Kurosaki Ichigo, Substitute Father!

by Jermaine94

Finding himself on the losing side of the Quincy War, Ichigo, Bambietta and Grimmjow all launch a final offensive against the Cruel King Ywach. Seeing defeat at his hands, Grimmjow opens a hasty Garganta and pushed Ichigo and Bambietta through. Where will they appear...but more importantly...when will they find themselves...

1. Chapter 1

Kurosaki Ichigo Substitute FATHER?!

Hey guys…I'm finally back…had all my surgeries…all my rehab…all my pills have been taken and my sabbatical has been completed! I can say with confidence that I am a marginally functional human being…about 80% of me is in full working order…my lungs…not so good…well…smoking does that to you after a while…don't smoke…its bad for you…

Now…with the upload of this chapter will come the removal of ALL the previous [Sub] chapters, cause this is going to be a completely new storyline with…hopefully…a more fleshy outlook...so yeah! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: This is a fan made production, I own nothing!

Chapter 1: Don't forget me

The light at the end of the tunnel kept them going. There was nothing left for them in their world. Not anymore. The War…it changed everything. Friends fought friends. Enemies became allies. Powers were lost and powers were gained. A soft thud behind the person at the front of the duo made him turn. His eyes widened when he noticed the person following him was now kneeling in a small puddle of blood.

"BAMBI!" The person raised his reiatsu in retaliation for whatever attacked them. The now named Bambietta Basterbine looked up with a myriad of emotions visible on her face.

Pain.

Sadness.

Hope.

Rage.

Anger.

Suffering.

Warmth.

Love.

"Run…Ichigo." He stopped dead in his tracks, his heartbeat now pounding in his chest, threatening to burst out. He took a step forwards. Then another. Then another. The Quincy woman waved him off. "I told you, run. Don't make me tell you again you stupid Berry! Go! Now! Before they finally catch up! I have no idea how they managed to find us, but they have, and it seems they got me good. I'll hold them off, then collapse this path. Ichigo. I want you to survive. You have to. There is no other chance for us to get away. He will always know where I- ICHIGO!" Her words were cut short as Ichigo flashed to her side, a monstrously powerful Getsuga already itching to be launched glowed brightly on his Hollow blade.

"Don't even think about giving up on me, Bambi. There is no way in hell that I'm going to leave you here! Do you think that after all we have been through…that I'd just up and leave? After all we have lost…that I'd just abandon you? Don't…fuck…with…me. They want to fight? Alright…let's." He swung his blade, using his monstrous strength to launch not only the Getsuga, but also a cruel burst of wind, back down the path they were travelling on. Whoever was in the path of that would most likely die by Getsuga or fall off and end up who knows when…or where.

It didn't take long for the attack to reach its intended targets, with screams ringing out through the blackness of the garganta. Ichigo smirked a rare, vicious smirk, before spinning and picking up Bambietta, who immediately tried to punch him in the face.

"LET GO OF ME DICKHEAD! YOU'LL GET US BOTH KILLED! JUST LEAVE ME! PUT ME DOWN!" Ichigo just ignored her. Even when she seemed to break his nose with one well-placed punch. She watched in disgust as his nose just seemed to magically repair itself right before her very eyes. "That was disgusting…and I thought I was fucked up." Ichigo looked down and smirked.

"High speed regen…courtesy of one Vasto-Lorde Class Hollow. Nift-" THWACK! CRACK! "OW! Dammit you broke my nose again! Why?" She glared at him.

"CAUSE IT DIDN'T STAY BROKEN THE FIRST TIME!" Ichigo smiled at her brutal way of showing affection.

"I love you too."

"FUCK OFF!"

Ichigo just laughed. He was…however…torn from his little moment when an arrow decided to whizz past his head. An inch or more to the left and it may have just been in his general direction. He looked up and noticed that there seemed to be something glowing in the far distance. He decided to speed things up a little.

'Hey! Zangetsu! Can you give me access to that fake Ban-Kai with hyperspeed capabilities?'

'Oh! You mean the one that the pid-' TWACK 'OW…I mean…Gramps…made for you? Sure. Why not. You seem to be in a pickle soooo…fakeness…AWAY!' Ichigo just shook his head at the antics of Zangetsu. Now that he knew who he was…who he really was…they became the bestest of friends. And since Ichigo decided to keep Juha in his head because he was also a part of him, his powers had never been greater.

Or so they thought.

As it always turns out, Ywach was still more powerful…after absorbing the Soul King of course…but it didn't mean that they would just roll over and die. They fought until the bitter end. Until there were only 3 left standing against the Quincy Forefather.

Ichigo.

Bambietta.

