Little ghost [JT | Akira]

[Akira Hinosai]

Akira almost told the little hollow to get behind him, but without knowing where the noise came from, there was no way to know where would be safest for the little guy. Akira prepared to draw his sword, but before he could lift it from its sheath, there was a loud crash only a few meters in front of them. Akira barely managed to avoid being knocked prone. He involuntarily brought an arm to cover his eyes from whatever air waves or dust had been kicked their way. Before Akira could recover, he felt something grab hold of his zanpakuto. He tried to wrestle control of the blade from whatever had grabbed it, but it wasn't long before he was overpowered and it was plucked from his hands.

Then, Akira finally got a good look at the hollow. Somehow it defied all forms of classification. If it was supposed to resemble an animal, it wasn't one Akira had ever seen. He struggled to find some way to describe the monstrosity before them. "Well done little one. You served your purpose beautifully." Its head took up most of its bodymass, with an ear-to-ear grin showing off its many, many teeth. It had two tendrils for arms and powerful legs. Like if Audrey II and a Graboid  were fused together to create the most vile body plan anyone had ever seen. Akira could see it draw back its tendril still holding Akira's blade.

Knowing the little hollow was mute, Akira decided to step in for them. "What the hell are you babbling about?" Akira hoped he could use this hollow's apparent ego to buy some time. Maybe he could think of a plan. "I saw the garganta this little runt used. Not much of a meal on their own...but they would serve as excellent bait...A shinigami, oh how I have missed their taste. And without your sword this battle is as good as done!" Akira smirked. "Is it, now?" He took a deep breath. This was such a bad idea. Akira, with what limited time he spent in the academy, picked up a few tricks before graduating early. One such trick was the shinigami art of flash steps.

with a blur of motion, Akira was behind the big ugly hollow before it knew what was up. Akira had also picked up some basic kido, and learned how to cast wordlessly. Oh fuck me, please work! PLEASE WORK! "Bakudō #1: Sai!" and before the hollow could so much as turn around its two tendrils were tied behind its back "W-what?!?" the hollow struggled with all its might, but without its arms to keep balance, it quickly fell to the ground, straining itself against the invisible bonds of bakudo. That still left Akira with the task of wrestling his blade from the ugly thing. It still had superior strength, but with its range of motion and fine manipulation out of the picture, it was just a matter of persistence.

Akira struggled to pull back his zanpakuto from the monster's grip. "Hey, squirt, give me a hand with this, will ya?" However this would prove a very poor choice of words, as it reminded the ugly hollow there was another perfectly good target in front of it, and one it didn't need to move to hit. It opened its large mouth, and red light began to emanate as it charged a mighty cero. Realizing what was about to happen, Akira stopped wrestling for his sword and flash stepped back in front of the little hollow. While he may have once been able to effortlessly step in, grab the little one, and step out, his diminished speed meant he could only do the first part of that.

This wasn't a logical decision. It was something his body just sort of did. He could take the hit. He'd taken worse. Akira would use himself as a human shield to protect the hollow. For a moment, the cero colored the night a bloodstone hue. "AAAAAAAAAGH!!!'" Akira howled. the back of his shihakusho and turtleneck was mostly vaporized, showing his burnt skin. Akira would still be able to fight, but it certainly wasn't going to be fun. If the little hollow looked at the big hollow they would see it struggling with all its might against Akira's binding technique. However, it was actually making progress. Still it was down for the moment, leaving it open to a clever counter attack.Team Soul Society's only weapons being sticks, it wasn't looking good, but maybe the little hollow could do something clever and turn this around...

SPOILER: Click to show

{big dumb ugly hollow stats}
Strength: 140
Speed: 40
Reiatsu Strength: 40
Spirit Pressure: 40
Light Aura: 0
Dark Aura: 100
Senses: 50
Instinct: 50
Energy Sensory: 0
Total: 380

SPOILER: Click to show

SPOILER: Click to show

SPOILER: Click to show

{big dumb ugly hollow ref}

Akira's reiatsu: 500-25= 475

[Deleted]

Caballero and Akira's quality time was rudely interrupted by that feral snarl that had gotten the tiny Hollow on their feet first, and by a loud crash that all but startled a creature that was not found of loud noises. The impact stirred both wind and a cloud of dust, and Caballero had to lean forward while slightly bending a knee to anchor themselves to the bench. By reflex, one black, tiny arm moved to cover the mask, as if safeguarding that weak spot. The tiny Hollow's senses were not developed enough to notice the incoming threat having the nerve, the GALL, to steal a Shinigami's Zanpakuto. Only when the dust cleared and the form of the enemy became clear did Caballero have somewhere to direct their quiet rage.

