Disclaimer: I do not own bleach or any of the character contained herin. All rights go to their respective owners. I repeat This is a fan made fiction that can not and will not make any profit whatsoever, but has been created for the enjoyment of fans of the series. Anyone who reads this should immediataly go out and purchase the lates Episode of Bleach Manga, read it and support its distributors. That is all.

Prologue: Future of the Fifth Squad

In the town which should not have been where it was, in the city which no living man should ever see, the last two warriors stood facing each other in the final moments of the day. They cast long shadows over the broken and scorched ground that had been their battlefield. The sun was slowly sinking over them, lingering just above the horizon to catch one last glimpse of the final battle. The warriors stared at each other in that last moment, daring the other to fall first, while ordering their bodies to hold on just a little longer till the other fell. Despite their many wounds they both radiated an obscene power that seemed to shake and crack the ground beneath them. Many eyes watched them but none could come within a hundred yards of them and still breathe.

One warrior stood tall and proud, he was clothed in a white robe and his skin glowed with a faint by noticeable light. His sword was elegant and beautiful, simple but perfect in every sense of the word. His shining face only served to highlight his dark black eyes that seemed to hold infinity within them. Over the whole in his chest there was a white cross, and out of his back grew six elegant wings. The brightness of his body was soiled though by the countless scares that covered him and black burns on his wings. He swayed back and forth trying to keep his balance as blood and shadows ran over him.

The other warrior was as dark as his enemy was light, clothed in a long black robe with well tanned skin sitting on top of a red velvet lining; he seemed like some great burning shadow. Through the whole in his chest one could see his long orange hair fluttering in the breeze like his back was on fire. His sword was jet black from handle to tip and a short broken chain ran down the end it seemed utterly unremarkable compared to the shining elegant sword of his foe. His face was covered by a white mask that looked a bit like a human skull with long red lines running down the mask over the eyes like the warrior was bleeding through them. From the top of the mask came a pair of long horns which even now still burned with a faint red flame. Blood ran down his arms and over his chest he had been well paid for the wounds he placed on his foe.

The two warriors glared at each other with great intensity. The white warrior had a pained by determined look on his face as he looked down his nose at his foe. He was convinced that no enemy could ever stand against him. The black warrior drove his sword into the ground and steadied himself. His face was unreadable through his mask, but his eyes radiated of hard won power and obstinate defiance against the world. It was as if God and Satan had warred against each other, but who would've guessed that Satan wore white?

As the sun sank beneath the horizon the last of its life giving rays left the battle field as night fell like a final curtain to this long battle. As it descended the battle ended. The white warrior slowly fell foreword and he breathed out his final words as he collapsed, "Damn you Kurosaki." And then it was over.

As he hit the ground, blood exploded from his wounds and the power that had been holding them closed collapsed completely. And instant later his heart beat for the final time, as death stole over him. The black warrior sighed with relief as his mask shattered and his long hair evaporated and flowed into the whole in his chest and closed it up. He was left with short spiky hair that had never truly known a comb. His face was sharp and well defined with an obvious look of relief on it. His sword began to shine out and its image became distorted for just a second as it radically changed. The guard to the hilt disappeared and the black portion of it grew wider and thicker as a pure white bit grew out from it. It looked like a massive cooking knife with a bit of white cloth wrapped around its steal handle. At the same time his black clothes changed into a black kimono. He smiled faintly and he began to fall.

I did it. He thought to himself as he slowly fell his thoughts drifted back to all the friends he had left in Hueco Mundo. I did it everyone, he's dead. It's over. Orihime you can come home and they will never trouble you again. I'm just sorry that I won't be with you there. He slowly closed his eyes and drifted off into the abyss of unconsciousness and near death.

"Wow, there boy. Don't you go dying on me just yet." A strange almost country drawl said to him as a thin hand grabbed him in the chest and held him up, dragging the warrior back from the edge of death. He looked up and saw its owner. He looked like a snake. His body was long and thin and did not fit well in the baggy white clothes he was wearing. His hair was short and thin, and silver with a purple tint, like it was an afterthought, a stubborn piece of humanity that clung to him and refused to let him go bald. He squinted so much that you couldn't see his eyes at all, and he had a wide grin like he knew something funny and rude which he both did and didn't want to tell you.

