Chapter 9: 'I got the power!'
A/N: I'm sorry for everyone who is waiting for me to update anything else but I have soooo much Bleach going through my head that I have to write it before I can move on. Don't worry. I just write all I really have to and then look at my older fics. I've decided to update them next. After a long long time.
Remember to review!
CHAPTER BEGING
Three figures were standing in a middle of a rocky area. All of them were panting heavily like they had just run through hell. Their clothes were ruined. Around them, countless pieces and shards of rocks lied around them. It seemed like an army of hollows had just rampaged here.
Two of three figures were standing inside a glowing cube while the third was sitting outside, holding his hands together.
"Tessai-san, release the barrier." One of them whispered.
"Yes…" Another formed few hand sings. A glowing cube disappeared. "It's done."
Kisuke slowly sealed Benihime back to a cane and crashed down. Tessai followed suit.
"What an amazing power." He whispered and swept some sweat away.
"Are you okay, Naruto?" Kisuke asked when the last person joined them on the ground. "That was some skill you got there." He added with a forced lightness in his voice.
Narutos face was blank. "That… is my bankai."
"Yes it is." Kisuke covered his eyes with his hat. "Naruto, I have to ask you… no… as a father to order you not to ever use that against an opponent before you've mastered it."
Narutos face hadn't changed. "I… cut off your arm." He whispered shocked.
Kisuke stood up. His left arm had reduced into a blood tripping stub. "It was because of my own ignorance. Don't worry. I'm sure Hachigen-san will repair the damage in no time."
"But I didn't mean to-" Naruto became frantic. "I mean! I just lost it and-"
Kisuke appeared front of him and gently placed his one arm on his shoulders. "I know. Mastering such a high-level move as bankai takes years. Remember that only handful of shinigamis will ever reach it. Yet you manage to reach that level in three days. We all knew the risks of trying it this way and there is no one to blame." He stood up and whistled. "That was some serious power."
"But I might've-"
"Naruto, zanpakuto is a weapon. Learning Zanjutsu is learning how to kill." Kisuke said. "That is the truth."
"They said the same thing in the academy." Naruto muttered.
"Because it's true. Shinigamis zanpakuto is a mirror of their inner world. Of their soul."
"My soul is rotten to the core."
"Naruto, you told me that you never revealed your zanpakutos true nature to anyone expect Gamaken-taichou? Because you feared that they might get hurt."
"My zanpakuto was so out of control." He whispered looking around, avoiding his father's eyes. "It could do nothing but kill and destroy."
"But that was not the case and you know it, because you still kept using it until finally understood what it could really do." Kisuke smiled. "Having a zanpakuto with such bankai might give you the same impression, but it doesn't mean you should never use it."
Naruto looked up. He tried to answer to his gaze but his eyes locked themselves directly in to that bloody stump.
"It's not the nature of the power but how you use it." Kisuke said with low voice. Pain in his arm was getting excruciating but he was not going to let it show. Naruto was feeling awful already, he didn't need to make it worse. "You are the master of your zanpakuto. Not to other way around. Understand the power, use it, master it. You must trust yourself and you will pull through."
"But what if I kill you nex-"
"Don't overestimate yourself!" Kisuke laughed loudly. "I was stunned for a minute there and all you took was my arm! I was a captain in Gotei 13 once, boy! Don't think you're that strong just yet." He turned around. "Tessai-san. Could you tell Hachigen-san to come and pay us a visit, if you don't mind?"
"Of course!" Tessai rushed after Kisuke, leaving Naruto alone. "That was some skill he had there." He muttered when they were out of his hearing range. "What are we going to do, Owner? If we just allow him to use that power recklessly, it might not just be dangerous for others but for himself as well."
"Tessai-san," Kisukes eyes darkened. "what you think I should've said?"
"Eh?"
"Naruto… more has potential than I ever did. He can't be afraid of his own zanpakuto."
"But if he were to use it recklessly…" Tessai tried to argue. "He can so easily forget everything else and concentrate only on one thing. He might-"
"That's a road he must go by himself." Kisuke whispered and jumped up to the candy shop.
"What am I doing wrong?" Naruto asked himself. "I've reached my bankai. I should be able to use it perfectly by now." He watched his swords. Wakizashi and katana, stuck to the ground. "We need to talk." He whispered and started to meditate. He would find an answer to control such power. He would do it.
He found himself inside the autumn colored forest where momiji leaves floated in the air, gently pushed by the wind. He felt completely relaxed.
Then suddenly two foxes sprinted out of opposite sides to greet him. Other was golden, and the other silver. They both knocked him down when they jumped into his arms. They snuggled closer and hissed to each other when they fought for who would get closer.
Yes, he would succeed. With these two, he would.
(())
"Naruto! You're back!" Ichigo greeted his friend when he walked in from school doors. "And still wearing that mask." He added under his breath.
"What happened, for you to actually miss school, it must be pretty serious." Mizuiro pointed out.
