Confronting Feelings

Zen'i rushed at Ichigo, Zanpakutō glowing red as it charged with power. "Getsuga Tenshō!"

Ichigo dashed to his left, avoiding the crescent entirely and bringing Zangetsu down to clash against its counterpart. Bringing his left hand to grasp his Shikai as well, he forcibly overpowered Zen'i, sending him flying a few dozen feet away into a dune, sending sand flying and obscuring his vision.

Ichigo flicked his left hand up. "Hadō 33: Sōkatsui!" he incanted, firing off a large blue blast into the cloud, where it promptly exploded and kicked up even more sand.

"You didn't really think that got me, did you?" Ichigo spun and blocked a horizontal slash from Zen'i, who merely smiled grimly. "You need to work on your follow-up, Ichigo. Firing at someone you couldn't see didn't work against Hell, doesn't even work against yourself."

"Noted," Ichigo grunted, channeling power down his blade. "Getsuga Tenshō!"

The blue Getsuga pushed Zen'i back several feet before he was able to shunt it to the side. He immediately had to flicker out of the way with Shunpo as a chain shot towards him at high speed. "So you've discovered your chains," Zen'i observed calmly as he rematerialized several feet away. "Do you even know what they are?"

"They're chains. They don't seem to have a spirit that manifests in my Inner World, if that's what you're asking," Ichigo replied, keeping Zangetsu at the ready. "And they don't feel like Hell's chains, so the best I can tell is that they're a special ability that belongs to me."

"'A special ability that belongs to you'? You don't have a clue, do you?" Zen'i chuckled. "If Zangetsu is our idea of true strength, and Cazador our instinct, just who are you?" Before Ichigo could open his mouth to respond, Zen'i Shunpo-ed in front of him and forced Ichigo to defend himself from several slashes. "WHO ARE YOU?" Zen'i yelled, suddenly angry now. "WHO AM I? You know NOTHING, Ichigo! For all your power, for all that you have learned and experienced, you are still a stranger to yourself! You know AIZEN SOSUKE better than you know yourself!"

"That's not true!" Ichigo roared, taking up the attack, only to be deadlocked by his Hell aspect, each blade pressing against its counterpart with neither giving an inch.

"It is!" Zen'i insisted. "I was there with you for all those years! All that time when the only way you could express yourself was violence! All those times you purposely sought out and provoked those gangs, just to feel anything at all beyond guilt and grief and anger and uselessness! All you know is how to fight! All your life you have only found purpose through war!"

"So what?" Ichigo growled, pushing harder against Zen'i, only to be perfectly matched.

"Are you nothing but a weapon?" the Togabito demanded, staring into Ichigo's eyes with an intensity, a need that Ichigo didn't understand. "Are you only happy when you fight? When there is no one to save, when your power is not needed, what will you do with yourself?"

"I was trying to find out before all this started!" the Vizard retorted.

"And you had no fucking idea!" Zen'i cried out, breaking the deadlock himself and jumping back. "What do you want to do when you're graduate high school? Do you want to go to a university? Do you want to be a writer, a fireman, an actor? A police officer, a baker? A doctor, an astronaut? What do you want to be? What do you like to do? You don't know! All you know is that you feel alive when you fight, and even that was engineered by none other than Aizen when he killed our mother! Have you no true identity to call your own? WHO ARE YOU?"

With a wordless scream, Ichigo flung Zangetsu at his opponent, channeling a Getsuga as it flew. Zen'i dodged and made to cut the cloth, but the Vizard tugged and called it back immediately, catching Zangetsu and holding it at the ready once again. "I am Kurosaki Ichigo," he whispered. "And I dream of a world where those I want to protect are safe and happy, of a time where I can put down the sword without fear. And when that happens, I want to create something beautiful. I don't know what yet, but I'll have a lifetime to figure it out. That's what I want."

"And if that time never happens? If you're never able to put down the sword?"

Ichigo grit his teeth, a blue fire blazing in his eyes as he raised Zangetsu once more. "Then I'll pave the way for someone else."

Zen'i slowly nodded. "Yes. That is who you are. Keep that in mind, Ichigo…" He reached to his side with his left hand, and drew another sword, this one unfamiliar. "Because Hell's Zanpakutō will tear your mind to shreds otherwise. Reveal the truth, Asahi no Kagami!"

