Moka and Kurumu had to create distance between them and the fight. The intensity of the fight made it hard to breathe. Thankfully though, Ichigo had managed to move the fight to a more discreet location all without letting Kenpanchi know. It would be a bad idea for anyone else to know their identities as Soul Reapers.

"My destined one is amazing…" Kurumu spoke as she hugged herself. This was the kind of man she needed. Strong, powerful, good… she wanted him… all of him.

"He's not you're destined one," Moka said as she sent a heated glare towards Kurumu, "But he really is amazing."

They continued staring at the fight, watching as Ichigo and Kenpachi exchanged blows. Suddenly the girls gasped as Kenpachi's sword looked like it was going to cut Ichigo in half. But Ichigo had actually blocked the blow with his arm… which truly surprised the girls, not that they already weren't. Then they saw as Ichigo brought his own sword to slice the Kenpachi's stomach… but the sword just grinded against the tough skim harmlessly.

"What kind of monsters do you think Ichigo and that man are?" Kurumu asked, before she grunted as a large gust of wind swept by. Even from this distance, their power was still felt.

"I don't know… but they're definitely stronger than me in my vampire form." Moka replied as she looked on with earnest fascination. Her heart and mind, despite the chaos, felt strangely at peace. And if she had looked down, she would've seen her Rosario glowing…

---

"Excellent Ichigo, but you can do better than this!" Kenpachi yelled before lunging forward at Ichigo. He swung his sword, aiming to slice of Ichigo's head. But Ichigo disappeared from view in a burst of speed and reappeared to the left of Kenpachi. Kenpachi simply grinned as he grabbed Zangetsu with his left hand, temporarily stunning Ichigo. With a yank, he brought Ichigo in front of him and twisted his sword into position in order to impale Ichigo. The sword… hit its mark.

But no damage was done.

"You're right," Ichigo's voice suddenly took a darker, more twisted turn. His voice seemed to hold its own echo and sounded like two people were talking, trying to overlap each other. Kenpachi looked up in time to see Ichigo finish putting on his mask, his yellow eyes gleaming ominously against the black sclera. "I can do better."

Kenpachi was, for the lack of a better term, thoroughly excited. Ichigo was finally fighting him back, earnestly. His sword shook from the excitement and his grin turned even more maniacal… this was what he had been waiting for! A burning sensation dashed across his chest and Kenpachi's vision was filled with blood… his blood.

"I think I'm actually going to have fun for once!" He yelled as he swung his sword wildly at Ichigo, who simply blocked it with his arm. Before Kenpachi knew it, he received a slash to his side and was bleeding heavily. This did not, however, make the grin on his face fade.

"I'm not gonna get us noticed so I'm ending this quickly." Ichigo said as he began to draw upon an enormous amount of reiatsu. The dark energy circled around his sword and collected energy, waiting to be released. Ichigo raised his sword and his eyes caught the ever grinning face of Kenpachi. Ichigo narrowed his eyes as and prepared to launch his attack.

"Getsuga Tenshou"

---

Moka collapsed to her knees, but Kurumu didn't notice since she was entranced by the sight before her. Ichigo had launched an attack that looked like a shadow from this distance towards the man. It had engulfed him completely and the winds tore across the land from the amount of energy released. Kurumu was falling in love with Ichigo more and more as time passed by.

On the other hand, Moka was feeling and receiving the energy slightly differently. Her Rosario was now glowing a bright red. For reasons she couldn't fathom, warmth had spread throughout her body, causing her to blush. Her skin was sensitized, and ever time her clothes rubbed against her, a pleasurable tingle spread, like a raindrop hitting a body of water. She held herself as the urge to be with Ichigo increased significantly. Her breath was hot and her mind felt like it was growing distant. Then, with an unheard clink, her Rosario unfastened itself.

---

"Sorry about this Kenpachi." Ichigo said as he lugged Kenpachi over his shoulders, "Didn't mean to go overboard, but it is your fault for getting him excited as well."

