Chapter 18: Because I Loved You
Renji left the room at flash step speed, calling for Kisuke. Byakuya brought himself to his knees on the bed, lowering his head against the pain that shot through him. He could hear the raised voices of the others and footsteps in the hallway. Then suddenly, the spirit energy around the beach house rose until the building shook and Byakuya was nearly incoherent with the pressure around him. He struggled for breath and moved toward the edge of the bed. Another wave of heavy spiritual pressure struck the house, shattering the windows and sending the house into darkness.
Byakuya heard the hiss of a flash step as someone came in through the window. He couldn't see who it was, but he had felt her presence so often that he didn't need to.
"Rukia!" he gasped softly, "What are you doing here? You have to get out of here!"
"I came to find you. I'm getting you out of here!"
"You don't understand. I can't leave. I have to remain here so that I can regain my shinigami form!"
"That's what I came to tell you! Captain Kurotsuchi was able to find another way to reverse the process. Yoruichi and Orihime stayed to help him finish the preparations. Byakuya…you have to come with me now!"
"Rukia," Byakuya panted, his head bowed against the pain, "I cannot return to the Seireitei like this!"
"They're at Urahara's shop. You must try to go that far."
"Renji…" Byakuya said, looking out the open door into the hallway.
"The others know. I was able to tell them. Come on!"
She leapt lightly into the windowsill, pulling him along. Byakuya bit back the pain and dragged himself along with her. A moment later, the room stood empty.
Rukia led Byakuya along the side of the building and onto the trail that led up and away from the beach. They could hear raised voices nearby and felt pulses of power that increased the pressure pushing in on Byakuya, making him stagger and lean against Rukia.
"Hang on," she said softly, "We'll be away from them soon."
They climbed with agonizing slowness up the darkened pathway, listening to the sounds of a battle in the distance. They had just reached the top of the trail when they heard a flash step and Orochi Kuchiki appeared in front of them.
"Ah, Rukia," he said, his eyes glinting, "I see you have found my cousin. Come with me."
"Man, I hope Kurotsuchi knows what he's doing!" Ichigo said, sending an attack in the direction where their unseen assailant was concealed, "I mean, the other way of getting him back was awful…but I don't know about trusting Kurotsuchi with anyone's life. That guy's crazy"
"Shut up and fight!" Renji snapped, "I don't want to think about that! This is bad enough as it is. Dwelling on it will only drive me crazy too!"
"Don't worry, Renji. Kisuke went ahead to make sure that the process works. All we have to do is provide cover so that Rukia can get Byakuya out of here."
"Yeah…then what?" Renji mused darkly.
"Hey," Ichigo grunted in surprise, "How come they stopped attacking us?"
Renji reached out with his senses.
"I don't know…but I don't like the silence. Damn! Something's wrong!"
The two dropped down off of the balcony and onto the beach. The rain pounded down on them and lightning flashed, lighting the area for a moment.
"Can you sense Byakuya or Rukia?" asked Ichigo.
Renji was silent for a moment.
"No…but I can tell that someone is using kido to interfere with my already poor ability to sense reiatsu."
"Man, that sucks! Like we aren't already reiatsu sensing challenged!" complained Ichigo.
The lightning flashed and Renji stared ahead of them.
"Ah…Ichigo…I don't think we need to worry about sensing them."
Ichigo followed his eyes. Ahead of them, Byakuya knelt in the sand with Rukia at his side, clinging to him tightly. Nia knelt next to them. The two shinigamis appeared to be held there with kido, but Byakuya had not been bound, probably, Renji surmised because Orochi wouldn't have seen him as any kind of threat in his current state. Orochi, himself, stood over the three and Tadashi stood in front of them.
"Bind them," Orochi ordered Tadashi.
Tadashi stepped toward them. Ichigo raised his sword, but froze as Orochi pointed his zanpakuto at Nia.
"Do you want to be responsible for her death?" Orochi hissed, "Or for Rukia's or Byakuya's? Allow him to bind you. Do not fight him or I will kill all of them."
"You won't get away with this!" cried Renji savagely, "Byakuya is your clan leader! You will be killed for daring to harm him!"
Orochi laughed and moved to Byakuya's side. He dragged the noble to his feet and held Byakuya against him.
