A/N Hey everyone! We're back at Frozen Tears: Centuries of Hate! Last time, the Shinigami and their human friends were talking about the 'Unknowns', the name given to these strange demonic, zombie-like creatures that they were supposed to hunt down. And it also seems that something is wrong with Hitsugaya! What could be the problem? What would he think if he was told that he would be staying with the Kurosaki family? And just how would he react when he finds out that he was meant to go to SCHOOL?! All answers will be revealed soon enough! And there will be reference to episode 132 of the anime! Happy reading! :)

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Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach. Although Bleach is love. And life. Kubo Tite owns it all.


It took a while before everyone was finished discussing on how to hunt down the Unknowns. Yoruichi had explained that they could blast Balas like Arrancars could when she fought with them to defend a soul, and somehow could use Sonido. This led to the assumption of the Unknowns being somewhat like an Arrancar, as stated before.

Then there was another startling fact when Karin pointed out she had seen them huddling in groups before, lurking around the alleys, and surprisingly with katanas in hand. The katanas had seemed identical to that of a zanpakuto. When asked when she saw the scene, the soccer girl replied by saying at least a week ago.

Another assumption was made, this time assuming that the Unknowns were more like Vizards. Then Hirako, who had felt offended by being put together in the same category as the Unknowns, snapped, telling everyone that the katanas might have been stolen from other Shinigami. The 'Vizard' possibility still stood, though Urahara had to assure a fuming 5th Division Captain that they were not classifying the Unknowns as real Vizard. They were weaker than the Hollow-Shinigami race, and much hideous too.

This made Hirako feel a bit smug.

Eventually they decided they would stay around doing their own things while keeping a sharp lookout for the Unknowns. They had no idea how to track their reiatsu after all, as, according to Yoruichi, their spiritual presence kept disappearing, blinking in and out from existence.

"Finally, it's settled." Ichigo muttered, yawning tiredly. "How long were we here anyway?"

"At least three hours," Urahara replied, smiling cheekily. "It's already evening,"

"T-three hours?!" The Substitute exclaimed in astonishment. The shopkeeper nodded.

"Oh yes, someone, do call Hitsugaya Taicho back here. We'll just fill him in on the important points," Urahara said. Both Karin and Hinamori stood up, exchanged a small glare and went to where Hitsugaya was. Matsumoto stared after them for a moment, then jumped up and followed.


Karin reached Hitsugaya first, and was surprised to see the ice captain lazily dozing off, his head rolled to the side, eyes closed, and an arm resting over his stomach. She crouched down beside him and was about to shake him awake when Hinamori bounced over.

"Shiro-chan! Hey, Shiro-chan, wake up!" The 5th Division Vice-Captain called, bending over the sleeping prodigy. There was no response, only the steady soft breathing of Hitsugaya. Hinamori pouted. "Shi. Ro. Chan!" She huffed, clenching her fists. Karin suppressed a snort of amusement and grabbed Hitsugaya's shoulder, shaking him.

"Oi, Toushiro. Rise and shine, sleepy-head," she teased, and was satisfied when she saw Hitsugaya's eyes twitch. They slowly flickered open, dazed teal eyes being revealed.

"Hmm...? Karin?" The ice captain mumbled, tilting his head towards the soccer girl. Karin flashed him a grin.

"Good morning, Hitsugaya Taicho. How was your little nap?" She teased again, and laughed when Hitsugaya scowled, a tick mark appearing on his forehead.

"Was that meant to be sarcastic, Karin? Because it sounded like it was," he snapped, slowly getting to his feet. Karin playfully punched his arm.

"Of course it was sarcastic! But that was meant to be a joke," she laughed. Hitsugaya sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, and Karin heard a mumble which sounded like, "I cannot get jokes sometimes..." This made her grin broader and she was about to take his hand and pull him back to the table when Hinamori stepped forward.

"Shiro-chan!" She whined, giving the ice captain a puppy face. Hitsugaya blinked at his childhood friend.

"Ah. Hinamori. What're you doing here? I don't think it was necessary to have two people come and wake me up," Hitsugaya said.

"I'm here too Taicho!" Matsumoto called from where she was sitting on top of the rock Hitsugaya had slept against. Hitsugaya glanced up, only to see his vice-captain dropping down on him.

"What the-?!"

"Gotcha Taicho!" Matsumoto exclaimed gleefully, and the two fell to the ground, with Hitsugaya once again being suffocated in his hyper vice-captain's large breasts.

"Rangiku... san... You're going to kill him," Karin nervously pointed out, her sweat dropping at the disturbing scene in front of her, where Hitsugaya was struggling in his vice-captain's grip. Matsumoto blinked and snickered, before letting go of her captain.

