(no subject)
And the last thing for tonight..
Title: The Unknown
Author: Cayt
Pairing: Kira Izuru/ Hinamori Momo
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Interlude. In the time between Aizen’s betrayal and the Winter War, Ichigo and his friends are not the only ones healing, growing, and moving on.
Disclaimer: Bleach and all characters therein belong to Tite Kubo, the creator, not me. I’m just a poor college student… I have nothing of value, really!
~*~
Part One
~*~
“Hinamori, watch it!” A voice snapped, and she whirled to deflect a blow from the Hollow’s tentacle just in time. Her feet slid through the dirt as the force behind the blow thrust her backwards, though she was gone before the Hollow’s next tentacle lashed out. She nodded toward the owner of the voice briefly, still focused on the target.
Steadying Tobiume in front of herself, Momo whispered the familiar incantation under her breath before thrusting her other palm toward the Hollow, power rushing up and out easily. Her voice carried clearly as she snapped, “Sōren sōkatsui*!”
There was one last unearthly howl as the Hollow was destroyed, leaving Momo to lower her zanpakutō. It had been a long time since they had been in direct combat, and it felt almost like coming home; Tobiume obviously agreed, her satisfaction humming in the back of Momo’s mind. Sheathing her blade, she allowed her fingertips to wistfully brush against the guard before glancing up to her observers.
In the last few weeks, she had been working relentlessly to regain her strength back. She had finally been allowed to return to her squad after her hospitalization, and it actually felt more like she’d been released from imprisonment. As friendly and helpful as the Fourth Division was, she was far from stupid; it wasn’t hard to sense the watchful eyes and the guarded, stilted nature of their conversation. The only thing worse than being watched constantly, however, was the underlying pity in their gaze. It stung, knowing that things would never be the same, and that they wouldn’t stop looking at her like that for quite some time.
She was still in a daze when she had finally returned to the Fifth Division; everything looked the same on the surface, but nothing was ever going to be the same again. It only took a few hours to realize that she was just as alone here as she had been in the hospital ward. Despite the numbers of acquaintances and Fourth Division officers stopping by to chat with her, she was still alone. Everyone else was preparing for war; everyone else believed that Aizen-taichou was the enemy, shooting still more pitying looks her way when they thought she wasn’t looking.
Now, however, she returned to the side of her observers, face grim with determination as officers from the First, Second, and Fourth Divisions studied her closely. She cast her eyes to the ground as they watched her, fighting the urge to tremble under the weight of their stares-after all, this wasn’t just a judgment of her skill, but of whether or not they thought she should retain her position as fukutaichou just yet.
“Hinamori-fukutaichou, well done,” a voice finally said, and she looked up, startled. “We’ll return to the Seireitei now.”
Momo nodded respectfully. Without further delay, they returned through the Senkaimon; her observers wasted no time once back in Soul Society, leaving her alone on the training fields they had departed from earlier. After a moment, she turned back in the direction of her division; while her training was done for now, there was still plenty of work to be done. Without Aizen-taichou, it fell to her to keep the division functioning. She had to take care of the paperwork, assign missions, and supervise… none of it was new to her, but Aizen had always been there to help alleviate the worst of it-he had always been so kind that way…
Shaking her head slightly, Momo bit her lip as she shoved those thoughts away. She couldn’t afford to think like that. It was a betrayal to the rest of her squad, to keep thinking of Aizen as if he were coming back… a betrayal to Soul Society, a betrayal to her friends… but wasn’t it a betrayal to him, too, to keep pushing Aizen-taichou from her thoughts like this?
Frowning, Hinamori continued her path back toward her Division, lost in thought. Night was beginning to fall over the Seireitei, elongating the shadows on the ground and painting the white buildings in shades of creamy peach and deep violet. Mindlessly, she continued through the familiar streets, though she didn’t take any of the shortcuts she knew by heart. The extra time allowed her more space to herself, with the added benefit of being able to avoid the constant pitying stares that she seemed to attract lately.
“Momo!” A sudden voice cut into her thoughts, jolting the young woman from her semi-daze. She jumped as a familiar figure landed in front of her, a faint smile on his face.
“K-Kira-kun,” she stammered, eyes wide for a moment before she smiled shakily. “What are you doing here?”
“You’re by the Third Division training grounds,” he said softly, amused. “I’m supposed to be here… so, I think the question is, what are you doing over here?” He was rewarded when her smile became firmer, more honest and real, something he hadn’t seen in a long time.
“Oh, I was just out for a walk,” Momo replied, relaxing. It had been quite a while since she had had the chance to catch up with Izuru; they had both been put in charge of their respective divisions, taking up the slack that had left behind in the wake of their captains, making it hard to have time to meet up with others outside of their own squad. He had somehow made time to stop in and visit her, however, while she was in the Fourth Division. It made up for the gaping hole left by recent events in a minor way, especially when she realized that Tōshirō wouldn’t be able to visit her. She understood that he was needed in the real world for the time being, but his absence was just another reminder of everything that had happened; after all, whenever she was wounded before, he had always stopped by, even if it was only to tease her into a better mood.
