Chapter Four- A New Mission
Hitsugaya spent the next couple of days in the infirmary, recovering his strength, and then on the third day Captain Unohana came into his room carrying a stack of folded clothing in her arms.
Captain Unohana handed the clothes to Hitsugaya. "Please get dressed Captain Hitsugaya and then meet me in the front courtyard."
With that Captain Unohana left him alone.
"What in the world?" Captain Hitsugaya wondered, getting out of bed. The young captain shrugged and removed the white robe that he was wearing. Then he pulled on the shihakusho that Captain Unohana had given him and to his surprise it actually fit. And there was a new captain's coat as well.
"I wonder what this is all about?" the young captain thought to himself as he tied the sash that secured Hyourinmaru across his back. Shaking his head Hitsugaya made his way outside. Once he arrived at the courtyard he saw Captain Unohana standing near the building along with Captains Ukitake, Kyouraku, Zaraki and Kuchiki, as well as Head Captain Yamamoto.
This prestigious crowd only served to add to Hitsugaya's confusion.
"Tenth Squad Captain Toushirou Hitsugaya," Head Captain Yamamoto called out. "You have been summoned here today, before these witnesses, to prove that you still have the reiatsu necessary to be a captain of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads."
Understanding dawned on Hitsugaya as he heard those words. Captain Ukitake had told him that the dart that he had been shot with combined with reiatsu and attacked the body from the inside. In the known history of the darts only four people, himself included, had ever survived being hit by one. And the other survivors had all lost their Shinigami powers.
"So I have to prove myself worthy of being a captain," Hitsugaya thought to himself, his hand reaching up to grip the handle of his zanpaktou. Thinking back to the last time he'd tried to release Hyourinmaru, Hitsugaya could only hope that it worked this time. However it soon became apparent that he had nothing to fear. As soon as his hand made contact with the hilt of Hyourinmaru a blue aura erupted around the young captain and his eyes turned from brilliant green to an eerie silver.
Captain Ukitake's eyes widened in disbelief. Even now he could barely sense Captain Hitsugaya's reiatsu however from the aura it was plain that he still had spiritual powers. "The kid still has reiatsu but is he still as powerful as he was before the attack?"
Hitsugaya thought about what he should do to prove his worthiness and although showing the group the ice dragon that was Hyourinmaru's released form would probably suffice, the young captain decided to go all the way with the demonstration. He drew Hyourinmaru from its sheath and held it out in front of him. "Bankai," he whispered. "Daiguren, Hyourinmaru."
The blue aura surrounding Hitsugaya grew and ice flew from the handle of Hyourinmaru and completely engulfed the boy's right arm. At the same time wings of ice sprouted from the young captain's back and wrapped forward, as though forming armor. Completing the picture were three four-petaled ice flowers, floating just behind the young captain.
Floating a few inches above the ground, supported by his ice wings, Hitsugaya gazed around at the group of captains that were watching his every move. Briefly he wondered whether he would have to engage one of them in combat, to prove that he was still worthy of being a captain.
"Well done Captain Hitsugaya," Yamamoto called out.
And with those few simple words Hitsugaya knew that he had passed the test and proven his worthiness to be the Tenth Squad captain. The wings on his back exploded in a shower of ice and Hyourinmaru reverted to its sealed form. Hitsugaya sheathed his zanpaktou and took a deep breath, waiting for fatigue to hit him, but it never came. He felt absolutely fine, as though he hadn't just used his Bankai.
"Squad Ten is once again under your command Captain Hitsugaya," Head Captain Yamamoto said.
"Thank you sir," Hitsugaya said.
Yamamoto nodded and then turned to leave, followed by Captains Kyouraku, Zaraki and Kuchiki. That left only Hitsugaya, Ukitake and Unohana in the courtyard in front of the Squad Four Barracks.
"Well done Toushirou," Captain Ukitake said, walking up to the young captain. "You've done what no one else was able to do. You beat the poison with your reiatsu intact. That's truly amazing."
Captain Hitsugaya nodded and turned to Captain Unohana. "May I leave now?"
Captain Unohana nodded, appreciating the fact that he'd asked for her permission this time instead of simply leaving as he'd done the last time.
"Thank you for all your help." And with that Hitsugaya turned and walked away.
Happy to finally be free from the infirmary, Hitsugaya made his way to the Squad Ten barracks and entered his office. And even though it was the middle of the day he found Matsumoto asleep on the sofa. Although why he was surprised by this was beyond him since his vice-captain could often be found thus.
Shaking his head Hitsugaya closed the door softly and walked over to his desk. The young captain sat down and began to read through the paperwork that was stacked on top of the desk. And despite himself, he had to admit that Matsumoto had done a good job.
