Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or anyone or anything from Bleach. Nor do I own the city of Nagasaki. It's as simple as that. Everything else, however, is mine. :D
Chapter 14: The Final Step
Sachi had hoped that Yuzuki would forget all about interrogating her about her weekend, but she was wrong. The next day both Yuzuki and Mao cornered her in the locker room before PE class.
"Spill."
Sachi, who had just barely gotten her locker open, looked up at Yuzuki, confused. "Huh?"
"I said, spill it!" Yuzuki commanded with a glint in her eye that bordered on maniacal.
"I-I don't know what you're talking about…" Sachi stammered, feeling rather afraid.
"She means about what happened this weekend," Mao supplied dreamily. "Something happened between you and Renji right?"
Sachi, suddenly understanding, hurriedly looked away as she tried to control her blush. "Nothing happened," Sachi said, trying as hard as she could to sound convincing. "We didn't even see each other."
Mao's face fell in disappointment, but Yuzuki stared hard at Sachi, her eyes narrowing. "You're lying."
"I am not!" Sachi responded crossly, slamming her locker shut.
Yuzuki huffed in defiance, but gave up and fell back against the lockers.
"Awwww," Mao whined softly.
"You do like him though right?" Yuzuki asked, defeated, but still searching for something juicy.
Sachi's face turned bright red and she suddenly looked away, refusing to make eye contact with her friends. Then her blush faded a bit as she seemed to lose herself in thought. "I'm…not sure…"
Yuzuki and Mao exchanged excited glances and then they both squealed. "I knew it!" Yuzuki exclaimed triumphantly.
"Oh you two are so cute…" Mao swooned.
Sachi was completely taken aback. "H-hold on second!" Sachi stammered. "I didn't actually say anything!"
"Oh just admit it already," Yuzuki replied, throwing her arm around Sachi's shoulders and whispering to her in a manner that was probably supposed to be conspiratorial. "You. Love. Renji."
"I didn't say that!" Sachi all but screamed, her face turning a violent shade of pink.
"Let's go ladies! You're going to be late for class!" Their teacher's voiced echoed through the locker room.
"Come on! You get to go see Renji!" Yuzuki grabbed Sachi's hand and dragged her forward while Mao followed after them squealing in delight.
Sachi sputtered protests the whole way, but Yuzuki's and Mao's berating only made her consider her own feelings more. There was no doubt that she liked Renji a lot. He had become her best friend without her even noticing. But was she in love with him? Sachi had never been in love before so she honestly wasn't sure. But she had definitely realized that past weekend that her feelings for Renji had grown past what would be appropriate for just a friendship.
Sachi wasn't the only one getting interrogated that day. Renji had just finished hanging up his school uniform in his locker before PE when someone else suddenly slammed the locker shut. Renji's eye twitched in annoyance. The idiot had nearly taken his fingers off with that move.
Renji glanced to the side to see Akio standing there, a belligerent look on his face. Kenta stood behind him and offered Renji a smile and a friendly little wave. This could not be good, Renji thought, frowning.
"Can I help you?" Renji asked sounding bored.
"Yea," Akio growled in reply. "We've got something to ask you. What're your intentions with Sachi?"
"My intentions with Sachi?" Renji asked skeptically.
"Yea. You're into her right?"
Renji schooled his expression into careful neutrality. "I fail to see how that's any of your business."
"It is our business," Akio answered aggressively, stepping up so that his nose was inches from Renji's though Renji was still quite a bit taller than him. "Sachi is our friend and if you hurt her you're going to pay for it."
Renji's eyes narrowed at the obvious threat. He leaned down over Akio until the other man was forced to take a step back. "I would never hurt her," Renji answered, his voice dangerously low.
Akio held Renji's gaze for a moment longer, before quickly turning away. "Good," he spat over his shoulder as he strode away, clearly not pleased about coming out as the loser in their intimidation contest.
Renji snorted derisively. Stupid human boys.
Kenta laughed awkwardly, reminding Renji that he was still there. "Sorry about that. Akio likes to act like the tough guy sometimes."
"I've noticed," Renji grumbled.
