One-Hundred, Ninety-Nine
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By: Bloodmist-Exile
Rating: T for Safety
Misc: Romance/ General
Pairings: Onesided ByaYoru, KisuYoru
Disclaimer: Bleach isn't mine.
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Kuchiki Byakuya is a master of Shunpo. In fact, he can Shunpo one-hundred ninety-nine times without having to pause in between. His reiatsu is so finely tempered that, often, it seems to pierce his enemies' souls more deeply then his blade pierces their body. He is a veritable prodigy, and he knows it.

However, that wasn't always so.

Once, cries of, "Almost, Bya-chan! Come on!" rang through his ears and silky purple hair billowed around him as he lunged desperately through nothingness. It would then repeat over, and over, and over again until he fell to his knees, his lungs aching for dear, sweet air. He would look up and her beautiful amber eyes would be there, just out of reach, twinkling roguishly in the dim evening light. "It just wasn't meant to be," she would say, "Victory was just meant for someone else."

So he would practice passionately, hoping to impress her every afternoon. Soon, they grew beyond the nobles' gardens and began to play in the rest of Seireitei. They became near-legends in Seireitei almost overnight. It seemed as if a dream.

One bright day, it all came to an end. They had just finished their daily game of tag and were wandering through some random Rukongai street. It was normally quite dangerous for nobles to wander around freely in the lesser regions of the Soul Society, but they felt assured they were quite safe. He would defend her, Byakuya had assured, if anything happened. It turned out to be the wrong thing to do.

Surprisingly, it was one small bump that caused it all. "Stand back, commoner," he snapped, brushing off his expensive clothing, "Show respect for your betters."

The older boy simply matched his arrogant gaze with a smirk, "Of course, sir!" he sang sarcastically, picking up several books from where they'd fallen from his grasp,"I would love nothing more than to furiously hump the ground you walk upon!"

He felt a brief flash of anger as he heard Yoruichi giggle from behind him and reared up to his maximum height. "Do you have the slightest inkling of who I am?" he asked pointedly, fixing the boy with his most scathing glare.

"Why? Have you forgotten your name?" the blond-haired boy shot back before Byakuya could finish. "Bad luck for you, then. I have no idea who you are."

There was something about the older boy that was disconcerting to him. He was tall and dirty, with sack-cloth clothes and shiny eyes, but didn't have the submissive look that he was so familiar with. "I know my name." Byakuya defended lamely, completely thrown off guard.

"Good for you," the boy snapped again, "Remembering one's own name is great mental exercise. Too bad it won't improve your character." With that, the boy spun on his heel and began to walk away.

"Wait!" Yoruichi yelled suddenly, "Are those Academy books?"

The blond-haired boy stopped and turned, the annoyance disappearing fairly quickly from his eyes, "Yeah," he said, holding them up, "Why do you ask?"

Byakuya snorted under his breath. The books were tattered, worn, and obviously secondhand. The cover on one book was hanging a little limply, as if it had torn from its binding when it was dropped. They were hardly worth calling books. "I'm going to the Academy this year too," Yoruichi said quickly, though her voice was suddenly filled with a feminine charm that Byakuya had never heard before, "My mother accidentally bought me an extra set of books." Yoruichi smiled radiantly and ran a hand briskly through her hair, "Youcouldhavethemifyouwant..."

The blond-haired boy blinked as if thrown off guard and then smiled. He even smiled like a peasant, Byakuya decided, showing little restraint and bearing his feelings to the world. "No thanks," he replied lightly, "I appreciate the gesture... but I'd rather use my own." He winked at her, "I paid for them myself, you know.

Yoruichi looked slightly crestfallen but nodded. There was a soft scraping as his sword left his saya and the blond boy glanced wearily at the gleaming sword, "Thank a noble when they take interest in your pathetic life, boy." Byakuya spat, pointing his Zanpakuto at him. He wasn't going to actually cut the boy, of course, but he would be damned if he didn't teach him some respect.

