Bleach Fan Fiction ❯ Flowers on the precipice ❯ Head on Collision ( Chapter 5 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

By: Twix2010

Sorry I took so long to update. I've just been so busy with school and then my computer crashed and erased the other completed chapters and I had to do it all over again. Anyway, here's chapter 5…enjoy!!!

Chapter 5: Head on Collision

“How about a break?”

Ichigo looked up from the textbook he was looking into at Tatsuki's voice, glancing up at the clock in the huge library. It was almost six. He checked his watch, not quite believing they had been at it three hours already.

“My ass is just about dead,” Tatsuki stated now as she stood up and stretched, “how long have we been sitting here?”

“Three hours.”

The answer didn't come from him but from Sado.

“But we got a lot done,” Orihime offered cheerfully, “with this, the entry exams shouldn't be very hard at all.”

“You're way too optimistic,” Tatsuki teased, ruffling her bangs.

“Nothing is impossible but the impossible,” Orihime stated, missing the looks of puzzlement following that statement, “It's just a pity Ryo-chan and the others had to leave already.”

“I wouldn't worry about Ryo too much,” Tatsuki put in, “She's always been the top girl in our group so she's gonna do well whether she studies with us or not.”

“I think we should all take a break,” Rukia stated, “We've been at it nonstop. Besides, I'm starving.”

“Hm,” Sado agreed.

“Yay! Time for a snack then,” Orihime chirped from across the table, pulling out a bento.

“Oh, what did you bring?” Rukia questioned from next to him.

Orihime opened the box with a flourish and tilted it for her to see.

“Today's snack is a feast of rolled eggs with sweet red bean paste, pickles and ripe bananas.”

What the hell kind of food was that…

“It looks kind of strange to me,” Rukia commented innocently.

“Orihime's lunch always looks weird,” Tatsuki whispered back.

“Oh,” Rukia murmured.

“Are the vending machines working?”

Tatsuki looked over to Sado at the question.

“I think so. They don't usually lock them since a lot of teams train after school anyway.”

The big bodied guy stood.

“I'm going to get a snack,” he announced as he moved towards the door.

“Did you manage to schedule a time for Ishida to meet with us yet, Orihime?” Tatsuki voiced as Sado went through the door.

“Iie,” Orihime answered around a mouthful of food, “Ishida-kun is always busy.”

“I wonder if he'll show up at all then,” Tatsuki wondered aloud, “that guy doesn't talk much and doesn't have any friends it seems but since he's always had top scores, he's a big help at times like these.”

“I'm his friend,” Orihime put in. “Ishida-kun may seem a bit standoffish and quiet…but he's kind and tries to help people who come to him, no matter how busy he is.”

“Hey, you seem to know him pretty well, Orihime. Are you two close or something?” Tatsuki teased.

The girl waved her hands frantically.

“No, no…we met in the handicraft club and since I still have some troubles with my sewing, Ishida-kun's always been nice enough to help me get it right. Ishida-kun is really great at sewing! He can mend teddy bears in seconds and do pretty doll's dresses. He may even save the world one day with his sewing.”

He didn't get the last part at all but that was Orihime for you. He'd never met such an enigma as she was- uncommonly wise and insightful one minute and then totally out of the loop the rest of the time.

“I'm going for a walk,” Rukia announced standing abruptly.

“I'll come out with you,” Tatsuki offered. “I could use the exercise. You coming Orihime?”

The girl looked down at her half-eaten food and as if in answer, her stomach growled rather loudly.

“Ah, gomen,” she apologized, her face red with embarrassment, “I skipped lunch today so…”

“I guess I'll take that as a no then,” Tatsuki said with a smile before turning to follow Rukia out of the room.

Orihime turned back to her food with a relish until she suddenly realized that Ichigo was still sitting there looking at her stuff her face like a pig. She turned as red as a beet, turning away quickly before he could see it.

“Are you alright?” he asked then.

She nodded vigorously, afraid to speak, swallowing hard and choked. In an instant, he was at her back, gently thumping her back until her coughing subsided. By then, tears were streaming from her eyes and she was more than a little embarrassed.

“Are you alright?”

“I-A hundred percent,” she returned, voice sounding normal before adding in a whisper, “Gomen.”

