Arriving in Yāolù: Strike the Heart of the Palace!

''Seireitou was in the cabin, apparently in the Jinzen state, his eyes clenching. "Hanullim... Why... Why won't he answer... Ever since then..." Memories of Kamui's arrest, and Datara's escape came rushing back through his mind. Suzaku and Shiori also came to his mind, remembering the pain felt in both of their loss; whether it was death, or hatred. Hanullim's powers were working, to some extent, but the spirit had refused to speak to Seireitou. "Hey! Everybody, we're approaching the coast!" called out Sorata, as Seireitou's eyes opened instantly. He stood up, unable to worry about this now, as he arrived to the bow of the ship; as did the others. Seireitou looked out into the horizen, "I'm coming... Kamui..."''

The Coast
The ship crept along the wake of the shallow waters near the coast, finally anchoring at an abandoned port. Apparently, word hadn't gone through about a group of invaders, making it all the better for their group. Sorata was the first to get off, followed by the others, leaving Seireitou and Raian as the final two on the ship. Seireitou's eyes appeared sullen, much more than usual. As if he was under an intense hypnosis.

Raian glanced over and could immediately feel the sorrow coming off of Seireitou's being. "I tried too...back then." he thought, remembering the moment he lost his powers trying to rid Seireitou of his despair. "I can't see into your heart." he suddenly said, breaking the silence yet not facing his friend entirely. "But I did tell you back then about Hanullim and about my own growth. I sense the despair that has grown to overtake you. The way you are now, you can't move on. It's time to let go of somethings, Sei-san. The things plaguing your heart are preventing your from protecting what you want to protect. Right now...you have no reason to protect anything." he explained. He realized that his words might infuriate the emotionally compromised man, but Raian had to give him this bit of information. It could save him, if he acted on it. "What do you have to protect? Kamui? Aside from this instance, Kamui has usually been strong enough to protect himself, Shiori is gone, Suzaku has gone astray and yet your driving goal is to protect those important to you. That, indeed, is a noble cause, but it's useless if you don't have a reason for it. If you don't have fuel to ignite the fire. I'll say it now; stop it. I talked with Zangetsu for a long time. I realized a lot of things in that time. I want to protect something. Right now, the only person I have to protect...." he said, finally turning around with tears in the corner of his eyes, "....is you."

A smile crept across his face, "I do it because in every battle, you've been there. We've trained together. The day I met you, during the battles with Akujin, I knew you'd be someone I would protect. Soon I will have others that I will protect as well, but not like you are now." Suddenly, he became more stern, "Right now, you protect out of a sense of obligation. You believe because you failed Kamui, Shiori, and Suzaku that you have to protect someone and that motivation will eventually fail you. I'll say it; what you dread inside, but won't admit outloud. Suzaku's shortcomings aren't your fault, and neither is Shiori's death. The ones who arrested Kamui will pay, so what is there to worry about?" he asked. Zangetsu's words came to his mind, and with fiery determination causing his eyes to glow, he stared Seireitou down and repeated the words of his Zanpakutō friend, "Abandon your fear!" he shouted in beginning, "Look forward! Move forward and never cease! You'll age if you pull back, you'll die if you hesitate!."

Seireitou's sullen eyes were fixed on his friend, and his ears on his friend's words. He had lied to himself. He did know why Hanullim wasn't answering. He gave up on his master; his despair-conquered master. Despite the realization, he shrugged it off. "We have to go... Raian." he stated, jumping off the ship onto the port. He slowly began to walk over to the others.

Raian sighed silently and glared off of the ship into the distance, thinking about something, before snapping back to reality and leaping off of the ship, onto the hard earth below. "So then, where do we go now?" he asked Seireitou, attempting to change the subject.

Ambush!
Seireitou looked out into the horizen, quickly catching eye of an immense structure made of what appeared to be a green crystal material. "There... I can faintly sense either Kamui or Shinbyeong there.." he stated. However, several men then appeared, surrounding the group. "You there! Intruders! State your Business!" called out one of the men.

Chūkin Komamura stepped forward, "Everyone. Let me handle these soldiers." he told the group before continuing his advance on the ambush team. "If you defeat me," he began. " I will tell you our business."

Taka silently moves away from the group and uses kido to vanish from sight. "Time to spy" He thought to himself.

One of the men stepped forward, and laughed at Chūkin's proclaimation. "Defeat us? The elite soldiers of the Jade Emperor?!" he stated, drawing his blade as the others followed suit. "Bring it on, Doggie." he barked.

Chūkin made no movement to draw his sword. With speed that was vastly unexpected for a being his size, he swept into the midst of their ranks and smashed the middle soldier with his fists, causing a gory explosion of brains and blood upon doing so. He then heightened his spiritual pressure, causing a red glow to surround him and the ground to tremor below him.

