A/n: Thanks for the reading, reviews, follows and favourites. Wassup readers of Hidden World? I thought that it would be a decent time to update since its been a while since I've had. Anyways...
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or its plot. The only ones I own are the badass Kobayashi Suki, the spunky Mizushima Kei and Ukeire Atsushi for number 1 jerk :D
I will warn that there may be errors, don't let that you stop from reading the chapter
Chapter 44
"I just received a message from Las Noches that intruders have entered," Lunuganga's voice boomed down to the small group. To think that he just got a message when they had been here for quite some time now. It was either that they had crappy communication skills or this so called 'guardian' sucked at his job. Suki was going to go for the latter, "And to think that you mere bugs are connected to these intruders. None of you will be forgiven and you will all turn to sand in this desert."
"Hell no," Suki stood to her feet and scowled as she reached for her bat, "I already have white hair. I'm not going to deal with be as white as Ishida's clothes damn it."
"Don't worry Kobayashi – I've got this one to deal with," Ichigo drew out his blade and his reiatsu shot up. "Getsuga." Suki knew what he was going to do and stood back with a blank expression. She supposed it was only fair that Ichigo had a shot for himself. "Tensho!" As he swung, a blast of reiryoku sliced through the air and made contact with the hollow. Ichigo's attack sliced the hollow's face and took him out instantly.
"Show off," Suki muttered and scowled once she heard yelps from the hollows.
"You cheater!" Nel shouted accusingly as her brothers pointed with her. "You used a cheap shot! Only bad guys used cheap shots."
"Shut up already," Ichigo snapped as he lowered his weapon. "I saved you and it's not a cheap shot when you hit from the front!" Suki heard a growl from the dead hollow and she turned around with a frown. That's when she realised that the hollow wasn't exactly dead.
Just bloody perfect.
Lunuganga regenerated and his expression snarled down at them like they were insects. "You will not be forgiven Intruder!"
"What the hell?!" Ichigo snapped before shooting a glare at Nel, "What is with that thing?!"
"It's obvious Itsygo," Nel replied innocently. Ichigo's eyes narrowed at the second nickname that she gave him. "Lunuganga-sama is made of sand."
"Just stop talking already!" Suki barked and hauled out her bat. "We need to deal with this-" She lost her balance the second that Lunuganga slammed a fist into the ground, barely missing them. Immediately she shot back up and glowered. "I am never going to a beach again!"
Ichigo lost his temper, "What the hell can we do Ishida?"
"I won't be able to do anything." Uryu observed the hollow with a keen gaze, "An arrow will just but a hole in it unless Sado-kun and Kobayashi-san have anything in mind?"
"We could bash it?" Suki suggested and thought of the outcome. She turned to Chad who was look back at his own fist. "Could we do that Chad?" Even though her powers increased her impact, how much would she be able to use?
"I don't think it's possible," Chad admitted and lowered his fist. "Though I suppose we could try." As Suki spared another glance at the hollow, she saw the size of it and dismissed it. They would have to get close enough to actually hit it.
"We'll retreat!" Ichigo turned to Nel who was already ahead of him. She smacked Bawabawa with her tiny hands and ordered the pet hollow to flee. Bawabawa didn't need to be told twice, wailing with alarm as he wriggled his way to freedom. This was unbelievable. Suki felt annoyed that it was taking far too long, but she turned to see the distance between them and the enemy.
Suki's eyes went wide as the hollow's mouth opened, showing his very dangerous set of teeth that looked like they belonged to a shark. What the heck was with hollows and their damn shark teeth that could devour them?!
"None of you will escape!"
Gravity seemed to favour the hollow and Suki felt her body sink like a stone. Surprise flooded her system as she fell off the hollow and towards the pit, but Chad's arm shot out and grabbed Suki's hood to halt her fall. The hood was the only thing that held her and Suki shot a grateful glance towards her dark skinned companion.
Suki reached up and grabbed Chad's arm, allowing him to haul her up with ease to place her back on Bawabawa. For once she was thankful to be on this hollow rather than the ground.
"What's the weakness of this damn thing?" Ichigo demanded, pinching Nel's cheeks in annoyance. Her eyes welled up with tears.
"Water, his weakness is water!"
"Where on earth would we find water in a desert?!" Suki demanded in rage, now finding more motivation in punching Aizen in the face. He just had to hide in Hueco Mundo, didn't he? "And I'm not spitting on the bastard either! I don't think my powers work like that!"
