Sorry if I took a long time with this update, but a combination of low morale, low reviews, and me being busy with a lot of crap in the outside world sort of delayed it.
Anyway, I have my mind overflowing with great plans for this fanfic, keep reading and reviewing and I'll keep writing, because I definitely love writing this story.
Let's get this started!
Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach or its characters, settings, etc... Did you really need me to tell you that?
Soul Society
Seireitei
Kaworu gave a confident smirk.
Suddenly Kaworu's eyes widened in surprise. The two Shinigami Captains were no longer in front of him, instead he could distinctly feel them standing behind him.
He could also feel the four slashes that had been dealt deep into his chest on either side, as if his torso had grown comical red eyebrows.
They were not fatal, but the blood flowed steadily out of them and stained his Captain's uniform, the pain pulsating heavily.
Kaworu turned on unsteady feet to stare with increasingly angered eyes at the two Shinigami Captains standing there with their twin zanpakutōs stained with his blood.
Ukitake an unreadable look as Shunsui stood alongside him.
"It seems you have forgotten the power of the two apprentices, Kaworu Yamamoto-Genryūsai."
Both men closed their eyes and suddenly from both of them there arose a blast of massive spiritual power that shook the earth, sending Kaworu flying backwards like a mere leaf in the merciless wind.
Kaworu's eyes centered fiercely on the pair below him, shaking his head dismissively.
"Strong…I guess I have no choice but to take this seriously…I hope that damned Quincy is doing his duty at the very least…"
He quickly grasped his spear with both hands, staring down at the two Shinigami Captains moving quickly below him.
"Inazuma…Bankai! Adauchi Raikiri!"
His muscles bulged and his spiritual power rose up and down drastically as his body crackled with pure reiatsu.
The knuckles gripping his changing zanpakutō seemed to smolder until it was clear that golden-white kanji were forming tattooed on each finger's knuckle spelling the phrase "VENGEANCE IS MINE" ("Fukushû Suruwa Wareniari") across both hands.
The letters gave off smoke as they were seemingly tattooed onto him with an invisible hot iron, and as his newly changed hands gripped the spear, it began to change as well.
Inazuma seemed to grow longer and thicker, far stronger and sturdier looking and it changed further, obviously no longer a simple cross spear.
The perpendicular trio of blades ending in a sort of curved trident instead much like the blade of a sai.
This new Inazuma glowed with power, as did Kaworu Yamamoto-Genryūsai's trembling form.
Kaworu's massive spiritual power bled out all across the landscape to clash with Kyōraku and Ukitake's spiritual powers. The Shinigami Captains were momentarily impressed as Kaworu's spiritual presence managed to actually cancel out both their own spiritual powers, sending a massive wind crashing down onto the battlefield.
As the dust cleared, Kaworu felt wind rushing all around him and he realized that both Captains were still moving at speeds beyond his own.
He quickly swung Inazuma in a wide arc around himself, catching Ukitake's twin strikes. He also managed to catch Kyōraku's two blades…except he caught them in his side, rather than on his spear.
Kaworu spat a long flow of blood, feeling this wound quite severe and adding to the many they had already been giving him.
Quickly Kaworu flash stepped forward, deciding his best bet was to separate the two fools as quickly as possible with sudden bursts of speed and power. He needed to end this decisively before their ganging up on him took its toll.
In a sudden burst of speed he found himself directly crouched in front of a quite surprised Jūshirō Ukitake, landing a powerful roundhouse kick in the white-haired Captain's face that sent him flying backwards a good fifty feet.
Perfect! I just need some space!
Quickly he whirled Inazuma in a wide arc around himself just in time to intuitively catch Kyōraku's twin strikes with the pole of his spear, noticing with murderous glee the surprised look on Shunsui's face.
Quickly he pushed Kyōraku back and thrust the trident-like points of his spear forward to skewer the Shinigami Captain…only to find himself skewered from behind.
