Well, this is not actually how I thought I would come back to fanfiction, I said in my profile that I was going to publish "The Twisted Vermillion Dragon" but after reading so many good bleach fics I opted for trying my luck with the bleach universe, so here we are in the first chapter of my new fic "Hollow"
Ukitake Jūshirō
Enjoy and I don't own Bleach nor any of its characters.
"Tch" he just could click his tongue to how annoyed he was, it was supposed to be another official visit to the human world, but nooooooo~ "There always has to be a hollow, there always has to be a fucking hollow!" he cried out for the Soul Kings sake! He just wanted a little rest, was that much to ask?! He could admit that he didn't like paperwork, heck what captain actually really liked paperwork to begin with! He would ever dare to say that the Soutaichou wasn't much different from them, after all he is the one in charge of the strongest division of the Seireitei…
But now he thought about it he wouldn't has never thought that he would feel pity towards the Soutaichou of all the people "I mean Yama-Jii has been Soutaichou since the foundation of Seireitei for all I know and he is like thousands of years old, right? Thousands of years of paperwork" a shiver went through his spine, thousands of years of never ending paperwork, he couldn't suppress the thought "How is it possible that Yama-Jii and Sasakibe Fuku-Taichou haven't snapped yet?" he sighed, he really couldn't imagine himself as an old man of thousands of years old and much less in the position of Soutaichou, it actually made him almost piss his pants to only imagine all the paperwork he would have to do in order to run not only the security of the entire Soul Society, take care of the mess of the different members of the 13th divisions (Especially the 11th Division), interact with those stuck up ass nobles and to treat with the old farts of Central 46 and their shenanigans, it was overwhelming, of course he was a noble himself but to contrary to the other nobles of Seireitei his family was very well known for not acting noble like and for being a bunch of crazy bastards, and at all that he just could sigh "I have been sighing too much lately, it seems I'll have to take Shunsui on that offer of his if I want to go through the next hundred years" he sighed again, maybe it was his imagination but he swore that the only thing he had been doing since morning has been to sigh, don't misunderstood him, he love his family dearly and as any other Shiba he was very carefree and didn't have that air of nobility around him instead of that he has an air of being a troublemaker and a very laid down man, yep as any other Shiba bastard, but with all this sighing, the never ending paperwork and the constant presence of the nobles and Central 46 in the Seireitei, it just made him feel…old. Shit!
"If only that Fuku-Taichou of mine could see me now, she would laugh her ass off of my predicament, call me an old man in the process and to add more fuel to the fire she would tell if not half of Soul Society that the Taichou of the 10th Division Shiba Isshin was going through some kind of midlife crisis" and…he sighed again, it seems that sighing was going to become a habit of him "Well I'll give some thought later, let's go take care of that Hollow and call it day" he talked to no one in particular just wanting to express his actual thoughts.
Arriving in a blur of Shunpo to the area where he felt a Garganta tore open the sky Isshin sharpened his senses not only looking at the number of human buildings in the area but trying to get a hold of the Reiatsu of the newly dispatched Hollow, not having any luck at the few minutes after he arrived he decided to try expand his reiatsu trying to attract the nearby hollow "Careful, careful, I don't want to alert the division on duty in this town" it didn't matter if you were a captain or not if someone from the division assigned to watch over a specific area of the human world catch you roaming around without direct permission from the Soutaichou in said area you could be accused of interfering with the work of said division leading not only to explain the why of your actions to the captain of said division but to confront he Soutaichou itself and receiving and appropriate punishment from him personally.
The list of punishments could vary from a little reprimand to the confiscation of your Zanpakuto or worse not only confiscating your zanpakuto but to direct expulsion from Seireitei, sealing your powers along the way, and throwing yourself into the last district of the Rukongai, but now there was the little but, depending of your position inside the division you belonged to the punishment would vary, for example if a captain like Isshin would be discovered by one of the Shinigami in charge of protecting the area where they are right now, said Shinigami would have to report to the captain of the 13th division that the captain of the 10th division was in the human world in a town protected by the 13th division without permission of the Soutaichou and much more avoiding his responsibilities as captain of the Gotei 13, leading this to a meeting between the two captains of said division in this case a meeting between the captains of the 10th and 13 division, resulting in the later questioning the actions of the former and receiving a detailed report explaining what, where, why and when and with who he was during his unauthorized trip to the human world, after that since he was a captain Gotei 13 he had to make the same procedure but this time in front of the Soutaichou and the rest of the captains of the thirteen divisions, but since he was a captain and in this case he was…well…Isshin, he just received a harsh scolding from the Soutaichou, not able to leave the grounds of the 10th division during the speculated time he was grounded, and usually the double or triple of paperwork, and Isshin has been already found out many times lazily walking in said areas, at first it was only a simple scolding, then a warning, next a scolding plus a warning, and then another scolding plus the Soutaichou caressing his really long beard, something was really wrong in that moment, and then it came true a really harsh scolding, grounded for three entire years and only leaving on official business and the double of paperwork, it wasn't expected to say that Matsumoto Rangiku fuku-taichou of the 10th division wouldn't take advantage of his "imprisonment" while the always stoic Hitsugaya Tōshirō 3rd seat of the 10th division refused to help his captain.
From that day on ward Isshin learned something very important…his fuku-taichou and 3rd seat were really evil, especially little Shiro "How can it be possible that someone as talented as little Shiro could be so evil! He even dared to eat my precious Manjuu!" he thought with anime tears on his face.
Isshin could have keep crying for his long lost manjuu and his devilish 3rd seat if it wasn't for two familiar reiatsu near his position, looking toward the direction of the two reiatsu Isshin disappeared in a blur of Shunpo.
[June 4th 8:22PM Karakura Town]
"It's getting overcast" the unnamed Shinigami said looking at the barely visible cloudy sky of the night "that's is a bad omen…" making a little pause the Shinigami kept staring at the cloudy sky and the eerie look of the moon "As I recall those two met their maker on a rainy evening…" making another pause, the Shinigami tried two make two and two with the coincidence of the recent events "Kinda creepy…" no matter what he thought the coincidence of the murders happening during rainy evening was much of a coincidence and almost like some kind of sick murderer was on free killing Shinigamis like nothing.
