POV change.
So while Sora was currently in the middle of telling the strongest Hollow to chill down unless they wanted a bullet in their cranium, somewhere else in Hueco Mundo, a woman who could kill could be seen.
She looked gentle, yet probably had more bodies than most Shinigami... and by bodies, I mean kills. Get your mind out of the gutter.
Soft footsteps echoed through the ruins of Hueco Mundo, and with them came a familiar presence.
Unohana.
Calm, composed, and deadly as ever.
She silently tended to everyone's wounds, moving with the grace of someone who had seen too much death to be fazed by it.
"Glad you're okay. I would appreciate it if we could get a move on. The Gotei 13 is—" she finally said, her voice smooth but firm.
Sora, who was lounging against a nearby rock, arms crossed, just shrugged.
"They got one-shot."
Silence.
How the fuck did he know that? Wasn't he like, knocked out a few seconds ago, unable to say shit because he was in the gulag? How did he know that?
Also, Unohana should be the one who knows what happened to them. How the fuck did he know?
A collective pause from everyone present.
Then—
"How the hell do you know that?" Ichigo blurted out. How did Sora know that? He was sleeping in the sand of Hueco Mundo.
Byakuya, who hadn't exactly said that, shot Sora a sideways glance. His delivery had been far more... aristocratic. Refined. Noble.
"Gut feeling," Sora said, shrugging a bit.
"Are you implying that the Gotei 13 would lose to Aizen due to a gut feeling of yours?" Hm. Brother-in-law was quite eloquent in the way he spoke. How nice.
"Well, you see, not to brag or anything... but myself from like three months ago, give or take, was able to make a clone strong enough to somewhat contend with Yamamoto."
"The Captain-Commander did not release his Bankai."
"Yes... and I get that. But I can beat the version of myself blindfolded, and with one hand... and Aizen practically one-shotted me."
...
...
"How sure are you of your claims?"
...
...
{Report... Aizen Sōsuke has entered the Royal Palace.}
It seemed like fate was listening to their talk. As Unohana spoke with Isane, an image flashed on the screen.
Hm. The Gotei 13 laid out, beat up... damn.
"Hm..." Sora didn't say much. He about expected as much.
The realm began trembling... Sora felt a decently big Reiatsu... hm, neat.
Still smaller than his though... no, he wasn't overcompensating.
Fuck.
Aizen.
He was fighting Squad Zero.
Welp. It was time to go.
Unohana, unfazed, calmly stated, "Squad Zero exists in another realm entirely. We must reach the Soul Society first before attempting to—"
Sora exhaled sharply, tuning her out.
He scanned the Reiatsu signatures of Squad Zero and Aizen, pinpointing their locations. Using his knowledge of how Garganta worked, he searched for a point of entry.
Then, he turned toward Starrk.
A small smile tugged at his lips.
Yes, he was going to use Starrk to open a Garganta. He already had the coordinates. All he needed was for the portal to be opened. Sora didn't have every power in existence—he still had his base kit, just buffed.
Orihime got to choose what their transportation device was... so now, they were inside a dinosaur, Sailor Moon, Optimus Prime hybrid. Ichigo didn't say a word.
This was their ride.
Ichigo sat against a floating rock, getting healed. Uryu, mostly recovered, adjusted his glasses.
And then—
"Are you confident you can beat Aizen?" Ichigo asked.
Sora: "FUCK no."
Ichigo: "...What."
Sora shrugged. "Bro, did I stutter?"
Ichigo blinked, processing. "Wait—so you're saying you're not planning on using me as bait so you can land a hit on him?"
Sora tilted his head. "Oh... nah."
Ichigo: "...That 'nah' felt sarcastic."
Sora: "Okay, slight change of plans—"
Ichigo: "Oh for fuck's sake—"
Sora cut him off, pointing dramatically.
"We're jumping him."
Ichigo blinked. "...What?"
Sora smirked. "We're jumping him. Me, you, and Uryu. Squad Beat-Aizen's-Ass. Ichigo, you're the tank. Uryu, you're the strategist—teleporting us around. And me?"
He grinned.
"I'm the main DPS."
Orihime, who had been quietly healing Ichigo, perked up. "Oh! So I'll be healing?"
Sora snapped his fingers. "Exactly. You're our White Mage."
Ichigo's brow furrowed. "Hold the fuck up—I'm the tank?"
Sora nodded.
Ichigo's eye twitched. "So, what, am I supposed to just get lubed up and take all the damage?!"