“Um…well…there's no need to apologize,” he stated back, a hand going to the back of his head. “I probably made you uncomfortable…”

“No, no…that's not it,” she hastened to rebut, waving her hands and forgetting the bento box on her lap. As the contents hit the floor, she couldn't help but think this was just getting from bad to worst by the minute.

“Here, let me help you,” he offered as she bent to clean up the spilled food.

“It's not necessary,” she returned, “It's not that much. I can do it by myself…”

She didn't finish when he bent and started picking up some of the stuff.

She watched him for a few seconds before bending her head to the task at hand again.

As she turned away from him to get the pieces that had fallen away from them, his eyes went to her. She really was a strange girl, he thought again. Not paying attention then, instead of the pickle on the floor, he grabbed her hand.

Her head shot up, her face coloring prettily, even as his own face went a shade or two darker. Instantly he released her.

“Sumanai,” he apologized.

“I-iie…it's nothing,” she replied.

They cleaned up the rest of the food in silence and without a word between them until, finally, it was done.

“Well…um…I think I'm going to go get my hands cleaned up,” he said straightening up.

“Hai,” Orihime replied. She watched him until she couldn't see him anymore before turning her eyes on her hand, a worried frown marring her features.

Just now, what had that feeling been?

When he'd accidentally touched her just now, she could have sworn she felt something- something inside of him. She had felt it so palpably right then- a mass of throbbing energy inside him- dark and light at the same time, alive…She shook her head mentally. That wasn't it. It wasn't a thing that she had felt…it was a power, a strange force inside of Kurosaki-kun.

Or had she just imagined it? She wondered if she should ask him about it.

She moved to empty the ruined lunch in the bin. She stopped suddenly as a strange sensation watched over her. Her stomach churned in apprehension. Worried, she didn't even bother to empty the contents. She just dropped it on the table and went to the window.

It was not quite dark outside as yet but there wasn't a lot of light illuminating the area she could see. From what she could tell though, there wasn't anybody out there. Still, she got an eerie feeling. She shivered, hugging herself against the cold that danced down her spine. Where had the others gone? They'd been gone for a while…

She stood there for a while, eyes searching for any sign of her companions. She was blazingly aware right now of just how vulnerable she was, all alone in the big library but her worry and focus was not on herself but on them. She had a strange feeling that right now, she was the safest of them all….

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The first beep came as she was drying her face. Flashing the water from her hands, she grabbed the phone tracker. By then, it wasn't one dot on the screen but one…two…three…six! She didn't waste anymore time. She had to find Ichigo and get the others out of here.

As she ran along the corridors trying to get back to the library, she spotted Tatsuki through the glass. She was standing outside on a little ledge overlooking the football field, her eyes to the sky. Automatically her gaze followed. What she saw made her heart quicken and her feet change direction.

Right above the girl, in the direction she was looking, there was a growing tear in the sky, several arms and appendages trying to rip through it into this world.

“Tatsuki-chan.”

The girl turned away at the sound of her name to see Rukia running towards her. Her eyes held a hint of fear and Rukia couldn't blame her. Even from here she could tell that the hollows she had seen on the radar were already here.

“We should head back,” she began, tone light so as not to cause the girl to feel more apprehensive, “It's getting late and we only have a few more problems to go…”

“Sure,” Tatsuki agreed. Her eyes went back to the sky before returning to her. “Rukia…can you see that?”

“See what?” Rukia asked, really confused. She hadn't thought the girl was actually seeing something even though she had been looking in the right spot as only people with high spiritual pressure like Ichigo could actually see the hollows and shinigami. She'd just thought that she was looking because she sensed something there because normal people sometimes did.

“That,” Tatsuki answered pointing right at the growing crack, “It's like the sky is opening…and it's still blurry…but I can see like there are things trying to…”

She broke off and let her hand drop.

“What am I saying?” she asked then, “Things like that aren't possible.”

Rukia didn't want to tell her they were and that she wasn't wrong right then. She was also too busy trying to figure out why Tatsuki could see them to even respond.

Beep. Beep.

She reached for the radar in her pocket again, eyes widening when she saw the screen.

“Is something wrong?” Tatsuki asked seeing her expression.

“Noth…” she started to answer back until she felt the hollow arrive behind her.

