Chapter 5 – Villains of the Academy (Killer with a potential)
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach.
"Normal speech"
'Inner speech/thoughts'
'Inner hollow/Zanpaktou speech'
xxx
Intently staring at the ceiling of his room, Ichigo's pupils were dilated as he tried to overcome the trembling of his body. It was an early Thursday morning and the new student of the Shinō Academy had just woken up from a nightmare. His chest rose and fell in a rapid motion; his breathing was accelerated. He blinked, causing his senses and mind to fully wake up. The cold and unpleasant sweat was covering most of his body and he touched his forehead with the palm of his right hand.
"Ugh, that was…" He groaned and glanced at the clock. It was barely six in the morning. With a sigh, he laid his head back on the pillow. His eyes found the same spot on the ceiling he had been staring at moments ago and his mind began to wander.
'…that dream… I'm sure it was a memory of my mother dying. Or wasn't it? My memories are still a bit unorganized and some are a bit hazy…' He raised his hand and looked at the back of his palm.
'If that was my mom, why was her skin covered in something like that? I'm certain I remember seeing a weird pattern on her hands…'
He narrowed his eyes and glared at his own hand for a while longer, trying to grasp other pieces of information from the dream. It was useless. Just like any other dream most people produce in their sleep, Ichigo's nightmare was the same in a sense that it slowly slithered away from his mind, leaving only a lingering emotion behind. When he realized it, the teen scoffed and slowly sat on the bed. No point in dwelling on something which had probably happened a long time ago.
A single bead of sweat traveling across his body, from his neck to his abdomen, reminded him the uncomfortable feeling he had and so, with a yawn, he stood up and entered the bathroom. Enjoying a cold shower moments later, he put one of his hands on the wall. As the water splashed against his skin, he recalled the rest of his first day at the academy.
There wasn't much to recall, though. The only class he'd had the previous day was Zanjutsu-practice and after the instructor made him spar with him, nothing extreme had happened. The man had completely ignored the fact that many students had apparently recognized Ichigo to be the person of a quite famous rumor. The teen had received the same treatment as the rest of them. While he was thankful for it, them knowing who he was troubled him. In the first place, he didn't even understand how they could know him. He had been travelling the Rukongai only for a few weeks, certainly not long enough to gain such a well-known rumor, bordering on a legend. Was what he had done so deserving the fame? 'No', Ichigo shook his head. What he had done was the absolute opposite. He should be treated not as a hero or a legend or anything even remotely similar but as a villain. The thin line he was treading on was just scarcely separating him from being a complete criminal.
Water in the shower got colder, snapping Ichigo out of his thoughts. Twisting the faucet, he enjoyed a bit of the warm water before stepping out. He grabbed the toothbrush, something the academy provided him with for free and returned back to his thoughts. Dully brushing his teeth, a frown appeared on his face.
'Tora, huh…?'
He wasn't sure what to think. Yes, it troubled him because of the reasons he listed a few minutes ago. On the other hand, maybe it was for the better. Maybe the rumor about him and his actions would help him achieve a piece of mind during his stay at the academy. After all, who would want to annoy somebody that had killed so much already?
He spat the remaining toothpaste in the sink and dried his mouth with a towel, his frown increasing. There was another thing that had been bothering the teen. He had arrived to the academy after the semester began, which meant he was behind in the curriculum. Zanjutsu, Hohō, Hakuda, Gotei 13 and Practical Shinigami, these were the subjects he was confident he could catch up with easily. However, Kidō class was a completely different case. He was practically sure he was going to have troubles with it. The teen based it on the way he was able, or more like unable, to reproduce what Rukia had showed him during the short journey to the Seiretei.
A grimace crept on his face. He glanced at the clock to see it was still only half past six and so, walking out of the bathroom, he neared the shelf with the textbooks. Retrieving a book on Kidō, he put it on the table and sat on the chair. He was going to make sure that Kidō wouldn't be out of his reach.
…
Having ten minutes before the class on Hohō was supposed to begin, Ichigo leisurely wandered through the corridors of the Academy. His distinctive frown was present on his face, showing the other students he was passing by just how much he wanted to be left alone. Although, it appeared to be not working as he thought it would. No matter how much he glared or glowered at them, the people passing him by were hell-bent on loudly whispering and some of them were even openly gawking at him.
"…did you see him? That was Tora."
"You mean that Tora?"
"What is he doing here?"
"H-he's a bit scary though…"
"Do you think I could get his autograph?"
The last comment was the last straw and Ichigo located its author. Giving him the dirtiest and scariest glare he could muster, a quiet growl escaped his lips.
'Are these people brain-dead or what? An autograph? What do they think I am? Who do they think I am? Some kind of a celebrity, damn it?' He watched as a duo of teenagers hastily scrambled away as soon as they noticed his eyes boring a hole in their heads. But even this didn't discourage others to whisper all kinds of things about him and the more students he passed by, the deeper his frown got.
"That's him, right?"
"Yeah, trying to look cool."
"Pfft, who does he think he is… low-class trash…"
Ichigo stopped in front of the door leading to his next class and slightly turning his head to the right, he glanced at a group of boys glaring at him from behind. They looked a bit different from other students. The clothes they were wearing appeared to be expensive and their eyes were the eyes of somebody who thought of himself better than anybody else. His eyelids lowered, Ichigo scanned their faces to try and remember them.
