Bleach: Heart of a Hero

by Blackdrag-rose

Rebellion: Muramasa's Hideout

Instead of heading out immediately, and attacking while the remaining Zanpakuto spirits were fleeing, Sombra called his forces back to the part of the Fourth Division's barracks where they could sit outside and relax a little, allowing the healers to tend to the wounded while they determined which enemies had been taken out. From what he could tell Yumichika had managed to overcome Ruri'iro Kujaku in their battle, and he knew the name because Haineko was kind enough to tell her what his true name was, Ikkaku had taken out Hozukimaru in a fair fight, Wabisuke had fallen when Zaraki arrived, Soi Fon had taken out Suzumebachi, and they all knew that Ashisogi Jizo had been blown apart by Mayuri, but they were impressed when Haineko revealed that she had fought, and defeated, Tobiume earlier. That meant that they had cut Muramasa's forces in half, as a good number of the Zanpakuto had been freed from his influence, but Ikkaku, Yumichika, Hisagi, and Kira would be out of commission for some time, leaving Renji and the other Shinigami to watch over the Seireitei while Shunsui, Ukitake, and Zaraki followed Sombra to the area they would be talking in.

While they headed to the building in question, and got themselves situated, the sun started to rise in the distance, but Sombra intended to give some of them some time to rest before they attacked their foe's hiding place, so they could free the remaining spirits and stop their enemy's plot at last.

"So, you found and took out the little girl that was tormenting you earlier." Zangetsu commented, speaking to Haineko as they walked into the area, with his arm over her shoulders, showing that he was showing the same interest in her that she had shown to him earlier, "Was she surprised by your sudden power boost?"

"Yes, Tobiume was shocked by the power I had gained." Haineko replied, to which she smiled, as it felt good to be around people that actually cared about her, and she was happy to see that her mentor was pleased with what she was able to do, especially so soon after their first lesson, "You should have seen the look on her face when I started to charge up my Cero, because she was so surprised by what I was doing that she didn't even attempt to defend herself, and I did damage her before I sliced her in half."

"That's excellent!" Zangetsu said, because that meant that if Haineko was able to learn how to use something properly in the first day he had taught her, since he had only taught her how to fire a Cero yesterday, she had some good potential to be a strong Ajuchas ranked Arrancar, "Once we're done with this mission, and we get back to Hueco Mundo, I'll start your real training and see how well you do against me when that happens, because you have the possibility to become even stronger than you already are."

"I'm already looking forward to when that happens." Haineko stated, because she had the feeling that Zangetsu was right, that her power could only get stronger from this point forward, before they came to a stop and faced their Lord, who was sitting down near Yoruichi, "So, what are we going to do next?"

"We're going to hit Muramasa's hideout and free the remaining Zanpakuto from his control," Sombra replied, as that was the main reason that he had been called to aid the Shinigami in the first place, before he glanced at the three Captains that were in front of him, "and, since he's already in the same area anyway, we can free Captain-Commander Yamamoto at the same time. Once we've saved the remaining spirits and the Captain-Commander we can put a stop to this rebellion and Muramasa's plans, and then all we have to do is make sure there are no consequences of this rebellion before we head back home."

"I have the general area of where his hideout is located," Yoruichi added, to which she pulled a map out from the small pack that she was wearing and rolled it out, showing the forest area that Haineko and the others had been in before Zangetsu took her away from the area, "because I found his reiatsu coming from an area that has a number of underground caves and an equal number of entrances."

"I know that place, because it's where we gathered when Muramasa called us to his side." Haineko said, staring at the map for a moment, as it looked like the area that the entrance she and the others used to enter the hidden hideout, to which she nodded her head and pulled herself up, "Yep, that's the same cave system that we used for our meeting area, though I was unaware that there were more entrances than the one that we used."

"Meaning that Muramasa is likely hiding in one of the other paths." Ukitake commented, as he had been thinking about all of this since the moment they started talking, though he knew they were fortunate that Haineko was helping them now, as she might know some of the passages they could take.

"You know, I'm honestly getting tired of them attacking us whenever they want to." Shunsui said, echoing what he and most of the other Shinigami were feeling at the moment, even though the Arrancar weren't tired of it since they were used to their enemies coming at them, "I say we gather what forces we can spare and attack their hideout, before some of them muster the courage to come and attack us again, and finally put an end to this nightmare, before Muramasa is able to do whatever he is working towards."

"There'd be someone for me to fight if I went with you guys, right?" Zaraki asked, because he was all for waiting for enemies to come to him, but at the same time there were still some Captain level Zanpakuto spirits running around and he was eager to break some of them.

"Yeah, there should be a few more hiding inside the caves." Yoruichi replied, though she and the others knew that all they had to do to get Zaraki to come with them, if they really wanted him to come with them, was to tell him that there would be some stronger fighters in the area and he'd jump at the chance to have a good fight, "Though if you decide to come with us, like it seems like you're planning on doing, just make sure you don't nail the Captain-Commander on accident while we're trying to reach where he's being held."

"The old fart wouldn't die if I accidentally hit him." Zaraki said, though at the same time he gave her a wide smile as he considered what he was talking about, as fighting the Captain-Commander was something he had considered a few times over the years and knew what he was talking about.

