A Shinigami Valentine

The patrol passed by slowly. By day they wove a seemingly aimless pattern through the forests and thickets of the Rukongai. Tetsuzaemon avoided the well worn paths, using his zanpakuto to cut his own. They managed to avoid any hollow activity as they slowly made their way back to the Sereitei.

Akina shuffled along, mindless of her location or surroundings. She couldn't seem to focus. She couldn't keep her thoughts off Zaraki. The first day was the worst. The second slightly better but the pain seemed worse. By the third day, she was able to focus a little more but continued to be easily distracted. And the tears...they came unbidden to streak trails through the dirt on her face. If only they served a purpose, she thought sadly. If the tears could only wash away the emptiness, the pain, it would be worth it. Tetsuzaemon moved her from the rear to a safer, less responsible position in the center of the group. She didn't complain. She didn't want the responsibility anyway.

At night, Akina readily volunteered for guard duty. The lack of sleep was hard but she would do anything to avoid dreaming. Her dreams were haunted with laughing images of Zaraki and Yachiru. She saw Yachiru's smiling face beaming up at her. And Zaraki staring down at her in the throes of passion. Memories of their short time together haunted her while she was awake but at night, in her dreams, she had no control over them. They swept her away, so real, so wonderful only to shatter and disappear when she woke. They left in their wake a pain so fresh and sharp that she often woke up with tears running down her face.

On the fourth day, they arose and started towards the more populated areas of the Rukongai. Akina was acutely aware the she was only one day away from the Sereitei. Her nerves jangled anxiously. She knew how much it was going to hurt to see him. To have him treat her as if he didn't know her. She was dreading it.

"Akina!" Tetsuzaemon called out, breaking her reverie.

"What?" she snapped.

"Pay attention. We've got company." he growled, not looking at her. His eyes were on a lone shinigami running towards them. He had flash-stepped to a full run not far from them. He was a tall, thin looking man with bushy black hair. Akina stared at him. She knew him. He was a talkative fellow with a nervous twitch when he got excited. She struggled to recall the man's name.

"Takumi." she said aloud as it came to her. He was with Division 10 but she had no idea whether he was a seated officer or not. Panting heavily, he came to a stop in front of Tetsuzaemon. He was so out of breath, he leaned forward with his hands on his knees, unable to speak at first.

"Captain...Iba...sir." he panted, straightening up suddenly. All eyes were on him. Why was he here? Something had to be wrong.

"What the hell you doing here?" Tetsuzaemon demanded.

"We're under attack, sir!" he blurted the words out all at once. Akina stiffened, suddenly alert. She looked slowly around, more aware of her surroundings than she had been in days.

"Who? Where?" Tetsuzaemon questioned him urgently.

"I was sent by Lt. Matsumoto, sir! I'm the fastest in our squad. She requests immediate backup. We were set upon by the arrancar in District 8 North Rukongai. They were under attack when I left, sir...but Lt. Iba, part of the the group that attacked us split off. I saw them as I left. They looked like they were heading towards the Sereitei, sir." he continued, his voice raspy but urgent. Tetsuzaemon turned, his gaze falling on Akina.

"How many do you want me to take with me?" she asked him quietly. He grinned as he said,

"We'll split the patrol evenly. I'll take the fastest in our unit. You take the other six and get back to the Sereitei. If you encounter any arrancar, you need to engage them. Do whatever it takes to keep them out of the Sereitei."

"You got it. Split them up and let's get going. After those hollows...as tough as they were...I don't wanna think about how tough the arrancar will be." Akina said grimly. She had avoided focusing on work but she now realized that it was the most effective distraction against thoughts of Zaraki.

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With her six squad members in tow, Akina headed for the Sereitei. Despite Tetsuzaemon's advice, she took the most direct route. If the arracar were around, that was the most likely way to intercept them, she decided. It wasn't a time for hiding. It was time to fight. They moved quickly. They needed to get to the Sereitei as soon as possible. Tetsuzaemon had sent a Hell Butterfly to notify Commander Yamamoto but if the arrancar were truly set to attack the walled city, they would need every able bodied man and woman to defend it.

They made good time, clearing four districts in a matter of hours. Exiting the town of Chigasaki led them into an open field. A group of shinigami approached from the far side of the grassy field. Akina stopped short. The leader of the group walked out ahead of the others. He was tall and lean, his white captain's coat billowing behind him. Zaraki.

