Talking : Regular Speech

Talking: Creature Speech

Talking: Hollow Speech

-=Two hundred years ago…=-

The sounds of zanpakutos colliding against one another were heard throughout the green forest at the very outer edge of Soul Society. Despite the amount of noise that were present within the training ground, there were only two Shinigamis training against one another. One, a male that had messy jet black hair and piercing blue sapphire eyes, wearing the white haori that was traditionally worn by all captains of the 13 Protection Squads. The man was lean, but muscular and had an aura of confidence and extreme power about him that made others look to him for inspiration. The other Shinigami was a female that had deep purple hair, chocolate colored skin that gave her an exotic look of beauty, and glowing topaz eyes that would shine in the darkness. The woman was incredibly attractive; her lean and curvaceous figure belied her impressive skills simmering just underneath the surface.

The two Shinigamis fought each other with all the skills they could muster, eager to bring the other down to their knees. The man fought with one hand holding his zanpakuto and another behind his back, swinging with such speed and strength that it seemed the woman would fall at any moment. The female Shinigami fought with both hands holding on to her zanpakuto, warding off the man's strikes and attempting to attack the openings that the men's vicious assault created. At the moment, the female was steadily pushing the man back, slowly cornering him against a trio of giant cypresses.

"Looks like I'm finally going to defeat you this time, Souken-sensei!" cried the purple-haired woman.

"So sure of yourself, Yoruichi? Perhaps you have forgotten why I am one of the most feared Shinigamis within the 13 Protection Squads," said Souken as a smirk appeared on his face.

"And yet I'm the one pushing you back am I not, sensei?" inquired Yoruichi sarcastically.

The two zanpakuto blades clashed together, creating a blade lock between the two fighters.

"You have done well and have come a long way, Yoruichi, however, I have a question for you. Have you ever wondered why the Edogawas are one of the noble families of Seireitei?" asked Souken.

"I have always assumed it was because the Edogawas are so skilled at shunpo that they become the best assassins within Seireitei. Am I correct in that assumption, taicho?"

Souken chuckled and said, "Indeed, most Edogawas are highly skilled at shunpo, but that is not a trait, it is a secret taught to all Edogawa clan members. Nevertheless, I am not surprised that you do not know why the Edogawas are part of the noble families, we Edogawas usually never show our special trait unless we are in danger of dying, that way, our special ability can be a secret weapon when we are in danger. However, I believe it's time for you to know what the special trait that the Edogawas possess. You see Yoruichi, all Edogawa clan members have one thing in common, within our bodies resides TWO zanpakuto spirits. You may have been beating me when I was using one zanpakuto, but what happens when I use both?"

"No…" Instantly, Yoruichi realized the danger she was in. Souken chuckled as the expression of fear appeared upon Yoruichi's face. Suddenly, a second zanpakuto materialized within Souken's free hand. Flipping the zanpakuto so that the reverse side was out, Souken quickly swung his zanpakuto into Yoruichi's abdomen. Immediately, Yoruichi flew into the wall of the training halls with a crash and crumpled into a heap.

Souken slowly walked over to Yoruichi's defeated form and asked with concern laced within his voice, "Hey, are you alright? I apologize… I guess I went a little overboard there with the swing."

Yoruichi painfully nodded her head in affirmation. Souken offered her a hand and Yoruichi quickly took the help.

"I am proud of you, Yoruichi; you've improved by leaps and bounds since when you first arrived. I am pleased to call you my lieutenant," encouraged Souken.

Yoruichi beamed and hugged her mentor with all her strength. Souken chuckled and slowly returned Yoruichi's embrace. However, their warm moment was quickly brought to an end by a spine-chilling howl that rang throughout the forest.

"Hollow…" whispered Yoruichi

"And a Gillian-class at the sound of that…" reasoned Souken.

Before either had a chance to ponder more about the situation, a crimson beam of destructive energy rushed out from within the dense shrubbery towards the two Shinigamis. Both quickly scattered in opposite directions and carefully surveyed their surroundings. Suddenly seven gigantic black beasts with bone white masks stepped out of the shadows. At the same time, two smaller, human-sized creatures stepped out behind the gargantuan monstrosities.

"Well, well, well… what do we have here? Two Shinigamis lurking on the outskirts of Soul Society… I was just getting hungry too… come brothers, let us feast upon these fool's energies," said one of the smaller Hollows.

