Ichigo stood in front of the archway to the upperclassmen lunch area with a scowl. Because he was seen talking to Kuroyukihime by Keigo, his friends haven't stopped badgering him about what she wanted to talk about. Uryuu was positive it it was some punishment for all the hidden fighting, Orihime thought that she just wanted another friend, and Chad just didn't care. All Ichigo knew was that it was a pain in the ass for him and wanted to get it over with.
So now here he stood, about to walk into the area no one from the freshman year was allowed in without permission. Finally, the girl who called him here waved him over, earning glares from his upperclassmen. "Ah, you actually came! I honestly thought you would ignore me." She said with a titter.
"Yes, I came, I get it. So, what is it that you want, miss Vice President?" Ichigo said in a bored tone as he cleaned one of his ears with a pinky.
If Kuroyukihime were perturbed by his lack of politeness, she didn't show it, cutting to the chase. "It is actually because of that impossibly high score I saw you achieve at squash this morning. But before I elaborate, please, let's use this." She said, pulling out and placing a Direct Wired Connection cable on the table. "It wouldn't pay to have others to hear our conversation after all."
Her boldness shocked many of the people surrounding them, causing a small uproar and an outbreak of blushes.
However, his response is what surprised everyone else. "Alright." The lack of any notable reaction is what truly threw them off. He, the violent prude, was not bothered in the slightest by what she asked, something only the closes couples did.
He reached over the table in a slow, exaggerated manner before plugging in.
[You truly do go against any expectations.] Kuroyuki said, her laugh flitting through his head. [Anyways, I know that, at the very least, you are curious about why I asked to talk to you like this.]
[How could I not be?] Was the rhetorical response.
[Well, I have a proposition for you. How would you like to have the world as you originally knew it be replaced with one that defies logic and reasoning, to be changed into one where you have more control then you had?] She said, almost like she were giving a sales pitch, throwing in some subtle gestures to add emphasis.
[I refuse.] Ichigo denied, deadpanning it. [My life is chaotic enough as it is. Unless there is anything else, I am going to walk away and I will expect you to go back to treating me as you once did: as if I didn't register on your radar.]
Sighing after getting startled by the sudden rejection, Kuroyuki changed her tactics. [I actually need you to do this. I know that you protective of your friends, and I know how your name actually means One Who Protects, and that is exactly what I need, a protector. I am being hunted by a lot of people who disagree with my ideals and they are getting close.] Her voice was not as strong as before, replaced with pleading, and Ichigo felt weak against it.
[Aaagh, fine, I will help you, just...give me whatever it is that I need to do so.] Groaning, Ichigo palmed his face when she visibly changed from scared to happy, feeling played.
He then watched as she skillfully manipulated something that he could not see, making small gestures with her fingers before flinging her arm as if she was tossing him some data. He was then let down when a simple icon with a B came on screen, asking for permission to be downloaded. Looking at Kuroyuki one more time, he accepted the download, and watch the meter fill itself.
He was thus surprised when the world around him, aside from him and Kuroyuki, blew up in a fiery vortex similar to what old man Yama's shikai would. Then, in a steampunk design, the words Brain Burst appeared, with chains shooting out to support the name.
[Wow, that was actually pretty cool.] Ichigo said in stunned admiration as the chaos died down. [But now what?]
[Now we wait for a day. However, you must not turn your Neurogear off nor take if off all day and night tonight while keeping it off the internet till you get to school. Can you do that?] She said with a very serious tone.
[I think I can manage that. Well, if that is all, I will be off.] Ichigo said as he started to reach for the cord.
[Goodbye then, Ichigo. I will talk to you again tomorrow.]
With a sharp tug, Ichigo popped her cord out of his device and walked away, getting mobbed by his friends after he walked out the secluded area.
Tatsuke got to him first, punching him upside the head. "What the hell was that Ichigo? Why were you Directly Linking with that girl?" She yelled at him.
"She wanted to talk privately is all." Ichigo said, acting as if nothing happened. "She needed protection and asked me for some, that's all. I just don't know what from yet."
Tatsuke only sighed, shaking her head in bemusement. "You get yourself out of one war and jump back into the action of some other fight with no information at all, how like yourself."
Ichigo was about to retort, but it was drowned out by the end-of-lunch bell. With no more words traded, Ichigo ran back to class, barging in and taking his seat right before his teacher got to class. He then spent the rest of the school day in a blur, ignoring everything around him till the bell rang.
