Hello fellow fanfictioners!
It has certainly been a while hasn't it? I've missed you guys all so much that I decided to write this chapter just for you guys!
It's been a long and hard war but I just beat writer's block in the last firefight and this chapter was the victory prize!
I hope that you all enjoy it!
Disclaimer: I do not in any way claim ownership of Naruto/ Naruto Shippuden or Bleach. They are the respective properties of Masashi Kishimoto and Tite Kubo.
I do however claim ownership to any and all OC's used in this story (they're mine! ;))
It was truly a bewildering sight, the soft green glow emanating from between her claws as she held them gently against the wounded hollow's grievous injury.
The hollow growled weakly at the feeling of another making contact with his own flesh and bone. In the realm of Hueco Mundo that almost always entailed death.
In the realm of Hueco Mundo the only religion was survival, the only lesson in life: Kill or be killed. The Hollow knew this all too well, that there was nothing that wouldn't kill if given the opportunity to do so.
It was simply the way of things.
The burning pain in his thigh began to fade into a mere tingling sensation. Looking at his wound he noticed that the shards of foreign bone embedded into his flesh were beginning to dissolve, allowing the blood they were clotting to flow freely from the wound, staining the white of his bone with the bright crimson of his own blood.
This glowing Hollow was indeed killing him! Removing the bone only so that he could bleed to death slowly.
He noticed with a vague sense of interest that he wasn't surprised at this act of cruelty.
It was Hueco Mundo, kindness was an illusion and cruelty a certainty.
He hissed, letting the female know that he would not die submissively, that he would defy his end to the end, regardless of whether he cared about living or not.
He stared into her eyes.
Those deep pools of amber-flecked brown present in each orb.
Those eyes… staring at him not with hunger, but with something else entirely.
Was it pity? Did this Hollow pity him? This useless, weak, glowing Hollow?
For a moment he thought that he should be angry at the fact that he was pitied for his very existence.
But he had lived for far too long to be so naïve.
Pity… that sounded about right.
Hollows were souls who had lost their way, who were abused, tormented and forgotten. They deserved to be pitied.
No.
He couldn't blame her for her feelings. Pity was all that their kind deserved.
Other than rage, pity was all that they could hold on to.
He opened his jaws, extending several rows of wicked white fangs and readied himself to remove the Hollows hands from her body.
Her eyes never left his even as his head snapped forward to complete his final act of defiance.
And then she started cooing.
It was in that moment that he became truly lost.
She wasn't surprised at his reactions.
Hueco Mundo was a desolate world, one without any hope. If they're positions were reversed then she would probably act in exactly the same manner. She watched with fascination as her glowing hands began to slowly knit the Hollow's flesh back together.
As soon as she wondered how she was able to accomplish such a feat it came to her in a flash.
The Ghost of a blonde haired woman wearing a green coat and with a purple crystal adorning her forehead was kneeling next to her.
And beneath her hands the monster had been replaced with a smaller, furrier version that kept on making these odd mewling sounds.
She forced herself not to recoil as the woman placed her hands on top of her own.
"You're doing it all wrong." The woman chided.
"Sensei?"
"Healing isn't like breathing a fireball or wielding water as a weapon, it isn't about the expulsion or moulding of chakra… it's about the emotion."
"I don't understand, what are you saying sensei?"
The woman sighed and squeezed her hands gently.
"Expulsion is important… but you need to pour your emotions into it as well, tell your chakra what it is you want to do. To heal, whether it is your friend or your enemy you need to want to heal before you actually can."
Breathing deeply she placed her hands over the stomach of the sick cat and slowly but surely the green glow began to appear from the palms of her hands.
Suddenly the cat hissed and swiped at her.
The woman beside her began roaring with laughter.
"Sensei! It's not funny!"
"Oh but it is! You have to remember that your patient has to be calm, and to trust you… does it look like poor old Mr Buttons trusts you?"
"… Then how am I supposed to do this Sensei?"
The woman smiled softly.
"That's up to you Rin. Every healer has a different method, it's up to you to find yours."
Did she want to heal this monster?
…
Yes. Yes, she did.
She looked on indifferently as the Hollow bared his fangs, ready to strike out at her.
She knew that she had to do something, or the Hollow would definitely kill her despite her efforts to save his life.
Another, more familiar hand laid itself on top of her own and out of the corner of her eye she saw her boy once again gazing at her with a gentle smile on his face.
"Sing… Sing to me Rin."
Sing?
She wanted to whine with frustration at the very notion.
She couldn't sing, she wasn't physically capable of it, none of creatures in this world were.
"I'm not very good at it Obito!" The voice inside her head shouted at the phantom.
"You won't know until you try!" The phantom replied, with a boisterous laugh, before fading away like dust in the wind.
Her hole ached at his disappearance.
Try?
Certainly she could do that right? She owed the Hollow that much in order to gain his trust.
The head snapped forward.
And so she tried... and she began to sing.
The notes coming from her throat sounded strange. It had been so long since she had tried making any sound for any extended period of time. At most since she had woken up in this place, the most she had done was emit the odd growl or shriek every now and then in order to fend off monsters, who would otherwise have tried to harm her.
