(Time Remaining: Hours)
A dark air hung in the capital ever since morning, tense with the military preparations and grim with the expectation of battle, the armies of the empire were ready to move the moment the call came. Almost all of the Shinigami were doing some light practice and testing new techniques with their Zanpakuto, Makoto sitting on his throne and waiting for the coming battle, Esdeath and Budo doing some last minute preparations with the Soukai children, and Ichigo sat atop the palace with Marik and Mira, watching and waiting for the whatever signal the Quincy would provide.
"You're doing very well." Esdeath told Hinowa as they continued sparring in the training field among her army, the general coming to a conclusion on a decision during her time in Soukai. "Hinowa, I've been thinking... would you become my daughter?" The sudden question shocked the girl and the whole army, freezing them in place and giving Esdeath an opening to kick Hinowa's legs out from under her. "Never lose focus or drop your guard. How many times have I said that?" The ice user scolded before helping her protege up.
"Too often," the foreigner admitted, "but... that was just so sudden. Why did you ask that?" Esdeath smiled looked into the distance, northward and in a land her family once frequented.
"I'm the last surviving member of the Partas Clan, a nomadic tribe of hunters that stayed in the norther territory of the empire." She said, recalling the days of her family and the fires she found after one of her solo hunts. "My father always taught me that the strong lived while the weak deserved to die, a philosophy I kept for most of my life. But they were attacked by another tribe and destroyed, leaving me as the sole survivor by mere chance. I once thought that I'd one day restore my clan, but I always sought out the next battle so I adopted my soldiers as my family." She said, making her troops blush and smile with pride while her smile faded. "But, I... don't think I'll ever have a child of my own and this may be my last chance. If I was to have a child, I'd be honored to have you as my successor and name you Hinowa Partas." That shocked her soldiers with many refusing to believe while others remembered her fights with Ichigo, that there are some out there stronger than Esdeath.
"This... this is a bit... overwhelming." Hinowa said, disbelief and shock running through her system. "Can... can I have some time to think about it?" Esdeath was about to smile before she felt something in the air change.
"I can't promise much." A spirit light streaked across the sky and was caught by Ichigo, causing a massive disturbance in the air. "Troops! Get ready to move out!" She ordered, her army scrambling to obey. Ichigo soon flashed away and Esdeath knew it was time. The final battle was here.
(Calm before the battle)
The promised day had come, the morning of battle and bloodshed. The sun began to rise as the military of the empire stood ready. Esdeath took the ground forces and stood in the front like an immovable wall daring any to challenge, Najenda held the wall with the archers, riflemen, and artillery ready to fire, and Budo floated in the sky, ready to order the many soldiers and Danger Beast mounts of the air force to take flight and battle. Ichigo was with Makoto deep within a hidden section at the top of the palace, where the final weapon of the royal family laid dormant. The two reached the door and Ichigo activated the Kido Tenteikura as Makoto continued toward the Teigu of the royal family, Imperial Guardian: Shikoutazer.
The room had an odd design, the walls being made of uneven blocks while the floor consisted of round platforms with a staircase leading to a monolith with a circular emblem in the center and a block in front with a keyhole, with the royal scepter being the key.
"Soldiers of the empire," Makoto started, knowing that what he said was being transmitted by Ichigo's Kido as he stood before the block, "brothers and sisters in arms. Today dawns not a peaceful day but a day of blood. Today we stand together to face a far greater danger than any the empire has known. So I beseech you, I beg you, stand tall and fight!" He stabbed the scepter into the keyhole, wind and energy now bursting from the monolith. "Fight! Fight for your homes, for your families, for tomorrow, for the new golden age of the empire!" A massive armored head appeared from the ground, dark and gold with a design of the imperial crown on its head. "Together! Push back and banish this evil!" The armor continued to rise, revealing more of the black and gold armor and a high collared cloak. "Go now Shinigami. I have no more words." He softly spoke as a sphere engulfed him and went inside the Teigu as it continued to rise.
"You've come a long way Makoto." Ichigo said with a smile before flashing to the head of the Teigu, standing among the clouds before sighting a flash of gold beyond the imperial army. Understanding who it was, Ichigo flashed above the gate and saw his enemy, sitting smugly upon his throne on Vianna with the same hooded figure from earlier. Wordlessly, Gilgamesh summoned a hundred different weapons and shot them at Ichigo who proceeded to knock them all aside with ease. The golden armored Sternritter smiled in response.
