Breath of the Moon
Ch 1: Demons are not metaphorical.
"Talking"
'Thinking'
"Communication over technology."
Welcome, welcome, one and all, to my Bleach Demon Slayer crossover. This story was inspired by the fanfic The Butterfly(Kurosaki) effect. But in this, Ichigo is a more cool and calm character, who just so happens to be a Moon Breather. Oh, and Isshin isn't intentionally abusive in this story; he's sort of like a Mastiff who doesn't know not to sit on the Baby.
One year. It had been exactly one year since the death of his mother. The death of the Twin's mother. The death of Goat Chin's wife. They had all promised to go to the graveyard, where her ashes were buried, to pay their respects to a wonderful woman. Masaki Kurosaki.
Ichigo felt miserable. Even a year afterward, he still blamed himself for his mother's death. If he could just remember what exactly happened, maybe he could atone. But how could a ten-year-old explain his guilt to his six-year-old sisters, who barely remember their mother? He couldn't, so he didn't say anything. The guilt tore him up.
As the first-ever outing for the Anniversary of Masaki's Death, they all stayed out late. And despite how tired the twins were, they remained awake throughout the entire day. Isshin was in a state that switched between a babbling mess and a caring but overbearing father. It quickly got on the nerves of Ichigo, who had long since cried his last tears.
Soon, the sun fully set, and the first few stars showed in the night sky. The moon provided some illumination but not enough for them to remain at the poorly lit graveyard. So, they began their trek home. Isshin carried the twins, who were on the verge of falling asleep. He was surprisingly strong. When Ichigo thought the twins had fallen asleep, the boy spoke to his father quietly.
"I'm sorry, dad."
Isshin glanced at Ichigo for a moment before returning his focus on walking. "Listen here, Ichigo. What happened that day was not your fault. No matter how exactly your mother died, she died protecting you, something I would also do in a heartbeat. So don't blame yourself."
"But I-" Ichigo started.
"Shh, quiet, or you'll wake Yuzu and Karin." Ichigo nodded, falling silent.
They walked for about ten minutes, making it halfway home before a large growl sounded out from somewhere. Isshin snapped to attention, looking around. 'An animal? In the middle of the city? Did it escape the zoo or something? No, extremely unlikely, so what is it?' The twins started to perk up, hearing the unexpected noise. They had just about fallen asleep.
A man with darkened skin walked around the corner, but what was peculiar was the red eyes and horns that came from his head. He bared his teeth, turning to the family of four and showing them his enlarged canines. "Humans…food. So hungry. Been without…for days. Damned…slayers." He growled, taking a predatory stance, as Isshin promptly put down the twins. They huddled behind Ichigo as Isshin stood before his children, trying to block them from view.
The man(?) growled again before leaping in a ferocious roar. "FOOD!"
Isshin ran to intercept, meeting the monster's hands in a lock. The beast, momentarily surprised, began to push forward on Isshin, who looked at the creature in shock. "What…are you?" He said, struggling to keep whatever he was facing from advancing. 'I worked out like hell, so that I could keep my kids safe from the average criminal. But he's not some criminal, not when he can overpower me like so.' He paused. 'Dammit, at times like these, I wish I had just an inkling of my powers; I could probably have used a kido right about now to send him flying,' Isshin thought.
"That is a demon." A voice called out as a man stood atop a wall, looking at the scene below. Isshin took the chance to glance at him.
'Wait a minute,' He thought, 'He looks like…' The man interrupted his train of thought.
"What you are currently engaging in a contest of strength is a demon. They're a sub-species of humans whose diet consists of only humans." The man said as he unclipped two dual-headed axes from his sides. They were black and possessed long chains attached to something on the man's back. "They increase their population by sharing blood, but more specifically, the blood of their king. Disengage, now!" He ordered.
