Chapter 8

It was unbelievable, such a far-off notion that he was not the last one. This woman, with her back straight, and gaze so nonchalantly ignorant of the approaching danger of the hollow chasing after her, was beginning to frustrate him. Could she not feel how dense the hollow's spiritual pressure was? He had never faced a hollow so strong, and yet it continued to linger in the distance. What was its aim, its goal? Why pursue the woman?

He glanced at his fellow Quincy. Older, more refined, and obliviously waving around her bow as if it was a child's new plaything. Already he could feel a migraine coming.

"Stop that," Ishida hissed. "Bows are to be treated with respe—hey! Are you even listening to me!"

No, no she wasn't, Ishida quickly realized as she tentatively began poking her bow with her free hand.

He sighed, and turned his attention back at the hollow. For whatever reason, it wasn't approaching, but that wasn't enough for him to let his guard down. He considered calling out, to stop this farce, but he was smarter than that. The hollow was strong, too strong for even him. It was a miracle that it hadn't even attacked yet. A temporary respite? Or did it enjoy toying with its prey?

His eyes darted across the clearing, noting the best paths of escape: Down the creek, or through the opening in the woods. He held no notions of being able to defeat that hollow alone, he was still too weak.

At times like these, you can rely on the Shinigami.

He growled as his Grandfather's words crossed his mind. There was no way he would stoop so low, not when they were the cause of his Grandfather's death.

"I'm going to need you to run," he whispered. A tilted head was his response. O for crying out loud, this woman! "Hurry and run, or maybe just go hide!" He finally shouted, absolutely sure he had managed to get his message through her thick skull.

She did neither. Smiling condescendingly down on him, like a mother would her naughty child, she just patted his head. Did she not understand the danger she was in? Or did she not even know she was being pursued?

"Stop that," he batted the woman's hand away and pointed a finger at her face. "You need to take this more seriously!"

She patted his head again with that same goddamn smile as if he were the one in need of a reality check. He had had enough. Moving away from the woman's grasp, he quickly noticed one thing.

She was following him.

His frustration was building again, and he could feel it in the rush of blood in his head. That, or the twitch on his left brow. He sighed, at least now he'd found a way to draw her away from the hollow, albeit, he would have to lead.

However, before he could take even another step forward, he paused as the clearing lit up in blue light.

He turned around to stare at the source, and gaped. That was impossible. How could she possibly make an arrow that large!

The woman had an arrow knocked on her bow, her eyes staring at it in sheer wonder. She moved it around, enjoying how it left small traces of spirit particles in its wake, and it looked utterly ridicules.

How much spiritual pressure did she have?

Suddenly it clicked, the reason why the hollow was pursuing her, and why it hadn't attacked yet. It was wary of her power, but at the same time, craved her power. Humans with high spiritual pressure always attracted hollows, but her case was simply absurd.

No wonder the hollow wanted her.

And based on the way the woman marveled at her bow, it must have been her first time materializing it. He pinched the bridge of his nose, realizing how lucky the woman had been. The hollow must have seen her materialize her bow and had become apprehensive. The sheer size of the arrow she produced did not dissuade that fa—wait?!

"Don't point it at me!" He yelled quickly. "The sky, damn it, point it at the sky!"

She blinked, before following his instructions. Moments later, she let the arrow loose as the strain on her drawing hand grew too large.

Ishida covered his eyes as the shockwave from the subsequent explosion uprooted the nearest trees and left behind a dense gathering of spirit energy in the air. Damn it, any Shinigami or hollow could have sensed that shot for miles. They had to get moving. Still…

It wasn't fair, he thought, staring at the sheer power behind the shot. He had been training for years and yet he could not boast of such power. It was why he could freely fire into the air without worry of too much detection.

He shook his head to remove it of such thoughts. If he wanted to get stronger, it would only mean to train harder.

His gaze shifted out towards the forest, looking for the hollow, but it was gone. There was no trace of its reiatsu that he could detect. Was it scared away by the explosion. Impossible, it was several classes stronger than the average hollow. One blast shouldn't have been enough.

It was at that point that a black cat strolled into the clearing, pausing as its eyes fell over the woman who stared right back. The woman waved, but the cat didn't move, its eyes trained intently on the woman.

Ishida waved to get the woman's attention, but apparently, the cat was of higher priority than him. Enough was enough. No more cats, and no more random materialization of bows. The hollow had left, and for all he knew, this was only a temporary respite. They needed to move. Grabbing the Woman's hand, he dragged her along. The cat's gaze not once leaving the woman's as they left the clearing.

Where could he take her? His father's place was out of the question, and he felt a tad resentful at his father for abandoning his duty as a Quincy. Then where?

Getting irritated, he soon came up with an idea. He had a second training ground beside a waterfall in the local park. There was nothing special about the area, but its water did have the ability to mask reiatsu. The story goes, that it had used to be a spiritual site where shrine maiden would go to cleanse themselves of impurities before any ritual.

He nodded, his head. It could work so long as she stayed near the area.

Letting go of her arm, Ishida motioned for the woman to follow him. It was then that he came to realization. He didn't even know the woman's name. And it was at the same moment that he realized something very important when the woman moved her mouth.

She couldn't speak.

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Nel stood tense in front of Pesche and Dondochakka. Although the Shinigami had guided them here, it was hard to restrain the natural animosity she felt towards him and his kind. Even more so when she couldn't exactly get a reading on his reiatsu levels. What if he was a danger to Pesche and Dondochakka? She would have treated him differently if he had at least dissuaded her of such notions, but all he had done was smile cryptically.