"Xaros, take command of my forces." he ordered the figure who jumped off the vessel. "Follow me." He told the hybrid before flying away, Ichigo following behind. Xaros watched his lord fly off before looking at Esdeath before raising his hand and causing the enemy army to reveal its many hundreds of thousands of soldiers, Danger Beasts, and a horribly misshapen abomination with a hundred limbs and fifty faces. A barrage of spirit arrows began to fire, forcing Esdeath to create a massive wall of ice.
'The last battle I'll use my Teigu... it's been fun, Demon's Extract.' She thought as she withstood the attack that was soon broken by missile strikes from the royal Teigu. "Grauhorn!" She shouted, making a massive icicle shoot from her ice wall and into the Quincy army as they redirected their fire to the missiles, then the wall crumbled and the fragments of ice shot like bullets from a thrust of Esdeath's hand. "FOR THE EMPIRE!" She shouted as she led the charge.
(With Ichigo and Gilgamesh)
The two flew at mach speeds until finally coming to a wasteland where Gilgamesh finally decided to land with Ichigo following close behind. The hybrid cracked his neck and was about ready to draw Zangetsu when the golden Quincy created a portal and brought out two golden goblets and a gold pitcher. The Quincy tossed one of the goblets to Ichigo and poured himself a drink of rich red wine before setting the pitcher on the ground and looked at Ichigo expectantly. The Soul Reaper got the message and took the offer, pouring himself a glass.
"Normally I'd refuse due to being underage back home," he started as he filled his cup with a maroon colored wine and took an experimental sip, "but if this is to be our last meeting than I will accept the generosity." He smiled at the flavor he tasted, smooth and rich from the fruits that made it, before returning his attention to Gilgamesh. "Speaking of, why the generosity in the first place? I expected us to just start trying to kill each other." The Quincy actually smiled with a quick laugh at that before holding his cup out with Ichigo refilling it.
"Our fight will come soon, I promise you." He took a steady drink, enjoying his wine with a smug smile. "However, it is not often I am faced with a strong opponent. Now that you're more man than beast, I have to show courtesy due to that strength. Beating you will be a worthy feat to my tale."
"Is that why you came to this world?" Ichigo asked after taking another drink. "To increase your notoriety? Is it truly worth the effort to come all the way here for Yhwach?"
"That mongrel that fancies himself a god is but a stepping stone in my quest to take what is rightfully mine; dominion of all things as their king."
"But in partaking of Yhwach's spirit and blood, you've sentenced yourself to death at his leisure." The seated Quincy gave a pointed look to Ichigo, waiting for an explanation. "Auswahlen, the ability to claim back whatever fragment of one's soul that was placed in another. Every Quincy under Yhwach's command has some of his soul with the Sternritters having drunk his blood. The moment you kill me could be the moment you die." Gilgamesh looked into his cup and took another sip.
"Not an issue at the moment." The golden Quincy finished his wine and rose to his feet. "I'll deal with that pretender eventually but for now, my pride demands that I take your head. Even if you swore fealty to me in exchange for aiding you in killing that false king."
"I see." Ichigo acknowledged as he finished his drink. "It appears that the two of us could never be allies, no matter the circumstance. You just irritate me." The two, at the same time, threw their glasses into the air and began walking away to make a respectable distance to the other. "So, shall we do a quick warm-up before we really cut loose?" The hybrid asked as he activated Zangetsu.
"I don't see why not." Gilgamesh returned, hundreds of portals appearing behind him. "Begin." He said before firing the first salvo of blades at Ichigo before the many others following the Soul Reaper as he moved around the field at great speeds. The hybrid was closing the distance before jumping away as chains and spears erupted from around Gilgamesh, creating a strong barrier between them as more and more portals appeared. "My arsenal is endless mongrel. I have any number of weapons with which to end you." Ichigo was back where he started and analyzed his chances.
"Very well, time to stop playing." The hybrid stabbed Zangetsu into the ground and unsheathed Kyoka Suigetsu. "I haven't mastered this yet, but I don't really have a choice. Bankai," the sword evaporated into mist as the air rippled like water, "Kagami no Bun'ya de no Tsukiakari no Nisshoku." The area around them was now riddled with an endless number of blades of all kinds. "Welcome, to my MoonLight Armory. My counter to your endless arsenal."