One of Ukitake's fishing-javelin-like zanpakutō was protruding out of his right shoulder and was firmly caught on him, as if he were some tuna to be lanced.
He glanced behind him in enraged pain and surprise to see Ukitake's slightly bemused face, the sickly white-haired Captain's body frozen in the pose of a throw.
Kaworu noticed then that the cord connecting the zanpakutō had obviously extended, Ukitake simply using it like a chained weapon with one hand on one of the blades and the cord, sending the second blade hurtling across the battlefield through Kaworu's shoulder.
Kaworu grunted, trying to yank the zanpakutō, only to find himself unable to because of the odd shape it had, one of the protruding blades that formed it being caught inside his skin like a fishing hook.
Suddenly the cord wrapped all him in an instant, the blade not plunged in his skin slamming into the dirt next to him as the cord between the two blades wrapped around him until it pinned his arms to his sides and caught his legs together.
In an instant, the proud and powerful Kaworu Yamamoto-Genryūsai was sent flopping like a fish onto the ground, helpless and hogtied.
Ukitake now loomed above him, smiling sadly while Shunsui also stood over his helpless body with a slight smirk.
"That's called Ukitake's Tuna-Kabob Special…How'd ya like it?"
Are they toying with me?! Those bastards!
Ukitake stared firmly at him as Shunsui laughed and joked, staring at Kaworu silently as an older admonishing brother or father would.
"Now that I have your attention, Kaworu…You didn't quite let me finish what I wanted to say previously…It is quite unfortunate what you have become, but you must understand this…In life sometimes a man must make terrible choices and sacrifices to further the lives of his world or life. We all stand atop large mountains of guilt and corpses; it is why we are still here. We all must shoulder that burden of blood upon our hands, because we cannot ignore the urge to survive or further on our existences. Your father had no choice; given the circumstances…what was he to do, allow the Quincy to survive? It was not the fact that they unbalanced the spiritual world, you know…that was just foolishness; I'm sure you and any Shinigami Captains then realized that. It is because of their abilities to so easily focus spiritual power, such an ability could potentially open Heaven's Gate and give access to the Throne of God, let alone disintegrate Soul Society itself."
Ukitake paused, glancing down at Kaworu's bonded and silent form, then continuing.
"Yes, it was not the crimes of the Quincy that made their execution so absolutely vital, it was their potential power. You discovered it yourself with that so-called Shinigami/Quincy hybrid, and certainly you intend to use it to destroy existence as we know it. It is that sort of potential that is the reason behind slaying the Quincy. As I said, we all stand atop large mountains of guilt and corpses; it is why we are still here…we are driven on, and we walk upon the skeletons of those we neglected or even directly hurt to survive. You are no different, and it will be no different if we kill you to save Soul Society. You know, you never asked me what bodies Shunsui and I crawled up on…I understand what you feel about your father, I understand it completely…"
"I don't care! I'll kill you if I have to, but rightfully so…my-"
"Yes…your vengeance, just another emotion that drives on your existence, justifying the killing and sacrifice of others to continue on. I know you may not care, but what else are we going to discuss with you tied up like that until reinforcements arrive to carry you away?"
Ukitake suddenly looked away and seemingly grew quite distant, though he continued speaking. Shunsui for once seemed quite silent and brooding.
"The aftermath was pure hell; the aftermath of the Shinigami Wars that helped bring Soul Society together into one strong cohesive united front…Bringing together the common masses of Rukongai and the high noble families who inhabited Seireitei, uniting noble lineages and Shinigami family clans and bloodlines. It was no easy feat. Centuries of warfare between Shinigami, for a year every horseman rode until thousands upon thousands of Shinigami were slain. Madness, chaos, and of course war…Shinigami against Shinigami, all striving for dominance…Try to imagine it."
Kaworu gave a dour smirk.
"Oh, I can imagine Shinigami against Shinigami quite well...more than imagine, it's my mission."
Ukitake continued on as if intending to rudely ignoring him.
