Bleached Vampire
Chapter 11: Opening Up
Orihime wasn't sure what gave her away but she felt the heat on her face at Moka's question. The truth was she was deeply in love with Ichigo she had been for the longest time. She wasn't sure when she had fallen in love with him only that she had always liked him. Over the years she had seen him from time to time but had never gotten the courage to talk to him. It wasn't until recently that they were around each other more. She had seen him at his best and at his lowest, she saw the strength he had and how he would go to any lengths for his friends.
That admiration turned to adoration which had turned to love. She did love him, more than she should she knew. She couldn't help it, she hurt when she saw him in pain and wanted nothing more than to take it away, she was happy when he was happy. But in the end she knew that he saw her as a friend, it hurt but she could bear with it. She had borne pain all her life, with never knowing her parents even if her brother said it was better not to have memories of them, the loss of her brother...both times and the loneliness of her life.
But she had found good things, like Tatsuki and the others. Plus there was always Ichigo, she felt safe when he was around and confident. She felt like she was a better person when he was near.
Moka smiled seeing the other girl blushing madly. "Oh so you do, have you told him yet?"
"N-no! I can't tell him that!" Orihime blushed even more in embarrassment. She really wished she wasn't so shy around Ichigo. Maybe if she wasn't and more confident she could have confessed her feelings to him, even when he had been sleeping she couldn't go through with kissing him. He wouldn't have known and she still couldn't do it.
Moka blinked in confusion, "Why not?"
Orihime looked down at the ground not sure if the other girl might understand. "I...I just can't tell Kurosaki-kun that. He only sees me as a friend and I don't want to ruin that."
Moka looked disappointed in hearing that, the only romance she knew was her own little twisted one that she shared with the other girls. Although she wished to have only have Tsukune to herself she felt sorry for the girl in front of her. Orihime looked like she really cared a lot but couldn't say how she felt. Moka kind of knew how that was like although she felt a lot for Tsukune she had never been able to say the words.
They were just so embarrassing to confess especially to the boy that had such a hold on her heart.
"Well I'm sure that he wouldn't stop being your friend," Tsukune told Orihime. "Sometimes people don't see what's in front of them and when they do." He cast a slight look to Moka for a moment. "It's just hard to say the words to someone on how they make you feel." He blushed a bit saying that as Moka's cheeks reddened a bit knowing the meaning behind his words.
Orihime looked at Ichigo as he fought with Kokoa, was there a way to say how she felt? Well even if she did she wished he would have the same feelings for her one day. Maybe she just needed more confidence but she also felt a little useless at times. She wasn't as powerful as the others, even Moka could be powerful when her rosario was removed. She felt like she was a burden at times and she didn't want to be. Looking at Ichigo she wished she could be like him at times, powerful, confident and brave.
Kokoa didn't want to admit it but she was having a hard time, this Ichigo just seemed to be playing with her. He was faster and stronger than any human (despite being part Shinigami or whatever he was) was supposed to be. She hadn't had this much trouble since fighting her big sister when they were at home together. In fact the look on Ichigo's eyes reminded the young vampire of how her sister used to look at her as well.
It kind of pissed her off even more so.
She yelled out a battle cry as she rushed towards him trying to swing her claymore at him. He only deflected it making her stumble a bit.
"You're strong but you don't know how to use your strength." Ichigo told her. "You throw yourself into a fight, actually I shouldn't talk as I do the same, but you keep overextending yourself. Each time I deflect you lose your balance and waste time trying to get it back."
Kokoa gritted her teeth as she was lectured by someone that not only wasn't a vampire but wasn't even a Yokai. Her pride wouldn't allow herself to be looked down on by anyone. She rushed forward again as she took a sweep with her sword only for Ichigo to disappear. "What!"
She felt cold metal against her throat as she looked to her left. The point of Ichigo's large sword was lightly pressing against her as he held the blade with only one hand, it wasn't even shaking from any effort like it didn't weight anything at all to him.
"Most Hollows you'll be able to fight like that but if you come across any of the stronger types you won't last. They can move just as fast as that and they won't hesitate to kill you. You can't put everything into a single blow unless you're sure it will land." Ichigo explained to her as he moved back. The girl reminded him a lot of himself. Well how he fought at least, her attitude was like a mixture of Baykuya and Renji, all the ego of an 'aristocrat' and being a total hot head.
