Hanatarou Yamada hummed cheerfully as he swept the corridors of Squad 4. The sun was streaming through the windows and a brisk wind was blowing in leaves. In the aftermath of Sosuke Aizen's betrayal and the ryoka invasion, Squad 4 had been filled with the wounded, but most were healed or buried now. As a member of the paramedic squad, Hanatarou was painfully ware that the lull was temporary; all the 13 Squads were preparing for war. Still, he enjoyed the peace while it lasted.

Hanatarou stopped at the farthest room on the right. He always saved this one for last. One of the remaining casualties of the betrayal was Momo Hinamori. After she was stabbed by her captain, Captain Unohana managed to save her life, but the girl remained catatonic. Hanatarou knew that Captain Hitsugaya often visited her, but he couldn't get her to respond.

Hanatarou entered and opened the windows to let in some light and air. Hinamori didn't respond; she just stared at the ceiling blankly. "Good morning, Hinamori-san," he said cheerfully. "It's a lovely day, isn't it?" She didn't answer, nor did he expect it. It was just too uncomfortable not to say anything while he was cleaning the room.

"We had a birthday party for Lieutenant Kotetsu last night," he continued. "Iemura-san gave her a new set of beads for her hair. I think he's a little sweet on her." He laughed. "To tell you the truth, she looked pretty pleased.

"Rukia-san seems much happier these days. She was here all the time when Captain Kuchiki was being healed. I think maybe they'll become a real family, after all." Hanatarou smiled as he remembered his parents and his younger sister. He had been born in Soul Society, in one of the better districts of Rukongai. They had been so proud of him when he was accepted to the Shinigami academy…

"Ah…sorry. I was just woolgathering." Hanatarou began to mop the floor. "Lieutenant Abarai is taking the captain test this evening. My unit will be on duty in case anything goes wrong, but I don't think it will." He didn't think it was a good idea to mention that Abarai would probably be taking over Squad 5, and that the test was just a formality, because Soul Society was desperate. There was talk of promoting Lieutenant Hisagi, even if he hadn't achieved bankai. And no one knew what to do with Squad 3, because Lieutenant Kira was clearly not ready to be a captain.

Hanatarou finished mopping the floor and turned to go. "Have a good day, Hinamori-san. One of the others will bring some food soon."

oOoOoOo

Momo was in a sunlit room, all alone. She was cold, even though she had a warm, brown jacket wrapped around her shoulders. It seemed like there was something she should remember, but nothing came to mind.

As she waited for something to happen, she occasionally heard voices coming through the windows, and she wanted to go and find out what they were saying, but it wasn't safe to leave. If she tried, They would attack, and They were much stronger than her. So Momo stayed in the room. It was nice in there, anyway. It seemed like home.

oOoOoOo

Those who thought Captain Unohana was soft had never been trained by her. In many ways, the war would be heaviest on Squad 4, since they would have to supply and care for all the other squads. She was determined that they would be ready.

Unlike human paramedics, the paramedics of Squad 4 were fully qualified to administer medical care, but they were specially trained to work under emergency conditions. With war coming, they needed to be ready to work in situations involving combat, even combat between shinigami, rather than merely fights between shinigami and hollows.

Looking at the sun, Hanatarou realized that he had taken too long to clean Hinamori's room. He hurried to his room and grabbed his zanpakuto and medical pack. He heard a clock chime the hour. "Oh, I am going to be so late," he groaned. He began to run full-tilt, almost colliding with several other shinigami.

Finally, he saw the training grounds in front of him. He skidded to a halt by his Second Leader, Kimiko Ueno. His two team members, Noboru Tsukuda and Shou Himura, were already there, watching with some amusement. Brushing himself off, Hanatarou asked Ueno, "So, what's the situation?"

Becoming serious, she said, "It looks like a building rescue. It's a three level, with two entrances and probably only one hallway per level."

Hanatarou shook his head. Building rescues were one of the most dangerous maneuvers; it was a good thing Captain Unohana was starting them with something easy. Tsukuda and Himura were bantering cheerfully, both excited to prove themselves. Neither of them had any actual field experience.

At that moment, Captain Unohana entered. "Good morning," she said. "Today's exercise will take place in that building. A shinigami is down on the first level. His last reported position was on the south side. Fighting continues between multiple combatants. You will be able to tell our side from the other side by the armbands, blue for us and red for them. However, you should not assume that your status as non-combatants will be respected. The injuries are reported to be serious, so please hurry." She opened her phone and pressed a few buttons. "You may begin, she said both into her phone and to Hanatarou's team.

Reiatsu began to crackle out of the building. Tsukuda and Himura went pale and began to sweat. "We have to go in there?" Himura gasped.

"Yes," Hanatarou said. "Use Kido to shield yourself."

He heard the two younger shinigami performing the Kido incantation. Hanatarou and Ueno refrained; the spell would protect you from the reiatsu of another, but also rendered you effectively defenseless. Not that it would really matter if one of the fighters decided to attack.

Hanatarou said, "Kimiko, find out how many fighters there are, and where they are. I'll locate the injured shinigami." He closed his eyes and felt for any spirit ribbons with damage. "Got him," he said out loud.

"There are three fighters on each side," Ueno told him. "Each is engaged in one-to-one fighting. There is a pair on the first floor, and two on the second floor."

"All right," Hanatarou said. "Tsukuda-kun, you and I will enter the building first. Kimiko and Himura-kun, you come in behind and watch our backs. We'll enter through the south door. Zanpakutos out!"

The team skirted around the edges of the building and slipped in the front door. The reiatsu was like walking into a gale, drowning out the injured shinigami's location. Fortunately, there didn't appear to be too many rooms on the first floor.