Grimmjow.

That heartless bastard actually did something human just before he met his end. He used the last dredges of his power to open a garganta and kicked Ichigo and Bambi through. He gave Ichigo the finger before the portal closed. Of course he would…it's Grimmjow!

Shaking his head, Ichigo looked down at Bambi, and now that she wasn't trying to break his nose, he spoke. "Close your eyes and take a deep breath. I'll get us out of here." She looked up at him in confusion, but nonetheless did as he asked. She almost felt her heart stop when he spoke.

"Ban-Kai. Saisho no henkei, Tensa Zangetsu (1)." With that, they were enveloped in a burst of black reiatsu, and when they emerged, the black Khyber knife on his back had vanished, only to be replaced with a slim black Daito. "Hold on…things are gonna get real fast, real quick." She could only nod dumbly.

'Wasn't Tensa Zangetsu supposed to be that huge blade? That when broken, would look like his original Shi-Kai? Why is he using his original Ban-Kai?' She watched as he took one step, before he rocketed off, immediately breaking the sound barrier. In all her life, she had never gone this fast. The shouts and screams of the trailing Quincy faded into nothing. Although they were quite fast themselves, they were nowhere near as fast as Ichigo was now. It was then she remembered that she was bleeding, but was quite relieved to see the faint blue lines of Blut Vene already active and repairing the wound. She turned to look forwards, and noticed that the faint light in the distance was now super bright.

"Uuuh…Ichi? You might wanna slow down? Not that I ever complained about the speed…or the roughness…especially the roughness…you get what I mean…that light seems to be really close now…Ichi…ICHIGO…FUCKING HELL ICHIGO! SLOW THE FUCK DOWN!"

"Nope…gonna bust right through that thing. We wont be safe until we get through it. Hold on tight. This is gonna hurt me a lot…please don't do anything dirty until we get to the other side." She grabbed his collar and pulled him into a blinding kiss. A soft tap on her shoulder made her break away. "I love your straightforwardness…but I actually need to be paying attention to where I'm about to crash through. Can't have you getting all hot and bothered…we have no time for fun right now." She leaned up and whispered into his ear.

"Not like we've ever done it while walking before." Ichigo had the decency to look away slightly.

"Once."

"Five. We did it five times. I would know." She pat his cheek gently. "Now…let's go b- LOOK OUT!" Ichigo slammed down on the metaphorical breaks as hard as he could, dust and reishi particles going everywhere. His eyes were wide in shock, horror and fear. Bambi was shivering in his arms.

"Hello my Son. Leaving so soon? How could leave without saying goodbye. Even that Hollow friend of yours said goodbye. If I remember correctly…what he said went along the lines of 'goodbye you Quincy fuck! You'll never get them now. I pray to whoever is listening that they smite your virgin ass…cause with a face like that…no wonder you had to adopt children…doesn't come as a surprise that they would die in the first battle to get away from your stupid bitch face." Everyone was silent after the Emperor finished his little speech. He then smiled like a crazy person, reaching behind to pull out an object, before throwing it at the feet of his runaway children.

Ichigo watched as the blue topped head thudded on the path. When it finally stopped bouncing and rolling, Ichigo almost broke out laughing, much to the surprise of everyone present.

"Stupid bastard going out with a smile. Who the fuck does he think he is? The protagonist of a teen manga? Still. You killed my friend. I really hope someone does fucking smite you…you fucked up bastard." He shifted his right foot back, and shifted his bodyweight. He gently helped Bambi stand before reaching over his shoulder, grabbing the hilt of his sword.

In a flash, he was standing before Ywach, blade held overhead. "Getsuga Tensho!" He brought the blade down with as mush force as he could muster, hoping to catch him off guard. The attack kicked up large amounts of reishi particles, obscuring them from view.

"Interesting! This is the original Tensa Zangetsu! I thought I would never see it again!" When the smoke cleared, Ywach was standing with Tensa Zangetsu held firmly in his grasp. Ichigo just smirked.

"How about…you get a closer look!" Ywach certainly didn't expect what he did next. Instead of removing the blade from his grasp, he violently pushed forwards, attempting to drive his sword through his eye. It was sheer luck that he managed to dodge. In his surprise, he loosened his grip, and Ichigo managed to wrench his sword free. "Ban-Kai. Tensa…ZANGETSU!" He was covered in reiatsu again, but this time, it was his new Ban-Kai. Ywach just growled.

"Come…my son…born in the darkness."

"YWACH!" Ichigo charged, pouring reiatsu into his sword. "GETSUGA! TENSHO!" Ywach laughed a cruel laugh, before reaching up and stopping the Getsuga with an open palm. He didn't expect it to push him back slightly, before he cast out into the infinite darkness.

