Chapter 4

Four years later

The winter had finally given way to the rebirth of Spring, warming the freezing air to a fresh blend of freshly bloomed flowers and crisp air. The sky was no longer a lifeless gray, but blue that was as pure as the crystal waves with a sun that was so bright, its mere rays were enough to mesmerize even the strongest of Shinigami.

Four years it had been since arriving at the Shinigami Academy with only the clothes on her back and the gratitude for a man whom had shown her kindness, as well as a place she could call home. Three long, trying years that had resulted in a graduation with her head held high and Zanpakutō at her side. She had graduated fast, taking three years, and had even gotten assigned to the 13th Division for her first year as a fresh Shinigami to learn and train with that very same man.

But now, she had new orders.

She no longer wore the tattered rags, but the familiar black Shihakushō of the Shinigami with white obi around her waist that held her Zanpakutō to her hip. Her sleeves were trimmed to her upper arms with a thick golden band that encircled one, far more defined bicep, and the collar of her top did a modest dive, revealing only a tidbit of her chest that was wrapped with black bandaging. Her hair was still long, but far healthier, falling all the way to her lower back. She had pulled it up into a high ponytail with several locks that had fallen loose that she had colored snow white in honor of her first Captain, new father figure and friend.

But that is not what typically caught the attention of her peers, but rather the black collar with silver twist clasp around her neck that did. That is what aided her most in controlling her massive amounts of spiritual power instead of solely relying on her will power, which only marginally worked. That black choker is her restraint collar.

This first day of Spring however, was a nervous one for Nyruki Sawada, as she had just received her new orders to join her new squad in the Gotei 13. She had been assigned to Squad 6 under the stoney gaze of Captain Byakuya Kuchiki. It wasn't the fact that she would be his subordinate that made her nervous, she had actively chosen to become apart of Squad 6, but she was nervous that she wouldn't be able to repay him for the pond she had inadvertently destroyed.

She had arrived at the Squad 6 barracks and was making her way through the somewhat active hallways on her way to her new captain's office at the end of the hall. No one really paid her any mind, save for a few that recognized the choker around her throat. It was no secret that she possessed massive amounts of spiritual power, but it always made her feel a little uneasy when others would whisper as she passed by.

She reached her captain's double wide office door and stood in front of it with her fist raised, but she made no move to knock as she stared at the black silhouette of a camellia flower on the door.

In the last three years, her interactions with the nobleman had been limited, but she had trained extensively with all the captains due to her high spiritual pressure. They were the only ones capable of actually providing a training session once she had reached a certain proficiency and that was only because they could withstand the sheer amount of weight.

Releasing a sigh, she finally brought her knuckles down against the wood of the door to get the attentions of whomever was inside. She heard the wooden groan of a chair slide across the floor and a moment later, the door opened.

Staring down at her was a tall, muscular man with the brightest red hair she had ever seen that was tied up to keep most of it out of his face. She could clearly see the myriad of tattoos that painted his tanned skin; his cloth covered forehead, neck, and at the very least, the center of his chest had all been colored with tribal black markings. His grin was big, albeit sheepish, as if he was far too thrilled to have a newcomer to the squad.

"There you are! I'm Lieutenant Renji Abarai." He said, resting his hands on his hips as he continued to beam down at her.

Nyruki wasted no time in bowing, "Good morning, Lieutenant. I'm Nyruki Sawada. I apologize for being a bit late... I got lost." She admitted with a barely there blush spilling across her no longer gaunt cheeks.

"Enter, Ms. Sawada." Came a deep, but calm voice from behind the Lieutenant.

Renji stepped aside to allow Nyruki to enter into the office that was filled with only the essentials. A pair of full bookshelves lined the walls on either side and faced each other, with a pair of desks the filled the center and a couch along the interior wall was all that filled the room.

Sitting behind the larger of the two desks, in front of the large window, her captain, Byakuya Kuchiki, sat with pen in hand and a stack of papers at his side.

"Good morning, Captain Kuchiki! I apologize for my tardiness!" She repeated, bowing deep once more towards the floor.