'They must be from a noble clan…' He thought and turned back to the door. Pushing them open, a small revelation hit him.
Even though he was in Afterlife, trying to become a proper shinigami in his death, things were just like in the Human World. Shin'ō Academy of Spiritual Arts was still a simple school with diverse types of students. It was precisely the same as the Karakura High School. He chuckled.
And here he thought it would be something completely different.
A single sun ray caused him to blink and he shielded his eyes with a hand. The classroom he had entered wasn't a classroom at all. It was more like a playground. Consisting of multiple running tracks, the area reminded him of a stadium for athletics. The running tracks varied in their length, the shortest one being around one hundred meters and the longest one around five times longer. Ichigo wasn't surprised by this sight. The class was supposed to be Hohō-practice and where else would one have it if not somewhere with enough space. However, the sudden transition between the school's corridors and the natural outside caught him off-guard for a second.
When his eyes allowed him to look anywhere without having them squinted, the teen spotted the Chief instructor Gengorō Ōnabara standing next to the shortest running track. Since other students began to gather around him, Ichigo followed the suit and walked closer.
Until he was sure every student from his class was present, the man didn't usher a single word. But after that, he pointed behind him and expectantly looked at his students.
"Quiet down brats. Until today, you've been forbidden to use an actual Shunpo during the practice. It was due to the fact that it could have ended with your tendons torn or worse. I had all of you just trying to apply the instruction you've received at the Hohō-theory classes. I do hope you remember them." He stated in a low voice, carefully studying their faces. Raising his arm, he pointed his finger at one student.
"Shoyuugarū Sakura! Remind us what it is all of you should already know." The girl in question jumped a bit at his raised voice and rapidly nodded.
"Y-yes, sir. For the high-speed movement called Flash Step or Shunpo, one needs to concentrate his reiatsu output to the sole of his feet and, using it as a propeller, he releases the concentrated reiatsu in an explosive manner. Thanks to that, his body travels forward until the portion of reiatsu runs out or he consciously limits it." She hastily explained, gulping when Gengorō stared at her.
"That was exactly what your textbooks tell you. It is not wrong but the explanation is a bit stiff. I won't change it or else you'd be confused. However, when you try it, listen to what your body says and don't try to necessarily do something your body doesn't want to do." The man allowed the female student to step back and shook his head in amusement when the rest of the students began to whisper. He could almost feel their excitement.
"Yes, as you have guessed, today you will finally try to perform the basic Shunpo. Don't try to show off and just do what your body is comfortable with. I don't want to see somebody tearing up his legs because he used too much of his spiritual energy. Form groups of four, stand at the edge of the running track and show me what you got."
Ichigo, along with the rest of the students, watched as four of their classmates stepped up and, under the vigilant stare of the instructor, did as told. When only one of them successfully moved from one place forward without falling down on his face, Ichigo quietly groaned.
'Isn't this allegedly a special class for gifted students? They did better yesterday and even that wasn't very impressive.' He wondered in dismay. However, his mood improved a bit when the next group of four students tried Shunpo. Of course, the first group experienced a disappointed sigh of their instructor.
As the minutes passed, Ichigo found himself frowning. While students that came after the first group mostly did well and managed to produce something that was closely resembling an actual Shunpo, it was nothing worth celebrating. It was nothing like what Rukia had told him. When the petite shinigami had described him what the Academy was during her time at it, he had been expecting a facility producing warriors and not… this.
Either he had extreme expectations of it, or the standard at the Academy sank compared to Rukia's time here. If the latter was true, something must have went horribly wrong. Otherwise, there was no way somebody could consider this class to be a special accelerated one. Not after watching the students perform in it. He raised his head when Gengorō's voice entered his ears.
"Ah, so the celebrity is the last one, along with Shoyuugarū, huh?" Ichigo ignored him and turned his head to the left to glance at the girl with pink hair nervously walking to the instructor. With a sigh, he followed her.
"So, Tora-kun, you look a bit bored. Do you think this class is a waste of your precious time?"
The teen narrowed his eyes and gazed at the man's face.
'He's trying really hard to piss me off.'
"If I learn something new, it is not a waste of my time. If." He replied, putting an emphasis on the conjunction. Hearing his response, Gengorō's mouth formed a ghost smile. Soon after that, he chuckled.
"Witty brat. And here I went through all the trouble of having Shoyuugarū remind us what we have learned so far. It was all for you and now you're trying to tell me you knew it? Aw, do tell that sooner next time." He stated and motioned Ichigo and the girl to prepare. In the next instant, Ichigo performed the Shunpo he had been using for the past few weeks, corrected with a bit of Yoruichi's guiding.
The rest of the students saw him disappear, their eyes not trained to be able to keep up with such speed. When they realized the person that suddenly appeared at the end of the running track was Ichigo, many had their jaws on the ground. However, there was a good amount of those, who were staring at his distant figure with a frown. In a flash, the teen returned back on the starting position and calmly looked Gengorō in the eye.
"So? How was it?" He asked. The man raised one eyebrow and a peculiar look showed up in his eyes. Ichigo's question caused his classmates to glare at him, as they thought he was trying to show off. But before anybody else could say anything, the teen continued.
"I ask again. How was it? Did I do anything wrong? I have learned this by myself so I'm not sure if I did it properly. Do your thing… what the instructor is supposed to do and criticize me. Otherwise this class will really be a waste of time."
