Another voice was heard and the ice was shattered in an instant by an overwhelming wave of power. A man with a calm face and black eyes was standing beside Ichimaru, looking at Hitsugaya calmly.
"Aizen?"
"Yes, it's me."
Seeing the sight of the dead Captain casually standing beside someone who stabbed his childhood friend, Momo, Captain Hitsugaya reached a conclusion.
"You deceived all of us! You were working together!" He growled at him, "What are you trying to do?! What is the meaning of all of these?!"
He raised his sword and pointed it at the Captain. The tip was trembling from the sheer amount of anger he felt.
"Why did you stab Momo?" Hitsugaya's voice was full of emotion and his expression showed how he hated this Captain. "She adored you!"
"That's exactly why, Captain. She's easy to manipulate. A loyal and foolish dog. Nothing more than a tool for me." Aizen explained as he raised his chin a little, "Now that the tool lost its use, I discarded it."
"You bastard! I will kill you!"
"Making a rash threat makes you seem weak."
Captain Hitsugaya hissed and attacked with his ice wing. It flew at the direction of Captain Aizen and Gin, intending to kill them. A giant wave of ice followed its trail, freezing the air around them.
As expected from the tenth Captain of Gotei 13.
The air around them became heavy, making breathing difficult. Ice was everywhere and their reiatsu could be felt from miles away.
But it was useless.
Aizen had already moved even before he finished talking. His reiatsu was calm and his expression was as stoic as ever, without a hint of worry or any emotion at all.
Before anyone noticed, he already slashed Captain Hitsugaya and appeared behind him, holding his zanpakutou on his left hand.
Blood trickled down his blade, and Hitsugaya froze in his spot.
"How?" The white-haired captain couldn't understand how this could have happened. His eyes were wide, and he stared at Aizen's back with disbelief.
Then, his knees buckled and his body went slack. His bankai was released and the dragon made of ice disappeared.
He fell forward, his blood dripping to the floor, forming a pool.
His zanpakutou rolled from his hand and stopped a few inches in front of Hinamori. The clang of metal against the ground resounded, echoing in the silent grove.
At that moment, Aizen turned his head and looked at Gin who had his usual smile.
"This is done. Let's go to the next part of the plan."
He turned his body and sheathed his zanpakutou. Not sparing another glance toward the injured Captain and Lieutenant, he left.
"Yes, yes, Captain Aizen."
Ichimaru followed him from behind.
As they were about to leave the compound, footsteps were heard. Three people entered the grove.
"We were too late."
A woman dressed in captain haori stepped inside, her long braided hair fluttering with the wind.
Beside her, Isane Kotetsu stood, her eyes were wide with horror.
The last person was...
Kurosaki Shirou, a boy with auburn hair, stood between the two Shinigami with his eyes wide. His face was full of surprise as he saw the sight in front of him.
Indeed, they were a step too late.
"I thought I would be able to stop you here before you can harm them. I guess it is impossible now." Captain Unohana muttered. "I am sorry, Kurosaki-kun. I have failed you."
"No." Shirou said, shaking his head, "It's not your fault, Captain Unohana. Rather, we're all used by someone here."
"Kurosaki Shirou, you're such an enigma, you know?" Aizen smiled, his face remained stoic as usual, "I would have succeeded if you didn't come, but alas, you came and forced me to alter my plan."
"Should I say that I am honored?" Shirou asked back in an unimpressed tone, looking at the traitorous Captain with an unreadable expression. "Or is this also an illusion you made with your zanpakutou?"
"Illusion? You're mistaken." He answered in amusement, his eyes closed and his lips formed a thin line, "Shatter, Kyouka Suigetsu."
Nothing changed.
Everyone here looked confused, except for Shirou. His expression darkened, but his eyes showed amusement. His lips curved up in a small smile.
"I thought so. The zanpakutou can create a perfect illusion and wouldn't be able to deceive everyone in Soul Society." He stated clearly, looking straight at Aizen.
Having seen the weapon once and calmly analyzed it, he came to a conclusion.
"Your real ability is something else, one that only needs you to present your zanpakutou once."
"Very perceptive. I'm surprised."
Aizen said with his stoic face. There was no panic in his voice at all, as if he was confident everything was still within his grasp.
"You're right, my zanpakutou's ability is perfect hypnosis. People who have seen my shikai's release even once are affected for all eternity. And once I released my Shikai, the hypnotic would return again. Even if the target knows about my zanpakutou's power."
He stopped and stared straight at Shirou's eyes, observing the boy who had just figured out his ability. Aizen could only see amusement and a bit of surprise in his eyes. But nothing more.
"I am impressed." Aizen complimented, his smile widened a fraction, "Though, it is too late for this. We have finished our objective and we are going to leave this place. You can't do anything to us now. Farewell."
"Wait!"
Shirou immediately traced the twin swords and rushed toward Aizen and Gin with hirenkyaku. He didn't want them to get away.
Not like this!
Unfortunately, they were faster than him. Cloth shot out from Gin's sleeve, spinning like a tornado, causing dust to fly around the grove.
As it dissipated, the two Captains were nowhere to be found.
