Disclaimer: I do not and never have owned anything from Bleach.

At this point, when I say I have an update schedule, I'm lying. It's an excuse. It doesn't even exist. It's a flimsy cover for my terrible updating habits that are somehow more reliable than my punctuality in real life.

Anyway, there will be action with Ichigo and his hollow coming up within the next three chapters. As a side note, I'd be happy to take suggestions for the hollow's name, though I'm leaning pretty heavily towards "Shiro" simply because it's both easy and logical.

Chapter 4

[fan fiction]

Ichigo came to slowly, groping for consciousness like a blind man searching for light. When his eyes did open, he had to squint them shut again to avoid being blinded by the brightness above him.

"Oh, good. You're awake."

Cracking one eye open, Ichigo saw the lieutenant of the Fourth Division, Isane Kotetsu, leaning over him. A soft green glow was coming from her hands where she was holding them over Ichigo's left arm.

"Isane?" Ichigo managed, confused. "What happened? Why am I here?"

"You were badly injured in your fight with Aizen," Isane explained, sitting back and putting her hands in her lap. "We brought you to the Fourth Division barracks to heal you."

"Aizen?" Ichigo repeated. Immediately, he started to get up, despite the bandages all over his body. "I have to-!"

"You need to stay and rest!" Isane said, trying to push Ichigo back down, but it was a useless attempt.

Suddenly, the entire atmosphere of the room got considerably colder. Ichigo and Isane froze, with the latter hurriedly standing up and facing the doorway.

"Captain!" She said, looking surprised. "I thought you were tending to the other wounded!"

Retsu Unohana, captain of the Fourth Division, smiled gently.

"They are recovering well," she replied. "My skills aren't needed." Her eyes went past her lieutenant and came to rest on Ichigo, who was still stuck in the process of getting up. Instantly, Unohana's expression became much more menacing. "You aren't getting up, are you, Ichigo?" She asked icily. "After all, you should really get your rest."

It wasn't a suggestion; it was an order.

Eyes wide, Ichigo sank back down and stared up at the ceiling, heart pounding.

"Your friends will be coming in a minute or so," Unohana continued, all of the danger sliding right out of her voice and expression. "Make sure you don't aggravate your wounds!"

Once again, Ichigo got the idea that Unohana's words were less of a suggestion and more of an order.

"Yes ma'am," he muttered. Then Ichigo frowned, finally putting a finger on the strange feeling he'd been getting since he woke up. "Captain Unohana?" The woman glanced back at Ichigo, tilting her head to indicate that he should ask his question. "Where is my Zanpakutō? I feel really strange without it."

Unohana nodded.

"Of course. I will have Isane fetch it."

Twenty seconds later, Ichigo was given the giant sword and he held onto it gratefully. However, he still felt as though something was off. There was an empty space inside of him, one that hadn't been there before.

I'm definitely not in bankai anymore, he thought, confused, but that shouldn't make me feel this way.

Lost in thought, Ichigo didn't notice the look that Isane and Urahara exchanged.

As the captain and her lieutenant took their leave, Ichigo's dad practically flew into the room, worry written all over his features.

"Ichigo," Isshin whispered, staring at his son who was lying on the mat before him, Zanpakutō clutched almost desperately in one hand, eyes open, and an unidentifiable expression on his face. He was bandaged from multiple wounds all over his body, likely inflicted by the blast of Reiatsu everyone had witnessed, and the chain that Isshin had seen forming during their time in the Dangai was gone, as was Ichigo's bankai. For a moment, Isshin reached out to touch Ichigo, as if to make sure he was real, but thought better of it seeing how injured he was.

"Hey dad," Ichigo replied, his gaze briefly flicking to his father before going back to the ceiling of the Fourth Squad's barracks.

"Did you . . . use the Final Getsuga Tenshō?" Isshin asked, his words hushed so that none of the others present could hear.

"I . . . I couldn't do it," Ichigo eventually replied, his amber eyes staring up at the sky while his left hand clenched into a fist. "I couldn't take that away from Zangetsu. I . . . he . . . dammit, Dad, he just wanted to protect me! He doesn't deserve to have that ripped away from him because I'm not strong enough to find another way!"

Isshin stared at his son, so passionate about a being that many could never connect to on such a level.

"But you did find another way," Isshin said, immediately calming his son down. "You defeated Aizen and saved the Soul Society. Ichigo, you- you-" Isshin had to pause while he got choked up and turned away. Ichigo rolled his eyes as he heard his father crying. "My son is famous!"

