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Sorry for the late update, I'm just getting over a cold that knocked me about badly. Hope this makes up for the wait!

Chapter 30: There To Use Them

The night had been tense, after more Arrancar had shown up in town, easily dominating against the Shinigami who fought them at first, before finally they had been defeated. To say that the Vizards had been riled up, was an understatement. Kensei had wanted to go out, and show them how it was done, but even he knew better. So, they laid low, and while some took it out on each other by sparring more, Mashiro slept obliviously, while Kirara and Rose had stayed on the roof talking and feeling out for what happened.

Kirara yawned, having been awake most of the night as a result. She was stretched across the sofa, while Rose played his violin nearby, allowing them to relax. After the fiasco the previous day, Kirara had refused to go back to school, and this time, Shinji had accepted it.

"Rose, why do you play music so much?" Kirara asked suddenly, leaning on the back of the sofa as she looked over to him.

"My inner symphony demands it, my dear," Rose smiled. "I always feel much more at peace when I play, so much so that all I can think of is composing something new," he explained, looking over to her. He had a soft spot for the girl, who had held a sort of sadness within her for a long time after they had become Vizards. They had spent a lot of time together, just talking about music, the changing seasons, even about food from different countries. Anything that caught their fancy, they talked about. She didn't grow exasperated with him rambling on, she seemed to enjoy it. And he simply just wanted to help her fight off the sadness, even if it was only by playing music.

Kirara fell quiet for a moment, seeming to be thinking, before she spoke again.

"You reckon we could find that café again? The one on the corner of the street that gave a view of the entire road?" she asked him, her blue eyes lifting to meet his purple ones. "It was really nice when the leaves were falling, and it's getting close to that time of year again," Kirara pointed out.

"I completely agree," Rose nodded. "That place helped me compose one of my favourite melodies yet," he began to play again, and Kirara watched him. She was thinking to herself about the changing seasons, and what it meant. There wasn't that much time left before the Hogyoku would be completely awakened. Urahara had predicted it would be winter time when Aizen would return with an army of Arrancar. And considering there were already a great deal showing up in town, it didn't bode well. To Kirara, the changing seasons represented time running out, to decide if they would join the brewing war.

"You know..." Kirara felt an arm wrap around her waist, and she was snapped from her thoughts as she was pulled down into Shinji. "A guy could get jealous, you know, if it wasn't for the fact that it was Rose," he commented with a chuckle.

"I'd be worried if you were jealous of Rose," Kirara smiled back at him, moving so she was more comfortable in his grip when he sat down.

"Me too," Shinji agreed, making her giggle. She leaned her head back, resting it on his shoulder as she looked up at him, her back pressed into him. He kissed her forehead, and her smile grew. She shifted, making herself more comfortable as she closed her eyes, making his grip tighten on her.

"Hey Shinji, let's go out for dinner tonight," Kirara said suddenly, opening her eyes.

"What? But you can feel it, can't you?" Shinji frowned at her. Kirara pouted at him.

"Come on, it's only for a little while, I'm sure nobody will die during then," she turned in his grip, putting her arms around his neck. "Please?" she asked hopefully.

"But..." Shinji started, and sighed. "Fine," he agreed, unable to find it in him to argue with her. Hearing a chuckle behind them, he turned his head to glare at Rose, who just kept playing, feigning innocence. Kirara grinned too, having heard him as well, and leaned in, kissing Shinji quickly before letting him go and jumping up.

"Come on Rose, best put that away now!" she called to him cheerfully. "We're gonna have a guest soon!" she told him.

"I suppose you're right," Rose stopped playing and placed the old, worn violin back in its case, followed by the bow.

"Hey, you guys feel that?" Kensei called as he and Love walked up from the training grounds. It closed up behind them, and Kensei stretched.

"I guess that last whooping he took was the final straw for the kid," Love commented. Slowly, the Vizards grouped together, waiting until a figure walked in through the bay doors. The metal shutter began to close behind him, leaving Ichigo standing on the main floor, aware of multiple eyes on him.

"Good job finding this place, Ichigo," Shinji called down as the Vizards all looked down at the orange-haired boy. In his jeans and blue jacket, he looked almost normal, if not for his poorly controlled Reiatsu. "My, so serious," Kirara rolled her eyes, standing beside Rose with her arms folded. "I wonder what that means...wait, have you finally decided to join us? I'm sort of impressed you found our hideout. I don't mean to put you down, but it is a surprise considering how much you usually suck at detecting Reiatsu," Shinji taunted him. "The bottom line is, I figured you'd come here...eventually. To make it easier for you, we got together and pumped out as much Reiatsu as we could to help you find your way here," he explained. Kirara frowned at his lie. It wasn't even a fraction of their true strength. They didn't want to alert anyone else. "I guess it must have worked...the fact that you're here, tells me you've finally decided to come over to our side, am I right?" Shinji asked. Ichigo lifted his head, glaring defiantly at him.