The name echoed through her tight chest. There was no mistaking him. Even at this distance, his hair, his eye patch and hungry grin were recognizable. He was trailed by a group of four shinigami, all from Division 11. Ikkaku and Yumichika flanked him. Yachiru rode high on his shoulder. A rush of joy from the mere sight of the man collided with the icy knowledge that what they had was over. Akina's heart fell to her feet. She wasn't ready for this.

"You okay?" Mai asked quietly, stepping up beside her. She couldn't speak. She couldn't take her eyes off him.

"It doesn't matter. We have to get to the Sereitei." Akina finally said, her voice tight and cold. She walked forward. Yachiru jumped from his shoulder, running towards her in a cloud of dust.

"Aka-chan!" she squealed, leaping into Akina's arms with enough force to send her staggering backwards.

"Yachiru." she whispered, hugging the child tightly. She had missed her. Despite everything, she cared deeply for Yachiru.

"I missed you." Yachiru cried out, scolding Akina as she released her choke hold on her neck. Akina grinned.

"I missed you too, squirt. I'm sorry but I didn't get your dress. We didn't go into many towns. Are you mad?"

"Nope!" Yachiru said, smiling at her. "I'm just happy you're home. Ken-chan's been so mad with you gone. He's yelling so much at Cueball and Feather Face that I been hiding in my room."

"I'm sorry." Akina whispered, looking up as Zaraki and the others neared. His face was cold and stone-like.

"Yachiru, leave her alone." he barked loudly. Akina released Yachiru, letting her slide to the ground.

"Captain Zaraki...sir." she said quietly. He glanced at her briefly then looked over the group of 5 men she was in charge of.

"Where's the rest of your patrol group?" he snapped, avoiding direct eye contact.

"Lt. Iba took the rest of the men and headed north to backup Division 10. They were under attack by the arrancar. We were ordered to return to the Sereitei and prevent the arrancar from attacking there." she replied automatically. Zaraki's gaze returned to her squad members. His sharp eyes seemed to be able to assess strengths and weaknesses at a glance.

"You'll be joining forces with us." he stated coldly. Her eyes widened in surprise.

"What? But Captain Zaraki, I was ordered to take my men and return to the Sereitei to help defend in the event of a direct attack!"

"I don't give a shit what you were ordered to do by Lt. Iba! I'm telling you that I'm absorbing you and your men under my command for this battle!" he yelled at her sharply. "We're the only thing standing between the arrancar and the Sereitei! I'd rather keep the fight out here! We're less vulnerable out here in the open than fighting at close quarters within the damn Sereitei!"

"But sir..." she continued to object but less strongly than before. Zaraki's eyes cut sharply to hers. There was no tenderness in them. Only anger.

"Are you questioning my authority, girl?" he growled. She faltered. No matter what had happened between them, he was a captain of the Gotei 13 and she was sworn to obey him.

"No, sir." she said quietly, looking away first.

"You came from where?" he snapped, looking beyond them towards Chigasaki.

"We came west through Chigasaki." she said, her jaw tightening. He was treating her as if she was nothing more than a nameless shinigami. He couldn't even be bothered to look at her when he spoke. Bastard, she thought as pain battled with anger inside her. Maybe that was how he felt now. Maybe she really was nothing to him.

"And you didn't encounter any arrancar?" he asked, turning towards the north.

"No, sir." she snapped sharply. "But Takumi from Division 10 said that they were under attack in District 8 in the north. He said that a group of arrancar had splintered off and were headed this way."

"Then we go north." he said decisively. Akina looked up. He was grinning hungrily. He was anxious for the fight, she thought. That was his true love. His reason to be. It took her a moment to realize that she was smiling. She closed her eyes and turned away from him. It pleased her to see him so happy, so excited. She was in too deep, she thought. The last thing she needed was to be stuck by his side.

"Move out." Zaraki called out, walking away from her.

"Fall in with Division 11, men!" Akina called out to her officers. She waited until Zaraki was a good distance away and all her squad members had moved forward before following. Yachiru remained at her side.

"Aka-chan, don't you like Ken-chan anymore?" she asked in a small voice as they walked forward, hand in hand. A single tear slipped down Akina's cheek.

"He doesn't like me, squirt. That's all that matters." she whispered, squeezing Yachiru's hand a little tighter.

