At birth given scars along tender heart liberties
injustice for awkward living situated casualties
they lay dead along your floor
careful not to wake them they're sleeping
in the morrows good mourning
the dying will discard the wish to live
Coheed And Cambria - Al The Killer
Chapter 12: The Disappearing Sun
"Is there a reason your stalking that poor boy?" Minato smiled as the smaller blond glared at him.
"Maybe." Naruto responded, glancing over to the man beside him for a second. "Any reason why you won't leave me alone?" He asked directing his attention back on the orange haired teen interacting with other pathetic humans.
Minato hummed to himself, making it seem as if he was actually considering the question. After a minute, the blond leaned his head to the side barely avoiding the halfhearted swipe at decapitating him.
"Probably cause you're just so much fun to be around." Minato responded as he back-peddled away from the irritated blond hollow.
Naruto sighed, he would never understand why he bothered to deal with such an annoying pest, instead of just squashing him like a bug.
"Son…you know you can trust me. Things will be better if you open up to me." Minato suggested. "I only want to help you, all I ask is for you to place some faith in me."
Naruto shook his head, but rose to his feet. He laid a hand on the hilt of his blade, a smirk breaking across his features as he eyed the man across from him.
"I'm sure we can come to some sort of agreement, one way or another."
Minato sighed, knowing just by the attitude of the other soul that he was in for another painful round of lets beat up the shinigami. He noticed a habit forming between himself and his son, ever since he began following him relentlessly over the years. As he spent more time with his only child, he found himself unconscious everyday, after a fun spar.
He realized, long ago, that inside the Arrancar was a lonely, broken spirit. With the loss of the demon lord, Naruto seemed to be fueled by hatred, and a desire for vengeance. Even though he exclaimed he wanted nothing to do with him, Minato knew deep down he was grateful for the company.
The former Hokage had grown accustomed to the random fights with his son. He would much rather talk than fight against the other blond, but he accepted the small amount of time his child would give him and, for once over the many years, he felt hope.
Hope that just maybe he could reach Naruto, and maybe begin to re-establish the shattered bonds between father and son. Minato was no fool though, while he prayed his wishes would come true he wouldn't depend on them. For one was more likely to be disappointed in the end relying on nothing but hope and a crazy dream. Sometimes no matter what, despite your hopes people were unexplainable creatures, that did unexpected things for unknown causes.
He knew how his son was treated, despite the fact he told his village to see the boy as a hero, and yet, he was treated worse then dirt. Sometimes all hope would lead to is heartache and suffering.
So, with another sigh, he drew his blade, and waited patiently for his son to make the first move.
Naruto, not one to disappoint, raised his arm and whispered "Bala."
Minato was moving the instant the words left the hollows lips. He dived under the blast of red energy, and pushed off the concrete roof propelling himself straight at the stoic blond.
Smirking, he swung his blade in a downward arc.
Naruto chuckled as he came to the conclusion that his father was an idiot. Judging by the distance separating them he figured the steel would miss him by at least a few inches.
A faint whistling alerted him to late of the actual danger behind that strike. Naruto moved to the side avoiding being cleaved in half by the fierce blade of wind extending from the Zanpakuto. Unfortunately, his own smugness cost him, as the wind blade removed his arm like a knife cutting through butter.
The blond stumbled backwards and growled at his father, more in annoyance then anger. Naruto's arm bubbled and hissed, before a brand new arm sprouted out. Flexing his fingers the Arrancar tested out his new arm.
Naruto glared at his father, causing the shinigami to hold up his hands in a form of surrender. A cruel smirk darkened his features as reiatsu swarmed through hid body.
"SHIT!" Minato yelled before his son charged.
Running a hand through his spiked hair, Ichigo Kurosaki grumbled under his breath as an ecstatic orange haired girl jabbered away beside him.
"Have you ever looked at a starry sky Ichigo? Oh so beautiful. Sometimes, I feel like each individual star is a brave knight watching over me, and protecting me from harm." The bubbly girl said, a bright smile lighting up her face.
"Hn…I don't spend much time thinking about stuff the way you do." He replied in his annoyed and bored tone.
Ichigo continued to walk and listen to his bubbly friend, on the long walk home from school. His eyes flashed for a second, he stopped dead looking directly in front of himself.
Orihime seemed to notice his absence after she walked a few paces ahead. Turning around she looked at him with a questioning stare.
"Orihime, go home." Ichigo's gaze never wavered as he continued to look straight ahead.
"What's wrong Kurosaki-kun?" She asked in a way that said she wouldn't go anywhere until she received an answer.
He took at glance at the stubborn girl and glared at her. "Get the hell out of here now, you stupid girl." The orange girl stifled her cry, but she jumped as he shouted at her.
"Kurosaki-k…" She started to mumble, but another glare silenced her instantly.
Ichigo felt horrible as he watched his friend out of the corner of his eye. He decided then that he would just have to make it up to the orange haired girl later.
