And here's chapter 3. :) Thank you to all those who have left a comment / added an alert / added it as a favourite. Thank you very much; it's very much appreciated. A enormous thank to Kuroi-cho-Tsuki-shiro for her translation. She is amazing. ^^
So today, a little action ("evil laughter", not the kind of action you're thinking of with your dirty mind… sure, okay, me too; I was thinking of that :P )
For any Hado or Bakudo that you would like to learn about, I would greatly suggest you go and take a tour on Bleach Wiki.
And….. no, Bleach is not mine; all credit goes to Tite Kubo.
CHAPTER 3: SPECIAL TRAINING
That morning, before he departed for his office in Sixth Division, Byakuya had been surprised to see his fukutaicho arriving at the manor. Abarai Renji! Though often impulsive, ignorant of his manners and a little distractible when it came to doing paperwork, Byakuya still preferred him over every other fukutaicho. Heaven forbid that he should have a lieutenant like the one in Eleventh Division, Kusajishi Yachiro, or even the Tenth Division's Matsumoto Rangiku: the woman was the laziest by far, and he didn't even want to consider the duo who temporarily occupied that position in Thirteenth Division: those too gave him a migraine every time he saw them.
In the end, Byakuya told himself that, though Renji certainly had faults, he could tolerate them. Renji had once hated Byakuya with all his being because he had adopted Rukia, but since the incident on Sokyoku Hill and Aizen's treason, Byakuya could almost believe that a bond of trust had grown between the two of them.
"Ohayo, Kuchiki Taicho."
"Good morning, Renji. It seems to me that it's a little too early for you to be up!"
Byakuya saw his fukutaicho scratch the back of his head nervously.
"Ah….. Say there were some papers that I didn't have the time to complete yesterday….."
The captain tried to hold back a sigh. When he had left the office yesterday, there had remained a considerable pile of paperwork on his fukutaicho's table.
"I see," he said at last.
"But I came to tell you that there's a captains' meeting at nine o'clock."
"Very good, Renji. I'll accompany you to the division."
Suddenly, Byakuya saw Rukia in the distance, crossing the gardens and taking the trail that led to the waterfall on the far side of his property.
"Ah, I see that Rukia is still doing her morning training; she's very driven," said Renji.
Byakuya said nothing, content to watch his sister walking calmly, serenely. At a certain time ever morning, he had become accustomed to sensing Rukia's reiatsu at this distance. It would be a lie to suggest he didn't worry each time he felt her energy reach knew peaks, but, at the same time, he felt an ounce of pride flare up: a rare burst of emotion.
"That reminds me, Taicho, Rukia asked me about something unusual that happens when she trains. She told me she had the impression that she wasn't alone."
Byakuya felt his heart miss a beat. He turned towards his fukutaicho, trying to appear calm.
"A presence?"
"Yes, Taicho, but she didn't want to say any more."
Byakuya had to force himself not to roll his eyes. He had no response for his fukutaicho, but he let his gaze drift again to the distant silhouette of his sister, before turning back to Renji. This troubled him: was there someone who wanted to take her away from him? Why were they observing her while she trained? Or else, was it….. he frowned:
"Renji."
"Yes, Taicho?"
"It's too late for me to go to the division now; you can go instead," said Byakuya.
"But Taicho….. the meeting….."
"Don't worry, Renji, I'll be there at the prescribed hour, and, in the meantime, you'll have time to finish yesterday's paperwork before starting on today's."
Touche! Renji made no more objections, but bowed to his captain and started to make his way to the gates. Yet he felt an involuntarily shiver run up his spine: was that concern he had seen in his captain's eyes? Nah! He must have been dreaming. His lack of sleep must have been working against him. Perhaps it was his hangover; nights out with Ikkaku and Hisagi often ended that way.
Byakuya crossed the gardens, taking the same path as Rukia had only moments before. He took care to mask his reiatsu, making it undetectable. And, as he passed under cover of the trees, he saw Rukia in the clearing not far from the pond; she was completely still for a moment, before reaching for her zanpakuto. Then, gracefully, she drew her sword:
"Mae, Sode no Shirayuki."
At once, the sword became white as snow and, in the same instant; the hilt became adorned with a long ribbon that seemed to circle Rukia like a protective shield. As she began her dances, Byakuya found that he was, despite himself, enchanted by the succession of movements, skilled yet fluid. He let a slow smile of appreciation touch his otherwise impassive features. With grace and precision, Rukia ran through the forms of her combat against an invisible enemy. He should leave; he should leave her alone. She was not in danger; indeed, she was doing well; yet he stayed to watch her. For some time, all that mattered to him was that he could watch her, that he could be close to her and simply enjoy her presence. And yet, in that moment, she was completely unaware of him. This was how he preferred her: natural and confident in her abilities.