Kokoa was starting to get frustrated now but she wasn't going to rush in blindly this time. She still had something to prove as she charged but this time it was more controlled. She swung her blade as it connected with Ichigo's, she felt the blade bounce off and used the momentum to swing it around trying to come at his other side. She smirked feeling she had finally gotten through his defence on his left side. But Ichigo didn't make a move other than to use his left hand to stop her blade as he gripped it with his fingers.
Kokoa's eyes widened as she felt the power coming off him as he had stopped the blade.
"Good that's better," Ichigo said to her glad she was learning.
Kokoa pulled back her blade as she glared at the older boy, "Why are you so strong?"
Ichigo looked at her for a moment considering what to tell her but decided to just do what he usually did. Say what first came out and go with it, it seemed to work so far. "I got my strength to protect others, my home, my family and my friends. I became strong enough to defend them all against anyone that would do them harm."
Kokoa looked at the intensity of his eyes as he said this this wasn't some idle boast he honestly believed in that. But Kokoa has her own reasons for getting strong, all her life she looked up to her big sister, out of all of her older sisters she wanted for Moka to recognize her. The Moka she had grown up with was the one she wanted to be like, someone that was graceful, powerful, beautiful, and smart. She was everything that Kokoa wanted to be and she would train hard to catch up with her sister.
"No matter how strong you are I will defeat you," Kokoa told him getting herself ready.
Ichigo smirked as he used that phrase a lot himself whenever he fought against a powerful enemy he wouldn't give up because he couldn't give up. She obviously had some reason to fight but he had to wonder what it was. Well there was only one way to find out and he was curious as to her answer. "So why are you fighting?"
"Huh?" Kokoa blinked for a second caught off guard.
"What's your reason for getting stronger, why do you want to get stronger?" Ichigo asked her.
"That's my own reason not for you to know," Kokoa said gritting her teeth as she lunched her own attacks. But Ichigo was always one step ahead of her, he was too fast and too strong and she couldn't land a hit. She kept swinging with everything she got but she only ended up getting tired. Eventually she could barely hold her blade as she breathed hard glaring at the boy. He stood there like a statue she glared at him her hands were sweaty and it was getting harder to hold up the claymore.
Ichigo looked at her as he placed his sword into the ground, "You got spirit but you'll need more than that if you face someone stronger. There are Hollows a lot stronger than what you've face and you'll need to get stronger if you want to face them."
Kokoa couldn't take this anymore as she angrily looked at him nearly in tears. She had tried so hard, tried everything she could and yet this boy who wasn't even a Yokai was making fun of her. He had been playing the entire time and she felt shamed because of it. "What do you know? You're already strong what do you know about getting stronger?"
"You think I've always been like this?" Ichigo said feeling a bit of anger at the girl if she thought she knew him. "You forget I was a normal human once and if you think I've never lost a fight well I got news for you I have. I've nearly been killed several times. But you know what? I never stopped, I got up and then I put everything I had on getting better. I pushed myself beyond my limits to new heights each time I was knocked down because I couldn't just lay down and die."
"I can't protect anyone if I give up, sometimes I needed help in seeing that. So if you're not strong enough now then there's only one thing you need to do. Get the hell back up on your feet and try harder. Push yourself until you can't move then get up some more. Never back down, never retreat, always face forward and never stop moving!"
Kokoa's eyes widened at his words as they seemed to strike a chord within her. She gritted her teeth as she pulled up her blade ready for more. She focussed as much strength as she could, even if she felt like she was at her limits she couldn't give up. Her sister would never give in and if she wanted to be like her sister then she couldn't give up either.
"I won't give up to you," Kokoa said to him.
Ichigo only grinned as he got his own sword again, "Now that's more like it. Come at me with everything you got I want to see what a vampire can do."
Kokoa gave a battle cry as she started to fight with Ichigo again.
As the two were going on others were also training with each other. Currently Kurumu was focusing on the boy in white as she was in the air a few feet. "Before we start I guess I should thank you for saving my butt out there."
Uryu nodded his head, "It was nothing I would have done the same for anyone."
Kurumu pouted at that, "That's not what you're supposed to say. You're supposed to say something heroic or something. That's how it works."
Uryu raised an eyebrow at that, maybe the girl read too many romance manga or something. At any rate it was time to see how well she could hold up. "First we'll have to see how you and your friends fight. Then we'll have to see how to improve on anything from there."
"Well I can certainly see the point in that but I'll have you know I spent a whole summer training to get stronger in order to beat Inner Moka." Kurumu told him getting ready. She honestly wanted to see what he was capable of doing as well. Plus if they were to fight together it would make sense to know what each other was capable of doing. "I feel a little bad though, I can fly and you can't."
