Hey guys welcome to another chapter of The Great Hollow Lion. First off I'd like to say thank you to all my readers for your support, you guys are awesome. I'm not gonna talk too much and just let you guys get to the story.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything you may recognize but I do own my OC.
Chapter 3: Saving the Brother
Ren is currently standing across from Yoruichi as they were getting ready to spar once again. It's been a few days since they last spared with each other and during that time Yoruichi had introduced Ren to her friend Kisuke Urahara, they were actually using the huge training ground Kisuke had under his shop for their spar. While Kisuke acted friendly enough Ren knew that Kisuke was keeping a close eye on him, hell he was standing off to the side to watch his and Yoruichi's spar.
As Yoruichi watched Ren she thought about what she has seen of him so far, though this will only be their second time sparing she has been watching him when he would train Ichigo. She noticed that in battle Ren exploited every opening he saw without mercy and that his defense was very hard to get through if you weren't strong enough to break through it or fast enough to get around it. She also noticed that instead of destroying Ichigo with his brute strength he kept his speed and Strength just above what Ichigo's max was. Bringing herself back to the here and now she charged at Ren and threw a fierce combination of punches and kicks, Ren blocked each and every attack with ease. To Ren Yoruichi was still much too young to be ready for him, no one knew just how old Ren was but every Hollow knew that he was one of the oldest.
As they continued to exchange blows Ren noticed that Yoruichi's attacks were much stronger than they were last time, he was impressed that she could could grow in strength so quickly. Ren soon started attacking as well and while Yoruichi did her best to dodge or block his strikes she still took some very heavy hits. Yoruichi was then launched back by a palm thrust from Ren, she slid half way across the field but she didn't get time to rest as Ren instantly appeared in front of her and started to rain down blows on her. She tried to block Ren's attacks but his immense strength allowed him to break through her guard and deliver a fierce kick that sent her flying. Yoruichi managed to right herself just in time to dodge a punch from Ren before throwing a quick combination of punches that hit Ren in the chest and forced him back.
The breathing room she had created for herself didn't last long as Ren was quickly back on the attack. While Yoruichi couldn't see Ren's face she could practically feel the excited smirk that was hiding under his scarf and mask. Yoruichi did everything she could to try and take control of the fight but Ren was matching her speed and he was clearly stronger than her.
Off to the side Kisuke Urahara was watching the fight. Kisuke was a man with light skin, gray eyes, light blonde hair with a stubble on his chin, and a lean build. For clothes he wore traditional japanese wooden sandals, dark green pants, a dark green top, a black coat that has a white diamond pattern on the bottom half, and on his head is a striped dark green and white bucket hat that shadowed his eyes. As he watched the spar between Yoruichi and Ren he knew that both were holding back but it was clear to him that Ren was holding back more than Yoruichi.
"Hmm, a natural Arrancar that has never eaten a human soul and hates Aizen. He'll be of great help against Aizen though I'm still having a hard time figuring him out." Kisuke thought to himself.
LATER
Yoruichi is soaking in a spring with healing properties after she lost her spar with Ren. She really needed this soak as her entire body was sore from Ren's blows. Looking to her side she saw Ren simply sitting on a rock with his eyes closed, she still couldn't believe just how strong he was and was glad he wasn't their enemy.
"Hey Ren." said Yoruichi.
"Yes?" asked Ren without opening his eyes.
"I've been talking with Kisuke and we've come up with a way for you to be more involved with Ichigo." said Yoruichi.
"And why exactly would I want to be more involved with Ichigo? I'm already training him in his free time and if I become more involved in his life people with come to question the weird things that will happen around him." said Ren.
"True but we have something that will allow you to be seen by regular humans, much like the Soul Reaper that's hanging around Ichigo." said Yoruichi.
"I have no need for something like that." said Ren.
"Oh come on Ren, please!" begged Yoruichi.
"Why are you so insistent on me being closer to Ichigo than I already am?" asked Ren while finally opening his eyes and looking at her. Yoruichi noticed that Ren still had no visible reaction to her nakedness and to be honest she was starting to feel insulted.
"We both know that things are happening in the shadows and more than likely Ichigo is going to be involved. It would be better if you were close enough to protect him while he appears to be hanging out with a friend." said Yoruichi. She notice that Ren looked like he was thinking it over. "Please, do it as a favor for me." said Yoruichi while giving Ren her patented kitten eyes.
Ren's right eye twitched as Yoruichi did this, Mila did the same thing to him whenever she really wanted him to do something. "Fine, what did you have in mind." said Ren with a sigh, he could never resist those damn eyes. Yoruichi just gave him a cheshire cat smile.
