Okay… I know I said I was shocked by the number of people who actually voted for this Bleach x Date A Live crossover, but the amount of followers and favorites for this story is freaking NUTS! To think so many people wanted such a crossover… honestly, I am honored to be writing something so fun. Especially with two series that are getting a lot of love recently.
I know the last chapter wasn't that good since it was mostly to set up what was to come, but at least now we can get started on the actual plot. Now that we're on chapter two, we can finally get to the main Date A Live series, which will be fun to include Ichigo in since we ALL know how easily flustered he gets.
But that's for later. Now, it's time for the reviews!
Phantom Thief of Hearts: That's fair. I honestly judge a story or series by three episodes and see if it interests me. Ichigo's harem… might be a little diverse;) And yeah… I like Shido, so there is NO FREAKING WAY am I genderbending him. It's just a weird thing to do for established characters. The games… I will need to play in order to understand the Spirits there.
ENDDRAGON369: Let her come at me! I ain't scared of that red haired shorty*covers body in tinfoil.* I will try to play the Rinne Utopia game to understand Rinne more.
Blazbluefan2018: Glad to know you're giving this story a chance, my loyal follower :)
Jose19: If there's a chance I can roast a story or the characters, I will have Ichigo do that for me lol.
Guest: Thanks for giving this story a chance. I agree that there haven't been too many Bleach fics, so I'm glad I can add to it.
Guest number 2: Technically, there is a crossover called "Date A Ichigo", which I enjoyed, though it is short. Check it out since it is still a decent read.
Guest number 3: HA! You sir gave me quite a lot of ideas. Thank you!
Vercingetorix Rex: I have a lot of ideas for all your questions, especially with the whole Spirit racism thing since that would be an interesting little arc.
SomethingAncient: I have a few ways to give Ichigo some protection. And the Masaki thing will be answered in due time.
I-Nex-I: Technically, Kotori and Shido see Masaki as an aunt, but they aren't blood related. As for the power scaling, I will work on it as the story goes.
Zatil Hidayah Spensa: Thank you for agreeing with me on the Shido thing. He's a great character, so getting rid of him entirely would be an awful idea.
Theanimegameguy123: Thank you.
To recap: Seventeen months have passed since Ichigo had given up his powers, and things seemed normal for him. However, Kisuke Urahara and Isshin Kurosaki called Ichigo to the Urahara, telling him about the mysterious beings known as Spirits. After explaining how much destruction the Spirits bring to the world, Kisuke asks Ichigo to investigate recent Spirit activity near Tengu city, which he begrudgingly accepts in an effort to at least gauge what they can do. Soon, Ichigo took a plane to Tengu city, where he met with the children of his mother's family friends, Shido and Kotori Itsuka.
Will Ichigo be able to see the power of a Spirit? And how will he be able to survive with the Itsukas? Let's find out…
Note: I will be using both Spatial Quakes and Spacequakes in this story as some characters like to use one name or the other.
It was… cold…
Nothing was there except for what looked like demolished buildings.
There wasn't a soul anywhere and the sky was especially dark.
He wanted to get away from this place.
There was nothing for him….
…
Why was he there again?
…
Where was the old man?!
…
WHERE WAS THE MONSTER?!
*CRASH*
"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"
The sound of someone yelling rang though the walls of Ichigo's room, causing him to snap awake.
"What the hell?" Ichigo began looking around, trying to find where the scream came from.
However, the more his eyes adjusted to the light bleeding through his closed curtains, the more Ichigo realized he wasn't in his usual bedroom.
'Oh yeah. Tengu City.' Ichigo reminded himself for the umptenth time as he rubbed his face.
It had been about a little over a week since he flew to Tengu City and to be honest… It was rather uneventful.
Now, Ichigo didn't mind traveling every now and then since he was starting to get bored with things in Karakura.
But despite that, things weren't that different in Tengu City besides the different landscapes. Even the school he went to was pretty normal… besides a few select students.
Not to mention his new roommates were as different as they could be.
Shido was someone Ichigo got along with pretty well. He was kind, thoughtful, a surprisingly great cook almost on par with Yuzu (which he would need to keep to himself), and he didn't annoy him even once since coming to Tengu.
The same however… could not be said for his little side Kotori.
Ever since he moved into the Itsuka house, the younger sister of Shido asked Ichigo a bunch of questions. Mostly about his hair and his name, much to his annoyance. Still, she wasn't the worst person to live with and she would even talk about how much she loved 'aunt Masaki.' It was still surprising to Ichigo that his mother visited the Itsukas in the past, but he wasn't one to pry on another's life without reason.
"AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" This time, Ichigo could hear Kotori's high pitched scream from the wall, making him groan in annoyance.
"And there goes any chance of going back to sleep." With a sigh, Ichigo stood up and looked at his alarm clock. "Okay. Still have time before school. Better get ready."
As he exited his temporary room, Ichigo spotted Shido doing the same, though he had a towel under his arm.
"Oh. Morning, Ichigo. Did we wake you up?" Shido asked with a curious tone.
"No. I had a nightmare about screaming little girls-yes, you woke me up." Ichigo sarcastically told Shido, who chuckled embarrassingly. "The hell happened?"
"Yeah… Kotori wanted to wake me up and… she slammed her feet on my stomach." Shido answered while rubbing his still sore tummy. "Oh, and she thinks I have something called the "Ten more minutes of sleep, or else my sister goes to Tickle Hell" virus."
"... Really?" Ichigo gave Shido a blank look, making him laugh a bit.
"Just call it the T-Virus for short. Anyways, she thinks I have it, so just play along. Okay?" Shido asked with a finger on his mouth. Ichigo knew it was just a simple prank, so he just nodded. Plus… it was a way to get back at Kotori for calling him 'Strawberry' all the time.
'A few minutes later'
After taking separate showers and a change of clothes, both Ichigo and Shido went downstairs in order to have some breakfast before starting the day. They wore the Raizen high school uniform, which consisted of a white long sleeve button down shirt under a black blazer with the school emblem on it, gray trousers, blue ties with black and gray stripes and black shoes. To Ichigo, the uniform wasn't that bad compared to the Karakura High uniform he used to wear.
"So, what's for breakfast?" Ichigo asked Shido, who yawned in his hand.
"Hmmm… well, we got a little time. Let's ask Kotori what she wants." Shido offered as he opened the door to the dining room. However, he and Ichigo soon found a familiar head of red hair shivering behind the couch.
'How is she still freaked out about that? It's obviously a joke.' Ichigo thought with a sweatdrop, though he reminded himself that Kotori had a younger mindset.
"I don't wanna go to tickle hell… Someone help me." Kotori whimpered as anime tears ran down her face. Ichigo was about to tell Shido to call off the joke when suddenly, Shido crawled over to the other couch with an evil look in his eyes.
"BWAHHHH!" Shido shot up from the couch and let out a scream, causing Kotori to yelp in pure terror as she quickly ran behind Ichigo.
"Mister Strawberry, help!" Kotori practically begged Ichigo while clutching onto his back.
"Not strawberry…" Ichigo muttered under his breath in annoyance.
