"Have you packed everything you need?"
Byakuya asked the same question for the umpteenth time that day as he looked at his younger sister. One moment she is still a little girl that barely reached his waist. A blink of an eye later, she had now grown up into a young woman in her teens who is now tall enough to reach his chest and enrolling into the Academy the next day.
How time flies.
"Stop being a worrywart, brother dear." Kurui teased Byakuya as she waved a finger in front of his face in that usual playful manner. "It won't be good for your health if you constantly worry yourself over nothing."
"If there's anything you need-"
"I will send you a letter to you and sofu."
"If the curriculum is too hard-"
"I can always ask you and sofu for advice. Or go to the instructor for help, or the friends that I make there."
"If you need spending money-"
"As always, send you and sofu a letter. Not that I spend much in the first place, so this point is moot. The only thing I spend my money on is food."
"If anyone bullies you-"
"I will beat them into an unrecognisable pulp and teach them to fear me."
"I believe the proper response I taught you is to tell me and sofu immediately." Byakuya said in a monotone. "As a lady of the Kuchiki clan, you shouldn't be getting yourself into a fight in the first place."
"I am training to be a Shinigami, Nii-sama. We fight all the time." Kurui said in a disapproving tone and flicked her long black hair backwards in an exaggerated manner. "And I may not be the best combatant out there, but I believe I can hold my own against fellow students."
Byakuya dragged a tired palm across his face. He should have known by now that their little princess doesn't follow the rules set by him and their grandfather. If anything, the rules follow her.
Kurui didn't pay attention to his gesture as she bent down and dug a little box out of her drawer.
"Here." Kurui handed Byakuya a small little rectangular box. "I won't be around to celebrate your upcoming birthday with you since I will be in the Academy, so I thought I will just give you your present in advance. Happy birthday, Nii-sama."
Byakuya took a second to get over the sudden surprise, but receive the gift nevertheless.
"Go ahead, open it up."
On Kurui's insistence, Byakuya opened up the box. In it sits a calligraphy brush, a very well-made and elegantly crafted brush.
"I remembered you said that your old brush doesn't work as well as it used to, so I decided that you may need a new one." Kurui added as she stands beside him to look at the brush as well. "It took me a long time to find a brush that you may like, but I think you will love it."
"I do." Byakuya said with a gentle smile on his face and ruffled his sister's hair with a hand. "Thank you."
"We are siblings, Nii-sama. There's no need to be so formal with each other."
"Sofu and I do have something for you as well." Byakuya said as he retrieved something from his robes and handed it to his sister. "You are of age now, so you can start to wear these."
Byakuya can see his sister's eyes widening at the object he had given her.
"Nii-sama! These are-"
"Kenseikan." Byakuya completed Kurui's sentence. "You are a member of the Kuchiki clan and you are finally of age, you will need to wear the kenseikan to symbolise your nobility as a member of one of the Four Noble Families."
Kurui went to stand in front of a mirror and carefully wear the kenseikan in her hair. A short moment later, Kurui stares at her reflection, taking in her new look.
"I take it that you like it." Byakuya spoke as he walked closer to get a better look at his sister. As expected, she looks beautiful in it.
"I love it." Kurui said in a soft whisper. "This is the best present ever, Nii-sama."
Kurui carefully took out the kenseikan from her hair, much to Byakuya's surprise.
"You don't want to wear it?"
"Erm…" Kurui stammered a little as she tucked a stray strand of her hair behind her ear. "It's just that I will be enrolling into the Academy soon, and I want people to see me not as the Kuchiki, but as Kurui. I don't want them to assume that I have it easy simply because I am born a noble…"
Kurui's voice descended into almost a whisper towards the end of her speech, as if she is afraid that she had spoken out of line. She worries too much.
"I understand." Byakuya reassured his sister and placed a hand on her shoulder to show his support. "I was the same too when I was in the academy. However, you will still need to wear your kenseikan in formal events. Other than that, as an Academy student you are free to choose when you want to wear it. Once you become a full-fledged Shinigami, then you will need to wear it at all times."
"You and sofu won't be too lonely without me around, will you?" Kurui changed the topic as she gave him a sly look, which immediately got the alarm bells in his head ringing loudly. She couldn't have found out about Hisana already, could she?
"We can finally have our long-awaited peace and quiet. We cannot wait for you to enrol in the Academy already."
"Awww, don't be such a tsundere, brother dear~~"
"Insufferable brat."