"I do agree with what he said though." Renji blinked at him in surprise. "Look I'm sure you're a good guy," Kenta said reassuringly, clapping a hand on Renji's shoulder. He then leaned in and his voice lowered dangerously. "But if you do something that does end up hurting Sachi you will be very, very sorry."
Kenta then laughed and clapped Renji on the shoulder again. "We should probably get going!" he called as he walked off. "We don't want to be late for class!"
Renji stared after Kenta dumbfounded. An involuntary chill ran up his spine as he thought about what had just happened. Kenta could be one scary dude when he wanted to.
…
The girls were supposed to be running on the track. But since the boys were setting up to have a baseball game that wasn't going to happen. Baseball was a big thing at Sachi's high school and none of the girls wanted to miss seeing the their newest up and coming pitcher up close.
Akio was milking it for all it was worth too, as he stretched and warmed up on the mound. While Mao talked animatedly about Akio with some other girls from their class Sachi, Yuzuki, Kenta, and Renji waited for the action to start.
"You're not going to play?" Yuzuki asked Kenta.
"Nah," he replied nonchalantly. "Not really my thing."
"And what about you?" Yuzuki asked, turning to Renji.
Renji looked away, reaching a hand up to scratch the back of his head as Sachi looked on nervously. "Uh…well…I don't know how to play."
Yuzuki and Kenta blinked at him in surprise. "Really?"
"Yea," Renji admitted, trying to smile convincingly. "It's not really that a big of a deal where I come from." And so it wasn't. In fact all that Renji knew about baseball was that it was a human game that had something to do with hitting a ball with a funny looking wooden stick.
"Oh look! They're starting!" Sachi exclaimed suddenly, trying to distract her friends. It worked and Yuzuki and Kenta looked away without further comment. Renji threw Sachi a grateful look, which she returned with a smile.
The baseball game began. The boys were all playing their hardest, trying to impress the watching girls. The girls chatted and gossiped, throwing flirtatious glances towards the guys they favored. Renji was enjoying watching despite the fact that he had no idea what was going on.
The teams switched positions and Akio walked out onto the pitcher's mounds to the sound of cheers. Suddenly he turned towards Renji and motioned for him to step forward. Renji frowned. What was this about?
Akio smirked. "What's the matter Abarai? You chicken?"
Renji's eyebrow twitched violently. He had just about enough of Akio's macho posturing for one day. Squaring his shoulders and putting on a scowl that was meant to intimidate, Renji stepped forward.
"Go Renji!" Yuzuki cheered gleefully behind him.
Sachi, dismayed, followed Renji and caught his sleeve. He half-turned and raised an eyebrow at her questioningly. "I thought you didn't know how to play baseball!"
Renji shrugged. "If I can swing a sword I can swing that stupid stick."
Sachi sighed. "It's called a bat. And Akio's just trying to get under your skin you know," she added in undertone.
"I know," Renji grumbled back. "But it's about time that someone knocked him down a peg or two."
Sachi couldn't disagree with that in all fairness. Akio's displays of masculine dominance were infamous in her year and everyone was pretty much sick of them. It'd probably be good for Akio to learn that he wasn't the only one who could act like an alpha male. So, with a slightly exasperated sigh, she released Renji's sleeve.
Renji walked over to the home plate and accepted the sti…bat from one of his classmates. He was certain this would be easy. Renji had seen enough of the game to realize that all he needed to do was hit the ball with the bat and then run around the bases. He took up his position in preparation to hit.
The jeering began almost immediately as Renji held the bat low and out in front of him instead of high and behind his head. "This isn't kendo you know!" someone snickered loudly. Renji ignored the hecklers.
Akio, who had been smirking wide enough to rival Ichihara, became focused as he started his wind up. Renji tensed slightly as Akio drew back his arm and threw. The pitch was fast, Renji would readily admit, but it wasn't anything that he couldn't handle. Using reflexes honed by decades of training and fighting Renji swung the bat as hard as he could. There was a deafening crack as ball and bat collided and then the ball went soaring away, over the fence of the field towards the school.