“At this hour?” Izuru asked, glancing at her curiously. She nodded slightly, then shifted as he remembered. “Oh. The observations?”
“Yes,” she replied, taking a small step forward. Kira followed without comment, something she was grateful for. It was always nice to see Kira or Abarai Renji when she could, though admittedly that was getting more and more difficult. “Today was the last session… I should hear the results in the next couple of days, don’t you think?”
“Or sooner,” he commented, frowning. “Since we’re still getting ready for the war, they’ll want to have everything in order as soon as possible. You’ll probably hear tomorrow, Momo.”
“You’re right,” Momo responded, thinking for a moment, then smiled sheepishly. She shouldn’t have needed the reminder… it was all anyone talked about anymore, and she knew that she still needed to attend to the training of her squad to prepare them. Since she had been so busy lately, however, it had made it hard to train them and pay attention to her own re-training.
They walked in silence for a few moments, at a slow enough pace to observe the setting sun. It was reassuring, to be able to walk with Izuru without feeling pressured to talk… the forced, stilted conversations that everyone else felt obligated to have with her were, while polite and sometimes pleasant enough, still enough to wear her down. Aside from turning them away, however, there was really no way to avoid them without appearing rude or hurting feelings; all they wanted was to make sure she was okay…
Kira, however, was different. They had known each other for long enough now that there was no need for constant conversation between them. Whenever Renji was there, completing the group, the atmosphere changed; the redhead had always been bolder and louder, creating a warmth of loud, friendly conversation that was hard to resist. Despite their positions within different divisions, it was still nice to meet up with the other two, and in some ways, it sometimes felt like nothing had changed. When it was just her and Kira, though, it was still nice, a comfortable quiet time.
It wasn’t long before they reached the outer limits of the Fifth Division, and wordlessly Momo paused before entering the gates, looking up at Kira and smiling once more.
“It was good to see you again, Kira-kun,” she admitted, and he offered a trace of a smile in return.
“Same here,” he said, then shrugged slightly with one shoulder. “You’re starting the training with your division tomorrow, right?”
“Yes,” Momo said, nodding. “They’ve already been working, but tomorrow I start training with them again. I hope they’ve been working hard…” Kira nodded, a distant look in his eyes for a brief second before it disappeared.
“We all have,” he murmured, then glanced at her once more. “When you’re done, if you want more training, feel free to stop by the Third’s training fields.”
“Thanks, Kira-kun,” she replied, smiling brightly. “I’ll try to stop by, okay?” He nodded in response, watching as Momo finally turned and retreated into the yards of her division, before heading out himself.
~*~
The next day found Momo wiping the sweat from her brow as she straightened from her half-crouch, surveying the ranks of shinigami before her. They had been training hard for a few hours now, some practicing better swordsmanship, some practicing their kidō techniques, and others practicing other techniques. They were doing well, though some of the newer members of the division looked as if they were ready to drop from exhaustion-these were the ones that were going to need the most work, she thought grimly.
Then again, she wasn’t all that far from the edge of exhaustion herself. All of the recent excursions to the real world to dispatch Hollows and to the training grounds for examinations were enough to wear anyone down…
But maybe that was the point, she thought, disappointed. She only allowed the thought to linger for a moment, however, before chasing it away. No. I won’t think that way!
Blinking, Momo glanced over the shinigami before her once more before signaling them to a halt.
“That’s enough for today!” She called, raising her voice to carry across the yard. “We’ll pick this up tomorrow-don’t be late!”
The yard cleared relatively quickly, though her sharp eye caught more than a few of her members limping or carrying themselves stiffly-but strangely enough, no one was complaining. She frowned slightly; how hard had they been training while she was busy? It didn’t look as if this was the first time they had been pushed this far…
“Welcome back, Hinamori-fukutaichou,” more than a few murmured on their way past, and she was surprised to note the pleased looks in their expressions. She mumbled responses automatically, unaware of exactly what she was saying.
“Wow, looks like they’re glad to have you back, huh?” A wry voice commented, and Momo whirled, startled. In her surprise, however, she ran face first into a wall of black, freezing before pulling back.
“Kira-kun!” She exclaimed, eyes wide. “When did you get here?”
“A few minutes ago,” Izuru replied, eyes watching the exit of the last few shinigami. “I thought you’d have been done training earlier than this.”
“They wanted to keep going,” Momo replied, frowning slightly as she glanced across the empty training fields wistfully. “Everyone’s really working hard…”
“They have good reason,” he commented, earning a confused look from the slighter lieutenant. “We all need to prove ourselves again.”
“Y-yeah,” she said, stuttering slightly at the reminder. Silence fell, jaggedly awkward, lasting for only a moment before she drew herself up, forcing her voice not to waver. “Are all the other divisions training as hard as this?”
“Pretty hard, yeah,” Kira said, rolling his eyes up to focus on the sky for a brief second. “Eleventh Division’s pretty much destroyed their training grounds, so they started using Twelfth… Kurotsuchi-taichou wasn’t pleased.”
