Hollow

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach nor any references I make.

Alone, he was truly alone, not a soul nearby not a speck of life, only the dead land before his eyes, the grains of sand dancing on the harsh winds of Hueco Mundo. Alone he stood on his balcony, staring out at the deserts of the Hollow Land, arms crossed and eyes never wavering, the eternal crescent moon shining light upon the entire realm. One could consider this world to be the pinnacle of hell, lifeless and barren. But the arrancar knew differently, he had learned first hand that appearances were oft deceiving, there was life here, under every rock and crevice, nook and cranny, you just have to know where to look. For many long years he lived here, to survive, he killed, to kill he had to devour, for many long years he knew nothing but the thirst, the hunger, the instinctual desire to feed upon all and at the end, he alone stood here, powerful, a pinnacle, a reminder.

He conquered the greatest dangers this world provided, defeating each opponent with ease or through tremendous perseverance. He could scarcely remember his days as a human, his flesh soft and weak, his body small and bones brittle, he cursed himself slightly as he remembered those times from so long ago. But he couldn't help his mind from drifting off sometimes as he stared at the unmoving moon. For some odd reason he always felt calm looking at that floating rock, filling him with a sense of serendipity. It was a feeling he couldn't describe with words, he just... knew. if anyone were to ask he would merely rebuke them with a harsh comment or glare, quickly silencing their attempts. This soft stupor of his was broken as he heard careful footsteps approaching from behind, his ears perked up at the cautious steps almost like a cat scurrying in the street.

"Kurosaki-sama.' spoke a voice from behind the hollow causing him to snap his head over his shoulder so to be graced with the appearance of this new arrival. He was a dark-skinned man with purple hair arranged into braids that hung freely, wearing a white sleeveless coat over a black hakama, a band-like visor for his pupil-less pearl eyes and in his right hand he carried his sword with a tsuba shaped into a tear. "all the Arrangements have been made, your entry into the academy shall go unobstructed, but I must remind you not to use your full power lest you break your masquerade." spoke none other than Kaname Tōsen kneeling towards the Arrancar who only turned his head back at the desert towards him. Kaname has been serving him faithfully now for little more than two years now, it mattered not that he was a hollow, to the Shinigami, their shared morals, goals and beliefs were all that mattered and the King knew that if he crossed the line between those motives, he would find a blade at his neck and a knife in his back.

"Kaname, tell me. Do you believe that blood must always be split to chase after our dreams?" questioned the King of Hueco Mundo, as he resumed his staring at the moon, never once taking his eyes off it while his subordinate contemplated the inquiry, trying to find a suitable answer to an already difficult question. He raised his head a little and if he possessed the sense of sight he would be staring at the back of the hollow, the wind sweeping through the white cloak of the king.

"Yes. To walk any difficult path, blood must be spilt for Justice. Justice isn't virtuous when it hands out retribution to those who are guilty of sin. Justice is hard, uncompromising and like most things it has to take something to exist. But, to walk the cleanest path, the path of least bloodshed is the most difficult of all, you must always remember what you are fighting for, lest you lose yourself in the peace around you." spoke Tōsen getting up from his kneeling position and ready to leave if it wasn't for the voice of the king cutting through the silence.

"One more question." stated the arrancar as Kaname stopped in his trek and turned to the Hollow. Eager to hear what he had to say. "do you believe I will stray from the path?" questioned the King as Tōsen bowed his head slightly in thought. Another grey answer for a grey question. That one question seemed to consume the shinigami, tearing at his ears and ripping through his mind, a good few minutes passed with silence between the two of them as the possible answers all but raced through the Shinigaim's mind, to deny an answer to such a godly being was disrespectful, to provide him a half-answer was suicidal but the blind-man knew that a dissatisfied was fatal mistake that the Shinigami could not make. It truly was a question with many answers. He raised his head once more, sure of his response, his own honest thoughts.

"Yes."

