Sun Rising, Moon Setting
(Author walks into a black void, then turns to face the camera)
AUTHOR: Good day or evening, wherever you are, whoever you are. I am Ron the True Fan, writer of the first actual GSD/BSG fic To Hell and Back, and adopter of the original White Sun Rising. Now, I know a lot of you are wondering just where the hell I've been. The answer is simple: I have been helping write a story with 117Jorn called Law for the Wolves. That means my own writing has slowed down, but not stopped. All my original fics are on the back burner for the moment, slowly simmering until the chapters are complete, but I promised myself that this would be out on my birthday, so here it is. Also note that I haven't read the Lost Substitute Arc's manga chapters. All of the basic information comes from the wiki. Considering this is an AU fic, that actually HELPS. Enjoy the pain. I know I will.
17 months had passed since Ichigo Kurosaki had woken up from his coma.
His friends were all acting...odd. Tatsuki and Orihime ran out of class at the weirdest moments, Uryū Ishida actually spoke to him, Chad...well, he had a job somewhere.
His dad was acting weirder then usual, too.
And that should scare you.
Then there were the fucked up dreams about that beautiful midget he kept having.
Her beauty never seemed to dull, like a porcelain doll.
Black hair, violet eyes...
Ichigo shook his head.
'Great, my brain's telling me to get a girlfriend.' A man ran past him carrying a bag with someone else on his tail.
Ichigo tripped the thief and took the bag handing it to its' owner, who didn't realize Ichigo got it back for him until he was given the bag.
"Oh. Thanks."
He took the bag back, thanking the younger man.
Little did Ichigo know that the man was Ginjo Kujo, head of the organization Xcution.
And watching them were 14th Division 3rd Seats Yoruichi Shihoin and Gin Ichimaru.
"Great. Just fucking great."
"Well, it's all part of the plan: Ichigo draws them out, we give him access to his powers again and take Ginjo down."
All they had to do was wait for Ginjo to make one TINY fuck up and they'll swoop in.
Karakura High
Ichigo walked into the class, dodging Keigo with ease.
"Hey, guys."
He moved through the motions of live as he did before, sans one fact.
"KUROSAKI!"
He had a part-time job.
Ichigo looked out the window to see his boss, Ikumi Unagiya, yelling at him from outside the school.
'What in the hell is WRONG with me? She's my boss: I should be caring more about this!'
Outside, watching with a pair of binoculars, was Ginjo.
"He's still clueless, Jackie."
"Really, Ginjo? I hadn't noticed! Kariya gave you Hollow bait: use it! He's still spiritually aware!"
He reached into his pocket, pulling out the coin-shaped bait.
Then his spidey sense kicked in.
'Oh, SHIT.'
A soccer ball rammed into his face.
A reiatsu-infused, Karin Kurosaki kicked soccer ball.
For the umpteenth time, his face was caved in.
"I thought I told you the last time that you and my zanpakutō would be getting to be knowing each other if I saw you near my brother again?"
"Oh, crap."
The trench knife from hell was shot towards him, but the Fullbringer avoided the sword of death and ran as fast as he could go.
Karin, however, wasn't letting him go.
"Getsuga..."
She swung the blade at Ginjo's retreating form.
"Tensho!"
Red energy soared toward the bastard, and he was sent flying into a building.
He pulled out his phone, which was surprisingly undamaged.
"Jackie?"
Jackie sighed on the other end.
"Yes?"
"Go to Plan B."
He fell off the building and fell on his back.
"Ow..."
5 hours later: Kurosaki Clinic
Plan B was Tsukishima's Fullbring, Book of the End.
Problem was, they clearly underestimated Karin Kurosaki and that EVIL sword of hers.
The sociopathic man ran from the Kurosaki home screaming.
Did I mention he was on fire?
No?
Well, he was.
In fact, he ran past Ichigo while trying to get to the river and put out the fire.
Ichigo looked back at the burning man and cocked his head to the side.
"What the fuck was that?"
At the river, Tsukishima jumped in, put it out and pulled out his phone.
"Ginjo?"
"Yes? Did it work?"
"No. We're going to need to go to Plan C."
He fell back, enjoying the cool feeling of the water on his burnt body.