THE NEXT DAY
Ichigo and Rukia were sitting in their classroom waiting for their teacher Ms. Oichi. While they were waiting Rukia was thinking about the last couple of days but mostly she was thinking about Ren. No matter how hard she tried she just couldn't figure Ren out. Unlike other Hollows that were solely focused on eating souls in order to try and fill their emptiness and were usually wild and full of malice, Ren on the other hand was always calm and she has seen him walk right pass souls with only a wave of acknowledgement. When it came to Ichigo's training Ren was a taskmaster but she had to admit that Ichigo was steadily growing stronger with each training session, and according to Ichigo he was growing closer to hearing his Zanpakuto's name, so far he knows it starts with Zan-.
Rukia was taken from her thoughts when Ms. Oichi walked into the classroom. "Good Morning class, today we have a new student joining us so make sure he feels welcome. You can come on in now." said Ms. Oichi. The door opened once again and Ren walked in wearing the boys uniform but without the blazer and his scarf was still wrapped around his neck and lower half of his face.
"Hello, my name is Ren Oda, I hope we can get along." said Ren. Ichigo and Rukia were shocked to see Ren so casually walk into the classroom like he was always meant to be there. Ichigo got up, ran up front, grabbed Ren by his shirt, and then dragged him up to the roof.
"What are you doing here!?" asked Ichigo.
"Hey trust me when I say that I didn't want to be here, but someone with your and your family's benefit in mind made a compelling argument for me to become closer to you than I already am." said Ren.
"Do realize how creepy that sounds?" asked Ichigo.
"Yes I realize how creepy that sounds but trust me when I say I'm straight. I have 5 mates that can vouch for me if you want." said Ren.
"WAIT YOU HAVE 5 WOMEN!?" asked Ichigo.
"Yes and I would appreciate it if you didn't scream about it to everyone, humans don't have a good history of being understanding." said Ren.
"Whatever, who is this person interested in my safety?" asked Ichigo.
"You'll find out at another time, but for now let's get back to class." said Ren.
The rest of the day went by rather quickly with the only thing that really caught Ren's attention was Ichigo introducing him to his friends with Ren only paying attention to Orihime Inoue and Tatsuki Arisawa. Something Ren found annoying was how most of the girls in the school kept trying to see what he looked like under his scarf, even Orihime tried, but he just kept avoiding their attempts. Then while he was trying to leave at the end of the day he had to beat up a couple of boys that thought he was dyeing his hair, they were easy to take down for someone of his skill but said skill attracted Tatsuki's attention.
2 WEEKS LATER
The last two weeks weren't as bad as Ren had expected them to be, other than the occasional guy he had to beat up and avoiding the girls trying to pull his scarf down. Ren also somehow ended up being talked into joining the Karate Club by Tatsuki, she also talked him into helping her keep the school's proud lesbian pervert Chizuru Honsho away from Orihime. Chizuru wasn't happy about this as now she barely ever got to grope Orihime's large breasts.
Right now Ren, Rukia, and Ichigo are wearing some casual clothes while walking down the street and talking after having just ran into Orihime. "So you noticed it right Rukia, Ichigo?" asked Ren.
"Yeah I noticed." said Rukia.
"Me to." said Ichigo.
"Good, so while it doesn't need to be said I'll say it anyway. That bruise on Orihime's leg didn't come from a car and she's obviously being targeted by a Hollow. What do you want to do about this Rukia?" asked Ren.
"Isn't it obvious?" asked Rukia.
"No it's not, if this was a regular Hollow attack it would have killed her and ate her soul right away but this one left her alive with only a bruise to show that it was there." said Ichigo. Ichigo didn't just undergo physical training from Ren but also mental training.
"That's right Ichigo, the fact that this Hollow isn't acting like a ravenous beast means that it does have some reasoning behind its methods. Tell me does Orihime have any relatives she was close to that died?" asked Ren.
"Orihime's whole family is dead but from what I know she was raised by her brother Sora." said Ichigo.
"I see, if she was raised by her brother than most likely her mother and father weren't any good so the Hollow after Orihime is most likely not one of them. Were Orihime and her brother really close, I know you said he raised her but that doesn't mean they were close?" asked Ren.
"Yeah they were really close, in fact the hairpins she wears were a gift from him." said Ichigo.
"I see, in that case it saddens me to say that this Hollow is most likely Orihime's brother." said Ren.
"WHAT, no way!" said Ichigo.
"How did you come to that conclusion?" asked Rukia.
