"We will now pass judgement!" said one of the judges of the Central 46. "Former Squad 5 Captain, Sosuke Aizen. We sentence you to the lowest level of the Underground Prison 8: Muken, where you will remain for 18,800 years!"

Ten days had passed since Ichigo's last battle with Aizen, who was defeated and sealed by Urahara before being taken away. The proceeding took place in the underground assembly hall within the Central 46 Compound. Inside the dark hall, each of the Central 46 had a plaque with a number on it obscuring their face as means to identify individual members. Aizen sat bound to a chair by many black bands wrapped around him, where he was standing trial for high treason and a list of many other crimes.

Despite hearing what punishment he was being given, he had a smirk on his face and scoffed, "I see. The likes of you, passing judgement on me? It strikes me as a bit comical."

This statement, of course, offended the judges. "Traitor!" shouted one of them. "Pushing your luck just because you're immortal!"

"Restrain his eyes and mouth as well immediately!" ordered another.

"Increase his sentence to 20,000 years!" ordered the first judge.

"Yes, yes!" agreed another judge. Aizen showed no fear or regret, as he watched their reactions with amusement before the black band wrapped around his forehead lowered to cover his left eye, keeping him in the dark.

Within the shadows of the hall, Tamako was watching the whole trial unfold until Aizen was taken away, prompting him to disappear into the shadows and reappear in front of Asa, who was one of the rooms of the 1st Division barracks preparing her grandfather's medicine. "He has been sentenced to 20,000 years in prison." he reported while receiving a daifuku. "He's being sent to the eighth and lowest prison, Muken."

"I see." responded Asa softly. "Thank you, Tamako-kun." The said boy manifested into a dark purple miasma before he returned to her Zanpakutou. Asa looked out the window and stared ahead with many thoughts in her head, mainly about Aizen. No matter how hard she tried to follow what was the reason his plan that led him to his downfall, she couldn't understand why. She may have been the only person to understand him, but she couldn't figure out that reason; the reason for him to crave for more power.

'Aizen.' she thought with concern. 'What is on your mind? What are your intentions all this while?'

Even if she stood there and spend the whole day thinking, she wouldn't know the answer. Also, she had to bring these medicine to her grandfather's office where he would be. Lightly shaking her head to remain focus, she carried the tray in her hands and began making her way down the corridor that led to the 1st Division's office.

However, just before she could take a few more steps, she heard her grandfather yelled, "IDIOTS!" His voice was loud enough to cause the roof of the building to tremble, prompting the sparrows on top to fly away. Even Asa was caught off guard by his loud voice, as she nearly dropped the tray. She sneaked towards the door and saw three Captains standing before him, without an ounce of guilt on their faces as he scolded them.

"You lost your Captain's haori?!" he questioned angrily. "Tearing it is one thing, but losing it?! How can you look so nonchalant about it?!"

"Captain-Commander." addressed Byakuya. "Do not worry. It was just a cheap coat, so I will pay for it."

The said man slammed his staff to the floor, clearly not liking the 6th Captain's response. "That's not what I'm concerned about! And it wasn't cheap, you idiot! Listen! Battles aren't just about winning! What do you people think the Captain's haori is anyway?!"

"A nuisance." was Zaraki's reply.

"Cheap." said Byakuya.

"Fashion?" answered Shinsui.

Yamamoto glared at them before scolding, "YOU'RE ALL IDIOTS!" Asa had to hold the tray properly before it toppled out of her hands by the force of her grandfather's voice. "Listen carefully now! A Captain's haori is a symbol of Gotei 13. And of all things, you lose it!"

'Well, ojii-sama seems to be in good spirits.' she thought with a sheepish smile before it faltered into a smaller, gentler one as she watched her grandfather from far. 'It has been ten days since the battle. He lost his left arm, but his strength has returned, so I'm relieved. There's still no Shinigami in Soul Society who can take his place.'

Finally, after giving the three Captains a piece of his mind and sending them off, Asa was able to enter his office to serve his medicine, helping him collect the empty bowls when he was done before sending it back to the cafeteria to wash them and put them away. Now that she was done, she could return to the 10th Division barracks to complete her work. But when she was walking pass the 6th Division barracks, she heard someone calling her name, making her halt in her tracks to look at the person.

"Ichigo." she responded as she watched the said boy walk towards her. "What is it?"

"Do you have a minute?" he asked seriously.

Confusion was written all over Asa's face, for she wondered what could be so important that Ichigo wanted to talk to her about. Eventually, she replied with a nod before following him to somewhere outside of Seireitei, on top of a cliff where no one would find them. Asa found it odd that Ichigo picked this place instead of an empty room in the 6th Division barracks, or even in her Division when her Captain and Lieutenant were away.

