Here's another chapter of Savage. Sorry about the wait, I've had a hard time adjusting to recent changes in my schedule and so have not had ample opportunity to write.
I hope you enjoy it, though. I'll admit that I'm not sure about parts of it for reasons I think are rather justified but that I won't say here. Maybe in an endnote.
-()()-
While Ichigo could see how it would make his promise easier to fulfil, he really wasn't sure that he'd call it a gift.
No, on second thought there was no chance in hell that he would call this a gift. It would get annoying very very quickly, he was sure, if he could not find a way to block off whatever path had been opened. Maybe one of his Zanpakuto would have a better idea, but there was no way to ask them just yet; not until he got rid of these two, who were… exuberant.
"We did not!" The taller of the two female Zanpakuto spirits, a red haired woman with pink fur covering most of her body, denied that they'd agreed the other one would hug Ichigo first. "I get to hug him first! You get to watch!"
"Watch what?!" The other girl, a shorter figure with black hair adorned with a flowery ornament and a pink ribbon with two bells wrapped around her upper body and arching behind her head as well as a baggy kimono that, unlike Haineko, the furry female, did nothing to highlight her form.
"What do you think?" Haineko asked Tobiume, placing a hand on her hip and gliding the other down her side, lingering to point at her breasts and bum. At the same time, she puckered her lips and turned to wink at Ichigo, not bothering to be anything nearing subtle as she heavily flirted.
"What?! You slut, what makes you think he would want anything to do with you?!"
"These!" Haineko yelled back, and grabbed her large breasts in either hand. "But you wouldn't know anything about that, would you?" She sneered at Tobiume, who reddened and expressed her fury at the statement. Loudly.
"SHUT UP! At least he wouldn't catch a disease from me!"
"What did you just say?!"
"I said that you're a disease riddled old woman whose best days are long behind her! And that nobody would be so desperate as to fuck you! Let alone someone who could have me instead!"
"Ichigo would never have a flat chested little bitch instead of me, a talented, experienced woman!"
"You mean a slut!" As Haineko made to retort again, a new voice, still female interrupted their squabble.
"WILL THE BOTH OF YOU SHUT UP!" Nejibana lost her cool, as the two discussed having their way with Ichigo, who was looking on baffled, right here in his inner world. "Neither of you is going to have anything to do with Ichigo, and if you do not get out of here right now you will REGRET IT!" She yelled, as her Shikai form appeared in hand and the trident's tips seemed to shine with lethality as both of the intruding girls saw the anger flash in her eyes.
"Uh…" Haineko said, nervously.
"Erm…" Tobiume echoed the sentiment.
"OUT!" Nejibana ordered, while Zangetsu, Ichigo, Hichigo, Tabigarasu and Kikoo watched her with slightly bemused expressions, not used to seeing her ire directed at anyone other than Hollow Zangetsu.
"R-Right." Tobiume vanished in a pulse of reiatsu, and Haineko hesitated slightly, turning to say something to Ichigo.
"Ah!" She cried out, as the drill on one end of Nejibana's trident skimmed her shoulder, cutting a thin gash as it was thrown much like a spear.
"NOW!"
With an eep, Haineko left Ichigo's inner world, and the orange haired Shinigami blinked at what had just happened. Then, he found himself scratching the back of his right hand, and looked down to see why it felt a little strange. He quickly saw the reason and blinked again.
One both hands, running from his knuckles to part-way up his forearm, there were four straight black lines, as though he had decided to get a rather strange set of tattoos. Presumably, they represented this new, likely annoying, aspect of his abilities and Ichigo briefly wondered how that would be received when he returned to the mortal world, and had to attend school again. He knew, already, that his father would react weirdly, after all, and there was no reason to try to predict what that reaction would be exactly.
Back to the situation at hand, though, Ichigo found Nejibana stood next to him, the trident having disappeared, with a scowl on her face as she muttered angrily.
"Insolent little… intruding… slutty…" Ichigo was unsure of how, exactly, to proceed and decided to take base it on past experience, taking her hand in a soft grip and drawing Nejibana's attention to him. She forced a smile onto her face, uncaring that it was obviously fake, and Ichigo returned it with his own reassuring smile.
"Well, that was weird." Hichigo commented, thankfully breaking the tension as Ichigo chuckled his agreement.
"As good a description as any." Ichigo grinned. "Any ideas how to stop that from happening again?" He asked, specifically to Zangetsu as the stoic spirit was most likely to understand the new ability, who had a thoughtful expression on his face.
