|UBWR|
-Use Bleach When Required-
Juuichi: Friends
We create our fate every day we live.
-Henry Miller
Sanae wondered off to the side and fetched two wooden swords. Ichigo's eyes followed her every move as she returned and tossed him the sword. Ichigo caught it with his free hand. His dominant one was still currently holding the remains of his Zanpakuto. Ichigo's tawny gaze went from the wooden sword to Sanae who stood a few feet away, twirling her own sword in her hand.
"A wooden one? What is this going to teach me?" Ichigo asked mockingly. A smirk twitched at the corner of Sanae's lips. Ichigo saw this and furrowed his brow. Sanae suddenly stepped up to him, using the sword she smacked his Zanpakuto out of his hand. Ichigo's eyes widened as he tried to block with his other arm but Sanae was already smacking his arm away. She ducked under his arm, turning and hitting the sword into the back of his legs. Ichigo yelped and spun around to retaliate but Sanae thrust the sword flat against his stomach. Spit came flying out of the teenager's mouth. He felt a force like a small car hit his chin as Ichigo flew back, landing a meter away in a heap.
He felt a small pressure against his neck as he gazed up, his eyes still wide. "If this were a real fight, you'd be dead—again." Sanae growled, her blue eyes intense. Sanae removed the sword from his neck as she stepped back and allowed him to rise. "First rule: Never underestimate your opponent."
Ichigo looked from Sanae's sword to his Zanpakuto lying a few feet away from him. "Well, what's the second one then."
Sanae met his stare, and then she smirked. "There isn't. I just said there was a rule one to sound cool."
Ichigo sighed and slapped his forehead. "You're an idiot."
Sanae chuckled for a few moments before she stabbed her sword into the ground. "That may be so, but the words I speak are true." Ichigo noticed the change in her tone again, and he started to pay attention to her once more. "There are no rules to a battle. When you fight, things change every second. You can learn every step, every move that your enemy can do—but in the end they can still surprise you. That is what I mean by never underestimating your opponent. You laughed at fighting a little girl like Ururu, and she almost took your head off. You laughed at the thought of fighting me. And need I remind you about the two people you fought the other day? It doesn't matter how much strength you wield, it's how you wield it that can turn the tide of battle."
Sanae continued, "I can teach you the moves, show you how to use your abilities wisely. But it all depends on what you do with them in the end. Are you ready?"
Ichigo's gaze set into determination as he nodded. "I'm ready."
Sanae smirked. "Good, then lets—"
"Hold on!" Urahara suddenly charged in between them both, his hands held up. Sanae's smirk turned into a glare as Ichigo quirked an eyebrow at his strange behavior.
"Urahara…" Sanae grumbled with a roll of her eyes. Ichigo's tawny brown eyes flicked from the shopkeeper to Sanae.
Urahara grinned at his friend. "Don't you think he should rest for the night? He did almost die you know."
"No thanks to you," Ichigo said spitefully.
Urahara spun around with a grin, "But you didn't, so I'm off the hook!"
Ichigo shook his head at them both. "I don't need to rest, I need to get stronger! We only have six more days, I can't afford to wait around."
"He's right, Ichigo," Sanae spoke softly. Her tone had changed back to normal. She no longer sounded like the battle worn warrior that she had been. "Too much at one time can stress your body out."
Ichigo patted himself down. "I feel fine!"
Sanae shook her head at him, "Your human body. You aren't feeling the side effects now because you're in soul form. Once you go back all the training and stress that Urahara put you through will start to show. It's best to have a good nights sleep and we'll continue in the morning."
Ichigo looked like he wanted to protest some more. He kept looking between Sanae and Urahara, and then finally sighed in defeat. "Alright—I guess."
X
Dinner that night had been awkward to say the least. Ichigo kept on giving Urahara daggers every time the shopkeeper made snide comments about how Ichigo almost turned into a Hollow. Jinta was no help, egging Ichigo every chance he got. The only silent ones were Sanae, Tessai and Ururu. After dinner Ichigo finally felt the after effects of his training, he all but fell asleep at the table. Tessai carried him to Sanae's room, with Ichigo protesting that he was fine all the way.