"It was hard to be young back then, but Shunsui and I were…we were babies when the final years of the Shinigami Wars began to calm down under the controlling grip of your father. The most dominant General and Shinigami, he managed to bring peace and order and either unite or indeed destroy the loose Shinigami clans. Rogue families were everywhere back them Shunsui's noble Kyōraku clan was one of them…my family, the Ukitake were a poor band of rebel Shinigami…two loose pieces that prevented the unity of Soul Society. The Kyōraku family refused to associate with the non-noble masses who they regarded as sub-human, and the Ukitake family refused to give up its stranglehold of power in the poor districts of Rukongai...War broke loose once more, and your father managed to bring Rukongai and the nobles of Kyōraku to their knees in subservience. However, your father required…assurances. The baby sons of each family were given to him as ransom, to be kept to make sure the two families no longer waged mad war."
Kaworu's eyes widened as Ukitake continued.
"We were raised as his sons, you know…before he decided to marry a noblewoman from a high-ranking family so he could gain the sufficient respect among the noble families to reign as chief ruler of Soul Society beneath the King and God and holder of the King's Key. Before that noblewoman bore you and died in the process, before all that we were his sons in the truest sense. He trained us in war, in battle, in wisdom, in everything my dear Kaworu. And soon we became young men, confident and full of life and laughter as the old man's prized apprentices when he established his definitive first Shinigami Academy to bring a final lasting order to the Shinigami."
Ukitake paused, as if to glance at Shunsui, who seemed stoic at the moment, and then continued.
"In those later years, the rebel clans rose once more, a last gasp you could say. The Kyōraku, the Itachi, the Ukitake, the Ikari, oh nearly all the clans from commoners to nobles, all except the Kuchiki of course. And with his own genius and power along with the assistance of the highly-esteemed Kuchiki Clan, your father crushed the uprising once and for all. Now see this, we had no idea of our origins, he had never told us…As I said, we had been given up as mere babes! Order and law dictated your father kill us, as we were the assurances, the ransom, the protection that had been given up, with the implication that we would be hurt if our families did not swear devotion. However, Shigekuni Yamamoto-Genryūsai spared our lives, and instead opted to kill every single member of the Ukitake and Kyōraku family. Men, women, children, that means brothers, sisters, father, mother, uncle, grandfather, cousins…you understand don't you?! Their lives were sacrificed, traded to support ours…we treaded upon their bones to live on, even if we had no idea of the whole ordeal. We lived on, oblivious, enjoying life and laughter, healthy and vibrant, strong and firm…we only found out about our histories and the fates of our families far later, through old records that Urahara dug up…Kaworu, we lived to tell this story by taking the lives of our fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, our families."
Kaworu was staring up at the Shinigami Captain pair with widened eyes as Ukitake continued.
"So yeah, it was simple…Their lives had been traded for ours. It's not that we didn't feel guilty…I even contemplated suicide…Shunsui was driven to a rage and even wanted to attack the old man, though I stopped him before he could…But…I started to think about it this way….What the hell were we all doing in that situation anyway? The chaos and madness of civil strife. It was something to go on, for both of us, we could atone by making sure Soul Society was never harmed or brought into a state of strife or madness again that would justify such atrocity…And despite his faults, your father is the central pillar that holds up that Soul Society we wish to protect from harm. Slowly however, we began to enjoy our lives, to enjoy our duty and slowly forget. It was then I was stricken by this disease, and we began to wonder if we deserved such laughter and forgetfulness when we killed our own families…"
Kaworu snorted.
"What? Is that it?!"
"It's the same with Shunsui…"
"You didn't kill them! He did it! Why not seek- "
"Seek vengeance like you? Kill and hate and destroy? That cheap lust of bloodshed and heated vengeance…An excuse…Neither of us deserves to be happy, and…neither do you Kaworu."
"What do you mean?! I'm not the same as you scum! My father killed them all, and he ordered my assassination!"
