Returning to Hueco Mundo so quickly was not something he had been looking forward to, but there was no other place for him to go. Tamotsu's plan was coming together slowly, but there were things which he had to rush to be sure everything was in place.
Approaching the small exterior fortress he could tell there had been some commotion while he was away. A group of Arrancar had gathered themselves and were standing behind two figures clad in black robes. Seeing this, Tamotsu ran until he could see everything clearly. As he neared the group, his blood ran cold. The Arrancar consisted of Kisaki and the three Fracciones of Tier Harribel. Before them were two Shinigami he recognized. Naomi and Takeo.
"We found them just outside the perimeter," Apacci said. "Want me to kill them? Or are they with you?"
Tamotsu walked slowly forward and looked at Takeo, who returned the gaze albeit with a bitterness in his eyes. Naomi was looking at the ground, eyes full of emotion. "What are you two doing here?" Tamotsu asked.
"Brought here..." Naomi said, her voice quivering. "We... were brought here..."
"Brought here? By who?"
Naomi still looked down at the white sands as she answered. She seemed reluctant, but the words came. "White butterfly. Tengokucho."
Tamotsu's eyes grew wide at the mention of the Tengokucho. To his knowledge, he was the only one who even knew of its existence. He looked at Takeo, whose eyes told him that he knew of it as well. Closing his eyes, he turned away and placed his hands behind his back.
"You are to release them at once, Apacci," Tamotsu said.
"What?" Apacci reached toward her zanpakuto and threatened to pull it out. "They're intruders! They know too much!"
"Apacci, do as he says," a female voice said. Turning around, the group could see Tier Harribel approaching. "This is his plan, and these are his people."
"Yes, Lady Harribel." Apacci stepped back and the two Shinigami Reincarnates stood.
"What are your plans concerning them?" Harribel asked.
Tamotsu stood silent for a moment, then answered without turning around. "We have to accelerate our plans. These two may prove to be useful. Meet me in twenty minutes on the dunes for practice. We will attack in three days."
Hinohebi sat in her manifested form on top of the dune and watched as Tamotsu sparred with not only one, but all of the Arrancar as well as the two Shinigami. A bright blue glow surrounded him as he fought and, in addition to being outnumbered by his own request, asked that he be blindfolded for the duration of the sparring.
"You worry about him, Hinohebi," a voice said. Looking up, Hinohebi saw a man standing with his arms folded across a purple kimono. "He is strong, and he is getting stronger still."
"So you can manifest yourself as well?" Hinohebi asked.
"Of course. He is my master just as much as he is yours. He may have not called upon me, but I will stand with him always."
"It is difficult for me to let go. I remember things were so much different when I first came to him. You would not know because you were hiding within his inner world."
"I may not have known the details, but as you know, his inner world has gone through many changes. I have seen these changes. And even if it becomes barren once again, I will not abandon our Master."
Hinohebi looked over the dunes at the glowing figure who was fighting several opponents at once. She thought back, long ago, and remembered how it was before the return of his powers. Before his death. Before he even knew her name...
32 years ago
The yellow sands seemed to stretch on forever. The air was warm, but not hot. Tamotsu stepped forward and looked at his surroundings. There was no end to the desert.
Can you hear me?
Spinning around to try locating the source of the voice, Tamotsu shouted, "Who's there?"
So you can hear me. That is good. I have waited so long...
"Waited? Who are you?"
A long time ago, I made a promise. I said that I would protect you.
"Protect me? You- You're my zanpakuto? What is this place?"
This is your inner world.
"My... inner world? Why is it so empty?"
It is empty because you yourself feel empty. You feel alone. But it is not as empty as it once was.
Looking at the ground, Tamotsu noticed a few small plants were forming. They did little to detract from the overall feel of this desert within his mind, but they were there.
Speak my name. And together we shall...
The voice war interrupted as the fierce sound of wind began blowing. "I- I can't hear you! What is your name? Zanpakuto-"
He awoke with a jump, body covered in sweat. It had been four days since Tamotsu had been allowed to graduate from the Academy and he still felt odd waking up in a larger room. His black robes were neatly folded next to his bed. It still felt odd, having spent so long looking at his faded blue uniform from those days when he was constantly mocked and deprived. But those days were behind him now.
Stretching, he felt a sharp pain on his arm. He looked and saw bandages wrapping the majority of his left bicep. He remembered now. He had been training ever since his graduation. The training here was more intense. The belief was that graduating would cause him to open his true power and be more competent. But no matter how he tried he just couldn't properly wield his blade.
It wasn't as if he was not trying. He could see his sparring partners approach, see their every movement, but his body always froze. A thousand possibilities flooded his mind and overwhelmed his system while he watched the opponent grow ever closer. By the time he reacted it was always too late and he was struck on the body or on the arm.
