Alright, this is my first Bleach story! I just had to take the infamous chibi route here! XD I really hope you all enjoy it!
Brown eyes widened in shock, darting around desperately, trying to find a way to escape the black void that had enveloped him. Ichigo gritted his teeth, slashing at the wall of the void in vein. His entire body was starting to feel weak and his attacks were getting weaker.
"D-Dammit..." he hissed, falling to his knees, gasping for air. He felt like he was suffocating!
"Ichigo! You must get out! That Arrancar is draining all of your spiritual energy away!" Zangetsu called out, appearing in front of the exhausted teen. Ichigo gritted his teeth, looking over at his sword's spirit. He tried to push himself up, to no avail. "Ichigo!"
"Stupid King," his hollow's watery voice echoed in his head, but it sounded strained, exhausted. "You'll disappear...we'll both disappear at this rate! Fucking idiot!"
"J-Just...shut up..." he gasped out, closing his eyes tightly. His vision was blurring, his body felt heavy, and his head was spinning. There was nothing he could do. He was being sucked dry! "Z-Zan...getsu..."
Zangetsu stared at his master, eyes narrowing slightly. He cared for his master, almost like a son, and watching him fade away like this, by such a cowardly tactic...
"Hold on, Ichigo." But the teen was already unconscious. Zangetsu held his hand out, his sword appearing in his hand in a flash of light. He would have to be quick to destroy the void. Once he took his physical form, he would be affected, just like Ichigo, he imagined. "Bankai!"
Rukia and Renji were doing their best to hold off the strange Arrancar that had appeared in Soul Society. As soon as he had caught sight of Ichigo, he had trapped him inside the strange void, cackling and droning on about sucking the boy dry of all his spiritual energy. Honestly, Renji didn't know what the guy was talking about. But he was sure they had to get Ichigo free, as soon as possible.
"Zabimaru!" he cried, swinging the extended blade at the void, only for it to bounce back uselessly. "What the hell!?"
"Hah! You're too weak to break through!" The black haired Arrancar grinned darkly, gripping his sword and unsheathing it quickly. "Ichigo Kurosaki...I heard of the immense spiritual pressure he possessed, but this...this power is more than I ever imagined! It'll all be mine, in just a matter of seconds!"
"Let Ichigo free!" Rukia hissed, appearing in front of the Arrancar, only for the hollow to disappear from sight. "Sonido," she cursed softly, looking around warily. The hollow reappeared beside the void, staring in, his stormy grey eyes wide with apprehension and his grin widening. "Renji, get him!"
Renji gripped the hilt of his sword, snapping his extended weapon down like a whip, growling low in his throat when the Arrancar caught his sword without a problem. His eyes turned and narrowed, a black light forming between the deer-like antlers on his head. "A cero," Renji muttered, pulling Zabimaru back to him quickly. He flash-stepped away from the beam that was fired at him, nearly getting swept away by the aftershock of the attack. "This guy's strong...and his spiritual pressure...is it getting stronger?"
"You're catching on, Soul Reaper. Does it feel familiar, my spiritual pressure? It should," the hollow cackled, his eyes narrowing in dark amusement. "I'll be strong enough to kill all of you...!"
"Getsuga Tensho!"
The Arrancar turned quickly, eyes widening at the sight of a red and black beam breaking through the void. "Could Kurosaki have...? No. That wasn't him..."
"Ichigo!?" Rukia called, waiting for the smoke and debris to clear from the previous blast. That didn't sound like Ichigo though. It sounded more like..."Zangetsu?"
Zangetsu narrowed his eyes, looking up at the hollow that had nearly killed his wielder. Thankfully, he had broken through the death trap just in time to save what remained of Ichigo's spirit energy. It wasn't much, but it was enough to allow the boy to regain what was lost. With time, of course. Zangetsu shifted the weight under his free arm, glancing down at the two, still bodies he held.
"So you are Kurosaki's Zanpakto? And just what do you think you're doing saving him?" Zangetsu stared the hollow down, gently lowering the two bodies to the ground. "Oh? And who is the other boy?"
"None of your concern. I will not allow my wielder to die at the mercy of such a cowardly maneuver. You aren't fighting him, you're stealing his power away from him. Inexcusable."
