"This is the trial of Karin Kurosaki," a booming voice echoed through the office. Captains were lined up parallel to each other, a young girl standing in the center, hands chained and kido holding her in place. Dark hair covered her face, shinigami robes billowing around her form, empty sheath strapped to a hunched back.

Oh shit, was Karin's only thought before cursing Urahara with every four letter word she knew. This was all his fault.

Flashback_

Kick. Walk. Kick. Walk. Kick Walk. Karin followed the rhythm, toeing a little rock down the street. Her backpack clunked against her back, full of useless books. The uniform she wore was a sailor fuko, making her subconsciously pluck at the skirt with a scowl of anger. Kick. Walk. Kick. Walk.

It was late afternoon, the sky several shades of beautiful. Oranges spilled into pinks that floated into violets, a pretty setting that would make anyone stop and stare. But Karin Kurosaki was not anyone right now. Right now, she was a pissed off teenager.

That day had started with her alarm clock not going off and Yuzu waking her up ten minutes before school began. Of course, the little brunette twin was not to blame, she had been trying to wake up her better half for ten minutes before that.

So, Karin had run around the house at top speed, getting ready with time to spare. Which was good since the middle child got stuck behind a couple in the hallway that made her late for class, stupid PDA. Mr. Honda wouldn't listen to her though. She caught up on sleep in detention.

And now, Karin was walking home. Usually, the avid soccer player would be playing with her friends, but detention had run so long that the wimps had stopped. When she arrived, the field was empty. Worst of all, her soccer ball had gone missing. Perfect.

So, now the fuming teen was making her way home, where a screaming father probably waited. This was her third detention. At least it hadn't been because she threw a beaker at anyone…this time. Really, teachers should be able to teach, not just-

A rumble tore Karin from her thoughts. Spinning around, she felt a small pulsing of power coming from around the corner. Without another thought, the young Kurosaki sped of, rounding the corner with a determined expression. Pausing, she looked at the thing in front of her, wondering how the hell she could take it down.

The hollow was huge. It looked like a blob of black with a white mask in the middle. Walls surrounded the sides of the street, blocking anyone's view onto the deserted path. But at that moment, the monster was baring down on a child, curled up in the fetal position, shaking. Anger coursed through Karin.

Bending over, the girl scooped up a few loose rocks from the road. Weighing them in her small hands, she separated a large jagged one from the bunch. Swinging back her arm, she heaved it forward with all her strength, putting power into it. Playing soccer didn't mean you had a bad arm, it just meant you didn't use your hands a lot. And Karin's aim was true.

With a roar, the hollow turned to his challenger. Another rock flew through the air, slamming into it's mask, cracking it down the middle. Another roar. The thing was charging now. The petite teen stood her ground. As the thing approached, Karin dodged out of the way. Trying to run toward the still curled up child, a sting of pain went up her arm, making a hiss escape stiff lips. With a jerk, her movement was halted.

The hollow growled, a shadow tentacle wrapped around his attackers arm. With another jerk, it brought the raven haired female closer, drooling at the potential of consuming so much reiatsu. But the chance never came.

Karin had enough, it was time to go. As the hollow leaned down, she tried to squirm away from the grip. And then she felt it, that spike of pain as something pushed around in her arm. The bastard had stabbed her, digging it's claws into her flesh.

A lump formed in the girl's throat, holding in a scream as her right arm went numb with pain. Mind writhing in burning agony, she ignored it.. The hollow was too close by now, she had to do something.

Screwing up her courage, Karin twisted around to face the thing. A sweaty rock was gripped in her left hand. She threw it. The hollow brushed aside the hit easily. Sucking in a breath, Karin moved into action. As the thing's face bent down to her level, she realized the mask was about her height. Pulling back her foot, the small female put all her power into the kick, sending it flying at the monster.

With a screech of pain, the white mask shattered, destroying the nightmare. So simple. But practice made perfect, and the soccer player knew that too well. This was the fourth hollow she took out that week.

Another shot of pain as the sound of dripping came to alert ears. Raven hair fell to the side as a head glanced down. The gray uniform was ruined. Three punctures were made in the fabric, blood spilling out of the lightly muscled biceps. Blood dripped from delicate fingers, falling on the cement to leave even more stains. Great, and that was her last uniform.

Sniffling caught Karin's attention as she mentally bemoaned the stains her life's blood was making. She turned to the child, still sitting on the ground, eyes wide. His lips trembled, brown hair sticking up in odd places. He was sorta cute, in a vulnerable helpless way.

"Ar-Are you okay, lady?" the kid stammered out. He looked no more than nine. And already seeing hollows, like Ichigo, Karin thought sadly. She wondered if he'd grow up like her brother, seeing things no one else did, always unhappy, always leaving.

"Fine," was her simple response. "You should get home, to your family. They're probably worried sick." Kami knew she was. Ichi-nii couldn't see hollows anymore, but that didn't stop him from getting involved with a whole other adventure. If only there was a way for her to eradicate everything dangerous from the world so he wouldn't keep searching for trouble. But that was impossible. All Karin could hope for was her family's safety.

The little boy just nodded, though, scampering off a second later. Karin just watched the sun set, her wound matching the sky. A white sheet seemed to cover her mind, no thoughts, just quiet.

"My," a voice spoke from behind the transfixed girl. "You do have a way with children." Karin didn't turn around, she knew who it was. "I told you, if you needed any help, at all, come to me." The last words were spoken softly, concern laced under the usually happy tone.

The Kurosaki turned around. "I'm fine." Her voice was firm as she stared at the shopkeeper, a small black cat sitting on the wall behind him. "Your hollow repellent is the thing that's not working. If anything, it's attracting more of them." A scowl formed on the wounded girl's face as her vision began to blur.

The cat perked up, pouncing down to the pair. "Your reiatsu is what brings them, it's like an all you can eat buffet with no end in sight." The animal calmly watched as the child stumbled forward, color drained from her tan face. "But that isn't important. You need to be bandaged up, then we'll talk." As the strange creature finished her speech, the teen lurched forward, hand pressed to the still bleeding wound.

"I'm fine," Karin whispered, eyelids dropping as her stomach churned. The world was slanting in odd directions, why couldn't it just stand still?

Urahara snorted. "Sure, kid," he responded.

Before his injured companion could complain, the ex shinigami scooped her up bridal style. A growl of complaint was all that came before she passed out. Kisuke scrunched up his nose. "Aw man, she's getting blood on my clothes." Yoruichi rolled her eyes before the two shunpo'd away.