Sometimes there are places in the world we wish to erase.
Sometimes we wish to erase people, too.
It's not that we hate them, though sometimes that might be the case. Rather, the world would simply be better off without them. Is that really such a terrible thing? Isn't it understandable to want unnecessary, or worse, troublesome things gone?
Usagi Haruna was something that would have been better off erased. That isn't to say she wasn't a good person, or that she did bad things…it just would have been better if she weren't alive. Because, really, she was much too troublesome…and also somewhat unnecessary.
Unfortunately, Usagi-san was alive.
And despite Central 46's intentions, she continued to exist.
She was an error, an entity that needed to be contained and controlled, despite what others might have said in her defense. The 'spirit king' himself had ordered her imprisonment, an eternity of confinement and solitude in the lowest level of Muken. With an eternal sentence and no parole, Usagi-san was to be condemned for the remainder of her afterlife. But, honestly, Usagi-san had never been one to be pushed around.
And she would most definitely not be erased.
Her cell was rather small, terribly uncomfortable, and much too dark.
Bakudō #63: Sajo Sabaku was keeping her chained to the wall, tight and burning just as it had been the first day it was placed on her. The binding originated from kido as well, as it should be for a criminal like herself. Bakudō #99: Kin covered her from head to toe, like some sort of second skin made of leather and demon magic, restraining her arms securely behind her back. Even her face was mostly wrapped up by its lengths, only her left eye and mouth left free for minimal sight and breathing.
It was stifling.
Suffocating.
The chains that throbbed with ebbing light zigzagged across her torso and legs, hugging her to cold stone, damp with frigid moisture. Her immediate left and right was Sekkiseki stone, the beginning and end of her cell, and her face was inches from checkered bars chock full of reiryoku.
This was her coffin, her final resting place?
She chuckled bitterly.
What a joke.
There was no way to keep time with the way she was, but it would be safe to say she'd been imprisoned for at least a millennium, give or take a few years. Or maybe it'd only been a few centuries…?
It was impossible to tell.
The binding spell seared her skin, and with no room to itch or squirm in her confinement, she could only suffer in her agony with burning eyes and a jagged smirk. Outside the bars lay darkness, a horrifying and dreadfully lonely darkness, and only the cool breath of the earth to soothe her rage. There was no sound, no light beyond the spell, and no smell besides the cold.
Was this supposed to be funny?
Did He think she would be amused with this place?
Usagi Haruna was not amused. In fact, she was verily pissed with the way she was being treated. Where was the room service? The entertainment?
The fun?
If she didn't know any better, Usagi-san would have to guess that she had been forgotten.
Well, that in itself wasn't all that bad. Being forgotten was just fine by her, really. But being forgotten in a place like this was a little…rude.
She slid her limited gaze along the length of the barriers, noting that if even just one of the markers was disrupted, then the bulk of the kido on her would be lifted. All that would be left of it would be the chains and binds, difficult to release but not impossible. It was old magic, spells that were nearly prehistoric in their origins, making them rather easy to tamper with if given the chance. The question was, how ever would she upset the seals?
She laughed, and the laugh echoed into the deep cavern. White wisps of breath billowed away from her lips, the deep, dark lines beneath her eye visible even in the bleak lighting.
Did He really expect her to stay here?
Amusing.
It was just too damn funny.
Because she would get out, one way or another. And when she did, she was going to go out with a bang. Although, the misplacement of her zanpakuto was a bit problematic.
At the thought of her blade she chuckled, though, it came out as more of a strangled cough. It wasn't just her constriction that entrenched beneath her skin and dug deeply into her soul. The loss of her other half had fractured a part of her whole, leaving her with a minor handicap that caught her breath. The whisper of her sword was inaudible now, only a dream in the vast stretches of her memory. What would it be like to hold the pommel of her katana, to grip and swing what had been an extension of her own being? Would it be like walking again, the feel of the firm earth beneath her feet, comforting and liberating? Would it be like tasting the wind and feeling the warmth of the sun, sweet and unbearable? Maybe it would be like drinking water again, refreshing and delicious?
She closed her eye, embracing the shadows.
Did He think she was a fool? That she was so weak as to remain stuck forever in a horrid space like this? Was He so afraid she'd seek revenge for what he'd done to her?
Hardly.
She had better things to do with her time.