"I cannot say for certain, Ichigo," The black-dressed spirit shook his head. "I am sure, however, that you can learn to control this… gift even if it may take some time. I will do what I can to identify from where the two entered, and we can proceed from there." He said, calmly.
"Hmph." Nejibana voiced her agreement with the noise. "The sooner the better. If they come back, I'm going to hurt them." She said simply.
None of the others doubted that what she said was true.
-(())()()(())-
"We are here today to discuss the fate of Byakuya Kuchiki, current Head of House Kuchiki and Captain of 6th Division, pending the decision of the Captains Council." The Captain Commander spoke from his seat at the end of the corridor of Captains. in between them, Byakuya Kuchiki was stood with shackles on his wrists and his Zanpakuto currently confiscated and in the possession of Second Division. Ichigo, on the other hand, was stood next to the doorway of the First Division's meeting chamber, having been asked by the Head-Captain to be in attendance as he knew what had happened better than anyone else. Next to him, Yoruichi also stood, as an effective witness to his betrayal and the attack on Ichigo.
"Before we begin," Yamamoto continued. "Do you have anything you wish to say, Byakuya Kuchiki?"
"Only that I did what I did because I knew of Muramasa's eventual goal. I believed it to be my responsibility to deal with the rogue Kuchiki clan member Koga; my family bears the responsibility for his survival, and I intended to set right that error. My pride would not allow any other course of action."
"And your pride nearly brought about the death of numerous Shinigami," Yamamoto countered. "You did not succeed in killing Koga, as you apparently intended, and that duty fell onto the shoulders of Ichigo Kurosaki; the very person that you attempted to kill days before."
"I was certain that Ichigo Kurosaki would survive; I did not expect him to play such a role in the proceedings, and so thought it inconsequential that he be out of commission for the time being."
Yamamoto did not respond directly to Byakuya's statement, and instead turned to address the medical expert in their midsts. "Unohana-taicho, how extensive were the injuries suffered by Kurosaki Ichigo?" He asked, focusing on the most direct betrayal that they had suffered at the hands of Byakuya.
"Extremely." Retsu responded a few moments later. "While he recovered quickly, for reasons he did not deem to reveal, Kurosaki-san's injuries were serious. Given that Shihoin-san happened on the scene through luck, it is plausible that they could have been fatal if he had been left as he was after Byakuya Kuchiki's attack. Not necessarily likely, but plausible as is to be expected from a direct hit, with intent to harm, from the Shikai of a Captain-level fighter."
Yamamoto nodded. "And do you have anything to refute this?" He addressed Byakuya again. When the man shook his head, unable to offer any evidence against what was said, Genryusai continued. "Does anyone else have information to add, or an argument to offer?"
Most Captain's would, truthfully, have been forgiving of their fellow's betrayal because he had been aiming to assist the Soul Society as a whole, had the information regarding Ichigo being attacked not been so blatantly highlighted. As it was, he had outright assisted Muramasa against one of the better fighters that had been on their side. Ichigo had been a great help in putting down the rebellion, and Byakuya had repaid that by nearly killing him.
"If we forgive a traitor, what precedent is set for the future?" Soi Fon asked, avoiding looking down the aisle to avoid the sight of Ichigo. "We have already suffered losses at the hand of the others, so why should Kuchiki's betrayal be any different? He attacked an ally without provocation and this should be punished severely." She said in a cold tone. "We cannot afford to appear weak in a time of war."
"Nor can we afford to be weak." Komamura argued. "We have lost three captains in recent months. Losing another would further deplete our forces."
"Aye," Kyoraku nodded, slightly somber. "Aizen's the bigger fish, I reckon. We'll need to punish Byakuya after the war's all said and done, of course, but I think we can be a little lenient."
"And if Ich- if Kurosaki is unhappy with that?" Soi Fon asked, and turned to the Captain Commander, who listened silently to the arguments put forth. "I am of the opinion that Kurosaki Ichigo will be a greater asset to the coming war than Kuchiki; we cannot afford to alienate him simply for the sake of favouring one of our own. How can we trust Kuchiki now?"
"That's true," This time, Ukitake responded. "It seems, to me, that Ichigo is an unknown to Aizen. He may have the best chance, excluding you Yamamoto-sama, of overcoming the traitor himself. It would be unwise to favour Kuchiki over that." What Byakuya felt at that statement, Ichigo did not know as he kept a mask in place.
