Chapter 16

Orihime was left alone watching her friends and the hollows fighting their former master. All of her attempts to reject Hougyoku had failed and there was nothing else she could do but hope that everyone else could change the course of the battle. Maybe if she tried harder, without letting her personal feelings get in the way, she would've succeeded. But despite the outcome, Orihime was glad that she didn't, yet it did not make her feel any less guilty. What if a better effort would've actually rejected it and helped them defeat Aizen? What if..? But it was already too late to be guessing about it.

Ulquiorra's movements seemed quicker and more precise. He was everywhere, and for the first time during the battle, Aizen looked overwhelmed by the sheer amount of force he was putting into his attacks. With a swipe of his hand he cut through his chest, ripping Aizen's clothing and revealing Hougyoku stuck right above his stomach. Aizen widened his eyes in surprise and jumped backwards.

"Your attacks have gotten stronger," he said, "If it was anyone other than me, who absorbed Hougyoku, this battle would've been over. But my power still exceeds your own, so do not fool yourself into believing that you hurt me."

Ulquiorra did not say a word. He continued attacking with the same unyielding mechanical force as before, making Aizen stop fighting back. Now he just dodged the incoming blows, finally taking a few steps backwards and sonidoing out of Ulquiorra's reach.

Orihime looked at his bloodied chest staring at Hougyoku. Could it really not be destroyed? It's not how you should do it, but how you want it to be done! A familiar voice whispered in her head. Why did I ever think I should use the time reversal? That technique could've worked under different circumstances, if she had more time, but not at that moment. Orihime had to use something faster, something that did not need time and concentration.

"Koten Zanshun, I reject!"

As soon as she uttered the words, Aizen turned into her direction with a smug look on his face and watched the tiny light shooting towards him without any attempt to dodge it. Orihime only prayed that his self-assurance would work to her advantage. Tsubaki smashed against Hougyoku with a crashing force pushing Aizen backwards. But he quickly recovered and stood up looking down at her seemingly unperturbed. A second later everyone heard a cracking sound.

Aizen glanced at his chest then back at Orihime and smiled. "I congratulate you, Orihime. You managed to break a chip away. But it does not matter, Hougyoku still lives."

Ulquiorra landed next to her looking back at Aizen in silence. Orihime felt his riatsu fluctuating. He was preparing for a power up.

"Soul Society is destroyed and the Shinigami suffered considerable casualties. More so, you succeeded at damaging Hougyoku. I've seen everything I came here for, so there is no point for me to stay."

"You are retreating, why?" Ulquiorra asked.

"After so much time passed, I was curious to see your progress. However, I also wanted to test the powers of Hougyoku. Thanks to you, now I know that it is not perfect. But it does not matter, you still failed to destroy it and beat me."

He opened the dimensional gate and turned towards it.

"Where are you going?" Ichigo called after him.

"Soul Society is weak and poses no threat. I can always comeback and finish the job after Hougyoku replenishes itself." He turned his head sideways, "You can thank Inoue Orihime for that. However, she only delayed the inevitable." Aizen said stepping through the portal.

"Wait a minute! You can't just leave in the middle of a fight!" Ichigo yelled.

"The initial battle has come to a conclusion. But devouring all of you will have to be postponed until a later opportunity. I am giving you one last chance to gather your strength and prove yourselves in front of your god when we meet again."

And with those words he disappeared through the portal.

Even though Aizen left Soul Society devastated, not everything was completely hopeless as now it was clear that he was not invincible. Despite his self-confidence and superiority over everyone else, it was obvious that with the right amount of force he could be defeated, Hougyoku could be destroyed and the war would be over. Nobody knew when he would show up again and how long it would take for him to fix the stone, but one thing was certain, nobody wanted to wait. They knew where he went and where to follow him and the plans to go after him were already set in motion. Seireitei would eventually be restored, but giving him another opportunity to destroy it was out of the question.

All of the wounded were gathered on the Soukyouko hill for the fourth squad to heal them. The rest, who were still able, tried to clear the rubble out of the way. Ulquiorra stood away from everyone and observed the commotion watching Orihime healing the injured. She periodically wiped her forehead and stopped for a few seconds to catch her breath. Her exhaustion was obvious, but there was still too much to do before anyone could take a well deserved break.