"And you, faced with the prospect of the Quincy Wars approaching, could only find the option of open insurrection against the Chief Captain of Soul Society? Have you ever heard of subtlety? Delicacy? There could have been other paths to contemplate! If you had tried to find some way to at least rescue or hide Quincy or convince your father…you could've at least tried to save as many as you could instead of raising your spear against your father! You could've saved more if you'd tried! The Quincy died, and you survived…Just like how we survived by trading the lives of our family's…And now you rage and fight your fellow Shinigami. That Kurosaki, he could be dead, same with Komamura, or Soifon…what did they ever do to you? You have their lives and the lives of the Quincy. You have them now. You've still got flesh and blood because you took the lives of others and because you allowed the death of others…So are you going to live that life so foolishly? So full of vengeance and destruction? Or are you going to atone and try to save as many possible lives around you as your zanpakutō allows, as we try?"
The only response to Ukitake's words was an eerie silence, Kaworu staring up coldly at the two Shinigami around him.
Suddenly Kaworu took in a suddenly sharp breath, his body dancing with what looked like electric bolts as he let out a rage-filled scream.
"Bullshit! SHUT UP! SHUT UP!"
Kaworu's muscles bulged and he spun the cords tied all around him off of his body in one strong motion and burst of spiritual pressure that nearly threw the two Shinigami Captains standing above him on their asses.
They silently regrouped, and in an instant as Kaworu picked up his spear, they were on him again.
Kaworu grunted angrily, dodging the twin slashes of Shunsui Kyōraku to the side only to have Jūshirō Ukitake appear directly in front of him.
"Damn you!"
Quickly he thrust his spear forward, only to have Ukitake bring his twin blades up and wrap the cord connecting his zanpakutōs around the firm pole, catching it tightly in place inches from his face.
Ukitake grunted angrily as he shoved Kaworu's fierce form backwards towards Shunsui's awaiting blades.
Kaworu just barely managed to duck away from the twin zanpakutō of Kyōraku, stumbling and rolling away with blood dripping from the many wounds of his body as Ukitake spoke in a firm but sorrowful voice.
"We've no choice but to take care of you, you know, Kaworu…"
Shunsui nodded, flash stepping alongside Ukitake.
"Indeed, while we sympathized with you, now that we know your intentions you cannot be allowed to live any longer. The men and women of Soul Society will survive by the taking of your life."
"There's a reason we were called the Immortal Brothers. We may not be kin, but our souls are bonded together intractably by the sacrifices that helped bring us into being and keep alive."
"While at least one of us stands, the other will not fail, the other will not be killed. We are the long-forgotten babies given to your father; we are borne on seas of our own family's blood and breathe in the tears of our dead mother's in the mist-filled air. While you may speak of Dragons, we are the air and sea that surrounds you. Your scaly familiars have no weight here."
Kaworu snorted, gripping his fist hard and wiping the blood from his lips.
"Hmph…Inazuma takes offense at that, you know…I'll have to make both of you fall together then. Releasing first limit, Inazuma…"
He held the great spear Inazuma in his left hand and pressed the tip into his right palm. As if made of air, it sank straight through his palm as if his palm was an endlessly deep pool of water and then simply disappeared.
Kaworu clenched his right fist, his eyes bulging and the veins at his forehead straining with obvious difficulty as his right arm trembled.
Suddenly, the bright golden-white tattoos spelling the phrase "VENGEANCE IS MINE" ("Fukushû Suruwa Wareniari") across both hands that had grown on his knuckles with his bankai started to contort against his skin.
The golden lines began to crisscross and grow, as if the tattoo was somehow sprouting like a vine. They grew up his hand and began to snake and crisscross all around his right arm, these glowing golden lines and symbols searing into his skin as if they were being branded on or tattooed.
It all stopped at his right shoulder, and as the smoke cleared, one could see the intricate and beautiful lines and runes all around his right arm with a new surprising addition.
There seemed to be a glowing wing of electric energy sprouting out of his right shoulder, a single ethereal wing of massive spiritual presence.
