~FIREFLY KNIGHTS~
Bleach Copyright Tite Kubo
Firefly Knights Copyright Illand Girl
'For those that need a Guardian.'
Chapter 19: The Snake and Dragon
Toshiro didn't move a muscle as he sized up the situation. I couldn't lie, it looked bad. Me, standing over a knocked-out Hinamori. The lieutenant with a sizeable goose-egg on the side of her head. Oh well, it wasn't like I could do anything about the terrible timing.
Teal eyes went from fearful when they gazed at the fallen lieutenant, to cold fury when they locked onto my purple eyes. A gust of cold brushed against me, his spiritual pressure rising. With purpose he reached behind him for his blade.
"Get. Away. From her." He said in a low tone. So, he was close to this lieutenant. I stepped back slowly, watching as he took purposeful steps closer to the woman. When I was the one twenty feet away Toshiro still didn't take his eyes off me for more than a second to glance at the woman.
"She was hysterical," I explained. His gaze snapped to mine, but I was undeterred. "I honestly didn't want to fight her, but she wouldn't stop. I just knocked her out, promise."
He fixed me with a hard stare, seeming to consider something, when he slowly took his hand off his sword.
"Don't move." He commanded. I snorted, amused by the little captain's authoritative attitude, but didn't move from my spot. When he saw me obey Toshiro turned to check over Momo. He was soft with her, brushing some of the loose hair from her face. His hands gently clasped hers and turned them over to inspect the quick wraps I had done.
The scent of roses and apricots increased. I turned around to stare at the direction it came from. Low and behold Gin Ichimaru was waltzing his way down the road. It looked like his lieutenant wasn't far behind him.
Well, I hadn't considered the thought that two captains and two lieutenants might find me, but here we were.
Gin stopped a few yards from me, Izuru looked surprised by my presence as he stood quietly behind his captain.
"Oh? What's this? A lil' thing like you out here all by yourself?" Gin hummed, grinning. "Don'tcha know it's not safe for ya out here on your own?"
"That's rich, considering you're the one who attacked me first last time." I said, crossing my arms. He chuckled as I glanced at Izuru. The blond stared at me with something between nervousness and discomfort. He didn't look anything like he had the last time we'd run into each other. He looked... unwell.
"Hm? Oh yeah, she's the one that knocked ya out, right Izuru?" Gin asked. Izuru stammered a bit, then gave a quiet confirmation. "Well then, we can't let 'er go out of principle then."
The cold behind me rose up. I glanced behind me to see Toshiro looking between me and Gin, his hand on his blade. Turning back to Gin, I stepped into his line of sight with the other captain.
"Little captain," I said, hand on my own blade. "I think you should help Momo."
"Excuse me?" He sounded insulted, but I ignored it and continued to stare at the other captain. Gin grinned, encouraging Toshiro's spiritual pressure to rise once more.
"She needs you right now," I said, remembering what I said to Ichigo. "Don't spread yourself too thin."
A moment later, the cold eased. Minutes later I could smell him and Momo getting further away. Well, I hadn't thought it would be that easy to get him to listen, considering how authoritative he'd been a moment ago. Maybe the lieutenant meant that much to him?
"Oh? Well that's no fun. Now ya have no back up." Gin laughed, pulling out his zanpakuto. I could smell him to my left before I saw him and parried. My left-hand shook, but I couldn't help but huff at the verbal jab.
"Isn't he your backup?" I asked. Gin cackled, leaning over me to bear his weight down.
"Ya really think I need it?" He teased.
"Dunno, this poor defenseless woman did make you bleed." I smirked, opening my right palm.
Momo's first attack blasted out of my hand before I closed it, surprising Gin as he dodged. The blast hit the wall behind him as I broke the lock and jabbed at his chest. He side-stepped out of the way, easily dodging several more jabs.
