of relative size, he is no more than a fifth of a single door's height, but carries more weight, as his white haori would suggest. Casually, he leans with his arms folded, his head bowed almost as if he were asleep. If one were to walk upon him at any given moment, even while he was in fact speaking, most would still consider him mumbling words in his sleep.

Few have ever seen him open his eyes, even fewer could tell you of their color. In spite of his captain's haori, few actually trust this man, the curvature of his face and his slit eyes resemble many species of the serpent family, and his reputation is no higher than said snake. Its not that he's particularly evil, he just has the appearance of being evil. Naturally shifty, he does nothing to dissuade the general consensus. Out of spoken distance, he is referred to also as a fox, for his sly demeanor.

Some consider his lack of attention, in regards to his eyes would be his lack of seeing value in anyone but a slim few. They remain open to only those who've actually seen the blood red rubies that hold a quiet vigil just under his eyelids. His optical nerves when incited upon a person hold attention even when they are closed. A conveyor of his killer intent, the slit eyes often cause a person to shriek in terror as if a horde of slithering beasts were just inches from strangling them to death. A scream is often known to follow one of his bouts of tearing down a person's erected defenses, and furthermore constructed wills. Staring into his eyes often carries the same effect of staring into those of a medusa, turning all that you are into stone, stone that is then pummeled under a huge snake.

Most are unable to get beyond the demonic presence of just his eyes that is to notice the slightly violet and silver strands of hair that adorn the top of his skull and middle parts of his face.

Crimson diamonds depart the coverings of their lids, shifting to the right as they gaze partially on a pair of female shinigami exiting a black wall. Naturally, their own uniforms blend into said darkness, but they are set apart by their skin tones and the shade of the shorter one's yellow hair.

The shinigami stroll rather swiftly until they abruptly stop, noticing of course the presence of the third captain, Ichimaru Gin.

-------------------

'Shit!' was the unspoken opinion between the two women, who were not expecting Ichigo's assumption to be correct. Neither of them wished it had been him. His own reputation spoke of the mental torture he could inflict on a person, they didn't even want to know what he was capable of physically.

Maintaining an act of surprise, the vice captain pulled the lower subordinate along with her, which was rather difficult seeing as though the blond had dug herself in place and was leaving the higher officer with no recourse but to drag her like an anchor along the seafloor.

In accordance with natural formality, the two of lesser status bowed before the present captain, speaking only in platitudes, the girl with glasses held firm her encyclopedia, hoping its effects would be strong enough to dissuade a captain.

"Good-afternoon Ichimaru-Taicho…"

The unusually cheery captain lowered his head in a respectful nod, before setting his aura upon them, a wave of snake like tendons began to strike at them repeatedly, even though they were merely artifices of his will, alterations of reality imposed by his killer intent. Both girls were caught in a state of frozen fear.

A whispered rumor, neither of the girls had ever faced Ichimaru's ability to crush a person's sanity.

The pair of them hung suspended in a sea of true terror as a slit-eyed shark the size of a bus encircled their souls. His earlier efforts had tenderized their skin, leaving the surrounding waters a veritable dinner bell to any and every predator. Ichimaru's smile widened, as he seemed to be salivating at the rank of their fear though, as evidenced by the voodoo drums that had replaced their normal heartbeats. Wordlessly they wished for a timely end for the fox faced captain, for someone to sever his spinal column in the most painful way possible. Fighting to keep their minds above the level of sane, the two them envisioned him hanging from a noose, knowing fully well the aura would continue even if they dreamed him dead.

Gin knew exactly what he was doing, even if the sight of it would appall a bystander. There was no one for miles, least none of which he could sense. They were alone for the moment. Gin used this tactic as a means of softening their defenses, so with a slight mental tap, their damns would fissure, and all their secrets would come pouring into his hands.

Ceasing his assault he spoke to them, his sly voice executing his psychic punch, in the hope his earlier efforts had damaged them.

"Now what are you fine ladies doing on an evening like this, returning from human world, where you have neither been given proper missions, suspicious this is, very suspicious."

"We've been given personal missions from our respective captains, of which you hold no authority to question us about. The fact that you stand here awaiting our return is even more suspicious than our arriving here, isn't it Ichimaru-Taicho?"

He knew the vice captain of the eight division couldn't be mentally persuaded, not with that volume sized zanpakuto, but it wasn't the psychic shield which stopped him, it was something else, something illusive. Like a proverbial dinosaur in the room, a presence was stifling the air around him. Opening a solitary ruby upon the two girls, they shuttered at its appearance.

Killer intent existed between the respective shinigami, like a sense of bloodlust. Where the captain had once been the source, the girls instantly became a waterfall of deadly desire.

The two female shinigami had swum to the surface of the strangling sea only to materialize into twin schooner sailed ships. This analogy came to mind as Gin noticed the girls could neither produce the level of intent that radiated from them, signaling they were being propelled by an unseen wind, an undisclosed third presence, chained to them in some fashion.

The very definition of illusive stared him in the face. A silhouette hung behind the two girls, watching their backs. It was less than an afterimage in that it held no definite shape, just a ragged outline of a body length haori, which existed tightly bound to its upper section while airy like a cape upon gracing the lower extensions. It did in time develop a set of yellow sunlit eyes, as terrifying as his own.

'What is this?' Gin pondered silently as he was never one to be terrified by something of a paranormal nature. Regardless of the irony of his profession to said paranormal activities, he watched silently but intently, like someone watching an automobile accident. Couldn't mistake the level of desire that pulsed on him was enough to make him a little concerned.

It suddenly vanished, to rain upon him a solitary rain of black light, which intersected the base of his neck severing like a blade upon its surface only to appear on the other side.

If this wasn't supreme killer intent, then he didn't look like a fox. For a living being to have this level of intention to annihilate someone, Gin couldn't believe it. Only a hollow higher than vastolord could display this much bloodlust. To create a shadow of himself to trail behind two living beings as a shield…

The citrine eyes emanated the intention to sever his head from his neck.

Ichimaru knew he was the least liked of all the captains, barely even tolerated much out of fear than anything else, but who could hate him this much?

Gin closed his lids as he walked away from the girls laughing, something mysterious was afoot here.

'Aizen would want to know of this', Gin thought.

He strolled until he was about ten feet away, then his form was severed from sight.

------------

"Nanao, what the hell was that?" Kiyone whispered.

Nanao had watched the entire encounter; an anomaly had made gin stop. She had felt the presence, around them, shielding them from his evil intentions.

'_It was Ichigo?' _she realized and then suddenly doubted, only to stutter for a moment at the further sight of what had really taken place.

Ichigo had shown them a piece of his power not as a sign of his strength, but to transfer some of himself to them, to act as a barrier against those he suspected. He was protecting shinigami he didn't even know. Once again she was reminded of why people grew stronger in his presence, and possibly even why Rukia loved him. Every thought or action on his part was an extension of himself to help another.

She was capable of seeing that he would make a great shinigami someday, but from what she could discern, he was already one.

'We'll know soon enough', she gasped internally. Nanao noticed the relevancy of Ichigo's apparent disdain for Aizen, to whom Gin was chained.

"Hell if I know?" she replied to Kiyone who could only utter a blank stare as to why they had been spared.

"Umm, ano, I think it might be a good idea if we got the hell out of here?" Kiyone spoke again.

"Lets find Kyoraku and Ukitake!" Nanao whispered to which she received a nodding agreement. Using their own shunpo, the girls vanished from sight; going any direction other than the one that snake had just gone.

-------------------------

Zaraki Kenpachi sat within the quiet of his domain; he noticed something out of place. An object was partially restricting his movement. Reaching inside his kimono, Zaraki found an envelope…

_Zaraki…_

_Give this to Rukia, at all costs,_

_-Ichigo. _

'_That sneaky bastard, when did he…oh, when I knelt down before him.'_

Zaraki laughed, "so I've been reduced to a postman have I; but if you think I'm going to be passing love notes…" he mumbled as he quietly crept out of his room, wanting not to disturb Yachiru who was snuggled up with her pink scarf. Slowly, he pried the scarf out of her hands by placing one of her random teddy bears in the same place. She grimaced a little bit but soon drifted back to sleep.

'I think I'd better return this to its proper owner, the look of surprise alone will be worth it', Zaraki chuckled as he dashed out of his division.

--------------------------------

"So what do you think of our friend's return Tousen-kun?"

"Just as you see it Aizen-sama, nature has manifested an enforcer of true justice."

"You are correct my friend, do you know where dear Ichimaru has…"

The lord was interrupted by a sliding door, where the fox faced man had knelt.

"Come in."

Sliding the door behind him, Gin registered a third presence, an unusually strong shinigami, whose startling green eyes shifted to meet the third of his masters.

"Ulquiorra, but how?" Gin gasped at the sight of the humanized vastolord, his eyes were open.

Aizen gestured with his hand for the boy to unveil the story yet again.

"I was killed by the Vizard Shiro. As a hollow, my soul was purified and deposited here by his zanpakuto. As a shinigami I contain the full power of a vastolord plus the ability to use both releases of a soul slayer."

"Well isn't this the day for unusual discoveries."

"What do you mean Gin?"

"Eight and thirteen are already aware of our movements."

Aizen wasn't aware of this tidbit of information, his hand reached up and scratched the underside of his chin, trying to ascertain a proper response, but not before he questioned what might've led to such a theory.

"What makes you so sure?"

"The vice captains of those divisions just returned from a meeting with the creator of the orb."

Aizen's eyes widened for a moment before shrinking,

'Damn, I knew sending Byakuya was a mistake, why did I feel so compelled to use such force! Look at what its done, dissention is already starting to build.'

"What information were you able to obtain?"

Ichimaru dropped to his knees apologetically,

"None my lord, Kisuke must've given them some kind of protection. An aura of bloodlust greater than our young friend here hung around them and even created a shadow that tried to sever my head."

"That is very strange Gin, it would appear as if the former twelve is moving as well.

"The rumor that his subordinate was coming?"

"It appears to be truthful after all. Eleven of all things appear to have sided with them also."

"I understand eight and thirteen, especially the movements of Kisuke, but why eleven?"

"Hirako has informed me that he encountered Kenpachi in their island hideout, Zaraki claims to know the true Vizard, the one which destroyed part of our fortress. He even went as far to name of me as an ally of the Vizards."

"What the hell is going on here, since when did things get this complicated."

"Ulquiorra, go and find Zaraki Kenpachi, obtain the information we want by the most subtle means necessary. Be warned though, he is far stronger than he should be as evidenced from his actions with Hirako. If you have to engage him, take him down but not out, without the coming ryoka invasion as a scapegoat it'll make this just that much harder for us to move around."

"As you desire my lord…"

The black haired hollow exited the room but not before bowing respectfully to all those within.

"Quite the polite young man you have there?"

"Your point?"

"I am concerned Aizen-Taicho, what assurances do we have that really is Ulquiorra and not just an artifice. I hate to go into the 'what if' scenarios but that's what this situation has dwindled down to, in my opinion at least. I'm almost overwhelmed by the irregularities that have been rising up due to our actions: a seeming alliance that should not have arisen till much later on I mean. Furthermore we have Ulquiorra who was killed by Shiro suddenly rising back up as a shinigami.

"I've always trusted Ulquiorra, I trust him with our fates. He was killed by someone after me, yet he returns to my aid now having been divinely restored. I can see where a conscious mind would conceive the possibility of vengeance over fate, but I can tell, he serves me still, even in death he walks among us an extension of my will." Aizen's words were final in any case, much like the words of a god, to be carried out without question or contest.

"In that regard there's nothing I can say further, but what of the presence of Shiro himself, whom I cannot entirely root out as a possible source for that killer intent I noticed." Gin spoke grimly matching a name with the face of deathly desire placed on him.

"Are you implying that the subordinate of Kisuke is actually Shiro?"

"There's no way that brat could be that strong, but whom else could it possibly be?", Gin returned.

"It is something curious to think about" Tousen suggested.

A soft rapping came at the chamber door, in which Aizen granted entrance.

As the door slid open, each of them had obtained a glass of tea and were sipping from them quietly.

An out of breath vice captain stood panting at the doorway before letting herself in and closing the door behind her.

Instantly she noticed the other two captains in the room and bowed politely,

"Aizen-Taicho, Ichimaru-Taicho and Tousen-Taicho, good evening."

"Good evening Hinamori" was the general reply.

"What's the matter Hinamori-chan?" Aizen asked.

"Someone told me U-kun had returned, is it true?"

'_U-kun' _Gin and Tousen sweat dropped a little at the girl's alteration of the subordinate's name.

"Ulquiorra has returned, and he's going to be our new third seat."

Aizen had conditioned Hinamori that whenever an abrupt change had been made in the staffing or just in general, she would nod politely as if you had told her she looked pretty or something completely different.

"Oh that's great! Oh and thank you" she blushed.

The level she had been conditioned was far greater than any other shinigami, after all nothing but subconscious alterations were the only possible way of covering up Aizen's nighttime urges.

She looked at her captain with a _'where is he now' _kind of stare at which he replied that he had sent the boy on a mission, he'd be back soon so be patient.

"Alright…" she opened the door once more but stopped when she realized they were drinking.

"I just wanted to warn you two, be careful when drinking around Aizen-Taicho or you might wake up with a mask on your face."

Aizen had his eyes closed and a hand partially covering his embarrassed look, _'somebody please let me kill her now'_ he was thinking.

Gin gazed over at the senior captain thinking '_you hentai! How many times do I have to tell you, that kind of action will garnish the perfect reputation you've maintained? At least have the sense to take the mask back when you're done with her.'_ Ichimaru chuckled at his own observations, though he'd never say it aloud, he had hoped the laugh would be enough of a further warning to Aizen-san.

Tousen was immovable as always, if it wasn't related to justice he didn't even let it cross his mind, it passed in one ear and out the other. Five and three had noticeably sweat dropped in complete awe, while nine didn't make a move, or even an utterance of disgust.

Gin noticed this and his mind had conjured a little joke about Tousen.

If there were ever a publication called justice weekly, Tousen would be the publisher, the editor and the contributing author. His mind swiftly envisioned a magazine cover to try and cover up the impurities of his earlier thoughts, with Kaname appearing in his captain's best, pointing a finger at the kanji for justice.

When Aizen asked Gin what he was laughing at, Gin honestly replied "Nothing."

------------------------------

Zaraki-Taicho ambled down the wooden hallway at his faster than walking but slower than running pace. Several guards tensed up at his presence, knowing it to be rather ferocious.

Entering the door-less alcove, he approached a pair of jail cells where Rukia sat wide-eyed at his appearance.

"Zaraki-Taicho?"

"Kuchiki Rukia."

In his opinion she wasn't bad to look at, but she wasn't a legendary beauty by any means. Her eyes were rather entrancing, royal crossed with amethyst at times, in certain lights as he had seen them before. It didn't make any sense to him, that such a simple girl was the source of Ichigo's will. That his initial will to run up to the gates of heaven and destroy two of its best stemmed from such a small person.

To stand against the phoenix halberd with only his cutting moon, just for her.

Zaraki wasn't a stranger to romantic entanglements, what with his constant pining for the fourth captain, but that was another thought for another time when he didn't have something urgent to deliver.

Rukia was a little terrified by the sudden development of the pointed haired captain in her sights.

Initially she feared the worse, but then Rukia noticed something was out of place with the bloodthirsty captain. A pink scarf was wound around his neck reminiscent of Byakuya's. Aside from the color, she'd almost bet it was his.

She didn't know what was worse, Zaraki Kenpachi wanting to kill her or a Zaraki Kenpachi wearing a pink scarf wanting to kill her. She'd probably die from the shock of seeing a feminine eleventh captain. He had long hair, when it wasn't up like a porcupine, but aside from that it was all wrong.

Zaraki noted her fear before he started to chuckle,

"Kuchiki, don't be afraid, Yachiru stole your brother's scarf, and dyed it pink. Which given the color of his Bankai I think is rather appropriate. I thought I'd return it to him but not before showing it off first.

Rukia couldn't help but snicker a little bit at the thought of her ni-sama wearing a roseate scarf. He'd try to bleach it obviously but it'd always be pink. At that moment she didn't want to be the eleventh captain, having to return a desecrated family heirloom.

Returning to the present, Rukia asked him what in the world he was doing coming to see her.

"A friend of mine asked me to give this card to you, I think you know him as the one who promised to come and save you."

She stared up at him wide eyed, pondering how the hell he would know of Ichigo.

