Hello everybody! This is my first Bleach fic, so don't be too hard on me if I suck. I've been told by a reliable source that this is a good idea and that I can probably pull it off, so I'm going for it. I'll try to update this thing about once a week if I can manage.
"One more thing!" At the time of writing this, I've only read up to the chapter where Rukia stabs Ichigo for the second time, so I'll be taking plenty of liberties with my writing. I hope this doesn't put off anyone.
It was morning in the small mountain village of Karakura. A small society with a population of only a few hundred people. Karakura Village was almost completely isolated from the outside world. This is because it was founded a little over 16 years ago for a specific purpose, but more on that later. For now, we'll focus on one particular inhabitant of this village. The inhabitant in question, being the oldest person to be born here.
Kurosaki Household - 7:00 AM
An alarm clock could be heard going off in the room of one reluctant to awaken young man. The man in question being the focus of this story.
"Morning already?" Groaned the young man groggily as he moved sluggishly to try an press the snooze button in an effort to get a few more minutes of shuteye before one of his parents came to wake him up rather harshly, only to snap to full attention when he saw the date displayed on the clock.
February 29
"Oh yeah," Realized the young man glumly. "That day's finally here, is it?" He sighed as he got out of bed and prepped himself for the day, suddenly not feeling nearly as tired as he had when he first woke up. He went through the usual steps he took every morning: Getting his clothes ready. Getting showered. Brushing his teeth. Combing his long hair and putting it in a ponytail. Combing his abnormally long and droopy eyebrows, mustache, and goatee. If that last part creeps you out, don't feel too bad. He was born with a hair condition that caused hair to grow from every typical surface it could find from the day he was born. He usually kept most surfaces of his body shaved, but left the hair on his head alone, and liked the way the long facial hair he let grow looked.
After finishing his daily grooming, he reluctantly made his downstairs to get some breakfast. When he get their, a familiar spiky orange haired man and a black haired midget woman greeted him. "Hey dad. Hey mom." The young man greeted.
The orange haired man, who you can probably tell is Ichigo by now, and the black hair woman, who you can probably tell is Rukia, both startled at his presence. "Kaito? What are you doing up so early?" Asked Ichigo.
"I couldn't sleep," The young man, now dubbed Kaito responded. "Not on my birthday of all days."
Both his parents visibly stiffened at that remark. After a long silence, Rukia finally spoke. "We were gonna let you sleep in today." She said silently.
"I appreciate the sentiment," Thanked Kaito as he ran a hand through his spiky black hair. "But we all knew this day was coming eventually. There was never really any point in trying to put it off."
Ichigo and Rukia looked at each other in remorse for a few minutes as Kaito went to the stove to make some breakfast. Ichigo sighed as he turned to address his son. "Look, Kaito," He didn't respond, or even turn around to acknowledge him. "I hope you know that we're not trying to hurt you by doing this." Still no answer. "We're between a rock and a hard place here too." Kaito paused in his cooking for a second before continuing. "We never really wanted you to have to go through this, no decent parents would want their kid to have to-"
"Stop." Kaito cut his father off, still not turning to address him. "I've known what my life will be like from as soon as I was old enough to walk and talk. At first I thought it might be cool, that I'd like things better that way... I know better now. The life you intend to have me live isn't the one I chose myself, and you know how much I value my freedom. But I suppose it's at least somewhat reassuring to know that instead of having to choose from countless paths in life, some of which may not even work, you have a solid, low, and more manageable number to work with." Kaito sighed again. "I just wish that... I had choices that didn't involve the military."
There it was, laid out bare. Kaito had long since held two major philosophies in life. Violence is meant only for video games and manga, and to partake in a life of peace, the arts, and overall laziness is the highest honor one could attain. The mere idea of fighting in real life was appalling to him. Though these were philosophies he truly held, he wasn't above using them as an excuse to slack off. His parents could barely get him to train in the local Dojo.
This brings us to what the mountain village of Karakura was constructed for. A few years after Aizen's betrayal of Seireitei, it was determined that, in order to better prepare for, and possibly even to prevent such an event from happening in the future, all newborn Shinigami would be raised and trained in a secluded village constructed and owned by Seireitei. To help progress this along quickly, the village was constructed in a remote location in the living world, and all children would be kept in special Gigai that would accelerate their aging process to that of a typical human. They would still be able to learn the Shinigami arts and converse with their Zanpakuto in their current states, but they wouldn't be able to use their Zanpakuto as a weapon until they left their Gigai.
