This was written on a dare for Numisma, who requested an impromptu!fic crossing over Inu-Yasha and Bleach. Because it was written on the spot with very little editing done on my part, I hope it turned out as well as it sounded in my head. ((laughs)) Regardles, please enjoy.
Disclaimer: Inu-Yasha belongs to Takahashi Rumiko, Viz, and other related names. Bleach is property of Kubo Tite, Shounen Jump, and other persons more worthy than myself. This humble fanfic writer, being neither, is simply borrowing for the time being.
The Minutiae of Battle
Kuchiki Byakuya touched down in the middle of the clearing, and the first thing he noticed was a strange reiatsu he could sense was some distance away. He'd been sent to the human realm to exterminate a rapidly gathering mass of Hollow, but what he felt now… it was definitely not the all too familiar pulse he was accustomed to. This one was different. It felt more powerful, much stronger, and - if he was not wrong - very, very alive.
It was not Hollow, but, at the same time, it was not human.
Perhaps… perhaps it was something in between.
But Byakuya did not bother with minor technicalities like that. It was his duty as a Shinigami to send yearning spirits to Soul Society, and no matter what this peculiar creature was, he would do just that.
A disturbance in the air above him made Byakuya whirl about, Senbonzakura at the ready, and he pushed himself to follow the unfamiliar reiatsu's trek across the sky. It grew ever-closer, as did the wind around him, and, face stoic, he unsheathed Senbonzakura and prepared for battle.
"Show yourself, creature," he said, voice flat and even.
And even he was surprised when something from up above answered back.
"My, my… you humans are so stiff."
A whistle of wind revealed an obscenely huge paper crane, clearly made of material strong enough to support the dark haired man that rode it. This person wore a self-satisfied smirk and had one arm lifted casually in the air in a perverse greeting.
And then Byakuya noticed his pointed ears and red eyes and knew that, despite this newcomer's other human aspects, he was, by no means, a human at all.
"Hm," the strange being continued, almost unaware of Byakuya's stony gaze from the ground below. "At least that'll make you one step closer to becoming a corpse."
"Do not cross me," Byakuya responded, and the other man seemed taken aback.
"Oh? Defiant, are we? Clearly you're different from the other humans I've come across…"
"I am not a human," Byakuya said, positioning Senbonzakura in front of his face as though the zanpakutou alone could prove his immortality. "I am a Shinigami, and you will not dare attack me without feeling the bite of my blade."
"Heh," was all he heard.
And that was enough to thrust Byakuya into the want to do battle.
"Chire… Senbonzakura."
The blade dissolved from tip to hilt, and Byakuya knew he needn't lift a finger after that to decide the brief skirmish.
He had won, for few stood up against his zanpakutou's shikai form and lived to tell the tale.
But then and again, winning did not involve the petal-like blades whizzing to a halt in front of him, and Byakuya's eyes widened when he discovered that, by only moving his hand, the blue-swathed form on the paper crane had stopped his attack.
"'Do not cross me,' you said? Well, human, I do think that I will have to say the same for you."
Byakuya's eyes narrowed. "What are you?" "Who," he thought, was not the most pressing question at this time, because it mattered not the name of the one who had defied Senbonzakura. It was what he was, what this creature was made of and what drove them to this clearing, that made all of the difference.
"A youkai," he - it - responded, as though it was saying that the sky was blue. "You may call me Byakuya."
The sixth squad captain wasn't sure what surprised him more; the fact that he had encountered a fabled deviation of the Hollow species in the human realm or that this demon shared his name. Youkai, he knew, were the living equivalents of Hollows; they fed on humans, lacked restraint and knowledge unrelated to slaughter and battle, and - in the case of this one - did not have an essence.
It did not explain, however, how the youkai, Byakuya, had been able to stop his attack.
The answer came quickly enough, as Senbonzakura reformed at its hilt, though the pink petals that formed a barricade between the two fighters still remained.
"An illusion, then."
"Yes, complete with a barrier." Here, he pointed to one eye, which, Captain Kuchiki noticed, squirmed around a bit more than the one opposite it. "With these at my disposal, defiance will, sadly for you, not be an option."
Still feeling the unfamiliar spirit pulse in the back of his head, the Shinigami Byakuya spoke. "What is it that you wish to accomplish?"
"Now, really," the youkai said, "Telling you that would just take away all the fun."
Something spiraled in the air toward the captain - a snake, it looked like - and he leapt out of the way, not wishing to resort to shunpo just yet. Letting his opponent know that he had mastered flash steps would have been a mistake even a seventh seat knew not to make, and if there was anything Byakuya didn't want, it was to give this youkai an advantage off which he could base his attacks.
More snakes flew at him, mouths open and fangs bared, and they increased in number enough to make Byakuya have to parry them with his zanpakutou. "You're defending him," he said, voice still managing to remain calm. "The source of that reiatsu… you're working for him."
"You've discovered that too late!" he cried, and as the snakes receded and Byakuya launched Senbonzakura forward into the small opening, his sword hit the barrier that shone out from the youkai's now-detached eye.
More than anything right now, Byakuya wanted to ask why he was helping the reiatsu source, how he had acquired this type of power, and what he himself was doing that caused such a disturbance.
But Byakuya did not bother with minor technicalities like that.
He was a Shinigami, he had been sent to eliminate the reiatsu source, and if this demon was standing in his way of fulfilling his task, then Byakuya would not hesitate to kill him.
Byakuya removed his weapon from the other one's barrier, and again, made a move to attack. In an instant, the youkai Byakuya felt the tip of the sword meet his barrier, and as the wind whipped about them both, he smirked confidently, knowing that nothing could topple him now.
But then the man in black robes appeared behind him, weapon pinned to his pale neck, and only then did the demon feel Senbonzakura rake its way across the rectangular barrier he'd created.
"That's…"
"Shunpo. Your barrier, which was only two-dimensional, could not protect you from all sides. You thought that because I had just appeared in this realm, I was naive. But I could tell by your twitchy movements that your sides were your weak spots and that they left you unprotected."
Byakuya remained frozen beneath the sword for a moment, just as his captor remained still and even and so damn calm. "Heh… you remind me of someone, stranger."
"Tell me what you are," the captain said, still uninterested in "who" so much as "what."
And from beneath the sword, Byakuya smiled.
"You are not the one who will defeat my master. I will not allow you to."
The youkai drew a small, glistening capsule from his breast, and Byakuya, though he did not recognize it, brought Senbonzakura crashing in on the demon's neck.
At least, that was the place where his neck had used to be, for now all that remained of the youkai was a glimmering pink flower, not unlike the color of sakura, and a writhing eyeball that flitted north against the wind.
Even after all this time, Captain Kuchiki still sensed the reiatsu.
And though he'd gotten answers few and far between, his mission was still incomplete.
I will destroy that youkai… and I will see to it that his master falls as well.
And Byakuya charged toward his duty, toward an aura strong and uncertain, and toward a demon that had very nearly made him ask "why."
End fic. Please leave a review telling me what you thought. It would be much appreciated. Thank you for reading. ((bows))