"Oh an ace in the hole! Very clever to hold on to that. I might need to take this fight seriously now." He came at me, swinging rapidly. I used my rebound technique to hit his zanpakuto upwards. Carrying the motion I stabbed the hilt of my blade towards his ribs, putting my back into it as I made contact-
He vanished, his scent behind me, his breath was on the back of my neck.
"Ya know, you're a creepy lil' thing," I tensed, not moving as he chuckled in my ear. "Ya might become dangerous someday."
"Heh," I looked at him standing over me like a menace. "Maybe."
I appeared behind him, my left hand lightly touching the insignia between his shoulder blades. An eye for an eye. I didn't attack him because he hadn't attacked me. This was simply a little game, and perhaps if i played it he might be more open to some questions.
As soon as my index finger traced the insignia on his back he tensed. His head turned to look over his shoulder at me, the blue of his eyes visible through small slits. He didn't look surprised, or mad, like I thought he would be. Instead, he stared down at me with amusement.
His scent increased-
I pulled my zanpakuto up just in time to block the blade that stabbed through his captain's haori. Instead of trying to fight it off, I dodged, appearing on his right side. Even if he pulled his zanpakuto back he'd have to get around himself. I jabbed at him, but he reached out and grabbed my right wrist, halting my jab. He shortened his blade, spinning it in his hold and elongated it towards me quickly. I raised my left palm to capture the blade up to the guard, my fingers finding purchase in the curved design.
We were in a lock, the entire event had taken mere seconds to get to, but now we both had each other pinned. Something in my gut told me Gin still wasn't trying though. His smell was too strong for me to believe he was an easy opponent.
But damn was it fun to try.
"Oh boy, looks like we're ina lock," Gin leaned into me a bit, using his weight to his advantage as he grinned. "What ever will we do now?"
"I wanted to ask you something, actually." I said, remembering the reason I had come here in the first place. Gin raised a brow, his smirk still playful.
"Oh? Ya mean to say ya were out prowling for lil' old me?" He mocked. I pressed my weight towards him as I continued.
"There's something that never made sense to me, right from the start," I said, my hand gripping his zanpakuto guard tighter. "Why you didn't tell that lieutenant about my abilities."
"Hmm? Are ya askin' or tellin' me?" He asked, laying his accent on thick with sarcasm. I huffed, deciding to instead speak my thoughts out loud and see if they had any effect.
"I think you wanted me to get away. You knew I could steal a key, and nobody would know," I said, leaning closer to him with a menacing smirk of my own. "It's why you took your anger out on Hanataro, wasn't it?"
Gin's smile widened into something I'd only seen on scarecrows and jack-o'-lanterns. His chuckle sounded just as demonic.
"I always knew you were a smart lil' thing," he praised, but it felt like an insult with the way he was speaking. "Though I find it hard to believe ya risked your safety just to ask me that."
I snorted, but decided I had in fact come here for more than that.
"Ah, yeah, actually, I came to ask you about Aizen. Specifically, why everyone thinks he's dead." I said, feeling my left arm tiring. It shook, only staying up because of the hold I had on his guard.
Gin chuckled.
"That's 'cause he is dead. Saw the corpse myself." he said cheerily. I narrowed my eyes, feeling odd about that reaction. He was really laying it on thick, huh?
"He's not dead," I said, watching the smirk slip off his face. "I can still smell him in the Seireitei."
Gin's grip on my wrist tightened to a bruising level. He'd simply been holding me before, but now the grip would leave marks. I tried not to wince, but my eyes likely gave me away as he let go abruptly, only to grab me by my throat. Lightning fast, he yanked me forward until our faces were inches apart. I stood on my tip toes, being held up by his grip.
"Dunno what ya mean by smell, but I'd walk away while ya still have two good legs," he spoke lowly, the humour gone from his voice. I tried to lean away but he was a hell of a lot stronger than I initially thought as he held me tightly. I narrowed my eyes. Gin wasn't choking me, but there was something in his expression that told me to stop asking questions.
It made me want to ask them even more.
