I don't own Bleach or KHR


44. Sense of Duty

Rukia slowly opened her eyes as she got adjusted to the darkness of the room. She could hardly see anything, and she felt her head pounding. She quickly stood up so see where she was, but all she could see was the crystal lock on her neck.

"Are you awake, priestess?" a child's voice said.

"Who's there?" she asked, but she could vaguely recognize that voice.

"Now priestess, lend me your power, make me the ruler of all the worlds." the voice continued, still not answering to her question.

"Power?"

"Yes, the power that lies dormant within you."

Rukia looked up and saw a scythe's blade shining in the dim light. Rukia wanted to move away, but her body was frozen in fear. The figure that held the scythe slammed it down, striking Rukia in the chest. Rukia could feel her consciousness leaving her, but before she passed out, she saw the two figures that were hidden in the shadows. Sadness overflowed from her heart when she realized who they were.

"Why?" she moaned before falling unconscious.

The scythe shattered into pieces and pierced her flesh; the scar on her back started to glow black and released black aura. The aura surrounded Rukia and trapped her in the vortex. The black aura engulfed Rukia completely, the figures looked at the flames released.

"Beautiful, isn't?"

The smaller of the two looked behind him, he could sense someone coming their way, and with two familiar weapons.

"It seems that the Vongola are foolishly bringing the heirlooms to me." He looked at the other one, "Go stop them and take their heirlooms…Frederico."

Frederico nodded and disappeared from sight. He could only laugh as how perfectly his plan was playing out; it was all a matter of time.

x-x

Soi Fon had to back up from another attack that the Rukia silhouette fired. She had to wonder; where did Gokudera get such technology? The silhouettes disappeared and the cards in Gokudera's hand turned black.

"Gokudera, stand down!" Yoruichi ordered.

"No, you stand back! I can handle this!" He growled

"Gokudera! This is an order; stand down! I have to take care of this."

Soi Fon took the opportunity to rush forward and attack. Gokudera noticed this and jumped back at the last second. Soi Fon managed to scratch his leg, making a crest appear on it. Yoruichi jumped in to attack Soi Fon; she curled her hand into a fist and extended her arm out. Soi Fon noticed this and blocked her punch with her arm.

Yoruichi raised her leg and aimed a kick towards Soi Fon's neck, but Soi Fon blocked her attack with her own leg. The aura that they emitted was strong enough to push them back. Soi Fon disappeared and re-appeared behind Yoruichi, trying to strike her stomach, but Yoruichi moved to the side scratching her cheek.

"Gokudera, take care of the pillar I'll take care of her!"

Soi Fon had to make a quick decision; either take care of Gokudera and complete her duty, or chase after Yoruichi and take revenge. Her moral values were to always finish a mission no matter who got in the way, no matter what her feelings were, she always finished with perfection.

'No I have a duty to take care of.' she thought.

"But don't you want revenge?" a voice on the back of her head chimed.

'But my duties…'

"You need to take your revenge."

Soi Fon left Gokudera and headed off to chase after Yoruichi. Gokudera clenched his fist; he'd failed to prove to everyone that he could take care of himself. But he promised Tsuna that he would take care of the pillar, so he would. After all, his duty always came first.

Gokudera saw something peeking out of the thick forest, the item was made out of crystal, the sun made it change colors like an aurora.

'That must be it!' he thought to himself.

The crystal being his only clue, he began to run towards that direction. The sooner he destroyed the pillar, the sooner he could meet up with everyone else. He had to swallow his pride and leave Soi Fon to Yoruichi.

x-x

Yoruichi ran forward while evading Soi Fon's attacks; she already had crests throughout her body. She remembered that there was a time limit before the crests disappeared. But so far, there were no signs of them disappearing. She could hear Soi Fon's laugh behind her.

"If you're trying to wait it out, it's no use. The crests won't disappear until I say so. Face it, I got stronger while you got weaker."

"It seems you're very talkative today, aren't you?"

