Here's a chapter of Savage; Ichigo's back in the human world for now.
I'm not sure, just yet, whether I'll do any filler arcs, but the Zanpakuto rebellion arc would be interesting if I did, don't you agree? So there is a decent chance that I'll include that one, but not so much of the others since they would just feel unnecessary to me. If anyone disagrees, please let me know why.
Otherwise, I'll let you know before I start an arc other than the main story ( included in the Manga).
Oh, and I'm sorry if Rukia was annoying in the last chapter, but I don't really think that it was any real stretch from how much she annoys Ichigo in Canon; particularly as he was being rude to Ukitake at the time.
I hope you all enjoy the chapter, and Favourite/Follow/Review.
-()-()-()-
Old Man Zangetsu
Hichigo
Nejibana
-()-()-()-
In his basement training area; one that he was very proud of, Kisuke Urahara waited with a grin on his face. From what he understood of young Ichigo's trip, it was a great success. Even if he had lost the Hogyoku, Urahra wasn't willing to let his mood be dampened; at least, that was the impression he gave to the youngsters next to him. Even if he was aloof, Urahara knew that the traitorous captain, even without such an amazing invention, if Kisuke did say so himself, would be a serious threat to the innocent souls of the Soul Society, and Urahara was rather unhappy that Aizen was now all the more formidable.
In front of the inventor, there was a Senkaimon. The first one he had seen, in a long time, that was sanctioned by the Gotei 13. Of course, it was simple for a man as intelligent as he to open, given his practise, and now he only had to wait for one of his oldest friends to return with his protege. Then, they would begin Ichigo's training anew and the boy could become better able to protect the people he cared for; that was all the hybrid was motivated by, after all. Of course, the ex-captain wouldn't be doing it out of the goodness of his heart. The... unique nature of Ichigo would be fascinating for him to study.
He was sure Isshin's son would not mind. Even if Urahara had intended to inform him of the study.
A sensor beeping thrice told the oddball genius that there were souls incoming, and his grin spread even further as he drew the fan from its holster at his hip. The man did not consider the anger of the short-tempered teen, after the actions he himself had committed against Ichigo; dismissing them as non-consequential in the grand scheme of things. That was one of his evident flaws, after all. He saw the big picture, and dismissed ethics in favour of advancement. Even if his amoral nature paled in comparison to his, ironically, pale successor.
As he pre-emptively raised the fan to cover the lower half of his face, Kisuke's eyebrows raised.
Why would Ichigo, or Yoruichi, need to use Shunpo so close to the exit? The cleaner was not in there with them.
It was a perfect example of Urahara's skewed perception of reality that he assumed they were only in a rush to see him once more; no doubt to thank him for providing the method of travel and the vital information on the Seiretei's current affairs. His cheeks reddened, and he let out a small giggle as he wondered if they had brought him any gifts and his mind wandered to some... inappropriate methods of thanks they could have settled on.
"What's up with him?" Jinta asked Ururu, as he slowly edged away from his employer. The quiet girl shrugged as she, too, gave Urahara an uneasy look. They had learned, from years of experience, that it was not a good sign for Kisuke to have odd expressions.
"Hello, Kisuke." The two youngsters' attention was pulled in another direction, as a black cat materialised in front of their boss. The masculine voice was bored, as was common for Yoruichi in her cat form, and gave no hint to the man as to the fate that awaited him seconds later.
"Ah. Hello Yoruichi, I am glad to have you back." Urahara visibly searched the vicinity; twisting his neck left and right, before he spoke again. "So... where's Ichigo?" He must have been planning a surprise to show his gratitude, was the conclusion Urahara reached, as another giggle escaped his lips.
"That was a strange noise, Hat 'n' Sandals." A voice commented, from behind Kisuke, in a venomous tone.
The bucket-hat wearing man twisted in surprise, just in time for a fist to collide with his face, and he was sent tumbling on to the ground with a series of strange noises that, to Ichigo, sounded like expressions of disappointment interspersed with grunts of pain.