"I came here for answers Gin." I stabbed at Gin, only to have him dodge and pin my sword between his ribs and bicep that he clamped down around the steel. I couldn't move the blade enough to shake it free, and the grin re-appeared on his lips as he lowered his face closer to mine.
"Ya really are a creepy kid," he chuckled, "but ya really need to shut that mouth o' yours."
The rage of the hollow flashed, indignation at being literally talked down to ignited within me. I glared at Gin, who flinched, as I opened my palm again at him. Momo's second attack blasted him in the chest just before he yanked himself away. I let him go, coughing as I summoned my zanpakuto back to my left hand. Gin retreated to nearby his lieutenant in one quick movement. Izuru was looking between us with confusion, but as he made a move for his sword Gin stopped him with a single motion of his hand.
I glared at Gin, frowning.
"Here I thought you were the fun one." I rubbed my neck, as I readjusted my grip. Gin chuckled.
"'Course I'm the fun one. Who else ya gunna face and live this long?" He teased, twirling his dagger lengthed zanpakuto. I huffed, re-adjusting my stance.
"I beat Kaname, for the record." I taunted. Gin hummed.
"And ya survived Kuchiki and Zaraki," his words made me freeze up. "Oh? Thought I didn't know? I've been keepin' tabs on ya, lil' girl."
Keeping tabs? But I had barely ever caught his scent before today. Once- when I was facing Byakuya. But his hadn't been the only scent I caught. In fact, the only scent I had been smelling around the Seireitei was Aizen's. So, did that mean Gin was implying Aizen was keeping tabs on me?
Whatever the reason, I knew he wanted to shake me up, but oddly enough it made me feel better about myself. I smirked.
"You find me that interesting huh?" I raised my zanpakuto to rest the flat side on my shoulder. "If I didn't know any better Gin, I'd say you're stalking me."
He cackled, his grin turning wicked as he twirled his zanpakuto again before clutching its handle tightly.
"Ya know, it almost feels unfair to use my shikai when you haven't used yours," he pointed his sword to mine then. "Ya can use it, right?"
My shikai?
I frowned, tilting my head to the side. Gin raised a brow, looking like he was waiting for me to do something.
"Don't tell me ya don't know your zanpakuto's name." He tutted lightly.
"I know her name!" I said, feeling oddly defensive. "It's... just a bit unusual is all."
It was intuitive, I suppose. The moment he asked, it was like her name slipped into my consciousness. I knew the name, and yet I didn't quite understand how I hadn't realized her name this entire time.
"Because you weren't listening to me, girl!" The hollow mused. Something in my gut told me that wasn't the real reason though. Regardless, I knew her name, but was feeling reluctant to call on her. I couldn't handle her spiritual pressure in an unreleased state, what would happen if I purposefully let her out? Kaname almost died, I barely reigned her in. Unreleased I was a sitting duck.
"Hmm? Oh I really wanna see it now." Gin brought me back to the present, his spiritual pressure increasing again. "I know, show me your shikai, and I'll tell ya what'cha wanna know."
It was a lie, even I could tell that. Considering Gin's reaction earlier, he knew what was happening and there wasn't a hope in hell he'd tell me more. Especially if my suspicions were correct and he was in on it with Aizen. But I'd gotten what I came for, right? So maybe it was a better option to leave.
I shifted, preparing to run-
Gin was beside me, locking blades with mine.
"Ah ah ah~!" He leaned over me like he enjoyed being a menace. "Ya can't run away like that. 'Specially after what ya said there."
I rebounded him, still getting a good gap between us. Good, it meant my spiritual pressure was still high enough. And Gin still had his shikai active, which meant that I still had a fair amount of juice left in me.
He extended his blade to stab at me across the gap even before he had balanced himself, but I rebounded it sideways. The sword hit the wall and cut down part of the alley we were in. Gin's grin widened to show his teeth as he swung again. He came at me a few more times, each one getting progressively stronger in strength and breaking parts of the walls around us. After the tenth attack, he stopped. His zanpakuto returned to the dagger length of its sealed form, but the scent of his shikai level spiritual pressure didn't fade.
