Ashido was, to say the least, shocked. An adjuchas hollow just defeated him, and when he was sure his life would come to an end after his many years in Hueco Mundo, his life had been spared and then he was thanked for the fight!
The hollow in question was running through the forest, slaying any being that came in his path with unwavering determination to become stronger. He finally decided to put all of his questions aside until he completed his task and fulfilled this feeling that became his sole motivation for moving forward.
Ashido sat in the same place for a couple minutes, and his train of thought was broken by the distant cries of hollows off in the distance, seemingly ceasing to exist…
"To find your true self, is to discover the meaning of life." – OSA
Chapter 3: Purpose
How long…how long has it been? He couldn't distinguish how long he had been fighting, for his new home had forever nights. However, he could distinguish how far away he was from his goal.
In the beginning, when it seemed as though he could finally reach this new power he had been working for, it evaded his grasp and was further out of reach. This power incessantly remained ahead of him and the gap between them didn't waver in the slightest, that is, until now.
He was completely elated to discover that the gap was now closing, albeit slowly, but closing between them nonetheless. From the start of his trek he was unrelenting, allowing himself no time for rest until he achieved his goal.
"Almost there…"
"995…"
"I will become stronger…"
"996…"
"My soul's desire will be fulfilled…"
"997…"
"Where others have faltered…"
"998…"
"I will succeed…"
"999…"
"For my resolve is unwavering!"
"1000" he breathed out slowly.
He calmed his body, preparing for what was to come, and patiently awaited his reward.
Then he felt it, a small churning within his very core, as if his soul itself was changing. This churning turned into a maelstrom, so powerful he was nearly forced to his hands and knees, but that was a position that went against who he was, and so he stood strong. The storm inside his body was expelled, decimating the land for miles in all directions, and as the dust settled, a new vasto lorde emerged.
He wore a white robe that covered much of his face; from what could be discerned of his face, he had slightly tan skin and strands of black hair running down his face.
He took a glance down at himself, reveling in the power he finally acquired after so long.
He quickly recognized the being within his soul, the one who had been guiding him the whole way and without hesitation he leapt into his inner world.
He saw an endless wave of skyscrapers piercing a night sky, a moon, much like the one he saw outside of his inner world, and below he could see an ocean of sand.
"Welcome again, Ichigo" spoke the being behind him.
He calmly turned around, "It is good to see you again, Zangetsu."
Zangetsu smiled at him, a smile that Ichigo was more than welcome to return.
"It appears you have been redecorating" Ichigo said nonchalantly.
Zangetsu merely shook his head smirking, "If it was I, there would have been more greenery."
"Ah yes, I forgot about that" he said before placing his palm on the building they were standing, and as he raised his hand, a massive tree sprung forth.
Zangetsu grinned widely, "Thank you, Ichigo."
Ichigo waved off his thanks, "No need to thank me."
"So I assume the merge was successful?" Ichigo inquired.
"Ah, it was. You were unable to contact me being in a less intelligent form, but I was able to communicate with you through your instincts." Zangetsu replied.
"I had a feeling that was you" Ichigo replied with a grin.
"What will you do now, Ichigo?" Zangetsu asked solemnly.
"Going back to the way things were seems unlikely, and while these past memories I have will always be a part of me, I am a new person, with a new home, and new people for me to protect" he replied.
Zangetsu knowingly smiled at him in response.
"Together we will move forward, eh Zangetsu?" he said.
"Always" the spirit replied.
That being said, Ichigo decided it was time to leave and he found himself back in the forest in the same spot since he evolved moments ago.
"There is nothing for me here in this forest, perhaps I can find those power levels from above that I sensed so long ago?" he pondered before making his way out of the forest and into the desert.
After mere moments Ichigo was in the desert, and took a full breathe of air; for the air down below was quite old because the trees prevented new air from coming in to replace the old air.
He immediately sensed all the power levels in the desert as clear as the moon in the sky, and so he headed towards the closest one.
Arriving to the power levels he had sensed, he saw someone holding a female hollow by the skull about to kill her with some energy spear.
Wasting no time, he intervened halting the attack moments before it would've killed the female hollow; the attack was so weak he wouldn't have noticed it had he not seen it beforehand.
He materialized his zanpakuto and before the hollow could even question who he was, the hollow evaporated into oblivion.
The female looked up at him in surprise.
"Who is this strange being…and where is that hollow?" she inwardly questioned.
As if reading her mind, Ichigo replied, "I am Danketsu, and the hollow that attacked you is dead."
She was still hesitant and suspicious of this new person to trust him, "Why did he save me?" she pondered.
"Do not worry, I am not here to devour you or your friends. What is your name?" he asked solemnly, his face still shrouded by his hood.
"Harribel" she replied, still wary of his actions.
Danketsu observed her appearance, she was reminiscent of a shark, had blonde hair, and water-like green eyes.
He held out his hand to help her up, "Nice to meet you."
She grabbed his hand and accepted his help as she did not have enough strength to stand on her own. After he helped her sit down on a nearby rock she asked, "What of them?"
He looked over at her friends, "They will be fine, no fatal strikes befell them" he replied.
"Why…why did you save us?" she asked him, trying to gauge his motives.
"No justification is necessary to protect others" he replied.
Harribel's eyes visibly widened in surprise.
Danketsu went over to the three hollows laying on the ground unconscious and picked two of them up.
Harribel flinched defensively, and was about to retaliate when he spoke, "I will place them in your…home."
She relaxed slightly after that statement, but was still wary of him due to her past experience.
After settling the three hollow inside, he helped Harribel up and placed her harm around his shoulder, leading her inside.
"She feels warm," he thought as her body was leaning against his for support.
Incidentally, she was thinking along the same lines.
"Thank you, Danketsu," she said.
"Ah" he replied in acknowledgement.
Danketsu leaned against the wall, and Harribel sat down as they both waited for her companions to wake up from their unconsciousness.
"What are you? Hollow?" she asked after a long silence was shared between them.
"If you pour water onto dirt and a plant is created as a result, do you still call it dirt?" he asked.
She had a bemused expression on her face, not comprehending the ambiguity.
Danketsu smiled, "I am myself."
Before their conversation could continue they heard rustling coming her friends, they were waking up.
"Ugh, what happened?" the dark skinned one asked to no one in particular.
"The last thing I remember was attacking that hollow," the blue haired woman said, before they all came to the same realization, "Harribel-sama!" they shouted in worry.
"I am fine, ladies" she spoke calmly, "this man saved us" pointing to the man leaning against the wall.
"Bastard, what're you up to?" one of them questioned suspiciously before they were abruptly cut off by Harribel, "Apache, that is enough."
"As you are all well, I will take my leave" Danketsu stated making his way towards the exit and before leaving the structure he glanced over at Harribel and said, "Get strong Harribel, I won't always be around."
Harribel sighed in relief, Danketsu seemed to have no ulterior motive as she had originally suspected.
Danketsu went out in search of more power levels.
"It seems as though I have found new friends to protect, eh Zangetsu?," he thought inwardly as he traversed across the sands of Hueco Mundo.
Chapter 3: Purpose
Author's Notes:
If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them in a review or private message.
-OSA