I hope you enjoyed this story a little, I know it seemed a little rushed. But the next stories are gonna be fun. I promise.


Aftermath

Goku and the others were all waiting. The sounds of the fighting were gone. But was that good or bad? Did the Hollows kill Kusaka, or did Vegeta make it in time to save him or were they both killed? The waiting was painful for Toushiro. He had no idea wether his two best friends were alive or not. And then, Krillin spotted him first.

Krillin: "Alright, Vegeta!"

Not one face didn't have a smile on it. Vegeta was alive and ok. Toushiro breathed a small sigh of relief. At least Vegeta was ok, he thought. But, what about Kusaka?

Vegeta: "Toushiro."

Toushiro: "Huh?"

Vegeta: "I think someone here owes you an apology."

Vegeta glanced behind him and to Toushiro's surprise, Kusaka walked up, albeit a bit intimidated by the saiyan.

Toushiro: "Kusaka..."

Vegeta: "It better be nice, or I'll break every bone in your legs!"

Kusaka gulped as he walked passed the saiyan prince and towards Toushiro. Vegeta walked right behind him to insure that he would do what he said he would. The scarred man stopped just feet away from the young captain.

Kusaka: "Hitsugaya... I'm..."

Kusaka glanced over his shoulder to see Vegeta standing right behind him. The saiyan prince growled as the exile stalled. Kusaka knew that he wasn't getting out of this. But, at the same time, he wanted to do this anyway.

Kusaka: "Hitsugaya... Your friend here told me everything. About how you've put yourself in danger to prevent him from getting killed like I was. And also about how you still blame yourself over what happened to me. If I had known about all of that before, I would never had said all of those awful things. What I had said back there was all out of anger and confusion. So... Can you ever forgive me, Hitsugaya?"

Not the kind of apology Vegeta had in mind but it was an apology none the less. Sometimes the hardest thing to say is: I'm sorry. The prince would know! Toushiro's frown turned into a smile as he raised his hand up and held it out to Kusaka. The exiled Soul Reaper looked at the small hand and smiled back, before clapping his own hand around it. But of course the moment was interrupted. Thanks Grimmjow.

Grimmjow: "Hey! Can we get outta here now!"

Ichigo: "Mood killer."

Grimmjow: "Say what?"

Goku: "Grimmjow..."

The Arrancar glanced at the saiyan who was giving him a look.

Goku: "Don't forget I don't have a problem beating your ass down if you do something wrong."

Vegeta just had to laugh at that statement.

Vegeta: "Ha HA! Best line I've ever heard from him!"

Grimmjow calmed down. He knew better. But all in all, he was right. It was time to go.

Ulquiorra: "We've stayed here long enough. We should get going before we attract anything unwanted."

Grimmjow: "That's what I said!"

Krillin: "But he said it in a nicer way."

Grimmjow: "Oh..."

Ulquiorra opened a Garganta and entered first. Goku and Ichigo stayed back with Vegeta and Toushiro while the rest of the team followed him. Vegeta glanced at Kusaka and encouraged him to follow as well. With a small smile, the exiled Soul Reaper did not argue. Vegeta followed Kusaka and Toushiro tried to follow the prince. But his left leg buckled under him and he fell to the ground. But a helping hand was already next to him. Ichigo picked the boy up and carried him over to Vegeta. The saiyan prince stood perfectly still as Ichigo helped Toushiro onto Vegeta's back. Once the young captain was situated on the saiyan's back, they all left Hueco Mundo for good. In the Soul Society, everything was in chaos! A Garganta had opened at Sokyoku Hill and everyone was scrambling to get their before anything came out. All of the Captains and Lieutenants were ready to defend the Seireitei.

Yamamoto: "Wait until I give the order!"

They waited for the order as something was coming out of the Garganta. The first thing that came out of the Garganta was...

Soifon: "Gin Ichimaru?"

Gin was the first to walk out of the Garganta, followed soon after by Ulquiorra and Grimmjow. Then Krillin and Gohan, and the last few that came out were Ichigo, Kusaka, Vegeta and Goku. The first thing most of them saw was the missing captain on Vegeta's back.

Rangiku: "Captain!"

Overjoyed to see her captain safe and sound, Rangiku ran over to him and hugged him. This time, Toushiro didn't try to fight her back.

Rangiku: "Oh, Captain! I'm so glad to see you again! Are you alright!"

Toushiro: "I'm fine, Rangiku."

Rangiku: "Are you sure? You're covered in bandages!"

Toushiro: "I'm fine, really!"

Gin: "He won't be if you keep hugging him like that."

Rangiku just punched Gin right in the nose! The silver haired man winced in pain.

Rangiku: "Watch it!"

Goku: "You ok, Gin?"

Gin: "Oh yeah! It's not the first time she's punched me!"

Everyone just laughed as Gin made it into a joke. Rangiku just went back to hugging Toushiro, being careful not to squeeze too much around his wounds. Vegeta noticed Yamamoto coming towards him and prepared himself for a fight.