As soon as Isshin let go, he kicked the demon away, and the man jumped, aiming his dual axes at the demon's neck. "Breath of Hell, Third form: Hades' Inferno." The man's aim was true, decapitating the demon in one quick movement. The demon screamed in pain.
"It burns! It burns!" The demon screamed as it began to disintegrate. It only took a minute for the demon to disappear entirely, leaving only a necklace.
The man put his axes back and walked forward, picking it up. "Huh, Sajin. I guess that was his name. May you find atonement for your misdeeds in Hell." The man said. Isshin got a closer look at him. He was decked out in an unknown uniform with gold buttons and wore a white Haori with the Kanji for Inferno on the back. And the axes had the words, 'Destroy Demons,' engraved in the blades. The man's black hair and glasses gave him a bit of an average look.
Isshin stepped back, making sure he was in front of the man. 'I know exactly who he is…got to protect my kids.'
The man gave a short bow to Isshin. "My apologies for startling you. My name is Kenji Shiba, and I am the former Inferno Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps. Nowadays, I travel from place to place randomly and kill any demon I come across." The man looked behind Isshin, taking in the features of the three kids. "Are those your children? If so, I applaud you for protecting your family. It's one of the things I strongly believe in."
Isshin tried to find a lie in Kenji's words but couldn't. He slowly let down his guard. "I'm…Isshin Kurosaki. Thank you for saving my family. Is…there anything I could do to repay you?" Despite not wanting his children to be left unsupervised in the man's presence, Isshin offered.
The man moved to speak before his stomach growled. The former Hashira blushed. "Sorry about that. I've only had a few granola bars in the past few days. A lack of funds tends to do that. But if you're willing to offer a full meal and a place to rest once the night ends, that would be much appreciated." He awkwardly rubbed the back of his head.
Isshin went over the choices he had before nodding. "Alright, please follow me back to our place. I'll set you up with some food, and you can crash on our couch. But why when night ends?"
Kenji perked up, smiling. "Oh, demons burn in sunlight, so they only appear at night or when supper cloudy." Kenji stretched. "Oh man, I need some sleep, stat. A good twelve hours should keep me going until Friday Morning."
Isshin blinked. "You only sleep twelve hours per four-day period?" He asked incredulously.
Kenji sheepishly rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "Yeah. I kind of trained myself that way so I could be active for longer periods."
Yuzu pouted as she looked at the tired man from behind Ichigo's body. "Mama always said to get 10 hours of sleep every night." Isshin cooed at his daughter's brightness.
Kenji shrugged, "Yeah, well, 10 hours of sleep a night is for growing boys and girls. Not me."
Isshin snapped out of his praises when Ichigo slugged him in the arm. He then whined and complained about his son not loving him. Kenji blinked in surprise. 'They're…now fooling around? After a traumatic experience like a demon attack? What's up with this family?'
Ichigo looked at the Demon Slayer. "Come with us. We should have some leftovers from yesterday's dinner." The ten-year-old offered for his father.
Kenji nodded as he began to follow from behind. 'The way they act, it feels familiar.'
Kenji looked up at the sign next to the house. 'Kurosaki Clinic' greeted him. He smirked. 'Interesting, so the father is a doctor. And judging from the direction they were coming from, the Mother is gone. Hollow, maybe? The boy certainly has enough reiatsu to attract one, which leads me to believe his mother had a decent amount of reiatsu herself, enough to see the Hollow and pull her son to safety.'
"I hope you don't mind microwaved food," Isshin said as the twins started to feel sleepy again. "I need to get my kids to bed."
"That's fine by me." Kenji nodded as he was let inside and led to the dining room.
Isshin opened the fridge, pulled out some food, tossed it on a plate, and put it in the microwave. He then pointed to a specific drawer and a cabinet. "In there is cutlery, and in there are cups, so pull your food out when the microwave is done. I need to send these kids to bed after a long day." He paused. "Oh, and I wanna talk to you some more after I'm done, so don't disappear on me."
