Soul Society arc: Exploration

Arriving in Soul Society with a thud, Haruki landed atop of Raze's body causing the white haired shinigami to scream out with an "OOOFFF! Get off me!"

"Hahaha sorry, but that's what you get for suddenly dragging me along without any sudden warnings at all." Haruki sighed as he stood and helped his friend up before spotting Kujina in Azami's lap and slightly blushing. "Hmmmm? I wonder where the others are? They were right behind us right?"

"Well I think they stopped momentarily but they should be here by now to be honest." Azami said as she looked around curiously.

The first to fall through the barrier was Jinta Kanō, who had been all but hurled bodily through by Riki, who landed atop him with a knee drop! "That's for the elbow earlier, you little-"

Riki's face struck the floor as Ashni followed Harumi, her foot connecting Riki in the back as she glided past to land on her feet graciously. Even winded as he was, Jinta was laughing at her entrance only to be kicked squarely in the fork of the legs; causing his scream to echo!

"Everyone here?" Ashni asked of the others, taking no further interest in her comrades beyond Harumi who followed her closely; casting the occasional look to Jinta who was still lying in a fetal position; wind knocked from him twice in as many seconds.

"... Bro, I think we're abused." Riki whispered into the floor before he rolled over and helped Jinta to his feet, who vomited as he was lifted. "I ain't gonna say anything 'cause I don't bloody well blame you. C'mon, time to go." Practically dragging Jinta along, Riki caught up with the others and sighed in exasperation as the sun beat down on them from above.

Looking around, Raze sighed. "Damn that Atsuya." Pointng behind the group he directed them to look off of large mountain and into the distance. "That's the Rukongai. That devil man placed us way on the outskirts of everything."

"WHAT!" Azami screamed out in annoyance before settling down and punching a tree. "Well what do we do now?"

"Its simple. We go save your friend....Jikan was it? And then we look for information about Akiye as well correct?" Kujina smiled as the wind blew her hair and thesun shone dimly behind her giving her a slightly angelic appearance.

Clapping his hands together, Rozeluxe nodded "That's true. So I think we should start making our way down the mountain about now right guys? At least before we're spotted by unwanted eyes" He said as he looked at the injured Riki and Jinta.

"...Paaaiiinnne...." Jinta said weakly, the youngster all but leaning on Riki for support. One arm was around the Fōun-juu's neck, while the other was cupping his groin in agony. His face had lost all color, being a very pale white.

Riki shook his head and looked at Ashni a little more fiercely than he had intended, canines barred and fists clenched. Even with her own stern look back at him his expression didn't lessen a hair for a good while. "Getting down the mountain? Good start." The blond-haired youth finally said as he worked his way past the girls of his group, dust from Jinta's feet dragging rising into the air in his wake.

"I know this place," Harumi said as they began their trek down the steep slopes. We're on Mt. Koifushi near District #3: Hokutan, western Rukongai. We aren't that far from the Seireitei here, but getting past the Patrol Teams of the Rukon could be a big problem." Harumi had once been a member of those very teams, back when her father and Kenji were defending the Rukon from Averian's attacks.

"Oh? Then by all means. Lead the way. I'm sure the rest of us wouldn't mind at all if we had some actual direction." Raze said he spoke to Harumi while trying not to laugh from watching Riki and Jinta.

Walking away from the cliff with Azami, Haruki sighed. "So these Patrol teams.....would they actually pose a threat to us? Or would it be more of an arrest type of deal?" Thinking for a moment he developed a look of disgust across his face. "Then again, would Inshu be involved with them? If so I would be more than happy to run into him. "

"Order members are permitted within the Rukongai... well... at least we used to be." Riki said from the side-lines, scratching the side of his head awkwardly. Jinta was walking freely now, though he was still a little unsure of his feet. As they walked Riki had to steady his rosy-haired friend twice to stop him from going down.

"There's a group," Ashni continued on from her blond-haired companion, tone neutral and without much discernible emotion for once. "We don't know their name. What we do know is that Averian, among others, are part of its number. The Imawashī included." She cast Harumi a look then that showed what she thought of that development.

"They have spies," Jinta slid in, finally looking to be coming back to his usual, energetic self. "These spies spread rumors about the Ryū Order planning a rebellion against the Soul Society. And the Central 46 are under the believe that 'whose to say rumors aren't truth'?" His sigh followed the information with his shoulders slumping in exasperation.

"Not that it matters much," Said the ever-confident Riki Nagakura. He was moving his right arm back and forth with the occasional spin to loosen the muscles; all the while a wolfish grin was plastered across his face. "If we run into 'em, I'll pound their heads in along with this Inshu character." He put his arm around Haruki's shoulder, with the image Riki cast of his goofy older brother, Shin, being very strong. In fact it nearly made Jinta gag at the likeness! "Unconscious people have a hard time arresting anyone, eh, Haruki?"

"Averian huh? I heard about him from my dad. That's one foul guy we really don't want to run into." Azami sighed as she walked with the group, her blonde locks flowing in the gentle breeze as she noticed the vast outreaches of land in front of them. "But if they have spies, then are we really going to be safe at any point while we're here right?"

Smiling Raze continued on, "Of course not. We are technically invaders. And I'm risking my hide to get you all in there. So don't go gettin yerselves caught or nothin cause I'm not gonna be bailing you out of any jams if I'm locked away as well." Looking back at blank faces, he sighed. "Fun accent not work? Let me phrase it like this. Don't get caught. That will be the least helpful thing for us at this point."

"In any case we should get going right guys? Let's try to get in there before someone spots us and brings down the house." Kujina smiled awkwardly admiring everyone's courage in the situation.

"Well? How about it Ms. Direction?" Riki asked of Harumi who simply pointed off in the direction they were traveling. "Let's get moving then! No point wasting time here flapping our gums, is there!?" Riki bounded off with gusto in his steps. As usual he wasn't paying attention to anything that was going on around him, nor was he thinking things through much either. The only thing he was doing was sniffing the air.

"Raze," It was Ashni who spoke. "What did you mean earlier when you said you were risking your hide to get us in here? Do you have some connection with the nobility?" It wasn't a question. The way she said it as well as the stubborn set to her shoulders and the intensity of those amber-colored eyes made it more of a demand. Jinta and Harumi were looking at one another as if they expected a war to break out.

"... There's something new..." Riki thought as he sniffed the air. He ran his eyes along the ground but made it appear as though nothing were outwardly troubling him.

"Oh? You heard that? Well how do I explain this?" Raze stopped as he clasped his hand's together. "Well, you see...the thing is I have asked the Princess of the Kasumioji Clan to marry me. And you see...the Sereitei has gotten more lenient in recent times but still doesn't look too kindly on strangers just waltzing in. "

Haruki smiled as he heard. "Well then, its a good thing our uncle works there, and Yurei went on ahead to speak to his mother. So we should be good to go right, Azami?" Looking around, Haruki couldn't spot his sister. "Azami? Where did you go?"

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!" A loud shriek was heard down near the bottom of the cliffs, causing Haruki's eyes to widen as he grabbed Kujina and began running toward the noise.

Despite the boot to the delicates he had taken earlier and the unsureness he had shown on his feet since, Jinta bounded off quicker than either Harumi or Ashni had thought possible, all considering. He flash stepped ahead of the others and stopped beside Azami with a concerned look plastered across his face. "What? What?" He asked hurriedly, skidding to a halt and kneeling in front of her.

"And there he goes!" Riki remarked, looking far off into the distance with a fool grin on his face. "Only time I've seen him move so quicks when he ate Ashni's curry and needed a restroom."

