Yuurei: The Invalid Torture

No Help For The Outcast
Ahatake was looking at the clock. In about an hour he'd have to go to his new job. He shuddered at the word.

WHAM!

The silence was blatantly interrupted by a violent kick of the front door, none other by a volatile Tereya. By the way her eyes were dangerously narrowed, a scowl that seemed to have been burned into her countenance, and the simple fact of the way she walked told anyone that she was a bomb ready to explode at the slightest touch. "I've had enough of this shit!" She snapped, throwing herself on her back into the couch beside Ahatake. "I give up!"

Ahatake looked at her, a resigned smile on his face. "Job hunt not doing so well?"

"Fuck no." She held up her hands, three fingers erected on each one. "Six months. SIX FRIGGIN' MONTHS and not a single job in this place fits me!" She ranted. "How in the hell do they expect 21-year-olds to get some sort of job if the market isn't versatile enough?!"

Ahatake laughed. "Ever considered getting a job to avoid getting in trouble?"

"Ugh..." A growl escaped from Tereya's lips as she flopped her arms back down. "I don't care anymore. If I get a job I'm gonna hate doing, I'm going to quit the next day. What would be the point o' that?"

Ahatake layed back on the couch sighing. "Woman, do you want to go to this nations prison?"

"Oh, for the love of..." Tereya snapped, though moving a little in order to give him some room. "If I wanted to, I wouldn't have wasted all this time looking for a job in the first place! You sound like I wasn't bothering at all!"

"You weren't very successful." Ahatake replied. "You don't need a job with combat."

"I want one to keep my interest. That's my hobby, and my favorite one at that!"

Ahatake sighed. "For God's sake woman, get a job, I don't care what so long as it ain't in a strip club!

Considering the position they were in, Tereya raised her arm and elbowed Ahatake in the stomach, though not enough to hurt him. "Shut up." She retorted. "You're not helping me out here."

Ahatake chuckled. "Well excuse me."

"Even using you as a bed can't help me think about what to do." Tereya grumbled, closing her frustrated eyes in an attempt to calm herself. "I'll tell you one thing; if those police come around here and start demanding why I don't have a job yet, the peace ain't gonna be kept around here for long."

Ahatake frowned. "Always so violent. If they do come and you kill 'em, you're burying the bodies."

"Hey, I'm not saying I'm going to kill 'em, either!"

"Sure you're not." Ahatake said, sarcasm dripping in his voice.

"....ok, maybe you're just a tad bit right."

Ahatake chucked again. "I know you well enough then. By the way, where is Midoriko? She's been leaving early for the past six months, and I know she doesn't have a job."

"Where our little stalker of blondes would usually be?" Tereya guessed, scratching at her nose. "Probably off bugging the Injikis or something like that."

Ahatake's eyes widened. "Of course." He sighed. "When will she give up on her?"

"When you give up on me." Tereya replied slyly, an involuntary smirk crawling up to her face. "And we both know when that will be..."

"When I am dead." AHatake said.

"Mhm."

Ahatake yawned. "I can say one thing. I never envisioned me with a job."

"Well, point out the obvious, why don't you?" Tereya folded her arms across her chest, laying her head back to rest it beside his own. "I don't think any of us actually thought of you with a job."

Ahatake laughed. "Yup. I'm definetly the slacker type."

"Oh, preach it!" Tereya said in false excitement, raising her hands up in the air. "Something else I already know!" With a quick roll and hop, she had left off of Ahatake and back onto solid ground. "Ugh... I donno what the hell I'm gonna do now. Maybe imprisonment won't be so bad... just a little time in a box before you're released again into the world. Once I am, my time'll be reset, and I'm free to start lookin' for a job again..."

"Or you could just haul ass to the employment office and get a job, no matter what it is."

"How about you shut the fuck up? All you're succeeding in actually doing is pissing me off."

Ahatake sighed. "Suit yourself. I'll see you on visitors day."

"Whatever."

With brisk steps, the woman promptly kicked open the door - again - and stepped out, back into the fresh air to leave the husband behind. The look of fury, although softened considerably, still maintained the malevolent feel about her.

