At Dawn They Sleep

**Date Started:** 1 December, 2022
**Date Completed:** Ongoing
**Next Role-Play**: N/A
**Users Involved:** User:MorellaVoltaire, User: Raidenforce, User:Felosr231, User:KaitoJones64
**Setting:** Soul Society,  Tokyo
**Characters Involved**:
* **First Division:** Amaterasu Munenori
* **Second Division:** Sakamoto Kazuha

## Stepping Stone

Outside of the First Division building was the red-haired beauty, Amaterasu Munenori, who was starting out fresh from the Shin'ō Academy. She was assigned to wait for a few members to team up with. Part of her felt excited to meet some new faces but at the same time her heart was racing and she was internally screaming. A nervous smile curled on her face as she continued to internally screaming thinking in a constant loop.

"Calm down, Calm down, CALM DONW!" Amaterasu thought to herself constantly breathing heavily, "just remain composed and just carry out this mission without any failure."

The wind blew as Sakamoto Kazuha reached his fingers into his hair, working with his hairband. Soon, the loose strands were gone, tied up neatly behind his hair as he walked out of the entrance. A small yawn emerged from his mouth as he took a second to look around. He was sure that this was the waiting place that his team had been assigned to, but none of the faces caught his eye. Nor did anyone approach him. Scrubbing his eyes, a flowing red streak caught his attention as he turned.

This was not a familliar face as well, but she stood right where the directions sent him to. Sliding his hands into his pocket, he walked towards her, letting a small wave from his right hand flow as to wave away the potential awkwardness a bit.

"Hi. I'm Sakamoto Kazuha. Do you happen to be my teammate?"

Amaterasu was taken a bit a back by Kazuha's presence and introduction. She was not used to this type of formality but brushed it off as she kept herself composed.

"I am," Amaterasu nodded, "I'm Amaterasu Munenori, we're waiting for two more members to arrive. They should be here by now."

Just as she said that a young man with tan skin would end up tripping and rolling over! He had long snow white hair tied back in an intricate braid, orange-amber colored eyes and pure unblemished skin.

"Heh, sorry to be late guys! I'm Asashi!" He cheerfully declared himself and got to his feet to properly bow to those here already.

Right behind would come the remaining member, who was mainly characterized by his short black hair and brownish eyes, as well as his light skin. He seemed to be late, given the situation in which he turned out to be the last person present at the call, unfortunately the shinigami ended up forgetting the meeting place, so he rotated the surroundings more than should have, trying to remember where he was supposed to be.

"Ah, it was here. I'm Taiyou Kobayashi." A voice in which seemed emotionless sounded from his lips, however, despite the lack of 'life' coming from that fellow, it was not hard to notice that he was disguising the fact that he was not on time.

Amaterasu looked to her team members with a look of confusion. Neither of them looked familiar to her though she knew long as they didn't get in her way, this wouldn't be too tedious.

"I see, so you three are my team mates it would seem," Amaterasu presumed looking at them individually, "you do know our objective yes?"

"We're heading to Tokyo, right?" A small smile emerged on Sakamoto's face. "I love Tokyo. Used to live there for a bit."

"Oooo I've never been there!" Asashi chimed in with widened eyes. "What's Tokyo like?"

"Oh well um...to be honest, I've never been there either," Amaterasu replied shyly looking away in a slightly shameful manner.

"Isn't Tokyo the same as every other city? It's just building, building, and more building." Shinji thought, it was strange to him that people would want to know big places like Tokyo, since he doesn't think the same. But of course, he wouldn't spoil people's pleasure.

"Anyways, the reason for this assignment or rather mission is to investigate suspicious hollow activity that's gone rampant in the city," Amaterasu instructed, "it's unclear when or where they're spawning from in Tokyo but it is best to remain vigilant and on your guard in case an enemy strikes."

"Right." Sakamoto's hands slide back into his pocket. "We'll need a briefing session on the targets and the hollow activity, I presume." Turning and looking at the bench behind him, he relaxed, allowing himself to sit himself down. "I know a friend that could help with information."

"Very well, we shall follow you then since this will aide us on our mission," Amaterasu nodded then looked to Asashi and Taiyou, "meanwhile, I'll briefly explain what our main targets are and the level of hollow activity in a certain proximity."

Asashi looked up at her and moded, "yes ma'am! Sounds like fun!" He joyfully added before pausing and thought to himself, "*aw snap I forgot I was supposed to be serious...*" he then stood up firmly and looked over to her, "er I mean, yeah! Let's go!"

"Right." Taiyou replied dryly. "Just know that whatever the primary targets are, they will see the terror of a shinigami." Did he finish his perhaps... excited speech? Overall he was showing something like a lot of adrenaline for the occasion, although his face and countenance made him look like someone different.