I frowned at the wicked smile still on his face. He was waiting for me to do something and was only giving me a breather for that reason. I sighed, lowering my zanpakuto.
"You really want to see it that badly, huh?" I muttered, taking a calming breath. Perhaps he was a lot stronger than me and would tire her out? One could only hope. As that thought crossed my mind, I felt the hollow perk up inside of me.
"Fine." I relented.
Gin looked a little surprised, but mostly amused as I raised my spiritual pressure.
"Oohh! Are we about to have some fun?" I could hear the hollow practically giddy inside my head. "Call me then, call my name girl!"
I held my zanpakuto horizontally in front of me, showing the flat side to Gin as my right palm pressed to the flat side of the blade facing me. I could see my reflection glinting on the blade.
"Reflect-"
Cold. Coming this way. Fast.
I moved just in time for an ice dragon to come flying to the spot I had just been standing. It continued, crashing into Gin who didn't even hesitate as he extended his zanpakuto through it. I had moved to not as broken part to the shingled roofing beside the alleyway, smelling the little captain's fast approach.
"Rain over the frosted heavens," Toshiro pointed his zanpakuto at Gin. "Hiyorinmaru!"
An ice dragon shot out of the tip of his zanpakuto again, lunging for Gin. Gin evaded, but Izuru wasn't as lucky as he was frozen to the wall.
"Why the hostility, captain Hitsugaya?" Gin hummed from his place on the opposite roof from me. "Ya should really be aiming for the ryoka."
Little captain didn't look amused. He looked even more furious than the first time he'd shown up. Which was saying something considering I knew murder was on his mind when he'd looked at me.
"It's funny, Gin. I might've agreed with you, if not for the letter I just read." His voice was carefully neutral, a lilt of emotion rising and falling in it as he spoke. "It's strange. A letter addressed to Momo, from captain Aizen? Stating that I was working with the ryoka to steal the Sokyoku?"
He raised his eyes to me briefly, then back to Gin, who just stood there with the same smirk.
"It's in Aizen's writing, which means someone must've forged it. And I can't get the words you said that day out of my head," he adjusted his grip on his sword. "About how he would one day be unable to hear the alarm."
I felt the cold again and looked down to Izuru still stuck in the ice. His hands were frozen in as was the lower half of his body.
"Captain...!" Izuru looked rather helpless. He probably still had a concussion from our fight a few days ago too.
Toshiro attacked Gin again, and those two started going at each other. The scents in the area were beginning to overwhelm me, but I watched for a moment. Brief satisfaction came to me when I realized Gin was showing about as much effort against Toshiro as he had been against me. Maybe I was better than I thought?
Well, this might be a good time to get out of here...
Just before I turned to run, I looked down to Izuru again, feeling sorry for the distressed looking guy. I felt bad for when I had knocked him out last time and decided to jump down next to him. He looked surprised, then swallowed as his face became stony with resolve. I swung my sword, putting some spiritual pressure into the strike, and shattered the ice around him. He flinched, then looked down in surprise as the ice broke around his arms enough for him to free himself.
Apricots and roses-
I blocked a stab as Gin's zanpakuto zoomed for me. Looked like Toshiro had dodged an attack and he let the strike continue.
"Oops, sorry 'bout that." He said with so much sarcasm I wanted to wipe that smug look off his face.
"This is getting ridiculous." I muttered, rebounding the strike away. Toshiro gained Gin's attention again, and I decided now would be a good time to make an exit-
The smell of woman's perfume came at me full force. I blocked as lieutenant Matsumoto appeared.
"God dammit!" I charged her, rebounding her so strongly she slammed into the wall. The force shocked me, as I hadn't meant to hit her that hard. "Um, I- sorry that was a bit much."
Matsumoto let out a grunt as she righted herself. It was then that I realized my position of standing directly in between two lieutenants was not a good idea.
