Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Bleach. They, along with everything else, owe their existence to hydrogen and time.
Chapter 7 - The Storm:
Ishida stifled a yawn. He winced as his overworked muscles protested. It would take a while before he become used to this kind of training schedule. The Sanrei glove training had been hard as well, but at least he didn't have to go to school at the same time. He was barely able to finish dinner yesterday before collapsing into bed.
The streets were unusually quiet. Especially considering that this was the time people usually went to work. In fact, now that he thought about it, there wasn't a single person in the whole street. Instantly on guard, the Quincy rolled to the side just in time to avoid a small projectile that would have pierced his back.
"Tsk, tsk. Mabashi. You are getting worse every time I see you. What have you been doing all these decades?" A voice came from behind him. The tone spoke of disdain.
"I-I'm…" Another voice started, but the first one waved him away.
"Just do your job. I'll take care of this."
Uryuu's mind entered a state of extreme focus as his reiatsu surged through him. Three opponents. Two males and one female.
The youngest looking male seemed to be in charge, based on his manner, speech, and the confident smirk stretching his mouth. He was dressed in old fashioned clothes and walked with an almost dignified posture. The other man looked decidedly nervous, giving the younger one surreptitious glances every few seconds. With orange hair brighter than Ichigo's and a stylized west, his appearance would make him easy to pick out of a crowd. The woman was the most nondescript of the trio, with black hair and a loose dress shirt, she looked like every other office worker in japan. Their energies were strangely muted, but most definitely there. They were Bounts. Had to be.
Ishida sucked in a breath. Damn it. He had thought it was weird that he had been the only one not given a Bount detecting Mod Soul, but had accepted Urahara's excuses at face value. He should have known better. He was being used as bait.
Uryuu grit his teeth in annoyance as he rose back to full height, meeting his opposition head on. With three opponents, he didn't fancy his chances at escaping, especially since that would be what they expected of him. No. His best chance was stalling until help arrived.
"You know, it is rude to attack people without warning. Didn't you people ever learn your manners?" Ishida asked. His eyes carefully scanning for a reaction.
The woman barely seemed to be paying attention, all her focus being taken up by something Ishida couldn't identify. Mabashi almost winced, but the leader laughed. "Manners? Fine. My name is Cain Radley, I'm here to capture you. Is that polite enough for you?"
Ishida blinked, and looked pointedly at the empty street around them. "At least you were kind enough to clear out all the civilians. I suppose you can't be all bad."
Cain shrugged. "Eh… It's easier that way. Our goal is you. Come with us willingly, and this doesn't have to get ugly. I promise we won't hurt you."
Ishida snorted in disbelief. As if. He opened his mouth to answer, but didn't have time to say anything as his instincts screamed at him to dodge. With a hasty burst of Hirenkyaku, Ishida once again barely managed to avoid getting his spine pierced. This time he got a better look at the projectile that had been aiming for him. It was a small animal-like creature, hovering in the air like a hummingbird. It was similar in size as well, although it had no wings.
"I'm sorry. I failed." The creature said, it's voice incredibly high pitched and slightly disturbing. Mabashi clicked his tongue in irritation, scowling at Ishida in annoyance.
Cain sighed. "Well then… I guess it's my turn." The smile he gave Ishida did not belong on a human.
"Inoue!" A deep voice called from behind them.
Tatsuki and Orihime turned around to the face the newcomer. "Chad!" Inoue waved excitedly.
Tatsuki looked over at her best friend, feeling the beginnings of a deep disconnect manifest itself. But now that she knew what it was, she could finally do something about it.
Giving a nod in greeting, Tatsuki tried to see if there was anything different about Yasutora. There wasn't much. Perhaps he had grown a little since she last paid him any attention. Perhaps he walked a bit straighter... but no, he didn't seem to have changed much. It was Orihime that was completely different.
Watching the girl run over to Sado and embrace the giant in a hug, Tatsuki tried to compare the Orihime she knew from the one she saw before her. They both had the same ditzy and colorful personality. Both had the same cheerful disposition and the same fleeting attitude towards anything considered even remotely normal.
But the girl before her carried herself like a completely different person. This Orihime had a burning light in her eyes that had only been a smoldering ember until a few months ago. She stood straighter and talked clearer. But by far the largest change was the self-confidence that was practically oozing out of her. Orihime had always had trouble believing in herself. She wasn't shy by any standards, but she had trouble really communicating with people on an equal standing. She also never defended herself from any sort of insult, inappropriate approaches, or even threats. That was one of the reasons Tatsuki had appointed herself as the girl's protector. But she had a hard time imagining this Orihime being taken advantage of. The fire in her eyes was the kind that would never let itself be quenched.
"Hello Sado, don't you usually walk with Ichigo?" Tatsuki asked, sidling up to Orihime's side.
The half-Mexican shrugged. "He's already at school."
And how does he know that? Tatsuki wondered but didn't say. There were perfectly reasonable explanations for Chad having that information, there didn't need to be anything supernatural about it. Nevertheless, she couldn't help but wonder.
"Then you can walk with us!" Orihime chirped. Sado nodded patiently, a small smile on face.
As they walked, Tatsuki tried to think of everything she knew about Sado.
The boy had moved to Japan sometimes during middle school. Although she couldn't remember exactly when. He already spoke fluent japanese by then, which meant he moved back rather than leave his home country. He had gotten into a bit of a scuffle with the local gangs together with Ichigo, but she had no idea how serious it was. Other than that, she knew precious little about him. He was Ichigo's friend, and that was usually how she thought about him.
Lost in her own thoughts, she didn't immediately notice when Orihime stopped walking. Tatsuki frowned, turning around to see the orange-haired girl staring into the distance with an almost frightened expression on her face. Chad had stopped too, looking confusedly between Orihime and the direction she was facing.
"What's wro-" Tatsuki began, but Orihime cut her off.
"I'm sorry Tatsuki-chan. Have to go. See you later!" She said, almost too quickly to be understood. She grabbed Sado's arm and began running.
Tatsuki grit her teeth. Oh no. Not again! Not this time. If Orihime was putting herself in danger, she needed to be there.
Sprinting after the pair, Tatsuki quickly caught up to them. "I'm coming with you."
The orange-haired girl looked very uncomfortable at this. She opened her mouth to protest, but Tatsuki beat her too it, "I know you're going to fight Hollows or something, I'm not letting you do it alone. Understand?"
Orihime's mouth snapped shut, her eyes growing wide. Tatsuki smiled a smile full of teeth. "If anything wants to hurt you, they need to get through me first. Human or not."
"When did you-?" Orihime started, then shook her head. "No time. Uryuu is being attacked."
Sado scrouged his brow together. "Are you sure? I can't feel anything."
"Neither can I." Said Orihime's bag.
…
Wait.
Her bag!? Tatsuki stared as the rabbit-themed bag came to life and started talking. She had thought Orihime's new school bag was a bit weird, but it wasn't too out of the ordinary for the eccentric girl.
"I am assuming he is being attacked by Bounts?" The bag asked.
Orihime looked down at her bag and then over at Tatsuki, panic written clearly over the girl's face. She sighed, resigning herself to the situation.
"I think so." Orihime answered nervously. "His opponents have weird energies, there are three of them."
"If there's three of them, shouldn't we call for help?" Sado asked. Already unlocking his phone.
"Ah! Good idea!" Orihime exclaimed, fishing out her own from within the sentient bunny bag.
"Ahahaha! That tickles!" The bag exclaimed.
"Sorry, Kurodo." Orihime apologized. She didn't let up her search though.
Navigating his phone while running, Sado didn't seem to have any problems holding a steady course. "I'll call Ichigo. Do you have any of the grown-ups' number?"
"I have Naruto's and Urahara's. I don't think Yoruichi has a phone." Orihime answered, panting lightly.
Tatsuki looked between the two teens, amazed. Only a few seconds into the crisis, and they already seemed to know what to do. Mentally slapping herself, Tatsuki tried to focus on the problem. "I have Naruto's number as well. You call the other guy."
"You do?" Orihime asked confusedly, then shook her head. "Right."
As she pressed the button, Tatsuki couldn't help but tense up. This was all happening so fast. "Come on, come on…" She chanted as the phone failed to connect. She cursed as it went to voicemail, ignoring the sharp sting of resentment she felt in her stomach. Of all the times not to pick up!
Naruto watched dispassionately as his vibrating phone calmed down, and the 'missed call' message popped up on the screen. He sighed regretfully before pocketing the device.
Staring at the building in front of him, Naruto calmly jumped over the fence, completely ignoring the locked gate.
The mansion was relatively large, with several extensions and additions to the original structure. It was situated on the outskirts of Karakura, halfway inside the forest leading further up the mountains, just outside the area of influence of his seals.
As he walked, he quickly catalogued and tagged every energy signature in the building. Some were familiar, most were not.
"You feel that Naruto? There is a Shinigami among them." Ino commented.
Sending a mental nod to his companion, the blond approached the entrance.
He hadn't been trying to hide his presence, so it wasn't really a surprise when the double doors swung open.
Naruto smiled cordially at the man waiting for him. "Claude. It's been a while. Glad to see you're not dead."
The large red-headed man bowed lightly. "Not yet, Uzumaki. I go by the name Go Koga now."
Naruto nodded, trying to get a glimpse farther into the mansion. He didn't see much thanks to Koga's massive frame. "Do you mind letting me in, I have some things I wish to discuss with you and your people."
Koga stayed silent for several seconds, not saying anything. Naruto remained equally motionless, only waiting for a response. Finally, the large man nodded and stepped away from the doorframe.
Naruto followed him inside, taking in the elaborate decorations and luxurious interior. Both Naruto and Koga stayed silent as they continued farther into the building. They were on their way towards the largest concentration of signatures in the house. Only a smattering nearby energies were elsewhere.
Ichigo ran up to the roof of the school, practically ripping his soul out of his body. He looked around, trying to hide it as best he could.
"Don't leave me!" Ririn's shout was muffled by the fabric of his backpack.
"No time. I'll be back." The teen answered. Then he disappeared in his fastest Shunpo.
He flew above Karakura's rooftops, looking for any sign of battle. Chad's call still ringing in his ears.
He was just crossing the old hospital when he was suddenly launched downwards with incredible force. Having no time to escape impact, Ichigo surrounded himself with reiatsu.
He crashed into the ground hard enough to form a miniature crater.
Jumping to his feet, Ichigo scanned the surroundings for his attacker.
"No damage. Huh. That's impressive."
Turning towards the voice, Ichigo saw a middle aged man with white, spiky hair. He had stylish clothes befitting an office worker, even if they were a bit old-fashioned.
He scowled at the man. "Out of my way. I'm busy."
The Bount (because of course he was), smiled. "Hello Kurosaki Ichigo, substitute Shinigami. Let me introduce myself. My name is Jin Kariya, leader of the Bounts."
