https://youtu.be/Fw02jUJznjk

Two fighters made contact as Zaraki and Cien attacked each other. The force of impact was felt through the town. As the battle raged on, Zaraki's spiritual pressure started to rise more and more.

Zaraki: Hey, you're pretty strong.

Cien: And you're just as strong as I imagined!

Zaraki swung his sword again, forcing Cien to block Zaraki's strike. Upon blocking, the strike was strong enough to cause Cien's knees to buckle. The rough road under Cien's feet crumbled as Cien's feet started to sink into it.

In response, Cien snuck one of his "wings" behind Zaraki. The appendage swallowed Zaraki whole and after a few seconds, the Kenpachi was spat out. The very same appendage spat out a mini doll that looked exactly like Zaraki. Cien held the doll in his hand as he chuckled to himself.

Zaraki: Huh? What's so funny?

Cien: Oh nothing, it's just... I now have your life in my hands, literally.

Zaraki: Can't say I understand what you're yappin' about.

Cien: This doll I hold in my hands allows me to play with any internal organ of yours that I see fit.

Zaraki: Does it now? So you planning on destroyin' them or somethin'? That's fine by me. I don't mind fightin' with some handicaps. All the more fun for me.

Cien simply stared in disbelief at Zaraki's lack of concern for his own health.

Cien: Well if you don't mind...

Cien opened the doll and pulled out the pancreas, crushing it.

...

...

...

But Zaraki didn't react.

Zaraki: Huh? Wasn't somethin' supposed to happen? Don't tell me you were bluffing.

Cien was confused.

Cien: *thinking* I was sure I crushed his pancreas. What about the liver?

Cien then took out the liver from the doll, crushing it with his fingers, similarly to the kidney. But just like last time, Kenpachi didn't react.

Zaraki: Now you're just foolin' around. I don't have time for this. I still got Azashiro to fight.

Cien's initial confusion started to turn into realization. Cien then chucked to himself once more.

Cien: I see... So your spiritual pressure is just that much larger than mine, huh? You've grown so strong that you've become immune to my ability. But no matter, I'll simply improve to catch up.

Zaraki: I'd hope so. The fight would be boring if you didn't get any stronger!

Zaraki wasted no time trying to cut Cien again, however, Cien used his tentacles to covered his body to protect him from Zaraki's sword. Zaraki continuously hacked away at the tentacles that Cien was using as a shield.

At that moment there was a crack in the sky. A garganta began to form behind Zaraki. The moment the Garganta was opened, Zaraki turned around in confusion.

Zaraki: Where did that come from?

While Zaraki was distracted, Cien tried to land a sucker punch, however, a cero was fired from behind Cien, pushing both him and Zaraki to throw the Garganta.

(Meanwhile) Urahara Shop

Roka quickly made her way to (Y/N).

Roka: (Y/N). Merlin did it. Both Cien and Kenpachi Zaraki have been successfully forced into the Garganta.

(Y/N): Good. Now all that's left is to get Azashiro in there.

Everyone, now including Chad and Orihime, were present.

(Y/N): I think now's a better time than any to get into position. Team A, get as close to Kenpachi Zaraki and Cien as you can without gaining suspicion. And Team B will meet at the nearest Garganta exit that'll lead to Hueco Mundo. Once everyone is in place, the plan will go just as we discussed.

Back with Zaraki and Cien

Cien and Zaraki found themselves in the Garganta after being pushed in by Merlin.

Cien: It seems that we had a third party observing us.

Zaraki: Huh... Guess I got too caught up in the fight to remember that I was fighting in the World of the Living. This works out I guess...

Cien then leaned forward as a black liquid exploded from his back. The liquid in question rained down, making contact with Zaraki.

Zaraki: Another weird technique of your's, huh? What does it do?

Cien: Just wait and see.

On cue, the liquid fell off of Zaraki and hit the ground. The liquid then split apart and took multiple forms of Zaraki.

Cien: How do you think you'll fare against a copy of yourself?

Zaraki looked at the multiple clones of himself on the battlefield. A huge grin formed on his face.

Zaraki: If I have to fight myself, then I simply have to overcome my current strength!

Zaraki then flash stepped, moving fast enough to cut down every single clone of himself in one swing.



Cien continued to make more clones but Zaraki wasted no time destroying them all.

Despite Zaraki defeating everyone of Cien's tricks, he was still calm and composed.

Cien: According to the data obtained when you slew Nnoitra in Hueco Mundo, cloning and remote organ destruction should have worked without a problem. But you've grown way past that data. It's outdated now, or maybe this just means my technique is inferior to Szayelaporro's.

Zaraki: Like I care. Are you done with your little tricks now?

