King of Hollows

(Hueco Mundo)

Ichigo and Gin soon came out of the Garganta, only a few miles away from the palace of Las Noches this time, and took a moment to survey their surroundings. Despite the curiosity, the only thing of any note was the palace itself. Charred from the Kido spell and broken from all the fighting, it was still a bit of a surprise to see it being reconstructed. The walls seemed to be crawling as building materials moved along with long tendrils of sand assisting in the construction.

"Makes sense that they'd rebuild," Ichigo finally said, "since there doesn't seem like there's much else to do here."

"There really isn't." Gin admitted, now glad that he had his new job. Before they could even take their first step, a mound of sand started to rise until it took the full form of Runuganga. Gin didn't react, only smiling, while Ichigo braced himself to use the ice spell, Hyoga Seiran.

"Ichigo Kurosaki... Master Ichigo." The giant sand Hollow said to the hybrid. "Word has spread that you have slain lord Aizen and claimed the throne. Your castle is still being repaired, but the denizens of Las Noches await your return." He held out his hand in front of the Soul Reapers. "If you'll have me, I'll bring you to the castle." Ichigo was hesitant, having been enemies with the Hollows of Hueco Mundo not too long ago, to take the sand creature up on his offer. Gin climbed onto the hand first before letting the hybrid know of the lack of danger. He wasn't entirely convinced, but it was enough to get on Runuganga's hand but he never once dropped his readiness to use the ice Kido spell. The sand guardian kept his word and within minutes, the Shinigami pair found themselves in front of the gates of Las Noches. A massive blank double door that was as plain as the rest of the outside of the building. The Hollow let Ichigo and Gin down before pushing the doors open, revealing an Arrancar with a bull skull mask with two lines of human skull Arrancar going into the palace.

"Lord Ichigo," The Arrancar said with a bow, "I am Rudborn Chelute. Leader of the Exequias and the guardian of the palace. Your procession is ready." As he said that, the lines of Arrancar faced each other, drew their swords, and made a tunnel for their king. "This will guide you to the inner palace and throne room, where your Espada await." Ichigo looked down the procession that seemed to go on for miles.

"Is it a straight line?" He asked and earning a nod of confirmation from both Rudborn and Gin. "Excellent." Ichigo undid the straps on his ankles, grabbed Gin, and tested the limits of his speed, reaching their destination within seconds. "Starting to get tired of this 'king' stuff." He griped as he redid the straps to contain his power.

"You'll only have to deal with it for so much longer." Gin responded, heading for the staircase so they could ascend to the throne room. "Come on Lord Ichigo, you subjects await!" He said happily, laughing as Ichigo released an irritated growl. They made their way through the palace halls before finally coming upon the throne room. Gin immediately entered and loudly proclaimed Ichigo's arrival. "Arrancar of Las Noches! Your king has arrived!" Ichigo entered the room, seeing the few Arrancar he recognized and many others he did not. The main exceptions were the two standing on both sides of his new throne, Ulquiorra standing on the left and Grimmjow sitting on the right.

'There it is. My throne.' The word still felt alien to the hybrid as he entered the room and made his way toward the stone chair. As he went, every Arrancar he passed knelt in submission to him. Some seemed more hesitant, but all bowed. Gin stood before the throne before stepping aside, letting Ichigo leap to his seat. He stood before it, brushing his fingers against the arms before sitting down. 'Wow. This chair is very uncomfortable.'

"The Gotei has come to a decision in regards to Hueco Mundo." Gin called out to the Arrancar. "Your king will now deliver that news." He said before looking to Ichigo and nodding.

"In the not too distant future, an army of Quincy will rise and attack." Ichigo announced, telling the Arrancar of the coming Blood War. "They want to destabilize the balance that allows our worlds to exist, disrupt the flow of souls, and destroy everything. They fear the Hollows because your Reishi is toxic to them, so we believe they will strike here first. Then they will do everything they can to destroy the Soul King, the lynchpin of the balance. To prepare for this, it was deemed that I conquer Hueco Mundo and prepare an army of Arrancar to counteract the Quincy. Thus; you are now members of squad 16, with Gin Ichimaru as your captain and Lord Steward of Las Noches. When I am not here, he is your leader." He waited a moment to see if anyone had any complaints. "Do not be afraid to speak up. Let your voices and concerns be heard."

"Were those three Quincy in the military uniforms part of this new enemy?" Cirucci asked, actually having met the Spyritters.

"They are, but they are also on the edge of betraying their side." Ichigo responded. "Many of the Quincy are under the delusion that there will be anything for them after the fighting is done. They are mistaken, but many are religiously devoted to their leader." Many of the Arrancar groaned, and Ichigo swore he heard someone say 'great, an army of Zommari'.

"What is the current plan of action your majesty?" The one known as Halibel asked. Many looked to him for guidance, Gin nodded before revealing a jar.

