Author's Note : Chapter 2 is finally here. Sorry for taking so long to update. I would like to thank those of you who took the time to review the first chapter: AvioNN, BleachFanJL, King of Stories, Shrinking Violet66, Marvolo-san, poohxebony, Fostersb, NaruHinaFanboy, Dark Vizard447, & anonfan. Thank you very much, guys! You know, I spent last night reading my Stephen King's book, then I watched The Unborn playing on TV. Though I managed to keep my eyes partly and safely hidden behind my teddy bear, by the time it ended, I was pretty much spooked. But the funny thing is, even horror story like that got me thinking; 'hey, I could write an IchiHime fic out of this one' XD. And that goes to show I'm more or less obsessed with IchiHime. I just love them and I just can't get enough of those two! =)
And, if you guys have the time, check out my fic; Detras de la Luna. I absolutely love this one (I sounded so narcissistic), and its currently dominating my mind, my time & my sleep *cries*. Anyway, I considered this one my best work so far, so do read it if you've got some free time. It's rated M by the way.
K, enough of my stupid rambling. I received comments from you guy saying it's nice to read a story that's following what is happening in the actual manga. So, I kept this one true to the actual manga as much as I could possibly do. It may not be an excellent story but I hope you guys will enjoy it. And sorry if the fight scene is pretty lame... but I've tried my best! &... Review please *stares with puppy-dog eyes*. Have a good day! =)
Disclaimer : Bleach belongs to Kubo Tite.
Warning : Violence, cursing, spoilers (ch. 393 - 395), & um... grammatical errors?
The burning flames surrounded them. The heat was unbearable. Powerful spiritual pressures were suffocating him. Had he been less strong than he was, he would have fainted, just by being that close to the battle scene between Aizen and old man Yamamoto.
"So you've finally joined the fray," Aizen commented when the old man stepped into the battle scene earlier. "But you're too late. You're the only captain left who can fight."
"Once I defeat you, the Gotei 13 are as good as destroyed. You lost your chance. You needn't have wasted your time coming out now," Aizen continued, his arrogant eyes looking down on his former leader.
"Don't be prideful, boy," the aged shinigami retorted calmly. "Don't think you can beat me."
Unfazed, Aizen answered coldly, "I don't think I can beat you. I already have."
"Don't make me laugh!!" Yamamoto barked, charging toward the man who betrayed Soul Society.
Silence filled the air. Then, Ichigo saw the splash of blood.
Yamamoto's blade had missed Aizen earlier. Aizen took advantage of that and made his move, his sword now piercing through Yamamoto's haori.
Ichigo felt like screaming.
But old man Yamamoto was still smiling confidently, and clawed his fingers into Aizen's hand, the hand wielding his sword.
"I have you, Aizen Sosuke."
But Aizen was smiling as well.
"Is the arm you hold truly mine?" Aizen taunted, taking advantage of Kyoka Suigetsu's well-known and well-feared ability.
"You may be able to fool my eyes and my hands," Yamamoto answered. "But there is no way I could mistaken the reiatsu of the zanpakutou in my gut."
Ichigo gasped. So, Yamamoto had intentionally missed Aizen and let him stab through his body? It had all been a trap. These people really wouldn't stop at nothing to defeat their enemies.
"You said I lost my chance…" His grip tightened, his reiatsu increased alarmingly, Yamamoto declared, "But you're wrong. Now is my chance!"
Walls of flames shot up through the ground, surrounding them. For the first time, Ichigo saw an expression that appeared close to panic on Aizen's face.
"Ennetsu Jigoku," Yamamoto explained. "The entire battle has been leading up to this moment."
The brief flicker of panic had disappeared; Aizen has now reverted to his arrogant self. "So you let your subordinates get wounded so you could do this? You're a crafty old man."
"So what if I am? You and I will die together in the flames of hell!"
Sacrifice? No! No! This is wrong! Frantic thoughts forming in Ichigo's head.
"Stand back, Kurosaki Ichigo!!"
What?
"You are not part of the Gotei 13. I can't let you get caught up in this."
"Jii-san?"
That arrogant smirk re-appeared on Aizen's smug face. "But you don't care if the others die? At this rate, the flames will get them all."
"They are all prepared. To give one's life to destroy evil. That is the way of The Gotei 13."
Unable to move, even for an inch, Ichigo shielded his face from the blinding flames. He couldn't believe what he saw and he couldn't believe what he heard. Everyone else is prepared to sacrifice their life in this battle against Aizen? Is this all we're coming down to? Does everyone have to die in order to defeat Aizen?