"What's that about my cooking!?" But Riki was gone with Ashni soon giving chase. "Get back here!!"

Azami pointed to a nearby tree as she covered her mouth to prevent herself from vomiting and turned to face Haruki placing her head in his chest. "Its...Yurei"

Haruk looked up confused. "What are you tal-YUREI!!" Shifting Azami to Kujina, Haruki ran over to see the mutilated body of his friend strung from the top of the tree. Tearing him down he tried to wake up his fallen friend to no avail. "Harumi!!!! Help, please! His pulse is weak and falling fast but there might be a chance to save him if we hurry!"

Riki maintained his distance from the others even when Harumi and Ashni bounded past him to offer their help. "Why do I get the feeling they know we're coming...? Sorry guys, but I don't trust this." He disappeared then, intent on checking their perimeter for any "surprises".

Jinta watched him go but didn't say a word to stop him. "Riki... what are you doing?" But Riki didn't fill his thoughts for long. "Haruki, hold these." He accepted the bandages as Harumi began the healing process, Ashni erecting a defensive barrier around them so nothing would take them by surprise. Jinta walked off to the side to stand with Raze.

"What do you think of all this, Raze?" Jinta was suddenly becoming very worried about them being very open. "Riki didn't smell him, for one, or he would've said something."

"R..un." Yurei squeezed out as he pointed toward the sky. "She's....ba...ck." He then lost conciousness once more as large amounts of blood began pouring from his mouth.

As the others looked up, a figure with a large blade descended in the glare of the sun in order to hide her prescence. "YA-HA!!!!!!"

"Everyone move!" Raze shouted as he ducked away grabbing Riki in the process and tumbling near the edge of a cliff as the strange person came down creating a large crater in between everyone.

"Get off me you oaf!" Riki roared, noticing that the strike came way too close to Ashni and Harumi's location for the young Fōrun-juu's liking. But there was little he could do as he was. Raze's grip was like that of a vice and breaking that was beyond him with his arms held as they were. The edge of the cliff came up then and filled Riki's vision, the resulting shockwave hurtling both of them clean over to fall to their unknown fate below. "Raze...! I'm gonna kill you if we don't die!"

Jinta rode the resulting shockwave like a surfer at the beach, finally using the momentum to propel his Shunpo. "Sorry about this!" He yelled as he grabbed Kujina bridle-style, though on the landing near the edge of the cliff he mis-judged his footing and ended up skidding down the mountain side with the remnants of that same shockwave speeding his descent! "This is insane!!!" His voice trailed off, eventually becoming little more than an echo.

Ashni, however, planted her feet and sought her equilibrium. As a result the earths rumbling or the shockwave did little to disrupt her balance. "Harumi, take the injured person with you. Azami, go with her and guard her back. Haruki!" She yelled over at the Satonaka clansmen. "We will give them time to escape." Her tone betrayed enough for Harumi to know she wasn't suggesting. She was commanding.

Looking at her brother, Azami sighed before noticing Kujina was missing as well before biting her toungue and running alongside Harumi and assisting her in carrying the injured Yurei. "You better not die, idiot brother. And make sure you find that cousin of ours!" Azami's voice could be heard as she ran into the nearby thicket of trees with Harumi and Yurei.

"I'm up for anything after seeing what this person did to Yurei." Haruki had a stern look on his face as he drew his nodachi and it began glowing with a blue flame. "I will be sure to give them hell. Right Ashn-" Before Haruki could finish, a cloud of dust and small rocks suddenly lifted from the crater as the figure jumped out and looked around.

"How dare that busty bimbo touch him! I will smack every little hair off of that pretty little face once I catch up to them. I saw him and he is my target, until I loose interest." The figure with the large sword jumped up from the crater and looked at haruki and Ashni before smirking and began running after Jinta and Kujina.

Ashni found herself hesitating, suddenly remembering the words she had had with Atsuya Tatsumi before they left regarding a certain group of Satonaka clansmen. "You seem the most trustworthy out of the bunch. I need a good eye to make sure they stay out of danger. They'll more than likely wind up getting themselves killed one of these days cause of their personalities and you seem to be able to keep most of them in line with just a glance." His fool voice replayed in her mind, the young woman kicking the ground in irritation. "Jinta... Look after her."

Stepping forward she would appear to be giving chase until she sheathed her nodachi finally with a slight metallic clink. "Another time, Haruki." She said simply, walking past him towards the downed Yurei. "Come on. You are needed elsewhere." The tone she took with her charge was altogether too calm. Almost cold. Like she didn't give a damn at all.

"Er...yea sure." Haruki looked over his shoulder in the direction Jinta and Kujina fell. "Tch. Let's just make sure Yurei is safe as well as Harumi and Azami."

Meanwhile....

The figure with the large sword began skidding down the cliff toward the location of Jinta and Kujina's departure. "Ohhhhh don't run away from me. I'm harmless. I just want to hug you and smash her face in. Don't worry about anything at all ok?" Stabbing her blade in the ground, she created a large quake through the area that ruptured the ground around her before jumping from rock to rock in order to edge closer towards Jinta. Spotting him near the bottom, she began to seemingly glow with excitement as she readied herself to do battle.

"... Tch. Seems like we're the pick of the day." But then there was the question that was nagging away at the back of his mind. Why the hell were they attacked in the first place? Did someone know about their mission? And if that truly was the case, then who was this someone? We're they a person of means with plenty of goons at their disposal or were they low key with well trained goons? Judging by the display so far he was willing to put his money on the latter notion.

"Hold on!" He said to Kujina. "Spark, Samazamahi." Flames ignited around him as the young mans wakizashi vanished into the very flames that now surrounded him and Kujina. "Fighting on this slope puts us at a massive disadvantage. The footing just isn't sure enough," Flames seemed to focus more around his feet and legs as he performed the Hakuda technique Tenka Shōseki to create a solid stream of flame that propelled the two away from the hazardous slope and into the air; finally landing them both at the bottom on nice smooth ground. But even as Jinta touched the floor he had vanished, setting Kujina down a slight distance away from their touchdown area. "Sorry about that," He said again. Even now he couldn't stop the blush coming to the surface.

"YOU'RE NOT GETTING AWAY FROM ME!!!!" The figure suddenly stopped her descent by stabbing her blade into the ground before heaving it up and over her head pulling up a large chunk of earth that she heaved at Kujina and began riding it down. "I'm gonna smash that pretty little face of yours."

Looking around, Kujina was still in a daze from all the excitement. "What's going on?" Seeing Jinta covered in flames she stumbled back a bit before seeing a descending figure coming down from above. "EEIYAH!!!" Jumping back toward Jinta, she suddenly grabbed him and smothered him in her chest as she held for dear life. "Jinta what was that!?"

"Bleh! I thant bleathe!" Jinta screamed almost desperately, cheeks aflame as it finally dawned on him just where his head was. "If this is heaven then I can die happy..." His inner pervert was saying, though base instinct soon took over. Before he was really aware of it he had tripped Kujina, launching both to the floor before he rolled along with her to avoid the intended strike from their pursuer! Rising on shaky legs, Jinta dusted himself down before helping Kujina to her feet; cheeks still as bright as the flames around him.

"Leave this to me," He assured her as he stepped forward, only stuttering slightly. Heh, he was getting the hang of this talking to girls malarkey. The youngster began flexing his wrists until he noticed something very wrong. "You...! You ripped my wristbands!" They lay ripped and tattered beyond all repair not three feet away. "I. Hate. You." He was a hairsbreadth away from doing murder. "Now answer me. Who the hell are you?"