"Don't care." Ichigo dismissed him, disappearing in another Shunpo.
Just as he was exiting the technique, he could see Kariya standing before him, so he immediately entered another one, executing a complex string of Shunpo steps and a small reiatsu shaping exercise that left an afterimage in his previous position.
He shot past the Bount, the world rushing past him.
Something snagged at his heel and the next thing Ichigo knew, he was spiraling through the air without any idea what was up or down. He didn't even have a chance to brace for impact as he smashed into the abandoned hospital with full force. Ichigo shook his head, trying to clear it of all the cobwebs lining its insides.
Ichigo grunted as he heaved off a rock almost twice his own size, but he eventually managed to pull himself out of the rubble.
Walking to the edge of the hole his body had just created, Ichigo scowled at the Bount hovering in the air above him. He cracked his neck twice and spat out a glob of blood. "What the hell is your problem?" Ichigo complained, drawing Zangetsu from its place on his back.
Kariya laughed. "They said you were tough, but no one mentioned your spunk."
Ichigo scowled even harder at this. "Look, I'm guessing you don't want me to help my friend, correct?"
"That seems like a safe thing to assume."
God. Ichigo hated that smile.
Power filled him as Ichigo released the full brunt of his reiatsu. Kariya lifted an eyebrow, but otherwise didn't react much.
Disappearing once more, Ichigo's swing just missed the man as his agile opponent jumped above it. Forming his hand into the shape of a gun, Kariya fired off two shimmering white bullets.
Ichigo blocked one, but the other tore through his clothes and a made an angry red line in his side. Adrenaline and reiatsu temporarily blocking the pain, Ichigo let his sword be consumed by blue energy. Zangetsu screamed through the air as Kariya moved beneath it, pushing Ichigo down with the palm of his hand. The action had more force behind it than it had any right to have, and Ichigo was sent flying back down again. Although he managed to break his fall before he hit something.
"Calm down will you. We don't need to fight. As long as you stay here for an hour or so, everything will be over." Kariya shrugged.
Ichigo didn't answer, only bursting forward again. The teen swung his sword, utilizing everything he had learned from his teachers. Each swing bore the intent to cut. Each attack bore the intent to maim. His reiatsu was lightning sharp and his body flowed expertly through the motions.
But he couldn't hurt Kariya. The man was like air, flowing around each attack with effortless ease.
Ichigo knew this feeling. It was the same one he had when he fought Naruto, Yoruichi, or Urahara. The gap between his own skill and his opponent's was simply too large to bridge with strength and speed alone. Not at his current level.
Gritting his teeth, Ichigo managed to grab a piece of the man's jacket. Jerking his hand back, the fabric tore. But not before halting Kariya's smooth dance.
Ichigo swung.
And Zangetsu was halted. The massive cleaver hung suspended in the air between them. Ichigo's arms strained against an invisible force. The small smile the Bount had worn since the start of their fight grew ever so slightly.
Then the Zanpakuto exploded with energy.
Ichigo jumped back as the dust cloud settled around them. Scanning for his enemy, he was sure he was still fine, but how fine was the question.
A gust of wind picked up and carried the dust away, revealing a mostly intact Kariya. He had a couple of small burn marks on one hand, and his clothes were ruined, but otherwise he didn't look much worse for wear.
Studying his arm, the Bount concentrated. The burn marks began to disappear one by one. It was slow going, but he was definitely healing himself.
Ishida rolled to the side just as a fist passed through where his face had been less than a second earlier. He jumped back just in time to get kicked in the stomach. Rolling with the motion, the Quincy got up just as another haymaker approached his head.
Somehow managing to activate Hirenkyaku, Ishida managed to get some distance. He quickly shot dozens of glowing arrows at his attacker. But like before, Cain dodged them all, closing in with a terrifying speed and agility.
Clicking his tongue in annoyance, the Quincy tried his best to ignore the pulsing pain emanating from his abdomen. This wasn't working. He was a long range fighter, close combat was not his forte. But he didn't have much choice when his opponent was so terrifyingly good at closing in.
Flowing into another Hirenkyaku, Uryuu shot out a round towards the other two Bounts.
They hadn't moved much since their first engagement ambush had failed. He took a chance to antagonize them like this, at worst, he might have to contend with three opponents at once. But based on their interactions, Uryuu had a feeling that Cain wouldn't allow that. He seemed too proud. Even if the other two were the ones being attacked.
But as the arrows closed in, they shattered against a transparent barrier. Mabashi flinched away, but the woman barely even bothered to look up, still looking very occupied with something.
Cain laughed. "Give it up Quincy. You'll never break through Leia's barriers."
Hmm… So the girl was the one making the barriers? He had noticed them pretty quickly as the fight began. The barriers surrounded them on all sides, enclosing them in a square box large enough to allow for a comfortable fighting arena. He had no idea why it wasn't noticed by all the mortals teeming around outside, but it was without a doubt the reason no one had bothered them yet. And why they hadn't made it smaller was also a mystery. Ishida had trouble enough keeping up right now. If they shrunk the area even more, he would have lost the little mobility he still had.
That reminded him to vanish as Cain once again caught up with him, easily having dodged the last projectiles Uryuu had half-heartedly sent his way.
Taking a deep breath, Uryuu sent a wave of reshi arrows towards the barrier enclosing them, testing its strength. Indeed, the barrier barely even shimmered, and the the woman didn't seem to strain in the slightest. His arrows simply weren't strong enough.
He managed to dodge Cain's opening kick, but the follow-up hit crashed against his ribs with all the power of a hydraulic piston. It should have crushed them, but…
Cain's eyes widened as Uryuu's counterattack sent him staggering back with a bloodied nose.
Ishida wheezed, letting Blut Vene's protective feeling fade. It was an amazing technique, but also seriously straining to keep up. As he had only begun to learn it, the mental effort it required surpassed all his other techniques.
Wiping away the blood from his face, Cain smiled. "Well then. Seems like the little kitten has some claws after all." Cracking his nose back in place with a single smooth movement, Cain sprang forward again.
Enhancing his blood with reshi, Uryuu met him directly. No point in using the bow anymore. It only tired him out, and seemed to have no effect whatsoever.
Blocking the Bount's first swing, Uryuu made his own. But it was easily countered, and the Quincy's stomach churned as he felt himself flying through the air.
Righting himself as he flew, Uryuu skidded back on the empty air. Bursting forward, the teen spun, shattering the wall of a nearby house. Cain easily dodged the kick, jabbing upwards into Ishida's stomach.
Ishida coughed, trying to suppress the pain. He rolled to the side, trying to back away again. Cain would have none of it though. The Bount chased him across rooftops and streets, tossing him into building after building, until most of the houses around them were reduced to rubble.
Uryuu staggered to his feet, blood dripping from countless cuts across his body. His brain was working overtime trying to keep Blut Vene from receding. But while doing so, Ransotengai was out of the question. He could barely maintain one of them, both was far outside his skill.
Cain laughed. "Give up kid. There's no need for this, after we're done using your power. We'll let you go. We have no reason kill the last Quincy. It won't even be that painful."
Spitting out a glob of blood. Ishida simply glared at the vampire.
Then all four heads inside the barrier swivelled to stare at a single point as a golden portal opened in the air. An orange haired girl almost tripped over the ethereal ledge to the entrance. She was quickly followed by a much more elegant giant of a boy. Lastly came a spiky-haired karate champion.
As they ran, Tatsuki had to push aside more than a couple of people. Apologizing profusely as she ran. The streets were filled with humans. How could anyone be attacked in broad daylight without others noticing?
"It's here." Orihime said, stopping in the middle of the street.
"But there's nothing here." Tatsuki insisted, looking around for anything out of the ordinary.
"It's here." The Orange-haired girl repeated. Reaching out into thin air, trying to grab something invisible and intangible.
Chad hummed, gaze wandering towards the school. "Do you feel that? Ichigo is fighting."
"He is?" Tatsuki asked, frowning as she tried to 'feel' what the other two were feeling. She came up empty.
Orihime was silent for a few seconds, gaze drifting back and forth between the two locations. She bit her lip, obviously conflicted. Taking a deep breath, the girl's eyes hardened. "Ichigo can handle himself. He only has one opponent, and he still hasn't used his Bankai. Uryuu is losing."
Chad nodded. He didn't seem to like the idea much more than Orihime, but he did follow her lead. "Then how do we find him?"
Frowning in concentration, Orihime's hairpins light up. "Give me a second." The hairpins split into six different spirits, each having their own unique style and appearance.
"Ehh…" Tatsuki began, her eyes widening in shock. She looked around at all the people around them, but miraculously, none of them seemed to notice the impossible things happening right in front of them.
"Ayame, Shun'ō. Sōten Kisshun, I reject." Orihime chanted. Pointing at the empty space in front of her.
People gave a few glances for the pointing, but no one reacted to the massive portal that opened in the air. The other side was much like the actual street, except there were no people inside, and the buildings seemed to have been reduced to rubble.
"Right. He's in here. Let's go." Orihime said.
"Wait!" Kurodo whispered furiously.
Frowning in confusion. Orihime looked down at her school bag. "Why? We don't have much time."
"Leave us here." The bag insisted. "We can't do much in a fight now anyways, and if anyone is comes looking for you, someone has to be on the outside. Plus, Noba could probably open the gate for someone else. If Ichigo gets her for instance."
"That's…" Inoue began. Then she nodded. Removing her bag, she put the Mod Soul up against the nearest wall. "Stay safe." She insisted. Then she jumped clumsily into the portal. Sado tossed his own bag beside Inoue's. He followed quickly after her. Not hesitating for even a second.
Tatsuki took one more look around. Staring at the two bags by the street. One normal looking one, and one that doubled as a sentient vampire detector. People were avoiding the invisible portal in the air, and no one had reacted to the two teenagers disappearing. They didn't seem to be paying her any attention at all anymore, as if her existence was completely forgotten. She had known these things were invisible for normal people. But it was one thing to hear it, and another to see it with her own eyes.
Clearing her head with a powerful shake, Tatsuki tossed her own bag beside the other two and sprang through the portal. Hers might not have any magical stuffed animals in it, but she didn't want to fight anyone while carrying around that unwieldy thing. The two fairies sustaining the portal quickly followed after her, closing the gate as they rejoined Orihime.
"O-Orihime? Chad? Arisawa-san?" Ishida stammered confusedly.
"Uryuu!" Orihime ran over to him, letting two of her fairies surround him in a bubble of healing. Ishida began to relax as the wounds on and inside his body began to disappear. He stood a little straighter, staring daggers at the Bounts.
Cain was observing the newcomers with narrowed eyes. He scowled at Leia. "How the hell did they get in?"
The woman for her part, looked completely flabbergasted. "I- I don't know. They shouldn't - shouldn't even be able to feel the place. Much less..." She trailed off, cringing under Cain's harsh glare.