Cien: Szayelaporro would be feeling hopeless right about now. He probably would've shaken in anger and fear when none of his intricate tricks worked.

Zaraki: Huh? Who's this Szayelaporro guy? Doesn't sound like someone worth my time if he'd be gettin' scared already.

Cien: You're right about that. Szayelaporro means nothing to me at this point. To be honest, seeing your strength firsthand has made me excited. I never would've experienced this if I'd kept trying to mimic Szayelaporro. You have my gratitude, Shinigami. That's right, I must thank you! Thanks to your tremendous strength, I have just now reached perfection! As a way of showing thanks, let me answer your question. That was the last of my tricks. From here on, this will be an all-out fight to the death without any gimmicks at all.

Cien's last sentence intrigued Zaraki.

Zaraki: Oh?

Cien: Let me warn you, though. I will use every means at my disposal to win, not just brute force. It may go against your style of hacking away at each other head on, but don't hold it against me, okay?

Zaraki: Hey, I could always end up slashing you from above or behind too, if the opportunity presents itself. Who gives a damn if I hold it against you. This is a fight to the death, aint it? No need to ask for my permission. How ridiculous.

Cien: I guess you're right about that. I apologize. My name's Cien Granz. The last name's tacked on, though.

Zaraki: Hey, we've got that in common. Same goes for my last name. I'm Kenpachi Zaraki of Squad 11.

As Zaraki got into another battle stance, he felt Cien's spiritual pressure rise exponentially. This was what he meant by "reaching perfection". Zaraki had a huge smile on his face, preparing for a worthwhile fight.

(End Song)

(Meanwhile)

Using the device Urahara created to use Garganta during the Hueco Mundo invasion, the two teams entered the Garganta to travel to Heuco Mundo. They opted to use this method, hopefully to not run into Kenpachi or Cien during their fight. (Y/N) was currently in Las Noches, ironing out the last few plans with his team.

(Y/N): Alright Orihime, stay far back. We'll need you to heal us if we get absorbed by Cien. If he damages any of our internal organs you can repair the damages. However if you get caught up in it, I don't think my healing is anywhere near as good as yours to repair you.

Orihime: Roger that.

(Y/N): Chad, keep close to Orihime to make sure she doesn't get hit by any stray attacks, however if you see a clear opening to land a devastating hit, don't be afraid to do so.

Chad: Sounds good to me.

(Y/N): Soi-Fon, the moment we get the signal that Cien is going to come through the Garganta, I'll restrain him with a double incantation and Hainawa and Rikujōkōrō. With him restrained, you'll have a free shot of Jakuhō Raikōben. I'll have Panzer be your anchor so you don't get blown away. That'll give us a huge advantage.

Soi-Fon: There's no way I'll miss.

(Y/N): From there, me and the rest of the arrancars will jump Cien and hopefully take him out. Any questions?

Nelliel: Understood!

Starrk: It's a simple plan... And easy to execute.

Harribel: Agreed.

Wiz: With all of us here, Cien will go down, no problem.

(Y/N) smiled before he decided to sit down in a meditation pose.

Soi-Fon: Don't tell me you're going into your inner world right now?

(Y/N): Yeah, I just need to ask my zanpakuto spirit a question. Don't worry, it won't be long.

After a few seconds, (Y/N) seamlessly entered his inner world. As (Y/N) opened his eyes he found himself in front of the floating palace that normally resides in his inner world.

"Long time no see, (Y/N)"

Turning around, (Y/N) saw Ankou standing behind him.

(Y/N): Yeah. It's good to see you again.

Ankou: Come, let's walk and talk.

(Y/N) and Ankou made their way into the floating palace as they conversed.

Ankou: So, you're looking for a way to acquire more power?

(Y/N): No. I can't acquire more if I can't properly control what I have now.

Ankou: I see. So you came here.

(Y/N) nodded before continuing.

(Y/N): It's obvious that my lack of control of spiritual pressure is because of my reliance on my reishi absorption ability. And it doesn't help that both summoning and resurrection consume a lot of energy. If I want to fight at my best, I need to have much better control of my spirit energy.

Ankou then took a thinking pose before snapping his fingers.

Ankou: Alright then, let's do a quick exercise.

(Y/N): Huh? Okay...

Ankou: I'm gonna ask you a few questions and I want you to give me an answer.

(Y/N): Alright...

Ankou: Okay, first question. How do you think Ichigo's Getsuga Tensho is performed?

(Y/N): Huh? I don't know... I've never done it nor should I be able to.

Ankou: The question wasn't whether or not you can use it, but how you think Ichigo performs the technique. Give me your best theory on how you think he does it.

(Y/N): Well, I guess he releases the energy as he swings his sword.

