Sakura Osanago
By Spunky0ne
(Just to be clear, this is not the version of the story readers may have read before. I have advanced the timeline to after Aizen's fall, so although I will be including some scenes that were in the original, this reworked version includes scenes with Aizen in Muken and interactions and events that were not in the first version. It is actually going to be a very different story. Cheers, and happy reading! Spunky)
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Chapter 1: Disillusioned
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I had forgotten you…and it was as you wished it. But I felt the beating of your heart beneath my skin. I felt the weight of your eyes and the touch of your hand. Despite our best intentions, when your heart cried out, mine answered…and all of our illusions were shattered.
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Deep in the bowels of the shinigami prison, the eighth level that was known as Muken, Aizen Sousuke rested quietly in his bonds. He was already used to the darkness that embraced him, one that, even if his eyes were not covered, would have persisted all around him. And he barely noticed the chill that no longer made his body shiver or the intense hunger that his burgeoning power caused in his belly, even beneath the heavy seals.
The seals only hold my power in close to my body. They do not restrict it in any other way.
That fact left the traitor shinigami with the ability to comfort himself endlessly with his own illusions.
I have watched other prisoners here lose their minds. And if I had not the power that I do, I also would have probably gone mad…if I wasn't mad already. That is why I am here, is it not? I went mad and tried to overthrow the king. But was it madness? Was it fate? Even I don't know exactly what drove me. But I have plenty of time to think about it…20,000 years, to be exact.
The Central 46 sages are a wonder…so self involved and corrupt. Don't they realize? Time has no meaning for an immortal. And I have become an immortal. Still, I would be terribly bored while waiting out all of this time if I didn't have a distraction.
He breathed slowly, focusing on the image that he used every day to invoke his waking dream. He conjured the slender, pale form of his lover, remembering the long, silken black hair, dark, brooding eyes and the usually frowning mouth that had rarely yielded a smile. He remembered the lovely breath of sakura that always radiated about the man, the sound of his smooth, deep voice and the touch of his soft hand. The illusion sprang up easily, and Aizen Sousuke felt himself escape the darkness and the lack of stimulation. Instead, he laid in a soft, warm bed in a well apportioned suite in the soul king's palace…and he wore the crown that he had so fruitlessly sought.
I will wear the crown one day, he promised himself.
He felt a shaft of sunlight fall across his bed and without opening his eyes, he stretched out a hand to touch the man lying next to him. There was a soft intake of breath, then the other man turned without waking and curled into his arms. He opened his eyes then and smiled contentedly at the beautiful sight that met them. Tumbled wisps of raven-colored hair trickled onto Byakuya's comely face and the noble's lips smiled.
"Byakuya."
Byakuya's dark eyes opened and fixed on him. And with the touch of those deliciously deep grey orbs, everything else around them ceased to matter.
"I hunger for you."
"When do you not?" the noble answered, looking amused.
His hand threw back the covers, but before he could move to make his conquest, a flash of bright light erupted from within Byakuya's strangely swollen abdomen.
"Sousuke!"
Aizen sucked in a surprised breath, feeling the icy coldness and dread emptiness of Muken wrap around him again.
That has never happened before.
Strange…
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There were sharp, bony hands everywhere, holding on to Byakuya, carrying him suspended above the sand. The icy wind whipped around them, sending the sand stinging painfully against his skin. As he struggled, he could see the stars and the shine of the crescent moon. He twisted in their grasp, tearing free, falling onto the sand and rolling to his feet. But his power was sealed away. He couldn't flash step, couldn't release kido…
"Where do you think you're going?" hissed one of the Arrancar, "We're not finished with you yet, shinigami!"
There were too many and he couldn't run fast enough…not without his flash step. Still, he turned and fought them, hoping beyond hope that someone would come.
Someone?
Who would come?
