"What Best Friends are for."
A Bleach Fan Fiction.
Written by trekkiexb5.
Hitsugaya/K. Kurosaki friendship. Rated T for language.
DISCLAIMER: If Bleach was mine, I would make a chart of ages of everyone. In human AND Soul Society.
AUTHOR'S NOTES:
This is the chapter I am most nervous about. I have made a major deviation from the movie. Originally it wasn't that big of a departure, but rethinking, you can't drop a major plot point, and not to mention the main reason you are writing about, to the side. I tried to stay parallel with the movie, but there is some new material.
CHAPTER 7:
THE FIGHT FOR THE SEIREITEI
"Get ready to fight Kurosaki, he's coming!"
We both stared at the whirlwind. The temperature was dropping. At the centre of this phenomenon was Kusaka. When the dust cleared, Kusaka had incased himself in a draconic figure of ice.
"So this is the power of the Ouin! IT'S FINALLY MINE!" Kusaka threw his head back and cackled.
Before I could react, before any of us on the hill could react, a large ball of concentrated spirit energy sped past me.
Kenpachi Zaraki.
We watched as raw power hit raw power. As they exchanged blows, we couldn't hear the conversation, well not Zaraki's part of it, but Kusaka didn't sound too upset when he took the fight off Sokyoku Hill and apparently dumped several tons of ice on the Squad 11 captain after he threw him to the ground.
He laughed an evil laugh. "It's incredible! My power is unstoppable!"
Kusaka came back to the hill, his ice wings spraying the crowd with snow and spiritual pressure. "I give you one more chance, Toushirou, help me to achieve my goals, and I'll give you the duel you so badly want."
"I would never betray the Soul Society to the likes of you!" He cannot be that stupid. I may want a fight with him, but not at the cost of the Soul Society. What a stupid bargaining chi…
He laughed as he saw my face. I must have expressed my realization. I quickly whirled to find Karin, who, during Zaraki's interruption, was standing near Rukia Kuchiki. I ran back to her screaming her name but Kusaka shot his hand out, and a purple tinged Hyorinmaru emerged. It quickly grabbed Karin, and bought her to the dragon-Kusaka.
"KARIN!" Ichigo, Rukia Kuchiki, and I screamed at the same time. He was so fast! And we just stood there… Oh deities, Karin! She screamed, kicking the ice but to no avail.
"You better rethink your answer, my dear friend. Or your little girlfriend will spend her last moments slowly freezing to death. Your choice!" With a laugh, he then flew down to one of the many tall chimneys and layered ice on it, forming a pillar. We watched as the atmosphere started to react to his massive extraction of moisture.
We were, just standing there. I knew he would take her, I predicted it. How…why did I forget? Why did I…?
"Toushirou!" I looked up at Ichigo in time to catch his fist with my eye socket. I staggered back as he said. "You put my sister in DANGER, you little son of a bit…"
"No time for that! Ichigo! We have to save her!" Rukia said, running up to us. I could hear Rangiku in the distance, but my hearing was ringing and I was seeing double. Damn him!
"Yeah, but how are we going to do that?" He replied, anger tinting his voice.
"Captain!" Matsumoto arrived.
Damn it! She should be back with the rest of the crowd! I have to rescue one girl…I deserved Kurosaki's punch, but gods and deities, it hurt! And I have to fight. I had no choice. Kusaka wanted me.
Why did he want me? He opened the Ouin by himself. I kept going back to the lack of ability to control his power. The power, raw power from the Ouin was tremendous, but there was no control. Now another problem, if he had no control, attacking may tip the scales into an uncontrolled obliteration.
And Karin was at the centre of it all. Damn, Damn, Damn. What was I thinking?
As my vision finally cleared, I heard Ukitake speak. "He's transforming again? He is becoming even more powerful!" His voice was filled with fearful awe.
But indeed, that was going on. With a roar, Kusaka's pillar turned into a tree of ice, with branches and roots stabbing into the ground all across the Seireitei. I looked for Karin's reiatsu, and there, a candle in a lit room, I felt it. It was still very strong. I need to go, but my feet wouldn't move. I was petrified of the fact my forgetfulness got Karin kidnapped. Finally, the branches of the ice made it to the hill. Several lanced through the crowd, injuring some shinigami and causing a panic with others.
