The BEAST and the BEAUTY
Chapter 1: Quiet Supremacy
He wasn't one to dream. Or think. Could barely even feel. He only knew blood. Lots of it. And the cruel, cold victory when he made someone else's world turn black.
The Fourth Division's quarters were different. He wasn't used to seeing floors bare of missing teeth and towels that weren't blotted with red. And it smelled too freakin' lemon-y in here. What the hell? Where was that musky, dirty stench he was used to? That's why the Fourth was so weak; they were too busy cleaning to actually train. Kenpachi should teach them a thing or two about that.
His excitement roused Yachiru awake. She had fallen asleep, curled and drooling on his abdomen.
"Ken-chaan!! Can't you see I'm sleeping here? Stop moving so much!" the pink-haired girl exclaimed in her high-pitched voice.
"This is supposed to be MY bed."
She kicked her heel into his chest, forcing him to wince slightly in pain.
"Hehe, you ow'd 'cause of that? You don't even have your eye patch on. Gosh Ken-chan, you're so weak."
Her attitude quickly flipped back from bouncy to sleepy again, and within seconds, Yachiru plopped forward right back onto Zaraki's chest. The young girl laid flat on her stomach and spread her arms out wide in the most turd-like position imaginable.
"I could just as easily pick you up and throw you into the wall," Zaraki angrily snapped back.
When there was no irritating reply, the behemoth man glanced down. To his frustration, his retort was in vain because the tiny girl was already snoring again.
Groaning, he rolled his eyes. Freakin' cotton-candy-haired brat.
With his lips curled into a grimace, his eyes drifted over to the nightstand several feet away from him. He was looking through both his eyes, and yet, no torrents of spiritual pressure expelled from him—no massive reiatsu was exploding against the walls. It's not like he was hiding it. Hell, he didn't even know how to do that.
He was just… Argh! What is this bullshit!?
The other day, he removed his eyepatch, and the trees and the mountains bowed at his feet. That creepy-ass scientist asked him to be the test subject for his newest development—a small device that inserted itself into the target's skin and drained all his or her reiatsu. Mayuri wanted to see how strong it was, and who better to try his experiment on than the Eleventh Division Captain?
Kenpachi remembered his how delighted he was. His crooked, animated grin screamed his thrill as he laughed at that stupid researcher. Through his reiatsu alone, he was already the strongest captain. He never should have questioned him. There was no end to the cataclysm of his reiatsu.
But her…
He roared and bellowed as his electrifying energy blasted out from him. Grasses unearthed, clouds squirmed, even that pale monster Mayuri was subordinate to his strength. But she… she was unmoved. He had heard whispers that she was strong—stronger than everyone except old Genryuusai. Could that actually be true?
The last thing he remembered, Kenpachi yelled at her, "I am stronger than you! Kneel!"
And nothing. No fear in her eyes. No dread. No worry. She simply stared at him with a stoic, bland expression as if looking down on a small, rascal child. That look... that dull, godforsaken look made him fuel with anger, burning to prove how strong he was. Stronger than her. Far stronger than she could ever be.
He, Zaraki Kenpachi, was more powerful than the weak healing captain. Her Gotei duties were disgraceful. Shinigami fight. Shinigami bleed. Those that need to be healed deserve to die.
And then the world turned black. When he collapsed, she was the one to catch him.
At that moment, Unohana appeared from the doorway with Hanatarou by her side.
"Moshi moshi, Kenpachi-taichou. We're here for your therapy," Hanatarou greeted smiling. "Will Yachiru-san mind if I wake her?" the young shinigami asked as he motioned to pick up the pink-haired girl.
"I will," Zaraki grumbled.
"Oh okay." Hanatarou pulled his hand away. "I'll let you pick her up then"
Sneering, the larger man answered, "No. I said, 'I will.'"
"You will…?"
"Mind," Zaraki growled.
"Oh!" Hanatarou jumped back startled. The captain's gaze alone was enough to kill him. "Uhhh... I'm sorry, I didn-"
Unohana put a hand on the young shinigami's shoulder. "It's fine. Yachiru-san can rest there; it won't be a problem. Instead, won't you take my coat?"
Unohana slid the white captain's robe off her shoulders and neatly handed it to the shorter officer. She raised one hand and gestured with the other for Hanatarou to step further back. In another moment, several blue rays emitted from her fingertips and surrounded the 11th squad captain in a turquoise dome. From her palm, a deeper shade of blue poured out and spilled over Kenpachi.
The intensity of the dark blue energy forced the captain to widen his eyes in a sudden, painful jolt. The immense spiritual pressure was overwhelming. Normally, if he felt a reiatsu like this, his heart only beat faster. He rose to the occasion with a devilish grin and excitedly over-powered their strength with his own. But this…
It felt as if she was reaching into his chest and pulling and squeezing and stretching both his heart and lungs. He thought he was choking. He thought he was screaming. He thought his body was shaking so violently that the roof of the building would topple over them. The process lasted for about ten minutes, and in all that time, his body had remained so still and calm that Yachiru hardly stirred on top of him. When she was done, Unohana withdrew the dome of energy. The pain subsided from Zaraki's chest. Exhausted, Kenpachi closed his eyes and relaxed.
Hanatarou unfolded the captain's coat and held it out for Unohana to put on.
She raised a hand. "Thank you, but let's wait until we leave the room." He nodded slightly and stepped out of the doorway. Before she followed, Unohana called to Zaraki, "That's all for today. We'll be back tomorrow at the same time. Your therapy will be complete one week from today, and you can return to your squad."
The Eleventh Division captain kept his eyes closed and said nothing.
When the pair were both in the public hall, Hanatarou helped Unohana back into her coat and asked, "Unohana-taichou, why do you take off your coat when you heal Kenpachi-taichou? Is it uncomfortable?"
"As a sign of respect," she answered, smiling gratefully as he helped her into her robe. "The Eleventh squad captain has been forced to remove his captain's coat. To show that we are equals, I will do the same for him."
Zaraki could still hear the two from his bed. Her soft footsteps showed no trace of the power she just imposed upon him. Too gentle. How could that woman wrench at his insides like that? There was no way... That clumsy kid beside her was likely to carry more power than she did.
"Geez, Ken-chaan. I told you to stop moving!"
"I'm not moving!" he yelled angrily.
"Pssh, whatever. You're lucky 'cause I'm not sleepy anymore!" she happily squealed. Yachiru then jumped up excitedly—her face brilliantly aglow with smiles and cheer. In another moment, she was hopping up and down on Kenpachi's stomach and began spinning and doing twirls on his chest. "Woow, Braidy Lady is pretty cool. You seem much stronger already. I wonder what she did."
He raised an eyebrow, "You were right on top of me when she did that blue thing. Didn't you feel it?"
"Nope." She spun some more. "I was sleeping… DUH! I dunno what you're talking about."
Not a thing, eh? It didn't make sense. The unpleasant little monster woke up every time he made the slightest shift in motion. But when that woman came and swarmed his body with that agonizing blue light, Yachiru was completely relaxed. What the hell?
"Lalalala. Braidy Lady saved your life. Lalalala. Ken-chan's a wimp! Hehe. Lalalala."