Denial of the Heart

-2 Months Later-

With a good chunk of time having passed from endless training and the occasional break, it wasn't long before the skin on Kein's indentation began to callous over and in turn becoming much less sensitive than it used to be. Both their fighting techniques drastically improved in dodging, hand to hand combat and sword fighting. The fear that once gripped Kein for so many years of her Shinigami life had finally began to fade as she feared less and less of her weakness being exploited, learning to fight with her powers once again instead of behind them. Most of all the two warriors had slowly become even closer to each other through understanding in moments of battle, but also through casual small talk that took place in between as Kein revealed a bit more of what it was like in her Shinigami days when learning to satiate her love for battle as Grimmjow too also revealed just a bit more of what it was like during his Adjuchas days. Soon enough they both realized in their own ways just how much they were alike and it made their battles ever more fierce and aggressive as the drive to fight and overtop each other grew.

A day had dawned in the darkness of Hueco Mundo's sky just like any morning as only but the illumination of the moon shined through the small window into Grimmjow's room. Touching upon the Sexta's hair lightly made it appear like crystal blue ice, glowing in the dimness of the room as the light also shined down upon the blueberry next to him, making the white of her Arrancar outfit glow like a beacon in the darkness. He had only started doing this a week or so ago, but Grimmjow had finally grown naturally comfortable with just wrapping an arm around Kein as she would be gently nudged up against him, occasionally with an arm around his waist. Her skin was smooth and her hair soft as it lightly brushed over the edge of his arm as it curled around her back, giving off a delightful scent that he now looked forward to every night to ease him into a deep sleep.

Grimmjow was the first to awaken as he opened his mouth and let out a deep yawn, his eyes then staring up at the blank white ceiling. He felt at a strange peace that he hadn't felt for the longest of times, but he wasn't bound to question it or why he was feeling it. He then looked down, finding Kein to still be curled up next to him, gently sleeping under his strong warm arm. Lifting it up lightly he placed it's hand upon her shoulder as he gently nudged it.

"Kein," he softly in a low morning grumble spoke her name.

"Nnn," she muttered under her breath as she finally awoke, immediately smiling as she felt Grimmjow's warmth.

Slowly sitting up in bed she stretched her arms upward, cracking a few back joints in conjunction with a deep yawn while Grimmjow sat over the edge of the bed as he began to put on his boots. Not really taking into account how Grimmjow would react, Kein scooted up closer to him as she leaned her head against his back. It took him by light surprise as he stopped midway into putting a boot on, but then he simply chuckled and continued to go about his business. He didn't particularly mind, but he couldn't help but to let slip a jesting banter.

"Hey, do I look like a head rest to you?"

Kein merely chuckled back lightly as she replied, "Sorry, it's just I'm…really glad to be here."

Then lifting her head away she gently placed a hand upon his back as she stroked it along Grimmjow's shoulder blades, sliding her hand along while she got herself off from the bed and into the bathroom. After placing his jacket on and making sure Pantera was firmly placed between his belt and his hakama pants, he stated to her from the bedroom in a jesting manner, "I'll meet you out in the field, but don't take too damn long."

"Whatever you say King," she replied in sarcasm as she listened to Grimmjow's footsteps leave the room and echoed down the connecting hallway. When he had finally left, she gained a moment to herself as she looked in the mirror. As much as she had enjoyed the last couple of months, the last few days had left her with what felt like an oncoming dread. She couldn't quite explain it or why she was feeling it, but it was a bad feeling. She hated getting those feelings because they always ended up with something drastic happening either with things around her or things around her friends. She couldn't help but to dismiss the idea that it had anything to do with her and Grimmjow so she rationalized that it had something to do with Ichigo, but that made even less sense. The war with Aizen was long done and over with. What could possibly be going on that could be just any worse?

Of course it had been quite a while since she had seen him last. Anything now could happen at this point especially since Aizen was still alive. The history of Soul Society has been running far more than the history of the living world and as everyone knows, history repeats itself from time to time. Who knows what new dangers or enemies lurk around the corner and that is exactly the reason that Kein is here and now, training with someone who understands raw instinct and how to overcome fears. She saw Ichigo's rise to power and she refused to lag behind.

