Chapter 45 - Spiritual World

The world around Yamamoto begins to swirl around and he suddenly finds himself pinned to the stand of the Sokyoku in the same manner Rukia was. Around him, the environment was an inverted grayscale and the sky was a bright red.

"Where is this?!" Yamamoto questioned. He was surprised. The moment he looked into Itachi's eyes it seemed as though space and time had warped, bringing him into another world. In front of him, a lone Itachi stood, holding his zanpakuto. Yamamoto struggled to break out of the restraints but couldn't move at all.

"Captain Commander. We will talk here, and you will listen." Itachi ordered as his voice echoed through the world of Tsukuyomi.

"Kuchiki's execution...there is something wrong with it. Don't you yourself find it strange she is receiving a Captain's punishment for her crime? There has to be something going on within Central 46 and I'm sure you realized it too." Itachi said, hoping to get Yamamoto himself to cancel the execution.

"That may be the case, Uchiha. But that may also not be the case. And for a thousand years, it has been my job to uphold the orders passed down to me by Central 46, even if I don't necessarily agree with them. You are a thousand years too young to be lecturing me on my loyalties. What you, Ukitake, and Kyoraku are doing now is treason! Now release me from-" Yamamoto demanded but was cut off as Itachi stabbed through his torso with his zanpakuto. Yamamoto grunts in pain but maintains his composure.

"It appears you cannot be reasoned with. So you leave me no choice, Captain Commander." Itachi commented as he stabbed Yamamoto.

"You're a thousand years too young if you think an illusion like this will break me Uchiha!" Yamamoto yelled. In that moment, Yamamoto found himself surrounded by dozens of Itachis. This time, two Itachis stabbed at Yamamoto's body. Yamamoto grunted in pain but held himself together. Another Itachi joins and all three stab Yamamoto simultaneously.

"In the Tsukuyomi, time and space, even physical mass, I control them all." Itachi said as he stabbed Yamamoto again. "The next year will be nothing but this." Two more Itachis stab Yamamoto. "Over and over."

Yamamoto's face begins to wince at the pain as he is stabbed hundreds of times.

"This is only an illusion. I have withstood far worse in my entire lifetime." Yamamoto said in between being stabbed several more times.

"Time and space. Even physical mass. I control them all. Telling yourself it is an illusion will do you little good. Pain is pain. Do you feel it any less deeply by thinking it's not real? How long will it be, I wonder. Before your spirit is broken. Even you, Captain Commander Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni, who has lived for over a thousand years. Can you really persevere through it?"

For what seemed like hours, Yamamoto was continuously stabbed thousands of times. Eventually, the stabbing stopped and a lone Itachi stood in front of Yamamoto, who was beginning to pant heavily.

"Only 11 months, 30 days, 23 hours, 59 minutes, and 59 seconds to go." Itachi said as dozens of Itachis began to reappear around Yamamoto again. Yamamoto's eyes widened in disbelief as what he perceived to have been hours passed was only a single second.

---

"Those two...they're just standing there?" Kyoraku questioned as he looked at Yamamoto and Itachi.

"I trapped him. Do it now!" Itachi said, looking back at the two Captains.

"Now's our chance!" Ukitake said as he raised his palm out in front of him and began to channel his reiatsu. Kyoraku nodded and did the same.

"First song: Halting Fabric. Second Song: Hundred linked Bolts. Final Song: Great seal of-" Ukitake and Kyoraku are cut off as a massive surge of hot reiatsu is released from Yamamoto and Itachi is sent flying back. Itachi covers himself with the Susanoo's rib cage to protect himself as he lands. Itachi looks at Yamamoto surprised. 'He broke out of Tsukuyomi through sheer reiatsu and willpower. However even he must not be unscathed. He was in there for an entire month out of the year that I had originally planned.'

Yamamoto glared at the two Captains and Itachi while panting heavily. 'That brat...that was no ordinary illusion.' Yamamoto suddenly collapses and takes a knee as he tries to stand back up. Itachi does the same as he expended a large amount of reiatsu to keep Yamamoto in Tsukuyomi.

"To all Gotei 13 Captains, Lieutenants, and the Ryoka. This is Vice Captain of the Fourth Division, Kotetsu Isane. I request your attention for a little while. I hope you can all hear me. This is an emergency message from Captain Unohana and myself. Everything I am about to tell you is the absolute truth." A voice is heard in everyone's head simultaneously. Everyone there calms down and listen intently to what was being told to them. Itachi grits his teeth upon hearing about Aizen. 'I was right about him. Yet he did such a good job hiding the evidence and manipulating everyone, including myself.'

"What are we going to do? We don't have time to mess around here." Kyoraku asked Yamamoto. Yamamoto gave him a tired look and shakily stood up. Ukitake and Kyoraku ran over to help him as Itachi looked towards Sokyoku hill with his Sharingan. 'I need to go there now.' Itachi thought to himself as he flash stepped away from the three Captains and quickly went to the hill. On his way to the hill, he could sense Renji and Ichigo's reiatsu fading but also noticed another large reiatsu heading towards the hill. 'Captain Komamura is heading there too. If he can hold Aizen, Tousen, and Gin off then I can group up with him.'

---

"Aizen!!!" A large towering figure appeared behind Aizen as he was talking to a bȧrėly conscious Ichigo. A large sword being held by a floating arm manifests itself and cuts down at Aizen. Aizen turns around and a huge explosion of rock and dust erupts from the impact. The smoke clears and Aizen is seen holding the edge of Komamura's zanpakuto.

"It's been a long time since you showed your face. What changed your mind, Komamura?" Aizen asked with a smile on his face. Komamura looked at Aizen angrily.

"How can you smile like that Aizen?!" Komamura yelled as he threw a punch at Aizen. Aizen swiftly jumped away as Komamura's punch shattered the ground. Aizen lands a few feet right next to Tousen. Komamura looks angrily at Tousen.

"Tousen...if you have anything to say, say it now!!" Komamura yelled as Tousen remained silent. "So you have nothing to say...you leave me no choice Tousen!" Komamura swung his sword up in the air.

"Bankai!" Komamura yelled. Itachi arrived at the hill and saw Ichigo and Renji on the ground, both bȧrėly alive and saw Aizen appear in front of Komamura as he was about to use Bankai. Komamura looked in shock as Aizen appeared in front of him.

'Impossible...he was just right next to Tousen…' Komamura thought as he saw Aizen raise his hand.

"Hado 90: Kurohitsugi." A large black box surrounded Komamura as his body was impaled by black spikes. The black box quickly receded and Komamura fell to the ground.

'So Aizen was this powerful...that kido he used was forbidden.' Itachi thought as he observed the situation.

"Using hado in the 90s! That's scary. When did you learn how to use those techniques?" Gin commented.

"No, I failed. That wasn't even a third of its potential. As expected, the 90s are difficult to use." Aizen commented as he walked over to Rukia. Before picking up Rukia, he glances at Itachi.

"So nice of you to join us now, Lieutenant Uchiha." Aizen said. "Would you also like to meet the same fate as Komamura?"