A knock at his door made snapped him back to reality. "Tamotsu, are you awake yet?" It was Rangiku. She had been the most understanding of him and his feelings, mostly from the several years of visiting him while still in the Academy. They had a close relationship it seemed, but could look on each other only as friends.
"Yeah, Rangiku. Just got up." Tamotsu stood and stretched, trying to shake off the dream he just had. But was it a dream? The last time he thought he heard his zanpakuto was thirty three years previous when he was nearly kicked out of the Academy. Had it finally decided to speak to him or was it his imagination?
"Well hurry up already," Rangiku said as she opened the sliding doorway. "Captain may be lazy but even he has a schedule to keep."
Tamotsu was just finishing tying his robes together and slid his zanpakuto on to his left hip. Even though he was still no good at using the bladed weapon, it was still a part of him. "So what's the plan? More training? You already know I'm no good at anything."
"Oh, come on now," Rangiku answered as she slapped Tamotsu on the back. "Nobody's completely incompetent. We'll find what you're good at sooner or later. Maybe some actual field work will assist with that."
"What?! Me? Field work? Fighting Hollows?"
"That's the plan. Don't worry. Both myself and the Captain will be with you in case anything happens."
"Oh, I have a bad feeling about this..."
The Hollow was small but it moved quickly. Captain Shiba watched with Rangiku as Tamotsu charged the creature while wildly swinging his zanpakuto. It jumped up and over as Tamotsu came with a wide swing which was painfully obvious. Landing behind, it kicked Tamotsu with its back feet and landed ten feet away. Spinning around, it hissed as Tamotsu turned to face its gaze.
"Come on, you can do it!" Rangiku called out.
"Easy for you to say!" Tamotsu responded without taking his eyes off the Hollow. "You do this for a living. I just got out!"
The Hollow leapt forward with claws extended and Tamotsu fell backward, more stumbling over something behind him than dodging, and the Hollow flew over him. With several more swings, Tamotsu did not manage to strike the Hollow but it did not strike him either.
With one wide swing, Tamotsu left himself wide open. The Hollow lunged and reached for his chest and was about to make contact when a flash of light caused the claws to bounce backward. The Hollow stood motionless for a second, confused at the miss, and was unable to dodge as Tamotsu came in with another wild strike which hit the Hollow and was able to cut through. The Hollow howled and remained motionless as it began to dissolve.
Tamotsu fell to the ground panting. "Okay... I did it... Can we go now?"
"I told you he could do it if we gave him a chance," Rangiku said. "What do you think, Captain?"
Isshin looked at Tamotsu and rubbed his short beard. He had seen the flash of light that deflected the Hollow's strike, and Rangiku seemed to have missed it. Tamotsu had no barriers surrounding him, and all of the testing that had been focused on him had been for the physical techniques. The only thing he had not been witnessed performing was the that which did not require physical effort.
"I just don't know what to do with him," Isshin said. "He's not showing too much promise."
"But you saw him today," Rangiku responded. "He was able to kill a Hollow on his own. He can learn."
"That was one Hollow. And a very weak one at that. If we were to send him on a real mission he wouldn't stand a chance. He would be killed. I just don't think there's any other choice right now."
"You can't mean-" Rangiku turned around to see Tamotsu standing in the doorway to the office. "Tamotsu..."
"Captain..." Tamotsu said. "I thought you believed in me... No... No, you're just like everyone else!" Turning around, he ran as fast as he could down the corridor.
"Tamotsu, wait! Captain! Why don't you believe in him?"
Isshin sighed and was quiet for a moment before responding. "I do believe in him. This is his final test."
Tamotsu ran and ran. He didn't know which gate he exited from but he didn't care. All he knew was that he couldn't stay within Seireitei. Tears flowing freely, he didn't notice the other Shinigami until the two of them collided. Herbs flew up and landed all around the two, but Tamotsu didn't raise his head from the ground.
"Hey, sorry about that," the Shinigami said. "I guess I didn't see you coming. Are you all right?"
"Useless..." Tamotsu said. "I'm useless. I can't do anything right. Not even my Captain likes me."
The Shinigami began picking herbs from around the area as he spoke with Tamotsu. "Hey, don't feel too bad. Squad Four gets picked on all the time. My name's Hanataro Yamada. What's yours?"
"Tamotsu... Tamotsu Toshiyuki... I'm sorry about running into you."
"Wow, someone's actually apologizing to me? That's a first."
"It was my fault. I was upset and I ran into you. Here. Let me help."