Not being able to figure out what was wrong within this gut feeling, she decided to toss it on the back burner for now and let it sit for a while before thinking about it again. Besides, she had better things to think about as she felt a genuine excitement today due to the fact that Grimmjow had stated from the previous fighting session that the next day would be training with her Bankai, which would finally get her a step up in training to be able to keep up with him. Although they had been going at it for a good couple of months now, she still greatly struggled keeping up with his regular form without the use of her Shikai, Bankai, or even her Hollow mask. It felt good to advance a bit further since the Sexta finally approved that her progressions were good enough to take it to the next level.

After taking care of business in the bathroom, refreshing herself and finally woken up, she went out into the fake sky covered grounds to face her opponent, her trainer and her master. Walking out onto the sands the image of pure white topped with a blazing light blue came into sight as it stood profound and unmoving. It was an image she saw every time she stepped foot on the battle field and it was an image that never got old. Excitement flickered inside her as a pleasuring chill washed over her body like an electrifying pulse. Her strength was building, her endurance was thickening, and her techniques refining; all of which she could feel with each passing week. It shot her confidence up tenfold and Grimmjow could see it. He could see it in her determined fire lit eyes and he could feel it from her blade.

When Kein first came out with him, she lacked in everything, more so than he thought and it depressed him to know that the opponent he faced three times during the war with Aizen was not as fierce in technique or ability let alone understanding of their power as she claimed. However, the one thing that he saw in her that no one else even seemed to realize, not even Kein herself, was her monstrous potential to improve and become something far greater than anything or anyone could imagine and it delighted him to know that he would be the first to witness this and all because of his efforts. It was like he was the potter and she was the clay; forming her and molding her to what he saw fit. It was a strange twisted pleasure that brought both satisfaction and freedom from lonesome boredom in the endless sands of Hueco Mundo.

All this effort wasn't just for her however. It was never truly for her as it was mainly for himself, but even he could not deny the intriguing factor and usage of words she spoke when painstakingly convincing him to take her with back to his home in Hueco Mundo. And he most of all could not deny her unique abilities and power that was still so badly untapped. Through strengthening her, he was strengthening his own abilities. Because they were on equal grounds of their power levels, she provided the perfect testing ground to see how far he could really go even though she wasn't as powerful as Aizen or even Ichigo. The more she improved, the more it allowed him to hit faster and harder, letting him develop as well, becoming closer to figuring out the secret to Ulquiorra's Resureccion Segunda Etapa.

Upon coming into view, the first thing Grimmjow took notice of was her shit eating grin, a grin he rarely saw on her face, but he knew what it meant.

"What the hell are you grinning about?"

"The prospect of finally beating the shit out of you, what else? There's only so many times of getting my ass kicked before it starts pissing me off!"

The Sexta grinned back with a deep chuckle. It was words like that that easily got him riled with excitement for the battle to come. There was nothing more pleasurable to him then an opponent with an instinct to crush.

"Ha, ha, ha, well then! I won't keep you waiting, but ground rules first; Hollows powers, weapons, and Bankai allowed. No special techniques. Got it?"

Grinning wildly, she leapt into the air with a burst of speed, materializing her sword and screaming, "BANKAI!"

The split second transformation of her sword into a scythe instantly collided with Pantera, metal against metal and instinct against instinct, her reiatsu's dark flaming aura engulfing Grimmjow. The Sexta knew better than to test her strength against his thickened hierro. When they first met, her Bankai couldn't even touch him, but now her improvements and building strength allowed her scythe to easily make a decent gash in his skin. However, without her Vizard mask, her Bankai still paled in comparison to his regular state of power, but that didn't stop her nor deterred her away. She came at him with a fierceness of a thousand warriors, her face drenched in fighting spirit and her blade dripping with the desire to cut down and devour souls. She was titled the Grim Reaper Shinigami after all and she would be damned if her name didn't live up to its reputation.

Utilizing the block, Grimmjow lifted his entire lower body in a spinning fashion to kick her upside the head. She in turn elevated her left leg and blocked the kick with the side of her thigh. The counter was affective, but his blocking power was immense as it threw her sideways into the air, but she just as quickly recovered in time to block a lightning speed downward strike from above as she only saw a second of Grimmjow in her upward peripherals. The counter was successful, but yet again the power difference was still fields apart as her body planted against the ground with a hardened thud in a ricocheting fashion as it equally bounced off from it, giving Grimmjow an ample chance to attempt at planting his foot into her stomach.

