A/N: Hello again, everyone! Here's a little one-shot (albeit, a long one) I thought of. The aftermath of Kaien's death. Enjoy!
What We Did for Honour
The silence was unnerving. They had led her in here, blindfolded, and then left her. Even though the cloth was still wrapped around her eyes tightly, Rukia could see and feel the bright lights over head, scrutinizing her every move from above. Sweat began to trickle down her forehead, her nerves preventing her from raising a hand to wipe it away.
Suddenly, the blindness was taken away and Rukia was left blinking, trying to regain her vision. After the initial glare, her eyes began to adjust, she could make out shapes. Large rectangles, some sort of raised platforms, she guessed. Atop these sat strange squares, each with something perched behind it. Something human. Each square had something scrawled on it. A number. Only then did Rukia realize where she was.
"Central 46…", she breathed to herself, dread filling her being. They had brought her to the Central 46, the ruling voices of the Soul Society. These men and women decided all decisions involving Souls, the Soul Society, and Soul Reapers. Rukia's heart sank. If she was here, there was only one reason why.
"Rukia Kuchiki!", boomed a voice. It was male, but due to the set up of the screens and the echo in the hall, Rukia couldn't distinguish which had spoken. "You stand before us under the charge of murder. Murder of your superior and Lieutenant of Thirteenth Company, Kaien Shiba. How do you plead?"
Rukia couldn't bring herself to look up, much less speak. What was there to say? Kaien was dead. By her hands. She knew it, they knew it. Why hold a trial? A voice from behind halted her train of thought.
"Not guilty!", spoke the calm, but strong voice of Jushiro Ukitake. Rukia started, turning to look at the voice. He stepped into the light, just over Rukia's shoulder. His face was reserved, expressing no emotion, but a certain confidence could be made out.
The Captain placed a gentle hand on Rukia's shoulder. "Courage, Rukia. All will be alright.", murmured Ukitake, giving her shoulder a squeeze. A swell of hope blossomed in Rukia where there was none. Somehow, just by being here, Captain Ukitake had given here that.
The voice spoke once more. "And who might you be?"
Ukitake stepped forward, placing his body in front of Rukia, blocking the eyes of the members of the 46 in front of her. "Jushiro Ukitake, Captain of Thirteenth Company and Miss Kuchiki's superior. I shall be speaking on her behalf. We plead not guilty. Miss Kuchiki acted in self defence."
A new voice spoke out from the circle. This one was female, and somehow, this voice sent chills down Rukia's spine. "'Self defence?' Ha! What proof have you?"
"Patience, #36. I think it would be best if you let Captain Ukitake speak first.", said the first voice. "Please, Captain, continue."
Ukitake nodded. "Thank you. Dear Sages and Judges, 24 hours ago, I dispatched a small force of Soul Reapers from my own company to dispose of a Hollow. This group was lead by my Third Seat officer, Miyako Shiba, Lieutenant Shiba's wife. Unfortunately, the whole force was killed, Miyako included. This caused the Lieutenant to become enraged, and asked if he could dispose of the Hollow himself."
Ukitake paused, his mind wandering back, to only hours ago. "I agreed. I joined Kaien's hunt for the Hollow, as did Rukia here. We found the Hollow fine. Lieutenant Shiba engaged it in combat, and the fight was going very well for him. That is, until the Hollow displayed the first of it's abilities: it dissolved Kaien's zanpaku-to, Nejibana, simply by touching it."
A swell of voices arose from those gathered around them, shock and surprise in all of them. The female voice, #36, was the first to speak out. "Dissolved his zanpaku-to? Impossible! No Hollow has that power!"
This did not seem to phase the Captain one bit. "It's true, it has never been seen before, but it is what happened. I believe it was some new species of Hollow, not seen before. After this happened, Kaien could not hold off the Hollow, upon which it displayed it's second ability: the Hollow possessed Lieutenant Kaien."
An even louder murmur arose, quieted only when Ukitake continued his story. His voice was becoming thicker, the memories coating his voice with grief. "The Hollow had total control of Kaien's body, able to move his body, his voice, and his memories as he saw fit. I ordered Rukia to run, to protect herself, while I held him off. She did as I ordered, but I could not hold him, as my illness struck and rendered me unable to fight."
There was utter silence in the hall, no one spoke as Ukitake tried to finish. "At my moment of weakness, the Hollow took the opportunity to strike against Rukia. It was then that…" His voice broke, unable to continue. His shoulders shook, his grief overtaking everything else.
Rukia was in tears. The visions of that night too vivid to ever be forgotten. Kaien's body, possessed by the Hollow running at her, a look of hunger in it's empty eyes. Rukia, raising her blade, and bringing it between them, piercing through her mentor's body.
"That was when I killed Kaien." Her voice trembled and wavered, but the silence in the room made it carry to the four corners of the hall. No one spoke. Not for one minute. Not for two. Only after two minutes did the voice of #36 spoke once more.
"So, you did kill Lieutenant Shiba? You admit to it?" Her shrill voice, the accusing tone. Rukia never wanted hurt anyone as bad as she did now.
Ukitake then found his voice, speaking out louder than before. "She struck down the Hollow that possessed Kaien as it was the only way to save herself and the Lieutenant. The Hollow had possessed his soul, not his body. Taking his life was the only way to save him." He dropped his head, the next thing said barely above a whisper. "That is no way for a person to live. Kaien would not have wanted that."
