I OWN NOTHING BUT THE STORY LINE AND THE CHARACTERS THAT YOU DON'T KNOW FROM THE ANIME/MANGA!

Chapter Four

3rd Seat

"Hey, do you know where File 36 is at?"

"On Keadon's desk."

"Where is the report on the Sector Three incident?"

"In the top drawer of the 2nd filing cabinet."

"Do you have File 17?"

"Your partner already grabbed it."

"Where is Jedidia, then?"

"On coffee break."

"Is there any coffee left?"

"There isn't any more."

Shinji found himself impressed. Natora Umio was quite on top of things. It had been three years since the last of the Umio clan had joined Squad 5 and, though he hated to admit it, Shinji had forgotten about her after the first year. Forgotten all about her, until three months ago when the 4th Seat of his Squad had approached him. His Squad member had come to complain about Natora. Complain about what she still didn't have a seat number. 4th said that she as one of the best. The moment the woman had been assigned to her position, Natora jumped onto the office and took control. She might not have had a Seat Number but the ones with their number still turned to her when they were unsure of what to do. She had taken control, and Shinji found himself impressed.

Impressed and mad at himself for not being the one to notice her without having his 4th come up and tell him. He was the Captain of Squad 5. He should have been the one noticing things like this, not the others. It made him mad at himself.

Right now, he was standing outside of the office doors, listening to Natora give instructions and answers to the shinigami that she worked with. She was a natural leader, it seemed, and that just made Shinji's attitude even worse. It's not very often that you find a Squad member like this in only a few years after graduation; that's why captains weren't often found.

Natora Umio had changed over the three years. She now had long brown hair that she pulled into a high braid, those fireball-like earrings and ring still worn and she was currently wearing the shinigami uniform, the top, black shirt hanging around her waist from her belt now as she helped rearrange, file, and clean the office. The six she worked with, Jedidia excluded, were helping her, sweeping and mopping quickly so the others can move everything back in. She no longer held that feel of a young shinigami. She would make you think that she had been doing it longer than just three years.

"How long are you going to stand there and watch us, Captain." Natora's voice called to the blond man and he took another look inside. The woman talking to him was still carrying the large filing cabinet and pushed it into place beside the others. She wiped sweat from her brow on the back of her hand. "You can come in and help anytime you want, you know."

Shinji gave a frown. "I think not. Besides, I'm Natora." That made them all pause and the woman finally turned to face him. She looked surprised.

"Me?"

"Yes," He lifted and hand and summoned her forward with a finger. "Follow me."

"Good luck, Umio," He heard one of the squad whisper to the woman. He gave another frown. What did that think? That he was going to kill her?

Natora had pulled her black sleeves back on and followed her Captain to his office. She wasn't sure what was going on. Had she done something wrong? It wasn't often that a Captain would summon an unseat member of their squad, let alone come and grab them for himself. It had to be important.

The Captain's room was on the first floor of the Squad housing, and very plain, believe it or not. As desk. A mirror. A few chairs. And there in the corner was a turn-table.

"A trinket from the human world," Shinji told her, noticing her gaze at the pink music-player.

"From below, huh?" Natora took a seat in another of the chair before turning back to the man across the desk. "Is there something that I can do for you, Captain?"

Over the last three years, there was something that Natora found she liked about her Captain the most. Shinji Hirako was comical, having the talent of adding a bit of levity to situations that were serous. His attitude was flippant under normal circumstance and he apparently got off on annoying Hiyori Sarugaki as much as she did in annoying him. She also noticed the he often wore that deadpan look on his face. But despite this, she also knew that her captain was quite perceptive in terms of regarding others and was fairly calm and level-head when it came to battles or serious moments.

"I've had someone approach me last week, complaining about you, Umio."

She pulled a face. "Complaining, huh?" She gave a sigh. "Well, if they would all just do their work like I tell them to then they wouldn't be annoyed now, will they? Maybe they would like to step up and deal with what I have to. I refuse to let Squad 5 be seen as the laziest of the Squads. That is Squad 11!"

Shinji just stared at her, that deadpan look on his face. "What are you talking about?"

"Maybe you should pay attention to what the other Squads say about you and your team, Captain Hirako."

Shinji rubbed his chin. "That bad, huh?"

"Yes, that bad."

"Then," Shinji folded his hands together and leaned forward on his desk. "It's a good think I decided to deal with you then, isn't it?"

Natora raised a brow. "I don't see how complaints about me being a strict bitch is going to make this any better." Shinji stared at her for a moment before he began to laugh. The woman was confused for a moment before it hit her. Her face turned red and she closed her eyes. "That's not…what the complaints were about, were they?"

Shinji had to give himself a few more moments before he could talk normally again. "No, it wasn't."

She gave a frowned, embarrassed now and letting her anger rise. "Then what is it about?"

