Chapter 4: Urahara's Story
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or Bleach… I probably wouldn't be here writing fan fiction if I did.
Although she was in an entirely new school, Kagome felt like she had already found a group of people to hang out with. They were a bit more active than her friends back home, but when she actually considered the facts, Eri Yuka, and Ayumi, weren't exactly known for being the life of the party. Thinking about her old friends made her miss them, but in the end she never believed for a second that anyone could ever replace her friends for the Sengoku period.
Inuyasha, Miroku, Sango, and Shippo, were the best friends that she had ever met, and she had honestly never met anyone like them… They were the most loyal and caring individuals that she had ever met, and she knew from experience that she could trust them with her life. Of course, things were different in the modern era, but the truth remained that the young priestess had never had such wonderful friends, until she had experienced the real dangers of the feudal era. It had been months since she had parted ways with them for good, but Kagome knew in her heart that no matter what happened to her, she would never forget them.
"Hey Higurashi-san… are you all right?" Orihime asked.
Despite the fact that the orange-haired girl had been sitting there the entire time, Kagome had been too busy thinking about her day to engage in conversation with her new classmate. "I'm fine, Inoue-san." She replied, giving Orihime a weak smile.
Glancing at her watch, Kagome looked up just in time to hear the school bell ringing. She watched as her fellow classmates left their seats, heading for the door in groups as they chatted excitedly with their friends about their plans for after school. Unfortunately for her, she had not really made any friends on her first day. Sure she had found a group of people to sit with at lunch, but having school buddies was much different than having real friends. Breathing a sigh of relief, Kagome began packing up her school supplies, cramming her many textbooks and writing utensils into her backpack. With a small groan, she heaved the now full book bag over her shoulders and swept wordlessly through the door.
With Ichigo
Ichigo continued his journey to the Urahara Shoten, having left school just moments ago. While he was wearing his usual grim expression, the Substitute Shinigami was determined to know exactly what was going on with that new student. As this notion crossed his mind, the orange-haired teen subconsciously quickened his pace. Rukia sped up a little to keep up with him, not bothering to raise any objections to his hasty behavior. Orihime, Chad, and Uryu followed closely behind, running to keep up with the two Shinigami in the front of the group. They continued at a moderate pace for the next few minutes, turning around the next corner and into an inconspicuous alleyway.
Moving through the gap between buildings, they arrived at a small convenience store nestled in the back of an open lot. A short red-haired child stood near the entrance to the shop, his back turned to the new arrivals as he swept the ground around the shop, muttering an odd combination of complaints and swears under his breath. A rather timid looking girl with blank eyes and dark hair tied into pigtails knelt beside him, scrubbing the floor with an old sponge, wearing a look of content as she diligently worked away. Ichigo immediately recognized them as Ginta and Ururu, the two kids who tended the shop. He approached the children, making a grim expression as he stopped a few feet away from them. "Hey kid, is Urahara here?" he asked is a gruff tone.
The redhead simply glared up at Ichigo with a defiant expression, looking slightly annoyed by the sudden interruption. "Nah, the boss went out earlier today and I don't know when he'll be back."
"Do you know where he went?" Ichigo asked, looking down at the kid.
"Why the hell should I tell you?" Ginta shouted, smirking in a cocky manner. "Besides, I'm sure that the manager has much better things to do than talk to you guys."
A vein on Ichigo's head began to throb, his temper slowly beginning to surface as he began to lose patience. "Listen kid… We just needed to ask him about something. Could you tell him that we came by when he comes back? We found something that we think might interest him."
Ginta simply nodded in an indifferent manner, turning his back to them as he headed back towards the shop. Glancing to his right, he tossed his broom at the girl sitting next to him. "Hey Ururu, I'm gonna go take a break. Finish the sweeping will ya." He added in a superior tone.
"But Tessai said that you had to do the sweeping…" Ururu replied timidly, picking up the broom and holding it out to him. "Shouldn't you do what you're told? The manager left Tessai in charge while he's gone."
"Mind you own business!" he shouted, seizing her by the hair and yanking his arm back. Ururu let out a cry of pain, but said nothing as her fellow worker pulled at her pigtails.
