Bleeding Weapon [Solo]

[Satoshi Fuuko]

Satoshi Fuuko rested her head on her pillow. Another long day. Unlike the other days, however, this one had not been spent cleaning sewers or washing equipment or many of the other menial tasks that were part of her duties as a member of the Yonbantai. This one had been spent training with Nakajima Kimiko, the captain of Squad Eleven. The tip of the spear of the 13 Court Guard. The woman who should have been her  captain... if not for her brother. 

"Kazuhiko..." Fuuko muttered as she drifted off to sleep. How long had it been? She knew down to the last second the last time she had seen him but it had also felt like a countless number of days, weeks? Whatever. Fuuko's lids were closed, but her mind still stirred as she rolled back and forth to try and get comfortable. Her body was sore, but she didn't want  to sleep. She could only think about her brother and getting stronger and getting back at the damn bastard who captured him. 

"Nnnn...." Fuuko groaned and nestled her head into her pillow one last time. Her mouth opened and she sucked in a breath from a big yawn and then she drifted off to sleep. Everything was black for a moment before suddenly, she felt like she was floating. She couldn't open her eyes at first, but the faint voice in the distance tickled at her ear. 

"Oi! Anego! Over here! Over here! Just don't..." 

Fuuko's eyes opened and when she lifted her head, she saw herself in a reflection. The reflection rippled and her arms pushed. "Oh, shit!" Fuuko's eyes widened and her whole body listed and she sunk into the water. When she opened her mouth, water rushed in. Her eyes widened and she thrashed about. 

'Drown.' It was a familiar voice that was in her head. Fuuko thrashed and looked around. The water was crystal clear but she saw nothing.

'It's you!?' Fuuko opened her mouth, but only bubbles came out. Still, she had said something in her mind. She was communicating with it. And it was speaking back. 


'Nah... if you can't even save yourself from this, then maybe yer not cut out to be my Anego anyway.'

[Satoshi Fuuko]

'Bitch! I'm so tired of your shit talking! When I get out of here...'

Fuuko opened her mouth and more bubbles came out. Her body was starting to tighten. She closed her eyes. Arguing with it wasn't going to get her anywhere but dead. Fuuko opened her eyes, and looked up to see sun above her, rippling from her thrashing. She extended her arms, kicked her feet and shot herself upwards. She burst through the water and inhaled deeply. After a moment of coughing, she started treading water and looked around. 

She was in the middle of some kind of lake. The water was beautiful. More beautiful than anything she had seen in the world of the living or the Seireitei. It was perfect, untouched. When she looked down, she was sure if not for the depth, she could have seen all the way to the bottom. Instead, there was a clear column of water that eventually faded into blackness. How deep did it go? Fuuko wasn't sure she wanted to know. 

As she thought about it, she heard the sound of water crashing into water. There was a mist that lazily wafted towards her and suddenly she realized she was surrounded on all sides by waterfalls. "No..." Fuuko muttered. They weren't waterfalls. The "water" was tainted a deep crimson. She inhaled. Iron permeated the clean air. It was distinct. Fuuko felt queazy. They were bloodfalls. Fuuko grimaced but found herself leering at them. Somehow, in spite of the fact that they poured over cliffs of a great height. the blood never seemed to mingle with the clear water that Fuuko was floating in. 

"This is my inner world? This is me? It's fucked up..." She muttered. 

"Yeah! I bet it's even worse than ya think, Anego!" 

Fuuko turned towards the voice. She saw an island covered in a grove of trees, but no sign of the zanpakutou spirit. Fuuko narrowed her eyes. She took one look back and then swam towards the island and looked around. "Oi!' Fuuko barked. "You made it sound like I was gonna drown for real!" The blonde barked and pushed through the forest. 

"I didn't think you could swim!" Admitted the spirit. 

"Who can't swim!?" Fuuko barked back. 

"Oi! I can't! Are you just trying to make me feel bad, Anego!?" The spirit whined. 

"Oh? Now you're a crybaby!? Where are ya hidin!?" 

"I'm not hidin... I'm in the middle of the island. Join me! If you dare! Ahahh!" 

"What the shit does that mean!? You gonna throw another test at me!?" Fuuko growled as she pushed through the trees and suddenly found herself in a clearing. Standing before her was a woman- no a demon! She had pale skin, almost white colored. Her hair was long, red and messy and contrasted against her skin. Her eyes were red and she was dressed in samurai style clothes with one hand resting on what appeared to be a wakazashi. She had pointy teeth, ears and... horns. Her arms were tattooed with sleeves but... she was flecked with blood. It smattered her face and dripped from the corner of her mouth. She bore a toothy grin and her red eyes gleamed as she finally made eye contact with Fuuko. 

[Satoshi Fuuko]

"Ok..." Fuuko said as she looked over the woman. "I'm not gonna lie, yer pretty damn cool lookin." Fuuko admitted.

The demon girl grinned even wider. "That's right!" She said and slapped her chest. "But, I guess if I'm cool, then that's causa you, right? Heh. Don't get too cocky about it, though. Because I'm such a badass, that means yer not ready for me, Anego!" 

Fuuko's grin faded. "So... we do gotta fight?" Fuuko asked and grabbed for her katana. "Great! I have been itchin for this for so long! Kickin yer ass is gonna be great after all that shit talkin! Heh!' Fuuko nodded to what looked to be a wakazashi hanging at the woman's side. "Is that it? Cause if that's it, then maybe I don't want yer stupid power!" 

The redhead looked down and tapped the odd shaped hilt. "This?" She shook her head. "No, this isn't for you, not yet. I don't know that it ever will be." She lifted up her hands and showed off her sharp claws. "This is all I need!'' The demon woman said and bent and curled her fingers so that they cracked. 

"Ha?! What? If you want yer fingers cut off, who am I ta say anythin about it?!" Fuuko laughed. The other girl shook her head, even as Fuuko grabbed and unsheathed her katana. "Oh? What? Do ya wanna punch instead?" Fuuko turned her Katana upside down and stabbed it into the ground. There was, suddenly, what sounded like a shriek of intense pain, but it was ethereal and distant. Fuuko turned her head and looked around, but her eyes fell back onto the redhead. 

"I told ya!" The oni woman said with a grin. "But... I can't fight until I've quenched my thirst.' The oni said and then laughed. 

"What?" Fuuko was a little annoyed and turned and motioned of a few feet away from them. There was a small little table for sitting with glasses of various size and fullness sitting, laying and upside down on it. Some dripping alcohol, others dry as a bone. A few feet away from that was what appeared to be a fully stocked bar. "Uhhh... what the fuck is that?" Fuuko asked. 

"Ha!" The oni barked. "That's for drinkin! That's not fer quenchin thirst!" 

"Tch!" Fuuko's cheeks blushed. She hated that the woman was right. She continued to look around. There was a small chair with a table next to it. It had a kiseru with little tufts of smoke wafting from it, a few packs of opened and unopened cigarettes and some matchbooks. Another table had a small box of cigars and there was even a large hookah. "Shit... this place is... awesome." Fuuko muttered. 

