Jeez this chapter was hard to write, I don't know why... writers block? blocko? block-is-a-bitch? I don't know... ALSO this chapter is a bit fast forward because this is the second chapter of Ichi's training and there is still Ishida and Chad to train before the invasion of soul society, so 3-5 more training chapters after this - including one more ichigo one.
Also next chapter may take longer than the usual update time (So far it has been every 2-3 days, 4 on occasion) because of real life stuff that will shorten my writing time, IF ANYTHING SUPA BAD HAPPENS CHECK THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE WHERE I WILL HAVE ADDED AN UPDATE IF SOMETHING DOES HAPPEN.
Italics + ' = Thoughts (Etc. = 'What is that?')
Bold + '' = Inner Hollow/Secondary Spirit (Etc. = ''Fucking Quotation marks!'' He roared) (Or Zangetsu in Ichigo's case).
Italics + '' = Zanpakuto Spirit (Etc. = ''Do not hesitate, Ichigo'' Zangetsu said) (Quincy part of Zangetsu for Ichigo's case).
I DONT OWN BLEACH!
Chapter 10: Determination to Grow - Dragons Shadow ARC
It was a sunny day in Karakura town, the grass a lush green as the leaves on the oak trees fluttered back and forth in the dull breeze. To the humans it seemed like a wonderful day to go out, maybe to the beach or for an ice cream. For a certain Shinigami and Hollow however, it was a far more interesting sight than the simple desert of Hueco Mundo.
''Humans are such irritatingly curious creatures'' The Shinigami mused ''If they see an explosion they run towards it to find out what it was instead of avoiding it, children are even worse... though I guess they can be an exception''.
The hollow obviously couldn't answer, though it watched the two children running about the small play park with their mother watching contently from a distance. They had come to relax as best as the duo could, though theirs nerves had only escalated upon arrival.
''Why... they only live a century at most and accomplish so much, yet Shinigami live for several centuries if not millennia yet progress is severely limited... wasted efforts is why in my opinion''.
Suddenly the air became heavier, no-where near to become a threat to the duo but the scent of Shinigami was clear. The hollow pointed up to the sky with its talon-like hand, directing his companions gaze to the Shoji doors high in the sky, the humans blissfully unaware of what was about to escalate. Two men in captains Haori stood present and ready for battle, their identity clear by the numbers 7 and 9 on their backs.
Sajin Komamura and Kaname Tosen have entered the battle.
''Your growth rate continues to impress me, Kurosaki'' Asami praised while dodging another series of slashes ''In the timeframe allotted, you have attained Shikai, learnt some degree of Kido just from mimicking myself, have reached a level of advanced Shunpo capable of matching lieutenants and possibly captains and have incorporated Hakuda into hour fighting style, all the while matching my Shikai and sealed sword''.
''When are you going to release your other Shikai?'' I pester, swiping and her midsection only to be blocked by her other still sealed rapier.
''Oh?'' She raised an eyebrow ''I hope you aren't getting too cocky Kurosaki, I said your matching my current skillset - not overwhelming me. If you wish for me to use my second Shikai then you better try harder''.
I grunt in annoyance, pushing her back with both blades, I push my Reiryoku into my Khyber knife and wordlessly slash the air in front of me, sending off a crescent of energy. She countered the nameless attack with her own, prompting both to push against each other for a moment before mine exploded, destroying hers.
''Besides'' She grinned slightly, only noticeable by the tiny twitch at the corners of her mouth ''There is a lot more to my Shikai than a simple Mikadzuki''.
''Of course there is'' I grunt, pushing my weight into my blades against hers. Her Shikai begins glowing, much more fiercely than her previous Shikai attack did. Her grin widened ever so slightly, which was a very bad thing for me.
''Bakuhatsu...'' She said as her blade glowed fiercely, I pull back but it was too late ''...Mikadzuki''. (Tran: Explosive Crescent Moon)
The energy seeped off her Zanpakuto into a crescent shaped energy projectile, it flew at me and I raised my blades to block it... only for it to pulse and explode, blinding me and sending pain coursing through my veins.