"Bite me!" Ichigo snapped, his answer taking Shinji by surprise. Kirara giggled, expecting such a response. Ichigo wasn't the type to come grovelling. "I have no intention of joining up with you people," he told them when Shinji yelped in alarm. Kirara couldn't stop her giggles, and Rose elbowed her gently, but was watching Ichigo curiously. "I'm not that desperate. So don't kid yourself," Ichigo smirked. "I'm here to use you, Shinji," he told the blond, who frowned, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, is that so?" he asked, quieter and less taunting in his attitude.

"I came here with one purpose in mind, and I'm not leaving till I get it," Ichigo explained. None of the other Vizards spoke, taking in the boy they hadn't seen properly before. "I want you to teach me how to control the Hollow inside me. After that, I'm outta here," Ichigo told them coldly.

"You must think we're just a bunch of pushovers," Shinji commented, watching him with slight amusement.

"I'll make you teach me," Ichigo growled.

"Oh yeah? How so?" Shinji frowned at him.

"Guess I'll beat it outta ya," Ichigo told him confidently.

"You're welcome to try," Shinji challenged him. Ichigo grabbed the pass from his side, the one Kirara had seen him with before, pressing it to his chest. His soul immediately burst from his body, clad in his Shinigami uniform. He leapt through the air and grabbed his Zanpakuto, but as he flew towards Shinji, another figure intercepted and slammed a leg into him. Ichigo crashed to the ground with enough force to crack it, and Kirara landed nearby.

"Wow, you didn't see that move coming?" Kirara tilted her head, resting her hand on her hip.

"Ki...Kirara..." Ichigo growled as he pushed himself up out of the rubble, already bleeding.

"Uh, Kirara? I had it covered you know!" Shinji called down to her, mildly irritated.

"Hah! You had nothing covered!" Kirara scoffed loudly. "You are a pushover Shinji, you'd have held back against this idiot and we'd just have been sitting here twiddling our thumbs, bored outta our minds," she told him.

"She has a point," Hiyori muttered, earning a glare.

"Well Ichigo? Are you gonna beat how to control your Inner Hollow outta me?" Kirara challenged, turning her attention back to Ichigo. He glared at her, hesitating, which left Kirara an opening. She rolled her eyes, and used Shunpo, reappearing in front of Ichigo. His eyes widened, and he managed to block her kick with his Zanpakuto, only for her to grab her own from its sheath on her back.

Ichigo went flying through the air, and Kirara followed, swinging her Zanpakuto as she continued to throw him around. "Come on Ichigo! Fight back! Are you holding back because I'm a girl and you don't want to hurt me?" Kirara mocked.

"Shut up!" Ichigo yelled at her.

"Or is it because I was your classmate?" Kirara kept going. "I was in your class for months Ichigo, I was there when Rukia joined, when Orihime and Chad were attacked by Hollows, when that kid's spirit was stuck in a bird, even when your Konpaku terrorised the class!" Ichigo's glare darkened. "I knew Uryu was a Quincy, I was even there when Orihime developed her powers! And I knew when the Captain and Lieutenant attacked and almost killed you and Uryu," Kirara kept pushing him. "I've been there the whole time, keeping an eye on you, watching for any changes. And the worst part? I befriended your friends," Ichigo's eyes blazed.

"Shut up..." Ichigo's voice was quiet, but his Reiatsu blazed.

"Keigo and Mizuiro, they were pretty funny as far as humans go," Kirara shrugged. "Chad was cool. And Tatsuki and Orihime were nice, we went for food. A bunch of us even hung out over the summer! Me and Tatsuki even went to a festival when you, Orihime, Chad and Uryu were in the Soul Society!" she raised her Zanpakuto and easily blocked Ichigo's strike. "About damn time. I was starting to think my goading wouldn't work," Kirara smirked at him.

"They all thought you were their friend!" Ichigo yelled, only to be shoved back.

"Like I care!" Kirara mocked. "So come on Ichigo, show me that Inner Hollow of yours," she told him.

"Never!" Ichigo shook his head. Kirara rolled her eyes.

