Limitations reached
Her surroundings blacked out as she could clearly see a new and somewhat unfamiliar figure in front of her. It appeared to be an angel…even though she never actually believed in them. That was when she realized who it was.
"Krad…" she said in a hushed whisper.
"I was known as Krad when you first learned of me. But now that I am a part of you, call me Yami no Hikari."
"Darkness of Light? Oh well…I've heard worse. Mind if I just call you Yami?"
"Eh…I guess that's acceptable as well. Now get up and fight!"
"With what, my looks?! I'm barely able to stand, let alone FIGHT!"
"Don't give me excuses. If you need reitsu, then ask!"
"Will you…fight with me, Yami?" Hikari asked, reluctantly.
"Good girl. Yes, I will fight alongside you."
She could feel the surge of reitsu course through her as Yami became one with her soul. She could sense that everything would work out fine, that things would be alright. How Hikari knew this, she didn't know. As she stood up, she looked at Aizen, who began to walk towards Rukia. She knew there was only one way to help Rukia and Renji.
"She doesn't have it! Rukia doesn't have the Hogyoku!" yelled Hikari.
"What? What do you mean?" said Renji, confused.
"It's what Aizen's really after. He orchestrated this whole thing to get his hands on it!"
"Captain Aizen, is that true?! Are you really the one behind this?"
"And who told you that, young lady? It's absurd…" said Aizen.
"Yeah, so is Yoruichi acting normal and not turning into a feline every ten minutes!" retorted Hikari.
"And what would you know of Yoruichi?"
"I know she's as normal as I am. And I also know she's a lot kinder than you'll ever be!" growled Hikari, preparing to charge Aizen.
"And what exactly were you planning on doing?" said Aizen calmly.
"I was thinking of stopping you."
"And how were you…"
"How do I initiate the second release?!" Hikari hissed.
Do you really have to ask? You are the wielder, are you not? This is YOUR fanfic…
Ack! What're you talking about?!
I mean you created this fic, so you KNOW how to activate the second initial release!
Yeah…about that…
WHAT IS YOUR EXCUSE NOW?
I'm drawing a blank here…can I still activate Hisagomaru?
NO…even if you ARE well acquainted with Hanatoro, your body can't hold any more reitsu than I've given you! YOU'LL HAVE TO USE YOUR OWN NOW!!!!
Damn! Here goes nothing…
"Embrace the Darkness, Hikari no Kage!" said Kari clearly as everyone present was enveloped in darkness. The only ones who weren't affected by it were Tosen and Kari.
"Welcome to the darkness boys… Get comfy, cause it will become your grave…" said Kari coldly.
So…the girl can see in the dark. Does she not realize I too, am accustomed to being in the darkness?
"Oh, and Tosen, don't think I've forgotten that you're blind and don't need to see to hit me."
"Then why did you proceed to bring us to this dark world?" said Tosen calmly.
"Because unlike you, I'm used to being in the dark and the silence that ensues. You however, are only used to not being able to see."
"What? If this truly is a dark silence, then why did I hear you now?"
"Because I asked Kyuubi-san and Yami-san, to allow you to hear. Now you shall hear nothing!" smirked Kari.
"This…silence…is unnatural!" said Renji in a hushed whisper.
"Heh…if you think this is bad, you should try my room at night when I'm asleep! This is nothing!" laughed Kari.
"Wait…how can I hear you?!"
"Because you are on my side you dolt. I let you two have your hearing back. Now shut up and let me finish this!"
As she prepared to charge, something inside her snapped. She stumbled slightly, then continued on as if she didn't notice it. But she did…and she knew what it meant. She had to end it quick, or she would die.
Aizen felt the bite of her blade sink deep into his right shoulder. Ichimaru felt it in his left, and Tosen felt it in his left leg. As she got a safe distance from the three, she felt her knees buckle.
What? Why can't I move my legs?
You've reached your limit. If we gave you any more your body would become dependent on us.
NOW YOU TELL ME THIS?!
We can't help you! You're on your own now!
Damn Soul Reaper powers…
Right before she passed out, she vaguely remembered the point where she ran into Ichigo, Ganju and Hanatoro as well as her fellow squad members.
Flashback to a few weeks ago…
Hanatoro had gotten split apart by accident from his group, and saw several other Soul Reapers standing around and decided to ask for directions. (But, being the klutz he is…) Hanatoro tripped on a loose stone and fell through the other Shinigami, and then into more trouble as he met Ichigo and Ganju.
-----
Kari was running late and decided to take a short-cut. She nearly fell face first as the way was blocked by her fellow squad members. She stopped short and coughed quietly, yet clearly enough to be heard.
-----
One of the Soul Reapers turned to come face-to-face with one cranky Kari!
"4th seat Kari-san! What're you doing here?!" he exclaimed. The others turned at sound of her name.
"I'm running late, so get out of my way!" she hissed annoyed.
"We can't. There're two ryoka and we're not supposed to give them a way out."
"Ryoka? Let me see these ryoka!" she growled.
They parted just enough for her to see the two, and she snorted.