Everyone was completely silent for a long moment and then they erupted in wild cheers. His classmates, all yelling and screaming about how far he had hit the ball suddenly surrounded Renji. Looking over the crowd Renji spotted Akio on the pitcher's mound looking extremely bad-tempered. He then looked around and caught Sachi's eye where she stood a bit away from the mob surrounding him. She gave him a big, genuine smile and a thumbs up. Pride swelled in Renji's chest.
The impromptu celebration was suddenly interrupted by very loud, very angry shouting. "You! You all! Who hit this ball?" From around the corner of the field appeared Fujaikara-sensei, the English teacher. He had a hand pressed against the side of his head where a growing bump was apparent even from a distance. He brandished the baseball that Renji had just hit as he shouted. "Tell me who did this!"
All of Renji's classmates hurriedly stepped away from him, leaving him to face the teacher's wrath alone. Fujaikara-sensei stalked forward while Renji lamely tried to hide the bat behind his back.
"Did you hit this ball?" Fujaikara-sensei breathed heavily through his nose at Renji, thrusting the offending item to within an inch of Renji's face.
"…Yes sensei," Renji admitted guiltily.
Fujaikara's face turned purple with rage. "Detention Abarai! After school!" He then turned and stalked away.
Renji stuck a finger in his ear, wincing at how loud the teacher's last scream had been. Detention? Great. What an awesome week he was having.
…
"Here."
Sachi blinked in surprise as Renji held his soul pager out to her. Hesitantly she took it. "How come you're giving this to me?"
"I can't leave my detention right? So it's up to you to take care of any Hollows that show up."
"Oh…ok!" Sachi beamed up at Renji. His scowl didn't budge. Not even Sachi's smile could make his predicament seem less ridiculous right now.
"Don't worry so much about it," she added consolingly. "It's just for one afternoon."
"I guess…" Renji replied sourly. He then turned and slouched in Fujaikara's classroom to serve his detention.
Sachi couldn't suppress her giggle as he shut the door behind him. After everything he had been through since he had come to the real world he was getting depressed by one detention. Sachi headed off towards the stairs, intending to meet up with her friends and walk home, but she had only just opened the door to the stairwell when the soul pager in her hand began to beep.
She flipped it open and after a bit of fussing managed to bring the orders up onto the screen. Sachi sighed regretfully. She was really looking forward to just going home and relaxing for the afternoon while she had the chance. But duty was calling. Sachi pulled her gikongan from her pocket and took off towards where the Hollow was.
…
Sachi landed near the train station and looked around. Confused, she pulled the soul pager from her pocket and double-checked her orders. The Hollow was definitely supposed to be here, but she didn't see one anywhere. Frowning in thought she put the soul pager away again. She jumped down from her perch on a light post and alighted among the throng of people moving in and out of the train station.
She wasn't sure what else to do so she might as well go and look for the Hollow, she decided. Not that she should have needed to. It's not like any of the Hollows she had seen so far were particularly sneaky. It was usually hard to miss a colossal, soul-eating monster.
Suddenly a voice was whispering in Sachi's ear. "Oh, now this is interesting. You're a Soul Reaper right?"
Sachi flinched violently, startled, and whipped around searching for the source of the voice. Even though she turned completely around she didn't see anyone besides the people who passed by, completely unaware of her existence. A laugh that seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere at once echoed around her. Sachi spun again looking for its source.
"Ha ha! You look so silly spinning in circles like that!" the voice exclaimed delightedly from behind her. Sachi turned again to see nothing.
"Stop messing with me!" Sachi shouted angrily, fighting the chills that threatened to run all across her skin. She reached back and grabbed Tengetsu's hilt and ripped her from her sheathe both to defend herself and lend herself some comfort.
"Well if you're going to get serious I guess I better get serious too."
Sachi turned around a final time and was confronted with her tormenter. A being- she wasn't sure what to call him- stood before her. He wore white hakamas and a long white jacket that fit tightly along his torso and then flared to his knees. He wasn't particularly tall and his build was lithe. His hair was a violent shade of purple and fell messily around his ears and into his face. His eyes were bright red. A yellow lighting-bolt shape traced its way downwards from his hairline over his right eye. He wore a sword that looked suspiciously like a zanpakuto on his hip.