Suddenly, Byakuya froze. It seemed to him that he could see something behind Rukia. As he watched, the apparition became more and more clear, seeming to follow the movements of the little shinigami like a shadow. It was only when the entity had emerged to its fullest extent that Byakuya could be sure of what he was seeing, though he didn't want to believe it. It was Sode no Shirayuki. Rukia had attained the materialisation of her zanpakuto. She was approaching bankaï. Impossible! She could not have progressed to such a stage right under his nose without him sensing it! Moreover, Sode no Shirayuki now stood behind Rukia, like an echo of her mistress, miming her movements. So, she was the presence that Rukia had sensed.
He was in shock. Never had he thought that Rukia would one day attain bankaï. The ultimate form of a zanpakuto was possessed only by nobles and those with powerful reiryoku, like most of the captains of the Gotei Thirteen. At last count, he'd not known that Rukia fell into that second category, and she certainly wasn't a noble by birth.
In the next instant, the young, white-haired woman in a kimono looked in his direction. Byakuya saw her pale blue eyes turn questioningly towards his. This too was impossible, he told himself. He was perfectly hidden by the cover of the forest and his reiatsu was firmly suppressed. She could not know that he was there. The spirit of the sword stopped copying Rukia's movements and swept towards him. Rukia continued to train without noticing anything different. Shirayuki advanced towards him, unseen by her mistress; he took a step backwards. It was then that she stopped and gave an enigmatic smile. She raised her white hand slowly and gestured that he should join them; that he should come and dance with them. And before he could do anything, Byakuya felt his own sword tremble against his side. Senbonsakura was dying to leave his sheath. It occurred to Byakuya, in that moment, to let him go. The noble, simultaneously shaken on the inside and calm as ever on the outside, stared at the white-haired woman. She raised an eyebrow and let out a tiny, crystalline laugh.
So it was that Byakuya saw the spirit return to stand behind her mistress. She leaned down to her ear and murmured something that he couldn't hear. And suddenly, Rukia started as if she had heard a noise. He hadn't even moved. Sode no Shirayuki vanished. Rukia turned in his direction and raised her sword.
"Who's there? Come out!"
He was discovered. Letting out a small sigh, he left the cover of the trees. At once, Rukia lowered her sword, her eyes wide with surprise: "Ni – Nii-sama!"
"You found me, Rukia."
Byakuya let a moment's silence pass: "What are you doing here, Rukia?"
"I'm training," she said quietly, though he could have sworn he heard amusement in her voice.
"Show me."
Byakuya saw the eyes of the little shinigami open wide when he reached for his sword and drew it.
In that moment, Rukia wondered if she was still dreaming. But no, he really was there. His reiatsu was real, powerful and even lethal. He would not lose to her. Rukia was nearly a hundred years behind her brother. And, if she didn't want to lose face, she would have to go all out. Rukia took her position and released her reiatsu, letting it flow freely through her.
Byakuya was surprised by the sudden change in Rukia. He was used to sensing her energy when it was at its lowest level: weak, nervous and hesitant, but this was stronger than he had anticipated. This troubled him; was this all the potential for power that lay beneath the surface, almost within her reach? She was close.
From the first cuts, Rukia knew that Byakuya was not going to present her with an opening. He was not fighting at his full strength yet, but at least he was not holding back as if she was a fragile china doll, as was the case when it came to Renji or her colleagues in the division. The latter were always preoccupied by her family name; they were put off by the image of a furious Kuchiki Byakuya reprimanding them for having injured her. Rukia was glad that Byakuya returned her attacks with force. He was giving her a chance, but also giving her a better training session than she had ever had. Okay, so she would spend the next few days complaining that she was in pain, but so what? If he was willing to take the time to train with her, then she would show him her best.
Rukia tightened her grip on her sword, giving stronger cuts and imbuing her attacks with more precision. She did not want to strike him; indeed, she knew she was far from capable of that; nevertheless she would give everything she had. Rukia wanted him to be proud. Suddenly, she felt anew the presence within her, but, this times, instead of a vague apparition, it seemed to her that the entity was almost complete; it doubled the strength of her cuts and gave her a resurgence of energy. Rukia smiled without knowing why.
"Oh….. You look as if you are enjoying this, Rukia. Good, you're serious now. Come, give me everything you have."
The air was brutally cold with Rukia's reiatsu, which was now fluctuating wildly. Her breaths made condensation in the fresh morning air. She at once abandoned the idea of using her first dance, Tsukishiro, because the pillar of ice took a certain amount of time to create and Byakuya was too fast in shunpo to be caught by it. He would avoid it easily. Her second dance, Hakuren, seemed a good alternative, but she would still have to plan several cuts in advance to trap him. Rukia took her position and used the fourth Hado, Byakurai. She had a particular affection for that one because she always had the impression that she was secretly saying his name. A small indulgence for her, as it was very rare that she dispensed with the usual formality of 'Nii-sama'. She sent out three more Byakurai, but her brother moved gracefully to avoid them, suffering no damage. Suddenly, she saw his lips move:
"Bakudo Nine, Geki," said his soft, deep voice.
All at once, Rukia's body froze against her will and she was surrounded by an aura of red light. It was a spell that paralysed its victim. Rukia swore between her teeth; her combat was not going to end like this! She had an image of herself; quite pitiful! At the same time though, this sort of spell was relatively easy to break if you had the strength and reiatsu. Moreover, she could see that Byakuya was not going to attack. He was testing her, trying to work out where her strengths and weaknesses were; he was evaluating her as he would any adversary.
