Chapter 02 - The Hangover
"Come in." Ukitake allowed, after someone knocked on the door of the room he was in, inside the barracks of the 4th Division. Considering the initial predictions made by Retsu Unohana, the recovery of the 13th Division's Captain was quite fast. In the 10 days that passed since the battle in the Fake Karakura Town, Ukitake's internal injuries had been mostly healed.
"Hey! I arrived first, Kiyone!" Sentarō Kotsubaki shouted, while he tried to force himself into the room. A petite girl with dark blond hair was right behind him.
"So what? I'm more worried about Ukitake-taichō!" Kiyone Kotetsu immediately countered and pulled her co-3rd Seat by his wrist, so he couldn't enter.
"I'm worried about him too!"
"But I'm more!"
"There's no need for you to argue with each other." Ukitake interrupted with a nervous laugh. Both 3rd Seats stumbled upon one another, and fell face-first into the floor, causing the Captain of the 13th Division to sweatdrop. "Are they ever going to change?"
"How embarrassing, in front of Ukitake-taichō..." Kiyone blushed and looked away from the man she admired. At the same time, her partner fixed his white rope headband, before bowing deeply.
"Taichō! I heard that you're going to be discharged today, so I came to pick you up." Sentarō revealed.
"I came too!" Kiyone quickly added, not wanting to lose to her rival.
"I wonder what has been happening out there..." Ukitake considered for awhile, before he started to cry rivers. "Nobody came to see me during the entire week!"
"We came, taichō!" Kiyone and Sentarō quickly remembered, their faces covered in tears as well.
"I know and I thank you for that, but..." Ukitake once again had a smile on his face, but he couldn't avoid to release a small sigh. "...I expected Kuchiki to at least pay me a visit. Then, there's Kyōraku who has been missing ever since the battle..."
"Kuchiki-san has been with Kurosaki-san since he fell unconscious, but..." Kiyone stopped and traded a worried look with her partner.
"...no one has even seen or heard of Kyōraku-taichō since then." Sentarō finished for her.
"That's so strange. It's not like Kyōraku..." Ukitake held his chin in a thoughtful manner. Someone then knocked on the door. "Come in."
"Excuse me, Ukitake-taichō." The girl with pinned back black hair and oval-shaped glasses made a greeting bow as she entered. Nanao Ise was carrying some folders and other loose files between them. Such disorganization wasn't characteristic of the Vice-Captain of the 8th Division. Plus, she seemed both tired and worried, which made Ukitake think if she had been working too much lately.
"Nice to see you, Ise-fukutaichō." Ukitake greeted her. "It's good that you came. I really wanted to know how Kyōraku has been doing lately."
"Well...he's the reason why I came." Nanao bit her lower lip, since she didn't know how to tell the truth to the best friend of her Captain.
Kyōraku was sitting behind the desk in his office with a bottle on his hand. Another bottle, which would soon be joining all the others that were already scattered on the floor. There were many, considering that the Captain of the 8th Division spent over one week locked in the office, drinking as much as he could. Being drunk was the best way he found to forget what was hurting him, but no such thing happened. The truth is that after a whole week of drinking, she continued to be the only thing he thought about. She, her words and the disappointment in her face. Then, there was that dream...
Kyōraku poured more sake into the glass. He, in his brief moments of sobriety, found amazing how that glass wasn't corroded yet. It had been too much alcohol already. Then, drunkenness came back. Putting that thought aside, Kyōraku focused again on the dream. Now that he thought about it, he could only think of it as a premonition. The problem is that he realized it too late. He and Lisa had already argued with each other. Or rather, Lisa had argued with him, since he couldn't say a word. Again.
The sadness that filled him had existed for a long time. It had been dormant for much of the last century, after the initial appearance. It had disappeared eventually, much because of the support of Ukitake in the first years. Now, after 100 years, after this encounter, the pain was back. The pain was back, but Lisa wasn't. She was destined to remain in exile in the Human World, while he would continue to be one of the 13 Captains in Soul Society. Two destinies, two incompatible ones.
And why? He knew why and she also knew ... Maybe, if he had done it the right way at the time it happened. Maybe if he had not insisted on proving her value to Urahara, comparing her to Hiyori. Maybe, had he lied and testified against Aizen, even though he had been caught on his illusion. Maybe, if he had used the time that his status as a spiritual being gave him to help the Visored instead of crying and drinking around the corners... Maybe, just maybe, this pain would never even be born.
