"The clock tower..." Mikoto murmured to herself as she stumbled through the alleyway. "have to get to the clock tower....clock tower.."
Mikoto felt extremely dazed, her mind was foggy from blood loss, and she couldn't even think straight anymore. Her body shook with fear and fatigue as she stumbled from to wall of the alleyway, the smashing and crashing sounds of Kenpachi running through the houses nearby only spurred her fear further as the battle hungry Soul Reaper searched for Mikoto.
Though had Kenpachi found Mikoto right now, he probably would have been extremely dissapointed at what he saw, the pale weak Mikoto, now falling to the ground as she continued to lose blood.
"Th-that's it.." Murmured Mikoto. "I'm gonna die here...and I don't even know why..."
Through her foggy vision, Mikoto could make out a pair of feet walking towards her.
"And there's that crazy Soul Reaper guy coming to cut me to pieces." Mikoto said softly.
But those weren't the feet of Zaraki Kenpachi. These were a smaller set of more femine legs. The girl bent down, her dark blue hair seemed to glisten as Mikoto felt her strength returning to her. Finally her vision cleared up as she saw that the girl had her hands on her wound, and there was a glowing aura coming from her hands.
"Thank goodness." said the girl. "I made it in time..Over here Charle!!"
A white cat wearing a neat blouse with wings flew over to where the girl was.
"Oh dear!" Said Charle. "She's lost quite a lot of blood hasn't she?"
"A talking cat..." Mikoto murmured. "Just like Yoruichi...just like Yor-Yor...yor...yrr..."
"Don't talk too much. "Said the girl. "Just stay calm and I'll heal you."
Charle looked to the side and suddenly had a very frightened expression on her face. "Wendy!! Look out!!"
Wendy turned to look where Charle had indicated to see Zaraki Kenpachi towering over them.
Kenpachi looked over the barely conscious Mikoto and the frightened Wendy and Charle.
"Heh..looks like Thunder Dragon over there is all tuckered out...hey you there girl...are you strong?"
Wendy let out a frightened stutter. "St-strong?"
Kenpachi sighed. "Heh..you're nowhere near good enough to make this fun for me.."
Kenpachi began to walk away. "Hmph..I"m gonna look for a stronger member of your group..the one fighting Hitsugaya right now seems strong..but then again, I'm supposed to deal with Thunder Dragon here...what a bother...I'll just let Ikaku take you out, he's always been enthusiastic about this stuff.
Kenpachi looked up. "Did ya hear all that? I'm done here, you can clean up this mess!"
A figure jumped up from on top of a roof and landed between Kenpachi and Wendy. His bald shiney head sparkled in the sun as the the man with red marked eyes black kimono and a gold plate on his arm with the character for dragon grinned at the cat and two girls.2
"Ya sure Captain?"said Ikkaku Madarame. "It looks like I could sweep these idiots over with one blow!!"
"I don't want these idiots somehow finding a way to escape while I'm off looking for a real fight." said Kenpachi. "Just take care of them.."
"Heh..fine." said Ikkaku, unsheathing his blade with his left hand and holding the sheath combatively in his left. "This will go by quick."
As Kenpachi crashed through another house, Wendy stood up determinedly clenching her small fists as she faced Ikkaku.
"Heh..gotta admit, you look like you have some real spunk right now kid." said Ikkaku.
"I won't let you touch Mikoto!" Wendy exclaimed as she puffed up her cheeks. "ROAR OF THE SKY DRAGON!!"
A tremendous twister of wind blasted out of Wendy's mouth and Ikkaku Flash Stepped out of the way, reappearing behind Wendy. "HA!! Not bad!! But you're dead now!!"
Ikkaku swung his sword mercilessly at Wendy's back, but suddenly there was a gray blur, and Gajeel appeared between Wendy and Ikkaku, blocking the blade with his forearm that had become covered in iron scales.
Ikkaku's eyes widened as Gajeel punched at him with his arm which extended into an iron rod. Ikkaku blocked the rod with his sword sheathe in his right hand and countered with another slash from his sword with his left .1
Gajeel dodged the slash and let out several more quick iron rod punches with both his arms that extended and retracted metal rods at Ikkaku who blocked several more times with his sword sheath, throwing up sparks.
Ikkaku, leapt back. and looked at Gajeel with a new interest. "Whoah! That was some sneak attack, who are ya!?"
"I don't really see how telling you my name really has anything to do with kicking your ass." said Gajeel with a devilish grin.
Ikkaku raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Hehehehe..you seem like the strong type.."
Gajeel nodded at Wendy who nodded back and helped Mikoto up, letting her lean on her shoulder as she and Charle helped Mikoto run down the alleyway.
Gajeel looked back at Ikkaku. "heh..aren't ya gonna try and stop them?"