Gengorō was silent for a moment and just closely studied Ichigo's face. Both of them completely ignored the murmurs coming from the rest of the students. Finally, the instructor's hand moved and he scratched his chin with it. A quiet snort escaped his nose and with a grin, he shook his head.
"No, what you just performed was a long step ahead of what the first years should be able to do. To be able to Shunpo one-hundred meters in a… single step? Yeah, I think it, was a single step. To be able to do that is impressive. I'll restrain myself from rating your actual Shunpo skills until I see you perform more of them but, so far, I'd say you're way ahead of most students at this Academy." He trailed off and turned to the rest of the students as the murmurs were getting louder.
"You lot, repeat the process until you think you successfully managed to do a proper Shunpo. Again, do it in groups of four people. Remember, don't show off or there will be some serious repercussions." Gengorō exclaimed and as the students nodded and obediently did as told, he grabbed Ichigo's shoulders, ignoring the teen's flinch. With a slight push, he nudged the teen to walk with him. As they were nearing the longest running track in the area, he spoke again.
"Listen here, Kurosaki. I think we need to talk."
Ichigo, until now willingly letting himself to be dragged across the field, narrowed his eyes. From what he could recall from his memories, every time a teacher had taken him away to talk to him in private, it had meant trouble. Making a small step to the side, he shook off the hand from his shoulder and waited for the inevitable with a composed expression. The Chief instructor noticed his stiff posture and waved with his hand.
"You're not in trouble so relax. It's quite the opposite… what am I going to do with you, Kurosaki?" Seeing the man sigh, Ichigo's eyes showed a minor confusion. How H
"What do you mean?"
The man chuckled.
"Ah, you know, I'm your teacher, you should at least try to be polite. The way your speak makes you sound quite arrogant."
"Don't change the subject. And I show respect to those who earn it." Ichigo quickly replied in a calm tone. One of Gengorō's eyes twitched but he remained calm as well.
"You're lucky you're interesting otherwise I'd have a problem with your attitude. Nevertheless, my main concern is the fact you appear to be too skilled for this class. It's true that so far I've seen only bits of your Zanjutsu skill and one Shunpo but taking the results of your entrance exam into account, I think I'm right." He explained and saw the teen frown.
"And how is this bad?" Ichigo asked, confused.
"It's not bad per say. However, if what I think about you is true, then it would be a shame to have such a talented brat getting held back just because he was assigned to a bad class. Saying that, I want you to show me your true skills at Shunpo. To be precise, your fastest Shunpo and your longest Shunpo you can muster within a single step. After that, I'd like to see you run one circle at the running track on our left to determine how quickly you can change directions while using a Shunpo." Gengorō stated, pointing with his finger to the side. When he noticed Ichigo's reluctant expression, he spoke once more.
"You don't have to do this, of course. However, you'll be robbing yourself of the opportunity to study properly and something new. Staying in this class would be more of a hindrance to you."
Ichigo closed his eyes for a moment. He wanted to properly think this through. He opened them with only one second delay and sighed. It was pointless to think about it. What Gengorō told him was true. There was no point in contemplating. He himself came to this school with an intention to finish it as quickly as possible.
"Fine."
Gengorō nodded to him, motioning him to start anytime he wanted to.
'The fastest Shunpo, huh?' Ichigo thought and in a burst of speed, he flashed across the track to land several dozen meters away. Returning back to the man, he expectantly looked at him.
"So?"
Gengorō scratched his chin.
"Okay, that was fast. One question though, explain the length of the step."
Not sure if he understood him right, Ichigo squinted his eyes, trying to think about the answer.
"Well, if I've gone further, the speed would only decrease. If I've gone a shorter distance, it wouldn't allow me to reach the top speed."
"Good."
Positioning himself at the beginning of the track again, Ichigo cracked his neck joints.
'Now, the longest.'
Pushing himself forward, he tried to sustain the Flash step for as long as possible, before his feet eventually landed on the solid ground. He glanced behind to see his instructor looking at him from a good distance afar. Trying to measure the distance he crossed, his gaze fell upon the rest of the track that lay in front of him. While he wasn't disappointed, he wasn't very much satisfied either. It appeared he had flashed through something less than a half of the running track, which made his longest Shunpo to be slightly above two hundred meters. The teen knew he should feel overjoyed with the results but, being hard on himself, he couldn't.
Flashing back to Gengorō's large figure, he did his own analysis.
'I did get quite far, but it took too much time. After about half of the step, my speed began to decrease too much. I still have a lot of room to improve.'
When he landed next to Gengorō, the man was silent and motioned him to continue with flashing around the last running track, oval in shape. After Ichigo did that too, it was only then that the man spoke again.
"It's just like I suspected. You're too good for this class. Taking everything you showed to me into consideration, all of my five senses are telling me you should be taking Hohō classes at least with the fifth-years. Your speed is undoubtedly on par with a seated officer of the Gotei 13 which is… nothing short of amazing. I want to say you should be taking classes even with sixth-years, however, watching you continuously use Shunpo at the last running track, I can't. You are obviously not used to prolonged use of high-level Shunpo. Before you say anything I'll add my observations from the Zanjutsu class too first. I haven't seen all of your abilities in that area so I can't be sure but you definitely belong to a higher-level class." While he talked, Ichigo watched him calm eyes, but on the inside he was furiously thinking. He still wasn't sure what this was all about. After the man ended his speech, Ichigo voiced his thoughts.
