A.N: sorry for the delay, was 'spose to be a fortnight but I'm in summer school on top of working full time this festive season...one word or maybe its just one onomatopeia whatever, URGH!
Thank You
Chapter 4; 2nd Part – Quincy
"Kisshōten-sama," intoned the returning Matsuyukisou bowing low
"I suppose you have a legitimate reason as to why you did not respond to your first summons"
Kuroshio's eyes darted to Ama in accusation and annoyance, Ama smirked only slightly before answering, "I performed the Kangetsu barrier"
Kisshōten's gaze shifted to Ryuusei Fubuki and then to the tense form of Touketsu Hatsuyuki. "This was to be a quick informing of our latest objectives, but it seems that a revision of what has passed is in order before that arises. Very well then," Kisshōten's eyes closed, and the four followed also, drawing back in their mind to the moments that eventually brought them here. The Quincy cross for each of them seemed to chime, and the faintest glitter of reishii floated from them to Kisshoten-sama's own Quincy cross.
Finally emerald eyes opened, "I see," spoke Kisshōten-sama, having truly 'seen' the previous event through the eyes of each of the Matsuyukisou at hand. "It is interesting would you not agree that between the time of your sensing her presence until the messenger butterfly broke up your battle," piercing emerald eyes bore into Kuroshio's gaze, "that you remained uninterrupted by either party, your own brothers or that of the Shinigami's allies."
Kuroshio and Ama snapped to attention realising the meaning in Kisshōten's words. None of their brothers let alone Kisshōten had appeared in over an hour since they first sensed her nor had any of the Visoreds or other Shinigami, even the Kurosaki kid and other humans who would surely have appeared if they believed her in danger. Yet none came, no one appeared; for the girl that fractured Soul Society once before, none had come to her aid this time except for her brother who was within the immediate area. Was she still as beloved as they had assumed, there was no doubt in their mind about that, so only one question was left, why did no one appear. Why was Kisshōten-sama even unawares of her presence; Kisshōten-sama that always knew what had happened, what was happening, and what was to happen, in this instance knew nothing of her presence out of her gigai, of the battle with the Kuchiki Captain, of the barrier that would prevent a messenger butterfly.
"It would seem logical that what you sensed was nothing but an illusion. You two are assigned to the Northern sector, besides the Kuchiki's scouting area no other of his group would be within the area, therefore none would be any wiser."
"Such illusionary power and shielding ability could only be performed by one of us," commented Ryuusei
"That is true, but only if you are assuming a shielding spell was used, no shielding spell not even the Kangetsu barrier can block my senses. Kuroshio and Ama both released their bow and yet I was unaware of such and therefore could not see these events unfold through their eyes. No shielding spell is capable of that, none that belong to the Shinigami, the Matsuyukisou, none even within my own family. Only by illusion, an illusionary ability strong enough to misdirect the bind you all have to me."
"Aizen," whispered Touketsu Hatsuyuki, with the faintest hint of incense for duping his Chitenma's demon senses
"If such had succeeded Captain Kuchiki would have been destroyed," spoke Ama, "Ryuu mentioned he is to have a meeting with you, Kisshoten-sama"
"Yes and no, Captain Kuchiki will be meeting with Anrui, who he believes is I. It is paramount that they know nothing of my existence and continue to believe that Anrui is the King."
At that moment another Matsuyukisou Quincy entered, Kasumi of the Jimo Clan, "Kisshōten-sama," she spoke bowing low, "Aizen-sama will be meeting with the Council Elders very soon,"
"Very well then Kasumi, inform the Elders I will be joining them shortly", replied Kisshōten, Kasumi bowed low in reply and then left.
"Aizen-sama, but Kisshōten," exclaimed Yuki, but Kisshōten's calmly raised hand silenced him from continuing,
"The Elders do not wish for me to meet with Captain Kuchiki, it is believed by them to be much too troublesome and potentially dangerous, on those accounts I agree with them, though it is obvious that they are unaware of that standing."
