Bleach Fan Fiction ❯ Zanpaku-to? ❯ Super Hollows ( Chapter 58 )

The card game had taken too long. He was hungry and the position of the sun indicated it was after lunch. Frowning he followed some tame Shinigami to the room in which he'd eaten previously and wolfed down the food without really tasting it. Dumplings for lunch was fine and there were many varieties, but he doused it with sauce and swallowed after barely chewing each bite. The faster the meal was over, the sooner this was finished.

3 more challenges; then it was ended. Not soon enough. It seemed pointless to hope the last challenges would be short or uncomplicated, but the hope refused to die. He glowered at Kurotsuchi who was eating slowly and dissecting each item of food with his chopsticks before conveying it unhappily to his mouth. Separating the dumpling casing from its contents and eating each defeated the purpose of a dumpling. He didn't seem to really be noticing what he was doing and if Zaraki knew anything about the man, he appeared to be thinking deeply about something which concerned him. What could he be thinking about? Another way of winning which might have some small element of undetectable cheating?

The silent meal continued. Zaraki eating angrily, trying to calm his growing frustration with food, found it was sitting badly in his stomach. Sullenly he placed his chopsticks on their holder and pushed his bowl away, pouring out some of the hot tea. He sipped it slowly, feeling the warm liquid begin to soothe some of the irritation. Not enough as his thoughts continually returned to the events of the last few days which were not exactly calming. Once more he glared at Kurotsuchi, identifying him as the cause.

The man had stopped eating and had been staring at his bowl, moving the chopsticks haphazardly. Something seemed to catch his eye and instead he began to observe the teacup, a frown creasing the paint on his forehead. His eyes opened wider until he shut them quickly and his lips moved as if he were trying to calculate or remember some fact. When he opened his eyes again he gazed once more at the cup. Zaraki looked at his, seeing nothing more interesting the tea. The tea lurched in the cup. So? Did it matter?

The 12th Division Captain sat up straighter than before and raised his head quickly. "I must speak to Captain Yamamoto," Kurotsuchi suddenly told one of the servers. "Alone and urgently."

The server simply nodded and left the room swiftly without asking for a reason. It annoyed Zaraki that this man should be permitted to make any demands without question.

"Why?" Zaraki asked only to be met by a blank stare. "I asked why do you need to speak to Captain Yamamoto?" Zaraki persisted.

"I do not believe it to be any of your business, Captain Zaraki," the Clown Captain replied shortly. "We are not friends or even comrades. We may be sleeping in rooms which are next to each other and we have to spend too much time in each other's company at present, but these are the only things we have in common."

Zaraki harrumphed. "Aside from both being Captains and competing in these damned challenges we don't, but do you expect me to trust you? Why is it important to speak to the Old Man?"

"It is," the man paused and his eyes flickered to Zaraki and away. "It is a private matter."

The comment made Zaraki laugh. "Yeah. You love privacy, don't you? Privacy and secrets seem to be the things you really want to keep."

"Once again, I remind you this is none of your business and it is urgent." The man spoke with more authority than normal and for a brief second he felt a flicker of respect, but quashed the emotion very quickly. He was not going to feel respect for this man unless there was a good reason.

"If it affects the challenges, then it is my business."

The man stared at him blankly and then frowned. "The challenges? Why do you imagine it has anything to do with the challenges?"

Zaraki didn't bother to smother the sigh. The man was being obtuse. They were in the middle of something which would affect Kurotsuchi and influence whether he remained a Captain. The result of this might mean he was executed or returned to the Maggot's Nest, permanently, with no possible release. Surely the man hadn't lost sight of the importance of the events which were occurring.

"I imagine it's the challenges because you're losing." There. He'd said it aloud. Yes, Kurotsuchi was behind, at the moment and it felt good to say it aloud. Then he felt a little petty. It might be true, but the next challenge might change everything.

"Captain Zaraki," Zaraki blinked at being addressed in this manner by the 12th Division Captain. There must be something seriously wrong. "This matter is more widespread than the outcome of some piddling challenges."

The man had called the challenges piddling?

"The man's hiding something, Kenny boy."

