Shinigami Saiyan

"Orihime, did you bring lunch today?" A dark haired girl questioned her fiery red head friend.

"Mmhmm. Leftover taiyaki style ramen with wasabi and honey." Orihime said, before bumping into someone. "Oh, I'm sorry."

"No, it's my fault. Please excuse me." Deku said, looking rather dead as he walked.

"Hey… you doing okay?" Orihime questioned, looking at Deku. "The trim around your eyes is looking darker then usual."

"Yeah I'm fine, just got into a bit of an accident yesterday, and the pain kinda kept me awake all night long." Deku said walking off. "I'll see ya later."

Heading for the roof, Deku yawned as he took out his lunch, consisting of only three Onigiri with fillings inside, and three bottles of cola.

"Seriously only three rice balls again?"

Deku wasn't surprised at who was there, when he saw Ichigo standing in front of him, with the now conscious Rukia Kuchiki.

"Sup half-pint?" Deku asked the black haired girl.

"Don't take that tone with me." Rukia stated angrily. "What the hell was that you did last night? How'd you transfer my spirit energy to this idiot?"

"Hey, who you calling an idiot?" Ichigo questioned.

"Simple Ki manipulation. Once I got my hands on your Zanpakuto, I just used my Ki to open your wells of Spirit Energy, and once I stabbed Ichigo with your blade, the rest can explain itself." Deku explained. "Though I hadn't expected your energy to unlock and merge with his own vast wells of it."

"So all this Soul Reaper crap is true?" Ichigo asked as they took a seat across from him.

"Yep." Deku said.

"An' you're an alien, known as a Saiyan?"

"That's correct."

"How were you able to fly and shoot energy blasts like that?" Ichigo inquired.

"Those are both natural Saiyan abilities." Deku stated. "What isn't natural, is this red streak in my hair, and my irises being golden ember. Nor is the shadow trim around my eyes."

"What's so unnatural about them?" Rukia asked.

"For one, all Saiyans have either black or brown hair, and onyx irises, never any different colors in the mix unless they're half Saiyan, which I know for a fact I'm not. Second, they're side effects of this body Mr. Urahara put me in." Deku explained.

"You mean that's not a Gigai?" Rukia asked.

"Nope. This body is made of 100% pure Saiyan DNA." Deku stated.

"I heard Saiyans have extremely large appetites. So why are you only having three rice balls?" Rukia inquired.

"Mr. Urahara made some tweaks to this body before my soul inhabited it. Now I have the appetite and metabolism of a normal human teen, and my delayed growth spurt was removed as well, so my body grew normally like Ichigo's." Deku explained.

"What now?" Ichigo asked.

"Normally, Saiyans stay about as small as kindergartners well into their early to mid teens, the length of how long that lasts varies from Saiyan to Saiyan, until one day we just suddenly hit a crazy growth spurt out of the blue. But as I said, that little piece of my genetics in this body was removed thanks to Urahara." Deku stated. "He thought my growth spurt and unnatural appetite might have been a bit conspicuous here on earth."

"So why aren't you still on the Saiyan home world?" Ichigo asked.

"Planet Vegeta, was destroyed by a galactic tyrant named Frieza. I had died along with most of the rest of my kind, but Mr. Urahara brought me to this world, and put me in this body, in exchange for doing a few favors for him every now and then." Deku said, flicking the cap off a coke bottle.

"Which was reported as an illegal act by King Yemma." Rukia said. "You do realize, you could have been training on the Grand Kai's home world right now, with a halo over your head."

"Do you know how many lives I've saved, or how many souls I helped pass on to the other side, since coming to this world, Ms. Kuchiki?" Deku asked, after emptying the bottle of its contents.

"Does it matter?"

"It does if you care about human life." Deku said. "For the past eight years or so, the number of Hollows to show up in this area, has gone down drastically."

"An' you think you're the cause of that?" Rukia asked with a scoff.

"I know I am." Deku said. "Because it sure as hell ain't any of the lazy ass Soul Reapers that have been sent by the Soul Society, or the Quincy's who own the hospitals in several locations across Japan."

"Quincy's?" Ichigo asked.

"You'll learn about them later on as you go through your Soul Reaper training." Deku said. "Training in which, I am unfortunately in charge of, thanks to Ms. Kuchiki, already running up her tab at the shop for a simple Gigai."

"Wait, you're in charge of this idiot's training as a Soul Reaper?" Rukia asked, pointing at Ichigo.

"Stop calling me an idiot." Ichigo tsked.

"I am, unless you think you can do a better job while stuck in that Gigai that is?" Deku questioned.

"I don't think, I know." Rukia said. "I can have him acting and fighting as an actual Soul Reaper by the end of the week."

"Good luck with that. Ichigo's about as stubborn as they come." Deku chuckled. "But let's make it interesting."