After much debate on the idea, with some, such as Ichigo and Rukia, protesting the idea, a non-unanimous agreement was reached. It was determined that the children would be removed from their Gigai, and based on their aptitude, incorporated into the ranks of the either the Gotei 13, Kido Corps, or the Onmitsukido at age 16.
Today was Kaito's 16th birthday.
Well, depending on how you look at it, it could also only be his 4th birthday, but that was neither here nor there.
Kaito, like every other child in the village, had been informed of this order from as soon as he could walk and talk, not that it made things any better. He knew his parents were against the idea, and had actually risen up in arms about it before being smacked down by some old man called Yamamoto. Apparently, the main reason they were spared was because his mom was a lieutenant and part of an influential family, and his dad was a captain, but the fact that his dad was born with a naturally high Reiryoku, and therefore had a chance of passing that on to future generations also played a part in it.
"Kaito," Sighed Rukia. "I hope you know we're not doing this by choice."
"I know." Sighed Kaito as he brushed him mustache and goatee in thought. "Let's just get this over with after breakfast."
"So soon?" Asked Ichigo in astonishment. "But it's still early in the morning. Don't you wanna at least want to..." He breathed in deeply, then out. "Say goodbye to your friends?"
"I already did that yesterday." Kaito explained sadly as he placed the eggs he was making on a plate. "They knew this was coming. They just needed to hear as much from me." He finished as he sat down at the table.
His parents both looked at him sadly, regretting that they couldn't do anything about this. "We're really sorry about this." His mother said.
"I know you are." Replied Kaito as he toyed with his food.
"Sakuya's gonna miss you." Said his dad sadly.
"I know." Nodded Kaito as he finally started eating. "She was crying into her pillow last night when I told her about it." He was sad that he'd be leaving behind his little sister, but this was how things were.
His father, sensing his sadness on the subject, placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "You'll see her again soon enough." He reassured him.
"I know." He nodded sadly. "She's only three years younger than me, so the pain won't be long, especially by a Shinigami's standards."
There was more to his sorrow than he let on, and his parents knew it. They knew he loved manga above all other hobbies that didn't involve his friends and family, and had dreams of becoming a mangaka himself someday. A dream which would have been quite easy for him under normal circumstances, given his incredible talent for art and storytelling. Unfortunately, while Seireitei had Seireitei Communications as a monthly publication, there were no manga publishers, and his parents highly doubted they'd make one just for the sake of one person.
"I'm done." Said Kaito as he set down his utensils. "Let's get this over with."
Senkaimon - 9:14 AM
As the second door of the Senkaimon opened, Kaito had a strange sense of dread. He knew more or less how the passage between the world of the living and Seireitei worked. For those who're guided by some weird butterflies who classification he couldn't be bothered to remember, it looks like a waiting room of sorts. For those who aren't guided, it's a much less pleasant experience, at least according to his dad. Personally, he didn't want to find out, and was glad those weird butterflies were guiding him and his parents through the gate.
Walking through the first door, Kaito swiftly pieced together where the dread was coming from. This was essentially the door to the afterlife. Once he went though, he probably wouldn't be coming back for quite some time. When, he didn't exactly know. Either when he was assigned a mission to the world of the living, or maybe when he started a family of his own, he really wasn't sure. What he did know, was that there was really no use fighting it. This was his fate. He had never really been a religious type, so fate was just a meaningless word to him. But right now, this unavoidable event, this was as close to fate as someone with his set of beliefs could ever get.
After stepping through the second door, Kaito was blinded for a second before the glare passed and his eyes adjusted. When they did, he was left in awe. Even though he could only see some of it, the sheer magnitude and attention to the architecture around him was breathtaking. For an artist at heart like him, these were the kind of buildings he could get used to.
'At least I won't be miserable here.' Thought Sallem. 'If these buildings and this weird uniform are any indication, arts are pretty important here. I just wish they were more up to date with the modern world. Hello! Have they heard of something called functional beauty? Or maybe colors for building besides white and orange?' Kaito wasn't able to continue his current line of thoughts, because something loud and obnoxious sounding cut off his train of thought.
"Well, well! If it isn't Ichigo!" Came the voice of some vicious pirate-looking man who Kaito thought could seriously stand to cut back on the hair gel.
Ichigo sighed while muttering something along the lines of "not now". Kaito was too focused on the pirate man to pay attention to his dad.