Uryu smiled slightly at her, "I may not fly but I learned to do something that can help out." He disappeared in a blur but then she noticed him reappear in mid air slightly higher then her. She was surprised and wondered how he was doing this. Seeing her expression he decided to explain.
"Quincy have an ability called Hirenkyaku, that's how I can move so fast in a short distance. But I recently learned how to make a platform under my feet as you can see." He pointed to where his feet where and there was a small glowing disk it was just big enough to stand on. "Although I can make this bigger in a spirit rich environment, in the living world I found it was harder as spirit particles are more rare, so I use my own power to make it. I keep it smaller as it uses less of my own energy to maintain."
"So you create something to stand on in mid air," Kurumu smiled at how he could overcome a lack of wings in order to be up in the air.
"Well since high powered Shinigami and Hollows can use an ability that lets them 'stand' in mid air, I had to come up with something," Uryu stated smugly at his creation.
"Well let's see how well it holds up," Kurumu stated as she quickly flew at the boy.
Uryu didn't want to harm her so he wouldn't go full out given that he could shot over a thousand arrows he didn't want any to hit her. Yes he was confident in his archery skills but it wasn't the type of thing you did in a spar. So he kept it to just rapid fires of single shots to see her agility in the air. He was amazed at her speed and grace in the air, he noted everything she did how she flew she even used her tail to help her in flight he noted. He wasn't sure what type of monster she was, but he would have to remember to ask her later.
Kurumu for her part was doing everything she could to keep from one of those glowing arrow things from hitting her. She wasn't sure what would happen but she doubted it would be good for her. The thing was, every time she got closer his arrows would force her back. She was starting to think he was just playing with her. Well there was one trick he wouldn't see coming. She smirked as wanted to try her illusion powers on him. It was hard to concentrate while in flight but that was what the training this summer had been about. She called up the imagery in her mind and focused her powers into it, she breathed in slightly and focused on Uryu, as she exhaled she let the power flow out to him.
Uryu wasn't sure what was going on he felt she was doing well but then suddenly things shifted in his vision. He wasn't sure what it was but then noticed one of his arrows pierced Kurumu in the chest. He was shocked to see her falling to the ground. He was certain that no arrow had anywhere been near her. He was about to shout out when something seemed wrong. His mind quickly took notice of several things.
There was no blood on Kurumu's chest, no one was reacting to this, sure they might not have seen it but a falling body was kind of hard not to miss. When Kurumu landed no one still paid no attention even though the body seemed to land close to Rukia and the two witches. That didn't make sense but something else was happening. He felt a breeze from behind, but the wind was gentle today and coming in another direction. His eyes widened as a possibility entered his mind and he quickly turned with his weapon ready and pointed dead center on apparently Kurumu. She was unharmed and had pointed one of her claws at his neck while flapping her wings.
"I didn't know you could pull illusions," Uryu stated looking at her with a smile at how they came to a draw in combat.
She was smiling herself, "looks like I have to work on my illusions, how did you know?" Uryu explained all the things that were wrong with it. "I'll have to make a bigger one then."
"I won't be caught off guard next time," He told her.
She only grinned in response, this could be interesting. It took a strong and sharp mind to see through illusions. He might be a perfect person to train with in making them stronger. "You seem to know about illusions."
"There was someone who could use them before," Uryu got a bit more serious, "I never faced him but I heard he could make you see anything he wanted. So one of the things I've been doing is strengthening my mind in case something like him ever showed up again."
Kurumu cocked her head to the side, "Sounds like there is a long story there."
"You are definitely right about that Kurono-san."
Now Kurumu looked more annoyed as her arms went straight down her sides, her fist balled up as she huffed at him. "Can't you call me by my first name? You make me feel old when you call me that!"
Uryu was taken aback by this, "Oh, um, sorry. I'm just trying to be respectful."
She crossed her arms looking at him, "Well you could drop it, just call me Kurumu okay?"
"Fine…Kurumu-san."
Kurumu sighed, she guessed that was good enough she never was one for honorifics anyway. She liked t be more informal among others. She wondered how the others were doing as she looked down and noticed Mizore and Chad.
Mizore looked that the large boy in front of her trying to see what he was capable of. He certainly was a big one and he looked tough to her. He also hadn't said much not that she was one to talk, she respected silence as you didn't need to talk all the time, like a certain big boobed Yokai she could name who never seemed to stop talking.
