K. Bout time I did this Chap. There will be some major Ash ass-kickery in this bitch. (The Chapter is the bitch in this scenario. If I ever call a lady 'bitch', I'd have to kill myself for being a piece of shit.) Anyway, Read on. I'm just a ranting ass-hat at this point.
Bleach: The Other Side
The Shinigami Strike
"Ash... ASH!... WAKE UP DAMMIT!" Ash could hear his partner Ethan. He also wanted to ignore him. But Ethan wasn't exactly making that an option right now.
"You asked for it." Ash didn't have to open his eyes to know what Ethan was doing. It had been a few weeks since they had arrived, so Ash decided he was taking this Friday of all Fridays off. So when Ethan went to poor a glass of Ice water on him, Ash simply rolled onto his stomach, and promptly swung his right hand around and pimp slapped Ethan... In the crotch. He heard a squeak and a thud. That was much better... He fell back into blissful sleep.
Ethan went to take a shower, still fuming about the sneak attack on his manhood. What an asshole Ash was when he was sleepy. But that didn't matter to Ethan now. He only wanted to keep his reputation for being a good student. And, he didn't have the kind of luck Ash did with girls. He actually had to try.
"Ethan! So glad you could make it in time. You almost showed up late though. Where's Satoshi-Kun?" Orihime questioned. Ethan felt his eyebrow twitch.
"He stayed at home to get some extra sleep. He also..." Ethan decided that maybe it wasn't the best idea to mention what happened, to the redhead." ... Just would not get up. He's stubborn like that." Orihime nodded.
"I've come to notice that about Satoshi-Kun too. He's kind of like Kurosaki-Kun in that sense." Ethan bobbed a nod. It was true.
"Now class, we can begin."
Ethan was walking back from school by himself. He was normally first out of class. He heard someone call from behind.
"Yo! Ethan! We're all heading out for some Ice Cream! Wanna join us?" He heard Keigo call. Ethan smiled. What was the worst that could happen?
They all made it to the Ice Cream joint in a few minutes. Nothing special had happened along the way. Currently the group consisted of: Keigo, Orihime, Tatsuki, Ichigo, Chad, Ishida, Rukia, Mizuiro, Chizuru, and Ethan himself.
"So, Ethan... How do you like it here?" Keigo attempted to break the ice. No pun intended.
"It's nice here. Ash and I love the place actually. He couldn't make it to school today, he was feeling lazy." Ethan decided to throw in, and see what reactions he would get. Tatsuki was the first to speak up.
"That's good. And, as for you're brother..." Her eyes took on an evil glint. "He needs to grow up. Or I'm going to have to beat the child out of him."
"That sound really terrible. Besides, the only reason you treat him the way you do is because you have a thing for him." Ichigo stated. Tatsuki's face turned bright red. She glared at Ichigo.
"That's stupid to even think! I would never be interested in him! He's too..." She couldn't seem to find the right word.
"He's clueless. That doesn't mean he's a child." Mizuiro decided to add. She glared at him as well but gave up and sighed. Her head slammed into the table.
"I've just never thought about anyone that way before..." She practically whispered. Orihime put a hand on her shoulder.
"It's okay Tatsuki-Kun. Satoshi-Kun probably doesn't know what to do either." For some reason, this calmed the girl down.
"You're right Orihime. I should just leave it alone for now."
"Yeah. I would recommend that. Ash is juggling alot of things at once, I think you should maybe bring it up with him in private and see how it goes. Let him think on it. That's how we pick out groceries anyway." Ethan said the last bit with a little smirk. That got everyone to laugh.
"Ethan, what brought you and Satoshi here?" Rukia asked after the mirth died down. Ethan shrugged.
"Ash and I were going to be coming here for some time now but ended up a little ahead of schedule due to an incident with a train. Anyway, our dad sent us here to get a better education and protect Karakura Town. If that makes sense?" Most of them nodded since Ichigo had informed Chad and Orihime about their purpose in town.
"What do you mean by protect Karakura?" Chizuru asked. Ethan began to sweat bullets. He knew they were there, but didn't know whether or not they knew. He looked in Ichigo's direction for a save, but found none. He then gave Rukia a questioning glance, she nodded. Ethan sighed in relief. That meant they knew about Hollows and Shinigami and the whole deal.
"Okay then, Ash and I are what you would call... Arrancars. We are Hollows fused with Soul Reaper powers, which purges us off our Hollow instinct and gives us our human bearings." He waited for a response of some kind. Tatsuki looked at him questioningly, but said nothing.
"Anyway, we were sent from a place called Hueco Mundo. That's where all Hollows reside. Our leader, the one who made us Arrancar, sent us on a mission here to protect Karakura and it's inhabitants. And that's pretty much it. Well, beside the fact Ash and I aren't brothers. That's just a cover. He's just my superior. Kinda like a friendly boss in a few ways."