It sounded strange indeed, a sound she had never even imagined could exist, so soft and delicate as though the slightest wisp of breath could shatter it into a million pieces. It was utterly beautiful.
The hollow had frozen, razor sharp teeth hovering a few inches from the interlocking bone plates covering her wrists.
She watched the myriad of emotions dancing within the cold green eyes of her… patient.
Shock, confusion and strangely enough… a sense of wonderment, of reverence.
She held his gaze as the soft sounds escaped from her mouth, dancing off of her tongue into the still air.
The Hollow never let his gaze wander from her own even as he retracted his head and rested it on the ground.
Slowly, ever so slowly his eyes began to droop lower and lower until finally, with a final huff of air, they shut completely.
She wondered briefly whether the monster was dead.
She felt a strange sort of relief when she witnessed the rise and fall of his chest.
Looking around she saw that the woman had vanished as well, leaving her entirely alone.
Alone in the darkness of the cave, with only the monster as company.
Why was she doing this? Was it solely for the boy? Was it worth risking her life to heal this monster who would most likely kill her after she had finished.
After all, only the strong and the merciless could survive in this hell, and it was clear she was neither of those things.
So why then?
Why shouldn't she extinguish her glowing hands and feast upon this vulnerable, unsuspecting prey?
She could! It would be so easy…
NO!
Her head whipped around as she looked for the phantom that had voiced their objections so loudly she thought that surely even the monster would be able to hear them.
It took her several moments before she realised that the voice had come within her.
No… of course she couldn't kill the creature.
But why not? Why didn't she want to kill?
These are the hands of a healer.
That statement didn't mean anything here, so why come up at all? She shivered, almost stopping her
song when she heard the woman whispering in her ear despite the fact that she couldn't see her this time.
You have to want to heal.
Did she? Did she want to heal this monster?
She pondered on that line of thought for a brief moment before nodding resolutely.
Yes.
The glow intensified and the song continued onwards.
He screamed.
"RIN!"
Gritting his teeth, Tobi clutched at the eye that held his recently acquired Rinnegan.
Ever since the day she died he had found himself plagued by the nightmares.
Every time it was the same.
He saw Rin, standing there before a doorway of the purest light.
On her chest, the strangest thing. An open chain with only a few links on it.
She simply stood there smiling softly at him. She stood there, waving at him with silent words leaving her mouth.
'Goodbye Obito… I love you.'
Then a hand placed itself onto her shoulder as though telling her that it was time to go.
The hand retracted itself as she turned around and began to walk into the light.
That's when it happened. It was that same person who placed their hand on her shoulder.
An arm, shooting from the light wrapping cold, white fingers around her throat.
Her slender, beautiful and perfect throat.
She screamed in horror as the grip tightened.
He roared, trying to get to her, to rip the owner of the limb into a hundred gory pieces, but each time it was as though his body was made of lead.
He just moved so slowly that he might as well have done nothing at all.
Another hand emerged and grasped the chain attached to Rin and began pulling.
All he could do was hear her screams of fear… of pure agony as the chain was pulled out of her along with a piece of her chest, leaving a sickly hole in its' place.
In the blink of an eye the doorway of light, along with the limbs had disappeared entirely.
He was left all alone with a sobbing Rin in the middle of a world of darkness.
That's when the howling began. A dreadful sound, as though a thousand wolves were howling at the moon.
Rin would turn to him, her eyes empty of life and her teeth gnashing with hunger.
All he could do was stand there, watching as her skin bulged and burst away, replacing soft and pink flesh with hard white bone.
All he could do was watch as his beautiful Rin turned into a monster before his very eyes. Then she would lunge at him and that's when he would wake up screaming.
Ignoring the cold sweat that drenched his futon he got up and dressed himself, before proceeding to head deeper into the labyrinth of his hideout.
'I don't have time to waste on such ludicrous nightmares! I have a war to win and a dream to fulfil!'
"You look tired."
Focusing on the events around him once more he saw that the miserable wretch Kabuto was leaning against the door he wished to enter, effectively blocking his path.
"What's the matter? Bad dreams? I have something that might help with that… if you want it?" The offer itself could almost be seen as genuine, if it weren't for the cold and calculating smile present on the abominations' face.
"And why would you think something like that?"
Kabuto's grin grew and a malicious glint entered into his eyes.
"We're allies aren't we? Therefore it's in my best interests that you are kept in the best possible shape, both physically and mentally to ensure that we have the best possible chance for success, am I right?"
Tobi narrowed his eyes at the snake master.
"No."
"No?"
"We aren't allies."
Kabuto feigned shock and hurt, planting a scaly white hand over his heart as though it had been broken by his words.
"And why would you say such a thing? If we aren't allies then what are we?"
Tobi didn't even hesitate with his reply.
"We're using one another."
Kabuto laughed, moving away from the door and began walking past Tobi.
"You know… you should really get some more sleep." He whispered mockingly before moving onwards.
Before Kabuto's form disappeared from sight Tobi replied.
"Monsters don't need to sleep."
Well there you go!
I hope you liked it!
I will try to write the next chapter as soon as I can but work is crazy and writer's block is a constant danger.
So all I can promise is that I will try my best.
Until next time fellow fanfictioners!