CHAPTER 42: TAYOMI VS ICHIMARU

Tayomi looked up at the sky, as the stars danced about and sparkled against the navy blue background. A gentle breeze blew past her face, sweeping her hair backwards. She closed her eyes, letting all her thoughts of him rush into her mind. It had to be done today. It was time to settle the score once and for all. She tried to take the hit for him and she did, but in the end it was he who suffered the dire consequences. Ichimaru. Ichimaru Gin. He would pay dearly. Once he had repaid his debt, it would be Aizen's turn. Tayomi sighed, wondering what she should do. Surely, there was another way out? Ichimaru's behaviour was rather strange, even for a strange man like him. Something was not right with his behaviour. Taking a deep breath and hoping that her deduction was correct, she hopped off the rooftop and landed safely five storeys below, before running off towards the north, towards his reiatsu.

She stopped in her tracks in the middle of the journey, sensing that he had shifted from his position and was moving in another direction. Running her fingers through her hair and grumbling, she knew that he was on the move and chased after him. After a few minutes of running around, she came face to face with a grinning man with silver hair. He had a creepy smile, showing his teeth to her. Tayomi's expression was as stern and as serious as ever, greeting him with anything but a smile.

"Hiya, Tayomi-chan!" Ichimaru waved at her, effectively ticking her off. "How's Hitsugaya-kun doin'?"

Tayomi refused to reply him and tightened her grip on her Zanpakutou, unsheathing it slowly.

"Aww, why are ya so silent?" He shrugged. "Don't cha have anythin' to say to me? Say fer example, 'Hiya, Gin-kun' or somethin' like that?"

Tayomi pointed her Zanpakutou at Ichimaru, refusing to speak a single word. It was between him and her, her and him. They had to settle a score today.

"Well then, since ya aren't gonna talk, then..." Ichimaru slowly unsheathed his Zanpakutou as well.

Tayomi disappeared in a flash. All of a sudden, the clashing of blades echoed throughout the vicinity as Tayomi jumped on Ichimaru and waved her Zanpakutou at him. Ichimaru defended himself quickly, still grinning away. Tayomi jumped back and did a backflip, landing her feet against a wall and pushing off, letting herself rush at Ichimaru at top speed. While in the air, she changed the direction of her blade, aiming it right for his guy. Ichimaru dodged neatly, much to her dismay. Tayomi gripped her Zanpakutou tight and landed safely on the ground. She turned behind to glare at Ichimaru, fury burning madly in her eyes. Using Shunpo, she dashed towards him and pushed her blade against his.

"Ikkimaku, Inazuma Kaze."

Hitsugaya lay in bed, unable to sleep. The moonlight was gently beaming onto his face. Soul Society's sky was cloudy today and showed signs of possible rain. The stars simply refused to shine that night. In his heart, he felt slightly uneasy for an unknown reason. Perhaps it was because he had been away from the Living World for about a month now and he wondered how his team were down there. He was curious to find out what they had accomplished and went through ever since his injury. Most importantly, he was worried about Tayomi. As strong as her resolve could be sometimes, he had to admit that she crumbled relatively easily. He hoped that she was handling it well and could cope with the workload down below.

He tried to shrug off the uneasiness and shut his eyes tight, trying to get to sleep. He tossed and turned in his bed, hugging the bunny she gave him close to his chest. But nothing worked. He just could not sleep until he heard her voice. It was in the middle of the night and he was positive that she was fast asleep. He pondered for a brief moment, before reaching out for his phone and dialling her number. The phone continued to ring, as his heartbeat picked up.

"Hihi! This is Tayomi-chan. I'm busy right now, either with work, or music or with my friends. So if it's urgent, leave me a message after the beep! But if you're Aizen, then go away! Bye bye!"

Darn it, I got her voicemail. There's no way she'd sleep through her ringtone. Perhaps...

"Tayomi... Where are you? Call me back, alright?"

The blast of lightning hit Ichimaru square in the face as Tayomi released her Zanpakutou. Her Zanpakutou divided itself into three blades, with the black outer blades bearing sharp spikes and curving slightly outwards, while the middle yellow blade extended itself. Ichimaru was sent flying backwards and crashed against the wall. Blood began to drip down the side of his face and he grinned, sensing that things were about to get interesting. Tayomi glared at him, with fire burning in her eyes. She slid her palm over the yellow blade and drew her Zanpakutou backwards, before lunging it forward and sending out a rope created by a lightning bolt at Ichimaru. He dodged it quickly, heaving a sigh of relief. The lightning rope had narrowly missed him by a centimetre and getting caught in that rope would bring about dire consequences. Tayomi grumbled, angry that she had missed Ichimaru again. Unwilling to give up, she sent another rope flying at him at lightning speed, hoping that Ichimaru would be entangled in it. Her hopes fell as Ichimaru used Shunpo to dodge her advance. Grinning, he released his Zanpakutou as well. Tayomi quickly jumped sideways as Shinsou extended itself, aiming straight for her. She landed safely on the ground, turning to her right to see Ichimaru's blade retract itself and Ichimaru still grinning as widely as ever.

