A.N: Apologies for any spelling errors, or just plain wrong or missing word(s), I don't own Bleach, obviously. Don't forget to review…
Set around the same time as the previous 2chapters just later at night i suppose...nehu onwards
Thank You
Chapter 2; 4th Part – Quincy
Ulquiorra landed lightly upon the bedroom balcony, the doors were wide open, the silk curtains swaying in the chilly breeze, the waning moon shadowing his figure. He entered silently, his footsteps mere whispers in the deep night, he edged deeper into the room, the figure - his incentive for visiting at such a time – slumbered in the warmth the heavy blankets bestowed, shadowed also but by the hazed canopy that afforded as the only defence. His reiatsu non-existent, if not for the soft chilled cloud of his breath, his presence would have been invisible. He drew even closer to the head of the bed, a hand silently, so silently extracting itself from the pocket of his pants to part the canopy film.
The sharp ring of metal cutting through air startled him frozen, too fast for even his reflexes, against his throat pressed the sharp blade of a zanpakuto, its pure beauty glowing in the shadowed darkness of the room illuminating his features and the startling emerald of his eyes.
"Brother," the grip upon the weapon loosened; Ulquiorra dropped to his knees, his head bowed
"Kisshōten-sama," he answered, almost in apology, almost
The ruffling of blankets broke the eeriness of the night; the figure rose from the bed, zanpakuto still in hand, passing Ulquiorra and moving towards the open balcony doors. Ulquiorra turned and watched; Kisshōten-sama stood just out of reach from the moonlight washed upon the balcony, the glowing zanpakuto clasped tightly, the pressure it enforced in the room was gravity defying, pressing down on every one of his muscles forcing him to draw out some of his reiatsu to keep himself from buckling. After a long moment the zanpakuto was finally sealed, Ulquiorra took this as the cue to speak but Kisshōten turned back around and so he held his tongue.
"Tsch…one day Anrui, you will address me properly as a younger brother should and not like a…a servant. Was it necessary to see me at such a time, little brother or not, this better be good," even in the darkness Ulquiorra could note the startling emerald eyes so like his own.
"Ishida-sama informed me earlier today of the plans in regards to the meeting with the Kuchiki Captain. I have not been able to understand the purpose, pretending to be you will serve to no advantage, as Matsuyukisou our faces are shielded there is therefore no logic."
"None that you can see, little brother. You will do as ordered, it is not that great a fallacy; you are a Kisshōten therefore"
"But I am not"
"An Arrancar anymore," interrupted Kisshōten-sama, "so stop acting like you have not yet mastered all your faculties. You will attend the meeting with the Kuchiki Captain, you will neither confirm nor deny your position as 'Kisshōten-sama', you will listen to his plea and then confirm to him that our mission, our target will remain so."
"There is no logic in this mission, we will gain nothing by killing Rukia; she is just,"
"The Key" interrupted Kisshōten-sama again. "In order to flush out Aizen before he has prepared another army, he must assume that it is safe for his appearance. That can only be achieved if he believes his main enemy is disadvantaged, the girl is the key to that; her execution fractured Soul Society before, it can do so again."
"This order is only to draw out Aizen"
"Yes. The humans have not been informed that the girl is the real and only target, they will learn of that eventually, as will the Gotei 13, Kuchiki will, no doubt, not stand by and allow for such an execution and besides the humans others within the Gotei 13 will also side with him against us. The Gotei 13 will be fractured, Aizen will take advantage of that, thus the reason we are all present within this town."
"So this order is just a scam"
"No of course not, she will be killed regardless of the Aizen ordeal. She is the target, as ordered"
"There is no logic to do so…Kisshōten-sama"
"She has broken many laws, little brother, and will be dealt with accordingly. She is the order; as a Kisshōten and the future King you"
"I am not…" interrupted Ulquiorra
"…an Arrancar anymore," interrupted Kisshōten-sama coldly ignoring Ulquiorra's attempt again to deny himself a true Kisshōten, "you are Lord Ulquiorra Anrui Kissh ōten of the Matsuyukisou, heir-apparent to the Quincy throne." She will be you first mission brother; I have already informed the Elders and the others, you and you alone will deliver the 'killing blow' to Rukia Kuchiki."