"What do you want Kenpachi?" Asked Ichigo in exasperation.
"Isn't it obvious?" Grinned Kenpachi maliciously. "I wanna fight ya again!"
'Fight him again?' Wondered Kaito. 'Aren't they on the same side? And furthermore, I know what that Haori he's wearing means. That was one of the first things they taught me in school after all. Why would one captain want to fight another?'
"Not now, Kenpachi." Sighed Ichigo. "Can't you see I have to take my son for evaluation?"
"Ichi's son?" Piped up a small pink haired girl from the shoulder of Kenpachi. "Where? I don't see anyone like that." She said as she put her hand to her forehead and looked around like some cartoon lookout.
Wanting to put a stop to this nonsense, Kaito spoke up. "That would be me. Why do you want to fight my dad, exactly? You're both captains, aren't you?"
"Hm?" Quirked Kenpachi at Kaito. "You're Ichigo's brat?" He asked skeptically. Kaito, though offended at his choice in words, nodded in response. "Ya sure? Ya look a bit too old to be his kid." He said, obviously referring to his copious facial hair.
"I'm sure, I just have a hair condition." Explained Kaito irritably as he brushed his facial hair.
"Whatever." Shrugged Kenpachi. "Say, you got any skills with that sword of yours?" He asked as he looked curiously at the Zanpakuto strapped to his waist.
"Not a chance Kenpachi." Said Ichigo protectively as he stepped between Kaito and Kenpachi. "You're not challenging my son to one of your crazy sparring matches."
"Fine. Then you fight me." Said Kenpachi as if his word alone could make it happen.
"Love to. Can't." Ichigo rebuked sarcastically. "Let me repeat, my son is here."
"Yeah, so?" Asked Kenpachi bluntly. "How does that affect our fight?"
"Did you seriously forget?" Deadpanned Ichigo. "Yamamoto wants to get a look at all Shinigami raised in the Living World to see how being born and raised there affects their growth, remember?" He felt ashamed for using his son as an excuse, but he really didn't want to fight Kenpachi.
"So? You can get that done later. I wanna fight now!" Kenpachi declared as he began to draw his sword.
"I'm afraid that won't be happening, Zaraki-taicho." Came a gruff voice as what looked to Kaito to be several other captains approached. "I had a feeling you would try to get a fight in with Kurosaki-taicho and his son the moment they arrived, so I brought everyone here for the assessment instead." Said an old man who was obviously the Yamamoto person Kaito had always heard about.
"Damn," Cursed Kenpachi as he sheathed his sword. "Fine, I'll wait." Some captains looked at him disapprovingly as he walked over to join them.
"Well then," Began Yamamoto as he looked at Kaito. "I suppose introductions are in order."
"There's really no need for that on most accountants." Denied Kaito. "I already recognize some faces here. Hey Mr. Hitsugaya, Mr. and Mrs. Komamura, Uncle Byakuya, Tattoo Face."
"That's Abarai-taicho!" Outburst Renji. "Sheesh, you're just as rude as that dad of yours." He grumbled.
"I don't know," Said Toshiro smugly. "At least he doesn't call me by my given name."
"While you're here you'll refer to my husband and I as Komamura-taicho of the 7th and 2nd Division respectively." Said Sui-Feng sternly.
"You're my best friend's parents, if I called you mom and dad it wouldn't be even remotely weird." Rebuked Kaito. "In fact, I've actually done so on occasion if you'll recall." Sui-Feng scoffed at the reminder, while Sajin just let it slide.
"It's good to see you again, Kaito." Greeted Byakuya politely.
"And I know who you and Spike Head over there are." He informed Yamamoto. "Not to mention that my mom's already told me a lot of good things about her captain," He nodded at Jushiro. "And my dad's warned my sister about what a lecherous womanizer Shunsui is," The man in question looked comically depressed at his words. "And I've been warned enough times to stay away from some 'Freak in clown face paint' to know all I need to," Mayuri gave his parents a bitter look at their description of him. "The only ones I've never really heard my parents say anything about are Spike Head and the woman in the braid over there, but I think I know all I need to about Spike Head." He said as he pointed from Kenpachi to Retsu.
"Call me Spike Head one more time..." Threatened Kenpachi through gritted teeth.
"My name is Retsu Unohana," Retsu introduced herself with a polite bow. "Though I find it very hard to believe that your parents never once told you about me." As she said this, Kaito's parents, as well as several of the captains present shuddered.