"I didn't expect the power behind that. You've certainly become strong. This, however, is where your journey ends. You almost made it to your destination. I praise you on your efforts." He raised his hands into the air. "Raum verloren (2)." Everything started to crack. Ichigo and Bambi began looking around. It was then that they realised Ywach was gone. "It was such a pleasure knowing you. Farewell."

Ichigo sprung into action. He spun and picked up Bambietta (much to her chargin) and launched himself at the barrier. Upon reaching it, he gently placed Bambi down again, and turned to face the bright light. He placed his hand up against it and felt it pass through easily, so he pulled his hand back and faced Bambiettta.

"Alright, seems safe enough. C'mon, let's go." She nodded, and walked up to the light, only for her to be bounced back, as if the world was rejecting her. They both stared in shock at what just happened. "No. No. No. NO. NO!" Ichigo reached with both hands and tried to pry the barrier apart, but his hands just went through to the other side. He turned and grabbed Bambi, and threw himself at the barrier, only to come to a grinding halt when Bambi was about to pass through.

"Ichi."

"NO! WHY?! AFTER EVERYTHING! I WON'T ACCEPT THIS!" He began searching, his spirits were screaming bloody murder. Trying to find a way to get Bambi through the barrier.

"Ichigo. Look at me."

"Bambi! There has to be a way. I can't let this be! Please! There has to be something I can do!"

"ICHIGO STOP!" He froze on the spot. He slowly turned to face her. "That's enough. Go on ahead."

"No. I won't leave you. As I said. There has to be a way."

"Not always Ichi. We've risked so much just by being together. It took years for the Alliance to accept me. Even then, I always felt their gaze on my back. You, however, saw past that. You saw me. And I saw you. You changed me, and I love you more than anything and everything for that. Which is why…I'm sorry. Heilig Pfeil." The arrow caught him in the stomach, and launched him back through the barrier. The last thing he saw before being consumed by the bright light was a smiling Bambi, tears streaming down from her brown eyes. "Goodbye, Ichigo. I love you."

"BAMBI!" Ichigo screamed as he was launched through the barrier, to where? Not even he knew. What he did know…was that he would be alone through it all.

As his voice faded away, Bambi felt a rare smile reach her lips. She wiped the tears from her eyes and let out a deep sigh. "I want you to move on, Ichigo. There is always going to be someone else." She lost her balance when the platform she was standing on broke. She watched as she fell from the white barrier.

"I want you to move on. But…don't forget me…okay."

Soon enough, she was swallowed by the darkness of the crumbling dimension.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

~Timeskip – 15 years~

Ichigo watched patiently as a group of teens left an abandoned warehouse. Brushing his hair away from his face, he let out a sigh before jumping down, making sure that they were long gone before strolling into the warehouse. He just sighed when he saw what was supposed to be a confronting scene. Blood was splattered everywhere, and on everything. Sighing again, he raised his hand and spoke quietly.

"Haien." The purple flame leapt from his hand, fully intending to consume everything, however, Ichigo forced the flames to devour only what was necessary, being the blood and rotting corpse of the stray devil. A soft 'eep' from behind made him turn his head slowly, hand reaching down for the concealed blade at his hip. He stared into the eyes of a young, black haired teenage girl, who had an exceptionally large chest and short skirt.

He raised his eyebrows when he sensed her power. 'Interesting. She seems strong. Has quite the potential…too much of a hassle though.' He let out a sigh.

"Sorry. Did I take your job?" He watched in mild humour as she fumbled slightly.

"Um…yeah...uh…hi? Sorry. Um…my name is Himejima Akeno. And you are?" She composed herself quite quickly.

"No one worth mentioning. I'll be getting out of your hair now, Himejima-san. Go home. There is something strange happening in town. Your friends may need your support. Especially that Issei kid. Really needs to work on focusing his power through proper technique and strategy." He turned back around and started to walk off. Akeno reached out.

"Please! Just a first or last name? Anything?" Ichigo stopped, his face hidden from her.

"Shiba." With that, he vanished. He was simply…gone. Akeno was baffled. One second he was walking off, the next, poof. Gone. She scratched her head and tried to concentrate, tried to find where his power went to but she found nothing. Pouting, she stomped her foot cutely before spinning and storming off in frustration.

'Three times now I've run into him. First time he actually spoke to me. Shiba. Hmm. Never heard of that name before. Guess I'll ask Lucifer-sama if he knows anything. He seemed to know us pretty well actually. Has he been watching us for a while now? Why haven't we ever seen him before?' She activated a magic circle beneath her feet and imagined herself been taken home to Issei's place (not that he would ever know), but she was violently thrown off her feet when she was struck in the stomach by something. Then the burning began. She clutched her bleeding stomach and screamed.

