Bleach Fan Fiction ❯ Princess of Death ❯ Death's Birth ( Chapter 2 )

Date written: 25/03/09 - 27/03/09

Rewrote with Beta: 06/04/09

Posted on FanFiction: 07/04/09

Posted on MediaMiner: 12/06/09

I would again like to thank NocturnalFerri for a thorough job in betareading this chapter. Salamit uli po.

--- CHAPTER 2 ---

Death's Birth

Orihime walked towards Ichigo, swaying her hips as if she were some fashion model. When she got close him, she rested her right hand on his left cheek, and then softly caressed it with care.

“I—Inoue?” Ichigo couldn't help but blush at the contact. The Orihime he was seeing now was seductive, confident, and held such a different kind of air around her that you'd think she was actually Orihime's long lost twin. Or a separate personality.

“Yes, cutie?” Her chocolate brown eyes were half-closed, inviting him to come closer. Ichigo felt like he was being led into a dark tunnel where on each end would be this woman, rubbing his jaw like she was petting it to make him comfortable with her. And at the same time, he felt his energy drain from his body. When he noticed his predicament, the woman only smiled some more as she craned her neck a bit like she was being given a really good massage. “You're quite delicious, you know.”

Ichigo would've almost fallen into that abysmal place and succumbed to whatever power she had if not for Rukia's swiping at Orihime's hand. The woman lost contact with his skin as well as the supposed `spell' she must have put on him. It was the only explanation Ichigo can think of at the moment. Her sensual attempt in making him defenseless and the way she had sucked a bit of his reiatsu reminded Ichigo of succubi. If anything, a succubus was a definite word to describe the woman. She was not Inoue at all.

“Who are you?” Rukia asked the question Ichigo was about to ask.

The woman put her hands on her hips and plainly said, “I am Orihime Inoue, of course.”

“No,” Ichigo said evenly, “you're not Inoue.”

The woman smiled again at him, but without anything seductive behind it this time, as if the situation was amusing to her. “You are right and wrong at the same time, I guess,” she said, causing both to be on their guard while getting confused as well. “I am Orihime, but I am also not her, too.”

“Don't speak in riddles,” Rukia said. “We don't have the time or patience for it.”

“My, my, such spirit.” Orihime giggled, almost sounding like her normal self. “All right, I'll get right to the point.”

When she grabbed her katana, Ichigo tightened his grip on his own, readying himself for any sudden attacks the woman would launch their way. From the corner of his eye, he saw Rukia tense up as well.

“Do not worry,” Orihime said, “I will not do anything suspicious.” She presented the katana to them with its sheath still firmly in place. “I am only showing you this. Kuchiki-san, you do know what this is, right?”

Rukia peered closer to make sure. “A zanpakuto . . .? Impossible!”

“I assure you, Kuchiki-san, that it is real. I will even give you a demonstration.”

“A demonstration?”

When the words left Rukia's mouth, a mighty roar and a sudden spark of reiatsu alerted the two of the Hollow they had battled earlier. It came from above, falling freely with its mouth wide open as if to swallow them whole like an actual snake.

Ichigo would have swung his sword to protect all three of them, but Orihime did not give him the time to do so. Before either of the two could blink, Orihime flash-stepped towards the Hollow and sent a powerful blow to its left cheek with her sword's sheath. The Hollow was hurled away and fell to the ground, crashing into a small crater. Orihime stepped on air as if it was second nature to her, which prompted Ichigo to question how strong she was. It took him nearly four whole hours just to learn how to levitate but Orihime was standing tall and balanced like she was actually walking on solid ground and not just air.

He watched as Orihime disappeared again in a flash. He shifted his gaze to the Hollow rising from the crater down the street. Orihime appeared at the left side of the street near the wall; even from where he stood he could see that she was smiling in glee.

“Rukia, what's going on?” he asked.

“I don't know. But somehow . . . Inoue-san is now a shinigami.”

“But how's that possible?” He looked away from the battle to face the short woman with his glare. “Inoue is human. She never displayed any kind of power like this before. So how—”

“I do not know,” she interrupted; her tone was not to be taken lightly. She was damn serious now. “There had been a sudden rise in her reiatsu when she transformed. You felt it, too, right?”

He nodded.

“I don't know what exactly is going on but if we don't suppress her reiatsu, Soul Society may intervene.”

“What do you mean?”