He was struck hard from behind and tumbled to the ground, rolling and kicking as he came to his feet. But several were waiting and struck at him all at once, sending him to the ground again. This time they fell with him, latching on to arms, legs, hands, feet, torso, throat and hair. He felt the claws rending the thin clothes he wore and felt icy breath on his skin. Sharp fingernails bit into the skin of his thighs and he gripped the hands that held his and kicked hard with his legs. An elbow was driven into his midsection and suddenly he couldn't breathe…he couldn't move…he couldn't resist. And as they closed in around him, he found himself unable to scream…
"No!" Kuchiki Byakuya gasped breathlessly, sitting up in his bed and staring into the darkness.
His pale skin had gone white and he panted softly as he waited for his heart to slow. Dizzy and nauseous, he climbed out of bed and stumbled toward the bathroom. He barely made it there before dropping to his knees and retching uncontrollably. He heard footsteps entering his room and someone was kneeling beside him.
"Byakuya-sama, are you all right?"
He started to answer his worried attendant, but found himself surrounded by spots of light that blinded him and left him unable to speak.
"Let's get you back into bed," his attendant said softly, helping him to his feet.
He leaned heavily against the younger man as they made their way back to the bed. He fell onto the bed and his attendant helped him move so that he laid more comfortably against the pillows.
"Torio," he whispered, "arigatou."
"It is nothing, Byakuya-sama," his attendant said, washing his face with a cool, wet cloth, "I will make you some ginger tea. That should soothe your stomach. And I will have a healer come."
"No, Torio," Byakuya said, recovering himself somewhat, "just bring the tea. I need no healer. This is minor. I will be fine."
Torio gazed at him doubtfully.
"But Byakuya-sama, you still seem quite ill!" he objected.
"It will pass."
Torio frowned, but left to make the tea.
Byakuya leaned back against the pillows and closed his eyes. He opened them again as Torio returned with his tea, and as he rested, a quiet footstep sounded in the garden doorway.
"Byakuya-sama?"
Byakuya nodded briefly at his black-haired, blue-eyed cousin, who was also his bodyguard and personal healer.
"Tetsuya."
"I felt a disturbance in your reiatsu," Tetsuya said, stepping forward, "Are you all right? Is there anything I can do?"
"The discomfort is already easing," Byakuya assured him, "I feel much better."
Tetsuya moved to his bedside, examining him for a moment before sitting back and biting at his lip gently.
"Well, your reiatsu does seem stable now. Just please send for me if you become uncomfortable again."
"I will," Byakuya promised.
"I will be on my rounds," Tetsuya informed him, "There was some kind of flutter in the shakonmaku, near the edges of manor property. I will send you a report if it turns out to be anything important."
"Thank you, Tetsuya."
Tetsuya bowed respectfully and exited the room. Byakuya rested quietly, sipping at his tea as the unsettled feeling in his insides slowly faded, leaving him feeling perfectly normal again.
It must have been a passing thing.
He finished his tea, then left the bed and entered the dressing area, where his attendant quickly dressed him. He headed off to work, arriving to find Renji already at his desk and working. He greeted his fukutaichou and took his place at his desk, working silently as Renji disappeared to make tea, then returned and set it on his desk.
"Arigatou, Renji."
"No problem, Taichou," Renji said, returning to his desk to tackle the large stack of paperwork in front of him.
The two worked intently for several hours, until Byakuya heard his fukutaichou's stomach rumble from across the room.
"Abarai Renji," Byakuya said, looking up from his work.
"Hai, Taichou?" Renji replied, lifting his eyes to meet Byakuya's.
"You may leave for lunch if you wish."
Renji nodded and climbed to his feet, stretching and yawning. He looked down at Byakuya, who was still poring over the papers on his desk.
"Would you like to join me, Taichou?" he asked, smiling.
Byakuya glanced up at him.
"I was thinking of going to that place near the thirteenth that we went to last week. Sound good? You really seemed to enjoy it last time. As a matter of fact, I don't think I ever saw you eat so much at one sitting!"
"Very well, Abarai," he said, setting down the papers he was holding, "that does sound tempting."
He followed Renji out the doors and along the street.
"I think you still haven't recovered from your stay in Las Noches, Taichou," Renji said, "because you eat and eat, but you don't seem any heavier."
