Self-Sabotage

["Do you really think you can do it in that short of a time frame Chiaki?"]

Chiaki would be pacing around at the bottom of the hole, considering what she should do; upon Ayane's interruption, she was a little taken aback by her speaking now of all times.

[I mean, I don't see why not? At the end of the day, I just have to access my inner world. Since I know that, it's going to be significantly easier than it was with Ichigo. Anyway, where have you been?]

["I try and stay out of your way when you're talking to people. Especially the shopkeep, who knows what he would do to us if he found out about me?"]

[Fair]

Chiaki would sigh, before focusing on meditation and trying to access her inner world. She and Ayame had theorized that her mental doors would be related to her internal powers, but it seemed like the one that-

"A͒ͬ҉̖̳A̷͖͓̮̐̀ͪ̒A̭͈̬͎̮̘̼̎̓̕Aͦ́̄ͬ͏̠͎͈̪A̺̞̋ͨ͞Á̻͇͖͌̐̌͜Ą̳͔̰̪̠̜̈́A̛̠͕͈ͪͮͬ͊Á̵̼̪̗̺̙ͅA̧̜͕̪̪̺͋̌A̸̖̝̮̭ͯ̏̂̀A̻̱̫̩̩ͫ́́A͛̎ͬ̑͏̥̤̩A̸̲̗͙̜̖͔̻ͬͅA͈͉͚̪̅ͨ̕ͅA̸̘̪̻̋̀͋A͈͎̻̝̗̙̟̽ͨ̍͗͞A̴͔̞̭̝ͥA̹̭͓̣͚ͩͪ̌̈͢Ä̮̰̯͟A͚̦̒͌ͣ́̀A̳̠̼ͬ͜A̮̫͖͍̜̪ͬ͗́͠A̝̦͊̽͞"

Chiaki felt overwhelmed by a sudden wave of pain, so strong that as she fell over, her eyes began to water as her entire vision seemed to go white, as if her entire body was blanketed in white hot molten metal that was quickly burning through her skin to wash through her entire entire inner body. She felt like an anthill being burned from the inside out to make a molten cast, literally being hollowed out by the corruption of her chain of fate to be made into a demonic husk.

She didn't know how long it lasted, but eventually, the pain subsided enough for her to take a look at the chain connected to her chest. Sure enough, the chain was a little shorter than it had been when she'd started, the proof that self-consumption had begun.

[No wonder even Ichigo wasn't able to fight through the pain when he went through this…]

Chiaki decided that she could absolutely not go through all that again. It was imperative that she moved quickly: not only was it extremely painful, but every session of it burned an unknown amount of time, and she preferred to finish this with some time to spare to minimize the risk to herself.

[Ok Ayane, we're going deep into my Inner World. We don't have a choice.]

["Aye aye captain, just do your best to meditate. I'll try and guide you in.]

Chiaki closed her eyes, trying to focus her mind and channel it into her subconscious. Hoping to try and find a way to the depths of her own mind, Chiaki reached into the furthest depths of her own mind and thought about what she was doing, and who she was. Was she a reincarnation? Was she as before, or was she someone entirely new?

At first, this contemplation was merely extremely uncomfortable. Slowly but surely though, the void behind her closer eyelids began to form into something with concrete substance; it seemed to be the same mansion that she had entered in her nightmares, before she had fought the hollow at the hospital.

This time, however, the area around her, as well as the hallways, all were now visible to her, bathed in various brilliant lights. Behind her she could see a faint pulsating of blue-green light, emanating from the paths behind her. Her main focus, however, was on the paths in front, one flickering with red light patterned across the darkness, like a Cero bursting into existence. In the other, a yellow-orange color seemed to be flowing out of the hallway, ebbing and flowing as it pulsated like the beating of a heart.

Chiaki realized that these were the literal paths presented to her in this moment. To hollowify and give in, or to push forward and become a shinigami. Of course, the choice was obvious, but…

Chiaki felt another wave of pain go through her body. Immersed in her inner world and disconnected from her body, the physical pain was… lessened, but the mental effect was exacerbated: the red light began to shine even more brilliantly, dazzling her eyes and beckoning her towards it.

Chiaki's mind flashed with visions of the possibilities before her: she had more potential than any hollow who had ever lived, and amassing power would only cause her to swell to even more grandiose levels. Becoming a Vasto Lorde would only be the beginning for her, she could go even further and become a ruler, a queen… a Goddess, ruling over Hueco Mundo with an iron fist. With the knowledge she had, defeating Aizen wasn't out of the question, and once he was out of the way, she would be the undisputed strongest being.

Chiaki felt emboldened as the light washed over her, her resistance washing away as she began to consider how easy it would be, how much she'd gain. Then, she stepped forward, hesitantly, but becoming more and more sure of her decision with every step. However… Chiaki stopped as some something grabbed hold of her shoulder, keeping her from heading forward into the light.

"Get ahold of yourself Chiaki!"

Pulled from her stupor, Chiaki turned around to see… herself? No, not quite. Whoever this was, she looked a lot like herself, but the purple eyes she had marked her as distinctly inhuman, her irises shining with a light that was unnatural, though not quite unnerving.

"Ayane?"

The mod-soul giggled mischievously, which was weird to see her own body do, even if there were some minor differences that marked her as a separate entity. Placing a hand on her chin, the Mod-Soul looked around the area carefully.

"It's a nice place you've got here. Sorry it took me so long to manifest properly, trying to form a distinct presence in your Inner World is harder than it looks, especially cause I've never had a body of my own to base it on. But since we're sharing a body and a soul space, I thought it would be a good idea to use your body as a base. I hope you don't mind!"

Chiaki simply smiled and gave her a Pat on the shoulder:

"You're fine. You really saved my ass back there, so it was worth it in the end. No matter how much power I gain… if I lose my identity with it, well…"

Chiaki frowned, stepping back from the red light, which had now died down. Taking a moment to survey the area once more, she looked towards the Shinigami door.

"Anyway, here goes nothing…"

Taking a deep breath, she steeled her heart to move forward, and stepped into the light.

__________

"2 hours and 17 minutes? That's quite impressive. I knew I was right to put faith in you."

Urahara watched as Chiaki shot out of the pit where he had placed her, a black blot moving through the sky as easily as a fish through water, before coming to rest in front of him. Perfectly fitted Shinigami robes wrapped her ghostly body, the last finishing touches coming in the form of a ballooning spiritual pressure erupting from her hands, before finally solidifying into a regal katana with blue tassels attached to its hilt.

Chiaki would inspect her new form, quietly taking in the change and inspecting the new clothing that her power had gifted her. Then, slowly but surely, a sly grin spread over her face, as she raised the sword and spun it in her hands.

"Nasty trick you played back there. What's next?"

Urahara simply chuckled, before taking out his own sword from his cane, adjusting his hat over his eyes as he prepared to start combat.

"Well, the next test is easier, so don't worry! All you have to do is touch my hat. Do you think you're up for it?"