Disclaimer:
Tite Kubo owns every bit of Bleach. I'm only a devoted fan! The only thing I own are my plot bunnies!
A/N:
This story is the fully edited version of the story. Turns out, the only things I really changed are the beginning and Kiore's interactions with Kuchiki. I'd dug myself into a pit filled with mini devil-microbes and couldn't really find a good way out. O.O I had to create a ladder of plot bunnies to get out of the pit, resulting in the other stories of mine that are now posted somewhere on this site.
Warning:
The farther you get into my story, the more you'll dig up angst and drama. It's a weird kinda ride, and a lot of people seem to like it. I have almost 2000 hits! . I can't thank my readers enough!!
In my story are scenes filled to the brim with smutty homosexual intercourse, so please, leave if you don't like it and stay if you do. The flames I'll most likely get in the future will only keep me and my blankey warm at night, so be warned!!
My Thanks:
To KivaEmber, for your awesome work.
To x pink cloud x for reviving my will to get this story moving ('cause we still have a long way to go!)! It's back on schedule!
My Beta-reader, 7PhoenixAshes, is a God-Send. She's just a plain miracle. I can't thank her enough, and btw, her work is not to be missed! So if you're any kind of curious, please check her out!
And to my favorite bands who give me all the inspiration a girl could ask for. xP
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The wooden clacking of the alarm never went off. The guards were never alerted. Everything I had prepared for never happened.
Needless to say, I was ecstatic. I hadn't wanted to fend off hundreds of guards anyway. All I'd wanted was to enter, find the soutaichou, give him my report and enter the court guard squads.
And that led me here.
With wide eyes, I scanned the area. It had been so easy to enter the Seireitei using the skills I'd been taught, but once inside, the difficulty was in navigation. The buildings were tall and pale, and parts of the roads too fragile and sterile; the trees appeared only in sanctioned areas. Overall, the environment gave off a very hostile feeling. I pressed further, making my way carefully along the rooftops. I was quick on my feet, which eased my progression when I stumbled upon division guardians. The place was like a maze.
I had picked winter for my infiltration because I thought fewer shinigami would be stalking my path. I inwardly cursed my ignorance as I thought up an escape route, should things escalate. My particular route needed to end at the first division's headquarters. I had only one goal in mind: to become a shinigami and scale the ranks as quickly as possible. Maybe then I could find the one my mission was centered around...
"You! Halt!" A voice shouted. I turned quickly and stumbled off the roof. The fall was longer than I thought, and upon impact I screamed. Why the hell couldn't I feel my lower leg? Looking around in fear for the person who'd called for me, it suddenly dawned on me that's I'd fallen on the opposite side of the wall from them. I was safe, but just barely. I picked myself up carefully and leaned against the wall, cursing quietly at myself. How disgraceful! How could I get hurt now, of all times!?
"Oi, you okay?" A voice asked apprehensively. I looked up at the approaching man and gasped. I had little means of escape due to my injury, and was prepared to fight to the death instead. I pushed myself off the wall and put my arms up in protection.
"Aw, fuck me. Look 'it you, ehh? A ryoka... that would be jus' my luck." The man continued, expression scrunching to reveal his irritation.
"Stay back!" I cried. The man was tall and lean, his muscles illustrating his might. His crimson hair was pulled back in a sharp ponytail, and angular tattoos covered his body. A worn bandanna was wrapped around his forehead, directly above his alert ochre eyes.
"Whoa, hey! I don' wanna fight ya!" As the man neared me, my weak leg buckled and I hit the wall behind me. Strange colors flashed before my eyes- shades of brown and green- before my vision blurred and reduced to spots. When I fell to the ground, I pulled out my sword in a panic. I shook my head fiercely to clear my vision.
"I-I-said stay back!" I shouted. My zanpakutou throbbed in my hands, demanding to feel the grip of flesh surround its metallic edge. The man knelt beside me and crushed the sword to the ground.
"Thassa 'nough o' that, now. Put it away." He ordered, eyebrows furrowing. I made an effort to strike him, but failed terribly and was caught up in an unbreakable hold. "I said stop!"
"Abarai-fukutaichou," A cold voice said. We both stopped struggling and looked up at the sixth division captain. I recognized him from the information given to me during my briefing; this man was Kuchiki Byakuya. He fit the profile perfectly.
His silky black hair was held in place by his kenseikan. His pale skin did little to relieve the beauty of his features. The uniform he wore was adorned with a standard captain's haori and the white ginpaku kazahana no uzuginu that draped around his neck and hung down his back. I watched in mild panic as his dark eyes acknowledged his subordinate, then accosted me. "... an intruder?"
"Taichou, whatta we do with her?" Renji asked. "She certainly ain't one a' us,"
I took a deep breath to steady myself, gathering as much tension in my muscles as I could. In a fit of panic, I broke from Renji's grasp and lunged at the threatening squad captain. I wouldn't have a chance in hell were both to come at me at once, therefore I reasoned I would attack the most powerful and make my escape. I could hear Renji's shocked gasp, even as my own war cry kept out the majority of sound in range of my ears.
The Kuchiki merely took a simple step back, grabbing my arm effortlessly. After escaping his hold, I managed to land a hit upon his side with my shin, my metal shin guards thrumming against my leg from the impact. He sidestepped another blow as I continued to come at him. With what looked like hardly any exertion from him, Kuchiki grabbed me by my wrists and held me to him firmly. My leg collapsed again and I was held up only by his hold.
I panted and struggled when he pulled my arms high behind my back, pulling the ligaments in my shoulders. I glanced quickly at my second opponent, watching his eyes grow wider as I accosted him. He'd probably never seen anyone assault his taichou before. I screamed and, trying hard to disregard the pain surging through my leg, brought my foot behind the Kuchiki's knee, pulling in and causing his own legs to give. When he fell atop me, I spun and kicked him off.
