Chapter 10:

"Excuse me. Has anyone seen Hisagi around? I can't find him anywhere." Kira stuck his head into a room filled with female Soul Reapers.

"No, Lieutenant Kira."

"That's perfect," he sighed heavily. "I needed his help with something and he suddenly ran off. No one has seen him."

"Have you tried Rangiku Matsumoto? She's always making him do things for her. She might have seen him."

"No luck. She ran off to a nearby bar. She's been there all morning. Good thing Captain Hitsugaya isn't looking for her."

"Come to think of it, he's been missing, too."

"I thought he was in his office."

"He is, but a lot of the time, he's not there anymore. Weird."

"Think they're planning something?"

"It's not their style."

"I'll keep searching, then. Thanks for your help." Kira quickly bolted out of there. He could smell women talk a mile away and did not want to get into that again. It would always result in him having to pick who he thought was the cuter captain. That just wasn't his style.

As he turned the corner, he wasn't paying attention to the Soul Reaper coming his way from another hallway.

"Rukia! Ruki-"

Kira and Renji collided.

"I'm so sorry, are you ok?" Kira asked getting to his feet.

"No time! Rukia!" Renji started off again.

The stunned Kira brushed himself off watching him run down another hall screaming her name. "Weird. Wonder what got into him?"

Renji ran down another hallway, still calling for her. "Rukia! Rukia! Rukia! Where the hell are you? Rukia!"

He ran into Hanataro carrying a broom, never bothering to see if he was ok. Hanataro gathered himself up and went on his way to clean the next room.

"Everyone's acting so weird around here. What's going on?"

"Rukia!" Renji ran past another room, never caring who might be on the other side.

In this case, it was Ikkaku. He had made himself comfortable on the floor and slept, passed out from all the drinking.

Wriggling under the thin blanket next to him was Yumichika. He had crawled in next to him as a surprise… and sheer amusement. He rested his chin on Ikkaku's chest. He was so warm! Why did he have to snore so loudly, though? He moved his head next to Ikkaku's face.

"Ikkaku?" he whispered.

No answer. Just snores.

"Ikkaku?" he tried a little louder.

More snoring.

"Ikkaku?"

"Huh?"

"Ikkaku?"

"Huh? Wha..?"

"Ikkaku-de-ku?"

"What?" he sounded annoyed.

"You awake?"

He turned over, frowning. "Unfortunately."

"Great! I wanted to talk to you."

Ikkaku opened his eyes and found Yumichika laying next to him sharing a blanket. "Don't do that. It's not funny."

"You'd be surprised how warm your body is, Ikkaku. Kind of comfortable. Well, it would be in winter, anyway…"

Ikkaku rubbed his head, moaning. "My head…"

"That's what you get for drinking too much."

"I didn't drink too much. I know my limit."

"Ok, smart guy. Then how much is too much? How do you know when you've had enough?"

"When you pass out."

"Like you did."

"I made it back ok. I just fell asleep. I didn't pass out."

Yumichika gave him a one-armed shrug, supporting himself on one elbow. "You still didn't make it back to your room."

"So what? I'm not bothering anybody."

With Ikkaku's back to him, Yumichika amused himself by sliding his stinger in and out of his palm. Ikkaku seemed like a good target. He was strong, fierce, and a good friend. He kind of wanted him to call him 'master'. It could be a nice change. He got ready to inject him, moving his hand closer to Ikkaku's spine.

The stinger slipped back into his palm when Ikkaku suddenly got up walking over to the window.

"It's your fault anyway."

"Huh?" Yumichika sat up, stinger safely tucked away. "What do you mean by that?"

"Why I'm so bored around here!" Ikkaku groaned. "Because of you using the Senkaimon so much without permission, the whole squad can't go anywhere. We're under lockdown until the old man says otherwise. Even the captain can't go out there and kill Hollows."

Yumichika frowned. "Oh. I see. Killing Hollows…" He sat up, folding his legs over the blanket. "Say, Ikkaku… I was thinking… Ever consider, I don't know, maybe… not killing Hollows for a change?"

Ikkaku turned, unsure if he had heard him right. "What? But you like doing it."

"I know, I know… But I was just thinking that rather than do that we could, I don't know, do something else. Maybe?" Seeing the look in Ikkaku's eyes, he quickly added, "It's not fair that you guys get all the good Hollows anyway."

"Try being more aggressive once in a while."

"I always let you have all the fun, Ikkaku! It's not fair!" he whined.

"God, stop! I hate that! You're such a baby sometimes."

He pouted childishly, teasing him. "Am not!"

"Shut up."

Yumichika stood up, kicking the blanket aside. "Listen, Ikkaku…" He started walking over to him. "I had this crazy idea in mind and I was just thinking…"

"Thinking what exactly?"

Yumichika stood shoulder to shoulder with Ikkaku. "It just came to me one day. Ever think what it's like to see the world from a Hollow's perspective? You know, feel the way they feel? That sort of thing. Hm?"

"No."

"Not once?"

"Never. Why, have you?"

He shrugged. "Only a little. It seemed interesting."

"Hey, you can think however you want. I'll have no part of it." Ikkaku turned the other way.

The stinger in Yumichika's hand slowly came out, hovering over Ikkaku's exposed wrist. "Oh… I think you will… if you gave it a chance…"

A hair from Ikkaku's arm and the door suddenly flew open. The stinger retreated in time. The two looked at the door, a small Soul Reaper standing there, panting, a broom in his hand.