Hitsugaya slumped on the ground, his face burning red, and he gulped in as much air as he could. "Matsu... moto... You trying to... Make me kill you...?" He gasped out, shakily sitting up with his trademark scowl on his face. The busty vice-captain giggled.

"Of course not Taicho! Why would I ever want to kill you with my-"

"Keep quiet," Hitsugaya cut in, his tone snappish. Matsumoto only giggled again. The ice captain stood up, dusting his Shihaksho and adjusting his haori, then turned to look at Hinamori and Karin. "So? Are we gonna go or what?" He asked, raising an eyebrow at the two girls.

"Ok Shiro-chan! Let's-" before Hinamori could complete her sentence, Karin grabbed Hitsugaya's hand and pulled him forward as she ran back to the meeting table, laughing at the stunned look on the ice captain's face.

"Less talk, more action!" She called back at the raging 5th Division Vice-Captain, while Matsumoto only laughed and followed after Karin. Hinamori seethed quietly as she finally chased after them.


"Took you long enough," Ichigo commented once Karin and Hitsugaya reached the table. He narrowed his eyes at their interlocked hands, and noticing his glare, Hitsugaya yanked his hand away from Karin's, clearing his throat awkwardly and trying to push down the blush that was creeping up his neck. Footsteps sounded behind him, and he glanced back to see Matsumoto arriving, Hinamori not far behind her.

"So? What have you all decided while I was sitting there, bored out of my mind and taking a nap?" Hitsugaya asked, crossing his arms over his chest. Ichigo snorted.

"Nap. Yeah right... Since when did you take naps anyway...?" The Substitute grumbled under his breath, but Hitsugaya caught it and delivered a swift kick to the orange-haired male's back. "OW!" Ichigo cried out, jolting upwards. Laughter came from the Shinigami as Ichigo could only glare at the ice captain, who returned it back, and huffed.

"We have decided to call... them- you should know what I'm talking about Hitsugaya Taicho- Unknowns. Your fourth-seat here came up with the name," Urahara told the prodigy. Hitsugaya blinked, realising that the monsters which had sounded hauntingly familiar had been named. He glanced at his fidgety fourth-seat and gave him a small smile of praise.

I knew I could count on him to get work done...

"We have also discussed about where your team will all stay. It has been decided that you stay with the Kurosaki family. Kazuko-san will be accompanying you," the shopkeeper went on. Hitsugaya stared at the former captain, unable to comprehend what he was hearing.

"What... Did you just say...?" He managed to force out, his eye twitching. The temperature dropped a few noticeable degrees, and Urahara gave a nervous laugh.

"You'll be staying with us Toushiro. Isn't that at least better than sleeping on the roof or staying with a bunch of girls who could probably leave you mentally scarred for life?" Karin sniggered. Hitsugaya cocked his head at her, the temperature dropping a bit more.

"Mentally what...?" He hissed. "Sleeping on the roof was perfectly fine for me, ok?"

"But you might get a cold, Shiro-chan! Please, just stay with Ichigo-san and his family for this one time!" Hinamori begged. Hitsugaya scowled, but relented.

"Fine..."

"Oh yeah! Taicho, you'll have to go to school!" Matsumoto said chirpily.

"WHAT?!" Hitsugaya cried out, his jaws dropping in bewilderment.

"Don't worry, Hinamori and Rukia will follow you along. The school is Karin's school. It's a college! This way, you can protect her if anything ever happens!" The vice-captain went on merrily. A sudden decrease in temperature told everyone that the ice captain was not happy about the decision of sending him to school.

"Matsumoto...!" Hitsugaya snarled, a murderous aura surrounding him. Matsumoto flinched and gave a nervous smile.

"Ah! I-I just realised that I have s-something coming up soon! Yeah! Uhm... I'll see you later Taicho!" She said, obviously lying, and shunpoed away. Hitsugaya snapped.

"GET YOUR LAZY ASS BACK HERE, MATSUMOTOOOOOOOO!"


"I can't believe her!" Hitsugaya complained furiously as he stormed out of Urahara's Shop, in his gigai and dressed in a loose, grey collared shirt with a white jacket, black slim jeans and sneakers. A belt was tied loosely around his hip. He shoved his hands into his jacket pockets, grumbling inwardly.

"Toushiro, just relax. My school's not that bad..." Karin tried to reassure the raging ice captain. Hitsugaya took in a few deep breaths, calming down slowly.

"I suppose you're right... Though I don't understand why I still have to go..." Hitsugaya growled.