"Yes… it's been too long since I've tasted Shinigami flesh… with their energy, we just might become Vasto Lordes! Gillians, stay back, I want to taste the flesh of the woman!" cried the second man-sized Hollow.

Yoruichi narrowed her eyes at the two Adjuchas-class Hollows and settled into a defensive stance. Meanwhile, Souken glared at the Adjuchas and merely sheathed his zanpakuto.

"I'd love to play with you all, but unfortunately for me, I still have plenty of paperwork to do once I get home, and I'd rather finish that before my wife starts attacking me for being incompetent," stated Souken calmly.

The two Adjuchas gritted their teeth at the obvious barb towards their skills and rushed off towards the Shinigamis.

"DIE!"

"I don't think so…" with that, Souken shunpoed in front of the Adjuchas and placed his palm on the face mask of the Hollow. "Hado number seventy-six: Scattering Blast." Souken's hand glowed red as the energy accumulated within his hands. The Adjuchas looked on in pure fear as he realized the predicament he was in. The energy exploded forward and completely destroyed the Hollow's head, continuing on as it separated into several smaller beams of energy, in a shotgun-style effect. The Adjuchas' head was completely obliterated, and the decapitated body slumped to the ground, lifeless and then disintegrated.

Meanwhile, the other Adjuchas barely had time to register that his partner was dead before he sensed the danger heading towards him. He just barely managed to block the zanpakuto that was about to slice him in half with the armored portion of his arms. The Adjuchas howled with anger as their carefully laid plans were completely trashed by the two skilled Shinigamis. This female in front of him was strong, there was no doubt about it, she far surpassed his powers and those of the other Adjuchas-classed Hollow, in fact, she was slightly stronger than both of them combined.

Yoruichi grinned at the Hollow in front of her before leaping back and preparing to attack again from a different angle. She could use shunpo, but was not that proficient at it yet; she had planned on asking Souken-sensei to teach her the secrets to mastering shunpo. Nevertheless, without practice, she would get nowhere, and with that, she shunpoed behind the surprised hollow and attempted to skewer the grotesque corrupted soul. The Adjuchas just barely managed to dodge out of the way of the lunge and raised his palm to fire a point-blank cero at Yoruichi.

"Goodbye… Shinigami!" However, just as he was about to fire the cero, Yoruichi smirked widely and grabbed his wrist. As he fired his cero, the beautiful Shinigami twisted his palm away from her torso, causing the cero to hit far behind her. The Adjuchas tried to wrestle his wrist out of the female's grip, but to no avail. Yoruichi reverse gripped her zanpakuto and sliced upwards, cutting the hollow's face and mask in half. The Adjuchas cried out one final time and then disintegrated with his partner.

The remaining Gillians retreated upon witnessing their masters' defeat, tearing a Garganta within the sky and flew through the dimensional portal towards the sandy wastes of Hueco Mundo. Souken looked at the escaping Hollows with disinterest, and then looked at Yoruichi.

"Are you alright? The Adjuchas didn't hurt you, did he?" inquired Souken.

"What, are you kidding? That guy was a pushover, not even worth my time. Still though, I wonder why Hollows have been appearing near Soul Society more and more lately…" wondered Yoruichi.

"I don't know. Nevertheless, we should be heading back now, I need to report this incident to Seireitei. Let's go," said Souken.

"Hai, taicho!"

-=Present Day…=-

Kira Edogawa was just a normal Japanese high-school student, striving to achieve good grades, get a high-paying job and settling down with a wife and a couple of kids. Coming in at one-hundred and seventy-five centimeters, he was considered tall in his close circle of friends. His messy black hair and azure eyes often made him stand out in a crowd. His build was lean but muscular, and he was incredibly fit, the result of years of kendo training and daily jogging. Kira lived with his older sister in their small, but homely flat in a gang-infested neighborhood within Karakura Town. His older sister by six years was the reason he was even able to go to school due to the fact that Kira lost his parents in a car accident when he was just five years old. As a result, his sister had to work for long hours just to scrape by a living for the two of them. The reason that neither of them went to an orphanage was their absolute refusal to be separated, they knew that had they gone to an orphanage, there was a high chance that they wouldn't be adopted by the same family. They managed to keep below the radar and his sister eventually managed to land a steady paying job that helped pay for their flat and his schooling.