If the tiny Hollow had any reference for beauty standards in the world, they would have immediately dubbed that thing as one of the most repulsive beasts they had ever came across, even in Hueco Mundo. A body mass that consisted mostly on a head, from which writhing tentacles and a pair of avian-like legs sprouted. Their mask parted to display a humongous mouth, packed to the brim with teeth, dripping with saliva, and emanating a rank stench that would have made anyone puke. It was way bigger, way stronger, and frankly had every odd in its favor to kill and consume Caballero. However, for every bit of childish behavior in Caballero, there was also a brave soul that would not cower in fear. Not only were they born with a certain tolerance for fear; their ability to focus on the battle at hand rather than other external factors and the strength of will that, unbeknownst to them, kept their tiny body from falling apart formed a sort of bulwark against the intimidation factor of a larger Hollow. Perhaps that was the reason why they had survived for so long in Hueco Mundo, eventually making their way to the human world.

Then, the Hollow talked to them in a commending tone. Unlike Akira's encouragement, this only served to further temper Caballero's anger; a mixture of the instinctual, animalistic response to a threat, an inherent distaste of other Hollows, and the fact that the thing was clutching the Zanpakuto as if it had done anything to ever deserve it in the first place. Not only that, but the Hollow made its intentions to eat not only Caballero, but Akira as well, all too clear. While the Shinigami played the Hollow's game for a while, perhaps to figure out how to win that fight without his sword, Caballero stood right next to him, their little body trembling not with fear, but with the burning desire to cut off those tentacles, crack its mask open and shatter it to a million pieces.

However, their Hollow instincts told them they were outclassed. Not in the spiritual sense, perhaps, but it was clear to the naked eye that the beast was physically stronger than Caballero. Like all the others they had ever been in, this was not a fight the tiny Hollow would be able to win through sheer power. Instead, they'd need to put those limited brain-cells in that big, empty head to work. Thus, the creature's sense for battle took over, and they watched Akira use Shunpo to get behind the Hollow and immediately bind their tentacles with a Bakudo spell, quickly throwing it off balance. The Hollow clumsily plopped to the ground without the tentacles giving them the leverage to balance its bizarre body, squirming and struggling to break out of the binding Kido.

That spell would not hold them for long. Akira asked Caballero to lend him a hand in recovering the Zanpakuto, but the little Hollow was already on it. Jumping down from the bench, they skittered over the snow... only for the Hollow to begin charging a Cero. Funny how, even without prior knowledge about what the attack was and without any ability to sense energy, Caballero knew they had to get out of the way. The dark of night was painted crimson as the Hollow fired their blast... which never did strike Caballero. Akira flash stepped back in, protecting a surprised and horrified Caballero by shielding them with his body. By the time the blast had passed, exploding behind them and destroying some of the foliage behind, sending loose branches and splinters of wood over them. The tiny Hollow was unharmed, but the same could not be said about the Shinigami.

Caballero quickly got up and went over their injuries, filled of concern for their friend, tiny hands futilely trying to heal those burns--it's not like they were a medic, and they had no idea what to do to fix that. When they realized Akira could still move, Caballero turned toward the Hollow. The creature's actions put the finishing touches on the sharpened edge of what little malice Caballero could muster. Honor and chivalry would take a backseat, for this was not a duel: this was a battle for survival against a monster that did not deserve one or the other. The little creature's combat abilities may be limited, but what they had been taught still rang true. They took a quick look at the beast's white mask, which served as a sort of frontal shield... but left those awful, protruding eyes exposed.

