We tremble in awe of that which cannot be seen, and we worship that which cannot be seen.
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A young woman in a black kimono stood atop a telephone poll "Yes… I sense two very strong spirit energies." and she leapt off the telephone pole, into the night.
A storm was coming.
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About 6 months had passed since the defeat of Naraku and the destruction of the Shikon Jewel, and things had returned to normal. For the most part:
Kenshiro had moved back to Karakura town to attend high school with Ichigo.
Kagome had moved to Karakura to be close to Kenshiro, and had moved in with their classmate, Orihime Inoue, who had a crush on Ichigo.
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A typical day in Karakura.
Kenshiro was walking home with Kagome when he saw Ichigo beating up several thugs without breaking a sweat.
"Seriously Ichigo-kun, you've gotta tone down the violence." Kagome scolded.
Ichigo shrugged "It gets the point across."
"Another spirit?" asked Kenshiro
"Yep."
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Ichigo went into his home at the clinic first "I'm home."
"You're late!" Isshin almost immediately kicked him in the face "You punk of a son, you know that dinnertime here is always at 7:00!"
"Damn you, is that how you greet your son who went out of his way to help a ghost on the way home?!" Ichigo barked
"I don't wanna hear it! Only punishments awaits those who disrupt our family time, no matter what the reason is! Or what, are you bragging that you're only one who can talk to and touch ghosts?!"
"Shut up, I didn't ask for this power!"
And thus, the squabble ensued.
Kenshiro and Kagome quietly snuck in and sat down, avoiding the confrontation.
"Stop it you two, the food is getting cold!" Yuzu scolded.
"Let them be Yuzu." Karin advised.
The squabble ended when Ichigo kneed Isshin into the wall "First of all, making a healthy male high school student come home at seven every night is unimagi-"
"Ichigo, you've got another one." Kenshiro informed him nonchalantly.
Ichigo looked and saw another spirit appearing next to him "What, when did you-?! I exorcise and exorcise and they keep coming, dammit!"
Karin sighed "Ichi-nii has it rough, being hi-spec."
Yuzu grinned "But you know, I'm kind of jealous. I can sense presences, but almost never see them."
"I don't believe in ghosts and stuff, so…"
"What?! But you can see them too, can't you? Dad's the only one who can't see them."
"Regardless if you see them or not, if you don't believe, then it's like they never existed."
Ichigo sighed "Dinner…"
Isshin knocked Ichigo off balance and pinned him to the ground "Your guard was down!"
Ichigo angrily flipped him off of him, and the match ended with both of them slugging each other in the face.
Isshin fell to the ground.
Ichigo wiped the fist-mark off of his face "Forget it, I'm going to bed." and he walked out of the room.
Kenshiro sighed "Alright Kagome, we should get going."
Kagome nodded, knowing that this was when Isshin would start talking to the huge picture of Masaki, Ichigo's deceased mother.
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Kagome was concerned "There's been a lot more of them coming lately. What do you think it means?"
"No idea, but I'm sure it's nothing." Kenshiro lied 'I hate lying to her like this, but I swore to Toshiro-sensei that I'd keep everything a secret.'
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Morning came.
Kenshiro came by the Kurosaki residence "Hey Yuzu-chan, Karin-chan. Ichigo ready yet?"
Then Ichigo came out "Hey guys, where's dad?"
"He's in a meeting, he won't be home until tonight." replied Karin.
Then Ichigo noticed the news talking about some big ruckus "That's nearby."
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Kenshiro and Ichigo walked past the site, with Ichigo carrying some flowers for the spirit of a child he helped lay to rest the night before.
They heard a scream and rushed to see what had happened.
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A mysterious creature, invisible to the ordinary eye, burst through a building just as Kenshiro and Ichigo arrived on the scene.
Kenshiro drew the Ryuuga, which had reverted back to the basic green-scaled katana form after the Shikon jewel was destroyed, and activated one of his new Chameleon Feature, cloaking him from anybody without a large amount of spiritual power, when he saw the spirit of a young girl running away "I'll hold it off, Ichigo you get her out of here!"
Ichigo nodded and started running away with the girl, who tripped and fell to the ground.
Seeing this, the creature surged forward, intent on devouring her.
Then a strange black butterfly appeared, followed by the young woman in the black kimono, who then drew her sword, but Kenshiro slashed the creature to bits with a severely weakened Dragon Cyclone, causing it to evaporate and disappear. She then looked at Kenshiro and Ichigo, then left without saying a word.
As it turns out, nobody could see hear or the creature.
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Kenshiro and Ichigo were talking in Ichigo's room while Kagome was with Yuzu and Karin.
Ichigo sighed "I just don't get it man, who was she?" then he saw the black butterfly outside his window "That's-"
Kenshiro nodded "It's her."
Sure enough, the woman phased through the wall into the room.
Ichigo stared in shock "What… are you?" he almost immediately freaked out when he saw her grip her sword "Who the hell are you?! What do you want?!"
"It's near." was all she said.
Angry, Ichigo kicked her in the back "Don't gimme "It's near," dumbass!" then he turned on the light "You scare the two of us shitless then ignore me? I asked you who the hell you are!"
The woman stared at Ichigo in disbelief "You can see me? Rather, you kicked me…"
Ichigo blinked "What the hell are you talking about? Of course we can see you."
"You're the guys in town earlier." she realized.
Kenshiro scoffed "You're just realizing it now?"
She touched both of their faces "Strange. Ordinarily, no one should be able to see me." she leapt over Ichigo's next attempt to kick her "Very well, I shall tell both of you."
"You're a Soul Reaper." Kenshiro blurted out.
Ichigo blinked.
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The spirit of the girl from earlier was running and hid behind a phone pole out of fear.
The creature appeared, invisible to anyone without spiritual power, but briefly appeared once it came into contact with the lines.
The girl took off running again.
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Ichigo was less than amused "So you're saying you're a Soul Reaper."
The woman nodded.
"And you've come all the way here from this Soul Society place in order to exorcise evil demons like Kenshiro has in the Feudal Era."
Another nod.
"So that means that that monster was a demon and it attacked that girl."
Yet another nod.
"Okay, I'll believe you." then he suddenly flipped out "Idiot, you think I'd believe something like that?!"
The woman seemed surprised by that "You're saying that, although you've seen ghost, and despite being friends with the wielder of the Ryuuga, you don't believe in Soul Reapers?"
Ichigo nodded "Unfortunately, I've never seen a Soul Reaper before. I don't believe in anything that I can't see."
"And yet you're seeing her now." Kenshiro pointed out.
Ichigo sighed "I'll admit that she's not human, but she'd better quit playing Soul Reaper around here." he turned to her "Got that, pipsqueak?" he patted her on the head.