"You can stop talking now…" the other unnamed Shinigami said a little creeped out by his teammate words.
"I see…so overcast days could possibly spell impending moon" someone's voice said behind them "thanks for the heads up!"
Screaming, the first unnamed Shinigami turned back to confront the unknown being realizing it was the Taichou of his division "Shi…Shiba Taichou!"
Meanwhile Isshin was amused with himself ignoring his two division members "My timing is impeccable as always…" meanwhile the first unnamed Shinigami still in shock for the sudden appearance just could stutter while trying to ask him why he was there "At least this mean it wasn't a wasted trip" Isshin concluded satisfied that everything which little Shiro said was accurate.
"Why are you here!" the unnamed Shinigami finally asked wanting to know the sudden appearance of his Taichou.
"Hm? See…I was looking to drain the lizard but kinda got lost…" Isshin said with a goofy smile on his face ignoring the incredulous look of his subordinates.
"If you are going to lie make it better!" the unnamed Shinigami cried out not believing for a second the words of his superior.
With a more serious air around him Isshin turned his back to his disciple "That reminds me, if it starts to rain, the two of you are dismissed" the Shinigamis stayed silent knowing that when Shiba Isshin get serious he wasn't joking around "It's hard for me to water the plants if others are watching" with that said Isshin left the two Shinigamis who were sweating and feeling a sense of dread in the air ignoring the silhouette hiding behind one of the clouds obscuring the moon.
"To think that for the first time in my life I am glad that I ended in the wrong city after leaving the Soul Society, really my timing is impeccable" just another floating thought inside Isshin's head "I'll need better ground if I want t cover this area" Isshin thought while looking at one the tallest building of the town.
[Ishida's Family Manor Dining Hall]
Eating was actually one of the little pleasures that Kurosaki Masaki has in the Ishida manor, her live could be called blessed in a sense, she lived with a family who take care of her since she was a child, maids attended all of her needs and quite the respectful fiancé, yes Kurosaki Masaki was blessed…you only needed to see through all that to know that all was nothing more than a mere illusion.
She wasn't adopted out of the love of said family, she was adopted because she was necessary not because she was special or they wanted a daughter, she was one of the last Echt Quincies in the world, their numbers had been decreasing since a long time ago giving birth mostly to Gemischt Quincies in the process, the Quincies of old believed blindly in the practice of true-breeding meaning that those who were descended from a long line of only Quincy, and so were thought to have a pure heritage, came to be known as Echt Quincy, while all others were instead referred as Gemischt Quincy and so on in order to preserve their pure lineage, many families conducted arranged marriages between their own children and only those belonging only to other pure families.
In resume, the Kurosaki family a family of pure blooded Quincy made an arranged marriage with the Ishida family another family of pure blooded Quincy so they could produce an offspring with the union of the heirs of their respective families, Kurosaki Masaki and Ishida Ryuuken, maintaining in that way the lineage of the pure blooded quincies, in other words Kurosaki Masaki…wasn't so different from a breeding stock.
She, deep inside her knew that it wasn't like that, but sometimes she couldn't stand the truth about why her parents arranged her a marriage with Ryuken, of course it wasn't like they would take her in an used like some throwable toy, she was served three meals every day, she lived under a roof, the cost of her studies were payed for and she was trained in the holy arts of the quincies, some could say that It was almost a dream…almost, that's the magic word, with the Quincy matriarch constant questioning of her abilities and responsibilities, adding her constant scolding and harsh words and always reminding her that her life it wasn't hers but for the Quincy…always for the Quincy, not for her, not for Kurosaki Masaki, but for the Quincy.
"I have to do the chemistry project that miss Kimiko assigned us last week and…" Masaki's mind trailed off trying to remember the last bunch of assignments she has received "Why I feel like I have forgotten something really important?" before Masaki could ponder about a certain responsibility of hers…
"Masaki-san?" the voice of a women called her.
"Eh…you're asking…me?" surprised that the Ishida matriarch called her "Let's see…Ah! Right! Well auntie…I look forward to commute to school every morning!" Masaki blurted out the first thing that came to her mind in the moment.
"That's great…but I was more interested in the school itself" not even looking at Masaki's eyes the Quincy matriarch stated her point, her voice and words devoid of any kind of warm, clearly not interested in her daily live.
"The school…huh" Masaki pondered about that "Did something happened in school worth mentioning?"
Deciding to not waste more time than necessary the Quincy matriarch decided to pass over her last question, obviously not surprised by Masaki's clumsiness "Moving on, how are your holy training sessions going?" expecting a good answer the Quincy matriarch looked at Masaki's seat.
Now Masaki knew why her fiancé's mother acknowledged her presence in the dining table, she wanted results and Masaki could be kind of an air head but she never lied "The holy training…the thing is…" not looking toward what was going to happen Masaki brazed herself and carefully choose her words "It's going okay…I am taking baby steps" uncertainty danced in her last words, not receiving an answer Masaki thought for moment that her auntie took pity on her.
"Baby steps!" obviously not; the Quincy matriarch answered upset "Are you even aware of the enormity of this situation!" Masaki tried to apologize but her auntie wasn't going to give her rest "The last of the predecessors passed away. Since you are the only off-spring of the Kurosaki family, we reached a mutual understanding that you'd would be raised as a fellow Quincy!" the already upset Quincy matriarch slammed her hands on the table, getting up in the process and ready for another scolding. "Why have the only off-spring Kurosaki family to be so dumb and clumsy with her responsibilities as a Quincy, why couldn't she understand that her very own race was in danger of disappearing, of getting extinct!"
"O-of course…I know that auntie by the way…don't you think that the meat is especially moist today…" Masaki trailed off knowing that she just has dug her own grave "Why you…" "Mother!" before the matriarch could yell at Masaki she was stopped by the voice of someone which she has known for a very long time her very own son and heir of the Ishida family, Ishida Ryuuken.