"We didn't ask you to!" Ichigo snapped back at her, leaving Nel alone and clearly disgusted by the new mental image.
"Tsugi no Mai." A familiar voice halted the arguments between the pair and Ichigo was the one to turn towards the direction. Suki was next, looking back to see an avalanche of snow was rumbling towards the hollow. "Hakuren!"
Ice shot out of her zanpakuto and engulfed the monster. As soon as the ice covered the hollow, it had shattered; completely destroying the threat from the group. It didn't take long for Ichigo to realise his rescuer, looking towards the duo with wide eyes (and Suki swore she noticed a grateful smile on his face).
"No way..." Suki muttered as she recognised the two figures standing on the hill. Uryu and Chad remained silent but they had their own shocked expressions.
"Rukia." Ichigo's voice quivered and it looked like he was relieved. "Renji..." So they ended up coming after all? Not only that but they had cloaks concealing their shinigami shihakusho. Suki raised a brow as they leaped from their positions to reach the misfit group. Kei wasn't with them... that surprised the silver haired female.
"Hey where are you going?" Nel asked as Ichigo jumped off Bawabawa to reach the shinigami pair. She let out a startled yelp once they were closer. "They're shinigami?! The bad guys!"
"You're slow," Uryu said curtly.
"Can't really blame a kid for being slow," Suki reminded with a shrug. Uryu spared Suki a frown of confusion. "It's not like she's at our age." She added before she hopped off Bawabawa with Chad, ignoring the sand kicking up under her feet. As they went to catch up to Ichigo, Suki heard a sigh from the quincy before he followed along.
Without words of response, the shinigami pair remained in their positions, smiling affectionately as Ichigo jogged towards them. "Rukia, Renji!" Ichigo resembled an excited puppy that was about to get his ball thrown. "Rukia, I-!" He obviously didn't get to finish his sentence because Rukia had connected her fist with Ichigo's chin.
"Kurosaki?!" Uryu blanched at the sudden turn of events while Suki winced. Maybe the Kuchiki somehow heard that Ichigo insulted her. Suki had to give props for Rukia's good hearing.
In response, the carrot had let out a pained grunt as Rukia turned around and tagged Renji in. This made the fukutaicho smirk with excitement, clenching his fist to slam into Ichigo's face.
"Are you alright, Kurosaki?" Uryu wondered with a sweat drop. Suki passed a suspicious glare towards Ichigo's limp form. No matter how many times she saw Ichigo's beaten up form, she never forgot the fact that sometimes he really deserved it. But she had no clue to why he got punched.
"I'm actually not surprised that he got punched." Suki admitted with a suspicious glare. "Kurosaki's always doing something to earn a punch in a face."
"No freaking way in hell, I'm going to live through that." Ichigo groaned, holding his new injuries to show that he was nursing for them.
"Fool!" Rukia snapped, glaring down at the carrot top with annoyance and fury. "Why did you enter Hueco Mundo without us? Why didn't you wait for us to return?"
"But you guys left like that," Ichigo protested with an annoyed scowl. "I wasn't sure if you were able come back or not-"
"Of course we're going to come back you fool! No matter what happens!" She looked annoyed, more annoyed at the fact that Ichigo had went without them. "We were planning it from the beginning, so why?" Rukia crouched down, looking at the carrot top with a desperate stare. "Why didn't you wait? Do you have that little faith in us? We're your friends, aren't we?"
Suki peeked a look towards Ichigo, appearing mildly surprised before another smile appeared on his face. It had been rare to see the carrot top smile like he truly meant it. She couldn't help but feel slight envy towards the carrot top. He had his best friend here; Suki didn't have Kei to greet her like she always did.
"Yeah," Ichigo mumbled with the smile still on his face. "You're right, thanks Rukia."
Rukia returned a smile, pushing herself from the ground. "It's good that you know that," She stated as she stood back up and sent a scowl towards him. "But you better not make me confirm such a foolish thing, ever again!" Ichigo still had his silly smile and it almost looked like he fell in love. "Come on fool, we need to save Inoue."
Renji approached Suki and raised his hand slightly as if resembling a wave. "You."
