Chapter 18

Author's Note: Hey guys. Sorry for the absence of a couple days. Been moving.

Just wanted to give you all a small 'Kubo Talks' moment or whatever those were called when he answered questions that fans asked and gave his own insight on the story and moments that happened in it. This also won't count towards the word count of the chapter so don't worry. Will still get between 1000 and 2200 words but didn't want to make a side chapter that gets confusing. I may add this to the prologue when the arc ends though. So let's begin.

We are going over 3 things. Yami's zanpakuto, Yoruichi, and Mira's Schrift. And we are doing that in the reverse order.

Mira's Schrift: So her ability is a variant of both the Lloyd Twins. Both took on the appearance of another person while only one got their current memories and knowledge while the other got their current abilities. This was kinda confusing since Royd didn't die immediately from ----'s Bankai which meant that even without copying powers, he was still someone that could kill/beat mid-tier captains.

But anyway, that is where I got the premise of her power from. She would gain the knowledge of up to 3 individuals' greatest strengths (Wisdom, Reiatsu, Speed, etc) and be able to surpass them in order to kill them more easily. She also got her own general power boost too because it just makes sense and fixes the Royd situation in my head.

And because I based it off the duo, I also copied the weakness. It is based on their current level when she copies them. Which was why ----- was able to kill Loyd as he was that dude's worst enemy and why Yoruichi was able to beat Mira in this battle.

She copied Yoruichi's base speed and Tessai's anti-Quincy version of kido. This was why even though Yoruichi used Shunko which is based on kido to kill her, it worked because she was only immune to tessai's kido variant.

Yoruichi: Yoruichi has changed a bit from the original version. Even though she is playful, she is more serious in this story. And that is because she has two disciples instead of one. This gives her more responsibility. She is also dealing with threats the old one did not have to deal with.

A Quincy invasion that didn't happen, killing off Koga, and various other things have occurred in the 3 years since Yami joined the squad. Also, this is why she is more powerful. She has taken training more seriously to ensure her two disciples are safe. Those who read the manga saw how much -----, ------, ------, ------, --------, and ------- improved with just a few days of training with the ------ ------, so her being at/or slightly weaker than she is 200 years later in the OG after 3 years of intense training shouldn't be that hard to believe.

Yami's Zanpakuto: He has Melee or Power-type zanpakuto. Most characters in Bleach have an elemental, kido, or hybrid type with Melee types being the fewest in number. Which makes sense, since they are pretty dull. Even Ichigo is pretty boring when it comes to his zanpakuto which was also a melee type. Like do you guys realize Ichigo just started using his 'signature' attack near the end of SS Arc? He only had one technique until the of the Arrancar arc before he lost all of his powers.

But that is off-topic. Yami also has a power-type zanpakuto. Yeah, I'm using them interchangeably, whatcha gonna do about it? It has two abilities with it but both are pretty limited compared to more popular ones. Like think of Senbonzakura vs Zabimaru in shikai. Zabimaru only has two abilities in its shikai form. To be a whip and another that can only be used in dire situations.

This brings me to the second thing that I saw several people complaining about his second ability, Branch of Sin. The secondary abilities on these weapons are supposed to suck lol. Ichigo gets a cloth he can lengthen which is almost never does, Renji can't use his shikai for an unspecified amount of time and it has to be broken to even be used, and Yami can't use his more than 3 times per day.

As for his primary ability, he has used it several times. It has been shown several times and in almost every fight. It's actually a passive ability too which makes it even more fun.

Anyway, back to the story!

----------

Bazz-B wanted to continue fighting with Kukaku and kill her when he suddenly felt Mira's reiatsu disappear. He turned his attention away for a moment to see the barrier that had shattered and the 3 captain-level fighters but Mira was nowhere in sight.

'Did that bitch retreat without me?'

Just as Bazz-B had his attention away, Kukaku used that as a chance to land a blow on him using one of her techniques, giving him severe burns to his chest.

"Shit!"

"Die, fucker!"

Kukaku pointed her zanpakuto at him and pulled the trigger 6 times causing 6 symbols to appear on his body before detonating. Bazz's body was put in an even worse state but he used the explosive cloud as his chance to escape. So while he was still in the cloud, his body descended into the shadows beneath him.

When the cloud cleared, Bazz was nowhere to be found. Kukaku stomped her feet in frustration when she saw her target had escaped.

"Get back here, you coward!"

"We have no time for that, girl!"

