[ gin thought she'd had him; the knife had been firmly pressed and while she had no intention of actually going further the surprise from that 'pop' made it slip--not deep but enough to draw a thin line. she's utterly baffled by what follows, showered in black ribbons and--
she might have to draw her blade to deal with this intruder, not the knives she tended to favour for close combat. fingers set on the hilt of her zanpakuto. she doesn't want to draw it unless she must and is currently having that internal debate when the intruder speaks again.
did he seriously
did he just
gin looks distinctly unimpressed from where she stands. had he really just tried that? in the middle of invading soul society? this man was either a genius or an utter idiot with luck who had found his way here. (though the fact he's wearing a reiatsu concealing cape suggests he's smart but gin's seen her fair share of idiot-geniuses and idiots who pretend.)
muttered mostly to herself with undisguised irritation: ] Are you serious right now? [ then, louder ] The longer you draw this out the more it'll hurt.
[In the scope of his scanning and probing over the past few months, Gin registered as one of a hundred similar presences. Hers was one of the sharper ones--easier to pick up if only because of her spiritual density. Her signal was also closest to the one he remembered. A lone, red ribbon marked her signal in a sea of various shades of red. As the smoke cleared from his decoy and Gin straightened herself, Naoyuki drew back his hood fully and ran his thumb over his throat, sealing the cut on his neck with kido, a thin green line of light left behind.
He hadn't let his eyes off of Gin, watching as a number of other soul reapers were scrambling to run to the same levels Kisuke and Gin had settled on. It would take a little time for them to catch up to the two. So, he didn't have long at all to verify who she was. Even if he had to run, he needed to hear her name. From her mouth.]
Deathly serious! Well, to an extent. I'll admit, my motivations for coming here are a little sketchy. They're not even remotely heroic, either!
[Laughing, he tapped his sword against his shoulder. In its unreleased state, it looked as simple and straightforward as any other asauchi.]
Now, just because I have my sword out doesn't mean I want to fight. Weird as it sounds, I still don't know if you want to kill me or kiss me, so it's there just in case I made a mistake and went for a different beautiful woman.
[ the moment he draws his hood back his face is incredibly familiar. cruelly so. those are features she has not seen in well over a decade and the surprise, while not evident to most, would be easy to pick up on for someone of kisuke's intelligence. then, it's shuttered away, back beneath the pale, indifferent expression gin favours when not wearing her mask.
well, fuck. this man is a lunatic who looks just like--gin can't even think of his name right now. her voice is soft, a little conflicted: ] You really shouldn't be here and now... [ she has to catch him. and take him to the other captains and see if she's imagining things and finally going insane or this is something else entirely.
unfortunately, gin's first reaction when confronted with emotional vulnerability is anger. ] Neither of those options but seeing as you are an intruder resisting capture, I might have to go with kill.
Flattery doesn't work on me.
[ not on this gin anyway. but she hasn't tried to stab him again and she's hearing him out, waiting for the rest to arrive and try to corral him. ]
[When confronted with anger, Naoyuki somehow felt utterly at peace. It was probably a dangerous quality to have but there was something relaxing about knowing when something dangerous was being pointed at his throat. It helped him figure out in critically short amounts of time whether someone was speaking honestly. She hadn't drawn her soul cutter at all. Either she was confident she could catch him or the sight of him had the right effect. At the very least, it was a little confirmation. His voice and face were the same as the guy from the past, right? He could work with that data.
Even so, he was quickly running out of time and he was trying to shake just how distracting that moment's hesitation looked on her face. There was plenty more conflict to witness but he felt his heart swell over that one little moment where it broke apart.]
Cute... Y'know, you were more honest at first but... I don't mind a few lies. Gin, right?
[There was a little beep from his hoodie, a little red light flashing around his hip in his pocket. A little panic crossed Naoyuki's face and he looked around, past Gin and to the soul reapers trying to reach the two of them. Up front, a red-faced man with his sword already drawn. The weird yakuza guy with the shades. Well. Maybe it was good timing.]
Oh! That's time! Gramps found me out.
[A Senkaimon gate burst out of thin air right behind him. From within, a big meaty fist grabbed Naoyuki by the back of his hoodie and yanked him within the depths before it swung shut and vanished into dust.]
[ what can gin possibly say to any of this? she's even quieter than usual under the watchful gaze of iba. who had spent a good ten minutes swearing and promising retribution on the intruder until gin has silenced him with a soft 'iba-kun, please'. and inevitably, as it often happens when kurosaki ichigo's energy is felt, the captains had a discussion.
gin, for the most part tries to stay out of it because that man— he'd looked and acted just like— but in truth, gin has never had very good sense because why is she even here?
in the human world after years and not just that but outside an abandoned warehouse that has seen better days. she could sneak in, sure but she hasn't, lingering outside while she has a whole internal debate about what she's doing.
if this is-- if this is him, gin has questions but also if he isn't entirely him then shouldn't she leave things alone? they've both suffered enough to continue drawing this out.
still, she lingers and waits and, because she wasn't raised in a barn, does knock on the metal door. ]
Why doesn't he have a doorbell...? [ or an apartment while they're at it. ]
[Ichigo had never yelled at him quite so much before that morning. He didn't just earn one or two lumps. He got put in the dirt every time he refused to apologize. Obstinate, stubborn, reckless, foolish--he got every card thrown at him until the old man just gave up and set up a cot in the warehouse so he could keep an eye on him. Granny would come by with food to keep them occupied as Ichigo angrily watched TV on the old-fashioned 4k setup, refusing to try out the projector cubes Naoyuki had gotten them.
His little warehouse was downright impossible to navigate without the right sort of spiritual awareness--an interesting little security trick he set up. Though, someone who knew an occupant wouldn't have any trouble actually getting through. It would look like an ordinary dirt path in the road leading to the front door if they were familiar. Regardless, his cameras picked up something. Someone. He scrambled from his workbench, prompting a sleepy grunt from Ichigo, laid out on his cot. Coming to a slide at the door, he cleared his throat, touched up his hair a little and completely forgot he was still quite covered in metal shavings and oil.
Naoyuki swung open the door, smiling at Gin and leaning against the frame, trying his best to put on just the right kind of lazy grin that he thought made him look devilishly handsome.]
[ while gin is busy with her own personal existential crisis and memories, the door opens and--yup. there is no mistaking that messy hair but the pose is all off. and what is he trying to even do?
well, whatever, gin doesn't have time for those details. she's here because she has questions and there are things only this person who looks like him could answer. if not, gin is going to find kurosaki-san and see what he knows. ]
Exactly who are you? And how did you know my name?
Standing up straight, Naoyuki cleared his throat and briefly averted his eyes.]
Sato Naoyuki. Formerly, Urahara Kisuke.
[An audacious claim, as he was well aware. While the broader system was still unconfirmed to him, he was aware of his own personal circumstances. Perhaps too intimately for someone who shouldn't have existed in the state he was.
For all intents and purposes, he was Urahara Kisuke. What little trickle of his presence existed outside of his reiatsu-concealing hoodie was undoubtedly him, even if considerably diminished. While he didn't know what he looked like in the past, he recognized Gin clear as crystal. She barely looked any different from those shadow-ridden memories.]
...I dream of you at least twice a week. It used to be 'once in a while' but since I changed my daily routine, it's happening pretty regularly.
[ the admission is simple. delivered with such calmness, as if it is fact and gin makes a complicated expression as if she can't quite decide on what to feel at that. the instinct is that he is lying, urahara kisuke is dead. she was with him when that happened. she mourned him, there is no way this is simple. there is a trick somewhere, there always was when kisuke was involved.
pained: ] Urahara Kisuke is dead. So, Sato Naoyuki, don't go claiming a dead man's name unless you want his enemies to come after you. [ a word of advice that is delivered in an unkind tone.
a younger gin would've been flustered to hear that sort of words from someone who looked and sounded like kisuke. an older gin is not thrilled, the only betrayal of her innate shyness is the way she tucks a long strand of hair behind an ear, avoiding his eyes for a moment. ] Perhaps you should go back to your previous routine, it sounds bothersome to dream of the same face so often.
I'm Captain Akutagawa, not 'Gin'. [ not to you. ] And if you sneak into Soul Society again, I will throw you in a cell.
