Balancing the Scales

"Please, be advised! We're detecting that a Senkaimon has just been opened!" cried a member of the 12th Division. "The energy signature matches that of former-Captain Ichimaru's Zanpakuto!"

"Then it is time," said Yamamoto, looking at Ohta with his distinctive red eyes and adding, "You have earned the right to face Aizen on your terms. However, should you fail, we will have no choice but to destroy Karakura Town to buy some time..."

Shrugging his shoulders, Ohta replied, "I don't care what you do after I die. Before that, don't intervene..."

Rising to his feet, Ohta half-turned to stare back at Rukia and Orihime. Rangiku was also present as part of the Soul Society Protection Squad. However, as their relationship was ultimately casual, she stood off to the side with the healed but still fatigued Toshiro.

Speaking before Ohta could, Rukia adopted a smile and said, "Give him hell."

"And make sure to return," appended Orihime, adopting a smile of her own as she added, "We'll be waiting."

Nodding solemnly, Ohta didn't bother to respond before teleporting away, reappearing high above Karakura Town. Several seconds later, the entire town and 'most' of its residents became veiled in bluish-white light before vanishing, swapping places with the ruins in the Human World.

"This is it..." muttered Ohta, his words directed at Anpu.

("Just this once, you will have access to all of our power,") replied Anpu. ("However, should you triumph, I expect you to take a more active role in the world you will have saved. You need not become a tyrant, but I will not tolerate you bowing your head to a system of authority that needed your power to endure...")

"Sure," replied Ohta. "Just don't blame me for not being 'protective' when you spend most of your day lazing about and sleeping. I have no desire to rule. I only want to live as I please..."

("That's all I've ever wanted for you...") replied Anpu. At the same time, a tremendous amount of power began to surge through Ohta's body as the tattoo-like markings around his wrist expanded rapidly, crawling up his arms and forming an Ankh-shaped scale on his back. More notably, the cloak around his body vanished, the pendant around his neck becoming a blue and gold Usekh as a Nemes-style headdress materialized around his head, framing his pointed ears. Golden bracers covered his forearms and forelegs, and, last but not least, a shendyt-style cloth formed from golden scales and blue cloth materialized around his waist, the completed outfit making him look like a furry-eared Pharoah.

("This the penultimate stage of our union, Sabaki(Judgment),") revealed Anpu. ("However, as you are not ready for this kind of power, it will cause permanant damage to your Soul if you maintain it for an extended period. That woman, Inoue Orihime, may be able to heal you, but you should not become dependent on her power unless you intend to claim her...")

"I'll keep that in mind..." muttered Ohta, casually extending his left hand, producing a black trail in its wake. As abnormal as it sounded, he felt as though all his mental, spiritual, and physical energies had disappeared or, more accurately, fused into something else entirely...

("You stand upon the precipice of Divinity, but you are unable to cross over due to a lack of faith,") explained Anpu. ("If you wish to make this power your own, gather followers and appoint Apostles. Only then can you transcend limitations to become a God...")

"Sounds like a pain in the ass..." replied Ohta, clenching his hand into a fist and causing visible cracks in the surrounding space. He genuinely had no desire to stand over others, but he would be damned if he allowed others to stand over him...

Just as Ohta was thinking about testing his new power on the remnants of the fake Karakura Town, an ungodly Reiatsu appeared several kilometers from his position.

Staring wide-eyed in the direction of the Reiatsu, Ohta muttered, "Is that Aizen? How the fuck did he get so powerful...?"

("It doesn't matter,") replied Anpu. ("This could be his Bankai or a power he awakened with the help of the Hogyoku. Either way, it doesn't change what we have to do...")

Recovering from his momentary stupor, Ohta muttered, "You're right..." as his expression changed from shock to resolution. Then, as Aizen's power was like a massive beacon within an otherwise empty void, he teleported over to the man, finding that his hair had grown longer and that the sclera of his eyes had turned purple, emphasizing his pale, lavender irises. More pressingly, the Hogyoku was embedded in his sternum...

Though Gin was also present, Ohta's gaze was firmly fixed on Aizen as the latter adopted a smile and mused, "Yamada Ohta...judging by your appearance, I assume you've had sufficient time to prepare? If not, I can return after I've defeated the remainder of the Gotei 13."

"Everything about you pisses me off..." replied Ohta, closing his eyes and appearing to drop his guard before abruptly activating Kūsho, expanding its influence to encompass nearly a hundred meters in an instant. Gin was forced to Shunpo away, but Aizen stood his ground, maintaining a relaxed smile as he held up his right hand, fused with the blade of his Zanpakuto.

"Outstanding," mused Aizen. "Unfortunately, I have already seen through and learned the true nature of this ability. Instead of destroying Reishi like Barragan's Respira, you deconstruct and displace it elsewhere..."

Waving his sword through the purple-black medium, Aizen created a trail of distorted space as he added, "In many ways, your power is comparable to that of the Kōtotsu, the Sweeper of the Dangai. Once mastered, you could manipulate more than space and gravity. Even time itself would not be beyond you..."

Pointing the tip of his Zanpakuto at Ohta, now glaring at him with crimson eyes, Aizen concluded, "It's a shame you lack ambition and were not born sooner. You very well could have been my foil..."

"Eat shit..." growled Ohta, surprising both himself and Aizen as a large volume of brown 'biomass' erupted from the latter's mouth, destroying his smug demeanor and forcing him to cough violently.

After a very brief moment of stupefaction, a toothy grin developed across Ohta's face as he pointed his right index finger toward Aizen and shouted, "Die...!" with a fervent gleam in his crimson eyes.

