Eeeeehh…slowly coming back. I'm building an even better ending than I was thinking of before, but the middle is still in its roughest draft, so these chapters can be a tad hard to write dialogue-wise, thus why it takes so long for such a short chapter.

I intended to update in September, and based upon my time zone, I'm almost an hour too late.

Thanks for bearing with me anyway.

There are quite a few things that I've changed or excluded from the original canon (including the gender of our MC, obviously).

For example, the timeline is the end of the time gap between the War at the start of the Fullbring Arc, but the War hasn't ended yet, and the final battle between Aizen and Ichigo hasn't happened...yet. Ulquiorra is among the Espada whose deaths I've canceled, though they had been brutally injured by their battles. I'll explain more things along the way.

Unfortunately, I can't seem to make everything make sense like I want to because of the length of time I spent not focused on this fic. Oh well, I'll make do with what I have and make it up as I go along.

Thanks for your favs, follows, and reviews.

-JD

Disclaimer: Nope. Not trying to get sued here. I just own Ichigo's boo—*kicked swiftly*

It had taken days, but Grimmjow had finally found the reiatsu he'd been looking for. He'd never forgotten the feeling of that energy, partially because he was hell-bent on finding who had the audacity to kick him out of a room he owned. He'd searched by himself with more patience than he could ever remember exerting, not telling any of the others about the mysterious being that had invaded his private space.

He was pretty sure they'd get a good laugh out of it. He wasn't afraid of getting laughed at, it just pissed him off.

Even if he didn't use the room much, it was still his property. How dare some Arrancar just burst into his territory and use it like it was theirs! After that had happened, he'd fully dedicated himself to finding the assailant and punishing them for what it was worth.

Given, he could've beaten their ass right then and there, but after smelling them, he figured he could at least let them clean off whatever shit they'd rolled in.

But that was an uncommon show of kindness he wasn't willing to show again. He would keep his promise to himself and beat the shit out of them all he wanted. Sure, they had an unreal level of reiatsu hidden under their skin, and he'd initially been startled by it—not scared. Never scared. Anyway, he'd been startled by it, but now he was ready.

He was the King, stronger than most other Arrancar, and certainly stronger than the powerhouse that spilled their reiatsu all over the place, calling enemies to them from left to right. He'd heard from Ulquiorra—the Espada strangely a bit chatty—that Arrancar had been rushing toward a strangely strong reiatsu with the intent to consume it, but their efforts hadn't done anything more than color the sand black.

Either way, the show-off wasn't going to throw him off kilter anymore.

And now, after days of searching for it, he'd found the bastard. It had decided to stay away from large fights suddenly, but that didn't matter anymore.

He'd found it and he was going to make sure it suffered.

"I don't know who the hell ya are, but you're the one from the bathroom that day, aren't ya?"

"Yeah, what ov'it?"

…The hell? That voice was higher than he was used to hearing, but he was pretty sure that was Ichigo's voice.

The creature stood up on the broken pillar, glaring down at him. His eyes slowly widened as shocking orange hair came into view, then smaller-than-usual shoulders, all the way to the tattered black clothes the substitute Shinigami commonly wore, though they were much more tattered than usual. The young-looking woman crossed her arms in distasted.

"…Ichigo?"

Said person glared down at him from their perch, their arms crossed under their chest, "Yo, Grimmjow."

…This person…it really was him…right?

"What the fuck…"

Ichigo's eyebrows raised a little, though not enough to really lessen her glare, "What?"

Grimmjow's right eye squinted as he stood up straight, "How the hell did'ja become a woman?"

She looked down at herself, "Oh this? Uhm…" she looked away, "It just kinda happened."

"The fuck? Ya don't just suddenly get breasts!"

Her face flushed, "Well I did, so shut up!"

"…Did'ja lose ya dick, too?"

"What?! Why the…that's…I…that doesn't matter, you prick!"