'Seems like everyone's afraid of her for some reason.' Observed Kaito. 'Can't really see why though. She doesn't strike me as scary at all.'
Yamamoto coughed loudly into his fist to clear the air. "Well, regardless, a full assessment of your skills is in order before you join any division, so we've brought along someone to test your skills in combat. Hisagi-fukutaicho!" He called, prompting a man with too many tattoos in Kaito's opinion to step forward.
'I really don't like where this is going.' Thought Kaito nervously.
"Hi there," Greeted the Tattoo man as he held his hand out. "My name's Shuhei Hisagi." He introduced himself as Kaito hesitantly shook his arm.
"Hey, old man," Interjected Ichigo. "Are you sure Kaito's ready to square off against a lieutenant? He's more of a greenhorn than I was when I first fought Renji, and he nearly killed me."
"Your concerns are noted, Kurosaki-taicho." Acknowledged Yamamoto. "However, they are misdirected. Your son has been trained his entire life in the Spiritual Arts, and even though he has no real practice in actual combat, this is merely a sparring match to better assess his skills outside of a Gigai."
Ichigo glared at Yamamoto for a bit at the reminder of what Kaito was raised for, but eventually let it slide. "Fine, but exactly what limitations will there be in this fight?"
"There will be no use of Shunpo, and causing a major injury or one side surrendering will result immediate end of the fight. Otherwise the fight shall proceed until I see fit to end it." Yamamoto declared.
'What have you gotten yourself into, Kaito?' Kaito asked himself rhetorically.
"Take your positions." Announced Yamamoto, prompting Kaito and Shuhei to get into the usual positions for a match.
'This is not good! This is not good! This is not good!' Panicked Kaito internally, but he didn't let it show. 'Didn't anyone ever think to ask my opinion on whether or not I wanted to actually do this? I don't wanna fight! I'm scarred of pain! Please let this be a dream! Please let this be a dream! Please let this be a dream!' Kaito was so busy panicking, he barely even noticed Yamamoto announce the beginning of the fight. When he saw Shuhei charging at him, he realized he had to act.
Panicking, Kaito deflected Shuhei's attack with the flat of his blade. If he wasn't so panicked, he may have noticed that it was just a simple, easy to predict attack, that left a decent opening. Shuhei was testing him, but he was to scared to notice.
Again, Shuhei tried a simple attack with a decent opening, and again, Kaito deflected it in a panic. This pattern repeated several times, with the onlookers much less than impressed.
"You sure that's your son, Ichigo?" Asked Kenpachi. "Seems like a real wuss ta me."
"That's always been the main thing about him." Responded Ichigo. "He doesn't really like fighting, or even work in general. He's always been the best at swordsmanship at the dojo, even though he barely shows up, and he's great in school, but unless he's bored or getting something out of the deal, he tends not to work very hard."
"My daughters always have called him a perfect slacker." Said Toshiro smugly. "Guess now I can see why."
"Not really," Denied Rukia. "You don't know him like we do. He's not a slacker because he never works. He's a slacker because he works too well for anyone to think he's actually working at all."
"What the hell's that supposed ta mean?" Asked Kenpachi.
"Just watch." Smirked Ichigo.
'Not good! Not good! Not good!' Panicked Kaito as he continued to deflect the increasingly challenging blows. 'Why did they ever come up with this system? Why are they forcing me to do this? How can I stop this guy from trying to hit me?' Even as he panicked, he still barely noticed the movements his opponent was making. 'C'mon! Let me beat this guy in one hit so I can get somewhere more peaceful already! I don't wanna fight! I wanna slack off and write manga! Where can I hit this guy? What's his pattern? How's he gonna attack next? When will he be most vulnerable?'
As these questions popped up into his head, answers came in just as quickly. 'A good place to hit him is his dominant hand, and based on the way he holds his blade, that's his right! It's always the right! His pattern is a four step beat with a downward to sideways to sideways to upwards diagonally to downwards diagonally to sideways then back around! He'll attack downwards diagonally next! Slash him up his arm after a sideways swing to the right when there's an opening!'
Waiting a for a few more swings to go by, he finally sees Shuhei leave a tiny opening on his right arm. But Kaito is too afraid to attack. 'That means it's a feint! It was definitely a feint! Wait for the next one to come around! Wait for it! Wait for it! Wait for it! Now!' He saw an opening, and wasn't scarred, so he went for it.
