21 - Chase

Rumi boosted her speed with wind reiatsu as she headed to the barrier unit. At first, she wanted to use Shunpo to get there faster because the faster she got back, the better it was. But, on second thought, Rumi thought it would be better to not use all her abilities for now, in case that thing in the air with a strong reiatsu or someone who was good at hiding their reiatsu was watching her. She figured having a hidden card or two would increase her chances of safety. 

It took a bit longer than she would've liked because she wasn't using Shunpo but Rumi arrived safely at the barrier unit. 

However, according to the scene in front of her, the word "safe" couldn't be said the same for the sixth years in the barrier unit. The tower had been signifcantly damaged and all the sixth years assigned to the unit were all on the floor, laying in there own pool of blood. It seemed that a few of their corpses had been gnawed on, with a few of their body parts missing. 

It was a ghastly sight, Rumi felt like she would puke as this was her first time seeing such a sight. She had been a relatively normal broke girl when she had been alive and even after crossing over to the Soul Society and sleeping in a cave full of dead bodies, she had never seen such a horrifying sight in all details. 

It took a moment to recompose herself but Rumi quickly pulled herself together, realizing the situation was more dire. It was clear from the sight of these sixth years that she wasn't safe here. She had no idea if the culprit who killed these students was around or not. She definitely couldn't get her guard down. 

So, Rumi immediately activated Mind's Momentum, so that she could maximize her reaction time and reflexes in case an attack came, and think with a clear head if she had to directly face the danger. 

With Mind's Momentum, Rumi felt that her head was clear, the uncomfortable feeling in her stomach disappeared and she could focus on every detail around there. 

Rumi started to find any traces that could be helpful but it seemed that the culprit was a monster, because of the corpses had similar bite marks and scratch wounds. Rumi decided to look at each body in detail to confirm her theory and after almost all corpses, it was almost clear that a hollow did it. 

But, then, she saw an usual wound on the last body. There were bite marks and scartch wounds like other corpses but upon closer inspection, Rumi saw that there was a slash wound in the midst of bite marks. It wouldn't have been seen normally without a detailed inspection, Rumi suspected, as it was almost hidden by the repeated bite and scratch wounds around that area. 

Rumi also noticed that it was as if he was killed by the slash wound, then bite marks and scratch marks were created later. 

Because the blood near the slash wound was much redder and there were signs of blood clotting and inflammation there once she looked at it carefully, while the blood from the scratch wounds and bite marks was much darker and more viscous consistency, which was often associated with postmortem injuries.

'A slash wound...' Rumi thought grimly. It was too similar to the type of injury that their Asauchis would create. But since none of the first years should be strong enough to kill all these sixth years without a huge commotion or even cut their connection with Soul Society, Rumi had to think at another direction.

Another thing similar to Asauchi was Zanpakuto, since they were all Katanas and the only difference was Zanpakutos had names and the fact that they could be unleashed into a different form once unsealed. But, until they were unsealed, Zanpakuto would take the form of normal Asauchi, hence, even injuries caused by a Zanpakuto in sealed state would resemble ones caused by Asauchi or any normal katana. 

But, those who had Zanpakuto were only official Soul Reapers, and if it were true, it would point to a huge conspiracy. 

Rumi didn't want to go straight into thinking it was defintely an insider job but the more she thought, the more likely her theory was. 

This area was supposed to be cleaned by Soul Reapers before their activity so the chance of a real hollow, let alone an abnormal hollow appearing was small in the first place. Then, there was the case of the slash wound. Rumi couldn't think of anything other than Zanpakuto or Asauchi that would've killed the sixth year.  Since they were all souls, it was highly unlikely that a normal katana had killed him. And if it wasn't an insider job, how would the attacker know about this activity and wait here to attack? 

The more she thought, the more uneasy she became. 

It also didn't help that Rumi had found a broken communication device a few feet away from the sixth year with the slash wound. It was as if the sixth year had found something out and when he was about to contact Soul Society or Hisagi to let them know, he was killed. Then, in order to cover it up, the bite marks and scratch wounds were created and made it look like an unfortunate hollow attack. 

[Congratulations on finding out the tip of the iceberg. As a result, a secret mission will be unlocked. 

Mission : Get to the bottom of the matter and find out the culprit of today's incident.

Reward : Classified (Will depend on the time taken and the performance.) ]

System's sudden appearance and the mission basically confirmed her suspicions. 

'But, who's planning all this?' The question was on Rumi's mind, but she shook her head quickly. It was no use thinking about it for now, since she had found out the secret, it was highly likely that she would be targeted as well. It was only logical for her to retreat at once.

Without a second thought, Rumi used her wind reiatsu to get as far away as possible. Her gut feeling or whatever it was, it was telling her to get away without looking back. 

So, she did. Rumi was tempted to even use Shunpo was refrained herself since she hadn't even seen the enemy yet. It would be wiser to leave Shunpo as a surprise so that she could use it as her final card to run away in the threat of death. With Mind's Momentum, she should be able to react fast enough to activate Shunpo and get away once. 