The woman felt a vein throbbing "You dare call me that? Bakudo Number One: Sai!"
Next thing Ichigo knew, his hands were bound behind his back "What did you do to me?"
The woman smirked "You can't move, can you?"
"That's a Kido, a high-level incantation only a Soul Reaper can use." explained Kenshiro "She doesn't look it, but she's probably lived nearly ten times longer than either of us. And besides, pipsqueak may as well be her trigger word. In any other situation, she'd probably kill us on the spot, but she's not permitted to execute anyone not named in her orders. You'd better be grateful for that."
"And so…" the woman drew her sword and brought it down, but it turned out that she used the end of the handle of her sword on the ghost from yesterday.
The spirit was horrified "N-No, I don't want to go to the Netherworld!"
The woman smiled "Fear not. Your destination is not the Netherworld, it is the Soul Society. Unlike the Netherworld, it is a restful place." she re-sheathed her sword, revealing a mark on the spirit's forehead as he sunk into the ground and disappeared.
Ichigo couldn't have been more confused "What happened to him?"
The woman re-sheathed her sword "I sent him to the Soul Society. In your language, it's called "passing over," I guess. It's one of the jobs of Soul Reapers. I'll explain it simply so that even you two idiots can be satisfied." she pulled some things from her kimono "Now listen, there are two types of spirits in this world." she then proceeded to horrify them with her terrible drawing skills "The first are normal spirits called Wholes, they're the ghosts you usually see. The second are called Hollows, they attack people, living or dead, to devour their souls. They're evil spirits. Do either of you have any questions so far?"
"How about you tell us why your drawing is so bad?" asked Kenshiro, cranking his neck to dodge a Kido blast "Nice try, low level Kidos like that won't be able to beat me. I've trained with a captain, you'll have to do better than that."
The woman then proceeded to draw a moustache on Ichigo "I will continue my explanation, Barons. We Soul Reapers have two jobs. The first is to lead the Wholes to the Soul Society with a sendoff, Konso, as I just did, and-"
"The second is to cut and purify Hollows." Kenshiro finished for her "I would've mentioned this before, but it has to be kept strictly secret. Hell, I haven't even told Kagome about this yet."
"Why was that Hollow going after that girl?" asked Ichigo.
The woman shook her head "That I do not know, we have yet to grasp everything about them."
Then Ichigo and the others suddenly felt shaking "What the hell was that?"
"Whatever the case may be, there's another one around here." Kenshiro told him "We'd better get rid of it."
The woman shook her head "For some reason, I haven't been able to sense its presence at all. It's as though some strong force is obstructing my senses."
"What are you saying?!" Ichigo barked "Can't you hear the terrible cries?! Isn't that the Hollow you're after?"
Kenshiro stiffened for a moment "Oh f*ck…"
Then they heard the cries of the Hollow, then a crash, followed by screaming, which Kenshiro immediately recognized as Kagome.
Kenshiro immediately fled the room, then felt something 'What strong spiritual pressure, I can't believe I didn't sense this before!'
Ichigo was horrified to see Yuzu collapse in front of him "Kagome-chan and Karin-chan were… Onii-chan… Kenshiro… Please save… Karin-chan… and Kagome-chan…" then she collapsed.
Kenshiro and the woman fled down the stairs and saw the chaos.
There was a huge hole in the wall, Karin was out cold, and the Hollow had Kagome in its grip.
Kenshiro immediately charged in.
The woman drew her sword and saw Ichigo topple down the stairs "Stay back!"
"Damn it…" Ichigo barely managed to stand with every ounce of strength he had.
The woman was stunned 'He's moving… after I put that spell on him! You'll get in the way, stay back!"
"Shut up!" Ichigo barked, seeing the situation. With Karin injured, Kagome in the clutches of the Hollow, and Kenshiro on the losing end of the battle, Ichigo, in a burst of power and anger, managed to break the spell and free himself, before he charged into the fray to help Kenshiro.
Ichigo began attacking the Hollow, known as Fishbone D, to no avail, being sent flying just as easily as Kenshiro, both of them being slammed into a nearby building.
Kenshiro slowly stood, despite the blood pouring from his wounds "Kagome…"
Fishbone D smirked "I found you." he made a grab for them, but they got out of the way, and the woman used her sword to stab Fishbone D in the arm, causing him to howl in pain and let go of Kagome before disappearing.
Kenshiro caught Kagome and gently cradled her in his arms 'I thought that once Naraku was dead, all of our troubles would be over. I was wrong. I can't even use 1/10 of the Ryuga's true power anymore, my trip inside the Shikon jewel must've really burned it out.'
"Get a hold of yourself!" the woman barked "That Hollow has not devoured her soul yet, or the others for that matter."
"Are you sure?" asked Kenshiro frantically.
The woman nodded "It's seeking souls with higher concentrations of spirit energy, though she might've been one of the possible targets." then she realized it "I see, that Hollow this afternoon wasn't after that girl either."
"What do you mean?" asked Ichigo.
"For some reason, your spirit energy was almost completely suppressed until just now. That's why I didn't sense anything about you, and even the Ryuuga boy's energy was very weak, so you two were never attacked by Hollows. It's just conjecture, but perhaps the spirit energy sealed within your bodies began pouring out due to the contact one of you had with the ghost of that young girl, or the fact that one of you has awakened the Ryuuga. In other words, those two Hollows sensed the density of your souls through that girl."
"They're really after us." Kenshiro realized.
The woman got ready as Fishbone D appeared "It's here! You two stay-"
"Shut up!" Ichigo barked "Are you saying that girl was attacked because of us?"
"What are you talking about?"
"Is it my fault that Kagome's life is in danger?" Kenshiro snarled as he and Ichigo ran out to confront the Hollow "You want our souls, don't you?"
"In that case, come fight me one-on-one!" Ichigo snarled "Kenshiro, you got your shot at it earlier, now it's my turn."
With a roar, Fishbone D charged in faster than Ichigo or even Kenshiro could react.
With no other options, the woman stopped Fishbone D's attack, injuring herself in the process.
She slashed some of the teeth out, then fell to the ground "You fools… you should've known… that you were no match for him! Or did you think that everything would be over if you gave him your souls? At this rate, we will all simply become food for him." she struggled to get back on her feet and looked at Ichigo "Do you want… to save your family?" then she shot a look over to Kenshiro "Do you want… to protect that woman?"
Kenshiro gripped the Ryuuga "More than anything."
"Is there a way?" asked Ichigo.
The woman gripped her sword "There's just one way…" she held the blade towards them "One of you must become a Soul Reaper, run the point of this Zanpakuto through the center of your being and I will pour my powers into you. I don't know if it will work but there is nothing else we can do, now which one will it be?"