"I… it's nothing." Naruto waved his hand. For once, he was glad that he was hiding his face. Others didn't need to see his face and he didn't have to force his usual smile. It was a small weight from his shoulder. "I had an intense training session with my dad. Keigo! What's up with you?"
And suddenly Keigo started jumping around like a bunny with its ass on fire telling a paranoid story about his mysterious 'girlfriend' who must've been some super-samurai-girl under special orders from to protect Karakura town. Naruto raised an eyebrow to this but dismissed it right away. Luckily, others started laughing at him and forgot all about Naruto. He didn't feel like standing out for a while.
(())
"He really took your arm?" Yoruichi asked. It was a beautiful day and they were sitting on a bench in park. "What were you doing? Sleeping?"
"Well, his skill was just so impressive and took me by complete surprise." He answered as he stretched his left hand fingers. It still felt a little weird.
"You're lucky that Hachigen was able to regenerate your arm."
"I know. So, life goes on normally in Seireitei?" He glanced at the cat that had started licking itself. "You really know how to keep up a role."
"Shut up." Yoruichi hissed. "Anyway, Aizen is staying low. Ichimaru and Tousen are following his example. Yet…"
"What?"
"I'm starting to think that there are yet others among the Gotei 13."
"Any other captains?"
"Might be. Can't be too sure." Yoruichi looked away. "I've ruled out the 'Geezer Trio', all of them for their separate reasons. Senju Retsu for valid reasons. Soi Fon…" She shrugged. "She's very angry person. Hate to say but she's a possibility."
"They dent to be when their girlfriend dumps them without even telling what is going on." Kisuke added under her breath.
"What was that, mister 'Playing-dead-for-a-century-has-a-son-who-he-didn't-even-know-about-and-ruined-his-lovers-life-who-is-going-to-be-maul-him-when-she-finds-out'?"
"Touché."
(())
"Kanto region finals?" Ryo asked and looked up from her book. "This weekend?"
"Yeah." Naruto smiled behind his health mask. "Do you wanna come?"
Ryo shrugged. "I guess I could take some time off this weekend to come and see you fight."
"And to mark your territory?" Tatsuki suggested nonchalantly. "Like you did last time?"
Other girls giggled when Ryo turned away. "It wasn't my fault. She just kept throwing herself at him even though he said that he had a girlfriend! And suggesting such lewd acts in public as a minor! Insufferable. I had all right to bash her."
There was a moment of silence. "Anyway, because it has been so quiet, I thought you might want to come and watch me beat some high school punks."
"But you're a high schooler too." Michiru pointed out quietly.
Ryo sighed. "Fine. If it means so much to you…"
"I know you would understand!" Naruto jumped away quickly.
"Don't you think he's acting a bit strange?" Ryo said quietly after he was gone.
"What you mean?" Michiru asked. "He seems same to me."
"He seems… distant. Careful. I don't know." She looked over the class. Naruto was fighting with Keigo about something and Chad had to step in to break them apart. "His laugh sounds somehow… forced."
Michiru smiled. "You're really falling for him, aren't you?"
"Well, he's easy to fall for." Ryo smiled back. "I just hope he feels the same way."
(())
"What I am doing wrong!?" Naruto screamed top of his lungs. "I can't understand! What I'm doing so wrong!? I did what my dad did! I should be able to control my zanpakuto by now!"
"You're just a pussy who can't even fight."
"Shut up!"
"Next time you use your bankai, I will take over completely. And that time, I will kill everyone important to you. Just out of spite for locking me down here."
"Shut up!" Naruto screamed.
"Why you even care!?"
"I told you to shut up!"
"Make me."
He took a deep breath. And another. And another. "Go away." He muttered. "I need to think."
"Pussy is trying to think? Hah! You're even doing it all wrong!"
"Wait… what you know?" Naruto asked.
"I'm you. I may be a pure instinct but I part of you much as you are part of me." He could see the hollowself walking away a smirk on his face. "Try to figure it out, my liege."
(())
"Men!" A boy in armor screamed and charged forward, shinai ready and slashed sideways, aiming for the neck when his opponent blocked the attack and stab the helmet at the same move. The judge raised one of the flags and people cheered.
"And the winner of High school's in Kanto region Kendo Tournament is… Urahara Naruto from Karakura High, Tokyo!"
Naruto removed his helmet and sighed bored. "Yepee…" He muttered when his team mates gathered around to cheer him.
The weekend tournament had just ended.
From somewhere, a judge came to him and offered him a huge trophy. People gathering around him was getting old so he pushed them aside and moved to the locker room, quite rudely but he didn't care. "I need to find some punks to beat up or I'm going Menos on Tokyo." He muttered as he changed his clothes. He heard the door opening. It was most likely another fan (his team mates knew better than to interrupt him when he wanted to be alone) or a scout. He had dozens of high schools, even universities trying to recruit him already. Well, it was no wonder. He had won every single match against every high school kendo champion in Kanto region.
