(Where we left off last time)
"I can explain." Ichigo said, trying to convince himself as much as he was trying to convince the two figures glaring at him. "With a chance to kill Koga, Byakuya would've been too-" Ichigo was stop with a hard smack of Yamamoto's cane, which sent Ichigo's head straight into the now cratered ground and fractured his skull.
"MENOS! KILL! NOW!" The pissed dragon ordered, terrifying Byakuya and prompting Ichigo to snap to his feet despite the blood dripping from his skull. The hybrid immediately began to jump all over the place, cutting down every Menos Grande in the immediate area as the rest of the Shinigami began to reach an even heat with the rest of the Hollows.
"Now to get him back to Soul Society." Isshin said, satisfied with the situation. He and his squad would be stuck fighting all the Hollows for the rest of the day, maybe even into tomorrow, but at least they held an advantage without his son being there. "Without his seals and all the Hollow Reishi still present, he's acting like a beacon to the rest."
"Trust me captain Kurosaki," Yamamoto growled, "he will not be going anywhere without his seals until his fight with Aizen." He opened a Senkaimon and turned to Byakuya. "We'll be discussing your punishment for this as well captain Kuchiki. I expected better from you. Restoring the honor of your clan is one thing but putting our preparations back by any length of time is inexcusable."
"I'm ready for whatever judgments you have." Byakuya said, keeping his voice even. He only received a slight grunt as the commander called his disciple back. Just as they were about to depart Orihime came to their side, with Muramasa still with her in the healing stasis shield.
"Why is that Zanpakuto still alive?" Yamamoto asked as Ichigo got between him and Orihime.
"Well, this offers an interesting opportunity." The hybrid quickly said. "If we can utilize his abilities, we may be able to use that to cripple the Arrancar. Or at least Aizen and Tousen." He tried to appeal to Yamamoto's military mind rather than admit his sentiment to the now broken Zanpakuto. Military value in the coming war was more important than feeling sorry for such a dangerous blade. The captain commander looked to Isshin and asked.
"Will you be alright without Orihime Inoue?" Isshin took a second look at his squad and the fighting going on.
"I'll have to remove my seal and help pick up the slack, but yes. We've got this." The father said, undoing his seal and joining the fray. With that settled, Yamamoto gave his silent approval as the group made their way through the Dangai and back to Soul Society.
(Squad 4 Barracks: Gotei meeting grounds)
"Ichigo Kurosaki and Byakuya Kuchiki, you stand before this assembly of squad captains for the crime of treason for your own selfishness." Yamamoto announced as Ichigo and Byakuya stood next to each other, in binds, between the lines of Gotei captains in Soul Society. "While posing as double agents to find and recover me is acceptable, the devastation caused to the Seireitei is inexcusable! Ichigo, you admitted that Zangetsu was unaffected and could have ended Muramasa in an instant. Instead you almost completely leveled the entire city and put back our preparations for Aizen by potential years and assisted captain Kuchiki in his own treasonous actions. Captain Kuchiki, you acted to free one of the most dangerous individuals in the entirety of the Gotei's history and all for the sake of your pride."
"I make no apologies for my actions. What I've done was selfish and for the sake of my pride as a Kuchiki." Byakuya stated, standing tall and proud in his achievement of fulfilling his promise as the head of the Kuchiki clan and ready to receive his just punishment for his crimes to Soul Society. Not that he could've dodged Yamamoto's cane anyway, which came down on him and breaking his Kenseikan headpieces.
"To hell with your pride!" Genryusai growled, anger evident in his tone with the mess he now has to deal with. "You are a Soul Reaper before you are a Kuchiki! I may have allowed it after the matter with Aizen was dealt with, but you threatened everything with this!"
"Sensei, if I may?" Ichigo asked, helping Byakuya get back to his feet. "I figured the sooner we killed Koga with the reveal of Muramasa, the better. Byakuya probably thought that you would never allow him the chance to fight and kill Koga, due to the danger he presented. As for why I allowed the rebellion to drag on for as long as it did was for the rest of the Gotei."
