A/N:
I rewrote my Re: Princess Knight. It's on my Pat - reon for Free and Paid members for now. Visit and join as members to read ahead of publish date!
***
Nodding, Yoruichi explained what she found out and how she wanted to proceed. Unexpectedly, the plan was simple. Yet it was something that could go wrong in a lot of ways.
Still, this was the best way to handle the current situation and he agreed with it.
After the plan settled, Shirou agreed and they returned to the cave. Yoruichi went to the corner and knocked the floor with her feet, seemingly searching for something.
The group watched her, wondering what she was doing. They were all confused, except Shirou who was already told about the secret base.
Yoruichi seemed to find whatever she was looking for because she nodded in satisfaction before kicking down the ground.
With a loud crashing noise, a hole suddenly appeared beneath her. Everyone gasped in surprise.
"W-what was that?" Ichigo exclaimed as he jumped from his position.
"Your training area." Yoruichi put her hands on her hips and looked at them, "All of you will train inside, especially Ichigo. I will have you to fully master your Bankai in the remaining days, understood? Your control over your reiatsu is... honestly still so bad that even a kid would have more control than you."
"Hey, I'm trying my best, okay?! It's not easy!" Ichigo retorted angrily. "And why only me? What about Shirou?"
"I don't know anything about Quincy's training method." She shrugged, "And I know enough about Shinigami. If you have a way to improve your skill as Quincy, do it."
"I have some ideas." Shirou nodded, thinking about spending his time learning Blut again.
With that, Yoruichi nodded and entered the hole.
Sighing in frustration, the orange-haired Shinigami scratched his head roughly. He looked annoyed by the situation. His brows were furrowed in frustration.
Wouldn't their time be better spent rescuing Rukia rather than training? For the first time in his life, he decided to break the first Kurosaki family's rule: don't mess with big bro.
"Well, sorry for saying this but we don't have time." He said, turning to Shirou with narrowed eyes, "Are you going to sit down like this, bro? I mean, Rukia's going to be executed! You said it yourself that you will follow us, and I didn't think you would sit down while she's being prepared for an execution."
Ichigo had a point, though.
There wasn't much time to prepare. But still...
"You're here to save Rukia, Ichigo." Shirou stated, looking directly into Ichigo's eyes, "Not to be a hero and charge in there alone. It's better for you to get stronger. That way it increases your chance to save her."
"..."
Ichigo didn't say anything else. Instead, he clicked his tongue, turned around, and entered the secret base first, not sparing a glance behind him. His back was rigid and tense, and he didn't seem like he would listen anymore.
Shirou sighed tiredly. He could really see that his ideal was rubbing off to his brother. He had no choice but to shake his head.
"U-Umm..."
Calling weakly, Orihime pumped her fists in front of her chest.
"Ichigo-kun must've been thinking a lot about it. He blamed himself for Rukia-san's situation." She smiled faintly. "So he might have thought he failed when you guys came to help. I can understand that. He's the type that wouldn't ask for help."
"That guy..." Shirou scratched the back of his head. "I already told him that it's not his fault but mine. If I didn't let Rukia go with them that day..."
"No, no! It's not your fault either, Shirou-kun." Orihime shook her head and smiled, "I believe in Ichigo-kun! I am sure that Rukia-chan will return with us safely. You believe in that, don't you?"
"Ichigo is strong." Sado suddenly added with a thumb up. "And I will fight by his side. No matter what happens, we'll fight together. So don't worry about anything, Shirou."
Both of them followed Ichigo to the secret training ground while reassuring Shirou.
Their presence alone calmed his mind, and Shirou couldn't help but feel relieved.
He turned to the last person in the room, Ganju. He was standing still, not saying anything or doing anything. Just looking down with a serious face.
Shirou had nothing to say to the man, so he just turned away.
But then, the other man suddenly opened his mouth and said something that caught him off guard.
"You are a strange one, aren't you?"
"Huh?" He turned back to look at the man again.
"You, you're different from everyone else, even that kid that was just talking about saving this Rukia." He added, his eyes narrowing slightly. "There's something off about you, but I don't know what."
"I don't think I am that different from any of them. I also want to save Rukia." Shirou said with a small shrug.
"Hah! Don't kid yourself." Ganju snorted. "You're different alright, I can tell just by looking at your eyes. How long do you think I've been living in Rukongai and seeing many souls come and go? They all had their eyes looking forward to their life. Even though they died in the Living World, their eyes were alive. And they had something they wanted to achieve. A hope that kept them moving."
Ganju was right. Shirou couldn't deny it. His ideals were long broken. He even narrowed down its scale, only caring for his family rather than the whole world.
His hope of being a Hero of Justice was long gone.
"But strangely, you're also full of hope. When you talked about... what was it? Gas... Gastonberg?"
"Glastonbury." Shirou corrected.
"Yeah, that." Ganju pointed his finger at Shirou, "When you talked about going there, I saw a small hope in you. You looked happy, excited even."
Shirou stayed quiet, not knowing how to respond to that.
"So you have something you're hoping for, huh. A hope that kept you going." The black-haired man crossed his arm. "Tell me, what's your goal?"
"It's nothing fancy," He said with a smile, "It's a simple goal that everyone wants to have. I just want to have a peaceful life with my family. But recently, I seem to want more. I want to say goodbye and thank you to someone I owe everything to."
That was it. There was no need for a grand goal like changing the world or saving people, because he didn't need them anymore. All he needed was peace and a small chance to visit King Arthur's grave and thank her for what she had done.
That was his goal now, the one thing he could do to repay her kindness and compassion. To say that he was thankful and that he would always love her for who she was.
Saber, his servant as well as his sword.
He, the sword that became her sheath.
They would forever be together, no matter what happened. Even if he died again, his heart would remain the same. Because his heart had been tempered, and nothing could change it anymore.
A heart of steel was proof of tin.
Even if no one understood him, he would also be happy to rest and have a reward from time to time.
Because he had changed, it was time to pursue his own happiness.
Ganju didn't say anything, just looking at Shirou with narrowed eyes.
"Tch, whatever. Just do your thing and save Rukia." He finally said before turning to leave, entering the hole to follow the others.
Only Shirou was left in the room now. He looked around and found a place to meditate.
He had to make his own preparation for the battle ahead.
***
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