"Okay, so whose coming with us?" Sombra asked, because right now he could easily make his way through the cave system that Muramasa was hiding in and stop the rebellion on his own, but right now Yoruichi was more than enough to lead the way to their destination and he wanted to see who wanted to join him.

In the following moment he watched as Shunsui, Ukitake, Zaraki, Ichigo, Zangetsu, and Haineko nodded their heads, indicating that everyone in the area around him wanted to come with him for the final battle of this rebellion, before he got up from where he was standing and glanced at the remaining Arrancar that were around them. Nel, Harribel, and Grimmjow nodded their heads, indicating that they understood the hidden command to assist the remaining Shinigami and Captains that were guarding the Seireitei, before he nodded his head and Yoruichi flashed out of the area, causing the rest of their group to follow after them. As the group made their way out of the Seireitei, and headed for the forest that their enemy was hiding in, many of the Shinigami waved at them as they went by, the smiles on their faces indicating that they had seen Sombra at the head of the pack and knew that the rebellion was coming to an end at last if he was getting involved for real. At the same time the sight of Zangetsu and Zaraki, both powerful warriors in their own right, was another indicator that they were going to stop the rebellion in it's tracks, and Sombra was sure that the sight of the other two Captains filled the other Shinigami with hope, though as they flew through air he noticed Renji and Rukia smiling as they left the Seireitei and headed out into the forest that Yoruichi was heading towards.

Despite the distance they had to travel to reach the first entrance of the cave system, which was actually the nearest one when they considered how many of them there actually were, it was still early morning when they arrived at the area that Yoruichi was leading them to, to which they all landed near the opening and opened their senses so they could see what was in the area around them.

"I sense the reiatsu signatures of Kazeshini, Gonryomaru, Tengen, Katen Kyokotsu, Sogyu no Kotowari, and Minazuki hiding somewhere in the caves, along with Muramasa." Sombra commented, as he could feel the various reiatsu that were nearly identical to some of the Shinigami that were near him and some that were identical to some Shinigami that were still in the Seireitei.

"Aye, and there's Captain-Commander Yamamoto's reiatsu as well," Ukitake added, as it was easy to tell that their commander was somewhere inside the cave, though at the same time he felt something else that was in the cave that he and the others hadn't thought about, "including a powerful barrier, one that has to be keeping him contained in a single area until Muramasa gets what he wants from him."

"I guess Muramasa can't control Ryujin Jakka, so he had to seal Yama-jii in a barrier." Shunsui said, using his nickname for the Captain-Commander while he spoke, as he used it all the time and no one seemed to really care when he used it around others, "We're lucky we don't have to fight Ryujin Jakka, since he's the strongest fire type Zanpakuto in the entirety of the Seireitei, and I honestly don't think that there's anything that can stand against him... no offense Sombra."

"None taken. I'm also unsure if I'd be able to stand against Yamamoto and his partner," Sombra admitted, because from what he knew Captain-Commander Yamamoto and Ryujin Jakka were a fearsome pair when it came to both battles and just being a figurehead, and from what Ulquiorra told him it was the Captain-Commander that slew the previous Dios Hueco when their forces invaded Soul Society, "but right now there's no time to consider what would happen if the two of us decided to fight each other, as we have an enemy to take the battle to, before he completes his mission."

"So the old fart is in the back of the cave, right?" Zaraki inquired, as the thought of seeing Sombra and Yamamoto in a battle to the death, with powers that he could only imagine in his head, was enough to excite him more than he already was, before he stared down at the cave once more, "I don't care if the Zanpakuto are using this as their hideout or not, so I'm just going to barge in and take out whoever is in my way... you guys can take whoever is leftover."

Sombra, Yoruichi, Ichigo, Zangetsu, and Haineko watched as Zaraki marched into the opening that was in front of them with Yachiru riding on his shoulder like usual, before both Ukitake and Shunsui sighed and followed after him, as they knew that the rest of the group would head to the other entrance and see if they found any enemies along the path that was over there. Sombra was sure that the two Captains would be able to find and overcome their Zanpakuto, since it seemed that they might be going in the direction of their former partners, and he had the feeling that Zaraki would either find someone to fight or he would get lost and then destroy the entire area around him until he found an opponent, so he turned his attention towards where they were going. It wasn't long before they found the entrance that Yoruichi wanted them to use, where they rushed into the opening and started using the stalagmites that were growing out of the water in front of them as steps as they moved through the area cavern that was in front of them. Sombra followed the reiatsu that was in the air, just like Yoruichi was doing at the moment, and the two of them were the first ones to enter a larger cavern that was deeper underground than the first chamber, but as they entered it Sombra came to a stop and held a hand up, to which the rest of his group came to a stop as well behind him.

He could tell that Ichigo was confused as to why they were stopping, since they were supposed to be looking for where the Captain-Commander was being held, but at the same time Yoruichi, Zangetsu, and Haineko could feel the faint presence that he had detected.

"You can come on out, Kazeshini." Sombra loudly said, letting the Zanpakuto spirit in question know that they had figured out that he was in the area that he was supposed to be guarding, while at the same time Zangetsu and Haineko gripped the handles of their blades as they waited for something to happen.

