"Ma... Mayu... ri..." Nemu Kurotsuchi looks up at the destruction from where she lays bleeding on the ground, long forgotten by her father and the intruder. "...sama..."

The cloud of dust billows out and slowly clears. Mayuri stands there, breathing painfully, with a broken sword in his hand. His head gear is gone, revealing a messy tuft of hair. Right through the center of his chest, with a diameter of about 2 feet - is an empty, gaping hole.

Mayuri's Golden Beast-slaying Jizou, the creature of his sword’s final form, stands in front of him - split cleanly in two. The huge creature collapses at the feet of Ishida Uryuu, whose arms are bleeding profusely. Half of the bow in his hand has been shattered from the force of the attack.

Mayuri's breathe comes out in harsh, wet gasps. "Haaah. Hhaaah. Shit... Haaah. Why you..." he raises his broken blade overhead, "you Quincy-wannabe!!!"

Ishida tenses up, unsure of what a man missing a torso and an arm is capable of doing next in this situation.

Mayuri shows Ishida exactly what he's capable of - by stabbing himself through the neck with his own blade. His body explodes and starts to deteriorate into a slimy, white liquid.

Ishida watches on in horror, ...He has the ability to turn the things he cuts into liquid...!?

"That was a close one, Quincy," Mayuri says, his voice changing due to his melting body.

He's been keeping such an ability handy for the sake of escaping, huh...!! Ishida charges forward, "Shit..."

"It's no use," Mayuri's disembodied voice calls out around Ishida. "In return for not being able to attack you, I cannot be attacked either. I cannot return to my real form for a few days, but in the meantime I'll return to the office and mend my wounds." The thick liquid splashes to the ground, sinking into the nooks and crannies; vanishing from sight. "Farewell, Quincy. You've been somewhat troublesome, but I will live and you shall die - that ending doesn't change...!"

Ishida stumbles forward; he body suddenly feeling weighted down, Shit...! The poison is spreading through me...! At this rate, I...

A choked voice calls out behind him, "Qu... Quincy...san...."

Ishida turns around, surprised to see Nemu lying on the ground, craning her neck up to face him, "I have the antidote... behind my vice-captain badge...!"

A short period of time passes as Ishida helps Nemu sit up against the wall and then retrieves the flask of medicine from her.

"Would you be more comfortable lying on your side...?" Ishida asks politely.

"...No..." Nemu replies softly, "this is fine..."

Crouched in front of her, Ishida holds out the flask, "You first..."

"No..." she lowers her gaze. "I am alright... My blood is the same as Mayuri-sama's... I won't die from this poison..."

Ishida stands up, looking down at her questioningly.

She looks up at him, "...Do you think that it might be a trap...? If you do, then please allow me the first sip. I shall drink some of it for you..."

"No..." Ishida brings the flask to his lips. "There's no reason to go to the trouble of setting a trap for someone who would die of poisoning even if left alone..."

"...Thank you very much..." Nemu says out of gratitude, startling him. "If you had aimed at his head, Mayuri-sama would have died... But that isn't what you did..."

"...It's a coincidence," he points out. "I shot him with intent to kill."

She looks down, "Thank you very much... for not killing Mayuri-sama. The antidote is the least I can do in return..."

Ishida pauses, facing away from where she sits, "...I don't get it. Is it alright to have such a parent as that...?"

"...I don't know," she answers sadly. "But... when I know that he is alive... I feel a little relieved..." she changes the subject. "Now, you drank it so please go. Members of the division have seen the earlier Ashisogi Jizou, so they will arrive momentarily. I will be alright. My team members will look after me..."

Ishida glances down at her for a moment and then sets the flask down at his feet, "...I'll go now." Droplets of blood trail after him as he walks away from her, "Thank you for the medicine."

Ishida and Nemu do not face each other again.

"Goodbye." (1)

~*~*~

Time passes and Ishida finds himself struggling with each step he takes. He leans against a rocky mountain face to keep from falling over. Blood continues to trail behind him. Shit... His teeth clench in frustration, My legs feel heavy... I can barely raise my arms... Spiritual energy is burning off his arm. The Ransou Tengai is vanishing...(2) This means my time as a Quincy is finally nearing its end, huh...

Sweat slides down his face, Inoue-san is alright, isn't she... Between her and that man from the 11th division, her spiritual energy is much higher... She should be able to gain the initiative and take charge.... In that case, she'll definitely come here... Ishida arrives in front of a long set of stairs and looks up at the huge white-walled compound above him. Here... to Senzaikyuu.(3)

Slowly, he mounts the stairs and makes his way up one step at a time, Kurosaki... Sado-kun... Yoruichi-san... Ganju-kun... I wonder if everyone is making their way here... No... everyone must be coming... so I can only wait here in order for us to regroup...

Ishida continues to climb the steps, thinking, That's right...! If I'm the first to arrive, I'll go rescue Kuchiki-san by my own hand... After all, that damn Kurosaki probably wants to save her himself... The side of his lips turn up in a thin smile, It would frustrate him if I did that... Heheh...

When Ishida reaches the top of the long staircase, he hears a sound and glances up. To his surprise, the Captain of the 9th Division, Tousen Kaname, is walking towards him.

"I hold no grudge against you," Kaname looks at Ishida through pupil-less eyes behind a semi-transparent set of goggles. "However, for the sake of peace I have no reluctance to get rid of you." He grasps the hilt of his Zanpaku sword, "Chirp, Suzumushi."(4)

A pitched sound emits from Kaname's blade, hitting Ishida unawares. He collapses, falling forward unconscious.

"...Forgive me, Intruder. This is the end of a meaningless battle,"(5) A lone tear trails down the side of Kaname's cheek as he looks down at the fallen boy who had given up so much to get this far. "Sleep. The battle you people are waging will soon be over..."

~*~*~

In the wastelands, Ichigo lies on the ground with one side of his head bleeding profusely. Yoruichi stands over him with her arms crossed.

"Stand up, Ichigo!" she orders him. Ichigo glares back at her with his teeth clenched.

"This still isn't over yet...!" Yoruichi warns him.

(1)Heh. Ishi/Nemu? Naaah, probably not. :P
(2)The 'heavenly puppet' technique that Mayuri explained earlier - it was keeping Ishida's body moving until now.
(3)Just a reminder: it's castle-fortress of the White Tower, where Rukia is being held prisoner. (I really should stop using so many Japanese phrases in my summaries)
(4)Suzumushi: It's phonetic meaning means that it is a type of noisy, 'bell-ringing' cricket; but it's literal kanji meaning means "Purified Insect".
(5)I think this is what KT meant by "void war".

Notes:
-Personally, I'm satisfied by the way things turned out: Mayuri gets an ass-kicking and Ishida triumphs, although Mayuri lives to haunt us again and Ishida is probably going to get tossed in jail for the time being.
-I really like Captain Kaname, so it was cool to see him pop in at the end.
-Since Ishida's power as a Quincy is vanishing, what will become of him?

back?