"Well with Orihime's personality it's clear that after his death Orihime prayed for him everyday, I'm guessing that as time passed she stopped praying as much before stopping altogether. Though something is still off." said Ren.
"What do you mean?" asked Ichigo.
"The bruise on Orihime's leg didn't look like one you gain from an attack, it fact I think that Orihime's brother simply grabbed her leg too hard while pulling her out of the way from the car that was going to hit her." said Ren.
"So even as a Hollow Sora is still looking out for Orihime." said Ichigo.
"For now." said Ren.
"What?" asked Ichigo.
"Ichigo, when a soul becomes a Hollow some of them can still hold on to their humanity but the longer they remain a Hollow they lose more and more of that humanity. We have no idea how long Sora has been a Hollow so we have no idea how close he is to losing that last bit of humanity."
"So what do we do, we can't just kill Orihime's brother!" said Ichigo.
"And we aren't going to do that, we're going to help them. And Ichigo you should know that you haven't been killing Hollows you've been purifying them and sending their souls to the Soul Society, there they'll stay until it time for them to be reincarnated." said Ren.
"Wow, really?" asked Ichigo.
"Really, now go home and do whatever you need to do. I'll go get out of this body and keep an eye on Orihime, I'll knock some sense into her brother if he comes for her tonight." said Ren.
"I want to be there." said Ichigo.
"Very well, be at her place tonight." said Ren. Ichigo nodded before heading home.
"Why are you willing to help Orihime?" asked Rukia.
"Despite the short amount of time I've known her I can honestly say that she's grown on me, much like you have." said Ren. Rukia blushed at this and turned her head away from him.
"I've grown on you?" asked Rukia before she felt his hand on her head, Ren was rubbing the top of her head.
"Yes Rukia, you've grown on me." said Ren.
"Enough for you to let me see your face?" asked Rukia.
"Sorry but only my mates will ever see me face." said Ren.
"Mates? You mean you have more than one?" asked Rukia.
"Yes I have more than one. I'm surprised Ichigo didn't tell you but I have 5 mates." said Ren before taking off, leaving a blushing Rukia.
LATER THAT NIGHT: ORIHIME'S HOUSE
Orihime was a very beautiful girl with fair skin, long orange hair, brown eyes, a voluptuous figure, long legs, wide hips, a plump ass, and DD-cup breasts. For clothes she was currently wearing an ankle length yellow skirt with an orange flower pattern on it and a dark purple button up blouse and in her hair was some light blue flower petal hairpins.
Sitting in front of Orihime is her best friend Tatsuki who she had called over to talk. Tatsuki was also a beautiful girl with fair skin, brown eyes, short black hair that she kept spiked at the sides, a lean and athletic figure, long legs, wide hips, a toned ass, and B-cup breasts. For clothes she's currently wear black pants and a short sleeved red shirt.
"Tatsuki I really need your help with this!" whined Orihime.
"Okay, okay, just calm down and tell me what's going on with you." said Tatsuki.
"Well, I've liked Ichigo for a long time now but I've been too shy to express myself. Now though even after only knowing him for a few days I've started to feel the same way about Ren and I don't know what to do." said Orihime.
Tatsuki blinked a few times at what Orihime just told her and felt a bit uncomfortable for 2 reasons. The first reason being that Tatsuki was a tomboy and didn't really think about boys too often, don't get her wrong she was interested in boys but they just weren't her main focus as she wasn't all girly. The second reason she was uncomfortable was because she herself had also started to get feelings for Ren. Like Orihime Tatsuki had only known Ren for a short while but she too had started to develop feeling for the guy. It really wasn't too hard to believe as while he didn't talk to people too often when he did talk he was nice and polite until you pissed him off. It also helped that she found his skill in hand to hand combat attractive, he was one of the few people that could beat her.
"Orihime, I'm not the best person to talk to about this as you know I'm not into all of this mushy stuff, but I'll tell you what I can. I say you take a step back and really think about who you want to go for. On one hand like you said you've liked Ichigo for a long time but you haven't taken any steps to take your relationship pass friendship, then there is the fact that Ren is new and this could just be a small crush that that'll be gone in a few days. So like I said take a step back and really think about this." said Tatsuki with a sigh. She had decided to be honest with her friend about what she should do rather than just pushing Orihime towards Ichigo so that she could have Ren.
"I see, thank you for the advice Tatsuki." said Orihime with a smile.
"No problem Orihime." said Tatsuki before she felt a shiver run down her spine. Before she could say anything about though she was suddenly knocked against the wall and knocked out.
