Pre-Note
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach. This is for creative purposes. I do own this plot.
There are Images for this Chapter.
The Gems of the Seavens
"This diversion...how long do you think he'll keep this going?" Rukia asked as both Raiden and her flew in the air.
"How the fuck should I know?!"
"Well you were there! I assumed you both had some type of plan!"
"Plan?! Are you forgetting he's our fucking enemy?!"
"O-Of course not! But why does it feel like he's helping me escape?"
"Hel—what the fuck? Helping?!"
"Yes! Helping!"
"Why the fuck would he help you escape?!"
"I don't know! But he must have his reasons. Something manipulative, I'm assuming...something he wants."
"We already know what he wants—he wants the fucking—"
"I know, I know but there's something more to that."
"Ya think?"
"I know."
"Well aren't you little miss cocky? Did you get that from your brother, too?"
"Raiden."
"Whaaat? I'm not allowed to have some fun with the whole Kuchiki clan thing?"
"No."
He laughed. "Why not? As a noblewoman shouldn't you be proud of being a prestigious woman from a noble clan—(and Rukia almost rolled her eyes as he played out a scenario with a screeching high-pitched female voice) 'Yes, hello? I'm Lady Rukia, sister of the prince of the Kuchiki clan.'—'Oh? How lovely! Would you like to have some tea?'—'Yes, that would be marvelous! Hura, take these shoes off—they're hideous!'"
"I don't sound like that." She snapped.
"Oh really?" He asked. "Are you sure?" He questioned while batting his eyelashes in the same irritably screeching tone earning a punch to the face by Rukia's fist.
"Seriously...do I honestly look like that?"
"Maybe." He laughed.
"Relax! I was kidding! No one thinks you're as fucked up as those princesses from noble homes. They didn't once and they won't now so you can chill the fuck out."
"I hope."
"Funny to think you've been working with nobles for almost your entire life, only to become one later on."
"Who would've thought their life would be so...majestic and principled? I never thought in a million years, even so by recommendation that I'd end up being one myself. The past doesn't count, that was different, I was okay and free. I had more leniency and more..."
"I'm guessing the past fifty years you've spent as the Kuchiki princess haven't been as fun as I originally thought."
"I-It's not that, it's just...it's just the principles I guess, the expectations and portrayal of how every noble is supposed to act—now that I've been treated as the outsider I truly am, I can see it with better eyes. The strive for perfection isn't a choice but a demand."
"They've forced you?"
"No." She replied instantaneously—a second earlier and she would've cut him off. "It's just an observation from...the outside lens."
"Are you sure about that?"
"Why wouldn't I be?" She muttered. Raiden decided not to ask.
Instead, he decided to ask about more pressing matters like her condition.
"So...what's all this talk about you having some psychological disorder or 'morbid memories'?" Raiden asked in an attempt to change the subject.
But her body flinching in response told him all he needed to know.
She didn't want to talk about it.
She wasn't one for telling people her problems, that much he knew but given the extent of the things she probably saw while she was asleep, Raiden knew she'd have to get it out of there eventually.
It was too much. She had one strong fucking mind to keep it all inside but he wished it didn't have to be like that but it was.
Raiden was convinced she'd stay silent the whole trek however, after a moment of stained silence, he heard his name.
"Raiden...?"
"Yeah?"
It came out uncaring but he was concerned.
Rukia looked straight forward, her face remained blank and uncaring as they flew side by side with the wind.
"Do you..."
She was hesitant.
"...remember in the Rukongai District..."
"Yeah?"
"….when I said I had a sister—a sister named Hisana, when we were little kids living in the Rukongai?"
"There's no end to this!" Ichigo yelled as he slashed another bundle of crystal blue ice lines which had multiplied after another one of his cuts.
Drowned in a white murk, he could barely see what he was cutting at this point. He couldn't escape the thick air even if he tried. Orihime behind him hugged herself to generate warmth, unable to do anything with red hands.
The only thing Ichigo was thankful for was the hissing sound coming from each and every one of them—it made it easier for him to cut even though he was unable to stop them.
The most he could do now was avoid either of them from getting cut. Given how unchanging this gloom seemed to be, he was sure they would've been caught by now given the speed.
Orihime was still numb. Her skin was completely flushed and her body trembled against her cloak. Not even the cloak wasn't helping, his forearms were just as red as hers.
"They just keep coming..." Ichigo said as the hissing sound grew louder and louder—almost as if they were already close to his skin. "Problem is, where the fuck do they keep coming from?"
"The walls..." Orihime managed to say—barely above a whisper in her trembling state.
"What was that, Inoue?" Ichigo asked as his amber eyes moved from left and right—trying to concentrate to the sound of hissing as she spoke.
"The walls...Kurosaki-kun. That's where the lines are coming from—the walls."
"The walls?" He repeated. "But how?"
"I don't know...but when Rangiku-san and I were thrown to the ground by that earthquake, the lines released themselves from the ice on the walls."
"That was no earthquake, Inoue—that was an explosion."
She gasped. "An explosion? From where?"
"12th Division barracks." Ichigo informed. "They were trying to melt the ice with some bomb but it turns out the bomb was switched with a nuclear one instead."
Her eyes widened. "A nuclear bomb? No wonder the ground shook so hard when Rangiku-san and I were walking." Orihime said.
"Ishida stayed back to figure out how it got switched but the place's an entire mess and the fumes of the explosion are already starting to spread with that bastard's reiatsu."
"His presence is really something, isn't it Kurosaki-kun? Almost like a fragrance or some sort of scent—it's everywhere."
"I know...but what the hell is it?"
"I don't know either but since his reiatsu is linked with everything around us, how can we be so sure that he's here?"
"We can't be, and that's the problem." Ichigo said as he moved slightly to the right. "I don't know what the hell kinda game he's playing but the fact that he was able to merge his reiatsu with the explosion doesn't make it any easier to figure it out."
"Do you think he's not actually here, Kurosaki-kun?"
"I don't know, Inoue—I don't know. It's kinda hard to figure out with his reiatsu moving around everywhere. For all we know that bastard could be manipulating us from some place else."
