Chapter 4: The Gentle Bindings
Tsuneo opened the door and caught Bya in his arms as his legs collapsed beneath him. Ronin rushed forward, his eyes wide and frightened.
"Please hide us, Tsuneo-san! Dad said we were being followed…by two captains! We managed to slip away, but we need to get out of sight!" the boy exclaimed.
Tsuneo looked down at the unconscious man he held in his arms.
What kind of trouble have you gotten yourself into, Bya? Captains? Why are they hunting you? Are they the ones who injured you the day I found you?
He motioned for Ronin to enter and closed and locked the front door.
"Come, Ronin," he said calmly, "This way."
He carried Byakuya and led Ronin to the kitchen, pulled back the kitchen table and uncovered a place in the floor beneath the rug that looked very slightly different. Focusing his reiatsu, he touched the floor and before Ronin's surprised eyes, a doorway opened and stairs led downward. Tsuneo turned away for a moment.
"Kiko," he said quietly.
The girl appeared in the kitchen doorway, her eyes wide and frightened as they took in the sight of the unconscious man and the opening into their secret room.
"Things are getting dangerous. Come. We will stay down here during the nights from now on."
The children followed him down the stairway and the rug and table reset themselves behind them. Tsuneo reached the bottom of the steps and waved the children off to the smaller bedroom, then carried Byakuya through a large storage room and into the larger bedroom. He set his friend down on the bed and arranged the pillows and blankets more comfortably. He left for several minutes and returned with tea and broth on a small tray. He set them beside the bed and sat down on the edge of the bed next to Byakuya, leaning over him to wash his face and throat with a cool, wet washcloth. He shook his head as he noticed blood leaking from his bandaged chest.
"You shouldn't have left Michio's…" he said softly, "You need more rest, my friend."
He cleaned the wound carefully and re-bandaged it, then sat quietly, listening to Ronin and Kiko talking in the next room and remembering.
The rain came down heavily as Tsuneo left his job working with one of the street vendors in the next town. He hurried as best he could with the wind and rain pounding against him. As he neared Inuzuri, a light in the sky distracted him for a moment. He stared up at it and was stunned at the sight of what looked to be an angel, his body lit with bright white fire and his zanpakutou a brilliant white as well. Something black and horrible soared towards it and the two collided in the air, the resulting explosion of power, knocking Tsuneo to the ground. The white form spiraled down, falling out of the sky and crashing down somewhere in the distance. Tsuneo ran towards it, not knowing what gave him the courage to do so. He reached the edge of town and, ignoring the still-driving rain, he searched the surrounding area carefully. He thought he might have felt several flashes of power…dark, like the one who the angel had been fighting. In the end, he didn't find an angel, but just a lone shinigami lying facedown in the mud, his broken zanpakutou still in his hand.
The reiatsu rose around them and he sensed the return of the other who had been fighting this one. He lifted the injured man and slipped into the shadows, watching as the other emerged and picked up something from the ground.
"I know you're here Byakuya!" the other yelled, "You can't hide forever. And when I find you again, I will kill you and take the rest of what's mine!"
The man turned away, and as the fabric he carried billowed in the wind, Tsuneo could see that it was a bloodied haori…bearing the number 6 on the back. He watched the shinigami disappear, then carried the injured man to the office of the town doctor. Michio looked at him strangely and took the man away…and the next morning, he had met Bya for the first time.
"I understand that you are the one who found me," the man said quietly, "I am deeply grateful, but I will ask that you never discuss anything you might have seen."
"You mean…the other one?" Tsuneo asked calmly.
Bya nodded.
"It is…a distressing situation…and I want him to believe he was successful in killing me."
Tsuneo frowned in confusion.
"I know it seems unusual…but it is…something I must do. I cannot go back where I came from, so I need to make a new start here."
Tsuneo's frown faded and he nodded.
"Well then…maybe I can help you."
Bya looked up at him questioningly.
"You strike me as a well educated man. Are you, Stranger?
"Yes…"
"Would you be interested in sharing your knowledge with the children in Inuzuri? I am a vendor by trade, but I want these kids to have a better life…so I am starting a school there, and I need someone to teach the street children how to take care of themselves…how to care for each other…and some reading and writing would be useful too. I could pay you a little…and that could help you get along."
"And you wish to help me because?"
