[BitP:R] Mortal World 3

[Edge]

Aura raises an eyebrow at the fortifications.

"You sure you've got enough firepower here? You might run into an Espada. Or a tank."

The sarcasm drips from her voice like water from a faucet.

The Concierge takes their tape recorder out and replays some speech in answer to Aura's question.

"Target is... hardened... heavy fortifications... likely... This... intended as... flak curtain... cover whilst... loading the... package."

[Kuroimaken]

Konpaku Aya - On the way to the Mortal World

Spoiler

Show

As Aya and Shishiou are moving through the Senkaimon and towards the Mortal World, Aya remains tense and stressful. Finally, in the privacy of the space between realms, Aya decides to speak.

"Its only fair that you know a little bit about my history with Captain Takeshi. I hail from the same lawless area of Rukongai as Kitano Takeshi, he was the leader of a band of brothers, if you know what I mean. I was the daughter of a very successful water merchant. Now successful merchant and lawless area of Rukongai would normally not be found together, but it was the auspices of Takeshi's gang, his protection and his work, that made my father's work possible." Aya sighs as she takes a trip down memory lane, her voice carries the tone of reminiscence.

"I was my family's only child, and my father didn't care if he didn't have a son. He prepared me to take over his business by teaching me everything he knows. In his heart, he wanted an alliance between myself and Takeshi. He knows that Takeshi is a man of ability and honor, and for lacking a son, he wants a son in law whom he knows will take care of his business and me." Aya carries on, blushing a little on the way.

"When my father introduced Takeshi to me, I was so quiet at that time. I just sat there, ready to hear and accept anything he says. He didn't say much, just look at me, I wonder if I had something on my face then." Aya laughs. "Anyway my duty was to my family and to him and I have no regrets accepting this fate from my father. And in Takeshi's presence, I could sense his reiatsu and the density of his reiryoku. That was also when I started having hunger pangs the likes I have ever seen. You know the drill, water isn't good enough for us anymore." Aya smiles, recalling that her reiatsu was so desperate for some nourishment that it set itself upon Aya, whose will held it back so desperately at first that her hair turned mostly white, leaving streaks of raven black that dances across the white surface.

"Takeshi would visit often after he heard that I fell ill. He recommended several doctors, all didn't know what to do. I guess, Takeshi didn't know what to do with me. He would just sit there, silent, hardly even looking at me. I think he must have felt that he might be getting a sickly wife. I felt embarrassed, that the one man I am supposed to serve and devote my life to could think that I am unfit for the task. When my father contacted the 4th Division for their healers, there was a look in his eyes, a sort of knowing? He left the area shortly after they had arrived."

"Then my father discovered that I have awoken my reiatsu, and should be sent to the Academy to train myself. He was glad, because I am fine and now I could be greater than what he had originally intended. He said that Takeshi had left for the Shinigami Academy shortly after the 4th Division came. So I went after him." Aya smiles and shakes her head, thinking about herself in the past. Was that why she was so good at pursuit and capture? Chasing after people might be the primary theme of her life.

"You know Takeshi's reputation at the Academy, and how I stuck by him silently. People think I'm some dumbstruck girl attracted to this bad boy. I didn't care. I know I have duty, and the gratitude that he did what he could to protect my family and let them prosper. So this is why it is simply impossible that Takeshi would just take a bunch of Kido Corp members and defect. He works hard to be the Captain of the Corp, why would he abandon his hard work and the rest of his Corp members? This isn't like him at all." Aya shakes her head again. There must be something at work to influence his decisions like that. Something drastic.

"So you could imagine why I am so eager to chase after him. I...like him a lot, and I believe him to be innocent of whatever acts of treason. I just need to know why, and knowing why can help him."

Shishiou merely lent his ear. He was a good listener; it made him a good doctor, and an able tracker. Through it all he couldn't help but sense Aya's own good-natured spirit coloring her memories. Surely it wasn't easy to understand what was going on through Takeshi's head. But it was exactly this that made him more than a little preoccupied.

"I think I understand where you're coming from. Takeshi is a very important person to you - someone you cherish and whose qualities you admire. I kinda envy you a little, I don't have many people like that in my life." This admission came with a sigh. "I... can't help but worry though. I can't think of a reason strong enough to make him all but throw responsibility to the wind, and worse, drag others down such a painful path with him. I will help you get your answer. But I want you to promise something.

No matter what the reason, you'll help me bring him back. You will NOT join him."

[Terry576]

The Concierge takes their tape recorder out and replays some speech in answer to Aura's question.

"Target is... hardened... heavy fortifications... likely... This... intended as... flak curtain... cover whilst... loading the... package."

Aura blushes, bristling.

"I see."

