A/N: Hello. This is not an actual story, but a one-shot, because I just wanted to get it done and posted. This involves T. Hitsugaya, a trainer named Jake from Pokémon White Version (in the male trainer's outfit), and just before the battle with N Harmonia. Enjoy! Also, spoiler alert.
Frosted Ideals
"Give me one week to train, then I'll come back and face you."
"Very well. I will wait one week."
The two teens nodded to each other, before parting, going their seperate ways. It had been one hell of an ordeal to get to this point, to face the one who wanted to force all trainers to release their Pokémon... all because one didn't like the way the Pokémon were treated. Sure, he'd gotten an enormous support group in the form of what were more or less thugs – hey, they'd stolen Pokémon – in the other teen's eyes. He had to get his team stronger. They had to get ready for one of the biggest battles they were about to face. And in only seven days.
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Ugh... damn thing got me with a sneak attack from behind, Thought a man carrying a large sword, dressed in black and white. Sneaky bastard.
Master? Master! Cried a voice inside the man's head.
It was a familiar voice, and it was worried for his master – especially as the loss of blood kicked in and caused him to fall to the harsh, rocky ground face-first. Where it was assumed that nobody would notice. Normally, the source of the voice would be able to arrive and help, but the unconscious form and currently low power of his master prevented it. It seemed that one strong sneak attack that had slipped past his master's awareness was enough to bring their final defeat – and it was this factor that forced the voice to slowly quiet, and barely catch someone approaching.
"What the hell?" Exclaimed a clearly young voice. The owner of said voice came over, and nudged the unconscious boy. "Okay, completely unconscious, carrying a bloodied sword that should probably be cleaned, and terribly wounded. With no nearby hospital and no phone signal. Wonderful... Zebstrika, I need your help."
A creature that appeared to be similar to a zebra – aside from the fact that it was mostly colored black, the stripes were yellow, and it had a tail and a horn that looked like a bolt of lightning – soon appeared next to the teen.
"This kid's hurt all to hell," The guy said. Zebstrika looked about. "What? Can't you see him?"
Zebstrika shook her head. The teen looked confused. Then he sighed and explained what he was seeing to her, and thankfully, she didn't question it. Probably because he was a ghost or something and this world was used to ghosts. He needed to take care of this guy, and thankfully, he had the time to do so. So he told Zebstrika to take his pack and stuff so he could carry the guy. And the filthy sword. It didn't take long at all to set up camp and set about freeing everyone.
"So, can you guys see this person?" He asked his team. The only one to nod was Munna. The trainer sighed. "Weird. Well, whatever. He's a bloody mess and it's gotta be taken care of. Munna, could you use your abilities to maybe stop the bleeding?"
Munna nodded, and the teen, now identified as a trainer, quickly set to work. He pulled his black backpack off, and got to setting up lunch for the team. It took very little work, considering he was in a bit of a hurry to take care of the guy that had white hair and yet looked like a kid, and still carried a bad ass sword. The problem was that he was bleeding – badly. Munna was glowing a light blue color, attempting to clog the hole long enough for her trainer to tend to it. While the blood was still slowed and clogging much better, said trainer was quick to do that very thing. Grabbing a long roll of gauze, he set about quickly covering the wound. It took a full ten minutes, and by the time it was done, Munna was covered in sweat.
"Phew... great work, Munna, go eat and take a rest," The trainer said, smiling to her.
Munna smiled gratefully, while the trainer grabbed a clean cloth, planning to clean the blade covered with blood and grime. It was when he gently grabbed the hilt that he hissed and let go, catching the attention of the team. He frowned, and made to grab it again, going slower and a little more cautiously this time. Once more, his bare hand instinctively shot away from the hilt that threatened to freeze his phalanges.
"Ser... perior ser?" Serperior asked, worried for his trainer.
"Damn thing's trying to freeze my hand off," The trainer said, scowling. "I know that only Munna can see it, but this guy's got a blade, and it's govered in blood and dirt. I'm trying to clean the thing, but something is keeping me from doing so... hmm... Munna, are you possibly sensing a presence from it?"
Munna took a moment to expand her mental senses, before nodding. There was definitely a mental presence in the blade. The trainer paused to think, clean cloth still in hand. Then he asked something that he hoped would take little energy from her.
"I know you're still tired from helping to take care of the bleeding, but could you possibly connect my mind to the blade's?"
Munna scoffed, that was the easiest thing in the world. Connecting two minds? Please, she ate dreams, meaning she had to connect her mind to her target's. It was second nature to her. So, after glowing shortly, the trainer felt his mind connect with the one laying worried and alert in the blade's. In an instant, he grit his teeth.
Who are you? Demanded the cold voice. The cold was permeating the connection and into the trainer's mind.
Oh, shut up, He snapped. After nearly losing his hand twice, and with how stressed he was at what would happen at the end of the week, he wasn't in the mood. I'm not in the freaking mood. Just stop trying to freeze my hand off so I can take care of you.
Ha, you just want –
To steal you? If I wanted that, I would have already done it, but in case you haven't noticed, you're no further than a foot from your master – who, with the help of my friends, have patched up. So shut the hell up and let me clean you!
The cold voice paused. If the trainer judged it right, it was taking in its immediate surroundings.
Why would you want to clean me? The coldness in the voice hadn't warmed up, but the trainer got the intention that it was a natural thing to speak in this manner. And you never answered my first question.
