[Quincy Archer Hates You Arc] Part 39: Princess & Dragon PART.2 - Guardian Dragon

Chizuru and Orihime were more and more scared. The young woman with glasses for some reason couldn't let go of her friend's neck and the laughter of that Hollow that was next to the two was making Tatsuki more and more frustrated.

Tatsuki: "Orihime!!"

Hollow: "HyaH Hya Hya!! It's painful!? It hurts!? That's my ability. I don't like conflicts so I use these seeds. When the planted seeds branch out, I can control my victims' bodies."

As a proof of her power, the Hollow began to control Chizuru's left arm, causing the girl to deliver a strong punch to Orihime's face.

Upon seeing the scene, Tatsuki tried to get away from the Hollow once more but it turned out to be a useless action, as he always attacked her or positioned himself in her path.

Tatsuki: "Get out of my way!" - She screamed while advancing against the Hollow to attack him.

This time, the Hollow allowed the girl to hit him just to be able to attack at the same time, taking advantage of the fact that her wound had slowed her movements a little.

Tatsuki was already badly injured and yet her only concern was her friends.

Tatsuki: 'I'm pathetic…'

The girl's frustration only increased as she began to remember the past.

# Flashback #

A young Tatsuki was standing by the river bank. Beside her, there was a boy with orange hair and a very innocent expression. Both had some bruises on their faces, which for them at that time was something quite routine.

Ichigo was her best friend and they both trained karate together in the same dojo, however, Ichigo was a very innocent child and because of the color of his hair, he ended up drawing negative attention from other children and most of the time it ended with the children hitting Ichigo and Tatsuki rushing in to save him.

Tatsuki: "Hey, Ichigo. Is it true that you can see ghosts?"

Ichigo: "Huh? Of course not, Tatsuki-chan!"

Tatsuki: "That's what I thought. I knew those guys were lying. Mikami and the others always made a fuss about how you're looking at deserted places, talking to nobody and making up stories that you see ghosts."

Ichigo: "Ha ha!"

Both were laughing about it and went back to their lives. Despite having completely opposite personalities, Tatsuki and Ichigo were great friends, however, this friendship became increasingly distant after the death of Ichigo's mother, Masaki Kurosaki.

Tatsuki always wondered why Ichigo stopped going to the dojo and rarely talked to her. After the tomboy saw his friend wandering day and night on the riverbank, despite feeling distressed, she didn't know what to do so she preferred to stay away from the boy.

# Flashback-end #

Tatsuki: 'I didn't stay by his side when he needed it…'

The young woman dodged an attack from the Hollow.

Tatsuki: 'When I first met Orihime…she looked so much like him back then…I saw that as a second chance…'

The Hollow roared as he punched the tomboy, making her back away after defending herself.

Tatsuki: 'But why do I keep doing this…? Regret…? Because they are my friends? Because I want them to count on me…? I'm not sure...all I know...is that I don't want that to happen again!'

The image of her friends came to the young woman's mind as she charged the Hollow once more.

Meanwhile, the other Hollow was having fun watching Chizuru beat up Orihime.

Hollow: "Now! Let's get started!! It's been a long time since I've seen a pretty girl with skills like yours…be violently killed by her own classmates!!!"

After these words, several other Karakura school students started advancing towards Orihime. They all had a Hollow seed planted somewhere in their bodies.

Orihime: "…what…?"

All controlled students grabbed Orihime and started to beat the girl. Some students pulled her so violently that ended up tearing part of her uniform.

Suddenly, a huge explosion erupted from where Tatsuki was standing. The Hollow looked scared at the place while Orihime tried to get rid of her colleagues.

Hollow: "What the hell was that!?"

Tatsuki: "What do you think you're doing!?" - She shouted after appearing beside her friend, kicking away from the redhead all the students who were being controlled.

Hollow: "But how!? You should've died to the–"

The Hollow doesn't complete the sentence after seeing where Tatsuki was earlier. The Hollow that Tatsuki was fighting a few seconds ago was down. The creature's head was gone and its body soon fell apart.

Hollow: "She killed him!? Impossible…how could a girl have the power to do that!?" - The Hollow turned to look at Tatsuki.

The tomboy was bleeding from head to toe, with several cuts spread across her body and even so she was standing, however, now there seemed to be more physical changes in the girl.

Aside from the golden eyes with slit pupils, Tatsuki's teeth seemed sharper. The girl's hands had been covered in blue scales and her fingernails were longer.

Orihime: "Tatsuki-chan!!"

Tatsuki: "I'm fine, Orihime…don't worry."

The girl turned to face the Hollow.

Tatsuki: "Hey, ugly thing! You chose the wrong person to fight! Since a long time…I'm the one who beats the shit out of those who make Orihime cry! If you want someone to fight, come on!"