"I still don't get it. What do you want me to do?"
Gengorō folded his arms and gave him a serious stare.
"It's not about what I want you to do. It's about what you want to do. You seem eager to learn. I don't know your backstory and frankly, I don't give a damn about it. However, I see your present self and it's a brat hungry for a knowledge. Long story short, I can arrange for you to have classes on the level you should be having them. You'd study and practice with your upperclassmen." He explained and his piercing gaze forced Ichigo to narrow his eyes.
Without a doubt, it was an excellent offer. An offer Ichigo almost certainly couldn't refuse. It perfectly fit with his plan on finishing the Academy as soon as possible. But, wasn't it too good to be true? Ichigo was unquestionably not as naïve as he had been in the past; the events of the past few weeks, even months have made him suspicious of the human's nature. Ultimately, even Kazumi, a person who sacrificed her life for him, told him the whole truth only at the very end. Because of that, his mind was questioning his instructor's intentions; where was the man going with it, how could he use the teen for his own purposes.
"Why?"
Seeing his question confused the older man, Ichigo elaborated further.
"Why would you help me? What is it that you gain by that?"
Ichigo's unwavering stare caused the other man to mentally flinch. He could see the teen's eyes that, while undoubtedly calm, betrayed many emotions hiding somewhere deep. His brow furrowed and a simple thought crossed his mind.
'What did he go through to gain such suspicion of others…?'
He blinked, clearing his mind and, trying to sound honest, replied in a serious voice.
"Nothing. There is virtually nothing I'd personally gain. You're mistaking what I'm doing for something you'd owe me for. I can assure you this is not the case. You'll owe me nothing. I have been an instructor at the Shin'ō Academy for the past two centuries and to this day, I still am just this, an instructor. I don't like brats, in the most cases I don't care for their lives. However, at heart I'm but a teacher and I just can't do nothing when I see a brat with an incredible potential. Why would I help you? Because I simply don't want to see you go to waste, brat. If you still don't believe me and insist I'll force you to owe me, you can repay me by not betraying my expectations. Learn, study, practice and use that thing you have in yourself. Your potential." His words were intriguing, his speech long and his voice deadly serious and Ichigo stared at Gengorō with an unfathomable expression.
The teen could feel it. The one small spark of flame within his being. The tiny bit of hope that this world contained even a person like this. A person truly dedicated to his cause, somebody who was able to do something selfless for a stranger. Closing his eyes, he noticed a second spark inside of him and a smile of disbelief forced the corners of his mouth upwards. He almost forgot. The person standing in front of him wasn't the only one who offered something to him without wanting anything back in return. There was also one raven-haired woman. She was a shinigami, something he detested and it was holding his sense of trust back from making a connection with her. However, hearing his instructor's words, a miniscule crack appeared in the shell that was hiding this sense. He looked up and changed the small smile into a neutral expression which still somehow radiated acceptance.
"Fine."
…
Ichigo was leaving the area for the Hohō class deep in thought. Since he had decided to accept Gengorō's offer, the man had explained it to him further. He would take care of the administration stuff but it wouldn't be sooner than during the weekend. Until the end of this week, Ichigo would remain in the class he had been assigned to and this way, Gengorō could see his skills from other areas too.
Walking through the crowded corridor, Ichigo tuned out the sound of whispers from the students who recognized him, along with the rest of the voices and reached to his pocket. He took out the map of the Academy and squinted at it, trying to find the dining hall.
He reached it not long after that and the sight of the masses made him grimace. There were many students; too many for his tastes. It reminded him of the memories of Karakura High School he carried with him from his life in the Human World. However, even those memories paled in comparison with this moment. Shin'ō Academy provided tuition to a lot more students that his previous school ever did. Just the sheer space which the dining hall usurped was at least twice as big as the one at Karakura's High School. Small beads of sweat sprouted on his forehead and the nauseous feeling in his stomach from the large crowd of people caused him to keep his head down. Hurriedly, he reached the counter and grabbed various food and with one glance scanned the room for a nice and quiet place. Thankfully, there was one just like that.
Sitting down at an old and abandoned table made for a small crowd, he sighed in relief. Nobody seemed to use this particular table and so he could eat at least in some peace. But it took only few minutes when his right hand moved in a flash and he slapped away a thin arm reaching for his shoulder. His mouth full, he gulped the contents down before speaking.
"Do not touch me."
His words were aimed at a girl with long pink hair styled in pigtails, who was previously sneaking up on him, trying to place one of her hands on his shoulder. The girl widened her pink eyes and offered him a radiant smile.
"Can I sit next to you, Kurosaki-san?"
Pulling his hand back, Ichigo took a gulp from his glass and without looking back he shook his head.
"No."
For an instant, the girl's smile changed into a dangerous grin before she walked around the teen and sat opposite of him at the same table. Narrowing his eyes, Ichigo gave her a short glare.
'What's the point of asking if you're still going to sit…?' He thought.
"Why the glare, Kurosaki-san? I respected your wishes and didn't sit next to you." She said with a smile. Ichigo's eyebrow twitched in annoyance but he decided to ignore the girl and continued to eat. He did it for a few more minutes, when he got an uncomfortable feeling in his gut.