I'm not looking to hurt your feelings but I wouldn't say dead. There're some technical details I'd prefer skimming over, though.
[It wasn't as if he hadn't considered it. He took his most pessimistic approximations and lined them up in a row. He could have died a few days ago. Someone else other than Gin might have found him. One of Kisuke's enemies, without a doubt. Even with that all considered, it simply wasn't anything other than worth it.
And, even with everything considered, he didn't want to hurt her feelings when he heard that tone in her voice change.]
And, I can't exactly sit idly by, you see. My resonance testing shows his efforts worked to ensure Hell itself wouldn't spill over, so I should have... maybe three thousand years to make it up to you? I'd rather not waste a single moment of it.
You never look to hurt my feelings. [ you just do; more muttered to herself than an intentional answer. she doesn't want the details, she doesn't want any of this at all--of course this man could potentially find a way to cheat death in order to finish whatever work took precedence over everything including his own life and wellbeing. or to make sure his plans were working as intended. gin feels a pang of familiar fondness and crushes it down the moment it peeks through.
gin looks up at him, confused as to what exactly he means about 'make it up'—this boy is really... he is really confused. mistaken. misguided. ] Sato-san, while I am relieved to know Kisuke didn't die for nothing, this is still highly inappropriate.
More importantly, what kind of experiments are you even conducting in there? [ she leans on the side, trying to peer behind and whatever is hidden. ] Just because you're Kurosaki-san's protege doesn't mean you will get total freedom to do what you like.
There are rules for a reason. [ she is very not subtly trying to steer the conversation towards work and rules and consequences and stay far from anything personal.
she's still in love with urahara, and that's something she's learned to live with but that doesn't mean she wants to get to know a man who wears his face and voice. ]
[Her first comment stung. Surely, he'd never deliberately hurt her feelings if he could do anything but, and yet, accidents happened. Every implied bit of it in her tone of voice however gentle led him to believe it was the case.
When she tried to get a peek inside, Naoyuki leaned a little more to the side and pulled the door closer to shutting. His expression was a little sullen--nothing of it being Gin's fault but rather his excitement to meet her and getting to know her being trampled upon by that place. Soul Society. Sure, she had rules to adhere to. It might have been the main reason why she was willing to come to see him.]
I only allow close family and girlfriends in my lab.
[Clearing his throat, he tried to put a tether on that little moment of sullen vulnerability. He didn't have quite enough training to hide it. Dryly, he glanced up at the sky, right over her head.]
That said, no rule should outlive its usefulness. Everything I do is something that needs doing. I don't need thanks for it but at least pass it over to your scientists that their approach to protecting boundaries is equivalent to using swiss-cheese as a wind sock. I have quadrillions of access points available.
[A beat. Unlike his previous incarnation, Naoyuki didn't hesitate at all to actually gush over the details when given a chance.]
Did you know one of them allows you to pass whole spans of spiritual energy and matter through shadows? The absence of light really does make a lot of sense but I don't think the typical soul reaper would be able to use them... Well, except me. Maybe that one guy.
[ the reaction that follows the statement is purely gin, unfiltered and slightly—jealous: ] Girlfriends? [ she does seem to catch herself after that and withdrawing again into her preferred blankface to deal with this entire thing. can naoyuki read her with the same ease kisuke could? that is horrifying to her. kisuke reading her was fine but this-- absolutely not. she did not sign up for this emotional vulnerability, even if she does catch onto his own. brief as her own and then gone.
thankfully, business and soul society is something they can talk about without delving into rocky personal territory and so, gin favours that. except what follows, the additional details and added explanation is not something gin expected or is used to. she blinks.
she finds it a little hard to look away during his explanation because he really does look so much-and according to naoyuki, he is kisuke. a form of him. something. ] I will make sure to pass your message on to the Research Division, I'm sure Captain Mayuri will appreciate this ...observation.
[ no, he'd be livid that urahara kisuke is still making his life difficult even though he's not supposed to be alive. and perhaps naoyuki says he needs no thank you but gin has the audacity to offer a polite, distant smile and add: ] Thank you, Sato-san.
If you are not going to be a hazard towards the security of Soul Society, then my visit here is unnecessary.
[The sweet scent of blood in the water. If Gin listened closely, she'd probably hear the internal scribbling of notes. It wasn't that he spoke the way he did with a totally deliberate, planned script but he wasn't the type to speak and not think about it. When she honed in on that word?
Well, that was another subfolder in his mental file on her. He smiled, utterly catlike.]
Yes. That would certainly count for my family and if any of them decide to start dating.
[It was a deceptive smile. The one that knew everything about where her misstep came from. Even so? He'd save it for later. In his pocket, his phone buzzed and for the moment, he'd ignore it. Sparing Gin anymore embarrassment, he leveled a sigh and shook his head when he thought about answering it on the second buzz. It could wait 30 seconds.]
I think you know I'd never turn down a visit from you if you want to try again later. You're much more pleasant than what I expected of Soul Reapers and it answers quite a few of my questions, Captain Akutagawa.
[ oh no. this is a misstep that naoyuki is seemingly, very graciously, letting slide for the time but gin admonishes herself all the same. the catlike smile is all gin needs to see to know those metaphorical noises of internal note scribbling were very real and that she had been caught out.
a formal address is a relief and it still feels off. the few times urahara had used that term had been when things hadn't been going well between them; there the use of titles and honorifics was necessary to remind one another of the need for distance. but that is neither here nor there, gin cannot hold sato naoyuki to the standards or actions of his previous self. she cannot have expectations or hopes, she cannot assume.
a tentative smile, and then there is gin's pleasant, customer-service-like tone: ] There are better ways to find answers, Sato-san, but hopefully there will be no need for me to come visit you unannounced [ or at all ] in future.
[ what they're both going to find out in the next few hours is the start of the many consequences put in motion due to sato naoyuki's impromptu visit to soul society; fueled by the fact he carries the legacy of a man who was both respected and reviled.
gin does not take a step to go though she has taken note of the buzzing in his pocket. there are things she wants to ask rather than spy to find out but right now making up her mind on the subject feels impossible. and so instead she tries to soften a little because: ] If you really are him or...part of him, then I am glad. He was a very remarkable person, and deserved better.
[He didn't know what to say to that. At all. She might have been right that there was a procedure to it all but he wasn't satisfied with slow progress. Something urged him to be quick and responsive. To take every detail and bleed it of its use. He'd gotten good mileage with that line of thought. When Gin left as politely as one might in such a dire circumstance, he sighed and watched her go in silence.
He'd only seen a small piece of her and she still struck him as... something else.
Once he shut the gate and snapped his security procedures back on, Naoyuki vanished back into the warehouse and slid his cell phone free of his pocket to find... more than a few messages. The soul reaper 'pack' he established kept tabs on this around the city and someone had been asking about him. It matched another notification from his trackers. Something was poking around in Soul Society, trying to match a signal he left behind a few days before. It was beginning to come close to finding the signal's origin point.
All of it, useful data. Something that might have unnerved someone with fewer precautions taken to mind.
With a resolute sigh, he packed his hoodie with its assortment of pockets and sleeves and readied himself for a new exercise. Something he'd put the better part of a year into readying himself for. His friends had struggled just to take on a single Menos Grande but there had never been any danger of any of them actually dying with Ichigo waiting by the ring. As intimidating as the thing looked like in its file and in person, he still supposed it looked... easy.
When he stepped out of his third favorite konibini a couple of hours later to pick up gyoza and begin a rigorous series of field tests, he was greeted by a half-dozen men and women in expensive-looking, old-fashioned clothing. Similar shihakusho to the kind he'd seen on Gin and her men but dressed with the livery of nobles. In silence, they all drew their swords and one in front caught his eye. One young man, looking no older than himself, with sharply trimmed bangs and a bleak expression of fury. Naoyuki had been in the middle of pulling gum out of his mouth, ready to toss it in the trash when they all interrupted.]
Urahara Kisuke. You have no idea how many years I've waited--
[Naoyuki flicked his gum at the young man in front. Right at the front of his clothes. Furious, he drew his sword and cut the gum only to blink in muted surprise partway through his swing as he saw Naoyuki's wide, pleased smile. Once the blade cut the piece of gum, both halves burst and expanded well past millions of times their own size to engulf himself and three more of his group, fully entangled and rooted to the pavement. Quick on his feet, Naoyuki came to avoid the next series of sword swings from the ones who managed to get out of the way in time before getting tangled. The chase led him up to a rooftop, hands spread out as his attackers took to points surrounding him.]