"Captain you're back."
Hitsugaya looked up from the papers and saw that Matsumoto was sitting up on the sofa.
"Good afternoon," Hitsugaya said, his eyes focused on the his vice-captain, who still looked half asleep.
Matsumoto stared quizzically at him. "Are you supposed to be here sir?"
"Of course I'm supposed to be here," Captain Hitsugaya said impatiently. "This is my office, you know."
"That's not what I meant and you know it sir."
"Captain Unohana released me a few hours ago" Hitsugaya informed her. "and the old man gave command of Squad Ten back to me."
"That's wonderful!" Matsumoto exclaimed. "Now I can go back to doing my own job."
"Or else avoiding doing your job."
"Captain!" Matsumoto said with an exaggerated shudder. "That was cold. But then again you are the lord of the frozen winter snow."
"You can't call what I said mean," Hitsugaya told her remorselessly, standing up and walking around to the front of the desk. "because it's true."
"Where are you going sir?" Matsumoto asked as Hitsugaya walked toward the door, deciding to drop the fight about her not doing her job. They could pick that up later on.
"There's something I have to do," he told her.
"I'll come with you."
Captain Hitsugaya was on the verge of ordering her to stay in the office but then he changed his mind. After all he was going back to the scene of his attack and in all reality it would be foolish to the point of stupidity to go back there alone. He'd been attacked there once and from what Ukitake had told him, whoever had shot that dart had been intending to kill.
"Very well," he told her and she fell in step behind him as he walked out of the office.
Hitsugaya and Matsumoto left the Seireitei and Hitsugaya led the way back to the scene of his attack.
When they reached the spot Hitsugaya closed his eyes, struggling to remember every detail of that day. Using the house as a landmark, the young captain determined the approximate spot where he'd been standing when he'd felt the presence of his attacker. From there he estimated where Hinamori had been standing and with those two locations in mind the young captain set about attempting to plot the trajectory of the dart.
Using all that he knew Hitsugaya was able to come up with a point of origin from which the dart had started. And once he worked this out, Hitsugaya set about searching the area.
However after about twenty minutes Hitsugaya was forced to admit that his attacker hadn't left behind any links to his identity at the scene.
"Dammit," he swore, standing up from a crouching position.
Matsumoto, who'd been silent the whole time, spoke up. "What exactly are you looking for?"
"I need to know who the hell wants me dead," he replied. "And I was hoping to find a clue to the person's identity here, but I was wrong. Come on Matsumoto, let's go back."
Matsumoto nodded and fell into step behind him once more.
Meanwhile, back at the Seireitei, Head Captain Yamamoto was having a meeting with three of the captains: Ukitake, Kyouraku, and Mayuri Kurotsuchi from Squad Twelve.
"So Kurotsuchi," Head Captain Yamamoto said. "Did you compile a list of everyone who had even a minimal amount of knowledge about the Reiatsu Poison Darts.?"
"I did," Kurotsuchi said, barely hiding his displeasure over having to disclose this information to the other two squad captains. "And it's a very short list."
Head Captain Yamamoto took the piece of paper from Kurotsuchi and scanned it briefly. "And all executed, just as I thought."
"Then that means someone passed the information to someone outside the technology department," Ukitake said.
Kyouraku nodded. "And that someone has held a grudge for two centuries."
"Finding the responsible party isn't going to be easy," Yamamoto said.
"Sensei," Captain Ukitake said. "Do you think it's safe for Captain Hitsugaya to remain in the Soul Society? He's already been targeted once and we don't even know why they went after him. And I really don't think we can afford to loose him at this point."
"You have a very valid point Jyuushirou," Head Captain Yamamoto said. "I think it would be in our best interests, as well as his, if Captain Hitsugaya went to the living world for a little while."
Captain Ukitake nodded his head in approval of the idea.
"Captains Kyouraku and Kurotsuchi, you're both dismissed," Yamamoto said. "Shunsui, could you please go and inform Captain Hitsugaya that I wish to see him?"
Captain Kyouraku nodded and he and Kurotsuchi both left the Head Captain's office.
"Well that was a huge waste of time," Captain Hitsugaya said as he and Matsumoto made their way back to the Squad Ten barracks.
As they were walking the two happened to come cross paths with Captain Kyouraku of Squad Eight.
Captain Kyouraku grinned broadly as he saw Hitsugaya and Matsumoto walking toward him. "Captain Hitsugaya, just the person I wanted to see."
Hitsugaya looked confused. "Why do you need to see me?"