"As were those." Ichigo looked at the crumpled man with confusion, before continuing. "That was for putting the exit a hundred metres in the sky," He walked to the green-dressed man, and grabbed the front of his shirt. "This is for sending me to get one of your failed fucking experiments; and for almost killing Rukia for the sake of destroying the same god-damn thing." Ichigo pulled the man up with his left hand, and drew back his right; clenched in to a fist. "Oh, and as a fair warning, this is going to hurt."
-()-()-()-
Ichigo wasn't going to enjoy this. He was painfully aware of that fact, and cringed as he approached the gate to the local park. Logically, he knew that there wasn't much to worry about. He didn't actually give a shit what Ishida thought; the self-righteous douche wouldn't care what Ichigo's opinions were, either. There was no doubt in his mind that he did the right thing for Innoue; of course she would be upset that she couldn't help her friend, but the girl was too innocent for violence, even if she was involved in this world. Especially since she was involved in this world. It was Ichigo's ridiculous reiryoku, and the constant leak, that dragged her in to being spiritually aware, so he wouldn't forgive himself if she was to be hurt when he could avoid it.
And Chad? He wasn't the type to make a scene. That was all Ichigo had.
But the fact remained that the friendly giant would be pissed. They were meant to have each other's backs, and Ichigo betrayed that. Like with Innoue, he would have been furious with himself if he let his best friend be hurt, or worse, in an endeavour he didn't need help in. And, no matter what was exchanged in the next few minutes, Ichigo's success had proved that he didn't need Chad, or any of them for that matter, to risk his life alongside him.
No; Ichigo shouldn't feel as guilty as he did. If only he'd thought to tell them why he was leaving them behind, the Hybrid Shinigami-Human would, probably, feel better right now. The course of action he had to take was clear, in his mind, however. He would take the three, or two of the three, anyway, to Urahara's, and show them the gap between them and him. If he had to, he'd pull out one of his Bankais to drive the point home. Even if Kisuke told him they'd been training, not one of Ichigo's friends would be able to match him on their best day.
If they could, he would sincerely apologise because that would mean he was wrong, and they could have handled themselves.
But they wouldn't be able to. Of that he was certain.
Bah. If only it was as simple as his reunion with his family had been. The Old Man had been as simple as ever; attacking him in a weak enough attempt that his son could simply side step, and help him on his way out of the door. Karin had chuckled, and Yuzu had berated the flying form of Isshin for attacking her Onii-Chan as soon as he got home; just before she leapt at her brother with enthusiasm.
Ichigo had laughed merrily as he caught Yuzu in a hug, and the girl's matching response was ample reward for the return and the stinging medicine to remove the cuts and bruises that had adorned his knuckles post-reunion with Kisuke. Medicine that he knew was Urahara's attempt to get some meagre revenge since Tessai could have easily healed the minor hurts with kido.
Karin had hidden her own enthusiasm behind a smirk, but had returned Ichigo's hug happily as the three stepped in to the house; leaving their father to whine and moan about being left in the cold by his 'cruel, cruel children'.
They hadn't held any grudges against him, but the same was obviously not true of his friends. The reason this was obvious? Because he'd tried calling Chad and Orihime already, since his return, and the first's only reply had been to tell him when and where to meet, while Innoue had declined the call altogether. Ishida would probably have done something similar, but Ichigo didn't have the Quincy's number, and didn't care enough about his opinion to ask Keigo, or Mizuiro, for it. And that was assuming they had the antisocial Quincy's number.
'I guess I should just get on with it.' Ichigo shifted slightly; uncomfortable in his body at the moment, as it had not yet copied the changes his Spirit form had undergone. It was like wearing shoes a size too small, and he felt stifled by the confinement. He would have forgone it for this trip, since they were spiritually aware, but his body would never catch up if he didn't spend time wearing it.