But, until such a need arised, Rumi decided she would try to use only Kido and Zanjutsu, and wind reiatsu to boost her speed. 

Just after she made her decision, she saw that a huge hollow was blocking her path. It was at least five times bigger than the dummy hollow she faced earlier today and its reiatsu was almost as intimidating as her own if she were to emit it to its maximum. It was scary, because Rumi wasn't sure if the reiatsu of the hollow was its maximum or not. 

However, Rumi knew there was no time to waste. If she couldn't clear the path by killing that hollow, she might be caught by the one who killed the sixth year and end up like him. 

"Hado Number 31, Shakkaho." Rumi quickly used the kido spell to kill the hollow. She made sure to make the spell stronger than usual, to maximize her chances. 

The red energy orb was bigger than usual and as it flew towards the hollow at full speed, Rumi watched in anticipation, while also getting ready to land a final swift slash with her Asauchi if necessary. 

Once the red orb hit the hollow, it exploded and took more than two third of its body with it. As a result, the hollow dissipated into the air.

Only when she saw that, Rumi sighed in relief. 

Now that the path was clear, she continued running, she didn't know where she was running but she knew she definitely couldn't run back to the group. It would be equivalent of bringing a wolf into the group of lambs, everyone would get devoured without a chance to fight back. 

Still, Rumi kept running and killing the hollows in her path. 

"Hado Number 4, Byakurai." Rumi casted another Kido spell to kill another big hollow.

"Hado Number 33, Sōkatsui." Blue flames discharged from her palms as Rumi casted yet another Kido spell. If it wasn't for her Kido talent and intermediate proficiency, Rumi knew she wouldn't be able to cast this many spells without full chant in succession. She lost count of how many spells she casted but it was defintely more than ten and she was starting to hit her limit. 

Rumi drew her Asauchi and decided it was time to switch it up. It would be better to leave one or two kido spell capacity for distraction when she had to use Shunpo to run for her life. With that thought, Rumi switched to slashing the hollows with Zanjutsu. Her skills in Zanjutsu wasn't as good as in Kido but she was still one of the best students in the academy. Combined with Mind's Momentum and Sloth's efficiency, it should be enough to hold her own. 

Rumi cut down about two hollows with her Asauchi but then she had encountered a challenge. 

This time, it was three hollows standing in her path. They also seemed more agressive and quick which made it difficult for Rumi to take out all of them at once. While she might manage to take on two at the same time, she simply couldn't face all three huge hollows at once. 

Rumi's grip on her Asauchi tightened, "I wish I could've been on the Ferris Wheel...no, on a rollercoaster ride with you." She muttered. 

At this moment, Rumi realized she might not make it out alive at this rate. Even if she could run away once, she wasn't so sure how many more times she would be able to do so. The contact with Soul Society was cut off, and there was the potential of this being an insider job. Rumi knew she couldn't count on anyone to come and rescue her. She knew that when she volunteered to investigate but she was now sure that no one would come for her. 

Rumi muttered as she prepared to fight, she knew if she ran from three, next time, it was likely that there would be four hollows in her path. It was just better to try and take them out while she could, "I just wish...I've found you." She muttered, "I wish I've seen you at least once."

Rumi wasn't hoping for the pity of her Zanpakuto spirit and to show herself in pity, she was just telling her what she wanted as she realized those feelings in the face of death. She felt that the spirit was similar to her, especially when she was a child, in some aspects, like loving fun, being mischievous and playful. It would've been like meeting her innerchild of some sorts, which would've been fun, Rumi wasn't sure if she would ever get the chance. 

Still, Rumi used her wind reiatsu and Asauchi to face the three hollows. Her approach wasn't to make big movements, instead she was to only dodge and wait for a perfect opportunity to strike so that she could maximize Sloth's efficiency. It wasn't easy and Rumi was having a hard time facing three of them at the same time even with Mind's Momentum. So it was already good that she was still uninjured. 

However, it didn't mean she wasn't going to get injured or that she had chances in killing all three hollows without any injuries. 

Rumi hated the idea but there wasn't much she could do for now. She took in a deep breath and prepared to cast a kido spell. She was going to get away from the scene and try to buy more time. While it could mean she could get encircled by more hollows later on, if she kept fighting here, it was also likely that more hollows would arrive. By then, it would be too late to get away. 

"Hado Number 32, Ōkasen." Rumi used one of her hands as the catalyst and generated a yellow orb that widened itself. The yellow orb, once fired, became a yellow energy arc that targeted the hollows. 

Just after firing the orb, Rumi activated her Shunpo to get away. She still held her Asauchi tightly in case there were more attacks but once she got away from the three hollows, there weren't any more hollows for a while. 

Rumi decided to hide in a corner for a while and recharge herself before finding a way to contact Hisagi and others. After all, only Hisagi and the other two sixth years could contact Soul Society to open Senkaimon gate, once the communication was restored. While there should still be conspiracies, going back to Soul Society was safer than being stuck here. 

