Chapter 7: Broken World
(Thanks so much to reviewers ActuallyNevis, D-Chan, XDarkerXDesireX, Alabirdie, OverPowered, Ren-Renji, HimenoSakura90, Hieizzz, Princess Moon Shadow, BunnyHopster26, Roisin Ichimaru, Cherry Pinup 42, Walkure (So sorry about your hair! LOL), Liqiu03, Cori07, Niacy, Liv2luv (Yup, I love sending readers into fits. I love stories that make me yell, scream and throw fits! LOL), Manga-fanficfan, Meggels, DragonPrincess01 (So glad I tickled your funny bone!), Kami-no-Namida (Hmmm, not sure yet how long it will be, but there are two parts, so I think long!), Autheane, BrittanySachikoKuchikiUkitake, Sakasandora, StephanieRie, Mina Kye, Firebirdever and Love Psycho! You guys are the absolute greatest! Spunky love ya'! Ah, and don't worry, although Bya and Renji get put off of explanations for a little bit, they are on the way. Just have some plot business to see to first!)
"Captain, is...everything okay?"
Byakuya climbed to his feet.
"Captain?" Renji said, watching with spellbound eyes as Byakuya crossed the room and dragged him to his feet.
Renji's heart stopped in his chest and his legs nearly collapsed as the captain he was head over heels in love with grabbed the front of his shihakushou and crashed their lips together in a mind numbingly beautiful kiss.
He felt his back hit the wall and groaned as the shock of it blended dizzyingly with the sudden pleasure of having his mouth forcefully invaded by the man he'd been wishing would kiss him for ages. His senses were overwhelmed with the lovely scent of sakura, the flashes of steely gray eyes locked on his, the crisp, black shihakushou, the surprisingly soft haori, and the silken brush of the windflower scarf he wore. The kiss seemed to go on forever, making Renji's body go weak as much from lack of oxygen as from being kissed. But finally, Byakuya released him, and the stunned redhead slid down the wall and landed in a heap on the floor, shaking his head and taking a long dragging breath. He looked up at the noble, who stared back at him with wide, intense eyes.
Renji panted for a moment, his head spinning as he got his bearings and gathered himself to speak.
"C-captain!" he gasped, still panting softly, "What? What in the hell was that about?"
It was then that he noticed that Byakuya's hand had fallen to the weapon at his hip.
"What the fuck is wrong with you?" he went on, sudden fear exiting his body as a flash of anger, "Were you trying to give me a heart attack?"
"Something isn't right about you," the noble said firmly, "I can feel it!"
"Oh," said the redhead, sarcastically, "Something isn't right about me? What about you? You just asked me if it was okay that you're dating my sister! You told me that you kissed her, for kami's sake! I gave you my blessing. I didn't do anything to lead you on."
"No," said Byakuya, "you did not. That is not why I kissed you."
"Ah," said Renji, beginning to catch his breath and feeling a harder swell of anger, "So, while you're on the subject, why the hell did you kiss me? If it wasn't that you sensed I wanted you to..."
"I was confused," the noble began.
He stopped as the squad room alert signal sounded, and a voice rose up on the loudspeaker.
Code red alert...code red alert...Base three, Hueco Mundo under seige...I repeat...Base three, Hueco Mundo under seige...Squad eleven, report to base three immediately. Squads four and six coordinate for relief duty.
Byakuya gave Renji a stern look.
"Remain here. I will see to this."
"Whoa, wait a sec!" Renji objected, "What do you mean, stay here? There's no way in hell you're going without me."
"I told you. I sensed..."
"I'm fine, Captain. And you know damned well, there's no one here at the base right now as qualified to back you up as me."
"But you are..."
"I told you, I'm fine. Please, Captain! There is...something kinda weird going on, but it isn't anything that will keep me from doing my job. I swear, I'll tell you when I get back. Just..."
Byakuya gave him a guarded look
"Very well," he said tersely, "But when we return, you are to explain exactly what is going on with you and Wren!"
"Fine!" Renji said, grabbing his zanpakutou and following the noble out the door.
Within moments, their group was assembled and on the way to the fourth division to meet the relief team. Captain Unohana and Vice Captain Kotetsu met them in the gathering area just outside the healing center.
"We are ready," she told Byakuya.
The noble nodded and motioned for his fighters to take up protective positions around the healers. The group broke into a run and headed for the crossover point, arriving there in a matter of minutes.
"There are likely to be many injured," said Captain Unohana, as they ran.
"Yes," agreed Byakuya, "If not from the attack on the base itself, from the fact that the eleventh was sent in to handle things."
"Hmmm," said the healer, smiling and shaking her head, "They do seem to go in headlong and without much strategy, but they are very intense fighters."
Byakuya made a non-committal sound and continued to lead the group on. They reached the crossover point and passed through the precipice world. As they ran, the kido specialists began preparatory incantations and the core fighting group drew their swords. They emerged from the precipice world, entering the base to find it overrun and teeming with fighting shinigamis and hollows. Byakuya ordered the healers back into the doorway and left a group of guards as the rest of the fighters set themselves and began an assault on the attacking hollows.
