Once upon a time, hollow attacks in the Rukongai were not that uncommon. Renji was still a child scrabbling in the slums of District 78 when rumors went around that the Soul Reapers were going to start enforcing a curfew to prevent people from falling victim to the creatures. Of course, if such a policy ever had been issued, young Renji never would have known. Word from the center of Soul Society rarely worked its way that far out to the higher districts.
Still, such talk had affected Renji and Rukia on a deep level at the time, and they and their other friends agreed to stay far away from the wall bordering between Inuzuri and Kusajishi, for as the stories told the hollows dwelled in the dark forests outside of District 80 where not even the shinigami tread, so naturally the closer they were to the border then the more likely a hollow would attack.
Renji hadn't been to District 80 all that much. All he really knew was that it was a lawless place, more dangerous than his childhood home of Howling Dog. To survive there, you either had to be a ruthless warrior like Captain Zaraki, or half mad like… well, Captain Zaraki was still the only name that could be called to mind.
The shadowly forests outside the Districts were even more foreign, with only the gruesome tales of the now reaccepted Visored bringing any light to it. Renji was a notoriously brave man. Brave to a fault, some would even go so far to say. But even he was not so eager to go marching straight into the proverbial lion's den, particularly seeing as he had used one of his so meager vacation days from work for this little search and dying would be a fine way to use up his day off.
The outer walls of the 80th District were dull and gray, in strict contrast to the pure white of the Seireitei fortifications, and were crumbling apart from age. They looked sturdy and thick, but when Renji placed his palm against the cool stone the wall creaked ominously before a sizeable crack appeared and shimmied across the rocks in a spider web.
Renji grimanced. A hollow could have no problem breaking through here, Renji was surprised that hollow attacks weren't a bigger issue as it was. On the bright side, finding the hole that a huge-ass hollow had broken through shouldn't be too difficult.
Renji strolled alongside the walls, occasionally checking the spiritual pressure of the area for any incoming hollows. There were small chunks of the wall that were missing, gaping holes through which Renji could just make out the shadowy outline of trees. Even though it was broad daylight and somewhat warmer than the day previous, the canopy of trees made the forest look dark as night, and a draft seemed to freely leak from the holes in the wall.
Renji sighed, noting the growing soreness in his feet. At this point he had nearly crossed the west side of District 80, and his examinations had yet to turn up any missing gaps large enough for a person to get through, let alone a hollow. He hated to consider it, but Shuuhei would probably be better at this whole "following clues" sort of thing. Renji thought that looking for an entry point would be a very Shuuhei-like thing to do, but now that he was here he could almost hear his former senpai chastising him for his inefficiency and wasting his time out in the middle of nowhere.
Sitting down against a more solid-looking part of the wall to rest his aching feet, Renji considered what Shuuhei had said yesterday. Renji was certainly on his own with this one now, but being on his own was lonely, and (more importantly) it was really boring. He wondered if Shuuhei would really tell the captains about Renji's secret investigation. He loathed thinking of what Captain Kuchiki would think. Shit, maybe Shuuhei had been right about Renji fearing his captain's disappointment.
Something flickered in the back of Renji's consciousness, like the sudden inexplicable knowledge that someone was standing right behind you. Against his will, the corner of Renji's lips turned up in a smirk. He knew who that spiritual pressure signal was.
"Now I know I was here first this time." Renji announced. A second of silence, then the telltale humming sound of something moving too fast to be seen and Shuuhei flickered into existence a mere few feet in front of him.
Shuuhei looked severely annoyed, arms folded over his chest. "What?"
"You're following me." Renji stated, still sitting nonplussed on the ground, "Cut it out."
"I'm not following you. I just thought that it would be perfectly in your nature to do something stupid like try to retrace the steps of a fucking hollow of all things. And look, I was right. Color me shocked." Shuuhei said, shrugging his shoulders a fraction of an inch.