Woah, woah! Please, relax! I may not be as strong as he was but I'm much less nice than he was, too! That gum was your only warning.
[A beat. Because he could never quite let it stop there.]
I don't think it is necessary to worry about this town as long as Ichigo-san is among the living.
Gin-chan, you really sometimes say such things...he's an old man no you can't just make jokes [ but the tone is teasing and gin can see the smile. ]
Hm [ she hums and adjusts her phone, visible on the other side of the screen is captain shinji hirako, his scarf around his neck as he lounges back. ] I am merely reporting that the Menos has been taken care of by Ichigo-san's...brood.
The one Sato Naoyuki is part of. [ shinji sounds knowing and gin wants to punch him and herself in the face to avoid the conversation that she knew is coming. ] Or rather Urahara Kisuke
[ and yes, gin wants the earth to swallow her whole. ] So?
It's been nearly two decades since I last saw you make that face
[ gin frowns, holding up the phone up. ] It's dark, you can't see my face.
Doesn't matter~ [ shinji's tone is teasing though he must see something in gin's expression because he drops the smile. ] You're a captain now, you don't have to look into this yourself, send your vice-captain to keep an eye on the situation.
I will, I just have to be sure he's...[ gin pauses a message popping up. ] I'll be back soon. [ she hangs up ignoring shinji's vague protests and she double-checks the location and alert she's received. how strange, when the menos has already been taken care of but--
--ah. she's grateful for yoruichi-san's training, she's quick and light on her feet. finding the first mess left behind by the shinigami trying to ambush a -for all intends and purposes- human is only slightly alarming.
she speeds up, feeling a wave of anxiety and hating every second of it until she spots the commotion on the rooftop.
voice soft, barely there:] Rashomon [ her blade splits, two wakizashi taking the place of the katana, unlike naoyuki who was nice enough to offer a warning about his gum, gin is not. she isn't looking to use her blade in a deadly manner but she isn't pulling back punches when she kicks the first shinigami threatening naoyuki in the face.
dropping one of her wakizashi onto the shadows, the blade seems to take a mind of its own within them, a dog-like shape that then swirls around to guard naoyuki as gin pauses her assault. ]
It's highly irregular for the distinguished Shimura family to show up in the human world. [ of course, hardly impossible given that they own their personal gates to travel and those aren't tracked. ]
[Gin had arrived just as the three on the roof had begun taking their turns to attack. Each swing carried its own fatal edge but he skirted by, step by step, narrowly avoiding death at every chance. Frustration welled up in them and, all the while, Naoyuki count each move they made between the three of them. He had a plan in mind. Something he wanted to practice and.
'Rashomon'?
His hood blew back, surprise bright across his face when a hound's shadow rose up and cut off the next sword swing coming from him. It snapped out and sharply cut across his attacker's forearm, earning a curse of spite when they backed off to make space.]
A Captain in action, huh? Now, that's a sight.
[None of them were pushovers but a surprise attack was rarely easy to shrug off. Gin descended and hammered the next in command in the chin and sent him back across the roof, though he managed to effortlessly fall cleanly on his feet. The Shimura clan head took in a cool breath and sheathed his zanpakuto, keeping his eyes fixed on Gin.]
Irregular? It cost time and effort to track him. Now that he's within my range, dog of the Court Guard, don't you think that I'll rest until he's paid with his life.
[Every word, laced with venom. Naoyuki recognized it for what it was worth. Not a petty call for revenge. Years of frustration and hatred turned to tar in his heart. With each word, the young man's spiritual pressure created a tangible burden in the air. The roof began to crumble under the force of it and while he wasn't burdened by the strain of it, the thought of it made him nervous. There were people nearby.]
Shape the world, Shinatsuhiko!
[He opened his mouth and loosed a deep breath that coated his sword, wrapping it in a surging cloud. With a single swing, he swung a thunderstorm forth that threatened to shred both Gin and Naoyuki.
Naoyuki drew his sword from his bag in one smooth motion and drove the tip into the roof. A bright red sheet of light spread across it, shielding the building below their feet. Not himself.]
[ though passing through the senkaimon means that all but 20% of her strength is sealed up, gin is confident enough over not needing more than that to deal with these shinigami. they're strong but that's not always the defining factor in a fight. someone had taught her that. gin just wants to sigh, all she wanted was a moment to collect herself before making decisions that can't be taken back and certainly she's showing her hand here.
she escalated without second thought by releasing rashomon to defend naoyuki, and the way she swallows at the heir of the shimura clan's words are telltale signs. ] He already paid with his life, be reasonable.
[ though she doesn't particular want the shimura to be reasonable because her frustrations are sometimes best worked out with a sword so... gin speaks, wanting him to get out of the way and let her deal with this:] Kisuke-
[ the reckless attack has gin recalling rashomon to dispel the worst of the storm aimed at them both. the edge of the building probably gets the worse of it, the ceiling beneath them threatening to crack under the storm from shinatsuhiko. (this is going to be a headache of paperwork)
except there is a bright sheet of red spreading across and-
oh, that- gin doesn't know why she is even surprised when urahara, no naoyuki, demonstrates his shikai. of course doing that leaves him open to attack, and gin tosses her wakizashi at their opponent. that leaves her momentarily without defence as she calls for rashomon's jaws to snap both arms off. ]
[Disregarding her peaceful plea, Shimura turned the handle of his sword over. Unrestrained, she could overpower him, but with her sanctioned restraints on, he could navigate the path of Rashomon's power and move the winds of his storm around it. Trails of the clouds that came from his sword handle wrapped around it, not quite clashing but pooling around Naoyuki's red shield.
Naoyuki huffed, lifting his head to see Gin had come to defend him, leaving him with a broad and appreciative smile on his face. Benitaisho's shield provided a total wrap around the roof that kept it from deteriorating but it did nothing to hinder the flexible spread of that man's shikai.]
Hey! Great teamwork!
[Naoyuki called out, beaming with amazement, as if she knew precisely how to cover him from the start. Still, the only thing stopping Shimura had been Gin's second move. When the hound-like shadow lunged for him, he responded swiftly. Withdrawing the storm in a flash, he took one step forward. Shunko. The thrown wakizashi. The hounds. Weaving between them, he unsheathed his sword once more as he closed in on the space between Gin and Naoyuki. Bringing that blade down, he brought up the clouds a second time to separate the two of them and the man in the brightest robes came up from the street to land beside Naoyuki. Still covered in heaps of gum, the older man drew his sword with deadly speed.
The Tsunayashiro clan leader's sword was met with Benitaisho, Naoyuki exhaling sharply as he had to switch from one form of defense to another. The weight of that man's sword was too much for him head to head, though. When their blades met, Naoyuki was blown away and speared through the city sky, struggling to get his bearings as the world went in all directions... at least until he very suddenly came to land, crumpled in the woods just outside of Karakura. A whole clearing of trees left behind and his eyes seeing stars. The Tsunayashiro clan head looked aside to Shimura and commanded:]
Keep our revered Division Seven Captain busy. Resist the urge to kill her.
[In comparison, Tsunayashiro was cold and distant. His restrained expression carried on as he departed, spearing through Karakura like a bolt of lightning himself, to chase down the young man and kill him with his own blade.]
[ she has no desire to kill anyone until naoyuki is hit and is sent flying, far from the protection of rashomon and her blades. there is a brief moment of panic that is tampered down before she leans on anger as a substitute: there is nothing she can do right now but defeat shimura, then help naoyuki. (how mad would the captain commander be if she accidentally killed a noble? he probably would understand why but rules are rules— she had hoped this wouldn't end in bloodshed but the moment naoyuki had been hit her decision had also been made).
inconsistent as this decision is with her previous words and wants, gin knows with stark clarity that she does not want to see a man who wears kisuke's voice, has his voice, and seems to share some of his memories, hurt.
rashomon returns to her, hounds back to blades as she tries to bypass shimura and follow tsunayashiro. she doesn't get far, her path blocked as blades crash. gin doesn't waste her breath trying to reason or ask politely. she has to defeat him to get past and that is what she'll do.
she only hopes naoyuki can keep up until then. rashomon is a blade of short range but once it pierces skin, it will find its mark. bones had be pierced cleanly or not; gin is going to make it hurt. not out of sadism but out of need; nothing deters like pain and death. and she's already making plans on how best to protect naoyuki when ichigo is not around.
another clash, she feels the storm threaten to swallow her and impede her vision.
please wait for me, i'm coming.
gin slashes, then sends rashomon forward giving up one of her blades so she can send a hound chasing in the direction naoyuki can be thrown. ]
[Tsunayshiro's head descended upon the forest, touching down softly. He found Naoyuki on his back, struggling to stand.