Urahara peered at the display with a careful eye, with Ishida and Inoue looking over his shoulder. The original contract had been written in German, but Urahara had merely scanned the contents into his computer and had it translated in minutes. The translation was then projected onto a very, very large screen for easier viewing.

All in all, the contract was fairly straightforward. In exchange for the ability to expand upon and pass on his abilities to his descendants, Yhwach had agreed that all spirits killed by Quincy arrows and techniques would be sent to Hell. In addition, Yhwach would not be able to die of old age. Either party could terminate the contract at any time without consequence. "Hmm…" Urahara hummed thoughtfully upon noticing that.

"What is it?"

Urahara pointed out the relevant lines. "It's surprising that your ancestor managed to get Hell to agree to such a condition."

"Well, I imagine Hell was hardly in a negotiating position at the time," Ishida muttered. "He would have taken the help he could get, no matter how long it lasted."

"True… and it would have allowed Hell to go after Yhwach when he regained power," the scientist murmured. "The question is what is meant by 'without consequence.' Would Yhwach's descendants still retain Quincy abilities? Or not?"

"There's really no way to tell," Ishida replied. "It depends on how much of our powers are bound to the contract. If the powers were given, then we might keep them. If they powers are, for lack of a better word, loaned from Yhwach through the power of the contract, then we might lose them."

Inoue looked at Ishida in quiet concern. Would he be ok if his powers were taken away again, maybe permanently? He's acting so… calm about the possibility. Her lips twisted into a slight frown. Then again, what choice does he have?

Unknowing of Inoue's thoughts, Shinigami and Quincy took a closer look at the passage in question. "'All descendants of the undersigned shall inherit the potential to utilize Quincy abilities,'" Urahara read slowly. "I'm inclined to believe that you would retain your abilities, Ishida-kun, simply for the idea of inheritance. If it had specified that all descendants could use Yhwach's power, then I'd be more concerned."

Ishida nodded thoughtfully, agreeing with the statement. "Yhwach's power existed prior to the contract formation, so the power is not Hell-based in origin. In addition, my soul is accustomed to Quincy techniques – even if it was being aided by the contract before, I should still be able to use them. However, any descendants of my own may not inherit the Quincy powers."

"Is that a problem?" Urahara asked lightly, though his eyes flicked to inspect the young Quincy.

"No. I would be content to be the Last Quincy," Ishida decided after a moment. "If my children are not spiritually aware, then they have little to fear from Hollows. If they develop powers of their own, then perhaps Soul Society will look lightly upon them if they are not Quincy. After all, there is precedent."

Apparently satisfied, Urahara moved his attention back to the contract. "Ah, yes. Sado-kun and Inoue-chan."

"Exactly."

Urahara turned off the screen and turned to Ishida. "Shall we destroy the contract now, then?"

Ishida stiffened slightly. "I'd rather wait until the conflict with Hell is over."

"Why?"

"There are a few reasons. First, this Yhwach… he would almost certainly detect the destruction of the contract. I have no wish to attract his attention."

Urahara's eyes sharpened. "Do you know something about him?"

"Only what is known in Quincy folklore. He's known as the 'The Sealed King.' Approximately one thousand years ago, he attacked Soul Society and was sealed away. The folklore states that after nine hundred years of being sealed, he would regain his pulse. After ninety more, his intellect. Nine years later, he would absorb the power of every impure Quincy." Ishida's eyes were hard flints. "I believe Yhwach has already done that. It's how my mother died, several years ago. He has likely been preparing for war ever since. I assumed that the Shinigami were already aware of him."

There was silence for almost a minute as Urahara processed the information. "I see."

"Do you understand that I don't want to make him move earlier than we have to? We cannot afford to split our attentions further," Ishida stated coldly. "Especially as Soul Society is currently cut off from the living world until you finish moving the Dangai."

"Yes, yes, you've made your point." The scientist sounded almost distracted. "Fine, we'll keep the contract here for the moment. Please leave me, I have much work to do."