When I awoke, I noticed several things.
One, I was no longer outside but rather in a pine-wood room. I was on a bed with my torso bandaged alongside my arms and I'm pretty sure my forehead, next to the my bed Zangetsu in his sealed form on the ground lay on the floor. I sit up and unintentionally groan, rubbing the sleep from my eyes I swing my legs off the edge of the bed.
Two, a sleeveless Shinigami uniform hung on the rack, clearly an altered version of my original uniform. It wasn't as loose looking as the old one, the sleeves non-existent as they stopped where my shoulder began.
Three, A note was on the table; as such I read it like any normal person would.
''Upon waking up, Kurosaki, freshen up and head out through the back door into the forest... this will be part of your sensing training alongside making your Shunpo silent and your Reiatsu undetectable, since you seem to be lacking in that area''.
''P.S: I modified your Shinigami attire for better freedom of movement, if you want your old attire back just say so''.
'Great...'.
I sigh, sitting up fully and heading towards the door with the word 'bathroom' on it, of course she made it obvious. What am I? A child?
''Yes''.
I sigh again as I walk out the back door of the well maintained house, slightly annoyed to see it both dark out and the admittedly creepy forest. It contained hundreds of ridiculously tall trees made from grey rock, all so high you couldn't see the tops. It was nearly pitch black out so it was hard to see, though I could make out a light in the distance.
Taking that as the location I was to go to I shoot off in a burst of Shunpo, side-stepping each of the large stone trees as I approach the blinking yellowish light. Just as I get close to it I spot a note next to the flashing ball of energy, I reach down to it and bring it close to me but still within the light of the energy.
''To concentrate your Reiatsu, mentally picture a catalyst of your own design; be it a dam, a lake, an orb, etc. Then picture your Reiryoku reserves in a form that can interact with your catalyst, for example; lake/dam = water. If you choose to use a dam or lake, which is the easiest way i have found then try pushing all of your Reiryoku into it until little to none is leaking. Once you are able to conceal yourself to an effective level I will end this lesson, good luck - you'll need it''.
''P.S: You'll have to do this while avoiding the attacks I fire''.
''P.S.S: AKA, behind you''.
I turn around and barely managed to Shunpo out of the way of no less than a thousand arrows. I Shunpo again to avoid the arrows that are either homing on me or she can see me from wherever she is firing them from. I keep using Shunpo to rapidly avoid the bullet-like arrows, mentally picturing a white-walled dam holding back a sea of deep blue water. It partially worked in that I filled the dam up but it began overflowing, I tried pushing the water back in but with my attention split between dodging arrows and stopping a sea with my bare hands.
Grunting in irritation I perform a series of rapid Shunpo away from my location, going deeper into the forest. The arrows sadly kept up firing, not stopping for even a moment.
''Your Reiryoku responds to your intent, Ichigo'' Old man Zangetsu pointed out.
'I know that, why would that- oh''.
''Oh is right, dumbass'' Zangetsu snorted.
'Shut up'
Mentally willing my liquefied Reiryoku into the dam, it went in surprisingly easy but the problem was whenever I thought I had it filled it overflowed and resulted in me condensing it again and again. It kept overflowing for at least a dozen times before I finally managed to do it, it made a strange sensation... like everything was so much clearer, my senses more refined. A blur to my left alerted me, I snapped my head around and tensed up, ready to dodge in a moments notice.
''Not bad, nothing worthy of merit mind you but good for someone who neither has formal training and a lieutenant-class amount of Reiatsu'' She nodded approvingly.
''So.. what now?'' I ask, rolling my shoulders while keeping the image of the dam in my head.
''First, clear your head of the image'' She ordered and I did, hesitantly dismissing the image from my head. The effect was my Reiatsu rising around me, though the difference from before, clearly evident as only so much Reiatsu got free.
''Hm, its like I guessed'' She mused ''If you focus on the mental image it allows you to 'clamp down' on your Reiatsu and make it harder to detect, though if you dismiss or forget the image then only about... 20% of your Reiatsu leaks out''.