[Kuroimaken]

[The Mitsurugi Household]

Reiji's home was not a mansion by any means. However, it was quite obviously a large, ancient and very well-cared for house. It was surrounded by a brick and stone wall, which allowed as an apology to modern times only a number of thin, electrified wires - likely the only real outward defense of his home. Or at least that's how the Watanabes perceived it, anyway.

Except for Kaito. He couldn't really see, but he could feel presences near the walls and gate. They were a very strange sensation though - for souls, they blended far too naturally with the background. Someone with no spiritual sensitivity couldn't hope to catch wind of them.

His assistant helped the Watanabes carry their luggage inside.

"Koichi, see to it that the crime scene is processed as soon as possible. Contact Nakamura, ask him to fix the damage on the Watanabe household as soon as he's able. Tell him I'll pay for it."

Then, he turned back to the house.

"Sadako-san, we have guests."

A woman perhaps in her thirties attired modestly as a Japanese housemaid greeted them with a bow. She was of average height, with black, elegant hair that she kept bound in a braid down to her waist. Perhaps it was her dull gray eyes, or the way she measured her smile, but Kaito could tell she was considerably older than she looked.

"Please carry their luggage up to the guest rooms. I'll show them around the house."

"Understood, Mitsurugi-sama."

[tgva8889]

The Vehicle

The man in the fedora looks around. "Cozy. Shall we?" He pulls a radio from his coat and motions towards it.

[Nicklance]

Spoiler

Show

Shishiou merely lent his ear. He was a good listener; it made him a good doctor, and an able tracker. Through it all he couldn't help but sense Aya's own good-natured spirit coloring her memories. Surely it wasn't easy to understand what was going on through Takeshi's head. But it was exactly this that made him more than a little preoccupied.

"I think I understand where you're coming from. Takeshi is a very important person to you - someone you cherish and whose qualities you admire. I kinda envy you a little, I don't have many people like that in my life." This admission came with a sigh. "I... can't help but worry though. I can't think of a reason strong enough to make him all but throw responsibility to the wind, and worse, drag others down such a painful path with him. I will help you get your answer. But I want you to promise something.

No matter what the reason, you'll help me bring him back. You will NOT join him."

Aya nearly skips a step as they emerge into the Mortal World. As the Senkaimon opens up, Aya skips through the portal to disguise that little misstep.

"Oh you...I won't join him. I want to know why, and bring him back with that testimony so that he will be tried justly. If he is unjustly manipulated, that should clear him of charges, or else he will pay for what his actions wrought." Aya smiles as she claps Shishiou on the shoulder. "You've got me to admire yeah?" Aya giggles as she elbows her friend gently in the ribs. He's much taller than her, and she is grateful for that supporting aura from that stature.

Finding her bearings, she finds herself standing at the roof of a school. A high school perhaps. Taking a moment to concentrate, she focuses her memories and fondness for Takeshi and that feel of his reiatsu and sends her feelings outwards, trying to make a grasp of his presence. Attempting to find that particular reiryoku ribbon so to speak.

[Kuroimaken]

"...I'll hold you to that."

Shishiou's method is a little different. He tries to sense Shinigami other than himself and Aya. With the most recent fracas involving the Septima and a number of other interlopers to an end, there should be little to no room for mistake.

And they might just run into Hollows along the way. It was hard to tell for sure.

[Edge]

The Concierge nods.

"Ready... just... give... the word..."

They then move up to the driver's door, open it, and stand ready for the order."

[Nicklance]

Konpaku Aya and Tsukikake Shishiou

Sensing that presence immediately, Aya's eyes snap open. "I found him!" Aya exclaims as he grabs Shishiou's hand and flash steps right to Takeshi's location.

Upon stepping onto the roof of the small gas station convenience store, Aya regards Takeshi with a look that's both confusion, relief, anger, frustration and awe, and a little longing.

"T-t-takeshi-taichou. What happened? I mean...come back with us. We want to know what happened, and take you home. I-I-I-I want you to come back to Seireitei with us...to explain yourself to me, I mean to us. To..all of us."

[nothingclever]

Ken
[Houheiden]
A thought suddenly crossed Ken's mind during the tense dead silence before the two exchanged blows. "Is there a certain form of sparring you had in mind? Also, what martial art do you practice?"

[Kuroimaken]

Takeshi could only blink at the speed she came at his location, a hand moving to the handle of his zanpakuto until she and someone else appeared. He'd brought his weapon just in case...this would have been the perfect trap for Soul Society but the feeling of only two presences made him a little less cautious. He slowly slid out of his hiding next to her, wrapping an arm slowly around Aya's shoulder with a cocky grin though his outfit had changed from the traditional Kido Commander's raiment to a simple pair of cargo pants and a black hoody. His pipe remained clutched in his mouth though a pair of shades adorned his face.

"Hey babe..."

He started though the flurry of words shuts anything further down until she's spoke her piece. His face turns into a hard line as he shifts before her, shaking his head.