With a blink of an eye, the black blade that was Tensa Zangetsu was run through the Arrancar's gut. Grey eyes widened in shock, and blood dripped from the hollow's mouth. "D-Damn you...how did you...m-move so fast...?" He knew the sword would not answer him. "Tch...don't think this is over, Zanpakto...there is still plenty of energy for me to have from your master..."
Zangetsu moved to grab the hollow, but he was already gone, disappearing in a flash of white. "Cursed hollow," he muttered, eyes narrowed in frustration. He would not allow him to get Ichigo again. Speaking of his wielder...Zangetsu moved over to where Rukia and Renji were looking over the orange haired boy.
"What happened to him? Is he...?" Renji raised an eyebrow, looking Ichigo over carefully.
"His body is just...that of a child," Rukia confirmed, looking at Zangetsu for an answer. "What happened in that void? What did that hollow do to Ichigo? And that other boy, is it...?"
"Ichigo's inner hollow, yes. That Arrancar drained the majority of Ichigo's spiritual energy and took it for himself. I imagine Ichigo's soul is only trying to adjust to the energy it has left. More so, I doubt he has the energy to sustain himself and his hollow, so his inner hollow was released and affected as well." Zangetsu moved over, picking up the two boys easily.
"We should take them to Squad 4. Captain Unohana may have a solution to get them back to normal," Renji said, motioning in the direction of the Squad 4 barracks.
"Let us go then."
Zangetsu watched the twins run around the koi pond, calling out back and forth, taunting each other into an endless game of tag. Captain Unohana had no way of helping them, unfortunately. The only other thing she was able to tell them was that she estimated their ages around five. More or less, the visit had been a waste. But they had taken her advice and gone, reluctantly, to Mayuri. The scientist had confirmed Zangetsu's previous theory, that Ichigo's soul was only taking on a form it could sustain for the time being, and once his spirit energy returned, he would return to normal. He was more interested in Ichigo's hollow, however, and Zangetsu was quick to leave, once the man mentioned something about a dissection.
It had taken two and a half days for the boys to wake up. Zangetsu wouldn't admit it to anyone out loud, but he had been worried for the two. But once they had woken up, they seemed well enough. They had no real memory to hang on to, but had known his name, or at least had called him 'ZanZan' right off the bat. They also seemed to have some familiarity with each other. Ichigo had called the hollow Shi-nii right away, Shi apparently short for Shiro. And Shiro returned it with Ichi-nii and the ever popular King. The hollow didn't seem to forget that little detail at all.
Zangetsu was happy that the two were getting along though. Maybe something good would come from this horrid experience.
"Shi-nii! You shouldn't get so close to the water!" Zangetsu looked up quickly, watching warily as Shiro knelt beside the pond and stared down one of the fish.
"Don't be so 'fraid King. I ain't gonna fall." Zangetsu sighed at the young hollow. He was more worried about the fish than he was the hollow. After all, Rukia had worked hard to get Byakuya's permission for them to stay for awhile, as the twins recuperated. But if they did something to his koi pond, Zangetsu feared for all of their safety.
Luckily, the fish darted deeper into the pond, much to Shiro's disappointment. "Stupid fish," he muttered, getting up and looking back at Ichigo. "I'm bored!"
"Well, whaddaya wanna do?" Ichigo asked, cocking his head slightly. Shiro shrugged his shoulders lazily, looking around the large yard curiously.
"I wish we could get outta here and explore. We've seen everything here. Its boring!" Shiro huffed, turning to their Zanpakto. "ZanZan! Can we go out of here?"
"Not right now." He closed his eyes, a slight smirk coming to his face at the whine that followed his answer. He never would've expected that sort of response from the hollow. "Eventually, Shiro, we will take you out. But you will have to be patient. You don't even have proper clothing."
It was true. Right now, the twins were wearing old, white shirts of Renji's that were many sizes too big and dragged on the ground. They had to cut the arms off and take a bit of length away, but it sufficed until they found better made clothing for the two. In fact, that's what Rukia had gone out for, in hopes of finding something that the two could wear around. And Renji had to go to some lieutenant meeting, leaving Zangetsu to watch the children.
