Devil's Confrontation [Ibiki]

His hands felt the ringing through them. It was like his sword had struck the side of a giant diamond. Throbbing went through his hands, she easily dispatched his cero. Did he have enough time to react to the counter, her fist buried itself into his diagram. Sending him skirting backwards as he spits blood up. Feeling the impact reverberate through his entire body. He began straightening out as he brought a hand up to his face. Pulling it away, his gaze lingered on the sight of his blood.

"Emotions, like that..I've never known such anger for any other person. Not in my lifetime, but you."

It was no good, his emotions were running wild inside him. His eyes narrowed as he clenched a fist. She didn't understand, that her inaction destroyed two families. That her inaction again allowed the Combat Division to be dragged through the mud. The throbbing anger flooded his body like rivers of fire.

Anger was the thing letting him ignore the pain, she'd hit him solidly and it did hurt. And the damage was done, ribs broken most likely.

"So that's the excuse for inaction, the reason you let Iriko and his demon hussie run around here. Dirtying the name of the Gotei, ripping apart our family. Then you let that blonde-haired idiot go...And side with the Damned Demons!"

His eyes glared at her, heat coming off them as his hollow power began leaking out more. He'd not dawned his mask yet, but he would be soon. His voice altering slightly as he began his final conclusion.

"And as if..that wasn't enough. You let Shinryu be the next Captain, he dragged the Combat Division through the mud. You did nothing to protect your people!"

His hand came down, pulling the form of his mask over his face. His color of reiatsu changed, black and grey in the color. As he couldn't stand this inaction she'd taken. None of this, none of it would be here without her inaction. His head was clearer, not by much. They were both melee specialists, she was just a lot better at it.

He'd get her somehow, with one of his techniques. Something had to give, he wouldn't leave her without hitting this woman once. His blade would reach her, he would make her feel even a fraction of his pain. Of the pain, her inaction with Iriko and Tsubasa had caused him.

Coming forward, he readied a Utsusemi, recording the action within his mask. He came at her with as much speed as his body could muster. Bringing down his sword again towards her vertically. Having it strike just as he arrived, performing the motion while moving.

If she did strike him, she'd catch only his coat. Leaving his Haori behind, the one Ibiki herself once wore. Coming from behind his blade would come for her neck.

Anger could be a source of great power, but it could easily blind one from a logical path. And in the case of Yoshitsune, it was obvious he was letting it cloud his judgment from frustration with the past. After all, what is one to feel when their family turns to ruin? Someone had to be blamed, and in his emotionally charged mind, Ibiki was the catalyst for that pain even if it was not true in reality.

"If nothing else, out of respect, I'll only use my fist for this. No sense in running away from the heartache in your soul."

With those weighted words thrown out in the atmosphere, Ibiki took a few moments to process all of the words he had spoken as the attacker began to charge himself for his next assault. And staying true to her word, she let him come at her once more. That was the honorable thing to do. To not avert her path from his.

The moment that the sword struck down upon her, The Devil Shinigami smashed both of her palms in between it. In this way, a hissing, screaming sound emitted as their powers collided. Within that instance of time was a small glimmer of success. Blood flowed from her palms as smoke, heat and debris scattered around them. Still, it was a long way from putting her down. While her body groaned and ached from absorbing the kinetic force he slapped into her, she savored his heart's truth and would respond in kind as he shunpo'd away. In one cold voice, Ibiki uttered this out:

"But that's the problem with you Crow's. You let your pain make you lose grasp of reality."

As his Haori flowed to the ground, Ibiki's own mastery of shunpo kicked in as she'd come pouncing ahead like a rabid cheetah ready to feast on her prey. Adding a bit of a boost to her speed by amplifying the levels of spiritual energy in her feet, the woman jolted toward the direction of his spine in order to deliver a deafening elbow smash straight to his back's core. By performing this action she sought to take the wind out of him, enforce the weight of this reality in his rearview and flatten the ground around them for ten feet in every direction as it would as if a bomb dropped off on him.

