Sweet! 30 reviews for (officially) 6 chapters! I want to thank all of you who are so patient with me and my updating.. I also appreciate the love for this fic and support to keep writing. Well I want to start something for this fic that I saw in another that was so cool to me:
Soul Requiem Mailbox!
That's right, if you have a question or just want to leave a comment in the review section then I will go out of my way to respond to them in each chapter. So from this chapter on, if you want to ask a question, then I will answer them during the next chapter!
Asher Grey: Thank you so much for the love and devotion to this fic. I'm sure there are plenty of other epic fics as well but I love how you speak your mind and voice your requests. I too battle with the options of whether to update longer or faster but I find that if I play it by ear then the best work I can put out for each chapter will be produced.
Antex-The Legendary Zoroark: Yes! Finally the battles will begin indeed! I've been looking forward to this for a while now and will do my absolute best to make sure it is as detailed and exciting as possible.
pinoychick143: Yes. Soi Fon can be a royal pain but I felt that her persona and attitude makes her a perfect antagonist for this portion of the fiction. Honestly, I don't know what direction I'll be heading with her later on in the fic but I know that she will be a primary force against the heroes for a while.
Now I want to reveal the actual battles that are confirmed so far:
Atsuhiko Makihiko vs Soi Fon
Kaito Satoshi vs Kaname Tosen & Gin Ichimaru
Kasai Hasu vs Yui Hotaru
Reiko Takenaka & Akimoto Shibita vs Renji Aburai & Rangiku Matsumoto
Yuki Makuto vs Byakuya Kuchiki
and much more
Please keep in mind that some of these fights may take up a whole chapter while some others will be paired with other fights as scene breaks. How this happens is completely up to chance. I may have chapters dedicated to each fight individually so you never know lol. Well I hope you all enjoy this next chapter sooooooo
BANKAI!
Just kidding :3 Let's get on with the show.
Souls Requiem
Arc 2: Soul Society- Division
Chapter 7: Survival
After finishing off some lower leveled Shinigami, Yuki was running down different paths for one reason and one reason only.
'Rukia...' his mind raced as he searched every nook and cranny within the soul society to find her. Ever since he'd admitted his feelings for the Kuchiki girl, he longed to see her face again. He wasn't sure if it was just his heart leading him to her or if he was just trying to get some resolution between the two. 'I just had to tell the girl that I loved her..' he mentally face palmed.
He didn't have much time to think about it any further as the sound of footsteps caused him to stop dead in his tracks. He wanted to avoid any confrontation that could result in him wasting time. Without any further hesitation, Yuki turned ducked within the barracks of the seventh squad and chose to remain hidden for the time being. 'This is going to be a little difficult...' he mentally deadpanned.
'Rukia...'
Captain, Soi Fon and Third Seat, Atsuhiko stared one another down for what felt like eternity. Neither one made a single movement. This battle was too evenly matched for sloppy fighting. Everything had to be planned otherwise the other would gain a significant advantage. However, Atsuhiko was the first to break the silence.
"What is your problem with him?"
This caused Soi Fon's eyes to widen for a moment before returning to her glaring.
"You misunderstand..." she said in a low, almost inaudible voice. "I have NOTHING personal against that street mutt..."
This brought about a confused look from the Shinigami across from her. His eyes narrowed at that term.
"Then why are you so against Yuki?" he demanded. "What the hell did he do to you-?"
Before he could finish, Atsuhiko tensed as he was now surrounded by a multitude of shinigami agents and the stealth force. He was about to say another word but was cut off by the Second Squad Captain.
"She showed you two love..." she practically whispered. "...She wasted her time on dogs like you!"
Suddenly a wave of spiritual energy roared from the woman; knocking down Atsuhiko in the process. He knew that a Captain had a wealth of power but never fathomed that it would be this much. He was in trouble and he knew it. Pulling out her wakizashi she grinned maliciously and yelled out.
"Sting all enemies to death, Suzumebachi!"
