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"Help me!"
A girl screamed, gasping for air as she tried calling for help from the nearby road going to a town. She stumbled down the sidewalk and was almost out of breath. She desperately reached out for someone who would help her, but it seemed that the people around were blind to her presence. Suddenly, a large monstrous figure appeared behind her. Its teeth were gritted fiercely, ready to strike her down.
A Hollow.
"Why do I have to die?" She asked herself as she shook her head sadly, tilting her head up fearfully to face the Hollow.
The Hollow then raised its left arm, aiming to kill her. As the hollow's arm quickly descended, it was immediately blocked by a sword's sharp blade.
"Targeting a fallen soul..." A tall man wearing a black kimono with a white long-sleeved haori and long silver-white hair suddenly appeared before her, holding the blade that had stopped the monstrous being. A shinigami. "...is something I can never forgive."
"Whraaahhhhhh!" The Hollow shrieked. It forcefully threw its arms above the blade, sending the shinigami crashing down to the cemented pavement. It then knocked the shinigami towards a building, the structure caving in on itself from the force of his body hitting it at such a speed. The shinigami quickly saw that the hollow's strength was much higher than he'd first thought.
The shinigami then fell from the building, not being able to right himself before his head hit the pavement below. Raising his head, blood dripped from his forehead and temples, running down the entirety of his face.
"Kuso!" The shinigami exclaimed furiously, unable to move as he laid there. Coughing up some blood, it was obvious he had reached his limit.
Turning his attention away from the hollow, he saw the ugly beast make its way to the soul he had been trying to save. The girl was crying helplessly. She needed to be saved. How pathetic it would be if he failed to save that defenseless soul and bring her back to the Soul Society. The hollow, having taken a moment to gather its strength, suddenly stood up to launch an another attack.
The shinigami heaved deep, shuddery breaths before the pain in his swollen throat subsided. He quickly wiped the blood from his mouth and stood up again with the same strength and determination he had had before and ran towards the hollow. The hollow noticed his presence and instead, turned to him and attacked. The two then become locked in a battle of survival, both unable to hit the other as they matched blows. The shinigami couldn't aim for the mask because of how fast and smart the hollow was. Frustrated with the constant blocks and dodges, the shinigami used shunpo, using his incredible speed to throw the hollow off guard and immediately deliver a fatal blow to the head. The hollow then instantly faded away into nothingness.
Landing gracefully on the ground, he looked around him but couldn't see any sign of the soul of the girl he had tried to protect just moments ago.
"Just where did that soul go?" The shinigami thought to himself for a moment. He sensed a weak energy coming from a nearby store. Following it, he traced a group of faint footsteps stretching into a sketchy looking alley between a house and an abandoned building. There he found the soul he had been searching for. The poor girl was still crying, her face buried between her knees.
"Taichou!" Chorused a man and a young girl dressed in black kimonos, hopping down from the roof above the two.
"Taichou! We apologize for letting you do all the..." Started the younger looking girl of the pair, but the white-haired hushed the two newcomers before they could babble about their failure to assist their captain.
"Ssshhhh..." He hissed at the two, effectively quieting them. The white-haired man then turned and smiled, gently patting the crying figure's head. The girl jerked her head away from his touch in surprise, avoiding the man who had just saved her life.
"No! No! Get away! Don't touch me! Please! Go away!" The girl cried.
"No...I won't hurt you. It's okay. My name is Ukitake Jushiro. I'm sorry if you feel scared...but I promise I'll take you to a safe place where no more monsters like that can harm you," he said, attempting to comfort the frightened girl.
"Why?!" The girl suddenly screamed, her rather violent reaction surprising the white-haired man.
"Why are there such things?! Tell me why?!"
"Things…? You mean...the Hollows? I'm sorry but-"
"No!" She screamed once again, putting her hands above her head, as if she wanted to just disappear all together.
There was silence. The two figures behind Ukitake tried to berate her for speaking so harshly to their captain, but were immediately silenced by him.
"Mama...I saw it. Those things...P-Papa." Her voiced cracked at the last word, again bursting into tears. "Wh-Why do they exist?"
"What? You mean...you've seen them before?" Ukitake said, looking bewildered by the girl's words.
"Those things...I...no. I'm sure it was one of those things...but they were so faint. I could see them...but...I couldn't see them. No! I...I don't understand. A-Am I...am I dead?"
There was another long pause before the man solemnly answered, "Yes...but...can you tell me what you've seen?" Ukitake rested his right hand on her shoulder, looking at her with caring eyes.
"No."
Ukitake stared at her for a moment. The girl was silent, sadness and loneliness showing clearly in her eyes. Though at the moment they were puffy and red from crying. Her hair was tied, with two hair clips supporting some loose hair on the side of her head. She looked like she could've been just a bit older than the substitute shinigami, Kurosaki Ichigo, maybe in her early twenties, but she looked much younger due to her small height and size.
"I see..." Ukitake sighed. "Very well then."
"W-Wait...what are you going to do? Please...just let me go!"
"Do not worry. It is also my fault that you were attacked."
"No! No! Just let me go!"
"No...Dear one." He turned his eyes to the Chain of Fate protruding from her chest. The chain had corroded and only three chains were left to sustain her in the real world. But that wasn't enough. If left alone, she could very well become the monster that she'd seen just moments before. He wanted to protect as many souls as he could, which was the sole job of a shinigami. To save lost souls.
"I'm sorry, but I hope you understand. The Soul Society is not a scary place. I promise you will be alright," Ukitake said, smiling comfortingly.
"Huh?"
The girl then gave up, knowing she could not persuade him to let her roam freely. Ukitake then performed the ritual of Kōnso immediately. Gently patting the base of the handle of his katana on the girl's forehead, she slowly faded away, she herself as a soul being sent safely to the place where all souls were sent to... the Soul Society.
Author's Note: Hi. I am only new in writing stories. I have been reading in FF for 3 years already and I have been using the account of my old friend. I was moved by many authors here in FF to write. So... I would be so much happy of what you can say about my works. I accept good and bad criticisms. So please read and review!
Beta by cream_2min.