~FIREFLY KNIGHTS~
Bleach Copyright Tite Kubo
Firefly Knights Copyright Illand Girl
'For those that need a Guardian.'
Chapter 14: Clash
Ikkaku stared at the sky, questioning how such a lucky day could go sideways so quickly. What was worse, the novice standing over him had only kept him alive for information. How fitting.
"What do you want to know?" He asked. Ichigo, the young, fake soul reaper stared down at him with a firm gaze.
"There's two things I need to ask. The first, where is Rukia Kuchiki?" Ichigo asked him, surprising Ikkaku. Rukia had been brought to the repentance hall last he had heard. He said it to Ichigo, describing it simply for the young man.
"Good, and lastly, I need to know about the intruder captured yesterday. Her name is Naomi Sakurai." Ichigo asked, crouching down over Ikkaku. If the bald man were any lesser, he might've felt intimidated by the wave of spiritual pressure that rolled out of Ichigo when he said that. But Ikkaku remained where he was, unphased.
"I don't really know much about that one," he explained. "I know that the captain of the third division was wounded by a ryoka, and that the ryoka was imprisoned. What her whereabouts status are, I cannot tell you."
Ichigo smirked.
"That's my girl." He said proudly, thinking of how Naomi would never sit down and give in, but would rather fight her way out. Always the stubborn one. Ikkaku noticed the tightness of the boy. A worry that was never present during their battle was evident on his face.
"Who is she to you? Is she your woman?" Ikkaku asked. Ichigo gave a tight smile but didn't say anything. Ikkaku hummed, curious.
"Is she strong?"
"Yeah." Ichigo said.
"That's good, she may still be alive then. Old man Yamamoto doesn't have a soft spot for women, neither do many of the captains here, so I don't want to get your hopes up too high." Ikkaku said, closing his eyes. "Lastly, you're going to want to watch out for my captain. Man or woman, doesn't matter to him. If he thinks they're strong, he'll fight them. His name is Kenpachi Zaraki, and he'll be the last thing you see, Novice, so don't run into him if you can."
Ichigo left Ikkaku lying there. The bald man looked to the sky, curious about this Naomi Sakurai that supposedly hit Ichimaru Gin. The third squad captain was an arrogant one, but a strong fighter. Ikkkaku smirked, wanting to meet this Naomi and gauge her strength for himself.
"Shatter, Kyoka Suigetsu."
I stared, the smell of cinnamon and cologne wrapping around me like a warm blanket. It felt like I was being lulled to sleep, reminded me of the waters of that inner world.
Suddenly, like my head was yanked above water, it stopped. I jolted, looking up to find Aizen was no longer there. The scent of cinnamon and cologne fading. I placed my hands on the bars to steady myself, wondering what on earth that display was. Whatever it was, it wasn't a good thing. A chill went through me as I wondered what exactly had happened.
Well, I couldn't get too angry. He did leave me alone in here...
I opened my right palm's portal, allowing the key I had stolen earlier to pop out. With a small smile I gripped it tighter, sniffed the air, then unlocked the cell. As quietly as I could, I moved out of the cell before locking it back up and stuffing the key in my pocket. As I turned away from my cell, I came face to face with a young girl walking in, holding a broom.
She stared at me, I stared at her.
As she opened her mouth to scream, I lunged for her. She startled, getting shoved into a wall and slamming the back of her head.
"Sorry, sorry!" I whispered, laying her down as she moaned in pain. It was then that I realized she was about the same size as me...
It took a while, but I finally figured out how to wear a shihakusho. I cleaned up my hair and returned it to a messy bun before taking a deep breath.
I could smell Aizen somewhere to the left of the door, and by some grace of god, Ichigo was to the right. So, as confidently as I could fake, I turned right after exiting the door.
It ended up working in my favour that the Seireitei was so big. Turned out, nobody knew who I was, and while some people glanced at me, nobody did a double take. It was the luckiest moment of my life, considering if I ran into Aizen or Momo I would've had some trouble.
It had been an hour of walking, to the point that I was wondering if I was mistaken and was just walking in circles, before I finally ran out of luck.
"Hey! You there." A voice called. I played dumb and continued to walk. "Don't ignore me. What squad are you in?"
As dumbly as I could, I turned around with a confused face, frowning.
"Me?" I asked, seeing one soul reaper. He had one of those badges on his arm like Momo and Matsumoto. A lieutenant? "I'm from, uh, squad five."