"Maybe from the Okasake manor." Orihime theorized and Ichigo turned around to meet her. "Kuchiki-san did say that the Okasake twins resided there and based on Ishida-kun's research, they've been the Head of the Okasake clan from the start and the ryoka happens to be their heir."
"I doubt any noble from one of the four great noble clans would ever risk getting involved with something like this, even if he is their only heir—just look at Byakuya and how protective he is of his clan's legacy, I doubt they'd join forces with Jushirmai."
"So then...where do you think he's manipulating us?"
"I don't think he's manipulating us at all, Inoue. He's somewhere here—I know it. The only problem is that he's using his reiatsu to shield his actual location and this mist or smoke or whatever this is supposed to be, is just a part of his plan to keep us from finding it."
"I wonder if Ishida-kun and Sado-kun are in the same situation as well."
"Ishida and Chad should be fine. Ishida's with the 2nd Division at the 12th Division's barracks and Chad left to meet with Renji since apparently Byakuya found him in the Rukongai."
"Abarai-kun was found?"
"Yeah, about half an hour ago when you were with Rangiku-san, Byakuya reported that he was found in the Rukongai."
"Oh...so what was he doing there?"
"He didn't say." Ichigo responded. "According to Rukia he was just visiting a friend."
"A friend...but if Abarai-kun was just visiting a friend all along, why didn't he tell us?"
"That's what I don't get. There's something going on, Inoue. I don't know what but he's been acting very strange."
"Just like Kuchiki-san..."
"But Rukia told the truth."
"What?"
"Earlier today I caught her wandering around, I decided to ask what happened and she told me the truth."
"How did you know she was telling you the truth, Kurosaki-kun?"
"It just seemed like she was being honest."
"...And you believed her?"
"She wouldn't lie." Ichigo responded. "I know everyone's been suspicious of her but they don't realize that something's wrong and it has everything to do with her past in the Rukongai—Rukia would never intentionally lie to us even if she knew it had something to do with her past."
"Then what do you think this all is?"
"I don't know, but I guess we'll have to figure it all out tonight."
"What do you mean?"
"He has to be somewhere around here, Inoue—watching us, figuring out what the hell he's going to do to us next while the others are in different places at the same time. If I can somehow get rid of this snow, we can meet up with Chad, Ishida, Rukia, and Renji and deal with this as a group."
"Right." She said before clenching her right fist. "But how are we going to do it? There's so much mist we can barely see each other's faces."
"Well I guess that's the perks of having orange hair, Inoue." He said with his face softening momentarily to smile.
She blinked at him with elliptical grey eyes at his random comment regarding their abnormal but bright hair as he turned around so that his muscular back was now facing her eyes once again.
"I don't really trust going up in the air since those veins can come out from anywhere so we'll just have to look around."
"That's alright, Kurosaki-kun—I'll just follow your hair so we won't get lost." She said in addition to his comment before slowly curving her lips into a smile.
"Let's go, Inoue."
"Hmph." She said as she nodded her head down and her two hands clenched into a fist.
Right.
Strong winds prompted the quick movements of her raven-coloured, medium-length hair as she flew in the sky.
In between the flaps of her silken hair and the flares from the gem, the fragment could be seen—embedded in the back of her bamboo-skinned neck—with the shadowy hue of a rose, blaring within the piece.
The fragment came to reappear and disappear as she flew in the air—eyes as red as mahogany, lips as red as the flower of euphorbia—looking down at the effects of the explosion and the pitiless reapers either deprived of their hearts or left for dead in knots.
Inari's hands twitched.
This sight of blood dripping down the sides of their numb necks was triggering something within her core. She was hungry.
The quick overview of the corpses had left her feeling famished and now she didn't know what to do. If she had it her way, she would've already done more damage to them but she wasn't the one who held that power.
It was them.
"Quán." Right on time, she thought. The fast-paced smeared blackness of flash-step revealed long, dark flying hair.
"Naohira." She acknowledged with her mahogany eyes meeting an iris colour—cold and cutting with strands carelessly covering them with the wind.
"Dispose of the artificial creation."
"I already did." She responded. "She did it to her own self afterwards without me."
"Nonsense, what are you talking about?"
"After I wounded her she collapsed in front of the explosion. She could've saved herself if she wanted to, but she stayed back to call her Captain's name."
"So she's dead?"
"Maybe. But why does it matter? What importance does she have to do with you?"
"It was an order from our commander."
"What does she have to do with him?"
"It was an order." She repeated.
"It had to have some type of meaning, Naohira. Didn't he tell you anything before you left?"
"No, it was an order. An order is an order, Quán—you do not question the Commander's motives."
"Couldn't you question his orders? Or at least ask why the Lieutenant was relevant?"
Naohira turned her face with her eyes facing forward. "I assume it is your lack of trust in his thinking that prompts your paranoia."
Inari continued to stare.
"There's no reason to be doubtful or even disrespect him with thoughts like those—you got your stone, didn't you?"
"Tell me his reasoning behind the order."
"Tell me the reasoning behind your doubt."
"I don't need to do any explaining to you."
"Then don't harbor doubt if it can't be explained." Naohira advised and Inari's eyes never moved from the woman's moonlit face. "You have made your decision. You were given a choice and you chose it. Any act of doubt as of now should be gone from your system—or at least buried away with the rest of your personal flaws."
Inari didn't say a single word.
"I am acceptant of every personality—including yours, a paranoid and confused one that initiates defenses and concerns but I value respect amongst it all."
"Of course. Isn't that the life of the superiors? The ones who hold control? The ones who rule over all?"
"The superiors you chose to the regain the originals."
"It doesn't matter—it's still about control."
"It always is, Quán—it always is." She said. "If you have questions about his motives then you should ask him yourself and be punished."
"If he punishes me then it's obvious he has something to hide."
"Nonsense, if he punishes you it is out of law, order, and respect, he is your superior."
"Who's hiding something."
"You're being doubtful again and that very doing will be the beginning of your downfall—your end, Quán. So understand."
"Understand that I'm not being told something?"
"Understand that being doubtful will end in your demise. I came here by orders to tell you to grind that artificial being into dust—he found you more suitable for the job than me."