"You are weak," he sneered in Byakuya's ear, "pathetic. Why they ever chose you, I don't know, because you are nothing. Look at you. Powerless, helpless, human…You sicken me, Cousin. And now you are going to die."
"You will only follow me in death," Byakuya gasped, "They will execute you for killing me."
Orochi laughed wickedly.
"Oh Cousin, I would never hurt the clan leader."
He leaned close and whispered in Byakuya's ear.
"And they won't execute me for killing your killer, Cousin. That's why Tadashi is here. He will kill you and I will kill him…his will be the execution for your death. Perfect, isn't it? There will be no way for anyone to prove I had anything to do with your death!"
"Bastard!" Byakuya hissed angrily, turning and striking the unprepared shinigami.
Orochi took hold of his hands and increased his spiritual pressure until Byakuya's legs threatened to buckle. He kicked out hard, connecting with the restrained captain's abdomen and sending him crashing down onto the sand. Byakuya remained facedown, struggling to breathe as Orochi stood over him.
"Kill him," Orochi ordered Tadashi.
The petrified shinigami stared at the fallen captain and hesitated.
"I said, kill him!" Orochi snapped, pointing his weapon at Nia, "Kill him now or she dies!"
"He'll only kill both of you anyway!" gasped Byakuya, raising himself slightly.
"Do shut up, Cousin!" Orochi said, coldly kicking him in the side.
Byakuya's body recoiled with the blow and he grunted in pain.
"Tadashi…he hurt your brother. You are only taking revenge. Go ahead, kill him. Kill him now."
"You know he didn't hurt my brother!" Tadashi said in a choked voice, "Takashi loved his captain. He would never have wanted any of this! You want Captain Kuchiki dead for your own selfish reasons. He is innocent. He doesn't deserve to die…but you do!"
Tadashi lunged forward with his zanpakuto extended in front of him, aiming for Orochi's chest. As he moved, Orochi raised his weapon and turned to meet him. As the two fighters closed on each other, neither noticed the slender form that rose up between them. Tadashi felt his blade being forced to the side and was thrown off his feet. Orochi felt his blade sink into the body that had thrown itself between Tadashi and him. There was a deep gasp of pain and the body impaled on his blade shuddered.
Orochi suddenly found himself face to face with Byakuya. He looked into his cousin's shocked eyes with an equally surprised expression at seeing his blade buried in Byakuya's chest.
"Byakuya!" screamed Renji, bursting forward.
Orochi kicked Byakuya hard in the abdomen, throwing him backwards into Renji and sending both down onto the sand. Immediately, Ichigo and Tadashi attacked, forcing Orochi away from the two. Tadashi turned back and freed Rukia and Nia. The four surrounded Orochi, attacking from all sides. The surrounded noble met the incoming attacks with blinding speed.
Below them, on the sand, Renji held Byakuya close, shocked at the heat of the blood that coursed out of his chest. Byakuya panted with pain, gripping Renji tightly and straining to catch his breath.
"Byakuya!" Renji gasped breathlessly, "Bya…"
"R-renji…" Byakuya managed, "n-no t-time. Get Ichigo…"
"Ichigo!" Renji screamed, "Ichigo, hurry!"
Ichigo turned to Tadashi, Nia and Rukia.
"The three of you have to hold him off!" he cried, "Can you do it?"
The three stared back with determined eyes.
"We'll hold him off! " Rukia said firmly, "Just help my brother! You have to save him now, Ichigo."
Ichigo flash stepped toward Renji and the dying captain.
Renji held Byakuya against him.
"Stay with me, okay?" he pleaded softly, "I can't lose you like this!"
"You won't…R-renji," Byakuya panted, "Listen to m-me…R-rukia…and the others. They n-need…you."
Renji put his hand on Byakuya's face, raising the pained gray eyes to meet his.
"I can't, Byakuya," he said, brushing the hair away from his lover's eyes, "I have to go with you and Ichigo."
Byakuya's eyes left Renji's for a moment and met Ichigo's meaningfully.
"S-set me d-down, Renji," Byakuya said softly.
