Alright! I'm back! Well, thank you once again for the heart warming reviews that I read all the time (especially in trains and giggle, making everyone look at me and wonder if I'm okay in the head.) No, really thank you so much!
Let's answer a question now !
Q. This story is interesting and I agree with the others,your writing is very good.
Awwwee Ukitake is just so sweet and supportive to Rukia. Just curious on why Byakuya is cold towards Rukia.
I'm so looking forward to read the next chapter :)
My reply : First of all, thank you so much! *Jumps up and down*
Let me narrate an incident that actually happened.
Me: *stares at all the bleach characters* Hmm, who do I use as the father figure?
Ukitake: *Peeking out of the corner with a grin*
Me: Yamamoto? No, that doesn't seem right at all! I want him to dote on her.
Ukitake: *Comes closer, waving his hands in my face.*
Me: Uhh, I could even use Hitsugaya, but he's too young.
Ukitake: *Punches me in the face* IT'S ME DAMMIT! *Turns to Rukia* Let's go Kuchiki.
Rukia: *Looks at my injured self* What about her?
Ukitake: Never mind her. Sinners must be punished. *Pulls Rukia away.*
XD And now I'm getting to the point (sorry,sorry!)
Byakuya being cold to Rukia... spoilers! I can't answer that yet, the story will do that for you (hopefully), so sorry? However I can tell you this much, that the reason Rukia 'thinks' Byakuya hates her is far different from what it actually is.
Thank you for commenting! Y'all can ask me anything you're confused about, since it's my job as a writer to clear it out!
Thank you for reading and let's get on with it!
(Prior Warning : This chapter is really long.)
Chapter 3 : A lot of firsts
That's one hell of a house, Ichigo thought to himself.
After four months of a tiresome journey, he had somehow reached his destination. Ichigo looked around him in awe. The village he hailed from wasn't even half as big as this one house seemed to be.
He walked on the seemingly endless carpet of grass, unable to see any humans for as far as his eyes could reach.
And then he heard one.
"Okay, now put your leg up like this!"
Ichigo raised an eyebrow. He followed the voice of the person- man,to be more specific- who seemed to be giving instructions of some sort.
"Now, your hands!"
In front of him was a person, a good 6 feet tall with salmon - or to be brutally honest - hot pink coloured hair. The boy, who had never really liked his striking orange hair himself, now suddenly felt very proud.
At least he was a carrot top, and not a rose bush.
But what made Ichigo stare at the man wasn't the colour of his hair, nor was it his strangely hoarse voice, it was his...well, position.
He stood tall, his arms parallel to his head, joined above it and his right leg raised slightly off the ground. He maintained his balance flawlessly, distributing his body weight on the large surface of his feet. All of this in front of a dozen gaping children.
The man turned to look at Ichigo, having sensed someone watching him.
"What are you staring at?" He asked, rather rudely for someone in a noble house, not that the boy cared. He was more comfortable that way anyway.
"Nothing really," Ichigo said, scratching the back of his neck. "Just wondering if you know how ridiculous you look right now."
The boy could see the change of colour in the man's face, from his natural wheatish complexion to an alarming shade of red. "What did you say?!" He yelled out, the pitch of his voice spiking high enough to tear the boy's eardrums.
Somehow, in their short meeting, this person reminded Ichigo of his father - which by the way- was absolutely not a compliment.
"Look at the kid's faces... That should tell you better." The man looked down quizzically at the bunch of kids who were all desperately trying to hold back their giggles.
And failing at it.
And he had wasted his time trying to help them too!
The children scurried away, having been found out, leaving an annoyed senior swearing revenge.
But right now, he had something more important to deal with.
"So," he said, turning to take a good look at the strange guest in the house, his tone more serious.
"What are you doing here?"
It was rather rare for him to see an outsider waltzing into the house of nobility.
"Work." Ichigo answered in monotone. He needed to conserve energy.
"Well," the man said, massaging his aching temples with one hand. He had always prefered to avoid contact with people if not necessary, since to him, striking a conversation was too much of a pain.
"Next time, come through the main gate." Ichigo tilted his head to one side in evident confusion.
"This isn't the main gate?"
The man stayed silent for a whole minute, staring at the boy. He then slowly turned his head in the direction of the massive structure behind him and Ichigo followed his gaze. Not one opening, not one door was in sight.
They were at the back of the house.
He turned to look at Ichigo, who rubbed the back of his head in embarrassement.
"Does it look like it?"
He let out an awkward laugh.
Sighing audibly, the man turned around in the direction of the house.
"Follow me." He said, before proceeding to walk on ahead with the stranger following shortly.