Landing with a large thud, the figure flicked ts hair back before revealing a girl with a short skirt and an even shorter shirt. "Me? Well I am just an angel of the earth itself. I was sent here by my leader, to watch over this area and came across some wood using boy earlier who challenged me to a fight. He didn't last too long against me. I sort of just broke through him like he were well....paper." Giggling she looked at Jinta before starting to blush. "In any case, I saw you back there and just knew that I would make myself your bride and then you will do everything I ask of you. I know its sudden but its fate, how else would you not have died when I tried to crush your skull back on top of the cliff?"

"Maybe because I was faster?" Jinta replied casually, a little half-smile playing across his face. "But rest assured I'll get you back for Yurei." He was a friend of Kentaro's after all and that was all the reason Jinta needed to dish out revenge in his friends steed. "But what the hell would you know of fate? I bet you'll say defeating Yurei was fate too, though in truth you were merely carrying out your orders like a good little boot licker, right? Judging by that fool look on your face I think I just hit the nail on the head." As he was now it was clear that Jinta was the epitome of seriousness. His shoulders were set and his features were hard. It was like watching a younger version of his brother. Anyone who knew him before Akiye had been kidnapped would say he was a different person completely.

His posture then shifted to the style that indicated his readiness to use his various Hakuda techniques dubbed Itten. His right was arm raised towards the heavens while positioned away from his body at an angle, with his left hand almost brushing the floor in front near his foot. His left foot was almost touching his left hand, while his right foot was planted firmly behind him to allow Jinta to propel himself forward easily and without trouble. "Kujina, don't let your guard down." He said without looking back. "If you see an opening, don't hesitate."

Pink Haired Female V. Jinta and Kujina
Nodding swiftly, Kujina readied her blade before thinking to herself. "I don't know the release....I did it while I was unconscious last time."

"Oh? Following orders? Hmmm...that's not quite it. He came along and asked too many questions and I had to put him in his place. To me...it just seemed like a way to kill some time. He wasn't too terribly strong, though the eye of his did garner my interest but he suppressed it before I could get a full feel of it. Oh well." Looking past Jinta toward Kujina, the pink haired female smiled with a twisted grin. "Hey there pretty little girl. Your face will be getting mauled real soon. SO don't think what I said doesn't hold any ground at all."

"Then let me kick you around for the same reasons." Jinta said in reply, his eyes narrowing in what could only be described as hatred. The one problem was that he didn't know Kujina's combat style - not even a shred of it. He'd have to watch and adjust to her attacks just as much as the pink-haired woman in front of him. "With that in mind-" He began thinking "-long-range seems to be best." Reishi formed around his right palm as the flames of his Shikai began to dance. "Itten: Rasenshō!" With a forward punching motion, the young Kanō clansmen released a spiraling wave of energy not unlike a twisting Cero. As that beam hurtled towards its target the black flames that formed the attacking strength of his Shikai converged from above, their aim to crush their target between both attacks!

Diverting her weight onto her sword, the pink haired female stabbed her massive weapon into the ground before pushing down on the hilt of her weapon lifting up a large boulder that was capable of barely blocking the black flames from above. Receiving scorch marks from the flames that made its way past the boulder, the pink haired woman smiled as she looked upon the incoming energy blast. "But you know....I just wanted to get to know you. Why do you have to be so hostile towards me? You act as if I did something wrong. The same reason you're attacking me now is the same reason why you're friend was attacked. Its the right thing to do, no?" Pivoting on her left foot, she seemingly skated along the Earth itself in order to narrowly avoid the energy attack.

Jinta merely tutted in response in the beginning as he vaulted backwards and then into the sky. The black flames were around him yet again while the red were dancing around Kujina in a defensive manner that would help keep her safe from harm. "I'm being so hostile because I find your idea of 'getting to know me' a little hard to swallow. If that were the case, you wouldn't have tried to split our skulls on the summit. And Yurei wouldn't have warned us, either. Besides-" The flames flared to life as Jinta scowled, the flames seemingly gaining in strength as his anger grew "-I'm here to find out something for myself in addition to my other reasons and you're in the way of that!" He'd infiltrated this hell-hole once and barely made it out alive. This time would be different! With a flick of his wrist the flames shot forward in streaking balls, the direction of which Jinta controlled from afar by exerting his will forcefully on the conjured flames. All he could hope for was an opening Kujina could exploit.

Charging foward through the flames set forth to protect her, Kujina launched a flurry of wires around the area creating a spider web of this steel material before charging electricity throughout it all attempting to char all that came into contact with it. "If this girl wants a fight...then let's give it too her Jinta!" Smiling as the pink haired woman was seemingly trapped in the large net she created, Kujina breathed a sigh of relief.

Blushing, the pink haired woman smiled a bit before jumping back away from the fire that scorched her feet burnig the soles off of her boot-like heels. "H-honestly its cause I thought you were cute. Then you grabbed that girl over there and I became jealous. Your friend made me seem worse than things actually were. He was the one to attack me first. I retaliated and he learned to regret his decision. You can see that can't you?" She smiled cheerfully before stumbling back and burning her back on the electrified stell wires. "Tch. You little brat! Why can't you just leave us alone?! You aren't wanted here!"

"You attacked us first!" Jinta shot back. "Unless what happened on the summit was a figment of my imagination?" It was obvious that Jinta wasn't going to pay much heed to this woman. He was too serious right now for that. "I reacted, saved my comrade and got out of the way of your attack. Live with it." And he'd sound cruel saying this, but honestly he didn't give a damn. He didn't particularly care for the pink-haired woman he was currently fighting with anyway. "You should really stop being so childish. I mean seriously. Running after me because you think I'm cute? Threatening Kujina because you want to take her place? Grow up!" He landed beside Kujina and began chuckling softly. "Time for a flare up, Samazamahi." The flames roared as though in answer to his statement, growing in fierceness and intensity. "......" The words were whispered so quietly Jinta barely heard them himself, but when the flames that had surrounded the Kanō and Satonaka clansmen vanished, both were nowhere to be seen. All that remained were the slowly burning remains of white bandages.

"Don't move," Jinta advised Kujina. "I've already disguised our reiatsu signature, so all we need to do is slip away." It seemed Harumi's various Kidō lessons had finally bore fruit for he had never been fit to perform those spells before.

"Tch. She got away. Do not fret my love, I will be with you one day! I know that you must act that way in front of that girl, but I understand. I will save you from her clutches!" Breaking the restraints that held her, the pink haired female ran toward the deeper levels of the forest in order to attempt to find any trace of Jinta and Kujina.

Enemy or Friend?
Riki and Raze, the respective leaders of their own teams, threw together as if by fate now raced away from the one place Riki wanted to head towards! "I said let me go!" Riki's temper was beginning to grow wild. One minute he had been ready to tear a certain assailants throat out while the next minute Raze had him by the back of the shirt trailing him off to god-only-knows were. A wolfish growl escaped his throat as his eyes momentarily changed to slitted irises. His muscle mass grew slightly as Riki finally twisted free from the man beside him.

"What's the big idea? Huh!?" His irises were back to normal, as were his muscles, though his posture and air told a very different story. This Riki was a hairsbreadth away from doing murder. "Soul Society isn't the place to be getting split up in. I don't know about you, but I want to be there if my friends are attacked."

