Bleached

Chapter 21: War, part 2 of 3

Disclaimer: Nope.

§ Seiretei, battleground §

Shinji Hirako looked over the battlefield. What had once been the 1st district of Rukongai and the outer part of Seiretei was now completely demolished. They'd been battling the Quincies for what felt like hours, and both the Quincies and the shinigami were equally matched. Part of the reason for this was a warning from Ichigo. The Quincy could take their bankais when they activated it. That meant that fighting them with their shikai's tethering at the edge of bankai was their only option. A job that was not easy. Rose had already had a few close calls,almost slipping into bankai. The way Rose's opponent, Pernida's eyes had lit up as it had sensed Rose almost lost control was a confirmation of the "hidden" weapon of the Quincies. Not to mention creepy, as Pernida was a hand. With eyes. Shinji shuddered inwardly.

Across him, Shinji could see Toushiro battling an overzealous quincy, whose name was apparently As Nodt. Shinji thought the name didn't fit the man, as he definitely was an ass. He almost snorted aloud, but saved himself. Barely. The lieutenant of the 10th division looked irritated. Shinji couldn't blame him. As Nodt was an arrogant idiot, and Toushiro could probably have taken out in three strikes had the bankai been an option. Byakuya was still battling that Candice girl, and he too looked vaguely frustrated. Shinji couldn't blame him either. Candice was barely holding herself alive, and Byakuya looked almost bored. The girl would likely survive a head on shikai attack, but a single strike with his bankai would eviscerate her completely. The same could be said for Kaien. The Shiba was in a slight unease as his opponent seemed to have been one of the better ones. Apparently he could duplicate his opponent and fighting style. It was disturbing to watch to versions of the same person go after each other.

The only ones who seemed to have fun were of course Kenpachi and Yachiru, wreaking havoc everywhere they breathed. Their opponents looked wary of them, but seemingly held their own against the dynamic duo. Kenpachi was the only one who had actually defeated an opponent, though it was no surprise. The man had only unlocked his shikai 50 years, with Ichigo's help, and even then it had almost outmatched every captain in terms of sheer. The fact that Ichigo had helped the man control that power and use it accordingly made him all the more terrifying.

Another Captain that surprisingly seemed to enjoy herself was Yoruichi. The Goddess of Shunpo was flashing everywhere, cackling while leading her opponent, Bazz-B on a merry chase all over Soul Society. Shinji almost felt sorry for the man. Almost. The Mohawk-dude was irritating enough to deserve it. And from the looks Sui Feng was shooting him, despite being rather busy with her own adversary Askin something, Bazz was going to get it even more tough soon Ukitake, Kyouraku and Kisuke were nowhere in his sight. Neither were Juuhabach and what seemed like his second hand man. Not that Shinji missed them, but it was worrying.

Shinji himself was fighting a rather lame man, Quilge Opie. As if the man's name wasn't idiotic enough, he had to have the lamest wasn't that he was stupid. It was the fact that his fashion sense clashed with his looks, which clashed with his tactically smart brain, which clashed with his flamboyance and sheer... gayness. Not that Shinji had anything against gay people, but there was a limit to what he could take. And the fact that Shinji had a better fashion sense than Quilge was telling enough. Also the fact that the man's "special" power was to jail him was lame. Who wanted to be an overrated jailer, anyway? Shinji was tempted to kill himself just the sheer idiocy of his situation.

All in all, the lieutenants and the captains of the Gotei 13 were busy. He could see the captains becoming frustrated. And he could see why. The Quincy were strong. But with bankai they would have been barely above an Adhjuncas level hollow for them. The only reason that the captains hadn't given in, was because of Ichigo's training. And Shinji thanked every force in the Universes for the hybrid's existence. Had it not been for the strawberry, they would have undoubtedly died. Several times over.

Elsewhere Kisuke Urahara breathed a sigh of relief. He'd finally created the cancelling device for the bankai canceler. He'd dragged his opponent, some guy named NaNaNa (really, was that even a name?), from the battlefield and into the 12th division, where he'd defeated the Quincy with the help of his soldiers. After a search, they'd found the device Ichigo had described. It was simple enough to figure it out, but making a canceler wasn't as easy. The scientist breathed a sigh of relief as he shunpoed to the battlefield, frowning at the destruction. They would have a hell of cleaning up to do. And Kisuke hated cleaning. Deciding not to dwell on it, Kisuke hurried towards the center of the battlefield. Taking a deep breath, the scientist pulled out his device, and activated it. The effects were immediate. Something exploded in each and every Quincy's face. Their medallions. The attackers pulled stopped in their respective activities, their shocked and surprised looks varying decree. Finally, a Quincy with a Mohawk seemed to snap out of it.

"What-who did that?! My medallion!" The rage on his face was frightening to anyone below lieutenant level. Which lost its effect as most of them were above lieutenant level. In fact, Kisuke saw Shinji roll his eyes. The captain of the 5th looked annoyed. Kisuke cleared his throat, bringing the attention of the proverbial to himself. Putting on a patented "mad-scientist" smile, Kisuke held up his canceler.

