Part 3 – Apart like Night and Day
And the Sky was always Clouded
Like leaves blown from the past, he met her beautiful big eyes piercing his soul and awakening him from the deepest sleep. Surrounded by long eyelashes they looked back at him and she smiled. The smile seemed to lighten up the night and bring a familiar warmth inside his chest.
Toushirou leaned closer to her, not minding his hakama growing wet from the slippery rocks under his knees or the humidity creating drops of sweat on his temples. Nothing mattered; not even the fact that they were being watched. He could feel the foreign reiatsu. Not even the thick clouds gathering on the night sky bringing along the scent of a rainstorm.
The thundering in the distance felt as if taking place inside of him. Drumming and reminding him how intensely and insanely alive he felt.
As a result he leaned even closer watching how her lids slowly closed and her breathing pace accelerated. When he noticed her fleshy lips part, his did as well. And when they met, he took the deepest inhale to fill all of his senses with her odour, sweet, tempting, breathtaking and dreamy…
He kissed her like he had never kissed her before. Like it was the first after the longest time. And it was… it was indeed a long time since the last he had felt her so close, so real…
His hands searched for her skin impatiently and found her slender neck. His fingers dug into her golden locks brushing through them with such ease as if they were made of the purest silk, and breathed her more and more while his lips cupped hers passionately.
But what made him smile while kissing was the fact that she was not pulling back, or keeping a slow rhythm as if to help him keep up with her. Of course he knew how much more experienced his lieutenant was in this area, but it was the last thing he was thinking at that moment, because she was not giving him that hint.
She was giving her all in this kiss, he could feel it in the desperateness of her touch on his face, on his chest, on his shoulder-blades. He could feel it in her slow but deep kiss, in the rhythm of her breathing and panting. Just like he was.
It was what they wanted, what they desired at that moment.
It was all they needed to let the other know of their importance to the other… after such a long time…
Such a long long time…
…
I shot up from the hard ground and folded myself putting pressure with my both hands on my stomach. My head was spinning fast and my guts hurt.
I groaned and clenched my teeth with the torrents of pain that shot through me.
"Hitsugaya-san?" I heard Fujiki next to me mutter.
I was unable to say anything. The pain that pierced through me was too much and had blurred all my senses. I fell back on the ground bringing my knees up to my chest hoping it would soothe the pain.
"Hitsugaya-san! What-what's wrong? Hitsugaya-san?" Fujiki cried and I felt his hands on me.
"Hitsugaya-san!"
…
The sun had risen when I opened my lids again finding a wild bush hanging over me. I narrowed my eyes to clear the blurriness. It was not as bright as it felt like; the sky was covered with a light gray blanket and I heard thunders not far away from us.
I turned my head to find Fujiki sitting by a fire. The scent of the bitterness of tea reached my nostrils.
Slowly I sat up rubbing my forehead. My shoulders felt like carrying boulders.
"Good morning!" Fujiki smiled and poured the hot water in a small wooden thing that looked like a cup in which dark green leaves were floating. He offered me the tea.
"Thank you." I blew at the hot water and cupped it with my both hands.
"How're you feeling?" the black-haired man asked casually.
"Much better!"
"I guess it's the hunger, right?" he glanced sideways at me and continued playing with the stick and the small fire.
"I guess so." I muttered, wondering if Fujiki was envious of this capability of mine which he had lost since his arrival in Soul Society.
"Then I think we should leave as soon as possible. The village should be a two days' walk from now on." Fujiki looked to the north where the gray clouds were coming from, like a growling monster. "There you'll find food!" he chuckled.
The sound of thunders brought flashes of my dream in my head, and I wondered if indeed that sudden pain I had felt in the night was due to the hunger and fatigue.
I looked over the cup at him.
Fujiki seemed sad as his dark eyes wandered over the vast valleys that stretched for as far as the eye could reach. The mountains covered with snow were now standing behind us; a gigantic wall separating me from Seireitei. And the more we headed north, the more it grew distant, yet the dreams grew intenser and more vivid…
But going back now did not feel right, for a reason I had yet to discover.
Fujiki stretched his legs and brushed a palm over his face.
"Well… when you've drank up, we depart. Ok?"
I nodded and took a short sip.
Fujiki was wearing the same expression as he had been since he had told me of the reason he wanted to head north across the snow-covered mountains; to the village where this Matsumoto Osamu was said to be.
An expression of mixed sadness, anxiety and excitement.
"Matsumoto… well, it is a name I've heard quite sometimes when… when I was still alive. So, it could be nothing but a coincidence that your woman shares this name with the one I'm looking for!"
