Chapter 4
"This is where it all started…" Ichigo spoke to Tatsuki, as they stood outside of his house. Dusk had fallen and the moon was out now. As they left the cemetery, Ichigo promised Tatsuki that he would keep no secrets from her. Anything she wanted to know, he would tell her. "I saw a monster here almost three years ago. Well, the technical name for the monster was a Hollow, but I didn't know that then."
"You saw something that was invisible to everything else…" Tatsuki responded, considering everything she knew about Ichigo. "So I was right long ago when I suspected that you could see dead people, even though you told me you couldn't."
"Yes, I may have hid the truth a bit then." Ichigo said with a sheepish smile, "The thing is, hollows are attracted to people with higher spiritual pressure. People like me, you, my sisters, even Chad and Orihime have higher spiritual pressure. So this thing was coming after my family…and that's when I met Rukia for the first time, and everything changed."
Tatsuki listened as Ichigo told her everything. The hollow was a strong one, and had bested the soul reaper Rukia. Rukia lent Ichigo her power, and he became a soul reaper with his own sword…or Zanpakuto as he called them. From then on Ichigo fought hollow after hollow, becoming Karakura Town's protector, or "Substitute Soul Reaper." Ichigo told her about the Soul Society, how Orihime and the others followed him there during the summer that she said she was visiting family out of town. In this other spirit world, Tatsuki learned they faced many battles and several times Orihime healed them with a power that only she possessed. Nobody understood her power, but it was different and unique from the others. She was not really a fighter, Ichigo explained, but she was always valuable for the team due to her healing abilities, protective shield, and her hopeful and optimistic attitude.
Then Ichigo informed Tatsuki of their many other adventures. How they defeated the Bounts, protected a princess, and then about the Espada and Aizen. This was the most terrifying story, for Tatsuki definitely recalled this Aizen character. She learned of how he sent his incredibly powerful and fully evolved hollows, known as the Espada, to capture Orihime so they could use her unique power, which seemed to work outside of time, as they learned, for Aizen's evil plan. Tatsuki cringed as she considered the terrible things her best friend must have gone through in this world of monsters known as Hueco Mundo. Ichigo explained how Orihime many times in there saved his life, and kept him strong to keep fighting more powerful enemies. As he told story after story of Fullbrings, Menos Grandes, Quincies, and so many other unbelievable things, he often pointed out that if it wasn't for his friends he would not have made it out of it alive. The two walked down the street back to Urahara's shop as Ichigo concluded all he had to say. At the end, Tatsuki had never been more proud of Orihime then she was in that moment. She always knew that her orange haired soul sister was her hero, but to see what a real hero she was for everyone…just made her all the more special.
"I see…" Tatsuki reflected on all this information and then spoke as she considered her musing. "The way I see it then, the man that murdered Orihime was a soul reaper then right?"
"Well, I don't know…" Ichigo considered this.
"He had to be, he had a Zanpakuto right?" She replied, "So if he doesn't live here in Karakura town, then he has to be in the spirit world. So I guess I will go there and avenge Orihime!"
"It's not that simple!" Ichigo spoke, frustration filling his voice. As much as he wanted justice for his fallen friend, he recognized the seed of hatred and rage that was consuming Tatsuki. "First of all, I've never heard of this guy, and neither has any of the soul reapers that were at Orihime's funeral. He's an enigma, he may not even be in the spirit world. And if he was, the place is to big for you to just traverse around and try to find him at. AND even if you do find him, he was incredibly strong. You'd be dead in an instant, Tatsuki. I'm sorry to say that, really."
"So what do you think I should do?" Tatsuki now was the frustrated one, "Just sit here and do nothing? You can't tell me that YOU are just going to sit here and do nothing. No, you've gotten your merry band of soul reapers, qunicies, and whatever the heck Chad is together and you're going to find this guy and take him out. I know you Ichigo, you're not going to let this go, and neither am I! You're going to go after him, and I want to come too."
"I…" Ichigo was speechless, Tatsuki was like him in so many ways. It was as if he was arguing with himself. "Look, Tatsuki…I know how you feel, it's just…Orihime wouldn't want you to get involved in all this. I get that you think it's amazing and all hearing about all the powers we've obtained through the places we've been and experiences we've had but…we've been through some pretty terrible stuff to protect the people we love. Orihime, when she fought, she fought to protect you. I don't think she would have wanted you to be pursuing this man."