"This is why they tried to cancel the meeting with Kuchiki, with the aid of Aizen by faking the presence of the target, a battle would ensue with the Kuchiki Captain resulting in his destruction," voiced Ryuusei
"So it would appear, regardless though, I have no intention of attending the meeting with Kuchiki, he wishes to meet with the King and that King is Anrui. It is true enough, the Elders have been pushing for Anrui to be made King, and he will become King once this ordeal is over, for now they will have to make do with him carrying the appearance of being King." The four nodded to Kissh ōten in answer,
Kisshōten's features then changed, "Ryuusei and Touketsu, I am assigning you to watch over Yoruichi Shihoin and Kisuke Urahara, I cannot allow them to interfere in any way into my plans. Watch them at all times." Ryuusei and Yuki bowed low before leaving, "Kuroshio, keep a watch on the Visoreds; Shinji Hirako and Kensei Muguruma especially. The Visoreds main enemy is Aizen, it is likely they will step aside regarding the Rukia Kuchiki business, regardless of Ichigo Kurosaki's stance; I believe only Kensei Muguruma and possibly Hachigen Ushoda will continue to stand by Kuchiki." Kuroshio took his leave,
Ama remaining behind awaited his command from Kisshōten-sama. A moment of silence seemed to stretch on until finally Kisshōten spoke, "The twins...they are troublesome, would you not agree?"
"They are certainly a handful, Kisshōten-sama, but as is the case with any pair of siblings, be it twins or those with a difference in age," replied Ama smoothly
Kisshōten answered with a smile, "Indeed Ama, troublesome and yet they are a necessary and fundamental part of the Matsuyukisou. Continue as you were Ama."
Ama stood still, confused about what had just passed but the inquisitive piercing eyes of Kisshōten-sama snapped him to attention; he bowed his leave and left directly.
Kisshōten's eyes closed in weariness, "You heard all I presume?"
A figure formed stepping out from the shadow, "Yes"
"You are a master of Illusions, but bound to me your loyalty is therefore unquestionable. That which binds you to me, binds you brothers also, you cannot release your bows without my knowing of such. Your thoughts and feelings may be yours and remain a secret to my knowledge but your senses belong to me; all that you see, touch, hear, taste and smell so can I. Yet here we have a case in which two of your brothers encountered a Shinigami, and engaged against him, and I remained unaware, the Kangetsu barrier was cast and yet I was unawares." Emerald eyes awakened and locked onto him, "You are a master of Illusions; on this matter speak the truth...the whole truth"
Tanmou Sagiri, the longest serving, most experienced and second most powerful Matsuyukisou agent returned Kisshōten's steady gaze, "I am a master of Illusions, but nothing that you wish and command to know can be hidden from you, my soul is yours to command and forever open for your scrutiny."
"Yes, your soul, your shinzui-yumi, and your hollow-self are bound to me, but what of the soul and bow that is not bound to me. What then?"
"Munen Musō possesses the ability to misdirect the connection but not such to overpower it, Yukizora is too loyal to you to betray you."
"Hmmm...I have a meeting to attend, return to your post," supplied Kisshōten, Tanmou bowed and vanished. Kisshōten stood and stepped down, stepping into a completely different room at the same time, a few hundreds of miles away. "Council Elders, shall we begin," spoke Kisshōten taking a seat between them, "summon Aizen forth," The servant bowed low and left the room to retrieve Aizen who stood just outside of the large oak doors.
Aizen entered, seating himself on the singular oak chair facing Kisshōten-sama and the Council Elders,
"Let us begin, state your purpose Sōsuke Aizen, former Gotei-13 Captain," began Kisshōten-sama,
Aizen glanced up, "I am here to form an alliance with the Matsuyukisou," he smiled serenely, "True Order is Absolute Order. Only with the downfall of the Gotei-13, the restructuring of Soul Society and the reign of a real King can absolute justice, absolute Order prevail in All the levels of Existence; the Kingdom realm, Soul Society, the Living World and Hueco Mundo. Together we can achieve that goal, a goal that I know we both share."
x0X0x
x0X0x
Ulquiorra walked straight into the Observatory Sanctuary where he resided, he knew the others to be within waiting for him. Their objective had taken a drastic turn, a turn that was in some ways inevitable.
