To Undo it All

Chapter 2: Execution(Once Again)

"You're gonna have to do better than that if you're gonna get your sister back, Byakuya." You're also gonna need to get that light-post out of your ass. He narrowed his eyes as if he heard my inner monologue.

"Tell me why. Why won't you just give up? You keep trying to save Rukia again and again." I was too pissed at that to listen to what I had originally said, and instead growled.

"Aren't you her brother?! Why the fuck are you trying to kill her?! You should be protecting her!"

"Such a foolish question. Even if I did have the time to try and explain the principle to you, someone like you would never understand it."

"Someone like me doesn't need to! It's wrong!"

"It seems talking serves no purpose. Prepare to die." He focused his reiatsu into his blade in an attempt to overwhelm me. Luckily, even weakened, I had excessive amounts of reiatsu. I flooded my blade with bright blue energy, and the warring energies exploded, causing both Byakuya and I to slide back a few feet.

"There is only one path before me; I shall kill you, Ichigo Kurosaki, and then, once again, I will capture Rukia, and this time, I will execute her myself."

"I won't let you do that. That's the reason I'm here!" I roared before we dashed at each other again. My sword skills were awkward now that I was used to dual wielding, but my moves smoothened with every clash. My eyes narrowed as I focused on deflecting his strikes. While I had increased in skill greatly thanks to the Zero Squad, they had agreed with me that a berserker fighting style was most effective for my zanpakuto and their power. Since I couldn't currently use the power of Zangetsu, I had to partake in a battle of skill, and do my best to not get hit. After a particularly fast clash, Byakuya and I each shunpo'ed back. He seemed uncomfortably pleased.

"You have mastered the Flash Step." Oh, I get it. He doesn't want to admit I can actually fight. "But don't think that it will change your fate. It won't." He snarled.

"I didn't master Flash Step to save myself." I pointed the fake Zangetsu at him in challenge. "You want Rukia? You'll have to go through me. And your shikai isn't enough for that." 'King. His Bankai isn't enough for that.' "C'mon. I heard you earlier. You said you were gonna kill me first and then execute Rukia with your own hands."

"So I did." He acknowledged.

"And I'm not gonna let you do that. I'm gonna defeat you, Byakuya, if you don't take this seriously." Well, I defeat you anyway, but you don't need to know that. "I'm willing to risk everything. Are you?" he frowned. "You act as if there's some reason why it has to be this way. You say I wouldn't understand! You got that right! I cant even imagine what kind of monster would actually threaten to murder his own sister! As long as I'm here, you'll never say that about Rukia again!" my eyes glowed with Reiryoku. "Release your Bankai now, or I'll kill you where you stand." Originally, that had been a threat from a cocky teenager. Now it was a genuine warning thanks to the sheer amount of power I had.

"An empty threat. All your boasting and bragging will not change my mind, and it will not change Rukia's fate." He lifted Senbonzakura in his favored position to release his shikai. I narrowed my eyes. "Nor your own. You want my Bankai? Careful what you ask for. You will die, but it is a thousand years too soon for you to die by my bankai." The blade glowed pink, and the fake Zangetsu seared a violent blue in response. "Scatter, Senbonzakura." Both halves of Zangetsu and I snarled in unison. All three of us were insulted at the reminder from the nobleman about how weak we were at the time. Zangetsu unable to protect me, and me unable to protect my friends. I growled as I raised the cleaver and swung down. A violent wave of sheer destruction erupted out of the blade, and it tore past Byakuya, purposely only striking the outside of his arm. The pink petals fluttered to the ground as his focus disappeared, and his face was full of shock. The slash had carved a path into the ground, stopping a few feet past Byakuya. Pathetic. It felt good, knowing I was so much more powerful than what amounted to a scratch in the dirt. Blood dripped down the arm of the Kuchiki Clan Head into the shallow path I had created.