It's midterm season and I feel like I'm gonna die. Have a chapter.
Part I
Rukia took one deep breath, in through the nose, out through the mouth, just as her old Sensei had taught her.
Those white marble steps, the ones that would take her right where she needed to be, were mere meters ahead. Only one thing stood between her and them, and that was Tatsuki, Shikai already activated.
Rukia couldn't do much more than brandish Sode no Shirayuki and face her for what was probably the last time.
Without warning, Rukia sent a wave of cold after Tatsuki, one that was blocked with a squared stance and a near visible wave of heat. Rukia wasted no time after that, rushing in, bringing her sword in front of her when she was faced with a blast of fire.
It started out as a simple warning blast, one that singed the tips of her hair and nearly caught her sandals on fire, but before Rukia could escape, it began roaring around her, intense, searching for any weaknesses in her repelling Reiryoku.
Was it just her, or did Tatsuki's fire feel much hotter than the last time they fought? Rukia could feel the sweat start dripping down her neck, her arms, and her palms, causing her grip on her Zanpakuto to slip. It was suddenly clear that Tatsuki had not given it her all in their last fight.
That was alright. Rukia had learned a few new tricks since then.
She could just barely see Tatsuki's silhouette through the flames and watched as her stance shifted and the heat intensified to dizzying levels. She could feel herself being pushed back by the sheer force of it, her feet skidding along the ground. It was almost unbearable.
Squinting through it, Rukia forced herself forward, one shaky step at a time, putting as much energy into Sode no Shirayuki as she could to strengthen the barrier. Her steps became faster as the temperature dropped and then with a final heavy step, she swung her Zanpakuto, the flames dissipating as she met Tatsuki's blade. The second they touched, a burst of steam and Reiatsu exploded out, forcing the two apart.
Tatsuki let out a chocked cry, and Rukia held back one of her own as she was thrown onto her back, left staring up at the clear blue sky. She rolled over to her hands and knees, forcing herself up, and gritting her teeth against the burns that scaled up her arms.
"You may have a new Shikai," Tatsuki panted out, "but you're still relying on old tricks, human." She was already on her feet, but Rukia saw it, the second her right foot hit the ground she staggered for a moment. She didn't get out of that one unscathed, either, huh.
"You'd be surprised," Rukia said with a smirk. "White tree!" She stabbed her Zanpakuto harshly into the ground, and like lightning, tendrils of ice shot along the ground, heading right for a wide eyed Tatsuki.
The Shinigami shot straight up in the air at the last minute, as the ice passed below, letting loose another flame attack from the sky. Rukia barely had time to deflect with a White Ripple, the resulting steam billowing over her.
For a moment, she coughed through it, squinting to try and catch a glimpse of her opponent, a tight grip on her sword. Tatsuki came straight down, hitting Rukia from above with her oversized blade, Rukia blocking it with her own. The attack lacked flames but certainly not strength, and as she strained against it, Rukia could feel herself start to buckle underneath the pressure.
It also didn't help that she could barely feel her own fingers, turning bright red with frostbite. Her arms still ached and the burn on her leg that she had been ignoring was screaming under the pressure.
Rukia had to finish this.
She ground out, "Third Dance, White Sword," and watched as the tip of Sode extended rapidly, just grazing along Tatsuki's shoulder. She knew that should have been enough.
Tatsuki's arm started to freeze over right before her very eyes. She could see the shivers start as her stance weakened. She could even see the exhaustion in her eyes from her own attacks. Still, Tatsuki didn't move a single inch.
"The ice won't stop spreading," Rukia panted out, pressing forward. Tatsuki didn't respond. "Just give up and–"
"LIKE HELL!"
Her words cut through the chaos. The sounds of quieting flames could be heard in the background, but for a couple of seconds, no one made a sound, aside from their own labored breaths. Still, Tatsuki looked at Rukia, fire burning in her eyes.
She continued, venom in her voice, "Like hell I'd just let you go."
With the last word, Tatsuki pushed Rukia back. She placed an unsteady hand on her frozen wound, and even from her distance, Rukia could see steam flow from it.