''Is that good or bad?'' I frown.
''Its decent, not amazing but not terrible'' She says ''Good enough for your next task, which will be sensing. Its similar to your previous task, though this time I will be hiding in the forest and you'll have to find me and land a hit on me...''.
''Okay... doesn't seem too hard'' I muse.
''...while I'm invisible'' She smirked ever so slightly at the end.
''HOW THE HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO HIT YOU IF I CANT SEE YOU?!'' I exclaim.
''Sensing'' She shrugged ''If you need to, use that technique Ishida-Baka used''.
Before I can ask what she meant, she disappeared in a blur and faded into air. I grunt in annoyance, closing my eyes and attempting to figure out how to sense someone.
''I have a feeling the next few months will be rather interesting...''.
We didn't return back to the house until the sun had risen and fallen again, she told me this was technically the second ''night'' in this place. It was kind of scary to learn that when we had originally sparred when I was achieving Shikai we had spent the entire day and half the night, totally up to three quarters of a month, exhaustion and hunger didn't really take effect due to temporal displacement, whatever that meant.
''In short, it is that our bodies only require supplementations as we do in real time, AKA per day. Since inside here a 24 hour day is turned into a month, half of it which is night and half is day, we only require food, water and sleep once a month. Our souls however do not require supplementations, as such they continue to grow without the need for rest. You'll have noticed it in our first spar, you felt tired but found the energy to keep going. That was because you have enough stamina to go for a full day of sparring, though here it translates to a month''.
I had improved drastically according to when I first entered here, my swordsmanship is on par with a captain due to our constant spars, my Hakuda isn't something to worship but is effective when incorporated into my Zanjutsu, my Shunpo could rival some captains and all of the lieutenants and while my Kido wasn't my strong suit she was determined to beat it into me, especially the spells she created herself - sometimes she came off as a Kido fanatic... a very stoic one at that.
Her training methods were odd, but never the less effective. She helped me gain incredible strength in such a short(?) amount of time, it felt short but it was long I guess. The next three days were a living hell though, I hadn't even considered it under Asami mentioned it in brief passing but once the word clicked in my mind I jumped at my Zanpakuto to teach me.
Bankai.
At one point, in the back of my mind, I thought it would be as easy as achieving Shikai... how wrong I was.
Three days/months of picking up random swords while dodging both Hollow Zangetsu's Cero's and maniacal swings and Old man Zangetsu's endless arrows and precise slashes. It was hard, though it was just as aggravating when Asami declared the training over for the day/night and 'sent' me to bed (Read: kicked me into it). It held a strange routine, wake up, shower, go to the kitchen where a breakfast 'just happened to be' waiting for me while Asami went to her private library to decide on training related things, stab the weird doll with both Zangetsu's and get my ass kicked.
But it was worth it in the end, painful as hell but worth it. But despite that... it felt odd. I approached my spirits about it and while they still seemed to be their normal selves they seemed... nervous? After pressing the question repeatedly they finally succumbed to my endless badgering, though the monologue that followed wasn't what I had expected.
''Bankai is more than an upgrade to ones power or abilities. Tell me, how is it that a wielder gains their Shikai after learning their Zanpakuto's name? Why can't a wielder just achieve it without knowing its name?''.
''Because a connection between the wielder and Zanpakuto is needed in order to work together?'' I ask after a pause.
''Correct'' Zangetsu nods ''If one does not put their trust in their blade, then they cannot hear its voice. Many other factors influence this of course, too many to count actually. However Shikai and Bankai are similar in some respects, though the end results are different''.
''How so?'' I ask.
''Shikai is trusting your blade, Bankai is understanding your blade and yourself'' Zangetsu said ''We are a part of your soul Ichigo, you cannot lie to yourself nor can you hide from yourself''.
I frown but nod anyway ''Okay... but how does that have anything to do with why my Bankai feels... incomplete''.
''He was getting ta that'' His hollow scowled.