"Why?"
"He did not doubt you, so you should not doubt him. Execute his orders if you find her alive—eat her to fill the stone if necessary then leave until we unite." Naohira ordered.
"I'll leave the job for your taking. It is yours." She whispered before vanishing into nothing but twinkling lavender dust.
"The miasma...it appears to be subsiding." Captain Hitsugaya acknowledged as the stormy blue of the miasma—stemmed by the explosion—began to evacuate.
"Captain Hitsugaya! Where's Lieutenant Matsumoto?" A member of the 10th Division asked as they stood their ground behind the short Captain with their zanpakutōs.
"Healing, at the 4th Division's barracks."
"She was injured?"
"Unfortunately, she has a concussion." Captain Hitsugaya explained—scanning corner from corner as the miasma pulled itself away.
"We will have to work alone and find the ryoka. He's somewhere around here so do not lose your ground." He ordered with impassive eyes scanning the wintry haze.
He was not used to this shivery feeling.
A chilling breath of air puffed against his skin. Perhaps it was even colder than his own skin. But he knew very well that he couldn't admit it—the act of even feeling cold, let alone being it.
He still had his honor.
The honor of carrying the title of having the strongest ice and snow zanpakutō in the Gotei 13 for years.
To believe that someone else was able to wield such a type as his and master it with the most interesting capabilities concerned him.
He couldn't understand. Why or how his zanpakutō was even able to create such chaos with one simple movement or demand. It all didn't make sense. His zanpakutō seemed like a muster of capabilities.
But how?
What was its purpose?
From what he knew, the ryoka's zanpakutō was able to create lines of ice—sharp lines of ice that were able to grow and extend from any aspect of ice within the ground belonging to his zanpakutō.
The lines itself forged hissing sounds like a snake and were able to seep into bodies and skin before devouring or 'freezing' them until there was nothing left but an empty shell.
When cut or broken, they could regenerate and multiply and also could retain a barrier that completely shattered any physical or spiritual attack to destroy it.
The snow, however...Captain Hitsugaya was convinced that similar to himself, the ryoka could control any object that retained water near his ground—including the sky—which was in relation to the snowy storm. But like himself, it didn't seem like the ryoka could create water from just nowhere or anywhere but preserve it.
But where?
"Captain Hitsugaya...his reiatsu is fading out—should we follow it?"
"Yes. Go search for him in every corner that you can sense his reiatsu from and alert me if you come back."
"Yes, si—"
"Pathetic." A deep voice scoffed and the 10th Division members searched with their eyes to detect the presence in the form of a voice.
"I'm already close by. There is no reason to leave. " He said with his raspy voice immediately identifiable to the Captain as his voice announced itself through the dying murk of the clouds.
"Show yourself, where are you?"
Jushirmai laughed as the Captain clutched his zanpakutō and used his pools of turquoise to analyze his surroundings.
"H-He's here!"
"But where?"
"How long has he been listening?"
"It looks like he's talking from the clouds!"
"Shut up, you idiot! The Captain's trying to hear."
"I know that, Harisawa but his voice just sounds so...sounds so..."
"Don't tell me you're frightened." Jushirmai said with amusement—a deep voice vibrated within them. "I didn't expect to see such a cowardly crowd. Especially when I come in nothing but peace, isn't that right Captain Hitsugaya?"
"No, I'm afraid it is not—I presume that means you're declaring some type of war. "
"War?" Jushirmai sounded a bit too amused. "To declare war would assume that the enemies were formidable opponents, Captain Hitsugaya—something that clearly isn't present here. Wouldn't you agree, 10th Division squad member?"
His attention turned to the trembling man who grew meek.
"N-No Sir—I-I wouldn't."
His teeth vibrated as he stammered to convey a single reply. The voice of the ryoka sounded all too frightening.
"What?" The amusement continued. "Don't tell me you're still frightened by me, 10th Division squad member. I haven't done anything worth being frightened by."
"N-No Sir, o-of c-course n-not. I-I'm n-not scared."
"Is that so?"
"Y-Yes."
"Hmph..." Jushirmai simply said in response. "Good." He slurred after with a deep intonation that would've driven anyone mad.
"Then perhaps you wouldn't mind walking over to that little box in the corner to the left of your shoulders, 10th Division member to prove to me that you are indeed not scared." The man of the 10th Division gulped before he turned to stare at the box covered with ice located a few spots to the left of his Captain and fellow subordinates.
The tiny hairs at the back of his neck rose while goosebumps layered his skin in cold and inevitable fear.
"Go on," Jushirmai encouraged smoothly. "Prove to me you're not frightened...prove to me you're a man..."
"...A-A man?"
"Yes, 10th Division member—a man. Walk next to that box of ice and stand and prove your masculinity to me."
"Don't do it." Captain Hitsugaya ordered.
The man's eyes remained fixed on the box of ice.
"Don't tell me you're going to let your Captain come in between you and your masculinity's pride." Jushirmai said. "Don't tell me you're going to allow him to lessen your pride as a man, 10th Division member."
"Don't listen to him, it's a trap."
"Prove to me that you're able to uphold your so-called soul reaper pride."
"If you go there, he will kill you with his lines, Amori—don't go."
"Prove to me that you're not afraid...that the sound of my voice doesn't plunge you in endless frailty and despair."
"Captain..."
"Don't do it, Amori. He's only trying to provoke you—listen to me and stand your ground."
"Amori, is it?" Jushirmai asked. "Your Captain just told you to stand your ground—a wise collection of words, indeed. But who is he to stop you from upholding your pride? Who is he to tell you that your decision is wrong if you by chance decide to follow your own instinct?"
"My Captain."
"Yes, you're correct—he is indeed your Captain. But a child Captain unaware of what it feels like to be a man—to uphold your honor and pride."
"Y-You're the enemy."
"An enemy, I am indeed. But what of it, Amori? I'm only telling you to uphold your soul reaper pride."
"B-But you're—"
"An enemy, yes I'm aware—an enemy that regards your kind as weak and pitiless and yet, you won't allow me to grant you some utmost respect from my being, how foolish."
