With the Captains suffering casualties and heavy injuries on their side, all hope seemed to be lost... until Shinji Hirako appeared, along with the rest of the former Shinigami. Though the aid of the Vizards certainly helped to draw the battle in their favor, it seemed Aizen's power alone proved too much for them.
Hinata felt her sword leave her back, and she turned with it, moving to grab it. She grabbed a hold of the strap, just before Ningai could take off, and tried to hold on. Well, she failed. When he shunpoed away, she fell forward, face planting firmly into the wooden walkway.
"You son of a bitch!" Hinata yelled, lifting her head up and scrambling to a stand. She jumped upwards and started to run at Ningai, red in the face and scowling. "Get back here!"
Hook line and sinker, Ningai must be thinking. Oh, she would get him back. She would make him pay. Her mind raced with ways to get back, ways she could--
What, you don't want Tatsu-kun back first? I have to say, it's quite lonely around here without that guy.[/i]
Hinata clenched her jaw. Shut up, Kyoei.
She noticed, with some irritation, that Ningai would stop whenever she got too far behind. That bastard was just messing with her. "Ningai!"
Character List "Let's eat, Grandma!" "Let's eat Grandma!" Commas save lives.
Crude language aside, his plan was working rather well. He didn't even have to use kido and kidnap her. As much as Ningai felt that this tactic was a bit childish, he had to admit it was fun. If Iagnin had been in control, he would have shaked his butt, and slapped it like a monkey at her. Luckily, for both Ningai and Hinata, that wasn't the case.
She screamed his name at one point when he stopped for her to catch up. They were reaching the wall now, the gate was coming into view. Ningai had informed Kaiwan, the eastern gate guardian, that he was on his way. Kaiwan saw the captain and began to raise the gate for the two Shinigami.
He stopped as the fierce looking guardian lifted up the gate enough for the Captain to pass through undeterred. He waited longer this time, long enough for her to get within arms reach of him before he shunpoed into the woods. It would take a few minutes with shunpo to reach his destination, he had hoped for a long walk, but Hinata ruined that plan.
Few minutes past as Hinata continued to chase him. Her anger would certainly be getting to her by now, but this can be considered training. Her anger was an issue that she had been trying her best to control.
Ningai saw a marking he left when he was a kid on a nearby tree. A crude carving of his face with a victory peace sign. He placed a hand on it as he slowed down. This part of the woods was far from any village and the path to the cabin in the woods had grown over by brush. With his zanpakuto, in a blink of an eye he had cleared the path as he sheathed it.
As he approached the cabin, he can hear movement in the nearby trees. Hinata should be close now, but those noises were not from her. Little eyes were peeking though the bushes and the dark broken windows of the cabin.
Hinata loathed how quickly they had reached the wall. In the end it seemed that she always ended up following Ningai's lead, even when she said she wouldn't. Chest heaving, she followed near the gate and stood still briefly. Then she lunged, grabbing for her sword, but only caught air as Ningai shunpoed towards the woods.
"Fine!" she shouted as an idea came to mind. "See if I care!"
Glancing about, she started to walk towards him and masked her reiatsu to the best of her abilities. If she was quiet, she could sneak up on that thieving bastard and then - she paused. As she neared him, she realized that he was stopped by a tree, his hand over a certain section. There was some look in his eye, nostalgic, Hinata thought.
She gave up on being stealthy, and just started to walk quietly. Their path seemed blocked by overgrowths of bushes and trees, and in an instant, one that Hinata caught only because she had seen Ningai fight, he had unsheathed his sword and sliced it away before sheathing it quickly.
"What is this place?" the young woman asked, perturbed by the eyes peeking through the windows of an old cabin. She groped blindly for her zanpakuto. That belonged on her back anyways. "Where is this?"
Character List "Let's eat, Grandma!" "Let's eat Grandma!" Commas save lives.
He looked back at Hinata, her curiosity had made her calmer as she walked quickly behind him. That was good, they tend to be a bit hostile toward strangers with ill will in their hearts. Ningai held out her sword, so it would be easier to grab, and so she wouldn't touch him. They get protective of him after all.
He gestured for Hinata to stay close as he was about to answer her questions. "This is where I grew up. Far from any village." Walking closer to the cabin, slowly so Hinata would be safe.
Squatting down, Ningai made some noises with his mouth that one would hear from a person calling a cat or other animal. He held out his hand, not worried about what would come from the cabin or the bushes near by. It took a moment, but something did come out of the cabin.
Slowly, a paw stepped from the darkness inside as the light revealed a near white fox. She was larger than an average fox, due to her age and status, and the black tip on her tail and paws balanced well with the white. She sniffed the air, cautious like any wild animal, and gradually made her way toward Ningai's outstretched hand. Her dark eyes stared at Hinata the entire time, ears back in a defensive state.
Slowly she reached him, sniffing to get his scent. She stepped back, than did it once more. After that she yipped and leapt into the quiet Captain's arms to give him a lick on the cheek. Ningai got up from his squat and looked at Hinata with a happy look in his eyes. Other foxes began to emerge from the hidden spots of the secluded area, all of different shapes and sizes. "Hinata-san, this is my family, and she my mother." He raised the fox in his arms to emphasis that she was the one he said was his mother.
This would come as a shock to her, as far as Ningai could guess, but it would explain a lot about him. His ability to distance himself from others, the way he rarely talks, and his affinity toward foxes. If anything, he'd guess she would say something along the lines of 'figures'.
Upon regaining her sword, Hinata slipped Tatsumaki over her head and lifted her arm to tuck the sash under. She blinked several times as Ningai answered that he grew up in this place and squatted down. "Far from any village."
