Sombra quietly followed Yoruichi as she lead the way to the area that she had put Ichigo in, where he could heal with the medicine she had given him without being detected by their enemies, though the one thing he found to be interesting about the whole trip was that the location in question happened to be beneath the large hill that had what appeared to be an execution stand on it, and with a rather large and imposing halberd that appeared to be tied down near it. As Sombra stared at the structure he realized that he was looking at the area that the Shinigami were planning on executing Rukia, whenever they were going to do that, and that gave way to the thought that Yoruichi had learned the time of Rukia's execution before coming to find him, Ichigo, and any of the others, to know how much time they had left. Still, his thoughts were a mix of what he had discovered, that a Zanpakuto had two different releases, the Shikai that he was familiar with and the Bankai that he knew nothing about, the fact that Byakuya called him an 'Adjuchas ranked Arrancar', and the fact that one of the Captains had an incredible reiatsu that was like an open flame. He knew that he could have beaten one or two more of the remaining six Captains, since it appeared that Rukia's Captain wasn't in the mood to battle, but the thought of all of them having this mysterious Bankai, which could likely turn the tables on him, made him realize that, for all his power and skills, that he was still growing and could be beaten if he let his arrogance get the best of him.
As such he sighed for a moment as he repeated Yoruichi's movements, just like he had done when she was training him four to five months ago when he first started his training in Kisuke's underground training area, and calmed his mind, as there were too many questions and he feared that he might not have enough time to answer them all before he and Ichigo were needed once more... though that was followed by them landed on a rocky ledge that had a wooden door, in the shape of half a circle, before Yoruichi opened the door and they walked inside. It was then that Sombra let his smile return to his face, as he found Ichigo peacefully sleeping in the middle of the chamber that Yoruichi had brought them to, though at the same time they moved to the right side of the room and leaned against the wall, to be sure that nothing happened to Ichigo while he recovered.
"Is something wrong, Sombra?" Yoruichi asked, as she was used to seeing his thoughtful expressions, showing when he had uncovered something that required him to think about what he knew and what he didn't know, and, at the same time, it was another reason why she liked teaching him, because he thought about what he did and what she told him to do, instead of blinding trusting her and Kisuke.
"During my earlier battle, before Captain Utitake arrived, Byakuya called me an 'Aduchas ranked Arrancar'," Sombra replied, because when he was dealing with someone like Yoruichi or Kisuke, who knew him better than anyone else, he found that telling them what was bothering him, or making him consider something, was better than denying what he felt and saved them all time and energy, "What's that supposed to mean?"
"As you know, there are Hollows that exist in Hueco Mundo and hunt for souls in the World of the Living," Yoruichi said, as both she and Kisuke had foreseen the day when he heard one of the three terms that a Shinigami gave to an extremely powerful Hollow, or their Arrancar counterparts, "and then there are the Menos, just like the ones that both you and Ichigo fought when Uryu used that bait of his. Menos, from what we can tell from our studies, are conglomerations of hundreds of normal Hollows, resulting in a single composite entity of far greater strength than any normal Hollow, as you no doubt realize from your first encounter with such a creature. Those Hollows are generally referred to as Gillians, and they are considered to be the weakest of all the Menos classifications that we have come up with, as they are more numerous than the other two classes and are the foot soldiers, or at least that is how a Human would consider them. After the Gillian Class there is the Adjuchas Class, though while they may be much smaller than Gillians, and in lesser numbers, they are actually quite smarter and even stronger than the first class... and Little Byakuya likely called you that because an Adjuchas Class Hollow, and the counterpart Arrancar, are enough to give a Captain trouble, depending upon the strength of the opponent anyway."
"Interesting." Sombra commented, though at the same time he had placed his right hand under his chin while he considered what Yoruichi had just told him, as it was starting to make sense why Byakuya had called him an Adjuchas during their battle, even if he ignored Yoruichi calling him 'Little' Byakuya, before he focused on the conversation again, as he knew that she had to be eager to wrap things up, "And what about the third classification?"
"That, Sombra, is the Vasto Lorde." Yoruichi replied, though her tone told Sombra that such a creature was not one that a Shinigami came into contact with very often, and that they had to be even stronger than an Adjuchas, "The Vasto Lorde is the highest classification that a Menos can reach, as it is stronger and smarter than both of it's lower classes, as well as being even lower in number than the other two classes. We honestly don't know a lot about them, especially not how they're created, by it's said that you could count the entirety of Hueco Mundo's Vasto Lorde population with the fingers on your hands, but even then there's likely only one or two of them around at the same time... and, from what we can tell, a Vasto Lorde's combat abilities are above that of a Captain. That is why the other Captains were coming the moment you unleashed your reiatsu, even if it was to show Byakuya how much stronger you had gotten, because they were afraid that you, as an Adjuchas ranked Arrancar, might be getting even closer to crossing the line and stepping into the territory of a Vasto Lorde."
"They were coming to destroy me..." Sombra said, understanding why the Captains had been making their moves in such a manner, though it also stunned him that he might be crossing into a level that Soul Society knew almost nothing about, a level that clearly frightened them if six Captains had been coming towards him, "I knew I had gotten stronger since the last time I fought Byakuya, but never could I have imagined that I was so strong that I would invite such danger to my location."
"Fortunately, this chamber is protected from those that would be looking for you," Yoruichi added, knowing that Sombra would fear for Ichigo's safety if he stayed in the same location, even though she knew that the Shinigami would be busy for the foreseeable future, before she turned towards the sleeping form of Ichigo, "We'll be able to lay low for some time before we get started on Bankai training... and then, once that's done, we can focus on rescuing Rukia and others."
Sombra nodded and resumed leaning against the wall, watching as Yoruichi got up from time to time to tend to Ichigo's wounds, or to check and make sure that the drugs were working like they were supposed to, while also getting herself something to eat to recharge herself after using so many Flash Steps to get here. That was, in Sombra's mind, one of the key differences between him, the Shiniagmi, and even people like Ichigo and the others, as which Yoruichi and Ichigo, for instance, usually ate food to recover their energy, and the evidence was there when they were practicing with the Spirit Orbs and food had been provided after their training was complete, he didn't need to eat anything. He guessed that it had to be because he had been a Hollow until his transformation, so instead of eating anything he assumed that he just regenerated his energy when he wasn't battling, though sleeping also seemed to be a good way to do it as well, even if he wasn't tired at the moment. He felt that he should be exhausted from the battle with Byakuya, but, at the same time, he had to guess that the fact that he so soundly beat the Captain, without burning through his reiatsu like he thought he would, made him full of energy and kept him ready to go, to which he simply sighed and continued to observe Yoruichi's movements as she continued to check up on Ichigo ever now and then.
