Chapter 2: The Untreatable Injury

A/N: Thanks to those who took the time to read and review the first chapter, I appreciate it very much! To jadeb, yes this is IchiRuki since I'll follow the canon pairings. The pairings will come in a little late, that's all. Also I'm in need of a beta, so if anyone feels like wanting to beta for me, please drop a review or email me, thanks!

Disclaimer: Everything that seems familiar to you doesn't belong to me.


"This is Hitsugaya," Hitsugaya spoke into a cellphone, the five of them hidden in a grove of trees. "Mission complete. We have an injured Hunter, requesting to be teleported back."

"Affirmative," The operator replied. "Hitsugaya-taichou, Kira-fukutaichou, Abarai-fukutaichou, Hisagi-fukutaichou and Kuchiki Rukia. Location confirmed."

"Hai… to think we came out just for this. I didn't even get to kill anything!" Renji moaned and Kira smiled sheepishly. "Abarai-kun, you were the one complaining of boredom. At least you could get out while Kuchiki-taichou is out."

"Yeah," Renji muttered as a ring of blue light surrounded them; the signal that they were about to be teleported.

"You're not going to get a good report from me, Abarai," Hitsugaya remarked sourly as they faded from view.


The Hunter HQ was relatively quiet when Hitsugaya and his team reported back after their mission. The three vice-captains returned to their respective divisions while Rukia reported to the infirmary. Hitsugaya was left to the most unpleasant task of all – writing a report. Ah, bureaucracy.

"Welcome back, taichou," His adjutant, an ample-chested female by the name of Matsumoto Rangiku greeted him as he entered the squad office. "You don't look happy. Did something go wrong?"

"No, nothing unusual," muttered Hitsugaya as he took his seat behind his desk and lazily picked up a fancy pen with a white feather on it. "Has the team returned?"

"Not yet, taichou." Matsumoto glanced at Hitsugaya. The boy wore his usual 'I-don't-care' expression, but with a little more venom. She figured that something must have gone wrong, but for the life of her couldn't figure out why. He was sent to supervise three vice-captains on a B-class hunt; mere child's play for someone of his rank. Surely there was nothing to be upset about?

Cue Matsumoto Rangiku, 25 years old, female. Vice-captain of the Emergency Response Unit, a busty woman whose battle abilities are only surpassed by her charming beauty. She balances her captain's aloof demeanor by being completely mischievous at times.

"Nothing that I can't take care of," His adjutant briefly scanned the report in front of her. "Although our third seat applied for a two-week leave starting next week. His wife is due to give birth soon. Approve it?"

"Approve it," Hitsugaya said lazily. "It's not like anything big is happening."

"Also the Academy's recent graduation showed some promising graduates. You're requested to visit the academy tomorrow, taichou."

"Dammit, and you say there's nothing for me, Matsumoto?"

Matsumoto smiled patiently. Because her taichou is her superior, she ignored his coarse language and aloof demeanor in comparison to his age. "It must have slipped my mind."

"You're getting old," Hitsugaya muttered as he began writing.

Late cue, Hitsugaya Toushiro, age 13, captain of the Emergency Response Unit, also the youngest Captain in Hunter Corp. Also the shortest captain in Hunter history. He holds quite a few records for someone so young.

Matsumoto lounged back in her chair, having finished all the work. Back in Assault Unit 5, paperwork was nil. They had nothing to report most of the time anyway. But the ERU is different. When Intelligence reports a sighting that is abnormal or in a non-AU patrolled sector, the ERU are deployed to investigate and possibly annihilate. Whichever the outcome, a report must be prepared to be sent to the Soutaichou.

Just then there was a knock and a tall woman with braided hair stepped in. Which should be nothing unusual, but instead of wearing it at the back, her hair was braided in front, swaying gently with each step. Despite wearing the black that was required of them, she looked quite bright, her smile gentle and serene. A doctor's coat peeked from under the large shawl draped around her.

"Hitsugaya-taichou?"