He placed Kenpachi on the ground, away from the school buildings and any other public place. He looked at Kenpachi and noticed his body covered in burns and gashes. Pieces of his skin were even torn away, revealing muscle. But this was Kenpachi and everyone knew he lived for this kind of stuff so he would be fine… hopefully. Ichigo decided to take off Kenpachi's eye patch, deciding that the extra reiatsu could help with the healing. He took off his hollow mask and sighed. Ever since they made that agreement, he would find himself losing to the heat of the battle when he used that mask. But at least technically he did have more control… technically.

"Kurosaki Ichigo." Came a feminine, but distinctly strong voice from behind Ichigo.

Ichigo turned his head around, and came to face with… "Moka?" He asked, unsure of why she looked so… different.

"What kind of monster are you?" The new Moka ignored Ichigo's question and stated her question directly. Her tone had been demanding, wanting an answer. But her eye… it held something else. And her stance, it radiated confidence and strength, like she knew she was superior to everything else.

"I can't tell you." Ichigo said. He was still on a mission, and if he revealed who or what he was, it might put him in jeopardy… not that the fight hadn't already gotten the attention of probably many others, but at least they hadn't seen him.

"Why not?" She asked again with direct intent. Her eyes we unnerving and he felt like this wasn't going to go anywhere if he didn't do anything about it.

"I'm sorry, but I just can't."

"Then I'm going to have to make you tell me by force." Ichigo had not been expecting an attack and was caught by surprised when a heel connected with his face, sending him through a tree.

Moka looked at the damage and scoffed. Guess he hadn't been so strong.

"You know, you didn't need to kick me." Moka turned around, her eyes widening ever so slightly when she found Ichigo standing behind her rubbing his cheek.

"One should know their place. You did not answer me, therefore I had to take action." Moka said cooly, masking her surprise with a look of slight contempt.

"You do realize I could kill you?" Ichigo said… then blinked. He wanted to kick himself for saying such a thing. This was always the effect of wearing the mask after the agreement.

But this new Moka simply gave him an amused look. "You certainly have courage, I'll give you that. Threatening a vampire, of all the foolish things! You should know your place when talking to your superior." She said haughtily.

Ichigo, despite wanting to diffuse the situation, felt a certain need to smack this new Moka. His annoyance registered on his face as his eyebrow twitched. She was like Uryuu… except ten times worse!

"So are you going to tell me or am I going to have to force it out of you?" Her arms were crossed over her supple bosom, which Ichigo couldn't help but notice since it looked like they were going to pop from her shirt.

This new Moka was by no means unaware of anything that went around her. She could tell he was eyeing her, and decided to she would use this to her advantage. Truthfully, she was sure he was beneath her… but for him to survive a kick that strong and not even seem fazed by it seemed he did possess some strength. She was… intrigued by him. Especially that dark power which somehow had forced the chain to unlock. She remembered that one of two conditions that needed to be fulfilled for her to be freed of the Rosario, but her father never told her what they were.

But that was of no importance. What mattered now was getting Ichigo to tell her what kind of monster he was. So she approached him, a slight sway in her hips. She made sure to have him looking into her eyes. Very rarely do people, or monsters, pull away from a vampire's look. They're always entranced by a vampire's look, which though not as effective as a Succubus' charm, still has a potent effect.

Before Ichigo realized it, Moka had somehow gotten inside his guard. She was so close to him that he could feel her breath tickle the hairs on his neck. It felt… oddly pleasant. Then, he felt a warm hand caress his neck, sending a small shiver down his spine.

"No wonder the other Moka liked you so much." She said as she leaned in, inhaling Ichigo's sweet scent. "You smell… wonderful."

She then bit down, but unlike the other times Ichigo had felt absolutely nothing this time around. It was almost a gratifying sensation to have his blood sucked out. But he noticed something… she was taking too much blood. He tried to gently push her away, but this Moka latched on ferociously and now proceeded to drain him of his blood as quickly as possible. Ichigo could already feel his strength diminish greatly as she struggled. Even though he was still in Bankai he could not come up with enough strength to free himself.