He had said making me furrow my brows with irritation.
"She's not my woman!" I had hissed through clenched teeth. Fujiki had laughed at my reaction while I wanted to punch the smile away from his arrogant face.
"I heard some stories that this man has a strange ability… they say he can find people!"
At first I had not reacted to his sayings; stories and myths were floating in every town and village. Even in Seireitei. And besides that, the newcomers in Soul Society were always naïve enough to believe any story and gossip that was flowing, and eager to meet again with their beloved ones. What bothered me was the familiarity of the name.
Matsumoto Osamu…
"He can find the people you are looking for! And… I think it's time I get over the fact that I'm dead and start building a new life here."Fujiki had said wearing that very expression he was wearing now. A distant gaze, a brave smile and a frown of sadness over his eyes.
"I can't forget the people of my life! I don't want to. I can't just find others here and start anew! It would be like… like betraying them! I have to find them! Maybe the afterlife will offer me a second chance or something!"
"Fujiki." I called him and he looked at me over his shoulder. "I think you should consider the possibility that the ability of that man is… that it's nothing but a myth! I've never heard of an ability like this. Not even among Shinigami with great abilities in kido. It could be something else. He could be a Shinigami with a Zanpakuto with strange abilities."
I didn't tell him that if there were another Shinigami named Matsumoto I would have definitely known of his existence, since his frown grew deeper as he watched me.
Suddenly Fujiki grinned.
"Don't worry! I may be more naïve and more, let's say, open-minded now that I know that the afterlife does exist, but I'll try not to grow too hopeful! I know!" he shrugged and looked away again. "Besides, I was just looking for a reason to leave that pathetic village since the time I had ended up there and found out that there are better places to live in here."
"In Soul Society."
"What?"
I smiled slightly.
"The here you mentioned. It's called Soul Society!" I explained.
Fujiki chuckled.
"Yeah… Soul Society! Maybe, if that Matsumoto guy does not exist, or turns out to be a fake, then I shall return with you to your town! Perhaps I could meet your woman!"
I placed the cup of tea on the ground and gave Fujiki a killer glance.
"She's notmy woman!"
"Yeah, yeah! I heard you calling her name in the night, mister-she's-not-my-woman! You're head over heels about her, Hitsugaya-san!" Fujiki laughed loud making me wonder how fast his mood could change.
I pressed my lips and kept myself from throwing the cup to his head.
Soon after that we departed further north.
Before sundown the rainstorm caught up with us and so we searched for a hide-out until the storm would cease.
Fujiki's mood was bright again and it got on my nerves, but at least time felt like passing by much quicker. A little after sunrise the storm turned into a light rainfall and Fujiki insisted we went on with our journey at once muttering something about my health.
We were following a river which had flooded after the strong rain. The ice-cold water rushed along the rocky shores like a snake-like beast being chased. As I watched the white water it reminded me of the last battle and Hyourinmaru's ice-dragon's form. And then Kuchiki's words, sharp like his Zanpakuto's ability, pierced my soul echoing all around me.
At once I lowered my eyes, just like I had when Kuchiki's eyes looked down at me that day.
But my reminiscing lasted only a short time when, suddenly, all my senses were woken up by an ice-cold, hostile reiatsu.
I stopped dead in my tracks and looked to my right where I saw the air moving strangely.
Everything that occurred after that happened in only a few seconds, though they had felt like entire minutes…
Out of thin air a huge Hollow appeared and rushed towards me with its jaws wide open revealing sharp teeth and sparkles flickering inside the slits where eyes ought to be. But what made me incapable of reacting fast enough was the mask with horns… it was the same shape and perhaps the same size of the mask of that Hollow that had been the cause of my death…
My eyes widened at the sight of the familiar Hollow and if my hand had not missed the handle of my Zanpakuto behind my back by an inch I would have been able to save Fujiki… but I had missed it by an inch…
Fujiki had been standing only two steps behind me, watching everything with slow motions, unable to keep up with the Hollow's and my speed. That was the reason he couldn't run away and save himself.
All I managed to see was a blur of white and black rushing over me, knocking me down on the ground and then slamming Fujiki on the ground. I heard a scream, and then the Hollow's laughter… and then I knew that it could not have been the very Hollow that had killed me more than hundred years ago. Its laughter was so much different…
I sliced its mask in two with my katana, but I had been too slow.
Before it faded away like smoke, the Hollow had already fed with Fujiki's soul… no trace was left behind, as if he had never existed in this world…
"Fujiki!" I cried out loud cupping my mouth. I scanned a round but I was surrounded by nothing but a soulless valley and a growling river.