"Should have figured that I'd never be able to hide from you." a voice replied, to which the group looked at the top of the highest stalagmite that was in the cavern that they were in and found the wounded spirit standing up there, but at the same time he appeared that he was going to fight them to the death, even if that resulted in him breaking, "No matter, I'll just kill all of you and prove to Muramasa that you were nothing to be scared about."

Before Sombra could say anything to take, since it was five on one and most of them could break the wounded spirit in no time at all, Ichigo flashed into the air and rushed at the area that Kazeshini was standing in, to which he sighed and shook his head, causing both Zangetsu and Haineko to let got of their handles. He had the feeling that Ichigo was getting annoyed about being on the sidelines, especially since he and some of his forces had come to assist the Shinigami, but in the end it didn't matter why he had chosen to do this, rather he was going to let Ichigo beat the spirit so they could collect his blade fragments before they went to see Muramasa. Sombra watched as Kazeshini turned into a red mist for a few seconds, allowing him to quickly reach the area that Ichigo was in, before wrapping around his target and forming behind him, with his legs wrapped around his body and his arms forming his Shikai blades to keep him trapped. It became clear that he was attempting to outright kill Ichigo by dropping both of them right into the cluster of sharpened stalagmites that were below them, but before they even managed to reach the area in question Ichigo released his Bankai and broke out from Kazeshini's hold, which wasn't hard to do considering that the spirit was weakened from his previous fight.

In fact the battle was over in a moment, as Ichigo rushed at Kazeshini and swung at him, where the spirit growled for a moment before he reverted back into his Shikai blades and shattered before hitting the ground, though once that happened Haineko rushed forward and grabbed the fragments, so they could put him back together once Muramasa as his rebellion were finally stopped.

"Well, that was boring." Zangetsu commented, as he had been expecting the Zanpakuto spirit that was guarding the area to be one that belonged to a Captain, and even if it didn't belong to a Captain it would still have the power to stand up to Ichigo, before he glanced at the side of the cavern, "Hopefully those two Captains found and beat their Zanpakuto spirits, though honestly I hope those spirits are somewhere else... so we can find and smash them instead."

Sombra knew that Zangetsu was annoyed that Kazeshini didn't last long, and was probably even more annoyed about the fact that he fell to Ichigo so suddenly, but at the same time he glanced at the ceiling and spotted a hole in the ceiling, which he knew would take them to the area that Muramasa was hiding in... and he was sure that Shunsui and Ukitake could handle whatever they found in the part of the cave system that they had found themselves in.

---

Ukitake kept his eyes on the area around them, as he and Shunsui were keeping their eyes and senses open for anything and anything that would allow them to find their Zanpakuto partners, though even as they did that he found that the area that they were walking into was more lit than the passage they had been walking through earlier. He wasn't surprised to find that Sombra and his group had gone in a different direction, since there was more than one opening for this cave system, and he also wasn't surprised to find that Zaraki had gotten lost, since he was the first one to enter the darkness and he was known to get lost almost all the time. Based on what he was feeling Sombra and the others would be in the area that Muramasa was standing in shortly, meaning that the rebellion might be over in the next few minutes, but before that happened he and Shunsui were looking for their former partners so they could figure out what they needed to do before they ended up in a fight. While they walked he noticed that Shunsui wasn't in the mood to talk, which was understandable considering that their Zanpakuto partners were around here somewhere, but eventually they came to a stop as they entered a cavern that the reiatsu was coming from.

The other thing about the cavern that he discovered was that there were a number of small pools in the stone in front of them, like they were forming a set of steps up to the other entrance that the cavern had, though they looked around the area for a moment to see if they could figure out where their partners were hiding.

"This is a rather pretty area." Shunsui commented, though at the same time, as he recalled everything that happened since the Zanpakuto rebelled against them, he knew that they couldn't lower their guards, not when this seemed to be the perfect place to ambush someone.

"Could you be a little more serious?" Ukitake inquired, but at the same time he knew that it was a foolish question to even consider asking, as the only person that could make his friend serious was Shunsui himself, and that all depended on the situations he found himself in, "You're taking this too lightly, especially since this is Muramasa's hideout."

"Don't say it like that." Shunsui said, though he couldn't fault Ukitake for thinking that he was acting too carefree, as that was generally how he acted most of the time, since he had to relieve himself of the stress of being a Captain of the Gotei 13 in some manner, before he looked at the area in front of them again, "Anyway, it doesn't seem like we'll be able to go any deeper into the cave without climbing up these 'stairs'..."

Before he could say anything else both he and Ukitake noticed the arrival of a tall woman that had violet colored hair, that was styled in two corkscrew pigtails with bangs framing her face, though she was wearing a red ribbon around her neck and had a black eye patch covering her right eye, while her left eye was turquoise colored. The lady wore an indigo cape with an imprint of a large skull and the two blades of Katen Kyokotsu on it, and a long, dark dress with a significantly low-cut neckline, exposing her large breasts, though she also had a golden bone headdress on her head. From the symbol on her attire Shunsui knew that this had to be his Zanpakuto spirit, or at least one of them since he knew that there were generally two of them, but for now he was happy to see that one of them was nearby, even if he didn't like the look that she was giving them. Ukitake also realized that she was one of the spirits that made up Katen Kyokotsu, since he and Shunsui were two of the three beings that had two Zanpakuto, in the sense that when they activated their Shikai their blades became a pair of powerful weapons for them to use against their enemies, even though he generally carried one Zanpakuto and Shunsui carried a daisho sword pair, a tachi and a wakizashi.

