Dragon's Disciple [Bleach, Powered!Tatsuki]

[Hampsterpig]

Dragon's Disciple
Chapter 1​

'When did I become the weak one?' Tatsuki Arisawa wondered.

It had been a normal day, she'd been practicing, Orihime and Chizuru had been doing chores, then Orihime had started acting strangely, even for her. But then she had left to change into her school uniform, but when she'd finished, there were a dozen guys trying to grab Orihime! She'd beaten the shit out of the first few, then that monster had shot her with those seeds and somehow made her hurt Orihime.

Before it had always been Tatsuki protecting Orihime, first the girls that had cut her hair in middle school, then when her friend had become so beautiful, she was the one that kept lechers like Chizuru at bay. 'The dragon guarding the princess' Orihime had called it.

Now all she could do was lie there and watch as her best friend since middle school, the princess that always needed to be saved, was the one saving her from a monster straight out of a nightmare. The martial artist turned her head, wincing as the left side of her head lit up with pain, and looked at the golden field surrounding her. It was strangely warm, and she could feel that warmth spread through her, sinking into her wounds and soothing it all away, making it feel as though the wound was never there in the first place.

"Tsubaki! Koten Zanshun, I reject!"

Another yell drew Tatsuki's attention back to Orihime and that monster, just in time to see a disk of golden light, similar to what was healing her but somehow different, slice through the tentacled monster, bisecting it. Its death cries echoed off the walls of the school courtyard as it disintegrated into black, then nothing.

"Tatsuki!" Orihime ran over to her and dropped to her knees beside her fallen friend. "It's going to be alright, you're going to be alright, I promise!"

"Orihime, you have powers..." she mumbled, looking at the tiny forms that formed an angel's halo around her head. Tiny people… how out of it was she?

"Yeah, and I can heal you! So just lie still, alright?" The girl's betrayed how tired she was. Tatsuki opened her mouth to let her know that she was fine when a new voice filled the air.

"Chichichi, so that coward got killed? Interesting, you must have a powerful soul then, girl." The raspy voice sounded from behind Orihime, like a knife being sharpened. "Too bad you used all your strength on that weakling."

No, not another one, Tatsuki could see how pale Orihime looked already, and she was clearly struggling to keep up the healing light. There was a soft rustling, and she could only watch as a long, insectile form rose up above Orihime. The vast majority of its body was covered with segmented plates and what seemed to be a hundred legs. A white mask with two oblong holes where there should be eyes and a pair of pincers leading to a disturbingly human set of teeth.

Tatsuki felt her heart pound, emotions roiling and building in her. Fear for Orihime, fear for herself and the other students hit by that tentacled thing's seed things, and anger at being so weak that she couldn't help her best friend.

"And that girl on the ground isn't too shabby either, you both will taste wonderful, I'm sure." The bug-thing was slow and predatory in the way it moved forward, legs clicking on the concrete, each tap a little closer.

'No, I won't let you! Not you, not anyone!' Blood pounding in her ears, Tatsuki clenched her fists, the pain in her shoulder inconsequential to the heat building in her. It needed an escape, if it couldn't find a way out, it felt like it would consume her.

"Those other kids were a good starter, but it's time for the main course!" The creature lunged towards the two girls.

'I am the dragon and you will BURN before you touch her!'

Then there was fire.

Tatsuki wasn't entirely sure when she had gotten to her feet, it didn't matter. All that mattered was that Orihime would be protected, the flame gave her that power, she could feel it.

She went down on one knee, then shot off, her fist hitting the centipede's mask and leaving a crater that spread into a spiderweb of cracks along the monster's face as it screamed.

Tatsuki ignored its crying, instead grabbing the thing with one hand and slamming her fist with a blow that cracked the thing's mask and the ground beneath it.

"Wha- What the hell is this? What are you?" The bug-thing screamed in pain as Tatsuki hit it again, breaking the centipede's shell and exposing the purplish flesh beneath. "No- Stop!"

The only response it got was a fist to its face, shattering its teeth.