"How so?"

"If you manage to do what you say, then you can take me to the Soul Society like you're supposed to, and I'll provide the spirit energy for the trip." Deku said.

"You don't even have a Zanpakuto, how could you know how to open a gate to the Soul Society?" Rukia asked.

"I have my ways." Deku stated. "An' for the record, I do have a Zanpakuto. Most of the time it's not even needed, and it's not like any blades you've ever seen."

"Blades?"

"I'm a dual wielder."

"That's impossible. There've only been two Soul Reapers capable of Zanpakuto dual wielding, and you're not one of them." Rukia said.

"Guess I make the third now."

"Alright, so what happens if you win the bet, and that's a pretty big if." Rukia inquired.

"Then I will require one thing from you." Deku said. "I need you to take over for Mr. Urahara as my handler for my second chance at life."

"I see. So you are the one who King Yemma reported having gone with Urahara." Rukia said. "Telling us how you got here, gave me my suspicions, but I wasn't certain until now."

"I thought it was a good idea at the time. But he's driving me crazy and up the wall with all his demands for delivering packages, and he practically pays me in peanuts for those jobs I do for him, that cheapskate." Deku exclaimed with a tsk. "He gave me an out, saying it had to be that someone, another Soul Reaper, would willingly take his place as my handler. So long as I keep to part of our initial deal involving the tab with my cardinal rule."

"Cardinal Rule?" Ichigo asked.

"Those scars on your back." Rukia pointed out. "Those are tally marks aren't they?"

"Tallies?" Ichigo didn't like the sound of that.

"Each one, for every instance where I've broken my Cardinal Rule about senseless violence." Deku stated. "So far, I've got about seventy-five on my back, and about ten on my chest from my past life, as well as my name carved into my chest."

"Wait hold on. Is that why you're always changing in private for PE class?" Ichigo questioned.

"Yep. If anyone were to see those scars, they'd think I'm some kind of psycho masochist with a kink for self harm." Deku said.

"Deku this is serious." Ichigo said, before turning to Rukia. "How'd you even know about those scars?"

"His Gi from last night." Rukia said. "It was quite loose, and one of the shoulders on it was down for a second, allowing me to see the scars before he pulled it back up."

"So what do you say Soul Reaper?" Deku inquired. "Deal?"

"No." Rukia said. "I'm not interested in becoming your handler. But I believe there's another Soul Reaper here in the living world, who qualifies more then me."

"Fiery orange hair, above average height, a huge rack of a J-Cup chest?" Deku asked.

"She's actually a K-Cup, which pisses me off to no end. But I see you're already familiar with Rangiku. How do you know her?" Rukia questioned, a red tick mark on her forehead.

"She's been living at my house the last couple days. I might have broken the rules and let a dead boys parents see their sons soul to say his farewells to them, so he could rest in peace and his parents could get some closure. She refuses to leave until she manages to arrest me." Deku said.

"Why would you do something as stupid as letting that boy see his parents again, after his death?" Rukia questioned.

"His death happened right in front of my house." Deku said, looking Rukia right in the eye, his gaze sending chills down her spine as she could see the anger he felt just by talking about this incident. "The official story I gave to the authorities after the incident happened, was I was at cram school when it happened. But that wasn't actually true. I was actually out collecting a bounty, and a pretty big one at that."

"Wait a bounty?" Ichigo asked.

"Oh that's right." Deku said. "You're not aware of what my after school job actually is. I hunt and collect bounties, and I bring them in. My most recent bounty however, was the man who had killed and defiled that boy, who's soul had been tethered to this world at the memorial shrine right outside my house."

"An' let me guess, you charged the grieving parents an arm and a leg for the opportunity to see their son one last time." Rukia said.

"I don't charge the grieving families for what I do to let them get closure." Deku said. "I just ask for them to come to the memorial, and they bring me money of their own volition, and present it to me as a gift. All I care about, is putting the souls to rest in peace, and for the families to be able to actually move on with their lives, after getting the closure they need. When I try to refuse payment, I always end up taking it because they insist on giving it to me."

"So… that head injury from a couple days ago?" Ichigo asked.

"The bastard who murdered the boy. He put up a fight, but in the end wasn't strong enough to take me on." Deku stated. "Of course, his next victim, was actually one of Mr. Urahara's helpers, Jinta. The red haired boy."

"I met him."

"After I got my payment, and made it home, Urahara was there ready and waiting to add another tally to the tab, since I did act out of violence and broke my Cardinal Rule." Deku stated.

"But that violence wasn't senseless." Ichigo said. "You were protecting someone you cared about, someone who was important to you. I don't know the full details about this deal of yours with this Urahara guy, but it has to stop. I don't want you hurting yourself needlessly anymore."