"What game would you like to play?" a voice asked, though at the same time she raised her right arm so she could cover her mouth with her sleeve, an odd habit when they considered what she was doing, but that statement confirmed that there was more than one Zanpakuto spirit in the area, as there was no way that Katen Kyokotsu sounded like a little child that was eager to play games, "Let's play!"

"Who's there?" Ukitake asked, though even as he said that both he and Shunsui glanced around the cavern that they were standing in, because it was hard to figure out where the pair of voices, as there were two nearly identical voices that had spoken when the lady raised her sleeve to her mouth, were located since they seemed to echo throughout the entirety of the part of the cave they were standing in.

"He wants to know who we are!" one of the two voices replied, almost as this was a game and they were having fun just talking, causing the two Captains to glance at each other for a moment, because neither of them were sure what was going on at the moment, before the second voice spoke up, "Sure does! You sure you don't know who we are?"

It was in that moment that two young boys with light green eyes and silver hair, which happened to be pulled back into ponytails and hung down in large bangs in front of their faces, dropped out of the part of ceiling that they had been hiding in and fell on Ukitake. That gave Shunsui the chance to see that the two kids were wearing large, triangular blue hats with small red fans on either side, along with light blue robes over kimonos that had vertical red and yellow stripes near their waists, light beige colored hakama, and blue colored shoes. If he had to guess these were playful spirits that might take the appearance of scholars, but at the same time they seemed to be pleading with Ukitake to play with them as they tugged at his face from behind his back, where his friend simply smiled as he laid on the ground. If it wasn't for the fact that he had determined that the lady was one of the spirits that made up Katen Kyokotsu he would have labeled the kids as his Zanpakuto spirits, since they wanted to play and his blades were the same way, but the reiatsu that he felt from them indicated that they were Ukitake's Zanpakuto partners.

"It seems that they won't let us move forward without playing with them first." Shunsui commented, which he found to be odd since it was his Zanpakuto that liked to play games and not Ukitake's, but at the same time it seemed that the time they spent together might have rubbed off on the spirits of his friend's blades.

"It seems to be that way." Ukitake said, as he agreed with his friend, that playing with the spirits might be the best way to figure out why they decided to leave them in the first place, instead of wasting energy fighting, "Besides, even though I know they're Zanpakuto, I can't bring myself to fight against children."

"This is going to be tougher than I originally thought." Shunsui stated, because while it was entirely possible for Sogyo no Kotowari to be defeated without an actual battle, since they were Ukitake's Zanpakuto spirits, he knew that Katen Kyokotsu wouldn't be that easy to deal with, which is why he walked over to where the lady was standing.

"Now then, who are you two?" Ukitake asked, as he knew that they were playing games and that the first one they wanted to play was him guessing who they were, but he wanted to be absolutely sure of that fact before he said anything, because he could easily upset them and he didn't want that at the moment.

"Who do you think?" the first little boy playfully asked, though at the same time he glanced at his brother, who was grinning as well, because it seemed that they might have fooled their partner with their appearances and that it might actually be taking some time for him to figure out who they were, before the second spoke up, "Huh?"

"Could you two possibly be Sogyo no Kotowari?" Ukitake inquired, because if they were going to act that way, when he asked who they were while following the game that they were playing at the moment, he was just going to say what was on his mind and then move on from there.

"Bingo!" the two boys exclaimed, to which they got off of Ukitake and ran over to the base of the steps that were near where they had dropped down on him, before turning around and looking at their partner, who got up a little so they could face each other, "Man, you figured that out too quickly! It's no fun when you do that!"

"Sorry, I didn't mean to ruin your game by correctly guessing who you were on the first try." Ukitake replied, as he hadn't been expecting them to take him guessing their name correctly in such a manner, even though it appeared that they might just be messing with him for whatever game was coming next, before he stood up and faced them, "How about we play something else?"

"Yeah! That sounds like fun!" the boys said, showing their enthusiasm for starting a new game, though that was before they turned towards each other, indicating that they were thinking about something and were going to talk with each other before coming to a decision, as they even took turns talking while Ukitake stood there, "What game should we play? How about a fan-throwing game? Yeah, that sounds like fun!"

Ukitake watched as they pulled out what appeared to be a scroll of some kind and proceeded to say 'a one, a two, and a three', before two fans popped out of the scroll and floated in the air above them, where they spun around and looked like yellow spinning saws, causing him to go on the defensive since it seemed like he was going to be attacked soon.

"So then, what game would you like to play?" Shunsui asked, as he had taken his time to get up to where the tall lady was standing, giving him a few moments to observe how Sogyo no Kotowari acted around their partner, and quite frankly he found it impossible to imagine two energetic boys being Ukitake's Zanpakuto spirits, before he turned his full attention to one of his partners as Ukitake dealt with the boys and their fans.

"Unfortunately, I'm done with playing games with you." the tall lady replied, though at the same time she actually lowered her arm back to her side, allowing Shunsui to see her mouth move and confirm that it was her talking and not a third spirit that was hiding somewhere near them.