Renji's face lit up in a smug grin and pushed himself off the ground to stand over Shuuhei. "Translation: You knew I was still gonna look for the hollow and you decided to come after me because you were worried."
Shuuhei's face twisted into a sneer, "Worried that you're gonna get yourself killed by being an idiot."
"Aw, Hisagi, I didn't know you cared!" Renji turned on one heel and began to walk away, "But I'm good. Thanks for the offer."
Shuuhei gaped at Renji's retreating back. "'You're good'? What do you mean 'you're good'?"
"Like I said, I don't need your help. I'm gonna find the hollow and I'm gonna kill the son of a bitch without you. Sucks to suck." Renji called out behind him. He continued walking, his long strides quickly putting distance between the two shinigami. For a few moments, Renji thought that Shuuhei's silence might have mean that he flash-stepped away, leaving Renji to his task. But the telltale sound of frosted grass being crushed by a pair of stomping feet signaled that this wasn't the case.
"I told you to stop following me. I don't need your help." Renji said, not bothering to look back at the vice-captain trailing him.
He heard Shuuhei grumble, "I'm not following you and I'm not helping you. I'm just looking around, same as you. Got a problem with that?"
Renji thought. Did he? At least maybe now this investigating business might be a bit less boring. "Nah."
The two walked in silence for a few more moments, each stewing in his own thoughts. Abruptly, though, Renji felt a shivery, creeping sensation crawl up his spine. He stopped, listening to the silence and the quiet "oof" from Shuuhei from walking into him.
"Why'd you stop?" Shuuhei asked.
Renji looked back at the dark-haired man. "You feel that?"
Shuuhei's gaze intensified. "Hollow." He confirmed. "But where-"
The end of Shuuhei's question was drowned out. Renji blinked, "Sorry, what?"
Shuuhei opened his mouth again, his lips forming words that didn't quiet seem to meet the air. Instead, a loud, fluttery buzzing sound filled Renji's ears, eating away all other noises. Renji winced when the buzzing escalated into a sharp wringing, searing his brain in a hot streak of pain. Shuuhei appeared to have felt it too, his hand flying to his temple and his eyes squeezed shut against the sound. A terrible wave of pressure seemed to be squeezing Renji's skull, pushing out every other thought except the registry of pain.
As quickly as it had arrived the buzzing harshly died down, fading slowly to a distant flutter before disappearing altogether. Both men cracked an eye each open to the wall expectantly, already putting a hand on their zanpakuto and readying to draw. They were, however, unprepared for the heavy thud of something massive landing directly behind them. Renji turned, only to be knocked nearly off his feet by something long and fast.
He swiped at the projectile with Zabimaru, but when a spurt of red blood spout out of the limb, another appeared and took a swipe at him. A few yards away, Shuuhei was also swinging his katana at more of the vine-like limbs which, Renji realized, were attached to a huge hollow.
The creature stood hunched over on all fours like a dog, his mask wearing a gruesome gaping mouth as if it was in mid-howl. From its back, hundreds of vine-like tentacles writhed like snakes, each independently lurching at Renji and Shuuhei as if they had minds of their own.
'At least we found something this time.' Renji thought dully, "Howl, Zabimaru!"
In its unsealed form, Renji's sword easily cut through dozens of the vines, each falling into the grass to wriggle like worms with blood still oozing from them grossly. The monster groaned, little lumps working their way from the roots in its back to the severed tips of the vines, which burst forth from itself and regrew the tentacles with new vigor.
"It regenerates?" Renji asked no one in particular, cutting another vine and watching it grow back.
Shuuhei, it seemed, had a different idea. Unsealed and now in its twin scythe form, the blades of Kazeshini flew in a spin through the vines straight towards the body of the hollow itself. Renji could see the trajectory, the spot where it would hit and surely sever the beast's head, if only the hollow had not also seen the path of the blade, his vines flying not towards the scythe but the chain connecting it. Shuuhei's blade flew off its path, leaving Shuuhei with one scythe for which to defend him for the wave of vines that assaulted him immediately afterwards.