“How else do you think I was able to track down a Hollow's location?” She crossed her arms, eyes narrowed at the deadlock between Orihime's sheath and the Hollow's teeth. “Hollow's create a sudden spark with their spirit energy. Hollow's are usually easy to detect due to that spark, and Soul Society will be warned of the Hollow's presence, so a shinigami is stationed to a district where they can disperse the situation with minimal damage in the human world. Now if there happened to be a tremendous rise in spirit energy in one particular place, a rise large enough to be proclaimed too difficult for one shinigami representative of the district to handle, what do you think Soul Society will do?”

“Send in reinforcements,” he answered with his eyes glued to the ground.

“Correct. Not only will they kill the Hollow, they'll question me about you and Orihime. And when Soul Society learns that not one but two human souls have become shinigami—one because a shinigami transferred her powers to a human, and another because of unknown causes—it would cause uproar there. And that's one thing I plan on avoiding.”

Rukia didn't say it, but Ichigo knew that whatever she did to him was considered illegal in that Soul Society place. She was safe for the time being as long as she stayed in the real world while he did her work for her. When she finally regained a bit of her power, she can return to Soul Society and his life as a normal—normal as he could be, that is—high school student. And no one up there would have to find out.

But Orihime may be another case entirely. Not only did she look and feel different from the Orihime he was accustomed to, she was fighting the Hollow without getting a scratch. He watched as the two pushed each other away from a deadlock and resumed attacking again, and she was still using only her sheath. Ichigo was certain that this seductive Orihime was only playing around. He wanted to step in, get the fighting to the next level and get rid of the Hollow as fast as possible. But something told him not to do anything. Just let things play out as they are and wait for things to be over.

Rukia opened her cell phone and checked some readings in it. “We have about three minutes before Soul Society brings in reinforcement. We need to defeat the Hollow and suppress Inoue-san's reiatsu within that limited time.”

“Easier said than done,” Ichigo said. Gripping the sword with stronger intent, he dashed towards the fight, fully ignoring the instincts that told him not to do anything.

But before he could come close to getting into a fight again (his wounds are still open, and he lost a lot of blood; it's a small wonder he can still stand without a hint of exhaustion), Orihime flash-stepped in front of him with her back facing him.

“Inoue—”

“Stop,” she interrupted. “I'll end this now, seeing that's what you want. Am I right?”

His grip on his zanpakuto loosened but he kept his eyes on the Hollow advancing towards them.

“ORIHIME!” it shouted. Enraged. Beaten. Desperate. Only eight feet away from its prey.

Orihime pushed the guard of her katana up with her thumb, unsheathing an inch of the blade hidden within the scabbard. When her right hand grabbed the hilt of the katana, there was a sudden flash of light, a flicker, and a faint change of the wind's direction. All of it occurred in less than two seconds but Ichigo didn't even see the blade come completely out of its sheath before it had done its job and Orihime sheathed it again. The damage was astounding, though.

The Hollow roared “ORIHIME!!!” one final time before its mask was completely destroyed.

As he and Orihime watched the Hollow of Orihime's brother disintegrate into the next life, Ichigo heard her whisper, “Have a safe trip, Onii-chan.”

The unmasked Hollow—no, it was just Sora now—replied, “Yeah. Itekimasu (I'm going).”

When Ichigo looked closer at Orihime, she was smiling happily as if a large weight had disappeared from her shoulders. She looked at him with tired eyes—gray, they're gray again—and said, “I'm glad you're safe, Kurosaki-kun.”

She passed out soon after.

Orihime groaned when a painful headache shot through her peaceful sleeping. She opened her eyes and saw two figures arguing a few paces away in hushed tones as if she was still asleep. Her mind took a second longer to recognize the two bickerers and connected the reason why they were in her apartment. As quick as lightning the memories went back into the forefront of her mind, and she was assaulted with another shot of pain in her head when she tried to sit up.

Her discomfort remained unnoticed by Ichigo and Rukia, who were arguing over things her mind can't really comprehend until her head's aching episode dissipated. But at least it gave her time to think on her own.

Ichigo and Rukia seemed all right, so that must mean that the monster (Hollow, she remembered the red kimono woman calling it) was gone. But how? She remembered accepting the kimono woman's offering of power and suddenly feeling her consciousness waning as if her energy was being drained out of her body. And after that . . . was nothing. She remembered seeing the image of a magnificent golden sword and her brother saying goodbye to her, but that was it. Nothing else came to mind.

