Back to our regularly scheduled programming, my dudes.
Part I
Rukia let out a giggle as she hopped across the rooftops. She ran ahead freely, using footholds in the air with barely a thought. With two great leaps she landed on the top of a light post, wobbling for a moment. She didn't bother hiding her big stupid grin.
"Not bad, not bad," Mashiro said with a smirk. She was standing mid-air, hand on her hip.
"I can only do the air thing for a second," Rukia panted out, "but I can do it! I still can't believe it."
The Visored plopped down where she stood, sitting cross legged. "Eh, you'll get there. Give it a few weeks and you'll be running circles around everyone. For now… sneak attack!" She sprung up.
"Bakudō Number Eight, Seki!" Rukia rushed out. Her arm barely came up in time, a light surrounding it just as Mashiro's foot struck. The Visored was sent tumbling back, skidding across the nearest rooftop. Rukia let out a sigh. "You can't just yell 'sneak attack,' you know. It defeats the whole purpose of a 'sneak attack.'"
"Hey, you were surprised, don't lie," Mashiro said, dusting herself off. She grinned. "And that was just a test, anyway. You did that without an incantation!"
I did… didn't I? Rukia thought with a smile. She hadn't even noticed. It seemed like all of Ushōda's hard work paid off. She couldn't wait until they got to learning some more advanced spells.
Mashiro walked back, right off the building. She turned away. "Race you to the park," she said over her shoulder.
"You're on!"
To absolutely no one's surprise Mashiro literally ran circles around Rukia, not that the Substitute really minded. That was just Mashiro's way of teasing her, challenging her. It urged Rukia to push herself harder, to try and stay on the air for a bit longer.
It was also a lot of fun.
When Renji had left, followed very quickly by Uryuu, Rukia knew it was her turn to get to work, too. She started spending as much of the day as she could running with Mashiro, learning spells from Ushōda, sparring with Sarugaki, and even working on her Mask with Sode. It was tiring work (Matsumoto had to practically carry her to bed on one occasion) but it was well worth it.
She'd made some amazing progress with her Bankai and had even learned of some of the amazing things she could achieve with it with the Mask (in the thirty seconds she was able to keep it for. She was up to a minute while using her Shikai). Though she wouldn't admit it out loud, she was itching to use some of her new knowledge…
With a grin, she thought to herself, No time like the present.
A well-timed use of her Mask right now would help her take this race, for sure. Mashiro was doing an awful lot of goofing off, after all, and Rukia remembered that old tale about the tortoise and the hare.
Bringing up a hand, she began summoning her mask. Her hand froze mere centimeters from her face as she spotted something odd right out of the corner of her eye.
"Not again," Mashiro whispered beside her. Dread filled her voice.
Way up in the sky, Rukia could see a portal open up, one that by this point had become far too familiar to her. She fumbled for her Soul Candy, landing heavily on the nearest rooftop. She swallowed a candy immediately, and only then, in her Shinigami form, the Gikon trembling silently beside her, did she take in the invaders.
Four Arrancar stepped through the portal, two of which she recognized instantly as Yammy and…
Her eyes narrowed. She drew her Zanpakuto.
"What?!" Mashiro cried. "You can't be serious. There are Shinigami here! Let them take care of it!"
Jagerjaquez chose then to take notice, sneering down at the Substitute. She saw the wound she'd given him, healed into a gnarled scar. She also saw the missing arm.
"I'll let them take care of those three," she said, pointing with her sword, "but he's mine."
Mashiro looked dismayed at this, hand extended as if she wanted to say something, or maybe even physically try and stop Rukia, but after a long moment she nodded, darting away faster than Rukia's eyes could follow.
Rukia closed her eyes, took in a deep breath, and faced her opponent.
Part II
"Come on, Fullbring," Ichigo taunted. "One more training session. Let's go."
The teenager let out a huff, rolling his eyes heavily as he continued to stuff his backpack. "We have like two hours. No."
"Hey, two hours is plenty," the Lieutenant argued. "We could probably work on your shitty aim some more."
