Note: I do not own Bleach. It belongs to Tite Kubo. This idea simply popped into my head. Please read and review!
Senpai
The Seireitei, despite what those in Rukongai may believe, was not a peaceful place. This particular day proved to be even more chaotic than it usually was with more people than usual bustling through the streets and talking with each other more often. This, of course, was intertwined with the very troubling mess that had struck the shinigami only a short while ago.
The execution. The ryoka. And Aizen.
Each of these factors had taken their toll on the population since it was absolutely shocking to all of them that Aizen of all people was a traitor, and quite a despicable one at that. Tōsen and Ichimaru may not have been as well-liked as their leader, but it was still hard to comprehend that their taichōs, their leaders, would be capable of treasonous activity at all.
As they walked around each other in a mild frenzy, one certain shinigami was making his way through the crowds slowly with a broken atmosphere surrounding his person.
This individual was none other than Hitsugaya Tōshirō, taichō of the 10th Division.
He had been released from 4th Division the day previous and had spent a large amount of his time in a depressed mood that wouldn't be shaken even by the bouncy antics of his fukutaichō Matsumoto Rangiku, who had been trying her best to accommodate him in order to hopefully provide some levity in this situation as well as cast off some of the gloom that she herself had been struggling with concerning Ichimaru Gin.
As he walked down the streets of Seireitei, even his thoughts reflected the dark mood he seemed possessed by.
Momo hasn't woken up yet. Unohana-taichō says that she will recover soon enough but still…
I failed her. I was right there, and I couldn't do anything while they made their leave while Momo and I were bleeding out on the ground…
Aizen.
It rankled his rage that such a monster had been able to fool them for so long, to make them believe in him as a virtuous figure; and worse, to earn such ardent admiration from Momo and betray that trust so brutally.
To pour salt on the wound, they now had to wait out and wage a war on that monster in order for any of them to give him a gut-wrenching death like the scum so deserved. He prayed to the Reiō that it would be him to deliver that blow.
Slowing his pace and eventually stopping, Tōshirō inhaled deeply and let loose a long sigh. As much as he wanted to keep cursing Aizen mentally, he couldn't deny that he was still taxed out from the long day that he had had. Looking over to his left, he made his way a few blocks over to a well-maintained restaurant that was located close to the center of Seireitei. He only knew of this place because of Matsumoto pointing it out as a well-to-do eatery that catered to every shinigami's need for a good break and drink.
He had no intention of actually drinking any alcohol, but he needed some nourishment and rest before his stress finally overcame him and made him pass out on the street right then and there.
:::Break:::
More than eager to serve one of the Gotei 13's celebrated taichōs, the waiter quickly directed him to an unoccupied booth where he promptly sat down and began looking over the menu. When the waiter came back, he made a short order for soup and rice with some water to drink, which was quickly written down and delivered to the table just as fast as it was taken.
Somewhat mollified by this, Tōshirō picked up his chopsticks and took his time putting the rice into his mouth first before he would proceed on to the soup. What came next was the least likely thing he suspected to happen at that moment.
:::Break:::
A certain harried black-haired youth stood up at the front counter of the restaurant, waiting patiently to pick up his order and move on to a table to eat. Yamada Hanatarō, out of misplaced politeness, did this so that he wouldn't take any seat that someone else needed and make himself content with whatever space had been left for him to sit.
He had decided to indulge himself today after another hard day's work since his time during the Ryoka incident and opted to have a large bowl of beef ramen with a large side of rice as a way to splurge. As he picked up the glass of water he ordered (since he was not one to drink alcohol at all) he looked around the room and was surprised to find that most of the tables and booths were vacant today, which he found strange because of all the high energy everyone else seemed to be possessed by today.
Struck by this sudden good luck, he looked around for some of his preferred seating spots when he suddenly caught a familiar head of white hair in his line of sight.
Naturally, he recognized who this individual was on sight. Not only because there were only two non-elderly white-haired shinigami in the Gotei 13, but because of the familiar posture and atmosphere surrounding him.
Slightly intimidated, he started to avert his gaze to find another spot when he got a better look at the young taichō's expression.