Zangetsu nodded his unspoken thanks ''When a soul reaper achieves Bankai, which few do, it is in most if not all cases incomplete. As I had said, Bankai is an understanding of yourself and your Zanpakuto''.
''And so to complete yer Bankai...'' His hollow drawled.
''...you have to understand yourself?'' I frown slightly deeper.
And that brought me to where I was now, resting externally but internally in my inner world.
''Care to be a little more clear?'' I grumble.
''Why do you fight?'' Zangetsu asked from his pole perch.
I frown slightly ''To protect''.
''Protect who?''.
''My friends and family'' I reply.
''Why not the world?'' Zangetsu inquired calmly.
''Well...'' I pause for a brief moment ''Because its impossible. I couldn't protect Rukia, how am I to protect millions of people all over the world?''.
''If yer friends and family are incapable of defending themselves, then why'd ya protect them? Isn't it better to have allies who stand against all that oppose ya?'' Hollow Zangetsu asked.
''To protect is to shield those who cant do it themselves'' I say philosophically yet take to glaring at the hollow spirit ''I protect my sisters, my father and my friends because they cant''.
''What about Chad, Orihime, Ishida-Baka and Asami?'' Hollow Zangetsu asked, his tone turning slightly quieter at the last name as if unsure if to include her in the list.
''They're strong enough to protect themselves, though I will still protect them when they cant themselves'' I declare.
''What about Asami then?'' He asked ''You could barely match her Shikai when she used that Baku-something shit, you got knocked the fuck out. Do you intend to protect her when you aren't even strong enough to?''.
Taken aback slightly by his serious tone I took a moment to reign in my senses ''I'm sure even she has limits, when she reaches that limit I'll be there to help''.
Both spirits were quiet for a long moment before his hollow decided to break it ''Why is that?''.
I frown at his serious expression ''What do you mean?''.
''Why do ya feel up to protectin' her when she can clearly do it herself? You said that you protect those who cant do it themselves, yet she clearly is capable''.
''Because she's my friend'' I reply without hesitation.
''Oh really?'' His hollow replied with a raised eyebrow ''I don't recall you two ever sharing a bond, ya have only spoken ta her on maybe four ta fives separate occasions before Rukia was captured and ever since ya have entered this weird ass place she's just been kicking yer ass... 'er cooking is good though''.
Ignoring the last comment about her admitted good cooking I reply ''Its like an unspoken one in a way''.
Hollow Zangetsu scoffed but didn't say anything else while the old man nodded wordlessly in understanding, though he spoke after only a moment of silence.
''And what of Rukia Kuchiki?''.
Taken aback slightly by the change in topic to another of my female friends, I look at him expectantly waiting for him to continue.
''You are training with us and Asami in order to gain strength to invade the soul society and save her, how many people have gone against an army just for a friend?''.
''Uh...'' I hum scratching my head awkwardly ''A few?''.
''Nobody does that dipshit'' Hollow-Zangetsu grunted ''Most would hope for the best or just be like 'ah fuck em' and be done with it''.
''Well sorry for caring for my friends'' I glare.
''Like Asami you have only spent a short amount of time with Rukia, yet like Asami you feel compelled to protect her'' Quincy Zangetsu said.
''At least this one actually needs protecting'' His hollow said with an unnatural amount of venom, even catching his Quincy half off guard.
''You got something against Rukia?'' I frown ''I doubt she hasn't even know of your existence''.
''I don't know...'' His hollow said, his face looking surprisingly mournful ''But... I feel... oddly angry whenever I look at a woman, it goes beyond sexism and something deeper, though I don't know what...''.
Silence reigned over the trio for a long minute, Quincy Zangetsu and myself in puzzlement at the hollow half of Zangetsu looking so... sad. Just as quickly as it appeared he shot up and disappeared in an odd buzz, leaving me with my Quincy half.
''I believe this concludes our... discussion'' Old man Zangetsu said, his face a frown.
''Right...'' I say uncertainly, looking off at the small explosions of Getsuga Tenshou in the distance ''When he's feeling up to a spar just let me know... I feel like he needs to blow off some steam''.