"Alright, alright. Fun's over." Shido confessed while chuckling, leaning against the couch. "It's okay, Kotori. It's just me."
"Are… are you sure?" Kotori meekly asked while peeking out from behind Ichigo.
"I am much good friend to you, that much is true." Shido answered with a straight face and a hand raised, speaking like a caveman. "Yes. I Kotori big brother." Kotori took a moment to look at Shido's face before sighing in relief.
"Did you really have to talk like that?" Ichigo couldn't help but question, to which Shido shrugged.
Soon, the three of them began doing various things: Shido was in the kitchen preparing breakfast, Ichigo was looking through his phone and Kotori was watching the local news while sucking on a lollipop.
"You know it's too early for that stuff, right?" Ichigo offhandedly mentioned to Kotori, not taking his eyes off his phone.
"Lollipops are something you can eat any time, mister Strawberry!" Was all Kotori answered with a happy giggle, though Ichigo just scoffed and continued searching for anything interesting on his phone.
"And in other news, earlier this morning, a Spatial Quake was recorded near the center of Tengu City." The news reporter on TV announced, causing Ichigo to put his phone down while narrowing his eyes. On the TV was video of a large round crater in the middle of Tengu City, with police cars surrounding it.
'Of all times, it happened when I was asleep?' Ichigo thought to himself with a frown. He was in Tengu City to investigate Spacequakes, yet they decided to appear when he wasn't awake.
"There was only slight damage, with no casualties among residents in the area." The reporter revealed, much to Ichigo's relief. "Investigations continue as to the cause of the Spatial Quakes…"
"Again? Sounded pretty close too." Shido said out loud while whisking some eggs for an omelet.
"It was…" Kotori muttered in a surprisingly even tone, making Ichigo look at her in mild surprise. Then again, Spatial Quakes were apparently really dangerous, so even someone like Kotori would understand how serious they are.
"A lot has been happening recently. It's pretty weird, huh?" Shido asked Ichigo and Kotori while checking on the bacon.
"You're telling me." Ichigo said to no one in particular as he continued to watch the news. 'Maybe I should go check this out after school. Could be something left behind.'
"This is happening earlier than planned." Suddenly, Ichigo heard Kotori whisper, only this time, she sounded completely serious. He turned his head and raised a brow as he saw a rather serious look on the young redhead's face.
'What the hell? When did she get-'
"Hold it…" Shido narrowed his eyes before he rushed over to Kotori, noticing the lollipop in her mouth. "NO SWEETS!"
"Ahhhh!" Kotori let out a startled gasp before she quickly closed her mouth, preventing Shido from pulling it out.
"Seriously?" Shido asked as he grabbed the bottom of the lollipop, though Kotori was stubborn and tried to push him away. "A little help, Ichigo?"
"Hey, she's your little sister." Ichigo shrugged while giving an amused look, making Shido sigh as he let go of Kotori's lollipop.
"Just make sure you eat breakfast, okay? It's not good eating lollipops this early in the morning." Shido lightly scolded her, making Kotori giggle as she took out her lollipop.
"Okay. Love you, big bro!" She told her with a cute wink. Both Shido and Ichigo rolled their eyes before the trio went to the dining table, ready to eat breakfast.
"So, got any requests for lunch, Kotori?" Shido asked her while looking away from his food.
"Oh yeah! One deluxe kids plate, hooray!" Kotori cheered while standing up, thinking about the meal.
"... Yeah, that's from the diner menu." Her big brother countered with a flat tone. "We don't serve that dish at this restaurant. Sorry."
"Awww! C'mon." Kotori gasped before giving the two males a cute pout. "Can't we go? Pretty please? With a strawberry on top?" This of course got Ichigo to twitch his brow yet again, though he refrained from saying anything. Shido just stared blankly at his sister's pleading face before he glanced at Ichigo for help. Noticing this, Ichigo replied with a shrug, not caring what the outcome would be.
"Fine." Shido finally relented, much to Kotori's joy. "But ONLY if you finish all your breakfast, okay?"
"Okay!" With that, Kotori eagerly ate her breakfast with a happy tone. She loved those deluxe kids meals at Danny's so much, though not enough that she'd give up her lollipops.
"Little sisters, am I right?" Shido jokingly asked Ichigo, who chuckled a bit.
"Tell me about me. Try taking care of two of them." Ichigo retorted as the two males shared a laugh, happy to find another thing in common. Still, what happened earlier was still on Ichigo's mind. 'What was up with Kotori? It's almost like she knew more about Spatial Quakes than she let on.'
He was gonna have to ponder that later.
'Downtown, Tengu City. A few minutes later'
"Hm hm hm hmmmmm. Deluxe Kids Plate wins!" Kotori cheered while humming cheerfully and walking towards Danny's, with Shido and Ichigo following suit. "I love eating out for lunch! Isn't it the best, mister Strawberry?"
"Again, just call me Ichigo. And it's not a bad thing to eat out. Just not all the time." Ichigo responded while lazily carrying his bag.
"I think she just likes calling you strawberry because it's one of her favorite fruits. Sorry about that." Shido apologized with a chuckle. "Besides, Kotori. It's a diner, so it's not really special."
"Yuhuh! Of course it's special!" Kotori countered before the trio eventually stopped in front of a white painted building with the words 'Danny's' written in red on top.
"I never tried Danny's before. Is it good?" Ichigo couldn't help but ask while looking at the building.
"The food's alright and the staff's nice. But… maybe don't ask for breakfast. It's not the best." Shido awkwardly told him, recalling a moment in the past where he accidentally got food poisoning.
"Okay. So, we all meet here after school for lunch, okay? I'll be waiting for you guys right here." Kotori explained to the older males while gesturing to where she was standing.
"Sounds like a plan." Shido nodded in understanding.
"And don't you break that promise! Be here, no matter what. Even if there's an earthquake or the place is taken over by terrorists! We still eat here!" Kotori countered with a determined frown.
'Okay, I get earthquakes. But terrorists?' Ichigo thought with a sweatdrop, not believing what Kotori just said.
"If either of those things actually happen, I doubt Danny's would actually stay open." Shido said with a blank expression. He then sighed and patted Kotori on the head, a smile on her face. "We'll be here, okay? Just be careful on your way to school." This caused Ichigo to smile a bit at their little interaction. Even though he had known the Itsukas siblings for about a week, he could tell they cared about each other, much like he did with Yuzu and Karin. Maybe he should call them later today just to chat… unless Isshin interrupted and asked if Ichigo had a girlfriend.
"Hey. Is that Shido Itsuka?" Standing a few feet away from the trio was a small group of female teenagers, each wearing the Raizen High uniform. It consisted of a white long sleeved shirt, a black blazer with the Raizen High emblem on it, a blue skirt with two black stripes near the bottom, brown shoes and a red ribbon tie, though the tallest of the three didn't have it.
The taller one had spiky blonde hair and bangs and golden yellow eyes. Unlike the other females, she didn't have the red ribbon and had her blazer open due to her somewhat sizable chest. Her name was Ai Yamabuki.
The second tallest female had short, brunette hair and brown eyes. Her name was Mai Hazakura.