At that same time, Shimura had been conjuring a denser and denser storm to entrap Gin completely. Once he saw she sent one of her blades to chase after Naoyuki and the other clan head, he scowled and closed the two of them off in that twisting vortex, leaving them isolated. Within that space, he fought with Gin, carrying on despite the deep wound she put in his arm. He was, after all, chasing her with his rage every moment he fought. The remaining nobles rushed to give chase only to be stopped by a woman with long black hair, wearing a cute, floral dress. One of Gin's old item. Ururu, looking no older than thirty, leveled her hand in the direction of the oncoming group.
Polite, she curtsied while standing on thin air.]
It's nice to meet you. I'm Urahara Ururu.
[One of the nobles interrupted, drawing her sword and swinging for Ururu as she bowed, only to see her arm twist back unnaturally. Ururu's hand had raised and she had done nothing more than give her a 'gentle' shove in response.]
Please. Cheap shots are part of my family's trademark. [Dusting her hands off, Ururu settled into a stance.] Now, please, all of you. Surrender or die.
[Naoyuki groaned, picking himself up from the ground. The sword he clashed with had been something else entirely. Something that shouldn't have rightfully existed. When Tsunayashiro landed beside him, he could see the sickeningly angry blade clutched in his hand and could feel its malice.]
Urahara. I'll take my time to cut you into pieces, so please... Raise your sword. It won't satisfy me until I kill you as a soul reaper would.
[Naoyuki fell on his side, seemingly having trouble just breathing. His zanpakuto, embedded in a tree, wouldn't come free when he went to pry it loose. Tsunyashiro scoffed, picking up the young man by the arm, looking on as his head slumped. Naoyuki took in a breath, deep and distorted, just as Tsunayashiro lifted that evil sword to plunge into his chest. When the young man raised his head to look him in the eyes, Tsunayashiro was met with black sclera. A white mask with a fox's smile.]
Got'cha.
[Naoyuki's mask split at that smile, a bright red cero bursting from his open mouth, engulfing Tsunayashiro and burying him into the dirt. Burned over most of his upper body, the old man looked up in surprise to see the fox's mask peering down at him.]
Hollowification!? As if you could have gone any madder!
[ the jackhammering of her heart against her ribs is all gin can hear over the storm around her and shimura. he doesn't know it yet but she's already decided that, regardless of the punishment and the captain commander's stern face, she's going to kill this man. that is how the port mafia resolved issues, how gin was brought up to deal with them when she'd been but a black lizard battalion squad member. verlaine had said to make sure an opponent stayed down because if they got up again- well, this is an example of it already. giving the tsunayashiro clan time to regain enough force to do this. verlaine would tell her to kill them all.
using her blades to kill a fellow shinigami had been something gin hadn't had to do in twenty years. somehow, the fact kisuke's returning is causing all this is perfectly normal in the back of her mind. she's unhappy about it, but how many things has she not done for urahara kisuke before that have eaten away at her? not in anger but in sorrow.
at the periphery, she is certain she's spotted ururu and that's a relief. if she's noticed then it means others had to have as well. the urgency of rashomon reaching its target is less so now as gin doesn't think it's fast enough to catch up before a more severe blow is aimed at naoyuki's very delicate, very frail, very human skin. had urahara seen her at first and thought of that too? how breakable humans are in comparison to shinigami and hollows and everything else living and breathing under the same blue sky.
thankfully, ururu's arrival also means gin has one single opponent to focus on. the target of her anger and all she needs is one good blow. what would verlaine say? he'd probably ask her to curb that anger and wait for an opening but gin doesn't want to wait. she's no genius, she can't calculate the variables of this battle, of whatever else is going on outside the storm. there are guesses that can be made but those aren't good enough in this situation.
oh, her old mentors would be so disappointed. even dazai, though this is the sort of strategy he would've goaded pawns into using (gin included). rashomon whispered quietly as she lets go of the blade and the hound returns, reaching with dark, hungry jaws to tear at the storm as if it were solid cloth and not just air. she has no blade to parry the katana like this and so gin allows it to sink into her shoulder.
the pain is blinding for a moment or two, being stabbed is never pleasant. shimura's look of triumph falters when he sees gin is reaching to grab onto his hand to hold the hilt in place. there. now she's close enough. ]
Rashomon[ —from hound to blade again, she's within reach, the small slit over his throat, the artery wide open and dousing everything red. the storm goes and gin waits because she wants to make sure shimura is dead. ]
[A number of young men and women, fresh out of high school, came to assist Ururu with her targets. The soul reapers scattered, taking to the new arrivals with a deep affront, leaving Ururu to sigh, dusting her skirt off with one hand. In her other hand, a noble gurgled helplessly with her fingers closed around his throat.]
It would be rude to take away this opportunity for them to learn. A shame. I would have been able to let go of quite a lot of stress if I were allowed you all.
[Shimura had descended upon Gin with sheer force, coming to believe he could pin her at a complete disadvantage. Killing her before her power could be restored by an order would be the most practical move. It would give him a chance to assist Tsunayashiro. No matter what, he couldn't let him take Kisuke's head. Lost in thought, he chased down Gin with every intent to crush her so that she couldn't stand again. She was a Captain, after all. If he didn't obliterate her with force, then she could only stand back up.
When he came to drive his sword into her, he had been aiming for her throat. Rather than avoiding it, she re-directed him to drive it through her shoulder instead. Strong, ruthless fingers closed around his sword guard, keeping him locked in place. Before he could retreat and force the blade free? She accomplished what she set out to do. Shimura only had that one moment of frustration and shock left in his life before Gin activated Rashomon once more.]
This only buys you--
[Certainly, something she paid for and earned. He couldn't finish those words without his throat, after all, dead before he could even touch the pavement, his storms dissipating into whispers of wind while the ones in the street fought.]
[Tsunayashiro stood up, gritting his teeth through the pain that flared along his skin after being burned so thoroughly by Naoyuki's cero. He advanced and swung his blade with a roar of force. The young man put his body into parrying the blow, wincing. He was blown back, breathing hard from the pain as he splintered his way through a tree trunk. The entire thing collapsed, forcing him to dive to avoid being caught underneath it. Tsunayashiro was on him in an instant. Decoy after decoy, destroyed when Tsunayashiro unleashed Enryakoten's power. Fire. Ice. Lightning. Stone. Blades. The zanpakuto that could imitate all other zanpakuto was something deadly in the elder's hands and it took everything Naoyuki had to simply escape and slow the more experienced warrior down. Tsunayashiro advanced, unimpressed by the bag of tricks he was being shown, slicing the mask off Naoyuki's face in one stroke. In the second, he scored a blow on the young man that could be considered the last, cutting him from shoulder to hip with a master's precision. His sweatshirt burst open and with it, blood blossomed from him. For that moment, Tsunayashiro lowered his guard. He was certainly cut in two.
Naoyuki had run out of decoys. Gadgets. Tricks. Blood ran down his front freely and, in that moment of victory and elation, Tsunayashiro considered letting him fall to simply watch. In the middle of his swing, one of the black hounds of Rashomon had grabbed hold of his leg, tearing into the bone of his calf and slowing his assault but he could attest--his training guaranteed he would still finish the swing.]
How convenient.
[Tsunayashiro stirred, something in him seizing up when Naoyuki reached up and ran fingers through his hair. As if he hadn't been cut. Impossibly, he stood, the sickening slash in his shoulder knitting together through a fiery blue light that burned in the center of his chest. The light vanished soon after, his wound failing to heal any further. Even as bloodied as he'd been and so close to death again, Naoyuki smiled wide.]