Byakuya, incensed, stood his ground and held me at bay with his forearms protectively in front of his face. He grabbed one of my legs and twisted it backwards, causing me to land on my forehead. My vision blurred again and I shut my eyes in pain. He forced me still with a foot on my back, pushing in hard with all his weight. I froze, feeling the previous wound in my leg muscles being pulled. Renji gasped.
"Taichou, she's already down! Ya won! You can quit now!" He protested. Byakuya released me and I managed to crawl a few feet away, panting from the overexertion.
"I demand to speak to Shigekuni Yamamoto-Genryuusai-dono!" I shrieked as the taichou reached for me again. He hesitated before dropping his hands to his sides. He turned away stiffly, his scarf and haori waving once behind him.
"Abarai-fukutaichou, carry her and follow me."
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Granted, the walk to the squad one captain's headquarters was uncomfortable (what with me being forcibly held in Renji's arms), but the scenery was beautiful. I couldn't help but wonder about the slight shiver coursing through Renji's body when the wind picked up– it wasn't cold at all here. The snow coated the long expanse of estates, but you could hardly tell it was winter here. Now that my leg was elevated and no longer in use, I could feel the painful throbbing circulating from my toes to my hip. My head wasn't much better, and occasionally my vision would go completely black. When I woke again, Renji would always be walking slower, and Kuchiki would have slowed his pace to match Renji's. I looked over at him this time, and Byakuya refused to meet my gaze. He looked absolutely pissed.
"How much farther?" I asked. Renji sighed.
"Don' worry 'bout it." He mumbled.
Byakuya stopped and grabbed the back of Renji's shihakushou, tugging him backwards to halt him.
"One moment." He said icily, and disappeared into the division building we'd stopped beside.
Renji's sighs became louder, and he set me on the ground before stretching.
"Yer pretty heavy for a girl..." He said and shut his eyes, wincing at the cold air. He rubbed his face to warm himself up as I glared at him.
"Excuse me?" I demanded. I so didn't want to hear that from this asshole.
"Y'heard me." A silence took us as he flopped ungracefully to the ground, his legs crossed at the ankles and his fists buried under his bottom. I huffed and set my sights on the aching muscles in my leg. I prodded them gently, and found them more tender than I expected. A cry escaped my lips and I ground my teeth together to keep in the following yelp of pain.
"Oh, my. You were correct, Byakuya-kun. It really is one of them." A voice exclaimed. I didn't much care for the way it categorized me, and looked up angrily to see who it was. A sickly looking man jostled me into his lap before stretching my leg out before him. I winced at the pain, body tensing to fight off whatever threat was holding me now. "Did you do this, Byakuya-kun? This injury?"
"U-Ukitake-taichou!" Renji gasped. "Unohana-taichou!"
Bingo. Jyuushiro Ukitake and Retsu Unohana. I'd read up on every taichou and fukutaichou the Seireitei had to offer.
Unohana, a woman with hair braided down her front, followed close behind Byakuya. They'd just exited the building, following Jyuushiro.
"Ukitake-san, you shouldn't be out here in the cold." Unohana said quietly, covering the elder man with a thick black blanket.
"Yes, but when Byakuya-kun told me about this ryoka I couldn't help myself! And he's right, she really is just a child!" He laughed sheepishly and further cloaked himself with the dark blanket. He hugged me tightly as he stood up, carrying me with him. He suddenly laughed a bit in surprise. "My, and she's not as thin as she looks!"
I flushed and covered my face with a groan. Renji suppressed his laughter before acknowledging Byakuya's silent order and taking me from the older man.
"What'd I tell ya?" He mumbled to me, grinning foolishly.
What was I supposed to think? They weren't exactly hostile, but they weren't rolling out the red carpet for me either. I'd expected to be beheaded by now. They were certainly surprising me.
Byakuya turned on his heel and again entered the building. Jyuushiro grinned warmheartedly and slipped his hand on Renji's lower back, leading him inside and chattering away to us in regard to how interesting it would be when the other Seireitei inhabitants heard about the infiltration. Unohana held the door open fur us before following us in.
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The corridors of the fourth division's medical ward were quite cozy. The walls were bright and cheerful, and the lights were dimmed slightly to reduce their sharpness. That being said, I still didn't feel the least bit safer here.
I felt the heat surround us upon our entrance. A delicate-looking officer appeared before us with a black wheelchair and forced me into a sitting position. She bent over to examine my leg and head.
"These aren't too serious..." She said. She stood to look at Unohana. "I suspect nerve damage and slight hemorrhaging. But with our technology, it won't take any time to heal. She'll probably be walking again in just a day or two."
Renji snickered. "Yeah, but she'll be incarcerated a helluva lot longer than that." No one found this humorous, and the Kuchiki leant over to whisper in his ear. Whatever comment it was made Renji blush and clear his throat nervously.
"Well, I've got some... uhh, some shit to do, so..." He glanced at Kuchiki again before ducking his head and swiftly exiting the ward; forgetting to bow or even acknowledge the captains.
"How rude! Not a bit of respect..." The officer mumbled and bowed to her captain before wheeling me down the hallway. Kuchiki and Jyuushiro followed behind, the latter prattling enough for all of us.
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A/N:
Well, readers, that's the beginning of my edited version of the story. For those of you who have stuck with me until then, I can't thank you enough. Because of the sweet review I got from one of my readers, I decided not to change as much as I planned, which became obvious in the story. I hope I made the right decision.
Everyone, I now have three stories up that have become the fruit of many plot bunnies, so please take a look at them too. When chapter 8 of Kiore comes up, I expect some damn good reviews from you guys, so step up!
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