Smiling, the captain slid the card in between the iron rod bars. It was a white piece of paper torn at its lower edge, jagged much like his blade.

"Its blank?" she asked the captain who was still in relative speaking distance, having leant up against the opposing wall, appearing as a guard in the hall.

"Push some of your reiatsu into it, don't worry you'll understand."

Before Rukia could say 'what on earth?' her world melted away from sight. Holding the card within her fingers, her reiatsu pulsed the card to life. A bolt of energy intersected the middle distance between the worlds, coursing through all of existence a chain, until a connection had been formed, with the other half of the card, in Ichigo's hands…

With each holding a respective half, the worlds shift away, and for one brief moment, she was connected to him telepathically.

--------------------------------------------------------

_"Ichi…go?"_ Rukia gasped aloud, only to find the words never left her mouth. Lyrically they intersected the distances of all things, leaving the dimension and settling within the mind of an orange haired boy, who furthermore had spoken her name.

_"Rukia?"_

_They existed in still frames, painted within a separate temporal dimension, caused by the unification of the two pieces of the same paper when infused with their reiatsu. Over such an extreme, two hearts for a second at least merged into one existence. _

_He stood there holding her in his arms, _

_She held him back just as fiercely. _

_He didn't have to say how much he loved her, she knew it. _

_She didn't have to say she was sorry for doubting, he didn't care._

_All the torture, every level of hell that had ever existed between them was shared in a brief instance. His grip increased with each moment, as she likewise increased her own. His future, her past, her death, the death of Kaien, when Ichigo held onto her with a grip that had couldn't be broken by any means, she knew why. _

_Rukia stood a false witness before everything Ichigo had done. She saw the reversal…_

_In addition, she also observed the countless fights with the architect and when Ichigo had found her skewered upon the trident…_

_Rukia watched the transformation of Ichigo at the sight of her death. The moody student who thought he could play shinigami one day and stop the next had finally become serious. Never again would a hollow try to take his world from him, as so much had already been taken, a line had been drawn in the white sand. _

_The serious man wasn't the one in her arms at the moment; it was the remnant of his old initial self, a smoldering piece of his younger self, still not fully integrated since the fusion. _

_Ichigo had not been there the day Rukia had felled her brother, so the girl could only view it as a third person retelling, she began to fissure. _

_A final image caught her eyes, as she read the future from his open mind. Rukia standing there in that pit holding the trident, against Ichigo. Rukia began to crumble into a heap, in spite of all she had done to him; Ichigo was still there, holding her together with his arms and the warmth of his love for her. Rukia cried for all the terror he had to endure because of her. _

_Rukia agonized in the fact she had doomed him to a cursed existence, having forced the shinigami life onto a living being, who had to then shoulder the weight of heaven with the capacity of still being mortal. It all stemmed from that night, and the death of that hollow, he became a savior. _

_Had it not been for Rukia, he might've lived and never known of heaven until it was naturally time for it. _

_His simple presence though, broke away any sense of regret or responsibility on her part, it was his choice the moment she inserted the blade into his heart. _

_---------------------_

_His eyes reflected through the shadows of her mind, retracing her own steps. _

_Ichigo saw Rukia and Renji standing on that hill, having buried the last of their friends, the day they decided to become shinigami. _

_The day she became Kuchiki, in that room, Ichigo burned inside as he watched Renji just give her up, failing to realize that in giving her to Byakuya she could never be with him. Ichigo was with her in that moment as she hoped and prayed for an extended hand to reach out and grasp her from the cold. He furthermore experienced the pain of having watch her transform into the cold and callous Kuchiki. _

_Then came the day she met Kaien, it was like a sun breaking through the horizon of a forever winter storm…_

_Sunlit images of her times with him recoiled through their minds, and she began to cry at how happy she had been, only to grow suddenly grim, upon the darkness that became the real reason she became callous. _

_The hollowified Kaien stood before her, pleading with her to end him. _

_Suddenly, their minds ceased, all manner of retelling shifted and reversed to present events. _

_Rukia through the heart of Ichigo saw Kaien restored to his normal self, at the hands of Ichigo. Every image of him since his 'brother's help made her light up again. _

_They separated for a second, as Rukia saw the image of Kaien next to Ichigo, he manifested from their shared memories, a temporal creation. _

_Rukia was dismayed in the similarities of their appearances, they really were brothers. _

_In this state, words were not necessary, or even possible for that matter, messages could be spread through thought impulses, when one had conjured and idea, the other would know of it instinctually. _

_She knew why and how Ichigo had saved Kaien, it still didn't stop her from thinking of it, as if the simple thoughts were possible of disproving its physical existence. _

'_Ichigo, you've saved Kaien!' _

"_Rukia, you claim to love me as I see it in your heart, you never got the opportunity to truly have a chance with him. You know how much I love you, but I've never known how you might've felt if things were reversed. In spite of everything that's existed between us, future and past, if it would make you happier to be with him than me, I would rather see it be. I would've saved him all the same, but from my very core I did it for you.' _

'_Ichi…go?' _

_She held him tighter. But lifted her head upwards so she could place her lips upon his own. To say he partially wasn't expecting this would be the gravest of understatements. He sort of knew she would choose him but at the same time couldn't be entirely sure. While his heart was on fire that she had chosen him, he at the same time was riddled with the fact he had actually doubted her. _

'_Ichigo, you've been forced into an existence where your love was forever one-sided, never having known my feelings, even still, you planned for all manner of expectations. Even as you try to give me the chance to be with someone I might've cared for, you won't be rid of me, not even by dangling a Kaien carrot in front of my eyes. Ichigo you baka, you reset time for me! You even went as far to resurrect the man I once cared for, in the likelihood I'd want to be with him…How could I not love the man willing to give me to someone else, even after he recreated the universe just to keep me from harm. This is beyond me giving you my powers to save your family, far surpassing the weight of the moment you stood before a hell phoenix for me.' _

'_I ceased being Kuchiki and became Kurosaki the moment you showed me what life was truly about._

_Ichigo cried, it had been years since the last time he did. Upon the discovery of her dead body, he wept for never letting her know, he wept for having done so much only to truly fail to save her. Her lips there upon his own, tears streamed from him like they had never before. Both of their lips shared the salty taste of streaming tears. It was unusual in the subconscious state for such a thing to be possible. It were as though he really was there in that jail cell, as she was really within a room of the Urahara shop, even over the massive separating expanses, they were one. _

_Collective hearts spoke in a singular voice, a phrase that spoken aloud couldn't even come close to reaching the depths of its meaning. To paint three words upon the world as the physical definition of what they were experiencing would be blasphemous. To reduce the scale of the light of their hearts, to something as simple as a phrase, they dared not to speak it. It was like trying to define a beautiful sunset; no matter of spoken or written word could ever do it justice. _

_In each other's arms, spiritually as it were, separated by oceans of irrelevant matter, if this was all the time they could share, and then it would be enough. _

_Never again, would Rukia ever doubt him. _

_Ichigo knew he couldn't wait much longer. _

-------------------------------------

The very moment they shared was reason enough to let Urahara Kisuke continue to exist. Ichigo had spoken to other members of the paladin in this manner, but never had it been used to reconnect those who were in love. Kisuke had theorized that normal usage between two companions or comrades wouldn't be very damaging or invasive, to some extent he was correct.

Connecting the linkages of two hearts, to combine the souls of two so perfectly affectionate, was theorized to be the deepest level of love two could ever conceive. To do so however, would create such a level of existence that the two would never want to separate from their perfection. It was a cursed technique as much as it was breathtaking.

The means of communicating over any distance by forming a telepathic link, was Kisuke's final invention, one of his numerous sort that crossed the lines of what a mortal should not have been capable of. It was a treasure Ichigo had brought back with him, secretly he hoped that if ever given the chance to rewrite time, he would use the torn card, just as it was currently being employed.

---------------------------------------------

_Only impulses and instinct existed in the realm between Ichigo and Rukia. Particles of thoughts and wishes danced through the everlasting warmth created by the depths of their emotions. Shining within a sunlight aura, the two hearts could feel the time for their separation growing closer and closer. _

_Rukia…it's time…I have to… _

'_I know Ichigo, as much as we both want this to continue forever, I'm well aware that it cannot.'_

_Rukia broke their kiss, but continued to be in his arms, staring into his eyes. _

'_I know you'd be just as likely to save me and put me on a shelf somewhere while you go off and kill the bad guy. If I promise to wait patiently, will you teach me how to fight, how to be as strong as you. I want to fight for myself at your side'_

'_Rukia, you can't…'_

'_I don't want to be the powerless girl who dies upon that trident. If you can't understand…'_

'_I got it' _

'_Just so you know baka, you may be super strong, but you're still a hundred years to young…'_

'_Why you little…' _

'_Ichigo, have the sandal fool teach you the matter retrieval technique, and bring a gigai modeled after me. We'll have a little bait and switch. I'll be in the tower by the time you come, just don't forget to or I swear I'll kill you.' _

Releasing their respective pieces, the unification was over, their consciousnesses returned to their natural places, like liquid in a drain. The papers acted further as a piped corridor for their essence to lock onto as they reformed with their mortal and spiritual vessels.

_---------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

For the moment, Zaraki had taken up guard duty outside the cellblock, trying to give Ichigo as much time as possible to be with her. A flicker of white caught his eye and he noticed the fourth captain had just turned the adjacent corner.

"Oh, Zaraki-Taicho, what are you doing here at this hour?" Unohana spoke softly to the rugged captain, who stood in complete dismay, it had clearly been a while since Kenpachi had seen her, and alive that is. Retsu was as pure and innocent as she had been before the war, like a blossomed flower.

Zaraki was struggling inside, he had managed to hold back his power since his return, but this was different, he was trying to restrain his heart from taking control. Naturally he wouldn't do anything rash or name tainting, but when his emotions had the reigns, Kenpachi was reduced to a bumbling teenager. His hold on himself was slipping off a slope, which started from the moment he saw those eyes.

Retsu noticed the dumbstruck look on his face, and then shifted naturally to the roseate cloth, which had been wrapped around his neck, very similar to the sixth captain's style. The last time she had checked, it wasn't that cold outside; perhaps it was a prank of some sort or a lost bet. She decided to humor his predicament.

"That's a nice scarf you have there, pink really is a good color for you…he he…" she chuckled as Zaraki sweat dropped, he clearly wasn't anticipating this development.

Out of the corner of his right eye, he saw Rukia stirring about, the conversation was over, which meant he could exit stage left so to speak, when his heart was telling him to exit stage right into Retsu's arms.

"Heh," he replied to a laugh with one of his own, having entered into a mental donnybrook with a hormone infused chibi version of himself. Fists and blades were abounding. The love struck side of the captain was trying to make a move but a solitary extension of an imaginary brass knuckled fist lowered the troublesome side back to its station. Sighing internally, he continued to converse with her.

"I just wanted Rukia's opinion of the new color of her brother's scarf."

Retsu pointed, "so that is Kuchiki-Taicho's?" she wasn't unable to notice the relevancy of Byakuya wearing the color, as it in fact looked rather well on him, from her mental vision that is.

"I should remind you that visiting hours are over, but I am curious to know of his response, so don't forget to let me know… perhaps over coffee?"

This drew a blush that neither captain were able to escape from, just like always, Retsu loved his humorous side, and whenever he was pranking someone, she loved to hear the details.

Trying to sound cool, he uttered, "Yeah perhaps".

Following his inner instincts, Zaraki got the hell out of that division, and returned to his original task of finding the owner of that scarf. The anticipation was at a fever pitch, having displayed the item to two of the most likely to get a charge out of such a sight. There were others he could've shown, but the way he figured it made sense to show it to women, he didn't want to be caught dead in that scarf, should a man happen to see him.

_-------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

Byakuya sat before a somewhat disheveled Abarai, who had been summoned only moments earlier and likewise knew an encounter was coming in regards to his failure, but hoped it would stall a little longer.

In what would moments later transpire, Renji could only be in complete and utter shock, he would've never thought such a thing was possible?

"Renji, do you still consider yourself worthy of being my vice captain?"

"In the recent light, what makes you think you can even be in my division?"

"Your actions of late are rank with a dishonor that shames that badge that many of your predecessors have died to uphold."

"I know you were trained by Madarame Ikkaku, did he crumble the first time he was humbled by Kenpachi? Would he stand idly as you have these last days, carrying on as if nothing had transpired?"

"The fact remains that you were humbled in your sealed state, but even still I think those who followed that boy without fear, would've won nevertheless."

"Without fear, they instinctually stood up to us without any notion of who we were only that we had threatened an ally/friend or otherwise."

"Is the notion that Kurosaki Ichigo met his demise at my hands any conciliation for you being irresponsible for your own improvement?"

"The rumors, Renji, are true."

"What, impossible!" Abarai's first gasp of air brought forth only the confirmation that he had truly given up. He didn't even consider strengthening himself under the logic that he had lost in his sealed state to a man who was rightfully dead. It appeared as though his captain was alluding to a lot more than he let on, a lot more than he had publicly disclosed.

Of late, Kuchiki-Taicho had been rather disheveled, mentally and visibly from close proximity, he was watching his back repeatedly as if he expected a ghoul to hope out of nowhere. Then in that moment, the ironclad noble was focused like a beam of light from a magnified glass burning an ant. Renji was the smoldering insect; his captain's words were the light. His shame and failure took the form of the amplifying glass.

How it ended between us is however aside from the point. Even if there was the slightest doubt, you should've been preparing to reclaim your own fate and honor from the one who stole it from you."

"I am right here Abarai Renji, how far have you come to surpassing me? From my vantage, you aren't even at the base of the mountain; you're below the surface. I have always been right here, just as I will always be. I do not want a subordinate who cannot live up to his promises. I could kill you before you even get up out of the chair, what could you possibly do to me Renji?"

"Knowing what Madarame taught you, I wonder even now in this moment how you can sit idly, I can't believe I've had to spell it out this much.

'How the fuck did he know about that, Ikkaku-san only told me and Yumichika-san.'

"I'm giving you three days Renji, to stand upright and acknowledge the face of your shame, and conquer it. If nothing else, if he turns out to be dead, then become the strongest of the vice captains.

"If you fail me again Renji, not only will you be relieved of tactical authority within this division, I'll see to it that you'll be cleaning the sewers in the fourth division!"

Abarai sat there quaking with fear for a second before he realized the point that it was his moment to get the hell out of there and work on defeating his flaws, and like pronto! Holding his zanpakuto, Renji rose up out of his chair and bowed just as he had when he entered, and stepped out into the night. It was the last night Byakuya would ever call him weak willed.

-------------------------------------

'_I hope that was enough of a push for you Renji, it was more subtle than my earlier plan. I had heard a rumor about Ikkaku and the final release, from that glare of revelation of the impossible, I must've been right. Can you ascertain the limits of your errors Renji, and ascend beyond them?'_

'_I'd hate to have to reshuffle the deck just as the game's about to start. Having addressed our flaws, illustrating yours while working on mine, it has left me to notice another flaw. Renji, you exist on an entirely different world than that boy, I exist just within a few days of training, while you conquer your lack of instinct, I will put all my focus into obtaining the strength to conquer Kurosaki Ichigo'_

Kuchiki Taicho had restored his resolve; it was clear and brilliant as the moonlit sky above. This time of night, he would normally be found sipping a tea while watching the heavenly alabaster reflection of earth's satellite. Having obtained a new goal, his stride was more confident and proud once again.

His noble pride flourished where shame had once held reign, that was until he saw his heirloom scarf walking towards him, hung in his style around the captain of the thief that had stolen it. Having just returned his eyes to their natural place of looking down on the universe, they focused down to earth, on a roseate cloth that used to be his pure and most cherished personal possession.

Anger stirred within him from the voice, which echoed like a gravel walkway, erratic and uneven, so unkempt.

"Evenin, prom queen?"

"I guess I have to thank Rukia-chan for the redecoration of your face, that burn scar has finally turned you into a man, now just lose the tiara and you'll be set. I am rather saddened that I was unable to help you with your sex change!"

His lack of social and hierarchal respect was astounding; furthermore he had not yet dropped to his knees in apologetic form. The demon smiled back at him, as if he were twisting a metaphorical knife, testing the limits of his patience for the supreme disrespect.