There were so many smells in my nose now that I was beginning to lose track of each of them. Cold winter and apricots with roses was clouding my senses, but the weaker scents of Matsumoto and Izuru were growing too. I felt dizzy and had to catch myself from swaying where I stood from the smells. I reached up to wipe my nose, hating the overwhelming scents in the air, when Gin struck again. I blocked but shivered as Hitsugaya appeared behind me.
Damn.
I couldn't take a hand off my blade to stop him thanks to Gin and was forced to watch as the little captain swung in an upwards motion behind me. Toshiro was too far away to hit me, but a wave of water crashed into my back, solidifying into ice rapidly. I winced, feeling the frost on my exposed arms.
The battle died down. Gin was still stabbing his zanpakuto into my blade, and as it was, I didn't have the ability to move my body other than to shiver. I looked at Gin, noticing the contemplation on his face as the pressure from his blade lessened slightly.
Then it lowered.
My eyes widened as I watched the blade extend to rest against my ribs. My eyes followed the movement since my head was frozen into place. I looked up to see Gin without his usual grin. Instead, he looked to genuinely be considering something as he stopped his blade against the fabric of my top. My heartbeat sped up as I watched his unnervingly calm face.
The audacity.
The tip of his sword moved closer-
"Captain Ichimaru!" Matsumoto grabbed the end of his sword, halting it in its tracks. "Please put away your sword! The Ryoka has been captured and will be taken into our custody."
My eyes widened as I saw blood spill through the seams of her fingers. I looked up to see the lieutenant and squad three captain looking at each other. He frowned and, in slow purposeful movement, retracted his blade. His eyes remained fixed on Matsumoto, then looked down to her bloody hand.
He didn't smile again, just sheathed his blade.
"Let's go, Izuru." He called to his lieutenant who had freed himself. Izuru staggered to his feet, looking worse for wear.
That was it? He left, just like that? Damn, there were a lot of inter-personal relationships in this place I wasn't privy to obviously. Once he was gone, I took a deep breath, shaking slightly from the freezing cold ice covering the back half of my body. My breath was visible as I let out a puff of air.
"Ca-Can you get me o-out of this? Pl-Please." I asked, no longer high from the adrenaline of the fight. Matsumoto looked at me as I followed her with my eyes. Toshiro walked around me, standing in front. I could just see him over my sword as he narrowed his eyes at me.
"I have a few questions for you, ryoka." He said in a low voice. My teeth chattered, and I couldn't quite get my thoughts in order as the ice sent cold spiralling through my body.
"L-Let me out-t." I asked again. Toshiro considered it. I didn't want to use my hollow abilities, but if he didn't let me out, I wasn't going to play nicely anymore. After another moment Toshiro slashed nodded to his lieutenant. She pulled out a pair of handcuffs. I felt something lock down inside of me when she put them on my wrists. Toshiro reached up and grabbed the handle of my zanpakuto.
"Let go of your sword," he said firmly. I frowned but obeyed. He took her away from me, then slashed the ice. It completely melted away and turned into water around us. My arms fell immediately, pulsing and itching from the cold. I was still freezing, and the wet clothing combined with the cool air of the night wasn't making things any better. However, I could feel the circulation of my blood starting up again.
"Th-Th-Thanks." I said, teeth still chattering. My eyes drifted to Matsumoto and her bloody palm. She locked eyes with me, looking suspicious. "You're bl-bleeding still?"
She looked surprised, and suspicious.
"It's fine." She said, closing her hand and hiding it behind her. My arms felt like lead cuffed in front of me, but I did my best to stay upright.
"Now," Toshiro began again. "As I said before. I have some questions."
"Is Momo okay?" I cut in, ignoring him. My teeth no longer chattered, though I still trembled. Toshiro's eyes changed immediately.
"She's fine." He said tightly. That was good at least. I doubted I would get a full answer from him about her though.