Hm... his way of speaking had changed... did it have anything to do with Sora...? No.
The Sora virus was contagious... why was Byakuya putting on a mask? Come on, it wasn't like the dignified Byakuya would get infected by the best virus to ever graze the face of the Earth.
Sora sighed dramatically. "Fine. Sub-DPS. Pussy."
Ichigo: "...I fucking hate you."
Uryu: "I second that."
Byakuya, ever the noble, finally spoke. "Do you have a method to ensure Aizen's defeat?"
Sora's smirk faded slightly.
His silver eyes sharpened.
"Yes."
"Basically, while he is busy beating Ichi—I mean, while Ichigo draws the aggro, I hit him with my ultimate move, which in our last fight seemed to weaken the effect of the Hōgyoku. So if I get a good hit, his immortality becomes a non-factor, meaning he can be killed again."
Ichigo's ears perked up. He heard that.
Sora, while saying that, may or may not have been snuggling with Rukia... maybe he was testing the waters, who knows.
A/N Random scene I wanted to add but would feel forced if it was included.
Byakuya stood in his pristine, regal silence, eyes narrowing ever so slightly. His gaze flicked between Rukia—currently smiling with the faintest blush—and Sora, who was standing next to her like a guilty kid caught with a stolen cookie... shaped like Byakuya's dignity.
"You seem... oddly close with my sister."
Sora cleared his throat, straightened his back, and smiled like a man with 47 backup plans and none of them involved surviving this conversation.
"Me? Close? Nah—well, I mean, yeah—but like not in the 'buy a wedding ring' kinda way. I just miss her. That's all. Super wholesome. Like, Sunday school levels of pure."
"..."
The silence was loud.
Sweat began forming like spiritual condensation on Sora's forehead. He laughed nervously.
"Trust me, we haven't done anything too bad. I swear on Ichigo's soul."
Bad decision.
Suddenly—
CLANK!
Chains erupted from the ground, coiling around Ichigo's legs like judgment itself.
"WAIT, NO—NOT MY SOUL!" Ichigo shouted as he was dramatically yanked downward.
A glowing crimson rift cracked open beside him—Hellfire, raging with theatrical fury.
Sora's eyes widened as he immediately recognized the Reishi composition. This wasn't actual hell. This was just Ichigo and Uryu being spiteful little demons with a flair for stagecraft. Sora, being hyper-attuned to Reishi, caught the signatures instantly.
"Uryu's using Elementarschöpfung: Feuersturm," he muttered, deadpan, Yeah...since he was like the only other Quincy there attuned to Reishi to such a great degree. He alone could feel it.
Ichigo, meanwhile, was being dramatically dragged into the rift. More like he was pulled under the sand of Hueco Mundo...still, look like he was going to hell.
"Tell my sisters I love them! Except Yuzu, she still owes me money!"
Poof. He was gone.
Sora blinked.
Uryu walked past, dusting off his gloves, not even sparing Sora a glance. "Strange. I warned him about making oaths on corrupted souls."
Orihime came running in a panic.
"ICHIGO?! WHAT HAPPENED?! I—I LEFT FOR TWO MINUTES TO GET TEA AND NOW—"
"He's in Hell," Uryu said flatly.
Orihime screamed, nearly dropping her tray. "WHAT?!"
"He'll be fine," Uryu added, adjusting his glasses. "Probably."
Byakuya remained silent, watching it all unfold like he was trying to calculate whether Sora deserved to be stabbed or vaporized.
Sora cleared his throat again, now visibly shrinking under Byakuya's gaze.
"I mean, in my defense, this wasn't me."
Byakuya's eyes narrowed further.
"I didn't know that was going to happen. Like, I'd never swear on Ichigo's soul again. Maybe on Chad's. Nobody messes with Chad."
"...Coward," Orihime muttered, still glaring.
Sora, meanwhile, was now doing everything possible to avoid eye contact with Byakuya. He turned his back. Looked at a wall. Counted clouds. Tried to recite Quincy equations.
Byakuya took one step forward.
Sora immediately spoke to the wall.
"Wow, look at this spiritual density, so... dense. Yep. Fascinating. Very... wall."
Byakuya raised an eyebrow. "You're still not making eye contact."
"Eye contact implies mutual respect," Sora replied quickly. "And I have so much respect for you right now that I can't even look at you. It'd be disrespectful."
Byakuya blinked.
Rukia chuckled.
The fire pit hissed.