"No. I won't do that."

"I can't accept that." Shishiou spoke to Takeshi.

"We probably don't have the means to force you to do anything. Even if we called for reinforcements they wouldn't get here quickly enough.

I'm not going to ask you to answer her question as the former Kido Corps. Commander. I'm going to ask you to tell Aya-san your reasons as Takeshi Kitano!" He pointed a menacing finger and a shut-eyed glare at Takeshi.

"I know more than enough about how to live as a man to stand where I am now. If you truly think what you're doing is what's needed, if you truly believe you have no other choice, then you at least owe it to Aya-san to let her know why you're breaking her heart!!"

[Nicklance]

Takeshi could only blink at the speed she came at his location, a hand moving to the handle of his zanpakuto until she and someone else appeared. He'd brought his weapon just in case...this would have been the perfect trap for Soul Society but the feeling of only two presences made him a little less cautious. He slowly slid out of his hiding next to her, wrapping an arm slowly around Aya's shoulder with a cocky grin though his outfit had changed from the traditional Kido Commander's raiment to a simple pair of cargo pants and a black hoody. His pipe remained clutched in his mouth though a pair of shades adorned his face.

"Hey babe..."

He started though the flurry of words shuts anything further down until she's spoke her piece. His mouth turns into a hard line as he shifts before her, shaking his head.

"No. I won't do that."

Aya succeeds in not swooning at that familiar gesture, though she keeps her hands on his arm just in case if anything. Her tone however carries a little more heat than just now.

"What do you mean you won't. Do what? Not explain to us? Or not going back with us?" Gently but firmly taking his arm off her, Aya takes two steps away from Takeshi, her arms crossed and a mini pout forms. The sort of face Takeshi recognizes immediately that she is determined to get answers, and someone is getting bullheaded. Her eyes seem to be holding back tears of frustration as well.

[Kuroimaken]

That kind of hot-bloodedness didn't really become Shishiou, that's for certain. But there was something nagging at the back of his mind about this whole thing.

Jealousy, perhaps?

"I'm not leaving Aya-san's side, certainly not with a big bullheaded jerk like yourself!

...Besides, I wanna hear it too."

[Nicklance]

Aya nods as she takes Shishiou and Takeshi's hand, one on each hand. She tries to force a smile.

"Beef bowl! But you must explain it to us. Without Shishiou I would not have proper permission to come here to find you."

[Nicklance]

Spoiler

Show

Takeshi smiles softly, shaking his head at the other man's outburst though breaks out into a loud laugh at the "bullheaded jerk" line. He points back to the man, a dangerous maneuver even outside the challenge itself from who was just a day ago the Kido Commander.

"Try scan no thing three-card dead fly. Man go for bling he got bled. I jam over sting, see spots red"

He then regards Aya, shaking his head again slowly as he closes his eyes.

"Your loss...I'd have paid for once. No chance you're going to join up with me then I suppose? I'm sort of hoping you'll do so if I explain everything...besides, you look like a chipmunk when you pout. Fine fine though...I'll spill it if you want, since you've come all the way to see me with no hug or booze among you."

You work, the both of you, for complacent nobles and politicians who have little concern for the world around us right this instant! Look around you, see how beautiful this world is. Then go home to Soul Society and look around there to and bath in the splendor that is life...or whatever you want to call what we've got. It'll be the last chance you've got ever. Because while you sit around and play at hunting down Hollows the forces you seek to defeat grow stronger and larger while we...we are over taken by petty little people who would rather subjugate their own people then fight against a foe that we won't be able to win against very much longer!

Your "Commander Captain" was here in the mortal world you know...along with what I can only assume was the very leader of the Arrancar himself, judging by the malignant cancerous energies my sensors were picking up. I don't know what happened except there was no fight...no confrontation. They let the Primera just walk all over Soul Society!! We're going to lose this war to protect a peace accord with our enemies! The Thunder Sage's struggle...was for nothing. Your leader and his predecessor doomed us all. I won't stand here and just let that happen.

Remember where you came from for one damn moment Aya...you may have lived well but did you ever really understand how the rest of us felt? Living in hovels and scrounging what little we could to eat? We had to turn to crime just to better our lives! It wasn't because it's just the way it is...you've seen the rest of the Rukon! You know it's not like that everywhere!! We were forgotten...lost and discarded and the mortal world is going to be next...the people we've sworn to protect will be but cattle against a beast that will turn to us when it gets done with the bones down here! We won't be able to get our ranks higher because every mortal soul will be in the belly of a Hollow!!"

Takeshi grits his teeth, his spiritual energy suddenly bursting out to cloak the area in thick smoke, unable to keep it under control as his previously calm voice spikes with rage.

