Anime/Manga: Bleach
Genre: Revenge/ Hurt/Comfort
Characters: K. Ichigo & K. Byakuya
Warning: Character death and abuse (not in the sexual nature). WARNING: VIOLENCE
A foretelling to the ones who have grieved:
The Shinigami realm has never been a stranger to the wars, nor loss of its people. It is a part of the job description in Seireite, people fight the noble fight and in the end they eventually die. Every shinigami understands this and live by it. This is not to say it is easy to accept this when the one that has departed is someone close or even someone that is secretly important. The struggle to live without the other can become hard, even to the point of maddening, to some, but there is no bringing back the departed no matter what is done. Memories become haunting and the worst moments (fights or simple disagreements) become depressingly unbearable. The job of the Shinigami is to fight for the people and protect who you can, there is no time to dwell in the memories of the fallen. The moment you do, you lose the concentration that is required to survive and soon follow the departed. Live well and remember the end is a new beginning unless you refuse to move on.
A Lesson in Life: Regret and Revenge
To Kuchiki Byakuya, the words of apologies and the sorrow filled sympathy did nothing to ease his hollow like frozen heart. Words were empty, no simple phrase would help him and he knew it, but the agony he felt needed to be quenched somehow. He had lost two important people in a matter of minutes, without warning. That wouldn't be changed by a simple "sorry for your losses" or "there was nothing you could do". In fact those words coming from the redhead that had caused the incident made it immensely difficult to keep his mask of calmness. The haunted mud colored eyes, glossy from sleepless nights brought flames stronger than the head captain's bankai, in fact the flimsy phoenix had nothing on his rage.
Kurosaki Ichigo.
The name of the murderer, the traitorous half breed that took away the most important people he had left, the man now his lieutenant. You couldn't imagine how much of a slap to the face it was to find that not only was this uncontrolled half breed freely allowed in his squad, but trumped everyone else who was more qualified to become his second in command. How demented did old Yama have to be for managing to make the man that caused his former lieutenant's early death take his place.
Just to see the man walk around his squad wearing the arm band, acting as though he were supposed to be there, had Byakuya's blood nearly boiling. It only got worse from there as the man feigned despair visiting the graves of the fallen as though he had the right.
Byakuya stared down at the pale gray slab behind his home, where the first slab was now accompanied by two. Sleek gray eyes read the new names etched in simple letters without any special messages to be remembered by.
Kuchiki Rukia.
Abarai Renji.
It was unfair by far that those two had fallen in the war when so many insignificant lives were saved by their sacrifice. The lives of lowly shinigami, who would be better off gone, instead of two irreplaceable shinigami. Looking down at the slabs his eyes criticized purple and red roses placed before them.
"How pathetic" muttered the captain of the twelfth division, without any discernible motion Zenbonzakura was unsheathed tearing the flowers apart.
Turning slowly he let his hiori flow with his movement. The captain strode away to continue his payback. Although he could not physically hurt the new lieutenant, there was no rule about how he should "train" his new recruit. As a shinigami he was supposed to treat Ichigo with respect and dignity, but as a brother and a friend he didn't owe the murderer a damn thing.
'The job of the Shinigami is to fight for the people and protect who you can, there is no time to dwell in the memories of the fallen.'
With well paced steps, neither fast nor slow, the captain arrived at the training hall searching out the patch of bright orange locks that marked his target. Looking at the position of the sun he suspected the redhead wouldn't last much longer. All throughout the toned body were mild burns and deep laceration from wooden kendo swords. It didn't matter that heavy breathless pants were painfully exhaled from the redhead, nor did it matter that the blood stains on the ground were becoming too large a puddle for "practice". He would stop the "training" at sunset. Until then it didn't matter how tired the half breed got or the cramps he'd surely get from the long hours of battle, his heart hurt just a little less with each unblocked blow.
"Get up" came Byakuya's icy reply, it was more of a courtesy call at the moment since he could have easily just attacked without warning. The noble gesture was just that, he would show the least amount of nobility there.
"I.. can't " came the breathy reply as the young lieutenant struggled to even left his eyes as the laceration above his left eye pooled made it hard to open. The scarlet trail mixed in with salty sweat agitated the wound, it left as though it were being opened once more and poked at. It burned with every bead of perspiration, but he couldn't even move to wipe his forehead, his arms were numb from hours of blocking shot after shot from every angle. The hemorrhaging from his upper arm seized minutes ago, but it was obvious the blood loss took a toll.