June 17: many years ago

This day, near the middle of Summer was unlike any such day of the hot, sunny season. Instead of rays of light or perfectly white clouds, the all but cascading rain fell from the sky as if they were waterfalls. The rain was so heavy that you could feel every impact resonate through your umbrella. The roads were slick and cars drove by, kicking up water with every movement from the wheels. Some people who decided to walk through the rain, without an umbrella or raincoat could only curse at the weathermen who told them that this day was going to be clear skies and sunshine, lies, I'm pretty sure you don't get completely drenched just from walking down the side of a street.

Unfortunately for the mother and son, they were all but forced to walk home through this horrid terrain, their socks and stockings becoming cold and moist, the tips of their hair all soggy an damp. Ichigo Kurosaki and his mother, Masaki Kurosaki, were both coming back from the young boy's karate class, of course in typical fashion, Ichigo got his butt-kicked, to put it simply. Every time he was made to fight Tatsuki Arisawa, again and again he would lose to the girl, he wasn't sure what was damaged more, his pride or his nose. Of course he didn't care, he was supposed to hit and get hit if that made any sense at all. To add salt to a wound, the child's bruised ego was already damaged as a result of a careless driver drenching the young boy in dirty water something which irked his mother to no end. She couldn't even begin to guess how people could be so callous and rude, but not intent on souring her son's mood any more, she simply took out her handkerchief and patted away the water from the boy's face, reminding herself to give him a shower when they got home, so he wouldn't get sick.

He could only wear that big goofy smile, just by looking at her he was so happy to have her around. To cheer him up when he was sad, to hug him when he was hurt, to be there when he needed her. He felt safe, as if her arms would always be wrapped around him, comforting him when he needed her most, as expected of a child. He utterly believed that he was invincible around her, as if nothing back could happen or go wrong. Such childhood fantasies were quickly supported, even though Masaki knew better than anyone that she couldn't protect her son from all of the world's horrors, the day will come when time will claim her and her boy would find himself standing independently, on his own two feet.

The two soon found themselves walking a lone path by the side of a river. The heavy rain made the waters of the river torrential and violent, almost as if it was a raging ocean, luckily for the mother and son, they were in no danger from the river for they were on higher ground. But, sometimes the greatest danger to all is the one you can't see, for within a moment, Ichigo saw a strange woman sitting by the bank, wearing a white dress that covered her whole body. He stopped in his stride not understanding what was going on, of course being naïve and ignorant of the ways of ghosts and the living, the young boy could not distinguish between what was real and what was a dream.

Just as the woman stood up, seeming as if she was going to fall into the water did the orange-haired child sprint across the wet and slippery ground, shocking his mother at his current actions. Calling out to her son, dropping her umbrella as she chased after him almost tripping over the dirty ground trying to reach him, her voice going hoarse from her calling out his name, but such things did not register to his ears, all he focused on was getting to the girl, he could almost touch her, reaching out his hand to take her by the dress. She raced after him, close behind she could almost reach out and grab his clothing but she was just one breath away.

But then, the girl disappeared. Vanished into the air, into nothingness, as if she never existed at all the child stopped his stride as a shadow loomed over the him, it was larger and more imposing than anything he had ever seen before, he could literally feel its eyes upon him, its putrid breath on his face and that large white smile glinting at him hungrily. Before he even knew it he was sharply pulled away by a hand on his shoulder and thrown away from the creature as its jaws crunched on the closest thing it could chew on. The tug disoriented him, causing his world to spin as his head it the ground as his vision went blurry.

He could feel the warm trickle of red liquid on his cheek, the blood dripping from his chin, mingling with the water of the rain and he knew, even at that age, the blood did not belong to him. He could hear the resounding hollow laughter permeate the air and the image of his mother, covered in blood, lying in front of him a hand outstretched towards him her face buried in the mud. He couldn't scream at the sight, he couldn't comprehend it, without warning tears trickled at the corners of his eyes, he silently screamed as the shadow moved towards him, slowly as if savouring his pain like a fine wine. He looked up for just a split second as the teeth circled around him and his sight went black.