"Is that so?" He said, eyes narrowing. "Interesting, considering Lieutenant Hinamori called all of squad five to the barracks not long ago."
I turned and bowed to him.
"Apologies, Lieutenant, but I was already given orders," I said, using my embarrassment and nerves to my advantage. "I'm supposed to give information to Captain Gin Ichimaru."
The blond eyed me, suspicious.
"Tell me your orders." He demanded. I froze. "What's the matter? As the lieutenant of squad three, I can carry out any duties for my captain."
Well damn.
"I apologize Lieutenant. But I was told they were for Captain Gin Ichimaru's ears only." I insisted, gulping. He didn't buy it, I could tell.
"What's my name?" He asked. I hesitated. "Surely an errand girl knows the name of the lieutenant she's searching for?"
I didn't have time to reply. In the next second he lunged at me; his sword drawn. I dodged, frowning.
"Unless you're just a Ryoka in disguise." He said with a hint of malice. I snorted.
"Can't blame me for trying." I taunted. Apparently, he didn't have the same humour as his captain. Not even a smirk was on his face. He swung at me again, I dodged, not pulling out my sword yet. He was slower than Gin, and Kisuke, which meant I might have a fighting chance if I played my cards right.
"You know," I began when he stopped striking and I got some distance. "I thought Gin had some great humour. You, on the other hand, are kinda rigid."
His eyes narrowed.
"So you were the Ryoka that stabbed my captain." He spoke. I could smell something akin to salt and ink rising in the air. It was faint. "Then you must face the consequence of your actions. My name is Izuru Kira, Squad 3 lieutenant, and your executioner."
I took a step back, expecting him to use his zanpakuto's abilities.
"Raise your head, Wabisuke." His sword took an interesting shape, lengthening and reshaping into almost a hook with corners. I stared at it, wondering what his shikai's powers were.
Guess there's one way to find out.
As he lunged at me, I summoned my own blade. We clashed, but he immediately moved to strike again, and I dodged. He did this once more, and an overwhelming weight entered my blade. Stunned, I watched it slam into the ground between us.
"Now how do you plan to fight? Anything Wabisuke touches will double in weight. Five hits and it should be impossible for you to move!" He lunged, jumping over my sword to get at me. I jumped back, evading Izuru to the best of my ability, but his sword was about to wrap around me. I summoned my blade to take the brunt of the strike. It did, then immediately fell to the ground, creating a crater and rattling my arms.
My summoning ability seemed to take Izuru by surprise as he watched my blade fall. In the same movement I rolled away, dodging another strike. It gave me an idea as I continued to dodge around his strikes, and as soon as I got an opening, I lunged my whole body at him. Izuru, naturally, went to block with his sword.
As he brought it down on me, I moved out of the way. It struck the ground, before I summoned my blade to land on top of his zanpakuto.
The weight forced Izuru to his knees as he couldn't lift the sword. Surprised, he looked up to me as I aimed to punch him in the face. His left hand came off the handle, he directed two fingers at my face.
"Hado 31! Shakkaho!" Red light emitted from his hand, and on instinct I covered it with my left palm. It vanished in an instant, surprising Izuru as he yanked his zanpakuto away. I noticed that he had undone the transformation of his zanpakuto, and mine was now lighter when I resummoned it.
Izuru narrowed his eyes at me as he squared up. We stood a few feet from each other, silently staring each other down.
"This is the part where I was reeeaaally hoping you had some humour buried deep down." I admitted, hating the rise in tension between us. It wasn't like fighting Gin where I knew he was playing. No, Izuru planned to kill me and was giving his all.
Izuru didn't react to my words. Instead, he came at me again. I kept both hands on my blade as he and I struck each other. However, mid-strike Izuru shouted his release again, surprising me.
"Raise your head, Wabisuke!" he said, slamming the blade down onto my own. My arms rattled from the weight. I winced. He went to upper strikes, forcing me to evade or take the brunt of the strike. However, the last strike he did Izuru really put his all into.
I had to use both my hands, one on the blade of my zanpakuto with both arms above my head. The hit was so harsh I fell to my knees.
Izuru reared back, doing another overhead strike. If he managed to land it, I'd be cut down.
I dropped my blade and opened my right palm.
Red light emitted from it, the half second of warning the blond got was apparently not enough as it hit him square in the chest. Izuru flew back, slamming into the wall behind him. He was still conscious but looked quite dazed.
