English is not my main language so yeah...
BLEACH and Naruto belong to their respective owners.
01
Standing in the air a safe distance away from Sokyoku Hill were eleven of the Gotei 13 Captains. Their attentions were on the other two who had been in an intense clash with each other. This had been going on for almost an hour, but the two combatants had only begun the real fight less than ten minutes ago as they released their Bankai. The dark gloomy aura of their Captain-Commander and the deadly chill one of the Tenth Captain overwhelmed their senses. It was forbidden for the lower rank Shinigami except for select few lieutenants to watch because of the high level danger around the surrounding vicinity.
It was not a show. They were there to be the witnesses to the final test for a new Captain-Commander candidate.
It all started a week ago during a regular meeting when their flamboyant Commander with his rather embarrassing charisma suddenly tried to persuade their youngest Captain to free him from his strict and boring duties as the main leader of the Gotei 13. It wasn't that much of as surprise though, considering that the Commander had stated several times before how the young prodigy had the potential to surpass him one day. Perhaps it was too soon for Shinigami standard. Kyouraku himself predicted it might take the boy a hundred year or so to be ready. However, it was impossible to overlook Hitsugaya's rapid growth in power since the Quincy Blood War. And no one could deny Toushiro Hitsugaya's unparalleled dedication to Soul Society.
In Shunsui Kyouraku's honest opinion, there was no point in any of this. To him, the young captain was more than ready. He admitted it had been amusing to watch the previous tests. But if he had any say in this matter, he wouldn't have been happy to pass up this last one.
The boy had become ridiculously strong. It was seriously beyond his expectation. He was still dumbfounded as he watched his Bankai's Ichidanme technique that was supposed to share the damages inflicted upon him with his opponent once again struck an ice clone instead.
"Splendid, Hitsugaya-kun. It's amazing how effective your Zanhyo Ningyo technique has become once you perfected it."
"I appreciate the compliment, sir. But would you please stop with the black spots attack already? It's nothing but annoyance, not to mention gross!"
The bleeding effect of 'The Pillow of Shame' technique itself barely did anything since the got frozen immediately, but the visual effect was truly horrendous. To be honest, Shunsui felt kind of sorry about it. But there was no choice left for him. It was very unwise to make any direct contact with the completed Daiguren Hyourinmaru so he could only rely on deception and ranged attacks to keep up so far.
"Is it my fault there's so few attack that work against you? We've started with children games at first, and unsurprisingly an old man like me couldn't keep up with you who has just grown up recently. Getting drown together with an ice master is out of the question. And there's no doubt my trusty thread would be frozen, and be useless as soon as it touches you."
"Just get rid of the horrid things already before I freeze you solid! Shikai... Hyou..." Toushiro had already begun the four seconds of building up power.
"Okay! Okay! A nice evening like this is much better spent drinking with Rangiku-chan anyway." The extend of his injuries and weariness finally registered to him as he deactivated his Katen Kyokotsu: Karamatsu Shinju.
"Good. The fight is over. No one wins. You keep your position. Get back to work and stop bothering me."
At that moment, there was nothing Captain Hitsugaya wanted more than getting back to his quarters for a necessary bath after enduring the most unpleasant battle in his life. He should've known better though that it wasn't over yet. He should've noticed the Commander's mischievous smile...
"Ahem! Attention please, everyone! The ice age has come! The inauguration for our new Shotaicho is in -"
"MAYURI-SAMA! WE HAVE A PROBLEM!"
Even decades later, they all still winched every time they heard Nemuri Hachigo's unnecessarily loud shouting. It was quite tragic that such an adorable little girl had to be equipped with such an overkill vocal cord. Perhaps there was some kind of malfunction in the system during her creation. Her father/creator never admitted it, however. The Twelfth Captain was simply too proud for his own good, seeing how he could barely stand the girl's voice himself.
"Tune down your voice, you pesky shrimp!" With a curse, he flash-stepped back to the S.R.D.I. building.