"Are you planning to go back to Hueco Mundo?" he heard Ichigo coming up to him.

"When it is time, I don't like to rush." Ulquiorra answered not taking his eyes off Orihime.

"But before you go, we need to discuss our next move."

"Then we will wait." He turned to Ichigo, "How long will it take for Soul Society to rebuild itself?"

"I don't know. It might take a while. But you and I both know that we cannot delay. Aizen thinks he already defeated us and we need to prove him wrong."

"I am not planning to wait for too long. Start gathering your allies as soon as everyone is ready."

Ichigo nodded then glanced at Orihime. "You know, about Inoue…"

"Hey!" they turned their heads seeing Grimmjow's annoyed face, "For how along are we gonna be staying in this dump? Aizen is gone so let's get outta here!"

"You need to wait until the dimensional gate is fixed. And once that's done we will probably go after him from here." Ichigo replied. "But he might be waiting for us to do just that."

"It does not matter," Ulquiorra said, "Now we know the extent of his power and the fact that Inoue Orihime's abilities can damage Hougyoku. More so, we can pinpoint his location so there is no reason to stall."

"It can also be a trap." Ichigo said.

"I don't care," Grimmjow grumbled, "That bastard believes he is tough shit so I am not about to let him think that he beat us."

"If we can have Inoue successfully destroy Hougyoku, it will make it a lot easier for us to defeat him."

"Whatever you two decide doesn't matter to me." Grimmjow said turning to leave, "As long as I get out of here and kick his ass, it's fine by me."

Ichigo looked at his retreating figure then turned back at Ulquiorra, "Aizen now knows about Inoue's ability to damage Hougyoku. And he will do something about it."

"A strong woman like her," Ulquiorra replied, "will not let Aizen hurt her so easily."

A few hours passed since she healed the last Shinigami and was finally able to take a break. Everyone did the best they could to clear away the rubble to build a camp for the survivors. And soon Soukyouko was quiet again after everyone was moved to the newly established base in front of what used to be the headquarters of the first squad.

Finally being able to get a break, Orihime cleaned up and met with her friends. They briefly discussed the preparations for their trip to the Hell dimension, and after making sure that everyone was alright, she took off to think and have some time to herself. Even though the Arrancar were not unwelcome, they still chose to be by themselves and tried to avoid any possible contact with the Shinigami. Yet, she did not see Ulquiorra among them. Orihime looked around trying to find a glimpse of him but he was nowhere to be seen. Then, she felt his riatsu some distance away from the camp and started walking into its direction.

Ulquiorra was in the same place where she saw him last. Orihime climbed up to the top of Soukyouko hill and looked around. He was standing at the far edge looking into the distance with his hands in his pockets. She took a few steps closer finally noticing that he was in his normal human looking form and it gave her a sense of nostalgia.

"I haven't seen you like this in a while." She said coming up to stand next to him.

"There is no need for me to remain in my released state after the battle is over." He replied without looking at her.

Orihime did not respond and cast her gaze at the horizon. Despite the smoke still hanging in the air, she could see the last rays of sun disappearing behind the mountains. It was hard to believe that only several hours ago this was a war zone, and now everything was quiet and peaceful, not a sound except for her own heartbeat.

She looked at Ulquiorra's profile. He was calm and composed just as he always was. Nothing was ever out of place, except for the wind slightly ruffling his hair. Mechanically, she lifted her hand and moved it away from his forehead, then suddenly tensed after realizing what she has done. Ulquiorra turned his head to meet her eyes, but did not say anything.

"I'm sorry." Orihime said nervously, and snatched her hand away.

"Are you prepared to face Aizen again?" he asked quietly.

"I am as prepared as I can be. There isn't much time left for training."

"This fight was only a test. The real battle is still ahead of us. And now that Aizen knows what you can do, he will make you his target."

"I know." Orihime said, "I am ready for anything as long as we can defeat him and stop his tyranny."

Ulquiorra looked at her for a moment. "Are you scared?"

"No….as long as you are with me."

Her bold words slightly surprised him and he wasn't sure how to respond. Ulquiorra already knew that he will do everything he could to protect her, yet it seemed like there was another meaning to what she said. But he did not dare to question it. Resolving to separate from her was his priority. He was a hollow and she was a human turned Shinigami. There was no future for them, especially with Aizen around. Yet, no matter what he decided for himself, the thoughts of her never stopped haunting him.