"Keh. Guess there's no helping it if my landlord is about to croak."

Ichigo's eyes widened when felt his arm grab Moka by the neck and toss her aside. She crashed into a tree, making a dent in it. Ichigo looked at his arm, which crackled with malevolent dark energy. It surged like electricity around his arm, giving off a low pitched crackling sound. Then that dark energy left him and he collapsed to the ground.

"Interesting." Ichigo saw Moka standing directly over him. She was clenching and unclenching her fists, almost as if she was testing something out. "I drained you of not only your blood, but of your strength as well."

Ichigo suddenly gasped as Moka rammed her foot into his gut, driving Ichigo into the ground slightly as spider web cracks spread from the point of impact.

"Now tell me, what kind of monster are you?" Moka demanded once again. But this time, her voice was more harsh. Her voice didn't hold any semblance of politeness and was replaced by an indifferent cool, hard undertone.

"Let go of him!"

Ichigo turned his head as best he could and was surprised to find Kurumu gliding towards them. Her nails were fully out and were aimed at Moka, aiming to harm her for harming her destined one! She dove in low, preparing to slice Moka…

But Moka was gone from view and Kurumu looked every which way to try to find her. Then, she felt a painful tug on her tail as she was slammed into the ground, making a five foot crater. Her back was badly damaged her head throbbed in pain.

"So this is the little Succubus?" Moka looked at Kurumu with a look that made her feel sick and angry at the same time. She felt cornered, like a mouse that is being played with by a cat.

Kurumu cried out in pain when Moka stomped on her tail. The pain… it burned through her spine and made her eyes water. She didn't even scream after the initial shock since she her body was too busy writhing. But she would not be granted a reprieve. Instead, Moka continued her torment as she stepped Kurumu's stomach and grabbed her wings.

"Why don't I tear off this tail and those wings so you never fly again." Moka said, blood thirst rolling off her in waves. She grabbed a hold of each wing… and proceeded to pull them away from Kurumu, who cried in agony as she was unable to stop Moka.

But then she stopped her torment when she felt a sudden spike in power come from behind her. She smirked. "So you finally decided to show your true power?" She said as she looked at Kurumu once more before letting go of her wings.

She turned around, only to feel the sharp edge of a blade pressing against her neck. She had to pause… this energy had something else to it. It wasn't just dark… it was… crazed, malevolent… and happy? Whatever it was, it sent chills down her spine… but they were pleasant chills.

"You better stop this." Ichigo panted slightly through his hollow mask. But there was no reply. Instead, Moka was looking into his eyes… fascinated… and was that a blush on her cheeks?

"Fine. I'm still groggy from waking up." She held up a Rosario and before she placed it on her chain, she said, "Take care of the other Moka… I will be back." Soon the Rosario was in place and her demonic energies were sealed and all that was left was a pink-haird Moka who collapsed into Ichigo's arms. Ichigo could only sigh in relief as he put his hand over his mask and willed the thing away. Moka was cradled in his arms and Kurumu lay in her crater, passed out. Ichigo vaguely wondered if every day was going to be like this…..

---

Time passed and the mid-term test scores were posted for all to see. Many of the students cheered while a great deal of others wept openly at their pathetic scores. Many of these monsters will go on to the human world to do business or universities.

Akashiya Moka strolled up to the postings and looked carefully for her name. She sighed in relief when she found herself in 13th place in the listings. Many others took notice of this, especially the male population and proceeded to shower her in praise.

"Awesome! Its says Moka-san is 13th!"

"Not only is she the most beautiful girl at the academy, but she's smart too! And she has a good personality and isn't stuck up!"

"SHE'S PERFECT!!!"

"SHE'S THE NUMBER 1 IDEAL GIRL." At this point, Moka was beginning to get slightly worried when the boys began surrounding her… all having hearts in their eyes, drooling, or a balance of both.