Name's Jake Roina, The trainer replied mentally. And I'm cleaning you because the blade is coated in blood and dirt. Now shut up and stop trying to push me away, I'm just trying to clean you, for Arceus' sake!
Before the voice could retaliate, Jake gently picked up the handle and began to carefully wipe the filth off of the sword. The team, noticing that everything was fine, went back to resting up and finishing their lunch. The job was finished in a couple of minutes. Jake took a moment to put the thing back in its sheath, and decided that the cloth was absolutely a biohazard waste. It needed to be burned or something.
"Zebstrika, would you mind helping me burn this thing?" Jake asked the creature. "With the blood on it, it'll be a biohazard, and that's not a good thing."
Zebstrika nodded and proceeded to use one of her attacks to burn the cloth to a crisp. The minute lunch was over and the food had settled, they got right back to training – but they stayed by the unconscious form of the white-haired dude.
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Hey... I'm not dead, The boy thought as consciousness forced its way back into his mind.
And it's thanks to one stubbern teen, The voice in the back of his mind growled. That guy was as stubborn as you, Hitsugaya.
Hyourinmaru, Hitsugaya began, ignoring the lack of 'master' in those sentences. What are you talking about?
The kid's right in front of you, Master. Just look. He took care of your wounds and even cleaned me.
Hitsugaya would've raised an eyebrow, if it weren't for the fact that he masked his emotions perfectly. Hyourinmaru could easily sense his interest, but that was because the dragon was his Zanpakuto. Damn thing wouldn't shut up sometimes.
I heard that, Master.
Hitsugaya decided to roll his eyes in time to open them and see two... okay, one person, and one creature fighting. He was left confused, but refused to show it. The moment the person noticed, he called for a stop, and Hitsugaya realized that it was a training spar.
"Well, sleeping beauty's finally awake," The teen grinned. Hitsugaya's left eye twitched – before he paused.
"Wait, you can see me?"
"If I couldn't see you, would I be talking to you?" The deadpan tone made the captain's eye twitch again. "Now don't move, I already bandaged you up and moving too much will stress the wound."
Toshiro would have looked over the job, but he was caught up on the fact that this live human had done it as he sat up and leaned against a nearby tree.
"You did it?"
"And I cleaned that sword of yours," The teen said, pausing to listen to the snake-like creature. "Yeah, you can take a break. Everyone's sparred today, so we'll rest for a while before moving on. Anyway, that blade of yours is stubborn as hell. Almost froze my hand off a couple of times before I convinced it to let me clean it of the gunk on it."
Hyourinmaru, you let him touch you? Hitsugaya asked his Zanpakuto, frowning.
Damn kid didn't give me much of a choice, Hyourinmaru growled. He just told me to 'shut up and let me clean you'. Then he did it before I could stop him.
Hitsugaya drew his blade and looked over the cleaning job. The teen in front of him, impressively, didn't even flinch. The shinigami was, privately, impressed by the cleaning job. Not that he'd admit it out loud.
"Normally I'd ask how you got a hold of a sword that has its own mind, but I'm not really in the mood for that right now," The teen said, getting the captain's attention. It was easy for Hitsugaya to see the look of determination in the kid's eyes. "My team and I have something big to train for, so I won't be able to keep an eye on the wound for long. We've gotta move to meet someone tomorrow, actually... meaning we don't have time to waste, guys. Let's keep sparring! Who's up?"
"Sim, pour, simipour!" Simipour said, jumping forward. The teen nodded and prepared.
Hitsugaya watched as the teen and the odd creature sparred. He silently wondered how he'd gotten here. Last thing he knew, he'd been fighting a strong hollow, when another strong one had masked its reiatsu and attacked him from behind. Wherever he was, though, it was quite interesting to have creatures like the ones the teen was now sparring. Seriously, a monkey-looking thing with blue fur? And something that looked like a boulder with eyes and was actually moving? Not even Zanpakuto got that creative. When the soul reaper tried to stand, a small, pink creature noticed and started to yell at him in its native language, thus catching the teen's attention.
"Arceus..." The teen rolled his eyes. "I told you to stay put! The wound will open if you move! Just stay still."
"I'm perfectly fine," Hitsugaya snapped. The temperature in the area dropped slightly from the kid's insolent tone. "And dammit, if you're going to talk to me, call me by my name – Hitsugaya."
The kid wasn't dumb enough to be confused by the change in temperature. He knew that it had something to do with the white haired person in front of him. If it kept dropping, it could hurt some of his Pokémon.
"Raise the temperature back to normal," The trainer warned. Hitsugaya noticed how quickly the kid had figured it out. "It was perfectly fine before you got annoyed, so you must have some ability to control it. Now put it back to normal before it gets low enough to hurt the Pokémon. Or I will have Munna put you to sleep."
Said pink Pokémon came forth, eyes glowing threateningly. Neither trainer nor psychic-type were going to allow their friends to get hurt. Toshiro decided, after much debate with Hyourinmaru, to do as the teen asked. Whether the kid knew it or not, his spiritual pressure had risen sharply when he'd felt that his team was in danger.
"Are you at least going to tell me your name?" Toshiro asked, tone cold as the surrounding temperature returned to how it was.
"...Jake," The teen answered. "Jake Roina."
The young tenth division captain watched as the human returned to sparring with the odd monkey. He wasn't all that happy about being treated like this, but at least it wasn't like being in the fourth division. Captain Unohana could be really scary sometimes. Hyourinmaru just growled his agreement to that one. The youngest person to make captain so far was being forced, by a teenage human, to sit and relax while his wound healed.