"Really?" Tatsuki looked Ichigo deep in the eyes, as her voice now was cold and filled with malice. "Is that what Orihime would want? Are you so sure, Ichigo? I am not, I wish I could know for sure…I wish I could just ASK her, but I can't because Orihime is dead! She's dead because some soul reaper decided to kill her to take some red rock out of her body! That's all she was to this freak. To this murderer, our sweet Orihime was just some wrapping to collect his crimson stone. Get rid of the wrapping, and take the stone…but she wasn't wrapping, she was OUR FRIEND! And she's DEAD! So no, I can't ask Orihime what she would want because she is gone and I am stuck here on this earth without my best friend…so I want to find this assassin and I want to take him out. You and your friends are wanting to do the same thing, and it's wrong of you to just leave me out of it."
"Look it's not that it's just…"
"Screw it," Tatsuki shrugged off Ichigo's next comment as she turned around to walk away. "If you won't help me I'll find my own way. One way or another, I'm going to avenge Orihime."
Ichigo sighed deeply as the black haired tomboy walked off fuming. Tatsuki was lost, and usually Orihime was her compass that brought her back on the path. Ichigo knew that would happen no longer, and he knew it was up to him to do something before Tatsuki found herself in a position she could not escape. Kisuke Urahara's words radiated through Ichigo's mind…"train her".
"Wait Tatsuki!" Ichigo cried out as he began running after her. She stopped, but she did not turn around. "Look…Urahara had this crazy idea. He said I should try to train you to become a soul reaper…you know like me."
"I thought you said normal humans can't become soul reapers." Tatsuki responded, "You could because you borrowed Rukia's spiritual energy for a while which allowed yours to manifest in a very accelerated way right? So how could I possibly become one?"
"That's the thing…" Ichigo said seriously, not to sure if it was a good idea to even go down the road he was about to. "On the night Orihime was killed…your spiritual pressure went through the roof. When I came to the scene and fought the killer, you're power was incredible. It was unlike anything me or Urahara have ever felt. It was similar to soul reaper spiritual pressure…but different."
"Alright then, Ichigo!" Tatsuki spoke as she grabbed his arm and her eyes glimmered with hope. "Let's do it! Train me to be a soul reaper! I know I can do it!"
"If we go down this path…" Ichigo said, his eyes showing sadness and worry, "You could die in the process."
"I feel like I died that night with Orihime…" Tatsuki's voice quivered as tears filled her eyes. "But what you're saying, it's giving me hope…it's giving me a reason to keep going, and a way to go…We can do this Ichigo!"
"Alright then!" Ichigo agreed, knowing that Tatsuki's mind was made up, "We'll start tomorrow then."
Meanwhile underground in a sewer in a spot that had been carefully covered with Seki Seki rock to mask spiritual pressure, a man with a red bandana covering the lower part of his face, with spikey purple hair and red eyes began to use secret kido to open a channel to his superiors.
"What have you to report?" the feral voice from the other end asked as soon as the link was established.
"I have the stone." Cedric responded obediently, "I removed it from the vessel, after killing her, and was met with resistance by the substitute soul reaper. Of course, you already know this as during the battle I received an order to retreat. I wish you would have let me stayed and finish the battle. Now, because he and that little friend of the vessel saw me word has gotten back all the way to the Soul Society. I am having to move extra carefully as everyone is looking for a mysterious power and a forbidden Zanpakuto…things were easier when I was lurking in the shadows."
"Whining is not becoming of you, servant." The voice responded, "The substitute soul reaper is not a force for you to treat lightly. He has defeated many formidable opponents and it has been proven in times of desperation, as in if he were just to have lost a loved one, his power is immeasurable. Please remember the stone is useless without the chalice…which you have yet to obtain, am I correct?"
"You are correct, Master…" the rogue soul reaper bowed his head, "I have combed the earth looking for it and have concluded it must be somewhere in the soul society."
"Then you must go to the soul society then to retrieve the chalice. Our plan to bring the Seireitei to its knees is absolutely useless without the chalice and the stone together. Do not worry about waiting long for an opening to the soul society. Now that the Hell Stone is out of its host, the great pressure it imits will lead to many holes in the world of the living, the spirit world, and hueco mundo. Hollows will be feasting all over Karakura town soon, and the Soul Society itself will be dealing with invading hollows too. Use these as distractions and find your way to the spirit world and recover the chalice there. I trust you know what to do with the artifacts once you have received them, yes?"
"I do Master…" Cedric spoke with an evil smile as the link began to fade, "And I promise that once I obtain both objects, the Soul Reapers will be completely defenseless against what we will release. The power that is coming will be unlike anything they have ever experienced."
A/N: Four chapters in one day...not a bad start I think! I had a lot of time to myself today, which will not always be the case. I will try to update regularly though. Thanks again for reading!