"I'm not going to tell you again, get up lieutenant" the title slipping out with acidic malice as he took the abandoned kendo sword and held it by the redhead's heart. He wanted so badly to just plunge the wooden weapon into the tired shinigami mix, but then all of the torture would be for naught. No, he had to show the half breed exactly how he felt.
With the point of the wooden blade the captain slide the pointy end above the heart and eased the sword to a fine line. More scarlet traces escaped happily joining the rest on the wooden floor.
'The moment you do, you lose the concentration that is required to survive and soon follow the departed.'
A hiss escaped the redhead as more sensations of pain joined the cluster accumulating agony his body felt. Almost by reflex his foot moved to try and kick the captain away. It was weak, the strain of ligaments protesting at the motion. It sent burning, a dull burn followed by striking sharp needles.
It was all Byakuya needed, the brat was good to go. He kicked over the redhead's practice sword, it was no use to broken man on the ground. It was covered with splinters and broken edges from the force of the hits hounding down on Ichigo. Blood prints covered hilt where strong hands foolishly tried to block a hit. It cost him two knuckles, the sound resonated throughout the dojo, a crack as bone met bamboo.
'Foolish child' Byakuya admonished as he reeled back aiming at the other's rib. Smashing a couple of them would cause quite some noise. Perhaps not as loud as the knuckles, but the screams would more than suffice.
"Just kill me then" Ichigo spat, saliva mixed with his own blood exited his mouth in the process. He rolled to his side in an effort to get up, he needed to keep fighting. It was his punishment for what he'd foolishly done.
"Lieutenant" Byakuya silently called in a deceptively calm voice. Perhaps this was the last straw for the redhead, what a waste. It wasn't nearly enough, it still hurt him. It hurt to think of Rukia, the younger sister in law that had been a nightmare to deal with. She was the last reminder of his dear wife, and now she was gone. He was alone. The manor felt empty without the brat, not that she really spent much time there, but she was still a part of the house. It never seemed to make any sense why she would rather stay with the dreaded half breed in Karakura. Now he would never know, her ignorance in the people to trust had to be a factor to her early demise. "Get ready"
Once the new lieutenant firmly planted his feet onto the ground the torture began anew once more. A strike to the left sending a gust of wind blowing towards limp blood drenched locks, next an attack to his front leg. A quick hop backwards to avoid the attack, a sudden block from above. It was a struggle to keep off the force and weight behind the attack. Byakuya was a bit heavier than Ichigo, not by much maybe eight or ten pounds, but add on the fatigue and Ichigo felt it could have been forty to fifty pounds.
"When will this training session be over?" Ichigo groaned as a careless step cost him a new slash to his ankle. The new addition limiting his movement as he slide away from wandering slices. by now he was starting to feel himself lose his control, he hoped his hollow wouldn't take over, it would probably lead to more reason to be killed.
"We've on just begun" The raven smoothly blocked an attack to his temple. He barely needed to put much effort into it. The haggard disposition gave the game away. No need to blink, next would be a charge to the heart, easily he side stepped the attach and backhanded the redhead with his fist.
"I was trying to protect them" Ichigo started, but his attention was quickly averted to the raven who was now wounding him with overwhelming strength.
It was a short moment before Ichigo was slumped over on one knee facing away from the Captain."Well, Lieutenant, that didn't do them very good" came the cold voice. It did nothing to aid Ichigo's grief, it was endless as it was.
"I tried" panting Ichigo used his sword to ease himself up. Inside his head he could hear the hollow chuckling at him.
Byakuya stared at the redhead with a bored expression, he surely didn't think he'd get away from training by claiming that he tried, did he? It was too late anyway. The time for trying passed, the time for revenge was ripe for the picking and ripe it was as he watched the struggle before him.
"When the hollows... showed up" Ichigo had to pause to catch his breath. It was becoming harder to take in oxygen through thoroughly abused lungs. The mere process burning his lining and made the aching in his torso immensely worse. "I fought along side... them. I did what I could... I fought and killed... a bunch of them" he defended as he finally managed to right himself again, but his eyes were wrong. The whites of his eyes were no longer normal, they were now a ditch black that was a common trait of the hollows. A hand went to cover them in a lame attempt to hide it, but Byakuya already saw.
