A/N: Well would you look at this. An update that didn't take nearly a YEAR to come out like the last two. And an added bonus this is the longest chapter yet. Hope you enjoy.
A Battle between Giants
Ichigo stared at the auburn haired woman. He was uneasy at how identical Suzume looked to Orihime's mother. His hand was just resting over the substitute badge just waiting to be used if the Inoue tried anything. The orange haired boy couldn't sense any reiatsu coming from the red head which only concerned him more as she must have been a master at concealing her energy. He had been ready to strike the woman he had presumed to be Kasumi, but Tatsuki's reaction to her presence had halt such an action.
"Miss Inoue… You… What… How…" His black haired friend stuttered. Ichigo could see that her blue eyes were full of surprise and confusion.
"Tatsuki," Suzume voice was firm and more in control, "how long have you been involved?" The girl was silent at the older woman's question. Ichigo was confused by what the woman was asking as well. "Tatsuki," she said with more of a demanding voice, "how long have you been involved in all of this?" The auburn haired woman gestured towards Kisuke, who had a big smile on his face, as if that would clarify her question; which it did.
"I've… I've known for over a year and a half." The raven haired girl said, but it seemed she was still stunned. A glare appeared on Suzume face and she turned around to face the blond haired Soul Reaper.
"You didn't think to tell me that Orihime's best friend was aware of all this spiritual business?" She asked in a miffed voice. "It would have made me feel better knowing I could talk to someone other than Soul Reapers." The ex-captain just shrugged his shoulders.
"Isshin was the one who had the information to contact you." Kisuke said as if it made complete sense. Ichigo saw her clench her fist, clearly she was not satisfied with that answer. "And besides, she and the others only just found out about the Inoue Clan. If she knew you were aware but Orihime didn't know of your involvement that would have raised questions."
Ichigo felt like he had been ignored since he had arrived and it was starting to tick him off. Apparently Tatsuki felt the same.
"What the hell is going on," she yelled drawing the attention of the two adults. "Miss Inoue, I don't understand what's going on. What's you involvement in all of this?"
"I would like to know that as well." Ichigo said. He kept a firm look at the auburn haired woman. "Why haven't you been trying to take Orihime back to the Clan?"
"Who the hell are you?" Suzume glared at him.
"My name is Ichigo Kurosaki." He saw a look of surprise briefly cross her face before it turned to a firm stare.
"I'm not with the Clan," she said firmly answering his question. "Like Sora, I was ostracized from the clan. Since he left with Orihime I've been doing my best to look after them and make sure the Clan never found them." She turned back to the blond Soul Reaper. "Which would have been easier if…"
"Now, now." Kisuke said while waving his fan with his trade mark grin. Ichigo saw Suzume clench her fist again, clearly she had been dealing with hat and clogs' antics for a long time. "Before we continue why don't we get Chad and Uryū over here so we don't have to tell the same story twice."
The silent giant couldn't help but be concerned about how uneventful the last three days had been. One of his closest friends, the one he had trained with on several occasions, was in danger and she didn't even know about it. He had just finished his shift at the warehouse he had been working at and was on his way home when he received a text message from Ichigo.
Get to Kisuke's ASAP
The bluntness of the text got Chad a little worried that something may have happened to Orihime. A quick search for the auburn haired girl's reiatsu eased his nerves as she was at her workplace. He could assume that maybe they got some important information that could help their friend. The silent giant began to make his way out of the warehouse district when a sudden heavy pressure bore down on him. He looked towards the source to find a large brown haired man standing at the top of one of the warehouses. Chad could summarize that the older man was as tall as he was.
"Hello there, boy," the man said with a grin. "Would you be so kind as to tell me where my daughter is?"
"You must be Osamu Inoue." Chad stared at the man. The older man was presenting himself in an aura of confidence. The grin on his face made it seem like he had won a battle. His lax posture said that he didn't consider the dark skinned boy a threat. And the amount of reiatsu he was unleashing said he was ready for a fight.
"And you're the Fullbringer that is friends with my daughter." Then the Inoue's voice got demanding. "Where is she?"