"Yo Moka." Said person turned to find Ichigo casually walking towards her. He stopped next to her and looked at the posted scores. Moka too turned and looked for Ichigo's name and when she did, her eyes widened in surprise.

"Wow Ichigo! You're in 10th place!" Moka said in amazement. Truthfully, she thought Ichigo was one of those slackers who never did any studying. He really didn't look like the kid who'd put any effort into his studies.

"Yea." Ichigo said nonchalantly. He didn't like boasting his scores in front of everyone, what would be the point?

"You shoulda told me you studied so hard… then we could've studied and gotten even higher on the mid-terms!" She pouted as she took hold of Ichigo's arm.

"Yea well…" Ichigo didn't know what he could say. That he was out looking for hollows? That he was actually on a mission from heaven/Soul Society? That he had actually already died more times than he cared for?

But not far off in the distance, a little girl stood staring at the pink-haired Moka. Her eyes shined with adoration and nervousness as she looked upon her idol. She never worked the courage to come up and talk to her… she was afraid she might think of her as some half breed like the rest of the monsters did.

"Congratulations Yukari-san. It looks like you're number 1 again!" The girl known as Yukari was pulled away from her thoughts as she turned to face the person who was speaking.

"Just as I'd expect from the girl genius. Even though you're just 11, it seems you didn't get to skip ahead to high school for nothing." The man grinned as he took another step closer to Yukari.

"But listen up; please don't get all high and mighty," The man said with a sneer in his voice, "because in my eyes, you're nothing but an immature brat who reeks of her mother's milk."

"Class representative?" Yukari tentatively asked, wondering what was going on. Suddenly she was pushed back by a smack to the forehead and she gave a small yelp.

"And what's the big idea with this outfit?" The class representative asked as he kept messing with Yukari. "It completely defies the school rules. I despise people who stick out!"

"Kya! Pl… Please stop thaaat!" Yukari whined as she kept being taunted.

"As the class representative, your very existence gives me a headache…" His voice was menacing and the grin on his face was far from pleasant. Then, he leaned forward and spoke directly to her face, "After all, your true form is a witch is it not? How disgusting! I feel like vomiting, just thinking that you're in the same grade as me."

Yukari was finally getting tired of being degraded, so she pulled out her wand and did a simple trick. A pebble floated in mid-air, unbeknownst to the bully before it hit him on the back of the head. "Ah, haha! You deserved that!" Yukari laughed triumphantly when the bully staggered.

"Hey! What the hell'd you just do to me?" The enraged class representative yelled.

"Stop!" Yukari's eyes widened in surprise when someone came between her and the class representative. To Yukar's delightful surprise, it was none other than Moka, the girl whom she'd admired! She was actually defending her!

"I'm sorry I don't have anything to do with this, but I can't let this go… please stop using violence towards girls!" Moka exclaimed.

There were whispers throughout the crowd at Moka's action. Most couldn't believe that someone had actually stood up for the little witch, let alone a beautiful vampire like Moka. Ichigo himself didn't say anything as he simply looked on. At the first hint of trouble, he'd jump in… but it seemed the bullies were stepping away.

"You had better remember this Yukari!" The class representative threatened before turning to his pals, "Let's go guys!"

---

"Oh, thank you soooo much! You really saved me!" Yukari said, brimming with happiness and praise. "My name is Sendou Yukari!"

Moka smiled before replying, "I heard that even though you're in the same grade as us, you're only 11? And even ranked first?"

The girl beamed at Moka's praise, and was overwhelmed when the praise kept coming from Moka as she continued, "You're really smart, aren't you Yukari-chan? And that outfit is also really cool!"

Flustered, Yukari began waving her hands about, denying and accepting the praise from Moka. "No, well… cool is such a… I mean I'm not… I'm just…!" She said with a small blush on her cheeks.