"I actually agree with his defense captain commander." Komamura said, Tenken appearing behind his wielder. "After confronting my Zanpakuto, I've begun to understand him more and improve our coordination and even strengthened my shikai." Some of the other captains nodded, noting the improved cooperation between certain Shinigami and their Zanpakuto.
"That's not why I did it." Ichigo said, surprising the captains. "None of you understand your Zanpakuto any better, you understand yourselves better. Zanpakuto are not their own entities that can be wielded by anyone. They are reflections of yourselves made manifest."
"That's preposterous!" Soi-Fon denied loudly. "My Zanpakuto wanted me to dress up and get a boyfriend! How could that that be a reflection of me?" Just then, Suzumebachi appeared on her shoulder.
"I also said that you were blinding yourself with your devotion to Yoruichi." The shining wasp stated. "And if not a boyfriend, then at least get laid more often. I'm sure Ich-" Soi-Fon quickly silenced her Zanpakuto spirit by grabbing trapping her within her hands, blushing up a storm.
"On some level, you acknowledge that your infatuation with Yoruichi is holding you back." Ichigo said, equally blushing and trying to distract everyone from his 'alone time' with Soi-Fon that one time. "On the surface, you're content with staying in her shadow and following her but deep down you know you should follow your own path. Every issue your Zanpakuto had with you was what you detested about yourself." The assembled captains said nothing, but each silently acknowledged that Ichigo was right. "My every intention was to help improve the soldiers of the Gotei and I am ready to pay for my actions." Ichigo said, kneeling down and preparing for his inevitable punishment.
"Your deeds may have bore fruit Ichigo, but you must still repair the damage you have wrought." Yamamoto said before feeling a disturbance he had not felt for a long time. "Maybe I'll have one ready when you return." He said, looking into the sky. Confused, Ichigo followed his sensei's gaze and saw something falling until it slammed into the earth behind Yamamoto. A tall white pillar with a blank diamond rhombus in the middle of a door. "It is certainly surprising for any of you to show up completely unannounced like this. I assume my student is the cause for this visit?" He asked as the doors opened to reveal two men. One was a dark skinned man with thick black hair with shaved green on the sides wearing a sleeveless jacket, shortened hakama pants, and sunglasses with a goofy grin. The other was a large bald man with a thick beard and red prayer bead necklace, wearing the standard Soul Reaper garb.
"You'd be right Genryusai!" The bald man said loudly with a smile on his face. "And let me tell you, this was new. Even for us." Ichigo looked between the monk like man and his teacher while the dark skinned man got in front of him and clasped his hands over Ichigo's.
"You've made me so happy!" The guy said, sounding like he was about to cry. "It's been so long since I've seen someone who truly understood a Zanpakuto like you do!" He said, wrapping his arms around the hybrid began to spin them around. "And you don't even have a Zanpakuto! Is it because of your unique abilities or the Zanpakuto spirit you possess? I don't care! I'm just happy you exist!" He continued happily until Ichigo punched him off.
"Get off me you freak!" He yelled out, turning to glare at the bald man standing next to Yamamoto. "Sensei, who the hell are these guys?" He asked, trying to understand what was going on.
"They are members of the Zero Squad Ichigo." He said, turning Ichigo's irritation into surprise. "The Royal Guard of the Soul King." The hybrid stood in a daze as the darker man appeared next to the monk.
"He is Oetsu Nimaiya and I am Ichibe Hyosube, though most people call me Osho." The bald man said. "And we have been watching you for a long time, ever since you first came to Soul Society. We are aware of Aizen's actions and Yhwach's return.
"So what? You here to help?" Ichigo asked, surprise switching to irritation. "Took you long enough to get off your asses." Instead of getting angry, Oetsu started laughing.
"No man, we're not doing anything about that unless they get up to the Soul Palace." He said before pointing to Ichigo. "You're finally getting a Zanpakuto, and I'm personally going to make it." Once again Ichigo was surprised.
"Oetsu Nimaiya, the man who forged every Zanpakuto in existence." Yamamoto explained for his student. "To become a member of the Royal Guard, one must make something that the Soul King considers a worthy contribution to the Soul Society. The last one was Kirio Hikafune, who created the Gikon, Oetsu created the Zanpakuto, and Osho gave everything their names." Ichigo turned back to the Royal Guards.
