Chapter 4: Suzumebachi
The entire forest was alive. Plants sparkled with morning dew, while insects hovered above them, buzzing busily. Birds chirped merrily from their perches on the tree branches, and small forest animals scurried along the dirt below. Many creatures lived in the lush, green woods. Honeybees, mice, and robins. Grasshoppers, voles, and cardinals. Crickets, squirrels, and thrushes. It was the ideal home for any animal. But the only home for one creature in particular.
A bright glowing thing zipped around happily, fluttering in front of a mole and then teasingly tapping a ladybug. She flew around, marveling at the beautiful world in which she lived in. She never got tired of such a sight, although she wondered how the forest could be so friendly while her wielder was usually so cold. She laughed; of course she knew the answer. But would it really hurt for Soifon to be a little more open? Shrugging it off, she decided to have a small snack of blueberries and darted over to the berry bushes. Settling down beside one tasty-looking clump, she plucked off a berry and took a big bite out of it. It was so delicious, she kicked her legs in delight as she chewed and swallowed, and then took another bite.
A squeaking noise caught her attention, and she looked down to see a brown mouse staring up at her with pleading eyes. It squeaked again, showing respect to the queen of the forest. She grinned and said, "'Course you can have one!" And then she tossed down a clump of berries.
The mouse squeaked its thanks and picked up the berries before scurrying back into its den to give to its family.
Suzumebachi laughed, and then took another bite out of the wonderful blueberries. She loved her life. She loved the forest she lived in, she loved all her animal neighbors, and most of all, she loved her wielder. Although sometimes she did question on how she could be so different from Soifon. Her partner was strong, and often times emotionless. She was obsessed with getting stronger, and never had any time for fun. Suzumebachi was okay with that. She liked it that the captain never lost a fight, and would never back down from a challenge. She helped Soifon get stronger, and her ability of 'death in two strikes' earned her much respect from both Shinigami and zanpakuto. But sometimes she did wish Soifon would come and talk to her once in a while. Did she even know that her inner world was such a happy, cheerful place?
"She'd probably be disgusted by it." Suzumebachi decided as she finished off her snack.
She continued to sit for a few more minutes, and then stood up and stretched. She pondered on what to do next, and finally decided on simply flying around for a bit. She liked flying. How many other zanpakuto could fly? Not many, she'd bet on that. As far as she knew, only she and that obnoxious Ruri'iro Kujaku could.
But just as she was about to jump off the bush branch she'd been sitting on, she heard a voice yell out, "Sting all enemies to death! Suzumebachi!"
Suzumebachi grinned. It was time for another fight! She quickly sat down again and closed her eyes to concentrate. She pictured her sealed form in her mind, and her wielder, Soifon. The golden glow around her became brighter as she released, and then she found herself on the finger of her partner.
"This is my zanpakuto, Suzumebachi." Soifon began her usual introduction to the enemy, who looked like a boy with messy dark hair and white clothes. "It kills in only two strikes. So now, prepare yourself for the journey to the afterlife."
Suzumebachi readied herself. Most of the time she had only one chance to inject her symbol into the enemy, and it had to happen extremely quickly. Soifon sprung at the boy, but he dodged and appeared behind her. Suzumebachi could've laughed; that wasn't going to stop her. Her wielder spun around, and Suzumebachi stabbed the boy's chest. Her mark sprung on. Half the fight was over already.
Once the battle was finished, Suzumebachi was sent back to her forest home. She whistled cheerfully. The battle hadn't taken that long, and it had been fairly easy. The boy had been young, however, and it had been a shame to kill him. But orders were orders, as Soifon would say. Now, all Suzumebachi wanted was a nice nap.
She went around the forest, looking for material to make a good nest. She had no real burrow or house in the woods, so she mainly just slept wherever she wanted. All the animals knew to respect her, anyway. She collected a few scraps of moss, some soft grass and leaves, and a thrush even gave her a feather. Pleased with her collection, she arranged it all into an acceptable bed, and promptly settled down to go to sleep.
The nap was peaceful, so to say. She'd had an odd dream about a man appearing in her forest, and all of the animals running away in fear. It had happened very quickly, however, so she couldn't remember all the details.