The elder man gave me a inquisitive look but then smiled slightly before nodding at my fading form, my eyes flutter shut as if I was falling off a building.
''Try harder'' Asami instructed ''You are putting more power than necessary into the arrow, the Quincy arts are more focused on precision than power''.
''I'm trying'' I grumble, pointing my trench knife out pulling the Reishi in the air into my body and focusing on making an arrow. I succeed but like last time upon firing, it swerves uncontrollably and spun. Asami easily batted away the weak attack with the back of her hand before raising her Shikai and forming only one arrow at the tip of the blade, though upon firing it generated hundreds of the buggers.
''If you can learn to even just use a standard Heilig Pfeil then that could provide a create advantage in a fight, the quicker you learn to make a decent arrow the quicker you get to unlocking the more advanced powers, one which your Quincy spirit is well aware of'' She said, her tone of voice quietening near the end.
'What does she mean, old man?'
''Blut Vene'' The spirit said somewhat reluctantly ''...after this training session, come to your inner world... we have much to discuss''.
'O...kay'.
''By the way'' I say, drawing the attention of my mentor ''What other advanced powers are you planning on teaching me?''.
She was quiet for a moment before answering ''Blut Vene and Blut Arterie, the defensive and offensive boosters of the Quincy.. though I may try and teach you Hirenkyaku too, if you can learn Sonido too and mix all three high speed movements it becomes incredibly effective''.
I nod, determined to learning and mastering the Quincy art, though the uneasiness that came from the old man transferred to me too.
''So what's this about old man?'' I frown at the older man standing on a pole, his cape billowing in the non-existent breeze. My hollow sat cross legged on the floor next to the elder man, his hollow eyes betraying his unease.
''When WE introduced ourselves, you took it quite well. You went with the flow, trusting Asami's words to trust us and in turn you have progressed further than any Shinigami could hope... have you ever questioned why you are part Hollow and Quincy?'' Zangetsu asked, getting straight to the point.
''Not really'' I shrug slightly ''I mean its down to chance right? Sometimes people are born with differences that others do not have''.
''A person, Shinigami or otherwise, cannot be born with Quincy or Hollow... Quincy powers are inherited, hollow powers usually are obtained but can occasionally be inherited from the parent infected'' Quincy Zangetsu said with a hint of uncertainty.
My eyes widen ''You mean... Kaa-san...''. (Tran: Kaa-san is less formal way of addressing ones mother).
''She was a Quincy'' His hollow confirmed with a serious expression ''She was infected by a hollow, presumably me, and our father sacrificed his Shinigami powers to save her life, rendering him a human with a faint amount of spiritual awareness. Kaa-san lost her Quincy powers shortly after''.
Silence reigned over us for a long moment, nobody said anything for a good few minutes before I break the silence with a question.
''Why?'' I mutter dejectedly ''Why didn't they tell me?''.
Before I realised it, a foot crashed into my back and sent me sprawling across the building. I wince at feeling one of my ribs that were still healing jumble slightly, ignoring it for the moment I look up to where I expect the hollow to be but am surprised when it was Asami who kicked me.
''Wha- How- When-'' I stutter in surprise ''HOW THE HELL DID YOU GET IN HERE?!''.
She raised in eyebrow ''I created a dimension, you really should stop being surprised with my actions and abilities''.
I scowl and turn to my spirits, the old man was on guard but showed no move of hostile intentions while his hollow glared at the woman and let out a low growl that went ignored.
''What are you doing in here, regardless of the fact it is normally impossible to enter another persons world without physical contact through their Zanpakuto''.
''Eh, call it a unique ability'' She shrugged ''I came here to help... fill in the blanks regarding matters that you may not have been aware of''.
The old man stared at her for a long moment before responding ''Very well, your input may assist things like you said''.
The hybrid woman nodded, she leaned to the side slightly and the faint pulses of Reiryoku appeared where her shoulder made contact with the air and made an invisible wall for her to lean against.
''Why though?'' I sigh, rubbing my forehead and getting into a sitting position ''You would've thought they'd tell me about it''.