Byakuya bristled slightly at the sight of those eyes. Yes, the half breed had a bit of those murderers in him too, he was no better than those evil beings. It would be better to rid the world of those disgusting things, they only destroyed. Nothing good would come from them.
Chuckling at the sight the Hollow within Ichigo was pleased to see the other in pain. It was a perfect moment to leave, to take over. The persona had been truly impressed that although battered and thoroughly "trained", he managed to keep control. Any other person would have lost the control long ago, the blood loss or the mental throw down would have done it. But, not Ichigo. No, the stubborn teenager refused to lose control over his body. He didn't want to become the very thing that took his friends away.
"You're losing it" Byakuya stated simply. Inside his heart was beating just a bit faster, just a bit more lively than it had been for weeks now. This was what he was waiting for, a chance to kill the hollow that was on the top of his list.
Just a little longer.
Just a little bit more prodding.
Lifting the wooden sword Byakuya took a stance facing the disoriented substitute shinigami before him. Those eyes kept changing, it went from completely black to only one being abnormal. Reluctantly Ichigo also picked up his sword and once again the dance began.
Swinging and blocking.
Dodging and pausing.
Ichigo felt his control dwindling as he continued the fight. With everything he had, he tried to stall the hollow within him. Just a few minutes. Surely Byakuya would tire of the same thing, he would leave soon enough and he could recover just a bit.
"Die" came the chanting within his head, the voice inhuman. It sickened Ichigo to have to hear the voice, the voice similar to those that took away lives.
A well aimed strike was all it took to get Ichigo to faint onto the wooden ground. He was too distracted by the voices in his head to notice that Byakuya was much too close to the left side. It was not a safe distance considering the gash on his arm that made it difficult to lift his arm higher than a thirty degree angle.
It was as though the move was in slow motion. Byakuya's eyes narrowed as he pin pointed an opening, the foolish teenager's glazed eyes gave it away. He was distracted. A bad choice for such a situation. Reeking the sword back the Kuchiki shifted his weight over to his front leg as he switched his position. A smirk was on his face as he lifted his back leg, it was almost artistic how quickly and swiftly he moved his limbs. The sandal moved in an unforgiving speed aimed at his already bruised ribs. Seconds, just seconds to impact Ichigo burst out of his thoughts, but it was too late.
Then the pain hit.
It felt as though every cell in his cell just burst upon impact, the vibration tingling his skin while every muscle in his body burned with the electric current riding through the hit. Several cracks were the prize for the trouble. A series of breath sucking, mind numbing, tension breaking cracks was all it took.
The last Kuchiki watched as light brown eyes widened at the impact. His icy gray ones stared as they suddenly began to disorient. It began to shrink back to normal size, no sign of the hollow escaping them. Bright orange hair blocked his eyes as the force rebounded him from the wall he landed on. Perhaps the impact on the wall caused the rest of his injuries, but it didn't matter. A tiny sliver of pain floated away.
A tiny sliver of pain gently flowed off into the tranquil pond like a cherry blossom.
The small petal a dark crimson color, it is drenched in his blood.
A small bit of satisfaction filled him at the imagery.
A loud and reverberating thump brought him back. On the floor laid the redhead once more, it was a pity that the hollow didn't make it out today. If anything Byakuya was patient, perhaps the hollow didn't make an entrance at this particular training session, but there would be plenty more to come. That was a definite promise.
The pain was still there.
If there is still pain, then there is still room for more revenge.
The revenge he wanted, no, needed laid there on the ground. Sooner or later we would have it.
A perfect revenge.
"I will come back tomorrow" Byakuya spoke out to the unconscious body on the ground. It was not the end, just a short intermission. He mockingly bowed in a sign of respect. He then made his way out for breakfast with the sun shining down his face. Perhaps he could smile just a little today and leave something for the tombs.
'I deserve this' came Ichigo's last thought before he let the darkness take him again.
A/N: I know this is probably not for everyone, but I did warn you about the violence. I think the rating would also give a hint to how bad it could be. Honestly this isn't as bad as it could have been, but please don't tear this apart in the comments. If this was terrible you can tell me, but just let me down gently... I can take it. Anyway I hope you enjoy. ~ TheRussianGaaraKid out!