Note: I apologize for not updating for so long, but I got distracted, tired, and busy. I've been writing in Harry Potter and didn't feel like doing any Bleach, but now that the filler is over in the anime, I have rekindled my love for Bleach, especially as the manga starts to ramp up the action itself. I will probably update this one as often as I am able. Thanks for reading!
SPRING RAIN WASHED OVER THE SUN
by Yih
||||| First Mission |||||
"You've achieved shikai for months already and you're telling me this is your first solo mission?" Renji exclaimed a little too loudly, much to Rukia's embarassment.
"Not so loud," she said. "I'm certain that Kuchiki-taichou and Shimada-fukutaichou are just watching out for my safety, to make sure that I'm ready for the task that is assigned. Besides," she continued, sliding her eyes toward him, "you haven't started on solo missions for very long either."
"True," Renji admitted, "but I still started before you even though I haven't mastered my shikai release yet."
"I've gone on plenty of group missions, though," she added.
"With a seated officer, I'm guessing?" he said.
Rukia nodded.
"It's different going solo. You don't have someone watching your back. All you can rely on is yourself. I'll admit," Renji remarked, running his hand through his red hair, "I was terrified on my first solo. If you screw up, you could end up hurt or worse, dead. But you'll be fine. Unlike me, you're good at kido and you've got a firm grasp of your shikai."
He paused. "Just remember that your zanpakuto is powerful, but your dances are not fast attacks. You will need to position them well, although this should be a piece of cake for you. You shouldn't need to use your shikai at all. I've rarely used mine at all and never on a patrol mission."
Rukia smiled at his advice and concern for her, along with his confidence in her abilities. She poured them both another cup of sake. Tomorrow would be her first mission on her own and it was time to celebrate the passage of becoming a true shinigami.
"If I'm scared," she murmured after they had clinked their cups together, "I promise I won't tell you."
Renji rolled his eyes at her and drained his cup. "I really need to shut up around you"
Rukia stared at him with her bright eyes. "I wish you wouldn't."
She could see his quick capitulation. It was so easy to read Renji, she thought, and yet so hard to read him.
Rukia had been assigned to track a hollow that had been cleverly evading groups sent after it for the past few weeks. Shimada told her that her assignment was just to track the hollow to its base and then to alert him once she had done so as he believed the reason they hadn't been able to successfully find the hollow was because too many reiatsus were working against them.
The hollow probably wouldn't want a group of shinigamis getting close to him, but a single shinigami he probably thought he could handle. The only reason Shimada was giving her this rather assignment was because she was easily the fastest shinigami in the 6th squad other than Kuchiki-taichou. Rukia was pleased she could finally be of some use, even if it was only a tracking mission. It was still her first solo assignment.
Rukia touched the hilt of her zanpakuto. As long as Sode no Shirayuki was by her side, she had nothing to fear, even if Shimada had no idea exactly how strong this hollow was. Not that it really matter, she thought, she wasn't supposed to engage the hollow anyway.
She sighed as she continued to shunpo through the vast forest, the last location that the hollow had been reportedly spotted. She had to give the hollow this, he was at the least a pretty clever hollow, to manage to escape detection from group after group of shinigamis sent after him. Rukia came to an abrupt stop and closed her eyes, concentrating hard to detect the hollow's reiatsu.
She felt a brief change in pressure around her and her eyes flew open when she realized it was behind her. Rukia turned around and withdrew her zanpakuto at the same time, barely blocking the red tentacle that was going to slash down at her and to her complete horror, her zanpakuto shattered. The hollow laughed, his white mask opened and smiling in an obscene manner.
"You weren't expecting that were you," the hollow cried out. "Shinigamis always underestimate hollows. They always expect Metastacia to be weak because I feel weak. They don't expect me to be able to hide my reiatsu!"
Rukia was terrified as she dodged Metastacia's tentacles, thankful that she had practiced hard at shunpo in hopes of equally Byakuya-sama's prowess. She wasn't nearly as good as he was, but she was definitely faster than the hollow. Unfortunately, she wasn't fast enough. She wasn't going to be able to escape him. He was just behind her and the closest village was full of souls, but no strong shinigami. This hollow was smart. He was out in the middle of nowhere and she was either going to die here or she was going to have to defeat him.
Luckily, she thought as she gripped tightly onto the hilt of her broken zanpakuto, Sode no Shirayuki was special.
It was now or never, Rukia thought, knowing that she was tiring.
"Mai!" she shouted. "Sode no Shirayuki!"
She heard the hollow erupt in fits of laughter behind her. "Your zanpakuto's broken, you worthless shinigami!"
Rukia glanced down at her zanpakuto and the hilt had turned completely white with a gleaming ribbon floating off of it. She was reasonably certain that even though Metastacia had broken Sode no Shirayuki in its unreleased form, it shouldn't affect its shikai ability. Rukia abruptly turned around, slowly her momentum enough that Metastacia was upon her, his tentacles plunging into unprotected body as she lifted up her zanpakuto at the perfect angle and said with all her might, "San no mai, Shirafune!"
"Where is Yukino-san?" Byakuya asked, looking up from his stack of papers to where his 3rd seat was sitting in front of his desk. "I have something I wish to inform her of."
Shimada looked uncomfortable as he said haltingly, "She is on a mission."
Byakuya narrowed his eyes. "She is on a mission?"
"Yes," Shimada stated, looking down at the tatami mats. "I sent her on a mission."
"I was not aware of this mission. Who is her commanding officer?"
"No one," he said. "She is on a solo mission."
Byakuya sent his brush down and stood up from his desk. "I thought I told you explicitly that you were not to send Yukino Rukia on any solo missions."
"It's merely a tracking mission!" Shimada exclaimed. "She is far more capable than the others that I have already sent on solo fighting missions. This is simple. She is to track that hollow we've had difficulty finding on group missions and to relay its location and hideout until we get there."
"Where is she?" Byakuya demanded. "Where is she tracking this hollow?"
"In the forest outside of the 71st district of Rukongai, just below the mountains," Shimada answered. "She should be reporting—"
"You will stay here and finish the paperwork," Byakuya said, pointing at the stack of papers that were still on his desk. "I will handle the situation myself."
And with that, he was gone.
And somewhere far away, she was out there, waiting for him.
Please review!
A/N: I suppose the action scene could have been longer, but I had fun writing a succinct action scene, while trying to get where I was going as fast as possible. I'm more interested in the chapter that occurs after this rather than this chapter per se, even though this is the more action packed one.
For those that have been reading, thank you so much for your reviews. Even though this is not as popular as my other Byakuya/Rukia story, your support makes it worthwhile!
One last note, I will likely try my hand at another Byakuya/Rukia story with a different spin from what I have been doing. I may try my hand at a modern/not in Soul Society story. I wonder if that would pique any interest?
Released on June 13, 2010.