Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach or any songs/lyrics used in this story. Also I don't own any manga/anime used in this story. So basically, I don't own anything.
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EternalSilence
TwiliteTGRgrl
Krymsom
KittyKaiya
Okay, a little rant here. I've been using an online version of Bleach, but I have recently acquired the first volume of Bleach and there was a quote in there that I didn't notice before. I'll put in each chapter of Savior until I find another quote (because I might not ever come across another one ever again). So this is the first chapter with this quote in it (because I'm too lazy to go back and put it in the previous chapters).
Again this chapter contains more swearing than usual, some on Rukia's part. Is Ichigo already rubbing off on her?
I hope you all like
this chapter!Please review!
3. Head hittin'
"We fear that which we cannot see"
--Bleach vol. 1
I need a hero
I'm holding out for a hero 'til the morning light
He's gotta be sure
And it's gotta be soon
And he's gotta be larger than life
--Holding out for a hero by Frou Frou
Rukia's Journal
Ichigo agreed! I told you that he would! I had sent him out for training in the morning and first he groaned and moaned and complained. But after one kick to his face, he muttered a "Yeah, Yeah midget, I'm leaving…" and walked away with a baseball bat in hand. I don't really know when he's going to be back, but if I'm going to be here a while I should pick up on modern speech.
I walked to the nearest bookstore, but while I was walking I could only think of Ichigo. I wondered how his training was going. I wondered if anyone was giving the poor strawberry any trouble (though I bet he could handle it).
I haven't been in the real world for too long and still all of this has happened. First getting attacked by that Hollow, meeting Ichigo, and now he's helping me with the Hollows. I wonder if word has gotten back to Soul Society yet…
I walked into the bookstore and headed for the manga section. There were a couple of kids already in the aisles, but their noses were stuck into their books. There was one man standing there with rectangle-shaped glasses and mid-neck purple-blue hair. He was tall and lanky and had one hand stuffed in his pockets. He seemed as though he went to my school, because he was wearing the uniform. He pushed his glasses up to the bridge of his nose and then grabbed a book. He flipped through the pages.
I walked around him and grabbed a random book. I walked over to a nearby stool and sat down with my legs crossed. I turned to a random page and began to read.
"You asshole, how dare you kill him? Do you have no damn shame?" I cocked an eyebrow. What was this? Is this how people really talk here? I read the next talk bubble. "You damn idiot. I shall kill anyone that comes in my way. Get out my way!" I made a disgusted face at the book and got up and threw it back on the shelf.
I picked up another and read a couple of talk bubbles. Yes, this was better. I stood there and read some more out of the book before I went to the checkout counter. A lady with mid-back and bright green eyes stood behind the counter. She was really tall and skinny. She wore a white-collar shirt and the rest of the body was hidden behind the desk. I placed the book on the counter and took it and scanned it. She called out the amount and I paid her. I walked out of the bookstore with the manga in hand. I made it to the sidewalk and I began walking to the right. I flipped to the middle of the book and began to read.
"…I know sister…everything is hidden in this box, right…? In this jade box passed down by our mother…" I murmured as I read the pages. "Give me the box sister Marianne! Now!…No! We mustn't open the box! Francois! No!…" Wow this was getting interesting. I kept on reading, not bothering to look at where I was going.
"Hey! What are you doing?!" Someone yelled behind me and I screamed loudly and fell on the ground. My butt hit the cement and it began to hurt. I turned around to see who had caused me to fall down.
Ichigo…that butthole…
"Y-y-y-you fool! Don't surprise me! I'm…studying modern speech!" I yelled at him and he scratched his chin and looked at me with his eyebrow raised.
"Huh? Studying modern speech?" He asked and then paused for a second. His face became angry. "You're making me train while you relax and read a horror manga?!"
"You done with the training?" I asked ignoring his icy glare. He slung the baseball bat over his shoulder and smirked at me.
"Hitting the hundred pepper-filled balls? Yeah, I'm done." He replied proudly. "Breaking open a hundred pepper-filled balls…what kind of training is that?" He asked while I got up and began to brush myself off.
"You fool! The pepper-filled were the bad ones!" I yelled at him and he looked at me confused.
"…Bad balls?" He asked while scratching his head. He titled his to the side and blinked once.
"Yes!" Gosh, with him it's like in one ear and out the other. How many times must I repeat myself? Damn Strawberry…
"…" I blinked once.
"…" He blinked twice.
"…You just didn't…hit all of them…did you?" I asked.
"Yeah!" Ichigo said happily. I sighed angrily and rubbed my temples. We didn't say anything for a second…then all hell broke loose.