"Ha!" The Oni chortled. 'Is it?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. 

Fuuko narrowed her eyes. "What the fuck was that?!" She asked. "So... is all this shit spoiled? Posioned!? What?!" Fuuko asked, suddenly grabbing the redhead's collar. The oni girl whined as she let her head loll backwards. 

"Aneeeegoooooo! I'm thisrty!" She complained. 

"And you won't drink the booze?" 

"Uh uh!" 

Fuuko pursed her lips and looked around. There didn't seem to be anything but alcoholon the island. But... she was surrounded by water. Of course it was weirdly half blood, which Fuuko tried not to think about, but at the very least, they had flames and bottles and a way to clean the water. "Ok, baby," Fuuko said as she grabbed a bottle and poured out what was in it.
 
"Hey! Hey! Hey! You're wasting good booze!" The oni protested. 

"I'm getting you water!" Fuuko said and marched towards the lake and dunked the glass in the water. 

"Ahahaha! What?! Bakaaaaa! Anego is a bakaaa! Stupid! Dumb- Whaaaah!" 

Fuuko whipped the bottle at the redhead, but she dodged it and it splashed against the tree. "Fine! Get if your damn self!" Fuuko said and crossed her arms as she stomped over to the lounge chair and plopped in it. She grabbed the kiseru and took a puff. It was... really good... "Shit..." She smiled and leaned back and took another drag. "Mmmm..." 

"Hey! Hey! Hey! I didn't bring you here for that! You gotta earn that!" The redhead hissed. "I am thirsty! If I die of thirst, you will die too!" The redhead glanced away sheepishly. "Probably." She muttered. 

"Ok, fine!" Fuuko huffed, shooting back up to her feet and tossing the pipe to the ground. "What do you actually want to drink, bitch!?" 

The redhead Oni pouted and turned. She pointed out and up and then slowly began to shuffle in a slow circle, pointing at the waterfalls that towered over the tree line. "That."

[Satoshi Fuuko]

Fuuko raised an eyebrow at the demon girl. "The red water? Why the fuck is it red anyway?" Fuuko asked. "I mean, how hard could it be to get get some? Build a boat or somethin." Fuuko said and crossed her arms under her chest. "Why the fuck is it red anyway?" Fuuko asked. 

"Heh... red water." The devil girl grinned, showing her sharpened teeth. "You smell it, don't ya? It ain't red water, bakaaaa." 

"Tch!" Fuuko spun and grabbed the girl by her kimono. "You were a lot less of an annoyin pussy when I wasn't here, ya know that!? Yer gonna make me say it? Why is it blood?" Fuuko demanded. 

The girl lifted her hands and dug her claws into Fuuko's hand, piercing it and causing it to bleed. Fuuko yanked her hand away, and the oni girl's eyes widened. She pulled her hand up and sucked on her finger greedily, but after a few slurps, she pulled out her saliva covered finger and sighed. 

"No... it's just not the same..." She muttered. "In a pinch, I guess it'd do, but..." The redhead sighed obnoxiously. "Anegoooooo! How should I know why this place is like this? You made it. It's you. I just..." The redhead shrugged. "I just... appeared here. Anyway, stop asking so many questions! I'm thiiirstyyyy!" 

Fuuko shoved the spirit and paced away. "Fine. I'll grab a glass, swim out there and fill it up with blood. Is that good enough?" Fuuko said, grabbing another glass of booze and dumping it out. The oni girl dove and turned enough to land under the emptying booze and gulped it down, not letting a drop of it spill. She rolled onto her back and grinned up at Fuuko. 

'Yosh..." After a loud burp, she looked up at Fuuko and shook her head. "By the time it hits the waterfall it's already mixed with water. You have to get it from the source!" The oni explained. Fuuko lifted her foot and was about to stomp down on the oni when she raised her arms. "I tried to climb the trees a couple of times. There's usually too much fog to see too much past the waterfalls, and every time I am up there too long, I end up falling, so I stopped trying, but... I caught a glimpse!" The redhead said hurriedly. "I know there's something past the waterfalls. A tree or more trees or something! I'm sure that's a good place to start!" 

"Yer really pissin me off! You don't even know!?" 

"Aneegoooo! Don't get made at meeee! I can't help it if I'm thirsty! That's your fault if anything, right!? Don't ya wanna know my name?!" 

"Why can't I just fuckin choke ya until ya tell me!?" Fuuko said and stomped down where the Oni was, but she rolled away and crawled off. 

"Do.. uh... you want the truth?" The redhead said, scratching the back of her head. 

"No, fuckin lie ta me! Of course!" 

"Uh... well... I can't tell ya my name because I... uh... don't actually know it... eheh..." 

[Satoshi Fuuko]

"Whaddya mean ya don't know it!?" Fuuko screeched at the redhead and clenched her fist. "What about all those times ya threatened not ta tell me?" Fuuko stomped after the Oni girl, but the redhead rolled away and scrambled away from Fuuko. 

'I mean.. I know it! It's on the tip of my tongue and sometimes I remember, but... Anego.. I'm sooo thirsty! Everytime I drink that, I just... forget..." She said and pointed to the bar. "Somethin's missin." She said and pointed to the waterfalls again. "I need somethin that'll actually quench my thirst! And I can't swim!" The girl crossed her arms and huffed. "Anegoooo!" 

"Fuck... fine!" Fuuko looked around. "I bet if I tried to climb the trees I wouldn't be very successful either, but..." Fuuko rubbed her chin. "How the fuck do I get up the waterfall?" She asked. The zan spirit nodded. "There's not really a place ta climb up since we're surrounded..." 

"Oh!" The red haired devil suddenly popped up and scurried off. She came back and held out her hand. In it was a folded up pocket knife. "Here, use this! I hear they are super useful!" 

"A pocket knife?" Fuuko raised an incredulous eyebrow. 

"Yeah!" The spirit nodded eagerly. "If anyone can put it to use, you can, Anego!" 

Fuuko snatched it out of the woman's hand and inspected it. She opened and closed it and held it in her hand. "I mean... it's nice, but... how is it going to help  me?" She said and peered at the redhead, who shrugged. Fuuko sighed and clapped her hand against her forehead. "Real fuckin helpful." She muttered. The oni girl beamed in delight at the compliment. "Tch." Fuuko pushed aside the girl and headed for the beach. She dipped a foot into the water, but the redhead  called out. 

"Uhhhh.... what are you doing?" 

"Helping your ass. Remember?" 

"Like that?" The pale skinned demon girl said, motioning to Fuuko. 

"Whaddya mean... like that?" Fuuko said and raised an eyebrow. 

"Uhhh, clothed?"                                                                                                                                         

Fuuko's eyebrows knit. "Am I supposed ta go in naked, ya pervert!?" 

The redhead crossed her arms. "Hmph! That's funny. You callin me a pervert!" 

"Whaddya implyin?" Fuuko said, narrowing her eyes. 