"Coming in furious like a bat out of hell against a devil, look at what that got you. I savor the thrill of a battle, but as a person in leadership, you can't fight every battle you see if you want to win the war."

Regardless of if he moved or not, the woman sought to smash her foot straight into the skull of the male with a thick, hard roundhouse kick. Even if she missed, the air around them would erupt into fire as the oxygen would become harder to breathe with the thick amount of spiritual aura dripping from the woman's intent.

"This result right here is what would have happened if I decided to charge in for a full-scale invasion when most of our troops of that era were brought to the brink of destruction. Do you seriously think you could have faired better?"

She was fast, one of the faster people he'd seen in a while. She'd have slammed him into the ground. If not for his Mask's power, if not for the skill that would protect him. He wore multiple masks, never letting that pain in his heart out. How much it tortured him inside, all the innocents who suffered. From Iriko, Tsubasa, and Shinryu, those three. When she chased she'd find a grey appreciation of his form. Left behind as a recorded moment of the prior Utsusemi. This technique was one of few that made him known for steps. He had taken his Hollow and Shinigami skills. Brushing them, but it didn't matter to him.

His frame stood back, having watched her destroy the recorded moment of his prior Utsusemi. His eyes yellow holding the bond of his pain. His breathing was the noise that could be heard clearest. He'd avoided another blow, but his body still trembled. Remember her first strike clearly, feeling it hurt his body. Fear of a true impact, she could have beaten him into a pulp.


His rage still existed, she'd done nothing to quell that inferno inside him. It was just like when Zin had left, deciding the Vizard Corps were going to join with the Lux Orior.


His teeth ground under his mask, this wasn't just a child's anger. There was something else here. "My problem, there are no more Crows. Iriko saw to that with his actions, which you saw fit to let happen." His words came out cold, as he let that fact out. The Crows were gone, not one of them remained. Even the old man Damien was dying. So what purpose did it make in the end? They were emotionally charged and often followed those passionate feelings to failures.

Nobody stopped them, he didn't stop them. His jaw tightened as it clenched further. "I and the geezer Damien are the last two, he's dying of sickness in his bed. " He slashed his blade once, his darker self pushed to release his Zanpakuto. To fight her, was what pushed at him. But he didn't do it, some vague notion of honor kept him from it.

"A war is that the only thing you are able to say. That is the reason you let Iriko and Tsubasa run amok here? Is that the reason you stepped aside and let Shinryu become the next Kenpachi, so he could spit on the people you had around you? Was war the reason you backed away from doing anything about him? Are you going to hide behind that excuse, are you Ibiki!?"


His eyes burned with anger again, but this time he didn't strike. He wasn't done with his venom, his eyes stared at her hard. Passion fueled these words and her excuses about war this and that didn't do anything. The survival of the faction, Shinryu had nothing to do with that.

"So you're telling me, you'd step down as the Captain-Commander and let some piss ant take over the Combat Division when you could have done it! You walked away, that was your choice for another inaction!" His blood was running away from him as he spewed his venom-filled rants at her.

Finally, his pacing back and forth had ceased and he came to stare at her.

"We both know the Kenpachi title, isn't something connected to your Captain-Commander one, you could have easily protected your people and the Division from Shinryu. But you ran away from that didn't you?!"

Despite his anger, beneath his mask small warm liquid came through. He was venting, releasing anger towards someone who wasn't to blame. It wasn't because of her that Iriko did what he did. That his family was gone, that they were all dead. That a dishonorable cloud hung over them. Tsubasa's actions weren't hers, but it nagged at him. Zin Yuudeshi's inaction made him angry at anyone who did it.

Why did he latch to these thin gs, why did his emotional state bring about so much anger? His body radiated spiritual pressure, this wasn't like him. This was an emotional arrow, one stuck in his core. Removing it would hurt, it would cause pain but there was no other solution. Because the moment it was touched, his anger came and reason left him. But slowly reason was bleeding back into him, he knew fighting her wouldn't be easy.

But he'd be damned if he just let her toss it all aside for something like War.