Yoruichi held on to a thick tree branch and kicked back, three knives with no handle flew towards Soi Fon at a very fast speed. Soi Fon blocked the knives with her guard; Yoruichi jumped forward and stepped on the guard, and she raised her leg high and let it down for a strong kick. Soi Fon acted quickly and blocked the kick with her own.

They arrived to an open area in the forest, and Yoruichi panted for breath. Soi Fon had one thing right, she was getting tired as the battle went on.

"Now do you understand I am stronger than you? If you do, then I will end this battle now. After all, I still need to capture the Vongola."

Soi Fon closed her eyes and white aura covered her body. The aura moved uncontrollably as it focused on her shoulders. The gusts of wind were getting stronger.

"This a technique that I invented not too long ago, it combines martial arts and aura techniques. This is the first time that I am testing it in an actual battle, it doesn't even have a name."

"No it does have a name…" Yoruichi muttered.

"What are you talking about?"

"Do you know why the commander's uniform doesn't have any sleeves?" she paused for a minute before continuing, "Because to that technique, it would be meaningless to have them,"

A small indigo flame lit from her finger and snaked through her arms and shoulders, ripping off her outer shirt. White aura struck the ground like lighting bolts, most of her aura was now visible on her arms and shoulders.

"You know, I wasn't planning on using this technique on you. It's still so unstable that I have to use my dying will flame to control it."

Yoruichi took her stance as she got ready to attack. Soi Fon could feel the aura emanating from Yoruichi; it was so much stronger than her. But she couldn't give up, she turned away duty for revenge, and now she was going to see this to the end no matter what the result might be.

"Be careful. I can't fully control this technique yet. The name of it is…"

x-x

"…Shunko" Ryohei muttered

The sun crest from the Serano gloves started to glow, white aura focusing on his arms and shoulders. The thick aura that rested on his shoulders ripped his shirt to shreds. However, he could feel his aura flowing through his arms and legs. He still didn't get how this technique worked exactly, but he got the gist of it.

"How did you learn that technique!?" Nanao gasped

"Master Yoruichi taught it to me. She showed me how to control my aura to the extreme."

"So what if you can control your aura!? It's still not enough to defeat me."

Ryohei looked up to see Omaeda coming down from the air with his weapon in hand. Ryohei closed his eyes for a moment and disappeared from their sight. He suddenly reappeared in front of Omaeda and clenched his fist tightly. He punched Omaeda's weapon and broke it into pieces. The punch sent Omaeda flying right to the metallic wall, the impact strong enough to leave a deep dent where Omaeda landed.

Ryohei landed gently on the ground, looking to Nanao next. He didn't know how to go at her; he honestly didn't want to hurt a girl. However, Rukia was more important to him now, and if the woman didn't stand down, he would have no other choice.

"Stand aside, and I won't hurt you to the extreme."

"Hadou no. 33, Soukatsui."

Nanao fired a blue flame from her palm, aiming at Ryohei. He let out a small sigh before disappearing from her sight. He suddenly reappeared in front of her. Ryohei wasn't sure if what he was about to do was right, but he was short for time.

"Forgive me to the extreme…" he muttered softly.

Nanao felt a sharp pain flowing through her body, then she started to lose consciousness. She dropped to the floor with a soft thud. Ryohei felt bad for hurting her, but he had no other choice. Now that there was no one to interfere, he could destroy the pillar.

He stood in front of the pillar, the glowing crystal shimmering in the light. It really was a beautiful sight. Closing his eyes, Ryohei raised his fist and gave a barrage of punches to the pillar. The pillar started to crack until it shattered completely. Pieces fell on the floor as a stream of light shot out of the ground. The once colorful pieces of crystal laid on the floor colorless as light passed through the ceiling.

Now that Ryohei had destroyed the pillar, he could relax a bit, and the pressure of aura on his shoulders disappeared. He looked back to the flight of stairs and remembered Chrome; she still needed his help. Taking a deep breath, he started to go back upstairs, hoping to make it to her in time.

x-x

Hibari sensed the aura that Zaraki was emitting. It was something he hadn't felt before. He could see the purple aura surrounding them, he felt a bit breathless and his body a bit heavier. This man was something beyond carnivore, and Hibari wanted to find out what he was. He had finally found someone strong enough to fight; no more of those weak herbivores that he easily lost interest in! No, he was someone that Hibari wanted to bite to death.