Hearing the voice in his head made him twitch uncontrollably. Recent events had made him forget Atonomatsuri, or try to. Her recent silence had been welcome but now it seemed she was back in full form. Kenny boy. Urgh.

"Of course he's hiding something. Tell me something even a blind vulture wouldn't notice."

"Did you miss me Kenny?"

The vultures' voice sounded pleading and the question shocked him. Did she want him to miss her? The best way he could think of missing her was to try and stab someone and accidentally end up with his zan..... No he'd already tried that and was still avoiding any thoughts about how a Zanpakuto could stab the spirit which inhabited it. Metaphysics and souls were not his concern, except when he was reaping souls of killing Hollows.

The way he was thinking wasn't helping in any way. Each thought seemed to lead to an unfortunate memory or truth he was attempting to hide.

"Yeah, sure. Missed you." Anything else might prolong the conversation.

"You did? Honestly?" the bird sounded excited and pleased. It might have been a mistake to utter the insincere assurance, but he never could predict the outcome of any conversation with the bird. If he'd been rude, a fight was in the offing, if he agreed she seemed to become overly animated.

"Whatever. What do you think Captain Clown is hiding?" A quick change of subject might suffice, or not. Who knew how the bird would react to anything he said? She was as predictable as a terrorist attack.

"It could be anything, but it doesn't seem to be connected to the challenges. If you look at him, he actually seems to be agitated, like someone shook up an explosive experiment."

Her words seemed to strike a chord. Looking at the man it was quite clear he wasn't calm or even trying to appear that way. He fidgeted, his hands grasping at each other or clutching at the table. Observing his eyes, Zaraki noticed they were firmly fixed on the door, awaiting the arrival of a message from the Captain General.

"Yes. He seems to actually be sincere in wishing to talk to the Old Man." Scary to think of the creepy guy as sincere about anything, but was it possible to tell what drove him?

"So you did miss me?"

Returning to that topic? How insecure could a vulture be? Was it possible for a vulture to be insecure? Were there any psychologists specialising in the metal illnesses of vultures?

"Where were you?"

A smug tone suffused Atonomatsuri's voice. "Here and there. Up and down. In and out."

Always a straight answer when he talked to the bird. "That's clear."

"I was searching. There's something strange about the Seireitei I hadn't noticed before."

"You can leave me and look around? I thought you were tied to the Zanpakuto." If she was the spirit of the blade, how could she leave it and run around looking for things. Well, maybe run was the wrong word for how the bird travelled. She could walk, and fly (indifferently) but imagining her running was both amusing and disturbing.

"Now I have more freedom there are many things I can do. No thanks to you, Kenpachi."

At least it was a name he didn't mind, but of course she wasn't losing any opportunity to insult him. Same old Atonomatsuri, hinting at secrets while attempting to make him feel guilty. One day she might work out guilt was something he didn't feel unless he knew he'd made a mistake, but only if it concerned someone he actually respected or cared about. That basically confined the numbers to very few people and usually on Yachiru managed to make him feel anything close to guilt. Why he'd waste time getting emotional over the bird was a question he didn't bother thinking about. Emotions were no fun, fighting was.

"Fine, vulture. Keep your secrets. They don't interest me anyway."

A small and taunting giggle preceded her answer. "You will be interested soon. Very soon."

Since he'd met the bird he'd stifled more sighs than he'd given in a year. Was this true of every Shinigami's interaction with the spirit of their Zanpakuto or was he just extraordinarily lucky; not.

The First Division Assistant Captain entered quickly through the door and looked at Kurotsuchi with a small amount of disdain. "Why do you need to speak with Captain Yamamoto? Are you seeking a method of winning this by default."

A small, but definite tremor shook the building. It felt as if it had been struck from the outside and Zaraki looked at the ceiling, wondering if a large object had struck the building for some reason. Maybe there was an invasion from Hueco Mundo and this was the only warning they received. Reaching for his Zanpakuto he remembered it wasn't there. Damn it, he had the bird but not the blade. If only it was the other way, permanently.

All the same he stood. He'd grab someone else's weapon for the moment. There was little chance he'd forego a battle simply because his blade was elsewhere.

Kurotsuchi was already on his feet. "I need to talk to Yamamoto about that tremor, and some other matters. My incarceration and these challenges were sudden and didn't permit me any time to make alternate arrangements for some of the studies I was conducting."

