Hinamori's Apprentice
Chapter Seventeen
Uryu Ishida sat in a park bench holding a newspaper. He was not reading it however. Instead, he was looking out of the corner of his eye at Yuzu Kurosaki, who was playing nearby with several friends. He didn't like having to constantly keep watch over her, but he had promised Ichigo that he would look over his sister, and his pride and honor as a Quincy would not allow him to abandon the task. That didn't mean he had to like it though.
Ichigo's father, and to a lesser extent Yuzu, were driving him nuts. They were constantly asking him into their house and would not give up the delusion that he was romantically interested in Yuzu. This was just plain creepy in Uryu's opinion, as Yuzu was several years younger than him. He didn't care about how mature she supposedly was, he wasn't into girls her age. Of course, from their perspective he probably seemed like he was interested in her, given the amount of time he spent around her. He couldn't just explain to them that it was his duty to protect them from hollows, so of course it would seem like he was attracted to Yuzu.
This of course brought up the question of what the hell Isshin Kurosaki was thinking. Most fathers would be at least a little concerned if an older boy was apparently stalking his young daughter, but not Isshin. He actively encouraged them to get together in a relationship, and unfortunately Yuzu was taking his words to heart and had developed an apparent crush on Uryu. Things were getting way too weird for Uryu's tastes…
"You want me to take over for you?"
Uryu looked up to see Yasutora Sado standing behind him. He stood up to greet him.
"Oh, hello," he said politely, "Are you saying that you'd like to watch over Yuzu now?"
"Yes, you've been doing more than your fair share of work," Sado said, "Take a break; I'll look after Yuzu."
"Thanks," Uryu said with relief. He said his goodbyes to Sado before walking off.
Uryu sighed in relief. So much of his time was spent looking after Ichigo's sister and father that he had little time of his own. Not that he had a lot of things to do, but it was nice to be able to actually have time to himself. He didn't have anything he particularly wanted to do, so he simply walked around aimlessly. As he walked down the street, by chance he quite literally bumped into Orihime, falling to the ground.
"Oops! Sorry Uryu!" Orihime said, grabbing Uryu's arm to pull him back up, "I wasn't looking where I was going!"
"That's okay," Uryu assured her, "No harm done."
"I still feel bad though. How about you come over to my place for dinner! I'll make you something to eat as an apology!"
"No, no! That's quite alright!" Uryu said quickly, well aware of what Orihime's cooking was like.
"Oh fine then…" Orihime said, apparently disappointed that she would not get the chance to cook extra food tonight.
"Well, I guess I'll be on my way then," Uryu said curtly.
"Wait! I was wondering Uryu… Do you know when Ichigo will be coming back?" Orihime asked. Uryu turned to her.
"I don't see why I would know something like that," he said.
"Oh… I was just wondering because he hasn't talked to me much lately. I'm not sure he'll ever come back here. He seems to have found his place, and it's not here," Orihime said sadly.
"Don't be too certain about these things. With Ichigo, nothing is certain."
"Maybe, but I don't see why he'd come back. He's going to become a Captain soon. Even if he wanted to bother coming back to this world, he wouldn't be able to because of his duties as a Captain. Things just feel different around here without Ichigo around."
"He'll do what he must," Uryu said, "Not that I care about the affairs of Shinigami, but I suspect he doesn't really care for the job. He's doing it out of obligation more than a desire to be a Captain."
"Obligation to what?" Orihime asked.
"Think about it. What was one of Ichigo's most important desires? To protect his sisters. As it stands, he has failed that goal in this world, and I imagine he intends to make up for it by staying in Soul Society to protect his sister Karin. He feels the responsibility to look out for her there, as he was unable to do so here," Uryu explained.
"I guess you're right," Orihime said, "It's really sad though; what happened to Karin, I mean. She had her whole life ahead of her, and it was taken away just like that. It's a true tragedy…"
"Yes, but at least she's managed to make her way safely to Soul Society and Seireitei. She'll be safe enough there, and hopefully live a fairly comfortable afterlife," Uryu said.
There was an awkward silence for a moment. Orihime watched Uryu carefully. He seemed to be focusing on something, but Orihime did not know what.
"Uryu, are you-"
"Orihime, get back!" Uryu suddenly yelled. He grabbed Orihime and pulled her away just as some sort of intense blast hit the place they had been standing. Dust rose into the air, obscuring their vision. Uryu let go of Orihime a few feet away, his eyes firmly focused on something behind the dust.