"Why did you bring me here, Ichigo?" she asked carefully. However, before she even wait for an answer from him, she took a closer look at Ichigo and notice something weird about his reiatsu. It wasn't depleting or increasing; it was surely stable. But Asa she felt like it wouldn't remain this way for long. 'What's going on?' she questioned. 'What happened when he was in Karakura Town? Did Aizen do something to him?'

"Actually, I want to talk to you about Aizen." he said. Ichigo had his back facing her as was looking at the sunset when he said that, and turned around to look at her in the eyes that held confusion and surprise.

From there, he began telling her what happened when he returned to Karakura Town, where he found out his father was a Shinigami who said that he needed to learn the Final Getsuga Tensho, as well as the side effects of using such powers. He also told her of Aizen's powers when he used the Hogyoku on himself to achieve immortality and immense strength. At the end of the battle, Ichigo wasn't able to finish him off because his powers were fading, and Aizen wasn't able to make his move because the Hogyoku rejected him, giving Urahara to opportunity to seal him with a Cross Seal after knowing that it was pointless to kill him.

"I see." said Asa after listening to the whole story. She then looked at him with a smile and said, "It is a shame that there's a price you have to pay for powers that could counter Aizen's, but it helped you save everyone."

Ichigo didn't respond to that. Instead, he said, "My old man told me that the Hogyoku's power is to take in the heart surrounding itself and manifesting its desires. If the Hogyoku really rejected Aizen, could it be that Aizen lost his powers of his own will?" Asa's eyes widened with realisation, but she kept quiet as she let him continue. "After I attained enough power to battle Aizen on even terms, I was finally able to feel his sword. There was nothing but loneliness in his sword. If his powers were superior from the time he was born, perhaps he was searching all this time for someone he could regard as his equal. Then, ever since the moment he gave up thinking he'd ever find such a rival, he's been wishing somewhere in his heart that he could become a mere Shinigami."

"Ichigo..." trailed off Asa, who was finally understanding why Aizen went to such extent to achieve power from the Hogyoku, something that she didn't expect him to do. She knew his plans even though she fell into his traps too often and would notice them after some time, as well as the reason behind creating the Espadas and Arrancars; but she couldn't understand his reason for doing so. Now that Ichigo told her how he felt when clashing blades with him, she could get the bigger picture and understand Aizen better.

"That's not all." he suddenly said, interrupting her chain of thoughts. Ichigo had something important that needed to be said. When he was understanding Aizen through their battle, he found out something that he thought Asa should know. He was hesitant at first because he thought it wasn't important, but after hearing what Urahara had to say, Ichigo felt it was necessary. "There's another reason behind the loneliness I felt through his sword. I didn't have much thought about it, but I felt something - love. Or rather, pain." He needn't necessarily continue, for Asa already knew what he was talking about. But since Ichigo thought it was necessary to tell her what he saw, she didn't interrupt him.

"I don't know how to put this, but I saw you." he explained after feeling nervous of putting his words wrongly. "He liked you from the time you were his Lieutenant because you were the only person who understood him, and even saw through his Complete Hypnosis. You were the only person who could read through him and know what he wants. But because you were married to another man, he felt pain because he couldn't have the woman he only loved. So he created a plan to have your grandfather send your husband away for a mission, where he released an Arrancar to kill him as a way to get closer to you. But when he saw how much his actions hurt you, he felt regret so he sent you away for another mission, to help you recover. This might sound clique, but in his heart, he couldn't bring himself to kill you no matter what." Ichigo took a deep breath and said, "He loves you, Asa-san. Even to this day."

Asa could feel a pang in her chest, and she couldn't tell what it was. Guilt? Sadness? Pity? Which it was, she couldn't tell. Had she take a step back to see the bigger picture and not create a distance between them, maybe Aizen wouldn't feel so lonely because he would have someone that he could trust and openly share his feelings. Had she listen to him and truly understand what his intentions were, maybe she could've helped him see things in a different angle that wouldn't lead them to the mess he created. Had she been there for him, he wouldn't be the man he was.

"You should talk to him, Asa-san." suggested Ichigo carefully after noticing her solemn expression. "I think you should ask him how he feels if you want to know him better."

The said woman didn't respond, but she took a deep breath and looked at him. "Why are you telling me all these?" she asked softly.

Ichigo hesitated at first, but eventually, he replied, "Urahara-san told me about you and Aizen back when you were working together. When he told me how close the two of you were, I thought I had to tell you what I saw when I fought him." Initially, she wouldn't like what Urahara had done, but it's times like this that she had to thank him for spilling the beans to Ichigo. Asa gave herself a few minutes to think until she knew what she wanted to do.

"Thank you, Ichigo." she said gratefully.

The said boy gave her a small smile. "No problem." he assured. "So what are you gonna do next?"

"I'll visit him in his cell." she said. "I just have to wait for the right time to sneak in."

The smile on Ichigo's face remained. Giving her a nod, he turned around and began walking away. "Good luck." he said before leaving her behind.