He also came to the conclusion that whatever drug Yoruichi had given Ichigo had knocked him out for some time, as the day slowly turned towards the evening, meaning that the other Shinigami had discovered what happened to Byakuya and were preparing themselves accordingly... and, at the same time, it was that very evening that the effects of the drug seemed to wear off as Ichigo finally opened his eyes and moaned a little.
"Ah, you're awake, Ichigo." Yoruichi said, though she was happy to see that the drug had worked out like she knew it would, while at the same time Sombra stopped leaning against the wall he had been leaning on, stretched his arms a little, and walked over to them as Ichigo sat up.
"Where is this..." Ichigo started to say, though that was before he realized that he was still in the same chamber that he had woke up in after his battle with Zaraki, but that was also followed him him noticing that Sombra was standing nearby, observing him like he always did, "Wait... did you get beat as well?"
"No. In fact I trashed Captain Byakuya near the Shrine of Penitence," Sombra replied, informing Ichigo that another Captain had blocked his path, especially after Zaraki entered the picture, and that he had beaten him, "I was, however, forced to retreat before I could save Rukia, on account that six additional Captains had been on their way to my position so they could destroy me... but Rukia's Captain, at the very least, promised that Ganju and Hanataro would be alright."
"So our enemies know our goal and will beef up security to prevent it from happening again," Ichigo said, though the thought of them coming so close to saving Rukia and getting out of here, even if it meant saving the others after the fact, annoyed him to no end, "Now what do we do?"
"Despite the fact that Hanataro opened the Shrine of Penitence, they're going to continue with Rukia's execution, regardless of our 'invasion'," Yoruichi stated, her tone telling Sombra that it was time for him and Ichigo to learn the pieces of information she was able to gather and what the plan really was from this point onward, "Since a few of the Captains will be present for the execution, including Captain-Commander Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto, we only have one option left at the moment. The two of you hold the possibility to overpower the majority of the Captains, rescue Rukia from the execution stand, and get everyone out before the Captain-Commander gets serious, so I'm going to train you to unlock the power you need to do just that... and, since it's going to take three days for what I have in mind, we're going to get started immediately, so gather your things and follow me."
Since there wasn't much they had brought with them both Ichigo and Sombra carried their Zanpakuto with them as they followed Yoruichi outside the chamber they had been in, used some smaller ledges to get down to the ground floor, and then slipped through a secret opening that apparently only she knew about, allowing them to enter an underground training area, that was lit up somehow, that instantly reminded Sombra of Kisuke's underground training area.
"How's the pain from your wounds?" Yoruichi asked, as she wanted to be sure that Ichigo's body was strong enough to resist what she was going to put him through, even though she already knew that Sombra, as an Arrancar, was much sturdier than his friend was, who might be annoyed about the fact that Sombra had bested Byakuya earlier.
"Ah, a lot better than before." Ichigo replied, as he remembered the pain he had been in earlier, when he first woke up, and the pain he felt now wasn't on the same level as before, but, at the same time, he had the feeling that his body was going to be tested even more than it usually was.
"Sadly, we have no time to wait for your full recovery," Yoruichi commented, to which she stood some of the rocks and stared down at Ichigo and Sombra, who were honestly just one level below her in terms of where they were standing, but it helped to show that she was in charge, "Ichigo, I know that you might be relying on Sombra to help you get through these fights, but sooner or later you'll be fighting on your own, with Zangetsu and not your friends, and you might not have the power to save anyone by yourself at that point. Going through this training will make the two of you even stronger than before, but it will also allow you to fight enemies without having to call for aid the majority of the time, unless it's an enemy that you cannot fight alone."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Ichigo asked, as while he knew that he never actually relied on Sombra for aid, since the Arrancar just assisted him when he felt that he might need help taking something out, before he sighed and drew Zangetsu from his back, where he held the blade at the ready, "Since we have no time we might as well get started."
"Let me ask you something, Ichigo," Yoruichi said, though the reason she wasn't going to ask Sombra this question was because he knew most of what she was going to ask and felt that it would only waste even more time, "Have you ever noticed that your Zanpakuto is a full-time released form type Zanpakuto?"
"It is?" Ichigo inquired, to which he shifted his stance so he could stare straight at the blade for a moment, though at the same time he could tell that Sombra already knew what Yoruichi was talking about, no doubt due to the lessons he had been given before they met each other, before something clicked in his head, "Full-time release... that sounds just like Zaraki's Zanpakuto. I thought it was weird because the shape of Zangetsu is so different from the other Zanpakuto we have encountered so far, especially Sombra's Zanpakuto. And there's also the fact that Zangetsu doesn't change shape when I call out it's name, not like Shokyo and the other Zanpakuto do when their partners call out their names."
"So you weren't aware of that fact..." Yoruichi replied, to which she glanced at Sombra, who had noticed that fact thanks to the information Kisuke had given him during his training, before she focused on the task at hand as she turned back toward Ichigo, who was clearly itching to get to training, "Then you didn't know that Zangetsu has another stage that can be released? Not only Zangetsu, but all Zanpakuto actually have two possible stages of release. We call the first release 'Shikai', or the Initial Release, and the second release is known as the 'Bankai', or the Final Release... though most Captains and Shinigami call it Bankai. The ability to achieve those two releases is one of the required conditions for someone becoming a Captain... meaning that every Captain of the Gotei 13, save for one, has achieved Bankai."
"Only one hasn't achieved it?" Sombra asked, as that seemed unusual, but, at the same time, that told him that whoever didn't have the final release of their Zanpakuto had to be incredibly powerful to be elected as a Captain, and he had the feeling that he might know which person it was.