Looking up, he came face to face with the girl, who had been apparently directly staring at his face from the moment she sat down. She was sitting motionlessly, just staring at him. Her unwavering gaze, coupled with an odd glint in her eyes made the uncomfortable feeling in the teen's gut grow larger and more uncomfortable. Forcing himself to remain to stay calm, he put his hands on the table.
"What?"
His voice caused the girl to shake her head and blink in surprise.
"Ah, sorry about that. I was just fascinated with the way you ate." She replied, hiding her embarrassed face behind her raised hands. Ichigo watched her with solemn eyes, his instinct telling him to leave the table.
'She's… weird.'
When he opened his mouth to try and make her leave, she beat him to it and spoke again.
"I almost forgot, my name is Yuno, Kyōraku Yuno." She introduced herself and offered him a hand, which he completely ignored. Instead, hearing her full name, the teen stopped eating completely.
'Kyōraku… Kyōraku… where the hell did I hear that name before.' He wondered while Yuno kept her hand in the air, still waiting for a handshake. His mind ventured to a memory of him talking with Rukia and he mentally cursed.
'…right. The Captain of the 8th Division is Shun-something Kyōraku. Great. Just great.'
With slouched shoulders he audibly sighed and scratched his forehead, frustration slowly creeping on his face.
"So, what do you want?"
Unexpectedly, the girl chuckled and repeatedly offered his the radiant smile again. Before she replied, she stood up and walked over the table. When she was behind him, she whispered to him from a close distance.
"Nothing. I just came to introduce myself, Kurosaki-san. I have the feeling we'll meet again."
Feeling a strange chill on his spine, Ichigo shuddered and massaged his ear, wiping the scent of the girl's breath from his skin. Her words, while not ominous, sounded rather strange and made him uneasy. The goose bumps on his arms were just the evidence of it. There was something about the girl he knew he didn't like but couldn't grasp the right word for it.
'Or maybe I'm too paranoid…' He wondered grimly and glanced at the clock. Half of the break for lunch had already passed. Letting go of his thoughts about the girl, he once again became aware of the voices filling the large hall. His heart started to pump blood faster and the adrenaline he previously felt only when fighting rushed into his bloodstream. Pointing his sight at his meal, he took few slow, deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself down. Partially, it helped and he was able to gobble the rest of the food in a couple mouthfuls. But the tingling in his gut didn't completely disappear and after a few more minutes, he dragged himself out, away from the large crowd. As he was passing through the entrance and headed towards the next class, he missed a pair of pink eyes intently staring at him from a respectable distance.
…
With one knee on the ground, Ichigo coughed and spit some blood, letting bits of it drip from his chin. Growling in anger and self-dissatisfaction, he strained his muscles and willed himself to jump forward. Two blades met in a dance of sparks, illuminating the faces of the two combatants. One was Ichigo's very own face twisted in resolve and a bit of pain. The other one was almost identical, but with a small distinction. Unlike Ichigo's, this one was twisted in a hysterical grin, thirsty for fight and blood-shedding.
"You're slowly getting better, Ichigooo!" The zanpakuto spirit exclaimed in a perversely satisfied tone before blowing Ichigo backwards with a swift kick. Following a crash of the body into the wall of a skyscraper, remnants of the rubble burst to all sides, revealing Ichigo's beaten figure. He was leaning on his sword, a series of short chuckles escaping his mouth.
"But it's still not enough for you to tell me your name."
The zanpakuto spirit loudly laughed and lowered its blade.
"Nah, we're just getting started. You're steadily improving but the insatiable recklessness is still vibrating in your sword. You're too eager to know something you may not be ready to know." He said.
Seeing that the fight was over, Ichigo let go of the weapon and fell on his ass, his stamina mostly spent. Ignoring the mess around him, he completely lay down and pressed his back onto the cold surface.
"Too eager, huh?" He sighed.
His albino copy jumped and landed next to him, his fingers twitching.
"Aaah, seeing you lie so comfortably makes it really hard to surpass my instincts telling me to chop you into pieces. Must. Resist!" The spirit grabbed his arm with the other hand, preventing himself from reaching behind for his sword. But the dangerous grin never left his face. Sitting at the ground in a small distance of Ichigo's motionless figure, he spoke again.
"Absolutely-fucking-sure you're too eager. Some shinigami go even decades without knowing the name of their zanpakuto and you want to know mine after what... a week since we first met? And you think I'm a crazy bastard."
From his position on the ground, Ichigo scoffed, flinching a little when a pain shot through his abdomen.
"Like you don't take pride in being a maniac."
"Che, true."
When Ichigo stayed silent for a while, his zanpakuto spirit stood up.
"Che, you're getting too comfy there, Ichigo. You should hurry up and get the hell out of here before I really start chopping you."
The teen opened his eyes and nodded. From the short time he came to know his zanpakuto spirit, he understood one thing. While the spirit was violent and crazy, he was also trying to push him into getting stronger. On the other hand, once he said something like that, it was a sign for Ichigo to leave his mindscape. It seemed as if the spirit had a limited amount of time he could remain sane enough to talk and behave at least a bit civilized when in the company of its wielder. One time Ichigo didn't get the hint and only thanks to the mysterious old man he had survived.
"I'm going…"
He closed his eyes again and let himself go of everything tying him to the place. As his consciousness was fading away, he heard one last thing.