She had to make a quick decision right then. She wouldn't be able to really fight in this condition but she wasn't supposed to be exposing her identity either. If Tatsuki could see the crack and the hollows, she would very well be able to see her. On the other hand, if she didn't go into her shinigami form, they might all die. The decision made, she popped the little green tablet in her mouth.

“Wha…? Rukia?” Tatsuki asked in surprise when not one but two Rukias appeared before her, one in the school uniform, and the other in a black kimono.

“There isn't time to explain,” the Rukia in the black stated then, “I will explain everything later…right now, Tatsuki, please just trust me. Get behind me.”

As the girl did as she was told, a blast echoed through the quiet evening at another part of the school.

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When the blast sounded through the air, Ichigo was already running towards the sound. He'd felt the hollows and had already been on his way, stopping only once to `borrow' one of the katana's he'd seen on the Kendo club wall. He skidded around the corner and came to a sudden halt as he spied a lone dark-haired figure in the middle of the path, back turned to him. He was looking upward and, of their own accord, his eyes followed.

There was nothing there.

In confusion, he looked back at the boy but his eyes hadn't moved. He was going to say something but then he felt it, the pressure signaling the arrival of several hollows. His eyes scanned about as the feeling intensified. Where were they going to come from?

The sky above the boy opened then and before he could blink, a hollow was right on top of the boy. He reacted in the one way his body directed.

By the time the boy finally took notice of him, he was bringing the sword down on the hollows head. Their eyes met.

“You…! What are you doing here?” he questioned in surprise as he landed on the ground again.

“Leave,” was all he got in reply.

He opened up his mouth to say something else but suddenly found the words stuck in his throat when the boy materialized a bow and arrow in his hand and pointed it at him.

“Stay out of it, Kurosaki,” he ordered, “If you had stayed away in the first place this wouldn't have happened.”

“What are you talki…”

“I warned you didn't I?” the boy continued as he neared them, his face unreadable, “I told you to stay away…but did you listen? This,” he said aiming the bow right at his head, “is exactly why I dislike your kind, Kurosaki.”

The arrow shot loose and his eyes widened as it came straight at him. He barely managed to duck out of the way. Behind him a howl sounded and he turned to see the disintegrating body of another hollow. A nerve started to tick wildly at his temples. That guy…for that reason, that guy…

“What the hell is wrong with you?” he shouted back at the boy, “You could have killed me, you prissy son of a bitch!”

“Who said that I wasn't trying to do exactly that?” the boy returned before adding coolly, “And it isn't `prissy son of a bitch'. It's Ishida- Ishida Uryuu.”

Ichigo didn't appreciate his tone but it really wasn't the time to argue he was reminded as one of the hollows who had arrived tried to smash him with its tail. If he lost his focus now, he wouldn't come out of this alive…and he had to- if only to teach this guy a lesson with his fists…

Ishida couldn't even look over to see if he had gotten out of it alive. He was too busy trying to keep track of the two hollows who seemed to be working together to get him. The big one with the build of an oversized juggernaut was attacking relentlessly, while the one with the fishlike head behind him kept trying to rip him to bits with his two sword-like appendages.

As he knocked back another arrow and let it rip, his eyebrows furrowed in a frown. In all his time fighting hollows, he had never seen so many converge in one place and from what he could tell, they were probably nine or ten already present on the school grounds and more was coming. He could feel it and knew that it had to do with the spiritual force leaking from the other boy- he had felt it from the beginning, then a tiny leak and told him to stay away but it seemed the leak had gotten stronger and he hadn't heeded the warning. Hence the predicament now.

…but still…why were they attacking all together now? Something was off about this style of attack but for the life of him, he just couldn't put his finger on it.

“Idiot! What the hell are you thinking about at a time like this?”

His eyes registered the wailing hollow and the severed arm with slight interest, before returning to the boy.

“I don't need your help, Kurosaki. Do whatever you like but die on your own. Don't get in my way.”

“Stop acting so high and mighty,” Ichigo yelled at him, swinging hard at the claws coming down again, his voice slightly breathless, “The only way we are going to come out of this alive is to work together. There are too many…”

“I don't need your help, Kurosaki so don't interfere. If you want to interfere, do it on your own because I won't help you. I'll never risk myself to save people like you.”

