Chapter 3: The Hunted

Orihime's Apartment, Karakura Town

Tatsuki sits quietly next to a chabudai table, with a curious brow raised. Across from her are Orihime and Uryu, the former of which is eating an obscure mixture of rice and sauces, which looks overcooked based on the occasional black scorch marks.

The auburn-haired girl chats the boy's ear off between bites, "I always knew you were a pro, bit I can't believe there is so much more to sewing than I thought!"

Uryu stares at his own bowel of food with a weary expression before adjusting his glasses, regarding the girl, "All I taught you were the basics. Honestly, it's surprising you won that contest recently considering how much of a novice you are…"

Orihime blushes lightly in embarrassment as she rubs the back of her head, "Oh, well, I'm a bit more unorthodox than most… I didn't have anyone around to teach me how to do it the traditional way like you did. Your mother must have been a real master at sewing!"

Uryu looks away distantly, "She was a master at more than just sewing…"

Orihime eyes Uryu's food in front of him, scrunching her brow, "Aren't you hungry, Uryu? You haven't touched your food…"

The boy flinches at this, trying to come up with an excuse, "Uh, well… I…"

The auburn-haired girl's grey eyes drop—a sure sign of disappointment, as she purses her lip, "You don't like my cooking…"

Uryu frantically waves his hands in front of his face, "N-no, that's not it! I'm just not—"

"Trust me, Ishida, it's not as bad as it looks. I eat Orihime's cooking every day, and you don't hear me complaining!", Tatsuki gestures at the empty bowel in front of her.

The bi-speckled teen is silent as he stares down at the bowel of food before him. He then takes his chopsticks and grabs some of the rice-sauce concoction before sampling it. The boy can't help it as his face turns a sickly shade of blue.

"I think I'm going to be sick!", Uryu thinks as he swallows his food, holding back the urge to hurl.

Tatsuki smiles as she pats the other teen on the back, "See, what'd I tell ya? First bite down! The rest will be easy!"

Uryu pales as he looks down at the bowel of food, giving it all he's got not to puke.

Orihime frowns as she looks at the boy with scrunched brows, "He doesn't like it… I don't want him too feel like he has too eat it… What should I do…?"

The auburn-haired girl is deep in thought for a few moments before her eyes suddenly widen as she reaches a solution, "Hey, Uryu. Didn't you say that you left some of your more complicated sewing stuff at the hospital two weeks ago?"

The boy's face returns to normal as he no longer feels the pressure of being forced to eat, "Why yes, I did say that… why do you ask?"

Orihime smiles, "Well, I'd like it if you could show me how all of it works again!"

This causes Uryu to raise a brow, "It's just sewing,,, and isn't it a bit late for that anyway?"

Tatsuki concurs, "Yeah, Orihime. The sun went down hours ago! No way do they let us just waltz in…"

The girl doesn't back down, however, as she gives Uryu a knowing look, "But Uryu's dad is the hospital's director. I'm sure the staff will be fine if we just go in for a look!"

Uryu glances down at his food before looking back at the auburn-haired girl, his eyes widening, "Orihime… I didn't know you could be subtle…"

The dark-haired teen then adjusts his glasses, cutting off Tatsuki who tries to protest further, "That's correct. We can go there anytime. I'd prefer not to loiter, though. I'd rather not have to deal with that man's scolding…"

Orihime claps her hands before giving the boy a smile of approval, "Then it's decided! We'll take a quick trip to the hospital and be back home before bedtime!"

The trio all get up from their seats, starting to head out of the apatement. Uryu stays behind for a moment, wearing a serious expression that is missed by the duo of girls.

20 Minutes Later, Karakura Hospital

Upon arriving at the hospital, the group immediately makes contact with the secretary at the front desk. The secretary eyes the group curiously as they explain what they wish to do and after a quick phone call, gives them the go ahead.

"Huh… you were right Orihime. She let us go without any issues.", Tastsuki notes after the group boards an elevator.

