Lex Talionis
Chapter 5
Ichigo tossed and turned in his bed, as if trying to rid away the thoughts that tormented him in his sleep.
* Flashback *
A young boy, dressed in rags, was trembling underneath a building. He was consumed by fear and frozen by terror. The rats and spiders knew nothing of his plight, and ignored him like the rest of Fushou. He could hear footsteps coming closer, and just when the sound of people was but a breath away and he felt his heart pounding in his chest, the footsteps faded away into the distance.
Nightfall didn't come soon enough for the young boy. After hiding all day from the evil known as the residents of Fushou, he found a semblance of relief when darkness bathed the land. He looked as far as he could see for any sign of activity until he felt comfortable and darted out from his hiding spot.
The boy knew not of where he was going, but anywhere his feet could take him that was away from Fushou spelled safety in his mind. He ran without looking back. He ran until his feet bled and eyelids closed shut. He ran for his life, letting the moonlight guide him to a haven; and that haven, was District 64 of East Rukongai, Sabitsura.
"Hey, look at that!"
"What is it?"
"Looks like a kid."
"Is it a Shinigami?"
"Maybe we should kill him, just to be safe?"
"What are you two doing over here?"
"Nothing!" the two said in unison before fleeing.
The young boy opened his eyes, exhaustion and hunger evident throughout his body. As he lay there, starvation bringing him closer to death's door with each passing moment, he looked up from the ground to see a young woman with long black hair looking down at him.
She looked into his eyes, and saw many emotions swimming in his auburn irises, fear being the most prominent.
"What's your name little one?" she asked.
The boy hesitated, unsure of whether or not he could trust this woman.
Her eyes softened, "I will not hurt you child" she said in almost a whisper, before extending her hand.
The boy eyed her hand carefully, noticing a cross dangling from her wrist. He looked back into her eyes and for reasons he couldn't fathom felt he could trust her.
"Ichigo," he choked out, his voice dry and raspy from lack of water.
She smiled softly, "My name is Äs Nödt."
Ichigo grabbed hold of her hand, albeit weakly, and she helped him to his feet. However, he soon collapsed once more as he didn't have the energy to stand. She gently picked him up and walked away.
* End Flashback *
Ichigo shot up from his bed in a cold sweat, breathing heavily as he did his best to bury his past in the pit of his soul.
Deciding that any attempt to go back to sleep would be a waste of time, he got out of bed, put on some clothes, and went for a walk.
The moon always seemed to have a relaxing effect on him; nighttime always isolated him from the rest of the world, but the moon was there to keep him company.
After calming down from his dreams of the past, he made his way for the Soul Library to do some research, however, as he approached the restricted area within the Seireitei, someone else seemed to have the same idea: Aizen Sōsuke.
"Good evening, Fushou-san," Aizen said with his back to Ichigo, his attention diverted towards a screen.
"Lieutenant," he replied simply.
Aizen glanced behind him, catching Ichigo's gaze, before smiling softly and returning his attention back towards the screen.
Ichigo made his way towards a screen on the opposite side of Aizen, and began looking up Kidō spells.
They both stood there, looking at their respective screens, allowing silence to dictate the atmosphere between them. However, after an hour of silence Aizen turned off his screen and stood beside Ichigo, looking curiously down at his screen.
"If you'd be interested, I could teach you some Kidō. After yesterday's demonstration it's clear that you require a more diverse curriculum in the art," Aizen said with a friendly tone.
Ichigo paused in his reading, and looked up at Aizen briefly before returning back to his screen, "For what reason do you make such an offer?" he asked.
Aizen's expression didn't falter even in the slightest, "As a former Kidō instructor I believe in nurturing students and helping them reach their potential. It will benefit any division you decide to join, which will thereby benefit the Gotei 13 as a whole," he explained.
Ichigo turned off his screen and looked directly at Aizen, "I'm not interested," he said before walking past Aizen towards the exit.
"May I ask why, Fushou-san?" Aizen said curiously.
Ichigo merely glanced back at Aizen with a passive face and replied, "Today at the Kidō demonstration, you excluded Gin from your Dankū spell."
Aizen narrowed his eyes ever so slightly, "What exactly are you trying to imply, Fushou-san?"
"If I lost control of the spell, Gin could only do one of two things: live or die. Since you gain nothing from his death, I can only assume that you were testing him. What exactly your intentions are I am unaware, but clearly you have ulterior motives," he explained before walking out of the Soul Library.
"Is that so?" Aizen thought, a smile appearing on his face.
Ichigo stealthily made his way out of the Soul Library, cautious to avoid detection, before traversing outside of the Seireitei and into the wilderness.
He eventually found himself approaching a cliff overlooking the hillside with the moon standing out in the pitch black sky.
He was trying to play a game of chess and the number of players on the board continued to increase. "As the enemies of my blade rise in number, the blades of my enemies rise toward me, and the sword of fate shall fall."
Deciding to compose himself and put a hold on his worries, Ichigo sat down on the soft grass and calmed his mind, body, and soul. His breathing slowed, his eyelids and shoulders relaxed, and he soon found himself diving into his inner world.