"We'll talk about this later." The leader said. Turning back to the group of teenagers before him. Ishida was almost completely healed by now, and seemed no worse for wear. Even his clothes had been fixed.
Cain smiled, a sadistic glint flashing in his eyes. "Well then. It seems we are outnumbered. Oh, wait..." Grabbing a necklace from within his shirt, tearing the string, the Bount held out a green gem. "Zeige Dich, Waineton."
Instantly, ghostly green flames sprung up around him, culminating with a large monster erupting from the stone. It had massive arms and claws, its eyes bore into them with cruel delight. Scraping its claws together as if looking for something to cut open.
"We need the Quincy alive. Kill the others." That was all he had to say, as the Doll shattered into hundreds of tiny orbs of light, shooting towards them with incredible speed.
Ishida's widened in panic. Grabbing Orihime's arm, he prepared to get them out of there before it was too late. But the girl ripped it away from him, putting it forward in a gesture of command. No words were said. There was no time to. Nevertheless, a massive golden triangle formed before them.
The green orbs of light bounced off it, but some found their way around. Homing in on them.
Manifesting his bow, Ishida fired off dozens of arrows in every direction, pushing the attack backwards. "I can't hold them back with this for long." He insisted, looking at the others to display the significance of his statement.
Orihime nodded, brow furrowing in concentration, she pulled her hand back. The fairies followed her movements, but the shield did not, creating a dome-like structure that isolated them from the world around them, each fairy moving towards three equally distant points from one another. The girl panted with effort as the shield completed its transformation, but it didn't seem to be a lack of energy that was the problem, only the difficulty of the task.
"Good. Now-" Ishida started.
"Incoming!" Tatsuki shouted as the tiny mouse-like Doll burst through the ground below them.
Uryuu moved back as quickly as he could, but there were nowhere to go. Gritting his teeth and hoping for the best, he activated Blut Vene. Now he could only watch as the Doll came closer and closer to his chest. And then bounced off.
Letting out a breath of relief, he watched in amazement as Orihime's other spirits began chasing the Doll inside the shield bubble. One of them even began shouting insults and derogatory names.
"Tsubaki!" Orihime chided.
"Shut up, woman!" The black fairy cried back as he bodyslammed the small Doll into the ground. He was about half the size of the Doll, but when the other three came to help, things went much easier.
"We've got this, Orihime! Concentrate on maintaining the shield!" The blond one shouted up at her master.
"Right. Thanks Shun'ō." Orihime nodded, turning back towards the outside world. Kain's monstrous green Doll had gathered together again and was slashing away at the magical shield.
"Ritz!" Mabashi cried, running over to the shield as he began to hammer away at it with his bare fist. His face was scrounged up in the perfect picture of fear. No, horror.
Scanning the outside, Ishida tried to come up with a plan. He had about half of one when the small Doll managed to break free. She burst forward, aiming directly for Orihime. Panic and reiatsu flooding his body, Uryuu created half a dozen arrows to fire. But he knew he was already too late.
Orihime seemed to turn in slow motion, her mouth forming slowly into a small frown as she watched her death come closer and closer.
And then Tatsuki was there. The black-haired tomboy had thrown herself in front of her friend. The powerless girl Ishida barely knew fell to the ground in a heap. She didn't even twitch.
"Tatsuki!" Orihime shouted, running over to her friend. The two healing aspects of her power formed their usual bubble around the girl. Ishida looked worriedly at the dome that protected them.
A shout from Orihime made him shift attention again. Tatsuki was standing up, holding both hands around her friend's neck.
"T-Tatsuki-chan?" Orihime stammered.
Tatsuki didn't answer. Her eyes were hollow and unseeing. Mabashi laughed. He had stopped hammering at the shield. Hiding his bloodied hands behind his back, the Bount sneered at them. "She's mine now. She'll do what I say."
A crack echoed through the the area as the shield began to fracture. Ishida's eyes opened wide in panic. He had to do something!
Before he got anywhere though, Chad had torn Tatsuki away from Orihime, holding the girl in a tight, inescapable hug. Orihime coughed, massaging her neck as she frowned up at the shield around them. The harm had already been done though, the dome finally shattered.
Waineton rushed forward, slashing Chad across the back. The giant grunted in pain, but no blood came. Still, whatever the Doll had done to him, it was enough to allow Tatsuki's escape attempts to succeed. She tossed the giant above her shoulder, turning around to face Orihime again.
Mabashi smiled cruelly. "Kill her."
Absently noting Ichigo had begun to fight, Naruto tried to place his pupil's opponent. There was something familiar about the signature, but it had either changed too much to be recognizable, or the Bount was deliberately distorting it.
Focusing back on his surroundings, Naruto carefully studied the room. There were about two dozen Bounts gathered here, all of which had their attention firmly centered on him. In typical fashion, Naruto beamed and waved.
A couple of snorts echoed back at him, but most stayed silent.
"Hello there!" Naruto started. "Welcome back to the land of the living. I thought you were all dead. Guess I should have known better. You guys are some of the most stubborn bastards I have ever met."
"Right back at ya'!" A voice crowed.
"That said…" Naruto's smile fell. "What are you trying to do here? Attacking my friends? Killing innocent people?"
The crowd shifted, the heavy mood reestablishing itself.
"It is for our mission." Koga answered. "We do not wish to do it, but for the sake of our goal, some sacrifices needs to be made."
"Yet you are not the ones making the sacrifice."
A growl reached him from one of the younger Bounts, a lady with dark green hair that Naruto hadn't met before. "What do you know! Your people weren't the ones hunted to near extinction. You aren't the one having to constantly watch over your shoulder for assassins, You aren't-"
"Yoshi!" Koga snapped.
"-the one who has to fight for your own existence day in and day out! You are the one watching as millions of people gets slaughtered every day. Doing nothing." She finished, her stare trying to burn holes into Naruto.
Silence reigned after her statement.
Sighing, Naruto turned to meet the woman's eyes. "If you actually meant what you said, you may have had a point. But you don't. You don't really care, do you? You want to rile me up. You want to make me angry."
Yoshi smirked. A chuckle escaped her. "Caught me." She shrugged. "Yeah. I don't really care. I just want to kill you."
Naruto blinked as a hiss echoed through the room. A wave of murderous intent filled the hall. But it wasn't directed at him, it was all focused on Yoshi. His empathetic senses told of almost universal loathing. Apparently no one liked Yoshi. For her part, the woman only seemed to enjoy the attention.
Naruto sighed. Why was it that so many immortals went insane? Oh, right. The whole immortality thing.
"You want to kill Naruto. You have to go through me first." An older looking man said as he rose to challenge the green-haired woman.
Naruto blinked as he recognized him. Short, dark skinned and with a tired complexion. He was one of the students that Naruto had taught so many years ago. Back then, the only thing he had was his name. Nàve.
Yoshi smirked. "That can be arranged."
"Enough" Koga said. Stepping between them. The massive man met the woman with a stare of his own. "Out." He commanded.
Yoshi smirked, but she did do as ordered. She turned on her way out, flinging a kiss towards Naruto.
"I'm sorry about that. Yoshi is… difficult." Koga explained.
"She's a bitch." Nàve corrected. A scattering of laughter followed the statement.
Naruto frowned. There didn't seem to be anything very different about the Bounts. They were fewer than before. Most of them were young, but the old ones were much, much older.
But on a whole, they still acted behaved like they always had.
So why then? Why did they decide to go back on their ancient rules now? "You said your actions were because of your goal. What is your goal then? What do you hope to achieve?" Naruto asked.
No one answered him.
"Well?"
Koga sighed. "We can't tell you."
"Then…" Naruto started. He merged his conviction and authority with his chakra, letting out a steady trickle. "I cannot allow you to continue."
"And what right do you have to deny us?" The question didn't come from one of the Bounts. In fact the speaker was the mysterious Shinigami that he had felt before.
Carefully tuning the natural energy within his body, Naruto listened as the world whispered in his ear. Maki Ichinose - self-exile - hatred - loyalty.
Sighing heavily, Naruto faced the Shinigami. "Under the Treaty of Atlantis, I hold the authority given to me by the World Council. But more than that, I have the right to stop cruelty and suffering wherever I see it. Not just as an official judge, but also as a human being, and a sapient creature."
Ichinose narrowed his eyes. "Fancy words. Can you back them up?" Drawing his Zanpakuto, the Shinigami laid the tip carefully on Naruto's chest.
"That's enough, Ichinose." Koga insisted. Grabbing Maki's sword with his bare fist.
Droplets of blood splattered against the floor, but Koga didn't let go. Eventually, Ichinose relaxed, and Koga released his grip. Sheathing his Zanpakuto again, the Shinigami narrowed his eyes at Naruto.
"I came here to give you all a warning. Abandon this path. Stop the killings, and I promise I will protect your lives and interests in the future." Naruto said, making sure everyone understood his intention.
No one said anything. Taking a deep breath, Naruto turned around to leave. He had done all that he intended to do here.
"Wait." Koga's hand settled on his shoulder. "What changed? You never went that far before."
Sighing, the blond tried to sense the mood in the room. There was a surprising amount of differences and contradictions. There was anticipation, interest, and even a few strands of hope. On the other side were shame, confusion, distrust, and hatred. Sometimes all of these traits were embodied in a single person. But the most prevalent emotion was without a doubt apprehension. It penetrated every person in the room, some more than others, but all of them were waiting, hoping that something else wouldn't happen before something else. They were stalling him.
A small smile played at Naruto's mouth at the thought. Fine then, he could indulge them a little.
"Lots of things changed. The world has changed. Mortals changed. Magic changed. The situation now is completely different than what it was a millenia ago."
Lifting an eyebrow, Nàve tilted his head. "So we don't have to give up our lives this time? Why not?"
Naruto shrugged. "As I said. Many things changed, but chief among them are the mortals. Surely, you all noticed the humongous changes brought about by the industrial revolution? I mean, it is a bit hard to miss."
Frowning in confusion, the Bounts looked at each other. "Of course we noticed. The rise of Western Civilizations has been the dominant feature of the mortal world for 500 years now." Nàve answered him. "But I fail to see why that is relevant. Empires rise and fall, there have been greater ones before. There will be greater ones after. Surely, someone as old as you have seen all of this before?"
Shaking his head in light bewilderment, Naruto couldn't help but chuckle. "No. I haven't. This time is different. Sure, there have been greater empires before, but none on this scale. The world is globalizing. The expansion of the western world began to slow over a century ago, instead fusing with all the other world powers. Borders are slowly being washed away, the world is uniting."
The Bounts frowned. "That is not how we see it." Koga mused. It was a very light protest, but Naruto couldn't help but feel the disbelief and heavy disagreement.
One of the younger ones snorted. "Human's could never unite. Greed and selfishness is far too ingrained in them."