He ran so fast out the door, he didn't even register to his other classmates as something that existed. He kept this speed up, vaulting over railings and fences, dodging cars when he had to, and slammed into his house, crouched down to evade a strike that never came. He stayed crouched there for a few moments, adrenalin pumping through his veins, before he relaxed and walked to the kitchen.
"Welcome home, you sly dog!" His father shouted from behind Ichigo, causing the boy to jump. Taking advantage of his son's surprise, Isshin wrapped his arm around Ichigo's neck while wearing a look of stupid happiness. "You finally bagged you a hot one!"
"What the hell are you talking about old man!" Ichigo shouted, futilely attempting to take his father's arm off of him.
"Oh don't act dumb! I know that you Direct Linked with the student vice-president at lunch today! Your friend Tatsuke even sent me a message about it not even five minutes ago!" Isshin then spun Ichigo around to face him, clasping his hands heavily on his son's shoulders. "Now, you have to take responsibility for your actions, you hear me? I want to mee-" He was then shut up mid sentence by a brutal uppercut, getting sent into the ceiling above them. Ichigo maintained his position for a moment more, veins bulging on the side of his head before he exploded.
"It was not like that you old pervert!" He shouted at the man now buried neck deep into the next floor. Said man then pushed himself out, falling right on his ass before pouting at Ichigo.
"What do you mean, it wasn't like that?"
"She had a request for me. She is in trouble with a group and I accepted to protect her. She said that she will tell me about the specifics tomorrow." Ichigo said, repressing his anger. "Got that, Goat-Beard?"
Isshin's eyes steeled at what he heard. "So what you are telling me is that you accepted in helping a person, not knowing why they are being hunted, nor knowing what she is being hunted by? Are you a fool, my boy?!"
'You are the last person I want to hear that from.' Ichigo thought to himself before settling with glaring at him. "I know one thing, dad, and that it involves this game named Brain Burst or something like that."
Isshin immediately let up on the boy with a sheepish smile. "Oh, then there is no problem at all! Never mind my ramblings now!" But then he turned serious for a moment more. "But I seriously expect you to bring her ho-"
"Shut up you old freak!" Ichigo shouted again, punching his dad in the face to cut him off before flopping on the couch beside Yuzu and Karin, both of whom were absorbed into the show they were watching.
The sudden weight change drew the attention of his sisters, eliciting a chorus of "Welcome home Ichigo!" from both of the twins. Yuzu then moved over to sit on Ichigo's lap, much to his amusement.
"So what are you guys watching?" Ichigo asked with a merry voice, looking at the screen. He was trying make sense of the hat-wearing frogs but was failing spectacularly, considering their entirely random natures.
"It's called Keroro Gunso. It's about these alien frogs that are trying to take over earth but are coming nowhere even close to it. They keep getting foiled by a single human family or by their own incompetence. It's rather hilarious." Karin said, never taking her eyes off the screen. "Though the sheer stupidity takes a while to get used to."
And they just sat there, enjoying each other's company as they watched the show together. 'The main frog, Keroro, has the exact same personality as Keigo...I wonder if he is a frog in disguise...' Ichigo thought to himself, seriously contemplating the possibility of that actually being true. Weighing the odds and ends of the idea, it was weighing more for it to being actually possible before Yuzu shot right off of his lap.
"Ah, I almost forgot! Dad! Lets make dinner!" She shouted, scurrying off as quickly as her little legs would take her. Rubbing his thighs to wake them up with one hand, Ichigo started on his homework, enjoying the rather peaceful day today had been, all things considered. Even the homework was light. In the back of his mind, Ichigo had the nagging suspicion that something bad was going to happen, but he suppressed the feeling subconsciously. Instead, he focus on solving the annoyance math was.
About an hour passed before both Karin and Ichigo were called in for dinner. It was a rather simple one, merely some seasoned somen, but Ichigo quickly dug in when he saw the excited look on his sister's face. Expecting the flavor to be a bit flat, Ichigo was essentially slapped in the face by the flavor of the meal. It danced, sang, and seared its heavenly taste into his memory, and he couldn't have enough. He wolfed down the food, as did Isshin and even Karin, quickly bringing their bowls up for more. "More please!" They said simultaneously with serious looks.
Yuzu couldn't be more delighted. She quickly scooped more onto their plates and dug in herself, also becoming entranced in the flavor.
