That Which Was Lost

Ch. 0

Its black wings whispered through the air, the maroon tips on the hell butterfly's wings glistening in the sun. It gracefully fluttered throughout the Seireitei, overtop the mountains of rubble that had once served as apartments for the shinigami and grand palaces for the nobles. The sounds of hammers and saws filled the air, occasionally accompanied by the barking commands of those who had been assigned to lead the restoration process in their district.

It continued its ascent, floating past first the eighth and then ninth squad barracks. They still needed moderate repairs, but the butterfly wove in between the shinigami who kneeled on the polished wooden floors, reinforcing the walls with lumber and applying plaster in order to return the walls to their original state.

It finally flew through an open window that led into squad ten's main office, coming to rest on the outstretched finger of Tōshirō Hitsugaya as he sat at his desk. The hell butterfly slowly flapped its wings once, twice, and then became still as it relayed its silent information to him.

Tōshirō's eyes widened, and his voice was full of disbelief as he said, "What?"

The door to his office suddenly slammed open, and there was a flurry of orange hair and lip gloss as Rangiku Matsumoto stormed into the room, another hell butterfly perched on her shoulder as she shouted,

"Captain, have you heard?"

Tōshirō hurled a book at her, hitting Rangiku smack in the middle of her face and knocking her completely off her feet and down to the ground. His fists shook in irritation, his left eye twitching as he seethed,

"How many times do I have to tell you to knock before entering?"

He sighed as Rangiku tried to recover, raking his fingers through his spiky white hair in frustration. His turquoise blue eyes looked out the window beside him, and they narrowed when he saw the first squad's barracks looming in the distance.

"It appears as though Head Captain Kyōraku has found the eighth division a new captain."

~0~

"A new captain?"

Jūshirō froze in the act of trimming the bonsai tree, his green eyes instantly becoming contemplative as he processed the news. Rukia kneeled behind him on the well-kept lawn of the garden, and a nearby bamboo shishiodoshi filled with water before tipping over, the sound of the bamboo hitting the stones echoing throughout the gardens of Ugendō.

"Yes, sir," she confirmed. "I received the news approximately twenty minutes ago, followed by an invitation for you to join a welcoming party being held in order to honor the newly appointed captain later this evening."

He mulled over this information, using the trimming shears to cut off a few withered branches of the bonsai. He was rather taken off guard by the news, especially since it was obvious that Shunsui had failed to seek counsel with any other captains – himself especially - regarding the matter. As a matter of fact, since being promoted to Head Captain, this was the first decision that Shunsui had made without conferring with him, first.

"I wonder who it could be?" Jūshirō pondered aloud.

"Before coming to find you, I met with all the lieutenants and asked them the same question," Rukia informed, still kneeling behind him. "None of them had any idea that a new captain had been selected, and no one from any of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads has received a promotion of any kind for over a month."

Jūshirō turned around and motioned for her to rise, and there was a radiant smile on his face as he said, "I'm sure Shunsui had a reason for not informing any of the other captains of his decision. If he believes that the new captain is capable of fulfilling the demands of such a position, then I will put my faith in whoever it is, also."

"But, Captain," she protested in alarm, "we are just now beginning to make reparations after the assault launched by the Vandenreich. Isn't it rather careless of the Head Captain to appoint a captain at his own discretion, instead of asking for approval from the other captains as well?"

Jūshirō walked past his weary lieutenant, but he stopped long enough to place a reassuring hand on top of her head and ruffle her dark hair, "There's no need to worry, Rukia. This is a time of rebirth for the Soul Society, and we can only go forward."

He removed his hand from her head and continued to walk toward the house, waving goodbye with the pruning shears still in his hand, "Well, I might as well go prepare for the welcoming party."

~0~

Shunsui had transformed his enormous office into an elegant dining area.

Every desk and filing cabinet had been removed from the room so that a large rectangular dining table was all that stood in its center, surrounded by twelve matching chairs. Silver candelabras had been set across the top of the table, the candles already lit and their lavender scent wafting throughout the room. The screens along the front wall of the room had been pulled back, revealing the beautiful orange and pink tints of the sky as the sun set behind Sōkyoku Hill, creating a spectacular backdrop for the welcoming dinner.