Damn glass is made of good material...During the entire week, Kyōraku had never been with a hangover. He knew how to avoid it, he just had to keep on drinking. Thank whatever entity that was up there watching over spiritual beings for Shinigami not having to be afraid of facing an alcoholic coma...since "It" created the 4th Division.
"He has been locked in his office the entire week. He doesn't allow anyone to come in and I'm pretty sure he's always drinking." Nanao revealed with an anguished look on her face. "I hate to admit it, but I'm worried about him."
"It's so strange. Why would he be like that?" Kiyone questioned her Captain who had a very serious look on his face.
Flashback
"Help isn't only bringing someone back home. It's also coming to see someone just to know if they're okay or talking with them to give them support. It's giving them a hand when they fall. It's to protect someone from getting hurt. That's help. Did you help us, Kyōraku-taichō?" Ukitake raised his head as he heard the familiar voice, but the pain was too much for him to be able to sat up. "You're...you're really an idiot..."
End of Flashback
"Specially considering it's time to be happy and celebrating. He didn't even attend the party organized by his division." Sentarō added.
"I think I know it's going on." Ukitake revealed with a sad smile that didn't pass unnoticed by the other three Shinigami. "It happened once before. I just never expected it to happen again..."
"Yamamoto-sōtaichō has summoned him for an urgent meeting, but I can't get him to answer me. If he doesn't attend it..." Nanao trailed off for a second, as she remembered the one time she was exposed to the huge Reiatsu of the leader of the Gotei 13. "Kiyone-sanseki made a comment about Ukitake-taichō being discharged today, so I came to ask you to accompany me to Kyōraku-taichō's office to convince him to...well, to get his ass out of there!"
"Now now, let's not get angry." Ukitake said with a nervous smile, as Nanao had a swell vein on her forehead and was shaking her fist furiously.
"You sure are a loudmouth...Couldn't you hold it in?" Sentarō whispered to his partner.
"Thank goodness that she didn't mention the rest of the conversation..." Kiyone nervously thought, while her face suddenly became a deep crimson.
"Well, let's get going then." Ukitake suddenly came bursting out of his bed and put on his Captain's haori over his pajamas.
"Hey hey, taichō! Isn't it better to wait for Unohana-taichō?" Sentarō grabbed the arm of his Captain, concerned for his well-being.
"Pr-precisely, Ukitake-taichō!" Kiyone shook her head to forget the perverted conversation she had with Nanao. "You shouldn't stand up so quickly!"
"Don't worry. I'm fine." Ukitake assured with a big smile. However, after two steps, Jushirō Ukitake became dramatically pale and fell forward, banging his face on the ground.
"Taichō!" Both 3rd Seats shouted in unison.
"I'm fine. I'm fine." Ukitake's words weren't that convincing, specially since he wasn't getting up. Kiyone and Sentarō quickly came to help but they soon became involved in an argument about who should raise the respected Captain. Nanao watched the scene with a drop of sweat slowly trickling down her forehead.
"I should've asked someone else..." She thought.
"Ken-chan! Ken-chan!" The little girl with pink-colored hair shouted for her Captain, as she ran across the 11th Division's barracks. Two members of that same division tried to stop her from entering the room of Captain Kenpachi Zaraki.
"Do not enter, Kusajishi-fukutaichō! It's not a good time!"
"E-exact! Zaraki-taichō said he didn't want to be disturbed during his nap time!"
"You two..." Both shook with fear as they saw the demonic look of Yachiru Kusajishi and felt the huge amount of reiatsu that she was releasing. "Are you trying to prevent me from seeing Ken-chan?"
"Aaaaah!" The painful screams finally woke up the Captain of the 11th Division, who was lying on the floor.
"What a pain in the ass...What the hell is going on here?" Kenpachi lazily muttered. The doors of his room were knocked down by the two Shinigami that were sent flying by Yachiru. While both were in the floor, foaming from the mouth, Yachiru happily passed over them and came to Kenpachi, who looked over his own shoulder. "What do you want Yachiru? Don't you see I'm trying to sleep?"
"Ken-chan! Ken-chan! Yamamoto-jiisan summoned you to a meeting!" Yachiru explained the reason for the interruption.
"What a pain. I wonder what that old fart wants now..." The moody Kenpachi mumbled as he got up to prepare for the meeting.
"Come in." The Captain of the 6th Division allowed, after hearing someone knocking on the door of his office. The door opened and a Shinigami from the same division entered. "What is it, Rikichi-nanaseki?"