The Crow yielded an equal amount of speed as herself, but one wrong move and this was all over for him. So, for a brief moment, Ibiki ceased her movement as her own body kept on flaring with a darkened glow of amber energy swirling around the devil shinigami. The woman listened in to the man screaming about her failures as a leader, inability to cease these two men from ruining their legacies, and that the leadership put in place after her retiring was inadequate.

...

The air stilled. Despite it being as explosive as an exploding volcano earlier, the woman's aura hushed the lands as low grumbles of a mighty power swelled in the atmosphere. After she had finished listening to everything, all there was left to do was act.

"Fist Of The Devil: Eternal Strike."

With that simple incantation uttered out into the world, the woman pushed her spiritual energy into her limbs as they became devoured in a pure fire. As this inferno raged, the woman took off at two times her normal speed and bolted in the blink of an eye toward his back. She had no desire to kill him, but what was to come next would be painful.

Utilizing the advantage of her augmented state from this technique, this devil shinigami smashed each of her fist into his kidneys to make him hurl up his own vomit and blood, bring a daunting amount of damage to his body, and place it under immense strain to the point of potentially even cracking his mask. And, in the wake of unleashing such a hellish blow, the air around them became filled with fire as it became difficult for most non-spiritual beings to breathe. So with the added damage, he may even find himself drowning in this heat and pressure.

All the while, the woman kicked off on his back to induce another agonizing enhanced kick to the backside which radiated a crushing sound that echoed for a half-mile in. As the earth buckled and groaned, she hurled herself in the air with The Crow being used as a platform and came zipping back down to lower her foot into his skull and to knock him clean into the dirt with a dropkick from hell. His entire vision may be blinded by the flames of her aura at this point as a small hole in the ground was bound to be made.

With enough savagery dished out, steam exited the mouth of Ibiki before she spoke.

"For someone who did nothing during a time of crisis, your pain is making you talk like a bird-brained buffoon."

Neutral in tone, the woman's face remained ever stern as she delivered those harsh words to the male before her. Sometimes, a hard beating is what a person needed to sink in a bitter lesson. So, she carried on.

"I have no control over them as people. They brought their own ruin with the actions they chose. To mourn their loss would mean to mourn forever as there are many souls that have died on my watch."

It didn't even matter where he was at this point, Ibiki reached out to grip his collar in order to yank him from the ground and slam the man's body like a ragdoll into a cliffside nearby; causing stoned debris to fall on the two of them as smoke bellowed out around the shinigami.

"If you haven't realized, this is a group effort. One wasted move from myself and the Gotei would have been destroyed. I saw past my own affection for them to benefit the group as they were both dead men walking."

Again, the woman started to unleash more strikes upon the male as she sought to pound her right fist into his jaw. Again, again, again and again she would put her fist out until blood was drawn. Then, she'd cease and move forward.

"Give up being a Kenpachi? Your brain must have suffered too many head strikes if you believe that title was ever given to Shinyru."

Then, with one final headbutt, the woman sought to crack his forehead with blood before her fiery eyes gazed at him.

"Did you expect me to rule forever? Do you know how that would have compromised the Gotei relying on one person? I set up the foundation for the next generation to go beyond what I had established, but that could not be done without the actions I took. I can't expect someone consumed by raw emotionally short-sightedness to understand that."

And like a falling comet, she'd drop him to the ground once more as she closed her eyes and felt the emptiness of this circumstance. It was all difficult to do.

"But it doesn't have to be that way. Why do I have to do this to you for you to see that point? Can you not understand the concept of personal losses being sacrificed for greater rewards for our world? Or do you truly wish for me to end your suffering?"

He thought he had time, but that roar of energy and raw power. His anger began eating him still, why had it come to this? Why did he not match her in any sense? A ringing filled his ears, her voice came in but this constant rin like a screech filled his ears. His body caved into her fists, bending flimsy as it was. He felt the cracking of ribs and his stomach projecting up his fluids. Blood mixing in as he felt the sensation like stabbing. His ribs had punctured his lung, injuries pilled up inside his body.

