.oO0Oo... Leaving a Trail ...oO0Oo.

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DISCLAIMER: Bleach is owned by and copyrighted to Tite Kubo.

This fanfiction is written for entertainment purposes ONLY.

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Hisagi let out another exasperated sigh. It was the umpteenth one that evening. He had been training with Kazeshini all day but the zanpakuto spirit had been extremely difficult and spiteful.

"What does it take with you...?" Hisagi murmured in frustration, more to himself than anyone else.

'What does it take with you?' Came the stubborn hiss in response. 'It's not me that's holding back, it's you. Admit it: You're afraid.'

"Shut up." As agitated as he was, Hisagi could not help but contemplate the harsh words of his zanpakuto. That morning he'd stated that one of the two was a liar. Even now, as he sat upon the dead tree trunk, the bark scratching his leg mercilessly, he was only aware of the harsh hiss of Kazeshini's words, echoing around in his head. 'One of us is a liar', he'd said and Hisagi could only agree; no matter how grudgingly, he could only agree. As far as Hisagi saw it, there were only two plausible options; either Kazeshini was not really the merciless killing machine he made himself out to be, or Hisagi was—no; it did not bear thinking about. Hisagi could not bring himself to even think it. He liked to think of himself as a helpful, responsible, merciful person; the mere thought of the monster that he could become—should he let himself go—made him quiver inside. That's what he was really afraid of; the demon he could become, or rather, the demon inside that was waiting, begging to be unleashed.

'You're confused again, aren't you?' Kazeshini's brash voice piped up again, throwing Hisagi's thoughts into disarray. 'Ever since Tousen left you've been wondering what to make of yourself, haven't you? You're confused about your ideals; you don't know what to believe.'

This time Hisagi couldn't ignore the demon spirit. Kazeshini was right and there was no denying it.

'We can get stronger together—you and I—if you just stop holding back. Don't be afraid of my power; of your power.'

Hisagi just sat there listening obediently, unsure of what to say. Kazeshini was right and Hisagi could see the logic in his words but it went against anything he'd ever believed in. He was torn in two; torn between his captain's ideals and his zanpakuto's—his own spirit's –desire. Hisagi Shuhei was a broken man without a clue in the world how to mend the rift within him.

Just then, Kazeshini spoke up, more softly this time. 'Listen man; don't be so hard on yourself.'

"Hmmm..." Hisagi mumbled in response, in a state of deep thought.

Kazeshini sighed. 'Trust in me, your zanpakuto...' he reassured and the next words he uttered knocked Hisagi off guard, '...have more faith in yourself because I know that you can overcome this.'

Suddenly Hisagi sat bolt upright. Kazeshini's words—as simple as they were—had struck a chord somewhere and Hisagi felt something within him change. Something shifted and the fog that had long since been clouding his mind, cleared. Hisagi felt a surge inside him, resonating through to his very core. For the first time in a long, long time, he could see clearly. He could see the path ahead. He could see for himself with the clarity of his own sight, using his own eyes, rather than through the eyes of someone else.

For the first time in a long, long time, Shuhei Hisagi stood up and unsheathed his zanpakuto without even the slightest shred of doubt.

"Kazeshini..." he began, in an attempt to express his sudden change of heart to the spirit who had brought about the change within him. However, before he could say anything further, Hisagi was overwhelmed by emotion until the only thing he was capable of uttering was a mere "thanks."

From that moment on, it was decided; he would forge his own path in life, take him where it may. He would follow his own ideology; make his own mistakes; live his own life. He would not follow the path that had already been laid; he would go where there was no path and leave a trail.

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Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Hello dear readers! Thank you for reading to the end of this story :)

This is the first fanfiction that I've uploaded although I've written some Hitsugaya/Matsumoto before aswell as Shinji/Hiyori (I just haven't uploaded that yet). I would really appreciate it if you left me a review letting me know what you think! ^^ Any other Kazeshini fans out there? I haven't really seen many and I think that both Kazeshini and Hisagi are under-apreaciated as characters so I wrote this.

(for some reason I find it kinda sexy that Shuhei means 'soldier'! XD)

Anyway (I have a habit of going off topic lol) please review and favourite :)

**~ Dark-ShadowXx