Cue Unohana Retsu, Age unknown. Captain of the Medical Unit. It is said that in all her years serving the Corp, she had never lost her temper even once. But don't say calm waters hath no crocodiles…

"Unohana-taichou," Hitsugaya sat up straighter in his chair. The woman smiled gently and waved the formalities away. "I had just finished tending to Kuchiki-san's wounds. It is surprising that she got injured while on a mission under your supervision, Hitsugaya-taichou."

"Ah…" Hitsugaya's brows creased in slight apprehension, his mask slipping. She was giving him a backhanded compliment while berating him for his failure – what a paradox. "I accept full responsibility for any injuries sustained by Hunter personnel under my command. However I did not think her injuries were serious."

"Well they aren't life-threatening, but what I did not understand was why she got hurt. Wasn't she the visor scout?"

Matsumoto sneaked a glance at her captain. It wasn't everyday that people found fault with the boy genius. Hitsugaya normally executed his orders flawlessly, but she guessed there must be a first time for everything.

"…She acted against orders." Hitsugaya replied at last. Matsumoto raised an eyebrow. It was also rare for her captain to show annoyance to another captain – but disobeying his orders had that effect. "She was trying to keep damage to a minimum, so she risked an attack to prevent the Hollow from attacking the civilians."

Unohana smiled. "That is very like her. However, I'm afraid her injuries are rather worrying. Physically, she is unharmed. However, the blow had damaged her Chain Link rather badly."

"No!" Matsumoto gasped.

Hitsugaya frowned. For a Hunter, one's two vital points lies in his Soul Sleep and Chain Link; two points that generate and boost spirit power. Any damage incurred to either one would result in unstable spirit power generation or worse – no generation at all. "How bad is it?"

"It isn't life-threatening, but I can't let her go on duty for the next few weeks or so… until her chain link has completely healed. Kuchiki relies heavily on her Demon Arts, and any attempt to use high-level Kidou will result in worse damage."

"Wait a minute, Unohana-taichou," Something had just occurred to Hitsugaya. "You're going to tell this to Ukitake-taichou, aren't you?"

"That is a must. He is her captain."

"And… Kuchiki-taichou?"

She too, paused. "I believe it cannot be avoided. He is after all, her brother."

Hitsugaya thoughtfully rested his chin on his hands. "…Is it possible for her to heal before he returns?"

"That is not possible, Hitsugaya-taichou, and you know it too," For a moment Unohana looked hopelessly at the ground. "It is a pity, but there is no method to treating such injuries. She must recover on her own."

Hitsugaya sighed and straightened up again. "Thank you for dropping by, Unohana-taichou."

"Good day, Hitsugaya-taichou. Matsumoto-san."

Matsumoto bit her lip uncertainly and was about to arrange her paper pile when a sheaf of papers were dumped on her desk. "Eep!"

"I'm done with them," Hitsugaya said lazily. "And Matsumoto?"

"Yes taichou?"

"I don't want to hear this on the gossip gravevine - ever."

"Y-Yes taichou." It was scary how he could practically read her mind sometimes.


The bell tinkled and Kurosaki Yuzu looked to see who. "Onii-chan?" She blinked in surprise at her orange-haired brother. "Onii-chan, welcome home!"

Cue Kurosaki Yuzu, age 11. Youngest member of the Kurosaki Family. Despite her age and size, she's the most useful around the house and looks after everyone.

Strangely he only nodded before heading up to his room. Perplexed, Yuzu ran after him. "Onii-chan, are you alright? Did you get hurt?"

He stopped on the stairs and managed a smile. "I'm okay. I'm just… tired."

"Um, alright," Yuzu clasped her hands in worry. "Are you sure you don't want dinner, onii-chan?"

"Hmm."

"Who's that? Did Ichigo come back?" Kurosaki Isshin, resident doctor of the Kurosaki Family Clinic poked his head to the hallway.

"Em, you just missed him," Yuzu walked back to the office where she was doing medicine inventories. Isshin made a horrified face. "Whaat? Ichigo came back and didn't even say hi to me?"