"You fool!" I yelled at the top of my lungs. "How many times do I have to tell you to only hit the balls that had a picture of a head on them?! What do you think the training is for!!??" People walking pass us stopped in their tracks and began to stare.
"I don't know what it's for! Plus How the hell can I make out which one of your pictures are heads and which aren't?!" He yelled back at me and one man with a black suit and blue tie broke into our fight.
"Hey, kids…go fight somewhere else." He said and put his top hat on over his black hair. People around us began to murmur amongst themselves.
"Sorry…" Ichigo mumbled and he grabbed my arm and started pulling me away.
"Couples these days…" I heard the man grumble and my face turned bright red. It's a good thing that Ichigo didn't hear what the man said…at least I hope he didn't.
Ichigo
I dragged Rukia along the sidewalk, ignoring her constant squirming. Damn midget, why does she always start the fights? It's not my fault that I couldn't tell her sucky pictures apart. God, she getting on my last nerve. I pulled into an empty lot with a small wooden picnic table and I let go of her arm. I sat on the seat while Rukia sat on top of it. She grabbed one of the baseballs out of my hand and stuck it in my face.
"Listen!" She yelled at me with her violet eyes on fire. "A Hollow's weakness is its head! If you slice the head, you can defeat it in one blow. This training is so that you can accurately hit the head in any situation." She tried to explain.
"Why the hell do I have to do that? I've been beating them so far." I said. I mean if I beat 'em I beat 'em. Why do I have to hit its head? As long as I win, it doesn't really matter does it? This stupid midget is making everything harder than it really is.
"You fool! Have you defeated a Hollow in one blow?" She asked and I shook my head once. She crossed her arms over her chest and continued to talk. "Sneaking up on a Hollow and defeating it in one hit is the basics of defeating them! It's miracle that you have remained unscratched so far from the way you've been fighting…" He voice on the last sentence sounded relieved, but with her, you can't be too sure.
"Uh…attacking from behind how can I fight so dirty like that?" I asked.
"Save that for the fights against humans. Your opponents are Hollows. The same rules don't apply! If you keep talking naively like that, you're going to die!" She yelled. How could I do that? Even if they aren't humans…that's just not right. I can't fight on terms like that.
"…But that's…." I began, but then I was cut off.
"Hello Kurosaki-kun!" Inoue's voice rang through my ears. I jumped and fell out of my seat and onto the ground.
"W-w-what are you doing here…I-I-Inoue?" I asked clearly shaken up. She smiled brightly at me and I got back up on my feet. She grabbed a leak out of her bag and showed it to me.
"Just doing a little shopping." She replied happily. "I bought bananas, onions, butter and gelatin." That sounded gross. What is she planning to make? No offense to her or anything, but I sure as hell wouldn't eat whatever she's planning to make. She stuffed her leak back into the bag and clasped her hand behind her back.
"What are you doing here Kurosaki-kun?" She asked and I scratched the back of my head.
"Oh? Me? Uh…I'm…" I stuttered looking for a liable excuse. What should I say? If I tell her I'm training, that would sound weird. All of a sudden, her face perked up with recognition.
"Kuchiki-San?" She asked surprised. Oh crap…
"Who the hell are you?" Rukia asked. God, this is freakin' hopeless.
"Idiot! That's Inoue! She's from our class!" I said trying to help her remember.
"Class?" Rukia asked and she walked up to Inoue. She pulled the end of her dress up to her knees. She bowed slightly and her voice now was laced with fake sweetness. (Sweetness she'll probably never have…) "Oh, Inoue-san. Honored to make your acquaintance." I see…so in front of my classmates, she intends to play that character…and I'm going along with it. Great, I feel as smart as a crayon now.
"Eh…yes…pleased to make your…?" Inoue sounded confused. Someone needs to teach that midget how to speak properly. I looked over at Inoue and noticed a small bandage wrapped around her arm.
"What's wrong with your arm?" I asked and eyes wandered to her bandaged arm. "Did you fall down?"
"Oh this? No! I was hit." She said happily. How could someone be happy that they got hit? Whoa…wait…did she just say she got hit?!
Rukia's Journal
"H..Hit? By a car?" Ichigo yelled and the girl smiled and nodded happily.
"Yeah! Last night I went out shopping to get a drink and bam. I've been getting hit a lot actually." She laughed and scratched the back of her head.
