Chapter 12
Hara found who she was looking for. He was fighting Ill fort, and winning, his bankai crushing the arrancar with every hit. Ill fort was now in his release state, and was terrifying, but not as terrifying as the fear Hara felt at how she would approach this. Suddenly, a huge red blast came from the Ban Kai's mouth, and Ill fort fell. He stood up there, lightly wounded, but otherwise in one piece.
Hara gathered her courage. She stepped forward, trying to look in control.
"Nice Ban Kai." she called out. "It took you long enough to get it though, Renji."
The red haired shinigami with the snake like bankai spun around, his eyes wide as stared down at the dark haired girl at first with happiness, and then, as he saw what she was wearing, and the way her eyes held an apologetic expression, with shock. He nearly fell to the ground, his shock so great. His bankai disappeared to be replaced by a sword in his hand...
"H-Hara?!" he cried. Hara nodded, as tears fell from her eyes and onto the ground. He came towards her, and she backed away from him.
"I-I came to s-say g-goodbye." she stammered, not able to look him in the eye. He kept coming closer,
"Hara what are you doing here?! And what the hell are you wearing?!" he yelled. Then it seemed to hit him full on. Renji's eyes went wide, "N-No!" he said, "Don't tell me you're…you're one of them?!" Hara nodded, her eyes swimming with tears.
"I'm sorry!" she screamed, before flash stepping away. She couldn't take much more of it. It was too painful to see his face, to see his own pain. Hara fled.
"Hara!!" yelled Renji as he chased after her. Hara ran even faster, straight towards Grimmjow. Renji couldn't keep up with her; she was now out of his sight, but not his senses. He followed, trying to figure out what had happened to his best friend, the girl he had secretly fallen for and lost.
Grimmjow's P.O.V
Grimmjow laughed in bliss, a wound across his bare chest.
"This is the best, isn't it shinigami?!" he yelled at the exhausted Ichigo. "Now, finally, you have become someone worth killing after all!" Ichigo stared at him, his chest heaving from exertion. Grimmjow looked barely tired, the wound in his chest shallow. "Oi!" called Grimmjow, "Don't just stand there like a lazy-ass shinigami…" Grimmjow put a hand on his zanpakuto, "'Cause now it's my turn!" He began to pull it out when a hand was placed on his shoulder. Grimmjow's eyes went wide.
"Put your blade back where it belongs, Grimmjow." said Tosen.
"Tosen?!" yelled Grimmjow, turning to face him, "What the hell are you doing here?!" Tosen stared at him coldly,
"Your asking 'why'? Don't you get it? Honestly?" Grimmjow stared at him, "You came into the material world on your own and even went as far as to bring five arrancar with you? Who all died in the end? All this…has been…A violation of orders!" Tosen moved next to him to say quietly, "And you should also understand…that right now, Aizen-sama is livid. Grimmjow," Tosen opened up the gateway to Hueco Mundo, "Come. Were going. Your punishment will be determined in Hueco Mundo." Grimmjow stared at him; didn't Tosen know Hara was here too? Maybe he had already picked her up. It was most likely what had happened. Grimmjow sighed,
"Tch. All right already." Ichigo stared at them,
"Wait! Where do you think you're going?!" Grimmjow glanced at him out of the corner of his eye,
"Shut up already. I'm going back. Back to Hueco Mundo." he began to walk towards the gateway.
"What do you think you're doing?!" yelled Ichigo, "You come here all of a sudden and then take off without even finishing your battles?! You got to be friggin' kidding me! Get down here! The winner of this battle still hasn't been decided!" Grimmjow froze.
"'The winner of this battle hasn't been decided' you say?" Grimmjow turned his head to look at him, "Give me a break. Without declaring the winner, its plain to see that the one who barely escaped with his life…was you, shinigami." Grimmjow smiled at the look of shock on Ichigo's face. "That move you just used, the Getsuga Tensho…it seems to hurt your body as well. I can tell just by looking at you, and you can probably only shoot two or three more of those babies. However, even if you continued to fire those things at me forever…there's no way you could ever hope to beat me in my released state." Ichigo stared at him,
"Released state?" Grimmjow grinned,
"You better not forget my name, and hope you don't have to hear it a second time. Grimmjow
Jeagerjaques." he stepped into the gateway and it began to close. "The next time you hear that name…will be your last shinigami!" Then the gateway closed.
Hara's P.O.V
As Hara ran towards the sound of Grimmjow's voice, she sensed something was wrong. All presences of the other arrancar were gone, meaning they had been defeated. That wasn't good. Grimmjow and she needed to get out of there quick. Hara wanted to call out to Grimmjow, but feared to because of Renji and because of her choked up voice. Grimmjow would attack Renji, and Renji would attack him, as he would see that Hara and he were together.
Hara spun round the corner to where Rukia, Ichigo and Grimmjow were, but everyone was there, except for the latter, Grimmjow was gone. Everyone was gone. Leaving Hara stuck in the material world, with Renji on her heels. She skidded to a stop in front of a bleeding Ichigo, who had one eye hollow like and the other normal. She ran towards him and stopped,
"Where's Grimmjow?!" she yelled. He stared at her, "Where is he?!" she yelled. Ichigo stared up at the sky, still in shock.
"He…left." he muttered. Hara's eyes went wide.
"What?!" This was going to be a problem. But why would Grimmjow leave without her? Hara didn't understand. Unless…something happened. Maybe he got caught. "Damn it!" she yelled clenching her fists. Grimmjow was probably in trouble with Aizen, because of the numeros who died…and Hara was in a worst position…stuck in the material world….with the soul reapers…
What was Hara going to do now?