"Please try and refrain yourself, I could hear your voice from the outside" sometimes she wondered why her only son was so overprotective of the off-spring of the Kurosaki family, she knew that Kurosaki Masaki wasn't some kind pebble on the road like many others, she was a beautiful young woman, with a likeable personality and good proportions, of course she knew that her son would never choose a woman for her looks besides she planted on his head from a very young age that his life and future wasn't only his but for the Quincy as whole, really she couldn't understand what Ryuuken could see in her that he would as far as to stop his very own mother from the very important lesson that she was giving to Kurosaki Masaki.
She wasn't going to lost breath discussing with her son, nor was going to try and insist on putting a stronger training on Masaki in order that she could concentrate mainly on her duties as a Quincy "Ryuuken" her voice was still harsh but it has lost most of her rage "I'll be going to my room now. Your dinner will be ready shortly, have Katagiri clean everything once you've finished" with that Quincy matriarch began her walk toward her room but not before stopping and without turning around she addressed her once again "If you are wondering where your father is, he is still at Fuenftes Feld, I am starting to wonder if he is ever coming back" without saying another word she resumed her pace going farther inside the mansion.
Ryuuken just stayed silent during the brief exchange with his mother, he wasn't going to pursue her nor he was going to look for his father, he knew the why his mother was so harsh on Masaki, but he was never going to say it aloud, all in respect for his mother "Masaki" Ryuuken called to his fellow Quincy/fiancée grabbing her attention "I'm sorry…don't judge my mother too harshly…she's just…taking her loneliness and stress out on you…" Ryuuken trailed off in the last part, he told Masaki why his mother acted like that, obviously it wasn't the truth but that didn't mean it wasn't part of it, he knew that his mother loved his father but he wasn't so sure if his father still felt the same way, adding the problem of the last predecessor passing away not to long ago and many others events happening at the same time he knew that his mother wasn't in the best condition.
"What are you babbling about Ryuu-chan?! She's done nothing wrong! I'm perfectly fine! See?!" with a cheerful smile on her face Masaki stood up and began to walk towards Ryuuken "Thanks for the amazing dinner, I'll be in my room if you need me!" passing Ryuuken Masaki stopped herself for a moment "Oh and one more thing, the shrimp-gratin is to die for! If you're not feeling up for it feel free to send it my way, later~" with all that said Masaki retreated to her room leaving an unamused Ryuuken alone in the lounge.
Ryuuken knew perfectly that it was a play, one of the many plays that Masaki would put every time she and his mother would begin their one-sided yelling, it was Masakis ways to demonstrate that she was strong and she wasn't going to show how hurtful the words of his mother were, at least she wasn't going to show it on the outside, but Ishida Ryuuken wasn't going to step into Masakis private life that was hers and only hers "Young master, your dinner is ready, shall I prepare the table?" greeting the maid with a small smile on his face "Yes, I'd appreciate that Katagiri" Ryuuken greeted the new named Katagiri and called her name once again, explaining to her Masaki's situation and her feeling plus his own point of view in everything respected with the arranged marriage "How thoughtful. I'm sure that your thoughtfulness will not be lost on Masaki-sama…" Katagiri said with a bright smile on her face, sometimes Ryuuken asked himself how Katagiri was able to smile that way and why she thought so good of him, it was truly a mystery how easily she could made him feel human sometimes instead of feeling like a Quincy "Oh please, I am not the thoughtful type…I only want Masaki to be happy so that she'll have a positive outlook on the future" he just couldn't see Katagiri directly at her eyes, even if it was for the Quincy he couldn't hide that actually felt ashamed of himself "And not our future…I could care less about that…I'm much more confident about the future of the quincies" he said with his head turned to the side, Katagiri could only stare at her master, her eyes full of sadness, seeing how her master was torn apart between his feelings and his duty, coincidentally, outside was raining, like if the night was feeling the same sorrow as her masters.
[Karakura Town Isshin's Location]
"So…it's started to rain" Isshin said looking at the clouds who were clouding the moon "If Shinigami are being targeted it can mean one of two things. We've either got a bullseye on our back…or whatever it is simply drawn to our robust reiatsu" steeling his gaze Isshin grabbed the hilt of his zanpakuto "If it's the latter…then perhaps…"
Under a bus stop the two Shinigami who were ordered to leave were refuging themselves from the rain "What do we do? Shiba Taichou said it was ok to go back" the unnamed Shinigami said to his partner not feeling comfortable with the actual situation "I can't shake off this feeling of dread since the moment the moon was clouded…it's like we have been watched even before Taichou came" "Dumbass!" his partner said incredulously "You really wanna head back now?! We set one foot on Soul Society and we're both looking at a demotion!" the unnamed Shinigami said nothing "We'll simply stay out of his way for now. I am sure it's something the Taichou can handle on his own anyway" his partner said, the unnamed Shinigami could notice that the tone of his partner never faltered for single second "I don't like this one bit"
Not prepared for the incoming wave of thick reiatsu the unnamed Shinigami and his partner were almost blown away by the explosion of reiatsu which came out from the captain of the 10th division "Damn!" the unnamed Shinigami said finally having found his footing "Holy shit! That's Shiba Taichou reiatsu?!" he said, his mouth agape not believing that such a powerful and explosive reiatsu belonged to the always lay down captain of the 10th division, the unnamed Shinigami was too stunned to notice how half of the head of his partner was sliced off by the new attacker, it was too late when he noticed the presence of the mysterious assailant.
Hearing cries of pain from below Isshin turned around and looked down at the place where his subordinates were waiting, only to see how blood spurted out of the bus stop "Dammit! It doesn't care about the magnitude of reiatsu!" Isshin shouted angry at his own ignorance and by the cruel dead of his subordinates, not even taking step towards his subordinates last location something landed behind him, turning around to face his new assailant Isshin was greeted with the face of the one who has been hunting Shinigami the last two months, the being in front of him was humanoid in shape, his entire body completely encased in black armor, with two forward-pointing black horns on his head, black blades as substitutes for his forearms while his legs presented a light curvature, white hair that cascaded to his mid back and a pure white mask which resembled a skull but its most outstanding feature was the hollow hole in the middle of his chest which was actually closed by some kind of white organs or meat.