'A holy weapon!? I didn't sense anything!' She looked up and froze when someone walked up towards her, a glowing blue bow in their hands. She searched her attacker for any identification, but nothing stood out. She crawled back, and she heard laughing coming from the hooded figure.

"Not so tough now are you, you fucking devil. I'll show you. I'll show you our power!" He raised the bow again and pulled back on the drawstring, an arrow forming and knocking itself. Her eyes went wide with realization.

"QUINCY!? How? There can't be any survivors! You were all supposed to be killed alongside the Shinigami over 1000 years ago!" The Quincy smirked.

"Not all of us." He aimed and fired at point blank range. Akeno closed her eyes and waited for death. There was no way she could avoid the arrow. She felt her heart skip a beat, but was surprised when it kept on beating. She slowly opened her eyes and was shocked to see someone standing before her. She immediately recognised the orange hair.

"Shiba-san!" The Quincy recoiled slightly.

"S-S-SHIBA?! Impossible! All of the Shinigami Noble Families were killed! The Kuchiki, the Shihōin, the Shiba, the Seihai (3), the Sazanami (4). All of them! How can you be a Shiba!?" Ichigo flashed forwards, drawing his blade and stabbing the man through the chest, twice, before appearing behind him, all in one, quick, movement.

"Kuchiki Byakuya taught me that. He called it…Senka." The man fell forwards. Ichigo just watched. "Hmm. Seems like everyone…falls slowly in death." The body hit the floor with a dull thud, and soon enough, there was a small puddle of blood pooling around the body's chest.

Akeno just watched, both in horror and fascination, as the man she only knew as Shiba killed a powerful Quincy with minimal effort. She heard him sigh, before he appeared in front of her. She back up a little, but his soft brown eyes made her relax.

"I need to see the wound. Quincy Heilig Pfeil contain large amounts of Holy energy. The name Quincy, translates to 'Monk of Destruction'. Move your hands, c'mon." He gently pried her hands away from her injured stomach, and began to gently touch her. She blushed at the gentle contact and took a deep breath. "It's not too serious. Seems like there was some sort of protective energy that got in the way. Did you raise some sort of barrier before you got struck?" She looked at him quizzically before a lightbulb went off above her head.

"Yes, that is correct, Shiba-san. I've fallen into the habit of covering myself in a protective layer of magic energy before casting a teleportation spell. Seems like my silly little habit paid off." She giggled slightly before wincing in pain. Ichigo looked at her wound critically.

"You need to be cleansed of the Holy energy. I'm guessing one of your peerage members knows how to do it?" Her eyes shot up at the mention of her family.

"How do you know about the peerage system? You aren't associated to one of the major factions are you?" She instinctively raised a protective layer of magic between her and him, but he simply shattered it and gently flicked her on the nose.

"No. I'm part of the Shinto Faction. You can call me…the Overseer of Kuoh, appointed over 10 years ago by Amaterasu-sama. Yasaka also vouched for me. Hold on. I'm gonna get you home to that kids place." He stood up and carried her in her arms.

In her eyes, he looked like a handsome Prince carrying his new bride. She blushed madly. "Shiba-san. I didn't know you were so straight forward. Imagine what everyone would say! I heard you were from a Noble House…does this make me a Princess now?" She cupped her cheeks with her hands and giggled. Ichigo just smiled.

"If you want."

Her whole world came to a crashing halt. For the first time in her life, Himejima Akeno was lost for words. Ichigo laughed gently before taking off into shunpo, covering the distance between their present location and her current residence quite quickly. Akeno couldn't believe the speed they were travelling at.

"So fast." She watched the world zoom by. Ichigo let out a deep chuckle, which caused Akeno to look up at him.

"If you think this is fast…wait till the honeymoon." He gave her a wink and steam exploded out from her ears. Ichigo let out a heartfelt laugh, clearly enjoying the teasing.

'I see now why Yoruichi and Bambi did it so much. It's so much fun!'

'Heh. If course it is! This kid's just like you were before. You could dish some out, but it was always turned back at you. You're getting the knack of it now.' He could hear the boisterous laughter of his Zanpaktou in his mind.

'Zangetsu is correct Ichigo. Though I would suggest that you don't tease her too much.'

'Yeah sure, no worries, Juha.' Ichigo tuned out from the mental conversation, and noticed Akeno was pouting and looking away.