And it wasn't just universities and high schools 0that sought him out, people started to follow him around also, cheer his name while he fought, asked his autograph and girls had started sending love letters to him. Ryo wasn't too happy about the last one. One high school magazine had made a short story about Naruto and had completely ignored her part in his life. Let's just say Naruto was being thrown back and ford between the doghouse.
He had competed almost in every big competition there was. Only left were the big 'West Vs East Tournament' and then the national, which might bring some challenge but he doubted.
"You seemed dissatisfied even after beating one of the geniuses in Kanto region." He turned around to see Ryo standing there in her usual demeanor. "I thought you were terrific." She offered a small smile.
"Thanks." Naruto sighed. "It's just that these idiots don't know anything about fighting."
"You would rather enter some 'underground tournament' than this?"
Naruto nodded. "They know how to fight. These brat's, are lucky if they know how to hold a shinai right."
Ryo shook her head in dismay but didn't press the matter. "Well, I would think you would be happy that there are at least two dozen high school girls screaming your name and trying to get in."
"Why would I need any of them when I have a beautiful girl like you?" He smiled awkwardly.
"Nice answer." Ryo smiled.
"How did you get in anyway?" Naruto asked as he finished dressing up.
Ryo smiled. "I think I know how to get to by boyfriend when I want to." She blushed slightly when she leaned closer to give him a peck on the cheek.
After the fiasco known as 'Kon' (Ichigo had the worse naming sense), Naruto had been evicted by girls. It would have been forgotten in a week or so, after all he said a lot of things and most of the people had learned to ignore them. But Ryo made sure there was a certain level of hostility towards him all the time. Or as she called it 'tough love' or 'training sessions'. It had all ended when Naruto had forced to publicly announce that he considered her as his girlfriend. From there, it was only upwards for the couple.
Meanwhile, Naruto started to anticipate the tournaments and win them. He became more and more popular and of course his father was more pleased than ever. Maybe giving him all the money Naruto had won had something to do with it. And still their family shop was on the verge of bankruptcy.
"Let's go." He smiled and they stepped outside. It was relatively quiet out there. When Naruto was about to ask why, he saw Mizuho screaming like a maniac, driving all the scouts and fans away, using rest of their team as a support. She had forbidden anyone from making any contact with her team's secret weapon. "She's scary." He whispered.
"Let's sneak out the back." Ryo took his hand and pulled him away.
As they stepped outside, they met front to front of a man smiling to them. "Urahara Naruto-kun, I presume?"
"Yeah…" Naruto answered slowly. "What you want?"
His rudeness didn't affect the man's ability to smile the slightest. "I represent the Aotoma High, in Tokyo. It's an elite school for best students in all of Japan. We would be delighted to have you as our student."
"Not interested. Let's go Ryo-chan."
Little startled, she hurried after him. "What are you doing? Aotoma High is one of the best high schools in all Tokyo! Many of its graduates go to Tokyo U! And you don't even consider it?"
"You should listen to your girlfriend here. You will need to start to think your future soon, son."
"I'm not your son, idiot." Naruto narrowed his eyes. He loathed people like this. People who could smile like a banana in their mouth, even if someone were cut of their arms as long as they got what they wanted. His life as Senju was full of them. "I already have a career and don't need another."
"Oh really. What then?"
"My father runs a candy shop." Naruto answered bluntly and took Ryos hand and pulled her with him. "If I wanted to go to this 'Tokyo U' or any other, I could easily. Considering that my test average is over 90."
"But let's face it." The man didn't give up. "Karakura High isn't actually the best academic institute there is. Think about how your parents would be proud of you achieving so high in life."
"You don't know my dad so don't even try to act like that." Naruto started to glare. "Leave us alone, idiot, or I will give you a beating of a lifetime."
Mans demeanor changed immediately. "You're nothing but a rowdy delinquent, aren't you?"
Naruto ignored this and walked away with Ryo while he kept yelling insults after another.
When they were safely board a local train, she dared herself. "Why didn't you take the offer? Even I have to admit that it's very amazing for one to get such an invitation."
Naruto sighed. "I have no desire to change my life goals just yet." He smiled to her and wrapped his arm around her, pulling her closer. She blushed but didn't reject.
"What is it then?" She asked. "Running a candy shop?"
Naruto smirked. "It's a secret."
After walking Ryo home like a gentleman (or a whipped boyfriend) Naruto rushed to his club house.
Life was slow as always with Vizards.
"Yo! Naruto." Hirako raised his hand to a greeting lazily. "What's- UGH!!!" Naruto jumped out of his gigai and charged at unsuspecting Hirako with his zanpakutos. First drawing Ginha with fierce force, he created a smoke cloud when the impact collided. Then suddenly, he pulled his Kinha out of its scabbard and slashed through the cloud. Hirako emerged his own zanpakuto out. "Oy! What's going on? Not even a greeting."
"I'm pissed." Naruto muttered.