"Ichigo, you've got an Inner Hollow. That makes you one of us," her voice was less harsh now as she stood opposite him. "It's not really your choice in the matter. Either you join us, or we'll have to kill you," Kirara told him. "So show me your Hollow," she said.

"I just said I won't do it!" Ichigo shook his head, and Kirara sighed heavily.

"Hachi?" she called suddenly, making Ichigo frown in confusion.

"Yes Kirara?" the pink-haired man called back.

"Add a couple more layers to the forcefield. This may get a little bumpy," she told him.

"As you wish..." Hachi sighed heavily, putting his hands together. Kirara then looked back up at Ichigo, her expression flat.

"Like I said Ichigo, it isn't your choice. You're full of it, coming in here claiming you'll beat the way out of us. Like it's that damn easy to control your Hollow!" Kirara lifted her hand. Ichigo's eyes widened as navy light formed by her hand, and a white substance began to form. Angling her hand, Kirara dragged it down and across her face, leaving her in her mask.

"Her...Hollow..." Ichigo breathed, alarmed. Part of him felt sick, finally forced to accept that Kirara wasn't a normal classmate. She wasn't even a normal Shinigami. She was something far more vicious.

"Show us your power, Ichigo," Kirara's voice was warped. "Or you'll be dead," she disappeared, and before Ichigo realised it, he was being thrown to the ground hard. Slamming to the ground, he let out a choke as the air was forced from his lungs.

"Kirara, don't go too far with this! You're not supposed to kill him!" Rose reminded her, worried.

"I won't, if he would hurry up and Hollowfy already!" Kirara called back. Ichigo pushed himself up, and grabbed his Zanpakuto. He leapt back into the air and swung with a yell, slamming the blade against Kirara's. She barely even reacted to it.

"You're still holding back. Are you really that damn scared of your Hollow, Ichigo?" Kirara asked him, shoving him back. "Put some fight into this!" she leapt at him and swung her Zanpakuto. Ichigo blocked, but the blade of his sword chipped from the attack. "Good god, right now you're absolutely useless. I don't know why we've bothered with you this long," Kirara shook her head, and lifted her Mask. Her eyes were completely black, with gold irises. "All that power, wasted, because you're too scared to do anything about it," Kirara shook her head and pulled her Mask back on, attacking again.

As Ichigo slammed into the wall behind him, Kirara watched from midair, almost bored. Under her Mask, her expression was pitying. Ichigo was far stronger than this. If he put full energy into the fight instead of holding back, he'd have given her a real challenge, even before he used his Bankai. After all, he'd been trained by Urahara, and Yoruichi. But he continued to hold back, scared of his Hollow. "Ichigo, you don't seem to realise that I'm going to kill you if you don't fight back here," Kirara told him with a sigh. "Then what will happen to your friends?" she asked him, tilting her head. Ichigo growled, lunging at her again, but Kirara easily blocked his strike. He watched her carefully as she moved, and Kirara sighed. "That won't work, Ichigo," she said.

"What won't work?!" he demanded angrily, shoving at her. Kirara put more strength behind her sword to shove him back slightly. Black was starting to fill his eyes, turning his brown eyes golden.

"Watching me use my Mask. That won't help you control yours," she told him. Ichigo's glare darkened, realising she'd caught on to what he was doing. "I've been telling you what will work, so why don't you just listen?!" Ichigo's eyes widened as Kirara was in front of him before he could blink. He barely managed to avoid her Zanpakuto, but a rip in his robes told him that he hadn't escaped completely unscathed. Her Zanpakuto came at him again, and Ichigo swung to block, but her attack managed to crack his sword's blade even more.

"No, I won't do it! I won't let my Hollow out!" Ichigo yelled at her, wiping blood from his face before it could run into his eyes. Kirara sighed heavily. "You're insane to think that I would!" he shouted at her. Kirara's irritation grew. She was getting fed up with him arguing against her. He'd come to them for help, and was arguing against everything that she said.

"Fine," Kirara breathed slowly, and returned her Zanpakuto to its sheath on her back. Ichigo frowned, not understanding what she was doing.

"Kirara, don't!" Mashiro cried up at her.

"That's a little much, don't you think?" Love frowned. Ichigo glanced to them for a moment, wondering just why her putting away her Zanpakuto was bad.

"You're not supposed to kill him, you idiot!" Kensei even spoke up, looking irritated.

