Chapter 181 - The Captains of the Gotei

The surprising erection of Kurohitsugi had forced the other Captains to retreat, as they were still grasping what had transpired, except for Itachi and Kisuke who had actually drew near to the black coffin, the former with his Zanpakutō unsealed while the latter had a cracked and broken phantom limb that punctured into the coffin and made cracks across the outer surface. 

The instant the gravitational torrent of the coffin disappeared, Itachi was immediately by Yoruichi's side and his eyes darkened red. 

Though he had used the Yata Mirror and offset a huge bulk of the compounding gravity inside the coffin, the Hadō spell itself was one that warped space and spatial attacks were hard enough to guard against as is. Due to her diminutive size, when compared to the Yata Mirror, the shield covered most of her, but what about the air she was breathing in? What about the space where she stood? 

Her bones were crushed and deep lacerations were all over her body but she was still alive, relatively well compared to anyone else who would have been struck with an Hadō #90 unawares. 

His red eyes turned to Kisuke and the air itself froze. Kisuke had yet to say a word when a dome of black flames was raised around him with the space around them shimmering with a wavy haze. 

"Explain. Now." The blackened blade of Amaterasu's Zanpakutō was now centimeters away from touching Kisuke's throat. 

The other Captains, their panic having greatly subsided, stared at Kisuke with questioning looks. 

"We had no way of completely hiding it from Aizen if he could truly sense it, so Yoruichi volunteered to hide it in her soul until we got rid of Aizen. A move he wouldn't have expected." Kisuke slowly said with his hands raised up placatingly. 

Nobody said anything as Itachi continued staring at Kisuke. Finally being on the receiving end of those damning eyes, Kisuke felt extremely uncomfortable as those gaze felt as if they were dissecting and probing him, a feeling he knew very well and wasn't fond of.

"Tessai." 

"Aizen must have done something to him." Kisuke sighed wearily, his worry seeping out his pores unrestrainedly. "… I don't know."

They all looked up as they felt the Senkaimon opening up in the sky but when they looked back down, Itachi and Yoruichi were gone. 

... 

"Kurohitsugi." Unohana said gravely. "However you did it, you did well to shield her from most of it. She'll be fine in a short while if it's only this much, but I'll have to stay here to make sure she's sufficiently healed."

"Thank you, Retsu." He said sincerely, surprising her a bit before she laughed it off. 

"It's my job. And besides, she was once a comrade of mine." She said, waving off his gratitude. "Unfortunately I won't be joining you soon in Hueco Mundo."

"You can join us where you're done over here." Saying so, Itachi looked at Kenpachi and nodded at the excited man, and then called over Junpei and Kaien. "Your role is to make sure you get Third Seat Miyako Shiba and Lilynette as soon as you can, we'll hold off the others as long as we can."

Since they were down a Captain due to Unohana staying behind to heal Yoruichi, Isshin joined the trio of Itachi, Kenpachi and Byakuya for the preemptive strike on Hueco Mundo. 

"You'll have to travel through the Dangai and these devices. They'll pinpoint as close as Aizen as possible." Kisuke threw a fist sized device at Itachi. 

Aizen currently had the Hōgyoku so why were they still going as a six man group? If he knew their plan, why wouldn't he just hide? These were all valid questions that were asked but the answer was that they had a way to track down Aizen at the moment. And for how to get him here, they had a plan for that. 

Using the gateway Kisuke had created for Itachi long ago, they traveled through the Dangai with the direction of the scanner until they arrived at a spot where it kept beeping unceasingly – their point of entry. 

The moment they arrived at Hueco Mundo, other than the stale air of death that permeated it, what welcomed them was the billowing waves of pure malice that was coming from the Forest of Menos. 

"Quite the landmark I'll say." Isshin whistled. 

With the knowledge that Aizen would be at the bottom of the Forest, the Captains unhesitatingly went in, casually ignoring the building malice that swirled around them. 

..... 