"Come on, don't be that way." Shunsui said, to which he wondered what he had done to his Zanpakuto partners to deserve such a cold shoulder, since it seemed like Katen Kyokotsu hated him with a passion, before he thought back on everything that they had been though over the years, "You know, we've known each other for a long time now and we've been through quite a lot since we first started talking to each other, back when I first found you. Why don't you just return to your sheath and we can talk about why you're upset with me and, more importantly, why you joined Muramasa."

"You can forget about us returning to you." the tall lady stated, though her tone revealed that Shunsui was going to find out why his partners had left him for Muramasa in the first place, which would help him understand what he needed to do to rescue them from Muramasa's control, "We're sick and tired of you and your smug attitude."

"Of course you'd mention 'we', since there's two of you." Shunsui said, because despite what one of his partners thought about him, and he honestly had no idea where she got the idea that he was smug since he was more lazy than anything else, he had felt the presence of the other half of his partners nearby.

Shunsui turned around for a moment and found that the second spirit of his Zanpakuto had pulled herself out of the water that was in the pool that he had been standing in front of, though she was much younger and shorter in appearance than the other spirit, meaning one was an adult and the other was either a teenager or a kid that hadn't matured. has turquoise eyes and chin-length violet hair, which is styled so only her right eye is visible, with a skull decorating it. The second spirit was wearing a dark top that happened to covers her lower face, her neck, and her arms, along with a pair of close-fitting shorts and knee length socks, though over all that she was wearing a purple, hip-length coat fastened at the front by a dark purple sash, and the tops of her thighs and the middle of her torso were left exposed. In her right hand she carried the Shikai form of the blades that he used in battle, holding it reverse of how he and everyone else wielded their blades, meaning that she was more like a ninja than anything else, and since she carried one of the blades he had to guess that the taller lady carried the second blade in the set. Once he had been given enough time to observe her form, and see how different it was from the first spirit, the younger spirit charged at him and started swinging her blade at him, to which he mentally sighed and drew his blades to parry the attacks.

Most would assume that he was just holding back and choosing not to actually fight his Zanpakuto spirits, since they knew his movements better than anyone in the world, and others would think that he didn't want to go too rough on them since they were ladies, but it was just the fact that they were his partners that caused him to go on the defensive as the younger spirit tried to cut him down.

"Most unimpressive." the tall spirit finally said, when the younger spirit stopped and made sure that her blade was pressed firmly against the one that Shunsui was using to defend himself against her, "I had always believed that you were stronger than this. Is this really all you've got inside you?"

"You're asking too much of me as it is, as I'm having a hard time bringing myself to actually fight you ladies." Shunsui admitted, to which he wondered if Sombra had been put in this position, back when he had been fighting his Arrancar spirit inside his inner world, but then shelved that thought and faced his foes once more.

"Is that so? Well, we can't afford to accommodate your whims." the tall spirit replied, though in that instant a drop of water fell from the ceiling and hit one of the pools near them, to which the younger spirit shifted her stance and moved the tip of her blade until it was within a few inches of Shunsui's neck, indicating the danger he was in, "We're the guardians of this area, meaning Sogyo no Kotowari, Kyokotsu, and myself."

"This is tearing me up inside, it really is." Shunsui commented, because in that same moment that the water fell he had drawn the second of his blades to stop the taller spirit's, Katen he guessed since she called the younger one Kyokotsu, blade from reaching the other side of his neck.

Katen let a smirk appear on her face for a moment, because as long as their former partner remained this way they'd be able to overcome him and strike him down, exactly as Muramasa intended for them to do when he assigned the four of them to guard this area, before she and Kyokotsu went on the offensive together. Over in the distance, however, he could make out Ukitake running after Sogyo no Kotowari, so he said nothing as he focused on his own battle, since it would be some time before they were able to figure out a way to overcome their partners and restore order to their bonds. Ukitake, on the other hand, had avoided the fans that had been thrown at him by the pair of young boys and was now chasing after them, mostly because it seemed like running was something they enjoyed doing, though at the same time they were still holding onto their dangerous fans, which they had caught and were running around with so they could get a better vantage point to throw them again. It was in that moment that he had an idea, one that might change how the three of them were taking this, though at the same time it could easily upset them on some level and make them use their swords against him, since he knew that they could pull them out whenever they desired, like all the other Zanpakuto spirits were capable of doing.

"How about you hand those fans over to me and we can play something else?" Ukitake asked, though while he knew that his words might not register in their minds for a moment he knew that they were still listening to what he said, even if they didn't agree with the words that he chose to speak, and besides, after hearing that Tobiume kept her blade hidden inside her bells he had an idea where Sogyo no Kotowari were hiding their blades, hence his request, "Otherwise I might just stop playing with you two."

That seemed to be the trick, as the moment he threatened them with their playtime ending, and the only person they wanted to play with leaving the area, the two young boys came to a stop all of a sudden and he did the same thing behind them, as it was good that he was right in his thinking.

"You mean these?" the first boy asked, though at the same time they turned and looked at Ukitake for a moment, all while holding the fans up in their collapsed forms, which made it easier for them to run around them with them, before his brother mimicked his actions, "These?"