"Stand your ground, men!" Bellowed the Head Captain. "We cannot retreat! The criminal Sojiro Kusaka must be destroyed!"
My military training kicked in. We have marching orders, and my fear induced paralysis disappeared. A chorus of "Yes, sir!" was heard and the captains and lieutenants led the charge. I was the last, knowing that Matsumoto was a few steps behind me as we ascended unto the ice branches to Kusaka. I could see Captain Kuchiki's Shikai, a pink cloud, and moved ahead of him towards the draconic form.
Please be careful, Byakuya, Karin is there.
Abarai's Shikai came out right after his captain's, carefully controlled but with no effect. But it bought enough time for many of the officers to surround Kusaka. I could see that Karin was to one side, in a bird cage like ice formation. She was screaming her brother's and my name. Her reiatsu was tainted with fear, and any control of it she may have had was gone.
We were still running on the branches with Rukia Kuchiki and Ichigo Kurosaki just ahead of us. Kusaka laughed at the surrounding officers and declared that they were in his way. Another spike of tremendous spiritual pressure, which he used to fling the officers back, and shattering the branches he just created. The four of us plunged to the ground below as the ice gave way.
Oh, gods! Karin has no protection against such powerful spiritual pressure. This could crush her!
I must have blacked out for a moment because when I awoke, I saw that Matsumoto was holding a huge fragment of ice, preventing it from crushing me.
"Rangiku," I murmured, still a bit fuzzy from the landing.
"I'm all right, Captain." Then she grunted as the ice started to slip from her. I could tell it was a strain for her. The danger of the situation hit my pain soaked brain. I quickly stood up and gave the ice chunk a good reiatsu powered kick and force it to fall in the opposite direction.
"What were you doing?" I was exasperated that she would push herself so.
"I was told that it was a lieutenant's duty to protect her captain, no matter what."
I stared at her, incredulously. First of all, me? After what I did? I was still her captain in her mind, her heart? Two: what danger…oh. I was unconscious. Still, it just made the burden of guilt on me so much worse. The pain in her eyes. The happiness in them just knowing I was alive.
Why? Why me? I was both thankful and so undeserving of that. She must know that. She is highly intelligent.
Why, why, why?
Noises distracted me from my inner debate. Rukia Kuchiki and Ichigo Kurosaki made it, it seems. Karin would be…
"I guess we are not the only ones. Looks like you guys survived, too!" Ichigo grinned at us. Master of the obvious.
Idiot!
Karin!
"Kurosaki! Karin!" I said to him.
His eyes widened, "yeah, let's…"
"Rukia, Ichigo!" Abarai flash stepped in.
"Renji, what's wrong?"
He sputtered, surprised. "What's WRONG? Are you kidding me? Look around you!"
By all the deities in all the worlds…Kusaka did THAT! The structure looked like something out of Hueco Mundo. It resembled a four legged stool, an insanely huge, evil looking four legged stool, and under the seat gaped a maw-like structure.
Kusaka was making up for lost time in spades.
"Looks like Kusaka built himself a castle." Renji clearly was being sarcastic. "As far as I can tell, we are trapped inside some sort spiritual wall."
Well, the black and red sky isn't exactly normal for the Seireitei.
"What do we do…?" Ichigo asked. He was way out of his depth, but I was surprised that he asked…
"You're asking the wrong guy," Renji answered…
…taking the words right out of my mouth. Before I could say anything, Soifon and Yoruichi showed up and gave us an update from the Head-Captain's point of view.
Damnit! Kusaka has Karin! As much as I wanted to charge up that…thing and rescue her, we needed a plan, we needed to figure our assets we…
I suddenly realized something else during Soifon's briefing. I was being ignored. Not that I had much to say, but I was not asked my opinions, at least. I know the enemy the most. But I probably deserved to be shut out of the planning. Still, it hurt.
It hurt…immensely.
