disclaim : manga belongs to Tite Kubo

Chapter 7: training

When Ryuu woke up the next day, or what he thought for that matter, he felt much better. Standing up, he went to the mirror in the room and looked back at his body. He didn't look like a five year old, that was pushing it, but no more than 8.

He had always been compared to a 6 year old brat from kindergarten, as his 'friends' used to say. Seeing as his body when back some years didn't make him that happy. He had a height complex, and knowing that your body doesn't look more than 8 didn't help.

He send a push toward the mirror, glass flying around him. Seeing through the cracked glass he could see the figure of his uncle behind him.

"I don't think punching the glass is going to make you grow faster," he said sarcastically. "Actually, if I remember correctly, it gives you 7 years of misfortune."

"I don't care about crappy believes," he said though his teeth.

"I just came by to tell you Urahara is ready to start your training."

"What ever," said Ryuu before following his uncle out. Opening a crack in the floor, he soon could see where his uncle was taking him: the training room from before. Oh, joy.

Looking more clearly at his surroundings he saw, Ururu holding a bunch of fruits in her hands and Tessai holding onto something that looked like doors.

"Ah Abarai," sang the owner of the shop happily as they got nearer. "I suppose it's time for you to leave."

Ryuu looked at his uncle as if he could tell him what was going on. No such chance.

"See you later kiddo," he only said before waving over his shoulder and walking through the door thingy. Running to the other side, he saw his uncle was gone.

"What just happened?"

"Oh, Kurosaki junior, nice of you to join your training classes. We will start with the basics." He went of gesturing Ryuu to follow. Yet a day with no answers he thought bitterly.

When the owner stopped he was looking at Ryuu smiling. He showed one finger.

"First I want to know if you are ready?" The youngster looked baffled.

"yeah, I suppose," he struggled off.

"Ara, ara, that's not what I asked." He said putting away his fan an gesturing to the zanpakutou Ryuu was clutching to his side. "I asked, are you ready?"

"Yes, I guess," he said unsure of what exactly they were talking about.

"Are you ready?" He said in an even more severe way.

"How am I supposed to know if I'm ready if I don't know what in the world you are talking about," he said back.

"To fight," he said putting the fan in one of the pockets of his jacket. "Are you ready?"

The teen looked at the sword before un sheltering it and throwing the shelter away. "Yes," he said with more guts.

"I see, good." Kisuke walked away and picked up the shelter. Then, out of nowhere, he destroyed it. Ryuu could only watch with fright and admiration.

"Why did you do that?" He said when he could talk again, but before he got an answer back, he got a fruit in the back of his head. And an other.

"You said you were ready," smiled Urahara, "doesn't look that way to me. Keep an eye out for the opponent."

Turning around he faced Ururu with that sweet face of hers. She didn't take him seriously at all.

"The point of this exercise is not to hurt Ururu, but see if you could use that sword of yours to anything else than showing of. " Ryuu really wanted to punch that man in the face about right now.

Back to his opponent, he understood why she had that bowl of fruit now. Not soft fruit either. There were apples, lots of apples, half eaten might he add. There were pineapples, oranges, coconuts, where in the world did that pathetic shopkeeper find coconuts. It hit him in the head once or twice.

He didn't like to brag, but even at a young age he had been great at using weapons of all sort and in different types of martial art. It did help that he had an uncle and an aunt that took it upon themself to train him the best they could, and a mother that made sure he had his focus on everything since she attract out of nowhere.

When he came into the process, the boy actually started to enjoy himself. Closing out the world, he focused solemnly on the one throwing random things at him, as it seems she was finished throwing fruits at him. Now she just run around gathering rocks and fallen fruits at him. As on instinct, Ryuu made his way closer and closer to Ururu. That well, that the tip of the blade was touching the lower part of her neck when he got back into the world.

He heard the sly laugh of the owner. "That's good. I suppose we can go over to part two," he said while raising his hand and showing of two of his fingers. "Ururu please go get your zanpakuto," the girl bowed before disappearing. "Try not to die," he told Ryuu before sitting down again where he was only moments ago.

That's when he noticed the bracelet on his arm. It wasn't any thing fancy really, just a plastic bracelet. Well, so he thought before said artifact started to glow. The pain flooded through his veins.

"What are you doing to me?" He screamed clutching his arm to try and take of the artifact.