"Gin Ichimaru," the black warrior said as he looked up at him. "What are you doing here?"

"I believe that I am healing you, boy." Sure enough, as Gin held up the warrior with one hand he ran his other over the many wounds that the warrior had taken in the battle. A faint light issued forth from his hand and caused the cuts on him to close up leaving neither scab nor scar behind. His hand nonetheless felt like a dagger's edge going over him.

"Why? I just killed your boss." The warrior protested in a weak voice.

"I never liked him really." Gin said.

"You defected to Hueco Mundo with him. You fought against me back on earth for him."

"I did that because there are only two people who could have killed him, you and me. You were to weak back on earth so I had to stop you and he had to trust me to give me a chance. In the end I couldn't kill him, but my fight with you kept you far enough away from him for you to finish him off."

"But…." The warrior started.

"Ichigo Kurosaki, stop protesting me and get healed already. You're alive, he's dead, your friends are safe, and nothing else really matters right now so shut up." Ichigo went silent not because of what he had been told but because he didn't really have the strength needed to protest any further. After some time Gin spoke again.

"Right then, that will keep alive till someone more skilled than me shows up. Now if you'll excuse me I have other people that I need to heal and see. Bye-bye." Before he left he turned to the ruins of the town around him and spoke again, "Ya'll can come now. It's all right, Aizens dead and the local boy won out."

Slowly, by ones and twos people started climbing out over the rubble. Most of them simply stared at the sheer destruction visited on the town's center. Dozens of buildings were destroyed and had been reduced to flaming rubble. Along with them came dozens of men clad in black kimonos armed with katanas. They started digging through the rubble and gathering up the injured people scattered from around the town and tending to their wounds. No one approached either of the fallen warriors. Except for four teenagers who immediately came running out to Ichigo's side. He smiled as he saw them coming, he was glad to see that they were still alive. He was even glad when one of them kicked him the side.

"What was that for Tatsuki?" He demanded of the short black haired girl who had kicked him.

"That's for running off to the fight right after you found us! What the Hell is going on here Ichigo?" She shouted at him in response.

"Yeah and what's up with those clothes?" a young brown haired boy named Keigo Asano asked as he pointed and snickered at Ichigo's kimono, "You look like a samurai, what kind of cosplay have you been up to?"

"Forget that!" A red haired girl with a pair of thin glasses exclaimed as she grabbed Ichigo and started violently shaking him back and forth, "WHAT HAPPENED TO MY PRECIOUSE HIME!"

"Don't worry, Honsho," Ichigo said as Tatsuki pulled her off of him, "She's probably back home by now."

"YOU MEAN THAT YOU BROUGHT MY HIME INTO ALL OF THIS MADNESS!" Honsho screamed as she resumed throttling Ichigo.

"No she's not here, she back home, or rather she's back at the fake home; I am not certain which one is real." Ichigo explained, with a slightly confused look replacing his usual scowl.

"What do you mean Ichigo?" The last teen asked, a youthful boy with black hair and an open cell phone named Mizuiro Kojima asked without looking up from the blank screen of his cell phone.

"It's a pretty damn long story." Ichigo said trying to avoid the question.

"Then maybe you should've told us it when it first started." Tatsuki said in a clearly annoyed voice as she turned away from him.

"I'm sorry, Tatsuki, I probably should've, but you would've never believed and by the time you could've it was my problem to deal with, not yours." Ichigo said as a very apologetic look stole over his face and he turned away from them.

"Idiot." Tatsuki said interrupting him, "were your friends, we'll believe even if you told us the moon was falling, and we'll help you no matter what's happening." She finished as all the other smiled and nodded at him. Ichigo smiled back at them a laughed quietly to himself.

"What a cheesy thing to say." He said to himself, as Tatsuki kicked him again. He laughed, they all laughed, except for Tatsuki who awkwardly hopped about rubbing her foot; Ichigo's head had felt like steal when she kicked it.