The sole presence of the monster in front of him make the hair of his neck stand up "What the fuck are you?!" Isshin shouted losing his composure in front of the unknown being, instantly reaching for the hilt of his zanpakuto Isshin took a draw stance prepared for the incoming clash.
…
…
…
…
…
Seconds passed but said being was only giving his back to Isshin, not feeling killing intent Isshin dropped his stance a little, inhaling and exhaling deeply Isshin regained his composure, this time shifting for a more calculative one, not losing time Isshin began to analyze the being "What…is he…?" it was a He his body structure was of a male "A black…hollow?" there has been numerous sightings of different colored hollows before but it never has been a black one before. His musing was interrupted by the now identified black hollow, with said hollow finally acknowledging Isshin presence opened his mouth launching the characteristically howl of a hollow exploding his reiatsu in the process giving away immediately his identity "I see, it's all black, and the hole has been filled up with something" Isshin let a grin shown on his face "But, this reiatsu…without a doubt, it's a hollow!" with both of the flaring their reiatsu at the same time, the hollow lunged at Isshin ready to kill his next victim, while Isshin drawed his sword in answer to his actions.
[Ishida's Family Manor, Masaki's Room]
Startled by the sudden burst of reiatsu in the distance Masaki looked to the direction where said reiatsu signature came from "What is…this? I can feel an incredible powerful reiatsu getting closer. A Hollow and another one, they are moving fast, I must get to where they are…quickly" bursting out of her room Masaki began to run towards the reception part of manor "Where do you think you are going Masaki?" surprised by the sudden call of her name Masaki stopped on her tracks and faced the one who called her name…the matriarch Quincy Mukuro Ishida "As always you don't stop being a dumb idiot right? Masaki-san" fear started to shoot through her head, the last person she wanted to meet right now was right in front of her "A-auntie" the matriarch wasn't going to lose time with her soon to be daughter-in-law "It doesn't matter how many times I say it to you, you just don't seem to comprehend it, you alongside Ryuuken are the last known Echt Quincy alive, is for that very reason that you should just come out when there are no Shinigamis nearby and leave this kind of dirty works to Gemischt like Katagiri" the matriarch stopped talking, evaluating Masaki's actions, her posture was rigid, her hands balled into fist and shaking, her covered by the bangs of her head, she was soon to snap "Masaki" the matriarch said her name sweetly, like a mother calling her child after a scolding "You should be more aware of your position. You understand, don't you? You should care more about yourself. We Echt Quincy…shouldn't waste our blood so easily" the matriarch finished her eyes not losing for a second their cold and calculative look "But auntie!"
[Sky of Karakura Near the Boundary Field]
Stopping abruptly Isshin tried to confront once again the hollow not forgetting to put reiatsu under his feet's so he could stay airborne "This is no good, I am falling behind" not losing for a second his incoming enemy Isshin lifted his sword struggling to stop the arm blade of the hollow "I can't understand. Its physical appearance is still of a hollow but…why I feel like I am fighting a Shinigami!" narrowing his eyes in concentration Isshin tried to push the black hollow "This is a hard struggle!" only to be sent skidding away not noticing the place where he was pushed to "Shiba Taichou!" a young Shinigami shouted getting his attention "What are you doing here?! Karakura town is under the jurisdiction of the 13th Division!" the young Shinigami said getting closer to their location "Damn it! I surpassed the jurisdiction boundary" trying to push away the hollow Isshin slashed at him only to slice the air itself, noticing a shadow passing by his side Isshin cursed knowing where his enemy went "Run!" Isshin shouted at the young Shinigami, only to this one to fall victim to a powerfully charged Cero, not only erasing the young Shinigami from existence but creating a big explosion in the process which shook the earth itself.
[Ishida's family manor]
Feeling the after effects of the explosion Masaki just stood there staring at the Quincy matriarch "Auntie, the fact that before acting you think about Ryuu-chan, uncle…, me, the future and many other things…is something I really like about you" turning around, preparing to go out Masaki didn't notice the wide eyed of expression that the matriarch had "But, I am not you. To me caring about myself means…to do everything in my power, every day." Looking over her shoulder, looking directly at Mukuro's eyes "If today I don't do what I can do because of some custom and someone dies because of it…I won't be able to forgive myself tomorrow" her whole being full of pure determination, Masaki began to run towards the two signatures of reiatsu leaving a stunned Ishida Mukuro alone in the hallway in the process.
Standing not too far away Ryuuken witnessed the little exchange between his mother and Masaki, grabbing some kind of device from one of his pockets Ryuuken pressed the only visible button on the device "Katagiri, it's time to go out, prepare the reishi armor" going his own way Ryuuken left his hiding spot preparing himself for the oncoming battle.
[Sky of Karakura Isshin's Location]
Sweating bullets Isshin just could glare to the Hollow "What was that? Cero?!" the smoke of the explosion being carried away by the wind revealing the back of the black Hollow "What the hell, that's not a hollow, that's not how a Menos fight!" lunging at the black hollow Isshin went for a downward slash only for this to be blocked by one of the arm like blades of the black hollow "Hey, there's no way a monster like you could exist without Soul Society knowing. Someone must be sheltering you…who's pulling the strings?" only receiving a low growl in answer from the hollow Isshin distanced himself from it "No answer of course…I don't care. Whether you talk or not I am gonna slash you anyway" putting both of his hands on the hilt of his sword and tightening his grip on it Isshin released his zanpakuto "Burn! Engetsu!" fiery flames ready to take down the Hollow Isshin charged only to feel a burning sensation which went from his right shoulder to the left side of his waist "Wha…!" Isshin said plummeting towards the ceiling of one the buildings below him.
[Sky of Karakura Unknown's Location]
Admiring his handiwork the unknow attacker couldn't help to chuckle to the irony of the situation "A cloak that isolates reiatsu almost completely" seeing in satisfaction how the symbol of the 10th Division inscribed on the captain haori of said division was slashed in the process "And by kneading some Kido into it even your body can blend into the air, rendering you almost invisible" witnessing the crumbling form of Isshin who tried to stay airborne "What a wonderful parting gift you left" memories of a long time ago resurfacing after so much time has passed "Urahara Kisuke" smiling, the unknown attacker stayed where he slashed Isshin just a second ago seeing how the last plummeted towards one of the nearby building "Everything is going on without any kind of problem, just as planned" his thoughts mirroring the smirk on his face, were the only sign that gave away that they all have been in the unknown enemy's grasp from the very beginning.