The only noise that was heard in that household was the clink of forks on plates as the whole family ate as quickly as they could. Upon running out, everyone groaned in sadness before reclining in their chairs, belching in satisfaction. "Yuzu, that was the best meal I have eaten in a long time." Ichigo said, ruffling his little sister's hair. "I think I can speak for us all when I ask if you would make dinner more often."
Everyone nodded ecstatically at the idea, causing the young girl to blush and giggle before accepting with a wide smile. After the cheers died down from the sheer happiness, Ichigo left the table to go to bed, feeling content. He was swiftly off to dreamland, dead to the world in a matter of minutes.
(XoxoX)
Sparks flew as two beings of equal power, one a white butterfly...thing, and the other being a boy clad in black, clashed in a deadly dance of steel. With each swing, each connection with their blades, the landscape buckled and cracked, being irrevocably changed. Then the pace changed as the white one pushed away. However, this is where everything went to tell.
Instead of casting Hado #90 like expected, he suddenly mutated into a more grotesque moth before firing off six small energy balls. They flew at and past the boy, of whom dodged them with a smirk, before realizing that they didn't hit the ground, that they had a different target. Turning around, the boy then ran as quickly as he could, trying to take them out, and almost succeeded. He sliced in half five of them, causing them to destablize and implode, but accidentally got caught in the chest by one.
Falling to the ground, he was dimly aware that there was a rather sizable hole in his chest, then saw his friends come around him with scared looks.
"Why are you on the ground?" Tatsuke asked, somehow not seeing the gaping hole in his chest.
"How could you fail to protect us, Ichigo?" Keigo then inquired, a defeated look on his face when he bore witness to the damage on his chest..
"We are all going to die now, and it was all your fault." Uryuu said while adjusting his glasses, glaring at the moth-thing coming their way
"You just were not strong enough, Ichigo." Orihime wept, falling to her knees.
"You failed Karakura, Ichigo." Chad deadpanned while looking at his fallen friend.
'No!' Ichigo yelled in his mind, too weak to yell out loud. 'I want to be strong! Strong enough to protect all of my important people, fast enough to be in time, and determined enough to end it as fast as I can! I wan to Protect with all my might!" His eyes shone dimly with an unrelenting fire as his body gave out before he heard a voice.
"Is that your what you want?"
"Is that your true desire?"
(XoxoX)
Ichigo flung himself upright, panting heavily while drenched in sweat before realizing what truly happened.
'A nightmare mutated from a memory a few months old? Odd...It never happened before'
Pushing himself to the edge of the bed, Ichigo glanced a weary eye over the nightstand clock and froze in horror. He had woken up ten minutes late. He quickly debated in his head and decided to skip breakfast, opting for a fast shower instead. Doing so, he changed at top speed, almost running out the door before Isshin stopped him.
"Ah, Ichigo! You almost forgot your money!" His dad said, grabbing his boy by the shoulder. As he made some quick sliding motions with his hands, the man's face scrunched up in confusion. "Huh? Says that you are offline."
"Ah, right!" Ichigo said before pressing a button on the back of his linker. "There, should-" He was then cut off by the notification of money being added to his device. "Alright, thanks dad! Tell Yuzu and Karin bye for me!" And he was off, running at a speed that even the most well seasoned athlete would be impressed by. It even seemed as if fortune smiled upon him. Each light he passed was just as he wanted it, allowing him one long non-stop run. That is, until everything froze around him as he ran in front of his school.
The freezing then changed to terraforming, completely changing how everything looked around him.
Some buildings grew taller and got a silvery-chromatic sheen while others shrunk to nothingness, giving more open areas. "Wait, why did Burst Link happen? I know I didn't command it. And why is everything changed?" He then looked around, taking in all the changes, when a reflection caught his eye. His avatar's outfit was the almost same as it was after he trained in the dangai with one notable difference: the colors were inverted. What was black is now white and the opposite was true as well, with the glove that fused his sword to his hand being the most pure strain of white of the outfit. He took note of his clawed left hand before freezing when he looked up to his face.
The first thing he saw was that his trademark carrot orange hair wasn't there. The second, however, was more shocking. He was wearing the mask of his hollow when he got possessed during his fight with Ulquiorra, horns and all, with intricately weaved lines of black surrounding the always furious look in his eyes while overlapping its bare teeth. The model also had a black mane of fur going from the edges of his front collar bone to the center of his back and three tuffs of black on his left wrist and both ankles, offsetting the white of the outfit.