Both spirits were quiet for a few moments, so surprisingly Asami spoke up for them ''Put yourself in their shoes''.
I frown at her ''What?''.
''Put yourself in the shoes of your parents'' She replied ''Hey son remember those ghosts you see? Yeah well they're called pluses and some people dressed in black and have swords called Shinigami, they send them to a place called soul society where it is portrayed a heaven but is actually a living hell. And if the Shinigami doesn't send them away then they become man-eating monsters who lack a physical heart and consume others like them because they follow their instincts and not morals like us humans do. Oh yes did I tell you that the Seireitei is where the Shinigami live and its like a military but with a brutal government who are a bunch of old traditionalistic bastards who have a pole stuck ten feet up their ass? Or that I used to be a Shinigami, a captain no less? And your mother was a Quincy, a race of spiritually aware humans who were massacred like pigs because they saw things differently than the Shinigami and she was technically my enemy but I fell in love with her instead and stopped being a Shinigami and am now an outlaw because I showed I have more heart than those bastards''.
The amount of venom in her rant was surprising considering her normally calm bordering cold personality. The three of us had mixed reactions to her rant, Quincy Zangetsu remained mostly stoic but smiled ever so slightly when she complained about the massacre of the Quincy. His hollow scowled most of the way through but grinned at hearing the ten-foot pole joke, I kept up a frown but silently noted all the information she gave off without me having to ask her.
She showed a bad history with soul society, she had spoke of hollows but not as fiercely as someone like Rukia had - whether that was because a hollow was present, she was part hollow or for other reasons I didn't know. She clearly hold distaste towards the Seireitei government, my father was a captain, a massacre of the Quincy, the relations between Shinigami and Quincy and my dad is technically an outlaw.
''Are you done gleaming information off of my rant?'' Asami spoke up with her usual raised eyebrow, silently expressing her mild curiosity. I blink in surprise, I hadn't realised I was staring.
''Sorry'' I apologised but she replied with a dismissive wave, though her brows were furrowed in concentration and was peeking looks at both spirits with a questioning look.
''Masaki Kurosaki'' She said almost wistfully and I froze up at the mere mention of her name ''Her death has caused more ripples through-out the spirit world, most of which you are unaware of''.
I glare at her ''What do you mean?''.
She gave me a hard look, not sympathetic like most people would when they spoke of my deceased mother - something I mildly respected.
''Why do you think she died, Kurosaki?''.
Instantly a thunderclap boomed in the distance, dark grey storm clouds began clouding up the sky much to my spirits irritation, though the conversation had suddenly only become between us with my spirits as mere observers, not even interrupting and just letting her talk. I swallow the lump in my throat and turn my gaze to the ground, avoiding her gaze as I recall my past where I got my mother killed.
''I...'' I say, my voice suddenly turning into a sandy desert ''I... got her killed... it was my fault''.
Silence fell over us for a brief moment before another clap of thunder echoed among my sideways city before the rain began pelting down, yet nobody spoke. Both spirits would be displeased, but still said nothing. Even his hollow was quiet.
''Was it?'' She asked evenly ''Did you kill her? directly?''.
''No... but I ran into Grand Fishers trap'' I grunt.
Two soft and warm fingers touched my chin, one curled up directly under my chin and a thumb pressed against my chin. She pulled my face up to look at hers roughly, her emotionless demeanour and stone cold brown eye staring into my own searchingly. We stayed like that for what seemed like an eternity, the rain that fell not even dampening our clothes. She eventually let go of my chin and she scowled slightly.
''Masaki would be disappointed'' She said harshly and I winced ''The grand fisher took her life, not you. You were but an unknowing child who couldn't tell the difference between his lure and a real person, your human curiosity got the better of you like any other human... I promised Masaki if you ever blamed yourself for a death that didn't occur because you intentionally did it that I would kick your ass''.
My eyes widen slightly ''You knew her?''.
The corners of her lips tug up ever so slightly in a fond manner ''Knew her?''.
''I was her best friend''.