Ulquiorra had no plans of allowing this order to carry through, let alone by his own hands, "I never raise my zanpakuto against…trash unworthy to be killed," he gave in reply
"Very good little brother," he was answered with a smile, a chilling smile, "for you will not 'kill' her with your zanpakuto; you will destroy her with your shinzui-yumi. Keep in mind little brother; all targets are destroyed by bow never killed by our zanpakuto. The zanpakuto is merely an advantage in skill and power to us; we are not like shinigami, no order is 'cleansed'. You will destroy her soul little brother that is your order."
Ulquiorra stood silent in the darkness; the sharp ring of metal ripping through air, this time, forced his instincts to move him. Kisshōten-sama's zanpakuto, re-released came crashing down where he stood, it swiped out against him again, "Release, little brother. We are both awake we might as well train, you needn't worry about detection the stones of this house quash reiatsu from outside detection. Release, little brother, I will not hesitate to force you."
Ulquiorra quickly dodged again as Kisshōten swiped closer, "Bind, Mur"
"Wrong!" called out Kisshōten loudly, the blade swinging closely and just nicking Ulquiorra's neck, "Release, little brother, I will not ask again." Ulquiorra jumped away, landing on the opposite side of the room, "don't tell me you've forgotten the call, little brother," taunted Kisshōten-sama moving instantly to his side, the zanpakuto handle punched into Ulquiorra's stomach, making him cough blood, "RELEASE!" commanded Kisshōten-sama again
"Bound in Demon Blood," intoned Ulquiorra dodging a swipe to his neck. "Breathe into my arrows," he continued moving away again from a blast sent his way, the pillows of the bed exploded into a snowfall of feathers, "and Shadow my bow," he moved back from another blow but was caught by a deep cut across his back, he gritted his teeth quelling the urge to cry out. The pain was nothing new but it was the icy jolt of fire searing at the wound bringing to mind every other moment of pain he has every felt before, a trait of Kisshōten's zanpakuto. Ulquiorra leant against the wall, his vision clouding with pain of the present and past, his breath ragged his body breaking out in cold sweat from the onslaught, he gritted his teeth and called out clear and chillingly, "Gisei kara Tamashi "
A flash of bright colourless light engulfed the room until finally clearing as if never occurring, "Tsch…about time little brother. I don't quite like that little light show of yours. Shall we get started then," Ulquiorra merely stared back coldly, he could still feel the pain from the wound in his back which his regeneration was not healing as quickly as it ought to, his mind was still faintly buzzing with the pain from past battles. "Let's begin then, Gisei no Tamashi" Kisshōten's deathly glowing zanpakuto transforming instantly into the shinzui-yumi
The curse and gift of the Kisshōten family, every Kisshōten possessed the same shinzui-yumi and zanpakuto, Gisei no Tamashi, the same soul for either soul weapon. Every Kisshōten received his shinzui-yumi/zanpakuto from the previous Kisshōten – father, grandfather; Ulquiorra was no different, receiving his shinzui-yumi from Kisshōten-sama.
He had not understand at first how two different soul weapons could be of one spiritual soul, he could not understand how every Kisshōten could possess the same spiritual soul. Even amongst shinigami, family members always had different zanpakuto, complementary maybe, but never exactly the same, never the same. Not until Kisshōten-sama had given him his shinzui-yumi, he had assumed like his previous knowledge on Quincy, that his Quincy cross would be devised by himself, however instead he was given the broken half of Kisshōten-sama's shinzui-yumi, once upon him it had reformed to one whole piece, and Kisshōten's had also repaired. This was the method of the Kisshōten family; this was the method of all of the noble eight of the Matsuyukisou; a curse and a gift.
Ulquiorra lay upon the ruined bed buried in ripped fabric and the white feathers that were once the cushioning in the pillows. He was panting, but in silence, despite the screaming pain his body was in, he kept silent, kept his expression neutral…blank…emotionless. Regardless of the turmoil his body and mind was in, he would not let such weakness show, he would not even acknowledge its existence within him. The canopy was ripped apart, and like the ceiling, it was splattered with blood…his own blood.