Renji dodged another vine, shifting quickly out of the way as they shot after him like fired arrows. The creature had cornered him with Shuuhei, who was now on Renji's immediant right.
"I've been rethinking about rethinking your proposal to tell the captains." Renji admitted. Shuuhei snorted. At least he hadn't lost that same sense of dark humor.
The hollow approached them, vines hovering above their prey menacingly. "So how do we do this?" Renji asked, "I go all Bankai and Bone-Cannon this thing's ass back to Huenco Mundo?"
Shuuhei licked his lips, "I think we- What the hell is that?"
"That's a hollow, Shuuhei, I think we've already established that problem."
"No, not that. That!"
Shuuhei pointed towards the ground, a foot away from the hollow. What looked like a sinkhole was bubbling up, eating up the ground around it, but where it should have been empty darkness in its place was an eerie blue light bubbling up and consuming the ground like a flood of water. Again, a buzzing sound swarmed the air, suffocating all other sounds. The light expanded and the hollow stood dumbly in it, looking nonplussed. Even faster than before, the buzzing escalated to a shrieking sensation, forcing both Renji and Shuuhei to cover their ears against the assault of noise Still growing, the light ate up the ground underneath Renji and Shuuhei's feet.
"Can't be anything good!" Renji howled to be heard over the noise, "We should get away-"
But before either man could turn to run the ground seemed to disappear beneath them. He heard Shuuhei and his combined yells of surprise when the light engulfed them in a blinding electric blue.
As soon as it happened, it was over. The bright blue was replaced by black although Renji soon realized that this darkness was merely his own eyes squeezed shut. Cracking one lid open, however, revealed no further sense.
Renji knew- was strictly positive, in fact- that only a moment ago it had been daylight, the sun shining happily away overhead just as it was predicted to do for the whole week. Why then, was a cold rain falling on his back from a murky dark sky overhead?
Renji forced himself up onto his knees, his legs sinking into the loose mud underneath him. He hurt from where he guessed he landed harshly with the ground. He knew right away where he was, could tell just from the feel of it, but how had he gotten to the human world so fast?
"Shuuhei?" Renji called out, whipping his head around, "Shuuhei!"
A groan came from a mass in the mud, next to him, "I'm right here, quit screaming."
Renji reached out to his friend, but Shuuhei brushed his dirt-soaked had aside, "Any idea where our little friend went?"
Something familiar growled loudly, "I have an idea."
Renji hoisted himself into a standing position, trying to grasp his bearings. He didn't recognize where he was, which meant they weren't even close to his usual stop at Karakura town. They seemed to be in a more marshy territory, and behind them a cliff trailed off to a rush of uninviting river underneath.
Renji looked blindly for the hollow, oblivious to the vine coming at him until it found hard purchase with his head. He fell to his knees from the sharp blow, his vision going dark around the edges. He could barely see the creature's ugly masked head arising from its hiding spot in the mud, could make out one of Shuuhei's scythes becoming caught and tangled in the furious knot of vines while he desperately tried to fight off the others with the single remaining blade.
Renji saw the hollow crawl out of the ground, breaking apart the dirt and turning up chunks of loose earth that tumbled into the river running madly underneath. Renji witnessed his world spin out from under his feet as the ground fell apart under him a second time and sent him tumbling into the water himself.
"Ren-" Shuuhei tried to scream out for limp form plummeting into the river, cut short by another vine from the seemingly endless mass writhing in front of him catching him in the side.
Shuuhei cursed, one scythe of Kazeshini was lodged firmly in the creature's back, the vines entwining the blade and chain. Shuuhei grit his teeth clutched the chain with both hands and yanked furiously but the weapon would not budge. He was caught, with only one scythe left to fight and meanwhile Renji was drifting further and further away by the second.