"In other words, he was doing something wrong and hoped he'd finish with it before anyone found out," Atonomatsuri said with amusement. "Pretends at being in charge behind closed doors, has special secret experiments and who knows what else? I know what he'd hiding."

Zaraki was about to demand an explanation when an event prevented the question being asked.

"Your meaning is ambiguous. Speak clearly, man, if you have something important to say," Captain Yamamoto's voice drew everyone's attention.

The Clown Captain coughed in surprise and the swallowed. He coughed again and hastily picked up some of the cooling tea which he swallowed. "This is a private matter, Captain Yamamoto."

"Anything to do with your studies or experiments is of interest to us all, Captain, as we are often not informed of many of the advances discovered by your Division. Speak now so we can continue and finish this trial which will determine your innocence or guilt."

Kurotsuchi took a deep breath. "Captain, Commander, I must insist..."

"Insist all you like, but I won't be moved. If is it as important as you are implying, then it should be revealed as quickly as possible. You are wasting time."

"If he keeps this up, it might all be too late," Atonomatsuri joked to Zaraki who closed his eyes and stifled the groan that rose instinctively at her bad pun.

"Captain, I protest...'

"Insist and protest? it might be quicker if you say what you need to say and then I can determine the required action." The Old Man leant heavily on his stick and looked stern and unmoving. Zaraki knew, even if Kurotsuchi didn't that there was no point in further discussion. The facts must be presented quickly before anything unfortunate happened.

Kurotsuchi gulped and glanced around the room, then appeared to come to a decision. He moved until he was within whispering distance of the Captain General and began to speak softly and earnestly.

Zaraki frowned. He was very curious about the 'confession' which Kurotsuchi seemed to be making, but knew if he tried to move closer to overhear he might be told to leave. This was one occasion where he didn't want to be dismissed.

"Speak up, Captain. The little you've told me indicates you may not be able to handle this situation by yourself and it will require the voluntary assistance of strong and persistent fighters."

Zaraki's attention was even more completely focused now. A strong and persistent fighter was required, which was obviously him, and it might mean a fight against a worthy opponent. Someone who wouldn't fold and crack after a few minor assaults. The thought of a decent fight after all this fooling around in useless activities was definitely to his taste and might make up for some of the boredom he'd been experiencing.

Kurotsuchi fell silent and glared at his commanding officer. "They don't need to know..."

"Yes, they do need to know. When a mistake is made, it is better to correct it quickly rather than permit it to grow more serious. "

"A stitch in time saves nine," Atonomatsuri agreed in Zaraki's mind.

Without meaning to, Zaraki growled.

"See, even the Captain of 11th Division is becoming annoyed at your attempts to delay," Yamamoto said pointedly.

"The Captain is not celebrated for his patience," Kurotsuchi protested, his hands raised as if he were preparing to ward off a blow.

"Stop prevaricating and get on with it," the tone Yamamoto used indicated he was not prepared for anything less than a full and immediate explanation.

"As you know, I am a scientist," Kurotsuchi began, using a tactic to try to explain his actions were all to further knowledge, not for any other reason.

"I believe everyone here knows exactly who you are, Captain."

"My studies are many and varied. How can I expect any of you to understand the fascination of studying a creature until all the secrets are revealed."

Yamamoto thumped his cane on the floor loudly. "Get to the point, now."

"My experiments with Hollows are incomplete. I was trying to replicate the action of the Hogyoku with a rather strong Hollow and found the results were proving very enlightening."

Zaraki was dumbfounded at this disclosure. No one could be stupid enough to experiment with Hollows and something that made them evolve into a Super Hollow in the Seireitei. It was sheer insanity.

"This form of research is banned, even you must be aware of it," the Assistant Captain of 1st Division stammered, his normal cool apparently shattered by the revelation.

Atonomatsuri whistled, something Zaraki wasn't sure Vultures could do. "Dangerous. Dangerous silly man. 'He who brings himself into needless dangers dies the devil's martyr.' I wonder if I should change that to 'He who brings himself and others into needless danger dies the devil's martyr.'"

