In a midst of a forest hidden from civilization, stands a large mansion where chaos brewed. Two men fight off against a swarm of monsters with masks known as Hollows.
Finishing off one of the Hollows a man hollered, "Run! Haru find your mother and sister and escape from here!"
"But dad, what about you!?", the younger man, Haru responded.
The man took out another Hollow with a grunt and replied, "Your mother is in her room with your sister! Get them out of here while I hold them off! I'll catch up with you later! Now go!"
Black mist has started to gather around them as they fight.
Haru nods albeit hesitantly. With a final glance at his father, he rushes off to his parents' bedroom. His priority right now was to take his mother and sister to safety.
When he reached the room, nothing has ever prepared him from the sight he was about to see. Haru slammed the door open and the sight that greeted him made his blood run cold. The sword dropped in his grip with a clang. There, lying on the floor in a pool of blood, was his mother. Underneath her lifeless body was his five-year-old sister, Yuuki. There were no signs of struggle in the room.
Despite his knees almost buckling underneath him, Haru approaches them. "N-No...this can't be... mom... Yuuki...", his voice trembled in utter devastation. This couldn't be real, could it? His legs finally gave out once he was at their side. With a trembling hand, he checks on his mother's pulse. She felt cold to the touch. Then a choked sob escaped his lips when he found none. Dread, thick and heavy, settled at the pit of his stomach. But then, a little bit of hope was ignited within him when he saw his sister twitch a finger. This snapped him out from his stupor and gingerly pulled her out from underneath their mother.
The young girl was just unconscious with no visible injuries but it's still too early to tell with all the blood covering her. It wasn't hard to put two-on-two together knowing parents will sacrifice themselves to protect their children. Even he would do the same for his family.
'Get a hold of yourself! Don't waste mother's sacrifice and take Yuuki to safety!', Haru thought to himself. The sheer determination to protect his sister and taking her to safety is what's keeping him together.
Wasting no more, time he lifted his sister into his arms and covered his mother's body with a sheet before leaving. It didn't feel right just leaving her exposed like that. With a final glance at his mother, he left the room.
Reaching outside, he saw black ominous mist covering all over the place. He kept on running until he gained some distance from the manor. They weren't followed ever since they got out and everything was deathly quiet.
It was what made Haru worry. 'Did dad defeat all of them?', he thought.
He believed in his father's strength but But they're not out of the woods just yet. It won't take long before the Abyss claims its prize.
Haru snapped out from his thoughts upon noticing Yuuki was awake staring at him with wide, confused eyes. Without a word, the young girl scans her surroundings.
Haru's shoulders sagged in relief. He settles her on the ground and bends down to her height. Placing his hands over her small shoulders made the young girl look up at him. "Yuuki, listen to me. I want you to stay here and wait for me, okay? I promise I'll come back for you as soon as I can.", his voice was firm and unwavering yet reassuring at the same time.
Yuuki nods tentatively in response, though her brows were furrowed in confusion. Haru rose to his feet and draws a circle on the ground using the tip of his sword then casts a barrier around it. Lastly, he wrote her name inside the circle.
Writing one's name amplifies its power to protect whatever is inside. Names are more powerful than words. It was what his mother taught him. Not just on people but to everything as well. It is the basic foundation of deploying a barrier within their clan. Afterwards, Haru places Yuuki inside. The circle glows in green light as if it acknowledged owner's name.
"Promise me you mustn't leave this circle until I come back. I've enhanced the barrier so you'll be safe. I'll be back quickly.", Haru told his sister.
Yuuki looks up at him and opens her mouth to speak but her voice won't come out.
Haru turns to look at the direction of the manor with a frown on his face. He can no longer feel any presence, be it Hollows or people.
Yuuki tried to call out to him but no words went past her lips. So instead she reaches her hand out towards him but he suddenly runs off. She could only watch as he disappeared through the folliage with the questions stuck in her head. 'Who is he? What's happening? Where am I? Why can't I remember anything? And why can't I..... speak?'
Although, one thing is for certain, she strongly felt that she could trust him. He seemed very familiar but she couldn't remember.
*******
Running back to their house, Haru frantically searches for his father. He went back to the place where he last saw him but there was no sign of anyone or anything. Nothing was there anymore despite the fact that he was fighting dozens of Hollows not too long ago. He searched the whole place while calling out for him but only silence answered. Even his mother's body was gone as well as everyone else's. He feared for the worst. Everything was already claimed by the Abyss. He knew he can't stay any longer knowing he'll be dragged into the Abyss as well. Yuuki was also waiting for him.