"I'm testing your limits. Try and see if you can take it of. Though I would advise you not to use your zanpakuto."

He had to admit that was a tempting thing to do, but he wasn't that mad as to cut of his arm just to satisfy hat and clothes. Bending over he went into panic mode as he remembered the pit. This wasn't a test of one's spiritual energy. This was a mental limit test. Noticing it didn't help him take the pain away though. It worsen it. He felt the pain stab him in the leg. Reminded him of the time he was bullied. All the time. Never resting. Seems like the bracelet took forth all the memories trapped down in his body and made them replay in his mind, if that was even possible.

He lied down with tears in the eyes as he remembered that sunny day he watched a friend die. His only friend had been a dog he adopted since he was stray. The owner of said dog didn't want it, so why couldn't he get it? A sunny day in may, the dog died as a car ran over him. Had the car passed the road five seconds before, Ryuu would have been the one to die that day.

The blood tasted bitterly in his mouth as he remembered the first day in middle school. The older ones making fun of him for being small. Everything got worse when they had seen his eyes. He didn't know if people were afraid of him or envious of his eyes, but nothing changed the fact that he got beaten up every day at school. He needed to admit that those experience helped tighten his resolved to learn how to fight.

"Would you mind giving us an other weather than storms and rain. The lightning is starting to get on my nerves." Said voice resonated in his head. He had completely forgotten about that reptile.

"Thank you for forgetting your inner world," he said sarcastically. "You do know I can read your thoughts if I want to, right?" Said the amused voice.

He stood up on shaky legs and hold tight the hilt of the zanpakuto. The pain was still unbearable, but somehow the words of his dragon made him think twice about what he was doing. This was only a test, if he couldn't even do this, then how in the world was he going to find out all the secrets his mother had been keeping from him.

Than it hit him: why didn't the owner want him to use his zanpakuto? Simple, that was the only thing that could destroy said bracelet. No one said anything about cutting of his arm.

Hey, he thought to his white friend, any idea how I can use the sword to cut the bracelet and not my hand?

"You, young man, have a lot to learn," he said as if what he was proposing was stupid. "I would never hurt you even if you point your sword at your self. If you know in your mind that the sword would not cut your skin, then it wouldn't."

Ryuu looked amazed at his hand and the sword. Not really thinking twice about what the dragon said, he lifted his sword high up and let it crash against the bracelet in a loud noise. When he looked again, the ground was covered in debris, but along the line he cut the artifact, a thin stripe of blood was visible.

I thought you told me you wouldn't hurt me, he said accusingly.

"I don't understand why you don't trust me? I'm a part of your soul, not an enemy. That is not my fault. That is you not believing in yourself."

Before he could answer however, he needed to block the upcoming slash that was sent toward him by none other than Ururu. Looking over his shoulder to Urahara, he could see him smile broadly holding up three fingers. Third test began.

In the start he didn't think it would be this complicated to fight against Ururu, mostly because he had fought her many times before and never had he had any problems. But the further they got in the fight, the more he understood how much she was holding back while training with him.

Her sword was simple really. It had a golden hilt and a blade long and sharp. The orange thread that was feasted to the hilt, was raped around her hand and up to her neck. She wasn't smiling either and her face had absolute focus on him and his movements. How in the world was he going to win this thing? Urahara didn't really think he could beat that woman, did he? Watching as she prepared to swing an easy blow at him, the grown under her started to vibrate and around her a circle of what he might thing as dust particles was forming. As she raised her sword 5 meter away from her, he didn't know what in the world she was doing. Until she send it flying toward him.

In a last minute luck, he dodged away. The grown he was standing on seconds before was gone. Instead lay a huge scare on the surface of the training ground. Looking amazed and terrified back at Ururu, he really was wondering how on earth he got into this situation.

Running was what he started doing while the woman send slashes of energy toward him leaving huge holes in the earth. He needed to jump over them now that the ground was only covered in them. Coming too fast toward him, he opted for his last result and took up his zany thingy to protect himself. Opening his eyes he was surprised he was still alive. On both side of him was a huge crack as if he just split the bean in two.

"You really do forget me all the time, don't you?" Said the amused voice in his head.

Good timing, Ryuu thought back when he started running again, what do that crazy dude want? Please tell me you know?