"You've been summoned to Squad One," Kyouraku replied. "By none other than Head Captain Yamamoto himself."
"The old man?" Hitsugaya said in surprise. "But what does he want with me?"
Kyouraku shrugged. "I'm just the messenger. You'll have to go and find out what he wants for yourself."
And with that Kyouraku continued on his way.
"Matsumoto," Hitsugaya said, turning to face his vice-captain. "Head back to the office without me. I have to go and find out what the Head Captain wants."
Matsumoto nodded. "Yes sir."
And with that captain and vice-captain parted ways. Matsumoto continued on toward Squad Ten while Hitsugaya changed course and made his way to Squad One.
When Hitsugaya reached Yamamoto's office he knocked lightly on the door and called out, "Captain of Squad Ten, Toushirou Hitsugaya, reporting as ordered sir."
"Enter," a voice called out from within.
Captain Hitsugaya slid the door open and entered the office. "You wished to see me Head Captain Yamamoto?"
The old captain nodded. "Captain Hitsugaya, I called you here to inform you that you are being assigned a post in the world of the living as of today."
"The world of the living?" Hitsugaya repeated in disbelief. It was exceedingly rare for captains to be sent on missions outside the Seireitei and the need in the world of the living didn't seem great enough to warrant such a drastic action.
Yamamoto nodded. "There is a dual purpose for this assignment. First, the situation in the world of the living grows more serious with each day that passes and your skills could prove extremely valuable. Second, we have as of yet been unable to determine who it was that attacked you and the reason for the attack. Therefore your safety is still a concern and as the Thirteen Court Guard Squads are already short by three captains we really can't afford to loose you."
"I appreciate your concern sir," Captain Hitsugaya said, barely managing to hide his annoyance with the situation. "But with all due respect, I know someone's after me now and I think I can protect myself."
"That may be," Head Captain Yamamoto said. "However I'm not willing to take any chances. Therefore you leave for the world of the living tomorrow." The tone of his voice left no question that this was to be the end of the discussion.
Knowing that it was pointless to argue, Hitsugaya bowed. "Yes sir, I understand."
"You're dismissed Captain Hitsugaya," Yamamoto said.
Captain Hitsugaya nodded and left the room. And he was soon joined by Captain Ukitake.
"You had a hand in this didn't you Ukitake?" Hitsugaya asked as the older captain appeared beside him.
Ukitake nodded, looking slightly guilty. "I'm sorry Toushirou but I don't want anything else to happen to you. But don't worry, I'll make it up to you I promise."
Slightly worried about what that might entail, Hitsugaya quickly shook his head. "It's okay Ukitake. That's not necessary, really."
Ukitake nodded, chuckling softly under his breath, and he and Hitsugaya parted ways.
Hitsugaya made his way back to his office, where he found Matsumoto waiting for him.
"So what did the Head Captain want?" she asked as soon as Hitsugaya walked through the door.
Hitsugaya's eyes narrowed. "I've been ordered to go to the world of the living?"
Matsumoto's eyes widened. It was very rare for captains to be sent on missions outside the Seireitei. Let alone outside of Soul Society itself. "Has the situation there really gotten that bad?"
"The situation there is serious," Captain Hitsugaya replied, a slight edge to his voice. "However that's not the sole reason why I'm being sent there. Ukitake managed to convince Old Man Yamamoto that it's not safe for me to be in Soul Society right now."
Matsumoto was on the verge of telling him that they had a point but then she thought better of the idea. Her captain probably wouldn't appreciate it.
Hitsugaya sighed. "There's nothing for it. I'll just have to go to the world of the living and see if I can't straighten things up there."
"I'm jealous captain," Matsumoto said. "My mission to the world of the living was interrupted and it isn't often that officers get to go to the living world."
"I'd trade places with you in a heartbeat if I could," Hitsugaya said, not at all happy about the assignment.
After making all the preparations for his trip to the living world, Captain Hitsugaya was on his way back to the Squad Ten barracks when he passed a random Shinigami walking in the opposite direction. Hitsugaya glanced up at the man and recognized him instantly as the guard who'd given him grief the night he'd left the infirmary.
"You," he said, pointing his index finger at the man.
The guard froze and stared down at the boy from a few nights ago. And to his horror, he saw that the kid now wore a shihakusho that was the proper size, as well as a captain's coat.
"Captain Hitsugaya?" he said tentatively.
"Caught on at last have you?" Hitsugaya said coldly.
The guard dropped to his knees. "Please forgive me for my earlier insubordination sir. It was late and I'd been up all night on guard duty. I didn't recognize you. I didn't mean anything by it, I swear."
