False Utopia: War's Beginning

Preparations
Sesshōmaru was sitting in front of the crystal ball. The spirit of Kyūmu was gone, but the damage was done. In more ways than one.

''"I am the spirit of Kyūmu. Your plan, thoughtful as it was, will soon come to an end." The Crystal Ball began to crack. "Sesshōmaru, I'm afraid you're fired." Her face continued to obscure the crystal ball, making it impossible for Sesshōmaru to focus on the Kurosaki family.''

He frowned remembering this. A Zanpakutō spirit materializing into the real world when it's user hadn't even learned Bankai was puzzling enough, but the fact that it could manage to crack the crystal ball, a product of a very powerful Shindō spell. And Seiryoku had no doubt release the spell on the family. Killing them was their only option now. He closed his eyes as Lynterria appeared next to him.

"Lynterra, go wake everyone up. We've got a matter to attend to." He ordered.

"Hm? Ok." She bounded out of the room, running first to Taiki's room. She banged hard on the door. "Taiki-chan, rise 'n shine!"

WHAM!

She should not have banged so hard - for the Kurosaki reacted to loud noises.

She was the fortunate victim to be knocked away the moment Taiki forced open the door. A rather bored look was on his features despite the enthusiasm in his actions. He raised his free hand (his other hand was still on the knob) to scratch his ear with his pinky finger. "Fire....?" He asked lazily, looking around in order to find the one that loudly knocked on his door.

The one who had knocked so loudly was on the ground, rubbing her nose. She got up, and immediately whacked Taiki over the head. "Watch where you're swingin' that door idiot!" She said, her nose looking slightly broken.

"Ow!" Wincing at the blow, Taiki hunched over a little. A hand reached instinctively to rub the spot where she had delivered the attack. "Well, it's not my fault you couldn't just wake me up a little bit more gently!" He complained in a slightly childish manner. "Whatcha do that for, anyway? I was having a nice nap...."

"Sesshōmaru told me to wake everyone up." She snapped, obviously still irritated. "Just go meet 'im, I gotta go wake up the others." She walked off, hand on her nose, grumbling.

After sticking his tongue out, Taiki retreated back into his room in order to get ready. Inwardly, he grimaced; most likely, this would be a meeting to discuss Sesshōmaru's epic failure and for them to clean up his mess. The deeper this was heading into, the less faith he was having in their so-called leader. Even the subordinates were still willing to follow him, even after this! For the very first time, he was hoping his family would succeed in their endeavor.

If they did all the work.... then he wouldn't have to raise his sword at all.

But first.... a nice shower would wake him up.

Lynterria went around the base, waking everyone up, before regrouping back at near the center. Sesshōmaru was standing there, his hood on as usual, hiding his face from view. Shinsetsu rushed to his side the moment she got there. Daiyaku, Jōchō and Lynterria were present.

"Now we just need Taiki." Sesshōmaru murmured.

It would take a total of thirty minutes, before Taiki stepped onto the scene.

His gait was calm and slow as he approached the rest of the group, his eyes half-lidded, and the light lost from his pupils. The smile, false as it had always been, was plastered onto his face. "G'day, ladies and gents...." He greeted casually, as if forgetting the hostilities from the day before. "How is everyone this fine morning?"

"Bloodthirsty." Jōchō said, gesturing to his brother. Sesshōmaru cleared his throat. "As you all know, we've reached a hitch in the plan." His voice sounded as if he hated to admit this. "The "hitch" lies in the heart of Taiki's family. Seiryoku undid the spell on his family members and now they are aware. Because they are not under the influence of the spell, erasing them is not possible. Killing them is our only option."

"Correct me if I'm wrong, Sesshōmaru-san."

Taiki's voice, at that opportune time, decided to cut through his speech before he could continue any further. He placed his hands on the back of his head, a rather bored look on his face. "But, at the start of this, you had told me that you would not harm my family, did you not?" His tone, despite having its usual casual feeling, had something else more in it. Only the ones that completely knew him could tell that he was already showing malevolence.

"I do not recall." Sesshōmaru said dismissively. "When I told you of the spell, I said I would not kill your sister. That's all I said."

