"I have to go to the bathroom!" Ichigo shouted at the teacher as he ran out of the classroom.
"So do I," Rukia said as she bolted after him. The teacher was confused. She walked over to the doorway and poked her head out. They were already out of sight. What is it with those two kids? she wondered.
Once they were out of the school building, they followed the trail of reiatsu to find Shibō. They found him out in the schoolyard, the exact same spot the last battle was held in. The Hollow's laugh rumbled the ground.
"Ah, Kurosaki, and the little girl Shinigami," Shibō smiled a toothy grin," What a pleasant surprise!" His forked tongue flicked between his teeth. Ichigo transformed.
"Take care of my body," he said to Rukia," I will only take a minute." She bade him well and took his human body from the ground. She ran off to find a place to keep it safe. "It's just you and me, now," Ichigo said as he grabbed his Zanpakuto," Bankai!"
Ichigo pointed Tenza Zangetsu at the Hollow's head. Shibō struck out with both of his front paws, but Ichigo blocked his jagged claws. The Hollow wiped the blood from his paws. Ichigo struck at Shibō's unguarded chest, but he managed to dodge the attack. While Ichigo had his back turned, Shibō struck out with his tail. Ichigo dodged using shunpo and reappeared right above the Hollow's extended tail. He swung Tenza Zangetsu down with all of his might and severed the tail.
Shibō looked at Ichigo calmly," You are stronger than I thought." The tail dropped to the ground with a thud. Shibō's reiatsu began to increase. Where did he get this power from? Ichigo winced from the large amount of spiritual pressure emitted from the Hollow. Shibō struck out at Ichigo, but Ichigo sidestepped and sliced his wrist. Shibō snarled.
"You think that will be enough to stop me?" Ichigo asked. Ichigo laughed," If you do, you are dead wrong!" He summoned his Hollow mask and Shibō grinned.
"You were holding out on me all this time, Kurosaki? No need to hold back now," Shibō said," because I am about to release my true power!" Shibō gathered all of his reiatsu and screamed," Osoroshī Akumu!" The reiatsu gathered around him creating a sphere of energy. The energy was consumed by Shibō's body. The Hollow's wings unfurled. They were red, the color of the webbing in between his spines, and had one sickle-shaped claw on each wing.
In the span of a second, Shibō lashed out with his claws. Ichigo dodged the attack. Before Ichigo could feel satisfaction, the claw from the right wing pierced his left leg. Pain rushed through his body and he fell from the sky. Ichigo hit the ground and the Hollow mask covering his face shattered. The pain... Ichigo looked down at the wound in his leg. It was small, but the area around the hole was infected and swollen.
"Ichigo!" Rukia screamed as she ran towards him. She knelt beside him and shook his shoulders. There was no response from Ichigo. Ichigo screamed and began to thrash and writhe on the ground. Rukia glared at Shibō," What did you do to him?"
The Hollow wiggled his wings," I used the claw on my wing to inject a toxin into his body. It causes terrible and insidious nightmares. It takes several hour to wear off, all the while, the victim is unaware of his surroundings." He took a step towards Rukia," You will be my next victim!" Rukia stood up to face him and unsheathed her Zanpakuto. He swiped at her with a heavy paw, but she swiftly dodged.
Ichigo began to struggle against the venom in his body. He groaned as he fought the terrible nightmares. Rukia's heart was splintering. Ichigo... Rukia blocked another attack and hacked at Shibō's leg. Her Zanpakuto pierced the Hollow's leg and made a large gash. Blood poured from the wound and Shibō grunted in pain.
Ichigo kept fighting the venom coursing through his veins. Reiatsu began to gather around him. He screamed and thrashed out at unseen enemies. Ichigo's screams became louder until he finally defeated the venom. He gasped for air. Rukia turned around and saw him shakily stand to his feet. Shibō saw that Rukia was distracted.
"Shi no Nemuri!" Shibō shouted as he plunged the claw of his left wing into the back of Rukia's left leg.
