Author's Notes: It's been a while since I've written anything to post. This summer due to personal issues, I started to look for ways to better express myself and began to turn back towards writing. Bleach has been one of my favorite Manga/Anime series of all time and I had this idea in the back of my head but never had the drive to really write it down. I wouldn't have gotten as far as I have with this if it wasn't for a fellow author who I consider my partner in this project, JMB Fictional Writing.

Lastly, I want to dedicate this story to my grandfather who passed away last month. He lived a full life and made an impact on all of his family. He will be missed, yet I know one day we'll see all those that have gone before us.

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach.

The Awful Truth

Chapter 1: Awakening

It had come to this.

Where these truly his final moments? All that he had fought for? All that he had worked towards to achieve and regain, was it all meant to mean nothing in the end? Was he going to die so close to having back everything he wanted and fail?

"Truly a horrible thing, to have everything ripped from you again," Ginjo said, hair slick with rain as the Fullbringer gave an almost pitying look towards him.

Ichigo did not know if he was sincere, for only a few moments ago he had turned his blade upon him, and stolen the power he had desperately tried to regain. Now he was there, in the rain, drowning in an ocean of despair.

"Let's go. He's suffered enough; let's not add any more to it," Ginjo said, turning away and moving off.

But where he turned away another stepped forward.

Tsukishima stood in front of Ichigo, that easy smile on his face never fell as the Fullbringer looked down on him. How Ichigo hated that smile, empty and cold as his eyes, but even more so knowing that this cruel man that had robbed him of his friends and family was nothing but an accomplice. Working for the very man that had given him hope, to give him a goal that he would fight tooth and nail to receive; the one man that had dashed it all away.

"Goodbye Ichigo," Tsukishima said.

Ichigo looks up, the blade was raised and the intent behind it need not be guessed upon. This was going to be the end, at the end of a blade to an enemy. It was always how he thought he might go out, but deep down he felt the crushing grip of failure smother him. Death would not be a release.

Stand Up.

What? Honestly, he did not know why he should, it was not even a stray thought brought on by defiance. He had none to speak of, his powers were gone and everything he held dear had already been taken. Whatever he felt, that semblance of self-preservation couldn't have been anything more than an echo of someone who wasn't as powerless as him.

You heard me. Stand up Ichigo.

Again he felt it, not a voice, but more akin to a lingering will. A force that moved across his mind and through his body. Not speaking to be heard, but felt and understood as to the meaning. It was a familiar presence, a strong one. Could it be he was not the one who was fighting to survive now? Was something else there, something within him calling out?

Has the will to live truly left you? Have you really become all that you despised in life?

It felt chiding; a hand to the back of the skull, and the familiar callousness of the strike nearly knocked his self-pity away. It rushed through his body; a familiar sensation of power and strength, its strong dominating presence brought a sense of familiarity to mind.

Have you fallen into such despair these last seventeen months, you have honestly forgotten my voice?

It came to him, not as a voice or even an echo, but as a feeling. One he had known for a long time, a presence he would never forget, and in that moment he felt it's presence grow and spread. No longer a hidden impulse within his subconscious, but something he could feel as if it was touching his very shoulders.

"…Tensa Zangetsu," Ichigo whispered, the world fading around him, darkness surrounding him as the familiar weight of the ocean pushed down onto him.

Tsukishima was gone. Ginjo was gone. The forested park and the mansion at its center were gone and he was somewhere familiar now. A place he had not seen for so long, a place that he felt at home within and at peace to walk within.

His Inner World, the dominating skyscrapers reached to the surface of the water high above. Like a sunken city it sat just beneath the dark murky waters surface, once they dominated the sky but now an ocean of despair swallowed them.

"That name no longer holds meaning for me, for I am no longer Tensa Zangetsu. Now, I am just Tensa."

Ichigo turned, glancing over his shoulder to see the young man that had met before he had trained for three months to learn the Saigo no Getsuga Tenshou. He stood there now, devoid of any Hollow traits, restored back to whom he once was.

"Tensa?" Ichigo repeated, and as much as he wished to ask more, he knew such questions would not be as important as the ones that came flowing from his lips. "How can I hear you? I lost my Shinigami powers. You said after I used Mugetsu, I would lose them, meaning I'd lose you as well. So how can I…"

"I understand you have questions but we do not have time to answer them all. Look at your foe Ichigo," Tensa said, raising his hand to stop him from speaking further.

Ichigo watched as the world blurred, everything around him fading away for a moment, and he was once more back in the forest. Tsukishima standing before him, blade at the ready and intent clear. Ichigo looked at Tsukishima, his form devoid of color, motionless like a statue. It was a situation he was familiar with, one he had been saved from once before.