Then the Squad 11 immature brigade showed up. Ayasegawa and Madarame. They couldn't be chucked on the other side of the barrier. I really need to have a heart to heart with my karma afterwards. Hyorinmaru chuckled in the back of my head. Still, they were another asset for us to use.
Oh, speaking of karma…
"I guess we got some company," Yoruichi stated as the maw of the structure opened and started to spew out hollows. Lots of hollows.
As we watched Soifon and the goddess of flash step leave, Ichigo started to make his battle plans.
I wanted to say something. But I couldn't, wouldn't. I lost that right. I am not a captain anymore.
"Captain?" I heard Rangiku approach me from behind. Funny, I forgot about her. She was so uncharacteristically quiet.
"Hmm?" I waited for her to say what she wanted to say. Hopefully fast. Karin is still alive and in need of rescuing. And that in a battle thing…
"I brought this."
I turned to look at her. In her hands was my Haori, neatly folded. She held it out to me.
My eyes widened. Did I deserve this? More importantly why does she think I deserve this? Should I take it? Just looking at it made me feel so guilty. I'm a horrible captain. I looked around at everyone else. Did they think I deserve it? I looked into each person's eyes. I was shocked. They were waiting, expecting me to put it on.
I saw it in their eyes, I was still Captain Hitsugaya. I was still worthy.
I was deserving of their loyalty and their honor. I was thankful, still I did not understand why. But it was their expressions that gave me the power to shed the cloak, put on the Haori on, unwrapped my Zanpakuto, and place the sash and brooch where they belong.
And that action gave me the courage to give commands. I felt better than I had for days. The reiatsu and the lack of limiters allowed me to tap into wells of energy that were untouched in the World of the Living.
"Matsumoto"
"Yes, sir."
"Watch my back, will you?"
"Yes, sir!" She sounded happy.
After I warned them to be careful with their powers around Karin, we divided into two teams and tackled the monstrosity ahead of us. I felt good, great even. This was where I belonged; doing something I was proud of. With my sense of identity returned, the self doubt that had been plaguing me for days faded along with the pain to the background.
Funny how a piece of silk-lined white cloth can change your perceptive.
My group worked its way to the top, despite the eerily familiar electrical attacks of a hollow that would make Gillians look like small animals. With Kenpachi's 'help,' we destroyed one of the 'legs' and distracted the electrical hollow. Only Squad 11…
Nevertheless, we reached the top. It looked like Kusaka just tore a piece of the Seireitei and made it the table of the stool. Most of the buildings were intact and in good shape…
Never mind all the Menos Grande. I went straight to Bankai. The pillar of ice, where Karin's small but strong reiatsu flashed like a lighthouse in a storm, was in the centre; there were an awful lot of high powered hollows between it and us. And they were all regenerating, fast.
Now Matsumoto wanted to clear a path so I could get to the centre while I leave my lieutenant and teammates to the never ending battle? I wanted to, so bad. It wasn't about being the hero, but to assuage my guilt about Karin.
Ok, a little of playing the hero was part of it.
But to sacrifice my teammates? I need to think objectively. Tactically, it really made sense. I was the strongest of the four and the fastest. I have Bankai. I have the highest chance of surviving to the top solo, rescuing Karin, and defeating Kusaka. Kusaka wanted me there. And it was my fight, anyways. But to leave them, after I just earned their respect again?
"But…" I stuttered.
Madarame interrupted. "Sounds like a great idea, Rangiku got it right but I should be able to handle that opening by myself."
Ok, Squad 11's over-zealous bragging mantra is going to get him killed. There are others that can help. It's ok to work as a team…
"I just got one condition. This attack stays our little secret," He paused. "BANKAI!"
Hell! My eyes widened. He had a Bankai? For how long? Why hide it? Idiot! After this was over, he and I need to have a little talk. The man was hiding this for a reason, and it better damn well be a good one. We have three empty captain's spots, and he could fill one of them. I know he is capable enough despite the occasional idiotic tendencies.