"All I'm sayin is I ain't the one who has to pick their tongue off the floor every time that Kaen boy is around! And don't even get me started on how yo behave around Iroka!" 

"Tch! Bitch! I hate that bastard! He's insufferable! And what way with Iroka-chan!?" Fuuko wagged a finger at the redhead, but she was most definitely blushing. "Well, what about Nakajima-sensei!? I was the one who had to deal with you while you crossed swords with her zanpakutous! Yer gonna sit there an lecture me about bein a perv!? I didn't even know a sword could be horny!"

"T-That's different, Anego! We were bonding!"'

"S'at what they're callin it now?" 

"Anego! All I'm sayin is if you go like that, yer never gonna climb up to the top! Those clothes will weigh ya down!" 

Fuuko narrowed her eyes but reluctantly peeled off her shuhakushou, tabi socks and zori sandals, leaving her in her panties and bra. "Get a real good look! I'm definitely the hotter of the two of us anyway!" Fuuko said as she waded into the water and then dove in once it got deep enough. 

[Satoshi Fuuko]

Fuuko hit the water and her form glided through it effortlessly. She was no champion swimmer, but she loved the beach and the pool. When Kazu grew up a little, it was a good place to take him when she had a little bit of free time. The water, though, was perfect. The temperature, the visibility. If she wasn't here for a purpose, she would have stayed just to have some fun and maybe do some laps. She still found it odd, though, that it would be this way. Fuuko was struggling to understand the depths of her own mind. She also didn't understand the redheaded devil. She seemed as contradictory as the world she lived in. 

That's when it hit her. She came up for water and then lunged back into the waters. She opened her eyes and in front of her was a murky wall. She blasted into it and, suddenly, she felt sick. The overwhelming scent of iron, the sudden change in temperature and the viscosity. Fuuko came up for air and it felt like she was getting pulled back down by the weight of the blood. She was able to tread water and looked back to see the redhead in the distance waving her on. 

"Goooooo Anego!" 

Fuuko shook her head and turned back. She seemed farther out than she should have been. It didn't feel like she swam very far at all, but it also felt like she had been swimming for hours. Time seemed imperceptible here and that only pissed Fuuko off even more. She pushed forward and swam has hard as she could to try and get to where the waterfalls crashed into the pond. The falling water pushed her away and she struggled. Every time she thought she made progress, the undercurrent swept her back into the clear water. 

'How the fuck am I supposed to do this?' Fuuko asked herself as she paddled back to where the ripples started to push her back. As she tread water, she looked back and saw the redhead sitting down near the beach. 'Shit. I don't think I have any other choice...' Taking a deep breath, Fuuko dove downward into the water. She could feel the resistance but pushed forward. She could feel it trying to grab her and push her away, but the deeper she went, the less the tug was until she suddenly felt the slickness of the water and not the sludginess of the red. 

Fuuko opened her eyes and looked around. It was clear again. She looked up and could see a red dot, but she could clearly see the surface. It was like a two-way mirror. She looked forward and nodded. 'I can swim underneath it. It really is just dumbing in from above...' Fuuko made the deduction and pushed forward. Her lungs were burning. She didn't know what would happen if she drowned here, but she had to keep pushing. With a surge, she gathered the reishi around her foot and shot herself like a torpedo under the undercurrent and to the wall. She hit it with more force than she would like and grunted as she bobbed up to the surface. 

Fuuko took a gasping breath and felt the raining blood slam against her and threaten to push her down into the water. A she pawed at the surface of the rock, she cursed. She couldn't get a grip. She was already panting but now... Climbing this rock would have been difficult if it had been dry, but without red pounding down on her, it seemed all but impossible. She shut her eyes and leaned against the rock. 

"Fuck... I should have seen if there was climbing gear or something..." Fuuko muttered. 

[Satoshi Fuuko]

Fuuko pushed her hand against the slippery rock as she bobbed in the water. The red rained down upon her as she tried to figure out what to do next. She pushed her other hand and steadied herself as she looked around. She still had the pocket knife in her hand. She hissed and flicked it open. It just seemed like a normal pocket knife except it was... weird. 

The handle was red and looked like it was caved from bone. The blade was also red and looked like it was infinitely sharp. She looked at the rock and frowned. "What the actual fuck am I supposed to do with this?" She reared back and stabbed it towards the rock. She expected it to scrape off, but instead, it slid into the rock ... much easier than it ever should have. Not only that, but there was something inside of Fuuko's head. It sounded like a screech. It was both deafening and distant. She wrenched the knife again and it cut again. A few more slices and Fuuko had managed to cut a hold into the rock. She made another cut nearby and was quickly able to start making hand and footholds. 

The climb was slow and arduous. She didn't know how long it took, but she climbed and eventually her hand slapped against rock from the top of the waterfall. With a grunt of effort, she pulled herself up and stabbed the knife into the riverbed. She leaned over the waterfall with her legs dangling off the edge. She looked back and saw the woman in red laid out on the beach. She looked like she was exhausted and matted to the ground. 

Fuuko pursed her lips and and used the knife to pull her up the rest of the way. right near the edge of the cliffs, there were rocks that seemed to form a ring that regulated the water. With another grunt of effort, Fuuko grabbed a rock and pulled herself forward. She wrapped her arms around it and then carefully pulled herself over the ring of jagged rocks. Once she was over, she dropped to a knee and leaned against the rock. Her arms were tired. It felt like it had taken hours to climb the waterfall. As she sat panting, the red splashed against her. It was warm, comfortable, perfectly tempting, yet again, oddly horrifying. The water on the other side of the rocks was calm and she finally had a chance to survey the area. 

There were bars of land that led to beaches. past the beaches was an endless sea and the sun just barely floating above the horizon, washing the sea in a beautiful crimson. Fuuko frowned. It felt like it was high noon when she started. Maybe hours had passed. Each of she small plots of earth stretched out around the waterfalls, except for small deltas which formed small rivers at roughly each of the four cardinal directions. She was sitting in one of them and stood up and waded over to one of the riverbanks. When she stood up and peered from where she was, she now only saw fog filling up the "bowl" that the waterfalls dumped into. 

Fuuko sighed, but she thought she could faintly hear the redhead's whining even from up where she was. "AneEeEeEgoooOoOOOooooo~" 


Fuuko turned around and barked back into the fog. "Shaddap! I'm goin! I'm goin!" Then she turned around and saw what looked to be small trees, barely alive, dotting the tops of the land. Some seemed to have some fruit tangling on them, some seemed to be almost completely dead. She didn't go to one right away and instead waded onto short and made her wat tot he beach. She thought she saw something in the ocean, but as she approached...

The sun had not been causing the ocean to look red. It was, indeed, an ocean of blood and the scent of iron permeated the atmosphere. Second... There was something in the ocean. Or, rather, somethings, floating. Bodies. Innumerable bodies bleeding from every pour and slowly drifting her way. Fuuko felt her stomach wretch and shut her eyes. 

[Satoshi Fuuko]

Fuuko was overcome by the stench of Iron and covered her mouth with her arm as she coughed and tried not to throw up. She crawled forward and onto the beach. Her fingers dug into the sand and it felt like she might sink in. She got to her feet and waded towards the body that never seemed to quite wash up to shore. 