Chad gave a stern stare at Orihime's father. The older man didn't really expect him to just hand his friend over did he?
"I won't let you take Orihime." The silent giant raised his reiatsu to match the Inoue's. The eyes of the man widened in response. "She is my friend and I will watch her back."
"It's been a long time since anyone has challenged me." A twisted grin appeared on Osamu's face. "Good, I prefer to beat the answer out you anyway." He disappeared from the rooftop and reappeared just above Chad; his fist was coming straight down so fast that the large teen barely had time to dodge. The Inoue's fist plowed into the ground, the force created a small crater. He looked back up at the teenager. "You have quick reflexes. Good, it would be a shame for this to end quickly."
The stoic boy threw his arm forward the moment he saw the older man jump towards him with his outstretched fist. Both their attacks met head on matching each other in power. Chad had to admit that he was proud that he was able to wipe away some of the confidence from Osamu's face. He decided to take advantage of the man's bewilderment and push back hard enough to throw him off balance. The dark skinned boy followed it up by slamming his fist below the man's jaw sending him flying up into the air before fall hard back onto the ground.
Chad watched as the large man recovered from his uppercut; a thrilled look was on his face. The teen felt a little uneasy at the Inoue's expression. He seemed to be getting a kick out of the fight.
"It's been a while since someone has been able to knock me off my feet." He wiped away some blood that started to drip down from his mouth. "Perhaps I should put a little more into this fight."
The silent giant felt the amount of reiatsu in the area increase. He was puzzled by the slight glow that Osamu's body was letting off. The dark skinned boy could swear that the man before him was getting slightly taller. That was when Chad noticed what was going on; the Inoue's body was transforming. Not into some new form, but his physique was getting bigger. Every muscle was becoming more enlarged. He was so surprised by the change that he was caught off guard when the older man punched him in the stomach.
The orange haired boy put his cell phone back into his pocket after he sent his message to one of his friends; Tatsuki was doing the same after she sent a message to their other friend. The raven haired girl she knew very well through Orihime. The boy on the other hand was another matter. It had taken her a moment, but she recognized him from the time that Sora had passed away and she went to the clinic of the Soul Reaper that had help protect her niece and nephew from her sister and brother-in-law; he was the young boy. To this day she questioned if it was a coincidence that Orihime had taken her brother to that very clinic.
"So you're Ichigo Kurosaki," Suzume said with a judgmental tone. The auburn haired woman caught the quick smirk that crossed Tatsuki, but it was gone to quickly for her to make anything of it. The boy sent a small glare at her.
"You sound like you know me," he said with a slight bit of aggression.
"We met once before, a long time ago," she informed him. "Orihime speaks very highly of you." This time the smile stayed on the raven haired girls face long enough that she was able to deduce that the young girl was catching on to what she was doing. Ichigo on the other hand looked surprised by her statement.
"Orihime speaks nicely of everyone," the orange haired boy answered.
"I didn't say 'nicely'," she said annoyed by his ignorance, more so with his attitude. "I said 'highly'."
"What is that supposed to-" He suddenly stiffened. Tatsuki did as well. And a quick turned around showed that Kisuke's interest had been peeked as well. "Chad!" Suzume turn back around in time to see the boy grab something from his waist and slam it into his chest. His body fell to the ground and in his place stood the same boy wearing a shihakushō and large sword strapped to his back. "Tatsuki, stay here." And with that he left the store.
Her brown eyes narrowed. "He's a Soul Reaper," she said out loud.
Chad picked himself up after he had been thrown through a warehouse wall. The large teen looked back at the man that had done the damage. Osamu's body mass had grown at least a third of its size bigger and now he was a head taller then him. His clothes must have been loose fitting because there wasn't a tear in sight. The confident smile was back on the older man's face.
"Are you ready to tell me what I want to know boy?" The smirk grew wider. "I hope not, I want this to last a while longer." The man clearly got a thrill out of causing pain.
The Fullbringer walked out of the rubble and got ready for the next round. He got himself ready by pushing his right leg and arm forward and his left leg and arm back, bring his hands up into fist. If it was even possible the Inoue's smile got bigger.