"That's right." Ukitake said, to which he sat down in front of them and smiled for a moment, because he was eager to see if his thoughts were right or if they were messing with him in some manner, because there was no telling if this fun seeking attitude they had was their original personality or if it was Muramasa messing with them, "If you hand them over to me, and let me hold onto them for a while, I'll play tag or whatever game the two of you want to play until Sombra completes his mission."

"Sombra? The King of Hueco Mundo? Here?" the young boys inquired, as they were still using their desire to speak in turns against anyone who talked with them, as it was always the boy on the left that started and the one of the right usually finished whatever they were saying, before they looked around the cavern, "I don't feel anything. Neither do I. Is he playing a game with us?"

"Sombra's position as the Dios Hueco prevents anyone from feeling his reiatsu," Ukitake reminded them, as he had been told this when they first discovered the powerful Arrancar's new position, after he had witnessed Aizen get beaten into the ground by Sombra's sheer destructive power, "but he's here, making his way to Muramasa's position. It won't be long until he breaks the Captain-Commander out of his prison and ends the rebellion, so why don't you two hand over those fans and we can keep playing some games until he's finished his mission?"

"Really? You'll play with us?" the boys asked, though it was hard to tell if they were more shocked or concerned by what he had just told them, or if they were more interested in seeing if he was telling the truth about playing with them until Sombra stopped the leader of the rebellion.

"That's right, but only if you give me those fans." Ukitake replied, though he was fortunate that they were paying more attention to playing games than actually caring what happened to Muramasa, because if they were more worried about their leader they would have run into the area that Sombra was in and would have been snapped in half by either Zangetsu or the King of Hueco Mundo himself.

"Pinky swear!" the boys stated, to which he held their empty hands up and locked their pinkies together, showing him the promise that they wanted him to make, so they could believe what he said and know that he wasn't lying to tell, and he could tell, from looking in their eyes, that they hoped that he was telling the truth.

Ukitake smiled at them and held his hands out, promising that he'd play with them if they handed over their fans, only for the two boys to shoot lightning out of the tips of their fans, something that he had to avoid, before the duo retreated and exclaimed that he had fallen for their trick, to which Ukitake sighed and kept his smile, because as long as they were distracted he was winning, and right now that was all that mattered to him.

"You know, I expected more out of them." Katen commented, as while she was letting Kyokotsu do all the fighting at the moment, since Shunsui was simply defending and had, somehow, already regained the ability to use the Shikai form of their blades, as that was what he was using to defend himself at the moment, "What's wrong? You haven't been able to land a single attack since the battle started."

"That's right, I haven't hit either of you once, but neither are you two fighting me at your full power." Shunsui replied, as he meant it in the sense of their Shikai form, because he knew that if they released their Bankai his chances at winning would be almost gone, and so would Ukitake's chances of keeping his partners in check until Sombra was done, "Let me remind you about something you should know, and that is that my two swords move at a different pace. You two, being my Zanpakuto, take advantage of that while we're fighting, when we're on the same side, and right now neither of you have even considered using that advantage against me. While an enemy is at the mercy of my wakizashi's speed, my tachi swoops in for the final blow, as that is the most common method that we have used our blades for, but the interesting part is that right now the wakizashi has been doing all the attacking and the tachi has barely moved an inch since our battle started. It's not that I can't stack up to you and land a hit, it's that you're deliberately keeping me locked in a position where all I can do is defend and not use the full extent of the power I have access to."

"Goodness, like sure is difficult when you have such a skilled master." Katen said, as she had been expecting Shunsui to figure out what they were up to sooner or later, but it was only the beginning of their battle and he had figured out that they were fighting in an entirely new manner, meaning that, despite his words and actions, he was taking this seriously and was waiting for them to do the same thing, "But now that you know our tactic, that means we'll be forced to take this much more serious than we already are."

"Good. The longer I can keep you stalled, the more time I can buy Sombra." Shunsui commented, to which he shifted his stance and readied himself, because if Ukitake mentioned their ally and Sogyo no Kotowari didn't seem to care than he saw no reason not to do the same thing, because even if Katen and Kyokotsu charged off it would be too late for them to stop whatever Sombra was doing.

"Wait, the King of Hueco Mundo is heading after Muramasa?" Katen asked, though the only reason she was the one talking was because Kyokotsu was a mute, which she was fine with since it gave her time to stall their opponent, but now they stood there and stared at their former master.

"Yeah, he's probably already made contact by now." Shunsui replied, which was followed by him raising his blades towards his Zanpakuto partners, as he would gladly stand in their way to let Sombra finish the rebellion, and he could tell that the pair was debating what to do next.

While neither of them had actually beaten their Zanpakuto in battle, as that was the original plan when they came to this cave system, both he and Ukitake were pleased that they were keeping Katen Kyokotsu and Sogyo no Kotowari from leaving the area they were in... and soon Muramasa's rebellion would be over, so all they had to do was be patient and their partners would be freed from the influence that was making them act this way, and then life would return to normal at long last.

---

"So, this is where he's been hiding the Captain-Commander." Sombra commented, as he and his group had flashed up to the hole in the ceiling the moment he knew it was there, though now he was staring at the green barrier that was in front of them, which just so happened to be where Yamamoto was peacefully sitting.