Two fighters were battling at the far end of the hall, but they seemed to be beyond the room where their target was. They moved down the hall carefully, dodging stray attacks. A second pair thundered down the stairs behind them, trapping them between two groups. Panicking, Hanatarou shouted, "Everyone, into the room on your right!"

They dodged into the room and shut the door behind them. The room was empty; it was the wrong room. Hanatarou thought the injured shinigami must be in the next room down. It got quiet outside. It was quiet for a moment. Then someone called, "Open the door."

Hanatarou had no way of knowing whether it was a friend or foe. Trying to think quickly, Hanatarou said, "Kimiko and Himura, hold that door. We'll get the shinigami."

In his peripheral vision, Hanatarou was aware that Ueno was setting up a Kido barrier, but he didn't have time to check on her. Focusing on the wall between him and the next room, he said:

Deeply rooted trees,
Power of ancient forests,
Turn back into dust.
Dust Reduction 22

The spell blew a neat hole in the wall between the two rooms. "Hurry!" Ueno shouted. "I don't think I can hold the door for long."

Lieutenant Kotetsu was lying in the center of the room. "Himura, check for back or neck injuries." Hanatarou blew a hole in the exterior wall of the room.

"Kimiko, Tsukuda, retreat to this room!" he shouted.

Tsukuda came through first, then Ueno, who set up a barrier behind her.

"Himura, can we move her safely?" Hanatarou asked.

"Yes," he answered. "There aren't any spinal injuries."

"Right," Hanatarou said, trying to think carefully, even though his heart was in his throat. "Tsukuda and Himura, take Lieutenant Kotetsu and get her out of the battle area.

They picked her up gently but firmly and carried her through the hole in the wall. Hanatarou went and stood by his second leader and said, "When I say 'Go,' drop the barrier and run. I will be behind you." She nodded. "Ready…go," he said. They both ran as quickly as they could.

After what seemed like a long time, they reached the outskirts of the training grounds, where Captain Unohana and their other team members were waiting.

"Well done," she said, favoring them with a small smile. "Your time was 17 minutes. Himura-kun, you examined the patient. Would you deliver your diagnosis?"

Himura cleared his throat nervously. Hanatarou realized this was probably his first time speaking to the Captain. "Um…the patient has a punctured left lung and two fractured ribs. She has a bone broken in two places in her right leg, and multiple cuts and abrasions, some deep."

Captain Unohana nodded slightly. "What would you heal first?" she asked.

"Probably the cut on her arm," he said. "It's near an artery, and she would be loosing a lot of blood," he answered.

"Isane, how close were they?" Captain Unohana asked.

Lieutenant Kotetsu sat up and smiled slightly. "Mostly correct," she said. "They missed the skull fracture. Also, given the level of blood loss, it would have been prudent to put pressure on while they were moving me."

Now that the intensity of the training exercise had passed, Hanatarou was impressed with Kotetsu's ability to fake injuries. Any reasonably proficient shinigami could hide their spirit ribbon, albeit not while they were fighting. However, projecting a false ribbon, let alone specific injuries, was very difficult.

"Hanatarou-kun and Kimiko-san," Captain Unohana said.

"Yes, Captain," they said, coming to attention.

"Your team members will not be able to defend themselves properly if they must employ a Kido shield to withstand reiatsu. If anyone had attacked while they were moving Lieutenant Kotetsu, all three would have been killed.

"While dodging into the empty room bought you some time, blowing holes in two of the walls could have brought down the ceiling. Also, Kimiko-san, that Kido shield would not have kept out a more powerful opponent. And while you retreat, always watch your back."

Hanatarou hung his head slightly. In real combat conditions, his team probably would have been killed. "Nonetheless, you did well for your first attempt," Captain Unohana said. Hanatarou perked up slightly at her reassurance. "That's all for now. Please practice with your unit. Your next session will be in three days, and I expect to see progress at that time."

Hanatarou spent the next two hours practicing with his team. Since he was the strongest, they took turns weathering the most powerful gusts of reiatsu he could muster. Still, he knew that most shinigami would produce a far more intense pressure. Even so, his two team members were exhausted when he dismissed them.

He kept Ueno for another hour, taking turns trying to hold a shield against the other's attack. When they were done, their concentration was fraying, but they were improving. "Thank you for your help today," he said. "I'll see you at tomorrow's practice."

"Thank you, too, Hanatarou-san," she said, and hurried away.

oOoOoOo

"We had our first real training session with Captain Unohana yesterday. I guess it could have gone better. We need a lot of practice, but I'm having trouble finding people who will practice with us.

"Abarai-sama passed his test and became a captain. He, Captain Kyoraku, Lieutenant Matsumoto, and Lieutenant Kira all got drunk and ended up disrupting half of Soul Society." Hanatarou chuckled slightly. They did create quite a spectacle between them. "Captain Abarai got a new tattoo to celebrate, and Lieutenant Matsumoto ended up singing on the roof of Squad 6 until Captain Hitsugaya got her down."

"Kira ended up passing out near our barracks, which was just as well, so that we didn't have as far to carry him." Hanatarou didn't mention that Kira had spent a good bit of the rest of the night sobbing in a room just down the hall from Hinamori's. Captain Unohana was furious that the others had let Kira get drunk. Again.

Hanatarou finished cleaning the room and left, saying as he always did, "Have a good day, Hinamori-san."

oOoOoOo

Increasingly, the names and phrases drifting in the windows seemed familiar. 'Abarai' and 'Kira' seemed familiar, and 'Hitsugaya' especially. She wanted to see what was happening, but she also didn't want to leave the safety of the room. She wrapped the brown jacket around her shoulders and cried with loneliness.