As Ichigo wrestled with his thoughts, a large shadow began looming behind Yamamoto.
* * * * *
The head of Gotei 13 noticed a presence behind him. He turned around swiftly, attacking with his sword.
The large, hideous looking Arrancar in its' resurrección form; with its large head and its' unseen eyes under the mask, and its' large, winged-like arms, was the one standing behind him. The creature looked like some sort of an insect to Yamamoto.
But despite its' strange, weak appearance, the monster managed to stop the force of his sword with merely one hand.
Yamamoto retrieved his sword and pulled away from the Arrancar, his captain robe abandoned. He landed a few meters away, and noticed a strange thing. What? Ryujin Jakka's flames disappeared?
"Shall I tell you?" came Aizen's proud voice. "Your Ryujin Jakka is the strongest zanpakutou, that is indisputable. In a fair fight, you would probably be more powerful than me."
Ichigo's hand went back to Zangetsu's hilt. He no longer had to shield his face, now that the flames had all disappeared.
"But, by discarding everything else and concentrating on just one aspect, even the strongest can be defeated," Aizen continued. "He, Wonderweiss, is the sole modified Arrancar. And the name of his resurrección is… Extinguir."
Extinguir?
"He was created to extinguish the flames of your Ryujin Jakka." Then, staring down with cold, expressionless eyes, Aizen added, "Farewell, Yamamoto Genryuusai."
* * * * *
Byakuya's body was sent sprawling a few feet away when Yammy's incredulously large fist hit him.
Zaraki charged from the Espada's back, but Yammy's reaction was quick, and Zaraki was thrown backward as well.
"And they called themselves the strongest," Mayuri snorted from up above, watching the fight happening down below. Then, he returned his attention towards his Vice-Captain. "Keep working, Nemu. We have to find a way to re-open the Garganta and to keep it open long enough for us to escape this time. I bet we are needed in Karakura. And it would be nice if I can collect some data on Aizen."
"Yes, Mayuri-sama."
A few distances away, three pairs of worried eyes watched the same battle. Yammy had the upper hand in that fight, Ishida noticed. He looked around. Captain Kurotsuchi and Nemu seemed to be working hard on something. Vice-Captain Yachiru, Vice-Captain Kotetsu and Hanatarou were watching the fight like they did. Renji and Chad were healing, but they were still unconscious. It would take some time for them to regain their energy.
"Nii-sama!" he heard Rukia screamed when Byakuya got hit. She got up and started to sprint toward his brother, but Ishida stopped her.
"Stay here. You're not ready to fight."
"Ishida? But at this rate, they're going to lose. I need to help."
"I'll help them. Besides, I have unfinished business with that Arrancar. Watch over Inoue-san and the rest."
He left, his white cape flapping against the dusty wind.
* * * * *
The sky that was once ablaze with the flames of Ryujin Jakka now cleared, Ichigo noticed with a sinking heart. How many other tricks Aizen had upon his sleeves?
"As you can see, Extinguir's power cancels out Ryujin Jakka's flames. For that single power, Wonderweiss lost the power of speech, knowledge, his memories, and even reason." Aizen continued his explaining and Ichigo wished he could just wipe that proud smile off his face.
With deadly speed, Wonderweiss charged at Yamamoto, his large hand extended in front of him.
But, being an experienced shinigami, Yamamoto was quick to react. He evaded the attack and launched a strong punch toward the Arrancar.
Wonderweiss was thrown back, clashing against a tall building, a large hole visible on his stomach where Yamamoto's fist had landed.
"Do you thing you can beat me just because I can't use Ryujin Jakka?" Yamamoto asked coldly. "You're naïve. So naïve it makes me dizzy. Have you forgotten that I have lead the Gotei 13 for a thousand years?"
Aizen wasn't answering. He merely stared, hatred clear in his eyes.
"In a thousand years, there has been no shinigami stronger than me."
With that, Yamamoto leaped, and landed effortlessly in front of Aizen. He immediately launched a number of deadly punches toward him, but something came between them, blocking Aizen's body from those attacks.
Yamamoto pulled away.
The dust cleared, revealing an injured Wonderweiss.
"I didn't hold back. You're a tough one. Now, since Ikkotsu wasn't enough to defeat you…"
Yamamoto ripped off his clothing, revealing his badly scarred body. Scars that he was proud of, because every single one of them was a reminder of the battles he'd won.
"This may hurt. Are you ready?" he asked.
"Ahhh…."