"That's correct; Kenpachi Zaraki." Yoruichi said, noticing that Ichigo, who had fought Zaraki earlier, was shocked by the news, and that Sombra found it to be very interesting, something that she was used to seeing since he found many things to be of interest to him, especially without his actual memories, "In the long history of Soul Society, he is the only one that has achieved the rank of Captain without obtaining his Bankai or even knowing his own Zanpakuto's name. This shows how big a factor his combat ability and attachment to fighting was for the Gotei 13... having fought him, you should know that better than anyone, Ichigo."
"Yeah, he did like to fight." Ichigo stated, though that was when he turned his head towards Sombra for a moment, as there was something he needed to say before they went any further in this information dump, especially when he recalled what he had been told, "Sombra, just know that, once he's been healed to the point where he can fight again, he'll be looking for you once more... he seemed rather pleased with my fight and openly wondered just how much fun you'd give him if he crossed blades with you."
"Onto the matter at hand," Yoruichi continued, though she did notice that Sombra had nodded his head to what Ichigo had said, which was bound to happen since Zaraki usually didn't leave someone alone until he had at least one fight with them, if he deemed them worthy of his time, and for him to chase Sombra down and get Ichigo instead must have annoyed him, only to bring joy when he considered the fight he'd have with the Arrancar, "The difference between the Shikai and the Bankai of the same Zanpakuto, which differs based on an individuals nature and degree of training, can generally be thought of as five to ten times greater. It's shocking, isn't it? Because of level of improvement, it usually requires at least ten years of training, even for talented people... I also know that we don't have that kind of time, so we'll have to use a different method, one that's fraught with peril, but through this method I'll have you learn Bankai in only three days time."
As Ichigo and Sombra stood there for a moment, to think about what Yoruichi had said, Yoruichi stepped to the side for a moment and when she returned she was holding a humanoid looking doll of some kind, one that almost looked like it was made of plastic and had it's arms and legs in different angles than an ordinary Human would.
"What the heck is that weird doll?" Ichigo asked, as he had no idea what this was supposed to do in regards to their training, and even Sombra seemed a little confused for a few seconds, but he hoped that Yoruichi knew what she was doing, otherwise they were wasting their time.
"A spirit-transfer shell, or a Tenshintai." Yoruichi replied, knowing that at least one of them would be a little lost as she talked about this, and she happened to be looking at Ichigo as she thought that, as he was much slower than Sombra was at times, but she hoped he was fast at learning by combat, like Sombra was, "It is one of the Onmitsukido's, or the Secret Mobile Corps, most essential specialized spirit tools. It can forcefully transcribe a Zanpakuto's true form and materialize it in our world. Allow me to explain something; what's needed for Shikai is dialogue and harmonization between the Shinigami and their Zanpakuto, meaning that you go into your inner world, the home of your Zanpakuto, and learn from them what is necessary to find their name, Release Call, and techniques. Bankai training, on the other hand, requires one to materialize their Zanpakuto in our world and force it into submission, and normally several years are required for someone to do this... but, given both of your achievements so far, I'd wager that you've reached the equivalent level."
Sombra had to acknowledge that this was fascinating to learn about, the process that one had to go through to learn the Bankai of a Zanpakuto, and it made him realize just how challenging it had to be, since there were usually only thirteen Captains, or twelve as the case was, that could use Bankai... all while making him wonder just what sort of powers rested inside Shokyo, and again making him wonder if he was ready for such a power.
"Ichigo, if you stab Zangetsu into this, it will take Zangetsu into the materialized state." Yoruichi continued, taking a few seconds for the information to sink in, as Sombra was clearly absorbing what she was telling them while Ichigo seemed to sort of understand and not understand at the same time, "Be warned that materialization, through this method, will only last for three days, meaning that you will only have those three days to force Zangetsu into submission to learn your Bankai. If you can't..."
"Don't tell me what will happen if I can't do this." Ichigo stated, to which he surprised Yoruichi for a moment when he stabbed the doll with Zangetsu, though he was staring straight at the device as he wondered what Zangetsu was going to have him do this time around, "If there's no other way, then I'll just have to do it, no questions asked."
In the following moment the wind kicked up for a moment as both the doll and Zangetsu disappeared, though as Sombra watched all of this happen the manifestation of Zangetsu, which he had seen one time before this point, back when Ichigo first drew his true Zanpakuto, appeared in the air before Ichigo, surprising his friend for a moment as he turned and stared at his Zanpakuto spirit.
"I see you have recovered quite a bit, Ichigo." Zangetsu commented, showing that he was well aware of what happened to Ichigo, meaning that he had definitely seen the fight with Zaraki, and had no doubt helped out as Sombra thought he had, though at the same time Ichigo just stared at him.
"You heard our conversation, yes?" Yoruichi asked, once more showing that time was not on their side and that they needed to get started immediately, though at the same time both Ichigo and Zangetsu turned and looked at her, while Sombra waited to see what happened next, only for Zangetsu to nod his head once, "Very well, then I'll leave the fighting method up to you. Can you start right away?"
"I can." Zangetsu replied, to which he spread his arms for a moment, showing that the cloak he wore seemed to cover the majority of his actual body and that it was hard to actually see anything else, before he touched the ground and focused his reiatsu, before dozens upon dozens of Zangetsu like blades erupted from the ground all around the underground training area, "Of all these swords, only one is the real me. Only that one can defeat me. If you want to force me into submission, then you must find it before I kill you... and then slay me, if you can."
"Question." Ichigo said, turning to look at Yoruichi for a moment, as while he knew that time was important at the moment, and he was even going to begin to question Zangetsu's method of teaching, there was one thing that Yoruichi seemed to have missed in her hurry to set all this up, "You only brought one of those, um, dolls with you. How is Sombra supposed to do his own Bankai training if he can't force Shokyo to come to our world?"
"There's a simple answer to that," Sombra replied, to which he pulled Shokyo from her scabbard and uttered the Release Call, allowing the blade to transform back into it's broadsword shape once more, before his reiatsu gathered for a moment as he thought about what he was going to do next.
That was followed by the main crystal, the one that rested between the guard and the blade of his Zanpakuto, glowing for a moment as several strands of energy erupted from it, striking the ground near where he was standing and kicked up some dust in the process... but when the dust cleared, however, both Ichigo and Yoruichi stared as Shokyo, the spirit of his Zanpakuto, emerged from where the strands had struck and were stunned by her appearance.
