The Hunt for the Wild Strawberry

A Bleach Fanfiction

By: Lycanwolff

Chapter 1

Author's Note: Y'all might need tissues... Just sayin.

Karakura town had been quiet, so quiet in fact, that not even Grimmjow and Neliel had any information for him. Hollow had been vacant for six months, ever since that craziness with Byakuya and his new fiancée, Nyruki Sawada, and because of it, Ichigo was losing his mind.

Things had been so slow, that his father, Isshin Kurosaki, a big man with a wild personality, had insisted he get a job to fill his time since graduating from high school. He had done as his father had asked and found a job that was very close by. In fact, he lived where he worked as the receptionist for his father's clinic.

He was paid as anyone would be paid, son or not, making a healthy income that he got to bank since he still lived at home, if at all to help his father with the girls; Yuzu and Karin. They had just started middle school and still needed help with their homework sometimes, or needed to be taken to after school activities, like soccer for Karin, or cooking classes for Yuzu. Those were the things he took care of so that their father could focus on his patients.

It was a fair trade for not having to pay rent.

The afternoon was young, and it was a bright and sunny day, albeit chilly with the fast approaching winter. The holidays were coming far faster than Ichigo would have liked and with the phones ringing like mad, it gave him little time to focus on what gifts he was going to get for his family. The only thing on his mind was that he couldn't wait for flu season to be over.

"Kurosaki clinic. How can I help you?" Ichigo answered the phone as he worked the computer to bring up the caller's file.

"Uh huh... Poor little guy's got a fever huh?... What is it at?... 103?... Give him some children's medicine and check it every hour. If it gets any higher, take him to the hospital. Otherwise, I've got you down for tomorrow at 1:15pm. Is that alright?... Uh huh... Alright, Mrs. Miyasaka. Take care... Uh huh... Goodbye."

Ichigo sighed heavily as he hung up the phone and finished entering the information into the patient's file before he saved the changes and cleared the screen.

For the moment, the waiting room was empty and it offered him a reprieve from the bustle of the day. Only a couple more hours and he and his father would close up shop and in all honesty, the time couldn't tick by fast enough.

With another sigh, he reached for his water bottle and took a drink to wet his throat from all the talking he had been doing before returning to his work with trying to write his father's dissertation for his upcoming seminar. It was like trying to write in a language he didn't understand and as such, progress was minimal.

"Hey, Iiiiiii-ch-iiiiiiii-gooooooo!" Boomed Isshin as he came flying down the corridor at full speed.

"Dad! Seriously? In the clinic? Shut it!" Ichigo chastised as he dodged his father's flying kick.

The large man, wearing slacks, a Hawaiian printed shirt and a lab coat, went sailing passed his son to crash into the waiting room chairs in a pile of limbs made of both metal and flesh.

"Nice dodge, Kiddo!" Isshin smiled despite the crash landing as he rolled over and stood up without a scratch on him.

Ichigo rolled his eyes as he crossed his arms, "Like I haven't spent eighteen years dodging you already."

"Good point." Isshin grinned.

Ichigo groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Anymore patients for today?" Isshin asked as he walked up to the reception desk and leaned on it.

"Let me check." Ichigo sighed as he sat back down and began to work the rather old computer.

It only took a few moments for the day's schedule to pop up, and to Ichigo's relief, the rest of their afternoon was open.

"You've cleared the board. Your next patient isn't until tomorrow morning at 10." Ichigo said as he closed the calender.

"Wonderful! How about you, me and the girls go to dinner tonight then?" Isshin asked, clapping his hands together on top of the reception desk.

"What for?" Ichigo asked simply.

"Yuzu's been so busy with cooking for us lately, why not give her a night off?" Isshin asked with a half shrug.

"Yeah. We probably should, but Karin's got her last game tonight." Ichigo said as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"Shit! What time?" Isshin asked.

Ichigo checked his watch, "Kickoff's at 4."

"Great! Afterwards then." Isshin beamed.

"I don't see why not, so long as it's not too late." Ichigo said.

"It won't be... Oh! How's that dissertation coming?" Isshin asked as he leaned over the desk far enough to check the computer monitor.