"Oh, you see, we received some information on the properties of your...medallions. And we couldn't just let you take our bankais, now could we? So I, being the helpful genius that I am, decided that a canceler was much needed. After all, we can't let you win, can we?" There was a look of relief on every shinigamis' face when they heard that they could finally let loose. Bazz-B was looking faint. Byakuya sprung into action.

"Thank you, Captain Urahara. Now I can finally rid the world of this stain on the name of women. Senbonzakura Kageyoshi." An explosion of pink deadly sakura petals enveloped the field. Kisuke sensed the rest of the shinigami powering up as well. Within a couple of minutes, the Sternritters fell. Shinji landed next to Kisuke, powering down. The man sighed, looking slightly relieved an weary simultaneously.

"Well...that was frustrating and anti-climatic." Kisuke snorted. Byakuya landed next to them, having heard the comment.

"Actually, this was just the beginning. The real battle is undoubtedly going on near the 1st division. You do remember that Ichigo told us that the more Quincies we kill, the stronger Juuhabach gets. And the man just received the biggest output of energy that he could have dreamed of. It was lucky none of them had the chance to activate their Vollstanding. Come on. I have no doubt that Shunsui and Juushiro are fighting that man who followed his King. We must help to the best of our abilities." With that, the Kuchiki heir shunpoed at lightening fast speeds towards the center of Seiretei. The rest of the captains followed soon after. They had a Universe to protect.

§ 1st division barracks §

Jugram Haschwalth was panting. And so was his enemy. Ukitake Juushiro was a tough opponent- not a surprise. Tough it did surprise him that the kindly man had gotten rid of his millennium old sickness. And the fact that the white-haired man was giving him a hard time without activating his bankai was another surprise. Though Jugram had hit equally hard, without his Vollstanding. If the situation wasn't so dire, Jugram might have enjoyed the fight. Ukitake was an incredible fighter, using both his blades with such precision and control that he could barely hold up. As a result, he had several small cuts bleeding all over his body. Ukitake was in a similar position. As soon as he nicked or injured Haschwalth in some way or another, he was immediately paid back, some times with interest. Ukitake was still waiting for the signal that the bankai stealing devices were eviscerated. After all, loosing his bankai would do no one any good. They continued to fight, both equally matched.

The fight was taking place over the center of Seiretei. A number of houses and mansions covered the ground under them, though most of them were demolished by the sidelines, that is from the top a roof, Kyouraku and Juuhabach watched the fight while playing chess. Kyouraku watched with an expression of mild interest, though in reality he was watching every move closely. His protectiveness of his best friend would always be there sickness or not. In reality, he was supposed to be fighting Juuhabach. And in a way he was. Kyouraku had always been one for mental battles rather than physical. And though he doubted he would win this one, it did beat having to undoubtedly unleash his bankai before it was safe.

Luckily for him, Juuhabach was in no hurry. He may be insane, but Juuhabach was a patient man. He knew that the Shinigamis were lpaying a waiting game. Waiting for what, he could guess. The shinigamis were stronger than he'd anticipated. They would raze his Sternritters soon enough. And while the loss would harm his cause in some ways, it would lead him to win in the long run. The energy boost he would receive would further his alredy high energy levels to unimaginable heights! That would lead to a quick and easy death for the remaining shinigamis. And the Reiou, weak as he was, would be an easy target. After all, what could the Royal Guard do to a much stronger and moral-less God? Especially without their bankais, they were weak as puppies. And as soon as he took his rightful place as God, he would resurrect his children.

Suddenly the medallion on Jugram's chest exploded, and so did Juuhabach's. The King's eyes widened slightly. Someone had known about the medallions. But how? he was mentally connected to all his children, so there was no room for lies. But somehow, his hand had been shown. Ukitake and Jugram paused their fight as they sensed the upheaval in spiritual energy that had followed the explosion. Ukitake's eyes widened as he put two and two together. He recognized his fellow captains and vices powering up after the explosion of the medallion. That must mean that the bankai-cancelers had been destroyed. Kyouraku had apparently come to the same conclusion, as he sat up with a groan.

"Ah, it seems like we have to post-pone our chess match. Time to get serious it seems." Shunsui made a light grimace. Juuhabach sent the man an amused and slightly unhinged smile. He was after all, receiving the energy of his strongest children. It was like getting drunk, only much, much better. Kyouraku shuddered internally. He never wanted to see that look on Juuhabach's face again. Ever. He seemed like he was an orgasm. It was disturbing.

Sensing the arrival of the victors coming, Jugram and Juushiro broke up their fight, Jugram awaiting orders and Juushiro following the plan. Soon enough the Captains and their vices were all assembled. Juuhabach smiled mockingly.

"So the cavalry has arrived, though, I wonder, where is my dear friend Genryuusai? Or for that matter, where is Kurosaki Ichigo?" A wave of shock followed Juuhabach's question. How did the Quincy King now about the time-traveler and his original name? However, they were spared the opportunity to answer as said time-traveler appeared out of thin air, orange hair blowing in the wind.

"I am afraid Yama-jii isn't joining us. Old age, you see? And I would say it was a pleasure to meet you, but I rarely lie. Kurosaki Ichigo at your service, though," Ichigo sent a smile towards Kaien, who smiled back. "I prefer Shiba."

I had a writer's block. You reviewed. It's gone. Like magic.

-iamAdisco