Matsumoto would never let you live this down, would she? Hyourinmaru chuckled. What wonderful blackmail!
I hope you know it goes both ways with how he force-cleaned you, Hitsugaya replied. He smirked when his Zanpakuto fell silent.
"Okay, that's enough for today," Jake said suddenly after the last team member had sparred. They were all exhausted. "It's dinner time anyway, so you guys go ahead and relax. You've earned it."
The team of – what did the human call them? Pokémon? – smiled to their trainer and did just that. They found their favorite spots in the meadow, and with a collective sigh of relief, sat down and relaxed. They were exhausted. All morning spent practicing their moves, then all afternoon sparring with their trainer... they were very happy when Jake gave them their dinner. Each and every one of them, including the normally stoic Gigalith, ate quickly. In moments, the food was gone. Jake laughed and, upon popular demand, gave them a second round. This one went slowly, and it gave the trainer enough time to wander over to a tree, jump up, grab a branch, and disappear into the leaves.
"Let's see... hmm... ah! Perfect!" The trainer's voice wandered down from where he'd disappeared. When he jumped down, he had a hold of what appeared to be a large blueberry. He tossed it to Hitsugaya. "Eat it, you'll feel a lot better."
Toshiro raised an eyebrow, and seemed to almost refuse. The trainer sighed.
"Just eat it," Jake said. "Why would I patch you up and then waste my efforts by poisoning you?"
He's got a point, Master, Hyourinmaru said.
Hitsugaya sighed and took a bite. Even he, with his iced emotions, couldn't help the frown at the taste. Jake grinned.
"Not poisoned, but horrible tasting," The trainer said. Then he got a straight face. "Finish it. And don't make me force-feed you, because I will if I need to."
Hitsugaya scowled and decided that if he wanted to avoid this human's wrath, he should just listen to him. He finished the odd blueberry in record time, then with a scowl at the seed, tossed it to the trainer. Jake caught it easily and planted it right where he stood.
"It's an Oran Berry," Jake said. "You should be feeling a lot more energized now, right?"
Toshiro paused. The kid was right – he did. That berry had damn good medicinal properties. Not to mention it was surprisingly filling... or perhaps the unsavory taste killed his appetite. It took very little time for dinner to be finished, and Jake just let his team relax for the rest of the day. He had a few questions for the oddly dressed person in front of him, anyway.
"So what exactly are you?" Jake asked, raising an eyebrow at the style of dress. "And what are you wearing?"
"I'm not allowed to say," Hitsugaya answered, tone as cold as always. Jake sighed and shrugged.
"Fine, whatever. But I'll warn you now – get up before I or Munna say and you will regret it."
Hitsugaya raised an eyebrow, almost challengingly. Jake smirked and looked to Munna, who gave a dark grin. Before the captain knew it, the little pink thing's eyes glowed blue as it looked him in the eyes – and in seconds, he fell asleep. The Hypnosis was, thankfully, powerful enough to go through to Hyourinmaru. Otherwise the Zanpakuto would have probably been quite furious.
"How long did you make it for? Until morning?" Munna nodded. "Alright, so it's late, and now we can all get a good night's sleep."
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"Wake up!" Jake woke to this voice, filled with anger and frustration. "What the hell did your thing do to me?"
Jake's process of waking up quickened when he noticed how cold it was. He saw how the Pokémon on his team that were weak to cold – Gigalith, Serperior, and Unfezant – were shivering heavily. The trainer was quick to get out of his sleeping bag, and knowing that the short person was standing over him and causing it, grabbed the captain. Hitsugaya didn't flinch from the glare that he was receiving, although he did take note of the rising reiatsu coming from the human.
"I thought I told you not to lower the temperature," Jake growled warningly. "If it stays this cold for too long, you could end up killing some of the Pokémon."
"Answer my question," Toshiro scowled.
"Not until you fix this. I can't answer knowing my family is in danger."
Hitsugaya paused at the way this human was so willing to fight a captain, all for these odd creatures. He reluctantly called in his reiatsu. The moment the place was back to how it should be, Jake let go of the soul reaper's collar, and went to check up on his team. They were a little cold, and wide awake, but after some breakfast and basking in the sun they'd be alright. After making sure they weren't badly hurt, the trainer answered the guy's question. Among other things.
"First of all, I told you to stay put," Jake said, scowling. Then he sighed. "But you won't listen to that, so I give up on it. I don't have time to deal with it. Second, she's not a thing. Her name is Munna. All she did was use an attack called Hypnosis, which forces the target to fall asleep. All she did was guarentee a good night's rest for you."
He's right, Master, Hyrouinmaru said. Hitsugaya noted that his Zanpakuto seemed to be just waking up. The Hypnosis must've been really strong to go through like that. I don't know how it affected me, but I haven't rested like that in quite some time.
Hitsugaya listened to the blade's spirit. Naturally, the ice dragon was right – neither of them had gotten that kind of sleep lately, and no, being knocked unconscious did not count as a good night's sleep.
"I'm going to ask that you eat one more berry," Jake said, tossing a big, yellow fruit to the captain. "It's like the Oran Berry, but better."
Toshiro took a bite, and scowled. He could detect a sweetness to it – but it blended in with all the other odd flavors. He forced himself to finish it, knowing that the human would probably have one of the odd creatures – Pokémon, the captain reminded himself – make him eat it. Once it was gone, he decided to pocket the seed and maybe take it back to Soul Society with him. Kurotsuchi would enjoy studying it and its medicinal properties. They could probably be helpful in a battle.