"He doesn't need a doll to call me into this world," Shokyo finished, ending the comment that Sombra had started, in response to Ichigo's question, before she bowed her head slightly, as she was pleased to be in the presence of those that Sombra considered his friends, "It's nice to meet all of you."
"I'm positive that you heard what we talked about and what I asked Zangetsu, so I'll cut to the point," Yoruichi said, where she noticed that Shokyo didn't even seem irritated to be in this world, as most Zanpakuto spirits, when they are first called into the world of the Shinigami, could be quite hostile, making her wonder why Sombra's Zanpakuto was so different from the normal rules, "Can you get started on Sombra's trial?"
"Yes, I have much to teach him so he can be ready for the battle ahead of him," Shokyo replied, though the way she spoke told Yoruichi that Shokyo wasn't going to teach Sombra his Bankai, willingly she mentally reflected from the sounds of it, to battle someone in Soul Society, rather it sounded like she was preparing him for an entirely different battle, one that only she knew about, before she started walking over to a corner of the underground training area that they wouldn't be bothered in, "Come Sombra, it's time we continued the training we started in your inner world... and, at the same time, I'll show you how to perform Bankai."
"Yoruichi... what the hell is going on?" Ichigo asked, as from what he had been told a Shinigami was supposed to force his or her Zanpakuto to submit to learn their Bankai, but Shokyo seemed to be completely different than what he had just been told earlier.
"Honestly, I'm not sure anymore," Yoruichi admitted, as her understand of Zanpakuto and Bankai training didn't seem to matter, since Shokyo changed that by being the first Zanpakuto spirit, in all recorded history, to willingly teach her wielder the secrets that would allow him to use Bankai, before she sighed for a moment, "Oh well, you still have some training to do anyway... so use whatever your feeling at the moment and pour it into trying to improve yourself, and show Sombra that he's not the only one that can get things done fast."
Ichigo growled as he and Zangetsu separated from each other, grabbed onto one of the many blades that were sticking out of the ground, and then charged at each other, because he planned on showing Sombra that he wasn't the only one that could achieve Bankai in a few days of training... but, before he got too involved with Zangetsu, he had a brief worry about their friends, as he wondered what they were doing, though Zangetsu forced him to focus once more and the thought was lost as quickly as it formed.
Uryu, Orihime, and Sora seemed to have the best luck out of the entire group so far, as they managed to avoid many unnecessary fights, even though Sora had to run around the rooftops, where he was more exposed than Uryu and Orihime were, but, at the same time, no Shinigami seemed to have noticed him yet. When it became clear that security was being heightened, no doubt because of Ichigo getting into a fight with Renji, as that was what Uryu had felt earlier, both the brother and the sister had a good idea to knock out some Shinigami and steal their clothing, and the group they attacked had two members, one for Orihime and one for Uryu. Of course, when they went to put them on, Sora found that he had to undo his own Shinigami attire and then put it back on slowly to show them where each individual piece went, while at the same time telling Uryu that he had no idea where the robed stranger that had given the clothing to him, on the night he transformed into an Arrancar, had even gotten the clothing from. Once the two of them were properly clothed, and they made sure that the knocked out Shinigami were someplace where they wouldn't be found for a few hours at the very least, the three of them set out and continued down the path they had chosen, with Sora running behind them this time around.
What surprised them was the fact that one Shinigami stopped them, and talked to them about a specific task that they ended up lying about to cover their rears and hide the location of the knocked out Shinigami, though Sora discovered that the soldiers around them didn't seem to know what an Arrancar was, confirming Sombra's statement that only Captains and certain Lieutenants knew that piece of information. The reasoning behind that was because the Shinigami that ended up stopping them thought that Sora was wearing some sort of new accessory for his eye, which he played along with, and didn't question them further, especially when Uryu managed to convince him to leave since the 'Ryoka' were still invading the Seireitei, leaving them to their own devices.
While many would consider themselves lucky, and the group felt that they were lucky at the moment, Sora knew that such luck would change at some point in time, even Uryu agreed to that fact, and the reason he believed that was because he felt someone with the reiatsu of a Captain near their area, which they were trying to avoid despite the fact that it seemed to be in different places at different times. Of course he was sure that the Captain, if there was one in their immediate area, might be doing this to either trap them or confuse them, but after a couple of minutes the reiatsu he was feeling disappeared and he returned his attention to following his sister and Uryu down the street that they happened to be walking on at the moment. Since they didn't know the layout of the Seireitei, and couldn't ask directions without labeling themselves as the outsiders that the Shinigami were after, the three of them spent the rest of the day gaining some progress as they made their way towards the Shrine of Penitence, where Sora was sure he felt Sombra's reiatsu flare for a moment, but kept to himself so they didn't get distracted. Eventually they had to stop and let Orihime spend some time trying to mend the damaged flower that she had tried to use to assist them during their only fight, which ended up taking some time, but it was well worth it since it restored the combat function of her power... and, at the same time, that allowed them to continue on their way towards the area that Rukia was imprisoned in.
Of course the benefit to traveling at night time was that they shouldn't have to deal with too many enemies, if any at all, and continued on their way toward the Shrine of Penitence, because that was where the others were likely to gather before they tried to spring Rukia, or, if she was free, they would be somewhere nearby, waiting for more of them to show up before they tried to make their way outside the Seireitei.
"HEY, YOU THREE!" a voice said, stopping the three of them in their tracks, though as they turned around they found a Shinigami that appeared to be drunk, if the sake container was anything to go by, staring at them, but that didn't stop them from sweating as they waited to see what the potential enemy's deal was, "Wait just a minute. What are the three of you doing in a place like this? What Division are you in?"
"The Eleventh Division," Sora replied, as they had determined that, if they were asked that question as they made their way through the Seireitei, he would be the one to answer the question, as he seemed to be the most battle ready of the three of them and might cause others to back off, especially someone that was drunk.
"That's weird..." the drunk Shinigami said, pausing in his steps, as he had started walking towards them the moment they had stopped running down the street, though it was clear that he was focused on what Sora had said, "I'm in the Eleventh Division as well, but... this is the first that I've heard of boneheads, who walk around without Zanpakutos, in the combat-specialist Eleventh Division."