"What’s more...your Gotei is trying to take control of the Kido Corp just like they did with the Stealth Force. Call it paranoia if you want but when you return to Soul Society watch what they do. They already flexed their muscles to keep my orders for making my home a better place shut down. My orders Aya...The Kido Commander of the Kido Corps, you know...the leader of the organization. They -over rode- my orders and shut them down. Search in your heart beautiful...you know that's not right.

So I ran with the information they wanted, I took it away the only way I knew how...and I'm not going back for them to parade me around as an enemy to Soul Society like they were going to do when they finally got control of all I ever worked towards. A better life for myself. And for you Aya."

Aya's heart skips a beat. Despite his position, his power, and his popularity...he still thought of...her? Her face glows red as she clutches her fist at her chest, shaking a little as she tries to make herself think.

"It is true...while I watch from my father's mansion. I see you and your brothers fight for survival. I know as much that my father manipulates you as much as you try your best to exploit every loophole and advantage you can take in order to provide for your brothers as well. In a way, our lives were a microcosm of Seireitei. You who represents the Gotei 13 in a way, try to work around my father, who represents the nobles that own Soul Society."

And this realization hits Aya like a spear in the heart, the pain of it causes tears to flow down her cheeks. She had lived a good life. She was sheltered despite thinking she had seen it all. Her love for Soul Society, that allowed her to love the place to much and lay down life and soul to protect and defend it, was because she wanted to defend that comfortable way of life. What about the others? Was it a condescending type of concern in a way a superior would to a lowly commoner? Is there any real shred of honor or chivalry in it? Did she delude herself thinking that maintaining law and order would benefit everyone or merely oppress the very people who had no choice but turn to crime in order to survive?

"I...I couldn't understand how you felt...but...I know the only thing I could do...was...w-w-with you...I..." Aya stands stunned, words unable to come out of her lips. She turns to look at Shishiou, wondering if he has anything to say. Takeshi is very persuasive at this point, but surely...

Not everything is as rotten as you claim...isn't that right Takeshi? Have you not found anything worthwhile in the Gotei 13, in several of the well-meaning, hardworking and respectable people that you have worked with? We...we have not forgotten where we came from. I send money and aid back whenever I can. Some of your boys are taken care of. Things have improved a lot. Alone I couldn't do much, but you never really gave up on your gang either. I saw your work too. We..." Aya really could not, in her limited experience of the world, mount any sort of good counter-argument against Takeshi at all.

And then she adds meekly, as an afterthought. "I'm sure...the Commander Captain has countermeasures in plan...and...surely we could change the Gotei 13 from the inside...and not..put their backs up...and...make them all jittery and stuff. And I don't think its right to override you and take over the Kido Corp just like that...it will only create resentment...surely they won't be that unfair..."

[Kuroimaken]

"Aya-san. There's one thing Takeshi is much too gleefully forgetting.

A full-out war gets way too many people in the crossfire. The human world would be devastated by something it could not quite comprehend. We've kept our presence hidden from humans at large for a reason - so they could go about their lives in peace.

Trying to extinguish all Hollows is pointless! As long as the cycle of reincarnation works the way it does, there will be Hollows forever! And the same applies to Shinigami! Worse, if we lose this all-out war, there will be nobody to prevent Hueco Mundo from doing as it pleases!

And that's not all! The fallout from our own confrontations would cause humans to awaken spiritual powers too - powers with which they could oppress the weaker of their kind! It may even be happening as we speak!

I won't let you go about this fool's errand, Aya-san! It's not worth it! Takeshi is not worth it!"

[Nicklance]

As Takeshi and Shishiou square off verbally, Aya's eyes gaze off to nowhere. Time seems to stop and the world turns into greyscale, her hair's ratio of white to black seems to equalize momentarily as a pair of figures materialize before her.

A pair of uniformed beings, one in mostly white and the other mostly black, in elaborate millitary-like attire appears. The being in white has a kindly air about him, and a tablet he carries that functions as both badge of office and weapon reads "Fortune favors those that meet me". The being in black has a menacing air about him, and a tablet he carries that functions as both badge of office and weapon reads "Death comes to those that meet me". Both men, however different their dispositions are, have long red tongues that are constantly sticking out of their mouths and reaches almost to chest level.

"Ain't that a charm? You sit at the fence, facing down order that is beautiful on the outside but terribly wrong on the inside. And chaos that feels right, but completely wrecks this delicate path you walk. That is...if its a path you really are walking." the being in black cackles, his long red tongue quivering from the chuckling.

"Give over Kokumujou, she's terribly upset." Hakumujou looks at Aya with concern. "But Aya, he's right. What is your choice? We are interested in knowing."

"What would you have me do?" Aya asks, which a frown breaks out on both spirit's faces.

"You decide for yourself, and accept the consequences, we are not here to coddle you or live your life for you." Hakumujou growls.