"Maybe it's cause you look like an eighteen year old," Ichigo remarked. Hitsugaya scowled at him, but didn't say anything. It was true he looked like he was eighteen, so he couldn't really argue against that.

"Uhm... Can we go now...?" Kazuko asked, in his gigai as well. He was dressed in a plain baby blue checkered shirt with buttons and matching royal blue trousers.

"Yeah! The rest of your family would be worried if you haven't came back for dinner! They'd definitely want to spend as much time with you as possible before you go back to Soul Society, after all," Rukia said, also in her gigai, where she was wearing a yellow summer dress and slip-on shoes.

"Yeah..." Ichigo sighed, a crestfallen look on his face. During the War, he had gotten excessive training, which eventually raised his reiatsu to a considerable amount- so much that if he ever went back home to the real world, he could end up destroying it. Mayuri had only managed to create a gigai which could suppress his enormous reiatsu to the level of a third-seat, but it would only last for a week maximum before having to be repaired, and that would take at least two months to finish.

The small group said their goodbyes to the other Shinigami, with Ikkaku and Yumichika heading towards Asano Keigo's house, and Hinamori, Renji, Kira and Hisagi staying at the shop. Hinamori had no idea where Inoue Orihime's house was after all, and could only wait till Matsumoto came back from wherever she was. Hirako had gone off to search for his fellow Vizards.

As the two Kurosakis, Hitsugaya, Rukia and Kazuko walked, the ice captain couldn't help but notice several women staring at him. He scowled, adjusting his jacket, and quickened his pace. Seems like it's the same here...

"Of course it would be, Master,"a deep, serpentine voice sounded in his head suddenly. Hitsugaya smiled inwardly.

Hyourinmaru?

"Yes Master?"the ice dragon hummed quietly. An icy calm settled in Hitsugaya's chest, and he relished in it happily.

You haven't talked for a long time now...

"I apologise, Master... There were a few... matters I had to deal with,"

What would that be, Hyourinmaru?

"It is nothing you need to worry about Master. Focus on the task ahead. Or more likely, what's ahead,"

What do you-? Then Hitsugaya felt his foot connect with something hard, and he tripped, slamming right into Karin's back.

"What the-?!" Both the Kurosaki girl and ice captain cried out, crashing to the ground. Hitsugaya found himself on top of Karin, his hands on the floor next to her head, trapping her below him. His breath hitched in his throat, his heart suddenly thumping loudly.

"Hitsugaya Taicho?!" Kazuko and Rukia exclaimed, gasping.

"TOUSHIRO!" Ichigo snarled, reminding Hitsugaya of the awkward position he was in. He quickly scrambled away, blushing profusely. Head turned and not looking at the soccer girl, he stood up.

"Sorry..." he mumbled, eyes sliding towards Karin. Instead of mad, which he thought she would be, Karin was flushing too, a nervous smile on her face.

"I-it's fine..." she said quickly. Hitsugaya blinked, then remembering his manners, offered his hand to her. She took it gratefully and stood up. A feeling of dèja vú washed over the ice captain, and he remembered that he had offered his hand to her before, when they had first met and became friends. He smiled, and to his surprise, Karin blushed a deeper shade of red.

Ichigo was glancing between them suspiciously. "You never really did tell me how you guys met... And I'm sure the others had asked too..." he said, narrowing his eyes. Hitsugaya scoffed.

"We'll explain it now then," he snapped. Karin nodded. The group of five continued to walk, three of them listening intently, while the other two talked.


It was during the time when Ichigo had been with the Vizards, several years ago. Karin was walking towards the soccer field nearby and had accidentally kicked her ball too hard causing it to fly out of its netting, rolling towards the road junction. That was where she met Hitsugaya, who had picked up her ball before it rolled onto the road.


"You shouldn't have done that," Ichigo chided.

"It wasn't my fault... You wouldn't tell me anything!" Karin argued.

"Stop fighting! What next?" Rukia asked, sounding like an over-excited girl who was being read her favourite bedtime story. The ice captain picked up from where Karin left off.


Hitsugaya had passed the ball back to her and left. Then later that day, the two had bumped into each other again. He had been sitting near a cliffside, leaning against the railings and checking on his soul phone, when he suddenly heard footsteps and looked up to see Karin standing next to him. Her soccer friends were not far behind her. Then she had suddenly asked if he was the one who picked up her ball, and he replied yes. A 'thanks' came out from her mouth, and he just shrugged. Then a short silence had fallen between them, before Karin asked some questions, including what school he came from.


Ichigo laughed suddenly. "Who wouldn't ask that question?" He snickered. "I mean, you looked like an elementary student that time!"