Kenpachi launched forward to finish Hibari off. With a mad grin plastered to his face, he raised his sword. Hibari looked at him calmly and raised his tonfa, ready to counter-attack. Their weapons clashed, the auras mixed together and created a huge explosion. The wave of energy spread throughout the forest.

x-x

Mukuro panted for breath as he felt the poison run through his body. He could feel the aura that Hibari and Zaraki emitted. Ignoring the battles that were going on outside, he faced Mayuri. He had a large hole where his stomach was; any normal person would have been dead by then.

"Kufufufu… it seems that you still live."

"You bastard!"

Mayuri took his broken sword and stabbed himself on the neck. Before Mukuro's eyes, He exploded into green goo, his body melting into nothingness.

"Its seems that we will have to end this now. In this state, you cant hurt me, but I can't attack either."

The green goo ran through the floor and into small crack on the floor.

"It's been fun, but in the end I will live and you will die. Farewell Rokudo Mukuro."

Mukuro felt his stomach burn, he clutched at it in pain. His vision was getting blurry. It now hit him, he was going to die here. He chuckled to himself because he found it ironic that his death was caused by someone in the mafia.

"Mr. Mukuro…. In my lab coat…. The antidote is there…" From the side, he heard Nemu cough.

Mukuro stumbled to where Nemu was, his footsteps were getting heavier. He crouched down and searched her lab coat. He felt a small glass bottle in her right pocket. He took out the bottle, it was brown and had no name tag. He thoroughly inspected it for anything suspicious.

"It's not poisoned. Put some in my mouth if you don't trust me."

"Kufufu, it would be pointless to poison a poisoned man." Mukuro drank the medicine in one gulp, it was a thick and very bitter substance.

"Thank you."

"Hmm?" Mukuro took a glance at her.

"For sparing my father. If you would have aimed your attack at his head, you would have killed him. But you didn't."

"That man? Don't misunderstand me, That man ran away before I could kill him. I will one day destroy this world. I'm just sticking with Vongola the tenth until then."

"When I saw father alive, I was relieved."

"You're a strange woman."

"You should escape soon, the execution squad are sure to come after they felt the aura." She warned.

Without saying goodbye, Mukuro turned around and headed towards the stairs. He had to hold out until he saw one of the Vongola, but he had spent too much energy in the last battle. Switching with Chrome took a lot of effort, even with his knowledge of the six paths. Heading downstairs, each and every one his footsteps got heavier as he moved. He placed his hand on the wall, panting for breath. He sat down on one of the steps, closing his eyes as he slumped to the side.

"I'm sorry Chrome." He muttered before falling unconscious.

Swirling mist engulfed Mukuro. After the mist disappeared Chrome was left unconscious on the floor. A figure's footsteps could be heard from far away. The figure looked at Chrome, sweeping her up and moving away from the area once more.

x-x

Tsuna and Grimmjow knew that they were close to their destination when they started to see rose bushes. Grimmjow thought about how many other people he knew that might show up. There was no way around it; he had to do this, he had to get to the bottom of this mystery that had been eating him since they left Japan. He had to know who killed Orihime, and why.

Grimmjow snapped out of his thoughts when he saw an obelisk. The obelisk was at the center of a large cluster of roses. The sun made the obelisk glow and change colors, swirling around wildly. Grimmjow knew that it was too good to be true. There hadn't been anyone to stop them from advancing.

"Sensei, look out!" Tsuna cried

A blue flame fired at Grimmjow. He noticed the ball of flames and dodged it easily. Suddenly, he felt a strong aura where Yamamoto and Orihime were standing, the aura was thick and black. That was not good. He glanced in the direction where the spell had come from. Two figures steeped out of the shadows. One had long white hair, and the other one had his hair tied into a ponytail.

"You two…" Grimmjow growled.

"Grimmjow…" Ukitake, the white haired one, muttered.