"A Shinigami?" The King of Hollows asked.

Nel clicked her tongue, crossed her arms, and stared begrudgingly at Shirou before nodding.

Shirou turned a contemplative gaze on the Shinigami. He brought Nel here, and he couldn't sense any ill intentions in the man. He might as well hear him out. "What's your aim?"

"Such a fine domain," The Shinigami spoke instead of answering. "There's a distinction in the hierarchy of power. The weak grow, and the strong grow stronger through these swords of reishi scattered around everywhere, but," the Shinigami smiled coolly. "You yourself created them and gain nothing through consuming them, remaining stagnant."

Nel's eyes widened. She had assumed that the numerous swords in the King's domain were a naturally occurring phenomenon that the King himself partook in. How long had the Shinigami been watching to know such a thing?

Shirou remained silent as the Shinigami continued speaking.

"Do you not wish for more power?"

"No," was Shirou's response. "I have the power to protect, and that's all that I need."

His response rendered the Shinigami silent as it had most of the other Vasto Lordes. What kind of hollow doesn't wish for more power?

The Shinigami sighed. "Is that so?" He spoke. "Then what will you do when a time comes when that power is not enough?"

Shirou didn't answer, and the Shinigami took the opportunity to smile cordially.

"Do you know what's been happening within the Soul Society?" The Shinigami once again changed the flow of the conversation.

Again, Shirou had no answer.

The Shinigami crossed his arms behind his back before pacing.

"You see, we Shinigami in the Soul Society have been at an impasse for several centuries," It was the decision of whether or not to send Shinigami into Heuco Mundo to ascertain the presence of ancient relics left behind by the Soul King. "That is until this Holy ground was discovered by a small squad of Shinigami sent after much debate." Most being wiped out, and the rest, trapped within the Menos forest.

"Holy ground?" Shirou asked, his brow creasing.

The Shinigami didn't elaborate further, dropping the matter entirely before he simply began to peer across the vast dunes of Hueco Mundo.

Nel's eyes narrowed on the Shinigami. In a way, she understood what the Shinigami was doing. He had done it to her after all: The constant changing of topic, and the constant use of probing questions. It had served to throw her off, made her curious enough to avoid confrontation and ask her own questions. It was also how the Shinigami wedeled himself into helping them. He was definitely a cunning man.

She huffed and decided to watch how things proceeded.

"Have you ever wondered what separates a Shinigami from a hollow?" The Shinigami asked after a short moment. "Hollow, or Shinigami, both are souls that have gained power through their own machinations." The Shinigami paused and stared at the King of Hollows. "Do you understand why you and the other Vasto Lordes resemble us Shinigami so closely at a hollow's strongest form? Why you all evolve from beast to human? It's because we are drawn to each others power."

The Shinigami drew his sword, but made no motions to attack with it. "This is a Zanpakuto, a Shinigami's main weapon to combat you hollows. Each Zanpakuto is a reflection of said Shinigami's power and soul, and are unique in that in them exists a sentient being."

Call on us, King. We are here.

Shirou perked up in surprise. Voices, he heard them. He was sure.

"I suppose that grabbed your attention." The Shinigami stated. "Most Hollows consider a Zanpakuto to be a simple weapon, but we Shinigami believe otherwise. Take my sword for example,"

The Shinigami brandished his sword with one arm. "Its name is Kyoka Suigetsu."

Shirou already knew that from the moment he laid eyes on the blade. It was a true representation of the Shinigami's soul, but there was still something he was missing about it, its power, and for that, he needed to understand its wielder.

Analyzing the recorded histo-

"I'm not that easy, hollow." A woman spoke. He could see her floating, her image vague and obscured by dark shadows. "I'm not so crass of a woman to chase after another man; let alone someone who hasn't earned the right."

Shirou winced from the sudden pain in his head as the image of the women disappeared, and another reappeared in a word full of blades. He blinked, and he was once again staring at only the Shinigami.

The Shinigami smirked to himself as he moved his sword to his right hand. "It's a simple water type Zanpakuto, however-" The Shinigami swung it down in a wide arc, and Nel, Pesche, and Dondochakka's eyes widened. "-With my spiritual pressure, it becomes a dangerous weapon."

Shirou raised a brow in confusion when nothing happened. The Shinigami had simply swung his sword.

"Hurry and move!" Nel suddenly called in warning.

From what?

Nel grabbed Pesche and Dondochakka, and jumped atop a large rock spire, leaving him behind.

"I'm surprised," the Shinigami spoke. "That you were able to notice my bluff without even flinching."

You didn't do anything though, Shirou reasoned in his head. But regardless, he wanted to get to the point of the matter. "Why did you come here?"

Brushing back his hair, the Shinigami made to grab something from his Haori, but frowned and reconsidered.

The Shinigami sheathed his sword. "A simple test," he said, a grin plastering itself over his face. "That, and to make your acquaintance." With this simple meeting, he had laid out the first of his plans. With the two rulers of Hueco Mundo under his illusions, there would be no hollow willing to oppose him when he finally sets everything in motion. For now, he needed to return and make a report for the Soul Society.

He turned to leave, but froze upon hearing a single question.

"Earlier," The king of Hollows began. "What purpose did it serve to just swing your sword?" The King of Hollows scratched at his head. "You called it a bluff, but you didn't even move from your position."

A gentle wind blew past, and the Shinigami glanced at his sword with the barest hints of surprise before blanking, and then promptly shifting his gaze towards Nel and her group.

Observations completed, the Shinigami slowly turned to face Shirou, his smile strained.

What the fuck?