Nodding, Ishida turned on his heel and left. Inoue followed a step behind. They walked in silence for a few minutes, leaving Urahara's shop. Finally, Ishida was unable to take the tension. "Is something bothering you, Orihime?"

Inoue bit her lip. "I know you don't like Shinigami, Uryū… but are you going to join Yhwach when he does attack?"

Ishida's eyes clouded and he looked down. "I don't know. I know that not all Shinigami are evil, but every time I think of Soul Society, I think of Kurotsuchi and his evils. I think of Yamamoto and how he permits people like Kurotsuchi and Kenpachi to be in charge of their own divisions, able to torture and destroy as they please without consequence. I think of the corruption of the Soul Society's government, the Central 46. I think of the nobles in Soul Society and how they effectively got away with kidnapping Kurosaki's mother. I think of how they relied on Kurosaki to kill Aizen. And I can't help but wonder whether it would be better for Yhwach to take over.

"But that doesn't matter right now," Ishida continued, lifting his head. "Right now, we have to deal with Hell. Even if I join Yhwach in the future, I still want that contract destroyed – no innocent deserves Hell. Let's get something to eat, and then we can go train."

There's too much. Urahara rubbed his temples, fighting the migraine. There was so much to do, so much to consider. Too much. He was hard at work shifting the Dangai, taking breaks only to alleviate the headache that inevitably came from trying to shift a dimension. Part of his mind still boggled at the idea. Another part, the part that giddily liked to show off and push the realms of science, reveled in it.

Regardless of his own enjoyment, there was only so much his poor brain could take when he constantly fed it streams of data regarding the Dangai. While the 12th Division was actually doing the work – exerting pressure on the dimensions outer and inner borders – it was largely up to Urahara to determine the precise points that would yield maximum effect in the shortest amount of time. Mayuri, tasked with developing anti-Togabito measures, simply didn't have the time to dedicate to the project, though he always insisted on reviewing Urahara's work before approving it. Urahara didn't mind at all – he'd rather Mayuri have the temporary satisfaction of being able to gloat at him, instead of having all their efforts fail because he miscalculated.

And it would be he who miscalculated. The Dangai was spatially and temporally isolated. Time worked very strangely there, and as a result even Urahara's computers couldn't consistently predict how the Dangai would shift. Additionally, the Kōtotsu had apparently been repaired from when Aizen had destroyed it. Or perhaps it had regenerated. Or perhaps the Dangai had spawned a new one. Or maybe it was the same Kōtotsu that Aizen had destroyed, using its time distortion effect to appear from a previous point in its own timeline. The inner workings of the Dangai wasn't Urahara's specialty, and at this point he really had no time to research it.

In any case, the Kōtotsu was back. And with it, exerting pressure on any point in the Dangai could have a variety of effects. The Dangai could respond the way it was supposed to, and shift slightly in the desired direction. Or it could do the opposite due to a reversal of cause and effect caused by time distortion – the pressure on the outside would be interpreted as the effect of the Dangai growing in that area, the Dangai rewriting time in that area to ensure causality was maintained. Or it could do nothing at all. Or it could shift sideways, closer to either the living world or Soul Society, or neither.

Urahara's computers couldn't keep up with the shifting instability of the Dangai and how time flowed in strange directions. They helped, certainly, but ultimately it was up to Urahara. The Dangai was simply too big and too unstable to test it all at once. He had to look at the Dangai in real time, continually approximate the points that he thought looked promising, let the computers run their calculations for the points and surrounding areas, verify the results through his own calculations, and send the results to the 12th Division. And it had to be done quickly, as his results were valid for a damnably short period of time – between one and three hours. And for every point in the Dangai, the calculations differed only slightly but unpredictably because of that damned time distortion! It was enough to drive a man insane!

Just thinking about it reminded Urahara about his headache. He'd been glad to get a brief reprieve when Ichigo-kun had dropped in, even if the boy did raise more questions that he had no time to try to answer. Why had Ulquiorra called him Kurosaki-sama? Stranger still, why had the young man not even reacted to the honorific? Everything that Urahara knew about him indicated that he had issues with giving or receiving that much respect to anyone. It might have been that there was no time or that it simply wasn't worth his attention… Ulquiorra had stated that Togabito were invading.