"Ah, Tayomi-chan, why are ya so unwillin' ta chat with me?"

Tayomi refused to reply him, running her fingers through her hair. She knew that Ichimaru had been unusually soft on her. He knew that she was a threat to him and that if he was not careful, she could easily overpower him and knock him to the ground. Ichimaru was definitely holding back. His actions practically spoke for themselves. She had quite a clear idea of what was going on. Perhaps it would be better to confirm my suspicions... I need to confirm this assumption of mine. I should continue the fight.

Her hand began to glow bright red and she quickly fired Hadou 33, Shakkaho, right at Ichimaru. He grinned and dodged neatly, before dashing towards her, aiming for her chest. She blocked his attack with the blade of her Zanpakutou, shocked by his sudden gesture. Ichimaru forced his blade against hers with brute strength, as she struggled to keep the tip of his Zanpakutou as far away from her as possible. Ichimaru was so much taller than her, practically towering over her like a giant. He was much older that she was too, explaining his amount of strength which was definitely enough to overpower hers any day. Tayomi was determined not to fall into his hands and let herself be killed. Placing her palm against the middle blade of Inazuma Kaze, she pushed his blade away with all her might, letting every ounce of strength in her body force his blade backwards and stop it from advancing. She succeeded in doing so, causing Ichimaru to jerk back slightly. He smiled and smirked, before raising his blade and aiming for her head.

He's definitely being soft on me. And I think I know why.

"Tayomi... Call me..." Hitsugaya sighed, with a hint of worry in his voice.

That was the tenth time he had called her, the tenth time his call was directed to her mailbox. Tayomi never switched off her phone. She always picked up her calls, especially if it was from him. Something seemed to be wrong. He decided to call Matsumoto and ask her to check on Tayomi.

"Ahhh... Hello?" Matsumoto yawned. "Who are you? Calling me in the middle of the night... Are you crazy?"

"No, I'm not." Hitsugaya groaned.

"TAICHO!" Matsumoto squeaked and jumped up from her bed.

"Matsumoto, do me a favour and help me check on Tayomi..." He spoke coldly. "I tried calling her, she won't pick up."

"Ooh Taicho..." Matsumoto teased him. "Since when were you the type to make late night phone calls to the love of your life? How sweet!"

"JUST CHECK ON HER."

Matsumoto unlocked her door and dragged her feet to Tayomi's room. She peeped her head in.

"Taicho... No one's there..."

Tayomi gripped her Zanpakutou hard. What exactly was Ichimaru thinking? He was being soft on her, despite her being a great threat to Aizen and his plans. Given his circumstances, he would have released his Bankai even though his intelligence was about the same as hers. Ichimaru would not like to waste time on her and his Bankai would end their fight much quicker. Yet, he had not released his Bankai. He released Shinsou only twice and he had begun to bleed. Tayomi sighed and brushed her hair out of her face, wondering how she could end the fight. Ichimaru did not seem tired of it, but she was sick of fighting with him. She needed to confront him as soon as possible. It was definitely time to end the fight, once she got the chances. Waving her Zanpakutou sideways, she sent a series of lightning darts at Ichimaru. He avoided her attacks swiftly, grinning as the darts embedded themselves into the brick walls, cracking it in the process.

"That was harsh, Tayomi-chan!" Ichimaru pretended to look disappointed, but hid a strong sense of sacarsm in his voice. "C'mon, be nice to ya fellow child prodigy!"

She shook her head violently, before raising her blade and aiming it at him. Tayomi disappeared in a flash and forced her blade against his, pushing him against the wall with all her energy. By accident, she pushed him against one of the darts on the wall. Ichimaru cringed as he felt the sharp, spiked dart dig right into his flesh. She dragged him away from the wall by the collar and threw him onto the floor. Ichimaru's blood splattered all over her face, as his wound began to spew blood. Fiercely, she stomped her foot on his chest and deactivated her Shikai, stabbing her blade into the hard, cemented ground. Ichimaru held his breath, wondering what she was about to do to him.

Tayomi swept her hair out of her face and pulled her Zanpakutou out of the ground. Gripping her Zanpakutou, she smirked and bent down slightly, raising her arm high in the air.

Author's Note:
OMG WHAT IS TAYOMI ABOUT TO DO?
Sorry for the late update, I've been really busy this week and had a short period of writer's block. I planned to have this battle from the start, but couldn't think of the best way to portray their battle. But it's finally up yay :D
Alright, so now Tayomi seems a bit crazy and Hitsugaya is worried. Find out how this battle ends in the next chapter! XD
I'm excited, because I'm going to an Anime Festival during the holidays! :D Not sure what to cosplay as though... But I'll think up of one soon XP
Hope you all liked this chapter :) Please review! Thanks! ^.^