Then, he noticed that he had spectators. LOTS of spectators, all along the rooftops with odd avatars of their own. He heard what sounded like muttering from them but ignored it, when something of more interest came up in the form of a light and the sound of a combustion engine.
"A new challenger approaches!"
As the words hovered overhead, an ashen, skull-headed man drove by Ichigo while talking to himself. "Chromatic Nightmare, eh? It's been a while since I been here. Luuuuuucky!" He then looked over to Ichigo. "So you are my opponent then, Monochromatic Protector?"
"Monochromatic Protector? Chromatic Nightmare? What the hell are you talking about?" Ichigo asked, confused by the seemingly random words.
The man then spun the tail-end of his bike around, revving his engine. "So you are a newb, aye?! MEEEGGAAA" He then charged at Ichigo, of whom hadn't moved in the slightest, "LUUUUCKY!"
Yet, in the next instant, everyone who wasn't Ichigo that watched was dumbfounded as the bike's front tire exploded from the force of the air pressure escaping through a gash left by the sword. The bike then flipped onto it's side, skidding across the ground with the passenger in it, inflicting scratch damage upon him. "That was rude, suddenly charging me like that." Ichigo said while brandishing his sword at the fallen form of his opponent. "You didn't even give me your name."
Ichigo then waited for a response, allowing the man to crawl out from under his bike and look at him as if he were stupid. "What are you talking about? You do know this is a game, right? Look up above and you will see it." And when Ichigo did look up, he was reminded of the Tekken, the one Tatsuki would make him play against her with. There were two bars, of which he assumed was their health considering their sheer size, and his opponent's was a little shorter then his, green in color while Ichigo's was blue. There was also two smaller bars, both glowing yellow with various lengths, and he assumed they were an indication to what special move they could use.
'Whatever, focus on this.' Ichigo thought to himself, ducking under a fist that was going for his head. "You broke my bike, so I will break you! How unlucky!" Ash said as he flung another fist at Ichigo. This time, though, he batted the fist away with the flat of his blade. Acting upon the opening he created, Ichigo brought the fingers on his left hand together and speared Ash through the chest with his claws, putting his arm elbow deep into his opponent's chest. The drop in his health was significant, bringing him from the green color down to red. And in one final motion, Ichigo brought his blade to the other man's neck before severing it, sending his head flying away.
"Perfect victory!"
In large, steampunk letters, the words came out above the wreckage from the fight. The spectators, most of whom expecting an overwhelming defeat on the newb, gaped in shock at the turn around before leaving in stunned silence. The others, however, were almost throwing up in the sheer monstrosity of the kill, shocked at the efficient and heartless attacks.
Then everything changed back to normal for Ichigo, not even a second having had passed in reality, and he paused for a moment to catch his bearings. Shaking his head, he knew that Kuroyuki had a lot to explain, but it could wait till they met at lunch.
(XoxoX)
Kuroyuki's jaw dropped when Ichigo explained what happened to him while they ate. [Wait, what?! You say that, in your very first fight, you dominated it, not even getting scratched?! Do you know how hard that is to do even when you are a pro?] She shouted through their link as he calmly ate his food.
[I think I have a good idea of the difficulty, judging by your reaction and all that.] He said, his voice calm. [Now, explain to me what exactly you got me into, Kuro.] He followed up with in a sharp tone.
She then struggled with calming herself before looking back at Ichigo. [Alright, it is fair that I do. I'll initiate a fight with you so we can talk in Brain Burst though so we have more time.] Ichigo nodded at the wisdom and they both whispered the activation key.
Just like before, everything froze. Then, the people of the lunchroom disappeared as the room darkened in the faint light of dusk. Surprisingly, Ichigo felt at peace in this map as he looked at Kuroyuki, seeing her in the same avatar as when he saw her in the school network gazing longingly out one of the windows.
"Your name fits you well." He said with his arms crossed, looking out a window at the falling sun. And he was being honest. Black Lotus was a name that seemed perfect, something beautiful that grew surrounded by refuse and trash, all while having a mysterious air about it. His words had managed to make her blush some before he got down to business, looking right at her. "Anyways, what is the true purpose of this 'Brain Burst' system and why is it like a fighting game?"