Sanae was going to share Ururu's futon that night; at least she would have somewhere comfy to sleep and not on the hard mats again. Everyone had called it an early night; everyone had been up the entire three days with Ichigo doing his training. Sanae changed into her nightclothes and then her and Ururu tucked themselves into bed together. Sanae lay awake for a while, staring up at the ceiling. Her thoughts kept on going back to Ichigo, when he had come out of the hole. She had sensed an ominous power coming from him, nothing seriously sinister. It was just different. Sanae chucked it down to him being human after all; his reitasu was bound to be a little different from everyone else. Soon though, the exhaustion caught up with Sanae too as she fell into a sleep.
"Hollow over here!" Sanae called out, brandishing her zanpakuto as she charged for the four-legged reptilian looking beast. The Hollow wailed at her. A grin came over her face as she sliced down the face of the Hollow, cutting off its cry as it faded into nothing. The sound of a sword slicing through flesh caught her attention as she glanced over her shoulder to see her comrade effectively killing his own Hollow. The man in question twirled his zanpakuto and rested it against his shoulder as he spun on his heel. He ran a hand through his longish black hair and gave her a thumb up. On the arm he was holding up, Sanae's eyes were drawn to the Lieutenants badge wrapped around his bicep. Isshin sheathed his zanpakuto as Sanae did the same and the two met halfway.
"A job well done," Isshin commented. Sanae begrudgingly agreed with him.
"I'm still pissed at the fact that you've already made Lieutenant. You climbed the ranks faster than I ever did," Sanae grumbled and pouted like a small child.
Isshin grinned and chuckled. "Just because it took you over half a century to reach third seat."
Sanae pulled a face at him. "Shut up."
Isshin poked her in the arm playfully, "You're just mad because I'm better then you. It's ok, everyone is allowed some denial at least." Sanae sent him another glare, which caused Isshin to throw his head back and laugh loudly.
All of a sudden, both Shinigami felt the presence of a Hollow form right beside them. It was powerful, and had been able to avoid detection up until that very moment when it had appeared. Its clawed hand came crashing down as Sanae leapt at Isshin, shoving them both away from the Hollow. Rubble was left in the spot the two had been previously standing. Both Sanae and Isshin drew their Zanpakuto.
"Looks like I'm better," Sanae said with a cheeky smile. Isshin returned it as both Shinigami charged at the Hollow together.
Sanae awoke with a sigh. Her dream—or memory had been so vivid, so real. She felt like she was really back in that place with Isshin all those years ago. Waking up reminded her about everything that had happened up until this point. She lay there for a few minutes, listening to the even breathing of Ururu. She was hoping that it might lull her back to sleep, but after around ten minutes she realized that she wasn't going to be falling asleep again any time soon.
Sanae turned her head to look at the clock hanging on the wall. It had just gone past two in the morning. Sanae sighed again. There was no use lying down anymore so she decided to get up. She was careful to not make a noise; she didn't want to have an angry Ururu on her hands.
Sanae slid the door shut quietly behind her as she made her way to the front of the store. It was summer, so the night was still warm as Sanae opened up the front door and felt the warm breeze hit her exposed skin. Sanae perched herself on the edge of the porch, tucking her knees up to her chin and resting her head against them.
She could hear the faint sounds of traffic not to far away, but other than that it was peaceful. The moon was shining brightly overhead and if she wanted to, she could even try and count the stars.
Sanae thought back on her life three hundred years ago. How different everything had been. She had been so carefree. She did her duty to her squad and had friends who she could depend on and who depended on her. She was well respected. She was known. She was happy. What she would give to go back to those days in the academy with Ukitake and Kyoraku. Two hundred and sixty years she had been hiding in the human world, she had seen many faces come and go. She had watched entire cities been built from nothing and others be destroyed. To her, time had no meaning. Those two hundred years had gone by in the blink of an eye. But before that, it had felt like she had lived for an eternity in Soul Society with her friends. She wished that when she goes back, that everything would return to normal, but Sanae knew that wasn't the case. She was going back to—
"Can't sleep?"