But those parts of his appearance were not what made Sachi's breath catch in her throat as apprehension slowly awakened in her gut. First there was the strange white object that covered the left side of his jaw and cheek all the way up to his temple. Sachi wasn't sure what it was, but there was something about it that reminded her of a Hollow's mask. And then…then there was the hole went straight through the middle of his neck. It wasn't very large, but she could see the street behind him through it.
Sachi took an involuntary step backwards as he smirked at her. There was definitely something weird about this guy. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end as her eyes again traveled over the white shape on his face and the hole in his neck.
"Who are you?" Sachi was amazed that she managed to keep her voice steady. Every instinct in her was screaming that this guy was dangerous.
"I am Wolta Kasfke or Arrancar number 63, at your service." He then performed and elaborate, mocking bow. When he straightened again there was an insidious glint in his eye.
Sachi gazed at the strange man, perplexed. "What's an Arrancar?" she asked guardedly.
Wolta's face mockingly fell, like her words had hurt him. "You don't know? You wound me, Soul Reaper. But I wonder…" The glint returned to his eye. "What kind of Soul Reaper doesn't know what an Arrancar is?"
Sachi did her best not to be offended by his words. She certainly wasn't an actual Soul Reaper- she was only a substitute after all- but there's something about the way he had said it that rubbed her the wrong way. She didn't answer except to glare at him.
Wolta's mouthed curled into a smile of smug superiority. "I guess you really don't know. Very well, I will correct your ignorance. An Arrancar is a Hollow that has been giving the powers of a Soul Reaper by Azien-sama. We are superior to you fools in every conceivable way!" Wolta then threw back his head and laughed, his laughter quickly taking on a maniacal edge.
Sachi's eyes narrowed. The name Aizen rang a bell, but she didn't have the time to think about. She also disregarded the part about getting Soul Reaper powers. All that was really important was that the bastard was a Hollow. And there was only one thing that she needed to do.
Wolta's laughter came to an abrupt end as he dodged Sachi's swing by a hair's breadth. He ducked underneath her sword and rolled away, coming up and spinning around with a vicious look on his face.
"I don't know much about most of what you were talking about, but if you're a Hollow then I already know what I need to do," Sachi said coldly, straightening up and resting her zanpakuto on her shoulder.
Wolta's ugly expression suddenly morphed into an equally ugly smile. "What an interesting way to put it Soul Reaper. I suppose there's no more point in us exchanging words now." He then flashed forward at an unbelievable speed. Sachi barely got Tengetsu up in time to guard as he attacked her with his bare hands.
Sachi swung, hard, and pushed Wolta back. He immediately leapt forward again, attacking in a flurry of punches and kicks. Sachi did her best to keep up, but it was all she could do to block him. "What's a matter Soul Reaper?" Wolta cackled. "Is this best you can do?"
Anger suddenly coursed through Sachi. Her head felt hot and her vision sharpened. "Shut up you bastard!" she shouted at him. Suddenly she was the one pushing Wolta back with a flurry of strikes that he was barely able to block. Wolta was taking yet another step back when his heel caught on something and he began to fall. With a yell of triumph Sachi attacked, swinging with all her strength. There was the crashing sound of steel against steel as Wolta was forced to draw his own sword in order to block Sachi's attack. Sachi grinned nastily as she leaned against her zanpaktuo keeping the pressure on the Arrancar. Wolta glared back at her, his lip curled in pure hatred.
This time it was Wolta who had to struggle to push Sachi away. He managed it eventually and then they stood facing each other, both tense and on guard. "I think I've had enough of you Soul Reaper," Wolta said. Any hint of levity in his voice was gone, replaced by cold anger and hate.
"That's funny. I feel the same," Sachi replied, her voice hard. They both stood there for a moment longer, sizing each other up, and then leapt forward again to attack.