"If you're gonna save that berry, save a couple others," Jake said as he hopped up to a tree before quickly returning. He had a small green berry, and a small blue one that had light blue spots on it. "The green is a Lum Berry, it'll cure any status problems, like confusion, paralysis, poison. The blue one would probably appeal to you, since you appear to like the cold. It's a Yache Berry and tastes best chilled. It'll also weaken a foe's ice-based attack if eaten just before the attack lands."
Okay, now Hitsugaya was definitely interested in what other kinds of odd berries this place had. A berry that cures poison? Would that be any kind of poison, or a specific kind? He voiced this question. Jake shrugged.
"Anyway, with a Oran and Sitrus Berry eaten, you should have enough energy to leave to where ever the hell it is you came from that wears that stuff," Jake said. "My team and I have to leave. We've got a battle to get to."
A battle? Hitsugaya thought. He wouldn't admit it aloud, but he was curious to see it.
Perhaps we should go with and observe, Master, Hyourinmaru commented. We could watch and when we get back, have that Kurotsuchi creep show the memory at a captain's meeting.
That would definitely be a good idea.
"Would you mind if I went with you?" Hitsugaya asked, causing the trainer to shrug again.
"Why should I care what you decide to do?" Jake answered. Toshiro watched as the teen put the Pokémon into six little red and white balls. The trainer rapidly packed everything else up. "But if you're going to follow, you'll have to keep up."
With that, the trainer dashed out of the meadow. Toshiro sighed and easily followed, not even resorting to shunpo. The wound was already healed enough to not bother him as he ran, even with Hyourinmaru on his back. Those berries were something else. He found the human running as fast as he could towards what looked to be a series of cliffs and caves. At first, Hitsugaya was confused, but then the teen ran into a cave entrance without hesitation. Raising an eyebrow, the shinigami followed the boy into the cave, up two sets of inner stone stairs, and the captain caught sight of the human slowing down and walking outside. Following quickly, the soul reaper watched as the human looked about, attempting to decide where to go.
"This way," Jake said, without even looking at Hitsugaya. The captain wondered how the human knew he was there. "Silence your footsteps next time. Although the rocky turrain can make that tough."
Hitsugaya scowled as Hyourinmaru chuckled. How he'd made such a rookie mistake was beyond him. Then he had to watch as the teen, having made his decision, went to the right and entered another cave, causing the soul reaper to follow quickly. Jake was fast on his feet – for a human. This opinion was reinforced as the boy ran up several flights of internal cave steps, before finally stepping outside again. This time, however, Hitsugaya was right behind as the human stepped up to a cliff, as if contemplating jumping. Toshiro was about to ask what the teen was doing – when that suspicion became real, and the human seemed to jump off the ledge.
"What the hell is that idiot doing?" Hitsugaya cried, dashing forward. He paused when he saw the teen confidently sliding down the cliff, as if it were nothing. At the bottom, Jake turned and smirked at the white-haired shinigami.
"Can you keep up?" Jake teased, making Toshiro's eye twitch.
You would never live it down if a human beat you, Hyourinmaru snorted.
Oh, shut up!
The captain carefully jumped onto the sloped cliff, and found out how easy it was to slide down. By the time he landed, Jake was already vanishing into yet another cave entrance. Once inside, Hitsugaya noticed several of the sets of stairs, and Jake was already up the second of three. The captain sighed and followed. If he'd known it would be this much trouble, he would've gone straight to shunpo. As it was, though, he caught up as Jake exited the series of caves again.
"Nice to see you kept up," Jake grinned. "But it's not over yet."
"What?" Hitsugaya said, just before the human dashed off.
While it was true that Jake didn't go into another cave, he did run down a lane of dirt after going under an archway. Toshiro sighed and went after the human. Why did he have to be in such a hurry? He found the trainer stopped in front of a large, impressive-looking building.
"Welcome to the Pokémon League," Jake introduced. "I doubt these guys can see you, so you can just sneak in."
"Of course they can't see me," Hitsugaya snapped.
Master, what's that huge building surrounding the place? Hyourinmaru asked, brining the castle that was around the league to the captain's attention.
"Roina, what the hell is that building behind this place?" Hitsugaya demanded of the human. Jake's gaze hardened as he presented his badges to the security man in front of the league's entrance.
"You'll know soon enough," Jake answered, as the man moved out of the way. "Now come on, there's no time to lose."
Toshiro followed the teen, catching up in time to see four glowing spots surrounding a statue that was also glowing. Jake went up to the statue, and stated his name. In moments, the entire thing moved, and left a spot open that the trainer was quick to get on to. Hitsugaya caught up as the platform quickly moved down many feet.
"What were those glowing spots for?" Toshiro asked. When he returned to Soul Society, he better return with information.
"They mean that I've beaten the Elite Four, but it was for nothing," Jake said. The tone in his voice said he didn't care about that right now. "Right now there are bigger things to worry about."
Hitsugaya watched as the teen seemed extremely impatient – and just before the platform stopped at the bottom, the human had jumped off and started racing up the steps. Apparently he was really in a hurry. The captain forced the twitch of his eye down and just decided to chase after the damned human that seemed to enjoy pushing his leg muscles.
Good exercise, right, Master? Hyourinmaru snickered.
I thought I told you to shut up.
You should know that never works by now.