Urahara frowned unhappily. He didn't have time to investigate that mystery. With some conscious effort, he banished it from his mind. There was too much to do. In addition to being largely in charge of the Dangai operation, he was also the living world's unofficial leader against Hell. He was the one who gave the information on where Togabito appeared, and he was the one who directed who went where. He was the one who decided that the Hollowified Vizard should be held in reserve. And now there was this Yhwach threat on the horizon? Did Yamamoto know? Urahara groaned in frustration. There was too much on his plate!

Urahara sighed and sat in his chair. There was little choice, despite how stressed he was. It didn't matter how tired he was, or how much he just wanted to rest. There was no one else. No one else had the intelligence and background needed to spearhead the Dangai operation.

Wait… Urahara realized. While I have to work on the Dangai, there's nothing preventing a former captain from taking over the Hell resistance. And I know just the one to ask. "Oh Yoruichi…"

Ichigo blinked. All around him were people that he knew, people that he knew were illusions. In fact, he saw a few versions of himself in the crowd. "Oh come on. An illusion-type Zanpakutō?" he asked disbelievingly. "Didn't we have enough of that with Aizen?"

"I know, right?" Zen'i agreed. "I kinda expected Hell to have some super-powered element-type. But once you know the truth about Asahi no Kagami it makes a lot more sense. You see, Asahi no Kagami's power is a lot more straightforward. It forces the opponent to see the truth about themselves. The devastating, unadulterated truth."

"So what?"

The Togabito smiled. "The truth is a terrible, terrible thing when one of the most powerful tools a human has is the ability to lie to himself. I can't see what you see, Ichigo. All I see is you. Everyone you see besides you and me are illusions, but they are your illusions. Now come on, Ichigo. Let's go!"

Ichigo raised Zangetsu to block an incoming strike from Zen'i, only to leap back to avoid a secondary swipe from Asahi no Kagami. He didn't manage to evade it entirely though – his chest had been grazed. With a grunt, he channeled the vestiges of Hollow power that existed in his base form to the area to heal the slight wound. He couldn't afford any handicap with all these illusions making it difficult to track his opponent.

For a moment, Ichigo considered bringing out the white Zangetsu to counter Zen'I's two Zanpakutō, but the Vizard dismissed the idea. In Shikai, it only slowed him down, and he was far more accustomed to fighting with a single sword anyway. "Well then, time to take it up a notch. Bankai!"

Black reiatsu enveloped Ichigo entirely for a brief few seconds before it died down, revealing his Bankai form. Ichigo held Tensa Zangetsu at the ready, quietly charging a Getsuga.

"You feel powerful like this," a pale illusory Tatsuki whispered, stepping forward from the crowd of illusions. Blood slowly leaked from a superficial cut to her forehead… a cut that Ichigo himself had made so long ago to prove a point. "You like to feel powerful. It distracts you from knowing exactly how weak you are."

Ichigo's eyes widened. That… that comment actually hurt worse than he expected. He knew it wasn't really Tatsuki who had said it, but the illusion had stabbed at the heart of his reasons to gain power.

"It's true," agreed another illusion, this one of a bully that he'd beaten up on Keigo's behalf right as they'd entered high school. "You didn't even know Keigo. You didn't care for him. You fought me not to protect him, but because you wanted to prove your strength, to prove you're not weak."

Ichigo grimaced, just before Zen'i materialized right behind him. "Don't get distracted!" Zen'i rebuked, swinging both swords down.

Ichigo narrowly blocked with Tensa Zangetsu before spinning and kicking Zen'i away, where he disappeared into the crowd of illusions. He prepared to give chase, but then a tearful Inoue jumped in the way. "You hurt everyone around you," she whispered, tears streaming down her face. "Sado-kun, Tatsuki, Asano-san, Kojima-san, me… how many people have you forced to become involved in the spirit world simply by being around them, by making them spiritually aware? We were so much happier not knowing! Just by living, you're forcing more and more people to abandon their lives! Why, Kurosaki-kun? Why must you be so selfish?"

"Because I want to live too!" Ichigo answered tightly, his heart aching. He knew that it was his own fault that everyone had gained spiritual awareness. He simply hadn't had the control needed to keep from affecting the people around him. "I didn't mean for that to happen, and I'm trying to stop! I've got a lot better control now, and while I'm in my body hardly any of my reiatsu comes out now!"