"You're getting good Ichigo. Next time I'll have to release more of my power in order to kick your ass into fucking tomorrow. At this pace, soon enough, I'll maybe even let you take a first test for getting to know my name.
…
Ichigo's eyes snapped open and a wheeze escaped his lips. He was back in his room, comfortably lying in the bed, covered in mild sweat from the exercise he underwent in his mindscape. Rubbing his stomach, his left eye twitched from a sudden pain when his finger touched an especially tender place. With his head raised, he saw a small bruise already forming on his skin.
"…must be from the last kick." He muttered.
From the clock hanging on the wall, he realized it was already night. Since he had returned from his classes, Ichigo apparently spent more than two hours in a combat within his mind. Thus, his second day at the Academy was coming to an end. Similarly to the first one, even this day was full of surprising events. Thankfully, this time they were positive.
Gengorō had dragged him aside even during the Hakuda class and after witnessing Ichigo's skills in the close-quarters combat first-hand he had been only further convinced about his hypothesis. Ichigo truly was too good for the first-year curriculum.
Taking a second shower of this day, Ichigo felt a little nervousness piling up within him. He was having his first Kidō class in the morning. Normally, something like this wouldn't even budge him. A problem like this was almost non-existent next to the hardships eh had faced during the long weeks spent fighting masses of enemies. However, the human mind is an extraordinary thing and it can adapt to one's surroundings in a frightening speed and so Ichigo's unconsciousness was back to its old days of Karakura's High School when the fear of good grade was the only type of fear.
Of course, nothing in life is easy and this case was no different. The teen didn't just magically forget about the faces of men he had slaughtered, the amount of blood he had spilled or the horrified cries of children used for god-knows-what. The images of his short journey in the Afterlife still haunted his young mind. The picture of Kazumi's face still lingered on the back of his consciousness. His reflexes, his resolve to cleanse the Soul Society, his anger and bitterness at the whole system were still there. He still couldn't help himself but to reject any touch of a female. The memories of his last moments as a living human still forced him to grit his teeth. Alas, everything he had been through was still firmly encoded within his body and soul.
But he was no longer living a survival game of life and death every day. He no longer spent his nights under the moonlight, with the sounds of nature waking him up in the morning. Right now, he was just another student living in a large dormitory. Now, his past ordeals resulted in a large amounts of sweat whenever he had to enter a room filled with people, knots in his gut whenever somebody walked up to him from behind and a degree of social awkwardness whenever a fellow student tried to talk to him.
Drying himself with a towel, Ichigo suddenly felt it was enough and so he grabbed his clothes, put them on, reached for his zanpakuto and left the room. In a series of jumps and flashes of Shunpo, he landed on a high roof of the Academy where he could feel a cooling breeze on the skin of his face. The full-moon glowed in the dark, allowing him to view the whole Seiretei from his very position.
There, he was alone only the wind as his companion. He lay there with his eyes closed and let his thoughts wander.
'I'm afraid to be here, Kazumi. I have forgotten what it is to be a simple high-school student. Is it even okay for me to be here? Aren't I trampling upon the mission I have set for myself with you? Am I allowed to live like this with the memories biting off chunks of my mind? Isn't there anything else I can do?'
…
Ichigo's eyebrows twitched in a suppressed annoyance as he tried to ignore the malicious chuckles coming from his classmates. They had finally discovered something in which the teen was quite incompetent and because of this discovery, they had been greatly enjoying these past few minutes.
'…huh, so they hate me after only two days…' A short remark flashed through the teen's mind. The small distraction proved fatal and an invisible force pushed him backwards while the dummy in front of him broke into small pieces.
'Damn.' He mentally cursed.
"I see. Well, I'm not really surprised at this development." Gengorō muttered with narrowed eyes and then sharply turned to the rest of his students.
"I suggest you lot stop laughing your asses off and continue practicing your Kidō spells if you don't want me try my own ones on you." He exclaimed in a grumpy tone and raised one of his hands that started to glow in a menacing light. Staring at their instructor with fearful expressions, the students immediately scrammed and left the area around the teen.
Gengorō glanced at him with a thoughtful expression and motioned him to walk a bit with him. Still disappointed with his inability to properly perform one of the most basic spells, Ichigo begrudgingly stood up and followed the larger man.
Kidō. Yes, as he had expected, Ichigo now knew just how difficult the delicate use of the flow of reiryoku for multiple different purposes could really be. Unlike in Hakuda, Zanjutsu or even Hohō, using force was absolutely useless in Kidō. And using force was what had helped Ichigo to survive until this day. So now, standing alongside his instructor, the two of them watched the rest of the students perform the first Kidō spell from a broad category of numerous other ones.
"Hadō #1: Shō!"
When a good part of the students managed to passable execute it, Gengorō turned to the teen.
"Shō is the most basic spell in the Hadō family of spells. It uses a small amount of the caster's reiryoku to produce a weak blast in a single direction. However, it uses a small amount of energy when we're talking about a normal student in this Academy. It is a different thing with you, Kurosaki."
Seeing the teen staring at the group of his classmates that managed to do a perfect Shō with a clenched jaw, he continued.