His ability to speak faltered in his growing anger; a growl of contempt was completely silenced when the scarf wearing eleventh captain vanished from sight. The next thing he felt was an unfamiliar presence on his starboard shoulder. His eyes shifted respectively to find the cloth dangling. The transaction occurred lightning fast, and could've only been accomplished using Shunpo, which Kenpachi was reported to not even be capable of. Byakuya was almost unable to follow the movements. Fractions of a partial moment existed between the instance he departed and returned, it were almost as if he had never even moved, his outer edges blurred for a second and his interior space hadn't even left their original space.

Eyes had opened wide and his jaw lowered partially, he could only utter the first thing, which came to mind, nevertheless it was not the most eloquent of utterances "You bastard! What the hell was that?"

-----------------------------------------

"Now that's a reaction!" Zaraki trumpeted in pride. He vanished once again to salt Byakuya's wounded pride, appearing behind the opposite shoulder to which he draped the scarf.

"The days of you having to lower the definition of captain level strength are over. Never again will you look down me as the weakest…aside from one other, I'm the strongest here. I know how you Kuchiki bookworms love to know everything, the other isn't you!"

Before Byakuya could turn his completely astonished head to look at number eleven, the pointed head was gone.

"I'm over here." Zaraki taunted as Mt. Byakuya was a good jab or two away from erupting.

Trying to regain his holding on the captain, number six began to let the tension drop as he unleashed a flurry of insults, or at least attempted to begin.

"Oh, so the child has finally learned to walk, just because he has flash step, it doesn't mean he's a man yet."

"I see through it Kuchiki Byakuya, your prim and proper bullshit. Save it for the weaklings, I told you, the days of me being included in that lot are now over. If it weren't for the lack of a proper justification, I'd show you the distance I've traveled, and how I've left you in my wake."

Mt. Byakuya was fissuring, steam hissed from burgeoning cracks. It was all over but the explosion. Kuchiki-Taicho had enough of the insults, and he extended his left hand ready to spout out a kidou blast when his target dissolved from sight, having noticed the killer intention like the smell of a rotten corpse to a vulture.

Kenpachi appeared with an extending fist ready to clobber the noble captain but he slid aside at the last moment, his chin up prideful as he uttered "too slow." only then did he realize it was an afterimage. Byakuya stood shuddering, never even noticing the freight train of a right fist until it connected with his raised chin in a beautiful uppercut.

It wasn't a normal fist; there were spiked edges, which had dug into his skin, earning Ken-chan a slight moan of pain, a satisfying utterance on the part of Zaraki, as if it were music to his ears.

"Only noble blood can make these brass knuckles shine properly." He stood there regarding the crimson, which dripped slightly from his handheld weapon. Having taking his sights off of number six for a moment, he realized he didn't even hear the captain fall.

Byakuya had developed into sight behind the captain, whom he could tell didn't even consider him worthy of looking back.

"Who are you?" he asked as he wiped the blood from his chin.

"Don't look at me with that tone of voice, Kuchiki-kun, even though were not allowed a blade, a man's got to have a weapon. Least its not one of those things called handguns, even I think they're trash. On one of my many excursions into human world, I encountered the miracle known as a barroom fight. I know you love a full moon, to me, there's nothing more beautiful than a drunken brawl. Anyways, some fool tried to take me out using these knuckle enhancers, so I borrowed them without permission, after beating him to within an inch of his life."

Byakuya just looked at him with a blank stare…

"Oh yeah, who am I right, I'm Zaraki's Kenpachi, that hasn't changed, I did achieve Bankai though."

"Impossible! How can someone who doesn't even know the name…"

"Use that big noble brain of yours and add two and two together."

A flashbulb went off in the mind of the captain in question… 'He had learned the name'.

"There we go, see was that so hard to process?"

Kuchiki was dumbfounded; he had just been humbled yet again, which meant his line of people to get stronger than was slowly growing, much as his amount of necessary strength to achieve it was steadily increasing.

"My Empress of restoration makes your Senbonzakura look like throwing shredded paper into a windstorm, just as you are now, utterly useless against me."

Kenpachi then did the most unusual of things; he wiped the blood of Byakuya onto one side of his haori.

"I now have a badge of distinction, for having drawn first blood between us."

Zaraki stood with his chin raised above the world, catching Byakuya's wide eyes, as it was his common practice to look down on others from his high horse. The very lowest of those he had scorn in his pride had just reversed the feeling onto him.

Taking the final word, he further stuck it to Byakuya; he looked the fellow captain straight in the eye, and once again referred to him as a woman.

"Bitch!"

That was the final straw, the volcanic fury lying just under the surface of Byakuya exploded, and he frantically charged the captain only to strike open air, a maniacal sound remained firm within the wind, Zaraki's vile laughter.

Number six got the hell out of dodge, knowing he had wasted enough time. Byakuya needed to improve himself more than anything, lest he could raise his sights above Kenpachi where it belonged.

------------------------------------------------

Descending an iron rod staircase, a forsaken shinigami trembles slightly, not from the insane height, but from the fact he was excited, he was finally taking another step at ascending to a new height.

From within a hundred feet of the rocky desert below, Abarai leapt to land on his knees.

Out of the tip of his blade, a red comet streaks into the vastness of the hidden realm, only to crash down before him a white baboon with a snake for a tail.

When the creature spoke, it was the tail, which did all the talking.

"Are you sure you want to do this Renji, you failed the first time and your attempt was nearly twice the amount of time."

"I wasn't properly motivated then, and I've improved this time."

"You aren't the only one who's improved Abarai-kun, it won't be the same."

'I figured as much' "Let's do it!"

"Very well."

The baboon hybrid dispersed its physical form into a cloud of mist, which blanketed the entire scale of the chamber, all five square miles of it. It suddenly had grown rather warm and moist, as Renji's eyes struggled to focus on his surroundings.

Instantly, the normally cool underground chamber started rising in temperature, becoming utterly moist and humid.

As an artificial breeze blew the mist, Renji stood not in a desert, but an Amazonian rain forest. He was at the very foundation of a tree canopy, which went on for as far as he could see, due to the lack of sunlight though, it lacked any defining growth. Leaping up into the understory or middle section, he uncovered a lost continent of life, shrouded by the upper and lower levels of canopy. Snakes and other animals ambled around foraging.

Renji had been lowered down a peg or twelve as he realized the daunting power a zanpakuto must've had to create such a vibrant and real life habitat for its spiritual avatar. In its home, Zabimaru would be the strongest; Renji didn't even know how he was going to tackle the task of even finding Zabimaru in all the mess.

He sighed and brushed his already sweat laden brow,

'_I think I might've bitten off more than I can chew here.' _

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

_**A/N: **_Renji's thoughts in that moment mirror my own as I've grown closer to the soul society entrance, the complexity of this show is astounding. Some of my choice ideas only further the advanced plotlines of my story. It's been rather nerve wracking.

Did you like the Ichi/Rukia sequence? I love finding new ways of not saying the same thing over again. I went back and added a little bit to fifteen that allowed for Zaraki to have the card, I don't think it would've alerted you so I'm saying this just so you don't think its one of those out of the blue things I do from time to time. I've already come up with the abilities that Ishida and Tatsuki will have, I'm still pondering what form Chad's power will take and what limit Inoue will be capable of.

Anyways, thanks for playing along and have a nice day! -CH


	18. Dawn in the dead of night

_**Updated 7.21.07 **_

_**Disclaimer: **__Bleach is not my property, a note though; it usually washes off best with a degreaser._

_**Return of the Moonfang**_

_**XVIII **__Dawn in the dead of night_

---------------------------------

Within an enclosed and elevated courtyard two figures stood amidst a slightly trembling ground. They stood at an intersection of fate, like the silence of a moment just before a gunfight, nothing more than the howl of the wind dancing in between them. One of them stood glowing within the beryl light of his reiatsu; confident it was enough to extract the necessary information from the other. The said other, had yet to even show how outclassed his opponent truly was, and had been savoring the moment at least for a little bit.

Ivory tiles carpeted the open platform for as long as existence. Having been silent since the time they were laid, the tiles began to chatter and come to life. Breaking free of their restrictive chains of cement, they shook inexplicably to one unfamiliar with the nature of reiatsu. Acting upon their own accord, the tiles rose up as if announcing a triumphant victory over fate and the world. Inanimate objects such as themselves visibly appear to rise up on their own will, when they are in fact bystanders caught in a voracious column of rising spiritual pressure.

Not every tile is quick to rise up, about half of the entire collection surrounding the source hold an orbit about a foot's distance above the ground. The chains that had broken them free increase their grasp of the stone sections thereby pulverizing them. Their end comes with not so much as a growl of the source's grinding teeth.

His fangs are bared as he opens the doorway to his power. With a solitary piercing roar, whose limits extend only to the limits of a single breath, the captain's muscles tighten to the density of a blade. Fists clenched, the warrior's aura had reached its momentary limit. Like the sun, the aura sends brief flares of itself out into the world only to return to its source. Distinctively, it is shaded in the color of said astral body, and illuminates the dark courtyard.

A creation more animate than the tiles, which had yet to be crushed, the aura whistled to itself with a low pitch intermittently. It likewise bore a sound similar to a serpent's hiss. Its voice was of a natural cause, when reiatsu encountered the suppression of air particles, it like any other surface, gave off friction.

------------------------------------

A nondescript shinigami watched the mosaic performance of his prey, which was summoning quite a bit more energy than he originally had been told the man was capable of. His malachite eyes shone beryl in the yellow light of the aura. With his hands tucked into the folds of his kimono, the boy waited patiently, even though he really had no choice in the matter, he a vastolord, was inches from being wiped out by the reported weakest of the thirteen.

Of his prior tactical knowledge, the boy could not discern why the eleventh captain had been labeled as such, he didn't even have the signature release of a captain, and he had simply crushed the leader of a random division. Ulquiorra would've applauded the action, being it something similar to what he might've done, had the slain not been such a weakling himself.

Nevertheless, it was this hidden strength of his, which made him worthy of the title. Without a zanpakuto, he stood up to the might of the strongest Cero he as a hollow within a human form could produce. That attack would've most likely killed every other captain except for one and eight. His master, he didn't even consider a captain, he was so far beyond them to lower him to such a height would've been disrespectful.

'_Who is this I am fighting against?' _Ulquiorra considered, he had known of Zaraki's hidden power, but it was said to be just below the average captain plateau. What kind of power allowed for his sealed state to be capable of stopping a vastolord? Naturally the sealed power was used in the blocking of his attack, which would've vaporized him without any sort of aid. Even with the amount he was historically known to have, it wouldn't have been enough.

The similarities in Shiro and this Zaraki were startling, both contained knowledge of Aizen beyond what they'd normally know, and both wielded abilities beyond their present and expectable limitations. It was almost as if fate was working against his master's ambitions, and even though he had become a knight for his king's side, the opposition was still daunting.

----------------------------

For a moment at least, Zaraki was a little afraid, he had no idea what height his suppressed power might've reached, having merged with his earlier self as well. Back in his time, there was no reason to remain sealed as the days of fighting weaker opponents were gone with the notion of there being thirteen captains. The fact that eighty percent of him had been sealed away was taxation onto his soul, which only caused it to increase slightly the more and more it was contained. The patch was of course engineered to actively evolve to match the progression of his power, but the captain wondered whether or not such a thing could really contain such a colossal might?

As it stood, the untouched twenty percent was close to being the same equivalent as he had contained at the moment in regards to his fight with Ichigo. Such a small amount of might was eighty percent of what he had against the orange haired boy during their fated encounter. There were not words for how much he had progressed, but war if anything was a means of rapid advancement, through ranking mainly, rarely physical strength.

It didn't hurt to have a zanpakuto as psychotic as its user. The presence of the empress had increased his power almost 3 fold. He wasn't anywhere near Aizen, he was just as strong as Grimmjow, whose strength was centered on 2.9 times captain level strength. That was with his final release, without it, he held right around two times the same measure of comparison. His thoughts in regards to Aizen and himself were mainly speculative means, seeing as though only Ichigo knew how strong the former number five really was.

This Ulquiorra had clearly underestimated him much as Byakuya had, expecting him to still be around 0.8 below standard Bankai strength. A recently acquired hobby of his was pulling the rug out from under people's conceptions. Reaching up for the patch, he smiled demonically. He knew with just a single pull of his fist, the rug would be out flying and he would crash down upon the weight of his own estimations, and he would fall ultimately straight into an open grave.

As he pulled back the patch, for a moment he relived the reason why he had come to this moment in time. Remembering why he was betraying Ichigo's order just a little bit…

-----------------------------------------

"_Zaraki Kenpachi" _

_A short and precise vocal extension caught his ears as he was running by a random courtyard. It was swiftly followed by a wave of overwhelming killer desire, which struck him like a wave. He was deterred; in reality he licked his lips with a barely visible excitement. _

_Walking into what was most assuredly a trap, the captain decided to humor the one who had called his name by acting the fool. _

"_I know you?" His words were meant to be confusing, while at the moment he didn't have any idea of who had called him out, he wanted to portray a recognition in the aim of springing a trap of his own. _

_The voice remained as intense as the desire surrounding it, and it spoke like the preceding notes of a song, the beginning of something beautiful. _

"_You'll have to excuse my lack of tact in this regard. I am a newcomer to this world and its notions of tradition. I have steadily learned the means of politeness through the service of my master, for they are seldom seen in the world of my birth."_

_Appearing before the alabaster adorned captain, a shadow of pure darkness almost materializes out of the very night sky. _

'_A shinigami, capable of such intense killing desire, isn't this interesting.' Zaraki noted, as he had never seen the pale-faced boy who appeared to be crying from the straight streaking lines, which poured down his face from a set of viridian eyes. _

"_Gotei 13, Fifth division third seated officer Ulquiorra Schiffer." _

_Zaraki Kenpachi took a partial step back, and then froze as if it were an instinctual response to a name he had only heard of, as a third party spectator. _

_He remembered the words of Grimmjow Jaggerjack in that instance for a reason he had yet to discern. The hollow used to get sentimental from time to time, after each of their contests, they'd get hammered drunk, and to get over the fact the best they could do apiece was a draw. _

_----------------------------_

"_The fourth Espada, Ulquiorra Schiffer used to be my rival. You could say he was my Kuchiki Byakuya, someone stronger than me who knew he was stronger than most of the world. His sense of arrogance was attuned to his level of pride, so he wasn't the type to engage in a fight of strength with those lower than him simply on the basis of it being irrelevant." _

"_Yeah that sounds like Byakuya, but what ever happed to Ulquiorra?" _

"_When our fearless leader found his dead girlfriend, it was Ulquiorra which found it amusing to taunt him about it…The way he died was something I'm not even close to being capable of…it's my deepest regret, not being able to silence that prissy bitch!" _

_----------------------_

_Zaraki's holy-shit-o-meter was making dinging sounds signaling that it was maxed out! It eventually exploded, leaving Zaraki to do something of which was slowly becoming a habit when he recognized someone from his timeline being out of place. _

"_You're the fourth Espada, Ulquiorra Schiffer!" _

'_The fourth espada? What the hell is he talking about?' Ulquiorra thought, as his mission became all the more relevant to him in the sense that Kenpachi knew of him somehow when the two had never met. _

"_Zaraki Kenpachi, I'll make this short and sweet, you'll tell me what I want to know or I'll kill you! Under orders I am forbidden to actually do the latter, but he said nothing about crippling you!" _

"_Oh, who would send a vastolord after little ole me?" _

_Ulquiorra's eyes widened as the man had just identified his station in existence._

_Zaraki made the sound of a yawn in which he began to taunt the boy. _

"_That look on your face confirms it, but your threats are pretty empty." _

"_Shiro told me to keep things quiet until he gets here." Kenpachi continued, Zaraki had already let the cat out of the bag so to speak and while he wouldn't go into names per say it wouldn't hurt to see if he could provoke a fight out of the boy._

_Ulquiorra's eyes widened further, 'he's toying with me; giving me information I would've already known by his estimation. I need to raise the stakes.' _

"_My threats are empty huh? It seems this situations requires further incentive on your part to be cooperative."_

'_Where's he going with this, other means of persuasion?' _

"_Yachiru, your daughter, how bout I kill her?" _

_There wasn't even time for the hollow kid to react as a torrent of a brass knuckled fist shot out at him. In his sealed state, Zaraki wasn't strong enough to knock him into the adjacent wall, but he was able to draw some more blood. _

_Ulquiorra rubbed the underside of his chin and stared blankly at the crimson essence on his hand, Zaraki Kenpachi had actually drawn blood, with a single fist. Gazing over at the captain who had just leapt back, he saw his blood glistening in the moonlight on something attached to each fist. They were known as brass knucks. _

