Thanks to IrishPrincess1987 for reviewing! Thanks also to IrishPrincess1987, Bepo1401 and Harukawa Ayame for favouriting and following!

Almost Lost You

Kirara hit the ground with a painful thud, breathing heavily. Her Zanpakuto clattered away, stopping by the foot of her attacker.

"Man, this isn't as fun as I thought it'd be," Ikkaku complained as he rested his unsealed Zanpakuto over his shoulder.

"Exactly why you should have let me fight her," Yumichika, who was leaning against the side of a building nearby, scoffed.

"Oh I'll fight you after, feathers, and I'm going to smash that pretty little face of yours in," Kirara warned as she pushed herself up. Blood ran down the side of her head, the blow making her woozy. Shaking her head in an attempt to clear it, she leapt at Ikkaku, who smirked. When he spun his spear and lashed out at her. Kirara disappeared, and reappeared behind him, slamming her foot into his side. Ikkaku went flying, smashing into the side of a building as Kirara landed, watching him carefully.

'I was careless. I need to slow these guys down enough to get away,' Kirara thought, frustrated at herself for being cornered by the pair. They'd caught her mid-jog, and hadn't allowed her to escape this time.

"Oh, that was way better," Ikakku laughed as he emerged, covered in scrapes and cuts. His uniform was ripped, and a trail of blood could be seen through one of the slits. "Maybe you'll give me a good fight after all," he leapt at her again, and Kirara dodged, ignoring the part of her that was wanting desperately to call on the power of her Inner Hollow. It'd give her a major advantage, but would leave them with knowledge she couldn't let them have.

Ducking under Ikkaku's attack, Kirara punched him in the gut, making him grunt, before she kicked him into the air. She reappeared behind him, her foot slamming into his back, and he smashed into the ground. Before he could recover, Kirara made a run for it, only for Yumichika to reappear in her path.

"Get out of the way," Kirara growled at him, shaking her head when her vision blurred.

"No," Yumichika refused. "You're not escaping this time," he told her. Kirara's eyes widened less than a second before she was grabbed from behind. Ikkaku hurled her into a building, and she hit the side of it with enough force to crack it. She sank to the ground, coughing up blood as she whimpered. Her ribs were definitely broken now. When she went to get up, searing pain exploded in her shoulder, and she bit back her cry.

"Just give up. You're beaten. Come with us," Ikkaku told her in a low growl.

"I get that you guys are doing this for Natsuki," Kirara said, her breathing even more uneven. Blood ran from the wound in her shoulder, mostly stoppered by the blade of Ikkaku's spear. "But you don't realise that if I go back there, they'll kill me," she told Ikkaku as he stood over her.

"Why would they kill you?" he asked, tilting his head slightly. Kirara gave a low laugh.

"Because that's what you Shinigami scumbags are all about!" she grabbed the blade and yanked it out of her shoulder, letting out a low growl in pain. Ikkaku's eyes widened in shock, and Kirara slammed her elbow into his gut. When he doubled over, she thrust it up to slam it into his face. Ikkaku grunted in pain, and Kirara then kicked him again, this time in the side to knock him out of her way.

Her vision swam even more madly as she attacked again, and Ikkaku recovered, blocking her strike. He kicked out, which she blocked with her own leg, wincing at his strength. Kirara gritted her teeth and attacked again, but before long, she was on the ground. Everything hurt, and the wound in her shoulder was burning as blood spilled down her arm and stained her tshirt.

"If you hadn't held back, you probably would have given me a better fight," Ikkaku told her as he stood over her.

"Shut...shut the hell up," Kirara snapped at him, trying to push herself up. Ikkaku just rested his spear over his shoulder, the red tail blowing in the wind.

"Best get her to Captain Hitsugaya," he called to Yumichika.

"And make sure she doesn't bleed to death. Honestly, the pair of you are so inelegant," the dark haired Shinigami scoffed, tossing his hair back. Ikkaku just rolled his eyes, but as he reached out to grab Kirara, another Reiatsu signature slammed into them like a brick wall.

"Wh-what the hell?" he growled, looking around as both he and Yumichika stumbled, taken by surprise and overwhelmed by the pressure.

"Dammit..." Kirara mumbled, trying to push herself up. Strong arms hooked underneath her, and she was hauled into the air.

"Hey!" Ikkaku spotted Shinji as he jumped away. He landed nearby, crouching as he looked to Kirara, ignoring the two Shinigami.

"Sorry...I kinda got my ass kicked," Kirara mumbled, leaning into him.

"You kinda did," Shinji agreed in a low murmur, and looked up at the two Shinigami with a dark expression. Ikkaku prepared himself for a fight, smirking at the idea.

"Don't..." Kirara gripped at his shirt. "Let's just go, okay?" she looked up at him, and he sighed.

"Okay, but only because I'd rather not let you bleed out," Shinji told her.

"I'm offended, you think I can't cope with something like this?" Kirara frowned up at him. Shinji rolled his eyes.

"Why do you always have to twist my words Yamada? It's annoying," he complained, which made her grin weakly.

"I'm annoying, remember?" she teased.

"That's true," Shinji couldn't help but smirk. "Well, I best get you back to Hachi for healing," he stood up, cradling the injured Vizard easily.

"Hey you," he finally glanced up at Ikkaku. "You gonna fight me, or what?" he asked. Shinji raised an eyebrow, taking in the bald Shinigami, who looked fairly beaten himself. Kirara had definitely not gone down without a fight.

"Squad 11, I've gathered," Kirara muttered.

"Not hard to guess," Shinji murmured back, frowning at the two. Despite his utter need to tear the man apart, he decided to heed Kirara's request. Without responding to the Shinigami's question, he turned and leapt through the air, using Shunpo to dart away before the two could try and stop him. Neither spoke as Shinji got back to the warehouse, setting her down on the sofa. As he straightened up, Kirara caught his arm and forced herself into a sitting position.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled, and he sighed. Crouching down beside her, Shinji put a hand to her face and leaned in, kissing her softly. Kirara gripped his arm tighter as he pulled her close, not caring about the blood getting on his shirt. Her hand slid up his arm as she gave in to his hold, allowing him to deepen the kiss. The two remained locked together, neither wanting to pull away, until Kirara shifted, and broke away with a hiss when she jolted her shoulder.

"The next time something like that happens," Shinji pushed her head up to look at him. "You use your Mask, or your Zanpakuto. I don't care what they do after, you do whatever it takes to get away from them," he told her firmly, leaving no room for argument. Kirara nodded slowly. "I could have lost you out there, you idiot," he muttered, and straightened up as Kirara's hand fell onto her lap. She gave a small smile back at him.

"Not a chance Hirako. Like it or not, you're stuck with me," she teased him weakly. Despite his worry, he gave a small chuckle.

"Good," he leaned down and kissed her again.

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