"You are all to train yourselves to become stronger." Ichigo declared, standing from his throne. "Strengthen yourselves, strengthen your allies, gather more to our ranks! As of now, you will no longer consume other Hollows. You will refine your abilities, bring others to our side, and I will reward those who succeed with more power." Gin tossed him the jar, which Ichigo caught and brought out a single pill. "These will strengthen any Arrancar that consumes it." He threw it to Dordoni, who caught it. "Show them. Swallow." The former Primera did so and everyone felt the slight increase in power coming from the Arrancar. "Follow me, and I promise a new era for all." Ichigo said, before displaying the weight of his Reiatsu and his power to them. "And I will protect it."

(With the Spyritters)

The three Sternritters returned to their base of operations safely; not happy with how their mission turned out or with the results of their 'success'. After Ichigo departed from Hueco Mundo to finish the fight with Aizen, Bazz-B and the others stated they had to report to Yhwach and pray that the emperor would be benevolent. They decided to retrieve the Zero Squad Haori that Ichigo had and discarded during his fight with Black, tracing the energy to inside a field of searing black sand. Yhwach was pleased that they returned with something useful, but that was little comfort knowing that they lost over two hundred Quincy in his majesty's attempt to kill Ichigo.

"How successful do you think they'll be?" Candice asked her companions. The loss of soldiers in the Vandenreich was recently being countered by a new recruiting process, other Sternritters were being sent out into the world to gather would-be Quincy to join them. Any that were too weak would still fuel Yhwach's regeneration; and as As Nodt and Gremmy Thoumeaux proved, anyone is fair game to join.

"Who wouldn't want to be one with his majesty?" Bazz-B said, sounding as sincere as he could out of fear that Yhwach was watching them. For their 'reward', Yhwach empowered them further. Sharing more of his soul and had them drink more of his blood. With not only his majesty but the whole of the Sternritters watching, they had to comply.

"Our ranks will swell!" Bambietta returned, trying to match Bazz-B's tone. "My question is, what did his majesty mean by 'Ichigo and Uryu are no longer my children'? It sounds like they severed their bond to him completely."

"Or are too dangerous to try and return to us." Candice finished. "Either way, our mission is to find out what they did and kill them." They nodded, knowing that whatever Ichigo and Uryu did is the only way they were going to get out of this situation alive.

(With Yamamoto)

The head captain was going through the reports of everything that occurred since Aizen's defeat. The progress in research on Hollows and Arrancar, the casualty reports of Hollows rampaging for a single day after Aizen's defeat, the new system that the good members of Central 46 offered, all for the sake of trying to block out what was to come. Being told of his return, seeing the evidence, none of it really prepared him to encounter what he considered the darkest times of his long life. He turned his gaze to the constant reminder he had of his shameful past, a hanging picture of himself in the fires of his Bankai.

"That thing was a monster that appeared when Soul Society was already a mess," the words he spoke to a young Kyoraku echoed in his mind, "and messed things up even more. But, it will never appear again." "If only that were true." He said, still staring at the picture. Some part of him was telling himself to not fight, that Ichigo was strong enough to battle Yhwach, but he refused to entertain that thought fully. Yhwach was his responsibility, the last fragment of a troubled time he'd need to rectify, and he would rather die before running from that. It would likely end in his death, but he'd never be able to face his students again if he hid behind them.

"Do you think he'll be able to properly handle it?" He heard his Zanpakuto ask him. "The power and responsibility you are planning to leave to him?"

"No one else in this world is more worthy my old friend." He responded as he pulled out the latest journal he had on Ichigo's training. "He has plenty of time to prove that."

(Hueco Mundo)

"You ready king?" Grimmjow asked Ichigo, standing across the sand and ready for the next round. After the meeting, he ordered them all to take some personal time to themselves. Get acclimated to the new situation with a new king and Gin as their other leader. One girl in Halibel's group was vocal in her distrust of Ichigo before getting into an argument with the other Fraccion in her group. It ended when Halibel sent them away, telling him they usually fight but so long as Ichigo earns her loyalty then he has theirs.

"Ready Grimmjow." Ichigo responded, unsheathing Kyoka Suigetsu. He closed his eyes, focusing on the lessons Yamamoto had the time to teach him. "Shatter, Kyoka Suigetsu." The two dashed at each other, Ichigo to his left and Grimmjow to his. Ichigo circled around the panther, but Grimmjow turned and got ready to block. Ichigo stopped just short of making contact. "How long?"

"After you passed me." The Arrancar answered, making Ichigo growl in frustration.