Kenshiro looked at Ichigo "Remember Ichigo, we made that "Every other" agreement. I had my shot at this thing, now it's your turn."
Ichigo nodded and turned to the woman "Give me that sword, Soul Reaper."
"My name is not Soul Reaper, I am Rukia Kuchiki."
Kenshiro prepared to hold off Fishbone D as it charged at them.
Ichigo gripped the Zanpakuto "I am… Ichigo Kurosaki!" and with that, he drove the blade into his chest, resulting in a blinding light.
Next thing anyone knew, Ichigo had become a Soul Reaper and sliced off one of Fishbone D's arms almost instantly with his large Zanpakuto.
Rukia, now clade in a mere white kimono, stared in awe 'How can this be? I meant to give him half of my energy, but he took it all. Who is he?!'
Ichigo walked over to Kenshiro and placed a hand on his chest "I felt this nagging voice in my head telling me to do this."
Kenshiro was surrounded in a bright light, and the next thing he knew, he was in a Soul Reaper uniform with a dragon crest on the back of the kimono, the scales of the Ryuuga turning completely black "How about we do this one together?"
Ichigo smirked "Sounds good to me." and both charged in.
Rukia stared in disbelief 'I've never seen humans with spirit energy enough to confuse a Soul Reaper, even if one of them has the Ryuuga. I've never seen a human with strength enough to break a spell on his own… and I've never seen a Soul Reaper Zanpakuto become so large, even if one is the Ryuuga!'
Kenshiro lopped off one of Fishbone D's feet "Alright Ichigo, you take it from here."
Ichigo eyed Fishbone D with disdain "Now you'll pay for hurting my family." and with that, he brought the blade down, cleaving Fishbone D straight down the middle, causing him to evaporate, leaving nothing behind.
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Next morning, things seemed normal enough.
"GOOD MORNING, ICHIGO!" Isshin dropped in to deliver a surprise attack, which Ichigo avoided.
This ended with Ichigo pinning Isshin to the ground and grabbing him by the face "You've got some nerve, trying to attack your own son in his sleep!"
Isshin groaned "You're pretty good my boy, there's nothing more to teach you."
Then Ichigo realized something and grabbed Isshin by the shirt "What about Yuzu and Karin's injuries?!"
Isshin blinked "Injuries? What're you talking about?"
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Ichigo stared at the gaping hole in his house.
"It's a miracle, a truck crashes into our house and no one's hurt." Isshin commented.
"What's more miraculous is that no one woke up." Karin muttered "And on top of that, the culprit got away."
Ichigo could not have been more confused 'What's going on? Their wounds are gone and everyone thinks it was some truck, is this the work of a Soul Reaper?'
Yuzu snapped him out of his thoughts "Ichigo, hurry and eat breakfast or you'll be late."
Ichigo thought about Rukia 'I wonder if she went back to that place she called the Soul Society, and now that I think about it, Kenshiro seemed to know some stuff about that.'
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Ichigo met up with Kenshiro at school "Kenshiro, you know something about that, don't you?"
Kenshiro quickly covered his mouth "Shut up man, that stuff is classified."
Then Ichigo accidentally bumped into Kagome and her Karakura girlfriends, Orihime and Tatsuki "Oh, hey Inoue."
Tatsuki immediately rounded on him "Ichigo, you bumped into Orihime and that's all you can say?"
"Oh, sorry." then Ichigo turned to Orihime "You alright?" he held out a hand.
Orihime immediately got up, scared by Ichigo's expression "It's alright, I have voby… bolley… volley…" then she ran off.
Ichigo blinked "What's with her?"
"You were kind of intimidating, Ichigo-kun." Kagome pointed out "By the way, why are you guys so late? It's already lunchtime."
Ichigo looked at Kenshiro, then at Kagome "We'll explain later."
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In class, they met up with Keigo, Mizuiro and Chad.
"So Ichigo, did a truck really crash into your house?" asked Keigo.
Ichigo shrugged "Yeah, and Kenshiro here used his body to save Kagome from being hit. He's got guts."
Kenshiro didn't even turn around as he kicked Ichigo in the face.
"So, you finished cleaning up?" asked Mizuiro.
"It's not that easy." Ichigo pointed out.
"Need help?" asked Chad.
Ichigo cursed himself for always forgetting how big Chad is "Uh, no thanks."
"Oh, are you Kamikaze-kun and Kurosaki-kun?" asked a new voice.
Kenshiro and Ichigo looked back and were gobsmacked to find that, to their surprise, Rukia was standing there in their school uniform "I'll be sitting next to you two from today, my name's Rukia Kuchiki."
Kenshiro and Ichigo looked back and forth between each other & Rukia five times "You're…!"
"Do you know each other?" asked Chad.
Rukia smiled "Oh no, this is our first meeting, right you two?" she held out a hand "Nice to meet you."
Ichigo was incredibly unnerved when he saw the message on her hand Make A Fuss And You're Dead.'
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She ended up dragging them both outside.
"Just what the hell are you thinking?!" Ichigo barked.
Rukia smiled "My how scary, what is the matter? You're not going to do something to me, are you?"
"First of all, quit talking like that." Kenshiro said dryly.
"Oh, I think this is pretty good considering I learned it overnight."
"Forget it, now why are you here?" asked Ichigo "Weren't you going back to that Soul Society or whatever?"
"Don't be stupid, only Soul Reapers can go back there." she explained in her normal character "I don't have that ability at the moment." she pointed at Ichigo "Last night, most of my powers as a Soul Reaper were taken by you. Thanks to you, I'm stuck in this gigai form."
"What's a gigai?"
"A gigai is a temporary body provided in case of emergencies." explained Kenshiro "Soul Reapers drastically weakened inhabit a gigai until their powers return, which is why everyone else could see her. So until her powers return, we're stuck with her."
Rukia nodded "Precisely, and you'll both have to do the work of a Soul Reaper until then. It's only natural. You now have the powers of a Soul Reaper, you have no right to refuse."
"I refuse!" Ichigo blurted out almost instantly "I'm never fighting things like that ever again!"
"Ridiculous, you did fine yesterday!"
"That's because my family was being attacked, but I'm not about to fight for complete strangers. Sorry to disappoint you."
Rukia sighed "I see… Then it can't be helped." she put on a strange glove and palmed Ichigo's face, then did the same with Kenshiro, removing their souls from their bodies.
Ichigo started freaking out "My body… What'd you do to us?!"
"Follow me." was all she said.
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Rukia took out a cell phone "It's around here."
"What?" asked Ichigo.
"She got an order from the Soul Society." Kenshiro told him.