Kenji nodded, replying, "There are no demons in a couple of miles, so that's fine," as he sat down at the table and stared at the microwave as if trying to make it go faster.
Isshin gave him another look before carrying his daughters to bed, letting Ichigo go by himself. The twins clung to their father, scared the demon would suddenly return, but Isshin assured them that Kenji would protect them if it came back. He hated praising somebody he didn't trust, but he was in no condition to defend his family from something supernatural that Soul Society clearly didn't know about. If they did, so would he, having been a captain.
He quickly peeked into Ichigo's room, noting that the boy had fallen asleep in his day clothes. He probably didn't even brush his teeth. Eh, Isshin would get on his case in the morning. For now, he needed to confront the elephant in the house, namely, somebody who should be rotting in the Muken under the Squad One Barracks.
Isshin made his way downstairs, watching Kenji finish his last bites. "You have no idea how filling that was, thank you." Kenji thanked the master of the house. He pushed his dishes off to the side. "Now, please sit. I want to know what it was you we're so keen to discuss."
Isshin breathed out. "I know who you are."
Kenji blinked in confusion. "Uhmm, what?"
"You are Kenji 'Kenpachi' Shiba, the second captain of squad 11 and former head of the Shiba Clan. You were thrown in the Muken for not only gaining hollow powers but also killing four other captains." Isshin explained, his face grim.
Kenji's eyes widened in shock. 'How does he..?' "What made you come to that conclusion?" He asked.
Isshin's eyes narrowed. "A few things. The first…is your looks. You look exactly like that portrait that sits in the Shiba Mansion. Now, that alone could be a coincidence, but the fact your name is the same leads me to believe you are one and the same. The third is that when a captain dies, they don't enter the cycle of reincarnation, as their bodies are too condensed with reishi, so their bodies are decomposed to scatter across the Soul Society. So, you can't be a simple reincarnation."
Kenji leaned backward as if physically struck. 'He knows all that? But the only people who could know are Yamamoto, Unohana, and…the Shibas.'
"You-you're a Shiba? What are you doing in the living world, and with no powers to speak of?" Kenji questioned, his eyes suddenly sharp. "And what is your relation to me?"
Isshin sucked in a breath in surprise. "I…lost them a while ago. Now, I'm just living as a human. As for the relationship, you are my Great-Grandfather. I am Isshin Shiba-Kurosaki, former Captain of squad ten and Branch head of the Shiba clan following my cousin's death forty-some-odd years ago."
Kenji blinked, not expecting that answer. "Huh. Well, that would explain how you know of me. Now, what else did you want to discuss?"
Isshin's face twisted as if he had bitten a lemon. "Why aren't you in the Muken?"
Kenji breathed out a sigh of exhaustion. "Well, in truth, I am both Kenji Shiba and not."
Isshin looked at him, surprised, "What does that mean?"
Kenji looked away for a moment before meeting Isshin's eyes. "I'm…a portion of Kenji Shiba's power made manifest, having gained consciousness."
Isshin looked confused. "What does that mean?"
"You really want to know?" Isshin nodded, "Well…"
By the end of the conversation, Isshin had felt like his entire world flipped three times, which was two times too many. He looked at Kenji, who was waiting for his reaction. "What are your current plans?" He asked his ancestor.
Kenji sighed, waving his hands outwards, communicating his neutrality. "Well, I'm currently on a journey to get even stronger. I even joined the Demon Slayer Corps centuries ago, having been a part of the Third Generation of Breath using Hashira. I had to 'retire' after about a decade. Otherwise, questions about how I wasn't physically aging would have popped up. But beyond that, I don't have a timeline of what I plan."
"Breathing…" Isshin muttered to himself. "Listen…" Kenji perked up. "Could you…teach me that breathing technique you mentioned?"
Kenji looked away. "I…could teach you the basics, like total concentration breathing, but beyond that, I can't."
Isshin looked at him in shock. "What? Why? You'd be giving me a way to defend my family while my powers are gone."
