Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach and I am not receiving any monetary compensation for this work. This is solely for amusement purposes.
Author's Note: This is a tag for the Shinigami Golden short at the end of Bleach 238. If you don't know, Shunsui made a wrong turn in the Fourth Squad barracks and accidently walked into Unohana's bedroom (while she was still in it!). This picks up on the aftermath.
Mistaken
"Kyoraku-taichou, why did you enter Unohana-taichou's bedroom if you were lost?" Isane asked as she tended to the Captain's black eye.
"It was a foolish assumption, really," Shunsui replied. "I thought it looked like her office door. Clearly, I was mistaken."
"That seems like a rather large error," Ukitake commented. "Even though we're in another squad's barracks, it is customary to keep sleeping quarters away from the offices."
"Like I said, I must have made a wrong turn somewhere," Shunsui replied wincingly as Isane applied ointment.
"Apologies, taichou, but what made you think that was her office?" Isane asked. "I am not aware of you having been inside it before."
"I have not, but last week I was walking by the barracks when I saw Kuchiki-taichou with Unohana-taichou coming out of her office," Shunsui explained. "Being concerned with Kuchiki-taichou, I met him at the entrance to the barracks and asked him why he had been to see her."
"What did he say?" Ukitake asked.
"He said that he had been to see her for Rukia about a personal matter. That is why he had been with Unohana-taichou privately in her office. Being that he was a Kuchiki, I chose not to press the matter," Shunsui replied.
"What kind of personal matter, and why didn't Rukia inform me?" Ukitake asked.
"Female problems," Shunsui answered with a grin. "Nanao has them occasionally, so I understood the need for discretion."
After recovering from his brief moment of shock, Ukitake said, "It is unfortunate how that circumstance may have led to this."
"Indeed, . . . ," Shunsui said as he continued to converse with Ukitake, but neither of them seemed to notice that Isane was now deep in thought. She remembered that day from the previous week. It was a day that both she and Unohana had chosen to catch up on their backlog of paperwork. While they had spent most of the day in Unohana's private office, Isane did remember Unohana excusing herself for about an hour for a private appointment. When her captain returned, Isane asked about the appointment, and Unohana said that she had indeed seen Byakuya Kuchiki concerning a personal matter with Rukia. The confirmation of the reason that Unohana had been seen with Byakuya, however, was not the reason for Isane to be lost in thought. It was the confirmation of the location, since she had been in the office all day and had not seen the Sixth Squad captain.
Just as the ramifications of her realization were beginning to materialize, Isane's thoughts were cut off by the gentle words of her captain, "Were you finished tending to Kyoraku-taichou, Isane?"
Looking to her left, Isane saw Unohana standing the open door to the treatment room. Isane stiffened as she did not know how long her captain had been standing there. By the look that Unohana was giving her, however, it was probably the whole time.
"Hai, Taichou!" Isane said as she quickly gathered up her medical supplies and rigidly took her place beside her captain. Shunsui and Ukitake likewise stood up rigidly under Unohana's withering glare.
"Since no more treatment is required, there is no longer any reason for either of you captains to remain away from your squads, is there?" Unohana asked with all due weight to her question.
"Only that I apologize for my earlier intrusion," Shunsui replied with a bow.
"As you have said, you made a wrong turn," Unohana said with a stiff smile. "It is unlikely that you will ever make that mistake again."
Beads of sweat formed on the brow of the normally non-chalant captain of the Eighth Squad. Taking his queue from Unohana, Shunsui hastily bid the Fourth Squad captain a good day and left the room followed by Ukitake. The two male captains then strode purposefully towards the exit without looking back.
"Isane," Unohana said as she watched the captain's retreat. "I believe that Kyoraku-taichou has suffered enough embarrassment, don't you?"
Stiffening, Isane replied, "Hai, Taichou!"
"Then it would be unwise to repeat anything about this incident to anyone else, wouldn't it?" Unohana asked still looking down the hall.
"Hai, Taichou!" Isane repeated rigidly.
"I'm glad that you understand," Unohana said with a nod. "Continue with your duties, and I will see you later."
With that, the Fourth Squad commander walked down the hall in same direction as Shunsui and Ukitake had with all the grace and power of a woman of her status. Isane watched her leave before letting out the breath she didn't even realize she had been holding.
Isane understood. She understood that Shunsui Kyoraku had indeed seen Byakuya Kuchiki and her captain leaving a room in the Fourth Squad barracks last week. She understood that Byakuya had indeed told Shunsui that he had been in Unohana's office. She understood that Shunsui had indeed recognized that same door from the previous week. She understood that when Shunsui entered Unohana's bedroom believing it was her office, he was not mistaken.
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