Sanae yelped in fright, having been so lost in thought that she didn't even realize someone had snuck up on her. Her arm flew out as she spun her torso around. Her hand came into contact with flesh as Ichigo groaned.
"Ouch!"
Sanae gasped, "Sorry!"
Ichigo rubbed his sore spot as he sat down next to her. There was an awkward silence between them. Ichigo rubbed at the back of his neck while Sanae stared at something on the ground.
"Do you think you can do it?" Sanae asked quietly, resting her head against her legs once more.
"Do what?" Ichigo asked, glancing over at her. Sanae didn't look at him.
"Save her."
Ichigo's brows twitched. "I have to, don't I?"
Sanae shook her head. "No…you don't. You can walk away. You don't have to sacrifice everything just to save her."
Ichigo glared at her, "Why are you so against me saving Rukia?" He was mad now. Sanae shook her head at him.
"I'm not! I'm just—trying to figure out why you would go so far for her? Do you love her?"
"No!" Ichigo exclaimed. He sighed and ran a hand through his bright hair. "No, it's not that. I already told you, she changed my life…and the people who took her—they aren't good people. She doesn't deserve to be executed for helping me."
"That was her choice," Sanae whispered. "She knew what would happen…if she got caught."
"And so she deserves to die?" Ichigo said in disgust.
There was a pause from Sanae. "No one deserves to die, Ichigo." Ichigo froze at the guilt and sadness in her tone. He stared down at her, watching how she curled her arms around her legs, looking like a frail child. Her dark brown hair was a mess around her shoulders. Her bare legs tucked up to her stomach. "But Rukia, she's the type of person that would want you to forget about her. She wouldn't want you risking your life for her just to save her. Maybe she wants you to walk away from her."
Ichigo sighed; he tilted his head back to stare up at the crescent moon. "The friend that you lost, did you walk away from them?" He heard her sharp intake of breath. She was quiet for a few moments.
"That was different."
"How is it?" Ichigo grumbled.
Sanae glanced over at him. "I didn't have a choice."
"There is always a choice," Ichigo said with a frown. "If you care about them enough, you'd do anything to help them."
Sanae glowered at the floor. She refused to let her bottom lip quiver. She ground her teeth together to stop herself from sobbing at his words. She already knew what a horrible person she was; she didn't need other people figuring it out too. Sanae knew that she wouldn't be able to get any words out without crying or her voice braking. So she choose to stand and leave.
"Kagawa!" Ichigo called out to her but she didn't turn around to him. Sanae stopped just after the threshold.
"You don't know anything about me," Sanae hissed as she stormed off into the building.
The next morning, Sanae stood down in the underground cavern. She twirled to wooden sword between both hands and was waiting for Ichigo to arrive for their session. Urahara was nowhere to be found thankfully, after last night Sanae didn't want to see her friend; she wasn't really in the mood. She had half a mind to scrap Ichigo's training all together, but Urahara would probably drag her back down anyway.
Ichigo finally arrived; he was already in his soul form. He picked up the wooden sword that was leaning up against a boulder and gripped it tightly in his hand.
"Lesson one," Sanae said. Ichigo met her gaze. In the blink of an eye, she was before him and using her sword to knock his feet out from under him. "Footwork." Ichigo was on his ass and glaring up at the brown haired girl in annoyance.
"That was for last night, wasn't it?"
Sanae's eyes narrowed into slits. "Lesson two." She suddenly whacked him on the head. Ichigo cried out in pain as he cradled his skull. "Don't lower your guard for anything."
"You're enjoying this, aren't you!" Ichigo roared at her. Ichigo caught the smirk on her face as she jumped back to her starting position.
"Immensely," she said with a chuckle. "Repeat!" Ichigo barely had any time to jump to his feet and block her onslaught.
