Standing Tall: Calm Before the Storm

This article, , is the opening segment of the Third Battle of Grat which itself is the final chapter of The Rising arc of Bleach: Cataclysm. Garrett and his friends remain the main characters with the Imawashī as antagonists.

Kusaka and Garrett where sparring in the former's training ground when Kusaka suddenly pulled Garrett up sharply with a raised hand and the young man slid to a complete stop mere inches from Kusaka's face. Had he not stopped he would have slugged Kusaka right in the mouth!

"What is it?" Garrett asked.

He had quickly developed a certain... appreciation... for Kusaka and his instincts. The man had all the social graces of a bulldog chewing a wasp, and he was quick to lose his temper and lash out at anything around him, but the bastard was as sharp as they came. When he sensed something it was a wise move to step back and listen to him.

Not that Garrett would ever admit that aloud, of course. Kusaka would lord it over him forever.

"They'll be here shortly: Dastan and his cronies."

He said it so casually that Garrett was taken aback. But then he remembered who it was that he was talking to. Kusaka Kori was feared throughout the spiritual realms as The Slayer of Gods, the bloodthirsty Sword Demon, and the battle-crazed Kenpachi. There was also the continued assertion that he was currently stronger than Kenji himself. Dastan Shiba, his cruel scientist Arata, and the rest of the Imawashī to boot barely registered as a blip on his threat detector by this point.

"I won't be here when they do."

"... I know." Garrett answered. "I am grateful... you grizzled old bastard."

"Oi, I'm not that old yet."

Kusaka wasn't the type to abandon anyone who couldn't defend themselves -- the fact he was walking away now, when he could have easily done so before, showed that he recognised the strength of those he was leaving behind. And Garrett knew this too.

"You and Kenji had done your share. Now let us do ours." Garrett sounded confident.

Kusaka grinned. "You're learning. Good. But before I do I have one more thing to test."

And he aimed a strike right at Garrett's skull...!

For the first time in weeks Jenna stepped into the light of day and breathed the outside air. It was early morning and the forested area on the outskirts of Grat was coming alive with sounds. Birds chirruped high above, the slight breeze blowing between the trees rustled the fallen leaves, and she could swear she heard water running. The serenity of the scene was shattered by the sound of metal scraping as the door to the training facility owned by Lloyd's family closed.

"Happy to be done?"

"Yeah, though I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to do about school." Jenna admitted as she bit her lip. "I've been gone quite a while."

Lloyd burst out laughing!

"You think we haven't done this before?" He asked, whilst chewing his toothpick. "Anko had custom Gigai's made for us and programmed each with a facsimile of our personality. They aren't exact but they stand up to some scrutiny."

"... She really has thought of everything." It seemed Jenna had just gotten herself a new role model.

"Not quite." Lloyd admitted. "We've still got to cram like mad for exams and stuff. Besides, all it helps with is appearances. Some of our teachers -- Mrs. Summers and the Principal for example -- are spiritually aware, and are very much aware of our extra-curricular activities."

Jenna's groan could likely be heard in Grat. "Enough about school. I'm starving! Lets get back to town: my treat, alright?"

Lloyd wasn't about to turn that offer down and in no time at all the two where settled onto his motorbike and on their way back towards Grat. The journey was uneventful. The meal more so but Lloyd was happy just to be enjoying a normal activity with her away from spiritual threats. For once they got to act like teenagers. For once they got to be normal.

"You know something?" Lloyd asked. "I'd like to this again sometime. Not the whole training thing, but the eating out and talking bit."

"... I thought you and Randy where supposed to be smooth talkers?"

"I'm not like Randy. That fool would ride a cracked plate, hence Tiffany's nickname for him."

"Maybe we'll see?"

And he was happy with that.

Whilst his friends carried on defending Grat in his absence Garrett slid across the ground to escape Kusaka's overhead slash and quickly sprang into the air. Once airborne he kicked off the air with Shunpo and aimed a kick at Kusaka's head! The elder Shinigami reacted with the ease of a veteran combatant and slammed Garrett into the floor hard.

"You're definitely getting quicker, I'll give you that."

The impact had slightly cratered the earth below Garrett -- an indication that Kusaka was holding back considerably -- and he soon returned to his feet and began dusting himself down. Before Garrett had been a mere Human but now he was something altogether different. Garrett was no longer dressed in his white karate gi but rather the Shihakushō of the, and at his waist hung a. The blade was the former Bakkōtō modified into an Asauchi by Anko and Marisa and took the form of a standard katana with black hilt wrapping and a square-shaped guard with inward-pointing corners similar to that of a four-leaf clover. His kosode however only covered the top right-hand portion of Garrett's chest, leaving his left arm free and left pectoral region covered with bandages. Sitting proudly on his left shoulder was a black shoulder-plate: not unlike that worn by Kusaka himself when using Shikai.

"Round two?" Garrett asked. "I think I'm getting the hang of my new powers."

"This time we don't stop until you cut me at least once."

Garrett wasted no time at all. He wasn't going to get anywhere using his fists against Kusaka -- he wasn't likely to get anywhere using his Zanpakutō either, if he was being honest, but he sure as hell wasn't going to slink away from this encounter like he had in past battles with the fabled Slayer of Gods.

This time Garrett was going to rise to the occasion. For the longest time he recalled being frightened of Kusaka. Who wouldn't be afraid of the man who put you in hospital for a week? But sometimes to grow one needed to face one's demons.

Garrett glared at Kusaka and all the Kori clansmen saw reflected in those eyes was resolve.

"Kusaka... I hated you. I was scared of you ever since I met you." Garrett declared loudly and without a tremor in his voice, and Kusaka couldn't help but notice that Garrett was now talking in the past tense. "I'll break your hold, 'cause I won't be controlled. You've pushed me in the past: now I'm pushing back." His reiatsu took solid form around him as he drew his Zanpakutō from its sheath. "And just an FYI? You should have killed me. Because what doesn't... makes me stronger!"

Garrett's eyes shone green as he freed his blade.

"Rise, Fūjin!"

And in seconds of the release Kusaka found a gash cut into his cheek as powerful wind currents surrounded Garrett's body.

The End.