"His voice has stopped." Captain Hitsugaya analyzed and Jushirmai's voice had indeed gone missing. But what he didn't know was that Jushirmai's voice was in fact still there—just not to him, he couldn't hear.
"What's so wrong with upholding your masculinity—your pride as a man, Amori? Don't tell me you're just a mere weakling like soul reapers."
"Where did he go?" Captain Hitsugaya questioned in the background but the focus of Amori was not in any way devoted to his Captain right now—in fact, he couldn't even hear him with the deep voice overlapping his.
"But then again, it is in the nature of you soul reapers to be weak—therefore I have no reason to be surprised by your lack of masculinity and strength. Your resistance to cooperate has shamed all the soul reapers in the Gotei 13."
"Shamed them...? Y-You're lying! I haven't shamed them at all!"
"Pitiless fool, you were the first soul reaper I had asked to take my little test of masculinity. If you had cooperated and gone to the box, you would've been rewarded with the same heroism and respect like the substitute soul reaper, Kurosaki Ichigo because you upheld the soul reaper's pride."
"I would've...?"
"Yes, indeed. Imagine all the respect you would've been rewarded if you were able to convince the ryoka—a man who regards the soul reaper as useless and weak—that soul reapers were something worth being fearful over."
"I would've been known all over the Seireitei..."
"Yes, indeed. The Court of Pure Souls would've bowed to your very feet to thank you for upholding their strength and honor."
"I'd be like a Captain or noble!"
"You would've been granted a certain level of honor and respect that exceeded your commoner's status—therefore giving you a reputation of a hero."
"And Koharu and Kaori would've been given a better life to live off of too!"
"Yes," He slurred. "Your family would've certainly been rewarded with wealth and honor for your bravery and intelligence of convincing the ryoka that the soul reaper were indeed very formidable opponents. Such a shame you didn't walk over to the box any sooner, Amori. Your chances of recognition are all over now."
"Wait! Sir, give me a second chance!"
"Where did he go?"
"Go find him."
"A second chance, you say?"
"Yes, a second chance! I'll prove my masculinity! Tell me what to do and I'll do it."
"Is that so?"
"Yes, sir—I will prove to you that the soul reaper are not weak."
"How?" He slurred.
"Wha...Well..."
"Tell me how you're going to prove to me that the soul reaper are not in fact the weakest beings to exist in mankind. Tell me how you're going to do it."
"Sir..." He breathed. "I don't know."
"You don't know, you say?"
"No, I don't know. B-But that doesn't mean I still can't prove my masculinity. I'll do anything, sir to prove it to you."
"Is that so?"
"Yes."
"Good." He slurred. "Then convince the Gotei 13 that the 13th Division's Lieutenant, Kuchiki Rukia has just committed treason and is currently running away."
He took a step back. "What?"
"You heard me. Tell the Gotei 13 that Kuchiki Rukia has committed treason and is currently running away with a quincy."
"A quincy?"
"Yes, a quincy with red hair and green eyes—Arigawa Raiden."
"But...But...they'll never believe me without proof, Sir—I mean...Lieutenant Kuchiki would never commit treason without reaso—"
"So you will show them this." Jushirmai interrupted before a USB stick was thrown from the clouds of miasma surrounding him and landed beside his feet on the ground—Amori bent down. "This surveillance footage depicts her treachery quite clearly. Show this to the Gotei 13 and reveal that Kuchiki Rukia is indeed a traitor to the soul reapers."
"And then what?"
"Then you will be rewarded—given the respect and honor you so blatantly deserve. The soul reapers will honor you for your intelligence and you will prove to me your masculinity throughout the process."
"A-Are you sure?"
"I am assured."
"Amori, let's go."
"Then I'll do it—I'll tell the Gotei 13 of Lieutenant Kuchiki's betrayal."
"Good and make sure her so-called brother and mortal friends—Kurosaki Ichigo—are there as well for the viewing."
"Right."
The Soul Reaper Library District doors creaked open before shutting themselves closed by the force of the wind. The Lieutenant of the 8th Division, Ise Nanao stepped into the extensive room with blue eyes scanning the library of books and candle lights—extinguished by the cold air.
From aisle to aisle, she went through each and every stack to search for the book of element-based zanpakutōs—the book that Lieutenant Abarai and Kuchiki had found and gathered research upon to confirm the usage of Jushirmai's ice and snow zanpakutō.
It was not that she was doubtful, but she needed more confirmation for herself as something was very odd about the zanpakutō that was supposedly stolen from an unnamed Captain.
Clutched in her hand was the old file of the supposed Shiegeari Jushirmai who was supposed to be executed for theft, but strangely never happened. And with a new appearance—that was supposedly natural—and a disguise he had used to play Shiegeari Jushirmai all along, it made Nanao wonder—what really was the truth? Because nothing discovered from the beginning to now made no sense at all.
Captain Kuchiki had supposedly met him in the woods but if he was noble, wouldn't he have recognized him as a noble as well through his voice, through his face, anything? But then she remembered, he had concealed himself with a disguise—a disguise completely opposite of what he displayed now and perhaps a different voice as well which was why he was so unrecognizable to the Kuchiki.
But even so...why was he disguised like that in the first place? What was he doing there talking to a zanpakutō? Why was he at the Shin'ō Academy and yet claimed he had been searching for Lieutenant Kuchiki all along?
Not to mention, why did he set himself up to be executed and then disappear only to come back years later with revenge and a desire for Lieutenant Kuchiki?
Who was the Captain?
What was the name of the zanpakutō?
None of it made any sense—his story, his background, his desires.
It could all be fake for all she knew, but she intended on finding out the real truth behind his desires—his supposed history—and more specifically, about his ice and snow zanpakutō.
Element-based zanpakutōs were indeed very dangerous to obtain in the Soul Society. Based on the wielder's stamina, it could increase its abilities if used and trained right despite the element. They were the very first zanpakutōs to be used in the Soul Society and were widely known when a wielder obtained powers greater than the element itself.