The next day
Plan C was simple: attack Ichigo. Problem was, Plan C wasn't going to work because Ichigo's middle sister, Senna, was in town. And that wind-type zanpakutō of hers was NASTY when used properly. And both Ginjo and Tsukishima were learning that first-hand. "Son of a bitch! RUN!" Ginjo looked at Tsukishima as they attempted to get away from Senna."I DON'T THINK THAT'S GOING TO HELP!" Key word: ATTEMPTED.
That means they didn't succeed.
"OWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW!"
Wind + gravel + glass = PAIN.
Senna sealed up her zanpakutō, got into her unique gigai and skipped, SKIPPED off as both men nursed their wounds.
"Plan D?"
Ginjo looked at his student.
"Do we even HAVE a Plan D?"
Tsukishima blinked as Ginjo sighed.
"I thought so."
Eight hours later
Plan D was very complex and prone to failure, but it was their last chance.
Ginjo, using his massive Fullbring, Cross of Scaffold, would attack Ishida while Tsukishima fucked with Kurosaki's friends using his Book of the End.
Uryū didn't even see the bastard coming and was out within seconds.
Ginjo smirked at his handiwork.
Ishida was alive.
Barely.
"That was too easy."
He was sure that this would draw out the Gotai 14, but they did absolutely nothing.
"Ginjo."
The former Substitute looked at the man he taught and practically raised.
"It's done?"
"It was EXTREMELY difficult. The Inoue girl is a Substitute Shinigami."
Ginjo groaned.
"How? I thought Kurosaki was the only one!"
"Shit happens."
They turned to face a rather plain looking man.
Well, plain if it wasn't for the fact that he was a Westerner.
"Who the-"
"Naoto Toyoda. Your informant."
Both men let out a breath of relief.
"So, you're the one that's helping us?"
"Kurosaki is a danger. I'm just doing my part."
He looked at Ishida.
"THAT is overkill."
"Well, it's part of the plan. I'll take you to the hideout-"
"No need. I know where it is."
He shunpo'ed off.
Ginjo blinked.
"Shit. Good thing he's on OUR side."
He faced Tsukishima.
"Well, you know what to do."
"Do I HAVE to cut you?"
Ginjo sighed.
"Yes, you do. We want Kurosaki's power, we need to do everything we can to get it."
He swung the blade unwillingly, altering Ginjo's memories before leaving.
In Naruki City, 'Naoto' pulled out his spirit phone.
"It's started, ma'am."
"You know, Ichigo's going to kill you, Nemo."
The 11th Seat chuckled as he looked at his gigai.
He was wearing a limiter band so it wouldn't catch on fire, and he looked, well, normal.
"Well, death's not permanent unless I'm killed by a Quincy or something. My soul will reincarnate."
Yoruichi chuckled on the other end.
"Good luck."
"Don't need luck."
He hung up and entered the bar Xcution used as their hideout.
48 hours later
Tsukishima had FINALLY cut the Kurosaki siblings and screwed with their memories.
However, he had multiple third-degree burns and he wouldn't be having children anytime soon.
How Karin made flaming soccer balls appear out of nowhere was a question that he REALLY wanted to answer.
At the moment, though, he was trying to recover from said third-degree burns with Aloe Vera gel and approximately three tons of aspirin.
"OW..."
"Clearly."
He looked up to see Naoto.
"How-" "Your reiatsu leaks like a faucet. The second Kurosaki gets his powers back, he WILL kill you. Or at the very least, make you feel a LOT of pain."
He disappeared as soon as he was finished speaking, leaving the sociopathic bastard to tend to his wounds before he met Ichigo for the first time.
"Whoever he is, he's terrifying."
He got out of the tub his was in, then got redressed.
It was time to screw with Ichigo's head.
Kurosaki Clinic
Ichigo arrived home later then his father would've liked, but since the old man wasn't there, Ichigo didn't give a shit.
'Ichigo...'
Ichigo blinked as he heard two voices in his head: one male, one female.
'What in the holy name of shit is going on?'
He looked inside to see a man (who looked very much like the one that was on fire a few days ago) sitting at the table with his sisters.
"What the fuck?"
He looked at Ichigo.