Suddenly, Yukari seemed collected herself as she said in a less enthusiastic, but equally heart-filled tone, "You're the one who's cool and pretty Moka-san. You know, actually I…"

To the surprise of Ichigo and Moka, Yukari suddenly threw herself in Moka's arms before giddily yelling, "I wuvvv you Moka-san!!!"

Ichigo's eyes widened a bit at the sudden confession, but Yukari paid no heed and continued, "Everytime I saw you in that classroom across the hall, I fell in love with you a bit more. But after you saved my life, my heart was made up!" She spoke honestly and truthfully.

But Yukari noticed the shocked and confused look on Moka's face and felt she had gone too far… but she wouldn't simply just give up! "Please go out with me! Is that so bad, dating someone like me?"

Unsure of what to say, Moka replied in an unsteady tone, "Err… umm, as a friend… I gue—"

"Yaaay! I'm so happy!" Yukari cheered as she placed her face in between Moka's breasts.

Ichigo could only look on in… well… he simply just looked on…

---

"Wow! Moka-san's chest is even bigger than it looks!" Yukari giddily said as she ran her small fingers around Moka's breasts. "It's soooo soft! Just like a dream!"

"Stop…" Moka begged as her face flushed, "For some reason, I can't move!"

"Oi oi OI! What the hell do you think you're doing!" Ichigo yelled at them when the girls fell to the floor in a rather… questioning position.

Suddenly, Yukari stood up and pointed a finger at Ichigo. "Please don't get in our way! I know all about you!" Feeling brave with Moka around, she marched right up to Ichigo and told him her thoughts, "You and Moka-san are like a snapping turtle and the moon! You're waaaay too different!"

"Kurosaki Ichigo, though you may be one of the smartest people around, are hardly a friendly person. You frequently got into fights in your other school, skipped classes, and were always getting into all sorts of trouble! Moka-san shouldn't be around a delinquent like you!"

She crossed her arms over her chest and nodded her head. "I love Moka-san! So I don't want my beautiful Moka-san to be brought down into the dirt by someone like you." She finished with a blush across her young face as she took a peek over her shoulder at said person.

Out of nowhere, she pulled out a wand and said, "That's why I'm declaring war on you with my magical wand!" She suddenly waved it around, which opened a door from somewhere in the hallway. All sorts of objects began levitating above Ichigo's head, who looked on in confusion. "I'll make sure you never come close to Moka-san ever again!"

The brooms, totaling around four, suddenly rushed down to ichigo with speed. Ichigo simply stood there and let one of the brooms hit him directly in the face… this wasn't to say he wasn't annoyed. On the contrary, he wanted to do nothing more than use Getsuga Tenshou on the girl… but that would be wrong.

So Ichigo swallowed his anger and asked, "What… are you… doing?"

"It's magic!" Yukari exclaimed, "I used magic with this magical wand in order to control the brooms! Cuz I'm a witch and I'll fight off any boys that get close to Moka-san!" She declared with the energy expected from a child her age.

Ichigo could only look on with annoyance etched on his face. What could he do?

---

"Sendou Yukari?" Kurumu said the name as she peeled off a 'curse' seal from Ichigo's forehead with tweezers.

"Yea… She's getting on my nerves." Said a silently fuming Ichigo. "When we have projects that I need to work on with Moka, I can't even speak to her without Yukari butting in and doing something weird!"

'Yahoo! Thanks to her, I'm alone with Ichigo! Thank you Yukari Sendou Yukari!' Kurumu thought as her heart filled with happiness.

Then she leaned in towards Ichigo as she told him, "I've heard rumors about that girl too! Even though she's called a girl genius or whatever, it sounds like she's still a selfish kid who plays pranks on others."

Unbeknownst to Kurumu and Ichigo, the subject of their conversation was standing outside, listening through the window sine they're club was on the first floor. Feeling resolved, she pulled out a doll made of straw and exclaimed, "I'll totally destroy the closeness between Moka-san and Ichigo for good! Magical item Warawara-kun!"

