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| - This article, Plan to Free Rosuto, is the first installment in a mini-series documenting the eventual return of Rosuto Shiba, whilst simultaneously providing Kenji's sister Kireina with her first appearance. Kusaka Kori serves as the primary POV character throughout. Kusaka intentionally hung back from the crowd of onlookers encircling Kenji but his hand never strayed far from the hilt of his Zanpakuto. If action where needed then Kusaka would be ready to split some skulls and take some names; hell, it'd certainly be a welcome change of pace. He was bored halfway to death already. If something exciting didn't happen soon... “You look positively thrilled to be here.” Sanada Shirono was one of recent recruits made by Kenji to help combat this Averian character who had everyone leaping when someone said toad. By all accounts he was a fearsome swordsman but all Kusaka saw was a weed. Sure he may be skilled with a blade... but against Averian skill alone would get you nowhere. Still his reputation was well deserved. Kusaka welcomed him with a sharp nod. The silence began to stretch between the two; Kusaka, who was here solely in the event the shit hit the fan and Sanada, who was here simply to meet some of the new faces, could really have been elsewhere and doing something else. You'd have thought their shared attendance would have given them a topic but not only did they not talk they barely even registered one another! “You don't like me much.” Sanada noted at last. “It's not that I don't like you.” Kusaka replied sharply. “I just don't trust you yet.” The tension between the two could – and would – have been cut by a blunt knife. If looks could kill then the look Sanada cast Kusaka would have killed him thrice over and then some, though Kusaka merely leaned off the wall and smiled in response. He said nothing but the sudden look in those eyes was as clear as any deceleration shouted from the rooftops could hope to be: “Try it. I dare you,” it said. “You're both acting like children.” The voice belonged to Kaimen Kazuki who just so happened to be one of the few men Kusaka, albeit grudgingly, had a degree of respect for out of Kenji's recruits. He wasn't much to look at – you certainly wouldn't call him a powerhouse by looking at him – but he packed a hellish wallop and possessed a certain air of strength and reliance that could only be forged with time and experience and many life-threatening experiences. Kusaka returned to his former position against the wall and harrumphed in reply. “Kusaka?” The three men where to a-man surprised by the new arrival, mostly because said arrival had managed to sneak up on each of them undetected. She was an auburn-haired girl with green eyes and tanned skin. She wore a light blue kimono, sleeveless, with a short skirt of a darker blue. Strapped across her back was her Zanpakuto. “That'd be me.” Kusaka said, stepping forward. “I've heard a great deal about you. I was wondering if you'd be willing to help me?” “That depends. Who are you and what's the problem?” “She's my sister: everyone meet Kireina Shiba.” Kusaka rounded on Kenji with big wide eyes and what he said immediately after only a friend would get away with. “How in the name of all that's holey could a fugly bastard like you have such a stunning sister!?” “Go fuck yourself you cheeky bastard!” Kenji reprimanded. Kusaka, batting aside Kenji's playful punch, turned his attention to Kireina. She was weighing the situation with a raised eyebrow when Kusaka finally chuckled. He couldn't help it. The way she was looking at him now erased any and all doubt from his mind; this was definitely Kenji's sister. “... What do you need help with?” “I need someone to help me find my brother, Rosuto.” What she didn't mention was how difficult that was going to be. Kusaka assumed it would take him a few hours at best. He'd crack a few skulls, rescue some idiot who shared Kenji's blood, and then be about his business as usual. But no! That would have been too easy. When Kireina took him to the side to discuss matters in private he discovered just what it was he had agreed to. Rosuto had apparently crossed Saburo Ryu at some point in the past and had been sucked into the timeless between of the Shisuikyō, which had spiralled out of control during Rosuto's battle with Saburo. This area, known as the Wandering Spirit World, was directly linked to the Shisuikyō's power to send souls along the path of reincarnation as one saw fit. In the wrong hands it could devestate the Spirit Cycle of Souls! “That's about it.” Kireina concluded with a smile. Kusaka sighed. “...Where do we start?” “Hueco Mundo.” He wished he hadn't asked. He wished he hadn't agreed to this. He wished he hadn't bothered his backside getting out of bed this morning. But he couldn't go back on something he had said... especially when the person asking him was Kenji. Sure, the request may have come from Kenji's sister, but Kusaka was under no illusions as to who had planted that thought in her pretty head in the first place. Kenji thought himself clever in these matters. Truthfully though he rarely got anything past Kusaka. But nevertheless he said he would help and he would. As they turned to leave Kireina looked her new companion up and down before speaking. “Thank you Mr. Kori. I promise this won't take long.” “Kusaka will do fine; Mr. Kori is my father.” Kusaka's tone went from joking to serious so quickly one could easily have missed it. “... Do I detect some hatred there?” Kireina asked. “I'm sorry. That's a very personal question. Forget I said anything.” “I thought Kenji would have told you more about me than that.” Her look just confirmed what Kusaka had earlier thought. “And yes, you did detect some hatred. Though I never knew the man. I was raised by Tadashi-” “The current Kenpachi? No wonder you're so powerful.” “Tadashi did not train me.” Kusaka remarked, causing Kireina to look at him for a moment in confusion. “But that story can wait for another time. Your brother won't save himself.” “True; let us depart then.”
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