Renji eased Byakuya down so that he rested on his back in the sand. He continued to hold Byakuya's hand as Ichigo brought his weapon around. He brought the tip to the dying captain's chest, staring at the red light that pulsed beneath the tip of his blade.
"Quickly now, Ichigo," Byakuya gasped, "We are out of time!"
Ichigo stared into Byakuya's eyes and raised his power until the three were lit with it. He swallowed hard and took a breath.
"Getsugatenshou!" he cried.
Light exploded from the blade, traveling down its length and heading for the receptor. As the power reached his shattered heart, Byakuya suddenly pushed Renji away.
"What the hell?" Renji gasped as he fell away from the other two, "Bya!"
"S-save…Rukia!" Byakuya gasped.
Then the blast of reiatsu reached him.
Renji watched in horror as the light from Ichigo's attack shot down into Byakuya's body, piercing the spirit receptor and loosing an explosion of red light. He tried to move forward, to take hold of Byakuya again, but the red light surrounded Byakuya and Ichigo, and forced Renji back.
"Byakuya!" the redhead cried again.
The light continued to grow and Renji watched with terrified eyes as Byakuya shuddered and went still, then disappeared into the light along with Ichigo.
"B-bya…" he sobbed, watching as the light faded and he was left alone on the rainy beach.
The sound of fighting reached through the pounding of the rain and Renji lifted his head. Tears coursed down his face and he heard Byakuya's last words in his mind.
"S-save Rukia!"
The words echoed in his head.
"S-save Rukia!"
If it was to be his lover's last request, then Renji was determined to honor it. He stared for a moment at the bloody patch in the sand, then took hold of Zabimaru and forced himself to his feet. He flash stepped through the rain, heading for the sounds of battle somewhere ahead of him. As he closed in on them, his mind shut down except for one thing, one goal, one mission.
"I have to save Rukia," he whispered, "And I will, Byakuya. I swear it!"
He spotted Orochi in the distance, lit with power and sending huge kido blasts at the three who pursued him. Blasts of kido and from zanpakutous lit the air all around them, making the darkness disappear and lighting the droplets of rain like glittering teardrops. Renji slid to a stop and raised Zabimaru as Nia crashed to the ground near him. He stopped and flash stepped to her side, but she waved him off.
"I'll be okay!" she cried, "You have to stop him! He's going to overwhelm them! He is…too powerful for us!"
Renji nodded and raised Zabimaru, trying to ignore the fact that Tadashi was falling to the ground and the noble was turning to take aim at Rukia.
"Ban kai! Hihio Zabimaru!"
A thundering screech rose up around him as the skeletal snake roared to life. He sent it soaring across the distance, on a collision course with Orochi Kuchiki. As it bore down on him, the noble turned.
"Hikotsu Taiho!" Renji cried.
The skeletal snake opened its mouth wide and loosed a huge red blast at point blank range. It blew Orochi Kuchik off his feet and sent him crashing into the surf.
Renji sent the skeletal snake towards Rukia. It grabbed her and turned back to bring her safely to Renji's side.
"Argh!" she yelled, "Idiot! You didn't have to do that!"
Renji slipped an arm around her, not even minding as she beat her hands against his chest.
"What did you do that for?" she ranted.
"Easy," he told her, "Byakuya ordered me to. So shut up. When my captain gives me an order, then I obey it. He told me to protect you and that is what I'm going to do!"
Rukia's hands stopped striking him and settled against his chest. They stood on the rainy beach, watching as Nia helped Tadashi to his feet and the two joined them.
"Do you think we got him?" Tadashi asked.
"He's down," Rukia said in a low voice, "but he hasn't been defeated yet. We have to be ready. When he attacks, he will hit us with everything he has!"
"Spread out," Renji said, stepping away from Rukia, "Weapons at the ready. As soon as you sense him, throw everything you have at him. This is going to be a very nasty fight. Don't hesitate…and don't miss!"
They waited, listening to the sound of the surf crashing against the shore and feeling the steady beat of the rain on their skin. As he watched for any sign of their enemy, Renji's mind went back to his last moments with Byakuya. He felt again the shock of betrayal as he was solidly pushed away and the words again rang in his mind.
S-save Rukia!"
"I will, Byakuya, I will save her," he promised, "I won't let anything happen to her."