"Damn it!" He swung the blade and created a massive explosion of sand as he vented. Grimmjow stood and waited as the hybrid took the time to calm down from another failed practice attempt. His teacher made the lesson clear, but putting it into practice was proving to be difficult. After taking Aizen's Zanpakuto for his own, Genryusai explained the three different types of Zanpakuto. Zangetsu was a melee kind, Kyoka Suigetsu was a Kido type, and his own Ryujin Jakka was elemental, and being different types meant different approaches to combat. Melee was about being faster and stronger than your opponent, which was what Ichigo excelled in. Kido was more mental and how to use those abilities, which was why Aizen was so dangerous. Elemental was about control, too little and you are ineffective while too much would cause collateral damage. What Ichigo was doing in his training was going to an entirely different fighting method, one that was less about relying on instinct and instead focusing on thought.

"You have to maintain the image you want them to see in your mind Ichigo." Suigetsu tried to help, reminding him for the fifth time that he needs to maintain the visual for himself for it to work on others. "Maybe you should take a break." She suggested as Ulquiorra came to them.

"Grimmjow, take five!" Ichigo called out, gaining a shrug from the panther as Ichigo went to the bat. "What's the news?"

"The Espada are acclimating well, most of them are planning out their own training schedules with Starrk being the exception." Ulquiorra reported. "It seems he has something he wants to talk to you about. Neliel on the other hand... I'm unsure what she wants exactly, but it involves you. The only other thing is that Loly Aivirnne and Menoly Mallia were planning an assassination. They are currently in the dungeon." Ichigo took a moment to think the matter over.

"I'll go talk to Starrk and Neliel about what they wanted." He decided, remembering that Neliel was the one that watched over his sisters. "As for the other two, who were they exactly?"

"They were Aizen's aides, just some numeros." The Arrancar told his king. "Though, with Loly's devotion, some might think it was more than that."

"I think Orihime was the one that spared them, I'll let her try to talk to them." He grabbed Kyoka Suigetsu and sheathed her. "But for now, I'll talk to Starrk and then to Neliel. Grimmjow! That's enough practice for today!" The hybrid called out to the panther before disappearing in a burst of speed.

(Kurosaki House)

Isshin was now coming home from, hopefully, being done with the Aizen affair. After the Arrancar returned to Hueco Mundo to inform the realm of their new king, the Hollows that hid during Aizen's regime came out of the woodwork. They thought that the Soul Reapers would be too weak to counteract them after the war and tried to take advantage of the situation. The sudden attack caught them off guard and led to an explosive casualty rise until Masaki and himself led the counter attack and pushed them back to the deserts. A part of him probably felt like he overreacted in the fight, but he didn't want to risk the chance of losing his daughters again. He entered the house and was greeted to the delightful scent of Masaki's home cooking and his daughters setting the table. Something normal, something calming, something welcome to come home to. The only physical change was a small alter with Kon's stuffed lion body and some incense burning to the sides of it.

'He was good to this family.' He thought as he gave silent thanks to the mod soul before joining his family for dinner.

"Dad, I think it's time for Yuzu and I to get Zanpakuto." Karin said as Isshin sat down. Masaki tensed up at the thought of her baby girls fighting more, but still understood the reason why they would think so. Isshin looked over his daughters to get a read on them. Karin seems confident in her stance and Yuzu seemed to support that decision. The captain let out a tired sigh.

"That's for your teachers at Shin'o Academy to decide." He responded as he took a long drink of beer Masaki had ready for him. "But if you really want to prove yourselves, I can get you permission to join the next field exercise on the outskirts of Karakura. What happens there will be up to you and your teachers." He finished, not wanting to abuse his authority as a captain or a noble and make it seem like nepotism was why his daughters succeeded.

(???????)

A dark figure stared at the lone image before him, the image of a dark god of death crushing a would be king deity and robbing him of his soul. The scene shifted to two girls, wearing white and waiting patiently for their savior. The figure smiled as he began to plan.

"Soon."

(Illustrated Guide to Soul Reapers)

The New Government

"Okay, here's what I'm thinking." A judge of the former C46 said as he and his fellows met with Yamamoto. "Each district will elect a council of five to discuss the happenings in that district. Each district can also elect one to two other representatives for a Rukon Representative house. Each Rukon can have one official to meet with the Great Noble House leaders to discuss the affairs of Soul Society." He finished with a smile, staring pointedly at Yamamoto. "There will also be a chairman overseer of that group. Ideally, you after retirement from military service."

'…I wonder if I can fake my death.' The ancient dragon thought, knowing how much of a struggle this was going to be to actually work.

More Practice

"You sitting on your throne." Starrk yawned out as he and the other Espada helped Ichigo with his image training with Kyoka Suigetsu. Ichigo would think of the image and they would tell him when they saw it and Gin would offer ideas. "Still looks pretty rough."

"Now you in Bankai. The wings are a bit off though." Ulquiorra said next. Then the other men in the Arrancar gained a huge blush. "Halibel, can you really bend like that?" He asked the female Arrancar before hearing a loud smack and Gin went flying.

"He's not allowed near me during practice anymore." Ichigo said, secretly pocketing the picture of Halibel doing yoga that Gin showed him.