Their fight was a blur after that as the exchanged sword blows. They were relatively equal, but it soon seemed that Wolta as tiring as his attacks and reaction time slowed. Sachi was finding it easier and easier to force him back until, finally, Wolta deflected her attack with a ferocious swing and leapt out of range. He stood back, panting, as Sachi resumed a guard stance.
Sachi couldn't help herself and she began to grin cockily. Wolta glared hatefully back at her. "You're feeling pretty confident aren't you Soul Reaper," he spat. Sachi's only response was to smile wider. Wolta's expression intensified and then he abruptly calmed. He stood straight up and drew in a deep breath. When he released it his lips curled into their own cruel grin. "Very well. I suppose I'll just have to show you my true power."
Sachi's smile faltered a bit. What was he talking about?
Wolta held his sword straight up in the air. "Strike, Relámpago!"
Sachi gasped as Wolta's reiatsu exploded. This felt kind of like a Soul Reaper's zanpakuto release… How was this even possible? The dust and wind from the release calmed and Sachi gasped again as she got a look at Wolta. His appearance had changed. The white object on his face had expanded, covering the right side of his face as well as his left and it extended all the way down his neck now as well, excluding the hole. The same substance had appeared on his arms and covered them from fingertip to shoulder. The lighting bolt-shaped mark on his face had extended down to his jaw and there was also one over his left eye. His sword has disappeared.
Wolta began to laugh again as he caught sight of Sachi's expression. "What's wrong Soul Reaper? You looked confused!" Sachi didn't respond, just simply continuing to stare at him mutely with fear in her eyes. "This is my Resurrección Relámpago. This is what happens when an Arrancar releases their zanpakuto! We regain the powers we had in our Hollow forms. There's no way you'll be able to stand against me now!"
Sachi involuntary took a step back. Wolta's new form was truly impressive. The reiatsu coming from him was enough to make Sachi's knees began to shake. Wolta's leering grin widened and suddenly he disappeared. Before Sachi got the chance to really register this fact he reappeared directly in front of her. His fist collided with Sachi's stomach and suddenly she was flying backwards. She collided with a retaining wall and fell backwards as the wall collapsed.
Sachi lay still for a moment completely caught off guard by the pain radiating from her stomach. With effort she managed to pull herself into a sitting position. She coughed and tasted blood. She was just beginning to stand again when she froze, Wolta's presence suddenly looming over her.
"Are you impressed yet Soul Reaper?" he asked her eagerly. "I'm many times stronger and faster now than I was before. And that's not even the best part!" A sudden dread filled Sachi and she looked up to see Wolta extend his hand until it was directly above her, his thumb and middle finger pressed together. "Resurrección also gives us extra powers, much like your shikai release does. Do you want to see what mine is?" Wolta's grin widened into an insane mockery of a smile and then he snapped.
Agony ripped through Sachi as electricity shocked every nerve in her body. It was as though she had been struck by lightning. She was probably screaming, but the only thing that Sachi could think about was the pain. As abruptly as it had begun the shock stopped, leaving Sachi lying panting on the ground.
Wolta was laughing again. "You stupid Soul Reaper!" he cried, bringing his other hand up. He began to snap repeatedly sending thousands of volts racing through Sachi's body. She writhed and shook as her muscles spasmed, screaming the entire time.
Finally Wolta stopped. Sachi lay still. "Had enough yet?" he asked wickedly, prodding Sachi's body with his toe. "I suppose you have. Too bad you died so easily. I was having fun." Wolta almost sounded disappointed. But he simply shrugged and walked away, intending to go see what other prey he could find to play with.
Abruptly reiatsu exploded behind him, whipping his hair and clothing wildly. Eyes wide with surprise Wolta turned around to see the Soul Reaper slowly rising to her feet.
"Rend, Tengetsu!"
…
Renji resisted the urge to sigh as he stared out the window. What was the point of this stupid thing called detention anyways? All he had done for the past half hour was sit at a desk. It wasn't even for a teacher that he respected. Of all the classes that Renji was taking in the human school the class to learn a foreign human language seemed the most pointless. When was he ever actually going to need to speak English?