"I figured a trick like this might be helpful against someone like you," she said with a sneer.
Tatsuki swung a volley of flame attacks at Rukia, each much steadier than she seemed capable of, but each much weaker than the last. Rukia dodged every one, sidestepping them, and repelling any chasing flames. For a moment, the volley ceased, and Rukia wondered if it was over.
The Shinigami was standing there, sweating profusely, hand still tight on her Zanpakuto, her eyes hidden by her messy fringe. She took one step back, pivoted, and released a large plume of intense flame.
Rukia cut through it with a wave of cold, letting it pass by her harmlessly as she ran forward. She didn't try for any fancy attacks, just struck at Tatsuki again and again, waiting for something to hit. This was all she had really. She knew in her gut that last Dance was all she had in her.
Maybe it was luck, or maybe Tatsuki really had reached her limit, but one final head on strike sent Tatsuki sprawled on the ground, her Zanpakuto loudly clattering away from her. There was no struggle to her feet. There was no smartass comment. She just stayed down.
Rukia half-limped to where Tatsuki lied, sheathing Sode no Shirayuki. She stood between Tatsuki and her Zanpakuto, just in case. The Shinigami gazed up at her, a strange look in her eye. The ice lodged in her shoulder was spreading again. Rukia turned away.
"…You look just like he did," Tatsuki rasped.
Rukia paused, her breath lodged in her chest.
"…You both have that stupid scowl," Tatsuki continued weakly, "...and you both always beat me." She let out a shaky sigh, trembling against the spreading ice. "…You better save him, human…or…I'll…"
Tatsuki's eyes slipped closed.
The breath Rukia had been holding in escaped shakily. The air seemed to thin, and when Orihime rushed in behind her, kneeling by Tatsuki with unshed tears in her eyes, Rukia was almost sent to her knees.
"Why does she always have to be so stubborn?" Orhime asked this, hands already glowing, her voice choked up with emotion.
Rukia took one unsteady step back from the scene, only stopping when she felt a large hand at her back. She looked up and saw Ganju who seemed almost…dazed.
"You alright?" he asked quietly.
She nodded, only to regret it immediately when her vision spun at the movement.
"Probably," she eventually said. She grimaced at her own rough sounding voice. He cracked a smile at that.
"You Shinigami are kind of scary, you know that?" He ruffled her already messy hair with his free hand.
"Were you scared for me?" Rukia asked with a sly smile. Ganju scoffed.
"Don't start thinking too highly of yourself, shrimp."
Orihime climbed to her feet about then, a hand coming up to wipe at her eyes. "I think I've done all I can," she said. "She'll need further care at the Fourth, but…"
"Someone else will take her," Ganju said, glancing down at Tatsuki. She was still out cold, but her expression seemed less pinched somehow. He continued, "After a fight like that, I'm surprised half the Seireitei isn't already here."
"Then we should get going," Rukia agreed. After a long moment of hesitation, Orihime nodded, not saying a word.
They had made it to the steps, not a thing blocking their way, and Rukia felt a deep satisfaction as she realized this. It was tainted when she realized, that she didn't have enough left in her to climb it.
"Hey," Ganju whispered suddenly. She looked over to see him, back facing her and squatting down. "Climb on," he said. "You'll need all the energy you can get, hero."
Rukia wanted to say something in protest, or even just say something sarcastic at being called "hero." All she did was climb on, feeling more than seeing their gentle but swift incline into the heart of the Gotei 13.
Part II
Waking up in a cold cell, left to contemplate your impending torture was somehow even more depressing than it sounded.
That morning, or at least what Uryuu assumed was morning, he found himself sore and no more rested than he was before he fell asleep. It's no wonder he didn't sleep well, either. A certain someone wouldn't stop pacing up and down the cell like a madman.
"Would you just sit still?" Uryuu bit out. How did Abarai even have the energy for this shit?
"Huh, you're up?" he asked, stopping briefly. Uryuu rubbed at his nose, feeling the grooves his glasses had left overnight.
