Third Release- Kakusei

"Unghh…"

"You're finally awake."

Opening his eyes, Gai Nagareboshi sees Retsu Unohana standing over him.

"What the…?"

"You took quite a beating…"

"Yeah, no derp…"

Gai uttered these words in biting sarcasm. He felt as if he almost died several times in that fierce battle. But now…It was almost as if he never fought that devil woman in the first place.

"I feel like I didn't even take a hit…What did you do?"

"I am an expert with healing Kidō. Trust me, I can even revive the dead."

"But nobody dies here…"

(Author's note: NOBODY DIES IN BLEACH. Well, except the bad guys.)

"…That's beside the point. Kubo is as Kubo does."

"…You can't say that! You're breaking the fourth wall!"

Hitsugaya interrupted Gai and Retsu's conversation.

"…True, Tōshirō. If the fourth wall to break in the depths of Seireitei, then a terrible evil would be unleashed."

Looking at Hyōrinmaru, Hitsugaya sighs. In that instant, that devil woman had shattered his Zanpakutō with ease.

"Unohana, what about Hyōrinmaru…? She destroyed it."

"…Do what Kurosaki did."

Hitsugaya's answer was silence.

"…"

"It is not the end of the world. Discard the remains, and draw a new power from your soul."

Placing the remains of Hyōrinmaru down on a table, Tōshirō Hitsugaya, broken by the loss of his Zanpakutō, then begins to walk off.

"…Thank you for before."

Directing these words at Nagareboshi, Hitsugaya then leaves.

"You defeated the Envoy of the Organic with one punch…How did you…?"

"…I don't know."

These words were nothing but the truth. Not even Gai could comprehend what happened before. Knocking out an Arrancar with one powerful blow…Such a feat would be impossible for a regular Soul.

"…You're no ordinary Soul."

"What?"

"Several months ago…A man called Sōsuke Aizen aimed to transcend the boundaries between Shinigami and Hollow. When he faced the Substitute Shinigami, Ichigo Kurosaki after he trained in the Dangai Precipice World, he saw the result of that. Such power…It had a similar feeling to that of the Soul King. And your reiatsu gave off the same signature, Gai Nagareboshi."

After this shocking theory coming from this woman's mouth, Nagareboshi retorted,

"…Listen. I don't care what you think I am. I just want look after these kids…Nothing more, nothing less. I don't give a damn if you think I'm the "pinnacle of evolution" or crap like that. I just want to be normal."

"…I see."

Sighing, Retsu Unohana turned around. Gai would not accept her thoughts on the matter. Placing a calling card down on the table next to his couch, she began to leave.

"…If you change your mind, then follow the directions to the Seireitei inscribed on the card."

"Trust me, I won't need to."

"…You'll see, Gai Nagareboshi. You'll see…"

Letting out a mysterious chuckle, Retsu Unohana left. Bothered by this last statement, Gai quickly scrambled to his feet.

"Damn woman…What's she going on about?"

Walking over to where Hikari and Natsu are resting, Gai glances down at them, smiling. Suddenly, the twenty other children rush out of every opening, surrounding him.

"Gai-sama, what happened?"

"N-Nothing. It was nothing."

"I'm hungry…"

"It's cold…"

"I need to pee…"

Though Nagareboshi adored his adopted children, sometimes, it was too much.

"Okay, okay…Everyone, I'll sort you all out by alphabetical order. …Aka, Ao, Chidori, Dan…"

Several minutes later, Nagareboshi had finished counting the heads. With a bed-ridden Hikari and Natsu by his side, Gai then stood up.

"You're always hungry…"

Sighing, Gai began to walk off.

"I'll go get something."

Leaving, Gai picks up the remains of Captain Hitsugaya's Hyōrinmaru, thinking that he could pawn it off for extra money to feed everyone.

"Maybe this piece of junk could earn me some extra dough…"

Walking down the streets of the filth-infested Rukongai, Gai contemplates the standards of living there. This environment was unsanitary for his children. He thought that he might contact Retsu Unohana to see if she could move them to Seireitei.

"Damn woman…What was she going on about…"

Entering Rukongai's pawn shop, Nagareboshi places what is left of Hyōrinmaru on the counter.

"Whatcha got for me today, Nagareboshi?"

"A Zanpakutō."

The woman at the counter looks at the blade, unimpressed.

"Whose is it?"

"Captain Tōshirō Hitsugaya's Hyōrinmaru. It was shattered, so he gave it to me."

"…Hmm…"

Picking the blade up by the grip, the woman examines the blade, before handing it back to Nagareboshi.

"Nah. Not my cup of tea, Nagareboshi."

Desperate, Gai pleads,

"…Is it worth anything?"

"…Nope. Sorry."