“Wow, I wouldn’t want to be near that area,” Momo said, grateful that the awkwardness was blown away so easily, like so many grains of sand in the wind. “So have you heard from Abarai-kun lately? I know he went to the human realm with Hitsugaya-taichou, but I haven’t had the chance to contact him…”
“They’re keeping plenty busy over there,” he replied, frowning. “Activity between Hueco Mundo has increased drastically-”
“Because the war’s coming,” Hinamori murmured, voice suddenly deadened. Izuru turned to face her, concern showing clearly, but the girl appeared not to see him any longer, her eyes instead focused on something distant. “We’re going to have to fight against Aizen-taichou…”
“No,” Kira said firmly, frown becoming more pronounced. “Aizen and the others are no longer captains, Hinamori-fukutaichou. They are traitors.”
“Aizen…” she whispered, eyes still glazed and different. Kira stared for a long moment, unsure. Hinamori had been fine only a moment before, but one absent mention of the war still caused her to shut down, he noted. She couldn’t afford to have a relapse now; she had just finished her observation period and proven herself, but if she showed any signs of not being up to the task of facing her old captain, command would have no qualms about detaining her once more. As it stood, there were those within the ranks of the Gotei that still believed that she posed a risk-that she would continue to follow her former captain blindly. For a brief second, Kira’s own steady belief in her wavered, before resolving once more. He had known the girl for decades now; despite her blind devotion to the traitor Aizen, she was, above all, kind-hearted and a firm believer in what was right.
He opened his mouth to say something, only to be startled as Momo’s eyes suddenly cleared, her stance straightening as she blinked, then blushed.
“O-oh, Izuru,” she stammered, unable to meet his concerned gaze. “Sorry! I guess I just got distracted, huh?”
“Momo-” he started, then paused, unsure of what to say. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?”
The girl looked at the ground, falling silent for a moment. A faint breeze stirred the air, disturbing the silence with the whispers of clothing and hair. The sounds of other shinigami close by were carried over the wall, though the expectant silence made the close reiatsu seem veiled, distant.
“No,” she whispered, sounding almost ashamed. “But I have to be. Aizen’s never coming back, and the division needs a leader, someone to help them get ready… I can’t be weak now! I can’t let them all down again!”
“Hey, you’ve never-”
“Yes, I have!” Momo cut him off, her voice growing teary. “You think I don’t hear them, Kira-kun? They all think I’m weak because I believed in him! They all think I’m weak because I let them down! When they needed me, I was… I wasn’t here.”
“Hinamori-” Kira tried again, only to be cut off once more. This time, however, it wasn’t by another outburst from Momo, but an explosion from the wall to the left. The solid wall crumbled with a groan and a cloud of thick dust, though thankfully no debris was sent flying.
“Murakami, you moron! Now look what you did!”
“I told you I couldn’t do that stupid kidō, but you never listen! This one is totally your fault!”
“Hinamori? Are you okay?” Kira asked, turning away from the argument over the wall. She nodded, a faint smile on her face as she sighed-whether from exasperation or from relief at the interruption, he wasn’t quite sure.
“I’m fine, Izuru,” she replied, glancing up at him. “I should probably go check on that…”
“I know,” he shrugged, one corner of his mouth twitching up in a smile. “We’ll train together another time.”
She nodded, though he could sense that her attention had already drifted to the situation at hand. He took his leave with a nod, leaving her to sigh once more, this time in resignation, before flash-stepping across the wreckage of the training grounds’ west wall, coming to a rest in front of two younger shinigami, both of whom froze at her appearance.
“Hinamori-fukutaichou!” They both said, eyes wide in horror. “S-sorry, ma’am!”
“What happened?” She asked incredulously, staring at the smoking ruins of the wall in something like vague amazement. “We’re done training for today, remember?”
~*~
Kira didn’t bother to turn on the lights in his office upon his return. Instead, he usually preferred the faint shadows cast by the sunlit windows to the artificial light. Ichimaru had always hated his methods, insisting that the lights be kept on even when the sun was the brightest. Knowing him, of course, he had done it just to get on Kira’s nerves... Pacing over to the desk, he spared the day’s paperwork a cursory glance before settling into the chair.
Seeing Momo so distant and distracted had disturbed him, more deeply than he had thought at first. He knew that the wounds from Aizen’s betrayal ran deep, deeper than the physical wounds that had almost killed her, though he still worried. Would Hinamori ever truly recover? It had always been easy to tell that she was close to her captain, making the betrayal that much more painful to her; despite the fact that Kira and Hisagi Shūhei had also been betrayed by their captains, admittedly neither had been quite as close to their captain as she had, taking away some of the intense pain.
Even if Momo fully recovered, however, there were still plenty of questions that remained-questions voices in whispers between friends, never loud enough to be concrete, but yet still frequent enough to spread dissention and even condemnation amongst the Divisions.