Caballero imitated Akira in a similar, if slower maneuver. The little Hollow brought both arms outside the little rags, and the tiny limbs quickly shot forward, spitting into two tendrils each. Tendón. They recalled them with ease, and all of a sudden, Caballero was no longer there, in all senses of the word. Their Reiatsu flared for a moment as they used Úlcera to cut the distance, and suddenly they were right next to the creature's head.

You'd better be nigh indestructible if you wanted not to take any pain from Caballero's next maneuver. With a ruthlessness that perhaps Akira may have not expected from the Hollow unless he remembered that they actually were one, Caballero proceeded to jump over the beast's head and use Tendon a second time to precisely jam each stick onto the creature's eyes. They used the strength from embedding the sticks as deep as they could to jump away, aware that they could not do much more for now.

Caballero's Reiatsu: 500 -75 [Úlcera] = 425

[Akira Hinosai]

"I'm ok, I'm ok." Akira said through gritted teeth. He shrugged off the little hollow's help. This wasn't the time to play field medic. He would worry about his injuries when the hollow was dead. He felt burning pain in his back and left shoulder, which was good, because that meant the reiatsu burn wasn't that serious. Even so, his weak constitution left him staggered. He turned to see the ugly hollow still bound, though Akira didn't know how much longer the bonds would hold. I knew I should have used the incantation... Right as Akira was cursing his decision to half-ass his kido, the little hollow practically teleported into close quarters with the beast.

What was more surprising was that the hollow jammed its stick into the monster's eye. Akira winced as the hollow bellowed out in pain. "You piece of filth!!!" Between struggling to free itself and the blinding pain, Akira's zanpakuto slipped from its tendrils. Not wasting a moment, Akira flash-stepped behind the hollow to grab his zanpakuto. Sensing the balance of power had shifted, the hollow jumped with its powerful legs, just as it had done before. this time it landed a few meters away on a large tree stump. Finally, it's "arms" could freely move again as it finished brute forcing the bindings. Black blood oozed from where the little hollow jammed a stick into its eye.

 With more distance being created between it and its prey it tried to call out to the hollow "I see now. I was wrong. You're not bait, you're a powerful hollow...Let's focus on our common enemy. We will play wish bone with his corpse! We are both hollows, you surely wouldn't work with that wretch over your own kind, would you?" The ugly hollow's condescending tone from before had been replaced with a desperate pleading. By all accounts, it didn't make sense. Hollows fought and killed eachother all the time. Why was this one playing nice with a shinigami? Surely given the chance it would help another hollow, right? Of course, considering the little hollow had honor and dignity, it was unlikely it would change sides.

"I know it must be hard to see...with your eye and all, but this is a shinigami, actually." Akira said, matter of factly, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. He had to hide his smirk. This was the funniest shit ever. He was going to enjoy seeing this hollow squirm. "What? No it isn't. Am I being punked? I am so confused right now!" Taking advantage of the hollow trying to figure out what the fuck was happening, Akira whispered at the little hollow. "Follow my lead, we're gonna wreck this nerd!" Akira ran at the hollow, zanpakuto drawn and at the ready. The hollow had an attack with his tendrils ready, but with its lackluster speed Akira was able to duck past it. With the hollow overextended, Akira decided to go for a quick counter attack.

Using some of that good old fashioned Kendo, Akira tried a downwards strike at the hollow's big ugly head. Considering its strength and Akira's inexperience it would be unlikely to end the fight or even crack the mask, but that wasn't what Akira set out to accomplish. He was just the distraction. The little hollow had some flexibility for what "follow my lead" meant, effectively leaving the ball in their court as the big hollow was focused on Akira. Whatever they decided on, Akira would be there to back them up. That was what shinigami did for each other, after all.

[Deleted]

Caballero's improvised attack plan seemed to have worked. The way they jammed the sticks into the creature's eyes made it cry out in pain and frustration, cursing the tiny Hollow as it struggled against the Bakudo that was keeping it bound and unable to properly move. Caballero landed back on their feet, having lost the sticks it used as weapons, as they had been left in the creature's eye sockets. They did not know whether that would have caused any lasting damage or not, but they had accomplished their goal: in the few seconds that the distraction lasted, Akira was able to use Shunpo to get closer to the monster and recover his Zanpakuto. All of a sudden, the larger Hollow jumped away, putting some distance between itself and Caballero and Akira. The tiny Hollow recognized that action. Where there had only been arrogance and bravado before, now only caution remained. It was instinctual. A predator would not get away from prey unless it recognized that said prey posed a real threat. It was one of the first times the tiny Hollow was taken seriously by a foe. Of course, that may very well have been Akira's presence, being a proper Shinigami. Even with reinforcements as paltry as Caballero, he could still kill and cleanse the Hollow... hopefully.