Orihime smiles, "Well of course, I don't think they'd deny their boss' kid. Sorry for using you like this by the way, Uryu…"

The auburn-haired girl shifts, clearly a bit embarrassed.

Uryu hardly even looks at her, giving her a standoffish response, "Hm? Oh, it's fine."

The two girls frown at this, sharing a look.

Tatsuki decides to speak up, "Is everything alright, Ishida? You've been acting all serious since we left the apartment…"

The boy's eyes widen, before he gives a frown of his own, "Well I'm sorry for wanting to be vigilant this late at night! You never know who you'll run into."

"Fair enough, I guess...", Tatsuki responds as the elevator doors open.

Uryu and Tatsuki step out of the elevator, but Orihime stands back for a moment, frowning.

"Uryu has no reason to be so vigilant in this hospital… and besides, it looked like something was on his mind, so isn't that the opposite of vigilant? Is something else going on…?"

"You coming, Orihime?", Tatsuki calls, prompting the girl to break out of her thoughts.

"Y-yeah! Coming!", the girl calls out as she rushes out of the elevator to catch up.

The group walks through a long, empty hallway which is poorly lit as only some of the lights are turned on—a sign that most of the staff on this floor have left for the night. After about a minute of walking, the group stops in front of a door, which Uryu promptly opens.

"No one uses this room outside of the director and his family, except in cases where they have a surplus of patients, or course.", the boy explains as the group enters the dark room.

Orihime plays with her hair sheepishly, "I didn't know you gave me VIP treatment the last time I was here… I don't feel like I'm that special."

The boy sighs, "It wasn't really VIP, and you didn't really need to come to the hospital. I just brought you here as a friend as it was a safe place to recover, and I didn't know where you lived…"

Orihime nods in understanding before Uryu reaches to the side and promptly flips a switch, causing the lights to come on. What is revealed is an old fashioned, desk style sewing machine. The auburn-haired girl's eyes have stars in them as Uryu plugs it in and starts showing her all the bells and whistles.

Tatsuki stares out the window, taking in the sight of the full moon in the sky, illuminating the town, "I don't usually get a view like this…"

Uryu glances away from the sewing machine for a moment, observing Tatsuki before his eyes widen.

"Get back!", the boy shouts as he suddenly jumps and tackles Tatsuki to the ground, causing the two to skid along the floor.

A giant hand comes out of seemingly nowhere and crushes the ground where Tatsuki just stood. Both Orihime and Tatsuki are confused and horrified that the ground was suddenly crushed for no reason. The windows shatter and part of the wall gives in, exposing a gaping hole on the side of the hospital.

The short-haired girl cries out, "What the hell is that Ishida?!"

Uryu, getting up from the ground, snaps at the girl, "There's no time! Grab Orihime and run!"

Uryu activates his Quincy cross and fires some shots at the now fully emerged Acidwire, keeping him away from the girls. As Tatsuki grabs Orihime by the hand and turns to leave the room, all three humans are being crushed under a separate pressure that has emerged. Blocking the exit with its huge size and taking up nearly half of the room alone, stands a dragon Adjucha-class hollow.

Karakura Town

Rukia stands atop a tall building in the middle of Karakura Town. The white light of the moon is the only thing illuminating her features, which appear particularly tense now.

Her captain, a wise man with long white hair, stands next to her, observing the town below, "It's a beautiful night, don't you think Rukia?"

The woman looks off distantly, "This isn't really different than any other night here…"

Ukitake places a hand on his chin, in thought, "I see…"

Rukia glances at her captain as his face shifts to a friendly smile, "…then I suppose it's a good thing squad 13 is stationed in this town! I'd prefer not to work in an area with poor weather."

Rukia slowly nods her head before flinching in reaction to the duo behind them.

"You said it, captain! This place isn't too shabby!", a petite short-haired blonde Shinigami, named Kiyone Kotetsu, replies.

"Yeah, this place is nice!", a tall, built man with oddly shaped black hair and a goatee shouts in agreement.