Naruto smiled at the man. "Perhaps. Then again, maybe not. But even if you are correct, there's still one other major difference between now and before. The old civilizations all had magic. Atlantis, Mesopotamia, The Sumerians, Egypt, The Xia, The Mycenaeans, Babylon, Ancient Greece, and even Rome. They all used and had mastered magic to a large degree. Indeed, for most of them, it was a major factor in their success. But this also made them unbalanced. In such a situation, it is too easy for a single individual to gain an immense amount of power. This inevitably led to collapse."
"Suppose you are right. How does this change our situation?"
Naruto smiled. "The statute of secrecy is unravelling. And it has been ever since the invention of mass communication and the internet. Sooner or later it will collapse. The hope is that the foundation of modern society will be strong enough to whether it by then."
Frowning, Koga began to answer. But before he got the chance, a humongous presence made itself known. Its energy washed over the city with unstoppable force, it's twisted nature making churning motions in Naruto's mind. Arrancar had come to Karakura, and they were not friendly.
Crashing through another support pillar, Ichigo seriously worried if the building would collapse on top of him. It had been on the demolition list for years now, but the city council had never gotten around to it.
With muscles as tight as steel wire, Ichigo burst through the rubble, seeking out Kariya's surprisingly subtle energy signature. Once again, his attacks had no effect, and was knocked back just as effectively before.
Kariya hadn't allowed him to take one step closer to his friends. It was like an invisible line drawn in the air. The substitute Shinigami could almost feel it. An impassible barrier which he wasn't allowed to cross.
Smiling a blood stained smile, Ichigo's energy shot towards the sky. Collapsing in on itself, the power concentrated within his body and sword. "Bankai. Tensa Zangetsu."
The world was pregnant with anticipation.
The smile slowly disappeared from the Bount's mouth as Kariya freed his hands from his pockets.
Ichigo burst forward, gathering dark energy into his new sword. Just as he reached his opponent he let the Getsuga loose, drowning the sky above the old hospital in reiatsu. Instead of continuing the attack however, the teenager bent all his not-inconsiderable speed towards one goal. Getting to his friends.
Flying forwards at insane speeds, he somehow couldn't help but expect another attack. And indeed, the interruption came like before, but not in the same way Kariya had previously used. Lances of air erupted in front of him. Ichigo was forced to break and bend off for all he was worth, or he would be skewered like a roasted pig. Still, he couldn't stop his left hand from coming into contact with the deadly technique.
His nerves were screaming at him as he landed. Blood slowly dripping onto the ground. Flexing his hand experimentally, the Shinigami was pleased with the results. He hadn't been damaged too badly it seemed. It only hurt like a bitch.
"Would you just get out of my way?" The teen hissed through clenched teeth. Pain, frustration, and anger getting the better of him.
Stepping out of the dust cloud his attack had generated, Kariya shrugged. "I told you. I can't do that."
Eyes hardening, Ichigo submerged himself in his own power.
Kariya's eyes widened as a massive surge of wind surrounded him.
Ichigo's power continued to build as he focused everything he could into Tensa Zangetsu. His Zanpakuto cried out in warning, but it was too late. The Getsuga was only a hairsbreadth away from release.
Stomach dropping in panic, Ichigo did everything he could to pull the attack towards the sky. As the horizon darkened, Ichigo prayed.
As the dust cloud and the residue reiatsu scattered, Ichigo finally let go of the breath he had been holding. The old hospital was practically gone, only a small portion of the building still stood. A gorge was torn into the earth, but it thankfully didn't reach the populated houses further back.
A cough echoed through the silence.
"I must say. I didn't expect you to go that far. Who would have thought? The guardian of Karakura gambling his own city to take care of an annoyance."
Eyes traveling back to his opponent, it gave Ichigo little satisfaction to see him wounded. Burn marks stretched across his arms and upper body. His clothes were virtually destroyed, revealing an impressive physique and a large tattoo covering the left side of his body.
Trying to calm his trembling arm, Ichigo opened his mouth to answer. Only to shut it again as a massive presence fell over them. It lay thick over Karakura like a blanket. It smothered the city in an oppressive and corrupt feeling. It was the reiatsu of a Hollow.
Kushina loved her life. She had an adorable husband, an amazing son, and cute grandchildren. Really, it was all she could have ever asked for. It might have dragged on a few thousand years longer than she had expected, but she was by no means dissatisfied with her situation. No one else from her village were enjoying a walk through the park with their granddaughter now. Few had ever gotten to experience such a thing. Indeed, with their newly bought bags of clothes hanging all over their bodies, it was hard to imagine anything going wrong.
That was until three demons ripped their way through the void between worlds.
Kushina and Himawari stopped, their attention being pulled towards the crater that had been made in the middle of the park. Then the Hollows let their energy virtually consume the city.
People were talking. They couldn't see or sense the Hollows, and completely ignorant of the massive pressure that threatened to snuff out their souls like candles in a storm. No, they couldn't sense that. But the crater the Hollows had made was obvious. Some people took up their phones and started filming. Small groups hesitantly inching closer to what would certainly be their doom.
"Gah! What the hell is this Ulquiorra? The spiritual energy here is so thin, it feels like I'm choking." A voice echoed from the crater.
"Stop whining." A much calmer voice answered. "I said I could do this alone. You're the one that insisted on coming."
"Yeah… Yeah…" The previous voice dismissed the point. Tiny quakes echoed through the ground as the Hollow made his way to the edge.
The Hollow was a giant. Or at least, giant for human standards. He looked human as well. A mask covered his lower jaw, and the stylish markings on his very human face couldn't be mistaken. This was an Arrancar.
"Huh? What are you guys staring at!?" The Arrancar bellowed loudly, frowning down at the humans approaching the crater.
An older woman fainted, her spirit having no chance against the mere ambient presence of these monsters. The other humans crowded around her, obviously distressed and confused.
"Fool. The humans can't see us. They're not staring at us." The other Arrancar said as he crested the crater's edge. He was much smaller than his partner, but somehow seemed even more dangerous. Behind him was an equally sized girl with a vacant expression. She had blonde hair and stumbled more than she walked.
"It's irritating all the same. I think I'll eat them." The largest one said.
Himawari and Kushina's eyes widened. "No!"
They were too late.
Naruto looked up, an expression of horror plastered on his face. The foul reiatsu of the Noh-Men washed over them, but it was different than normal. These Hollows were not mere beasts. This was not a hunt. This was an invasion.
Letting the natural energy flood into his body, Naruto sprinted outside. He was about to teleport away when a barrier snapped in place around the mansion. It surrounded them completely, sealing them off from the outside world. When Naruto tried to activate Hiraishin, the spacetime around him refused to budge. Space was frozen.
Whirling around in a rage, his anger slammed down on the Bounts that were only now reaching the exit of their house. "Open this barrier. Now."
"We can't." Koga began. "You have to-"
He stopped talking as he was forced down to one knee by the irresistible weight of Naruto's reiatsu.
"Koga!" Ichinose shouted, drawing his Zanpakuto in one smooth motion.
Naruto barely paid them any attention anymore. In the sky above Karakura, souls were flying towards the park. Being sucked in by an unstoppable vortex of death.
Forgoing any consideration of subtlety, Naruto let Kurama's power embrace him. The Rinnegan burned in his eye sockets as he tore the space around him to shreds, splintering reality into a thousand tiny fragments.
The barrier shattered.
"Gedō! Rinne Tensei!"
Almost before he had formed the words, a giant creature rose from the ground. It's eyes reflecting Naruto's own. The King of Hell opened its mouth wide, much wider than any living being should be able to. Thousands of tiny threads emerged from within its depth, shooting across Karakura at impossible speeds. Each thread connected to one of the free-floating souls, halting their advance towards oblivion.
As Naruto put even more power into the construct, the souls reversed direction, and was eventually swallowed by the Yama itself.
When the last soul had been consumed, Naruto let the monstrosity fade from the living world. Taking a deep breath, Naruto bent his legs. The local spacetime was completely messed up now, he couldn't risk a failed teleport.
"Wait!" Ichinose shouted, running towards him. "Shine Brightly, Nijigasumi!" Dozens of light blades flew towards Naruto, quickly followed by the Shinigami himself.
Naruto ignored him again. Letting a chakra arm flick away the attack contemptuously, the blond shot into the sky.
Kushina let out a breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding as the Souls stopped moving.
"Wha-?" The giant Arrancar frowned in confusion. "Hey!" He barked in outrage, as all the souls fled away to somewhere else.
"Hmm… that's interesting?" Ulquiorra mused.
"What? This is bullshit! Where did the souls go?" The giant complained. He blinked as he noticed the two people who hadn't been affected by his technique. "Hey Ulquiorra. Who's that?"
The smaller Arrancar raised an eyebrow at the pair of Uzumaki. "It seems they manage to survive your Gonzui. How curious."
Kushina's fist clenched. These three were dangerous. She didn't know how powerful they were, but right now. Her first priority was Himawari. As long as she survived, all other costs were negligible.
"You… You killed them!" The younger woman hissed through clenched teeth. Her eyes bulged out into the fierce look of the Byakugan. Blood veins accentuating themselves against her scalp.
"And you have a problem with that, human?" Ulquiorra asked. Looking marginally interested.
"Yes." Himawari hissed, letting her newly bought bags fall to the ground. Just before they hit the earth, Himawari was already in front of Yammy, landing a solid hit against the giant's stomach. The Hollow doubled over as a shockwave rocked the clearing.
The silence was complete for a whole two seconds.
"Heh. That tickled." Yammy laughed, grabbing Himawari across the stomach, his fingers reached all the way around her tiny body.
The Uzumaki gasped, hands futilely grasping at the Arrancar's massive appendages.
Yammy threw Himawari towards the earth, a delighted smile stretching his mouth.
But just as her body impacted the ground, the girl burst into countless wooden splinters. The log she had substituted herself with was completely obliterated.
"What the-?" Yammy began, just as Himawari forced his knee into the ground with a chakra enhanced kick. She twisted behind him, slapping her glowing hands on both sides of the giant's head.
"Your attacks don't hurt me girl!" The Hollow shouted. Swinging out with one of his massive arms.
Himawari danced around it. Landing dozens of hits in less than a second, the grace of the Hyuuga signature taijutsu apparent in her every movement.
Kushina bit her lip. Watching the other two Hollows carefully. Ulquiorra was impossible to read, but the girl was obviously eager to join in. It was only the more collected Hollow that held her back, restraining her with some kind of mental bond. It was hard to tell exactly what it was. Kushina wasn't used to working with these kind of energies.
Yammy laughed, chasing after an increasingly frustrated Himawari as her attacks continued to rain down without effect.
"Why!? Why won't Gentle Fist work on you?" Himawari hissed furiously, her tone was in complete contrast with her movements as she gracefully spun around another hit from Yammy.
"Die! Die! Die!" Was the Arrancar's only answer.
"I can see your nerves and muscles. But I can't-" The Uzumaki cried out in pain as the giant's fist graced her side. Tossing her mortal body like a ragdoll across the clearing.