"So then shall we start?" Chad asked the other girl who nodded. "Brazo Derecho del Gigante." He said as the black and red armour formed on his right arm.
Mizroe had never seen it show up before, she had seen it in battle but this was the first time she had seen him call it forth. It was interesting it was kind of like how she grew ice around her body only she had only ever used it for claws. It have her an idea she had never really considered before but there was something she wanted to know. "What was that you said? It wasn't Japanese."
"It was Spanish," Chad explained. "Part of my heritage as my father was Japanese but my mother was Mexican. It means the Right arm of the Giant."
Mizore had been wondering why the boy looked so different his skin tone was nothing like what she knew of others in Japan. Plus his features were slightly different than what you found among Japanese. It kind of gave him an exotic look to her. She looked at her arm as she concentrated and formed ice on her arm but instead of a claw she moved more of it up her arm. Now she had an ice version of an amour like Chad's only hers was in sharp angles that gleamed in the light. "I hope you don't mind you just gave me an new idea for my ice. I never thought of armour before."
"I don't mind," Chad said honestly as he watched the pale skinned girl form a weapon like his own. She flexed it out testing it as she seemed ready. Chad wasn't sure what to expect, he had only seen a little of her skills he guessed and she seemed to control ice, so there was no telling what she was going to do.
Mizore extended her new ice arm as several spikes grew out of it, then they launched at the large boy. Mizore was amazed by how fast he was moving to dodge the weapons as they flew through the air at him. She decided that she would need more help with his, gathering her power up she called on the ice inside of her and felt the air start to freeze. Water was everywhere in the world, even in the desert there was water in the air, sure not much but it was everywhere. It was inside of the body, in the land and the air. With this power she created several ice clones of herself.
Chad hadn't known she could create clones of herself, for a moment he though back to the Arrancar Rudobon that Rukia had been fighting in Hueco Mondo, that Arrancar could create limitless amounts of soldiers to fight with. Chad noticed the ice clones moving towards him quickly, the top of the arm opened up and flared to life as he fired a blast of energy at them. The energy shattered several of them that were not quick enough to get out of the way.
He noticed the Mizore had slipped out of sight he didn't know of the girl's stalking skills and how she could easily slip out of sight when she needed to at times. He saw movement and with a right hook to his left shattered through a clone that had been getting too close.
Mizore tried to use this as a distraction and using her ice arm to attack, but as it hit his back he hardly moved at all, he grunted as he took a step forward from the impact but then he quickly disappeared. She was surprised, although he wasn't a normal human, even a human shouldn't have been able to stand after being hit like that. Her clones were linked to her so thankfully she could still see out of the survivors. That was how she knew Chad had appeared behind her, she turned to attack again with her ice arm as it slammed into his armours fist. Her ice shattered under the impact of it, in fact her whole arm felt it as she hissed in pain and took a step back.
She rubbed her arm feeling it slightly go numb, flexing her hand the feeling was quickly coming back.
"Nice try." Chad told her.
"You're as tough as you look," Mizore stated shaking her arm it was better now but she would have to think of something other than a frontal assault. Chad was build like a tank apparently although looking at him she wondered just how hard that body of his was. She iced up her hands into claws, she might as well see how tough that arm was.
With Rukia and the two magic users things were a bit calmer as they were talking about the principles behind both kido and magic. As it turns out they were really much the same, incantations were used in both but weren't always necessary if you mastered the skill. Rukia herself could do a red shot without the full incantation if she was ready for it. It was just easier to use it and that time with Gin, well she had been angry and it was harder to concentrate in that mental state.
"You know I wish Nii-sama was here, he's a master at kido he could tell us a lot," Rukia sighed as she wondered how her brother and Renji were doing. Thankfully those two had been the least hurt in the Winter War and were up to full strength but with so many divisions with no captain or lieutenant, and in her own division without both, other divisions had to cover for the others for the time being.
"So who is you're brother?" Ruby asked out of curiosity. "You seem to say his name with some reverence."
"Well that's because he's the head of the Kuchiki clan one of the four great noble clans of Soul Society as well as Captain of the Sixth Division." Rukia told the two girls.
"Wait noble clan!" Yukari asked shocked at that looking at Rukia. "Does that make you a noble as well!"
Rukia looked a bit uncomfortable at that, "Well…it's kind of a long story but I'm actually only an adopted member. So I have no true noble blood in me." It was true and she tried so hard to live up to the Kuchiki name and to make her brother proud. "Although he was my brother before I was adopted anyway when you look at it in the long point of view."