And the shortest of the female trio had long purple hair that reached beyond her shoulders and matching colored eyes behind a pair of circular glasses with a thin frame. Her name was Mii Fujibakama.
"And look. He's with his sister and that Kurosaki guy." Mai added with a hand on her hip. "Don't they seem a bit too close? I heard Itsuka has a weird sister complex."
"That's so lame." Mii finished with a frown.
"Don't break your promise!" Kotori called out while running off to her school, though not before turning around and waving goodbye to Shido and Ichigo. "And I'll be here, ready to eat even if there's a Spatial Quake!"
"We get it. Now go to school." Shido reminded her with an amused smile as Kotori ran off.
"Think she'll be fine?" Ichigo asked offhandedly.
"She might act like a little kid, but she knows not to get in trouble." Shido answered as he saw Kotori wave at him once again, making him return the gesture.
"Hey there. What's up?" A hand reached out and grabbed Shido's wrist, causing him and Ichigo to look at whoever was talking.
Holding hands with Shido was another teenager, one with swept-back spiky hair and dark gray, nearly black eyes.
"Tonomachi. Hey." Shido greeted with a slightly forced smile as he greeted his friend.
Hiroto Tonomachi gave him a smile, still holding his hand. "Ready for the next semester, buddy? You look like you are." Tonomachi told him before he glanced over to Ichigo. "And don't worry. I didn't forget about you either, Ichigo."
"Yeah… cool…" Ichigo muttered. During the first week he was in Tengu City, Shido decided to introduce Ichigo to his school friend Tonomachi. To say the guy was a bit too open with his emotions would be an understatement. 'I just hope we don't get a repeat of that night in the arcade.' Just thinking about that memory made Ichigo cringe. As Shido and Tonomachi talked, Ichigo could feel someone watching them. Looking over Shido's shoulder, Ichigo noticed someone on the other side of the street, poorly hiding behind a lightpost.
It was another female teenager who wore the Raizen High uniform. She had pale skin, blue eyes, and short, silvery-white hair arranged in a bob cut with three hair clips on the right side of her hair.
'Okay, what the hell? Why's she stalking us?' Ichigo thought while narrowing his eyes towards the girl. She seemed to have noticed his gaze and gave him a glance before she turned her attention towards Shido. 'She's looking at Shido. Maybe it's a crush?'
"Come on. We better get to school or else we'll get detention before the new students get it." Tonomachi's words snapped Ichigo out of his funk before the trio went to the school with the white haired girl following suit.
'Raizen High School'
After the opening ceremonies for the new students attending Raizen High, the rest of the students were allowed to attend their classes as usual.
"It's still funny that we end up in the same class, huh Shido?" Tonomachi asked Shido, who was sitting at the desk near the left corner of the room. Sitting in front of him was Ichigo, who was listening in on the conversation with an uncaring look. "Some people would say it's fate at work." Tonomachi ran a hand through his hair while giving his friend a coy smile. "And I would be one of those people. Are you with me, Ichigo?"
"Not really. Fate's not really my thing." Ichigo responded with a blank expression.
"Besides, only you would think like that, Tonomachi." Shido added, though his friend didn't seem fazed.
*Vrrmm*
The sound of a phone buzzing caught the trio's attention as Tonomachi looked down with a smile. "Give me a sec, boys. That's my girl."
"Wait, you actually got a girlfriend?" Shido said in a surprised tone.
"I thought you always swung that other way." Ichigo joined in with a raised brow. From the way Tonomachi acted with him and Shido, Ichigo assumed he was into guys or at the very least bisexual.
"No way. I'm a ladies man." Tonomachi answered as he showed the two his phone. "Check her out!" Curious about what he meant, Ichigo and Shido checked Tonomachi's phone… only to sweatdrop.
On his phone screen was the title screen of a dating simulator called "Fall in love: My little seed." Above the title was a young pinked haired high schooler with white ribbons on her hair.
"... You realize it's a dating sim, right?" Shido questioned bluntly.
"So what? Doesn't change the fact she's my girlfriend." Tonomachi answered before he looked at the screen with a happy face. "Plus, neither of you have girlfriends, so don't go judging me for trying to find some happiness. Not to mention a dating sim can help you with everything you need to know about treating a lady." He then went on to talk about how the game was a "Textbook of love" and all that crap.
'Wow. Even Keigo wouldn't be this desperate for a girlfriend.' Ichigo thought while tuning out Tonomachi's dating sim rant.
"Shido Itsuka." However, the rant was cut short when a female voice called out to Shido. The guys turned to see the same white haired girl that was stalking them look at Shido with an unreadable expression.
"Ummm, yeah? Do I know you?" Shido couldn't help but ask, confused as to how the girl knew about him, despite never meeting her before.
"You mean you don't remember?" The girl asked with a somewhat curious tone, though she still sounded rather robotic.
'Great. She's acting like Byakuya.' Ichigo thought, comparing the two and sweatdropping. The girl stayed quiet for a few moments before taking her seat, which was right next to Shido and taking out a small book to read, making the trio sweatdrop.
"So… you have any idea who she is?" Shido whispered to Tonomachi and Ichigo.
"Don't you know? That's Origami Tobiichi, aka the Super Genius." Tonomachi answered, surprising both Shido and Ichigo.
"Super Genius? Is she that smart?" Ichigo asked with a skeptical tone, though he wasn't one to judge someone by their looks alone.
"For sure. She always had some of the best grades in our class and she does it like it's nothing. Not to mention she's ridiculous in sports and a real hottie." Tonomachi explained. "She's also high on my "Girls I'll probably ought to have as a girlfriend" list." He then gave Shido a look. "How do you not know one of the most popular girls in school? Ichigo, I get. But not you, especially since she apparently knows you."
"If you're asking how she knows me, don't. This is the first time we've even talked to each other." Shido reasoned.
"Doesn't explain why she stalked you earlier." Ichigo suddenly revealed, causing the two boys to look at him in shock.
"Hold on. Origami was stalking Shido?" Tonomachi looked over to his friend with a grin. "Dang. You're starting to be a ladies man, aren't you?"
"No, I'm not." Shido replied, though he was still confused as to why Origami was stalking him in the first place. Maybe after school, he could-
*RING*
The school bell rang, causing all the students to get back to their seats while preparing for today's lesson. The doors to the classroom opened up, allowing the teacher to enter the room. She was a young looking woman with a small body build, short brown hair and matching colored eyes. Her attire consisted of a pink button down jacket over a white shirt, a tan skirt, brown shoes, red trim glasses and a red stone necklace around her neck.
"Good morning, Tamae!" The class all greeted the teacher, who smiled in amusement.
"Good morning, class. But I keep telling you it's miss Okamine." Miss Okamine greeted them. "Now quiet down, please. It's time to learn." This got a round of applause from the students. However, as Shido lowered his hands, he noticed Origami was still looking at her with the same blank expression, much to his discomfort.
'A few hours later'
Class went on as usual, something that was all too familiar with Ichigo. There were a few readings, math equations and other ordinary schoolwork that wasn't much to write about. Much to everyone but Shido's surprise, Ichigo was able to answer the questions with little to no problem. Even though he had been in their class for a short time, they never expected someone who looked like a delinquent to be this smart.
