"Wait, wait, wait" Ichigo said holding out his left hand as his right rubbed the bridge of his nose "you've had these powers since mom was alive, people saw you use them and were scared of you, that's why you were bullied?" he asked. Karin looked at her Twin, then her brother.
"I really don't think that's the point Ichii-nii" she said "she can see Spirits, Hollows, she can fight them" his eyes narrowed, now realizingthe dangers his little sister had been exposed to all these years.
"Why didn't you tell me? Us" he asked, Karin gave a nod of agreement.
"We're family, aren't we?" Yuzu looked down at her lap ashamed,
"I didn't want you to be scared of me too" she whispered her answer.
"Yuzu" her brother said softly, her shoulders shut as she fisted her dress.
"You don't get it Ichigo" she said looking up, tears brimming in her eyes "I can kill with a single touch. Do you realize how dangerous I could be?" his eyes widened. Karin looked stunned, "it's true I can heal, I can give life, but it's the two sides of one coin" she said.
"…Hey" he began "we're not scared of you, we're not really normal in the end. We communicate with dead people" he said stressing the point, she smiled sniffing, Karin grumbled before throwing her shoe at a Spirit annoying her. He then crossed his arms, as she looked up wiping her tears.
"You know…" she began "I hated it, my Powers I didn't want them I hated them I just wanted to be normal, but then" he shifted "I realized that these Powers could help a lot of people, life and death. I disliked 'Shiki' because it took away the life of someone, even if I didn't harm anyone. I saved a lot of lives using that Power. Now, I liked them both, I couldn't see myself without the both of them" his eyes widened "its true 'Shiki' is dangerous, but in a way so is 'Jinsei'. They're both part of me and I have to accept that, I can work with both" 'just like the Hollow and old man Zangetsu' he thought.
"Thanks. I just realized something" he stood, both girls looked at him confused "I have to go, I'll be fine, but just in case don't go near any strong Hollows" he paused left out the door before returning "and no fighting the Arrancar" he then left.
"He's being weird again" Karin remarked, Yuzu stared at the door before gasping.
"I think I get it now" she whispered, the darkness that has been lurking around her brother's Reiatsu. Now, she realized why it felt so familiar it was a Hollow's. A Hollow that was part of his Soul, sure they now knew and it was confirmed that her brother was a Shinigami. Ichigo walked down a lane with abandoned warehouses on either side. He stopped at one and walked in. The light behind him disappeared as the entrance was closed off, he entered 'its him…'
"Good job findin' this place. Looks to me like ya finally decided to join us." Shinji said. "I must say I'm impressed that you found this place considering how much you suck at controlling and sensing Reiatsu. Although, we did pump out as much Reiatsu as we could to make it easier on ya." He adjusted his cap. "So, Ichigo, you're here because ya finally decided to join us, right?" the teen looked up,
"Yeah right!"
"Whaaaaaaat?" Shinji did a double take.
"Me join you? Get real! I'm here…to use you." The teen stated,
"Say what?" the other Vizards shifted looking at the boy, as the blonde's expression changed.
"I'm not joining anyone, but you'll teach me how to suppress my inner hollow." Ichigo said
"Looks like you're seriously underestimatin' us. We're not teachin' you anything dumbass!" the blonde called out
"I'll make you tell me." The strawberry replied,
"How?" Shinji questioned challenging him. Ichigo looked at him with a slight smirk on his face.
"I'll beat it outta you."
"Don't make me laugh." The blonde hissed, the teen was quiet for a moment, before pulling his Substitute Shinigami Badge out of his rear pant pocket and changing into his Shinigami form in one fluid moment, flying towards the unofficial leader of the Vizards. Shinji grabbed his Zanpakuto and looked at his attacker.
"Guess we gotta do this the hard way." The two clashed in midair, exchanging blows. Sparks flew from the friction of the blades smashing up against each other. The Vizard suddenly noticed something and sent Ichigo crashing down to earth with a burst of spiritual energy. He recovered quickly. "Damn it!" The rest of the Vizards watched the two battle, different expressions on their faces. They continued to clash and exchanged blows as the other Vizards turned their heads watching.
"Hey, that Ichigo boy is pretty good to fight on par with Shinji." Rose commented,
"Idiot! Take a closer look! Shinji isn't taking him seriously." Lisa snapped at him.
"It looks to me that Ichigo-kun isn't fighting with everything he's got either." Hachi remarked
"He's definitely scared." Love stated,
"Scared? Of what?" Mashiro asked obvious to the obvious fact.
"His Hollow." Kensei answered, his eyes narrowed watching the duo "that punk's so scared, he's trying to fight without calling his Hollow out. We've been trying to recruit this guy and this is the level he's at?" Hiyori's face turned one of disgust and annoyance.
"Where are you going Hiyori?" Mashiro called out,
"Hachi, add another five layers to the barrier." Hiyori ordered,
"Alright." The pink-haired giant nodded. The two combatants had stopped for a moment, standing on air and looking at each other in silence.
"Ichigo, you're…" the blonde man was cut off by a loud voice,
"Shinji! Tag out!" Said Vizard was met in the face with a slap from Hiyori's sandal. Hard. The poor man went flying out the window of the warehouse. Hiyori glared at Hachi who was staring in a mixture of fear and shock. "I told you to add five layers!" Hiyori yelled at the stunned Vizard.
"I didn't have enough time!" he protested
"Well, that's fine." She turned to Ichigo. "Ichigo, lemme tell you something. You got the wrong idea."
"The wrong idea?" he asked frowning,
"Yeah, we're definitely thinkin' about lettin' you become one of our comrades. The thing is, it ain't your choice." Hiyori stated,
"What do you mean?" Ichigo demanded.
"It means it's our decision. It doesn't matter if you wanna join us or not. After we see your strength, we'll decide whether we want you… or not. That's it. Think about it." Ichigo blinked. "You don't have any choice in the matter! If you're powerful, we'll let ya join us. We'll even teach you how to suppress your Hollow. But if you're weak, then forget it. We'll leave ya to become a Hollow and die a pathetic death. Now if ya get the picture, turn into a Hollow already! Let's see how powerful you are." Hiyori started walking away from him,
"I refuse" Hiyori stopped walking
"You just don't get it" she turned around "I told you, it ain't your choice!" Pink Reiatsu surrounded her and a white substance began forming on her face. After fully materializing on the side of her head, it resembled a cross between a Human skill and a Rhino with pink on it 'A Hollow?' the teen thought "If you're too scared to turn into a Hollow, I guess I have no choice. I'll draw that Hollow of your out by myself! Even if I have to beat it out of ya!"
"Hey, hey, hey!" Love called out trying to ease the tension
"Easy Hiyori!" Rose said
"Hyori!" Mashiro said looking at the blonde, as soon as the battle began they watched.