The only sound that came after was the screams of sirens and cries of people who looked on in horror. The bodies of Masaki Kurosaki and her son Ichigo Kurosaki, lying in the rain and dirty grass, covered in blood, with broken bones and dead eyes. The police had arrived a few hours later, well into the night when a jogger found the bodies of mother and child lying there. Dead. Standing there, wet hair overshadowing his eyes was Isshin Kurosaki, he stood there, police and ambulance circling around him, the chatter and whispers filled every crevice of his mind. In the blink of an eye, within a split second, two of the most precious things in the world to him were ripped away, his wife and oldest child. He didn't dare say a word, neither did the police question or prod him for questions, having confirmed his alibi they knew he was no suspect.

In a flash of maturity, he left his two young daughters back at his clinic, believing that they were far too young for such an image and too young to understand the circumstances. He of course blamed himself, what man wouldn't in such a situation? He cursed himself for his weakness, for not being there when his family needed him most, but he was confident, too confident and such a thing cost him dearly. He could only tighten his grip as he watched as drapes were placed over Masaki and Ichigo before being loaded onto a stretcher and taken to the nearest hospital, he stood there, even after everyone had left, even when the the rain continued to punish him as he continued to cry, the sky itself mocking him. He could no longer withstand the battering rain, no more, he grit his teeth and tightened his fist as he walked away, the last of his wife's and son's blood washed into the river.

All around him was darkness, the black giving way to shades of silver and grey. He couldn't see the sky, nor could he gaze up at the sun or the stars. It was blank black. All around him were trees, as hard as metal and glittering like quartz, they stood high and mighty, even taller than skyscrapers and towers. His ears perked and listened to the sound all around him, screams and howls and the sound of earthquakes, sparkling yellow eyes stared at him from the dark corners of the forest. Picking himself up, wearily, he inspected his body, he was enormous, larger than any human with a long tail tipped with red, lizard-like legs, two bull-like horns on the sides of his head and he was completely black in colour, in the middle of his chest, right between in pectorals was a small hole with red lines coming out of it. He squinted his yellow eyes, trying to make out the shades hiding in the shadows, to no avail. Without even thinking his body started to move, understanding that he was in danger if he didn't move.

He couldn't remember how he got here, all he could pull from his memories was black, just black, no sun, no light, clouds or rain, no smiles or cries or even blank eyes. Sensing the spirits of the monsters around him the black hollow continued to roam this alien land, wandering the wastes of this strange forest. He walked for what seemed like hours, maybe even days and he saw no end to the forest. Soon enough he stopped walking as he knew now he was being followed, being tracked. He took one last step when their image came into view, thousands upon thousands of hollows, each with a drive to devour the other and consume human souls and even each other.

All of them flocked towards him like a moth to flame each with dripping maws and a thirst for his soul. The black Hollow did nothing but stare, unafraid of the mass of creatures closing in around him. The black beast roared as all the others swarmed in around him like locusts eager to feast upon his powerful essence. The battle was quick, the fighting even shorter and many hollows feasted upon the others with abandon, driven by the ravenous desire to feed upon souls.

The black Hollow, stood atop them all, eagerly feasting upon the flesh of one of its attackers nor did it waste any more time trying to consume everything around it. The corpses were piled up, the blood had been spilt but it paid no heed as it eagerly devoured, if there were other hollows drawn to it, it was wise for them to retreat as if nothing could sate this creature as it chewed and swallowed all around it. The blood of its kin dripping through his fingers.

He could feel it, each bite he took, each morsel he ripped off he felt his power grow, like a well it only became bigger the more water was poured into it, the pursuers had made a mistake this day. They were drawn to his strength and in the end it killed them, their bodies serving as fuel for the flames while the ebon monster insatiably feasted upon the foolish hollows. To him, the hunger was far worse than any torture even the threat of death. Like a true animal, this was a kill or be killed world, to eat whatever crosses your path. Nothing else mattered.

Over the course of many years, the taste of human souls soured, becoming like ash upon the tongue, but the taste of other hollows was far too delicious to pass up, they contained more power and the Black Hollow continued to eat, without knowing its name, its past, what it used to be. It only knew the hunger now, living in the forests of hueco Mundo, feeding on anything nearby. It's roars and cries filled the forests attracting anything living or wishing to die. It would become a menace to all other hollows, a true apex predator among its kind. To it, there was no friend or foe, only the prey and the desire to feed.

