Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach
Ikkaku stumbled back into the Eleventh Division's barracks at the crack of dawn, tripping over the threshold as he did so. A passing Fourth Division member saw him and wondered where the Sake Festival was.
But for once, Ikkaku's exhaustion had nothing to do with alcohol or a fight with his Captain (the only person still capable of thrashing him hands down. He had no doubt that Yumichika could beat him too, but the vain Fifth Seat insisted that fighting in the hot summer sun would ruin his complexion) This time, it wasn't a Vasto Lorde that had ripped his muscles apart until he collapsed on the ground. No, this time his enemy was his own friend, his zanpakuto. He glanced down at the sword loosely hanging from his waist with a strange mixture of hatred and pride. He disliked the fact that he hadn't been able to conquer his own blade, but at the same time was proud of Hozukimaru's insistence that he become stronger before he granted him the knowledge of Bankai.
Hozukimaru had become fairly talkative lately, his words striking Ikkaku more deeply that his blows. Is Bankai truly what you desire? Remember, that there will be no turning back once that knowledge is yours. You will never be able to erase it from your memories. Even if you convince yourself to forget, I will not. And I will never settle for being less than what I am. In order to obtain Bankai, you must promise me that you will never fight with anything less than your full potential.
Ikkaku sighed. He felt a little guilty about giving Hozukimaru his Wielder's Word, the highest oath a Shinigami could make to his sword, when he had no intention of fulfilling it.
He shook his head to clear it and sweat flicked out. Recalling Yumichika's reaction the last time his friend had awoken to find him in such a state, he reluctantly kept his sword against the wall and went to shower.
A red haze still surrounded the blade. Hozukimaru had emerged from Ikkaku's Inner World for the battle for Bankai between the two and was yet to return fully. Part of his consciousness was still hanging around the sword, yet to submerge into Ikkaku's reiatsu again.
It was this part that detected a faint but bright reiatsu signature drawing near. It wasn't overwhelming but nevertheless it was enough to make Hozukimaru wish that his wielder was nearby, so that they could fight it. It would have made for an interesting challenge as the reiatsu's sheer wildness more than made up for the small body it emanated from.
His curiousity aroused, Hozukimaru tentatively emerged from his residence within the sword and found a small girl with bright pink hair watching him with wide eyes.
"Aren't you Baldy? You feel like him," she said.
"Who're you calling Bald?" roared Hozukimaru, curiosity forgotten in his anger. Ikkaku's years of drawing on him, every time he had been called Bald had instilled a similar reaction to the phrase in his blade. Besides, Hozukimaru rather liked his bright orange hair.
The little girl lifted a finger and said happily, "You're not Baldy!"
"No, I'm damn well not," he growled.
"Then who are you?"
Hozukimaru was about to reply that he was the Zanpakuto Spirit of Ikkaku's sword when he suddenly remembered that his master wanted to keep their training secret for as long as possible. Since Zanpakuto Spirits usually materialized in the Spirit World only during Bankai training, his presence would be a dead giveaway.
He glanced down at the girl who was still watching him expectantly.
"I'm …" he began uncertainly.
"You're Rock-n-Roll-kun!"
"I'm not a rolling rock, stone or pebble!"
"No silly, you're a dance-y."
"A dance-y?"
"You dance!"
"Oh. Why did you think so?"
"Because you have the hair, Rock-n-Roll-kun!"
Hozukimaru looked around furtively and then kneeled to face the girl. "I don't know how to dance," he whispered.
Quicker than he would have thought possible, a pink blur attached itself firmly to his head.
"Aargh! Stop chewing my hair!"
"You can't have the hair if you aren't a dance-y," she said obstinately.
"Fine! I'll be a dance-y! Let go of my hair first!"
And on that fateful night, the mighty Hozukimaru came up with a dance to please the bubblegum-pink monster before him. At the end of it, she clapped and finally let go of his hair.
Since then Hozukimaru has considered the dance lucky since it made her let go of his precious hair. He taught his master to think so too because he would be damned if he made a fool of himself alone. Also, it was a nice way to pay Ikkaku back for not keeping his promise.
AN: This fic is kinda connected to another crack-fic I wrote, called Connoisseur, which can be found on my profile if anyone's interested. It takes place before the events in Connoisseur.
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