But something had changed inside her; she was sure of it. Though she was sure she was back in her body, it felt different. It was like something dormant that was hidden within her had finally arisen, granting her a gift that was beyond human recognition. Orihime didn't know why but she felt like she made a pact with the Devil, condemning her soul to Hell once the payment was due, all for the sake of one person's life. But she didn't regret her decision. If anything, she'd do it again just for him.

Such dedication, child.

Orihime stifled a gasp. That voice . . .

Do not fret, child, this is only temporary. Soon I'll be consumed within the blade you possess and will only awaken once you shout out my name.

But I don't know your name, madam.

She heard her giggle inside her head. It was kind of weird, listening to someone else's voice laughing inside your mind.

You will, child. In time. In time, indeed.

I don't understand. What happened? Who are you, really? And . . . what's happening to me? What am I?

I can't answer that, child. I would be breaking the oath I made with Sora if I did.

You knew my brother?

. . .

Please tell me, what involvement do you have with my brother?!

. . . I have said too much. Ask your friends about what happened. I won't say anymore.

Why?! Why won't you tell me?!

. . .

WHY?!

. . .

Orihime felt a rush of energy inside her, engulfing her very soul before embedding itself into her very self. That red kimono woman was vague during their conversation about certain things but Orihime was certain that she could no longer communicate with the person until she figured out her name. But how would she know something like that? Recalling her first meeting, the woman said that she was not yet worthy to know her name. So all she needed to do was become worthy to call upon her again, right? That woman knew something about her brother (and possibly even why he became a Hollow) and she intended to find out what it was.

But first things first, she needed to wake up. Slowly opening her eyes again, she voluntarily groaned loudly to catch the attention of the bickering duo. Her plan worked and the two of them rushed to nurse her—well, Rukia did; Ichigo was just sitting Indian-style beside her with his arms crossed. Though he did have that bit of concern in his eyes, reserved only when he's quite concerned about something. Or to be more precise, someone.

Orihime inwardly blushed.

“Inoue-san, I'm glad you're awake,” Rukia said as she removed the wet cloth from the girl's forehead. “Excuse us for intruding your home on such short notice but we have more pressing matters to discuss.”

Orihime nodded, understanding what she was going on about. “What about Tatsuki-chan? Is she all right?” Rukia pointed to the futon next to her and she saw Tatsuki sleeping soundly under its blanket.

“Most of her wounds are healed, though she will experience some phantom pains when she wakes up. But she won't remember anything that happened tonight.”

“Eh? Why?”

“I modified her memories. There's a reason why what happened tonight is top secret.”

Orihime, being the very imaginative one, thought of a lot of things, and inadvertently unleashed one of her thinking-out-loud moments to the two. “Maybe Kuchiki-san is one of those MIB people who fight interdimensional monsters instead of aliens. Oh! And Kurosaki-kun must be a new recruit of the secret organization and this was his initiation. Because it didn't end well, and only Tatsuki-chan's memories had been modified—oooohh! It's just like the Men In Black!—that means that the organization is thinking of letting me join their ranks. Wow! That would be so cool . . .”

Rukia turned to Ichigo and said flatly, “Is she always like this?”

Ichigo nodded. “Yeah. Keigo once told me that she's like a more mature version of `Fuko Ibuki.'” He then added, “Don't ask me who that is because I don't really care about Keigo's opinions anyway. Most of them freakin' piss me off to no end.”

“What's with the euphoric look she has?” She eyed Orihime's red cheeks, dreamy-looking eyes, open-mouthed smile, and her head titled to the right.

“Who knows?” he said while shrugging his shoulders. “It'll pass, though.”

But Rukia didn't like to wait. “Inoue-san,” she called. “Inoue-san, please listen to what I have to say.”

Her words broke Orihime out of her reverie and she began to listen attentively to the raven-haired woman.

“Inoue-san, do you know what happened to you when the Hollow gotten a hold of you?”

Orihime shook her head negatively. “I blacked out when the Hollow broke the chain on my chest.” She rubbed a hand at the spot between her breasts where her chain of fate had once been. She didn't see Ichigo stare at her hands and . . . `assets' while she rubbed the former between the latter, however. But she did see him look away with a bit of a blush adorning his cheeks. “I only remember pain. Lots and lots of pain. I thought I was going to die.”

“You did die,” Rukia said callously.

“Rukia!” Ichigo exclaimed. “You should've told her more sensitively than that.”

“I don't like sugar-coating when the situation is dire, Ichigo. You should know that.”

