Chapter 4: Precedence

"Ban-kai." Rin's blade began to emit blue energy. The energy flowed out of the blade, and collapsed onto the ground before him.

Ankashi's eyes grew wide. He'd never seen his captain's bankai. He'd only heard about it from some of the older members of the Gotei 13. Now it was forming in front of him…this wasn't expected.

A large head with massive jaws began to form out of the energy. It began to grow in shape, almost looking as though it was climbing out of the flow of energy pouring from Rin's blade. A limb began to come out, and soon a whole creature walked out of the energy. It was shaped like a lion, only much bigger, and it's mane looked like it was burning with blue fire. The creature stood tall and proud next to it's master.

"Soudai Kisaki Shikujo." Rin stood firm beside his beast. "Attack."

The creature roared, with the voice of a thousand lions. It lunged itself at Ankashi.

OOOOOOOOOOO

Hiroshi flash-stepped across roofs and buildings. A massive wave of reiatsu came over him. He stopped cold and felt as though a wave had just crashed onto him. He heard a loud roar in the distance.

"Captain Tadokoro…you've released your bankai." Hiroshi knew he had to hurry.

OOOOOOOOOOO

Ankashi jumped back as the beast landed. The ground exploded, leaving a huge crater underneath the size and pressure of the beast. Ankashi landed a good distance back. He was now officially scared.

"You're done, Ankashi. Just give up now and leave." Rin walked over to his creature. "My Soudai Kisaki Shikujo is powerful enough to break you with just one of it's claws."

Ankashi stood up. He was scared but he knew this was what he had to do. He pointed his sword, which was still shaped like a gunblade, at Rin. "I won't give up. I can't give up." He fired off a blast towards Rin.

The blast was deflected by a massive paw. The beast looked towards Ankashi, and started walking slowly towards him. It roared loudly, and Ankashi began to step backwards.

"Just give up and I'll call it back, Ankashi. It won't hurt you if it doesn't need to."

"NEVER!" Ankashi ran forward, full force. He jumped high into the air and swung down as hard as he could onto the beast's head. The blade flew cleanly right through, splitting the head in half.

The beast stopped walking. Ankashi landed on the ground and looked up at the creature before him. It had a huge opening in it's head. Ankashi gasped as he saw the energy begin to form back into the spot he cut.

"That won't work, Ankashi. My lion is made entirely out of the blue flames that are currently about to consume you."

Flames shot out of the lions mouth, racing down towards Ankashi who raised his sword in defense. The heat smashed onto his blade, which pushed him backwards into the wall behind him. He smashed into the wall, groaning as he hit the ground. Looking up he saw the lion before him. His sword glowed and shrank, returning to it's original form.

The creature lowered itself to the ground, readying itself for the pounce. It growled low as it looked on towards its prey. The flames on its mane grew as Rin poured his reiatsu into his bankai. Rin pointed his sword at Ankashi. This would be the final attack.

"Shikujo, finish him off."

The lion pounced, clearing nearly 50 yards with one bound. It lunged at Ankashi, roaring loudly. Don't make me do this… Ankashi closed his eyes.

Flashes of his family entered his mind. His mother, a beautiful woman. His father, a powerful warrior. Kanoshi, his best friend in all the world…then…death. Images of the bloody horror that was his slain family flooded his mind. The whole world seemed to slow down as his heart filled with pain.

OOOOOOOOOOO

"Ankashi!" Kanoshi ran up to his friend. "Ankashi! Wait up!"

Ankashi laughed. He was running briskly through the 23rd district of Rukongai. Darting around the narrow alleys and past Ohmaki's water stand, the two ran as fast as they could towards the Court walls. Today was a special day: Today would be their inauguration into the Gotei 13.

"Come on, Kanoshi! We're gonna be late!" shouted Ankashi. Kanoshi breathed heavily as he followed after Ankashi. The two had woke up a little late that morning.

The Court walls were just ahead and the Eastern Gate was in sight. Fudoumyouou Hayashida stood guard. He was a huge man, over 13 feet tall. His body was the size of a small house, and just as wide. Perfect for a gate guardian. Ankashi and Kanoshi slowed down as they reached the gate.

"Whoa there!" shouted Hayashida in his huge booming voice. "What business do ye lit'l runts have 'n the Court?"

Ankashi reached into his pocket and retrieved a small envelope.

"We're gettin' inaugurated into the Gotei 13 today, Hayashida!" shouted Ankashi as he raised the letter up so Hayashida could see.

"Yeah!" shouted Kanoshi. "We're finally gonna get to be shinigamis!"