"Sorry kiddo. Sometimes I forget that not everyone can handle my humour. And professionally speaking, I'm actually travelling at my slowest speed in order to not injure you further. Hang on, we will be there in a couple seconds. The breaking always seems to be the part where the most GeForce is." Akeno nodded and grabbed onto his shirt, pulling herself as close as she could. Seeing the front of the house, and a very worried redhead out the front, Ichigo decided to NOT give her a heart attack, and landed on the other side of the street. Turns out, the redhead still almost fainted. She regained her bearings though when she saw Akeno in the strange mans arms.

"Akeno! Asia, please come quickly!" Soon enough, the entire family was gathered outside, drawn by the commotion. Ichigo smiled down at the girl in his arms.

"You have a strong family. Always protect them." She looked up at him, eyes full of compassion.

"You could join us. We always have space for more. You could even teach Issei-kun and Yuuto-kun how to fight properly." Ichigo laughed slightly before crossing the road to reach the house, causing Akeno to pout again. "What's so funny mister?"

"Sorry, but I can't join you. My wife would kill me." Akeno blushed.

"You're married? To who?"

"Yasaka of Kyoto."

…

"HUH?!"

Everyone in the current vicinity heard what he said, and it caused those more knowledgeable in the supernatural world to promptly faint. Ichigo just laughed like it was normal. He turned to those still standing, like Koneko, Issei and Asia.

"You three help me get these guys inside. I'll introduce myself once they all wake up." Nodding dumbly, they picked up their collapsed comrades and took them inside, gently lying them on the couches or sofas. Ichigo turned to Asia.

"Hey kid, you able to purify Holy energy from a devils body yet?" The girl looked up at him and nodded. "Good, Akeno here needs to be purified. She got hit by a Quincy arrow. Don't worry. I killed him. Won't be bothering you again." The girl nodded again and got to work.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Rias groaned as she sat up, leaning back into the soft leather of the couch she was sitting…wait a second. She opened her eyes and looked around, seeing the inside of her house. Asia was talking with Issei and Ddraig about something that obviously had them spooked. Akeno was lying comfortably on the other couch. Kiba and Koneko were watching an orange haired man make something in the kitchen.

Wait another second.

Her eyes shot back to the orange haired man. She stood up and slowly walked towards them.

"See? That's the colour you want the curry to be. It shouldn't be any lighter or darker than that. How are you feeling sleepy head? You've been out for about 4 hours. Everyone was feeling hungry so I decided to borrow your kitchen. Don't worry. There is enough for everyone. Can someone wake Akeno? Thanks Koneko-chan. Alrighty! Everyone to the table!" He carried out the curry and rice that he had made, the aroma of food teleporting everyone to the table, where plates and cutlery had already been set. "Thanks for setting the table, Asia-chan. Issei! There are some drinks in the fridge, bring them please. Yuuto, help Akeno over, seems like walking is still a bit much for her to do solo." Rias watched as he flawlessly gave everyone directions. He melded the entire team together into one large functional machine. In under 5 minutes, he had everyone sitting at the table with plates served out before them.

"Itadakimasu." He clapped his hands together and everyone followed suit. They raised a spoonful of curry to their mouths, the aroma making their mouths water. Each one of them swallowed saliva before taking the spoon into their mouths. Issei was the first to react.

"I have seen the face of God." Followed by Asia.

"Such a forbidden fruit. Truly a delight." Koneko and Yuuto had similar reactions.

"I want nothing else in my mouth/I want nothing else inside me." Rias was silent, but Akeno, she was positively orgasmic.

"Oh. OH! MORE! GIVE ME MORE! NOW! OH YES! MMMMM! MOOOORE!" Everyone at the table just watched with different reactions. The best one came from Ichigo, who leaned over and gave her another serving of curry. Everyone hid their laughter quite well, while Akeno just composed herself only to start pouting.

A magic circle appeared behind them, and everyone turned to see who the visitor was. Rias recognised the seal. "Nii-sama?" Ichigo raised an orange brow.

"Sirzechs is coming? Why?" His question was answered when a magic blast threw him from his chair. He slammed through the wall and out into the garden, when he flipped and gently landed on his feet. He dusted off his long coat and sighed. "Are you still angry at me…Serafall?"

"Of course I am you bastard! Not calling is one thing…but marrying that fox?! I SAW YOU FIRST!" Ichigo dodged another magic bullet, and deftly flipped over a large icicle.

"Woah there! Do you WANT to involve civilians?" Serafall was fuming. She lunged at him and lashed out with a flurry of kicks and punches, forcing Ichigo onto the back foot. What everyone noticed was, however, that not a single attack landed apart from the first one that launched him outside. Rias turned to her brother, who had just appeared to see Serafall fighting Ichigo.