"Kurosaki-kun!" A feminine voice called to Ichigo, as Innoue forgot she was mad at him briefly; slightly ecstatic at seeing her crush once again.
Ichigo, unaware of her reasons, was surprised at the happiness he heard in Orihime's tone, and looked up to see Ishida apparently berating her for the mistake, and Orihime looking sheepish; embarrassed for her slip.
"Hey, Innoue." Ichigo said in response, as he neared the trio. The neutral faced teen, rid of his scowl for this conversation lest he come across as even ruder, pretended not to notice the twitch of the girl's lips that announced she was, at least partially, forcing her current frown. "Chad." The Mexican boy's feelings were hidden as he nodded back to his friend. "Ishida." The Quincy's eyes narrowed, and he gave no other response. Pausing, Ichigo exhaled loudly before speaking once again.
"I'm sorry." He said, in a solemn tone. Unsurprisingly, Uryu was the one to respond first.
"You're sorry?!" He repeated, with scorn. "That's all you have to say?!"
"It sums up what I have to say pretty well," Ichigo replied to the... query. "And I didn't think any of you would be interested in hearing my excuses."
"Excuses?" Chad spoke up now, crossing his arms as he waited for clarification.
"Okay, then." Ichigo looked at Chad first of all. "I truly am sorry for leaving you, Chad," He neglected to mention how he left them, since that was something he did not have an excuse for. "It's only because I was worried about you, but I know that if the situation was reversed I wouldn't feel any better because of that. I'll only ask that you come to Urahara's, and let me show you why I didn't think that I should bring you and put you in harms way." The gentle giant nodded after a brief moment of consideration, and Ichigo turned to Orihime.
"I'm sorry Orihime; I know it must have hurt that you couldn't help save Rukia," As Ichigo looked in to her eyes, Orihime, surprisingly, did not glance away. Instead, she returned the look with determination betraying the difficulty in this task. For her, anyway. "But I wouldn't ever forgive myself if something happened to you. I have no justification other than that." The blush on Orihime's cheeks went unnoticed as Ichigo turned to Uryu.
"And Ishida... well... I couldn't bring you along without the other two." Ichigo shrugged. "Plus, you would've annoyed the hell out of me if I did."
"Wait, why would you bring him and not us?" Orihime asked, weakly.
"Because I don't care about him anything like I care about you." Orihime suddenly forgot how to speak; not noticing that Ichigo had meant she and Chad, since they were two of his closest friends, and took up a look much like her crush's namesake.
"Tss." Was Ishida's response. "You think we'll buy that?" He looked to the other two for support, only to come up lacking in that regard. Orihime was a stage off hyperventilating, and Chad seemed to have decided it would be best if he heard his best friend out before passing judgement. The glasses-wearing boy's mouth opened and closed repeatedly; eerily resembling a goldfish.
"How is Rukia?" Chad asked; as the other two did not seem to be in any state to continue the conversation.
"She's good. Stayed in the Soul Society, but it's her home and they've stopped trying to kill her, so... yeah." Ichigo shook his head and continued at the slight incredulous look in Chad's eyes; one that would be undetectable to someone who didn't know him as well as Ichigo. "Not that that makes much sense to me, either, but she seemed happy to be there."
"Any trouble?" Chad asked, using few words; something that was to be expected from the quiet teen.
"Of course; but nothing I couldn't handle eventually." He smirked, and continued. "Some of the Shinigami you really don't want to meet." Kenpachi was at the forefront of his mind, but the clown-faced captain and the... friendly Lieutenant of 10th Division were right up there with him. Ichigo imagined Ishida's head would explode at meeting someone so lazy.
-()-()-()-
Ichigo's conversation with the three did not last much longer and, after walking Orihime home; hers being almost on the way back for him, Ichigo headed back to his own house for dinner. Stepping to the door, the orange haired teen knocked once and stepped aside...