Rukia nodded "A Whole Spirit who lives in this part will probably be attacked."
Sure enough, the spirit of a young boy was suddenly attacked by a spider hollow.
Kenshiro and Ichigo were about to charge in, but Rukia's voice stopped them "Wait. Why are you going to help him? Isn't he a complete stranger?"
"So what?!" Ichigo barked "I can't just stand here when he's being attacked right in front of me!"
"So what?!" she shouted, taking them by surprise "A Soul Reaper must treat all spirits equally. Just because they're nearby, just because they're convenient, it doesn't work like that. If you intend to help that boy, make up your mind to save all spirits. You must make the commitment to go anywhere, and even be willing to sacrifice your life!"
There was a pause.
Just as the boy was about to be devoured, Ichigo slashed off one of the Hollow's legs, and Kenshiro slashed off the other, causing it to disappear.
"Are you both committed to this?" asked Rukia.
"Who cares about commitment?!" Ichigo barked "We both saved this boy because we wanted to! Besides, what about you?" he turned to face Rukia "You risked your life to save the both of us last night, did you think about your duty as a Soul Reaper when you acted? When you put yourself at risk, it doesn't matter!" he didn't even turn around as the spider hollow appeared and charged at him, but cut its mask when it got close "At the very least, we'll be different."
The Hollow collapsed to the ground and dissipated.
Kenshiro knelt down beside the boy "Are you alright? If you don't want something like that thing coming after you again, you'd better pass over." and he placed the mark on the boy's forehead, causing him to disappear "And that's how you do Konso. Let's go Ichigo, god only knows what's happened to our bodies at this point."
Rukia smiled as she watched them walk away.
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Nightfall came.
Two spirits were watching over Kagome and Orihime in the latter's apartment, when they were suddenly attacked and captured by Hollows, then taken to their lair and converted into Hollows themselves.
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Morning came, and Rukia was studying contemporary language, much to Kenshiro and Ichigo's annoyance.
"So how long are you gonna keep following us around?" asked Ichigo.
"Until you agree to do the job of Soul Reapers!" Rukia replied firmly.
Then they heard something and found that Kagome had barely saved Orihime from being hit by a car, and rushed over.
"Inoue, did that car just hit you?" asked Ichigo.
Orihime blinked "Maybe…"
"Maybe? And you're okay?!"
Orihime blushed "Yep, it was just a little bump. I'm fine Kurosaki-kun, I really am!"
"You're fine? And where's the car?"
"It drove away." she saw how annoyed Ichigo looked "Sorry."
Ichigo started to feel a little guilty "Well, as long as you're both okay."
Orihime looked over at Rukia "Kuchiki-san?"
"Who the hell are you?" Rukia questioned bluntly.
"Idiot, she's in our class!" Kenshiro hissed "Not to mention the fact that she's my girlfriend's roommate! That's Inoue, Orihime Inoue!"
Rukia did a curtsey "Oh, hello Inoue-san, Higurashi-san."
Orihime did the same "Hello."
"Have you been out shopping?"
Orihime grabbed her bag of groceries "My leeks, butter, bananas and bean jam, they're fine too."
Ichigo was rather unnerved 'What the hell are they gonna make with that?'
Rukia noticed a mark on Kagome and Orihime's legs "How did you get those bruises on your legs?"
Kagome blinked and looked down "Weird, I didn't even notice, maybe it was when that car almost hit us."
Kenshiro was immediately by her side, healing it subtly 'At least the Ryuuga hasn't burnt out enough to prevent me from being able to heal injuries.'
"Kuchiki-san, what's the matter?" asked Kagome, noticing Rukia starting at the bruise "You seem concerned."
"It's nothing." she lied "Just take care."
"Thank you."
"I'll walk you home." Kenshiro offered, which Kagome replied with by kissing him.
Ichigo looked over to Orihime "Want me to walk you home too?"
Orihime nervously shook her head "N-No, I'm fine, really. See you!" she took off after the lovebirds.
"Damn, they'd better be careful." Ichigo muttered "Well, as long as Kenshiro's with them."
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The walk home was awkwardly silent.
"What's the deal with those girls?" Rukia asked out of the blue.
Ichigo blinked "You mean Kagome and Inoue? Kenshiro's been in love with Kagome his entire life, and he finally won her over about 6 months ago."
"I see. What about Inoue? Are you friends with her?"
Ichigo shrugged "Not really, I've never even spoken to her much. She's close to one of my friends who lives in the neighborhood, Tatsuki. But about three years ago, her older brother Sora died at our hospital. The same happened with Kagome's dad about 7 years ago, but that's besides the point. Inoue's only family was her brother, it was a car accident. I didn't know she was the girl who was crying that day, I only found out a little while ago."
"How was your spirit energy back then?"
"Not as strong as it is now, it's only recently when I've been able to see and talk to ghosts."
"Just as I thought…"
"What's the deal with that anyway?"
"Nothing." she started walking ahead "See you."
"Where are you going?"
"Home."
"Where to?"
"Are you interested?"
"Not really."
"Then don't ask." and she walked away, much to Ichigo's ire.
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At the same time, Tatsuki came over to Kagome and Orihime's apartment with homemade stewed beef and potatoes.
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Yuzu came into Ichigo's room "Hey Onii-chan, have you seen my pajamas?"
Ichigo scowled "Hey, at least knock."
Yuzu pouted "Boy, you've gotten so mean now that you're in high school."
"Have not, and I don't know where your pajamas are."
"That's weird, my dress is missing too."
"But why do you have to ask me about everything?!"
"Good night." then she left.
Then Kenshiro came in "Hey Ichigo, we've got problems."
Ichigo was about to say something, when he heard a ringing noise "The hell?"
Rukia suddenly jumped out of Ichigo's closet "Alright you two, we have an order. It's coming." and she forced their Soul Reaper forms out of their bodies, just as two Hollows came into the room "Don't just stand there you two, it's coming!"
"Ichigo, aim for its head!" Kenshiro barked as he slashed the Hollow's mask.
The first Hollow leapt at Ichigo, who dodged the lunge and slashed off its arm, causing it to howl in pain.
Ichigo finally slashed the Hollow at the tip of its mask, but the Hollow grabbed Ichigo's blade, before part of the mask suddenly broke off, causing it to howl in pain before it disappeared.
The first Hollow leapt at Kenshiro, who dodged the lunge and slashed off its arm, causing it to howl in pain.
Kenshiro finally slashed the Hollow at the top half of its mask, but the Hollow grabbed his blade, before part of the mask suddenly broke off, causing it to howl in pain before it disappeared, following after his comrade.