Sakamoto crossed his legs, leaning back into the bench as he relaxed. Grabbing onto the scabbard of his Zanpakuto, he rested it against the bench, allowing himself to fully lean into it. "I have a home in tokyo that we could use as a base. It's in Shibuya, so if you like peace and quiet, it might be a bit of a struggle." He let out a small chuckle as he continued. "It's close to the railway stations, which is convenient, and if you guys get bored at any point, there's plenty do to as well."

"Very well, then we shall head there as our base for our assignment, if any objections before we head out, speak now," Amaterasu instructed looking to the trio. Her eyes were stern but calm but at the same time she still felt nervous of her first time heading to a new area she was not used to.

Asashi was busy looking upward, "*hm, I wonder if I can get some strawberry cake around there. Sure does sound good!*" he paused his internal thoughts and noticed the serious gaze on him from Amaterasu. "I uh, not not really. No objections here." He then clenched his fist and thinks "*nailed it!*"

"I like to stay in the top bed." Shinji commented. He doesn't even know if Sakamoto owned a bunk bed, but if he did, it was good to already secure the spot, right? "That's my only objection."

"Not...really an objection so to speak but, I'll accept that, now then, we should get going," Amaterasu instructed as she proceeded towards the Senkaimon.

"Sounds like a plan boss lady!" Asashi replied as he fixed his oversized clothing and followed behind Amaterasu.

"Alright, you guys. Follow me." Sakamoto stood, his hands latching onto his Zanpakuto, flinging it over his shoulder as he walked through the Senkaimon.

The flashing light, loud noises and the sound of cars rang through his ears as he stepped through, not that it was anything stranger to him at this point. The metro lines, the wide variety of dress codes, and more importantly, the feeling of home all presented themselves to Sakamoto. His heart felt at ease, yet excited at what was to come. There was just a slight tingle in his head that told him this would be good fun.

"Man, this place. I missed you, you'know?"

"Not me." Shinji said in a somewhat 'dry' manner. His were trembling a little, he looked a little nervous. He knew that that place was big and busy, he just didn't remember that it was as big as his eyes would be seeing at the moment. Since Amaterasu was the person who most seemed to be the leading figure of that group, in his vision, the small individual kept close to her, more specifically, on the front side, because Taiyou didn't want to get lost from the group by accident, something easy to happen since his height was small enough to just reach her chest region. Unconsciously, he hugged her as if it were a self-defense instinct, which he activated when he was nervous.

Feeling the unexpected embrace, Amaterasu turned her attention to Taiyou with a scowl on her face before instinctively elbowing him in the gut with much force knocking the wind out of him.

"Disciplinary action," Amaterasu scowled firmly.

A reaction other than pain was out of the question. The blow had caught him 'on the fly', and now he could only return to his original position with a temporary grimace until that feeling was gone. His urge was to try to do the same to Sakamoto or Asashi, however the fear of taking another Amaterasu's **Disciplinary Action** for poor composure was greater.

"We... Are we coming, Sakamoto-kun?" He uttered, finding himself forced to put up with his nervousness, he wanted them to go faster.

"What're you guys waiting for?" Sakamoto turned, giving those behind him a small wave, as to usher to move in his direction. A small chuckle emerged on his face as he took in the small altercation in front of him. Resting his hand inside his pocket, a small, teasing smile formed on his face, directing itself at the others. "Not used to big cities, huh?"

"Woah" Asashi quickly gasped and was struck with awe as he looked over the surroundings. He adjusted his oversized uniform and hugged his scabbard as he took a few steps forward. "This place looks cool!" Asashi blurted out and looked over, "this place is so big and all these bright lights!" Like a child filled with amusement he looked over and saw the hustle and bustle of the human world.

"This is new to me so, will take some getting used to," Amaterasu replied as she looked around her surroundings. The city lights left her enthralled as she her eyes lit up sparkling. She had never seen so many many lights in her entire life, in her mind, she couldn't contain her excitement. Amaterasu quickly shook her head then looked over to Asashi who was in a state of childhood wonderment tilting her head to the side. It puzzled her but deep down, she found it, amusing in a warm-hearted way. Amaterasu focused back on her task her as she headed to where Sakamoto was then looked over to the others waving over to them to catch up.

"Since our assignment here, for now, we'll have to keep our presence low since we don't know where our target is located," Amaterasu began as she spoke, "from the reports there's activity between dusk and day break so within those time frames are when they are to appear. Thing is, we can't stand out if we're to hunt down who we're after."

"I guess I'm the only one close to going bad..." He commented to himself, seeing how his colleagues who were also in a somewhat similar situation as his, appeared to be more excited than nervous, unlike him who is the opposite case. "I feel like I need to stay close to someone every time I look out of our group..." He complemented in a 'queasy' tone.