"Because I think we each have something to offer the other. We will both benefit from this…"
It had worked out to be a perfect arrangement for both. Bya taught the children and Tsuneo maintained the grounds and paid him. Bya was able to build his cottage and when he brought Ronin to live with him several months later, he was able to provide for his son. But in the years that passed, Tsuneo never forgot that angel he had seen. And that was how he thought of Bya…as an angel who fell out of the sky and gave the town something special…a real living, breathing miracle. And it wasn't far from that point to falling for the beautiful schoolteacher…
"Tsuneo?" Bya whispered, opening his eyes.
"Now…that's definitely better," the vendor said, smiling.
"Where are we?" Bya asked, his eyes running around the room.
"This is a hidden room beneath my house. I store things down here and use it as a safe place to go when there is trouble…and there seems to be some trouble about now, ne?"
Bya sighed softly.
"I did not want to involve you in my bigger problems…but I had nowhere else to go."
"I am glad you came to me. Rest now. No one will bother us here. You and Ronin are safe. I will leave you two and Kiko here, and I will let you know when the captains have left the town."
"But…Renji…saw you. If he finds you…"
"Bya…I look like every other townsman. He wouldn't know me from another if he saw me. I will not let him find you again. Please…let me ease your mind. When you do not resurface, those captains will believe you have escaped them. And perhaps I can help to give the perception you've gone. I know a few tricks…nothing very powerful, but I can make some false trails to lead them away, if you like. We Inuzuri folk are quite good at this kind of thing."
Bya's eyes softened.
"Arigato, Tsuneo," he said, letting his eyes drift closed, "You have proven yourself a true friend several times over…"
Tsuneo walked back to the doorway and turned out the light, looking back for a moment.
Sleep, angel. And if you fall again, I will be here to see that you land lightly…
XXXXXXXXXX
Renji sighed in annoyance at the sting of Tsuyoshi's reiatsu as it moved after him.
"Stupid shit…no, just fucking arrogant…" he muttered, "Well…I may not have been able to sense reiatsu well before, but I can now. That's one I owe you, Byakuya taichou. And I'll use another of the things you taught me to send this idiot on a wild goose chase. Tsuyoshi is not going to get to you…"
He watched sadly as Byakuya and Ronin melted into the crowd, then turned away from the direction they had gone. He made his reiatsu swell, then, working from memory, created a false reiatsu trail that echoed Byakuya's. As he flash stepped away, he felt Tsuyoshi following. His lips curved into a smile.
"Yeah…follow, you ignorant creep!" he laughed softly, "Let's go on a little adventure, ne?"
He spent the rest of the afternoon flash stepping about the Rukongai, leaving reiatsu traces and false 'appearances' of Byakuya in different areas to confuse anyone pursuing. As afternoon wore on to evening, he flash stepped towards the central senkaimon and made his reiatsu disappear into the precipice world. Then, he turned back, hiding his own reiatsu as he returned to the Rukon. He stopped at a shop and bought a heavy cloak and hood, put it over his clothes and flash stepped back to Inuzuri. Arriving in the town, he purchased some simple clothes and changed, leaving his shihakushou and haori hidden in the rented cottage. He conjured a hell butterfly and sent it to Shuuhei back at the ninth division.
"Shuuhei, you're in charge of things for a bit. I have some business to attend to in the living world and will return as soon as possible. Only recall me for level two or higher emergencies."
Gazing out the window at the setting sun, he remembered the way Byakuya had looked upon seeing him that first night…
I know I hurt you…and I'm sorry, Bya…so damned sorry! But I'm going to make things right again. I swear I'll make it right. Tsuyoshi will pay for interfering with our lives!
XXXXXXXXXX
Tsuyoshi stood at the central senkaimon, studying the reiatsu traces carefully. He iet out a frustrated breath, noting that, from the signs there was no clear path that his cousin had taken. The trails led everywhere, with townspeople in several towns claiming to have sighted his cousin.
"You little snake, Abarai…" he murmured softly, "You slipped him out of Inuzuri and hid him somewhere. And I am going to find that place…and I am going to kill both of you. I should have done that a long time ago."
"Sir…there are no signs of which way he exited the senkaimon. There are signs of a fight, but the cleaner got to whoever it was and there are no traces now."