The soldiers stood in shock and awe, and charged toward Chūkin with their weapons up high. From afar, a white-haired man wearing formal attire and a long black-haired man with a spanish motif were watching from a long distance. "So... it appears they came here in search of Kamui after all." stated the white-haired man, with the black-haired man smirking at the former's comment. "I'm just itching to kill that brown-haired kid... he seems like a strong fighter, and knowing a Shinigami has that kinda power to make me interested makes me infuriated." he declared.

In a display of raw strength and power, Chūkin defeated each soldier with his bare hands; leaving some unconscious, but most dead. "There," he began, bowing. "I apologize for the brutal end you all had to meet. You all fought valiantly." he said to the dead. Raian narrowed his eyes, "Alright then, let's go save our friend if there isn't anything else holding us here." he said.

Just then, a soft clapping sound could be heard from afar. The black-haired man who had been watching them just then appeared. His clapping finally deceased, as he chuckled, letting them see his hawk-colored eyes. "Why hello, children." he mused.

Elsewhere...
A ways off from the location of Seireitou's group, and the mysterious duo, another small ship was pulling up on the shore. Inside, was Seireitou's son, Suzaku Kawahiru, as well as a long-haired woman with rather large breasts, and a revealing outfit. Suzaku covered his eyes from the sun, narrowing them as he looked onto the horizen. "We're here..." he noted. Sayune stepped out, smiling softly. "I wonder if we'll find any hot guys here." she giggled, as Suzaku looked at her with a menacing look. "Remember why we're here." he stated. Sayune nodded, "Right. Ryūzaki-sama requested us to-" but Suzaku cut her off. "No. I could care less what he wants. I'm here for one purpose... to kill that man..." he stated, as he gave her another look. "If you won't help me, leave. If you attempt to rat me out, or stop me, I'll kill you." he declared, as he took steps toward the forest a ways off from the shore. Sayune looked at him silently, and nodded softly, walking with him. However, hidden from view, was a grin on her lips. "I just love it when he gets rough with me... teehee~" came to her mind, as she smiled softly. Suzaku, on the other hand, had only a single thought in his head; rather, an image. His father's head rolling at his feet. Suzaku smiled a creepy grin at the idea, as the two disappeared into the forest.

In a farther location, possibly even not within Yāolù, were three men speaking in a dark room. The silver-haired man wearing a hood looked at the other two, and smirked. "It appears Suzaku is going to disobey me. I have foreseen this, from the moment Lucius-san asked me to recruit him." the silver-haired man spoke. In the corner, was a man with light brown hair and a grin. "I never trusted the brat to be honest." spoke the brown-haired man. The silver-haired man, presumably the leader, crossed his fingers and placed his chin atop his cupped hands. "Yuanhai-san. I'd like for you to go to Yāolù and kill Suzaku. He's become a nuisance to my plans, if he intends to kill Seireitou." the man confirmed. Yuanhai nodded, "Yes... but Ryūzaki-sama, what if he becomes too much to handle?" he asked. The leader, apparently called Ryūzaki, then smirked. "You said so yourself. He's a brat. Would a brat cause you trouble?" he asked. "But Ryūzaki, I-" he started as a long unusual red-haired man interrupted. "If you are so worried about this mission, then I'll take care of the brat." he stated. Yuanhai shook his head, and sighed. "I'll take the mission." he answered. Ryūzaki smiled menacingly. "Very good. As for you, Jōshō-san. Make sure you keep the tension flowing between the Jade Emperor and the Spirit King." he ordered, as Jōshō bowed softly, disappearing via flash step. Yuanhai then bowed as well, disappearing from the location. Ryūzaki began to laugh, staring toward a window in the dark room, as the red sun began to rise; it was apparently morning at his location. "Well then, perhaps it is time for me to pay Britanna a visit." he spoke to himself, as he stood up. "All the pieces are coming together. Soon... I will establish an order of dominion." came to his mind, smirking at the thought of it.

Mysterious Strangers...
Raian looked back, obviously annoyed, "Well, well, well, look what the cat brought it; pedo-snake." he comically declared. "I suppose you've got some cockatoo-haired kid around here somewhere that 'services' you too, eh?" Chūkin grunted and rejoined the group, preparing for battle. Hinata simply glared at the newcomer, either too uninterested or too zoned out to speak.

"Well well, quite the annoying brat. What is your name?" he asked, pointing to Raian. "You, in the middle. With the James Bond wannabe hairdo." he mocked, attempting to counter Raian's earlier comment. "Now Now... calm yourself, Dante." spoke another voice, as the white-haired man from before also entered the scene via flash step. Seireitou's eyes instantly widened, as he grit down, instantly realizing the identity of this man. With a quick movement, which no-one could have noticed, he appeared right in front of the white-haired man, grabbing him by his collar. "You... Tell me where Suzaku is!! Where's Datara?! Tell me, right now!!" he roared, as if he was prepared to rip his head off; a trait quite unlike Seireitou.