"Now now… that's enough horseplay for today…" came a voice from nearby. Ichigo, Rukia, Chad, Orihime, and Uryu looked towards the source of the voice, their eyes shifting to where Kisuke Urahara was standing.
The Shinigami Captain turned storeowner was standing on the roof of his shop, leaning on his walking stick in a rather bored manner. He was wearing his signature clog sandals and his large floppy hat, which cast a shadow over his scheming eyes. Although the shadow of his hat hid his face from view, the shopkeeper wore a cheerful expression. His garb was the same as usual, consisting of a long, shabby-looking overcoat, and a dingy green outfit underneath.
Leaping from the rooftop, the former Shinigami captain landed gracefully on the ground a few feet from Ichigo. "Well if it isn't Kurosaki-san and the rest of the crew. My favorite customers… What a pleasant surprise." He greeted in a welcoming tone. "So, how may I be of assistance to you fine young people today?" he asked, giving them a mocking bow.
"We came here to ask you some questions." Ichigo stated, glancing back at his friends for a second. Urahara adjusted his hat in a lazy manner. "Come inside… We can talk there." He replied, gesturing towards the shop. Ichigo nodded cooperatively, following after the shopkeeper as they entered the store.
While the place looked relatively normal, the inside inventory was relatively untouched, and many of the products and food way past their expiration date. It was perfectly understandable as to why they received very few customers. The place was located in a place where most people didn't go, and in truth, the shop was actually nothing more than a front for the clientele that Urahara catered to… mostly Shinigami spending long periods of time in the world of the living.
Moving into the back room, Urahara took a seat on one of the cushions on the floor that surrounded the low table in the center of the room. The others followed suit, taking up places around the table until they were all sitting. "Hey Tessai… Could you fetch us some tea?" Urahara called out.
As if on cue, a large, imposing man entered the room. He had a large mustache, and wore a shop apron and a pair of glasses. "Yes manager…" Tessai replied, placing ceramic cups in front of everyone and filling them with freshly brewed tea. Ichigo watched with impatience, waiting for them to finish with the formalities. After he was done, the giant man sat down on the cushion next to Urahara, folding his hands in his lap in a more reserved manner.
"Alright then…" Urahara said, taking a sip of tea as he settled down. "So Kurosaki-san, what can I do ya for?" he asked in a flamboyant tone.
Ichigo took a sip of his tea, allowing himself to think for a few moments before answering. "We need to ask you about something new that we discovered…" he replied, placing his cup back on the table.
Urahara clicked open a small fan, holding it up in front of his face for a few seconds before clicking it shut again. "No problem, young Ichigo… Ask away."
The group took a few seconds to exchange nods before Rukia finally spoke up. "It's actually quite complicated… We were wondering if you could explain a strange spiritual pressure that we sensed coming from a girl at out school. She seems normal, but possesses unusually strong spiritual powers for an ordinary human."
"I fail to see what's so complicated about that…" Urahara interrupted, looked slightly disappointed. "In my experience, humans can be spiritually aware and possess a large amount of reiatsu… Although he was able to obtain his own Shinigami powers, Kurosaki-san is just one example of many humans who fit such a description."
Rukia shook her head, not entirely thrilled at having been interrupted before she was done speaking. "That's not the only thing… There's something strange about her. She has an extremely potent spiritual pressure, yet it feels much different than anything else that any of us have ever encountered before." she added, a puzzled expression appearing on her face.
Uryu pushed his glasses back into place before he spoke. "Indeed… the feel of this girl's spiritual powers are nothing like that of a Shinigami, nor are they reminiscent of Chad's armor or Orihime's Shun Shun Rikka. I did sense some similarities with my own abilities, but I wouldn't describe her powers as a Qnincy's either…" he added in, looking just as confused as everyone else. "Quite an interesting turn of events?"
"So, do you know what's going on?" Ichigo asked, staring at Urahara in an expectant manner.
Kisuke Urahara relaxed a little bit more, inclining his head in thought for a few minutes as he considered everything concerning what they had just told him. There were a lot of ideas that he came up with, but none of them seemed to make much sense… unless… Lifting his head back up, the former Shinigami Captain removed his hat, twirling it between his fingers in a thinking gesture before and plopping it back onto his head.