Soul Society

His cane tapped the hard wood, garnering the attention of the gathered captains, his deep and imposing voice reaching into the their bones and demanding their respect. All the captains were gathered, sans their lieutenants, each lined up in rows of two all the captains belonged to the even-numbered divisions to his right and all the odd-numbered to his left each captain, neither looking similar to each other, there was nothing similar, only the contrast. His narrow eyes inspected them all, each proudly wearing the captain's haori that had been hand-crafted by the finest tailors the sereitei had to offer, to not wear one was the greatest disrespect that could be shown to the captain-commander. If such a thing was to happen, one could presume that the other captains were mere children compared to the old man.

"I am pleased to see you all gathered here on such short notice. As you well know, the disappearance of Isshin Shiba remains a mystery to Soul Society even today, his loss was great and terrible tragedy and the Tenth Division has stagnated and suffered as a result of his absence, but as the seasons must change and the green leaves of Summer changes to the orange of Autumn, so too must the Tenth division change also." spoke the Captain-commander each captain's eyes fixed firmly on him. He could see the many faces staring at him, each expecting an answer, all except one pair of eyes which belonged to Retsu Unohana, captain of the Fourth division, the only other remaining captain of the original Gotei 13. Some looked bored such as Kenpachi Zaraki's, captain of the Eleventh Division, others were amused such as Captain Shunsui Kyōraku, one of his own students. Some faces were keen to hear what he had to say such as Captain Jūshirō Ukitake and Captain Sajin Komamura, others were currently wishing they were anywhere but this meeting, Captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi being the most notable one. But enough of the sight seeing and impatient looks, the old man decided to get on to the topic at hand. "After months of training, and already having the loyalty of their division, this individual has not only the experience but the ability and the skill and respect necessary to lead their subordinates. Captain Unohana and Captain Aizen have witnessed and beheld this individual's talent, believing them ready to take on such a responsibility that hangs on their shoulders. They not only managed to complete a long term assignment within Hueco Mundo, delving deep into the heart of the hollows, but to come back without losing a single soul is truly a testament to their abilities and experience. I am pleased to say that our decision was unanimous, not a single dissenting thought and so at this time I would like to introduce you to the woman who will be assuming the position formerly held by Isshin Shiba, his own lieutenant, Rangiku Matsumoto."

With those final words from the Captain-commander, the woman who is to be the new captain of the tenth division walked through the large doors, the wood creaking as it did so. Rangiku could only be described as beautiful, she had wavy blonde hair with an orange tint to it that was cut short at her shoulders and curling near her chin with glimmering blue eyes with a beauty mark under the right side of her mouth. Her Shihakushō also had a split in it, running down to her right leg. Although the first thing many would take note of is her curvaceous figure and ample bosom with a gold necklace tuck between her cleavage and she wore a long pink scarf over her shoulders and finally she wore her Zanpakutō on the back of her sash.

"I am Rangiku Matsumoto, a pleasure to meet you all." spoke the new captain of the Tenth division, giving a respectful bow that didn't go unnoticed from the more experienced and hardened captains.

"Excellent, now Captain Matsumoto take your place between captain Kyōraku and Captain Kurotsuchi, we have further matters to discuss." commanded Yamamoto to which Rangiku nodded, carefully taking her place between the two other captains, with Kyōraku smiling to himself as he took a peak at her umm 'bountiful features', Kurotsuchi however only sneered believing this part of the meeting to be nothing but a waste of time. He obviously couldn't care less because he had other things to worry about, not least of which a new captain. "Now as you all may know, the Twelfth Division is here to report news of a disturbing matter that transpired recently over the course of many months. Captain you may speak freely."