"Not fair," Shiro muttered, but he didn't argue further. Instead, he moved over to Ichigo, who was now attempting to climb up the tree near the wall. Ooh, that gave Shiro an idea. With a grin, truly worthy of the hollow that he was, he began to scale the large tree, glancing back at Zangetsu occasionally. Ichigo sat on the lowest branch, watching him curiously.
"What're you doin'?" he whispered quietly. Shiro grinned, reaching down and pulling the orange haired boy up beside him.
"That branch goes over the wall! We're gonna go out and find somethin' new to do!" he explained, slowly scooting across the branch that led over the wall.
"But ZanZan said-"
"We're not gonna do anything bad. We'll be fine. We're just gonna explore!" Shiro eyed Ichigo, smiling smugly. "You 'fraid?"
"I'm not!" Ichigo huffed, following after his look alike quickly. Shiro smiled and climbed onto the wall, gripping the edges and lowering himself close to the ground before letting go and and falling the rest of the way.
"Hurry up!" he called, watching as Ichigo peeked over the wall warily. "Its not that long of a drop! I'll catch ya!"
"Yeah right," Ichigo muttered, but he followed his hollow's instruction, going down the same way he did. Surprisingly, his hollow did somewhat catch him, keeping him from falling on his face. "Thanks."
"Alright," the pale boy grinned, pointing ahead. "Let's go explore!"
Rukia carried a few bags out to the back yard, sitting them down heavily on the porch. "I'm back!" she called, looking around. She saw Zangetsu, but not Ichigo or Shiro. "Zangetsu, where are they!?" she cried, grabbing the Zanpakto's arm and shaking him.
Zangetsu's eyes snapped opened in surprise. He had fallen into a meditative state without realizing it. He had felt tired and peaceful, and just sort of drifted off. "Rukia?"
"Where are Ichigo and Shiro?!" she demanded. Zangetsu's eyes widened slightly and he looked around the yard. There was no trace of them. "You lost them? Do you know how hard it will be to find them out there? This place is huge! They could be anywhere!"
Zangetsu felt slightly ashamed. He should have kept a better watch, however, with Ichigo's spiritual pressure so low, it was difficult for him to keep his manifested form on his own. Usually he would borrow some energy from Ichigo to keep himself out for longer periods of time, but on his own, he was surprised he had sustained his form for this long. That would explain why he had felt so tired.
"I will go out and search for him. We will find them, so don't worry yourself." Zangetsu turned and moved to leave. Rukia huffed, but nodded her agreement. But it would take more than just the two of them...
Renji jumped in his chair, flushing when all eyes fell on him. He had forgotten to shut his ringer off when he had come to the meeting. "S-Sorry about that," he laughed nervously, pulling out his soul pager. "I have to take this."
He stepped away from the group and flipped the phone open. "What is it Rukia?"
"Renji, Ichigo and Shiro snuck away, and we need help finding them! We have no idea where they went off to!"
"What do you mean they 'snuck away'!? Wasn't Zangetsu watching them!? And do you know how hard it'll be to find those two out there with just the three of us!?" Renji cursed his luck. Sometimes, Ichigo was more trouble than he was worth!
"Don't you think I know that!? Maybe some of the lieutenants will help us?" she suggested, humming thoughtfully. They had originally agreed to keep quiet about the situation, but they would need all the help they could get.
"I...I suppose. I'll ask them and I'll go out and search as soon as I can!" He clicked his phone shut and turned back to the meeting room. Apparently the meeting was over, because only a few of the Lieutenants remained.
"What was that all about, Renji?" Izuru looked at the red-headed lieutenant curiously. So, maybe the few left had eavesdropped on the conversation, but they hadn't caught it all.
Renji rubbed his neck, eyeing the remaining lieutenants. Rangiku, Shuhei, Izuru, and Momo. He was silently glad it was just them. This group, he knew he could trust. "Look, I need your help with something. Its supposed to be kept quiet, so you can't go telling everyone about this."
All the lieutenants nodded their agreement, and Renji relayed the story about the mysterious Arrancar and what had become of Ichigo and his hollow. The four listened carefully, eyebrows raising at the knowledge that the two kids were now missing and they had to find them.
"I suppose it would be useless to try and sense their spiritual pressure, considering the circumstances," Shuhei frowned, crossing his arms.