Ichigo stared directly at Rukia as she showed him her unemotional eyes again. He wasn't backing down at all. “Even so,” he said, “this situation is not bad enough to just say out of the blue that Inoue died. Besides, if she is dead then shouldn't she be sent to Soul Society?”

“Are you really such an idiot that your mind didn't comprehend what transpired during the past hour?”

“Uh . . .”

“Do my big words burst your little brain, Ichigo no baka (Idiot Ichigo)?”

A vein popped on Ichigo's forehead. “W—why you . . .”

“Then let me spit it out for you. Orihime is now a shinigami.”

Ichigo quieted, but Orihime was more intrigued than confused at what Rukia said. “Eh? Me, a shinigami?” She pointed at her nose. “But—but how?”

“That, I do not know.” She then murmured, “First, a human that can see ghosts and took all of my powers. Now, a human has mysteriously turned into a shinigami. What's next? Hollows becoming shinigami?”

“Kuchiki-san?” interrupted Orihime.

“Yes?”

“What does a shinigami do exactly?”

Rukia smiled, which in turn made Ichigo grimace. “I'm glad you asked, Inoue-san,” Rukia said, positively beaming. Orihime saw her take a sketchbook out of nowhere and opened to a page filled with colorful drawings. “I've made this illustration especially for Ichigo but I think it's better suited for me to explain a shinigami's job with it to you.”

“Wow . . .” Orihime said in awe.

“Ugh . . .” Ichigo said in disgust. “What . . . the hell . . . are those?”

“Listen closely, Inoue-san, because the lesson is about to start,” Rukia said in her lecturing voice, ignoring Ichigo for the moment. When Orihime nodded her head with her full attention on Rukia, the lecturing began.

The picture in the sketchbook was not what you would call . . . a grand masterpiece; it was more like a scribbled version of something very grotesque and horrifying but very, very child-friendly. The Hollow illustrated in the page didn't look like anything like a Hollow, and if not for the word `Hollow' written under it, you would've thought it was a sick, cartoonish bear. The image of the Plus was just as bad except she used a rabbit instead of a bear. These two figures also had their own special backgrounds that may have been to signify their intent. The Hollow bear had a black background filled with yellow-colored lightning bolts drawn everywhere. The Plus rabbit had a white background filled with flowers and hearts adorning the corners, giving it a good and happy kind of side in contrast with the Hollow bear's `evil'-like kind of side.

Rukia went on to explain the very basics of what a shinigami does to Orihime. Ichigo just sat far away from the two girls, saying that he already knew that stuff and he might just be a distraction to Orihime during the lecture. Orihime, of course, denied that Ichigo was in any way a distraction but Rukia agreed with the substitute shinigami and allowed him to miss out on her lecture. Orihime saw him sigh in relief; she didn't question him about it even after the lecture.

“So,” Rukia finalized, “that's how it is. Do you understand, Inoue-san?”

Orihime nodded her head enthusiastically. “Yes, Kuchiki-san! Your illustrations were a great help.”

Rukia blushed a little. “Really?” She looked at Ichigo by the corner of her eyes. “Well, at least someone appreciates my artful illustrations.”

“More like childish doodles,” Ichigo muttered.

“What was that?!”

“I said your drawings resemble a child's doodles!”

“They're illustrations, not drawings! Can't you tell the difference, idiot!”

“I will if you draw something that is comprehensible for once!”

BASH!

“OW! What the hell?!”

“You want another one, Ichigo?”

“The hell's your problem?!”

“Kuchiki-san! Kurosaki-kun!” Orihime yelled, which prompted the two to shut up. “Please don't fight. Plus, you'll wake my neighbors.”

“It's okay, Inoue-san,” Rukia said. “While Ichigo is in spirit form, only spirit-sensitive humans can see and hear him. Besides, he's the only one shouting.”

“All right . . . but still, no fighting. It's forbidden inside this apartment.”

“Why?”

A sad expression formed on her face. She gave a meaningful but subtle look at her brother's altar. “I just don't like it when people fight.”

Rukia sighed and sat down cross-legged. “All right. We'll stop bickering for now. Do you have any questions about our lecture, Inoue-san?”

Orihime thought about it, and mentally listed the questions she wanted to ask. “Do spirits normally inhabit a shinigami's zanpakuto?” she asked as her first question.

