Worlds Apart: Introductions and Explosions
Hitsugaya felt an instant kinship with the Autobot commander when he recognized the giant mech giving the ceiling an I’m-trying-not-to-roll-my-eyes look. He stepped onto the offered hand and introduced himself once he was close enough to do so without shouting.
“My name is Toushirou Hitsugaya. I am captain of the Tenth Division of the Gotei 13.”
“Greetings, Captain Hitsugaya. I am Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobot forces.”
BOOM!
Optimus and Hitsugaya turned to see Ironhide pointing his still-smoking cannons at Ikkaku from point blank range. The Eleventh Division’s third seat spat out a tooth and grinned maniacally. “Do it again!” he yelled.
“He is not one of mine,” Hitsugaya felt compelled to point out.
“Unfortunately, the other one is mine,” Optimus reluctantly admitted.
Hitsugaya winced and patted the giant palm beneath him. “Someone will attack soon,” he reminded the Autobot commander consolingly. “If not the Decepticons, then the hollows or one of our other enemies.”
Optimus brightened. “That’s true. And we can throw them out in front and let them work out all their excess aggression on the enemy. If nothing else, we can always call the Decepticons and offer to negotiate. They hate that.”
Hitsugaya considered that. “Hmm… A valid option, but one that I think we should reserve for last.”
“Of course,” Optimus agreed quickly. “The lunat-ah, the troops will get suspicious if they think they’re being placated.”
“That wouldn’t do,” Hitsugaya said solemnly. “Restless minio-I mean, subordinates are horribly inefficient.”
“Captain!”
“Hey, Optimus!”
The gleeful voices of their respective seconds clicked on the “prepare for damage control” switches in Hitsugaya and Optimus’s minds. They simultaneously braced themselves and faced Jazz, who had Matsumoto riding on his head and clinging to his ear…thing.
Hitsugaya raised an eyebrow at Matsumoto and tapped his foot meaningfully against Optimus’s palm. Matsumoto grinned unrepentantly up at him. Jazz just snickered.
“Actually, Captain, we were just about to tell you-“
BOOM!
Hitsugaya swung around to fix his best I-know-you-didn’t-just-blow-something-up-without-my-permission glare on Ironhide. Although he wouldn’t admit it, Ironhide was a bit intimidated to receive such a fierce look from so small an organic.
“Ironhide can’t make an explosion that big without help,” Optimus murmured.
“…tell you that Urahara just arrived,” Matsumoto finished. “He met up with some mech with pretty blinky things on his head. What was his name, Jazz?”
“Wheeljack,” Optimus declared before his second could reply, “the most destructive scientist in all the Autobot forces. We had better go rescue them before Ratchet gets involved.”
“Forget rescuing them,” Hitsugaya muttered. “How about we rescue the planet from Urahara the Amoral Mad Genius and Wheeljack the Amazing Alien Explosion Making Machine?” Jazz and Ironhide both laughed out loud. Optimus looked regal and commanding, which Hitsugaya took to mean that he would be laughing himself if he weren’t in charge. Hitsugaya shook his head and shunpoed to his vice-captain’s side.
“Let’s go, Matsumoto. We’ve apparently got work to do.”
“Yes sir, Captain!”
Honestly. Hitsugaya was beginning to suspect Yamamoto was just sending him on these missions to act as a babysitter, not a captain. He sighed and took off toward the scene of the crime with Matsumoto in tow.