The booming male voice spoke once more, addressing Rukia for the first time since the beginning of the trial. "Rukia Kuchiki. You and Captain Ukitake were the only witnesses to this event. Do you agree with everything he has said?"
Rukia nodded, a lump that had formed in her throat preventing her from talking.
"Fellow Sages and Judges, you have heard the evidence. It is time to decide." Voices began to call out, each giving their vote. The clamour was too much, Rukia couldn't make heads or tails of which way the decision was going. Only when the voices had quieted did the voice speak once more.
"The Central 46 have decided. Based on the account presented by Captain Ukitake and evidence gathered at the scene, Rukia Kuchiki has been found not guilty in the murder of Kaien Shiba."
Relief washed over Rukia, her shoulders relaxing for the first time. Rukia bowed her head. "Thank you. Thank you so much.", she said, trying to project her gratitude through her voice. Despite this, Rukia still felt guilt in the pit of her stomach. A feeling that was sure to never go away. I killed him. I killed Kaien.
"Miss Kuchiki, you may step down. Our next issue is with the Captain. You may remain if you wish.", echoed the male voice. Rukia stepped back, allowing the focus to land on Ukitake.
"Captain Ukitake, now that we have determined the nature of the murder, we must move onto the next step: replacing your lost Lieutenant. The spot must not be left open. As you said earlier, though, you have lost your Third Seat as well." This was a new voice, also male, but kinder, more gentle.
Ukitake swept his head from side to side, his long, pale hair swaying across his back, his eyes looking at all he could see. "Yes, it's true. I have a request for the 46, though. I would like the position of Lieutenant to remain unoccupied."
"Are you serious? That's against the rules! We can't allow that!", yelled the now familiar voice of #36.
"#36, I will ask you to be quiet, and I will ask it only once.", spoke the gentle voice, this time lined with malice. #36 didn't speak again. "Please, proceed."
"Thank you, sir. I ask that the spot of Lieutenant be left unoccupied in my Company. I ask this out of respect for Kaien, Miyako, the Shiba family, their honour and the honour of Thirteenth Company. This is the first time that a seated officer has been killed in years, and someone as beloved as Kaien was. As a sign of respect, I request this of you." Ukitake then fell to his knees, and bowed, his forehead almost touching the ground.
The first male voice was back, his voice calmer than before. "This is a noble request, Captain. But we cannot allow a Company to go without two head officials. It's just unheard of, and could cause trouble if we were ever to come under attack."
Ukitake rose into a sitting position, a smirk on his thin lips. "I have a solution to this. As some of you might have been aware of, before the deaths of Kaien and Miyako, there were two Fourth Seats in my Company, Kiyone Kotetsu and Sentaro Kotsubaki."
Almost after their names were mentioned, Kiyone and Sentaro were there, standing on either side of their Captain at attention. "I propose that these two be promoted to the position of Third Seat, and the both of them together shall act as my Lieutenant. They are ready and able, and have expressed their desire to serve as such.", said Ukitake.
"I see. Fourth Seat Kotetsu and Fourth Seat Kotsubaki, is this true? Are you ready to do as Captain Ukitake says? To work together and act as his Lieutenant? Are you ready for the challenges?", said the kind voice of the second man.
"Yessir! We are ready to serve Captain Ukitake in anyway possible!", bellowed Sentaro, his eyes never leaving the spot in front of him.
"We shall act in Lieutenant Kaien's stead and eagerly await any challenge that comes our way!", came the reply from little Kiyone. This was the first time Rukia had ever seen them agree on anything.
A quiet followed these proclamations. The sound of papers shuffling, could be heard, and then a soft chuckle. "Well, Captain, it seems to be your day today," said the kind voice. "Your request has been approved. You and your subordinates may leave. Your affairs have been organized."
Ukitake stood once more, his shoulders slumping from the release of pressure on them. "Thank you, all. I wish you good day." He bowed, Kiyone and Sentaro following, and, after a moment of hesitation, Rukia as well. Without another word, Ukitake turned, his newly appointed Third Seats closely behind.
Only after they had exited the area and were safely back in the barracks of Thirteenth Company did Rukia approach Ukitake. "Uh, Captain Ukitake? Might I ask you a question?"
Ukitake turned. His face was at ease again, a wry smile in place on his face. "Of course, Rukia. What would you like to know?"
Rukia glance down, trying to organize her thoughts, before she looked her Captain in the eyes. "Why did you request something like that? Sentaro or Kiyone would make a fine Lieutenant. Why leave the spot vacant?", she questioned.
Ukitake straightened up, having been bent over to look at Rukia, and gazed out towards the horizon. Rukia followed his gaze, but couldn't find what he was looking for. Maybe a distant memory?
"There are things in this world that must be done, Rukia. They may not be easy, and they may hurt a lot, but they must be done anyway. These are the things we do for those we love. These are the things we do out of respect. These are the things we do for honour."
Ukitake looked down once more at his subordinate, his eyes meeting hers. "Once you understand that, Rukia, then you will understand why I did what I did." Without saying another word to her, Jushiro Ukitake turned and walked away.