"It's not. I can't very well write a medical dissertation without a medical degree, Dad." Ichigo said with a glare towards his father.

"You'll get it. Any thought what you're gonna do, now that you've graduated?" Isshin asked with a big toothy grin.

"Dad, what happens if something happens here? I can't go to college when my job is to protect Karakura from Hollow and anything else that may decide to pop up." Ichigo said as he flicked off the monitor to get his dad out of his personal space.

"Isn't that what that afro dude is for?" Isshin arced a brow.

"Seriously?" Ichigo matched the arc.

"Good point... Nevermind." Isshin chuckled as he gripped the back of his neck.

Ichigo rolled his eyes as he checked his watch again, only then realizing exactly what time it was.

"Shit! I've gotta go get the girls from school." Ichigo said as he immediately started to clean up his desk for the day.

"Where's Karin's game?" Isshin asked as he stood up straight.

"The school. We'll come home first though and we can go together." Ichigo said as he took off the scrubs top he wore and put on his normal t-shirt with a bright red strawberry on it.

"Sounds good, Kiddo! See you in a bit! I'll close up!" Isshin called after him.

Ichigo burst out of the clinic doors and started the lengthy walk to his sisters' middle school, stuffing his hands into his coat pockets as he walked to help keep them warm from the chill. He looked up into the cloudless sky and enjoyed the sun's rays as they graced over his face. The breeze rustled through his longer hair that he had let grow out a bit since he graduated. It was shaggy enough to cover his ears and the back of his neck, and with its tendency to spike, it stayed out of his face; For the most part.

He drew close to his sisters' school and parked himself next to the front gate, leaning back against a brick pillar with his arms crossed. He had put his earbuds in to listen to music while he waited, and as such, he hadn't paid attention to that he had company.

"Oi! Kurosaki!" Snarled a short, round fellow with long black hair that was stringy and heavy with grease.

Ichigo ignored him, as he hadn't heard it.

"Oi! Orange brat!" The man snarled again, this time jabbing a fat finger into Ichigo's chest.

Ichigo finally looked up from the ground and removed his earphones, only then realizing that there was a crowd of five in front of him.

"What do you want?" Ichigo asked with a slight curl in his upper lip.

"So you never left town after graduating? Big mistake, Punk Ass." The man said angrily, jabbing his finger into Ichigo's chest again.

Ichigo's brows furrowed, "Huh? What're you talking about? Do I know you guys?"

"Yeah... You do. Remember those guys you beat up at the high school last year?" The man asked, getting far too close into Ichigo's bubble than he would have liked.

Ichigo stepped off the brick pillar and sidestepped to regain some breathing room, "That was you guys? Can't be... Those guys were thin." He smirked.

The man and his lackeys all growled.

"Listen here you good for nothin' punk. We're gonna repay the debt of you putting all of us in the hospital. There's no way you can take all of us on by yourself." The man began to laugh along with his cronies.

Ichigo's fists balled, "Look, I'm just here picking up my sisters from school. Can't we do this later?"

"Not a chance in hell, berry brain. We're gonna settle this here and now." The man glared as he reached into his pocket.

Ichigo's muscles began to tighten as he watched the round man pull a pipe from his pants pocket and his goons pulled their weapons; A chain, brass knuckles, and a hammer, but the last of the man's little peons kept his right hand in his pocket.

The bell rang behind Ichigo, signaling the end of the school day as children began to pour out through the doors. His brows furrowed harder as he realized that these losers were wanting to fight right then and there, in front of a horde of middle schoolers. He couldn't let that happen, but as he saw Karin and Yuzu step through the main doors, he knew he had to protect them, even if it meant fighting where he stood.

"This is your last chance. Lets take this somewhere else so I can level you losers out without being in front of a bunch of kids." Ichigo said as he set his gaze hard onto the gang.

"What? 'Fraid you can't handle all of us?" The round man smirked.

"I can handle you guys fine, but here is not the place." Ichigo said sternly as the kids began to gather around them.

"Any place is good for a fight." One of the lackeys snickered.

"Get him!"

