61 Beginning of the End

Oetsu was amazed at how much more powerful he felt. His body was brimming with energy and his mind was working at least ten times as fast. What bothered him was the memories from Orihime's ego. His death was very pathetic and made him angry at Yhwach. He died like a dog and was barely able to attack a few times. He couldn't believe the difference in strength was so great. However, he was happy about one thing in particular.

With this new mental capacity and understanding, he was able to devise a way to complete his greatest failure. A sword that cannot be sheathed. Oetsu had to put that off until later because the transformation had a time limit and he needed to make it to the meeting to explain what happened to Orihime.

Just like Gin had devised the plan to kill Oetsu with only a few seconds of control, Oetsu was creating several plans for the main body. His ability to sense every Zanpakuto and their location would prove extremely useful to expanding this body's power. He was a cruel and brutal man and had no issue destroying Soul Reapers for his benefit.

"Where is Orihime?"

"Dead. She failed and was destroyed as planned."

"What a shame, she used ten decades worth of Oken Thread. My little cuties will take a long time to spin more."

"Indeed. She ran me ragged with her deep stomach. Would have been nice to no longer be the newest member though…"

"That's enough. Next business at hand, the seal on the Soul King needs to be renewed. Who is up this time?"

"I'll do it."

Oetsu volunteered after a few moments of silence. No one liked to see that monster at the top of the Soul Palace. Although they followed his "orders" it was really just to keep him from causing destruction. Every now and then, the seal would weaken and he would wake up. Once his precognition activated, he would attempt to move pieces. The seal needed to be renewed regularly to decrease the number of times he woke. Oetsu needed to make sure that the Soul King was asleep.

The large crystal behind the curtains hung on wires from the ceiling. A body without limbs and a blank expression stared off into the distance. Oetsu shuddered from being near it. Fortunately, it seems to still be asleep. He repaired the seal in the remaining time of the transformation. Just before turning back, he created a portal to the World of the Living. He began to transform back into Orihime as he stepped through. When Orihime was completely back in control, she collapsed in exhaustion. Oetsu had opened the portal straight to her bedroom, so she just slept for days.

When Orihime got up, she yawned and shuffled around the house. The water was off, electricity was off, and there was no food in the fridge. She was not surprised since it had probably been months since the bill was paid. She fixed her braid and went toward the front door. When she opened it, she leaned against the frame and looked at the man leaning up against the side of her house.

He was wearing black jeans, white V-neck shirt and a black leather jacket. His arms were crossed and he had an impatient expression. Orihime chuckled and he turned his head to see her looking at him.

"Hello stranger."

"Tch, since you knew I was already here why did it take so long to get outside."

"Grimmjow, you're sitting here on my doorstep in the middle of the night. Why do you resemble a stray cat so much?"

"Shut up. You left me with that Kurosaki brat for two months without a word. That kid is getting more and more fucked up every day. I'm starting to think he's more of a Hollow than Soul Reaper."

"What do you mean? What's he been up to?"

"Well, after resolving the situation with those 'Fullbringer' people, half of them got away. But Ichigo couldn't let it go. He searched everywhere for them, hunting them down one by one. Even after they begged for mercy, he still beat them before killing them. However, he could not find Ginjo, the instigator of the situation. He started to threaten me to help him search.

Fortunately, I was strong enough to resist, but he kept getting stronger and stronger. Several days ago, I managed to lock onto his weak Reiatsu and Ichigo went straight there and started torturing him. When I sensed your return, I came back right away. If he's left alone, I'm afraid he might hurt those two brat sisters of his…"

Orihime eyebrow raised thinking about Ichigo's change. She wondered if this was related to his Quincy blood, or if all of his pent-up rage took a dark turn. Perhaps the Yhwach that represents his Quincy powers is manipulating him. All of this didn't really matter so she just shrugged. However, she noticed something interesting in what he said.

"Starting to care about Karin and Yuzu? How did that happen?"

"Tch, I'm just fulfilling my task. Don't overthink it."

"Mmm whatever you say. Anyway, we're going back now. It's too dangerous to stay here any longer. Open up the path."

A Garganta opened up next to the pair and they went through. When they arrived, Nelliel was already waiting for them. She was wearing a turquoise-colored, shoulder-less kimono with a large purple sash and purple boots. Her hair was done up in a traditional style and she waved towards the duo with a light smile.

"You're back! Welcome home Grimmjow."

"When did you get so nice? And sneaking into the human world to dress up?"

"You want a beating?"

The two arguing like a couple made Orihime chuckle. She flared her Reiatsu to summon the other two over to her. When Tier and Ulquiorra showed up she told them her plan to invade the Quincy and start taking them out. Her instructions for them were to prepare for an invasion. It was already March, so there was a little over a year until Yhwach was at full power.

"What the hell, why do we have to stay here?"

"Because you can't do this…"

Orihime said as she transformed into the Quincy girl, she stripped memories from. The ego was very weak compared to the others, but was a good cover. She transformed back into Orihime and the four Arrancar looked at her with shock. They were very sensitive to changes of the soul and spiritual power and she had literally become a different person.

The child Ulquiorra just walked over and hugged Orihime's waist. It seemed that he either favored his small form or he couldn't maintain his adult form. She didn't see any issue with his soul so it was likely the prior. She patted his head and smiled. There was something she hadn't told them, which was related to a certain Soul Reaper. Oetsu had formulated a plan to get stronger in order to face Yhwach.

Orihime transformed into Oetsu and he opened a portal. The portal lead directly into the Seireitei, even bypassing the barrier and alarms because of the Oken in his bones. He stepped into the office of one of the most dangerous and powerful people in Soul Society. The woman sat at her desk with a braid covering up the large scar on her chest. She looked up and saw Oetsu standing there.

"I suppose you are here to kill me?"

"It seems Tenjiro taught you really well."

"Can I at least ask why?"

"No."

Unohana, the first Kenpachi, sat there seemingly resigned to her fate. Oetsu pulled out his blade from the jelly vat which appeared at his side and prepared to strike her down. However, her face suddenly contorted into a crazy expression. Her inner Kenpachi she had suppressed all this time came out and she was prepared to go down fighting. However, her ideas were destined to not be fulfilled. As Oetsu swung down his sword, he disappeared in a flash.

A sword stabbed through Unohana in the same location of the scar. Her hair scattered revealing the sword sticking out of her. It was Amanozako, and Orihime was behind her. She had instantaneously transformed and activated her ability. Unohana attempted to heal herself with her bankai, but the powerful teeth shredded her body apart. After a minute, she disappeared from existence. Orihime transformed into Unohana and fixed up her hair. Unohana turned toward the door just as one of her subordinates entered.

"Captain Unohana, is everything alright?"

"I just suddenly had an idea and got too excited. Carry on with your work."

"Yes, Captain!"

Unohana sat down and felt the power coursing through her. With this, she could take back her Kenpachi name. Even if he released his full power, this was not a simple increase in strength. She broke through her previous limits and even completely healed her wounds. Her eyes sparkled as she consolidated her new existence.