Ahatake sighed. "Yareyare..."

Trouble
She desired something that would help ventilate the frustration.

It was all that was in her mind, even as she sat on the curb of the side-walk, lost in her own thoughts. Starting a fight would immediately draw attention from the police, something that she was having difficulty trying to avoid in the first place. Her husband hadn't helped her at all, and even made her mood a bit less optimistic than it already was.

So much for relying on family.

She buried her face in her hands, letting out a frustrated sigh.

The outside was quiet, as it was only 8:00 AM. Not many people were awake, but as usual, officers were patrolling. It was if they never slept.

It was here that her eyes snapped to the patrolling officers. The feeling of apprehension went through her, and she was forced to stand up on her own once more. She knew she couldn't remain; they might as well would've had her identity on a piece of paper to read and memorize. She needed the shelter of cover, a place where she wouldn't have to worry about them.

She needed to get out of there.

She turned and walked forward, away from her house and in an aimless direction. A police officer eyed her, and those very eyes narrowed. He pulled out a walkie-talkie like device. "Sir, reporting in. Target 101 currently sighted."

At first, only static was the response, and it was being wondered if the message got through. But then, a voice spoke up, the walkie-talkie static giving a rather mechanical tone to it. "Approach with caution. Have your team close by to cover you. If she shows any sign of resistance, shoot her on sight. Over."

The officer clicked and stowed the walkie-talkie away. He began to pursue the woman, walking briskly.

Tereya's ears immediately picked up his footsteps, and she allowed herself to stop. She cursed under her breath, knowing full well who was pursuing her. Her hand was now begging to go for the sword to cut him down, but thought no more of it. She refused to allow her hand to rise and strike the man down. Instead, she waited ever so patiently for him to come to her, all the meanwhile remaining silent.

"Excuse me ma'am?" The officer spoke when he had reached her.

She did her best to show no emotion to what would be her prosecutor, choosing instead to incline her head in his direction. "Yeah?" was the only word that came from her mouth, as she slid her nervous hands into her pockets.

"We have recieved intelligence that you have passed your 6 month limit."

"I'm looking, damn it." Tereya snapped, a bit harsher than she did. "Gimme two more weeks, I'll find a job by then." But her tone didn't sound at all pleading - nothing but pure irritation was being voiced out, though she was still trying to keep her cool.

The cop's eyes narrowed. "Two weeks and you'll have a job by then?"

"Sure, whatever..."

"Fine." The cop replied, turning. "We will give you this week."

"Thank you, officer." This time, her tone was mocking, but she didn't allow for any further comment. She walked off, feeling at least a little bit relaxed. Now that she didn't have the police breathing down her back for a while, she could get to finding a proper job. The luxury was with her.

Unfortunately, the same couldn't be said for the officer, for his walkie-talkie went off once more. Now, the one who had spoke to the man before put on a much colder tone as he spoke. "And just what do you think you're doing, officer?" It demanded.

"Giving her extra time, sir." The officer replied. "Do you request I do otherwise?"

"Apprehend her! There are no exceptions to our law, and you definitely have no say over what our King's judgement is." The voice snapped. "Don't be foolish enough to sympathize with your target in such a time! Now, do your job!"

"Of course, sir!" The officer replied hastily.

The communication was cut.

The target was continuing to walk away, increasing the gap between her and the officer at a slow rate.

The officer began to follow again. "Ma'am there has been a change of plans."

Her feet stopped. Abruptly. "...so, now you're going to arrest me? What a joke." She taunted, though she still refused to look at him. "You're a hundred years too early to take me on just yet, rookie." A malicious sneer crossed her face.

The Officer held up his gun. "It's my orders."

"Try it, you punk."

The Officer aimed at her arm and pulled the trigger. A blast of pink reiatsu shot out, a loud BOOM! sounding throughout the area.

The light cleared.

Had Tereya not raised her arm up, the resulting blast would've blown off her arm. But now, her hand was clutched onto his gun hand, fingers clenching and tightening. "You fuckers just don't listen, do you?" She spat. "You're weak compared to me, a piece of shit that was lucky enough not to get stepped on. And guess what? That's just how you'll die."