X
The two fought for hours, Sanae giving Ichigo lessons on how to properly fight and defend himself. In those hours, Ichigo could see the difference in himself. Before when he was fighting, he was just acting on instincts, believing that what he was doing was the right thing. Sanae showed him where to place his feet for more power behind his attacks. She told him what to watch out for with dodging blows and blocking them. He was surprised at her knowledge. He was just surprised by her in general.
Sanae blocked Ichigo's attack head on. She used her strength to push him back but Ichigo came at her again with a roar. He sliced horizontally at her, Sanae sliding back and dodging his move. She spun around to his side, lashing out with her sword and Ichigo blocking it. The ginger then grabbed onto her sword, shocking Sanae as she gasped in surprise. Her eyes widened as Ichigo raised his foot and kicked her in the stomach. Sanae let go of her sword as she went flying back. She rolled onto her back and then slowly got up.
"What the hell was that?" Sanae asked, disbelief on her face.
Ichigo grinned and tossed her the sword. "You told me to never underestimate my opponent. I thought you should do the same."
Sanae scoffed but admitted defeat to him. She gave him a slow clap and then brushed herself down. Another set of applause distracted both of them as they turned to see Urahara and Tessai approaching.
"Very nicely done, Kurosaki-san!" Urahara cheered.
"What are you doing?" Sanae asked him.
Urahara grinned at them both. "You've been down here for a whole day training. I thought it was my turn to beat him—I mean train him now," Urahara smirked playfully at Ichigo.
"We've just started!" Ichigo protested.
"Fine, have him," Sanae agreed as Ichigo whirled around to her, shocked.
"Eh?"
Sanae shrugged her shoulders at him. "You beat me, in a day no less. I've taught you what you need to know, its up to you to implement them. I can't do it for you."
"Very well then," Urahara clasped his hands together and stared down Ichigo. "Here I come, Kurosaki-san."
Ichigo's training was complete. Urahara had trained him the rest of the time, improving Ichigo's strength with him learning the name of his Zanpakuto finally. He finally felt stronger. He was ready to save Rukia. Ichigo knew that if he came across those two men again, he would surely be able to beat them.
He had been home for a few days. It was strange, adjusting back to normal life. His sisters and father had no idea what was really going on around them. They didn't know the strange things that he had seen over the last couple of months.
Ichigo stood watching his family play those stupid festival games. His gaze settled over Karin, the dark haired spitfire. He thought back to the fateful night, if Rukia had never shown up. Karin would have died. He owed a lot to the Shinigami.
Ichigo watched as his dad threw a hacky sack through the hoop and then jump up and down as he won a prize. It was a stuffed fox that he gifted to Yuzu. The three then moved off to enjoy some more games before the fireworks started.
Ichigo wondered around by himself, he glanced around at the people playing games, listening to their victorious cheers. He shoved his hands into his pockets and then looked towards another game stall that had a girl trying to throw a small ball into high scoring holes. He smirked, as he recognized the girl. Her brown hair was pulled back into a braid; she wore a pair of black shorts and a dark blue shirt with cherry blossoms over it.
He approached Sanae as she threw another ball but missed the hole and groaned loudly. "Sorry, girl! That was your last try," the vendor told her.
"Come on!" Sanae whined. "This game is totally rigged, one more try!"
"Five hundred yen."
"What?" Sanae exclaimed. "You changed the price!"
The vendor leaned against the front of his stall. "I've got to earn a living here." He held out his hand, waiting to see if Sanae would pay his money. The girl glared at him, but the man didn't back down.
Ichigo stepped up to the stall. "Or I could tell everyone in ear shot that your game is rigged." Sanae jumped in fright as she turned to Ichigo, her mouth open in shock. The vendor turned his glare to the carrot top. "I know that you've blacked out the hole so there's no way anyone's ball can actually get through it."
The man suddenly straightened as his gaze flicked around nervously. "That's bullshit."