"Well I'll start with the obvious. Have you ever seen a castle like that back home?" Ichigo asked as he pointed towards the horizon. Throughout the day the horizon had been blocked by a thick line of clouds but now they had been driven away and the outline of a massive castle was now clearly visible in the twilight of sunset.

"It's called the court of pure souls." Ichigo continued as all of his friends stared at it with wide eyed wonder. "It's the capital of this land that were in, which is called soul society, this is the land of the dead where human souls come while they wait to be reincarnated."

"So are we all dead?" Keigo asked in a hesitant voice.

"No were not, Karakura town was brought here in order to protect it from that guy." Ichigo said motioning to the dead white warrior laying across from him. "There are guys called Death Gods who are in charge of protecting this place and all dead human souls who went to earth to stop him after moving everyone here so that they wouldn't get caught in the cross fire. They failed, but I was able to kill him and end this. Once the Death Gods get back they will send us all home and this will all be over."

"How were you able to succeed where they failed?" Mizuiro asked.

"Well, I am a Death God too. Technically I'm only a substitute Death God, but I was strong enough to take him down."

"How did that happen?" Tatsuki asked

"Do you all remember Rukia Kuchiki, the transfer student?" Ichigo asked and they all nodded their heads. "Do you remember that she vanished without saying a word to anyone back before summer vacation and that no one noticed her vanish or asked where she went?" when he asked his four friends looked back him with blank faces that then started to look rather solemn and pained as the realization poured over them. Rukia had been with them, then she was gone and no one noticed, then she came back, and no one noticed. It hurt to think about it, like their memories couldn't agree about what had actually happened.

Ichigo continued, "The reason why you didn't notice is because she came back here to soul society. Rukia died about a hundred and thirty years ago. She grew up in the soul society and became a Death God. See back during the spring semester I was attacked…." And he told them everything, and it was a very long story.

Skip

Gin had never considered himself to be a hero of any kind. He barely considered himself to be human. He knew that he radiated bloodlust on the battle field, or even in day to day life. He knew that he creped most people out and that those same people feared and hated him for that. Under any other circumstance he probably would've been one of the bad guys, as bad as Aizen was at least, but he got lucky. He had found someone worth saving and protecting. He knew that needing someone to rescue him was a sign of weakness but he also believed in order to be truly strong he needed a weak person to protect. Maybe Aizen wouldn't have been nearly as nuts as he was if he had found a person like that. Maybe, Gin didn't really know.

It was probably a bad sign that the only way he had to protect the one he care for was by stabbing her, but Gin had never really known the right way at all. All he knew was his way, to stand in the shadow where people were too frightened to look and do what had to be done. And what had to be done with his love was to stab her. If Aizen had thought that she was alive he would've really killed her, but Gin only broke her Soul's Chain which kept her down and unnoticeable but could still be repaired. It didn't take long to heal her, but he didn't wake her up when he was done. He still had more to do before then.

"I am sorry Rangiku, I got to save you one more time before I own up for this." He said to the wounded girl he had just finished healing as he looked down at a small black orb he held in his hand, and then he left.

The black orb was the catalyst for all this. Because of it, Aizen had gained the power he needed to attack the Soul Society with an army of Hollow Demons. It was called the Hogyoku, it had been designed by a mad scientist who did not understand what he was making, but neither did Aizen understand what he was stealing. There was only one group in the universe who truly understood what the Hogyoku was for and they would soon come to take it back. Only Aizen and Gin truly knew what they had to promise to receive permission to enter Hueco Mundo and build an army.

Gin crossed all of Soul Society as he went. It was a trip that would've taken days for anyone other than a Captain. Gin crossed it quickly with constant flash steps, he didn't want to be late. He ran far beyond the eightieth district of the Rukongai, he ran far beyond the plains and forest that lay at its edge all the way to the outer most wall of Soul Society to the infinite sea that lay at its edge. There, on the wall, was one of them.

He was standing in a circle of white crosses painted on the ground. At the center of each cross was another cross of bones standing up around him like a fence. It was an old technique used to hide their spiritual pressure which could've killed people across all of soul society if he hadn't set it up. He was as tall as a man, but his features could not be seen in the pale light. When Gin entered the circle the pressure almost drove him to his knees. But he didn't fall, he put one hand on his sword and took out the Hogyoku with the other.

