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Alternate fic between the Bount filler and the introduction of the Vaizard and Arrancar. No pairing yet determined. Small amount of Unohana/Hanatarou and Isane/Hanatarou in this chapter.

…

Hanatarou must complete a competitive task against each of the Gotei 13, with the exception of his own captain, in order to be proven innocent of his crimes. He will have a few days rest between each captain equal to the squad number of the next captain he is to face. As we are short 3 captains, the 2nd seats of those squads will fight together against Hanatarou in 17 days time.

"HEY! Jidanbou!" called up a gruff voice from below.

Jidanbou, the giant gatekeeper, looked down after a big yawn with his gigantic mouth. Smacking together his thick lips he heaved his shoulders round "Who goes there?" he asked grumpily; he was enjoying a good snooze and hated to be interrupted. But today he had a special visitor "Oh, you're the younger brother of the Shiba clan, Ganju! How is Kuukaku-san?"

"As bitchy as ever." Laughed Ganju, on his boar. He was rugged and dusty after a long trip. "Actually, she heard there was a commotion with the shinigami, and she wanted me to report on it. Can you tell me anything and save me some time?"

"Eh? You haven't heard yet?" said Jidanbou, surprised. "The news spread pretty fast, probably faster than it took you to get here. I wouldn't be surprised if your sister already knows all about it."

"Gah! Don't say that!" whined Ganju, tiredly. "It would mean I rode here for nothing and onee-san will beat me up for being useless again!" and the mental image of his sister's foot in his face making him shudder.

"Sorry, but it's common knowledge around here now."

"So what is the news?"

"The 12 Trials are being held in 17 days time!" said Ganju, somewhat excited. "Everyone is talking about it, it has been over 2000 years since the last trial. But I do not think it will be very entertaining this time around…"

"12 Trials?" asked Ganju.

"Oh, you are much too young to know about it, forgive me." Bowed Jidanbou and he explained, "The 12 Trials used to be an old ceremony used on the toughest of shinigami, usually the high seated officers and captains. It was replaced by swift execution because the trial's length gave time for a means of escape to be planned. This was probably part of the original plan by the creator of the law, so as to allow his personal friend's time to get away. The trials themselves, against 12 of the 13 captains, are so tough, only seated officers can even hope to get past the first test."

"So who is the officer or captain that is being trialed? Heh-heh!" he then chuckled. "I'd laugh so hard if it was that stuck-up Byukuya! That would make my day!"

"Hmm… let me think." Said Jidanbou, scratching his large forehead with the blunt side of his axe. "It was a shinigami from the 4th squad… err, 7th or 8th seat, a tiny fellow. Like I said, he won't make it past the first trial!"

"Tiny? 4th squad?" said Ganju, thinking. "That sounds sort of like Hana!"

"Hana? You mean, Hanatarou? Yes, that was his name." said Jidanbou with a laugh. "Hanatarou Yamada."

"Hana-chan?" laughed Ganju. "Ha! Impossible! There must be some mistake, what did he do?"

"It seems he attacked the first captain, Yamamoto."

"BWAHAHAHAA!" cackled Ganju. "Hana-chan? Attacking the most powerful shinigami captain? And SURVIVED? You have to be joking!"

"Well, no, I'm not…"

"A-a-a-and…" wheezed Ganju, still giggling. "He's going up against 12, that's T-W-E-L-V-E captains?"

"Well actually, because we have lost 3 captains, his first trial will be against three lieutenants at the same time!"

"3 lieutenants! At ONCE? GWAHAHA!" rolled Ganju, falling off his steed. The sheer thought of meek Hanatarou fighting off three lieutenants was just too absurd to keep a straight face. "This is priceless! Ha-ha-ha!" and he struggled back to his feet. "Ha-ha! Whee-hee-hee… ahem… You must have gotten the name confused Jidanbou-san! There is no way it can be Hanatarou Yamada."

"No, I do have the name right… in fact!" and he rummaged his shirt for a piece of paper, hardly a small note for him, but a medium sized poster for Ganju. "I kept a notice about it, signed by Yamamoto himself!"

"Really?" smirked Ganju, still very skeptical.

He read through the note and fainted…

At first, the verdict was kept as a secret, but due to a drunken ramble by a certain few lieutenants, the news soon spread of the '12 tasks of Hanatarou', as it was popularly named. General Captain Yamamoto, though not directly, was labeled Mr. Meanie of the year.

The first three tasks would be combined, a 3 on 1 fight, as to better equal a challenge from a captain level shinigami. The other tasks were kept secret, only to be revealed after each preceding task was completed, but Yamamoto had already written out the trials and had done so with five witnesses, so there was no fear of him changing it… not that he thought Hanatarou would be able to complete the one task anyway.