"Ulquiorra-dono we're really really sorry, really!" spoke Sazanami the moment he entered
"Is that a different jacket?" asked Isunami, his eyebrows knitted quizzically as he looked over the jacket Ulquiorra wore, until Sazanami elbowed him in the gut hard. No was the cool reply Ulquiorra gave him, it was a lie but nevertheless the truth that he had left his previous jacket with her wasn't of any consequence, let Hikari and Zora assume he had retrieved the jacket after her use.
"What of Byakuya Kuchiki?"
"We did as you instructed, I healed him letting him regain consciousness whilst we spoke of Aizen. He is under the belief that Aizen faked her presence to draw the immediate Matsuyukisou and himself into battle, his death would subsequently prevent his meeting with Kisshōten-sama," answered Hikari
"Our Brothers as well as Kisshōten-sama will also come to the same belief. Hikari informed me as soon as you had left and of where you expected her to appear. Only her presence there would create a risk, other possible areas her allies are within distance, therefore your assumption seemed the most logical; I summoned Munen Musō and was able to encase that quadrant. Detection from Ama and Kuroshio could not be helped, but it at least kept our other brothers and Kisshōten out of the loop, her own allies were included in that though."
"Which worked to our advantage," answered Ulquiorra, nodding to Zora in thanks,
"Yes, and since the Elders also do not want Kisshōten-sama to meet with Captain Kuchiki, it would appear logical that Aizen was behind this, working with the Elders to sabotage the meeting," spoke Zora
"That makes no sense unless the Elders are working with that Fucktard in the first place," spoke Grimmjaw, Ashido agreed with Grimmjaw though not with such 'eloquence'.
"The Elders, the majority at least," corrected Zora from the looks he received from the twins, "they support Aizen, and have been pushing for a meeting. Rumour has it that they have already met with Aizen numerous times, they are pushing for a formal meeting, for Aizen to go before them and Kisshōten."
'As expected,' thought Ulquiorra sighing, relieved that the Elders had further proven how corrupt they are and how necessary it was to overthrow them, but at the same time frustrated that they were now officially in a more difficult position. Logically they would need a greater number on their side, but from there Fate held the reins.
"You mean those incontinent geezers are with Aizen and are roping in Kisshōten as well. Tsch, Fucktards the lot of them," blurted Grimmjaw, which Isunami heartily seconded.
"The tables have turned then," spoke Ashido, earning the attention of everyone, "we cannot protect her forever; the Elders are with Aizen, it will not be long before they overpower Kisshōten to side with them also. There will be no new order. Eventually we will have to come to heads against them, all of them."
"We need more of us to stand against them," spoke Sazanami
"Once the time comes we can easily join forces with the Shinigami, they want to keep her alive too," supplied Isunami
"Those prats will be split; besides Kurosaki and the other humans, plus the Shinigami and Visoreds already here, I doubt much more in Soul Society would join in,"
"Grimmjaw's right, we should expect less than half a dozen still in Soul Society to join, I doubt the Visoreds will be a part though, their main enemy is Aizen I doubt they'll sidetrack themselves even though Ichigo would stand against it," spoke Hikari
"But that Fucktard would be in this; fighting with us will be fighting against him," exclaimed Grimmjaw
"They do not know that though," answered Ashido, "and I doubt they will become aware until the near end. If the Elders join with Aizen, with or without Kisshōten aligned as well, they won't be blurting it; they'll keep that card close in hand."