"So, wanna walk home together, you guys?" Tonomachi asked Shido and Ichigo with a smirk, unintentionally flirting with them.
"Sorry. We got plans after school." Shido politely declined.
"Oh yeah? Tell me, is it a girl?" Tonomachi asked before he glanced at Ichigo. "Or is it a double date situation?"
"Not really a double date. We're just going to lunch with Kotori." Ichigo bluntly told him while putting his books in his bag.
"Oh, I get it. I get it completely." Tonomachi coyly told them while running a hand through his hair. "Besides, as far as I know, there's not a girl in this school with a sensitive and kind enough spirit to have lunch with either of you. Especially Ichigo's menacing face."
"... Do you want me to punch you?" Ichigo rhetorically asked with an annoyed tone. He could get a girlfriend if he wanted to. Life was just in his way… not to mention he needed help asking a girl out in the first place. But besides all that, Ichigo could get a lunch date if he really tried.
"Thanks for that, but I'm pretty sure you just made fun of us." Shido blankly told his friend.
*Brrrrrr*
Suddenly, a strange alarm began to blare from out of nowhere, causing everyone to tense up.
"The hell's that?" Ichigo couldn't help but ask, not familiar with the sound.
"Your attention, please." A female, robotic voice called out. "This is not a drill. There have been precursory signs of an impending Spatial Quake in this vicinity."
"Oh crap. A Spatial Quake." Shido repeated with a serious tone.
"Another one? We just had one last tuesday." Tonomachi added with a frown, dropping his happy attitude from before.
"We need to evacuate now." Shido urged them while standing up, gathering his things as quickly as he could. "There's a shelter near the school that should be safe. Come on." As the trio prepared to leave, they noticed Origami suddenly stand up and rush off in a hurry.
"She's probably heading to the shelter, too." Ichigo told Shido, as if reading his mind,
"Yeah, but the shelter's the other way." Shido added with a hint of concern for the girl he had barely met.
"That's something to worry about later. Let's go!" Tonomachi urged them as the trio and the rest of the students went off to the nearest shelter.
'Damn. Looks like they really are prepared for Spatial Quakes here.' Ichigo thought as he, Shido and Tonomachi made it into the shelter, waiting in line as people rode down an escalator to the lower levels. He was told by Shido that Tengu City had safety precautions in place whenever a Spatial Quake was detected, from subways closing down to even bullet trains being transported underground (which he thought was something ripped straight out of some light novel). Still, considering he had seen some weird crap in the Soul Society, seeing a city lockdown due to a Spatial Quake shouldn't be as shocking.
"Everyone, please calm down! And don't forget the three Ds: Don't push, Don't run, Don't wal-wait, that's wrong. JUST DON'T STOP!" Miss Okamine shouted in an attempt to keep everyone calm.
"I'm pretty sure you're the only one who's freaking out, Tamae." Tonomachi told her with a sweatdrop, making the teacher realize what he meant before she smiled shyly.
"Of course, you're right. I'm sorry." Okamine apologized before she fostered everyone to enter the lower levels with a more calm demeanor.
"Shido, you ready?" Ichigo asked the blue haired teen, only to see him going through his phone. "What's up?"
"Just trying to reach Kotori. I wanna make sure she made it out alright." Shido explained, not taking his eye off his phone before he found Kotori's number, pressing it and waiting for her to answer. "Come on, come on."
"I'm sure she's fine." Ichigo reassured him, understanding Shido's concern. If their roles were switched, Ichigo would've kept calling until he made sure Yuzu and Karin were out of harm's way.
"Damnit. She's not answering!" Shido blurted out with a frustrated tone. "Where could she have-" It was then he froze up, something Ichigo noticed. "Ichigo, remember what Kotori said earlier?"
"Earlier?" Ichigo repeated with a raised brow. "Well, she said she wanted that Deluxe Kids Meal at-" The resident of Karakura Town stopped speaking as he realized what Shido was implying. "She wouldn't."
"Let me check her phone's location." Shido then activated the phone tracker app to find where Kotori is… only to gasp in horror. "Oh no…"
"Please tell me she isn't there." Ichigo checked the phone, only to see what he had feared.
On the map was a red blinking dot… which was located right in front of Danny's.
"NO!" Without warning, Shido quickly began to run towards the exit.
"Shido!" Ichigo called out, trying to stop him from doing something crazy. But it was too late as Shido was already out of arm's length. Gritting his teeth, Ichigo made his decision as he began to run after Shido.
"Ichigo! Shido! Where the hell are you guys going?!" Tonomachi called out, only for his words to fall on deaf ears as his two friends ran out the exit.
'Downtown, sometime later'
"KOTORI!"
"KOTORI!" Ichigo and Shido's scream echoed through the now deserted streets of Tengu City, trying to find the younger of the Itsukas. Considering the city-wide alarm was still active, it was only a matter of time before a Spatial Quake would appear, which meant they needed to find Kotori as soon as possible.
"Why would she be there?! I told her not to go out when there's a Spatial Quake! Stupid, stupid, stupid!" Shido berated himself for not being firm with his little sister. She may act like a kid, but even she should know better than to be out. at a time like this. Maybe he was just a bad older brother.
"Hey!" Ichigo caught up to Shido and grabbed his shoulder, causing the two of them to stop. "Don't say that. It's not your fault a Spatial Quake's happening, alright? You aren't stupid, so don't call yourself that. We're gonna find Kotori, then we're gonna go to a shelter. You hear me?" Hearing Ichigo's firm words, Shido looked back and saw a look of pure determination on his face, something he was surprised to see. He knew Ichigo didn't have that good of a relationship with Kotori, but to see how serious he was about saving her eased some of Shido's stress.
A smile broke on Shido's face as he nodded. "Right… you're right. Sorry about that." Shido apologized as Ichigo patted his shoulder. "It's just that-"
"I get it. Trust me, I do." Ichigo cut him off with a small smile. "If it was Yuzu and Karin out here, I'd be worried about them too. But since there's two of us, we can cover more ground. And when we find her, we can all go to Danny's later, my treat."
A chuckle escaped Shido's mouth. "Don't let Kotori hear that or else she'll ask for dessert." The two males laughed a bit, feeling a bit better, despite the situation they were in. "We gotta get to Danny's."
"Right." Ichigo and Shido continued to run towards the direction of Danny's, occasionally turning the corner in an attempt to get there sooner. 'Is it going off?' Reaching into his pocket, Ichigo pulled out what looked like an old style compass, though for some reason, the arrow began to faintly glow blue. 'If it's glowing, then that means-'
*Rumble*
Ichigo's thoughts were cut short when a sudden shockwave passed through the city, causing him and Shido to stop in their tracks.
"Oh no…" Shido muttered in genuine fear.
In the horizon, a large dark dome of energy suddenly began to grow, sending out a shockwave that sent dust and debris flying. "GET DOWN!" Ichigo quickly tackled Shido in an attempt to shield his roommate. However, his efforts were for not as the shockwave pushed the two of them back several feet.