They weren't fast. Not even a little bit. He would have thought the round one would at least roll downhill quickly, but even that was slow. It didn't take Ichigo long to drop the round one, and two of his lackeys to the ground with well placed punches to their noses, but when it came to the last two, they were a bit more difficult.

The one with the hammer swung with a wide arc, trying to land the head into Ichigo's temple, but he ducked and grabbed the punk's wrist in the same instant. He stood and cranked the kid's arm painfully behind his back, where he dropped the hammer and began yapping for Ichigo to let him go. He planted his knee into the loser's back and thrust forward, dropping him to the ground and leaving the one still with his hand in his pocket the last one standing.

"I just dropped four of your buddies. You really wanna try this?" Ichigo asked with a grin as he cracked his knuckles.

"You're good you little bitch, but you ain't good enough to dodge this." The last kid smirked.

He pulled his hand out of his pocket and at the mere sight of what the kid held, the kids watching immediately screamed and began to scatter in every direction, save for Karin and Yuzu, whom stood a ways back to give their older brother room.

Ichigo's eyes went wide as he stepped back, half crouched in preparation to make a quick dash. He was fast, yes, incredibly so, but in his human form, without his Shinigami powers, he wasn't fast enough to outrun the blistering speeds of a bullet.

The punk in front of him had a gun.

"Dude!... Put it away! This is a middle school!" Ichigo yelled, holding his hands up, if at all to keep the thug from firing.

"You've punked me for the last time! I'm done being humiliated by you!" He screamed back with eyes that were a bit glassier than Ichigo was expecting.

"Fine... I'm sorry. I won't do it again. Just put that thing away. My sisters're right there." Ichigo said a bit quieter, taking another half step back to bring him only three feet away from the shaky thug.

"I don't care!" The kid screamed.

"Ok... Ok... Calm down. Whatever it is I did, I'm sorry. Are we cool?" Ichigo asked with another half step back.

"No! Fuck you!"

"Ichigo! Run!" Karin barked suddenly, which scarred the thug.

Pop.

The thug's finger twitched with just enough strength to pull the trigger from the sudden outburst. He had been so tense with the situation, had such tunnel vision that he couldn't see anything else, but Ichigo standing in front of him. Even that was rimmed with hazy black.

As the thug's world began to come back into focus, he saw Ichigo laying on the ground with his sisters on either side. He wasn't about to wait around and before either Karin, or Yuzu could look up from their brother, the thug took off with gun in hand.

With the thug's back to them, Karin tried to commit him to memory, tried to remember what he looked like, but her mind was drawing a blank. He was faceless, soundless. The only thing she could remember was the small gun in his hand before he took off with it. The only thing running through her head was the sight of Ichigo falling back onto the ground.

Karin tore her eyes away from the street and look back down to Ichigo. He was still, motionless, but it wasn't the first time he had been knocked down. He always got back up. Always.

"Ichi-Nii? You alright? That was pretty scary." Karin said, setting her netted soccer ball down next to her to give Ichigo's shoulder a shake.

Ichigo didn't move.

"Onii-Chan? Come on... It's time to go home. I have some beef in the fridge I was gonna make for dinner." Yuzu said quietly, giving Ichigo's other shoulder a shake.

"Ichi?... Come on. This isn't funny anymore." Karin said as she reached up to his forehead to brush aside his hair that covered his eyes.

The moment she had, she wished that she hadn't. Her hand was red with blood, having come off his hair that had been covering his forehead. She couldn't look at anything else, but that, the fact that the ground below him was pooled with even more blood that stemmed from the spot in his forehead. It had to be a joke. Ichigo always got up, always kept fighting. This time would be no different. She was sure of it.

She gave his shoulder another shake, this time a bit stronger, but it only served to loll his head to face her with his frozen, wide open eyes that were void of light. They were dull and blind and they looked straight through her.

"Ichi-Nii?" her eyes started to glass, "Ichi?... Come on. Wake up," a tear leapt free, "Ichigo?" Karin breathed.

"K-Karin? Is he-... Is he-" Yuzu's eyes were already spilling their tears, but she had yet to make a sound.

"Ichigo!"