Working in 4th Division led to working with emotional wounds as well as physical wounds, and he recognized inner pain when he saw it.
Conflict started to build up in his mind. They were very far apart in rank, it had obviously been a difficult day, it had been a long time ago, and rejection against any type of company was a very likely occurrence in this kind of situation…
Sweating slightly, he steeled his nerves and made his way over to the occupied booth. Hanatarō was nothing if not kind-hearted, and there was no way in hell he was going to allow his kohai to be left alone to suffer at a time like this.
:::Break:::
He had only gotten half-way through his rice before melancholy had struck again, and he closed his eyes again and let out a sight as he reached for his glass of water.
"E-excuse me…is this seat t-taken?"
His eyes opened at the voice (that familiar voice), and he looked up to see crystal-blue eyes and the thin, obviously-nervous figure that they belonged to. Not expecting anything like this to happen today and he replied in a calm yet surprised tone of voice.
"…Hanatarō?"
Senpai?
:::Flashback:::
Here he was in the Academy. The same place Momo had attended and graduated from.
Needless to say, he was surprised by how boring it all was.
Ever since he had started classes, he found that it was all easy for him to absorb and master. In fact, the sensei was already singing his praises and stating that he could probably graduate by the end of the year with how well he moved through the subjects, something that was almost unheard of.
Despite his accomplishments, it was obvious that this wasn't earning him any fans amongst his fellow classmates. The upper years, especially, were put off by how fast he was progressing while they had been attending the academy for years. Even here, the feel of his reiatsu was off-setting to some of them, and combined with his solitary nature, he always found himself sitting alone at the lunch tables when it was time to eat.
Sighing to himself, he looked down to figure out what exactly they had served today and if this month's menu's school food managed to resemble actual food at all. He had begun to sample the meal when…
"E-excuse me; is this seat taken?"
Stiffening at the sudden sound in surprise, he looked up at the owner of the voice.
The person in question was a skinny black-haired boy who was a bit older than Tōshirō himself. Making contact with the boy's nervous blue eyes, he made a non-committal shrug.
"No."
Relieved, the boy sat down across from Tōshirō, and broke his chopsticks and began eating. Suddenly, realizing that Tōshirō's gaze was still on him, he blushed and bowed his head.
"O-oh! Sumimasen! My name is Yamada Hanatarō! It's nice to meet you!"
He sat in silence for a few more moments, and then decided to return his politeness.
"Hitsugaya Tōshirō."
Smiling tentatively, Hanatarō jerked in realization. "Oh! You must be the prodigy that everyone is talking about right now. They say you'll probably graduate at the end of the year."
He nodded in acknowledgement.
Hanatarō smiled in return. "That's amazing. This is my sixth and final year, so I guess that means we'll graduate at the same time."
Tōshirō nodded again and replied in turn. "That doesn't bother you?"
He stared back in confusion.
"It doesn't bother you that I'll be graduating in one year when it took you six?"
Somewhat taken aback by the question, Hanatarō shook his head softly.
"No, not at all; we all learn at different paces, so it's good that you're able to get things so quickly. That means you'll be a really strong shinigami when you graduate, right?"
Tōshirō simply stared back with slight surprise then let a small smile grace his mouth.
"I suppose so."
Both of them had made quick work of their meals and Hanatarō looked up at the clock.
"Oh my, lunch is almost over! We'd better get to classes soon!"
Picking up their respective bags, Hanatarō smiled once again as he moved to leave.
"I guess I'll see you around then, Hitsugaya-kun?"
Pausing once more, he nodded and replied "I guess you will, Yamada-senpai."
Flustered by how he was addressed, he flapped his arms in protest while blushing.
"Oh no, you don't need to call me that! Hanatarō is just fine!"
Tōshirō nodded again and replied "Very well then, Hanatarō-senpai."
Still blushing slightly, he nodded in acceptance and they both split up and made their ways to their own respective classes.
:::Flashback End:::
He stared at the nervous healer for a few more seconds in surprise. He then sighed softly and jerked his head towards the seat across from him.
"No, it's not taken."