"Take it and leave." He ordered the man as he casually threw the Hogyoku to him. The man nimbly caught it and smiled to himself. He then tapped the air behind him and opened up a massive black portal, threw which one could just barely see a pale crescent shaped moon. He stepped through the portal and was gone.

Skip

Three days passed in the Soul Society without much event. The great Captains of the Thirteen Court Guards returned the same night it had ended and saw to Ichigo's wounds and to Gin's arrest. Aizen's body was carefully searched and once they were certain beyond a doubt that it was him, he was turned over to the medical core and the science department for a full analysis. There was much work to be done after that though. Karakura town had been badly damaged in the battle and they had to carefully repair it. But that work had been done. The town was fixed and had been sent back to the earth. They had changed the memories of everyone who was spiritually ignorant before this event so that they could resume their lives normally. For the fifty or citizens who were spiritually aware and thus immune to a mind wipe, they explained the situation completely and sent them on their marry way under an oath of secrecy.

Now for the first time since the battle all of the Captains gathered to debrief and make plans for the future of Soul Society. There were nine of them, just over three fourths of their full number but the situation was dire. The First Captain was an old man, with a weathered face and a long beard. He squinted in the harsh light and supported himself with a long wooden staff. The Second Captain was a short girl, missing her left arm but she nonetheless walked with an aura of power and authority. The Third Captain was in jail. The Fourth Captain was a middle aged woman with the look of a caring mother about her. She was carrying a large report in her hands. The Fifth Captain was dead. The sixth Captain was a rather handsome young man, who seemed to personify grace and honor. He wore long black hair with a silver head piece, he also wore a very expensive scarf around his neck, but aside from that did not deviate from the captain's uniform. The Seventh Captain was a humanoid wolf who towered over those around him, he looked serious, and scowled slightly. The Eighth Captain wore an ornate cloak over his captain's cloak along with a straw hat. He was also chewing on a bit of straw. The Ninth Captain was dead. The Tenth Captain was a young boy who looked to be no more than twelve years old, aside from his snow white hair and solemn face. The Eleventh Captain yawned as he entered the room as if he had just woken up from a nap, his right eye was covered with an eye-patch and his spiky hair was covered in bells. The Twelfth Captain looked like a Noh actor with elaborate face paint, and a large bleu wig, he was smiling to himself. The Thirteenth Captain was out sick.

The Fourth Captain, Retsu Unohana, started with her report in a tender and motherly voice. "Good morning my fellow captains. I am not certain if we got off of lucky in this battle or if we were devastated by it." The other captains nodded at what she had said, it had been a long and hard battle against Aizen and his Hollow Demons but it was over now.

She continued, "Sosuke Aizen is dead. This has not only been confirmed by a full analysis of his body but also of his Soul Slayer, which is now devoid of power and broken. The cause of death was blood loss brought on by multiple cuts to his skin. Kaname Tosen is also dead, cause of death was sever brain lacerations, brought on by three cuts to his skull, one direct cut from the outside and two cuts from the inside. Jushiro Ukitake was severely wounded in his chest, which while not fatal, has drastically irritated his tuberculosis, I do not believe that he will ever be able to use Bankai again, and I also doubt that he will be able to use Shikai for longer than three minutes."

At this all of the captains bowed their heads. It was not easy to here that one of their allies had been so badly wounded. Even the Captain Commander's otherwise constant look of power and control faltered for just a moment as he heard of the damage done to a man he had always treated like a son.

After a brief pause she continued, "SoiFon lost her left arm in the battle and has refused medical treatment to replace it. While I don't think that this is wise, I can confirm that she will suffer little long term debilitation from this. Amongst the vice captains the wounds taken were almost as bad. Seventh Squad Vice Captain Tetsuzaemon Iba is dead, cause of death was a combination of dehydration and an overheated body temperature brought on by sustaining a direct hit from a powerful cero blast. Tenth Squad Vice Captain Rangiku Matsumoto was badly injured in the chest resulting in damage to her Soul's Chain, however all damage has been repaired and she should make a full recovery very soon. Fifth Squad Vice Captain Momo Hinamori was stabbed in several places but is expected to make a full recovery in about a week or so. The real damage is psychological in my opinion, she has been betrayed by everyone she has ever trusted and may never fully recover. I recommend that she receive a full evaluation for the first squad psychological corps as soon as possible. No other major casualties were sustained in the battle." She concluded.