The sixth Espada burst out laughing at exactly how red she was, "You always get into the craziest shit! How the hell'd you get outta jail?"

"Ehhhh," she waved her hand absently, frowning as always, "stuff happened. Now I'm here. Your point?"

Grimmjow placed his hands in his pockets, smirking at her, "Well, at least Ichigo fits better, Strawberry."

Her nose scrunched up, "Don't make me hit you. You know that's not how my name's written."

"Hoooooh, so you want to hit me?"

"Maybe a few times, just to get you to shut up," she said, her scowl the same as ever.

The Espada stared at her for a moment before he started glaring in return, causing Neliel to flinch as she hid behind the ex-substitute Shinigami.

"Oi, it can't be just me…are ya actually pissed at me?"

"Yeah, what ov'it?"

"If anyone should be pissed, it should be me!" he growled.

"…For what?"

He ripped his hands out of his pockets, one finger pointing directly at Ichigo.

"Ya kicked me out of my fuckin' bathroom!"

Nel blinked, confused by the Espada's confession. What was he talking about? When would Ichig—

"You wouldn't go away!"

Oh.

"It was my fuckin' bathroom!"

"Shut up! It's not like you even use it much! Besides, I'd been in jail and was dirty!"

"Then use someone else's!"

Her face scrunched up, though she seemed to consider the thought for a moment. Then, she shrugged, scratching at the back of her head.

"Nah, then I'd have to go through all of this again. Besides," she gazed at him knowingly, "you're one of the few Espada who wouldn't go off running to Aizen, and I really don't need him on my ass right now."

Grimmjow grinned maliciously, "What, ye scared?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Not scared," she growled out, "I just know I'm not strong enough yet."

"So yer weak, that's what yer saying?"

"I burst my ass out of Maggot's Nest, didn't I? I'm not weak," she hissed.

The blue-haired Espada drew his sword, feeling his blood begin to thrum under his skin, "Then prove it."

"…Oi, I did say I wasn't strong enough, but I meant that I don't have enough strength to take on Aizen…yet. Don't make a mistake though," she blinked, her irides turning red, "I kicked your ass once before and I can do it again."

Grimmjow's eye widened a bit at the gesture. Those were the eyes he only saw when the Shinigami donned the mask…and even then, the irides had been yellow.

'What does that mean…that she can do it without it…'

He grinned in reply nevertheless.

"Well, that's fine. I can wipe your ass all over the sand, no matter what you are. You've been sitting around in a damn cell for these months while I've been getting stronger. Fuck, if you manage to beat me now, I'll even let you use my room without question."

She blinked at the proposition, allowing her eyes to turn back, "Hmm…sure, I'll take that," she crouched a little, "You better not regret it."

"…Itsugo?"

Ichigo sighed lightly, turning away from the blue-haired Espada, "Sorry, Nel. This'll take a second. Can you stay here?"

The girl looked as though she wanted to protest, opening her mouth before she froze. Instead she closed her mouth, nodding light as she backed up behind a rock. A pained look crossed Ichigo's face, but she put her scowl back on, facing her opponent.

"Let's hurry up and get this over with."

She suddenly thrust herself forward, leaving behind a slight cloud of dust as the pillar cracked a little under her pressure. Grimmjow grinned at the challenge, moving forward as well, his sword ready to swipe.

"How the hell are ya gonna fight me without ya Zanpakuto, eh?!"

Ichigo didn't reply, bringing her arms up, her hands dipping behind her back. Seconds later, the two closer to each other, the Espada swung his sword at her, grinning manically. Ichigo brought her hands from behind her as the two came together.

Their swords clashed.

Grimmjow stared wide-eyed at the black Zanpakuto that had suddenly appeared, the light glinting off of it showing its slightly purple-red hue. It looked as it did before Ichigo was jailed, but there was something off about it. Just as Ichigo's reiatsu had changed, her Zanpakuto had altered itself, though the changes were still only slightly seen.

