SOULS BOUND ACROSS TIME: A KISUKE URAHARA LOVE STORY

Chapter 20- Back On Guard

Sayas POV:

My entrance back into Squad Zero was somewhat uneventful, receiving a verbal accommodation from Captain Hikifune and the occasional bow of respect from fellow shinigami that fought just as bravely in the battle that awoke me from my selfish existence. Training came and went as it had always had, but now I was surrounded by looks and uncomfortable confrontations as people now feared to train against me. Afraid that I would again release the power that I had in battle, a power that was seen to be at the level of a captain and still suspect if I could control it. All that I had wanted and all that I had done now rendered me an outcast within the shadow of a hero. I don't know what I had expected, I too would have been surprised by a mere lieutenants ability to utilize a Bankai like mine.  I had deceived them even, not letting them know that I had even come close to such a level.

Looking around I found myself the odd man out as the others paired up immediately. Trying to hold back my anger, I stood tall next to my captain as she looked on and began to review the techniques of those before us. My anger quickly turned to self-doubt as I tried to reassure myself that I was not a to be feared, that I did have control and that I could easily do it again given the opportunity.

She laughed looking over at my distress,  "Some may fear you and some may feel inferior to you… either way, they respect you. Your sacrifice made you no longer their equal, it made you their superior" she paused as I looked up at her, "Welcome to the pedestal my dear , it’s a long fall from here!" here eyes gazed back to the field as her tone turned parental, " I hope that is what you really wanted and that you are prepared for all of the responsibility that comes with it!" it felt as though she walked through me as her shoulder brushed mine, leaving me to think about the reality in her words.

My eyes glanced back in the direction of a familiar voice, "Well are you just going to stand there and watch or are you going to learn how to control that half-ass technique that you call Bankai?"

I turned to see Isao walking up with a confident swagger and a mischievous smile. A brightness came to my face and  the invisible weights fell from my shoulders as I realized that this  was the first real interaction that I had had with him since my return. His presence was a comfort to me in a way that I hadn't felt before. It was as if he and I were attached, like there was a future partnership that had been but in place as we both sought to fight for alpha.

"Well, well and here I was thinking that you were hiding from me as well." I said back tossing my hair playfully.

"Nah, just giving you your space" he said walking past me toward the outermost point of the training fields.

His zanpakuto dragged the ground beside him as if a he was leaving a trail for me to follow to his challenge. A smile returned to my face as I took the bait that he had laid out for me and met my match away from the rest. His dragon green eyes seemed to shine under the light of the sun that greeted us in a friendly respect. As I drew my swords, they awoke from their slumber with as much childlike excitement as I had, both clawing at the chance to soar through the wind with their newfound strength once more.

"Don't tell me that you missed me!" I yelled out to him with a playful pout.

His head tilted down and his smile widened, "Maybe just a little"  he said grabbing his wrist and calling forth his Bankai releasing it in a blaze of orange aura, "Who else was I going to play with?" his head tilted back up to wink at me.

I laughed heartily eyebrows raised in slight surprise , "Huh" I said with ah huff, "We are full of surprises today!"

He lunged at me crashing his blade, that now took on the shape of a scythe, into my zanpakutos. There was a wildness behind his eyes that begged for me to strike back as hard as I could. Quickly I utilized my flash step to created enough distance between the two of us as I combined my two swords to call forth my Bankai. In an electrifying explosion of energy I had all others looking onward to a meeting of the two that would now stand tall as leaders of the unit. The two that would fight for supremacy under a proud captain that looked on, knowing that she had created the next generation of captains without any knowledge to us. Our blades raptured the air and the land around us with each release of energy that coursed through the foundation that was our partnership with our spiritual pressure and our zanpakutos. Each of us walking a fine line of control and chaos  that we finely balanced in the palm of our hands as we combined kido into an elegant symphony of destruction. Again and again we drove toward each other so harsh yet so playful until our fun was brought to a holt with one last blow that shook  the ground beneath our feet in a glorious last release that sucked what energy we had left; leaving us but mere shinigami holding onto the thin blades that we claimed in our youth. No words were said as we both took in each breath in exhaustion only to bow in respect of the other efforts. All seriousness was lost in those moments as a lighthearted laughed came spilling from my gut followed by the reciprocation that came from Isao. Every line of worry, anger, frustration and sadness was now released into the light that began to fade as the once bright sky had turned to shades of orange and lavender that traced filled in the spaces between the white fluffy clouds. That day we came to the understanding that we were equals both in life and in battle. We had proven to not only or captain, mentor and fellow soldiers that we were worthy of their respect, but demanded it. In some odd way we realized through the laughter as we walked back to the barracks that day, that we now had created a partnership that would last tied to an invisible line of fate that we shared. A fate that was already playing out yet I carefully controlled with every small decision that I made as I attempted to manipulate the marionette that was my life.