Disclaimer: Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo while belongs to Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth
Chapter 04: Curiouser and Curiouser
"What? She's 15?" Renji questioned before blocking an upcoming fist from his team's leader. He and Ichigo are sparing with hand-to-hand combat in one of Beacon's training halls closest to their dorm. Tatsuki is seating on a bench with a bottle of water in hand, already having a turn in sparing. The two continue to exchange fist after fist at each other before Ichigo manages to Renji in a headlock.
"Yep. And the guy she's with doesn't even have his Aura unlocked," Ichigo said, keeping his hold in place as Renji struggled to get himself free. The latter then decides to use his leg to swing at the back of Ichigo's knees, causing him to lose his grip and fall on to his rear.
"Ichigo and I kinda wondered if the Headmaster have something up his sleeves," Tatsuki said.
"And that would be...?" Renji questioned, offering Ichigo a hand.
"I don't know..." He said. He accepts the hand and returned on to his feet. "Old Man Oz's always seems to be nuttier than a fruit cake. Maybe he sees some potential in him or something." The two guys look over to see Tatsuki walking towards them.
"My turn," Tatsuki said.
"All yours," Ichigo said, walking over to the bench and sat down. Tatsuki and Renji began to circle around each other, watching for any openings to strike at. Renji seems to have spot as he charges towards Tatsuki. The woman easily blocked the attack and went to strike him with an uppercut. Renji dodges and aims a low kick at Tatsuki's legs. She leaps away before aiming a fist at Renji, but he grabbed her arm and pulled her into a hold similar to Ichigo's from before.
"Are you guys done yet?" Rukia called in from the training hall entrance.
"Oh, hey Rukia!" Renji greeted. "Wanna have a go?"
"No thanks," Rukia declined. "I came by to tell you three to get in the showers. Uryū's almost done with dinner."
Noticing that Renji is distracted, Tatsuki used the opportunity to grab his arm before flipping him over her shoulder and slammed on the ground, flat on his back. Tatsuki smirks down at him. "Alright, boys. Let's go," Tatsuki said as she walked out. The only answer she got from the tattooed male was a pained groan. Tatsuki laugh as she exits the training hall. Ichigo walks over to help Renji back up to his feet as he did for Ichigo.
"When will I learn to not drop my guard around her?" Renji asked.
"Probably a few years. Took me a while and I still have the occasion suplex," Ichigo said.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Guardians of Remnant ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Ichigo sighs to himself as he exits the bathroom and enters the kitchen/living room, a towel draped over his shoulders. He sees that Uryū had just finished cooking and everyone is filling their plates with food and judging from the spicy aroma, it's South Vacuo-style. Orihime notices him and beams a smile. "Come on, Kurosaki-kun! You better hurry before all the food is gone!" She said, waving an empty plate. Ichigo chuckled to himself, knowing how true it might be. Despite being such a curvaceous young woman, Orihime is a big eater. Ichigo figured that the excess calories simply went to...other places. He strode over, accepting the plate Orihime offered him. He gathers his portion of the meal before joining the rest of friends at the table. All the while, the Vale News Network is on the holographic screen in the living room area.
/...Once more, Roman Torchwick is on the run after robbing yet another Dust Shop and the police were unable reprimand him,/ Lisa Lavender stated, showing a mugshot of the criminal.
"Hmmmm..." Rukia hummed.
"Lien for your thoughts?" Tatsuki offered.
"I just find it a bit strange," Rukia answered.
"Strange how?" Orihime asked.
"Strange that Torchwick went from being a small-time criminal and fugitive to stealing thousands of Lien worth of Dust just like that," Mizuiro explained, snapping his fingers for emphasis.
"Took the words right out of my mouth," Rukia said.
"...I still don't get it," Keigo says. Uryū readjusts his glasses.
"It's one thing to steal a necessary amount of Dust for one or two people every now and again, since there are evidence that Torchwick has an accomplice," Uryū starts. "But to abscond an entire store-worth of merchandise periodically..."
"Makes you think that the guy is working for a group," Tatsuki finished. "As for who, no clue."
Keigo scratches his head. "Sooooo, the White Fang?"
"Nah," Renji dismissed. "It would have been a possibility if this happened over five years ago, but with the White Fang becoming a radical group, any non-Faunus members were kicked out, some with force."
"Then, the Wandenreich?" Keigo asked.
"Perhaps," Uryū said. "However, the Wandenreich likes to stay in the shadows for the most part and someone like Torchwick would garner too much attention."
"What about Animal Farm. That human supremist group."
"It doesn't matter in the end," Ichigo spoke for the first time since seating down, scooping up a spoonful of dirty rice. "This is the responsibility of the police, not Huntsmen."
"Oh, come one, Ichigo," Keigo complained. "You have to be at least a bit curious about this."
"Not really." It is true. When it comes to Kingdom matters, it's the job of the police or whoever is in charge to resolve the issue, not the Huntsmen or Huntresses who are trained to deal with matters well outside the safety of the Kingdoms.
/And in other news, another group of kidnapped children has been found in an abandoned facility located in the center of Sanus. Fortunately, none of the children seems to be harmed and are safely returned to their families, thanks to the Huntsmen and Huntresses./ Lavender continued, showing a photo of a group of kids gathering around a Huntsman and Huntress, who are being congratulated by the parents. /This marks the seventh occurrence of a series of kidnappings all throughout Remnant in the past twenty-years and to this day, it is still unknown who the culprit, or culprits, are and if the kidnappings are connected to one another. Many have raised the question of the White Fang being the cause, but there are some speculations of the Quincy cult organization, the Wandenreich, being the perpetrators due to the facility being in close proximity to Lopt. Currently, there are no answers to either confirm or deny any of these claims./ The holographic screen turned off, courtesy of Tatsuki.
"Those poor children..." Orihime said, her eyes saddened. "I'm happy that they've returned to their homes." She picks up a bottle of chocolate syrup and squirts some chocolate on her beans. "Their families must have been so worried."
Tatsuki turns to Uryū. "Weren't you kidnapped before?"
"Yes," Uryū answered. "But it was more about ransom due to the status of my family." That's not surprising. The Ishida family have taken ownership of many hospitals and medical facilities, which includes the Atlesian Medical Center. So of course, by being such an elite family would garner unsavory attention.
Silence fell as everyone eats, enjoying their meal, every now and again new conversations starts among, whether it's about recent events, school or what happened over the new year break. Ichigo can't help but smile to himself as the sight of his friends. It felt like it was yesterday when all eight of them first sat on this table, awkward silence and all.
All is good.
Next Chapter: The New Step