Tentatively, she tested the doll out. For the first test, she moved the doll's arm and made its hand hit its face.

"Ichigo!" Yukari heard. That meant her voodoo doll was a success!

Inside, mayhem was sitting in its throne as Ichigo's arms swayed every which way, knocking over stuff, hitting himself, and even groping Kurumu (to which Kurumu didn't really mind). In fact, now she felt truly thankful towards the little witch. She had secretly longed for him to touch her in this way… and now it was happening if indirectly.

The door to the classroom then opened, revealing a certain pink-haired vampire. "Sorry for being late to the club!" She said before stopping and taking in the scene in front of her. Ichigo was fondling Kurumu's breasts while Kurumu tried to get away from him (yea right).

"I'm not doing this! Something's wrong with my body!" Ichigo yelled. Suddenly, his hand moved of its own accord and flicked Kurumu's skirt upwards, revealing yellow panties.

"Eyaaaa!" She screeched. Just outside the window, Yukari was quietly giggling to herself at her triumph.

---

"That's it! Moka, do something about her! Make her stop doing all these stupid things!" Ichigo's frustrated voice rang loudly in the empty hallway. And Yukari's taunts weren't helping any since he couldn't do anything about it while she was behind Moka.

Moka felt like she was stuck in an awkward situation. On one hand, she could tell Yukari's pranks did seem to go a little bit too far. On the other hand, Yukari was just a little girl and didn't really know what she was doing. Couldn't Ichigo see that she was just looking for attention?

"Ichigo… let's calm down." She spoke as she tried to placate the angered substitute shinigami.

"No, you're going too easy on her Moka! She's not just bothering me, she's bothering everyone else! Look at what she made me do to Kurumu!" Ichigo retorted.

"I… suppose… but…"

When Yukari heard those words, she began to feel hurt. Was she a bother to Moka as well? She gripped her wand tightly, not wanting to face to facts. She was sure Moka would defend her, just like the time she did with the men from earlier. After all, Moka was not only pretty, but kind and understanding. Yea… Moka would surely defend her!

But when Moka didn't speak up to defend her, the hurt came back. Maybe… she really was just bothering Moka-san. "I've always been alone…" Yukari spoke dejectedly.

Those sudden words made Ichigo and Moka pause… especially Ichigo. He felt guilty now and felt like he should apologize. He walked over to Yukari and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Yukari…"

Just then, a giant pot fell from out of nowhere and hit Ichigo in the back of his head. "Ahahaha! Gotcha! Gotcha!" Yukari yelled in triumph. She shook her arms every which way, spinning, enjoying her victory.

"That's… IT!" Ichigo said as he gave chase to Yukari, who was now currently running away from him. But he was stopped by Moka, who placed herself in between them.

"Wait! It's awful for you to be mad at her Ichigo!" She exclaimed, her eyes holding ever the slightest hint of anger.

"What are you getting mad at me for?" Ichigo said as he backed up a bit. He was scowling, that little trick had been far from justified, so why was Moka getting mad at him? But then again… he had been getting a little bit… crazier after the agreement between him and his hollow. But he sighed… he knew he would have to apologize to Yukari.

---

Yukari ran, and ran… she ran out the doors, around the building, away from everyone. Faces of people from both human and monster schools came to mind, each of them taunting and uncaring. Both humans and monsters despised her for what she was, a witch.

She gave a sad smile as she continued to run. "I don't mind… being alone." She spoke to no one other than herself. As she continued to run, she failed to see the people in front of her and bumped into them.

"Oww, stupid! Why don't you look where you're going?" Yukari said as she rubbed her forehead.

"You're the one that bumped into me Yukari-san." Yukari's eyes widened as she looked up, recognizing that voice, "How rude, you're a damn shame to the academy."

"Class representative…?" A tingle of terror rode down her spine as the man in front of her bent over to see her eye to eye.