"You know, if you ever feel a little lonely in this big mansion, you can always go and find yourself a wife. I will love to have a Nee-san." Kurui's sly look returned, which unsettled Byakuya as the bells in his head rang even louder. "I wonder what kind of woman will grab your attention?"
"Stop thinking of useless stuffs." Byakuya reprimanded his sister and push his sister's head away from him with a single finger poking at her forehead. "If you have so much time on your hands, use it to think on how you can survive the Academy."
"Nii-sama, thinking of getting rid of me so soon?" Kurui put her hands on her hips and glared upwards at him with a look of mock annoyance. "You will miss my chattering before the sun sets tomorrow, I guarantee you."
"No, I won't."
"Yes, you will." Kurui argued back before pulling him with her out of her room. "Since it will be a while before we can see each other again and I am in such a good mood, I will prepare sofu's and your favourite dish for dinner today. You are helping me."
"You can always leave such chores to-"
"Is it wrong for a sister to want to personally prepare a meal for her brother and grandfather?"
Byakuya didn't speak further. In all honesty, even if Kurui doesn't want to be a Shinigami and chose to live the rest of her life as a princess, he and his grandfather will take care of her properly until she found the man she loves and marry him. She is their princess, there is no need for her to do these things known as chores. She deserves the best treatment the world has to offer.
The servants all gave a polite bow to them as they spotted the siblings making their way to the kitchen and Kurui returned it with a cheerful wave. Byakuya is pretty much indifferent to this although he will usually acknowledge them with a mere nod of his head. Unlike his stoic behaviour, Kurui's personality makes her very approachable and she treats their clan's servants with respect and kindness, something that some of the other Noble Families don't do. Many of the servants here had watched them grow up, and all of them love the bubbly and lively princess of the Kuchiki clan. She cares for them and treats them as her equal despite the difference in their status and in turn, the servants treat her with utmost reverence.
"Kurui-sama! There's no need for you to do this lowly job! Let us do it!" The Head Chef of the kitchen spoke in a flustered manner the moment Kurui entered the kitchen and began to pick the ingredients she needs from the shelf. This isn't her first time here, and every time she tries to cook something in the kitchen the staffs there will try and stop her. Cooking is something beneath someone of Kurui's status. It is a job left for the commoners.
"Just leave it, there's no stopping her once she decided on something." Byakuya cuts in as he joins his sister in picking out what they need. He still has no idea how Kurui learnt to cook behind everyone's backs. The first time she tried it by herself, the meal she prepared was a blackened mess. Somehow, her skills had magically improved by leaps and bounds over time without them aware of it. She would make a good Onmitsukido with how good she is at doing things without anyone realising. However, Kurui had told him that she is not interested in joining the Covert Ops, so the chances of her ending up in the Second Division is close to nil.
It may be for the better. The Onmitsukido's job scope can put them in perilous situations, something that he doesn't want to see his beloved sister in. Being a normal Shinigami is safer for her.
The siblings prepared the meal together as Byakuya silently listened to Kurui telling him what she had done for the day. She is right, he will miss her chattering before the sun sets tomorrow.
Not like he will ever admit that to her. He has an image to uphold after all.
"Class #1… where is the classroom for Class #1?" Hisagi Shuhei muttered to himself as he walked through the long corridor. The welcoming ceremony for new students had just ended and they are all dismissed to find the classroom that their assigned class will be using for the academic year.
Shuhei walked briskly as he looked at the signs of each of the classrooms that he passed by. He should be nearing his classroom soon. He adjusted the position of his right arm, which is used to carry a stack of textbooks and increase his walking pace before turning around a corner.
"Ah!"
A high-pitched yelp was his only warning the moment he made a turn around the corner. A girl with long black hair tied up in a high ponytail nearly collided into him and him into her. However, what the girl did next had him stumped.
They would have collided if it wasn't for how the girl avoided that outcome by suddenly bending backwards at a near ninety-degree angle and spun on her left foot at the same time, changing her position with just a single step.
A very basic yet difficult application of the Hoho technique. To apply it so flawlessly and suddenly spoke volumes on how much practice she had in this combat art.
"Ehehe… sorry about that." The girl rubbed the back of her head sheepishly with a hand as her other arm carried a stack of books just like he did. "I wasn't looking at where I was going."
"It is my fault as well." Shuhei apologised quickly. "I was searching for my classroom, so I didn't pay much attention to what was happening around me. Are you hurt?"
"Nope!" The girl chirped back happily. "By any chance, do you know where the classroom for Class #1 is? I searched the corridor over there to no avail." The girl ended her sentence by pointing at where she had just come from.
