Nascent King III (Patreon)

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They’d had a much more fun morning than night, with Candice waking him up like a succubus with her mouth. Strangely, that had been a first for him, and her tongue piercing drove him absolutely wild. After sucking his soul out of him (or at least that’s what it felt like!), she had winked and immediately left the room to go shower and do her hair, leaving Ichigo very much eager for more with zero outlet. At least until Meninas had finally woken up an hour later when he’d almost been falling asleep again and had promptly woken him up again with her kisses and straddling.

He was really thankful for the Kidō doohickey that Kisuke had given him yesterday, grinning like that cat that had gotten the canary, the cream, and the mouse. Ichigo wasn’t certain if the crater his elbow had left in the man’s face would ever go away, but that was the price the blonde paid for being an idiot. Thankfully, it worked well, and his sisters seemed none the wiser about his morning…activities.

Bambietta had elbowed him hard when he saw her in the hall, blushing bright red, and blustering that he should keep his Reiatsu to himself.

But the family and guests had settled for breakfast without further issue, and then it happened. “Here we go.” Candice said in a hushed tone, her hand hovering near her belt buckle just in case. Ichigo’s shadow pulsed before racing up the wall. It creeped his sisters right out. He could see it in their faces. Isshin had a finger pointed, ready and waiting with a quick Hadō #4: Byakurai just in case the one that the three former Sternritters feared popped out.

And then a blonde girl stumbled out, barely managing to catch herself without grabbing something. Unlike her very buxom friends, she was much more petite. She had some nice hips, but was pretty skinny and her breasts would have charitably been called B-cups. Very charitably. She was also barely taller than Yuzu and Karin. She shook her head, looking almost concussed, before her gaze brightened up and she looked around.

“Hey Lili.” Candice waved cheerfully.

Liltotto Lamperd blinked slowly, before looking around at every face at the table. She only winced slightly when she saw Bambietta’s glare. “Okay, I’ll bite.”

“Please don’t.” Meninas said immediately.

“What’s the punchline?” She asked dryly, before taking the chair Yuzu offered her and starting to fill her plate as if nothing was wrong. “Oooh, this is really good.” She said as she took a bite of her breakfast.

“Thank you!” Yuzu chirped, smiling at her. “I’m Yuzu, and this is Karin.” Karin gave the new blonde a wave,

“Uhh, long story short, we’re all popping out of Ichigo’s shadow for some reason, none of us can feel our Schrifts or use Vollständig, and we’ve pretty much been cut loose by Yhwach.” Candice said with a half shrug.

“We’re staying with Ichigo here.” Meninas told her.

“And we either time traveled or had visions from the future.” If Bambietta had the ability to shoot lasers from her eyes, Liltotto was pretty sure she would be full of holes right now. “Anything smart to say about that?”

“Maybe later.” She glanced at the two young girls to her left for a bare moment, before looking over at Ichigo. “Kurosaki Ichigo.” She said in that monotone drone of hers, “You just can’t figure out how to be normal, can you?”

“It’s a gift.” Ichigo shrugged, which earned him a snort. “That’s my Dad, Isshin, by the way. Feel free to call him Goat-chin like the rest of us.” He smirked at his father’s look of affront.

“Well, it’s nice to meet you all.” Liltotto said, “Thanks for having us over.”

“You don’t have to thank us for that.” Isshin shrugged, “We know you have nothing but the clothes on your back at the moment.”

“Tsk…” She quietly clicked her teeth, knowing he was right.

“Well, let’s finish eating, and then I have to get to school.” Ichigo said.

She raised an eyebrow, “I have to assume you know what’s coming. Do you have time to waste going to school?”

“I wasted almost two years being powerless.” Ichigo replied, “And besides which, we’re holding off on forming actual plans until the rest of you show up.”

She stiffened, “…Dare I ask who else will be arriving?” She glanced at Candice, Meninas, and Bambietta.

“Well, if basic pattern recognition proves itself correct, next will be Giselle.” Meninas said airily, and Liltotto did not miss how Bambietta’s fists clenched. “And after that, there’s one more.”

“The Quincy Crosses currently in my Inner World are dark indigo and red.” Ichigo informed them helpfully.

“Tsk.” Liltotto clicked her teeth again as the other three girls stiffened. “If we’re lucky, it’ll be Bazz B. At least he’s somewhat reasonable.”

“And if we’re unlucky, it’ll be Mask.” Bambietta agreed.

“And if everything absolutely hates us, it’ll be Pepe.” Meninas had an uncharacteristically venomous tone as she said that name.

“At least if he is, he won’t have his Schrift either.” Candice smirked, before cracking her knuckles. “I’m almost hoping it is. We could all do with some…stress relief.”

“And that’s enough of that.” Isshin said firmly with a stern glare, “No more discussions like that at the table.”

“Yes sir.” The four girls stated, though Candice couldn’t help but feel like Isshin would help them plan Pepe’s suicide (shot himself thirty-six times in the back. I couldn’t believe it!) if he knew how disgusting the man was.

“Well, I’m done anyway. I’m going to go get ready.” Ichigo stood and ruffled his sisters’ hair.

“I’ll help.” Candice grinned sleazily as she hurried after him. Meninas did as well, causing Liltotto to raise an eyebrow.

“Ten minutes or else I will resume breaking your door down in the morning!” Isshin called at their backs.

Karin flushed as she suddenly understood, “Wait, is that what I felt on his Reiatsu?” She muttered, thankfully unheard by Yuzu. “Ichi-nii, you pervert!”

“Seriously? Already?” Liltotto simply let out a groan as she stood. “Thank you for the food.” She bowed to Yuzu, before she grabbed Bambietta’s wrist. “We need to talk.” She said as she started to pull the busty, dark-haired girl away.

“Yes, we do.” The two exited the house and vanished with Hirenkyaku.

-]|[-

Liltotto (complete with a red handprint on her face, courtesy of Bambietta) settled atop a building with the rest of the girls. “Okay, so what do we already know about this nonsense?” She asked dryly, “Please tell me you haven’t given the ones who were supposed to be our enemies everything already.”

Candice shrugged, “They’re no longer our enemies. You know that damn well, Lili. Not after he fucking killed us with his Auswählen.” She crossed her arms, “We have a second chance, and we landed in the perfect place to ensure we win this time around.”

“Yes, about that.” Liltotto said blandly, “I see you wasted no time riding his dick.”

