Prologue

Vibrant oranges licked the midnight blue sky, specks of yellow leaping up among the stars. The oranges turned to bright crimson near their base, which was the ablaze structure of an old temple. Outside sat a single man calmly, clad in black armor. His tangled black hair tied in a loose, low ponytail. Resting beside him was a blood red blade.

''How fitting that, even at the face of your death, you would remain so calm, Lord Nobunaga.'' A voice commented, approaching the black-clad man. Nobunaga slowly opened his eyes, lifting his head to see the man across from him. He had long, thin, violet hair tied back. He wore a white kimono with dark blue simple patterns.

''Akechi.'' Nobunaga stated, flatly. He stood, picking up the blade beside him. ''So you've finally come after all.''

''You knew this was inevitable, Lord Nobunaga.'' Akechi replied, holding out his arm. A blue light formed from his gauntlet, taking the shape of a bow.

''So, you've truly hated me all this time. How interesting.'' Nobunaga brushed his hand over his blade, causing a black flame to cover the surface of the sword. Akechi closed his eyes for a moment.

''No. Not always. The first time I met you, Lord Nobunaga, I believed in you. In your power, in your ability to lead. I felt for sure that you would be the one to unite this land.'' He opened his eyes, pulling on the string of his bow, making an arrow of light materialize. ''But my vision was clouded. Only now do I see. A demon cannot unite a land in a just peace!'' With that, he released the arrow. Nobunaga leapt out of the way. Akechi followed his movements, drawing another arrow. He fired once again, but Nobunaga managed to barely deflect it.

''Is a just war so much greater than an unjust peace, Mitsuhide?'' Nobunaga asked. Akechi took a sharp breath. For a moment he was silent, then drew another arrow, releasing it towards Nobunaga. Once again, he leapt out of the way, bringing him closer to the burning temple. Akechi continued firing the blue arrows, driving closer to the temple until finally he was inside.

''Forgive me.'' Akechi said softly, before slightly shifting his aim, and firing one last arrow towards one of the few pillars holding the structure up. Only now had Nobunaga realized that he had been driven into a trap, but too late. The temple around him crumbled, burying him in burning wood. Silently, Akechi turned on his heel, and walked away from the rubble behind him. It was done. The land was rid of this demon that would be ruler. Yet, in his heart, Akechi knew that his actions today would curse his name forever.

- 430 years later -

''And thus the officer Mitsuhide Akechi executed his lord, Nobunaga Oda. Can anyone tell me what this incident is called today?'' Asked the teacher standing in front of the large class.

''The Incident of Honnouji.'' One student responded.

''Correct. I hope you're all writing this down, as this information is very likely to appear on a test in the future.'' With that, the teacher paused, giving the students some time to write down the information on the blackboard. One student, however, didn't write anything at all, and just stared out the window. That particular student was an orange-haired boy by the name of Ichigo. His mind was more focused on his friend, Rukia Kuchiki. She had recently returned to her home, in the Soul Society. Though, forced back would be a much more fitting term. And it seemed, with her physical disappearance, all traces of her existence in everyone's minds vanished as well.

It wasn't until the high pitched ringing on the final bell that he even realized how late it was. With a sigh, he gathered his books, tucking them into his bag. He slung his bag over his shoulder after he was done.

''Ichigo! Wanna see who can crack this melon first?'' Yelled a brunette a seat behind Ichigo. Of whom, the initial reaction was a fist against the brunette's head. ''Ow! That's MY melon!''

''Whoops. Sorry, Keigo.'' Ichigo apologized, half sarcastically.

''That's okay! Cause I don't need to think anymore! Summer is here, and summer means the sea, cause the sea is where we're going! C'mon Ichigo! Ten days of girls and bikinis and all kinds of questionable, unsupervised activity!''

''Uh, sorry, but I already have plans.''

''What!? What could possibly be cooler than hanging out with me!?'' Keigo shouted. Ichigo just sighed and turned his back to Keigo, walking off, ignoring the stream of comments and complaints coming out of Keigo's mouth. Things were already stressful enough without having to listen to him. Just trying to keep his thoughts together, Ichigo left the building. He didn't get far before…

''Ichigo!'' Chimed a familiar voice. Ichigo looked over to see the perky, voluptuous, orange haired girl named Orihime.

''Orihime, what's up?'' Ichigo asked, as casually as he could manage. She skipped over with a smile. When she reached him, though, her expression turned serious very fast.

''Ichigo… Why doesn't anyone remember Rukia?'' Orihime asked quietly. Ichigo took in a sharp breath. She remembered! She actually remembered! But… How…? ''Ichigo?'' She asked after a moment.

''Oh, sorry. Hey. Let's talk somewhere else. Alright?''

''Okay.'' Orihime smiled. With a nod, Ichigo headed off, Orihime following shortly behind.