Getting her tumbling under control, two ethereal blue lion mouths surrounded the Uzumaki's hands. Letting her energy flow outwards, the lions grew until they had complete bodies. They sprang forward, only being connected to their master through small chakra threads.
As they reached Yammy, they bit down. "Hey! Go away!" The Arrancar complained, trying to shake them off. The lions refused to let go. "What the heck are these even supposed to do?"
"They are draining your reiatsu, fool. Can't you tell?" Ulquiorra answered almost contemptuously.
"Huh?" Yammy looked down at his hands and frowned. Flexing his muscles, the Arrancar sent a burst of power through his body. The lions exploded, sending drops of almost liquid chakra raining down around them.
Himawari grit her teeth in frustration. Trying to speed up the healing process that had already begun within her stomach.
Kushina clicked her tongue. This wasn't going well. Himawari wasn't a warrior. She had never been a kunoichi, and her fighting skills didn't go much beyond this. If Gentle Fist didn't work, it wasn't much her granddaughter could do.
Apparently Himawari had come to the same conclusion. A drop of sweat ran down her neck as Yammy's laugh boomed towards her again. The giant Arrancar jumped towards her, forming a ball of red energy around his fist.
"Let's see how you like a Bala!"
"Well this is… unexpected." Kariya said. Looking towards the source of the corrupted energy. "Not unwelcome though."
Smiling, the Bount turned towards his opponent. "What do you say Kurosaki Ichigo? Are you going to go defend your city? Or will the Hollows be allowed to roam as they please. Then again, perhaps you don't care as much as I thought you did."
Ichigo gritted his teeth as he looked between Kariya, the Hollows, and where Ishida was supposed to be. "You…!"
"Oh calm down. I won't leave. I trust my subordinates. They'll take care of your friends. And I'm guessing you feel the same. You should leave their fight to them, trust that your friends has what it takes to win. Then you can go stop the Hollows. Alternatively, we could always continue this pointless quibble." Kariya's smile was positively gleeful.
Ichigo's grip on Tensa Zangetsu tightened and loosened in bursts, indecisiveness warring within his heart. In the end, logic won out. Kariya was right. He would have to win against the Bount to even reach his friends, which at this rate would take far too long, if he even managed it at all.
Turning around, Ichigo flew away with all the speed his Bankai allowed him.
As he approached the park, Ichigo noticed a battle ongoing. Naruto's daughter was already fighting the Arrancar, it seemed. She wasn't doing that badly, all things considered. But it didn't seem to be going well either.
Just as he reached the clearing he noticed a large Hollow charging up some kind of energy attack. As the ball of energy was fired, Ichigo fell from the sky, scattering the projectile into a harmless rain of reishi. His landing created a crater almost as large as the one the Hollows had made upon entering this world.
Ishida could feel time ticking ceaselessly forward. It was now or never. Either they would all get out of this alive or…
He could see Waineton heading towards him, the ethereal mantis-like creature looking like something straight out of a horror story. At the same time, Tatsuki was running at Orihime, her eyes devoid of any will or consciousness.
Uryuu's eyes shifted to his friend. The girl he had promised to protect for the rest of his life. Her eyes met his, and Uryuu understood her intent. There wasn't a shred of fear in those eyes. No hesitation.
A second later, Waineton was cut in two as Tsubaki passed through him, splitting the doll from head to… whatever his bottom was.
"Wha-" Cain began. Frowning at the scene. The he laughed. "Fools! Waineton isn't a material creature. You can't hurt him with puny attacks like that!" His laughter was cut off abruptly as Tsubaki passed through Waineton again. And again. And again. The glowing fairy sped up to a ridiculous speed, scattering the Dolls essence so thin it wouldn't be able to remake itself in any reasonable timeframe.
At the same time, Uryuu had appeared before the barrier the other two Bounts were hiding behind. Frowning in concentration, the Quincy felt his blood shift as he transformed the Blut technique from defensive to offensive. Smashing his hand against the barrier, Uryuu could hear a satisfying crack as splinters in the shield manifested themselves. A few more hits and he should be through.
But that was when Tatsuki reached her target, reaching for Orihime's throat again, she was thrown away by the orange-haired girl herself. Inoue huffed. "Remember when you taught me how to fight, Tatsuki?" The girl beamed at her friend. "I never thought I would have to use it against you though..." She trailed off, her lips turning down of their own volition.
Tatsuki got up again, the same vacant expression on her face.
Orihime clapped her hands on her chin, focusing her attention on the girl in front of her. "This is the second time this has happened. Weird, isn't it?" She laughed, although her breath hitched as the sound almost transformed into sobbing.
Uryuu smashed his fist against the barrier again. Blut Arterie did a marvelous job of protecting his body from the rebound. But his fists still stung, blood had begun dripping down his knuckles. The Bounts inside looked nervous. And Uryuu allowed himself to delight in their expressions.
"Uryuu! Behind you!" He heard Orihime shout just in time to notice Cain bearing down on him.
Ishida jerked back, panic flooding his brain. But just as the Bount's hands were about to reach him, a mountain barreled past him, taking Cain with it.
Chad grunted in exertion as he smashed the Bount's head into the ground with all his might. Causing the ground to quake in the process.
Concentrating back on his task, Uryuu finally breached the barrier around Mashabi and Leia.
"S-Stay away!" Mashabi shouted flinging rubble and stones at him. Ishida dodged them with ease. Ignoring the obnoxious man, he went straight for the woman. She was the one controlling the shield. She was the one that had set up the barrier. He was positive.
As he reached her, the mostly absent woman reacted with terrifying speed and power. Instead of knocking her unconscious like he had planned, Uryuu was sent flying through the air, rolling across the broken ground and sharp rubble. Without Blut Vene to protect him, the attack had completely ravaged his body.
He moaned in pain as he tried to get up, broken bones and open wounds protesting the treatment. That was the inherent problem with Blut. You could only use one version at once.
As he looked up, he could see Tatsuki overwhelming Orihime. After all, one of them was a Karate Champion, while the other was not.
And Chad was also being overpowered. Whatever Waineton had done to him, it hadn't done him any favors.
"Ahahahaha! You see that Quincy! We win! We win!" Mabashi shouted in elation. A drop of sweat sliding down his neck.
Spitting out a broken tooth, Uryuu staggered to his feet. Abandoning any type of Blut, he concentrated purely on utility and movement. Ransotengai. The ultimate endurance technique of the Quincy.
But just as he was about to try one last attack. The world shook.
Leia looked up in alarm. "That's-"
Then it shook again, harder this time. It felt like they were inside one of those small snow globes, and a child had picked it up and was shaking it around.
"What the hell is going on!?" Cain shouted, leaving Chad motionless on the ground.
Then the third quake hit, and the world shattered. It looked like someone had broken a mirror in the air. Except there was no mirror. Just a portal in space. On the other side pedestrians and normal mortals went about their business, apparently ignorant of the gate to another world that had just opened up before them.
A raven-haired woman walked in, ripping out a shard of reality in the process. She had blood red eyes with strange patterns in them. Scowling and angry looking, she reminded Uryuu a lot of Ichigo. Although there was something distinctly sharper about her.
Stopping in the middle of the battlefield, she surveyed the situation.
"So this is where you were. It was a pain to find you. Was setting up a pocket dimension really necessary?" She said, scratching the back of her head in a very familiar gesture.
"Who the hell are you?" Cain demanded. Scowling even more than the woman did.
"Me?" The black-haired woman smiled. "Uzumaki Aika. Kunoichi, assassin, and temporary babysitter."
Gritting his teeth in frustration, Cain pulled up the arm of his shirt. Revealing a long set of seals and tattoos. "Just get out of our way!"
Aika laughed. "Try it kiddo."
Letting the seals light up one after the other, Cain fired off a giant burst of green energy.
As the beam approached her, Aika's smile only grew. Just before the attack hit, Aika met it with an outstretched hand. Letting dark flames cover her appendage, the woman ripped through the green beam. Scattering the energy around her.
"Huh. That's an interesting attack." Aika mused, her eyes followed the remnants of the beam as she twirled a kunai around her finger.
"Y-you-" Cain began. He didn't get much farther though. Before he could utter another word, Aika stood before him, having implanted her fist in his stomach. The bount coughed up blood as his eyes rolled back into his head.
"So… You gonna come willingly or do I have to take you out as well?" The dark-haired woman asked, turning towards the two remaining vampires.
Leia's eyes were still wide, but as soon as the question was asked she began chanting quietly in german.
Aika only seemed amused at their attempted resistance.
But Ishida recognized the words. Manifesting his bow, the Quincy fired off dozens of arrows at the Bount, trying to stop her incantation. Unfortunately, the woman's doll appeared. It looked like a bronze metal bird. Crying out in protest, a wall of force manifested itself between Ishida and the Bounts.
Cursing, Ishida sprang forward. Intent burning in his eyes. "They're escaping! That incantation is a spacetime technique!" He shouted at the newcomer.
Aika's eyes widened in realization. Her legs bent and the air contracted before her.
Uryuu's eyes widened at the sheer power she was outputting. He barely had time to throw himself back again before Aika blasted forward.
Alas, she was too late. Leia had finished her spell.
A burst of light seared their way into the retinas of everyone present. When they could finally see again, there were no sign of the Bounts.
Kushina blinked as Ichigo fell from the sky. The earth shook as he landed, creating a clear separation between Himawari and the Arrancar.
"What the hell?!" Yammy shouted, irritated that his attack had been so completely negated.
As Ichigo climbed out of the crater, Kushina could feel the power radiating out of the boy. He was clad almost entirely in black, wielding a small danto and a fierce scowl on his face.
Pointing his Zanpakuto at the Hollows, Ichigo challenged all three at once. "Get the hell out of my city. Or I'll make you."
"Huh? The fuck did you say punk?" Yammy asked, glaring down at the newcomer with complete contempt.
Ulquiorra stayed silent, studying the newcomer with interest. "Orange hair, black Bankai. This is one of our targets."
Yammy broke into a huge grin. "Really? That's great! Saves us a lot of trouble going to look for him." Taking a step forward, the giant tightened his fists. The crack from his knuckles could be heard from the other side of the clearing.
"Stand back Yammy. You are no match for this one." Ulquiorra stated. Taking two steps forward.
"Hah! As if!" He shouted, disappearing from view as the air cracked in protest.
Less than a second later, Yammy tumbled to the ground. One of his feet laying unattached back where he'd started.
Blood dripped from Ichigo's sword.
"I'll say it again. Leave. Now."
Yammy cursed up a storm. Pulling himself up to a sitting position, a red orb formed at his fingertips. His face pulling into a manic grin, the giant pointed straight at Ichigo. "Cer-"
He was interrupted as hundreds of golden chains erupted around him. The Cero exploded in his face, causing the Arrancar to cry out in pain. The chains just finished binding him as Kushina relaxed, turning her attention back to the rest of the fighters.