"That's true, what you said. We'll do some shopping tomorrow." Sakamoto gestured a thumbs up in Amaterasu's direction before facing the others. "I will be in touch with my contact tonight to see what information we can get." He allowed himself to pause for a moment as the smile on his face grew brighter. "Now, what do you guys wanna do for dinner? I don't mind cooking, or if we're all feeling lazy then we can either get takeaway or just eat at a resturant or something. I have ideas for both."

"Oh yeah food sounds good!" Asashi quickly added. "I'm up for either or honestly!" He then began to drool as tons of images of food began to flash through his mind.

"That should be fine," Amaterasu nodded then a small blush appeared on her face pointing to an apparel show that captured her attention, "I also have an idea too, though if going with this, it can help with keeping our concealing our identities."

A small yawn escaped Sakamoto's mouth, his palm covering his mouth on the basis of courtesy as he gestured for the others to follow him. "Alright. I know a place next to a pretty good mall in the city centre. Teppanyaki to your liking?"

Asashi looked over at Sakamoto, "sure!" He then turned his head and smiled looking over at Amaterasu, "but she's not wrong,come disguises could come in handy."

"I'm not one to complain about food... but do we really need to go into a clothing store?" While it was true the points raised by his colleagues about blending in more with the rest of the citizens, Shinji only had one problem with that... He would probably have to wear clothes from the children's session. "I'm going to have to wear clothes for 12 year olds..." He commented right after lowered his head and it conveyed an aura of a sad nature.

"Unless you have another suggestion to keep our presence hidden," Amaterasu answered in a sharp manner looking over to Shinji.

"No... I've been content with wearing children's clothes..." Answered her sharpening, it didn't impact him that much, deep down he knew he would have to undergo this experience.

A warm laugh escaped Sakamoto's mouth at the hint of Shinji's doubts. Not one carrying the intention to mock, but rather to reassure. "You'll be fine. Don't worry about it." Turning away from the group, he raised his hand once more, making sure that all the attention was on him. "Let's move, shall we? I don't know about you, but I'd kill to kick back with some hot food right now."

Asashi was already distracted, looking off to the distance and taking on more sights. "You all talk too much. I'll be heading out on my own if you can't decide. There's plenty of food, clothes and time to kill until our work really starts." His voice didn't have any tone of disrespect, more like oblivious honesty. He then fixed his sandal's strap preparing to head out.

"H-hey, wait, don't go off on your own!" Amaterasu shouted running off after Asashi with a look of annoyance, "seriously, why can't this be a simple task?" Amaterasu sped walked up to him until she tripped over and stumbled onto him.

"Hahaha you okay?" Asashi asked as he looked up, his back on the floor while looking up at Amaterasu. He chuckled and places his hand on her head, "hope ya didn't hurt yourself now."

"I-I'm fine, should try and not wander off, could get lost," Amaterasu replied trying to keep her composure then noticed his hand on her head as her eyes widen, "anyways, we should find something to keep our identities hidden."

"Heh heh, yeah yeah." Asashi chuckled and looked at her. "We should probably get up, seeing as how you're ontop of me and all."

"Right," Amaterasu nodded looking back at him. Suddenly, the sound of clinking chains was heard as a young boy was running off screaming. , Amaterasu looking at the boy with a confused look then noticed it was a soul then a loud roar was heard in the distance as she turned around with wide eyes, "you hear that?"

"Hm?" Asashi murmured to himself and got back to his feet. "Indeed I did."

CRASH!

A gigantic hollow appeared before the two as it roared loudly! The creature glared down at them before it reached for Asashi!

"Get down!" Amaterasu warned pushing him aside blocking the hollow's attack with her Zanpakuto!

Asashi was thrown away as the attacked missed and he adjusted his footing, looking up at the massive beast. Letting out a loud whistle be jumped up in the hallows arm and ran up to it's shoulders. He cheerfully whistles and slammed a kick to it's face, throwing it's balance off, losing it's foot the monster staggered it's foot steps.

Asashi landed on the floor and looked over at Amaterasu, "this doesn't mean we're not getting food, cause I so am." He said as he drew his zanpakuto. "That thing is heavy, I didn't hold back from that kick and it only barely threw it's balance off."

"That's good to hear," Amaterasu commented before her eyes turned sharp, "now let's end this because honestly...I need to eat as well and when I don't eat...I become enraged. I'll weaken it while you aim for the head." Amaterasu quickly charged in aiming towards the hollow's leg slicing it causing it to let out a loud roar!

The smile remained on Sakamoto's face at the appearance of the hollow, though a splash of seriousness now contaminated it. Reaching for his Zanpakuto, he unsheathed it before holding it in front of him with one hand.