Zaraki ignored her and stared at the man. Yeah! A challenge. He might be fighting a Super Hollow sometime soon. Not an Arrancar or Espada of course. It'd have to be something less as he couldn't believe that Kurotsuchi's version of the Hogyoku might be nearly as strong as the one created by Urahara.

"Nothing should stand in the way of science," Kurotsuchi mumbled.

"Laws are created for valid reasons, Captain. In this case you have violated the sanctity of the Seireitei by your experiments and broken the most important rules which are in place precisely for the 12th Division. If I believed you were a threat previously, you have certainly proven that belief." Yamamoto's voice was harsh as he continued, "How many of these altered Hollows are there?"

Kurotsuchi glanced around the room as if seeking an exit. "Three," he quavered, "or possibly four."

Yamamoto ignored the gasps of disbelief and kept probing for answers. "And where exactly are they? Why did you neglect to mention them until now?"

"I had containment cells created deep underground with all my most advanced technology. I monitored it every day and there were many fail safes."

"Again why are you telling us this now?"

A gulp and cough preceded the answer. "I think the Hollows are getting too strong to be held. Over time the cell loses strength unless it is maintained and there is an increase in the seismic activity."

As if to support his statement the building shuddered again.

Yamamoto remained stock still while everything and everyone seemed to be affected by the sudden disruption. Zaraki grimly and determinedly forced himself to stay upright, but couldn't prevent himself from swaying with the force of the movement. Once everything was stable once more the Old Man spoke.

"I see there might be a problem. Captain Kurotsuchi we will attend to the problems created by your 'research' immediately. Once it is dealt with prepare yourself for an investigation."

Zaraki grimaced. Another investigation. If his bad luck continued he might end up with another set of challenges to meet in order to prove the man's guilt.

"This will be one of the challenges in the current course of judgement against you, Captain." The Old Man continued, "but as there are a possible 4 mutated Hollows, you will take additional forces with you."

He couldn't prevent his reaction. "Trying to deprive me of a decent fight, Captain?" Damn, if there were strong Hollows in the offing he wanted to fight all of them, not be allocated one, probably the weakest, and then hang around waiting for other people to catch up.

The Old Man raised a quizzical eyebrow. "How strong might these 'Hollows' be, Captain Kurotsuchi?"

The 12th Division Captain hesitated, obviously not wishing to answer the question. "They were proving quite strong, in fact I'd increased the confinement capabilities on the chambers before I was unfairly arrested."

Sasakibe bristled at the comment. "The arrest was in accordance with all the laws and regulations. "

Zaraki said, "How strong?"

Again a pause and his eyes quickly glanced at the people present. "I don't know."

Yamamoto nodded. "As we do not know the strength of the enemy we need to take additional precautions. Captain Kuchiki, Assistant Captain Abarai, Assistant Captain Kushajisi and Third Seat Madarame will accompany you. I will also permit your 12th Division subordinate Akon to accompany you, Captain Kurotsuchi."

Zaraki frowned angrily, unhappy with the news. He didn't mind if members of his team were involved and didn't care if Abarai came along, but why was he lumbered with the humourless flower petal noble? The man consistently refused to fight him, either ignoring him or simply gazing at him in disbelief. One glance at his superior officer indicated he was not receptive to discussion on the matter.

"You have 10 minutes to collect any items or weapons you require and will meet at 12th Division. You can gain access to the cells from there I trust?" The question was directed at Kurotsuchi.

The man shifted from one foot to the other and then shook his head. "No. I wanted it to be secret and I'm not willing to permit anyone other than myself to enter the precincts of my private research establishment."

Yamamoto breathed out heavily and lifted his staff in a threatening manner. For a moment Zaraki hoped he'd let it assume it's natural form but instead the Old Man held it out in the direction of the 12th Division Captain. "You dare to speak of will and permit? Meet with the others at 12 Division and escort them to your secret base. Any secrets you hold will be made public soon as you have proven you cannot be trusted."

"I protest..." Kurotsuchi began and then fell silent as if remembering how unsuccessful any of his previous protests had been.

"10 minutes, Captains. I will meet you at 12th Division."