"Remember when you disgraced me in front of all those students earlier? I'll never forgive you for that!" Suddenly, his skin started peeling away, replaced by dry, thick scales. A long forked tongue jutted out as it tasted the air. "I've been waiting to get you alone."

---

"We have to go get her Ichigo! Don't you feel sorry for her?" Moka pleaded with the Shinigami.

Ichigo thought about it for a moment. Then he sighed. He remembered his own past and knew what it felt like to be lonely. What Yukari needed more than ever was simply someone who cared for her. "Fine… let's go get her."

Moka's eyes brightened as she gave a bright smile. "Thank you so much Ichigo! C'mon!" She said as she took Ichigo's hand and pulled him along.

---

Yukari took a few steps back in fright. Thinking about her options, she quickly pulled out her wand only to have it eaten by one of the lizard men. Razor sharp teeth tore her wand apart like it was nothing. In fact, the lizard who ate it was now using it as a toothpick.

"What should we do to her?" The leader asked to his cohorts.

"Let's eat her up!" One suggested, "The fog is so thick so no one will ever know!"

Yukari continued taking steps backwards. Without her wand, she was defenseless! But her actions didn't go unnoticed as the leader took her up in one of his clawed hands and picked her up. "That sounds good! We should eat her up!" He said as he opened his mouth, ready to eat his meal.

"Stop it! Get your hands off Yukari-chan!"

The lizard men all stopped and turned around. Tongues flicked in and out of scaly mouths as they recognized the girl from earlier. "Damn, it's you Akashiya Moka-san! You've caught us at a bothersome time..." The leader said as he eyed the pink-haired vampire with malicious intent.

"Run! Moka-san!" Yukari yelled past the lizard men, "Or you'll be eaten! Forget about me and run!"

"No one's going to get eaten while I'm around." Yukari's eyes widened as she whipped around. Ichigo looked past her at the lizard men with his obscenely large green backpack 'standing' in front of him, a handle poking out the top end.

"Who the hell are you?" The leader asked as his tail swung back and forth, his body posed and ready to attack.

Ichigo grabbed the handle and pointed the backpack at the leader and said, "The one who's going to kick your ass!"

The leader hissed, signaling the others to form up behind him. Ichigo simply stared at them, challenging them. Catching the challenge, they all launched towards Ichigo at once! As they got closer and closer, Yukari began to panic, fearing Ichigo would get harmed. But then he raised and held the backpack horizontally.

"Getsuga…" Ichigo uttered as he began his swing. "Tenshou!"

A large, blinding light filled the lizard mens' vision. When the light hit, their breath was knocked and they were thrown far away. When they finally hit ground, they were already unconsciousness and their bodies were singed. Ichigo wondered if he should've held back more.

"Why…"

Ichigo's attention was shifted when he turned to his side and faced Yukari, who was sitting on the floor looking sad. "After I've done such horrible things to you. Why. Why did you come for someone like me?"

Ichigo sighed as he let out of breath of air. "Let's just say I get what you're feeling. We're your friends now so don't be sad, got it?"

Yukari looked on at Ichigo and a new light as her heart was moved by Ichigo's words. "You..." She stuttered as her eyes moistened, "Umm.. fa…hm…"

"Uwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahaaaaaaaaaa!" Ichigo had to take a step back when Yukari let out a monster of a wail. Tears freely streamed down her childish face… but they were tears of happiness. After the initial shock, Ichigo let a small smile play across his face.

---

"I heard she apologized in front of her whole class for playing pranks all the time!" Moka chattered away excitedly to Kurumu as they carried supplies for the club.

"It sounds like everyone's mood has become a bit more thoughtful. And she's getting more sociable bit by bit." Kurumu said.

"That's great, Yukari-chan is really growing up!" Moka said as she opened the door. Both Kurumu and Moka blinked as they saw what was transpiring.

"Ichigo! I wuvv you!" Yukari said as she leaped into Ichigo's arms.

"Wha…?" All three thought at the same time.

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Well, finally has the next chapter up. Enjoy!