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In a large, forested area with hills of various height spread throughout, a small group of people dressed in ragged, peasant clothing from a time long before the modern age, enter their sole, poorly designed hut. Lying down on the cold, straw flooring, the men, women and children huddle for warmth, shivering in the cold, night air. This single home would one day become the bustling Karakura town, however not for a very long time.

As the exhausted peasants allow their long awaited slumber to overtake them, they fail to notice the loud roar of a starving beast. As well as the hurried footsteps of a panting child as he runs from the beast, the chain attached to his chest dangling like bait for the ravenous creature. "Help!" The boy screams, not stopping for a moment as the ground behind him gives way to the dark green feet of the house-sized creature chasing him. "Plea-!" A smaller figure, clad in red fur dashes in from the side, grabbing ahold of the boys' chain and yanking him away, slamming him into a nearby tree. The boy, his dirty, black hair falling over his terrified face drenched in tears freezes in fear at the sight before him, illuminated by the clear night sky. The creatures chasing him appeared to have multiplied. Monsters more terrifying than anything he could dream of. Each with their own sizes, shapes and colours, the only similarity between them all being the hole in their chests and he nightmarish masks on their faces.

The largest of the group of monsters proceeds to lick its lips as it ponders the ways it could bite into the boys' flesh. Time seems to slow down and the boy's eyes widen as the large creature reaches for the prone figure. Suddenly, the sound of steel rending flesh rings through the air, followed by a spray of blood dyeing the boy red and a scream of pure agony from the large monster as it reels back, holding onto its arm as the large cut in its palm continues to bleed. "Are you alright, kid?" A female voice; soothing yet rough. "Huh?" The snaps out of his daze and wipes his eyes clean of the red liquid, seeing a woman of average height with long black hair tied back and wearing a black shihakusho. Perhaps the most striking feature however, would be the katana in her hand. The blade reflecting the moonlight onto her face, revealing her fair skin, brown eyes and calming smile directed at him.

"Shiiiniiigaaammiii" the creatures begin a strange chant, their eyes now firmly focused on the black clothed woman in front of them. "Hey, boy. Can you move?" The woman's calm yet concerned voice barely reaches the boy's ears as an echoed whisper. The thin boy attempts to stand but fails to get even a centimetre off the ground before his shaking legs give out on him. The woman sighs, showing him a warm smile though her eyes betrayed her calm visage, revealing the fright within. "I'll protect you. Run when you can." She turns back to face the monsters as one of the smaller, more nimble creatures leaps at her.

She manages to block its' claws with her sword and push it away before slashing at another creature to her right, slicing through its' mask. The creature lets out a horrible wail as the mask splits in half and the monster's body turns to black particles as it vanishes from existence. As the night drones on, the creatures seem to have become more wary of the figure protecting their meal, attacking in groups to overpower their foe. By sunrise, the sheer amount of monsters appears to have dwindled considerably, though with every five monsters killed, three more seem to take their place, making the unfortunate situation take even longer. "Behind you!" The boy manages to shout, alerting the swordsman to the smaller creature leaping at her from the side.

She twists her body, slashing through the mid-section of the creature, killing it instantly as she barely reacts to another monster, blocking its' giant hand with the flat of her sword. A second later, the boy witnesses as an adult-sized, dark red hand pierces the woman through the side of her stomach. She coughs up blood before kneeing the creature in the face, cracking its' mask as a blue aura surrounds her. She pushes the large hand away and cuts down the smaller monster.

Wincing at the pain in her side, she subconsciously takes a step back, limping as she wipes the blood from her mouth, holding her wound with her unarmed hand. "Kid. I don't think I'm gonna make it...but I'll be damned if I let you be eaten by these things too." The boy has no time to react as the woman turns on her heel, sprinting towards the boy with the bottom of her swords' handle glowing a bright blue. Mere metres away from the boy, the woman with a calming smile is torn from the boys' vision, swept of her feet by a large arm, her sword falling at the boys' feet. "No!" Both he and the woman scream for different reasons.

With the woman firmly grasped within its' giant, pale blue hand, it squeezes. A gut-wrenching scream of agony reaches their ears. Terror for the boy and pure bliss for the creatures as they begin to laugh, turning their attention back to the boy as a snap echoes. "Let me have a piece!" "Don't hog! Don't hog!" "Gimme some!" The smaller creatures clamber around the larger beast, calling out in their distorted voices, hoping for even a nibble of the delicious treat. "Mine." The larger creature swipes his hand, bringing up dirt and rock as he slaps aside the smaller beasts, killing them.

The boys' eyes can barely see through a mixture of blood and tears, though he manages to glimpse the blade at his side, but his body still refuses to move. The creature tosses the woman's limp body into the air before swallowing it whole. Unable to look away, the boy witnesses everything. The laughing monsters, the crunch of the creature chewing on his saviour, the glint of the blade in the sunrise.

The boy lets out a loud, scared and defiant scream as his body moves on its own. The numb feeling of picking up the blade as he runs. Not away from the monsters. towards them. "Gihihihi" the high-pitched, distorted laughter is cut short as the smaller creature loses its' head. "What!?" Letting our an ear piercing battle cry, the boy continues his desperate assault, all the while his chain grows shorter. The monster that devoured the previous wielder, watches on from the back as the blade carves through its' kind. The screaming child is battered and bruised but continues his assault.

Eventually, by the time the sun has finished rising, the only two left on the scarred battlefield are the boy with the blade and the monster who devoured the swordsman. Feeling its' approach, the boy spins, slashing at the oncoming creature with everything he has, only to see his blade caught in the hand of the beast. The morning breeze blows past the silent encounter, as of pausing time for a moment, until the sound of laughter emanates from behind the creatures' mask. "Mine." With incredible strength, the monster strengthens his grip on the blade and flicks the boy away, slamming into the same tree where he once watched his saviours' death. Now he would be devoured by her killer.

For a moment, the monster seems infatuated by the blade, as though it were reminiscing about an old friend. Seeing this, he slowly attempts to stand, believing he could use this moment to get away. That is until the sword finds a home just below his chain. The boy lets out a roar of agony as the creature begins to slowly lift the cap like a can opener. A hole can be seen beneath the chained cap as the boy writhes in pain, screaming in terror and agony. Tears stream down the boys' face as his chain begins to react. Mouths form along the linked metal, devouring itself, making its' way towards the boy. The creature doing this, laughs, amused by its' new toy as it continues to open the hole in his chest. "Soon. You'll be like me. Won't that be fun." The creature speaks to itself more than the boy, musing to itself about the possibilities of turning the mindless monster the boy would become into a subordinate or, if that didn't work, he could simply devour him. He has taken the power of the Shinigami from earlier after all.

The creature's attention is brought back to reality by the renewed volume of the child's screaming. The deep, distorted laughter echoes throughout the forest as the child feebly attempts to grab the blade piercing his body. Blood drips from his palm as his grip tightens, the pain only pushing him to desperate levels. "Mine." The creature speaks once more as the chains reach their target at the same time as the hole in his chest is opened completely. The sword pierces the hole and the boy's screams cease as for a moment. Nothing happens. Until a black and white aura forms around the boy, expanding before encompassing both the boy and the monster in a ball of pure spiritual power. "What!?" The monster barely manages to get out a single word as the ball expands and contracts, imploding on itself. In their place, only a crater remains.