"Good boy." Osamu charged forward, his massive body didn't reduce his speed at all.
Chad didn't hesitate to meet him head on. As he ran the large teen thought back to his previous battles. How he had fallen to so many enemies. How he had failed when he could have been the most helpful. No longer would he let that happen. He wanted to be able to watch Ichigo's back like he had promised. He wanted to protect his friends just as much as they wanted to protect each other. With each thought the teen poured more energy into his right arm. The larger man was coming closer each passing second.
I will not be defeated this time. I will protect those closest to me. The dark skinned boy put more reiatsu into his arm. For Ichigo. For Uryū. For Rukia. For Orihime. Osamu was just about on him, throwing his right arm at the Fullbringer, Chad responded with his own. I will not lose!
The Inoue's large fist met head on with Chad's black and purple armored fist. The force and power that the teen had put into his arm was enough to send the older man fly back a several yards into a warehouse wall. The tall teen stood firmly at the point of collision. Brazo Derecha de Gigante completely formed around his right arm.
An explosion from the warehouse caught his attention and Osamu came running at him his left arm ready to strike. Chad planted his feet into the ground prepared to meet the man head on again. As the older man attacked, the dark skinned boy throw his armored forward with his palm open; catching the man's fist. The power that the Inoue put into his attack was enough to push Chad back, his feet dug into the ground to keep his balance. The older man brought up his other arm and brought it down on the teen. Chad quickly caught that one as well and was forced back further.
The two giants pushed against one other, each trying to get the upper hand. They stared into each other's eyes looking for any weakness. Chad maintained his determined eyes, while he saw Osamu kept his confident smirk. At the same time they head butted each other. They both stumbled back from the respective blows.
Chad was the first to recover. He threw a powerful punch into the older man's jaw sending him reeling. Osamu recovered quickly and answered in kind by sending his fist into the stoic teen's temple. He saw stars for a moment but regained his senses and dug Brazo Derecha de Gigante into the man's stomach. The Inoue doubled over in pain but got back up got back up; he raised his hands up, clutch together and brought them down on the boys back. Chad maintained his balance and delivered a firm uppercut to Osamu sending the older man stumbling back, the teen took the opportunity to put some distance between.
He would be lying if he said he wasn't hurting after that engagement. The teen didn't know if he could say the same thing about his opponent. He could tell the man got a thrill from causing pain, he didn't think it would be too farfetched to assume that the older man got a thrill from receiving pain.
"Alright, boy." Osamu still had the smile on his face. "You have quite a bit of power. How about we kick this up a notch? The Inoue flexed his body and his body began to change again.
The raven haired boy was jumping from roof top to roof top, heading towards the warehouse district where his friend was locked in battle. Chad was up against a powerful opponent. Judging by the reiatsu, it was Orihime's father.
"Uryū!" He heard someone call to him. The Quincy turned to see Ichigo flying towards him. "You felt it to?"
"Of course I felt it," the black haired boy said annoyed, "how could I not."
"Looks like they're making their move," the orange haired boy stated.
"What's their gain from attacking us?" Uryū asked. "You fought Kasumi earlier, right?"
"Yeah , she wanted know where Orihime was."
"So they're coming after us to get-" He was interrupted when someone appeared right in front of them. Both of them jumped back to get out of Kasumi reach.
"Hello, boys," she said with a smile. Uryū quickly activated his bow and Ichgio pulled out Zangetsu. "Well this is an odd sight. A Quincy and a Soul Reaper working together."
Uryū glared at the woman for getting in the way. His short encounter with the auburn haired woman gave him enough information to know getting past her wouldn't be easy. He and Ichigo would have to come up with some sort of plan to fight her. But he couldn't let the woman's comment go without some kind of retort.
"We don't work together," he remarked. "We just have a common interest."
"Keep telling yourself that four eyes," Ichigo said.
"Shove it orange head," the Quincy shot back.
"You two should get a room," Kasumi snickered.
"Shut up!" The two boys said at the same time.
"We have to work out some way to get past her." Uryū said to the substitute.
"What's there to work?" Ichigo asked. "Let's just charge right through her."