The two picked up the herbs and Hanataro placed the sack around his shoulder. "Thanks a lot. Captain Unohana asked me to pick these up for her. She wouldn't be too happy if I lost all of them."
"Come on. I kind of lost my way running around out here. I don't know the way back to Seireitei."
"Sure thing."
The two began walking but were stopped suddenly by a large burst of reiatsu. It was something Tamotsu had not felt before. Powerful, but very dark. Like an emptiness. There was only one explanation he could think of. It was a Hollow. And it was strong.
The ground shook and trees swayed, both Hanataro and Tamotsu looking upward toward the gigantic beast. It was larger than anything they had seen before.
"It- Its a Menos!" Hanataro cried.
The beast stepped forward, then looked down. The glowing eyes behind the mask focused on the two Shinigami which did not even go up beyond its foot. The best howled and stepped forward once more as it walked straight for them.
"Do you have your zanpakuto?" Tamotsu asked.
"Yeah, but my zanpakuto heals."
"It heals?! How can- What a lousy- Gyah!"
"What about you? You can fight, right?"
"I'm no good with mine!"
The Menos stepped forward once more and a ball of crimson energy began forming in front of its gigantic maw. The ball of energy concentrated and grew and there was no doubt as to what was coming.
"Hanataro, can you shunpo us away?"
"I can't use shunpo! We can't dodge that Cero! We're doomed!"
The beam of energy shot forward from the Menos' mouth and Tamotsu threw himself in front of Hanataro, bringing his hands out in front.
"Bakudo eighty-one. Danku!"
A barrier of light formed in front of Tamotsu which blocked the cero, causing light and energy to flow outward into the surrounding woods. Hanataro looked up slowly, surprised at the save.
"I might not be able to use my blade, but there are other ways to fight. Stay behind here. I'll do my best to fight it."
"But," Hanataro started, not sure what to say. "But you said you couldn't fight!"
"I can't wield my zanpakuto, but there are other ways to fight."
Tamotsu ran out from behind the barrier and let loose a barrage of crimson balls of energy. They struck the Hollow, knocking it back a step. Another cero began forming and let loose toward Tamotsu who blocked it once again using a Danku shield. A streak of blue lightning erupted from Tamotsu's hand and struck the Hollow above the spikes in its neck. Howling, the Hollow turned to retreat.
"Oh, no you don't," Tamotsu said. With a thrust of his hand, glowing yellow chains appeared and wrapped themselves tightly around the Hollow and held it in place. "Sprinkled on the bones of the beast! Sharp tower, red crystal, steel ring. Move and become the wind, stop and become the calm. The sound of warring spears fills the empty castle! Hado Sixty-three! Raikoho!"
A large burst of yellow lightning erupted from Tamotsu's hand and struck the Hollow squarely in the center of its body. With a howl, the Menos began to dissolve. When it was gone, Tamotsu lowered his hands and the Danku barriers faded.
"Wow, how were you able to do that?" Hanataro asked as he ran to Tamotsu.
"I spent forty years in the Academy and took private lessons for Kido. I don't know how, but after the first year I was held back Kido came so naturally to me."
A slow clapping sound from one of the nearby trees caused Tamotsu to look up. Sitting on a branch was Captain Shiba, a satisfied grin on his face. "Well done, Tamotsu," he said. "Sorry to put you through that and I wasn't expecting a Menos to come."
"What?! You mean- You set me up!"
"I thought I saw a barrier form for a second earlier today with the other Hollow. I must say I didn't expect your Kido abilities to be so advanced. But I never would have done this if I didn't believe you could do it."
Present Day
"Thank you everyone," Tamotsu said as he removed his blindfold. "You have helped me a lot."
Takeo approached, breathing heavily. He had sparred with Tamotsu before, but never to the extent he had just participated in. He touched Tamotsu from behind on the shoulder. When he turned around, Takeo shrugged his shoulders. How?
"Would you like to know?" Tamotsu responded.
Naomi and Kisaki also approached, curious expressions on their faces. They subconsciously formed a line in front of Tamotsu, awaiting his response.
"I think it would do well to teach you. Sit down, please."
The group sat down and Tamotsu joined them. Kisaki spoke first. "What was that fighting form?" she asked. "I've never seen anything like it before."
"Months ago, I was training with Yoruichi. She made a comment that this form I created was more powerful than her Shunko form. I know now that is not true. It is not more powerful, but it is the completed form of Shunko."
The trio exchanged glances of surprise at the revelation. "Completed?" Naomi asked. "But... Yoruichi... so strong."