So we watched Madarame's Zanpakuto turn into three stupidity large weapons. He started to clear a path along with help from Ayasegawa and Matsumoto. I took off. I felt a blast of spiritual pressure to my right. I could see Captain Kuchiki's Bankai as a small wall of pink in the distance. It suddenly dissipated as I felt Kurosaki burst out at an alarming rate towards the pillar.
He easily caught up with me with his visored; Arracar or whatever power that mask gave him. Kusaka, of course, felt us coming and sent down a bunch of Hyorinmaru Shikai attacks towards Ichigo Kurosaki.
Like that was going to stop us. Ichigo Kurosaki avoided them, never slowing down. I countered with my own larger version that easily crushed them before they could make a pass at him again.
Karin's reiatsu suddenly dimmed. DAMN! I heard a roar from Ichigo and we raced to the top. He got there first, blocking an insanely powerful blast from Kusaka. I flew to the opposite side, behind Kusaka, hoping to break open the cage to free Karin.
Ichigo Kurosaki kept Kusaka busy as I tried to open the cage without causing harm to the occupant or getting Kusaka's attention. The ice would not melt on my command; it wasn't my ice to begin with. None of the kido I threw at it was working; I was contemplating a Shikai when Karin's reiatsu suddenly shut off.
Then her reiatsu flared.
From the sky, a large reiatsu-filled purple lightning bolt flashed down to strike the cage, shattering it easily.
It was Karin's reiatsu. How…?
She was trying to get up, but the lightning bolt caught Kusaka's attention. "You little brat!" He roared as he raised his hand towards her. And turned his attention away from Ichigo Kurosaki. I sent out a Shikai and swooped in, grabbing her and creating a shield from my wings. Kusaka's claws raked my ice, gouging it deeply. But that wasn't important. I sent my Shikai around to the other side and up through Kusaka's pillar. It shot through the ice and attacked him.
He whirled on my shikai Hyorinmaru, and I took that opportunity to vacate the area with Karin. I knew what was coming. People can be predictable.
"You little pest! You defy me? I will kill her in front of you slowly…" WRONG thing to say, considering who the other person in this attack was.
I just watched Kusaka trying to rip my ice dragon from his neck.
And I heard Ichigo Kurosaki cry "Getsuga tensho!" and he drove his sword in at point blank range.
We got him. Well, his connection to the Ouin. The ice dragon that was Kusaka shattered, sending him down to the pillar itself. A ray of light went up, starting to dissolve the barrier.
Now all he had to do is to grab the power again. But he didn't, couldn't or wouldn't. I was not sure which.
I carefully sat the bewildered Karin down and shattered my Bankai. Ichigo Kurosaki stood next to me, removing his mask. I wonder what Kusaka's next move would be. I was weary of all this guilt and pain. I wanted it done. I wanted to give Kusaka that chance he didn't have. A fair opportunity to win Hyorinmaru.
Child, Hyorinmaru said, in a chiding tone. I was always yours. Never doubt that. What you want is to assuage guilt that isn't yours to have in the first place.
Well, you could have said that before. I retorted.
I could have, but would you have listened?
Point.
Kusaka got up, looking tired, weary. I know the feeling.
"Go on, you take it from here," Ichigo quietly spoke. He wasn't going to interfere, good.
"Go stand with your brother Karin," I said, not even looking at her. I took a few steps forward, and dropped into a stance. I waited for Kusaka.
"Hitsugaya," he panted.
"No more," No discussions, no Ouin, no nothing. "It's over." Time to do what should have been done all those years ago. A fight to the death, no interruptions, for the honor of carrying Hyorinmaru.
He pulled his weapon up and dropped into a stance. "You're right. Let's end this!"
We looked at each other for a moment in silence. I had no doubt in my mind I would win. That I was the master of Hyorinmaru. I earned it and mastered it.
I'm sorry Kusaka, but you are going to die again.
The actual duel was anti-climatic. I stabbed Kusaka through the heart, and he got my side. His blade shattered.
I am so sorry, Kusaka. You were my first real and true friend. And you will always be my friend. I told him so as he dissolved and the Ouin reformed, dropping to the ground.
All the energy, adrenalin or whatever left me. I was tired, but the guilt of Kusaka's death was gone. I don't quite understand why Hyorinmaru showed for both him and me. Questions for later, I supposed, but I do know it was never his, but mine.