Kisuke and Yoruichi were being carried over by Tessai. The former had his leg injured before the rest had gotten there and was forcing his body to move despite the pain. Now, that all of the adrenaline was gone, he couldn't even stand on his own.

As for Yoruichi, she had pushed herself beyond her limits using her new form. The amount of kido that was wasted was astronomical. If Tessai hadn't injected some of his own reiatsu in her, she might not be able to even move her fingers.

"What's wrong, Kisuke? We beat them back on all fronts and we can clean up here."

Yoruichi shook her head.

"We only dealt with two of the three. That other one went after Ukitake. Sui-Feng and Yami went to intercept but they can't hold out against him for long, especially after taking on an Adjuchas.

Me and Kisuke are exhausted while Tessai has to stay here for any of those damn Quincy that use their final move. Only you can help them out. Go!"

Kukaku cursed before kicking off the ground. Of all the top 5 in the Onmitsukido, she had the second slowest Shunpo, besides Marenoshin. She rushed across the rooftops and walls, even cutting through the estates of some smaller nobles.

'Don't die, you two. Yoruichi will make us go to Hell to get you both back and that does not seem like a fun trip.'

-----

Ukitake had his twin zanpakuto stabbed into the ground as he looked up at his opponent. The states of the two could not be any more different. Cang Du's white clothes were in pristine condition as he stood tall over Ukitake.

Ukitake on the other hand already had a single foot in the grave. His white hair and white, captain's haori were stained red with blood. Normally, he already had to force his body to stand and walk around with his reiatsu just from the normal stress his illness caused his body.

Thanks to it flaring up and weakening his body even more, Ukitake could not even display 10 percent of his full power. Usually, he would be able to handle someone of Cang Du's level with ease. But unfortunately, his opponent had come at the worst time for the captain.

Ukitake looked at the dead guards around him and felt immense guilt.

'If only I had given myself up. I should have held him back to allow them to escape.'

There was a reason why Ukitake was the most popular of the Gotei 13 captains. He treated all of his subordinates like family which made for a very warm division. But it was also what was the division's biggest weakness. Every time a member of the division died, they would take it much more personally than the other divisions. And as the captain and paternal figure of the entire division, Ukitake felt the pressure the most.

This was why Kaien was in command of the 13th Division during the assault while he waited behind. Even if he could sit there and watch from the frontlines or give commands himself, he didn't want to allow the enemy to gain an opportunity to take advantage of him to harm his division.

'But even with all that preparation, it seems that I have still brought these guys down with me. Sorry about that.'

Cang Du stood over Ukitake with an apathetic expression as he looked down at the captain. He raised both of his hands above his head, ready to bring down his wolverine-like claws on the captain and finish him off.

"No need to worry about them. Since you were together in life, I shall ensure that you are together in death as well."

The Quincy was about to bring down both of his claws when he heard the sound of wind behind him. The man turned around in time to block Yami and Sui-Feng's attacks.

"Captain Ukitake. Please take this time to escape. Backup is coming for us."

Sui-Feng advice while she clashed with Cang Du, already feeling the intense pressure from him.

'Even though we are both only losing a single arm, I had momentum on my side and Yami attacking his other side. How did we not push him back?'

Ukitake wanted to argue with Sui-Feng but he knew that he would only be a hindrance if he stayed.

"Stay safe, you two," he said to the pair before disappearing with a shunpo.

Yami and Sui-Feng stayed in the clash with Cang Du for a few more moments before jumping back and creating space.

The trio stared at each other without moving their bodies. All of their muscles were ready to explode at a moment's notice when they see that the other side created an opening.

'This man is too dangerous. He isn't a warrior like most people who are in it for the thrill of the battle. He is a soldier, ready to fulfill his duty and slay anyone who stands in his way, even at the cost of his own life. What kind of monster can command such loyalty from a captain-level figure?'

Yami was thinking about how dangerous Cang Du was. Whether it was his body, spiritual power, or stance, all were on a level that he knew he couldn't compete with at the moment.

"Yami Kobayashi. Sui-Feng."

Cang Du opened his mouth and spoke both of their names.

"Sui-Feng, 76 years old. Lieutenant-level spiritual power, captain-grade potential.

