I do not own bleach (sigh) and I give full credit to its creator. Thank you reviewer and readers, please continue to read.
Chapter nine.
"Kumiko was there," Rukia thought looking out of narrow window, "Even though I tried to leave her out of this, she still came. Ichigo, you baka, why did you come? Why did you bring her with you?" Rukia heard the doors open behind her and turned around. There stood her escorts dressed in white, their faces covered except for their eyes. She walked over to them with out a word. She allowed them to bind and restrain her with out any hesitation at all. She allowed them to lead her away to the execution grounds, accepting her death with an empty heart.
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"Vice-Captain Abarai, please stop. Please withdraw, Vice-captain Abarai!" The man said, shaking and backing away in fear. His comrades laid on the ground unconscious or just barely maintaining theirs, moaning from their pain. Renji paid no head to his request. Renji's right sleeve had been torn off, revealing a tattoo on his shoulder. His face was deadly serious. Renji jumped at him. The man flung his arms in front of his face, waiting. Waiting for the blow to strike him. Waiting for the attack to reduce him to where his companions were.
But it never came.
Renji had jumped over the man leaving the scene in a rush. The man collapsed to his knees, deeply relieved. One of the shinigami on the ground attempting to get up saying, "Renji-san, why are you doing this?"
Renji ran, his will to save Rukia driving him. "Soon. Just a little more time," He thought to himself, "don't worry. I will save you Rukia. There is no way I'll let you be executed." He ran through an arch way and froze as he felt an unbelievable strong reiatsu wave over him, freezing him to the bone. He took a shaky gasp and a drop of sweat hit the ground. His eyes were wide in realization.
"This reiatsu is…" he thought, horrified. He looked up at the top of the ridiculously high arch way and saw the source of the reiatsu. There, at the very top, was…
"Kuchiki Taichou," said Renji, still wide eyed.
"Where are you going, Renji?" Byakuya said, staring down at Renji with cold eyes.
"I'm going to save Rukia," Renji said, his eyes no longer wide and his eye brows furrowed.
"You will not." Byakuya's cold stare and tone had not changed.
"I'm going!" Renji said angrily. Byakuya said nothing but the wind blew his hair gently.
"Won't you allow me to pass?" Renji said face the way he came, still looking up at Byakuya.
"I won't say it twice," Byakuya said, in the same cold manner. He suddenly disappeared from the top of the arch way.
"He's coming!" Renji thought preparing himself. Byakuya appeared behind him slicing at him, only for it to be stopped by Renji's blade. Byakuya was shocked. Renji pushed Byakuya's blade away with his own. Byakuya jumped back, a good distance away from Renji.
"Seka. The use of a special shinpo to hit difficult spots in the opponents back. I finally can see. Kuchiki Taichou, you can no longer kill me with your sword." Renji said, confidently.
"You can not possibly think you can surpass my sword with on at that level," Byakuya said, holding his sword pointing up at the sky. "Scatter…"
Suddenly a jagged edge sword knocked into Byakuya's blade shocking him. Renji withdrew his sword, pointing it towards the ground.
"I told you. You can no longer kill me with your sword," Renji said, eyes narrowed. "It's not since I became Lieutenant. It was even before I entered Gotei 13. The only person I wanted to surpass is you, Kuchiki Taichou."
"You released your Zanpakutou without calling its name," Byakuya said looking uninterested. "Could you have…?"
"I am going to surpass you, Kuchiki Taichou." Renji said his blade glowing red.
"Bankai!!!" Shouted Renji as his reiatsu covered the area. There was an explosive sound and Renji was covered by a huge mountain of smoke. Kumiko who was watching from where Byakuya once stood. She kicked her legs which were dangling over the edge. She had gotten bored and wanted to do something. So she followed Renji. This was interesting, Kuchiki Taichou-san and Renji-san fighting. She was curious to know what his Bankai thingy. The smoke cleared and it revealed a long bamboo skeletal snake with bamboo spikes. It was connected to the hilt Renji was holding.
"Heheou Zabimaru," Renji said, seriously.
"When did you," Byakuya said softly, "achieve bankai?"
"Someone who never looks at the bottom will never understand," Renji calmly stated. "I will say it once again. I'm going to save Rukia!"
"I thought I told you I wasn't going to repeat myself."
"If you won't let me pass…" Renji said, each bamboo segment extending with red reiatsu. "Then I will strike you down!"
"Impossible. You cannot even make my knee touch the ground," Byakuya said.
"Let's see then." He then slashed it out like you would a whip and the skeletal head of it charged at Byakuya who flash stepped to a safe spot. The bankai swerved around and went after Byakuya only to have him flash step to one of the tower like pillars. Kumiko frowned as Renji made his bankai go after Byakuya again. Was that all? It wasn't fast enough to keep up with Byakuya's flash steps. Kumiko followed Byakuya's flash step into the air and noticed that he was keeping the head of Renji's bankai away form him with his blade. The blade began to glow pink and it turned into…… cherry blossom petals? No it was fragments of his blade. The many blades cut Renji's bankai, sending it into pieces. How stupid, she thought.
Byakuya landed only to have the bamboo segments suddenly put themselves back together. Byakuya turned around to face a smirking Renji. Kumiko watched with interest, liking the turn of events. She decided she wanted to come closer and flash stepped down behind a tower like pillar and listened in on the conversation.
"-purposely separated my blade and evaded all of yours!" Renji was saying proudly. Byakuya's eyes widen in surprise.
"Why are you so surprised? All I'm saying is that I can see your blade!"
The ground beneath Byakuya's feet cracked and part of Renji's bankai hit him. Byakuya jumped back and collapsed to his knee, making a pained sound.
"Your knee touched the ground." Kumiko was now watching with wide eyes. Renji was fighting on par with Kuchiki Taichou-san. She forced herself to keep watching.
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Kumiko had her hand over her mouth as a badly beaten Renji charged himself at a not so hurt Byakuya. She knew she couldn't help Renji. They would both just get hurt a lot. She had no choice but watch Byakuya strike Renji unconscious and to the ground. She was about to run for it, knowing it was a mistake to have left.
"I would not move if I were you."
Kumiko looked behind her wildly to see Byakuya standing there. She was thinking about flash stepping away when he spoke again.
"You will be striked down if you try to run," He said, putting his sword's blade in front of her. She simply looked up at him with her wide eyes. Her hand fell limply to her side and she hung her head in defeat. He went down on his knee and to restrain her. Suddenly she disappeared and reappeared onto his shoulder.
"You do not threaten me or naiyami will get you," Kumiko said soon disappearing, but not before smelling him. Smells like spice.
She flash stepped off, but not getting very far before she ran into someone.
Once again Kumiko was caught and knocked out.
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Rukia stood on the platform and looked unnerved. She wasn't paying attention to the whispering made by one of the captains. Her attention was caught by something else.
Kuchiki Byakuya came walking up.
"Nii-sama," she whispered, tension filled her heart. Byakuya ignored her and took his place among the captains and their lieutenants.
Her death was now.
Finished with chapter nine! REVIEW PLEASE!!!