Oh God what if he had already drowned? Oh fuck what if it was too late? Shuuhei craned his neck to look back and saw a form of something he hoped was Renji fighting against the current sweeping him away, head bobbing ontop of the water.
Shuuhei considered the huge hollow, the cold rain stinging his eyes and blurring his vision. The monster was apathetic to Shuuhei's plight or Renji's peril- Maybe it didn't even notice the scythe sticking out of its back, half of the weapon Shuuhei had spent decades loathing but was defenseless without all the same. Blood welled up around the spot where the metal had pierced and weeping down the hollow's sides.
Shuuhei gave one more desperate tug, and when that proved hopeless he released his grip on the chain altogether, the remaining scythe falling onto the loose earth with an empty thud. He slipped and stumbled gracelessly in the uneven mud where the ledge had fallen apart and squeezed his eyes shut before madly diving into the rushing river.
The water was oppressively cold, freezing even. Shuuhei struggled to the surface to breathe, fighting against the current trying to pull him under. He looked around, desperately hoping to see that flash of crimson that signaled the presence of his fellow vice-captain because Renji would not be dead, Renji could not be dead.
There, for just a flicker of a moment, a head nodded above the foamy waves before disappearing underneath. Shuuhei took a massive gulp of air before diving under, limbs stinging and going numb from the cold but madly propelling him towards the form of Renji.
His hands found something to grab, clasping together around Renji's midsection. Shuuhei's legs kicked furiously, trying to push both him and Renji back above the water. Renji was limp in Shuuhei's arms, head unconsciously nodding with the pull of the current. Shuuhei swam harder for all he was worth but something was weighing them down, sealing them under the water.
Shuuhei opened his eyes under the water, the mud and grime smarting but he could see the flash of metal. He could see Zabimaru still gripped tightly in Renji's unconscious clutch, unwilling to let go to the part of his soul whom he had relied on so much. Shuuhei pressed Renji harder to himself, one arm releasing him as to grab Renji's wrist. When he found it, Shuuhei worked his grip further down, prying Renji's fingers off the hilt. They were running out of time- Shuuhei's vision was already beginning to go black around the edges.
Underwater, Renji made a small gurgle of protest, but Shuuhei worked the hand free relentlessly. Finally the zanpakuto slid from Renji's hand and was swept to into the darkness below. Freed from their burden, Shuuhei kicked against the water with new fervor, his lungs now feeling as if they were on fire from being denied sweet precious oxygen.
Unanchored by their weapons, Shuuhei broke through the surface of the water and scrambled for the riverbed, dragging the unmoving form of Renji with him. His clothes felt heavy from the water, and Renji felt heavier in his arms but Shuuhei refused to release his grip. At last his feet found purchase with the ground under the rush of water, for his sandals had been eaten up by the current long ago. Shuuhei struggled forward until the water was only at his knees now. Pushing against his legs, Shuuhei toppled over onto Renji's unresponsive form, sloshing gauchely in the shallow water. Fear gripped Shuuhei's heart, and he fought to right himself and pull Renji to the solid earth.
There he dropped Renji, his eyes shut and giving no indication of awareness. Shuuhei panted heavily, falling to his knees beside the redhead vice-captain. Renji was deathly pale, black lines of his tattoos standing out starkly against the white of his skin. Renji was a lot of things, including a symbol for Soul Society, a beacon of freedom and rebellious abandon and strength through sheer hard-work and pure will, but the man looked as fragile as porcelain splayed out on the wet ground.
A trickle of water dribbled from Renji's lips and Shuuhei choked back a panic sob. He tried desperately to remember what Kira had taught him, back when the blond was still in the Fourth Division. If there was ever a time to remember what had once seemed a trivial bit of information, it would be now.
Shuuhei pressed his palms against Renji's chest, over his heart, trying not to notice how cold Renji was. He pressed firmly, repetitively, acutely aware how easy it would be to accidentally break a rib this way. Shuuhei grit his teeth. Hopefully Renji was just a little too strong for that.