Had Hinamori-fukutaichou really recovered, or was she just pretending? Was she going to follow her beloved captain, even now? And what about Kira-fukutaichou and Hisagi-fukutaichou? Surely they must have at least suspected their captains of something! After all, they were some of the brightest and most admired of the lieutenants… they had to have known something! Kira widely ignored the rumors and whispers. He knew he had been used, and he knew that the important people-such as the remaining captains of the Gotei 13, the current lieutenants, and some of the older shinigami in the Division-also knew that he was innocent, a victim of Gin and Aizen’s manipulation. What the others thought didn’t really matter to him; he had more pressing matters to worry about beyond correcting everyone’s assumptions.
With the war coming up and Ichimaru gone, all of the work had fallen to him. That, in itself, was no big deal; instead, the difficulty came from training with his squad. Izuru had worked hard to establish himself once more within his Division after everything that had happened. Amidst the doubts circulating, he also had to deal with the fact that he wasn’t exactly an ideal leader, especially for a disgraced, discouraged squad. Nothing about Kira screamed “leader,” a fact that had raised further doubts in the already-shaky ranks; he was quiet, somewhat depressing, and largely kept to himself.
Hisagi Shūhei, however, had had no problem establishing his authority within the Ninth Division-after all, one didn’t just become lieutenant of the Gotei 13 with a winning smile and a good sense of humor. As acting captain, he knew where he stood, and the members of his Division followed him without question. Sometimes, Kira wished he possessed that same confidence, that same presence, and yet… it wasn’t him. Hisagi-sempai was someone he admired, but if Kira were to change his methods now, it would only incur more doubt. No, instead, he had to continue as he always had… though there was questioning within his ranks, he knew that there was no doubt about his ability. He may not inspire hope and happiness in his subordinates, but that did not make him weak.
Despite Kira’s self-assurance, the problem appeared most clearly during their training sessions. While the shinigami worked to hone their skills, it became apparent that, though they were determined to succeed and prove themselves, there was no… real confidence to be found, only a grim determination.
Fighting, and the prospect of the upcoming war, provided more than enough reason to be grim. War only brought misery and despair to all involved, whether they were involved directly or even indirectly. Constant fighting brought pain and destruction, shattering any hope and peace in the area. While sometimes war was necessary in order to obtain peace, the knowledge that a large scale war was looming ever closer didn’t ease Kira’s mind at all.
This, however, was one war that would be unavoidable for all involved.
~*~
It was early in the morning, early enough that the only people moving about in the gray pre-dawn light were the assigned guards-and even they were moving slowly and sluggishly. The patrols lingered briefly at the edges of the Fifth Division, curious of the figure out so early, yet disappearing once more as soon as they realized who it was.
Despite the faint morning mist lingering in the pale gray air, Momo was wide awake. She had slept well last night, though she had inexplicably woken far earlier than needed. Unable to return to sleep, she had instead risen and gone back to the training grounds, taking advantage of their empty state at this hour.
Aware of the occasional observing gaze, Momo worked her way through a set of exercises, stretching and preparing to train for a while. To the outsiders, her face was calm and composed, her beautiful eyes serious, lit by an inner determination. After stretching, she unsheathed Tobiume, progressing smoothly into an intricate dance. Tobiume’s blade glinted faintly in the early morning light, cutting easily through the still air as Momo’s body fell into a familiar rhythm and pattern.
Extend, block, turn, block, shift, strike, follow through, crescent sweep, duck... There was no sound in the yard save for the soft scuff of her sandals in the dirt or the sound of her shihakusho ruffling slightly as she moved. The air parted with increasing sound as Hinamori sped the routine up, adding more steps as she went.
Her breathing remained steady, evidence of accustomed endurance, though she could feel her adrenaline beginning to rise. The rush of energy felt good, filling her up with a confidence and peace that she hadn’t felt in a long time.
As she let her body settle into the routine, Momo felt Tobiume’s calm satisfaction in the back of her mind, reassuring in the same manner as the warm sun on her cheeks in summer. It was easy to connect with her zanpakutō on a deeper level, adding a new degree of comfort to the already-relaxing routine. Things were finally getting back on track… for the longest time, even when simply warming up, Tobiume’s concern for her had always lingered on the back of Momo’s mind, hindering her ability to connect fully with her zanpakutō-and reducing her effectiveness.
Welcome back, Hinamori-kun, Tobiume whispered, and the lieutenant let a small smile grace her lips as she drew to a smooth stop. Her blade was held in front of her, as if poised at an enemy’s throat, her body balanced and positioned just right to allow her to either escape or pursue her line of attack as needed, and she nodded to herself before straightening and lowering Tobiume.
It has been a while, hasn’t it? She asked silently, receiving a light bubble of happiness in the back of her awareness as a means of reply. Pleased, she carefully sheathed Tobiume once more, aware of the eyes lingering on her once more. Turning, she nodded to the patrol team, who nodded sharply in response before disappearing-a small sign of normalcy. She knew these men, had nodded to them before in the early dawn hours…
Maybe there was a way to fix things after all.
~*~
* Sōren sōkatsui translates to “Twin Lotus Blue Fire, Crash Down,” which is hadō 73-also the same as 33, only doubled.