Hayashida took the letter from Ankashi. He studied it, and pulled it close to his eyes. Suddenly he reared back his head and shook the ground with rolling laughter.

He boomed, "Well I ne'er thought I'd see the day! Ankashi 'n Kanoshi, the two biggest idyits in the 23rd district, as shinigami fer the Court?"

"That's right! We're here for the ceremony!" Ankashi beamed with pride.

Letting out another huge earth-shaking laugh, Hayashida stepped aside and motioned Ankashi and Kanoshi through the gate.

"Well, congratulations!" laughed Hayashida. "Give mah regards to whiche'er cap'n yer placed under. Tell 'em Hayashida sent ya." He laughed some more as the two ran through the gate into the Court.

The two ran as fast as they could, following countless other young men and women. They came into a large courtyard area, filled with nearly three hundred new applicants into the Shinigami Academy.

On the other side of the courtyard, a large building stood. Huge doors stood in the front, and a large banner that read "Welcome New Students" hung above the huge doors. The crowds got excited as the huge doors began to open.

A procession of people in white and black robes walked out of the building, and formed into a line on either side of the doors. The last person to walk out was an older looking man in a white robe that had golden trim. He stood in front of the crowd and raised his hand to hush the crowd.

"Greetings to all potential shinigamis. I am 1st squad Captain and overall Commander of the entire Gotei 13, Kurosaki Sawamura. You are here because you are the elect, chosen to receive the blessing of reiatsu. Because of this selection you are here to become enforcers of good both here and in the other world. Here at the Shinigami Academy, you will be put through rigorous training to ensure that you become the best of the best. One day one of you may stand here where I stand and address new students as Commander."

Kanoshi elbowed Ankashi to grab his attention. "That'll be me for sure!"

"Only if you get there 'fore I do." Ankashi grinned.

OOOOOOOOOOO

"So I'm supposed to just…grab it?" asked Ankashi.

The instructor was getting frustrated. "No, stupid. Your zanpaku-to is a concentrated form of your reiatsu. You need to concentrate all of your reiatsu into a solid form. Because you have reiatsu, your zanpaku-to already lies within you, waiting to be released for the first time."

The whole class waited impatiently. All those before Ankashi had no problem releasing their zanpaku-tos for the first time. Especially Kanoshi. It was almost as natural as breathing.

"Come on, Ankashi. You're holding up class. Just concentrate your reiatsu, reach out and grab your zanpaku-to."

Ankashi nodded. He relaxed his mind. Reiatsu coursed through him, and he could feel it. He forced the reiatsu to concentrate it's flow into his arms, then into one arm, then just into his hand. His hand began to glow brightly.

"More, Ankashi! Put all you've got into it!" Kanoshi shouted.

"SHUT UP I'M TRYING!" snapped back Ankashi. Ankashi returned to concentrating. He relaxed his muscles, and reached deep inside himself. He knew somewhere in him was a huge pool of reiatsu and he needed to tap into it. He reached further and further down into his soul.

"There you go!" said Kanoshi.

Ankashi opened his eyes and noticed just how bright the room had gotten. With new found determination, he pushed all his reiatsu into it.

The instructor smiled. "Good, now condense it, just like we did in practice."
Ankashi began to condense his reiatsu, and the glowing began to die down. Ankashi closed his eyes. Gotta stay calm.

When he opened his eyes again, he was holding a brand new zanpaku-to in his hand.

OOOOOOOOOOO

"Kanoshi! Watch out!" Ankashi shouted as he slashed through another hollow.

A huge hollow was swinging it's claw down at Kanoshi, who quickly turned around and raised his sword in defense. The two clashed and a huge cloud of dust flew up into the air.

"Kanoshi!" Ankashi screamed. Did it get him? Ankashi ran as fast as he could towards his friend. He stopped as the dust began to settle.

"Scream, Ayanoshi." Kanoshi's blade held back the claw of the hollow. It began to glow brightly, and then a screeching blast of light exploded out and through the hollow. The hollow roared as it's body began to fade away, having been cleansed.

"Nice work, Kanoshi." Ankashi sheathed his sword. "That's 23 for me."

"Heh…I wasn't counting, but I'm sure that big one counted for at least 10 by itself." Kanoshi smiled.

OOOOOOOOOOO

"Ankashi! Ankashi! Can you hear me?" Kanoshi yelled.

Ankashi lay on the ground, half conscious. The hollow had attacked him, and hit him hard, but then vanished before Ankashi could retaliate. He had no clue where the hollow was.

"I'm…fine." Ankashi began to stand up. He felt…strange. Like something was pulling on him. He shrugged it off. "Kanoshi…where did the hollow go?"