"Thank you Captain Commander." spoke Mayuri, trying to restrain that slippery tongue of his. "Over the past few years my subordinates and I have been observing Hueco Mundo, Land of the Hollows, now obviously I could care less what happens there, hollows killing other hollows has little consequence over Soul Society until my third seat, Akon reported to me of a strange anomaly that suddenly appeared. Whatever this anomaly may be, we have no idea what it truly is, but given the fact that its powers has grown substantially over many months is cause for concern as already, not even a menos, this aberrant hollow is already nearing the power of a lieutenant." spoke the Captain, causing all of his co-workers to be shocked at the idea. Normally a simple hollow's power never exceeded anything over a unseated Shinigami, but to hear of a Hollow that powerful and not even a Menos was frightening indeed, now of course none of them were afraid to face such a hollow right now, they were of course worrying over the potential this specimen showed, if it was allowed to ascend to Adjuchas then their fears and worries would grow.

"Captain-commander, may I speak." spoke Rangiku causing the wisened Shinigami's head to nod just once. "While during my expedition into Hueco Mundo, I too sensed the power of his individual, we never saw it in person but we did sense its presence, hollows from all around the desert seemed to converge around it, perhaps its strength draws other hollows to it, explaining it's great power." the other captains nodded to each other, hollows were of course beastly creatures of instinct, when they found something plentiful to feast on nothing would stop them from pursuing such a powerful font of Reiatsu and while the captain-commander was of course troubled by such a thing, he didn't allow it to show or cloud his judgement.

"For now, until we have more information to act on than scans and actions from insignificant hollows, no expeditions or inquires will will be taken." spoke Yamamoto as he tapped his cane on the ground once more, its crack echoing throughout the hall "I hereby forbid all shinigami from venturing into Hueco Mundo in search of this aberrant hollow, severe punishments shall be handed out not only to the individuals but also to their cpatains and divisions! Dismissed!" with that said the captains began to leave the room, one after the other and before Matsumoto could escape she was quickly taken to the side by Captain Ukitake, arguably the friendliest of all the captains who decided to offer her words of encouragement.

"First of all welcome. I know there's a lot of protocol involved with being a captain but I think you will manage and it is surreal to get used to, so ask my advice whenever you feel the need."

"Why thank you captain Ukitake, but first before anything else I must have a celebratory drink!" quipped Rangiku giddy at the idea as she walked out of the meeting room for the nearest stash of Sake.

The Captain-commander was the only one remaining in the room still seated and holding onto his cane, watching all of his subordinates slowly leave through the door one by one until his lieutenant, Chōjirō Sasakibe came walking through the door, Yamamoto could still remember how many times his lieutenant had been offered the position of captain, but each and every time he had refused out of loyalty to Yamamoto. It filled the man with pride knowing that such an individual as loyal as his lieutenant existed and would carry on with the old man through anything, in fact Sasikibe was so respected many looked at him as if he was a captain, many adored and appreciated his wisdom even if he was no captain by name.

"We managed to fill the last opening, I was beginning to fear that we would not find another to fill the spot for another ten years." stated the lieutenant standing to the side of Yamamoto, arms behind his back, diligently like a statue.

"It's progress but news of this strange Hollow in Hueco Mundo is disturbing. With Matsumoto's promotion, conflict has been put to rest. In any world, including our own an empty leader's seat only invites discord and negative opportunities. We can not have such a thing while news of a dangerous hollow lurks."

"Do you believe it could be a Vasto Lorde, if given the time."

"Menos hardly leave Hueco Mundo, they feed on the souls of other hollows and they know the only place to find them is within the deserts of that realm. There have been Vasto lorde's in the past, but never have they crossed into Soul Society or the world of the Living, they are too keen to stay in their land and that is where this beast shall be also. And if it does happen to become trouble for us in the future... I shall end it myself. Besides, the possibility of a hollow becoming a Vasto Lorde is entirely slim, the chances have always been below five percent. But we shall see."

As For Captain Matsumoto, she was currently being escorted to the Tenth Division barracks by the Third seat Hitsugaya.

"How did they let you become a captain? You don't do much around here." complained Hitsugaya slightly irked at the thought that the lazy, drunken lieutenant was going to become a captain, they could have made a pigeon captain and it still would've gotten more work done.

