I'm still alive!

Sorry for such a long time between chapters. A lot has been going on lately and I've just not had the motivation to post anything, or even write. But I'm working on it, and finally mustered the energy to post.

Hope you like it!

Chapter 62: No Holding Back

The days started to go by quickly as Ichigo fell into a routine of training, attempting to improve both his reaction speed, and the time he could retain his Mask for. Hiyori handled the majority of his training, while the others occasionally swapped in so she could take a break, and Kirara continued to help him work on his reaction times.

"Well, his Mask retention time still sucks, but at least he's getting faster," Kirara admitted to the others as she left Hiyori to resume training. Almost immediately the two began yelling at one another again, and Kirara couldn't help but smile in amusement.

"Did my eyes deceive me, or did he almost succeed in catching you?" Rose asked, and Kirara turned an offended look on him.

"How sloppy do you think I am?" she asked, sounding as offended as she looked. "That will never happen," Kirara said, so adamant that Rose couldn't help but smile in amusement.

"Of course, how foolish of me," he drawled in response.

"He is getting faster though. As I would expect, since Kisuke and Yoruichi taught him in the first place," Kirara pushed her hair from her face, and rested a hand on her hip. For a moment, she turned and watched as Hiyori continued to throw Ichigo around like a ragdoll. Even after a few days, he struggled against the short woman's pure, violent strength.

Tugging on the long sleeve of the black hoodie she wore, Kirara gave a quiet sigh. It was now or never. "Hey, Kensei?" she called, earning the attention of the man who was finishing taping up his knuckles to get in some training of his own.

"What?" he grunted, looking up and seeing her shifting on her feet. Kirara was missing her usual devious smile that she had when she talked to him, meaning she wasn't about to start winding him up out of boredom. In fact, Kensei recognised the look as one that often came before she would spar against him properly.

"Can I talk to you for a moment?" she asked, gesturing off away from the others. Kensei's eyebrows furrowed further, but he got to his feet as a little curiosity encouraged him to humour her.

"What do you suppose that's about?" Love wondered aloud, watching as Kensei followed Kirara away and out of sight.

"I have no idea," Rose admitted when Love glanced at him, half expecting him to know the answer. The two were as close as ever, and Rose seemed to know Kirara better than anyone, expect for maybe Shinji now.

"How interesting," Lisa smirked. "Maybe Kirara's wanting to have some fun," she suggested.

"Don't be an idiot," Shinji sighed, though his gaze was focused in the same direction as the others, telling them he had no idea what was going on either. 'I still don't like that look, Kirara,' he thought, but made no move to follow.

"What's so important that you had to drag me off away from the others?" Kensei asked when Kirara finally slowed to a stop. He folded his arms, looking down at the short woman when she turned to him. She still had that serious look on her face, but if she just wanted to spar with him, she wouldn't have dragged him away from the others.

"I have a request," Kirara admitted, putting her hands behind her back as she lifted her head. "With everything going on, and with Aizen preparing for war, I can't afford to hold back and hide my abilities anymore," she started, holding his dark gaze easily. Kensei waited quietly, listening to what she had to say. "The only problem is, I haven't trained some of them in a long time, and one in particular I need practice with, so…would you train with me?" she requested, almost sounding nervous.

"What?!" Kensei shouted, taken aback by both the request and her demeanour. "You want me to train with you?" he demanded, as if unsure he'd correctly. Kirara nodded. "But…why? Rose, or Shinji-"

"Would both hold back," Kirara finished for Kensei, who fell quiet again. He knew she was right. Neither went all out unless they absolutely had to, and they definitely wouldn't be able to against Kirara. She smiled faintly. "That's why I always challenge you, Kensei. You don't hold back, ever, and I both appreciate and respect you for it," she said honestly. Kensei grunted, fighting the embarrassed look that crossed his face.

"Dammit…" he growled, running a hand over his cropped hair. "Fine, I'll help, but only if it shuts you up," he said, and Kirara smiled.

"Thanks, Kensei," she said, a little relieved that he'd agreed so easily.

"Yeah, yeah. Like I said, if it shuts you up," his gruff words told Kirara how embarrassed he was by her honest words, and it made her smile widen.