"Obviously," he said. He didn't see the glare Abarai sent him, but he could feel it.
"Well," Abrai said with a frown, "I've been thinking."
That couldn't be good.
"Something's not right here…" he continued.
Uryuu held back a sarcastic comment about how literally everything about this situation was "not right" but held it back, for once giving Abarai the benefit of the doubt.
"What do you mean?"
"It's just…" Abarai struggled for a moment, resuming his pacing before continuing, "someone should have come for us by now, right? Those clowns from yesterday were pretty eager to continue, so, what gives?"
Uryuu's eyebrows furrowed. He hadn't had much time to think about it, but he supposed he'd been expecting some rude awakening. He thought he'd be snatched away first thing in the morning to whatever chamber they had prepared, but here he was, having enough time to chat with Abarai who could have been awake for a while now.
"Something must have happened outside," Uryuu said carefully. Abarai nodded.
"That's what I was thinking, but…what could it be?"
Uryuu shrugged and jokingly suggested, "Maybe some paperwork got held up, maybe everyone suddenly came down with the flu, or maybe…"
"Maybe something big is happening outside," Abarai said, chewing at his lip. "…You don't think it's Rukia, do you?" Uryuu could hear just a touch of disbelief, or rather a refusal to believe, in Abarai's voice.
Sure, Uryuu didn't have the same connection to Orikasa that Abarai did, but the thought of her getting captured was still…worrying and getting much more likely as time passed. If she did get captured, something in Uryuu's mind told him that would be as good as a death sentence for them all.
"We'll know soon enough."
Abarai visibly gulped, but Uryuu tried not to dwell on his own words.
"What we need to do," Uryuu continued, "is take advantage of this. I doubt anyone's watching us, so this would be a good time to assess the situation."
"What's there to 'assess?' We know what we're stuck in, here."
"But do we?" Uryuu asked seriously.
"…What?"
"We know we're in a cell, but we don't know where that is, or even what we'd be facing if we managed to break free. We're missing quite a lot."
"Actually, I might have a few clues about those," Abarai said confidently.
"What? How?" Abarai smirked at the questions. Uryuu glowered.
"Back when we were first getting dragged here, I think I woke up before I was supposed to. I don't remember much, just being dragged down a staircase. I started struggling like hell and some guys jumped on me. I got knocked out again. I woke up in a cell, and you know how the rest goes."
"You were going downstairs?" Uryuu considered. "That could mean we're underground, but that's still not much to go off of." It would explain the total lack of windows and the heavy air, though. "How many were there when you woke up?"
"I dunno, I was blindfolded. There was a lot of noise, though."
"Guess," Uryuu insisted.
Abarai huffed. "I dunno, eight or so?"
Eight they may be able to take down together, but Uryuu doubted that only eight were here total. Then again, even if you triple that number, and consider that some of them are away at the moment…
"Now might be the time to try and escape," Uryuu said quietly.
"Escape with what?" Abarai sat down near Uryuu. "Both our powers are shot."
For a moment, Uryuu thought of telling Renji about his glove. If he activated it, he could easily blast right through the wall, Sekiseki stone or not, but that moment passed, and he hesitated.
He wasn't willing to part with his Quincy powers forever. Even being without them for a few hours felt humiliating. If he was being honest, he knew that he could handle a bit of pain just to keep them, but would he be thinking the same way after a couple of days? Would he be thinking that when he saw Abarai suffering the same?
He didn't know the answer to that, but for now he kept quiet.
"I'm not sure," Uryuu eventually answered, "but maybe if we…" Uryuu trailed off as he heard a distant noise.
"What was that?" Abarai asked nervously. His question was punctuated with panicked shouts and the sounds of destruction.
"Maybe it's Orikasa?" Uryuu asked, inching away from the door.
"Yeah, that doesn't sound like Rukia to me." A loud banging sound rang out, bringing them both up to their feet in a panic.