"Ah, Ichigo-"
"Who the hell are you and why are you here?"
Yuzu looked at her brother curiously.
"Onii-chan, it's Tsukishima-san. Don't you remember him?"
Ichigo narrowed his eyes.
'In all my life, I have NEVER seen this man.'
"I've never seen him before, Yuzu. My question still stands: who are you, why are you here and how the FUCK do you know my sisters?!"
Tsukishima passively looked at Ichigo.
"Really, Ichigo, I-"
Ichigo grabbed Tsukishima and THREW him out the window.
I hope he's got good medical insurance.
Pain did not describe what the sociopathic asshole was feeling, but AGONY was pretty close. Remember, third-degree burns and broken glass are not a good combination.
He got up just as Ichigo was coming outside to continue beating the living shit out of Tsukishima.
He pulled out a bookmark, which transformed into a sword.
"What the fuck?!"
"My Fullbring, Book of the End."
Tsukishima got up, ready to attack, but a green energy wave stopped him from attacking Ichigo further. Tsukishima ran, not wanting to risk further injury.
"Kurosaki!"
Ichigo looked at the source of the beam that saved his ass: the man he helped four days before. "Who...are you?"
"Ginjo Kujo. I see you've met Tsukishima."
Ichigo looked at the giant sword Ginjo was carrying, triggering a memory of him wielding a sword of similar size.
"So, you really don't remember, do you?"
"Huh?"
Ginjo waves his hand around. "Hollows, shinigami, reiatsu: ringing any bells?"
Ichigo shook his head.
"Damn. That's going to make this a lot harder then it should be."
He walked toward Ichigo.
"Come with me. There's a lot you don't know."
"But-"
"I spoke with your boss. She understands perfectly. Come on, follow me."
Six hours later
Ichigo looked incredulous.
"You're saying I'm some kind of badass monster killer?"
"A shinigami, actually. According to what I've been told, you were the Captain of the newly formed 14th Division before...something happened."
"Something?"
"Apparently, you lost the ability to use your powers and your memories. I don't know the details."
Ichigo KNEW something was wrong with him, but THIS?
This was madness!
"You're lying."
"Have you been hearing voices, Ichigo? Voices in your head?"
Ichigo narrowed his eyes.
"Yes..."
"Then I'm telling the truth!"
Ichigo snapped his fingers, finally remembering.
"Two of them: a man and a woman."
This confused Ginjo, but he said nothing about it.
"Well, me and my organization are going to help you get them back."
"Organization?"
"It's a LONG story."
Ichigo raised an eyebrow, but went along with it.
Naruki City: Xcution Safe House
Kariya and Ichinose were safely hidden away, so they wouldn't try to kill Ichigo when they saw him. Their 'informant', however, was in plain view. "So, what do you think this Kurosaki guy looks like?" Naoto answered Riruka's question quickly and briefly. "Tall, orange hair and brown eyes. Why the hell would I care what he looks like? He's taken." Riruka looked slyly at the shinigami-in-hiding. "Oh?" "Not what I meant, you stupid bitch. A: I want him dead, and all you people are doing is helping me. B: he's got a girlfriend: Lieutenant Rukia Kuchiki." Riruka got ready to use her Fullbring, Dollhouse, but a sword to her neck stopped her from moving. Naoto had shunpo'ed behind her and materialized his blade. "I would advise against such rash action, Toyoda-san." He looked to Giriko Kutsuzawa, the bartender, who was getting ready to use his Fullbring, Time Tells No Lies. "Well-" The door opened, interrupting the fight. "I see everyone's getting along SWIMMINGLY." Naoto put away his sword. "Ginjo. Do I want to ask what you're doing here, when you should be trying to-" Then the orange hair of Ichigo Kurosaki came into view. "OH, MY GOD!" Everyone looked at Riruka, who was hopping up and down like a rabbit. "HE'S A HOTTIE!" She ran toward Ichigo, who started running away. "GET HER AWAY FROM ME!"
Naoto sighed.
"Bakudo 9: Geki."
Riruka froze in place, giving Ichigo time to escape.
"What the-"
"Get over here."
Ichigo blinked, but walked toward the other shinigami.
"The name's Naoto Toyoda. You're my captain."