"Well…" Rukia questioned, breaking the group's silence and causing the others to shift their attention back to Urahara.
"Hmmm… I wonder…" Kisuke muttered, striking a thinking pose as he thought of Uryu's description. "No… that's not possible…" he seemed to say to himself more than anyone else.
Ichigo's glared at Urahara, his own temper began to rise again. "C'mon, just tell us what's going on!" he ordered, effectively catching the store owner's attention.
Urahara simply sighed wearily, giving his visitors a rather disapproving look before answering. "I have a theory, but I'm not really sure if it's even possible. You really should be a little more patient Kurosaki-san." He replied, looking slightly bewildered. Ichigo opened his mouth to retaliate, but seen found it unnecessary.
"Enough, what is your theory?" Uryu asked, leaning forward in curiosity.
"Well, I know it sounds kinda weird, but I think your little friend from school is a priestess…" he replied, although he appeared to be equally as unsure of the entire situation as his visitors.
Although Ichigo, Chad and Orihime were not sure what to think, both Rukia and Uryu seemed to have understood his words, and from the looks on their faces they were just as surprised as Urahara was.
"That can't be… the ancient times of Monks and Shrine Maidens is long gone!" Uryu replied, looking completely aghast. "The last of their kind disappeared centuries ago."
"I would know… I was alive." Urahara replied, casting a glance towards Rukia. "I doubt you were alive, but I'm sure that the Kuchiki Family has records from those times…" he said, turning to Rukia who simply nodded in response.
Ichigo looked slightly confounded by their reactions as he attempted to understand what they were trying to say. "What the hell are you talking about?"
Urahara took another sip of tea from his cup attempting to calm his nerves a little before answering. Taking a deep breath, he began explaining. "Well, you might want to sit back, because this is actually a pretty long story." He replied, placing his cup back onto the table and settling himself into a more relaxed posture.
"Anyway, this little story I'm about to tell you goes back over 500 years from this modern era, back to the time of feudal lords, samurais, and castles. Things were kind of like Soul Society is now, only much less civilized. This was a time when people knew how to train their bodies and minds to develop spiritual awareness… While few people actually chose that path, a select group of individuals throughout Japan, and a few other lands in Asia, trained to hone their skills in these mystic arts. Through extensive, and sometimes even grueling training, humans could develop powerful spiritual abilities. These people were often referred to as monks, priests, and priestesses, some of whom were even revered as living saints, and could actually see the border between this world and the underworld." Urahara stated.
"Did these people have anything to do with slaying hollows?" Ichigo asked.
The shopkeeper paused for a moment, eventually shaking his head. "Partially perhaps… but not directly." he replied, looking unsure of the idea himself. "These people were actually aiming to expel or slay demons that inhabited the land centuries ago."
The orange-haired Shinigami looked outraged. "What a load of crap… I've seen a lot of weird things in the last months, but I know that there's no such thing as demons!" he shouted.
The banished Shinigami Captain simply raised his hand in an attempt to silence the hotheaded teenager. "There are no such thing as demons anymore…" he corrected, casting Ichigo am uncharacteristically serious expression. "Allow me to explain how that works later… but let me finish my story first."
Clearing his throat, Urahara continued telling the long tale. "Anyway… these monks and others with strong reiatsu became spiritually aware, but they did not know because to them, a hollow was just another demon from them to slay. You must remember that these people existed in an era where demons roamed free, and sometimes even dominated the lands. Those with spiritual powers believed that any monster with malicious intent was an enemy, sometimes even killing innocent demons. It didn't matter to them, because they believed that it was their duty to protect other humans by destroying all threats to humanity…"
"So what happened?" Rukia asked, her curiosity beginning to grow.
Urahara sighed again. "Well, things were fine at first, but then it all went wrong. Did you know that groups of Hollows sometimes traveled the land, following hoards of demons as they slaughtered the humans?" When no one answered, he continued. "It was because the hollows were intelligent enough to know that death followed demon attacks. By following the path of destruction created by the demons, they would quickly devour all of the souls of the fallen humans before Shinigami could arrive to perform a proper Soul Burial."
Rukia nodded. "I understand… It was a symbiotic relationship in which they both benefited from the slaughter of the living."