Everyone absorbed all the info they could. Even Ichigo and Ishida who'd both heard it from Ash were hearing a little more this time.
"I have a quick question. If you and Satoshi are originally Hollow, how do we know we can trust that you aren't lying to us?" Chad brought up. Ethan wasn't quite sure about how to respond to that.
"I suppose you can't for the time being. But I wouldn't recommend trying to drive us out of Town yet. I swear to you that I'm not lying, and you may find reason to believe me yet. And, I can wipe the floor with Ishida and Ichigo at the same time, and Ash can do the same to me. So you're just going to have to trust me for now." Ichigo narrowed his gaze. He didn't like being threatened. Neither did Uryuu. Ethan just sat back a little. He knew he had hit a couple of nerves with the floor wiping comment, but wanted to make a point of them not leaving.
"Alright, I'll trust you for now. But don't think I won't try to stop you with my strength if you bring harm to my friends." So Chad was onboard.
"I agree with Chad." Orihime too.
"Fine. I'm only agreeing because Orihime is." Chizuru as well.
"What she said." Now Keigo.
"Hmm..." That sounded like a yes from Mizuiro.
"I trust you and the baka... For now." Tatsuki as well.
"I will trust you because Satoshi has saved my life before." Now all that was left were Ichigo and Rukia.
"Fine." That's all Ichigo had to say.
"I still don't trust you." All but one agreed.
"That's understandable."
Everyone said their goodbyes and headed off for the night. Tatsuki decided to go with Ethan, and left Orihime to head home with Chad as an escort. She needed to talk to Ash.
"Ash, wake up! I'm home! And there's a guest with us!" Ethan called upstairs. He heard a grumble of sorts. Ash came sliding down the railing on their stairs.
"Whoa! Uhh... Hi Tatsuki!" He tried to greet as in-awkwardly as humanly possible. But Ash thought that when Ethan had said guest, he had meant a guy. So Ash hadn't felt the need to slip a shirt on. He stood there, bare chested, and glanced at Tatsuki, whilst blushing like mad. She had a slight blush on her face as well.
"Well... This isn't awkward as hell. I'm gunna head to my room. You guys can talk in his." Ethan headed upstairs for the night.
Ash held his hand out for her to grab. She took it with a little hesitation, and they headed up to his room. They both sat on his bed and looked at one another briefly.
"So... Might I ask why you decided to visit?" Ash tried to break the ice, whilst slipping a plain black T-Shirt on. Tatsuki nodded.
"I... I wanted to talk to you about how I feel..." Ash was a little shocked at that.
"But I thought you hated me?" She smiled a sad smile at him.
"How could I hate the cutest guy I've ever met?" Ash blushed dangerously. He hadn't known she felt that way.
"If it's any consolation, I like you too..." She blushed this time. They both just looked at each other for a moment. Ash laid down in his bed, and motioned for Tatsuki to lay beside him. She blushed a little deeper and snuggled up next to him, resting her head on his chest.
"You know, I've had other girls I was interested in... But they just never talked to me about how they felt. A few of them even kissed me, and I kissed back, but... They wouldn't tell me what that kiss meant to them. So, I'm glad that you told me how you felt. That was something I've needed from someone I care for..." Ash looked into her eyes. She looked back into his, and just let what had been waiting, happen.
She took his head in between both of her hands, and pulled him in closer. As their faces only grew inches away, and their noses touched ever so softly...
"I just hope that you only have eyes for me then. I don't like sharing."
Ash shook his head no. After all, why would he ruin something like this? He liked Tatsuki and she showed him in return that she liked him. Why would he go on a matter of what if's? He just wanted to be with someone he cared for. And here she was.
She smiled at his response and finished the course their lips were moving on. The kiss was deep and passionate. It held alot of feeling on both sides. Ash had never had a kiss like this before. His heart was racing and he could swear his mind exploded in pure joy. They didn't part until they needed breath. Then, as soon as they got that, they went at it again. She slid her tongue into his mouth and the had a little game out of it. She would wrestle against his tongue for dominance, and they would separate for a brief moment when no victor was found, then they would go at it again. After awhile, Ash had to let her win. She was too good with her tongue for him to be victorious.
They both finally separated when she had explored every inch of his mouth. She was hovering above him, saliva running down the side of her mouth, and the same with his. She placed her head on his chest again. She could tell that they were both getting a little to excited. She didn't want anything to happen to early and spoil the newly formed relationship. She got off of him and stood up. Ash did the same. He came up to her and gave her a hug. She gave him a quick peck on his lips, and turned to leave. Ash caught her hand as she was going out his room, and turned her back towards him. He gave her a long and heartfelt kiss before handing her the bag she almost left.
"Oh crap. That would have been bad." She said after they separated. Ash smiled.