"What I'm saying, Kurosaki, is what you should already know. You possesses a lot more reiryoku than a simple student. From the readings during your entrance exam and from what my senses are telling me, your reserves are probably bigger than even mine. That is your problem. While having that much energy is almost never a problem, it becomes a one when you're trying to learn Kidō. It is nothing to be ashamed of." Surprisingly he heard a quiet chuckle, making him raise his eyebrows.
"I'm not ashamed. I'm just frustrated, that's all. Naturally, I knew from the start that my reserves would make it hard for me to learn Kidō. However, I never expected it to be this difficult. It's like… it's like trying to hold water with your hands. I'm sure I understand the fundamental mechanics and principles behind it, the books were quite clear in listing them. I just… can't handle it. The subtle flow of the energy, the delicate task of manipulating it, it all seem like such a bother in a battle, when you have to fight for your life. It's easier just to slash with my sword or to crush with my fist." Ichigo stated, shifting his gaze from the students to the man.
Gengorō silently stared at him for a long time before he called out to the students to switch back to practicing the Bakudō spell number one, Sai. Watching them do as told, he spoke more quietly and addressed his words to the teen.
"It is easier. But what would you do if you encounter an enemy you can't defeat by merely using force or an enemy you can't overpower?"
Ichigo didn't reply. The older man had him and he knew it.
"Exactly. That is why the Kidō spells exist. They do not serve as a primary combat technique for most of the shinigami but instead, they are mostly supplementary. We use them in the right moment. Yes, the Kidō Corps uses them as the only way of fighting but that's a completely different case. You don't have to worry about it that much, though. It's not like you have to know Kidō perfectly in order to graduate from the academy. You'll have enough time to get your skill in it on the needed level." Gengorō continued in a more relaxed tone.
"I know that…" Ichigo muttered.
"…but you still want to be the very best like no one ever was?" Gengorō heartily laughed and nudged the teen to move to the side.
"I know that you've been here only for two days but I think I know your type. You want to hone your skills to the max, be it Zanjutsu, Kidō or anything else." When he noticed the glare, he defensively raised his hands.
"Relax, I'm not trying to say something as cliché as 'I know who you really are' or 'I know that under that mask you're just…'. No, I don't know you. I don't know you past nor your future. I don't know what you've been through. I'm only saying there is a side to you that you share with a number of students I've taught so far. Because of that, let me give you one advice." He waited until the glare lessened and became only a light scowl before adding more.
"It seems rather obvious to me that Kidō won't ever become your strength. You should focus on the other sides of your skillset. Hone your Zanjutsu, Hohō and Hakuda; things you like and prefer. Learn Kidō at a different pace. Study it as a hobby not as a compulsory subject. It'd just increase your stress and hinder your ability to better yourself."
…
His mind full of new information, Ichigo wandered through the empty hall thinking back to his conversation with Gengorō. The man had said all those things as if it was easy to change yourself and just take it easy. Although it hadn't been as ridiculous idea as Ichigo had thought it would prove to be. After all, he had changed quite profoundly so far. Nevertheless, it was still an advice coming from a teacher and Ichigo had never liked those. It still came as a surprise to him that he had accepted the man's offer to help him study with the upperclassmen.
Because of that, listening to the second advice from the same person was pushing it too far. He couldn't argue with the logic behind it but still. With a sigh, he rubbed his head. Maybe he was too stubborn but that was just him being him.
In the end he tried to relax in Hohō class and during the lunchtime he decided to attend to the optional Kidō-theory class following after that. And he was glad he did it. The class hadn't been tutored by a regular lecturer. Instead, as he had found out, it hosted a different expert in some area of Kidō every two weeks. He didn't remember the name of the man who did it this time but he provided the few students attending the lecture with a different insight to the arts of Kidō. While it had been practically the same thing as what was written in the books, the man's interpretation of the information gave birth to a different seed of thought inside Ichigo's mind. He could almost picture the next time he would practice the Shō spell.
His legs carrying him towards his room, he didn't notice the group of students slowly surrounding him from all sides. It was only when they collectively raised their reiatsu his senses finally alerted him to their presence. He ignored them and moved forward, leaving an audible sigh in his wake, to reach them with its nonsensical irritation.
"Oi, oi, oi. Kurosaki. We heard you have caused quite a ruckus getting admitted to this academy just like that. Stealing a spotlight for yourself, Tora?"
Ichigo stopped walking and closed his eyes. He took a deep breath. He knew people like that. They were nothing new to him. Situations like this used to happen in his past. He used to get provoked like this because of the color of his hair when people assumed he was a delinquent and tried to take him down. But this was a bit different. He was no longer simple human student and these were not simple bullies. Studying the group he noticed a few rather expensive-looking accessories.
'Nobles, huh? And from the looks of it, first-years mixed with upperclassmen.' He quickly assessed the situation. He didn't have his zanpakuto with him. Neither did them. The group consisted of eight teens, all of them male.
'Good. Not like I have any problem hitting a girl.'
"We really don't like new students like that. Poor them, they don't know the rules around here just yet."
"I suppose you're here to educate me?" Ichigo grunted without a hint of fear.
"That's right. We heard rumors about you, Tora but frankly, rumors tend to go overboard. Because of that, the filth from the Rukongai hail you as some sort of a hero. Fucking animals."
Ichigo's mouth twitched and he felt the familiar feeling creeping out from the bottom of his stomach.
"We can't have that. It would give them wings they don't need to. You dirty lot need to learn there is no place for you in the Seiretei. We all know that you're just another weak-ass faggot who thinks he's a hero because he managed to luckily beat some weaklings."