[POV: With Aizen] 

He looked at the heavenly jewel in his hands and relished in the feel of it finally in his hands. 

Had he been anybody else, he would have been beyond ecstatic at the tool of his goal finally in the grasp of his palms, except he was Aizen. 

It was a calculated outcome. It was a bit troublesome but like always, in the face of godly intellect and comparable strength, it became an inevitability. A flawless plan and a perfect execution. The results were obvious from the start. 

He had to hand it to Kisuke Urahara. The changes he had made to his Gigais was a perfect vessel for any powerful soul. 

This was one of a long time planned maneuver. 

Thanks to Itachi, he had been forced to think of new ways to hide the effect of Kyōka Suigetsu and by a stroke of genius he had found it. He had found out that as long as they saw the activation of Kyōka Suigetsu but were not put under its effect, Kyōka Suigetsu will have a completely dormant hold on that person that only needed them to see the blade another time for it to take hold. Whether his Zanpakutō was seen during activation or in its sealed state, the dormant effect will finally take hold… and there was no escaping Kyōka Suigetsu. 

As for Tessai's Gigai, he has been playing with masking his Reiatsu for centuries now and decades ago, there was this interesting Hollow that had the ability to take the form and memories, even the Zanpakutō spirit, from any Shinigami it ate. From then on, it was just careful action. 

'Still, I am surprised he noticed at the end. Albeit a few moments too late.'

"Tōsen, get ready. They are finally at our doorsteps." He said to his ever loyal aid. 

As Tōsen turned to leave, Aizen called out to him again. "Make sure our surprises are ready."

As much as he hated to admit it, Itachi's actions that very day affected a lot of his plans. A lot of his contingencies had been evaporated alongside Las Noches. 

Right now however, the only person he was most worried about was the Head Captain but he was sure that the vaunted Genryúsai Shigekuni Yamamoto will only descend when there is no other choice. That will give him time to acclimate and grow the Hōgyoku. 

The Shinigami didn't need all those plans to draw him out. He'd have come out regardless. He needed them to be the whetstone to stimulate the Hōgyoku's growth. 

"The end of an era. My Espada will herald the beginning of a new one."

....

On the side of the Captains, Byakuya and Isshin sported grim faces as they came across what was essentially a small army of Arrancars. 

The Hollows that had feasted on each other and had grown from it were all given the privilege of being part of Aizen's Arrancars. Given that only four, with the inclusion of Starrk, of Aizen's Espada were Vasto Lorde, this small army of Adjuchas Arrancars were more than a sizeable force that was capable of threatening the Soul Society. 

The weakest of them had the same Reiatsu levels Kaien and Chōjurō Sasakibe while the stronger ones were no different from Byakuya and Sajin. That they were concerning was an understatement. 

"Finally! A good bloodbath!" Kenpachi ran his tongue over the jagged edge of his Zanpakutō, relishing in the storm of malice. 

"Burn and Reveal, Honshin." (Kogasu to Sarakeru, Honshin.)

"Senbonzakura."

"Burn, Engetsu."

"Nejibana." 

"Siphon off, Shichishito."

"RAHHHHHH!"

The growling voices dimmed for a second as the explosion of Reiatsu from the four Captains engulfed the upper levels of the forest and threatened to swallow up the malice with unforgiving impunity. 

"Aizen…" Itachi started, his voice a low dim as he took a step forward. 

"The Captains of the Gotei are at your door…." Isshin said with a low chuckle, dreary flames hanging off his hands. 

"To put an end to this ill-bespoken farce…." Beautiful and regal, Byakuya stood in the midst of petals, appearing cutoff from the quagmire of death and madness. 

"DIE!!!" 

An unrestrained and bloodlusting spear – that was what Zaraki Kenpachi was as he tore an advance into the sea of Hollows. 

Black flames of dread that whispered lies of despair spread out, consuming everything it touched. 

Wrathful flames engulfed all unfortunate souls that dared cross its path. 

The pink spring of falling cherry blossoms turned into cold winter steel that drizzled of red.