"Ichigo-" she said, but before she could finish, she collapsed to the ground. Ichigo saw the hole on the back of her leg. She was struck by Shibō too... Ichigo strode towards Shibō. He lifted Tenza Zangetsu.
"You will pay for what you did to Rukia!" Ichigo shouted," Getsuga Tenshō!" The arc of reiatsu raced toward the Hollow's chest. Shibō raised his front paws to block the attack. He fought against it with his own reiatsu, but the attack was too powerful for him to block. It sliced through his paws and cut a deep wound in his chest. Shibō's severed paws dropped to the ground and blood gushed from the wounds.
"You think you have won, Kurosaki?" the Hollow asked with an angry glint in his eyes. "You are wrong, I could easily defeat you as I am now, but I believe in fair battles. I will retreat, for now," Shibō finished. A rift opened in the sky, and Shibō disappeared into the void. Ichigo panted and dropped to his knees from exhaustion. He knew the battle was not over yet.
Rukia was still on the ground, suffering from the seemingly endless nightmares. Every once in awhile, she would scream. It broke Ichigo's heart to see her like this. I bet Orihime would heal her! I think school should be out by now. Ichigo got to his feet and brushed himself off. He grunted in pain when he put weight on his left leg. I have to push through no matter what. He knelt beside Rukia and slipped one arm under her neck, and one under her legs.
Ichigo slowly got to his feet and headed off towards Orihime's apartment. Since he was tired, he wouldn't be able use shunpo to carry both of them. Ichigo resorted to walking. I hope Orihime will be able to heal her... Rukia screamed again.
"Ichigo!" she screamed," Ichigo! Ichigo!" Ichigo felt defenseless. All I can do is stand here and watch as she suffers... He hugged her tight against his chest and began to run. Orihime's house was just around the corner. We are almost there, hold on Rukia! He rounded the corner and thundered up to her doorstep. He balanced Rukia in one arm and pounded on the door.
Within a few seconds, Orihime opened the door. She saw Rukia in Ichigo's arms and her eyes widened.
"What happened?" Orihime asked as she rushed them inside. They placed Rukia in the center of the living room.
"She was injected with a venom that causes nightmares," Ichigo said," So was I." He showed her the wound on his left leg.
"Let me heal that, Kurosaki-kun! It looks bad," Orihime said as she examined the wound. Ichigo shook his head.
"Heal her first," Ichigo motioned towards Rukia," She needs it the most." Orihime nodded gravely and began to heal the puncture wound on the back of Rukia's leg. The hole began to close up after a few minutes. Orihime's face beaded with sweat. What is with this wound, Orihime wondered as the hole completely closed up. It feels as though I cannot reject the venom...
"That is as much as I can do, Kurosaki-kun," she said sadly," I cannot heal the venom. You will have to wait until it passes." Ichigo tried to protest, but he thought better of it. Orihime did the same for Ichigo and healed the wound in his leg. "Do you want me to keep Rukia-chan here?" Orihime asked.
"No, I couldn't ask you to do that," Ichigo said determinedly," I will take care of her." Orihime blushed.
"Oh, okay," she said," Bye, Kurosaki-kun." Ichigo took Rukia from the floor and slung her over his shoulder. He opened the front door and set out for his house. Rukia hardly moved, but occasionally she would mumble something or shift around. It was pretty easy going the whole way home. Once he got to his house, he carefully entered the front door and crept towards the stairs. He silently walked up the stairs and into his room.
He sighed and placed Rukia on his bed. Now I have to go retrieve my body, and her gigai. Great. Ichigo heard a tapping at his window. Kon was inhabiting Ichigo's human body. He held Rukia's gigai under his arm. Well that solved my problem. Ichigo slid open the window.
"Here is Nee-san's body," Kon gestured to himself," and here is your body." Kon stepped inside and gently set Rukia's body in the closet. Ichigo shut the window. "What happened to Nee-san?" Kon asked.
"She was injured in battle," Ichigo replied. Kon opened his mouth to say something, but Ichigo smacked him in the back of the head. The small green pill fell out of Kon's mouth. Ichigo took the pill and put it inside the little stuffed lion which was laying on his bed. Ichigo quickly returned to his body.
