"Even if you have no interest in me, I'm still here to kill you, so if you don't treat me as your opponent it would be a problem." — Isshin Kurosaki.
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Two steps. That was all Itachi had taken, and yet Murakumo couldn't help but feel a sense of deep trepidation hit him and made his fingers coil tight around his glaive.
Garogai was a simple brute so Murakumo doubted he felt anything. In fact, if he could feel anything then it was more likely that it would drive him into a rage-induced frenzy.
Murakumo gritted his teeth as he stared at their main target, the Captain in front of them, and felt his chains rattle. It was pissing him off that the bastard was just standing there and doing nothing. And what was that speech he gave?
"I've survived hell itself. What makes you think I'll ever be afraid of you?!" Murakumo growled and swept his glaive to the side, making it pick up a huge gust of wind.
Garogai beside him decided that he didn't care either way and rushed at the standing Captain. He followed.
He jumped up and came down on the fancy prick from above, while Garogai pummeled towards him from the front.
Time seemed to slow down as the man placidly turned his head up to look at him and opened his mouth to speak in that dead tone of his.
"Who said anything about fear?"
Before he could process what those words meant, his body subconsciously reacted and he jumped back, much to his confusion and dawning realization.
He wanted to call out to Garogai but his throat felt dry and the words felt like lumps were stuck in them.
In a way, he knew exactly what would happen before it even happened. It felt, to him, like the scene played in his mind for a thousand times over before it got to his eyes.
Garogai, in his simplemindedness, even while knowing that the man in front of them was dangerous, rushed forward with the notion that a fight would be had and that they would likely come out on top. He didn't need to fear the man in front of him, because he felt nothing about him to fear.
Those were Garogai's last thoughts….
Neither of them saw that path Itachi's sword traveled, but one saw what it did.
Both of Garogai's arms were engulfed in black flames at the same time that a gust of blame flames shot out from his back, and that was the end of Garogai… except it wasn't.
The sky bled red and a cold wind blew out, along with the stench of grieving souls. Murakumo's face was deathly pale as he knew exactly what was about to happen.
Isshin disengaged from his opponent with Momo on his shoulders and his opponent lacking an arm, and came to stand next to Itachi with a heavy frown on his face.
"Isshin…"
"Yeah, I'm seeing it too, Itachi." It didn't take a genius to figure out that things had turned a lot worse than what they expected. And the reason for that was because the weird Reiatsu these people have felt similar from what was flowing out from the fissure in the air.
Red lightning rained down as two gigantic skeletons appeared in the air and grabbed the air until it shrieked. They pulled and a gate was opened in the middle of the sky, from which the overwhelming stench of death flowed out.
The Gates of Hell were opened.
The two Captains watched on as black chains sprung out of the gates and wrapped around the immolating Garogai, who suddenly had the flames put out.
It pulled him back into the gates, from which the tip of a colossal sword emerged, and impaled him on it. The moment the destroyed figure of Garogai touched the blade, the remnant of his soul form was extinguished into motes of Reiatsu that was swallowed up into the Gates of Hell.
Isshin and Itachi watched in surprise and mounting caution as the Gates of Hell slowly disappeared and the atmosphere returned to its normal hue.
"Well, this just got messier." Isshin quipped as the heavy weight that had suffused the air bled away. He turned to the two remaining masked figures and asked, "So, who wants to explain to us what just happened?"
The two figures looked at each other and came to a silent agreement that saw both of them tearing open a gate that was similar to the Garganta and jumping through it.
Murakumo knew, although belatedly, that personally waiting to draw the Captain out was a bad idea, one that became very clear to him when Garogai was executed by the Kushanāda, the guardians of Hell.
So when he looked at Shuren, he had already decided that it was time to get out of here, regardless of what Shuren decided, so he was a bit relieved when he saw that he and Shuren were on the same page.
He doubted the Captains would jump in after them, but either way they had gotten what they came for. If kidnapping the boy didn't work, then they'll plan a way to kidnap the others, no matter how long it took. They had spent an eternity in hell, waiting was all they did.
So when he jumped through his little portal, he had been expecting to see the familiar dreary lands of Hell, not the foot of someone kicking him back into the World of the Living.
"Hello there, Murakumo. Sunny day, ain't it?" A mocking voice taunted as he picked himself up from the ground.
"Kokutō…" the growl that escaped his mouth as he uttered that name carried almost the same hatred he had for Hell. When it came to what he hated the most after his hellish prison, the frivolous bastard in front of him was number one.
"Ah, I see you still remember me, that's good." The man bent down to his, his half wrapped face open for Murakumo to see the light of satisfaction in his eyes. "So tell me, what the hell are you guys doing, running around in the living world? And how did you guys even know how to get here?"
He wanted to snarl and curse at the bastard, except that was when the two Captains arrived, flanking Kokutō from both sides.
"Oh, if it isn't our favorite jailers. How goes the day, Mr. Captains?" Even seeing how the both of them had him in a lock, Kokutō remained unphased and joked away.
"And who are you? This your friend?" Isshin asked, Momo still passed out on his shoulders, lacking most of his humor.
Kokutō laughed. "What!? These losers? As if I'd ever do something that stupid."
Murakumo wanted to shout at him, the insults slowly getting under his skin, but he could do nothing when he looked up from his kneeling position and found the other Captain, Itachi Uchiha, pointedly looking at him.
"Be that as it may, you're coming with us. Both of you." Isshin said, his tone telling them that he expected no response except quiet acceptance.
Kokutō, however, had something to say. "Eh, whatever you want to ask, just ask him. I still have the others of his ilk to hunt down."
"The boy," Itachi finally spoke, "where is he?"
There was something seriously wrong with those eyes, Murakumo thought to himself as they stared straight at him.
He chuckled, the plan was still in motion it seems. "He's in hell, and the only way you'll get him back is if you go inside. I can lead you there if you want."
"Eh? You guys into the kidnapping business now? And little boys for that matter. Just how low will you fall?" Kokutō said with disgust clear in his one open eye. "Lower than Hell it seems."
Itachi ignored all the extra banter and asked again. "What do you want from me?"
"Why don't you go in there and find out for yourself, Itachi Uchiha."
The two Captains looked at each other, Itachi with his usual lacking expression, and Isshin with a troubled frown on his face. They only had broad speculations of the consequences of what this meant, and none of it was something they liked.
"They won't allow it." Itachi simply said.
Isshin winced. Yeah, that was about right. Venturing into Hell was a no go and that wasn't a case he could plead, or even want to plead, to the Head Captain.
"So, are you guys done? If you are, I'd rather be on my way right now, since I have some people to annoy, and quite a few to kill a few times over."
Itachi and Isshin both looked at the Kokutō, who couldn't seem to be more at ease, and then traded a look with each other, one that seemed to make Isshin groan.
"You may look quiet, but has anyone told you that you're one annoying troublemaker?"
Isshin scratched his head and let out another groan. "Listen, even if you want to risk it, the Head Captain won't let it slide even if you make it back in one piece. There's a reason we Shinigami try as much as possible to have nothing to do with those Gates."
"The Head Captain won't punish me," Itachi said, earning a confused look from Isshin. "Not if I went into Hell by mistake."
"You…" Isshin couldn't believe the ridiculousness of the words Itachi spoke. "Even before that, how the hell are you planning to get out?"
Kokutō raised his hands jokingly. "You can ask him how they did it." He said, pointing at Murakumo, who still couldn't believe he was still here.
Itachi and Isshin completely ignored the both of them as they both thought of an answer to Isshin's valid worry, and somehow they both arrived at the same answer.
"Kisuke."
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