(Battlefield)
The air was choked with smoke and fire, filled with bullets, arrows, stones, and missiles, and ringing with the cries of rage and violence and the dying. The many barely trained soldats of the Quincy army falling rather quickly to the more experienced members of the imperial army and certain Teigu uswers, but the sight of seeing many of their allies suddenly falling dead to the unseen spirit arrows was a harsh blow to many a soldier's mind. Esdeath on the frontlines, battling like a war god or a devil from hell, kept moral up as she cut through many enemies. Budo helping the aerial forces with the power of Adramelech aiding him in flying about, but due to his inability to see the spirit arrows he had gained many injuries that would force most other men out of action.
The original cover that came from the Shikoutazer's artillery fire was ended as the monster with the many limbs attacked Makoto, releasing an inhuman shriek that seemed almost furious with either the Teigu or the one inside. A hundred different arms and fifty different faces, each one with something unique that attacked the massive mech Teigu and causing some harsh damage to the robot. Makoto was forced into a struggle, fighting against the strength of the nightmarish abomination as forty arms were locked with Shikoutazer's two. With a roar, Makoto forced the two of them to turn away from the battlefield and causing massive damage to the deserted city of the capital, but Makoto refused to harm his people. The center of the chest piece of Shikoutazer flashed as an energy beam struck the monster at point blank range, disintegrating much of its body. Believing he won, Makoto was about to throw the massive carcass aside when it started regenerating.
"MakoTo!" The thing roared as a recognizable face appeared, startling Makoto. "YOu mAdE mE ThIs! YoU RuiNeD EVERYTHING you useless puppet!" Honest's disgusting face became more dominate over the rest of the mismatched mass of flesh.
"My ultimate failing was not seeing you for the monster you were." The emperor growled, coming to his senses. "But no one could possibly make that mistake now. For my parents, you disgusting freak." Shikoutazer headbutted the monster, stunning it so Makoto could rip an arm free to punch Honest in the face again. "And I'll kill you as many times as I have to to free this world from your evil!"
(Gate Wall)
Most everything froze for certain people when they saw the monster was Honest, shocking many of the more 'in the know' members of the imperial forces, Najenda being one of them. She wanted nothing more than to help blast the disgusting freak back to oblivion but a sudden shot got her shoulder, forcing her to turn back to the battlefield as many Quincy were attempting to get up the wall. Her robotic eye scanned the enemy and identified over a dozen that were getting too close to their anti-siege weapons. She held out her new arm and it split apart until it resembled a beam rifle and she took aim, shooting each Quincy through the eye to avoid the possibility of the Blut Vene.
"Still a bit rusty," she complained as she felt the drain on her being, "should've got them all faster." A Quincy appeared before her, ready to shoot, before her arm shifted into a shotgun and blew a hole through the unfortunate archer. "Keep up the pressure! Fire!" The catapults and ballistae fired again into the army, striking some groups and most of the Danger Beasts while the archers and riflemen reloaded. Najenda continued to scan the battlefield, finding Esdeath cutting through the enemy and driving a wedge before she suddenly stopped with a robed figure walking toward her. Najenda fired a shot at the hooded Quincy, but he deflected it before looking directly at her and she was brought to her knees by an ear piercing screech.
(With Esdeath)
'What was that?' The general asked herself as she regained her focus after a sudden sound, overwhelming the clash of the battle around her, stopped and she was freed from the daze she found herself in and looking at a Quincy in a ragged coat and hood with his face hidden behind teal colored hair exposing only the left side of his face with a single golden eye. He held out a hand and a large double bladed scythe manifested in his hand, spinning it around with amazing dexterity to display his mastery in a single motion. "And you are?"
"Xaros Blackthorne, Sternritter N. Now die." The short Quincy introduced before suddenly vanishing in a burst of speed, prompting Esdeath to immediately erect a massive wall of ice around herself. She then heard the sound of ice being cut, causing her to jump as a blade sliced through the ice with no effort. She found Xaros holding up black and gold arrow guns that looked like spiked diamonds with a bee pattern, aimed right at her.