"Thanks Uryu!" Orihime said gratefully.
"Don't mention it," Uryu said, not turning, his eyes firmly focused ahead of them. The sound of a females laugh could be heard from behind the settling cloud of dust.
"Wow, that was a good reaction! You're faster than I thought! I guess it's to be expected from someone like you!" the cheerful voice of a girl said.
"Who are you?!" Uryu yelled. The dust had now cleared, revealing the person who had attacked them.
A female Shinigami stood before them. She had orange eyes and dark hair tied up with a ribbon. She carried a strange weapon that looked like a golden staff with rings around one end and a spear tip on the other. She gave them a small smile.
"I asked you a question! Who are you? What is a Shinigami doing here, and why are you attacking us?" Uryu repeated.
"You do not need to know," the Shinigami said. She leapt into the air, staff raised. Uryu quickly formed his Quincy bow, preparing for conflict.
"Orihime, you may want to step back," he said to her.
"Right," Orihime said, backing away to a safe distance. Uryu looked up at the Shinigami.
"This is your last chance! I am not an enemy of Soul Society, but if you persist in attacking me I will have no choice but to fight you!" he said firmly.
"That's okay, because I am an enemy of Soul Society," the Shinigami said.
"What? But aren't you a Shinigami?" Uryu said in confusion.
"Maybe…" the girl said with a silly smile, "You'll just have to find out!" With that, she swung her staff forward. Immediately, a tornado erupted from the tip. It was thin, but it was still clearly quite intense, and Uryu had no desire to get hit by it. He jumped out of the path of the tornado and fired an arrow of spirit energy at the Shinigami. She ceased the tornado in order to dodge the arrow, which came within inches of her shoulder.
"For what purpose are you attacking us?" Uryu yelled.
"It's nothing personal! I'm just doing a favor for someone I owe a great debt to," the girl said, "In fact, I rather like you, though I suppose you probably don't remember me." She swung her staff forward and created another tornado. This time Uryu responded with a blast of dozens of small arrows that forced her to swing the tornado upwards to deflect.
"What do you mean?" Uryu asked, "I have never met you before!"
"Well, we didn't really know eachother very well. It was Ichigo that I spent most of my time with. That's neither here nor there, however. I've come to take you to my master. One of his allies has need of you, and I'm afraid it is my task to kidnap you and take you to him."
"I have no clue what you're talking about, but I'm not going anywhere!" Uryu growled, "I don't know how you know Ichigo, but I assure you that if he were here, he would be taking my side in fighting you!"
"Naturally; he would have no idea who I was," the girl said simply, "In any case, I've been given my task, and I intend to fulfill it."
"That's too bad. I hate to cause you significant harm, but it looks like I have no choice." Uryu began collecting spirit particles in his bow. He drew his bowstring, a large arrow of spirit energy forming. When he released it, it flew towards the girl at an extremely high speed. She tried to dodge it, but was only able to move a little to the side before it hit her.
The shot blew off her entire left arm, and she fell to the ground bleeding and panting, unable to stand up as she watched Uryu walking forward.
"I'm afraid I will have to apprehend you. Since you are apparently a rogue Shinigami, they will be the ones to take you captive," Uryu said. The girl merely gave a pained smile.
"I'm sorry, but that won't happen." A strange bubble of distorted air suddenly surrounded her. "I'm sorry for the inconvenience, I was only following the wishes of my master. You were more of a side-objective really, and since you're stronger than we thought, I doubt they'll send more after you. Farewell, Uryu. It was nice seeing you again, even if you don't remember me." The bubble of distorted space collapsed, and the girl disappeared.
"Uryu!" Orihime ran up to him, a concerned look on her face. "What are we going to do?" Uryu thought carefully for a moment.
"We'll go to Urahara. As much as I hate involving myself in the matters of Shinigami, it seems that is our only choice right now," he said.
---
"You're here, I see," Momo said calmly.
"Yes, of course I am," Karin replied.
"Good…that's good…"
"So what are we doing today?" Karin said, "I suppose that first you want me to do the warm up exercises?" Karin's smile was rather forced. Even though she was now more determined to train and had greater respect for Momo, she still didn't like the harsh exercises she was forced to do each day.