Ichigo stared wide eyed at the trapped Arrancar. "Err… Thanks, Kushina-san."
The redhead beamed back. "No problem."
Sighing, Ulquiorra took another step forward. Locking eyes with the Kurasaki boy, the Hollow let a truly massive amount of energy wash over them. "What a fool." He said, completely ignoring Yammy's increasingly frustrated exclamations. "Can't even understand basic instructions."
Pulling his arms out of his pockets, the Hollow lazily stared at his opponent. "I will test you now, Kurosaki Ichigo."
Ichigo narrowed his eyes in defiance. "Test me? For wha-" He began. Then his body was knocked into the ground, sending up a fountain of grass and dirt in the process.
Ulquiorra stood above him, dispassionately staring down at his target. "To see if you are worthy of being killed."
Groaning, Ichigo managed to send a burst of red-dark energy at the Hollow.
But even at point blank range. Ulquiorra still managed to dodge. He reappeared behind the substitute Shinigami, grounding his face into the earth.
He jumped back again as Ichigo burst back to his feet. Swinging widely for his opponent.
"Is that all?" The Hollow drawled.
"Of course not." Ichigo grit through his teeth. The orange-haired Shinigami powered up a Getsuga, letting it spill out of his sword and across the park. Rubble and loose bodies skidded across the ground.
Ulquiorra didn't even twitch.
Bursting forward, Ichigo kicked off the potent Getsuga reiatsu, burning his feet in the process. Appearing before Ulquiorra again, Ichigo swung his sword with everything he had.
He was stopped by a single finger.
Ulquiorra let the Daito fall to the side, reaching out and flicking Ichigo in the forehead.
The teen flew backwards, crashing into a tree and utterly destroying the trunk.
Ulquiorra sighed. "If this is all. There's barely any reason to bother with you." Looking over at Kushina, Himawari, and then at his female companion. The Arrancar gave a single command. "Kill them."
Kushina's eyes widened in panic. Suddenly everything was moving sluggishly, the adrenaline in her brain made the world move in slow-motion.
But even in this state, the third Hollow managed to completely disappear from her sight.
Kushina sprang towards her granddaughter. Reaching out an arm as a silent scream echoed within her mind. Golden chains lunged towards Himawari.
It wasn't fast enough.
The strange Arrancar materialized right behind the Byakugan wielder, the monster's arm still moving in slow motion as the world slowed even further.
And then it stopped.
There was no sound. No gusts of wind. No heavy breathing. No words. There was only silence.
Himawari fell forward, rolling away from the attack far too late to have helped. If not for the man who had stopped the attack dead in its tracks.
"Did you just try to kill my daughter?" Naruto asked.
His voice was calm, almost pleasant. He wore normal clothes, and his eyes were squinted into something that could almost be a calm expression. His energy was contained. There was nothing about him that seemed particularly threatening. And yet… the world trembled.
Ulquiorra blinked. "Uzumaki Naruto. How convenient. Now the second part of our mission will soon be fulfilled."
Naruto looked over at the Arrancar. Ulquiorra froze as Naruto's focus moved to him. The Hollow had even stopped breathing.
After a couple of seconds, Naruto moved his attention back to the girl he had stopped. "Marielle Summerfree, huh? Nice name. Who gave it to you?" Naruto asked, eyes flashing blood red for a fraction of a second.
"Aaah…" Marielle moaned. Dipping her head to one side.
Naruto narrowed his eyes. Without warning, his energy slammed into the park. The earth shook, the sky cracked, and the world cried out in protest. His power was accompanied by an inhuman killing intent. It filled every nook and cranny of the mind, holding the heart hostage within a cage of iron.
Marielle shook. "AAAHH!" She shouted. And as she looked up, Naruto staggered. His eyes went wide as the chakra in his body seemed to disappear into a bottomless pit. The air became alight with energy, massive quantities of power flowing from Naruto and into Marielle.
And in that moment Naruto understood the Arrancar. He saw how she had been created. How the Hogyoku had morphed and discarded everything that she was in favor of gaining a single advantage over him.
Naruto blinked as he saw the ground rushing up to meet him. Black spots danced in his vision and he could feel all the carefully laid architecture of his mind crash as its foundation crumbled.
Even forming a conscious thought was a struggle. Yet somehow, he managed to activate the Rinnegan. The energy flow stopped as the enhanced Preta Path grabbed ahold of his energy reserves. Putting one foot forward, he stopped himself from face-planting. Despite this though, he had still been brought to his knees.
Gritting his teeth, Naruto gathered the barest smattering of a coherent mind.
"Naruto!" Ino sounded panicked.
"I'm here." He returned. He let the last remnants of the walls in his mind dissolve into the overarching structure around it. Naruto's physical shape distorted.
"Kurama, you ok?" He asked, even as something much greater assimilated his thoughts and took control of his body.
"I'm fine, Naruto."
"Good." Ori returned.
Back in the real world, Naruto shape shuddered again, and suddenly he was standing. He was still holding onto Marielle's hand, but something was different. His eyes now held the shadows of nine tomoe, three in each circle. The burning anger from before was completely gone, instead being replaced with a relaxed, almost distant demeanor.
Ori sighed. "I am sorry Marielle. You can't be allowed to retain that power."
"AAAH!" Marielle cried again. Pulling on Naruto's energy even harder this time.
Nothing happened.
Then the world was flooded with light.
It rushed through everything in the clearing. Flooding the area with an incomprehensibly thick miasma of energy. The yellow trees began to bloom. Brown grass turned green and everyone present felt their broken bodies begin to heal.
"You wish for power?" Ori asked, her voice was calm and quiet, yet it still somehow echoed above the overwhelming sound of the chakra flow. "I will give you more than you could ever imagine."
And the light became blinding. It tightened and concentrated until the flow existed only in a thin, dense thread of power.
Marielle didn't say anything. She couldn't. Her mouth was open in a complete circle. Her eyes shone with impenetrable light. Cracks began running through her skin. But when the Arrancar burst, all the energy that should have escaped into an explosion simply vanished. The only thing left of the once powerful Hollow was a large concentration of invisible souls beginning to scatter across the clearing.
Ori smiled sorrowfully. Cupping her hands around a single soul, she let the rest be whisked off to Soul Society.
Looking up at Ulquiorra and Yammy, Ori nodded. "I'm sorry we had to meet like this."
Waving her hand absentmindedly towards Ichigo and Himawari, the rest of their wounds evaporated into nothing.
"D-dad?" Himawari asked, eyes wide.
Ori smiled and nodded. "In a way. You'll remember shortly."
"So what are you going to do with those two?" Urahara asked. Having suddenly materialized besides Ichigo. He was scrutinizing Naruto closely, his hat shadowing intense eyes bereft of anything but cold intelligence. Yoruichi appeared just after he did, expression betraying nothing.
"They are not our enemies. Aizen is. Still…" Ori trailed off. Giving no indication of surprise at the ex-captain's appearance.
Ulquiorra blinked at them, he glanced over at his one remaining partner, who had returned to cursing and trying to tear his way out of the chains binding him.
"You sealed this world off from Hueco Mundo… How?" It didn't look like the Arrancar was particularly bothered by this turn of events, but neither had he moved much since Marielle's death.
Naruto's body shrugged. "Unimportant. I couldn't let you leave."
"So you're going to kill us then?" Ulquiorra sounded vaguely interested, even this possibility didn't seem to excite much emotion within the apathetic being.
Ori shook her head. "No. I have a message for your master, and you are of little use to us dead."
Himawari swallowed as her throat went dry. Naruto didn't talk like that. He never talked like that.
"And the message?" Ulquiorra asked, head tilted curiously to the side.
Ori scrutinized the two Hollows closely, landing back on the smaller one as she spoke. "Aizen Sosuke. I understand you won't stop. That your motivation is much too great for that. But know that you will not succeed. Your goal is an unattainable one. Your motivation is too great. No man can have what you want. No god can obtain what you seek. It is an impossibility. Accept reality, and change yourself. That is the only way to preserve anything. All other paths leads to destruction."
Ulquiorra bowed, showing he understood. Turning around he poked the air, opening a gateway into the great beyond.
"Hey! Ulquiorra! Get me out of here!" Yammy shouted, continuing to tear fruitlessly at the chains binding him.
"He will not. I only need one of you to deliver a message." Ori said, Naruto's form shivered in the air as if it wanted to take on another shape.
"Wha- NO! You bastard! Ulquiorra! Get back here! You can't-!" Despite the shouts and threats, the smaller Arrancar didn't turn around once, and he soon disappeared into the great darkness between worlds.
Aika cursed. Whirling around as the space around them shattered and collapsed.
Ishida looked on wide-eyed as tiny fragments of the barrier they had been surrounded by rained down around them. As the fake streets faded, the real ones took their place, ruins and smoking craters were replaced with people and buildings in fully respectable conditions.
Strangely, none of the people reacted in the slightest to their appearance. Even Chad or Tatsuki, two people that were lying unconscious in the middle of the street.
"Orihime, are you ok?" Ishida asked, limping over to the reality-bender.
The girl coughed a couple of times, wiping away a few stray tears as she nodded. "Y-yes."
She looked around nervously at all the people around them, frowning in confusion as she noticed the same thing Ishida had.
"There's no need to worry. The mortals won't see anything out of the ordinary." Aika said, dragging an unconscious Half-Mexican after her.
"Chad!" Orihime exclaimed horrified.
The black-haired woman rolled her eyes. "Oh calm down. It's not like he'll feel anything, and he's not in any danger of dying."
Ishida narrowed his eyes but said nothing.
Putting the massive boy besides Tatsuki, Aika stretched lazily. "Man I really don't like babysitting."
"Who are you?" Orihime asked, checking the pulse of both her friends.
Aika smirked. "I told you. I'm Uzumaki Aika. I'm the one Urahara sent to help you."
"Urahara sent you?" Ishida asked. Adjusting his glasses, the Quincy made a note of asking about the name later.
"You called, didn't you?" Aika asked. "I was conveniently at the scene. And the shopkeeper had other places to be at that moment."
Opening his mouth to ask more questions, Uryuu snapped it tight as an otherworldly feeling settled over the entire city. The Hollow reiatsu that had permeated the city before this was almost completely washed out.
"Ah, yes. That would be my father." Aika hummed, frowning in the direction of the energy burst. "I wonder why he-"
"It's Naruto, isn't it? He's your father." Orihime interrupted, having made certain her friends were in no immediate danger, she allowed herself to relax slightly.
Aika raised an eyebrow. "Indeed he is. Why?"
"You don't act like him." Orihime pointed out, manifesting her healing technique. It widened until it covered both her friends with a wide membrane.
The older woman snorted. "And I suppose you act just like your parents?"
"That's not what I-" Orihime began.
"Look. I'm not much for chit-chat. If you have some actual questions, I could answer those."
