Chapter 22 : Selena

It was a quiet, sunny morning on the outskirts of Karakura town. Kaze Akurei sat in a tree close to the spot where he met the girl from yesterday, Selena. He yawned as he looked down the beaten path. They had agreed yesterday evening to meet here the next morning. So far, there was no sign of her. She was getting pretty late. Kaze sighed as he began to grow tired of waiting. He heard a faint ringing tune, and remembered his phone. He pulled the tiny device out of his pocket, flipped it open, and placed it to his ear. "What do you want?" he growled.

"Hey, Kaze! How are you doing?" a familiar feminine voice chimed over the phone.

"I'll repeat this... WHAT do you WANT, Koukeisha?" he growled again.

"Oh, I was just checking up on you. You know, making sure you're still alive and all. No Arrancar sightings yet?"

"You expect too much. Jono just has bad luck is all." Kaze sighed.

"So, what have you been up to? Enjoying your vacation?"

"I was until you called..."

"Haha, very funny. Did the heartless Vice-Captain make any new friends?" Koukeisha laughed, knowingly pissing off her superior. She didn't quite get the reaction she wanted.

"Yes, actually." Kaze grinned. "In fact, I have a date today."

"Really... Aww! That's so cute! You DO have a heart!" Koukeisha laughed.

"What the hell did you call me for anyway!?" Kaze snapped.

"Ouch..." Koukeisha replied. "Well, Aya didn't know how to get a hold of you. So I figured I'd call and let her chat with you."

"I'm kinda busy right now." Kaze moaned in agony.

"Just talk to the poor girl. It's not everyday someone actually misses YOU." Koukeisha grinned. Kaze sighed as he heard the phone switch to Aya.

"Hey, how have you been?" Aya asked him.

"Pretty good I guess. What about you?"

"Bored out of my mind. I can't find anything to do here. I'm thinking about coming to visit you tomorrow, if that's ok."

"Fine by me." Kaze replied. "I could use the compan-" he began, but was cut off. His phone started beeping loudly, and the screen switched over to a more radar-like appearance. "Hollow..." he groaned. "Hey Aya, Gotta go. There's a Hollow. If you want, come by later this evening. I'll be bored all night if I don't have someone to talk to."

"Got it. I'll stop by after I'm off duty later. Don't worry, I'll find you." Aya laughed. "Don't get hurt. See ya."

"Bye." Kaze sighed, hanging up the phone. He replaced it into his pocket, and charged in the direction of the Hollow.

A few minutes had passed before the Hollow had come into view. It looked as if it were wandering around aimlessly. Kaze quickly separated from his Gigai and drew his Zanpaku-to. "Eliminate, Hayaitanin." he spoke. The single Katana separated into to two, scythe-like daggers. With a quick wave of one dagger, a gust of wind slashed through the Hollow's mask. The monster roared in agony, and dissapated in no time at all.

Kaze Akurei sheathed his Zanpaku-to, and returned to his Gigai. He smiled. The Hollow didn't even notice him. He was getting better at hiding his Spiritual Pressure everyday. He laughed as he turned around, and stopped.

"What's so funny?" Kaze was startled.

"Oh, Selena." he smiled. "Good morning." He looked to her hands, which she was hiding behind her back. "What do you have there?"

"Well..." She spoke softly. "I figured since we'd be out the majority of the day, I'd pack us a lunch." she said, bringing a large basket around to the front of her.

"Whoa, you made all of that?" Kaze stared.

"Yeah..." Selena replied, staring at the ground. Kaze took the basket from her hands.

"I'll carry it. It's much too heavy for someone as little as you."

"You're not much taller yourself, Kaze-kun." He could hear his Captain's words ringing in his ear. He shook his head, red from anger and embarrassment.

"Ah-choo!" Captain Jonouchi sneezed. "Eh... I must be allergic to something here..." he grinned, sniffing.

"You ok?" Kalinda asked, looking over from her kitchen.

"Yeah, I'm fine. But you really should take a break. The kids are gone now. Their Academy classes have already started. Sit with me for a bit."

"I still have some things I have to do..." she looked down to an empty sink.