"Are you kidding!?" Ikkaku said with a laugh. "When I've found an opponent as strong as you to play with!? I'm not turning my nose up at this lucky coincidence!! That's right!! I'm soooo lucky!!"
Ikkaku suddenly began to dance a very strange dance, standing on one foot, and twiddling along on his toes, going. "Lu-lu-lu-lu-lu-lu-lu-lucky!! lu-lu-lu-lu-lu-lu-lu-lu-lu-lu-lu-lucky!! That's right I'm lucky! Whose so lucky! It's MEEEE!!! Lucky lucky lucky lucky lucky lucky!!! MEEE!!!"
Ikkaku sheathed his sword and used it like a pole vaulter, flipping over and then taking a wide legged stance as he brought his sheathed sword out like a bow staff. "Lucky lucky THAT'S MEEEEEE!!!!"
Ikkaku's bald head gave a final gleaming sparkle...finishing the dance.
Gajeel just stared at Ikkaku. "What...the heck...was that?"
Ikkaku's eye began to twitch as the anger level in his little bald headed thermonitor seemed to go kaboom. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT?' I JUST DID MY SUPER AWESOME LUCKY DANCE FOR YAA!! THAT MEANS I'M LUCKY WE GET TO FIGHT AND ALL!! YET HERE YOU ARE JUST STANDING AROUND AND STARING AT ME LIKE AN IDIOT!! WELL COME ON ALREADY!! DON'T YOU KNOW HOW GRATEFUL YOU SHOULD BE THAT I EVEN BOTHERED TO DO THIS DANCE FOR YA!!?"
As Ikkaku continued to complain, Gajeel walked over to the bald Soul Reaper.
"OH THE NERVE OF SOME PEOPLE!! SOME JUST DON'T APPRECIATE GOOD- WHAAAAMM!!!" Ikkaku's complaints were cut mid sentence by Gajeel's fist, causing Ikkaku to fly off and tumble head over heels onto his back.
"Dork.." Gajeel muttered. "If you have enough energy to run your mouth, at least direct it in actually putting up a fight.."
Ikkaku jumped back to his feet, grinning. "Hey..I'm starting to like ya..You sure you don't wanna tell me that name?"
"Why should I?" Gajeel said. "By the time I'm done with ya, nobody's gonna remember yours."
Ikkaku laughed. "To announce one's name and rank is a courtesy in battle, if you should fall at least you would know the name of the one who defeated you in battle. I am Ikkaku Madarame, third seat of squad 11 under Zaraki Kenpachi.."
"If that's the case.." said Gajeel. "Ya can call me Gajeel Redfox, Iron Dragon Slayer of Fairy Tail."
Ikkaku grinned. "There, least we know you've got some ettiquete...Gajeel."
Ikkaku unsheathed his blade and put the hilt against the end of the sheath. "Extend...Hozukimaru!!"
The sheath and hilt merged together into a long wooden staff with a long bladed spear at the end and a red horsehair tassle at the pommel. Ikkaku grabbed the spear Hozukimaru with both hands and pointed it at Gajeel, grinning with a new violent look in his eye. "Well come on nameless foe...you're facing one of the dragons of the 11th squad now!"
"Dragons?" Gajeel said. "Dragons? Geeheehee!! Trust me baldy! You haven't ever seen a real dragon!"
Gajeel launched himself forward and morphed his fists into massive iron rods again. "ROD OF THE IRON DRAGON!!"
Ikkaku ducked the long iron pole that shot over him as he dashed forward, stabbing Hozukimaru at Gajeel's face who twiched his head to the side to avoid it.
Ikkaku grinned however and said. "Split! Hozukimaru!!"
The spear's long handle suddenly split into three parts, each connected by a long extendable chain, the chain swung and the blade of the spear came swinging at the back of Gajeel's neck.
Nearly taken by surprise, Gajeel brought his right arm up as it was still an iron rod, blocking the blade in a sparking clash before kicking outwards with his foot, extending it into another long iron rod which rammed Ikkaku in the gut, and continued to extend, smashing him into the ground and throwing up a trail of rubble as he dragged a rut in the cobblestone.
Ikkaku gritted his teeth and pushed the iron rod off of him, dashing at Gajeel again as the chains on his three part spear extended and swung around with deadly precision.
Gajeel jumped out of the blade's reach as the chains continued to extend and provide a longer reach.
Gajeel puffed up his cheeks. "ROAR OF THE IRON DRAGON!!"
A powerful twister of metal fragments raged it's way at Ikkaku who flash stepped out of the way and stabbed Hozukimaru at Gajeel as it contracted itself back into a spear.
Gajeel grinnned and grabbed Hozukimaru by the shaft right under the blade, he then pulled back, causing Ikkaku to fly towards him as all his skin became covered in iron scales.