"I don't know. I saw it jump you, but now it's gone. It must have just attacked out of fear and ran off." Kanoshi looked worried at Ankashi. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"…Yeah. I'm fine. Let's go home."

OOOOOOOOOOO

Ankashi's mind was flooded with flashes of the faces of his family. He couldn't even remember what really happened that night. He only remembered Kanoshi pointing his sword at Ankashi. Why had they betrayed him? Why did they attack him?

Rin's bankai soared through the air. It almost seemed as though it was in slow motion, claws outstretched and jaws open wide.

Stop lying to yourself. The words resonated in Ankashi's mind.

"None of you understand..." Ankashi raised his sword. His eyes narrowed. "So I'll make you understand."

With that he thrust his sword into the ground. "BANKAI!"

OOOOOOOOOOO

Hiroshi stood over the rubble. Huge holes were all over the area. The medical teams had already arrived by now, but it was no good. Rin was dead. His body was completely sapped of all reiatsu and lay broken in the rubble. It was no different than when he got there. He had been too late. The intruder shinigami was long gone and had concealed his reiatsu, so no one would be able to follow him.

Jinosuke had arrived with the medical team. He was crouched over Rin's body.

"Captain Tadokoro…how could he have beaten you?" Jinosuke noted the body. It was completely unscathed. Not a single cut or even a bruise. It was like someone had just pulled the very life out of him.

"Lieutenant Jinosuke?"

"Yes?" He turned and saw Captain Hiroshi. "Oh! Yes, sir?"

"See to it that Rin's body is taken care of. I have to report to Commander Kurosaki."

"Yes sir!"

OOOOOOOOOOO

"Let this Captain's meeting commence." Commander Kurosaki pounded a gavel.

Eleven captains sat in the conference room. All of them knew why this meeting had been called. One captain was dead, another had gone missing, and the unidentified shinigami was still roaming through the Court. Not only was he unidentified, but he was apparently strong enough to kill Tadokoro Rin, one of the strongest captains.

"Captains, I've called you here to discuss militant actions against the traitor, Dosu Gennosuke, and the unidentified intruder who murdered Captain Tadokoro."

A small man stood up. It was Ogawa Takumi, the 12th squad captain. "As head of the Special Ops division, I have my top men out in the Court searching, but nothing has come up. It's hard to believe that we can't find two captain-class shinigamis in the Court. We can't sense either of their reiatsu."

Shosuke stood. "That's because Dosu is hiding in the shadows. Literally. When he fought me he released his bankai, which allowed him to assimilate himself into the surrounding shadows."

"Yes, Izu, we all read your report." Hiroshi motioned for Shosuke to sit back down. "No one seems to think that these two, Dosu and the unidentified shinigami, may in fact be working together. If this is the case, then finding one may allow us to easily find the other.

Captain Maruyame of the 4th squad spoke. "My lieutenant gave me descriptions of the deceased. All of them had their reiatsu drained from them before they were killed. Captain Tadokoro was no different. We must proceed with caution. This individual may have the ability to absorb whatever is used to attack or apprehend him."

"I hate to do this…" Commander Kurosaki motioned for everyone to sit back down. "But it seems as though there's no alternative. I am issuing a war-time order in the Court. These two men are far too dangerous. The release of shikai and bankai will now be at the discretion of the individual, but should only be used if there is no other option."

A murmuring began to flow through the room.

"Silence!" shouted the Commander. "All missions and orders are now postponed until these two men are brought to justice for their actions. I will not let two men tarnish the name of the Gotei 13, nor will I allow such insubordination amongst my own captains."

Captain Hisao laughed. "Don't you mean 'tarnish the name of Kurosaki,' Commander?"

"Keep it to yourself, Takemine." Captain Endoh of the 10th squad chimed in. "Just because you're a noble doesn't mean you have to be a jerk."

Captain Hisao smirked. "But it's so much fun!"

"Silence!" Now the Commander was mad. "Captain Hisao I've had about enough of you. You too, Captain Endoh. Keep the petty quarrels to yourselves. You're all dismissed."

Captain Endoh shot a look at Hisao. Man…I hate that guy.

OOOOOOOOOOO

High above the Court, Dosu stood on top of the Shrine of Penitence. He looked out over the entire Court. He knew they were looking for him. "Captain Daikon…am I doing this right? I'm a criminal according to them. But I was only doing what will benefit all of Soul Society. They're hope is in their nobility…my hope is in my pride. Why can't they understand that? Stupid Ayame…she didn't understand where I am going. The path I'm on now is the one that you taught me to follow. Captain Daikon…why did you have to die?"

