48 Roger Pirates
(3rd Person POV)
Roger and Toji stood opposite each other. Both had smiles on their faces. Roger could feel the power of this man in front of him, with his Kenbunshoku Haki. And he can also hear it ... he can hear a voice that seems to speak to Toji ... he didn't know what that was.
Roger's smile grew wider. He was excited about this. He had two rivals, Garp and Whitebeard. They both were his friends and he loved to fight with them. It got his blood boiling and made him feel free. That was the greatest feeling a man could have.
Roger unsheathed his cutlass, ACE. And Toji did the same with his Zanpakuto. He wanted to use his Zanpakuto's Shikai form for this fight because this wouldn't be a pure skill fight.
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"What an interesting sword you have there.", Roger said.
"As do you. Are you ready?", Toji asked.
"Always!", Roger says and then smiles.
Both activate their Haki at the same time and pressure each other. A massive wave of Haki emanates from them. The clash sends lighting into the area. Both of them prepare their swords and then ... attack at the same time.
*BOOM*
(Roger vs. Whitebeard Picture)
They clash with their full power ... well at least Roger does. The massive amounts of Haoshoku Haki that clashes send ripples through the area and make the clouds part. But this clash is not just a fight to see who is stronger, that doesn't matter at the stage these two are at right now.
They are living this moment to the fullest. They are checking their respective characters and understand each other. They are both very similar. Both strive for the ultimate treasure ... freedom. And they bond over this shared thirst. Roger's journey is different from Toji's. And their end will also be different. But this time right now ... they walk side by side and enjoy themselves.
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The fight didn't take as long as it could have. It wasn't about winning or losing. It was about friendship. The time they knew each other was very short, as not even 2 hours had passed. But when fighting, time seemingly slows down and two fighters can understand the other's heart. Just like Naruto and Sasuke did and many others too.
Roger wouldn't stand the slightest chance if Toji was serious. But Toji is not even serious when he is about to be crushed by the void of the entire Bleach universe, so why would he now? On the contrary, he enjoyed himself like he never could. These were his kind of people. Freedom ... that was what Toji or Gremmy always strived for since the day he was born.
"Join my crew!", Roger said after their first clash.
"I will."
"Rahahahahahaha" "Hahahahahaha"
Both laughed as they attacked again. And again and again. It was nice just to enjoy yourself and go all out with someone who could take it all. Your Haki grows stronger when you fight someone stronger than you. The more you fight, the stronger you get. And this was the best thing that could happen to Roger.
"Kamunsari!"
"Normal Series: Normal Slash."
*Fwooooom* (Sound of Haki lol)
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The island they fought on was destroyed. But it didn't matter since it was uninhabited. After the fight, the entire Roger pirates partied till sundown. It was an amazing atmosphere as everyone was happy and friendly.
"So, Toji. Tell us a bit about yourself. What do you do apart from looking for travelling and enjoying yourself?", Rayleigh asked him. The Vice-Captain was the one who had to make sure that the crew was safe, but if Roger gave someone a pass and asked them to join, then that was enough for him.
"I am what you would call a Shinigami. We protect the weak and make sure that the world doesn't fall out of balance.", Toji said.
"Oh, a Shinigami? Tell us more."
"Well, it is a corrupt system where those with power try to control everything in the world and to do that they create laws and kill those that have other ideas. Very similar to the World Government here."
"Rahahaha ... I can't imagine anyone telling you what to do Toji. That must have been a chaotic time."
"Haha, it is indeed. My sensei usually explodes with anger ... literally. He's the leader of the Shinigami and is already very old. But his power is still unmatched in the Gotei 13. He is a bit stiff and has gotten complacent but that might change soon. I usually go on these trips to enjoy myself and meet people like you guys."
"So you must be one of the leaders then? Do you have a lot of treasures?", Buggy asked Toji.
"Treasures? Hahaha, no not really. The only treasure I have is the bond I have with the few that I count as my friends. The rest didn't see me with much respect. I didn't show my strength for a few years and it made everyone forget why I was a Captain in the first place. But that is none of my concern."
"Indeed, why would you have to prove anything? The strong don't need to prove anything to those that are weaker.", Shanks said. The two boys were very fascinated by Toji and his strength. The fact that he could hold his own against their Captain was also impressive.
"You seem to have fixed values Shanks, what about you Buggy? What do you desire from your life?", Toji asked.
"I want to find the biggest and the most treasure there is!", Buggy said with conviction.
"Hahaha well, I guess you are already doing that."
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Toji didn't tell them that he was from a different world. But he was sure that Roger knew more than he let on. That voice of all things was powerful and he was interested to know what it told him about him. But it didn't matter. He came here by chance and would use the time to enjoy himself. Sooner or later he would return but that could wait. Ichigo had things handled on the other side anyway.
The crew took Toji in without a problem and he quickly got to appreciate the mentality of the Roger pirates. They weren't a cruel Pirate group and only wished for freedom. They were currently trying to find the One Piece but didn't know how to read the language that was used on the Poneglyphs. And Toji had no interest in translating it for them.
Oden could do that later on.
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- Back in the world of Bleach -
When Toji shot Ichigo and Unohana through the Garganta, they managed to get ejected out just in time before it broke and all three worlds shook. The fight temporarily stopped when they felt that.