Shuuhei counted to thirty, then moved his hands up to cup Renji's face. Shuuhei tilted Renji's head back, pulling the jaw forward carefully, oh so carefully. Renji gave no warning of waking up, but the unsteady rise and fall of his chest from Shuuhei's resuscitation was all the hope Shuuhei needed to continue.
Shuuhei pinched Renji's nose, locking off air before forcing his mouth over the other's and exhaling- hard. Forcing air and life into Renji, blowing firmly into his airway before pulling back to gasp for air himself. For a second there was nothing, silence except for the rush of river that had almost taken their life and the fall of the rain and Shuuhei's terrifying observation that Renji had been cold and still as stone against his lips.
And then Renji coughed.
A wet choking sound forced itself from the redheaded man's lips. Shuuhei exhaled shakily before putting his hands under Renji's head and tilting his head forward for Renji to cough more slimy water down his chin. Renji's hand weakly sought out Shuuhei's but held with a deceptively powerful grip. Shuuhei winced as his palm was squeezed but didn't force Renji's hand away. Renji turned his head away from Shuuhei and wretched, the wet sound of liquid being forced out of his lungs sounding like the sweetest music in the world to Shuuhei.
Renji supported himself on his side with one elbow, panting and gasping heavily over the emptied contents of his lungs and stomach. "Don't move too much." Shuuhei warned, voice sounding small.
Renji looked over his shoulder at Shuuhei, his eyes fluttering drowsily as if he had just awoken from sleep. "Hey."
"Yeah?"
"Help me stand up." Renji asked, putting his arm on Shuuhei's for support, "I don't think I can move much like this."
"You're telling me." Shuuhei said, expression matching the serious tone in his voice, "We need to find a place to take shelter."
Gray eyes scanned the forest, looking for a relatively dry spot, somewhere out of the cold of the rain and the spray of river water on their shoulders. Shuuhei fixed his gaze on a small canopy of trees, the branches serving as enough of a roof that would at least serve as better cover than staying out in the open.
Four limbs struggled to stand, shuffling towards the cover of trees. Shuuhei gently lay Renji down against a trunk, sliding down next to him. He shivered in the cold, and from the water still soaking their clothes. Renji's teeth were gritted with pressure, but he trembled as well.
"Hang on a sec." Shuuhei demanded, chilled hands clearing a small patch in their makeshift camp and clearing debris. Some branches were a little less damp, dry enough to make an ample pile in the center. One small hado resulted in a flickering fire, casting a glow on Shuuhei and Renji's faces against the murky darkness.
"Resourceful." Renji snorted. Renji looked over to Shuuhei, who scooted a little closer to the fire to pick at it with a stick. "You look cold."
Shuuhei cocked an eyebrow at Renji. Though it was still in its usual ponytail, Renji's hair had darkened with the water and grime almost to a brown, which hung in a stringy mess on the back of his neck. Shuuhei couldn't have looked much better, his black hair plastered to his forehead and falling into his eyes. "You look like you almost drowned."
Renji shrugged, a smirk playing across his face. "Eh, it happens." As fast as it had appeared, the smirk was gone, replaced by something more somber. "I guess I kind of owe you big, considering you saved my life and all."
"Yeah, 'and all'." Shuuhei grinned, nudging him with his elbow, "What do you think that was, anyways? That portal that brought us here to the human world?"
"No fucking clue. Thanks to it, though, we have no idea where we are and we're definitely not going to be able to find our way back to Karakura so we can get home like this." Renji sighed. "Maybe we should have told the captains after all."
Renji's hands went to rest comfortingly on the hilt of his sword, but found only air in the red scabbard. He looked down in surprise. "What the-?"