*Bzzzzzz*
An annoying high pitch buzz rang through Ichigo's ears, mainly due to the sudden shockwave as the smoke in the area began to disappear. Opening his eyes, Ichigo first noticed Shido next to him, trying to stand up. "..." He tried to speak, but the ringing in his ear was making it hard to hear his own voice. "... do? …Ido… SHIDO!"
"Huh?" Having heard his name, Shido turned his head and saw Ichigo fumbly walk towards him, grabbing his arm and helping him on his feet. "Ichigo?"
"What?!" Ichigo shouted before he shook his head, the ringing in his ear slowly dying down. "Can you hear me?"
"Yeah. I can hear you. Can you hear me?" Shido copied Ichigo's answer, with said teen nodding in response. "Good. I was worried for a second." The two males looked around, only to see the buildings and the streets were ruined. Cracks were formed and pieces were spread around, as if a nuclear bomb had hit. "Woah… look at this place."
"So this is what happens when a Spatial Quake hits." Ichigo muttered, looking at the wreckage with a deep frown. It looked like Karakura Town after Aizen was able to bring everyone to the land of the living. Just remembering all the buildings in ruins and the bodies of his defeated allies made a pit form in the former Soul Reaper's stomach. 'And if Yuzu or Karin were dragged into something like this? I don't think I'd be able to live with myself.'
"Hey, look over there." Shido spoke up while pointing ahead. There was a large crater that had strange purple energy leaking out of it, with nothing that once stood there remaining except charred pieces of rubble.
However, that was not what Ichigo and Shido were focused on.
Standing in the middle of the crater were two things: a large golden throne… and a girl.
She was a rather attractive girl who looked to be around the same age as Ichigo, with very long dark-purple hair tied in a ponytail and matching colored eyes. Her attire consisted of a dress with a black, cream, and pink color scheme and a set of purple-and-cream plated armor which adorned her shoulders and waist. The dress was open at the back and made up into a black corset (which exposed a part of her cleavage) and a two-layered, knee-length skirt which has a pink-to-white gradient. Her hair was tied back using a butterfly-shaped hair accessory. She also wore a pair of gauntlets which have petal-like cuffs, both sharing the same color scheme as her attire, as well as a pair of armored boots.
'Who is she?' Was the thought Ichigo and Shido shared as they looked at the girl. Just looking at her and the strange purplish aura around her made them feel insignificant.
"..." The girl seemed to notice the two looking at her, making her narrow her eyes before she grabbed what looked like a sword handle from the top of the throne. She then drew out a large broadsword out of the throne before slashing the air, sending out a wave of dark magical energy.
"SHIDO!" Grabbing Shido by the shoulder, Ichigo threw both of them to the side as the energy slash sailed past their right side, not only destroying more of the ground, but also leveling a crumbled building nearby. Turning his body, Ichigo looked at the destruction caused by the attack with wide eyes. 'Holy crap. That was like one of my Getsuga Tenshos. Just how much power does a Spirit have?!'
"Not you too." The girl finally spoke in a serious tone, making both Shido and Ichigo look up and see her standing over them, a deep frown on her face. She had her weapon pointed at them, ready to strike. Thanks to their close proximity, they could see that the edge of the sword had a sort of energy coating around it and several light blue lines across it. It was as if the sword itself was from another world. Shido stood up, though he didn't dare move as he was paralyzed in fear from this strange girl.
As for Ichigo, he stood protectively in front of Shido, giving the girl a scowl. Even though he could feel the pressure coming off her, he was still gonna try his best and protect Shido. 'Then again, I left the gear back in the house.' He thought while mentally berating himself.
"I see. You are trying to protect him." The girl rhetorically stated with an even tone, looking at Ichigo. "There is… something off about you."
"Me? If you haven't noticed, you're the one pointing a sword at us." Ichigo retorted, not dropping his guard.
"Then it's true." She said, not affected by Ichigo's words. "Both of you are here to kill me."
"Huh?" Now Ichigo and Shido dropped their guard for a moment and looked at the girl in confusion. Did she honestly think they were in the middle of town to kill her? Sure, she caused a lot of destruction and she had a ton of power, but that wasn't why they were there?
The girl, not liking their silence, took a step forward, forcing Ichigo and Shido to unconsciously go back. "Don't bother trying to deny it. You two came looking for me so that you may try and kill me." She told them with narrowed eyes. "I must deal with you two before the others show up."
"Others? What do you mean?" Shido found his voice and asked, still confused as to why she would reach such a conclusion.
"And we aren't here to kill you." Ichigo added, cautiously taking a step forward. "His sister's missing and we think she's around here. But then that Spatial Quake happened and we saw you in the middle of that crater. That's the truth."
"What?" The girl actually raised her brow a bit. Isn't killing what humans did on a daily basis? Why would these two not want to kill her? And what was a sister?
"I… I could never kill anybody." Shido spoke up as he stepped up next to Ichigo, his eyes looking at the girls. "But… is that why YOU'RE here?" Ichigo was also curious about why she was there as well. If he could get at least a little intel from the girl, then he could relay it to Kisuke in the event a Spirit came to Karakura.
However, the girl suddenly tensed up and turned around, much to their confusion.
"Hey. What's-" Before Ichigo could finish, the sound of missiles being launched rang in the air, with a barrage of them flying down from above. "LOOK OUT!"
"..." Not saying a word, the girl raised her right hand, creating a light purple barrier around herself, Ichigo and Shido.
*Ding*
The missiles crashed into the barrier, though thanks to the girl's power, they were grinded to a halt, worthlessly trying to push through. "Woah…" Ichigo muttered, amazed by the girl's barrier.
"Why do they not realize the futility of their attacks?" The girl asked in an almost sad tone before the missiles exploded, though the barrier did protect the three from any harm. More missiles were suddenly fired, making the girl narrow her eyes before she suddenly flew in the air.
"She can fly?!" Shido asked rather dumbly.
"She can fly." Ichigo rhetorically answered as he saw the girl cut through the missiles, a string of explosions soon appeared afterwards. 'Is this what it feels like when I go out there? Guess now I know why Keigo and the others were shocked when I fought Aizen.' Still, there was one thing bugging Ichigo about this girl.
It was clear from the way she was acting that she was a Spirit, but for some reason, she was sad when she had to block the missiles a moment ago. Then again, Kisuke was rather vague on whether or not Spirits felt any sort of emotion outside of destruction.
What was this Spirit's deal?
Speaking of the Spirit girl, she turned her head back to the duo with the same sad eyes as before.
"She's sad…" Shido muttered in concern.
"No kidding." Ichigo more or less replied back, feeling something off with the Spirit. 'And she said I was different. I mean I don't have my powers anymore, so why would she-' The Spirit girl slashed more missiles coming at her, creating more and more explosions in the sky. Grabbing her sword tightly, the Spirit girl let out a cry as she launched two energy slashes, forcing her attackers to dodge. Noticing the missiles had stopped trying to hit her, the Spirit girl flew down and landed on the ground, letting out a small sigh.
*Click*
However, her moment of calm was cut short when someone appeared in front of her, aiming a futuristic gun in her face.