"Oh because you trust me know?" He could discern both anger and anticipation in the reptiles voice.

What kind of crappy question is that? You live in my brain. Though more time than not, I do believe I am going crazy.

"Well then I leave you to your fun. Watch up a head." In fact, the beam came tumbling toward him and hit him straight on. He felt the real impact when he hit the ground again. Not giving up, he stood up again.

Are you going to help me or not, he screamed internally.

"What can I help you with kid?"

How do I fight back, and what in the world is she doing with her sword?

"Zanpakuto, kid. It's a zanpakuto. How many times do I have to tell you before you get it? As for what she's doing, she's simply using her zanpakuto like you are supposed to."

How do I do that?

"Are you ready?" Ryuu nodded even if he knew that who ever so him there must think he was crazy. "Then say it." He hold up the sword and screamed.

Ryuu didn't know what happened really. All happened in a blur. One minute he was running and the next, the spot next to Ururu was just a crack in the ground, and Urahara stood in front of her with a red type of shield.

"Good," he said. "I think we are going to wait a bit before we get on with the training. Don't you think you need to learn a bit more about yourself before continuing?"

That's when Ryuu noticed the mass in his hand. It was cold at touch but somehow burning too. Looking at the shining white blade in his hand, he recognized it as the one he pulled out in the pit.

"So this is your true form?" He said in a small whisper smiling to himself.

Feeling the sensation of something on his back, he drew the other one too. This one was burning under his touch. The white ribbon protecting it went off to show a beautiful black sword, or zanpakuto. He didn't know this one. Didn't tell him anything and silent as it could be. He turned it in his hand before putting it back over his shoulder where it was supposed to be. The white ribbon protected it, came hanging around his bust again.

"Maybe you would want to speak with your mother," came the serious voice of hat and cloth. Never had he heard him this serious. "You should be able to find her in the town. Just remember to come back here when you are done talking so I can give you your new gigai."

He turned away from the questioning boy. "Oh and by the way," he said with his usual voice. "As a soul you can walk in the air."

Not wanting to wait any longer he tried to put the white zanpakuto over his shoulder. Magically the black ribbon attached around the hilt and flying in the air, wrapped itself around the blade and the rest came around his bust, exactly like the other one.

Trying Urahara's method he leaped up toward the exit only to notice he actually could fly. Smiling to himself he flew out the house. He didn't need to think twice when hat and cloth told him his mother was outside to know where she was. What he hadn't expected was to see a much younger version of his mother standing on one of the lamppost.

"I know," he said weakly into the air as he came closer to the person looking out toward the orange horizon. He had nearly been certain that he was adopted after everything that had happened. He did feel relieved however when he saw his mother dressed up in a black attire just as his uncle, black hair flying in the wind.

"I suppose you do," she said weakly into the air, not looking at him. When he came beside her, he was surprised to see her look that young. But in the same time it made sense. She didn't look any older than 18 or something. What surprised him was the ash black hilt and the flame like shelter on her side.

"Souls don't grow as fast as humans," she said to his unasked question. "I'm sorry about the other day, I didn't think you would skip school."

She sat down on the air patting the empty place beside her. He looked skeptical before deciding it wouldn't be so strange to sit three meter above the ground after all he had been through in the past day.

"By the way," she said with mirth in her voice, "it's Monday tomorrow, and you have skipped a whole week. Think about all the classes you have to take." He grunted back. They sat in a comfortable silence until the sun was entirely gone and the sky was filled with bright stars.

"Where's sis?" He asked innocently.

"Rangiku's watching her right now." He didn't exactly know how to ask his mother, heck, he didn't even know where to start. Finally he asked the first thing that came to mind.

"How's your zanpakuto?" At this, his mother laughed.

"Bossy," she said after calming down. "Really, really bossy. Some just says that was just my personality thrown back to my face. So how is yours?" She said gesturing toward the two blades strapped at his back.

"One of them is bossy, angry, cold and really not fun to have a discussion with. He answers half my question with questions and don't believe me when I tell him something." Said the boy crossing his arms while making a face. "I don't think he likes me."

His mother just giggled. No he couldn't believe it, but that sure sounded like giggling. He watched in shock as she recomposed herself.

"You know what I think? I think you don't like him because he sounds exactly like you," she trailed of when she saw something in his hair. Reaching for the part she looked at she suddenly became sad and pulled her hand back.