"Maybe you should actually ask Ichigo, then!" Yoruichi had been growing irritated from her place next to the human-shinigami, eyeing her ex-protege worriedly, and saw this as the obvious course of action.
"Agreed." Yamamoto spoke again. "Kurosaki Ichigo," His eye cracked open. "How would you suggest we proceed in regards to the punishment of Byakuya Kuchiki?"
Ichigo blinked, as everyone in the room turned their attention to him, excluding Byakuya who did not move and Soi Fon who began to turn to look at him, thought better of it, and snapped her attention back to the wall directly in front of her.
"Uh…" Ichigo hadn't considered how to phrase it. "Well, I think the bastard needs to be taught a lesson, but I don't think he did any of this shi- stuff out of malice, just out of a moronic sense of self-importance and pride. He doesn't seem to dislike the Soul Society, and only has a grudge against me after our last fight and because I'm not a noble, and don't have a stick so far up my ass that I have to waddle around." Kenpachi guffawed, while the rest stared at Ichigo with something akin to shock. "No reason to kill him, or kick him out of the Gotei 13. I'd say… well, I want to fight him, that's non-negotiable, but maybe you could have him clean the toilets around Eleventh division's barracks. Considering his pride is what got him into this mess, putting a few dents in it would be a good thing." Byakuya's head, Ichigo was amused to notice, had snapped around at the second part of Ichigo's suggested punishment.
"What?" He asked, horrified, while Zaraki's guffaws turned to outright howls of laughter.
"Throw in havin' to fight each of my division includin' me, and I think that's a perfect punishment for bein' such a dick!" He exclaimed his agreement.
"Right. What I said before, plus having to fight the members of Eleventh Division, in single combat, in whatever style they wish." From his right, Yoruichi cleared her throat. Ichigo thought for a moment, and then deduced what she might be asking. "Oh, and a game of… what was it, Hoho-tag? Yeah, a game of Hoho-tag with Yoruichi."
"Ichi!" A voice interjected, and he looked over to find a pink-haired head peering over Kenpachi's shoulder, while Yachiru waved her hand in the air.
"Yes?" He asked, with a grin. "Do you have some suggestions?"
"Aye! I think he should buy the lieutenants candy! Oh! Oh, and make a calendar for the Shinigami Women's Association!"
"That sounds fair," Ichigo said, the grin still present. "SO candy for the Lieutenants and pictures for the SWA's calendar, the details of which are to be discussed with Lieutenant Kusajishi at a later date."
"Ahem." Yamamoto cleared his throat a few moments later, his eyes fully open in surprise, and then spoke as they closed once more. "Does anyone, other than the guilty party, object to the punishment set forth by Ichigo Kurosaki?"
Byakuya looked around, desperate and with a hint of pleading in his gaze, but found nobody willing to speak on his behalf; even Renji was unable, as he was stood stock still, frozen at the ridiculous image of what Yachiru would have his captain do for the calendar poses.
"Those in favour of… a fight with Ichigo Kurosaki, a fight with Kenpachi Zaraki, a fight with the members of Eleventh division in the aspect of combat of their choosing, the cleaning of the Eleventh Division's bathrooms, including the toilets, a game of… Hoho-tag with Yoruichi-Shihoin, the purchase of snacks, of their preference, for the Lieutenants, and the gifting of aforementioned snacks, and the posing for a calendar for the SWA?" He listed the extensive set of punishments.
"Agreed." Soi Fon nodded, with a slightly bemused expression on her face.
"That sounds fair." Retsu Unohana smiled at Byakuya, who suppressed the desire to shudder.
"I concur." Sajin Komamura said next.
"Yep." Kyoraku was amused at the notion, and so voted in favour.
"He needs to be punished…" Toshiro was unsure, but if that was what Ichigo wanted, then he supposed it was fair enough.
"Definitely!" Kenpachi was already looking forward to his fight. Also, the toilets hadn't been clean in Kami-knows how long.
"I don't object." Kurotsuchi voiced.
"This will allow Byakuya to remain as a Captain, and so is for the good of the war effort." Ukitake, the last of the Captains to vote, meant that it was unanimous, and Byakuya's shoulders had fallen to the point that his posture screamed defeated.
"Very well. The punishment will begin upon Unohana-taicho clearing Kuchiki-taicho for combat." Yamamoto announced, as his cane struck the floor.
That announced the end of the meeting, with Ichigo forgetting to talk about the new ability he had discovered. Well, forget might not be the right word; he didn't want to give Mayuri more reason to want to examine him and so neglected to bring it up, but would tell the Captain-Commander when he got the chance.