His two companion were there seeing how the captain of the 10th Division called to him, to show himself "Oops, looks like he realized it wasn't a hollow that hit him" his ex-Fuku-taichou said with his ever-present smirk on his face "Indeed…I am going" surprised by his leader action he couldn't stop the doubt in his voice "Is it okay? It's…" assessing the uncertainty on his companion "His Bankai is quite a burden on his body, he won't be able to use it with that wound" the unknown Shinigami explained to his companion "If a captain ranked shinigami is able to defeat it with just a Shikai, it means that sample was a failure in the first place" the unknown Shinigami cleared.
While blind the man was able to see far more than any other, it's because he was blind that he was able to see the pureness of the creature a little under him, so he wasn't going to stay there and let even his lord call it a sample "It's not a sample, please call it White. He's completely different from all the types of Hollow we created so far, it's the first one we created based on the soul of a Shinigami" the blind Shinigami stated defending their creation "You are right. Sorry, Kaname" his lord apologized, he knew that his subordinate only said it as a reminding of their efforts, but… "But don't forget Kaname that, while his base is of a Shinigami the source in the end is Hollow" he said, reminded and cleared in the same time, the source came from a Hollow, a Hollow that only he knew, a Hollow which he take care of personally, his companions or better said subordinates knew nothing about said Hollow, nor like they needed to know to begin with, that Hollow was far long ago, he glanced towards his creation, towards White, and he couldn't help to make the uncanny resemblance within his creation and its source, except for the black armor "However, calling it White even though it's completely clad in a black armor, just because of his inner whiteness…is something I find quite ironic" with that said the unknown Shinigami stayed there to observe his experiment
[Isshin and White's? fight]
Lunging towards the wounded Isshin, the new named White went at him with a downward slash with one of his arm like blades only for this to be blocked by Engetsu, receiving the full force of the swing Isshin couldn't help but being pushed down creating a crater in the ceiling of the building where they were fighting, feeling his wound spurting blood thanks to the use of his right shoulder Isshin winced and looked towards his wound on his back, making a perfect opening for White which swing his other arm like blade trying to cut Isshin's feet off, only for the later to jump and land over the limb trapping him by the moment, but as the berserk he is White used his enormous strength to launch Isshin with his trapped limb, sending him flying upward, not letting his prey go out of his line of sight, White let out a loud howl while lunging towards an airborne Isshin, still being send flying away by his opponent Isshin grabbed a little of his blood on his hand and sucking it "Don't underestimate me… you piece of shit" to then spit out the recently sucked blood on his zanpakuto setting it ablaze and giving it by the moment the form of a giant blade made of pure fire, with that all done Isshin lunged towards White with a fiery battle cry, not losing time White lunged at the same time as Isshin, lunging at each other at the same time the colliding Shinigami and Hollow created a giant explosion which reverberated through the air and earth, not noticing the presence of a certain Quincy in the neighborhood, Kurosaki Masaki was there watching the scene unfolding above her with keen eyes.
Arriving at the scene unfolding up in the sky wasn't an easy journey, since the two signature of reiatsu were on constant movement she had to turn around many streets hoping that she would be able to arrive on time to wherever the battle was happening, it was by a stroke of luck that said signatures approached the residential district near her position, deciding to not lose any more time, Masaki went on a full sprint, arriving on the aftermath of the clash between the two reiatsu signatures, Masaki just stood there, watching the giant explosion happening high in the sky, surprised by the incoming projectile Masaki dodged at the last second witnessing how said projectile came to a halt while surrounded by a cloud of smoke, with the smoke dispersing thanks to the wind Masaki was able to see that said projectile was some kind of weird black blade with a strange protuberance instead of the place where the hilt is supposed to be, making it clear the result of the clash. "Whoever went against that hollow…I have to get closer!"
If Isshin have ever heard before the words `I like the rain` he was pretty sure that he would've take those same words and shove them inside the mouth of the person who said them in first place. "Everything it fucking hurts" not being the softest landing of his life Isshin just could complain to himself, looking at his still airborne enemy, Isshin smiled, a fiery smile. "How long has it been since I have been pushed this far?" Isshin thought not been able to remember the last time he has been in a dire situation. "I am getting soft" his train of thoughts not leaving any time soon proved to be his worst enemy, blocking at the last minute the reckless charge of the black armored hollow, Isshin gritted his teeth's in annoyance. "Does this fucker even know what it means to have an arm sliced off?!" intercepting the remaining arm like blade Isshin endured not only the excruciating pain going through both of his arms and back but the constant reminding of being in a zone populated by living people. "I can't use Takibi nor Fureā to escape" trying to put his aggressor away Isshin tried to force his escape through brute force not taking the risk of flaring his reiatsu and hurt the living people inside the nearby buildings. "I could try to use the Getsuga Tenshō but while I know that I would be able to incapacity him I'll just cause more destruction in the process and ill just bring more harm to myself no less, come one Shiba Isshin think, think dammit!" bringing out of his thoughts the red color of a Cero shined brightly between the horn of the hollow. "Shit!" Isshin cursed loudly not being able to overpower his adversary trough pure force nor being able to use most of his abilities, staring at what would be his end Isshin sent a defiant glare at his adversary deciding not to show any kind of fear or anxiety towards his opponent, preparing for his incoming doom Isshin saw how slowly the hollow pointed his horns towards his face. "Why did you just have to eat my Manju Shiro-kun" Isshin said to his insides still remembering his stolen manju. "Hope Rangiku can lead the 10th Division without my help" his thoughts drifting towards his lazy fuku-taichou. "Kaien, Kukaku and Ganju will get really mad " a quick image of his niece and nephews passing through his eyes. "Forgive me…Katsu-nii" the image of an elder looking Isshin flashing in front of him. "Come on you bastard what are you waiting for?!" Isshin yelled at the black armored hollow, his voice unwavering only full of resolution, with the bright red cero fully charged the hollow proceed to fire it towards the heavily injured Shinigami…only to dodge at the very last minute a glowing blue arrow made of pure reishi causing in the same time to lose focus and making the cero to shut down, astonished by the recent turn of events Isshin rolled over himself seeing his apparent rescuer a few streets away from his position. "Who is that girl?".