The identity of the attacker actually made Ichigo and Shido widen their eyes in shock.
"ORIGAMI/TOBIICHI?!" The two males blurted out, shocked to not only see their classmate attack the Spirit… but also because of her outfit.
It was a futuristic battle suit, colored in dark olive coating. However, much of the suit exposed Origami's rather impressive build, though it did cover her chest, the sides of her stomach(leaving her stomach exposed), legs and arms, as well as having a pair of red edged wings that let out small jet flames to keep her flying and what looked like small head gear on the sides of her temple. In her arms was the same gun aiming at the Spirit.
With a growl of anger, Origami pressed the trigger, firing a green beam of energy. However, the Spirit merely raised a hand, creating another barrier that successfully blocked the otherwise fatal blow. Origami gasped before she flew back as the Spirit cut her gun in half, attempting to strike her down. She jumped back once again, though the Spirit was able to clip one of Origami's wings. Still, she flew up in the air to get out of her opponent's range before landing a few feet away, detaching her wings. With an impressive jump, Origami flipped over the Spirit and right behind the pair of male teens, who looked at her in shock.
"Tobiichi, what the hell are you doing here? And why are you dressed like that?!" Shido questioned, though he did quickly look away out of embarrassment.
"Shido, it's you." Origami replied in her usual blank tone, though there was a hint of surprise in it. She then noticed Ichigo standing next to him. "And Ichigo Kurosaki."
"Yeah, yeah. We're here. Now would you tell us why YOU'RE here?" Ichigo repeated Shido's question, though his cheeks were mildly pink due to Origami's outfit. He was still a growing teen after all.
"RAHHHH!" The Spirit sent another energy slash towards Origami, who narrowed her eyes before flipping in the air. Ichigo and Shido weren't as fortunate as they were sent flying due to the attack's force. Taking something out from her side, Origami activated it, causing a light beam-like blade to come out of the device. Raising it up, Origami fell towards the Spirit and locked swords with her. The two jumped back before they began slashing at each other, creating a large gust of wind around them.
'Hang on. Those clothes… the way Origami's fighting… is she part of DEM or something?' Ichigo thought as he and Shido watched the fight in front of them.
"This has to stop. Otherwise, they'll both die." Shido said before he stood up, looking at both girls with a deep frown. "STOP IT, YOU TWO!"
Origami and the Spirit ignored him as they struck their blades against one another once more, only this time, a bright light began to glow from between them. Ichigo and Shido looked in horror as the light suddenly formed another Spacequake, growing larger and larger.
"AWWW SHI-" Ichigo was unable to finish his curse as both he and Shido were consumed by the light.
And just like that… they lost consciousness.
'Unknown location?'
"... Coordinates FG-18-20. The target 'Princess' has been lost."
"Area reaction waves below detection threshold."
'Who is that? Why are they speaking?' Shido thought as he attempted to speak, only to get no response.
"Finally. We meet again." For some reason, a disguised female voice spoke to him in an almost excited tone.
"Who… who are you? Where am I?" Shido questioned the voice.
"I'm so glad. But you'll have to wait." The voice answered him. "Just a little longer… I will never let you go again… I won't ever be wrong again… Soooooooooooooooon…" With that, the voice disappeared.
The first thing Shido noticed was a lamp hovering over him, shining a light on his eyes.
A gasp escaped Shido's mouth as he sat up, shoving the person examining him away. Letting out a few pants, Shido looked around and noticed he was in a new place.
"Hmmm… it appears you're awake now." A tired, female voice spoke up from next to Shido. He turned around and was surprised to see who it was speaking to him.
It was a rather attractive woman with pale skin, long, unkempt, pale blue hair which was tied in a right-side ponytail and blue eyes, though given the bags under them, it looked like she hadn't slept well. Her attire consisted of a white collared button down shirt under a tan jacket with a brown outline, black tie, black skirt, brown stockings, black heel shoes and a small blue teddy bear with stitches on her left breast pocket.
"Wait, I don't know you. Who are you?" Shido asked the woman in confusion.
"My name is Reine Murasame, but you can call me Reine." The woman now known as Reine answered in the same tired tone. "I'm the Head Analyst here. There's no reason for you to freak out. First Aid is hardly out of my league."
'And that's supposed to reassure me?' Shido thought with a sweatdrop.
"Anyways, I have to know something. Where am I?" Shido asked as he looked around. The room itself looked like it was ripped straight out of a Sci-Fi movie. And while that sounded cool on paper, it was still a bit unnerving.
But as soon as he laid eyes on the bed next to him, Shido widened his eyes.
"ICHIGO!" Lying on the bed was none other than the orange haired delinquent, Ichigo Kurosaki. However, based on the lack of a reaction he got from Shido's outburst, it was clear Ichigo was still out of it.
"You need to relax." Reine told Shido while trying to prevent him from moving. However, he broke free of her grip and walked next to Ichigo's bed.
"Hey. Wake up! Ichigo!" Shido said in a slightly louder voice, though Ichigo didn't respond. "Come on, wake up!"
Shido grabbed Ichigo's shoulder and shook him…
*Woosh*
"AAAAAHHHHH!"
*THUD*
However, faster than anyone could see, Ichigo unconsciously grabbed Shido's arm and with a tug, threw him over his bed and onto the other side, landing back-first on the floor. A pain-filled gasp escaped Shido's mouth as his eyes turned comedically white from the retaliation.
"Huh. It seems he has some sort of defense mechanism in case someone attacks him in his sleep." Reine remarked with a small hint of interest as she took out a notepad and pencil, writing down what she witnessed.
"Hmmmm…" Ichigo let out a groan as he began to open his eyes, only to shield them from the light. Slowly, he began to sit up and take into account everything around him. "What's going on?" Ichigo soon realized he was in some sort of room with advanced looking technology and a tired woman looking at him. "Who the hell are you?"
"Reine Murasame. But call me Reine." Reine answered him before pocketing her notepad. "And to answer the previous question, the two of you are in Fraxinus' sickbay."
"Fraxinus? Wait, what do you mean the two of us?" Ichigo questioned before he heard a groan before him, making him turn around and see Shido lying on the floor. "Shido?!"
"Heyyyyy…" Shido greeted weakingly as he stood up, cracking his sore back. "Why'd you throw me? I was just trying to wake you up."
"Wake me up?" It took Ichigo a moment to figure out what had happened before he rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah… sorry about that. You see, my old man always ambushed me whenever I was home to 'hone my instincts' or some crap like that. So now, if someone tries to grab me while I'm sleeping, I react."
'What kind of dad attacks their own son while they're sleeping?!' Shido thought with a surprised expression. What kind of man did aunt Masaki marry if he was gonna put his own son through such hell?
'Karakura Town'
"ACHOO!" Isshin suddenly let out a sneeze into his coffee cup, almost spilling the hot liquid inside.
"Are you okay, sir?" The waiter of the cafe Isshin was at asked with a concerned tone.
"I'm fine. Thank you." Isshin thanked the waiter, who gave him one last look before walking away. As he drank his coffee, Isshin began to wonder who in the world was talking about him. 'Probably Ichigo. Damn punk…'
'Back in Tengu City'
"So, why are we here? The last thing I remember was Origami fighting that Sp-" Ichigo realized what he was about to say before quickly correcting himself. "That weird girl with the sword."