"But they went missing around the Kuchiki Manor, right? We should start there and expand out. Two little kids couldn't have gone too far, right?" Momo smiled, trying to reassure Renji. "I'm sure they'll be fine Renji!"
"Momo's right. And knowing Ichigo, he's not the most tactful person. He'll probably stand right out in the crowd." Izuru gripped Renji's shoulder lightly. "Let's get going."
"Ooh, I can't wait to see the little cuties!" Rangiku squealed, before flash-stepping out of the meeting room.
Two hours. They had been searching for two freaking hours! Shuhei stopped on the roof of one of the building and examined the area. He knew it would be difficult, but this was ridiculous. How in the world two kids could get so far on their own, Shuhei didn't know. There hadn't even been any sightings reported!
Shuhei was ready to go search a different area when a sudden yell caught his attention. He turned his attention to the source of the yell, to find a couple of Soul Reapers, cursing, yelling, and raising their swords at...his eyes narrowed at the sight of two young boys; definitely Ichigo and his hollow.
"My pager's goin' nuts! Yeah, that one's definitely a hollow!" the brunette raised his sword, glaring down at Shiro. "Pretty pathetic one. Makes me almost feel bad that it looks like a kid!"
"A hollow's a hollow! We have to destroy it!" the black-haired Soul Reaper unsheathed his sword, narrowing his eyes. "It may look weak, but don't take it lightly."
Shiro was frowning, his eyes narrowed and lips pursed in thought. Were they calling him a hollow? Or Ichigo? What was a hollow anyway, and why were they pulling their swords on two kids? Ichigo tugged his arm lightly, eyes wide with fear.
"Shi-nii, we should go back now," he whispered, eyeing the two men. He cried out, startled when the brown haired man swiped his sword at them. Shiro shoved him away and stumbled away, barely dodging the sword.
"Tch, fast little bastard. How about this!" the black haired man did a sideways swipe with his sword, eyes widening slightly when his clashed with another. "What..!? L-Lieutenant Hisagi!"
Shuhei narrowed his eyes at the two, giving the black-haired Soul Reaper a swift kick in the gut, knocking him away hard. "Hollow or not, he's defenseless and hasn't caused any harm. So why are you attacking?"
"But sir, its our job! That's why we have patrols, isn't it?" the brunette quickly sheathed his weapon, swallowing thickly at the narrowed gaze that landed on him.
"Your job is to protect the Soul Society. But these children did nothing to threaten us. Now get out of here, before I decide to show you a real threat!" he snapped, watching in satisfaction as the two stumbled away down the street. He heard a soft sniff behind him and turned to the two kids.
Ichigo was trying to wipe away oncoming tears, holding his arm against himself, and sniffling softly. His white double was scowling after the two Soul Reapers, before getting up and checking on his twin. "Are you alright King?"
"That hurt," he whimpered, looking at his arm. It was bleeding just a little, nothing too deep. "Why'd they have to go and do that?" Shuhei watched the two, eyebrow raised. This was seriously Ichigo and his hollow? If it weren't for their appearance, he never would've known.
"Here." Shuhei knelt beside the two and tore a piece off of the overly long shirt that Ichigo wore. He tied it carefully around the cut, sighing heavily. "You know, the two of you have a lot of people looking for you. You shouldn't run off on your own like that. You could've gotten hurt."
"Who are you anyway?" Shiro asked, eyeing Shuhei suspiciously. Shuhei laughed under his breath.
"Shuhei. I'm a friend of Rukia and Renji. They asked us to help find the two of you." Shuhei looked at the two expectantly, satisfied at the guilty expressions. "Well, I hope you won't try it again."
"Ichigo!" Rukia's voice called out from down the road. Her and the others were rushing towards them, looking relieved. Shuhei nodded, looking down at the orange-haired boy who was still sniffling pitifully.
Zangetsu stepped over, looking down at Shiro, his expression unreadable. Shiro squirmed under the stare. He still looked plenty guilty. Honestly, Zangetsu wasn't too mad. It was the hollow's nature to get into trouble, and it was how he learned. He knew the boy better than anyone. "Have you learned your lesson, Shiro?"
"Yes ZanZan," he mumbled softly, staring at the ground. Rukia and Renji were crowding around Ichigo, and a few new people were hovering over him as well. Shiro felt a little left out. "ZanZan? What's a hollow?"