A single young woman was hard at work setting the table as the captains arrived alone or in groups. Her nimble fingers arranged delicate china and expensive silverware, making sure that every knife rested perfectly straight on the ivory placemats before each chair. She used a damp rag to wipe each bowl and plate, and once she was finished she leaned back and pushed her long wavy brown hair out of her face, the determined set of her bright green eyes expressing how hard she was trying to make everything perfect.

Shinji Hirako's eyes followed the server's every movement, and when she disappeared from the room he leaned forward in his chair and rested his chin in the palm of his hand. Although he sounded bored, there was a business like look on his face when he asked the one question that all the others had been asking themselves the entire day,

"So who is this new captain?"

Rōjūrō, Kensei, Tōshirō, Sui-Fēng, and Byakuya glanced toward the Visored, the same look etched onto all of their faces- disapproval.

"Oh?" Shinji's eyebrow cocked. "So no one has any idea who it is? Not even Stealth Forces? Or the nobles?"

Sui-Fēng crossed her arms across her chest, obviously irritated by his accusatory words, "None of us knew about the new captain until late this morning, and that's hardly enough time for Stealth Forces to obtain any reliable information. All I know for certain is that the new captain was never a member of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads."

"And no noble clans have submitted a request to have one of their own become a captain," Byakuya added.

Shinji sighed and leaned back in his chair, obviously displeased by the conclusion they were all able to draw: "So Shunsui really did choose a new captain without seeking counsel with any of us."

"Yikes!" Shunsui Kyōraku breezed through the doorway, casually strolling into the room with his pink kimono trailing behind him, "You look like it's the end of the world, Shinji. If I would have known you guys would be so sour about this, I would have told you months in advance."

"So that's how long you've been considering this person?" Shinji asked. "Just a few months?"

"Not at all," Shunsui waved him off, taking a seat at the head of the table. He was immediately approached by the female server who poured sakē into his cup, and she respectfully served him from the left, paying extra attention to the fact that his right eye was covered by a black patch.

"Why, thank you," his overly flirtatious smile caused the others to grimace, but the server simply dismissed herself from his presence in order to circle around the table, pouring sakē for the others and taking requests for water or some other type of beverage, then leaving the room.

"Actually, Shinji," Shunsui addressed him once more, "I've been considering this particular person for well over a year. It's just that they needed a little help…refining their skills. That, plus I had to do a lot of convincing in order to make them accept."

"Convincing?" Tōshirō's eyes narrowed. "If they didn't want to become a captain, why did you pursue them for so long?"

"Because I believe that they will be a valuable asset for the Soul Society," he replied matter-of-factly.

"How will that be possible" - the voice was almost a snarl, causing everyone to look and see Mayuri Kurotsuchi standing in the doorway – "when the new captain didn't even attend the shinigami academy?"

There was a collective, sharp inhale of breath from almost everyone in the room. The effects of Mayuri's words seemed to please him, causing a sadistic smile to spread across his face as he glared at an unaffected Shunsui.

"I have been searching through databases all morning long," Mayuri informed. "Not only did I go through the files of all the shinigami currently serving in the Thirteen Court Guard Squads, but I also went through every single file for those who are currently enrolled, or will enroll, in the academy. And do you know what I found? Nothing. There is no one capable of using Bankai except those who are already seated officers, so who, pray tell, did you manage to get Central 46 to approve to become cap- Oof!"

Mayuri was shoved out of the doorway, causing him to stumble before regaining his balance in order to cast a lethal glare toward Kenpachi Zaraki, but he only regarded Mayuri as though he was nothing more than a gnat buzzing around his head,

"Why are you standing in the door blabbering? Let's just get this over with and eat already."

He walked past Mayuri, leaving him trembling with anger until a large shadow overcast his entire form, making him glance to the side and see that Sajin Komamura and Jūshirō had entered the room.

"There is no need to get upset," he advised. "After all this time, you should know that Zaraki lacks respect, not just for you, but for everyone."

