Belonging

Ch.45 The Pass Still Hurts

I watch as the blade turns to crystal clear glass.

Throwing his zanpakuto in the air, it stops and floats there while continuing to spin in a perfect circle. It was like the hands a clock.

Still spinning, a huge green-colored glass dome manifests around us, trapping the three of us inside. Nagi tried turning to me, but she became extremely slow all of a sudden. It was like watching everything through slow motion.

I tried to lift my hand, but I've too became very slow.

"Don't bother trying to escape now." the guy continues to speak. "Unless you're outside of this dome, your movements will remain slow. I control all time in this space."

He walks up to Nagi, who was still trying to turn my way. He wasn't affected by the time manipulation at all.

Using that sharp metal thing on his finger, he stabs Nagi right in her shoulder.

It was taking awhile, but Nagi's face was turning into an expression filled with pain. The guy continued to stab Nagi's body in four more random spots, injuring her even further.

No. Stop it.

"Don't worry. You won't die right away. Even something as sweet as death doesn't come fast while you're in here. I'll make sure you'll suffer for what you did to him."

Reaching into his sleeve again, he pulls out a razor sharp dagger.

Wait a minute... Why is he using that? Something's off.

Nagi's lips were slowly moving. She's trying to say something. The guy noticed it too. He snapped his fingers twice, causing the zanpakuto to freeze in place.

The moment it does, Nagi hits the ground, bleeding out. Our speed had returned to normal. I quickly go to her side. The guy just stood tall over us.

"What did you say?"

I rummage through my bag and begin trying to treat her wounds.

Nagi looks his way.

"I said...I'm sorry."

"..."

"I didn't mean to kill him. It was an accident."

"An accident?!"

The guy's mood dropped even more after hearing Nagi's words.

"How can you call what you did an accident?! You killed the Head Captain's son! You kill my father!"

Father?

His words seem to click in Nagi's mind.

"You're...Kazz? ...Kazz Ryu Yamamoto?"

"Are you telling me you still didn't realize that?!"

"...I'm so sorry..."

"Is that all you can say?! I've might have been a baby at the time, but the Head Captain told me everything! You were always playing in the World of the Living, instead of training! And because of that, you lost control and killed him!"

"..."

"...Got nothing to say, huh?"

The guy named Kazz, suddenly grabs my arm, pulling me to my feet. He has me facing Nagi as he holds me against him. Without a word, he stab the dagger into my stomach.

"..."

I try my best to hide my pain, but fail. It's hurts.

"No...stop." Nagi weakly begs.

He pulls the blade out and holds it against my throat.

"This Ryoka must mean a lot to you if you're making that face."

Nagi's expression was mixed with fear and anger. I've never seen her like this before.

"What's it going to be? Shall I let her slowly bleed out to death. Or...should I slit her throat?"

I feel the blade press against my neck.

"Stop please... Don't hurt her. She has nothing to do with our situation."

"You care about her a lot. If I take her away, you'll finally feel how I feel."

"You don't think I'm hurting too?!"

"..."

We watch Nagi slowly climb to her feet.

"Dammit, Kazz! You're not the only one hurting! I miss him too!"

"If you did, you would have stayed and face your crime."

"As much as I wanted to, I couldn't... I needed to live. He told me to continue living."

"What?"

"It's true, because of my curiosity with the World of the Living, I neglected my training. When our group was dispatched to fight those strong group of Hollows, I used my zanpakuto to deal with them. But like you said...I lost control. My zanpakuto killed not just the Hollows, but my fellow soul reapers as well."

Kazz stayed silent, listening to her every word.

"Tomohiro tried to help me control it...but in the end... He risked his life to stop it. By the time everything settled down, I couldn't save him. He laid dying in my arms. His last dying words were forgiving. He told me it was alright, even though I knew it wasn't. He spent his last dying breath trying to console me.

He wanted me to continue living my life, but I couldn't. The person who means everything to me was dying right in front of me, and it was my fault. So, in the end, he told me to live for you..."

Nagi looks right into his eyes.

"He told me to live for my little brother."