Shuhei had been chosen to test Kaito Kurosaki in a duel to see how good he was, and had been honored at first to see what Ichigo's son was capable of. But sadly, he was very disappointed in what he's seen so far. He could quite honestly say that, highly unlike his father, Kaito was a coward among cowards. He could practically taste the fear in the air. In all honesty, Kaito was clearly not meant for the ranks of the Gotei 13. He was the kind of person you'd expect to see in a peaceful job that never sees any form of excitement. He'd have to end this now and tell Yamamoto about this.
Just as he was about to end the fight however, Kaito took him by surprise and slashed him up his right arm, causing him to drop his sword in pain. Before he could retreat and regroup, Kaito had grabbed him by his uniform and held his neck to his Zanpakuto.
"I win." Boasted Kaito. "Now can we end this? I'm getting bored."
Shuhei was flabbergasted. This kid had essentially beaten him in one hit! Granted, he had been holding back, but the fact that he had been caught completely off guard at all by someone who had, until just moments ago, looked like a total coward was humiliating.
Finally finding his voice, Shuhei chuckled. "I'm impressed. You're pretty good at faking cowardice."
"Who ever said I was faking?" Asked Kaito. "I was genuinely terrified throughout the whole thing."
Now Shuhei was even more surprised. "You mean... You were seriously that scared during our fight?" It was crazy. Sure, Shuhei had learned from his former captain to always maintain a healthy level of fear for his own sword and those of others. But if what Kaito was saying was true, he took that very same philosophy up to levels where he should barely be able to function at all in combat, let alone win against a lieutenant level Shinigami.
'What kind of freak is this kid?' Shuhei wondered.
"Wow, impressive." Remarked Shunsui. "Even I never saw that coming until the last second. That son of yours is pretty good at playing the fool."
"Thanks," Remarked Kaito. "But I'll have you know, I wasn't acting."
Shunsui blinked in confusion. "He heard me? From over there?"
"I have very good hearing," Remarked Kaito. "So I heard every hurtful word you guys said."
"Er, sorry about that." Apologized Toshiro awkwardly. This guy was eavesdropping on them while he was fighting? What kinda weirdo is he?
"I'm not." Denied Kenpachi. "Like I said, the guy's a wuss. He ended a perfectly good fight way too fast. There was only one hit for fuck's sake."
"Hm, most impressive." Nodded Yamamoto. "You are indeed very skilled if you can disarm and defeat a lieutenant in one attack."
"Like my mom said before, I'm a slacker." Informed Kaito. "Hell, I'm a slacker among slackers. I didn't take him down in one hit because of some big plan or amazing skills, I just wanted to end this as fast as possible and get to relaxing, so I took him down in a way where I knew it would only take one hit."
Most of the captains and lieutenants present were baffled. What exactly was that supposed to mean?
"That's how he works." Remarked Ichigo. "He doesn't like working at all, so he does it in the quickest, most efficient way possible so he can get back to lazing around. And if there's one thing he's a prodigy at, it's finding the quickest way to do things. In fact, it's really the only thing he's good at."
Kenpachi scoffed. "So what you're saying is, he's basically just a lazy coward? That's some weird kid ya got there Ichigo, and I don't just mean his freaky hair."
"Shut up." Deadpanned Kaito. "You're not one to complain about hair."
"Hige-chan's just a coward!" Booed Yachiru from her perch on Kenpachi's shoulder.
One of Kaito's long drooping eyebrows twitched in irritation at Yachiru's nickname for him. 'Hige-chan? Really? She gives me a nickname after my facial hair just a few minutes after meeting me? What a weird kid.'
Yamamoto coughed into his hand again. "Disregarding Zaraki-taicho, there is no denying that you are indeed a prodigy. Even though Hisagi-fukutaicho was holding back, your skills are clearly that of at least a third seat officer."
"Only third seat?" Asked Shuhei, rather insulted at the implications of being beaten by someone who was only at the level of third seat.
Sensing Shuhei's unease, Yamamoto continued. "While you are a lieutenant, as I said before, you were quite clearly holding back. Not to mention that we have yet to see young Kaito's Shikai in use, so until we do, we won't know for certain what his exact level of combat abilities are."
"Shikai?" Parroted Kaito nervously.
"Exactly." Nodded Yamamoto. "I know that you have never actually used your Zanpakuto until now, but it's necessary that you release it so that we may properly grade you abilities. Not to mention that I think we are all curious as to its abilities."