When I walked up to him, he barely moved. His hold on Wabisuke was weak, he was barely closing his fingers on the hilt.
"I am so sorry for this." I whispered. Izuru looked at me as I summoned my zanpakuto, slamming the hilt into his head. Considering Wabisuke only turned back after I struck him, my zanpakuto had to have been at least fifty pounds prior to its return transformation. The fact that Izuru's head didn't cave in was a miracle.
"Sorry sorry," I muttered as I grabbed at his shihakusho, pulling him off the main road and resting his zanpakuto into his scabbard next to him. He was heavy, I worked up a sweat dragging him away. "That felt like a cheap shot, not gunna lie."
Hopefully his soul reaper buddies wouldn't find him for a while longer.
As soon as I stepped back into the walkway, I ate my words.
"Hey you!" Someone called. Another lieutenant by the looks of the badge on his arm. I turned and froze as he walked closer.
"Ah! L-Lieutenant..." Maybe he wouldn't notice if I didn't say his name?
"Have you seen Lieutenant for squad three?" He asked. I hesitated, then swallowed my fear.
'Now or never...'
"Sorry Lieutenant, but I just spoke with Lieutenant Kira. He informed me that a ryoka had been spotted in the area and I should return to squad five. That wasn't too long ago, sir." I said, bowing my head. Izuru's scent was pretty weak for me, maybe this guy hadn't noticed?
The lieutenant huffed. I peeked at the tattoos all over him briefly - what sane person puts '69' on their face? - but then look to his feet to hide my emotions.
"Dammit Izuru, you're normally the rational one. Even though we were going to meet up here... As you were then." He dismissed, jogging off. I held my breath for a moment, waiting for him to return. When he didn't I exhaled deeply.
It's official, after graduation I'm taking up a career in acting.
I refocused by closing my eyes to try and find Ichigo. So many scents were mixed in the air around me that it was getting hard to focus on Ichigo specifically. Captain Aizen's scent was rather strong, almost overbearing. It also smelled significantly closer than I remembered it being.
It smelled like... like he was right beside me, like in the jail cell.
I opened my eyes and looked around, but nothing was there. I was alone in the pathway, even that lieutenant from before was undetectable to me anymore with how overwhelming the scent of cologne and cinnamon was.
I coughed, rubbing my nose to clear the scent, but it wasn't leaving. I closed my eyes again, attempting to focus on Ichigo's scent. Barely, but I could smell it above the cologne and cinnamon. A feeling of danger crept up my spine as I looked around again to be sure I was truly alone.
Nothing was there.
Getting to Ichigo, and then finding everyone else, was the optimal choice right now. If I wasted any more time Ichigo would be too far away.
I jogged after him, feeling like he was further away than I initially thought. I moved through the Seireitei as efficiently as I could, hoping that I would make it to Ichigo before the sun started to set. Considering that it would be less than a few hours now, I didn't have much time.
Despite the smooth sailing I had of not running into anybody that asked me questions, I couldn't shake the feeling of being watched. As I continued, I left behind the scent of cologne and cinnamon, gaining a new scent that bothered my nose. It was fainter than Gin's but was mossy in scent. Earthy? Hm, what a bizarre smell for a place like this.
I stopped running when I smelled it behind me. A moment later I turned to see a lone figure walking towards me.
"You are the Ryoka girl from the meeting," he said, slowly moving closer. "Naomi Sakurai."
I didn't speak, instead I turned fully around and squared up to him. He stopped.
"I am Kaname Tousen, captain of squad nine." He introduced himself. I took a deep breath, questioning whether I could make a run for it or not. A lieutenant was one thing, but a captain? Something in my gut told me this wouldn't be like fighting Gin. This man felt different, like he wouldn't play around debating whether to let me live. I felt my nerves spike.
"Strange, you had so many things to say during the captains meeting, and yet there is nothing you'd like to say now?" He asked, his hand reaching for his hilt. I tensed, preparing for something akin to fighting Kisuke.
"Cry out, Suzumushi."
"Oi."
I blinked, my eyes refocusing on the internal world. It took me a second to realize I was lying on the water. I tried to sit up, but found my body refused to move.
"Oi, you awake?" That guy... he was calling me. His feet walked on the water as he sauntered up to me. I glared up at him, unable to move. He stood over me with his pipe, taking a long drag before sighing.