"Ya've been on the edge ever since ya cut Kisukes arm off. Feeling guilty over something like-"
"Shinji! That's out of line-" Hachi yelled but it was too late. Naruto brought his left arm over to his face and activated his hollow mask. A mask, resembling a sneering fox, covered his face.
Hirako smirked as he activated his own mask. "You really need to learn to control yourself." He fired a cero.
"First art!" Naruto blocked it easily and shunpoed behind Hirako. "Second art!" He waved Ginha downwards, creating the flock of momiji leafs that impelled the ground as Hirako easily dodged them all.
"Ya really need a serious beating, don' ya?" Hirako smirked as he appeared right behind him and delivered a kick into his back.
Naruto crashed through a rock, shattering into pieces.
"Hiyori, Kensei." Hirako yelled. "Give me a hand."
"What is it?" The two appeared side him.
"We will kick that brat's ass." Hirako smirked and raised his sword. "Don' give 'im a second to retaliate."
"Sure." Hiyori shrugged and activated her own mask and dived after him.
Kensei sighed but decided to follow them. The brat had gotten to his nerves with his attitude lately. Ever since Hachi had gone and heal Kisukes arm. Naruto could be very mature but he was still a teenager who had just accidentally cut of his father's arm. People went to therapist for lesser reasons. And it didn't help that boy had to compete in lame 'tournaments' where he could hardly blow his steam.
He pulled his sword and appeared in Narutos blind spot and slashed hard at Narutos neck at the same time when Hiyori landed a punch on his guts. Naruto managed block Kenseis sword with Kinha but Hiyoris punch was too fast. It landed straight to his guts.
"Don' worry." Hirako smirked as he started loading a cero. "Dis will hurt ya' whole lots of more than it will us." Hiyori and Kensei both jumped back when he fired it.
"You really needed to go all out against him." Kisuke sighed as Hiyori dumped Narutos carcass on his shop floor. "At least Hachigen-san did some first aid."
"It's not like we have anyding against de kid." Hirako scratched his head. "It's simply dat he was too annoying. Dis is how you raise children." And he punched Hiyori into head. "Dey will learn to respect ya'." (A/N: I'm trying to start looking into how people speak and several characters speak with Osaka dialect, like Hirako and Ichimaru. So, when I write 'they' as 'dey' it's not about grammar)
"Shutup!" Hiyori kicked Hirako between his legs. "Anyway, we decided to deliver this sack of meat to you. Be sure not to heal him. It will give him some time to think things over before he tries anything that reckless again."
"Be quiet, you monkey." Narutos voice whimpered. "Or I will beat you to the ground and this time I won't hold back."
Hiyori blinked. Then she stomped his face. "Don't get full of yourself!" She screamed.
"Anyway, we will be going now. See ya!"
(())
Kisuke sighed. "This is getting troublesome." He whispered. "Naruto, I want you to stay out of school for next week and think."
"W-why?"
"Because by the end of the week, we are going to have a rematch. All out fight you using your bankai and this time, I won't hold back."
(())
"Naruto hasn't been coming to school lately." Ichigo pointed out bored during a lunch. "Do you know if something happened to him?"
"We haven't heard anything either." Mizuiro shook his head.
"Someone should find out." Keigo said worried. "My sister is getting paranoid. He hasn't even shown up at practice."
"Maybe something happened to him?" Chad suggested.
"So, you don't know either?" Everyone turned around to witness Ryo standing there with Michiru and others.
"What's up?" Ichigo asked.
"It's just that… I haven't heard of him either." Ryo looked around uncomfortably.
"When was the last time you saw him?" Mizuiro asked.
"Day of the tournament. He walked me home and rushed away."
"You sure got him whipped, don't you?" Ichigo snorted. "Are you sure you're not just scared that he run away from you the first chance he got?" This earned a pretty painful punch from Tatsuki. After he had recovered, he sighed. "Don't worry yourself too much. Naruto is one of the strongest guys I know. He won't get himself hurt. He just probably found some new ramen shop and is having a ball, forgetting everything 'non ramen.'"
"For five days?" Tatsuki asked. "Ignoring his girlfriend? Guy friends? School? Kendo? For ramen? Naah… it's possible."
"What?" Ryo asked shocked of her friend.
"It's Naruto." Tatsuki pointed out calmly. "Out of all people you should know it's possible."
"That's it! I'm going to his house and ask what he is doing!" Ryo stumped out of the class angrily muttering: "Thought made my point last time."
Others watched quietly as she stormed out. "Aren't you least a bit worried, Ichigo?" Tatsuki asked finally. "He's your friend?"
"That's why I'm not worried one bit." He smirked happily. "That guy can handle himself."
"But I am curious, what's going on." Mizuiro pointed out. "Want to go and check out his house."
"Good idea!" Keigo agreed.
"We're coming too." Natsui nodded. When Orihime and Tatsuki looked at her little surprised, she snorted. "I want to see the fireworks when Ryo whips Naruto back to his place."
"Does anyone know where he lives?" Chad asked suddenly.
A silence filled the classroom.
"I know Ryo-chan does." Michiru said proudly.