Once the always irritated scientist gone, Shinji turned toward the others with a mischievous grin.
"Anyone wanna bet what it is this time? I bet my next month salary, the little brat misplaced Mayuri's makeups again."
Kenpachi laughed out loud. He had no money left since he had to give up all of his salaries for this year to compensate for the destruction he had made all over Seireitei during the new year celebration. But it wouldn't stop him from partaking in a bet, of course!
"I'll go with the brat blowing up the creeps' toys again! I'll do paperwork for three months if I lost!"
"I will donate one percent of Kuchiki family's wealth to you lowlifes if no one in the Twelfth Division ended up unconscious."
Most would've drooled over the amount of money if they didn't already get dumbstruck by the fact that the one and only Byakuya Kuchiki was willing to partake in a bet. However, it only seemed to make their Commander even more excited.
"Surely, they've once again turned everyone there into women! I'm willing to give up my position to Captain Hitsugaya if I'm wrong." He chuckled to himself but all he got in response were deadpan looks and dirty stares.
Suddenly, a hell butterfly appeared to inform them that the Twelfth Captain had requested an urgent meeting. Any trace of playfulness left Shunsui's face as he led them all to the meeting hall after giving his permission back via the same butterfly. The rest understood well enough to not take matters lightly when their Commander turned this serious. Everyone immediately took their respective place within the hall as soon as they got there. The head of the S.R.D.I. had not yet arrived, however so they waited in silence.
Soon later, the huge doors of the First Division's meeting hall opened again. And once again, they all winced.
"SORRY, WE'RE LATE -" Thankfully their eardrums were saved by Mayuri who quickly covered his assistant's mouth with a tape before he started.
"Pay attention, you fools! If you all have been paying attention to my monthly presentations, you should be aware that in the last sixteen months I've been studying a newly discovered world of the living that is somehow connected to the endless plains outside of Rukongai. I still can't believe that we weren't even aware of its existence until recently! Now, as I mentioned eleven months ago, I've discovered that without our presence, this world has been watched over by ancient/primitive Shinigami that I've explained to you morons during the same session."
To his irritation, his colleagues all gave him clueless looks.
"I swear if I need to explain myself again, I'll seriously inject you all with my prototype IQ boosters Mk 2!" He sighed as the clueless looks remained in place.
"Listen now! Those primitive Shinigami reside within the hidden layers of hell. They're all just mindless beasts that are barely smarter than Gillian, and only work on instinct. Their only purpose is just hunting down every Plus that has the potential to become a Hollow. However, unlike us advanced Shinigami, they work more like those Quincy trashes, eradicating their preys completely."
He briefly gave everyone a glare, challenging them to look clueless again.
"Okay. Be grateful I've decided to take pity on your pathetic minds. I'll give you a short recap. This new world is technologically less advanced than the main world of the living. I've come to the conclusion that it was caused by their reliance on ninja knowledge to run their civilizations." He paused abruptly.
Mayuri's eyebrow twitched as he noticed the relatively new Thirteenth Captain suddenly stood agape in wonder.
"Yes, there are ninjas in that world, Compact Kuchiki! You already showed that idiotic look the first time you heard this information fifteen months ago."
"Now, back to the matter at hand. Four hours ago, a particularly strong ninja utilized an interesting technique to mass murder a good number of a particular village's residences. The problem is twenty minutes ago those pitiful insects were resurrected with an unknown procedure that I could've taken note of if only I didn't have to waste my time earlier watching a barbaric tradition. Anyway, I hope each one of you at least have enough brain capacity to realize that not even us Shinigami are allowed to defy the course of death and life. You see the problem now?!"
It might seem nothing particularly dire for the moment, but it had all the potential to turn into a multi-realms crisis. The Commander understood this very well.
"Captain Kurotsuchi is right. Any knowledge about resurrection has to be eliminated before it could create even more imbalance to multiple worlds." He paused.
A murderous aura of a certain Captain had begun to engulf the meeting hall. It had become somewhat disturbing so he decided to address it.