"I guess that makes you the leader of the Zero Squad, right Ichibe Hyosube?" The hybrid said, turning his attention back to the Royal Guards.
"Yes, I suppose you could say that." The old monk say. "Though you should be careful about names Ichigo."
"Whatever Ichibe." He said casually before walking up to the pillar. "So how do we get back to the Royal Palace?" Oetsu walked beside Ichigo and started explaining about the Shiba family cannon.
"Disrespectful boy, isn't he Yamamoto?" Ichibe asked the Head Captain. "Surprised you didn't beat that into his head."
"Power and status mean nothing to him Osho." Genryusai reply. "And he can say your name quite easily. When his training is done, no Shinigami in existence will ever be stronger." The old man smiled as Ichigo lifted the Tenchuren pillar with ease.
"Come on Hyosube! Let's go!" He said, leading the way to the Shiba house. "By the way, can someone get Orihime and Muramasa?"
(World of the Living)
To normal eyes, the city was empty. There were no people wandering the streets and few parked cars were along the streets. To the living, the city was dead. To the spiritually aware, battles raged on furiously. For all the progress made, the Shinigami of squad 15 were still fighting thousands of Hollows. Uryu was slaying hundreds by the second with his arrows, Chad had dozens with every blast but had to fight many with his hakuda, Tatsuki was holding her own with her skills, Ginjo was helping out after Tsukishima rewrote the Quincy history of the Kurosakis and was bedridden with exhaustion, Jackie was slowly beginning to tax herself due to not being used to long fights, Lisa had her mask on and aided the effort, Senna was practically swinging around a stream of lightning from the winds she generated, and Isshin was doing his best to keep the matter contained with Hiyori keeping him on top of all the strongest Hollows.
"Gillian in Karakura park!" Hiyori shouted from his earpiece as the captain struck down another Hollow. He turned to the park and saw the towering Hollow, pointed with his hand, and fired a nameless Raikoho kido, removing the top half of the Menos. "This is ridiculous! It's like for every one killed, another shows up! What the hell is this!?" She yelled in frustration. "South Karakura."
"Something's not right about this indeed Hiyori." Isshin growled, flashing to the spot to see his squad fending for their lives. "Is this Aizen's plan? To wear us down with all these small fry?" He swung his blade and slew the Hollows. "He usually uses misdirection to manipulate people."
"Emergency! All seated officers to Karakura park!" Hiyori screamed, alerting everyone. "Arrancar are coming! Espada level!" Isshin and his seated officers immediately bolted to the park to find a Garganta opening to reveal four Arrancar. Two were Yammy and Grimmjow while one was an effeminate boy with a long sleeves jacket and black hair that was glaring at Grimmjow and the last was a dark skinned bald man with a bone like necklace and mandarin style robe shirt.
"Four of them and six of us." Uryu stated, glaring at the Arrancar. "That will be an uneven fight." Grimmjow looked around for a bit before rushing to the front of the defenders.
"Hey, where's Ichigo?" He asked, being particularly rude. "I owe him an asskicking for last time." Isshin stepped forward to stare down the blue haired panther as the other Arrancar came in, some getting ready to fight.
"My son's grounded until further notice for causing more than a few problems for Soul Society, so he'll still be there. Not that you'd fair any better than last time." Isshin told the fifth Espada as the two sides stared each other down. "You can leave now or Aizen can lose a few more soldiers." The captain challenged, just before Yammy was about to throw a punch. The instant the large Arrancar prepared his attack, Chad was on him with a hard left hook to the face and sending him down to the ground with the Fullbringer following after.
"And there he goes, as uncouth as ever." Luppi said before turning back to the city defenders. "So, who do I have the pleasure of killing? I don't mind taking you all on." 'Maybe I'll get my rank back.'
"That's just asking to get killed instantly." Tatsuki said, glaring down at the boy. "I don't mind beating your face into the dirt."