Ichigo stood at the front of the house, gaping at the large mansion, towering over him as if attempting to intimidate him. The cream coloured structure shined as the sun beat down on it, causing him to have to squint. Uniquely twisted fencing kept the house enclosed, neatly trimmed hedges surrounded the house. The roof was peaked, slanting down at an angle and the windows had a royal feel to it.
As he stepped past the wild grassy ground onto the soft bed of soil,he noticed a marble fountain sitting to his right side. A sculpture of a woman holding a flower was perched on top, looking up towards the sky. Water spurted from its other hand, which lay gently out in front of it, as if waiting for someone to take it in return. The water fell gently towards the crystal blue pool beneath it, causing ripples to form and wave out until they were no more.
The main axis of the house seemed to split, radiating into five different directions, wooden ledges leading to what Ichigo guessed was the main hall.
"Do you have a staring problem?" The man who still hadn't introduced himself said standing next to him, his hands folded over his chest. It was only then that Ichigo noticed that he was carrying a sword on the waist belt of what seemed to be training attire.
And the only people who were allowed to carry weapons were...
"Are you a samurai?"
Scrunching up his nose in annoyance, the man looked at Ichigo.
He'd only just realised? "Damn right I am!" He answered, tapping the holder of the sword.
Opening his bag, Ichigo took out the scroll he'd been handed out by the Daimyo. Maybe this man would know something about it.
His eyes widened at the sight of the scroll. He snatched it from Ichigo's hands and ran his fingers over the strange seal on it.
"This is..."
"That fat old man gave it to me before sending me on this cursed journey. " Ichigo said, shaking his head in annoyance.
That idiotic haggard.
Ichigo turned to look at the man in front of him, who only kept staring at the scroll.
"Oi!" He said, waving his hand in front of the Samurai's face. He snapped out of his thoughts, seemingly still in a daze. Grabbing the younger boy's hand, he climbed up the ledge and walked straight ahead, which just went to show how well he knew this house.
After quite a while of dragging a displeased Ichigo, he finally stopped in front of a room .
"Wait here." He said walking into the room and shutting the door behind him without even excusing himself, leaving a very perplexed guest alone.
"Commander Ukitake!"
The man looked up from the scrolls he was reading at the perturbed man.
"What is it, Lieutenant Abarai ? Why the abnormal rush?" He said, quietly rolling the scrolls and placing them into a cylindrical container.
The ex commander's calm temperament never failed to surprise the captain. Looking at his usually sweet attitude, nobody would believe how strong a warrior he really was.
To be honest, nobody would believe he could even swat a fly.
"Look at this!" He said, thrusting the scroll in his senior's face.
After a second of analyzing what it was he looked up at his junior. "Help has arrived?" He asked, walking out of the room.
Ichigo who had been waiting there for a good 5 minutes now turned to face the commander.
"Oh, is this him?"
The boy glared at the lieutenant, standing behind this other person and simply looked away.
"Yes."
Ukitake went ahead and shook hands with a flabbergasted Ichigo, who just remained silent.
"I'm Jushiro Ukitake, an ex commander and current teacher to newbie samurais!" The excited beautiful person in front of him smiled from ear to ear .
Ichigo took in the older man's form, his wide shoulders seemed heavy with burdens of many lives and the scar on his left hand only further proved it.
"Which rank of a samurai are you?"
The question hung in the air as Ichigo stupidly stared at the two men.
"Samurais have ranks?" He asked, looking in between the two men.
There was a whole minute of silence.
Ukitake blinked and Captain Abarai scoffed.
"I see you haven't been told anything about...anything." the older man said breaking the awkward silence.
Ichigo pointed at the scroll in the captain's hand.
"All I was given was this scroll. I wasn't told anything apart from the fact that I had to become a samurai."
Ukitake took the scroll in his hand.
"Oh dear...Yes, that would explain the lack of weapons." Ichigo shrugged, pulling the bag on his shoulders higher up. It wasn't as if he enjoyed being pushed around.
Ukitake unrolled the scroll to have a look at what it said. When he did read it however, it became almost impossible to mask his shock.
The captain, who was watching him in silence, now peeked at what was written. And boy was he surprised!
Both of them looked up at Ichigo at the same time astounded at what it said.
"How can this be?" The captain exclaimed, the older long haired man in front of him just looked half frozen. Ichigo snatched the scroll from his hands and looked down at it. There, in clear words was written:
Kurosaki Ichigo
Rank: Major General
Ichigo blinked in disbelief. Huh?
Wasn't that a very high rank?
"How can someone that knows nothing about Samurais be given such a high rank?"
