Yay, another chapter…
Now, school days, and flashbacks to the year out on the streets. Hint: includes important plot clues, groundwork for future plot devices and so much more… I know you've been waiting for it. Sorry for the earlier rushing chapters, I hope this makes up for it.
Boring class A.K.A. A series of unfortunate flashbacks.
'Boring. Boring. BORING! How the hell can people stand this stuff?' Naruto's thoughts were obviously taking a darker turn as the class progressed. 'History of Purification and the Soul Burial? How the hell is this making us better Reapers?' Yes, gloomy were his thoughts of late. 'Ah, the period starts in about 25 minutes.' He thought after glancing at the clock on the wall briefly. 'Plenty of time to daydream…'
Flashback
They were running through the streets of Rukongai. He did not know where they were running, but Renji was obviously leading them somewhere. Bah, to be that excited about something, it must be someplace either really fun, with something cool there, or both. As they were running, Naruto noticed that Rukia had fallen behind.
"What's wrong?" Renji had shouted out, once he had also noticed Rukia's sudden absence. Naruto just wanted to start moving again, as he felt uncomfortable to be in such an open place with hostile adults around them.
"Nothing, I'm all right." Came back the slightly muffled response.
Naruto was discernibly nervous, and was fidgeting. "Come on Rukia, we need to get moving."
When she had caught up with them, they started running again, until they reached a shiny carriage.
"Wow, what a cool rickshaw!" Naruto shouted out, and ran next to it. "It's so shiny! Come on, look! You can see your own reflection in it!"
While Naruto was preoccupied with the rickshaw, Rukia and Renji were patiently standing next to it, waiting for Naruto. While they were standing there, they overheard a couple of old men.
"That's something though." One of them said. "That brat is going to become a Soul Reaper."
"He is going to become the pride of this town!" Another one announced loudly.
"Even I want to be one."
"Stop dreaming, you need a whole lot of reiatsu to become a Shinigami." The first speaker reprimanded lightly.
"Well, that means it's already impossible for one of us." Came the subdued response.
The slide-door opened all-of-a-sudden, and out walked a nondescript man wearing a traditional servant's outfit and a straw hat.
"Get your dirty fingers away from it!" He raged at Naruto, pushing lightly, sending him tumbling to the ground.
"Hey, what's the big idea!"
While Naruto and the servant were shouting at each other, a purple-haired man wearing a Reaper uniform lightly stepped out of the house. Renji and Rukia's eyes widened slightly at the sight of the man. As the man (obviously a Soul Reaper) slowly walked past them, Rukia started trembling, unnoticed by Renji. Rukia unexpectedly keeled over.
"Hey, Rukia! What's wrong?" Renji asked worriedly.
"Are you alright?" The Shinigami had walked over to them. "Aren't you feeling a bit Hungry?" He inquired.
"No, were not hungry, or…" Was Rukia's slightly less than confident answer.
"Feeling hungry, in a world where you're not supposed to… I was puzzled at first too, but it's a fact that you have to accept." The man replied. "You must have used all your energy, in reaction to mine." He took out a box, and extended it towards them. Inside were three rice balls. "Here, eat these." He said with a comforting smile on his face. "No need to hesitate."
Rukia, Renji and Naruto watched with thankful eyes, as the stranger walked to his carriage, and rode away.
End Flashback
'Yes, good times good times…'
Flashback
Renji had his hand extended in from of him. He was screaming. Finally, flexing his arm one last time, he conjured a glowing ball of energy over his palm.
"Wow, that was impressive, Renji! Let me try too." Naruto was excited, the new Reaper academy selection exams were coming soon. Flexing his arm like Renji had done, he screamed and opened his palm. Nothing happened…
Renji was rolling on the ground laughing his ass off.
"Idiot, there's no way you can do this."
Rukia just calmly observed the exchange from the background.
"One more time!" Naruto centered himself. The result was the same as before. Renji laughed even harder. Nothing happened. At all. "I'm glad that somebody's having fun…" Naruto muttered under his breath.
But this time around, Naruto had felt something. Something like an elusive, slimy eel, unwilling to be grasped.
"Ok, one last time!" Naruto breathed out near silently.
Standing in the center of the backyard, their house behind his back, he just stood silently, still as a statue. He imagined himself jumping into a black hole. He gathered his concentration, and just stood there. Finally, he felt something. He grasped it and pulled with all his might.
Screaming in exertion, he extended his palm out, and released the pent-up energy.
It blew up spectacularly, hurling Naruto through the air. Finally he crashed into the flimsy wall of the house. Lying in the rubble of the once almost sturdy wall of the house, knocked all but unconscious by the blast, he uttered one thing. "I hate this shit." At last he fell unconscious, and consequently shook Rukia and Renji out of their respective stupors. They carried him inside and dumped him on the couch like a sack of wheat.
"What are we gonna do now." Renji asked, still slightly shaken by Naruto unexpected show of reiatsu.
"No, just no!" A scream rang out in the cool early morning air. "I am not doing that again!" The cause was an indignant Naruto, irritated by his friends proposition that they join the Reaper academy next fall. "One time is enough!"
"We're comfortable here, we have warm living conditions, enough water to last a while, and we have each other." This was evidently enough for Naruto, because he turned around and walked out.
"Give him a while, he'll get over it." Rukia calmly advised Renji, who had been about to run after Naruto.