2nd seats Kira, of 3rd squad, and Hisagi of the 9th, didn't take well to their upcoming task. If it was a stronger opponent or a more serious criminal offence that was committed, they would have felt more at ease, but to fight someone like the quiet and appeasing Hanatarou, a 7th seat, over a clumsy mishap, was uncomfortable to think about. They kept a low profile, especially after they and Matsumoto accidentally made the trial public knowledge.

Momo Hinamori was still too incapacitated from the Aizen incident to even consider stepping out of her bed, so the squad's not too well known 3rd seat would take her position in the trial. This was news Rikichi thought would be able to cheer up his friend, as this would give him a slightly better chance at winning, but it was still a heck of a dilemma for our small timid friend…

It was 3 days after the announcement, 14 days left to prepare…
"Hana-san! Please stop doing that!" said Rikichi (better known as Renji's stalker), overcome with anxiety for his friend. "You need to practice your fighting skills!"

In the corner of his meager room, Hanatarou sat down with his head against the wall, unable to think, unable to sleep, unable to talk and unable to train. He gave another deep sigh and wandered what kind of jobs an ex-shinigami could get into these days in Soul Society. As far as he was concerned, the fight was already over.

Just then, the door opened, much to Rikichi's relief. "Ah! Unohana-taicho! Isane-fukutaicho! You're finally back!"

"Yes we are." Said Unohana, gracefully entering with Isane behind her. They spoke just out of Hanatarou's earshot. "Thankyou for minding Hanatarou-kun for us. Has he eaten anything since we left?"

"Half a biscuit and a cup of tea." Said Rikichi with a heavy sigh. "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault Rikichi-kun." Consoled Unohana "Only Hanatarou can decide whether or not to revive his hope. I am sure your company has helped him greatly, you may go back to your own squad duties now."

Rikichi bowed and made his way out, but after a glance back at Hanatarou, he held the sleeve of Unohana for a brief moment "Please… Unohana-taicho," he asked, "Can you do anything to help his spirits? R-renji once told me… that the will to live, protect and fight is half the battle. If he keeps this up, there will not be even the slightest chance he can pass the tests! You must help him! You have to strengthen him up if he is to have any chance at all! Is there a way… any way that you can get him to pass the trials?"

The captain looked to Rikichi thoughtfully, and smiled, holding his hand to make a promise of it. The little shinigami shuffled his feet and blushed "We would not have returned otherwise." Answered Unohana. "You are a great friend Rikichi-san, I am glad Hanatarou-kun is so fortunate… In fact, I think you can still help, if you have nothing else to do?"

"K-k-kuchiki-taicho has given me some leave a-actually." Said Rikichi, once his mind settled again. They both turn as they overhear Isane trying to get a response from Hana.

"Yamada-san. Please, have something to eat, you look starved!" Isane said carefully, gently squeezing his shoulders.

Hanatarou, though still polite, shook his head dismally. He softly panned away her hand and she conceded and let him be. "I-I'm not hungry… s-sorry…" He looked slightly to his side to see if he could hide away and mope silently alone again, but working himself in a corner had done exactly that, and he had no way to avoid his friends.

"Hana-kun…" Isane sighed.

Unohana walked over behind him. "I'm sorry it has to come to this, but… 7th seat Yamada Hanatarou," she said seriously. "As your captain, I order you to prepare for the trials."

At first, Hana didn't answer.

"Yamada Hanatarou, did you hear me?" repeated Unohana. "We will not give up on you, no matter how hard we must work!"

Still no answer.

"Yamada! Your friends are here to help you! Don't you understand? We are here; talk to us!"

Then Hana replied in his tired voice. "Unohana taicho…" he said, bowing his head lower. "If only… only if I was stronger… this wouldn't have… have happened…"

As his speech became more broken, Unohana gently turned him around, with Hana unable to gather enough will to resist, to see he was crying terribly. "H-hana-kun…?"

"If I was only stronger!" cried Hana, his face contorting with his grief. Each time he tried to stop crying, more tears and more shame would overflow. "I-if I could only defend myself, I wouldn't have gotten into this mess! I want to be strong! Then I-I wouldn't be such a burden to you! I'm so sorry I got into this mess! I'm sorry to be such a p-…"

SLAP

Unohana looked up in shock at Isane, who had just struck Hanatarou on the face, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I-Isane-san?" and Hana also looked up to his much taller officer in surprise. "Why did you just…?"

"I-I apologize U-unohana-taicho…" said Isane, trembling. "B-but I had to do it."

"I-Isane… f-fukutaicho…?" trembled Hana.

"I'm sorry Hanatarou… b-but…" said Isane, sniffling. "You made me cry… and I don't like it when people are so sad and so unhappy, th-that I have to cry as well… s-so please stop crying… please… Hanatarou-san…" and she did a squeak as she began to water and choke again.