"Shut up, you're really annoying." His other daughter made an appearance, bogged down with boxes of pills. "If Ichi-nii says he's tired then maybe he is."

"Demo Karin-chan, Ichi-nii was perfectly healthy yesterday!"

"I didn't say he's sick, Yuzu. But then again, who knows?"

"I think it's cause onii-san's always troubled by ghosts," Yuzu said importantly. "They must be affecting him."

"Then he's stuck, isn't he?" Karin replied wearily. "Unfortunately there's no medication for ghost sickness."


"Her chain link is damaged?" Ukitake Jyuushirou never had such a look of disbelief on his face, ever. He worriedly passed a hand through his long hair. "Yare yare, this isn't good."

Unohana watched as her comrade rubbed his chin. Ukitake absently picked out a report and skimmed through it half-heartedly. "Her brother is still away, isn't he? Byakuya still doesn't know about this?"

"Kuchiki-taichou is still away, and is not expected to return until the middle of next week." Unohana replied. "Currently the S.M.C is unable to locate their position, let alone receive reports. He will not know of her condition until he returns." She lapsed into silence before sighing again.

"Yare yare…" Ukitake sighed. "Rukia will get in trouble when Byakuya finds out that she damaged her chain link. I can't imagine his punishment, but I know it won't be light. These Hunter families can be so ickle. Do you have any ideas, Unohana-san?"

"It would be best for her to rest, but keeping her in the facility is not the wisest option. However, I do not recommend her fit to fight yet either, Ukitake. If you recall, she is still recovering from…" She hesitated to continue, but Ukitake got the message anyway.

"There has to be something we can do," Ukitake muttered as he went over the reports of the day. Although Rukia had only been in his unit for two years, she showed good promise of being an outstanding Hunter. And with a brother like Byakuya, Ukitake expected her to rise rapidly in rank. But for some reason, the higher-ups always rejected his proposal at promoting the girl.

Maybe it's because she's from the Thirteenth Unit? Ukitake frowned slightly. His unit was primarily in charge of intelligence and worked closely with the S.M.C. Unlike the Assault Units, his subordinates were only called when the need for Kidoh experts arose. Other than that, he was also in charge of validating reports from the various divisions and arranging those in need of attention from the General.

Something struck him and he riffed through the papers again. Intelligence. Reports. "That's it!"

Unohana watched in slight bafflement as he read through a report. "Hitsugaya reported an 'abnormal spirit presence' during his mission today. Apparently he found a human with an abnormally high spirit power level – this is interesting. Hitsugaya never reported any anomalies before."

"Hitsugaya is very particular in his specifications. If the human caught his attention, then he must be worth investigating," Unohana offered. "Perhaps you can authorize Kuchiki Rukia to observe him for a few weeks?"

"Ah," smiled Ukitake as he drew up a sheet of paper. "I'll have the S.M.C. find his whereabouts. We'll let Rukia observe him for a few weeks; a few weeks should be enough for her chain link to recover. Observing a candidate for the Academy always takes time, so Byakuya won't be suspicious. I believe Rukia's injury can be kept quiet?"

"Please leave that to me," Unohana smiled slightly and shook her head. "It is unfortunate… but what is done, is done. Thank you for your time, Ukitake."

"No matter, Unohana. She is my subordinate after all."


Rukia sat at the edge of her bed, one hand splayed over her abdomen. There was no pain, no blood and no scar yet she could feel it – she wasn't okay. Even when the medics had assured her that she was healthy enough to be discharged, she still felt as if they're hiding something from her.

"Yo," A muffled voice outside the room made her look up. "Come in."

The door opened and Renji came in. Dressed in casuals, he was apparently off-duty today. "How're ya doin', Rukia?"

Rukia smiled a bit. Trust Renji to ignore formalities and protocol. Although he was a vice-captain, Renji wasn't a stickler to rules. "Renji."

He grinned and picked out an apple from the fruit basket. "Those snobby guards out there kept askin' me for ID. Heck, I'm just coming to see a friend."

Her eyes softened and she bowed slightly. "Sorry about that. I'll scold them."