"Not this time!"

With a fierce verbal reaction she swung her scythe in a circular up and downward motion to the right, pushing on the bottom staff end of her weapon as the blades on the end of it struck against Grimmjow's foot just above the ankle as it knocked his foot away, but the heaviness of the upper part of her weapon swung it in a swift momentum for her to simultaneously plant the scythe blade into the ground and push herself back up to her feet. Not wanting to let a pause in the action occur, she fired a series of quick shot Balas that blazed through the air like spiritual pressure bullets. Using this as a distraction for Grimmjow, forcing him to dodge out of their way, she used the opportune moment to violently spin her weapon in her hand in a deadly circular motion before throwing it like a boomerang. Grimmjow was quick to counter it however as he fired a Cero at it that would also fire downwards at Kein. It was a counter distraction since he knew Kein would dodge out of the way, but what he didn't plan on was Kein's weapon still moving.

Her Zanpakutou has the unique ability to not necessarily block attacks completely, but to cut directly through them like a knife into butter. If it was made of a spiritual essence, then Bankaguna would slice into it directly as it similarly would with cutting through dimensional attacks or kidou. Like a storm that could not be avoided, Bankaguna spun through the air as Grimmjow threw up Pantera at the last second, colliding against Kein's scythe with a massive impact that exploded sparks, nearly pushing him through the air as this gave Kein ample opportunity to come at him. With a swift roundhouse kick, Kein's leg planted firmly against Grimmjow's back, causing him to let out a stiffened grunt as he flew through the air. With lightning speed she went after him, rematerializing her weapon back into her hand. Stopping himself in midair he then used a push of his reiatsu to charge him back through the air and directly at her as the two warriors yelled their battle cries with weapons drawn, eagerly awaiting to clash.

SLICE

From opposite's ends meeting at the middle and then facing each other with their backs on opposite sides, their weapons had clashed, their blades slashing through flesh and a stream of blood shooting out equally from both ends. Quietly for a moment Grimmjow and Kein floated in mid air silently. A deepened cut had stretched from the middle of Kein's stomach and curving downward along her right thigh. A nasty lengthened gash started on Grimmjow's back, from the tipped curvature of her scythe, just above his six emblem branding and continued further downward along his right buttocks until it stopped at the middle back of his right thigh. Because of the nature of her blade, he had come in at her directly, but blocked her weapon at an angle and dove downward and under with his blade slicing along her body as her's in turn scraped along his on the opposite side. Both were equally in pain and bleeding, but that only further pushed their adrenalin like a wild animal that had been unleashed.

Blood…it was already dripping down her clothes as a grin creased her face. Dipping her finger tips into the blood, her skin was smeared with the element of surprise as she swung up her hand and chanted loudly.

"Gran Ray CERO!"

Grimmjow gasped in near shock. He knew she had hollow powers, but this was the first time she attempted at do anything stronger than a regular Cero. While his Gran Ray Cero appeared in a bright blue color, hers appeared in a pitch black like death was being fired at him. He flipped his body sideways and fired a regular Cero that launched his body downwards towards the ground in a quick fashion, barely dodging her attack as it was nearly point blank, but it wasn't as big or strong as his own. However, he did not go entirely untouched as the entire front of his body gave off a strange translucent smoke and although there appeared no scaring, it felt like his skin was burning like acid.

"Good. Very good. That's the first time I've seen you attempt a Gran Ray Cero. To be honest I didn't think you had it in you let alone had the ability too."

Landing upon the ground just a yard or so away, Kein chuckled in near ecstasy. This was all so invigorating and made her feel alive.

"I love how your compliments are equally as insulting."

"Well considering you're not an actual Espada, I'm surprised you can use our techniques like that. You're becoming more like a Hollow by the second."

As glad as Kein was to hear that Grimmjow was pleased, his statement took a strange grip on her, one that she couldn't quite tell if she liked it or just as easily was repelled by the idea. He was right though. She was becoming more like a Hollow. She trained more on her Hollow powers than anything else. Of course they haven't reached the stage in their training that focused on personal powers yet, but still, ever since she gained her Hollow mask it was all she really focused on and it made her wonder if maybe she was turning into something else entirely. She was the only Shinigami in existence to have a mark on her body that resembled the Hollow's hole and she was the only Shinigami in existence to be merged with another entity. These thoughts wiped her grin as it faded into a stern blank stare.