When she got to it, she pursed her lips and touched the body. It was clothed not like a Shinigami, but like someone from Earth. It was coated in red, so it was hard to tell exactly what they looked like, but when she turned the body over, she about wretched again. 

"K-Kazu!?" The face was mangled as much as the body, but Fuuko just knew. She turned her head and her body shook. "W-Why!?" She yelled. Fuuko's eyes were dilated as she shivered and looked around. "N-No... this ain't right!" She snarled. 

'It's right, Anego.' The voice was in her head and Fuuko whipped around. No one. She waded back over to the the waterfall and peered down enough to cut through the fog. The demon girl was still wheezing on the beach on the island. 'We can still speak this way...'

"Fuck this! Fuck you! You killed Kazu in this fucked up world? What point are ya tryin ta prove? If this is a sick joke, I never  wanna know yer name!" Fuuko hissed and just about lost her footing. She gripped the rocks and steadied herself enough to get back to the land and once she was there, she closed her eyes and sobbed. 

"How many times I gotta see that image? Who are the other  bodies then!?" Fuuko demanded. "My parents? Iroka-chan? Aunt Yoko?!" 

'Uhhh.... Maybe we should try again some other time...' The voice said weakly. 'I don't know if you can handle the answer Anego...'

Fuuko stood up and glanced at the overturned body of her mangled brother. She waded back in and pulled it ashore. "Kazu-chan..." She lowered her head and said a prayer. Fuuko then stood up and dove into the still ocean and swam over to the next body. She pushed it over and nearly drowned when she bobbed under the blood at what she saw. "Kazu!?" She bleated as bubbles escaped her mouth  and she choked on some of the blood. She scrambled back to the surface and threw herself over the floating corpse. She felt tears sting her eyes and looked at another floating body. 

"They... are all Kazu...?" Fuuko muttered. 

'Sorry, Anego...' The weak voice confirmed. 

"Shit.." Fuuko let herself slip off of the body and started sinking into the Ocean. Her arms spread and she could see nothing but red as her eyes stung from being open. They were glazed over and she could feel the tightness in her lungs. 

'I can't live if this is what's inside of me...' Fuuko thought as she closed her eyes and continued to sink.

[Satoshi Fuuko]

Fuuko felt the scent of iron slowly leave her lungs as she sunk deeper and they filled with darkness. 'How fucked up am I? Even in my inner world I can't save Kazu. Am I doomed to fail to save him forever?' The blonde wondered. 

'You were doomed to be a Hollow, Anego. With all that rage and sorrow inside of you, with everything you did at the end of your life, with the way you reveled in death... the last  place you should have ended up was in the Soul Society.'

'I didn't even know what any of that meant back then. All I knew was that Kazu was afraid and I wasn't going to let him be alone. I'll never let him be alone.'

'That's right, but what you did... made that difficult, didn't it?'

'Yeah... that much violence and hatred. Those bad people. The Gates of Hell took a lot of them. The rest were devoured by Hollows. We didn't know it at the time what was going on, so we fled. We ran away from the Shinigami who might end up in the area. It was tough. Neither of us knew what to do. I felt the pull back but I couldn't say what Kazu felt. He could always feel them coming and I would lead them away. The Hollows were drawn to him. I know that now but I didn't back then. One day he was gone. I didn't know what happened but thinking about it, a Shinigami must have found him. I wasn't so lucky. I don't know how long it was before a Shinigami finally found me, but my chain had nearly snapped. Any longer and...' 

"You would have become a Hollow. That's right. But you survived, Anego! That's what you do! Even when you die you survive!'

'That's the shittiest thing you ever said. It's not very motivating. How did I ever end up with you anyway?'

'Desperation...'

'What!? I ain't desperate! I definitely coulda waited for some bitch who wasn't half as annoyin, you know!'

'Tch! I meant me! Don't make me say it! As an Asauchi I was eager to serve, but I was never chosen. I could feel in the hearts of those who passed me by that they were not picking me on purpose, even if they didn't know it... It was embarrassing and shameful... I can't say how long I was just a blade, but my eagerness is made for ... certain people, but even those people wouldn't grasp me. In the end, I'm not a zanpakutou that a Shinigami can be proud of.'

'What the fuck? When did this become your pity party!? Maybe I'll just drown and put you out of your stupid misery, bitch! Both of ours!'

"Aneeego! No! I don't know how else to say it, but we were meant for each other! I don't want  you to die! And you're the only one who can protect Kazu! Not everything in this inner world is what it seems! You have to find out what is real and what isn't.'

'Why would I lie... to myself?! And, tch, don't start getting sappy! I'll throttle your name out of you! You're right about saving Kazu and about not dying, though! Fuck that! I don't have enough room or time for us both to be crybabies! People are counting on me!'

The space around Fuuko's feet began to glow and she shot upward. She began to zoom through the water. She used the shunpo to push herself up again again and again until she hopped out of the water. Just as she was about to fall back in, she hit the shunpo on the surface and threw herself into the air. She was higher than the sun and could see an endless horizon in front of her. Except... that wasn't true. 

In the distance she saw what seemed to be an island. Once she got a survey of the area and began to descend, she looked down. "Forgive me. I know it ain't you." Fuuko muttered as she landed on one of the bodies and sprung off of it. She started body hopping towards the island in the distance. 

[Satoshi Fuuko]

Fuuko hopped from body to body as she approached the island. The sun had slowly started to disappear. Its position in the sun seemed to be correlated to where Fuuko was in her inner world. Suddenly, behind her was a setting sun against an endless ocean. The reds, purples and oranges to Fuuko's back and nothing but darkness in front of her, except whatever faint light the twinkling of stars in the distance provided. It obscured the clouds and when she finally landed on the beach, she was pelted with what felt like hail. 

It was much harder than hail, though and Fuuko lifted up her hands and and looked up. She caught something in her free hand and it looked like little metal balls. No wonder they hurt so much. "It's fuckin rainin metal?!" She asked and glanced up, only to see something catch the starlight. Her eyes widened and she dove out of the way, just as a sword pieced the ground next to her. Fuuko rolled as another one fell from the sky, even as the metal pellets continued to beat against her too. "What is this shit for real!?" 

Fuuko scrambled to her feet and and began running from the raining metal and swords, all of different shapes and sizes until she finally got to a tree and pressed her back underneath it. She panted as she watched. The swords seemed to stop falling when she was under the tree and the metal hail all rolled downhill. She watched it dribble into a very large hole in the center of the island. She looked around and saw a few more trees around the island. As soon as she stepped out from under the trees, a sword dropped from the sky and Fuuko backed up against the tree again. "Ok? So, now what am I supposed ta do?" She growled. 

'What's goin on?' 

'Every time I step out from under this tree, a fuckin sword falls from the sky and tries ta impale me. Don't tell me one of these is my real zanpakutou?'