The Inoue blushed, looking down at her two patients, she stayed silent.
"Thank you for helping us." Ishida said, forcing his body to stand despite the pain shooting through his body.
"Urahara already paid for it, so it's not much of a problem. I've had worse clients."
Ishida twitched, but he didn't say anything. Instead he studied the people around them. They were thinning out now. The morning rush having ebbed somewhat. But there were quite a number of people in the street. And none of them seemed to be paying them any attention.
"You said normal people won't notice us. How? We don't belong to the spiritual realm." Aika didn't either. It wasn't difficult to tell that much.
The kunoichi smiled. Ishida twitched again. That was a patronizing smile. Like an adult smiling at a particularly slow child.
"Oh it's just a genjutsu. An illusion covering the entire city. Anything having to do with the supernatural will be ignored by the mortals as long as it's not obviously life threatening. In which case they would probably run away screaming. Although they still wouldn't see what would really be there, just something really terrifying." The raven-haired woman shrugged, leaning casually against the wall as she watched Inoue work.
Ino Yamanaka watched distractedly as Ori went through the motions Naruto should have been doing. A sigh escaped her lips as she cradled a golden orb in her lap, the healing remains of her friends mind.
That was the inherent weakness of artificial minds. They had to be supported somehow, and that support was almost always in the form of manipulated energy, or in Naruto's case, chakra. No amount of mental protection would help against someone consuming the very foundations of the construct. Had Summerfree been allowed to continue, the results could have been disastrous. If Naruto hadn't managed to halt the absorption technique, both her and Kurama would have been consumed. And if the Hollow had somehow managed to consume them, it could have become too powerful to stop without risking Karakura, and possibly all of Western Tokyo.
Not that they would have made it easy for it, but it was a scary possibility.
How had this happened? Ino had never even heard about absorption techniques this powerful. The amount of energy Summerfree had managed to consume boggled the mind.
Her focus once again being drawn back to the chakra construct in her arms, Ino felt a smile stretch her lips. Naruto certainly didn't stay down for long.
Manifesting a body for him to sense the world through, Ino let the orb melt into its chest. Naruto stirred at the change. But he didn't immediately wake, so the kunoichi began stroking his hair. Her fellow blond relaxed at the motion, tension seeping out of his sleeping frame.
They stayed like that for several minutes, Ino's attention sporadically returning to the outer world for updates.
"Hnngh…" Naruto moaned, pulling himself into a fetal position.
"Good morning, Naruto. How do you feel?" Ino asked, her fingers still trailing softly through his golden locks.
"Like my head has been split in two." He managed. The shinobi's deep blue eyes opened to stare at her own. Pain, confusion, and apprehension stared up at her. There was a slight trickle of fear as well.
"D-Did anyone die?" He asked, trying and failing to sit up.
Ino gently but firmly pressed his head back into her lap, continuing her stroking movements without pause.
"No. Everyone is fine. In fact, we came out ahead in the confrontation."
Naruto closed his eyes as a relieved sigh escaped his lips. "That's… good."
"What do you remember?" Ino asked him, studying his face for a reaction.
"Not much. More by the second. Ori is helping. Why is she…? Oh."
A muted laugh escaped the blonde psychic. "Yeah. It was pretty bad."
"What's happening?" Naruto asked, his body once again straining to get up.
Again, Ino pushed him back. She laid a finger over his mouth in the universal signal of silence. "You need to rest Naruto. Your mind was almost completely dissolved, even your soul was damaged. Just lay here and keep quiet. I'll explain what's going on."
Reluctantly Naruto listened, his body stilled as he completely surrendered to her care. A smile crept up on Ino. Here she was, one of the most powerful entities in the world in her lap, and he trusted her with his life. And she trusted him with hers.
For thousands of years she had lived within his mind. After she lost her original body, there weren't many other places she could go. But even after he had gained the ability to give her a new one, she had decided to stay where she was. Where she was most comfortable. Within his mindscape. Within his soul. But mortals were never meant to live without their body. Their souls could linger for a little while after death, but like the flame on a candle, without cover the wind would extinguish it. So he had become her cover. Shielding her mind and soul with his own. But someone covering a candle with their hand could also choose to extinguish it.
For all of these years; her life, her soul, had completely been at Naruto's mercy. For 5000 years.
"The Hollow that attacked Himawari was called Marielle Summerfree. She had been modified by Aizen in order to consume your energy."
Naruto said nothing, only grunting weakly in acknowledgment.
Ino felt her lips twitch upwards.
"Ori took care of her. She has her soul now, and is purifying it herself. We wanted to make sure there would be no unwanted side effects when she is reborn." Ino explained.
Naruto hummed. "Where is Kurama?" He asked, squinting at her with sleepy eyes.
"He went to speak with his siblings. He'll probably be back in a few hours."
At that moment, a woman appeared beside them. Her form fading into the black nothingness around them. Her blood red hair and ringed, purple eyes were a clear indication of her identity. Not that it could be anyone else.
Naruto turned towards her. "Huh. Nice dress, Ori."
The woman laughed quietly. Looking down at her plain white clothing. At least it was more than she usually wore before him.
Her shape shimmered slightly as she sat down besides Ino. "How is he? Everything is ready on my end. His new mindscape has finished forming. I increased its priority after today's event."
Ino frowned. "I would prefer that he rest some more. Can't you tell yourself?"
Ori looked down at Naruto's almost sleeping form, pursing her lips in contemplation. "I am not the best judge of things like these. Especially not when it comes to him. From my viewpoint, he is more than capable. Especially since his new mind could cover for any issues stemming from the spiritual damage."
Ino sighed. "You were always like that. Even before… you know? Even centuries old, you still didn't know how to take care of yourself. And even now…"
Ori smiled and bowed politely to Ino. "That's why I have you, isn't it? I will leave it to your discretion. Summon me when he is ready." And she disappeared again.
Ino shook her head. "What am I going to do with you two?"
Naruto chuckled. "You know you still love us."
Rolling her eyes, Ino focused again on the outside world. Then her eyebrows crept upwards. Huh… that was interesting.
"What? What is going on?" Naruto insisted. Trying to form a connection with the sensory data Ori was feeding them.
Ino shut him down. "Nu, uh. I'll explain it. Besides, you're not even up to date yet."
"Oh, come on!" He complained. Voice much stronger than it had been a few minutes ago.
Ino cleared her throat, scowling down at her friend. "Anyways, after Ori took care of Marielle. There was only two of them left, Ulquiorra and Yammy. Ulquiorra left with a message for Aizen, while Yammy is now locked up somewhere under Urahara's shop. Apparently, there are more rooms than just the one."
Naruto's eyebrows crept up, but he stayed silent.
Answering the implied question, Ino nodded. "He grew wary of us when Ori revealed herself. I don't think he expected anything quite like her. Ori, used Yammy like a gesture of good faith, trying to mend at least some parts of the relationship."
Making sure he was still following her, Ino continued. "Also, the Bounts disappeared."
"What? How?" Naruto asked, eyes straining to find any clues on Ino's face.
"When Marielle attacked you, you lost all the different mind strands occupying your body. The ones keeping tabs on the Bounts included. Afterwards, they seemed to have completely vanished. There's no trace of them left. Even Yoshino Soma, the one who broke off on her own, have vanished. The mansion is still there, and Ori has set up some wards to make people leave it alone. Some spacetime irregularities have begun to crop up, but nothing too serious yet. Ori is trying to fix it, but as you know, she can only do so much. Even after she's finished, it would probably be over a decade before people can safely live there again."
"So… we have no idea where they've gone?" Naruto asked.
Ino shook her head. "No tracks. No surveillance or satellite footage. No odors. Not even psychometry reveal much. Only that they were there before, and then suddenly disappeared."
"Teleportation?" Naruto frowned. That could be troublesome.
"Most likely. The Bounts have always been quite gifted in that field. Seems like they have continued to cultivate the talent. They used a pocket dimension to isolate Ishida as well."
"Hmm…" Naruto scratched his head in thought.
"The most interesting thing however, was whom Ichigo ended up fighting. He met someone claiming to be the leader of the Bounts, calling himself Jin Kariya. He controlled wind and was apparently really powerful. Capable of matching or even exceeding Ichigo in both speed and power while he was in Bankai."
"Wind?" Naruto asked. Remembering the strange familiarity of the distant energy signature back at the mansion.
"Yes. Ichigo described him with white hair, scar on one cheek and markings covering half of his upper body."
Naruto sucked in a breath. "Eugene? He's alive?"
"Apparently." Ino answered. Watching silently as Naruto's face went through several different emotions, and eventually settled on a sort of satisfied-resigned-acceptance.
"Also, Aika is here."
"WHAT!" Naruto shouted. Sitting bolt upright faster than Ino could press him down again.
"Aika is here." Ino repeated, meeting his astonished expression head on.
"What? Why?"
Ino shrugged. "She wanted to meet you, I guess,"
"Now!?"
Ino shrugged again. "She is your daughter. She's over 3000 years old. She does what she wants."
"But… but… there isn't time for…" Naruto trailed off. Gaze unfocused as he reconsidered all the different social dynamics that would change with her thrown in the mix. He groaned.
"Has she met Ichigo yet?"
"Yup."
"Have they fought?"
"Nope. They haven't really talked much, Aika has only observed him until now. Ichigo hasn't noticed yet."
"Fuck." Naruto swore.
"They could do that too, I guess. Doesn't really seem within their character though." Ino smirked.
"Gah! Stop it!" Naruto insisted. Covering his ears. "What about Bolt? Has she seen him yet?"
"Yes."
Naruto stared at her, waiting for her to go on. Ino stayed silent, with a face that might as well have been chiseled in stone.
"Aaaaand…?" Naruto insisted.
Ino shrugged. "I hear the moon has a new crater now. Astronomers seem very puzzled."
Naruto sighed into his hands. "You're joking right? They haven't ever gone that overboard before."
Another shrug. "Yeah. I'm joking. But they did make contact, and it wasn't any prettier than usual."
"Any more surprises?" Naruto asked.
"Yoruichi wants to talk to you."
"Hmm…" The blond mused, thinking about all the ways that could go. "When?"
"Right now actually, she's waiting outside for you to be ready." Ino explained.
Naruto blinked, trying to hone in on his body's senses again. Ino didn't stop him this time, as he was mostly fine. He could still feel the after-effects of the spiritual damage, but that would heal with time, and his new mindscape would pick up the slack.
Taking a deep breath, Naruto stood up, did a couple of squats and clapped his face twice, trying to wake up properly.
"Alright. Let's do this. But no special mind modules, ok? Only me."
Ino nodded, and Naruto's consciousness flowed back into place.
Opening his eyes, Naruto stared directly into the penetrating gaze of the former Onmitsukido captain. Yoruichi was sitting beside him on the steps of a local shrine. Thousands of grave stones surrounded them, all of them drenched in water as the heavens cried.