Hitsugaya lost control of his eyebrow and let it twitch. Then he realized that Jake was vanishing out of sight, and the platform had been lowered for several moments now. He snapped at Hyourinmaru for distracting him even as he raced to catch up. If he was going to watch a battle that would probably be good to report on, he needed to catch up. Noticing that Jake was out of sight, he decided he was tired of regular human running – and was pleased when the shunpo didn't aggravate his wound. He walked into one of the most prestigious places he's been in, but was able to keep his surprise down. It was shiny all to hell, though. There, Jake was talking to a man that had some of the wildest and brightest hair Hitsugaya had ever seen.
"Alder, has anything changed over the week?" Jake asked the man.
"No," Alder said, shaking his head. "He's been waiting for you just as he promised. Just up those steps."
Jake nodded and turned to the out-of-place black staircase. Hitsugaya just now noticed it, having been focused on the exchange. The trainer walked over to it, and the captain followed. Jake began to slowly climb, allowing Hitsugaya to actually keep up, as they exited the room through the hole in the ceiling.
"That was Champion Alder," Jake explained as they left. "He's a trainer that's stronger than all of the Elite Four. Normally, I would've faced him, but... things are different."
As they exited the league – through the ceiling, oddly enough – they approached the ridiculously large castle-like building surrounding it, and arrived quite quickly despite their slow speed. The minute they entered, however, Jake grit his teeth at the six men that stood there and demanded what they wanted.
"We're here to stop you from getting to our lord! Prepare for a battle!"
Six on one? That's hardly fair, Hitsugaya scowled.
Agreed, Master, but we aren't allowed to do anything about it,Hyourinmaru pointed out. That was what the captain didn't like.
"Hold it!" Cried a voice, before eight different people ran in.
"You!" Cried the same sage that had originally spoken. "The Gym Leaders...!"
"That's right! Jake, go on ahead! We'll take these guys on – because not only are there more of us, but we're stronger!"
"Right!" Jake exclaimed, relaxing slightly and racing off, making Hitsugaya run after him.
"Where are you going now?" The captain demanded. He was really getting tired of all this running.
"Presumably, to the top," Jake answered, he paused as they went up the set of stairs he spotted a man that was a Plasma grunt. "What is it? You want a battle?"
"My lord would like you to know you are welcome to visit the rooms," The grunt said with a slight bow, before getting out of the way.
Jake blinked before shrugging and beginning to walk through the hallway. Toshiro followed, giving the grunt's outfit a look. They both paused when they heard a woman's voice from the second room they walked by. The woman, with purple hair that reached her shoulders and a flowing purple dress, walked out and offered to heal Jake's team. The trainer smiled and gratefully accepted the offer, which was completed in moments. He thanked the woman, before moving on.
"Who was that?" Toshiro asked.
"Honestly? No clue."
"What kind of battle are you going to be doing?" Now, Hitsugaya didn't usually ask questions, unless he was learning something that would be useful to tell the captain-commander back in Soul Society – and this was just one of those occasions.
"Well, if you don't know, you'll just have to wait and see," Jake smirked. "Besides, words don't do it justice."
The conversation halted as, after they'd gone up another flight of stairs – how many steps was that so far today? – they spotted a room full of what looked to be toys. They went in, and found out that was exactly what this room was full of – toys, basketballs, and even a skateboard ramp. As they went in, a man in pure black appeared out of nowhere, making Hitsugaya instinctively grab Hyourinmaru's hilt. Jake didn't even flinch.
"Welcome to our lord's room," Said the man, before vanishing.
"So this is his room? Why the hell would he live in a room full of toys?" Jake commented. Then he shrugged indifferently. "Never mind, there's no time for this."
"Why can't you slow down?" Hitsugaya said. Even Hyourinmaru was getting tired of it.
"Because I need to find N," Jake answered.
'N'? As in, the letter? Hyourinmaru wondered, just as confused as Hitsugaya, as said captain raced after the running Jake. Upon going up one last flight of stairs, Zanpakuto watched as Jake spotted another man in a large coat and overzealous method of dress... and was that green hair?
"My lord N is waiting just inside for you," Said the man. "I want to see if you really have what it takes to become a hero!"
"A hero?" Hitsugaya asked Jake as they entered upon the man's invitation.
"Later, Hitsugaya," Jake said, walking forward and stopping a large, square battlefield. Toshiro stayed only a little behind. "Hello, N."
Toshiro looked forward to see a man no older than Jake getting up off a throne.
"Welcome to my castle, Jake," N greeted, beginning to make his way to meet them at the battlefield, long green hair swaying behind him. "What I desire... is a world for Pokémon, and Pokémon alone. I will seperate Pokémon from people, so Pokémon can regain their original power."
What is this guy talking about? Hyourinmaru asked, Hitsugaya mentally shrugging as Jake remained silent.
"It's time to settle this once and for all!" N exclaimed, as he continued to make his way to Jake. "My determination is absolute! I will prove the value of my beliefs – even if it means my Pokémon friends get hurt. Since you've come this far, I believe you are equally determined. If that's so – then prove it to me! Show me the depth of your determination!"
Toshiro frowned. The reiatsu of both Jake and this N guy were slowly increasing – and it showed no signs of stopping. N paused about a third away from the battlefield, and had a sad look in his eyes.
"You cam all this way to battle me... but Zekrom is not responding," N said sadly. "You haven't yet been recognized as the hero, have you? How disappointing. I actually kind of liked you a little. Through our many battles, I got the feeling that you might be a trainer who truly cares about Pokémon!"