Orihime looked into his eye for few seconds, the silence between them escalating and growing more uncomfortable. After what seemed like an eternity she nodded with tears finally escaping and trailing down her cheeks, as she turned away from him and ran home.
He watched her go, knowing he shouldn't but he did it anyway, feeling bad about the way he acted to the kind natured girl.
"I think 'sniff' I'm going to tear up 'sniff' such a cruel man you are Ichigo Kurosaki." Said boy stared angrily at the over-dramatic man, he guessed from the tone of voice, wearing a crimson porcelain mask, dressed casually in a bright orange long sleeved shirt and black khaki's.
"What do you want?" He growled at the man standing twenty feet down the road.
"No need for such hostility boy. I have no desire to harm you or any of your friends." He stated offhandedly as he inspected his finger nails.
This just irritated the part time shinigami as his glare intensified. "Who are you?"
"Wow, you're just full of questions aren't ya? Names…" The man paused "Sasuke."
"Why were you following us then…Sasuke?" Ichigo questioned a visible tick in his eyebrow.
When the masked being began scratching the top of his mask, Ichigo guessed he must be thinking of another good excuse.
"Oh, I got one!" Sasuke shouted. "I was watching your back, making sure no hollows would get the jump on ya and…" Sasuke stopped as Ichigo levelled him with his deadliest glare. "damn, I actually worked hard on that excuse too. I thought it was a good one."
"Let's just say I'm a friend." Sasuke's demeanor did a three sixty as it changed from casual to serious.
Ichigo stared impassively at the man identified as Sasuke, before scowling. "What kind of friend are you exactly?"
"Oh…hehe, one with benefits strawberry." Sasuke replied, the grin covering his face practically visible through the mask.
Ichigo on the other hand had a completely different expression. His eyes filled with anger as he glared at the masked individual. Time flew by as Ichigo continued to spear Sasuke with his glares, while the other man seemed to be oblivious to the mental beatings he was receiving.
"It's getting quite late. I'd say its about time we started strawberry." Sasuke commented catching Ichigo's attention and stopping any further death glares.
One instant Ichigo was standing guarded, ready to protect himself from what ever plans this man was making. The next, his body was falling to the ground but he wasn't with it. Somehow, his soul was detached from his body, without the help of Rukia's special gloves.
"How in the...what the hell did you do!?" Ichigo screamed, his mind not able to comprehend what just happened.
"It's a very simple process to separate you from your shell, shinigami." Sasuke stated. "but that is not important. Ichigo, my friend, you have two options available. You can either surrender peacefully, or I'll kill you!" Ichigo was about to charge the man when his ankle felt like it was on fire, Looking down, a strange red tentacle of energy was wrapped around his ankle.
"Don't be alarmed, this is simply a precaution. It will be removed before we begin."
Ichigo opened his mouth to protest but then closed it as the crimson tentacle retracted back to Sasuke's body.
"Times ticking away, strawberry." Ichigo's retort stopped dead on his tongue as the mask man vanished. He drew his weapon and tried to listen for any sound that would indicate his opponent's position. He knew he was in a tight spot, not only did Sasuke have the advantage of surprise, he seemed to be extremely fast.
Ichigo spun around, instinctively raising his weapon as a blade crashed down and shook his legs as a powerful weight bore down upon him.
"Very good. Now, lets see how well you are in Taijutsu."
Before Ichigo could blink, Sasuke's fist crashed into his jaw. The teen fell backward, landing on the hard sidewalk.
He felt hands gripping his shoulders, twisting, he tried to throw them off. As soon as he tried he was lifted and thrown into a brick wall, dust settling on his black robes.
Shaking the cob webs from his head, Ichigo sprang to his feet spinning back and forth, his blade clutched tightly against his palms.
Ichigo's blade was already moving as Sasuke appeared in front of him. His blade was stopped in mid air by the man's forearm. He yelled as he applied more pressure to his blade trying to cut through the arm, but not even budging the blade from its position.
"How utterly pathetic and boring, Strawberry." Sasuke spat, grabbing the blade and snapping it like a twig.
Ichigo stumbled forward as he lost resistance, and was met with a knee to his abdomen.
Blood and spit sprayed from his mouth as he gasped for air. The orange haired teen locked his hands around the man's wrist, before he could follow through with another attack.
He was surprised when an elbow connected with his head, forcing him down, his chin crashing into the pavement.
He wearily lifted his head, blood dripping from his mangled chin. Sasuke stared at him his crimson mask looking slightly ominous in the fading light.
"Tsk-tsk…" His taunting voice echoed from behind the mask. "Your skills are worse then even I imagined. Looks like I got my work cut out for me, but…" Sasuke drawled as he deliberately slid his zanpkatuo slowly from its sheathe. "I think it's time you found your own power boy."
Ichigo cried out as a burning sensation engulfed his back. He twitched, painfully, on the ground before something collided with his head.