Suki remained unfazed by the fukutaicho's voice. Her amber eyes met with his and she narrowed them in suspicion, "Abarai." They barely got the chance to talk when he was in the living world, in fact – Suki only saw Rukia and Kei. Then again, Renji did break into her room while she was sleeping... and that didn't end well.
"Do you two always have to act like this?" Uryu asked, confused of the conflict by the pair.
The redhead ignored Uryu. "Mizushima's back in Seireitei."
"Oh really?" Suki scoffed sarcastically with a raised brow. Boy, why didn't Kei come instead of Renji? Out of all the times Suki saw the fukutaicho with Orihime, was literally never. At least Suki knew that Kei had a conversation with the walnut haired girl to have a bond. "I thought she tripped over in the sand and you ditched her due to embarrassment."
"I'm being ignored again... aren't I?"
Renji held back a snarl, but he looked peeved. His shoulders shook due to annoyance. "Can't you just accept this information without being a smartass?"
"Because it makes you look like a dumbass," Suki shot back and smirked in satisfaction as Renji narrowed his eyes at her. "And I clearly remember giving you my name to call me by, dipshit."
"That's enough!" Uryu announced and dragged Suki back with her hood. The action surprised Suki and she nearly tripped over her own feet. "You two are at it like two negatives! Do I have to watch you with your arguments as well?!"
"Nerd..." Suki muttered in annoyance and regained her step. As she walked on her own, Uryu let her go and Suki shot one glare at Renji before jumping on Bawabawa. She took her previous seat next to Chad, and kept quiet as Uryu sat near her. He was probably monitoring her after her spat with Renji.
"What was that about?" Rukia wondered in confusion, already on the hollow with a frown. Renji followed afterwards, shooting a glare towards the silver haired female before taking his own seat next to Rukia.
"Some rivalry thing they have," Ichigo answered, sitting next to her. "It started with Kobayashi punching Renji – since then they've been strange friends."
Suki and Renji shot a glare of death towards Ichigo, who raised a brow back at them. It almost appeared as if the pair were saying that the other wasn't their friend. Well in a way, Suki was Renji's companion but she hated to admit it. He probably thought the same way. Their friendship was different compared to most; they greet each other with a blunt, curt tone and pass insults as if they were bonding.
"Hey I just realised," Ichigo looked over to Rukia, ignoring the fact that the little arrancar was sitting in his lap. "What's up with the cloaks? Did you guys find them from somewhere?"
"We were ordered to take these because the dust clouds in Hueco Mundo are pretty bad," Rukia replied calmly as she looked away.
The carrot top raised an eyebrow in confusion, looking towards the Kuchiki as the frown grew on his face. "By who? Did someone let you go?"
"... By," Rukia reached up to touch her face with a hint of reddened cheeks. Now it was Suki's turn to raise a brow in confusion. Why on earth was she acting shy about it? Was the guy that let them go meant to be a pervert? Kon was the first thing that went in Suki's head. "Nii-sama..."
Wait a second... What?
Suki remembered Kuchiki Byakuya... or at least tried to. He was the cold taicho that tried to kill Suki back in Soul Society? He was ready to stab her if not for Ichigo, who asked Suki for the fight. She also remembered that Byakuya reminded her of Atsushi. Even Kei showed a bit of an attitude towards him because he locked Renji up.
Her eyes went as wide as dinner plates and her jaw dropped wider than it should have. There were a mix of emotions that flooded through her; surprise, horror, more surprise and maybe a hint of annoyance. Suki hated surprises, but this was just bloody ridiculous! No more. She gave up trying to not be surprised by random facts of life. It was just impossible now!
Even their shocked reactions, not one of the shinigami pair cared about their reaction.
"Wait!" Ichigo was still flabbergasted that Byakuya actually helped them. "Then the one who sent you to Hueco Mundo was Byakuya?!"
"Technically, the one who opened up Garganta was Urahara-san," Renji added gruffly and crossed his arms over his chest. "However the reason why we were able to get to the human world was thanks to the taicho."
Rukia began her long discussion again, "Nii-sama had said to us that he was only ordered to bring us back. He wasn't ordered to do anything with us once we had returned and said that we could do as we like. He then helped us get to the Senkaimon so that we could depart to the living world."
Ichigo was too stunned for a moment, before a smirk crossed over his features and he looked in another direction. "I see it now." He gazed out into the distance with a chuckle. "It turns out that Byakuya's getting pretty soft if he's letting you and Renji out."