"Weissschnabel!" Esdeath summoned thousands of icicles and shot them at Xaros. Instead of firing any arrows, there was a loud screech that pulsed from the Quincy and shattered all the ice. Esdeath barely managed to shield herself with another ice barrier that cracked the moment the pulse touched it along with an arrow barrage that was tearing it apart. "Conquer the frozen hells, Tsundora Akuma!" She summoned her Zanpakuto and immediately fired her Kottaiki at the Quincy, the cold energy freezing everything it touched. Xaros didn't even flinch as he easily dodged the attack, aiming his arrows at the general once again.
'Need to dodge!' She thought as she analyzed the hundreds of arrows, trying to think of a way to avoid getting shot by all the bolts. She didn't have enough Reishi control to stand in the air, nor was she proficient in Shunpo. Running out of time and options she used her Teigu to cover her wrists and ankles in ice to move her body in the air, somehow dodging most of the arrows. 'I'm surprised that actually worked. Let's see what else I can manage.' She thought as Xaros created another pulse, this one killing everyone around them in a twenty meter radius with blood pouring from their heads. Esdeath barely managed to shield herself with ice, giving her a chance to finally recognize what he was using. 'He's fighting with sound... Heavy Pressure used ultrasonic waves to break bones, but he makes that Teigu seem absolutely tame.' She couldn't help the savage grin as a white mist formed around Tsundora Akuma's blade. 'Wonderful. A proper challenge.'
(Elsewhere on the battlefield)
"Keep moving!" Akame called out, leading the special team of Teigu users and those with Soul Reaper powers. Their job was to find any and all Quincy that seemed like officers or stronger than the normal Soldat. Bulat, Daidara, and Leone started competing over who could score the most kills, pulling Wave into their game while the rest of the Shinigami focused on doing their jobs. Kurome and Wave stayed close together while Akame kept an eye out for the more dangerous targets. She looked over to Esdeath, seeing the general suddenly paralyzed with another Quincy with wavy blue hair appearing literally out of nowhere and taking aim at Esdeath. She may not like Esdeath but they were still comrades and she was compelled to aid her, dashing forward to cut the Quincy only for him to vanish. 'What the?'
"The assassin Akame, the chosen successor of Kurosaki as the leader of the Shinigami in this world." She heard him say, causing her eyes to widen in shock. Only herself and Ichigo knew of that talk as they were in private. "Yes, I know many things young lady. I know what is precious to you, but this isn't the way." Akame scanned her surroundings, trying to find the source of the voice. "The Shinigami are tyrants, they command the world from the afterlife and we Quincy seek to save this world from them."
"Sounds like trading one tyrant for another," Akame called out, "if Ichigo was that kind of person. He saved me and my sister from trying to kill each other and has kept his word on every promise he's made. That's more than enough reason for me to stay on his side." She felt an attack coming from behind and dodged, the arrow cutting through her shirt and side and cutting across her ribs.
"A pity." She saw him with another arrow ready to fire and covered the distance instantly before the Quincy disappeared again, with Akame almost cutting Sheele's head off. Another shot stabbed into her thigh, the man disappearing again before she could find him. "My name is Makiri Zolgen, the Hidden. Good-bye, Akame." The assassin focused and summoned her Zanpakuto.
"Consign them, Chimei-Tekina Kisu." Her blade gained its toxic mist as she readied both her Teigu and Zanpakuto, turning in time to deflect an arrow before he disappeared again. "Eliminate." She promised as she pushed her senses to the limit.
(Makoto vs Honest)
Honest sprayed a mix of acid and fire from two mouths while another five limbs clawed, slashed, and stabbed at Shikoutazer's chest, trying to either destroy the core that allowed Makoto to shoot energy blasts or dig out the young emperor. The Teigu seemed to sense the danger to its master and generated a barrier that blocked the attack from Honest, soon shooting forward to slam against the monster's face. Honest was partially stunned by that but he didn't release his hold on the Teigu, refusing to let go of the kid he blamed for ruining his life. Makoto raised a foot of the mech and slammed it against the blob of Honest's form, with his shoulders firing another mortar barrage that exploded on and around the both of them.
"GRUAHH!" The monstrosity cried in the explosions and fire, losing the twenty of his arms as his grip weakened and Makoto was freed with his Shikoutazer cracked and burnt.