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They traveled hard for the next hour, moving at a brisk pace. Weary, Yachiru returned to Zaraki's shoulder to rest. From her position at the rear, Akina could see the energy of her squad slowly fading. She knew none of them had the courage to voice their feelings aloud to Zaraki. But they were her responsibility. She would have to speak for them.

"Captain Zaraki." she called out, drawing closer to him. He didn't slow his pace but swiveled his head around to glare at her. His expression belied his annoyance that she had dared speak to him.

"My men are exhausted. They need a break, sir." she said evenly. He didn't respond. He simply continued walking, his back to her.

"They're not going to be any good to you in a fight if you don't let them rest." she snapped sharply. He stopped. His men stopped immediately.

"We'll stop here for a short break." he called out to everyone without turning around. Akina shook her head. Stubborn as ever, she thought, walking away. They were in a large clearing, surrounded tall pine trees. An unseasonably warm, afternoon sun beat down on them. Akina flopped down on the patchy grass, thankful for the break. Her body was tired and achy. She leaned back, her hands on the ground behind her. She wondered when, if ever, she'd get the chance to truly rest again. The way she felt now, she could sleep for a month.

"Yo." Ikkaku said, stepping up beside her. He leaned over, blocking the sun with his bald head.

"What do you want?" she snapped, covering her eyes. He squatted down beside her with a grin.

"You look like shit, Akina." he said easily. Her eyes narrowed.

"Thanks ever so much!" she said sarcastically. "You came all the way over here just to tell me that?"

"Nah, it's just good to see it ain't only him this crap's messing with." he chuckled.

"What are you talking about?" she snapped sharply as she sat up straight. Ikkaku settled onto the grass beside her.

"What the hell did you do to him? He was messed up before he went out there to see you, fussing and jumping all over everyone, but when he got back...damn! I ain't never seen him like that. We've got half our squad in the hospital from 'training accidents'. I'm surprised he hasn't killed anybody yet. He's hurting, Akina, hurting bad. And it's your fault." he said flatly.

"Fuck you, Ikkaku!" she spat out the words.

"What happened?" he asked quietly.

"We broke up. End of story." she said with a sigh, looking away from him. Her gaze automatically traveled to Zaraki. He stood away from the others, staring out into the woods thoughtfully.

"Why the hell would you do something stupid like that?" he blurted out. "He's in love with you."

"No, he isn't." she said quietly. "If he was, he could never walk away so easily. He'd be bleeding inside...torn up with pain and regret. Look at him. He's fine."

"You must not know him very well." Ikkaku said with a shake of his head. "He's putting on an act. This is the best I've seen him look since you left. I think he was hoping you'd be a part of the patrol that was headed back to the Sereitei. When the news about the attack came in from Tetsuzaemon, he took the men on duty and headed out right away. Commander Yamamoto's pissed. He wanted us to stay and defend the Sereitei. The Captain didn't pay him any mind. He came out here straight away. He was trying to intercept your group."

"Why would he do that?" she questioned.

"I think he was worried about you. And...he wanted to see you." Ikkaku explained softly. She turned, staring at him. It didn't make any sense. Why would he care? He hated her.

"Bullshit! He thinks I'm screwing Tetsuzaemon. You don't know the things he said to me. He doesn't trust me at all!" she said, her voice rising.

"It's those fuckin' rumors." Ikkaku growled. "They're every where and people are believing 'em. I don't get it. Captain Zaraki was pissed. He didn't believe any of it but it was wearing on his nerves so he went to see Chizu. I thought he was gonna kill her but when he came back, he was convinced they were real. I ain't ever seen anything like it."

"She convinced him that it was true? How?" Akina asked. Ikkaku shrugged.

"Don't know. But he's having doubts now. One of the guys he put in the hospital yesterday was mouthing off about you. The Captain beat the shit outta him. It took four of us to pull him off the guy." he commented, watching Zaraki. Akina turned, watching him as well. She felt a surge of desire just from looking at him. She closed her eyes, pushing it back down. Could he possibly still care, she wondered.

"Who the hell are they?" Ikkaku muttered, rising and walking away. Akina opened her eyes. A group of six shinigami walked out of the woods. They approached Zaraki directly. Akina stood, looking over the six men. She didn't recognize any of them. Without realizing it, she moved closer to Zaraki and the newcomers. She heard him say,

"What division are you with, boy?"