"This is not a matter than can be dealt with brute force, Captain Zaraki. You may leave. None of us guessed correctly so go ahead do your paperwork now."
"No fighting then? What a waste of time. Damn those blasted paperwork." It was really the worst scenario for Kenpachi.
It felt much better then once the killing machine left. Shunsui could really feel the difference as an idea easily formed in his mind.
"I suppose sending one of us is enough for now. However, we need someone experienced, dedicated, intelligent, and most importantly, open-minded. Captain Hitsugaya, would you please consider it as an unofficial bonus test from me?"
He knew he was asking too much from the young Captain, considering how many bothersome tests they had put him into recently. But somehow, he had a feeling that his chosen successor might gain important experiences from this particular mission. Of course the boy didn't knew about this, and couldn't care less even if he did.
Toushiro just wanted to catch a break. It was getting harder and harder lately for him to remain professional, dealing with his ridiculous comrades.
"Last I recall you're the one who begged me to take over your position so you can go back lazying around again." He sighed in defeat then. "Yes, sir. I'll make sure it wouldn't get out of hand."
"That's good to hear. Good luck, Captain Hitsugaya. Everyone else, be prepared for possible deployment for yourselves or your subordinates if the situation is actually worse than it appears. Dismissed."
The Commander patted the young Captain's shoulder in assurance as he walk passed him on the way out. The others followed after him in silence, saved for the Twelfth Captain. The scientist was quite pleased with their leader's decision since he actually considered the Tenth Captain as his most reliable and least irritating colleague in Gotei 13. He briefly stopped near the boy who still stood in silence before he left.
"You have forty minutes to prepare, Hitsugaya. Head to my lab as soon as possible."
Toushiro decided to walk normally on the way back to his division, seeing that he had plenty of time. It was quite refreshing actually, and allowed him an opportunity to ponder about his life.
He was not an ambitious person. He had been content with managing his division that he had grown so fond of. Maybe he should ask Kyouraku to consider Kurosaki instead as a successor. That Substitute was the hero after all, had always been the one who saved the world. Though he called it bullshit if someone said that the guy was strong because of his desire to protect his loved ones. There had been plenty others including himself who had similar or even stronger desire to do such a thing. The most logical explanation behind the Substitute's power might be his complex hybrid powers. Or perhaps it was simply because Ichigo Kurosaki had been the one chosen to be the hero or protagonist in this theater of life. Did any of this matter, though? Nope.
Before he knew it, he already found himself in his office, being attacked by his dear Lieutenant. Thanks to Nanao, Rangiku already knew everything about her Captain upcoming mission. So to celebrate the prospect of a vacation - ahem - assignment to a brand new world, she outright gave him a healthy dose of her boobs to his face. The boy deserved it!
"Captain! What a good boy you are. You will take me with you, won't you? We know very well you can't work properly without me around!"
"No. And stop attacking me, Matsumoto! You're supposed to be my successor." With a bit of effort, he finally managed to pry her weapons off of his face.
He actually believed the woman could already passed as a Captain a long time ago, even earlier than Iba or Kotetsu, but her very strong loyalty to the Tenth Division made her not even bother to take the test. It was admirable truly, not that she cared about any of this, though.
"Oh, please! Don't remind me! I've been so busy as S.W.A. President since Yachiru's gone." Her definition of busy was so beyond her Captain's comprehension.
As usual, it was best to just ignore the busy woman so he just grabbed his basic Shinigami equipment for missions from his drawer before going to his personal quarter. It was rather disappointing though that he could only take a quick bath instead of his planned long one. Stupid mission. Or maybe it was him who had been stupid. If he used Shunpo to get back here in a second instead of lazying around in the road, he would've still had a good enough time for it. Thankfully, cleaning the dirt from the previous test wasn't as difficult as he feared it to be so he could quickly dress up and move on to do the rest of his preparations.