"You are in Class #1 too?" Shuhei asked curiously. This is a pleasant surprise. There is no one that he knew that is also in the Academy like him and making a friend on his first day here sounds like a nice idea.
"You too?!" The girl asked excitedly with wide eyes. "Great! We can find the classroom together!"
The two of them carried on walking through the last unexplored corridor and eventually found the classroom that they were searching for. Thankfully, it seems that they had made it in time. There weren't many seats left, so the two of them chose to sit at the corner of the classroom side by side.
"I haven't got around to introduce myself, have I?" Shuhei took the initiative as he officially introduced himself. "I am Hisagi Shuhei, it is a pleasure to meet you."
Shuhei can see the girl's eyes widening slightly in surprise but that look disappeared as quickly as it had come. The girl gave him a bright smile, one that he will grow used to seeing in the future.
"Call me Kurui! It's nice to meet you, Shuhei!"
Kurui is both smart and strong.
That is Shuhei's impression of Kurui after his first week in the Academy. She is the first friend that he had made in the Academy and he is the first person she had befriended too.
The biggest surprise came when he learnt that she is a Kuchiki.
He had thought that he had heard wrongly when their instructor was taking attendance and calling out their names one by one, but when he saw the same stupefied look on everyone's else faces, he knew that his ears were working just fine.
He could have never guessed that Kurui is a noble given how approachable she is. He had heard from many others before he enrolled in the Academy, telling him how snobbish and uptight these nobles are. Kurui looked suitably uncomfortable too when the instructor called out her full name. She is the only noble from the Four Great Noble Families in their year. Her family name alone is enough to garner a lot of attention.
Despite the differences in their status, Kurui had never once shunned or ostracise him for being a commoner born in the Rukongai. She treats him and everyone else as her equal. Her ever cheery demeanour is infectious and she soon became friends with everyone in the class. Unlike him, she is a social butterfly.
She is also strong. In their class's first sparring session, she actually managed to even take on most of the guys in her class without much effort. It is obvious that her family had trained her extensively even before she enrolled into the Academy. However, she did not lord over them about her victory like some of the guys did when they won their spars, but instead helped them with whatever they are struggling at as long as she is free to do so.
She is very different from what he had heard about nobles that had grown up in the Seireitei.
Even with the huge number of friends that she had made, Kurui had never forgotten about him and the two will spend time regularly with each other, be it helping each other with their homework or just to unwind and relax after a long day. Shuhei mainly helped her in practicing her Hakuda, which Kurui had admitted will never be her strong suit. However, it is obvious that Kurui's proficiency in Kido, Hoho, and Zanjutsu is more than enough to make up for it. Shuhei is unfamiliar with Kido, a common problem that students that came from the Rukongai will struggle with when they just enter the Academy. If it wasn't for Kurui teaching him what she knew, he cannot even begin to imagine just how much harder it will be for him to learn how to cast spells.
By the time they are six months into their first year, the two of them had become good friends with each other along with Kanisawa and Aoga. The four of them grew to be a tightly knitted group. Kurui didn't mind that the three of them came from the Rukongai, and the three of them didn't treat her any different from the rest of them because she was born a noble. It was a relief for Kurui, since she doesn't like getting preferential treatment simply because she is a Kuchiki. Shuhei knew that Kurui has her own pride and she wants to be acknowledged not because of her status as a noble, but because of the skills and power that she had gained with her own hard work.
"Shuhei!" Kurui called out to him excitedly and waved a hand frantically in the air the moment she spotted him. "Over here!"
Shuhei spotted Kanisawa with Kurui beneath the shade of a large tree where they are sharpening and polishing their Zanpakuto which they had just received three days ago. Their Zanpakuto are still asauchis, since none of them are strong enough yet to learn the name of the sword they now wield. Shuhei himself hasn't had much luck in this issue either.
Shuhei walked over and sat down beside Kurui, who is now inspecting the condition of her Zanpakuto with a critical eye. Satisfied with what she sees, she gave it a few practice swings with an arm before sheathing it once more.
"There will be a field lesson tomorrow on how to combat hollows, excited?" Kurui asked him with an eager gleam in her eyes.
"A little." Shuhei responded as he took a piece of cloth and began to polish his own sword as well. Maybe doing so will get him to be able to converse with his Zanpakuto sooner. "But it will be dummy hollows, not the real thing. There's nothing much to be excited about."
"I heard that the field lesson will be held in the outer district of the Rukongai and that there may be a chance for us to encounter real hollows, no matter how small it is." Kanisawa added. "We should still be careful."