"I came to deliver this, Kuchiki-taichō." Rikichi handed the envelope to Byakuya Kuchiki and waited for him to take out the letter. "It's a summoning from Genryūsai Yamamoto-sōtaichō."
"Yes, I see." Byakuya curtly replied, without looking up from the letter. Rikichi was just waiting for permission to leave the office, but Byakuya didn't give it immediately. "Shouldn't Abarai-fukutaichō be the one to deliver me this notice?"
"Well...yes, it should, but..." Rikichi nervously replied, not wanting to hand over the man he admired, but the truth was that he didn't want to anger the leader of the noble Kuchiki Clan as well. "A-Abarai-fukutaichō is out there somewhere, training his Bankai. He wants it to be perfect as soon as possible."
"Bankai?" Byakuya stopped looking to the paper in his hand and stared to the young Shinigami, who immediately thought if he had said too much for his own well-being. However, Byakuya didn't rebuke him as he had expected and just looked back to the letter. "I have told him once before that he will need 14 years under a proper training regime to achive perfection with his Bankai."
"So, it's better to start now. The sooner the better, right?" Rikichi's eyes grew larger after he made the question. Only now was he realizing how bold he was being. In fact, Byakuya looked at him again for a moment, in stoic amazement. The Captain of the 6th Division landed the letter on his desk and stood up from his chair, heading for the door and leaving Rikichi behind.
"Rikichi-nanaseki." Byakuya finally spoke, but Rikichi didn't dare to look back. "The truth is that it would be useful for the Gotei 13 if Renji Abarai was able to perfect his Bankai as soon as possible. Perhaps he'll be able to do so in just a few days..."
"Oh, does that mean..." Rikichi hopefully turned, expecting his Captain to help Renji in his training, but Byakuya quickly interrupted him.
"It means nothing. It's simply a truth that applies to any Shinigami who is a part of the Gotei 13, as it will increase the battle power of that Shinigami's division and, therefore, of the Gotei 13 in general. That's what it is. As for you, Rikichi-nanaseki..." Byakuya looked over his shoulder and Rikichi immediately froze. "I'll talk with Unohana-taichō to give a week off to the members of her division who are responsible for cleaning the barracks of the 6th Division and the Kuchiki estate. You will be in charge of this task during that same time, because of your insolence. You are relieved for the moment."
"Hai." Rikichi made a clumsy bow and his Captain went away soon after. "I really spoke too much..."
"Sake-chan's over? Damn..." Kyōraku grumbled as he straightened himself in his chair. Now that there was no alcohol, Kyōraku was beginning to feel the drowsiness and dizziness that he wanted to avoid. He remembered the possibility of still having something in the cupboard at the corner of the office, so he stood up to fetch it. As he took a step, Kyōraku lost his balance and almost fell to the floor, still being able to hold on to the desk at the last second. He tried to take another step. It worked. He tried to take another one. It worked again and he gained confidence. Overconfidence. He tried to take two steps in a row and eventually fell to the floor, face first. "What a ridiculous situation..."
Kyōraku was in such a miserable state that he couldn't get up. So he decided to crawl. And that's what he did, putting on a tremendous effort to reach the cupboard. He climbed over it, clutching the handles of doors and drawers to remain on his feet. He opened all the compartments, only to find that they were all empty. So much effort for nothing, he thought, before letting himself fall back to the floor. At least, he landed on a sitting position, which wasn't all that bad. What would say whoever found the respectable Captain of the 8th Division in this state? What would Nanao say? What would Ukitake say? What would...
"Lisa-chan..." And once again, his focus was back on Lisa Yadōmaru, his former Vice-Captain. Inevitably. Kyōraku's head fell forward. Bad sign. In trying to keep it straight, he let it fall again. Very bad sign. If he let himself fall asleep, the hangover was inevitable. The eyelids were becoming too heavy. The eyes were rolling back to his head. He wouldn't be able to hang on for much longer.
"Kyōraku! Hey, Kyōraku!" Someone violently knocked on the door. The voice sure was familiar.
"Ukitake? Is that you?"
"Kyōraku! Hey, Kyōraku!" Ukitake punched the door while he shouted but he got no answer.
"Taichō! Don't force yourself too much!" Sentarō worriedly remembered his Captain of his health state.
"Kyōraku! Hey!" Ukitake continued to call for his best friend. Suddenly, the four Shinigami who were outside the office of Shunsui Kyōraku heard the sound of many glass objects breaking. They all froze instantly. What was happening on the other side of the door? It was then that they heard a weak and slurred voice.
"Ukitake...save me..."