There was another silence.
"She left minutes ago." Ichigo muttered frustrated.
(())
"Jinta home-run!" Red haired kid screamed as he waved the bat. A white ball that shot through the air, collided with the wooden bat, and was sent flying far and high. But a just when it was about to fly far far away, black haired girl jumped really high in the air and caught it.
"Y-you're out." Ururu whispered.
"No way! You're not allowed to jump like that! Naruto! Ururu is cheating!"
"A-am not!"
Slowly, Naruto opened his eyes. He was relaxing in the woods behind the Karakura Mountain. "Play nice both of you." He sighed. "Jinta, don't hit that ball so hard. Ururu, not jumping over half meter. We agreed on that, right guys?"
"Haai." Kids sighed.
"So this is where you were hiding." Naruto slowly turned his head around to see very angry looking Ryo standing there, her arms placed on her waist.
"Hi." He gulped. "How did you know I was here?"
"You brought me here for a date, remember? Your girlfriend. When I didn't see you at your house, I thought you were probably hiding somewhere."
"Smart." Naruto smiled nervously. "So… how you've been?"
"Don't talk like that!" Ryo almost slapped him on the face. "I'm supposed to be your girlfriend and I haven't heard of you for days! What is going on?"
Naruto sighed. "Sorry. Sit down."
"I don't want to!" She yelled. Then she noticed all the bandages around him. "What happened to you? Did something happen after you left me home?"
"Nothing for you to worry about." He waved his hand dismissively.
"Don't be like that!"
"Be like what?"
"Like I'm five years old! I deserve to know what my boyfriend is doing getting himself wrapped like a mummy!"
Naruto gulped. "Ryo-chan… there's a lot of me you don't know." He whispered with unexpectedly serious voice. "And a lot you shouldn't know."
"I know that you've been missing school lately! I know that something is bothering you enough for you to act like an idiot half of the time." There was a moment of silence when their eyes met. "I know there's something going on with Kurosaki, Kuchiki and you that you're not telling me or to anyone else."
"I don't know what you're talking about Ryo-chan." He laughed nervously. "Why don't you sit down and-"
"If you don't know what I'm talking about, Naruto-kun, maybe I don't know if I want to have a relationship with a guy who can't figure it out." Ryo whispered. "So, what you think?"
Naruto looked away. "Perhaps it's better to end it then. Before you get too involved in this."
Ryo gulped her tears down. "You're serious?" She whispered. When he didn't say anything, she nodded to herself. "I really like you."
"And I like you too." He whispered. "Which is why I don't want to drag you any deeper than this."
"You're really an idiot, you know that."
"I know." He whispered.
Slowly, she walked away. "See you… in school I guess." She disappeared out of sight.
"Are you fucking mad!?" A screaming voice echoed inside his head . "Are you going to let her to walk away? Just like that!? You haven't even scored yet!"
'There's nothing I can do about it.' He thought. 'I can't bring her into my life. She would never understand me.'
"It's you who doesn't understand himself!" He was standing in his autumn colored forest, surrounded by Marigolds. His all-white replica was sitting there, most disturbingly, smoking a pipe. "Yo, my liege."
"Doesn't matter what you think I don't understand, it's my life and my body…" He looked around. "And this is my inner world! What the heck are you doing here?"
"Bitch." Pale-Naruto huffed. "One, what happens to you, happens to me. Two, when something happens to you, your inner world is disturbed and it gets very windy here. Three, this is my home, moron!"
Naruto closed his eyes. "If we weren't one entity, I would stab you. Either tell me what's wrong with me or send the girls back."
Pale-Naruto snorted and slowly dissolved. "Bitch."
Suddenly, two vixens sprinted through the woods, almost knocking him down while they crashed on him. "Naruto…" They purred as they snuggled closer. "You did well getting rid of that bitch… I'm the only one you need, right?" Silverish fox said.
"Wrong, bitch, it's me!" The goldish fox hissed when she was knocked down. "I'm the one he needs. Get away!"
"Girls, girls." He pulled them apart. "I no wonder I can't control my bankai when my zanpakuto is arguing like this." He looked down to them. "What is wrong with you?"
"Nothing!" They screamed. "We're just happy that you finally kicked that slut away!" They snuggled closer.
"Do I really love myself this much?" Naruto muttered curiously when he felt little vixens closer. "I'm really screwed up person, ain't I?" Then he took a deep breath. "What is going on? Why won't you give me my bankai?"
"Bu~t!" They complained in chorus. "You're just gonna use it all wrong!"
"All wrong?" Naruto whispered. "What does that mean?"
Vixens giggled before dashing off. "Find it out!"
"HOME RUN!!!" Jinta launched the ball right into Narutos face. "Watch out!"
"L-l-little earlier… would've been… better." He whimpered as he fell down.
(())
"He broke up with you?" Natsui asked shocked.
"No way!" Michiru gasped.
Ryo didn't meet up to any of their faces. "He… we… I… it didn't work out anymore."