"Isane-san!" squeaked Hana in return, feeling even worse that he made her feel that way. "I'm so sorry I…"

SLAP

Isane and Hana then turned to the new culprit, Rikichi, who had also weakened at the eyes. "D-damn you Hana-san! How am I meant to face Renji-sama like this?" he cried, just as bad as Isane. "I'm from the 6th squad, under the command of Kuchiki Byukuya, the most emotionally fortified man in both worlds, and I'm crying! I'm not meant to cry damn you!" and he wiped his face with his sleeve.

(Emotional three way…)

Hanatarou- "R-rikichi-san!"

Rikichi- "Isane-san!"

Isane- "Hanatarou-kun!"

Hanatarou- "Isane-s-san!"

Rikichi- "Hana-san!"

Together- "WAAAAHHH!"

The three then mooshed into a teary group hug.

"I'll train!" yelped Hana, between his friends' crushing affection. "I'll train hard! I promise I'll do my best to win! I promise!" and they cried and hugged some more.

Not joining the love and standing by the open door, Unohana left to leave the rest to Isane. Looking back at the three, she smiled, but only ever so slightly 'Train well… Hanatarou-kun…' she wished him. 'May you find what you seek…'

Just remembering about his taicho, the shinigami at the center of it all, looked up but only to see she had already gone. Isane and Rikichi were too busy still crying over him to notice. He wondered, in puzzlement, why she had left so soon

'Unohana… taicho…?'

"You can come out now…" said Unohana as she walked. "Shunsui-taicho…"

"Yare-yare." Nodded Shunsui, popping up from behind the wall with a tip of his hat. "As sharp as ever Unohana-san."

"One must be sharp in these times." Agreed Unohana, continuing her walk. "Did You learn anything from your spying?"

"Spying?" frowned Shunsui. "Spying is for enemies. I was peeking over the wall… Hey, wait up!" and he used a flash step to catch up to her. "Where are you going now, eh? I thought you'd stay there and oversee them and their training? You missed out on their hug." He added.

"Isane is more than capable of training Hanatarou-kun to lieutenant level. I have complete faith in her." She replied. "But right now I have captain matters to attend to. Excuse me…"

Shunsui stopped following, but gave her a few more words… "You spoke to old-yama (General Yamamoto) for two days… How did it go?"

Unohana stopped to answer. "Nothing…" she said sadly. "He would not budge."

"Was there something else…?"

"What do you mean by 'something else' Shunsui-taicho?"

"I mean…" said Shunsui with his 'a lot wiser than I look' stare. "Was there something else, you talked to him about?"

Unohana looked back to him for a short while, before turning back to her own way. "You have been investigating for three days now, Shunsui, on Hanatarou's background, missions and abilities. You have also talked to Yamamoto often these past days after I had left…" she said, surprising him a little. "I'm sure you will find out… eventually…"

Shunsui watched her leave and walked towards the court. "Rest easy Unohana, Hanatarou has many friends now… I think I'll go speak with old-yama again…"

"Maybe just a bit longer." Said Isane, scanning the field. "I want Unohana-taicho to help."

"I-I think she would want us to, um… continue without her." Said Hanatarou standing beside Rikichi. "I'm sure sh-she has other things to do."

"But she spent ages on this schedule!" said Isane. "And hours and hours trying to get Commander General Yamamoto to pardon you, even when he started getting angry, she stayed her ground!"

"Sh-sh-she did…?" said Hanatarou, feeling awkward at how much trouble his captain was going through to save him. "She d-did that… for me?"

Rikichi looked at Hanatarou and gasped. "You mean… you and Unohana-taicho are…?"

"Uh?" he looked at Rikichi, and when he realized what he was implying he burned red and waved his arms. "W-w-w-w-wait! W-wait! I-I n-never… I mean I w-w-w-ouldn't, c-couldn't ever…! That's just impossible!" he said finally in frustration.

"OMG! Your blushing! It's TRUE!" gasped Rikichi again, but absolutely stinking of fresh sarcasm. "Should I call you Retsu Hanatarou from now on?"

"R-RIKICHI-SAN!" squeaked Hana in his loudest squeak. "D-d-don't joke about that kind of thing!"

"A-anyway…" smiled Isane, the mere thought of her captain fraternizing with little Hana making her laugh at the absurdity. "Hana-kun is right, we need to start immediately." And Rikichi and Hana stood to attention. "First two hours will be sword spar, then next will be racing, some more sparring and then talking to your zampukuto."

"Hai!" said Rikichi and Hana, and they jumped/tripped to their starting positions for their sparring match. Both friends concentrated hard, wondering just how well they would fare against each other.

"And remember Rikichi!" said Isane. "For Hanatarou-kun's sake, please… do not hold back. You were chosen first because you have a closer power level to Hanatarou-kun."