"I wonder who you're talking to?" Zen'i wondered aloud with a wicked smile as he dashed right through Inoue and forced Ichigo on the defensive. Tensa Zangetsu clashed against Zangetsu and Asahi no Kagami repeatedly before Ichigo grit his teeth and fired a silent Getsuga Tenshō to force Zen'i away. "The truth hurts, doesn't it?" the Togabito inquired with a smile before vanishing once more into the crowd.

"Shut up!"

"She's right, you know…" a white-clad Rukia murmured from the side. She wore the outfit that she'd had while imprisoned in Soul Society, awaiting execution. "Everyone who becomes your friend gets hurt. I wanted to break the rules and give you half of my power, but you took it all. When I couldn't return to Soul Society, I was sentenced to execution. And when you came in to rescue me, Ishida-san lost his powers, Sado-san almost died, you kidnapped Yamada-san and almost got him killed… Renji joined you and was almost killed by Nii-sama! How are you able to live with yourself?"

Ichigo resisted the urge to clench his eyes shut. He knew that! He had felt so very guilty about it all, but it had all worked out. He'd had a chance to talk to everyone before they'd left Soul Society, and no one had blamed him. Ishida had been frustrated by the loss of his powers, but was grateful he knew the truth about his grandfather. Renji was just glad that Rukia was alive, and had smacked Ichigo upside the head for beginning to fumble through an apology for almost getting him killed. He'd made the decision himself to try to rescue Rukia, and he'd finally gotten his taicho to acknowledge him. Yamada had understood and held no ill will – he'd wanted to rescue Rukia as well, and being kidnapped by Ichigo and Ganju had simply helped give him the courage to do so.

Chad… loyal Chad had reminded Ichigo of their promise to each other, to always watch each other's back. He had claimed that no apology had been needed.

As if summoned by Ichigo's thoughts, an illusion of Chad emerged from the crowd, his face blank but his eyes accusing. "Have you even tried to uphold that promise lately?" Chad rumbled, his voice filled with a quiet disappointment. "When was the last time we fought together? When was the last time I actually needed your help, and got it? When was the last time you helped me get stronger?"

Ichigo couldn't help but flinch. The fake Chad was absolutely right. Chad had fought Ulquiorra alone, and fallen. And it was only when he'd fallen that Ichigo took up the fight. They hadn't fought together in a long time. And the last time that they'd trained together was in Urahara's basement in those free-for-alls, before Chad had ventured alone into Soul Society to find his Abuelo. Even now, Chad fought alone in the living world.

"Keep your head in the game, Ichigo!" Zen'i warned, startling Ichigo out of his thoughts and back into the fight.

Ichigo flickered away from an incoming Getsuga with Shunpo, trying to refocus. "Asahi no Kagami," he whispered. "Damn, but that's effective."

"Yep."

Ichigo Shunpo-ed away just before a Getsuga-enhanced Zangetsu cleaved down right where he'd stood a second before. Yet he couldn't escape the ghosts that Asahi no Kagami had summoned.

"The world has no place for a transcendent Vizard," an illusory Zangetsu murmured. "Even by simply existing, you destroy any possibility for peace."

Ichigo winced – that was a painful thought, but worse still he couldn't argue it. Aizen had arranged for the Grand Fisher to kill his mother so that Ichigo could grow stronger. Gangs fought him because of his natural hair color. The Berean had kidnapped his mother to control his power. Hell itself was resurrected because of him. "That's not all my fault, though," he said quietly. "It's because they're afraid of me."

"Yes, but why are they afraid of you?" an image of Cazador in full Resurrección asked pointedly, his stance relaxed but his mouth quirked in a knowing smirk.

"My power," the Vizard answered at once, gazing without hesitation into Cazador's eyes.

"More than that, King. They fear that your power will be used against them. Are they really so wrong?"

Ichigo froze. "What?" he whispered.

An illusion of Zen'i materialized next to Ichigo's other inner spirits. "You said it yourself, Ichigo. 'A monster is someone who does terrible things because he enjoys it.'"