"Okay," she giggled.

"You want to start now, then?" Kensei guessed, eyeing her up.

"Yup!" Kirara nodded, and pulled her hoodie up over her head to toss it aside. Kensei arched a pierced eyebrow warily at her actions, as she stood in a backless, sleeveless black crop top. "Okay…I'm a bit rusty with this, so give me just a second," Kirara requested with a smile.

Kensei didn't reply. He just folded his arms, wondering what Kirara wanted to train that required his help. At first, he assumed it was her Zanpakuto, but she didn't have it with her, meaning it was something else entirely.

As he tried to come up with ideas for what Kirara was about to do, he felt the spike in her Reiatsu, right before strange black shadows began to pour across Kirara's arms and down her back, swirling around her as if protecting her.

"What the hell?" Kensei growled, staring at her. Kirara's power had increased just by activating the strange shadows, and he could tell they were for more than just show. A faint wind had picked up around them from the sheer power, blowing Kirara's hair wildly as it tugged at his loose clothes.

"Damn, it's been too long," Kirara complained, shaking her arms. The shadows swirled even more, leaving wisps trailing behind where she moved. "So, I guess I should explain first before we jump into it," she looked back at Kensei with a grin, seeing his baffled reaction.

"You guess?!" he repeated incredulously.

"It's something that Yoruichi showed me a long time ago when she developed the technique. I trained with it, and only just figured it out it when…well, when we came here," Kirara's smile turned strained for just a moment. "I haven't even thought about using it, but I figure it might come in useful if I can manage to use it with my Mask at the same time," she told him what had been on her mind.

"Of course that psycho was the one who came up with it," Kensei grunted. "What exactly is it?" he asked.

"It's an entirely new level of Hakuda that blends with Kido. It's called Shunko," Kirara looked down at her arms again, trying to keep the power from exploding out. "When harnessed to have Kido channelling constantly like this, it causes it to form as an element," she said, remembering the explosive power of Yoruichi's lightning-based Shunko. "Mine is obviously shadows. Fitting really," as she spoke, the power faded, and she staggered.

"Doesn't look like you've got much control over it," Kensei said, studying her as Kirara shook out her arms as they tingled, just like her back did.

"Not yet," Kirara replied, keeping that cheerful tone. "That's where you come in. With a proper opponent, I'm sure I can learn this power," she said confidently. Kensei hummed, sounding derisive. "What, backing down now?" Kirara asked with a trace of that teasing smile.

"Please," Kensei scoffed. "Just don't go crying to the others when I beat your ass," he threatened. Kirara bit back the teasing comment, knowing that he could easily threaten to not help her.

"I would never, Kensei. You know that," she said instead. With a grin, Kirara threw out her arms, and the shadows returned with another burst of power. "Shall we?" she offered. Kensei smirked in response, moving into a fighting stance as he raised his fists.

"Ready when you are."

"You know, normally I wouldn't pry-"

"Ha!"

"But what the hell happened to you two idiots?" Shinji ignored Kirara's snort, arms folded as he surveyed the two sitting in front of him. Hachi was hard at work healing the two, despite Hiyori, Lisa and Love telling him not to bother.

Kensei watched Kirara out of the corner of his eye. The bruises he'd left all over her body were slowly healing along with the damage done to her bones, and he knew he'd almost dislocated her shoulder at one point, but Kirara's expression was her usual cheerful one. In that moment, his respect for her grew just a little.

Kirara then angled her head just a little to meet the much larger man's gaze, and as if she sensed his thoughts, she grinned.

"Training," they chorused together. Kensei had to admit, he was a little impressed by how easily Kirara got under Shinji's skin as he saw his eyebrow twitch. And he could understand a little of why she enjoyed doing so.

"How the hell does your training end up with the pair of you so beaten that neither of you could move for several minutes?" Love demanded. They'd all felt their clashing Reiatsu, with Kirara's higher than they'd felt in a long time. Whatever she was doing, she was taking things seriously. Even Ichigo had felt it, and now he too was eyeing them curiously as Hiyori found herself too distracted to keep training him.

"I can't believe you finally managed to wear Kensei down enough to sink to your level," Lisa told Kirara, almost sounding impressed by it.