Candice’s eyebrow twitched, “First of all, fuck you. Second of all, you better not be about to give me shit about Giselle’s bullshit rumors.”

“No, that’s a waste of time.” She closed her eyes in response, before opening one of them, “Is he at least a good lay?”

“Ehehehe, he had some learning to do, obviously, but if there’s anything he does really well, it’s learn.” Candice smirked happily.

“Hmm.” She replied noncommittally, “So, have you bitches spent all your time between his legs, or have you bothered trying to figure out why our powers are seemingly gone?” She rubbed her stomach, “I haven’t felt this full in years. It feels so fucking uncomfortable. I hate it.”

“No idea.” Bambietta shot out, “Though I have to assume it’s because His Majesty is no longer our King.” She continued, “And leave me out of it. I haven’t fucked him.”

“Yet.” Three voices said as one, and the explosive girl’s eyebrow twitched.

“You’re probably right.” The blonde interrupted the pending explosion, “Though we’ve traded one King and chain for another.”

“Huh?” Candice blinked, looking at her in confusion. A look that was mirrored on Meninas and Bambietta’s faces.

Liltotto rolled her eyes, “Why am I friends with you dumbasses?” She asked rhetorically, “It’s the one thing that makes sense.” She said before the girls could protest, “We’re being summoned to his side for no discernable reason, after feeling like our souls were being sucked out hours to days earlier. We saw visions of the future where we were betrayed in various ways, and now we’ve been abandoned by Yhwach and pulled away from Silbern. Ichigo has Quincy Crosses in our colors in his Inner World that presumably weren’t in there before. You three aren’t seriously dumb enough to not understand the implications, right?” They stared at her flabbergasted. She palmed her face, “Fucking dumbasses.”

“Well,” Meninas licked her lips, “At the very least, we don’t have to worry about him ever betraying us.” She relaxed as the words left her mouth, “Even if he can somehow learn to use Auswählen, he’d rather die than do so. Don’t forget what we learned about him in the Daten.”

“Right.” Candice’s shoulders relaxed, “He gave up his powers to stop Aizen the first time. Meni is right. He would never.” She grinned cheekily and hugged her best friend, “Especially not to us.” She nuzzled her cheek against the magenta-haired girl’s.

Liltotto smirked, “Who knew you slutting it up would be useful for once!”

“I will fucking cuntpunt you, Lili.” Candice growled. She shook her head, “I’m trying to be a better person here, so can you stop being a fucking bitch for once?” Liltotto blinked in surprise, opening her mouth slightly, before shutting it. “Anyway!” Candice continued and moved the conversation on, grinning, “Meni and I already found out about a huge benefit.”

“Oh?” Liltotto asked, raising her eyebrow again.

“So, you know those Hollow powers of his?” Meninas asked, and Liltotto shivered slightly, “He used them last night while we were hugging him.”

Liltotto’s eyes bulged, and her jaw actually dropped, “How the fuck are you even alive, much less awake?!”

Candice again looked like the cat that had caught the canary, “Forget withstanding it. It barely even affected us! There was no burning. No pain. The only reason it was even uncomfortable was because of how much power he was pumping out!”

“What the fuck?!” Liltotto exclaimed, before a grin crossed her face, “Are you telling me our new King is protecting us from Hollow Reiatsu?! That we don’t have to worry about getting nicked by one of the cunts and ending up with a huge scar if we’re lucky?!”

“Thought you’d like that.” Candice grinned eagerly, “It might be only his though. We haven’t exactly tested it with a real Hollow, obviously.”

“Hollow Reiatsu is Hollow Reiatsu.” Bambietta threw her two yen in, “While we can’t know for certain until it actually happens, I think it’s reasonable to assume we may actually be safe.”

“This is insane.” Liltotto muttered, “Who knows what other benefits our new King is granting us?”

Meninas smiled slightly, “We’ll just have to wait and see.”

-]|[-

School had thankfully been normal, though he still had to deal with Shinji showing up. Apparently, despite the show from last night, he wasn’t quite willing to just give up. If anything, the Vizards apparently wanted him to join them even more now. He’d waved him off and walked home, and settled in for his new favorite pastime: making out with his two girlfriends.

So, Ichigo was quite upset when an avalanche of Reiatsu hit them, causing Candice to roll off of him with a shocked squeak. The thudding of feet behind the door heralded Bambietta and Liltotto bursting in, “What the hell is that?” The dark-haired girl asked. They might have studied the Shinigami and had an interest in Ichigo, but the Wandenreich hadn’t kept him under twenty-four-seven surveillance, especially in the human world. They didn’t know about every event that happened.

Candice and Meninas were grumbling as they hurriedly began to dress, watching as Ichigo shot out of his body and out of the window, “We’ll catch up!” The green-haired girl yelled, unsure if Ichigo even heard her from how fast he was moving.

Ichigo sped towards the heavy Reiatsu signatures, gritting his teeth as he felt hundreds of people expiring from the writhing masses of souls being sucked out of them. Tatsuki was there, and it felt like she was barely alive. Chad and Orihime had moved to intercept, and he knew Chad didn’t stand a chance against the monsters he was feeling. Ichigo had been moving with Shunpo but added Hirenkyaku to the mix for an extra burst of speed. He was just in time to take a punch for Chad with his Zanpakutō crossed in front of him. His back crashed into Chad’s chest, forcing the huge man back with a harsh exhale.

Ichigo glared as he lowered his Zanpakutō, “Who the hell are you dead fucks?”

“Huhhhh?!” The big one asked in irritation. He was nearly four meters tall, with heavily tanned skin, and what looked like ridges along his cranium. A black ponytail flowed from the back of his otherwise bald head, and he had bushy orange eyebrows. The remains of a Hollow Mask covered his jaw. He was wearing a white pair of hakama with a different style of jacket that almost resembled Ichigo’s Bankai jacket. It was all the way open, revealing his chest and his huge Hollow hole. “Ulquiorra, is this the one?”

Ulquiorra was different. He was smaller than Ichigo, with pasty white skin and green tear-streak-like markings on his face along with emerald eyes. His Hollow Mask had turned into a shattered helmet, with only the left side still intact. And now that he was standing near them, Ichigo realized that almost the entirety of the Reiatsu he felt came from the tiny one. “It appears so. Your tantrums have lured him out, Yammy.” Ulquiorra’s eyes narrowed, ‘But what is this Zanpakutō of his? It does not match the descriptions given to us by Aizen-sama. He was never said to be a dual wielder.’