[Sky of Karakura Unknown's Location]
"Well, well, well, who would have said, a Quincy of all things appearing at the last minute" the fox eyed individual said with his grin still plastered on his face. "I'll get rid of her immediately" with his hands already gripping the hilt of his zanpakuto Kaname proceed to eliminate the new intruder only to stop by hand gripping shoulder. "Let's see and wait Kaname" his lord said with a smirk on his face and his eyes flashing on pure intrigue. "But Aizen-sama!" Kaname called at the newly appointed Aizen in exasperation but knowing to not against Aizen's orders Kaname decided to stay silent and trust his lord judgement.
[Masaki VS White?]
Seeing how the black colored hollow locked his full attention at the new threat which she represented, Masaki with her Heilig Bogen still manifested, locked her fingers around the thread made of reishi and pulled making a new Heilig Pfeil in the process and sequentially let it fly towards her new enemy, seeing how this easily dodge her last shot, Masaki let fly many more holy arrows trying to shot down the incoming enemy. "Too fast" just as the previous shot the hollow easily evaded the incoming projectiles without difficulty. "No…I am to slow, I need him to come closer"her mind already going through numerous outcomes, Masaki sighed at her only chance to eradicate her incoming enemy, dematerializing her holy bow, and abandoning any kind of self-defense, Masaki stretched her arms in answer at the fast-coming threat. "I only can hope that my Blut will we tough enough to endure the blow".
[Isshin's Location]
Seeing how the unknown girl lowered her defenses on purposes Isshin couldn't help but panic at the soon to be bloody scene. "Run!" Isshin shouted hoping that his voice would reach her from his place, but seeing only how the girl stretched her arms in answer to the fast approaching hollow Isshin's panic augmented drastically. "What is she doing!" ignoring the excruciating pain going through his entire being, Isshin focused the necessary quantity of reiatsu under his feet preparing to flash step towards the girl's location, but before he could do that Isshin saw how the hollow was already over her. "I'll never make it on time!" cursing his powerlessness Isshin just could stare at the scene unfolding in front of him…only for that to be taken away by the flying figure of the hollow, which was send flying in the opposite direction of the girl, blinking Isshin directed his gaze towards the girl location only to pale at the being which has its arm extended at her side. "Two of them?!" Isshin cried out inside his mind not believing the being a few streets away from his location, nonetheless this only filled him with a new sense of dread, if one alone was dangerous enough them two of them were already worse. "Fuck! Come on get up, get up!".
[Sky of Karakura Aizen's Location]
Ignoring the bewildered expression of his two subordinates Aizen felt static at the sudden turn of events. "To think that [You] would go as far as to evolve to Vasto Lorde in such a short time after our last encounter; but to be able to easily overpower your own child with a single strike…fascinating" feeling the sudden rush of adrenaline through his body, the aching of his hands to grasp the handle of Kyoka Suigetsu, and the almost murderous grin forming on his face, Aizen did everything in his power to contain himself from shunpoing to the location of the recently introduced hollow. "Fascinating…totally fascinating, to think that you would go and overstep your boundaries, you are so near to the last step of your evolution, to become one of the few natural born Arrancar, but It doesn't surprise me, after all, from the very beginning you were destined to become the strongest of your species, isn't that true…White". Aizen said aloud receiving looks of shock from both of his subordinates.
"Aizen-sama what does that mean?!" Kaname asked shocked by his lord words. "Ah yeah, it seems it slipped me to share with both of you a certain experience I had during a brief visit to Hueco Mundo". Aizen chuckled at his subordinates' expression, a look of pure shock which in the same almost expressed the words impossible at the same time. "To think that the day we would see each other again would be this day specifically." Aizen Sosuke was a man who always has hundreds if not thousands of different kind of plans prepared ahead of time each with their own back-up plan in the process, always an step ahead of his enemies, always holding all the cards on his hands, it may be true that he favorited the use of his shikai during battle but that didn't deteriorated his overwhelming talent in kido nor his heavily and thick reiatsu which was even able to crush his surrounding enemies with ease or even damage his surroundings as a whole, he was more a man who loved to play as the strategist instead of the vanguard, he liked to play mental games on his enemies only to see them succumb to their own despair and suffering; he could attest and even say that he was a very wicked and mischievous man, he didn't even blinked when he stepped over the trust of others or when he betrayed those close to him, after all, for him the rest were only the next step he needed to take on his crusade, to kill the abomination which resided high above the Soul Society, since the day he saw it with his own eyes, he knew what was his destiny, he knew what was needed to do in order to kill it, and when a certain captain presented him the opportunity to finally acquire the power he yearned so much for, he didn't wasted single second more and he quickly devised the next stage of his plans, to say that it went better than he expected was little to say but sadly he was too late to retrieve it, nonetheless that didn't mean that all of his efforts were for nothing, he knew that the person that made the Hōgyoku always had an ace under the sleeve, it took him some time but in the end he found it, the files which contained all the data about the Hōgyoku and the King's Key, of course all that happened eighty years ago but he could remember all of it like if it happened yesterday, he knew how to make his own Hōgyoku but the materials to make it were very unusual to not to say very rare and hard to find, he knew that if given enough time and with patience he would be able to make his own Hōgyoku but that didn't mean that he wasn't going to keep going with his experiments, after all success only could be achieved under trial an error, but there has to be always a but in the process, and that but received the name of the King's Key, the materials were far more difficult to found than those of the Hōgyoku to not to say less intriguing, the King's Key or better known as the Ouken was the final piece of his plans the key to enter the royal dimension, the dimension where resides his objective…the Soul King, but he wasn't going to push everything at once, oh no, he is going to wait, wait just a little more, yes, just a little more and his plan would finally start to go on full march, but for now…he was going to witness the final trial of his experiment, to surpass his progenitor.
[Masaki and ?]