Ichigo felt a vein ticking at his temple. What a hard-headed guy! Didn't he realize the predicament they were in?

An arrow zoomed over his head and his head spun just in time to see the hollow that had been about to attack him from above turn to dust.

“Idiot! If you're just going to stand there and be a happy target…go do it somewhere else!”

“I thought you said you weren't going to save me?”

Ishida opened his mouth to answer, then closed it again as nothing came out. Having no response, he turned his back on the boy and started to attack the oncoming hollows again.

“You're just talk,” Ichigo stated dodging another attack from the four armed monster, “Despite saying you don't care and all those other things…you do. It doesn't really matter though, what you think or why you think that way right now…all that matters is that we need to work together to get out of this alive. When it's done, we can have the pleasure of beating each other down as much as we like. Right now, faced with so much of these things, we should just fight first, talk later.”

For the first time, a small smirk curved the other boy's mouth.

“It seems you're not such an idiot after all, Kurosaki,” he praised, letting go of another arrow, this time striking the flying monster, “Prepare yourself for after then…I'll make sure to beat you until you cry.”

“Keh…you wish,” Ichigo returned taking out the smallest of the five that had been running below the winged monster with one heavy blow to the head.

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She was getting that feeling again. She paused and glanced up at the sky for the tenth time in the last half an hour. Something was definitely wrong. The strange howling sound echoed in the empty room and goosebumps pimpled her skin.

What was that sound? She wondered even as she wondered where the others were. They were taking so long. She got up from the table and went to the window. She was getting a bad vibe from all of this…

She looked about but as before, there was no one around. She started to turn back when her eyes glimpsed some kind of movement. Thinking it was one of the others, she turned back. She was two feet or so from the huge window when something slammed into the glass and the whole thing shattered, sending her body as well as glass flying. Instinctively, she raised her hand to cover her face, not minding the pain as her body slammed into the table, knocking over chairs. Several cuts and gashes appeared in her skin as well as embedded glass fragments.

When it was done, gingerly, she lowered her arm.

One word echoed in her mind then…Run! She managed to struggle to her feet but her legs didn't seem to want to obey the rest of the warning.

What is that thing, she wondered at the huge beast looking right back at her. It had a human enough looking body except for it's gigantic size and the large hole in the middle of its chest but the head was like that of an ancient saber-toothed tiger she'd once seen in a book, large fanlike teeth sticking from the side of it's mouth. The head moved and the eyes stared her down.

Run, her mind screamed again but her body remained frozen even as that thing started towards her.

“Get down.”

Someone tackled her to the ground, her body slamming painfully into the ground once more as Rukia's voice chanted above her.

“O Lord, mask of flesh and bone, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of man, truth and temperance, upon this sinless wall of dreams unleash but slightly the wrath of your claws! Hadou 33: Sokatsui!”

A big blue ball of spiritual energy exploded from the girl's outstretched palms and slammed into the monster. It made a loud howling sound even as its body started to disappear.

“Orihime, are you alright?”

She stared up into Tatsuki's familiar face, her eyes still wide.

“Tatsuki-chan…”

“Thank goodness,” Tatsuki sighed.

Orihime's head shifted.

“Rukia-chan…why did you change?” she asked then, noting the dark robes, “What's going on?”

Rukia frowned. First Tatsuki and now Orihime…how was it that both of them could see her in this form?

“I can't explain right now,” Rukia put in quickly then, “We have to get out of here first.”

“I don't understand,” Orihime began as Tatsuki helped her up, “Why are you so beaten up…and Tatsuki-chan…?”

“Don't worry about it,” Tatsuki cut in, “We're both alright and you're more beat up and bloody than both of us. Let's just get out of here.”

Tatsuki started to pull her behind her. As they went through the door, Orihime's eyes fell on the broken table and overturned chairs with their stuff in the middle of the mess. Sado-kun and Kurosaki-kun, she thought then, they still hadn't come back…

“Don't come.”

Rukia's voice cut into her thoughts.

“Stay here until I come back to get you.”

Orihime hated that tone…

“Ku-Rukia-chan,” she called out worriedly as the girl started towards the exit alone.