The Kuchiki continued, "Then he said: Those in Hueco Mundo will probably be displeased to have a filthy looking brat wandering in the deserts as the barbaric moron he is."
Ichigo's scowl reappeared slamming his fist into the ground (*cough* onto the hollow's body) with fury radiating him. "That freaking bastard!" Ah well, you could tell if Ichigo was ever going to marry Rukia, Byakuya would be clear about his disdain.
"All that aside," Rukia changed the subject and looked over towards the trio of hollows that suddenly flinched at Rukia's stare. "What the hell are with these guys?"
Nel's eyes went wide with horror. "Now that is wude, you shinigami! You don't say 'what the hell' you know!" She got out of Ichigo's lap and stretched out her arms to give a pose as if they were staring in a superhero comic. "Nel Tu!" What was with kids and being weird? Suki never wanted kids at this rate... not that she thought about them...
"Dondochakka!" Dondochakka reintroduced himself and Suki was surprised that she didn't hear the 'don'tcha know' part. But she didn't want to jinx herself, so she remained scowling at the trio in silence.
"Pesche Gautiche!" The skinny hollow cheered, giving some sort of pose to look familiar to a crane. But did they even know what a crane was? Suki was still trying to wrap her head over the fact that hollows were helping them.
"And together we are the..." The rest of their words fell into a chorus of yelling and confusing words, Suki's face fell blank as Ichigo complained that they weren't even sync. She seriously wished this damn hollow would move faster. The sooner they arrived the Las Noches, the sooner that they could take Orihime out of there. If the arrancar were worse than these hollows, Suki found more reason to go rescue her friend.
"Well." Ichigo let out a sigh as the hollow began to converse to themselves about their terrible introduction. "There you have it – these guys are hollow."
"Have what?" Rukia looked towards Ichigo as if she was going through the most traumatising experience. Suki didn't blame the Kuchiki; not one bit.
"Don't ask," Suki muttered with a frown. "It'll just get them going."
The trio had let out another introduction, but only this time the hollow that they were riding on let out roars of excitement. Suki resisted the painful urge to face palm her face and grumbled to herself in annoyance. If she didn't get off soon, Suki was going to go mad.
Ichigo too, looked like he was already going through a painful experience. "No one cares so just shut up and forget it guys," He muttered with a glare, hoping that they would shut up.
Suki's eyes directed back into the sky, suddenly feeling the strange feeling again. What was with this place that made Suki wish to go home? Of course, this was enemy territory but Suki wasn't one to back down. Every time Suki looked at the odd moon, she felt like she felt like a shadow loomed over her figure and threatened to rip her out of existence.
As soon as Suki felt something touch her shoulder, she flinched and widened her eyes at Uryu's sudden appearance. His blue eyes held a flash of concern for her, which was rare since Suki never really saw him concerned for her... okay that wasn't true but she was still surprised.
"Kobayashi-san, is there something bothering you?" Uryu wondered in a low voice. The only one who heard them was Chad and he seemed to look rather concerned as well. She understood Chad... but why was Uryu showing her concern? In fact... why was she questioning his concern for her? Why was Suki still concerning herself over this stuff? It wasn't like her.
"No," Suki huffed to herself, looking back at her gloves. It didn't feel like a lie, but Suki swore that her voice quivered like she was lying. Atsuko trained her for this; the woman wanted her to fight for a reason. Instead of getting into an inner monologue, Suki added, "I just want to get Inoue and get the hell out of here – this place is giving me the damn creeps."
A/n: I'm not sure when the chapter will be updated next. Hopefully the wait won't be as long, but I can't make promises.
Also to answer your question LateNightOwl, my pinkie isn't as bad but it still hurts. It's probably safe to say I've done something to it that wasn't a bruising. I should probably go to the doctors... but honestly I'm too lazy :P Also, thank you for enjoying Hidden World.
To thank you everyone's support, I present a random omake :D today
Omake~
Suki: I am never going to a beach again!
*Meanwhile, in the living world*
Hiro: *Shudders* TT_TT
Atsuko: What's with you all of a sudden? Don't tell me that you're getting sick.
Hiro: I don't know... I just have a feeling that my little baby doesn't want to go to the beach-bonding-trip in Summer time... the thought of it breaks my heart!
Atsuko: ... -_-' Hiro... you have some serious issues...
27-08-2015*
Ciao!
Please review.