"Riiight, about that..." Began Kaito hesitantly as he scratched the back of his head.
"Is there something wrong?" Questioned Yamamoto.
"Well..." Began Kaito. "Screw it. I'll just come out and say it. I don't know my Zanoakuto's name." Everyone except Kenpachi and Yachiru just stared at him oddly. "What?"
Yamamoto cleared his throat. "You don't know the name of your Zanpakuto?" He asked.
"Not at all." Admitted Kaito shamelessly. "I've tried to talk to it more times than I feel motivated to count, but it never worked. Talking to Zanpakuto usually requires meditating. Meditation is basically just doing and thinking nothing. I'm fine with doing nothing. I do nothing all the time. It's the thinking nothing part that gets me. I always get angry when my mind's inactive for anything but sleep."
Yamamoto mulled this new information over for a few about a minute before speaking again. "You say you don't like inactivity in your mind, is this correct?"
"Yeah, I get real stir crazy and just feel like making noise and causing damage." Kaito elaborated.
"You don't say?" Grinned Kenpachi maliciously. Maybe there was something good about this kid after all.
Meanwhile, Yamamoto was deep in thought again. 'He's already such a skilled Shinigami, and he doesn't even have access to his Shikai yet. Such untapped potential is to be expected given his father, but this is beyond the level I had originally anticipated. I haven't seen such talent for both the blade and the mind since Shunsui and Jushiro. If only he could attain his Shikai, he could one day number among some of the greatest Shinigami Seireitei has ever seen. But how to go about this?' After giving it much thought, Yamamoto settled on a decision.
"Unohana-taicho," Summoned Yamamoto.
"Yes, Yamamoto-sotaicho?" Retsu asked as she stepped forward.
"You are to oversee Kaito's Shikai training." He ordered, much to the shock of several present.
"Hey, ya old fart, how come the medic gets ta train the guy?" Complained Kenpachi. "I'll bet I could motivate him." He said as he grabbed his Zanpakuto anxiously.
Yamamoto just looked at him disapprovingly, seeing through his obvious ploy to fight the young Shinigami. "This is my decision, Zaraki-taicho. Kaito has great potential for a Shinigami his age, and the proper training could take him far. Therefore, he shall receive training from the greatest Shinigami in Seireitei aside from myself."
"Why don't you just train me then, Captain Senile?" Kaito questioned, causing almost everyone present to show signs of fear.
"Captain Senile?" Questioned Yamamoto bitterly.
"Yeah, that's what my parents always call you." Explained Kaito, ignoring his parent's frantic signs to shut up.
Casting a sideways glance at Ichigo and Rukia, Yamamoto stored this information away for another time. "Were your problem areas any different, I would take it upon myself to train you. However, given your rather unique difficulties, it would be more prudent to have someone of Unohana-taicho's character oversee your training."
"Whatever." Shrugged Kaito. It didn't really matter to him at all whether person A or person B trained him. He just wanted to get this over with so he could have some fun.
"I look forward to working with you Kaito." Said Retsu.
"Whatever." Shrugged Kaito again. He was really too tired to care.
Kenpachi scoffed. "Probably gonna turn the guy into some pansy ass medic. Waste of a good fighter if ya ask me."
"Weren't you just insulting me for being a coward a few minutes ago?" Asked Kaito, not really caring either way.
"And I stand by that," Retorted Kenpachi. "But I'm sure that it's nothing a few weeks in my division wouldn't fix." When Kaito didn't respond for several seconds, Kenpachi turned to see what was keeping the smart ass response he'd come to expect in the few short minutes he'd known the guy, only to see him snoring with his head tilted back. "What the...?"
"Yeah," Began Ichigo as he scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "There's one more little problem with Kaito that you all should probably know about..."
"He's highly prone to narcolepsy." Sighed Rukia.
Everyone just stared at Kaito for a few seconds of awkward silence before he suddenly woke up. After looking around, Kaito finally broke the silence.
"What's everyone staring at?" He asked. A few people actually fell over.
"That's one freaky kid ya got there, Ichigo." Kenpachi remarked.
"Not nearly as freaky as your hair." Rebuked Kaito.
"My, my," Chuckled Retsu. "It's certainly going to be an interesting experience working with you."
"Does anybody have any fish?" Asked Kaito. "I really like fish."
There you all are. I hope I did good with this so far. Was it a bit too random up at the end? Well if you think so, it's gonna get a whole lot more random later on, but don't let that keep you from reading.