"Admitting that you are at a loss is a good step forward though." Hakumujou soothingly replies. "All the while you have led your life believing what you believe to be true. All it took was Kitano Takeshi to take a step you did not expect to throw you off. It is good to re-examine your state of progress."

Aya nods, knowing what Kokubyaku Mujou thinks of her as the pair of spirits fade away and Aya's perception of time returns to normal.

----------------------------------------------------------

Dropping Takeshi's hand gently, Aya takes a few more steps back, her expression a contortion of anguish. "I belong to the 10th Division which I firmly believe honor a code of chivalry not unlike what you have. I cannot abandon my Division, not my squad, just because you manage to persuade me."

Drawing her blades slowly, Aya takes a readied stance. "In due respect to your position as Kido Corp Commander, I will come at you with my blades, instead of my fists. My job is to take you back into protective custody. Your desire is to escape capture. If your conviction, cause and will are truer than mine, by all means, do what you must." I would not use Hakuda on you, my dear, knowing fully well how deficient you are. I do not know what I am doing is right or not, but if you can do what you want accomplish, I will willingly fail to apprehend you.

"Qiu Fan Tao Yu, Bing Fen Liang Lu, Qiao Xia Yu Yue, Hong Shui Fan Lan, Yi Ren Yen Si, Yi Ren Shang Diao. (Prisoner escapes, search splits into two, agree to meet under the bridge, flash floods emerge, one man drowns, the other man hangs.)" Aya speaks her Shikai incantation as Hakumujou glows with white reiatsu while Kokumujou seems to absorb ambient light near its outline.

With tears falling down her eyes, Aya speaks quietly. "You...are under arrest...Takeshi."

[Nicklance]

Takeshi shakes his head slowly, looking at the ground for but a moment before looking back at Aya, his eyes betraying nothing.

"No. I am afraid Aya...I am not."

He draws his blade and levels it at the pair.

"There are living people underneath us. Will the blood of their bodies be on your hands tonight? Or shall we take this somewhere else. Aya."

"Somewhere else then." Aya replies quietly, and flash steps away from the roof of the gas station convenience store into a forest clearing a mile away.

In her mind, she is fully aware that she is no match against Takeshi, even with the help of Shishiou. But she cannot just return to Soul Society just like that. The seeds of doubt have already planted themselves firmly within her mind, Kokubyaku Mujou have expressly manifested for a brief period of time in her active mindscape to deliver a poignant choice. She stands at the precipice of choice that borders between predestination and free will.

No, she has her duty, and she will talk to Captain Taiki when she goes back. Assuming Takeshi simply does not bind her and take her away. She will not and cannot join Takeshi like this. Not when doing so violates everything she stood for, and why she stood by Takeshi before his defection. Being Takeshi now, would invalidate Takeshi. No. This is where she is placed directly opposite Takeshi for the first time in her life. Where the interplay between light and darkness spirals in perfect synchronicity, this time the spiral has effectively stopped, with Takeshi and Aya looking at each other in perfectly opposite directions. For all its worth, Takeshi retains that idealism Aya has. And Aya realizes the reality that Takeshi lived in all his life.

She will not willingly lose to Takeshi, and she does not expect Takeshi to give up just like that. No she will give it her all, and if Takeshi prevails, like how she suspects will be the outcome, and let the strength of their convictions speak to each other. The time to talk will be later. And in her heart, she owes Shishiou another apology. While she kept her promise to not join him, it wasn't a promise she made just for his sake alone. It was for her sake, and Takeshi's sake as well. This scouting and apprehension mission has failed as predicted, and she will assume responsibility, just as how she bungled the previous search and capture assignment.

[Kasanip]

Ken
[Houheiden]
A thought suddenly crossed Ken's mind during the tense dead silence before the two exchanged blows. "Is there a certain form of sparring you had in mind? Also, what martial art do you practice?"

Sayaka
[Houheiden]

Sayaka shook her head.
"I don't know. I practiced Japanese Archery. I think." She frowned a little.
"Actually, I'm not sure. I don't think I've fought a person before. Just spiritual creatures."

She held her hands up defensively.

[tgva8889]

The Concierge nods.

"Ready... just... give... the word..."

They then move up to the driver's door, open it, and stand ready for the order."

The man motions to the radio again. "We should coordinate."

[Frozen_Feet]

Sora sighs, relieved. A tinge of red touches his cheeks as Yui questions his motives, and he mutters a reply.

"I was just a bit smrgflrel." The last word is incredibly silent, but Yui might have heard "worried". He shakes his head at the question about Silva, but he turns quickly at the howl, the hunger in Yui's eyes reflected tenfold on his face. But he couldn't go off chasing Hollows to eat, that wouldn't be normal.

"Like I said, haven't seen her, I was just about to go talk to her. Which reminds me, how do you know Hasunaga-sensei?"