"Oh really?" Raze sighed as he looked around the surrounding area. "What are ya gonna do if you get killed along with your friends? Huh? Oh that's right nothing except for sitting there in your own blood. Sometimes a tactical retreat is needed for situations such as these. Its called trusting in your friends and believeing that they will be able to take care of themselves." Taking in a breath, he paused before looking away from Riki before continuing. "And besides. You say you're on a mission no? Then why don't you show off those muscles of yours and let's just go knock on the front door..."

Riki remained silent, his eyes narrowing as his anger grew. A slight growl escaped his lips before it was stifled quickly as the young, temperamental Fōrun-juu folded his arms finally across his chest. But as much as he was beginning to hate the man in front of him with a royal passion...... Riki couldn't help but find a degree of sense in his words. Just a little though. "Damn you!" It was said more as a complaint to himself than Raze, though. And his tone was still laced with anger. "But knocking on the front door? I was never any good at that." It looked like their differences were going to keep popping up... until. "Kicking it in however..." Well, it seemed there was something these two could agree on. "Let's move."

Thinking for a moment, Raze smiled. "Now, now. Let's just go toward the Sereitei. I know a Captain on the inside. He helped train me after all." Looking at their current location, he smiled wide. "Though...would you happen to know how to get there? I don't want to say that we're lost. But, we could have a more favorable location to have fallen down in. Oopsie."

"Oh this takes the biscuit!" Riki proclaimed, hands raised to the heavens as he rounded on his would-be-rescuer. "You grab me and then drag me off to heaven knows were without a bloody notion were the hell your going yourself!? What did I do to deserve being lumbered with you?" Any thoughts of reigning in his temper went out the nearest window and to hell in a hand basket besides. "I could've went with the ladies but nooooo, that'd been too easy."

His rant done, he heaved a heavy sigh, directed a dirty look towards Raze and began sniffing at the air like a trained hound. "Our best bets this way." He said finally, pointing vaguely to the east. "Harumi said we were in Western Rukongai. We head east it should take us to where we need to go."

"Hmm. If that's the case, then I suggest we go North. Who knows where that hound like appendage of yours will take us." Raze smiled as he shrugged and drew a image in the dirt with his foot. "And its not like I knew for a fact where we would end up. If you want I could help you along into death if that's really what you want. I never knew people could complain so much about getting saved. Remind me to let you get your skull cracked open next time." There was a harsh tone in Raze's voice, obviously annoyed with who he had wound up with.

If this was one of those children's cartoons static electricity would be passing between these twos eyes any minute now. Riki picked up on the tone and took the comment as if it was the formal declaration of a challenge, for his eye was twitching like nothing half normal and his anger was growing with every passing second. "Never mind my nose. It's the direction my foot'll be going that you'll need to worry about." He even made the kicking motion. "And I think I'd have been better off on the mountain! At least the others have a sense of bloody direction." Not waiting on his "companion", Riki started stalking off west, all the while flexing his fingers and cracking his knuckles. Only when he remembered he needed to be going east did he turn around. "Not. A. Word."

Following slowly, Rozeluxe decided to go with the flow and tag along. "Hm...you know if its the direction of the foot we should be focused on; then mine going up your backside should be one of your biggest concerns." Speaking with a nonchalant tone, Raze then edged himself past Riki in order to get a feel for the surrounding area. "Since someone here seems to think they know what's best. I suppose I won't do a thing unless you tell me do so O Great Leader of Mine. Heh." Thiking to himself, Raze stopped for a moment wondering where his estate would be. "Maybe my Fiance could find us somehow."

''Meanwhile... In the Rukongai...''

"I do hope I can trust in you to see this carried out? Failure would be... unpleasant." The man wreathed in shadows said quietly but with an edge that told of its assurance. The figure was tall with dark blue hair visible beneath his cowl, though the features were hidden well. All that could be seen were the small, red eyes burning like torches in darkness that stabbed even as their owner vanished through what could only be a Garganta.

The subject of his statement was a short young woman with light red-colored hair and a dirty kimono dress that blended in with the average citizenry rather well.

Now that the man was gone, Anko Tayuya shivered visibly despite her best efforts not to. She hated the mystery man who'd lately been giving her her orders. What did he want? What was it all for? As far as she could see it didn't benefit her mentor, Bansui Amatsuki, nor herself a hair to track down anyone wishing to infiltrate the Soul Society. Wasn't that what the Collective Vices were after? Soul Societies downfall and the utter destruction of the Gotei 13? Anko wasn't sure now. But she couldn't very well ignore the order now could she?

"Let's go." Her companion, Gengetsu, said finally. He was tall. Much taller than Anko and wore school-themed clothing that struck a prominent clash with those around him. "Let's not keep him waiting."

In the Forest.

"I told you we should've taken that last right." Riki maintained when they passed a tree they'd past already for the second time. He was intent on being more of a hindrance than a help and wasn't much in worry how Raze took it, either. He never thought he'd see the day when he was actually looking to return to the danger being around Ashni almost assured. He was even missing the newcomers... what was their name? Satonaka? But here he was stuck with the dull old man instead. "My nose is starting to sound like a good idea again."

"Bah! I know its left three times and right twice. Though....the order escapes me." The last of this Raze whispered to himself. "In any case, I doubt your nose could do any better than we are now because if it could then you would have already found the way." Annoyed at the impatience of the man he was with, Raze longed for the his companionship of his friends and their lively atmosphere. "Ah...to be with this reckless idiot. I guess my fortune is off today. Oh well. Oi! Fool! Why don't you climb a tree and scout out the area?"

"You say the directions aloud so it's clear you know them, yet you still get us lost and you call me the fool?" Riki spat as he past, obviously hating his time in this idiots company as much as Raze was. At least they both could take some small comfort in the fact one might not be around much longer. "I wonder if I could kill him and pass it off as an accident? I could always try..." He clambered up the trunk of a large tree in little to no time at all. Atop his perch he could see for miles in either direction. "Keep going the way we're going." He said angrily. Unbelievable! He'd taken them the right way after all. "Didn't know you had it in you... and you say you've got a fiancée? Boy do I pity her."

"Hm. Why don't we rest here for the night instead? It will be getting dark soon and won't do us any good if we listen to you and keep going....we both know we'll only end up lost." Raze snickered a bit before leaning against a tree. "Though if you ask nicely I could make you a tent or something to keep you warm. Heh." Looking around, Raze paused before grabbing a firm hold on both of his blades. "Riki get down here. I think we have company."

"Can you never be sure of anything? It's always I think I see something, or I think its this way. How about: Riki, there's definitely something down here!" Riki shouted from his treetop vantage. Here he could for miles, though if Raze did see something it lay hidden by the canopy of leaves and branches just a foot or two away from him. Sliding down the tree trunk to land with a slight thud, Riki dusted his hands down and walked towards the man he was truly considering to murder.

His nose told him what was up the minute he came closer though. "For once you weren't joking. That's a stench I could never forgot and I even washed my nose afterwards. Serious case of BO and blood mixed in with... yup, chemicals. It's Gengetsu and Anko." Riki sighed heavily before cracking his neck and knuckles. "Last time I saw those bastards was just after I fought with a certain Diabolus. I was still in bandages, so what they're capable of..." He knew full well, but best to let Raze find out on his own said Riki's mischievous side.

"Oi! You handle this one fearless leader. I need a nap." Raze yawned as he waved his hand and turned his back walking toward a nearby shrubbery and layed down inside. Sitting back up and moving the leaves from his face he spoke again. "If you need something just yell ok? I'm sure you can handle this on your own. You look calm enough and you know them so you should be fine."