"It looks like they got in because of numbers!" yelled Renji, "but they're gonna lose that advantage right now!"
Byakuya nodded and surged forward with a group of fighters, loosing a wave of petals to give the fighters room to move. Renji's group set themselves up just behind their captain's, sending a hail of kido to clear the path to the eleventh division and base forces that were already heavily involved. Behind them, the healers emerged from cover and ran to the fallen fighters in the secured area, as the sixth division forces advanced.
Byakuya flash stepped to a bridge, overlooking the fighters and sent his petal blades arcing around the defensive fighters ahead of him.
"Ban kai," he said calmly, "Scatter, Senbonzakura Kageyoshi."
A larger swell of petal blades roared downward and spun between the fighters, striking numerous hollows and giving the weary fighters time to gather themselves. Renji reached the bridge and stood at the near end, sending the shield group to spread out along the span. They began their incantations and slowly raised a protective shield over the fighters below them to keep flighted hollows from making strafing runs over them. Captain and vice captain watched carefully, protecting the shield holders and launching protective fire to defend the fighters below them. Renji tensed as he spotted a weakening in the defensive lines, where hollows looked to be on the verge of pushing through. He drew Zabimaru.
"Ban kai, Hihio Zabimaru!" he cried.
To his astonishment, nothing happened.
Shit!
He shifted seamlessly to kido, raking the hollows with blazing red fireballs and forcing them back.
What the hell is wrong with you guys! he thought, reaching out with his mind to connect with his zanpakutou.
A shiver went through him as he felt only silence in return. He looked down at his weapon and felt that there was reiatsu in the blade.
Damn it! Then, maybe the problem isn't with them. Maybe the problem is with me! I wonder if it is an effect of...
A heavy rumble that shook the bridge, dragged Renji out of his thoughts, and he saw Byakuya grab the railing to steady himself. The next moment, ceros pounded the base of the structure, passing beneath the shielding and destabilizing the structure beneath the shield holders. Immediately, Byakuya used the force of his spiritual pressure to keep the bridge from breaking apart as it sank downward.
"Don't drop the shield!" Renji shouted at the shield holders, "Whatever you fucking do, don't...!"
He broke off as four menos grande broke through the fighters in front of them and took aim on the slowly descending bridge.
"Fall back!" Renji ordered the shield holders, "Captain and I will cover you!"
As though connected, Renji and Byakuya sent a punishing hail of kido fire into the menos, giving the shield holders a chance to flash step away from the crumbling bridge. Renji met Byakuya's eyes and the noble nodded his approval for them to fall back. Renji flash stepped down, then fired protective kido as Byakuya followed. But as the noble landed, the remnants of the bridge that he had been restraining, crashed down, and to their surprise, exploded. A moment later, a group of flighted hollows soared overhead, raining cero fire and stones down on the retreating fighters, then sweeping down to attack with teeth and claws. Renji's heart froze as Byakuya flash stepped clear of the exploding bridge, but disappeared into a cloud of hollows.
"Damn it!" he screamed, "Hado number 31, Shakkahou!"
He flash stepped almost as fast as his kido blasts flew, and arrived at Byakuya's side as the noble's legs gave way beneath him. The shield holders set themselves in front of the two and raised their shielding again, giving Renji time to drag the injured noble out of the fighting zone.
His heart ached to remain at his captain's side but he knew better than to leave their squad leaderless. So, he turned Byakuya over to the healers and flash stepped back to the fighting zone. He noted, with relief, that the shield holders had taken up position in the base's watchtowers, and were, once again, covering the hand to hand fighters and kido groups as they fought. Renji ascended one of the watchtowers and observed the fighting, holding his own power in reserve in case anything else broke through.
The lull in activity gave him time to think about what had happened. He placed a hand on the hilt of his sword and reached out with his senses again. And again, he could sense that there was, indeed, reiatsu in the sword, but no matter how he tried, he could not connect with the spirit in the blade.
It's so strange, he mused, Because I didn't feel any change in my reiatsu or Zabimaru's, it didn't even occur to me to think that what happened to me could have affected my connection with my zanpakutou. I need to see Kisuke to tell him about this. I can still fight, but I'll be a lot less effective as long as I can't use my zanpakutou. Shit, and if anyone here finds out, I'll be out of the Gotei 13. You can't be a shinigami if you can't connect with your zanpakutou. But...there's got to be a way to fix this.
He glanced back at where Captain Unohana leaned over Byakuya, who looked to still be unconscious.
I wonder if he saw. I'll have a hell of a time explaining if he did. I don't want to think about what will happen if...
He forced himself to focus his attention firmly on the battle to push down the feeling of panic that was rising up inside him.
There's a way to fix this. There has to be. Kisuke will think of something. The guy's a freaking genius. And no shinigami knows more about hollows and their weird effects than he does.
He gave a sigh of relief as the battle wound down and the hollows finally retreated. Renji left guards on duty and flash stepped back to where the injured fighters were being prepared for evacuation to the Seireitei. He approached Captain Unohana as a group of healers lifted the stretcher Byakuya laid on, and prepared to carry him into the precipice world.