And although she'd nearly gone numb with the passage of time, a smoldering energy simmered within her veins. A single voice pattered in her mind, and behind closed eyes she found a mass of watercolor pockmarks bleeding into one another, relentlessly, forever.
"Miss Otemo~
Weren't you married just recently?
As a matter of fact, I was. However,
Since my husband's face is all pockmarked,
We haven't had a proper ceremony~
Our village is replete with busybodies.
If those people found out.
What would become of us, I wonder?
Let's go to Kawabata Town.
There are many ripe pumpkins
And heaps of flowers in the fields~
Chirpetty tweet-tweet, the skylarks sing~
The eggplants show their thorny branches."
A tumult of voices crooned with dancing limbs, twirling in heaps of silk and fabric made of finely-woven threads. It was a celebration, wasn't it? Summer girls with tiny waists and summer boys with itching fingers…
"I often wonder where a flame goes when it is blown out."
"Does it matter where it goes, just so long as it comes back?"
"Refined Nori, fold it well. Stuff it inside the okra shells!"
She laughed wildly at the insanity plaguing her.
Years passed, she assumed, and still she lay tied to her post.
Two voices swayed along the edge of her memory, one tight and the other rather bored.
"You don't belong here, Inuzuri mutt."
"Ah, you're in my way. If you don't move, I'll be late."
"Did you hear what I said?"
"Nani? What did you say?"
"You little-!"
"That's enough, leave her alone."
"Ne, Shiro-kun, how heroic of you!"
And it seemed memories were starting to intrude in on her consciousness.
How terribly boring.
And..
There was still no chance of escape. She didn't have the energy to release herself from the kido scrawled onto the wall, she probably wouldn't be able to lift it even if she'd been at her best. It was old, so terribly old, and so easy to tamper with. But being as she was, confined as she was, there was just now way she could escape as things stood. If only there was something she could do about the seal parameters...this line of thought felt agonizingly familiar.
And there was little to dream.
Despite her lack of dreaming she decided to dedicate herself to a rather deep sleep, one way to appease the boredom of her imprisonment. Her discomfort made it difficult, and so she trained her attention on reciting incantations.
"Disintegrate, you black dog of Rondanini…look upon yourself with horror and then claw out your own throat…Heart of the south, eye of the north, finger of the west, foot of the east, arrive with the wind and depart with the rain…"
The teahouse in the Red Light District has tasty morsels for your mouth! Beds are warm, you know that well! Round and round we cry tears that flood the unagi with our sorrow. Unagi, unagi, where are you~?
"Carriage of Thunder. Bridge of a spinning wheel. With light, divide this into six…Walls of iron sand, a priestly pagoda, glowing ironclad fireflies. Standing upright, silent to the end…Black and white net. Twenty-two bridges, sixty-six crowns and belts. Footprints….
distant thunder, sharp peak, engulfing land, hidden in the night, sea of clouds….
blue line. Form a circle and…"
She woke with one lazily opening eye.
There was something going on. A resounding vibration shook her cell's walls, dust fluttering down past her head. However, the sound resided into a dulled thump and faded into silence.
Nothing important.
Her eye lowered and she fell back into sleep.
She was dreaming.
There were red ribbons everywhere, though none were tied into pretty little bows.
How boring.
Louder.
It was louder.
Thunder?
The vibrations that shuddered through the stone prison were stronger this time. More dirt fell from the ceiling, coating Usagi-san in a layer of cool mist. Her lid slowly opened, revealing one frigid green eye. It was the color of damp moss, vibrant despite the austere darkness of her cell. In fact, it seemed to glow.
Eerily.
She watched halfheartedly as the walls shook.
Boring.
She fell back asleep.
A dream again.
This time she was sitting at a tea table, the kabuki stage painted in melting watercolors of koi fish, egrets, and roosters standing near giant marigolds and tsubaki's tainted crimson red.
Usagi-san smiled fondly.
"Kabukimono."
A baritone crack echoed loudly, though, her eye reflected little interest until a crevice tore through the side of her cell door.
The kido flickered.
"Oh?"
More cracks spider-webbed along the seemingly impenetrable stone, interrupting the kido seal until it wavered violently and fell, leaving only the light from the chains embedded into the wall behind her. It felt as if an insurmountable weight had been lifted from her body, leaving her rather weightless.
A smirk slowly lifted her lips.
"Oh?"
She chuckled until it escalated into a hysterical laughter, shaking her entire body in fits of hilarity.