"Man, you're a lightweight. Didn't think you'd get knocked down by an attack like that." He mused. I wanted to frown, but again my body wouldn't move. He smirked at me, as if sensing my ire.
"Get up already, you're plenty strong enough." He said, crouching in front of me. He took a long drag off his pipe again, smirking.
"Oh? Perhaps you need me to tell you how?" He mused. I glared as he stayed still. After a few moments he scratched his unshaven stubble on his chin.
"Admittedly, this was more fun when you could talk. There's no back and forth otherwise," he sighed, standing up. My eyes followed him. "Alright, it's pretty easy, just open the tap up."
My eyebrow barely furrowed.
Open the tap?
"It's your spiritual pressure valve. Imagine it's gushing water and flooding the floor. That's what you need to do to beat this guy." He took another drag. "Or... something like that."
This guy...
"Focus Naomi." He said calmly, blowing out more smoke.
Right, focus.
On what exactly? Oh yeah, the tap. Right. Hm, a tap... imagine the tap is open and the water is overflowing...
"That's it. Feel the eb and flow." He encouraged me.
Eb and flow...
Eb and flow...
Eb...
My eyes widened and I was immediately back in my body, face down in the dirt. I could smell that guy standing over me. Was he aware I was awake yet? Did I lay here and make a run for it when his back was turned?
"Hm? So, you defended against my Suzumushi?" His voice made me feel cold. I heard him draw his blade and rolled over just in time to dodge him stabbing the ground where my shoulder had been a second prior. He drew back, quickly stabbing my shoulder again. I summoned my sword and rebounded him, my strike catching the tip of his blade and surprising him. He backed up a single step as I rolled away and scrambled to my feet.
"Interesting, Ryoka girl," he mused. His sword was held in front of him. "I do not wish to fight you. These battles are senseless, so why would you fight so hard for Rukia Kuchiki?"
I watched him, taking a deep breath to familiarize myself with his scent, before answering.
"To be honest, I'm not close with her." I admitted. It was hard to get a read on the guy, considering his eyes were closed and he was wearing some transparent glasses. But he tilted his head to the side as though he was listening.
"However," I continued. "When I heard a friend of mine was going to rescue her... well, it sort of felt like the right thing to do."
He hummed.
"The right thing to do?" Perhaps it wasn't the answer he wanted.
"Well it's not like this is a fun roadtrip for us." I muttered, frowning.
"Your answer to the crimes of Rukia Kuchiki are to create more senseless bloodshed?" He asked, I tilted my head.
"As I said at the meeting. We were attacked first. Get a landline if you don't want visitors." I said, fighting the urge to roll my eyes at how often I had said something akin to it. He turned his head slightly, as if listening for something else.
"Are you not aware of it, Ryoka girl? Your friends are slowly dying."
I froze, still able to smell Ichigo's scent. In fact, it smelled stronger than before. However, I had never bothered to memorize any of the other's scents before I left.
"You're lying." I said, though my voice wavered. Where was Chad? Uryu? Orihime? Surely they were alright? Kaname didn't answer, nor did he confirm or deny.
"Tell me, was Rukia Kuchiki worth the life of any one of your friends?" He asked, I swallowed. "Was she worth all of your lives?"
I felt stunned, almost dazed even. There wasn't a doubt in my mind that none of us were worth the life of Rukia's but- Would Ichigo feel the same? No, of course he wouldn't, it was why he didn't want us coming here but...
What about his life?
It took me a second to realize that he had moved. I barely shifted when I smelled the scent of moss beside me.
He sliced my shoulder, surprising me. I watched the blood roll down my arm and realized I had hardly moved a foot while he struck me. It was so fast that it took a second for the pain to start.
Wake up...
The wound on my left shoulder was shallow, but it hurt badly. I covered it with my right hand, wincing and shaking my head, trying to refocus. Ichigo... if I found Ichigo I could find out about the others...
"You don't seem worried for your own life." Kaname said from behind me. I took a sharp breath, staggering to face him and trying to put space between us. How had I become so rattled? This wasn't like my fight with Gin, even though he had been so much stronger than me as well. Even my fight with Izuru didn't bother me like this.
Perhaps it was his voice. Kaname spoke in a soft voice, but it gave me chills. I felt like a cricket was chirping in my ear. An ominous feeling indeed. Kaname's sword was dripping with blood. My blood. He pointed it at me.