Ankou: While technically that is true, that's just about any projectile-like technique. Think about it some more.

(Y/N) thought about it some more.

(Y/N): *thinking* Getsuga Tensho... the name means Moon-Fang Piercer of the Heavens. Thinking about it now, the Getsuga Tensho does look like a crescent moon.

(Y/N) voiced his thoughts.

(Y/N): Does it have to do with the shape? Despite the Getsuga Tenshou being a projectile, it takes the shape of a sharp crescent beam. It cleaves through things before exploding.

Ankou: You're getting closer. Now think about it some more. How do you think Ichigo puts the entire technique together? What do you think he did to make Getsuga Tenshou take the shape and power that it usually does?

(Y/N): This is where I get confused...

Ankou: Think back to a time where you've seen Ichigo use the technique. Break down his stance and when the attack is released.

(Y/N) did his best to think of the steps.

(Y/N): Hm... Ichigo charges his spiritual energy and swings his sword in an arc. During the swing he releases the spiritual energy he stored through his zanpakuto which is where the Getsuga Tenshou gets its crescent shape from.

Ankou: Good observation.

(Y/N): So how does that help me?

Ankou: You just broke down how you efficiently use your spiritual energy.

(Y/N): Huh?

Ankou: Visualize the ability in question, add the necessary amount of spiritual energy needed for the technique, and shape the attack as you see fit. With no clear indication on what you want to do, you tend to use less or more energy than you intend to. In your case, you use too much. I'll show an example...

Ankou lifted his arm and casted Hadō #63. Raikōhō, however, the technique's range was significantly shorter than what (Y/N) was used to seeing.

Ankou: I was able to control the range and how far it went because I simply envisioned it and controlled how much spiritual energy I wanted to use to make it happen.

(Y/N): I wonder why it took me so long to even realize this...

Ankou: So far you've done this subconsciously with Kido techniques because you've always seen an example of it before you casted it. This meant you technically always skipped the visualization step. And that also goes for summoning. You envisioned the person you wanted to summon and did it, but you never really thought of it as a necessary step.

(Y/N): I see... But that still doesn't help me with Shunko or Quimera Parca.

Ankou: It does. You simply have to be much more creative. Think about it. Both Yoruichi and Soi-Fon's Shunko are of different elements. Why do you think that is?

(Y/N): Is it because they envision Shunko differently?

Ankou: Exactly. They followed the same principles and steps to use the technique but the way they envisioned the use of the technique changed the form it took. Now you can take that into consideration and copy one of them... or you can take your own path and find a Shunko best suited for you.

(Y/N) took in all the new information he got.

(Y/N): Then I assume Quimera Parca requires both me and Wiz to come to be in complete sync with our spiritual energy control and what we visualize the technique should be used for. We can't simply sacrifice a limb and combine our reishi by simply dumping it into our creation. There has to be some sort of consistency in the creation of our... "subject".

Ankou: Bingo. You two will have to reevaluate how what it is you want out of this technique in more detail and make sure you both put in equal value in your creation.

(Y/N): Huh? So it's like a lightbulb. Too much volts will simply overheat and shatter the bulb, making it useless. Then again that's pretty obvious. Too much of anything can kill you, no matter what it is.

Ankou: Give it as much thought as you need. Just combine the advice I gave you with your father's and I'm sure you'll find the answers you're looking for.

(Y/N): Thanks, Ankou. This has been really helpful.

Ankou: Eh, it's no problem really. Good luck with your upcoming battle.

(Y/N): Thanks. I'll need it.

Just as (Y/N) was about to leave his inner world, he turned around one last time.

(Y/N): Oh, and let Thanatos know I said "Hi".

Ankou: I'll be sure to do that.

And with that, (Y/N) left his inner world.

Back in Hueco Mundo.

(Y/N) opened his eyes and saw that everyone was still waiting for Cien to make his arrival.

(Y/N): Good, I'm back just in time.

Soi-Fon: Is everything alright?

(Y/N): Yeah. If anything, I feel great.

(Y/N) then turned to Wiz.

(Y/N): Hey Wiz, we'll need to reevaluate how we go about using Quimera Parca.

Wiz: Hm? Did you find something out?

(Y/N): Yeah. We still have some time. Wanna theorize for a bit.

Wiz: Are you sure it's wise to do so now?

(Y/N): We don't have anything to lose. Remember, we still have our signal.

(Y/N) lifted his index finger that had one of Roka's thread tied to it.

(Y/N): Once Roka pulls on the thread, we'll know that they're on their way here. We're on an invisible time limit so let's not waste it.

Wiz: Alright then. Let's start planning.

To be continued.

Things are finally picking up now. I wasn't this arc to be so long, but I'm soon to the end.