Konnichiwa, minna-san! :) I'm back and Devil's Snare comes with me... this time it took very very long to write this, because my lack of imagination refuses to go away Y_Y And there are still more projects to work on. And I need to travel a lot these days. And Christmas coming up as well. Cooking and stuff.
Anyway, here goes the sixth chapter at long last. I was waiting for my beta Evil-Peach to re-read it, but it seems everybody's on vacation, so there might again be grammatical mistakes as usual... please ignore them.
Enjoy!
The air still chilled, even thought the last remnants of night had long since retreated before the first cones of daylight tentatively reaching over the pink and violet tinted horizon. Gust of freezing wind rose up to wash over two lone figures standing at the very edge of Seireitei, where its neat reishi walls and ground blended with shabby houses and well-trodden main street of the Junrinan district of West Rukongai. The place was deserted as well, for none of its inhabitants had neither the desire to wake up just barely after the sunrise nor the wish to meddle in Gotei 13's affairs. And perhaps even less so since the news of the massacre of Inuzuri reached far and wide to almost every corner of Soul Society.
Looking up at the pale-blue sky, Abarai Renji yawned, unable to supress it any longer and it cost him a reproachful glance of obsidian eyes which made him apologize automatically and mind his own bussiness again, oblivious to Kuchiki Byakuya still watching him closely from the corner of his eye.
Renji crouched down, taking out his now Zabimaru-less zanpakuto and began to draw circles in the dusty road beneath his feet, not really paying attention to what he was doing. He was bored and worried and scared like hell and the events of last night kept whirling inside his head as he attempted to make some sense of it all. His Tengu was keeping largely to himself since Renji had come to about half an hour after he collapsed in Ichigo's room to find himself facing Unohana Retsu, whom the orange-haired teen had the brilliant idea to call over to take a look at him without making a fuss for all of Seiretei to know. The 4th Division Captain's diagnosis was overexertion, thought she herself did not look quite as convinced of the truthfulness of her words as Renji would like her to, for he couldn't explain it either. And the Tengu claimed to have no idea what happened either, which made Renji even more uneasy, though he decided to keep his suspicions to himself. It wouldn't do to pass out again while they were investigating Inuzuri during the preparations for the Ritual of Banishment. And to start arguing with the Tengu would surely mean another overexertion Unohana-taichou made a point of forbidding with one of her rare falsely kind smiles that carried a promise of imminent danger.
The red-head shivered imperceptibly as he recalled the clearly defined threat sneaking into every syllable of the otherwise kind Captain's voice that so reminded him of Byakuya at that moment and sighed, dragging the tip of his sword over the dusty ground. The blade glimmered in a single golden ray falling upon it and for a moment Renji thought he could feel Zabimaru brushing against the back of his mind and paused to reach back for it. The sensation dissapeared the moment he heard footsteps approaching and stood up, looking at the new arrival. It was Ichigo and his gang.
A grin spread on Renji's face as he saw the sour expression on the orange-haired teen's face along with large bags under his bloodshot eyes. It didn't take a genius to link his current mood to the way Ishida Uryuu was keeping his distance, ignoring his lover and seemingly deep in conversation with Inoue Orihime and Arisawa Tatsuki, who was being wary and anxious now that she got at least a little used to this place as if she anticipated to be attacked at any moment from any direction. Perhaps it was due to spending too much time with the 6th Espada, whom had taken a great interest in bickering with her as much as possible only for the fun of taunting her and provoking Ichigo to do something stupid. He nearly did too once, along with Arisawa herself. The others had a hard time separating the three untill Ulquiorra came along and a single look of his eyes made them cease all hostilities immediately. Grimmjow did so with a snort as to not seem intimidated by the 4th Espada.
"Oi, Ichigo!" Renji called, smirking at the obviously exhausted teen. "What's with that face? Want me to call Zaraki-taichou? 'M sure few rounds around Seireitei'd wake you up."