"Because I have Bankai and you don't, silly." said Rangiku with a giggle in her voice and a large grin on her features. "besides as my new lieutenant you will have to work twice as hard to keep order around here, a captain's schedule is very tight and busy, I have to take daily naps, go drinking until midnight, gambling with Hisagi and Shunsui until daybreak, you know the usual." spoke Rangiku causing Hitsugaya to gain a tic mark on his forehead, at least he was being made a lieutenant, which was possibly the only silver lining here. "And when a cute recruit comes along I can just assign them to Third Seat, meaning they have to less work, more play."

"You're loving this far too much." growled Tōshirō while his new captain only seemed to giggle as a result of his frustration. Soon enough the entire division was gathered to welcome their new captain, the air was care-free not single piece of tension in it as they had been working under Rangiku for many years now, even when Captain Shiba was still in command. They were chattnig amongst themselves, saying how they had someone they knew and trusted as their captain was a relief.

"Good morning everyone!" shouted Rangiku a happy tune in her voice as she surveyed all the eager faces. "I don't think an introduction is necessary since most of you know who I am. But just in case you don't, well that's your problem anyway." spoke Rangiku waving a finger in the air while her face went serious, losing the smile. "but above all, my duty as captain is protect and support my division, I'm the one who gets you what you need and it is your duty to assist me whenever I need it. Our duty as a whole is to protect Soul Society and that's it. Well enough of that dour stuff everyone go and have fun and celebrate, I know I will." spoke the new captain as she retreated to her quarters leaving some of the shinigami slightly bemused while Hitsugaya only shook his head in exasperation.

Elsewhere around the same time three captains of the Gotei 13 were meeting a small room of computers, it was dark of course to obscure their nefarious dealings, the only light coming from the monitors what flashed grey and white.

"Impossible. A hollow that powerful couldn't possibly exist unless they were a human with high amounts of Reiastu. And even then, no humans could have that kind of potential, not unless they were born with Reiatsu all but flowing through them." spat Tōsen, slamming his hands against a keyboard, the thought of a hollow even gracing a captain's strength at its early life, it was almost too unthinkable to believe.

"I agree, Kaname, such a thing is impossible. But, it is clear from the start that this is no ordinary hollow. Not even a menos and with the strength of a lieutenant, it intrigues me to no end, the potential and possibilities. I'm more interested to see if this specimen shall become a Vasto Lorde, chances are slim but against all data and belief I think this strange hollwo shall succeed. It may prove to be pivotal to everything we must accomplish. Some day we will have to take a trip to Hueco Mundo and introduce ourselves to this unique hollow." Spoke Aizen in his cool, calm manner, not letting Tōsen's frustration blind him or the skulking Gin antagonise him.

"Although we will have to wait a while, the Captain-commander has forbidden all expeditions into Hueco Mundo, it will be a long while before we can set our plans in place." commented Gin, his bone-chilling smile never wavering as he entered the room.

"That is of little consequence. Although this hollow was never a part of our plans there are aspects about it that exceeds our expectation. This creature is nothing more than an unexpected event, something we could not predict. How exciting, the unknown, many fear it of course but I choose to embrace the mystery to unravel all the clues and answers from within like a string. Don't you want to see what happens next?" queried Aizen as he tapped his keyboard, pulling all the files from the twelfth division about this hollow. "What will you do next?"

The corpses piled around him, hanging from the trees, impaled on sharp rocks and splayed all about the place, limbs, bones and masks of hollows. It was a grizzly sight, even for the most hardened of captains and menos. The culprit, a hollow, the size of a sky-scraper, far larger than anything else found in the forest of quartz, it wore what appeared to be a black cloak with white spikes around its neck with white pointed feet and white hands with elongated claws. However this hollow had a different mask compared to others of its kind, this creature wore upon its face a mask in the shape of a menacing skull, it's white teeth bared and dripping with saliva as two bull horns sprouted from the sides of its head. This Gillian of the menos class had just been created from the feasting of the many hollows around it, but its thirst, its drive to continue to devour all that moved pushed it onward as it started to move away in search of new prey. Its roar was shrill and it echoed throughout the forest as it marched ever onwards. The thirst and hunger, that's all it knew it ever knew as it continued its desperate search to devour all things.