Just as the tune of the battle had changed, so did the creature's attitude toward them, or more accurately, toward Caballero. Whereas it had immediately referred to both Akira and Caballero as nothing but a tasty meal before--well, Caballero was more of a snack--, now it sang to the tiny Hollow, beckoning them to its side. Its argument was the camaraderie that should exist between two Hollows facing their common enemy, then perhaps split the corpse between the two later. Without a voice to speak, Caballero had no means of verbally rejecting the offer. However, the tiny creature flexed its body, entering a battle stance once again despite their lack of weapons, or offensive means for that matter.

Honeyed words? Appealing to being part of the same species? That meant nothing for the little Hollow. If anything, from all they had seen and experienced before, they had outright develop a certain contempt for them. Always running away, being hunted because of their small size, doing their best to survive and not be cannibalized. Furthermore, Caballero would keep believing they were not a Hollow, but a Shinigami... and this creature had the nerve to not only plead for its sorry life, but do so while actively berating the Soul Reapers. In doing so, it had also spit upon Caballero's dreams and ideals, and even if the Hollow was too young to understand those at a conscious level, the subconscious reaction was of complete rejection.

Akira actually laughed at the Hollow's attempts to bargain with Caballero, greatly confusing the enemy when he mentioned that they were a Shinigami. Even if only indulging the little creature's whims, that was the correct thing to say. Caballero stood tall (well, not tall) and proud next to the real Soul Reaper, ready to help in what limited ways they could. The other Hollow could not believe what it was hearing, but the time for chit-chat was over. Telling Caballero that they were going to beat that thing, Akira plunged into battle once again. He would skillfully dodge the Hollow's initial attack and retaliate using a downward strike, delivered straight to the mask.

Caballero instinctively took the opening and shot out Tendón once again, first with one arm and then with the other. The little Hollow's goal was to restrain the beast's tentacles with Tendon first, grabbing and crushing them, and slap at the mask with the other to deal some damage. Unfortunately, despite the fearless Hollow's best intentions, reality was something completely different. Reality was the fact that the opposing Hollow was stronger than they were, and that Caballero's Tendón was far too weak to be used offensively. The result? Even caught unawares, the opposing Hollow effortlessly undid the black tendrils (and thus, to Caballero). A tentacle lashed out, swatting the tiny Hollow away. The sheer difference in strength and size was enough to deliver a powerful blow to a, for the time being, very fragile and small screature. Caballero landed on the snow with a crunch. They could keep fighting for a while longer, but without a proper weapon or way to deal damage, the tiny Hollow could only serve as further distraction.

How would the two of them defeat that monster, when Caballero was so utterly useless?

[Akira Hinosai]

Akira's strike to the mask did little more than piss the hollow off, and the little hollow's stretchy limb technique went nowhere. Akira was left face to face with the ugliest hollow he'd ever seem. Before it could open its mouth to devour him whole, he decided for a new strategy. By new strategy, he of course meant the same strategy he'd used before. As the hollow lunged forward, Akira flash-stepped behind it. "Bakudō #1: Sai!" This time, however, he had a zanpakuto to use. Akira hacked at the hollow's leg, trying to prevent it from moving. However, the mass of sinew and muscle proved difficult to cut. Even if one strike hadn't disabled the limb, it was a start.

The hollow jumped in the air, trying to escape Akira's butchery. However, when it landed, pain shot through its wounded leg. There, Akira knew his path to victory. "Tell me, hollow, do you know what a stuck lock is?" Akira struck the hollow's leg again and again. Just as last time, the hollow used the only option it had, cero. This time, Akira was ready, and he knew the little hollow could speed-trick away.He jumped for cover, and just as he did, he noticed something about the hollow. The mask that covered its head-torso-thing didn't extend under the jaw. Akira's lips curled into a wolfish grin. Oh that'll do. That'll do nicely.