The best thing that had ever come from S.R.D.I. was in his opinion the portable compartment device that miraculously could contain stuffs far larger than its size. The small thing had no problem containing his equipment. There was no point to bring money to a whole different world, though. So he just took his leave after pocketing his trusty wallet-like device.
As soon as he arrived at the S.R.D.I. main lab, he was greeted by his fellow Captain along with certain little assistant of his.
"Good, you're early. The gate is ready. One more thing before you go. She's coming with you to give me regular updates and to aid you with technical matters."
Mayuri pointed at Nemuri Hachigo who stood with her head down slightly behind him. Toushiro noticed that the girl had always been oddly quite and rather shy around him in particular, very unlike her usual self.
"Very well. Why she, though?" It puzzled him a bit.
"She threatened to make my other subjects deaf if I didn't allow her to go with you. I swear if she ended up becoming another one of your braindead fangirls, I would terminate her immediately."
The poor girl flinched in an instant. It was heartbreaking to see such an innocent soul being treated like that. The young Captain gently took her small hand in his considerably larger one to make her feel a bit better.
"Come on, Hachigo. Ignore your father. I won't let him hurt you." Then together, they stepped into the gate.
To save time in the Dangai, Toushiro took the little girl into his arms before speeding through the dark path with Shunpo, unaware of her blushing face. A few seconds later, they got to the end of the tunnel, and he jumped through it without hesitation.
Interestingly, it was still late afternoon in this new world as he stood in the air above the destroyed part of the village. The destruction look quite terrible, but it was still nothing compared to what Seireitei suffered twenty eight years ago. Below them, people were busy helping each other, working together to salvage what were left of their belongings. It was rather intriguing though that for a place that was supposed to be filled with strong humans, he could sense not that many who could pass the minimum standard to sense spirits. Hopefully, he could still find one who'd be willing to provide them a temporary base.
Suddenly, the little girl in his arms squirmed slightly. It was not that she disliked being in this position, she just found it concerning that for some reason, her body felt so hot all over. It also puzzled her how she had difficulty talking barely above a whisper every time she was near the handsome Captain.
"Um Captain Hitsu- gaya... I can stand in the air too, you know..." She quickly hid her flushed face.
"Hm? Sorry, I was lost in thought. And of course you can, Hachigo. You're a Shinigami too."
As he put her down gently, he noticed for the first time that she stood just barely above his waist. Not bad for a girl her age, seeing that he had become almost as tall as Byakuya Kuchiki. It was one of the few things that he couldn't help being proud of.
For the next few moments, the Captain didn't move from his spot, with his little partner patiently waiting for his order behind him. Then just as he finished his thinking, he spotted something bright among the rubles of one of the destroyed buildings in the distance. And all of a sudden, a strong wave of melancholy overwhelmed his senses, and he was helpless against it.
It was a lone daffodil.
It was very familiar to him since that particular flower was his division's insignia. The Tenth Division had been his home since he officially became a Shinigami decades ago. The easygoing division that back then was led by his predecessor, the overly high-spirited Isshin Shiba, always welcomed him open arms. So the prospect of having to leave it once he completed this mission was kind of hard to swallow. The division had become a major part of who Toushiro Hitsugaya was. Nevertheless, he understood that changes are sometimes necessary in life.
"Stay here, Hachigo. I'll be back soon."
He supposed he could allow himself to be a bit unprofessional for just a moment as he flash-stepped toward where the flower laid. Before he knew it, he found himself holding the flower delicately in his hand, inhaling the sweet scent.
"So many memories..." How uncharacteristic of him, whispering softly to a flower, of all things.
To be fair, he deserved to have some melancholic moment like this after all the horrors he had gone through in his life. Alas, some people seemed to be too full of themselves to care about his predicament. Just like a certain blonde-haired girl for example.
"If you're not going to buy it, put it down please."
Toushiro quickly regained his composure, and calmly turned his soft but still cold gaze toward the source of the voice.
Pretty, just like the daffodil.
That was what instantly crossed his mind as the image of a teenage girl who seemed to be in a bad mood came into view.