"Guys…" Ichigo said slowly "That thing's face… It was Inoue's brother."
"The other one…" Kenshiro said grimly "That was Kagome's father. I was afraid of this."
"Rukia, how do we get rid of Hollows exactly?" asked Ichigo.
"Attacking a Hollow from behind and splitting its head in one blow, that is the essence of exterminating a Hollow." explained Rukia "Neither of you forget. This is to minimize your own injuries, and also so that you never see the identity of the Hollow. You both saw it just now, all Hollows were once the souls of ordinary humans. Now he's just a monster, and he must be destroyed. Grudges, regrets… Souls who still harbor such feelings are hard to perform Konso on, and linger on alone. Then they either become Hollows themselves, or are devoured by other Hollows and become new Hollows."
Ichigo was horrified "That's… Wait… Kenshiro, how come you didn't mention this before?"
Kenshiro shrugged "I know some of the details of the Soul Reaper jobs, but I don't know everything."
"But why would Inoue's brother come after me?" asked Ichigo "And why would Kagome's dad come after you?"
Rukia shook her head "I don't know, but judging from the Hollow that attacked you both last time, it seems a powerful Hollow who remains in the dark wants to devour the spiritual power from both of you, and it probably controls several Hollows. Then the appearance of Inoue's brother and Kagome's father would make sense."
Kenshiro grabbed Rukia by the shirt "So what the hell do we do?! There's no way I'm killing Kagome's father!"
"Think!" Rukia barked "You know a little bit about Soul Reapers and Hollows, if you don't kill him then he'll wander around forever! And there's no doubt that they'll attack you again." then she realized something "Wait, we may not have time to worry about him! Those girls are in danger!"
Kenshiro jumped out of Ichigo's bedroom window faster than anyone can see.
"He gets like that when it comes to Kagome." explained Ichigo "I know he's not willing to go halfway across Japan just to purify just one soul if it means he's not there to protect her."
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Tatsuki was thinking about beating Ichigo to a bloody pulp after Orihime and Kagome told her about the encounter with him, Kenshiro and Rukia earlier that day.
That is, until the Hollows of Sora and Kagome's father, Akira Higurashi, appeared and started attacking them.
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Ichigo raced across the rooftops after Kenshiro "The Hollows target their own kin?!"
Rukia nodded as she rode on Ichigo's back "It happens frequently."
"What do you mean?"
"Hollows are fallen souls, souls that weren't guided into the Soul Society by a Soul Reaper, souls that weren't protected by Hollows. They lose their hearts and become Hollows themselves. Now that these Hollows have failed to devour you and Kenshiro, they'll go after the souls of the ones they loved most in their lives. Remember the bruises Higurashi and Inoue had on their legs yesterday? Those were the marks left by Hollows."
"Then that accident was their doing?"
"Perhaps."
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Orihime and Kagome's souls were ripped out of their bodies, with Sora attacking Tatsuki, who could see the faint outline of a figure, but was helpless to stop it.
Kagome and Orihime were confused about what was going on, until the Hollows started speaking to them.
Akira took Kagome to the roof, leaving Orihime and Sora in the apartment.
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Kagome immediately backed away from the Hollow "Let me go!"
"Fear not Kagome, I have no intention of harming you." said the Hollow.
Kagome's eyes hardened, but still let fear seep through the look "How… how do you know my name?"
The Hollow frowned underneath the mask that acted as its face "How sad Kagome, don't tell me you've forgotten my voice already." then he suddenly roared "I have… no control… over my body… Kagome… get away!" and he lunged his claw at her against his will, but a shock-wave was sent throughout the area.
Kagome opened her eyes to find that Kenshiro had blocked the strike at the last second "I thought you were after me."
Akira retreated through a hole and disappeared, with Kenshiro unable to go after him.
"Kenshiro?" asked Kagome meekly "Kenshiro, what's going on?"
Kenshiro was about to explain, when a thought struck him and he saw the chain connected to her chest 'No, don't tell me… Dammit, that thing ripped her sole out of her body?! Kagome, you're…"
"A spirit." said a voice as Akira returned through a portal "Kagome is nearly dead. I have no control of my body, you must stop me boy!" he unwillingly grabbed Kagome by the chain in her chest and knocked Kenshiro off of the roof and tail-whacked him to the ground.
Kagome struggled from the Hollow's grip "Let me go, Kenshiro's hurt!"
"Kagome… Have you truly forgotten me?" asked the Hollow.
Kagome suddenly recognized the Hollow "Dad…?"
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Kenshiro slowly got up and wiped the blood from his forehead "I can't… give up… I have to… protect Kagome… At any cost…"
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Kagome stared at the Hollow "Are you really my dad?"
Akira nodded "I am, but I have very little control over my body thanks to being turned into this vile being known as a Hollow. Your spiritual power comes from my side, seeing how it's my side of the family that has the spiritual powers. Your grandfather had it too, but it wanes with age, so he lost about 99% of it when he hit 60."
"That actually explains a lot… But why can't your soul find peace?"
"Because of my doubt. You see Kagome, even after I died, there was one fear, one attachment, that kept me from moving on: I couldn't see you be with the man you would be with for the rest of your life. Every father wishes to know that their daughter is in good hands."
Kagome smiled, tears swelling up in her eyes "Well I can assure you daddy, Kenshiro is the one for me, and I only regret not realizing my feelings for him sooner."
"I see, that's good. I can't stop myself from having the unbearable urge to attack, but I can decide my reasons for attacking. That boy… to help me find peace, that boy must prove himself in my eyes, prove that he will be able to protect you, shelter you, and above all, make you happy."
"You know, that's taking overprotective parenting to a whole new level." Ichigo commented, before Sora tail-whacked him to the ground.
"So what's with that Hollow?" asked Kagome.
"Oh that's Orihime's older brother, we started watching you together when you moved in with her and sort of became friends. He can't control himself like I can." then he suddenly groaned "Can't… control my body…" and he unwillingly lunged at Kagome.
Then Kenshiro appeared and slashed off his hand "Sorry Higurashi-san, but I have to do this."
"I understand, just prove yourself to me and I'll use what remains of my spiritual power to destroy the Hollow within."
"Very well." and he suddenly kicked Akira through the wall and brought down the blade, but dropped it when Akira spat some acid on Kenshiro's hands, burning them.
Kenshiro quickly recovered thanks to his Ryu Scales and used one hand to grab his Zanpakuto, his other arm being caught in Akira's jaws.
Kenshiro broke free with a Ryu Scale-enhanced kick "I've known it was you Higurashi-san, I know you've always been there for Kagome, always guiding her, helping her, protecting her when I couldn't. Even when she protected Orihime from being hit by that car yesterday, you saved her from being injured as well, right? But if she keeps depending on you, you won't be able to rest in peace. So I wanted to show you, I'll always do everything in my power to protect her and make her happy, so don't worry. You don't have to bear that responsibility anymore, I'll bear it for you."