Haru turns around when he felt someone else's presence. But before he could even react, a sword went through him from behind. The attacker kicks Haru at the back pulling out the sword in the process. Haru coughs up blood and staggers as he faces his attacker. Recognition made his eyes widen in shock.
The attacker a has gray shoulder length hair tied to his back and his eyes were the color of blood, his face was devoid of any emotion.
Haru falls to his knees. Blood drips from his mouth as he slowly succumbs to his injuries. "S-Shin... jo...n-... wh-", was all he managed to say as consciousness left him.
Shinjo smiles wickedly as Haru crumpled to the ground, unmoving. Moments later, they were both engulfed by a black mist and vanished.
*******
It wasn few hours later when three Shinigamis came to investigate. Seireitei tracked so many Hollows in once place so they sent the three of them since they were already in the world of the living.
"Taichou, are you sure you're alright?", Rangiku, a beautiful and busty woman with reddish blonde, wavy hair, asked in concern.
"I'm fine.", Toushirou, a short white haired kid, simply said.
"Are you sure? You suddenly collapsed! It wasn't fine at all! You gave us quite a scare back there. And now you're acting as if nothing happened!", Momo, a black haired said, concern lacing her voice and features.
Toushirou heaves a sigh and faces his two female companions. "Matsumoto, Hinamori, I told you already, I'm fine. I don't know what happened either but once we get back I'll ask Unohana about it so stop worrying already."
Momo and Rangiku exchanged brief glances before Momo finally relented.
"O-Okay then.....", Momo tentatively said.
Though the worried looks on their faces remained despite his assurance.
Flashback, about an hour earlier
While on their way to their destination, Toushirou suddenly clenched his chest in pain and collapsed. His breathing became ragged and he was slowly fading out of existence.
Momo and Rangiku immediately rushed to his side. The former tried to heal him with a Kido spell while the latter was trying to gain a response from him. But despite their best efforts, nothing worked. They did everything they could until they ran out of options.
Fortunately, he eventually stabilized, much to his companions' relief. Rangiku and Momo supports him as he stands up.
"Taichou, we should head back and let Unohana-taichou check on you.", Rangiku said in concern.
Toushirou rights himself and stares at his hands as if making sure they were still visible. "I'm fine now. We're almost there anyway so we might as well continue."
Both females weren't too pleased at hearing that. It was his childhood friend who voiced out her concern.
"But Hitsugaya-kun! Something like that happening out of the blue is totally unheard of! We have to go back to make sure you're okay!", Momo insisted.
Toushirou looks up from his hands to them and held their gaze. "The pain has subsided...", he assured them. "We came all they way here so we might as well finish this."
Being the one in charge, they hesitantly obliged.
Momo's shoulders sagged in defeat. "Alright.... but if something happens again then we're going back and you're not saying no for an answer.", she firmly said.
Toushirou opened his mouth to remind her who's in charge but decided against it. Instead, he settled on saying, "Fine."
With that, they resume in their tracks.
End of Flashback
"Now let's get to work.", Toushirou declared.
With a nod from his companions, they started to search the entire area but found nothing aside from the traces of battle. The place was no longer covered in black mist and everything was eerily quiet.
"It's too quiet. There are no bugs chittering. This place is giving me the creeps.", Rangiku mumbled.
The entire place seems to have been deserted. It's like one of those places in horror movies.
"What on earth could've happened here?", Momo muttered as she looks around, equally creeped out.
There were fallen trees, craters on the ground, houses reduced to rubble and different kinds of weapons were strewn all over the ground. Blood was everywhere but there were corpses. That itself screamed bizzare.
They were searching for almost an hour now but still found no one. Luck completely abandoned them when rain suddenly came pouring making their search harder as physical evidence wash away.
"We're going nowhere here.....", Toushirou muttered and turns to his lieutenant. "Matsumoto, I need you to go back to Soul Society and call for assistance."
When they were called in, they were expecting to fight against a horde of Hollows. Something must have happened while they were on the way. Such a large number of Hollows don't suddenly disappear in just a short amount of time like that. Though the real questions here are; Why did they suddenly appear in one place? What happened? Why this place? Where did the people go? Are there any survivors?
Rangiku nods at him in response. "Gladly. I was dying to get out of this creepy place. Be careful you two."