Feeling exhausted after severing Ichigo's soul chain and moving one step further with his plans. Naruto lazily watched as Urahara Kisuke gathered the bloody orange haired boy. A groan leaving his parted lips as he rose to his feet to follow.
Naruto stopped in his tracks as he noticed the faint silhouette trailing the two from the rooftops. Frowning, the blond nonetheless stalked the stalker, while his head worked through various scenarios to assassinate the extra as quietly as possible.
What the hell was going on? That was one of the many questions swirling around his brain like a vortex. As he observed the oblivious stalker, Naruto stealthily pursued the man. Tracking his movements with minimal difficulty. It was baffling why everyone seemed to be so interested in this child, and for the life of him, Naruto couldn't figure out why. Sure, he had a decent spiritual presence to him, but what else was he hiding inside that warranted attention from so many high level shinigami.
As he carefully approached closer to the oblivious being, Naruto delicately positioned himself to spring forward and end the man's life as quick as possible, with no resistance. Shifting his left foot, the blond shot forward the moment the stalker paused, his blade drawn, the man's life was gone before he even knew it.
"Ah Naruto-san, so nice to see you again. It's been far too long, since our last get together?" Naruto's entire body went rigid at the deceptive and sickening voice coming from behind.
"Ichimaru…Why are you following them?"
Shrugging Gin's grin seemed to widen just another fraction of an inch. "No idea, he just seems to be an interesting fellow. Don't you agree?" The blond narrowed his eyes and pointed the tip of the blade in his hands at the purple haired shinigami.
"No! He's a waste of space in this world as are you!" Naruto stated nonchantly. "I see Aizen still doesn't trust his pet dog with any vital information. Do you even know why your trailing this boy in the middle of the night?"
No reply was given except the sound of a blade being drawn ever so slowly from it's sheathe.
"I see, very well, I shall grant your wish traitor, and send you on a one way trip to hell." The blonde growled through clenched teeth.
Naruto noticed the violet haired soul whisper under his breath. The shinigami's blade extended the next instant stretching across the distance and aiming to pierce through his head.
He leaned to side at the last second and grabbed the blade with his bare hands.
Like with Ichigo's massive Zanpakuto he snapped the tip of Gin's off. Though it took about twenty times the amount of strength he used on the teens. Naruto caught a brief glimpse of his opponent vanishing, he began to turn but he was forced off his feet as Gin's blade pierced through his shoulder and carried him off the rooftop. The blade took him across the distance between the buildings, and slammed him through a glass window.
Gin stood on the ledge, peering intently at the shattered window. His eyes opened slightly as a cero blast tore through the opening Naruto's body had made. His form vanished as he flash stepped around the blast of reiatsu and landed quietly on the other side of the roof.
Gin spun around, ducking as he twirled, and brought his blade down in a low sweep at the figure standing before him. Naruto managed to jump in time, avoiding losing his legs. He lashed out with his leg and caught Gin in the jaw, snapping his head back.
When he landed, his blade was carving into the shinigami's side. Pulling his blade free, Naruto unleashed the cero charged on his fingertips at point blank range into the shinigami's face.
A smirked tugged at his lips. The last part of his mask falling from his face, as he watched the burnt and smoking form rolling across the roof.
"Still feeling so smug now Ichima…." Naruto's voice faded. Whatever he was saying forgotten, his eyes locked onto Gin's body.
It took whole lot of restraint on his part to not just rush in and behead the bastard where he stood, with his creepy grin. His teeth clenched grinding against one another, Gin had used his power. It was such an insignificant amount that it was barely noticeable, but he had seen it.
The bastard's skin tissue was repairing itself right in front of his eyes. Naruto knew their was no other explanation for the abnormal healing powers Gin was displaying. They found a way to harness the Kyuubi's spiritual energy to a point where they could use it through their own bodies. How they managed such a feat was baffling, for he knew naught how someone could stabilize such a potent amount of youki energy, without inflicting harm or even fatal poisoning from the exposure.
Naruto kept his calm, even with the presence of his stolen spiritual energy coursing through the bastard in front of him. His eyes narrowed as Gin looked up from his position on the ground his slant eyes twinkling with some hidden glee as he smirked.
A seething haze of red enveloped his vision. Without hesitating, Naruto charged across the rooftop and kicked Gin's body as hard as he could. After the first hit he followed up with another and another, venting his rage, feeling a deep satisfaction at the wet sounds his boots made, the jerking movements of the body and the crunch of ribs giving away beneath the mighty blows.
Naruto didn't notice another soul land on the roof, nor did he care. His clouded mind was so focused on inflicted as much physical pain as possible, on one of his father's murderers.
So, he was taken by surprise when a blazing fire hit him in the side, sending him careening over the building's edge.
Yeah its kind of short, but it would have been a while for an update had I continued. Anyways the next chapter will be the conclusion to the fight and then some more Ichigo. Hope you enjoyed it and if you did, don't forget to leave a review.