The Black Cat
Masochist
Breakfast
Ichigo and Rukia were both exhausted from constantly fighting hollows. Tousle haired and grumbling, they both sat at the breakfast table, nibbling at pieces of toast. A glaring contrast, Kyoko went twirling around the table, seemingly more cheerful than usual.
"What's up with you?" asks Ichigo, annoyed.
"This!" she says, holding a manga out in front of her. The manga was called 'Ch!b! Pan!c,' and it looked as though Rukia might've drawn it.
"Which is…?"
"Don't you remember me saying something about looking for a rare manga? Well, this is it!" she says happily.
"That's nice. Now shut up."
"Behave, Ichigo!" scolds Yuzu, waving her spatula threateningly.
"I think I'm gonna head off to school now." says Kyoko as she picks up her book bag.
"Kinda early, isn't it?" asks Karin.
"Yeah, but I was late yesterday. I really didn't like making such a big entrance on my first day. 'bye!" she shouts over her shoulder as she jogs out the door.
THWACK!!
"Ow!" Kyoko rubs her head from where she had hit her head on the street sign once again, and sets off at a slightly slower pace.
Later, and elsewhere
Toshiro was not having a good morning. He was still more than angry with himself about the previous night. He couldn't have had a better opportunity to ask questions, and he had completely blown it! What was worse was that the soul society was already badgering him about his mission. How could he possibly get any results after just two days! "Ugh, and now I am forced to waste half the day in that school with those idiotic children!" he thought to himself angrily. Never had he been more grateful to be in the company of his lieutenant. Though she wasn't apt to use it, she at least had a half a grain of sense. Heaving a sigh, he continued down the street, heading straight toward a rather questionable-looking part of town.
~*~*~*~
Abandoned, dirty-looking buildings lined the street. Toshiro ignored them, however, for he was still lost in thought, trying to figure out the best way to quickly solve the hollow problem and go home.
"KYAAAAAAHHHH!!!"
His thoughts were interrupted by a high-pitched scream. It had sounded like it had come from the alley up ahead. Without thinking, he dashed off in the direction of the source of the commotion. When he rounded the corner, he found books scattered over the ground. Three large, burly young men were at the other side of the alley. One of them was gripping a struggling young girl by her upper arms. Toshiro couldn't help but do a double take when he realized just who the girl was.
"LET ME GO, YOU SLUG!!"
"Uh-uh, not yet. We ain't done wit you, yet!"
The other two approach her, arms outstretched, greedy looks on their faces. Gasping, Kyoko squirmed away from the two approaching men, still trying to fight off the man behind her. It was useless, however. They were simply too big and to strong for her. Realizing that she was not going to be able to free herself, Toshiro dropped his things and charged. He tackled the man holding Kyoko, who, in his shock, let her go.
"WHAT THE HELL?!?!"
Kyoko was barely able to scramble out of the way as the two other men attacked Toshiro, the nearest of which grabbed him by his hair.
"You little PUNK! MIND YOUR OWN DAMN BUSINESS!!!" he shouted as he drug Toshiro, who was still a little stunned from the impact of the tackle, to his feet. "I'LL BREAK YOUR DAMN NECK!!!"
"tch…bastard." Toshiro mumbled as he jumped into the air and planted his foot squarely in his face, sending him flying into the wall and knocking him out. He then turned to face the third man, but before he could react, he had punched him in the jaw. He raised his fist to strike again, but Toshiro was too fast for him. Unable to reach his face, he punched him in the gut, sending spiritual energy through his hand to make sure it did real damage. He then turned to Kyoko, who was still sitting on the ground, eyes wide.
"What are you waiting for?!" shouted Toshiro, grabbing her by the wrist and dragging her along.
"W-wait, my stuff-"
"Forget it. You can come back for it later. We need to leave now before they wake up." He is able to grab his own briefcase as they run by, though.
~*~*~*~
After jogging a few blocks, they reach a more public area, so they can slow down.
"Why didn't you use your soul reaper abilities against them? You were clearly in danger." asks Toshiro, slinging his briefcase over his shoulder.
"… Because they were humans. I will never raise my zanpakuto against a human."
"But they would've-"
"Just drop it, already!"
They continue walking, passing coffee shops and cheerful people. Kyoko rubs her arm where the man had gripped her.
"Why did you save me?" asks Kyoko unexpectedly.
"I don't know. Perhaps it was because you were in danger. I guess I'm not the kind of man who will simply stand around and let an innocent woman get hurt."
"… How do you know I'm innocent?"
Toshiro turns around and looks her in the eyes.
"You're bleeding!"
"hmm? Oh." Toshiro wipes his chin where the blood had been trickling down from his busted lip.
"See? You're hurt now because of me! I told you to stay away from me, and yet you keep coming back! What are you, some sort of masochist?"
"No, I'm not. And stop blaming yourself for everything."
"But it's my fault! I explained it to you already. I'm bad luck. And if you stay around me, you'll only keep getting hurt again and again."
Toshiro looked as though he was about to say something, but he was cut off when a small doxon, tethered by a leash, runs in between them. It turns and runs behind Kyoko, and it's leash trips her up. She falls flat on her face.
Toshiro stares at her, wide-eyed. "Kyoko… um,… are you… okay?"