Deku just looked at Ichigo, an expression of shock on his face as he wasn't expecting his friend to be so forthcoming about his objections to the tally system for breaking his Cardinal Rule. Laughing a bit, when he realized how silly he'd been, Deku couldn't help but smile before he grabbed two more cola's and gave one to Ichigo after popping the lid off.

"Alright Ichigo. I'll make a deal with you too." Deku smirked, as the fiery haired teen took the drink. "Summer break is about a couple months or so away. If you can make your sword, take on it's third form known as Bankai, before summer break ends, then I'll nullify the tally system with Urahara."

"It's a deal then." Ichigo stated, clinking their bottles together, signifying that they'd made a pact through drinks, similarly to how the Yakuza did business deals with sake.

"Well, I gotta go. I don't have anymore classes for the day, so I gotta catch up on some training." Deku said, getting up and heading off. "An' Ichigo, try not to give Rukia too much trouble."

Taking his leave, Rukia just looked at Deku, noticing as he gave a quick side glance to her, before disappearing through the door to the roof of the building.

"Weird. He's not usually so chill like this." Ichigo said.

"You do know you're not gonna be able to hold up your side of the deal right?" Rukia asked.

"How do you know?" Ichigo questioned, sounding annoyed.

"Because mastering Bankai, or even attempting to transform it for the first time, takes at least a decade to do so." Rukia stated. "He knowingly gave you that task, while hiding the fact you couldn't accomplish it, because he has no interest in stopping tally system with Urahara."

"You're wrong."

"I'm not."

"Yes you are." Ichigo said, surprising Rukia with his tone. "I've known Kaen since we were both in the same martial arts class as kids. He always picked me to be his sparring partner, because he saw potential in me, and pushed me to do my best, like he was an instructor, even though we were both students. An' when… the incident happened, he pushed me harder, and told me that if I wanted to be someone she could be proud of, then I had to stand up and do what felt right in my heart. Time and time again he'd give me an impossible task, and time and time again I'd rise to the occasion to meet his expectations. You say that he gave me this task, just to see me fail, well I say he gave me this task, because he wants me to succeed and show him how serious I am about putting a stop to this tally system."

Ichigo's words struck something within Rukia, and she could see the fire lit in his soul at the prospect of being able to free his friend, from the suffering and self harm he's putting himself through.

~Later~

"Damn it, my neck's hurting like hell. What the hell did that Hollow do to me that…" Deku paused in what he was saying, when he felt a powerful Hollow nearby. "Strange, Hollows don't normally act like this. They're more open in their acts, and barely hide their true intentions, yet this Hollow is hiding in the shadows, and its energy feels familiar somehow, but I can't place where I've felt it before. It's not the Grand Fisher, so what could it be?"

Continuing to walk down the street, Deku stopped, when he looked up and saw a spirit floating above the ground, and looking into a window.

"Hey buddy." Deku said, flying up to be eye level with the spirit. "You do know that just because you're dead, it doesn't make peeping any less creepy right?"

"What? No I'm not… wait hold on, how can you even see me?"

"It's complicated. But right now, let's go to the roof, no one's seen me flying yet, and I'd prefer to keep it that way." Deku said, flying over and landing on the roof of the building. "What's your name?"

"My name's Sora, Sora Inoue." The spirit said, coming to the rooftop.

"So Sora, if you weren't peeping, then what were you doing?" Deku asked.

"I was keeping watch, over my little sister, Orihime." Sora stated.

"Orihime Inoue?" Deku asked.

"You know my sister?" Sora asked.

"I do. I'm her classmate." Deku stated. "So you're the big brother she always spoke about on the Bon Festival Day these past few years. I was sorry to hear of your passing, even sent flowers to your funeral."

"Hoping for an easier time to get with my sister?" Sora asked.

"Dude, take a chill pill." Deku said. "Orihime's cute, but she's already got someone else on her mind, has since they've met. All I was doing, was showing that I care. I know all too well, the pain of losing family to the cold clutches of a life ending disaster. I lost my entire family to that."

"Sorry. I guess I'm just being a bit over protective of her." Sora said.

"I get it. I was a big brother once too ya know. So I know what that's like." Deku said. "But still, you're only hurting Orihime more, by sticking around. You need to pass on, your chain's almost gone and if it vanishes completely, you're gonna turn into a soul eating monster."

"But I can't go, not until Orihime knows I forgive her, that I heard her apology that day I died." Sora said. "I want her to know I still care and love her, even after that fight we had."

Deku looked at Sora, before he sighed and turned around.

"If you're adamant that's what it'll take to get you to pass on, then follow me." Deku said.

"What are we doing?" Sora asked, following him.