The feeling of reiatsu suddenly exploding instantly shook Renji out of his stupor of boredom. This reiatsu…he didn't recognize per se, but he instantly recognized what kind of reiatsu it was. An Arrancar. Renji was stunned with disbelief. There was an Arrancar? Here? How ? What the hell was going on?
Without really realizing he was doing it Renji stood and headed towards the door. Sachi couldn't handle this on her own. She was strong, but she wasn't yet ready to face an enemy of this caliber. Renji was so caught up in his thoughts that he didn't notice when Fujaikara-sensei stepped in front of him. Renji stopped just short of running into him.
"Where are you going Abarai?" the teacher snarled.
"I'm sorry, sir," Renji replied icily. "But there's somewhere I need to be."
Renji made to step around Fujaikara, but the teacher roughly grabbed Renji's shoulder and pushed him back. "You're not going anywhere!"
Renji had to bite his tongue to stop himself from cursing at the man. He didn't have time for this! As he stood there debating how physical he was going to have to get with Fujaikara another voice interrupted them.
"Yoo hoo! I hope I'm not interrupting something."
"Ichihara," Fujaikara breathed heavily. The dark-haired, grinning man had his head stuck through the door. "What do you want?"
"I just need a word with Abarai that's all!"
"Absolutely not! He's currently serving his detention with me."
Renji frowned as Ichihara's grin widened. What the hell was he up to?
"I'm perfectly aware of that," Ichihara replied pleasantly. "In fact I think he deserves more than one afternoon's detention!" Renji suddenly had the urge to throttle him for that comment.
Fujaikara, however, seemed slightly mollified. "Alright fine," he huffed. "But it better be quick."
Ichihara stepped out of the doorway, but beckoned to Renji with a hand. Renji stepped out into the hallway with him feeling surly. Ichihara closed the classroom door behind Renji and they both stood there for a moment staring at each other.
"Well what're you waiting for?" Ichihara finally asked.
Renji blinked, confused. "Huh?"
"I got you out of there so you could go help Kurosaki. She can't handle whatever that is on her own I'm quite sure."
Renji was a bit startled. Ichihara had gotten him out of there to help him? "Why didn't you just go help her yourself?" Renji blurted out.
Ichihara shook his head and his normal smile fell a bit. "This is something that I can't handle, otherwise I would. I suggest you hurry though. Things seem to be going badly."
Renji cast his senses outward and found that Ichihara was right. An unfamiliar feeling of panic rose in Renji's chest as he felt the desperation with which Sachi fought. He needed to go. Now. Renji muttered a quick thanks before turning away from Ichihara and sprinting down the hallway. Ichihara smiled benignly at Renji's back as he disappeared around the corner.
…
Sachi had to fight to stay standing as both she and Wolta attempted to catch their breaths. After she had released her zanpakuto their fight had quickly turned vicious and now they were both bloodied and badly beaten. It was clear, however, that Sachi was losing. She was more tired than Wolta and she was certain that it was only a matter of time before she made a fatal mistake.
Sachi mentally shook herself. She couldn't think like that. She could win! She had to win! Sachi straightened and set herself as firmly as she could. She would not give up.
Wolta's mocking joviality had long disappeared and as Sachi took her stance he did the same. Fighting this Soul Reaper was no longer fun, he decided. It was time to end it.
Suddenly Wolta blurred, moving forwards at an incredible speed. Sachi twisted, somehow following his movement as he raced behind her. As she turned she gathered reiatsu around Tengetsu's blade in the technique that was quickly become her go to move. She could feel it as Wolta changed direction moving towards her now. With a yell she released the energy gathered around her zanpakuto. And that was her mistake.
With a gloating smirk Wolta, abruptly changed direction in a burst of speed far beyond what he had so far displayed and dodged Sachi's attack. Sachi gasped as Wolta appeared before her out of nowhere. He drew back his leg and kicked her. She flew backwards, unable to slow her momentum because of the power of the kick, and eventually collided with a building. The wall collapsed behind her, leaving her lying in rubble.
Sachi tried to draw in a breath and pain tore through her chest. A few of her ribs were probably broken. The crunching sound of footsteps drew Sachi's attention upwards. Wolta stood over her, both hands extended and ready to snap.