"Hasunaga-sensei...?", Yui asks. "Oh, do you mean that paranoid... errr, cautious old man who was with you at the graveyard six days ago? It was six days, right? He's you're teacher, huh?"

[Sora and Silva's Apartment of Fun]

Sora opened the door, a small click was sounded as he walked through, shutting it behind him. He walked over to the couch, falling onto it as he grabbed a book off the nearby coffee stand.

Anybody who didn't know him well would have been shocked. He appeared completely comfortable in this situation. Of being inside someone else's house. Because he didn't really seem to live there, only to stop by.

A lot.

"... I don't really know if him at all, really", Yui continues as she enters the apartment in Sora's wake. "Just met him passingly that day. Why do you even ask? And since when did Silva give you the key?" The last sentence is clearly teasing in tone.

Then, a torrent of dread flows over the small apartment, and Yui freezes. Surely, Sora feels it too, the conflicting energies washing over the hapless town. Yui walks silently to a window on their right, opens it and peers outside. She stays put for a good while, just feeling the sensations filling the air.

What in the world?, she thinks. Even though her mortal guise obscures and diminishes her senses, she can still see the lights over the horizon, still feel the warmth of distant spirits as if they were unholy bonfires blazing near her skin.

For some reason, the conflicts and battles of the world after have spilled to the realm of the living, in magnitude not witnessed in ages. A part of Yui feels frustrated at the fact that going there to intervene herself would... likely be very, very unwise. Oh, if I only had my sword...!

"This sure is turning out to be an interesting afternoon", she quips. "You haven't felt anything like this before, I reckon? Do you have any idea what these feelings mean?"

[Kuroimaken]

Spoiler

Show

"Somewhere else then." Aya replies quietly, and flash steps away from the roof of the gas station convenience store into a forest clearing a mile away.

In her mind, she is fully aware that she is no match against Takeshi, even with the help of Shishiou. But she cannot just return to Soul Society just like that. The seeds of doubt have already planted themselves firmly within her mind, Kokubyaku Mujou have expressly manifested for a brief period of time in her active mindscape to deliver a poignant choice. She stands at the precipice of choice that borders between predestination and free will.

No, she has her duty, and she will talk to Captain Taiki when she goes back. Assuming Takeshi simply does not bind her and take her away. She will not and cannot join Takeshi like this. Not when doing so violates everything she stood for, and why she stood by Takeshi before his defection. Being Takeshi now, would invalidate Takeshi. No. This is where she is placed directly opposite Takeshi for the first time in her life. Where the interplay between light and darkness spirals in perfect synchronicity, this time the spiral has effectively stopped, with Takeshi and Aya looking at each other in perfectly opposite directions. For all its worth, Takeshi retains that idealism Aya has. And Aya realizes the reality that Takeshi lived in all his life.

She will not willingly lose to Takeshi, and she does not expect Takeshi to give up just like that. No she will give it her all, and if Takeshi prevails, like how she suspects will be the outcome, and let the strength of their convictions speak to each other. The time to talk will be later. And in her heart, she owes Shishiou another apology. While she kept her promise to not join him, it wasn't a promise she made just for his sake alone. It was for her sake, and Takeshi's sake as well. This scouting and apprehension mission has failed as predicted, and she will assume responsibility, just as how she bungled the previous search and capture assignment.

Shishiou followed in kind. He was more or less expecting things to turn out this way. The sad thing was, this was the best case scenario for him.
Unfortunately, his stance as an outsider made it easier for him to realize the extent of Takeshi's madness (for lack of a better word). But at this point he was starting to breed actual hatred for the ex-Kido Corps. Commander. The way Shishiou saw it, Kitano was playing with her feelings to get what he wanted. He was hurting her, and many others, for the sake of some insane fantasy world he was living in. He couldn't stand that.

"Ama no murakumo de odore! Utatte! Ranginjin!" (Over the gathering clouds of heaven, dance! Sing! Storm Minstrel!)

The little yellow sprite usually following him quickly becomes a stream of crackling electricity, which Shishiou commands to lodge itself at his feet at first.

[KnightDisciple]

Spoiler

Show

[The Mitsurugi Household]

Reiji's home was not a mansion by any means. However, it was quite obviously a large, ancient and very well-cared for house. It was surrounded by a brick and stone wall, which allowed as an apology to modern times only a number of thin, electrified wires - likely the only real outward defense of his home. Or at least that's how the Watanabes perceived it, anyway.

Except for Kaito. He couldn't really see, but he could feel presences near the walls and gate. They were a very strange sensation though - for souls, they blended far too naturally with the background. Someone with no spiritual sensitivity couldn't hope to catch wind of them.

His assistant helped the Watanabes carry their luggage inside.

"Koichi, see to it that the crime scene is processed as soon as possible. Contact Nakamura, ask him to fix the damage on the Watanabe household as soon as he's able. Tell him I'll pay for it."