The orange-haired Shinigami narrowed his eyes in response, his lips curling in a wry smile. "I'll pass, thanks. You need the exercise more than I do. Passing out on me like that yesterday, I thought the floor was gonna crack under the weight."
The retort sounded even more lame spoken aloud and Ichigo knew it, he just couldn't think of anything better at the time, memories of trying to make it up to Ishida for the rest of the night and failing miserably still fresh in his tired mind. He didn't feel like joking. Or walking. Or talking. Or doing anything else for that matter. But his small taunt still managed to produce at least some of the desired effect as an angry red vein pulsed on Renji's temple and the Vice-Captain ruffled up, striding towards the high-schooler, eyes shooting daggers.
"Temae!" he grabbed the boy by the hem of his shihakusho.
Ichigo did the same, obviously insulted and a little bit glad to have somebody to vent off the steam on right now. "What? Wanna hit me?"
Renji didn't. Instead a feral grin split his tattoed face and he leaned closer to the boy, lowering his voice to a whisper. "How 'bout I rather tell 'em 'bout last night, berry-chan? 'M sure Rukia's never gonna let you live it down!"
Ichigo scoffed, defiance etched into his bronze gaze as it locked with the chocolate one. "Go ahead, pineapple-head, I couldn't care less."
Flicker of dense reiatsu washing over him and an unmistakable sound of indignant coughing, however, was indication enough for the teen to realize that Ishida Uryuu did care. His pride as a Quincy would never be able to survive the humiliation of being constantly bothered by more Shinigami for already sharing his bed with one. It's been a nightmare to just persuade the archer to continue their relationship when Inoue found out about them. Of course, that was just an accident. She would never have known if it wasn't for her forgetfulness that made her look for the Quincy after school one day, finding him on the roof in a deep and completely wordless conversation with Kurosaki Ichigo involving lips, tongues and nimble fingers.
Ichigo blushed violently as he recalled the moment Ishida realized she was there. His eyes shot to his lover, whose glasses shone opaque as he pushed them up his nose with two slim fingers.
"My my, whatta lively mornin'." Ichimaru Gin strolled lazily over, boney hands thrust in his long sleeves, face-splitting grin firmly in place as usual and the hilt of Shinsou peeking from beneath the folds of his white haori. "Ain'tcha gonna teach yer fuku-taichou how ta behave properly, Kuchiki-taichou?"
Byakuya, for the first time since the two started arguing, looked at them as if he didn't notice what was going on untill now, eyes heavy-lidded, pale mien expressionless to rival even that of Ulquiorra Schiffer who stood serenely next to Orihime with his fingers absently stroking Murciélago, while Grimmjow -also trailing behind the former 3rd Division Captain- kept his distance, leering at Arisawa provocatively, Pantera dangling at his side.
"Quit it, Ichimaru. Nobody's interested in your smart comments." It was Hitsugaya Toushiro, who spoke, following the Hueco Mundo delegation to keep an eye on them. Of course not only because nobody else wanted to.
"Oya! Unfriendly like tha' so early in the mornin'." Ichimaru grinned at the white-haired Captain whose aquamarine eyes sparkled with loathing. "What could lil' ol' me do ta earn such hostility, 10th Division Taichou-han?"
Hitsugaya's eyes narrowed dangerously. However Ichimaru Gin already lost interest in provoking the small Captain the moment a tall blond woman flash-stepped to his side, bowing her head. She didn't seem to notice the former 3rd Division Captain, nor his two companions as she leaned close to her superior, whispering into his ear. Hitsugaya noded curtly and his quarrel with Ichimaru was forgotten. He adressed the rest of their group whose attention turned to him immediately and without questions.
"Time to go. The others will meet us there." he said only and assumed the front line, followed by Kuchiki Byakuya with Renji once again by his side.