"Nah," He waved it away. "They're just doin' their job, aren't they? After all, you're a Kuchiki. Can't just let anybody pass through, haha!"

She smiled painfully at his jibe, feeling it sting. The rank of vice-captain wasn't what separated them… it was her name. The Kuchiki House, one of the most prestigious Hunter families in history.

But she wasn't born a noble. She didn't have the Kuchiki blood running in her veins. All she did was let the name shield her, let herself be conformed to its expectations.

She grew up in the abandoned streets of Rukongai, the 'trash' district. She didn't know how she ended up there, but she assumed her parents had thrown her away. She learnt to steal almost as soon as she learnt to crawl, and that was how she survived. Even when she was beaten to near death, she refused to let this miserable district claim her dead body. Later on she met Renji, and they became fast friends. Their ability to see and purify spirits was their ticket out of Rukongai when they obtained a referral to the Hunter …

"Hah!" Renji roared and concentrated his palms together. He slowly moved them apart and concentrated his spirit energy into a sword form. The shining spirit energy wavered, wobbled – and vanished. "Gaah!"

Rukia giggled, her own sword lying beside her. Renji merely glared at her. "Stop showing off, Rukia!"

"I'm not," She said innocently, twirling the sword in her hand. It was slender and refined, but what puzzled Renji was that it was completely white. Solid white from hilt to tip. Even the ribbon that trailed from the hilt was pristine and pure. "Che. What's the point of materializing a sword if you don't put any details? It doesn't look like a real sword, y'know."

"It's a zanpakutou no matter how it looks," Rukia replied hotly. "And at least I managed to materialize a sword by listening to my 'ghost' properly, unlike you."

"What's that? You wanna fight!"

She stuck out her tongue at him and continued to watch his attempts at materializing his spirit power. Stupid Renji. If only he cared to listen properly, he might hear the name of his 'ghost' properly but no. Pompous Renji who thinks he's better than her in every aspect doesn't need to meditate. He can hear his 'ghost' in his dream just fine. Or so he says.

Their mentor had told them that having spirit power did not mean they can purify hollows. It's a question of how they used the spirit power that matters.

"Everyone is born with spirit power," He had explained one day. "Every single human has a guardian 'ghost' that serves as a spiritual source. Most people are not aware of their 'ghosts' and thus the spirit power remains dormant, or rots away. And each spirit power differs from person to person. A skilled exorcist may have a strong 'ghost' protecting him. A seer may have a 'ghost' that can predict the future. Great figures in history all use their 'ghosts', whether they realize it or not."

"Can we do that?" Renji asked. "Exorcising spirits? Me and Rukia… we can see them. Rukia can touch them, but I don't feel anything solid."

"Ah… then you're already on your first step," He had smiled. "Your 'ghosts' are calling to you, and you're half-listening but not quite there yet."

"Huh?" Renji squinted. "Meaning?"

"I'll come back in a month. Try and learn your ghosts' names by then. You will see the difference."

"Sode no Shirayuki," Rukia mumbled, running her hand down the cold blade. Sleeve of White Snow. It was no wonder that her weapon was pure white.

It came as a surprise, actually. Before, they were able to manifest their spirit power into globes of light, but nothing more. As she was meditating, she heard a voice – and saw it. A katana of pure white, glowing with a gentle, pulsing light. It was then she realized – this is her ghost.

Unfortunately Renji was having a hard time with his. He said the name sounded like Zabimaro or something… but he couldn't be quite sure. And he couldn't think of the shape of his weapon either, except he wished it to be a really long katana.

It wasn't long after he finally learnt his ghost's name did the opportunity to test their power arise. A monster had appeared in the northern end of Rukongai, and the two rushed to see if it was spiritual.

"Big." Rukia managed, suddenly feeling faint. Renji nodded dumbly. "Well… we gotta do something. Um… I don't know how strong this is."

"You can distract him while I run over, right?"

Renji wondered if he replied with the same nervousness. "Right."

Taking a deep breath, she gripped her katana and he clenched his jaws. "Let's go."