There was an insane light in Wolta's eyes as he looked down at her. "I'm afraid this is the end for you Soul Reaper!"
Sachi watched numbly as the muscles in his arms and hands tensed in the beginning of his simultaneous snaps. This really was the end. She was going to die. And as numb as this thought made her mind she still felt angry. Enraged in fact. But she was strangely detached from it and therefore couldn't use it to her advantage. All she could do was lay there, her body beaten and broken. It frustrated her.
Suddenly Wolta's eyes widened in surprise and he began to fall sideways. The reason quickly became obvious as blood spattered Sachi's face. The silver and black blade of a Soul Reaper's released zanpakuto was embedded in Wolta's side. The zanpakuto tore the rest of its way through and began to retract, Wolta leaping away as another figure landed in front of Sachi. With that particular shade of brilliant red hair it could only be one person. Renji. Sachi had never been so happy to see someone in her entire life. "Renji!" she managed to gasp.
Fury unlike anything he had felt before rushed through Renji's veins as he glanced back over his shoulder at Sachi. She was bloody and bruised, her face contorted in pain as she struggled to sit up. Renji turned angry eyes back to the Arrancar in front of him. He had done this. Damn Arrancar! And here he was, certain that he was never going to have to deal with one of these bastards again.
"Don't worry Sachi…" Sachi started as Renji said her name. His voice sounded strangely calm. An odd feeling of expectation filled her. "I'll take of care of this vermin."
"Vermin?" Wolta hissed angrily, holding his side in a vain attempt to stem the bleeding. "Who are you to call me vermin?"
"I'm the fukutaicho of Squad 6 of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads, Renji Abarai. And I will kill you."
Something that looked suspiciously like fear flickered briefly through Wolta's eyes. Then he threw back his head and laughed manically, his hands in the air. "You stupid bastard! You can't do anything to me! You don't have the power!" Renji's eyes narrowed at that comment as Wolta's laughter abruptly abated. "I'm Arrancar 63 Wolta Kasfke. And we'll see about who's killing who," he sneered.
Wolta raised his right hand and snapped. Renji dodged the lighting it created by a hair's breadth and charged, swinging Zabimaru forward. Wolta leapt away and began to snap in rapid fire forcing Renji to evade rather than attack.
It was quickly apparent to Renji why Sachi had had so much trouble with the bastard. Even he was having a hard time in his current condition. Renji's preoccupation with figuring out what to do became a problem as Wolta suddenly appeared behind him and snapped. Pain raced through Renji's body along with the electricity and he collapsed, twitching. Wolta howled with laughter.
As Renji pushed himself to his feet he realized that he really only had one option to take out an Arrancar. But would he be able to do it? He had been trying ever since he had reacquired the ability to achieve shikai, but he hadn't been able to yet. Renji glanced over to where Sachi lay. She had managed to prop herself up, but her lips were still tight with pain. And her eyes…they held that same fear for him that he had seen before when she had saved him from the Menos Grande. That's what decided it for him. He couldn't let her worry so much about him.
Renji closed his eyes and began to carefully gather his reiatsu around him. Wolta stopped laughing as he realized what was happening. "What the hell are you doing you stupid Soul Reaper?" he spat, stepping forward, unable to keep the alarm out his voice.
The reiatsu around Renji only increased until he looked he was glowing with it. Suddenly Renji's eyes snapped open and the energy around him skyrocketed. "Bankai!"
Red reiatsu literally exploded from Renji. Sachi hurriedly raised her arm against the fierce wind it created, her senses completely overwhelmed by its power. When the light and wind had died down Sachi slowly lowered her arm and was stunned by what she saw. Renji still stood before her, but his zanpakuto had changed. It now resembled a giant, skeletal snake with a red mane behind its head. Renji also now wore what seemed like a small fur cape that extended all the way down his right arm. An ape's skull adorned his left shoulder.
"Hihio Zabimaru," Renji said, his voice confident. Sachi was in awe. Renji had explained what bankai was, but she had never imagined it would be like this. It was without a doubt visually impressive and the power emanating from it was…incredible. Hope and a sense of peace filled Sachi as Renji's reiatsu washed over her.