Renji let out a growl, throwing his backpack over his shoulder. "You really know how to piss me off, don't you? …Fine."
They hurried to the training fields, Ichigo keeping an eye open for a good spot. Of course, they just ended up at the usual, Orihime already waiting for them, her own bag packed. She looked at them pleasantly, greetings already on her lips. The pleasant look was gone the second she realized what they were up to.
"I thought you'd learned your lesson last time," Orihime sighed out. "If you're late again, the Captain Commander's going to incredibly cross, you know that, right?"
"I'm not going to be late," Ichigo said back. "I just want to use every second I've got, is all. Trust me, the kid needs it."
"Hey, watch it," Renji warned.
Ichigo pointedly ignored him. "Okay," he started, mind working. "I think we'll start with…"
He trailed off, not paying any mind to the strange look Renji shot him as a result. He was far too focused on the two figures in the distance, running towards them.
Sentarō and Kiyone were coming at them at full speed, practically tripping over each other in the process. This was not a new sight to Ichigo, honestly, but usually that meant Captain Ukitake was involved. Wasn't he supposed to be in a meeting, right now?
"Shiba!" Sentarō yelled.
"Lietenant Shiba!" Kiyone cried. "Something terrible has happened!"
That got his attention. The two stumbled to a stop in front of him, panting with the effort. "Explain," he said tersely.
"Karakura Town," Kiyone rushed, "the Arrancar, they've–!"
"They've invaded!" Sentarō cut in. "We don't know how powerful they are, but the Captain told us to get you!"
"You're kidding me," Ichigo grumbled. He turned to Renji, a crooked smile on his face. "Time to see if any of that training paid off."
Renji gulped, nodding solemnly.
The three were led by the dual Third Seats to the Division Thirteen Gardens, the Captain already standing there waiting for them. He looked nervous, something that only spiked Ichigo's anxiety. A Senkaimon (one that form a glance Ichigo could tell was completely unauthorized) stood behind the man.
"You'll need to hurry," Captain Ukitake said. "I'll cover for you. As far as anyone else will know, you three left right as scheduled."
"Thank you," Ichigo said. There were perks to having a Captain old enough to know how to perfectly game the system. Her turned to his companions. "You guys ready?" he asked. "We'll be landing right in the middle of a battle." That was assuming this message got to them efficiently. News could travel slowly in the Soul Society.
"What do you take us for?" Renji huffed out.
"I have to agree, that is a silly question," Orihime said with a nod.
Ichigo grinned. "Then it's time to run like hell."
Orihime hurried through the portal, Ichigo springing through right after. Renji lingered for a moment, turning to the Captain to say something, but what he said, Ichigo never caught it.
The second they all landed, the Cleaner made its presence known as dramatically and terrifyingly as possible, its Reiatsu settling over them like a five tonne rock. The weight alone had Ichigo slipping on the slimy ground, his attempts at Hohō almost sending him into the wall.
Heart rate spiking he stumbled forward, forcing himself to stay upright by sheer force of will. He glanced around, seeing Orihime right ahead of him, struggling similarly. Behind him…
"Hurry it up!" Ichigo called over his shoulder.
"You don't think I'm trying?!" Renji yelled back.
Orihime shook her head in dismay.
"I knew I should have gone over speed more," Ichigo cursed to himself. He pushed himself forward, forcing his feet to grip on the floor with a touch of Reiryoku. He continued to look back, trying to ignore the literal monster on their heels.
When they broke free to the other side, Ichigo nearly cried with relief. How on earth did those humans do this by themselves before?!
The sounds of battle raged overhead, something that oddly enough only increased his relief. This relief was destroyed when he saw Tōshiro get knocked out of the sky by a small Arrancar's tentacles.
"Orihime!" he yelled.
"On it!" She went to the boy in a flash.
"Renji, back her up. She'll be vulnerable while she's healing!"
"Uh… you got it," the boy panted out. His eyes were wide as he took in the scene in front of him. It took some visible effort for him to tear himself away.