"_So barbaric Kenpachi, that's just like you." _

_Zaraki grimaced that he didn't have his blade with him, only the knuckle enhancers and a few other choice items, but nothing that could do any serious damage. _

"_Listen here you piece of shit, I'm going to give you the opportunity to hit me with everything you have. When you fail, this patch comes off, and the next time your master will see you is in your mother-fucking grave!" _

"_Hotheaded fool, don't get cocky, you drew blood simply because I wasn't expecting it, I am not someone a peon like you can step over." _

_An azure smoldering light began to arise from the black hakuma and kimono, giving it a sort of silvery appearance. Opened eyes glowed blue from kidou, as winds began to erupt from an explosion rivaling the impact of a ton of bricks falling from a moderate height. The boy's shinigami attire shifted from side to side in the forced air of his reiatsu, whose shadowy appearance evolved into threaded strands of light erupting into a solid burning aura of incredible power. _

_Currently wielding about more than half of himself, Ulquiorra concluded such a level was sufficient to achieve his goal, even though he himself was drawing too much attention as it was. He'd end this quickly before any others could approach. _

_Heads shifted instinctually, as each of the captains nearby noticed an unfamiliar level of power centered on their own heights, which was steadily climbing. Those who felt the unnaturally large reiatsu leapt upon their respective buildings, as to ascertain who or what might've been releasing said power. _

_--------------------------------------------_

_A rippling wave of reiatsu spread out to the fifth division headquarters, striking the three captains therein. _

_Gin laughed at the plight of the situation, characteristically "Is this you're idea of subtle, I don't think so." _

_The low drawl of Tousen replied with a simple and direct assumption of the nature of the situation, which would've required such an exertion. _

"_You are correct Tousen". Aizen settled the two of them, "return to your divisions, if you are not present if orders are issued then it will be suspicious, and since he is of 'my division' I can naturally go after him in the attempt of offering aid." _

"_Quite clever Aizen-Taicho, just don't destroy him too badly", Gin laughed again as he exited, followed closely by Tousen. _

"_Ulquiorra, I know you are making the right call, just end it quickly", Aizen mumbled to himself as he slid the door closed behind him. Aizen walked in his normal carefree manner to the limits of his division, from there he'd flash leap. _

_----------------------------_

"_You've made some pretty big guesses about me Ulquiorra-chan, I'll be sure to make you regret them." _

"_Stop this insanity right now Zaraki Kenpachi, you are nothing compared to me, I am a vastolord, and you're the weakest of the shinigami captains." Ulquiorra shifted his body to the left, extending his right hand with his pointer finger glowing. _

_He would end this now with one strike. _

_One again he imagined the masked face of Shiro who was standing in the corner of his opponent, in spirit at least. _

_Speaking to both of them, he announced victory while holding a charging cero at the tip of his finger. _

"_You are not omnipotent, only my master is!" _

_Dissolving from sight, Ulquiorra appeared right before Kenpachi, point blank range. As he fired the cero, a metal adorned fist reached out and suppressed the energy, pulling the boy even closer. With his opposing hand, the captain cocked a fist back, lowering his jaw as he summoned a portion of his might up to the surface with a roar. Static energy dispersed from him, causing the tiles around them to fissure and crumble, sending bits of themselves into the air. _

_A sunlit fist of glowing reiatsu collided with the pale chin already smeared in crimson from his earlier efforts. This time it was capable of sending him flying, but Kenpachi never let go so he received the full effect of the hit. Imagine a normal person being hit in the face by a metal bat; it carried that kind of impact, yet to reiatsu infused skin, it would do some structural damage as well not just breaking the surface. _

_Ulquiorra cried out in pain as Zaraki had let go of him as he ascertained the status of his jaw, which wasn't far from being broken. Coughing, he spit essence onto the floor, wiping his mouth; he couldn't believe what was going on there. _

"_I told you to bring it, hit me with your full power! What about Royal Cero, why are you holding that back from me?" _

_Ulquiorra stood with his eyes quivering in fear; royal cero was an official attack of the espada. The Privaron had developed the final form of Cero but had nowhere near the power necessary to make it great. No shinigami aside from the three should've known of that attack, the ultimate expression of a hollow's love for Aizen. _

'_I'm two levels down from even being capable of that technique. My usage of it would only cause him more trouble, I shouldn't'. _

"_I can see it in your eyes, Ulquiorra, you know the greatest attack of the Espada, hit me with it now!" _

_Ulquiorra would require no further goading, nor was the man worthy of a reply, as he stood with a wide stance, his right wrist connected in the palm of his left, as it faced up, he was doing it. _

_The night sky suddenly had an azure tint as a partial helix of reiatsu began to materialize out of the air itself. Pouring lines of energy followed the outer limits of an invisible column, crashing down into the ground and into him. The space between the multiplying lines was soon occupied by a smoldering light of the same color, rising up into a flame of blue. His hand was conjuring the strongest attack he knew of, and Ulquiorra was channeling all his might by stealing spirit particles from the air just as a hollow would've in Hueco Mundo. Shifting his eyes left right and then up and down respectively he acquired the energy around him, forming a Maltese cross of flowing helix strands, all coursing into a solitary dot no brighter than the furthest of twinkling stars. _

_With a single flash, his ability to contain the spark sized object ceased, and it exploded outward to the size of a baseball. The true test of an Espada was the ability to contain the spark for at least twenty seconds, fifteen at the outside. He had barely managed five seconds. It wasn't enough to blow away a chunk of Las Noches, but it'd definitely leave Zaraki within a world of pain, if he managed to survive. A dead Kenpachi would be a lot better than a living chatterbox. _

_-----------------------_

_Aizen was dismayed, as he had to slow his progress when the seventh captain had somewhat caught up with him. Ulquiorra had confronted Zaraki, and was forced into unveiling a piece of himself to accomplish it. The first attempt yielded nothing, now he was pulling out all he had. Aizen had hoped to be alone when he reached Kenpachi, thereby being able to ascertain what he needed to know and then discreetly use a portion of his true self to stamp out the bastard. He'd have to take a new strategy though. _

"_Aizen Taicho, who or what do you think that could be?" _

"_Komamura-Taicho, this reiatsu is beyond captain level isn't it?" _

"_That's a good guess, I was thinking the same" the masked fox replied. "I'm at a loss for words, how can someone we can't even recognize be apparently stronger than Yamamoto-Taicho?" _

"_We'll know when we get there", Aizen finished for the moment, hoping to maintain his character's reserved nature. _

_The situation wasn't lost, with Komamura there, another of his controlled subjects; Aizen might just have a way to win the moment. A faint smile graced his lips as the two captains leapt much slower than he had hoped to. _

_-----------------------_

_Ulquiorra dropped to a knee, under the weight of such power; the technique truly was more than he was capable of handling. The helixes continued flooding reiatsu into the sphere but he could only hold it a moment longer. _

_In the back of his mind, a voice echoed from the past, _

'_Is this the limit of your love for Aizen-sama, how sad…' _

_In that instance again, just as it had been in the moments before his first attempt he saw that damn Vizard, laughing at him one more. _

'_I cannot continue to lag behind at the rear, more power is available to me, I will obtain it! Until then, I cannot gracefully show the extent of my love, but this will be enough this time.' Ulquiorra focused his will, as he stood upright once more, barely holding his supreme limit._

_His right wrist ratcheted around the hold of his left hand, until it pointed a beryl assassin forward. _

"_You shall receive what you have asked for, death!" _

_Tiles broke upward around Ulquiorra as he severed a small piece of the outer shell of his attack, with his mind unleashing a compressed tornado of power. _

_It didn't bare the traditional cylindrical form of cero; it was a reversed maelstrom of surging vehement energy. Its will thrust upon Zaraki Kenpachi obliterating him and tearing into the wall behind him into the night…_

_-----------------------------------------------_

_Komamura and Aizen stopped in their tracks, in fear for the first, and pride for the latter, watching a pyroclastic flow of a kidou attack. _

"_What in the stars was that?" Komamura exclaimed. _

'_He used it, I can't believe he'd actually be that capable… he should be at his limit now, if Zaraki survived that, I must hurry.' Number five pondered intently, as he leapt forward. _

"_Come on Komamura-Taicho, standing around will not teach us anything." _

"_Right, Aizen-Taicho." _

_-------------------------------- _

"_My master, in destroying him, I've failed you. I was able to silence a potential threat to us. Please forgive me." _

_Ulquiorra stumbled to the platform exit knowing others would come running at such a sight. Upon the exit, a wave of reiatsu crashed into him like a furious chill, followed by the deepest and darkest laugh he'd ever heard. _

_His love was insufficient to destroy the glowing spectacle of Zaraki Kenpachi, whose reiatsu had been pulled up from whatever hole he kept it in to be wielded as a suit of armor. It had pushed him though, pushed him off the edge of the wall that was no more, he hovered on a platform of focused energy. His hair no long held the pointed sun design, each respective point had been forced back down, almost into a half crescent curve. Each of the Christmas bells which had adorned each tip had either vanished or been destroyed. _

"_That all a vastolord can do? Damn that sucks, you're not even worth me taking the patch off; still gonna kill ya though." He did notice the absence of the ringing when he moved his head. "Well I'll be damned, you did manage to hurt my bells, and my hair is curved back like a ponytail, not a bad look if you ask me. Thanks, for the new do, I guess now all we have to do is settle the matter of your fee." _

_Ulquiorra was without the ability to speak, as any would be after such a transaction, Zaraki had nary a scratch on him, aside from the signature scar on his face. _

_-----------------------------------------------_

Pulling back the curtain, the true Zaraki Kenpachi took his first steps onto the stage. Tossing aside the patch, the remaining tiles, which hadn't been destroyed, were broken free as the ground quaked vehemently in the final moments before the eruption. Getting a first glimpse of the power that awaited his control; Zaraki began to laugh in his maniacal tone, even louder than the roaring earth beneath his feet.

An uneasy darkness fell in a foreboding blanket of the realm. Unwilling spectators could only watch as the moon overhead had dimmed in its radiance, been unnaturally reduced to a softly glowing bulb. Candles lost their ability to light a room; as it were all sources of light were bowing respectively to a coming greater light. It was nothing more than Zaraki's energy absorbing all the light around him, a signaling prelude to its explosion into the world.

Endless declarations of "what is this", were replaced by "what the?" as an explosion of reiatsu announced its presence from an undisclosed province of Sereitei.

When it came, it was a volcanic geyser of pure yellow light. Almost to the limit of never ending, it pulsed upward from the platform, which to all spectators appeared nothing more than a vent, canceling out the thought it was a person and not a broken seal of some kind. Miraculously, the walls contained the energy for the most part, having lost its decorative roofing tiles, its outer edges that were visible seemed ragged, but that could neither be confirmed nor denied. Sunlit reiatsu cascaded into the outer limits of heaven, only to collide with the barrier shield of Sereitei. Finding no means of out, the aura rained down upon the entire realm of the shinigami. The blinding light of a singular individual, who at the time remained nameless, overcame countless masses announcing the impossible.

All of the nearby surrounding districts of soul society could only gasp in fear, as Sereitei had turned into a yellow dawn, a dawn in the dead of night…

---------------------------

A bald headed shinigami with his pretty boy counterpart regarded the aura, which had encompassed their entire world.

"I would reckon to say the days of you being the strongest of the eleventh are over Ikkaku?"

"Shut up Yumichika, I thought I told you to never speak of that!"

"Yes, yes, I wonder though, did he finally achieve it himself? Who could he be fighting that's close to that strength?"

"Hell if I know…" his gaze was averted by the members of his division standing idly around, "Hey you bums, stop scratching your heads, if there's time to lean, there's time to clean! That's our captain's reiatsu, so if you don't want me to tell him about you slacking off, you'd better get back to work!"

"Hai, Madarame third seat!" Like ants, their underlings scrambled around to sweeping or whatever they were doing.

-------------------------------------------

"How's that for having your fucking foot in your mouth?" Zaraki trumpeted victoriously as he held reign over the power necessary to wipe out any of the other eleven. He spoke of course to Ulquiorra who like Byakuya had done nothing but underestimated him straight to the grave.

Zaraki sweat dropped when he realized Ulquiorra was incommunicado. The hell mouth of his reiatsu's appearance had driven the vastolord into the adjacent wall, from which he had fallen out at some point, gone. He wasn't dead by any means, but at his physical and mental limits, having just fired that colossal cero, then having stood up to an even greater amount of spiritual pressure. The toll was too much for him.

"Damn it all to hell!" Zaraki swore hoping to have some sort of astonished gaze at the sight of his full power, just a knocked out viewer.

Clenching his fist tight for a moment, Zaraki could sense the approaching powers; he had to end it swiftly to be able to stand up against him. Charging a final hit, the eleventh captain blurred from sight, dashing with an energized fist, the safety was off, and he was set on kill.

----------------------------------

A commanding voice broke the moment just as Kenpachi was about to end it.

"That's enough Zaraki Kenpachi!"

"If it isn't the douche-bag extraordinaire, and what's this, you have the pet fox with you, how interesting."

Aizen's eyebrows tweaked a little bit at the absurdity he was labeled, but he was quick to shove it off as Zaraki's usual brand of communication.

'_Pet fox' _Komamura thought, _'how could he know of my true form?'_

"What do you think you're doing here, harming one of my subordinates?"

"Subordinate? This little shit threatened to kill my daughter to get me to fight him. I've been so bored as of late, and I finally get a chance to flex my true muscles, and you two have come along to interrupt it."

"How did you get to be that strong", Aizen was quick with a fiery question, in the hopes it would break the captain's train of thought. Kenpachi wasn't that weakly willed, he never broke, and you'd have to kill him first. Even in death, he'd tell you to go pound sand, or fly a kite; whichever colorful string of expletives seemed appropriate.

"I've always been this strong, I've never had a reason to show it till now, but who'd a thought this kid could be as strong as a vastolord? He's no Espada though, I can't believe I removed my patch thinking I'd get a decent fight."

Aizen restrained himself as best as possible, even with Komamura present, he couldn't shake the intent he was sending, he wanted to choke Zaraki until he coughed up answers, or blood, whichever one came first.

Komamura didn't quite understand what an Espada was, perhaps a form of a hollow he wasn't aware of given the vastolord reference. The mentioning of such a hollow in itself was insanity.

"A vastolord you say?" Komamura, spoke rather dismayed, "none of us, aside from the commander have ever seen a vastolord, yet you speak of it like its common knowledge. Who are you really, you cannot be Zaraki Kenpachi, and if he were this strong he would've shoved it down our throats from the very moment he obtained it. By now we would've most likely killed him out of the sheer annoyance of it, but he would not have held back until now."

The fox in disguise noticed something a little off with the situation; there was no zanpakuto in Zaraki's hands.

"Where is your zanpakuto Kenpachi, this energy is from your Bankai isn't it?"

"Do you see a sword in my hands, baka, the old man in the sea, says I can't have a sword? The old fart didn't say anything about these." Zaraki showed off the brass knuckles with pride.

"Do you take us for that much of a fool Kenpachi, heh?" He snickered at the insanity of his implication that amount of reiatsu was his sealed power.

Zaraki walked over to the closest wall, and pulled out a piece of twisted metal from its broken face. He waved it up in the air numerous times before speaking, "Look Sajin-kun, number five and I need to have a little chat, I got a stick, I got a stick, now go fetch!" Kenpachi threw it over the furthest wall and heard it clank its way down.

His reply from the wolf was a fierce growl. "I thought dogs liked to play fetch?" Kenpachi laughed as Komamura dissolved from sight to attempt to knock the pointed haired fool out.

Aizen watched the exchange of blows carefully, Zaraki stepped aside using flash step, only to drop an elbow upon the massive helm of the fox shattering it. Number seven fell, but only enough to meet the rising left knee cap which ejected him upright. Komamura was completely unaware that Zaraki had taken stance to deliver a third strike to his bear sized midsection.

'_Who am I watching?_' Aizen thought, for a moment he almost considered the dismantling of number seven had been done by a carbon copy of himself, Zaraki was emotionless. Zaraki was never emotionless in combat.

'_Where was the giddiness?_' Zaraki's usual demeanor was rank with a bloodthirsty arrogance due to his above average fighting skills. To fight a ryoka on any given day, he would've given his left nut. To duel a captain class warrior, there was not a description colorful enough to describe the limit of requisite he would suffer. The ability to knock aside Komamura was beyond his historical range of limitations; even so he wasn't even enjoying it. There were no emotional commentary on the part of number eleven, it were as though the execution of one of the best was nothing more than a trifling act.