Akira's Hollow Mask suddenly disappeared "Very well, Kenshiro… You have my permission…"
Kenshiro then performed a Konso and placed the mark on Kenshiro's head "You won't have to suffer anymore Higurashi-san, you can finally rest…"
Akira smiled "Thank you…" and with that, he disappeared.
Kenshiro then healed a sobbing Kagome as he comforted her.
That is, until he had to erase her memory of the night's events.
Then he went over to rendezvous with Ichigo "I'm wrapped on my end, how about you?"
Ichigo pointed to where Sora had stabbed himself with Ichigo's Zanpakuto "You tell me."
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Next morning, Orihime was blurting out stuff about how a sumo champion came into the apartment and blasted a hole with his gun.
Ichigo's eye twitched "What the f*ck did you guys do yesterday?"
"Memory replacement, her memories of last night were replaced with new ones." explained Kenshiro "Kagome and Tatsuki-san don't remember anything, so they have to go along with it. The only problem is that we can't choose the new memories, which can be a problem. It's usually based on the victim's imagination, and considering what Inoue-san is like… We probably should've used it on someone else. That's the second time I've had to lie to Kagome about this stuff."
"You mean you and Rukia used it on my family too the other day."
"Yeah."
Rukia noticed them seeming rather off "What's with you two?"
"I don't have the resolve to do this yet." Ichigo admitted "I'm not such a fine human being that I can promise to risk my life for a stranger. However, I'm not a total slime who'd watch someone get hurt before my eyes." he held out his hand "I'll help you do the work of a Soul Reaper."
Rukia accepted the hand, then turned to Kenshiro "What about you?"
Kenshiro sighed "I'm not gonna just go halfway across Japan to purify one soul if it means leaving Kagome to fend for herself. But like Ichigo, I'm more than willing to help someone right in front of me who needs it." he held out his hand "I'll do it, I know a little bit about Soul Reapers so I'm sure that'll come in handy."
Rukia accepted both hands "Thanks, I'm counting on both of you."
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A couple of nights later, Chad got a supposedly cursed parakeet from a friend of his, and immediately had a metal beam fall on him thanks to an unknown force.
And by unknown, that obviously means that it was a Hollow.
It turned out that the bird was able to talk and introduced himself as Yuichi Shibata.
And Chad was interested in it.
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"Geez, I can't believe my injuries healed in less than a day." Ichigo muttered.
Rukia smirked "See? I was the best in my Kido class."
"So what? Soul Reapers go to school?"
"Not exactly, it's more like an academy or a training center." explained Kenshiro
"But one thing you two." Rukia cut in, holding up a juice carton "How do you drink this?"
Ichigo pointed to a small plastic hole on the top "You see this? You poke the straw through it and drink it, it's that simple."
"You three are together again? You guys are pretty close to Rukia, aren't you?"
Ichigo glared at the one who said that "Mizuiro… Dumbass, does it look like we're friends with her?"
Mizuiro blinked "Am I wrong? Oh well, if you say so. But Ichigo, you should be more aware of what people will think."
"If I cared what people thought, I wouldn't be the man I am today." Kenshiro pointed out "And besides, if Ichigo actually gave a f*ck, he'd dye his hair black."
Mizuiro then noticed Rukia "Hi, Kuchiki-san."
Rukia smiled brightly "Hello, uh… Kojima-kun!"
"Right, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Mizuiro Kojima, age 15. I like…"
"Picking up girls." Ichigo cut in dryly "He looks like a dork, but he's a real flirt. Watch out for him."
"Stop it, you'll ruin my reputation! Besides, I'm only interested in older women."
"That's why she has to be careful."
"Huh?"
"Never mind."
That was when Keigo came onto the scene "That's the beautiful new transfer, Kuchiki-san! What are you doing here?!"
"Ichigo lured her here." Mizuiro blurted out, starting this whole thing with them.
That is, until Chad made himself known "Yo."
Ichigo noticed the bandages "Are you injured?"
"What happened?" asked Kenshiro.
"A steel beam fell on my head yesterday." explained Chad "As for my hand, I had a collision with a motorcycle, and the rider got hurt bad, so I just carried him to the hospital."
"Geez, what's your body made of?" Ichigo muttered, then noticed the bird "What's with the bird?"
"Hello, my name is Yuichi Shibata." said the bird, shocking Kenshiro, Ichigo and Rukia.
"Chad, where'd you get the bird?" asked Ichigo.
"Yesterday, someone gave it to me." Chad said after a pause, ignoring Keigo's accusations about being lazy and cutting his explanation short as he fed Yuichi.
"So what do you guys think?" asked Kenshiro.
"There's definitely something in that bird, but it's not evil." Rukia told them "It's probably a lonely spirit, but we can't leave it alone. We should perform a Konso tonight."
"It was during 8th grade." Ichigo said suddenly "That was when I first met Chad. Back then, my hair color got people's attention and got me into fights. It was when I got into this little scrape. They probably would've ended up killing me if Chad hadn't shown up, but he didn't even fight back and took all of their attacks. Chad never fights back, no matter how much people goad him."
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When Ichigo and Kenshiro came into the clinic that night, Isshin immediately stiffed them, telling them to stay out of the way.
That is, until Chad came in with the parakeet and serious injuries on his back, despite claiming that he was fine.
He collapsed almost immediately as he tried to leave.
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"Did you feel it?" asked Ichigo.
Rukia nodded "Of course, I felt it even in here. I didn't sense anything from the parakeet, but his injury smelled of Hollow."
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What they didn't know what that Karin felt it too.
She hadn't realized what it meant, but her spiritual power was growing.
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Next morning, Ichigo found that Karin wasn't feeling well, which was unusual for him, and that Chad had disappeared from his room.
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Ichigo met up with Kenshiro and Rukia, and they started searching for him.
"Well, any clues about where he went?" asked Rukia.
Kenshiro shook his head "No luck on our end, what about you?"
"No luck either. There's no news from the Soul Society about a Hollow, and I can't find anything on the radar either. Usually, Hollows hide themselves between this world and the Soul Society, except when they commit foul deeds." she then showed them her usual bad drawings "Even if Hollows are after Chad, we won't be able to get to the location unless they show themselves in this world. Got it?"
"You expect us to understand with drawings like that?" asked Ichigo, earning a drawing pad to the gut "A Hollow is targeting Chad, it'll be too late if we wait until he's attacked. Wait, what about that parakeet Chad had? We just have to follow the soul that possessed it." he stood still for a moment, trying to sense it.