A deep rage built up in Ichigo as he drew his Zanpakuto. He took a running start, launching himself into the air.
The small Arrancar let out a laugh, seeming confident in his own victory. It wasn't just Tōshiro that he had taken down. In those weird tentacles of his he had Rangiku, Ikkaku, and Yumichika in his grasp. With a fourth tentacle he was getting ready to skewer Rangiku.
"Getsuga Tenshō!"
He sliced clean through the appendage, taking satisfaction in the shock clear on the Arrancar's face as Rangiku fell from his grip.
"And who would you be?" the Arrancar hissed.
"The one that gonna kick your a–"
He cut himself off, making a hairpin turn as a presence came up behind him. He sliced out, forcing back another small Arrancar. This one seemed… different from the others somehow.
The new Arrancar said nothing, laughing openly as he moved back. His blonde hair fell into his face, his sleeved nearly covered his hands. Ichigo might have said he were some out of place child, were it not for the hole in his chest.
(Or the manic glee in his eyes.)
"Well, aren't you a weird one?"
The kid responded by striking forward, a powerful energy emanating from his hand. Ichigo dodged back, alarmed. What kind of attack was that?
He moved forward, readying his own, when suddenly a third presence appeared beside him, and this time he was just a bit too slow.
He was sent plummeting, an intense force jackknifing through his back. He slammed to the ground, dazed. He squeezed his eyes shut as he sensed more attacks coming down.
When a familiar warmth enveloped him, he let out a gasp of relief. He didn't even have to open his eyes to know it was Orihime's shield around him. He forced himself up to his hands and knees.
"Tōshiro," he immediately said, "is he…?"
"Look for yourself," she said with a smile, pointing up to the air. He glanced up to see an expansive web of ice trapping the tentacled Arrancar, Renji cutting down his remaining tentacles from a distance.
Huh, the kid had learned something.
He glanced up at his own opponent, still sending down attacks with reckless abandon. This Arrancar was a bit of an idiot, wasn't he?
"Hey, Orihime?" he asked hesitantly.
"You've got some bruising," she said automatically. "You can still take him."
"Great. Cover me."
She grinned at him. He darted up the second the shield was lowered. These Arrancar would regret messing with them.
Part III
"Heh, I was looking for you, Substitute."
"Funny. I was about to say the same thing."
The two enemies faced each other, neither making a single move, waiting for the other to budge. It was then, as battles erupted around them, that Rukia allowed her curiosity to win.
"…What happened to… that?" Rukia felt uncomfortable the second the words left her mouth, but she just had to know. She remembered the frost that crawled up his hand during their last battle, but had it really gotten that bad?
"Ah, this?" he asked with a sharp toothed smirk. He shook the stump of his arm, if only to make her squirm. "I didn't need it, not to beat you, anyway. So, I threw it away."
Likely story, Rukia thought sarcastically. It didn't really matter, she supposed.
"That wasn't very smart," she said instead. "I've improved a lot since you've last seen me."
"Oh, have you?" He barked out a laugh. "Well, I'd love to see that."
Eyes narrowing, Rukia turned over her sword. She pulled down her mask.
"Bankai!"
He smirked, a hand reaching for his sword. Rukia wouldn't even let him draw it.
Rukia remembered vividly the winter wonderland that Sode had made back in Yoruichi's hideout, how she had said their Bankai could produce such a thing with proper training. Rukia yearned to get there one day, but for now this would have to do.
With a single swipe of her sword she encased Jaegerjaquez fully in a pillar of ice, the structure quickly expanding out in the crystalized air.
Twenty-seven seconds left, she thought. That was twenty-seven seconds that she wouldn't need. She stepped forwards.
The Arrancar's face was trapped in an intense rage, his sword barely drawn a few centimeters. She could practically see him struggling, his eyes darting this way and that. Good luck to him. This trap was about as sturdy as glacier.
She placed a hand on the ice, wondering how she might move him. As long as she could bring him to Ushōda, they could keep him trapped indefinitely. Then, maybe they could get some proper answers on what Aizen was even up to.