"Calm down, Umio. Most would think that taking that tone of voice would be a rather dishonorable actions towards one of the Captains of the Seireitei." He watched as she went to say something but she caught herself, turning away. He gave a grin. "Now, back to the problem at hand. No, the complaints about you are not about you being strict or," He gave a grin as the look she gave him dared him to say the two words. He hopped over them. "They're actually about you not having a Seat Number."

That was, without a doubt, not what she had been expecting to hear. "Really?"

"Really-really," He smiled at her. "A high member seems to think that you deserve a Seat Number, as well as some of the men you order about."

"Is that right?" She wore a large smile on her face. "And I suppose that I was called in here to acquire said number, right?"

"Of course. But that's not it." He told her.

"It's not?" Her brows rose.

Shinji was taking a spur of the moment to learn what Natora had turned into over the years. He needed to see it instead of hearing it. "I am offering a lunch for the new 3rd Seat of Squad 5 to join with me."

The moment that was out of his mouth, Natora felt like she was going to faint. "3rd…3rd Seat?" She gasped. "But why?"

"4th's idea. Said I needed someone to clean up after me in the future, but I digress," Shinji shrugged with a careless look as he stood from his desk again. "So, is the lunch a-go or not?"

"O-of course!"

Shinji gave a grin. "Good. We'll talk more there."

The restaurant was like a small shack with a bar and about twenty tables. This was always the place that she, Chisa, and Hiromi would meet up at, Kaien Shiba with them every now and then. She actually had a meet-up with Chisa and Hiromi the next evening. Hiromi was finally beginning to come out of her shell that she had formed after her mother's death. She was glad that her friend was finally returning. She saw herself going through the same events when her parents had died.

Settling down into one of the tables, Shinji and she got a few strange looks but neither of them took notice to them.

"So, you haven't told me your answer yet." The blond began as their order was taken.

"My answer?"

"To being 3rd."

She stared at him. "You're offering it, not assigning it?"

He gave her a frown. "I'm not like the other Captains, Umio. You can either take it or not."

"You do understand that this is 3rd, out of all other numbers to give me. This is right under lieutenant and since you do not currently have a lieutenant that makes me, basically, the lieutenant until you find one."

"Yes," Shinji grinned. "And?"

"And you're fine with that?"

"Who wouldn't be fine with the late Kiyoko's daughter? I've seen you fight. You take after your father's skills extremely; your mother's as well. The Squad already goes to you for suggestions or help. You order them around already anyway, so why not?"

"Is that all?" Her voice sounded sad.

He raised a brow. "Should there be anything else." It took Shinji a moment to realize what she was wanting as she sat there, staring at the glass before her. He gave a soft smile. "Besides, I need someone that I can trust, or learn to trust. It's not very often that I find someone that I know I can trust."

That's what she had been waiting on. She had been waiting to hear what he thought about her. Shinji was very perceptive in his regards to those around him and to hear that he felt like he could trust her made the answer to his question very clear. "Captain, I-"

"'Sup, Shinji!" The high voice grabbed their attention and Shinji turned just in time to have a small foot slammed into his face.

Natora gave a frown as the sight of Shinji bleeding due to Hiyori's greeting. As she watched the two of them exchange their arguments over and over like she had seen before, she crossed her arms. To be honest, she hated this little brat with a passion. For her to get away with treating anyone like this, especially a Captain, it was horrible. She had wanted so many times to teach this little brat a lesson but she had never had the chance to.

Not until now, that is.

Natora continued to frown as she heard her Zanpakto talk to her. Her blade had a point. Shinji had just given her the offer of being 3rd Seat, that would make her second in command until he found a Lieutenant to place above her. Until then that made her the 'lieutenant', didn't it?

"Go bugger someone else, you stupid brat!" Shinji growled.

Hiyori gave a growl and slammed her forehead against his, "What did you say, asshole?!"

"I believe his words were 'go bugger someone else, you stupid brat'," Both turned to see that Natora had placed her elbows on the table, a firm look in her eyes. Shinji blinked. These weren't the normal, kind eyes that he had seen on her before. They held a more superior, annoyed look in them. He got a sudden feeling she wasn't pleased with his and Hiyori's little 'war'. "So why don't you do what the Captain has asked and bugger off before I make you?"

Hiyori turned to her with a snarl. "You can't tell me what to do! Who do you think you are?"

"I am Natora Umio, 3rd Seat of Squad 5, and if you don't 'bugger off' respectfully like my Captain has asked you then I shall see that you do and have a small chat with your own Captain to make sure she doesn't let you perform like this again."

Shinji let a smile break out across his face as Hiyori stared at the other woman in shock; and anger. He lifted up his glass in a toast to the woman across from him.

"To my 3rd seat."

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