The two backed away from each other with a clank, both sliding in the sand from the force of their blows.

The Espada breathed out, smirking, "Ya really do got some weird shit goin' on with ya, huh? Where the hell did'ya pull that out from?"

Ichigo didn't respond, her bare feet settling in the sand before she thrust herself forward again.

"No talk, huh?" he asked, their swords clashing, Grimmjow pushed back a bit from her force, "You're even less fun than before."

Ichigo narrowed her eyes as she swiped at Grimmjow, the other avoiding her blow as he slashed at her in return. She blocked his blow with her sword, though.

'This…feels harder than usual…'

She slammed her sword down toward the Espada, and though she missed, sand billowed into the air, providing cover for her as she thrust herself forward.

'It's like it's heavier…like it's just on that side of too heavy that I can't move it right…'

Her moves were more sluggish than before, which she knew Grimmjow was picking up on. The Espada was so tuned to battle, she knew it was impossible for him to not have noticed. She tried to not let the thought get too deep into her head though, and continued to aggressively force herself forward.

She swung her sword up wildly, Grimmjow's parrying with hers. She slid her blade against his, eyes glaring into her opponents as sparks flew between them. She came at the Espada from the other side once their swords stopped touching, but he parried it again.

It seemed like it took a second before the move she actually wanted to happen did, and it made her scowl, just as she watched the same expression slowly build on her opponents face.

'What's going on? I don't need this right now!'

'Uuhhm…well, it's kind of my fault.'

Ichigo's eyes widened at the voice, bending back suddenly as Grimmjow's sword few above her.

'…Chihime?'

Though she couldn't see the girl, she could hear her as she backed away from the Espada, though he followed after her quickly, the tides of battle having turned at just a moment's notice.

'Yeah, I'm kind of an added weight. I'm a different sort of energy than you're used to, though you didn't really notice the difference when you fought against weak Hollows. You need some time to adapt to having me inside of you.'

'How long ov'a wait period are we talkin' here?' she asked wordlessly, narrowly avoiding another slash toward her abdomen. She hissed angrily at the action, turning her body to force her arm to slash at him faster. It seemed to work, her sword connecting with his just as she expected it to. She couldn't expect herself to do twists and turns to make every move though, and had to do her next move in the same, slightly sluggish manner that she'd started out in.

'A few months at least. Much longer than you're expecting, I'm sure.'

"Months?!"

Grimmjow and her swords clashed again, the two sliding away from each other.

"What the fuck are you yelling that out suddenly for? Are ya distracted or something?" the Espada growled, "No wonder you're coming at me half-assed! Don't underestimate me, bastard!"

Ichigo clicked her tongue at the mistake, feeling his energy spike in irritation. She blocked his next blow, but he kept forcing himself forward.

"Did'ya lose ya memory sittn' in that crummy cell? I'll make ya remember everythin' then…"

She hissed at the pressure pushing against her as she finally got him to stop pushing her back. She didn't move in time to stop him from kicking her in the head though, her head snapping to the side. Luckily, she ducked in time to avoid the downward slash of his sword.

'Yes, months. The kind of power I hold is different from usual. And you're still fighting like a Shinigami,' Ichigo could almost see her narrow her eyes in ill-covered disdain, 'So you're forcing yourself to shape your energy into a form that doesn't fit you, not quite. Certainly not as well as it did before.'

Ichigo took another blow to the stomach as she flew back into a pillar, the thing crackling under the force. She coughed, though only spittle came out, and she landed on the ground, only slightly bent over as the pain began to fade.

'…Huh, tougher than before.'

'Of course you are. You are different.'

She didn't bother thinking too much about what Chihime said, ducking out of the way of another one of Grimmjow's attacks.

Grimmjow growled as he slashed at Ichigo again, the girl parrying his attack, but it didn't satisfy him. Sure his blood was pumping more than usual, but with the amount of reiatsu Ichigo had been spilling out before, he was sure he'd get something even better from this fight.