"Damn that asshole!" Tatsuki narrowed his eyes. "Want me to kick his ass?"
"No…" She shook her head. "Thanks but… I… I need to be alone right now!" Ryo dashed off leaving her friends on the street.
"That asshole…" Tatsuki started to glow. "Where are those morons!? They must've known something! I'm going kick their asses until they tell me where that asshole is!"
On the other side of the town, boys were having cold shivers running down their spines.
(())
Meanwhile in Urahara shop. "Where is your son, Urahara?" Rukia asked as she visited on her monthly restocking. "I haven't seen him around."
"He is doing some errands for me." Kisuke answered while putting together a check. "Why?"
"No reason. Some girls in our class have been on the hunt for him. And guys have no idea where he is."
"Really?" Kisuke raised an eyebrow. "What happened?"
"I heard he broke up with… one who he was dating with."
"Really." Kisuke leaned slightly back. "Do you know why?"
"Who do you think I am!?" Rukia snapped. "I don't keep up with teenage rumors! I have an important duty to fulfill while I wait my powers to get back, which for some reason doesn't seem to be happening."
"Want me to do some checking? I can do it for a low price." Kisuke smiled cunningly.
"No thanks. Just tell Naruto that he better stay low for a while."
(())
"I heard you broke up with Ryo-san." Kisuke said as they faced each other in the training room. The week was up and everyone had enough of Narutos attitude. It was time for father put his son back to his place.
"I… I don't want to drag her any deeper than this to our world." Naruto answered.
"Really?" Urahara sighed. "Well, life is all about making mistakes, Naruto."
"Well, you're not so quilt free yourself." He shot back. "You ruined my mom's life!"
It looked like Kisuke was about to get seriously angry about that but he only sighed and smiled sadly. "I guess it's a curse of Urahara men to fail their relationships in the end."
"I guess so." Naruto muttered and took a hold of his Ginha. Then he moved it on his other side, leaving Kinha alone. Then he took both of the handles and lowered his stance. "Ready?"
"I was ready the whole time." Kisuke raised his cane.
Naruto stepped forward and yelled: "Tatakai tame hogo, hogo kara tatakai! Ginha kitsune Kinha momiji!" Then he pulled the both blades out at the same time.
"Okiro! Benihime! Chikasumi no Tate! Double iaido?" Kisuke was taken aback when he watched the effect of the two blades running over his shield. "But not good enough." He added as he jumped over his shield. "I want to see your bankai. Nake!" He sent his attack straight towards Naruto.
"First art!" He waved his golden blade and flock of hard momiji leafs blocked Kisukes attack. Then he charged from behind and waved his silver blade. "Second art!" Another flock of momiji leafs followed it. "I can't control it!"
"I know you can!" Urahara blocked them and pushed forward. Their blades met in the middle. "What is it? Why are you doing this? Because of my arm? Because you haven't seen your friends over a year? Because you met Kuchiki-san? Because you think you can't control your hollowself?"
"I don't know!" Naruto yelled and they pulled back. Kisuke jumped over and slashed his chest. Narutos eyes narrowed into slits as he started to tear apart. When Kisuke just realized what was going on, he transformed into a momiji leafs that flew into every direction.
Kisuke had hard time avoiding all them and in that time, Naruto had enough to sheet Kinha and took hold of the Ginha with two hands. "Fourth art!" He slashed down.
There was a loud bang and lot of smoke.
Kisuke jumped back and whistled. "Wow. So that you've been practicing. I was curious of that 'super secret ultra move' you've been up to. And it could've ended me if I hadn't been on my guard."
Naruto visibly flinched.
"So you really are afraid of this." Kisuke sighed and scratched his head. "How many times do I have to tell you that it was all my fault! It won't happen again."
"But what if it will!?" Naruto yelled with sudden force. "What if I kill you this time!? What… what will I do if I lose you when I finally found you…" He gulped down his tears. Damn! This was manly! He was almost crying. A man who had once fought against five menos alone was crying because of a sparring match! "You don't understand how it was to grow up without you, shitty old man!" His voice changed into a high-pitch scream. "I was known as a 'noble bastard' my whole life! My mother was called a whore! And you weren't even there!"
Kisuke was taken aback by force of his words. Naruto had been staying with him over a year now and he had thought that things were going smoothly. But obviously he had overlooked something big.
"Then I finally found…" Naruto continued. "I finally found you and I cut your arm… I couldn't live with myself if I were to kill you! I finally found you…" He crashed on his knees, his blades fell down rattling.
Kisuke sat down. It hadn't gone as he had planned. Not at all. "I'm sorry." He whispered. "I wish I had known about you. I wish I had been there." He smiled. "I grew up without parents too. Yoruichi-san adopted Tessai-san and me when were just kids. But I guess, growing with just one parent isn't easy either." He started playing with his fan. "Why didn't you say anything?"
"And tell you what? 'I want to spend time with my daddy'?" He gulped. "God, that sounds lame!"