'Almost out of ammo and energy,' Makoto thought as he scanned his HUD within the sphere of the Teigu's cockpit. 'and Shikotazer can't take much more damage.' He looked at Honest again to see the abomination's form shift, getting smaller as it rearranged itself. Now the dozens of mouths sprang out like the heads of a hydra and Honest himself from the waist up. Seeing him more clearly, despite the emaciated and frail figure, reignited the fury and hate the young emperor had for the man that lied to him and poisoned his home. "RAAAAAHHH!" He roared as his willed forced the armor into going faster and hitting harder. "For your lies!" Makoto shouted as some heads shot forward to bite while others were ready to breath whatever and Shikoutazer swatted them aside. "For your greed!" The Teigu gripped the base of the monster, on either side of Honest as the former prime minister tried to pry off the Teigu and attack it at the same time. "For everyone that you murdered for your own benefit!" The core on Shikoutazer charged up once again. "I sentence you to DEATH!" He shouted as he blasted Honest and tore the blob of meat in two.
"Mother... Father... rest in peace." Makoto whispered as the last of Shikoutazer's power slowly drained away. "Guess this is it then? Thank you for fighting so hard, Imperial Guardian." He whispered as he lowered the Teigu to safely eject, stopping only when he saw Honest's frail form crawling away and having the Teigu's massive hand slam down on the man, trapping him between the Teigu and the ground. Makoto was slowly lowered from the mech and once he touched ground he felt disoriented from the drain the Teigu had on him, forcing him to use his scepter as a cane as he went around to find Honest.
"I... won't die." Honest growled feebly as he tried to free himself. "I... will NEVER... die!" Makoto appeared before him, both glaring at each other; Honest with pure hate and Makoto with disdain. "You... damn... brat. All you had to do... was what I said. You were blissfully ignorant... and I lived the good life."
"Living at the expense of others is hardly what I would call good." Makoto returned, stabbing his scepter through Honest's eye before the man could respond. The traitor screamed in pain until the emperor pulled his scepter free and watched in disgust as Honest's body began healing.
"I... am... the Perpetual... I cannot... die!" Honest roared in defiance, but Makoto merely smiled.
"Perfect. I'd much prefer it if everyone could exact their revenge on you." Honest's rage then fell away to horror. "I was planning on a long execution for you. Now it'll be endless." And Makoto stabbed the man again. And again. And again.
(Esdeath Fight)
The battle persisted with Esdeath staying on the defensive, none of her ice abilities really posing any threat to the sound using Quincy and the ground getting coated in a thick cold fog with shards and powdered ice littering the battlefield. The general constantly had a shield of ice in front of her as she tried to land a strike on Xaros, but his high frequency attacks always reduced her ice to harmless bits and left her shield cracked. It was becoming more a battle of attrition that she was on the losing side of, using quite of bit of her energy to make thicker and denser ice. It was only her ice powers and years of experience that kept her alive as Xaros blitzed around the battlefield, landing minor scratches to shooting through her arms and legs with Esdeath coating herself in more ice to help her move.
'Just a little more.' She thought as she continued to fight. "Hagelsprung!" She created a giant boulder of ice, launching it at Xaros who shattered it with a concentrated beam of sound. The beam also hit Esdeath's shield breaking it and stunning the Esdeath with the high pitched ringing. Xaros appeared behind her and it was only by luck that Esdeath managed to coat her neck and left shoulder with ice before Xaros' blade came down and shattered her shoulder and collar bone, sending her flying to the ground with a heavy thud that broke a few ribs.
"You were supposed to be the strongest after that Soul Reaper." Xaros said as he floated down in front of Esdeath, his bowgun appearing and aimed at her head with Esdeath holding her steely determination. "But I should have known better than to expect an equal match." Xaros never noticed her Zanpakuto's continued glow as the mist grew thicker around them.
"Shunkan Toketsu." Esdeath whispered, causing all the ice around them to concentrate on Xaro and freezing him in a block of ice. The air around them became unbearably dry and hot as a result of Esdeath using every last bit of ice and cold to flash freeze her opponent, the ultimate move of her Zanpakuto and Teigu. She slowly pushed herself up before hearing the ice crack, looking to find more and more cracks appear as Xaros tried to free himself. Esdeath took her blade and stabbed it into the ice, grazing his side and focusing all of strength on keeping Xaros frozen with the hope that he'd either freeze to death or suffocate. "Come on! Die already!" She growled as more cracks appear with each one she fixed until something pulled her back.