The second they stood, everything went quiet. They could hear the low groans of the injured, sounds of dripping water, and, if they listened very carefully, footsteps, increasing steadily in volume before they suddenly stopped, right in front of their door.
Another quiet step was heard, and then suddenly, without warning, an impact that shook the floor hit, sending the door flying off its hinges. The two dived to opposite sides of the room, just to avoid getting hit.
"A Sekiseki cell, huh? At least they've kept some of their standards."
The person who said that, the person who broke through their stone door like it was nothing walked into their shared cell with no visible weapon. She was a slight, dark-skinned woman who wore a bright orange jacket that called attention as easily as Shiba's hair. She didn't look like a Shinigami, but a quick glance at her Reiatsu said otherwise. In fact, it looked familiar.
It couldn't be…right?
"Who the hell are you?" Abarai asked. Uryuu didn't pay much attention, though. He was too caught up in how strange this all this was.
"You can ask questions later," the woman said with a smirk. "We need to leave before reinforcements get called in."
Those eyes. It was the eyes that gave it away in the end. They were shining gold, smiling brightly at you like the cat that caught the canary.
"Yoruichi?" Uryuu asked, shocked. She grinned at him a little too widely.
"Yours truly!"
Abarai sputtered, and Uryuu didn't blame him. Yoruichi didn't wait for them to gather their wits. She just started moving out into the hall, leaving the two scrambling to follow her.
They left the building as quickly as they could, heading up to the ground level which turned out to just be a regular looking office building, albeit one that a hurricane had blown through. People were lying unconscious. Papers were scattered everywhere. Furniture was splayed about and broken. Uryuu neve would have thought that Yoruichi of all creatures (people?) would be capable of this.
It was odd being locked up in a place, and then finding yourself casually walking out the front door, but once they left, they found themselves in the middle of a forest, not dissimilar to the one that Uryuu and Abarai had crash landed in just yesterday. He looked up to the sky and found that no, it wasn't morning anymore. It looked to be just a little after noon.
Yoruichi led them quickly through the brush, seeming to know exactly where they were going, and exactly who they were escaping from. Eventually…
"It's safe," she announced, shrugging off a pack at her shoulders, and stopping by a large tree. "Take a break. I'm sure you need it."
She sat down right at the base of the tree, opening the pack wide, and Uryuu felt as if he had no choice to do the same. (Inwardly he was lamenting the grass stains that this would put into his white pants, but who was he kidding. This outfit was beyond saving a while ago.) She turned over the pack, dumping out all its contents, and what was revealed had Uryuu's mouth watering.
It was a large assortment of packaged foods, just about everything he could think of. There were rice balls, chips, cookies, and things that made it look like she had spent a good half hour raiding someone's pantry. Uryuu's stomach told him not to question the source of these too much, and Abarai seemed to agree. They were digging in before Yoruichi could even say another word.
Uryuu had reached first for the salmon rice ball swiping a bag of potato chips with a flavor he didn't bother reading quickly after. He had forgotten how hungry he was!
"…Where've you been, anyway?" Abarai asked through a mouthful of rice-cake.
"Looking for you kids, mostly." Yoruichi said this, looking at them with an amused expression. "Among other things. I was able to meet with the contact, and though there have been some hitches in the plan, we're adapting."
"Hitches?" Uryuu questioned.
Yoruichi let out a displeased sigh, though it wasn't aimed at either of them. She said with a frown, "Aside from the obvious disruption, this morning a Captain was found dead, though 'dead' may not be the right word for it. Everyone's already blaming the Ryoka, so things are going to be a lot harder for us from now on. That's not even mentioning the time limit."
Uryuu asked grimly, "They've scheduled an execution date, haven't they?"
Yoruichi nodded. "We have a little less than five days left, including today."
Abarai cursed. Uryuu felt like doing the same.
"And since we still don't know where the others are…" Uryuu said this, feeling his frustration rising. All this preparation and somehow things managed to get this bad?
"Hey! You were able to find us," Abarai pointed out. "Couldn't you track them down, too?"