Captain Soifon then said in a quick and quiet voice, "Former Third Squad Captain, Gin Ichimaru has turned his soul slayer over to the Captain Commander and is being held in the high security penitentiary wing of the Second Squad barracks under constant observation. He awaits judgment."

The Twelfth Squad Captain, Mayuri Kurotsuchi, then said with his eyes flowing around the room studying the effects of his words on his audience, "A full analysis of Aizen's body and his blood has failed to confirm the whereabouts or the fate of the Hogyoku. It is possible that it was completely absorbed into Aizen's body before his death as he finished his transformation, but I would like more time to study his corpse to confirm this."

The Captain Commander nodded. And then he spoke in deliberate and powerful voice that only an old man can muster. "We now come to the point of this meeting. The battle is over and it has cost us the lives of two captains. Over the remaining eleven two are unfit for command, we must discuss their fates and decide what is to be done about the gaps in our numbers."

The Wolf Captain named Sajin Komamura, spoke first his words had been carefully chosen, "We should bury Tosen with full honors. He was deceived by Aizen and betrayed by him in the end, we should at least preserve his honor in his death."

Tenth Squad Captain, Toshiro Histugaya, rejected his idea, "Tosen was a traitor to Soul Society and should be dealt with as such; we should burn his body along with Aizen's as soon as possible."

Sajin growled back, "Do not be so quick to judge Tosen, he was confused and injured by the death of his love. If we had known we could've saved him he should not be punished for our failure."

"It was his failure that brought this on himself. He should've been ready to accept the consequences."

Eighth Squad Captain, Shunsui Kyoraku, interjected. "Calm down Toshiro, there is no need to be so hot headed. We should take this as slowly as possible."

"Besides," Mayuri said enforcing Shunsui, "I need Aizen's body for my research this is no time to be talking of burning him."

"He was a traitor though," Soifon said, "Traitor should be dealt with under the full weight of the law."

"Especially Gin," Toshiro silently added.

"That is not our place," Sixth Squad Captain, Byakuya Kuchiki said rebuking Toshiro, "Gin actions are not as black and white as Aizen's were and he is still alive."

"He stabbed Rangiku through the chest!" Toshiro exclaimed,

"And in so doing saved her from Aizen." Byakuya responded, "None of Gins actions are strictly speaking illegal and all of them were motivated by a desire to protect Soul Society from Aizen. They were not admittedly the best or even the right actions to take, but such judgments are not ours to make. Gin Ichimaru cannot be legally removed from command of his squad without direct orders from Central Room 46."

The room went silent at the mention of that powerful name. Central Room 46 was the governing body of Soul Society. It was a council of Nobles that even the Captain Commander answered to. No captains could be punished, restrained, interrogated or disobeyed without direct orders from Central Room 46. Unfortunately, Aizen had wiped out the council before defecting.

The Captain Commander was the first to break the silence, "Captain Byakuya, as head of the Kuchiki household and the only captain here with a noble blood line, you were assigned to oversee the reconstruction of Central Room 46, how goes your work?"

"Slowly," The Sixth Squad captain responded, "Central Room 46 holds a great deal of power and most of the heads of the noble families were wiped out when it fell. Several of the Noble houses are just establishing new heads and only once they have been established can a caucus be held to appoint a new central council which will then appoint the rest of the judicial body. Reforming the body completely is likely to take a full year."

"You expect us to wait a full year before punishing that bastard Gin?" Toshiro exclaimed.

"Calm down Toshiro, there is no reason to shout." Shunsui chided, "Byakuya is right, without central room 46 it would be illegal to judge Gin, or to replace any of the captains for that matter."

"I think in times of crisis like this," Mayuri started, "We can forgo the formalities and simply act. When Society breaks down it is up to those with power to restore order. Who cares if a few fingers are stepped on in the process? I am sure the a new Central Room 46 will agree to support any decision we make after the fact."