~*~
Title: The Unknown
Author: Cayt
Pairing: Kira Izuru/ Hinamori Momo
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Interlude. In the time between Aizen’s betrayal and the Winter War, Ichigo and his friends are not the only ones healing, growing, and moving on.
Disclaimer: Bleach and all characters therein belong to Tite Kubo, the creator, not me. I’m just a poor college student… I have nothing of value, really!
~*~
Part One
~*~
“Hinamori, watch it!” A voice snapped, and she whirled to deflect a blow from the Hollow’s tentacle just in time. Her feet slid through the dirt as the force behind the blow thrust her backwards, though she was gone before the Hollow’s next tentacle lashed out. She nodded toward the owner of the voice briefly, still focused on the target.
Steadying Tobiume in front of herself, Momo whispered the familiar incantation under her breath before thrusting her other palm toward the Hollow, power rushing up and out easily. Her voice carried clearly as she snapped, “Sōren sōkatsui*!”
There was one last unearthly howl as the Hollow was destroyed, leaving Momo to lower her zanpakutō. It had been a long time since they had been in direct combat, and it felt almost like coming home; Tobiume obviously agreed, her satisfaction humming in the back of Momo’s mind. Sheathing her blade, she allowed her fingertips to wistfully brush against the guard before glancing up to her observers.
In the last few weeks, she had been working relentlessly to regain her strength back. She had finally been allowed to return to her squad after her hospitalization, and it actually felt more like she’d been released from imprisonment. As friendly and helpful as the Fourth Division was, she was far from stupid; it wasn’t hard to sense the watchful eyes and the guarded, stilted nature of their conversation. The only thing worse than being watched constantly, however, was the underlying pity in their gaze. It stung, knowing that things would never be the same, and that they wouldn’t stop looking at her like that for quite some time.
She was still in a daze when she had finally returned to the Fifth Division; everything looked the same on the surface, but nothing was ever going to be the same again. It only took a few hours to realize that she was just as alone here as she had been in the hospital ward. Despite the numbers of acquaintances and Fourth Division officers stopping by to chat with her, she was still alone. Everyone else was preparing for war; everyone else believed that Aizen-taichou was the enemy, shooting still more pitying looks her way when they thought she wasn’t looking.
Now, however, she returned to the side of her observers, face grim with determination as officers from the First, Second, and Fourth Divisions studied her closely. She cast her eyes to the ground as they watched her, fighting the urge to tremble under the weight of their stares-after all, this wasn’t just a judgment of her skill, but of whether or not they thought she should retain her position as fukutaichou just yet.
“Hinamori-fukutaichou, well done,” a voice finally said, and she looked up, startled. “We’ll return to the Seireitei now.”
Momo nodded respectfully. Without further delay, they returned through the Senkaimon; her observers wasted no time once back in Soul Society, leaving her alone on the training fields they had departed from earlier. After a moment, she turned back in the direction of her division; while her training was done for now, there was still plenty of work to be done. Without Aizen-taichou, it fell to her to keep the division functioning. She had to take care of the paperwork, assign missions, and supervise… none of it was new to her, but Aizen had always been there to help alleviate the worst of it-he had always been so kind that way…
Shaking her head slightly, Momo bit her lip as she shoved those thoughts away. She couldn’t afford to think like that. It was a betrayal to the rest of her squad, to keep thinking of Aizen as if he were coming back… a betrayal to Soul Society, a betrayal to her friends… but wasn’t it a betrayal to him, too, to keep pushing Aizen-taichou from her thoughts like this?
Frowning, Hinamori continued her path back toward her Division, lost in thought. Night was beginning to fall over the Seireitei, elongating the shadows on the ground and painting the white buildings in shades of creamy peach and deep violet. Mindlessly, she continued through the familiar streets, though she didn’t take any of the shortcuts she knew by heart. The extra time allowed her more space to herself, with the added benefit of being able to avoid the constant pitying stares that she seemed to attract lately.
“Momo!” A sudden voice cut into her thoughts, jolting the young woman from her semi-daze. She jumped as a familiar figure landed in front of her, a faint smile on his face.
“K-Kira-kun,” she stammered, eyes wide for a moment before she smiled shakily. “What are you doing here?”
“You’re by the Third Division training grounds,” he said softly, amused. “I’m supposed to be here… so, I think the question is, what are you doing over here?” He was rewarded when her smile became firmer, more honest and real, something he hadn’t seen in a long time.
“Oh, I was just out for a walk,” Momo replied, relaxing. It had been quite a while since she had had the chance to catch up with Izuru; they had both been put in charge of their respective divisions, taking up the slack that had left behind in the wake of their captains, making it hard to have time to meet up with others outside of their own squad. He had somehow made time to stop in and visit her, however, while she was in the Fourth Division. It made up for the gaping hole left by recent events in a minor way, especially when she realized that Tōshirō wouldn’t be able to visit her. She understood that he was needed in the real world for the time being, but his absence was just another reminder of everything that had happened; after all, whenever she was wounded before, he had always stopped by, even if it was only to tease her into a better mood.