"Toushirou?" I looked up into Karin's eyes. They were swirling with relief anxiety and concern. She grabbed my hand. "You won."
I nodded, not wanting to speak just yet. So I just stood there, thinking, with Karin quietly holding my hand. She left me to my thoughts. She always seemed to know when to be quiet around me. My thoughts were a swirl of mundane trivia, like the ice pillar cleanup and the castle removal when Ichigo approached Karin and I.
"Thank you for your help, and your forgiveness." I said quietly.
Ichigo let out a puff of air. "You know what? I don't think he had any regrets."
I turned to look at him in confusion. He tossed the Ouin to me and continued. "This time he got a fair chance to settle things. Sometimes it seems life isn't giving us a fair shake, you know what I mean?"
More than you know, Ichigo. Karin giggled a little. Even before this, she has heard me bitching about my karma.
"And no one can tell us to get beyond that. We have to figure it out ourselves."
Yes. I looked at this tiny thing in my hand. So small. I thought of Kusaka and probably shouldn't complain about my karma too much.
Ichigo continued. "He was given a second chance and he decided to come back here. He could have let someone else do it for him, but he wanted to settle things himself. That's it; he stayed true to his feelings. Although he sure put all of us through hell."
"And," he added, almost at a whisper. "you're forgiven."
I didn't quite understand what he was saying. Nor, I think, did it matter. But the fact he was trying to cheer me up and rationalize Kusaka's actions was amusing and very human. I chuckled.
"Karin, Toushirou, let's head back."
"Yeah." I released Karin's hand as Ichigo gestured to her to come to him. I was bleeding and ill, no condition to be carrying anyone. And I needed to return this to the Head Captain.
I took a step then I stopped. Wait a minute. "It's not Toushirou, it's Captain Hitsugaya." There wasn't any venom in my correction. "Come on."
He picked up his sister in his arms as we shunpo'ed to Sokyoku Hill, where the Head Captain was waiting. I felt Kuchiki (both of them) Matsumoto and the rest of the usual gang of idiots follow.
I was very, very exhausted. I had used up all my carefully stored reserves for this fight. While the icy feeling from my wound was gone, I was still suffering from the infection. Plus a new wound, pierced through my side, was bleeding. At this point the only thing driving to stay upright and mobile was the fact I wanted to put the Ouin in the Head Captain's hands.
Alas, it didn't work out that way. I miscalculated the last few steps and suddenly the ground was rushing at me for a third time in so many days.
Not a big deal for a shinigami, normally. We are all trained to cushion our falls with reiatsu instinctually. Unfortunally, my mind was asking how to do that and wasn't getting any answers. Still, a several story drop is painful, but not deadly for a shinigami. We are far tougher than a mere mortal human.
Apparently my mind decided that a reiatsu 'push' was the correct thing to do. I smashed myself into a space a few feet from the Head Captain, left side of my head making contact with a large and very sharp rock.
I heard a splat.
The Ouin bounced out of my hand.
"Ouin…return…sorry" I managed to say before the world faded from view.
XXXxxxXXXxxxXXX
Dear lord this was a tough one! I originally wrote the scene pretty much like the movie, leaving Karin in the hands of Ukitake. Story wise, that was stupid. The story was written BECAUSE of Karin, not for any other reason. So I stuck her back in. Not sure if it worked out, and there is probably a few changes I will make after everything is completed. If there was a chapter that needs review, this is it!
Also, for a battle scene, it was slow in places. But a lot needed to be said, particularly when Toushirou gets his Haori back. I tried to hide what I deemed the slowing of the action in the movie in Toushirou's reflections of what was going on. It also made the Haori scene make a little more understandable. At least, I hoped it did.
FYI: My beta didn't get the expression "in spades" so I looked it up for her and posted on facebook. Here's my reply:
Got your answer. "in Spades" refers to playing cards. Spades are almost the highest suit, so meant abundance or most. FYI Espadas means swords in Spanish, and they are spades of spanish decks (which I own one)
Please read and review