'Enrakyoten'. I remember that file. It's so deadly that I couldn't possibly recover fully from that last swing but now that I have, I've recovered something important. Still, I'm even more grateful it was weakened somewhat by Captain Akutagawa's assist. Close one, right?
Truly. You really are a monster, Urahara Kisuke. Even so, you won't survive this a second time.
Sir! [Almost annoyed, Naoyuki made himself laugh and waved his sword reproachfully. His shoulder, still quite injured, wouldn't let him grip it with his other hand. Even as Tsunayashiro drew his sword once more, he still scolded his attacker.] I'd like you to keep that word out of your mouth but I won't have to worry about that for very long.
[Tsunayashiro came forward like a bullet, aiming to skewer Naoyuki's throat. He came to a halt, the tip of his family's sword stopped dead on the flat of Zangetsu. Ichigo, boiling with anger beneath the reiatsu-shrouding cloak he carried for those precise circumstances, loosed a cool breath and squared his shoulders.]
There's some things I don't tolerate. Kyoraku is just going to have to clean this one up.
[ gin is not usually stained in blood, hers or others. sneaking in behind targets to slit throats meant she is out of the way of the arterial spray. she misses her mask in this moment, using a free hand to wipe the lower part of her face, and there is something utterly dark and pleased about what she has just done.
she waits, sure that shimura is very much dead before taking a step back. she's aware the other part of rashomon should be near naoyuki's vicinity if not already there. there is the urge to go chase the other conspirators and dispatch them all. (and where did she lose that touch of kindness she had? somewhere after her human death or much later after urahara's?). adrenaline though is doing a great job in keeping the wound at the back of her mind as she turns towards ururu and the teenagers that had come in.
gin doesn't care for the humans, surely naoyuki's friends? ichigo's brood and successors once he retires, yes? but she does smile at ururu, warm. ]It's nice to see you, Ururu-chan. Can you please make sure there are no more surprises around? [ she looks well and that dress is perfect on her. ]I'm going to find Kisuke. [ the slip of the name doesn't even cross gin's mind as she turns, heading off.
ichigo's reiatsu is cloaked so she can only sense tsunayashiro's and naoyuki's, more faint than before but present. gin tampers down on panic, on concern.
but apparently she need not worry because that is very much ichigo and she's--well, there is a reason why soul society owes him so much and why he's feared by many and respected by the rest. man, oh man, the captain commander is going to have such a mess to clean up here. ]
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2023-01-18 05:40 pm (UTC)she might have to draw her blade to deal with this intruder, not the knives she tended to favour for close combat. fingers set on the hilt of her zanpakuto. she doesn't want to draw it unless she must and is currently having that internal debate when the intruder speaks again.
did he seriously
did he just
gin looks distinctly unimpressed from where she stands. had he really just tried that? in the middle of invading soul society? this man was either a genius or an utter idiot with luck who had found his way here. (though the fact he's wearing a reiatsu concealing cape suggests he's smart but gin's seen her fair share of idiot-geniuses and idiots who pretend.)
muttered mostly to herself with undisguised irritation: ] Are you serious right now? [ then, louder ] The longer you draw this out the more it'll hurt.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-18 10:31 pm (UTC)He hadn't let his eyes off of Gin, watching as a number of other soul reapers were scrambling to run to the same levels Kisuke and Gin had settled on. It would take a little time for them to catch up to the two. So, he didn't have long at all to verify who she was. Even if he had to run, he needed to hear her name. From her mouth.]
Deathly serious! Well, to an extent. I'll admit, my motivations for coming here are a little sketchy. They're not even remotely heroic, either!
[Laughing, he tapped his sword against his shoulder. In its unreleased state, it looked as simple and straightforward as any other asauchi.]
Now, just because I have my sword out doesn't mean I want to fight. Weird as it sounds, I still don't know if you want to kill me or kiss me, so it's there just in case I made a mistake and went for a different beautiful woman.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-19 12:39 am (UTC)well, fuck. this man is a lunatic who looks just like--gin can't even think of his name right now. her voice is soft, a little conflicted: ] You really shouldn't be here and now... [ she has to catch him. and take him to the other captains and see if she's imagining things and finally going insane or this is something else entirely.
unfortunately, gin's first reaction when confronted with emotional vulnerability is anger. ] Neither of those options but seeing as you are an intruder resisting capture, I might have to go with kill.
Flattery doesn't work on me.
[ not on this gin anyway. but she hasn't tried to stab him again and she's hearing him out, waiting for the rest to arrive and try to corral him. ]
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Date: 2023-01-19 01:19 am (UTC)[When confronted with anger, Naoyuki somehow felt utterly at peace. It was probably a dangerous quality to have but there was something relaxing about knowing when something dangerous was being pointed at his throat. It helped him figure out in critically short amounts of time whether someone was speaking honestly. She hadn't drawn her soul cutter at all. Either she was confident she could catch him or the sight of him had the right effect. At the very least, it was a little confirmation. His voice and face were the same as the guy from the past, right? He could work with that data.
Even so, he was quickly running out of time and he was trying to shake just how distracting that moment's hesitation looked on her face. There was plenty more conflict to witness but he felt his heart swell over that one little moment where it broke apart.]
Cute... Y'know, you were more honest at first but... I don't mind a few lies. Gin, right?
[There was a little beep from his hoodie, a little red light flashing around his hip in his pocket. A little panic crossed Naoyuki's face and he looked around, past Gin and to the soul reapers trying to reach the two of them. Up front, a red-faced man with his sword already drawn. The weird yakuza guy with the shades. Well. Maybe it was good timing.]
Oh! That's time! Gramps found me out.
[A Senkaimon gate burst out of thin air right behind him. From within, a big meaty fist grabbed Naoyuki by the back of his hoodie and yanked him within the depths before it swung shut and vanished into dust.]
no subject
Date: 2023-01-19 02:19 am (UTC)gin, for the most part tries to stay out of it because that man— he'd looked and acted just like— but in truth, gin has never had very good sense because why is she even here?
in the human world after years and not just that but outside an abandoned warehouse that has seen better days. she could sneak in, sure but she hasn't, lingering outside while she has a whole internal debate about what she's doing.
if this is-- if this is him, gin has questions but also if he isn't entirely him then shouldn't she leave things alone? they've both suffered enough to continue drawing this out.
still, she lingers and waits and, because she wasn't raised in a barn, does knock on the metal door. ]
Why doesn't he have a doorbell...? [ or an apartment while they're at it. ]
no subject
Date: 2023-01-19 04:14 am (UTC)His little warehouse was downright impossible to navigate without the right sort of spiritual awareness--an interesting little security trick he set up. Though, someone who knew an occupant wouldn't have any trouble actually getting through. It would look like an ordinary dirt path in the road leading to the front door if they were familiar. Regardless, his cameras picked up something. Someone. He scrambled from his workbench, prompting a sleepy grunt from Ichigo, laid out on his cot. Coming to a slide at the door, he cleared his throat, touched up his hair a little and completely forgot he was still quite covered in metal shavings and oil.
Naoyuki swung open the door, smiling at Gin and leaning against the frame, trying his best to put on just the right kind of lazy grin that he thought made him look devilishly handsome.]
Hello, there.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-19 04:25 am (UTC)well, whatever, gin doesn't have time for those details. she's here because she has questions and there are things only this person who looks like him could answer. if not, gin is going to find kurosaki-san and see what he knows. ]
Exactly who are you? And how did you know my name?
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Date: 2023-01-21 07:49 pm (UTC)Standing up straight, Naoyuki cleared his throat and briefly averted his eyes.]
Sato Naoyuki. Formerly, Urahara Kisuke.
[An audacious claim, as he was well aware. While the broader system was still unconfirmed to him, he was aware of his own personal circumstances. Perhaps too intimately for someone who shouldn't have existed in the state he was.
For all intents and purposes, he was Urahara Kisuke. What little trickle of his presence existed outside of his reiatsu-concealing hoodie was undoubtedly him, even if considerably diminished. While he didn't know what he looked like in the past, he recognized Gin clear as crystal. She barely looked any different from those shadow-ridden memories.]