Hakuda: Mid-Expert, Hoho: Mid-Expert, Zanjutsu: Low-Expert, Kido: Low-Expert

Zanpakuto: Suzumebachi. Shikai Command: Sting all Enemies to Death. Bankai: Yet to achieve

Shikai Special Abilities: Nigeki Kessatsu. n addition to creating a rather deep wound when stabbed, the attack leaves a butterfly-shaped stamp on the victim's body. Spreading from the center of the wound, known as Hōmonka. If struck in the same spot that was hit the first time, the person will inevitably die, and thus illustrate "Death in Two Steps." The Homonka lasts 15 minutes before disappearing.

Yami Kobayashi: 27 years old. Lieutenant-level spiritual power, advanced captain-grade potential.

Hakuda: Low-Expert, Hoho: Mid-Expert, Zanjutsu: Mid-Expert, Kido: Mid-Expert

Zanpakuto: Izanami. Shikai command: Constantly-active shikai. Bankai: Yet to achieve

Shikai's special abilities: Scar Dead and Tsumi no Eda. The former reopens a random wound that the one attacked had in the past as well as making them relive the memory of that wound. The latter allows you to unleash a large wave of reiatsu in an attack but can only be used 3 times per day and drains a large amount of stamina."

Yami and Sui-Feng's pupils contracted but they knew they couldn't move otherwise Cang Du would use that opening to kill one of them.

Cang Du had access to classified information. Classified to the level that only Yoruichi was supposed to know about the weakness of each of their techniques, with no one else in the Onmitsukido, 2nd Division, or even the Gotei 13 having access to it.

'What the hell?!?! This isn't just them having spies. They need to have some sort of clairvoyance power.'

'Die! He needs to die immediately.'

Sui-Feng and Yami had very different reactions to Cang Du having that information. Sui-Feng wanted to figure out how he got it while Yami just wanted to get rid of the leak.

Cang Du seemed to see an opening as he used the quincy version of Shunpo to appear directly in front of Sui-Feng. Both his claws stabbed toward the girl's throat but he retracted his hands when Yami attacked from the side.

Cang Du almost managed to dodge the attack but he received a small cut from Yami. The moment his arm got cut, a memory suddenly went through Cang Du's head.

The first time he disagreed with Mira to her face. She used her Jaeger to adapt to his Schrift before rushing behind him and cutting the back of his left leg with her wolf claws.

After getting out of his memories, he felt the warm blood dripping down his leg.

'So this is Scar Dead in person. Seems we must warn the others since this ability has the potential to cripple a sufficiently powerful Sternritter if they are careless. When we engage, either I must engage with him or someone with a decent mastery of Blut.'

Even though he was injured, Cang Du didn't feel any fear. Instead, he was taking notes!

The quincy tried to kick Sui-Feng away with his free leg before bringing down his uninjured arm on Yami but the young shinigami were able to block and dodge his attacks. They then began their counterattack.

The primary method of attack was simple. Sui-Feng was in charge of leading the attacks on Cang Du by acting as the rogue waiting for an opportunity to land a blow from an opening while Yami was supposed to act as the vanguard which took the brunt of the damage.

But even with their coordination, their injuries and overall lack of strength compared to Cang Du simply made this process a joke in the quincy's eyes. And when he started to truly fight back, the injuries on Yami's body began to accumulate rapidly. And even when he acted as a sacrifice, Yami was unable to create a large enough opening for Sui-Feng to take advantage of.

'Let's finish these two off.'

Cang Du felt that he had seen enough of these two. Although they had the potential to be threats in the future, at the moment, both were nothing more than chicks to be slaughtered.

A red symbol suddenly appeared on one of Cang Du's claws, the two more up his left arm. These detonated and sent the quincy flying several meters.

In the smoke, Cang Du looked down at his torn sleeves and frowned. If he had not activated his Schrift in time, he would have lost his arm and may have even suffered more severe injuries.

'Kukaku Shiba has arrived. That means either both Mira and Bazz have been defeated or retreated. Either way, that means it is time to go.'

Cang Du descended into the shadows beneath him just as Bazz had done, using the cover of the smoke to hide his ability. And when it cleared, the man was gone.

When Yami and Sui-Feng saw that Cang Du was gone, both collapsed to the floor. They had been pushing themselves the entire time just to stand before him and not die.

Kukaku arrived next to Yami who was getting medical treatment from Sui-Feng as she was frowning.

'That's two of them. They have some sort of special ability to escape when one isn't looking at them. Better inform Yoruichi of this.'

Kukaku lifted the duo over her shoulders before taking them back to the Central 46 HQ to help with cleanup. But with the Sternritter gone, that invasion ended in a victory for the shinigami.