"MOVE!" Mira said, yanking Esdeath away from her opponent as Marik dropped from the sky like a meteorite, smashing the Quincy to powder and creating a massive deep crater with a shockwave that threw almost the entire battle off balance. Mira said nothing before returning to battle while Marik rose from the crater, resembling a weretiger with a bone tail.
"Can you still fight?" Marik asked as Esdeath examined herself, gritting her teeth in frustration when she found herself too drained to continue. "I'll get you back to the wall." The arrancar said, picking the general up in her arms as Budo took command of the ground forces.
(Akame Fight)
The assassin was covered in numerous cuts and growing more and more frustrated with her opponent. Makiri's ability to completely vanish kept her from landing a killing blow and he had a habit of appearing next to her allies, making her have to hold back to avoid killing her comrades. The battle was fraying her nerves to the point that she generated a poison to boost her adrenaline, senses, and reflexes, basically drugging herself to give her an edge and Makiri was still evading her. The poison was pushing her body into overdrive and she didn't know how long she'd last.
'Just one clean cut, that's all I need.' She keeps telling herself as Makiri appeared and shot her again, Akame deflecting them and pouncing at her opponent before stopping herself from cutting Bulat's back. Her heart was pounding in her chest with rapid abandon and her blood was roaring in her ears, everything other than that and the sounds of Makiri's spirit arrows became muted as she focused again on where he might appear. Every time he attacked he was also dangerously close to one of her allies, trying to trick her into attacking one of her friends. She took a glance around her surroundings and found Sheele coming by out of the corner of her eye, with Makiri appearing. The world slowed down as she bolted toward the Hidden.
'Eliminate!' She poised her blade to impale the vanishing archer while he failed to stop his attack and vanish again, the only thing left for him to do was to shoot Akame. The battlefield that shook with such force that Akame tripped in her step and Makiri took that chance to vanish, feeling too close to Akame's lethal blade. Akame took that moment to find that Esdeath's fight was over and then notice that she was hitting her own limit. Unable to keep going with it, Akame deactivated her Shikai which negated the self inflicted drugging.. She was on her last legs, but she was determined to keep fighting.
"Dance on strings, Foru Chita Yakusoku!" She heard her sister call out followed by a shout of pain. Akame turned to find Makiri frozen with an arrow pointed at her, with Kurome's strings inside his body. "Do it Akame!" The younger sister cried out, apparently struggling with Makiri for control of his body. Akame forced herself up, reactivated her Chimei-Tekina Kisu, and stabbed Makiri in the chest with a poison that would quickly liquefy his insides, keeping the blade there as his body turned red from the internal hemorrhaging. The two sisters ripped their Zanpakuto free as his body fell to pieces, Akame slumping over from exhaustion only to be caught by her sister. "Don't worry Akame. This time, I've got you." She promised as Wave and Daidara came by to help them.
(Ichigo vs Gilgamesh)
Hundreds of shattered weapons and craters littered the battlefield, the golden Quincy launching his many weapons at the lone Soul Reaper who either dodged or deflected the attacks. In Ichigo's hands were a physical copy of Katen Kyokotsu's scimitars that he found earlier. He could duplicate their form but the powers were another thing, Kyoka Suigetsu claiming that Ichigo's familiarity with the spirit would reflect his ability with that Shikai. For the time being the hybrid danced along the battlefield, looking for an opening to strike at the Quincy using the two blades without their 'games.'
"Is this really the best you can bring against me?!" Gilgamesh called out as more portals appeared, each one generating another blade. "I was expecting better when you claimed to have the perfect counter. My endless arsenal has no match." He fired another thousand at Ichigo, whose arms became a blurred as he knocked aside every blade as they came at him.
'Endless is right.' The hybrid thought as he flashed away, dodging another and flying around chains that erupted from the ground. 'No matter how many I break it doesn't seem like he runs out. And he just shoots that at me with those portals. Does he even know how to wield... anything?' Ichigo puzzled as he continued flashing around the battleground, spying a familiar ax resting on it's tasseled head. 'Maybe I'll try the Zaraki approach. Just hope I can maintain this.' He reached his hand out and focused his Reishi, pushing out and shaping it into an extension of himself. He soon felt his hand wrap around the long hilt of the Nozarashi ax and a smile on his lips, looking to find a large version of his hand grasping the ax hilt.