"Hey!" Kensei growled, offended.

"She's right," Mashiro giggled. "Normally you're just a big grouch and shout at Kirara, but today…" her giggles grew when Kensei's glare turned to her next.

"Hey, don't annoy him too much, or he won't train with me again," Kirara complained, barely managing to hide her wince of pain as her shoulder twinged.

"Again?" Shinji repeated, and Kirara turned to him with her eyes narrowing. For a moment, they stared at one another, almost seeming to be having a silent argument as the look on Kirara's face told them all that if he tried to stop her now, it would go the same way as when he'd tried to stop her from attending school.

Even Kensei's eyebrows furrowed at the silent exchange going on. He recalled that day well, and he also recalled how he'd had to be the one to drag Shinji back to the warehouse after two weeks of the idiot sulking alone.

"I'll go easier next time," to their surprise, Kirara was the one to back down first. She dropped her eyes to the ground, knowing that she had to compromise. Even Shinji couldn't hide his shock. "But I need Kensei's help. It's the only way I'll be strong enough after…" she trailed off, but the words didn't need saying. Even Ichigo knew what she was thinking.

After how easily she'd lost on Sokyoku Hill.

"Idiot," Shinji sighed as he reached out and put a hand on her head.

"So what were you doing?" Mashiro asked, unable to contain her curiosity any longer as the sudden tense atmosphere faded.

"Training," Kirara repeated, and Mashiro pouted.

"Leave it alone," Kensei growled, getting to his feet as he finally felt okay to do so. Of the pair of them, his injuries hadn't been quite as grievous, but he knew that she'd at least broken a few of his ribs and almost snapped his arm. He eyed Kirara warily as she stayed sitting, letting Hachi finish what he was doing. 'If she masters this Shunko shit…she might actually give me a run for my money. God help us all,' with a snort, Kensei turned and walked away.

"Kensei!" Mashiro whined. "Tell me!" she followed him, undeterred as he snapped at her to stop following him. The others started to disperse now that Kensei had left, knowing that he had been their best chance of getting an answer.

"Hey! Who said you could have a break?" Hiyori realised that Ichigo was standing with them, and she instantly turned to glare at him. "Back to training!" she snapped. He scowled back at her, instantly annoyed again.

"How can I when my so-called trainer is slacking?!" he snapped. There was a loud thudding impact, and Ichigo went flying across the training area.

"So much for those improved response times," Kirara shook her head, before getting to her feet as Hachi finished what he was doing. She was still stiff and sore, but she suspected that was more to do with how much she had pushed herself. "Thanks Hachi," she smiled at the large man.

"Of course," he smiled softly back at her.

"And you," Kirara turned and grabbed Shinji's hand when she noticed that he still looked unhappy. "You trust me, don't you?" she asked softly. His brow furrowed, but it was more in a weary look than annoyance.

"You know I do," Shinji sighed. Kirara smiled, squeezing his hand.

"Then trust that I know what I'm doing. I'll show you when it's ready, okay?" she offered, and saw the flicker of curiosity in his eyes.

"Fine," he groaned, giving in as he tugged her closer. Kirara smiled, pressing her face into his chest as warmth glowed in her own. "You're such a pain," Shinji complained, but pressed a kiss to the top of her head despite his words.

"I know," Kirara said, her words quiet as she didn't move. "But I'm not going to be helpless again, Shinji," she said, determined. He didn't respond, but didn't release his hold on her either.

"I have no intention of killing you today, Kirara. Not until my former Captain can watch."

Aizen's taunting words echoed in Kirara's head, and she grasped his shirt wordlessly. She refused to be a liability; a distraction designed to inflict torment on Shinji. For a moment, she clamped her eyes shut, forcing the memory of Aizen from her mind, before she looked up and grinned. "I do know what you can help me with, if you really want to help?" she said, watching his eyebrow rise.

"Oh?" Shinji wondered just what was on Kirara's mind now, and listened as she stretched up to whisper in his ear. He couldn't hide his surprise at her request. "You're serious?" he straightened, staring at Kirara as her grin widened. She loved when she managed to make him lose that deadpan, straight face he normally had.