Ukitake looked up at fuming captain, clearly not understanding very much himself.
"There's only one way to figure out..."
Apparently realising what the ex commander meant, the captain spun on his heels motioning Ichigo to follow him wherever it was he was headed to.
Great! More walking, Ichigo thought to himself.
Just when he thought he could rest.
After skipping about four rooms, he stopped in front of one and pulled the door open.
It was a tiny 10 by 10 cubicle which seemed to be really dusty, judging by the smell in the air and not to mention, really really dark.
That was ofcourse, until the lanterns were lit.
Reflecting the light from all the corners and against every wall of the room were different shapes and sizes of weapons.
"Oi,you damned shopkeeper! Maintain this place for God's sake!" Screamed the displeased captain. Every time he came here,he swore, this room was a mess.
Ichigo turned his head in all directions, looking around for anything slightly...well, human in the room.
The only thing he could hear was...silence.
But that didn't last long, when the ground under Ichigo's feet began to wobble, as if something was trapped and trying to escape.
Ichigo moved two steps back, eyeing the floor cautiously.
And just as he thought, something did come out. Except it wasn't even half of what the boy had expected.
From underneath the floorboard a strange structure could be seen, jade in colour with stripes.
And then a hand followed.
"If it isn't Lietenant Abarai!" Emerging from what looked like a basement now completely coming into view was a man, the jade structure being the hat that sat on top of his head, strands of dirty blonde hair peeking from under it.
He looked at Ichigo,raising his eyebrow ever so slightly. "How rare of you to bring a guest!" His cheery voice echoed in the soulless room.
Urahara Keisuke, one of the best warriors of his time, he now lived a peaceful retired life satisfied with his tiny job as a shopkeeper. He was a shrewd man, no matter how nice he looked and most of the people knew better than to go to him for just browsing items. You'd definitely end up spending your coins on a pile of garbage that you never would really use.
But then again, he was good businessman and most of the times, he got the work done.
The lietenant looked over his shoulders at the boy who's eyes moved from one article to another, like a butterfly deciding which flower to sit on.
"Take your pick." He said, moving aside to let the boy have a better view of everything that the shop had to offer. Ichigo walked to the centre of the room in a daze, skimming over the variety of ammunition. At his silence, the commander continued to explain.
"Samurai's of higher rank are allowed to carry two swords,one long and one short,so hurry up and -"
"I don't need two." Ichigo replied, who had been staring only at a particular corner of the room for a while now.
Walking over to the exact place, he stopped at a foots distance from his choice.
Ichigo ran his fingers over the smooth surface of the blade that was probsbly made from a metal that he hadn't even heard of before. It was giant,matching his height. But what made it stand out to the boy out of all the other swords in the room was it's unique shape. It resembled a kitchen knife, with a very sharp tip and a very wide curved body. It almost seemed to him as if it was calling to him,as if it asked to be held.
And Ichigo obliged.
Grabbing it by it's handle, since it strangely had no hilt, he hoisted it off the ground and in front of him. It was on the heavier side, the grip a little weak.
But it suited ichigo just right.
"I'll have this one." He said, turning to look at the two men in the room.
The lieutenant snickered. Anyone who knew even the basics of sword fighting knew better than to pick up a fancy looking sword. The points taken into consideration while choosing should be height, weight and girth, all of which this strange sword seemed to defy.
While the captain was basking in his superiority, Urahara watched the boy with a keen eye. For anyone to choose a sword without a hilt was rare, since it could not facilitate easy wielding in most situations. And choosing only one sword in itself was a huge risk, given in a situation where you're surrounded, you can barely protect yourself. He had only ever had one other customer ever choose that alternative.
Interesting, he thought as he moved aside, watching to boy leave through the door.
Very very interesting.
After exiting the storehouse, since calling it anything better did not make sense to him, Ichigo met the ex commander, who gazed at the sword.
"That is quite the choice of weaponry." He said, catching a glimpse of the large sword that covered his back and was now covered in a roll of cloth.
"There's no need to waste time in pleasantries, commander," the lieutenant said, stepping down from the wooden floor onto the soil below.
"Let's get started."
Ichigo looked from the smirking lieutenant to the worried ex commander.
"Exactly what are we doing?"
The lieutenant wielded his sword.
"You're going to fight me, ofcourse."
Ichigo blinked in confusion.
Fight him?
"What? Why?! Why should I have to fight you?!" Ichigo said, pointing to the man in front of him.
"Besides, you're a damn lieutenant!"
"Yes,I am," the man replied, spinning the weapon in his hand with the hilt.