Trouble.
And that quickly concluded his analysis as he took note of the shamelessness of both her attire and body language.
She was actually one of the locals with decent enough spiritual power to see him. Though it was pretty much doubtful that a typical annoying girl like her could be convinced to cooperate with a very important Shinigami representative like him. Still, as a gentleman, he was expected to respond if someone spoke to him. The typical response of most Shinigami in his situation would've been 'you can see me?' or something of the likes, but it had been so long since he got pass his amateur days. He even doubted he had ever asked such of stupid questions in his early career so...
"Nice shop." Well, it wasn't the nicest thing to say, but the disbelieved look on her face was simply priceless.
The next thing he knew, he found the front of his Shihakusho being grabbed roughly by the girl's dainty-looking hand. A scowl marred her pretty face.
"Listen here, pretty boy. I'm not in the mood to entertain your insensitive sarcasms. Take a look around! Everyone is grieving!"
The fuming girl continued to glare up at the stoic boy who was considerably taller than her.
Under normal circumstances, if she wasn't this troubled, she would've blushed madly as she fully realized how handsome he was up close. She almost couldn't believe how unearthly attractive he was, like it was impossible for a human to look that stunning. And somehow, she got the feeling that he actually possessed a power far beyond human comprehension. He was definitely dangerous. It was completely understandable for her to be this cautious with this stranger no matter how attractive he was after the horrible disaster earlier that day. She even dared say if hypothetically he miraculously decided to be nice and try to kiss her, she would push him away!
Well, not really... Maybe she could enjoy the kiss for a bit. Why not? Just to see how good he was at kissing, of course!
All the while, the young Captain only watched in amusement as he noticed her internal conflict. It had been so long since he met someone who dared to challenge him like this. Somehow, he found himself enjoying it to an extent and wanting to see more.
"No one dies anymore. Infrastructures can be rebuilt. No need to be over dramatic. I heard ninjas are resilient."
"We are. What are you anyway, carelessly stepping foot in Konohagakure with your high and mighty attitude? A samurai?"
She would never admit it, but she honestly thought that the black and white traditional attire along with the long katana strapped to his left hip made him look even more majestic. It was not that it would matter, though.
He couldn't care less about her opinion on his appearance. That didn't necessarily mean he would just disregard her. He knew better than that. And for that reason, he decided to be blunt to gauge her reaction.
"A Shinigami." Let's see whether she was worth his time or not...
"Well hello there, Mister Death God. Let me introduce myself. I am the Goddess of Beauty. Want a kiss?" Sadly, she wasn't, not even the least bit.
And someone seemed to agree with that...
"GET AWAY FROM CAPTAIN HITSUGAYA, MISS PROSTITUTE!"
Most people in Konoha should've been grateful they didn't have enough spiritual power to sense spirits or they would've been deaf after hearing the extremely loud shout from a certain Nemu.
Since there's no tag for Nemuri Hachigo, I decided to use Nemu Kurotsuchi's tag instead. She's basically the eight Nemu Kurotsuchi, right?
I would like to explain the power scaling in this story for a bit. I repeat, IN THIS STORY only. It's okay to disagree! (I will change nothing, though.)
A Menos Grande is roughly as strong as average Biju. So, top tier Shinigami such as Shunsui and Toushiro who could kill such gigantic monstrosity with almost no effort, in this story are much more powerful than mortal beings including any shinobi.
I decided to follow the basic rule that was first implied during Ichigo versus Kenpachi fight. That means one could not hope to even scratch an opponent that had a far superior spiritual power. Now, considering that Shinigami are spiritual beings, and some of them had spent decades or even centuries to gain their powers, it would be kind of silly if mere mortals who had only lived for some time could stand a chance against them in pure strength.
Anyway, the real focus here is the great crisis and the conflict between the two factions of Shinigami (Bleach version and Naruto version) and not some silly Bleach characters versus Naruto characters. Let's just enjoy the story!