Ichigo glowered. "Is it? Let me see it then." Ichigo and the vendor had a silent stare off, neither one backing down. That was until Ichigo angled his body and cupped his mouth. "Oi! Every—"
"Alright!" The man hissed, cutting him off. Ichigo smirked proudly as the man turned, grabbing the top prize, which was a collectable stuffed toy. A panda that had only a handful ever made. "Take this and get lost." Ichigo and Sanae turned away from the stall and walked a few feet away.
X
Sanae and Ichigo halted a few meters down the sidewalk. Sanae glanced around awkwardly before she suddenly had black and white thrust into her vision. "Here," Ichigo grumbled.
Sanae smirked and took the offered toy from his hands. "Thanks, you could have let me waste my money, you know."
Ichigo rolled his eyes at her and then shoved his hands back into his pockets. Sanae held the panda under her arm. "You probably figured out that the game was rigged, why'd you keep going?" Ichigo asked her.
Sanae shrugged. "Curiosity I guess? I mean it's my first time coming to one of these, I wanted to see what all the fuss was about."
Ichigo's eyebrows rose up. "You've never been to a festival before?"
She shook her head, "Nope. Thought I should at least try it out before I die going to Soul Society."
Ichigo reeled back, looking perplexed at Sanae. "What do you mean? You aren't coming along!"
"Of course I am," Sanae said with a laugh. "I'm not letting all mine and Urahara's training go to waste! Someone's got to make sure that stupid head of yours doesn't get yourself killed." Sanae grinned at the expression Ichigo was making. She turned away, looking over the hill. "And besides…Rukia's going to need more than just your help. I'm choosing to help save a friend this time." Sanae missed the softened look that Ichigo gave her. Sanae realized, that if Ichigo found out her true reason for returning to Soul Society, he might never speak to her again. The thought had her heart aching. Over the month, Ichigo had become a friend to her. They had their squabbles, their disagreements, but they shared a bond. Something that Sanae didn't want to break.
Sanae's rumbling stomach killed the mood. Her cheeks burned hot as Ichigo chuckled at her. "Nice job trying to be heroic," the ginger laughed as he patted her on the shoulder. Sanae brushed a strand of hair out of her face and shied away, embarrassed. "Come on," Ichigo said as he tugged on her shirt. "If you've never been to a festival then that means you've never had street food."
"Street food?" Sanae said, disgust lacing her tone as she pulled a face. "Is it off the floor or something?"
Ichigo laughed, "No, idiot. Just follow me." He beckoned her with his hand as Sanae trotted after him, the panda bear hanging loosely from her hand.
"How is it?" Ichigo asked Sanae as she dug into some caramel covered sweet. Sanae's eyes went wide as she did a little giddy dance.
"It's amazing!" She cried out with her mouth full. Ichigo munched on his own dessert as they walked towards the hill where the fireworks would be released in a few minutes. "I want to come to a festival everyday!" Sanae called out, finishing off her sweet. Ichigo smirked down at her. It was strange; he had never seen her act so…childlike. During their training she had been focused and brutal. Even before then, at school she had been smart and caring. Now it was like she was naïve to the whole world. This girl has so many personalities it's giving me whiplash, Ichigo thought grimly. I wonder who the true Sanae is?
"Where are we going now?" Sanae asked the ginger. Ichigo pointed off to a point not too far away.
"Just over there, the fireworks will be starting soon."
"Fireworks?"
Ichigo gave her a deadpan look, "You've never seen fireworks before?"
Sanae laughed, "Of course I have, I've just never seen them this close." Ichigo turned away; he didn't want her to see the frown he had on his face. Every time she spoke, she confused him even more.
They came to a stop at the top of the hill, where dozens of people had gathered to watch the fireworks. Some were sitting down on the slope; Ichigo could even spot his dad and sisters. To his left, Sanae was bouncing on her toes, seemingly anxious for the show to start.
They didn't have to wait long before the first one shot up into the sky and exploded in a sparkling display of green and blue. Ichigo watched them, admiring the color. He could hear Sanae gasping and aweing to his left each time a new firework shot up into the sky.