"Careful Tatsuki," Lisa warned as see saw a burn on the Arrancar's stomach, "he might be stronger than you think."
"Come on." Senna said, twirling Mirokuma around. "Between the three of us, he's got no chance." Tatsuki nodded as the group went off to get more space for their fight, leaving Isshin and Uryu with Grimmjow and the black Arrancar.
"I'll take Grimmjow, you handle your fight quickly." Isshin told his Quincy lieutenant, who nodded as he and the Arrancar went to their chosen area.
"My name is Zommari Rureaux, espada number 8." The now named Zommari said with a bow, being respectful to his chosen opponent and surprising Uryu.
'That's new.' He thought before responding. "Uryu Ishida, lieutenant of squad 15. I must say, I never thought I'd meet a civilized Arrancar."
"Until I am shown otherwise, I view my opponents as equals." Zommari informed him. "Even if they are Soul Reapers."
'Nevermind. Not polite, just arrogant.' The Quincy thought as he formed his bow.
(Rising to the Royal Palace)
"So yeah," Ichigo said as he finished a long recap of what happened with Muramasa and Koga, "all stuff I'm sure you already knew somehow." Orihime was with them, keeping the spirit of Muramasa in her rejection stasis field and keeping him alive, as Oetsu looked at the fragments of what was the most heartbreaking Zanpakuto. "Urahara said he got all he needed from Muramasa's blade and spirit, but I was wondering what you could do. It doesn't really sit right with me to just let him die like that."
"Is this genuine concern Ichi?" The master smith asked, showing his more somber side. "Or arrogance because you tend to break the rules so often?" Ichigo was about to answer before actually thinking about whether this was genuine concern or arrogance. "You know every Zanpakuto is a reflection of their wielder so you should have no reason to feel guilty for Koga's own bitterness and self loathing." Oetsu turned to Muramasa's spirit and held out his hand, forcing the spirit to become a perfectly fine copy of the ruined blade. "A Zanpakuto without their Shinigami is nothing but a piece of steel that's best left shattered." He said, making everyone's eyes turn downcast. "Although... there might be something I could try." The smith said, glancing between Orihime and Muramasa.
"Quite possible." Ichibe said, already seeing what Oetsu was planning. "Muramasa can't be fixed, but with an Onmyoji Exorcist..."
"Man, today is a good day!" Oetsu cheered, already starting to dance. "Not one, but TWO people that make my blood burn with excitement!"
"Context please." Ichigo asked as Orihime and Oetsu started... a dance off, oddly enough. "What is he planning?"
"Fixing Muramasa as a Zanpakuto is impossible with Koga dead." The monk said, being one of the two sensible people left in the giant pillar. "So what he is going to do is reforge it into a new blade with the preexisting spirit, creating a Tsukumogami for your friend to use."
"Can that work?" Ichigo asked, feeling skeptical despite what he had seen so far in his life.
"We'll find out soon enough." The Tenchuren stopped and the doors began to open. "But first, you need your proper Zanpakuto Ichigo." Ichibe said as he gestured for Ichigo to exit the heavenly transport with Orihime to witness the realm of the Soul King. Five flying discs holding several buildings on each with a massive cylinder structure that radiated power, leading Ichigo to conclude the building was the Soul King's palace.
"So as a member of the Royal Guard, you guys get your own cities?" Ichigo asked, equal parts amazed and disgusted as the two Zero Squad members nodded. "You people suck."
(Karakura Town)
"Keep it up!" Masaki growled as chaos continued to reign throughout the city. The Hollows were attacking their home, the barrier keeping them out beginning to crack and fracture despite Yuzu and Karin's efforts to strengthen it, while she and Kon killed as many Hollows as they could to lighten the burden. Masaki had her own purifying bow, much like Uryu's, but she was growing tired trying to maintain the unfamiliar spirit weapon. But if that barrier finally comes down then morality be damned, she'd destroy thousands to protect her family. Kon was in much the same boat, crushing Hollows using Ichigo's body, but the endless swarm began to wear the down and he couldn't afford the time to switch to his other body.