Yoruichi shook her head solemnly as Abarai visibly wilted. "You remember what I said before, don't you?" she asked. "This place is huge. I can't find you if I don't even know where to start. The only reason I tracked down the two of you was because information about two captured Ryoka had already spread."
This time Uryuu did curse. Was this really it? Were they just doomed, now?
"But," Yoruichi interrupted Uryuu's train of thought. "Something else did happen earlier today. A Lieutenant was found badly injured. I haven't checked the sight myself, but if it was the others, then that puts us in a pretty good spot, actually."
"Then what are we doing sitting here?" Abarai asked, stuffing a bag of cookies into his pocket. "Let's go check it out ourselves!"
Uryuu almost rolled his eyes. Could Abarai be any more obvious?
"That's the spirit!" Yoruichi cheered. She stood up with a languid stretch, gathering up the bag before throwing it over her shoulder. "Follow me!"
The pace they set this time was much quicker. They carved through the forest in record time and were back to the sterile buildings of the Seireitei before they even knew it. By the time they reached their destination, the sun was starting to dip in the sky.
They reached what at first looked like an empty clearing before the steps of what Yoruichi explained was the First Division. Upon further study, this clearing had quite the story to tell.
Scorch marks covered the ground, turning the white and gray stone a deep black. Near it trails of slowly melting ice left deep cracks in the ground. Puddles were scattered about the area in the same way that traces of Reiryoku were.
"No mistaking it, this is Orikasa's work," Uryuu said.
"And since Rukia won this fight, then…" Abarai's eyes trailed up the white steps.
"Good. Then they're headed right were they need to be," Yoruichi said with a bright smile.
"All we have to do is catch up." Abarai said this with clear determination in his eyes, a grin on his face.
Abarai's feelings may have been painfully obvious, but Uryuu had to say, they were admirable.
Uryuu didn't say any of this, though. Instead, he adjusted his glasses that didn't need adjusting and rolled his eyes, silently waiting for them to get moving.
They still had a job to do, after all.
Part III
Tatsuki sidestepped strike after strike with a wide grin. It was almost too easy! She finished it off with a great swipe of her weapon, knocking her opponent right off his feet.
"Congratulations, Tatsuki. You're doing well." Uncle Kaien stood off to the side attentively, a kind smile on his face. "We still have to work on your control a bit, but you should feel good about how you're doing."
He then turned to Ichigo, who Tatsuki gave the stink eye. The boy stuck his tongue out at her, still rubbing his sore rear.
"Now, Ichigo, you need to work on putting more confidence into your strikes." Ichigo's eyes were glued to the ground, even though this dressing down had only just started. "You'll have a real Zanpakuto one day and believe me when I say they don't like it when you show hesitation." Ichigo let out a long huff at that, nodding with a sullen look on his face. Uncle Kaien reached down with a hand to ruffle the boy's hair. "I can tell you've been practicing a lot," he said. "Don't worry, you're doing well."
"Excuse me, sir?" A servant asked politely from the door.
Uncle Kaien frowned with a tut, asking, "Could it wait? We're in the middle of a lesson."
The servant shook her head. "Your sister, Lady Shiba said it was quite important."
Their teacher let out a sigh at that, shaking his head before turning back to his students, saying, "You can take a break. I'll be back soon." Tatsuki watched him follow the servant back into the house.
Suddenly, she heard another deep sigh beside her. Looking over, she saw Ichigo, sitting down on a rock and looking thoroughly depressed. He always looked this way after losing (which happened pretty often) but this was worse than usual.
"What's got you down?" Tatsuki asked, twisting over to look at his downturned face.
"You know what it is," he said quietly. Tatsuki worried her lip. She actually felt bad.
"Well," she started, "you heard what Uncle Kaien said. You just have to be more confident. That's not hard."
"That's easy for you to say," he huffed. "I'm don't know how to do that."
Tatsuki scrunched up her eyebrows, wondering. "You seem alright when you're throwing a punch. Something about that sword throws you off, I think."
"Then why don't you get thrown off?" he asked with a scowl. Tatsuki almost sighed in relief. Things were back to normal.