Zangetsu looked down at the boy, frowning. "A hollow is a monster. Why do you ask?"
"Am I a hollow?" he asked quietly, kicking at the ground. That's what those men had called him, right? And no one seemed as fond of him as they did Ichigo. Maybe he was a monster?
Zangetsu hesitated, watching the boy, meeting his expectant gaze. What should he tell him? Shuhei cleared his throat, looking down at the pale boy.
"You're not a monster at all, kiddo. Don't let anyone tell you different. Those people that came after you weren't too smart is all." Shiro seemed to consider, before smiling slightly. It wasn't the cruel or manic smile that Zangetsu was used to. It was an actual, sincere smile.
"Okay then," he nodded, happy with the answer. He pushed through the crowd of people and over to Ichigo, huffing at the soft little hiccups coming from the boy. "You still cryin' King?"
"S-Shut up," Ichigo whimpered, watery eyes glaring up at the other, its intensity half-hearted. Shiro stuck his tongue out, but sat beside the sniffling boy, his arm wrapping around his shoulder.
"What happened Ichigo?" Rukia asked, lightly patting the boy's head. Man, this was awkward, she thought. She was used to being rough on the teen she had come to know, not being so loving towards him. She felt like a mother.
"I hurt my arm," he mumbled. "These scary men tried to hurt us, and Shiro had to push me away so I didn't get hurt, but I fell and hurt my arm."
"Oh? Let me see." Rukia took his arm lightly, and kissed the injury lightly, much like she had seen a mother do for her son back in the world of the living. "Better?"
Ichigo stared, before a wide, happy grin broke out over his face. He nodded his head quickly, looking at Shiro, his eyes now dry. The Soul Reapers stared in astonishment. That smile was something they had never seen from Ichigo before. The boy gripped Shiro's hand and pulled him over to Zangetsu, gripping the Zanpakto's coat and tugging lightly.
"ZanZan? We're really hungry! Can we eat?" Zangetsu looked down at the two, nodding his head slightly.
"Oh, they're so cute," Rangiku hummed, kneeling beside the two. "How about we take you out to get something? There's plenty of good places to eat around here."
"Oh boy," Rukia muttered, eyes narrowing at the group of lieutenants. "Fine, but no sake!" The lieutenants all groaned, but reluctantly agreed.
Zangetsu sat in the corner of the tavern, watching the two kids eat their fill. Apparently Rukia, Renji, and the others had played some kind of game to see who would buy dinner. Poor Izuru ended up the loser, and the others had encouraged the kids to eat as much as they wanted. He acted upset, but Izuru didn't mind in the least. The kids were good at lightening all of their moods.
Sighing, Zangetsu raised his hand to his face. His form was starting to fade, almost unnoticeable. Soon, he would have to return to his sword form to rest and regain his energy. He couldn't risk taking any from Ichigo right now. He sighed heavily, allowing his eyes to slip closed.
It could've been a few minutes or a few hours, he wasn't sure, but once he opened his eyes again, he found Ichigo curled up on his lap and Shiro leaning against him, both fast asleep. Rangiku and Momo had both apparently left, leaving Rukia, Renji, Shuhei, and Izuru. The four were talking quietly as to not disturb them, and the tavern was mostly empty.
He looked back down at the two boys, allowing a slight smile to come to his lips. It surprised him that this didn't feel strange to him or foreign. All Zanpakto had a connection with their wielders, some good, some bad. His connection with Ichigo, though it hadn't always been strong, was always good. He cared for the boy, and the boy relied and trusted him in return. He always imagined it to be similar to the feeling between a father and son. The father wanted to see his son safe and happy, but still growing strong enough to stand on his own two feet, where the son trusted his father to guide him and help him achieve his place in the world
Shiro's relationship with him was different, yet much the same. The hollow was a handful, that was true, but he actually was somewhat good natured. Everyone disagreed, but they didn't know the truth about the hollow like he did. Shiro, like him, actually cared about Ichigo. His true instinct was not to take control of Ichigo, as he usually preached. It was to push his King and make him stronger. It was to make sure his King survived. If Shiro had to find a way to sacrifice himself to save Ichigo, he would do it. But he never wanted Ichigo to know. Personally, Zangetsu believed Ichigo would benefit more if the two would work together, but Shiro insisted otherwise.