The three shinigami finally joined the others at the table, leaving the seat directly to Shunsui's right – the one reserved for the new captain– empty. The young server reentered the room, balancing a large silver tray on the palm of her left hand, using her right to set plates filled with steaming food before the captains. The scent wafting from each of them was simply mouthwatering, and when Shunsui picked up his fork he surprised everyone.

Jushiro was actually the one to speak up, saying, "Surely we aren't going to begin eating without the guest of honor?"

With the tips of his fingers, the Head Captain pulled the brim of his hat down over his face so that all they could see was his mischievous grin, "Who says they aren't here, already?"

"Quit monkeying around!" Mayuri slammed his hands down against the table, finally at his wits end with the entire situation. "You summoned us here – made us drop everything we were in the middle of doing – just so that we could meet this so-called new captain. Not only that, but you tossed this unknown shinigami into our ranks without even so much as a single request for approval from any of us. And, now that I've taken the time out of my busy schedule to acknowledge this newcomer, they don't even have the decency to show?"

Air whistled through Mayuri's teeth as he bared them like a mad dog, his beady golden eyes shaking in their sockets as he glared at Shunsui. The captains silently observed the battle of words, the female server appearing to be the only one capable of moving as she quietly made her rounds, filling the silent captains' glasses with sakē as tension filled the room.

Shunsui silently regarded the Head of Research and Development for a moment, and then he said, "Well, I'm sorry that you feel that way, Kurotsuchi. But, you see-"

"I'm done with this nonsense!" Mayuri roared, rising from the table but slamming into the young woman who had been pouring his drink. She gasped as the bottle slipped from her hand, shattering against the wooden floor and drenching the bottom of Mayuri's white haori with sakē.

He finally exploded, screaming 'YOU STUPID WENCH' as he reared his hand back to strike her. But she caught his fist in the palm of her hand, digging her fingernails into his white flesh and stunning the entire room into silence. Her bright green eyes were narrowed as she glared at Mayuri, watching how he scrutinized her as his own golden eyes roved over her body from the black boots and trouser-like hakama pants that she wore to the simple black tank top tucked underneath the waistband. A long, delicate silver chain hung from her neck, the small triangular pendant dangling off the edge of her breasts causing Mayuri's eyes to widen when he saw the insignia for squad eight engraved into the metal.

"What I was trying to tell you, Mayuri," Shunsui smirked at the scene before him, "was that she has been here the entire time. She wanted to prepare dinner for us tonight as a show of respect."

Mayuri tried to pull his hand away, but the intent to kill was written all over his face, causing the young woman to sink her fingernails even deeper into his skin and render his sword arm immobile. His eyes narrowed, his voice a lethal whisper as he threatened her,

"You will unhand me."

Blood began to seep from the crescent shaped holes she was cutting into his flesh, but her gaze didn't waver as she simply gazed back at him, saying, "I might consider it once you wipe that look off your face. That, and you also need to apologize for striking out at a helpless woman because of your own stupidity."

Mayuri's free hand reached for his sword just as she balled her own hand into a fist, aiming to punch him directly between the eyes until someone stepped in-between them, placing one hand on the hilt of Mayuri's sword and wrapping the other around her wrist, stopping her blow in mid-flight.

"Now, now. Let's not be fighting amongst ourselves like this," Jūshirō spoke calmly, a disarming smile on his face as he separated them.

Air whooshed from the woman's lungs as though she had been hit in the chest, her eyes wide as she beheld the captain of Squad Thirteen. Her expression was a mixture of shock and something else – was it fear? – as she slowly looked him over from head to toe, her gaze lingering on his long white hair before averting to where his hand encircled her wrist.

An intense, unexplainable burning sensation radiated from where his skin touched hers, causing her to yank her arm from his grip, the confused look on her face growing more intense as she cautiously stepped backward before turning around and running out of the room.

Shunsui sighed, closing his one good eye and pinching the bridge of his nose as he mumbled, "Well, that was a disaster."

X0x0X

A short chapter, but this is just so that I can test the waters. I've only written Naruto fanfics prior to this, so please forgive the rough edges of this story. Thanks!