He glanced down at her, seeing her smile at the show. Her skin was cast into a glow of red and blue as the colors changed above them. Echoes of the bang rang out around them as the people awed at the display.
"They're so pretty!" Sanae said breathlessly. She suddenly turned to Ichigo, their eyes meeting for a split second before he turned his gaze up. Seeing a few gold ones explode before them.
"Yeah," he agreed quietly. Ichigo heard a slight noise of someone walking into Sanae. He looked at the man who had bumped into her as he was apologizing with a smile. Sanae wasn't mad about it and thanked the man. Ichigo noticed that Sanae had dropped the panda; he crouched down and picked it up off the ground. "Here, Sanae."
Sanae turned to Ichigo, seeing him holding out the stuffed animal. She took the panda from him and then gave him a grin.
Ichigo gave her a weird look. "What?"
Sanae laughed, "Nothing—that's the first time you've called me Sanae. Guess that means we're friends now, huh?"
Ichigo raked through his memories, trying to figure out if what she said was true. He came to the conclusion that it was. He rolled his eyes at her and folded his arms over his chest stubbornly. "Yeah, well—I've never had such a suicidal friend before. Thought I'd start with you."
Sanae laughed once more. She hugged the panda to her chest. "Thank you, Ichigo."
The night of the mission was finally upon them. Sanae was in the underground area training on her destruction spells. That was until Urahara joined her. "Don't tire yourself out too much before the big journey."
Sanae spun around. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine."
"I know you will," Urahara said with a gentle smile. He approached her, stepping within a few feet of her as he held out his hand. "Here, I made you this." Sanae held out her hand as the shopkeeper dropped a small silver bracelet into the palm of her hand.
"What is it?" Sanae asked, holding it up and examining it.
"A modified Gigai release. I have a feeling that a time will come where you will need to reveal your true self. I won't be around to help you," Urahara twirled his cane around his finger. "When you place it on, it will register to your Gigai. When you remove it, so will the Gigai."
Sanae grimaced as she fastened the bangle to her wrist. She felt a sudden warmth flow up her arm. "It's going to hurt, isn't it?"
"You have been in there for over two hundred years," Urahara said teasingly. Sanae kept her gaze down on the bracelet.
"Am I ready, though?"
"Only you can answer that." Urahara told her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. Sanae didn't reply to him as she dropped her arm. The bracelet felt heavy on her wrist. It was a reminder to her that her life was about to change…again.
"Kisuke, Sanae," Yoruichi called out to them from near the ladder. They both turned to their feline friend. "They're coming."
Urahara turned his gaze back to Sanae. "Are you ready? There's still time to back out if you want to."
Sanae shook her head determinedly. "No, I'm going. I'm doing this…for me." Urahara chuckled as he twirled his cane and rested it against his shoulder. He and Sanae headed to the ladder with Yoruichi.
"Well alright then, let's go meet this rag tag team that's going to save Rukia."
A/N
Hey everyone! Sorry for being awol for a while. had a lot to deal with irl for a few weeks or so and it was hard for me to find time to sit down and write. But hopefully I should be getting some more updates out a lot quicker! I know a lot of you were wanting a massive ichigo and Sanae showdown, they had a little one but I want to keep the good stuff for the Soul Society battles as Sanae can do a lot more there, and you'll soon find out why! And yes, finally next chapter we're fnially heading to soul society! I did want this chapter to be a little longer but I decided to have the whole Soul Society entrance be ni the next chapter! I'm excited cause a lot of shit will be going down!
Hope you all enjoyed and i'll see you next time!
Nixxon Mysterio - Ah sorry for the long absence my friend, rl got in the way! Anyway replying to your review, Ishida really has no purpose right now. I mean, none of his interactions give Sanae any character development, but obviously that will change as they're going on this mission together! Ahh the Sanae and Isshin friendship stuff will be addressed and everything, but for now enjoy that little flashback and keep guessing hahah!
ukitakeitalialover041757 - Thank you, sorry it took me donkeys years
curlystruggle - yeahh battle wasnt as epic, but some cool fights will come up! And her past will come out too!