"Take a seat." He said, using his silver eyes to motion to a chair that sat in front of his desk.

Nyruki moved without hesitation and sat with her papers in hand that she rested in her lap without saying a single word.

"Shut the door, Lieutenant." Byakuya ordered, his steely expression never once faltering as he looked up from his paperwork.

Renji did as ordered and shut the door before coming to stand at the side of the desk with thick arms crossed over broad chest.

The three regarded each other in silence, not a single one making a move to speak as if they expected the other to make the first move. It quickly became awkward for Nyruki until the barest of flights from her captain's eyes flicked to the papers in her hand.

"Oh! I'm sorry! Here are my transfer papers, Captain." Nyruki said as she handed the small packet over to a long and elegant hand that reached out for them.

"I must admit, I wasn't expecting you the change squads. I thought you were happy under Captain Ukitake." Byakuya said as he read over her papers.

"Oh, I was... am... was," She stuttered and sucked in a breath, "I just needed to with the hopes of repaying my debt." Nyruki said, beginning to pick at her fingernails from nerves.

"Wait... What? What debt?" Renji asked, dropping his arms to his sides.

"She was the reason why my pond was destroyed four years ago." Byakuya said, shifting his eyes up to glance at his lieutenant.

"Oh... Oh, she's the one with that monstrous spiritual pressure!" Renji pointed at her while he gaped.

Byakuya simply nodded once.

"You picked Squad 6? With that kind of power, you could've joined Squad 11 and thrived." Renji said, recrossing his arms.

"I wanted to join Squad 6, Lieutenant." Nyruki said swiftly.

"Fair enough, I suppose." Renji said with a shrug.

Again, silence befell them as the Captain read through her paperwork with keen eyes and Nyruki took the time to study the man she had only ever met under official circumstances, this time included.

His posture was perfect, with shoulders straight, his back upright and his neck still, only pivoting his head about its top. His jet black hair was in perfect order and fluttered almost weightlessly against his perfectly kept skin that wrapped his attractive face. The way he carried himself was intimidating, prideful even, but at least it was all wrapped up in an attractive package.

Forcing herself to be comfortable in the silence, only broken by the soft rustle of the papers in her Captain's hands, Nyruki sighed and clasped her hands in her lap to keep herself from picking at her fingernails while she waited.

A few more minutes later, Byakuya set the papers down and picked up his pen from the desk, dipping it into the small black bottle before flipping to the back page and quickly signing it with the perfect sweeps of his writing.

"Everything is in order, Ms. Sawada. Do you need any assistance in settling in?" He asked as he handed Renji her papers to be properly filed.

"No, Captain. Everything I own I am currently wearing." She said, holding her head high.

"I see... Lieutenant?" Byakuya asked, never changing his posture.

"Yes, Captain?" Renji responded, standing up straighter with his wide shoulders back.

"Summon the squad to the training square." He ordered.

"Yes, Captain!" Renji bowed and left in the same amount of time it took Nyruki to take a normal breath.

The door closed, Nyruki found herself solely under the gaze of her new Captain and it raised a layer of nervous bumps along the back of her neck. His gaze was intense, it always had been and every time she was forced to look into that gaze during her training, she felt like she would blow away into ash.

"Your scores throughout your time at the academy were exceptional, Ms. Sawada." Byakuya began, resting his hands in his lap and neatly folding them.

Nyruki stared at the desk, waiting for him to continue.

"But why do you still hesitate to release your Zanpakutō? Your new orders still mention that you will actively look for reasons not to use it." He said.

That simple statement sent another nervous spike through her chest, as she was desperately hoping that he wouldn't have brought it up. She had foolishly hoped, but there was no forgetting the many training sessions she endured, both during the academy and after it, that she typically lost because of her reluctance to summon her Zanpakutō.

"Fear." She said simply, unable to bring herself to look at her Captain.

"It still persists?" Byakuya asked.

With a sigh, Nyruki finally brought herself to look into his eyes, "Yes, Captain. I don't believe this power should belong to me."

"I see." He said with lips a thread's width apart, "Follow me, Nyruki Sawada."