“Woah, what happened to Zangetsu? Is that your Bankai, Kurosaki-kun?” Orihime asked, having never seen it before.

Ichigo chuckled, “Not quite. You and Chad stay back and make sure Tatsuki is safe.” He glared at this Yammy, “You’re the one who sucked out all of those souls, huh?”

“That’s right.” Yammy grinned, “They may have tasted like shit, but they saved us the trouble of hunting for you! ¡Que suerte!” He reared back to unload an absolutely punishing punch at Ichigo.

“Luck?” Ichigo glared daggers at him, “That’s the wrong word to use, motherfucker.” He held Zangetsu up, sharp side out, and let Yammy’s fist hit it. He was covered in the bastard’s blood as his blade split his arm in twain right up to his elbow as the ground around him cracked.

“WARGH!” Yammy roared as he reared back, clutching his ruined arm, the two attached pieces of which were just flopping uselessly.

Ichigo blurred forward, slamming the hilt of Zangetsu into the man’s stomach and dropping him to his knee. His smaller blade made a noise of audible sharpness as it flew upwards. Yammy managed to avoid having his head cut into two, but Ichigo did cut his nose clean off.

“¡Coño!” Yammy swore as he clutched his face with his good arm and saw the blood oozing from the orifice, “¡Hijo de puta!” He drew his Zanpakutō and slashed out at Ichigo. His rage began to build, and his size began to increase, as did his power. But that didn’t matter one bit to Ichigo, who continued carving him up like a holiday roast. He was like a buzzsaw, finally using his Shikai to its maximum potential via the black bandages. He flung it like a certain Lieutenant’s Shikai and succeeded in slicing Yammy up more and more with his buzzsaw-like blade as well as his tiny knife. And the more Yammy got injured, the more apoplectically furious he got, and the larger and stronger he became.

Ulquiorra watched without lifting a finger. In fact, only half of his attention was on the fight. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Orihime healing Tatsuki, who now looked right as rain and was looking at the fight in shocked, terrified awe. ‘What is that power? Her soul had nearly been sucked out of her body. It’s impossible for a human to recover from that so quickly.’ He refocused on the fight as Ichigo cut off Yammy’s leg. ‘He is much stronger than you believed, Aizen-sama. Never mind how short of a time has passed since he even acquired his Bankai, he claims he’s not even using it at the moment. How is it possible for such a young and new Shinigami to slice through an Espada’s Hierro as if it is nonexistent?’ He narrowed his eyes, ‘Still, this level of power is not really anything special compared to Aizen-sama’s new level.’

“You shouldn’t have come here.” Ichigo glared at Yammy, who was kneeling before him and bleeding as Ichigo’s power rose. The man had been sliced to ribbons, left in only his torn hakama pants. Even his Zanpakutō had been sliced in half. His jacket was gone, revealing a gothic 10 tattooed on the man’s left shoulder. “And you shouldn’t have hurt so many people in my town.” He raised his small Zangetsu even as his four Quincy landed nearby, drawing a momentary glance from Ulquiorra before he dismissed them as trash. “Getsuga Tensho.” He said, before swiping down and unleashing a massive wave of golden Reiatsu at Yammy.

Ulquiorra appeared in a buzz of Sonido and caught the attack. He struggled against it for a moment, before realizing that he had underestimated the power behind it. He raised his second arm up and braced against it. “No.” He said sharply, before the power struggle ended with an explosion.

Ichigo’s eyes narrowed, knowing that hadn’t been enough. He could feel the bigger one’s Reiatsu dimming even more, but the smaller one’s was as strong as ever. “I know that wasn’t enough to kill you.” He called out, “You’re far stronger than that moron.”

The response he got was a light-green Cero. Ichigo growled as he raised his blades, stopping the doom blast cold and redirecting it to the sky with a grunt of effort. He glared back at the smoke, which quickly cleared up.

Ulquiorra was revealed, his jacket completely burned off, “Impressive.” He stated calmly, as if he didn’t have light burns on his person. “It has been some time since someone was able to injure me.”

Ichigo eyed the gothic 3 tattooed on the left side of his chest. His eyes went to the similar tattoo on Yammy. “What’s with the ink?” He asked curiously.

Ulquiorra brushed himself off, “Arrancar created by Aizen-sama are all assigned numbers, starting from ten. The numbers are determined by birth order.” He eyed Ichigo calmly, sure that his Resurrección would be capable of matching even Ichigo’s Bankai if he were to decide to release it. And even if he was wrong, his special surprise surely would defeat him. “The ten strongest however, are ranked by their power. We are the Espada.”

“I see.” Ichigo said, before smirking, “So if I kill you two now, Aizen loses two of his strongest soldiers, huh?”

“Don’t be a fool.” Ulquiorra replied, “Even if you were to release your Bankai, you would be incapable of defeating me. I would simply use my Resurrección in turn, and I guarantee this town would not survive that battle.”

Ichigo tilted his head, “You know, that’s a whole loada’ shit you’re talking for someone covered in burns from one of my half-assed Getsuga Tensho.” And then Ichigo’s Reiatsu spiked so much higher that Ulquiorra immediately drew his Zanpakutō in reflex. “Getsuga…” Ichigo sliced the sky in front of him, leaving that golden gash in the air. “Jūjishō!” He roared as he sliced downwards with his big blade.

Ulquiorra immediately created a new technique by coating his Zanpakutō with a Cero. He swiped at the attack, and his eyes widened as it was almost immediately cut through. “Enclose, Murciélago.” He called out, just before the attack hit him. A massive outpouring of Reiatsu that more than matched Ichigo’s erupted into the sky. A green beam pierced the clouds as Tatsuki sank to her knees, and had to be caught by Orihime and Chad, neither of whom were doing too hot either.

Candice, Meninas, Bambietta, and Liltotto sprang into action, surrounding the group and spiking their own powerful Reiatsu (which was more powerful than they remembered it being!) to shield them.

When the outpouring of Reiatsu cleared, Ichigo waited for the smoke to dissipate. He raised his eyebrow at the sight that awaited him. Ulquiorra’s helmet had taken a different shape, now sporting elongated ‘brows’ and covering his whole head rather than just one side. His overall appearance hadn’t changed much, though his wounds disappeared and his clothes had apparently changed completely. His hair was slightly longer and a bit wilder, but the biggest change was the giant, pitch-black bat wings on his back.