He couldn't feel much, as she slammed him around like a rage doll. He needed to do something, his jaw felt itself cracking as a solid strike to his skull came. Blood dripped from his nose and lips, his eyes held an empty gaze to them. His body crumbled into the dirt as he left a trail. His bones and body felt broken, his regenerative powers from Vait killed in. They were working on fixing the injuries he'd sustained. His body hurt, almost as much as it had from the Sea Beast.

Her words felt like knives cleaving his flesh. What had even changed since Zin, his body didn't move just yet. The beating had left his will and body bruised. Was that really it, for the majority she sacrificed them? His ears had blood leaking from them, a familiar pain. When he cut them off against Kaminari. So long ago, before he knew Zin or the people.

"I..do not..have such strength..that I can affect them." He said his head down, answering the female's words. Perhaps it was the concussion talking, but he knew damn well he was weak. Nowhere near Iriko or Tsubasa in power or substance. He had not the forces nor the people.

He began to rise when he felt the grip come. She wasn't giving him time to recover from his wounds. His hollow regenerative powers were working overtime. But it didn't matter, he had absorbed punishment. He felt himself swung like a child and smashed into the mountainside.

Small shards of rock shattering against his body, causing him pain through his body. He should have released his Zanpakuto, in hindsight, it would have been better. Could he still do that in this state? His body ached and felt pain despite the regenerative effects.

Blood had been drawn, her fist impacted him again and again. He couldn't respond as she began pummeling him. His injuries were plenty, his body felt numb from the amount of pain. But the power Vait offered was right there. On the tip of his fingers, his had shattered against her foot and fists combined assault. As his body hit the ground again.

He hadn't lost his grip on his blade. Was Shikai even enough to deal with her, was that even possible? No, it was kicking and screaming. He began to rise up, driving himself to his feet again. Blood dripping from his face as bones and pieces began slowly snapping back into place.

"So the Crows were a sacrifice for the many, my son, sister, and brothers. That is what we were to be, unknowing sacrifices for the group?"


Through his strength of will, he began rising up again. His body struggling to keep balance as he felt the pain through every bone. It felt like his cells were on fire with pain. Her strikes had hit deeper than just his body, they'd struck his soul.

"I've replayed those events, over and over in my head. I've lived them a million times every single day...Not a day...not a day goes by that I don't wish I could have stopped them..I train myself until I collapse. " His eyes looking at her. Swelling on them from marks and imprints of her fist still healing.
Blood dripping from his face and other parts of his body. What could he do truthfully against her, she was a force of power.

"I reach for those stars, but I am not...not able to grasp them. Perhaps I'm simply meant to..." He collapsed again, using his sword as a means to catch himself.

His eyes fixated on her, though he was seeing multiple visions of her. He steadied himself. Beginning to raise himself back up, his pride and sheer force of will make him rise again. He didn't care how much she beat him, he wouldn't just fall and lay in the dirt. That was unacceptable to him, to his honor and the Combat Divisions pride.

"Never meant to reach that place, where you and Unabara and Iriko are. " His eyes had blood running through them, making them crimson in color. Her visage even looked crimson to him, but what more could be done? He couldn't fight her, no he wouldn't accept that. He would fight until every last cell in his body was dead. He'd not dishonor his Squad, no even if his rage wasn't right. Giving up would mean giving up everything, everything he'd done.

"I...get it...personal losses, for the greater good, for this world's stability, my family had to die. Does that mean I shouldn't feel anything, not envy or anger?!" His last words came out as shouting at her. As he raised his sword up. His breathing heavy as he looked at her, he didn't know how to word it.

"I envy you, that place among the stars..for that..I cannot stand the sight of you, a constant reminder...of my fail.."

He went silent now, trying to collect himself and his thoughts. The damage had been rung up on a massive scale, but his emotions were running lower. The anger through his veins was slowing, feeling the warm trail of blood across his body. How long until he could move again, he needed to fight her. He couldn't just back away like a frightening child. He wouldn't back down, even if the mistake was his own. His emotionally charged actions had caused this.

But he'd be damned if he ran away, dishonoring the only thing left. The Combat Division and the Kobayashi family.