"What, did all ov' yer battles with those weaklings really tire you out? Where's that energy you had before?" he yelled, charging a cero. He huffed as she dodged out of its way, thrusting her body toward him as she stabbed at his body. He got out of the Zanpakuto's way.

No matter how weak she was acting, he could feel the energy condensed in that sword, and he wasn't willing to get cut by it.

He was able to grab her face, though and threw her into the sky as he charged another cero. She got her bearings just in time to move out of its way, though he could tell that the tips of her clothes were a little singed.

"How long do you plan on fucking with me, huh?!" He threw another cero her way, though she was able to dodge it along with the others that he dished out.

Grimmjow frowned. Even though it was already know that her reiatsu was in Hueco Mundo, why wasn't she letting it out? Sure, he'd found her reiatsu while searching for her, but that was the thing.

He actually had to search.

Before, in those first few days, it had been easy for even small Arrancar with little wits about themselves to find her and try to kill her for their own gain in their rag-tag groups, but then those bursts of hollow slaughter had near ceased after some time. Sure, there was the occasional spout of reddened sand here and there, but it wasn't nearly as frequent as before. Ichigo had been reigning in her reiatsu, and she was still holding it back.

'What the fuck does she think she's doing?'

Suddenly, he remembered.

He didn't bother facing the pillar, but he looked back toward it, knowing that there was a little green-haired hollow hiding there. He grinned.

'Hoooooh…that makes sense…Ichigo hasn't changed at all, huh?' he laughed out loud, 'How considerate!'

"Hey Strawberry! You've been holding back for the lil' runt over there, haven't ya?"

The look on her face was answer enough.

He laughed again, grinning widely as he cut his hand, "What, she couldn't handle the fights you'd been getting in? Couldn't handle your spiritual pressure? Heh, yer lackin' some killin' intent, too."

He turned to the pillar, his hand facing it as he grasped his arm with his other hand. Blue energy began to charge in his palm, the pressure building quickly.

"Let me fix that lil' problem for ya'!"

Just as quickly as the blue energy built up, it exploded outward, sending the Gran Rey Cero straight for the little Arrancar.

Neliel stood stock still as the charged cero headed straight for her.

'I…I can't move…it'z too fatht…I can't get outta the way…'

She staggered back despite her revelation, her hands trembling as she had nothing she could do.

'I…I can maybe thwallow it and thend it back…but I've never done one that throng before…it'th even thronger than before, ithn't it? C-can I do it?'

It came closer.

'And he can thend out a lotta thoth, right? I…I can't do it…I can't do it!'

It was nearly upon her as she closed her eyes.

'I can't, I can't I can't!'

"ITSUGO!"

A dark energy slammed down in between the girl and the blue cero that was close to hitting her, the cero bursting outwards as it hit the force.

She still covered her eyes, the force of the two colliding causing a bright light to flash and a large explosion that others were sure to notice. Even so, the cero's energy receded, leaving only a dark, heavy reiatsu in its wake.

Nel already knew whose it was.

Grimmjow grinned at the heavy force that filled the area.

'That's it…that's it! Wake on up, Ichigo!'

His eyes widened at what had been done to dissipate the cero, though.

Rather than cleaving his cero in two to protect them with her Zanpakuto like he'd thought the exe-substitute Shinigami would do, a large, off-white hand had been used to shield Ichigo and Neliel from the force of the cero. It was large enough to cover their bodies from view, its claws black and sharp—not unlike the hands Ichigo had when battling Ulquiorra, though somehow it looked even less human, the palm of the hand singed.

The hand slowly dissipated, becoming smaller as the off-white shield began to travel down and along Ichigo's body. Once the dust had settled enough, he could see Ichigo's red eyes staring back at him, her face maskless even as her sclera was black like a Hollow's.

The guttural, inhuman growl that escaped her mouth made him shudder with excitement.