"Now, now, you two had a rough time coming this way so why don't we sit down and have a drink?" The other, Kyoraku, suggested.

Kyoraku took out a bottle of sake and sat down where he was, then he took out four small cups and set them on the floor.

"I see you're still a drunkard."

"Now let's drink and resolve our problems peacefully."

Tsuna felt relived to hear those words. Maybe not everyone from the Kuchiki family wanted to fight. He hoped to resolve this matter without anymore fights, and maybe they could stop whoever is behind this.

"But I'm afraid that we will have to take you into custody."

Grimmjow got in front of Tsuna with his katana in hand, ready to fight. Tsuna looked around for Reborn, but there was not a sign of him.

"Brat, listen to me carefully. I have a bad feeling about that aura that I felt, go back in the direction we came from and head off to the central tower. I'm worried about Hime and that idiot."

Tsuna nodded and took out the case that held his dying will pills. He took one and swallowed it, an orange flame appearing on his forehead. He used his gloves to fly away, and as soon as he was gone, Kyoraku closed his eyes and disappeared from Grimmjow's sight. Grimmjow turned around and shunpo-ed in between Tsuna and Kyoraku. He blocked the attack with his own katana.

"I'm your opponent!" he growled.

Tsuna looked at Grimmjow and Kyoraku, he needed to make a choice fast. He could stay and help Grimmjow, or go help Yamamoto and Orihime.

"Brat, if you don't follow orders I will beat the crap out of you!" Grimmjow growled.

Tsuna nodded hesitantly and flew off at top speed, leaving Grimmjow alone with Ukitake and Kyoraku. Grimmjow pushed Kyoraku off of him and jumped back, wondering what they were going to do next. He looked behind him to look at Ukitake; he wasn't moving.

"Grimmjow. why are you doing this?" Ukitake asked

"I don't need to tell you anything."

"Stop this Grimmjow! We don't want to hurt you."

"What I am doing now is in the name of the Vongola, I will stop this ritual."

Grimmjow touched the end of the blade; blue aura surrounded him. Gusts of wind and dirt engulfed him. With a large explosion, he transformed into his release form. There was no use in hiding it now he was sure that he wouldn't make it out alive. In his mind, he thought of one thing…acceptance.

He had accepted the fate that was given to him; he was probably going to die. He thought that was the only way to atone for Orihime's death. But there was one thing he had to do; he had to destroy the pillar, even it meant his life.

"What ritual?" Ukitake asked.

"That Shrimp will die if we don't stop it!" Grimmjow growled.

"Rukia?"

Grimmjow jumped high into the air and fired an arc of energy from his claws. Kyoraku blocked the attack with his katana, the sound of the clash could be heard throughout the garden. He deflected it with ease and swung it back to Grimmjow. Grimmjow had to act fast, the attack was coming his way. Moving to the side, he dove towards Ukitake. Ukitake blocked his claw with his katana, only by being that close to Grimmjow could he see his determination to defeat them.

Kyoraku swung the dull part of his long katana and smacked Grimmjow away from Ukitake, sending him a few feet away. Grimmjow quickly stood up studied his opponents carefully.

'Damn it! These two won't let me get close to the pillar. There's only one thing to do…'

Grimmjow gathered as much aura as he could around himself. If he was going out, it would be with a bang. His armor started to glow blue from the amount of aura that was stored inside of him. He took a deep breath and let out a huge roar. The roar was mixed in with his aura, the sound waves pushed Ukitake and Kyoraku back. They looked back at the pillar, it was starting to crack at the center.

Ukitake took his sword and slashed the air, an arc made of aura sliced the sound wave in two. Grimmjow stopped his attack and stared at the two who were his mentors a long time ago. He could see pain and sadness in their eyes, but his decision was made. There was no turning back.

"It seems that your resolve is strong," Kyoraku said in a sad tone. "It would be disrespectful if I didn't fight you as an equal."

Grimmjow had to attack the pillar just one more time; if he could do that, then whatever happened after that wouldn't matter. He rushed forward towards Kyoraku with his claws engulfed in blue flame. Kyoraku took out his second katana and looked at Grimmjow with grim eyes. At the moment of collision, Kyoraku slightly moved to the side and struck Grimmjow with his blades.