Nyruki held her breath for a moment in disbelief at the conversation's sudden and abrupt end, but under Captain Kuchiki's gaze, she stood and followed him from the office without a word of protest. His brows were softly drawn together as they walked, with members of the squad already heading to the training square of the Squad 6 barracks, passing them by in a rush to make sure they arrived before their Captain.

Outside, under the beams of the yellow sun and with the squad gathered around in a semi-circle, Captain Byakuya Kuchiki stood in the semi-circle's center with his hands clasped behind his back.

"Nyruki Sawada... Step forward." Byakuya called out, never moving, but with his eyes firmly set on her where she stood amongst the crowd.

With a gulp, she did as he commanded and took a step forward, revealing herself to the whole of Squad 6. She looked around at all the murmuring faces, and she knew without having to hear the words what they were most likely saying.

Closing his eyes, Byakuya went to one end of the arena and rested an elegant hand on the hilt of his Zanpakutō.

"Draw your sword." He said, finally opening his eyes and looking at her from across their battle ground.

She suddenly knew what was going on, and the realization caused her eyes to instantly go wide and her breath to hitch in her throat. She was being made to battle her Captain, in front of the entire squad.

"Go on. This isn't the first time. I'm just glad I get a break." Renji laughed from behind her, poking a finger into her shoulder to prod her forward.

Nyruki gulped again as she began to make her way to the opposite side of the arena, her own hand resting on the hilt of her blade, but with a mild, barely noticeable tremble.

"I will not repeat myself, Nyruki Sawada." Byakuya said, his voice still as calm as ever, but somehow conveyed his impatience.

Releasing her breath, Nyruki widened her stance and drew her sword in the same instant, bringing it to bare in front of her as she mentally prepared herself for what was to come. She knew her Captain's power, knew his abilities and all she needed to do was fend him off.

That was a tall order. A very tall, towering order.

In the blink of an eye, Byakuya flashed forward the length of the entire arena, reemerging directly in front of her with his sword clashed against hers. The metallic clang echoed throughout their arena, stinging in her ears for a moment, but that wasn't going to be enough to stop her.

She instantly reacted and slid her blade down the length of his, grinding its edge and flicked her wrist to launch her blade forward for a strike. However, Byakuya flashed out of sight in time to evade the sweeping arc of her blade as she swung it outwards to her side.

I know where you're going. She thought as she turned her head just enough to see him reappear, this time behind her. She raised her Zanpakutō and swung it behind her, smacking his blade away from the close call that would have found contact with her back. She leapt away, backflipping a number of times before landing on her feet with both hands clasped tightly on her blade's red and gold fabric covered handle.

Fine. We'll play this game, Captain. She thought again to herself, but this time, she didn't give him the time to act first.

Going on the offensive, she grit her teeth together and launched herself forward, her sword flipped around so that its blade pointed to the ground instead. She spun in mid-flight, whirling herself around with great speed in order to confuse the great Captain's sense of sight before she struck her blade against his for another metallic clang. She instantly moved again, spinning around and striking again, and again, and again with such ferocity that even his mouth tweaked into a sneer and his brows drew down.

Her flurry of blows soon only met air as he flash stepped away, reappearing behind her, but several steps away and out of her reach.

"Release your Zanpakutō, Nyruki Sawada." Byakuya said so only she could hear.

However, instead of answering, her expression did it for her as she scowled and gripped her sword tighter.

"Then I will force you."

As fast as lightning could flash, Byakuya was upon her once more, swinging his sword with such precision that it made it difficult for her to counter. His movements were perfect, not a single motion wasted as he struck and his strength was immense. From the outside, he appeared a thin man, but in reality he could level the strongest of Hollows without even breaking a sweat.

With another powerful strike, Nyruki blocked it with her sword, but the two became locked as their swords ground against each other from the strain and sheer amount of strength both poured into their blades.

"End this. Release your Zanpakutō." Byakuya said lowly, his brows pulled down over his eyes as he stared hard at her.

"Don't make me do this, Captain." Nyruki said in a voice that barely broke above a whisper.