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Chad was hiding with Yuichi in a construction site, fully aware that he was in danger but still refusing to abandon the bird.
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Ichigo finally managed to locate the spirit ribbon of the bird "Found him, this way!" and he took off running.
Rukia was stunned, to say the least 'Those were Spirit Ribbons, visible rays of spiritual energy. Only high-level Soul Reapers are able to see them. Have both of them really progressed that much in such a short amount of time?'
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Chad kept hiding with Yuichi, despite the parakeet saying that he didn't have to stay with him.
That is, until the Hollow, known as Shrieker, attempted to pounce on Chad, who ran like hell with Yuichi, despite not being able to see it.
Getting over his surprise when he saw Ichigo and the others, Chad then took off in the opposite direction, much to Ichigo's ire "That idiot, why is he running?! It's dangerous alone!"
"Ichi-nii!"
Ichigo looked and found Karin, barely standing "Karin! What're you doing? You're still so weak!" then she fell to her knees "Karin!"
"Ichigo take her home, we'll go and save Chad." Rukia instructed "If you leave her there and go, you'll be distracted when you fight the Hollow."
Kenshiro smirked "Besides Ichi, every other!" and he took off running, with Rukia following him.
Ichigo took Karin into his arms and took off running "Are you alright Karin? Hang on, this isn't like you!"
"Ichi-nii…" Karin whispered "I… saw it… Last night… the memories of the spirit that possessed the parakeet, I think it's because I was closest in age. The strongest memory that remains in that child's mind, it came flowing into me. That child… his mother was killed right before his very eyes! Please Ichi-nii, please save that child!"
Ichigo ran even faster "Yeah, you can count on it!" then he tapped into his mental connection with Kenshiro, which he established before he left Tokyo after Naraku's death "You hear that Kenshiro?"
"Every word of it Ichigo, you can count on me. Rukia overtook me but I'll catch up soon enough, don't worry."
"Got it, thanks."
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Rukia had sprinted ahead of Kenshiro, but couldn't catch up with Chad 'Dammit, I can't overtake them! If I weren't in this gigai, it'd be easy! Why is is that the physical powers of a gigai are the same as for an average human being?! These dolts at the technology development bureau! No… I'm starting to run out of breath!'
"What a nice smell!" a voice taunted as a Shrieker rose from the ground "You smell delicious! Let me devour that soul of yours!"
Rukia backflipped away, avoiding his striky.
"You won't just die in one shot, and you can see me? Just who are you?"
Then Rukia kneed him in the jaw and landed on top of his head "The one who reigns! Mask of flesh, all creation, flap of wings, the one who carries the title of human! In the name of truth and temperance, did your claws into the wall of sinless dreams! Destruction Spell 33: Pale Fire Crash!" and she unleashed a small blast of spiritual energy on Shrieker 'Good, at least this much of my powers are back.' then she saw that it didn't effect him.
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Chad heard the clash from a fair distance away "What was that noise?"
"She's being attacked." Yuichi informed him "The lady who was after us earlier is being attacked by the one who is after us!"
Chad quickly put the cage down "Stay here."
"What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to save her!"
"No, you can't! It's too dangerous!"
Misunderstanding what he meant, Chad put him on top of a wall.
"No, I don't mean I'm in danger of being hit by a car if you leave me in the road!" Yuichi corrected, but he went ignored as Chad ran off.
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Shrieker chuckled "I know that trick, it's a Soul Reaper spell, isn't it? But yours is so weak, I felt nothing."
Rukia quickly leapt away from him 'Dammit! As I thought, my Kido hasn't recovered enough to use a spell of that level!'
"I get it, you're a Soul Reaper. No wonder you smell so yummy. I've devoured two Soul Reapers who tried to help that kid pass over, they were delicious!"
"By kid, do you mean the spirit inside that parakeet?"
"Yes."
"It seems you keep chasing after that soul, why is that?"
"Well if you'll let me eat you without resisting, I'll tell you." he then proceeded to pin Rukia against a wall "Are you really a Soul Reaper? Why don't you take off that human form?"
Then a fist, i.e. Chad, smashed into him "Oh… did I… get him?"
Rukia was completely gobsmacked 'He hit a Hollow? Can he see spirits?' her response was Chad swinging his fists randomly 'No… maybe not…'
Shrieker chuckled "What's this, he just happened to hit me? I thought he could see me-" he was cut off by Chad's fist slamming into his face "There, I got him."
Rukia was even more shocked now 'Impossible… He shouldn't be seeing the Hollow, much less hearing his voice. He's calmly facing down an enemy he cannot even sense… Doesn't he have any fear?'
Shrieker took to the air "Bet you can't touch me up here, what're you going to do you good for nothing Soul Reaper?"
Rukia looked at Chad "Don't just stand there! Get away, he's up in the air!"
Chad's visible eye widened slightly "Transfer student, you can see ghosts?"
"Never mind about that! In any case, at that distance…"
"Where is he?" asked Chad "He's flying isn't he, in which direction?"
"What good would knowing that do?"
"I'd do this…" Chad then proceeded to rip a telephone pole out of the ground and slam it into Shrieker and slam him downward.
"Now give up, someone's on his way to finish you off." Rukia warned.
Shrieker chuckled "No wonder you Soul Reapers, the whole bunch of you, are always getting beaten by us!" then he summoned several bug-like creatures that pinned Chad and Rukia to the ground "Looks like the shoe's on the other foot, you Soul Reapers take us too lightly and that's why you end up like this. Now, who shall I start eating? I think I'll save the guy for last."
Then Chad suddenly broke free from brute force and punched Shrieker, sending him back, but then started punching air. (A:N/ Keep in mind that Chad still can't see him.)
"This way Chad, kick the air above me!" Rukia shouted.
Chad did so, freeing her.
The bugs then scattered as Shrieker retreated higher.
That was when Rukia had an idea.
Chad wasn't exactly keen about launching her into the air "Transfer student, will this really work?"
Rukia nodded "We'll utilize your strength with my brains."
"What can I say… This doesn't seem smart at all."
"I don't have to take that from you! Let's go, in the direction of the tiger!"
"Which way is the tiger?"
"Left! You fool, that's too high! Okay, here we go!"
Shrieker grinned "If I'm this far up in the air, no electric pole will reach me!"
"Fire!" and Rukia was catapulted into the air, but fell into Shrieker's trap, being caught by one of his bugs and caught by Chad as she hit the ground.
It turned out that the bug could divide into multiple leeches that would explode from Shrieker vibrating his tongue, wounding Rukia. Seeing her in pain, Chad stood and prepared to fight.