Jake, at the mention of Zekrom, had taken a black stone out of his pack and looked at it thoughtfully. Hitsugaya and Hyourinmaru decided to remain silent and watch. The captain noticed N glance at him, before continuing.
"But I was kidding myself. The idea of trainers getting to know each other through battles is ridiculous! You have two options. Challenge me to a fight you can't win, or leave this place and watch the birth of a new world where Pokémon are free of people!"
"I came here to battle you, and that's what my team and I are going to do!" Jake said to N, as he arrived at the battlefield.
"I see... very well then. Reshiram! Come to me!"
Hitsugaya instinctively grabbed Hyourinmaru's hilt when the wall behind the throne was smashed into pieces, but the shinigami had to let go in favor of throwing up a wall of his own reiatsu around himself to keep the explosive heat ball that had appeared away from him. Upon the heat dissipating, the captain reigned in his spiritual energy, and noticed that the water that had surrounded the walkway had been evaporated – and standing directly in front of N was a large, dragon-like creature covered in white fur and a gigantic tail.
What... is that...? Hitsugaya wondered silently.
I don't know, master... Hyourinmaru admitted quietly.
They would never admit it aloud, but they were both in awe at the beauty and power of the creature. Jake put down the arms he'd thrown up to protect himself. When he did, he watched as the black stone in his hand pulled away, flashing multiple times – before it began to expand.
"Your Dark Stone is... I mean, Zekrom is..." N said quietly, watching in awe as the ball of electricity stopped growing, and the aforementioned creature stood there – before dispelling the electric current.
Zekrom roared before quieting and glancing around. She knew instinctively that Reshiram was right behind her – but what caught her attention was the Soul Reaper and trainer in front of her. She spared a glance for the captain, before looking Jake in the eyes.
"Zekrom and Reshiram..." N began to say, Jake not looking away from the legendary Pokémon in front of him, Toshiro's hand itching to grab Hyourinmaru. "They were once one life. One Pokémon."
What! Hitsugaya exclaimed to Hyourinmaru, whom was equally surprised. The captain's mask hid it from their face, but the fact that these two completely different looking creatures were once one... N continued to speak.
"Complete opposites... yet the same. They only appear before the hero that they recognize... ah... I see. You really are a hero, too. I'll tell you what that Pokémon is saying. Zekrom is saying, 'I want to battle with you. Try to make me your friend and ally.' It plans to test you... to see if you really are worthy of pursuing ideals. I am also curious to see how powerful you are. Now, catch Zekrom, and make it your ally!"
"Heh... you wanna test me, huh?" Jake smirked to Zekrom, Reshiram and N taking several steps back to accomadate for the upcoming battle. "Fine with me! Gigalith is first!"
The large creature on four legs made of rock appeared, and upon command, launched an attack. Toshiro was busy with how quickly the beast had been summoned – and with how much reiatsu was pouring out of the large black Pokémon... and, more importantly, Jake. N was also giving off a large amount, enough to be above the amount that Reshiram was giving off. When these humans reached Soul Society, they could easily make captain.
Master, we need to memorize their reiatsu signature, Hyourinmaru cut in, as Jake returned a tired Gigalith and sent out a fresh Pokémon – Munna this time. Zekrom was quickly put to sleep with Hypnosis. When they enter Soul Society, we should be there to meet them... if they are left to roam in Rukongai...
Things could go crazy there, Hitsugaya agreed, understanding where his Zanpakuto was going with this. Plus it will help us learn more about them.
As the captain noticed, Jake's level of reiatsu was currently matching that of Zekrom's – however, it was quickly rising above said creature's. Even so, they were so similar, Hitsugaya very nearly got them mixed up. The only reason he could tell the difference was because Jake's had a sense of human to it. Just as the shinigami began to analyze N's signature, the battle was over – and he watched as the giant Pokémon was sucked into a little black, yellow, and white ball that sealed even the spiritual pressure. The object rattled several times before giving a soft ding. Smiling softly, Jake carefully picked it up and quickly replaced Zebstrika with Zekrom on his team, thanking the electric zebra in the process. Hitsugaya noted that the trainer's reiatsu level was slowly decreasing.
Perhaps it only rises during a battle? Toshiro theorized.
If we witness this next battle, that theory may prove correct, master.
"Ah... I see..." N said, walking forward with Reshiram once more. His reiatsu hadn't changed. As he came closer to Jake, said trainer's level began to rise again. "Zekrom, who is said to lend its power to the hero who searches for ideals, has recognized your power and agrees to stand by your side..."
"...Then I suppose we shouldn't waste anymore time," Jake said. He'd walked forward to get the Ultra Ball, but before he could return to his side, N gently grabbed his arm.
"Hold on," N told the trainer. "Your Pokémon are hurt. There is no triumph to be gained in battling a weakened opponent. Let me heal your Pokémon."
Jake paused, before nodding and holding out the team. N called out into the hallway, and someone, the same purple haired woman, came in and quickly healed the trainer's team. Then she left and the two trainers prepared their battle, N's team arriving behind him, since the king of Team Plasma refused to carry them in Pokéballs. It was then that Hitsugaya's eyes widened a fraction as the battle began and Zekrom was released to face Reshiram... both trainer's reiatsu levels had just doubled. A moment ago, they were only just above that of the large dragons, but now...!
Master, their levels... Hyourinmaru whispered. They're...
More intense than we could have thought... they're almost like Kenpachi's, Hitsugaya admitted to his Zanpakuto silently. And even more strange... Jake's is similar to that Zekrom's, and N's is like Reshiram's. Those two really go well with those creatures.