"I'm not sure if I can explain it," she started. "It's like…the sword isn't really a weapon, it's something else?"
"That doesn't make any sense!" Ichigo bit out, digging his fingers into his hair.
"Sorry."
Ichigo let out another long sigh, more of a release of tension than one of frustration. "No, you're just trying to help." He visibly steeled himself, adding, "I just need to work harder!"
Tatsuki smirked, saying, "Yeah, then maybe we could have a real fight."
Ichigo punched her in the arm for that jab. She just laughed back.
…
Tatsuki found herself flat on her back yet again in her swordplay class. Ichigo was already sheathing his Zanpaktuo, leaving Tatsuki to crawl to reach hers. The teacher observed, and with a tut marked something down on a clipboard that Tatsuki would never see.
"Shiba beat her again?"
"How does he even do it?"
"I guess he's top of the class for a reason, huh."
She ignored the whispers that followed her when she left the ring. Keeping her head down as she sheathed her weapon.
"Tatsuki, are you alright?"
Orihime looked right at Tatsuki, a handkerchief in her hands, seemingly torn in between offering it or not. She looked worried.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Tatsuki said, brushing the other girl off. "The only thing that's wounded is my pride."
Yeah, that's what happens when you get beaten by the same person again and again for a year straight. She tried to smile at that, but didn't quite manage, judging from Orihime's slumped shoulders.
It was kind of scary how quickly Ichigo improved once he got to the Academy. She guessed it had something to do with that Zanpakuto of his, the one that he already seemed perfectly in sync with before anyone else in the class had gotten so much as a peep from theirs. Then again, she couldn't be sure. They haven't been talking for a while, now.
Tatsuki vaguely knew that Orihime was still speaking. She didn't really notice Chad waving at them while in a conversation with Ichigo. Her mind was focused on a single thing.
Why does he always beat me?
…
Tatsuki woke up with a start. Still groggy as she struggled to remember her dream.
That wasn't a dream. It was a memory.
She let out a deep sigh, trying to grab onto the flashes and impressions left over.
She remembered being so proud back in the day. She was just some Rukongai brat, and here she was getting good at swordsmanship.
She remembered the blow her swelling pride had taken when Ichigo so thoroughly passed her by.
More than anything she remembered how nice it was back in the day to just talk freely with him, to be friends with him.
Soon, she was going to lose him.
Tatsuki got up in her hospital bed and kicked off the sheets, climbing out, eyes searching for her uniform and Zanpakuto. There was no reason to waste her time here. She had things to do, places to be, and most importantly, someone to find. She had made her decision.
She wasn't going to lose him for good.
Part IV
Holed up in some empty warehouse, sealed and double sealed by Orihime in the dead of night, the Shinigami wasn't sure what she was looking at.
She found this…thing on Rukia near the end of their healing session. She'd have asked the girl what it was, but she was fast asleep before Orihime had the chance.
It was a mask. That much was clear. It looked like an animal skull, though she wasn't sure what animal. It seemed angry, a permanent scowl on its face. It almost looked like a Hollow's mask, but as a medic, Orihime didn't have much experience with those creatures, so she could have been wrong.
Yeah, she was probably mistaken. There was no way Rukia just had a Hollow mask tucked into her robe. Besides, she was pretty sure Hollows weren't human sized, and she could comfortably fit the mask on her own face. (Okay, she may have tried it on when she thought no one was looking…)
"What are you doing?" Rukia croaked out. Orihime quickly tore the mask from her face, hiding it behind her back.
"Nothing! Um, how are you feeling?"
Rukia looked blankly at the ceiling, not appearing entirely awake, yet.
"Tired," she eventually said. "Sore."
Orihime nodded. "You had some pretty serious burns there. I'll need to do some more healing in the morning, but for now, just get some rest."
Rukia nodded, eyes already drooping. Orihime considered something for a moment, ultimately deciding that this was her chance.
"One more thing," she said, feeling a little guilty when Rukia's eyes snapped open, focusing on Orihime again. She brought the mask from behind her back, bringing it close to Rukia. "I found this on you earlier. Is it yours?"