Rukia stopped and turned to look at her over her shoulder.

“Don't worry, Orihime,” she said then, a small smile playing about her lips, “I'll come back safely. I'll definitely come back for you and Tatsuki-chan.”

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“Shit,” Ichigo cursed then as he skidded across the ground on his ass.

“Get up, Kurosaki!” Ishida ordered, notching another of those strange blue arrows into that even stranger bow, “I don't have time to save your stupid hide right now.”

Ichigo made to retort that he hadn't asked him to but saved his energy instead to scramble out of the way of the oncoming blast.

As he landed, he did a quick count. There were six hollows now, two of them just waiting in the back while the other four kept attacking them relentlessly. He guessed they were just waiting for an opportunity to jump in but wasn't prepared to give them one. Still, it was getting harder and harder to keep an eye on the two watchers with the other four attacking so much. He glanced quickly over at Ishida. His fingers were visibly red with blood from firing so much and his movements were much slower now from fatigue. They wouldn't last long in this condition at all. There had to be something he could do…

He dodged a sharp claw aimed at his head and suddenly realized how far he had gone from the other boy. Had this been perhaps been a plan to separate them from the beginning? As he wondered, something shifted in his periphery.

“Watch out!”

The shout came even though he already knew the boy wasn't going to hear it in the middle of fending off the two hollows he was fighting with and all the howling going on. It came anyway as he also already knew that he wasn't going to get there on time, although he was already running there at his fastest speed. It felt like he wasn't moving at all. The spikes glistened in the evening light as they raced for the defenseless boy. He wouldn't reach him…

By the time Ishida saw the attack, the spikes were already poised to attack. He was trapped he realized then, unable to dodge as surrounded as he was. Was this how it was going to end then?

His eyes widened as just as suddenly, something big blocked his view. A strong palm slammed into his chest and he found himself falling backwards, unable to scream or look away as the sharp spike meant for him impaled the dark-skinned boy.

“Chad!!”

Something hot and burning twisted in Ichigo's gut as the spikes ran through the boy's back and straight out of his abdomen. It filled him with a rage he hadn't thought he was capable of- blinding, white, hot rage. As the boy's already bloody body fell to the ground with a sickly thud, the dam holding the rage split open.

“That's enough!”

With that shout, the area suddenly became flooded with an overwhelming reiatsu. 88888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888

“Seems like we're right on time.”

The assistant looked over at his blonde-headed boss.

“Tessai-san, please attend to the injured. I'll go and find Kurosaki.”

“Hai.”

As the two split up, the blonde-haired man sighed. This was becoming as troublesome as he had expected.

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Hah hah hah hah…

Was that panting, labored breathing coming from him?

He couldn't move anymore. It hurt so bad to breath much less move. He stared at the blood dripping through the fingers clutching his left side, dripping down into his already blood-soaked pants. He was losing way too much blood. His head felt light and dizzy. His knees, weak from running and dodging finally gave out and he collapsed to the ground.

A bitter smile curved his lips. Even though he had said that it was enough, he hadn't been able to do anything except get beaten up like this. He'd been nothing but a mere mouse for them, too powerless to do anything except get Sado out of the way. That was how he'd gotten stabbed in the side- he'd run to get to Sado and the hollow had tried to attack again.

He looked over at the unconscious youth propped up a few feet from where he had fallen. At least he was okay for now. His eyes turned back to the archer who, slightly less injured than he was, was still fighting. He looked down at his bloody body. He should be hurting like hell, he thought then, but strangely enough, it didn't hurt as much as it should have. Instead, he mused while lying on the ground, everything seemed dimmed- the pain, his perception of his surroundings… everything suddenly seemed strangely and almost pleasantly distant.

“Let me out.”

The voice sounded faraway and distant. He struggled against his closing lids to see who it was that was speaking.

“Kurosaki,” Ishida called, “get your ass up and get out of here.”

“I'm not running away,” he replied stubbornly, struggling to get up, “I'm going to fight…I have to ….Tatsuki and Rukia, Sado and Inoue…I …”

As he struggled to his knees, a familiar looking pair of feet came into view. He raised his head in shock.

“Geta boushi…”

“That was a good decision, Kurosaki-kun,” the shopkeeper stated in answer lifting his cane, “if you want to fight…then fight.”