He looked back at Yammy, and for the first time, an actual expression crossed his face. “Unbelievable.” He turned back towards Ichigo, “To think you could not only force me this far without using your Bankai, but also kill Yammy while I was trying to prevent it. This…irks me.” His Reiatsu had protected him, and so Ichigo’s attack had slightly flowed around him. Two new canyons stretched out behind him, and Yammy was lying on the ground in four pieces. “Aizen-sama was wrong about you, Kurosaki Ichigo. You are far more dangerous than he expected.”

“That’s some Reiatsu you’re pumping out.” Ichigo said, realizing that it eclipsed even his own. “Guess I’ll have to use Bankai.”

‘No can do, King!’ Zangetsu’s voice sounded in his head, and Ichigo almost stumbled.

‘What? What do you mean, “no can do?!”’ He asked his Zanpakutō in irritation.

‘Your Bankai was nothing more than a false shell of power I granted you.’ Old Man Zangetsu told him, ‘Just as your true power was unleashed, your fake power was lost. You must earn your real Bankai, as you have never truly challenged us. Only me, and even I was not at my full power.’

“Yeah, so tough luck, King. You haven’t earned shit yet.” He could feel the Hollow in his soul grinning.

‘Well…fuck.’ Ichigo glared at Ulquiorra, wondering if only his mask could match the Arrancar.

A flash of memory. “Resurrección: Segunda Etapa.” The crushing abyss of Reiatsu the creature before him pumped out as his true power was unleashed.

Ichigo shook his head and blinked rapidly, again not realizing that his eyes had once again possessed two sets of pupils and irises for a bare moment. His opponent didn’t catch it either.

Ulquiorra tapped the sky and opened a pitch-black hole in the air. “I see you understand. This is not the time for our battle, Kurosaki Ichigo. Too much damage would be done to this land.”

“And what do you care for Karakura, Ulquiorra?” Ichigo asked him, sheathing his blades.

“I do not.” Ulquiorra replied, “But Aizen-sama is interested in it. And so, I will refrain from damaging it without need.” He reached down and grabbed Yammy’s head, neck, and a small bit of shoulder, “It is a strange feeling I possess now. Anticipation.” He said, and a ghost of a smile crossed his lips, “I look forward to when we clash for real.” The portal closed on the Arrancar, allowing Ichigo to relax.

“What a pain.” He scratched the back of his head, “What the hell does he want with Karakura?” He muttered, before turning around. He smiled as he saw his girls defending his friends, “Thanks girls.”

Candice sauntered up to him and planted a kiss on his lips, “You’re welcome, stud.” She shuddered in pleasure as his left hand found her lower back and pulled her close. Orihime gasped in horrified shock at the sight.

Meninas strode forward, “He was quite powerful.” She commented airily, “And you were really hot.” She murmured in his ear before kissing him too. Ichigo embraced her as well as Orihime gaped, red-faced now.

Tatsuki’s jaw was on the floor. “Wh-wh-what the FUCK?!” She screamed.

Bambietta winced, “Jeez, that’s a pair of lungs you have on you.” She twisted her finger around and around in her ear.

Ichigo decided to try to lighten up the atmosphere with a joke, “Why do I have the feeling you’re more shocked about my girlfriends than the anime battle you just watched?”

“G-Girl-” Tatsuki swayed, before her eyes rolled into the back of her head and she collapsed into Orihime’s arms.

“Was it something he said?” Liltotto asked curiously, poking her with her toe.

-]|[-

“I have returned.” Ulquiorra said as he stepped into view inside Aizen’s throne room.

“Curious.” Aizen said, looking down at your subordinate, “I do not see Yammy.”

“My apologies, Aizen-sama.” Ulquiorra then surprised them by turning back and walking back into the darkness.

Murmurs erupted in the room as what remains of Yammy that Ulquiorra had grabbed flew into view. “What the fuck?!” Someone yelled out as Ulquiorra stepped back into the light.

“I’m afraid your calculations on this Kurosaki Ichigo were very inaccurate, Aizen-sama.” Ulquiorra replied to the murmuring of the room.

Yet despite the death of one of his Espada, Aizen seemed almost happy. “Well, this is surely unexpected. It seems surprises are in good supply these days. Show us. Show us all of it.”

“Yes, sir.” Ulquiorra said, before calmly and without so much as a grimace of pain, tore out his left eyeball. “Please take a look.” He crushed the organ, and instead of spewing blood everywhere like a normal eye, it turned into a dust-like substance which quickly spread through the throne room.

The Arrancar, Gin, Tōsen, and Aizen all breathed it in, closing their eyes. And then Aizen’s eyes snapped open, and for the first time, he frowned, “How…intriguing.” He said softly. ‘How is that possible? It appears to be the same as when I touched the Hōgyoku, leading to my great increase in power. But he couldn’t possibly have gotten his hands on it. How has he done this?’

“How is this possible?” Tōsen blurted out Aizen’s inner thoughts, “The boy was incapable of conclusively beating Kenpachi a mere few weeks ago. He also failed to kill Kuchiki, who was able to leave the site of their battle under his own power and interfere in his sister’s execution later.”

“Moreover…” Grin still firmly on his face, Gin sounded amused, “That ain’t even the same Zanpakutō I saw at the gate. It is similar, for sure, but he never had a second blade, and the colors were wrong.”

“You’re soft!” A man with icy-blue hair snarled, “He forced you to use your Resurrección and you let him live?”

“You heard my reasoning, Grimmjow.” Ulquiorra stated without emotion, “The fight between us would have destroyed much of Karakura, which would have ruined Aizen-sama’s plans.”

“And instead, you’ve left an enemy at our backs.” Grimmjow shot back, “When you have permission to kill, you kill, coward.”

“Don’t be a fool.” A dark-skinned woman with silver hair had her arms crossed beneath her bust. Her jacket was so short it completely exposed her underboob. “Ulquiorra had the right of it. Had Karakura been decimated, it would set Aizen-sama back centuries until a new Jūreichi formed.”

“What did you say, Halibel?!” Grimmjow ground his teeth as he stared at the woman.

She ignored him, “Moreover, the Bankai is said to increase a Shinigami’s power by five to ten times. Had that fight escalated to that point, the very real possibility exists that Ulquiorra would have failed to emerge victorious.”