Wolta now wore an expression of true fear. He stumbled backwards a couple steps, his eyes wide. "What the hell is that? You can't do that! "You're not supposed to be able to do that!"
In response Renji raised his arm. The massive his snake that was his zanpakuto responded in kind, rising off the ground and flying forwards. Wolta turned and ran, desperate to escape, but Renji's bankai was on him before he could go more than a couple of steps. Wolta screamed in terror as he was caught in Hihio Zabimaru's jaws. Renji's zanpakuto began to angle upwards towards the sky and the red light of reiatsu gathered in its mouth alongside Wolta.
Renji flicked his arm again and the reiatsu exploded outward in a massive blast. "Hikotsu Taiho!" There was final shriek from Wolta as he disintegrated inside the explosion.
Suddenly all the sections of Hihio Zabimaru broke apart and began to fall. They disappeared before they hit the ground, Zabimaru resealing itself as Renji's reiatsu spent itself. Renji swayed a bit as he sheathed his zanpakuto. He had really done it. He had finally used his bankai. He knew he should have been elated, but Renji was really just exhausted. But he couldn't pass out just yet. He made his way over to Sachi.
Sachi didn't know what to say to Renji as he came over to her and half fell, half dropped to his knees. He had just saved her life in a massive display of power. And he looked totally exhausted. "That was amazing," she told him quietly, at a loss for anything else to say.
Renji couldn't help but smile at that. "Thanks," he told her sincerely. "How're you feeling?"
Sachi winced as she shifted. "I've been better."
"I can take care of that." Renji reached out, his hands already glowing a faint green.
Sachi caught his wrists. "Should you really be doing that?" she asked concerned.
Renji frowned. "I can handle it," he told her defensively. Reluctantly Sachi released his wrists. She was definitely grateful when her breathing eased as his hands hovered over her torso.
Suddenly he swayed again and began to collapse. Sachi caught him and let a small 'oof' as he landed against her half healed chest. "Are you ok?" Sachi asked, her voice rising with worry.
"I'm okay…really…" Renji panted. He really shouldn't have done that. But Sachi was still hurt…she needed to be healed. And yet he couldn't find the will power to sit back and continue when he was so comfortable leaning against her
"I don't think you should be doing this. Besides, I thought you weren't very good at kido anyways…"
"I've had lots of practice recently," Renji replied wryly.
"Well I suppose that's true," Sachi admitted a bit sheepishly. She did have a tendency to take risks when she was fighting that ended up with her getting hurt.
Sachi looked down at where Renji's head lay against her chest. He was always coming to her rescue. He had done so much for her since he had come into her life. It wasn't fair for her to ask anymore of him now. With a sudden impulsiveness Sachi wrapped her arms around Renji. Her heart pounded in her chest as a strange warmth reached all the way through her body, from the top of her head to the tips of her toes.
"It's ok, Renji," she told him softly. "I'll heal on my own. You don't have to push yourself for me."
Renji mumbled a quiet acquiescence and then returned her embrace with a contented sigh.
It was then that Sachi realized that she never wanted to let him go.
Author's Note:
So I'm pretty sure I set a new record for length with this chapter for this story. Crazy huh? But it's ok because this chapter is awesome! Or I think so anyways. Also the word document for this story is now over 100 pages. That's just insane to me. I can't believe how much I've written for this!
So I'm pretty sure I'll be able to keep updating during my training/class/thing. It'll probably just be more like every other week rather than every week like it has been. I still make no promises though. This has only been the first week and we haven't been assigned any outside work yet so I'll just have to see.
Eight reviews! Not as awesome as ten, but I'm still happy with it! I'm glad everyone enjoyed Ikkaku's and Yumichika's appearances last chapter. Anyways THANK YOU to Sora'struelover, Red6, KuroOkamii77, Luafua, bored411, Dovie-Chan, bleach fan no 1, and Zororenjilover!
Only two more chapters til the time skip. Yay!
Thanks for reading!
imagination junkie