Yamamoto: "You, Vegeta, are trying my last nerves!"

Vegeta: "I could say the same thing with you, old man!"

Yamamoto: "Do you realize how many orders and laws you've broken today alone!"

Vegeta: "Like I care and why does it matter now? My job was to protect my captain and that's what I did! I went after him, found him and brought him back! Does it really matter how I do it if I do it?"

Yamamoto and Vegeta were in a serious argument. With Rangiku's help, Toushiro slid off of his saiyan friend's back. He didn't want to be there incase this argument turned physical.

Yamamoto: "Just because you are not an official Soul Reaper, that doesn't mean you can do whatever you wish, Vegeta!"

Vegeta: "And that's also the reason why I don't have to obey you the whole time!"

The two of them glared at each other, until Yamamoto spotted Kusaka in the back.

Yamamoto: "Sojiro Kusaka?..."

All of the other captains suddenly noticed Kusaka too. Like Toushiro, they too thought that he had died.

Soifon: "That's impossible!..."

Komamura: "He was confirmed dead!..."

Kurotsuchi: "How is this possible?"

Everyone looked over at Kusaka for an answer. But he just shrugged with a blank stair. Even he didn't know.

Soifon: "You were the one who stole the Oin and attacked the Seireitei a few years ago! I thought Hitsugaya killed you!"

Kusaka: "He did but... I don't know what happened."

Kurotsuchi: "No one just comes back to life! No one can!"

Val: "Wrong!"

Kurotsuchi: "What?"

Val: "I've been wished back to life before. In fact, Vegeta... how many times were you brought back?"

Vegeta: "Two."

Val: "Krillin?"

Krillin: "Three."

Val: "Goku?..."

Goku: "Uh... two, actually."

Vegeta: "I thought there was more?"

Goku: "I actually thought so too, Vegeta."

Val: "See? We have ways to bring the dead back. Although I'm not sure it would work with Soul Reapers..."

Piccolo: "That's a good question."

Yamamoto: "Regardless of how he's alive... Sojiro Kusaka, your situation remains the same. No two can have the same Zanpakuto and there is still the matter of your theft of the Oin. For these... There is but one outcome."

Kusaka bowed his head down in submission. He knew what that meant. Yamamoto released his sword's cane disguise. Vegeta and the other Z-Fighters did not know what was going on.

Vegeta: "What's going on?"

Gin: "He's about to execute Kusaka."

Goku: "What?"

Vegeta glanced at Toushiro with shocked eyes. The boy looked at him in a way that confirmed this to be true. There was nothing the young captain could do.

Yamamoto: "It has to be done."

Yamamoto started to walk towards Kusaka, drawing his sword in the process. Toushiro could only look on helplessly, too weak and injured to do anything. Kusaka sensed this of the young captain and nodded to show that he understood. Everyone watched as the Head-Captain got closer to the scarred man. But then Yamamoto stopped his advances when Vegeta stepped in between him and Kusaka. The saiyan stood there, his eyes locked on the old man. The prince then snarled, a clear threat. Yamamoto stared at the saiyan. He knew that there was a very strong possibility that Vegeta was stronger than him. But just how strong was unclear. The old man was weighing his options. Did he really want to risk it? The answer was chosen for him when another man stepped forth. He stood directly behind Vegeta, his arms crossed and eyes fixed with a serious expression. If anyone somehow got past Vegeta, they'd then have to deal with Goku himself next. Toushiro could only smile with joy as he saw the two strongest warriors in the universe standing firm, ready to defend Kusaka to their limit. Both saiyans just stood there in silence. They knew they didn't have to say or do anything more. Everyone on the scene knew which of them was the fastest and which was the strongest. Together the power and strength these two had was like a wall. A wall that even Yamamoto himself did not dare to challenge, and the Head-Captain quietly sheathed his sword and backed down.

Yamamoto: "Then again... We could turn a blind eye... Just this once."

Many sighs were heard and smiles formed. Kusaka breathed a deep sigh of relief. He had just been saved by the very man who wanted to kill him a while ago. Toushiro limped over to his saiyan friend and hugged him tightly to thank him. The poor boy was still sore from his injuries. It couldn't be heard by all, but Vegeta's sensitive hearing heard Kusaka loud and clear.

Kusaka: "Thank you."

And that's what had happened. Yamamoto kept his word and turned a blind eye on the whole thing with Kusaka. The scarred man apologized to Vegeta and the others and was offered a place to stay. But Kusaka turned down the offer, saying that he wanted to see the World of The Living. Although Vegeta apologized to Yamamoto for his behavior, there was still some underlining tension between them. It was a hint of a fight to come. But for now things went back to normal. At least as normal as it got in Toushiro's life. It would take a little while for his wounds to heal, but they were just collateral of the lesson he had learned. A lesson to prove that life holds many surprises and nothing is concrete.

The End.