I'm so sorry that I haven't updated my story in so long. This is the 7th chapter and I hope you enjoy it.

Disclaimer: I don't own bleach.

Toushirou's thoughts


Holding On

Chapter 7- Nightmares coming true

Toushirou laid in Ichigo's bed, sore from hitting tree trunks. He had to admit though; Karin was getting better at controlling her reiatsu. He wondered how long it would take to surveillance the town before he had to leave.

We need more information as to why the menos have been attacking and why there weren't any attacking today thought Toushirou.

Then suddenly the screen on the wall turned on. Toushirou was a bit shocked by it that when he tried to get up he fell off the bed in the process. Toushirou quickly got to his feet and stood in front of the screen to see Yamamoto.

"Hitsugaya-taicho, do you have any information for us?" he said.

"No sir" said Toushirou respectively.

"Hitsugaya-taicho, you realize that we have a time limit" said Yamamoto.

"Yes" said Toushirou.

"You must hurry, Hitsugaya-taicho. Lives hang in the balance" said Yamamoto before disappearing from the screen as it shut off.

I know lives hang in the balance and I know I've got to hurry, but I just can't seem to get any clues Toushirou thought as he climbed back into his bed. Then Toushirou felt a sharp reiatsu nearby.

It couldn't be thought Toushirou as he ran out of his room and into Karin's. He looked at Karin and there she was blowing out reiatsu like a fire hydrant. Toushirou braced himself as he walked closer to her. She was tossing and turning just like the night before. Once Toushirou was close enough he grabbed her shoulders and shook her awake. Karin's eyes opened wide at the boy right in front of her.

"You were having another nightmare" said Toushirou.

"I see" said Karin. Toushirou looked at her face as she calmed down.

"Well, I guess now that you're awake I'll go now" said Toushirou as he began to walk out until something pulled at the back of his shirt. He turned to see Karin grabbing on to him.

"Don't go" she said. Toushirou looked at her quizzically.

"Just stay here until I fall asleep again" she said nonchalantly. Toushirou could see right through her act though. She needed him to stay, at least until she fell asleep. Toushirou would have said no if not for the fact that if she went to sleep and had another reiatsu sharpening nightmare then more hollows would attack.

"Alright" he said. He pulled over a rolling desk chair and sat in it backwards, facing the girl. Karin laid down in her bed, resting her head on her pillow.

"Toushirou, what's your happiest memory as a child?" Karin asked randomly.

"Well, what's yours?" responded Toushirou when he couldn't think of a happy memory.

"Hmm… I guess it was when Ichi-nii, Yuzu, and I went to an amusement park on my 8th birthday. That was the first time I'd ever been on a rollercoaster. I puked and Ichi-nii started freaking out, thinking that I lost one of my internal organs. It was so funny" said Karin as she became sleepier.

"Yeah that is funny. The only thing I remember from my childhood is eating watermelons. I used to spit the seeds out. Sometimes I would even use the seeds as weapons. Of course that was extremely childish but it was also quite fun to see the look on someone face after they had been shot at by seeds. Usually they would just…" he cut off there because he then noticed that Karin had fallen asleep.

Toushirou got out of the chair and pushed it back over to her desk. Toushirou then saw a frame on her desk he picked it up and looked at it closely. In the picture there was a young girl with black hair and right next to her was a girl with strawberry blond hair. Toushirou then realized the two were younger versions of Yuzu and Kurosaki. The boy with orange hair in the picture he realized was definitely Ichigo. Lastly was a man he recognized as Isshin but next to him was the same woman from the poster that Isshin cried to, it must have been Kurosaki's mother. Toushirou wondered what happened to her. He then put the frame down and headed back to his room to get some sleep as well.


The next day

Toushirou woke up by his alarm clock. He got up and got dressed. When he got down stairs he saw breakfast on the table. It was pretty much a normal morning until…

CRASH!

Toushirou turned to the crash to see that Karin dropped a plate on the ground and it shattered. Toushirou knew she felt the huge reiatsu coming for them. She had a completely shocked and scared look on her face before emerging from her shocked state.

"I just remembered I have to go to my early soccer practice" said Karin before bolting out of the house.

"I'll take you" said Toushirou as he was right on her heels. Toushirou popped a pill in his mouth and sent his other self to school. The two ran to where the reiatsu was and there he was right in front of him, there Toushirou saw Szayel. His pink hair was blowing in the wind.

"Well, how nice of you to come to me without any trouble" said Szayel.

"Why are you here?" asked Toushirou.

"I was sent to get princess over there" said Szayel pointing to Karin. Toushirou's eyes widened.

"What? Why would you want Kurosaki?" said Toushirou as he stood in front of Karin defensively.

"Princess?" said Karin annoyed.

"Way to notice the real problem, Kurosaki" muttered Toushirou.

"Hey! It matters to me" retorted Karin. Toushirou rolled his eyes before being attacked by Szayel.

"You beings are truly annoying" said Szayel. Toushirou got up from the ground and released Hyorinmaru.

"Why do you want Kurosaki?" Toushirou repeated.

"Hell if I know. All I know is Aizen wants her. I'm just following orders" said Szayel.

"Aizen's alive?!" said Toushirou.

"Of course, you didn't think you inferior shinigami could have killed him, do you?" asked Szayel. He then moved closer to Karin.

"Kurosaki, stay behind me" ordered Toushirou as he jumped in between the two.

"Do you honestly think you can protect her?" asked Szayel before transforming. Karin watched as the man transformed into a thing with tentacles and stick-like wings that looked like they droplets on them.

"That just does not look right" commented Karin.

"Tell me about it" said Toushirou. Toushirou then attacked the tentacles on the man but he missed. Szayel then shot blood from his body and it got Toushirou in the shoulder. Then suddenly there was another Toushirou. Karin's eyes widened.

"What the hell?" said Karin as the two Toushirous commenced into battle. The real Toushirou was stabbed in the shoulder.

"Toushirou" Karin cried in panic.

"Don't worry, he'll be dead soon" said Szayel from behind Karin. Karin quickly whipped around to see him. Karin eyes widened before narrowing as she tried to kick him but he caught her leg. Karin's eyes widened as she was thrown into a nearby car.

"Kurosaki!" shouted Toushirou. Karin slowly got out of the dent she made on the side of the car. Toushirou then went into Bankai transformation. He shot straight at the other him and destroyed him. Toushirou then went straight for Szayel. Szayel smirked and launched his zanpakuto straight through Toushirou's stomach and then took out his blade from Toushirou's body. Karin watched as Toushirou's blood sprayed onto the street.

"Toushirou" she said as she began to creep over.

"What's the princess going to do now" said Szayel smugly.

"I'm going to make sure that you never say another damn word again" said Karin as she released all of her reiatsu at once.


Well that was the 7th chapter, sorry it took so long. Please review.