Kisuke Urahara returned her nod before resuming his story again. "Anyway… Many hollows were slain by monks and priestesses who saw fit to eliminate them along with the demon. Either way, there were complications for normal humans who used mortal weapons to slay demons. It's actually quite simple to explain. Ordinary humans can see demons, but only those who were spiritually aware could even hope to see the hollows, let alone slay them. Either way, lives were lost because of this.
"But what about those with power?" Orihime chimed in. Although she had been listening to the story from the very beginning, she had chosen not to say anything until now.
"That's was the issue, Shinigami, monks, and priests would not always be present during demon attacks… so the demons and the hollows continued their symbiotic cycle, ultimately devouring humans, body and soul. It was a terrible time in this world's history." He replied, looking completely undisturbed by this small piece of information. "This went on until 400 years ago when Old Man Yamamoto called upon the strength of the entire Gotei 13. The Central 46 had already taken notice of the situation. The co-existence of the demons and hollows was finally beginning to disrupt the balance of the dimensions."
"The Quincy Wars…" Uryu muttered, having heard this part of the story before.
"Precisely…" Kisuke replied with a small nod. "Anyway… by this point, demons had dwindled due to a large faction of monks and priests who had assembled armies of human soldiers. All of them banned together to eradicate the demons. The ultimately succeeded, and the threat produced by demons became much less prominent… Although one problem had ended, another had begun. The top priests and monks of this alliance realized that the strange masked demons that fed on dead souls were still quite numerous. Many of them had spoken with Shinigami, and knew the name of those creatures… Hollows… Either way, they changed their objective. The monks and priests who had gained the highest level of spiritual awareness began improving their weapons and abilities through special training in which they focused solely on destroying hollows. Thus, the first Quincys came to be…"
Uryu bowed his head slightly, remembering the crimes of his people as described by his grandfather when he was a child. Even he had to admit, the Quincys were guilty, and should have listened to the Soul Society's ruling… however unfair it may have seemed at the time.
"As Ishida-san mentioned… this once again led to the imbalance of the different worlds. You are all aware that that a Quincy's spiritual power merely destroys a hollow, rather than freeing the souls that the hollow has within, and allowing them to pass on to the Soul Society. This imbalance of souls within the worlds was the reason for the genocide of the Quincy… Thus the Gotei 13 was ordered to permanently destroy the Quincy Race." Urahara finished.
Uryu looked up at the sandal-wearing shopkeeper, his face showing very little sign of emotion. "And the clans of spiritually aware humans began to dwindle…" he stated in a low, icy tone.
Urahara cleared his throat in a professional manner, tipping his hat before he spoke again. "While it has little to do with what we were talking about, the fact remains that Quincys were actually the successors of the priests and monks from Japan's Sengoku period."
Rukia leaned forward slightly. "Still, we still don't know what to do about the girl? She constantly leaks large amounts of Spiritual Pressure, and all of that powerful reiatsu is bound to attract many hollows from Hueco Mundo…"
"And what can't just let her die…" Uryu added, a fierce expression appearing on his face as the more chivalrous aspects of his personality began to surface.
"Hmmm…" Urahara mused, striking another thinking pose. Although it took him a few minutes to decide on a solution, he had a couple of ideas in mind. "Well… the way I see it there are two possible solutions to this little problem… Neither of which will be particularly beneficial to you guys."
"Just spit it out already." Ichigo replied, his patience beginning to wane.
Urahara nodded. "If you really want to prevent her from experiencing any danger from the hollows, than you can always knock her out and remove her spiritual powers like Byakuya Kuchiki tried to do to you that fateful night that Rukia returned to Soul Society." He replied, turning to Ichigo.
The Substitute Shinigami shook his head, looking completely unsupportive of the idea. "If she has these powers, then I don't think it would be the right thing to do. Even if she isn't aware of her abilities, it wouldn't be right to attack an innocent girl."
"I didn't think you'd go for it, but it was worth a try." Urahara replied. Reaching for his cane a few feet away, the shopkeeper hoisted himself into a standing position. "Well… If you're not willing to forcibly remove her powers, than there is still the possibility of teaching her to use them properly."