'I don't know! Maybe none of them are! Maybe all of them are! Anego... pleaaaaase! I'm soooooo thirsty!"

'Listen, bitch, I ain't got time for-' *C-chnk!*

"HOLY SHIT!" If Fuuko hadn't already been pressed against the tree, she would have slammed into it. In front of her dropped a body, tanned skin, blonde hair, covered in only a pair of glasses. Fuuko's heart started pounding as she watched what looked like her brother turn and look at her with blank, vacant eyes. "K-K-K-K-K-Kazu!?" Kazu's mouth opened but only a horrible sound came out and it crawled forward. Fuuko's hand shook and she reached out, but she couldn't help but watch as Kazu slowly stood up and walked forward, only to get pelted by the metal hail, which brought him to one knee. That didn't stop Kazu from trying to move towards the beach, but before he could get another step, a giant sword fell from the sky and impaled the Kazu. 

"Hrrrkhhh!" Fuuko covered her mouth and dropped to her butt as the Kazu toppled and rolled into the pit. She nearly threw up as she caught a glimples of Kazu's vacent eyes before it disappeared into the hole. "Shit! Shit! Shit!" She scrambled forward, but before she could get out from under the tree, the ground began to shake. She fall backwards and then watched as the Kazu was shot out into the air, a metal orb in his back propelling him into the sky. Her eyes followed as the gnarled body flung blood everywhere before it plopped into the Ocean and started floating away. Blood poured from it. It looked exactly like the ones she had seen before. 

"W-What the fuck is this?! Please tell me... Please tell me what the fuck this is!? I just watched Kazu fall out of a tree,  get impaled and tossed in a hole and then shot into the sky..." 

'That sounds awful Anego... but.. it is your inner world. I've seen your dreams. You toss and turn at night. You see these bodies in your own nightmares, in your own failures. Though... I wonder...'

'Wonder what?'

'Ahhh.... I'm sure you'll see...'

Fuuko hissed in disgust but as she got to her feet and leaned against the tree, she was startled as another Kazuhiko dropped from the tree, same as before. Her stomach churned again. This time, before Kazu could move from outside the canopy, Fuuko grabbed him and wrapped her arms around him. Kazu hissed and kicked, but couldn't wriggle free. As she managed to hold Kazu, she finally found a moment to smile. "Ha! Fuck you... me... dammit!" A red hue splashed against Fuuko's cheeks, but once again as Fuuko was finding some kind of reprieve, another Kazuhiko dropped next to her and walked forward. As soon as she let go of the one she had, both began to walk and, in an instant, they were pelted with metal, stabbed and rolled into the hole. 

"Shit....SHIT!" Fuuko stamped the ground as the bodies were flung into the air in a bloody mess. The two Kazu didn't fly quite as high, but they did both land in the Ocean with an awful splash and both began to drift and spill blood like a dropped glass into the already deep crimson sea. "Ok... whatever bullshit is going on...." Fuuko hissed and turned as she looked up at the canopy. Up in the trees were what looked like dozens of Kazuhiko in various stages of "being formed" Fuuko once again found herself nearly throwing up at the scene. Like fruits in various stages of being ripe. She covered her mouth and dashed out of from under the safety of the tree. 

Fuuko dodged the swords as she tried to investigate the island further and ducked under the canopy of another tree to catch her breath. She heard the leaves rustle and pursed her lips. She turned her head as she heard a thump. She didn't want to look, but curiosity was too much. She opened her eyes and this time, instead of Kazuhiko, there was a full bodied orangette. She was looking at Fuuko with a gentle smile on her face as she backed away from the safety of the canopy.  Fuuko's eyes locked on with the girl and her mouth opened but no sound came out. Then, it happened just at it had before. the orangette, Fuuko's squadmate and best friend, was slowed by the metal- and then a long, large blade went through her and disappeared into the ground. Iroka wobbled for a moment and then tumbled towards the hole, never losing her smile or breaking eye contact. 

"IROKA!?" Fuuko shouted and dropped to her hands and knees. 

'Ahhh, yeah... things have been changing a bit... You don't think about just yer otouto anymore." 

"Get... out... of... my ... fucking ... head....' Fuuko panted and winced when she heard the thump of another body and then the increasingly familiar sound of steel into flesh, then finally a splash in the distance. 

'It is you... Anego. I'm sorry... I'm trying to help... but... ya gotta help yerself...'

'Just... just tell me... is it just Kazu and Iroka?'

'..........'

'Oh... Now ya wanna keep quiet, huh!? IS IT!?'

'The trees that bear fruit, bear the weight of yer guilt. That's why the trees on the lake are evergreen. They are the trees of yer hope. It doesn't matter, though, Anego!'

'It fucking does!" Fuuko snarled. She shoved her way past an Iroka, causing the dropping blade to miss. She bounded away to anther tree, but heard the sounds in the distance. One more tree. When she looked up, she grimaced. Fuuko watched the branch snap and she caught what fell. In her arms was her sensei, Kimiko. Fuuko shut her eyes. "It.. It's not real!" She snarled. She set Kimiko down and, like all the others, it moved out of the canopy, compelled to do so and met the same gruesome fate. 

"IT'S NOT REAL!" Fuuko screamed. "YOU'RE JUST TRYING TO FUCK WITH ME!" She ran her fingers through her own hair and tugged on them. She stumbled away from the Kimiko tree and looked beyond. There were some saplings in the distance. Young trees that were growing but did not have the ability to bear fruit, or even shelter Fuuko. She could only guess what they could end up being. 

"Don't tell me... everyone I have ever fuckin met ends up here?" She asked and looked as far as she could in the darkness. 

'Probably not everyone. Probably just whoever you care about?'

'So... what if I just stopped giving a shit?'

'C'mon, Anego, we both know that ain't happenin. But even if it did, it would still find a way. It's doin something. Just because it aint' real doesn't mean it's random. There's somethin goin on. I know that much, at least." 

Fuuko ducked and dodged the swords until she came back around to the Kazuhiko tree and leaned against it. She panted and tried to catch her breath, but the sick scene that kept repeating made it hard to concentrate. She slammed the palm of her hand against her head. "What am I supposed ta do?!" She asked herself. 

[Satoshi Fuuko]

Fuuko sat under the tree and watched the scene repeated over and over again. Her eyes were glazed over and she could feel bags under her eyes as she slowly became numb to the scene. She wasn't sure what was worse, watching everyone she cared for get brutally killed and flung into the ocean over and over again, or no longer flinching every time a blade spiked them. In the back of her mind, she could hear the red headed demon's whining. She was still moaning about being thirsty. She was pretty sure it was bullshit, but for all Fuuko knew, she had been in her own inner world for a few minutes. It felt like much longer than that, though- hours or even days. 

'Anegooo! What are you dooooing! I'm sooo thirsty! Aren;t you helping!?'

'Shut up. Yer gonna be fine...'

'N-Nooooo! And, still, even if I am, what about you!? Eventually, yer gonna die of starvation!'

At that moment, as if on cue, Fuuko's stomach started rumbling. She frowned. 'How long have I been here?'