...I dream of you at least twice a week. It used to be 'once in a while' but since I changed my daily routine, it's happening pretty regularly.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-21 08:26 pm (UTC)pained: ] Urahara Kisuke is dead. So, Sato Naoyuki, don't go claiming a dead man's name unless you want his enemies to come after you. [ a word of advice that is delivered in an unkind tone.
a younger gin would've been flustered to hear that sort of words from someone who looked and sounded like kisuke. an older gin is not thrilled, the only betrayal of her innate shyness is the way she tucks a long strand of hair behind an ear, avoiding his eyes for a moment. ] Perhaps you should go back to your previous routine, it sounds bothersome to dream of the same face so often.
I'm Captain Akutagawa, not 'Gin'. [ not to you. ] And if you sneak into Soul Society again, I will throw you in a cell.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-21 09:41 pm (UTC)[It wasn't as if he hadn't considered it. He took his most pessimistic approximations and lined them up in a row. He could have died a few days ago. Someone else other than Gin might have found him. One of Kisuke's enemies, without a doubt. Even with that all considered, it simply wasn't anything other than worth it.
And, even with everything considered, he didn't want to hurt her feelings when he heard that tone in her voice change.]
And, I can't exactly sit idly by, you see. My resonance testing shows his efforts worked to ensure Hell itself wouldn't spill over, so I should have... maybe three thousand years to make it up to you? I'd rather not waste a single moment of it.
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Date: 2023-01-21 09:59 pm (UTC)gin looks up at him, confused as to what exactly he means about 'make it up'—this boy is really... he is really confused. mistaken. misguided. ] Sato-san, while I am relieved to know Kisuke didn't die for nothing, this is still highly inappropriate.
More importantly, what kind of experiments are you even conducting in there? [ she leans on the side, trying to peer behind and whatever is hidden. ] Just because you're Kurosaki-san's protege doesn't mean you will get total freedom to do what you like.
There are rules for a reason. [ she is very not subtly trying to steer the conversation towards work and rules and consequences and stay far from anything personal.
she's still in love with urahara, and that's something she's learned to live with but that doesn't mean she wants to get to know a man who wears his face and voice. ]
no subject
Date: 2023-01-23 02:01 am (UTC)[Her first comment stung. Surely, he'd never deliberately hurt her feelings if he could do anything but, and yet, accidents happened. Every implied bit of it in her tone of voice however gentle led him to believe it was the case.
When she tried to get a peek inside, Naoyuki leaned a little more to the side and pulled the door closer to shutting. His expression was a little sullen--nothing of it being Gin's fault but rather his excitement to meet her and getting to know her being trampled upon by that place. Soul Society. Sure, she had rules to adhere to. It might have been the main reason why she was willing to come to see him.]
I only allow close family and girlfriends in my lab.
[Clearing his throat, he tried to put a tether on that little moment of sullen vulnerability. He didn't have quite enough training to hide it. Dryly, he glanced up at the sky, right over her head.]
That said, no rule should outlive its usefulness. Everything I do is something that needs doing. I don't need thanks for it but at least pass it over to your scientists that their approach to protecting boundaries is equivalent to using swiss-cheese as a wind sock. I have quadrillions of access points available.
[A beat. Unlike his previous incarnation, Naoyuki didn't hesitate at all to actually gush over the details when given a chance.]
Did you know one of them allows you to pass whole spans of spiritual energy and matter through shadows? The absence of light really does make a lot of sense but I don't think the typical soul reaper would be able to use them... Well, except me. Maybe that one guy.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-23 03:05 am (UTC)thankfully, business and soul society is something they can talk about without delving into rocky personal territory and so, gin favours that. except what follows, the additional details and added explanation is not something gin expected or is used to. she blinks.
she finds it a little hard to look away during his explanation because he really does look so much-and according to naoyuki, he is kisuke. a form of him. something. ] I will make sure to pass your message on to the Research Division, I'm sure Captain Mayuri will appreciate this ...observation.
[ no, he'd be livid that urahara kisuke is still making his life difficult even though he's not supposed to be alive. and perhaps naoyuki says he needs no thank you but gin has the audacity to offer a polite, distant smile and add: ] Thank you, Sato-san.
If you are not going to be a hazard towards the security of Soul Society, then my visit here is unnecessary.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-23 04:33 am (UTC)Well, that was another subfolder in his mental file on her. He smiled, utterly catlike.]
Yes. That would certainly count for my family and if any of them decide to start dating.
[It was a deceptive smile. The one that knew everything about where her misstep came from. Even so? He'd save it for later. In his pocket, his phone buzzed and for the moment, he'd ignore it. Sparing Gin anymore embarrassment, he leveled a sigh and shook his head when he thought about answering it on the second buzz. It could wait 30 seconds.]
I think you know I'd never turn down a visit from you if you want to try again later. You're much more pleasant than what I expected of Soul Reapers and it answers quite a few of my questions, Captain Akutagawa.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-23 05:11 am (UTC)a formal address is a relief and it still feels off. the few times urahara had used that term had been when things hadn't been going well between them; there the use of titles and honorifics was necessary to remind one another of the need for distance. but that is neither here nor there, gin cannot hold sato naoyuki to the standards or actions of his previous self. she cannot have expectations or hopes, she cannot assume.
a tentative smile, and then there is gin's pleasant, customer-service-like tone: ] There are better ways to find answers, Sato-san, but hopefully there will be no need for me to come visit you unannounced [ or at all ] in future.
[ what they're both going to find out in the next few hours is the start of the many consequences put in motion due to sato naoyuki's impromptu visit to soul society; fueled by the fact he carries the legacy of a man who was both respected and reviled.
gin does not take a step to go though she has taken note of the buzzing in his pocket. there are things she wants to ask rather than spy to find out but right now making up her mind on the subject feels impossible. and so instead she tries to soften a little because: ] If you really are him or...part of him, then I am glad. He was a very remarkable person, and deserved better.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-24 03:47 am (UTC)He'd only seen a small piece of her and she still struck him as... something else.
Once he shut the gate and snapped his security procedures back on, Naoyuki vanished back into the warehouse and slid his cell phone free of his pocket to find... more than a few messages. The soul reaper 'pack' he established kept tabs on this around the city and someone had been asking about him. It matched another notification from his trackers. Something was poking around in Soul Society, trying to match a signal he left behind a few days before. It was beginning to come close to finding the signal's origin point.
All of it, useful data. Something that might have unnerved someone with fewer precautions taken to mind.
With a resolute sigh, he packed his hoodie with its assortment of pockets and sleeves and readied himself for a new exercise. Something he'd put the better part of a year into readying himself for. His friends had struggled just to take on a single Menos Grande but there had never been any danger of any of them actually dying with Ichigo waiting by the ring. As intimidating as the thing looked like in its file and in person, he still supposed it looked... easy.
When he stepped out of his third favorite konibini a couple of hours later to pick up gyoza and begin a rigorous series of field tests, he was greeted by a half-dozen men and women in expensive-looking, old-fashioned clothing. Similar shihakusho to the kind he'd seen on Gin and her men but dressed with the livery of nobles. In silence, they all drew their swords and one in front caught his eye. One young man, looking no older than himself, with sharply trimmed bangs and a bleak expression of fury. Naoyuki had been in the middle of pulling gum out of his mouth, ready to toss it in the trash when they all interrupted.]
Urahara Kisuke. You have no idea how many years I've waited--
[Naoyuki flicked his gum at the young man in front. Right at the front of his clothes. Furious, he drew his sword and cut the gum only to blink in muted surprise partway through his swing as he saw Naoyuki's wide, pleased smile. Once the blade cut the piece of gum, both halves burst and expanded well past millions of times their own size to engulf himself and three more of his group, fully entangled and rooted to the pavement. Quick on his feet, Naoyuki came to avoid the next series of sword swings from the ones who managed to get out of the way in time before getting tangled. The chase led him up to a rooftop, hands spread out as his attackers took to points surrounding him.]
Woah, woah! Please, relax! I may not be as strong as he was but I'm much less nice than he was, too! That gum was your only warning.
[A beat. Because he could never quite let it stop there.]
Although, I do have more gum.
no subject
Date: 2023-01-25 10:30 pm (UTC)Gin-chan, you really sometimes say such things...he's an old man no you can't just make jokes [ but the tone is teasing and gin can see the smile. ]
Hm [ she hums and adjusts her phone, visible on the other side of the screen is captain shinji hirako, his scarf around his neck as he lounges back. ] I am merely reporting that the Menos has been taken care of by Ichigo-san's...brood.