"Yep. Maybe tomorrow. I don't want to undo all of Hachi's hard work after five minutes. Though, that might be a record for me…" Kirara mused, and Shinji snorted before kissing her forehead.

"Not a record I'm going to let you break. Come on, Princess. Rest up for a bit before you go and torture Ichigo again," Shinji pulled her away to find a place to watch Ichigo being thrown around by Hiyori once again.

"Don't call me that," Kirara warned, not missing his grin. "Prick," she muttered without any annoyance as a faint smile played on her face.

Shinji wasn't sure that he believed what Kirara had asked of him, even the next morning when she dragged him off to the same place where she had been sparring against Kensei. The place was in shambles, with many of the rock pillars shattered or badly damaged. Not for the first time, Shinji wondered just what the hell the two had been doing.

"You sure about this, Princess?" Shinji called over to where Kirara was standing. He carried his own Zanpakuto loosely in one hand, while Kirara's was sitting over her shoulder, similar to how Hiyori carried her own.

"Keep calling me that, and you'll see how sure I am," Kirara warned, standing a short distance away from him.

"You've never released your Zanpakuto while we've been here," Shinji reminded her patiently. Kirara didn't reply, knowing he was right. "I was beginning to think you never used it," he said, watching for her reaction.

"I've unsealed it once in the last hundred years, against Natsuki in the Soul Society," Kirara said, drawing her Zanpakuto and admiring it. "I don't like using Kokoro no Kage's power often, because when people figure out its ability, it loses its impact," she explained, hearing a low hum in the back of her mind.

"But you're fine using it now?" Shinji asked, curious about what her Zanpakuto was capable of. She shrugged with a faint smile as she looked away from her sword, and over at him.

"Of course. I don't have any intention of fighting you for real, so I don't mind showing it to you," she said softly. There was something in how she spoke that made it suddenly harder to focus, and Shinji tightened his hold on his Zanpakuto to ground himself.

"So what does it do?" he asked instead. Kirara smirked at him.

"You're a smart guy, I'm sure you can figure it out," her answer didn't even remotely surprise him. She was getting better at sharing when he asked, but Kirara was still a nuisance to get a straight answer from.

"Fine, fine," Shinji shrugged, drawing his own Zanpakuto and moving into a comfortable stance. "But I hope you know that I'll be taking the time to train just as much as you are," he warned, and Kirara's eyebrows quirked up at his words, intrigued.

"Okay, so why don't we make this fun?" she grinned widely. "First to tag the other five times wins?" Kirara offered. Shinji's own grin widened at the challenge.

"You're on, Princess. Winner gets to pick the prize," he agreed. Kirara laughed, her eyes lighting up. "Ready?" Shinji called. Kirara just winked in response, and he rolled his eyes.

"Confuse My Enemies, Kokoro no Kage!" the moment he did, Kirara tossed her Zanpakuto into the air. As it reached its apex, she launched herself after it, and vanished once she'd caught it by the handle.

"Oh?" Shinji hummed, casting a quick look around for any sign of Kirara. He could still sense her lurking around; in fact, he was more aware of her now than before.

As he looked around, bracing himself for her usual fast movements, a hand pressed gently to the small of his back and made him jump. Shinji whirled around, too surprised to react past that as Kirara grinned up at him.

"That's one," she sang, and vanished once again.

"You menace," Shinji grinned widely, following her in the direction he'd seen her vanish in as he focused on her presence. Moving around a large pillar of rock, he reached out to grab Kirara, only for her fingers to ghost along the back of his neck.

"Close," Kirara teased as she bounced backwards, out of reach as Shinji turned to her again. "Two," she had that devious smile on her face, enjoying the look on his face before she vanished once again.

"Alright, you brat. I said this was training for me too," Shinji chose not to follow her this time, holding out his Zanpakuto.

"It was starting to feel a little one-sided," Kirara teased from her hiding place. "Come on Hirako, impress me," she called out, making him grin once again.

"You're going to regret talking so big," he warned. Shinji focused, letting his own power flow. Kirara felt it from her hiding place, the hairs on her arms rising at the sensation. "Collapse, Sakanade."

:)