"How are we here? How did you come back? Are my powers returning?" Ichigo asked. There had to be something, to come back here and to speak with Tensa Zangetsu had to mean something.

"I cannot keep this going for long. I am not as strong as I once was. I am using all my strength to try and give you a fighting chance," Tensa explained. "You are in this position, Ichigo, because you despaired and ceased to walk forward. Too long have you been forced to sink into your pain and loss, too long have you remained stuck in this abyss with no way to reach the surface. I won't let you remain this way, and I will not allow that darkness to consume you."

Tensa slammed his fist into the flood, darkness pooled beneath him, growing darker and denser with each passing moment. Chaotic and twisted energies coalesced there, something was being brought out.

"Right here and now, I will pull out the source of your despair, to give it form and shape and mold it into your greatest strength. But I need you to have the will to act. Do you have the will to walk forward with me at your side? No matter what may happen? No matter what truths come to light? No matter what secrets are revealed? Will you fight with the same convictions as you always have?" Tensa asked, looking up at Ichigo.

"No matter what will happen? What are you talking about? And what power Zangetsu? The despair I feel has always been against me, always been an enemy, how can I turn that into a strength? How can I gain strength from the one thing that has always held me back?" Ichigo asked, not understanding his Zanpakuto's reasoning.

There was a tense silence for a few seconds and in those few seconds, neither spoke or tore their gaze from the other. Fear danced in both their eyes, but for different reasons.

"Many times Ichigo you have been kept in the dark, forced to fight on without truly knowing all the facts. I have a secret Ichigo. One that has been a greater hindrance than even this ocean of despair," Tensa said somberly, weariness appearing in his eyes as he let out a sign. "There is a truth I have not shared with you. One that I regret to admit has caused you more pain than I am able to ask forgiveness for."

Ichigo felt speechless, his despair growing, a few skyscrapers actually shattered in the distance.

"Zangetsu, have you lied to me too?" Ichigo asked.

"I have already told you, have I not? I am not Zangetsu, Ichigo. I am Tensa and I have never lied to you. I have kept a truth from you, yes, but I did it to protect you. As I said to you seventeen months ago: you are what I wish to protect."

The words he heard from Tensa were as strong as steel. But he had kept secrets from him, ones that had been important, and Ichigo knew that there was much they needed to discuss.

So many questions that absolutely needed answers, he had never forced others to tell him these secrets, whatever they hid from him and whatever details they did not reveal he never questioned. It was never important if it didn't help him in his goals than they were not important. But this was different, and as much as he wished to shout and throw punches, he knew he couldn't.

For out of all the people who could have hidden something from him, the Old Man was the one he trusted to do so with no ill intent. He would not demand answers, why this was hidden from him? Or how he could have done this to him? Those were not the questions he should be asking, but only asking him if he was ready to talk.

But knowing his executioner's sword was nearly to him, he had no time for any confessions. He trusted him, and there was nothing the Old Man could do that would shake that faith. The strength behind Tensa's word had given him strength, he did not need to speak up to give him any reassurances, they understood well enough.

Ichigo could feel Tensa smile at him. "Then rise up and use the power you have always had. What was taken from you was only a shell, a measly strip of the might of the true power within you. Show these fools who you truly are and no longer be bound by chains!"

Ichigo turned back, finding Tsukishima standing there, the blade was already moving and with every moment that passed the speed of the descent increased. He looked down at the dark chains that had coiled around him, a restricting coil that had held him back, and now they shattered and flickered into white light.

Ichigo felt something deep within himself, something new and unknown to him. Yet he did not feel the malign presence of the Hollow, this was a power he had not known before, forming from once restricting chains. Whatever this was, he could feel it within him, calling for him to use it. Soon he felt a weight in his palm, one that was familiar but also alien to him.

But he smiled, he knew what this was, and while he was still uncertain of what he was holding onto. He only needed to know one thing, and that was to attack.

And he did.

"…Tensa Zangetsu."

Tsukishima halted for a moment, what had he said? He did not understand at first, but perhaps the realization of the situation had sunk in and he was at his breaking point; trying to find some semblance of peace and calm in the storm that had engulfed his psyche.

"Tsukishima, what are you doing?" Ginjo called out.

"Just tying up loose ends," Tsukishima replied, he knew that leaving Ichigo alive would be dangerous as well as cruel.

If the fact the Shinigami were willing to sacrifice him to them meant anything he was likely going to die anyway. So why prolong his suffering? He was without any reason to live anymore, what else could there be for him to have?