"You idiot." He stopped the orange haired boy from jumping forward. "She has more than enough speed to avoid our attacks and if she gets a hold of us she'll drain us of our reiatsu. We need to come up with a strategy."
"Or," Kasumi chimed in, "you two could just sit this one out."
If Chad hadn't gone up against some many monsters of the last year and a half he would have lost his composure by now. Osamu body mass had grown to twice its original size now. The older man's cloths were now starting rip in several places due to the increase in muscle mass.
"Let's continue." The large man charge forward in a burst of speed that wasn't hindered by his massive body. The teen dodge just in time for Osamu's forearm to bury itself into the pavement. The man ripped his arm free and continued his attack. Chad evaded the forward thrust from one arm only to barely dodge an attack from the other. If it were possible, the dark skinned boy would swear that the man's speed had increased.
He saw a chance to put some distance between him and Osamu and took it. The battle was intense enough and had been going on long enough to make him a little winded and the stoic teen needed to catch his breath. This only seemed to give the Inoue a reason to smile more.
"What's wrong?" He asked. "Getting tired already. How about I give you a free shot." The man beat his chest. His voice was filled with confidence.
Chad knew it would be the dumbest move he ever made if he charged in. It was likely the second he got close enough Osamu would strike. So a close range attack was out of the question. So he would just have to go with a distant attack. The smile on the Inoue's face disappeared when the extensions on the teens arm opened up and reiatsu flared out of Chad's shoulder.
The teen pulled his arm back before thrusting it forward. "El Directo!" He yelled as energy burst forward from his fist. The attack flew towards his opponent and made contact causing a massive explosion. When the smoke cleared Osamu was standing, but damage had clearly been done. He had brought up his arms to protect himself, but the attack was strong enough to burn them. The older man brought down his arms. His smile wasn't as big as it was before.
"That actually hurt." His voice wasn't filled with as much amusement as it had throughout the battle. "You've been hold back on me. Well so have I!" The area started to get flooded with more of Osamu's reiatsu.
Ichigo was starting to get annoyed. She had been dodging every single one of their attacks since they had engaged her. Whenever the auburn haired woman got close to them she would have gotten a hold of one of themif they hadn't teamed up to back each other up. Every time he or Uryū saw a chance to go to Chads aid and took it, Kasumi would focus on them and keep them in the area.
"Anymore ideas?" He asked the raven haired boy.
"I'm thinking," the Quincy answered in frustration. Suddenly the air started to get heavier. Chad's battle was clearly exalting. Even Kasumi seemed startled by it with the look of concern on her face.
"Damn it!" Was all she said before she disappeared.
Kasumi saw the damage to the area on arrival. She didn't expect the battle between the boy and her husband to go so far. Nomally she would contribute this to Osamu's thrill of battle and pain, but even he wouldn't play around this long. The auburn haired woman arrived in time to stop her spouse's change.
"Enough!" She yelled just before appearing in front of Osamu. Her brown eyes got a good look at the Fullbringer. He had taken some damage from the battle but was still standing tall. What really surprised her was the boy's right arm. It was unlike any Fullbringer power she had seen before. Most hollow powered humans' abilities revolved around a personal item. But this one was his arm. She turned to see that her husband had taken damage to, the most evident being the burns on his arm. They had underestimated this one.
"Chad!" She turned back to see the Quincy and Soul Reaper appear at the Fullbringer's side. "Are you alright?" The orange haired boy asked the dark skinned teen.
"I'm fine." The large teen answered.
"Why are you here?" Osamu asked in an aggravated tone. "You were supposed to keep the others away."
"You were going too far," she answered sternly. "We don't want draw the Soul Society's attention."
"What about Orihime?"
"We'll find her eventually. Either we'll get the answer from one of them or from Sora when we find him." She saw the looks of surprise on the boys' faces but she didn't think much of it. "For now we retreat and form a plan. We have still have a few days." And with that they left; she was quite annoyed by the set back to finding their daughter.
A/N: Well, what did you think. Hope you enjoyed this update. I realize that although Orihime is supposed to be the central character to this story she hasn't been featured much. I hope to change that in the next chapter or two.