One after the other they vanished in shunpo the moment they crossed the boundary between Seireitei and Junrinan, Matsumoto Rangiku looking as if she wanted to talk to her silver-haired traitor of a childhood friend before she changed her mind, joining her Captain. Ichimaru's grin dissapeared from his fox-like face for a split second, coming back before anyone could notice and he too was gone, Ulquiorra and Grimmjow at his heels, Ichigo and Ishida taking Inoue and Arisawa with them, for the two girls couldn't use any kind of flash-step.
o*O*o
The sun was high and the skies gradually darkened with threatening storm, hiding the blazing orb as the group of eleven people apperead seemingly out of nowhere, in the middle of a deserted dusty road leading along a line of shrivelled, long dead trees. Their leafless branches sticking out of strangely distorted tree trunks as if they were once people turned into solid grey bark as they prayed or perhaps cried out in agony to the gods in heavens to hear them for one last time. Dust rose up carried by the wind gushing through the Shinigami ranks and bearing an indistinct essence of foreboding that brought chill to their spine and made the hair on their necks stand up.
"Where are we?" Ichigo spoke first, looking around with apprehension. The road under their feet slithered across a rocky plain with nothing in sight, even the occasional clusters of grass spreading over the barren land were yellowed and withered. No sign whatsoever of this place ever being inhabited.
"There're 80 Rukongai Districts, from the most wealthy borderin' with Seireitei, to the most frowzy. Inuzuri is 78th, so you can imagine how it must've looked like." Renji's voice was tinted with bitterness and regret as he said it as a way of explanation.
"However the protection of surrounding districts was necessery to prevent Mikaboshi's influence from spreading rapidly, especially to Kusajishi and Zaraki, which are unfortunately the most vulnerable due to the people's living conditions." Byakuya took the iniciative, walking slowly forward before coming to a halt as if there was an invisible wall preventing him from going further. "Which means the Kidou Corps errected a powerful barrier around a significantly large area round Inuzuri District preventing anything from getting in or out." the noble raised his hands and where his slender fingers touched the air, circles appeared as if he threw a stone in the water.
Hitsugaya imitated his actions and under the two Captains' silent incantations an archway opened up to admit them. They stepped aside, letting the gawking rest of the group through. The only one unaffected by this magical display being Ulquiorra, whose facial expression never changed and Ichimaru, who looked as if this was only natural. The archway closed behind them the moment they were all on the other side, the place where it had vanished shining bright yellow for only a few seconds.
Immediately the dread they have all been feeling as they approached Inuzuri strenghtened to a point where it resembled a very dense mass of spiritual pressure crushing down on them, preventing their limbs from moving. Even breathing became unnaturaly difficult. Inoue's knees buckled under the pressure, Matsumoto and Ishida panted heavily, Ichigo's fingers wrapped around Zangetsu so that his knuckles had gone white. Even Ulquiorra's otherwise analiticaly calm green eyes darkened and dilated slightly, while the grin on Ichimaru Gin's lips seemed not as face-splitting as usual.
"The effect of the change in pressure will wear off soon." Hitsugaya blinked a few times, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand.
Byakuya wriggled his scarf, shooting a glance at Renji who -surprisingly enough- seemed totally unaffected. As did the other Guardians.
"What the fuck're ya jabberin' about? Don't feel a shit." Grimmjow growled, frowning a bit precariously at Ichigo, whose face turned an interesting shade of marble as he tried to get used to the thick atmosphere surrounding them.
"Same here." said Renji, apparently confused as well. Arisawa only scowled, one arm thrown over Inoue's shoulders, the other holding her hand in place around Tatsuki's own neck as she tried to keep her friend from collapsing.
"Apparently, your Guardians serve as a shield from Mikaboshi's influence. Most intriguing. I do hope I will get to gather more detailed informations from a dissection should any of you die here."
The voice came unexpected and very much familiar to almost all of them and there were thoughts of dissapointment as all heads turned to the newcomer. Especially in the case of the three Guardians.
Kurotsuchi Mayuri was walking towards them, gracefuly, half-clenching and unclenching his hands in the general direction of the group slowly regaining their composure. Orange eyes sweeping each of their faces and his yellowish grin widened as they fell upon the two Espada whom he had aparently found almost as interesting as the Guardians themselves. He seemed to ignore Ishida, however, as the archer's slightly sick expression changed into one of utter disgust. Apparently he still hasn't forgotten the circumstances of neither of their previous meetings.