"I'd help you, but Captain Unohana told me to rest. If she caught be out and working, she'd kill me before anything else did." Kalinda remained silent. Jonouchi noticed that she hadn't been talking much. She seemed to be avoiding eye contact altogether. He sighed, turning and looking out the window. "I wonder how Kaze is doing..."

Kaze and Selena both sat under a nearby tree, resting. Bits of food and garbage lay scattered around in the grass.

"Wow..." Kaze grinned. "The food was amazing."

"Thanks..." Selena replied without a smile. She stared into the sky, not showing any emotion on her whatsoever. She stood, walking towards the basket. "Are you thirsty?" she asked.

"Sure." Kaze replied. He grinned, watching her as she walked away. His smile quickly faded though. Something didn't feel right to him. He heard a rustling noise in the tree above, and his heart sank. He jumped into action, as someone sprang from the tree towards Selena. Kaze, already out of his Gigai, Flash Stepped to defend Selena. He drew his Zanpaku-to, and deflected the attackers blade. Selena just stood there. She refused to move.

Kaze pushed the attacker back, and got into a defensive stance. He noticed the attackers Jet black Shinigami Robes. "You're a Soul Reaper." he growled. "What are you doing attacking this young human for!?" The attacker glared, and charged without a word. "Fine by me!" Kaze roared, charging the attacker. He pushed the enemy back a second time, and cut into his side. The attacker winced in pain, but stood his ground.

"Fire..." The attacker growled, pointing his Zanpaku-to at Selena. "Bakumori!" As the attacker called out the name, hundreds of thousands of needles covered his Zanpaku-to. Needles began to rapidly launch from the blade, directly at Kaze. Kaze moved just in time, but was stuck with a needle. He gasped, but suprisingly felt no pain. The barrage of needles had stopped, and Kaze plucked it from his shoulder.

"What the hell is this?" he asked. He closely examined the needle. The needle was slowly flowing a bright orange from point where it had entered Kaze's skin. The orange glow slowly moved up the base of the needle, like a lit fuze. He quickly tossed it into the air and almost instantly, the tiny needle exploded. Kaze Akurei was shot backwards, but he quickly caught himself. He sprung back into action, Flash Stepping behind the attacker. He quickly brought his blade up, and slashed into the Soul Reaper's back. The man fell to the ground without a sound. Kaze glared, sheathing his sword.

"How dare he..." he growled.

"You're a Soul Reaper..." Selena stared, eyes wide with fear.

"You, can see me?" Kaze asked, startled.

"Y- Yes..." Selena replied, the look of fear not leaving her face. " I... I have to go..." she said, running.

"WAIT!" Kaze called to her.

"I'll be back later... I promise..." Selena stopped to say, just long enough before running off once more.

Kaze looked down at his hand. He felt terrible. He had probably scared her half to death. He felt ashamed of what he was for the first time since he joined Squad 3. He bit his lip, as if holding back un-existing tears.

"So, this is Karakura?" Aya grinned, ear to ear. It was already very dark and well into the night. "Well, I'll start from where the call came from. The eastern outskirts look good for a start." She smiled, Flash Stepping away.

Kaze Akurei sighed as he stared at the stars. She said she'd be back before now. He was beginning to doubt her. After all, to her, he was a monster.

"Kaze-kun...?" a voice came from behind. He instantly recognized it and shot to his feet.

"Selena! You're here!" he exclaimed, running to her.

"Mmhmm..." She nodded. Kaze could see tears welling up in her eyes.

"Selena... What's wrong?" he asked, scared.

"I'm sorry, Kaze-kun..." she cried.

"What do you mean? Sorry for wha..." Kaze started, but froze. Pain shot up his chest, blood shooting from his body. Selena held her hand in the air, grasping a blood cover dagger. He never even saw her lift her arm. She was fast. Faster than he was.

Kaze stood there, much too hurt to run, let alone even move. He stared in amazement. So many emotions were taking over his body at once. He was confused and afraid, but overall, he was crushed. Selena stood before him, dressed in a white gown. She had white gloves covering her hands, up to her fore-arms. There was a hole visible to the left of the center of her chest. The tears never faded from her eyes. He didn't want to believe what he saw. He refused to believe it.

"You're an... Arrancar..."