"The form of Shunko used by Yoruichi and Captain Soi Fon," Tamotsu continued, "is incomplete. Yoruichi admitted this herself, and not even she is able to control it completely. This form is used by combining Kido and Hakudo techniques. They focus the Kido outward. This is why the back and sleeves are torn apart when they enter this mode. Mine is focused inward. In order to understand fully how it works, you must be aware of how Kido itself works. To perform Kido, the user focuses their reiatsu from within their bodies and manipulates it. The first Shinigami discovered this and devised one hundred destructive spells, the Hado, and one hundred other spells which include binding, known as Bakudo."
"How do you know this?" Kisaki asked.
Tamotsu smiled. "Would you believe me if I told you I was there?"
Naomi and Takeo exchanged glances and grinned.
"Anyway, the manipulation of reiatsu to form new spells was difficult so the original Shinigami perfected several that could be used by any Shinigami with enough reiatsu. I'm sure you've noted that I'm able to manipulate and alter various spells. This is how I am able to do it. It is because I understand the basic fundamentals."
Holding out his finger, Tamotsu fired a blast of blue lightning at a rock. "Hado number four. Byakurai. A concentrated blast of electricity from the user's fingers. But what if it were not concentrated? And what if it were fired from multiple fingers?" Moving his hand out once again, what appeared to be a lightning storm erupted from the tips of his fingers and danced around, each bolt finding objects in which to ground itself. "A modification of Byakurai. For lack of a better name, I call this Palpatine."
Takeo chuckled silently at the appropriate name given to the technique.
"There is one more thing. While in this fighting mode, there is more than increased speed and power. You open yourself fully to Kido, your reiatsu flowing freely through your body. While this is in effect you are able to see the world using reishi. Reishi is a form of energy. Look at the ground. You see sand under your feet. But that sand is made of smaller particles. Move smaller and we get molecules, and then atoms. And atoms are made of energy. I will teach you how to see this. Takeo. Come here please."
Takeo obeyed and stood in front of Tamotsu, who held up a blindfold.
"Just as you have learned to speak without your voice, you must now learn to see without your eyes." Tamotsu placed the blindfold over Takeo's eyes and motioned for the others to step back. "You cannot always trust your eyes. They deceive you. Trust what you see without your eyes. Open yourself to the reiatsu within yourself. See the energy in the world all around you."
Walking to Takeo's side, Tamotsu could sense that he was beginning to see.
"Feel my reiatsu. See where it is. See where it is going. This is how I'm able to know where someone will exit from Shunpo, even though I cannot perform the technique myself. Feel my movements. When you can perceive my movements you can match them. Anticipate them. Mimic them."
Tamotsu entered a starting stance and a second later Takeo matched him. A step forward with a slow strike and again Takeo followed. The movements moved slowly and gracefully, Takeo only half a second behind but quickly catching up as the movements became more elaborate. A quick punching strike and Takeo matched it as if only following in its shadow.
A soft blue-green glow began to appear around Takeo as a bright blue glow appeared around Tamotsu. The two jumped and spun around, each striking at an invisible foe. A double kick combination and the two of them were almost in perfect sync. Even though he could not see Tamotsu's movements, Takeo could sense them.
Several move movements followed and before long it looked as though the two were performing a perfectly choreographed routine. The pace suddenly changed as Tamotsu stopped, then struck at Takeo who blocked hard. Sparks flew from the point of contact and Tamotsu struck again. Takeo did not block this strike, but redirected it and countered. Takeo kicked, Tamotsu guiding it away from him and spinning with a backhand technique.
The two increased in speed and before long were going full speed. What was more, they did not use hard blocks. Every strike seemed to be met with the perfect counterstrike using minimal effort. To an outsider it would have appeared to be a well rehearsed martial arts demonstration. But to those watching it was far more.
Jumping back, Tamotsu and Takeo struck a ready stance at exactly the same moment. Tamotsu opened his eyes and Takeo removed the blindfold, the glow fading from them both. "Well done," Tamotsu said. "Now you are like me."
From the distance, Tier Harribel had witnessed the entire proceeding. She folded her arms and narrowed her eyes, her three Fracciones standing behind her.
"He does seem to be quite skilled," Sung-Sun commented. "Both as an instructor and leader."
"Ha!" Apacci said. "I just don't like working with the Shinigami. As long as I get to break a few bones during the big fight I don't care. He'll deserve whatever Tamotsu throws at him."
"What are you thinking, Lady Harribel?" Mila Rose asked.
Harribel was silent a moment, then answered. "If he is that skilled during the attack, we may just be able to pull of this plan of his."
Notes From the Author
Wow. A bit longer than I expected for this chapter, but we're getting closer. I hope I'm getting a good balance between Tamotsu's past and the current story going on, I felt that this part of his past fit because of his later explanation of how Kido works.