Just as she begun considering going to find Mashiro, or really any of the Visoreds, a low sound rang through the air. Her eyes went right to the ice under her hand, and with alarm she realized it was cracked. She barely had a second to jump back.
The ice exploded outwards, her narrowly avoiding getting struck by boulder sized pieces. Steam billowed out into the air. In the center of all the wreckage stood Jaegerjaquez, frostbitten and pissed as hell. He panted out heavily, ice slipping from his arm and falling to the ground.
She gulped.
"You bitch!" He lunged at her, sword in a one-handed grip. He slashed out wildly, forcing her back.
She, in the meantime was trying to think rationally, here. She still had her mask, even if half her time was up. She just needed to try again, to try something different.
She launched another wave of ice, mentally cursing as he dodged past, weaving in after her. He went in for the attack only to be parried, her blade slashing across his chest leaving a gash that quickly froze over. That one he didn't brush of so quickly.
She followed through, slashing again, sending him back with a speed that he struggled to keep up with. With one cut she froze his eye shut. With another she sent ice crawling down his left hip quickly making its way to his knee.
She faced him, the Arrancar panting and absolutely livid. Then, her mask started to crack away.
Shit!
"What the fuck were you doing since then, huh?!" he yelled, slashing at her once more.
Her eye exposed, she dodged away, heart pounding. "Training," she quipped, "what else?"
He flipped his grip on his Zanpakuto and seeing the hand motions for a Cero she cut at him, putting at much force into it as possible. She sent him tumbling through the streets.
Her mask fell off. He rose up.
Shit!
With a single piercing blue eye, he looked at her. He stumbled up to his feet, one stiff leg dragging behind him. He grinned, and before she could think better, she took a cautious step back.
"Fresh outta time, huh?" he growled out.
She smirked at him, hiding her nerves.
He struck quickly, coming down on her, forcing her to block. It didn't come easily, either. She let out a grunt, the effects of her Bankai starting to hit her. With worry she noticed her fingers begin to crack bloodlessly. She was sure other parts of her body were suffering similarly, and the fact that she could hardly feel it wasn't very assuring.
He pushed down harder, blades sliding, and in a quick decision she broke left, attacking with what was hopefully enough ice to at least slow him down.
He deflected with a Cero, heat of the attack overtaking it. Then he flashed forward. Then she was crashing down.
Then everything went white.
It took her a good moment to figure out what had even happened. With clearing eyes, she took in the inside of a decrepit building, the rubble of a now destroyed wall surrounding her. She felt a pain at her back. She saw Jaegerjaquez crouched on top of her. With a cruel grin he shifted the hilt in his hand. She let out a choked gasp.
One glance down and Rukia saw the blade buried deep into her wrist, nearly lopping her hand right off.
He shifted it again, drawing another noise from her. She thought vacantly that it didn't hurt as much as it should have. That worried her (though not as much as her Bankai having disappeared, nothing more than a sealed sword lying at her side right then).
"I'd tear you apart with my bare hands," he said, jostling the blade. She choked down a groan, tears stinging in her eyes. "That probably wouldn't end well for me though, would it. No, I think this is a nice safe distance."
He brought a hand up, mere centimeters from her face, and began to charge a Cero, the gathering energy burning her cheeks.
A giant blast sliced through the air, right between them. Jaegerjaqeuz stumbled back, hissing at his now burned arm.
"You picked a fight with the wrong Shinigami, there, friend."
Through the hole in the wall stood Hirako, Zanpakuto casually slung over his shoulder as Msahiro tittered behind him. Rukia would have run over and kissed them both if this dammed sword wasn't still stuck in her arm.
"Heh, friend?" Jaegerjaquez asked. He was still smirking, but there was a certain uneasiness to his words, now. "You an ally of this one's or something?"
"As a matter of fact," Hirako pulled down his mask, Jaegerjaquez faltering at the display, "yeah."