A tick mark forms on Kiyone's head, "Hey! I agreed with the captain first!"

The man barks back at her, "Since when does that mean I can't agree with him too?"

The two continue to banter over who deserves Ukitake's attention more, as they often do, prompting Rukia to sigh.

Ukitake, taking note of Rukia's troubled expression from earlier, inquires about it, "You looked troubled just now, Rukia. Is there anything you'd like to get off your chest? We can go somewhere private if you'd like."

Rukia nods, "That won't be necessary, sir. I've had this on my mind for a while now and I just want to know. Have you ever heard of the Qui—"

Rukia's words are cut off, however, as all four of them feel massive, captain-level reiatsu in the distance.

Ukitake starts to issue orders, "We'll have to discuss this later, Kuchiki. For now, you're to follow my lead. You two, take command of the rest of the squad and spread out through town! Ensure the safety of the residents!"

"Yes captain!", Kiyone and Sentaro cry out in unison before disappearing with a high-speed technique.

Ukitake rushes off towards the source of the reiatsu with Rukia, giving her an ominous warning, "This is not a Shinigami's reaistu… it's a hollow's. It might be that 'White' we're looking for. Be careful Kuchiki…"

Rukia merely nods, adopting a concerned expression, as she continues to follow her captain.

The World of the Living

In a neighboring city to Karakura, Kenpachi and his squad sense the spiritual energy as well. Before anyone can ask what his orders are, Kenpachi, with Yachiru on his back, is sprinting towards the source with a twisted smile on his face.

Ikkaku declares, "Follow the captain! This should be a good fight!"

All of Squad 11 barrels through the streets, following their captain.

Karakura Hospital

Back at the hospital, White observes the three humans in front of it, taking great interest in the two girls shaking in fear and confusion. "They seem familiar."

As White is observing the girls, Acidwire rushes towards them, extending his hand to grab them. Uryu intervenes by shooting another volley of blue arrows at the large serpent, which causes it to wince in pain. This takes White out of his thoughts; the scene of his ally being assaulted angering him greatly. Before Uryu can make another move, he is impaled on one of White's horns. The Hollow then quickly discards the incapacitated Quincy, sending him barreling into the corner of the room with a sudden tilt of his head. The girls gasp as Uryu is suddenly bleeding out behind them, unable to move. Orihime starts to see outlines of the beings before her, becoming even more terrified. Tatsuki, on the other hand, finally faints from the sheer amount of pressure the dragon Hollow is exerting.

Now without interruption, Acidwire moves towards Orihime, pushing his hand through her body, killing her temporarily by separating her soul from it. This scene doesn't sit right with White, but he voices nothing, choosing instead to observe what happens next. Orihime, seeing her body laid out in front of her and fully taking in the scene of the Hollows before her, begins to scream in panic and confusion.

In a tone that is almost yelling, Acidwire addresses Orihime, "Be quiet! Now we can be together again!"

Orihime screeches, "I don't know what you're talking about! What are you?!"

Acidwire tilts his head down slightly, saddened at the reminder that his new body is no longer recognizable as his past self.

After a moment, the serpent asks, "Have you forgotten about me, dear sister?"

This causes a shocked expression to cover Orihime's face as she hesitantly asks for confirmation, "Sora?"

White takes note of this, "So Sora is his real name? …what is mine…?"

White narrows his eyes, trying to recall a name, but it ultimately proves fruitless. The hollow is hardly able to recall how he looked in his own life, so recalling something as specific as a name amongst all the souls that comprise his being is completely out of the question.

Seeing as he has now been recognized, Acidwire explains, "I was so happy for the first few years after I died, because you never failed to pray to me every day. But once you met that girl…" Acidwire points to Tatsuki's unconscious body "…you had prayed for me less and less often. And then, after you met that Kurosaki, you forgot about me altogether. It hurt me, dear sister, that you would only ever talk about Kurosaki when praying to me. You love him more than me!"