The barrier in question was like a pyramid, with five sides instead of four, and outside the barrier rested five special posts that allowed the user of the technique to cut themselves off from the outside world and go into a trance like state, to keep whatever they knew safe from those that would misuse it or to give them some peace and quiet. In the situation that he found themselves in he knew that it was more about keeping the location of Koga's resting place, where he was sealed away, kept safe from Muramasa, who must have either been trying to break into it or he was keeping Yamamoto inside it to be sure he didn't flee when his back was turned. At the same time it gave the Captain-Commander the ability to keep his Zanpakuto partner safe from the influence of Muramasa, as it was rather easy for him to find the frustrations that the spirits felt all the time and use them against the Shinigami, which had to make him mad since he couldn't get at the information that he needed to know. While he stared at the barrier, which would be rather easy for someone like him to break if he so desired, the rest of the group studied the area, looking for their enemy since he wouldn't just leave the Captain-Commander alone like this, but it wasn't long before he found the source of his target's reiatsu.

The interesting fact was that the moment he locked onto where his foe was standing he spun around and waved his right hand, like he was blocking something, and the rest of the group watched as he deflected a blade that was thrown at him, only for it to fly into the waiting hand of Muramasa, who had emerged from where he had been hiding while they were distracted by the barrier.

"There you are." Sombra said, though at the same time he moved his hand in a different manner, one that informed the others that he'd take care of the situation on his own and they backed away immediately, before he turned his full attention to the one that was responsible for the rebellion.

"I knew that it was only a matter of time until you came here, Sombra." Muramasa stated, though as he said that he floated down to where his target was standing and touched the ground, as he needed the Arrancar to do something that would aid his mission, "It would see that it is our fate to keep crossing blades with each other."

"Please. The last time we fought I let you go because we had no idea where the Captain-Commander was located, and I didn't know what your endgame for this rebellion was." Sombra replied, though now the situation had changed, as he could easily break their foe into pieces and end everything he set in motion in one moment, but at the same time he had a different plan in mind, which was why he was standing straight and neither of his hands were near his Zanpakuto, "This time around I know why you decided to cause the Zanpakuto to rebel against their partners and cause all the chaos that you've sown so far, so if I so desired I could just end this right now. Though if we're going to be talking for some time, we might as well have everyone in attendance... isn't that right, Byakuya, Senbonzakura?"

At this point in time Byakuya wasn't surprised to learn that Sombra knew that both he and his partner were present, as they had been standing near the Captain-Commander's barrier since they discovered he was here, and now that they had been called out they stepped out of the shadows and stood nearby.

"Good. Everyone that needs to hear this is present." Sombra said, as he was pleased to see that Byakuya had the bright idea to stand near Yamamoto until his arrival, because if everything happened as he intended it to they'd be leaving for the area their true target was imprisoned in, before he focused on Muramasa once more, "Now then, I believe it's time that we got started, Muramasa. Does the name Koga Kuchiki ring any bells?"

"H... How do you know that name?" Muramasa asked, as he was under the impression that the Shinigami had buried all the records of his master, including where he had been hidden, thus the entire reason for him going through all the effort to get the information he needed.

"You're a Zanpakuto, and as such your name is written in the records, along with the names of the other Zanpakuto that have appeared over the years, the names of their individual powers, and the name of their partner." Sombra replied, though while he was lying about the fact that he had learned the name from the records, which was basically the same area that Aizen got his information on the Hogyoku, it was true that Muramasa's name and information would be in the records, meaning it was easy to fool his foe into thinking that he had the upper hand, "It was rather easy for me to find some time to get inside the records and look up your information, as well as the fact that Koga is labeled as dead, and yet there is no records detailing how he died or where he was buried. From what I can tell the only living person who knew what happened to your partner, and could tell you that information, is the Captain-Commander, though when he found that you were looking for that very information he locked himself inside this barrier and cut himself off from the rest of the world, all by putting himself into an unconscious state. Basically you needed to enter his mind to get the memories and information that you were looking for, and he knew that you'd be after that, which is why you staged rebellion in the first place... all so you could buy yourself some time to figure out how to break the barrier and get what you needed."

"Wait, so he never intended to fully free the Zanpakuto from their partners?" Zangetsu asked, because while he knew that his Lord was great at piecing things together, even to the point where he and some of the others had no idea what was going on at any given moment, he was outraged by what he had heard, especially when he learned what Haineko had been through for the longest time.

"Sombra, you are correct. I needed Yamamoto's memories to get what I needed," Muramasa stated, because now that his foe knew why the rebellion had happened in the first place he figured that he might as well admit his entire plan, in the chance that it would buy him some time to get away from him and start again, hopefully when he went back to Hueco Mundo and stayed there, "and, as you no doubt know, he created this barrier to prevent me from entering his inner world and seeing into his mind. You are also correct in the sense that I only manifested the Zanpakuto was so I could throw Soul Society into chaos, thus giving me more than enough time to figure out how to break the barrier and get what I needed, but even then I never planned on Sode no Shirayuki accidentally getting you involved in my plans. In order to get anything done I had everyone, both Shinigami and Zanpakuto alike, believe that I had already captured the Captain-Commander, as it rallied the Zanpakuto and caused some weakness in the Shinigami that were my enemies, leading to the perfect storm of turmoil that I could have asked for... that is until you showed up and ruined everything."