'This _Zaraki is like me_', Aizen concluded, his confidence was at a height close to omnipotence. Casually stepping over any other captain but Aizen would be a breeze, and he knew that instinctually, almost as if he'd done this life once before. A completely radical and absurdity of a thought, though it would explain the drastic difference in strength, and how he would know Shiro.

Aizen's mind wanted to connect the dots further between Kenpachi and Shiro, but he kept his thoughts focused on the moment, there would be time for analyzing later.

As Kenpachi struck Komamura in the stomach, he uttered a final phrase, which kept with his normal style of trash talk but still radiated with overconfidence.

"Play dead!"

Komamura had been hit by a freight train of reiatsu; the force of the punch spread over his entire front side and drove him into the adjacent wall with a fury that cut through rock with him as the blade.

Like the metal stick, Komamura screamed his way down.

Aizen remained emotionless; in spite of things he was impressed. Zaraki Kenpachi had just felled number seven as easily as he could have. Naturally he would've done it with advanced kidou, but the effect was still the same, even with a different cause. Eleven smiled at him in his demonic gaze, as Aizen materialized before him, moving exactly as swift as the opposing captain had when he disposed of the fox.

A showdown began again, this time they were alone, save Ulquiorra who didn't really count, incapacitated as he was. Nothing existed between them but the wind and a world of killer intent.

"Now that the trash has been disposed of, the game really gets exciting."

"You will tell me what I want to know Kenpachi." Aizen thundered with a reiatsu, which matched the intensity of the eleventh captain with not so much as a breath on his part.

"Blow me!"

"If you insist!" Aizen bellowed as he raised a glowing hand, with its fingers separated into two groups, two forward, two risen up, the hand sign necessary watcher's seat 30.

A phone booth of darkness large enough to house a Greek titan, filled upward as if it were being poured. Kenpachi was laughing through the entire ordeal, signaling his insanity, he replied to Aizen's earlier boast "I didn't know you swung that way Sosuke-kun…hah haha!" Zaraki's coffin had arisen like a sinister tombstone, translucent in the midnight sky. At least from Aizen's vantage it was invisible against the night sky. Kenpachi's aura hung around the area, giving light to the true darkness. More than a few were capable of seeing the blade like spikes that bounced outward and then within decimating the interior.

"I would hope that this has taught you some humility Zaraki Kenpachi, if there is anything left of you to feel it."

Out of the darkness came the demonic laugh again, followed closely by a titanic shudder, like the footstep of a giant lizard, a furious crash quaked the very foundation of the platform.

Another furious earthquake brought the end of the dark coffin, as yellow fractures appeared around a singular epicenter, fissuring outward. Like a glass vase, the hellhole Zaraki was encased within shattered, sending countless pieces in all directions. Kenpachi looked like he had been through a wood chipper. Crimson splashed all around him like he was a fountain. He was injured, but not out of the fight just yet.

There were no more words between them only a final dash as Zaraki lunged to plant his enhanced right knuckle upon the chin of Aizen. He took it without showing any sign of fear or injury. Number eleven hit him with the fury that would've separated the head of the big fox from his spinal column.

Zaraki and Aizen watched as the metal knuckle enhancer wrapped around his fist crumbled from the impact, having broken upon armored skin. Its shards fell down just as he was about to.

A third source of killer intent entered the mix as a glowing eyed Komamura had flashed up to the platform, snarling. Unlike the others, the wolf had brought his zanpakuto, and because of his enormous size could keep it concealed, it was the one law he ever broke, out of his desire to be able to protect the commander at all times. Glowing crimson, he started to raise his blade out of a concealed sheath.

Aizen's voice was clear and precise, speaking of how the conclusion had come.

"What will you do now Kenpachi-kun? Your weapon has shattered, just as you are inches from being. Restriction or not, Komamura will kill you within the next minute, unless I say otherwise!"

Kenpachi thought about it for a second, and then noticed the swiftly approaching presence of the second captain, along with the first. Instinctually, he reached out for Aizen's hands, smearing a bit of himself on them, before dropping to a knee.

"What is your answer Zaraki, you're out of time!"

"Hmm, I think I'll let you take the blame for all this!"

"Preposterous!"

A shallow hiss echoed around them, as Aizen and Komamura's heads turned eyes wide as the captain commander and the leader of the Special Forces appeared, along with thirty or so of her subordinates. Her personal guards, they were adorned in skin tight black suits that revealed only their eyes, which stared into the very depths of whomever happened to be unlucky enough to warrant their gaze.

At a moment's notice, without any hesitation, her elite would plunge themselves into death. From the taste of the atmosphere, they could discern that evening was most likely one of those times.

--------------------

Acting completely as his mind had just conjured, Zaraki had his legs give out on him, and he collapsed before Aizen.

He could not have painted a better picture if he tried, Komamura had his sword drawn, Aizen's hands were bloody and Kenpachi looked like he had gone through a meat grinder.

Soifon and Yama-ji obviously were momentarily speechless. Their minds assessed the situation simply by observation. Initially this was a reconnaissance mission, to uncover whom or what conjured that epic kidou attack which could've only been weld by someone of the caliber of Soutaicho. Given the reality that the old man was not even in that district, such a thing was improbable.

Logically, they could've never predicted the situation their eyes would've uncovered.

There against the port sidewall, laid a knocked out shinigami whose lingering reiatsu felt similar to the blue inferno Sereitei had witnessed. Soifon and the old man exchanged looks of extreme horror and confusion, as none of them knew of the young raven-haired man.

From what they could piece together, it must've been the boy who by all logical assumption had initialized or been goaded into a fight with Kenpachi, who was then beset by Komamura and Aizen, who respectfully mauled him, no pun intended to the newly revealed beast of a captain. Zaraki had to be the cause, but with a released sword on the part of the big bad wolf, and the bloody hands Aizen, the evidence spoke otherwise.

There likewise existed the possibility that the kid was a member of seventh division, and Komamura found them engaged in battle and went crazy. Aizen could've come in to intervene.

With the report of the other illegal attack, it pointed to Aizen who was a kidou master.

There were too many variables to sort them out at such a late hour. From what his senses were directing him, Zaraki was torn up, but not in a state where his life was in danger, oddly enough it felt like he could still take a further beating. Which meant they had time to wait, and possibly ascertain the truth.

'_To think we've had a monster like that within our midst all along, at least he's on our side for the moment_', Soutaicho considered briefly.

The captain commander cleared his throat, intending to deliver orders to the surrounding guards.

The order never came, as with a single thought, Soutaicho set his titanic reiatsu upon the courtyard, breaking away any remnant of the floor and forcing everyone who wasn't knocked out or barely breathing to their knees. His gaze bore the heat and destructive fury of the legendary halberd, for some reason it wasn't affecting Ulquiorra that much.

"I wish to know for what reason have we all gathered here tonight, to regard the beauty of the moon and stars I think not. Who conjured that tempest of a kidou attack, its form and shape are entirely unique. Scaled in the terms of the forbidden arts, I am confused as to who among this collection of souls would be capable of it."

"We will stay here until I get some answers."

Viridian eyes slowly opened to regard the warmth of a deadly stare, his immediate thoughts of focusing on his own survival shifted to protection when he saw his own master being lowered by the will of the old man. He knew better than to assume it was for real, with his spiking reiatsu, his master's eyes met his, and his mouth formed the words '_can you move?_'

Ulquiorra slowly nodded, applying his own power to move against the commander's will.

Soutaicho watched the entire courtyard, from every hovering spec of rock or dust, to every movement of the occupants; his eyes registered the shift of Aizen's head to the newly awakened mysterious shinigami.

"Was it this subordinate or Ryoka, Aizen-Taicho?"

The eyes of number five continued to stare a hole in those of his subordinate whose never wavered. Instantly they shifted to port, focusing on the commander for a moment and then dashed away to the opposite side.

Ulquiorra read this as '_confront the commander, then escape_'.

Focusing more of himself onto number five, the commander roared, "Answer me Aizen Sosuke!"

A piercing scream broke the forced silence, as reiatsu burst forth from the unknown boy, his power had restored from the spirit particles in the air about a two fifths.

Zaraki watched the unfolding scene with a '_what the hell_' kind of expression, thinking he still had that much left.

Disregarding the invasion force of power upon his shoulders, Ulquiorra got first to his knees, slowly rising like the sun to stand upright. Within a beryl aura he burned against the world ceasing power of the commander.

To the elder captain, the boy's intentions for the moment were unreadable. From the feel of the reiatsu swirling around the young man, the elder reckoned it was he who fired off that initial whirlwind. He didn't even bother with the guards, for Soutaicho could discern the level of power the kid was capable of, reasonably none of the guards could stand against such a being.

"Who are you?" like an arrow, his intentions tore through both powers.

Even with his nearly broken jaw, Ulquiorra had no difficulty in speaking, even though his voice was a little raspy initially from the bloody wound. Spitting crimson essence upon the tattered ground, he wiped his mouth with his right fist before conversing with the elder captain.

"If you wish to refer to me as something, I am the fourth Espada, Ulquiorra Schiffer". His tone spoke of his title being above the entire world, as he had spoken with his chin held high.

A partial smile came to the lips of his master, who could only laugh internally at the boast of his subordinate. Ulquiorra's eyes shifted to Aizen who watched them shift further for a moment to Kenpachi, painting him as the source of the name, only to return to the commander.

Aizen nodded slightly even though his 'sword' had already returned to his original gaze, '_isn't this interesting_?'

Zaraki was astonished, but at the same time a little impressed, this was the sort of person that could hound the very soul of his last rival. More than any other moment of their own encounter, he in that moment understood why Grimmjow loathed the punk.

'_Ulquiorra would get along great with Byakuya, if they could ever get past the whole seeing who could raise their chin higher while still staring the other in the eye_'. Zaraki laughed at his mind's ability to conjure something comical in such a predicament.

"Clearly you are suffering from mental problems young lad, Espada haven't existed for over five thousand…" Ulquiorra interrupted him, as the boy raised his right pointer, which held a glowing blue sphere. His course of action suddenly came to a screeching halt. A shuddering darkness crept into the realm of his eyes, flooding everything in a perfect moment of silence.

-------------------------------

His mind had been separated to a pocket dimension, while his body remained in its last form. Ulquiorra was immersed within an alternate reality whose very essence breathed tranquility.

A crimson set of three small talons instantly reached out to him at an almost unnoticeable speed, instinctively he met it with his hand hardened with reiatsu. Initially it was a single clawed hand, but eventually it spread to two identical clones, which struck at a cyclical diagonal angle, from the left and right respectively.

Ulquiorra deflected every attack, but for the life of him he couldn't discern where the hell he was, and what the hell he was really doing. All of a sudden, the pattern of attacks shifted, it wasn't just a series of small claws, and it became an enlarged talon and even the feel of a blade like tail.

It wasn't until a blood red raptor materialized before his eyes that he understood. The solid white Ulquiorra carefully analyzed the zanpakuto avatar before his eyes, having never seen such a creature before. Nearly a meter high, it was bipedal, with a low and long head, but what struck him the most was the means in which he was equipped. Two sets of three claws hung from rather short arms. It wasn't until his eyes ventured lower that they locked onto the large talons that had attacked him before, but they were affixed to the upper side of his feet.

'_What kind of speed and agility must this creature have to employ an attack with his feet while giving it the appearance of an arm?_'

'**You're a swift bastard Ulquiorra, no wonder my previous occupant didn't stand a chance. I can see your in a bit of a jam here so how bout I help ya out?**'

'_Where were you ten minutes ago when I could've used you?' _

'**I wasn't too sure about you until I saw hollow flash of yours. I can help you with the means of controlling it. My nature relies on the stealthy hunting of prey, but even I can see if you are to survive this you'll need my help.' **

'_What's in it for you?' _

'**Don't beat around the bush do you?' **

'**I like that about you, your violently direct, just like me. Since you took me from that chump, it must mean I'm not dead, so that means I'm a part of you…'**

'**I am…' **

Ulquiorra returned to reality as he had departed in only the span of a few seconds. Gripping the hilt of his newly initialized blade, he could feel its power channeling through him even though he hadn't released it yet, its presence was ferocious. His left hand drew out the blade from its corresponding side sheath, in which his presence spread out in a column a couple of meters beyond him before ceasing.

Aizen observed the unfolding situation, for Ulquiorra to have blacked out like that, if even for a few moments, with him pulling forth the blade, they must've made contact. His underling had already taken the first steps, as a father figure, he was rather proud to be witnessing it.

He stood within a beryl aura, reminiscent of his kidou form of cero, but with the influence of the sword, its face started to change. A confident, satisfied smile had come across his lips, as the tint on his face shifted to amethyst. From blue to purple in an instant, it shifted one final time, to its true form, scarlet.

A blood red light encircled him; it was like he stood within the swirling tempest of a true hollow flash. His glowing finger sparkled for a moment, sputtering blue until it to shifted to red. It appeared as though the boy stood within a wildfire, but instead of being burned alive, he was being restored. His aura outlined the bones of his jaw, reconnecting and repairing their damages. Within a minute, he could move it as if the lower side of his face had never taken damage.

'_Aren't you just full of surprises Ulquiorra; your light is now as it should be. What course will you take from here, are you capable of aiding me in this?_' Aizen considered.

Zaraki was livid, '_why is it that almost every mother-fucker I fight has a god dam restoring zanpakuto?_'

Ulquiorra gazed down at the zanpakuto in his hands, viewing its unsheathed self for the first time since their introduction. In its basic form it was no different than a standard soul slayer, its hand guard bore the form of two raptor claws set in opposing directions, forming an S.

"_**Tairageru, shikou verokiraputoru" **__(Consume, crimson raptor) _Ulquiorra announced with pride as he held his shifting sword out front.

An explosion of dust and reiatsu blanketed the entire courtyard, but Ulquiorra didn't use the diversion as a means to escape, he remained, holding firm a new extension of him, whatever form it might've taken.

When it cleared, Ulquiorra was holding a Kama blade, a farming style tool with a small sickle attached to its tip. While that was its defining form, it was worlds away from it in actual appearance.

The wooden handle had been superimposed by a solid metal shaft two thirds of a meter in length. Its blade wasn't a puny fang, but an exact replica of the toe claw of said velociraptor. From a V shaped end, the claw flowed horizontally forward before falling to an ridiculously narrow point, almost like half of a crescent, but far more ominous.

The scarlet raptor hummed with his own reiatsu as Ulquiorra bathed in his brilliance.

Schiffer held out his right hand mysteriously, gathering energy until a single red spark appeared concealed within his grasp.

"I am the one who fired that tempest as you call it, even such a description is insignificant to its true meaning. It is the depth of the love for my master."

"Who is your master, whose sword are you, Ulquiorra Schiffer?"

"The true king of this world, not the fool who sits on high clouds. He doesn't intend to watch you ants scurrying around. Ah, I almost forgot, it was I who conjured the black coffin of death you must've seen, it took my last stitch of power, but I managed to humble someone like Kenpachi."

"Nice try kid, but the reiatsu from that attack varied from your own, rather convenient of an assumption, almost as if your master is among those here before us."

Ulquiorra's eyes narrowed as he turned his back on the captain, to direct an explosion of Cero at Kenpachi.

Aizen intercepted the intention of his subordinate and rose to his knees, spinning around the fallen captain before him to act as a shield. The reversal took less than a second, he wasn't moving at his best possible speed, but at his 'known' speed.

A compressed cylinder of red light struck Aizen like a runaway train, without any yielding or hesitation, even though it was being directed at his own master. Through the attack, their minds were connected, hypothetically at least.

'_I've just taken the blame off your shoulders master, consequently also the fox, I know you aim to use him some more before our departure._'

'_There are not words for what you've done, I'm so impressed_.'

'_Thank you master, I take my leave._'

Ceasing his scarlet blaze, the then unoccupied hand pulled down upon an undisturbed section of space, summoning gargantua. For a moment there, he wasn't sure if he could still use the gateway to Hueco Mundo, but perhaps with the restoration of his true hollow powers, this must've been included.

Clutching his scythe, Ulquiorra leapt into the black void, returning to the fortress, to ascertain its condition, and to rally others, if the need be.

Aizen fell having '_succumbed_' to serious burns, drifting backwards until he collapsed upon the ground next to Kenpachi, their heads aligned. While Zaraki had been quite efficient in his dramatics to paint the two of them as the cause of his injuries, Ulquiorra had taken the mantle of blame onto himself.