He watched as her blade turned into a stinger blade attached to a gauntlet on her right hand. It was small but the young man knew not to underestimate it's powers and abilities. He was about to attack but stopped short as a few of the other soul reapers drew their swords; ready to attack if they must. He was quick, but even he couldn't avoid every blade with them surrounding him at this proximity.
"Damn.." he cursed.
"You're surrounded by my Onmitsukidō." She taunted while he regained his footing. "You can't escape-"
Suddenly, out of no where, both warriors watched in awe as the every swordsman and Onmitsukidō member was taken out seemingly at the same time.
"What the-?" he started but words just wouldn't come out.
Soi Fon, who was just as shocked as Atsuhiko, gritted her teeth in annoyance. "What trickery is this?"
"My, my..." a feminine voice echoed. "...Such attitude young lady."
Both shinigami turned to find a young woman with ebony skin and purple long hair that was tied in a ponytail. She was wearing an orange top and what appeared to be black leggings that fit her thin frame perfectly. The mysterious woman wore a smirk that suited her like fish to water and her golden eyes flashed with excitement.
"Hello, Soi Fon."
Amazement was the proper expression to use for Soi Fon's face at that moment. While she was very attractive to Atsuhiko, who had to suppress a nose bleed at this point, the second division captain had familiarity to blame for her feelings.
"Y-Yoruichi?"
Nodding, Yoruichi then turned her attention to Atsuhiko who, at that point had just barely managed to stop blushing, and grinned at him causing his efforts to be all for naught. "Who are you?" she asked with a hint of sweetness in her voice. His inability to respond resulted in a giggle from her and a death glare from Soi Fon. It was peculiar to say the least considering he heard the giggle come from directly behind him. Turning around he found that the voice, as well as the source of it, were both directly behind him.
'S-she's even more beautiful up close...' he mused as a bead of sweat fell down the side of his face.
Yoruichi flashed another smile that made Atsuhiko shake with nervousness that he'd never felt before. The thing that caught her eyes though were the duel blue pools (A/N: say that five times) staring back at her. "You!" she whispered in realization. "You're that kid from the lowest Rukon District right?" he finally snapped out of it.
"I'm Atsuhiko.." he corrected; slightly peeved with being known only for where he came from. "...and yes I grew up in the lowest part of the Rukon District. So what?"
"You saved my life." she admitted with a blush while looking away.
However, just as Atsuhiko was about to respond the shrill voice of Soi Fon broke them from their private conversation. "You dog! How DARE you speak to Lady Yoruichi like that?!" She charged with reckless abandonment. She was seeing red at this point and only wanted to see blood spilled. 'Nobody talks that way to her... NOBODY!'
Her Suzumebachi connected with something, but it wasn't the sound of flesh. It was the sound of steel...
She opened her eyes to see Atsuhiko glaring at her while defending her attack. She was no doubt amazed at his speed but was surprised at the accuracy of his defense. 'He hasn't even released his Zanpakuto yet.' she mentally marveled. "Howl, Konton no Ookami!" he roared. She flash stepped away just as he threw a swipe of his blade, narrowly missing her by mere centimeters. Unfortunately, before she could process what happened, she heard the sound of howling and a green aura emitting from what appeared to be a large scythe.
"Chi no Kiba!" he roared as the green aura slashed the ground and headed in her direction. Yuroichi watched from directly behind his frame the power that was literally oozing from him. 'I see you kept your promise after all this time..' she smirked seductively before flash stepping back into the stands.
Once Soi Fon landed, she finally had a moment to assess everything. First was the presence of Yuroichi Shihoin who has appeared almost out of no where. Second was the fact that taking her opponent lightly will result in her speedy demise. Lastly, despite that large weapon Atsuhiko wielded appearing heavy, his ability to use it quickly was similar to how fast she could use her own Zanpakuto. 'This will be troublesome, but I can beat him.' she had to believe that she was better. Hell, her status as a captain of the Thirteen Court Guard Squad was enough proof that she was a better fighter than he would or could ever be. With a cocky smirk, she watched as he hung the base of the scythe onto his shoulders with a focused expression. "You're fast." she complimented. "But it's my turn!"