"Amplify."

On that command, Sakamoto released his grip on the hilt, the sheath wrapping around the entire sword until it had shrunk in size, merged with the sword. Holding back on to the tanto that was now in his hand, Sakamoto's eyes refocused back onto the hollow, in between Asashi and Amaterasu. He moved, his entire body boosted forward with his Shikai as the distance between him and the hollow was closed within an instant.

Opting for a heavy overhand right due to the need to avoid the buildings and people around them, his punch connected heftily with the hollow, the impact sending the hollow straight into the pavement. A loud bang came into existence with the punch along with a powerful shockwave, but Sakamoto's eyes remained locked onto the hollow as he quickly threw his tanto into his left hand before unleashing a downward slash, creating a large gap in the mask of the hollow.

In front of everyone, the hollow was no more, taken away by the purification process. It was intense, yet warm and reassuring with the notion that it would be able to find a new life now. Sakamoto stood, the seriousness remaining on his face as he turned to face the others once again.

"We need to scout the area to see if there are any more."

"Should be wise to do so," Amaterasu advised, "so far this was one, who knows if another will appear..."

Asashi was already splitting apart from the group, ignoring their words and looking over at all the people carrying food. "Soooo if we're gonna split up, can I get some food then?" He said showing how little he really needs an answer,preparing to snag some grub.

"I'm getting hungry too..." Taiyou spoke in agreement with Asashi, the rumbling of his stomach was making him more impatient.

"I...am too," Amaterasu replied her face turning red looking away embarrassingly.

"Right. I've entirely forgotten what we wanted to eat, originally." Sakamoto's tanto unwrapping, he sheathed his sword as he hung it over his back. "Let's go to the teppanyaki place next to the mall. Was that the original plan?"

"Yes, it was." The dwarf shinigami uttered, his voice was a bit gawky, but it was probably just the effect of his stomach wanting to be recharged.

"Let's head to where you mentioned a place for food first...please," Amaterasu begged in a soft tone a bit embarrassed as it was out of character of her.

Sakamoto allowed a large laugh as he put his hands around the shoulders of Amaterasu and Taiyou, dragging them forwards as they spoke. "Let's go."

Asashi was looking over at someone carrying a box full of treats and drooled. "Now that looks good!"

"Asashi! Move your tuchus this instant!" Amaterasu snapped while being dragged away, "and get some of those treats too pleeeeease!"

"Yup," Asashi replied before taking off running. Where! He jumped off the roof and snagged some of the treats for himself before taking off running. "I'll catch up to you guys!"

## Hell Awaits

As the day began to turn to dusk, everyone was able to replenish themselves, obtain their attire to hide their identities and were able to find Sakamoto's home without issue. While resting, Amaterasu couldn't help but wonder about the last hollow attack from earlier. She looked up at the ceiling as she tried to fall asleep until from outside a loud roar echoed. Amaterasu shot up as she looked up listening to the roaring noises as her eyes widen.

"*They're here*," Amaterasu thought to herself as she grabbed her Zanpakto.

Sakamoto turned his head on the emergence of the roar, putting his ear against the pillow to try and drown it out. A loud yawn escaped his mouth as he pulled his blanket up, covering his exposed neck. Night terrors have been squatters in his life since childhood. His ears might say otherwise, but his brain was sure that this was no different.

Taiyou was still asleep, sleeping like a stone. He was probably having good dreams as when he would lowly say. "Marshmallows..." His face moved through the size of the pillow.

Sakamoto sat up from his bed, his eyes still blinking from the tiredness of just waking up. *Loud noises, loud noises.* Taking the blanket off of himself, he stood, his legs starting to carry himself into the direction of the noises.

*So much for night terrors, huh.*

Taiyou woke up. His eyes were red from being awakened in the middle of the night. "So much for my dream..." He said in a half whimpering voice, regretting having lost his dream. Still, with a face that showed fatigue, he got out of bed to get the sword that belonged to him. "I should wash my face first..."

The same roar echoed again as it was heard once more, this time much louder than previously causing the area to shake.

"It's drawing near, we should head out now," Amaterasu ordered picking her Zanpakto up.

"Mmm this tastes so good!" Asashi commented as he continued to much on some dangos, taking everyone else's lead and raising to his feet. He drew out his blade without taking a pause from eating and looked forward.

Leaving the restroom, with an expression more worthy of an 'introduction', the smallest of the quartet approached his colleagues with his zanpakuto in hand, still trembling somewhat because he was a little wary of enemies who were too strong. "Question... how powerful are these hollows?" He asked, but from the level of the question it was probably easy to see that his mind was still 'coming back down to earth'.