I sniffed the air, smelling Gin's scent travelling further away. It was difficult to smell anyone with these cuffs on. Were they blocking or limiting my spiritual pressure? Why didn't he kill me? Again, it was like he should've, but he didn't. My gut told me Gin had been thinking about it, or maybe it was the sensation of his blade clashing with mine that brought out an intent? Like when I trained with Ichigo, a feeling washed through me when his zanpakuto contacted mine. He felt conflicted, like he wanted one thing but needed to do another. Gin's actions didn't make any sense to me still, and considering his reaction to my words, I clearly knew something he didn't want me to know.
What was going on here?
"Hey!" Little captain snapped, looking a indignant as he glared at me. "Answer the question!"
"I wasn't listening." I admitted, looking down at him. He grumbled, tightening his hold on my zanpakuto. He turned, holding her over his shoulder as he glared at me.
"Let's move elsewhere then, lest you get distracted again."
"Do you know anything about the letter in Momo's possession?" Toshiro asked. I nodded.
"Can't say I do."
"What about the death of captain Aizen? Did any of your companions do it?" Toshiro pressed. I stayed neutral, shrugging.
"I doubt it."
Toshiro growled, looking riled up.
"If I may, captain?" His lieutenant piped up.
Toshiro frowned from behind his desk. We had moved to his office, which was surprising, considering I thought I would be moved to a jail cell and need to wait for Zaraki to come barging in with Orihime and Ishida. If they could even find me that is.
Instead, we had parked ourselves in the squad ten office. Lieutenant Matsumoto- who surprisingly insisted I called her Rangiku- stood beside where her captain sat. I was in a lone chair on the other side of his desk, still cuffed.
My gaze lifted to the lieutenant as she spoke. Her gaze calm and strong.
"I understand your hesitance to speak," Rangiku said, her eyes softening ever so slightly. "But please. The death of captain Aizen has affected us-"
"Rangiku." Toshiro warned, but I ignored him and continued to look at the lieutenant.
"Please sir," she insisted. Toshiro sighed, allowing her to continue. "Please understand us. First Rukia Kuchiki's execution keeps moving up-" that perked me up "- and then you ryoka appear. Now there's a death of one of the most beloved captains in the Seireitei. You must understand that we are simply trying to get to the bottom of this. If you ryoka are innocent, would it not help to clear the air?"
She made some good points, but I was reluctant to speak. Zaraki had declared himself interested in helping us out. I didn't feel safe with Zaraki, but I trusted his sentiment enough to believe him. Toshiro and Rangiku were a different story. I liked them, a hell of a lot more than Zaraki's crew if I was being honest, but I trusted them a lot less.
For starters, there was no reason to speak with them.
"What happens to us, once you find the killer?" I asked. Toshiro tilted his head slightly. "That head captain wanted to kill us when I didn't fall for his trap. Why should I help you if it's just going to lead me to an early grave?"
Toshiro leaned forward in his chair, eyes locking with mine.
"If what you're saying is true about your altercation with Lieutenant Hinamori. If you truly chose to simply knock her out and did not strike her," Toshiro's eyes narrowed on me. "Then I will do what I can to help you and your friends leave this place. Alive."
I searched his eyes, looking for any sign of miscalculation or lie. What he can do and what he would do were questionable, but honestly? Any help was a good thing right now. Especially with how horribly stretched out we all were. The captain looked honest though, and something in my gut told me this guy wanted us to be innocent. Not to help us, but because he had a suspicion on who the killer was.
From his altercation with Gin earlier, I had a pretty good idea of who he thought the killer was. I looked to Rangiku again, seeing a surprisingly unguarded expression as she nodded at me. I sighed, flopping back in my chair.
"Look, I understand how it looked, but I am telling you the truth. The lieutenant came at me claiming you and I decided to kill Aizen. I read the letter afterwards and it didn't make a lot of sense to me, well, at first." My words caught Toshiro's attention as he frowned, leaning back in his chair.
"Explain." He demanded, though his tone changed to inquisitory rather than accusing. I took a calming breath and started my explanation.
"First, I wasn't lying when I said our only intention is to rescue Rukia Kuchiki. That is a fact. We had understood that we would have to fight our way through several of you, but none of us, and I do mean none of us, came with the intent to kill." I said clearly. Both of them listened intently as I continued.