'Who knows? Lone enough to be hungry?'

'Tch! I'll get out of here...' Though she didn't know how, Fuuko looked around. She watched the scene and tried to pay attention. Again, body after body was pelted, skewered and launched into the air. It always seemed the same, though the bodies did mostly fall on the same side of the island. The movement of the bodies as they were heaved in the air seemed relatively the same, but Fuuko became curious. When the next Kazu fell, she dove at it and shoved it out of the way of the impaling weapon. It was thrown into the hole and Fuuko winced as she rolled out of the way of getting impaled herself. This Kazu got flung and it shot upward. It looked up in the sky and when it hit the top of its arc, it reached for the clouds, as if trying to grav onto something. It failed, and went toppling towards the Ocean where it crashed into the waves and then floated along, still ending up like the others. "Poor bastard..." Fuuko frowned. "But still..." 

Fuuko's eyes lifted to the sky. There was a cloud cover, yet winking stars in the distance: the only thing that really provided light. There was a sun, she glanced off towards the horizon where she had come from. Yeah, it basically stayed fixed, but... "Shouldn't there be a moon?" 

'Huh?'

'Ain't there a moon?! There's a sun.' 

'Huh... now that ya mention it... It's been a while since it's been dark.'

'Ain't that weird!?' 

'I was too thirsty to notice! Anegooo! Check the sky!'

"What the fuck? What does that mean?" Fuuko narrowed her eyes and looked up at the sky as another body, this one was a Kimiko, was launched into the air. Even though it was clearly killed, its hand seemed to almost reach for the sky. Fuuko thought it had just been part of the flight, but then she watched and it happened. Again. Again. Again. "Huh... I wonder..." Fuuko launched herself forward after a body toppled into the hole. She looked down and looked around. The ground had spirals cut into it like the rifling of a gun. Then, she heard the horrible grumbling and a thunderclap. Soon, the body was hurling up at her. She hit it and knelt, letting it shoot her up into the air. She soared and when she hit the apex of the hurtling body jumped. She soared into the air and barely missed hitting the cloud cover. 

"SHIT!" She hissed as she dropped and used her shunpo to navigate a safe drop into the ocean. She plunged into it and then came back up and swam to shore. Avoiding the rain and swords, she ducked under a tree and dropped toher hands and knees. "I was... so close, but... I don't think I can do this alone..." She punched the ground and cursed. She collapsed and closed her eyes. 

'Yer not alone, Anego!'

'Shut up... like you count. Yer just whinin...'

'I'm doin my best! Trust me! If I wasn't here...  Things would be a lot worse...'

Fuuko laughed sharply. 

'Seriously!'

'I'm tired... I just need ta rest...'

'Nonononono! Amego! Don't go ta sleep! There's no other dream ta go to! If ya go ta sleep, it means yer body's failin on the outside! Please trust me! Ya gotta stay awake!'

Fuuko yawned and closed her eyes. Outside of her inner world, Fuuko's body slumped and blood started to trickle from her mouth. She had been in a meditative statce with her Zanpakutou sitting on her crossed legs. 

[Kaen Youji]

Time had gone by and not so much as a peep from the 80th District of the Rukongai or any of the surrounding districts. Squad 12, 3 or 9 had not reported anything from the now since-repaired sentry towers in the nearer districts. It was safe to say that the Shinigami that had attacked Fuuko and kidnapped Kazuhiko, had not returned since. Perhaps he'd duly recognized the heat he was attracting and had opted to bide his time, or perhaps he was simply done with his mission and further risks weren't acceptable. It didn't matter why, the point was that no further activity from Fuuko's "Bum Association" had been noted.

As such Kaen figured he'd give her a short update on that. She'd probably yell at him, but oh well. He wanted to make sure she knew he wasn't locking her out of the loop. He approached the front door of the Fourth Division Barracks, and several officers were already gauging him. With how he treated their facilities like a revolving door, he could tell a lot of them were already assessing him for injury. "It's fine everyone, I haven't beaten myself up this time. I'm just here to talk to Officer Satoshi." One of the nearby officers piped up. "Oh! I haven't actually seen her in a bit. Maybe she's just still adapting to her promotion?"

"Promotion?" Kaen raised an eyebrow. "Ah, Satoshi is now the Fourth seat of this division!" Kaen chuckled a little. "I'll have to give her my congratulations then. So.... no idea where she is?" "Afraid not. I haven't seen her today." Kaen paused. "Mind if I ask around? She asked me to keep her updated on an ongoing investigation. Given her.... temperament, I think it's best she stay appraised on the matter." The officer Kaen was speaking to repressed an amused chuckle, and nodded. "Understandable. Well, I wish you luck, Lieutenant Youji." Kaen flicked off a casual salute as he went to ask around a bit.

To his chagrin, it seemed that nobody knew where Fuuko was, and Kaen had just enough sense not to go barging into her quarters. Given her reaction to him, coupled with Kaen's general luck, that seemed like a recipe for disaster. Fortunately, after considerable digging around, he did find out that a few officers had noted her heading in the direction of the South Barracks, looking a little zoned out. So that's where Kaen was. He searched through the courtyards, and halls. He did do his best to avoid patient rooms-- he generally assumed that if Fuuko was dealing with a patient nearby, he'd hear her, but still nothing. Nothing at all, and frankly, after about an hour and a half of looking around, Kaen was about to hang up his coat and say screw it, he'd update her another day, but figured he'd do one last sweep, and check the roof of the Barracks.

Unlike the Seventh with its elegantly slanted rooftops in the style of a Japanese Castle-- made to the Empress's specifications, the Fourth Division Barracks had a surprising number of spots on the roof that made for very good hiding spots, and it was in one of the alcoves created by the multiple floors of the Fourth, that Kaen finally found his quarry.

"You really gave me the runaround, you know. What're you doing over here, I didn't take you for the sort-- huh?" It occurred to Kaen that he'd already gotten almost two sentences out without Fuuko snapping at him, or giving him a death glare for surprising her or anything like that. In fact, she seemed to be in a deep trance, with her Zanpakuto. Communicating with it huh? Well, Kaen still remembered snippets of their conversation at the bar, where she'd expressed fear she couldn't have learned its name. Guess she was working on it. He'd learned Hachiryuu's name in a similar manner.

Although.... Was that.... blood? Kaen's eyes narrowed sharply at the sight. And she was looking paler than usual. Kaen kneeled beside her. "Oi! Fuuko! Talk to me here!" He snapped sharply. If no reply was forthcoming, Kaen grimaced. "Shit." He wasn't a medic. He didn't see any visible wounds. Which meant this was probably a result of either a disease, or something going on in her inner world, and frankly, Kaen had absolutely none of the training required to determine if that was the case. "Alright, if I'm wrong you can punch me later, but I'm gonna have to move you." Kaen moved an arm under Fuuko's and lifted her unresponsive body up, darting down with her (and her Zanpakuto) off the rooftops into the courtyards below. "Hey! Someone get over here, and get your superior officer stabilized, stat!" He snapped at a nearby Fourth Division officer.