He's just an ugly shopkeeper, thought Rukia as Renji sprinted towards the monster. Just an ugly shopkeeper who will kill us for stealing food. Just trip him!

She shot out from her hiding place as Renji swung his sword. "Howl, Zabimaru!"

His katana suddenly shot out, extending its segments. Like a serrated saw, it caught the monster in the side and tore a huge gash, spewing blood everywhere.

Meanwhile Rukia lifted her sword. She could feel it; her ghost guiding her hand, calming her nerves, speaking the words. First Dance; White Moon.

Renji watched as the ground under the monster froze, freezing it from feet upwards. Taking the chance, he roared and swung the sword once more, decapitating the monster with a single blow.

Rukia's eyes met Renji.

They did it.

"Ho, not bad!" A cheerful voice greeted them, a figure in a black gi and a striped hat slid down the mountain of trash. "You've improved a lot, kids!"

"Sensei…" Rukia managed before her knees gave way and she fell, dropping her katana. Their mentor grinned. "I didn't expect you to be able to use your Soul Cutters so soon, but I've underestimated you. Well done!" he applauded and gave Renji a slip of paper. The redhead stared at it in confusion. "What is it?"

"This is the address of the Hunter HQ. Go there whenever you feel ready."

"Hunter?"

"They are people like you, who walks the path between reality and the supernatural. Go there and show your zanpakutous – Soul Cutters – and you'll be admitted into the Academy, where you will learn more about your powers."

Renji gripped the piece of paper and helped Rukia up. She looked fearfully at the blood on her shirt and looked up questioningly at Renji. He smiled in return. "Let's go, Rukia. It's time to change our fate."

"Oy, are you still here?" Renji poked her nose. She managed an affronted glare, but it only made him chuckle. "Anyway, I got a new tattoo. Whaddaya think?" He proudly removed his headband and displayed yet another addition to his body markings. Rukia sweat-dropped. "Now you look like a yakuza gone mad, Renji."

He scowled at her unflattering reaction. "Hey, the ladies said I look manly."

"I don't see how tattoos could possibly add up to that," Rukia said dryly. "Nii-sama doesn't have a single one and the ladies just keep flocking."

"Aah, he's different," Renji scowled at the mention of his captain, also Rukia's older brother. "Anyway, heard they're sending you on a scouting mission," He switched topic as he pulled up a chair. "Man, you always get the easy ones."

"Don't be jealous, Renji," Rukia laughed lightly. "It's just a boring mission, nothing to it. Just a little surveillance mission."

"Surveillance, huh? Well I'm not gonna pry," He stood up and reaffixed his headband. "Guess I'd hit the bars now!"

"Don't get sloshed and make Kira carry you home, y'hear?" Rukia called good-naturedly after him. She knew her warnings were in vain; Renji doesn't seem to know restraint when indulging in sake. She was surprised he hasn't gotten drunk to the point of waving his zanpakutou and causing a fuss – but he's always been lucky.

The door slid open again and Rukia raised her eyebrows. "Sentarou? Kiyone?"

"Yo!" The two greeted cheerfully, Sentarou bringing a large fruit hamper. "How's things, Rukia?"

"Taichou sent us," Kiyone said eagerly, occupying the single seat. "He's a bit busy now, but he'll come – if you're still here."

"Thank you," Rukia smiled gratefully. "I hope I didn't cause any trouble to everyone."

"No trouble, no trouble at all!" Sentarou stroked his goatee proudly. "Your health comes first, ne? We don't want you to collapse like – " He abruptly caught himself and coughed. "Um, well, we don't want you to get sick! That's the point!"

Her heart clenched a bit, but she quickly cleared the feeling away. There's no need to reminisce any more. "More importantly, What about my next mission?"

"Oh, that," Sentarou glanced at Kiyone, who only shrugged in the negative. "We don't know. Taichou just said it's a candidate surveillance task, but he arranged it himself without telling us. We were kind of worried that he assigned you since you're still recuperating, but Unohana-taichou said you're okay, so you must be okay."