With each blow, Tatsuki felt the burn in her chest intensify. It was the burn of a long workout, of a hard match, the feeling she felt every time she broke an old record, rolled into one. Her lungs screamed to let it out before she lost control of it. Halting her barrage, Tatsuki instead lashed out with an axe kick that drove the monster into the ground, letting the force from her own blow send her back to the edge of the crater she had made for the creature.

She took in a deep breath and roared, her flame making the crater into a funeral pyre.

The fire took to the creature like a match to gasoline, spreading along its body in moments. The fire didn't hurt her, as it shouldn't, it was her flame and it would not burn her. It was only a few moments before the flame did its work, leaving only smoke that quickly dissipated into nothingness.

"Tatsuki?"

She looked back over her shoulder to see Orihime had walked up beside her.

"Orihime, are you okay?" She clambered up the side of the hole, looking over her friend with a scrutinizing eye. There were scrapes and bruises visible on her arms and legs where she had been attacked by the guys… and her while they were controlled by the tentacled bastard.

"I'm fine!" Orihime waved her arms wildly, though Tatsuki caught a slight hitch in her voice, she let it lie. It did, in fact, seem she was fine. "What about you? You're all scaly!" Tatsuki cocked her head in confusion. "Look at your hands!"

The martial artist looked down at her hands and found they were, for lack of a better word, scaly. Her skin had been replaced with scales the color of blood and her fingers now ended in sharp claws. But even as she marveled at them, the scales seemed to melt off of her and leave only her normal skin underneath.

What had happened to her?

"Hey Orihime, what do you think those were?" Tatsuki looked back to her friend, only to find she was passed out.

"No Mister Weasel… I don't want your lemons…"

…and already in dreamland, as per usual. It was to be expected though, it had been a rough day. She could use… a nap… herself...

The last thing she heard before passing out was the sound of wooden sandals.

-T-​

'Why does my bed feel so hard… Orihime!'

Tatsuki sat bolt upright, casting around for her friend, calming a bit once she saw her friend lying next to her, talking in her sleep.

"Silly Ichigo… the navy doesn't wear pink..." She could only sigh, idly wondering just what was going the girl's head before stopping herself.

That way lied madness.

'... but am I already crazy? Those monsters couldn't have been real…' No, it must have been real. The feeling of her strikes hitting flesh had been real, the pain had been real… the fire had been real.

"Arisawa, you're awake."

She turned towards the voice, ready to lay out anyone who even twitched towards Orihime, only stopping when she recognized who it was.

"You're one of Ichigo's friends…" Orihime had told her his name… what was it? "Chad, right?" He nodded, making a small affirming sound. She'd always found it confusing that his name was Japanese, and his nickname was Western, but his family was Mexican?

"Where are we?" They were in what seemed to be a very classically Japanese room, complete with tatami mats and paper-wood sliding doors.

"Well,-"

"N-no, Ichigo, you're wrong…" Tatsuki looked back at Orihime to see her turning in her sleep. "That's not poo, that's peetan. They look similar but they're different…" the martial artist rolled her eyes.

"Is she alright?" Tatsuki glanced back at Chad, who seemed genuinely concerned.

"She's fine if she's having a weird dream like this, I just give her a quick shake to wake her up." With that, Tatsuki pulled Orihime upright and started violently shaking her with the same ferocity of a dog with a new chew toy, the girl's head making an audible wokketa sound.

"Arisawa, wait-" Tatsuki stopped shaking her friend, the brown-haired girl's head lolling for a moment before she snapped awake, looking up casting around for a second before seeming to finally see Tatsuki.

"Oh, good morning Tatsuki, Chad!" she exclaimed, seemingly unphased by the rough treatment.

"Good mornin-"

"It's afternoon." Tatsuki let go of Orihime, who fell back with a yelp before catching herself, only then seeming to notice the floor and their wider surroundings.

"Umm… Where are we?"

"So…" All three turned at the new voice. "You're all finally awake." There stood a rather scruffy man with pale blonde hair topped with a green and white striped hat that cast a dark shadow over his eyes, and wearing a loose-fitting black coat with large white diamonds along the bottom edge.