"Ouch... could you be delicate with me?" Kon asked. Ichigo scoffed. Ichigo changed out of his school clothes. He slipped on a tight t-shirt and a pair of skinny jeans. Ichigo sat down on his bed beside Rukia. I wonder when the venom will wear off... He brushed her hair back and placed his hand on her forehead. Her skin was cold. The seconds turned into minutes, the minutes turned into hours, but Ichigo refused to leave her side.
Ichigo could no longer keep track of the time, he just waited. Finally, someone knocked at his door. It was Karin. He could tell from her spiritual pressure.
"I have your dinner!" Karin said.
"Just leave it at the door," Ichigo replied.
"Whatever," Karin said as she set the plate down beside the door. When he was sure she had left, Ichigo opened the door just a crack. He quickly took the plate and shut the door. If it is dinner time, it must be around seven. Shouldn't the poison be wearing off by now? Ichigo placed the plate of food on his desk and returned to Rukia's side.
Half an hour passed until Rukia finally began to stir. She opened her eyes and sat up in bed. There was a terrorized look in her eyes.
"Rukia!" Ichigo said," How do you feel?" Rukia groaned.
"I feel tired and hungry. Who healed our injuries?" Rukia asked.
"Orihime. I took you there directly after the battle. She was able to heal the wound, just not the venom," Ichigo explained," Shibō retreated to Hueco Mundo, again." Rukia nodded. She tried to get out of bed, but Ichigo stopped her. "Don't get up, you need to rest," he said. Ichigo got the plate of food from his desk and handed it to her.
"Is this your dinner? I couldn't-" Rukia started, but Ichigo interrupted her.
"Eat, Rukia. You need it more than I do," Ichigo said. Rukia didn't try to refuse because she knew it would be pointless. She took famished bites of rice and pork until the plate was scraped clean. Ichigo tossed the empty plate on the floor.
Ichigo leaned over Rukia and felt her forehead. She was still freezing cold. He removed his hand and layed down beside her. He covered her in a soft blanket. Ichigo noticed that she still had a scared look in her eyes.
"What did you see?" he asked Rukia. Rukia turned away from him. Ichigo wanted to take it back, but he couldn't. Rukia said nothing for a long time, but finally, she spoke up.
"I saw the people that are close to me die in front of me," she choked up," They told me it was my fault they had died. I couldn't do anything..." Rukia broke down into tears. I must look like a fool, she thought.
"Hey, Rukia," Ichigo said softly," It's okay. Look at me." Rukia slowly looked up at him. Ichigo reached out and brushed the tears from her cheeks. "Come here," Ichigo beckoned her. He pulled her close and rested his head against her shoulder. "It's gonna be okay," he murmured. His breath tickled Rukia's ear. She blushed.
Ichigo could hear Rukia's pulse increasing. I wonder what she is thinking right now... Ichigo wondered. He took in a deep breath. She so soft and delicate, how does she act so tough? All this time, she has protected me. I should have been the one protecting her...
Rukia buried her face into Ichigo's shoulder. A warm, comfortable feeling settled over her. She could feel Ichigo's muscles relaxing beneath her. So strong, but so gentle. I never knew that Ichigo had a soft side, she thought. He nuzzled her neck softly. Rukia hoped her face wasn't as red as it felt.
"You should sleep, Rukia," Ichigo whispered into her shoulder. He lifted his head slightly," Don't worry, you're safe with me." Rukia felt Ichigo's lips brush against her ear as he spoke. He must really enjoy messing with me, Rukia thought, or maybe, just maybe... She could hardly keep her eyes opened, so she stopped trying. She let Ichigo's warmth seep into her and pull her into a deep, peaceful sleep. Ichigo enjoyed the feeling of being with Rukia, and holding her close for as long as he could, but in the end, he let sleep take him over as well.
This, right here, lets me know that even if the world is crashing down, I have built a roof to protect me and the ones I hold close...