"SENSEIIIIII!!!", Ichigo screamed.
"No!", Unohana said as well. She was in disbelief. She thought back to the moment it all happened and just saw Toji's smile. She couldn't believe that the man she had known for a thousand years, the one who had always been that powerful, had died. And that also with a smile. He was always like that ... that stupid smile. She hated it.
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(Aizen POV)
So the plan worked ... but not how I imagined. Who was the one that broke the Garganta? And how did this person have such power to do that? I can only think of someone, that might do something like that ...
But why would he care? Toji was their best chance to defeat me ... so why remove him like this? Was he that dangerous? Could it be ... he was planning on doing this for a while now? Did I still not understand how powerful Toji Fushiguro was ...? No ... I am sure that my plan was solid.
Well, if anything this will make it easier for me. I will just ask him myself.
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(Rangiku POV)
"To ... ji ... NO! No no no no No No NO NONONOOOOO! TOJIIIII-NIII-SAAAN!!", I scream and begin to cry. This is all Aizen's fault. This is all his fault! If he hadn't prepared for Toji, he would still be alive. Why did he have to save Ichigo and Captain Unohana?
"No, I don't believe it! ... Toji wouldn't die due to this. He is much stronger than you think!", I say with conviction.
"He will come back! ... I am sure of it."
" ... Please Toji ... come back ..."
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(Shunsui POV)
"Toji ... are you serious? That ... can't be right."
"I also don't believe it. I'm sure he will return.", Jushiro says, "Nothing is decided yet ..."
"You're right. What is it he always says ... It's over when he says that it's over."
I don't believe you would die like that, Toji. Everyone is misjudging ... normal conventions don't apply to Toji ... no convention does. You are just that different and I have glimpsed at your true power Toji ... You might not know that but ... I know about it. Katen Kyōkotsu told me ... she told me about what you two did and she was ... speechless.
I know what you are capable of... I mean truly capable. And as long as you put your mind to it, there is nothing you can't do. Literally.
"He'll come back ... I'm sure of it as well."
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(Yamamoto POV)
...
"Aizen ... "
...
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(Ichigo POV)
I failed ... I failed ... again. First Rukia, then Orihime, and now Toji ... the one who was honest with me and trained me. He was a monster during training but I could feel his goodwill. He wanted to make me stronger.
You showed me not to be afraid of my power and to use it without restraints. It is time that I use what you taught me to the fullest.
Aizen ... I will show you what I was taught and make you pay for messing with my friends and my sensei ...
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(3rd Person POV)
The reactions to the news that Toji had perished when the Garganta was destroyed hit a lot of the Shinigami hard. Some were his friends, others were the ones he raised and some ... just valued his strength which he briefly showed.
Yamamoto was one of those that was the most affected. Toji was like his own child. Similar to Shunsui and Jushiro. But Toji's happy-go-lucky attitude gave him a special place in the old man's heart. He never thought that Toji would ever succeed him, due to ... his situation. But if no one found out ... he thought that Toji could at least act as the protector the Shinigami didn't know they needed.
He was angry, to say the least, and Aizen would get to feel that.
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Yamamoto was not the only one who was angry though. Rangiku was very affected by this. She knew that Toji was powerful and trusted him, but she was not ready for this. The Espada Harribel was also surprised at the revelation that Toji had died. And it practically made the decision easy for her to switch sides and fight against Aizen.
The battle changed slightly after that. But Aizen had prepared for the Gotei 13 and them being angry with him didn't change anything. They still lost tragically. Yamamoto was unable to deal the finishing blow fast enough and the screaming child Arrancar managed to seal the flames of Ryujin Jakka.
What was different though was the fight between Gin and Ichigo.
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"It's been a while, Ichigo.", said Gin.
Ichigo was not in the mood to bother with this guy. He would rather fight against Aizen, but his father was having a go at the guy. So he had to wait and quickly deal with this one. The snake ... just like Gin said himself.
"This time, I won't be holding back.", Gin said.
"Do you remember the last time we fought?", Gin asked. Ichigo didn't answer him immediately. He wasn't even looking at Gin right now.
"I don't remember.", Ichigo said.
"Liar. Are you trying to taunt me?"
"Why would I do something that pointless? I'm not saying I don't remember your sword. I don't remember your heart. Whenever I face an opponent, I can tell what my opponent is thinking. It started out as just slightly and then after training with Toji, it got a lot stronger.
I can't read their minds, but I can tell why they're fighting, what they want from me, or whether they're looking down on me. After training with Toji, I got to the stage where I could feel my opponent's fears and hopes. The anger they felt, or their motivation ...
I used to be desperate during battle, which was why I usually only noticed it after the fight was over. But the stronger my opponents are the stronger their hearts are conveyed.", Ichigo said.
"You're quite the poet. How typical of someone that Toji chose to teach.", Gin said.
"Shut up. You on the other hand have none of that. Even when you were fighting me, you weren't looking at me. I don't know what you were looking at, though. At first, I thought it was Toji ... but that didn't make sense. I know that you don't see eye to eye with him, but it wasn't him."
"You know ... I thought you were an interesting kid, but you're actually kind of creepy.", Gin said.
"You're one to talk."
"I understand why Captain Aizen is interested in you."