“No, that isn’t quite right.” Aizen finally spoke again. He had his cheek on his fist and looked amused, “You were forced to unleash your true power, and yet you seemed unconcerned with the possibility of him using his Bankai.”

“I was.” Ulquiorra said tonelessly, “The power of his Bankai would not have been enough to overcome me.”

“How confident of you, Ulquiorra.” Aizen smiled indulgently, “But I’ve felt the power of his Bankai myself. It was irrelevant against me, but it was not an insignificant jump. Based on the relative power multiplier compared to his unexpected level of potency in this new Shikai of his, he would have eclipsed the power of your Resurrección.” He smiled, “It may even have matched the Reiatsu of our dear Primera in potency.” The old man amongst the Arrancar growled, clenching his armrests in fury.

Again, Ulquiorra felt irritation towards Ichigo, though it was only indirectly his fault. “He would have.”

Aizen raised his head off his fist, “And yet you say it would not have mattered. That he would not have been able to overcome you.” He smiled, “Have you been hiding an interesting surprise of your own, Ulquiorra?”

“I have not.” Ulquiorra denied. “It merely was something I’ve never felt the need to use before.”

“Show us.” Aizen commanded.

“We would need to move outside.” Ulquiorra sighed, “We are forbidden from releasing our Zanpakutō inside Las Noches.”

“Yes.” Aizen said, before clicking a few buttons on his throne. The ceiling above opened up, revealing the black, endless night of Hueco Mundo. The platform they all stood on rose, moving up swiftly in order for them to stand on the roof of their palace. He stood from his throne, “Go on, Ulquiorra. Give us a show.”

“Yes, Aizen-sama.” He stared up at the moon in the sky, before closing his eyes. “Enclose.” His eyes snapped open, “Murciélago.” A torrent of green Reiatsu shot into the sky, making the weaker Arrancar and even the weaker Espada feel as if gravity was crushing them down.

“So what?” Baraggan, the former God-King of Hueco Mundo and current Primera Espada asked arrogantly, “This level of Reiatsu cannot match my own.”

“Fool.” Ulquiorra said calmly, “You always refuse to look further than your own nose.” His power began to rise once more. Higher and higher it went, until even Aizen was looking surprised. And then his clothes began to disintegrate, shattering off of him like glass as a heavy, unnatural Reiatsu pressed upon them. At that point, even an Espada as strong as Nnoitra, the current Cuatro, started to sink to his knees. “Resurrección, Segunda Etapa.” Ulquiorra called out, before his entire body appeared to explode. The mere release of his power cracked the roof of Las Noches.

The Reiatsu Ulquiorra was pumping out was so dense it acted like a liquid. The green Reiatsu literally rained down on the assembled Arrancar. It both drenched everything and didn’t. They weren’t really wet, despite the feel of it. All of them were covered in it, except for Aizen. His new power shielded him from the ‘rain.’

When the smoke settled and the light show vanished, Ulquiorra was revealed. He looked much more animalistic than he had before, now covered in black fur everywhere but his chest and upper arms. A whip-like tail moved languidly behind him. He looked like a humanoid bat wearing no clothes, completely exposing his Hollow Hole. Said hole seemed to almost be weeping black blood. His eyes had turned yellow, and the sclera had become green. Finally, his mask had vanished completely, leaving him with two white bat ears coming off the top of his head like horns.

“What is this, you bastard?!” Baraggan snarled, taking a stomp forward.

“His Reiatsu is so thick and dense, it hardly feels like Reiatsu.” Halibel stared at him in interest. Her girls were shivering beside her, perspiring heavily. The air seemed almost thick and hard to breathe.

Grimmjow and Nnoitra were grinding their teeth together, furious that they were barely able to keep their knees from shaking.

Aizen looked positively elated, “Well now, this is interesting. It is almost as if you have achieved Bankai yourself.” Inwardly, he was almost put out. Had it not been for the power up the Hōgyoku had granted him, Ulquiorra might actually have been a fun opponent. His current Tercera Espada handily deserved the position of the Primera, and it wasn’t even close. At his current level of power, Baraggan’s Respira would be incapable of even touching the bat.

“I suppose you could call it the equivalent.” Ulquiorra agreed.

“And how did you achieve this, Ulquiorra?” Aizen said, before walking over, “You possess enough power now to even stand beside me.” He held his hand out, and while he did not touch the Espada, the fact that he didn’t unravel spoke volumes. Aizen had quickly learned how to reign in his power, as it would hardly do to dispose of his forces by mistake, but now he was not bothering to restrain it. He was nowhere near his full power, but neither was he holding it back.

“I do not know.” Ulquiorra stared at the moon, “Perhaps I have always possessed the ability. I just always knew I could go further than was believed. I merely know it as the form of absolute despair.” The weaker Arrancar who hadn’t been able to even stay on their feet readily believed it.

“Disappointing, but understandable.” Aizen walked away, “But if that is the case, perhaps this depth of power is merely something your comrades have yet to awaken for themselves.” He took his seat on his throne, “You may seal yourself once more.”

The platform descended as the ceiling closed, and Aizen smiled at the thought of what was coming, “Ulquiorra has given us quite a gift.” He said, eyeing each of them, “I challenge you, my dear Espada, to conquer the same hurdle he has.” He brought the Hōgyoku out and Baraggan began to gnash his teeth, “I’m sure this will come as little surprise, but I would like for you to call out your new ranks.”

Ulquiorra was unsurprised to find a Gothic 1 tattooed on his chest, where a 3 had once sat. “Primera.”

Baraggan’s voice sounded like two cinderblocks grinding together, and his teeth were in serious danger of cracking all on their own, “Segunda.” Like taking blood from a stone.

“Tercera.” Halibel revealed the 3 on her breast, before zipping up. Her Fracción were still too shaken to even protest their mistress’s demotion.

Nnoitra growled, before exposing the 4 on his tongue. Grimmjow had a 5 on his back. The Espada continued to call numbers out, ending with an ecstatic Cirucci Thunderwitch rejoining the Espada once more, this time as the tenth.

-]|[-

“So let me get this straight.” Tatsuki was pacing back and forth like a caged tiger. “Before last summer, you became a Shinigami.”

“Mhm.” Ichigo nodded indulgently.

“Those ghost stories you used to tell me when we were kids were actually real. Ghosts really do exist and they’re everywhere. And because they exist, sometimes they turn into monsters.” She didn’t really acknowledge his acknowledgement.