He lifted the cane and before Ichigo realized what his intentions were, he'd stamped him soundly with the cane on his forehead- and through -and then the world became black.

“Ichigo.”

The voice sounded in the dark, familiar yet unfamiliar. He squinted as he opened his eyes, wondering why and when it had gotten so bright. The next moment he found himself staring up at the sky in amazement, the reality of it still escaping him- well it couldn't be reality, his mind rejected even as he thought it…what kind of reality has clouds floating to the ground?

“It's been a while, Ichigo.”

“Wha…? Who's saying that? Who are you?”

“Who am I, he asks. And here I thought there was no one in the world that knew me better than you. Look over here boy.”

Ichigo shifted slightly to his left and there, standing on a pole a few feet away from him, was a long dark-haired man dressed in full black with dark glasses.

“Have you really forgotten about me, Ichigo?”

Ichigo studied him. He was bad at faces- always had been but somehow he couldn't think he'd forget such a remarkable face- anyone with such a gloomy look would be hard to forget. His eyes widened as said face appeared suddenly before him.

“I'm surprised,” the man spoke again his breath fanning his face as he was so close, “You and I have been together for so long, and yet you don't remember me. I'm a little hurt, Kurosaki Ichigo. ”

“My name…how do you know my name?” Ichigo questioned.

“Easy,” the man returned, “Like I said, you and I have a long history.”

He reached up and removed the shades, dark eyes intense in their gaze on him.

“I see,” he said finally after a few seconds, “They erased everything.”

“Erased? What are you talking about? Who are they?”

The man continued as if ignoring that he was speaking to him.

“That's why he sent you in, eh? That bastard…”

“Oi,” Ichigo called trying to get his attention, “I was asking you something.”

The man turned his attention on him then.

“Tell me Ichigo, why are you here? Why are you wearing those dark robes? Holding that sword?”

Ichigo looked down at his words noticing for the first time the dark robes so very like Rukia's shinigami garb and the huge sword he held in his right hand. Even as he wondered why, apart of him was telling him he knew…it felt slightly familiar…

“You don't remember…I guess it was just never going to be easy.”

He stared at him then, the intense expression on his face causing Ichigo to feel slightly nervous.

“Do you trust me, Ichigo?”

“Huh? What the hell are you talking about, old man? I just met you…How can I …?”

“Do you trust me, Ichigo?”

He faltered.

“I…”

“Make up your mind quickly, Ichigo. Times running out…you want to save them, don't you?”

“Yes…”

“Trust me then, Ichigo.”

Before he could form a reply, the man's hand slammed into his chest, palm open. A fierce burning raced through his body and he found himself stumbling back from just the one hit, tumbling off the side of the building. Fear struck in his heart.

“Old man!”

“Don't worry,” the man called down, “This is the only way to undo the seal. You have to release me yourself. All you have to do is call my name- call my name Ichigo. I won't let you fall and it will all come back to you- just say it. Say my name.”

“I don't know your name,” Ichigo shouted back, “I've never even met you before.”

“Say it,” the man urged. “Say it if you want to live.”

He was getting further and further away. Ichigo looked behind him. There was only hard concrete there. If he fell…What do I do, he thought frantically. What do I do?

“Say it! Say it and the fall will end,” the man urged. “It will all end.”

A name…what could it be?

“Boy, what are you waiting for!? You've known it all along. Just say it!”

The ground was coming closer.

A name…a name

He was almost there…

He closed his eyes.

A name…a name…

Nothing came to mind. He was going to hit…he was going to die.

“Do you want to live, boy!? Say it!”

Images of his family flashed in his mind, his new friends, images of the attack on Chad…

Yes, he wanted to live. He wanted to be alive to save them…he wanted…

He opened his mouth and gave his answer.

“Zangetsu!”

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This was taking too long.

It was the one thought that kept repeating in her mind even as she jumped out of the way of another attack. It was taking way too long to defeat this hollow…why? Something wasn't right but she couldn't put her finger on it. She couldn't even stand still for even the few seconds needed to activate her technique as she was, jumping from the ten appendages coming at her from all directions. Even with her speed, she was barely managing to keep up with the attacks.