As the hollow struggled to break the bonds, straining itself against Akira's kido, Akira ran back to the little hollow. "I have a new plan. Remember that trick you did where you slid under my legs?" Akira paused, waiting for the little hollow to indicate that they remembered. "Ok, How about we use that again, but this time, we make it more suited for live combat?" Akira picked up his practice stick and quickly began carving it to a point. For the little hollow it would be more like a spear than a sword, but that was just what they needed.  All the while the hollow was screaming and thrashing as it slowly but surely made progress against its bindings. "I'm gonna get his attention, while he's distracted by me, you slide under him and BAM!" Akira did an upward thrusting motion with his free hand.

Akira then handed the little hollow the now pointed stick before giving them an encouraging pat on the head. Morale was important with subordinates, Akira had learned. Right as the hollow had gotten his arms free it panted with ragged breaths. "YOU'VE BEEN A THORN IN MY SIDE FOR LONG ENOUGH!" Akira took point and held a hand out, ready to cast another spell. "Well this thorn's about to take you down! Hado #4: Byakurai!" However, instead of a polt of pale lightning, all Akira produced were a few sparks which harmlessly fell to the ground. "Out of mana already?!?" Akira called out in despair, as the hollow laughed uproariously.

Of course, Akira wasn't out of reiatsu at all. He'd just never learned Byakurai Still, his performance was convincing enough to fool the hollow. So focused on Akira's failure and its own iminent victory, it would be left entirely open for an unorthodox strategy the little hollow might employ.

Reiatsu: 300/500

-50 flash step
-25 Sai

[Deleted]

Before Caballero could intervene, the Hollow attempted to devour Akira. However, a Shinigami would not fall that easily, no sir. They were not a part of the Gotei 13 for nothing, after all! With another quick flash-step, the Soul Reaper appeared behind the Hollow, who had displayed yet another key difference between itself and Caballero: the fact that this big, lumbering monster did not learn from its mistakes and experiences. Akira used the same Bakudo spell as before--judging from the words he used, because Caballero had no knowledge about Kido--to bind the monster, but this time he also added a Zanpakuto strike, hacking at the beast's leg. Having so much muscle mass and physical power meant that the Shinigami did not manage to sever the leg in one strike, but did enough damage that when the Hollow jumped back, they limped. Taking advantage of that opening, Akira relentlessly pressed on the offensive, dealing more and more damage and forcing the creature to fire yet another Cero.

However, they both had seen that. Caballero had been caught unawares the first time, but after watching the battle, they knew this was its only option, or perhaps the only one it was smart enough to use. Although Úlcera was hardly as fast as a flash step, it operated differently, removing Caballero from the folds of the human world and letting them re-enter it at their convenience. This way they managed to avoid any lasting, perhaps fatal damage from the powerful energy blast, and stood at the ready right next to Akira.The Shinigami had a wolfish grin plastered across his face, and although Caballero didn't know why at first, it was soon made clear to them when he explained their next move. When he mentioned the maneuver Caballero had used to get him during their sparring round, the tiny Hollow immediately nodded, never quite removing their gaze from the monster in case it tried something. Caballero felt more confident after Akira handed them the sharpened stick and patted them on the head. Being the equivalent of a child, Caballero was a sucker for positive reinforcement.

Now with a sort of weapon of their own, at the very least they might be able to cause damage to the Hollow. Still, as Caballero looked at their improvised spear, they couldn't shake the feeling that this would not cut it in the long run. They would need a weapon of their own, a better Zanpakuto if you will.

They didn't get much about the distraction part or how they'd do that, but the Hollow was already focused on their next move. They had been given a task, and they could very well replicate the movement. Their enemy roared in defiance, indicating that they had broken free from Bakudo #1. This time it had taken them much less time to do so, or at least so it seemed. Not that it mattered to Caballero, who stood at the ready. Akira attempted to fire a Kido attack that ended up being nothing but a few sparks... which was enough to make the Hollow feel overconfident and laugh in their face. They'd laugh so much that they barely noticed Caballero phasing out of reality again via a second Úlcera step, rentering when they were right below the Hollow. With its eyes damaged by the Caballero's earlier strike, and with the sonorous laughter masking the sliding sound the tiny creature made on the snow, it was too late for the enemy to react before Caballero shot their Tendón up with as much strength as they could muster. The flesh underneath was not as muscly and sinewy, and it was ill-protected. The wooden stake impaled the creature from underneath, with Caballero's Tendón retracting as quickly as it had shot forward.

