Alright presenting chapter 4! *Dramatic music* Sorry it took me so long DX I had to do chores and I was fighting a cold. I am well aware that I have made quite a few errors within the last chapters (Hence why I'm fixing them now XD). I apologize for that! Oh and this story is following the manga plot. Otherwise orihime would have gotten her powers after the bounts arc. (Or maybe before the battle? -ponders-) Anyways, Onward to the next chapter!!
DISCLAIMER: I don't own bleach or any of the contents. Except for my character and Orihime's zanpakutou!
Everyone just gawked at her. How could Orihime heal everyone but herself? That made no sense to anyone. The only people who weren't surprised were Tia, Urahara, and Yoruichi. Cause they already knew.
"Tia-Dono, how could she heal everyone but herself? Is that even possible?" Rukia asked.
"The only reason why it's like that is because of the fact that she cares for others more than herself. If she cared about herself the way she cares for other people, she would be able to heal herself. But since she worries more about the people around her, she focuses all her energy on them. She's selfless that way. At first I was confused but then I asked Tia-San. And that's what she told me." Kisuke replied.
"It's the way her zanpakutou reacts. Since it's part of her soul, wouldn't it obey her orders? That's what all of your zanpakutous do right? They fight to protect you and help you in combat. Well, the same goes for Orihime, except she worries about healing and protecting more than fighting." Yoruichi added.
Just then they heard a groan from behind Rukia, Ichigo and Renji. They all turned to find Orihime waking up. Her eyes opened and she sat up. She yawned and rubbed her eyes before she turned to look at everyone.
"Where am I? What happened?" She asked. She didn't know why but everyone stared at her with worried looks on their faces.
"You don't remember? You healed all of us after Grimmjow attacked and then you felt weak and fainted. We're at Urahara's shop now." Renji replied.
"I see... So I really did faint huh? Wow that just happened randomly. I wasn't actually expecting to just faint out of no where. I guess healing took a lot more out of me than I thought." She put her finger to her mouth as she stared at the ceiling lost in thought.
Man and here I was thinking I could actually make them worry less about me. And then I go and faint on them! I wish I was more stronger! So they wouldn't have to always protect me or watch over me!
"So Orihime, you want to get stronger right?" Tia asked with a smirk.
"How did you know?"
"Did you forget that we can read each others minds? We did it all the time when we were younger! Since you got really nervous at some of the things that happened and you didn't want to say anything so you just went with talking to me telepathically!" She yelled. How could she forget that?
"Oh right sorry Tia! I guess I just forgot since we hadn't done that in a long time. I thought I had forgot to do that so I never went with it. Now I feel stupid" Orihime sighed.
"Don't make me come over there. I don't want you to put yourself down alright? You're not stupid. If you feel really dumb, then just get smarter! But enough about that. Let's just focus on getting your powers back to normal alright?" Tia asked calmly.
"Alright. I will try my best!"
"That's all we're asking of you Hime. Do your best and you will succeed!" Rukia chimed in.
"Orihime, where would you like to train? There are two places where you can't hurt anyone. The first place is in Kisuke's basement. You can fight Tia and get your powers back faster that way without hurting anyone. We could rearrange the basement into sort of a training ground for you. Or there's the second option which is an open field. Everyone will be watching but I will put a kido barrier around everyone so nothing gets in the way. You'll have all the space in the world so you can extend it as far as the barrier will allow." Yoruichi asked.
"I think I'll go with the open field. Since it's in the open and not to mention there's no roof so I won't blow anything up. I wouldn't want that although I could reject it so it returns to normal. Although I never tried rejecting objects." Orihime said as she pictured the roof being blown off the shop she was currently sitting in.
"Alright I'll go prepare the field then. Until I'm done stay here and talk with everyone. Try to get as much rest as possible before training with Tia." Yoruichi looked at the young girl.
"Thanks Yoruichi-San!" She smiled.
Yoruichi smiled as she left to go find a suitable field away from everyone. As they watched her walk out of the shop, Ichigo looked back at Orihime. He seriously couldn't believe that he was going to watch her fight this time. Normally he shielded her from combat due to her charming personality but after finding out the things about her, he wanted to see how she actually battled. Just the thought of her holding her zanpakutou and fighting made him smirk.
"So Orihime-San how do you feel?" Toushirou asked.
"I feel fine! Thanks Toushirou-Kun! How are everyone's injuries? Did my healing work alright? I haven't used my zanpakutou to heal anyone in a long time so I'm worried about the results-" She was blabbing on until Ichigo cut her off.