Hanatarō made a tentative smile and sat down across from the white-haired taichō. Both of them sat there for a few uncomfortable moments while they slowly ate their respective meals.
Tōshirō looked across at his old classmate and distanced friend. Truth be told, there were very few people he had ever considered close friends during his time residing in Soul Society. In fact, there were only three on that list. One of them was Momo, obviously; the other was Matsumoto (though he would die before admitting that to her); and the third was none other than Yamada Hanatarō.
It wasn't as if they were "joined at the hip" back in the academy and shared every personal detail about themselves, but Hanatarō had connected with him when no one else would, and (on rare occasions) even act as a mentor. Meeting him again, on top of everything else, was a bit…awkward.
"…So, have your wounds healed well?" the timid 7th seat asked.
Tōshirō stared back at him and responded "Fairly well, actually. Most of the wounds endured during this mess have already been healed."
It went unspoken as to whose wounds had not fully healed as of yet.
The young taichō turned the conversation to another topic. "You managed to attain a seated position in 4th, I see."
Hanatarō flushed with some pride and scratched the back of his neck nervously. "Well, it wasn't that great; I'm only a 7th seat in the Division and…"
A ghost of a smile tugged at Tōshirō's mouth. He had been exposed more than once to the healer's unfailing modesty as well as his tendency to trip every 10 steps he took.
His eyes narrowed when he caught sight of a bruise on Hanatarō's shoulder while he was still scratching his neck.
"What's that on your shoulder?"
Taken aback by the sudden question, he took a quick glance and felt even more nervous when he caught sight of the bruise he had gotten from one rough 11th Division member barraging his way out of the hospital. "W-well, you see…"
His eyes narrowed even more. "Are you still being bullied?"
It seemed that problem had continued to haunt his senpai's steps all the way outside the academy.
Caught by Tōshirō's accurate assessment, he only nodded meekly.
Taking a deep sigh, he moved on to a less sensitive topic. "Have you been doing anything that doesn't involve getting pushed around?"
Somewhat emboldened by the change of subject, Hanatarō opened up a new conversation about what he regularly did in a typical 4th Division work day. Amused by the descriptive narration he had once listened to, Tōshirō joined in soon after, both of them quietly exchanging some miscellaneous occurrences they both had to deal with in their respective occupations. After talking about one of Matsumoto's many drunken misadventures, it struck a new topic into his mind.
"There's actually something I'd like to ask you about."
Blinking curiously, Hanatarō nodded in reply.
"Matsumoto caught wind of a rumor flying around about the ryoka invasion, and that there was a member of the 4th Division helping them navigate to the Senzaikyū. Is any of that actually true?"
His entire face reddened and he fidgeted under the surprised stare of the young taichō.
"Actually…it was me who guided Ichigo-san to the Senzaikyū to rescue Rukia-san."
Tōshirō now officially looked gob smacked at this revelation. After a few more seconds of silent bewilderment, he managed to speak up again.
"You…you helped the ryoka…guided them to their destination…even though you were directly defying the entire Gotei 13?"
Still blushing, Hanatarō put on a serious face and replied "Rukia-san is my friend, and I wasn't going to let her die."
Despite the color of his cheeks and the nervous sweat on his brow, Tōshirō saw that he meant it in earnest, and gave a small smile in return.
"I would have done the same thing."
Sitting there silently for a few more seconds, Hanatarō glanced at the clock and gasped.
"Oh! I'd better get going!"
He got up to leave…
"Wait a second, senpai."
Startled by how he was addressed, he turned around to look at serious turquoise eyes.
"Do you think we'll make it through this war?"
His face briefly furrowed in contemplation, Hanatarō stood for a few seconds and swiftly beamed.
"Of course we will! We still have all of our friends with us, don't we?"
The taichō briefly smiled in return. "We do, don't we?"
Nodding again, Hanatarō bowed and made his way to leave. "Goodbye, Hitsugaya-taichō."
"Hitsugaya-kun."
He looked back at the white-haired boy.
"Just for today."
Small smiles were exchanged, and then Hanatarō left the restaurant while Tōshirō finished the rest of his tea.
It turns out that it wasn't such a bad day after all.
Fin
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