Orihime tries to explain, in a desperate tone, "That was never my intention! I never wanted to hurt you brother!"

This prompts Acidwire to ask, with a hint of hope in his voice, "Then you'll come with me, away from these interlopers?" He gestures to Uryu and Tatsuki.

Orihime expresses concern over her friends and tells the Hollow, "I can't go with you after you hurt them like that. My brother was too kind, he'd never do this!"

This causes Acidwire to go into a rage, grabbing Orihime and crushing her as he roars at her, "YOU ARE THE REASON I'M LIKE THIS ORIHIME! YOU HAVE TO COME WITH ME OR I'LL—."

"You'll what?"

Acidwire feels an immense amount of bloodlust coming from White, who is supposed to be his companion.

"Drop the girl.", the dragon snarls coldly, causing the serpent to flinch. "NOW!"

This causes Acidwire to let go of Orihime, who is gasping for breath on the floor.

White, pissed off, now yells at Acidwire, "I THOUGHT YOU SAID YOU WANTED TO PROTECT HER! YET HERE YOU ARE, ATTACKING YOUR DEFENSELESS LITTLE SISTER!"

After a few heavy breathes, the Adjucha states with finality, "You disgust me."

It is at this moment the White had reached an instinctual decision: that attacking or killing defenseless humans is wrong, no matter the circumstance. Meanwhile, Acidwire begins to honestly contemplate his actions as all his survival instincts are preventing him from lashing out at White.

"How could I do this to my own sister? What have I become?!", the hollow begins to roar in anguish and shame.

White observes the hole on Acidwire's chest carefully, causing his eyes to widen, "Did it just grow?!"

Just then, two Shinigami appear in front of the windows of the room—Rukia and Ukitake.

White, recognizing one of them as a captain, glares at Acidwire, "Get your ass out of here! You'll only be deadweight against them… we'll resume this conversation later."

Acidwire nods quietly in shame as he opens a Garganta to retreat. This prompts Rukia to try and cut off the hollow's escape, but Ukitake stops her.

"The Hollow we're interested in doesn't seem to be retreating, let the weaker one go.", the captain explains.

White commends the captain, "Good call stopping your subordinate. I would've killed her should she have made a move on my friend there."

Ukitake scoffs at the idea of Hollows helping each other but pauses as he gazes at the hollow's mask carefully, recalling Kenpachi's report about the Gillian protecting another hollow.

"You're White…", the captain concludes.

The dragon sneers evilly, "Good to know you Shinigami remember my name! You would do well to fear it."

Ukitake scowls, "Kuchiki, stand back. This is the Hollow we're after."

Rukia does as ordered while Ukitake cautiously approaches the hollow.

After a few moments of Ukitake not attacking, White chuckles, "You're different from that other captain—you don't charge in recklessly."

The captain regards the dragon with a serious expression, "I won't let any of these humans die. I can't afford to fight recklessly!"

The dragon's eyes narrow, giving a brief look at the humans, before immediately exiting the building via use of Sonido, a high-speed hollow technique.

Ukitake is shocked but regains his composure as he addresses Rukia, "Tend to the humans here. I'll deal with this hollow myself."

Ukitake then uses flash step to chase after the hollow.

Once outside, White and Ukitake are about to initiate battle, when suddenly Kenpachi barrels into the dragon, sending it flying into the woods on the outskirts of Karakura as he flies after it. Ukitake is stunned by the sudden intervention and sighs as he can sense the members of Squad 11 following after them.

"I've got to make sure Zaraki doesn't let that Hollow escape this time.", the captain then flash steps away after them.

Karakura Hospital

Rukia approaches Orihime, pulling on a glove which she uses to rejoin the girl's soul to her body.

Before Rukia can do anything else, Orihime blurts out questions, "Who are you samurai people?! Do you know what's wrong with my brother? Who was that dragon—"

Orihime stops talking as Rukia places a finger on the girl's mouth to be quiet.