"Actually, no," Momo said, surprising her, "Today we'll be doing something a bit different. I've already taught you how to do the exercises, I trust in you to do them on your own time. Today, I'll be teaching you about swords."
"Really?" Karin said, a hint of excitement in her voice. Learning about a Shinigami's primary weapon was one of the things she looked forward to the most.
"Yes. Please draw your sword," Momo said. Karin carefully drew the sword from the sheath at her side. She had only wielded it a few times, and was extremely careful with the weapon. She had practiced with a bamboo sword, but it was nothing like holding a real sword.
"Now tell me, what do you see as special in that blade?" Momo asked.
"Um…It's sharp…?" Karin said awkwardly. Momo could not help but chuckle a little at this.
"No, I mean what do you see in it that makes it unique from other swords?" she said.
"I…I uh…" Karin mumbled, unsure what to say.
"It's a katana," Momo answered for her, "The sword of a samurai in the past, and now the form of a Shinigami's blade. It is among the greatest swords ever to be forged. It is distinguished by its slight curve and single edge. Its sharpness and strength are considered to be among the greatest of any sword. Swordsmiths of old times would put incredible effort into the forging of a Katana. It is truly an amazing sword. It is not, however, the greatest bladed weapon."
Momo reached to her side and drew her own gleaming sword.
"This is a zanpakuto. It takes the form of a katana, but it is much, much more than that. You already know the basics of it I assume, but I thought that I would impress upon you just how important a zanpakuto is. Even the mighty katana that you hold pales in comparison to a zanpakuto. That is because a zanpakuto is not just a weapon, it is a part of a Shinigami's soul. A zanpakuto is a sentient being, yet they share their souls with us. A zanpakuto can purify hollows, send ordinary souls to Soul Society, and increase a Shinigami's power by a vast degree. By conversing and meditating with a zanpakuto, one can grow stronger. A zanpakuto is your greatest ally in battle. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
"Yes, I think I understand," Karin said.
"Good," Momo said, sheathing her sword, "Now attack me with your katana."
"What?!" Karin practically yelled in shock.
"Attack me with your katana," Momo repeated.
"I can't do that!" Karin protested.
"Why not?" Momo asked.
"Because you're my teacher and I can't hurt you," Karin said.
"Don't worry, you won't hurt me," Momo said, "Now strike me with your katana. Use all your strength to attempt to cut me down."
"I…I'm not doing that," Karin said firmly.
"Oh? I thought you said before that you would do everything I said without complaint?" Momo pointed out.
"I… I did, but-"
"Karin, as your master I order you to attack me with your sword," Momo said. Karin felt like she didn't have a choice now. Closing her eyes tightly, she raised her sword and ran at Momo, bringing down the blade in her strongest swing.
The next thing she knew she was lying on her back, with Momo holding onto the wrist of the hand holding Karin's katana. Karin stared up at her in shock.
"H-how?" she was barely able to ask.
"I'm a Vice-captain Shinigami, it goes without saying that I'd be able to defeat an inexperienced sword user bare-handed. Your technique is greatly flawed, and while I'm sure Rangiku taught you some of the basics, you wouldn't last long in a confrontation right now," Momo said, "Luckily, that's what I'm here for. Now let's try that again." Momo helped Karin up so that she was back on her feet.
"This time, pay attention to the way you come at me. Hold your blade in front of yourself in an aggressive stance before striking," Momo said. Karin held her sword up in front of her, but Momo shook her head and came forward.
"No, no, no, that's not it. Here, let me help you," Momo said, walking over to Karin, "Which of your hands is dominant?"
"I'm right-handed if that's what you mean," Karin said. Momo nodded silently and moved behind Karin and reached around so that her hands were on her wrists.
"Hold your katana with your right hand near the top of the grip, near the guard. You'll want that grip to be as firm as possible, but not so tight as to cause difficulty wielding it. Keep your left hand a little looser, but still holding onto the grip. You'll want to keep both hands on the katana whenever possible for both grip and control. There are some circumstances where it would be prudent to use one hand, but I'll discuss that at a different time. Now, once you've perfected your grip, you'll want to work on your stance. The best way is to be in a position where you'll be able to attack or defend from as many angles as possible, as well as being the most mobile. Keep your legs bent a little, and don't make your stance too wide or narrow. Just try to stay in the position that feels natural. You can hold your Katana pointing up at an angle, straight up, diagonally, or even horizontally in front of you; whichever way works best for you. Now, let's try again." Momo walked back to where she was previously.