Nyruki couldn't sleep a wink, and it was the third night in a row. Her mind was running wild with things that needed to get done and despite Byakuya promising that they had plenty of time, she utterly didn't feel like it, as the effort that went into planning a wedding, which was not far away, was far beyond than what she was willing to shoulder by herself.

She sat up in their bed, supported by a stack of pillows with her bedside lamp on that was just bright enough to light her pad of paper that rested on her raised knees. She wrote down the massive list of things she needed to do and appointments she needed to keep and the list of people they were inviting and so far, her list was four pages long.

She pinched the bridge of her nose with a sigh and ended up jabbing the tip of the pen into her cheek that she knew left behind a black smudge.

"Great." She quietly grumbled, glancing over to the man next to her that was well into the thralls of sleep, laying on his stomach with his arms wrapped around his pillow.

She huffed a smile as she set her pen down and lightly brushed his hair from his face so she could see him. He was so innocent, so sweet, that every time she laid her eyes on him, she couldn't help but smile. It was such a far cry from his usual, emotionless resolve that he wore on a day to day basis.

She had gotten so lost in her thoughts, that she hadn't realized that that very man had opened his eyes and was looking up at her with an ultra soft smile on his half, pillow covered face.

"It's late, My Love." Byakuya said, a bit huskily from having been woken up.

Nyruki returned the smile, "I know. I just can't get my brain to shut off. There's so much we've gotta get done for this wedding-" Her voice trailed off.

"I told you not to worry. It will all be taken care of." He said, exhaling a long sigh as he pulled an arm out from around his pillow to drape it over her lap.

Nyruki smiled as she rested a hand on his arm, "I know, but I can't help it."

"We could always just have a traditional ceremony." Byakuya said, which earned him a weak glare.

"I like the idea of a western ceremony. They just seem so... intimate and lovely." Nyruki said as she tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

"Whatever you desire, My Love. Have you asked Ukitake yet if he'll walk you down the aisle?" Byakuya asked, blinking the only eye that was open as he watched her.

"No... I haven't yet." Nyruki groaned as she lightly pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Why not? That would have been the first thing I'd expect you to do." He said softly.

Nyruki shrugged, "I don't know. I guess I'm worried it'll send him into a fit, or something. His illness has been acting up lately."

"Nyruki... He was there when I proposed. If that doesn't send him into a fit, asking him to walk you down the aisle will not." He said, smiling up at her.

Nyruki couldn't stop from returning the smile as she looked down at him, sweetly stroking his arm still laying across her lap. She shifted her golden eyes to her hand where her ring finger was adorned with the rather delicate ring, being a crescent mood wrapped around a modest yellow diamond. She hadn't taken it off since he had asked her to marry him and she never planned on ever taking it off. Ever.

"You're right. I'll ask him in the morning to be given his inevitable yes." She smiled a bit wider.

"Good girl. Now... It's time for sleep. Come here and keep me warm." He said as he tightened his hold on her.

Nyruki softly chuckled as she set her pen and pad of paper down on her nightstand before switching off the lamp with a soft click. She turned to put her back to him, where he rolled himself onto his side and curled around her, both nestling down into their plush bed to get some sleep.

The chilled air was crisp, but held at bay by the thick blankets that they had put on the bed a couple weeks ago. His familiar warmth was settling to her mind and she soon found herself beginning the journey of falling asleep. Her eyes fell heavy, her breathing evened, but the night was shattered by distant yells.

"What was that?" Nyruki asked as her eyes shot open.

"What was what?" Byakuya asked gruffly.

Again, more yells shattered the peace of the Autumn night and this time, they were loud enough for Byakuya's ears to hear.

"That... What was that?" Nyruki asked as she sat up.

Byakuya's brows furrowed as he looked towards his bedroom door, but no one was there. More distant yells sounded from outside, too jumbled for him to make anything out until his name was screamed.

"Captain Kuchiki!... Please!... Captain Kuchiki!" Someone screamed from outside.

"What the... What in all the realms is going on out there?" Byakuya mused lowly as he sat up and turned to get out of bed.

Nyruki stood and padded to the coat rack to put on her thicker robe to cover her night robe while Byakuya did the same. They put on their socks and sandals before he opened the door and the screams became clearer.