Suzumebachi woke up a few hours later, and was surprised to see how dark it was. The sun had set very quickly, or she had been asleep longer than she'd expected to. But that was fine for her; nighttime was when the crickets chirped, and the sound relaxed her. However, tonight when she strained her ears to listen, there was nothing but silence. No singing crickets, no rustling of the nocturnal animals, no hoot of the Great Horned Owl. It was completely quiet. And the quiet frightened her.
Slowly, she stood up and looked around. A bird had been nesting on the branch above her, but now it was gone. Near the roots of the tree on which she's slept, a family of voles lived in a burrow. But when she checked it, they had all vanished.
"What's going on?" Suzumebachi murmured, trying to ignore the panic rising within her. "Where is everyone?"
"I am glad to see that you are awake." A low voice commented from behind her.
Suzumebachi yelped and whirled around. From behind the tree, a dark-haired man stepped out. His face was emotionless, and markings surrounded his eyes. He wore a thick coat even though the forest air was pleasantly warm, and his fingernails were longer than Suzumebachi herself. He walked up to her, until he was about three feet away. The zanpakuto hovered backwards warily.
"Please, there is no need to feel frightened." The man said. "My only interest is to become friends with you."
"Friends?" Suzumebachi hissed. "Yeah, because I always want to make friends with strangers who come into my forest and scare all my neighbors away."
"I'm sorry for alarming them. I did not expect for there to be other animals living here; in most of the other zanpakutos' homes, it is only they. Your wielder must surely be a kind and affectionate woman."
Suzumebachi couldn't figure out if he was being sarcastic or not, so she decided to reply, "And yours must be creepy and weird."
The man frowned, looking somewhat dangerous. "What makes you say I am a zanpakuto? I have revealed nothing of the kind."
"What do you think I am, an idiot?" She was insulted. How dare this man question her intelligence? "No human or Shinigami could get in here, but I've definitely heard of zanpakuto visiting others."
The frown disappeared, and the man's tone sounded almost impressed. "Interesting. You are, by far, the brightest zanpakuto I've met. Kazeshini believed me when I told him I was not a zanpakuto."
"Well Kazeshini's an idiot." Suzumebachi replied. Then she hesitated. "Who's Kazeshini?"
"Have you not heard the rumors of the dark demon who rules the black mountains?"
"Oh, that Kazeshini. So that's his name, huh?" Suzumebachi was surprised by how friendly her tone was, and how quickly she was warming up to this man. Usually she lived by the rule: Men are lazy, never depend on them.
"Yes. And not even Haineko or Sode no Shirayuki could guess."
That was when Suzumebachi began to get suspicious. "Haineko and Sode no Shirayuki, too, huh? Just how many other zanpakuto did you talk to? And come to think about it, who are you?"
"Excuse me for not introducing myself. My name is Muramasa, and, as you've already said, I am a zanpakuto. Previously, I have spoken to three others: Haineko, Sode no Shirayuki, and Kazeshini. I asked them all the same question, and they have all agreed to join me. I am now about to ask that question to you."
"Wait, they all agreed to join you? Join you for what?"
"I am getting there. Have patience, Suzumebachi." Muramasa replied. "You see, lately I have realized how mistreated the zanpakuto are. Shinigami call on their power whenever they feel like it, because they know that without their zanpakuto, they would be nothing. But do they ever show gratitude to their partners? Not in any of the times I have watched them battle. They instead simply seal up the ones who helped them win, and carry on until they need them again. Do you see where I'm getting at?"
Suzumebachi was beginning to get the idea, and it horrified her. "You're not gonna tell me to go against Soifon, are you?"
"Generally, yes. I am building an army of zanpakuto to attack the Shinigami. No longer will they rule over us, but we will rule over them. We will be the masters, not them. And without their zanpakuto, they cannot fight back. Only the use of their pathetic Kido can aid them, and those little magic spells cannot stop us. Very soon, the era of the Shinigami will end, and the zanpakuto will reign." Muramasa paused, looking at Suzumebachi to see her reaction.
Her reply was blunt: "You must be out of your friggin' mind."
Clearly, that was not the answer he had been hoping for. "Why do you say that?"
"The Shinigami are our wielders for a reason. And Soifon doesn't mistreat me; she's actually really nice sometimes." Suzumebachi insisted.
"Sometimes, you say? As far as I know, she has never once spoken to you. Except for, perhaps, a century ago?"