"Captain Ichimaru described you as a chatterbox, and yet you so silently accept your death here. Have you only now realized your plans have been ruined? You all came here, to the land of the dead, to die. That is the only justice you will receive here."
I bit my lip, focusing on his sword as he came at me again. This time I raised mine in time to block his. He bared down on me, using his weight to push me lower. I was forced to hold with both hands, wincing as the pain in my left arm, my sword arm, radiated from my wound.
Hurts...
Kaname moved away, his scent increasing. I dodged another strike by him, but my movements were not what they were against Izuru. I felt nervous as he cut a thin line on my cheek and skidded back a few steps. Was it his voice? Or the fact that he hadn't opened his eyes? I wasn't sure, but this guy really unnerved me.
Danger...
I tensed, sensing something coming as he leapt away, creating a wide distance. I couldn't hear what he said, the man spoke too softly to hear that far away, but as he slowly lifted his blade, several blades appeared in its path.
They slowly shifted, then zoomed towards me.
Danger...
I swung my zanpakuto, managing to rebound several, but two stabbed me. I cried out when one hit my right thigh on the outside, and the other hit me in the hip not far above it.
Pain.
Pain pain pain pain pain pain pain pain PAIN!
I didn't realize I was crying until he moved closer, my vision blurry. I struggled to hold my zanpakuto, feeling like the life was pouring out of me. I felt dizzy, and cold, but the pain was numbing at least.
Kaname appeared in front of me, his hand on my left shoulder. I looked up at him, not entirely registering that he was there.
"This, is for justice."
He stabbed me in the gut.
I stared, wide-eyed, as he pulled his sword out. I watched the flash of blood on his blade, watched the dripping. My legs gave out, and I was on my side, feeling the blades from before vanish from my body as red pooled around me.
No...
I can't...
Ichigo...
Ichigo...!
"Ichigo!" I called, rushing towards the boy. He'd collapsed again, by the river. It'd been days since he started doing this, and no one could make him stop, not even me. So I had taken to sitting and watching him on the hillside until he collapsed.
Today hadn't taken too long. Ichigo hadn't eaten yet. He looked scrawnier than usual, his hair a mess and his clothing disheveled. I knelt beside him, rolling him onto his back. His eyes swollen and red in his lash line. Despite having passed out, he didn't look peaceful. His brow was furrowed, his frown dragging the corners of his lips down.
I pulled my sweater off and made a pillow for his head, sitting right beside him and using my body to create shade from the sun hitting his eyes. Curling my knees to my chest, I prepared for the long haul.
It ached, quite deeply really, that I couldn't do anything for Ichigo. Supposedly I was his best friend, but I was terrible at it. What was I going to do for him? His mom was dead, and I was so useless that I was essentially just watching him and waiting for him to collapse each day.
And yet...
Twenty minutes later, Ichigo woke.
"Nao?" Ichigo sounded hoarse. I scampered back to the hill, rushing back with a pack of food and water. I opened my canteen and held it for him as he sat up.
"Drink some water." I said, waiting for him to deny it. He must've been so thirsty, as he slowly reached over and took the canteen to drink. His stomach growled, I laughed at him.
"Somebody didn't eat, huh?" I teased, only for my own stomach to do the same. Ichigo scoffed.
"Hypocrite." He muttered. I pulled out two bentos from my bag, evading telling him my mom made it for us as he relented to eat a few bites of rice. We sat in silence for a while, Ichigo's eyes a little vacant as he stared at the water.
"Nao?" Ichigo began. I hummed for him to continue. "Why do you keep coming here?"
"What do you mean?" I asked, finishing my meal much faster than Ichigo. He pushed his food around, frowning.
"I mean, why do you watch me all day?" This was the most he'd spoken since his mother's death. Other than crying out for her I hardly heard him talk since.
"Because you're here?" I asked, confused why this was even a question. "I'm your best friend, aren't I?"
He didn't answer, instead he glared at the water.
"Ichigo?" I asked, trying to make eye contact with him. He looked away from me. I put a hand on his shoulder. "You know I'm here for you, right?"
"You shouldn't be." He said immediately. Ichigo was shaking, surprising me.
"What? Why not?" I asked, startled. Ichigo still wouldn't look at me. His grip on the bento tight.
"I'm the reason..." He began, but then he turned and glared at me. "Go away Nao. Go home. You- You shouldn't be here."
When he finally made eye contact with me, I could read him again. He had an anger in his eyes, along with an overwhelming sadness. However, cresting his eyes, was a look of fear. Of loneliness? Loss? I wasn't sure.