Sluggish hands took it from Orihime, and Rukia studied it with narrowed eyes. No signs of recognition showed, but somehow, she didn't look so happy holding it. She nodded in the end, tucking it back into her kimono.
The reaction was odd, Orihime thought, and it left her with more questions than she started with, but at the end of the day she was a healer first and foremost. Her patient needed rest, so she let her quietly drift off. Orihime had plenty more important things to think about, anyway, and here, with nothing but her two quietly snoring companions, she had plenty opportunity to.
She was mostly worried about an issue that came up during Rukia's healing session. She hadn't said anything at the time, but she knew something was wrong.
Burns were a tricky thing to heal. Coaxing skin back to its old state, or at the very least a less damaged state was…difficult, but it was far from impossible, especially for someone as experienced as Orihime. She'd healed plenty of burns without leaving so much as a mark, but not this time. The healing didn't go as well as it should have.
By tomorrow, it should be good enough for Rukia to move around again, but Orihime would be surprised if there wasn't a scar left. She had some theories as to why this was, the main one being that Rukia was too human.
Orihime had never encountered something like Rukia before. She'd never had to heal the wound of a human turned Shinigami, and she was starting to guess that the human part of that equation was causing some complications.
Humans had very solid bodies, unmalleable and unwilling, unlike a Shinigami's Reishi body which could be easily coaxed and manipulated. She would have to inform Rukia and her human friends of this later. If they were planning on getting into more fights in the future, they would have to be careful.
Oh, who was she kidding? When was anyone ever careful? All they did was charge into battles with reckless abandon, not a single thought for their own safety or the poor medic that would have to put them back together again and again and again. That was how Ichigo was. That was how Tatsuki was. Somehow, after all these years, it never got any easier.
I'm rambling, aren't I?
"Orihime, you're thinking to hard," Ganju whispered. She nearly jumped at the sudden noise.
"It's not time for your watch yet," she hissed back. "Go to sleep."
"Eh, it's close enough," he drawled. "I'm already up, anyway." As he said this, he stuck a finger in his ear, looking completely bored. Orihime couldn't help but laugh. Really, the Shiba were so alike, it was frightening! Still, being without even one of them felt wrong somehow.
"Hey, Ganju?"
"Hm?"
"Why did you leave?"
He was silent, eyes on the ceiling.
"You and Lady Kukaku just left one day," she continued, "and no one ever knew why."
A few seconds passed between them. The silence was uncomfortable, deafening. Eventually Ganju broke it.
"After…after Kaien died, Big Bro and Big Sis started thinking something weird was going on in the Soul Society. Why they decided that meant going to the World of the Living, I didn't really know, but I knew I wanted to help her, so I left, too."
"…Something weird?" Orihime asked quietly. "Like what?"
"Some kind of conspiracy, I think. They were never very specific."
"You mean like…corruption?"
Orihime's had her fair share of experiences with the Soul Society's government, and they were far from perfect. Still, going to the World of the Living seemed like an odd way to go about fixing it. Besides, what did that have to do with Kaien?
"Maybe," Ganju said with a shrug. "It could be corruption, or some kind of traitor. I still don't know."
A traitor. Now that was much graver, but she wouldn't even know who they were insinuating. At the end of the day, she trusted the judgement of Captain Shiba and Lady Kukaku, but…
What if there was a traitor? Then what?
Orihime suddenly felt very, very tired.
"I think I'll get some sleep," she told Ganju. He nodded, sitting himself up against the wall and sorting through his pack.
She lied down, falling into an uncomfortable slumber.
The Tatsuki vs. Rukia fight had a lot of hype behind it, and though it's quite different from the fight in the manga, I hope it has its own merits. I struggled a bit with keeping it shorter and to the point or staying "by the book" in the same way I did with Ikkaku's fight. I went with the former, and I hope everyone is satisfied with this decision. If you aren't I don't mind. We can talk about it. Hit me up in the comments because…they give me life.