Atsuhiko's eyes widened when he witnessed Soi Fon almost disappear from view. He knew exactly where she was aiming for and he needed to stop her. He shifted his body and swung his scythe downwards in an attempt to halt the attack before it could get close enough to attack but felt the undeniable pinch of a pointed object piercing his abdomen. Sensing the next attack, he pointed his weapon behind him and noticed that his opponent returned to her original spot before initiating her 'assault'.
"Gotcha..." she taunted.
Looking down he noticed a black tattooed mark that resembled a butterfly. 'What the hell?' he mentally panicked for a second.
"That is my Nigeki Kessatsu. Translated, it means Death in Two Steps." she taunted as he clutched his stomach. "With the first attack, I marked your body and when I hit you the second in the exact same spot, you'll die..." she said with sickening glee. Atsuhiko watched as her face darkened with sadistic fury. He now had to keep a close eye on protecting his abdomen or else it was all over.
Yoruichi stood atop one of the seats with a mix of excitement and concern. On one hand, here she noticed what appeared to be a sign of mental instability from her former protege. On the other hand, she watched as Atsuhiko was holding his own and appeared to be getting off some offense of his own in the process. It had been a long time since she'd seen a battle this good and she was intending to soak it all in. Her golden orbs watched intently as each swipe was narrowly avoided; as each thrust was parried. It was a close battle to say the least but knew that there was going to be a deciding factor...
Soi Fon charged in and started rained blows with her Suzumebachi but found that her opponents defense was just as fast.
'Damn...' she scolded herself. 'I guess Kyoraka taught him things other than how to be a slacker...'
She had to admit that for her to find a worthy adversary was somewhat intriguing as she ducked under a horizontal swipe of the large curved weapon. His movements were in no ways slow for someone who carried around a massive scythe. But, just as she lowered her body to the ground to strike, she felt a hand crash down on her protected right hand. She looked up to see that her movements were read. "Gotcha.." he smirked before slashing her shoulder; drawing blood instantly with the connected blow. However, before he could capitalize on the small 'victory', Soi Fon flash stepped behind him and attempted a thrust at his neck only for Atsuhiko to lean to the left at the last millisecond.
'His speed is amazing...' Yoruichi looked on with a new sense of respect for the young man but found herself soon staring with wide eyed interest at what resulted next. "Rouga!" (Wolf Fang)
Soi Fon was launched in the air from the palm strike but recovered quickly. She inspected herself only to find no markings on her body. However a faint howl echoed in her ear and soon felt a bite on her abdomen resulting in her clutching her waist. Seeing no movements from Atsuhiko, she took the moment to inspect her 'wound' and found a dark black bite mark on her waist that resembled her own attack.
"You're not the only one with a trump card, Captain Soi Fon." he flash stepped directly in front of her and watched with a bit of amusement as she flinched away from him. "My Rouga is similar to your Nigeki Kessatsu technique. The only difference is the result of death."
Time stood still for the three figures as the second division captain listened to the words pour of his mouth.
"You're technique grants it's victims a quick death..." Atsuhiko then grinned almost sadistically showing his canines. "...My techniques guarantees a slow and painful one..."
After what felt like hours to the captain, she regained her composure (along with her signature smirk).
"Then what say we finish this then?" she taunted with venom dripping with each word. "Or are you gonna chicken out, dog?"
Atsuhiko's grin only grew bigger and was now threatening to split his face. As much as he hated to admit this, he was intrigued by the outcome of what would happen should he defeat a captain of the Thirteen Court Guard Squad. He never liked getting to this point of anger and sadistic behavior but felt it necessary at this point. Nodding, the two steadied their weapons and prepared to strike what would be the deciding blow. However, this was halted by the actions of the third party.
"Shunko!"
The ending was anti-climatic but needed as Yoruichi watched the two fall down to the ground with their own sickening thuds. Fortunately, they weren't too far from the ground to begin with or the results would've been worse. Both Soi Fon and Atsuhiko looked on as the purple haired woman now was looking at both of them with a gaze that said many things. Soi Fon knew this gaze was one of disappointment and borderline shame. She trembled as the woman's gold irises pierced her to the core. When she looked at the latter of the two, he noticed embarrassment, and what appeared to be curiousity in her eyes.