She landed on the ground and jumped out of the way of the tentacle coming straight at her. As she rolled out of the way, her senses picked up on the presence of another hollow. Just where were they all crawling from? she wondered.

Her eyes sought out the next hollow as she ducked yet another attack. She found him, slightly behind the first hollow. Before she could figure out a plan of action on what to do then, however, another loud blast sounded in the air and the area became flooded with a familiar reiatsu

“Wha…?”

The unfinished question died on her lips as a heavy hit landed in her midsection, pushing her body through the air for a few feet. How foolish to have forgotten the enemy in front of me, she thought over the pain then.

“Rukia-chan!”

She turned her head to see Orihime running towards her, Tatsuki following behind.

“Orihime, Tatsuki, run away,” she called out, “Get Sado and Ichigo and run away from here.”

“No,” Orihime returned forcefully, reaching to help her up, totally ignoring the danger of the situation and her injuries, “I won't leave you here. We're friends aren't we?”

Friends!?

“And friends don't leave friends in danger,” Tatsuki finished from Orihime's side, “We may not be much help, but we're not letting you fight alone.”

“I don't want you to get injured, Rukia-chan,” Orihime stated then, “I don't want Tatsuki-chan to be injured either. I want us to be able to eat lunch again and study together…so…for that reason, I will protect you and Tatsuki-chan. I won't let them hurt you anymore.”

The second hollow chose that moment to fire a blast. They all saw it coming. Tatsuki, the faster to react then, used one hand to push Orihime out of the way before diving to the opposite direction, taking Rukia who had been closer to her, with her.

The fall slammed Orihime's shoulder into the ground but she didn't have time to think about just how much she hurt all over just then. As soon as that attack was fired, the hollow was setting to fire again, this time right at Tatsuki and Rukia. I won't let them, she thought pushing herself up and starting to move quickly to where the other girls were. I won't let them hurt my friends. I will protect them.

The blast closed in so much as she neared that she could feel the air on her arms singeing. Defensively, she slid in front of them and raised her arms out as if the bounce the blast back.

“I won't let you hurt them,” she screamed.

Unbeknownst to her, the two hairclips at her temples began to glow. A few seconds later, the heat disappeared and a bright yellow shield appeared in front of them, repelling the blast that would have surely killed them back into the hollow who had fired it.

Rukia was sure she had never seen anything like that but she didn't wait to ask or wonder about it. She seized her chance then and with the dust of the blast as her camouflage, raced forward and sliced through the unprepared hollow with the tentacles. As she turned back to see if the other were alright, the shield suddenly cracked and started breaking off. Orihime slumped forward and Tatsuki had to grab her quickly before she hit the ground.

“Are you guys alright?”

She nearly jumped at the question, releasing a small sigh when one of the boys in the class appeared round the corner- Ishida was his name if she recalled correctly-, struggling under the weight of a bloody unconscious Sado. As they came closer she noticed the small piece of dark armor on Sado's arm.

“We're okay,” Tatsuki returned in her silence, “You guys?”

“Could be better,” Ishida replied. “Did you guys see Kurosaki?”

Rukia felt her heart thump heavily. Ichigo….

“Kurosaki-kun is just fine,” a voice broke in then, “I will take you to see him but before that…it seems like we all need to talk.”

Several steps away, four pairs of eyes watched the group struggle off.

“Got anything useful?”

“Mmm,” came the reply.

“Can we go now then? The failure of these lower level animals is just pissing me off. Despite surrounding the humans, they proved so useless. They are a disgrace.”

“Why are you getting so worked up?” the other form asked, “They were noting but pets, prawns to be used to get the bigger fish. Our objective was to use them to get the information and we've done that. Our job is done, as is theirs.”

“Bloody animals,” the other spat, ignoring the previous comments, “I should have been out there.”

“Then no one would have been left alive. How would we get the information we need then?”

The first form sucked his teeth in response and started walking off.

“Information…that's all you care about,” he said, sticking his hands in his pocket.

“And fighting is all you care about,” the other responded drily as they both stepped into the dark and disappeared.

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“So you decided to come along?”

The dark-haired man turned as the boy's consciousness faded, to the presence across from him.

Dark eyes filled with mirth.

“Of course. Why should you have all the fun, old man?”