"Nii-sama? Why is Leviathan-dono fighting Shiba-san? Who exactly is Shiba-san? What is going on?" Sirzechs just sighed.

"Shiba-san first appeared about 15 years ago. He took the world by storm. He was probably the single most powerful being to have ever appeared. He was just monstrous. And all he did was get even more powerful as we fought. During our fight however, I sensed that he was full of pain and grief. When I mentioned it to him, he froze for about half a second before his power just…vanished. I figured then that he was most definitely more powerful than Akuja or myself. Easily being either no.3 or 4 in the top 10 rankings. Thankfully for us, Amaterasu intervened, taking advantage of a momentary distraction to whisk him away. He returned after 5 years away in Takama-ga-hara, where he apparently learnt the way of the world. Serafall and him dated for about 3 years before he vanished again, only to reappear 3 years ago, married to Yasaka of Kyoto. According to Amaterasu, he's someone who shouldn't exist. If you want any more info, ask him. That's all I know." They all turned to watch the fight. Ichigo parried a quick strike to the stomach and flipped Serafall over, throwing her over his shoulder.

Serafall flipped in the air and landed on her feet, she clapped her hands together and formed a blade of ice, snapped it in two, and charged with two short swords. Ichigo, for his part, reached into his coat and drew a small trench knife which was about as large as his forearm. Serafall froze on the spot. "You'd bring…that…out against me? Are you fucking serious Ichigo?" She took a step back. Ichigo vanished, reappearing right in front of her, blade at her throat.

"Yes. I would. You've caused more problems for me than I can solve at the one time. Embargoes on the Yōkai faction? Wanted posters of me in Asgard? Hell…even Hades is looking for me! You are one of two people on this planet who know what this blade means. Since I've drawn it, I want you to cease your actions, or I WILL pay you a visit…in New Lilith. Don't force my hand Serafall Sitri, or you will cut yourself." Ichigo pulled the blade from her throat and walked off. "Sorry, I'm no longer in the mood for sharing information. Bye. Sirzechs, put a fucking leash on her." With that, he clicked his fingers, tearing open a hole in space and strolled through, the portal closing behind him, leaving everyone shocked and confused.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

"I'm home!" Ichigo jumped out from the garganta and landed in a calm garden. As soon as he landed, he spread his feet, planted himself and held his arms out in front of him.

Good thing too.

Not a minute after he landed, a tiny blonde bullet launched itself at him. "PAPA!" Ichigo caught the small girl with ease, gently tossing her into the air before catching her and spinning.

"Hey there Kunou, my little princess. How are you? Behaving for Mama?" The little girl nodded.

"Yes Papa! Mama says that I've been behavouring better now!" Ichigo laughed and started walking towards the house.

"Is that so? Well that's good. Do you know where Mama is? I need to talk to her about work. Then I need to get to the Ruins for a bit." Kunou nodded, lifting a hand in the direction of the office at the back of the large compound.

"Mama is working at the moment. But she will be happy to see you Papa. I am. Onwards!" Ichigo laughed and ruffled her hair.

"Alright, guess I'll surprise her a little. Hold on." Kunou latched onto him and closed her eyes as she always did before her Father launched them into high-speed movement. She felt the air whipping her hair about and she screamed in childish delight.

"WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Yasaka sat in her office, her tails whipping about in frustration. She scrunched up the paper before her and chucked it at the wall, where is fell and landed in a waist high pile of other papers in the exact same fashion. She looked at the pile and sighed. She missed her husband. He had been gone 3 months this time. Amaterasu always sends him on the dangerous missions. She leaned back and thought about the day that he was brought down from Takama-ga-hara.

~Flashback – 5 years ago~

"Hurry and arrange the carpet. Quickly now, move that desk over there. No, not there. Over there!" Yasaka watched as her head maid ordered the castle about as she always did. She smiled at the over enthusiastic manner in which she discipled a guard who ignored her order. Sighing, she walked from the window and back to her desk, where she sat for two seconds before deciding that she wanted to see Kunou. She stood and threw the door open.

Poor guards outside never stood a chance.

"Bring my daughter to me. I shall be awaiting you in the throne room. If you dally, then I shall send you outside to assist Lorna in renovating the ENTIRE north section of the compound, am I clear, now please, get moving." She walked down the corridor, the guards frantically tripping over each other trying to the to the small princess.

It didn't take Yasaka long to get to the throne room, mainly because it was almost a straight shot from her office, but because she had a feeling in the back of her head that something was going to happen today. She didn't know what, but from what she felt, it would change the world. Ever since Amaterasu retreated back into the Sanctuary with that Hero, she had been receiving passed on orders from Lord Susanoo. She dropped herself into her throne, relishing the cushion she so ungracefully landed on.

