"Sake all around!"
One male shouted as the waiter brought around five bottles of sake to three tables. The group had rented out the bar and they seemed to be having a good time. Most of them were already drunk though. Some of them clung on to each other and sang tunes of their childhood, some engaged in drinking games, and others just chatted with others, whether they knew them or not. Although one male was off in a corner, sulking. Apparently watching everyone have good time. Someone came over to the lone male with a slightly flushed face and sat near him. The smell of sake was heavy on his breath.
"Hideki…why are you so…so…"
The male grabbed his head and hiccupped.
"Not trashed, Taizo?"
Hideki scoffed as he looked at his friend. Taizo had dirty blonde hair, deep blue eyes, and fairly built. He was every girls "dream" guy. It was quite embarrassing how they all flaunted to him. His eyes then gazed around the room once more. People were stumbling down and others had passed out either in their chair or on the floor. 'What a way to celebrate graduating.' Hideki thought. One reason why he was not drinking like everyone else was because he was underage. Another was because he knew what drinking did to people. Hideki looked at Taizo, who seemed to be eyeing him strangely.
"What?"
Hideki said, watching Taizo, who seemed to be acting really odd, probably due to the alcohol.
"So…we've….known each other…for…a long time…right?"
Hideki nodded, wondering where Taizo was going with this. A feeling of uneasiness crept up over him. This could not be good.
"And...I know…well…you know I know…you go…that…way….you know? So I was…you know…wondering..."
Hideki did not even give him a chance to finish his sentence. In an instant, Taizo was sprawled on the floor and Hideki loomed over him with a clenched fist. Everyone in the bar had stopped and looked over at Hideki and the now bleeding Taizo.
Hideki gritted his teeth and stormed out. How dare Taizo think of such things? Tomorrow was everyone's inauguration ceremony into one of the thirteen squads, it was something to be happy about but after what had just happened…whatever. He could not bother himself with such petty things. Right now, all he wanted to do was to train with his new zanpakto, which everyone got as a graduation gift, and practice. Hideki figured the forest outside Soul Society would be a quiet place to collect his thoughts.
It was nearly midnight, the full moon was out. Its light reflected off of his silver hair and amethyst eyes. He stood in the forest, zanpakto drawn. He had always wondered how everyone reached Shikai. Hideki remembered the professor talking about "releasing" your zanpakto to achieve a greater power. No two zanpakto were alike so everyone had a unique ability. It got him wondering what would be his. As he swung the sword around, something rustled in the bushes near him which caused him to jump back.
"Who's there?"
Hideki stood ready for combat. He was not the top fighter or his class but he was near it. The top spot was held by Taizo. Just the thought of Taizo made his blood boil. This was not the time to get distracted, it was known that Hollow were seen in these forests. On top of that, he was not even supposed to be here at night. But Hollow this close to Soul Society? This area was still covered by the barrier. He could not have strayed that far. The bush had not moved for a few moments. Maybe it was just a passing breeze. Hideki began to lower his weapon but was caught off guard by someone's voice.
"Watch out!"
The voice seemed to come out of nowhere by Hideki soon found himself on the cold, damp ground. Someone had pushed him and in that instant something flew from the bush from before and landed a few yards away. Hideki coughed and spit out a few strands of grass, and practically a teaspoon of dirt. Who the hell had pushed him? He turned to see who the culprit was but instead of shouting his mouth off, Hideki remained on the ground. All he saw was a haori. 'A captain? What is he doing out here?' He though. The captain's back was to him and zanpakto drawn. The air around him grew thin and Hideki began to cough, struggling to breath. It felt like something was pushing him down to the ground, like gravity was acting well beyond its limit. This must have been the spiritual pressure he had learned about. It was almost unbearable, it was like someone had punched him straight in the gut, knocking the wind out of him but not being able to recover.
"It'll be over soon. Don't faint on me yet, kid."
The captain whispered.
"Ignite, Itaras!"
The bush where whatever flew into suddenly bust into a dark flame. Hideki could hear something screech in agonizing pain as it was being burned alive. As quickly as the flame ignited, it diminished, as well as the spiritual pressure. Hideki began to breathe normally. The captain sheathed his zanpakto and turned to face Hideki. A warm smile was on his face and he extended his hand to help Hideki up. Hideki took it and got up, brushing off several grass strands. He had just got this kimono cleaned. He then began to cough. That spiritual pressure was intense and still felt like he was under the influence of it. The captain smiled and laughed.
"You're new I see."
His voice was a bit deep. Hideki knew the person before him was older than he was but by looks alone, he determined not by much. He was young for a captain, looked around captain Hitsugaya's age. Still, Hideki never saw him before. Was he replacing one of the old captains? Who knew but now was not the time to be worrying about that. He felt sick and lightheaded. Still, he tried to talk.
"Yeah…I get to go in…one of the…squads tomorrow."
The captain nodded.
"So you just graduated. Congratulations. I was like you not too long ago. Are you sure you're ok?"
Hideki nodded slowly. He would be fine once he regained his breath. It was dark, getting darker actually. He could not really make out the captain's face. Maybe if he would sit…he would….feel…
"Shit!"
Hideki fell forward, right into the captain's arms. The captain held the now fainted Hideki and sighed.
"Usually I get a name before someone falls for me."
He knew it was lame but it still got a chuckle out of him and a small smile came across Hideki's lips as well, right before he was totally out of it.