Hitsugaya scowled. "And you weren't as rude as you are now, moron," he fired back. Ichigo smirked.

"Next please!" Rukia only pleaded.

Karin continued the tale by saying that Hitsugaya had told her that he had graduated early

"That technically is true, actually. In the Academy of Spiritual Arts, I graduated in less than a year," Hitsugaya said smugly. Karin punched his arm, laughing.

"I figured out that much already, Toushiro. There's no need to boast!"

"I wasn't boasting..." Hitsugaya grumbled, causing Karin to giggle. "Anyway..."


Karin had also asked whether he played soccer. He just shrugged, but she continued to tell him that her team was playing a match some days later. That was when her friends had pulled her aside and started whispering urgently to her. Hitsugaya had managed to catch their entire conversation, and got pissed when he heard one of the boys assume he bleached his hair, while another called him a midget and that he probably wouldn't know how to play soccer.


Ichigo guffawed, clutching his sides. "M-midget! They called you a midget! Oh god, that has got to burn!" He laughed hysterically. Hitsugaya aimed a lofty kick to his ass, kicking like the soccer pro he was.

"Shut. Up," He snarled, smirking when Ichigo doubled back in pain, clutching his butt.

"H-Hitsugaya Taicho is not a midget!" Kazuko spluttered, his cheeks red from the embarrassment of saying those words. Hitsugaya glanced at him, flashing a pleased smile. Karin giggled.


Hitsugaya had wanted to leave the area, but was stopped when Karin kicked her ball at him, aiming for his head. Then a miraculous thing happened. Hitsugaya had jumped, and halfway through a backflip, he stopped the ball with his foot, before shooting it back with a burst of power and landing on the ground gracefully. The ball had whizzed past Karin's head and smacked into one of her friend's face.


"I find that absolutely difficult to believe," Ichigo drawled, scoffing. Hitsugaya kicked him again, except this time right in the groin area.

"Want me to prove it to you?" The ice captain threatened. Ichigo, who was now groveling at the prodigy's feet, shook his head, his hands between his legs in pain.

"S-sorry..." the Substitue squeaked out. Hitsugaya let out a tsk, then continued the story.


Karin's friends had swarmed around him after he was dusting his pants, causing him to feel slightly nervous and confused. They had asked several questions, including what his name was, and Hitsugaya had replied by saying his name was 'Hitsugaya Toushiro'. The boys had proceeded to compliment on the coolness of his name, when suddenly his soul phone had gone off and he realised a Hollow had appeared. Apparently Karin was able to sense that one of the monsters was nearby as well, as she had a particularly serious face while looking at the direction where the Hollow was.


"Well, that's Karin for ya..." Ichigo said, gazing proudly at his sister. Karin grinned.

"Yeah I know that..." Hitsugaya muttered, blushing slightly.

"So, what happened next?" The Substitute asked. Apparently he was now getting a bit more curious.


As Hitsugaya had been the only one who was close to the Hollow, he took off, but not before the soccer group called for him, inviting him to join their training sessions. However, he did no such thing. And eventually, a few days later, Karin found him again, sitting near the cliffside, watching the sun set into the horizon. She had asked why he hadn't showed up for training. Hitsugaya replied by saying that he didn't have time for such things, which made the soccer girl comment he was pretty busy and serious for a kid.


"Kid! She called you a kid!" Ichigo chuckled. Hitsugaya scowled, and the strawberry immediately clammed shut, not wanting to get risked being kicked again.


Karin then asked why he was always at the cliffside, and he had mysteriously replied saying that watching the sunset brought back memories. That made him sound like he was older than he looked. Which he was, as Karin soon discovered later on. After a moment, Hitsugaya's soul phone rang again, and he checked to see that a Hollow had emerged. He had wanted to go defeat it when Karin grabbed his arm and told him not to go in the direction of the Hollow. This made the captain puzzled, as he had no idea who Karin was that time, and Karin, who realised how silly she sounded, wanted to tell him to forget it when the phone beeped again, indicating that the Hollow had been defeated.

A few more days later, Hitsugaya found himself on the roof of a building, watching Karin and her friends as they practiced soccer in the playground.


"Hang on a minute... You were stalking her?!" Ichigo exclaimed, flabbergasted.

Hitsugaya opened his mouth to protest when Karin cut in. "So that's why I felt like I was being watched! And probably why the house next to us felt a bit cold,"

The ice captain grumbled. "I was trying to hide my reiatsu, since I figured out that much..."


Hitsugaya was worried about something. He continued watching peacefully, only to have that moment disturbed when Matsumoto appeared, and once she realised what her captain was doing, concluded that he liked a human girl.