Just in time for Isshin, who had obviously been waiting for him, leapt out the door poised to strike. As he sailed past Ichigo, Isshin saw his son's annoyed face for an instant before the younger Kurosaki's boot met his gut in mid air.
After his father's greeting, Ichigo headed inside, to spend some time with his sisters while gratefully eating Yuzu's cooking. There was nothing comparable in the Soul Society, and Ichigo made it clear that he had missed the excellent food, much to the delight of the light haired twin.
Dinner was an ordinary affair; Karin had told tales about her soccer, and the boys she'd humiliated recently, while Yuzu talked briefly about her own holiday so far before beginning to question Ichigo on his trip. He didn't like lying to his sisters, but the human-Shinigami had no choice and so had repeated the story Yoruichi helped him invent. Evidently, they'd believed him as Yuzu hung on to every word and Karin feigned disinterest in the story.
After dinner, Ichigo was shooed out of the kitchen by his sister, as she refused his help with the dishes, and chose to head up to his room rather than sit listening to his whining father; Isshin was upset that none of his kids had apologised for the perceived slight earlier, as Karin and Yuzu had declined to help him once again. As his hand found the door handle to his bedroom, Ichigo's brow deepened in to a frown.
"And what are you doing in here, Yoruichi?" Ichigo asked, as he walked in to the room. The black cat; sat on his bed, looked up and spoke.
"I came to see if your talk with your friends went well, of course." Yoruichi replied. Ichigo only hesitated briefly, before shrugging and responding. It wasn't as if he found her violation of his privacy shocking at this point.
"It went alright," Ichigo nodded, as he sat at his desk; given that his bed was occupied. "Chad and Innoue are planning to come to Urahara's tomorrow. I'll show them the difference in our power and that'll, hopefully, show them why I thought they'd be put at risk if they came and faced captains of similar power."
"Oh? And are you going to take them to the Soul Society at a later date?" The cat asked. "I am sure that they would also benefit from training with Soul Reapers other than myself and Kisuke."
"Hmm. I hadn't thought about that, but I guess I'll ask them tomorrow, since it's not my decision to make. No chance Uryu'll come, since he's... less than fond of Soul Reapers, but Chad and Innoue might want to." Ichigo shrugged. "I suppose I'll have to give them a more thorough warning about certain Shinigami before then, though." Yoruichi gave the cat-equivalent of a smile at the thought.
"By the way," She said after a brief silence. "There's something I need to warn you about." Ichigo waited for her to continue for two minutes, until he decided to speak up.
"Are you going to make me guess what that is, or will you tell me?"
"That depends on whether or not your manners improve."
"When have my manners been lacking?" As far as Ichigo was aware, he'd done nothing that could be considered rude since the conversation began.
"You haven't said the magic world."
"The magic word? What're you talking about?" Ichigo asked, confused. "I haven't started learning kido spells yet..."
"No," Yoruichi dead-panned. "I mean you should say please." She had expected the human-shinigami to get that.
"Oh, alright. Please tell me what you need to warn me about." Why he needed to ask, Ichigo had no idea, but it didn't seem worth the effort for an argument he wouldn't likely win. Plus, now he wanted to know.
"The Soul Society..." She paused, for impact. "Is sending a reconnaissance team to observe you and the people around you."
-()-()-()-
'Ichigo,' Old man Zangetsu began, as his wielder arrived at the scene. 'This would be an ideal time for you to attempt to call us forth.' He suggested, to the others' agreement.
'Right. And how do I do that?' Ichigo stepped out of the 6 limbed, canine-ish Hollow's path as he asked.
"Okay, firstly I would recommend calling myself first, since I have been with you for longest and the strain will be less than Hichigo's blade.'
'Of course you would recommend he use you. Ichigo hasn't been aware of you for any longer than he has me.' Nejibana interjected, irritated. 'His connection isn't any stronger with you than me. Don't lie and say that it would be easier to summon you.'