Taiki shrugged. "Either way, I believe we have a problem. The entire goal of this plan was to create a world where violence would not exist. If the one who created such an idea engages in the thing that they despise the most, then where would his followers go? Surely, once the leader discards his ideals, the rest will follow suit. And, since this little flaw was unexpected to even the creator of this spell, I'd rather not risk any more facts turning out to be nothing more than fabrication. The only thing we can do right now is retreat and keep them off of our trails."

Sesshōmaru frowned. He did have a point. He was acting ti impulsively.

"What if they meet up with us?" Daiyaku asked. "Can we kill them then?"

"They're not going to meet up with us if we actually do things right this time...."

Daiyaku sighed. He sounded disappointed. Shinsetsu glared at Taiki, thinking he was blaming her brother for the plan going wrong, but said nothing. Sesshōmaru placed his hand on the crystal ball and took it. "We'll proceed with Taiki's plan. Let's move."

In the Kurosaki House, the family was scattered around the home, doing various things to get ready. They fully intended to pursue Taiki and co., though Kyūi still had her doubts. Adela was sitting in a chair, thinking things over.

Kyuui, because she wasn't one of the strength department, would be fitted with only the Zanpakutō she possessed, the sheathed sword currently secured to her back. She was lying on the couch, sprawled out and faced upward. Her red eyes were staring straight up at the ceiling, and doubt swam her mind like a turtle through open sea waters. Of course, the plan had been clear; pursue and stop the vampire-like entities from continuing what they believed was a utopian idea.

But she was still conflicted. Although she had knew for sure what she said when she spoke about bringing her father back, she just wasn't sure on how to do so. How would he react? How would she convinced him? What if he refused? She feared that all of this would be a major problem when finally facing him.... and she was scared. She was afraid of failing her father, after all the success he had taught her.... and if she did, she knew the consequences.

"Oh, Tou-san.... only you would've known what to do in this situation...." She thought, staring at the ceiling in a pained manner.

Miharu was outside on the porch, Kyūmu in her hand. She was the one that was going to have to fight Taiki her father said. She had to be ready. She had been practicing with Kyūmu for ages, and as far as she knew, her brother wasn't aware of it's powers. Only her father and Ezra knew. And with her Zanpakutō's power, she'd have the advantage of constant surprise. She sighed. She didn't feel like she was ready for this...but all she had to do was be creative. She got up and walked into the house.

"How much longer 'till we get going?" She asked when she saw Megami.

"As soon as everyone's ready...." Her mother answered, having sat herself into one of the nearby chairs of the living room. Her eyes were closed in thought. "Or at least, when Seiryoku gets fully prepared."

"No need to rush on my account." Seiryoku replied, having just descended the stairs. He was dressed in a different outfit than he had been when he faced Taiki. A white jacket with a rather high collar and long coattails, with black sash, a white hakama black tabi and waraji, very similar to an Arrancar's outfit. He looked ready to set out. "We can wait till everyone is ready. We don't need casualties."

"I'm ready...." Kyuui allowed herself to say, raising herself up. "Where's the rest of us....?"

"Last I saw of Ahatake, he said he was testing something. Hopefully he'll be down." Seiryoku explained as Adela entered. She looked as if she hadn't slept well.

"Kaa-san...."

That immediately forced Kyuui up and on her feet. She walked over towards the rather exhausted woman, raising her hands up in concern. "Are you sure you want to come with us? You look quite terrible...." She asked softly, deciding to escort the woman the rest of the way to her destination.

Adela forced a smile. "I'm fine Kyūi, don't worry about me at all." She said, the smile fading as she looked up. Ahatake was descending the stairs, also wearing an Arrancar like outfit, a white shirt with a white jacket over neath, both having raised collars, a black sash, white hakama, black tabi and waraji. His Zanpakutō was hanging loosely at his waist. "Sorry if I was holding everyone up. I needed to try something out."

"What, a new fashion sense?" Megami remarked in a joking manner, smiling behind her hand. "I don't see what would be the point of that if you're just going to get ruffled up later...."

"I prefer to fight in clothing like this than in a suit." Ahatake replied. "Besides, these clothes are made for "getting ruffled up"."

"Now that Tō-san's here, do we start moving?" Miharu asked.