"And who's this geezer?"

"I don't know," Tatsuki noted how Chad seemed to watch the man carefully, "but I think maybe he saved our lives."

'This guy?' Tatsuki gave the man a scrutinizing look, the fighter in her noting just how at ease he was, despite the tense atmosphere in the room.

"C'mon, they're both awake now. Let's hear the rest of the story. Why do we suddenly have these strange powers? And what do they have to do with Ichigo?"

-T-​

"What? You don't believe me? Is the story that incredible?" Tatsuki cupped her chin in one hand as she frowned at the man who had introduced himself as Urahara.

"Yeah…" Chad trailed off, massaging the bridge of his nose, while Orihime was more outspoken in her confusion.

"Of course it is!" she protested, "Soul Reapers, Hollows? Do you expect us to believe that stuff without proof, right Tatsuki?" Orihime looked to her friend for support, but Tatsuki stayed silent, thinking. "Tatsuki…?" Everyone looked at the martial artist expectantly.

"So you're telling us that Ichigo has been running around, fighting those monsters and protecting the town, all on his own, without telling us?"

"Well, Ms. Kuchiki has been of some help, but in essence, yes."

There was a crack as Tatsuki's fist broke through the tatami flooring. There was a silent beat before she looked up at Urahara.

"Where is that orange-haired dumbass? I need to knock some sense into his thick head." Orihime opened her mouth to protest when the door behind Urahara slid open, a huge mustached man in overalls kneeling there.

"Sir! The Sky Ridges, they've begun to converge!"

Urahara turned to address the man, "Is everything ready?"

"Yes, sir!"

"All right. Let's go."

"Wait a second! We still haven't-" Orihime's voice was shaky, which Tatsuki understood. It all felt like something out of one of her friend's daydreams, not reality.

"Do you want to come along?" Chad and Orihime paused slightly, while Tatsuki's mouth tightened into a thin line. "If you still desire proof, come and see for yourself." Urahara turned to leave, the three high schoolers got up to follow him. "The world you are about to step into and the enemy you have to fight."

-T-​

Tatsuki watched as explosions ripped through the air, impacting shimmering forms that faded with each hit. The little girl's weapon was surprisingly effective. It looked like some sort of firework but seemed to be closer to a machine gun in function.

Ichigo was there too, surprisingly clear and standing next Ishida, arguing and pointing at the dark shadow that loomed above them. The thing was taller than some of the city's high-rises but moved at a glacial pace as it seemed to step out of a tear in the sky. She couldn't quite make out its form, a huge black body on two feet and a white oval, which she suspected was a mask, much like the centipede woman Tatsuki herself had destroyed.

Memories of the flames burning within her sprung to mind. The fire that seemed to fill her, giving her such power. With it, she had protected Orihime, and for that she was grateful, but where had it come from? Her soul, like the man had claimed? Was that even possible?

Was there any other explanation?

"Tatsuki, why are we here?"

Tatsuki hummed at Orihime's question, considering it. "Well it's obvious, isn't it? That geezer told us about how Ichigo is fighting those Hollow things to keep us safe. We're supposed to decide what we are going to with that knowledge."

A 4-year-old with orange hair, grinning at his mom when he was crying moments ago from her punch.

"What we're supposed to do...?" Orihime's voice trailed off as she watched the battle rage.

A 9-year-old, pacing the riverbed as he blamed himself for his mother's death.

Tatsuki and Orihime gasped while Chad's eyes widened as a blast of energy came from the shadow monster's mask to slam into Ichigo, who withstood it all alone before sending it flying back at the creature, a fissure appearing up its body.

'I'm going to help him.' Ichigo had a bad habit of keeping all his problems to himself. 'Orihime won't be able to stay away either. I'll learn to use the fire and I'll make sure he doesn't have to fight alone.'

"DID ICHIGO JUST REFLECT A LASER BEAM WITH HIS SWORD?!" And she needed to make sure Orihime stayed out of trouble.

---​