"Shut up, Dad," Ichigo muttered, scowling. "And I wasn't even sure if what I did would work."

"Technically it didn't," Isshin admitted, turning back around with a serious expression on his face. "The Hōgyoku is capable of fixing itself using the Reiatsu around it." Instantly, Ichigo's eyes shot wide open and he began to get up, but Isshin slammed his foot down on his son's chest, forcing him down.

"Dad!" Ichigo snapped, bracing to get up again. A punch from his father stunned him and he stayed down.

"I said, 'technically'," Isshin sighed. "You need to pay more attention."

Ichigo rolled his eyes. "That's what the problem is," he growled under his breath.

"As I was saying," Isshin Kurosaki continued, "the Hōgyoku technically was not destroyed; it was near where we found you, completely fine."

"That's not possible!" Ichigo snapped, some of the fire returning to his expression. "I felt it crack under Tensa Zangetsu! The thing even exploded!"

"That's something I can explain," a new voice drawled. Ichigo looked past his dad and saw Kisuke Urahara walking into the room; his fan was splayed across the lower half of his face. "You see, the Hōgyoku is . . . well, alive. When your Zanpakutō damaged it, it immediately tried to heal itself."

"Heal itself?" Ichigo repeated, frowning. "Like high-speed regeneration?"

"Not quite," Kisuke corrected, snapping his fan shut. "The Hōgyoku takes much more spirit energy to repair itself due to its capabilities and structure, which are so incredibly complex that-"

"Kisuke," Isshin interrupted, inclining his head towards Ichigo, who seemed to be falling asleep. Immediately, Urahara hit the tired boy over the head with his cane.

"Ow!" Ichigo yelled, holding the hand that had been attacked. "What was that for?!"

"For not listening," Urahara replied calmly, his fan back in place. "Now, the Hōgyoku takes more energy to heal itself than you would, Ichigo Kurosaki. Because of that, it appears to have taken its energy from the nearest available source."

"Aizen," Ichigo whispered with growing realization. Briefly, he recalled how Aizen had disintegrated right before his eyes in the explosion.

"Exactly!" Urahara declared brightly. "The Hōgyoku is fine, but Aizen is no more."

Ichigo realized he could hear someone sniffling again, and he didn't even bother to suppress a groan.

"Dad. Stop. You're pathetic."

"It's just," Isshin managed, wiping his eyes, "you're . . . you're . . ."

"I get it!" Ichigo snapped. "Seriously, Dad, you don't need to repeat everything! I'm not deaf!"

Isshin Kurosaki continued to be emotional, which was completely at odds with his appearance. Ichigo still wasn't used to seeing his father in a shinigami uniform. He was just too professional looking.

"What happened to the Hōgyoku?" Ichigo eventually asked, looking at Urahara. "Did you take it back?"

Urahara laughed, seeming to find Ichigo's question hilarious.

"Of course not! Yamamoto would never let me have my hands on something like that again!"

"So what happened to it?" Ichigo pressed, propping himself up slightly.

"He took it to some secret stash of toys," Urahara replied, waving a hand. "There's no need to worry about it."

"That's not going to stop me from worrying."

"I never said it would."

Ichigo was quiet for a moment, thinking.

If there's a time to bring up the weird feeling that I have, he realized, now is it.

"Dad-" Ichigo started, but he was interrupted by the arrival of his friends.

The room became abruptly more crowded with the appearance of Tatsuki, Chizuru, Keigo, Mizuiro, Orihime, Uryu, and Chad. Don Kanonji had already returned to the human world, claiming that he was needed for something.

"Ichigo!" Orihime cried, kneeling next to the boy she'd known for so long. "You're hurt!"

"I'm fine," Ichigo corrected, trying to ease Orihime's worry. He ignored Isshin's snort, but watched as his father and Kisuke Urahara took their leave.

There goes my opportunity. Oh well.

"Leave it to you to tear up a quarter of the Soul Society in a fight," Uryu said, pushing up his glasses.

"It's not like I had a choice!" Ichigo retorted.

Tatsuki watched, trying to connect the animated boy with the calm, collected one she had seen grab Aizen and propel him far away.

It doesn't fit, she thought, eyes wide. When Ichigo glanced up at her, she shied away. But his hair is still longer, and he's definitely taller. I don't get it.

"Hey, Tatsuki," Ichigo said, smiling slightly. Then he frowned. "Wait, what are you guys doing in the Soul Society?"