With a flick of her wrist, she crushed his hand, feeling the grim satisfaction of blood dripping down onto her own hand. His gun fell to the ground as a result, clattering onto the sidewalk like the useless metal it was. She pulled her arm forward, slamming him on his face. "Ashes to ashes..." She whispered darkly. "Dust to dust."

The Officer was unconcious, blood flowing.

At this, Tereya snorted. "Wow! You're more of a pussy then I thought... not worth the effort killing you." She said haughtily. With a kick to the side, she forced him on his back, only to let loose a wad of spit into his face - insult to injury. She then turned and walked off once more, this time in the direction of her house.

The man's eyes flashed open and he groped for his gun. "I'm not letting you get away!" He thought and pulled the trigger with the remaining hand.

Too bad he hadn't bothered to aim it.

As a result, the shot was way off, alerting Tereya once more to action. Abruptly, her figure vanished, only to re-appear above him, leg outstretched. She landed, her foot connecting with and crushing the bones in his neck. His head fell back down to the side. A trickle of blood pooled out of his mouth.

An officer no more.

But now, the rest of the pack had been awakened. Tereya's eyes widened, as she felt several more presences coming her way.

A group of Policemen had arrived each armed with guns, though varying in model. Leader carried what looked like an air rifle. One of them ran up to check the fallen officer's pulse.

"He's dead."

His killer sneered. "You should be glad. I just ousted someone worthless from your ranks." She declared, folding her arms across her chest. "Maybe you'll let me go just for that, hm?"

The leader scowled. "Let you live? After you committed murder if this very city?" He snorted. "Don't make laugh, woman. We will kill you where you stand."

At the taunting words, Tereya's adrenaline pulsed inside of her, and she felt her Hollow's eager voice pushing her to combat. She placed one hand on the hilt of her sword, the other one raised in a taunting gesture towards the leader. "Bring it, bitch." She taunted. "This sidewalk needs a reddish color to it, anyway."

"You common thug." The leader officer spat. "You really think you can threaten these streets with impunity? How dare you lay you villainous hands on the law enforcers of this proud nation. Pond scum would recoil in shame to call you cousin!" The officers all lifted their guns and red reishi charged at their tips. Without warning the shots were fired.

The reishi tore through her body. Shot after shot hit her, and she was forced to stagger back as the force pushed her away. Pain rippled through her like a tidal wave, smashing into every nerve and nearly immobilizing her. No human would've willingly suffered through it, choosing instead to die right then and there.

But she wasn't human.

And she definitely wasn't submissive.

When the shots stopped, she fell to one knee, breathing hard. Her body shook with the pain, but the breaths that escaped her mouth almost sounded like laughter. She stood up ever so slowly, blood trickling down her mouth as she stared into the officer's eyes. A maniacal smile decorated her face, eyes bathed in the black and yellow of the Hollow. Half of her mask donned her face.

Tereya no more.

The killer had awakened.

Most of the officers backed away in fear, but the leader ordered them to fire again. And they did. Firing at the monster that could kill if looks could.

"My turn." Her metallic voice rang in their ears, chilling their very souls. She raised two fingers to them, a beam of her own red reishi forming at the tips. "You should've known better than to play with a loaded gun, boys. Especially when the barrel's pointed right at you. CERO!"

She unleashed that pent-up energy upon them - her own personal form of Hell and divine judgement.

The shot kept firing. As if the Officers thought they're bullets could stop impending doom. But for all the use it did, they could have been pitting a water pistol against a Howitzer. The blast quickly enveloped them and only ashes remained.

Tereya smiled in satisfaction, even as the Cero continued on. A bright light illuminated the area, as the Cero connected with one of the houses, causing it to explode immediately. But she was not deterred - oh no! Her eyes were focused straight onto her next target, a weakened leader who lay sprawled onto the ground.

The man was covered in blood but he was getting to his feet, his gun clutched in his hand. He looked up at the woman, pointing the gun at her face. He made a last futile effort to kill her, as his partner had and pulled the trigger.

Nothing.