"Same here. That was some chick fight." Shido muttered while trying to recall what had happened. "Wait… KOTORI!" His outburst caused Ichigo to widen his eyes. How could they forget about Kotori?!
"Shit, that's right!" Ichigo quickly said before looking at Reine. "Look, thanks for helping us, but we have to go find his sister."
"We think she's in front of Danny's. Please, let us go down there." Shido begged Reine, who looked rather indifferent.
"Both of you need to calm down." Reine calmly instructed them before looking at Shido. "Your sister's fine."
"Hang on. She is?" Shido asked with a relieved tone. While he was confused how the woman knew who Kotori was, if she was fine, then that's all that mattered.
"I'm assuming the two of you want an explanation, right?" Reine questioned rhetorically.
'You make it sound like that's not what we've been doing.' Ichigo thought with a sweatdrop, wondering what the deal was with this woman.
"Apologies, but that isn't really my forte." Reine explained. "It's better to ask the Vice Commander. Come along." Ichigo and Shido looked at each other, a bit skeptical about listening to Reine, despite the fact she did help them out. Still, if this Vice Commander guy knew where Kotori was, then the least they could do is follow along. Giving Reine a nod, the older woman began to lead the two through the hallways of the Fraxinus.
"If something goes down, we run as fast as we can." Ichigo whispered low enough for Shido to listen.
"Are you sure? She said Kotori was fine. What if they have her?" Shido asked with a concerned tone, not that Ichigo could blame him. They could be on the other side of the planet for all they knew and they still wouldn't know where to find Kotori.
"We'll find her. I promise." Was the only thing Ichigo told Shido before the two ended their little talk, stopping in front of a large pair of doors.
"We're here." Reine pointed out before stepping forward, causing the doors to open up.
The first thing the trio saw was a man with his back facing them. Upon hearing the doors open, the man turned around, allowing his full form to be seen. He was a very tall man with long blonde hair and light brown eyes. He wore a white suit with black outlines and blue covering some parts. He also wore a black shirt underneath and a silver-white tie with a black belt that can be seen around his waist.
"I brought them with me." Reine told the man as he walked up to her, looking over Shido and Ichigo.
"Thank you for bringing them to me. And for taking care of them." The man thanked Reine before giving the other males a smile. "It's very nice to meet you. I'm Kyohei Kannazuki and I am the Vice Commander of the Fraxinus. Welcome, Shido and Ichigo. We're glad you could be here."
"Hang on. You're acting like you expected us to be here." Ichigo spoke up with narrowed eyes. "You're gonna tell us everything we wanna know, starting with where Kotori is. If you hurt her-"
"Why don't you ask our Commander?" Kannazuki replied with a bow while gesturing to his right.
Ichigo and Shido turned their heads to speak with the Commander… only to gasp when they saw WHO it was.
"It's about time you two woke up." The Commander told the two with a smirk. She wore a red coat over a white uniform like a captain, black ribbons with red outlines, a black tie with red sidelines, a red skirt with white cloth-like sticking out and a pair of long, black boots that reached up to half her thigh.
"KOTORI?!" Both Shido and Ichigo exclaimed, shocked to see that Kotori was not only alright, but was also wearing a Commander uniform.
"Like that idiot said, welcome to Ratatoskr." Kotori greeted the two while waving her lollipop.
'Wait… RATATOSKR?! You've gotta be shitting me!' Ichigo thought with a bewildered expression. The very group that Kisuke told him about days ago was the same one that saved both him and Shido. And apparently… Kotori, little Kotori who wouldn't shut up about eating at Danny's, was the Commander.
"Let's get down to business, shall we?" Kotori said, not even taking into account how shocked her brother and Ichigo were as the large monitor in front of them showed footage of the Spirit from earlier. "This monster right here is called a Spirit. It was lost a long time ago, which means it disappeared out of the blue. And this is what we call-"
"Can you shut up for a second?" Shido suddenly cut off Kotori, who groaned in annoyance.
"Don't you know it's rude to interrupt the Commander when they're speaking? Shame on you, big bro." Kotori scolded Shido with a blank tone.
"Yeah, about that." Ichigo interjected before he gestured to Kotori. "How the hell are YOU of all people the Commander here?! You're freaking fourteen!"
"Age doesn't matter, Strawberry. You're lucky I'm even letting you stay here in the first place." Kotori countered Ichigo with a smirk, noticing the annoyed look on his face. "Both of you should be on your knees, bowing in gratitude. It's not everyday the Commander briefs you personally. If you really want, you can lick my boots while you're down there."
"You little-" Ichigo was about to scold Kotori right then and there when someone unexpectedly butted in.
"Wait, really?! I can lick your boots and grovel?!" Kannazuki asked with a rather excited tone, much to Ichigo and Shido's disgust.
*SMACK*
Kotori responded with a hard jab to Kannazuki's stomach, though rather than groan in pain, he moaned in ecstasy. "Oh yes~ Thank you for that, Commander." He gleefully said while holding his stomach.
'Is this guy a masochist?' Ichigo and Shido thought in unison.
"Just to be clear, you ARE Kotori, right? Not just a person that looks like her or… a clone?" Shido asked, still skeptical that his cute little foster sister was this arrogant little Commander.
"Come on. You seriously forgot what my face looks like, Shido?" Kotori asked while wagging her lollipop in front of him.
"Well, it's gotta be the real Kotori. No one else has called me Strawberry like her." Ichigo admitted.
"See? Even Mr. Strawberry here has a better memory than you. Don't tell me you have Alzheimers." Kotori mockingly said while laughing, irritating to the two males.
"Besides all that, why are we here? What IS here?" Shido asked while getting to the point.
"Would you quit freaking out? I'll explain everything soon. But first…" Kotori pointed her lollipop at the screen. "There's three things you need to know. 1. That girl is a Spirit and doesn't belong in this world. Even appearing on our planet destroys everything around her."
'Already knew that much.' Ichigo thought, though he still paid attention.
"Hang on. Why is that?" Shido interrupted Kotori once again.
"Are you dumb?" Kotori asked before leaning a bit forward on her chair. "You know the Spacequakes?" When Shido nodded, Kotori continued. "Well, Spirits like that girl down there are the ones who cause them." Shido gasped in shock at this information while Ichigo continued to look at the footage of the Spirit.
'She acted like no matter what, humans would always try to kill her. What's up with that?' Ichigo thought as he looked at the Spirit with a sympathetic frown.
"Now for number 2." Kotori brought them out of their thoughts while showing footage of Origami and a squad of females in mech suits. "These are the ground force's Anti-Spirits team. When a Spirit appears, the AST comes in and take care of it."
"By take care, you mean kill?" Ichigo bluntly asked, getting a look from Shido. "You saw what Origami was trying to do, Shido. She was trying to kill the Spirit."
"Yeah… but why?" Shido muttered as he looked at the image of Origami on screen. It still baffled him why the AST would try and kill Spirits? Yeah, they caused a lot of damage with the Spacequakes. But did that really justify murder?