Then, he turned back to the house.

"Sadako-san, we have guests."

A woman perhaps in her thirties attired modestly as a Japanese housemaid greeted them with a bow. She was of average height, with black, elegant hair that she kept bound in a braid down to her waist. Perhaps it was her dull gray eyes, or the way she measured her smile, but Kaito could tell she was considerably older than she looked.

"Please carry their luggage up to the guest rooms. I'll show them around the house."

"Understood, Mitsurugi-sama."

Kaito blinks at the house. Akira and Hinata seem mildly impressed, but not totally surprised; it's likely they've been here once or twice before.

"Man, maybe I do want to go into law-ow! Mooommm!"

"That has to be the worst reasoning ever, Kaito."

"It was a joke. I'm trying not to think about almost getting shot earlier, okay? Sorry. I just...yeah."

The family hugs, Hinata giving a shaky laugh.

"It's okay. Let's get inside."

They passed their luggage on to Sadako, Kaito's parents walking inside immediately.

Kaito himself lingered for a moment, frowning as he cast his gaze across the walls, narrowing his eyes a bit. He knew there was something there...But what?

He shook his head and started to walk inside...

[Terry576]

"Hasunaga-sensei...?", Yui asks. "Oh, do you mean that paranoid... errr, cautious old man who was with you at the graveyard six days ago? It was six days, right? He's you're teacher, huh?"



"... I don't really know if him at all, really", Yui continues as she enters the apartment in Sora's wake. "Just met him passingly that day. Why do you even ask? And since when did Silva give you the key?" The last sentence is clearly teasing in tone.

Then, a torrent of dread flows over the small apartment, and Yui freezes. Surely, Sora feels it too, the conflicting energies washing over the hapless town. Yui walks silently to a window on their right, opens it and peers outside. She stays put for a good while, just feeling the sensations filling the air.

What in the world?, she thinks. Even though her mortal guise obscures and diminishes her senses, she can still see the lights over the horizon, still feel the warmth of distant spirits as if they were unholy bonfires blazing near her skin.

For some reason, the conflicts and battles of the world after have spilled to the realm of the living, in magnitude not witnessed in ages. A part of Yui feels frustrated at the fact that going there to intervene herself would... likely be very, very unwise. Oh, if I only had my sword...!

"This sure is turning out to be an interesting afternoon", she quips. "You haven't felt anything like this before, I reckon? Do you have any idea what these feelings mean?"

Sora nods at Yui's question, before shooting her a sharp glare as she continues, the faintest hint of a blush coloring his cheeks. He opens his mouth to reply before the dread washes over him, freezing him in his sarcastic tracks. Unlike Yui, Sora isn't used to such a feeling. The dread has a massive tinge of something else, something he wants.

Power.

It's strange, really. When Yui asks her second set of questions, Sora shakes his head, but only one thought is running through his mind.

"I'd like to have that kind of power."

[Kuroimaken]

Kaito blinks at the house. Akira and Hinata seem mildly impressed, but not totally surprised; it's likely they've been here once or twice before.

"Man, maybe I do want to go into law-ow! Mooommm!"

"That has to be the worst reasoning ever, Kaito."

"It was a joke. I'm trying not to think about almost getting shot earlier, okay? Sorry. I just...yeah."

The family hugs, Hinata giving a shaky laugh.

"It's okay. Let's get inside."

They passed their luggage on to Sadako, Kaito's parents walking inside immediately.

Kaito himself lingered for a moment, frowning as he cast his gaze across the walls, narrowing his eyes a bit. He knew there was something there...But what?

He shook his head and started to walk inside...

"A mind like yours is a little less befitting of the court trade, I would think. Rules and semantics, Kaito-kun. You'd be bored of it within a week.

I must admit that the investigation of each case is the most interesting part for me - unraveling the mystery, as it were. Everything else is consequence. Some people claim I'm unbeatable in court, but they forget that the process of law is about truth, not winning or losing. I have had my share of defendants against whom I've eagerly dropped charges as soon as I found out they were not guilty.

Which reminds me of something I'd like to talk to you about. Hinata, Akira, do you mind if I borrow your son for a minute?"

[KnightDisciple]

"A mind like yours is a little less befitting of the court trade, I would think. Rules and semantics, Kaito-kun. You'd be bored of it within a week.

I must admit that the investigation of each case is the most interesting part for me - unraveling the mystery, as it were. Everything else is consequence. Some people claim I'm unbeatable in court, but they forget that the process of law is about truth, not winning or losing. I have had my share of defendants against whom I've eagerly dropped charges as soon as I found out they were not guilty.

Which reminds me of something I'd like to talk to you about. Hinata, Akira, do you mind if I borrow your son for a minute?"

Kaito smiled.

"Yeah, and a bored lawyer is a dangerous lawyer.