The only other thing Ichigo intended to do, in talking to Soi Fon, was foiled upon the petite Captain vanishing in a Flash Step as soon as she was dismissed. He could not find her upon visiting the Second Division's barracks and would not have any idea where to go in order to find her until that night, when he was back in his inner world.
-()()-
"Ichigo-kun!" A small voice exclaimed, as Ichigo landed, on his feet, in his inner world. It was not one he immediately recognised, and so he swivelled on the spot to find the origin of the voice. He could not see anything, and turned again before the voice corrected his assumption. "Up here!" It told him, and he craned his neck to find a brown haired, small female figure floating above his head.
"Um… hello, Suzumebachi." Ichigo said, blinking his confusion at finding her here. "How are you?"
She let out a happy squeal-like noise, and did a loop-the-loop in mid air to arrive an inch from his face. "You remembered! I'm good! Hello!"
"O-Of course I remembered," Ichigo said, as the gold and black dressed girl stared into one of his brown eyes for reasons unknown to him. "How could I forget?" Suzumebachi grinned, before Ichigo continued. "So… what are you doing here?"
"My wielder's stupid!" Was the extent of her response.
"Oh… erm, okay? How is Soi Fon stupid?" He asked, uncertainly.
"She's ignoring you because she listened to that silly cat-bitch!"
"'Silly cat-bitch'?" Ichigo repeated, understandably confused. "Could you elaborate on that?"
"Yoruichi suggested that you wouldn't like Soi Fon, because she was jealous, and my idiot wielder believed her!"
"Wait… what?" Ichigo asked. "Could you back up, and start from the beginning, please?"
-)_)-
Soi Fon had come to these woods, on the border of her family estate, in order to clear her mind. To have some time alone with her thoughts, and in order to finally shed the unreturned feelings she held for Ichigo. She had not brought anything that could hinder that, through distractions, and so only carried her Wakizashi, it always payed to be prepared, and the clothes on her back. She had only stopped by the Second Division barracks long enough to leave her Captain's Haori, as there was no reason to bring it.
This clearing was a retreat she had had for as long as she could remember, and the bark of one tree had, before today, held a carving of a bee and a cat in the bark of its trunk. The meaning would not be difficult to discern for anyone who knew Soi Fon, but the fact that it now had a dozen slashes marring the drawing would be more confusing for most. Nobody had seen her, after all, angry with her revered mentor. She had hated Yoruichi when she left, but not once had Soi Fon been able to convince herself to be rid of the reminders, though most had been placed in storage.
Now, Soi Fon was beginning to believe that this was the end of her and Yoruichi having any sort of relationship. Even their friendship would be unlikely to continue. It would hurt, she knew, to see Ichigo with Yoruichi; he was the first man she had felt anything for, let alone…
Soi Fon sighed in her sleep, as her dreams took on a feel that was becoming frustratingly familiar. Ichigo was the star of most of her dreams of late but at least this one was rather innocent; they were just sat in a clearing, cuddling and talking of nothing in particular. The smile on her lips would not last long, however, as the frigid airs of the night began to intrude on her contentment, and her small, unconscious form began to shiver. Her dream-self huddled deeper into Ichigo's chest, trying to escape the cold outside of her mind, but this did nothing to help. Eventually, her Reiryoku may have solved the problem, but that was not the case as Suzumebachi revealed to Ichigo where the Captain was hiding out.
Ichigo appeared in the clearing in a slight blur, and the lowest of buzzes; to the point that it was unlikely that Soi Fon would have thought anything of it even if she had been awake to hear. It certainly was not enough to wake her, and so Ichigo's eyes found her shivering form where she had fallen asleep unintentionally, curled into a ball in an attempt to be comfortable.
This was not what he had planned. Ichigo had expected her to be awake, if she was outside, and for a conversation to take place. Instead, it looked as though he would have to take a different course of action and, after his gaze swept the clearing for anything that might be of use, he deduced that he had no choice, and hoped Soi Fon would forgive him.
He stepped to the sleeping Captain, and crouched next to her, putting his arms under her form slowly so as to not disturb her rest. He smoothly lifted her, and stood without effort as he smiled softly at just how light she was. Adjusting his hold, Ichigo moved her to sit in his arms with his left under her knees and the right on her upper back.
Soi Fon stayed like that for but a moment, and then seemed to breathe in rather deeply, before her hand found the front of Ichigo's Shihakusho, and gripped it tightly. She proceeded to bury her face in his chest, to Ichigo's slight embarrassment as he felt heat creep up his neck, and snuggle into his warmth just as her dream-self did.