With a hard grunt, Nyruki threw her arms forward, pushing her blade towards Byakuya and pushed him away from her, giving her a moment to catch her waining breath.

"Lieutenant Abarai!" Byakuya ordered, standing up straight with his blade still in hand.

The red-headed lieutenant grinned as he stepped from the crowd and drew his blade.

Now faced with two opponents, Nyruki was running out of options and she knew it. Her swordsmanship was good, yes, as she had been taught by Captain Ukitake himself. Her Kidō was good enough to hold its own against most, as she had learned that from Captain Kuchiki himself. But being faced with two opponents whom by all accounts could take on anything from Hueco Mundo and win, she realized her choices had dwindled to only one.

Pursing her lips together, she held the steel of her blade to her lips and spoke.

"Fall into desire; Kibōyūwaku."

With a bright flash of white, her blade vanished into a subtle mist that swirled and danced around her as if it was caught in the breeze. Her stomach churned at the thought, but it soon did not have time, nor the capacity to be nervous as the mist began to rush into her own lungs through her nose and mouth to succumb the whims of her own Zanpakutō.

Both Byakuya and Renji watched with lips slightly parted as the mist forced itself down Nyruki's throat. Her whole body went ridged, her arms tight at her sides with one hand still gripping the blade-less handle of her Zanpakutō. Her head was thrown back, mouth open as the mist continued to drift passed her lips, softly hissing like a barely there breeze until all of it, her entire Zanpakutō had vanished into her own body

"What's going on, Captain? Why is her own Zanpakutō attacking her?" Renji asked, tightening his hands on Zabimaru.

"I have no answer." Was all Byakuya said as he watched and waited.

After a few moments, her body released the tension that the mist had caused and her head lolled forward with her eyes covered by the drapes of the loose white locks of hair. However, her mouth with modest lips was quirked up into a smirk that only served to furrow her Captain's brow line all that much more.

"She warned you." Sang a voice from Nyruki's mouth, but it was slightly deeper; not the voice he had heard before.

"What? What's going on?" Renji asked, widening his stance and readying himself to release his Zanpakutō with a hand on its blade.

"She doesn't like it when I take the reins, which from where I'm standing, is a crying shame. The scenery is delicious." She laughed in a sultry vibrato as she raised her head, revealing her eyes that were no longer golden yellow, but bloody red.

Renji quietly gasped and made to attack, but stopped when his captain held his Zanpakutō out in front of him to clang against his sword.

"Do not take her lightly. Her Zanpakutō's ability is yet to be known to anyone and that is by her own doing." Byakuya warned, never removing his eyes from this new woman with the same face as Nyruki Sawada.

"What?" Renji yelped.

"What's wrong? Do you not wish to play anymore?" The woman cooed as she stepped forward with a sway in her hips that could not be ignored by anyone present.

"I've got this." Renji growled.

Renji swiftly got around Byakuya's sword and rushed towards Nyruki, whose personality had made a drastic shift. He had allowed it, simply to see what the woman would do. That is not Nyruki Sawada. This is a different person. Byakuya thought as he stood and watched what unfolded.

Renji raised his blade to attack, his throat rolling with a growl that could come from any savage animal, but as he brought his blade down to strike, the red-eyed Nyruki smirked with a look in her eyes that sent a shiver down his spine.

At the last moment, Nyruki flash stepped to the side in time to dodge his swing, burying his blade in the ground with a metal on stone howl that echoed around them. Her speed had become even faster and as he looked to his side to regain sight of her, she flash stepped right out of it.

This time, she struck as she thrust her foot forward into the back of his right knee, bringing him to a kneel. Before he could even think, a lithe hand had tightly gripped his throat and yanked him backwards into a painful arc that left him with the only option of looking up at her.

It had all happened faster than he could turn his head at the calling of his name.

"Like a fly in the spider's web. You, my delicious treat, are mine to do as I will." She said lowly, her tongue slicking out across her upper lip.

"W-What?" Renji choked, finding that her grip on his throat was far stronger than it appeared.

"Oh, you wait and see, my pet." She bit her bottom lip as she leaned over, bringing her face only an inch from his.