"How many times have you threatened someone and enjoyed the thrill of power?"

"How many times have you thought about what I said when we first fought, and wondered if my way just might work? How many times have you been tempted?"

"How many times have you had to remind yourself that people you don't know have worth too?" Zangetsu asked quietly. "You have fallen far from when you realized that protecting life was more important than honor, pride and your word."

Ichigo did close his eyes then. This was too cruel. Was he really a monster at heart? "I know that I'm not perfect," he whispered. "I make a lot of mistakes, and I know I have my problems. But I don't think that I'm a monster."

"You honestly believe so? You have forgotten what being a Hollow means!" Zangetsu roared. "They consume souls for survival! And yet you enjoy their company and completely ignore that atrocities they commit outside your vision!"

"You only banished the Menos from Karakura!" Cazador pointed out with a terrible scowl. "You don't even care if they visit other places in the living world, as long as they leave your home alone! That's not a lack of thought, that's just pure apathy!"

"And it's not a large jump from apathy is participation," Zen'i finished. "Soon, Ichigo, even you won't be able to deny that you are becoming a monster."

Ichigo fought the moisture that threatened to collect in his eyes. They were right. He hadn't even thought about everywhere else in the world. He had only concerned himself with Karakura's safety. "Arrancar are different. Some of them just want to live in peace. Like Nelliel, or Starrk."

"Arrancar are Hollows, and Hollows need to be purified!" another voice boomed, and Ichigo turned to see Yamamoto, Ryūjin Jakka released and fire raging around him but not touching anything. "You are a fool, Kurosaki Ichigo! What soul would desire to be a Hollow? How can you look at the Hollows you call friends and not remember that there are dozens, hundreds, thousands of other souls inside each one of them? Don't those souls deserve release?"

Aizen, from before his evolutions, stepped forward to stand next to Yamamoto. "Where is your righteous anger?" he murmured. "In order to protect the one hundred thousand souls of Karakura and Soul Society, you struck me down. Are one hundred thousand souls consumed by Hollows not worth the same?"

Guilt flooded Ichigo's mind. He'd known. He'd known that all the Arrancar had once been powerful Hollows, but he'd avoided thinking about the implications. All those souls, trapped, waiting for release… Why hadn't he just purified every Hollow, every Arrancar? He had so much power. Didn't that mean he had the responsibility to use it? Wasn't it his duty as a Shinigami to purify Hollows and relieve them of their endless hunger for souls?

And yet… Ichigo knew there had been a reason. He'd had a reason not to go on a purifying rampage in Hueco Mundo, beyond that of needing their power for this war against Hell. Why couldn't he remember? It had seemed so obvious before, but now he couldn't seem to think clearly.

Then an echo of Kurosaki Isshin manifested, distracting Ichigo from his thoughts. "With all your power, why couldn't you protect your sisters? Your mother? You were just useless after all. You can't protect anyone."

That struck a chord in Ichigo's soul, awakening a set of memories that dispelled the other emotions that distracted him from the truth.

Isshin was smoking a cigarette at Masaki's grave. "Live well, age well, and go bald well. And die after me. And… if you can, die smiling. If I can't, I won't be able to face Masaki."

Isshin was in the living room after the battle with Aizen. "Ichigo, I'm proud of you. You were put into an impossible position that no man should ever be placed in, and you found an answer you can live with without regret."

Isshin was hugging him tightly, despite Ichigo having failed to save Masaki. "Damn it, Ichigo… you're not supposed to be this wise yet. Soon I really won't have anything left to teach you."

No matter what else was true, Ichigo knew that his father loved him and was proud of him. That was his truth. This illusion was a lie!

And just like that, Ichigo came to his senses. "SHUT UP!" he screamed, and there was blessed silence for several seconds. "None of you are real. I should have known from what Zen'i said, and from how every one of you knows exactly how to hurt me the most. All of you are just illusions, projecting my own private fears and feelings onto the most likely people to say those things to me!

"You wanted to reveal the truth, Asahi no Kagami?" Ichigo yelled, unable to see Zen'i but knowing that he and by extension Hell's Zanpakutō was listening. "Then hear my truth! I am Kurosaki Ichigo! I know that since I have all this power, I have a lot of responsibility. And I know that I've made a lot of mistakes. And I'm grateful for having some of them pointed out. But I am not a god!" he called out strongly. "I am a human being! Making mistakes and learning from them is how we grow!"