"You're not going to let your Hollow out, Ichigo?" Kirara ignored the Vizards below. "Fine then. I guess I have no choice but to kill you," she tensed, and disappeared. She reappeared behind Ichigo, whose eyes widened as he looked around, only for her leg to slam into him. As he flew through the air, struggling to right himself, Kirara reappeared in front of him, and her other leg caught him in the stomach. Ichigo cried out in pain, and Kirara stopped above him, slamming him to the ground with another powerful kick.

"Dammit..." Ichigo rolled onto his front, propping himself up on his hands and knees as he coughed up blood. She was even stronger without the use of her Zanpakuto, and her attacks reminded him of Yoruichi. She was certainly fast enough, though still not as fast as his teacher. Grabbing his Zanpakuto, his grip tightened. The blade was chipped in multiple places, and would end up broken completely if he wasn't careful. But none of that mattered. All that mattered was fighting with Kirara until he understood how she suppressed her Inner Hollow and used its powers for her own. He wouldn't give in to her demands. He'd not let his Hollow out to fight her.

"I guess I have to finish this...what a waste of my time," Kirara shook her head. After all her time watching him, he'd amounted to a scared kid who wouldn't even listen when people tried to help him. What a waste of potential. She launched at him again, and Ichigo went to fight her, but her punch slammed him into the wall. He choked up more blood, falling forwards.

Kirara felt the pulse less than a second before she was attacked. Ichigo let out a shriek as a white Mask formed across part of his face, leaving him with a wide, demented smirk as he leapt at her. All of the Vizards jolted as they felt the sudden power increase, and Kirara barely managed to dodge Ichigo as he flew at her, his hand outstretched and aiming for her neck. As he sailed past her, he spun and kicked her hard, with enough force to send her flying backwards. Kirara slammed into a pillar hard enough to crack it the entire way through, and she bounced off it from the ricochet. The next thing Ichigo knew, he was being pinned to the ground by rest of the Vizards, all with their swords drawn.

"Alright, that's enough," with a quick jab, Shinji broke through Ichigo's Mask. "Happy now, Kirara?" he called up to the Vizard, who just lifted a hand to give a thumbs up, not moving other than that. Ichigo had given her a serious kick, and she was pretty sure he'd broken something. "You understand now, don't you, Ichigo?" Shinji asked as the rest of the group stood up off him, leaving Ichigo on the ground. "Your Hollow can't be suppressed simply by focusing your mind on stopping it, and it can't be stopped with your body either," the black disappeared from Ichigo's eyes, and Shinji sighed as he looked around at him. "You pass. We'll teach you control, you'll learn how to deal with that Hollow inside of you," he turned back to the boy still lying on the ground.

Kirara squirmed, uncomfortable as Hachi hovered his glowing hands over her.

"Please lie still Kirara," he requested as he focused on her ribs. Her exposed skin was already blotched purple and blue from bruises. "I can't heal broken bones with you moving," the giant man told her softly.

"You shouldn't heal them at all, it's the idiot's fault for aggravating the kid that much," Kensei grunted.

"What would you have suggested then Kensei?" Kirara shot him an irritated look. "Let him and Shinji fight like little old ladies until we die of boredom?" she asked.

"I had it handled," Shinji muttered.

"My ass you did," Kirara scoffed.

"I think Rose is right in calling you callous," Kirara stuck her tongue out at Shinji when she heard his comment. Nearby, Ichigo was trying to ignore them, running on a bizarre contraption that looked like a ski machine, which Hiyori had created. He had initially protested, but Hiyori, who seemed to have decided to be in charge of his training, hadn't given him a choice.

"That should be okay now," Hachi finally finished, and Kirara sat up, stretching.

"Thanks Hachi," she smiled brightly at him, getting to her feet. Her stomach was still bruised and hurt a little to move, but it was a lot better than it had been. Tugging down her top to hide most of the bruises, Kirara then lifted her discarded jacket and shrugged it back on.

"Going somewhere?" Lisa asked, her eyes peeking out from over her book.

"Dinner," Kirara told her with a shrug, and Shinji's hand landed on her head. She smiled as he trailed his hand down her face, and leaned in to kiss her. "Later guys!" Kirara called cheerily as she pulled away and took his hand.

"Wait a second, you're just leaving us with the kid?" Kensei yelled as the two left.

"He's on the Super Trainer, he'll be fine," Kirara waved a dismissive hand.

"And what about our dinner?" Mashiro pouted.

"Get it yourself," Shinji rolled his eyes, and they disappeared out of the warehouse.

"They really have gotten worse," Hiyori muttered with a roll of her eyes.

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