I tightened my grip around the handle of my Zanpakuto and clenched my teeth.
What was going on with me…
Why hadn't I moved faster… why hadn't I sensed the Hollow's presence in time… it had been so close when I first noticed the air move strangely… too close…
What was wrong with me…
I had just been the reason for an innocent soul to die.
"Idiot! Idiot! Idiot!" I growled at myself pulling my hair and biting my lips. I threw the long katana on the ground and felt a flicker in Hyourinmaru's reiatsu, but I paid no attention. Instead my eyes kept searching for some sign of Fujiki, even though I knew that I would never see him again.
The Hollow had eaten him, the way I had wished would happen to me many years ago, so that the end would come faster…
That moment I remembered a faint memory. An image of pure white and a little shadow flickering over the bright white light. Something moving slowly, like a leaf falling from a tree… but it was not…
I furrowed my brows staring at my knees on the ground and my clenched fists.
And then I remembered a butterfly in front of me…
It had been that night I had died on that ice-covered field as the sun was slowly rising, though I never made it through the dawn; there had been a butterfly. A Hell Butterfly… which meant that a Shinigami had performed the Soul Burial on me, a technique every Shinigami learnt in the Academy to purify a Human soul and send it to Soul Society.
I ran my hand over my face and folded myself over my knees blaming myself for everything; for Fujiki's sudden death, for the Gotei 13's disappointment in me according to Kuchiki's sayings, for all I could imagine was going on in 10th Division, for the pain I had caused to Matsumoto…
All I wanted was to find out about my past.
But now the consequences of my snubbing the laws were tumbling down around me, falling and piling up to hide me from everything and everyone.
Once more my feet were tied on the very spot. I was unable to move forward or return back home.
I remembered Fujiki's words; he had said he'd come back to Seireitei with me if that Matsumoto turned out to be a fake…
I couldn't go on like this. Like a coward running away from something I could not specify.
Was I afraid of facing the consequences of my departure…
Was I afraid of facing my lieutenant…
Or was I afraid of returning back to a life that was so much different from the one Hyourinmaru had revealed to me…
I couldn't understand it myself. But I knew that, if indeed that Matsumoto Osamu's abilities were true, then I would have searched for him myself as well. Just so I could know if my family was here; my brothers, Jin and Michio, and my aunt and my grandparents…
For the first time I tried to imagine a life here, in Soul Society with Jin and Michio and aunt-Hikari living under the same roof. I would introduce them to my Division and to Matsumoto…
I wondered what aunt Hikari would think of her…
What my brothers' opinion would be… would they laugh at me, or would they encourage me…
And then I heard Matsumoto's voice inside my head mentioning that name… it had been that day she had insisted we took a day-off together, as a result we had breakfast at Kuchiki's mansion, then a stroll in Rukongai and ended up at my grandmother's…
"Osamu was the logical one. When Hikaru and I would defy my mother's shouts, he would take the lead and talk just like a big brother should… .He was not the type who'd simply act mature in order to gain our parents' trust or anything… no, it was just his way of applying order!" I remembered her words clearly.
Grandmother had asked her about her past… that's right, Matsumoto had two older brothers; Hikaru and Osamu…
I looked up staring into the nothingness bringing back details of that day, the most beautiful day I could remember…
Back then I had not the slightest idea of what my past could be like. Back then I had been insanely envious every time somebody talked about their living life with smiles across their faces…
But Osamu… Matsumoto Osamu… could he be Matsumoto's brother…
With that I stood up and sheathed my Zanpakuto letting Hyourinmaru's faint spiritual energy to calm me down. Although I had no clear mind to make important decisions at the moment, I made my way to the north.
But this time, I was not running away anymore.
If this Matsumoto Osamu Fujiki had mentioned was real, then I had to fulfill his desire and find out if he really possessed the ability to find people. And then, I had to find out if he was Matsumoto's older brother. Because if he was, it would be the first time I'd know someone who had met with their relatives in the afterlife…
…
With flash-steps I reached the village before the sky had darkened.
The conditions here looked much improved compared to the little village at the south foot of the mountains. The people looked livelier, animals were running around freely and dogs barked happily at each newcomer.
But even here the villagers were surprised and were staring at me with awe but cautiousness; a black-dressed Shinigami with a long katana on the back and snow-white hair.
At first, I flash-stepped over the rooftops trying to sense every single trace of reiatsu in the vicinity. If there were Hollows or Menos Grande I wanted to be aware of their presence in time. And in addition to that, I wanted to find out who the Shinigami of this village were.
If anyone knew of a man capable of finding people, it had to be them.