“That’s right, Tatsuki-chan!” Orihime was trying to keep her spirits up after the revelation that her crush had not one, but two girlfriends. Tatsuki was so frazzled that she didn’t even notice how strained her smile was.

“One of these fucks attacked Orihime and me before the summer, and she awoke powers too!” Tatsuki continued, “You guys then invaded the afterlife to save a girl I couldn’t even remember until that huge jackass started sucking out all of our souls!”

“The soul grows stronger when in mortal peril.” Meninas helpfully informed her.

She was ignored, “AFTER you guys managed to save Rukia, a megalomaniac revealed that she had THE McGuffin inside of her and he orchestrated the entire fucking thing just to steal it from her! And when you tried to stop him, he almost cut you in half?!”

“An accurate retelling.” Chad sounded amused.

“And to top everything off, before you can even relax from the ordeal back home, your soul gets attacked by a parasitic asshole trying to steal your power, just like he did six years ago to your mom which led to her getting killed by a Hollow! That pisses you off, so you pull an Uno Reverse on him, and then you start having girls fucking fall out of the sky, and you don’t even think twice before starting to date them?!”

“Oh no, he definitely thought twice. We had to wear him down.” Candice smirked from her seat on one of the rocks in Urahara’s basement.

“WHEN THE FUCK DID LIFE STOP MAKING SENSE?!” Ichigo wasn’t quite sure where Tatsuki had gotten that table from, but he would grade the flip that she gave it a ten out of ten. It even landed back on its legs! She looked just slightly mad as she pointed at him imperiously. “Teach me!”

Ichigo blinked, “Whuh?”

“What’s that look for, jackass?!” Tatsuki snarled, “I… I felt helpless! I never want to feel like that again! So fucking teach me!”

“Tatsuki.” Ichigo said flatly, “I regret to inform you, but spiritual powers don’t exactly grow on trees. You’re not a Shinigami and you’re certainly not a Hollow. What the hell do you want me to teach you?”

“Well, what about Chad and Orihime, huh? Or these chicks?” Tatsuki snarled, “What the hell are their powers?”

“An interesting question.” Urahara stated as he walked by. “And to be perfectly frank, we don’t know. Their powers do not match those of any others.” He snapped his paper fan shut, “Catnipp-san, McAllon-san, Basterbine-san, and Lamperd-san are Quincy.” He smiled at her, “Which you must be born as. Not to mention the fact that it risks you being linked to the King they escaped from.” Tatsuki flinched at his words, “So unless you awaken your own powers, I’m afraid there isn’t really anything we can teach you. And if you were going to awaken them by now, it would have been at the same time that you and Inoue-san were attacked before summer.”

“But…” Tatsuki started to protest, but Ichigo spoke again.

“Tatsuki.” He sighed heavily, “I’m a freak.” He said softly, “I’m literally every spiritual race combined. That is why I got so strong so quickly.” He looked at her, “I know you don’t want to hear this, but even if you did unlock some powers right now, you still wouldn’t be able to fight with us. Even the weaker of the two would have completely crushed Chad, who has had his powers for far longer.”

Chad flinched, “Ichigo…I…”

“It’s not your fault, Chad.” He looked over at his best friend, “But it doesn’t change things. If I hadn’t gotten in front of you…” He trailed off ominously.

Liltotto had no issues saying what needed to be said, “Based on your Reiatsu and his, if you had tried to fight the big guy with that arm of yours, he would have ripped it off without even trying.” She said blandly.

Chad was clenching his fists so hard they were shaking.

“You need some serious training if you don’t want to sit this fight out.” Ichigo told his friend, who clenched his jaw and gave him a look. Ichigo looked back at Tatsuki, “Maybe when this is over, we’ll be able to figure something out. Or maybe you’ll figure something out on your own. But until you do?” He sighed, “Your best bet is finding out if Urahara has anything to mask your Reiatsu, so you don’t get targeted.”

“This is BULLSHIT!” Tatsuki snarled and turned around.

“That’s reality, girl.” Bambietta said without a care. It’s not like Tatsuki was her friend. Tatsuki whirled around and glared at her. “You still haven’t figured out the way the world works. Even after seeing what Ichigo could do. It takes years to become strong unless you’re him.” She jerked her thumb at Ichigo. “Candi, Meni, Lili, and I have been training since we were still in our nappies. That green guy would have killed us. Full stop.” Especially without their Schrifts and Vollständig. With it, they at least stood a chance. “This isn’t a game. You might be strong for a regular human, but you are a regular human. The quicker you get with the picture, the better off you’ll be.”

“Are you really going to let her talk to me like that?!” Tatsuki whirled around to Ichigo, “I thought we were friends, Ichigo!”

“We are.” He sighed in irritation, “And that’s why you need to hear it.” He glanced at Bambietta, “Though she could have been less of a bitch about it.”

“Oh please, you think that was me being a bitch?” Bambietta snorted, “You might want to grow some thicker skin if that’s the case.” She shrugged at Tatsuki, “Take it or leave it. If you want comfort, that’s Meni’s job. Go rest your head on her tits.”

“Right.” Tatsuki snarked, before turning around and stomping away. Orihime hurried after her to help her up the ladder.

“And now that that’s settled.” Urahara grinned as he opened up his fan, “What did you learn about our enemies?” He looked at Ichigo.

“They’re strong.” He said flatly, “So strong, in fact, that just Ulquiorra would have been able to defeat several of the Captains. And he was only the third strongest. His… what did he call it? Did any of you catch it?”

“Resurrección.” Meninas replied helpfully.

“Right, that.” Ichigo frowned, “Why is it in Spanish…?” He mumbled to himself, getting some snickers. “He easily put out more Reiatsu than Kenpachi. By a lot.” He rubbed his chin, “Also, every time I cut that Yammy guy, it felt strange. Like I was cutting through tar or something.”

“That was likely his Hierro.” Candice chimed in, “Arrancar have iron-like skin to make them tougher. You just couldn’t feel it because you’re so strong.”

“Oh, thanks for confirming that for us, Catnipp-san! I suppose you learned about that in this aborted future you saw visions for.” Urahara said cheerfully, though the gleam in his eyes was kind of creeping Candice out. “How strong would you say that Hierro is?”