Sora's eyes narrowed as he heard that, as none of them had realized that each Division had their own specialization and that each Shinigami knew those facts, meaning that not knowing the differences had cost them in the long run, and his hand went to his Zanpakuto as the drunk Shinigami reached for Orihime and grabbed onto part of her borrowed Shinigami attire, only to reveal an emblem that none of them had noticed on the inside of the clothing they acquired.
"That's a Twelfth Division badge, not one of ours." the drunk Shinigami continued, to which he glanced up at the three of them once more, his mind coming to some sort of conclusion in a matter of seconds, but as that happened Sora readied himself in case he tried anything against his sister, "Of course you wouldn't know that... Who the hell are you guys?"
What happened next was four more Shinigami appearing behind the drunk one and one of them, who happened to be carrying a small rectangular piece of wood, whacked the drunk Shinigami in the head and knocked him to the ground, while at the same time his companions smiled at the three of them for some odd reason... while also making them wonder where they had come from since they hadn't been in the area a couple of second ago.
"That was a close one you guys." one of the Shinigami, not the one that had struck the drunken Shinigami, said, while at the same time the others nodded their heads, making them wonder what was going on at the moment, even though they said nothing, before he glanced at the drunk Shinigami, "Oh all things, to suspect a comrade... what a jerk."
"He was drunk." Orihime replied, waving her hand for a moment, as if that would show them that she, Uryu, and Sora weren't bothered by what had happened, even though she knew that her brother had come close to drawing his blade and attacking if the drunk Shinigami had done anything to her, "But thanks for the assistance."
"Think nothing of it." the one Shinigami, who apparently was the speaker for the entire group, said, while at the same time the others seemed to be focused on something else that the three of them weren't aware of at the moment, "It's only natural for members of the Twelfth Division to come to the aid of other members. Members from the Eleventh Division are always looking for an excuse to come over here and mess with us... besides, when you're in a hurry you tend to forget your Zanpakuto every now and then, so it's no surprise that two of you forgot yours tonight. Come now, we'll escort you to the Division building and make sure this doesn't happen again... maybe our Captain can talk some sense into this guy's Captain in the morning."
It was in that moment, when the Shinigami mentioned his Captain, that Uryu's thoughts on the situation screamed at him as he charged forward, with Sora at his side, and they started to warn Orihime of the danger, only for three of the Shinigami to be consumed in small pillars of fire while the fourth one walked towards their Captain, who happened to be standing nearby... who also ended up blowing the poor guy to pieces as well, before raising an eyebrow, or would have if he still had one left, at the scene in front of him.
"A shield?" Mayuri commented, as he had no idea how such a thing could have formed, especially when none of his targets seemed to say anything before the first set of bombs went off, but that didn't change the fact that there was a cracked orange triangular shield protecting his targets, including the drunk Shinigami for some odd reason.
"Thank you, Uryu, Sora." Orihime said, looking down at the Shinigami from the Eleventh Division, who seemed confused as to what was going on at the moment, before she glanced up at looked at her brother and her friend, "If you hadn't called out to me, we'd be..."
"Nonsense, it's because you spent all that time practicing. That's why we're fine." Uryu stated, to which Sora nodded as well, as he was happy to see that his sister was doing so well with her own powers, making him wonder what she would be able to do with even more practice.
"The same cannot be said for the others," Sora added, referring to the Shinigami that were used as bombs by their own Captain, something that was horribly wrong no matter how he thought about it, and he found that Uryu was nodding his head as well, as if he agreed with him, "Don't punish yourself for what their Captain did to them... instead, the one that should be punished... is HIM!"
Just as he said that, and both he and Uryu turned around, the shield that Orihime had created shattered before their eyes and the parts of her hairpins that had gone into creating it returned to their original resting places, showing that her power wasn't damaged at all, before the two of them focused on the enemy Captain and his subordinate. The Captain seemed to have a skeletal appearance, just based on how his body looked, and his head almost looked like a skull in some areas, though it was clear that most of the outer parts of his face were painted white, followed by the inner portions being covering in black paint, save for his white nose. The Captain's eyes seemed to be golden colored and he was baring his white teeth at them, making it look like he was constantly smiling, while the two of them also noticed that his ears seemed to be covered in what appeared to be a golden cone, and that most of his fingernails, despite being blue colored, were mostly short, save for the long one on his right middle finger.
"That's an interesting technique." Mayuri continued, as if he hadn't been stopped at all by the fact that the two of them had been referring to him as the person that needed to be taught a lesson, because that was never going to happen and he knew that, which was why he was focused on the task at hand and nothing else, "I take it that the technique belongs to the woman sitting behind you? It's an interesting technique... I've never seen anything like it before. How about I let you live as one of my research subjects?"
It was in that moment that the Captain started explaining that he would do a number of things to Orihime if she was forced to become one of his test subjects, such as the administration of drugs being limited to eight hours a day and mechanical work being limited to five hours as well, and he even said that he'd resist the urge to do body modifications that held the risk of death, showing that, despite how terrible he sounded already, he was too eager to get his hands on Orihime and her powers. Sora, despite how much anger he felt, had to smile as Uryu slipped through the air and reappeared a few steps behind the Captain, all while drawing both his bow and an arrow that was currently pointed at his target's face, indicating that he was ready to fire should the need arise.
"I see, you're a Quincy... and you're friend is an Arrancar." Mayuri commented, as he recognized the bow and arrow that was currently being pointed at him, and he also recognized the bone white mask fragment that the other young man was wearing, before he mentally sighed, as this particular Arrancar wasn't the one he wanted to find, "What a rare breed... I wonder how long it has been since I've seen a live Quincy specimen... or a live Arrancar for that matter. However, I regret to inform you, Mr. Quincy, that I've already concluded my research on your kind, so I have no further interest in you and any other members of you kind that might still be alive."
"What do you mean you 'finished your research'?" Sora asked, though since it appeared that a fight was going to break out at any moment he decided to draw his blade and step away from Orihime, because he had the feeling that the now sober Shinigami was going to run any moment and take his sister away from here, which would be perfect for them, "Just who in the world are you?"