"Yesterday, I heard from Zaraki that Aizen was murdered. Up until that point, among our group, only I had fought a captain, captain Tousen, and I had a brush by with captain Kuchiki. Both were alive when I left them though. The only other two capable of fighting captain class had not crossed paths with a captain leading up to that point. Ichigo fought Zaraki, and Ishida fought that creepy captain with the white skin. That is the only captains we've encountered since I escaped the cells, and I am adamant that none of us killed captain Aizen or anyone else for that matter." I said the last part firmly. Toshiro frowned.
"Captain Tousen was rushed for emergency surgery and still in critical condition this morning," Toshiro raised a brow at me. "And you admit to putting a captain in such a critical state?"
"Yes," I said calmly. Toshiro locked eyes with me, not moving.
"So my understanding is you are trying to imply that- after your battle with captain Tousen, you went on to face Kenpachi and Kuchiki? Forgive me for saying, but I find that hard to believe." He said with narrowed eyes. I took it as a shaky acceptance to what I said before.
"I only fought captain Kuchiki," I clarified. "Well- briefly. I had to split from my group. I was trying to find everyone since we were now all separated with that grand entrance. I found some, but not everyone. On my way to finding the rest, I ran into the squad eleven lieutenant. She introduced us to some squad members along with Zaraki."
Toshiro and Rangiku shared a look, then Toshiro looked back at me.
"Please continue." He said, his voice less angry than it had been a minute ago. I regathered my thoughts, going over that meeting.
"Zaraki said that, since one of us defeated him, he wanted to help us out. Surprised me, but he was quite genuine about it. I left my group with him and went to find Gin to ask some questions." I said. Rangiku frowned.
"Why were you looking for captain Ichimaru?" She asked. Toshiro's eyes darkened at the mention of the other captain. I crossed my legs and my arms the best I could with hand cuffs.
"Probably a similar reason to why you were. His actions were- well, out of everyone I had encountered, his didn't make any sense." I looked down to the front of Toshiro's desk. "He didn't kill me, for starters. And he seemed surprised when he heard my name, like he knew it. Then he didn't tell either of you about my zanpakuto."
I glanced at the blade, sitting on the far side of the desk and out of my reach. However, it had been handled with care, which I appreciated.
"How did you stab him?" Rangiku asked, an almost childlike curiosity leaking into her voice. Toshiro murmured a warning, but the woman's voice made me crack a smile.
"I told you, he stabbed himself. I just- I redirected his blade back at him." I clarified. Rangiku looked like she had more questions but stayed quiet. "I would show you, but it's kinda hard with these on."
I raised my hands and jangled the cuffs, to which Rangiku sighed.
"Well that's a shame." She mumbled. Toshiro scoffed.
"So you ran into lieutenant Hinamori on your way to finding Ichimaru, correct?" Toshiro asked I nodded silently. He watched me, the cogs in his head turning rapidly. "What else did you ask him?"
"Oh we had a good chat," I said, lowering my arms. "I specifically asked him about Aizen. Between his actions and Aizen's scent I was getting pretty confused with what was going on."
"Scent? What are you talking about?" Rangiku asked. I sighed. I really didn't want to explain this again, but it looked like I would have to.
"Everybody has a unique scent. I can track each and every one of you for miles if your scent is strong enough. Your scent is linked to how much spiritual pressure you have." I looked between the two, watching the growing suspicion. Without waiting for the question, I answered. "Little captain smells like winter and cold wood, Rangiku smells like woman's perfume."
Toshiro looked like he didn't believe me at all, I pressed on, closing my eyes as I recalled each scent begrudgingly.
"Kuchiki smells like chili peppers, Zaraki smells like blood, Gin smells like apricots and roses, the head captain smells like a campfire, Aizen smells like cinnamon and cologne." I noticed the two looking at me with different ranges of belief. "I can't tell you where anyone is right now though, it's hard with these chains on."