"Uh, sorry about that. My bad." Shuuhei winced, "Zabimaru was kind of dragging us down. I had to drop it so we wouldn't sink underneath. I lost Kazeshini, too, so…"
"Well that's just great!" Renji groaned, throwing his arm into the air, "What good are two sopping shinigami with no weapons?"
An uncomfortable silence stretched between them. The rain fell cheerfully around them, the canopy of trees sheltering from the water but not the chilly air.
"Cold." Shuuhei said, quietly.
"Huh?"
"Two sopping shinigami with no weapons are cold." Shuuhei emphasized, looking downcast. He settled himself close to the tiny fire, curling his legs to his chest to conserve heat. "Hope we don't get hypothermia or something from this. That would kind of suck."
Guilt stirred in Shuuhei's gut. "I didn't want to drop Zabimaru, just as much as I hadn't wanted to abandon Kazeshini." He admitted, "But I didn't have a choice. You were unconscious in the water and if I hadn't done those things you would've… I'm sorry, Renji."
An arm gripped Shuuhei's shoulder, pulling him closer to the redheaded vice-captain. "What are you doing?"
"You said you were cold." Renji said in answer. He pressed Shuuhei's side against his own, arm still wrapped around the older man. "Thanks for pulling me out of the river, by the way."
"Don't forget resuscitating you. I basically brought you back to life, you half-dead idiot." Shuuhei said, leaning into the meager warmth that Renji's body-heat provided.
Renji cocked an eyebrow. "Eh, resuscitating? Like mouth-to-mouth?"
Shuuhei colored, tensing into himself and alarm plainly on his face. "Well, uh…"
"You totally did, didn't you!" Renji said, beginning to laugh, "Aww, Shuuhei, you do care after all! Sorry I couldn't be there for it."
"It's not funny, jackass!" Shuuhei barked, hitting a now howling Renji's shoulder, "I thought you were gonna die!"
Renji's laughs came in panting breaths, using the one hand to wipe forming tears from his eyes, "So you used your magic prince-charming kiss to wake me up. That's so sweet!"
"It wasn't a kiss! It was CPR! You're beginning to make me regret saving your ass."
Renji's laughter died down, ending with a breathy, happy sigh. He curled up closer to Shuuhei, mirth still twinkling in his eyes. "I know. I'm glad you'd do that for me though, Shuuhei."
"Yeah, don't expect this to be a regular occurrence…" Shuuhei trailed off. He looked up and Renji, one eyebrow risen under the heavy fringe of his wet hair, "When did you start calling me Shuuhei?"
Renji thought for a moment. "When did you start calling me Renji?"
"Did I do that?"
"Yeah, when you were kinda apologizing for saving my life."
"Oh." Shuuhei looked up at the cover of trees, through which he could almost see the night sky. Thick black rain-clouds blocked the view of the stars overhead. "Neither of us seem to do that very often, do we?"
"Well, why not?" Renji asked, "We're friends, aren't we? We've been for years. We should be able to call each other by our given names."
"Yeah, but you only do that for your close friends. Like Kuchiki, Kurosaki, Madrame... It's like, they're your real friends, the rest of us- Kira and Rangiku and me and the rest of our friends- and we're all just background noise." Shuuhei said, stating it matter-of-factly.
Renji's face twisted into a scowl, "Hey, don't say that." He demanded, jostling Shuuhei's shoulder so he would look at him, "You're my friend. I care about my friends, okay?"
A set of dark gray eyes met amber. Renji had a stubborn look on his face, the familiar arrogant grin from earlier gone without a trace. In the face of Renji's determination and endless resolve, Shuuhei suddenly felt very small. "Okay."
Shuuhei tentatively put his arm around Renji's shoulders, the way Renji had done for him. Alone in the woods, they anchored each other. Renji yawned, and Shuuhei's eyes drooped with tiredness. The events of the entire day seemed to be catching up to the two vice-captains all at once. The last thing either would remember before falling asleep would be Shuuhei grumbling "You smell like a wet dog."