"Oh my, you mean to tell me that the Ryoka just pushed into their enemy's headquarters and didn't even bother to do any sort of investigations before hand?" Mayuri inquired, though based on the looks he got he assumed that there had to be one Ryoka that knew more about Soul Society than these two did, and his thoughts pointed to that someone being the same Arrancar that he had been trying to find since Byakuya said he fought it in the World of the Living, "What a careless bunch you all are. I should have thought that you would have at least memorized the thirteen people at the top. I am the Captain of the Twelfth Division, as well as the Second Technological Development Bureau Chief, Mayuri Kurotsuchi... but you won't have to remember all of that, not once I'm through with the two of you."
Sora, sensing a spike in the Captain's reiatsu, indicating that he was going to come at them in the next couple of minutes, turned and looked at his sister for a moment, who nodded her head and started running in the direction they had come from, though at the same time the now sober Shinigami got up and ran after her, but he and Uryu would deal with him once they were finished with the Captain.
"Did I say you could run?!" Mayuri asked, to which he held his left hand towards Orihime and the sober Shinigami, where Uryu and Sora watched as his arm seemed to race towards the pair, showing them one of the modifications that he had made to his body.
As that happened, however, Sora flashed through the air and swung his blade down, severing part of the arm before it could even reach his sister, while at the same time Uryu loosed the arrow that he had formed and let it pierce the stunned hand, blowing the entire thing apart and allowing Orihime to depart from the area, before they turned their attention back to Mayuri and his companion, who had to be the Lieutenant.
"Did we say that you could follow them?" Uryu asked in return, just as Sora flashed back to his side and held himself at the ready, as they both knew that it was only a matter of time until the Captain got serious and attacked them, and neither of them knew if they were strong enough to take him on, even two on one since they had no idea what his Lieutenant was going to do first.
"Dear, oh dear, I said I'm not interested in either of you." Mayuri commented, as he was displeased that the two of them had gotten in his way of retrieving one of the invading Ryoka that he was now interested in studying, especially since the Arrancar he really wanted was so much stronger than the one in front of him, before he looked down at the damaged attachment that had been his left arm and hand, "Oh dear, actually attaching this takes some time and effort. Now this is going to hurt so bad that my head will feel like it's melting."
What happened next, as Uryu and Sora got some distance between them and Mayuri, was that the insane Captain put some pressure on what was left of his left arm and detached the rest of it, before pulling out a syringe of some kind and injected the liquid into his left arm, allowing them to watch as his arm glowed with some reiatsu before it was fully grown once more, revealing that he had some sort of regeneration mixture that acted insanely fast.
"It seems that the woman has gotten away for now... that's fine." Mayuri continued, to which he flexed his fingers for a moment, making sure that they worked as well as they had before his old left arm and hand had been destroyed, before he focused on his opponents, "If there's a hair or two of hers laying around here, that will be more than enough for me to track her later on. I so badly want to catch her and study her until she turns to mush. I hate to lose a minute of study time, or even a second for that matter."
Uryu, upon hearing that, loosed the new arrow he had formed right at Mayuri, who moved out of the way a little to avoid the attack, even though that was what Uryu wanted as he flashed into the air above the Captain and loosed a second arrow down at his back, causing a small explosion to sound the moment the arrow came into contact with his body... only for both him and Sora to be surprise when Mayuri appeared on the roof area that Uryu was currently standing on.
"Not bad, you both move quite well." Mayuri said, referring to the point where the Arrancar had moved fast to cut part of his arm off, while at the same time making a mention to what the Quincy was able to do, before focusing his attention on what he was going to do next, "The previous move and the one just now... that was Flying Curtain Legs, wasn't it? it's a high level Quincy technique of rapid movement, whereby one rides a flow of reiatsu created under the feet... I never would have expected a young man like yourself to be trained in such a technique. It seems that you are bursting with talent... the same, however, cannot be said for your companion, as his level of Sonido, the Arrancar equivalent to our Shunpo, is barely worthy of a Fifth Seat's position, and that's being generous in case he's holding back. But, despite your speed, I can't have either of you evading me and scurrying around the area, because I fully intend to find that woman again and capture her for my studies... I even have a room set aside for the Arrancar that managed to wound two Captains so far. Since I am going to be a busy man in the near future, I shall use the method that requires the least amount of effort."
Both Uryu and Sora watched as Mayuri grabbed onto the handle of his Zanpakuto, which they only now noticed he had positioned in front of his body since the scabbard was right in front of his body, almost between the legs, and started to draw his Zanpakuto... before saying the Release Call, 'Rip', and then the name of his blade, Ashisogi Jizo. The blade transformed the moment that happened, becoming deformed trident with curved, serpentine blades, where the middle blade was straighter and longer than the side blades, and appeared to ascend from the guard, which was shaped like a baby's head with hands clasped in prayer. All of that was mounted on his sword's normal hilt, which had more ornate spiky protrusions on either side, made to resemble golden leaves right below the guard, but, at the same time, both Uryu and Sora knew that it was a dangerous weapon, especially with the smoke emitting from the baby's mouth at the moment, which likely contained some sort of poison since they were dealing with a mad scientist. The moment following the blade's transformation Mayuri started to move towards Uryu, who stalled since he had no idea what sort of ability the Zanpakuto possessed, before the Lieutenant moved into the space between him and the Captain... though that was short lived as Sora flashed beside her and tackled her out of the way, allowing both of them to move before they were hit, causing a look of annoyance to flash on the Captain's face for a moment.
Of course, as luck would have it, the Lieutenant recovered quickly and latched onto Uryu as he moved away from the Captain, showing that she was faster than she looked, only for her Captain to appear behind her and slice through both her and Uryu at the same time, cutting a horizontal gash through the back of his Lieutenant and Uryu's left shoulder at the same time, causing the two of them to disengage when they hit the ground... though the frown remained on Mayuri's face as he approached his Lieutenant, just as Uryu leaned against a wall as Sora landed nearby.
"Why?" Mayuri asked, surprising both Uryu and Sora for a moment as he punched his Lieutenant in the face, causing her to fall to the ground and rest against the wall that happened to be near Uryu's position, "You fool. I thought I taught you not to let go, even if your arm was severed."