"We cannot abandon the law," Byakuya responded, "The Law is not upheld by power, but by the consensus of all society. The duty of those with power is not to create the law, but to follow it, so that by our example the weak will follow it to. What message does it send to the wandering souls if we break the law the moment it become inconvenient for us? If we expect the Soul Society to hold together we must not try to force it closed but persuade it to stay shut."

"Very well then Byakuya what do expect us to do with the gaps in our line? Only Central Room 46 can appoint new captains, if we respect the law and wait then we will be severely weakened. Not only be the lack of captains, but also by a lack of recruits. Without a Fifth Squad captain the Death God Academy cannot open its doors to classes, and without Central Room 46's orders none of us can take it over."

"But Mayuri you forget there is a way to replace captains without Central Room 46. If a Death God kills the previous Captain of a squad in a one on one dual, in the presence of a thousand witnesses and one other captain, he takes command of that squad. That's how Kenpachi Zaraki took control of the eleventh squad, and it's just what Ichigo Kurosaki has done to Sosuke Aizen."

"But none of us witnessed Aizen's defeat." Unohana objected.

"Gin did," Byakuya explained, "If we obey the law, and simple declare Gin to be a captain on probation, we can use his testimony to appoint Ichigo into command of the fifth squad solving our only pressing issue. All other appointments can wait until Central Room 46 is reestablished. The law will be upheld and the crisis averted."

"You expect us to just sit back and let a monster like Gin walk free!" Toshiro demanded to know, and then the meeting devolved into a long argument.

Skip

Ichigo Kurosaki was resting peacefully in the Fourth Squad's medical center waiting to be released. He was eager to leave Soul Society all of his friends had already gone back home and he wanted to join them. He also wanted to forget that the whole thing had happened. With Aizen around he could slip back into a rutine of classes and beating up the uppity punks from around the school. No more chasing down hollows. No more life or death struggles with monsters that really should not be. Just a peaceful normal life like he had had before his adventures started.

It wasn't that Ichigo dislike the Soul Society, and to be certain he had enjoyed his adventures to an extent, but they weren't something he was eager to continue. He had never sought out adventure, he had never dreamed of being a hero. He just wanted to protect his friends and now that they were safe he could end all of this. He wasn't that lucky though.

Late that evening the door opened and four captains entered his room. Ichigo knew something was up when he saw that the Captain Commander was leading them along Byakuya, Gin, and Shunsui. The Captain commander took a seat opposite him as the other captains lined the room.

Ichigo greeted them, "Hey there. What are you all doing here this late at night? And wasn't Gin sent to jail."

"They let me out to do one thing," Gin responded,

"What's that?" Ichigo asked with a confused look on his face.

"To confirm that you, Ichigo Kurosaki, are the one who challenged and defeated captain Aizen in a one on one dual three days ago."

"Is there a problem with that?"

"It means that we ain't got no fifth captain no more."

"So?" Ichigo said with just a bit of worry creeping into his voice.

"That means," The Captain Commander said in a slow deliberate voice, "That in accordance with the laws of the Court of Pure Souls, you: Ichigo Kurosaki, are now the official Captain of the Fifth Squad. Here is you cloak." The Commander said taking the long white cloak with the number five written on its back out from his sleeves.

The room was silent for about five minutes, as Ichigo tried to stare down the Captain Commander and make him admit the bluff. He didn't say a word so Ichigo assumed that he must've been telling the truth and reacted as he would've normally.

"Hell no." Ichigo said breaking the long awkward silence.

"You can't refuse, this is not a matter up for debate." The Commander responded.

"Watch me." Ichigo said as he started to stand up and got ready to leave.

"We need you Ichigo," Shunsui said before the Commander could speak again. "The Fifth Squad needs a leader and you are the only one who qualifies. Without a Fifth Squad captain we can't run the Death God Academy and recruit new warriors."

"All the more reason to refuse, trust me you don't want me incharge of a school much less and entire squad."

"Want it or not, you're the only one who can take on the job, think of all the good you could do with it."