As he opened his eyes, he found himself sitting on the beach, with a pitch black sky and bright moon. The water reflecting the moon and stars that stood overhead their liquid depths. He stood up and began walking along the beach, the still waters and cool wind soothing his soul.
For how long he walked he never knew, but always he was to be found and never find; 'twas the way of his Zanpakuto.
"Did you find her?"
Ichigo stopped in his tracks and looked behind him, gazing upon the familiar form of his Zanpakuto: a small boy with white hair that covered half of his soft face.
"I'm afraid not."
The boy almost looked dejected, but it was hard to discern with his messy white hair and the pitch black night.
"There was a small wave tonight."
Ichigo looked out upon the waters, their only movement a result of the breeze flowing through the night sky.
"It's nothing to worry about."
The boy frowned before walking away from the beach and out of view.
Ichigo closed his eyes and took a deep breath of the salty air, and as he reopened them he found himself back in Soul Society.
The sun was soon to be rising and he decided that now would be a good time to return to the academy, less he cause suspicion. After an hour or so of walking he was able to sneak back within the walls of the Seireitei and join his fellow classmates for the graduation ceremony, standing next to Gin in comfortable silence.
"Ain't this exciting Fushou-san?" Gin asked with a grin on his face.
Ichigo glanced at Gin before looking back up and saying, "I suppose."
They both walked in line to receive their marks and see if they were accepted into the divisions they applied for, as did all the other students graduating this year.
The same burly man who took down their information when they joined the academy was the very same giving their results, "Next!"
Gin stood in front of him, his smile ever so present on his face, "Ichimaru Gin."
The burly man looked through his stacks of paper before finding Gin's results and handing them to the boy, "Next!"
"Fushou Ichigo."
The man froze in his seat. He didn't even bother to look up. As quickly as he could muster without throwing papers all over the place, he found Ichigo's results in record time before holding them up without so much as glancing up to meet Ichigo's gaze.
Ichigo grabbed the results and walked over towards Gin who was reading over his own results.
"I got perfect on all their tests, what about yourself Fushou-san?" he asked curiously.
Ichigo looked down at his paper, "As did I."
Gin's grin widened at that statement, "It seems my application to join the 5th Division was approved."
Ichigo narrowed his eyes ever so slightly, "Why did you apply for the 5th Division, Gin?"
Gin was a bit surprised at the question, evident by his eyes opening slightly, "The same reason you became a Shinigami."
Ichigo decided he would ask no more on the matter, it was obviously something very private for Gin and he didn't want to pry.
Gin's eyes and smile returned quickly as the matter was dropped and he asked, "What division are you joinin'?"
"2nd Division," he answered as they both made their way for the entrance of the Gotei 13.
They eventually found a divide in the road, one direction leading to the 5th Division, and the other leading to the 2nd Division.
"I guess we won't be seein' one another for a while, eh Fushou-san?" Gin asked.
"I'm sure our paths will cross eventually," he replied.
Gin looked up at Ichigo, before turning and heading towards the 5th Division, "See ya."
Ichigo spared a glance before he too went his own way, heading towards the 2nd Division.
He was now one step closer to having his revenge, having infiltrated the Shinigami ranks, and within their security division no less. However, the Captain of the 2nd Division was difficult for him to read, which unnerved him to no end, but in time he had no doubt that he could move past her and on with his true goal.
As he approached the 2nd Division, he decided to test its members by sneaking into their headquarters.
There were two guards stationed at the division's entrance, but getting past them was without effort. Several members of the division walked throughout the compound, either having friendly discussion, arguments over responsibilities, or other meaningless endeavors.
"I would've expected more from a division focused on stealth," Ichigo thought with slight disappointment.
He spotted the familiar form of Ōmaeda Marenoshin, along with his eye-catching gold chain and curly brown hair. Ichigo decided to toy with the worthless Lieutenant. As the rotund man walked past the members of the division, either abusing his power or treating them with his condescending attitude, Ichigo quickly flash-stepped behind the Lieutenant and stole his gold chain right off his thick neck. The arrogant noble fearfully looked in all directions as he felt his necklace being taken right out from under him, or rather behind him, spewing threats for the unknown thief.
Ichigo's disappointment in the squad only grew at this point, and thought he'd get a final verdict with the division's Captain.
He carefully approached the Captain's office and decided to lean on the side of caution, given his reservations about her already, and leaped on top of the roof. As he walked gracefully on the tile surface, not a sound being made, he overheard a commotion inside.
"You're overestimating that man, Yoruichi-sama," he heard a young girl proclaim.
"I don't think I'm overestimating him or underestimating him," the Captain replied.
"This is no joke!" the girl opposed.
Ichigo climbed through an opening in the rooftop and was able to get a view of the two talking. The young girl had very short black hair and a petite form, no one he recognized initially. The second being obvious, both in name and appearance. If she knew he was there spying she certainly didn't mind him overhearing this conversation, she looked almost bored while chewing on some sort of cookie.