"Zangetsu?" He raised his head, looking at Rukia. "We should head back and get them to bed." Zangetsu nodded his agreement and stood, shifting Ichigo into his arms carefully. Rukia took Shiro, who fussed slightly, but calmed quickly.
"Rukia, I must warn you, I will not be able to stay in my manifested form much longer. A Zanpakto has their own energy, but usually draws from their wielder to sustain their form for longer periods of time. But with his current state, I can't risk drawing from Ichigo. I will need to rest for a bit, after today." Rukia nodded her understanding, frowning slightly.
"I understand. But Renji and I were assigned a mission in the world of the living. We'll be gone for a few days. So, whose going to watch them?"
"I suppose it will have to be handled in the morning. Let's just worry about getting through tonight without them causing anymore problems."
"How come ZanZan can't watch us?" Ichigo whined, raising his arms as Renji slid the black kimono onto the boy. Shiro snickered and muttered something about 'King in a dress', which Ichigo countered with a light shove, which ended in the two of them wrestling on the floor. Renji huffed, pulling the two apart easily, before changing Shiro into the white kimono with black trim.
"Sorry, but Zangetsu's resting right now, and he'll have to rest for awhile. We're just going to have to find someone else to keep an eye on you." Shiro's gold on black eyes looked up at Renji, his eyes lighting up slightly.
"What about Shuhei? I liked him!" Renji blinked slowly, humming in thought. They were good friends, but would Shuhei agree? It was worth a try. After all, he didn't seem to mind the kids too much yesterday.
"Well, alright then. We'll ask Shuhei."
"You want me to...what?"
Renji sighed heavily, watching the two kids run around the lieutenants office like lunatics, examining everything curiously. "Look, I know its sudden and all, but we don't have a lot of people we can ask here. Rukia and I have to go to the world of the living for a few days, and Zangetsu can't keep up his manifested form. It'll only be for a few days. Besides, they like you."
Shuhei stared blankly, glancing at the kids that had made their way to his desk, and were now lying beneath it, whispering secretively. "What do I do if something comes up? I'm not just the lieutenant right now Renji, I'm acting Captain too."
"If its nothing dangerous, take them with you! If it is dangerous, leave them with Izuru or Rangiku. They'll be good, won't you two?"
"Yeah!" Both boys chirped in unison, looking up at Shuhei with grins on their faces. Renji grinned himself, patting Shuhei on the shoulder.
"Alright, hear that? Its all settled! Now I have to get going!" Renji was gone in the blink of an eye, leaving Shuhei to stare where he once stood.
"When did I actually agree?" he muttered, sighing heavily. He turned back towards his desk, raising an eyebrow at the orange haired boy that now sat on his desk. "What are you doing?"
Ichigo smiled sheepishly, rubbing his hands together. "I have to make sure Shiro can't get me." Shiro was currently trying to climb up to Ichigo, not having noticed the office chair yet. Shuhei sighed, chuckling quietly; he lifted Ichigo onto his shoulders, much to Shiro's annoyance.
"Not fair!" the hollow whined, gripping the lieutenant's shirt and attempting to pull himself up, much to Shuhei's amusement. He wasn't doing half bad either. Ichigo giggled, grinning as his other attempted to reach him.
"Uh, is this a bad time?"
Shuhei glanced up, silently cursing his luck. Frankly, he didn't want anyone seeing him right now! He let out a heavy sigh, lowering Ichigo down from his shoulder, watching as the boy grabbed his white copy's arm and dragged him over by the lieutenant's desk. He could feel Izuru's eyes boring into him, questioning and amused.
"Shuhei, are you...babysitting?" Shuhei fought the urge to slam his head against the wall.
"Of course not. Rukia and Renji were sent to the world of the living for a few days, and Zangetsu was having trouble sustaining his form, so he went to rest. I just decided to make sure these two didn't cause anymore problems." Izuru chuckled at his friend's explanation.
"That's babysitting." Shuhei snorted softly, muttering under his breath. "But there's nothing wrong with that. Does it embarrass you?"