"You should rest, Rumi." Rumi heard the little girl's voice. She wasn't sure if it was from her head or from the real world. She had heard of Zanpakuto spirits manifesting in the real world but with the existence of hide and seek challenge, Rumi wasn't sure if the spirit would come out. 

"Rest, idiot Rumi." The little girl said, again. "Before we have to run again." 

"I know," Rumi sighed, "I just wish I don't have to, you know.." 

"If I was stronger..." Rumi muttered. 

The little girl chuckled, "You're doing plenty good, Rumi. For someone without Shikai, the way you wield the sword is as good as it gets." 

"You think so?" 

"I know so," The little girl replied, "There is a big difference in my current state and Shikai state. That is when you'll get much stronger." 

Rumi sighed, "But, I still can't find you. Even when you're talking to me like this, I can't see you or find you." 

The little girl chuckled, "But now you can hear me just fine, can't you?" 

A look of surprise was on Rumi's face as she then realized that she could now hear the little girl so clearly and even hold a conversation. 

"Also, I told you to open your mind, idiot Rumi. Try to think a bit more openly." The little girl said.

"Think more openly..?" Rumi was trying to decipher the words, just what did that mean? 

The little girl had told her to open her mind several times and now, to think more openly. It was clear by now that it was her way of thinking that was preventing her from seeing the spirit. 

But, just what was she supposed to think or figure out? 

Then, Rumi also remembered her replying to the little girl that the little girl was the one chasing her away with the tornado but the little girl replied with a question "Am I?"

Did that mean she wasn't chasing Rumi away this whole time? 

If she wasn't just chasing her, what was she doing with the whole tornado? 

"Wait, tornado...wind...wasn't the Zanpakuto spirit wind elemental?" Rumi muttered. This whole time, Rumi had thought the little girl was controlling the wind and making tornadoes to chase her away and preventing her to find anything. But, could it be that..

"The little breeze, the strong wind, that tornado...was that all you?" Rumi asked. 

The little girl laughed and Rumi felt a warm breeze in her face, "So, you've figured it out, finally." 

"..wait, really?" Rumi asked, "I thought you had an actual...body, you know, since you had the voice of a little girl." 

"Oh, I have an actual body but I can also take the form of different types of wind, so I figured me taking forms of wind would be more of a challenge for you. Which turns out to be true, coz you'd have found me in like two days if I was in the form of a little girl and just controlling the tornado." The little girl said. 

"Then, the reason I couldn't find you was because.."

"Because, there wasn't nothing to be found or seen in the first place." The little girl finished Rumi's sentence for her.

"So, you were lying when you said I wouldn't be able to see you even if you were in front of me at that point." Rumi said, with a sigh.

"I mean, technically, in no point, you would've seen in my wind form because I had no visible shape, unless you had magical powers or had schizophrenia." The little girl said with a laugh.

"It's a lie, still." Rumi said.

"Maybe," The little girl replied, "But at least you got your wind reiatsu and Shunpo trained because of that and I had fun chasing you. I'd call it a win-win."

"How's that a win-win?" Rumi said  in exasperation.

"Come on, Rumi. Live a little." The little girl said.

Rumi sighed, "I can, if you keep your promise."

"What did I promise? Didn't I just say I'll let you hang out with me if you find me?" The little girl said.

"I guess..." Rumi realized that in fact, the little girl never promised to tell her her name. 

Noticing Rumi's sour face, the little girl said, "Next time you need my help, ask me to play." 

"Ask you to play? What's this? Another riddle or trick?" Rumi asked.

"I promise it's not! Just try it, okay?" The little girl said. 

"Fine," Rumi finally replied.

"Good, now that it's been a while, you should get moving." The little girl said, "Remember, next time you meet more of those hollows than you can handle alone, ask me to play." 

Rumi nodded, as the wind slowly disappeared. 

But, at least, Rumi had found her and completed her mission. She even saw the system notification but she couldn't open it right now. The little girl's warnings were always right so far, if she told her to move, it was better to move. 

Rumi didn't know why but she felt that the little girl was scarily good at warnings. 

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A little earlier while Rumi was studying the state of the corpses from the barrier unit, 

Two figures watched Rumi from the shadows, their reiatsu and presence concealed perfectly.

"She's quite perceptive for a first-year, isn't she, Gin?" The man wearing a white captain haori said to his subordinate. "And that reiatsu...it's rather uncommon to see like a third seat or stronger Shinigami level in a first year." 

Gin smiled, "You're right, captain. She's a sharp one, it's quite unsual to see someone like this, at least not at this level. What should I do, captain? Would it be fine for me to kill her?" 

The captain paused for a moment as if thinking, then he replied, "No need, it just happens that I need a new test subject. It'll be better to test her a little now for our later use." 

"Understood," Gin replied with a smile, "I will begin the test for her then." 

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A/N: This chapter was kinda difficult to write. I honestly wanted Rumi to get a Shikai this chapter but yeah, I guess we wait just a little more.