"Yep. Here, let me walk you home." She nodded and grabbed his hand. They went out the door hand in hand all the way to Tatsuki's house.
"That was... Amazing." Ash speculated to himself, after walking his new girlfriend home. He was going down the dark streets of Karakura by his lonesome. Not that he minded after what happened earlier that night.
He couldn't help but wonder what the girls back in Hueco Mundo were going to think. It's not like he had betrayed any of them. They were forward with him, but he couldn't help but feel that was simply because of a lack of suitors, rather than any actual feelings for him... Except maybe Halibel. She might have been the only one though. He pushed the thought out of his mind. He was on break now! He and Tatsuki could go out and do things together. He would need to find a job first... Hmm...
His thought process was interrupted by two fairly powerful energies, nearby. He could feel Ishida's, but it was faint. He could also feel Ichigo's but it was fluctuating to often to be reliable. All it would take is for the more powerful of the two foreign energies to step in. He slipped out of his Gigai, and proceed to Sonido to his destination.
"Don't attempt to stand boy-"
"The hell are you doing with Rukia!?" Ash shouted. He then noticed Ichigo and Ishida on the ground, both near dead. Ash gritted his teeth, really pissed off now.
"Ahh... Another nuisance. Let me take care of him Captain." The red haired man with tattoos all over stated. The man only nodded in response. He rushed at Ash with a large blade that appeared to get larger and whip-like as he swung it. Ash caught the blade with one hand, catching the man off guard. He then pulled the man too him by his sword and consequently kicked him in the chest. The red haired guy just went flying into a wall and through it.
"Hmm... You appear to be very powerful. Abarai! Call in to Seretei and ask permission for release of our seals." He pulled himself out of the building and nodded. That was the second time he'd been beaten tonight. He didn't like it.
"Ash... Don't stay here and die! Grab Ichigo and Ishida and go!" Rukia pleaded. The black haired man only tossed her to the side and drew his blade. As it stood, this man was currently stronger than he. If he could wait out the release, he could have a solid chance at besting him. Ash however was still furious. He let his Spiritual Energy run full force. The red aura surrounding him grew enormous. He drew Marushiro and charged the man.
The man caught Ash's word with his own and immediately regretted it. This was not just some normal foe. He had felt it when his enemy let his Energy flow unrestrained. It had crushed his Energy entirely. The force of the attack sent a shock-wave past him and down the street, forcing a whirlwind of power in all directions behind him. The wind nearly uprooted trees, and that was only the wake of their blades clashing. He hoped the Release happened soon, or he might not live through the night.
Ash grabbed his opponent by the collar and Sonido'd into the forest nearby. He chucked the man straight to the ground, causing an explosion off the force of the throw. The man stood in a small crater, spitting blood from his mouth. Ash almost laughed. He had bit his own tongue.
"I do not see what is so amusing. Why are you assaulting me when I am simply performing my duty?"
"If you're 'duty', is to kidnap a friend of mine and attempt to kill the others for trying to help her, forgive me for laughing at your slight sufferings. What's you're name you asshole?" Ash demanded. The man sighed.
"If you must know, I am Byakuya Kuchiki." Ash seemed confused.
"Okay, Byakuya. If your Rukia's relative, then why are you trying to take her?"
"I am only performing my duty. I am inclined to hold Rukia Kuchiki, and have her tried for her wrong-doings." This only confused Ash even further.
"What wrong-do... Whatever. I'm just gunna kick you're ass and bring her home." Byakuya frowned. That was the same thing the false Soul Reaper had said. He then noticed his power grown considerably. The seal had been released. He smiled.
"It would appear you have waited to long boy. I have just had my seal released, and am now stronger than you can ever hope to imagine." Ash shrugged.
"Whatever. Let's get this over with."
Ash and Byakuya's battle was intense. They had destroyed over half the forest in just a few clashes with their blades, and had proceeded to destroy the rest of the forest with special moves.
"Cero!" Byakuya deflected the attack with His Shikai. This boy was becoming troublesome. He would have to end it soon.
"Bankai. Senbonsakura, Kageyoshi." Ash noticed what he had said. Bankai... Fuck.
A thousand swords came out of the ground and each separate one became a hundred steel cherry blossoms. If not more. He couldn't even begin to fathom how many there were. He could only think of one way to survive this.
"Marushiro! I need to know how to use my Resurrection!"
But Marushiro was no where to be found in the Colorless Pallet Town. Instead, there was a large dog-like creature. It looked like Ash did when he was a hollow. It barked happily and ran up to the boy. Ash looked back nervously, only to be knocked to the ground and have his face licked. Ash laughed and stood.
"So, you must be Old Wolfe. I'm guessing your going to be showing me how to use my Resurrection?"
"Wulf!"
Sorry to leave it on such a cliff hanger but Yeah. I'm like that. Longest chap so far. Hope you all enjoyed.