"We were conscious when they moved Karakura Town here," Mizuiro explained calmly. "They figured that we could stay until you woke up, especially because Tatsuki was concerned for your safety."

"I was not!" Tatsuki snapped.

"Either way," Chad said quietly from the wall, "we will be leaving soon. The head captain apparently is not fond of having so many strangers on his land."

"Makes sense," Ichigo muttered, brushing a few stray hairs out of his face. He then frowned. "I'm going to need to get a haircut."

"NO!"

Ichigo flinched at the combined response of Chizuru, Tatsuki, and Orihime.

"Geez," he coughed, looking up at the three girls. "What's that about?"

"Nothing," they replied in unison, though Orihime's voice was considerably higher than the others', almost a squeak.

"Say, Ichigo," Keigo said in the ensuing awkward silence, "when did you get so tall? And when did you have time for your hair to grow?"

"Um," Ichigo answered. "It's kind of hard to explain."

"We've got time," Tatsuki said, sitting cross-legged on a convenient mat. Everyone else followed suit, and Ichigo realized what it must be like for a teacher in a classroom. With a sigh, he began to talk.

"Basically, there's two worlds: the human world and the Soul Society as you guys already know. The way to travel between the two is through the Precipice World, where time flows a lot differently. Basically, three months in there is equal to about an hour in the Soul Society and Human world. That's how I was able to train to confront Aizen, because he destroyed the thing in the Precipice World that usually stops people from staying there for too long, and my dad could slow down the other defense mechanism that would've swallowed me."

There was a momentary silence.

"So you're saying that you're three months older than you were two days ago?" Uryu asked. Ichigo nodded.

"That's a little confusing, but yeah."

"That would explain the height and hair," Mizuiro noted.

"So . . ." Chizuru said, sidling up to Orihime. "How about we all have a giant group hug, with Orihime in the middle and me- oomph!"

Tatsuki's foot hit Chizuru right in the stomach, sending the other girl crumpling to the ground.

"Ow," Chizuru moaned from the ground. Orihime just looked confused.

"Chizuru does have a point, though," Mizuiro said, draining the tension in the room. "What now?"

Silence descended over the room as everyone thought things through. For a few minutes, all that was audible was the sound of hurried footsteps outside the room from hassled Fourth Division members.

"I guess . . ." Ichigo started, thinking as he spoke, "that I'll stay here for a bit. It seems like they could use my help in fixing things until the Guard Squads are at full strength. You guys should head back before your families get worried. I mean, they probably moved Karakura Town back by now, right?"

"Yeah, they did," Tatsuki replied. "But, are you sure? Don't you want to go back?"

Ichigo shook his head.

"There's more that I can do here. I know Karin and Yuzu are all right, and my old man is more of a danger to himself than anyone else. It'll be fine." Plus, I need to figure out what's wrong with me, Ichigo added silently.

"They're not going to let us come back here, are they?"

"Probably not, Chizuru," Ichigo replied. "They've got a thing about Ryoka, y'know?"

Uryu coughed and looked away while Chad scratched his neck and found interest in the floor. Even Orihime took a few seconds to play with her hair.

" . . . Right," Keigo said, looking between the four of them. "Is there something I'm missing? Did you guys do something without me?"

"Trust me," Uryu muttered while pushing up his glasses, "you don't want to know."

"Aw," Keigo responded, his face falling.

There was a knock at the door, prompting everyone to turn as a member of the Fourth Division opened the door and looked into the room.

"The Head Captain has ordered the humans –" Uryu coughed loudly, " – and Quincy to be returned to the Human World as soon as possible." He sounded apologetic, but no one in the room seemed surprised by the news.

As everyone was standing, Orihime glanced back down at Ichigo. "You're sure you're going to be okay all alone?" She asked quietly.

"Yeah," Ichigo answered, giving his friend a reassuring smile. "I'll be fine. You need to go home, Orihime."

Ichigo watched her leave and heard the door shut behind her. When the room was quiet again, Ichigo let out a huge sigh that quickly morphed into a yawn.

I'll just take a short nap, he thought drowsily, his eyelids dragging themselves shut. I'll just . . . sleep . . .

Not much action, but necessary oh-my-god-Ichigo-you're-not-dead-that's-awesome stuff.

Please leave a review before you leave.

-RoR

Coming up: Ichigo & Co. freaking out because this fan fiction would actually be really creepy if you think about it