"Either way, the Shinigami will not give us enough numbers; we must recruit more within our own," continued Hikari
"The Kokhabi are not possible, highest ranking members are also bound to orders, which leave lower ranking members and the students at the Academy. The Spring break will be in a fortnight's time, the older students and the orphan students will be returning, we can recruit from amongst them," spoke Zora
"So basically a bunch of weaklings and pubescent brats will make up our numbers! Tsch...figures," spoke Grimmjaw rubbing his eyes in frustration
"We have no other solution, your younger brother Chaz will also be returning won't he," asked Hikari turning to the twins,
"Yeah but he's only fourteen," replied both twins in unison
"It is better to bring them in," spoke Ulquiorra finally, "than for them to be turned against us, or killed. They are returning to the Matsuyukisou domain anyhow, neither Aizen nor the Elders will tolerate insubordination. Keep in contact with your brother, if all is revealed before their arrival we need to know their arrival in order to intercept."
"So we're still operating per norm, in secret and all?"
"It is the safest and surest way, we cannot contact any Kokhabi without earning attention and suspicion from the others, that line of recruitment must therefore be held off until the last moment. We need the most able bodied Quincy's, therefore Hikari you will train Uryuu Ishida, the Ishida's have always been a powerful clan, train him to discover his shinzui-yumi."
"Uryuu Ishida? But due to circumstance he will remain in a group or pair, he will not break off, it will arise too much suspicion to cause him to do so."
"He will come with Rukia Kuchiki, you will train him and I will train Rukia. He knows me as the Quatro Espada therefore I cannot be in his presence."
Grimmjaw literally choked at that, 'Maybe the twins do have a point', he turned his azure eyes onto Ulquiorra and asked in German with his trademark smirk plastered on his face "Also was fordern wir sie?" [So what are we calling you?]
The twins chuckled, and even Ashido and Hikari smiled, "Anrui," answered Ulquiorra, and then turning to Hikari, "Schatten ihres" [Shadow her]
Hikari nodded and left.
"Where the hell are you going?" boomed Grimmjaw, as Ulquiorra walked around them and towards another door
x0x0
'Home' He answered to himself as he walked into the dark room right to the end where three bird cages sat upon a desk.
A tiny shaft of light filtered through the top window, the beam of light touching upon the cages. Within the cages weren't birds but butterflies, hell butterflies; the cage on the left housed snow white messenger butterflies, once a message was relayed it would disappear and then reappear in front of Kisshōten. The cage on the right housed sea-blue transportation butterflies that would transport to any one of four locations the user wished to go.
The Matsuyukisou owned each location; the Spring Manor in the south that resided upon the top of a mountain ridge - where they were previously before transferring to Karakura, the Winter Manor to the east set within the mountains, the Summer Manor to the west - a seaside property enclosing a whole cove to their privacy. The forth location was within Soul Society, the long abandoned Shiba Clan Manor, a large property on the rim of the 1st district.
The centre cage housed a different kind of transportation butterfly; this hell butterfly transported the user directly into the Matsuyukisou Dominion, past the Byakuren barrier and right into the empire.
The situation had taken a turn, with his agreement with Rukia and now the revelation that the Elders sided with Aizen, he had to get away to clear his thoughts, to think clearly, rationally, logically. Ulquiorra opened the cage and reached in, one of the hell butterflies landed upon his hand; he extracted his hand and closed the cage, bringing the butterfly to eye level. Out of the sunlight, the butterfly appeared a dull white, in the sunlight it fluttered with a prism of colours reflecting endlessly.
"Take me home," the wings chimed and in the blink of an eye, Ulquiorra found himself within the Matsuyukisou Dominion.
x0x
x0x
'The Kisshōten Manor'
He arrived inside the Kisshōten Manor, well the Matsuyukisou Meeting room to be exact, which was really a circular courtyard. The Meeting 'Room' was an impressive sight, rimmed by a multitude of stone archways and at the centre of a wild garden. The Manor was built around it; Kisshōten's quarters to the North, Ulquiorra's own in the Southern wing, the Kisshōten library took up the entire eastern wing, whilst the Western wing contained all else.