Ichigo clutched his head as memories started assaulting him: memories of monsters with masks, an old man and an albino version of himself, a pale-skinned woman with equally pale hair and that black haired beauty that had been assaulting his dreams for 17 months.
"I see...So your memories aren't completely blocked."
Ginjo looked at Naoto in confusion.
"Blocked? What the hell are you-"
"The trauma of nearly losing all of his powers. When he took down Aizen, I was told you used something called the Saigo no Getsuga Tensho. It stripped you of not only your powers, but your memories."
Ichigo was confused beyond belief.
"Then why the hell did you bring me here?!"
Jackie sighed, deciding to give him the reason.
"We are Fullbringers. And we wish to be rid of our powers, Ichigo."
He looked at Jackie.
"What?"
"The only way we can do this is if we transfer our powers to a Substitute Shinigami."
She pointed at him.
"In short, we need your help."
He looked at Naoto.
"And why are YOU here? You're not like them."
"I'm a shinigami. My duty is to help you regain your powers because you are Captain of the 14th Division, which I serve in."
The man narrowed his eyes.
"Also, because I was ordered to by 3rd Seat Shihoin."
The last name rung a few bells in Ichigo's head.
"Let's get started, shall we? You have a lot of power to recover, and not much time."
Meanwhile...
While normally impossible for someone in a coma to access their inner world,
Rukia seemed to be able to do just that.
And she was PISSED.
Not at Ichigo, but at Aizen for all the shit that forced it to come to that point.
"Rukia."
She turned to face Zangetsu, and the old man looked...ashamed?
"Zangetsu? What's wrong?"
"I have not been entirely truthful, to you or Ichigo."
Rukia was confused.
"What are you talking about?"
Zangetsu sighed.
"I am...not a zanpakutō."
"What?"
"What I am...I cannot tell you. Not yet. Ichigo must learn this first."
Rukia wasn't taking that for an answer.
"Zangetsu! What are you?! And-"
Zangetsu looked at Rukia.
"Shirayuki knows what I am. Yet she still loves me in spite of it."
Zangetsu disappeared from the snowy world, leaving Rukia alone once more.
Rukia chased after him, but everything faded to black once more.
When Rukia opened her eyes, she found that she was in the 4th Division Medical Treatment Center.
The first thing she saw other then the ceiling was Hanataro Yamada, 7th Seat of the 4th Division.
"Captain Unohana! Lieutenant Kuchiki's awake!"
The 4th Division Captain rushed inside.
"So she is. Nemo-san is VERY good with his predictions."
Rukia tried to get out of bed, but Unohana stopped her by putting a hand on her shoulder.
"You have not moved in 17 months, Lieutenant. Do NOT strain yourself."
Rukia flinched at Unohana's tone.
"What happened? The last thing I remember was being in the Dangai."
"Captain Kurosaki defeated Aizen. However, he lost his memories soon after."
Rukia sighed.
"I need to see him."
"Captain Kurosaki is trying to regain his powers with Nemo-san's help. Your presence would...complicate things."
Rukia looked at her.
"Then explain to me what the fuck happened while I was comatose!"
Unohana was taken aback, but did so.
Quick note: it usually takes me 3 days to write a chapter. This took over a WEEK.
Reasons:
A) Laws for the Wolves
B) The recent Bleach chapters
And C) A rather large case of Bleach-based writer's block, whose ass is getting Yamato Cannoned.
(Ichigo and Rukia appear)
ICHIGO: It's about damn time!
RUKIA: While I'm not going to curse, I agree with Ichigo.
AUTHOR: Look, quit your bitching. I'm trying, OK? It's a pain in the ass when your mind wants to write one story when you're trying to write another! And I've got more plans for you, my dears...(Cackles like the Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz (The original movie from 1939, not any of the remakes))
ICHIGO/RUKIA: ...Do you need help?
AUTHOR: It's too late for-
(A blue, fizzy Muppet-like creature appears out of nowhere)
?: I'm a Ronnie Monster!
(Author looks at the Ronnie Monster)
AUTHOR: What's a-
(Ronnie Monster jumps onto the Author and begins devouring him)
ICHIGO: Hopefully, when he gets back, he's less...insane. Ja Ne.