With that, his lieutenant left while Toushirou and Momo decided to look around for shelter. A few minutes later, they suddenly felt an eerie presence close by. As if to confirm that they both felt it, Toushirou and Momo exchanged glances briefly and nods. Words weren't need as the young captain sprang into action. Momo immediately followed suit.
*******
A few hours earlier, Yuuki fainted for some yet unknown reason. It was less than an hour later before she regained consciousness. Despite this, she still waited as if nothing happened. Another hour passed but there was still no sign of Haru. Now, even when heavy rain came pouring, the young girl still had no intention of leaving the circle. Whether or not Haru comes back, something deep inside told her to stay. Plus, without any clue as to where she is or where to go, she had no other choice but to keep on waiting for the unknown.
However, with Haru gone, the barrier became severely weak. Things had suddenly gone amiss when black mist slowly started to crawling around her. Moments later, she felt a presence close by. The rustling of bushes only solidified the fact that she wasn't alone anymore. It wasn't Haru who emerged from the foliage. Instead, it was a tall black beast-like creature with big fangs and long razor sharp claws. It was standing on its two feet, eyes glowing red and a black chain hangs from its chest. It gave out an ear shattering shrill cry the moment its eyes fell on Yuuki but it didn't even faze her. She doesn't know what it is and knows that it's dangerous but she didn't care. Something deep within her won't budge.
The beast makes a mad dash towards the little girl but Toushirou arrived and saw it bringing down its deadly claws to strike the young girl. Without a second to spare or think, the young Shinigami captain flash-stepped towards Yuuki. He grabbed her in his arms taking her out of harm's way. However, due to this desperate attempt, the beast managed to scathe his back eliciting a hiss of pain from the young captain.
Yuuki stares intently at her rescuer. It was moments later when Momo arrived.
Toushirou quickly made his way towards his companion and handed over the young girl to her. "Take care of her and stay within my sight.", he ordered and unsheathes his Zanpakutou to confront the beast.
As he turns to his back, Momo saw his injury. A worried look crossed her features. "Shiro... your back.....", she trailed off.
'Shiro...?', Yuuki thought without taking her eyes off the young Shinigami captain.
"It's just a scratch.", Toushirou assured without taking his eyes off the beast.
Momo turns her attention to the young girl. Yuuki tilts her head to look up at the other person. Momo's curious gaze met Yuuki's confused one.
"Everything's going to be okay. That onii-san will make the monster go away so don't be scared, ne?", Momo softly reassured her.
Yuuki nods in response and clutches onto the fabric of the female Shinigami's clothes. She rests her head on Momo's shoulder relishing the feelings of safety and comfort.
Momo smiles fondly. "Good girl you're so brave.", she said patting her on the head. She recedes into the bushes but not out of sight as was told. Her arms wrap around Yuuki's back and head.
It was more likely done to spare the child from the scene of the fight and the violence that comes with it. Once the child was secured in her arms, Momo turns her attention back to Toushirou.
The young Shinigami charges at the beast and pierces its head but got flabbergasted when it didn't even flinch or move. He immediately pulls out his sword and slashes at it a couple more times only for the damage to heal within seconds. He cut off its head and limbs but they grew back in seconds as well. The amputated limbs and head turned to dust. What's even more frustrating was that it didn't even gave Toushirou a second glance as it focuses on Momo and Yuuki. Noticing this, he places himself firmly between them and the beast like a protective wall.
Since nothing else seems to be working, Toushirou opted to activate his Zanpakuto's Shikai. "Sōten ni zase, Hyorinmaru!", he chanted.
[Sit upon the Frosted Heavens, Hyorinmaru!]
Using its special ability, Toushirou swings his sword and an ice dragon flew towards the beast freezing it instantly. However, it didn't take long for the ice to shatter and turn back to energy form which the beast absorbed making itself stronger. Without warning, it lunged past him and straight towards Yuuki and Momo. Toushirou caught up within a second and parried its attack. For a fews seconds, they locked sword and claws. Fueled by his determination to protect the two, he pushes it back with brute force making it fly a few meters away. This gave them a chance to escape. So the young Shinigami captain quickly scoops up Momo, with Yuuki in her arms, and made their escape.
After witnessing the fight, Momo didn't need to question why he suddenly decided to retreat but Toushirou still spoke.