"Yes, I think that's all of us, and I believe we're prepared." Megami agreed with her daughter, allowing herself to rise out of her seat. Though she claimed to be prepared, she knew the fighting up ahead would be difficult, especially with such a level of opponents. One of her hands was placed comfortably on her hilt - she herself would be mentally ready to combat what was up ahead. However, she idly wondered if Ahatake's insistence on allowing Miharu to fight her older brother was necessary. "Let's get moving. Seiryoku, care to lead the way?"

"Of course." Seiryoku replied, appearing in front of them with Kenpo, his coattails fluttering. "Let's get moving."

The Hunt
They took off, Seiryoku in the lead. He was the most attuned to Sesshōmaru and his groups spiritual pressure, so it was easier for him to track them. They were heading towards the outskirts of the region, towards the forest.

This was immediately noticed by the white-haired daughter of the traitor, as she huffed a little. "It's always in the forest, isn't it?" She complained, folding her arms across her chest as she Flash Stepped in order to keep up with the rest of them.

"Perhaps the bad guys just have good taste." Aoi replied, gripping a brance and leaping from it. It was clear that she enjoyed forests very much, despite the fact that Kyuui had once rejected her in a forest.

"Forests are among the ideal places to hide." Seiryoku replied. "Various trees of different witdhs and heights, it's easy to conceal yourself in here."

"But we've fought in them like.... I donno. Several times!" Kyuui continued on, feeling a need to continue the conversation. It was a means to distract her from what was to come.... at least, for the moment. "One would be so normal as to ask for a change of scenery, for once!"

"There's nothing wrong with a good healthy forest." Ahatake replied. "The world of the living is losing alot of their forests you know. Be grateful we have them up here."

"Hmph...."

Though Kyuui was silent, she folded her arms across her chest, a rather poutish expression on her face. She didn't mind having forests to explore in - after all, it was life! But, still....

The sky began to grow cloudy as Miharu's facial expression changed to one of worry. She still wasn't sure if she would be ready to face Taiki.

Far ahead of them, Lynterria looked up. "Looks like it's gonna rain. That good or bad?"

"Huh?"

Taiki himself decided to look up, spotting the rain clouds. He raised an eyebrow. "Does that truly matter? It just means that we're probably gonna catch a cold if we don't hurry to shelter!" He answered for her. He wasn't really concerned about the threat behind him - after all, they could escape easily! They managed to evade Yuurei patrols for who knows how long, what was different in this situation?

"If I catch a cold, I'm giving it to you." Lynterria replied, rolling her eyes.

Daiyaku was looking behind them, and his facial expression seemed to soften momentarily before returning to it's normal state. "They're most likely going to catch us." He thought, smiling. He seemed to look forward to it.

"Aw....." This made Taiki hang his head down in a comically sad manner. "Must you be so mean to me, Lynterria-chan?"

Lynterria's face turned light pink, but she said nothing. Rain began to pour down on them as they moved. Lynterria had been right about the rain.

"Now what?" She asked. "Keep moving?"

"We've got no choice...."

Sesshōmaru created a small "barrier" around the entire group that repelled the rain drops as they moved. "There. Now you can move without worrying, Lynterria."

"Silver, what exactly do we do when they find us?" Daiyaku asked Taiki.

For a moment, Taiki folded his arms across his chest and thought for a moment. "Well.... if they manage to corner us.... we have pretty much no choice but to fight." He admitted. "So, you'd better be prepared to take up arms as soon as possible."

"I look forward to it." Daiyaku replied.

The hunting team was running faster soaked by the rain. "I can feel their energies." Seiyroku said, still in the lead. "We're not far off, but the moment we get there, be ready to fight!"

This time, Taiki remained silent. However, he had been far more than prepared for such an encounter. He could easily handle himself against one of his own family, particularly his father. But the question was; who would he actually engage in combat? Everytime they fought, the family members did try to handle their opponents one-on-one each (except when the opponent was particularly powerful). It would be interesting how it would play out....

Seiryoku increased his speed and the rest of the team followed suit. It wouldn't be much longer now. Taiki and his group were coming into view, though they were still far off.

"And here they are." Daiyaku said, his voice filled with satisfaction.