She turned towards him, flinching lightly at the evil mask his avatar had. She saw an angry demon looking at her, its stance that of a seasoned warrior, and that it had a large, white blade in its grasp. 'What was his dream like?' She then shook her head, getting back in the mind set to answer him. "That's because Brain Burst is exactly that: a fighting game. It uses the time-accelerating mechanics you are already used to and creates a variety of special battlefields using cameras in the surrounding area to plot out a map. It then pits you against an opponent to fight over points, of which are automatically bartered. These points are used to activate the acceleration, each time taking one point. And should you lose all of these points, poof. Brain Burst uninstalls itself and you can never get it back." She said while approaching him.
"And then there is a whole culture that was formed by the players. Standing at the top are the Six Kings of Pure Color, every one at level nine, and they have legions of players of their color. And this is why I need protection. I used to be the Seventh king, the King of Black, but when all the kings found out the way to become level ten, they all wanted peace. I was the only one against it and killed the Red King, putting the rest of them off to want me dead. I need your help because they are coming close and my dueling avatar is sealed up to make me harder to find." She then extended her right hand out. "If you follow me, they will become your enemies as well. This is your only chance to back out while you can, Ichigo."
Ichigo just gave an aggravated sigh before shifting his feet to a wider stance, folding his arms in front of his chest. "You are not telling me everything. What is the requirement to get to level ten and why are they so against it? And why are you looking for help now?"
She jerked back, pulling her hand in, and was stunned at how easily he saw through her, then lowered her head. "To become level ten, you need to defeat five level nine players. However, when a level nine player defeats another player of the same level, the loser loses all their points. There is also speculation that the game will end when a player reaches level ten, but it is only speculation on that matter. And as for why now, it is because someone has found me and they are whittling me down. I have been evading this person, so they don't know who I am, but I am running low on points because of him." She then knelt down with a forlorn look on her face. "But there is one problem: I can't find this person on the roster. Whenever I look after getting attacked, I can't find anyone's name but my own. It's infuriating!"
Ichigo just looked down at her, betraying no emotions because of his mask, before giving her a hand. "Alright, I will join you on two conditions. You tell me everything, and I mean everything, that I want to know when I ask for information and I want you to treat me like an equal, not a servant."
Kuroyuki gave him a smile, accepting the hand, and stood to her full height, of which was still three inches shorter then her protector. "After all," he continued, "I said I would protect you, and I don't go back on my word."
"Thank you, Ichigo." She said, walking towards him once more. "Now, lets see what attacks you have to work with. I am curious myself, considering how...well..."
"Considering how demonic my character looks, right?" Ichigo said, completing her sentence for her. She just nodded her head, looking ashamed in herself. "It's alright, the monsters that share this kind of face are fairly demonic themselves, so of course it looks like this. But how do I look at what my moves are?"
"Just imagine a menu for moves and it should show up, telling you what they are." She replied smoothly, covering for her moment of shame. And when he did, she heard him breath in shock. "What is it?" She inquired.
"Tell me how are these characters generated." Ichigo said with a cold, biting tone.
Kuroyuki flinched. "The program enters your memories, pulling out what you fear most, and creates a character based on that. It is usually accompanied by a nightmare." She said. Ichigo's eyes flashed and he shattered the wall in front of him, making Kuro shriek in fear. He then calmed himself, visibly using breathing to flush the anger from his mind.
"I see." He said curtly. "No wonder. Otherwise, I was going have to deal with you because my moveset is something no human should know." Leaving Kuroyuki puzzled, Ichigo then began to practice his moves, saying what they were out loud. "Slash." He said as he approached and cut down a pillar in one smooth movement. "Claw." Pinching his fingers together, he shoved his arm all the way through another nearby pillar, burying his arm shoulder deep. He then gathered black energy into his blade, causing the yellow bar that filled up to drain a little. "Getsuga Tensho." Swinging his blade down, the energy erupted from his sword, cleaving the building in two. Then red energy gathered in between his horns as he turned around, pointing his head to a window facing a cluster of buildings, his special bar dropping to empty. "Cero." The energy that had gather condenced before exploding out, destroying everything in it's path till met the buildings so far away, erupting in a crimson dome that left only a crater and nothing else.
Kuroyuki was stunned into silence, terror rooting her to her spot as she witnessed the damage he wrought. 'What have I done?' She asked herself. 'What kind of monster has entered this game?'