The raven-haired woman lets out a sigh, "I suppose that means you can see us, then. I'll tend to your friend."

Rukia walks around Orihime to check Tatsuki's pulse, confirming she is still alive.

Orihime gives an alarmed look, "You should check Uryu instead! It looks like he was hurt bad!"

As Rukia is about to turn to go help the boy, a voice stops her, "That won't be necessary."

A bi-speckled man with white hair walks into the room, wearing a calm and collected expression despite the current events. He walks over to Uryu and with a flash of bright blue light brings the teen's consciousness back momentarily.

"I warned you against this before, boy, but it seems you've ignored me once again.", the man scolds.

Uryu growls at the man who is his father, "I'll never regret defending the people of this city from hollows. I will do so for as long as I breathe, by the honor of the Quincy!"

Ryuken quietly adjusts his glasses, maintaining a neutral expression, "That won't be for very much longer, foolish boy!"

Uryu doesn't respond as his vision becomes clouded. The boy begins to feel uneasy as the hollow reiatsu from White begins to assault him.

Rukia, clearly confused asks, "What's happening to him?!"

Just then, the shady man in hat and clogs walks into the room, prompting Rukia to let out a gasp, "You're that other guy from the funeral… Why are you here?"

The man ignores her and addresses the topic of Uryu, "Quick Ryuken, take him to my shop! We can better stabilize him there!"

This prompts the white-haired man to grab his son and vanish away with Hirenkyaku, a high-speed Quincy technique.

The man in the hat regards Rukia, "Follow Yoruichi to my shop after tending to the two girls… you should bring them with you… I'll explain things then, but just know; I sense potential in them."

Rukia wants to question him about this but is unable to as he disappears using a high-speed ability, leaving only a small Black Cat with them.

The cat speaks in a masculine voice, "I am Yoruichi. You can carry that other girl there and follow me."

Rukia does so, seeing no harm in it if the safety of humans is the priority. Ukitake's orders were to tend to the humans, he didn't say how. She walks over to the larger girl and lifts her over her back.

Yoruichi continues, "Good, now follow me uh… what was your name?"

Orihime responds to the cat's gaze, "Orihime Inoue, it's a pleasure to meet you Yoruichi."

She pets Yoruichi on the head which causes the cat to purr.

Once Orihime finishes petting the cat, Yoruichi raises their voice, "Now, you two should follow me. Time is of the essence!"

The cat then vanishes using a highspeed technique. Rukia asks Orihime to grab her hand as they follow suite, vanishing from the scene.

Karakura Outskirts

In the woods of Karakura, a scarred man with a white coat and a pink-haired girl on his back and a dragon with forward-facing horns and a long orange mane are standing off against each other.

"I've become stronger since the last time we met, Shinigami." White states matter-of-factly.

This causes Kenpachi to raise a brow before recognizing the markings on the Adjucha's mask, which causes him to cackle, "It looks like you have, Gillian!"

Yachiru corrects her companion, "Kenny that's not right, he's an Adjucha now!"

"Oh right…", he looks up at the small girl, genuinely curious.

Yachiru smiles, waving at the Adjucha, "What's going on, Whitey? Just so you know, Kenny's really pumped to play with you, so you should give it all you got!"

The dragon sweat drops, "It's White, not Whitey… isn't this supposed to be a fight?"

Kenpachi turns his attention back to the Hollow, "Yachiru, stand back. This should be messy!"

As Yachiru hops off Kenpachi's back, he grins maniacally before he quickly draws his sword and attacks the hollow with a downward swing. White parries the strike with one of his horns and scrapes a gash across Kenpachi's chest, sending him back by the sheer force of the attack. It's now White's turn to take the offensive as he charges Kenpachi, impaling his right and left shoulders with both horns before he has a chance to regain his bearings, and blasts him with a cero charged between its horns at point blank range. The force of the blast blows White back slightly. Kenpachi's scorching body rolls across the ground, halting when it hits a tree. The battle isn't over; however, as Kenpachi gets back up and starts to laugh hysterically.