"What is it?" He asked trying to see for himself to no use.

"Nothing," she waved of, but he knew his mother and that was that kind of face she always had that same day. That sad face that made him want to huge her. "I'm just happy we can finally talk about spirits together," she said before laying on her back looking up at the stars.

"Mom," he started carefully, "who is my dad?" He could see her body tense at the simple mention of him, she always did. "Is he like you? I mean can he do these kind of things?" She looked sadly back at him, caressing his untamable hair.

"I'm sorry," she said weakly. "I truly am sorry for not telling you about him, it's just," she trailed of looking toward the horizon. "It's just that it really hurts."

"I'm not adopted, am I?" He said in a pled. She gave him one of those sincere and sweet smiled she gave him when he was younger and scared.

"No sweetie, you're not adopted."

"Then why can't you tell me anything about him? Is he dead?" He knew he was being unfair with her, but he has been living a lie for sixteen years straight. "He wasn't in the military, was he? He never died on a ship in the war. Answer me. Who am I?"

He had started to hiccup as all the memories came back to him. All the stories he heard about his dad and about his act of bravery in the war. They had no pictures because that was to painful apparently. His voice cracked at the end of his sentence.

"Who am I?" He asked desperately toward his mother that had tears running down her face. She hold him tight in her arms. Even if she looked barely older than him, he still felled immensely relieved to be in her embrace. She was still his mother what ever age.

"Shush, sweet boy, don't cry. Don't cry you will see the sun again," she sang sweetly in his ears until he calmed down. It was an ancient lullaby she sang to him.

"He was strong," she said weakly in his ear. "Always fighting for what he thought was the right thing." She rocked him back and forth sweetly. "He never grew much and had cold staring eyes looking like two orbs of solid ice piercing your soul. A few shapes darker than yours. You got his eyes sweetie."

He looked up at her sniffing. "I already know that. That's the only thing I know about him." He felt somehow stupid for crying. Maybe he really was just a kid after all.

"He fell in love with a human," she said finally after holding on to him a bit longer. "For that he was punished by his higher up and they made sure he suffered. He never came back and he never got to know you."

"Why?" Asked the boy confused back.

"Because he fell in love with a human soul. One that didn't belong to soul society. One that he was supposed to guard so she didn't get attacked by a bunch of hollows. One he trained for three years before realizing he loved her, five before he admitted it. One he must suffer for because she never really understood what they put on the line."

He was amazed by his mother's self control. The tears were flowing out of her eyes, but her voice had no trace of sadness. She looked toward the horizon. "This was his spot."

"How do you do that?" He asked amazed. "I mean, keeping such a neutral voice?"

"Someone in this world actually knows how to hide their feelings," she said while smiling.

He couldn't feel happy to know about his dad when the only thing he could see was the hurt in his mother's eyes. He fell asleep with great difficulties that night. He had been a soul reaper that had come to earth to watch over his mother. They had fallen in love and because of that he needed to grow up without a father. Somehow, that really pissed him off.

Karin sat in the living room when Rangiku came back from an other hollow murder near the bridge. There were getting more and more lately.

"Good thing Ryuu is finally learning how to use his spiritual pressure. I don't think we can last very long before they start being able to track him down." She looked over a the pensive face of Karin. "What did you tell him?" She asked sitting down on the opposite side.

"Just that his dad was punished for loving a human."

"Not saying she was too for leading him on?" She said resting back against the soft sofa.

"He doesn't need to know all the truth just yet."

"What will you do when they come get him?" She ask after a while. "Because I hope you know they will track him down and they will bring him to soul society either he wants it or not."

"I know," she said absently.

"Okay, I know that look," she said fuming, "what's on your mind?"

"White locks," she whispered. "There was a white lock in his hair after he used his zanpakuto."

"And you believe what exactly?"

"He has an elemental zanpakuto. Two blades opposite of each other. One white as snow the other black as ash. Don't tell me that doesn't tell you anything."

"I saw them too, you know? And just because he has two blades doesn't mean he has higher spiritual energy than the norm."

Karin just looked at her while rolling her eyes as to say she didn't buy it one bit. "We should probably warn him about the possibility someone will drag him away soon," she said before leaving.

Thanks for reading :D