I cocked my head to the side. How could this girl be so happy that she got hit? And why does her face have a slight red tint to it? Why is Ichigo so concerned? Then it hit me like a wall of bricks. Ichigo likes this girl! She cares about her! Wow, he doesn't look like the type that can make the first move, but apparently he can. For some reason Ichigo and girlfriend just doesn't go together. I'm going to ask him later.
"You shouldn't be laughing," Ichigo said, "That's a serious accident, you should be angrier." By the way she looks, I don't think this girl…wait what was her name? Oh…yeah…Inoue. I don't think Inoue could get angry…ever…shouldn't Ichigo know this if she's his girlfriend? Stupid Strawberry doesn't pay attention to anyone, even his girlfriend!
"Well it's not like hey hit me on purpose." Inoue reasoned with Ichigo.
I wanted to say, 'It's not use Inoue, he's stubborn fool!' But I kept my mouth shut and instead I said, "You get hurt often Inoue-san?"
"More than often! It's almost everyday." Ichigo muttered to me.
"I zone out a lot so…." Inoue said.
"Then you shouldn't act like it's unavoidable!" Ichigo barked back. So, I guess she is an airhead. Great choice Ichigo! Great, now I'm being sarcastic in my mind. Something is very wr-. My train of thought stopped as I noticed the long black bruise on her leg…it reeked of Hollow. Did one attack Inoue?
"…That mark on your leg…can I see it?" I asked quietly and Inoue's attention went from Ichigo to me.
"Oh this? Sure, go ahead." She replied and I crouched down and began to examine her leg. Oh no…this definitely a Hollow's mark. One has touched this girl. Maybe the Hollow is after her, in that case I must tell Ichigo soon. I wouldn't want him to loose his girlfriend.
"Kuchiki-san? What's with the scary face?" Inoue asked me and I immediately dropped the face and replaced it with my façade.
"I was just thinking of how painful it looks!" I lied.
"Wow, you're right!" Inoue exclaimed. "My legs much more than my leg!" Ichigo eyes widened and she began yelling at her again.
"Have you gone numb from the pain?! Go to a doctor?!" He nagged and Inoue began to blush. "…Why does that make you blush?" Ichigo asked and scratched the back of his head in confusion. I guess she really is his girlfriend by the way he's acting. Inoue looked at her watch and she gasped.
"Oh! It's late!" She said and Ichigo crossed his arms.
"In a rush?" He asked her.
"Yeah! Laugh hour is almost on!" Inoue said as she dashed up away.
"Want me to walk you home?!" Ichigo yelled and I crossed my arms and looked away. I let out an angry sigh. Why couldn't he just say bye? What's with all the 'Want me to walk you home darling?' Ugh…I sound jealous don't I? I'm not jealous of Ichigo and Inoue. Nope, I am NOT jealous. Not jealous at all.
"Wh..what? N…No, I'm fine!" Inoue called back. I looked back at her and I saw that she had begun to blush.
"Ok, see you tomorrow!" Ichigo called back and she nodded.
"Yeah, tomorrow!" Inoue said and began to walk away. I turned back around so that my back was facing Ichigo.
"…That Inoue girl…" I mumbled.
"Hm?" He questioned.
"Are you two close?" I asked hesitantly. Maybe I don't really want to know if they're boyfriend and girlfriend.
"Not really. Well…I guess so." Ichigo said. "She was best friends with someone who lived in my neighborhood since eighth grade."
"And family?" I asked honestly curious now.
"She had an older brother…" Ichigo said looking up to the sky.
"Had?"
"Yeah, he died three years ago."
Ichigo
"I remember because I opened the door…" I began as I pulled the memory out. "I was just about to leave for school. The doorbell rang before we opened. A girl came in carrying her brother on her back. When my dad asked what happened they girl said that it was a car accident. He was covered in blood."
I could still see the blood pouring out of his back and chest. I don't think I've ever seen so much blood. "We didn't have enough equipment to save him, he died while we were arranging his transfer to a big hospital. I found out recently that the girl was her."
"What's with all the questions? Are you worried about her?" I asked Rukia with my arms crossed across my chest. She flipped her hair and let out a "Pft."
"No. I'm not worried." She replied. We stood in silence until she began to speak softly. "Is…Inoue your girlfriend?" My girlfriend? Is she crazy? Hell no! I'm sorry but I don't think I would ever go out with Inoue! No no no no no no no no NEVER!
"W-what? No! Hell no! What gave you that idea?" I asked in shock. Really, where does this midget get all of this?
"Nothing, I was just curious on why you were so concerned about her." Rukia replied.
"She's my friend! That's why the hell I'm concerned!" I yelled at her and Rukia didn't even flinch. She just stood there quiet and calm. Rukia shrugged and turned away.