"I won't hold back Isane-fukutaicho." Nodded Rikichi, and then he looked back to Hana. "Remember that while we fight, Hana-san, and also remember that Isane will be your next opponent… I don't want you to fight her until you can beat me easily, otherwise training with her will just be a waste of your time."

"H-hai!" agreed Hanatarou. He drew Hisagomaru and took stance, while Rikichi had his hand on his hilt, ready to attack him with a special drawing of his sword.

Isane looked at both of them and held her breath… raised her arm… and threw it down. "FIGHT!"

"I'll hit you with my cane if you come in again…" warned Yamamoto, sensing the distinguishable, annoying reiatsu of Shunsui at the door.

"That's if you can hit me old man." Replied Shunsui outside. He calmly sat down to avoid the walking stick that thrust through the iron doors with a stupendous crash. "Missed."

With a grunt, the walking stick was pulled back and the old man peeped out at Shunsui, who did his best 'innocent Bambi' face. With a scowl and a sigh, the Commander General opened the door. "Come in then… but I repeat again; I will not pardon Yamada."

"Yes, that bit has always gotten to me." Said Shunsui, sitting just inside the door incase he needed a quick escape. "I mean, why bother with the 12 trials if you could just banish him straightforward? It would raise less questions, be more quiet, quick and easy. Unless…" and he smiled. "Unless it would be too easy… too easily overlooked and not noticed. Unless, you wanted everyone to know about it… After three days of investigating, that is my final conclusion!"

Yamamoto looked annoyed, but as his moustache lifted, he smiled. "Very good… you're right." He chuckled. "I expect nothing less from your badgering."

"I was intrigued, and I was also bored." Shrugged Shunsui. "But it is good to know from you, yourself, that I was more or less right… So… all this was just an example?"

"Yes." Said Yamamoto. "I do not intend, and have never intended to remove the powers from Hanatarou Yamada. This was a warning for him to pick up his act and train harder, to stop being the complacent servant of others and finally become a worthy shinigami… which is what we need in these times…"

"So… this is also to do with Aizen then?"

"Indeed, we all need to gather our wits and become stronger." Said the old man, starring out the window over Seireitei. "Every shinigami in these walls must be able to fight for themselves and stand tall in the face of such foes as Aizen and his hollows. Hanatarou might even be fortunate to have been chosen first."

"Cruel to be kind and kind to be cruel?"

"Something like that." He agreed. "Unohana has been pleading for hours and I already know of all of Hanatarou's good points. I know he does have an interesting zampukuto and a fine medical capacity. Indeed, he is very valuable to the 4th squad, and as such, important to the Gotei13. His position with us is secure; Hanatarou has little to fear."

"What about the first challenge and the fight with the two lieutenants and 3rd seat? Does he need to worry about that?"

"I have spoken with them, and though they will not go easy, they will not kill him. Hanatarou will get a warning and continue with his duties, hopefully, wiser and stronger."

"Learning the hard way is it?"

"Learning is often hard."

"And what if he actually gets past the first test?"

"Well I will loose my bet with you for starters…" said Yamamoto, making Shunsui laugh. "But I will also be pleasantly surprised…"

"Pleasantly?"

"Well… horrifically shocked would be more precise, but I would also be very glad that he took the time and effort to become so skilled. Though passing the first test, I believe, is absurd to expect from a 7th seat."

"Well suppose he does…" hypothesized Shunsui. "What happens if he completes all the tasks?"

"The next tasks are even more strenuous than facing 3 lieutenants, and the last two are challenges that even captains would find immensely difficult, and indeed for some… impossible."

"The last trial being with you, is it not?" guessed Shunsui.

"It's supposed to be confidential, but you're right." Said Yamamoto. "So no matter how hard he tries over the next few weeks, he will never succeed in winning. It would be a matter of several centuries, perhaps a millennia or two, before he can match my strength. But even failing after a few tasks completed, he would be quite a hero for the others, another role model for others to aspire, and a greater aid in the battles to come."

"But you highly doubt that."

"I know for a fact it is impossible for him to defeat the 3rd seat, let alone Kira or Hisagi on their own. Even if he receives training from a captain. He is too weak and killing is not part of his nature, so he has no will to win."

Shunsui got up and sighed. "I must admit, it is a very shrewd way of dealing punishment Yama-sama. But you could be a little more merciful on Hanatarou; he's scared witless."

"Shinigami should not fear death." Stated Yamamoto.

"It's not death he fears." Said Shunsui, taking his leave. Yamamoto opened his eyes. "It's being a disgrace to his friends."

With only a fortnight left, can Hanatarou gather enough strength to complete the first trial, or was this adventure doomed to a quick finish from the very begginning? Who else can still help Hanatarou?

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