As he walked out the door, it was with a strange sense of freedom. He was free of the challenges for a time, even thought this was an additional challenge. Free to be reunited with some of his friends and his blade. 10 minutes was not a lot of time, but what did he really need? He'd eaten and wasn't hungry or thirsty, he didn't rely on a lot of scientific crap to fight and wounds didn't worry him. All the same, it might be nice to return to his accommodation and see if anything had turned up.

Minutes later, Zaraki was in his bedroom, picking up his Zanpakuto, and deciding to check his hair. A look in the mirror showed that some of the bells required replacement and he worked on it for a few minutes until it met his standards. His clothes were clean, but he permitted himself the luxury of just lying on his bed.

"It's time Kenny. Why are you lollygagging?" Atonomatsuri was quick to remind him that the time was passed even though he had been mindful of the time.

"Don't get your feathers in a lather. I'm going," he replied as he reluctantly got to his feet.

Even a few minutes in a place where he didn't feel like an outsider restored him. People might think he was crazy and never felt discomfort or the need for peace, but sometimes it was good to be surrounded by a familiar place with items he'd collected over the years. Not that there was much because ownership of things didn't mean much to him, but the sight of a simple pebble Yachiru had given him when she was young brought a smile to his face. It was round and unremarkable, but she'd said something about how it was smooth and felt good to hold.

Arriving at 12th Division he realised he hadn't really noticed the walk. He'd been thinking, while blocking out the outraged comments from the bird who was correctly insisting that he was ignoring her, remembering parts of his life which made it worthwhile. The interesting fights, the jokes and laughter with his friends and companions, the coming of the Ryoka and the promises of future tough battles. The current situation would pass, it always. After it was over he'd resume his life and dedicate more time to training his men and honing his own skills. While he might be strong now, was there a problem with becoming even stronger, but there was no way he'd try Kendo again, or not while anyone was looking.

The challenges were depressing him.

It was the truth. They seemed pointless and futile. Why couldn't he do the normal thing and fight Kurotsuchi to the death and be done with it? It was the most sensible and quick solution to problem and then Yamamoto could stuff around pretending to search for new Captains to take up all the vacant seats. What was another empty seat here or there and Kurotsuchi seemed to be more interested in his own concerns rather than thinking about the wellbeing of Soul Society as a whole.

The man was nearly as much of a waste of space as Piecrust.

Zaraki briefly recalled the second of respect he'd felt for Kurotsuchi. Fortunately it had passed and no one knew, or had Atonomatsuri noticed.

Preferring not to think she had, he looked around and saw the others were waiting. Abarai was trying to talk to his Captain who was patently ignoring him as he looked into the distance. Why was the man such a colossal pain in the neck? He was a noble but that was only an accident of birth. His attitude made Zaraki hunger for the day of bloody revolution when all nobles would be put to the sword.

"So would you, Kenny if the downtrodden rose up and overpowered their oppressors. You're an oppressor as I can clearly show. Look at your treatment of me."

The bird once again made her case.

"For someone who is oppressed, you have a hell of a lot to say." Zaraki said as bluntly as possible.

"Come and see the injustice inherent in the system. Help. Help. I'm being oppressed!"

Confused, Zaraki looked around. Who was the bird talking to and why was she cackling with laughter. It made as much sense as any conversation he'd had with her, but once more he wished she wouldn't try to make jokes he didn't understand.

Kurotsuchi looked mulish as he stood next to Akon, whispering furiously. As usual his subordinate wore a carefully blank expression and he nodded in response to whatever the man was saying.

"Captain Unohana is not happy about this," Madarame told him as he appeared by his side.

He felt an accustomed weight as Yachiru jumped on his shoulder. "Lolly's only fussing. You won't get hurt because Ken-chan won't let you fight."

"Yeah. Good plan," Zaraki said.

If he fought everyone first then it would be over fast and he'd have all the fun. What could possibly go wrong?

----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Author's Note

Apologies for the misquote from "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" but I needed a laugh.

The reasons for the long, long delay? After I was held for ransom by the bunyips, I was taken in for questioning by the special fruit bat flying force who were not happy with my explanations. They in turn sent me for further questioning and evaluation by the jolly jumbucks who eventually released me into my own custody.

Fiction? Yes, but why tell the truth, which in this case is not even slightly amusing.

Please review.

MS