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"That's enough for today." Said Shinji. Ichigo, panting, leapt back, away from Lisa, sweat dripping into his eyes from his soaked hair. Lisa, on the other hand, seemed completely unfazed.
"Come on, Ichigo." Said Shinji, gesturing for the orange haired Shinigami to follow him. Still breathing rather heavily, he followed.
Several blocks from the building and Ichigo expected Shinji to turn right, as usual. Instead, he turned left, going in the opposite direction.
"You have a place to be?" asked the Shinigami, curious, despite himself. Shinji smirked.
"A place we both have to be."
Ichigo raised an eyebrow.
"Come on, there's someone I want you to meet."
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The area couldn't be described as rural, really, but it wasn't quite a town either.
Houses dotted the wooded hills, hidden around bends and curves in the twisting, paved roads. It seemed to be a strange blend of regions, all combined into one. And it was only about half an hour from Karakura town by train.
Shinji, on the ride there, had joked rather easily about the fact he was glad Ichigo was still a spirit, as he only had enough cash to pay for his own tickets.
Ichigo, on the other hand, was reading into the stiff uneasiness that had washed over the Visored.
"Is something wrong, Shinji?" he asked, as they trekked up an inclining road.
The Visored didn't answer.
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Ichigo thought it was probably one of the strangest buildings he had ever seen.
The outside was plastered in stucco, the roof covered with curved terra cotta tiles, the massive dark-wood doors set with black iron hinges, bars, and detail work. The windows didn't have glass, instead, curtains fluttered, like pale, white ghosts, catching the passing breezes with ease.
Ichigo had just opened his mouth to ask what kind of house it was, when Shinji walked up the front steps and knocked on the door.
Several minutes passed before the large slab of wood finally opened, revealing a young woman, maybe in her mid to late teens, leaning against the doorframe.
"What do you want, Shinji?" she asked, glaring at the addressed Visored with piercing, almost neon blue eyes. Her long, silver gray hair fell down her back in waves, the bangs and top pulled up into a half ponytail.
She was dressed rather casually in a pair of baggy cargo jeans, a wife beater, and tabi socks.
A silver skull hung from her neck on a chain, gleaming slightly in the half-light of the quickly gathering dusk. A pair of dog tags hung slightly lower than this, hidden partially by her shirt.
"Do you mind if we come in?" asked Shinji. The woman frowned, but stood slightly to the side, letting him pass, and then locked eyes with Ichigo, moving into his path when he tried to follow.
"Your sword, Shinigami." She said, extending a hand for it. Only then did Icigho notice her own blade, hanging from her second belt by a chain. It was relatively short, only about an arms length long. The hilt was wrapped in black, red, white, and gray fabrics, and another chain hung from the end, a second skull charm attached to it. The sheath of the blade was beautifully and intricately carved with the shape of a dragon fighting a tiger, inlaid with white stone on the black backdrop. A rose vine twined around the entire sheath, behind the fighting beasts, and was inlaid with some form of gray stone.
Blinking himself back out of his observations, he glanced at Shinji, who nodded, before handing over Zangetsu. The woman took the blade, and paused for a moment, examining it. Then, she turned and vanished down a hallway, leaving Ichigo to follow Shinji in the other direction, into a sitting room.
The door slowly swung closed behind him.
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Sorry it's so short…
Please READ and REVIEW!!!!!
WPD