"Zekrom, hold out!" Jake called to his newest friend that had been hit by Fusion Flare. "And retaliate with Fusion Bolt!"
Jake was using his Pokédex to learn of Zekrom's, so that his new friend could help convince N that releasing all of the Pokémon from their trainers was a bad idea. Hitsugaya could only stand by and watch as the battle raged on, the reiatsu levels peaking at a little over that double point. It was immense, to put it nicely. When Reshiram fell, Carracosta was next, and the battle just continued.
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That Ghetsis bastard was manipulating his own son! Hyourinmaru growled, as his master's fists clenched in an unusual show of emotion. Jake had, however, beaten both N and Ghetsis Harmonia.
He was just as manipulative as Aizen, Hitsugaya scowled, but he paused as Jake, who had a sad look in his eyes, approached N, while Ghetsis was arrested and taken away.
"I'm sorry," Jake said to N. After taking a deep breath, the other trainer shook his head.
"I will be alright," N said. "But... Reshiram and I were beaten... your ideals... your feelings... they were stronger than mine. Reshiram and Zekrom, each choosing a different hero... is that even possible? Two heroes living at the same time – one pursuing truth, the other ideals. Could they both be right? I don't know... perhaps... that it's not rejecting ideas, but accepting them that the world makes a chemical reaction... yes. That is the formula for changing the world. For being a hero."
N paused at this and grit his teeth, clenching his eyes shut to force away the tears.
"But I have no right to be a hero!" He noticed that Jake was looking at him sadly. "Acting like you understand... up until now, we've been fighting each other over our beliefs... yet, despite that... why!"
N shook his head to clear out the thoughts that threatened to drive him up the wall and focused on Jake... his once-opponent... now perhaps his friend.
"I want to talk to you about something," N said, Reshiram resting in its Pokéball. It was the only one to have one on N's team, even though this was probably only the second time it was in it. "About when I first met you in Accumula Town."
Jake nodded, and the two of them began to walk towards the throne in the far end of the room. Hitsugaya noticed that their reiatsu levels were much lower than they were in the middle of their battle, which had left many marks on the battlefield. Toshiro and his Zanpakuto needed to report this to the captain-commander, but they decided to wait and see what would happen. Jake and N were out of earshot at this point, as they talked for a while – before N released Reshiram out of the hole in the wall, got on his back, and flew off into the distance. Jake watched for a minute or so, before turning to Hitsugaya.
"I'm sure you have several questions," Jake assumed as he approached. Hitsugaya nodded, and the game of 20 questions began.
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"Okay, Zekrom..." Jake began to say, Hitsugaya watching. They were back in that meadow from earlier, the night late and everyone ready to rest outside. Jake was talking to the released Pokémon. "You have all night to decide. I'm giving you the option to stay... or go. You can tell me in the morning."
"You aren't going to make her stay?" Hitsugaya asked. Jake shook his head.
"No. Zekrom is a Legendary Pokémon – I have no right to force her to stay on the team. This is her choice entirely."
Zekrom had taken little time to let her gender be known, but right now, the focus of her attention was on her trainer – the one that was willing to let her go if she wished to be. Jake told her that she could tell him in the morning, and was soon asleep. After a few moments, she turned to Hitsugaya.
"Shinigami," Zekrom said, smirking at the way the captain's attention snapped to her. "I am sure you want to return to Soul Society – but I have some business with you first. Come with me."
With that, Zekrom silently took off, and after the captain of tenth division caught up, he followed the Pokémon lead the way. By the time midnight arrived, they had reached the destination.
"This... is the Hall of Origin," Zekrom said. "Arceus is waiting for us. Come."
The large golden doors in the hall opened gently, letting in both Pokémon and Soul Reaper.
"Ah, I thought I sensed a captain," Arceus said with a smile, before becoming serious and turning to Zekrom. "Reshiram has already told me what happened... and he has decided to remain with N. I assume that your trainer has given you it as an option?"
Zekrom nodded. Arceus waited patiently, the silence calm and gentle.
"I... Master Arceus, may I stay with him?" Zekrom asked at last. Arceus smiled and nodded. The black dragon's smile widened as she thanked him and left upon his request.
"Now, I'm sure you have many questions, and I can't answer them all," Arceus told Hitsugaya. "But tell me, child, how old are you?"
"I'm not a child!" Hitsugaya snapped, the air dropping in temperature as his frustration made his reiatsu slip out of his control. "I'm a century old, dammit!"
"Definitely a child, then," Arceus smirked. He notcied as ice began to form on the walls. "You're quite a young captain, aren't you... Captain Hitsugaya?"
"How do you know my name?" Toshiro froze.
"Please," Arceus said, rolling his eyes. "I keep in contact with that captain-commaner kid. He tells me what goes on all the time."
"Did you just... call the captain-commander a kid?"
"Of course. Sure, he's, what? Two thousand years old? Ha. Still a kid to me. When I open the way back and you report to him, be sure to tell him I said hello, would you?"
"How do you know him?" Hitsugaya asked, curiosity overwhelming both him and Hyourinmaru.
"Retract your reiatsu and I'll tell you."
Frowning, the captain did as asked, and waited for the answer patiently.