Channelling her reiatsu, Rukia concentrated and let it burst out of her like a bomb. Her involuntary cry resounded through the clearing. Somewhat out of breath, Rukia tried to regather her thoughts. He wanted to test her kido; well she was not going to disappoint him. Raising her hand to her mouth, she said:
"Bakudo Four, Hainawa."
She released a powerful rope of energy on her attacker. Byakuya raised his hand towards her while deflecting it with the flat of his sword:
"Bakudo Thirty-Nine, Enkosen."
A circular shield appeared before him, blocking the cord of reiatsu. Rukia wasted no time and tried a new angle. The bakudo had not proved to be of much use. Focussing her energy anew, she sent out a new series of Byakurai, rapidly shunpoing between each. She wanted to avoid staying still; it would only make her vulnerable to his attacks. But Byakuya followed her shunpo easily. Time suddenly seemed to slow as she fought. Rukia noticed that, every time she reappeared from shunpo, Byakuya was catching her, finding openings. She must work out where he would appear next in order to protect her weak points. She realised then how much she still had to learn on the path to becoming an effective shinigami. And Byakuya was not even fighting at full power. Raising her hands before her, Rukia cried:
"Hado Thirty-One. Shakkaho."
The ball of fire exploded directly in front of the captain on Sixth Division, but he reappeared several metres away, unhurt. Suddenly Byakuya stopped and pointed at her. Rukia froze and tried to think at great speed. She had seen her brother adopt this position before. He was going to use Hado Sixty-One: Rikujokoro. The Six Points of Light Prison! But she knew for sure that she was not strong enough to free herself from that sort of spell. So, when she heard Byakuya pronounce the first syllables, she made to use a final Byakurai against his incantation, then focussing all her reiatsu and reaching her hand out before her again, Rukia cried: "Hado Seventy-Nine: Soken Sokatsui."
A vast blue light forked out towards Byakuya. She knew very well that he would block it too. But before he could defend himself, Byakuya could see that Rukia had already begun her second dance; the wave of ice was already emerging from the tip of her sword. Before it could reach him, Byakuya cried:
"Bakudo Eighty-One: Danku."
The ice slammed into his shield and passed to either side of it. Against his will, Byakuya's lips flickered towards a smile. He knew that Rukia was very good at kido, but this enchantment was not bad at all. And her attacks were controlled and precise. He was pleasantly surprised by her progress. Battling against his lieutenant or even against another captain was often brutal and painful. But Rukia fought with subtlety and sweetness. All her movements were so fluid that, even when she was evading him, Rukia moved with such grace and agility it seemed she truly danced for him. In that moment, she had absolute control.
He saw her dive towards him again, her sword raised. Byakuya was so entranced that he had no desire to evade her; he wanted to let her pierce his armour of ice, to embrace her and fall to the ground with her. She was graceful, pretty and intoxicatingly dangerous. In the last moment, his body responded with learned reflexes and he took a simple step to one side.
When Rukia saw that her enchantment had missed, she raised her sword and launched herself towards him, hoping to take advantage of the confusion before he could gather his thoughts. She knew that she was proficient in kido, but she had much more to learn from him. By Kami, this was Kuchiki Byakuya.
She saw him as she rushed towards him. And she felt a heat, now all too familiar; consume her completely as she plunged into those grey eyes. His features refined and controlled; his hair a deep black; his skin pale and his lips fine, and….. Ahh. Rukia bit her lip. Her dream tormented her even in her waking hours. And it was clear that training in the presence of such temptation was doing nothing to help things.
If only he would open his arms to her instead of presenting a sword. She was certain that his arms were strong and comforting, a place that she could shelter. Her gaze returned to his mouth and she felt the fire that burned her already turn into a conflagration in the pit of her stomach. Kami, she had wanted so often to taste those lips.
When she had returned to reality a little and had recalled she was attacking him, Rukia found herself surprised to see an expression of amusement on his face. Certainly, he wasn't laughing, but his eyes betrayed a desire that was perhaps as strong as her own. Thus, at the moment when the blade should have reached him, Byakuya slid gracefully to one side and Rukia slammed into the ground with very little elegance. When she sat up, out of breath, she heard:
"Chire, Senbonsakura."
Little lexicon:
Taicho / Fukutaicho Captain / Vice-Captain
Hado: Way of Destruction
Bakudo: Way of Binding
Omake
Rukia: AHHHHH! No, but that's not fair! You're releasing Senbonsakura against me.
Firebird: Be calm, Rukia. Everything's going to be okay.
Rukia: You're an author who's going to make a character die at the very beginning of the story?
Firebird: But no, you're not going to die! You're just going to…..
Rukia: Be shredded into pieces! Why don't you spend a month in a block of ice?
Firebird: Huh, what? O_O
Byakuya appears, looking annoyed.
Byakuya: If you choose to hurt Rukia, I will personally be on your case.
Firebird: Gulp. Leave a review, someone!