"Division 5, sir! Our unit was attacked by the arrancar and divided. We were instructed to return to the Sereitei and await further instructions." the man said. Akina looked the unfamiliar shinigami over slowly. He was tall and lean with a shock of white hair and bright blue eyes. She came to a stop next to Ikkaku, off to the side of Zaraki. The handsome, white-haired shinigami's eyes moved over her slowly. There was a hungry, lustful gleam in his eyes as he watched her. It made her uncomfortable.

"How many arrancar?" Zarkai growled, capturing the man's attention again.

"Only three, sir. They're really strong." he said automatically. Akina stared at the man. He was completely unfamiliar to her. She knew that she wasn't familiar with everyone in the Sereitei but she recognized most, even those she didn't know well. This man was a complete stranger. She looked past him to the five men standing behind him. They, too, were strangers and they looked nervous, their eyes shifting over the other shinigami and Zaraki anxiously. Something was wrong, she thought.

With a knot in her stomach, Akina shifted her focus to their spirit energy. A thick band of black reiatsu glowed around each of them. Akina stared at them uneasily. She'd never seen black reiatsu on any creature except for hollows. A cold chill crept down her spine. She focused on the white-haired man. His spiritual pressure was strong, almost as powerful as Zaraki's. His reiatsu rushed back at her, raging wildly. It carried the scent of death and decomposition.

"Alright, get outta here then!" she heard Zaraki say, waving them past. No, her mind screamed, she had to stop them. She couldn't let them reach the Sereitei. She had to do something.

"Kenpachi Zaraki! You will not ignore me, you son of a bitch!" she screamed, surprising herself as the words tumbled out. Zaraki's head spun around. Looking at her as if she'd lost her mind, he fixed his one wild eye on her. She stormed forward, brushing past the white-haired man as she heard someone behind her snicker,

"I was wondering when this would happen."

"This is why you don't fuck crazy chicks no matter how good looking they are." a second voice chuckled. Akina noticed the white-haired man look her over curiously as she stepped in front of him. She reached Zaraki, grabbing his face and kissing him hard. She knew everyone was watching them. She didn't care. It was a distraction that would hopefully buy them much needed time and allow her to speak privately to him. Zaraki yanked his head back, his lone eye glaring at her with unspoken questions. She wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him as tightly as she could. In a barely audible voice, she whispered directly into his ear,

"They're not with Division 5. I don't recognize any of them. Their reiatsu's black. Only hollows have black reiatsu. And the guy with the white hair...his spiritual pressure's through the roof. He's almost as strong as you. I think they're arrancar."

Zaraki pulled back, staring at her for a brief, lingering moment. Then he crushed her mouth in a hard, quick kiss. Faintly, he breathed against her lips,

"Tell Ikkaku and stay the fuck outta the way!"

Then he pushed her away, spinning her backwards into Ikkaku's arms as he drew his sword.

"I saw the way you were looking at her, you son of a bitch! Did ya think I'd let that pass? She's my woman!" he roared as he launched himself at the white-haired shinigami. The man jumped back in surprise, drawing his sword.

"What the..." Ikkaku started.

"They're arrancar!" she hissed to him. He stared at her in disbelief for only a second or two then shoved her behind him with one hand while drawing his sword with the other. He rushed at the closest of the five shinigami.

"Aka-chan! You made Ken-chan really happy!" Yachiru chirped, jumping from Zaraki's shoulder to land beside her. Slowly Akina turned away from the sudden fight as the other members of squad 11 took on the remaining fake shinigami. She could feel another presence behind her. Standing just beyond Yachiru was a small, violet-haired woman dressed as a shinigami, a seventh one. She smiled smugly at Akina as she said,

"You can see through the illusion, can't you?"

Yachiru stood with her back to the woman. Akina reached for her as chaos erupted. The illusion fell away, revealing seven arrancar amongst them. The woman closest to Akina laughed a strange, bitter laugh as gossamer like wings unfolded behind her. A frilly pink and white dress seemed to move with a life of it's own around the woman's small legs. White-skinned with a deep purple butterfly tattoo on face, she was oddly beautiful. She wore the remains of her hollow mask adorning her short curly hair like delicate bone hair clips.

"Pretty!" Yachiru declared happily, rushing from Akina to see the arrancar better.