"No it wasn't." Kisuke smiled. "There's no such thing as 'lame' in this world." Then there was a moment of silence. "Who had balls to call your mother a whore?"
"Some guys in the academy once." Naruto whispered.
"Did they get away with it?"
Naruto wiped his cheeks quickly, trying to pull himself together. "I was almost kicked out of the academy because I broke beat them up so badly."
Kisuke smiled. "That's my boy! And let me tell you, your mother is a classy woman."
"I think I'm going to regret this but… how did you two end up together? I mean, you're…"
"What? Not her type?" Kisuke asked slightly shocked.
"Pretty much yeah." Naruto nodded. "Mom is a very powerful woman and you are… cunning."
"You forget that I was a captain of 12th squad."
"Yeah, and I've heard stories from Yoru-baa what kind of looser you were back then."
"Well, that isn't exactly accurate." Kisuke laughed nervously. "Well, to put it simply, Tsunade-hime and I were victims of circumstances."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Naruto demanded.
Kisuke was doing his research in his lab. He had been a captain for seven years now. Hiyori and Mayuri behind his back, he watched over the 12th squad.
Like any other day, Hiyori would start a fight with Kurotsuchi over something ridiculous and he would have to do his best to stay out of it. While listening to his vice-captain complaining about their third seat, he made a mistake. Pretty small mistake. A small mistake that evolved into an explosion that blew up the whole lab.
So next time Kisuke opened his eyes, he was looking up to pair of beautiful golden eyes. "Look who is wake. We really need to stop seeing like this or people will start think you're trying to get my attention by faking a reason."
"Senju-taichou." Kisuke smiled and sat up. It pained a little but nothing he couldn't handle. "How nice is it to see you again." He laughed awkwardly. "How long was I out?"
"Couple hours." Tsunade muttered annoyed as she filled the chart. "Seriously! This was the third accident this month! What are you doing?"
"Just a little research. I seem to have found an obstacle that refuses to move." He sighed. "Hope anyone else wasn't caught up in the explosion."
"No. Only you. Your vice-captain was wise enough to run away when your alarm went off."
Kisuke laughed. "I thought I could restrain it." He explained. "This thing is very tricky."
"Perhaps the third time is the sign telling you to stop." Tsunade suggested. "I don't know how many times I can save your ass if you do something like this."
"I'm sure princess of healing can accomplish something like curing me every once in a while." Kisuke laughed.
"Don't be a smart ass." Tsunade glared at him. "The only reason I'm doing this because Yo-chan would be devastated if her pet were to die."
"You referring me as a pet is actually quite complementing." He laughed again.
Tsunade shook her head. "If you're into something like that…" She wrote something down and then walked away. "You can leave now. So get out and don't come back without something new."
Kisuke left the hospital, deep in thought. So deep in thought that he in fact forgot his haori in the hospital.
"That idiot." Tsunade cursed and picked it up. "I don't understand what they were thinking allowing a goofball like him to become a captain." She stormed out of the hospital. She could have just asked one of her subordinates to deliver it but she was feeling angry and wanted to set that idiot straight once and for all.
So she stormed the 12th squad barracks without meeting anyone. For some reason there wasn't anyone around. She knew where captain's quarters were so she knew where to deliver the haori.
"Kisuke! Are you here? Answer me you idiot!"She slammed the slide door open. The room was empty, a complete mess but still empty. Slowly, she made her way into to room. She was curious to find out what was inside this messy place. Tubes, tools, metal containers, sample cups were lying around.
After a while, she was satisfied with her curiosity and placed the haori on a table and turned around. What she didn't see was how she knocked down a glass bottle of… something and when she reached out for it, she stumbled onto something and fell back.
Meanwhile Kisuke was finally reaching his quarters after a small snack (he had a habit of eating ramen while deep in thought like he was now) and entered the room when he saw Tsunade falling backwards, a glass bottle in her hands. He knew what that bottle was instantly and he the first thought he had; was to prevent it from falling down. So he took a dive but it was too late. The bottle broke right front of his nose. He could smell the fumes filling his nose. "Damn." He whispered and jumped up, reaching to a control panel on the other side of the room and thick metal walls surrounded them.
"What is going on!?" Tsunade yelled through her hand when she saw how they were locked inside the room. "What was that?"
"Just an experimental drug I've been working on." Kisuke answered, covering his face too. "It's used to attract soul-particles together."
"Is it dangerous?" Tsunade asked, starting to feel strange.
"No, no." Kisuke slowly removed his hand from his face and smiled softly. "The ef-ef-fec-eff… EFFECTS can be… what's the word…?" He started to giggle. "I have no idea anymore!"
Slowly Tsunade joined his giggles. "H-h-how long will it last?"
Kisuke was suddenly rolling his head up and down. "Hmmm…. half a day…" He started feeling awfully hot.
"W-w-what are the effects?" Tsunade tried to calm herself down and think. This was not the time to give in. Even though she was feeling hot too. Slowly, she dropped her haori on to the floor.