"Hey!"

She flinched at the sudden roar of his voice.

"Wipe that pathetic look on your face Marasuna. It doesn't suit you and we've only just BEGUN!"

It was time to turn it up a notch as his speed abruptly increased. He came at her in the blink of an eye as he appeared only a second in front of her and then disappeared. She gasped, barely being able to keep up with his movements as she could barely block his oncoming rain of slashes with his blade. The clashing of metal sparked rapidly, but his katana was much too quick for her much larger scythe as he managed to land quite a few slices all over her body until he finished his combo with a sideways kick to her lower back, impacting her hollow indentation. She let out a heavy grunt, spit flying from her mouth as she was catapulted into a nearby broken down building, crashing into it like a bulldozer. Pain shot up her back, not too terribly, but enough to keep her from moving too much. There was only seconds to react before she realized she was being surrounded by a reddened glow.

Cero

Angling her weapon with the top part forward and directly vertical, pointing at the attack coming her way, she held Bankaguna firmly in one hand as she placed up her other and fired back a counter Cero.

BOOM

An explosion erupted causing the entire area to be filled with smoke and debris. Grimmjow lowered himself down to the ground after barely dodging yet again another seconds-to-react-counter attack. His clothing was tattered and bloodied and there was singes and dirt all over his body. His hair was lightly ruffled and a small crack appeared in his mask. He was still ten times stronger than her without her Vizard mask to deal with his regular form, but she was still packing a wallop. A grin creased across his face as a small droplet of sweat slide down his sideburn. This is what he was ready for and this is what he had been waiting for. He could only imagine with anticipated enjoyment at the idea of what she would be once they reached the final stage in their training but these thoughts would have to be set aside as he studied in silence, watching the area for any movement or signs of another counter. There was none, but he decided to wait as the vicinity of the blast slowly began to reveal its aftermath. There was no more building, that was for sure and anything near it or behind it was also smashed to pieces or completely obliterated.

A silhouette of a figure finally came into the clear as Grimmjow was finally able to catch view of Kein who appeared to be nearly wiped out. Her weapon was staked into the ground as she used it like a crutch to lean on. Her clothing was also completely tattered and bloodied and her back most of all aching with a throb, but nothing that wasn't too unbearable. It wasn't nearly as sensitive as when she first arrived.

"That better be just a moment of rest because I won't accept a quitter as a trainee."

Kein chuckled lightly as she replied in exasperation, "Is that right? Well you can kindly go screw yourself! I never quit!"

"Good…" swinging his weapon out to the side "…because I won't LET YOU!"

He came at her again, but the training was already taking a toll on her considering the still gaping difference in their powers as Grimmjow attacked her at full force. Their blades met with a vengeance as they continued to clash weapons, Grimmjow obviously much quicker as she was blocking most of the flanks and parries, but not without receiving more cuts upon her body. This didn't last long as the Sexta spun viciously until he swung his sword in a backwards strike. She managed to block, but her face was met with his leg, her body skidding along the ground until it ended in a barreling roll from the sheer force of the kick. Her body soon stilled to a stop as she was upon her stomach, her weapon laying just a few inches from her hand. Blood trickled down from her head as her vision blurred, trying her best to grab her weapon, but before she could reach it her forearm was suddenly stomped upon by a heavy boot. She cringed from the pressure on her arm as she looked up to find Grimmjow's shadow overcastting her.

"Nice try, but still not good enough to hold your own."

The smallest grin that Kein displayed was quickly cut down by the Sexta's tongue. As always, what seemed like a compliment only ended with a negative undertone. She never expected anyone to hold her hand, but you'd think by now that Grimmjow would show just a tad bit of encouragement especially with how far they had gotten. Even Shinji had better words to say to her during training than Grimmjow ever did. He normally talked like this, but over time it began to grind against her and his lack of support was beginning to surface a nasty sting. Her pride got pushed down along with her arm as he dug his boot into it. She grunted, desperately wanting to get back up, but was too exhausted.