"Okay, so she doesn't talk to me that much." Suzumebachi admitted. "But I know she trusts me. And I trust her. She would never place me in danger, and I'll always protect her. It's pretty obvious to me that your wielder treated you badly, and I'm sorry for that, but not all Shinigami are like that. And I know Soifon definitely isn't."
"Not all Shinigami are like that?" Muramasa's tone turned cold again. "What of Kazeshini's wielder? Hisagi never released him, and was even scared of him. Rukia gave Sode no Shirayuki to a complete stranger long ago, without even using her to fight. Matsumoto only relies on Haineko for such insignificant things, even calling on her Shikai just to shred piles of paperwork. And you are telling me that not all Shinigami mistreat their zanpakuto?"
"I'm not saying none of them do. I'll admit, some of them are pretty stupid to their zanpakuto. But Soifon isn't, and I'll never go against her. She'd never do it to me; she likes me, I know she does." Suzumebachi winced at how desperate her voice sounded, as compared to Muramasa's cool, confident way of speaking.
"She likes you, does she?" Muramasa said. "I have heard her say otherwise. I often hear her complain about your Bankai. She says it's too large and heavy, and hardly ideal for someone like her. In other words, she does not appreciate your strongest form."
"She's an assassin; of course she wouldn't like my Bankai. I don't blame her for that, because she's never lost a battle with just my Shikai."
"Your Bankai is too flashy for an assassin. And you yourself… you glow. That alone would give you away, should you be on a stealth mission."
"But I never will." Suzumebachi pointed out.
"Then what about this?" Muramasa sounded extremely irritated. "Join me, or she dies."
This caught Suzumebachi off guard.
"I can free other zanpakuto from their sealed forms, so that they can appear right next to the Shinigami visibly. I myself can do that as well. And I can kill her just as easily." Muramasa said, clearly pleased that he had finally gotten to Suzumebachi.
"Soifon's strong, and so am I. Even if you do materialize, she can call onto my power, and together we can defeat you." She hoped fiercely that the man didn't notice her panicked tone.
"Can she?" Muramasa said. "Can she really kill me?"
He sounded so sure that he could not lose. That he could never lose, and that he would always kill whoever dared to opposed him. She didn't like the way he sounded. She didn't like the arrogance that emitted from his body. She was scared. Suzumebachi was scared of this man, Muramasa.
"She… she…" Suzumebachi could hardly believe that she couldn't get the words out of her mouth. She longed to say that she had the utmost confidence in her wielder, but what if her next words really did result in Soifon's death? At least if she joined Muramasa, she could make sure Soifon was still alive. Suzumebachi stuttered for a few more moments, and finally hung her head in defeat. "She can't." I'm sorry, Soifon.
Muramasa nodded. "That is exactly what I was thinking."
His words that rang with triumph filled a burning hatred in Suzumebachi. She trembled, wanted terribly to jab the man with her stinger.
"So now… will you join me?"
Suzumebachi clenched her left hand into a fist, and whispered, "Yes."
"Excuse me?"
She growled angrily. She didn't need him to rub it in. "Yes! I will freaking join you, okay? Happy?"
Muramasa offered her a grim smile. "Extremely." And then, without warning, he lashed out, scratching her cheek lightly with one sharp fingernail.
Suzumebachi cried out as bright lights flashed in front of her. Blood throbbed in her head, pounding furiously as the world around her began to spin. Her stomach turned, and she spat out the blueberry that she had consumed only a few hours ago. A few hours ago, when she'd felt that there was nothing wrong in the world. When she'd assumed that she and Soifon would always be safe and the best. Finally, the ground beneath her steadied, and she glanced around, panting.
She glared at Muramasa furiously, aware that her golden glow was extremely dim. "What did you do?"
"I merely transported us to where the other three zanpakuto currently reside." Muramasa replied as he turned to a staircase. "Come on. I'm sure they're simply dying to meet you."
This time she knew it was sarcasm. She wiped her mouth and, with some difficulty, took to the sky, slowly hovering behind the man as he made his way down. Once he'd finally reached the bottom of the stairs, he called out, "We have a new ally."
The first voice that sounded was a female, and a cat-human hybrid bounded up to the two. "It's about time. What took you so long? And where is she?"
A demonic cackle rang in the air, and from above, a black devil leapt down. "You idiot, do you know nothing? Suzumebachi is a fairy. Don't you see that glowing thing right here? Or is your ego too big that you can't see past it?"