Dosu closed his eyes and remembered his dear friend and mentor. It had been 10 years since his mentor's death. No, not death. Murder.

The air chilled Dosu. Night was approaching. It would be much easier for him to move around soon. A large cloud passed over, blocking out the sun. With the oncoming shadow, Dosu vanished.

OOOOOOOOOOO

Ankashi stood in the middle of the slaughter. His family's bodies covered with fresh blood. In the darkness he heard a deep, rolling laughter. It sounded evil.

"Well done, Ankashi."

"Sanzoku?"

"Ankashi. Stop lying to yourself." said a voice.

Ankashi spun around. It was Rin. "Captain Tadokoro…Rin?"

"Ankashi, I understand now. I forgive you. But you must forgive yourself."

"Forgive?"

Rin's face contorted. Slowly a mass of white began to cover it, forming the mask of a hollow. It shouted in a demonic voice, "FORGIVENESS IS FOR THE WEAK!" The hollow leaped forward.

Ankashi snapped awake. He was on the roof of one of the squad buildings. Suddenly, he couldn't breath. Looking up he saw why.

"You're the one their looking for, aren't you?" Dosu smiled. He had a shadow wrapped around Ankashi's throat.

Ankashi choked out some sounds. Dosu loosed his grip and stepped back. Ankashi gasped for breath.

"Huh…huh…You're…Lieutenant Dosu…" Ankashi gasped out.

"Lieutenant? Wow you're really out of the loop there buddy." Dosu pointed to his robes. "These aren't lieutenant clothing." He smiled. "Captain of the 13th squad, Dosu Gennosuke. And if I'm not mistaken, you're Kyuzo Ankashi, former lieutenant of the 3rd squad."

"Yeah…that's right." Ankashi had somewhat regained his composure. He stood up and placed his hand on his sword. "Now, what can I do fer ya? Or are ya here cuz you wanna turn me in?"

"Turn you in? Oh no no no! Quite the contrary. I'm here to…enlist your services. I heard you killed Captain Tadokoro. Quite impressive. You see…I too am on a path destined towards violence, unfortunately. You and I have similar goals."

"Are you on crack or somethin'? You and I are nothing alike. You're just another shinigami that's in my way." Ankashi drew his sword.

"Come now, you really don't want to kill me, do you? What have I done to you?"

"You're a shinigami of the Gotei 13. You deserve to die just for being associated with the evil people here."

"You're still upset because you killed your entire family, aren't you?"

Ankashi's eyes widened. "How…"

"I remember reading the report. They came in and found you, holding your sword, which was covered in the blood of your own family. We never really figured out why you did that, though."

"It was because you people had them betray me!" Ankashi dashed towards Dosu and swung. Dosu quickly sidestepped and moved out of the way.

"Devour, Kokuei." Ankashi stopped moving. He couldn't move.

"Wh…what…"

"Why does everyone ask that stupid question? Obviously I've paralyzed you. That's my Kokuei's ability. It steals your shadow, and without a shadow you have a much harder time moving." Dosu moved in front of Ankashi and raised his scythe to Ankashi's throat. "Join me in the destruction of the noble families."

"Go…to…hell." Ankashi shook violently, trying to break the paralysis. now. Surely you understand why they must die? They think they have the right to control everyone in Soul Society just because they're born into noble families. This simple isn't true. My mentor taught me that the only way to rule is by force and power. I also learned that from my family. Though they weren't noble, they were very influential because they had power. Power is the only way to get people to see things your way, am I right?"

"What…do you want…with me?"

"Simple that you'll lend me your power. You believe that the Gotei 13 made your family betray you? Fine. Exact your revenge on them and show your power! Work with me and together no one in all of Soul Society can stop us!"

Ankashi screamed as the paralysis broke. He collapsed to the ground, breathing heavily. "Gimme back my shadow, bastard."

"Hehe…very well. Terror of Shadow." A large shadow began to pour out of the blade of Dosu's scythe. It formed into a figured that looked stunningly a lot like Ankashi. The figure launched itself at Ankashi, sword out stretched. Ankashi raised his blade to guard and the two swords clashed.

"Whisper, Sanzoku." Ankashi's blade glowed. The shadow figure began to dissolve and melt into the ground. It reformed on the ground in the shape of Ankashi. "Thanks fer my shadow. I'm'a head out now." Ankashi sheathed his sword and turned around, then stepped away and flash-stepped. He was gone.

"Hmm…Kyuzo Ankashi." Dosu smiled. "You may yet serve a purpose." He laughed to himself as he sunk into the shadows. "We'll meet again, Kyuzo Ankashi."