Two presences entered further into Riki's smelling range and it was clear that they were suppressing their powers. But he knew they lay just below the norm for a Shinigami captain because it had taken Naibu Shizuka and Ashido Kanō to drive them away from Jinta and Harumi before. But was he going to swallow his pride and ask for Raze's help? Pigs would be more likely to start flying. Because he certainly wasn't scared. He had enough confidence to do five people normally and he'd encountered stronger folks and lived before, so why in earth would he do anything else but meet Raze's comments with a wolfish grin all his own? "I understand you old folks need to keep your bones from breaking," Riki declared over his shoulder. "But how long do you two plan on stalking in the trees like wraiths, Gengetsu? Anko?"

The targets of Riki's words merely looked at one another over a handful of trees and branches that separated them. They were both within striking distance of the young Fōrun-juu and his Shinigami ally, but the fact they had felt their approach proved they were more attuned to their surroundings than either had expected. From the trees burst a figure clothed in a purple Shihakushō, zanpakutō in hand as she twisted through the air, rosy hair blowing wildly in the wind. Before she landed five blades shot forward from the arc of her slash!

But of course Riki had knowledge of their skills. He had watched helplessly from the sidelines the last time he saw them, so he knew that to be one of her Shikai's special abilities. Riki twisted in place once before falling to his knees purposefully to smash his fist into the forest floor, kicking up small pieces of shingle before the blades were even halfway towards him. With those small leaves and pieces of dirt between him and the knives, Riki directed his transference energy through the leaves and dirt, which bounced the knives away. Riki then literally vanished. There were no steps made nor was there sound. He was merely there one second and gone the next. He was at home in the forest. There was so much around someone could use to hide or change trajectory, which he did now to; bouncing off a tree trunk to attempt to cave Anko's ribs in! Only a black-colored blur saved her, which forced Riki back across the forest floor with a flash of an over-sized cleaver.

"Heh," Gengetsu was fast, Riki remembered. He just didn't remember him being this fast.

Shifting in his bed-like bush, Raze turned to see what were feet near his face as Anko threw her body at him to bring him out of hiding. "Oi! Woman! What's the big idea!? Riki is over there! He is you frie-" Before he could finish, his mouth was met with a fist from the much smaller woman.

"Shut it! Ya aren't gonna be able to just sit this one out ya old geezer. And besides, that guy isn't a pal of mine, in fact I would say its quite the opposite." Anko said as she pulled back her fist, readying herself for a follow up attack before noticing a body behind her. "What the hell!?" Swinging her blade, Anko tried to cleave the body in two but to no avail.

"Meikyo." Raze's voice was dark and chilling as his body began to reform from a wispy black smoke. Blade in hand, he met Anko's own causing a large clanking noise to chime throughout the area. A flock of birds could be heard leaving the area due to the impending danger. "I usually don't hit a woman, but today I believe I have just decided to alter my rules."

Riki's body blurred past Raze until his clothing fell in a heap at his feet as he slid to a complete stop. Kneeling as he was, the forest floor concealing his modesty, Riki was abruptly a lunging wolf with teeth barred! His movements became a lot more focused not to mention precise. He bounced from trunk to trunk with little effort until he was upon Gengetsu, who promptly took to the skies straight above him to avoid the young Fōrun-juu. But Riki wasn't finished. Not by a long shot. He was abruptly a human again, without a stitch of clothing and seemingly not caring as he leapt into the air and used whatever transference force gained in his wolf form to blast it through the air, the water molecules between him and Gengetsu the medium!

To save himself from the very surprising attack, Gengetsu bit into a packet of blood he took from his inside pocket, before shaping that into a powerful Kyūketsuki Ga Satsuei, which forced him skidding back through the sky into the canopy above. Riki emerged in a crouching position, small wounds on his arms. He couldn't full control transference through the air like that yet, because it still caused a backlash effect on him. Taking his wolf form again, the youngster howled as thought at the moon as he set those yellow eyes on Gengetsu's throat.

Rotating her, blade around Raze's, Anko gracefully turned about his body as if her own were a musical number in humanoid form. Seemingly dancing through the air, she made her way toward Riki from behind, kicking him in the spine of wolf form to cause him considerably more harm. "You didn't think I would focus on just one of you did I? This isn't some pairing off type of deal, this is a fight! If there's an opening you take it. Serves you right for turn-" Feeling a cold blade against the back of her neck, Anko stopped mid-sentence

"Oh!? So something like this is acceptable then?" Razeluxe smiled devilishly as he moved his weapon to the front of her throat. "Then why would you turn your back on someone like me? I have no qualms about killing you, but I think you would be better fit to give us some information first. Like why are you both here and why are you attacking?"

Riki was sent trailing into the forest, his wolf form giving way to his human form once again as he skidded across the ground. "... Bitch!" He shouted finally before flying through the air to strike her across the face with a kick, sending her hurtling away from Raze's blade and into one of the many tree trunks. Afterwards he spent his time dusting himself down as small pieces of bark and other such forest junk were stuck or embedded in his skin.

"They're some of the spies I told you about earlier," Riki informed with a snarl playing across his face. "Anko's a scientist at heart while Gengetsu is the muscle." Riki then walked away towards were his clothes were, donning them quickly, leaving them quite messy. "Just kill them," He furthered. "They work for the-" Riki was silenced as another blast of blood-fueled energy parted him and Raze, as both fighters took to the skies to avoid it. Now in the air himself, Gengetsu spun like a spin-top as he aimed a kick at Raze's back.

Caught off-guard by the combination of sudden attacks Raze felt the man's heel crash into his spine causing him to soar through the air until he crashed into the ground with a large thud. Skidding through the very Earth, his momentum didn't give way until he was stopped by a tree near the end of the clearing. Using his blade to prop himself up, a smile could be seen on the blonde haired fighter's face. "Heh. Looks like this is a fight that's all about underhanded tactics and who's paying attention. I like it."

Off to the side of Raze's landing zone was Riki and Gengetsu, both fighters exchanging hand-strikes followed by lithe evasionary tactics. Two fields Riki excelled in were Hakuda and speed, and while the same was true for Gengetsu, Riki's confidence was ever-present and ever-encouraging. No matter the situation, the attack aimed at him, Riki didn't care. Gengetsu wasn't as strong as Naibu was and Riki had survived battles with his mentor before, even if they had been mock at the best of times. For a while the two appeared much like two over-grown children playing tag before Gengetsu finally succeeded in swiping Riki off his feet, though before the former knew what was going on, Riki had used the straight line motion of his body striking the floor coupled with a twist to blast transference energy through the floor and send Gengetsu skywards. Once again correcting himself, the young Fōrun-juu leapt skywards only be blasted back again with the same blood-wave as before!

Watching Riku in action, Raze snarled as the man was shot down after charging recklessly. "Oi! Get your head in the game! I can't watch both of our backs, you keep rushing in like that and you're gonna be the reason we both die!" Jumping up toward Gengetsu, Raze tightened his grip upon his blade before spotting Anko speeding toward him. Shifting his momentum to his side and raising his blade, he delfected the woman skyward before being kicked in the chest by the Reikon Kyuuban. "Tch....!" Skidding to a stop, he began forming the same wispy black smoke around his sword as Anko charged him once more. "That's it, just keep it coming you witch." The last of his words became lost as a loud screech could be heard coming from the forming of the scythe from the smoke and the ensuing swinging of the blade. The scythe making full contact with Anko, one could spot a portion of her soul momementarily exuding from her body before vanishing.