The Meeting Area encompassed eight white-blossomed cherry trees; deep markings lined the marble floor creating a snowflake symbol. The eight cherry-blossoms represented the tip of each stem; the Blossoms were very old, over 2000yrs he was told but such could not possibly be true. The trunks were large and weathered, forming on their own a low seat; the Elder of each clan sat upon it during meetings, the corresponding Matsuyukisou agent would stand upon the Elders' left.
The head Blossom tree represented the Kisshōten family, on the left the 2nd most noble family, third on the right, subsequent families following the pattern, so that the eighth clans' tree – which happened to be the now extinct Uhyou clan, was directly opposite the Kisshōten blossom. The Uhyou blossom had been dead since the War but still standing, the trunk and branches black, however now the Blossom was alive. Kisshōten-sama had told him that the Noble Blossoms would bloom when war was eminent. He had instantly dismissed it, it was not possible or logical; but now before his eyes all the Noble Blossoms were in full white bloom.
Amidst the Matsuyukisou Ulquiorra had gradually been learning that logic and reason were never as they should be.
White blossom petals drifted around him, as well as...pink? Ulquiorra turned; the tree noted for the Kisshōten clan was blooming white and pink blooms. Ulquiorra walked towards it, pressing a hand against the trunk as he looked up into the branches sprouting white and pink blossom side by side, "You cannot exist," he muttered aloud, as if expecting the Noble Blossom to explain itself, to explain its duo blossoms. No answer came, the breeze rustled the blossoms, cushioning the fall from branch to the floor; white blossoms floated to the ground but the white and pink blossom petals from the Kisshōten Blossom seemed to dance about in the air, or battle, a part of him thought.
His eyes saw all truths, his eyes could not been fooled by what did not and could not exist, but here before his eyes was an anomaly one of many he had encountered amidst the Matsuyukisou that defied truth, logic, reason and existence. Ulquiorra closed his eyes and walked away, he did not understand but truth is truth, existence is existence, if it was so then so be it, he had no right to question its existence, though this did not stop him wondering and analyzing. His light footsteps bruised into the already fallen petals, passing through one of the many arches he darted into the garden manoeuvring subconsciously through the various trees and shrubs to the closest entry into the Manor.
The Manor was dead, not even the whisper of servants in the distance, the servants had left, accompanying the Council Elders at the Spring Matsuyukisou Estate since Ryuken's audience. The stark quietness was unsettling; in Las Noches, it was natural, here in the Manor and within the Dominion, quietness was uncommon as much as it was unnatural.
Before the shift to the Spring Estate it had been winter; he had awoken just a week after his battle with Ichigo to found himself within this very Manor. The timing coincided with the Winter-Break return of the senior students and orphan Quincy's from the Helmward Academy and Rædbeorn College, the two schools in Europe that trained all Quincy's; the very schools every Matsuyukisou and Kokhabi was educated, Ryuken Ishida and previous Ishida's had been educated at Helmward. Outside of his wing, there was no escaping the noise from the students, servants, other Quincy Agents, or the endless droning of one Elder or another. Now though, a heavy silence descended upon the Dominion, save for the quiet buzz of nature.
Ulquiorra walked out of the barren Kisshōten Manor, through the lonely walkways of the Matsuyukisou Dominion towards the lake, where the only person that was present within the Matsuyukisou Dominion resided.
Akira Tomoya
AN: I extended this chapter a bit with the last two instalments. [english translation] obviously! as to why Grimmjaw know german, well to me Jaegerjacques sounds french, but i'm gonna say its more swiss, therefore he just knows german as well, just go with it, their won't be much german spoken between the two, probably none at all after this, but just to let everyone know, the Quincy's are multinational, international taught, and international fluent.
Ræd – Old high German for council or wise/wisdom, Boern – OHG that roughly translates to 'warrior', Helm – OHG for mind/soul/life/person, Ward - OHG roughly translates to 'guardian'….Matsuyukisou are the 'Warriors', Kokhabi are the Guardians. You can obviously figure out what Ryuken is.
nehu review if you wish 'til nxt time AlMo