Truth...I can respect that. No matter what I do, I know truth is critical. Maybe that's why the sciences attract me; they're all about truth..."

Kaito frowned a bit at Reiji wanting to speak with him, but looked to his parents and shrugged.

"That's fine. We're going to go to whatever room you've given us and change into something more comfortable."

With that, they walked down the hall, leaving a curious Kaito with their host.

"So..."

[Kuroimaken]

Kaito smiled.

"Yeah, and a bored lawyer is a dangerous lawyer.

Truth...I can respect that. No matter what I do, I know truth is critical. Maybe that's why the sciences attract me; they're all about truth..."

Kaito frowned a bit at Reiji wanting to speak with him, but looked to his parents and shrugged.

"That's fine. We're going to go to whatever room you've given us and change into something more comfortable."

With that, they walked down the hall, leaving a curious Kaito with their host.

"So..."

"You can relax. I'm not going to tell your parents anything about your situation. If you haven't told them yourself, that's your secret to keep. But I'd ask you the same courtesy.

I know you've noticed something. Tell me, won't you?"

Takeshi moves back out to sea with the two seated Shinigami though as the other man calls out his weapon he stands firmly in place as the waves crash beneath him. He shakes his head once more, closing his eyes as he lifts his fingers in mock gun like pantomime.

"Lower your weapon Aya...for your own sake do not come at me. For if you do...you'll mark yourself as my enemy."

He looks up, his eyes open as they pierce through the young girl like twin spears.

"And as a Shinigami I will cut you down without regret for even your death will be the least of my sins when this all has played out."

"You're the lowest, Takeshi. You're using Aya's heart as a shield! Have you NO SHAME?!" Shishiou seemed to be positively trembling with anger. Deep down he knew he shouldn't let it get the best of him - he was in deep as it was. And Takeshi picked the best possible battlefield for himself.

Salt water and electricity were a bad mix.

"Aya-san, no words are going to get through to him. I'm afraid the time has come to fight."

[KnightDisciple]

"You can relax. I'm not going to tell your parents anything about your situation. If you haven't told them yourself, that's your secret to keep. But I'd ask you the same courtesy.

I know you've noticed something. Tell me, won't you?"

Kaito's eyes widen a bit. He'd hoped Reiji wasn't quite so observant, but...

"How can you tell? I mean...you're blind, aren't you? What do you even know?"

He glanced back outside.

"I'm not sure what I noticed out there, on your walls. Wasn't distinct. Just...something. Back at the house, though? It was hard to say for the most part, other than "something I don't want to go near"."

[Kuroimaken]

Kaito's eyes widen a bit. He'd hoped Reiji wasn't quite so observant, but...

"How can you tell? I mean...you're blind, aren't you? What do you even know?"

He glanced back outside.

"I'm not sure what I noticed out there, on your walls. Wasn't distinct. Just...something. Back at the house, though? It was hard to say for the most part, other than "something I don't want to go near"."

"Clinically, yes."

At this point, Reiji removed his shades. The scar on his eyes was obvious and more than a little unsettling.

"Back when my parents were murdered, and their killer blinded me to prevent future recognition... their spirits lingered. They couldn't bear to leave me behind, but there was nothing they could do. Their presence... left a mark in me. I became able to see spirits, and soon... I actually had better vision than before my eyes were damaged.

What you sensed out there are spirit servants of mine. We have a working contract. Since it's not particularly easy to tell apart who can and can't see spirits, they hide whenever we have visitors in the household."

[Kuroimaken]

"I tire of yapping dogs, if hated I must be...I shall forge Aya's new blade in the blood of her friends."

Takeshi stoops low, his eyes narrowing as energy starts to crackle between his palms.

"Black Dog of Rodanini cry havoc and let loose the dogs of war. Hado 90 Negative Absolution."

An almost perfect sphere of darkness forms between Takeshi's hands before he pushes it forward with obvious strain. The sound of an amplifier rings through the air as time almost seems to halt before a powerful and wide beam lances out across the water towards Shishiou, the water and air bowing around it.

He wasn't kidding around. A fully chanted level 90 Hadou would surely disintegrate Shishiou and any attempt of defense he tried to mount.

Luckily, Shishiou wasn't that stupid. He was competent enough with Kidou to know that any spell starting with "Black Dog of Rondanini" was a Hadou. And the weakness of Hadou is that no matter how potent it is, the point of origin is always the caster.

This enabled him just enough time to shift Ranginjin to his torso, and Shunpo away with enough freedom that at first glance, he'd managed to avoid the black beam completely. Closer inspection would reveal a tear at his shihakusho's right sleeve, however.

Were he a fraction of a second slower and had Ranginjin not softened the "scratch" he may well have lost his entire arm.

Shishiou's needles fly towards Takeshi. They seem spread enough to be random - luckily, Takeshi isn't very familiar with his technique.