"And just how do we do that!" Ichigo shouted, rising to his feet as well. "You said that the line of priests and monks is long dead… We don't know anyone that can train her properly."
If the shouting bothered him, Urahara displayed no signs of annoyance. "Calm down Ichigo… If her powers were developed enough for you to differentiate between her and any other spiritually aware human, then she probably already knows how to use them to an extent. But I'm betting that this girl doesn't realize the true extent of her reiatsu."
"What do you mean?" Uryu asked, looking hesitant.
"It's pretty simple… If she already has the abilities of a priestess, then she can learn to bring them to the next level. Centuries ago, the Quincys were the ones who learned how to use the full extent of these abilities, so I believe that this girl might be able to hone her current abilities so that she can learn Quincy battle arts…"
Ichigo raised an eyebrow in a disbelieving manner. "And how do we do that."
Urahara gave them an amused smile, pointing to Uryu who was still listening silently. "He can teach her…"
"You know I lost my powers…" Uryu replied. Although his expression was fierce, the Quincy spoke in a rather calm tone of voice, shaking his head in a solemn manner. "Not only that, but I never attained the level of a Master Quincy, and in my current condition I'm in no position to teach her anything…"
"Not entirely true…" Urahara replied. Turning his back to his visitors, he entering the dark storage room in the back of his store. The people sitting around the table remained perfectly silent while they waited or him to return, each of them wearing a puzzled expression after hearing what he had said the Uryu. Rummaging noises could be heard coming from the storage room along with a few loud crashes, but the five friends remained patient. After a few minutes, the sandal-wearing shopkeeper hobbled back through the door, his walking stick in one hand, and a box in the other. "Here we go…" he replied, laying the container on the center of the table.
Uryu simply stared at the box in a curious manner. "And what may I ask is that thing…"
The former Shinigami wore a cheerful expression as he thrust the end of his cane forward, flipping off the cover of the cardboard box. "It's exactly what you need if you plan to help this girl."
Uryu reached into the box, removing a small glove from the interior. "What is this supposed to do?" he asked, looking towards the eccentric shopkeeper in a distrustful way.
"Well… it's basically similar to that battle accessory that Mayuri Kurotsuchi sent to you during that whole Bount fiasco a while back, except this one was personally designed by me and allows the user to create a more stable power with it. While I've improved the overall functions of this version of the Quincy battle accessory, similar rules apply. The item will grant you your powers back, but the effects are limited to a certain extent, and the device will eventually fail." Urahara explained. "You don't want it failing in the middle of a fight, which is why you I wouldn't advise you to use it in battle." His words earned a nod from the young Quincy.
Urahara shook his head, looking more serious this time. "Fine… but I'll warn you a second time so you can't say that I didn't tell you. You should not use it in battle if it can be avoided… and I'm only willing to give you this device if the girl you guys were talking about actually accepts your help. If she does, you can use the weapon to train her in the Quincy arts..."
"I understand…" Uryu replied, bowing his head in respect. Reaching over the table, he grasped the small metal band and placed it into
Urahara looked around cheerfully, snapping his fan open in an energetic fashion. "Great! Now that that's settled, I have something else to discuss with you guys… The situation is getting worse in Hueco Mundo right now."
"Aizen…" Ichigo hissed in an unpleasant tone. "It has something to do with that bastard, doesn't it?" he asked, slamming his fist onto the table.
"Precisely." The shopkeeper replied. "Anyway, The Hogyoku is coming even closer to its complete awakening, and once that happens, I doubt that every Shinigami in the Seretei will be enough to stop Aizen."
"We'll just have to stop him before then…" Ichigo added, making a determined expression. "There's no way that we can let that happen… we can do this."
Urahara let out a sarcastic chuckle, which seemed oddly sinister despite the nature of the gesture. "While I do agree with you, I personally believe that this might be harder than you think. If we don't hurry, we'll soon be dealing with some pretty powerful enemies before this is over. I don't think that Aizen is powerful enough to outwardly defy the Soul Society yet, but I hear that he's assembling an army in the depths of Hueco Mundo… the world of the hollows."
"So what do we do?" Rukia asked, looking expectantly at the sandal-wearing shopkeeper.