Captain Hitsugaya had fully planned on getting revenge if he ever met the guy again but now he just looked down at the man in disgust.
"Stand up," Hitsugaya ordered.
The guard jumped to his feet, looking worried.
"Now get out of my sight."
Looking relieved beyond measure, the guard bowed and then made a hasty retreat.
"Idiot," Hitsugaya said as he continued toward the Squad Ten barracks.
The young captain was almost back to his office when he heard a voice call out behind him, "Toushirou!"
Hitsugaya turned and saw Hinamori walking toward him. "You're being too familiar again Hinamori. You still have to address me as a captain you know."
"Oh you can forget about that," Hinamori told him, thinking back to his reaction the last time she'd addressed him as a captain. "So is it true that you're going to the world of the living?"
Hitsugaya nodded. "Tomorrow."
"You'd better be careful," Hinamori warned him.
Hitsugaya waved off the warning. "Don't worry about me, I am a captain you know. However you should probably refrain from leaving the Seireitei while I'm gone. If whoever is responsible for this can't find me then they may target you."
Hinamori nodded. "I'll be careful."
Hitsugaya nodded and he and Hinamori made their way to the Squad Ten barracks together. And when the two of them arrived they found Matsumoto working on paperwork, which shocked them both.
Captain Hitsugaya stared at his vice-captain, his eyes wide in disbelief. "Matsumoto, you're actually working without having been threatened with disciplinary action?"
"Why does everyone keep acting so surprised?" Matsumoto demanded.
"Because," Hinamori replied. "You're famous all over the Seireitei for avoiding your work."
Matsumoto pointed her index finger at Hinamori. "You'd best watch yourself Momo."
"Scary!" Hinamori cried out, clutching Hitsugaya's arm and hiding behind him. "Save me Shirou-chan."
Hitsugaya stepped away from Hinamori and then turned to glare at her. Her actions pissed him off in more ways than one: not only had she called him by that deplorable nickname again but she was also pretending to be afraid of a friend and colleague. Hitsugaya was not amused by this.
Hinamori placed her hands on her hips, completely unconcerned by the annoyed look on the young captain's face. "Aren't you going to protect me Shirou-chan?"
"I told you to stop calling me that," Hitsugaya said, a slight edge in his voice. "And no I'm not going to protect you. And I think you should remember what happened the last time you engaged in battle with another vice-captain."
Hinamori sobered at once. She well remembered what had happened. It was right after she'd found Captain Aizen's body and she'd went after Captain Ichimaru, believing him to be responsible since Hitsugaya had warned her to watch out for Squad Three. However, before she'd been able to attack Ichimaru, his vice-captain Kira had shown up and got in her way. So she'd fought him instead.
The fight had been short lived however. Hitsugaya had interrupted them just when they'd gotten serious and had ordered them both taken to jail. It was only afterward that Hinamori found out from Matsumoto that Ichimaru had been about to attack her and Hitsugaya had ordered her taken to jail for her own protection.
"Matsumoto."
"Sir?"
"While I'm gone I expect for you to keep things in order around here," Hitsugaya told her. "And you'd best do a good job because you've already revealed to me the fact that you're capable of it."
"I think I messed up," Matsumoto said.
Early the next morning Captain Hitsugaya left the Soul Society and traveled to the world of the living. It had been decided by the Head Captain that he should blend in with all the humans so he'd been given a gigai and was only to use his Shinigami powers in case of emergency.
"The gigai will suppress your reiatsu," Captain Ukitake had told him. "That will make it harder for any undesirables to find you so don't use your powers unless you absolutely have to."
"I understand," Hitsugaya said.
Ukitake nodded. "We'll be in contact if we have any information that we deem prudent to your situation."
Hitsugaya turned to leave however he was halted after only a few steps.
"Toushirou,"
Hitsugaya turned back to the older captain. "What is it?"
"There's something important that I need to tell you, concerning our means of communication while you're in the world of the living."
When Captain Hitsugaya arrived in the living world he spent a few hours wandering around, thinking about how best to approach the situation. He didn't know whether he should attempt to make contact with the Shinigami who were stationed here in Karakura Town or keep his presence here secret.
Lost in thought, Hitsugaya made his way down the street but he was soon jarred from his thoughts by the presence of a Hollow. Glancing around Toushirou spotted a young girl walking down the street, completely oblivious to the Hollow that was approaching her.
"Damn," Hitsugaya swore, running toward the girl. "Watch out!"
Hitsugaya pushed the girl out of the way just before the Hollow struck. The girl fell to the ground and Hitsugaya sucked in his breath as the Hollow's talons sliced through the flesh of his shoulder. And even though it was only a faux body he was still connected to it and it still hurt.