"Ahh…thank you Y-bay (5)…couldn't have ordered a better cushion that this." She got comfortable and awaited her daughter, who was brought in rather quickly by the guards she had sent before. 'The moved quickly…I should start threatening people with Lorna more often if that's the case.' She held her arms out, and Kunou ran to her.

"Mama! I did all my work today!" She gave her a beaming smile.

"Oh? I'm so proud of you! I think you deserve a treat for that. Maybe later we shall go out into the town and get some ramen from that one stall. Sounds like a plan?" She softly poked her daughter on the nose, and the child laughed and cheered.

"Yay! Ramen! Yummmy! I love you Mama! You're the be-"

Everything exploded.

The two guards who had brought Kunou leapt into action, using their own bodies as a shield to protect both Yasaka and Kunou.

"KURO! KAGE! NOOOOO!" Yasaka screamed out when the blast died down, revealing the badly burnt and near death guards slumped on the floor before her. Kuro looked up at her weakly.

"We…couldn't…protect…Kukaku-sama…all those…years ago…we will…protect…you…" He collapsed, passing into blissful unconsciousness. Yasaka grit her teeth, flaring her power in a protective shell around not only herself and Kunou, but the two honourable guards collapsed at her feet.

She looked up and noticed a pair of white clad enemies approaching, glowing blue bows in their hands. "QUINCY! YOU DARE INVADE MY HOME! THE AUDACITY! BEGONE!" She poured magic energy into her hand and launched a torrent of blue fox fire at them, causing them to evade in fear of their lives. One Quincy let their hood drop, revealing a head of green hair.

"Chill out Yasaka! We are here for answers. If you tell us…we will let you die a quick death. Deal?"

"NEVER!" She clenched her fist, cutting off the power to the fox fire, but stabbed her hand up in front of her face.

"Hi no yari (6)!" The flames below the Quincy formed lances and shot forth at blinding speeds, making the green haired Quincy freeze in shock. If she had come alone, then she would have most likely died then and there. The other Quincy jumped and using an weak arrow, managed to push her just out of the way of a lance aimed at her heart. They both landed and regrouped at the end of the room.

"Careful Candice. This is Yasaka of Kyoto. If she wanted, she could take on his Majesty." Candice just snorted.

"Perhaps, but definitely not Ywach. She could most likely take on Uryu-sama and win. Say…Bambi, have you heard anything about Ichigo? I know you pushed him through the portal, but…where exactly did you send him?" Bambi looked away, not wanting to meet her eyes.

"Apparently he was sent into the future. Don't know how far, or where, but all I know is that he was sent there. The only reason he could go through the portal in the first place was because he wasn't meant to be alive. He stopped existing. The portal didn't recognise him. I was still alive, and was meant to survive the war. Ichi…Ichi was meant to die at some point." She took a deep breath. "I will find him. And I will take him home. Ywach is gone, and now Uryu-sama sits on the throne. Perhaps we can fina-" Her sentence was cut brutally short when a titanic amount of reiatsu crushed them. Candice fell to her knees and Bambi just stood there, eyes wide, sweat starting to slide down her brow.

"No way…it can't be! He's here?! Candice! It's him!" Candice struggled to look up at her.

"Who?"

"ICHIGO!"

The room was bathed in a bright white light, forcing everyone in the room to cover their eyes and look away. Once the light died down, Bambietta blinked the spots away and looked at the centre of the room, where, clad in a white Haori and his two swords in hand, stood Ichigo, surrounded in black reiatsu, his eyes empty and unfocused. His head perked up and the black reiatsu exploded out. Once it cleared, he had drastically changed. His orange hair was now waist length and a midnight black. His chocolate brown eyes were a deep crimson red, and he was covered in grey bandages. He looked at the two Quincy women, and his eyes went wide when they landed on Bambietta.

"No…it's…how? Bam…bi? Is that you? Bambi?" He took a couple tentative steps forwards, the grey bandages around his face breaking off and dissipating. He stopped and shook his head, before reaching up and grabbing it, falling to his knees, face contorted in pain. One hand shot out and formed a black blade made out of reishi. Candice shouted.

"BAMBI! MOVE! THAT'S A REISHI BLADE!" Ichigo stood, his eyes once again empty. The most impacting thing about his appearance was that the bandages had reformed around the lower half of his face. Bambi remembered him telling her that those bandages only formed when he was in combat.

