Author's Note: Uh, again, regarding my means of watching the movie...Like I said, it wasn't legal and I don't want to get into the details, just in case. Let's just put it this way...It involved my cousin and a video camera.
Furthermore, I do realize that my ramblings on Hitsugaya's thoughts were a bit confusing, so I will now attempt to clear it up. What it means is that he thinks that he should not see Ichigo ever again, because if he does, that probably means having to kill him. I hope that clears things up, and sorry if my logic kind of lost you guys there. Also, do keep in mind that this is the sequel to Smile, so if you haven't read it yet, be sure to before you read any further...Anyways, on to the next chapter!
"So, tell me, Toshiro, why did you come here anyway?"
"It's complicated," Hitsugaya sighed. "I didn't want to, originally, but Aizen threatened to make Ichigo's death worse for him, or something like that. I couldn't refuse, otherwise...Well, it would be selfish of me."
"I get it now," Kusaka muttered, "So it's Ichigo-kun's fault you've been forced to come back here."
"No, it's not anyone's fault," the younger white-haired boy protested, "I was the one who made the decision to do as Aizen asked me."
"That may be true, but no matter how you look at it, it's still his fault," Kusaka replied bluntly. "If it weren't for him, then you wouldn't have agreed to come here to Hueco Mundo. That's just how it is, Toshiro."
Kusaka had a point, Hitsugaya supposed, but even so, it wasn't right for him to blame Ichigo for the recent chain of events. It wasn't like the strawberry had done anything intentional or as if he had wanted this to happen. Whatever the case was, though, it scared Hitsugaya to know that Kusaka was acting like this. It was highly unlike him, to be making a scapegoat out of someone else. Be it jealousy, contempt, or something else, it didn't feel like the Kusaka he had known from before.
At that moment, the sounds of footsteps echoing from the corridor brough both of the shinigamis' attentions towards the region directly outside the cell they had been confined to.
On the other side of the bleak iron bars, as expected, stood Aizen Sosuke.
His eyes narrowing, Kusaka slowly moved himself in front of Hitsugaya, which seemed to be quite amusing to the ex-taichou of the fifth division.
"Well, it does seem that the two of you have enjoyed your little reunion," Aizen smiled, looking at the two with malevolently smug eyes. "Anyway, since that's been taken care of, although it may seem sudden, I'd like to ask the two of you to do me a favor."
"What do you want?" Kusaka demanded, seeming to be completely unafraid of the man despite the fact that he knew, very well, that both of their lives were entirely dependent on Aizen's mercy.
"Nothing much, a very simple task," chuckled the traitor, "I want you two to go to Soul Society. I'm afraid it would be inconvenient to send an Arrancar, after all, no one knows the Seireitei better than a shinigami, correct?"
"And what exactly is it that you expect us to do?"
"Like I said, nothing difficult at all. All I want the two of you to do is to assess the current fighting ability of Ichigo-kun. Don't kill him quite yet. It is not the time to do that, but don't worry, the time will come soon enough. However, if you run into any other shinigami, eliminate them at once, lest they find out about our intentions and slip a word to the sotaichou."
"If that is what you are planning," Hitsugaya spoke, "Then why is it not the same with Ichigo?"
"Rest assured," Aizen chuckled, "I'm sure he'll keep his mouth shut about it, given he can figure things out...He'd do anything for your sake...isn't that right, Hitsugaya-kun?"
Hitsugaya blinked, a soft sigh escaping his lips in a fashion that was barely audible. This seemed to have a different effect on Kusaka, however; the raven-haired youth actually was starting to look quite pissed off.
"Okay, kill everyone we run into except for Ichigo-kun, we've got it," he muttered darkly, "How soon can we head out?"
"Eager, are we? Very well, if you two would follow me now, I shall arrange for your immediate transport to Soul Society."
"...What the hell?"
Ichigo was staring at the letter in his hands with disbelief, as Matsumoto watched his facial expression, her own happening to be very distraught.
"I honestly don't know what taichou was thinking," she answered glumly, "He never mentioned anything about resigning or leaving...All of a sudden, he was just...well, gone."
"Why would he do this?" the orange-haired subsitute shinigami murmured, his hand clenching around the sheet of paper that contained Hitsugaya's last message to them. "Where the hell did he go?"
"As if I would know!" the said departee's fukutaichou retorted. "I have no idea what's going on, Ichigo-kun, I was hoping you would know where he went and why..."
Ichigo shook his head. "No, I don't," he muttered.
Just moments ago, he had been minding his own business, heading off to the sixth division to have a chat with Renji. Matsumoto had suddenly come out of nowhere, looking extremely distressed and saying that she had been looking for him all over the place. She had shown him the haori and the note, and what its contents revealed.
Come to think of it, he thought, Hitsugaya had been acting somewhat strangely the last time he had seen him before his sudden disappearance.
"Do you think we should ask the sotaichou to arrange a search party...?"
"No!" Ichigo snapped, "We can't do that! The old man can not know about Toshiro leaving Soul Society. He'd be considered a traitor, and you know what that means..."
"I understand," Matsumoto answered dejectedly, "But there's not much else we can do, you know..."
At that moment, there was a sudden, abnormal shift in the spiritual composition of the air around them. It felt as if something, or someone, was forcing their way through and into the dimension.
"What was that?"
"No clue. We'd better check it out."
As the two of them began to set off towards the general area of the change, Matsumoto suddenly stopped. "Wait," she called to Ichigo, "I...I can feel the spirutual pressure of Hyorinmaru..."
"Hyorinmaru?" Ichigo repeated, "Where?"
Matsumoto frowned, her ash-colored eyes narrowing. "I don't know," she murmured, "I can feel it from both the left and the right..."
"What did you say?"
"I don't know what's going on," Matsumoto answered, "But we should split up. You take the right, and I'll take the left. Head towards the reiatsu."
"Got it."
And with that, they took off in their own seperate ways.