Kaen may not have been of the Fourth, but you didn't sit at the position of Vice Captain for nearly a decade-- even if you were only a placeholder, without learning how to assert command in a situation, and within a few moments, Kaen had a decent amount of attention from officers he had no command over, still listening to his instructions as he had them immediately start checking on Fuuko to stabilize her condition. If this is the work of your Zanpakuto, Fuuko, you have got one piece of work in there....

[Satoshi Fuuko]

"...Perv... ert..." 

Fuuko barely muttered the word as her body was shifted  in the outside world. On the inside, Fuuko was slumped against the Kazu tree. Blood seeped from her lips, but as she started to fade, the ground began to shake. Fuuko rose and sucked in a deep gasp of air like she had just come up from being underwater. Once she was upright and awake, she opened her mouth again. 

"Asshole!" She blinked. "Wait... what?" Fuuko looked around and tasted the iron in her mouth. She wiped her mouth and looked at the blood, even as the voice blurted in her head. 

'Anego! I thought you really were going to pass out and die!' 

"Wouldn't you be happen about that? For all the times you said you wanted me to." 

'Hey now! I was just joking! Besides, you were sooooo weak back then! Now you're so close to leaning my name!" 

There was a rumbling again and Fuuko hopped up. She looked around and saw a spot where there had been nothing and now, suddenly, there was a tree. "What the shit?" Fuuko raised an eyebrow and hopped over to where the new tree was. She looked up and before she could even look among the branches someone fell. She turned and when she saw the form, she immediately turned her head. "What the fuck!?" She turned back and peeked out of the corner of her eye, only to see the figure get run through like all the others. Fuuko winced and pursed her lips as the body rolled into the pit and then was fired into the air. She watched it and followed the trajectory all the way into the ocean. 

"That's really  fucked up." She said and then jumped back as another body fell in front of her and shambled out into the open. "Why is he naked, though. I don't even know  what he looks like!" Fuuko said, tilting her head to try and see the front side of the man and then quickly turned around and and faced the tree, just as she heard another gruesome execution. 

'I guess your imagination fills in the blanks. Clearly!' 

"Oi! Shut up! How the fuck did Kaen get here anyway?" 

'He's important to you, Anego.'

"Bullshit! All we do is argue. He's only helping me because he feels like he has to or ta shut me up. Once Kazu's back, I bet we never speak again..."

'Is that what ya want, Anego?'

"Now ain't the time for that!" Fuuko hissed and crossed her arms. "If he wants to help so bad, then he can help!" Fuuko watched another Kaen fall and then pulled up her foot and kicked him right into the pit. It was shot up and Fuuko watched Kaen get shot up and as he straightened up, he reached for the clouds before splashing into the ocean. Fuuko turned her head as Kaen bobbed for a little bit before finally sinking under the water and then bobbing back up face down. "Fuck..." Fuuko ran her hands through her hair. "Whatever I need to do, I need to get up to the clouds." 

Fuuko looked around. She spied all of the trees. There were three of them them now. She didn't know what the timing was, but she could guess. The tree she was by fruited with pretty rapid frequency, but the others still did as well... She waited patiently, looking up at the Kaen tree and when there was a full body hanging, she tensed her knees. When a Kaen dropped, She caught it in  mid air, shunpoing with all her might until she crossed the pit and  skidded underneath the Iroka tree. With a deft maneuver, she shuffled Kaen onto one shoulder and caught Iroka and did the same, even as she pivoted and launched herself to the Kazu tree, where she skidded to a stop and barely managed to catch Kazu with both hands. Then, she turned and closed her eyes as she leaped into pit. Fuuko hit the collected metal and dropped the bodies down. "I'm so sorry... I don't know why it's so fucked up, but I'm gonna try and fix it... I just... need your help..." 

'Ooooh...'

"What?" 

'Look!'

Fuuko looked around  and the pit now suddenly had grooves in it. "Huh... why is tha-SHIIIIIIIIT!" Before Fuuko could finish, she was shot into the air. The metal seemed to follow the grooves and suddenly Fuuko was spinning. She felt nauseous but quickly had to pin down the bodies as they were getting thrown off by the centrifugal force. She grabbed Kazuhiko with one arm, Iroka with the other and stepped on Kaen with her leg. "Shit! Sorry!" She barked as they sailed through the air. She looked up. SHe could see the clouds, but they were losing momentum. Fuuko pursed her lips and  hooked her foot under Kaen's armpit and with a grunt, kicked him high into the air. She bent her knees and shunpoed up, touching Kaen's back as she was already preparing another shunpo. 

"Yer next, Sis!" She chirped and whipped Iroka's body upward. "I'm so glad they don't talk..." She muttered as she hopped off Kaen and landed on Iroka. "Last but not least... thanks, Kazu." Fuuko said and glanced at her brother. As soon as she felt her own momentum fading, she heaved Kazu into the air and hopped from one body to the next until she hit Kazu. She could see the clouds a bit more clearly inspite of the blackness and bent her legs. "Here I fucking coooooommme!" Fuuko yelled as she put everything she had into one more shunpo and launched herself into the clouds. 

She pointed her hands up like she was diving and shut her eyes. She felt herself penetrate the clouds and opened them as she hit the apex of her ascent. She looked around and her mouth dropped. "The actual fuck?!" Fuuko said and then felt herself falling. "SHIT SHIT SHIT!" She waved her arms and then began to drop. She was certain she was going to fall back through the clouds and then what? However, as she hit, she bounced. It was a soft landing and she flopped on her back and stared up. Her heart was racing. She was out of breath from all the fast movement. 

"It's like they are going at the same rate..." Fuuko said and looked at the sky. Except... it wasn't.

[Satoshi Fuuko]

Where the sky should have continued, was a pulsating, concave membrane. It looked like the walls of the inside of a body and it stretched out as far as Fuuko could see. She blinked once, twice and continued to try and process what she was seeing. Her eyes eventually returned to the part of the "sky' that wasn't a membrane. Stuck in the center, hovering just above where the hole in the island was, was the bottom half of a large, pulsating heart. Fuuko could tell it was beating as fast as her own, but there were no veins connected to it. Where one should be was, instead, a glowing red crystal. 

"Is that my  heart?" Fuuko asked, taking deep breaths to calm herself and noticing that the heart was slowing as well. She closed her eyes and listened to the oni's words. 

'Yes, and no. I mean... obviously it ain't, but also... it kinda  is..." 

"That doesn't make any fuckin sense!" Fuuko barked. 

'If you die, it dies and, kind of vice versa?! Aneeego! It doesn't matter! What's important is it's full.' 

"That crystal lookin thing lodged in it?" 

"Yep!" 

"What the fuck am I supposed ta do?!" 

'Remove it?' 

"How?!" 

'Iunno...'

"Real fuckin helpful... what is it?" 

'That's all your fears and hatred and all yer bad thoughts. It literally  bottles up inside of ya. It's like a cork. All the good stuff is trapped and for everything to work properly. For me to remember my name and be able to tell it to you, this place needs cleanin.'