The sky was dyed a deep pink as the sun had set and I sensed two Shinigami. Without second thought I followed the soft trace of their reiatsu.
In the centre of the village stood three tall towers, similar to the ones in Seireitei. The two Shinigami were sitting nonchalantly on one rooftop under the fading shadow of one of the towers.
The moment their eyes met mine they stood up at once and their hands found instantly the handles of their Zanpakuto.
I stopped in my tracks feeling the passerby's staring at me and slowly walking away.
I was looking up at the roof at the man and the woman with the black uniform of the Shinigami.
They jumped down and walked towards me with deep frowns on their faces.
I tried to look calm and neutral, and made no single movement to grab my Zanpakuto.
The man stared at me from my toes up to my hair. Both their eyes stayed a little too long on my hair.
I clicked my tongue in response.
"Who are you?" the man with spiky, dark brown hair asked. His face was quite angular and tanned, while his eyes had a bright green colour. The woman beside him was much shorter than him, barely surpassing me by a head, with long straight black hair dancing around her round face. I didn't like the arrogant expression on her face.
"My name is Hitsugaya Toushirou." I replied simply. "And who are you?"
The man's brow rose at the remark.
"Ha, the Shinigami of this village! My name is Mukai Akihiko! And this is-!"
"What do you want here?" the woman asked and I noticed the tension in her slight movements. Her eyes were looking nowhere but me.
Mukai next to her chuckled nervously and tapped her shoulder.
"Rude Haruki-chan! Hitsugaya-san, don't take it personally! She's like this with every man!"
The woman kicked Mukai at his leg causing the man to groan with pain and surprise. He grabbed his leg and gave her a light punch on her forearm.
"You idiot!"
"You're the idiot, Akihiko! What is he doing here? What if he wants to take our places here? What if he-!"
"I'm not here to take your place!" I said coldly.
Both Mukai and that Haruki-chan looked at me frowning, as if I had just insulted them.
"You don't like it here?" Haruki asked sharply crossing her arms on her chest.
Mukai straightened his back and looked suddenly all serious. He crossed his arms as well and for a moment I seriously considered of using a simple kido on them and then walk away.
How could anyone put the responsibility of an entire village in their hands…
I fought the urge to roll my eyes as I observed them.
"It's a very beautiful village, but I'm not interested in it. I'm interested in a specific man who is supposed to be living here!" I said, wondering if they would be willing to help me.
"A man?" Mukai asked and rubbed his chin glancing down at Haruki.
"His name is Matsumoto." I added when I noticed Haruki looking thoughtful.
"Matsumoto?" Mukai asked again.
"That's what I said!" I muttered to myself.
"I know, Matsumoto-san! He owns this shop that sells sandals with beads? You know him!" Haruki said looking at Mukai and showing, for the first time since I got here, a smile on her face.
"And that other old man, who is being followed by a herd of dogs each time he goes for a walk!" Mukai said and started pointing towards different directions.
"And Matsumoto Kasumi, she has thi-!"
"Wait! He said he's searching for a man Matsumoto!" Mukai corrected her and tapped the top of her head. At once her face turned red.
"Aa!" they both gapped and then turned towards me simultaneously.
This time I couldn't keep myself from rolling my eyes.
"Matsumoto Osamu, a man! Do you know him?" I repeated the question.
"Osamu?" Mukai asked. Again.
"Exactly!" I nodded.
"Osamu… Osamu…!" Mukai and Haruki looked at each other for a long time before they both jumped on their feet and approached me with wide grins on their faces as if we had been friends forever.
I flinched with the sudden approach and the too bright smiles.
"We know him! Well, Haruki-chan knows him more than I do!" Mukai started snickering and then laughing loudly at the short woman who had turned even redder. "Haruki-chan here, as you see, has a crush on that man you're looking for, Hitsugaya-san! And now you'll become her favourite person for the day for giving her a reason to meet him! Again!"
Haruki slapped Mukai hard on his face. The sound of the slap even made me flinch.
"Shut up, you jerk!" she hissed.
"If you're going to kill me today, please tell me so, so that Hitsugaya-san here can replace me in time!"
I furrowed my brows and gave Mukai a killer glance.
"Please, tell me where he is!" I requested as calmly as I could muster, but that Mukai and Haruki insisted they showed me instead of telling me. As a result I had to endure their idiotic insults towards each other for another twenty minutes.
At some point they started arguing about where Matsumoto Osamu was living, and I wished that, when we'd finally find the place, we would part ways.
The last thing I wanted was to have those two there when I would ask that Matsumoto if he was my lieutenant's brother and if he could indeed find people.