"M... My deepest apologies." the Lieutenant replied, though, oddly enough, there didn't appear to be any emotion behind her words, as if she was a creation of some kind that had none, but she made no move to get up any further than the kneeling position she was currently in.
"Just as well I suppose... I never expected anything from you in the first place." Mayuri said, to which he glanced away from his Lieutenant and stared at Uryu for a few seconds, indicating that he might be getting ready to finish part of the fight so he could chase after Orihime again, "Now that we come this far, it seems that I can finish this with no more effort than what is required to strangle a infant. What's wrong, Quincy? You're sweating quite a bit. The must hurt. I'm quite amazed you can bare it without screaming. You have some impressive mental fortitude as well, I am quite impressed. I guess that this isn't the first time you've been cut by a sword..."
Whatever he was going to say was cut off by his Lieutenant moaning for a moment, showing that she was definitely in pain at the moment, causing him to turn his frown back towards her, as he had been having fun taunting his opponent while ignoring one of them entirely, as he'd cut them both down eventually.
"M... My deepest apologies." the Lieutenant commented, though both Uryu and Sora could tell that she was in pain at the moment, despite the fact that she had the same neutral face that she had been wearing the entire time she had been watching them earlier, "Mayuri-sama, may I please also have some regenerating medicine? It seems that my wound also extends into my lungs. A... At this rate, I might not be able to maintain life func..."
"Are you trying to make a FOOL OF ME?!" Mayuri snapped, to which both Uryu and Sora watched as he matched up to his Lieutenant and started stomping down on her side, inflicting even more pain onto her already wounded body, before he started kicking her to remind her of her place, one that she always seemed to forget from time to time, "Eh, are you?! Are you trying to say that your body will become useless from one tiny wound?!"
"Stop it!" Sora stated, as he couldn't believe what he and Uryu were seeing at the moment, as this Captain was even worse than the one that Uryu and Sombra had met in the World of the Living, as it looked like he was intentionally trying to kill his Lieutenant for failing him, "Can't you see that your Lieutenant is going to die if you don't help her? Aren't the two of you supposed to be comrades in some manner?"
"Are you trying to make a fool out of me, too?" Mayuri asked, as he turned his head slightly to stare at the Arrancar once more, because it was interesting that the creature even seemed to care about his Lieutenant, while at the same time noticing that the Quincy seemed to be of the same mind set, before he picked up his companion, "She's going to die just from this? The body I built is going to stop functioning from such a light wound, is that it? You ought to be more careful about who you insult."
"You... you made her?" Uryu asked, as he had no idea that Soul Society had the technology to do something like this, but then again there were many things about Soul Society that he didn't know and might never know, not that he was actually interested in everything the Captains did.
"That's right. Why don't I tell you her name... Nemu Kurotsuchi." Mayuri said, to which he noticed that both the Quincy and the Arrancar were shocked for a few seconds, as if they were making the connection for themselves, only for him to decide that he would deprive them of that as well, "I made her by concentrating the essence of my faux soul technology and my faux body technology. She is, in essence, my daughter... so don't wave your creepy sense of justice here. No matter how I treat this thing, a pair of strangers like you two have no right to say anything."
Uryu tried to move his arm, to stop what was going on since Mayuri slammed Nemu into the wall that was behind her, while also dropping her in the process, but that was when Mayuri explained that his Zanpakuto's ability was to strip the movement from the four limbs that it could cut, meaning that if he cut someone's arm, like he did for Uryu, his target wouldn't be able to move his arm for some time. His Zanpakuto specifically targeted the signs that told the brain to move a limb and severed them, and as he explained that he stabbed Uryu in the arm, showing them that, when he screamed a few second later, that the nerves were still alive, and the only the 'move' signs had been cut. After that Mayuri stated that Nemu could have the death blow so he could focus on Sora, mostly so he could get this over with so he could chase Orihime once more, before remembering that he had cut Nemu as well, to which he called her worthless and raised his Zanpakuto in order to kill his own Lieutenant. What stopped him was Sora releasing his reiatsu, as he was tired of letting this man get away with what he was doing and whatever else he had done before this point in time, before Sora sighed as he raised his blade and made sure that it was facing the Captain.
"You know, I haven't had a reason to do this since I became an Arrancar," Sora said, using the knowledge that he had been given the moment he had changed from a Hollow and transformed into the same state that Sombra was, even if he was weaker than his superior, before his blade glowed for a couple of seconds, "Bind them, Serpiente."
Uryu and Mayuri averted their eyes for a few seconds as Sora was obscured from their vision thanks to the smoke that came from his energy expanding, but as the smoke cleared Uryu's eyes widened as he stared at the form that was standing behind the Captain. Orihime had told him and Chad about the time that Sora had attacked her, and even Sora told them his viewpoint of that night, so it was easy for him to recognize the more Hollow like Sora when the smoke cleared, as his legs had merged back into the lower body of a snake, one that was sized to fit a Human frame and not the monster he had been when he assaulted his sister. The scales on the snake portion of his body were black, just like they had been before he became an Arrancar, and the coloration of his arms turned red again, though the right half of the mask he had worn when he was a Hollow had returned, though now he looked more like a naga, a person that was half snake and half Human. Uryu was also surprised to find that Sora's reiatsu was stronger in this form than when his true power was sealed, making him wonder just how much power Sombra would possess if he found his Arrancar blade and finally had access to his true power... though that though actually terrified him, as Sombra was already very strong on his own and he had no idea how strong he'd be if he had his full power.
"Now this is interesting," Mayuri said, turning to face the Arrancar that he had been ignoring the entire time, as he had thought the creature had been weak, and he still was weak compared to the power of a Captain, but the reiatsu he felt showed that he was slightly stronger than he gave him credit for, "I was not expecting you to release your sword before I had a chance to get to you, not that thi..."