"Quiet, you two. I've been telling you for the past hour not to argue." The last zanpakuto joined them, a soft-sounding beautiful lady dressed all in white. She looked kindly at Suzumebachi. "Welcome. I'm happy to have a new friend here."
"Man, you really are small." Haineko commented, somewhat rudely.
Suzumebachi glared at her. "I'm sorry for not being up to your expectation, you freaky-looking fusion."
Haineko looked taken aback, and Kazeshini laughed. "Good one! Damn, Suzumebachi, I like you already."
"Good. Then you can take care of her." Muramasa said shortly. "I'm going to fetch someone else. All of you stay here." And then he whipped around and walked up the stairs quickly, his fast steps quickly followed by a loud cracking noise.
"Did you do something to irritate him?" Sode no Shirayuki asked gently.
Suzumebachi looked at her, instantly taking a liking to the quiet but kind zanpakuto. She shrugged and said, "I guess. He forced me to come here; I didn't want to betray Soifon."
And then something clicked. She looked at all three of the other zanpakuto, and backed away in alarm. "All of you! You all went against your wielders! You came here willingly, wanting to harm them." She flew high up, pressing herself on a tiny rock jutting out of the rock wall.
"I get it, you didn't agree, did you?" Haineko put her hands on her hips. "He must've forced you."
"Didn't I just say that?" Suzumebachi snapped. "He threatened to kill Soifon, and I couldn't let that happen. That's the only reason I'm here."
"Awfully loyal, aren't you?" Kazeshini said.
"The only thing you aren't."
"You mean besides being a fairy?" He sneered back.
Sode no Shirayuki smiled up at her, willing for her to ignore the other two. "I can understand that you would feel wary at first in trusting Muramasa. But believe me, he only means well for us zanpakuto. Surely Soifon must have done something for you to want revenge on?"
"No matter what you say, I'll never bring myself to really want to hurt her." Suzumebachi said defiantly.
Haineko folded her arms against her chest. "Well that won't do, now will it? We can't have a member who doesn't really want to hurt her wielder." And then, with amazing agility, she scaled the wall and shoved her face right into Suzumebachi's, grinning madly.
Suzumebachi pressed back up against the wall. She was really hating it here.
"Repeat after me: I hate Soifon, and I want to kill her." Haineko said.
"No."
Haineko moved in closer. "Say it."
"I don't want to."
She bared her teeth, revealing sharp, pointed fangs. "Say it, dammit, or I'll force it out of you!"
Suzumebachi looked at her furiously, but the larger zanpakuto didn't seem to care. She looked down miserably and muttered, "I hate Soifon, and I want to kill her."
Haineko gave a satisfied smile as she brought her head back. "Now say it again."
"I don't want to-."
"Say it again." She said dangerously, a low growl coming from her throat.
"I hate Soifon, and I want to kill her."
"And again."
"I hate Soifon, and I want to kill her."
"Now just keep on saying it, and don't stop until I say so." Haineko ordered her. Suzumebachi glared at her with all the hatred in the world, but the cat-human hybrid just flashed a grin and scampered back down to the two other zanpakuto.
Sode no Shirayuki gave her friend a disapproving look. "I can't say I agree to your tactics."
"It's gonna work." Haineko insisted. She glared up at Suzumebachi. "Oi! I can't hear you down here!"
"Then maybe you should get yourself a hearing aid." Suzumebachi retorted. She decided that this was probably the worst moment of her life. How much more would she have to take?
"Don't play with me." Haineko snarled.
Suzumebachi gritted her teeth, and then yelled down, "I hate Soifon, and I want to kill her!"
Kazeshini cackled. "Well I'm impressed. Score one for Haineko."
"Thank you." Haineko replied. This was one of the rare moments that they got along.
"I hate Soifon, and I want to kill her." Suzumebachi repeated. "I hate Soifon, and I want to kill her." She could almost feel the tears coming up to her eyes. "I hate Soifon, and I want to kill her."
She only wondered how much longer she could say it, and really not mean it.
Hi, this is Cronomon. I just wanted to say that I am open for suggestions on who to do next. I was thinking of:
a) Tobiume
b) Sogyo no Kotowari
c) Wabisuke
So what do you think?