Immediately, I launched myself at him. My arms pushed his bento from his hands as it fell to the ground. I wrapped my limbs around his neck and held him so tightly I probably cracked his spine.
He pushed against me, but I was bigger, I was stronger than him.
"Nao- Stop!"
"I won't!" I refused, feeling his struggle dying with how weak he was. I held him tighter, burying my face in his shoulder.
"I will always be here for you Ichigo. I promise. No matter what, I will always. Always. Be here."
I... will always...
I will... always...
I will always...
Be here.
"Sounds like you're in trouble."
I blinked and was once again in that inner world. This time, however, I was deep in the water. Red water spilled around me, and it took a moment to remember I was bleeding out. A voice chuckled from beside me. I looked over to see the hollow smirking.
"It's amazing what the brain will do, going through details of your life to try and find something that will allow it to survive." She yawned the last few words. I stared, contemplating. She looked at me, her bright green eyes piercing despite how deep we were sinking. Why were we sinking again?
"C'mon girl, it's time to make a choice," she said, her body wrapped in vines that extended well beyond what I could see. "This world is going to crumble if you don't make your move."
Move...
"You gunna lie down like a dog and take it?" she asked, a smirk slipping onto her lips. "Or you gunna fight for your damn life?"
"I'm... bleeding out." I whispered, feeling heavy. She yawned as well.
"Bleeding means you're alive," she said, huffing. "You humans die so easily. Can't even heal on your own."
"Heal?" I asked, confused. My brain felt sluggish. She yawned again. I felt the waters become rougher. When I looked down, I could see the ocean depleting rapidly below us, dropping out of existence. My eyes widened.
"I'm not repeating myself, girl," she made a noise in the back of her throat. "If it were me, I would show that captain what happens when he fucks with me. He's lucky he met you instead."
Lucky...
I looked at her, seeing the pride in her stance even though she was strapped down by God knows what. Her eyes looked across to mine, and in the depths, I could see the same look Ichigo had all those years ago. Pain, loss, sorrow, fear. She was like me even if she didn't want to act like it. A mirror that refused to be one.
"I don't even know your name..."
"You know my name." She scoffed.
She looked down at the water vanishing beneath us and scoffed.
"Time's up." She muttered, looking disappointed.
Lucky...
I reached forwards, grabbing her horn. She looked surprised as my gaze became sharper.
"Then... let's see how lucky he is..."
I yanked, the vines and branches holding her down snapped instantly under my hold. Something pulsed through the water, sending a shockwave out around us. The water stopped it's vanishing act, freezing in place as a wave of something pulsed from inside my chest and echoed in the waters surrounding us.
The hollow looked surprised, staring at me with wide eyes. Then her smirk widened into a massive, ominous grin. She showed her glimmering white teeth and laughed loudly. The green cat eyes narrowed and almost smiled along with her lips as she put her palm flat on my chest.
"You're more interesting than I thought you'd be, Naomi!"
She pulled back, and I looked down to see her sword emerging from inside of me. It stung, but not nearly as bad as you'd think it would having a sword coming out of your body. Once it emerged, she held it and laughed.
"Guess I owe you for this one, little Nao."
Ichigo felt something deep in his gut that told him to leave the sewer earlier than Hanataro said to. The small soul reaper shouted after him to no avail. Ichigo was rapidly climbing the ladder, looking around with a frown.
"What's with you? Leaving so suddenly." Ganju grumbled, climbing halfway out as well. Ichigo ignored him, wondering what this strange feeling was.
"What's going on?" Ganju asked, frowning. Ichigo looked back at him, about to open his mouth, when that horrible feeling washed over his entire body.
It felt like rain. This deep emotional spiritual pressure washed over him and made him feel cold in his chest. He recognized it from the time he fought with Nao and her hollow had emerged. It had been smaller then, a passing glimpse, but he felt the chill all the same as she stared down at him, her eyes mismatched green and purple while she put her who weight on his chest.
"Honestly. It's almost like you belong beneath me."
He shivered, remembering the feeling of dominance rolling off her. His mind was not in a savory place at the time. But he remembered the coldness, the silent fury in her spiritual pressure.
"Nao." Ichigo whispered, turning to tell Ganju and Hanataro what he'd realized. However, Ganju looked like he would be sick soon, while Hanataro turned pale as he sat on the ground.