"This has gone on long enough..." she spoke up as the combatants struggled but managed to get to their feet. "This is pointless and I'm declaring this a draw."
"What?!" Soi Fon's fear had now shifted to rage. "Lady Yoruichi?"
"Enough Soi Fon.." she muttered just low enough for the captain to hear.
Atsuhiko was about to ask what was going on but stopped short when she raised a hand to silence him. "I know exactly what you're thinking.. You find me familiar but don't know why.." he nodded; dumbfounded. "As Soi Fon has said on numerous occasions, my name is Yoruichi Shihoin." she then dropped the serious look for a more casual smile that in his humble opinion, suited her nicely. "...And I'm the little girl you saved in the Rukon District hundreds of years ago."
The silence in the air was nerve racking.
Atsuhiko stared with surprise etched on his face.
Soi Fon's glare intensified as a bead of sweat dropped from her temple.
Finally, Yoruichi was grinning like the cat who ate the canary.
"What?" was all he could muster up the fortitude to say.
Nodding, she walked over to him and began inspecting him closely; more specifically his face and neck. "Hmm..." This continued as she moved from one area to another eventually settling on his back. "Aha!" she said as she literally tore off the top of his Shihakushō revealing his toned torso. As his face was now a beet red, he failed to notice both women were sporting there own tiny blushes as well. Although he was lean, he was cut in all the right places. There wasn't a hint of fat to be found on his body. Soi Fon looked away, disgusted with herself for being even physically attracted to someone of lesser status than her but still couldn't manage to rid herself of the pink tint that was burning her cheeks.
Yoruichi on the other hand, made no effort to hide her blush and even voiced her approval multiple times before settling on his back. "There it is..." she whispered.
"T-there iswhat?" he stammered.
Point to what was a massive scar on his back that traveled upward and ended just past his right shoulder. "The proof of who I now know you are." she giggled before flash stepping in front of him and getting a clear view of the blush that engulfed his face. "Atsuhiko Makihiko, the boy who saved my life-" she crossed her arms as her own blushed shifted to a deeper shade of red. "More importantly, the boy who stole my heart."
TBC
Well now... I must admit, even I didn't see this coming. I originally was going to end the fight with Soi Fon and Atsuhiko own a whole different level but settled on this instead. Don't worry the fight will conclude in the next chapter and I will start on the next two battles in the same chapter. I know for sure Kasai will be taking on Yui in the next chapter but I want to here your voices as well. So when you review, I want you all to add which battle you want to see next chapter along with the one mentioned above:
Kaito Satoshi vs Gin Ichimaru & Kaname Tosen
Yuki Makuto vs Byakuya Kuchiki (yes it's happening)
Oc vs another character...
The battles I don't choose will be added in later chapter but rest assured they will be covered in this story arc nonetheless. We still have a battle with Sosuke Aizen on the horizon along with Kenpachi Zaraki who is looking for a challenge and a host of other OC's that haven't been introduced yet or just barely. I hope to hear from you all soon via review and if you want to send me feedback afterwards please rate my battle chapter. I want to write more descriptive chapters where you can understand and visualize what's going on instead of trying to figure it out. So any amount of feedback is welcomed in the reviews section.
Lastly, I want to introduce the surprise ending that caught even yours truly off guard. Yoruichi has stated that Atsuhiko stole her heart some hundreds of years ago when they were children. Don't worry, I'm working on the story for that as soon as this chapter is posted so don't worry it will all make sense. If I don't put every detail in the next chapter, I will probably write a one-shot that will cover all bases on this subject so don't worry. And yes, if you're wondering there will be a love triangle between Atsuhiko, Yoruichi, and another OC yet to be introduced so yes more romantic drama will ensue with them and other characters as the story progresses.
This is KenshinIchimaru signing off and hoping you all have a blessed and wonder day/evening.