The Hollow howled in pain in a strange way, the improvised spear greatly diminishing its ability for coherent speech. However, Caballero was far from done. They continued sliding until they were at the back of that big, ugly head. Using Tendón again, they grabbed it by the protrusion on the back, not to attack, but to pull Caballero towards it. The big, ugly beast had spoken about eating, about sharing a meal, about how tasty the Shinigami would be. It seemed they had forgotten that Caballero, too, was a Hollow.

Then, like a flea on a dog, Caballero used its strange Reiatsu body to bite down and attempt to consume a part of the nasty creature, holding onto it with the tendrils created from their tiny arms. They would continue to feed until the creature shook them off... or until Akira delivered the another blow to the creature. The Hollow thrashed about, roaring even more and trying to reach the annoying flea, leaving a major opening to be exploited. Caballero trusted their new friend not to be out of Reiatsu. Why? Because there was NO WAY a Shinigami would be beaten by a Hollow. That's why they were the heroes, and why Hollows were the villains.

Caballero's Reiatsu: 425 - 75x2 [Úlcera] = 275

[Akira Hinosai]

Akira watched in amazement as the little hollow exceeded every one of his expectations. Here Akira was thinking the little hollow would just pull a "Hercules vs the giant crab" maneuver, when actually the little hollow gored the monster and then started eating it. That is so fucking metal! Akira wanted to hug his newfound ally, but he'd save all that for after their enemy was dead. To its credit, being blinded, lacerated, stabbed and eaten alive wasn't enough to kill the hollow. It fought admirably, but it was clear its injuries were starting to get the better of it. It had practically lost all momentum and was just wailing about trying to get the little hollow off.

That left it completely open for one last attack. The best shot at killing a hollow usually involved going for the mask. However, in this case, Akira wasn't strong enough to even crack it with his feeble body. That said, he could always take a page from the squad 12 handbook to work smarter, not harder. Akira ran over to the hollow. The once proud beast had been reduced to a frightened animal overcome with pain and instinct and incapable of responding to Akira. Using the little one's distraction to its full extent, Akira ran his sword through one of the hollow's good eyes.

You could gouge an eye out with a stick, sure, but it wasn't likely to run through someone's head. Akira's zanpakuto however was well suited for this type of butchery. He sunk half its blade into the hollow's face, the cutting edge angled upwards. Then, using his blade like a lever he tried to pry the hollow's mask off its head. Able to generate more force, and with the hollow so thoroughly beaten, there was nothing to stop Akira from finally breaking the hollow's mask. With a satisfying crack, the hollow had effectively been purified by Akira's zanpakuto. Its body began to disintigrate, turning into reishi and its spirit being sent to the soul society.

"That was DOPE! Oh my god, you used that stretchy arm thing!" Akira made a motion to imitate shooting his arm out like the little hollow had done. "Mad wicked awesome!"  Akira knelt down to be closer to the hollow's eye level and held out his arms for a hug. Akira had missed this feeling. It was pure joy, pushing himself like this and winning. "Cuz when this started I totally thought he had us, then we kicked his ass!" Akira didn't even feel bad about swearing this time. He didn't feel the cero burns on his back either. The thrill of combat was better than any drug. "We make a pretty good team, don't we?"

Akira would have to leave soon. It was dangerous to be out and about after he'd exhausted himself and took an injury. Besides, it wouldn't be long before the little hollow had no more need of him. Akira would have no way to keep in touch with the little hollow anyway. He didn't want to think about that, though. He wanted to let this moment go on for just a little bit longer.

