Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, or any of the characters used in this fic. They all belong to Tite Kubo: the genius behind the captivating manga that started it all. I only own any of my original characters that I choose to include, as well as any of my own original plot ideas.
I Was Hoping You'd Know
A/N: Pre-series, pre-TBTP.
It was a swarm, looking very much like a blur to his eyes. They moved far too swiftly for his tastes, easily dogging him while twisting about in dizzying circles, rendering his blows useless. He would swing too wide, as his teachers had said, giving the beasts far more room than they should have been allowed. He would be berated by his peers, by his upperclassmen, for this sort of mistake. They'd told him that his cocky, laid-back attitude would be the end of him.
Given the circumstances, Shunsui was starting to fear that they'd been right.
He hadn't seen the creature sneaking up behind him. Hadn't even sensed it. He had just thrown an arm over his head to stretch, catching the beast in the face with his blade. It screamed, flailing on the ground as blood pulsed across white flesh, dark eyes glowering up at him as it hissed, falling limp. He smiled, content with the fact that he'd made a kill, albeit by mistake. Other Soul Reapers would have called it a fluke, saying that it didn't count for anything.
Shunsui wasn't quite so picky. A kill was a kill.
Up the rocky hillside, dust and stones rained down upon him like shrapnel in a war zone. It wasn't quite so horrid as the battles in the human realm, but it was a war all the same. A war against the hoard that had threatened to encompass the twenty-fifth district of the east Rukon. This really was one hell of a training exercise. A shrill cry caused Shunsui to clamp his hands over his ears, a mass of blood pouring down upon him as his comrade appeared beside him, eyes like glass, seeing everything.
"That's a big one," he laughed, nodding towards the top of the earthy mass. The head of a serpentine Hollow hung over the edge, several teeth having been knocked from its mouth before death. "Didn't think you'd be the one to go after it."
The other boy grimaced, nudging him with an elbow before kicking up rocks at another white abomination. "Keep laughing, and I'll have to drag your body back to the Academy," he retorted, blade shooting over the top of Shunsui's head. "Or..." The tip of the sword was lodged in the eye of a Hollow Shunsui hadn't seen coming. "...I'll just leave you here as bait to lure out the rest of them."
A grim idea, coming from this quiet and studious boy. Jushiro Ukitake was one of the better students in the Academy, even surpassing some of the sixth year students. Shunsui never would have pegged him as one to make cruel jokes.
"So," his voice was no longer joking, the white-haired boy turning to look over his shoulder. "Do you have a plan, or are we just going to, as you might say, 'wing it?'"
Shunsui shook his head, the two of them now back-to-back. It was a laughable question. "You're asking me? What the hell's wrong with you? You're in the top ten in class, and you want me to come up with a plan?"
"So, that's a no?" Jushiro asked, looking somewhat worried.
A nod. "I was actually hoping you, being the smart one, would have a plan."
They were going to wing it.