"I have a soft spot for kids. And as big of a pain as these two are, I think I'm getting attached. I don't need all of Soul Society finding out. Get it?" Izuru gave a slight smile, watching as Shiro pushed Ichigo around in Shuhei's office chair. At least they were occupied for now.
"I get it. I won't ruin your tough guy image. Your secret is safe with me." Shuhei nodded his approval, raising an eyebrow at Ichigo's squeal of delight when Shiro began to spin the chair around quickly. There were so many things from the child that no one would expect out of Ichigo Kurosaki. Then again, the same could be said for the hollow half of him. Shiro didn't act like the blood thirsty inner hollow that he had heard of from Rukia and Renji. He acted as if he really was Ichigo's sibling, just another human child, minus his appearance.
The moment of calm soon came to an end, of course. Shiro had spun the chair too hard, which resulted in Ichigo falling and sliding across the carpeted floor. Shuhei and Izuru both watched, eyes somewhat wide and bodies tense as the boy slowly sat up, his eyes beginning to water and lip quivering.
"P-Please don't..." Shuhei covered his ears as the boy let out a wail, large tears falling down his face and sobs wracking his small body. "H-Hey, don't cry! Its alright!"
The two lieutenants rushed over, examining the small rug burn on the child's leg. Nothing too bad, but it would hurt for a few days. But the injury was the least of their worries. Ichigo continued to sob. Loudly.
"What do we do?" Izuru asked, glancing at Shuhei. He didn't know the first thing about taking care of kids.
"We gotta get him to stop crying!" he hissed, eyeing the five year old warily.
"What is going on here?"
The two lieutenants tensed at the voice, both jumping up and looking at the doorway. "C-Captain Komamura!" Izuru glanced back at the still crying child, then at Shuhei, before looking back at the captain. His dog ears were twitching wildly, and he stared down at Ichigo with a strange look.
"Why is he crying?"
Shuhei swallowed thickly. "He fell, Captain. Its just a small scrape, nothing major. But I don't know how to make him stop crying."
"Ooh, I know! Shu!" Shuhei looked over at the albino boy who was looking Ichigo over curiously. "Last time he fell, Rukia kissed his cut better, and he stopped crying! Kiss it better Shu!"
Shuhei could feel his eye twitch. "No way! I'm not-"
"Lieutenant Hisagi." Shuhei's eyes widened slightly. He turned slightly to meet Komamura's narrowed gaze, his fangs slightly bared. "I do hate to hear children cry."
A chill went down the lieutenant's spine, and he cursed the snickering Izuru that stood behind him. Damn his luck. "Y-Yes sir," he muttered, looking at Ichigo and kneeling beside him. He kissed the injury lightly, somewhat relieved when the sobs died down to little hiccups and the child tried to dry his eyes. It was better than before, at least.
"Was that so bad?" Izuru covered his mouth when Shuhei sent him a wicked glare. Komamura walked into the office, looking at the two curiously.
"So, this is Ichigo and his hollow. I heard about what the Arrancar did to them, but it was somewhat hard to believe. I can see now that it was true." Ichigo looked up at the Captain, eyes wide.
"Big doggie," he mumbled, blinking slowly. Shuhei and Izuru looked alarm, ready to reprimand the boy, but Komamura raised his hand to stop them.
"Its alright. He's just a child, there's no need to get defensive for me." Shiro seemed less impressed than Ichigo, but still, he seemed intimidated by the Captain's size, if nothing else. "Neither of you have anything to fear from me. Don't worry."
The two nodded slowly, Ichigo smiling and Shiro waving slowly. Komamura seemed slightly amused by the two. "I apologize for barging in, Shuhei. But please, try and keep them from crying again." Shuhei nodded his agreement, rubbing his face tiredly. "Good. I'll be going."
They watched the Captain leave. "Bye doggie!" Ichigo called, waving at the oversized captain. Izuru and Shuhei stared a moment before breaking out into laughter. It happened so little, it felt nice to do. Shiro watched the two, cocking his head slightly.
"Shu?" Shuhei looked down at the two, raising an eyebrow, finally coming down from his laughter. "We're hungry." Shuhei sighed heavily, looking at the unfinished work on his desk. He had a feeling that this was going to be a long few days.
There was the first chapter! I hope you all liked it! Now don't be afraid to hit that review button, I need the critique!