"To bad, I don't want it. I never wanted any of this. I only got my powers as a death god to protect my family, and I only kept them to protect those I could see. I am not the kind of guy to try and be the hero and save the world. I just want to go back home."

"Liar," Byakuya said interrupting Ichigo, "I know you to well to get away with such a ridiculous statement Ichigo."

"What you don't think that I don't want these powers? Cause if you do your wrong Byakuya."

"No what your lying about it wanting to go home."

"So I don't really want to go home?"

"No you don't"

"Why not?"

"Because you aren't the sort of person who puts his friends in needless danger."

"What are you talking about?"

"Ichigo, you have the spiritual power equal to that of a Captain, it is so great that you can't even seal up your Shikai and you have completely mastered your bankai. However since gaining this power you have only fought against extremely strong opponents, so its no wonder that you have forgotten about the weight of your own power. When we captain release our power it forms and intense pressure around us that we use to gauge each other's strength but if we are not careful we can kill weaker warriors with it. If it wasn't for the fact that we sealed up the area you were fighting in, you would've killed hundreds of people accidently during your battle with Grimmjow."

As Byakuya words sunk into Ichigo's mind his face went blank. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. But no sooner did he doubt the truth then his memory reminded him of the first time he fought a captain, how nearly impossible it had been to even breathe in the presence of Kenpachi's power. It had been too much for his friends Ganju and Hanataro to take, did he really produce that same kind of pressure every time he fought?

Byakuya continued as he watched his words sink into Ichigo, "Even without your bankai the pressure you release is incredible. Most humans don't notice it, but their souls are constantly fighting it. Your forcing dozens of people to release far more spiritual power then they should just to resist your power and stay alive. Now for Quincy this is no problem since they absorb spiritual energy to replace what they expend resisting you, and for people like Inoue and Sado who must've been powerful spirits in their previous afterlife this also isn't a problem since they have vast energy reserves to begin with. But normal Humans have very little spiritual energy and they need what little they have to make it through life. Your friends have probably already lost several years of life by being around you."

Ichigo was stunned he couldn't believe what he had been told. Byakuya didn't relent to still continued. "Normally a Death God with as power as a vice Captain or higher is sealed up so they can only use a fifth of their full strength, but given enough time this seal will fail and be overwhelmed by the power of its host. Even a Vice Captain can spend no more than three days in the Human worlds without returning to release their power. A typical Captain can spend about a day or so, if they practice great patience and constantly wear a Gigai. For someone like you Ichigo, with your power that rivals even the elite of Soul Society, you could spend no more than twelve hours in the land of the living before you become a threat to those around you."

"Why didn't you tell me this sooner?" Ichigo asked trying to process all of this information.

"We never thought that your power would reach this level." Shunsui said, "When you left Soul Society the first time you had the strength of an exceptional vice captain, if your power had stayed at that level you would've been no threat to anyone. But the Arrancar forced you to become far strong than we anticipated. We are sorry, you shouldn't have gotten this far."

"What if I wore an eye patch like Kenpachi's to consume most of my energy?"

"That would work, but only for a while. Kenpachi does seal up most of his power with his eye patch but even with it he can fight on par with most other captains. You would be the same case. Even with most of you power consumed by such a device and the rest sealed up with a captain's seal, you could only remain on earth for about 16 hours before becoming a threat to others."

"Which means," Byakuya said continuing for Shunsui, "You could spend mornings and your school day on earth, but at four o clock you would have to come to Soul Society and remain here for another eight hours before returning home a midnight or later."

"It would be just like a day job." Shunsui said trying to put a positive spin on it. Ichigo only glared at the floor. "Look you don't have to say anything yet. Just think about it for a day or so and then get back to us later alright?"

Ichigo said nothing, he simply rolled over in his bed and stared out the window into the night. The other captain left with out pressing the subject further but the left the captain's cloak behind. Ichigo was rather angry at the world. He didn't want this. He just wanted to be another normal teenager with normal teenager problems. He didn't want to lead a squad, he didn't want to be a full time Death God, and he definitely didn't want to be in charge of some academy. But while he didn't want to save the world, he wasn't such a jerk as to ignore the problems in front of him. So he swore under his breath and took up the mantel of the man he had killed.

End of Prologue.