Dispelling her bow and putting her arms away, in signal of forfeiting Masaki without no one noticing activated her Blut Vene, conceding that her only way to gravely injure the fast-approaching threat she had to receive a little bit of damage in the process, she steeled her nerves, all traces of doubts disappearing at once from her face, her eyes narrowed in the incoming black enemy. "If I am not wrong, he will aim for one of my vitals instead of slashing savagely like any other hollow." Feeling the reishi coursing through her blood vessels only made her feel slightly better about her recent course of actions. "I only need a single clean shot on his mask and all will be over…only one." Pushing her thoughts aside Masaki focused his gaze on the enemy mere inches away from her. "Come you-"
"Dodge to the right"
Instinctively listening to the new presence behind her, Masaki moved slightly to the right avoiding in the process the incoming strike, only to realize that it wasn't for her but for the black armored hollow which was on the receiving end of said strike, hearing the resounding crack of something Masaki with wide eyes just could stare at how the same living nightmare was send flying away with a single punch to his mask, mouth agape, and eyes wide as saucers, Masaki slowly directed her gaze towards the unknown being standing at her side only to have all the color on her face drained and almost looking like some kind of ghost or vampire, the being in front of her had from his hips down to his feet's like claws covered completely in an ebony black like armor, while his entire chest was of pure white color while having some kind of red colored marking which protruded from the hollow hole located in his upper chest, his arms were white just like his chest with the exception that this ended on the elbows, from both elbows to the fingertips of his clawed hands were covered in the same ebony black like armor, the red markings reached towards both sides of his shoulders and keep going up his neck finally reaching his mask which has two red lines going from his head passing through his eyes, passing the chin to finally meet with the markings of the neck, just like his counterpart carrying a pair of forward-pointing horns protruding from the sides of his head with the only difference of these being pure white instead of the sickening black of the other hollow, but his most outstanding feature wasn't how his mask resembled something akin to a demon or how similar both hollow were, no, it was his bright orange hair which reaches down to the middle of its back.
"I'll take it from here." The new less armored hollow said taking a few steps forward having his back facing Masaki. "An advice…go and heal the injured Shinigami up in that tower and if you want to live…" watching carefully how his counterpart was standing up after receiving one of his punch, this glared at the black hollow "Don't follow me or else…I'll kill you." with that said he appeared immediately in front of the other hollow. "Let's do this elsewhere." Taking his doppelganger by the face the white horned hollow disappeared in the distance in matter of seconds.
Masaki could only stare at the site where her savior used to be seconds ago, her mind trying to come with many questions, but everyone one of them always came to the same conclusion: why?
Why did he protect her? She was vulnerable, she knew it, she left herself wide open intentionally. Then why he saved her? Weren't they comrades?
Why she couldn't sense him? If such a strong hollow would be around she would have sensed it even before Ryuken or any other Shinigami could have the opportunity to sense it. But it was like he didn't have a single trace of reiatsu on him.
Why she couldn't…avert her eyes from his back and why she felt so…so sad when he told her to not follow him. "Don't follow me" the words said by the hollow played again and again inside her head making her heart ache with sadness and pain, but, why? Why she felt so sad, so sad that she wanted to cry, so sad that she wanted to shed all her tears right in that instant moment, so sad that she wanted to tell him to stop, that he didn't need to go and fight, that he didn't need to shed more blood for…for-
For who he would shed his blood? For who he would fight for? Why he couldn't stop fighting? So much questions, so much feelings, she was so confused, but she was sure of something…something which she couldn't deny, something she wouldn't deny, she, Kurosaki Masaki, in that exact moment wanted, one thing and only one thing, to tell him that he didn't need to fight, that he could stop, and then…she would hug him strongly and softly at the same time, running her hands through his long and wild orange hair, whispering to his ears so many words, of love, of sadness, of pain, of regret, like a mother to her child, but she couldn't, he didn't let her, he wasn't going to let her and that was what it hurted her the most.
"Hey girl!" her thoughts interrupted by the approaching figure of a badly hurt Shinigami. "Are you okay? Did those hollows hurt you?" The Shinigami in front of her was young to say the least, maybe some years older than her, but he seemed to need something on him, she had it in tip of her tongue, she just needed a few words…
"err miss?" letting out a girlish scream Masaki jumped in surprise for the proximity of their faces, her face resembling a Christmas tree and incredibly flustered "Y-yes thanks for caring but look at me! I am as new as a roble!" puffing out her chest, which only seemed to make them look bigger "They are just a little bit smaller than Rangiku"
Following the direction of his gaze, Masaki tried to hide her bust from the rather energetic Shinigami "Excuse me, weren't you dying just a moment a go?! And if that true how is it that you seem to be good enough to keep leering at my breast!"
"W-What are you talking about young lady? I wasn't staring at your chest I was only checking if that black hollow had done something to you" A half-truth half-lie, it was true that he was concerned over the well being of the girl but that didn't meant that he was going to act like some prude, he, Shiba Isshin, is a full-fledged red blooded male and consequences be damned if he didn't appreciate true beauty, but make no mistakes! Shiba Isshin wasn't some down of the mill pervert he was a gentleman, one who deeply appreciated the beauty of a woman body.
"Sure" Masaki rolled her eyes at his statement "Oh and for your information my eyes are u-" not being able to finish her words thanks to the resounding sound of an explosion going in the distance, Masaki and Isshin directed their gazes towards the core of the sound, only to gasp at the immensely big explosion which was still going on past the mountain side of Karakura town.
"Miss" hearing how the Shinigami addressed her Masaki turn back on her own feet's staring at the serious and cold expression of the Shinigami "I don't know what are you doing out here and much less why a Quincy, is so close to an area which is under the protection of the Gotei 13, but I suggest you to go back on your feet's and head home, this is no place for someone like you, from here onward this is strictly Shinigami's business" having said what was needed Isshin tried to step forward in order to engage the two rampaging hollows, only to have his route stopped by Masaki herself.