When we reached a wooden cabin under a naked maple tree, Mukai and Haruki stopped and pointed at the small house.
For a moment I stopped breathing and tried to sense the man's reiatsu. There was a faint trace, but nothing strong enough to prove that he was a Shinigami, or possessed a strong spiritual energy.
I glanced at the two Shinigami beside me and thanked them.
Haruki suddenly grabbed my wrist and smiled nervously at me.
"Please… let me-!"
"I'm sorry. I have to talk to him in private." I told her knowing what she was about to ask. I looked away from the disappointment that showed at once on her round blushed face. "It's really important to me!" I added and walked up the three small steps of the cabin.
I glanced over my shoulder at Mukai comforting Haruki as they flash-stepped away.
I sighed and ran my hand over my face when the door opened before me making me jump backwards back to the ground in terror.
"Oh! So I was right! I did hear some voices outside!" a deep voice said and I looked up to meet a tall man with broad shoulders and eyes that momentarily brought an image of my lieutenant in my mind. And that was enough for me to prove that this man was indeed Matsumoto's older brother.
My lips parted as I stared at the man and tried to search for more similarities; the dark blonde hair, the fleshy lips, the long eyelashes, the nose…
For a moment I even thought I was making those features up, but, as I stared, and I was staring long, I could see the similarity.
My eyes had widened and my palms had grown sweaty when I managed to make the question.
"Are you… Matsumoto Osamu?"
The man chuckled and motioned towards the inside.
There was something familiar in his movements and in his manners. Something warm, something I had missed too much…
I had been away too long, but I had learnt a lot during this time.
Big places inside of me that were once empty had now been overfilled with memories and emotions; things I couldn't even imagine some time ago. I was given a family out of nowhere, I made a friend, and lost him.
And now I would make a new one; and this man would be the one to guide me back home with his strong words and the brave and easy-going character that so much reminded me of her… of the person I had missed the most of all…
We talked about Matsumoto Rangiku, both sharing our own experiences and memories with her individually. Osamu was more than shocked when I told him that I knew her and she was my lieutenant. But he was even more shocked when I asked him of that ability of his. He only laughed in response and said that if he did have such an ability he wouldn't be here living in this faraway village under a maple tree all by himself.
I tried not to tell him too much about her, since I could not trust this lump in my throat anymore. It felt like the air was too heavy inside my chest and it forced a strange pressure in my skull. I fought the urge to cry in front of a stranger…
But Osamu was the first one to start shedding tears as his sky-blue eyes wandered away, probably to his childhood...
That's when he told me of the tragedy that involved Matsumoto's death… it was after their parents' murder and the destruction of their home that Osamu and his uncle found Matsumoto dead being watched over by a white stallion… she had only been fourteen years old…
I couldn't help the horrid images popping in my head. I tried to imagine her as a happy little girl with long golden locks and the white stallion standing proudly over her. She had mentioned him once to me, a white horse named Shiro…
And then I remembered a memory of my own; the day Jin, Michio and I had visited the town. We had eaten grilled eel, we had gone for shopping, and we had met a samurai brushing a white stallion.
I remember clearly telling that samurai what a beautiful horse it was. And then his words rang in my ears, as if I had heard them only yesterday.
"Yes, he is! But… he used to be so much more beautiful. Not long ago. He's been through much, this horse. He grew old in a matter of days although he's so young!"
Osamu had been looking at me with a worried expression as strange thoughts started swirling inside my head. I never told him that I had met his uncle and the white stallion. I never told him that I had met him that day as well. Osamu was much younger back then, the day I had visited that town which I was not supposed to go to…
But, just like I never told him about my feelings about his younger sister, even though he realized it the moment I started talking about her, I didn't need to tell him what I had found out to make him trust me.
He had trusted me the moment our eyes met… as if he knew as well that we had once met in our previous livinglives…
Maybe he did; that is something I never found out…
Osamu and I departed for Seireitei the very next day. For the first time in months my feet were no longer hesitating to move back south. I was afraid, but I was excited, and I had the company of a beloved person of my lieutenant's…
Through our journey, the last traces of the winter faded away. And the sky, that had always been clouded while I had been running away from home, was now wearing its most beautiful clear blue…
…
Another late update! Sorry about that! I'm preparing to move out and so have been quite busy...
Thank you for reading and reviewing! It means so much!
Hopefully you liked the turn in the story- and you surely realized that Toushirou is finallyreturning to Seireitei, to Rangiku! Yeahy XD Oh, by the way please tell me if you thought it was a little confusing with all those references to the past chapters (those in italics in the story).
Have a nice day/evening!