"And you're supposedly a major general."
Ichigo opened his mouth to say something and realising that he had no say to defy this person, he shut it.
He stepped down to where the man was standing and with the handle of his sword, he pulled it to his front.
Sweat covered his brow, his heart beating in nervous energy. What if it was just a slip up by the Daimyo?
If he died here, Ichigo swore he'd haunt that bastard all his life, which would be over.
But well, that wasn't really important.
"Take your stance." The lieutenant said, watching Ichigo struggle to even retain his balance.
Full of openings, he thought, analysing his opponent with professionalism.
For someone like him, who had been working so hard to become a samurai all his life, meeting someone who couldn't care less about being one was an insult.
And he didn't like it one bit.
"Come." He raised his sword in front of him, to defend himself from any attacks.
"You come," Ichigo said, keeping his cool even as his legs trembled.
"You're the one who challenged me."
And that's all it took to send the samurai into a fit of insane rage.
He attacked the boy with unmatchable speed, as if ready to send him flying across the globe.
But Ichigo wasn't one to lose. He parried the attack successfully, and with all the force his muscles could build up, he pushed the man off of him, swinging his sword as hard as he could.
Before he could lose his footing, the lieutenant jumped back, landing a good metre away from the sweating boy.
Ichigo breathed heavily, his muscles already tensing up. Every part of his body shuddered, feeling the force of the attack.
Good reflexes, the lieutenant concluded, but terrible control on his sword.
He charged once again, this time hitting the boy in the places he could not defend. The sword he held was only good at long range, while at a short distance, he was sure to lose.
The lieutenant overpowered Ichigo, who stumbled a few steps back, the spot where he had been hit now spilling blood. It stung, like a million needles had just pierced his belly. Simultaneously.
The lieutenant smirked. There was no way this boy could even lay a finger on him.
Injure him a little bit, and send him back, that's what he was determined to do.
Ichigo's vision began to blur, as he staggered, losing his ability to stand straight.
It was painful, really really painful.
But then why was he so excited?
He felt an adrenaline rush, every cell in his body vibrating, as though they had lived for the first time.
He was enjoying this.
Without him realising it, his face broke out into a smile.
The lieutenant's breath hitched and a chill ran down his spine. What was that expression?
He charged at Ichigo, tearing up more and more of his skin, until he could barely see any part of his body that wasn't painted red.
Yet, he didn't budge.
The lieutenant had never seen a newbie with such determination. He had always considered himself to be the only one who worked his hardest to win.
Looking at the boy, who was bleeding profusely, he was reminded of himself, who lost again and again to the one person he kept challenging.
"Analysing your opponent is the key to winning," he said, looking away from the boy for a second.
"If you don't understand your opponents weakness, you'll never be able to beat him."
He wouldn't give his opponent time to think, ofcourse, so he charged to the boy who just stood there, unmoving.
It was the end, the lieutenant told himself. He'd pierce the sword a little away from the centre of Ichigo's body, just to throw out the fact that he'd die if he would not have gone easy on him.
However, he failed to notice the devilish smile that now sat on the boy's face.
Thrusting the sword with all his might, the lieutenant pushed it into his opponent, putting an end to his trials.
However, instead of falling down once the sword had ripped his abdomen apart, he held it inside of him with his hand, now looking into the lieutenant's eyes.
The man froze. Those eyes did not speak fear as the lieutenant had expected. It said, no, it screamed confidence.
His grip on the blade tightening, Ichigo held the sword in place, piercing his body, it's tip still inside. The lieutenant who by now seemed to be loosing his calm, struggled to pull the sword away in vain.
"You're wrong, lieutenant," Ichigo said, an insane smile accompanying his strong words.
"I don't need to analyse you at all."
The lieutenant never thought he'd be in such a fix. To be pushed around like so by a newbie?
His ego would never allow it. He'd have to use it. With one hand holding his long sword, he put his hand on the other, ready to pull it out.
Which didn't happen .
Ichigo used his the hand that had held his sword that now fell to the floor to hold the lieutenant's hand on his short sword down , restricting him from pulling it out.
"I just need to find your blindspot."
Eyes wide in fear, he pulled the sword out, pushing on the ground below him and jumping two feet away from the seemingly insane man.
What was happening?
There was no way, he thought, every nerve of his body awake in alarm. There was no way this boy could have sensed his shortcoming.
Ichigo flexed his neck muscles, blood trickling down his face. Bending down, he picked up his fallen sword.
"You assumed that I wouldn't be able to carry this heavy a sword with one hand, so in close range, my defense would be weak. But you couldn't be more wrong." He couldn't muster any words to counter his thinking.