However, while Kira appeared largely normal, there was one secret that he and his sister shared: both are capable of seeing spirits. While they usually leave the dead alone, sometimes they do help a spirit out when they are able to, such as helping fulfill some sort of unfinished business the spirit had. Nevertheless, if you disregard his abilities to see the dead, Kira was a completely normal kid.

Kira walked down the same small path within the park that he took whenever he was walking home from school. He slowly took in his surroundings and breathed in the fresh air that smelled distinctly of palm and oak. Still, there was this nagging feeling at the back of his mind that told him that he was being watched. Kira slowly looked around, but saw nothing out of the ordinary other than the fact that there was no one in the park at all except for him. Just as he was about to start walking again, he felt it again, he was sure of it this time, he could feel someone's eyes on him.

"Alright, come out, whoever you are, I know you're there," shouted Kira at the surrounding shrubbery.

What answered his call completely caught him off guard. A nearby shrub started shaking and slowly walked out a small cat with fur as black as night, but that was not what caught his eyes, the most distinctive feature of the feline was its incredibly beautiful yellow eyes. They seemed to shine with their own luminescence and he felt that the cat was staring straight into his very soul. The cat opened its mouth and, "Meow." Kira sighed a breath of relief, he had thought that it was some punk trying to look for an opportunity to mug him.

Kira slowly walked to the cat and knelt down to face it. The cat peered at him with a humorously curious expression. Kira slowly started to pet the cat and wondered who its owner was. There was no collar, so that meant that it might just be a stray, nevertheless, he couldn't be sure. While Kira stroked the cat, it began to make a soft and affectionate purr at him. The cat nuzzled into his other hand and gently licked his palm with its rough, pink tongue.

"Hey there little guy, you want to come home with me and get something to eat?" asked Kira as he continued to pet the black feline.

Surprisingly, it seemed that the cat understood what he said and gave a small, but perceptible nod towards him. It then leaped into his arms and nestled next to his chest while Kira created a crib of sorts using his own arms. The cat then peered up at Kira with its enigmatic eyes, almost as if urging him to start moving. Kira smiled down at his new found friend and started again on his path towards home.

Alas, it seemed that fate was determined to make Kira arrive home as late as possible, for no more than a few minutes later, a terrifying howl was heard by the teenage student. The cry chilled Kira to the bone, it sounded… haunting… as though someone lamenting their own misfortune. Before he had time to ponder more about the strange cry, the ground trembled and out of the trees walked a gigantic abomination of nature. It had some sort of bone-like material covering its face, and the eyes of the monster were yellow with malice. The creature walked on four legs, and had a single thick tail, as well as a long neck. In many ways, it reminded Kira of some sort of nightmarish dinosaur from hell. The thing opened its mouth again and let loose another terrifying cry before it started moving rapidly towards Kira. Kira was frozen, too shocked and too terrified to know what was going on. All he knew was that the creature was headed straight for him, and it did not look like it was friendly. The giant beast raised one of its legs and began to slam it down in an attempt to crush the black haired youth.

"YOU FOOL! MOVE OUT OF THE WAY!" cried a deep, masculine voice. At those words, Kira snapped out of his stupor and years of kendo practice kicked in. Kira threw himself to the right, just barely dodging the leg that left a crater in the ground. Kira rolled a few times and slowly stood up, then looked around to see where the voice came from. However, there was no one in the vicinity. Kira slowly looked down at the black bundle he was holding onto. The cat looked up at him with exasperation.

"Is this really the time to be looking at me? Hurry and run from that Hollow!" said the black cat.

"Y-Y-You can talk!" exclaimed Kira in disbelief.

The cat sighed and said, "You have a gigantic Hollow in front of you, ready to consume you, and you think a talking cat is weird?"

Kira glanced back at the Hollow for a second and then started running again.

"What… What is that thing?"

The cat stared up at its carrier with a somber look and said, "It's a Hollow"

AN: This is my first fanfiction, so go ahead and be critical, god knows I need all the help I can get. However, while I welcome criticism, saying things like "This story sucks" without any justification is not what I consider criticism, if you want to say that my story sucks, give me a reason so that I can improve it. I've always wanted to see what would happen if someone different starred in the Bleach series. I most likely WILL include Ichigo and co. in the story, as this isn't completely AU, it will just be starring a different character. Ichigo will probably still play a major role in the story.

Stay tuned for Chapter Two

This is TWPC920, signing out.