"Bya-chan..." Yoruichi said, rolling her eyes. Before she could utter another word, the blond-haired boy had already snapped into motion. With the practiced ease that comes of a hard life, the blond boy stepped forward and slipped Byakuya's own saya out from where it was tucked in his obi. Then, he simply batted the katana aside and delivered a terrific kick to the young noble's sword hand.

Grimacing in pain, Byakuya could react in no other way but to let the sword drop. The saya still raised, as if to strike him, the blond-haired boy paused. "I said I appreciated the gesture." he said, dropping the saya to the ground and turning to the Shihouin girl, "I mean it too."

Yoruichi nodded, meeting his eyes again, "What is your name?" she asked, "Uh... since we're going to both be at the Academy anyway..."

The unrestrained grin that Byakuya hated so much lit up from the boy's face again, "My name is Urahara Kisuke," he said. Byakuya couldn't help but feel that the blond boy with the unbearably common name was glaring at him, "Remember it, if you will."

"Shihouin Yoruichi."

"Lovely name." Kisuke replied, "I'll most certainly remember it." He raised a hand in parting and began to walk away again. This time, Byakuya did not try to stop him.

"That was low, Bya-chan." Yoruichi snapped, "Leveling a sword at someone who was unarmed."

Byakuya did not reply, simply standing and sheathing his blade with his still-aching hand. "Let's return to Seireitei," he said, fully and horribly aware that, unthinkably, he had somehow lost to the blond-haired boy, "I've had enough of commoners today."

They did not return to Rukongai for several weeks. Slowly, life began to return to normal but Byakuya became more and more worried every day. Yoruichi's first day at the Academy was drawing ominously closer.

"Watch out for that blond boy, Yoruichi-sama" he said to her, outside the Academy gate on her very first day, "I don't like him."

"Who?" Yoruichi said, fiddling quietly with her uniform, "Kisuke?"

"Yes, I'd forgotten his name," Byakuya said, lying through his teeth, "Watch him carefully."

Yoruichi opened her mouth to answer when she was cut off by a loud sound, "Shihouuuuin-sama!" Kisuke sang as he walked up to them. It was remarkable how different he looked in his school uniform, completely clean and with his hair brushed. He was only distinguishable because of his clear gray eyes and brilliant smile.

"Oh, Urahara-san! Hello!" Yoruichi said, suddenly turning red, "I didn't even notice you behind us."

"I just got here," the boy admitted. "Did you like it?"

"Did I like what?"

"Your honorific," he said with a grin, "Because that's the last time I'm ever calling you '-sama', Yoruichi-chan."

Byakuya was appalled. Not only had this filthy commoner defiled Yoruichi's name on his dirty lips, he dared to be so informal, so rude! His carefully controlled face actually showed shock as Yoruichi looked at the ground and smiled. "Okay." she said softly, "But t-then... c-could I call you Kisuke-kun?"

The blond boy nodded, "Of course," he said, "Feel free to call me whatever you want." He waved at Byakuya happily, "Hey, Bya-chan." Seeing Byakuya's still-shocked face, Kisuke frowned, "Right... uh, I'll see you inside."

As the blond boy sauntered into the Academy, Byakuya frowned. He had the unbearable urge to draw his sword and run at the boy, but already knew how that would turn out. Byakuya stiffened as Yoruichi hugged him gleefully, "Oh, Bya-chan!" she yelled, "My first friend! I have my first friend!"

"I'm your friend, Yoruichi-sama..." Byakuya said softly, not daring to look into her eyes.

"Of course you are, Bya-chan!" she said, patting him on the head. For some reason, he couldn't help but frown.

That hadn't been the response he had been hoping for.

The day seemed to drag on maddeningly and Byakuya was waiting at the front gate almost an hour before the Academy actually let out. His brain screamed at him as Yoruichi appeared from the gate, accompanied by the blond commoner. "Hey, Bya-chan," she said, making him grimace, "Do you mind if Kisuke walks with us for a bit?"

"No." he said through gritted teeth, "Not at all."

As the years passed, Yoruichi grew further and further away from him. The games of tag steadily grew more and more infrequent - going from once a day, to once a week, to once a month. They became shorter, more abbreviated, many times being interrupted by the commoner himself. Instead of snapping at his insolence, as Byakuya had hoped, Yoruichi simply beamed and asked him to join in.