Focusing on ice and snow zanpakutōs, Captain Hitsugaya wielded the strongest of that element—but who wielded the strongest one before him? She did not know and she did not understand how a zanpakutō as strong as the one used to smother the Soul Society with ice could be so unknown and unheard of in the Gotei 13's database. After all, its power was so immense that it was able to turn the entire Soul Society into a modern day ice age that occurred in the World of the Living ages ago in some parts of the world. Why was it so undiscovered?
Nanao intended on finding out exactly about this mysterious Captain and his zanpakutō. But first her mind was set on only one thing—understanding the concept of element-based zanpakutōs.
She did not know about much of them except the fact that they were very dangerous and could increase in abilities—a disadvantage to non-element-based zanpakutōs. But beyond that she was unaware and in order to find out the truth about the Captain's zanpakutōs and his abilities, she'd have to learn more.
All starting with, the Seavens—the seven stones with seven guardians dating all the way back to the beginning of the Soul Society.
The seven stones which gave birth to the element-based zanpakutōs.
"Kurosaki, Inoue-san."
"Ishida, Chad."
"Ishida-kun, Sado-kun—you're alright." Orihime said as she looked up at the quincy and her muscular friend that stood on top of a roof.
"The miasma is disappearing." Chad informed.
"Yeah, I know. And his reiatsu's disappearing along with it." Ichigo said while looking up at them before they jumped down to meet them at the ground.
"My question is, how did it merge with the explosion?" Chad asked.
"And how was he able to disperse it around the Seireitei as if it was nothing?" Ichigo added.
"Unfortunately for you, Kurosaki—I don't know. His reiatsu is beyond any Captain's reiatsu I've ever felt before in my life. It's strong—very strong, maybe even stronger than yours, Kurosaki."
"Stronger than Kurosaki-kun's? But...Ishida-kun how can that be?"
"Well I kind of figured that would happen, Inoue." Ichigo pitched in. "This guy's reiatsu is nothing like mine—it's like some kind of a poison...some kind of weapon of its own."
"Not to mention, every time someone encounters it their oxygen levels manages to decrease immediately and his zanpakutō's abilities are able to merge with his reiatsu to unveil his lines of ice."
"I don't understand where he's getting this power from. He claims he got them from the moon but that all in all sounds like a load of crap to me."
"How would the moon be able to transfer him powers? That means he might not have been as powerful as he was before." Orihime said.
"I still feel like his whole story is just a load of crap to me. I mean, before we even came here, Tōshirō told me that Rukia and Renji told them based on an old report that he was set up to be executed for stealing a Captain's zanpakutō—what the hell does that have to do with the moon?"
"Well the more I think about it, the more I feel that this execution story of his was just a part of his plan to begin with." Uryū said.
"Part of his plan?"
"His plan to find Kuchiki-san, I mean. A lot of parts of his story don't seem to add up. The more I think about it, the more I feel as if he purposely did it to find her."
"So wait...you're telling me he disguised himself, tricked Byakuya, stole a Captain's zanpakutō, and created all that chaos, just to see if Rukia was within the Seireitei?"
"As I said, it's just a thought. But the story I'm trying to believe still doesn't add up, regardless—there's too many things missing."
"Like why would he help Captain Kuchiki find Kuchiki-san?" Orihime asked.
"And if he knew where she was, why didn't he take her then?" Chad asked.
"And why don't we have any records regarding his family affairs?" Uryū asked.
"And most importantly, what the hell does he want with Rukia?" Ichigo asked and in that very moment and time, all the questions that were waiting to be answered unveiled themselves in a silver light.
"You are all more meddlesome than I first took you for—pity me for doubting your persistence and curiosity."
"You."
"Ah, the legendary ryoka boy and his crew—Kurosaki Ichigo, did I not inform you that I'd be back?" The amusement in his deep tone only seemed to piss Ichigo off even more but it couldn't be helped.
Jushirmai unveiled himself in the miasma of his thick sheatsu with his dark hair flying behind him and a few loose strands beside his face. The Karakura gang watched him sport a new attire—a plain midnight blue kimono with an even darker shade as a vest—similar to a sleeveless Captain's haori.
"I remember." Ichigo informed with his orange brows furrowed and amber eyes hot with solemnity. "I just didn't expect to see you so soon."
"Oh, is that so?" Jushirmai replied with hilarity colouring his voice.
"It's been seven days—why the hell did you show up now?"
"What?"
"He means, considering the fact that it's been seven days, why have you decided to suddenly make an appearance now?"
"Why, you ask? I thought the answer was quite obvious." He cackled with his enamoring irises of an imperial indigo contrasting well with the midnight blue night.
"Rukia."
"Correct." He answered. "But there's no reason to fret, I've come to reveal much more than Rukia and I's history."
And although his original motive had been to release Rukia from her penitentiary and set her free, he had come to the realization that Rukia's betrayal would not impact the entire Gotei 13 to go to the limit for her. In fact, he had decided to grant them the honor, actually to witness his zanpakutō and see what power he contained that was completely irrelevant to the moon.
"Oh really? And what the hell would that be?"
He smirked.
The reiatsu surrounded him in dark midnight blue clouds—thick and mixed with the white haze as the wind tangled through his curvy dark tresses and shook his cloth as he stared down at Ichigo and his crew. The hilt of his zanpakutō was not far from his reach—a power soon to be seen.
"I thought it was about time I finally introduced to you the phenomenon behind my zanpakutō—the one responsible for all of the Soul Society's icelandic destruction, Wintry Hail of the Wailing Ice, Hidden Storm, and Missing Wind." Jushirmai slurred with an amusing grin before his hand gloved with a jet black tekkō reached the hilt of father's zanpakutō from its sheath and unveiled its glorious figure in the blinding moonlight.
A powerful cold aura emitting itself from his reiatsu surrounded him as the silver cloud hid the showcase of his zanpakutō.
The wind began to strengthen and the Karakura gang below used their arms to cover their eyes as the dust toyed around with the tornado of energy surrounding the ryoka man standing above. Their capes flew at the cold pressure before the wind subsided and within the clouds of reiatsu came a sword—a zanpakutō—the zanpakutō with the element of ice.