Suddenly Kisuke stumbled against her. Their faces only an inch away from each other. "You're beautiful…" He whispered.
Tsunade smiled and licked her lips. "I'm feeling so damn horn-"
"STOP!!!" Naruto scream filled the training room and he covered his ears. "No more!"
"Well, that was how it happened." Kisuke explained. "After the effects had faded away, we had decided to keep this one time a secret and never meet again."
"That must've worked out well." Naruto muttered. "I heard babies were delivered by storks."
"Well, your mother was a… very moody woman if I say so." He laughed to himself. "Anyway, after a year or so she finally decided that we were on a relationship (even if no one knew about it). But after another year or so… Aizen and his plan worked out and we have to leave.
His eyes smiled sadly. "That was the first time I met you… and last time I met her. Tsunade-hime had gone into labor in a middle of a captain meeting. Yoruichi-san had rushed her into a hospital. Meanwhile, Hirako-san, Aikawa-san, Otoribashi-san, Yadomaru-san, Hachigen-san, Muguruma-san, Kuna-san, Hiyori-san were turned into vizards. After I had faced Aizen, tried to stop him and then tried to turn others back, I visited you and your mother. She was half asleep when I last saw her and you were in her arms. Of course, in my confused mind, I didn't really see you. Just Tsunade-hime, lying in a hospital bed." He laughed nervously.
"How you could NOT know that I was there!? I'm your own son!" Naruto yelled. "And I can guess the rest. You escaped from Central Room 46, took others with you, left my mom who even now thinks that you are dead." He sighed. "What a screwed up story."
"That was how it happened." Kisuke explained. "Victims of circumstances."
"Yeah, a real romance novel. My parents got together because they were drunk." He suddenly felt nausea.
Kisuke laughed. "I blame it all on Urahara curse." Finally, he stood up. "You know what, let's just go. You can go to school tomorrow and we can have this training some other day."
"What? No more reminiscing? Reminiscing… remember…" Naruto slowly stood up also and picked up his swords. "I'm doing it all wrong. All this time, I forgot the one thing about myself." He raised his zanpakutos. "I what I'm supposed to think."
'Don't think about anything.' Jiraiya had said once during their training. "You think too much. You think about your mother, you think about your squad, you think about your friends, you think about your zanpakuto, you try to figure them out. You're not that type of person."
"Well what kind of person am I?"
Jiraiya had smirked. "Stupid idiot who pushes through, without giving up."
"I've been here for too long. So long that I forgot who I am. An idiot. Thanks, Ero-taichou." He took a deep breath and smashed the blades together into shards. "BANKAI!!!"
Kisuke turned around to witness his son to be shot out amazing amount of reiatsu swirling behind him. "I guess we do this now." He muttered.
(())
"And then, I saw a girl with huge breasts!" Keigo told a story. "It was amazing!"
"Don't you think anything other than girls?" Ichigo asked.
"What!? It's normal for a teenager like us to be interested in girls! This is the springtime of our youth! Not everyone can just pick a girl like some people!"
"Hey! I don't pick up girls like that! I'm into more refined women who don't fall like that." Mizuiro yelled.
"I'm not talking about you." Keigo muttered. "I'm talking about that Idiot Naruto who-"
"Who's an idiot?" Naruto asked slowly. Everyone turned around, Keigo as the lastly and very slowly. "Well?"
"H-h-hey buddy-" Naruto kicked him aside and stepped forward. "Long time no see!"
"No kidding!" Ichigo answered with a fake punch on his shoulder. "Where you've been?"
"Ow! Ow! Ow!" Naruto twitched in pain.
"You okay?" Chad asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I've been taking some heavy beatings lately." He smiled. "Anyway, what's the word?"
"Weakling." Ichigo muttered nonchalantly.
"Shut up!" Naruto kicked him on the knee. "How does that feel?"
"Welcome back, Naruto." Mizuiro smiled. "It's been lonely without you."
"I bet. I have missed you guys too." He smiled back. "Let's not play it rough for a while, okay?"
"I heard you broke up with Kunieda?" Ichigo pointed out slowly.
Naruto nodded. "Yeah, I didn't work out guys. Let's leave it that, okay?" He smirked. "Anyway have you heard? Don Kanonji is coming to town!"
"I heard! It's happening tomorrow night at the old hospital." Keigo nodded. "Let's all go and watch that show."
"Pass." Ichigo said quickly.
"What? What you mean, 'pass'!? This is a once in a life opportunity to meet an actual tv star!" Keigo ranted as they continued their walk to school.
"Are you really okay, Naruto?" Chad asked. "Because you know you can trust us, your friends, right?"
"I know that!" Naruto smiled to the big guy. "I know that if anything happens, you got my back. Like I got Ichigos and Ichigo got yours." He smacked the guy playfully. "But you don't need to worry about this. This is something I needed to do."
"Aah… okay." Chad nodded.
CHAPTER END
A/N: Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I felt it somehow weird but if you liked it, then it's okay. See you later.