The one Sato Naoyuki is part of. [ shinji sounds knowing and gin wants to punch him and herself in the face to avoid the conversation that she knew is coming. ] Or rather Urahara Kisuke
[ and yes, gin wants the earth to swallow her whole. ] So?
It's been nearly two decades since I last saw you make that face
[ gin frowns, holding up the phone up. ] It's dark, you can't see my face.
Doesn't matter~ [ shinji's tone is teasing though he must see something in gin's expression because he drops the smile. ] You're a captain now, you don't have to look into this yourself, send your vice-captain to keep an eye on the situation.
I will, I just have to be sure he's...[ gin pauses a message popping up. ] I'll be back soon. [ she hangs up ignoring shinji's vague protests and she double-checks the location and alert she's received. how strange, when the menos has already been taken care of but--
--ah. she's grateful for yoruichi-san's training, she's quick and light on her feet. finding the first mess left behind by the shinigami trying to ambush a -for all intends and purposes- human is only slightly alarming.
she speeds up, feeling a wave of anxiety and hating every second of it until she spots the commotion on the rooftop.
voice soft, barely there:] Rashomon [ her blade splits, two wakizashi taking the place of the katana, unlike naoyuki who was nice enough to offer a warning about his gum, gin is not. she isn't looking to use her blade in a deadly manner but she isn't pulling back punches when she kicks the first shinigami threatening naoyuki in the face.
dropping one of her wakizashi onto the shadows, the blade seems to take a mind of its own within them, a dog-like shape that then swirls around to guard naoyuki as gin pauses her assault. ]
It's highly irregular for the distinguished Shimura family to show up in the human world. [ of course, hardly impossible given that they own their personal gates to travel and those aren't tracked. ]
no subject
Date: 2023-01-26 01:24 am (UTC)'Rashomon'?
His hood blew back, surprise bright across his face when a hound's shadow rose up and cut off the next sword swing coming from him. It snapped out and sharply cut across his attacker's forearm, earning a curse of spite when they backed off to make space.]
A Captain in action, huh? Now, that's a sight.
[None of them were pushovers but a surprise attack was rarely easy to shrug off. Gin descended and hammered the next in command in the chin and sent him back across the roof, though he managed to effortlessly fall cleanly on his feet. The Shimura clan head took in a cool breath and sheathed his zanpakuto, keeping his eyes fixed on Gin.]
Irregular? It cost time and effort to track him. Now that he's within my range, dog of the Court Guard, don't you think that I'll rest until he's paid with his life.
[Every word, laced with venom. Naoyuki recognized it for what it was worth. Not a petty call for revenge. Years of frustration and hatred turned to tar in his heart. With each word, the young man's spiritual pressure created a tangible burden in the air. The roof began to crumble under the force of it and while he wasn't burdened by the strain of it, the thought of it made him nervous. There were people nearby.]
Shape the world, Shinatsuhiko!
[He opened his mouth and loosed a deep breath that coated his sword, wrapping it in a surging cloud. With a single swing, he swung a thunderstorm forth that threatened to shred both Gin and Naoyuki.
Naoyuki drew his sword from his bag in one smooth motion and drove the tip into the roof. A bright red sheet of light spread across it, shielding the building below their feet. Not himself.]
Wake, Benitaisho!
no subject
Date: 2023-01-26 02:41 am (UTC)she escalated without second thought by releasing rashomon to defend naoyuki, and the way she swallows at the heir of the shimura clan's words are telltale signs. ] He already paid with his life, be reasonable.
[ though she doesn't particular want the shimura to be reasonable because her frustrations are sometimes best worked out with a sword so... gin speaks, wanting him to get out of the way and let her deal with this:] Kisuke-
[ the reckless attack has gin recalling rashomon to dispel the worst of the storm aimed at them both. the edge of the building probably gets the worse of it, the ceiling beneath them threatening to crack under the storm from shinatsuhiko. (this is going to be a headache of paperwork)
except there is a bright sheet of red spreading across and-
oh, that- gin doesn't know why she is even surprised when urahara, no naoyuki, demonstrates his shikai. of course doing that leaves him open to attack, and gin tosses her wakizashi at their opponent. that leaves her momentarily without defence as she calls for rashomon's jaws to snap both arms off. ]
no subject
Date: 2023-01-26 04:16 am (UTC)[Disregarding her peaceful plea, Shimura turned the handle of his sword over. Unrestrained, she could overpower him, but with her sanctioned restraints on, he could navigate the path of Rashomon's power and move the winds of his storm around it. Trails of the clouds that came from his sword handle wrapped around it, not quite clashing but pooling around Naoyuki's red shield.
Naoyuki huffed, lifting his head to see Gin had come to defend him, leaving him with a broad and appreciative smile on his face. Benitaisho's shield provided a total wrap around the roof that kept it from deteriorating but it did nothing to hinder the flexible spread of that man's shikai.]
Hey! Great teamwork!
[Naoyuki called out, beaming with amazement, as if she knew precisely how to cover him from the start. Still, the only thing stopping Shimura had been Gin's second move. When the hound-like shadow lunged for him, he responded swiftly. Withdrawing the storm in a flash, he took one step forward. Shunko. The thrown wakizashi. The hounds. Weaving between them, he unsheathed his sword once more as he closed in on the space between Gin and Naoyuki. Bringing that blade down, he brought up the clouds a second time to separate the two of them and the man in the brightest robes came up from the street to land beside Naoyuki. Still covered in heaps of gum, the older man drew his sword with deadly speed.
The Tsunayashiro clan leader's sword was met with Benitaisho, Naoyuki exhaling sharply as he had to switch from one form of defense to another. The weight of that man's sword was too much for him head to head, though. When their blades met, Naoyuki was blown away and speared through the city sky, struggling to get his bearings as the world went in all directions... at least until he very suddenly came to land, crumpled in the woods just outside of Karakura. A whole clearing of trees left behind and his eyes seeing stars. The Tsunayashiro clan head looked aside to Shimura and commanded:]
Keep our revered Division Seven Captain busy. Resist the urge to kill her.
[In comparison, Tsunayashiro was cold and distant. His restrained expression carried on as he departed, spearing through Karakura like a bolt of lightning himself, to chase down the young man and kill him with his own blade.]
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Date: 2023-01-26 02:41 pm (UTC)inconsistent as this decision is with her previous words and wants, gin knows with stark clarity that she does not want to see a man who wears kisuke's voice, has his voice, and seems to share some of his memories, hurt.
rashomon returns to her, hounds back to blades as she tries to bypass shimura and follow tsunayashiro. she doesn't get far, her path blocked as blades crash. gin doesn't waste her breath trying to reason or ask politely. she has to defeat him to get past and that is what she'll do.
she only hopes naoyuki can keep up until then. rashomon is a blade of short range but once it pierces skin, it will find its mark. bones had be pierced cleanly or not; gin is going to make it hurt. not out of sadism but out of need; nothing deters like pain and death. and she's already making plans on how best to protect naoyuki when ichigo is not around.
another clash, she feels the storm threaten to swallow her and impede her vision.
please wait for me, i'm coming.
gin slashes, then sends rashomon forward giving up one of her blades so she can send a hound chasing in the direction naoyuki can be thrown. ]
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Date: 2023-01-27 04:23 am (UTC)At that same time, Shimura had been conjuring a denser and denser storm to entrap Gin completely. Once he saw she sent one of her blades to chase after Naoyuki and the other clan head, he scowled and closed the two of them off in that twisting vortex, leaving them isolated. Within that space, he fought with Gin, carrying on despite the deep wound she put in his arm. He was, after all, chasing her with his rage every moment he fought. The remaining nobles rushed to give chase only to be stopped by a woman with long black hair, wearing a cute, floral dress. One of Gin's old item. Ururu, looking no older than thirty, leveled her hand in the direction of the oncoming group.
Polite, she curtsied while standing on thin air.]
It's nice to meet you. I'm Urahara Ururu.
[One of the nobles interrupted, drawing her sword and swinging for Ururu as she bowed, only to see her arm twist back unnaturally. Ururu's hand had raised and she had done nothing more than give her a 'gentle' shove in response.]