"Interesting ability. Sometimes I forget you are also of Quincy blood... though that doesn't seem like a true Quincy ability. No matter," Gilgamesh said before creating thousands of portals to completely surround Ichigo, "nothing changes." He unleashed the latest and watched the explosions engulf the hybrid, frowning when he noticed blades of wind flying about as well. 'What the?' He thought before seeing a blade come at him. He summoned a shield to stop the attack, eyes going wide in shock as the blade cut through the defensive plate. The speed of the cut left the Quincy with little time to summon another shield so he twisted to dodge, earning a nick in his armor and skin.
"This is the blade of the one titled 'Kenpachi'." Ichigo explained as the smoke blew away revealing only slight burns that quickly healed. "He once claimed that there was nothing that he couldn't cut." Gilgamesh glared at the hybrid as he prepared for his next attack before starting to laugh.
"Truly, this shall be a battle worthy of kings and heroes!" Gilgamesh claimed before unleashing hundreds of thousands of his weapons at the hybrid. The Nozarashi copy burned with Ichigo's black Reishi as he donned his golden Hell armor, swinging the blade and unleashing a massive Getsuga Tensho that vaporized the Quincy's attack and slammed against a wall of shields. Gilgamesh moved himself out of the way and shifted the shields to deflect the attack away from him.
"Bankai." The king's eyes widened as the field of blades disappeared and Ichigo appeared behind him. "Tensa Zangetsu." Gilgamesh summoned a chain to wrap around his legs and pull himself away from the hybrid as Ichigo swung his blade and cut a chasm into the earth. Gilgamesh landed on the ground with Ichigo soon appearing across from him, like a hellish god of death with dozens of Zangetsu blades in the form of burning black wings and a halo, almost like he's waiting for the Quincy to act. Gilgamesh accepted that time as his golden armor left his chest and arms, revealing red lines up his sides and around his biceps. He held out his hand as a glowing crimson orb like a small sun appeared.
"Gate of Babylon." The man chanted as wings of burning golden light erupted from his back while a... thing appeared in his hand from the orb. It had a golden hilt and guard but the blade itself was a three segmented black drill with red lines and a golden tip. "This is the strongest weapon in my treasury, the Sword of Rupture, Ea." He pointed it at Ichigo. "Show me your full might, this will be the deciding clash." Ichigo swung out his Tensa Zangetsu, gathering vast amounts of Reishi into the blade while Ea started spinning and generating power as well. "The power to tear the heavens and earth asunder," Ichigo shot toward Gilgamesh, "Enuma Elish!" The golden Quincy fired a blast similar to a Cero in form but with more destructive power than anything Ichigo had ever seen. The blast consumed everything in its wake and Gilgamesh frowned, watching it all fly into a tear in space that led to the Precipice World. "It was a pleasure to fight you, Ichigo Kurosaki." He said as his attack ended and Ichigo reappeared in front of him, cutting the would-be king into pieces. "How?" Gilgamesh asked as his life drained away, cut from the middle of his body and losing his arms.
"After you shot that Enuma Elish, I knew I couldn't take it head on." Ichigo explained as he grabbed Ea and placed it on Gilgamesh's chest. "So I opened a Garganta and flashed to the side. People forget, that above all my strength and power, my speed has always been my greatest skill. With that, it's a matter of staying calm and using any one of the skills that my teachers taught me. Gilgamesh said nothing else as he closed his eyes for the last time, content with having found a worthy adversary. "Now to kill Yhwach and release your soul."
"I can help you with that." Ichigo froze and turned to see a shining figure.
(Final)
With the heavy hitters going down, the battle really fell to two Arrancar, the eight Soul Reapers, and all the remaining Teigu users with what artillery they managed to keep going. Against the hundreds of fully trained Quincy that remained, the battle hit a stalemate with the imperial forces slowly losing ground. That changed when reinforcements came from the north, west, and south before finally ending with Ichigo returning to the main battlefield. However Yhwach seemed to be aware that the battle was lost and used his Auswahlen to bring an end to the failed venture, seeing as the main point was to try and kill Ichigo from the beginning.
The armies of the other kingdoms were tempted to attack the Empire, now being more vulnerable than ever before, but swift action from Ichigo and Budo brought a swift end to those thoughts. The time of war was over, now was the time to rebuild.