A growl came from the inside of Ichigo's head.
'The size of our sealed form makes no difference. Don't even start, Tabigarasu.'
'Okay! This is fascinating and everything, but I could really use some actual instruction!' Ichigo called out, as he evaded yet another strike from the Hollow in front of him. The thing wouldn't be any threat to him in his Spirit form, but it was significantly more difficult to use his abilities in his human body and just dodging was asking for trouble.
'Well, Ichigo, focus on whichever blade you wish; focus your Reiatsu on to your hand, and draw it while picturing said Zanpakuto.' Zangetsu explained, briefly. He knew that his wielder understood things far better when they were concise, and even more so when he had to get it in the midst of battle.
'Right. Here we go.' Ichigo stepped aside once again; speeding himself up with a burst of reiatsu, and did as his Zanpakuto recommended.
It was a shock to the Hollow, who had come here for an easy meal, when the human in front of him placed his right hand next to his left hip, and a bright blue, flickering light engulfed said appendage. If it had been capable of conscious thought, the HellHound would have wondered just what the orange-haired man was, since he had simply assumed his good fortune was why he'd encountered a soul with such juicy reserves.
The canine-Hollow had just enough time to catch a glimpse of an orange-hilted katana in Ichigo's hand before the human-shinigami appeared in front of his face, and the blade ran down its mask.
-()-()-()-
"Ichigo! It's good to see you again!" Kisuke called, as he backed away a little; his black eye twinging as he wondered if the boy was done with his revenge.
"Hey, Hat 'n' Sandals, are the others here yet?"
"Ah! You mean Chad and Orihime!" The scientist realised, happily. "Yes, yes, they're through the back." Urahara turned and wandered back through the store; reaching the entrance to his basement-training-area and beginning the descent as Ichigo followed.
"Look who's here!" The shop owner announced, as he reached the last rung of the ladder. "Ichigo!"
"Kurosaki-Kun!" Orihime adopted the man's enthusiasm; forgetting, once again, that she was supposed to be in a bad mood with Ichigo, until Chad murmured something to her and she re-donned her scowl.
"Ichigo." Chad nodded in greeting.
"Hey, guys." Ichigo returned; dropping the last few feet to the rocky ground below. He then turned back to the older man. "Is everything ready, Urahara-san?" The hybrid asked.
"It is," Kisuke grinned, raising his fan to cover the lower half of his face. "Would you like to begin?" He asked of the trio, since the Quincy boy had, as Ichigo predicted, decided not to attend.
"Sure." Ichigo responded, while the other two simply nodded before they walked over to a cluster of rocks, where Ichigo now noticed Tessai was stood.
The Human-Shinigami drew a badge from his pocket; one that had the image of a skull printed on it, and pressed it against his chest. His two human friends were shocked to see his human body fall away, and him be left there stood in an odd version of his old attire; one they'd only briefly seen before he knocked them unconscious. As previously, he was wearing a jet black Kimono, but where he had had a white shitagi, or under-shirt, there was now an equally dark item. The Kimono's arms were missing, leaving Ichigo's bare, and a crimson sash was wrapped around his waist, with a pair of black-hilted katanas resting on his left hip.
"Come forth and pierce the sky, Zangetsu!" Ichigo drew the blades, and they transformed with an explosion of reiatsu. Ichigo held the two out in front of him; each running parallel to each other and the ground, and took a slow, deep breath as his eyes lit up in sapphire light. "Bankai!" Ichigo was engulfed in an explosion of black Reiatsu, and the two humans backed away at the massive pressure; felt even through the kido barrier.
The subsequent show thoroughly convinced Chad and Orihime of Ichigo's message. They really weren't strong enough to fight someone of his calibre, as he insisted the Captains were. They would have to start training seriously if they were ever to match their friend and crush, respectively, in battle. And if they could not come close to that level, at the very least, how could they ever stand beside him?