"We're all fine thanks to your powers Inoue. Don't worry everyone is fine. You don't have to go and start blabbing on about how your powers not working. We're seriously fine." He said. Sometimes it was annoying to hear her ramble on but he also found it cute how she would freak out like that.
Wait, did I just say she was cute? Well, she is the third smartest kid in school and she does seem attractive. What am I saying?? I don't like Inoue like that! Do I? But I barely know her! But it also feels like I've known her my whole life... Even if I did like her, I wouldn't know if she likes me back. Besides there's no way she would like a guy like me! I'm just a punk with orange hair that gets me in trouble more than my personality. She's also the other leader of Soul Society. That's royalty! There's no way she could fall in love with someone like me! What am I thinking? Snap out of it Ichigo!
Tia snickered. She was also able to read other people's minds. Not just Orihime's. So when she read Ichigo's thoughts she couldn't help but giggle quietly. She had to. If the others saw her they would be wondering if there was something wrong with her. She didn't want that happening.
"Orihime-Chan, are you actually able to stay a Shinigami without needing a gigai?" Rangiku's question snapped Ichigo out of his thoughts and Tia just looked at her sister.
"Well, that's what Tia told me when I was a kid. "Why should we have to hide ourselves from the world?" She said that would just cause people to make fun of us for needing a gigai and that we had no control over our reiatsu. She also knew that nobody would see us since we're in spirit forms. So she taught me how to conceal my reiatsu without having to use one. She also said that it would make people suspicious and start to wonder why we would need one. Then there's the possibility that they would figure out that not only are we different, but we would also be someone who's really important. Tia didn't want others to find out that I was the other leader of Soul Society, not even Yamamoto-Sama. So she sealed off my Shinigami powers and my Shun Shun Rikka only to protect me." Orihime answered. This was the truth and Tia knew it. Obviously since she was the one who told her to begin with.
"Inoue-San, did you want to combine your Shun Shun Rikka with your zanpakutou? It would be a lot easier for you to use kido and your healing powers if they were connected since your hair pins do resemble a zanpakutou."
"Would I lose the hair pins?" That's all she wanted to know. They had sentimental value and she didn't want to lose them since it was the only gift she had from Sora. Aside from the shrine of him in her house.
"Of course not! All we do is put them on top of your blade. They'll sink in for a moment to release the powers within them. Once all the connections to your powers are out of the hair clips, they'll pop back out and you'll be able to keep them." Kisuke grinned.
"Alright then. Can we do it now?" Orihime asked anxiously.
"Of course! Just summon your zanpakutou and then place your hair clips onto the blade. One has to be on the tip while the other stays near the hilt."
Orihime stood up and transformed into a Shinigami. She then extended her hand out getting ready to release her zanpakutou. Everyone moved out of the way so they wouldn't get hit by the blade.
"Shine, ShiroRyuu." She called out as the blade appeared once again in front of everyone's eyes. The blade was still attached to her hand and she carefully laid it on the table. She then lifted her hands to grab at the hair clips that stayed at the sides of her head. She unclasped them, letting her bangs fall in front of her face and placed one on the tip of ShiroRyuu. She then placed the other one at the back where the hilt was.
Everyone watched as the hair clips sank into the blade. They saw ripples of blue covering the entire zanpakutou. It transformed the blade into a marble blue colour. It still shimmered due to the silver that was mixed in there as well. After what seemed like eternity, the pins popped out of their places and landed in their owners hands. Orihime quickly slid them back to secure her fallen bangs.
"Wow that didn't take long. I thought it would definitely take at least an hour or so." Renji commented.
"I guess it was because Orihime was concentrating on her powers. I mean it may not have looked that way, but she was staring at the blade so I guess you can say she was focused. But whatever. I'm just glad that it worked out. Besides now she doesn't have to worry about having two different weapons. She can just focus on her zanpakutou skills and such. So it's all good now." Tia added.
"Yeah at least I don't have to worry about Tsubaki being killed or anything. Like last time. I thought he was really gone but I guess ShiroRyuu healed him for me." Orihime looked down at her blade. She grasped it and flipped it over to look at all of her blade.
"So when does the training start anyways Tia-Dono?" Rukia asked.
"Well, we have to wait until Yoruichi comes back and tells us that the field has been prepared for fighting. So we have to wait until then I guess. Although I am getting restless just sitting her doing nothing. I've been doing that a lot lately. So it gets really annoying when you still have to do it for god knows how long. But I'm glad that my sister is alright." Tia grinned.