"You said I was a common thug before..."

Now her deathly figure stood before him, triumphant, venemous, and ready to bring down the last piece of hell onto his soul. "But did you ever take a close look at me? Did you ever bother to pay attention to your own nose? I reek of the blood of the people who dared to raise a sword against me, their souls continuously crying out. They loathe me for everything I am - a monster, a manslayer, and right now, your god."

"Y-you? A god?" The man's body shook with strained laughter. "Don't f-flatter yourself woman!" He coughed up blood as she shattered he weapon, a sharp fragmented piece, long enough to be a sword, resting in his hand. "I will fight for the king. To kill trash like you." He clenched his fragment. "Glory to our king." He thrust the fragment at the woman's chest. But before it could reach, his body shuddered and he coughed up blood a final time.

"Sh-shit..." Was his final word as he fell to the ground amongst his dead comrades.

Tereya's mask promptly shattered, and she gave a snort at the dead man's direction. "Your king... can go to Hell." She said darkly. She gripped the hilt of her sword, turned away from him, and walked off, leaving the mass slaughter behind. Her face was now set with one of murderous intentions, and she could practically hear the alarms.

Maybe she did find a profession, after all.

Discovery
Back home, Ahatake was putting on a suit and getting ready to leave when he flicked on the TV for a second. The news was on with a pretty newswoman at the desk.

''"...regret to report of a small massacre outside Blith and 1st. The killer was described a young woman wearing half of a mask. She had long hair and piercing red eyes."

Ahatake's golden eyes widened. It couldn't possibly be Tereya could it?

"It is recommended for all citizens to stay inside, as the police are still in process of taking control of the situation..."

The camera flashed to police officers, locked in an intense firefight with something that was approaching them. However, when they backed away, a new figure stepped into play, sword in hand. With that very blade, she swung, slaughtering officer after officer like it was nothing new. Soon, they were all forced to fall back, with the killer in pursuit.

It was Tereya.

Ahatake straightened his tie and sighed, placing a hand to his face.

"Seems like I better get over there.." He muttered and quickly walked out the door. Tereya spiritual pressure was easy enough to find, what with her exuding it everywhere, chasing after the cops. He took off in her direction.

The slaughter had grown.

As he passed by the area, he could hear the screams of agony, limbs being cut off, and the spilling of the sticky red fluid. In the road, there lay dozens of officer corpses, each with their own varying expressions of horror and shock on their face. Many more lay in pieces, limbs or ash. Tereya had not been kind, even without the assistance of her Hollow.

Ahatake gritted his teeth as he ran about 10 miles in 3 seconds to get over there.

"Tereya, WHAT the hell are you doing?" He asked, his voice sounding resigned again.

He came across her.

Officers were surrounding her in a loose circle, pointing their guns at her. But they didn't pull the trigger, and it seemed like they were the ones pushed back. Tereya glared at all of them, malice in her eyes, and her mouth in a panting expression. "Come on!!" She shouted. "I'm right here, you fucktards! Shoot me, I dare you!!"

She raised her sword to point at them, a feral snarl decorating her face. Her spiritual energy blew from her body in enraged force, causing winds to billow against the officers.

Ahatake sighed, and turned to Tereya, ignoring the officers for a moment. "Tereya you didn't answer me."

Immediately, all eyes turned towards the source of the voice, and Tereya's own widened immediately. The spiritual pressure stopped abruptly, and her sword lowered as shes tared at her husband in astonishment. But the officers still had their guns raised, fearful that if they let down their guard, she would slaughter them all.

Which, she would've, had it not been for the simple fact that Ahatake was even standing there a ways off from the circle.

He vanished with Shunpo and appeared in the center of the circle, having lightly pushed his way through the officers. "Well? Have an explanation for.." he gestured at the bloody scene.

"....I was bored." Tereya lied bluntly. "Got a problem?"

"..." Ahatake was silent for a second. "BORED?" He all but yelled the word. "You kill people because you were BORED?"