"We really can't do much at the moment." He responded, looking slightly depressed. "I don't know what to do about it at the moment, but I can tell you this much… Aizen is planning on using the Hogyoku to remove the masks of the most powerful hollows. This process will grant them humanoid forms and powers reminiscent of Shinigami… resulting in creatures called Arrancars."
Rukia nodded. "So, do you know what to do about this?"
Urahara simply shrugged. "We'll worry about that when the time comes, but right now I suggest that you guys deal with the immediate problems that we have. You should find that girl before the hollows do… If she is really as powerful as you say, than her spiritual powers are bound to attract the hollows before long, especially in a town like this."
Ichigo hastily agreed, hoisting his backpack over his shoulders and turning towards the door. "I gotta get going. You coming?" he asked, turning back to Rukia. The petite Shinigami nodded in agreement, standing up and taking off. "Goodbye everyone…" she called, glancing back at the others before following after Ichigo.
Orihime stood up in an awkward manner, bowing in a respect. "Thank you Urahara-san." she said, picking up her bag and leaving through the front door. Chad followed her example and disappeared through the door as he they left, closely followed by Uryu.
"Good day…" Urahara replied, hastily closing the door behind them. Spinning around on his heel, the former Shinigami captain re-entered the room where the group had been talking just moments ago. Walking over to the closet, he began wrapping his cane against the door in an impatient manner. "C'mon out… I know you're in there." He shouted, reaching forward and pulling the handle.
A black cat exited through the now open door, its eyes scanning the room in a curious manner before turning to Urahara. "You do know that you could have just done that earlier." The animal replied in a deep, masculine voice.
"Snooping around again, were we, Yoruichi?" the shopkeeper replied, smirking at the cat. "You do know that you could have just came out… It's not like anyone would have cared if you were there or not."
The cat stood still its body beginning to change shape. The fur began to retract into the skin as the arms and legs became more defined. After a few moments, a beautiful, dark-skinned woman stood where the cat had been moments before. "Where's the fun in that…" she replied, smiling mischievously at her old friend. "I was just testing my stealth skills. Besides, if I don't use my skills, I'm bound to become lazy like you."
Urahara gave her a genuine smile. "Yeah, like you were any better. You basically distanced yourself from battle for the 100 years that you spent in exile." He replied, tilting his hat to the side with the end of his cane. "So… what do you think about that little discovery that those kids made today?" he asked, his voice taking on a considerably more serious tone.
"I think you basically hit it on the head when you tried to explain it. After all, I don't think you've ever been wrong." She replied, nodding her head in agreement.
"Wrong…" he replied, snapping his fan shut and tucking it away in the folds of his robes. "I've made many mistakes in my life, most of which appear to be coming back to bite me after all these years… Like I once said to you before… there'll be no growing old peacefully for the two of us." He stated, turning to face her with a small frown on his face.
The dark-skinned woman smiled in an optimistic manner. "Stop dwelling on it, because you can't single-handedly correct the mistake that you have done in life. Even so, I have a feeling that you've done more good than you give yourself credit for."
"All in the name of correcting my initial errors." Kisuke added, casting a veil of silence over the two of them for a few moments. Turing back to face her, the eccentric shopkeeper couldn't help but smile. "Oh, and by the way… It's not like I mind, but maybe you should put some clothes on before someone else walks in." He added in a casual tone. His blank expression changed into a smirk, while an almost unnoticeable flush remained hidden by the shadow of his hat.
"Sure thing…" Yoruichi replied, returning his smile. Reaching into the closet, she slipped on her usually clothing, which she had stored in his closet a few days ago. "Clothes…" she muttered in an irritated tone. Urahara smiled again as he heard this. "Same old Yoruichi…" he muttered, leaving the room to check on his shop workers.
Note to Reader: Well there you have it… Mixing two Animes can be difficult, but I tried the very best I could. I know it's probably not that great, but I'm confident that I tried the best that I could. I'm sorry if anyone doesn't like it, but I gave it a shot. So, we'll see what happens to Kagome next chapter. Please review, give me some well-rounded critiques so that I can improve the story, and know what people think of it so far. Thanks to those of you who have reviewed so far, it gives me the motivation to write faster and update faster.