"TATSUKI!" yelled Orihime before she as well found herself up against the wall before everything went black. A few moments later Orihime opened her eyes and came to an unexpected site. She saw herself laying on the floor, looking down at herself she saw that a chain was embedded in her chest and connected to the body on the ground. "What, what is going on?" asked Orihime with fear in her voice.
"Orihime." said a dark voice behind Orihime. Turning around Orihime saw what she could only call a monster, it was huge with a red and black naga body with a hole in its chest, razor sharp claws, messy, brown hair, and a skull mask on its face. Before Orihime could scream in terror the monster grabbed her in its hands and started to squeeze her causing her to scream in pain. "How could you Orihime, how could you forget about me?" asked the monster.
Orihime didn't know what the monster was talking about but she knew that she was scared out of her mind. In her head she was praying for someone, anyone to save her, her prayers were answered in the form of a figure punching the monster in the face. This action forced the monster to release her but the figure caught her before she could hit the ground. Looking up to the figure holding her she went through three different emotions with them being shock, embarrassment, and finally fear. She was shocked because she saw that the figure that saved her was Ren, embarrassment was because due to the clothes he was wearing she was able to see his rock hard abs, and fear was because she was able to see that Ren left peck had a hole in it just like the monster had in its chest.
Ren seeing the emotions on Orihime's face was quick to reassure her that he was here to help. "Don't worry Orihime, I know you're scared but I promise that I'm here to help you. If you want I'll explain everything to you after this is over." said Ren in as soothing of a voice as he could muster. With his words Orihime was able to calm down some though it was still clear that she was scared, not that Ren could blame her. He sat her down next to Tatsuki and her body while he stood in front of her as the Hollow finally collected itself.
"Who are you? WHY ARE YOU INTERFERING!?" asked the Hollow.
"My name is Ren Oda and I'm interfering because Orihime is my friend and I don't want you doing something you'll regret, Sora." said Ren surprising the hell out of Orihime and Sora.
"Sora! Y-You mean….that's my-my brother?" asked Orihime.
"Yes Orihime, this is your brother but don't worry I'm going to get him back for you." said Ren. It was then that Ichigo and Rukia showed up through the window. "Ichigo, Rukia, you're late." said Ren.
"Sorry we got held up." said Ichigo while looking at Sora. Rukia stayed quiet waiting to see what Ren would do.
"Rukia, I need you to heal Orihime. Sora managed to push Orihime's soul from her body but she's still alive." said Ren. Rukia simply nodded at this and got to work. Sora then started yelling about how Orihime was his then went on to tell how she use to pray for him everyday but after awhile she stopped and would only talk about Tatsuki and Ichigo. He explained how he felt forgotten and that her friends were tearing them apart. Orihime then explained that she had stopped praying because she felt she was being selfish in wanting him to stay with her and not move on, she also explained that she only wanted him to hear about the good things in her life. Sora admitted that he would have prefered if she had continued to pray for him, he start claiming that Orihime belonged to him and that she should die for him. Ichigo then started to explain that Orihime never forgot about him as she still wore the hair pins he gave her. Seeing the hairpins in Orihime's hair caused Sora to freeze up as he remembered giving Orihime those hairpins. When he froze Ren made his move and with a strong punch to Sora's forehead his mask was shattered revealing Sora's human face.
Moving quickly Ren opened up a Garganta and then threw Sora into it. "I'll be back and when I return you'll have your brother back Orihime. Rukia don't erase her memories." said Ren before jumping into the Garganta himself with it closing behind him.
IN HUECO MUNDO
Sora looked at the dark, white sand covered landscape of Hueco Mundo only vaguely remembering it from his time turning into a Hollow. Looking behind him Sora saw Ren walk out of the Garganta, Sora didn't know what to make of Ren but he decided to give him a chance since Ren did stop him from further hurting Orihime. Ren stopped a few feet away from Sora before holding out out his hand with his palm facing up and soon a golden ball of spiritual energy with a black outline form in his hand. Sora could barely breath as he felt the insane amount of spiritual power in that little orb that was no bigger than an apple, and yet Ren was standing there like the power of the orb was nothing to be impressed about.
"Take this and eat it Sora." said Ren.
Sora reach out to do just that due to the commanding tone in Ren's voice but quickly realized what he was doing and pulled back while looking at Ren curiously. "Why, what will it due, what even is it?" asked Sora.
"In reverse order, it's a ball of spiritual energy, it will evolve you straight to Vasto Lorde, and I'm doing this to help you protect Orihime." said Ren.
Hearing that eating the spiritual energy would allow him to protect Orihime Sora carefully took the orb into his hand before looking at Ren once again. "Why are you helping me and Orihime?" asked Sora.