"You... you BASTARD!" Haineko shouted, as she couldn't believe what she was hearing, that the rebellion that she and the others had joined, to free themselves from their terrible and sometimes abusive partners, had been a front for Muramasa's plans, that he never intended to keep his word to them, and it was only because Zangetsu stopped her from charging forward that she was able to remain in one spot.

"It was incredibly rude of you to dangle something like that in front of the Zanpakuto, especially since some of them aren't too happy with their partners," Sombra commented, as Haineko was one of the few Zanpakuto that hated how their relationships had degraded over time, before he focused on Muramasa as Zangetsu calmed Haineko down, "especially when your ultimate goal was to find the place that your partner, Koga Kuchiki, was sealed away in and break the seal so he could come back to this world. You told the Zanpakuto that they would be free, when you wanted to go back to your partner's side, but in the end I don't blame you for trying, not when you were trying to fill the hole that had been left inside your heart when he was imprisoned. I'm not saying that it justifies what you did..."

"It doesn't matter now anyway, not when I failed to break the barrier and get the information I needed." Muramasa stated, as he didn't want to listen to what Sombra had to say, because it sounded like he was going to damn him for even trying to put his world back together, to which he summoned his blade and prepared for his retreat.

Sombra chuckled for a moment, shocking Muramasa in the process, before he turned towards the pyramid shaped barrier and tapped on it, like he was knocking on a door, before pausing for a moment, to which everyone watched as the walls of the barrier came undone and Captain-Commander Yamamoto got onto his feet as he took in his surroundings once more, as there were more people here than he was expecting.

"King Sombra, I was wondering when you were going to show up and break the barrier." Yamamoto said, though while his voice still held it's serious tone, something that he always used when he was talking these days, he noticed that the one being he had been hiding from was still present, "And I'm curious as to why Muramasa hasn't been taken care of yet, when he could easily reach into my mind now."

"If he so much as moves to attack or to reach into your mind, I'll cut him in half," Sombra stated, to which he heard Muramasa gulp for a moment, as if he wasn't expecting something like that to be said, before he turned towards the Captain-Commander, "As I'm sure you already know, since you hid yourself in such a manner, he came looking for the location of Koga Kuchiki's prison, so he could break the seal and free his partner at long last. Would it be alright if I asked you where the prison is located?"

Yamamoto considered the request for a moment, as he had intended to keep Koga sealed inside his prison until the day the banished Shinigami died from being inside the seal for too long, but at the same time he remembered what Sombra did to Aizen and how easily he was able to decimate the traitorous Captain. He knew that Koga was powerful, hence why they had to use a sneak attack of sorts to seal him away in the World of the Living, but where Aizen was much stronger that Koga, before he merged with the Hogyoku, he knew that Sombra was far stronger than whatever power resided inside the banished Shinigami. Normally he would have said no in such a situation, as it would have been one of his fellow Shinigami asking or one of the Central 46 asking about it, but since it was Sombra, the Dios Hueco and the King of Hueco Mundo, he decided that he was going to bend the rules.

"Koga Kuchiki is imprisoned on an island that resides in the middle of a lake, somewhere in the area around Karakura Town," Yamamoto replied, though at the same time he thought about the information that Sombra would need for the mission to be a success and tapped his cane for a moment, "You can copy the information you need into a crystal or something, so long as I am willing offering to let you look at it, correct?"

Sombra nodded his head before resting a hand on the Captain-Commander's shoulder, to which he found that the information he would have been searching for had come to the front of Yamamoto's mind, showing that he wanted this to be over at long last, and he quickly copied the information regarding the unsealing process into a crystal that formed above his right hand. Once that was done he pulled away from the Captain-Commander and nodded his head, to which Yoruichi escorted Yamamoto out of the cave, so they could find the others and share the news with them, before Byakuya stepped forward and a number of Jigokucho, one for him, Senbonzakura, Sombra, Ichigo, Zangetsu, Haineko, and even Muramasa flew down and gathered around them. As that happened he raised his Zanpakuto and opened a Senkaimon in the air in front of him, since they couldn't use the large one, as that would only upset Muramasa, before they all stepped into the passage between realms and headed for the World of the Living once more. Sombra knew that some would consider him crazy for what was going to happen next, when they reached their destination, but at the same time this marked the end of the rebellion, so he was going to focus on finding their target and seeing what happened when Koga was finally free from his prison.

He did, however, find it interesting that Muramasa was so willing to trust him now that he had the key to unlocking the seal that was holding his Shinigami partner in a banished state, and soon he'd bring an end to the goal that Muramasa had been working towards since the moment Koga had been sealed away... and then, once both of them had been taken care of, he could focus on helping the Shinigami rebuild and focus on whatever threat would come next.

Comments

[Jarimor]

this arc really hurt the first time, and it hasn’t gotten any easier.

[PrismStrike]

A very interesting chapter. I particularily liked this line though

"If he so much as moves to attack or to reach into your mind, I'll cut him in half," Sombra stated, to which he heard Muramasa gulp for a moment,

Sombra gives no fucks. he doesn't think he is the strongest guy in any room within this world, he knows it. Lookin forward to more. keep up the great work

[Black--Soul]

Very interessting how things development.
I wonder if it becpmes a common practice to offer seperation if a Shinigami becomes unworthy of their partner.