[Deleted]

Caballero continued biting down on the Hollow, or whatever the means for consumption the little Hollow actually had. The gist of it was that the bigger, badder, scarier Hollow thrashed about unable to focus on the fight. Its tentacles got dangerously close to smacking an already damaged Caballero, but the tiny creature did not care. They trusted Akira, they trusted that he would finish the fight and cleanse the Hollow... and that's exactly what he did. Without hesitation, the Shinigami moved closer to the Hollow and drove his Zanpakuto straight into one of the creature's undamaged eyes, and used their own weight and the mask as a fulcrum to actually tear it open. Eventually, the mask was broken with a sickening crunch, but that was only the sound of sweet victory for Caballero. Immediately upon hearing that, the little Hollow jumped off the predator turned prey--or rather, the monster that the Shinigami had just saved. With a real Zanpakuto, the Hollow would not face death, but they would be cleansed of all their sins and, since it didn't appear to have been particularly nasty during its original life, their body began to disintegrate and slowly ascended to Soul Society.

Caballero watched the lights spectacle in awe, knowing that they had just fulfilled their duty as a Shinigami. Despite acting like a true Hollow moments prior, the tiny being swelled with pride, small arms on non-existent hips and chest puffed out a little bit. Only once the purification was fully completed did Akira break into celebration, claiming that this had been awesome and that the way Caballero had attacked the Hollow was 'mad wicked awesome'. Caballero had no idea what any of those words meant, but their chest puffed out even more, head bobbing up and down as if acknowledging that they had done a very good job. Then, they grabbed the now half-broken stick with which they had gored the Hollow from below, and used it to imitate Akira's last move, as if to say that that had also been really cool. In fact, the happy little creature then instinctively began to drill another technique, their young mind losing track of whatever train of thought they had.

Then, Akira did something that confused them a little. He knelt and opened his arms wide, more than enough to encompass Caballero. The tiny Hollow stayed in place for a few seconds, head tilted and a tiny arm resting on the side of their mask, as if wondered what this meant. Of course, curiosity got the best out of them, and they approached the Shinigami, leaving the stick behind. If Akira took them in for a hug, Caballero would remain there, slightly confused about what to do. However, a warm feeling that it had never experienced in their Hollow life spread through their body. They did not know what it was, and left them even more confused. But they did not dislike it. Quite the opposite, in fact. They would look at the Shinigami, silent as ever, trying to figure out whether this was good or bad, though the former was quickly winning that battle.

In the meantime, Akira said that for a moment, he believed they'd be food for the Hollow. But of course they couldn't have been. Silly Akira! Shinigami didn't lose to Hollows. Hollows lost to Shinigami. That's why Shinigami were heroes. Something they did agree with, however, was the fact that they made a pretty good team. Caballero's head bobbed enthusiastically again, and squirmed to leave Akira's embrace. Not because they had gotten tired, but because they had something to say. Grabbing the same stick they had left behind, Caballero drew a fifth picture. The same small stick figure with two horns on the left, a monster on the ground in the middle, and a bigger stick figure on the right. Both stick figures had their arms up, with what looked to be swords. Once done, Caballero pointed at the drawing with the stick: a new page to the short book that was their life as a Hollow.

Caballero remained there, looking at Akira. Unbeknownst to the little guy, they had fulfilled their mission, finding and stopping Hollow activity. Their meeting had been nothing but chance, but it had taught Caballero a lot of things. For starters, the creature had decided they liked this world. They would have chances to meet more Shinigami, right? So they would stay. And perhaps more importantly, there was someone they did not need to run away from.

[Akira Hinosai]

"You're really something, you know that?" Akira said, though his tone had gone somber. He looked at the new drawing the little hollow had made. Akira liked being a part of the story of this hollow's life. Soon enough, though, he'd have to exit stage left, and he didn't know when or if he'd be back. "I can't stay here with you." Akira looked down. "It isn't that I don't want to, it's that I can't. I have to go back to Soul Society...I've got people there who depend on me, and this..." Akira gestured to the world around him. "It's not my home, it's just a place I go to for business. I'm always tethered to another realm." Akira hated that he had to do this.