Tereya shrugged. "Hey, the officers were there, I was in a bad mood, and my sword just happened to be at my side..." She trailed off, her eyes narrowing in a death glare once more at the officers that surrounded them both. "But, seriously. I said that the peace wasn't going to be kept if these bastards stepped up and demanded why I hadn't got a job yet, but nooooo, you didn't listen!!!"

"I told you to haul your ass down to the employment office and get any job whether you liked it or not!" Ahatake snapped. "But you didn't listen!"

The officers had yet to do anything. It was possible they were still scared of Tereya.

"I would've fucking quit the moment I was hired, you inconsiderate bastard!"

"I was trying to keep you out of jail you idiot!"

Tereya allowed a bitter and loathing laugh to erupt from her throat. "Too late for that. They've already decided to kill me where I stand, honey." She replied, raising her sword up to a defensive position. "You might as well get out of my way. I've got some fresh meat to cut up."

Ahatake sighed. "Hey officers!"

The officers jerked their head in Ahatake's direction.

"Could I convince you to leave this idiot woman alone by any chance?"

Tereya growled. "Shut up." She hissed. "These puckered-up assholes deserve what's coming to the--"

However, she was blatantly interrupted by the sound of an officer's voice; another zealous one. "Let her go?! She has the blood of our comrades on her hands! Such a crime cannot be allowed to go unpunished!" He shouted angrily. That brought a bit of morale to the rest of them, as their bodies seemed to relax. "If you are willing to assist her in such an atrocity, you will be executed as well!!"

Tereya smiled smugly. "See?" She hissed. "Now get the fuck out of my way."

Ahatake sighed. "Want I should help you then?"

"I'm afraid that's out of the question."

A cold voice rang out in the midst of the crowd, making the immediate officers in the vicinity freeze. It sent a cold chill down the core of their spines, and they immediately recognized who it was. Tereya's eyes snapped to the direction of where it came from; surely, it wasn't one of these jelly-boned shitheads that dared to speak to the one that easily lowered their numbers.

It was clear that someone was new in the area, because three spiritual energies could be felt within the area.

Ahatake looked around, annoyed. " Show yourself."

"With pleasure."

Out of the midst of the crowd, and escorted by two cloaked bodyguards, a robed figure walked towards the two, arms folded behind his back, and a rather calm gait around him. Out of the etnire group, he himself didn't seem to be unarmed, though his two bodyguards were. "Of course, the troublemaker had to be a Seireitei Shinigami... what a waste of my time." The man lamented, red eyes glaring at the two behind his hood.

Ahatake laughed. "A Seireitei Shinigami? Not a chance."

"Oh, pardon me. I mean "outsider"." The robed figure countered mockingly. ''"Though, I must hand it to you, woman..." His evil eye turned on Tereya, and she returned it full-force. "For you to be able to cleave through dozens of the police force without breaking a sweat is an impressive feat. Wherever you're from, you must've learned quite well."

"Flattery'll get you no where with me." Tereya replied haughtily, raising her sword to point the tip at him. However, a small part of her remembered her brother - the mentor that had taught her the ways of swordsmanship. She smiled inwardly at the thought.

"So it would seem." The figure turned his eyes away from them, glancing over at his two bodyguards. "Ardish! Suki!" He said sharply.

The two both looked at him, identical, though oppositely colored robed figures. The taller one was silent, but the shorter one spoke up, a loud, rough feminine voice ringing out.

"Yes sir?"

Their leader pointed straight at the crowd around them. "These fools have considered themselves incompetent, incapable of taking down two simple Shinigami." He said venomously. "Show them the error in their ways, and punish them with their own life. Kill them all!"

"Yes Sir!"

Though the face was obscured, it was clear from the tone of her voice she was grinning. She twirled her pistol and vanished, Before the soldiers could even react, loud bangs could be heard, blood spurted, and the soldiers fell. The gun was smoking as the girl twirled it again.

Ahatake looked shocked. "You'd kill your own men because they couldn't stop a Shinigami?"

"Hmph. Are you one to patronize me, Shinigami? I suggest worrying about yourself, now."

Ahatake frowned. "Worry about myself? Just because the chick can use a gun?"

"Oh, it's not only that."

The robed figure lifted his finger up in a gesture to point.