He was right, completely right.
Ichigo tossed his sword from one hand to the other with ease. "I don't need two hands to hold this."
The lieutenant's hands shook in surprise. How?
"Your own backup is your second sword, that you wouldn't take out unless you were in a dire situation. So I figured, if I surprise you a little bit, you'd have no choice but to reach for it. "
Everything had worked out the say this boy had planned. Even though he was more cut up, more bruised, how was he winning?
"Now then," he said, taking his sword and raising his arm away from his body, in a position ready to charge. His eyes turned dark, his smile morphing into one of undefeatable seriousness.
"Let me give you everything I have."
The lieutenant had but a second to act, somehow managing to block the force of the large sword in between the two of his own. The force pushed the lieutenant back, who looked plain horrified.
Without prior warning of any sort, Ichigo pushed the man with a clean strike of his sword and charged once again.
The lieutenant, who still hadn't had time to regain his balance and had lost his other sword that fell a few feet away, raised the remaining one in a weak attempt to defend himself with one hand.
Ichigo was ready, putting all the strength left in him into this one attack.
The senior shut his eyes in despair. He would rather die by this one blade than live in the shame of being beaten by some damn villager.
But nothing happened.
He cracked open his eyes, only to see the former commander standing before him, one hand down by his side and the other, stopping Ichigo's blade.
He had stopped the force of a blade with his bare hand.
Ichigo stumbled back, the sword falling out of his hand and himself falling on the floor. He had used up way too much energy.
"That was more than enough." Ukitake said, looking at both the incapacitated men before him.
"That was too much force, lieutenant," he said sternly to his junior who simply looked at the ground.
"As for you," he said, now turning to Ichigo who wiped the blood dripping down the side of his face.
"You're not here to kill your allies."
He was right though, Ichigo thought to himself. He had gone too far.
"Abarai Renji." Ichigo looked up at the lieutenant, who got up on his feet and offered a hand to Ichigo, who had been a worthy opponent.
Ichigo accepted it and the man pulled him up. He shook his hand, smiling at the man before him who had fought brilliantly.
"Kurosaki Ichigo."
Ukitake looked in between the two men and sighed.
So it was true, Ichigo thought to himself.
Men really did talk fists.
Well, in their case, swords.
After fixing up his messed up state and soaking in a quick bath, Ichigo was headed somewhere that the two men would be taking him.
"This house, as you must have heard is one of the top in everything, from army to economy." Ukitake started explaining to Ichigo who was analysing the wierd robe he was given. Apparently this was what Samurais wore.
"The main reason we're so perfect is because the head of our family manages everything efficiently. " He said proudly." Even every grain of rice is chosen meticulously."
Ichigo nodded in awe. How much ever he had seen of the house, it really was pretty damn perfect. But he couldn't be one to judge ofcourse, since he hadn't really seen any other houses himself.
"So, where is this 'meticulous and perfect' head of the family?" He asked, adjusting the part of the cloth around his neck.
"That's exactly whom we're going to see now." Renji said, a strange ring to his voice.
He sounded...annoyed?
"Who's the new person with you, commander?" A voice came from somewhere behind them. Ichigo turned and looked around, unable to see anyone.
"Ah! Here you are! We were just heading to meet you!" Ukitake said, his normally calm voice now extremely cheery.
"Kurosaki Ichigo,"he said, resting his hand on Ichigo's shoulder.
"Meet the head of the family, the one I was telling you about!"
Ichigo looked left and right, still not understanding where this amazing personality he spoke of was at.
"Where do you think you're looking?" He heard. Ichigo looked down in front of him. There was a person standing, one eyebrow raised and an annoyed expression on their face.
"Who's this?" Ichigo asked, pointing down at him.
"What are you saying? This is the person I've been telling you about!" Ukitake said in surprise. Renji sweat dropped. He didn't blame Ichigo for not understanding, he hadn't either when he first came here.
"This is the head of the Kuchiki Clan!"
A soft breeze blew, taking away the words and replacing it with a momentary silence, while also blowing away every expectation of the brilliant head that Ichigo had.
"THIS MIDGET?!"
There you go! Im sorry for the delay, I'm currently juggling 3 other fics, quite literally like a clown. I'm sorry this was long and well, no romance. Like I had already warned, I did not just want to write a boring romance fic and so these chapters are necessary to set the mood. The more you long for romance, the better it is when you get it. Ofcourse, we never got it in bleach *buries self* But don't you worry! I'm gonna give you a ton of romance! I hope you liked it and keep reading.
Don't forget to review. I love y'all!smil