Besides, always best to make sure that anything he knew is not given to the wrong people.

"You don't have to do that," Ginjo said. It wasn't part of his plans to kill Ichigo. He was much a pawn of the Shinigami as he had been.

"No, I don't. I need to do it, Ginjo," Tsukishima replied, dropping his sword right towards Ichigo's head.

But then he heard a clang, and for a moment his eyes widened at the silver blade blocking his own. Where had that come from? It had taken him a few moments to realize who was holding that weapon, and in that time he was thrown back by the user.

Tsukishima looked on, watching as Ichigo rise back to his feet with blade in hand. The weapon pulsed with energy, like flames they coursed over its surface and dispersed as a shape began to form, and soon a single edge blade was in hand. Could it be his Fullbring? No, that had been taken and there is no way he could regain it. Especially when his combat pass was still on the ground next to his feet.

Where had that weapon come from?

Ichigo took in a breath, his heartbeat was steady and he used that same rhythm in his chest to calm his other nerves. As his spirit regained the balance it once had he looked up, contempt and loathing working its way into his heart as he looked upon Ginjo and Tsukishima.

"Why is it that every asshole I have ever fought always thinks that they have me when I am on my knees? Why do they gloat and start monologuing their entire life story to me?" Ichigo said, anger present in every word as he narrowed his eyes at the two Fullbringers. "Maybe they have such an ego they don't realize that just because I am on my knees…"

He stepped forward, appearing right in front of Tsukishima and swinging, the Fullbringer was quick to block the strike. Skipping backward the Fullbringer stopped right next to Ginjo, the man had a scowl on his face as he gave Ichigo his full attention.

"… Doesn't mean they are safe," Ichigo replied, raising his blade and pointing it towards his former ally. "But in this case, I will forgive your stupidity, because it was actually the thing I needed to regain this power."

A frown adorned Ginjo's face; he was obviously confused about the turn of events. Not that Ichigo could blame him. Even he did not know the full scope of where this power had emerged from, or what power Zangetsu had given to him.

"You idiot," Ginjo scoffed, waving this off in such a way that Ichigo thought he may actually be trying to salvage the situation. "Are you really trying to mock me or could it be that you haven't really looked at what is in your hands?"

Ichigo felt like rebuking him, even calling out his poor attempt to regain control of the situation, but he thought for a moment. His eyes lingered on the blade, his own reflection seen within the silver surface. This was certainly not his Fullbring, for that had been stolen. Nor was it his Shinigami powers, for how could they be if he still resided within his human body? Never once had he manifested them within his earthly vessel.

It was a power he had never felt before. This was not Zangetsu, not as he knew him; this was something both new in both substance and power.

What was this power?

"Kurosaki!"

Ichigo turned, looking to his wounded friend. Ishida was on the ground, bloody and hurt, but even the pain did not stop him from looking astonished. Disbelief flickered behind his glasses, which was set solely on his blade.

"Why do you have a sword like that?"

Ichigo had not truly looked at his weapon, and now he saw the actual weapon as a whole and what it actually meant in his hands. The weight of the weapon reminded him of Zangetsu, along with the single edge and length, but the form was wrong.

No longer a large crude sword, its form was straight and reminded him of a broadsword, appearing to be made of pale silver. The grip of the weapon was comfortable, actually possessing a handle, but short and meant to be held in one hand. But the one piece of the weapon that drew his attention, and made him realize what kind of power he was wielding: the crossguard.

The crossguard was shaped as a cross with five points. Embedded on these points were five blue sapphires that seemed to churn with unreleased power. It was this cross that Ichigo came to understand what this power was, for he had only seen this from one other person. He turned back to Ishida, his eyes falling onto his wrist where his Quincy pentacle rested. That five-pointed cross, nearly identical to the one that now rested upon his sword.

So many questions came to mind as he looked at the symbol. Many had been mounting since he spoke with Tensa, but again he had to ask himself. Was this the secret you were hiding from Tensa? Is this the truth you tried to protect me from knowing?

Tensa looked down at the blade in his hand, sighing as he felt the burning questions that reverberate through Ichigo as he sought to understand what this meant for him. Much was being revealed and no answers were being given.

This blade was the same Ichigo now wielded, a weapon that Tensa had recalled from ancient memories locked away in Ichigo's Blood. Memories of a person that he once used to represent.

"In time Ichigo you will come to understand, but we both have our battles to fight," Tensa said, looking up from the blade, and over the Inner World.