"Now for 3." Kotori said while raising three fingers. "There is another way to deal with Spirits without killing them. Hence, why Shido is here." She then looked over to Ichigo. "And since you saw the whole thing, I guess it's okay to show you too… as long as you DON'T tell anyone."
"Got it. So, what's number 3?" Ichigo asked while looking at the screen with a serious gaze, making Kotori raise a brow.
"How do I help?" Shido questioned with a curious tone.
"We'll have to make sure to start your training tomorrow. I'll leave the details up to the person in charge of your development." Kotori told him. "For now, just go back to school like normal."
"Why do I need training? Tell me that much at least." Shido told his sister, wanting to make sense of everything. "Seriously, what the hell can I do?"
*STOMP*
"AAAHHHHH!" Irritated by Shido's questions, Kotori slammed her foot down on Kannazuki's foot… only she unintentionally stomped on Ichigo's instead. He hopped back and held his foot while glaring at Kotori. "The hell was that for, Kotori?!"
"It's your fault for standing there. I was TRYING to stomp on Kannazuki." Kotori simply said without a hint of remorse.
"Really?! Please do it now!" Kannazuki begged while getting on his knees, wanting to get kicked in the face. Much to his disappointment, Kotori didn't do that as she looked at Shido.
"No one's asking for your opinion, Shido. Your only option is yes." Kotori said to her brother.
"But I…" Shido saw the look Kotori was giving him before he sighed. If he knew one thing about his sister, it was that she was stubborn and wouldn't give up until she got what she wanted.
"Now I have a question for you two. Why were you down there?" Kotori questioned the two males with a raised brow. "Don't tell me you wanna die."
"No, you brat. We were looking for YOU." Ichigo answered her while rubbing his foot. "You said you'd be at the diner, even if there was a quake."
"Yeah, I said that. But why would you think I'd actually do that?" Kotori asked with a hint of amusement in her voice.
"Cause your phone's locator said you were there, so we went to check." Shido added with an annoyed tone.
"Really? Well, I guess that does make sense." Kotori admitted before she sucked on her lollipop. "But technically speaking, we were above Danny's."
"... Above?" Ichigo and Shido both asked in confusion.
"Reine, please disable the filter." Kotori asked Reine, who nodded before instructing the crew to do so.
Suddenly, the entire room changed, showing the skies of Tengu City.
"WOAH!" Shido took a step back, afraid he would fall. However, much to his surprise, he was still standing… standing ABOVE the clouds.
"How the hell?" Ichigo muttered while tapping his foot, still feeling the metal floor of the Fraxinus.
"Shocking, am I right?" Kotori questioned the two with a smirk. "We're currently fifteen thousand meters above Tengu City. We're on an airship called the Fraxinus."
'I knew this place would be weird… but this is too much.' Ichigo thought, feeling a migraine growing in his head.
"Turn on the filter." Kotori ordered as the filter was turned on once again, showing the cockpit of the Fraxinus. "Like I said, we'll give you more details tomorrow, Shido. You and Ichigo should head back."
"Yeah… yeah…" Shido, still a bit dazed by the whole filter thing, nodded as he and Ichigo stepped away from Kotori's chair.
"Actually, I feel it is important to go over some papers in regards to Ichigo Kurosaki's sudden involvement with the Spirit, Commander." Kannazuki suddenly spoke up, surprising Ichigo.
"Really? Well, we're pretty much done here for now, so I guess that's fine." Kotori shrugged before taking out her lollipop and pointing it at Ichigo. "You heard him, Ichigo. Go with Kanazuki and get those papers done."
"Seriously?" Ichigo asked with a tired sigh. He just wanted to head back home and rest up from the craziness of today. Still, it wouldn't hurt him to look over the Fraxinus a bit more.
"I guess I'll see you back home, Ichigo." Shido bid Ichigo farewell before looking at Kotori. "And… you'll be there too, right?"
"Of course, big brother!" Kotori answered in her usual cheery tone before it shifted to her Commander's face. "Just rest up cause come tomorrow, I'm gonna push you to your limit."
Shido gulped nervously, not liking the sound of that. Reine then led Shido out the same way he and Ichigo came in.
"Come this way, please." Kannazuki asked Ichigo while gesturing to the right exit. Pocketing his hands, Ichigo followed the blonde Vice Commander as they walked through the halls of Fraxinus.
"So… how long is this gonna take? I got homework to do." Ichigo told Kannazuki.
"Not long. I just need you for a moment." Kannazuki cryptically answered before he opened a door in the middle of the hallway, urging Ichigo to go in.
The room they entered looked like a rather futuristic break room, with two tables inside, a refrigerator, a microwave, cabinets, several chairs, a couch and even a flatscreen television.
"Sit, please. Do you want something to drink?" Kannazuki asked the orange haired teen, who sat at one of the tables.
"I'm fine." Ichigo simply told him as Kannazuki sat across from him, looking at Ichigo with a curious gaze. "So… why are we in the break room? I thought you wanted me to sign some-"
"Kisuke was right. You do ask a lot of questions." Kannazuki suddenly blurted out, making Ichigo freeze up.
"Hang on… did you say Kisuke?" Ichigo cautiously asked. "As in-"
"Kisuke Urahara. The shop owner living in Karakura town. A man with rather impressive intelligence and typically wears a green samue and clogs?" Kannazuki listed off with a knowing smile. "The very same. He told me a lot about you."
"... You've got to be kidding me." Ichigo asked with a skeptical look. "Don't tell me YOU'RE the friend he was talking about."
"Guilty as charged." Kannazuki chuckled in amusement. He figured Kisuke wouldn't tell Ichigo who he was, so seeing his shocked reaction was genuinely hilarious. "He said you may be able to help Ratatoskr with our Spirit problem, so I wanted to speak with you personally."
"A masochist. Of course old Hat and Clogs would be friends with a masochist." Ichigo muttered while rubbing his forehead. "Does Kotori or anyone else know about you and Kisuke?"
"Only one other person, though I may be able to vouch for you." Kannazuki revealed before he cupped his hands together, looking at Ichigo with a serious look. "Now, let's talk for a moment."
JESUS!
Why do I always try and write more than I originally don't need to? It just adds more of a headache for me in the end.
Oh well. I know you guys want something, so I might as well go all out.
As you can see, the chapter pretty much followed episode 1, with a few new scenes here and there. I did have to change up the canon a bit since Ichigo was already in the start of the semester in Karakura town. Still, I think I did decently with how Ichigo and Shido met Tohka.
I know someone asked why Kisuke would send Ichigo to Tengu City without any kind of defense. Well… Ichigo does have something, but since he went to school, he wasn't able to bring it with him. Don't worry, I plan on revealing what kind of gear Kisuke gave Ichigo to help against Spirits.
First episode of Thousand Year Blood War… LET'S GO! I am hyped by the animation and the story so far. And I am PRAYING the anime ends better than the rushed mess of the manga, though I can't blame Kubo since he was pressured to finish it.
Follow, Fav, Review and PM for anything.
Next time: Operation: Ask a girl out!