"Oooooowwww… Yeah, I'm okay. I'm used to it. Stuff like this happens to me all the time."
"I see." says Toshiro, still staring at her. "She's beginning to have a point. I doubt many humans could survive having luck like hers." he thinks to himself. He helps her up and they continue to walk to school. Lost in her own thoughts, Kyoko gazes at the back of his head as they walk.
Class
"Arisawa?"
"Here."
"Asano?"
"Right here!"
"Hitsugaya?"
"…"
"Honsho?"
"Here!"
"Inoue?"
"Here."
"Kojima?"
"Here."
"Kuchiki?"
"Here."
"Kunieda?"
"Here."
"Kurosaki?"
"Here."
"Matsumoto?"
"Heeeeerrre!!"
"Naka?"
"…"
"Natsui?"
"Here."
"Ogawa?"
"Here."
"Two absent. Has anyone seen Mr. Hitsugaya?" asks Ms. Ochi. Rangiku and Rukia exchange puzzled looks. "What about Miss Naka? Ichigo, Rukia, I understand that you three live in the same house. Where is she?"
"Uh, She left before us. I don't know where she is." replies Ichigo.
"Oh. Alright, then. Today we're going to talk about-" she is interrupted once again by a knock on the door. "Excuse me." She walks to the door and opens it curiously. "Well, look who decided to join us today- What happened to you two?!" she exclaims, all professionalism lost.
Toshiro and Kyoko were standing in the doorway, covered in scrapes and bruises. Toshiro's lip was still bleeding.
"Unfortunately, we were involved in a bit of a disturbance this morning." explained Toshiro calmly. "Though it did result in violence, I assure you it is nothing to be concerned about." he adds as he sits down. Kyoko sits down, too. She continues to stare somewhat vacantly at Toshiro for most of the day.
Lunch
Ichigo, Rukia, Orihime, Toshiro, and Rangiku were all having lunch on the roof.
"So, what was up with this morning, Toshiro?" asks Ichigo.
"It's Captain Hitsugaya! ~sigh~ Like I said, I was involved in a slight disturbance."
"Hollows?"
"No."
"Wait" interjects Rangiku. "So you're telling me humans did that to you?"
"…yes."
Rangiku tries, and fails horribly, to stifle her laughter. "~snicker~ I-I can't believe my captain got beat up by humans!! At least tell me they were armed!"
"…no."
"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!" Rangiku nearly falls over she is laughing so hard.
After she finally calmed down a bit, they began discussing the hollow situation.
"Have any of you been able to find anything?" asks Toshiro.
"No, nothing." replies Rukia.
"Well, we need to find something soon. The soul society already expects results."
"So soon?" asks Rangiku, still snickering slightly.
"Excuse me." came a voice from behind Toshiro. They all turn and see Kyoko standing there.
"How long has she been standing there?!" thinks Rukia, alarmed.
"Toshiro… I… I just wanted to thank you for saving me." she said, bowing. "I also wanted to apologize for how I've been acting lately. You saved my life, and I was nothing but rude to you."
"Don't worry about it."
"But-"
"I said not to worry about it. It's really no big deal. Now stop wasting your time apologizing and go and eat your lunch."
"Uh, right. 'bye." she said, taking the hint that she had interrupted something and leaving.
"Wow. You certainly handled that well, captain." says Rangiku lightly.
Later
Once again, Toshiro was fighting hollows. "How annoying! They're relatively weak hollows, but there's just so damn many of them!" thinks Toshiro angrily. Just as three of the hollows surround him, a familiar voice calls out.
"Hey! Why didn't anyone invite me to this little party?!"
Toshiro turns to see Kyoko standing on the roof of one of the buildings. She was in her shihakusho.
"What are you doing here?" asks Toshiro, killing the three that were surrounding him.
"Isn't it obvious? I'm here to kill hollows. I mean, it's my job, isn't it?" She drew her own zanpakuto. It was the first time Toshiro had gotten a proper look at it. The blade was the perfect length to suit her small body. The hilt was tied with purple material, to match the rest of her. But the most noticeable part was the guard. It appeared to be made of gold, with a sapphire at the top, and a ruby at the bottom. It's sheath was also purple, with three gold chains looping from the top. Without another word, she began to cut down the hollows. It would take much less time to do away with the hollows with two people fighting instead of just one.
"Thank you for your assistance." said Toshiro.
"No problem! I was getting kinda bored anyways." she says cheerfully.
"I see. You mind explaining the sudden change in personality?"
"Huh? Oh, right. Well, like I said earlier, I've nothing but rude lately when what I should be is grateful. Besides, it's not like you're going to listen to me anyways, so I might as well stop complaining." she said with a shrug. "I figured you'd get annoyed with my attitude and leave me alone, but I guess not. Don't say I didn't warn you, though."
Fin.
-Sorry for the huuuge delay, but i've been experiencing technical difficulties. -gonna try to upload more frequently. i'd like to give a special thanks to Mikiko97 and Wulf 4 Life for their reviews/favorites! i'd also like to thank LunaBlackLovesPie and oreobabe100 for favoriting! You guys rock!
I do not own Bleach. If I did, this would not be a fanfic.
Pleeease review!