They were gone. Aizen and Ichimaru escaped from his grasp.
Shirou clenched his hand and clicked his tongue, disappointed in himself. His eyes were full of regret as he turned his head toward Hinamori and Hitsugaya who were still bleeding.
"Captain Unohana!"
Nodding, Captain Unohana approached the two injured Shinigami. She also gave a command at the same time.
"Isane, locate them."
"Yes!"
Answering her, Isane drew a circle in the ground and activated Bakudou.
"Hearts of the South, eyes of the North. Fingertips of the West, heels of the East. Gather holding the winds, scatter sweeping the rains."
"Bakudou 58: Kakushi Tsuijaku!"
Coordination appeared above her hand and a wave of her spiritual pressure flowed into it. In a few moments, a light shined on top of it. She narrowed her eyes and focused her spiritual senses on it.
"The signal... They are heading to Soukyoku hill!"
"Good. Inform everyone what we learned, including the Ryoka!"
"Thank you."
Shirou dashed out of the grove immediately once he got their location, not spending a second to talk or explain himself. His mind was blank, only filled with rage and disappointment.
How could he be stupid even after everything that had happened to him? How could he be fooled by something as simple as a hypnotic ability?
He followed Yoruichi's plan, and it worked. However, even she couldn't really guess that Aizen's death would be fake.
Why?
'Yoruichi-san has also been hypnotized. That's why she failed to notice it.'
The enemy was cunning and smart. Everything had always been in his control from the start.
Maybe even their arrival was within his plan all along. He didn't like that man called Aizen; he reminded him of that priest.
Something still didn't click, but Shirou followed his intuition.
Considering everything happening so far, he could guess one thing about Aizen's goal. It had something to do with Rukia's execution.
Someone who fooled the Soul Society wouldn't just escape after everything he did, it was too simple. And he had been working for so long that he should have an ultimate goal.
One that made him confident enough to pull it off now.
'They will do the execution now.'
He could feel Ichigo's reiatsu approaching the Sokyoku Hill.
At the same time, he also felt a shift in Renji's reiatsu. He, who should've been running toward Rukongai to reach Shiba house, suddenly appeared in Sokyoku Hill once again.
"I won't reach it in time!" He gritted his teeth as he reached outside the building.
Even if he used hirenkyaku, he wouldn't be able to reach Sokyoku Hill in time. His mastery over this technique only allowed him to reach the maximum distance of 500 meters with a few seconds to recharge.
But then, he didn't really need to go there.
"I will do what I can."
He disappeared from the ground and reappeared in the sky.
Sokyoku Hill was tall enough to be seen throughout Seireitei, including from where he was standing. A few figures could be seen like a dot in the sky from here.
Six, to be exact, including Ichigo who stood beside Renji who held Rukia with dear life.
Inhaling sharply, Shirou traced a black bow on his left hand. He gripped it tightly, pointing the tip toward Aizen's direction.
Raising his right hand, he traced another weapon.
"Trace... on."
A spiral sword, one that he often fired as an arrow appeared. He knocked it on the string, aiming at the distant hill, toward Aizen's position. The sword transformed into a thin spiral arrow.
"I am the bone of my sword."
Reiatsu began to gather at the tip of the sword. A red halo of energy started to condense in it.
However, it wasn't enough. He wanted to ensure it would hit, he had to make sure it would reach its target.
And he had to make sure it took them down.
So he focused and gathered everything into it.
***
Wind blew around them. The atmosphere was heavy and dark.
Ichigo stood in front of three Captains with a determined expression. He had heard everything from the voice that appeared in his head earlier.
"So you were the one targeting Rukia all along?" He glared at Aizen, not a hint of fear could be seen on his face.
Aizen remained silent. He stared straight at the orange-haired Shinigami with an unreadable expression, not a trace of emotions was there. His black eyes were sharp, observing everything about Ichigo.
"Shall I take care of him, Captain Aizen?" Gin offered with his fox-like grin.
"No need. Just two ants won't be a problem."
"Ichigo, he's strong. You need to be careful." Renji whispered from his spot. His eyes narrowed, his hands still holding Rukia's unconscious form. "He's not someone you can take on. He killed Lieutenant Hinamori and even Captain Hitsugaya easily."
"I won't be defeated. Not yet. Not ever!" The orange-haired Shinigami raised his reiatsu. Reiatsu rose to the sky, causing a small whirlwind to appear around them. "Bankai!"
Dark reiatsu surrounded him and exploded outward, changing his zanpakutou form.
When the cloud disappeared, Ichigo stood in his Bankai's form. A black coat fluttered as the wind blew. Ichigo gripped his long, thin black sword tightly as he looked straight at the traitorous Captain in front of him.
"Getsuga Tenshou."
He fired his signature move without a moment to spare, causing the dark energy to fly straight at the Captain.
The destructive energy cleaved anything in half, destroying the ground in front of him. It headed straight at Aizen's figure. Dust flew everywhere, blocking the view of anyone who tried to watch the battle.
"Interesting."
But to the Captain, it wasn't enough.
Aizen blocked the attack using his palm, stopping the energy slash from reaching him.