"You dare intrude upon this house, Quincy. I will give you one warning. Never return. If any Quincy step foot in Kyoto, I will kill them. That is the task given to me by My Lady Amaterasu. My name is Shiba 'Kurosaki' Ichigo, the last Head of the most Noble House of Shiba, The last of the Nobles of Soul Society, and the Last Shinigami. Now heed my warning, Bambietta Basterbine, and Candice Catnip, begone." He swiped his blade and launched the two Quincy out the door. Bambi looked at Ichigo, his last words reaching her ears as easily as her last words reached him all that time ago.

"Goodbye, Bambi. Amaterasu wants me to stay here. I'm so sorry that it ended this way. Go home. Be free. Ywach is gone, and Uryu seems to be a good leader. I just ask that…you move on…but…don't forget me, okay? Goodbye…I love you." He was gone in a flash as she and Candice were launched through the barrier dome surrounding Kyoto.

"Ichigo! What do you mean! Tell me! WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU! ICHIGO!" She flew back at the barrier, but instead of going through it, she slammed into it, the barrier holding firm. She slammed her fist into it, hoping to break it, spiritual world secrecy be damned. Her Ichigo was on the other side, and there was no way she was going to let him go again. Candice grabbed her arm.

"Bambi! BAMBI! STERNRITTER 'E'!" Bambi looked at her. "He's gone. He clearly said it himself. We are not welcome in Kyoto. Let's go inform His Majesty Uryu that Ichigo has returned. I'm sure that even after 1000 years, he would enjoy seeing his cousin again."

They never made it back to the Vandenreich. Two devils found their bodies in a park three days later. Upon investigating, Ichigo discovered that they were killed by other Quincy. Heart burning with rage, sorrow, anger and despair, he threw himself into finding who killed Bambietta. He never stopped searching.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

A year after Bambi was killed, Ichigo found himself getting close to Yasaka. After he returned from every search, from every interrogation, from every lead, she would always be there. He'd vent, argue, cry, shout and lash out, but never once did she react. She always waited patiently for him to return home. Always had food ready for him, tea brewing in the pot, and a warm bed for him to curl up in. It didn't take him long to realise that he had indeed fallen in love with the Princess of Kyoto. It didn't help his case that whenever the little Princess, Kunou, would see him in the hallway she would jump into his arms and cry out "PAPA!". He found it adorable, so he let her do it. He saw himself as a sort of father figure for her anyway. He would always smile for her.

XXXXXXXXXXX

~Flashback End~

Yasaka sat at her desk, scribbling furiously. She was signing page after page. Serafall Leviathan had gone and placed a minor embargo on the Y ōkai faction after learning that Ichigo was staying there after returning from Takama-ga-hara. She sighed and threw her pen across the room in blind fury. What she didn't expect was the door to open and a certain orange haired man to walk in.

"Hey, Yasaka, yo-" BLARCK! The pen dug straight into his forehead. Didn't help that it was a fountain pen. Sharp tips and skin equals pain. Ichigo just stood there for a second before he fell backwards.

XXXXXXXXXX

Kunou was walking towards her mother's office after being dropped off at her room on the way because Ichigo said it was 'work related grown up stuff that they were going to talk about' when she saw a wild Papa in the distance. Grinning, she skipped forwards and got ready to pounce when his head snapped back, a pen lodged in his forehead. Kunou went pale. She watched in slow motion as he toppled backwards and landed on the floor with a dull thud.

She reached out for him, tears in her eyes, threatening to burst. "Pa…pa…nooo…PA…PA!" She watched in horror as her mother stuck her head out of her office, a look of shock on her face. She looked left, then right, straight at her daughter.

"Not…a…word…" She reached down, grabbed his legs, and dragged him into the office before closing the door.

Kunou burst into tears.

A nearby guard and maid were by her side in an instant. The maid spoke first.

"YOUNG MISS! WHAT AILS YOU?!"

"Hime-sama! What seems to be the problem? Shhh. It's okay." The guard pulled her into a hug and let Kunou calm down. "What's wrong, Hime-sama?" Kunou sniffed a couple times before mustering the courage to speak.

"Mama…Mama killed…Mama killed Papa…" She burst into more tears.

Yasaka, who had heard the commotion outside, stuck her head back out from the office. "HE'S ALIVE!"

End Chapter 1

Saisho no henkei, Tensa Zangetsu – First Variation, Tensa Zangetsu

Raum verloren – Lost Space

Seihai – Holy Grail (Family of the Holy Grail)

Sazanami – 'small ripple' (Family of the Small Ripple'

Y-Bay – Yōkai version of E-Bay

Hi no yari – Lance of Flames

Well…I'm still getting back into the swing of writing these things, so forgive me if this seemed a bit rushed. The ending at least…anyway…tell me what you think!

Please R&R!

Ja ne!