60 Test Failed

Orihime mindlessly fought against the Asauchi with her Zanpakuto. There was no rhyme or reason. She attacked, blocked, and dodged. At some point she stopped healing her wounds and just let her extreme regeneration cover it. There was a theory she was working out with her dual thought process, letting her parallel thought focus on battle. The Asauchi were essentially hundreds of souls fused together to create a blank entity which would eventually become a Zanpakuto.

The Soul King regulates the flow of souls between Soul Society and the world of the living. However, she realized something strange. Where did all the souls come from to create the six thousand plus Asauchi needed for all the Soul Reapers, and all the extra lying around. The Royal Guards were bestowed with the King Key by the Soul King, which makes one think they are truly guarding him. However, he is confirmed to have precognition and possibly already knows of his death to Yhwach.

Combining all of this information, Orihime came up with some startling conclusions. First, the Soul King was a being of extraordinary power which automatically keeps the worlds separate using souls. It is possible that he was weakened or unconscious, and uses souls to recover. Second, the Royal Guards were selected on purpose. The Soul King has precognition, so perhaps he has been laying the ground work for Yhwach's rebellion since the beginning.

A human will turn into a hollow when they die and don't move on. A hollow is akin to a soulless human, but they have substance of their own that could be considered a soul. Hollows are innumerous and exist in Hueco Mundo. However, the density of spirit particles keeps them sated and they don't often break into the World of the Living to devour humans. This usually happens due to territory conflicts between weaker Hollows. Additionally, humans will occasionally produce strong individuals that can sense bound souls and even fight Hollows.

Orihime's third conclusion was based on this basic knowledge. The Quincy, which originated from the first Soul King, are an invasive species to this universe. Not only this, but it created the Soul Reapers in order to facilitate a steady supply of souls. At some point, the Quincy descendants rebelled and began to destroy the source of souls for their god and father. This led to a blood feud between the two. Eventually we come to the current Soul King who is without limbs and sealed. It is a prisoner to the Soul Reapers.

The possibility that even half of what she theorized being true scared her. She had spent a long time going over everything she knew and experienced so far, and coupled with her enhanced intelligence, drew these conclusions. Perhaps the Soul King knew she planned to kill Yhwach before he could make it to the Soul Palace. It had probably placed all of its hopes on its son to free it through death. However, since precognition didn't work beyond one's death, it couldn't guess that a super-powered Yhwach would eventually die and become the next slave to the three realms.

At some point, the Asauchi had stopped attacking her and light came back through the blocked entrance of this pit. Orihime jumped out and landed next to Oetsu. She had a strange look as she considered the things she had on her mind. Oetsu didn't say anything right away and led her to the giant forge at the edge of the cliff.

"Most of what I told you before was a lie. I could sense that you never really considered yourself a Soul Reaper which began to reflect onto your Zanpakuto. This has caused your Zanpakuto's true powers to be locked away, preventing you from reaching the truth. Instead, your Zanpakuto took on aspects of others' Zanpakuto. This ability to copy powers is related to your true bankai. Here we will reforge your blade."

Oetsu walked over and fired up the forge. The furnace was filled with lava and the ocean behind it was the cooling trough. Orihime didn't know anything about forging but placed her sword into the fire regardless. She felt her soul being burned. She wanted to scream but no sound came out. Before she could pass out, the pain disappeared and instinct kicked in. She pulled out the sword and placed it on the slab of metal which acted as an anvil. Oetsu walked over and hit it several times with a hammer.

They repeated this process nine times before she could sense it was ready. The heat and hammering ripped away the façade and pulled out the true Zanpakuto underneath. The short sword had transformed along the way, automatically taking up its released form. However, it now resembled a ten-span blade. It was slightly curved with a single edge. She poured all of the spiritual power in her body into the sword and the ocean worth of water moved to cool the blade.

Once it was complete, she automatically entered bankai form. Nothing changed with her normal outfit. However, he hair turned black and a featureless white mask appeared on her face. With her special vision she could still see through and inside everything. She looked down at the sword and felt comfortable. The powers she had were still there, but there was one ability that made her understand the nature of her bankai. She could transform into any persona that she has devoured.

Her mask shimmered and her body size changed. Her chest flattened and her muscles expanded. Her hair shortened and turned white. Even her Zanpakuto changed forms. Orihime became a perfect replica of Gin Ichimaru. Gin's ego became the primary and his original ego became the secondary. He was still aware that he was actually Orihime, but Gin felt he was real.

Gin transformed back into Orihime, switching the main ego. This made her realize that she could now freely devour people's memories and package them into their own ego utilizing her bankai. No longer would she lose track of her original ego. However, the cost remained, so she had to use it sparingly. She pointed her sword forward and called out the true name of her Zanpakuto.

"Amanozako, Heaven Opposing Everything, you fooled me all this time."

Orihime now knew that this Zanpakuto was a big trickster. Since Amanozako was willing to reveal her true form to her, Orihime finally understood the true extent of her power. She turned to Oetsu while still in her bankai. He had been observing her and was alarmed that he still could not sense her Zanpakuto.

"You have passed the final test. Come with me to meet the commander of the Royal Guards. There, you will be told the true purpose of the Royal Guards. Then, you will be brought to see the Soul King and he will—"

Oetsu was already walking away and a sword penetrated his heart from behind causing him to spit out blood. The sword began to emit ripples of invisible energy which were actually the teeth of Amanozako. Oetsu tried to resist, but the power of her bankai opposed logic. Amanozako's mouth was chewing him from inside out. Orihime had a cold expression under her mask. Once she realized the potential, Orihime knew the correct move to make.

Fortunately, Oetsu had let his guard down. Without his Zanpakuto and with his back turned, he couldn't put up a fight. In a direct battle, Orihime wasn't sure if she could beat him. And even if she did, it would likely become mutual destruction. However, he was just a lamb to the slaughter once he decided to trust Orihime. Her eyes flashed with a cold glint as his memories began flowing in through the blade. They were sealed behind her bankai to prevent Oetsu's strong ego from taking over.

Sharing a name with a goddess wasn't just for show. Orihime's powers were truly competing with the god's domain already. She saw the path towards shaking off the limits of her current body and reaching a level previously unattainable by anyone except for Aizen, Yhwach, and Ichigo. Orihime wasn't power hungry and would be content with her life the way it was. However, the Soul King overstepped by trying to lure her into its machinations.

Once he was completely devoured by Amanozako's giant maw, Orihime slowly transformed into Oetsu. His personality and his memories took the forefront of her mind and her ego was pushed back. The first thing he did was frown at having died. Although he was the shared ego of this body, he was aware that Orihime had just killed him. However, instead of being upset, he felt strangely good. This was the effect on his ego of being corrupted by Amanozako's power.

"Now that Orihime is gone, I must stabilize the situation. Simply put, she failed the final test and was destroyed by me. This was the original plan so it won't be suspicious. Ichibe may be doubtful, but there is no evidence otherwise."

Oetsu walked toward the meeting location prepared to explain the results. He was thinking of a way to leave the Soul Palace and face off with Yhwach. This was the best chance to slowly hunt each Sternritter one by one. Visiting with the Soul King was also on the agenda. He needed to confirm the extent of the precognition on this new body.