"We should retreat for now and come up with a plan. That thing might be weak and slow but it's impervious to attacks.", Toushirou said in frustration as he jumps from branch to branch.
Momo remained silent, sensing his frustration. When she finally realized something, she flailed her legs since she was holding Yuuki in her arms. "P-Put me down! Shiro! I-I can run on my own!", she exclaimed, flustered that he was able to carry both of them with ease despite his short stature.
However, having a lot of things in his mind, Toushirou paid no attention. He continued to put some distance between them and the unknown creature until he found a small clearing. Jumping down to the ground, he looks around to make sure they weren't followed. 'What the heck was that thing?! None of my attacks worked! Its presence is a bit like that of a Hollow's but it has no mask!', he thought and his gaze lands on the young girl in Momo's arms. 'That thing was after this child no doubt. But why?! What does it want with her?! She might know something..... and why was she all alone in the woods in first place?! There are too many things I don't know and I don't understand!'
As more questions come up unanswered, Toushirou shakes his head and finally noticed Momo making a fuss so puts her down. Momo stopped struggling once he did so.
"We should find a safe place to stay for a while and wait for Matsumoto.", Toushirou told Momo. "Whatever we're dealing with right now is new and completely out of our element. We should proceed with utmost caution."
Momo looks around them. "In this forest? It'll be hard, and the visibility is low since it's raining."
Hearing their conversation, Yuuki squirms in Momo's arms gaining both the Shinigamis' attention.
Momo gave the young girl a confused look. "What's wrong?"
"I think she wants you to put her down.", Toushirou beckoned.
Yuuki nods in confirmation so Momo settles her on the ground. Toushirou takes off his haori and drapes it over the young girl's head to somehow protect her from the rain. Yuuki gave the young Shinigami captain a grateful smile. The white fabric easily got dirtied with mud but that's the least of their worries. Protecting Momo and the young girl was Toushirou's top priority.
Yuuki tugs onto Momo's hakama. Once she got the Shinigamis' attention, she tugged again before walking off not looking back if they were following or not. The two Shinigamis exchanged questioning glances. Momo shrugs but they started following her.
After several minutes of walking, they eventually saw a small house. Running up towards it, the young girl opens the door and casually walks in with the Shinigamis trailing closely behind. No one was home. Toushirou walks towards the window to keep a lookout. It was still pouring but he didn't need to rely on his visual to look out for danger. After deeming they were relatively safe for now, his attention went back to Yuuki who was sitting silently on the floor. Momo was sitting beside the young girl trying to talk to her but she remained silent. The two Shinigamis didn't fail to notice the sad look on her face so they didn't force her to talk. Both of them don't know that she can't speak.
Momo approaches Toushirou with his haori in hand. Wordlessly, she handed it back to the young captain. Toushirou didn't shrug the outerwear back onto his shoulders but folded it on his forearm instead.
"You two should rest, I'll keep watch.", Toushirou gently said.
Momo lowers the volume of her voice so that Yuuki can't hear. "With the way things are right now, isn't it better to go back to Soul Society?"
Toushirou shakes his head no. "There could be more of those 'things' out there. It's not likely that a slow thing like that could've annihilated an entire village in just a span of few hours. Plus those villagers, whoever they were, put up an intense fight judging by the landscape of the place and all. Other than that, we came here because we recieved a report about the sudden appearances of hundreds of Hollows yet we haven't even sensed or saw one since we arrived.", he mused. "We don't know what else might be out there so it's too risky specially when we have a little child with us. I'm sure you noticed as well, that thing was after her.", frustration was evident in his voice.
Momo has to admit he has a valid point. "You're right. It's better to be safe than sorry afterall. But... why is it after a this child, I wonder...", she mused.
Toushirou shrugs. "Who knows? But it won't come after her without any reason. You saw how that thing completely ignored me.", he said with an annoyed look on his face.
"Do you think she knows something?", Momo inquired. "I mean, she's the only person we found not far from the village. If she really is the only survivor then... she might be an orphan now..."
Toushirou looks down sadly on Yuuki's behalf. "Perhaps. So we shouldn't force her to talk. Specially after all that she's been through."
~ ¤ ~ ¤ ~ ¤ ~ ¤ ~ ¤ ~ ¤ ~ ¤ ~ ¤ ~ ¤ ~
Japanese words used:
Shinigami (死神) - god of death / soul reaper.
Haori (羽織) - Japanese formal coat.
Hakama (袴) - Japanese formal divided skirt.