"I'm gonna let you say your peace to Orihime." Deku said, jumping down to the balcony leading to Orihime's door. "I do this for those who are grieving and needing closure, if the spirit of their loved one is still lingering. I'm pretty sure Orihime has some things she wants to say to you as well."

"But… how are you gonna…"

"Just trust me, alright?" Deku asked, ringing the doorbell.

There was a moment of waiting, before the door opened and Orihime looked surprised.

"Deku, what brings you here?" Orihime asked.

"Sorry for just dropping by unannounced. But this is urgent." Deku said.

"Well, if it's urgent please, come on in." Orihime said, stepping to the side.

"Thanks." Deku said, as he came in with Sora following. Once they were in the apartment, Deku turned to the girl, with a serious look. "Orihime, I know this might seem like a cruel joke, I'm about to tell you, but hear me out okay?"

"What's wrong?" Orihime asked.

"Sora, is here." Deku said. "An'… he has a final message for you."

Deku put his hand on Sora's shoulder, and channeling his Ki through it, he manifested Sora's soul, just as he'd done with that boy to his parents. Seeing this shocked Orihime, and she gasped as she took a step back.

"Sora?" Orihime asked.

"Orihime, you can see me?"

"I can, but how is…"

"Your classmate. He's allowing you to see me somehow so we can talk." Sora said. "Orihime listen. I love you, and I always have, you're my little sister, and nothing you do could ever make me hate you."

"Sora…"

"I heard your cries the day I died, and to my surprise, you were wearing the hair pins I got you. Still are." Sora said, seeing the snowflake hairpins in Orihime's hair. "I don't care that we had that fight, all I cared and do care about, is that you're safe."

"Oh Sora." Orihime said, tears in her eyes. "I've been blaming myself for what happened to you that day after we argued, and I feel that if I had only been nicer to you, the accident wouldn't have happened. I'm so sorry for saying all those hateful things to you."

"It wasn't your fault Orihime." Sora said, his body beginning to vanish into particles of light. "You have nothing to be sorry for."

"I love you big brother." Orihime cried, falling to her knees.

"I love you to, Orihime." Sora said before his body vanished entirely.

With Sora gone, Deku was out of breath and fell to one knee, gasping for air.

"I'm sorry, Orihime. I couldn't keep him from ascending any longer." Deku stated.

"No, it's not your fault." Orihime said, surprising him as she wrapped his arms around him in a hug. "Thank you for letting me see my brother one last time."

"Uh… no problem." Deku said, his face blushing as he felt her chest on his. "But I really should be going now."

"Hold on a minute." Orihime said.

Pushing down on his shoulders, Orihime sat Deku on his knees, before there was suddenly a table in front of him, then some food Orihime made.

"Uh… what's going on?" Deku asked.

"Eat up silly." Orihime said. "This is my way of thanking you, for helping my brother and me."

"Thanks, I guess." Deku said. "But I wasn't doing it for any sort of reward or anything."

"All the more reason to cook you dinner." Orihime smiled. "Dig in."

"Well, it'd be foolish to look a gift horse in the mouth." Deku said digging in.

~The Following Day~

"What do you mean Deku's not coming in today?" Rukia questioned, looking at Ichigo as they walked into school.

"Apparently my dad found him in front of our clinic last night. He'd been there for hours without any of us knowing, until my dad found him when he went to get the morning paper." Ichigo said. "You left through the window, so it makes sense you didn't see him."

"Well what happened to him?"

"He got a serious case of food poisoning. So bad his stomach practically started digesting itself apparently." Ichigo said. "So my dad's keeping an eye on him in our clinic, until he gets better."

"What kind of cooking could cause that?" Rukia asked.

"Morning Ichigo, morning Rukia." Orihime said, greeting them. "Where's Deku?"

"He's in my family's clinic." Ichigo said. "He'll be missing school for a while."

"Oh no, what happened to him?" Orihime asked.

"Apparently he ate something poisonous, and it made him real sick." Rukia said.

"Oh, he must have grabbed a snack on his way home after having dinner at my place last night." Orihime said. "Makes sense, he is a martial artist so his body would burn through a whole lot of calories."

"Wait… what was he doing at your place?" Ichigo asked.

"Oh well… Deku has some sort of supernatural powers that allows the living to see the dead, and he let me see my dead brother Sora, so I cooked him dinner as a thank you for giving me closure, he did seem in a bit of a hurry to leave after he finished eating though." Orihime said. "Oh well, guess I'll just have to eat the bento I made for him."

"I think we found the cause of Deku's food poisoning." Ichigo said, as Orihime took off for class.

"What makes you think it was Orihime's cooking?" Rukia asked.

"Trust me, that girl has the strangest taste for food, even a pregnant woman wouldn't touch." Ichigo stated.

~A/N~

So I kept Sora from being turned into a Hollow, sue me. I don't like that it happened alright?