"If you recall from watching the battle between Zekrom and Reshiram, the trainers' reiatsu shot through the roof." There was a nod. "In this world, only trainers whose reiatsu does that in a tough battle are able to capture, and usually, train a legendary Pokémon for several years. I'll admit that the current champions are powerful, but these trainers have almost limitless potential. They will be some of very few to actually go to Soul Society, so look out for when I send them there."
"Hold on..."
"Confused about the part of 'few to Soul Society'?" Arceus guessed, receiving a nod. "Well, remember when I called your boss a kid? That's because I've been around since before this planet was made."
If he weren't so good at hiding his emotions, Hitsugaya – not to mention Hyourinmaru – would have been gaping. Openly.
"So naturally, I made the cycle of how death works here – but that was after a few souls were lost to those damn hollows and I got tired of it," Arceus said, snarling at the name of the beasts. "So, my fellow legendaries and I spent over a year pouring our reiatsu into a barrier to prevent those... things... from coming here. Sadly, it also cut off most connections to where you're from.
"In order to deal with this, Giratina – this world's Lord of the Graveyard – and I set up a reincarnation system. A few, choice souls would go on to Soul Society – that Yamamato kid being the first – while the rest would return to the earth, memories erased of their past life. A human would be reincarnated as a Pokémon, and vice versa. Some of the earliest, strongest humans returned as legendary Pokémon and are still alive, actually."
Okay, this was big news to the youngest captain in history. Arceus himself sent Yamamoto to Soul Society over two thousand years ago? That meant that the captain-commander knew all about this place already. And the reason it had remained secret was because of these creatures' abilites – and because the barrier was, as Arceus admitted just then as Hitsugaya was thinking, constantly being fed by the powerful Pokémon's reiatsu. It took nothing short of a miracle to arrive here without the permission of Arceus himself.
"I have no idea how you got here, but I've got a way for you to return," Arceus said. "Normally I would tell you to keep this place secret... but I heard about the traitor. Tell the entire captain's council. Show them your memories. And tell the kid that I'll be visiting in three or four days of your time."
"Yes, sir," Hitsugaya said, bowing. If Arceus was this powerful, it would be wise to respect it – but he paused at the way the Pokémon laughed.
"Relax, I don't need to be bowed to or anything," He said. "I only let the legendaries get away with calling me 'Master' because I can't convince them to stop. I gave up on that millenia ago. Now this doorway will lead you back to where you belong. And don't forget to give the kiddo my message."
Hitsugaya nodded respectfully, and watched as a doorway, glowing a pure white, appeared – and without hesitation, he walked through it. Before he knew it, he had ended up just outside of the office of Captain-Commander Yamamoto – and immediantly knocked and was granted entry.
"Ah, Captain Hitsugaya," Yamamoto began, pausing in his paperwork. "I was wondering where you had gone over the past few hours."
Hours? Hitsugaya wondered silently, bowing to his leader.
There must be a time difference between the worlds, Hyourinmaru guessed. Perhaps Arceus put it up in order as part of that barrier. By affecting the time and changing it, when a hollow enters that world by some miracle, they're thrown off by the difference and possibly killed because their body fails to adjust.
"Where have you been, Captain Hitsugaya?"
"Captain-Commander, I have a message for you," Hitsugaya replied, getting the old man's attention. "It comes from a creature named Arceus."
"What?" Yamamoto's breath paused and his eyes went wide. Then he calmed down. "So... you must have somehow slipped into his world. I assume he told you of our connection?"
"Yes, sir. He also said that he would be coming by in three or four days according to our time."
Yamamoto nodded. He would have to prepare a proper place for his old friend to rest... he hadn't seen that powerful creature in almost two millenia.
"He also requested that I share my findings with the rest of the captains," Hitsugaya said.
"Were you wounded?"
"I was, but I have been treated."
"Very well, I will call for a meeting now."
By the end of the day, Kurotsuchi had some seeds and berries to experiment on, the rest of the captains had heard the youngest captain's story. With some help from the research department's machinery, the memories had been looked at, reiatsu-readers and all. The captains agreed that it was certainly impressive, although the part on Arceus was odd. What about his reiatsu? This question came up when, at the captain's meeting that said creature arrived, Kenpachi decided to ask.
"Hey, freak, why can't I sense anything from you?" Kenpachi said. This guy was supposed to be strong, right?
"Hmm... Captain Kenpachi, correct?" Arceus said. The shinigami could understand him because, unlike between Pokémon and living humans, Arceus had made it so Pokémon and Soul Reaper could understand each other. "The battle lover. Well, I apologize for forgetting to allow you to sense my reiatsu. It'll take a few moments."
Arceus took a second to focus, before concentrating. In moments, the creature's spiritual pressure crashed down upon the captains – and a wide radius outside of the meeting. It only lasted a few seconds before it vanished.
"I can't hold it that low for long, it's too much effort for me to have it constantly lowered," Arceus said, as the sweat beaded each captain's face. "Don't ask me to lower it again, and no, Kenpachi, I am not going to fight you."
With that, the meeting went on – and things just got more interesting in Soul Society...
Credits: Yeah. The plot's mine, but the characters you recognize aren't. Also, most of the quotes (almost all of them, actually) that N used are directly from the game (thank you, Bulbapedia).
A/N: Those numbers are just line breaks. Nothing special. Also, if you're wondering why I made Arceus so strong (reiatsu-wise), I thought 'He's been around longer than Yamamoto, surely his reiatsu is at least double, if not triple'... so yeah. Also, I wrote this because it was a plot bunny in my head that I just couldn't kill. So I wrote it, but because I don't want another dead chapter story, it's a one-shot instead.