If he had met this hollow before all the bullshit with the vandenreich, maybe things would have been ok. Luca could have brought him into UE and helped protect him and train him. Akira would have no such opportunities. The Gotei 13 was no place for hollows. Only now Akira had to explain to a child why he was abandoning him. " If there was a way to take you back with me, or for me to keep in contact with you, I would. I just can't. That's part of the reason I wanted to train you. I knew I wouldn't always be here to protect you. And this world, there are dangerous people who will try and hurt you just because you're different."

Words just fell out of Akira. He wanted to know he did everything he could to make sure this hollow didn't suffer like he had. Only he didn't have the answers to these problems. He struggled with them just like the little hollow would. "I...I just...I'm always trying to make sense of this crazy world, but really, I'm just guessing. One thing I know for sure is that you'll be ok without me." Akira really hoped this was positive reinforcement of him. He wasn't sure if he believed it, but he had to get some closure out of the hollow. He wanted some closure from his old life, but he didn't know if anything would make this ok.

"You've got...Well you've got something I don't have anymore." Innocence. Akira didn't say that last word, though. "I guess I'll leave you with this. Most shinigami won't understand you. They'll see what you look like and that'll be enough to pass judgement. Be careful around them. I'm not the rule, I'm the exception...I guess I have a soft spot in my heart for weirdos like you." If the hollow was understanding Akira's convoluted attempt at a long goodbye, Akira would kneel down and pat their head one last time. "You take care, squirt. I hope our paths cross again, but, till then..." Akira prepared to portal back to his home, back to his new life and away from the old.

"Arrivederci."

[Deleted]

Caballero watched Akira go from happy to pensive in a matter of seconds, after the rush of adrenaline from having won a battle to the death had finally wore off. And, as with most highs, what awaited beyond was a harsh mistress called reality. As much as Akira seemed to have developed an initial attachment to the little Hollow, they could not stay with them for long. Unbeknownst to Caballero, their being a Hollow would be enough to invite the wrath of Soul Society if another Shinigami ended up crossing paths with them. The tiny being was far too deluded and immature to understand this, as their mind lacked the capacity for prejudice, but even then they understood. Akira mention he had people who depended on him, and Caballero understood something as basic as that. Protect those dear to you. It was a fine ideal to live according to, and one Caballero unconsciously espoused.

Akira mentioned the reason he wanted to train him was to make sure they'd survive, that they'd be able to defend themself, since the world wasn't always as kind as it had been that night. Caballero nodded slowly, also understanding this--at the very least, they got that they had to become stronger. They would never have been able to defeat that monster on their own, despite believing themself to be a Shinigami. The Soul Reaper was trying to make their parting not too hard on Caballero, but the little Hollow had been through much worse. Hueco Mundo was far more dangerous, gloomy and sad than saying goodbye for now to a new friend. For now, not forever!

Caballero tapped him on the leg, trying to draw his attention again. Then, from under the rags that formed their makeshift Shihakusho, they lifted their tiny right arm. While it was difficult to interpret, given Caballero's lack of thumbs, the tiny Hollow was essentially giving Akira the equivalent of a thumbs up. The Shinigami said that they should take care of themselves and stay away from other Shinigami--something impossible, given the level of curiosity and idolatry the creature held for them--but the young Hollow nodded all the same. He was worried about them, that much was clear.

Caballero accepted Akira's last pat on his head before the Shinigami opened a portal to return to Soul Society. Instantly, Caballero was drawn to it, knowing that this would take them to the land of their dreams, the place where Shinigami all gathered together. However, his Hollow instincts--and Akira's last warning--actively fought off against that desire, making the Hollow stay in place. Not yet. Perhaps one day, but not yet. Wishing them the best, Akira bid Caballero adeu before returning home. A flash of light later, and Caballero was all alone again, like they had been before arriving into the human world.

Well, perhaps not the same way. The tiny Hollow looked back at the drawings they had made, specially at the last one. Nodding to themselves, they picked up the half-broken, yet still sharpened stick with which they had gored the Hollow, and put it on their back, entangled in the rags that covered their body. That day they had taken their first steps toward becoming a real Shinigami, no matter how much of an asinine dream that could be for a Hollow. That day, they had also learned that they were not alone.

[END]

[Kitai Yoru]

138 paragraphs, 690 TO awarded

Caballero: one class 8 hollow, 50 TP that is not halved when converted to CTP