“It varies. Some have stronger Hierro than others, and not necessarily based on their strength. An Arrancar can specialize in it.” Meninas said, before standing. “Draw your Zanpakutō and try to cut me.” She told him in that soft tone of hers as her arm started to glow blue from Blut.

“Hmm. Awaken, Benihime.” He said, allowing his sword to transform as he slid it from its sheath. He then vanished and in less than a blink, he swiped his blade across Meninas’s arm. He did zero damage at all. “Hmm.” He mused to himself, tapping his shoulder with the back of his Zanpakutō.

“That was about the average for someone not in the Espada.” Meninas said, allowing her Blut to vanish.

“Not in the Espada?” Urahara asked sharply. Off to the side, the silent Chad clenched his fists again. He wouldn’t be able to even burst through a weaker Arrancar’s Hierro if that was the case!

“That’s right.” She replied, “That Yammy guy’s Hierro was probably five times tougher than that, and his was pretty weak.” She was spitballing a bit as she had never actually faced Yammy, but they had collected a good amount of data in their Daten. After all, they trained to overpower their enemies, and their defensive abilities would hardly have been useful if they had been weaker than the enemies the Shinigami had already defeated. Of her group of friends, she had the strongest Blut, and it was good enough to put Nnoitra’s Hierro to shame.

“Excellent.” Urahara sheathed his Zanpakutō, “That’s an excellent bit of data for us, McAllon-san. Thank you. I will have to send updated projections to the Seireitei. By their defense alone, these Arrancar far overcome our predictions.”

“You’re welcome.” She took her seat next to Candice.

“I’ll leave you to it.” He said, before looking at Ichigo, “Unless, of course, you feel like having that talk now.”

“I told you, Geta-Boshi, not until we’re all here.” Ichigo sounded irritated. Every damn time they came in, Urahara was trying to get the sneak peek.

“Very well…” Urahara sighed in more than a little bit of antsy irritation, “How long until the next one pops up?”

“Shouldn’t be long now.” Ichigo said, before glancing at Bambietta. She was stone-faced. “That’s why we’re here.”

“Excellent. Have a good day then, Kurosaki-san.” Urahara vanished.

“Good. He’s gone.” A new voice sprang up, and Bambi and Candice leapt away from it in shock. Candice ended up in Meninas’s arms, which just made Ichigo start to cackle.

“Holy shit, a fucking ninja cat!” Bambietta cursed, “Don’t do that.”

“H-Hey Yoruichi.” He said to the cat in between chuckles. “How have you been?”

“That’s all you have to say, boya?” Yoruichi sounded mad, “After you betrayed me like this?!”

“Ehh?” Ichigo blinked owlishly, “The hell are you on about?”

“Oh, it’s nothing…” Yoruichi glared at him, “Just a little bit of fun you’ve been having.” She huffed, her tail flicking, “I show myself naked and you freak out and act like a cherry boy and start demanding I put clothes on.” Ichigo rolled his eyes, “And then they get naked in front of you, and you ensure that you’re no longer a cherry boy. I thought what we had was special!”

“You were just teasing and having a laugh at my expense.” He rolled his eyes again. He stopped, and smiled, before glancing at Candice and Meninas, “Though if you care to try your luck again, maybe you’ll have better luck.”

“Ohohoho!” The queen bitch laugh did not belong on that manly voice. “Challenge accepted.” POOF. A cloud of smoke erupted from the cat, before she was revealed standing there, completely nude. Chad choked and looked away.

Candice whistled, “Holy shit, look at that ass! You go girl!” She held up her hand for a high five.

Yoruichi grinned, “Could bounce a yen off yours too.” She grinned and high-fived Candice, while staring at Ichigo’s roving eyes, “Finally decided to be honest with yourself, huh?” Her grin widened. “What do you think, Ichi-kun? Care for a ride?”

“Ask my girls.” Ichigo replied immediately.

“Ha!” Yoruichi laughed, “Good answer!” She glitched, and then was clothed, “So, what’s the deal with the huge power up?” She sat down on a fallen log. “You’re stronger now than when you were in your Bankai and it’s not even close.”

“Like I told Urahara, you’ll have to wait. There’s a load of stuff to go over and I’m not going through it all multiple times.” Ichigo said, before smirking, “You know, this is actually perfect. We can kill a bunch of birds with one stone. I need to train with my new abilities, the girls need to learn how to fight without their special abilities, Chad just needs to get his ass kicked until he can kick back, and we have a couple hours to kill before the next Quincy arrives.”

“Heh, I knew I liked you.” Bambietta was immediately ready to go, yanking out her sword, a bloodthirsty grin on her face.

“I suppose Basterbine-chan will be going first then?” Yoruichi asked.

“No.” He stabbed both Zangetsu into the ground, before standing. “All of you come at me at once.”

“I didn’t remember my precious Berry-kun being so arrogant!” Yoruichi mock-gasped, “You want to face all of us without even your Zanpakutō?”

“Yeah.” Ichigo said, before raising his hand.

Candice, Meninas, and Bambietta all froze, “Ah, fuck.” Candice whimpered, drawing a curious glance from Yoruichi.

“So why don’t we make this a little bit more fun?” He swiped his hand down and donned his demonic Hollow Mask. The torrent of Reiatsu was nearly choking Chad, making him sink to his knees.

“Oh, holy shit.” Yoruichi gasped, spreading her feet in order to keep from unbalancing. “Reiō’s fucking scrotum, that’s heavy! You’d kill Kenpachi in one move.”

“What is this?!” Chad managed to gasp out.

Ichigo chuckled, and his voice sounded like another voice was layered on top of it, “Long story short, I have Hollow powers too.” He glanced at Chad, “You just chill there until you can breathe again, Chad. Then come at me. Now…let’s see…” His arms lit up, but not with blue. The veins on his arms were black. “Oh good, looks like that does work.” The girls were having to bite their lips to keep from exclaiming that he’d corrupted their Holy Technique. “Let’s have some fun, shall we?” He vanished, and the only thing that saved Yoruichi from being taken out in one move was her instinctive activation of Shunkō, blowing off her orange jacket.

…

Orihime had been completely paralyzed by the feel of Ichigo’s Reiatsu when in his Hollow form. She had locked up so completely that she was frozen up on the ladder on her way back down from seeing Tatsuki off for over five minutes. When her body finally remembered how to move and breathe again, which took Tessai shielding her slightly with his own Reiatsu, she was very cautious as she made her way down to the battlefield.