"It's not as if I don't understand what you're thinking," the girl stated, while Yoruichi calmly took a sip from her glass.
"Allow me to say this! I believe that you were mistaken when you placed him in charge of the Special Forces Detention Unit," the girl continued.
"The Special Forces Detention Unit...she's referring to the 3rd Seat then," Ichigo recalled.
"The Detention Unit is a very important unit that watches and captures anyone who disturbs the peace. The man isn't qualified for such a position! He's dirty and stupid! He's nothing but a lump of laziness and mediocrity!" she ranted.
Yoruichi tilted her head in thought, "He's not much of a hard worker, I'll give you that."
Ichigo decided that now was as good a time as any to show himself, as a part of him happened to agree with the young girl, although his concerns were for the entire squad, not simply the 3rd seat.
He jumped down from the ceiling and landed right next to the young girl, now facing Yoruichi.
The young girl nearly wet herself in shock, while Yoruichi merely smirked, "Nice of you to join us, Ichigo."
Ichigo allowed the briefest of smirks to grace his face before vanishing behind the cold facade he adorned most of the time, "You noticed?"
Yoruichi's smirk widened, "I noticed you since you entered our division, you're not as subtle as you think."
The young girl simply looked back and forth between the two as they spoke to one another, either upset at this young man garnering the attention of Yoruichi, or surprised he was not scolded for eavesdropping, probably both.
Finally she spoke up, "Yoruichi-sama, who is this man!"
Yoruichi glanced back at the girl, "Calm down, he's a new member to our division."
Ichigo faced the young girl at looked her directly in the face, which unnerved her quite a bit, for what reason she could not discern, but held her ground nonetheless.
"My name is Soifon, I'm the 4th Seat of this division, your new superior," she boasted slightly.
At that point Ichigo paid her no mind and faced Yoruichi once more, "I'd like to fight your Lieutenant for his position."
At that statement Soifon was quite deflated of her confidence and quickly tried to think of some way to deter this man from jumping up the ladder, but wasn't fast enough to beat Yoruichi.
"Why should I do that?" she asked, her smirk still present on her face.
Ichigo reached inside his robes, which caused Soifon to become immediately defensive and reach for her sword.
"He won't get his gold necklace back," he replied, holding up the chain while ignoring Soifon's attempt to seem threatening.
Yoruichi let out a deep laugh, lightly clutching her side as she soon stifled her chuckles, "This should be entertaining."
Yoruichi and Ichigo soon left her office and went out on to the training grounds, Soifon quick on their heels.
"Ōmaeda!" Yoruichi bellowed.
Moments later the large Lieutenant came bellowing from around the corner, clearly out of breath and still visibly upset at the loss of his necklace.
"Yes Captain?" he asked, coming to halt in front of Yoruichi.
"Our new recruit has challenged you for the Lieutenant's position," she stated.
Ōmaeda sweat-dropped, his nervousness starting to show, "What new recruit?"
Yoruichi merely pointing behind her towards Ichigo who was waiting in the middle of a sparring section of the training grounds, twirling Ōmaeda's gold necklace in his fingers.
This caused the Lieutenant, much like before in the classroom, to go into a rage and immediately flash-stepped in front of Ichigo with his Zanpakuto already drawn.
"Alright punk, this time I won't hold back!" he gritted through his teeth before charging forward with his sword reeled back.
As Ōmaeda brought his sword down, Ichigo merely held out the gold necklace to block the attack, causing Ōmaeda to halt his sword for fear of breaking his precious jewelry in half.
Ichigo swiftly kicked Ōmaeda's sword out from his grasp, vaulting the blade several yards away, and began launching a volley of attacks to the man's body.
"You're pathetic," Ichigo said as he landed a kick to Ōmaeda's ribs.
The Lieutenant flash-stepped away from Ichigo to create some distance and recover from the assault.
Ichigo began walking towards him, purposely slow, "Would you let a human die if a hollow held your jewelry as ransom? Do your material possessions have that strong a hold on you, a man who holds a position of integrity?"
"W-what do you know, you're just a Rukongai commoner! You wouldn't know anything about a noble such as myself!" Ōmaeda proclaimed, an ever-growing fear becoming increasingly evident.
Ichigo wanted to hear no more and launched the gold necklace straight into Ōmaeda's face, breaking his nose and likely knocking several teeth out. He flash-stepped beside the Lieutenant before landing a spin kick to the back of his head, knocking him out cold.
"I know more than I would like," Ichigo said quietly, anger coating his words.
The members of the 2nd Division were speechless, including Soifon, but the silence was soon broken up when clapping broke out, from none other than Yoruichi.
"Congratulations, Lieutenant Fushou," she said, a smirk on her face.
Ichigo resumed his usual posture before glancing at the 2nd Division Captain, his gaze just as unwavering as it was during his short fight with the now previous Lieutenant.
"It's not over just yet, Captain," Ichigo replied.
Yoruichi ceased in her applause, her smirk disappearing from her face, a questioning expression now prominent on her features.
"I challenge you."