"I'll get you, Yoruichi!" Kisuke yelled, preforming a sloppy Shunpo to the top of a nearby building, "You can't run away forever!"

"Yes I can!" she yelled back, dodging him, "You can't catch me!"

"You want to bet?" Kisuke yelled, almost colliding with Byakuya, whom had simultaneously attempted to catch Yoruichi by coming in the opposite direction.

Yoruichi easily twisted away from both of them, spinning lithely like a dancer through the air. This time, both boys actually did trip over each other. "Don't underestimate her," Byakuya warned as he panted, "You'll never be able to catch her with Shunpo that sloppy."

Kisuke blinked and his eyes seemed to go out of focus for a few seconds. "You're right," he admitted, grinning, "Thank you." As Byakuya lifted one eyebrow, the blond-haired boy was in the air. He was grinning like a commoner again.

"Ready to give up, Kisuke?" Yoruichi taunted, knowing full-well that she had the advantage, "It's not going to get any easier from here."

"Good." Kisuke said. He flashed to the building that Yoruichi was standing on but was greeted only by empty space. Yoruichi had already moved. He gazed around a little confusedly, finally seeing Yoruichi standing on the building he had just left. "I'm going to get you!" he yelled, flashing forward again.

"I'd love to see you..." Yoruichi began. Her sentence was quickly cut off in horror, however, as Kisuke preformed yet another sloppy Shunpo, this one the sloppiest of all. His left foot grazed the top of the building, as he began the Shunpo, and he plummeted, sickeningly, to the ground. Byakuya felt a rush of triumph. That would teach the commoner to play with his betters. "Kisuke!" Yoruichi screamed, flashing over to the building he had just fallen from. Her heart pounding, she desperately scanned the ground below for her friend, for any sign that he was okay. "Kisuke!" she screamed again, "Kisuke!!"

Yoruichi jumped an entire foot off the ground as she felt a hand descend on her shoulder. "Tag," Kisuke said, grinning widely, "You're it."

Even a few hundred feet away, Byakuya heard the slap.

After that, the games of tag became more frequent again, though neither boy caught Yoruichi ever again. It didn't exactly help Byakuya's feelings toward Kisuke, though, that he wasn't ever able to catch the blond boy either.

Both Yoruichi and Kisuke graduated from the Academy with honors. Yoruichi, as expected, was elevated into the S.M.C, or Secret Mobile Corp. The commoner had, strangely enough, been promoted into the Twelfth Division. Suddenly, Byakuya found that he had nothing but contempt for the Twelfth Division.

It was his third year in the Academy when he first realized the horrible truth. "Oh, look!" he heard some girl whisper, "It's those two again! You think he's finally asked her out?"

"Yeah! I remember her telling me he did!"

"Seriously? You wouldn't be lying again, would you, Kukaku?"

"No! I swear!"

Byakuya's blood literally froze in his veins as he glanced in the direction the girl was staring. It was that dirty commoner with Yoruichi. They were holding hands and she was giggling as he talked animatedly about something. That day, he made an excuse and went home sick. He walked very composedly to his room, laid down, and closed his eyes.

The next day, he was standing outside her office in the Second Division. "Oh, hey, Bya-chan," she said pleasantly, "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at the Academy?"

"We don't have classes today," Byakuya lied.

Yoruichi raised an eyebrow, unconvinced, "I can tell that's not true," she said, "But if I told you that skipping was bad, I'd be turning myself into a hypocrite." She smiled and opened the door, "Come on in."

Byakuya stepped into the room, feeling his chest squirm uncharacteristically. The only picture on Yoruichi's desk was that of Kisuke. That only served to solidify his resolve. Before Yoruichi could even ask him why he was there, he found himself explaining everything to her. How he loved her and how she deserved more than some commoner. How she deserved him. He felt the overwhelming need to kiss her, to prove what he said was true.

He leaned forward slightly but felt two fingers press firmly against his mouth. Silently, Yoruichi pushed him away. "No, Bya-chan."