"What the hell was that!?" Anko screamed as she looked visibly shaken for a moment before sighing to herself and raising her head back up with a smirk. "Doesn't matter." Swinging her zanpakuto in a circular manner, she set loose a flurry of blades toward both Raze and Riku.

Angered by Raze's words more than any spoken by either Gengetsu or Anko, Riki voluntarily placed himself between the onslaught of blades and Raze; all the while twisting through the air like a large spin top. Wind swirls momentarily danced along his limbs before spreading outward, the transference force he blasted through them knocking the advances of Gengetsu back who had correctly guessed Riki's actions. Whether Anko guessed or not didn't much matter considering her close proximity.

His movements when coupled with the nature of the energy in use formed a miniature typhoon with the blond-haired Fōrun-juu in the center, a confident little smirk plastered across his face as it's effect on the forest began to become apparent.

What was evident in the glimpses Raze would catch of Riki's face was the signs that he cared little about the angle of his motion. Raze would be just as susceptible to it as Gengetsu and Anko were, for Riki made no attempt to limit the scope of his spin. Whether he'd be twisted around and blasted away alongside their twin enemies was mostly up to how Raze reacted himself.

Seeing the power and force behind Riki's attacked, almost intinctively, Raze jumped toward Anko, tossing her out of the way in the process before being struck himself. "Even though you're my enemy, you're still a woman." He managed to get out before falling to the ground in a heap.

Smiling, Anko laughed as she readied her zanpakuto and leaped downward to pierce Raze's skull.....

Weary and Wandering
After being separated from the others Haruki walked silently next to Ashni, holding his sword in his hands. "I wonder if everyone is ok..." he thought to himself before glancing over at the woman beside him.

Ashni made little effort to acknowledge Haruki as he walked towards her, for she was still trying to track Jinta and Kujina. She didn't worry much for Riki because she knew how stubbornly tenacious he could be and with Raze with him his chances of survival were increased many times over - unless they tried to kill each other she thought with some hesitation. That'd just be like him. He'd been staring daggers at Raze since they first met. Another cause for concern which caused her to pinch the bridge of her nose in frustration.

"We need to keep moving," She said finally. "Yurei needs more aid than we can give him here and we can't afford to be separated long." Informing Harumi, who looked up in shock, Ashni didn't linger not share her reasoning. "Any objections?"

Noticing his friend hobbling along his sister and Haumi, Haruki darted back to aid them carry his friend. "Not at all Ashni. I think it would be best if we find some sort of residential area to treat Yurei."

Stretching her arms for the first time since their escape, Azami looked around the area trying to find a water source. "Well the thing about it is, I think we should try to hydrate him. He lost a large quantity of blood back thee. In fact if we aren't careful, hs trail could lead the enemy right to us." Turning to look at Haruki and Yurei she stared Haruki over before giving him a swift chop to the side. "Why didn't you go after Kujina instead?"

"Ashni directed me otherwise. And besides, Jinta is with her so its most likely he will not just let her die" Haruki managed to get out as he barely stopped from toppling over from Azami's chop.

"I wouldn't worry about Kujina," Harumi added as she took the appearance of an angel with its wings spread wide. The energy around her back which gave the illusion soon settled onto Yurei, causing him to wince slightly. Afterwards Ashni needed to grab her arm to keep her from falling. "Jinta's with her." She finally managed.

"Don't do that again," Ashni warned. "We can't have you collapsing from exhaustion." She'd already spent a good bit of energy helping to stabilize Yurei so he could be carried. And the fact remained they still didn't have a destination, or knew anything about Soul Society's current situation. "We'd be backtracking," Ashni finally informed "but our best bet would be Nishiendo. If Harumi was right earlier, we're in Western Rukongai. Nishiendo has a garrison loyal to the Ryū Order. The healers there could help Yurei as well as give us information."

Haruki smiled upon hearing that his friend would receive treatment before looking at an exhausted Harumi. "What was that ability? Is that something anyone could learn?" His eyes widened at the thought of obtaining more knowledge.

Looking up at the darkened sky, Azami sighed. "I wonder how they are truly holding up. If that beast of a girl caught up to them, I don't know if they could take her head-on. Jinta may be fine, but Kujina is the type to lose it under pressure. I don't think she has ever experienced a true life or death battle." She shook her head causing her blonde locks to flow in the gentle breeze. "But suppose there really isn't anythng we can do about it right now."

"Be careful....someone's here." Yurei tried to squeeze out but was muffled by everyone's excitement.

Which was why Ashni didn't hear his warning. She instead kept herself close to the others, though at a distance that wouldn't hinder her ability to act if something did happen.

"I developed it," Harumi said to Haruki, remembering how he'd said he would like to learn more about Kidō when she first met him alongside Kentaro and Yurei. "But to teach you it I'd first need to teach you more about healing Kidō-" She began explaining. "-you are just as likely to harm someone with it than help them if you don't have the normal, traditional healing skills down."

Ashni merely rolled her eyes. She remembered how in-depth Harumi could be with explanations, for she tried often enough with her own Bakudō skills.

Looking at Yurei, Haruki developed a smile. "Well then, how about I learn some Kido from you? I mean...more than the basics this time. After all, you shouldn't be the only one trying to keep everyone alive." Laughing, Hauki stopped suddenly as a stream of fire shot in front of his face, burning his nose in the process. "What the-?!"

"Hm. It seems like I still don't have to try to actually kill weaklings like you. You're reflexes aren't as sharp as I expected, if the wind hadn't caught it you would have been incinerated." A voice whispered from the trees. "Hmm. I can smell the stench of the Satonaka Clan on two of you. Which are they?"

"That'd be me and him," Ashni said pointing towards the fallen Yurei before either Haruki or Azami could say anything to the contrary. She didn't even appear to flinch at either of the two real Satonaka clansmen, which only aided the overall deception. Better this fellow think it her and Yurei, for she had both her Shinigami and hybrid powers at her disposal, while Yurei was protected by Harumi's Kidō. Besides, she'd given her word she'd see both Haruki and Azami, as well as Kujina, to safety throughout this mission.

Stepping forward while at the same time telling the others to get away as quickly as they could, all the while leaving little room for disobedience, Ashni finally spread her legs and drew her zanpakutō. She appeared much more in control of herself with a blade in hand, like it was meant to be. Her eyes betrayed nothing, nor did her body. She was perfectly unmoving. Still. Calm. Poised. Her movement was sudden and well worked through, like a well practiced dance. Her nodachi flashed through the air as she twisted through the air, the blade coming in at a diagonal aimed for the flame-haired mans side!

Looking momentarily at Azami who was frozen in fear and then at Ashni, the red-haired smiled as he created a wall of flames in front of him. "You match up to the descriptions. What is your name girl, I must make sure you are the one I need to kill. there s no need for me to waste my time on an ant." He sneered as he thrusted his palm toward Ashni's throat.

But Ashni was already moving, for her Pesquisa was well-developed and more akin to a sonar. She hadn't spoken either, for Harumi had already got both of the Satonaka clansmen moving, as well as Yurei. Even if Ashni's eyes couldn't follow the mans movements on their own, her mind was a seperate thing completely. Her senses told her of his movements just as he made them and her skill and speed in swordsmanship allowed her to react by impacting the flat side of her zanpakutō against his palm, which twisted her around from the impact where she followed up with an upward slash wreathed in transference energy from her twist, which she sent barreling straight towards him through the air!