'Why are they attacking here?!' Kon thought frantically, punching a Hollow's skull clean off as he tried to figure out what was going on. 'The barrier should have kept this place hidden and it's not like they'd know who was here. Right? They're just dumb, hungry Hollows!' He rationalized as he kicked another dozen off the cracking barrier, everyone unaware of the small tear in space above them.
(Illustrated Guide To Soul Reapers)
Yumichika and his Zanpakuto (During their fight)
"So, Ruri'iro Kujaku, why did you betray me?" Yumichika asked his feathered Zanpakuto. "The narcissism, different sense of aesthetics, because I'm pretty sure I already dealt with my self loathing from keeping the truth about you hidden."
"Then why do you continue to call me by that disgusting name?" The beautiful blade returned. "You know full well I hate the color of wisteria."
"Is it not obvious?" The third seat asked, flashing up close to his Zanpakuto. "How could I not keep such a beautiful power all to myself? Letting your lovely vines and flowers touch something ugly without killing them so that their deaths can bring something beautiful into the world?" He said, cupping the face of his Zanpakuto and leaning in close.
"So it is the narcissism." Kujaku concluded, placing his hand over his master's. "But now I can't find myself complaining."
Meanwhile, away from the campy pair
"What the hell is happening there?" Ikkaku asked as he and Hozukimaru watched the interaction between the two biggest narcissists in Soul Society.
"I'm not sure." The large spear using spirit said. "I'd just say that they're about to screw, but a Soul Reaper and their Zanpakuto? Who would do such a thing?"
#Whackybiscuit: Claiming Power
Byakuya's Punishment
"As for you, Byakuya Kuchiki." Yamamoto started when everything finally settled down in Seireitei. "There is a lot of work to do in restoring the Seireitei, buildings to rebuild, apparently rogue Zanpakuto that are attacking, and teaching you humility." Byakuya sat, kneeling in front of the captain commander as he prepared for his judgment. "First, rebuilding. There are many materials that need to be moved and carved, something you will help with by carving and transporting a fair share of the destruction you caused. The rogue Zanpakuto you will be hunting down yourself with only your Zanpakuto in it's sealed state. You are not permitted to stop until you meet a quota of five of these 'Toju', as they've been named, a day until they are all slain. Finally, your lesson in humility. You are the head of one of the Great Noble houses, but so long as you are a member of the Gotei your status is meaningless to me. You will perform your duties in this uniform that Riruka and the rest of the SWA made." Riruka showed up with a smile while holding up a full body baby blue dog outfit with pink collar. Byakuya gagged at the thought of wearing it, but before he could say anything. "Wearing this is mandatory and Urahara will know if you take it off. It's this or you will dishonorably discharged." There was a pause. "Well?"
"I'm weighing my options, sir." Byakuya said in a defeated tone.
Kenpachi's Birthday
"Really?" Ichigo asked as he looked at the towering pastry. It was taller than Komamura and decorated with sugar skulls, lined with yellow frosting, and made to look like it was bleeding from dozens of cuts with red gel frosting.
"I've discovered my sweet tooth Ichigo." Kenpachi said, patting the hybrid on the back. "I was just as disturbed as you are." The last candle was placed and Yumichika began lighting all of them with kido.
"Alright Zaraki Squad! Like we rehearsed all month!" Ikkaku ordered as the members of squad 11 got into position.
"There is so much wrong with this." Kisuke sighed, most of the captains agreeing while the rest just waited for cake.
"Captain Zaraki! Thi~s i~s your~ birthday so~ng! It isn't very long! HEY!" The squad cheered in unison. Just then, Unohana in her Yachiru state appeared out of nowhere and stabbed Kenpachi in the chest before pulling him in by his hair for a deep tongue kiss and earning a shout of pain.
"You bit me you dirty bitch!" He yelled, blood dripping from his tongue and lips. "Damn you know how to get me hard." He growled before throwing his wife over his shoulder. "Have the cake without me boys, I'm going to be busy with this all day!" He ordered as he ran off to the 'Kenpachi Love Shack' located far away from civilization.
'This ended with less blood than I expected.' Ichigo thought as he got himself some cake.