"Oh, that's right. He took the power of speech from you."
Yamamoto produced countless numbers of attacks but they were successfully blocked by the Arrancar's large arms.
"Not a single movement is wasted. You have indeed been modified!" Yamamoto complimented.
Ignoring him, or rather, not understanding his words, Wonderweiss tried to attack Yamamoto, his arm extending ridiculously long.
Yamamoto dodged the attack easily and caught hold of his arm. With a grunt, he pulled it down, and the sound of breaking bones was heard, followed by spurting blood.
Wonderweiss roared, and suddenly, things that appeared to be countless numbers of hands sprouted from behind his back and began punching at Yamamoto.
The attacks were incredibly fast, and Yamamoto had no chance of blocking himself from them. He held his arms in front of him, a vain effort to shield himself. Punches after punches landed on his body, until Wonderweiss finally managed to catch his hand.
Wonderweiss spread Yamamoto's hands apart. Bursting from the Arrancar's body were hundreds of hands, moving in the air like snakes.
Ichigo gasped at the hideous creature before him, almost as shocked as Yamamoto.
"Ahh…." Wonderweiss grinned, and began attacking Yamamoto again.
Ichigo strained his eyes, trying to see what was happening but it was hard to do so amidst all the flying debris.
"What…?" he heard Yamamoto's voice.
Then Ichigo saw him, held up by Wonderweiss, blood covering his face.
"Is it over?" Yamamoto asked.
Again, came the sound of breaking bones.
Yamamoto hovered in the air, holding Wonderweiss' torn arms, and once again Ichigo's visions were filled with redness of blood.
"At least… you no longer look like a child," he heard Yamamoto said, a faint hint of sadness in that voice. "Now I can kill you without regret."
"Oh… ahh…." came the reply from his enemy.
"Sokotsu," Yamamoto said, and punched Wonderweiss' hard body with both fists.
* * * * *
"What are you doing here, ryoka boy?" Byakuya asked when he noticed Ishida standing beside him.
"To lend a hand, obviously. If I were to leave this fight to the both of you, it would take forever."
Byakuya chose not to answer him, but Kenpachi laughed. "Nice attitude, boy."
Above them, Kurotsuchi Mayuri was watching amusedly. "So that Quincy boy has finally joined in the fun, huh? Someone should teach him that it's wrong to keep involving himself in other people's fight."
"What is it, Mayuri-sama?"
"No need to concern yourself with other matters, Nemu! Just keep working!"
"Yes, Mayuri-sama."
Keep surprising me, Quincy boy! Then maybe I'll develop in interest in keeping you as a specimen…
A smile formed on his lips as his gaze lingered on Ishida. He was beginning to have more and more respect toward the Quincy.
* * * * *
Yamamoto's fists proved to be stronger than Wonderweiss' body. He managed to crack open the Arrancar's hard, shell-like body.
Wonderweiss was torn into pieces. Even his head was severely damaged from the deadly force of Yamamoto's attack, and it was thrown to the ground.
"Poor thing… Were your emotions taken from you, too?" Yamamoto asked, as his gaze lingered on the dying Arrancar.
Then, directing his words to Aizen, he said, "That was cruel of you."
"Cruel? Souls that become hollows have no meaning. They just exist to eat the souls of others," Aizen replied. "What is cruel about giving one meaning? You are the cruel one, to have smashed that soul to pieces."
"I have no interest in your foolish arguments." Yamamoto landed a few steps away from Aizen, "Say what you will now. But soon, it will all be over."
"Foolish arguments, eh? You take my words lightly…" Aizen smirked. "And do not listen to what I say."
"What do you mean?"
"I want you to remember… my words. I said, Extinguir… was created to seal your Ryujin Jakka." His smirk never leaving his face, Aizen continued, "By 'seal', I mean that new flames are sealed within your sword. But… is that all? There were already flames that you had released."
Yamamoto's eyes went wide. He had been careless. He'd thought that as long as he didn't use Ryujin Jakka, everything would be fine.
"Now, where were those flames sealed?"
A faint, crackling sound was heard, coming from behind Yamamoto.
Ichigo turned his gaze toward the direction of the sound, so did Yamamoto, and they saw Wonderweiss' bulging head.
Yamamoto panicked.
"You are wise, Captain of the Gotei 13. If all your power were to explode indiscriminately in an instant… I'm sure you know what would happen."
A bright, blinding flame engulfed everything around it.