"It's your body." Kenji pointed out.
"Body?"
"Yeah," Kenji started, "You look to be in your late twenties, early thirties, right?"
"I'm 31, physically," Isshin said.
"Exactly. If your body was even six years younger, it could tolerate the sudden use of breathing techniques. But, as you are, anything beyond total concentration breathing could put your physical health at serious risk, and something tells me you aren't keen on turning back into a spirit anytime soon. As it stands, the basics are the most you can safely use." Kenji explained.
Isshin looked down in disappointment. He had hoped he could learn something valuable enough to keep his family safe. "Although…there is 'that.'" Kenji's voice broke Isshin's line of thought.
Isshin looked up hopeful, "What is 'that?'" He asked.
"I'm talking about 'Repetitive Action,'" Kenji said.
"What is that?" Isshin asked, curious.
"Hmm, how to explain," Kenji closed his eyes, "Well, Repetitive Action is where you repeat a series of actions, whether it be a set of movements, saying a Mantra, or even focusing on a memory of fear or anger. It supercharges the five senses and boosts your strength to the point where you can fend off the average demon. It's less intensive than breathing styles, but combined with Total Concentration, you would be on par with, maybe, the average Kinoe demon slayer. That's the rank below Hashira for reference."
Isshin thought about it for a moment. "Alright, I would like to learn both of these."
Kenji held up a hand. "Hold your horses; we haven't discussed payment."
Isshin narrowed his eyes. "Helping your descendent isn't enough?" He asked.
"You are not my first-generation child; ergo, it's not my responsibility to raise you." Kenji raised his hands in surrender. "Don't worry, my terms are reasonable."
Isshin's eyebrow raised, interested in what Kenji had to say. Kenji took that as a sign to continue. "The training shouldn't take more than a year if I only teach you a couple hours a day. I did notice your sign. So, my offer is you let me crash on your couch for the year and offer a place at the dinner table before I go out every night. A full meal a day will make me far more productive. What do you say?"
Isshin balanced the idea. On one hand, Kenji is both spiritually aware and capable of fending off hollows and demons. That made the Kurosaki family much safer. On the other hand, he was hesitant to let Kenji have any measure of influence over his children. After a few minutes, Isshin's desire to protect his family won out as he held out his hand. "Alright, you have a deal; you'll have a place until I've learned all I can." Isshin looked down. "I'll probably have to clear out the attic, as I only have four bedrooms, but that should be spacious enough."
"Deal." Kenji nodded as he shook the offered hand. He suddenly got up and walked to the door. "A demon is within my sensing range. Could you please put my dishes in the sink for me?" Isshin's eyes narrowed before he nodded. "Excellent. Oh, and one more thing, Isshin," The former captain of squad 10 reared back in shock as Kenji's face became cold. "Don't call me Kenpachi. It's degrading, as I've yet to kill the one who holds the title."
"W-" Kenji left before Isshin could get his question out. "Who…holds the title of Kenpachi?" He asked himself.
Kenji was exhausted. He had run all over Karakura Town and had slain three more demons in his night, saving a handful of people. It was close, but he was always gone by the time a demon slayer could show up. Thank god breath users felt different than ordinary humans. He walked through the unlocked front door and detached his blades, placing them on the coffee table.
He yawned, stretching a bit. "Uh, Mr. Shiba?" Kenji looked down at Ichigo, who was decked out in a school uniform.
"What?" He yawned again.
"Could you, um, teach me how you killed that demon?" Ichigo asked. "I want to protect my sisters."
Kenji snapped awake, looking at the boy in shock. Isshin, who had been in the kitchen, his jaw dropped when he heard that.
"What?" That was the only thing Kenji could say.
This entire chapter was written in about three hours, edited in one hour on three hours of sleep; my throat is scratchy, my nose is stuffed, and I might have a fever. Who would have thought being sick made you suddenly more productive.