“At this hour?” Izuru asked, glancing at her curiously. She nodded slightly, then shifted as he remembered. “Oh. The observations?”
“Yes,” she replied, taking a small step forward. Kira followed without comment, something she was grateful for. It was always nice to see Kira or Abarai Renji when she could, though admittedly that was getting more and more difficult. “Today was the last session… I should hear the results in the next couple of days, don’t you think?”
“Or sooner,” he commented, frowning. “Since we’re still getting ready for the war, they’ll want to have everything in order as soon as possible. You’ll probably hear tomorrow, Momo.”
“You’re right,” Momo responded, thinking for a moment, then smiled sheepishly. She shouldn’t have needed the reminder… it was all anyone talked about anymore, and she knew that she still needed to attend to the training of her squad to prepare them. Since she had been so busy lately, however, it had made it hard to train them and pay attention to her own re-training.
They walked in silence for a few moments, at a slow enough pace to observe the setting sun. It was reassuring, to be able to walk with Izuru without feeling pressured to talk… the forced, stilted conversations that everyone else felt obligated to have with her were, while polite and sometimes pleasant enough, still enough to wear her down. Aside from turning them away, however, there was really no way to avoid them without appearing rude or hurting feelings; all they wanted was to make sure she was okay…
Kira, however, was different. They had known each other for long enough now that there was no need for constant conversation between them. Whenever Renji was there, completing the group, the atmosphere changed; the redhead had always been bolder and louder, creating a warmth of loud, friendly conversation that was hard to resist. Despite their positions within different divisions, it was still nice to meet up with the other two, and in some ways, it sometimes felt like nothing had changed. When it was just her and Kira, though, it was still nice, a comfortable quiet time.
It wasn’t long before they reached the outer limits of the Fifth Division, and wordlessly Momo paused before entering the gates, looking up at Kira and smiling once more.
“It was good to see you again, Kira-kun,” she admitted, and he offered a trace of a smile in return.
“Same here,” he said, then shrugged slightly with one shoulder. “You’re starting the training with your division tomorrow, right?”
“Yes,” Momo said, nodding. “They’ve already been working, but tomorrow I start training with them again. I hope they’ve been working hard…” Kira nodded, a distant look in his eyes for a brief second before it disappeared.
“We all have,” he murmured, then glanced at her once more. “When you’re done, if you want more training, feel free to stop by the Third’s training fields.”
“Thanks, Kira-kun,” she replied, smiling brightly. “I’ll try to stop by, okay?” He nodded in response, watching as Momo finally turned and retreated into the yards of her division, before heading out himself.
~*~
The next day found Momo wiping the sweat from her brow as she straightened from her half-crouch, surveying the ranks of shinigami before her. They had been training hard for a few hours now, some practicing better swordsmanship, some practicing their kidō techniques, and others practicing other techniques. They were doing well, though some of the newer members of the division looked as if they were ready to drop from exhaustion-these were the ones that were going to need the most work, she thought grimly.
Then again, she wasn’t all that far from the edge of exhaustion herself. All of the recent excursions to the real world to dispatch Hollows and to the training grounds for examinations were enough to wear anyone down…
But maybe that was the point, she thought, disappointed. She only allowed the thought to linger for a moment, however, before chasing it away. No. I won’t think that way!
Blinking, Momo glanced over the shinigami before her once more before signaling them to a halt.
“That’s enough for today!” She called, raising her voice to carry across the yard. “We’ll pick this up tomorrow-don’t be late!”
The yard cleared relatively quickly, though her sharp eye caught more than a few of her members limping or carrying themselves stiffly-but strangely enough, no one was complaining. She frowned slightly; how hard had they been training while she was busy? It didn’t look as if this was the first time they had been pushed this far…
“Welcome back, Hinamori-fukutaichou,” more than a few murmured on their way past, and she was surprised to note the pleased looks in their expressions. She mumbled responses automatically, unaware of exactly what she was saying.
“Wow, looks like they’re glad to have you back, huh?” A wry voice commented, and Momo whirled, startled. In her surprise, however, she ran face first into a wall of black, freezing before pulling back.
“Kira-kun!” She exclaimed, eyes wide. “When did you get here?”
“A few minutes ago,” Izuru replied, eyes watching the exit of the last few shinigami. “I thought you’d have been done training earlier than this.”
“They wanted to keep going,” Momo replied, frowning slightly as she glanced across the empty training fields wistfully. “Everyone’s really working hard…”
“They have good reason,” he commented, earning a confused look from the slighter lieutenant. “We all need to prove ourselves again.”
“Y-yeah,” she said, stuttering slightly at the reminder. Silence fell, jaggedly awkward, lasting for only a moment before she drew herself up, forcing her voice not to waver. “Are all the other divisions training as hard as this?”
“Pretty hard, yeah,” Kira said, rolling his eyes up to focus on the sky for a brief second. “Eleventh Division’s pretty much destroyed their training grounds, so they started using Twelfth… Kurotsuchi-taichou wasn’t pleased.”
