As always thanks to SoldierG65434-2 for beta-reading. Enjoy.
Chapter 9
There was a small part of Soi Fon that thought that being separated from Yoruichi for one hundred years would make this separation easier. However, that small part was overpowered by the truth. Their romantic relationship only made it harder. The break-up took a toll on Soi Fon. Her already tight grip on her subordinates tightened even farther. She trained them almost nonstop. Maybe there was another part of her that wanted her squad to feel what she felt, just so someone could.
She had turned away from drinking as her source to numb the pain. The day after the break-up Ukitake and Kyouraku came into her office and cleaned out any offending bottles of liquor. They claimed it was for her own good. Soi Fon just saw it as a blow in the face. After that incident she had removed herself from her already sparse social activities. Instead she poured herself into her training, even ignoring her duties as captain. Her technique greatly improved but at the cost of damaging her emotional health. Retsu Unohana realized this.
The fourth squad captain arrived at the cherry blossom grove one afternoon. Years ago, Soi Fon had told her what happened here with Yoruichi. Unohana didn't understand why the young women would choose such an emotionally charged place to train. But she suspected that the captain had her reasons.
Unohana walked through the grove till she reached the clearing. It appeared that no one was there. Suddenly a flash of black sped by her. It dashed to the top of a nearby tree and left behind a familiar symbol; the homonka. She smiled and called out Soi Fon's name. The flash stopped for a fraction of a second then appeared in front of Unohana in the form of a panting young woman. The smile vanished from the other captain's face. Soi Fon was a mess. Her usual well-kept hair was in shambles. She hadn't even bothered to braid it. It hung stringily down her shoulders where it met a disheveled uniform.
"Oh my," Unohana gasped.
"I really look that bad?" Soi Fon asked. The other woman smiled weakly in response. Soi Fon sighed and sat down on the grass. Unohana sat next to her.
"Soi Fon-taicho," she started. "I'm confused. You told me all about what happened here." She gestured to the sakura trees in bloom around them. "So why would you come here of all places."
A sakura petal floated down and landed on Soi Fon's shoulder. She picked it up and stroked its velvety softness. There they sat for a few moments until she finally opened her mouth to speak. "I don't know what happened," the Chinese woman said. "How did that group manage to find out my fears about Yoruichi-sama and exploit them? Why would they do such a thing?"
Unohana could see that Soi Fon was holding back tears. Her motherly instincts told her to reach out and comfort the young woman. But for once in her life she ignored them. "I'm going to make an assumption here," she said instead. "As the leader of the Onmitsukido I assume you have sources within the organization, correct?" Soi Fon nodded.
"Have you questioned them yet?"
She shook her head. "I didn't think to." Soi Fon put her head in her hands angrily. "I'm such an idiot. I got so caught up in my personal issues that I forgot my own training." To hell with it. Unohana left behind her professionalism and hugged the other woman.
When they pulled apart Soi Fon stood to leave. "Thanks for the advice Unohana-taicho," she said as she began to walk away.
"Soi Fon, wait!"
She looked back. "What is it?"
Unohana smiled gently. "Give Yoruichi another chance. This wasn't her fault." The Chinese woman's jaw dropped.
"Not her fault!" she cried. "What did you mean 'this wasn't her fault'? Yoruichi was the one who went out and got drunk despite what I asked her. She's the one who went and slept with another woman. Give me one reason why I should give her another chance."
Again she smiled. "Because you love her. That's the only reason you need." Soi Fon set her jaw and spun away, not even bothering to even dignify Unohana's comment with a response.
Shizuka sat outside the office of her captain with two other members of the Onmitsukido having been called there two hours before to meet with Soi Fon. She hadn't been in the office of the 2nd squad captain since she was approached to be the captain's eyes and ears. After all, Soi Fon had explained to her, she needed people to find out things that would never be revealed in front of their superiors. It was only a matter of time before the woman figured out that it was her own subordinates behind the breakup.
She was jolted from her thoughts by the opening of the shoji screen. The fourth person who was called inside first was exiting. "She wants to see you next," he said to Shizuka as he walked past her She nodded and stood up, preparing herself for what she had to do. And with that she walked into Soi Fon's office.
It was a room almost completely bare. Like the other captain's offices the floor was covered with polished hardwood. The shoji screens on all four walls were closed despite the stifling heat outside. In the center of the room was a desk with a chair in front of it. Behind that plain desk sat Shizuka's fearsome captain.
"Take a seat," Soi Fon said, not looking up from her paperwork. Shizuka quickly obliged her and sat down in the chair. They sat in silence for a few moments before Soi Fon spoke up. "I hope that you have some information?"
"I do." Shizuka said quietly. "I was directly involved with the fan club."
"The what?"
"It was a group designed for the purpose of breaking you and Yoruichi-san up."
Soi Fon dropped her calligraphy brush on the stack of papers she had been working on. "What do you mean there was a group? I thought Reiko worked alone."
Shizuka nodded. "That was her goal. She gathered a group of people to help with her scheme."
"Who was she working with?"
"Goto Hoshiyo, Abe Haruto, and me."
"You were involved with her?" Soi Fon asked. "But why would you come forward?"
Shizuka tucked a long piece of her brown hair behind her ear before speaking. "Reiko is my best friend. She asked me to help her so I did. She's not the most competent girl so I didn't think it would come to anything."
"But it did."
Again Shizuka nodded. "That's why I came to report it." The captain leaned forward in her chair and looked inquisitively into the girl's eyes. She didn't flinch.
"You're a good kid Shizuka," Soi Fon announced. "I'm proud to have you in my squad." With that, she gave the girl a rare smile. And for Shizuka that was the best reward she could have gotten.
Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto also sat behind his desk that afternoon. He had had to work twice as hard the last week due to the loss of another captain. Before this week he had never let a captain off due to personal incident. Even when Kuchiki Byakuya lost his wife the Sotaicho still demanded his presence at work. But he hadn't had the emotional instability that Soi Fon had.
The second the last thought left Yamamoto's head he felt the presence of a familiar reiatsu. It was considerably weaker than usual but familiar all the same. "Come in Soi Fon-taicho," he called. The raven haired woman entered through the screen on his right.
"Sharp as always Yamamoto-san," she commented. He gestured to the seat in front of him. As Soi Fon sat she smiled. "Felt like I've done this already today." Yamamoto looked to her for information. "I had a suspicion that what happened was conducted by members within my squad so I questioned a few," she explained. "Turns out I was right."
"Interesting. I assume you'll find a way to punish them properly?" She nodded. "Then why are you here?"
Soi Fon sighed. "I need to take care of some personal business first. I'm here to request an opening of the Senkaimon."
Yamamoto cleared his throat. "I'm not supposed to open the Senkaimon for non-military matters."
"I'm aware of that," she interrupted.
He held up his hand to silence her. "I wasn't done," he said curtly. "I was going on to say that I would under these conditions. I need my captains to fight at their best, not distracted by personal problems. Go. I'll have the Senkaimon open by this evening."