Captains Jūshirō Ukitake and Shunsui Kyōraku stared firmly at Kaworu's glowing body, deciding not to waste time any longer.
Ukitake grasped his twin zanpakutō firmly, the long cord in between the blades shimmering and glowing with a strange blue spiritual force as the sickly Captain spoke a fierce mantra.
"Sōgyo no Kotowari…Shironami Bakuryūha…Bankai…"
The cord suspended between the two blades Ukitake held began to swell and shiver, suddenly the blue aura simply overwhelming it into an ethereal strand of glowing swirling blue which covered both the cord and the blades.
In an instant everything in Ukitake's hands became a torrent of fierce blue water with splashed out and began to swirl all around the Captain.
The torrents and wave after wave of water seemingly materialized out of his outstretched hands, descending all around the shattered battlefield like a terrible tempest.
Kaworu's eyes widened in surprise bordering at fear as he quickly leapt up and over the massive waves which had now submerged the battlefield below him in a small sea.
He seemed comfortable floating above them inertly, though he gazed down baffled at the fact that Ukitake himself had seemingly been submerged in the small body of water he had created.
This momentary glance turned his attention away from the twin zanpakutō whistling through the air at his head, held by Shunsui Kyōraku whirling and spinning in the air as he landed the centrifugal-powered slash.
Kaworu's eyes widened as he barely dodged the possibly decapitating blow, the two blades so sharp that they simply left two small cuts on his cheek instead of cleaving it apart.
However their force still sent him splashing haphazardly into the water below him, his electrical wing of energy sizzling in the waves as Kaworu struggling to leap out.
Shunsui Kyōraku stared down at him, a soft wind sending the Captain's straw hat floating off into the air as Captain Kyōraku gripped both his own zanpakutō and began speaking a calmly enunciated mantra.
He spoke it in a conversational tone, almost lazily, but the fierceness in his eyes could not be mistaken.
"Katen Kyōkotsu…Kamigura Kaze …Bankai…"
The instant those words left his mouth, the two blades in his hands simply shimmered into what looked like glowing red flower petals that were blown into nothingness by a strong wind.
Shunsui stared down defiantly at Kaworu, who had quickly burst out of the water only to float a bit above it and glare up at Shunsui.
"Hmph! So one drowns himself and the other destroys his weapon? A wise choice. Given up already?"
Shunsui shook his head in what seemed almost like sorrow, and suddenly Kaworu found himself totally paralyzed and unable to move a muscle. He couldn't even suck in a breath, he felt as if he'd been stuck in a vat of concrete or something, but he was out there floating seemingly safely with nothing touching him.
All Kaworu found himself able to do was move his eyes low to glance at the water below him which had suddenly sent out two giant fists of roaring liquid that were now hurtling up and converging on his frozen and floating form as if the sea itself was applauding.
Captain Shunsui Kyōraku sighed, reaching his hand out lazily and motioning towards his distant straw hat, which floated back towards him guided by a slow and steady wind.
It settled atop his head with a firm plop.
"As I said, Kaworu Yamamoto-Genryūsai, we are the air and sea that surrounds you."
The group of retreating Shinigami and outsiders had been moving quickly for a good amount of time when Kisuke Urahara stopped, his arm helping Orihime's weak form while Captain Hisagi tried his best to carry the massive bulk of Komamura and Rukia assisted Ichigo's wounded form.
Urahara glanced at the group and sighed, scratching his head in an almost lazy motion as he spoke in a matter-of-fact fashion.
"Ishida's still trailing us you know…"
Orihime looked frantically at Urahara, her eyes full of worry and sadness that seemed mirrored except far firmer in Rukia as well.
"L-Let me go see Ishida…I don't know what's wrong with him, but I know he'd never hurt me or Rukia…"
Ichigo's eyes were wild as he almost shoved Orihime away in his exasperated pain and clearly worried anger.
"No! Inoue! He's too far gone! He'll kill anything that stands in his way! Don't you trust the wounds on my damned body? I have to go take care of this once and for all!"