"…Tch."

Irritated, Gai quickly puts the remains of the blade in his pocket before walking off.

"Dammit…Can't even pawn off this piece of junk…"

Disgruntled, Gai passes a trash can. About to drop the blade into it, he quickly withdraws his hand holding Hyōrinmaru.

"Why did I…?"

Hyōrinmaru had a sort of possessive effect on him. He wanted to get rid of the Zanpakutō, but at the same time, he wanted to keep the blade. Attempting to get discard the Zanpakutō once again, Gai stops himself again.

"Dammit!"

Screaming at the shattered Hyōrinmaru, Gai roars,

"WHAT'S UP WITH YOU!? CAN'T YOU SEE THAT I DON'T WANT YOU!?"

At that moment, the passersby look at him as if he was mentally ill.

"STOP STARING AT ME LIKE THAT!!"

Furious, Nagareboshi then storms off. Walking down Rukongai's food district, he reaches the backdoor of a shop. Entering and stealing as much food as he can, Gai then runs off.

"Alright, maybe that's enough…This should keep them happy for a few days."

Running back to his apartment, an explosion goes off behind him.

"…!!"

Rising behind him, a Menos Grande emerges. A high-leveled Hollow, Menos Grande were vicious demons, being the twisted visage of people who had died with hate in their souls.

"How did it get so far without anyone noticing…?"

Swipe.

With a swipe of its claws, the Menos Grande knocks Nagareboshi flying, spiraling into a wall.

"G-Guh…!"

Leaping into the air, the creature lands with a thud on top of Gai, causing a small tremor. Coughing up blood, the creature's eye was only slightly larger than Nagareboshi himself. At that moment, its pupil contracted, as blood dripped out of its teeth. Rearing up, it was about to devour Nagareboshi, before the remains of Hyōrinmaru began to glow in white light, the same color of Gai's reiatsu.

"What the…?"

At that moment, the shattered blade of the Zanpakutō became surrounded in white light before shooting forward, restoring the sword to its original form.

"It restored itself…"

Glaring at the Hollow, Gai Nagareboshi leapt up, pointing the blade at the creature.

"So you're Hyōrinmaru, huh…?"

No response. The greatest ice Zanpakutō in Soul Society did not react to Gai's question.

"Your heart's still with Tōshirō, huh…? Well, I don't care. You're going to help me purify this thing, and then I'll return you to that midget."

Spinning the blade around his arm, Gai Nagareboshi then ran at the Menos Grande.

"YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!"

Swinging the blade wildly at the Hollow, Gai found that the blade weighed a ton. After several seconds of hacking away at the creature, Gai had dropped the blade as it made a small crater in the ground. Still grasping onto the blade, the Menos Grande continued to stomp on Nagareboshi, causing him to scream in pain. Refusing to let go of the blade, Gai stood his ground.

"Dammit…! Damn thing! If we don't cooperate, then we'll both kick the bucket. I can't die…All of them…They're counting on me. They look up to me. I need to protect them, no matter what! If you won't pitch in…Then you'll have to live with the guilt of those kids having no-one to turn to. HEAR ME!?"

No response.

"SKRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!"

As the Hollow charged up a Cero, Gai smashed the blade into the ground and screamed at the Zanpakutō,

"COME ON, YOU PIECE OF JUNK!!"

At that moment, something truly magical happened. Becoming engulfed in light, Gai Nagareboshi and Hyōrinmaru changed form. Light surrounding him, Gai's attire changed in an instant. Gai now wears a small black shirt, shaped like a diamond; the collar is a thin strand of cloth, wrapping around his own neck, and on the sides of the shirt, there are two thin strips that connect around his back, being tied in a small ribbon-like fashion with two red, intersecting belts over his chest. He wears white hakama, with painted golden phoenix wing designs, tied with a green sash. A large piece of black fabric hangs from the center of the sash; embellished with the images of three origami cranes. Gai also bears two strips of blue cloth that drape over either side of his hips, along with a smaller, white strip of cloth tied around his waist, draped in the same manner. On Nagareboshi's arms are white bell-sleeves and two large, scarlet gauntlets, with a golden shell on the back of each hand. He also wears black sandals with black thigh-high socks. As the light subsided, Gai glanced up at the Menos Grande. Uttering the words,

"Yatte yaruze, Kakusei."

Hyōrinmaru entered Shikai. It took the form of a large broadsword. It has a gear-hilt that can slide off the blade and be used as a flailing weapon. It has an ornately etched base, but its most unique feature is that it has been specially customized with a motorcycle-like gear shift. No longer the most powerful ice Zanpakutō in Soul Society, Hyōrinmaru's identity was now different. Kakusei. The new identity of the Zanpakutō, newly awakened.