* * * * *
"This is not working!" Ishida yelled through his raspy breath. He managed to dodge Yammy's fists a few times but if this kept going on, he's going to get tired quickly. He hadn't even managed to strike with his Scheele Schneider because of Yammy's fast, countless numbers of attacks directed at them.
Kenpachi tried to attack again, but Yammy fist hit him and was sent backward again. His body crashed into a large boulder, shattering it to pieces.
Damn it! Ishida thought. "We need a strategy!" he called out to Byakuya.
The captain stared at him disbelievingly. Byakuya and Kenpachi were both strong captains and they were also known for their inability to fight alongside other people because of their pride of their strengths.
But I'll have to make it work somehow… I'll have to get everyone work together. Nobody will leave here safely if we couldn't defeat Yammy.
* * * * *
Aizen watched calmly as the fire destroyed everything.
Slowly, the bright light diminished, revealing a badly injured, out-of-breath Yamamoto. He had thrown his body toward Wonderweiss' corpse in a hope to minimize the impact caused by his blade's flames.
The explosion had produced a large, round hole on the earth's surface, and Yamamoto looked so fragile inside it.
"I can't believe you were able to confine the damage from an explosion that huge. No wonder you are the leader of the Gotei 13," Aizen remarked in mocked admiration.
Yamamoto stared disgustedly at the man who wanted to play God.
"If you hadn't absorbed the blast, your flames would have destroyed the weak barrier you created. And an area many times larger than this city would have turned to ash." Aizen was smiling arrogantly, "I'm grateful, Yamamoto Genryuusai. Thanks to you, my world was protected."
"Y-you…" Yamamoto said through gritted teeth.
Aizen moved slowly toward the injured man, his hand lifting his sword.
"Yamamoto Genryuusai, I won't say I won't kill you. You are Soul Society's history itself. And you, at least, I will finish with my own sword."
Yamamoto's hand shot up to grab Aizen's ankle. Aizen's eyes went wide with shock.
"How many times must I tell you, child?" he said. "You are naïve."
Aizen sensed the danger coming.
"Hadou 96. Itto Kaso."
A blinding wall of fire shaped like the tip of a blade erupted from the ground.
Unknown to the both of them, Ichigo was gathering his courage. He had to do something, soon. And he knew he wouldn't stand a chance if he fought Aizen in that state of his. As much as he feared the power, he'd have to bring out his mask.
* * * * *
Orihime watched the fight with wide, terrified eyes. Ishida had rushed into the fight, hoping to turn the table against Yammy, but so far, the Quincy hadn't been able to launch a single attack.
She glanced at Rukia, whose face was masked with worries. She sighed, isn't there anything she could do to help her friends?
Then her face lit up. Aizen showed her something, didn't he? The Hougyouku! And she remembered clearly which room it was in.
Glancing around, she noticed that everyone was absorbed in watching the fight. Perhaps she could sneak off quietly and do something to the Hogyouku… She saw how Ishida operated the Hirenkyaku and she was pretty sure she would have no trouble using it.
"Shun'ou, Ayame, I'll leave Renji-kun and Sado-kun to you guys!" she whispered in determination as she began to sprint away towards the damaged castle of Las Noches.
Finally, I'll be able to do something to help my friends! I won't be a burden anymore!
* * * * *
Aizen shot out of the burning flame. His smug smile was gone now.
For a few seconds, he thought luck was on his side.
But, like a powerful eagle conquering the sky, Ichigo, with his Visored mask on, was advancing toward him, his sword held up in the air.
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End of Chapter 2
Again, if you guys are very well-versed with Bleach like it's one of those textbooks you have to study at school, skip this part and go straight to review! =)
Gotei 13 – 13 Division Imperial Guards: an organization in Soul Society (sometimes referred as the protection squads), and is one of the three main branches of military in Soul Society.
Haori – the robe/kimono-like jackets the captains are wearing.
Ennetsu Jigoku – "Flames of Hell": Yamamoto's attack.
Resurrección– an Arrancar's released state.
Garganta – the tunnel or path that Arrancars and Hollows use to move to and from Hueco Mundo.
Ikkotsu – "One Bone": Yamamoto's attack.
Sokotsu – "Twin Bones": Yamamoto's attack.
Ryoka – the term used by Soul Society to identify those who are not aligned with them.
Seele Schneider – German for "Soul Cutter": Ishida's sword-like weapon.
Hadou 96: Itto Kaso – Hadou means destructive spells: "Single Blade Cremation".
Hougyouku – "Crumbling Orb", a unique substance in the form of a small orb that can dissolve the boundaries between a shinigami and a hollow, granting either the powers of the other.