"Like hell I'm gonna kick the bucket for you to do some weird shit to me!" Grimmjow snapped sharply, blue brows now knitted together to form a line over his eyes. Even though he didn't know half about Mayuri that the Shinigami did, there was a slightly Szayelish air around him that made the arrancar uneasy, to say the very least. "And who're you anyway? Grantz's underrated freak of a cousin?"
Kurotsuchi's gaze ran hungrily along the 6th Espada's body up and down few times as if he was trying to strip him there and then and Grimmjow jerked slightly under the scrutiny as a cold net of foreboding coiled around his spine.
"I see no reason to clog your brain with more unnecessary information, Grimmjow Jeagerjaques. You see, most specimens are sufficient even if they are already dead. You on the other hand would make a very good addition to my collection alive. So much more to explore that way." yellowish teeth bared in the widest smile yet and this time it was Ichigo's turn to grin as he saw Grimmjow's face pale. Apparently he had had his fair share of encounters with mad scientists as well and was not keen on repeating any of them any time soon.
It took a few more minutes and Hitsugaya busting in to prevent a fight or two that Kurotsuchi seemed way too insistent on starting, especially with Ishida, whose presence he seemed to have finaly realized and properly disallowed for having already done his lot on him and thus considering the Quincy of no further interest, to get them underway, where the 12th Division Captain familiarized all of them with the current situation, which was being taken care of even at this very moment by yet another Captain dispatched to make the scientist's work smooth and easy without interruptions and whom they had the pleasure of meeting only about ten minutes later as they reached the outskirts of Inuzuri itself. Only that right now it much more resembled randomly gathered up piles of what could possibly be an attempt of a five-year old to make enough wood-coal to last for at least a decade.
Renji's eyes widened as he saw it and he was glad Rukia wasn't here. Though their memories of this place were not exactly happy and they've long since gone to join the Gotei 13, he still found himself familiar with what they had once called home. He could clearly see before his eyes how Inuzuri looked like when they were kids, playing pranks to steal water and sometimes even food for themselves and their friends and being chased by the vendors brandishing crudely made clubs as they were running for their very lives through filthy dark alleyways, forming a somehow passable way through the warren that was the 78th Rukongai District. Now, however, the place had virtually been burned to the ground. No corpses though, which seemed slightly odd, only charred remains of shabby hovels and shops, some still smoking and suddenly he remembered yet another thing from the day he had lost most of his division here during his investigation. Inferno. Fiery hell consuming Inuzuri even as they arrived, almost as if someone had unleashed Ryūjin Jakka to erase all evidence of life ever flourishing in these parts of Soul Society. He could hear the screaming of his men as they dissapeared within it one after the other only to come back, changed and twisted to turn against those who still remained, including Abarai himself. And the screaming grew louder and Renji wasn't even aware of his knees giving way and his hands covering his ears to shut it all out and Ichigo's voice calling after him and Byakuya's eyes widening as he saw his lieutenant collapse, though he wouldn't move from the spot untill it would be absolutely necessary and then an explosion shook the whole place and they all jumped back or covered their faces as a crowd of humanoid creatures loomed out of the newly formed cloud of smoke only to be cut mid-step, their bodies falling to the ground in a river of blood, severed in half before they all turned to ash carried away by the wind. And maniacal laughter followed them and everybody seemed to have recognized its owner even before he jumped into sight to finish those that managed to escape his first attack, little pink-haired girl cheering him on as she dangled from one of his broad shoulders.
"No use! No use!" he yelled and swung his blade once, twice, three times untill all his oponents fell to the ground and scattered.