"Do not bother yourself with irrelevant things and concentrate on the battle ahead."

Orihime sighed but did not let his words get to her. "Perhaps it is you," she said "who pretends to ignore what's important."

"What do you mean?"

"This." She touched her hand to his chest, "No matter how hard to try, you can't forget some things. I know you want to because you think it is for the best, but maybe it is not."

They stared at each other before she spoke again. "No matter what you say, you know you need me, just like I need you."

"This is impossible." Ulquiorra put his hand over hers, "I am not human and I will never become one."

Orihime smiled and touched her other hand to his cheek taking a step closer. "I don't care who you are. " She said in a half whisper, "To me you are a man."

She saw his lips part as if he wanted to say something, yet nothing came out. They stood and quietly looked at each other until Orihime slowly tilted her head upward and touched her lips to his. At first he did not respond, then she saw him releasing her hand, that still touched his chest, and felt his arms encircling her waist bringing her close to him. Their faces were very close as he looked down at her for a moment before covering her month with his. Their lips parted and she brought her arms around his neck to brush her fingers through his hair. It was surprisingly soft and silky which did not match at all with the rest of him.

Orihime found it ironic that it took a war to get them this far. Would things had changed if Aizen disappeared for good and never returned? Would they still have fallen in love? Or would everything have been different and they wouldn't have been here at all? None of it really mattered anymore. Right here and right now it was just them, and she was happy despite the grave circumstances. More importantly, he loved her. No matter what he's said and done, his feelings were known. The unbreakable wall finally cracked revealing nothing but a man. This was Ulquiorra, her castle, her fortress, her demon that would hide and protect her from anything that ever threatened to hurt her.

The kiss finally broke but she did not want to let him go. Orihime tightened her grip around his neck and put her head on his shoulder. Ulquiorra stood, quietly holding her around the waist feeling her warm breath against his neck.

She sighed, "I wish we had more time." and reluctantly released her hold taking a step backwards.

Ulquiorra did not respond and silently watched the moonlight dancing in her eyes.

"Don't you want to say anything?" she asked nervously.

The cool night wind disturbed the air and Orihime brought her arms around herself feeling a chill going down her spine.

"We will discuss this tomorrow." he finally responded, "Return to your quarters until someone comes looking for you."

She managed a smile, then slowly turned around and started walking away. He watched her go until she disappeared down the hill still feeling the kiss burning on his lips.

Thump.

Ulquiorra brought his hand to his chest feeling the rapid beat against his palm. How does it feel not having a hollow hole? She asked him so long ago. At that moment he couldn't explain it, the strange sensation that made him feel a distant pain that refused to leave him alone. He didn't even remember when it started, only that it happened after he met her, the woman whose image burned into his mind forever.

Thump.

At first he cursed his own weakness and his inability to suppress this human emotion that he deemed to be beneath him, but soon it devoured him whole leaving nothing but a burning desire to possess one person that he thought he couldn't have. Yet, after being with her, holding her again and feeling her touch, Ulquiorra realized that he will never be able to rid himself of her, and neither did he want to. She was in his mind, in his blood, in his soul. Her presence was everywhere and he was done running away from it.

He wanted her, needed her, all of her, always. Their meeting all of those years ago was no other than destiny that set in motion something that neither of them could escape, and no matter how far they ran, they always returned to each other. The red string of fate was steadfast and strong that tied them together for all eternity without allowing to drift away.

Thump.

This human heart was not as easy to break as he thought. It had a will of its own that smashed every single barrier he spent years putting up around him. Its one wish was to connect him to this woman forever, and there was nothing left to do but to obey it.

~END~

The story is over and I am a little sad but happy that I was finally able to complete it. It took me 6 months to write it. And now it's done.

I did not kill Aizen because as of right now he can't be killed even by the top dogs among the Shinigami. And I really have no idea how to go around his god mode. Kubo really got me there.

There won't be a sequel because UlquiHime has been MIA for over a year and there is no new material to write about. And I don't want to be pulling a random plot out of my a** for the sake of a story. Hopefully, Kubo-sensei will bring the Emobat back soon so we can see our favorite ship reunite.

Thank you all for reading and reviewing!