Ichigo shivered, at this, for a very different reason to the cold that had been affecting the girl in his arms, and did his best to ignore the voices inside his head, as they spoke up.
"... and she'll never know!" Hichigo finished his suggestion.
'WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!' Ichigo yelled back, horrified.
'What? Do you not think she has a nice arse?' Hichigo asked, confused.
'I… she… that doesn't mean I'm going to do that, you freak!' Ichigo responded.
'Show some respect, you disgusting Hollow!' Nejibana added, and Ichigo heard a clang as she whacked Hichigo over the head. 'Soi Fon is not some piece of meat for Ichigo to… to rape! He cares for her! Do you not realise how disgusting that is?!'
'So what? He should just put her to bed?! That's boring!' Hichigo defended his suggestion.
"I was not suggesting that, I think he should greet her in the morning with breakfast in bed. It would be romantic, and then he could have the conversation that she needs to convince her that he isinterested, and that she has no reason to be insecure.'
'That's still a little creepy...'
Ichigo arrived in the Second Division Barrack's Captain's office, where he understood there were also sleeping quarters, in a quick Flash Step, glanced down at the girl in his arms, and paused at the small, genuine, beautiful smile that was on her face. It was so much more innocent than the cold mask she normally wore, and Ichigo found himself wanting to see it more often.
Even so, Ichigo needed to put the girl to bed, lest something more happen to disturb her rest. With this in mind, he turned to the wooden, sliding door and walked towards it. Then, he stopped, realising his hands were occupied, and tilted his head to the side in confusion. After a moment's thought, he mentally shrugged and a wisp of Reiatsu came off his arm, formed a tendril that snaked to the door, and slid it open. The room inside was, unsurprisingly, Spartan, even the top of the dresser being entirely bare in its place next to the single bed. Ichigo didn't feel overly concerned about that fact, as it fit her character, and moved over to the bed, to lay her on top of the cream-coloured cover.
He did so, placing her carefully down, and made to stand. Soi Fon did not release her hold on the front of his Shihakusho, however, and Ichigo made a slightly startled noise originating in his chest. Soi Fon did not, however, wake and so he frowned in thought as to what to do. Ignoring the suggestion to climb into bed from two of his spirits, Ichigo summoned the smallest of his blades, Tabigarasu, and with a quick motion cut the cloth off his body.
Leaving the upper half of his outfit with Soi Fon as she smiled and cuddled into the cloth that held his scent, Ichigo began to walk away only to stop at a sound coming from behind him.
"Ichigo… no…" Soi Fon murmured, and Ichigo spun on the spot to find her eyes closed. So why had she said that, he wondered. Ichigo was troubled by the unhappy expression on her face, and took a step closer to the bedside. A smile reappeared on her face, in response, and Ichigo scratched the back of his head before shrugging and turning to leave again.
"Don't… go…" Again, Ichigo spun, trying to find any sign that Soi Fon was faking her unconscious state but failed to see anything at all. She was asleep, but had suddenly become restless.
He did not know, as he repeated his attempts to leave twice more, and was stopped by moans of despair from the unconscious Shinigami, that Soi Fon's dreams took on a more troubling nature, of him abandoning her, upon feeling his Reiatsu signature move out of the immediate area. Hence the voicing of her concerns.
It did not take Ichigo long to deduce that Soi Fon could feel his location, even in this state, and did not want him to leave. Granted, he did not fully grasp the reason, but it was enough that he could understand what she wanted and so Ichigo sighed. There must be a better solution, this would surely be an odd situation in the morning, yet one did not come to mind at that moment.
Ichigo flopped onto the floor next to the foot of the bed, leaned against it and, eventually, fell asleep.
-()()-
So, yeah, that last part was especially strange to write. While fluff is nice in moderation, and I'll happily write what comes next, it feels weird to write it with one half of the pair unconscious. This was the scenario I decided on, though, and so I went ahead and wrote it. The first part, too, felt a little weird just because the amused anticipation I had when I wrote the end of the last chapter had kind of faded away. A side effect of the long delay. I did, however, very much enjoy writing Byakuya's trial, or at least the outcome of it. His punishment will come quickly enough (largely fighting. I don't expect writing about Byakuya cleaning a toilet would be entertaining.) and I look forward to a more extensive fight in which Byakuya won't be caught off guard so much by our Protagonist's abilities.
Once more, I hope you enjoyed the chapter.