"So that's it huh? Got no more fight in yah? Figures…but whatever. Get yourself cleaned up. I'll practice some more on my own."

Releasing his foot from her arm, he turned and began to walk away. She leaned on her forearms, pushing herself up lightly as she protested, "Hey! Wh…W-What the hell? That's it? We barely trained for even an hour."

He turned slightly in her direction with a nonchalant scowl, refuting back, "Don't be an idiot. Your energy is spent thanks to that Gran Ray Cero you experimented with. That took a heavy chunk of your reserves. That was a big mistake. Next time train on your own with new attacks before wasting them in our fights. That way at least you'll last longer."

"WHAT?"

Turning back he continued to walk away. Other instructors would be fascinated with a student progressing with an attack they had never used before and congratulate them not to mention it came out mostly successful, but not Grimmjow. Personally he was indeed surprised she could pull it off, but he wasn't impressed. He wasn't going to give her the verbal satisfaction if he felt it wasn't that significant, neither was it really his style to butter people up or to sugar coat over the reality. They either had it in them or they lacked the gumption. And if they lacked the gumption then he certainly wasn't going to waste his time further on the matter.

He was simply going to walk away.

Once again her ass was kicked and once again a hint of a grinding disappointment settled within her. He was right, she shouldn't have used an attack she was completely unfamiliar with especially in the middle of training, but that couldn't be it. That couldn't be all that there was even if another day would come and another training session would ensue. She didn't enter each fight with Grimmjow like there would be another day. She entered each fight as if it were her last. That was the only way to truly gain anything from each experience. She couldn't take it lightly and neither did Grimmjow. It was the reasons for the cuta on her body, the bruises on her skin, and most of all the hardening of her hollow indentation. No, this was not it. She wasn't going to go just yet as a strange fire lit in her that had never truly lit before until now. She found the hidden resolve she needed to push herself further as her eyes began to glow and a dark aura surrounded her body like the shadow of death had given her its cloak.

"G-Grimm…jow! I'm not THROUGH WITH YOU!"

Her voice whaled as Grimmjow turned back around with a fierce motion, gasping at the sight, a shiver running up his spine. It was like he was starring death in the face and then within seconds his blade grinded against Bankaguna, shrouded by its dark aura as an enraged and yet wildly inspired Kein continued to bark her passion.

"Don't you DARE LOOK DOWN ON ME!"

Those words.

Those words he had yelled many times before at his enemies, but Kein was the last person he thought he would hear those words from. Kein always displayed a sense of dignity and pride about her powers regardless of what others thought, never caring about their opinion of her abilities. However, the one person she sought recognition from was Grimmjow and it was at this second he realized this.

"I don't care how many times I have to do it! But I will prove to you that I AM WORTH FIGHTING! AHHHHHHHHH!"

He finally did it. He had awakened the warrior within as they clashed swords like Titans, fierce power against fierce power as Kein soon found that she didn't need her Vizard mask as much as she thought she did, finally relying on her true born powers of a Shinigami and Grimmjow was finally getting the opponent he always dreamed of being able to fight as it was raw pure instinct that rippled off Kein's scythe. Through anger she found an inner peace that allowed techniques to finally click in her head as she swung around Bankaguna almost flawlessly in scythe wielding form. With almost no effort she easily blocked Grimmjow's attacks while using the energy from the push of his blade to twirl her scythe with what seemed like a never ending rotation of counters and parries. In the midst of the weapon slinging, Grimmjow saw an opening just as Kein was lifting her weapon high, horizontally and completely leaving her midsection vulnerable. Twisting his blade he went for a lower strike as his blade swung from a downward position to an upward strike that would slice along her abdomen, but what seemed like an opening was merely a trap.

With second hand switching, her palms were now parallel along the staff part of her scythe, pulling it back downward to meet his blade as the push from his sword allowed her to effortlessly and violently swing the heavy part of her weapon in an upside down curving motion as the tip of the blade…

…pierced into Grimmjow's side.

Slicing from the middle of the stomach up into his lung, the thicker end of the blade pierced further as it fractured a few ribs in the process and sliced through to the other side. Kein's stomach dropped as her master was stuck idly upon her blade, his blood trickling down the metal as he coughed a glob of blood. This wasn't just a simple stab of a Katana. This was a stab of a very wide curved blade that had a long reach and a nasty serrated edge. Getting hit by it would be devastating. A horror hit Kein's heart as a sickening panic nearly overwhelmed her.