"Do you not love me, Yoruichi-sama?" he asked softly.

"It just wasn't meant to be," she replied, as if this was nothing more than one of their games of tag. She crossed her arms awkwardly over her chest and looked down, "I love Kisuke, Bya-chan."

"I see." Byakuya said, "Would you prefer I leave?"

"Please."

The next time Kisuke saw Byakuya, the blond-haired man was much nicer to him than usual. Byakuya simply ignored him and walked on past. A century of awkward silences and averted gazes later, Kisuke introduced him to his friend, Hisana.

Byakuya has never forgiven Kisuke for this.

Over the years, Byakuya had drifted away from Yoruichi. Then, one day, news reached him that Kisuke had been exiled. Hope suddenly welled forth and he went to her again. He couldn't remember the last time he had seen her so distraught.

Due to the sudden lack of a Captain, Byakuya had been informed that he was to be promoted to the Vice-Captain of the Sixth Division. He felt his heart swell with pride. Perhaps finally he could have Yoruichi feel love for him; perhaps he could finally prove to her that he was more deserving, in every way, than that stupid commoner. He immediately went to her office, only to find the door already unlocked. Inside, Yoruichi was standing with a small bag over her shoulder, staring at everything as if to take it all in. A jigokucho was hovering gracefully over her shoulder. Immediately, Byakuya understood what was happening, "You're going to him, Yoruichi-sama?"

Yoruichi jerked around in surprise, her yellow eyes frowning. "I am." she said.

"I will not let you go."

"You can't catch me." she said.

"We'll see." Byakuya replied levelly, drawing on every last bit of his reiatsu. He would not, could not let her go.

Yoruichi smiled wearily at him, "Then I guess this is our last game." With that, she flashed out the door. Byakuya followed mere seconds later, almost equally as quickly. They both exploded down the streets, on top of buildings, and past trees. His determination was strong, but he could feel himself flagging. He preformed Shunpo after Shunpo, the steps unconsciously counted in his mind.

Kuchiki Byakuya knows for a fact that he can do one-hundred and ninety-nine Shunpo in a row. This is because Shihouin Yoruichi, the Goddess of Flash, left him behind at two-hundred. As he crumpled to the ground, exhausted and spent, she glanced back a single time, his last look at the beautiful golden eyes that had captivated him for so long.

He married Hisana just one year later. He has never regretted this.

He could have cared less that she was a commoner. It didn't matter to him. Urahara Kisuke was the only commoner he truly hated anymore. He would take that hatred to his very grave if he had to.

Byakuya hardly even thought about Yoruichi since then, as he loved Hisana dearly. Then, as all good things will tend to do, she passed away. Byakuya swore at her death to never let anyone take her place in his heart.

When he saw Yoruichi again, he immediately squelched the remnants of his feelings for her. How ironic it was, he mused later, that the second time he tried to touch her heart, it would be with the blade of his Zanpakuto. He would not betray Hisana.

Regardless, at the end of their game – if one could call it that, Byakuya couldn't help but be strangely relieved that he still hadn't caught her.
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A/N: Whew.

This is my first pairing-ified fic that I've submitted to this site. You probably already knew, but it's like a Kisuke and Yoruichi story told from the eyes of Byakuya. This particular fic was a bit more difficult to write but I like the way it turned out.

This was also an attempt to shorten my style and convey more meaning in smaller paragraphs. I've recently fallen in love with the powerful writings of people who could write a moving, yet short and to-the-point, story. (Read: By the Sword, Set Apart, Remembrance, and The Thread of Duty; you'll see what I mean) I am proud to say that this is my shortest story to date (word-count-wise) but I really hope it isn't my worst.

Everyone who is waiting for me to finally finish 'Be Good', I apologise. I don't know why but I haven't been getting 'the feel' for the final chapter of that which means I probably have writer's block on it. Sorry, I'll get it out as soon as I can.

This is my third fic; however, that is no excuse for it to suck. If it does, please don't hesitate to tell me.
Please review, as all feedback is appreciated.

B-E