So it's a secret… huh. There must be a reason why taichou made me go on a solo mission despite what happened. "Actually I'm alright," Rukia managed to smile. "I'll report back to the office tomorrow, so don't worry."

"We're not… worried," Kiyone began hesitantly but quickly pushed it away. "Sentarou, let's get back for the briefing," She stood up and pulled her companion by the scruff of his collar. "Bye, Rukia!"

She waved them a cheery goodbye and slumped back against the pillows. Outside, the bright day continued uninterrupted by her gloomy deposition.

"I'm alright."


Hitsugaya flipped the light switch with one hand, the other removing his shoes. His footwear joined several identical ones on the shoe rack and he slipped into his house slippers (fluffy white ones). He could tell that she had been in his apartment earlier in the week; the floorboards were gleaming, his books were neatly arranged on the bookshelf and there was a note on the fridge.

Shiro-kun, I bought some things for you!

Hinamori.

His gaze swept the apartment, noting the new white throw-pillows on the couch and food in the fridge. Every time he came home, there was always something new. Why Hinamori even bothered was beyond him; he only returned back once in a few days to sleep on a bed. Although Matsumoto insisted that the couch in the office lounge was better, he never favored it much. Guess there's a difference between a captain and a vice-captain's bed.

Genius. That was the term bestowed on him, although he never asked for it. Four years ago, a place crash claimed the lives of his family and very nearly killed him too. He lay in a coma for two months, where his ghost had spoken to him. His tie with the world was weakening, and it was impossible for him to awaken by his own will. There was only one way…

It certainly wasn't an easy way, he reflected as he loosened his tie and flopped back on the bed, wincing as a fluffy teddy bear fell on his face. His ghost literally jolted him out of the coma by shocking his systems with a surge of spirit power. The emission was detected by the Hunter Corp, and there rest is history.

He lifted the teddy bear from his face and stared at it. Hinamori was making his room all girly. Sure he appreciated the girl's thoughtfulness of taking care of his neglected life, but this was too much.

Then again, he owed Hinamori an awful lot. Hinamori was the person closest to his age in this world of adults. She was the one who convinced him to use his powers for the greater good instead of just letting it waste away. True he learnt the Demon Arts awfully fast, but it was only because Hinamori taught them to him. Although they were initially in the same squad, she was later promoted to be the fifth division's vice-captain and he became the tenth's chief.

He wondered why he even bothered, really. If he didn't make the effort to learn, he could still be in the academy right now. If he didn't keep training, he wouldn't have unlocked his ghost's second form and became a captain. If only…

His cellphone rang and he lazily answered it without looking at the screen. "Hitsugaya."

"Shiro-kun, you're back? Why didn't you pick up your phone?" A worried voice came on the other end and he winced slightly, eyeing the innocent phone by his bed. Hinamori. He must have been so engrossed in his thoughts that he forgot to answer the phone. "I must have fallen asleep, sorry."

"Really… you shouldn't overwork yourself, you know." The patronizing tone he was so familiar with. In the absence of a parental figure, Hinamori had taken up the task of becoming his 'big sister' – not that he ever needed one.

"Hai hai…" He slowly got up and stared blankly at his reflection in the mirror. "Why are you calling, Hinamori?"

"Oh…" She suddenly sounded awfully guilty and he felt a punch in the gut. I didn't have to ask.

"Um, I think I can't make it to dinner tomorrow, Shiro-kun. Aizen-taichou needs me to follow him on an investigation. We'll eat together some other time, okay?" She added quickly, as if to console him. As if he needed any consoling.

He stared at his reflection. His reflection stared emotionlessly back at him. He swore he could see Hyourinmaru lurking behind his eyes, laughing. "Sure. Work comes first, after all."

"Thank you! I'll call you later, bye bye!"

Click.

"It's no big deal, there's always another day." He said aloud to nobody in particular, but why does his voice sound so bitter? She has work to do. As a captain, he should understand that.

He does understand that.

But it still doesn't explain why he felt so cheated.


That was rather long wasn't it? Please drop a comment, thanks!