Karin held her sword up in front of her, trying to keep it in a position like Momo had shown her. It wasn't easy to find a good position, as she was unfamiliar with how to properly hold a sword for combat. Her practice with Rangiku hadn't gone this far. She tried holding her sword in several different stances, but none of them felt quite right. Finally, she settled on a basic stance with her sword in front of her at a slight angle forward.
"Are you ready?" Momo asked. Karin nodded and approached. This time, she did not hesitate as she had before, as it was clear that Momo would not be hurt by her amateur use of a sword. Karin raised her sword and cut straight down, but Momo predictably dodged this with no effort, and in the same movement that she dodged the strike, got behind Karin and grabbed onto her, indicating that it was over.
"You're too straightforward. Look for my weakest point before striking. Attack where I will be least able to evade and strike back. Don't make it immediately obvious where you will strike, be intelligent with your blows," Momo instructed. Karin tried again, but the result was the same. She ended up in a restraining hold.
"Watch where I step and move. Keep your footwork even to mine. When I move forward, you move back. When I move to the side, you move to the side. Remember to keep an eye where I can move and can't move, and take advantage of that. Also, vary your attack methods to make yourself more unpredictable."
Karin tried to follow Momo's instructions, but again found that she was unable to keep up. Momo was moving around, apparently expecting Karin to follow her, but Karin couldn't keep up with the movements. She tried thrusting her katana forward, but Momo merely pivoted on her feet so as to dodge it and grab onto Karin's hands, immobilizing her. Despite the repeated failures, Karin kept trying. She didn't want to give up, so she persevered and continued without complaint. Eventually however, Momo stopped the exercise.
"Hm, I don't think this is working out," she said.
"I'm sorry," Karin said.
"No, it's not you, I'm just saying that I don't think I'm training you in the best way I can. It goes without saying that you won't be able to stand up against me. After all, it took me fifty years to gain my skills; you can't be expected to pick such skills up quickly. No, I'm saying that I should try a different method of teaching you, one that can help you learn about swordsmanship more effectively. Teaching this is sort of difficult, you have to experience sword fighting before you're able to learn to improve your swordsmanship. I don't think I'm teaching you as well as I could when I'm just repeatedly immobilizing you. We're going to have to come up with a different strategy."
"Like what?" Karin asked.
"Well…there is a technique that can push you to pick up skills at a much faster rate than usual, though I'm hesitant to use it," Momo explained.
"Why?"
"It's an extremely high-stress technique. Some who have tried it have suffered nervous breakdowns. I'd rather not use it if at all possible," Momo said.
"But if we did use it, I'd learn how to fight with a sword a lot faster, right?" Karin asked.
"Well that really depends on you and how fast you're able to pick up on the skills. There are countless aspects to swordsmanship, and I don't think I could teach you all of them. This particular training method makes you experience a situation where you must learn for yourself the various techniques, in a way. It's hard to explain. It is effective though. It may even reduce the time it takes to reach Shikai."
"Shikai? As in…" Karin trailed off, having heard the term vaguely mentioned before.
"Yes, the state you reach when you have learned the name of your zanpakuto. Shikai is a significant enhancement of a Shinigami's power, and once you have achieved it, your power will increase nearly exponentially," Momo said.
"How long does it take to reach shikai?" Karin asked.
"Don't think too much about it right now. Shikai takes time. It was three years before I was able to obtain shikai. Even Toushiro… erm, Captain Hitsugaya, took six months before managing to achieve it. You probably won't reach it for a while, though with luck it might come sooner."
"Um…if it's not too much to ask, how do you achieve shikai? I know it's by learning a zanpakuto's name, but how do you do that?" Karin asked.
"It takes time. Most people start hearing their zanpakuto subconsciously in the form of dreams and strange visions. It's tough to explain what it feels like," Momo explained. Karin immediately thought of the dreams she had been having.
"And how do you speak to your zanpakuto and learn its name?" she asked.
"A person is able to communicate with their zanpakuto when they're sufficiently strong enough, as well as determined enough. Force of will is an important factor, as is power and experience. You must achieve internal harmony and gain a degree of control over your powers before you will be able to learn a zanpakuto's name. Not complete control of course, just enough control to make your powers stable. It's different for every Shinigami, so I can't really give you too many details on the process."