Kurui gave a hum of agreement as she stood up and began to go through the repetitive motions of her Zanjutsu kata. She had said that it is an ingrained habit of hers ever since her grandfather taught her how to properly wield a sword, claiming that she did it so frequently when she was younger that now she will feel uneasy if she did not at least practice her Zanjutsu once everyday.
With so much hard work put into honing her skills ever since she was a kid, it is no wonder that Kurui is as strong as she is right now.
"Where's Aoga anyway?" Shuhei asked as he gave a brief look at his surroundings, searching for their tall and lanky friend. There are no signs of him.
"He is performing Jinzen in some secluded corner. Someone is impatient in trying to learn the name of their Zanpakuto." Kurui added the last part with a slight laugh as she continues to swing her blade without stopping or slowing down. "Something about wanting to try and be the first Shinigami ever to learn the name of their sword as a freshman."
"A little too ambitious, if you ask me." Kanisawa added dryly from the side as she also finished up with maintaining her blade.
"At least we can give him an A for effort." Shuhei shrugged as he gave his blade a few practice swings like what Kurui had done earlier. It feels just right to hold his blade in his hand, like this particular sword is made just for him.
"A spar with only Zanjutsu?" Kurui gave him a cheeky grin as she ended her kata. "Loser helps to do the homework for the winner for the whole of next week."
"No thanks." Shuhei and Kanisawa chorused. Kurui is the best among them in Zanjutsu and Kido. No way they will fight her in a spar with only Zanjutsu.
"I will go easy on you?"
"Still a no." Kanisawa emphasised her point as she crossed her arms in an 'X' at her front.
"Awww, pleeeeassse?"
"Please what?"
Aoga announced his presence as he appeared from wherever he had been performing his Jinzen.
"Aoga! None of them want to spar with me using only Zanjutsu! They are mean!"
"No one in class wants to go up against you in a Zanjutsu spar." Aoga retorted as he tilted his head downwards to face the petite girl. "Your swordsmanship is wickedly strong."
"Aoga! Not you too!"
"How did your Jinzen go?" Kanisawa changed the topic before Kurui goes into her whining mode at full blast. "Made any progress?"
"Sadly, no." Aoga sighed as he moved to take a sit with his friends. "Not even a little."
"Nii-sama did say it will take some time for Zanpakutos to open up to their wielder." Kurui commented as she continues to practice her Zanjutsu on her own not far from where they are. "Although he also says that the exact time differs for every- EEK!"
Kurui's sudden scream got them standing up on their feet immediately. A burst of shunpo from Kurui later, Shuhei suddenly found a black-haired girl at his back and using him as a human shield.
"Kurui? What's wrong?!"
"B-B-Bugs!" Kurui pointed a finger at the tree in front of them. The three of them squinted their eyes to get a better look.
"Oh, you mean this?" Shuhei said with an evil grin on his face as he gently grabbed the small spider dangling from the branch with its thread. Kurui immediately bolted to hide behind Kanisawa the moment she saw Shuhei doing that.
"I can't believe you are scared of a small measly spider." Kanisawa huffed out. "You are training to be a Shinigami, Kurui."
"But it's a SPIDER!" Kurui shouted back nervously. "And stay away from me, Shuhei! Don't bring that abomination here!"
"But Kurui, look at how cute and harmless it is." Shuhei purposely cooed out in a smothering tone as he patted the small spider sitting on his palm with a single finger. "Your words just hurt the feelings of this little spider, how could you?"
"S-Stay back!" Kurui unsheathed and pointed her Zanpakuto at Shuhei the moment he walked closer to Kurui with the little spider in hand. "O-Or else…"
Shuhei exchanged knowing smirks with Aoga and Kanisawa, which did not go amiss by the princess of the Kuchicki clan seeing as she immediately made her escape with a burst of speed.
"Get her!"
"Don't let her escape!"
"You need to apologise to Mr. Spidey, Kurui!"
"GET THE SPIDER AWAY FROM ME YOU EVIL PEOPLE! AHHH!"
Definitions and meanings:
Jinzen: Sword Meditation
Onmitsukido: Secret tactics (also known as the Stealth Force, Secret Mobile Corps, Special Forces, Covert Ops)
Rukongai: Wandering Soul City
AN: Kanisawa and Aoga are canon characters in the anime, where they and Shuhei helped lead the freshmen class of Class #1 for a field lesson to teach them how to perform a Konso when Renji, Izuru, and Hinamori were students of Class #1. In the anime, Kanisawa was killed by a surprise hollow attack during the field lesson. Aoga and Shuhei survived.