The blade itself was very thin in width and very sharp like glass or ice. The long and pointing blade resembled the transparency of glass and the shivering aura of ice—a barrier with a certain glimmer (correspondent to the blade) showcased the polished tip that was tinted with a specific shade of blue and silver merged into one.
The tip of the blade was curved inwards with one side of the sword being straight and the other being almost exactly consistent before joining together to create a small curve—like a hill—along the way.
Small and uniquely written inscriptions were carved into the blade—running down in a straight line for only half of the entire sword. The last inscription ended at the point where a single vein of ice—glistening with something like lavender or silver—led itself all the way down to meet the hilt of the sword.
He laughed.
"Woah..." Orihime said as her grey eyes met the sliver of the glass-like blade. It's even bigger than Kurosaki-kun's, Orihime thought to herself with her hair whisking in the wind and the bewitchment gleaming in her eyes.
The cloud aura produced from the blade immediately froze everything within the area around Jushirmai's atmosphere and it was only during the act of being released.
"A zanpakutō with three names?" Uryū questioned.
"Are you surprised, quincy?" Jushirmai asked.
"How is that even possible?" Uryū responded.
"I am a man bound to many possibilities, Ishida Uryū—however this one happens to be a possibility envisioned on its very own—a jewel is what stems this icelandic creation."
"A jewel?" Ichigo questioned. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"Allow me, Kurosaki Ichigo to inform you about the true nature or foundation, I should say of element-based zanpakutōs—the most dangerous and destructive zanpakutō type in the entire Soul Society." He mused with a voice deeper than the depths of the ocean, slurring and cackling under his breath as his eyes watched the confused but hard-faced Kurosaki Ichigo stare at him from below.
"Thrive," Ichigo's deadpan amber eyes and orange brows scrunched. "Wintry Hail of the Wailing Ice."
He slashed his zanpakutō to form a glowing tinted blue streak in the direction of a 180 circle causing millions of lines of ice to release themselves towards the Karakura gang—a silver haze merged with the transparent crystals of ice to mask their direction as they dashed like bullets combined with a wintry avalanche in the air.
Orihime moved in front of the gang to release her shield to protect them.
"Hinagiku, Lily, Baigon, Tsubaki—Shiten Kōshun, I reject!"
The lines instantly slashed against her orange-coloured shield—like a muster of bullets fired from a gun. Immediately in response to her offense and defense attack, the lines clashed with the shield, only to be discarded back to her opponent being Jushirmai. But unfortunately, she wasn't strong enough to hold it all.
Something she only realized later on.
"I-I can't...I-I can't hold it." Orihime said. "It's...It's p-pushing me back."
Her feet began to slide back and the pressure of the wind brushed through her hair, making her realize she had used the wrong shield to protect her friends. Using only her defense would've been a lot more stronger than physically summoning her defense and offense attack to reciprocate Jushirmai's vicious attack.
Still, she had to remain valiant—focused on holding the shield for dear life because as of right now, it all depended on her shield, itself because everyone's defenses were down and under.
It was only her protecting them from being attacked.
Sado-kun...Ishida-kun...Kurosaki-kun...
I will hold us back.
Uryū watched in amazement behind the orange shield as the lines of ice shot at them with a never ending focal point—almost as if there was no end to its release.
The speed they bolted in...the way they extended to slither like a snake...one slash granted them a never ending birth—it was like a portal that continued to release millions of them per minute as they opened like some kind of flower.
There was no end.
"Wintry Hail of the Wailing Ice has no end." Jūshirmai interrupted his thoughts. "Upon release to thrive and grow, my zanpakutō creates lines of ice that feed on anything and everything to ensure its own survival—lines created by ice storms from its neighboring name, Wintry Hail of the Hidden Storm."
"To ensure its own survival?" Uryū repeated with the wind. "For ice to survive or be created, it needs to live in roughly 0 degrees Celsius and below."
"Wintry Hail of the Wailing Ice's lines ensure their own survival by creating their own habitat and feeding on anything I wish for them to destroy. A single strike of my zanpakutō summons their birth from a storm created by Wintry Hail of the Hidden Storm and leaves a never ending supply of veins."
"Using my sheatsu and reiatsu combined, it forms a barrier around any usage or form of ice I use from being destroyed or liquefied—leaving all of your attempts, fruitless which is why the ice cannot be destroyed from anything outside or within. It's impossible."
"Every attempt we put on it whether it be physical or spiritual won't have an effect because the barrier created by your reiatsu is somehow able to freeze any of our attacks before completely obliterating it into dust. Ice dust that transforms itself into your ice." Uryū explained.
"I'm glad you finally understand that everything, including your own fruitless attacks can be used as a weapon against you—almost as if it's reincarnated into ice."
"Is that so?" A voice asked—a different one, one not standing on the ground.
"Kuchiki and Abarai informed us on the night you first came here about the destructive nature regarding the element-based zanpakutōs. I'm unaware about how these two events are connected but I would like to know what exactly you know about the element-based zanpakutō type and how is your zanpakutō so strong." Captain Hitsugaya said as he stood on a roof—cold and small.
"Tōshirō!" Ichigo acknowledged as he turned his back slightly to see the Captain stand with his arms crossed and a few members of the 10th Division located right behind him.
"Where's Rangiku?" Ichigo asked.
"Matsumoto is resting—she was injured by the explosion as for the rest of the Captains, they'll be here soon to settle this identity case for once and for all."
"Well, you got me here." Another voice said accompanied with the fast moving sounds of shunpo.
"Shunsui, you too?"
His right hand bent his hat—emitting a shadow—as he looked up at Jushirmai. "It's been quite a while, hasn't it—Okasake Jushirmai. I've been looking forward to it—believe me."
"Lieutenant Kira, Lieutenant Hisagi, Captain Kuchiki, Captain Suì-Fēng, and Captain Komamura are here as well." Uryū acknowledged as they looked around to see a few of the Gotei 13 Captains and Lieutenants gathering atop the roof or in the air to meet the center of attention—Mizuri Jushirmai—standing with his zanpakutō.
"Where's Renji?" Ichigo asked.
"I sent him home."
