Cut, Rewind, Action
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach! Bleach is the brainchild of Tite Kido. I just love Hitsugaya-taichou too much to leave him alone!
Dedication: This fanfic is dedicated to a good friend and classmate of mine. His undying love for Bleach and especially Hitsugaya has brought me back to this fandom. Thanks 26-san; it means a lot to me! But, then again, I doubt you'll ever read this story.
Summary: We all know that during the Diamond Dust Rebellion, Hitsugaya defeated Hisagi and Kira and was badly wounded in the process. How come Soul Society never sent anyone after that? It would have been too easy to capture the weakened captain, right? That's why we are going to cut, rewind and play again.
Chapter One:
"Set above the frosted heavens, Hyourinmaru!"
The sound of blood splashing against the frozen ground seemed abnormally loud in the eerily silent night. Hitsugaya Toushirou struggled to stand in a pool of his own blood. He took a faltering step forward, then another.
I have to get out of here.
A fukutaichou level mission was bound to be on high alert; it won't be long before someone decided to check up on Kira and Hisagi, and when they get no response…
Even now, they could be on his trail. The Onmitsukidou were highly efficient in their missions and Hitsugaya had no desire to experience it first-handed. He quickened his pace.
Perhaps it was this urgency that caused him to lose his normally sharp senses, or maybe his wounds were really getting to him; whatever the reason, it wasn't until much later that the taichou of the Tenth Division noticed shadows lurking in the forest surrounding his passage.
"Damn," he croaked, reaching back to draw Hyourinmaru, before a burning sensation at the base of his neck caused him to hurl into unconsciousness.
Hitsugaya woke to a massive splitting headache and a sickening up-and-down movement. Voices murmured around him, but he couldn't figure out what they were saying. He felt dizzy, so he kept his eyes tightly closed. He tried to ease his breathing as he struggled to remember what had happened…
Flash
The King's Seal; ambush; fire; two Hollows; pain; Kusaka, Matsumoto; Karakaku; Kurosaki; Kira, Hisagi; battle, escape, capture!
Capture!
Hitsugaya gasped, his teal eyes opening wide, his whole body stiffening. Dimly, he noted that his wounds seemed to have been treated and bound already.
The voices around him stopped as a sudden chill pervaded the air. Survival instinct kicked in and Hitsugaya leapt off of the shoulder of his captor, successfully kicking him unconscious in the process. He spun in the air, surveying his surroundings, noting that there were eleven of the ninja-clad Onmitsukidou, not counting the one he knocked out. He spotted Hyourinmaru clutched in a pair of trembling hands, before he lost altitude, so he opted instead to kicking the nearest person, knocking him out cold.
He landed lightly, his body settling into a crouch, his eyes darting from one person to the next. His captors surrounded him swiftly, but they were hesitant to attack.
"Hitsugaya Toushirou! By the combined orders of Yamamoto-soutaichou and Soifon-taichou, you are now under arrest on charges of suspected treason! Come quietly or we will use force!" The leader of the small group, a tall male with shockingly red hair, apparently had more guts than the others, for he drew his zanpakuto and held it in an attack position. Hitsugaya, however, had no intention of going quietly before he found Kusaka and he was willing to do everything in his power to escape capture.
A few moments of chilled silence passed before a barely audible sigh passed the red-haired man's lips.
"I take it you will not surrender." It was not posed as a question; it was merely a statement.
"Like hell I will!" Hitsugaya snarled as he sprung forward, releasing his reiatsu in a tidal wave.
Most of the Onmitsukidou were knocked back in the blast, but the leader of the group stood his ground, albeit with difficulty.
Hitsugaya aimed a kick at the man's head, but he dodged with surprising swiftness. Hitsugaya used the momentum to spin in the air and aimed another kick, which connected with his target's shoulder. The man staggered backwards, but maintained his balance. Still in the air, Hitsugaya searched the ground for the glint of Hyourinmaru in the mass of tangled Onmitsukidou. He spotted the blade a few feet from where he was and he positioned his body so he would land right next to the zanpakuto. However, the red-haired man had other plans.
"Oh no, you don't!" The ninja moved to intercept the young captain, knowing that should the white-haired captain be reunited with his dragon, the fight was just about decided.
Hitsugaya was not a prodigy for nothing, either, and he wasn't going to be thwarted this easily. A burst of carefully controlled dense reiatsu knocked the reckless man back several feet and Hitsugaya reached for his key to long-awaited freedom…
"Sting all enemies to death, Suzumebachi!"
A split second warning was all Hitsugaya needed to avoid a fatal stab to his heart, but it was not enough to escape unscathed. He staggered as a butterfly sprung forth on his back, bringing with it a slight stinging sensation that grew in intensity with each passing minute.
"Soifon-taichou," Hitsugaya said coldly.
"Hitsugaya Toushirou, I will not repeat the command again; either you come quietly or I will use force." Soifon smirked, "With poison running in your veins, and Hyourinmaru out of your reach, what are the chances that you can escape from me?"
"Slim to none," answered Hitsugaya. Nevertheless, he crouched into a defense position.
"Yet," Soifon raised an eyebrow, " you are still going to fight."
For a moment, silence greeted this statement.
"There is something that I have to do," Hitsugaya's voice dropped to a whisper, " something very important. I have got to do it, before it's too late."
"Something very important? Pray tell, Hitsugaya Toushirou, what could be more important than your duties to the Gotei 13? Your duties as a captain should come before anything else. But look at you now; I doubt you even know that your whole division is facing the danger of expulsion, yes, expulsion! Yamamoto-soutaichou is extremely angry, and if you do not want your fukutaichou and division members to suffer from the consequences of your actions, you will come with me quietly, now!"
"I…"
But before Hitsugaya could say another word, he felt the pain from the poison intensify suddenly. He dropped to his knees as his sense of balance was stripped away. Darkness leeched at his vision and dimly he felt someone start to bind something to his neck.
"Don't struggle; it will be better this way, both for you and me. Trust me."
And darkness claimed him completely.