Shrieker chuckled "You wanna take me on, you lummox? But you…" he revealed Yuichi sitting next to him.
"I'm sorry Mister, he caught me…" Yuichi muttered.
Shrieker grinned "Looks like you understand now big boy, now it's time for us to play Soul Reaper. Now run, let me enjoy hunting you down!"
Despite her wounds, Rukia stood "Don't move from here Chad, he plans to blow up that birdcage if you take even a step."
"Transfer student, what about you?" asked Chad.
"You needn't worry about me, I gave my word not to foul up." and she started running away, with the leeches and Shrieker following.
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Rukia continued dodging the exploding leeches, but was eventually covered and wounded.
Despite being injured, outclassed and outnumbered, she continued running until she reached a river.
"I haven't given up." she replied to Shrieker's taunts "I have no need to run anymore. You said that I could attack you, didn't you? In that case, I will take you at your word."
That was when Kenshiro dropped in on his head "Sorry, I had something to check on."
"Damn you…" Shrieker snarled "How long do you intend to sit on my head?!"
Kenshiro jumped off "Kenshiro Kamikaze, age 16, currently Dragon Reaper in training. If you want someone to chase, I'm your guy."
(A:N/ Okay, so I'm making Ichigo and everyone else a year older in this fic so Kenshiro and Ichigo can be the same age)
Shrieker blinked "Dragon Reaper in training?" then he laughed "Damn! If that's so, I should've gone after you from the start!" and he had his creatures unleash several leeches, all of which Kenshiro slashed away with ease as he entered his Dragon Reaper form and slash Shrieker, wounding him lightly.
Shrieker chuckled "You look the tastiest."
Kenshiro got into a battle stance "I see, so you used those bombs to pin Chad down so you could enjoy attacking a girl? You filthy wretch, I'm doing the world a favor by getting rid of the likes of you."
Shrieker chuckled "But now you're gonna be eater by that filthy wretch."
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By that point, Chad showed up with Yuichi and saw Kenshiro's body on the ground.
"Perfect timing Chad, go and hide Kenshiro and the parakeet somewhere safe." Rukia ordered him "Don't worry, how's now in the middle of a battle."
Chad couldn't have been more confused.
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Kenshiro continued slashing through the exploding leeches.
Shrieker chuckled "Good move, but remember, the leeches that flowed out of their bodies are also bombs!"
Kenshiro smirked as he jumped upwards, out of the blast range "I know fully well about your abilities, and I know how to evade them." and he slashed at Shrieker's mask "But before I cut you down, there's something I want to ask you. Are you the one who killed the parents of the boy inside the parakeet?"
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Rukia was stunned by what she heard "What?"
"He said it's all my fault." Yuichi told them sadly "Because of me, the man and the girl got hurt. It's all because I wanted to bring my mom back to life. I'm sorry…"
"Wait." said Rukia "Did someone tell you that he would bring your mother back to life? Did someone tell you there was a way to do that?"
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Shrieker grinned maliciously "That's right, I'm the one who killed that kid's mother while I was still alive. At the time, I was a serial killer. It was all over TV, I was famous. That kid's mother was my last victim. It was so much fun, she ran as hard as she could. She barely had any breath left, but she still tried to protect her kid. It was such a thrill, but that's where it went wrong. I chased her out onto her veranda, but that kid grabbed my shoe laces. Who would've thought I'd get killed by a slip up like that? I decided to pay that kid back, I put his soul into the parakeet and told him if he could run around in that form for three months, I'd bring his mother back to life."
"Bring her back to life?"
"Fool! Of course I couldn't do that, bring a dead person back to life!"
"I know a guy who can."
"Well I'm not him! Anyway, that kid believed me and he ran as hard as he could. What's fun about this penalty game is that I could kill off any and everyone who tried to protect the kid. And each time, the kid would whine and beg to quit. He didn't like it, he said. That's when I used my clincher… "Your mother is waiting for you to save her!" Hearing that, he would always regain his will!" he could see Kenshiro shaking with rage "What're you sympathizing with him for?!"
In a rage, Kenshiro caught one of his leeches and shoved it through his mask "You can have this back." it didn't go off "What, you're not gonna set it off? Come on, click your tongue already. If you don't, then I'll do it for you!" and he ripped off Shrieker's tongue "Burn in Hell!" and he slashed at Shrieker's mask once more, resulting in two large gates appearing. Kenshiro immediately recognized it 'The Gates of Hell… For those who committed unforgivable sins before their death, they go to Hell instead of the Soul Society, seeing how a Zanpakuto can only wash away sins after death.'
The gates opened and Shrieker was bound and dragged inside, before the gates shut again and disappeared.
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Kenshiro later met up with Rukia and Chad "Well Rukia, anything?"
Rukia shook her head "It's unfortunate, but his chain of fate has been severed; there's no sign of it. There's no way I can return him to his body." she saw him looking sad and smiled "Don't worry, Soul Society isn't a scary place!"
Kenshiro nodded "That's right, you'll be happy there. I've only seen it two or three times, but I know you'll be happy there. You'll never get hungry, your body will feel light, and you'll probably find it a better place than this. And besides, if you go over, you'll be able to see your mom. Eventually.'
Yuichi lit up at that.
"You can't bring her back to life, but now you can at least go to her."
Then Yuichi looked at Chad "Mister, thank you for everything. You ran around with me in your arms, so I didn't get hurt at all."
Chad nodded "You're safe."
Then Yuichi exited the body of the parakeet "Well I'll be going then, thank you for everything."
Chad smiled "Yuichi. When I die and pass over, would it be okay if I carried you and ran around again?"
Yuichi blinked, then grinned "Sure!"
Kenshiro then proceeded to perform Konso while Rukia erased Chad's memory.
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Ichigo made some coffee and handed Kenshiro a mug "That's one hell of a story."
"To be honest, that wasn't my first time I saw the Gates of Hell." Kenshiro told him quietly "I've seen it once before, during my time in the Feudal Era. One of the mini-vacations to this era actually."
"Really?"
"Yeah. It was back during the whole Shikon Jewel thing, after we met Shippo-kun but before we met Miroku and Sango-san. There was the spirit of this little girl, the sister of one of Sota's friends."
"You mean Kagome's little brother?"
"Yeah. Apparently she resented the kid, and this nearly led her to being dragged through the gates into Hell by a demon called the Soul Piper. I pulled her out, and I think she went to the Soul Society. I never told Kagome about this, and ever only told Arashi and Raidou about half of the details. I never really understood until I told my two mentors told me."
"Who were your two mentors? You never told me."
"I will when the time is right, just not now."
Knowing he wouldn't get anywhere by interrogating, Ichigo decided to drop it.
