Fox's Fangs

Late at night, on the main road leading to the Third Division, Gin and Tōshirō clashed.

The sounds of Zanpakuto clashing echoed repeatedly. Neither of them were skilled in Kidō arts), and the clash between their blades was purely primal.

Tōshirō's swordplay is wide and sweeping, each strike seemingly designed to cleave the enemy in two. Gin, on the other hand, spends most of his time on defense, but each counterattack lands precisely in the gaps in Tōshirō's changing moves, forcing him to sheathe his sword and defend.

The blades clashed in the night for over a dozen rounds. Yin dodged a powerful vertical slash, slipped, and created distance. He tilted his head, a familiar smile still playing on his lips.

"As expected of Captain Hitsugaya of the Tenth Division, he truly is a prodigy who only appears once every few centuries."

Tōshirō felt that he was being sarcastic. His Reiatsu increased again, and fine cracks appeared on the stone slabs beneath his feet. He gripped his sword with both hands, assumed a charging stance, and charged towards Gin. Gin also charged forward to meet him.

After their exchange, the two passed each other. Silver's sleeve was cut open, the tear as smooth as a mirror, while Tōshirō was completely unharmed.

Gin looked at the drooping sleeve, then simply ripped the whole sleeve off along the cut and threw it at Tōshirō's face.

Tōshirō swung his sword to deflect the flying piece of cloth, his vision momentarily blocked. In that instant, Gin lunged forward—the tip of the Shinsō transformed into a barrage of thrusts, so fast that the naked eye couldn't keep up. Gin's right hand seemed to vanish from its spot, replaced by six blades simultaneously stabbing towards Tōshirō's throat, chest, shoulders, and ribs.

Tōshirō was struggling to defend against the continuous thrusts of the blades, and had to retreat repeatedly.

"How does it feel to be relentlessly pursued, Captain Hitsugaya?" Gin maintained his offensive.

Tōshirō lived up to his reputation as a genius, quickly adapting to Gin's attack frequency. He used the long chain trailing from the end of his Zanpakuto's hilt to entangle the blade of Shinsō.

The chain tightened, forcefully pulling the high-speed thrusting blade off.

Tōshirō stomped on Shinsō, pressed his foot against Gin's face, and said fiercely, "You've angered me to this extent, don't think you can just let this go!"

Then Tōshirō leaped into the air, his Reiatsu pouring down like an avalanche.

"Sit Upon the Frozen Heavens, Hyōrinmaru!"

As the words of liberation were uttered, dark clouds obscured the bright moon, and a pure dragon made of ice and water the Roar forth from Hyōrinmaru's sword.

On this sweltering summer night, as the Roar of the Ice Dragon the Roar through the Ice Dragon sky, frost and snow fell along with it. This was Hyōrinmaru, whose mere Shikai could influence the weather.

As Tōshirō pointed his sword at Gin, the Ice Dragon, enveloped in extreme cold, swooped down.

Silver used his Shunpo to dodge, avoiding a direct collision with the Ice Dragon. However, the Ice Dragon crashed into the ground but did not shatter into pieces.

The dragon instantly turned into water the moment it touched the ground. With the impact of the impact, the water surged outwards and then almost instantly re-frozen into ice.

The water turned into sharp ice crystals that pierced Yin from all directions, leaving tiny bloody scratches on Yin's cuffs, hem, and cheeks.

To avoid the ice crystals, Gin leaped onto the roof. Tōshirō, relentless, unleashed another Ice Dragon Ice Dragon, which flew upwards and lunged at Gin.

Silver used his Shinsō to unleash a series of slashes, the blade cutting into the Ice Dragon, attempting to shatter it into pieces in mid-air before it could melt into water.

While Gin was busy dealing with the Ice Dragon, Tōshirō was no longer in his original position.

"It's over! Gin Ichimaru!"

His voice came from behind Gin. The chain behind the hilt of Hyōrinmaru wrapped around Gin's left hand, also binding the persimmon-colored bracelet. Hyōrinmaru's blade was already raised above his head.

Gin turned around, but his attention wasn't on Tōshirō. His eyes were fixed on the deformed bracelets twisted by the chains, and the smile on his face vanished instantly.

Only when the fox bares its fangs do people realize that it is closely related to the wolf. "Untie that lousy chain of yours!"

"Shoot him, Shinsō!"