It seemed lady luck had it in for her. What were the chances that something such as this would happen? More importantly, what was she going to now?
She'd been given her chance, how would she handle it?
"With pleasure."
Pushing against the wall, she strained against the golden chain, its links unbending despite the force of her struggle. She whispered huskily with as much might as she could muster.
"Hadō #54: Haien."
A violet stream of demon magic ignited from her covered palms, burning away the old seal into ash and propelling her away from the wall. It raced along the chain's length, fighting for dominance for a second before succeeding and relinquishing Usagi-san from its hold. She fell onto weak legs, shaking and then tumbling to the ground. The recoil from the spell smoked from her blistered hands, leaving them to twitch in slight tremors. Without control, she wretched on the rough flooring, hissing as sour bile stung her mouth. Any reserves she'd had were completely gone now, the Sekkiseki sponging up what little she'd released.
But now all she had to do was get up.
…nothing happened.
Get up….
A spasm ran from her thighs to her toes.
Get up.
Curling her legs beneath her, Usagi-san slowly righted herself, her still bound arms making balance difficult. So she pushed against the wall for support until she stood, leaning against it with heavy panting.
Now walk.
With horribly unsteady legs, she took a step.
Then another.
And another.
The shakiness prevailed, her body barely righting itself against the frigid walls, leaving her to drag her feet. She ran her shoulder along the smooth rock, a single trail of blood running from beneath her mask and dripping from beside her feral grinning lips.
Usagi-san was out.
Free.
More rock began to crack and crumble above her, the entire cavern rumbled with signs of battle somewhere beyond the surface. Would she have to fight once she emerged, or would she be able to quietly steal away until her legs could properly carry her? Either way, she was sure it'd be fun.
But what of her zanpakuto?
She chuckled darkly, disappearing into the gloom.
Approximately 110 years before the pendulum sputtered to a stop…
"Oi, what are you guys mumbling about?"
Captain Hirako Shinji picked at his ear with his pinkie, scowling as he went ignored by the other two captains ahead of him. The crowds of konpaku politely shifted away from the triad as they strolled down one of the busier streets in the district, vendors beckoning out to any listening ears willing to fork over their kan. Most of the wares out for display were dawdles and staple food items for those who enjoyed it, as it was one of the wealthier areas that they presided in; though, a curious sweet stand produced hefty wafts of sugary-smelling pastries.
"Oi!" Shinji hissed, walking a bit faster to intervene the pair.
"Nani? What is it, Hirako-taicho?" Captain Kyōraku Shunsui asked airily, smirking softly back while Ukitake Jūshirō gave him a scolding glare.
"We were just discussing celebrating the new captain's arrival," Jushiro said while making room for Shinji between them, the latter of which slid in easily. "Kyōraku-taicho was just saying we should host a party for him a sake bar," with this he again sent a concerned glance across to a whistling Shunsui, "However, I think something a bit low key would be more appropriate."
"Eh? But drinking is the best technique for creating new friendships~"Shunsui tipped his straw hat slightly as they approached a slight clearing up ahead, the villagers parting from the usual traffic around a raised platform. "Ne, what do you think, Hirako-taicho?"
"I think you just wanna get wasted," Shinji plucked his finger away and sniffed it, wiping it away on his pristine captain's haori. A particularly boisterous shout caught his attention as the crowd began to thicken, people shoving and squeezing in between each other as if in a confined bazar. The heat suddenly became stifling, and a little girl with an acutely hard foot raced past him and promptly smashed down on his foot. Scowling a bit more, he raised his head lazily to inspect what it was that was obviously drawing so much attention.
"Come one, come all! Performing here in Junrinan for the first time is the Tsuin Kujaku Entertainment Troupe!" A woman danced around a stage elevated among the throng of Rukongai villagers, her smile bright in the morning sun. She wore a simple green haori over an auburn summer kimono, the sleeves stitched with maple leave patterns that were visible even from where Shinji stood. Atop her head was a mass of dark hair piled into an extravagant twist, vibrant jeweled ornaments dangling easily from their ends. Three other men, notably surly, surrounded her, handing out flyers to those who appeared interested. All of the members, including the woman, wore tall tengu geta sandals and a single insignia on the back of their clothes, the symbol resembling the kanji for Tsuki (July).