He snorted loudly as he looked around and saw nobody else to fight. "All trash." he said throwing his sword over his unoccupied shoulder and walking towards the group watching the whole scene from afar. "Not worth my time. Got somethin' more interesting there, Kurotsuchi?" he spotted the others and his good eye lingered on Grimmjow, whom he seemed to consider carefully, then Ulquiorra, the Espada returning his gaze with obvious unconcern and finally settling on Ichigo at which point his face split into a wide grin and bells perched on top of each black spike forming his echinus-shaped haircut jingled as he moved.
"Huh? Ain't it Ichigo!" he purred like a cat about to jump at a cornered mouse and his eye gleamed dangerously.
"Ichi! Ohayou!" Yachiru's head popped out, her face shining with happiness and dissapeared in shunpo, appearing almost immediately perched on Ichigo's shoulder before leaping into the air and neatly landing next to Byakuya, who automatically reached into his sleeves and before she could utter a single word shoved a manju into her mouth.
She began to munch on it happily, completely ignoring Ichigo's gulping protests as he was pushed to run for the hills with the 11th Division Captain at his heals, laughing madly, brandishing his sword and totally ignoring the orange-head yelling at him about the reason they all came here for and utter disregard for the safety of others, especialy Renji.
However the red-head was already standing up, breathing a little heavily as Grimmjow and Ulquiorra watched the two Shinigami running about, Sexta about to roll over in fits of laughter, Cuatro with mild curiosity shining in his emerald eyes. The rest -obvioulsly used to such behaviour- didn't even bother to sigh in exasperation.
No surprise that Byakuya was the first to notice the sudden change in Renji's posture as well as his facial expression, now austere and somehow unearthly. Black eyes narrowed with apprehension, hand reached for Senbonzakura's handle.
"There is no need to get suspicious, Kuchiki-san." Renji's tatooed hands shot up in a calming gesture and even if it wasn't for his odd way of adressing Byakuya, there could be no mistake that this was not Abarai Renji. One of chocolate eyes, usually streaked with crimson now gleamed pure gold and the ponytail on the back of the Vice-Captain's head came undone, crimson hair a shade lighter and much longer, spilling like a liquid fire over his shoulders and back. "I am sorry for this sudden unannounced intrusion, however Renji seems to be... unavailable right now. I had to take over." came out of the red-head's mouth, however it was not in his own deep growl of a voice. Or not entirely.
Byakuya's hand stilled on his sword as he put two and two together, understanding that what he was looking at was, in fact, Renji's Guardian.
"You should've taken someone more alive. Told ya he wouldn't last long." this time it was Grimmjow who came forward, hands thrust in his pockets, eyes the color of forget-me-not blue now dark, feral grin spread across his face, electric blue hair formed strangely into a pair of curved hornes curling around the espada's ears. Second Guardian had resurficed.
The Tengu folded Renji's hands on his chest and pursed his lips in such a girlish way Byakuya hoped he would never have to see this kind of expression on his Vice-Captain's face ever again. Thought it seemed to have attracted the attention of the rest of the group, who apparently finally noticed something going on.
Yachiru wolfed down the rest of her sweet dumpling and squeeked, jumping at Renji, tugging at his long hair. "Monkey-face turned into girl! Yaaay!"
The Tengu's face contorted with rage at her statement. "Who're you calling monkey-face, you little bubblegum brat!" he waved his hands to shake her off, however Yachiru was too quick for him, so that after a few spins and turns which made him feel slightly nauseous, he ended up sprawled on the dusty ground, spitting out dirt and mud.
Grimmjow -or more likely the Oni now occupying the Espada's body- who couldn't take it any longer, gave up and bent over laughing his head off. It didn't help to raise the Tengu's spirits in the slightest.
"Ssssstop bickering you usssselessss freakssss!" another voice joined the quarrel that had broke out between the two Guardians under Kusajishi Yachiru's happy cheering and all heads turned to look at Arisawa Tatsuki, prowling towards her two companions, shooting daggers at them.
"Tatsuki-chan...?" Inoue's voice trailed off as her hand automatically reached for her friend, who didn't pay the slightest attention to it.