The Arrancar ripped his sword from Rukia, forcing out a true scream, not that he seemed to care. He charged at Hirako, chasing the man out of the building. Mashiro was at Rukia's side in less than a second.
"Oh, no, no, no, this bad," Mashiro cried, hands hovering. Above them the roof shook, bits of dust falling on them. "Where's Hachigen when you need him?"
"We need to bind it, r-right?" Rukia asked, voice wavering.
"Bind it?! I don't even want to move it!"
Rukia moved up to a sitting position, grimacing as she resisted the urge to take another look. She instead focused on Mashiro's worried face, the Visored's teeth digging harshly into her lower lip. She paced for another moment before finally shucking off her tank top, revealing a plain sports bra underneath.
She wrapped the entire hand tightly but carefully, her own hands shaking. With Rukia's good hand gripping the makeshift binding tightly she allowed the other girl to drag her to her feet.
The two moved out of the warehouse, Mashiro hovering slightly, but Rukia didn't really notice. She instead found herself instantly glued to the fight in front of them.
Hirako blasted Jaegerjaquez with a Cero, directly hitting the shocked Arrancar, knocking him right out of the sky.
The Arrancar tumbled past them, stopping himself with one arm, glaring up at the Visored with a deep hatred.
"You minimized the damage by meeting my Cero with your own," Hirako commented. "Not bad."
"…Fuck…. you…" the Arrancar panted back. He stood up, nearly buckling under his injuries. (And Rukia had to give herself some credit, most of that damage was her own.) He swayed momentarily on his feet, hand on his sword as Hirako looked on with something akin to pity visible through his mask's eyeholes.
The Arrancar smirked.
"Grind," Rukia's eyes widened, "Pa–!"
He was stopped suddenly, a pale hand settling on his blade as strong as any vice.
"Ul…Ulquiorra?" he sounded. His teeth were grit so hard Rukia thought they might break.
The other Arrancar looked down at Jagerjaquez, expression unreadable.
"Mission accomplished," he said. "Let's go."
The words seemed to trigger something in Jaegerjaquez, judging by his reaction. His shoulders slumped, and his eyes settled to the ground. He didn't move for another attack.
Hirako charged another Cero.
"Negación," Ulquiorra said, and in a flash of light they were both gone. The Cero blasted through thin air.
"Dammit!" Hirako tore off his mask. "Every fucking time!"
"…What did he mean by that?" Mashiro asked quietly. "He said 'mission accomplished,' what did he mean?"
"Not sure," the man growled. Glancing at Rukia's heavily bundled arm he added, "And we're not going to worry about it for now. Let the Shinigami scramble to figure it out."
Feeling the shirt start to soak with blood, Rukia thought that wasn't a very good idea. What if they…
If she…
She was losing her train of thought. When Mashiro tugged her along, she followed.
Part IV
Renji couldn't hold back his yell of excitement when Hitsugaya encased the tentacled Arrancar in a mass of ice as big as his entire apartment complex.
"That's our Tōshiro!" Ichigo cried.
"What the hell?!" Yammy yelled. Renji aimed a spike right at the big guy's face in retribution, forcing him back and giving Ichigo an opening for attack.
Renji grinned. It really looked like they were going to win this thing!
The Fullbringer was forced back suddenly as a pillar of light came down from the sky, overtaking the huge mass of ice and breaking through it. For a second he thought that squirrely bastard had broken out of it himself, but when the shards fell away Luppi nearly fell down to his knees, frost clinging to him as he stumbled.
The other two were surrounded similarly, Yammy looking frustrated, while the small one just seemed bored. In the distance Renji could see a fourth.
"How unfortunate for you, little Captain," Luppi said with a smirk, rising in the air. "You don't get to kill me, today. Don't worry, though. I'm coming back, just to twist that tiny head of yours right off."
Even from this distance he could see Hitsugaya's eyes narrow in irritation.
"Mission accomplished, huh?" Yammy grumbled.
"You're kidding me," Renji growled. Was this what Rukia was feeling those days ago?