It truly was beautiful when a plan comes together.

-------------------

Soutaicho was in complete disarray, he shuddered in fear for the first time in countless ages. He had made sure he killed the last one with his bare hands. That was a time when he was capable of such a thing. What hole did that boy crawl out of, the normal zanpakuto release, combined with the red fire of Cero, it had been accomplished without a masked face, he was a true Legendary Espada.

'_He's only the forth, those monsters have returned under my nose without any warning. The way we are now will not be enough to stand against them again.' _

The mind of Soutaicho had disregarded the fear, shifting to what was necessary at the moment, the saving of Aizen and Kenpachi, who were both critically injured.

"Soifon-Taicho, contact the fourth squad, we need Unohana-Taicho here immediately!" Soifon nodded to a guard and a few of them leapt from sight, to summon the fourth captain.

-----------------------------------

"This situation has gravely shifted, I will disregard any notion of betrayal or breaking of law. But I cannot dissuade myself from thinking perhaps one of you three might be connected to that monster. Until such a time that the truth can be uncovered, I am placing you all under arrest. Zaraki Kenpachi, you and Aizen-Taicho will be detained by the fourth division and placed under their care until such time as a proper statement can be taken by you both. From there you will be placed under house arrest within your division."

"Sajin Komamura, even though the baring of a zanpakuto without direct order is a crime punished by suspension, I will not allow one of my best to be dishonored in such a manner, you and Aizen came to the aid of a fellow captain, and the good outweighs the offense in this manner. While I believe you wouldn't be connected to that kid, I cannot turn my back on any of you, therefore your punishment will be the same as theirs."

"While I cannot deny the appearance of good intentions, we also have the acknowledgement of someone using watcher's seat thirty."

Aizen's eyes lit up partially as he had thought the darkness had concealed his 'even greater' darkness. He'd thought Ulquiorra had mentioned it just on the outside chance someone had seen it.

"Using forbidden kidou even in this manner is not allowed, but given the situation, whomever of you conjured it will be forgiven."

He was about to address the matter of their Zanpakuto when the commander noticed the absence of Zaraki's jagged Nodaichi.

"Where is your zanpakuto Zaraki?"

Zaraki coughed up some blood before replying, really fluffing up his condition.

"Its back at the division."

The old man's head leaned back in partial awe, Soifon fired off a response as quick as one of her hits, "You're implying that the reiatsu that still lingers around here is not a final release but your own stored power? Do you really take me for that much of a fool?"

"Its true, I obtained the final release: _Zakkuri-taikou-saiki._"

'_Cutting empress of restoration?' all inquired. _

"That crazy bitch sword of mine gave me a huge amount of power to play around with, seems I wasn't strong enough to play with her true form. Zakkuri likes it rough, much as I do, and from what I hear so do…"

"Enough Kenpachi, being a victim in this situation, you can retain your sword, for protective means, though with a power level like that, you'd be fine without it I think."

Soifon blushed for a moment, wondering how the hell Kenpachi would know of that, they had never…

It was one of Zaraki's secrets from the future, one night they had gotten into a drunken fight, and one thing lead to another…

Zaraki nodded out of respect, more for show than actual devotion.

"You three had better believe I will find out what happened here tonight! If one of you is attached to that monster, there won't be enough of you to put in an ashtray by the time I'm through with you."

With a corresponding nod of their supervisor, the special ops vanished to apprehend Komamura who was in complete dismay at having shamed himself before the commander. Even in the fact that he had been redeemed, his head still hung low in a sullen manner as two guards lead him away.

Kenpachi winced in pain as two guards flipped him over to await field treatment.

Aizen stared over at the luckiest man alive, knowing his hands were tied literally and figuratively. Killing him at the moment however would serve no purpose. He would bide his time, until he could spring a trap upon Zaraki, given he was the biggest threat to his ideal at the very moment.

"You have become quite clever Zaraki, but it seems fate is working in my favor. Oh, and you will tell me what I want to know!" Aizen whispered.

"_You have yet to meet the true face of fate, until that time comes, go fuck yourself!" _

Zaraki had just mouthed a phrase at Aizen that would've driven the captain insane had he not been of a sound mind to realize the company.

A newly awakened sleeper had outwitted number five. Nevertheless, even in the face of having his tactics reversed upon himself, Zaraki wasn't dismayed, he even appeared enigmatically happy. The days of him being the weakest of mind and power were over. Kenpachi had always been clever in battle, but reiatsu wise, he couldn't tell his own ass from a hole in the ground. It was just another irregularity stacking high in favor of Sosuke uncovering the truth.

Zaraki blacked out after that, as he had reached his limit, he had hoped to see Retsu before zoning out; she'd probably have a clever quip about the situation of their meeting not being suitable conversation material over coffee.

_---------------------------------------_

Zaraki awoke the next morning to find himself in jail. He'd woken up in worse places, like the time he got so annihilated that he refused to leave a mortal world bar, and had to be thrown out. He awoke within an alleyway god knows how many days or hours later.

A swiftly opened eye assessed his situation, he was in a fourth division prison, and in rather well shape all things considered. His ears twitched as a voice and its corresponding reiatsu came to mind, of all the places he had been put, it was next to her.

'Because of me, his fate and destiny were disrupted. Because I involved him in my affairs, he's probably…' she choked up and started to cry clearly fake tears, but the receiving end of the act was sucking it up like a sponge.

Why was she laying it on so thick, she knew he was alive, he'd made sure of that himself. Gazing over he recognized the seventh seat of the very division he was crashing in, he was why she was speaking like that, to get him on her side just as he had been the first time. Zaraki decided to play with her a little.

"That boyfriend of yours sounds like a real pussy!"

Hanatarou leapt suddenly in fear as the beast known as Kenpachi rose up ferociously like an old man who had just found kids on his lawn. Zaraki politely told Yamada to scram with a few choice expletives, in which he backed away swiftly. The boy respectfully bowed to both of them and waved to her to whom she wove and implied it would be all right.

---------------------

The two of them sat in silence, both aware of their own powerlessness. Both attentive to their shared reality, they viewed it in a careless disregard.

"I hear you went against the architect, and managed to survive, I'm impressed."

Without a doubt, this was the Rukia he expected to meet, not the meek girl that Ichigo had come to save, but the iron willed soul that had attacked the brother that would've separated her from the one she loved.

"Kuchiki, your boyfriend's going to kill me isn't he?"

"It's Kurosaki not Kuchiki, I haven't been the latter for some time now."

"So that's how it is, you know, you don't have to wait here for him Kurosaki, I can hide you somewhere safe, maybe even take you to him."

"No Zaraki-Taicho, I am waiting here on the promise he would make me as strong as he is."

"That's a good answer, its too bad I can't use my idea of using that brat as a decoy, a little sake, clothes and a wig and I think he could pass for you. Not much need for a bra either, good thing your not like that tenth squad vice captain, hot damn now that's a broad".

"I don't think Unohana-Taicho would like to hear those words from you, she was worried sick about you. She checked many times during the night, I saw that blush you gave her earlier, Ken-chan's got a crush, oh I can't wait to tell Ichigo."

"Not been sleeping well?"

"With a shark out there in a white haori having convinced everyone else he's just a little guppy?"

"Yeah, guess I can't blame you there." Zaraki laughed but shifted to dead on serious.

"I give you my word, Kurosaki Rukia, if something happens to Ichigo, my division will shelter you, or die trying. It would be the least I could do for him, I owe my very existence to him."

"Thank you Zaraki-Taicho, I have full faith in Ichigo's ability to fulfill his promise. He'd better, or I'll kill him myself…" she laughed completely at ease.

A white haired man also in a white haori had heard their entire conversation. Furthermore, he had yet to hear from his subordinate he had sent to ascertain the relationship of Kuchiki Rukia and Kurosaki Ichigo. Regardless of whatever words may come of the yellow haired third seat, he was capable of realizing he had been wading at the surface of the situation.

Rukia knew of depths of the oceanic plot, because she was chained to its bottom. In addition, Zaraki Kenpachi of all people knew of her plight, and would even go as far as to offer her the means to escape it. Based on knowledge Ichigo was coming for her, Rukia refused a clear exit. She'd even changed her name to his.

Ukitake-Taicho didn't even present himself to her, he shifted from sight, walking away, hoping that he didn't have to become as involved as the atmosphere seemed to suggest, knowing the trouble it would cause if they were all wrong. He'd converse with Kyoraku, hopefully their emissaries would've returned by then.

The three of them were likewise unaware of an undisclosed fourth presence, a bonnet-wearing girl, whose eyes were tear-filled. She had come to see her injured captain, whom she adored; she couldn't believe what had happened to him that she broke down from the shock.

The phrase _'went against the architect' _caught her ears and ignited her synapses; these words were requisite for one of Aizen's safeguards. Number five had programmed her to detect any notions of deceptions or hard feelings against him. He treated her more like a machine than an actual human, she however was unable to notice the difference, and he'd even gone that far.

Without question, Hinamori had struck pay dirt…

------------------------------------------------------

_**A/N: **_(raises pinky finger up to lip, laughs like a bald headed villain…)

If the italicized section confuses some of you, it was my first attempt at using a flashback for a moment that would've happened just before the opening words. Sorry if it was confusing.

As far as soul society is concerned, this story will get there when it is meant to, and it's not far away by any means.

_(My profile has the official soundtrack of moonfang listed; I'm still working on putting a folder together for you guys to DL if you'd want to.) _

**------------[7.21.07------------------------**

I can't believe I had forgotten about U-kun when Soutaicho appeared. I hope that this has satisfied your curiosities, and furthered the plot, as you would've hoped.

Thanks for playing along, and have a nice day! -CH


	19. As with the clouds

**Moonfang**

**XIX **_As with the clouds_

* * *

Things seemed to move rather quickly whenever Kurosaki-san was involved, Kisuke thought to himself as he pondered the rapid progression of those surrounding the boy. Ichigo's mere presence was such that he inspired greatness, and with the outstretching of his hands, he offered providence for those who he loved.

Providence was something Kisuke was no stranger to, as history reflected, his own efforts were for those he considered comrades at least and friends at best. It was clearer to him now as Kurosaki continued to train his friends and would be kin, that Kisuke's hands had helped shape the young boy into the leader he was before him.

For some inexplicable reason, the boy seemed to no longer wish vengeance upon him; perhaps save all his fury for those more deserving.

His recent sins of late made him wonder why the kid was being so lenient, but rather than incite a storm of anger he decided not to probe the boy's motives, for they would surely show themselves when he decided them to.

As Kisuke continued to observe the advancement of those children, his gaze was focused more often then not upon the oldest of the children, someone who was almost within his age group yet almost identical to Ichigo, in Kaien.

Kaien's return to the world of Shinigami is almost as unexplainable as anything ever could be. Ichigo being a traveler from a not too distant but explainable dark future is something Urahara didn't refute from the onset regardless of his story. Anything was possible when it involved Aizen, and perhaps this too was no different. In spite of all the realities which make it impossible, there Kaien stood far below him, adorned in a mask fighting the materialized form of his zanpakuto, and as time had shown, not far from accomplishing the task.

Everything came back to Kuchiki Rukia: Ichigo's return, his redemption of Kaien, the progression of the children and more importantly the final destruction of Aizen Sosuke. But from what Urahara could tell, the children below him knew or cared nothing about Aizen, they sought to improve themselves in order to help out Ichigo, and help out Rukia.

Ichigo was wise enough not to burden them with the truth about who they would ultimately be facing, and in that sense left them unafraid nor ridden with the doubts one might usually have when informed of such a danger on the horizon.

* * *

With Urahara's mind focused on other things, he failed to notice a distinct rumbling sensation in his haori pocket, which trembled a few times and then paused. Once more it shook the lining of his pocket, snapping him back to reality. Lifting the object to his ear, Kisuke heard the unmistakable kansai-ben dialect of someone who also had a vested interest in the proceedings of late.

"Geta-boshi-san, this is Pharaoh…"

Kisuke noted the use of nicknames in questioning whether or not the connection was secure, and slightly he was offended by the gesture.

"ah Hirako-san, nice to hear from you again!"

"Fool, don't say that name!"

"Do you think me foolish enough to use a device that soul society could trace Hirako-san? Not even Mayuri himself could break the encryption on this phone."

After a momentary pause, the fair haired man continued with his reason for calling.

"What do you know of Hueco Mundo?"

Kisuke laughed and answered in his jovial manner "Black skies, white sands and full of hollows?".

Hirako sighed internally, and decided just to come out with it.

"I heard about the white fortress… was it your doing?"

Kisuke knew Hirako was bound to call about the situation involving the fortress, the rumor of his involvement with their enemy seemed to legitimize itself with those words. It was mutually understood why they had reached out to Aizen, even if it was the dumbest of gestures, seeking to serve him in the opportunity to betray, but sometimes Kisuke wondered if they had in fact been discovered and then pressed into conscription.

Likely it was the latter of the two, Shinji would rather give up something too vulgar to mention at even the slightest thought of serving Aizen.

"Hirako san, you should know me better, of course it wasn't my doing, I'm not that brave."

"Do you know who then?"

"Of course…"

"Was it one of your experiments?"

Kisuke went through the motions of appearing to think about it, not for any particular reason, "at one time he may have been an subject, but surely not this time."

Hirako could sense that Kisuke knew of everything but in his usual wayward manner wasn't coughing up the information lightly.

"Tryin to get an answer out of you is like pullin teeth!"

Kisuke having still employed his jovial mannerisms grew deathly serious as he continued. At this moment he knew he was risking alot, and he would gauge Shinji's answer to see how much he could divulge safely.

"What kind of person do you think would be brash enough to attack that bastion single handedly?"

Hirako knew of no answer and therefore voiced none.

"It was the descendant of Shiba…"

Hirako paled, and felt chill creep down his back as he waited for Kisuke to continue with what had to be some kind of better clarification.

"The son of Isshin is a vizard, a pretty formidable, possibly even more so then the lot of your kind."

In spite of the harrowing news, Hirako's mind was still moving forward,

"Would he have anything to do with that asshole Kenpachi?"

"You remain marvelously well informed, in spite of things", Kisuke replied.

The chill on the back of Shinji was almost all encompassing by that time, as he could feel the hands of fate were beginning to move.

Hearing nothing but silence on the other end, Kisuke continued.

"The how and the why are not important at this time Hirako-san. From this, one might conclude that the clouds are starting to gather…"

'_And without the fortress Aizen will have no shelter from the storm'_, Hirako's mind silently concluded.

"and so shall we Kisuke…" and with that the phone disconnected, and as the phone slid back into the pocket, Kisuke's gaze returned to the present situation…

Just as his comrade on the phone had just been taken aback, he too was forced to step back slightly in fear. What he had been able to accomplish, had now been done in less time.

-------------------

"It…is… done, I've done it!" Kaien's normally deep and proud voice was broken and weak due to his state of near exhaustion. The remnants of his vanquished zanpakuto dissolved from the air before him, spiraling out of sight and once more returning to the place at his side.

Even though he had far surpassed the measure of tapped out, he felt as though he had crossed a bridge that had never been open to him before, and looking back he could no longer fathom what it was like on the previous side. He could feel a overwhelming sense that his new limits of greatness might be enough to take his breath away.

And with that thought, he had no more as his wear had finally taken it's toll and taken his consciousness along for a ride. Backwards he fell only to be caught by Ichigo, who like Inoue and Tatsuki had come swiftly, but he had gotten there first.

"You've done well my brother…" Kurosaki mentioned softly as he carried Kaien over to a section of soft dirt. In placing him upon the sands, Ichigo greeted his approaching friends, mentioning to Inoue to begin the process of rejecting his wear, to help Kaien and be further training for her as well.

With a flicker of Santen Kisshun, Inoue's fairies went to work in repairing the vast damage that Kaien had undertaken. Tatsuki had taken his hand warmly and held it within her own.

Rather than impose any further Ichigo rose upward, and walked away calmly…

'_We're finally ready to save you Rukia…' _Ichigo thought to himself _'If only we had the conductor on the same page…' _

Out of the corner of his sight, Ichigo thought he heard the faintest of voices creeping from behind him, Kaien spoke from his sleep _"Tell him the truth…" _It were as though his exhausted brother had seeped into his own inner world and could read his thoughts. To be honest it scared the hell out of Ichigo, but the message was not unfounded.