“Wow, I wouldn’t want to be near that area,” Momo said, grateful that the awkwardness was blown away so easily, like so many grains of sand in the wind. “So have you heard from Abarai-kun lately? I know he went to the human realm with Hitsugaya-taichou, but I haven’t had the chance to contact him…”
“They’re keeping plenty busy over there,” he replied, frowning. “Activity between Hueco Mundo has increased drastically-”
“Because the war’s coming,” Hinamori murmured, voice suddenly deadened. Izuru turned to face her, concern showing clearly, but the girl appeared not to see him any longer, her eyes instead focused on something distant. “We’re going to have to fight against Aizen-taichou…”
“No,” Kira said firmly, frown becoming more pronounced. “Aizen and the others are no longer captains, Hinamori-fukutaichou. They are traitors.”
“Aizen…” she whispered, eyes still glazed and different. Kira stared for a long moment, unsure. Hinamori had been fine only a moment before, but one absent mention of the war still caused her to shut down, he noted. She couldn’t afford to have a relapse now; she had just finished her observation period and proven herself, but if she showed any signs of not being up to the task of facing her old captain, command would have no qualms about detaining her once more. As it stood, there were those within the ranks of the Gotei that still believed that she posed a risk-that she would continue to follow her former captain blindly. For a brief second, Kira’s own steady belief in her wavered, before resolving once more. He had known the girl for decades now; despite her blind devotion to the traitor Aizen, she was, above all, kind-hearted and a firm believer in what was right.
He opened his mouth to say something, only to be startled as Momo’s eyes suddenly cleared, her stance straightening as she blinked, then blushed.
“O-oh, Izuru,” she stammered, unable to meet his concerned gaze. “Sorry! I guess I just got distracted, huh?”
“Momo-” he started, then paused, unsure of what to say. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?”
The girl looked at the ground, falling silent for a moment. A faint breeze stirred the air, disturbing the silence with the whispers of clothing and hair. The sounds of other shinigami close by were carried over the wall, though the expectant silence made the close reiatsu seem veiled, distant.
“No,” she whispered, sounding almost ashamed. “But I have to be. Aizen’s never coming back, and the division needs a leader, someone to help them get ready… I can’t be weak now! I can’t let them all down again!”
“Hey, you’ve never-”
“Yes, I have!” Momo cut him off, her voice growing teary. “You think I don’t hear them, Kira-kun? They all think I’m weak because I believed in him! They all think I’m weak because I let them down! When they needed me, I was… I wasn’t here.”
“Hinamori-” Kira tried again, only to be cut off once more. This time, however, it wasn’t by another outburst from Momo, but an explosion from the wall to the left. The solid wall crumbled with a groan and a cloud of thick dust, though thankfully no debris was sent flying.
“Murakami, you moron! Now look what you did!”
“I told you I couldn’t do that stupid kidō, but you never listen! This one is totally your fault!”
“Hinamori? Are you okay?” Kira asked, turning away from the argument over the wall. She nodded, a faint smile on her face as she sighed-whether from exasperation or from relief at the interruption, he wasn’t quite sure.
“I’m fine, Izuru,” she replied, glancing up at him. “I should probably go check on that…”
“I know,” he shrugged, one corner of his mouth twitching up in a smile. “We’ll train together another time.”
She nodded, though he could sense that her attention had already drifted to the situation at hand. He took his leave with a nod, leaving her to sigh once more, this time in resignation, before flash-stepping across the wreckage of the training grounds’ west wall, coming to a rest in front of two younger shinigami, both of whom froze at her appearance.
“Hinamori-fukutaichou!” They both said, eyes wide in horror. “S-sorry, ma’am!”
“What happened?” She asked incredulously, staring at the smoking ruins of the wall in something like vague amazement. “We’re done training for today, remember?”
~*~
Kira didn’t bother to turn on the lights in his office upon his return. Instead, he usually preferred the faint shadows cast by the sunlit windows to the artificial light. Ichimaru had always hated his methods, insisting that the lights be kept on even when the sun was the brightest. Knowing him, of course, he had done it just to get on Kira’s nerves... Pacing over to the desk, he spared the day’s paperwork a cursory glance before settling into the chair.
Seeing Momo so distant and distracted had disturbed him, more deeply than he had thought at first. He knew that the wounds from Aizen’s betrayal ran deep, deeper than the physical wounds that had almost killed her, though he still worried. Would Hinamori ever truly recover? It had always been easy to tell that she was close to her captain, making the betrayal that much more painful to her; despite the fact that Kira and Hisagi Shūhei had also been betrayed by their captains, admittedly neither had been quite as close to their captain as she had, taking away some of the intense pain.
Even if Momo fully recovered, however, there were still plenty of questions that remained-questions voices in whispers between friends, never loud enough to be concrete, but yet still frequent enough to spread dissention and even condemnation amongst the Divisions.