"Captain Kuchiki! Please! We need to talk to you! Please!" Screamed the panicked voice.

"Who is that?" Nyruki asked as she tightened the robe around herself to keep the chill of the night away.

Byakuya shook his head, "I don't know. It's coming from the front gate."

Both started through the gardens and headed for the front gate, bathed in the light of the moon overhead in the cloudless sky that sparkled with millions of stars. The air was crisp, sweet smelling with the coming of winter as a swarm of his personal guards came into view.

"What's going on here?" Byakuya asked sternly, not exactly thrilled with having his peaceful night obliterated.

"A young man and young woman tried to break into the estate, My Lord. We're detaining them now." Said one guard as he stepped aside with a bow.

"Pardon me?" His brows furrowed all that much harder, "Step aside... All of you." Byakuya ordered.

His personal guards did as their master ordered and stepped aside, revealing the pair that had tried to enter the estate uninvited in the middle of the night. They were both in hysterics, with tears screaming down their faces with reckless abandon. Neither cared that they were crying so fiercely, they only cared that Byakuya had answered their calls.

"Uryū Ishida? Orihime Inoue? What are you doing here?" Byakuya gasped, studying that both were still dressed in their night clothes.

"You have to come quickly, Captain! There's no time to explain! Just come with us now!" Uryū rattled off through his cracking voice, struggling against the guards whom had ahold of his arms.

"What? What are you doing here? What's going on?" Byakuya repeated as he snapped his fingers.

The guards released the pair, where the hysterical Orihime ran straight into Nyruki's arms. The girl buried her tear stricken face into Nyruki's neck where her cries became even more intense to the point where she was nearly wailing.

"Calm down, Orihime... Shh-... It's ok. Calm down and tell us what's going on." Nyruki said, rubbing the poor girl's back.

"Please! There's no time! Isshin is begging for you to come and meet with him! Please!" Uryū begged, grabbing fistfuls of Byakuya's robes.

"What? Why would I meet with Ichigo Kurosaki's father?" Byakuya asked.

Both Orihime and Uryū's cries turned into harsh wails as both shook from their sobs. Their tears dripped from their faces to plop onto the ground, some of which were caught by the robes they wore. They had both wailed at the mention of the boy's name, upon which Byakuya and Nyruki glanced at each other with matching expressions of confusion.

Nyruki gently coaxed Orihime to withdraw her face from her shoulder, and her face was so red, so wet with tears that she looked like an entirely different person. The poor girl cupped her hands over her nose and mouth where she squeezed her eyes shut, only producing all that many more large tears that were the size of Spring raindrops.

"Sweetie... What's wrong? Please tell us." Nyruki said sweetly as she brushed aside a tear soaked strand of the girl's deep orange hair.

With a hard sob, Orihime finally told them.

"I-Ichigo was murdered!" She screamed, falling to her knees where she wailed into her hands.

Byakuya's and Nyruki's hearts stopped dead in their tracks.

"What?" He breathed.

"He was shot this afternoon at the middle school! Please... you have to come with us!" Uryū begged, dropping his head as he still held onto Byakuya's robes for support.

"I thought you didn't like the boy?" Byakuya asked, his brows still furrowed hard.

"I don't! But he didn't deserve this! Please, Captain... Come with us!" Uryū pled, looking up as he tried to breathe through his hysterics.

"How did you get here?" Byakuya asked lowly as he glanced over at Nyruki, who's eyes had glassed over with the news.

"Urahara... He sent us." Orihime whimpered, once again cradled in Nyruki's arms.

Byakuya's chest hurt. Every beat of his heart caused more ache than the last. His mind was having issues processing what he had heard, as he didn't believe it. Ichigo was more resilient than a cockroach and always got back up, no matter the injury. That had always been one of the most frustrating things about the boy. You couldn't get rid of him no matter how hard one tried.

The pairs' cries eased up into airy sobs as they tried to bring themselves back under control, but it was clear that all their emotions wanted to do was go haywire. Their sobs may have eased, but their eyes continue to pour.

"P-Please, Captain... Please." Uryū sobbed.

