A/N: I don't Bleach, Tite Kubo does, otherwise the Vandreich would not be on a trolling-spree right now. Please read and review, review, review!
The Substitute Arrancar
Chapter 1- Urahara Kisuke
Most major problems in Karakura town and Seretei, like always, found itself traced back to Mr. Hat-and-Clogs (Getaboshi).
The day had started off innocently at the Urahara Shop. White cotton balls drifted by in the afternoon sunny sky and the city sparrows fluttered from building to building, singing a content melody. A black cat scampered around the old-fashioned candy shop occasionally going off to her haunts. Tinkering noises could be heard behind a screen door inside the shop. A sandy-blond haired man clad in a traditional olive green jinbei (1) sat on a wooden stool by a nearby work table. He was vigilantly crafting his newest standard artificial body (gigai); gray eyes and sweating forehead obscured by his green-and-white-striped bucket-hat.
"Ahhh, almost done," Getaboshi sighed, "Yoruichi –san would be proud." Should he run off and gloat to her? This newest one could suck away spiritual energy (reiatsu). He quietly leaked out bits of his reiatsu searching for the said woman. His eyes widened in surprise. Instead of the Flash Goddess, he had stumbled across a whiff of a hollow's reiatsu. It seemed carefully hidden though so it was hard to determine its reiatsu level. From the estimate, Getaboshi could tell this was obviously not the run-of-the-mill-hollow-that-could-be-purified-in-one-slash hollow. Giving another quick reiatsu scan around a 5-mile radius, there was no spiritually powerful shinigami or being around other than himself.
"Ara? (2) It seems that the humble and handsome shopkeeper of a candy store must come to the rescue," he said to himself smirking. Well, more like observing that fighting. He didn't want to unleash so much reiatsu so that Soul Society would be alerted that the fugitive ex-captain was camping around in Karakura. Grabbing his wooden cane, Getaboshi slid open the screen door to find the arrancar standing by a candy-jar shelf in his shop. The tall figure was wrapped in what appeared to be a reiatsu-concealing cloak.
"So I'm not the only one," the ex-captain thought, his smile stretching until he spotted a Shiba clan crest on the back of the cloth. Eh? What in the Four Dimensions of the Universe was Isshin Shiba doing? With a hollow especially? Giving a quick once over, Getaboshi mentally made several points.
A humanoid hollow meaning Vasto-Lorde class unless…it was a Shinigami and Hollow hybrid. From the reiatsu evaluation it was indeed a hybrid, matching that of an arrancar's. Given that the arrancar had on a reiatsu-concealing cloak and the still large quantity of remaining reiatsu, it was of Adjunchas or Vasto Lorde class. Aizen was still the current 5th division captain in Soul Society's Gotei 13. It appeared the 5th division's Hogyoku could create hybrids, but unstable hybrids. On the other hand, Getaboshi's Hogyoku could stabilize. Considering that Urahara kept his Hogyoku with him at all times, this arrancar was not artificially created by the 2 Hogyokus. With this all in mind, the conclusion was…
This arrancar was indeed powerful.
The ex-captain tipped his hat at the arrancar.
"And what can this humble shopkeeper do for you today sir?" Getaboshi asked in his signature poker-face. The figure stayed silent.
"Ehh? Why so silent? Did you not need my help?"
The figure looked straight into the shadows of the shopkeeper's face. In a quiet but deep voice it rumbled, "So you knew I wasn't a threat, former twelve division captain, Urahara Kisuke?"
(1)Jinbei-a kind of traditional Japanese clothing worn by men, women, boys, girls, and even babies during the summer, aka what Urahara always wears
(2) Ara- a Japanese term, usually said if one's suprised like 'Huh?' or 'Eh?'
A/N: How'd you guys like it? Please review! I'd really like to know what everyone thinks.