"Are you okay?" the girl asked, staring in horror at Hitsugaya's blood soaked shoulder.
"Don't worry about me," Hitsugaya said. "You should be more concerned about yourself. You have to get out of here."
The girl hesitated. "But what about. . ."
"Go!" Hitsugaya yelled.
With one last glance at the strange white-haired boy, the girl ran off down the street.
"Alright Ukitake I tried," Hitsugaya thought as he faced the Hollow. "And I know I've only been here for three hours and already have to ditch my gigai and use my powers but it's not my fault I've turned into a magnet for trouble. Sorry."
Hitsugaya pulled a small, green pill from his pocket and popped it into his mouth. Leaping from the faux body, Hitsugaya drew his zanpaktou and quickly made short work of the Hollow. It was so pathetic that he didn't even have to use Hyourinmaru's released form to finish it off. Then, after destroying the Hollow, Hitsugaya returned to his gigai and stood for a moment, catching his breath. Shaking his head Hitsugaya gingerly touched the wound on his shoulder. "I can't believe this. Three hours and I've already damaged my gigai."
"You should come to our clinic and get that looked at," a voice said from behind him.
Hitsugaya turned and saw the girl from before standing behind him. "I thought I told you to run?"
"I did run," the girl told him. "But you didn't say I couldn't come back."
Hitsugaya shook his head.
"Come with me," the girl said, offering the young boy her hand. "You really should get that wound looked at."
Hitsugaya thought about her offer and decided that he should take her up on it since it would look suspicious if he simply blew off
a wound that was obviously serious from a human standpoint.
"Alright," Hitsugaya said with a sigh. "I'll come with you."
The girl smiled and took Hitsugaya's hand. "I'm Yuzu Kurosaki. What's your name?"
"Toushirou Hitsugaya," he replied automatically, thinking hard. "Kurosaki. The same last name as that orange haired Ryoka boy who invaded the Seireitei. Oh no!"
Unaware that Hitsugaya was now regretting his decision to accept her help, Yuzu led the way to the clinic that her dad ran. And when they arrived she practically drug the young boy inside. "Dad, we have a patient."
A man appeared around a doorway. His eyes widened when he saw the vicious looking wound on Hitsugaya's shoulder. "What happened to you?"
Hitsugaya opened his mouth, prepared to lie through his teeth to the man, however Yuzu beat him to it.
"I was walking down the street, on my way back from the craft store, when this huge dog jumped out of nowhere and attacked me. And I probably would have been seriously injured if Shirou-chan hadn't appeared and pushed me out of the way."
"Shirou-chan," Hitsugaya thought to himself, clenching his teeth to keep from yelling at her, his hands involuntarily clenching into fists. "Not another one."
"Well come into the back and we'll see what we can do for you."
Hitsugaya allowed Yuzu to lead him into a back room and he sat down on a bench that the man pointed to. Mr. Kurosaki removed Hitsugaya's shirt, cleaned the wound and wrapped a bandage around it.
"So what's your name kid?"
"Toushirou," he replied, fighting the urge to tell the man that he wasn't a kid. While he was in the living world he would just have to put up with people calling him that, even though it irritated him.
Mr. Kurosaki nodded. "So where are you from Toushirou? I don't think I've ever seen you around here before."
Hitsugaya hesitated, unsure of how best to answer this question since he knew virtually nothing about the living world.
Mr. Kurosaki took the boy's hesitation to mean that there was no answer to the question. "You know what Toushirou I think you should stay with us."
Hitsugaya held up his hands. "That's not necessary."
"Nonsense," Mr. Kurosaki said. "I insist that you stay with us and I won't take no for an answer. After all you did save my daughter's life. That makes you practically family."
Hitsugaya thought about the situation in the living world and decided that it could prove advantageous to be near the substitute Shinigami named Ichigo. At least that way he'd know what was going on without having to communicate with Soul Society.
His decision made, Hitsugaya bowed to Mr. Kurosaki. "Thank you very much."
"Don't worry about it kid. I have a son who's a few years older than you and you can share his room, so it's really no trouble to have you stay here." Mr. Kurosaki turned to his daughter. "Yuzu, he can't wear this bloodstained shirt so why don't you go and get one of Ichigo's for him?"
Yuzu nodded and left the room, returning a few minutes later with a shirt in her hands. She tossed the shirt to Hitsugaya.
"Thank you," the boy said, pulling the shirt over his head. It was a few sizes too big for him but it was definitely better than the one that was covered in blood.
"No problem. By the way, my name's Isshin Kurosaki."