Ichigo cracked his neck joints and swallowed some of his emotions.
"Well, it looks like this 'weak-ass faggot' is going to beat more weaklings. Or is it you wanted to greet me so much that there are eight of you?" He retorted with a dark chuckle.
"What are you...? …fucking bastard!"
Hearing a roar closing on him from behind, Ichigo ducked under a wide swipe and, spinning around, let out a punch to the stomach. The sudden action momentarily surprised the others but when they saw him motioning them to coma at him, they growled.
Ichigo prepared himself to intercept their attacks when a cold reiatsu pressed on all of them, incapacitating the group and causing the teen to sigh. He remembered the feel of this reiatsu.
"I recommend all of you to return to your rooms if you don't want me to report this."
As he heard the group yelling in surprise at the newcomer, Ichigo sighed, feeling the adrenaline slowly leaving his system. It left him with a bead of sweat on his forehead that he wiped while calling out to the person.
"What are you doing here, Kuchiki Rukia?"
The raven-haired shinigami walked up to him with a small smile while putting he sword back to its sheath.
"Nothing much, I just figured you'd want to leave the academy for a while."
Thinking back to everything that had already taken place during his short time in the academy, Ichigo suppressed the urge to instantly rebuke her offer and instead only heavily sighed. Funnily enough, an idea to leave this place for a while had been pressing on him from the back of his unconsciousness for a few hours. All the whispering, the looks, the rumors and most importantly, all these crowds of people had been very taxing on the teen's patience.
"Haaa… yeah, okay, fine. Give me a minute. I need to put these back to my room." He pointed at his books. With a small smile playing on her lips Rukia followed him, neither of them seeing the group of bullies getting beaten up behind the corner. It was too dark there. The only thing barely visible were pink pigtails swinging in a rhythm of the beat-down.
…
At first, Ichigo had thought the people would be surprised to see an academy student sitting in a tavern. His eyes passed the others as he studied the room but it seemed the shinigami were ignoring him. The only pair of eyes firmly staring at him belonged to Rukia.
"So? How is it? The student's life?"
Ichigo blinked. He didn't realize it before but the person sitting across the table was almost a completely different person he last saw three days ago. Gone was the anxious, uneasy expression from her face she had been showing ever since the two of them met. Now, she looked relaxed, the smile on her face appearing to be an honest one. She was eager in her questions, interested in hearing his answers. The transformation was truly amazing and for a moment, the teen thought she had gotten a whole century younger.
"Heh, it has its pros and cons but basically, it's the same thing as the High School in the Karakura… in the Human World. Only the things we learn are more interesting."
Rukia was nodding all the while he talked, the smile never leaving her face.
"Who's your Chief Instructor? Is Gengorō-san still there?"
Ichigo scoffed.
"Yeah… he is…"
"You have him?" Rukia perked up.
"Yeah and he's… I want to say 'a pain in the ass' but he's got some good points. Ah yes, he talks too-freaking much, obnoxious son of a… he taught you too?"
The petite woman chuckled but replied negatively.
"No, but he taught a group of my… friends…"
'Ah, there goes her smile…' Ichigo observed. It didn't really interest him, but the sudden change in her expression unconsciously embed itself into his unconsciousness. He would remember it the next time he'd meet her 'friends'.
"Now enough about this, we're not such good friends that we could exchange many pleasantries. Was there a development with the case? Did your brother interrogated… what?" He asked when Rukia inexplicably smiled again.
She just waved her hand and motioned him to continue. She didn't dare to point it out in fear he would instantly deny or correct it. However, even that small slip of the tongue managed to improve her mood and made her quite happy again.
He said the two of them weren't such good friends but then again it implied he considered them to be at least some sort of friends.
Was that slip deliberate? She couldn't know and she didn't care. Bringing her sense back to the conversation, she nodded to him.
"The two shinigami we captured were sent to the Maggot's Nest and are awaiting an interrogation. Nii-sama contacted and informed the Captains of the 2nd and 8th Division about what had happened."
Waiting for more information, Ichigo silently stared at her for a while longer before recoiling in a mixture of surprise and disappointment.
"That's all? It's been three days!"
"Well, it takes time in cases like this to arrange the dates and the investigation could take even months till the completion. Don't worry though, Nii-sama won't let this case go cold. But as I said, it may take some time." She tried to placate him and continued.
"Moreover, if things will go as planned and this case will raise enough sparks, it may even be brought into the attention of the Central 46. At that point, there is no doubt in my mind that the two of us wouldn't get brought in to give a testimony."
Narrowing his eyes, Ichigo took a gulp from his glass.
"I'm looking forward to it."
In the future, he would come to regret these words.
End of chapter 5.
As always, thank you for your support.
This chapter was mostly about the introduction of the new environment. However, I made sure to insert some things that will come back in the future. Some of them will play a major role, some a minor role. But all of them will be important. I think I'll say it now, but I'm giving this fic time to write itself. I'll try not to ruch things and because of that, plot will be moving a bit slowly... at least in my opinion. One more thing, this story will mostly NOT follow the canon. There are things I simply cannot omit but much will be completely new.
So long! Hope you enjoyed it and look forward to the next chapter. I'm out.
P.S: Yuno Kyoraku is indeed a reference (There were more of them, can you count them all?)