Clang!!! Clang!!! Clang!!!
Szayel watched as everyone started fighting against his puppets created by his Carbon liquid and had a crazy smile on her face...
Ishida was managing somehow while he was fighting and absorbing his clones Reiatsu slowly, this gave him enough time to keep on the lookout for any of the others that might face trouble...
Especially Tatsuki since she was dead tired...
Mosqueda was trying to take the share of his and Dordoni who was on the ground still spasming in pain from the earlier fight with the invaders...
Sado was also trying to cover for Tatsuki as she could only fight with her sword in her hands and that was incredibly difficult not being able to activate her Shikai in her condition as her Reiatsu was in a mess...
Pesche and Dondochakka looked at each other as they were fighting their own counterparts and suddenly as if they had nodded with their eyes the attacks of Bara they had prepared reversed themselves...
Just as they were back to back, they turned around and Pesche fired at the fake Dondochakka and vice versa hitting both of them as they crumbled away...
Ishida and Sado along with Tatsuki and Mosqueda saw with the corners of their eyes their key to victory and suddenly shuffled around...
Ishida hitted Sado, Sado hitted Mosqueda, Mosqueda hitted Ishida and Tatsuki hitted Sado all within a split of a second using their respective flash steps...
Szayel: "Oh?? Impressive... But it looks like someone can no longer move forward..."
Tatsuki fell and breathed heavily on the ground as this was her last attack surpassing her limits, Szayel raised his hand and started charging a Cero in his hand as he pointed towards her...
Sado: "Tatsuki!!!"
Ishida: "Avoid it!!!"
While they tried to help, the clones that burst or slashed up and had become Liquids reformed themselves into more Clones...
Now each one of them was blocked by at least 2 or 3 clones...
Szayel: "I warn you that when they are defeated, the clones break apart and multiply, adding to their numbers"
Szayel: "Now watch as she takes the full brunt of CERO!!!"
Vzooom!!!! The trigger was pulled and the purple coloured Cero launched itself towards Tatsuki as everyone screamed at her while Ishida noticed her eyes were in a daze as she had lost consciousness...
Just as the Cero was about to fall on her, bird-like created appeared and created a wind barrier that stalled no more than 2 seconds before they evaporated in its flash...
They watched in slow motion as Tatsuki was almost englufed within the Cero before an explosion happened right in their eyes...
Szayel: "Hahahahahaha, one down many to go..."
Szayel didn't bother even looking at the leftovers of the dust cloud caused by the explosion but when he saw the expressions of the others he was confused...
??? : "Yo, Tatsuki... I came to save my girl..."
Sado: "Ichigo!!!"
Ishida: "Kurosaki!!! You were freaking late!!!"
Ichigo: "Well sorry about that... But i'm sure she would have been fine..."
Ishida: "Are you nuts??"
Ichigo didn't answer and looked at the dazed eyes of Tatsuki, he went ahead ignoring everyone and hugged her before he softly whispered to her...
He knew the state she was in, and that was her instincts taking over in order for her to survive just like he had done when fighting white Ichigo in the cannon...
Although her mind is blurry, she can still tell what is happening as she can't control her body anymore...
Feeling Ichigo's hug and words she blacked out with a slight smile on her face...
Ichigo: "Ishida, take care of Tatsuki and everyone else while you guys take cover..."
Finishing his words Ichigo was already in front of Ishida handing over Tatsuki to him and turned to Szayel with a serious yet angry face...