"You are an Idiot, little brother, it is no wonder you are being punished" said Kisshōten-sama simply.
Ulquiorra turned his head towards the voice; Kisshōten-sama stood looking over him, Gisei no Tamashi released and pulsating with such pressure that it was furthering Ulquiorra's discomfort. His own shinzui-yumi, Gisei kara Tamashi is the complement of Gisei no Tamashi. Like all Matsuyukisou shinzui-yumi the upper-limb was longer than the lower-limb, extending far above his own height likethe bows used in the sport Kyudo except the limbs of his spirit-bow were blade-like, pitch black like that of his zanpakuto unlike Kisshōten's which was a pure crystal-clear color, like ice or diamonds.
Gisei no Tamashi sealed away, Ulquiorra was finally relieved from the pressure of its reiatsu looked up into Kisshōten-sama's eyes. Kisshōten looked back, but not truly at him, with a look of deep melancholy.
Ulquiorra now understood the expression of describing one's eyes as the windows to the soul. He did not like the melancholy he could see in Kisshōten's soul, it's cause deeper than the injuries given to Ulquiorra; a melancholy ingrained, sewed into the fabric of Kisshōten-sama's soul. Ulquiorra turned away, unable to stand such a sight, he stared absently at the ceiling stained with the dark red of his ink. "Punished?"
"For one of logic and reason, how could you not have seen?" answered Kisshōten. Ulquiorra continued to stare absently at the wall, ignoring the pain that seemed to intensify in his body and soul. Kisshōten-sama sighed, sitting down upon the edge of the bed. Ulquiorra finally turned his head back, feeling safe to stare at Kisshōten's back instead. "You have been ignoring your shinzui-yumi, little brother. It has been calling to you and yet this is only the second time you have released it. You mask your pain and struggle well little brother, but I know you too well. My Gisei no Tamashi affects you more that it should, your own kara Tamashi was not performing as well as it can. You spelt too much time back home training with Tomoya using your Murciélago. What is it about your shinzui-yumi that scares you?"
"I am not afraid," answered Ulquiorra hoisting himself off the bed and towards the balcony door, avoiding the watchful eyes of Kisshōten-sama. "It does not respond to me well because I am not a"
"Don't start that again, Anrui," warned Kisshōten coldly, "We have been through this you"
"Interrupting me every few moments does not settle the situation, nor does ignorantly enforcing an order I have no desire to fulfil," interrupted Ulquiorra quickly, turning back towards Kisshōten-sama who was still seated upon the bed, his eyes were turned into the darkness of the room and not upon Kisshōten.
"There is no place for desire in the Matsuyukisou, little brother," answered Kisshōten-sama tiredly, "not anymore…too many times has it led to ruins"
"Rukia is"
"ENOUGH!" bellowed Kisshōten, "Enough," continued in a tired whisper, "…I cannot withdraw the order little brother, the Elders will never reconsider…like your brothers, I am bound to orders. There is no hope for change…do not attempt a battle you have no hope of winning"
Ulquiorra turned back around, staring out at the night the was waiting to engulf him. Kisshōten was powerless against an order as was his other brothers, the Elders held all the power. "There is no logic in killing her," he spoke quietly, as if to himself
"There is no logic in protecting her," answered Kisshōten simply, a whisper upon the night chill. A warm hand pressed lightly into Ulquiorra's back, causing a searing pain to consume his body instantly sealing his wounds and broken bloods vessels. "Goodnight little brother," came the whisper to his ear before a blinding light appeared on the floor of his feet.
In the blink of an eye Ulquiorra found himself at the door of the sanctuary bordering Karakura Town where he resided with the twins, Hikari, Zora, Ashido, and Grimmjaw.
Grimmjaw pushed himself away from the door, hiding his shock of Ulquiorra appearing suddenly in front of him, the receding patterned glow upon the ground informing him of another transportation spell. He stood for a bit just looking at him; Ulquiorra was dishevelled in more so than from the fight with the twins early on that day, his clothes were tattered and stained with blood though he appeared to not be injured. Grimmjaw though understood the blood was Ulquiorra's own, despite the lack of visible injuries, Ulquiorra stance was weaker somewhat as if he had been ripped from his body and then forced back in. He understood what this meant, "You went to see Kisshōten-sama," he spoke stepping closer towards him, throwing the remnants of his cigar to the ground.