Had Hinamori-fukutaichou really recovered, or was she just pretending? Was she going to follow her beloved captain, even now? And what about Kira-fukutaichou and Hisagi-fukutaichou? Surely they must have at least suspected their captains of something! After all, they were some of the brightest and most admired of the lieutenants… they had to have known something! Kira widely ignored the rumors and whispers. He knew he had been used, and he knew that the important people-such as the remaining captains of the Gotei 13, the current lieutenants, and some of the older shinigami in the Division-also knew that he was innocent, a victim of Gin and Aizen’s manipulation. What the others thought didn’t really matter to him; he had more pressing matters to worry about beyond correcting everyone’s assumptions.
With the war coming up and Ichimaru gone, all of the work had fallen to him. That, in itself, was no big deal; instead, the difficulty came from training with his squad. Izuru had worked hard to establish himself once more within his Division after everything that had happened. Amidst the doubts circulating, he also had to deal with the fact that he wasn’t exactly an ideal leader, especially for a disgraced, discouraged squad. Nothing about Kira screamed “leader,” a fact that had raised further doubts in the already-shaky ranks; he was quiet, somewhat depressing, and largely kept to himself.
Hisagi Shūhei, however, had had no problem establishing his authority within the Ninth Division-after all, one didn’t just become lieutenant of the Gotei 13 with a winning smile and a good sense of humor. As acting captain, he knew where he stood, and the members of his Division followed him without question. Sometimes, Kira wished he possessed that same confidence, that same presence, and yet… it wasn’t him. Hisagi-sempai was someone he admired, but if Kira were to change his methods now, it would only incur more doubt. No, instead, he had to continue as he always had… though there was questioning within his ranks, he knew that there was no doubt about his ability. He may not inspire hope and happiness in his subordinates, but that did not make him weak.
Despite Kira’s self-assurance, the problem appeared most clearly during their training sessions. While the shinigami worked to hone their skills, it became apparent that, though they were determined to succeed and prove themselves, there was no… real confidence to be found, only a grim determination.
Fighting, and the prospect of the upcoming war, provided more than enough reason to be grim. War only brought misery and despair to all involved, whether they were involved directly or even indirectly. Constant fighting brought pain and destruction, shattering any hope and peace in the area. While sometimes war was necessary in order to obtain peace, the knowledge that a large scale war was looming ever closer didn’t ease Kira’s mind at all.
This, however, was one war that would be unavoidable for all involved.
~*~
It was early in the morning, early enough that the only people moving about in the gray pre-dawn light were the assigned guards-and even they were moving slowly and sluggishly. The patrols lingered briefly at the edges of the Fifth Division, curious of the figure out so early, yet disappearing once more as soon as they realized who it was.
Despite the faint morning mist lingering in the pale gray air, Momo was wide awake. She had slept well last night, though she had inexplicably woken far earlier than needed. Unable to return to sleep, she had instead risen and gone back to the training grounds, taking advantage of their empty state at this hour.
Aware of the occasional observing gaze, Momo worked her way through a set of exercises, stretching and preparing to train for a while. To the outsiders, her face was calm and composed, her beautiful eyes serious, lit by an inner determination. After stretching, she unsheathed Tobiume, progressing smoothly into an intricate dance. Tobiume’s blade glinted faintly in the early morning light, cutting easily through the still air as Momo’s body fell into a familiar rhythm and pattern.
Extend, block, turn, block, shift, strike, follow through, crescent sweep, duck... There was no sound in the yard save for the soft scuff of her sandals in the dirt or the sound of her shihakusho ruffling slightly as she moved. The air parted with increasing sound as Hinamori sped the routine up, adding more steps as she went.
Her breathing remained steady, evidence of accustomed endurance, though she could feel her adrenaline beginning to rise. The rush of energy felt good, filling her up with a confidence and peace that she hadn’t felt in a long time.
As she let her body settle into the routine, Momo felt Tobiume’s calm satisfaction in the back of her mind, reassuring in the same manner as the warm sun on her cheeks in summer. It was easy to connect with her zanpakutō on a deeper level, adding a new degree of comfort to the already-relaxing routine. Things were finally getting back on track… for the longest time, even when simply warming up, Tobiume’s concern for her had always lingered on the back of Momo’s mind, hindering her ability to connect fully with her zanpakutō-and reducing her effectiveness.
Welcome back, Hinamori-kun, Tobiume whispered, and the lieutenant let a small smile grace her lips as she drew to a smooth stop. Her blade was held in front of her, as if poised at an enemy’s throat, her body balanced and positioned just right to allow her to either escape or pursue her line of attack as needed, and she nodded to herself before straightening and lowering Tobiume.
It has been a while, hasn’t it? She asked silently, receiving a light bubble of happiness in the back of her awareness as a means of reply. Pleased, she carefully sheathed Tobiume once more, aware of the eyes lingering on her once more. Turning, she nodded to the patrol team, who nodded sharply in response before disappearing-a small sign of normalcy. She knew these men, had nodded to them before in the early dawn hours…
Maybe there was a way to fix things after all.
~*~
* Sōren sōkatsui translates to “Twin Lotus Blue Fire, Crash Down,” which is hadō 73-also the same as 33, only doubled.
~*~