"Is he going to be okay?" he asked the healer worriedly, "He got pretty banged up."
"He was lucky that you were near enough to come to his aid so quickly," commented the healer, "You are to be commended for making sure that the damage he took was minimal. He will be fine with some rest and a reiatsu infusion."
"That's good," Renji sighed, "Thanks, Captain Unohana."
Renji watched as Byakuya was carried away, then returned to where the sixth division forces were gathered and waiting. They waited in the staging area until another group of relief fighters arrived to watch over the base as repairs were done, then he led the sixth division forces through the precipice world and back into the Seireitei. As much as he hated to delay going to Byakuya's side, he returned to the division office and first made sure that things were in order and the proper reports were filed. After he finished, he hurried off to the fourth division.
He was surprised to find that, not only was Byakuya awake, but Rukia and Wren were already at his bedside.
"Wow," he commented, "Word gets around fast."
"No thanks to you, baka," Rukia said, frowning, "You know, you could have sent a hell butterfly."
"I was busy making sure that we got our asses outta there in one piece!" Renji objected, "And then, someone had to make sure that the reports got filed."
"Renji is right," Byakuya said, "And even if he wasn't, I am in his debt for stepping in and assisting me. So leave off insulting him."
Byakuya paused for a moment, then met Renji's eyes.
"Rukia," he said quietly, "You and Wren should go back to the manor and have something to eat."
"Oh, we can find something around here," said Rukia, "Come on, Wren. Do you guys want me to bring something back for you?"
"I am fine," said Byakuya, shaking his head.
"Nothing for me either," said Renji.
The two men watched as the women left the room, then Renji felt Byakuya's eyes touch on him.
"Abarai," he said, making a jolt of uncertainty pass through the redhead, "I wanted to have a word with you privately."
Shoot...
About the kiss?
Or about my zanpakutou?
I don't suppose another hollow attack's going to put this off any longer, so I might as well get it over with.
"Yeah, okay," he answered, bracing himself.
He caught his breath in surprise as the door opened and Hanatarou entered the room.
"Hello, Captain Kuchiki," the healer said, smiling, "Captain Unohana has asked me to run another set of tests, so I'll need to borrow you for a while."
"Oh, very well," sighed the noble.
He gave Renji a meaningful look.
"We will continue our discussion when I return."
"Oh," said Renji, "It's gonna have to wait...just for a bit. I, uh...promised Kisuke I would meet him to talk about our next set of deployments in Karakura Town."
"That does need to get done with due haste," agreed the noble, "But I expect you will report to me upon your return, Abarai."
"Yes, of course, sir," Renji said, groaning inwardly.
This is all kinds of not good...
He couldn't escape the healing center fast enough, but flash stepped outside and found Wren standing on the steps outside the healing center, as though waiting.
Oh great. She probably sensed that kiss Captain gave me and is going to bust my chops for it...
"Renji?" she said, wringing her hands together, "I need to talk to you."
"Look, about that kiss..."
"Oh," the girl said, blushing, "I told you. It was really just an impulse thing. And as much as I liked it, I felt kind of bad. You were right. We don't know what's going to happen. I'm probably just going to be put back together with you, at some point, so...it's best not to get too involved. I understand."
Whoa...hold on a sec! She didn't sense us kissing? Does that mean that I can sense what she does, but she can't sense what I do?
"Look," Renji said, taking her hand, "It's okay. But...you and I have to go to Karakura Town. We need to see Kisuke about this. I have some more questions, and I think he'll want to run some tests on both of us."
"Well," said the girl, "All right. But we can't be away too long. I want to visit with Byakuya."
"Yeah, all right," said Renji, "We'll make it a quick trip. I just want Kisuke to be able to get a handle on what's up with us."
Wren nodded and fell in next to him, as they walked to the central senkaimon. They started to enter the precipice world, but Wren stopped short and made a sound of dismay.
"What's wrong?" Renji asked quickly.
"I don't know!" the girl said, wide-eyed, "I can't go in!"
Renji frowned and stepped out of the doorway. He stood in front of Wren and scanned her body carefully.
"Damn!" he mused.
"What's wrong?" Wren asked.
"What's wrong is that your reiatsu isn't sufficient for you to pass through!"
He studied her again for several minutes.
"Can you make a kido ball?" he asked, "You know how it's done, because I do."
"Okay," the girl said, cupping her hands and trying to make the kido ball appear.
The two stared as nothing formed. Renji shook his head in confusion.
"This just gets stranger and stranger," he said, shaking his head, "Come on. We'll go and get you a mod soul so that you can pass through."
"What does all of this mean, Renji?" Wren said, looking unnerved.
"I don't know," the redhead admitted, taking Wren's hands, "But I promise you. We're gonna find out, and everything will be okay."
Wren gave him a look of even greater uncertainty, but nodded briefly. She followed him quietly back to the Seireitei gates, a silent shadow on his heels.