"Hello Ichigo and Ganju," she said irritably.
"Kari?! What're you doing here? And why aren't they after you too?" said Ichigo confused.
"Because I'm the fourth seat of the 11th squad you dolt. Now let these two bumbling fools pass…" Kari said clearly.
"But Kari-san, they're ryoka!" protested another.
"Let me put this in terms even you bakas can understand…Dandelion-head over here is the strongest of the ryoka who came in. Do you really think the captain would like us turning these twits in before he has a chance to fight him?!"
"Nani!"
Around this point Hanatoro stumbled into the ring where Ichigo and Ganju stood. They took him hostage, and Kari looked like she was trying hard not to burst out in cold maniacal laughter.
"You two are even dumber than you look! Do you really think taking him as hostage would work with them?!" Kari laughed coldly.
"But we've got a hostage!" said Ichigo confused. He hissed to Hanatoro to look scared… (like he really needed to do that!)
"Are you two blind as well as imbecilic? Take a look at his uniform morons! He's not from our squad!" snorted Kari. (It pretty much follows the anime up till the point where they realize Hanatoro wasn't the best choice for a hostage.)
"You 2 might as well let Hana-chan go…or I'll kill you if they don't."
"Who's Hana-chan?" asked Ichigo.
"Um…that's Kari-san's nickname for me…" said Hanatoro embarrassed.
"But 'Hana' means flower…" said Ichigo surprised.
"Back off Strawberry… This is not the time you'd want to get on my nerves…" growled Kari.
"What's that supposed to mean?!"
"Let's just say the 'Week From Hell' is not the best time to piss me off…" replied Kari.
"Week From…aw crap…" said Ichigo as he figured out what she meant.
"Let him go or you'll face me and not THEM…" she growled.
"Ganju…who would you rather face. A girl with a very cranky attitude or a bunk of muscle-headed fools intent on killing us?" asked Ichigo nervously.
"Muscle-headed idiots…why?"
"Because the way she's looking at us, we don't have much time left to live."
The dark silence dissipated in an instant. It happened so quickly that no one other than Kari and Tosen could see for a few moments. As a result, neither Aizen nor Ichimaru saw her coming. She spun around, her weapon sinking into their skin with eerie accuracy. When they could see again, they were mildly surprised. Where her blade had been there was now a harmless looking fan.
The fan's edges seemed to seamlessly flow into each other, as if it were really made of cloth. The tip extended slightly past the end, and had an intricate design of a white dragon. Near her hand were two cords, one white and one black. They seemed to wrap around her wrist and weave into each other. The way she twirled the fan indicated she had been taught how to use it in a delicate dance.
Kari turned towards Aizen, then began to charge him as if she wanted to end it quickly. She tried not to let him see her exhaustion, and silently prayed she wouldn't fall unconscious. If she fell unconscious, it would be relatively easy to kill her. As she drew closer to her target, she neglected to notice someone come up from behind. Ichimaru hit her hard at the base of the neck, knocking her out completely.
"I wondered when she'd finally stay down for once," commented Ichimaru.
"She is very troublesome…perhaps we should rid ourselves of her before she wakes up," replied Aizen.
"I couldn't agree with you more," said Ichimaru as he prepared to strike her.
He could sense she was in danger, and rushed to protect her. Kari, Anne, no matter what name she took up, she was always there for him. Even if he WAS a bloodthirsty monster hell-bent on revenge…
He drew nearer to the Execution Grounds where she lay helpless. He could see the cold-hearted man known as Gin Ichimaru prepared to slay her, which he could NOT allow! He lunged, narrowly avoiding the blade, knocking the man down to the ground.
"Leave the girl alone! If it's a fight you want, then you'll have to contend with me!" roared the enraged Fox Demon known as Kyuubi no Kitsune.
"Well, well…if it isn't her little pet fox. Looks like he came to save his foolish master," said Ichimaru from under him.
"I am no one's pet, you pathetic mortal!" growled Kitsu. (He was in familiar form if you hadn't guessed.)
"Ichimaru, who's this fox and why did it jus attack you?" asked Aizen, confused.
"This annoying kitsune is the girl's pet. As for why it attacked…my guess is to save its beloved mistress."
"I AM NOT HER $&() PET! I AM HER FAMILIAR!"
"What's your point fox?" smirked Ichimaru.
"A pet has no powers while familiars are supernatural creatures summoned to the physical plane. And…I can also do this!" Kitsu smirked back as he grasped Kari's Zanpaku-to with one of his tails and roared…
"Embrace the darkness, Hikari no Kage!"
Gin was quickly enveloped in darkness once more. His eyes opened slightly from surprise.
Around this time Komamura arrived and confronted Tosen. This distracted Kitsu long enough for Gin to break away, and the fox immediately went to Kari in concern. Komamura was quickly tricked into drawing closer to Kari and Kitsu, so Aizen could attempt to get rid of all three at once. He used a Kido that was very hard to master, and could barely unleash a third of its power. But he underestimated Kitsu's true power. They came out unscathed. Only Kitsu remained standing…