Caught off guard by the girl's sudden movements, the red haired man ducked back a bit as he looked at his now bleeding hand before being struck by the energy flowing through the air. "Tch. You little Satonaka snots are truly annoying. But...." Stepping forward, he suddenly incinerated the local fauna causing a large wildfire to begin. "If you want to defeat me, then you're gonna have to use that cursed family skill of yours." Forming a large broadsword made of fire in his hand, he launched himself forward as his eyes began to glow gold. "I can see everything. Be prepared girl. Your death is already long forgotten."

"Do all old men talk so much?" It was true. They did tend to talk a bit. So in response to the wildfire, Ashni brought her hand to her face as though to shield her eyes before ripping it down to form a Hollow mask that only covered half of her face! Her eyes glowed in the usual Hollowfied manner and her temper, along with her spiritual energy, was beginning to skyrocket. Anyone familiar with her temper knew that when she lost, you found cover. Quickly. Her zanpakutō resounded off the mans flame-wreathed broadsword, while the flames surrounding her were stopped by a series of Kidō barriers. All she needed to do was hold him off until the others escaped, where she could then try and lose him herself.

"Hahaha! Good! Get angry! Show me that Satonaka grudge!" The flame haired man smiled wide as a series of gauntlets began growing on his forearms. "I will enjoy watching you writhe in pain." Stomping on the ground, he created a series of fiery pillars that rose from the ground around Ashni, before he twirled his right fist in his left hand, creating a large fireball in the shape of a flower that came from above the pillars in an attempt to catch the hollowfied woman in a fiery explosion.

Ashni quickly scanned her surroundings before surrendering her vision by closing her eyes. Instead she gave herself over to her Hollow senses, now increased by her Hollow mask. She could track her target by its spiritual energy and determine distance based on that as well. Now came her escape. It wasn't necessary for the spells themselves: the movements just helped her concentrate better. Her hands moved in complicated hand signs while her body seemed to flow through a graceful dance. Her head whipped around and her hair with it, while her lips soundlessly moved in what could only be incantations. She employed a mixture of different Bakudō spells fed through her usually seperate Hollowfied spiritual pressure, meaning when she released the mask her usual powers would remain as they were, though her reserves would be gone. It saved her from immediate exhaustion though meant she'd have to continue as she was if things went badly. Casting Bakudō #19: Ashitematoi first to slow the movement of her opponents arms and hand and thus the creation of his fireball, Ashni proceeded to turn her attention towards the towering pillars of flame all around her: still guided by her senses alone.

The next step in her plan was the usage of Bakudō #56: Daiyamondomaunten. Towering walls of ice surrounded the fire, which Ashni fed until they were roughly three times the size of the flames in order to compensate for their sheer strength. When the flames touched the ice it naturally melted to form water, which brought a smile to Ashni's face, for water absorbed heat and transformed it into steam. The towering inferno that her foe had created became nothing more than a moist, hot cloud of steam. The final part broke her Hollow mask, for it was a spell in the nineties. Bakudō #90: Kuroireikyuu began to form as a small black orb which soon grew to such size that it threatened to engulf the red-haired man, though the sheer exhaustion still brought Ashni to her knees while the fireball - reduced in size though still there - crashed into her left side! Her body careered through the air before landing in a smoking heap, the young woman coughing weakly.

"ARRGGGHHHHHHHHGGHHH!!!!" The flame haired man's roared echoed through the area as he released his spiritual energy from his body causing a majority of the area to become incinerated. "I grow tired of your meaningless resistance. I know everything that you will do. You are still far to young to understand the difference in power that lay beween us." Suddenly he began charging up a large sphere of fire in his palms. "This technique will cau-" As he spoke a streak of blonde hair came zooming by before punching him in the face. Surpirsed buy the fact that he was caught off guard, the flame haired man looked around trying to find who attacked him before spotting a young woman attempting to tend to Ashni. "YOU!"

A Turnaround? Ashni and Azami vs. The Flame Haired Man
"Tch. I was worried so I left the others. Are you ok Ashni?" Azami, said as she helped Ashni sit up. "I had a bad feeling about this guy and something inside of me just wouldn't let me sit back and let you face him alone while the rest of us got away." Drawing her guns, Azami readied herself for battle.

"Oh? Are you going to stop me little girl? Just who might you be? Another little ant for me to squash?" The flame haired man smiled as he rubbed his face before forming several fireballs on the tips of his fingers,

Ashni struggled to her feet, for she was still recovering from having so much of her reserves sapped in a single instant that did little more than flinch her target. If this was the caliber of foe they were going to be coming up against she was seriously starting to doubt their chances, especially since they had been scattered to the four winds.

"I'm fine. But that was stupid of you... thank you." Ashni managed to say and instantly felt her mouth burn as the words left her mouth. She hated thanking anyone. She normally just whacked people and then be done with it, those neither Azumi or Haruki understood her like Riki, Jinta and Harumi, so she needed to make certain allowances.

With her hollowfied reiatsu all but depleted, she needed to rely on her own vision, which was an interesting concept. She had come to rely on her sonar-like sensory skills and was now seeing the weakness of it. "Don't attack on your own, no matter what you do." Ashni advised as though speaking to a child. "He's too powerful for that."

"Ah. So now there are two of you? Fine. It matters not how many of you weaklings there are. My search will never end until I can kill a few little members of the Satonakas and the Hiroshis. I must end those bloddlines before they become too dangerous." Forming a small militia of flame soldiers, the man spoke again. "Its only right that you know he name of your killer. You may call me Akira."

Azami suddenly flinched back. "A-Akira? As in Akira Cagali?" Turning to look at Ashni, she stumbled back before regaining her compusure. "Ashni...this guy escaped Soul Society with my father. He was the one who orchestrated the mass break out and caused one of the greatest coup d'etats in history. That year, not many recruits joined and resulted in a lack of manpower." Pointing her guns at Akira, she steadied herself. "Well Akira. I'm gonna have to ask you to leave silently. You have no business with us, just let us go and we won't have to hurt you."

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! YOU hurt ME!?" Akira laughed with all his being before a stern look returned upon his face. "Ah. Well...I don't like empty threats." Moving his hand forward, Akira directed his soldiers toward the two females.

"Tch." Rapidly firing her kido guns toward the fiery spirits, Azami caused a large explosion to engulf the man-made warriors before witnessing the fire become incorportated into their bodies resulting in them becoming much larger. "What the fu--!" A large fireball came zooming past her head before she could finish her sentence, but it wouldn't take a rocket scientist to see where she was getting at.

Ashni absorbed the information silently. Akira Cagali was a name she hadn't heard of before, but judging by Azami's reaction, Ashni could take a guess at what his connections were. And the mention of the Hiroshi family alongside the Satonaka caught her attention as well. Did this man know that the most notable members of the Hiroshi family where, in truth, members of the Shiba family? Kenji and Ino kept the name simply to honor Kenji's adoptive parents and single uncle, while Kentaro did it because his parents did it.

"Not today we won't." Ashni said as her zanpakutō swung through the air mere inches from Azami's skull! The blade impacted the larger ball of flame, yet the transference energy lacing the edge resulted in its destruction regardless. With immediate harm out of their way, Ashni turned Azami around and pushed her into a run. "We're getting out of here!" They couldn't keep this up and hope to be a match for anyone they might meet down the road, which was why Ashni kept pushing her until she was running on her own.

Hurrying through the brush and down a path, Azami sensed her body running away fueled by sheer fear alone. "We have to get out of here! I don't know how anyone can put up with him in a prolonged battle!" The girl's voice was filled with horror and confusion

"WHY ARE YOU RUNNING!?" A feminine voice rung throughout Azami's head. "Stand your ground proudly and defend you friends." The voice rung out again causing Azami to momentarily stumble over.