"GRIMMJOW!" She bellowed as she forced her weapon to dematerialize.

Without even second guessing, she quickly wrapped her arms around him as he began to stagger over, catching him just before he hit the ground, but with an unwelcoming notion, Grimmjow aggressively pushed her away, the move catching her off guard as she fell on her ass. Grimmjow was bleeding profusely as he could barely stand, towering over her in anger.

"W-Why are y-y-you stopping? FINISH THE FIGHT!"

Kein nearly gasped as she stood up and protested in tears, "Are you fucking KIDDING ME? This is training not a fight to the death! I punctured your lung and ribs let alone your god damn heart!"

And in an even fiercer retort, Grimmjow yelled at her in a rage, "I-I don't n-n-need your GOD DAMN P-PITY!"

"IT'S NOT PITY!" Kein yelled equally loud as tears streamed down her face, catching Grimmjow by slight surprise as pain wracked his body and his senses dulled from the blood loss.

Not allowing more arguments to ensue, Kein flashed forth her Vizard mask.

"Hey! W-What the hell are y—"

"—SHUT UP!"

Rematerializing her scythe, she continued to chant her technique. "Rei de Karitoru," she commanded as tears continued to stream down her face from a mix of exhaustion, a small moment of panic, and a trembling emotional burst. The thought of loosing Grimmjow was deafening as she began to summon a part of her soul and entered it within Grimmjow's body so it could begin to repair and heal him from the inside with the manipulation of her own reiatsu. She knew this would take a great deal of energy to perform, but she didn't care. She just wanted Grimmjow to be okay, even if it cost her nearly everything she had. This wasn't the first time she had used this technique on Grimmjow as the Sexta was already beginning to feel the soothing affects of her soul fraction within him, the pain dissipating and the blood returning to where it belonged.

He was still enraged for multiple reasons, but he was oddly struck by the tears in her eyes. When she looked at him with a tear filled gaze, it was something he simply couldn't ignore for reasons he could not understand or explain. He hated the idea of anyone pitying him, but he at least knew Kein well enough to know that it wasn't pity. And she was right. This wasn't a fight to the death and he didn't at all regret awakening something new in her that he had been painstakingly trying to obtain.

A moment of silence passed as Kein's energy was draining rapidly, but Grimmjow's body and composure was just as quickly regaining its stiffened nonchalant stance as he placed Pantera back in its sheath, watching her with a piercing silent gaze. Her eyes were becoming heavy as she stared off into space, huffing and puffing for air.

"I-I-I…can heal your wounds, but i-if you actually died I wouldn't be able to bring you back like Orihime can. That's why I panicked. It wasn't o-out of p-p-pity. It's just if…if something happened to you I…I…I don't know what I WOULD DO!"

The last bit of her words took Grimmjow by an irritating shock. She wouldn't know what she would do? What the hell was that supposed to mean? He couldn't comprehend the meaning behind her words. They were strange and almost idiotic. He wondered if maybe she was speaking out of some delusional state of exhaustion, but he couldn't ignore the feeling that she meant every word she stated.

She finished healing him, falling to her knees as her Bankai formed back to her regular state of power and her weapon dematerialized once more before Grimmjow finally spoke up, "What do you mean you don't know what you would do? What kind of pathetic statement is that? If I died you would keep going! You'd continue to train yourself and better your techniques and fighting until it makes you bleed! You rise to the top and stay at the top! That's what you would do! I didn't train you for no fucking reason!"

It wasn't until now, until this very second that Kein reflected for a moment on the words she stated and realized that despite all other explanations, there was one reason above any other that Kein was so fervent towards fighting Grimmjow and following him here and being with him nearly every moment of every waking day. She tried to accept the feeling before, but it didn't quite make sense to her so she denied the feeling and the idea for so long, thinking that the fighting and the thrill of battle was enough for her…

…but it wasn't. There was that one other reason that drove all her motivation and decisions. It was the one reason she was here.

"I…I…" too exhausted from healing Grimmjow most of the way let alone dishing out and receiving serious damage, she collapsed to the ground unconscious.