Renji began to struggle against her hold, but to no avail, as the extreme angle of his back made for limited movement. All he could do was grab her wrists and hope it would be enough.

Unfortunately for him, it wasn't.

His eyes wide, the woman's lips crushed down onto his and her tongue had forced its way into his mouth to pry his lips apart. He could feel the edges of her breath dancing just outside his mouth as her tongue slicked over his own. The action sent a fiery wave down his torso, but something was wrong, very wrong and he was all too aware of it.

A moment passed before the woman removed her lips from Renji's and released his throat, but Byakuya saw the ultra fine mist that trailed from her lips to his Lieutenant's. She had done something to him, but what, he would have to wait and see.

The woman turned to face him, with tongue slicking over her lips as if she had just finished a delightful meal. He looked passed her to see Renji was still arced painful backwards without her help, but his arms had gone limp at his sides and his mouth was parted as if he was still embraced in the woman's kiss.

"What did you do?" Byakuya asked calmly as he kept a close eye on both the woman and his Lieutenant.

"You'll see, or would you rather I do the same to you? I'd be more than happy to claim you for myself." The woman said as a mischievous grin spread across her lips.

His question was soon answered as Renji rose to his feet and turned to face them. He seemed normal at first glance, but Byakuya's keen eyes saw the singular difference that proved that the woman had done something to him.

Renji's brown eyes, normally colorful and expressive, were entirely blank, lacking any sort of vibrance, or life within their dark depths. They simply stared down at the woman in front of him as if he were blind and couldn't see at all.

Smiling, the woman stepped back against the much taller man and leaned back against him as if he were a wall, "How do you like my pet, Captain? Isn't he exquisite?"

Drawing in a long breath, Byakuya sheathed his sword and closed his eyes, "That is enough." He said sharply.

"Well that's not very fair. I was just starting to have fun." The woman cooed as she raised her arms and hooked them around Renji's neck above her head.

"Release your hold." Byakuya ordered, opening his eyes to convey his seriousness to the woman.

"Tsk... Oh well. Perhaps next time then, you and I will get to play." She winked before she turned to face the man whom had wrapped his arms around her protectively.

She softly trailed her hand down his face until her fingers reached his mouth. She slowly pulled them away, drawing the mist out from his body that fluttered delicately like smoke from a stick of incense until all of it had been removed.

In an instant, the life in Renji's eyes returned and he stumbled backwards, tripping over his sword to land on his backside on the ground with a firm bounce.

"What... What the hell! What did you do to me?" Renji demanded angrily, his fists curled tight into the dirt beneath him.

The woman didn't answer however. She merely stood with her shoulders slumped and head hung as the mist swirled around her and collected at the handle of her Zanpakutō to return to blade form.

"Nyruki Sawada?" Byakuya finally spoke, standing firm and without fear.

She raised her head to look at him again, but this time her eyes were gold, laced with unshed tears.

"I told you not to make me do this." She whimpered.

Before anything else could be said, she thrust the blade of her Zanpakutō into the ground and ran off, darting through the shocked crowd that had yet to say a word about what they had seen. He was still trying to make sense of it himself. How her eyes changed in color and her demeanor clearly was that of someone else. Her Zanpakutō? A possession type? No... She could spread it. Illusions? Hypnosis? Perhaps. He thought before turning to face his squad.

"That's all for now. Return to your duties." Byakuya ordered.

As the squad dispersed, Renji climbed to his feet and dusted himself off before he picked up his sword, as well as removed Nyruki's and went to stand by his Captain.

"C-Captain I-" He was silenced.

"We'll discuss what happened in my office. Are you hurt?" Byakuya asked flatly.

"No, Captain. I'm fine." Renji said quietly as he handed Byakuya the sword.

With a nod, Byakuya simply spun on his heels and walked away, heading for the massive closed doors of the Squad 6 barracks. He knew and understood he had to make sense of what he had just seen, sense of what, exactly, her Zanpakutō's intent really was. From that brief encounter, he didn't get the sense that the spirit wanted to hurt anyone, but he couldn't be positive. All he knew was that he had to bring this up to the other captains.