The Ichigo that existed in the past but of the future had no ill will towards Urahara Kisuke, regardless of how the past and the future unfolded, Kisuke's decisions had ultimately resulted in the victory over Aizen Sosuke. Ichigo was never the type to hold a grudge, but as he walked towards the wooden sandal wearing man, his mind formulated a possibility as for why he rained anger upon him earlier.

It could have been the merger with his younger self, whose naivety saw past the good and only visited upon the wrong. To Ichigo however, it was irrelevant in whatever the case might have been, he now needed Urahara's brilliance to formulate a refined strategy.

The Kisuke before Ichigo was undoubtedly overtaken by the progression of Kaien more than the others, and his face shown a regard to something along those lines. As Ichigo approached it he could not help but feel a bit ashamed by the callous behavior he had displayed to Urahara who was someone who had always helped him out, through his own cunning ways.

Ichigo needed him at the helm of their operation, for he was just a soldier, he needed a general. Using the same method he had done only a night before with Rukia he would share the absolute truths of him and the future.

-------------

Kisuke's dismay was not without warrant, for impossibilities continued to follow Ichigo like a wedding train. Shiba Kaien was someone that Kisuke knew only by reputation, a genius level vice captain who completed the Shinigami course work in a single year. Even with that kind of intellect it still took normal Shinigami captains years to achieve the second release.

Ichigo had mentioned that he too was in the 2 day club, and the gears in Kisuke's mind were cycling forward trying ascertain the answer for how.

He gazed further from the sight of Kaien over to the girls now at his. One was a human with zanpakuto like creatures at her control, the other a spiritually aware human now a Shinigami. At the request of Arisiwa-san, Kurosaki transferred some of his reiatsu into her heart thus recreating her as a Shinigami. It was a transaction he performed with the utmost of care and respect. Kurosaki offered from his own pool of strength freely an amount that made her possibly a little higher than a third seated officer. His power injected itself into her own, creating a stable foundation for her own latent abilities.

Such a practice always came down to the ethics of the individual Shinigami involved. Kuchiki-san had freely given her own powers to Kurosaki in a time of crisis, and as he now understood, was paying the price for it. There was some legitimacy to the idea of it being taboo, considering that it exposed a living being to the matters and situations involving the dead. From what the future had told, the Shinigami eventually overlooked the case of Kuchiki and Kurosaki given his ability during what would be the insurrection of Aizen. If all the ducks fell into the proper order, Kisuke assumed the same case could be said for both of them now, Kurosaki and Arisiwa.

It's not like she didn't have potential, surprisingly even to him Arisiwa-san had even gotten to the point where she could converse with her zanpakuto to achieve it's primary form. The zanpakuto took the form of a long and thin metal shaft upon which a large cylinder sat, almost like an oversized sledge-hammer. From what Kisuke could discern, it had to be amongst those considered the most beautiful of weapons, given that the entire object was crafted out of what had to be sterling silver or better.

Even more surprising was the hammer's attacking ability which seemed to take a page directly from Zangetsu. A hammer is a pretty destructive weapon by it's own right, but when combined with a reiatsu burst of striking power from the hammer's business end, it made it even more so. Giving a sledge hammer to a boxer was somewhat fitting, given the nature of both to pummel the living heck out of something. Coupling Tatsuki with Inoue's gift of casting her shields, it made the young girl a formidable opponent for anyone vice captain or lower.

Kisuke's mind processed many things in those moments, pondering the advancement of the Mexican Sado-kun, whose arms manifested hollow like attributes that could defend and assault with impressive results. Tessai had been a good sparring choice for him, with all the Kidou and physical strength he matched the kid in combat styles perfectly. Then the boy disappeared from his sight, only to reappear… he had mastered the flash step, and yet it wasn't the flash step, a shivering movement with an entirely different sound…

'_Must be sonido then, so that's what the nature of your power then Sado-kun, appropriate.' _

Snapping back to reality, Urahara almost leapt out of his skin, to find Kurosaki-san standing next to him, the boy's presence was impressive at such a distance, almost overpowering.

"Urahara-san", Ichigo began as he lowered his head in shameful regret. "I wish to apologize for my behavior involving you, and as a token of my regret I wish to show you all that I cannot properly explain to you."

Visibly astonished by the apology of the kid in front of him, Urahara was skeptical of anyone willing or wishing to explain things to him.

"Take my hand and the future will open up to you."

Reluctantly Kisuke consented, and their hands met, but unbeknownst to him, the joining card coupled their souls together. Their energies interconnected, pulling the pair of them away from the world, into a mosaic kaleidoscope of images and moments. It wasn't a total merger like it had been with Rukia, Ichigo restricted his mind to only show the most relevant moments involving Aizen and his movements and actions in the future.

Within the first instance of the transaction of memories, Urahara came into his own, having shed the fear and doubts of Ichigo, his mind ravenously took in the knowledge of what would have come to pass like a shark feasting upon a dead whale.

The more renown memories echoed the loudest, from the moment his insurrection began, to the showdown in Hueco Mundo and the street-fight in Karakura to the day Aizen vanquished the Shinigami.

The memories illustrated what the boy's words could only suggest, he had indeed come from the darkest of futures, the final outcome of all possible failures.

When it had concluded, the pair of them stood idly, but gasping for breath.

Urahara, examined the card in his hands, the gears of his mind spinning away in the silence thereafter.

"A substance…", he began to vocally theorize, "A substance that acts as a subconscious medium between the minds of two souls, quite ingenious. I'm curious whether or not this a product of Kurotsuchi-san?"

Ichigo looked at him with the sort of glare that could infer the stupidity of even answering such a question.

"You already know the answer to that Urahara-san."

"Perhaps", Urahara laughed as he turned to stare Ichigo dead in the face, " you're really a Division captain are you not?"

"I was the second division captain", Ichigo replied.

"You are as formidable as any captain I have ever seen."

Urahara turned away for a moment pocketing the card for later study but he then looked back to Ichigo with a glare that read _'well, aren't you coming?' _

"Ah…right, I forgot… Kurosaki-san, what spells are you trained in?"

"I have only initiate level training with Kidou, nothing formal. But I can perform the hollow arts though, better than most."

"That's a start then… come, I'll grab Tessai-san, cause we've got to train you in using some Kidou techniques."

"Why, Urahara-san?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Urahara's face bore the usual almost devious smile that Ichigo had come to revere and sometimes fear.

"When you go to soul society, you're going to use that card one more time. I think you might be able to use it with Tentei Kuura perhaps."

A startling chill emanated from the spine of Ichigo, and a somewhat devious smile came to his lips, this was the Urahara he needed on his side…

Indeed, storm clouds were gathering…

* * *

_**A/N: **__Well well, it has been quite a while since I've last updated, a year or better… I'm not proud of this, if bleach hadn't taken such a turn for the worse I might have had the will to work on this some more. I've also been racking my brain deciding whether to redo or just continue and I decided to continue because I do not have the will to start this over. _

_Let me know what you think of this, I haven't seriously written anything in a year so it might be a little off. I can't guarantee fast updates, this was merely an idea which popped in my head last week and I've been fine tuning it ever since. So until I say otherwise, Moonfang is continuing and it will remain IchiRuki because changing it would change the nature of this story and I don't want that._

_There aren't words for what bleach has fallen to, Hitsugaya not being a smear on haiibel's unreleased boots, starrk losing to a Shikai. Soifon making that absurd request in order to partner up with hacchigen, the horned mask not being properly given to Ichigo by Shirosaki, it's all shenanigans.  
_

_Oh well, I've ranted enough, have a nice day and thanks for playing along. If you need anything of me, you can find me at BA and NF under the same name. _


	20. As with the clouds comes the reign

_**Moonfang **_

_**XX **__As with the clouds comes the reign_

_

* * *

_

Sipping from his green tea silently, he observed the star rising in the distant horizon. Alone in the solitude of the morning sunrise, he could do nothing but reflect on the mysterious questions asked of him.

Many of his division had come to call at some point during the night and early hours of the morning, inquiring about why other Shinigami were claiming he had attacked another captain, defended a Ryoka and used a forbidden Kidou.

Aizen had no answer for anyone who dared to call upon his residence. Unlike his vice captain Hinamori, the Aizen within the domicile could not speak for his own actions and for all he could remember they had never been his own. For more than a hundred years, he had worn the mask made by an artificial reality generator. He had once stood by the side of Shinji Hirako, as a vice captain. Unfortunately, he had neither the mental capacity nor the ability to be consciously aware of ever holding an official rank. He did not even have the ability to plead for Aizen to be merciful enough to end his life.

The doppelganger continued to sit there, even after the star had risen beyond the limit of the edge of the porch, enduring the sacrifice that was never his choice, probably as he would for all of time.

* * *

Of the three captains alone in the chamber of the slain council, the real Sosuke sat quietly among the decaying judges. Kaname and Gin dispatched the orders of their lord to a cadre of knelt messengers. Their orders were as real as if a judge of the 46 were speaking to them. Respectfully, each of the messengers listened and memorized every word down to even the manner in which it was spoken as it were their singular purpose in life. Their primary order was the final execution of a long anticipated and carefully sequenced exit strategy that would being Aizen's journey to the throne of all mankind.

Aizen's silence was not entirely unusual, he often delegated menial tasks to his subordinates, but with good reason he remained silent this time.

For the first time in a long while, Sosuke was concerned about the recent events and how they coincidentally happened to intertwine with his own movements. The words of his enchanted subordinate Hinamori had left him quite harrowed, as her eavesdropping had stumbled onto a major revelation.

'_"I hear you went against the architect..._

_"I can hide you somewhere safe, maybe even take you to him…"_

_"No, he promised me he would make me his equal, therefore I cannot run."_

"_there's a monster of a shark in this pond, everyone thinks he's just a minnow, but I know better…" '_

Like the doppelganger, Hinamori had no level of consciousness when it came to the orders given to her. Even still, her admiration of Aizen would have stifled any subconscious qualm even if one happened to appear. Like a tape recorder, Hinamori recounted the events of the previous night that she had overheard, a curious conversation between Zaraki Kenpachi and Kuchiki Rukia.

Following this train of thought, Aizen reflected upon the irregularities since he initiated the endgame for his plans.

'_Byakuya and Renji met with unexpected force in their real world mission, to the extent of narrowly being defeated by children. _

_Las Noches was attacked, his Privaron wiped out by a single individual, a vizard of unknown origin and mask configuration. _

_Zaraki uncovered the connection between Aizen and Shinji. He even goes on to reveal that he knows and bows to the destroyer of the fortress. _

_Zaraki nearly destroys Ulquiorra, a fight which should have been a win for the vastolord. Zaraki survives a level 90 Kidou, and deliberately shows no regard or fear of Sosuke. _

_Zaraki acts as though he knows the true colors of the fifth captain, yet in spite of this remains reserved in his actions. The fact that he is reserved indicates a plan is in motion, a plan where Zaraki is not the one selected to deal with him. _

_**Zaraki and Kuchiki are aware of a plot involving her! **__As impossible as it could be,__none of the other Shinigami had even a trace of his true nature until now… The prior night though, when he showed himself might be enough to sow doubt into the Shinigami. The problem with Zaraki and Kuchiki is that up until this point neither had contact with the other, yet they seemed so intimately familiar; almost comfortable with each other, as would any who had shared experiences. _

Sosuke disregarded Zaraki for a moment because any speculation on the part of him was irrelevant, the captain could be dealt with or discredited without too much effort.

In his opinion, the most damning revelation from his vice captain was the nonchalant attitude which Kuchiki regarded Sosuke. Even in the face of such a threat to her life, Kuchiki refused aid from Zaraki. Kuchiki Rukia was not mired in self destructive doubts and pain, as Sosuke expected her to be. Kuchiki was calm and collecting, she was aware of everything that was transpiring, patiently waiting for pendulum to swing back in her favor. More directly, she was confident enough to reason that she had nothing to be seriously afraid of.

There was little doubt to Sosuke now that everything started to link together, one cog into the fingers of another, progressing not in his favor.

His arms and shoulders were covered in a chill of fear for the first time in an age, as he realized the identity of the one who was attacking him as their could be no other: Kurosaki Ichigo.

Everything was stacked in the favor of this conclusion, his connection to Urahara and his parentage were the primary. It was painfully obvious to Sosuke that Kuchiki inexplicably knew the outcome of any contest between himself and Ichigo would end in the latter's favor, it was the source of her confidence. The result of the breeding of a Shinigami and a human had clearly produced a being far more incredible than Sosuke had theorized. Urahara could have made him a vizard, granted him Shinigami powers and necessary training for both. When presented with Kuchiki Rukia, any number of lies could have been woven to favor the boy while indoctrinating the pair of them with the knowledge of what had transpired in the past. It was clear that Urahara knew of the boy's potential like Sosuke had, and turned him into a enforcer of his own ideal.

But Sosuke on the other hand was not a weakling by any means, he perfected his skills over centuries of life and could not be crushed by some child with hastily acquired powers. He the master of all four Shinigami arts, having captain level proficiency in each field could not be bested by the likes of Kurosaki. Sosuke's momentary displacement was replaced by his righteous resolve, as he knew that he could weather whatever storm Urahara was planning, enforcer or not, the presence of this boy could not dissuade him from action. Luck was still on his side as he was now informed to the presence of the child, and would plan accordingly.

Acknowledging that Ichigo was no longer the child Sosuke believed him to be meant changing all of his plans to suit his new construct of reality. Obtaining the orb was still paramount, though the means in which he acquired it would have to change. Sosuke could not risk drawing out the execution of Kuchiki Rukia, nor could he suddenly have it happen. Sosuke was still hindered by the fact he could not physically access the core of Kuchiki's soul. He could reduce the waiting period for her execution even though it would bring undesired attention to the senate.

A slight snicker came to his lips as he realized how he could distract the Shinigami and at the same time distract Kurosaki.

Kurosaki was not invincible and Sosuke could deal with him in the manner most befitting a god, he would delegate the task to someone beneath him. Recent events being what they were, Sosuke could take full advantage of Ulquiorra's presence and turn it against his enemies.

With a fiery gait of purpose, Aizen rose from the bench he was leaning against. His presence immediately silenced his subordinates and the messengers looked to him as an elder judge.

Appearing to the cadre as a senior judge, Aizen's mastery of perception went as far as to change his voice into something more raspy and ancient. "The council have need of only one messenger", he spoke dismissing most of the cadre with a waving of his hand.

"You are to report to the Captain commander that we have received evidence suggesting that the Ryoka yesterday was a probe of our defenses, a prelude to a coming invasion."

Kaname and Gin weakly looked at each other in quiet dismay, this was clearly not what they had expected him to say. Their plan dictated that Kuchiki would be put to death for her crimes, so what was the intent behind Aizen's new directions?

"For too long we have turned a blind eye to the heresy of Urahara Kisuke. Our evidence suggests the Ryoka to be soldier created by Kisuke. The foremost expert of hollow research has created an army which we believe will come under the guise of attempting to rescue Kuchiki Rukia."

Kaname came to accept that Aizen had a reason for changing their plans, even if he could not yet grasp the motive behind the change. Gin began to see how this shift in tactics could benefit their goals, even if it exposed part of their overall plan.

"If a war is to be on the horizon it is the Shinigami who will start it! We must protect the innocent souls of soul society and the innocence of the world from the blasphemy of Urahara Kisuke. Therefore, it has been decided by the council of 46 that all captains of the Gotei 13 are to depart for Karakura-cho and silence that traitor once and for all!"

With a waving of Aizen's hand, the messenger darted off into the morning… to spread the news of war. Kaname and Gin were speechless, tactically it was a masterstroke that only their leader could think of. Although neither of them could sense why Aizen had taken such an abrupt course correction, he must've had a legitimate reason for doing so.

Aizen sneered at them, "Urahara has managed to create an enforcer that might prove troublesome to us. It's the boy, the son of Kurosaki, I used Ulquiorra as a scapegoat but he'll understand. I need time to research extracting the orb. Send all of our clones along with the Shinigami, see that they are killed in action. Our deaths will galvanize the Shinigami into the correct mindset we need them in. Even if the truth comes out, Kisuke and Kurosaki won't survive long enough to know of it."

* * *

In times of weakness due to his ailment, Juushiro could usually be found in what most would consider a feudal lord's kind of retreat. Basically it was just a covered pavilion in the center of a lake, connected by a narrow boardwalk. But it was peaceful and isolated, which allowed Juushiro to rest undisturbed, except Kyoraku did not find him peacefully slumbering but awake and lost in deep thought.