"Today's performance is a new interpretation of that unusual man all over the land of the rising sun, entitled: Rising Sun Kabuki: A New Tale of Ryouma Sakamoto!" She cheered pleasantly towards the upturned faces staring curiously at her. Shinji rolled his eyes and tuned back into Shunsui and Jushiro's conversation, noticing that neither had come to an agreement.
"Something a bit more comely would suffice, Shunsui," the rather pale captain said firmly, contradicting his fragile appearance. "Sake always loosens mouths, and that doesn't always end for the better."
"You worry too much."
"You don't worry enough."
"Ne, ne, you worry enough for the both of us."
As they crossed across the spectacle, another child skipped between the civilians and made his way to where the captains stood out, nudging the long, blond man in the arm, which earned him a terribly intimidating glower. The child seemed all the better for it, and smiled up at him, handing over one of the flyers being given out on stage. He looked over the paper briefly, noting that the flyer served as a 4 ticket reservation.
"Come tonight, Chin-Chin-san!" The kid chirped waving at him and quickly fleeing. Shinji twitched convulsively and crumbled the paper in a tight fist, shoving it into Shunsui's chest before stomping off in the direction the street urchin had ran off.
"Come back here, bozu!" He roared, pushing around people as he hunted for blue and gold, what the kid had been wearing.
Shunsui smiled widely, adjusting his hat again before looking over at his longtime friend.
"Ne, Shiro-kun, how about some kabuki?" He asked suavely, handing over the crumpled paper. They both looked over the details and agreed that, considering it was a comedy, that it would be a fine idea to treat their new captain, Urahara Kisuke, to a night of entertainment.
And maybe, if things went well, a cup or two of sake.
References
-'Usagi' means Rabbit and 'Haruna' means Spring Vegetables.
-If you didn't know, Sekkiseki is the stone that the walls of Seireitei are made of. It is a material known to negate all Reiryoku, similar to magnetic lodestones. The stone also forms a full spherical barrier around the city, stopping anything spiritual from breaching it. It is also used in the walls of the cell Rukia Kuchiki was detained in as she awaited execution (.com).
-Muken is the 8th and lowest level of imprisonment in Seireitei. It is also where Aizen is sentenced to remain after he is captured.
-Reiryoku is a power aligned with the spiritual sensitivity and willpower of the user. It is used by Shinigami to provide power for their various feats and to effectively channel the powers of their Zanpakutō. It can also be used to cast Kidō, magic spells created by the Shinigami. Reiryoku can even be coalesced into a physical form and thrown or shot as a projectile. As a display of potency, spiritual beings have the ability to incapacitate the opponent's movement and simultaneously frighten them, by means of dispersing Reiryoku into the air. The aforementioned ability is known as Reiatsu (Spiritual Pressure), possessing power that could be literally felt within the atmosphere (.com).
-The song that Usagi-san hears in her mind is a Japanese folksong called Otemoyan. It is played by mass performers dancing in the streets of Kumamoto in the summer. It is usually accompanied by shamisen, taiko drums and other percussion, and the Japanese used has a southern Kumamoto accent.
- "I often wonder where a flame goes when it is blown out" (Butoh).
-Unagi means eel
- Tsuin Kujaku means 'Twin Peacocks'
-Konpaku- spiritual beings in the Bleach universe that reside in Soul Society. Many Souls live in the Rukongai and are not allowed into the Seireitei where the Shinigami and the Gotei 13 reside. While many Souls are deceased Humans from the Human World, it is known that they can be born within the Soul Society as well (.com).
-Kan- is the currency of Soul Society (.com).
-Chin-Chin- a child's wording for 'dick'
-Bozu- slang for the term 'squirt'
-What the woman is yelling out to the crowd is from an anime called Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto
Kido Mentioned
- Bakudō #63: Sajo Sabaku : Similar to Bakudō No. 4, but stronger, this spell binds the arms of a target (Link: .com/wiki/Saj%C5%8D_Sabaku ).
-. Bakudō #99: Kin: Ties the target's arms on the back in addition to wrapping the spiritual fabric around the entire body, and continues to pin the target with spiritual fabric stacked to the ground around the target with several iron shafts in an "X" shape (Link: .com/wiki/Kin ).
Author's Note: I'm asking anyone who happens to read this to please leave a review. I'm not completely dedicated to this plot, and some feedback would help me make a decision as I pave the way through this story. Just tell me what you liked so far, what you didn't like, what you're confused about, and maybe if you caught any hints about future chapters.
I would appreciate the effort.
Thanks.
-17th Century Deviant