Raian didn't attempt to stop him, in part because he knew Seireitou would want answers. Hinata leaned up against Raian's back and whispered something to him. He didn't show any signs of responce, and simply stared ahead at Dante. "Sei!" Raian suddenly shouted sternly, "Calm down. Rushing in recklessly will get us nowhere."

Taka didn't speak, he remained silent as his kido ended and he reappeared after analyzing the fighting skills or lack there for of the Yāolù shinigami. He then looked at the new combatants and how Seireitou had flown off the handle to gain answers. "Master Seireitou, Master Raian is right anger wont give you answers any faster."

Seireitou ignored both voices, his attention focused heavily on Lucius in his grip. "Tell me... now..." he spoke, with a very heavy strained voice. Lucius stared at the silver-haired man through his glasses, adjusting them slightly. "I do not know." was Lucius's answer. Seireitou's eyes glowed with the color of Sanagi's spiritual power, as he drew his Hanullim. However, just then, a blade was thrust through his chest, shocking each and every person witnessing the two. Seireitou began stepping backwards slowly, as the blade retracted, being from Lucius. "My Jikkō'omo senses your negative emotions, and reacts instantly." he stated, as he sheathed his blade. Seireitou began to pant loudly, as memories of what Shōyō told him came back to him. "You see... when Sōsuke Aizen had first defected, he became part of an... organization. Nobody knows specifically of what their motives are, but it's a roving band of nine like-minded beings who call themselves the Akirakyū. These are not small timers... almost every member could be considered to be on par, if not stronger, than the Royal Family. For instance... that guy Lucius is one of them. I can't really say much about the others... so just watch yourself." Seireitou returned his attention to the two strangers. "I know you... both of you... There are seven more of you... aren't there... and Suzaku is a part of you guys..." he stated, panting as loud as before. "You call yourself the Akirakyū." he explained. Lucius's eyes widened for an instant, as Dante frowned. "Dante... we're bringing Seireitou with us. As for the others... get rid of them." he coldly stated. Dante drew his blade as it transformed into a large black blade, charging for the weakened Seireitou.

"Morigetsu, Tensa Zangetsu!" Raian declared. Suddenly a long white haired being materialized beside him. "Already, Raian-san?" the spirit asked, glancing in the direction of the enemy. "Yeah, let's go...Tensa Zangetsu..." he commanded. Tensa Zangetsu's speed was incredible, as he grabbed the injured Seireitou by the collar and threw him behind Raian and away from danger. "Chūkin, Hinata, make sure Seireitou stays safe." Raian shouted as he leaped in, joining Tensa Zangetsu. Both summoned white energy with red outlines, "Getsuga Tenshō!" they shouted in unison, causing a massive blast to envelop the combatants.

Taka followed Raian's example and with his own shikai fired a black energy wave with a red outline, with a similar feel to the Getsuga Tensho. "Hachiman!" He called this attack as it mixed with the Getsuga's that sped towards the combatants.

Seireitou's eyes were fixated on the ground. The attack didn't hurt him much physically, but the despair he had felt recently had caused triple the pain..perhaps more. Dante blocked the force of both spiritual attacks with his black blade, chuckling at their efforts. Lucius only continued to stare onwards, as Dante raised his blade up. "Lemme me show you a real attack!" he declared, slashing his blade down with great force as a green wave of spiritual energy escaped the blade, crashing at high speeds toward Raian, Tensa Zangetsu, and Taka.

Taka tried to summon his Susanoo technique to block the attack but before it could completely form it was shattered much to the awe of the young shinigami. "Dammit!" he cried as he was the first to be hit.

Tensa Zangetsu stepped in front of his master, redirecting the blow away from him and towards a nearby hill. The spirit then launched himself forward at Dante clashing blades with him, which resulted in a nearby hill being cut in two. "What a puny Shinigami. I pity the Zanpakutō trapped under your command." he spat, releasing a point-blank Getsuga on Dante. Meanwhile, Raian summoned his Hollow mask and appeared in front of Lucius, "You're...Gin's father aren't you?" he asked. "If only he could see you now."

Taka fell to his knees but wasnt severely hurt by the blast as his barrier took most of it, He gets to his feet and analyzes the power of the two combatants deciding that they are far above his current level but he must fight in order to protect his teammates. "Looks like I underestimated that last attack" He said as he points one blade to the sky and the other at Dante. "Tensa Zangetsu-san, please dodge this.......Raijin" He spoke calmly as he fired a lightning blast towards Dante.