"I'll explain once we're done here, now eat." said Ren. Asking no further questions Sora ate the spiritual energy and immediately felt a huge burst of power filling his body. It wasn't long before body started to glow and expand before it popped into a large cloud of smoke. Once the smoke cleared and revealed Sora in his new form; he stood tall at 6'0 with his body being reddish brown with an athletic build, a long snake like tail sticking out from behind him, his Hollow hole was still in his chest, his hair was longer as it now reached his shoulder blades, and the remains of his Hollow mask took the form of a snake helmet. "How do you feel Sora?" asked Ren.
"I feel powerful, but I also feel much calmer than I did before." said Sora.
"Good, now for the next but also the most painful part. You need to tear your mask off." said Ren.
"What will doing that do?" asked Sora.
"It will turn you into an Arrancar like me, once you become an Arrancar the hunger for souls will disappear." said Ren. Nodding at Ren's words Sora started trying to take off his helmet and just like Ren said he was met with pain. It took awhile but Sora did manage to get the mask of and took on his human form with his Hollow hole in his chest and the remains of his mask took the form of a headband. Ren made Sora some robes out of his spiritual energy to wear and had him pick up the sword that formed beside him. With that done Ren Opened another Garganta and they went back to Orihime and the others.
WORLD OF THE LIVING
Appearing back in front of everyone they were all shocked at how normal Sora looked except for the hole in his chest and the headband made of bone. Orihime slowly approached her brother but it was clear to everyone that she was scared he was going to attack her again, it caused Sora a great deal of pain to see his little sister so afraid of him. Ren sighed at this as he hoped his part in this would be done once Sora became an Arrancar but apparently he still had work to do.
"It's okay Orihime, like I promised I've brought you your brother back. He's not going to attack you, he just wants to protect you like any big brother." said Ren. With those words Orihime stopped being afraid and ran into her brother's arms and they hugged each other with Sora repeatedly apologizing and promising to never hurt her again. Ren nodded his head at this and turned to leave but was stopped by Sora.
"Wait, you said you'd explain why you're helping me and Orihime." said Sora.
"I helped because Orihime has grown on me and because you remind me a bit of myself." said Ren.
"How do I remind you of yourself?" asked Sora with everyone paying close attention to the answer.
"When I was alive I too had a little sister that I adored named Rei. Our family naturally had high amounts of spirit energy so we attracted spirits, I could see them while she could only sense them. One day I fell ill and died but instead of moving on I stayed and continued to protect her like any good big brother. I protected her from Hollows and anything else I could, a lot of people thought she was magic because anything that came to hurt her was knocked away or blocked by some invisible force. Rei on the other hand could sense me and simply told them that her brother was protecting her even from beyond the grave. For years I watched and protected Rei even when I became a Hollow myself, when she died of old age I continued to watch over her children and their childen and so on and so forth. It wasn't until our bloodline finally died out that I went to Hueco Mundo and became King." said Ren.
"You, you willingly allowed yourself to become a Hollow?" asked Rukia in pure shock.
"Yes I did, my sister was all the family I had left since our parents died while we were young. I didn't care what happened to me so long as she was safe and happy." said Ren before disappearing in a burst of static.
"I see where he's coming from, I'd most likely do the same thing for Karin and Yuzu if I was in his situation." said Ichigo.
"I see." said Rukia in deep thought while continuing to heal Orihime.
Well guys there you have chapter 3, I hope you lighted it. Yes I decided to save Sora and later he'll become Ren's very first Fraccion. As of right now Sora won't have that big of a roll as he isn't properly trained so he won't really come into play until it's time to rescue Orihime.
Now when it comes to Ren's Zanpakuto I'd like you guys to suggest some names and abilities. I already have some in mind but I want to know what you guys think before I make my final decision. One Reviewer as already suggested a name and I'm considering it but I really want to hear from a lot more of you first. Oh if you do give a name try to make it one involving either a King or a Lion.
Also I'm still undecided about Ichigo's pairing though someone said to pair him with a female OC Soul Reaper and that idea is really interesting to me. Let me know what you guys think. Now the choices for Ichigo are Nelliel, Senna, Nozomi, or OC Soul Reaper.
Harem
Harribel, Mila-Rose, Sung-Sun, Apacci, Cirucci, Loly, Riruka, Tatsuki, Rukia, Rangiku, Yoruichi, Mashiro, Lisa, Hiyori, Unohana, Kukaku, Soifon, Orihime, Senjumaru, Isane, Nanoa, Momo, Female Zanpakuto Spirits.
Well that's it for now everyone remember to Fav., Follow, and Review and as always listen for when the Dragon Roars!