In response to Ohta's 'decree,' two inordinately tall and shadowy figures materialized, one behind him and the other behind Aizen. The one behind him resembled Anpu but had a more humanoid appearance and wore a lavish three-piece suit. The second ultimately took the form of a green-skinned man with a pharaoh's beard, his ensemble consisting of golden bands, mummy wrappings around his legs, a distinctive Atef crown, and a golden crook and flail.

Speaking in an incredibly deep voice that resonated with the surrounding space, Anpu stated, "The Judgment of Anubis has been invoked. It is time to balance the scales..."

As Anpu's voice reverberated within their bones, a golden scale appeared between Ohta and Aizen. At this point, the latter expelled all the shit from his mouth, allowing him to growl, "I see...within this space, you aren't just able to break down and displace matter and energy; you can materialize it and create 'rules' that influence everything within..."

"Thanks for the explanation," retorted Ohta, uncertain if Aizen had hit the nail on the head or was talking out of his ass. He knew his psychic power responded to his will and depended heavily on his mental image, but this was much higher than simply willing a pencil to move or raising a massive laboratory out of the ground to crush it...

Before Ohta could ask Anpu for an explanation, the golden scale between him and Aizen plunged heavily on the latter's side. As it did so, Aizen felt tremendous pressure descend upon him, forcing him, wide-eyed, to take a knee. At the same time, Anpu declared, "In Death, all things are equal. Before the Final Judgment can commence, both sides must yield their power until the scales are balanced. When the Trial ends, the winner will take everything presented by the loser.."

Hearing Anpu's explanation, Aizen abruptly burst out laughing while Ohta stared up at him in disbelief. If he knew he had this kind of power...

("You don't,") asserted Anpu, adding, ("Not yet, at least. We are burning our souls to utilize this technique, so if you fail, we won't simply lose our power; we'll be erased from existence. No more reincarnations. No more second chances...")

("Now you're speaking my language...") internalized Ohta, a vicious, toothy grin developing across his face as he outwardly stated, "I yield everything but my capacity as a human..."

As a feeling akin to having his blood drained permeated Ohta's body, the pressure on Aizen abruptly skyrocketed, crushing him into the seemingly indestructible ground. The Hogyoku tried to compensate by increasing his power, but as this only increased pressure, it eventually began to do the opposite, draining Aizen's tremendous Reiatsu at a remarkable rate.

Realizing what was happening, Aizen groaned, "This is impossible..." as his eyes widened. He believed that he had subjugated the Hogyoku and gained insight into the 'will' slumbering within. However, at its core, the Hogyoku was a construct that responded to the will of 'everyone' around it. With Ohta willing to stake his existence, the Hogyoku couldn't help but recognize his 'conviction.'

Over a several-minute period, the brackish-purple 'domain' enveloping Ohta and Aizen had expanded to several kilometers to offset the latter's Reiatsu. Once it had stabilized, Aizen's hair returned to its original length, and the purple coloration of his sclera had completely vanished. Far more importantly, the Hogyoku had temporarily gone inert, becoming little more than an opal-hued sphere in his chest as he was momentarily rendered as powerless as an average human.

Rising to his feet, Aizen, bereft of his Zanpakuto, glared at Ohta as if the latter were his most despised enemy, growling, "How dare you...our battle could have shaken the very foundations of the Soul Society. I was on the cusp of transcending the limits of Shinigami and Hollows. If I had known you were going to do something-"

Interrupting Aizen's speech, Ohta abruptly lunged forward and attempted to tackle the glowering man. 'Unfortunately,' while Aizen had temporarily been reduced to the capabilities of a human, he was a master of Hakuda, the hand-to-hand combat arts of a Shinigami.

In response to Ohta's lunge, Aizen stepped back and pressed his hand to the back of the former's head, attempting to force him face-first into the ground. Fortunately, while he was a master of Hakuda, making him more than a match for any orthodox martial artist, he, like many other 'masters,' had never encountered a modern fighting style like MMA. Thus, while he succeeded in pushing Ohta down, the latter didn't crash face-first into the ground. Instead, he maintained the low angle, practically crawling on all fours as he persistently swept at Aizen's legs.

"Cease this pointlessness...!" shouted Aizen, backstepping to avoid Ohta's attempts at a takedown. For added measure, he kicked Ohta in the side of his face, but his actions only seemed to entertain the 'feral' youth, causing him to laugh out loud and exclaim, "Keep running, bitch...!"

"Kuh..."

Stepping back in timing with one of Ohta's lunges, Aizen intended to stomp the former's head, but that was a big mistake. He wasn't used to fighting at a human's standards, so while his reactions and control were exceptional, his mind was processing information too fast for his body to respond seamlessly. The moment he raised his foot, Ohta managed to move forward and rise between the gap between his legs. Aizen saw it coming a mile away, but he couldn't just 'negate' the momentum of his attack or Shunpo away like he would usually.

Knocking Aizen onto his back, Ohta's adrenaline surged even as the man rolled with the momentum of his takedown in an attempt to dislodge him or reverse their positions. He ended up being the one on the ground, but as he held firm to Aizen's leg, they ended up in a fairly awkward position where his head was tucked into Aizen's chest, compelling the previously proud and arrogant man to elbow the top of his head, shouting, "Unhand me, you mongrel...!"

"Not before I squeeze the life out of you...!" bellowed Ohta, punctuating his statement by grabbing Aizen's junk with his left hand and twisting it without mercy or hesitation. It wasn't a very 'sporting' technique, but in a fight to the death, manners and fairness meant jack shit. Besides, hearing Aizen squeal like a pig before frenziedly elbowing the top of his head was music to Ohta's ears...

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(A/N: O_O...)