"What the hell?" I asked as she began to walk away.
"Let's go home." Rukia said. Damn, she's always acting so superior!
'Oh, I'm Rukia!' I began to imitate her in my mind using the best snobby girly voice my mind could make up. 'I'm so much better than you Ichigo, because I'm a shinigami! So, ha! Why don't you bow down to my great awesomeness? Don't forget to polish my shoes while you're down there carrot top!' Urgh…I hate her.
"Oh yeah? Where you always leave to?" I asked trying to find out some more information about her.
"Does my personal life interest you Ichigo?" She asked sweetly and began batting her eyelashes mockingly.
"I-I'm not interested in that!" I lied. She's always so mysterious. I bet if I asked her favorite color she'd probably say, 'I can't answer that, it's too personal!'
"Then don't ask!" She said with her back facing me. Da-Damn it! That midget! "Later!" She yelled and began to walk away.
-------------
"Ichi-nii!" I heard Yuzu calling me. "Have you seen my dress?" I walked upstairs only to see her head stuck in my doorway.
"Hey! Don't open without knocking!" I said angrily. She muttered something under breath and I walked up the last couple of steps.
"Oh! You took a bath! I wanted to come in too!" Yuzu said and pouted a little.
"Are you stupid?" I asked. "You're in fifth grade now, learn to go by yourself already." When Yuzu was small, I'd help her take a bath, 'cause she was too small. But, I mean she's older now, shouldn't get used to the fact that I can't give her bath anymore?
"Ichi-nii, you've become so mean since you started high school." Yuzu mumbled.
"No I have not!" I countered. "And I don't know anything about your dress." I muttered.
"What? I'm also missing a pair of pajamas!" Yuzu wailed.
"I don't know about that either!" Damn, why does she think I know where all her stuff is? I bet Karin threw it out as a joke or something. "Why do you think I know the answers to everything?" I asked and Yuzu pouted and walked back down stairs.
I walked into my room and threw my towel onto my bed. I heard a beeping sound nearby. Who calls at this time of night? Or maybe Yuzu and Karin are playing video games. The noise lasted for about one more second before it stopped. Hm…the noise is gone…weird.
"ICHIGO!" someone yelled and a jumped up in surprise and turned around. Rukia sat inside my closet with Yuzu's pajamas on. Her eyes had a sense of urgency in them and she sat like a cat ready to attack.
"Y-y-y-y-y-you! How long have you been here?! Aren't those Yuzu's pajamas?" I asked in surprise.
"Forget about that!" She snapped at me. "It's an order!"
"Order? Meaning a Hollow's going to appear?" I asked confused. She nodded once and climbed out of my closet. Her tiny feet made a 'thunk' sound as she stepped onto the hard light brown wood floor.
"The time and place are both…now and here!" She yelled and everything happened so fast that if I blinked, I would have missed it. Rukia hit my forehead, causing my shinigami form to come out in one direction and my body to go another direction. Then a huge hand came up under my bed and ripped my pillow in half. Jeez, Rukia has some fast reflexes.
The Hollow began to climb out of the wall and onto my bed. It crawled slowly as it made its way to the back of the room. Meanwhile, Rukia and I were still in mid air flying towards the south wall of my room.
"Go for the head!" She yelled at me and I grunted.
"I know!" I yelled back. I pulled out my Zanpakutou and sliced its head. The fraction of its mask came off and it revealed a part of its face. I've seen that face before…
"Not deep enough." Rukia muttered. The Hollow let out a pained scream and ran back into the wall and disappeared. Rukia and I landed back onto the floor and she began to pant and so did I. "…He got away…" Rukia said under her breath.
"We're going after him!" I said and began to run.
"Wait!" Rukia yelled loudly and I stopped mid-run and looked back at her.
"What's going on?" I asked and hung my and focused on the wood planks beneath me. "That was Inoue's brother…" I looked back up Rukia who now stared intently in front of her.
"I told you that sneaking up from behind it and killing it in once one hit was basics against killing a Hollow. That's to protect against being hurt, but there's one more important reason." Rukia looked up straight into my eyes. Her violet orbs captured mine and I just couldn't look away.
"To avoid seeing the Hollow's identity. Because all Hollows are the souls of former humans…"
Another chapter done, sorry it took so long to get out.
My grandmother died and so I haven't really had much time to write, so please forgive me.
Um…I don't think I have anything to explain, but if you have questions, please feel free to ask me!
Reviews only take a couple of seconds, but if you do review, it'll mean a whole day of happiness for me. So please please please please review!