She froze, horrified as she saw him for the first time. That… black hole feeling she got from his Reiatsu was only magnified when she saw him in all his horrific glory. He looked like Ichigo, other than the mask, but he felt so unlike Ichigo that she almost couldn’t reconcile the two in her mind. Tessai had to help her all the way, which led to a lull in the action. “Kuro-saki…kun?” She managed to get out, looking at him with fear in her gaze.

He turned around, “Oh, hey Inoue. Tessai.” He waved over, and it was almost comical and helped to stave off the terror she was feeling. “How’d she take it?” He asked as he blocked a punch from Yoruichi and ducked under a kick, before flinging her away and sending her crashing into Candice.

“Uhm… n-not that well.” She stuttered in reply.

He sighed, “I knew she wouldn’t. She’s just so damn stubborn.” He rubbed the back of his head in irritation. “Nothing to do about it now. We’ll make it up to her when we can. We’re training right now.”

“C-Can I join in?” Orihime asked, his words slowly helping her relax.

“No.” He said, and she gasped, “You’re too gentle for this, Inoue. You don’t like hurting people. You never have. Unless you can find your will to attack, you should focus on being our White Mage. That’s where you’ll find the most improvement!”

“…But!” Orihime tried to protest.

“We have plenty of fighters already, so don’t feel forced to do something you don’t like. Do what you do like.” Ichigo told her firmly, and she wilted a little, despite knowing he was right.

“Speaking of healing.” Yoruichi winced as she appeared next to Orihime, “Please get me back in action.” She held up her hands, which were shaking from exertion and were more damaged than Ichigo’s skin. “Damn, even in Shunkō I can’t hurt him. It feels like hitting steel! I’m the one hitting him but it’s my shapely ass getting kicked!” She whined.

“Okay!” Orihime was a little saddened that Ichigo wouldn’t even let her join the spar, but his words made her remember Tsubaki’s wounds back in the Seireitei. He had said much the same to her then. Was it really that wrong to not like to hurt people?

She started to heal Yoruichi, who sighed in relief. “Hooo, that’s the stuff, ‘Hime-chan.” She rubbed her chin, “Hmm, you’re not really restoring my Reiryoku though.”

“That’s a thing?” Orihime blinked in confusion.

That made Yoruichi frown, “Come to think of it, what do your Shun Shun Rikka actually do? I’m obviously healing but what’s the mechanism? Kaidō functions by restoring the victim’s Reiryoku and using that restored energy along with Kidō to heal the physical body. You’re totally backwards!”

“I had no idea!” Orihime gasped as she continued to work.

“Hmm, we’ll have to teach you properly then. That can only make your healing even more potent.” Yoruichi smirked, “But that’s for later. For now, get me back in action so I can go kick that smug mask off his face.”

“Right!” Orihime said and focused once more.

“Oi, Tessai! Get in on this too! I haven’t really faced a Kidō user before and I saw Aizen almost kill the wolf guy with that one Kidō that looks like a black box.” Ichigo called down.

“That would be Hadō #90: Kurohitsugi.” Tessai said… allowing the Kidō to surround Ichigo.

“Hooo!” Ichigo cried out as he shattered the box, “That felt like you were squeezing me through a toothpaste tube.” His mask was even damaged and showed half of his regular face.

“Indeed. You can liken it to being inside a black hole. Not quite the same, of course, but it gets the idea across.” Tessai commented, “The gravity inside is so powerful that it rips space and time to shreds. The fact that you were able to move much less shatter it is impressive.”

“PAYBACK TIME!” Yoruichi cried out jubilantly as she appeared next to him. His veins flashed blue, but her kick was so powerful that he was flung over five kilometers away, slamming into the ground and digging a huge furrow with his body. “Oh, that felt good!” She said cheerily.

“Great!” Candice said equally as cheerfully, “Now can someone come DIG ME OUT OF THIS HOLE SO I CAN GO FUCKING KILL HIM?!” She screamed as she tried to fight her way out of the crater Ichigo had put her in. “DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MUCH EARLIER THAN EVERYONE ELSE I HAVE TO GET UP TO MAKE MY HAIR LOOK GOOD, YOU BASTARD?!”

And then she was flung up, and away, landing in a heap. Meninas popped out of her hole, her arms still in the air from flinging Candice away. “This is…irritating.” She said softly. “I want my Schrift back.”

“Meni…” Candice glared daggers at her as she brushed the dirt out of her hair.

Yoruichi laughed as she landed next to her, “Girl, your hair looks great. I’ll show you some tricks if it’s really that much of a pain.” She flipped her own hair, “Nice and silky and it barely takes me five minutes in the morning.”

Candice gasped, “Really, Yoru-oneesama?!”

Yoruichi blanched, “No! I’ve spent a hundred years away from my brother calling me that! You’re not starting!”

Candice grinned, “Sure thing, Yoru-oneesama.” Yoruichi glared.

Bambietta and Liltotto landed, “Any ideas?” The smallest one asked. “Kind of pissing me off that we can’t even put a dent in his defense while he has the mask on.”

Chad, meanwhile, was looking at his arm. “Why does my power seem…happy next to Ichigo in his mask?” He clenched his fist, realizing his Reiatsu had increased by a tenth just from this short, fifteen-minute spar. That was far more than he had ever experienced.

“Well, that’s enough of a break.” Ichigo put his mask back on, “Time for round two.” He charged, appearing beside Chad, and punching at him. He was keeping his Reiatsu manageable for each person he was facing, taking it for his own lesson on controlling his now unreasonably strong power. After all, he couldn’t hurt his friends badly. Not even with Orihime on standby. That didn’t mean he was taking it easy on them, however. Chad blocked it with his arm and was flung away half as far as Ichigo had been.

“GOOD! TIME TO DIE! GALVANO BLAST!” Candice yelled, unleashing a Heilig Pfeil at him. She was really happy that if nothing else, she still had her lightning bolt arrows. The one thing that remained of the power she only had memories of now. Most thought that her arrows had been electric because of her Schrift, but the reality was they had always been like that, long before she was accepted into the Sternritters.

None of them believed for a second she had actually managed to hurt him and attacked once more. It was a good thing they were underground in a separate dimension, otherwise Karakura above would have been trembling with earthquakes for the next several hours.

-]|[-

Hey guys! Here is chapter 3 in pre-public form. (AKA, available to all paid members) If you've read the BIG chapter you've already read this.