Juushiro's mind labored with the meaning behind the conversation between Kuchiki and Zaraki as he was the other eavesdropper. Uniquely he never thought he'd see a day where his closely reserved subordinate could ever openly speak with another captain and do so in an intimate manner. Mysteriously, the pair of them seemed to be under the impression that Kuchiki's detaining had to do with a plot against her life, by a tormentor that Zaraki had met first hand, in combat perhaps.

Juushiro was usually out of the loop when it came to recent Intel, thanks to his illness, but in journeying to meet or observe Kuchiki as it were, he found himself awe struck by the battle which took place between Zaraki and a being of vastolord caliber. The battle's conclusion obviously held the most interest to him, Zaraki's apparent powers had grown beyond all recognition and as he was about to deal the coup de gras, Captain's Aizen and Komamura intervened in the favor of the invader. Obviously, there was legitimacy behind Aizen's motives, not wanting to kill the Ryoka in favor of gaining information, but his actions definitely seemed out of place for someone like Sosuke. It was not so much the action but more so the remarkable powers in which Sosuke wielded. Like Zaraki's newfound power, Sosuke seemed quite adept at using attack Kidou which were beyond the limit allowed by the law. Perhaps it was justified that only a level 90 could stop someone of Kenpachi's caliber but even still, it made Juushiro doubt everything he thought he knew about the fifth captain.

His thoughts were broken by the presence of his old friend Kyoraku, broken but not forgotten, he placed them on a shelf in his consciousness. Much to his surprise, Kyoraku had brought a large encyclopedia, which he recognized as the zanpakuto of the eight vice captain. The fact that Kyoraku had brought Nanao's zanpakuto was proof that their subordinates had returned with valuable Intel. Without speaking a word, Juushiro's brother in arms set the zanpakuto before them and with the brushing of a page with his hand, activated the sword.

What unfolded before the pair of them, was something truly remarkable. Nanao's zanpakuto opened like an encyclopedia and exposed the pair of them to an actual other worldly view of the subject which her sword had recorded.

They were in a room, of what they presumed to be the residence of Urahara Kisuke… they had been sent in order to ascertain the truth of the situation involving Kuchiki and Kurosaki Ichigo. After some time, a door opened, revealing the one named Ichigo, who remarkably resembled the late Shiba Kaien. Then as he entered, Kaien arrived in the doorway as to prove the similarities accurate.

What he saw… what the pair of them saw made Juushiro's blood run cold. It had to be a mistake…Kaien was alive; the Kaien that he had carried to the door of Kukaku so many years ago was talking and laughing as if he had never died. As much as Juushiro wanted to cry out that it had to be fake, It wasn't just a projection of his dead vice captain. The zanpakuto of Nanao displayed the entire environment of it's exposure, including the internal emotions and subconscious thoughts of everyone involved… Juushiro's eyes watered with tears of relief and happiness that somehow Kaien had been redeemed from the monster which had taken his life. In his heart, Juushiro was assured by the zanpakuto that there was no subterfuge involved, no spell had been cast, there was no puppet master pulling strings. Kaien was alive and seemingly well again and to Juushiro that meant more than anything.

The legitimacy of this Kaien was without question, yet the words in which he and the younger twin spoke, were highly doubtful. Not since the days of Urahara's reign as the technological development chief had there ever been the mentioning of someone with an interest in the production of hollows. It chilled them to think that someone else was capable of creating a hollow that could possess a soul and masquerade as the soul until it had been consumed. Even more so unique was breakdown effect, such an altering of a zanpakuto's physical state had not been witnessed since the days of Kuchiki Kouga and his Muramasa…

Kyoraku's intelligence and the ability to render the truth of a situation was one of the commander's greatest prides.

When Ichigo recoiled slightly at the mentioning of Aizen Sosuke, to Kyoraku it was a flashing light bulb, and given the events of the previous night,

"An architect of misfortunes… huh?" Ukitake Juushiro weakly spoke at having seen the visual records presented by his subordinates, "A rather elaborate title for the real identity he can't yet share with us, wouldn't you say Juushiro?" asked Kyoraku, as he had already perceived the possibility of the boy knowing the real identity, but used a convenient cover up.

"Kuchiki also referred to an architect…" Juushiro added to the moment, revealing in depth what he had heard his subordinate speak with Kenpachi.

Juushiro spoke freely from his mind, stating possibilities based on his initial impressions, "perhaps the slip we witnessed in Kurosaki's demeanor and the words of Kuchiki and Zaraki's suggest that they know the identity of this architect of misfortunes. It's clear that he's created this title because the one that he believes is his enemy is someone we'd almost never suspect. Even if we interpreted this correctly though, the real we have no supporting details other than the words of a human an accused capital criminal and a captain of questionable standing."

Kyoraku followed Juushiro's thoughts and verbally reached his own conclusion, "any statement from Zaraki at this point would be viewed as revenge for Sosuke attacking him. There's not much that Zaraki could say at this point that would be taken seriously. Kuchiki Rukia's word also has very little value, all things considered.

"Unfortunately for us, that leaves just Kurosaki", Kyoraku concluded grimly, " as a human, value of his word in any accusation of us isn't worth the air used to speak it."

* * *

**Urahara Shop, **

_Morning. _

Bright and early, as if someone else was really pulling the strings, fate itself appeared in the doorway of the Urahara shop. It came in the form of a usual Shinigami customer, who for a certain price would divulge the political climate of Sereitei as he always did. This time, the customer came with an almost staggering amount of tactical intelligence.

Isshin, stood behind the door curtain, listening intently as the customer began to speak. His demeanor was solemn, and reserved, as he had been since the day his son returned.

All of Sereitei was in a state of disbelief, two captains of the Gotei 13 openly and directly attacked another captain who was in combat against a Ryoka…

Isshin's eyes widened and he felt a chill reach into him like a hand reaching into his soul.

Just as Urahara was probably now gathering, it was time. That was all Isshin needed to hear to confirm his course. Even now Isshin's strength had not yet recovered completely. Although He wasn't powerless by any means, strength wasn't a requisite for what he could do and what had to be done.

The Ryoka in question had been someone beyond captain level strength, on par with the highest level of hollow, the vastolord. During the night, the invader had gathered the attention of the eleventh division captain who happily engaged him. Zaraki released his hidden powers during the fight and nearly destroyed the Ryoka.

While the Shinigami customer couldn't pronounce the name that the invader gave the commander, it was without a doubt the one named Ulquiorra. Urahara gave up on trying to fathom impossibilities, like Ulquiorra being dead. He had fallen at the hands of Ichigo only a short time ago in Hueco mundo yet had reformed as a Shinigami soul and gained access to Sereitei. Urahara accepted the irregularities as just another part of the game Ichigo was waging with Aizen.

It was Aizen who openly moved in the behalf of that Ryoka. Using a forbidden Kidou, and enlisting the 8th squad captain, probably through his hypnosis, Aizen and Sajin attacked Zaraki. Zaraki fought the pair of them, easily crushing the other captain, but he fell against the destructive might of hadou ninety. The Ryoka was able to divert most of the blame from Aizen to himself, under the illusion that he was an arrancar, a legendary type of hollow. Nonsense as it were, considerable doubt had now been sown about the once untouchable reputation of Aizen and if ever there was a time to move against him it was now.

Urahara could have stood there for days on end fathoming the possible ramifications of such Intel, if used properly. The memories of the future who continued to spin like an unending system of gears in his mind were now empowered by the possibilities of catching Aizen in a moment of weakness. Urahara turned from the Shinigami customer and took flight into the halls of his domicile, leaving the messenger in the sight of the children he sought the children below the surface. His skin tingled with the chills of disbelief, in stride he knew that this time the illusions would cease.

Leaning against the door frame as Urahara dashed through the partial curtain, Isshin reached out to him, ceasing the man's progress. Just as he had been throughout this ordeal, he had been wearing his Shinigami persona, he was the utmost of seriousness, a stark contrast to his usual self. His gaze was piercing like two sniper rounds shot into a target, they cut through the walls and into the depth of Urahara's soul.

"His quest begins now Urahara, and I'll sanction it!" Isshin said calmly, his eyes not wavering in their intensity. Urahara's present dismay was taken aback by the short but most poignant revelation from his companion. The words of Isshin were accompanied by the gesture of a hand within his Shinigami robe, revealing a thin metal crown, seven or eight inches in diameter.

Urahara's surprise was genuine, for Isshin to mention something, reveal something of this caliber, the ramifications of it were infinite.

"Isshin-san, by sanction, you mean…?" Urahara mentioned as he regarded the stern facial expression of Isshin and the metal ring in his left hand. Staggering to stand and speak he continued, "what…what makes you think he even needs that? Ichigo is more capable than anyone I've ever seen… he's even exceeded what I've seen of you."

Isshin's mind processed for a moment before stating the obvious, "so I take it you have some idea of his full strength?"

Urahara revealed an object also, the white card through which memories, thoughts and words could be transferred between two souls. With it in his hand, he explained all that he had seen, from Ichigo having a full hollow form similar to an arrancar release but not as precisely controlled. Lastly he recounted that in his full hollow form, Ichigo had stood victorious over Aizen.

Isshin observed the object for a moment and took Kisuke's word for he had seen. Isshin however did not have time to probe the truth, not when an even greater truth was still the more relevant. Regardless of strength, Ichigo still had an impassable barrier in front of him.

His resolve furthermore unbroken, Isshin pressed the greatest weakness that Ichigo possessed, it was not one of strength but even tougher to fight. "If you were the Gotei 13 and had someone come to you fitting Ichigo's description, filling your mind with tales of a dark future, an architect of misfortunes, would you believe?"

Urahara stepped back from the he who had lived in the present, and reinserted himself into the captain of the twelfth. In doing so, he knew that he would have a hard time swallowing the words of a human who had stolen Shinigami powers. The captains, he himself included were bound by the dogmatic ways of their society. Tragically, the Shinigami were narrow-minded, and slow to react to any kind of great change. Also he reasoned that any information that Ichigo were to provide would be easily dismissed as propaganda and would only expose his hand to Aizen, who would then be free to exploit the situation to his advantage. Ichigo would be regarded with the darkest of eyes as a committer of heresy, in addition to the theft of power.

Urahara had to admit that the greatest fight that Ichigo had before him was not of physical strength, but of how he was perceived. Naturally he could run Aizen through his blade and put an end to the situation, but it would force him against each and every Shinigami he never wished to fight. The future could not be expected to follow the same script, Ichigo had changed things too drastically already. The Shinigami would not turn against Aizen without overwhelming tangible evidence, unlike Ichigo's memories which could be disputed as an illusion.

Bowing his head respectfully, Kisuke admitted that his friend was correct. Isshin had already jumped to this conclusion to save his son from being labeled a heretic by the Shinigami. The future he had sought to change would grow undoubtedly more difficult without the Shinigami at least open minded to his presence.

The other complication came with the words that Ichigo might speak in relation to him serving the king.

Only the zero division acted in the name of the king, and to speak of the king without being zero carried the same fate as heresy.

The crown held firmly in Isshin's extended hand was the key to that change of perspective. Regrettably, it was the only way that Ichigo's desired future could come to pass.

Urahara lowered his head, removing the hat from his head and lowered his legs until he had assumed the position of kneeling respectfully, his left arm tucked behind his back as knight would before their king. As respectfully as anyone had ever heard him speak, Urahara queried their next move, "General Shiba, what are your orders, how should we proceed from now on?"

Isshin flinched slightly his face showing more of his usual disregard for anything serious, but given the situation he let the comment slide. It's not like it was untrue though, it was his name and title, but he had buried it on the day he married Masaki.

Isshin extended the crown to Urahara who accepted the item and treated it delicately.

"This isn't the world he came from Urahara, he can't hope to reproduce the same kind of favorable outcome in his meeting with the Gotei 13. As his father it's my duty to prevent my son suffer the hardship of fighting those he considers friends. If I failed to at least do this, I would be less of a father than I already am…"

"Give this to Ichigo, and inform him of what has occurred in Sereitei. Ichigo is to assume the rank of Zero Division Colonel and move out immediately. Ichigo will be sent first to rescue Kuchiki and then when we arrive all of us can take down Aizen together."

Isshin had eloquently laid out his orders, drawing to a conclusion he reemphasized the importance of acting now. "It's clear that Aizen has given us an opportunity to strike him in a moment when his reputation is faltered, we must not fail to take it."

* * *

Ryuuken laid upon the jagged floor in the basement level of his hospital, unmistakably worn. The elder Quincy however was not as diminished as his standing son, who he guessed was running on less than fumes. Though he was uninjured, a certain sense of pride and awe kept the elder on the ground, rather than quickly rising. Ryuuken had been defeated honorably, taken down in a manner which chilled his perception of the world.

A slideshow of moments replayed in his mind during that lingering instance…

_Ryuuken had let loose an arrow while caught up in the momentum of a forward jump… Uryuu seemed almost overjoyed by the presence of his father's arrow, as he drew a seele blade… as the elder had seen in the movies of lore, his son caught the approaching arrow with his blade and parried it back to its source… and while the arrow itself was not worth focusing on… Ryuuken watched in awe as in the same move used to deflect the arrow, Uryuu launched that very blade at him as an arrow of his own. This was not the crowning achievement of his son, only the beginning of the trap which his son was orchestrating before his eyes… _

_The seele struck the ground at his feet, drawing his immediate attention to it as another four seele soared over striking places around his feet and he knew what was coming. And so with the tossing of an energy capsule from his son, Ryuuken took flight, only to land outside the pentagon of the five arrows only to find Uryuu behind him. The trap had been set and activated perfectly with Ryuuken then in Uryuu's line of fire. Mercilessly, Uryuu ended their several day war with a shot directly to Ryuuken's chest. Though the arrow was weak, had his son been at full strength, the blow might have killed him. Tactically the victory was Uryuu's and that was enough for Ryuuken to throw in the towel. The fall of his arrogance was replaced by the pride of a father seeing the greatness in his son for the first time._

Ryuuken's senses were on par with any top level warrior, from them he knew that Ichigo's friends had progressed greatly during this time. Uryuu had progressed beyond any of them also in a remarkably short period. Unlike those who wanted to help that orange haired kid, he sensed in Uryuu the kind of resolve found in the desire to surpass a rival. The elder Ishida guessed that from the proud downward stare of his son, that the boy had been envisioning fighting Ichigo this entire time. While his son was no match for the boy as he stood, in soul society it would be an entirely different question. The source of his pride was simply the sight of his child having achieved the final form of their race through force of will alone.

He had pushed the boy beyond anything his father would have ever condoned.

Ryuuken had to stifle a laugh that was largely out of character for him, in spite of the requesting Shinigami, the elder had still given his son the means for concentrating and channeling high level spirit energies. Though the boy forbade the use of the glove which could render a users energy destroyed if removed, Ryuuken knew that achieving the kind of progression the Shinigami wanted wasn't possible without it. Therefore, Ryuuken gave his son the next generation of the spirit glove, condensed into twin metal bracelets, designed by him to achieve the same results but without the harmful affect. The bracelets appeared more like a fashion accessory. While the bracelets were not commonly seen on men, they were an item of high status and far more socially acceptable than a solitary white glove.

* * *

His orange hair fluttered in the wind, back and forth as he sailed through the molecules of air in the space between. Arms back, eyes on the horizon, he was _finally_ moving and flying without wings towards his destiny. Even though he was alone this time, he could act as he was meant to without having to fear for his friends. He knew they would be along shortly with those who could keep an eye on them while letting them join Ichigo in the process of saving Rukia.

"Rukia… you need only wait a little while longer, the future is ours."

* * *

_**A/N: **__Finally, this chapter is completed. Didn't think I'd ever get this one done, ideas creep in so slowly these days and I struggle to find which ones I like and which ones lead nowhere. Finally the story is moving towards soul society, bout damn time I'd say. I'll go into more detail about Ichigo accepting the zero crown in future chapters, I didn't want to kill the forward momentum this chapter had built up with endless descriptions. I also changed the makeup of Ishida's powers, and I'd say the change from the MJ gloves is a big improvement. Unlike the previous twenty, this chapter wraps up a lot of the previously mentioned plots and events which should have created doubt in aizen, but i failed to mention.  
_

_Sorry bout the delay as always, life is being a bitch as I bounce back and forth between unemployment and working. My life worries are the catalyst for writers block and even having a job doesn't bring it back completely… _

_*I know I have a problem with grammar and too many commas, it's my weakness. _

_Thanks for playing along, -__**CH**_


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