"With due respect Shinigami-san, I doubt you would be even able to make a single scratch on any of them in your actual state" like a bad joke the already open and pretty damaged wound on his back released a little bit blood making Isshin flinch in pain and surprise. "Due to all the adrenaline going through my body and my own instincts going haywire, it seems I, in some twisted way, ignored or better said forgot about my sense of pain and the actual state of my body"
T'ching in annoyance Isshin could only look at the already soaked floor in shame "I can't feel my right leg, my back feels like is burning and I am pretty sure that one of my arms is probably cracked in the bone but not fractured, that doesn't mean that is good, but nothing a little bit of healing kido wouldn't fix, right now my main priority are my right leg and back"
Before Isshin could began his own treatment, he felt himself being healed while surrounded by a light blue aura of reishi "Stay still Shinigami-san, I can't heal you if you move" staring wide eyed at the girl in front of him, Isshin couldn't help but gap at her "I know I shouldn't have come out of my house tonight, but I couldn't just stand there and see innocent people getting trapped in the crossfire or…I don't know I just couldn't stay there and do nothing ok" fidgeting in front of him with an adorable face of concentration Masaki keep healing Isshin at best of her abilities.
"Hey missy, you're doing it wrong" not understanding what the Shinigami in front of her talked about she directed her gaze towards his face, noticing a little but kind smile on his lips, entranced by his smile Masaki didn't noticed that the aura with which she surrounded Isshin disappeared thanks to her lack of concentration, and neither didn't notice when he grabbed her arm and put her palm facing upward.
"Listen carefully, you begin concentrating a little bit of kido in the center of your palm, in your case reishi, which actually while not as effective as healing kido it actually helps a little in the bodies made purely of Reishi like souls, then you slowly but with care make the collected reishi to go to your fingertips and then you use it to cover your entire hand" following his instructions to the letter Masaki found herself at her own hands this time clad in something resembling a gauntlet of sorts "Well I didn't expect that, but whatever now the next part comes in the idea of what are you healing, it actually helps what is it that you are trying to heal but in our actual situation we can't be beggars so it would be good if we act now so that we don't lose any more precious time, right now my most affected areas are my back and right leg with one of my two arms bones possibly cracked, right now I want you to concentrate on healing both of my arms we can't lose time on pondering which of them is the cracked one or not, ok? After that I will use healing kido to repair the damage done to my back and right leg but I will need your help to heal my back" nodding in understanding Masaki began to assist the injured Shinigami.
"Oh I almost forgot" not losing concentration she looked at him in the eyes "My name isn't Shinigami-san, its Isshin, Shiba Isshin, captain of the tenth division of the Seireitei" smiling, Masaki just could answer him in the same way "The same is to you, I am not miss, nor missy and much less little missy, its Masaki, Kurosaki Masaki last heir of the Kurosaki family, got it Isshin?" Smiling, Isshin answered "Of course Masaki-chan"
[Sky of Karakura Aizen's Location]
"Aizen-sama" looking at his always faithful subordinate, Aizen raised and eyebrow in answer "What is it Kaname?"
"With due respect my lord but shouldn't we be doing something to interfere between the Whites fight?" Asked Kaname "At this rate the purpose of the experiment would be for nothing and this would only attract the attention of the Gotei 13" seeing the logic on Kaname's words Aizen couldn't but hum in agreement "While that is true Kaname, I have already made the necessary precautions in case something like this happened, maybe you hadn't noticed it yet but Karakura town and its surrounding have been inside of a barrier of my own design for a while, actually since the very beginning of the battle within Shiba-san and our White to say the truth, so it doesn't matter if they flare their reiatsu at the max nothing will be sensed out of the barrier unless I wanted it, of course" Aizen just could smile at his machinations "Oh and rest assured Kaname that the barrier will disappear once 24 hours has passed in the human world, so it won't rise any kind of suspicions, now I think it's better if we get better seats don't you agree gentlemen" with all that said Aizen just lazily floated towards the rampaging battle within the two Vasto Lordes with Kaname not to far away.
"My, my, captain Aizen is truly a really cunning man" Gin said to himself while following the other two a little away from them.
[?]
"Bravo, Bravo!" clapping in appreciation of the beautiful fireworks aka explosions of utterly destruction far in the distance, the man, clothed in a dark coat which sports a white diamond pattern along its bottom half, with a dark green shirt and pants underneath and with a striped dark green and white bucket hat that casually hide his gray eyes and just helped to make it even more messy his already messy light-blond hair which stayed on the borderline of being pale, alongside a little bit of shin stubble which only complimented his shady appearance "Bravo!"
"Seems like someone has been a little busy lately, don't you think so Kisuke?" A black cat made its appearance, and while the humble candy shopkeeper ignored the shocking fact that a cat just now talked, he took out a fan out of its coat and spread it open hiding his smile with it "hum indeed it has Yoruichi-san, Tessai-kun come quickly and don't forget to close the store in the process we wouldn't want another little rascal our precious merchandise, would we?" with a 'hai boss' coming from the back of the store, our humble and shady shopkeeper alongside it feline companion set to go onward the battlefield "Now, let's see what has been Aizen lately doing" Kisuke said while revealing a sharp but deadly gray pair of eyes under the famous stripped bucket-hat.
[?]
The pieces are finally in places
The one bathed in tainted black and white
The fool hanging upside down on a grave of his own
The maiden whose destiny has been long written in stone
The joker and his lively companions hiding behind the curtains
The madman seated in his very own throne of lies and deceit moves
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Now who would come out victorious?
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Say child, don't you…want to play a game?
Ok, wow I actually forgot about this little project of mine, and to be worse it was an actual 95% of written, well I suppose this is the start of my very own bleach fanfiction named Hollow, believe it when I say that while this is hollow centric I am actually coming out of every little concept of other fics which pic Ichigo as White or the hollow version of himself, of course Ichigo is White obviously, but if you pay attention there are some things which aren't particularly right with some characters, yep things are messed up in many levels, those wondering of Howling: the cursed moon I and very happy to say that is finally being on process of being written the second chapter, the Uni plus some modifications here and there had been a little heavy on me so I hadn't had the time to write sadly and my own laziness didn't help neither, but I an actually at 15% so progress people, slow yeah but surely coming out soon, well I am saying goodbye and right now are the 2 am so gotta sleep and ciao~