Above him Ichigo was scowling up at his opponent, Orihime standing beside him. Her fingers dug into her sleeve, worry plain on her face. Renji wasted no time running to them, or at least as close as he could get. They ended up meeting him the rest of the way, blurring onto the ground.
"I think we may have been duped," Hitsugaya said in a low voice.
"'Mission accomplished,' what mission?" Orihime asked. "You don't think…" She glanced at Ichigo, lips pursed.
"I'm not sure," he answered, "but we should check our bases. Renji, you and I are going to check in on Uryuu, and…" he hesitated, looking to the other gathering Shinigami, "does anyone know where Rukia might be?"
Matsumoto was the one to step forward. "She should be with the Visoreds. After that she usually just goes home."
"Make sure she gets there safely," Ichigo ordered, "and the rest of y–" He cut himself mid turn as he was met with Hitsugaya's harsh glare.
The Captain cleared his throat. "The rest of you search the area for anything suspicious. I'll return to the Shiba Shop and report what I can to the Captain Commander."
"Yes, sir!" everyone chorused, then they dispersed. Ichigo pulled Renji aside.
"Lead the way," the Shinigami said.
"Okay…" Renji said, a little weakly. He'd only been to Ishida's place once. Hopefully he still remembered where it was.
(He also made a mental note to check on Rukia as soon as he had a chance. It didn't take a genius to figure out she'd gotten into her own fight, too.)
The group split up into their assigned tasks, and in the end, it was Orihime that was left with searching duty alongside Madarame and Ayasegawa. If she were being perfectly honest, they were probably the worst people to be sending for this kind of job, but she supposed they'd just have to work with what they had, here.
"Madarame," she called softly, "could you look from above and see if there's anything strange? Ayasegawa, you can stay on the ground with me. We should be able to cover more space together."
The other Third Seat let out a deep sigh like he wasn't any happier with this than she was, but in the end, he still groaned out an, "Alright," before jumping high into the air and out of sight.
"How undignified," Ayasegawa grimaced. "I suppose I'll take this side." He pointed towards a cluster of upturned rocks and torn shrubbery. That left Orihime with the splintered trees.
"That's alright with me," she answered with a frown.
Now, she wasn't the best sensor, but she was observant when need be, and didn't mind getting a little dirty. So, slipping on a pair of medical grade gloves she started digging through the rubble.
She found nothing for a long while, hefting piece after piece aside, looking for so much as a clue that something was wrong, here. Eventually she started considering calling the other two in to search elsewhere.
Then, she spotted a glimmer of something in the hollow of a tree, something that certainly shouldn't have been there. She dug in, pulling out what appeared to be a glass eye.
The iris was a teal green, not a terribly common color, especially for this region. Just as she brought it up to get a closer look at it, the iris swiveled, looking right at her, pupil constricting. It turned hot with Reiryoku, and she realized suddenly that she had about a second to react. She tossed it in the air, dragging out her Zanpakuto.
"Blossom, Shun Shun Rikka!" she called, and just as the device begun to self-destruct, two butterflies came to its side, forcing the pieces to stay in place.
With hesitation she brought it back to her, letting out a sigh of relief when she realized it was still somewhat recognizable, though the singed inner mechanisms were partially exposed, now. Then the reality of what she was holding sunk in. Her brow furrowed.
Someone was watching them, someone that had slipped in and out of here without anyone noticing. She didn't quite know what that meant yet, but it could be nothing good.
Orihime cradled the device, heading towards the Eleventh Divisioners. The others needed to see this.
Part V
"I'm fine," Rukia repeated.
Across from her stood a wholly unconvinced Matsumoto. Rukia grimaced, unsure of what she could even say, here.
The woman had come bursting into her house a few minutes ago looking quite frazzled. The first thing she did was look Rukia over, drilling her with questions all the while.
"What happened?"
I got into a fight with Jaegerjaquez.
"What else?"
This other Arrancar… Ulquiorra, something or other. He interrupted it.
"And?!"
…And?...