"I'm glad that you're back Tia-Dono. Things haven't been the same without you there to guide me and Renji through the hard times. I really did miss you though." Rukia smiled sadly.
"Well, I'm back now so no need to fret over the past. I'm just glad that you weren't executed and that Ichigo saved you with everyone's help. And I'm also glad to see that everyone has been trying to keep my sister safe. As long as everyone's alive I can't complain. But I can complain about how The Soul Society acts once in a while." She smirked.
"So how's everyone holding up in Soul Society Tia-Taichou?" Toushirou asked.
"Well, Ukitake is doing some research about the Hogyoku and why Aizen took it. They're doing some research about the king's key too just to be on the safe side. He said they would contact me once they found anything. But yeah everyone seems to be doing fine. Even Byakuya. He may not show it, but he's happy that Rukia's alive. I know he is. I mean she's his only family. So I know his position since Orihime's my only family too. Oh and they're also sending Momo down to the world of the living as well." Tia replied.
"Hinamori is coming? But why? Shouldn't she be resting?" Toushirou asked frantically.
"Relax Toushirou. The reason why they are is because I asked them too. Ikkaku and Yumichika are going back and they're sending Momo down. I made a request because I noticed that she hasn't been herself and the more she stays in Soul Society, the worse her condition will get. Everything there reminds her of Aizen. So if she came here, she could probably make a fresh clean start. Besides you two need to talk about what happened when she attacked you and such. I'm not meddling but I don't want to see anyone sad anymore. Besides Momo and Orihime would probably get along quite well I think. So maybe if someone else knew her situation and understood her, she would feel much more lively. I'm doing this for her sake. Remember I'm different than most leaders. I actually care for my captains and lieutenants. If they don't feel comfortable, then I'll do everything in my power to make them feel better. Like I won't force her or anything but I just think that she needs to be away from there for a bit. Maybe see what the world of the living is like and maybe she'll snap out of her depression over her captain disappearing on her." Tia explained calmly.
"Wait, Aizen was Momo's captain? Seriously? How come I never knew that?" Ichigo asked.
"Because you're a substitute soul reaper. You were once deemed an enemy to Seireitei remember? Not that I'm agreeing with them to begin with. What they did was wrong. Especially when I was gone. I don't remember actually making that law stating that soul reapers couldn't give their powers to humans. Plus I knew you were already a Shinigami just by seeing you break a kido. Well, the one Rukia put on you. And before you ask, yes I saw the whole thing. I watched over you silently. I needed to because of my sister. I felt the seal was starting to break so I had to check it out and make sure. And my suspicions were correct. As soon as they broke, I had to stay away from her cause I would've awoken her powers right then and there. I didn't want her to get her Shinigami powers back so soon so I stayed far away as possible. But then I ended up meeting back with her. Which I'm glad for." Tia replied.
"I feel bad for Momo-Chan. I would probably feel depressed too if my captain disappeared. Especially if I looked up to them as a role model. I would have been totally crushed. I wouldn't know if I could go on without them. I would probably have a mental breakdown like she did and maybe even go berserk. But I mean I'm glad that he disappeared. He deserves to die! I would've killed him if I was her. But when you have a special connection to them and then you kill that person, you feel as if you should be burdened with that memory forever. You may not be able to go back to that, but you can start anew and make up for your actions. At least that's what I think." Orihime replied.
Everyone stared at her. They knew her words were true but to actually hear someone as gentle as Orihime say them, it opened up their eyes to a new and different Orihime. One that was confident but protective too. Then again, they knew that she might change due to having these powers. But she shouldn't let them go to her head. At least they hoped that they wouldn't go to her head.
Just then Orihime felt something different. Something sinister but calming inside her. She didn't know what it was but she hoped that it wasn't something serious. Tia looked at her sister. Man this isn't good. I have a feeling the worse is about to come.
Meanwhile, Yoruichi had found the field perfect for the training.
This is perfect. Time to get to work.
A/N: So what did you think? Pretty good huh? Jeez I love cliffhangers! I guess it's because they give me inspiration to write the next chapter. They also help plan the next chapter. Which I'm glad for! *Phew*
Don't worry! It will revolve around Orihime more! And there will be some HitsuHina in here! Just because I think they're an adorable couple too! RenRuki will be in here too. But it will take some time to get them together obviously. ^^
What does Tia mean by the worse has yet to come? What is happening inside of Orihime? What will become of her Shinigami powers? Is this sinister presence something that will change everything? You'll have to find out in future chapters!
Anyways Hope you liked this chapter! Please Review! :3
~Tia-Chan~