When he returned a few hours later, Naruto was surprised to notice his friends were not there. They had apparently gone out looking for him. When they had at last returned, worried because they had found neither hide nor hair of Naruto, they were pleasantly surprised to see him lying face down on the couch.
End Flashback
'I hate Kido, I just hate it…'
Another Flashback
They were fishing down by the river at the edges of the district. They had not caught anything, but it didn't matter, they had each other, and it was all that they needed. Naruto laughed himself silly at seeing Renji almost drown into the knee-deep river. Yes, they were the best of friends, a true group, bound together by fate. At seeing Rukia reprimand Renji for making so much noise, he couldn't help but smile brightly. He loved this 'after'life. He had friends, he had peace. True, living on the streets was tough as hell, but as long as he had Rukia and Renji with him, he would survive 'till the end. He was startled out of his musings at seeing a few ethereal flowers softly floating down the stream.
"Flowers…" Rukia's softly spoken word floated over to him.
"Flowers?" Renji inquired. A fish splashed. "There!" Renji stabbed lightning-fast at the water. He had at long last caught something. "Yay, how are my skills now, huh? Hey guys, get the fire ready!... Huh?"
As Renji turned around, he saw something utterly indescribable. Rukia looked like an angel, with the evening sun creating an orange halo around her. She was knee deep in the water, holding one on the flowers in her hands as she gazed at it. Renji was shellshocked at how beautiful Rukia was. He had taken it for granted, having lived with her for years.
He was interrupted from his staring by a holler. "Hey Renji, are you gonna grill that fish, or do you want to stay hungry?" Naruto's yell had the negative effect of both irritating Renji, and shaking Rukia out of her ponderings. "Yes yes, I'm coming alright?" He yelled back. 'Bah, that ignoramus…'
End Flashback
'We were together at all times. We were a family. But it was still a crappy town with a bunch of crappy people living a crappy life after all. The adults were all either thieves, or murderers. The children were all stray dogs. The people around us were all like that. There was only one way to get out of that kind of life…'
Flashback
"Naruto, Renji…" Rukia sounded sad. "Let's become Soul Reapers. If we become Soul Reapers, then we can live in Seireitei, and we can move away from this crap hole."
Naruto got up from the ground where they all sat. "No! I thought we already discussed this. We have a good life, we have each other, we have food, we have water, and we have shelter. What else do you need?" Naruto was shouting by the time he stopped. His friends were surprised at seeing tears leaking from his scrunched shut eyes. Naruto turned and ran off, the burning evening sun at his back.
"Give him time… He'll be alright." Renji threw the words she had uttered all those long months ago back at her face. Rukia stopped. "Yes, he will." She turned around and walked back next to him.
End Flashback
'We all came here alone… looking for family… and united. But, that town was a bit too harsh for a bunch of kids to survive. It had been a year since he had become Rukia and Renji's friend. Right after meeting Momo, a full month after my breakdown, we got into the academy for Soul Reapers, The Central School of Spiritual Arts. And so school life with other kids from noble families began.'
Flashback
"That buildings huge!" Naruto yelled out in shock at the sight that greeted them as they moved through the gates. The large white building was built like a palace. Their group consisted of Hinamori Momo, the girl he had saved last night from the gang, Rukia, Renji and Naruto himself.
As they slowly walked down the paved path towards the school building, they saw a beautiful woman. She had purple hair tied up in a braid in front of her neck, kind eyes and a caring smile. "I am Unohana Retsu, and I am this schools Administrator. Come this way, we'll have a small test first to determine your group."
They came to a classroom at the end of the hall. It had a domed ceiling and benches in several rows. Most of the students had already sat down. At the front of the room was a huge blackboard, with a lecturer's booth, with an old man standing next to it. He had a grey beard, with a pair of classes perched precariously on his crooked nose. His bald head shined in the dim lighting.
"Now, the assistants will be passing these tests to you. There will be no cheating, as those who do so will be thrown out and forbidden from entering, ever again."
After the tests were distributed, the teacher started a clock. "You have 45 minutes, make it count." After that, he sat down and started doing paperwork.
Naruto took a quick look at the test. "The first question: How do you kill a Hollow?" He breathed out. 'How the hell should I know? Oh well, cut through its head, I guess.' Reasoning that anything dies if their head is cut in half, he turned to the next question. 'What is a Zanpakuto? Aww crap…' The questions continued on this vein for the rest of the test.
"Now, you will give the test papers back to the assistants for grading. You can go on break after you've submitted your test."
End Flashback
'Oh Yes! I aced that test. In the top class, oh yeah. Though this class is boring. Thankfully we have Zanpakuto training and hand-to-hand combat class next. I don't think I could survive another hour of this… The only thing comes to mind that is even worse than this is Kido spells and reiatsu harnessing…'
He was rudely startled from his daydreaming by the bell chiming the end of the class. Letting out a rousing cheer, the class rampaged out of the room, leaving behind a mess. How the hell did those scorch marks get there?
A/N: Ok, another chapter. This might seem like filler, but it contains important plot devices, groundwork, and clues. Also it describes the academy, and the year on the streets of Rukongai… To kind of make up for the rushing speed of the earlier two chapters.
And also, before you start whining, I wrote this in about 6 hours, on one roll, no breaks. I will write when the inspiration hits, capiche?