It was in that moment that Sora struck, as he raced towards the Captain while he was still talking and avoided the incoming attack that came his way, maybe surprising Mayuri for a moment, before he took a deep breath and spat some poison onto his target's right hand, forcing him to drop his Zanpakuto in surprise. He then followed that up by spinning his tail around and slammed the side of it into Mayuri's chest, knocking him through the air and put some distance between them, though at the same time he knew that it was only temporary, as the Captain was fast and could be back where he was standing in a matter of seconds. As he turned to assist Uryu, however, he found a photo that had been dropped the moment he struck Mayuri, one that, when he looked at it, showed an old man, dressed up in similar clothing to what Uryu had been wearing earlier, and realized what he had stumbled upon, as he recalled why Uryu hated the Shinigami as much as he did... because his grandfather, his sensei, had been killed by Hollows and the Shinigami arrived too late to help him, only for this guy to get his hands on the body Uryu's grandfather.
Suffice it to say that when Sora showed Uryu the picture, as he now believed that there was a reason behind it being dropped in such a manner, he went silent for a moment before his own reiatsu flared, flattening the immediate area around his feet as he pushed himself to stand once more... all while his energy rolled off of him in the form of a web, or at the very least that was what Sora thought it was.
"I'm glad that Orihime's not here to see this," Uryu commented, though at the same time strands of energy wrapped around his arm and flashed the moment whatever he was doing was complete, but as those strands disappeared Sora watched as Uryu was able to move his left arm once more, "because I'm going to do everything in my power to kill him and avenge my grandfather. I'm sure he knows this technique, but I'll tell you about it; it's called Ransotengai, or Heavenly Wind Puppet Suit, and it allows me to control parts of my body using strings of reiryoku. I'm honestly not sure how long I'll be able to hold this together, against an opponent like him, so we might only have one shot at beating him... Sora, can you keep him distracted for a couple of seconds?"
"Honestly, considering that we're fighting a Captain, I doubt I'll be able to hold out for too long," Sora admitted, as he was surprised that his first few attacks had actually hit his target and knocked him away, but he still wasn't sure if that was due to his transformation or if Mayuri was gathering more information on him, to use against Sombra later on, "Why, what do have planned?"
"In order to gain enough power to defeat him, in such a short amount of time, I need to disobey my sensei once more and remove this special glove that I am wearing," Uryu said, though as he gestured with his hand, showing Sora the glove in question, he formed his bow as well, because either way he was going to do this no matter what, "My grandfather called the form that's associated with removing the glove as Letzt Stil... or Destruction Sage: Final Form. It should give me the power to destroy our opponent and avenge my grandfather, not to mention all of the other Quincy's that he's taken for his experiments since he became a Captain..."
"I get it, it's a trump card of sorts." Sora stated, to which Uryu looked at him for a moment, as he had been about to tell him about the drawback of this power, but then, since they were already running out of time, he decided to just nod and go with it, as there was no telling what their opponent was doing.
"I hope you two enjoyed your little strategy meeting," Mayuri said, though at the same time he held out his Zanpakuto and allowed his own reiatsu to gather, as he could tell that they were planning something big and that he was growing tired of dealing with them, so he decided to skip to the end and show them true despair, "Bankai. Konjiki Ashisogi Jizo."
Sora and Uryu watched as the baby's head on the guard opened its mouth for a couple of seconds, though that was when it produced a giant creature with the body of a caterpillar in a red cape, with a grotesque golden baby's head and arms, and a silver halo hovering around its head. Near the back of the halo were four bells, two on each side, but while they noticed that they also noticed that Mayuri's Zanpakuto returned to its sealed state, as it looked like a katana once more, though that didn't stop them from realizing that he was going to try and kill them to get to Orihime.
"I take back what I said... I don't stand a chance against that thing." Sora said, as he was more nervous than he was a couple of second ago, because the two of them might have been able to defeat Mayuri before this happened, but with that creature, and the fact that he had no idea how to perform a Cero, he was realizing just how screwed he was.
Uryu, on the other hand, took the moment that was available and snapped off a portion of his glove, one of the silver colored bars that came out when he formed his bow, and was temporarily consumed by his own reiatsu, though when it settled down Sora moved to the side, out of the way, and his eyes widened as he took in Uryu's appearance. He looked more battle-ready than he had been moments ago, as he now had silver colored armor on the left side of his body, in a Quincy style he guessed, and had a blue flame-like wing coming from behind him as well, which broke down the structures around him and gave him more energy to work with. The moment the transformation was complete Mayuri ordered his Bankai to move forward and kill them, causing it to reveal a number of blades that were near the neck area as it started to move forward and Uryu, standing his ground, forged an arrow from all the particles he was gathering and readied himself for what was going to happen next... only for Sora to cover his eyes as Uryu released the arrow and a blinding light erupted in front of him, though he could have sworn that he heard the scream of Mayuri's Bankai as it was struck.
When Sora opened his eyes he found that the caterpillar creature had been split down the middle, perfectly in half from the looks of it, and Mayuri, who had been in the way of the attack, had a large hole where his heart should have been located, along with the fact that he was somehow missing the entirety of his left arm and shoulder... but, before Uryu could prep another arrow and kill him, Mayuri stabbed himself in the neck and turned himself into some kind of liquid, to which the wounded and defeated Captain departed from the area.
"Sora, I'll finish up here and move on to the Shrine of Penitence," Uryu said, though he let out a sigh, as it appeared that fate had other plans for him, as he had been hoping to avenge his grandfather before his powers disappeared from breaking his limits for a few moments, before he turned to look at the Arrancar, "You should make sure that Orihime is safe, as well as figure out where that Shinigami took her, before coming after me so we can join the others as they push to the cell that Rukia is being held in."
Sora, not knowing what else to do at the moment, nodded his head and let go of the reiatsu he had gathered for his own transformation, allowing some smoke to form around him as he reverted back to his sealed state, with his attire still in pristine condition, before he sheathed his blade and headed down the path he, Uryu, and Orihime had taken to reach this point, all while hoping that his sister was safe. Uryu, on the other hand, was going to have some words with Nemu, about her creator and the poison he had been inflicted with by her Captain's Bankai, which Sora was able to avoid because of the distance he put between himself and the fight, before he continued towards his destination... though, at the same time, he hoped that Ichigo and Sombra, as well as Chad for that matter, were safe and sound. He had the strangest feeling that two of them were training at the moment, preparing themselves for something major, and he hoped that he could reach them before he lost all of his power, but time, he guessed, would tell him what would happen.