It didn't take long to spot the subtle changes marking the manifestation of the third Guardian. Tatsuki's slythering movement, the whites of her eyes inked with black, pupils bright gold just like Ichigo's when he calls forth his inner hollow. Instead of a white mask, however, only markings began appearing on the girl's pale skin, forming a pattern clearly recognizable as that of a cobra.
She smacked Renji and Grimmjow over the head, hard, before turning to see all eyes upon her. Some interested -expecialy Kurotsuchi's- some worried and some rather unsure of what to do or think.
"And what're you all ssssstaring at? We've got job to do, remember?" she snapped at them and her tongue shot out of her mouth, quickly swished through the air and dissapeared again as she straightened up, suddenly alerted.
Soon everybody knew why that was, for the very ground under their feet shook violently so that it made even Kenpachi and Ichigo -who had somehow ended up on the ground infront of one of the ruined houses crumbling around them, covering his face- pause and look around. They needen't have bothered. The roar that cut through the air couldn't be mistaken for anything else.
"Hollow." Hitsugaya uttered through gritted teeth and in a blink of an eye he drew Hyourinmaru and prepared for a fight. As had all the Shinigami.
And sure enough, not a single breath later a giant figure rose above the remnants of the main street of Inuzuri and it was something they expected, though hoped they wouldn't see here.
Another ear-splitting roar pierced the silence that fell between them at the sight of the giant creature wrapped in what resembled a black cloak, long white fingers reaching out of its sleeves and marble oval mask of a head with two small, perfectly round holes for eyes, long pointy perforated nose and two rows of skull-like teeth now opening again in a familiar fashion.
However the Gillian's Cero never reached its target, whomever it might have been.
"Ikorose, Shinsou." came out two simple words and the Menos roared for the last time as it was sliced in half by Ichimaru's shikai, anyone none the wiser when it had extracted and shrinked back again.
The former 3rd Division Captain shoved his hands back in his sleeves, grin still spread over his fox-like pale face.
"Taichou." this time it was Matsumoto and the sound of her voice as well as her hand resting on his shoulder made Hitsugaya look away from Ichimaru Gin's slitted eyes, though he immediately wished he hadn't.
How naïve can one get to think there would be only a single enemy? The little Captain gave up thinking about such things immediately, for they were now surrounded with Gillians and all the gigantic hollows were opening their mouths, gathering brilliantly red traces of reiatsu for their next attack.
"What the hell are those freaks doing here?" Ichigo's voice came out right next to Hitsugaya's ear and mad laughter that followed it could only mean Kenpachi already charging at the closest hollow, now stepping over what had once been a shop.
"Hollows are Mikaboshi's creations, Kurosaki Ichigo. Of course he would send them to protect himself." Ulquiorra answered instead, walking calmly forward, eyes set on the Menos infront of him. "Trash." he murmured and outstretched his hand as a cone of red energy shot from its mouth and he negated it with his own Cero, sending another blast back, succesfully dispersing his opponent.
"Says another hollow." Ichigo retorted dryly. "Should we expect you to go berserk any time soon?"
"Fortunately for you such a thing is highly unlikely." the Espada said in a calm and utterly disconcerned manner, his green eyes meeting for a split second with bronze ones. "Our physiology has been altered by the Hogyoku to such an extend we no longer fall under Mikaboshi's influence."
"And how the hell do you know that?" Ichigo snapped, irritated for not recieving a proper explanation. Not that he particularly minded anyway. Listening to crap like that never ranked among his favourite pass-times. Though lately it had become a kind of daily routine with all this shit going on all the time.
"Surely not by being ignorant." Ulquiorra said with a simple finality and moved on to dispatch another Gillian, replacing the one he destroyed before, leaving Ichigo muttering angrily under his breath, while he too flash-stepped in to join the fight.
Please review, it's always nice to read what you think :) And merry Chistmas =3
Notes:
Temae - a scornful reflexive pronoun; though it can mean both "me" and "you" ... usualy it's translated as "You little..."
Ohayou - Good morning
Manju - sweet dupling (the one Byakuya always hides in his sleeves!)