Karin nodded silently. She thought of the strange dreams she had been having. Instinctively, she knew that those dreams must have been visions of her zanpakuto and inner world. She was filled with excitement, but also reservation, as she was unsure what would happen next.
"Vice-captain Hinamori, how did you reach contact with your zanpakuto?" Karin asked. Momo paused for a second before answering.
"It was back in Rukongai when I first heard it. At the same time my powers began to develop, I started hearing this whispering voice in my sleep. I didn't know what it was at the time, but after I entered the academy, I learned that it was the voice of my zanpakuto. As I spent more and more time training and gaining control over my powers, the dreams became more and more vivid. Eventually, I was able to see my zanpakuto's true form, a young girl, and I was able to communicate and explore my inner world with her. I couldn't hear her name though, not at first anyways. It was about three years into the academy when I finally managed to learn her name, Tobiume. I was one of the youngest people at the academy to reach Shikai at the time. Of course Toush- I mean Captain Hitsugaya, put me to shame a few years later when he reached shikai after a few months at the academy."
Karin stared at the ground. How long would it take her to reach Shikai? Based on what Momo said, reaching shikai in a few years would be an incredible feat. The excitement she had felt was beginning to fade with the realization that it would be a long time before she would reach shikai. The cold hard truth was that she was comparatively weak right now, not much more than a little girl. It wasn't her fault, but that fact still stung. She desired to get stronger, so that one day she may hopefully be able to compete with those like her brother, Toushiro, Rangiku, and Momo. They were all years beyond her, but the thought of eventually being as powerful as they were was a satisfying one. She yearned for the day when she would be able to take care of herself without needing others to protect her.
"So what do you say? Would you like to try the training method I mentioned?" Momo asked, "It will be tough, but it's effective. If you don't want to go through with it, we can still work with conventional training methods."
"I don't care how tough it is. I want to become stronger, and if this training will help, I'm more than willing to do it," Karin said. Momo smiled at her.
"Very well then." Before she could make another move however, they heard the whoosh of Shunpo behind them. They turned to see Rangiku Matsumoto and Izuru Kira, both looking rather agitated.
"What are you two doing here?" Momo asked.
"There's been an attack in the world of the living. The Captains are convening and the Vice-captains have been instructed to patrol Seireitei in the mean time," Izuru said.
"What kind of attack? It must have been big if it warrants a Captain meeting."
"It was in Karakura town, and the attacker appears to be a rogue Shinigami," Rangiku explained.
"Karakura?!" Karin said in alarm.
"Don't worry, nobody was hurt and surveillance over that area has been increased," Rangiku said, "Come on Karin, I'll take you back to my place. Stay there until this is over. Momo, you have been instructed to watch over the Western Gate. Also, keep an eye out for Captain Hitsugaya. He was out on a mission and may be returning. If he does return, tell him to go to the meeting grounds right away."
"I understand," Momo nodded. She turned and shunpoed away.
---
Toushiro climbed the rocky slope of a hill. Once again he had been sent on a comparatively minor mission that didn't feel important enough to warrant the attention of a Captain. It was little more than inspection of a remote region of Rukongai. The terrain was rough, but ordinary Shinigami should have been able to handle it. He was irritated by the fact that he kept getting sent on missions like this. He was young and his powers immature, but he was still a Captain, and had worked very hard to achieve that rank. He felt that being assigned missions such as this was rather insulting.
Finally he reached a rather flat piece of ground. He looked around at the landscape. Grey rocks dominated the area, with grass and moss being the only plant life visible. The place could be described as either large hills or very small mountains. He looked over and spotted the opening to a cave. He rolled his eyes. Caves were always troublesome spots. Not only were they dark and difficult to safely access, they were often home to hollows. There had been reports of strange things happening in this area, and the culprits were likely hollows. This cave was more likely than not the home to one of them.
Toushiro grabbed onto the hilt of his sword and entered the cave. It was dark, but luckily it was large enough that Toushiro didn't have to worry about hitting his head on overhanging rocks. It was still too dark to see though. Toushiro raised his hand and began focusing reiatsu on it. This was a useful trick that the more powerful Shinigami could perform. The reiatsu gave off a glow around his hand, illuminating the area around him.