Gin gripped the Shinsō in his right hand, aiming it at Tōshirō through his clothes. The Shinsō pierced through the Captain's Haori from Gin's left side and headed straight for Tōshirō's forehead at an extremely vicious angle.

Thanks to Tōshirō's quick reflexes, he saw the reflection on his haori and immediately raised his sword to defend himself. The speed and force of the Shinsō extension were extremely fast, and Tōshirō was knocked down directly, the sword grazing his nose as it flew away.

But Gin chimed in, "Is it really okay to just run away like this? She... she could die!"

Tōshirō looked along the extended blade of Shinsō. Where the blade passed, lay Momo Hinamori, unconscious and lying on the ground.

His pupils contracted sharply. He was currently in a stage where his new power had not yet been generated, and he was unable to use Shunpo to pull Hinamori away. The only way to stop the Shinsō was to use his own body to block it, and that was exactly what Gin was aiming for.

Just as Tōshirō was about to charge into Shinsō, a golden figure rushed in from the side and blocked Shinsō's blade with his own sword—it was Rangiku!

"Matsumoto..."

"Captain, I'm so sorry." Rangiku Matsumoto stood in front of Hinamori, still using her Zanpakuto and Shinsō to fight back. The tip of Shinsō had already pierced her Zanpakuto, and cracks had appeared in the blade. "Although you ordered me to return to the barracks first, I sensed Hyōrinmaru's Reiatsu, so I rushed back."

She looked up at Yin. Her gaze swept over him, finally landing on the persimmon-colored bracelet on his left wrist. The bracelet was slightly deformed, and the Gin Hanabi pendant hung quietly by his side, gleaming faintly in the night.

"Put the knife down, Silver."

Gin looked at Rangiku's strained face, and it gradually overlapped with his memory of the girl who had collapsed on the ground struggling to breathe that day.

Her voice wasn't loud, and she didn't draw her sword against him; her simple command, "Put down your sword," was more effective than any of Aizen's orders.

He sighed:

I just can't fight back against you.

The blade of the Shinsō slowly shortened, returning to its original length. Yin sheathed the sword back at his waist, stood on the rooftop, and the moonlight shone on him.

Tōshirō gripped Hyōrinmaru tightly, still wanting to make a move, but Gin turned his head to the side, his usually squinted eyes slightly opening a crack:

"You brat, what you see and hear isn't necessarily the truth. What you see is just what others want you to see. If you only look at actions and not motives, you'll be led astray."

"Ichimaru, what do you mean by this?!"

Yin ignored him. He jumped off the roof and, as he passed Rangiku, spoke in a low voice, just loud enough for her to hear:

"Rangiku, go and tell Koko that he doesn't have much time left to do what he wants. My promise to him will be fulfilled tomorrow, so be prepared before dawn."

Rangiku looked puzzled. "Gin, what does this mean? What was your promise with Kou? What are you going to do now?!"

Gin didn't want to answer. He pulled up Kira, who had been hit by Tōshirō's Hyōrinmaru and was lying in the corner, and helped him break the ice that was freezing him. After making sure Kira was alright, he turned around and walked towards the Third Division with him.

Rangiku watched Gin's retreating figure. His steps were slow, his shoulders were slightly hunched forward, and his back was a little stooped, making him appear somewhat hunchbacked.

But in Rangiku's eyes, Gin seemed to be carrying some unseen weight. She looked down at the gray-blue marigold bracelet on her wrist—the amber pendant shimmered with a soft Marigold -brown glow in the moonlight, and an Osmanthus petal rested inside.

During her visit to Qinghui Clothing Shop, she confirmed that Gin's feelings for her remained the same as during their time in Rukongai, and she herself also confirmed her feelings for Gin.

Ever since she put on the bracelet that they had chosen together, she felt as if she could sense Yin's emotions, something she had previously thought was just her imagination!

And just now, she was certain that it was definitely not an illusion! She could clearly feel the surging anger in Yin because of the injury from the bracelet, and when she stood in front of his knife, his intention to retreat was also genuine.

So the impatience she felt this afternoon might be Yin's true emotion, and she wanted to find out.

Rangiku used Shunpo to block Gin's path, her hand, adorned with a gray-blue bracelet, grabbing Gin's hand, which wore a persimmon-colored bracelet, and holding it up to his eyes. Her knuckles were white, and her grip was tighter than ever before.

Explain yourself! I've been waiting for you!