She saw the looks and guessed she could elaborate. "You see, Nii-sama was once married I've seen her picture on her shrine everyone says she looked a lot like me and it wasn't until recently that I found out why. Hisana, his wife, had been my older sister that I didn't even know I had."
"What!" Both witches were on the edge of their seats on that.
"You see I grew up an orphan in one of the poorest places, we had to steal for food and everything. I even met one of my oldest and closest friends named Renji there, who by the way is my brother's lieutenant now. Anyway, my sister had to give me up because she couldn't take care of me, I don't remember her as I was pretty young as I understand it. But she looked for me when she married, she would spend countless times trying to find me…but she never did…" Rukia trailed off.
This was something that she secretly had been coming to terms with, when her brother told her the full story she had been blown away by it. When the reality set in she had spent most of the night in her room thinking about it. She had been angry of course at one point but she knew what it was like living in that area. It wasn't uncommon for children to be given up for the hope of a better life for them. Then came the loss, he had had a sister in the world and never even knew it. She had wished for just one day with Hisana so she could get to know her to talk to her.
Rukia had gone to Hisana's shrine that very night and just sat in front of it for hours looking at her picture. She could see the family resemblance now and looking at the older sister she would never get to know she felt like there was a hole in her life that would never be filled.
"Are you okay?" Ruby asked seeing Rukia's far off look.
The tiny Shinigami shook herself out of it, "Yeah I'm sorry for getting away from that."
Ruby had a sad smile as she understood totally, "It's okay, I was young when I lost my parents so I know what it's like to lose family too, it's hard sometimes but I have all my wonderful friends now and I don't feel so alone anymore."
Rukia smiled she did have friends and her brother as well. It was true that she would never get to know Hisana but she felt her sister wouldn't want her to be sad. It was then that Rukia noticed that Yukari was sniffing as soon as she locked eyes with the young witch she burst comically into tears. "Yukari-chan what is it?" Rukia asked nearly frantic.
"It's just such a good story!" Yukari nearly wailed. "It's so sad but happy too! You got a home and a new family but never got to know your sister, but you also are part of a noble family it's like a story out of a fairy tale."
Rukia had never considered that outlook on her life although the part where Ichigo had came to rescue her also fit into that category. She had even been locked inside of a tower and the more she thought about it the more it did sound like a fairy tale. "Well…not totally there's no prince charming for me apparently." She muttered to herself. Then again any man that would be foolish enough to approach her would be judge by Byakuya and no one wanted to go up against him.
She sighed thinking about her lack of a love life because of her station in life, she wasn't really looking for one but after coming to the living world and reading all those romance novels she felt she was missing out on something. She was well over a century old and she had never even kissed a boy that was a bit depressing as girls her age (or relative age in her case) had at least done that or gotten close to it. But who would even be insane enough to even try to court her when she wanted a boyfriend?
Well Ichigo would go up against Byakuya and survive and could win but she didn't think of Ichigo in that way. Maybe once but they were more comrades and friends, well maybe it was a bit more but as lovers? She remembered when she had been asked at school if she liked Ichigo, that was a shock to her system. But honestly given how much Ichigo and her fought, they might commit homicide against the other before ever getting close to an altar together.
Besides she knew that Orihime had feelings for Ichigo, she had seen it at the end of the war the look of relief on her face when she saw him again in the living world. Plus when Rukia had visited everyone in the Fourth division for recovery, Matsumoto had been on painkillers at the time and let it slip that Orihime was totally in love with Ichigo. Thankfully no one really remembered her saying that with their own medications and Matsumoto had been kind of out of it, having half your stomach ripped away apparently wasn't fun.
Nor was having some damn Espada ram a fist into your gut she thought to her first encounter with an Espada.
So Ichigo was out for her but who else? There wasn't really an answer and it just really depressed her, out of all her male friends or males she knew she couldn't really think of anyone, at least not anyone that might actually put up with the wrath of her brother or survive his wrath depending on how he reacted.
"Is something wrong Rukia-san?" Ruby asked her seeing the depressing look on the other girl's face.
"Just realizing that I might be single for a very long time…" Rukia moaned as an image of her as an old woman still being single it wasn't a pleasant thought.
Next up Chapter 12: Troubles at School
I might be going on this two month course soon so updates will be a bit slowed down as I might have little to no free time for that period of time but I will get right back into it and work when I can.