Naruto looked around, noticing this was the only place beneath a ceiling in the area. Huh… He wondered how they'd gotten here?
"So you're awake then." The shapeshifter commented, drawing her legs in towards her body.
"Ah…" Naruto started, scratching the back of his head embarrassingly as he blushed. Yoruichi didn't wear many clothes, only a large T-shirt he was pretty sure Ori had given to her. If nothing else, the Uzumaki spiral on the shoulder was a big giveaway.
Yoruichi narrowed her eyes. "Enough of this pretend game. Stop acting like you're actually embarrassed. After what I have seen, I can't believe that is anything more than a facade."
Naruto glanced over at her, brow furrowed in concern. What had Ori told her? But as soon as he saw the contour of the woman's body, his face went beet red again, and a drop of blood fell from his nose.
A rough push made him fall back against the floorboards of the shrine, and suddenly Yoruichi was over him, their noses almost touching. Slitted, predatory eyes stared directly into his own. The blond began to stammer, but there was very little suggestive in Yoruichi's gaze. Only pure scrutiny. She stared deep into his eyes, looking for… something.
"This can't be right. You're even more green than when we first met." Yoruichi frowned again. Then she leaned down and kissed him. It was not a sensual kiss, only a quick peck on the lips. But Naruto's body still sparked, and thousands of sensations exploded in his brain all at once.
When the blond had finally got his brain in order again, Yoruichi was a few meters away. Leaning against the entrance to the shrine.
"Why? Why do you act like that? Your reactions seems genuine, but they can't be. Not for someone like you." The ex-captain said, her eyes boring even deeper into him. Then, so quietly Naruto almost didn't hear it. "Humans act like that."
Naruto opened his mouth to answer, but again, he was unsure how he wanted to proceed. He was tempted to call upon Ori or Ino for help, but he had already decided he wanted to do this himself.
"I am human." Was what he eventually settled on. Repeating something many others had to reassure him of with disturbing regularity.
Yoruichi narrowed her eyes again, but said nothing. It was clear she didn't believe him.
Naruto sighed, looking up at the endless rain that descended on the graveyard around them.
"I am old, Yoruichi." He said, with only a hint of humor.
"By all rights, I belong with all those buried around us. But somehow, I still find myself here, alive and kicking." He laughed, waiting for some kind of response from his conversation partner. When none came, he continued.
"Depending on how you want to count it, I was born 5476 years ago. Although by that time, my soul had been reborn dozens of times in a cycle of conflict with my brother."
Still no response. Although Naruto was pretty sure he could feel her surprise.
"Five and a half millennia is a long time." Naruto laughed again, feeling tears forming in his eyes. "Far too long."
"No human is meant to experience that kind of time. It is why my friends changed their psyches. Changed themselves into something not quite human."
"And yet you still claim to be one?" It was the first things Yoruichi had since he'd started talking.
"Part of me is. The same way part of you is still human. Like parts of Hollows are still human. Almost every kind of intelligence that exist on this planet comes from humans in one way or another. Homo Sapiens were the first real intelligent life to evolve here, barely crossing over the threshold to true sapience. It happened approximately 300,000 years ago. The primordial gods came soon afterwards, but they are here because of us. Not the other way around, like so many myths would have you believe."
Yoruichi shifted, it was clear she didn't quite understand why Naruto was talking about this.
"Such timescales makes even my life span seem paltry in comparison. But despite all that time, it took hundreds and thousands of years for civilization to sprout. Modern man believes the first real cities came about around 12,000 years ago. They're wrong. Civilization is far older than that. 110,000 years ago, the first gods gathered themselves into what we today call pantheons, and since then, the world has been a place of mystery, magic and power."
"For most of human history, the world was a terrifying place. Life was short, scary and completely beyond any individual's control. Civilizations rose and fell. But humanity as a whole moved very little." Naruto explained, his voice lacking the authority of his normal storyteller mode, but it was clear he still wanted her to hear it.
"Then, about 10,000 years ago, the leadership of the gods changed drastically. We're still not quite sure what happened, but that was around the time the Titans were overthrown by the Olympians, the time when the Aesir and Vanir formed their alliance, and when Osiris took up the mantle of the lord of death. Most pantheons underwent similar upheavals. Together, they signaled the beginning of what would be known as the Golden Age."
"This was an age of remarkable progress. Magic and inventiveness was combined to produce truly marvelous results. Some of the greatest civilizations the world has ever seen arose in this period. One of them was mine, the Elementals of the Elemental Nations. The Elementals really came into our own sometime after the Shinju came to earth, a little more than a thousand years before I was born. The rest of the story you already know."
Yoruichi nodded. She remembered very well the bath she and Naruto had shared in Soul Society.
"The Elemental Nations almost ended with the Fourth Shinobi War, but somehow we managed to scrape through. The rest of the world wasn't so lucky." Naruto said, his voice dragging downwards in a negative tilt.
"Uzumaki Naruto was born at the end of the Golden Age. It was a very turbulent time. Gods and mortals often intermingled, and power was gathered into a few extreme concentrations. At that time, it was relatively easy for an individual to become powerful. Too powerful. As was almost the case with the Elementals, a single person managed to bring an entire culture to its knees. And this was not unusual. In fact, our survival was the unusual part. Over a period of a couple hundred years, almost every major civilization collapsed. Something that would be repeated 2000 years later with the Bronze Age collapse."
"And yet we survived. The Elementals are the world's last Golden Age civilization."
"You say you are 5000 years old, yet you act as if you're younger than me. Why? Why pretend? Is it truly just to make people trust you?" Yoruichi asked. Her face betraying nothing of her thoughts.
Naruto sighed. "I am not pretending Yoruichi. This is how I am. How I have always been. Or rather…" Scrounging up his brow in concentration, the blond tried to find the right words. "... It is mostly how I am. A facet of how I am. My friends and family were forced to change themselves due to the unrelenting passage of time… but I…"
He trailed off, eyes unseeingly staring into the rain.
"But you're even older than they are, aren't you?" Yoruichi asked.
Naruto's eyes widened as he looked back at the woman behind him. He quickly looked away though, his face flooding with red.
"Minato told me about it. About your clones, the fragments of yourself that also live as you."
"Ahh… He did?" Naruto scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "Then he spoiled this entire conversation before it could begin!"
"That is the reason I find you so complexing. Compared to a human, I am ancient. I didn't think about it much before leaving Soul Society, but out here… I can somehow feel the years pressing down on me. I have been alive for almost 500 years. And yet you are to me, like I am to a human. So why do you still pretend to be one?" The ex-captain asked. Just to make a point, her otherworldly power began spreading across the shrine, a power no mortal could match.
"I told you. I'm not-"
"Then why!? The Captain Commander is old. As is many of the other captains, but you have them all beat! And that isn't even counting your clones. Why do you act so… so… different." She finished lamely. It almost seemed like she wanted to get angry, but had no real reason to do so. At least not yet.
Naruto was silent for a few seconds. Staring into the clouds. The rain was beginning to thin out. A few more minutes and it would be over.
The silence stretched out. But finally the blond sighed. "The truth is, I don't know how old I am Yoruichi. Seen from earth's timeline, I was born about five and a half thousand years ago. But as you already mentioned. I have experienced far, far, more than that. Ever since I was a child, that horde of clones have always been a part of who I am. And even if their numbers stopped growing as fast after my first couple of centuries, their growth never fully stopped. It is advantageous to be in more places at once. I can do more. Help more people. The last decade, I have been averaging around 28000 clones at any one time."
Turning around, Naruto met Yoruichi's eyes once more. He looked terribly old. "Within this collective, I have experienced more than a hundred million years."
Yoruichi's eyes grew wide as Naruto's posture slumped slightly. "Even that number isn't all that accurate. It is mostly a conservative estimate based things I allow myself to know."
Taking a deep breath, Yoruichi tried and failed to imagine what that must be like.
"Of course. I don't remember all those years. As I said. Mortal's were never meant to live five millennia, much less experience the beginnings of deep time." Naruto shrugged.
"Ori is the one that takes care of all of that. I am simply living my life, living it as if I've only existed for a couple of centuries. It was the only solution I could find that either didn't leave me completely incapacitated, crazy, or both."
"Couldn't you just forget?" Yoruichi asked. That would have been the easiest solution, and the one she imagined most would have taken. Or perhaps just dying. Giving up.
"No. I will not forget my friends." Naruto said. Voice as hard as steel.
The ex-captain smiled slightly, looking away as she asked her next question. "So what is Ori? Who is she?"
"She is me… Or rather. Me as I would have been, if I hadn't split my soul back when the memories first started to overwhelm me."
"You… split your soul?"
Naruto bowed his head in a an affirmative gesture.
"It was perhaps the most difficult decision of my life. But yes. I did. I wanted to live without being buried under a mountain of memories. I am selfish. Even now, I could take her place. Carrying the burden I originally gave to her. But… I…" Tears started flowing from Naruto's eyes now, he was openly crying in front of Yoruichi's astonished face.
"I want to live."
Hesitating only for a moment, the shapeshifter surged forward and embraced her friend.
They stayed like that for several minutes, Naruto shaking against her shoulder as the ex-captain's worldview adjusted itself once again.
Once Ori had appeared, Yoruichi had been afraid. Afraid that everything Naruto had done up to that point had only been a ruse. That the cheerful, charming boy she had come to like… come to love, had only been a facade. The ancient being and incomprehensible aura he had given off at that time had somehow seemed more honest. All the mystery had been stripped away, and Naruto had appeared as how he truly was. A godlike being who casually weighed thousands of lives on scales of cold logic.
He was still that person. That was clear. But he was more as well. This was Naruto. A cheerful, charming blond that took to life with an unbeatable optimism and smidgen of mystery.
And an unbounded love for all life.
She had only gotten glimpses of it a couple of times before. Once Aizen escaped, and when he first discovered the Bounts' actions. His reaction then spoke for themselves. It seemed to her that that was his core. Everything he did was for this one principle. Even splitting his soul and becoming something he did not want to become. And someone like that…
Holding him out at arm's length. Yoruichi found those marvelously blue orbs again. They stared back at her with warmth, recognizing her own acceptance of who he was and relishing in it.
She kissed him.
This time, it lasted much longer than before. Their second kiss was deep and emotional. Leading into a much more interesting series of events than their first one had. At least from Yoruichi's perspective. She wasn't really much for explanations. She was a girl of action.
Author's note:
A great thank you to my Beta reader PseudoPhysics. He continues to be an amazing boon to this project.
A few more months pass by, and suddenly I find myself at the University studying physics. Man I can't believe it's been two years since I posted the first chapter of this thing. That chapter alone must have been updated a dozen times at least.
Also, saw Madoka Magika. Shit is crazy. Not as crazy as me though. Recommend it for anyone interested in anime.
Anyways, thanks for reading. Leave a review. See you next chapter. :)
