Two weeks ago.
"Karin… what were you doing at Urahara's place…?" A dumb founded Ichigo asked as he watched his sister run into the distance. A second figure approached Ichigo from behind, Ginjo Kugo. He taunted Ichigo, commenting that he should be concerned about Karin visiting Kisuke.
"Just how much do you know about this Urahara guy? Ichigo Kurosaki? You should act while you still can, to protect your family."
"What's your name?"
"Ginjo, Ginjo Kugo."
"Listen, Ginjo. It's clear you aren't a normal human, you know about my Dad, and Urahara. Probably about me as well, right?" Ginjo remained silent.
"You're right, there is a lot about Urahara that I don't know. There is a lot about my father I don't know, but I know even less about you. Don't approach me again, Ginjo Kugo." Ichigo turned, taking his leave. He heard Ginjo laughing a little and could somehow feel that something was approaching him. Bringing his hand behind his head, catching the card that Ichigo threw at him.
"In case you find yourself needing a friend, Ichigo Kurosaki."
"Hey guys, I'm home." Ichigo announced as he walked into his home, following this his father approached him with a flying kick which when Ichigo caught his father was left rather helpless. Ichigo pulled his father back to the ground.
"Come on dad, I am eighteen years old. I think we should move past these pointless attacks." He walked past his father and into the main room of his home, from which he could spot Yuzu preparing dinner and Karin sat reading some book from school.
"Hey Yuzu, Hey Karin."
"Hey Ichigo, is everything ok?" Karin asked, much to Yuzu's confusion as Ichigo seemed perfectly fine. Ichigo summarised that this was her way of telling him she knew he was following her earlier on.
"Yeah, everything is fine." Deep down, Ichigo was a bit concerned about his sister getting further involved in the affairs of soul society but it was obvious to him that her powers were going to continue growing so perhaps having Urahara there for her was a good idea. Despite shutting him out earlier, what GInjo said earlier still bugged him and trusting Karin to Urahara reminded him of that.
A few hours into settling home Ichigo was visited by Orihime, who arrived under the pretext of giving Ichigo left over pastries from her work but in actuality was investigating the strange spiritual energy she felt around Ichigo recently.
"It seems Orihime arrived here before me, that's probably for the best she is closer to Ichigo than I am." Uryu thought from outside the Kurosaki home, but his thoughts were quickly turned to something else. Next door, a man walked across the roof despite seemingly reading a book in his hand he was clearly watching them.
"Who is that?!" As Uryu made his notice known, the man soon sped off. Following him, Uryu quickly deduced that the man's ability wasn't like his, or even like a soul reapers. Caught off guard by the appearance of a bright light at the man's feet, Uryu suddenly felt a blade striking him down.
"Don't you think we should have told Ichigo?" A few hours later, Orihime was called to the hospital by Uryu's father in order to completely heal Uryu.
"There was no need, as it stands Ichigo can do nothing for Uryu. Telling him about what has happened would only serve to frustrate him. I would have liked Sado to be here, given what I found out."
"Found out?"
"I analysed the spiritual energy in Uryu's wounds, and he wasn't struck by a hollow. In fact, the energy doesn't even resemble a soul reapers. If I was to hazard a guess, I would say Uryu was attacked by a human with some kind of spiritual ability, like you, or Sado. If you widen the parameters a bit, you can include Uryu and me as humans with powers, so assuming Uryu was attacked for this reason, you or Sado could be the next target."
"I should get to chads, and warn him." Orihime quickly ran out, leaving Ryuken alone.
The next day started like any other in the Kurosaki house hold. Yuzu and Karin were the first up, followed by their father who personally wanted to awaken his son. Making his way into his son's room, he stood next to the bed and prepared to attack him when something caught his eye. Outside his sons room, on the room of the opposing building clearly visible from the window, was a soul reaper. This soul reaper wasn't one Isshin recognised, and his spiritual pressure was massive. Isshin decided to drop his goofy persona and his 'body' to talk with the soul reaper. Before introductions could even begin a battle began as the unknown soul reaper attacked Isshin.
"Step 1: Remove former captain Isshin Shiba from the equation." The soul reaper though aloud for Isshin to hear, in an attempt to antagonise him. Karin ran outside, having felt the colliding spiritual pressures. For the first time, Karin could see her father's true form.
"Dad… is a soul reaper too?"
"Karin, what's going on? What do you see?" Yuzu followed her sister, unlike Karin Yuzu still couldn't properly see spirits, she could see them as blurs. Karin wasn't sure how to answer, she never really knew how to answer when Yuzu asked these questions even when it was just about hollows. She turned to her sister, preparing to tell her to go inside as everything was fine but….
"Yuzu look out!" Karin flung her sister out of the way as another soul reaper punched her, knocking her back into the house through one of the windows. Although Karin didn't know it, this other soul reaper and his comrades gathering around them was dressed in a special soul reaper attire reserved for the stealth force. Ichigo was finally awoken by the sounds of glass breaking in their home. As he rushed out of bed he fell over his father, reaching down he felt that his father had no pulse. Growing more concerned Ichigo ran down the stairs. Finding Karin in the kitchen, glass covering her body.
"Karin!" Ichigo ran to his sister when he heard his other sister screaming outside. Looking out the window that Karin had come from he seen Yuzu suspended in the air. From the way she was clawing at the air around her throat, something that Ichigo couldn't see had her. Ichigo ran out and helplessly attacked where he knew the figure had to be standing. He felt his fist hit something, but he wasn't strong enough to hurt it. The soul reaper knocked Ichigo away with the back of his hand, Ichigo grew increasingly frustrated unable to do anything to protect his sisters. He felt another invisible force hitting against his face and breaking his nose. He fell back against the ground, despite being a trained warrior and having endured far more pain than this, his human body couldn't take abuse from a soul reaper. Slowly, Ichigo felt himself losing consciousness.
"Ichigo, Ichigo wake up!" Orihime nudged him at his bed side. When Ichigo woke up, he found his body with no injuries at all. With Orihime by his side it was a simple deduction that she was the one who healed him. He looked around the room, quickly summarising that he was in the hospital.
"How did I…."
"Karin phoned an ambulance."
"Yuzu! Karin! Are they ok?!"
"Yeah… Karin's injuries were minor. After you were all brought here she ran out I don't know where she went, I healed your wounds and we weren't sure if I should use my powers on Yuzu…"
"What about my dad?"
"I don't know…"
"What?! How is that…"
"Isshin has been taken by the ones who attacked you, Ichigo." Ryuken entered the room, smoking a cigarette, a perk of running the hospital.
"Mr Ishida?! You said that either Chad or I would be the next target!" Orihime suddenly covered her mouth, in her rage she forget who else was in the room with them.
"Next target…. What are you guys talking about…."
"Oh, Miss Kurosaki! Hello there, I wasn't expecting to see you again until next week." Urahara greeted, before noticing the cuts and scrapes all over her body. He dropped the act, becoming suddenly much more serious.
"Miss Kurosaki…" He began, he knew what she was going to ask and he was about to try and talk her out of it.
"Don't bother Mr Urahara. You can't talk me out of this, you said that if anything happened you would prepare something for me. We were attacked, we were attacked by soul reapers, and these toys of yours aren't enough for me anymore!" She pulled out her bag, empting all the spirt items she had purchased onto the ground.
"I need you to make me a soul reaper!"