"And Rukia?"
"She is at the manor—resting."
"And what about Lieutenant Kurotsuchi and her father?" Uryū asked.
"The explosion blew most of the towers away—the only explanation is that they got buried underneath the debris." Captain Suì-Fēng informed. "But the Stealth Force are on the job—we'll find them eventually."
"And Jūshiro's division has gone down there as well."
"And what about the others?"
"All divisions were reported to specific areas by the Head Captain—one being the site of the explosion and two being here—the point of Mizuri Jushirmai's reiatsu or should I say, sheatsu—Okasake Jushirmai." Captain Suì-Fēng said.
"Well, well—it seems that you've finally caught on, Captain Suì-Fēng. I'm surprised it took you that long to figure out what exactly I was using as reiatsu all along."
"Sheatsu? What is that supposed to be?" Uryū questioned.
"Sheatsu." Captain Suì-Fēng repeated. "It's a form of spiritual stamina—different from reiatsu—that focuses on physical stamina more than spiritual stamina that is stemmed from the energy in one's soul."
"How is that different from reiatsu?"
"Reiatsu is the act of reiryoku being released from the amount of spiritual energy one contains in their soul. Sheatsu is different—its main purpose is physical energy that one contains within their soul, muscles, and tendons. Combined with the spiritual forces in one's souls, the two components of physical and spiritual stamina merge together to create sheatsu—pressure grown to the ones who are physically and spiritually strong." Captain Suì-Fēng explained.
"Pressure grown to the ones who are physically and spiritually strong...?" Uryū repeated to himself as he looked down to comprehend the concept before looking up at Jūshirmai. "So that's what you've been using all this time...sheatsu."
"Yes," He slurred. "Sheatsu—a form of physical pressure that is beyond the bounds of what you, soul reaper are used to or known for. A kind of energy that focuses on your muscles, tendons, and soul all at once to determine how powerful you truly are."
"I've never heard of this kind of spiritual pressure before."
"That is because you are incapable of possessing it, Captain Hitsugaya—it is not in, what you call, a soul, Captain Hitsugaya Tōshirō. Something as powerful and physically complex as sheatsu is not something so simply given to someone of your rank."
"It's not something every soul reaper can obtain." Captain Suì-Fēng continued. "It's like a gift—another power or component—given to your soul or grown into it as you continue to train and work physically hard every day."
"You impress me, Captain Suì-Fēng. I didn't expect you to participate or even reveal such information to the Gotei 13—especially after Rukia's and Genryūsai's request to keep it safe."
"I guess Yama-jii knows more than he shows."
"But that still doesn't answer why the hell you're doing all this. What the hell do you want with the Gotei 13?" Ichigo asked.
"What I want, you ask? I want nothing more but your interference, Kurosaki Ichigo. I want you and the Gotei 13 to understand and see where the true acts of power relies and are conceived."
"What are you talking about?" Captain Hitsugaya asked.
"I'm talking about superiority, power, history, and most importantly, the foundation and creation of the most destructive and well known zanpakutō type in the entire Soul Society."
"Element-based zanpakutōs." Captain Komamura finished.
"Correct."
"Earlier you said something about your zanpakutō having three names. How is it possible for a zanpakutō to have three names?" Ichigo asked.
"It's not." Jushirmai said firmly. "That is of course, if it was not the first ice and snow zanpakutō prototype to be made in the Soul Society, millenniums ago when Ol'Genryūsai first created the afterlife you know today."
"First...ice and snow zanpakutō prototype?"
"Yes, Captain Hitsugaya—and the strongest ice and snow zanpakutō prototype to exist, might I add."
"Who did you steal it from?" Captain Hitsugaya questioned. "And why are our databases so unaware of such a type?"
"Why, you ask? Your databases are inferior to where the true database's information lies. The reason why you're so unaware is the fault of Ol'Genryūsai and his crew."
"And where might that be?" Uryū asked.
"I'm sure Ol'Genryūsai will inform you all soon, quincy."
"You still didn't answer my question." Captain Hitsugaya said. "Who did you steal it from?"
"According to Abarai and Kuchiki, our databases say it was a Captain's zanpakutō. Though the more I think about it, the more I believe there's more to it than what Abarai and Kuchiki refuse to show." Captain Hitsugaya said.
"Lieutenant Ise and I checked the 12th Division's database for over the course of two hundred years—in the years to come there's been no Captain besides Captain Hitsugaya to wield an ice and snow zanpakutō."
"So what's the real story?" Ichigo asked. "Who's zanpakutō did you steal, Jushirmai?"
Jushirmai merely smirked. "Okasake Einosuke Hiroshima."
Okasake Einosuke Hiroshima? He's one of the Okasake twins! Orihime thought to herself.
"My father." He finished darkly. "An assassin."
The group's eyes widened. "What?!"
"An assassin?" Uryū said with widened eyes.
"That's enough." A hoarse and old voice scolded and the Karakura group followed by the Gotei 13, turned around.
"Sensei Okasake Einosuke Hiroshima and Sensei Okasake Einosuke Hirosuke were the first superiors exceeding Head Captain Yamamoto Shigekuni Genryūsai. They created the Soul Society's afterlife—millenniums prior to the soul reaper name..."
"…..They served as Head Commanders alongside Yamamoto Genryūsai and held lineage with all conservative noble clans as they held sovereignty above the assassins that trained in Judan level martial arts—a hand-to-hand combat fighting technique merged with several different standings of martial arts..." Nanao read out loud to herself with several candles burning brightly around her on the desk.
She turned several pages away from their twenty page biography (marking it to review it later with a note) before skipping to the part that discussed the element-based zanpakutōs connected to the seven gems—the gems related to the Seavens, the gems that stemmed the element-based zanpakutōs.
Based on what she read earlier (from a discarded piece torn from the book she was reading now), originally, element-based zanpakutōs were the only creations known to be made as soul reaper did not exist when zanpakutōs were first created. A zanpakutō's abilities were originally based on elements, primarily—nothing else beyond that was capable from the start.
The zanpakutōs were stemmed from seven gemstones that represented these elemental concepts connected with the Earth's grounds and were later formed into zanpakutō prototypes for those specific elements and were grouped with the calling name of the Seavens.