The vizard raised a brow as a nearly white fox stepped out and approached Ningai, eyes turned towards Hinata rather than the man who called her. Several other foxes emerged from bushes and the cabin, and Hinata blinked rapidly.
"Hinata-san, this is my family, and she is my mother," Ningai said.
Hinata blinked. Then she looked around. Then she rubbed her eyes.
"Not much of a family resemblence," Hinata quipped, folding her arms. She recalled being told at some point that Ningai grew up with foxes...but she hadn't imagined it being quite like this.
Character List "Let's eat, Grandma!" "Let's eat Grandma!" Commas save lives.
Ningai nodded at her comment, though he would have laughed at it if it weren't for the fact he was so distance from his emotions. He let his 'mother' down as she yipped at Hinata's comment, as if she knew what she had said. The mother fox came up to her and sniffed around Hinata's feet before she turned back to go up the cabin stairs. She circled once and laid down as the others came around Ningai and Hinata.
The little guys were curious at this new person, as Ningai never brought anyone else with him on his visits. They patted their paws at Hinata, acting the cuteness that they were. It was almost too cute for anyone to resist.
Ningai decided to explain why he brought her here, as he squatted down to pet some of his nieces and nephews. "When the walls feel like they are closing in on me and it feels like you can't escape, coming here always calms me down. I thought it can do the same for you." Scratching the belly of a young fox while talking to Hinata he revealed that he did this just to make her feel better.
Whether she believed it or not, Ningai did care about her well being. This was for her to just think about other thing besides the Seireitei or her family. Just some time away from it all.
Hinata bent down, holding out a hand to let one of the foxes sniff her. She idly ran her hands along his snout, frowning even still. A few of them patted their paws at her, and she rolled her shoulders to shoo them away when it started to bother her.
"When the walls feel like they are closing in on me and it feels like you can't escape, coming here always calms me down. I thought it can do the same for you."
She stood rather suddenly, too suddenly, and snapped, "I'm not you, Ningai."
She slipped her hands into her sleeves, scowling as she started to walk away. She walked a little slower, not wanting to spook the animals and become a chew-toy anymore than she might have already become. She walked away, to the tree with the carving on it, and paused. Her eyes trailed over the image, a crudely-drawn boy making a peace sign.
He was lonely too. You're the same, in that way.
She paused, running her hand over the tree. Yes, she remembered being a very lonely child. Maybe Ningai was more or less so. How fitting, she thought, that his name should mean outcast. She leaned against the tree, cupping her hand over her eyes.
Character List "Let's eat, Grandma!" "Let's eat Grandma!" Commas save lives.
Ningai let Hinata do what she needed to do. He was well aware that they differ from one another, the simple fact was that is why he respected her so much. She was able to express herself in away that he was unable to. His up-bringing prevented what others might consider normal in the Soul Society for a child. The old saying of quiet people tend to be placed upon him, so much so that he was tested with the theory nearly everyday he was alone. But it was at those times that he rather bottle in his emotions rather than express them as not to worry the elderly couple that was in charge of his care.
He continued to pet the foxes that came trotting his way. They seem to overwhelm him as some grew mischievous and started to climb on him.
While the others climbed over their adoptive cousin, the young male that Hinata allowed to sniff her followed her. He sat and watched how she was reacting to the tree, though he didn't quite understand why. He tilted his head to the side and stared up at her all Innocent like.
Meanwhile, Ningai was getting climbed on like some type of human tree. It would make for a perfect picture to take and laugh about later as the little foxes found their way into his clothes. One laid inside each of his sleeves while another found her way under his hat. The most mischievous one found a comfortable spot in ht e confines of his chest were his head peek out like a baby kangaroo.
He looked toward Hinata, a bit of sweat dripped from his forehead, and he sort of had this look of discomfort on his face. It was as if he were asking for help without actually asking for it.
Tucking a loose stand of hair behind her ear, Hinata sighed. She knew her childhood was priveleged compared to some. She had a roof over her head and a warm bed, elaborate kimono for festive occassions and simpler ones for every day use. She had the use of practice swords and bruises when she learned swordfighting, and she had seen children running around with real daggers and scars.
Ningai hadn't even had real parents, though she supposed it didn't bother him anymore. Nothing bothered Ningai.
She turned around and leaned against the tree, deciding to wait for Ningai to finish before she returned. A single fox sat before her, tilting his head.
"Foxes, huh?" she murmured, resting her hands on her stomach. It was odd, talking to a fox. Smiling wryly, the orange-haired woman chuckled, "I'm more of a tiger myself, if zanpakuto mean anything. Ningai's the one you want."
Character List "Let's eat, Grandma!" "Let's eat Grandma!" Commas save lives.
The little fox contiued to stare up at Hinata and responded to her talking with a yip. His little tail swayed side to side slowly, waiting to see what this strange new comer was like. He liked her smell, she smelled of food, but she also smelled a bit like Ningai, he perferred the food smell.
Ningai tried his best to remove the foxes without them getting upset. It was a very difficult task, considering that if he removed one, another would pop up in its place.
Without much choice, he looked toward Hinata once again. "Hinata-san, I could use some help." Yeah, he asked for help. It may be a rare thing but even Ningai knew when he was defeated. Defeated by adorable little pups and overwhelming numbers. It was a proud day in the fox family as they defeated thier eldest brother, proud indeed.
If the mother could laugh, she would be snickering at the display. The best she could muster was a sly smile not unheard of from foxes.
Unfortunatly for Ningai, Kit and Iagnin were able to do that for her as they both took a moment to effortlessly point and laugh at Ningai deep in his soul. Yes, this moment shall forever be mentioned with future Jinzen practices.