"WHAT?!" Ichigo spluttered. Hitsugaya blushed, and tried to push it back, a scowl on his face.

"It isn't like that... I told you, I was worried. If Karin had high reiatsu, she would have been attacked by Hollows..." he muttered. Karin nodded, though there was a disappointed glint in her onyx eyes.


Hitsugaya had adamantly denied that fact and went away, leaving his vice-captain behind.

Soon, the day of the match Karin had to go to arrived. The opponents were a bunch of middle-schoolers who had refused to abide by the rules. Apparently, they had hogged up the field for themselves when Karin and her team had wanted to play and, getting annoyed by that fact, got into a little argument with the older people, before being challenged to a match to see who was better.

The match had started out fine until the captain of the middle-schoolers played dirty and tripped her over.


"What?! Why that bastard...! If I ever get my hands on him, I'll pummel the life out of him!" Ichigo growled, his over-protective side coming out. Rukia smacked him.

"Language Ichigo!" The petite Shinigami huffed. Ichigo awkwardly apologised.

"What happened then Hitsugaya Taicho?" Kazuko asked, his tone intrigued.


Karin had ended up with a bruised knee, and due to that, her team was losing. It was then Hitsugaya appeared. The team had a timeout so they could greet him, and the captain was about to refuse to join them when he realised that Karin was hurt. He relented finally, and joined the match on Karin's side.

Hitsugaya showed amazing skill in soccer, stealing the ball from the opponent while they were dribbling, and their first goal was scored by him. The kick had been powerful enough that the opposing goalie had been knocked down by the spinning ball.

They continued to score with ease, Hitsugaya doing the shots, until they were on par with the middle-schoolers. One more point and they would win. Hitsugaya let Karin kick the ball in, and they won that way.

They congratulated each other, with Hitsugaya getting some attention, until a Huge Hollow suddenly appeared, and attacked the field.


"Wait, a Huge Hollow?! Are you sure?!" Ichigo gasped, brown eyes growing wide. Hitsugaya nodded.

"Karin tried to kill it by kicking her ball at it, infused with her reiatsu, but it hardly affected it,"

"Yeah... Then it wanted attack me after that..." Karin added sheepishly.


Karin had been shocked when she found out that Hitsugaya could see the Hollow too, and had tried killing it, but to no avail. Instead, the Hollow attacked her, and just when Karin thought it was the end, she was saved by Hitsugaya, who stopped the Hollow with just the tip of his blade. He had come out of his gigai and was in his Shinigami clothing, stunning Karin as she remembered Ichigo was one too.

Hitsugaya then killed it, and helped Karin to get up. There was a lot of questioning after that, including a question of Ichigo's whereabouts, which Hitsugaya didn't know.


"Ooh... So that's how you guys met. Hm. Pretty eventful," Ichigo murmured. "Oh, we're finally here!" He exclaimed in surprise, noticing that they had reached the Kurosaki residence.

The weary group trudged in, and just as Ichigo said 'We're back', a figure rushed forwards, a foot flying towards the Substitute's face.

"Welcome back, Ichigooooo!" Said a voice familiar to Hitsugaya's ears. Hitsugaya's eyes widened when he saw who the owner of the voice was.

Ichigo grabbed his father's leg and swung it away, sending the old man flying. "Cut it out oyaji! We've got guests,"

Kurosaki Isshin leapt to his feet, a massive bruise on his forehead, but grinning away. "Oh really?! Who could they-" he stopped abruptly, spotting Hitsugaya standing next to his son. The old man stared, unable to comprehend who he was seeing.

"Tou... Toushiro...?" Isshin whispered, his face paling. Hitsugaya stared at the man in front of him.

That voice... It was the one whom had teased him, so many years ago.

That face... The face of the man whom he looked up to, and thought of as a father.

Those hands... The hands of the one who had carried him countless of times, treating him like the child he had looked before.

There was no denying it.

Hitsugaya Toushiro, Captain of the 10th Division, was staring at the former captain of his Division.

Shiba Isshin... The man he thought of as a father.

"Shiba... Tai... cho...?"


A/N And Hitsugaya meets Isshin! Oooh, tensions are rising! I'm sorry for all the things above... This is literally 4370 words long because of all the past stuff. I honestly had no idea how to cut it short... And I can't believe I'm updating just after a day. Anyway, hoped you enjoyed it! What will Hitsugaya do, now that he has reunited with the man who he thought of as a father? The man who disappeared suddenly without saying goodbye? Find out in the next chapter of Frozen Tears: Centuries of Hate! Reviews please! :)