"YES! NOW THIS IS A CHALLENGE!", Kenpachi cries as he removes his eyepatch.

White is about to leap at the captain again but finds himself unable to move as the raw amount of reiatsu from Kenpachi freezes him in place—his instincts for the first time ever screaming at him to leave or else he will die.

Kenpachi taunts the dragon, "What's the matter hollow? Don't tell me you're done when the real battle has just been started!"

By this point, Squad 11 has encircled the area where Kenpachi and White are battling, Ukitake being there as well.

Kenpachi looks around in all directions, clicking his tongue, "Looks like you can't run hollow, so might as well fight me to the death—it'll be fun!"

Kenpachi once more charges towards White, who tries to parry the strike with his claws, but it is no use as the madman cleaves right through the dragon's arm, sending a shockwave across the ground by the sheer force of it. White bats Kenpachi to the side with its wing and sends its tail darting at the man's chest. This causes minor internal bleeding on Kenpachi but will not stop his assault as he grabs the dragon's tail, swinging it around, taking down trees in its wake, and slamming the dragon into the ground. The dragon gets up again, wobbling to keep itself upright as it blasts Kenpachi with yet another cero. Kenpachi tanks this, coming out of the cero, and sends another slash that the dragon tries to dodge but takes across the side, but not before managing to get one last slash in on the maniacal captain. At this point, White is struggling to stand while Kenpachi isn't even panting.

"Is that really all you got? What a shame, I thought this would be more fun." Kenpachi states, realizing the Adjucha won't last much longer.

Ukitake approaches, "Finish this quickly, Captain Zaraki. We need to report back to the Soul Society."

This earns a sigh of disappointment from Kenpachi, "Looks like this is the end of the road for you, White. Can't say it hasn't been fun."

Kenpachi starts to raise his sword for a killing blow.

White's mind starts racing, as it stares death in the face, "No! I refuse to die here! I must help Sora resolve things with his sister! Sisters… that's right…!" Flashes of young girls, one with jet-black hair and another with dirty blond hair flash across his mind. "I have to see them again! I can't die here—I won't!"

White begins to roar as its reiatsu spikes to levels higher than even Kenpachi's, charging a cero nearly the size of a building between its horns.

"Zaraki, get back!" Ukitake yells before uttering the command, "All Waves, Rise now and Become my Shield, Lightning, Strike now and Become my Blade; Sogyo No Kotowari!"

This causes Ukitake's sword to become two swords with a rope connecting them with talismans hanging on it. As White releases the Cero, Ukitake jumps in front of Kenpachi pointing one of the swords towards the blast and the other to the sky. The blast is absorbed by the one sword and the talismans light up as it is transmitted through the rope to the other sword, sending the blast instead to the sky away from the town. By the time any of the Shinigami register what just happened, White is escaping through a Garganta.

The Hollow growls at them, "Your kind hunt us as it is now, but heed my words Shinigami: When next we meet, YOU will be the Hunted!"

The Garganta closes, leaving the Shinigami to think about what just transpired.

"Sir Genryusai will not be happy about this…", Ukitake states simply.

Kurosaki Clinic

Outside the Kurosaki Clinic, Isshin senses what has transpired in the city and sighs, "Now that the girls are sleeping, it's time to see an old friend…"

He begins walking down the street towards an odd, run-down shop, but unbeknownst to him, he is being followed by his daughter Karin, who in fact was only pretending to be asleep in hopes of being able to talk to her father privately without Yuzu listening in.

"Time to find out a little more about these shady friends he never told us about.", Karin thinks to herself as she follows her father stealthily.

Author's Note:

If any of you are on the fence about continuing to read this fic or not, I urge you to stick with it until the end of chapter 6. If nothing interests you at that point, then I don't think this fic is for you, as the first six chapters will give a general idea of what this fic is ultimately all about.

In any case, look out for the next chapter as It will be shifting gears a bit.