"Very well, go on to the living world…and if you see or hear anything, send for me…"
"Hai, Captain Kuchiki."
Tsuyoshi looked back at the entrance to the Rukon, remembering…
"Where are you going, Byakuya?"
He glared at his cousin, dressed in only a shihakushou, the markers of his noble status and captain's rank shed. The expression on his face was tormented and his eyes were red with the strain of holding back his tears. The only thing he carried was Senbonzakura. Tsuyoshi's lips curled upward and he placed his hand on his zanpakutou.
"You forgot this…" he said, removing Byakuya's haori from within the folds of his cloak and releasing it to flutter to the ground, "Are you leaving us, then?"
"Where I go for peace and reflection is none of your business…"
"Peace and reflection? Really?" Tsuyoshi said with calm sarcasm, "Or do you mean, you can no longer cope without that Rukon dog that used to warm your bed? Who's bed is he warming now?"
He laughed again as Byakuya flash stepped forward and their swords crossed.
"Do not dare to speak of Renji that way!"
"I know for a fact what you saw when you went to see him today. I have had the two of you watched carefully ever since he left you…and that means, I know what you're about!"
"What do you mean?"
"Look at you…my cousin…so weak…so broken. We all tried to warn you. Time and again, we warned you about the folly of mixing noble and common blood. But you…you had to break the rules…not once, or even twice. Three times, Cousin. Three times, you broke our codes. You muddied our pure blood. You soiled our name. And now…you see what happens when you put your faith in low blood. You had a pure heart, but you let them inside and now they have torn it. Your fine blood pours out and is lost to our clan. You are lost to us. And now there is no choice. Emptied of your nobility, made weak and impure like those commoners you ruined yourself with, you are damned, Byakuya. As Head Elder, I have been made your executioner. You will no longer sully our name, nor foul our reputation. But there is something I want you to know…something I want you to take to your grave. I want you to know why…why he left you."
"I would never believe a word that falls from your pretty, foul lips, Tsuyoshi," Byakuya said, readying his blade, "You haven't got a breath of truth. All of your words are lies."
Tsuyoshi smiled.
"This is no lie. Do you want to know how I fooled him? How I set you up? How I used you against each other and then stood with you and watched it fall apart?"
"I will not listen to anything you say. Now…if you wish to kill me, strike hard. You will only have one opportunity…"
"Hah!" snapped Tsuyoshi, "I only need one. My dear…naïve cousin. How you have been deceived. I have been weakening you for months, though you have not seen…picking away at your confidence, your faith, your resolve. And now, you will see. Your powers can no longer match mine…and when I shatter your sword and your body, this sword I carry will steal away your powers. You will die with nothing…nothing at all!"
He held up his blade. Byakuya's eyes widened.
"You stole that from the archive! The day we met at Kuchiki Manor…the day…"
"The day Renji left you, yes! I went into the vault with you and had you distracted while I stole it."
He looked down at the family heirloom blade.
"Tenrai Keibatsu…Divine Punishment."
"Only the clan leader can use that blade!" Byakuya hissed, "You are not our leader!"
"That is true…however…a unanimous act of council can empower the Head Elder to deplete the powers of an ineffective leader…and our council has granted me that power. You might have been able to withstand such power as this before, but by depriving you of the love that held you together, I have weakened you enough to make you susceptible to this blade! As you fall, you will feel your powers fade…and you will die alone and with nothing. This weapon will provide all of the reiatsu I need to defeat you in one strike. So prepare yourself…"
He watched, smiling, as Byakuya released his ban kai.
"Senbonzakura Kageyoshi…Shukei Hakuteiken!"
"Devour…Tenrai Keibatsu…"
His eyes gleamed viciously as they flash stepped towards each other, swords raised. Both weapons slashed and Byakuya's blade managed to cut him. But as he slashed at Byakuya, the divine blade found its mark and sent the clan leader spinning away in a slow spiral. He plunged to the ground leaving a beautiful white fire trail behind him. Tenrai Keibatsu flared and Tsuyoshi's smile widened as he felt it fill with Byakuya's surrendered power.
"You should have died that day, Cousin…" Tsuyoshi whispered, "but I will fix my mistake now. I will find you and kill you. You and your Rukon dog are going to be put down…"
He sighed softly, shook his head, and headed back into the Rukongai.