Toushiro was immediately glad that he had done this, as the light illuminated the form of a hollow lying straight ahead. Toushiro's hand immediately went to his zanpakuto, but he stopped when he got a better look at the hollow. It was not attacking him, it wasn't even moving. The hollow was completely chained up and restrained. Toushiro cautiously stepped forward. The hollow's eyes were clearly upon him, and it growled and struggled weakly, but the chains held it in place.
Toushiro was baffled. Who had chained up this hollow, and why? Hollows were a rare occurrence in Rukongai; it was only recently that there had been an outbreak of hollow appearances. Surely there was no one in the area who was experienced enough to defeat a hollow without Shinigami assistance. And if they were able to defeat it, why did they imprison it here rather than kill it? It was all very strange.
Toushiro looked at the hollow for a moment longer before drawing his sword. Though he didn't like having to kill a chained up enemy, it was still his duty as a Shinigami to eliminate the hollow. He thrust his zanpakuto into the hollow's mask, cracking it and causing the hollow to dissolve within moments. The chains fell to the ground and Toushiro found himself staring deeper into the cave. Something very, very odd was going on…
Just then, Toushiro suddenly sensed danger, and raised his sword just in time to block a strike from a battle axe. Toushiro turned to see several small figures moving towards him. They were short, no taller than he was, and they were wearing black metal armor. Two more of the figures came at him, one with a spear, another with a sword. Toushiro easily blocked their blows, and was beginning to back up when he saw that three more had come at him from behind, these ones wielding long pikes.
Toushiro grit his teeth. These things weren't very skilled warriors, but they had him outnumbered and trapped. He would have to get to a more open space to defeat them. He charged the one with the axe, delivering a swift blow to its stomach and sending it reeling back. The one with the spear tried to skewer him, but he grabbed onto the handle and pulled it away, using it to knock over the other one blocking his way. He ran out of the cave, where he found two more of the creatures, both wearing heavy helmets and carrying short double-edged swords. They circled around him, waiting for their allies to come out of the cave to join them. When the pike wielding ones came out, they fanned out around him, intending to corner him.
Now taking full advantage of the open space, Toushiro leapt into the air, landing behind the pike-users. Before they could turn around, he delivered blows that dropped them to the ground. One of their helmets fell off, revealing an ugly grey face that looked like some sort of troll. The two swordsmen then attacked, but as Toushiro swung his sword to deflect their crude blades, something flew at him. He twisted himself around to just barely dodge a black arrow that would have hit him in the back. He looked up to see two more of the creatures hiding on the rocks higher up the hill, firing arrows down at him.
Dodging more arrows and the attacks of the two sword-wielders, Toushiro quickly leapt up to attack the archers. The first one he sent tumbling down the hill with a single strike, and the second one was cut down as it pitifully tried to raise its bow in defense. Toushiro leapt back to the swordsmen and promptly defeated them, knocking one down the hill and rendering the other one unconscious.
Toushiro looked over the pathetic beings. What the heck were these things? He had never seen anything like them before. Why had they attacked him? Were they the ones that had chained up the hollow? He would have to report this incident as soon as he got back to Seireitei.
Before he had even put his sword away however, he found himself under attack once more. Two tall warriors dressed in tan robes from head to toe appeared out of nowhere and attacked. One wielded a spear and the other used a strange weapon that had a club on one end and a double-edged axe with a spearing tip on the other. Toushiro used his smaller size to evade the first blow, but it was immediately clear that these beings were far more skilled than the trollish creatures he had just fought. They were completely covered in the tan brown robes, and they wore dark goggles over their eyes.
The spearman thrust his spear downwards, coming close enough to Toushiro to actually go through his Captain's haori. Toushiro brought his sword to the side, cutting the spear in half and raising it to block a blow from the other warrior. The one with the broken spear tossed the broken pieces away and drew a short sabre, which it promptly used to attack Toushiro. Toushiro blocked the strike and kicked that warrior in the chest, sending it reeling back. It was now just Toushiro and the remaining warrior.
Toushiro used his small size and agility to evade the blows, but it was clearly not going to be easy. The warrior's strange weapon was wielded in a manner similar to a quarterstaff. Both ends of the weapon were deadly, and could be used in short succession of eachother. It could club, cut, and spear, and it performed these tasks while simultaneously defending. The warrior would strike with the club, and when Toushiro blocked it would use the sharpened axe blade at the other end. When Toushiro tried to step back, it would use the spear end to thrust.