Toshiro looked so suspicious of me, but I really didn't have any way of proving it without going full bloodhound.
"Why did you ask Ichimaru about Aizen's scent?" Toshiro continued.
"Because I can smell him around the Seireitei," I explained, surprising both of them. "I've smelt him like he was standing next to me, and very far away. I've smelt him when I was in battle like he was standing on the sidelines. What's more, Gin knew of several battles I had had where I smelled Aizen's scent."
"What are you implying?" Rangiku asked. I frowned, sensing the defensive tone in her voice.
"I think Aizen's alive, and Gin knows what's going on." I said out loud. Toshiro looked me dead in the eye, unmoving. I didn't blink, staring back with just as much strength.
"Can you smell him right now?" He asked. I shook my head and rattled the cuffs. He stared at them, then his eyes flickered to mine. Contemplation ran through him, he seemed to be weighing several thoughts in his mind. Finally, he closed those teal eyes and let out a small sigh.
However, as he went to open his mouth, a black butterfly flew in through an open window. It landed on Rangiku's fingers.
"The following is an urgent message for all squad captains and their lieutenants. Rukia Kuchiki's execution is set for twenty-nine hours from now. This decision is final and irrevocable. There will be no further changes to the execution date. That is all."
I stared at Rangiku, my eyes widening.
Ichigo... What are we going to do now?
"Are you kidding me?" I whispered, rage filling me. Toshiro looked surprised too as he returned his gaze to me. I felt something clench in my heart as I made two fists. "Rukia saved me and Ichigo that night. We would've died without her, and this is what she gets?"
Were we all going to die, and not be able to save her?
My heart thumped, and I felt my rage pulse deep inside of me again. Whoever was pulling the strings knew what they were doing.
"Why would they shorten the grace period again?" Rangiku asked.
"So that we would run out of time." Toshiro said, looking at me. "Convenient that this happened after your run in with Ichimaru."
I narrowed my eyes at him.
"I told you I'm not-"
"That's not what I meant." Toshiro clarified quickly, not angry surprisingly. "What I meant was, whatever you said to him, it made them want to hurry this along."
"Them?" Rangiku asked. I looked at Toshiro, surprised.
"So you believe me?" I asked, hopeful. Toshiro stared with contemplation for another few moments.
"Rangiku, please remove her cuffs."
I swallowed, feeling excitement as the handcuffs fell to the ground. Immediately my senses returned to their normal levels and I felt like I could breathe easier. Toshiro stood, looking down at me with a sharp gaze.
"Show me," he began. "Show me where Aizen's scent is."
I stood, opening my palm to find my zanpakuto back in my hands. I sheathed her, smirking at the two.
"Follow me."
Oh man this one took longer to write and IDK why. But honestly, my favourite chapter is the next one.
Guys we're almost done the SS arc! Can you believe it? We'll wrap up the betrayal in the chapter or two, depending where my writing takes me, and then one or two chapters where I'll indulge y'all in some characters meeting Naomi. Then we're back home! Can you believe it? So soon!
Lil Nao is trying to be the adult of the group, Trying being the operative word, but it's not really getting her anywhere.
Mesmerizing Mermaid: Thank you for the review! Honestly Nao in the original outline gets separated from Orihime because she's fighting Gin, but it dawned on me that it didn't make sense for Gin to show up there and I instead made that entire scene last minute. Yeah Zaraki scares the pants of Nao, mostly because she can just tell the man would love for her to cut into him. haha. Little captain makes another appearance! Honestly he's so grumpy that writing him without his thoughts in the chapter make it hard to really say anythign other than 'he looks grumpy' but gosh he's just too adorable.
Thanks for the reviews! I am curious if there's anyone in SS you specifically wanna see Nao interact with? I know Shunsui has been mentioned quite a bit and I promise they do have a scene together! There's a few people Nao gets to have a nice chat with once everybody's friendly.
Anyway, see y'all next time!
Cheers.
Iland Girl