"HARD FIST OF THE IRON DRAGON!!"
Gajeel's metal scale covered fist rammed into the side of Ikkaku's face, and the Soul Reaper flew along the ground and exploded into a house that Kenpachi had already smashed through, causing the whole thing to collapse.
Ikkaku pushed himself out of the rubble, part of his Kimono was torn to reveal his muscular body and he was grinning as if he just got a job at hollywood. "HAHAHA!!! Nice!! Tell me Gajeel...who was your master, to give you skills like that! You must have had a mentor!"
Gajeel snorted. "Master? Yeesh..I wouldn't exactly call Metalicanna my master..."
Ikkaku looked confused. "Metalicanna...? That's the name of a legendary dragon...you don't mean to tell me that your mentor was named after him.."
"Nah...he really was the dragon.." said Gajeel. "The Iron Dragon Metalicanna.."
Ikkaku stared in silent shock for a bit...then..
"I CANNOT GO EASY ON YOU NOW!!" Ikkaku yelled raising Hozukimaru as a powerful pressure began to rise around him. "IT WOULD BE AN INSULT TO ONE WHOSE STUDIED UNDER THE LEGENDARY DRAGON!!!!"
Ikkaku made a stance with Hozukimaru. "BANKAI!!!!!"
"Bankai?" Gajeel said. "What the heck does that mean?"
There was massive explosion of dust around Ikkaku, when the dust cleared. Ikkaku's weapon had changed dramatically. In one hand Ikkaku held a massive Chinese Monk's Spade and a standard Guando in the other hand, both had chains that were connected to a massive axe like blade in the center that was above Ikkaku's shoulders. The axe blade had the crest of a serpent-like dragon on it.
"Ryumon Hozukimaru!!!"
Gajeel stared for a bit...then he began to laugh. "GEEHEEHEEHEEE!!! YA LOOK LIKE AN IDIOT!! GEEHEEEHEEEHEEEE!!!"
Ikkaku went wide eyed at the insult. "OH YEAH!!? I'D LIKE TO SEE YOU FORM AN AWESOME WEAPON OUT OF YOUR STUPID IRON RODS YA STUPID EXCUSE FOR AN IRON DRAGON!!"
Gajeel grinned as both his forearms morphed into spiked blades. The spikes began to move around the blades at extreme speeds so that they became like chainsaws.1
"SWORD OF THE IRON DRAGON!!!" Gajeel dashed at Ikkaku and begah swinging and clashing his blades into Ikkaku's massive blades. Ikkaku blocked and parried the blows, sparks flew from the blades as the two smashed metal against metal.
Ikkaku laughed with utter thrill as he jumped into the air and grabbed the handle of the axe blade, swinging Ryumon Hozukimaru around like a massive nunchuck. As he continued to swing it, a glowing red dye began to fill Ryumon Hozukimaru's dragon crest.
Gajeel noticed the dye. "What's that supposed to do...?"
"When I first go Bankai, Ryumon Hozukimaru takes such long time wake up see.." said Ikkaku. "Sometimes I gotta keep swinging him around like this just to wake him up...but when he's fully awake.."
Gajeel grinned. "So all I gotta do is beat ya to a pulp before that crest is completely red...easy."
"EASY!?" Ikkaku exclaimed. "IN YOUR DREAMS!!!"
"Time I stopped going easy." Gajeel. Gajeel's iron scales turned dark and his eyes turned red and dark shadowy auras began to twisting around him.
"What the hell?" said Ikkaku. "Is this part of Metalicanna's power?"
"Are ya gonna keep asking questions...or are ya gonna start getting beat!?" Gajeel yelled as he suddenly turned into a shadow and sank into the ground.1
"WHAT IS THIS GUY!?" Ikkaku shouted as he lashed out Hozukimaru's blades at the shadow which shifted along the ground without recieving any damage.
Gajeel's shadow darted under Ikkaku and a long metal rod surrounded in shadows shot out of the ground.
"ROD OF THE IRON SHADOW DRAGON!!" The shadow covered rod, rammed Ikkaku in the chin causing him to fly back as Gajeel leaped out of his shadowy form and puffed up his cheeks. "ROAR OF THE IRON SHADOW DRAGON!!!!"
A massive beam surrounded by shadowy tendrils rippled at Ikku who move his blades in front of him to block in mid air. As Ryumon Hozukimaru took the full impact of the roar attack, it's blades began to crack from the power.
"N-no way.." growled Ikkaku. "NO WAY!!"
There was an explosion of power as Ikkaku's blades were knocked aside and he was engulfed in power.
Ikkaku fell to the ground as Ryumon Hozukimaru fell with a crash around him.
"Heh.." Ikkaku muttered. "So unlucky..."