The Getsuga Cero collided.
There was no flash. There was obliteration.
The explosion spread like a black sun imploding, the epicenter swallowing everything. Towers crumbled and were then erased. The sky shattered like glass, shards of blue falling to the ground as the fake heavens were undone. The very air turned white-hot, then collapsed into vacuum, then erupted outward in a second wave.
A ring of destruction, miles wide, rolled outward from the impact zone. Winds screamed as they flattened the dunes. Waves of sand lifted and vaporized mid-air. Lightning danced across the horizon, some bolts reaching all the way to the desert floor.
For a moment, nothing remained in the sky but smoke and silence.
Then the dust began to fall.
A gentle snow of ash and debris rained down over the bones of Las Noches. Blackened pillars. Craters that used to be courtyards. Half of the dome had collapsed in on itself, and beyond the torn canopy, the stars of Hueco Mundo shimmered through.
Ichigo hovered in the air, cloak torn, hair matted with sweat and soot. Tensa Zangetsu hung at his side, the last traces of the technique fading from the edge of the blade like dying embers.
Ulquiorra was falling.
His body tumbled, wings gone, spiritual pressure fading. His expression wasn't one of anger anymore—just shock. Not at Ichigo's strength. But at the stillness in his eyes.
Ichigo vanished, and reappeared at the ground, catching Ulquiorra before he hit the earth. He set him down gently.
Ulquiorra blinked. "You… could've finished me sooner."
"That wouldn't have been fun would it?," Ichigo said softly as he smirked.
Ulquiorra stared at the sky. "Fun huh? I think I had fun as well, for the first time I felt something. " He said as a smile rose from his listless face.
His body dissolved into ash.
Ichigo stood up, his shoulders heavy.
Behind him, the wind howled through the bones of a dying fortress. The war wasn't over. But this battle was. The Final Eclipse had ended one of Hueco Mundo's strongest. And Ichigo, cloak billowing in the breeze, walked toward the next storm.
'Time to fight the big dawg. Aizen Sōsuke.'
Ichigo exhaled quietly as he turned his back on the battlefield, his grip still slightly firm around the hilt of Tensa Zangetsu. The weight of his victory against Ulquiorra lingered like static in the air. Dust swirled lazily around his feet as he stepped forward, the silence echoing louder than any roar.
Suddenly—
A piercing scream echoed through the corridor of broken stone and twisted towers.
"ICHIGOOOOO!!"
He turned just in time to see a blur of green hair and flying limbs racing toward him—Nel, tears streaming down her face, arms flailing in panic and relief.
"Nel?" he muttered before instinct kicked in. She leapt into the air, and he caught her, her small arms wrapping tightly around his neck as she sobbed into his shoulder. Her entire little body trembled with emotion, her voice high and frantic.
"Nel thought you were gonna DIE!!" she wailed, snot dripping freely as she buried her face in his chest.
Ichigo blinked, caught between amusement and disbelief.
"Yeah… yeah, I won," he said, trying not to show how much the hug meant to him. "Don't cry."
Nel hiccupped and nodded, still sniffling, and Ichigo gently hoisted her onto his shoulder, settling her comfortably on his head like a hat made of tears.
"Alright, let's go."
He vanished in a flash step, disappearing from the ruins of Las Noches.
---
They reappeared in the inner chamber where the others had gathered—tired, bloodied, but alive. The soft light from the crumbling ceiling cast long shadows over their faces.
"Ichigo!" Rukia called, eyes widening.
Chad's brow lifted. "Whoa… man, not a scratch on you?"
Ichigo shrugged casually, setting Nel down. "Guess I got stronger."
Nel sniffled one last time, then bolted toward her brothers, who rushed over to catch her in a whirlwind of relief and affection.
Renji folded his arms. "So… what now?"
Ichigo's gaze turned distant. "I don't feel Aizen's spiritual pressure anymore. He's not here."
"He must've already left," Renji muttered, jaw tightening. "Heading straight for Karakura Town."
Rukia nodded confidently. "Yeah. But don't worry… the Soul Society's ready for him."
Ichigo raised an eyebrow. "You sure?"
She smirked. "Very."
---
Meanwhile…
In the heart of a shimmering Karakura Town replica, the air was tense with anticipation. High above the rooftops, Head Captain Yamamoto stood atop a floating platform surrounded by several captains—Kyoraku, Ukitake, Soifon, Hitsugaya, and others—all with weapons drawn and eyes sharp.
Across from them, bathed in the eerie glow of the false sun, floated Aizen, calm and composed. Beside him, the silent Tōsen and the ever-smirking Gin Ichimaru stood ready, flanked by Arrancar elites, their spiritual pressure thick and menacing.
The final confrontation had begun.
Across the divide hovered Aizen Sōsuke.
Elegant as ever, arms casually folded behind his back, he looked almost amused by the standoff. His smile held no warmth. It was the expression of a man who believed the game was already won.
"So," Yamamoto rumbled, voice as deep as thunder, "you've come this far. Betrayed your comrades, experimented on countless souls, manipulated the balance of the world... For what, Aizen?"
Aizen tilted his head slightly, his voice smooth and unwavering. "Balance is a construct, old man. And this world... is flawed. I seek to fix that flaw."
"By ascending to the heavens and becoming a god?" Yamamoto scoffed. "You were once one of our finest. Now you stand surrounded by monsters, in a mockery of a town, acting like a child playing king."
Gin's smirk widened. "Oooh, harsh, Captain-Commander."
Aizen didn't flinch. "That's where you're wrong. I'm not playing anything." He turned slightly, hands still behind his back. "This world has always bent to the strong. You cling to outdated systems, built by the weak to cage the powerful. But I intend to break those cages."
Yamamoto's eyes narrowed.
A moment of stillness stretched between them.
Without another word, he unsheathed Ryūjin Jakka.
FWOOOOOSH—
Instantly, a wave of intense heat exploded across the battlefield. The sky rippled as the very air began to burn. Flames danced from the blade like living creatures, crackling and hissing, eager to consume.
The Arrancar elites stirred uneasily behind Aizen. Even Gin's smirk wavered a fraction.
"So you've chosen to fight, then," Aizen said calmly, still not moving. "Very well."
"No." Yamamoto raised his sword high. "I've chosen to end this."
With a mighty swing, fire erupted in a ring around Aizen, Gin, and Tōsen—blinding and absolute.
BOOOOOOM
A flaming barrier encased the trio in a dome of white-hot heat, stretching high into the sky and deep into the ground, isolating them completely.
TO BE CONTINUED