"No!" Akina screamed. The purple-haired arrancar drew her sword and called out,

"Chouko! Dance!"

The arrancar changed before her eyes. Her wings grew with what looked like blue and black blades embedded in them. Her arms extended, her nails curving into sharp talons and changing to purple and red. She screamed loudly, suddenly airborne as she bore down on Yachiru. She pulled several disc-like blades from her wings, firing them at Yachiru who seemed oblivious to the danger. Akina lunged forward, her sword drawn. She managed to deflect one of the blades but the other two clipped Yachiru, striking her shoulder and head. She fell limp to the ground, blood gushing from her wounds. Akina looked back helplessly. She couldn't take time to help her or they might both die. She had to fight. She stepped away from Yachiru, raising her sword in the air.

"Reimaru! Rage! " she called out as her spiritual pressure exploded. Her sword changed, splitting and coiling at the same time, becoming four loosely coiled blades suspended from the hilt. She snapped them out like a whip, slashing four bright red cuts across the arrancar's chest. Her frilly white dress shredded beneath the onslaught.

"Bitch!" she screamed, diving down for Akina. She was fast. It seemed she used her wings to adjust the speed of her attack. Akina rushed forward, catapulting herself in the air as the arrancar dove down to strike her. As Akina passed over the girl, she slashed out with her coiled blades. They severed a wing, blood spraying. Akina landed hard as the girl dipped unsteadily, crashing to the ground. She turned, lashing out at Akina with her sharp talons. Fabric shredded and blood sprayed as she gouged four deep cuts across her belly. Akina fell back, snapping her sword forward as she moved. She clipped the tips off three of the arrancar's talons before she jerked her hand back. Growling in anger and frustration, the girl flew at her. She was still quick despite her damaged wing. Akina couldn't dodge her as her other hand came up, deeply slashing Akina's neck and upper chest with her claws. The pain was incredible. Akina didn't think she couldn't take another direct hit as the pain spread hotly through her body. She knew that she had to get to Yachiru to safety.

As the arrancar flew up and away from her, Akina snapped her wrist desperately. The thin, wiry blades of her zanpakuto stretched out then wrapped around the arrancar's neck. They caught in the girl's violet hair. Akina could see her black reiatsu fluctuating wildly. Akina fell hard to the ground, her body collapsing under her. She saw the thick black band grow thin, almost invisible, as the arrancar rose above her. She had to strike now. She watched as the girl snatched three blades from her remaining wing and tossed them at Akina. Akina tried to jerk the hilt of her sword down as she turned in an effort to dodge the blades but the coils were tangled in the arrancar's hair. Akina felt two of the steel blades strike her left side with a dull, deadly thud. They embedded deep in her flesh, sending a blinding pain shooting through her. Akina used what little strength she had left to pull her zanpakuto down with both hands. A sharp squeak sounded as the coils of her blade tightened around the arrancar's throat then silence. A rain of black dust fell upon Akina as she struck the ground hard. The arrancar was dead.

Pain rushed through her body like fire, crippling her. Her side was the worst. She tried to turn, to remove the blades, but the movement stole her breath and sent her crashing back to the dirt. Painfully she dragged herself over to Yachiru. The girl was still, blood pooling darkly on the ground under her.

"Ya...chi..ru..?" Akina struggled to whisper, her breathing difficult. Each breath sent a sharp, searing pain shooting through her chest. Grimly, Akina dragged herself up to her knees. Blood soaked through her kimono as she pulled the child into her arms. She pressed a bloody hand to Yachiru's throat. Her heart still beat steadily but the girl had turned a deathly pale. Akina looked around at the battle raging around them. She saw no one from Division 4. Zaraki was lost in the joy of battle with the arrancar whose white hair had changed to bright blue. There was no one to help them. And she feared without help soon that one, or both of them, might die.

Tears stung her cheeks. Her breathing became more constricted. She rubbed her eyes wearily as she fell backwards onto her bottom, pulling Yachiru with her. Akina felt something warm and wet on her face. Examining her hands, she saw more blood. She felt her head, one of the blades had struck her forehead. She looked down at her kimono, the white undergarment had turned red, the black outer kimono was wet with blood.

"Shit." she muttered just before she passed out.


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This chapter was a bit long but action-packed. Hope you liked it. If you feel like it, please review and let me know what you think. To all of you who have taken the time to review it so far...THANK YOU!!