Please. Cheap shots are part of my family's trademark. [Dusting her hands off, Ururu settled into a stance.] Now, please, all of you. Surrender or die.
[Naoyuki groaned, picking himself up from the ground. The sword he clashed with had been something else entirely. Something that shouldn't have rightfully existed. When Tsunayashiro landed beside him, he could see the sickeningly angry blade clutched in his hand and could feel its malice.]
Urahara. I'll take my time to cut you into pieces, so please... Raise your sword. It won't satisfy me until I kill you as a soul reaper would.
[Naoyuki fell on his side, seemingly having trouble just breathing. His zanpakuto, embedded in a tree, wouldn't come free when he went to pry it loose. Tsunyashiro scoffed, picking up the young man by the arm, looking on as his head slumped. Naoyuki took in a breath, deep and distorted, just as Tsunayashiro lifted that evil sword to plunge into his chest. When the young man raised his head to look him in the eyes, Tsunayashiro was met with black sclera. A white mask with a fox's smile.]
Got'cha.
[Naoyuki's mask split at that smile, a bright red cero bursting from his open mouth, engulfing Tsunayashiro and burying him into the dirt. Burned over most of his upper body, the old man looked up in surprise to see the fox's mask peering down at him.]
Hollowification!? As if you could have gone any madder!
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Date: 2023-01-28 01:08 am (UTC)using her blades to kill a fellow shinigami had been something gin hadn't had to do in twenty years. somehow, the fact kisuke's returning is causing all this is perfectly normal in the back of her mind. she's unhappy about it, but how many things has she not done for urahara kisuke before that have eaten away at her? not in anger but in sorrow.
at the periphery, she is certain she's spotted ururu and that's a relief. if she's noticed then it means others had to have as well. the urgency of rashomon reaching its target is less so now as gin doesn't think it's fast enough to catch up before a more severe blow is aimed at naoyuki's very delicate, very frail, very human skin. had urahara seen her at first and thought of that too? how breakable humans are in comparison to shinigami and hollows and everything else living and breathing under the same blue sky.
thankfully, ururu's arrival also means gin has one single opponent to focus on. the target of her anger and all she needs is one good blow. what would verlaine say? he'd probably ask her to curb that anger and wait for an opening but gin doesn't want to wait. she's no genius, she can't calculate the variables of this battle, of whatever else is going on outside the storm. there are guesses that can be made but those aren't good enough in this situation.
oh, her old mentors would be so disappointed. even dazai, though this is the sort of strategy he would've goaded pawns into using (gin included). rashomon whispered quietly as she lets go of the blade and the hound returns, reaching with dark, hungry jaws to tear at the storm as if it were solid cloth and not just air. she has no blade to parry the katana like this and so gin allows it to sink into her shoulder.
the pain is blinding for a moment or two, being stabbed is never pleasant. shimura's look of triumph falters when he sees gin is reaching to grab onto his hand to hold the hilt in place. there. now she's close enough. ]
Rashomon[ —from hound to blade again, she's within reach, the small slit over his throat, the artery wide open and dousing everything red. the storm goes and gin waits because she wants to make sure shimura is dead. ]
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Date: 2023-01-31 03:38 am (UTC)It would be rude to take away this opportunity for them to learn. A shame. I would have been able to let go of quite a lot of stress if I were allowed you all.
[Shimura had descended upon Gin with sheer force, coming to believe he could pin her at a complete disadvantage. Killing her before her power could be restored by an order would be the most practical move. It would give him a chance to assist Tsunayashiro. No matter what, he couldn't let him take Kisuke's head. Lost in thought, he chased down Gin with every intent to crush her so that she couldn't stand again. She was a Captain, after all. If he didn't obliterate her with force, then she could only stand back up.
When he came to drive his sword into her, he had been aiming for her throat. Rather than avoiding it, she re-directed him to drive it through her shoulder instead. Strong, ruthless fingers closed around his sword guard, keeping him locked in place. Before he could retreat and force the blade free? She accomplished what she set out to do. Shimura only had that one moment of frustration and shock left in his life before Gin activated Rashomon once more.]
This only buys you--
[Certainly, something she paid for and earned. He couldn't finish those words without his throat, after all, dead before he could even touch the pavement, his storms dissipating into whispers of wind while the ones in the street fought.]
[Tsunayashiro stood up, gritting his teeth through the pain that flared along his skin after being burned so thoroughly by Naoyuki's cero. He advanced and swung his blade with a roar of force. The young man put his body into parrying the blow, wincing. He was blown back, breathing hard from the pain as he splintered his way through a tree trunk. The entire thing collapsed, forcing him to dive to avoid being caught underneath it. Tsunayashiro was on him in an instant. Decoy after decoy, destroyed when Tsunayashiro unleashed Enryakoten's power. Fire. Ice. Lightning. Stone. Blades. The zanpakuto that could imitate all other zanpakuto was something deadly in the elder's hands and it took everything Naoyuki had to simply escape and slow the more experienced warrior down. Tsunayashiro advanced, unimpressed by the bag of tricks he was being shown, slicing the mask off Naoyuki's face in one stroke. In the second, he scored a blow on the young man that could be considered the last, cutting him from shoulder to hip with a master's precision. His sweatshirt burst open and with it, blood blossomed from him. For that moment, Tsunayashiro lowered his guard. He was certainly cut in two.
Naoyuki had run out of decoys. Gadgets. Tricks. Blood ran down his front freely and, in that moment of victory and elation, Tsunayashiro considered letting him fall to simply watch. In the middle of his swing, one of the black hounds of Rashomon had grabbed hold of his leg, tearing into the bone of his calf and slowing his assault but he could attest--his training guaranteed he would still finish the swing.]
How convenient.
[Tsunayashiro stirred, something in him seizing up when Naoyuki reached up and ran fingers through his hair. As if he hadn't been cut. Impossibly, he stood, the sickening slash in his shoulder knitting together through a fiery blue light that burned in the center of his chest. The light vanished soon after, his wound failing to heal any further. Even as bloodied as he'd been and so close to death again, Naoyuki smiled wide.]
'Enrakyoten'. I remember that file. It's so deadly that I couldn't possibly recover fully from that last swing but now that I have, I've recovered something important. Still, I'm even more grateful it was weakened somewhat by Captain Akutagawa's assist. Close one, right?
Truly. You really are a monster, Urahara Kisuke. Even so, you won't survive this a second time.
Sir! [Almost annoyed, Naoyuki made himself laugh and waved his sword reproachfully. His shoulder, still quite injured, wouldn't let him grip it with his other hand. Even as Tsunayashiro drew his sword once more, he still scolded his attacker.] I'd like you to keep that word out of your mouth but I won't have to worry about that for very long.
[Tsunayashiro came forward like a bullet, aiming to skewer Naoyuki's throat. He came to a halt, the tip of his family's sword stopped dead on the flat of Zangetsu. Ichigo, boiling with anger beneath the reiatsu-shrouding cloak he carried for those precise circumstances, loosed a cool breath and squared his shoulders.]
There's some things I don't tolerate. Kyoraku is just going to have to clean this one up.
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Date: 2023-02-04 08:26 pm (UTC)she waits, sure that shimura is very much dead before taking a step back. she's aware the other part of rashomon should be near naoyuki's vicinity if not already there. there is the urge to go chase the other conspirators and dispatch them all. (and where did she lose that touch of kindness she had? somewhere after her human death or much later after urahara's?). adrenaline though is doing a great job in keeping the wound at the back of her mind as she turns towards ururu and the teenagers that had come in.
gin doesn't care for the humans, surely naoyuki's friends? ichigo's brood and successors once he retires, yes? but she does smile at ururu, warm. ]It's nice to see you, Ururu-chan. Can you please make sure there are no more surprises around? [ she looks well and that dress is perfect on her. ]I'm going to find Kisuke. [ the slip of the name doesn't even cross gin's mind as she turns, heading off.
ichigo's reiatsu is cloaked so she can only sense tsunayashiro's and naoyuki's, more faint than before but present. gin tampers down on panic, on concern.
but apparently she need not worry because that is very much ichigo and she's--well, there is a reason why soul society owes him so much and why he's feared by many and respected by the rest. man, oh man, the captain commander is going to have such a mess to clean up here. ]
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