Toushiro relied on his small size and agility to counter the solid attacks of his enemy. He jumped and ducked and darted around the warrior, attempting to overwhelm it, but unable to thanks to its skillful use of its weapon. Toushiro's zanpakuto, nearly as long as he was tall, was faring poorly against his enemy's versatile weapon. His enemy obviously could perceive the weakness of Toushiro's fighting style. His large zanpakuto necessitated that he keep a slight distance between himself and an opponent, as he couldn't use it effectively when close up to an enemy. This was the basis of his fighting style. His opponent clearly noticed this, and was attacking as close to Toushiro as possible, giving him little room to counterattack. This was making it difficult for him to use his sword in an effective manner. Against this unorthodox fighting method, his zanpakuto was of limited use.
Things soon got worse for Toushiro. The other warrior had managed to get back up, and rejoined the fight against him. Toushiro now had to face both of the warriors. He was still able to use his small size to dodge, but they kept him in such close quarters that he could not use his zanpakuto offensively. With them surrounding him and attacking at extreme close range, he didn't have room to properly use his sword. It was like trying to swing his zanpakuto around in a closet.
Toushiro began planning how he could put some distance between himself and them so he could gain the upper hand in the fight. As he evaded them, a thought struck him. Toushiro dodged another blow from the axe and blocked the other warrior's sword. The club was then swung at Toushiro. Toushiro did not even attempt to dodge it, instead taking it in the chest. He was sent flying, landing on the ground several feet away. The warriors pointed their weapons at him, preparing to finish him off. This was just what he wanted however.
As they approached him, Toushiro leapt into the air, slashing the warrior with the staff-like weapon as he did so. As the greater threat fell to the ground, Toushiro landed behind the sword wielding enemy and immediately took the offensive. Now able to fight on his own terms, Toushiro quickly bested the swordsman. With a powerful slash, he knocked the sword out of his opponent's hands, and then brought his sword down to cut it across the leg, sending it to its knees. Toushiro pointed his sword at it,
"Surrender, you are now a prisoner of the Gotei 13. I will have you explain what you are up to once we get back to Seireitei," he said with authority. The being looked up and spoke in a harsh, barking language Toushiro did not understand. It was a rough and unpleasant language, heavy in consonants.
As Toushiro tried to think of what to do with the warrior, there was suddenly a loud bang, and the entire area filled with smoke. Toushiro held up his sword again, preparing for another attack. Through the thick smoke, he heard high pitched laughter.
"Well! Aren't you an intrestin' one?!" a soft but high pitched voice said.
"Who are you? Identify yourself!" Toushiro yelled, eliciting another laugh. The laughter was much harsher than his voice, and was very distinct. The smoke began to clear, revealing the speaker.
A man wearing a black longcoat stood atop a jet black device that hovered in mid air. His eyes were covered in dark sunglasses, and his blond hair tied into a braided ponytail. He wore a smirk on his face.
"I asked you a question! Who are you?" Toushiro yelled again.
"Oh, pardon me for forgettin' my manners," he said in a soft, slightly feminine voice, "The names Usagi Uzaki. Charmed to make your acquaintance!" He laughed again, shrieking and snorting with manic laughter.
"What is your purpose here?!" Toushiro yelled. Usagi didn't seem to listen to him however.
"Hey! You two! Fall back, you've lost this one!" he yelled. Toushiro looked up to see that the two warriors he had defeated were now standing again and approaching him. He raised his sword in preparation for combat. Usagi sighed in frustration.
"You stupid things never listen to me," he said, "Hey little boy! Do you like to play catch? Well…catch!" Usagi reached into his coat and pulled out a small black ball and tossed it down to them. Immediately recognizing what was going on, Toushiro dashed away for cover. As soon as the black ball hit the ground, a massive explosion erupted through the area, causing the ground itself to shake.
When it was over, Toushiro emerged from within the cave to find that the troll-like creatures, the two warriors, and Usagi nowhere to be seen.
Thanks for reading! Thank you to Chillis, war90, Photophopic, chiharuSAICHI, sasukesgirl, Hinata-cutie, Hikari Droflum, Thunder Claw03, nexuswarrior, The Great Pineapple MEKI, blackwitchkarma, and Psyco101 for reviewing! Please review!