"Great...' Fuuko hissed. "What the fuck am I supposed ta do? There aint anymore bodies ta lob at it!' 

'Anego! Ya should have everythin ye need on ya!'

Fuuko patted herself down. "Ya know I ain't, exactly, prepared for anythin. I sure as shit wasn't expectin this when I started my day."

'Do ya still have the knife I gave ya?' 

Fuuko stuffed a hand into her cleavage and pulled out the small pocket knife. She inspected it and then looked at the crystal. "This... doesn't seem helpful at all. What the fuck am I supposed ta do with this? Throw it at the damn thing?" Fuuko shook her head, but when she didn't immediately hear a response from the demon, her brow cocked. 

'Why not...?'

Fuuko sighed. "All that work and it's just that easy?" Fuuko's eyebrow arched and she slung the knife upward. it spun in the air and missed the crystal. Fuuko's eyes watched as it hurtled towards the hole. "Shit! Shit!" Fuuko dashed and leaped and managed to catch the knife before it dropped. She skidded against the clouds and exhaled. "Thought you said-" 

'I didn't expect ya ta limp wrist it like a fuckin pussy, Anego! And here I thought I was the one dyin of thirst!" 

Fuuko's eyebrow twitched. "What did ya fuckin call me!? I hope ya dehydrate!" Fuuko fell backwards and flopped against the clouds and stared up at the gross membrane. "Hmph!" 

'Nononono! Aneeeeegooooo! I really am dying of thirst! Pleaaaaaaase!'

"Heh." Fuuko smirked. "Now which one of us is the pussy?" There was silence for a moment and then the Oni spoke again. 

'...Let's see you throw that again..."

"Oh, fuck YOU!" Fuuko kipped up and whipped the knife as hard as she could. The point of the knife stabbed into the crystal and it began to crack Fuuko was about to cuss again, but, suddenly the whole thing shattered and, like a faucet being turned on, a waterfall of blood began rushing out of the pumping heart. Fuuko watched as the red liquid just poured and poured and poured. "Woah..." Then, the clouds began to soak up the blood.  "Neat." She said as she watched the fluffy clouds turn red under her feet. That's when she felt it. Her foot was sinking. The clouds, soaked with blood, could no longer hold her up. "Shit! Shit! Shit!" She hopped forward and began to run. After getting some distance, she stopped. 

"Wait.. why do I need to run?" She asked. "Don't I need to come back down?" 

'Yeah, but it's quicker to take the clouds back to the island.Follow the sun.' The oni said. 'Run towards it. Where there's a gap is where the island is, but it'll fill up. Soon it's going ta rain. Finally!'

Fuuko looked around. She saw a sun in the distance. It was blood red now. She began to dart towards it, even as the clouds soaked up more and more of the blood at a faster and faster pace. Soon, Fuuko was having to shunpo to clear the distance, but eventually she found the clearing. She saw the waterfalls and saw the clouds forming underneath her. Inhaling, Fuuko shunpo'd one more time and threw herself off the clouds. She balled up at first, and then extended and dove gracefully into the water, going deep and then turning so she curved upward and ended up near the beach in the clear water. She popped up, took a deep breath and then quickly swam to the beach. As she crawled onto it and caught her breath, she could feel droplets of water begin to pelt her. She glanced up and clouds had formed over the island. Blood started dripping from the clouds and soon it began to pour. Fuuko could feel it soaking through her hair and clothes but at this point, she could care less. 

"Ahhhhhhh~" Fuuko looked up to see the oni holding a clear bottle that was filled with red liquid and the pocket knife in her other hand. "Now that's refreshin." She said as she took another sip. Fuuko's brow wrinkled and she slowly got to her feet. 

"So... what's her name?" Fuuko asked. The only girl smiled, guzzled the rest of the bottle down and tossed it away. She held out the pocket knife and flicked it so the blade popped out. 

"Sorry, Anego. I remember, but... did ya really  think I'd give it to ya without a fight?" The oni said with a grin as she advanced towards Fuuko. 

"Shit..." 

[Satoshi Fuuko]

Fuuko slowly rose to her feet as blood began to pour fromt he skys. It was cool, like rain. It was somewhat comforting too, not repulsive. It did fill the air with a dull, iron scent, though. Fuuko kicked off her sandals and pulled off her socks and let her feet sink into the sand. Then she raised her fists, opened one palm and beckoned the oni girl to come at her. 

'I have been waitin ta kick yer ass for a long  time now. All that shit you talked? You better be able ta back it up if yer gonna be my zanpakutou." 

"Heh. Says the bitch who is worn out and weaponless. I got a knife and I'm refreshed. If you can't keep up, then you don't deserve to have me as a zanpakutou! You don't deserve to have a life!" 

Fuuko smiled. "Now that we agree on!" Fuuko lunged at the oni, who swiped with her knife at the blonde. Fuuko ducked and then came up with a handful of sand and whipped it at the oni's face. She threw her arm up, but it managed to do the job and Fuuko speared the oni into the sand. She sat up, pinned one arm down and smashed two right hooks into the oni's face before she lifted up her had and bit Fuuko in the choulder. 

"Ahhhhh! Ya fuckin bit  me!?" Fuuko barked and rolled off of the oni. 

'You threw sand in my face!" The oni whined and both hopped up. The onli managed to slash at Fuuko while they were scrambling to their feet and cut open Fuuko's arm. Fuuko hissed as she grabbed it and the Oni came in and decked Fuuko in the face, sending her spilling to the sand. The oni stepped up to Fuuko and pointed the pocket knife down at the blond. As she did, it began to glow and soon the oni was holding a katana pointed at Fuuko's neck. 

"Too easy... Fuuko." The oni hissed. "a weaking like you could never be my Anego... I guess it's not your fault since it's me,  know how to use- Hnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnghhhh!" 

While the oni was talking, Fuuko's leg shot up between the Oni's legs. The redhead's eyes crossed and she dropped to her knees, her hands stuffed between her legs. Fuuko hopped up, grabbed the sword, which was back to a pocket knife, mounted the Oni and jammed the blade against the oni's neck, barely drawing blood as she grabbed some of the Oni's hair. 

"You think yer the first person ta ever come at me like that, bitch!? Next time bring a fuckin gun! Now... tell me yer fuckin name!" Fuuko barked. 


The oni girl gulped. "Ok! Ok! Aneeeegoooo! I'm sorry!" She whined. "It's Shhhh-" 
________________________________________________


Fuuko shot up suddenly. Her eyes were wide and she seemed disoriented. She looked around in confusion and then sniffed. She smelled blood still and wiped it off with her arm, stretching it across her lips to collect the trickling blood. "I know it!" She said and then looked around, suddenly finding herself in one of the Yonbantai infirmaries. She looked down at herself and outstretched her palms. "I know it... heh..." She said, grinning like a fool. "And I kicked her fuckin ass  too!" She said, pumping her fist. Fuuko then blinked. "Oi.. how'd I get here? This isn't where I sat down..."