"Kyōraku! Are you alright?" Ukitake asked, but for awhile he did not answer. The Captain of the 13th Division punched the door a few more times and that was when there was another reaction.
"Save me...sake...bring me...sake..." They heard. They looked at eachother. They sweatdropped. They fell to the floor.
"Really? Really? That is what will save him? Let me at him!" Nanao snapped in such a way that Sentarō and Kiyone had to grab her by her arms to prevent her from breaking down the door and attacking her Captain. Ukitake just sighed and shook his head, before holding a finger against the door's lock.
"Hadō #1: Shō" With reiatsu, Ukitake generated a small force that thrusted the lock back, separating it from the door and allowing Ukitake to push the latter. "Let me go by myself. I want to talk to him alone about what he's doing with his life."
"Hai." Sentarō, Kiyone and a now calmer Nanao nodded. Ukitake entered in the office and closed the door behind him. The office was stuffy, dark, without any sign of light and with an unbearable smell of alcohol. Predictable. Ukitake felt the walls, looking for the switch to turn on the lights. When he did, his jaw hit the floor. What a sad scene that was. All the objects that used to be on the desk had been overthrown and replaced by empty bottles of sake. Some documents had remained there and ended up stained with drops of alcohol that had escaped from Kyōraku's mouth.
The floor around the desk, was also covered with bottles of various sizes, shapes and (previously) contents. Ukitake could only shake his head, while he thought in which state would he find his friend. Knowing that there was a cupboard in one of the office's corners, Ukitake just ended up looking at there. There he was, sitting against the wall, with his hair greasy and unkempt, his beard longer than usual and his black kosode stained like the documents that were on the desk, but on a much larger scale. At his side, the cupboard had fallen, or Kyōraku made it fall, breaking it and its contents into many pieces.
"Kyōraku...Kyōraku..." Ukitake kneeled by his side and called his name, only to find out that he had fallen asleep. With the help of a few slaps, he ended up awakening his friend. "I guess talking will have to wait..."
"Did you..." Kyōraku let out a big yawn, before he grimaced in pain. The headache had started already. "Sake-chan...Did you bring it?"
"Shut up and stand." Ukitake ordered, as he put Kyōraku's arm over his shoulders to help him get up. "You have a private bathroom here, right?"
"I guess ..." Kyōraku mumbled, as he was too busy trying to figure out what was going on. "Where am I?"
"In the same place where you were in the last 10 days. We really need to have a serious talk... Sentarō!" Ukitake called one of his 3rd Seats, who appeared in front of them immediately, but was unable to stop his eyes from increasing in size. "Yeah, I know...You will tell the girls to come in and fix the lock. We don't want someone to see him, right? Then they can clean up this mess. It's not fair to them, but we're out of time to be this boy here to do it... After you give them this message, I want you to come to the bathroom. We have to put him minimally presentable to appear in front of Yamamoto-sensei. "
"You mean...give him bath?" Sentarō asked in disbelief.
"A drunk's worst enemy is water. You know that right?" Ukitake asked and Sentarō ended up nodding in agreement, before heading towards the girls, leaving Ukitake to drag Kyōraku to the bathroom by himself. "You've become really troublesome, Kyōraku."
"IDIOTS!" The angry shout of the Captain Commander of the Gotei 13 was felt throughout the entire Soul Society. In front of Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto were the Captains of the 6th, 8th and 11th Divisions, each with a different mood: Kenpachi showed himself distant and dull, Byakuya kept a solemn but also indifferent look, while Shunsui had his head spinning after the yelling of his mentor. "You lost your Captain's haori? Have it destroyed by your opponent during a battle is one thing, but losing it? How can you look so nonchalant about it?"
"Sōtaichō...Do not worry." Byakuya calmly tried to reassure the oldest Shinigami of the Gotei 13. "It was just a cheap coat, so I will pay for it."
"That's not what I'm concerned about! And it was not cheap, you idiot!" Yamamoto scolded again, violently hitting the tip of his cane on the ground to reinforce the idea. "Listen! Battles are not just about winning! What do you people think the Captain's haori is anyway?"
"A pain in the ass." Kenpachi simply stated, while he stared to the window.
"Cheap." Byakuya repeated the idea previously transmitted.
"For fashion?" Shunsui tried to guess, while his head continued to tumble and Yamamoto's voice continued to echo in his ears.