“A spirit?” Rukia raised a brow. “Yes, a zanpakuto is created with its own spirit, usually matching the shinigami's self and personality. And if a shinigami were to learn his or her zanpakuto's name, they will achieve the released form of a zanpakuto called shikai (Initial release).”

“How do you learn a zanpakuto's name?”

“By communicating with it. And in time, the name of a zanpakuto will be known to a shinigami that's proven their worth to their blade.”

“Why haven't I heard of this shikai stuff before?” Ichigo asked.

“You didn't ask.” Vein popping on the scowling boy's forehead. “Besides, you're only borrowing my shinigami powers, so you have no shikai. The sword you possess is only a mirror copy of a true zanpakuto. Inoue-san's zanpakuto, however, is genuine.”

“How do you communicate with it?” Orihime questioned.

“I can't answer that,” Rukia replied. “Only you yourself can know how, Inoue-san.”

She nodded. “Can I ask be blunt with my next question, Kuchiki-san?”

“Go ahead.”

“Why am I a shinigami?”

“I can't answer that.”

“That's what the red kimono woman told me, and also she said you could answer my questions.”

“Red kimono woman?”

“Yes. She must have been the one who took control and fought Onii—” She paused. “. . . and fought the Hollow when I was sleeping.”

“What did she look like?”

“I didn't see her face; her back was to me and she was covering the upper half of her body with a red parasol.”

“Did she say anything?”

“She said that if I want to help Kurosaki-kun, I needed to accept her power. She called it my birthright.”

Rukia widened his eyes. “Your birthright? Power? Then that means . . . but she's human, it can't be . . .”

“Rukia,” Ichigo interjected her train of thought, “is there something you're not telling us?”

“It's only my speculation, but . . . it is impossible. But it would also make sense.”

“What do you mean, exactly?”

“The only reason I can think of as to why Inoue-san is now a shinigami is because she is a descendant of a shinigami.”

“What? A descendant?” Ichigo had a dumbfounded expression.

“But that's impossible!” Orihime exclaimed. “My parents and brother were normal human beings. And also, my brother didn't tell me anything about shinigami and spirits. He was perfectly normal and . . . and . . .”

“If it troubles you,” Rukia interjected, “then we should stop thinking about this. Let's just face the fact that Inoue-san is now a shinigami.”

Both Ichigo and Orihime nodded, and they entered silence inside the room. There was nothing to say, nothing to talk about. More so for Orihime because she was still accepting the fact that Ichigo was in her apartment, sitting cross-legged less than two feet away from where she was. She couldn't call this feeling uncomfortable but more like embarrassment. Seeing a person's bedroom and its overall appearance is a great way to understand, in a way, a person's character, and Orihime was worried that Ichigo may have already looked around her room. She had nothing to hide but just the thought of him looking around as if he was assessing her very soul made her feel a little self-conscious. Thankfully (or unfortunately), with their mission done, Ichigo and Rukia said that they needed to get back to Ichigo's home.

“See you at school tomorrow, Inoue,” Ichigo said as he and Rukia exited Orihime's apartment via the front door. When Ichigo asked why they didn't just use the hole in the wall, Rukia replied that that would have been rude.

“See you at school, Kurosaki-kun, Kuchiki-san.” Orihime waved goodbye as she saw the two of them off. Watching Ichigo carry Rukia on his back made her feel a little jealous but she banished the thought away quickly. There was nothing odd or insinuating about that. Ichigo just wanted to help Rukia get back home faster, so they can get to sleep earlier. That's right. They're only—

. . . wait a second.

“Kuchiki-san and Kurosaki-kun are living together?!!”

The seed of envy had been planted . . .

And soon . . . very soon . . . I will come back . . .

Chapter Afterword:

It's a common gesture in Japan where when you point at your nose, you're referring to yourself. Much like how Americans do an upwards waving motion like they're throwing something over their shoulder is a common gesture of “Come here” or “Over here.” Another bit of trivia is that Japanese wave downwards instead of upwards to signify “Come here/Over here.” If I remember correctly, an example of that, the wave gesture, can be found in one episode of Bleach (nearing Soul Society arc) where Yoruichi in cat form tries to get Ishida's attention during their first meeting.

`Fuko Ibuki' is a character in the visual novel (that also became an anime with two seasons) Clannad. She's a memorable character due to her saddening storyline and childish personality (she even refers to herself in the third-person). But in the reference in this chapter is due to her euphoric episodes. If you've seen Clannad then you'd definitely know what I mean when I say `Starfish Daydreaming.'