It was an awful sight. On the buildings were several figures, in uniform, heavily armed, and sights focused on the two Shinigami. "And don't think you can fight your way through those soldiers as easily as you did those pieces of shit for police. They actually have the guts to shoot where it hurts... and..." He chuckled darkly. "They know where it REALLY hurts. So don't try anything funny."

Ahatake yawned. "Seems like I'm going to have to ruin this suit."

"Glad you find this to be relaxing to you. Now..." He raised a hand up, pointing at a rather silent, but still volatile Tereya. "Hand over the girl, and we can leave without further bloodshed."

Ahatake pretended to me in mock thought. "Not a chance. If she was just going to jail, then I'd say O.K. see her on visitors day. Bit I distinctly heard execution a few minutes ago."

"Oh, how funny, outsider. But playtime is over. I said..."

The clicks of many rifles were heard, safeties being turned off. "Give. Me. The. Girl." He emphasized, starting to take a few daring steps towards the male Kurosaki. "Or I shall execute you both where you stand."

"Don't make me laugh." Ahatake said, his voice cold as ice. He extended a hand at the soldiers. "Hope you all have written your wills." His head began to glow bright red, and a small orb began to form. But it didn't stop and it soon enveloped his whole hand and became about the size of a beach ball.

"Cero." Was the trigger word for the large mass of energy, larger than any blast Tereya fired, to shoot out at the soldiers.

The leader did nothing, watching the blast of death as it headed towards the soldiers that it was facing. He felt the intensity of it, knowing that it had a killing capability that could easily overwhelm any individual. Yet, he still shook his head. "Foolish boy..."

Staring down the beam of death, the targeted soldiers dropped their rifles and held out their hands. They jumped together, their bodies glowing with their own spiritual energy. Then, the blast collided with them.

But, in a miraculous diplay, those soldiers were blocking it.

It was even moreso of a shocker when they tossed their hands up, deflecting the Cero into the sky.

Ahatake eyes widened. "That was.. unusual."

He didn't have long to be surprised.

The soldiers behind him fired.

Bullets of the pink reishi tore through his upper torso and arms. They refused to stop firing, unleashing the volley of death on the man as if it was their very lives. The soldiers in front had picked up their own rifles and fired upon him, as well, without a single shred of remorse.

The bullets hit him and pierced flesh, but Ahatake stood his ground. He grimaced as morr bullets came in contact with him. How much ammo did these things have?

They lowered to the lower torso. The shots continued to tear through his legs continuously, breaking down his ability to stand. The leader just sat and looked on in curiosity, tilting his head to the side in puzzlement.

"Gotta admit...t-these things sting." Ahatake muttered. His eyes began to turn black and the gold in his irises deepened.

"Still haven't had enough yet, boy?" The leader taunted.

Ahatake laughed as he placed his hand in front of him. "Compared to actual battle...this is nothing." He said, multiple Dan blasts at the oncoming bullets.

His wife scoffed, watching him go at it with relative ease. "Show off..." She muttered, lowering her sword to glare at him once more.

As their bullets fought against his in an intense firefight, the leader reached behind him. "Suki. I need to borrow your pistol for a moment." He muttered, for only the subordinates to hear.

"Here." Suki replied, handing him the gun.

Ahatake raised his other hand and began shooting Dan blasts at the soldiers heads.

They reacted quickly, taking cover one by one. The Dan blasts whizzed over their heads by a millimeter, but they refused to show any emotion as they came back up. The leader himself didn't react, only raised the pistol to Ahatake. "Say goodbye..."

....

....

....

"...to your love."

He twisted his wrist at the last minute.

BANG!

Tereya's eyes had widened immediately the moment she realized hiis words. But even she was too late to escape the lone bullet of death heading straight for her. It tore straight through the heart, and she let out a surprised, pained gasp before falling on her back. The sword clattered to the ground.

All fire stopped abruptly.

Ahatake's eyes widened and anger surged through him. He turned to glare at the cloaked man and his spiritual pressure began to rise. It began to become the very thing it's name suggests. Pressure. His placed a hand to his face and donned his Hollow Mask with a roar.

"GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

The leader tossed the gun back to Suki. "Our job is done here. She's dead." He reported calmly, despite the intense winds blowing against him." Take her with us and retreat. Our King will want proof of this." He reached into his robe once more to pull out a metal object. "Farewell, Shinigami."

He threw it down.

FLASH!

A bright light immediately blinded the enraged Kurosaki for a moment.

But when it finally cleared, there was no one there.

No robed man. No bodyguards.

And worst off... no Tereya.

Ahatake's eyes widened as he let out a blood chilling scream of fury that resonated throughout the city.

"GRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" It echoed, as if a chorus of ghostly Ahatake's was screaming with him.

"...dad...Dad? Dad!"

There was at least one small comfort that came to him now; the voice of his own son Taiki. His footsteps were faint, but they were getting louder and louder with every step. "DAD!" He called out, seemingly flustered about something.

The scream was abruptly as the voice of his son broke through. Ahatake panted as his mask shattered, but he was silent.

"Dad..." Taiki breathed heavily, running up beside his father. "I saw on the news, Mom--" He abruptly went silent, eyes searching around and around for Tereya. "W...where's Kaa-san?" He asked quietly, unsure of whether he wanted to hear the answer or not.

Ahatake looked up, the black still in his eyes. He said one word. "Dead."

He didn't need to say any more.

Taiki's eyes lost what was left of their color, and he lowered his head, hair covering the upper part of his face. Out of mourn for the newly dead, he remained silent and refused to say anymore. Possibly unknown to his father, a tear slid down one of his eyes and dripped into the blood underneath his feet. And, despite this, he couldn't help but smile, even if that smile could barely be seen.

Taiki was finally showing grief for a loved one.

"I'm going to kill them." Ahatake muttered, the black not yet fading. "I'll break them in half and burn the pieces."

"Will that..." Taiki questioned desolately. "Bring her back...?"

"No." Ahatake replied. "But there is small chance Akiko can bring her back to life. Unfortunately we'd have to go to the Living World to get to her."

"...." Silence reigned over the boy once more.

Ahatake sighed. "Let's head over to Injiki's. Midoriko should know now."

"Yes, sir."

They walked over to Injiki's house without any disturbance and Ahatake rapped on the door.

For a moment, there was nothing but deathly silence, almost as if they knew, but were simply too afraid to face the truth. Taiki didn't bother to raise his head up, giving the illusion of two people whose job was simply to give out bad news. It was a rather depressing moment as they waited for someone to answer.

Finally, the door opened, and Ryuka's head poked out. "Oh, it's you--" He started to say.. until he noticed the desolate faces. "Wait a minute, what happened? You guys look worse than an infant Vizard."

"Bada-bing." Ahatake muttered. "Injiki, is Midoriko around?"

"Yeah, she's checking in on the kid. Though, I've gotta ask... what happened?" Ryuka's voice held concern in it as he allowed himself to step aside, and for the two Kurosaki men to pass through the doorway.

"Tereya's dead." Ahatake replied thickly. "Killed, to be more accurate."

"By who?"

"The cops."

It would've seemed heartless at the time, but the Injiki simply let out a low whistle. "Woah. Should've told her not to steal that guy's purse." He said humorously, shoving his hands into his pockets.

Ahatake feigned a laugh. "She got in her fair share of killings as well. I take it you don't watch the news?"

"Why watch the news? I practically heard the shit go right beside my house." Ryuka raised his arms up in a shrug. "C'mon, it's not that easy to miss screaming and sword slashing when it's right beside your window."

Ahatake managed a real smile that time. "True. I'm going to call Midoriko down now." He walked over to the steps. "Midoriko!!!"

The young black haired girl was down in a flash, carrying Kibou in her arms. "Tou-chan? You rang?"

At the sight of his sister, Taiki straightened up, putting a rather small smile on his face. He folded his arms across his chest, raising both eyebrows briefly upon the sight of the child. "So you were here, little sister. I would've thought you left already." He commented.

"Nah, I've been here for awhile, keeping Kibou-chan entertained." Midoriko said, smiling brightly.