Ulquiorra looked up, momentarily lost at the appearance of Grimmjaw, though he hid it well, "we trained…with our shinzui-yumi" answered Ulquiorra, with a deadened tone, more so than usual.
He paused and then his eyes closed and he was falling, almost slowly forward, instinctively Grimmjaw shunpo'd forward to catch him, swearing under his breath he slung an arm over his shoulder as he clutched the unconscious Ulquiorra around the waist and shunpo'd inside the sanctuary.
"HIIIKAAARRRIIII!" he bellowed loudly, moving towards the lounge. Uncomfortable with his proximity to Ulquiorra, more due to the Quincy cross Ulquiorra bore around his neck, its pulsating iciness making even his soul uncomfortable.
He busted through the doors of the lounge, meeting instantly with Ashido Kano and Zora.
"Kisshōten-kun!" "Ulquiorra!"
"What happened?" they both asked at once, as they cleared off the pillows from a couch-bed, adjusting it for Grimmjaw to lay him down. Ashido ripped after the remnants of Ulquiorra's shirt to ascertain whether internal bleeding was the cause.
The soft glow of Ulquiorra's Quincy Cross halted then all, as if hypnotizing them with the power it pulsated with. Ulquiorra's Quincy Cross, like that of all Kisshōten's resembled a snowflake, but of eight points, hung from a silver chain that looked like a thread of a blade. The crystal whiteness of the snowflake Quincy cross made it appear like a real snowflake in its fragility and yet with a toughness as if of pure diamond. They knew better though, they knew that it was made of pure pressurized reishii formed originally just over 2000 years before by the first Kisshōten Quincy, Anrui. Though the Matsuyukisou had only discovered the name of their shinzui-yumi 200years prior, they had been passing down their Quincy 'cross' since the first ever Quincy's.
Despair gripped their souls the moment of its revealing, clawing deep, tearing at their minds drawing back all the pain and despair from the past, they desperately wanted to look away but they couldn't.
Grimmjaw found himself pushed to the floor by Hikari, who quickly grabbed a small pillow placing it over the Quincy necklace. Immediately they felt relieved, lifted from the despair, retrieved from their past. "Kisshōten?"
"Maybe, I don't think so. It's old power you know, the souls of all users before reside in his Quincy 'cross', but he's been ignoring it for the same reason of what you three just experienced, now its punishing him I guess" answered Hikari coolly
"FOR WHAT?" bellowed Grimmjaw angrily, still shaken from the experience
"For being afraid of his own soul," came the simple reply
"His own soul, but he is not a real Kisshōten though, he is just adopted," spoke Ashido
"I don't know, I guess 'cause he shares the soul of Kisshōten-sama and all the Kisshōten's before with that necklace," answered Zora this time, he draped a think quilt over Ulquiorra. "We should leave him to rest, he has no injuries, tomorrow he should be fine…right?" asked Zora turning to Hikari,
"Yes, there is nothing much we can do; he has collapsed due to the combination of the strain of his shinzui-yumi, his training with Kisshōten-sama, and probably the fight with the twins early today as well. Rest will be best, for us all…tomorrow I have a feeling will be…more trying" answered Hikari, turning and leaving he was followed by Zora.
Ashido and Grimmjaw shared a look, they grabbed a couple of blankets and crashed on the floor, more comfortable with its hardness and remaining until Ulquiorra awakened.
AN; Tite Kubo uses 'Quincy Cross' to refer to an unreleased bow regardless of its appearance (cross, pentagon, whatever)., 'no' and 'kara', 'of' the other 'from'. I only recently found out the Uryuu actually has a name for his bow, so I guess I ain't that far off. I quite enjoyed the constant interruption between the siblings, nehu REVIEW please, you know you want to! 'til next time..hopefully much sooner than my record so far AlaeaMori