"YOU'RE ALL IDIOTS!" Yamamoto's yelling shook the Soul Society again. It seemed like strong winds were created along with his words. Powerful winds that ruffled Byakuya, who didn't flinch though. Shunsui though, due to those same winds and the headache caused by the hangover and the high screams of Yamamoto, became dizzy and spun around before landing on the floor.
"What a pain..." Kenpachi showed a brief grimace of pain and even had to use his right pinkie to unblock his ears.
"Listen carefully now! The Captain's haori is a symbol of the Gotei 13 and, of all things, you lose it!" Genryūsai Yamamoto resumed the reprimand to the three Captains.
"Sōtaichō seems to be in high spirits." Sentarō noted, while he unblocked his ear just like Kenpachi did. Both him and Ukitake were sitting in the hallway, with their back against the wall. Kiyone however, was lying on the floor, unconscious from the powerful roars of Yamamoto.
"Yeah, it has been just over a week since the battle and he lost his left arm, but his strength seems to be back. I'm relieved. There's still no Shinigami in Soul Society who can take his place." Ukitake pondered with a sad smile and a thoughtfool look.
Flashback
By the time Kyōraku left the bathroom, the whole office had been cleaned. The only difference was that a cupboard was missing in one of the corners of the office. At the desk, Kyōraku was seated on his chair with a cup of hot coffee in front of him, while Ukitake sat opposite.
"Yama-jii wants me there, eh?" Kyōraku asked, rubbing his forehead in a useless attempt to make the pain go away. "I don't think I'm in condition..."
"Blame yourself for that. I believe you'll be worse if you fail to answer Yamamoto-sensei's call without a proper justification." Ukitake stopped talking for a moment to take a sip of his coffee. "At least you didn't tarnish your kimono. You may be able to hide the fact that you lost your Captain's haori from Yamamoto-sensei."
"I doubt it. I'm in no condition to hide a thing." Kyōraku rubbed his face, his eyes and rested his head on his left hand while waving the cup in his other hand. "You should've given me more sake. The best way to avoid a hangover is to keep on drinking."
"The best way to avoid a hangover is to not drink at all." Ukitake corrected, causing Kyōraku to release an annoyed sigh. "It's her again, isn't it?"
"Her who?" Kyōraku tried not to understand but Ukitake looked at him in a way that made the 8th Division's Captain sure about not being able to fool his best friend.
"I always thought that the reason why you chose Nanao Ise to be your Vice-Captain was because of her looks." Ukitake then came closer to whisper. "She sure looks a lot like Lisa."
"You heard, eh?" Kyōraku sighed, as he wasn't going to be able of escaping the interrogation.
"Barely. I was nearly unconscious with all the pain but I still listened to the ending." Ukitake revealed. "Well, she really was a bit harsh on you, but..."
"But she was right." Kyōraku finished for him and Ukitake hesitantly nodded. "I don't know what hit me harder, her words or the fact that she hates me."
"Don't know if she hates you, but she sure was disappointed. That says a lot, doesn't it?" Ukitake questioned.
"Yeah...I've thinking about that too." Kyōraku admited, while he rubbed his own face again. "That's why I said it. Love easily turns into hate...Aah, what am I going to do, Ukitake?"
"Mistakes can be fixed. Even if things don't go back to what they were, at least it may ease the burden you carry at the moment." Ukitake suggested. "You have to do what you didn't do back then."
"Won't it seem too forced?" Kyōraku asked, after he pondered for awhile. "I mean, it will look like I'm doing it just because of what she said."
"Then leave that for later. Start with your own ideas."
"Bring them back?" Kyōraku wondered. "Won't be easy...Central 46 isn't easy to deal with."
"I can't help you too much with that. My knowledge about how to deal with them is pretty much the same as yours. But..." Ukitake finished his coffee and then let out a confident smirk. "When we don't know something, we should ask for advice and there's one man who sure has given us a lot of that over the years."
"Yama-jii..." Kyōraku concluded and Ukitake nodded. There was no one with more knowledge throughout the Soul Society than their former mentor. Kyōraku eventually released a long sigh and a shy smile. "Thanks Ukitake. I will talk with him...as long as you give me an aspirin before I go."
End of Flashback
"Who knows if they won't be able to find a way?" Ukitake thought, while his long white hair flew to his side, due to another loud roar of the Captain Commander.
Translations:
1- sanseki means "3rd Seat"
2- nanaseki means "7th Seat"
3- taichō means "captain"
4- sōtaichō means "captain-commander"
5- fukutaichō means "vice-captain"
6- reiatsu means "spiritual pressure"
7- kosode is the black robe used by Shinigami
-Nawirama13