Ripple

When she opened her eyes, everything was a total blur. It seemed to be situated in a purgatorial area; all she could see was pure white, white as fresh snow. "...Huh? Where am I?" Those were the only words that could leave her mouth as the white-robed figure appeared before her once more.

"You're in my inner world." That was their response. Vittoria was incredibly confused by all of this; as all she could remember was being attacked by that crimson beast...and this person saved her. "Or more accurately, I casted an illusion after I took care of that Akutenbake so that we could talk in private."

"Aku...ten...bake?" Vittoria's head was spinning.

"Ahahaha, let me explain. The Akutenbake are eldritch beasts; they're the darkness inside the hearts of men manifested and personified. You'd think for manifested hearts, they'd be happy little guys, but they behave entirely devoid of emotion. ...Alright, let me start from the beginning. In the beginning of the previous universe—the one Gai comes from—there were these things called Hollows. These buggers were a race of creatures which were born from Human souls who, for various reasons, did not cross over to Soul Society after their death and stayed in the Human World for too long. They were corrupt spirits with supernatural powers that devoured the souls of both living and deceased Humans. Hollows settled in Hueco Mundo, but could cross over to the Human World and Soul Society."

Vittoria muttered, "Sounds like an idiot made them up..."

The figure chuckled; "Ahaha, you're right. They do sound like somebody huffed some crack and made them up. Anyway, that's off topic. About the time the Shintō Goddess of Death, Izanami, used The End to reset this universe and this one began; the moment that man began to think impure thoughts, demons were roused from their hearts and given physical form as darkness manifest. Even now, the bastards are attracted by the darkness inside beings that they feed on. The Akutenbake come in many forms; they usually come in a black-winged skeleton humanoid form that can fly and feed upon beings."

Vittoria just had a blank expression upon her face. "...Huh?"

"Remember now, each Akutenbake has unique tastes, feeding on specific emotions and taking over the target as host to stalk other beings to feast on. The Akutenbake can cooperate with its host's blackest desire or completely take over the being to feed upon its emotions. Akutenbake can manifest spiritual energy into physical objects such as chains or become objects like a watch to ingest a target. And most sickening of all, the bastards tend to "play" with their targets before chowing down."

Vittoria was noting all of this. "Anything else?"

"Akutenbake, being mindless, quite probably have no master to direct their actions and instead act on the instinct to devour more souls. I think they'll obey those with an affinity for darkness and a strong will. If many people attempt to control them, they'll side with whomever is most powerful. Those with dark souls endanger themselves however, as the Akutenbake are attracted to their souls and if they show weakness, they ain't gonna think twice of consuming 'em." The man was an endless barrel of exposition.

"Now, HERE is the problem. Akutenbake can never truly die so long as darkness exists in the hearts of men." The figure finished.

Vittoria questioned, "But I saw you kill that last one! You had some sort of hot energy in your hands...!"

"Let me explain. Akutenbake, as darkness manifest, are logically weak to the element of light. It's common knowledge. However, any ol' Luminokinesis won't do. That stuff's child's play to them. So your regular Shining Onslaught will be like an teensy weensy lil' fly buzzin' 'round them. What's the hottest thing to ever exist, Vittoria?"

This was a no-brainer. "The sun, duh."

"Correctamundo! Now, remember what I did before? That's a special art that the second Rising Phoenix developed, which utilizes the energy of the sun's rays through breathing and empowering yer body with solar energy. It's of a higher temperature than any flame in existence, even in the old universe. However, you gotta be breathing constantly in order to take in solar energy. But once you do, you use your own spiritual energy to project it through yer limbs!"

Vittoria was interested now. "Oh really?"

The figure responded, "Sendō is the insurmountable light that illuminates the darkness stemming from people's souls, the devilish wraiths known as the Akutenbake."

"Can I learn it from you?" Vittoria was eager. "Teach me teach me teach me please please please!" Stars lit up in her eyes as she continued blabbering, "Are you gonna teach me? Wait, don't tell me! I want to be surprised!"

Gai snarked to the robed figure, "Dear god, man. The fuck are you? One of the goddamn Jonas Brothers?"

The figure grinned at this; "I'm glad to see that no matter what incarnation you're in, you never change." These words made Gai suspicious; as the figure continued, "Oh, I'm sorry, I haven't introduced myself. I am the White Wizard."

Gai immediately knew that this was a disguise of sorts; but he didn't want to push his luck. "I see...Anyway, you better teach her. She gets kinda clingy if not."

The White Wizard nodded in compliance. "In order to vanquish the darkness, an immense light must be unleashed."