"Then answer us," the image of Rukia replied. "Answer your feelings and see the truth for what it is."

"Fine. Then in reverse order…" The Vizard glared at the image of his father. "I know I haven't been much success at protecting, but I'd like to see someone do better in my position. I'm doing my best and we both damn well know it."

Ichigo stared at Aizen with determination. "My anger is still here! But it's not my right to judge other beings for what they did for survival! You tried to sacrifice my town for your own bloody purposes! The souls within Hollows will eventually return to the cycle, whether their purification is in the next minute or centuries from now."

He whirled on Yamamoto. "I remember that those souls are inside Hollows, but you tell me why you haven't set up Hollow hunting missions. All that I've heard is reactionary! Stationing Shinigami in the living world to handle newborn Hollows… Why haven't you hunted in Hueco Mundo to purify Hollows if they are such abominations? You're the most powerful Shinigami in Soul Society, and you've got some damn strong taicho. Hell, I bet Kenpachi and his Division would be overjoyed to go Hollow hunting, and it would keep him from wrecking the 11th Division barracks so often. You're not stupid; you have to have thought of that before!

"But you haven't done that, and you won't," Ichigo stated firmly. "I'm not stupid either. The balance of the worlds has to be preserved! Hueco Mundo, home of the Hollows, lies in the balance with the living world and Soul Society! It would only do more damage to purify every Hollow I come across in Hueco Mundo."

Ichigo spun on the three illusions of his inner spirits. "And I am not a monster! It's only natural for a human to care about what's in front of him more than what he can't see! I make mistakes, but I do my damn best to fix them and keep from repeating them! That what it means to grow as a person! The real versions of you understand that!"

Turning to Chad, he lowered his voice. "I haven't been there as much as I like, but I have faith that the real Chad understands. I'll make it up to him later."

His eyes were significantly harder when he turned to Rukia and Inoue, who stood together. "I know my powers played a part in giving everyone spiritual awareness, but they made the choice to join me. I forced no one – their decisions are their own, and I WILL NOT take responsibility for them!"

Finally, he cast his eyes towards Tatsuki and the bully whose name he couldn't remember. "I know that I was, and sometimes still am, weak. And yes, I do take comfort in feeling powerful. But just because that's true doesn't mean that I'm going to abuse my power." He narrowed his gaze to the martial artist who'd been his friend for as long as he could remember. "You knew that when I beat you all those years ago. You knew that when I gave you that cut."

As he finished speaking to each of the ghosts generated by Asahi no Kagami, each smiled and faded, dispelled by Ichigo's resolve. "As for the rest of you," the Vizard snarled, "go away, I have a fight to finish and people to protect."

And just like that, Ichigo was alone in the desert. The real Zen'i stood several dunes away, clapping his hands slowly. "Nicely done, Ichigo."

"You bastard…!" Ichigo growled.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Zen'i confessed. "Like I said, I don't know who you saw or what you heard, though I could probably make a few fairly accurate guesses. You needed the exposure to Asahi no Kagami's power if you hoped to stand a chance against Hell. If he ever takes you seriously, then you needed to know how to counter it. Now then, shall we continue?"

Black reiatsu surged around Ichigo, his face ugly with rage. "No. I'm done with this." And in an instant, Tensa Zangetsu was suddenly stabbed through Zen'i's throat, with an Adjuchas-masked Ichigo leaning right up to Zen'i's face. "Go back to Hell, Zen'i. I know that you did what you needed to do. But I'm too angry to deal with you right now."

Blood leaked around Tensa Zangetsu as Zen'i gave a very wet gurgling chuckle. "Think about…" He spat out some blood. "… me too… ok?"

"Fine." Ichigo ripped out the blade, and Zen'i fell to the floor, blood pooling in the sands for several seconds before the Hell portal materialized underneath him, taking him away.

Taking off the mask and reverting to his Shikai form, Ichigo grit his teeth angrily, turned on his heel, and began to Shunpo back to Las Noches. He had a war to win.