Gate of the World

"Moe… he's dead…"

"We have to leave! Something's wrong with Ichigo. It was like looking at a different person—"

Another arrow streaked across the sky towards their group, trained on Jackie. Ginjo and a shaken Tsukishima worked together to deflect the arrow, however it burst through and hit Jackie on the shoulder. She was wounded, but thought she would be okay. However, the spiritual power infused into the arrow began to expand and exploded. Tsukishima caught Riruka and Giriko suddenly handed Yukia to Ginjo and ran back towards Ichigo.

"I'll buy us some time; it has been good knowing you all."

Giriko appeared in front of Ichigo and Grimmjow. Ichigo pointed the next arrow straight at him. The old man took out a pocket watch and flicked it open. The clock began to tick and the atmosphere around them seemed to be locked in space.

"For the next two hours, no one will be able to leave this courtyard. Violation of this timer will cause the god of time to engulf you in flames. Even if you kill me, you will be unable to—"

He was cut off by Ichigo suddenly pointing his bow into the sky and releasing a volley of five arrows. They flew vertically before making a ninety degree turn and flying toward the fleeing group. Ichigo simply leaned into his bow with a dull expression. Giriko was taken aback by Ichigo's actions. Their information had labeled him as someone who held life precious and wouldn't even kill his enemies in direct combat.

However, these actions were one of a ruthless killer. He began questioning which one was the Hollow. Ichigo's eyes were still yellow and his outfit had turned completely black. Grimmjow was also a bit taken aback by Ichigo's actions. In fact, he would not have killed those who ran away if they were too weak to be a threat. He would only kill them at their full power in a fair fight.

Ichigo pointed his finger at Giriko like a gun and Reiatsu concentrated on his finger. Before he could pull the trigger, his wings collapsed and his eyes reverted back to their brownish-orange color. Ichigo held his head in pain and passed out. Giriko was ready to die the moment he set up his timer for this area. Therefore, when he ended up surviving, he didn't know what to do. The most awkward thing was that he couldn't leave the area until the time was up.

"You just stay in the corner over there and don't bother us. Weak opponents like you aren't worth my effort."

After waiting for the time limit, the space around them seemed to revert back to normal. Ichigo was still unconscious so Grimmjow grabbed him by his collar and threw him over his shoulder. He grumbled how annoying it was to babysit then made his way back to Ichigo's house. Truthfully though, Grimmjow was slightly frightened with that power Ichigo showed. He wasn't sure if he could block one of those arrows.

…

Orihime walked through a dense wall of trees and through a short cave. On the other side of the cave was the ruins of a town from several hundred years ago. Orihime was munching on the last few pieces of cotton candy. Her face was painted orange and black like a tiger's, which strangely matched her.

She had asked around the city but no one seemed to know anything about a village. That is when she ran into a group of wanderers that set up camp outside the city. When she arrived, she realized this 'camp' was actually a circus. There would be the random group or couple that came to get ripped off for fun.

Orihime realized that these wanderers typically know a lot more about what is around the cities, so she decided to solicit information. However, the ringmaster insisted that she tour the circus and enjoy herself. The ringleader suggested they knew the information she sought, but wanted her to spend some money at the circus grounds. She made her way around getting popcorn, face painting, and a giant ball of cotton candy. It had been a while since she experienced a grounded human activity.

When she walked in front of "The Mystical Madame Abela", curiosity got the better of her. When she entered, the tent was very dark. The only source of lights came from the crystal ball in the center and the few candles in the back. Abela asked Orihime to sit down and began to read her fortune.

The crystal ball became black and she began to sweat. After a short while she put away the ball and apologized to Orihime. Madame Abela took out tarot cards and had Orihime shuffle them. She pulled out the first one and placed it down on the table. It was the tower reversed, which she explained relates to a disaster that was avoided or delayed. The next card reveals the hanged man upright, which reveals sacrifice or martyrdom. The final card she reveals as death upright.

When Orihime asked what it all meant, she handed back her money. Madame Abela explained that the fates weren't being clear and she couldn't do a good reading. Orihime shrugged and went back to the ringleader. He then shared with Orihime the coordinates of the entrance to the ruined town. Apparently, he had stumbled upon it and thought to turn it into a carnival one day.

While reminiscing on her experience the day before, she found herself in front of a long pathway with many stone arches. At the end of the path was a stone archway that had not collapsed like the others. The stone used to make it seemed the same, but over the years the white had not faded in the portal. Whereas the marble arches along the way had eroded and become less polished.

Orihime drew a circle on the ground and separated into four quadrants before drawing distinct symbols in each quadrant. Then she poured spiritual power into the spell and it glowed blue for a few minutes as the symbols in each quadrant changed. Eventually they stopped on a set of symbols and Orihime nodded.

"Now that I've marked the spatial coordinates of this spot, I can open the Senkaimon directly here. However, I still don't know how this arch is supposed to be activated…"

Orihime walked over and touched the stone. It was completely inert and didn't react to her Reiatsu. She tried dripping some blood on it and the door sparked, but didn't activate. It was likely related to the Quincy blood, but it seemed her counterfeit wasn't enough. Or perhaps it wasn't mature enough to open it.

"No problem, I can get Ichigo to open it. Bringing Uryuu might be dangerous since he may get drawn in by Yhwach and become 'The Antithesis' again. That would be troublesome to deal with. Only if Ichigo cannot open it will I bring him. It's too dangerous otherwise."

Before Orihime could create a portal back to Karakura town, she senses a burst of Reiatsu and jumps backwards. A series of Reiatsu bullets riddle the ground where she was standing and then continue to fire as the direction changed. Orihime harrumphs and fires off a destructive Kido in the shooter's direction, which halts the firing.

"Your attacks are futile, Soul Reaper. His Majesty has tasked me with protecting the Gate of the World. You will be eliminated and turn into data by me."

Orihime narrowed her eyes and seemed to recognize the enemy. He looked a lot like BG9 from the main timeline. She started to get excited. Fighting a Sternritter would be a good way to gauge her strength. She thought back to his specific abilities and seemed to recall him being quite strong. Orihime licked her lips in anticipation.

Without waiting for anymore banter, she released Shunko and Reikoromo. Her civilian clothes tore from the intense Reiatsu but were replaced with her captain's uniform within the maelstrom of Reiatsu from her ability. She appeared in front of the strange man. He was wearing a full helmet and a white overcoat that went down to his ankles.

Orihime shifted her center of gravity and rotated her body, giving him an upward kick. BG9 did not expect the sudden attack and was sent into the air. Orihime followed up by jumping and giving him a series of punches all over his body. It felt like she was hitting something inorganic like stone. Finally, she finished her combo by clasping her hands together into a two-handed fist and slamming him into the ground.

"I see… So, this is the strength of a Captain. I have analyzed your Reiatsu and added it to my knowledge. This battle is over for you. A mere captain cannot defeat a Sternritter such as myself. I am BG8, designated K of the Sternritter."