They both stood still as Grimmjow panted for breath. Grimmjow placed his hand on his chest; a large gash had been made by Kyoraku. The wound gaped open across his chest. Kyoraku let out a small sigh as he sheathed his katana, and Grimmjow let out a grunt of pain before falling to the floor.

The victor was clear…

x-x

Gokudera found the pillar that rested in the training grounds. The pillar seemed buried deep within the forest. The obelisk was covered with moss, only cracks showing the aurora glow, swirling around in the glass.

"That thing must be it. Now to destroy it and get back to the Tenth."

Gokudera took a step forward before he noticed a spell fired at him. He rolled out of the way and looked to where it had been fired from. His eyes widened when he saw who his opponent was, it was a whole army of men dressed in black, each had a mask on their face to cover their identity. With swords in hand, each looked at him, ready to kill.

"Vongola Storm guardian, you are hereby under arrest for shattering the peace in this manor. The punishment for intrusion and attempting to kill our commander is death" One of the masked men said.

Gokudera didn't say anything, he just took out his pistol and let it transform into his weapon. He was not giving in without a fight. He took out eight cards from his pocket, figuring it would be a good time to test the cards; limits. He'd promised his boss that they would make it through, and he wanted to burn off some steam.

"Come and get me, if you can!"

x-x

Grimmjow's vision was getting blurry as he lost blood due to his injury. He tried to get up,.to no avail. Ukitake looked at Grimmjow with eyes full of regret; but he didn't want his mentor's pity. It angered him to see those eyes. Because it reminded him of himself, his own expression when he thought of how he failed Orihime.

"Forgive me, Grimmjow." Ukitake murmured

Kyoraku picked Grimmjow up, putting his arm over his shoulder. Grimmjow still had his katana in hand. Using the last of his strength, he threw the blade with all his might. The sword spun around in the air, the point piercing the pillar where the cracks were. The cracks grew larger and large by the second until the pillar shattered completely.

Ukitake and Kyoraku had shocked looks on their faces; they had failed to protect the pillar. Grimmjow had a grin on his face that said it all: I won.

"Don't disappoint me, brat…"

He let his head drop, his mind drifting out of consciousness.

x-x

Tsuna flew as fast as he could; he had faith in Grimmjow and his power. He had to focus his strength in finding Orihime and Yamamoto. As he flew through the air, he felt a disturbance all over the manor. There were also some people he couldn't sense, but he had to hurry and help the others. His eyes widened when he couldn't feel Grimmjow's aura anymore. He stopped midair and looked back, an inner struggle arose inside of him. However, Grimmjow ordered him to help Orihime and Yamamoto, he had no choice. If Grimmjow felt something wrong, then there must be something going on, right?

Using his gloves, Tsuna continued on forward. He was deep in thought, wondering why the Kuchiki family performed the ritual. Why were they doing nothing to prevent this? He stopped his train of thought when he saw a glowing sakura petal floating past him. He looked in front of him and saw tons more floating in the sky. Tsuna felt a sting on his cheek as another petal flew by him.

'Something tells me that those petals aren't for show.' Tsuna thought.

Using his gloves, he propelled himself higher, but the petals followed him. He gained speed, hoping to outrun the petals, but to no avail. The petals gained speed and started to surround him. Tsuna had to think up something fast or the petals would get him. However, they closed all exits and made a sphere around him.

Tsuna felt the sharp blades hidden in each petal. Each and every petal made a small gash on each part of his body. Tsuna couldn't keep himself in the air much longer, he cut off his flame and dove to the ground. The sharp pain was too much for Tsuna, and he crashed to the ground, unconscious.

A figure watching in the shadows watched as Tsuna crashed to the ground. He walked towards Tsuna before picking him up, taking him to a place unknown.


Chapter 44 end

Beta-ed by grenouille-85

It's a surprise gift to all my readers, and to all my reviewers. Hope you enjoy this early chapter.