Byakuya sucked in a painful breath as he reached up and forced Uryū's hands to release his robes. He looked over at Nyruki, whose own eyes had begun to tear. Ichigo was a friend, had helped them when they needed it, had always helped them, helped anyone no matter their cree. Now he needed help.

"Where is he?" Byakuya asked quietly, still holding onto Uryū's wrists.

"He's at my father's hospital. I'll take you there, just please... please, I can't say anything else, but please." Uryū said, sucking in a long, trembling breath.

"Nyruki, inform all the captains immediately. I'll return as soon as I can." Byakuya said as he released his hold on the boy.

"I'll take care of it. Just go." Nyruki said quietly with a soft sniffle.

"Both of you. Come." Byakuya said as he stepped passed the pair.

Byakuya lead them all the way to the Senkaimon tower where he opened the gateway and stepped through the intense white light, none being able to say anything else because of their sobbing. The Dangai was traversed so quickly that nothing inside even registered with his eyes as he lead them back to their home town, stepping out onto the bank of the river where Uryū took over.

The young man lead him towards his father's hospital, cradling Orihime to his shoulder as they went. The poor girl showed no signs of stopping her crying, and in all honesty, Byakuya couldn't blame her. He had figured it out long ago that she had feelings for the boy and having to stomach the thought of someone you cared for being brought down by another was not an alien sensation to him. He knew it all too well.

It didn't take long for them to reach the large hospital, but instead of going in through the front doors, Uryū lead them around to the back entrance where a familiar man awaited them.

"Urahara." Byakuya exhaled as the man wearing his typical striped hat opened the back door for Uryū and Orihime to head inside.

"Quickly... Get into the gigai and follow me." Urahara said, pointing to a stiff figure leaning against the wall that was covered by a sheet.

Byakuya's brows furrowed, "What for?"

"There's a detective that's supposed to be arriving soon. We can't very well have everyone talking with someone he can't see." Urahara said, still holding the door open.

Byakuya didn't wish to argue, so instead, he tore off the sheet and popped into the gagai with no trouble. The muscled form immediately took on his features, even sprouting the very robes that he wore as his hair grew to its proper length. It all happened within the span of a few seconds before he was following Urahara down the dimly lit hallway.

It was sterile and entirely white, with no decoration at all to break up the plainness. Even the doors and their frames were white until they reached a pair of elevators what were made of brushed steel. Urahara jabbed a finger into the call button for up, where they waited the moment before the car arrived to pick them up.

Once inside the car, where no music was playing at all, Urahara finally spoke with a knuckle resting against his lips as he held himself together.

"I hope you have a strong stomach, Kuchiki." Urahara said lowly, not looking at the indicator for which level they were passing.

"I have seen death before, Urahara." Byakuya said as he drew in a deep breath that only highlighted that his heart still ached.

"Not like this you haven't."

The soft bong sounded as the doors opened out into the nearly identical hallway, but this one was at least decorated with a few fake potted plants and had a soft blue stripe painted along the wall. A few framed posters were hung and as they rounded the first corner, Byakuya knew immediately where they were headed.

The light of the only open room flooded out into the hallway, bathing those that stood outside of it in white light from one side that still showed their emotion.

Uryū still held Orihime as she cried, and Chad just stood in silence, leaning back against the wall with his thick arms crossed. Yoruichi Shihōin, the demon cat and Goddess of the Flash, sat in the row of chairs with Karin and Yuzu sobbing into her shoulders on either side of her. She gently brushed their hair, over and over again as she stared blindly out the windows with their own glassy sheen reflecting in the white light. Urahara's own people, Tessai and the two children stood across from them, where the children were latched onto a leg and hiding their faces in his apron.

There was only two missing.

"Where's Grimmjow and Neliel?" Byakuya asked, stopping a few paces away to keep the group from overhearing.

"Tessai's going to tell them when you head into the room." Urahara said in just above a whisper.

"Is that where Isshin is?" Byakuya asked.

All Urahara did was nod before stepping away and going to his employees.

Byakuya stood still a moment as he drew in a few deep breaths. His stomach was starting to flip and his heart still ached with each beat, but he had to go inside the room. He had to answer a broken man's plea.

With a shallow gulp, Byakuya stepped into the room.