Watching the two females run away, Akira smirked as he formed a large swirling ball of fire in his hands that resembled a miniature version of the sun. "You can't escape me. I will just destroy everything. I will end you both right here today." Motioning his hand forward, the large ball of fire seemed to move through the landscape eating away at the land and setting fire to all of the local fauna as it approached Ashni and Azami at a rapid pace.

Turning to look at the large fiery attack coming directly toward her, Azami began to pass out from the heat caused by the attack. As her eyes faded into unconsciousness, Azami began to see a figure who turned back and smiled at her as she materialized a large scythe in her hands and slashed at the large ball of fire causing it to split in half and explode on either side of the three targets. Witnessing such a feat, Azami became overcome by the shock of it, passing out completely in the process.

"Take her far from here. She'll wake soon enough, I just borrowed too much energy from her when she wasn't ready." The figure smiled as she looked at Ashni and suddenly began to vanish as though she wasn't there to begin with.

Taking the burden and not stopping to ask questions either, Ashni bounded off at speed, her surroundings blurring past. Yet she never stopped nor looked back. To do so would be utterly stupid, 'cause she hated the very idea of running away in the first place. If the figure who saved them were in any trouble she seriously doubted her ability to keep running. Finally skidding to a winded halt in the middle of a small residential area, with people walking about around her, Ashni easily dropped Azami to the ground and heaved a sigh of relieve. They'd gotten away. They'd actually gotten' away!

A Moment's Rest, Where To Next?
Walking through the streets surrounded by small homes with the others, Kujina turned a corner spotting Ashni bounding in while holding an unconscious Azami. Gasping and taken aback, she motioned toward the others to hurry as she ran toward Ashni. "What happened?! I-is she ok!?"

Jinta followed the quick moving blur that was his companion and entered a small, quaint little home he saw was a travelers lodge. There were padded seats in the back corner, a fire burning in the hearth on the farthest wall from the door, a little round-bellied man with a full head of blond hair sitting behind a small bar and an equally large woman with auburn hair waiting the tables. She looked like she was ready to kill something for she was waving her fist at the bartender, muttering curses. Jinta dropped coins onto the tray held in her other hand and plucked the water that had been resting there while dodging around the circular tables, which shone from their recent clean.

Jinta slid past the final table occupied by two men who looked like they wanted to be anywhere but here and sat himself down beside Ashni, who was sitting close to the fire, breathing somewhat heavy. "Take a drink," He greeted, bottle outstretched. She scared him shitless, but thankfully she wasn't in an emotional mood. Whew, he'd live a little longer. She took a gulp, stopped, took another and returned the water. Jinta handed the rest to Kujina, hoping it would rouse Azami. "What happened to the others?"

Assisting her cousin in drinking the liquid in front of her, Kujina cradled Azami for a bit before the blond haired woman shot up in an instant. "Haruki! Raze! Where are they!? Did Akira get to them?" As she finished her sentence, Azami suddenly felt faint causing Kujina to jump up to catch her now falling cousin.

Kujina looked up at Ashni as she sat on the floor with Azami. "What in the world happened to you two out there?"

Jinta echoed her question silently, his eyes closed and his legs crossed beneath him. He could be mistaken for meditating. "We were attacked," Ashni said finally. "Some man calling himself Akira Cagali. He was very strong. Wielded fire. Young." Trust Ashni to keep his description basic. Sometimes basic was best. "Riki was dragged off by Raze, while Harumi and Haruki, wherever they are, are nursing Yurei back to health."

The news about Harumi was like a kick to the stomach. Riki could handle himself. He wasn't sure about her safety. When Harumi was healing someone she focused on nothing else. The outside world became a trivial thing, a distraction. It was blacked out, forgotten. If someone attacked, Haruki would have to be the one to defend them. Cursing, he took a deep breathe, calming his thoughts. "... We were attacked as well," Jinta said finally. "A woman with pink hair. Crazy bitch took a fancy to me, but we escaped without much problem. No sign of her since. Azami, did you see where Harumi and Haruki went?"

Noticing Ashni's brief description, Azami followed suit as an attempt to not worry anyone. "They went toward a different road. But no one followed them. They should be safe if its the three of them." Looking down at her hands, she noticed a new sword that replaced her standard katana. "Ashni....what is this?"

Jinta relaxed visibly. There had been a moment there he'd been considering rising and going out after them.

"I think it's your zanpakutō," Ashni replied. "A figure, probably your zanpakutō spirit, appeared out of nowhere. She was the reason we managed to get away at all."

Azami shot up suddenly with what seemed to be stars in her eyes. "What!? I missed it!? Wait....how is that even possible? I don't remember even coming into contact with her." What did she look like? What did she do?" Azami's voice was filled with excitement and amazement at her zanpakuto spirit's skill.

Hating the very idea of answering yet more questions, for she found it a complete waste of time, Ashni rose from her seat, told Azami to grab her zanpakutō and struck the blade once. "Now you'll see for yourself," She said cryptically, passing the images along to Azami by means of resonance between zanpakutō.

"...Soooo..." Jinta started with an audible sigh. "What now? Riki's an idiot, don't know about Raze. Though at least his head's on straight. Harumi, Haruki and Yurei... we need to find them."

Smiling to herself, Azami looked at the feat accomplished by her Zanpakuto spirit. Suddenly Azami perked up as she thought about the rest of her friends and her brother. "How we should find them? Should we split up to search? Or should we stick together as a group?"

Ashni didn't look to enthralled by the discussion, so Jinta took that as his cue to give his opinion. "We'd cover more ground separately..." Was his conclusion.

"But then we've all used some power," Ashni cut in smoothly. Oh, so now she spoke? Lovely. Maybe she just liked interrupting Jinta. "I know I have. We'd be safer together, especially if our enemies tracked us."

Kujina chimed in ever so lightly, as she raised her hand as if in school. "I agree. I think it would be better if we all stuck together. That way if something dangerous were to happen again, we would all be there to back each other up."

"I agree with both sides." Azami muttered as she furrowed her brow. "However, I think it would actually be more beneficial if we decide who to search for first. That way we can decide on which direction to head before we set off aimlessly."

As the others discussed their options Jinta rose from their shared table and walked outside. Watching him leave them deciding that he'd be fine, Ashni returned her attention to the others of the group. "Riki's an idiot, but not when it comes to survival. Even if he was on his own, he'd survive. He's as home in the forest amongst the animals as he is with people. I can assume that Raze is also a survivor. That leaves Harumi, Haruki and Yurei; whose injured. We'd probably be best looking for them first and leave the other boys to their own devices."

"So we're going to find Haruki, Harumi, and Yurei? Are you sure? I'm really worried about Raze and Riki. They're personalities....were less than a match for each other. I don't think it'll be anything out there that will kill them, it will probably be themselves that kill each other." Azami sighed.

As the party prepared to move out, Ashni couldn't help but agree silently with Azami... Riki hated anyone trying to "take over", and he'd already shown more than enough hostility towards Raze. "Yes, they aren't a match. But they're the strongest of us all."

Above the others now leaving their resting place stood Jinta hovering on little more than solidified reishi currents beneath his feet. His features had a far-off look and his spiritual energy was hidden by layered Kidō barriers. "Sorry," He whispered into the wind, "but I need to check up on something. Later." And his next step took him into the cover of floating clouds.

Next Story > Soul Society arc: Unification.