"Oh, I am perhaps regaining a bit. I had to loosen the ties on my clothing again," Byakuya commented, "I've regained the weight I lost and then some. It is perhaps all of these long lunches with you. Perhaps we should train this afternoon."
"Sure thing, Taichou. We haven't had so much time for sparring lately. The weird intrusions near the gates have been keeping us pretty busy."
"I think we are approaching a major conflict, Renji," Byakuya suggested, "We cannot seem to get a fix on exactly who is testing our defenses. The taichous have been ordered to send a seated member out with every patrol. Also, the patrol sizes have increased. Soutaichou expects trouble."
"Huh," Renji chuckled, "If ol' Aizen was still running around free, I'd think it was him just wanting to get you back. How many of your petals do you think we found in his fortress after Ichigo took him down? I think we saw him near the base at least ten times after you came back! And each time, he just captured another petal blade. You never did tell me what he said when you went to see him that once in the prison."
"Abarai?"
"Hai."
"Shut up."
"Hai, Taichou."
"I do wonder at his behavior, Renji," Byakuya said quietly, "The way he looks at me is unsettling. And we know that I was kept close to him. You and Rukia saw me with him."
"Yeah, when we walked in, it almost looked like you two were speaking about something important. And the way you were looking at each other…"
"What do you mean?" Byakuya asked, trembling slightly at the thought.
"Well, it just wasn't the way enemies look at each other. You were looking each other in the eyes…and you weren't frowning. I don't know. It just looked…odd somehow."
He scratched his head thoughtfully.
"The whole situation is odd," Byakuya admitted, "especially that my zanpakutou was affected as I was. Senbonzakura has no memory of what happened, any more than I do."
He sighed softly.
"But it no longer matters. Aizen is in Muken and this new enemy needs to be our focus. When we return, I think we should review the records again."
Renji groaned as he opened the door to the restaurant, allowing Byakuya to enter.
"Again? Eh, well, it's less boring than regular paperwork, I guess."
Byakuya's mind drifted while they were seated and Renji ordered. He only half heard the questions about what he wanted and his answers were automatic.
"Taichou? You seem a little off," Renji said, disrupting his thoughts, "You ordered your meal without spices. Are you still having problems with your stomach?"
"It is nothing to worry about, Abarai," he assured his fukutaichou, "Unohana taichou said that there was evidence that I was given drugs of some kind. Likely, it was to control me…to keep me docile. The effects will fade."
"I hope so. I know Rukia said she's worried about you. She asked Torio why you haven't been at breakfast the last few days and he tried to brush it off. But Rukia said that he looked worried."
"Rukia and Torio worry too much. I told you. It will pass."
Talk gave way to eating as their lunch arrived. Renji tried to look as though things were normal, but Byakuya sensed that his fukutaichou was watching him carefully. But he couldn't make himself be angry about it. In truth, he wondered.
Why am I having so much discomfort? Is it truly something that will fade or have I been somehow affected in a way that is longer lasting? While my examination found no sign of poisoning, there were non-poisonous compounds that could still cause discomfort.
"Taichou?" Renji said softly.
Byakuya looked up.
"Is everything all right?" the redhead asked, "You were looking at that food like it just attacked Rukia and you were going to kill it! Really, what is it you think it has done to you?"
Byakuya sighed.
"My apologies. My mind just wandered."
He was surprised that, once again, he finished everything on his plate. He looked for the bill, but was surprised to see that Renji had already paid it.
"You did not have to do that, Renji," he chided his fukutaichou gently, "And if you keep doing this, Matsumoto fukutaichou and her friends over there are going to suppose we are dating."
Renji laughed merrily.
"Let them talk all they want, Taichou," he said, smiling, "I have no problem with them thinking we're dating. Who wouldn't want to be dating someone as nice looking as you?"
Byakuya couldn't quite suppress a smile.
"Then if it pleases you to have them gossiping about us," Byakuya replied, laying his hand lightly on Renji's forearm in a polite, but slightly suggestive manner that left the younger man blushing, "I feel I should do a good job of convincing them…especially since you did pay for lunch."