"This... spiritual pressure..." Ichigo realized then that Hanataro had fallen to the ground, not sat. He couldn't seem to sit up despite his best efforts.
"Who... just who the hell is that?" Ganju covered his mouth suddenly, fighting back nausea. "I feel so cold and ill."
"It's Nao," Ichigo said, gaining their attention. "She's probably in serious danger if we can sense her."
"That is the girl you've been searching for?" Ganju sounded incredulous. "Buddy, I think she should be rescuing you!"
But the more he stared at Ichigo the more he realized the orange haired boy stood unaffected by the power swarming them. The spiritual pressure relaxed after a moment, indicating someone had just released a shikai or bankai. Ganju hoped it was a bankai, as the idea of it becoming stronger made him sick all over again.
"Yeah, she's normally impossible to sense, which would've made it hard to find her." Ichigo said, turning to the direction the pressure came from. "I was half expecting Nao to find me first."
Ichigo started to jog in the direction of Naomi's spiritual pressure. Right now, it was like a beacon, and it didn't seem that far away. But the problem was that if Nao was showing her spiritual pressure when she didn't normally express it. Did that mean something terrible had happened? Or...
Did the hollow gain control?
He moved faster, ignoring the shouts of Hanataro and Ganju behind him.
He didn't think of his friends, or Rukia, in that moment. Ichigo's only priority was the one person he swore he couldn't lose. He thought then, of little Nao and her tiny fists as she squared up to one of his bullies for him.
'Nao...' he thought, rushing towards her. 'Don't do anything stupid. Don't pick fights if you don't have to. And no matter what...'
He remembered Nao, trying to tell him goodbye, but he wouldn't let her. He remembered how hurt she looked when he refused the gift she held in her tiny hands. So small... she was so small and yet he was the one being protected all the time. He remembered the first time he woke the next day and his first thought was "where is Nao? Is she alright?" and how he wouldn't know because he didn't reach out to her.
He couldn't do that again.
'Don't go where I can't follow.'
Ay sorry for the wait, it was such a lovely new years and peaceful time. I also had my birthday (I'm a capricorn can't you tell?) a few days ago so i'm just coming down from a little time off. NGL, I wasn't going to update yet, but the reviews on here and AO3 just made me soooooo freakin' happy I had to. Also, this chapter was split into 2 because I'm only 1/2 way done the other and combined we were at 11,000 words. I'll edit it down but next chapter a looooooot goes down!
Little Nao got a wee bit in over her head here. Get distracted, get sliced Nao! Ah, also powerscaling is essentially non-existent in the earlier episodes, ngl. Lieutenants seem so all over the place with varying levels of skill. Like, we never get to see if Momo is actually lieutenant level, and we never really see much of Shuhei's skill except in the anime... man's it's tough. But anyway, Kira seemed like a pretty good match against Nao, and I like to think that Nao is very distracted by the fact that Kaname has more killer intent than Kira did, which makes her feel off.
Cinna bae: Yeah I think Grimmjow certainly got a lot of screentime in the arrancar arc. He's cool, and I liked him too. I did skim through the TYBW arc in the manga a while back just to get a general idea of what happens (and to figure out if Nao can even fit into the original plot) and like what I see. Chair-sama and Aizen are the most stable relationship in the entirety of bleach imo. haha
Laur-machine: NGL,Nao was originally supposed to fight Shunsui instead of Kaname, and then 'let' her win (or rather fake being beaten as Nanao gives him shit for letting her go) when he learns she is just a kid. However it didn't quiiiiiite fit in the timeline, especially since this was the fight her hollow spirit was supposed to show up. Shunsui is really cool, and I LOVE him and Ukitake's dynamic. *chef's kiss* they're so cute oml. Ok Kansai dialect makes more sense! Will proabbly go back and change his dialect since I would like to keep to the source material. I just weirdly love his dub voice even though it is nothing like what you've described lol. I will probably need to watch the sub again to hear everyone's voices. I did watch the arrancar arc in sub so I can probably swap mentally. Little captain and Gin hold a special place in my heart and nothing will ever change that. I was devastated when Gin died, and was lowkey expecting a lot more to die (was weirdly dissappointed next to nobody died in the arrancar arc from SS side ngl). Funny enough, when I first imagined Nao, I imagined her with Nel's hair style but black. Nel is legit so cut and pretty.
Thanks for reading! See you next time!
Cheers,
Iland Girl