Gin looked into Rangiku's eyes. In those eyes was an unwavering determination, as well as pent-up grievances, and everything he had never directly addressed. A thin layer of tears welled up at the corners of her eyes, swirling around the edges.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say something harsh, but looking at her face, he couldn't utter a single word. He was truly afraid that the harsh words he uttered would hurt her.

Gin sighed. "Rangiku, do you remember the last thing I said to you when I was in Rukongai?"

Rangiku paused for a moment, her eyes reflecting scenes from the past; memories flooded back in that instant—

The dirt road was damp and muddy, the sky was gray, and Ururu was falling at an angle.

Yin walked further and further away in the rain. She had lost her shoes but was still chasing after him barefoot. The puddles on the stone slabs splashed water that soaked the hem of her skirt.

"Yin, where are you going? Don't go."

Yin stopped and turned around. His face, which had always been smiling since childhood, appeared faint in the rain.

"Rangiku, I'm going to become Soul Reaper," he said, "So that you'll stop crying."

Those were his last words before he left Rukongai. At the time, she didn't understand what he meant; she only knew that he was going to a very far place and that she would likely never see him again.

The days that followed seemed endless. She had become Soul Reaper, joined the Gotei 13, and even rose from a regular soldier to the Lieutenant of the Tenth Division.

Yin never approached her proactively—not even once. Even when they brushed past each other in the corridor, he would simply call out "Lieutenant Matsumoto" and walk away.

She once thought he had long forgotten those words after entering Seireitei. However, the Qinghui Clothing Shop made her realize that he hadn't forgotten, never had.

And it was precisely because he hadn't forgotten that she was even more worried. What kind of thing could he possibly do that required him to shut his heart out?

Gin lowered his head, raised the fingers of his right hand, and gently touched the center of Rangiku's chest. Even through her Shihakusho, he could still feel the small fragment of his soul remaining within her.

All these years, it remains there, pulsating quietly and warmly, filling the void that was ripped from her chest.

His fingertips could still perceive the shape of that hollow through his own soul.

It was a wound left after it was forcibly removed, with jagged edges. It was something Aizen had taken from her body to collect the raw materials for the Hōgyoku!

The creation of the Hōgyoku requires a large number of souls with Soul Reaper powers as materials. At that time, Rangiku was just a child from Rukongai, and her soul contained extremely rare fragments from the Soul King's fingertips.

Aizen took the fragment from her body, disregarding her life or death, and brutally ripped a part of her soul out along with it.

This left a wound in her soul that could never heal on its own.

She lay on the clearing in the woods, like a flower forcibly plucked from a branch; Yin would never forget that sight for the rest of her life.

Yin filled that wound with his own soul; he tore off a part of his soul and embedded it into that jagged void, filling the missing piece with himself.

From that day on, a part of him pulsed within her, like an inextinguishable dark flame. He could sense her location, her state, and her Reiatsu fluctuations through that fragment.

Even when Yin wasn't by her side, his soul protected her within her body in his place.

And that's why the shape of that wound was forever etched into his soul.

When was it torn apart, how was it taken away, and by whom?

Yin opened his eyes, and the moonlight fell into his pupils, which had been hidden all along. They were bright and open, no longer obscured.

"I will never forgive the guy who hurt you that way that day, and I will make him pay! Don't worry, I will definitely come back after everything is over. That's our promise."

Rangiku looked at him, and the fluctuations in her soul told her that Gin had not lied. The grip on her hand gradually loosened, and the two stood face to face under the moonlight.

"Silver..."

Yin gently pulled her hand away, his fingers lingered on the back of her hand for a moment, then withdrew, and he and Kira disappeared into the night.

Rangiku stood still, the Marigold -shaped amber pendant on her wrist still swaying slightly, the petal inside resting quietly, never to wither.

Tōshirō stood behind her, Hyōrinmaru already sheathed. He looked in the direction Gin had disappeared, pondering Gin's words to him, and remained silent for a long time.

"Captain, I want to find out the truth." She removed her hand from the bracelet. "What exactly is happening in Seireitei right now? What is Gin trying to do?"

Tōshirō watched her retreating figure, and then he could only sigh.

"It's rare for you to volunteer to work overtime, so let's get to the bottom of this mess today." He scratched the back of his head. "Tonight's going to be very busy, so be prepared."

Rangiku turned around and looked at the squad leader, who was a head shorter than her. He turned his head away from her, his ears slightly red. She suddenly smiled and wiped away the thin layer of moisture from the corner of her eyes.

"Yes."