Things after Hirako appeared got blurry, honestly. Ushōda told her she was probably in shock, which made sense since her hand had nearly been severed. He splinted and bandaged it so heavily that she could barely even twitch her fingers, but hey, at least she could still feel her fingers.
(Well, most of them.)
Barely a minute after Matsumoto arrived, Byakuya came running in looking downright panicked until he finally saw Rukia. She honestly didn't understand this reaction.
Currently he was sitting at the table, one hand on his head and the other on a cup of coffee, looking like he'd just come back from a twenty-hour shift at the office.
"I'll just be a few minutes," Rukia insisted. She just needed a moment alone to clear her head. Was that so wrong?
"I'm not taking that chance," Matsumoto said back. "I let you out of my sight and Ichigo will have my head on a stick by morning. You're staying here until we can figure out what's going on with the… uh… club tomorrow."
Rukia glanced at Byakuya. "Okay," she sighed out.
When she slipped out through the window while Matsumoto was in the bath, she sent the woman a silent apology.
She ran for a time, if only to avoid getting dragged back so quickly, but running wasn't what she was here for. She had some… things to work through, right now.
If Hirako hadn't been there during her fight with Jaegerjaquez, she would have died, plain and simple. Oh, she had the Arrancar struggling for a bit. She put him through quite the ringer, but the fact was that she was still painfully behind.
With a frown she brough her hands up her face, hitting both sides hard. She let out a yelp when her injured wrist flared with pain.
"Rukia?"
The girl stopped herself, realizing she was one step away from knocking into Renji's mom of all people, groceries stacked high in the woman's arms. Looking up she realized his apartment was barely a block away.
Of course, she thought. Of course, I walked here without even thinking about it.
"Hello, Miss Abarai," Rukia finally said. The woman gave her a crooked smile, walking on. Rukia kept step beside her.
"If you're looking for Reni, I'm pretty sure he's with that friend of yours, Uryuu, and– wait, are you okay?" Her eyes turned wide as she pointed at Rukia's wrapped swollen hand.
"Just, uh…" According to Renji, she knew, right? "Just a little fight, and uh… no, I'm just taking a walk. I hadn't even realized I'd come here, actually."
"Well," the woman's smile became worried, though she tried to hide it, "you're welcome in. I just bought sodas, after all."
"Thanks." Rukia just might take her up on that offer but, "I need to do something, first, though."
"It's an open invitation," the woman said warmly.
Rukia's heart just about melted at that. Somehow Renji's mom always managed to make her feel that way. She watched as the woman walked up to her apartment door, waving as she disappeared through. Without really thinking walked to the back of the building, hopping the fence to the cemetery.
She wandered in, noting the patch repairs that were being made after her and Jaegerjaqeuez's initial fight. She walked right past, not stopping until tombstones came into view and sat heavily on the nearest bench. It wasn't really her first choice for a thinking spot, but it just might do for today.
Letting out a breathy sigh she braced her hands against her knees, eyes on the ground. Rukia… had some work to do, and she knew it. She was behind in the fight, but she hardly needed another pep talk from Sode to know that it didn't have to stay that way. Her speed was getting there, so was her spell work and Mask, they just needed some extra practice.
And really, what was she complaining about? She went toe to toe with the Sixth… until she ran out of time. (That's not even mentioning his unused Ressureción.)
Okay, so maybe she needed a lot of work, but…
Dammit! She was tired of getting like this every time she lost. What was it that Captain Shiba had said about "youngsters taking losses too personally?"
He'd probably lost plenty of times. He wouldn't be a Captain if he'd let it hit him this hard every time!
Yeah, she had work to do, but that was okay. Live to fight another day, right? She'd kick Jaegerjaquez's ass for real, next time, and Aizen wouldn't be too far behind. In fact, she was going to talk to Sode right now. They were working double until she reached a full minute with the Mask in Bankai.
She got up from the bench feeling as invigorated as she had when the day began, and the second she turned around she saw Ulquiorra looking down at her with cold eyes.
Four more chapters until the end of the arc. I'm excited! (Yadda, yadda, yadda, reviews give me life.)
