Hey! So people seemed to want me to continue, so here you go! It's not as long as the last chapter, and I still don't really know what I think of it, so any reviews will be welcome, even flames. Hope you enjoy!


Yumichika sat on the ground, dirty and panting, but smiling all the same. A few weeks had passed since he had first begun his attempts at achieving bankai, and he was finally making progress. He had spent the weeks dealing with his moody zanpakuto as it switched from crying that Yumichika was ashamed of him, and smugly reminding him of his fears every chance he got. The shinigami lay back, allowing the ground below him, cool in the morning air, to sooth his warm body. The wind blew some of his hair into his face, but even his vanity couldn't get him to move right now. Every morning since he had begun this quest, he would wake up long before Ikkaku and walk to this training ground. He would then proceeded to place a number of barriers around it and leave a very intimidating message by the entrance to ward off any other shinigami who wished to use the grounds.

Of course, this still did not stop his friends from noticing changes in him. They could tell he was training due to the fatigued state in which they usually found him in the afternoon. As well, considering most of his 'training' seemed to consist of him arguing with Rui'iro Kujaku about his fears, he seemed more irritable, though after awhile he learned how to not take it out on his friends. However, no matter how hard he tried, he could not stop himself from being slightly awkward around Ikkaku. Most of his arguments between himself and his zanpakuto were about Yumichika telling his best friend the truth about his sword. As such, Yumichika had to deal with Rui'iro Kujaku constantly yelling at him in his head whenever he was with Ikkaku to "tell him now! Tell him! Tell him! TELL HIM!!!"

But despite all things, he had still managed to complete the first step in his bankai training.

"Oi! Don't ignore me now that I'm actually HERE!"

Materialization.

Yumichika grunted as his sword spirit kicked him.

"Get up! Just cause you actually managed to get me out here doesn't mean we're done for the day!" The feathered man sighed and sat up, glaring at him.

"All you're going to do is yell at me to tell Ikkaku you're kido type."

"Darn right I will! And I'll keep yelling at you until something I say manages to get through that thick skull of yours!"

"Don't make such an ugly expression so early in the morning." The zanpakuto screech at the remark, shaking his fists in anger.

"You're calling me ugly!? Have you seen yourself recently?" At this, Yumichika jumped up as well.

"I look like this because I've been working to get you out here. Maybe if you weren't so ugly, I wouldn't look so ugly after materializing you!"

"Don't blame beautiful people for your ugliness."

"I wasn't, I was blaming you!" The two glared at each other for a good solid minute before looking away with a huff. Rui'iro Kujaku opened his eyes a crack to watch his master out of the corner of his eye. Yumichika was shivering slightly, the morning breeze not as refreshing as if had been a moment before. Sweat was coated his brow, his cheeks slightly flushed while the rest of his body seemed paler. He had dark circles under his eyes and he could tell his reiatsu was low from the strain of materializing him for the first time. He looked like he was going to pass out any moment. The spirit sighed, looking away again.

"Look, why don't you rest for awhile. Take today off and we'll resume your training tomorrow when you're recuperated." Yumichika glanced sideways at him.

"Really?"

"Yeah. We wont be able to get anything done when you're like this anyways." Yumichika nodded, relieved that they wouldn't be doing anything else today. Bidding each other a slightly frosty farewell (as well as a final reminder from Kujaku to tell Ikkaku about his zanpakuto), the spirit returned to his own world. The shinigami sighed again as he walked to the ground entrance, removing the barriers and threatening note.

After what seemed like a painfully long walk, he finally arrived back at his room. As he entered, he saw Ikkaku sitting up in bed, reading over some old mission files. Looking up, the bald man's eyes widened when he saw the state of his best friend. He looked dirty and tired and in utter disarray, and it was still relatively early.

"Yumi…" Ikkaku was met with a glare that clearly told him now was not the time, so he remained silent as Yumichika disappeared into the bathroom. He listened as he heard the bath running and figured, judging by the way his friend was looking, that he would be in there for awhile.

And he was. Nearly forty-five minutes passed before the death god reemerged, clean and content as could be. Ikkaku smiled as he watched Yumichika practically skip out of the bathroom, glad that he was back to looking like himself. Clearly all he had needed was to return to his 'beautiful' state. Now that he was in a better mood, the shinigami figured it would be safe to ask,

"So what messed you up this morning?" Yumichika smiled as he lay down on his own bed. Despite how irritating this morning, heck the past couple of weeks, had been and how annoyed he'd been with his sword, he still couldn't help but be proud of his accomplishment.

"I finally reached materialization." Ikkaku sat up straighter, smiling widely.

"Really? Awesome! You're getting closer." Yumichika nodded, closing his eyes. His friend grinned a bit more as he looked at him.

"That would explain it. I remember how exhausted and disgusting I was after I reached materialization." At this, Yumichika cracked an eye open, smirking.

"Wow. For someone like you to say that, you really must have been disgusting." He chuckled as Ikkaku sputtered indignantly.

"What's that suppose at mean?!" He tried to glare, but the shinigami's laugh was infectious, and soon they were both laughing. Ikkaku only stopped when he noticed that Yumichika's laughter had died down. Looking over, he smiled as he realized his friend was already half asleep.

"Rest up, Yumi. Ya deserve it." Yumichika nodded absentmindedly, wincing slightly as he fell into a fitful sleep, still hearing the voice in his head.

Tell him… Tell him…


And there you go! Please let me know what you think!

Also, I'm trying to decide if I want Yumichika to tell Ikkaku about his sword, or if he should show him, like in a battle or something. I haven't decided, so opinions are greatly appreciated (although bare in mind, this doesn't necessarily mean Ikkaku's going to find out next chapter. That's still up in the air).

Oh, and also (long AN) I am in fact well aware that it takes much longer than a few weeks to reach materialization/ bankai in general, but for the sake of this story, it's not gonna take as long as it actually does (as in, not a couple hundred years).

I'll try not to take too long on the updates. Thanks again all!