Rukia reached out to touch Ichigo's trembling shoulders but he flinched from her touch, still staring at Orihime.
Urahara watched on with stoic calmness, shaking his head.
"Tsk, tsk…Neither option seems viable. It seems like we'll have no choice but to stop before we reach the main way to the infirmaries…"
"No."
The entire group turned in surprise at Captain Hisagi's voice. He had been silent the entire time, helping support the now unconscious Komamura.
Urahara raised his eyebrows almost comically and tipped his hat to Hisagi.
"No? What do you mean?"
Hisagi turned firmly to the two girls, nodding to them, rudely ignoring Urahara.
"Can you two walk?"
Orihime said "Yes" while Rukia simply nodded silently.
"Then…"
Hisagi stopped speaking and the entire group followed his gaze in the distance. They could feel it, Ishida was growing closer.
Captain Shūhei Hisagi continued, turning back to the girls.
"Then…help Urahara and take both Kurosaki and Captain Komamura back to the infirmary…They're both in serious shape, and any delay could be terrible. I'll stay behind and take care of this."
Komamura let out a grunt as he lay at Hisagi's feet where the new Captain had put him down to speak. He seemed to be slowly coming back to consciousness but still severely wounded and unable to move easily.
"Hisagi…you…don't…"
"Shh, Captain…don't forget the vow we made to return Kaname…"
"You can't…"
Captain Shūhei Hisagi gave him a firm smile and turned away, indicating to Urahara that he wanted Kisuke and the girls to take Ichigo and Komamura out of the area immediately.
And indeed, in a few seconds they were gone, flashing through the rooftops of Seireitei.
Hisagi watched them and then concentrated on the trail of dust they left, noticing a white flash hurtling after them.
In an instant he flash stepped before the white presence, halting Uryū Ishida before he could pursue the group any longer.
Ishida stared silently at Hisagi, his white robes fluttering about in the dusty wind as he adjusted his spectacles.
"You. What do you want?"
"I won't let you advance any further, Quincy."
Ishida smirked, raising his white spider-web like bow and glowing with a burning white spiritual presence that shook the air around him.
"Then perhaps I should introduce you to Ginrei Kojaku."
Hisagi stared hard at him, his expression stoic and mature despite the tattoos on his face and body.
"That would be polite. In turn if we're beginning introductions, I'd like to introduce you to my brother…"
Hisagi paused, pulling out the simple katana at his hip and then continuing.
"Hikou, Yakedo Shisō na Koi!"
Ishida's eyes widened in surprise as he felt Captain Shūhei Hisagi explode with a swirling spiritual power that was at least strong enough to equal his own.
Perhaps even greater...
Captain Sajin Komamura sighed wistfully as Urahara flash stepped with him in tow, a comical sight for such a giant fox-like creature to be carried by the far more diminutive Urahara in sandals and all.
Urahara glanced at him as they continued quickly moving forward, Orihime and Rukia also advancing as best as they could with the increasingly fatigued Ichigo Kurosaki.
"What is it, Komamura?"
"It's…been a while since I've seen Shūhei Hisagi fight…"
"Worried he might lose?"
"I'm worried he might win and destroy Seireitei with him…"
"Huh?"
Hope that chapter didn't seem too short or rushed, but I ended it specifically at those points for plot-related reasons.
Well, we had some Ukitake/ Kyōraku backstory, hope it wasn't too baffling for you guys or lamely-done…
Their fight with Kaworu seems to be warming up definitely…Let's see if their boasts are right and what their bankais are really made of…
And uh oh, what's this about Hisagi? Expect a major spotlight on him and even a backstory and some cool shit. He's been snubbed in the series…
That's what you should expect from this fanfic, I give love to all the characters in the series…so if you're a fan of someone who hasn't gotten much screen time just be patient, I promise. Everyone gets their time in the spotlight.
Hope you guys stay along for the ride.
See ya next chapter.