Gone were the great towers that rose in the sky, the oceans having dried away and leaving only a desert of white sand behind. Rubble of the old world remained, destroyed and broken down by the darkness that now sought to make itself manifest in this place. It had been the creeping shadow that had hid within the confines of great towers and mighty spires, symbolizing hope but in truth were prisons that sought to subjugate rather than inspire.

Best that they were destroyed, along with the thing that lurked within it.

"I have faith in your strength, but my own is not one that can hope to compare to this enemy," Tensa said.

Perhaps he had hoped too much, prayed that by destroying the towers and Inner World that he would be beaten. No, this shadow would not be so easily bested, for he was just as cunning and dangerous as Tensa himself. For once they were no different.

The darkness coalesced into a single form, forming a billowing cloak that flowed behind him like a wave of darkness. But the dark hair that fell down and over his face did little to hide the smirk on his face. Had Ichigo been here he would have found such a smile strange, for he had never known that face with such a grin. For never had Ichigo seen Old Man Zangetsu smile, and not with such a cruel upturn of the lips.

"You must have been so desperate, to destroy everything in the hopes of defeating me without a fight," The Old Man said. His smile never faltering as his eyes locked with Tensa's.

"If only to spare Ichigo the same corruption that lingers within you," Tensa replied curtly, narrowing his eyes.

"What you call corruption, is nothing more than wisdom brought about by many generations and many lives lived. You would not know, for that form you take all but shows how naïve you have become," Old Man Zangetsu replied, giving a derisive look onto Tensa.

"I have not forgotten, but your cruelty cannot be allowed to remain, not when it endangers Ichigo," Tensa replied, leaping from the perch he stood upon and down to the sands. "You may seek to subjugate Ichigo but even I know you don't wish for him to die. Why are you still trying to move him along a fate that will end in tragedy?"

He was met with a scoff.

"There is no denying it; the end is coming for this world and all upon it. Ichigo would never be spared from it," Old Man Zangetsu stated as if it was meant to be. "This is a mercy, one that I had not thought possible. One that he deserves over many others."

"Deserves? How can he deserve this? We can save him!" Tensa barked.

"Childish, truly childish," Old Man Zangetsu replied. "You do realize there is no changing his fate. What you spared Ichigo from today was a mercy compared to what he would face when the Sealed King comes for him. Do you think the fate that awaits him will be any better?"

Tensa did not wish to answer to that, to speak on what had been seen and known to come to pass, so many possible futures and many ending in horrible fates for Ichigo.

"We can change that!" Tensa exclaimed. "We can stop that from happening!"

"Our only chance now, is for him to die at the hands of our King, once he is part of the whole he will be at peace. No mutter pain or suffering, only contentment within the whole," Old Man Zangetsu said, narrowing his eyes, a look Tensa shared with his older counterpart.

He felt disgust well within him. To think that this piece of him, this fragment, thought that Ichigo dying at the hands of Yhwach would give him peace. There would be no peace there, no freedom, only a new hell for him to endure; along with all those other poor souls.

"I am fortunate that when Ichigo came to me all those months ago seeking to learn the Saigo no Getsuga Tenshou, that I separated myself from you. Merging with the Hollow had given me the chance to carve myself away from you as your presence minded with the Hollow," Tensa said, fist tightening around his blade. "Separated from you, I was spared when Ichigo sacrificed his powers. I was free to grow and realize that I could not allow him to die. Cut away from you I know now that there is a chance I can save him."

Tensa raised his blade, aiming it towards his other half.

"Hearing those words from your mouth only proves I was right to cut myself away from you," Tensa said with resolve. "And with this blade, I intend to cut you away like the cancer you are."

The Fragment chuckled, clearly amused at his defiance.

"This is a battle of dominance, do you honestly believe you can beat me the way you are?" The Fragment challenged.

"Belief is irrelevant," Tensa replied. "I either defeat you to protect Ichigo or fail, knowing what you will eventually do to him."

"At least you understand that much. But you are simply half a power that has cut himself off from the source of our strength. Where I on the other hand…"

Tensa watched as the world around him began to shift and churn, breaking apart as the Fragment of himself raised his hand and showed him the difference in their power. No other motion was given, only a raised hand, and a broadsword of pure reishi formed in his palm. Tensa knew that this was but a fraction of what he could do, but none the less it was still a daunting thing to be on the receiving end of that power.

"My ties to his Majesty are still strong. He knows what is happening here and his intent is clear, you will not be allowed to interfere with his true goal." The Fragment said. "Be torn apart knowing, that all you have fought towards will not be in vain, Ichigo will be safe. He will be free."