Sensei Okasake Einosuke Hiroshima wielded an ice and snow zanpakutō—the same one his adopted son, Okasake Jushirmai was wielding now. As a Sensei and Head Commander, he was required to hold the gem as it stemmed his zanpakutō's very power—the ability of ice and snow—the gem being aquamarine.
Sensei Okasake Einosuke Hirosuke however, wielded the opposite—a fire-based zanpakutō. And as Sensei and Head Commander he was required to hold the gem of the citrine—a gem he later discarded in Hell as he believed that the usage of zanpakutōs were not compatible to what he, his clan, and the Soul Society once stood for being Judan.
All seven gems were given to the seven Senseis (including the Head Commanders being Sensei Okasake Hiroshima and Sensei Okasake Hirosuke) as the holders of the gems and wielder of the zanpakutōs. Zanpakutōs that were later associated with soul reapers and were stemmed from one's soul instead of earth elements born from the seven gems being:
Fire associated with citrine.
Ice associated with aquamarine.
Wind associated with lapis lazuli.
Lightning associated with diamond.
Blood and sun associated with ruby.
Earth associated with emerald.
And the last one remaining unknown for decades.
The book was poorly torn.
There were many missing pieces—things Nanao still didn't understand.
The book had offered her valuable, but little information—information she couldn't help but question.
For one, if assassins were the first inhabitants of the Soul Society prior to the creation of soul reapers, where were they now?
What happened to them and the seven Senseis?
Why were they undocumented in official files?
Why were soul reapers created then if assassins were originally the race that—as their name depicted—assassinated or eliminated hollows?
What happened to their race?
What even was their race?
Nanao couldn't comprehend these loose strings—the book in her hand was the only thing tying her to these answers and a majority of the context was focused on the Okasake twins and their legacy and contribution to the Soul Society's name.
She had been lucky, she acknowledged. The book had dropped from nowhere and a piece of its context was ripped away and left on the floor. If it had not been for whatever had taken the book to fall, she would've never known and she would've still been unaware.
But even so—despite the newly-acquired information, she was still unaware of the answers to these questions, but she did intend on finding them out. One being, who exactly were the Senseis, two being, why they disappeared, three being, the race of the assassins, and four being, why exactly were soul reapers unaware of their prominent existence?
Where were all the prior files gone to or disappeared?
How did they disappear?
Who stole them?
Towers of books were still stacked all around her as the newly found questions repeated themselves in her head.
And as invested as she was, she still did not understand one major thing or predicament that seemed to stem the act or arrival of Okasake Jushirmai to begin with in the first place.
It didn't make sense. What did she have to do with the Senseis, Seavens, assassins, Okasakes, predicament or mistrust Okasake Jushirmai was referring too?
She was lying about something—but what?
Could it be this?
Could she know of his type?
Does she know why the Senseis and assassins were unknown to soul reapers?
Does she know about the seven gemstones that stem the element-based zanpakutōs—the origin?
Does she know where the assassins disappeared to?
Does she know why Judan isn't known to the soul reaper curriculum?
Jushirmai intended she was lying about something—something she did not understand, but what? Or no—he also intended that he wanted her for something, he desired her for something, but what? What did he want from her? What could she give?
There were so many questions left unanswered and Nanao couldn't help but feel frustrated at all the empty holes she still did not understand.
It was embittering to know that she was so illiterate about the context—that she didn't have a clue to these answers and questions that were currently eating her mind away for not knowing.
But among all the questions that embittered her brain, there was only one that was gladly eating away her flesh as she thought and thought and thought about the predicament that no one seemed to have a concrete answer to—or a suspicion to at all.
The one that never seemed to have any answers or ideas or theories except confusion, uncertainty, and annoyance to the oblivion.
The one that had only three sources—three sources that were unattainable to question and confine.
The one that seemed almost hallucinatory with the chaos and missing answers combined but still managed to evoke frustration and denial within the same person who was inevitably involved with its summoning.
What did Mizuri Jushirmai want with Kuchiki Rukia?
End Note
Pronunciations
Raiden (pronounced ray-den)
Sheatsu (pronounced she-et-su)
Judan (pronounced jew-dan)
Seavens (pronounced sevens)
Jushirmai (pronounced juh-sheer-may)
The Seavens' Gemstones
Citrine (Fire): "Citrine is a joyful stone with bright energy which lights up many aspects of life."Carrying the power of the sun, it is warm and comforting, energizing and life giving. It stimulates the chakras like the sunlight of spring, clearing the mind and stirring the soul to action." (Crystal Vaults)
Aquamarine (Ice/Water): "Aquamarine evokes the purity of crystalline waters, and the exhilaration and relaxation of the sea. It is calming, soothing, and cleansing, and inspires truth, trust and letting go...Aquamarine embodies all things connected to the sea, as well as those things relating to Heaven reflected on the surface of the water." (Crystal Vaults)
Lapis Lazuli (Wind): "Lapis encourages honesty of the spirit...powerful crystal for activating a higher mind...it balances..." (Crystal Vaults)
Diamond (Lightning): " It is associated with lightning and fearlessness." (CrystalVaults) "...believed that diamonds were created when bolts of lightning struck rocks. Diamonds were also believed to attracting lightning bolts." (heartsonfire)
Ruby (Blood/Sun): "It is also associated with the Fire element." (CrystalVaults) "'A drop of the heart's blood of Mother Earth' is how the ruby is described in the Orient." (jewelsforme)
Emerald (Earth): "All the green of nature is concentrated within the Emerald." (Megemont, 80-81)
Images For Chapter
Explosion + Expanding Smoke (2)
Jushirmai's Lines of Ice (summoned by his zanpakutō's command 'Thrive')
All Lieutenant's Midnight Blue Cloak
All the Seavens Jewels Appearance
Mizuri Jushirmai (played by Naraku)
Jushirmai's Zanpakutō's Appearance—Not a perfect picture but the blade's design was close to what I imagined, so I referenced it here.
Quán Inari's Hair
Contact
byaruki / tumblr