"Sorry," said Hanataro. "I was asked to clean in here."

Yumichika moved away. "Go right ahead. We're done here." He walked out the door. "Next time… Ikkaku…"

Renji turned another corner sharply, no longer keeping track of which building he was in. He stopped to catch his breath for a minute, then continued what he had been doing for the past half-hour. "Rukia!" She wasn't where she was supposed to be. This was troubling. Where could she have been? "Rukia!"

"Shh! Would you keep it down?"

Renji turned around. A captain with white hair was coming out of another room to see what all the yelling was about. "Captain Ukitake. How are you feeling, sir? You haven't been around lately."

He inhaled deeply smiling, though he still looked pretty pale. "Much better. I felt well enough to come in today. I have to thank everyone who's been sending me gifts and well-wishes. Shame I missed so much these past few days. Anything happen while I was gone?"

"Sort of." Renji suddenly remembered his mission. "Hey, have you seen Rukia around here anywhere?"

"Um… Why? Is something wrong? You look awful, no offense."

"I just really need to see if she's ok."

"Ok?" Ukitake looked worried. "What do you mean? Is she hurt or something?"

"That's what I'm trying to find out."

He looked confused. "I'm not understanding. Was she doing something dangerous or..?"

"I can't say…"

"Lieutenant, if something has happened to one of my squad members, I need to know what it is. Please tell me. I'll keep it confidential, if it's something you're worried about."

Renji didn't know what to do. Ukitake was her captain. He had a right to know what was going on. He had been out for a few days so he was in the dark about the whole thing. It was unlikely for Yumichika to turn him evil or whatever it was he did to his victims since he hadn't been here for so long. And it may help him find her faster.

"Well, sir, it's about Yumichika really."

"That 5th seat from Squad 11? Why? What's he done?"

Renji moved closer to whisper to him in case anyone else was around. "My captain found out that he may be organizing a rebellion and is somehow turning Soul Reapers over to his side of thinking. He's dangerous. He's fighting on the Hollows' side."

Ukitake looked shocked. "What are you saying?"

"Yumichika is evil… you know, for the moment. We have to stop him as soon as possible."

"What does this have to do with Rukia?"

"She's been tailing him all this time, spying on him. We think she might be targeted next. That's why we want to find her. And no one's seen her so I'm starting to get worried."

The captain looked at the floor. "I see. So that's how it is…" He raised his head to look at Renji, patting him on the shoulder. "Thank you for telling me. I understand now. This is horrible news. Why haven't you told anyone this yet?"

"Because they might kill Yumichika thinking that he's possessed or had become a Hollow, which hasn't happened at all. He's just thinking like one and is trying to help them out by taking over the Soul Society."

"I see. That makes perfect sense to me. Glad you told me." Ukitake snapped his fingers. "Oh, yes! Rukia was doing some last minute stuff for me! I sent her down the hall. If we hurry, we might still catch her."

"Thank you so much, Captain Ukitake." Renji followed him down the hall and down the stairs. He led him to the far end of the hall to a closed door.

"Ah, good. I don't think she's left yet." Ukitake knocked on the door. "Oh, Rukia. Renji is here for you." He opened the door, showing Renji inside. "Go right on in."

"Thanks." Renji stepped inside and looked around. It was dark. There were no windows. This room was so small. He stepped further in, his foot kicking a bucket on the floor. It rolled to the back and hit a couple of brooms with a clang and a thump. He looked around at the shelves of cleaning supplies lining the three walls. "Uh, but sir, this is… I think this is a closet."

The door slammed shut behind him, a click telling him that it had been locked from the other side.

"Hey!" Renji ran to the door, pounding it with his fists. "Hey! Open up! Hey! Let me out!"

"Sorry," came Ukitake's voice from the other side. "But I can't let you interfere with what my master has planned. Yumichika will lead us to a brighter future for all Hollow kind!"

Renji's eyes widened in the dark. "You… you're one of them now, aren't you? He did something to you! What did he do?"

"Opened my eyes. And it only hurt for a second. Now I've never felt better. Oh, and thanks for the tip about Rukia and Byakuya."

Him and his big mouth. He listened with his ear pressed to the door. It sounded like Ukitake was leaving. "Hey! Hey, wait! Come back! Let me out! Let me out of here!" He reached for his Zanpakuto at his side only to realize that he had left it back in his room while he did the cleaning. "Damn it! I'm such an idiot!"

"What?"

"Yeah, sir," Ukitake said to his master. "Every word of it. I heard it myself from Renji. They know."

Yumichika paced the floor for a moment then smiled. "No problem. That just means that we get to start this party a little early."

Ukitake returned his smile. "Shall I inform the others?"

"No, I'll do that."

Rukia thanked Nemu for the gift she held in her hands. "You sure this will help?"

"Yes. We tested it and proved it's power. It should to the trick."

"Thank you very much. For everything."

"Just be careful with them both, ok? It's not going to save you from every attack. It's only good for one shot."

"That's all I'll need. Thank you." She hurried off down the hall, finally able to help Ichigo bring Yumichika down. Rukia had to get a message to Kisuke fast.

She ran passed Hisagi on her way down the hall. He passed her by without so much as a second look. As he climbed up the stairs to the third floor, he ending up bumping into Ukitake on his way. He noticed the look on his pale face and had to ask what was wrong.

"Rukia knows about our plan."

Hisagi glanced back the way he came. "Should I go after her? I just passed her by. It won't take me long to catch up."

"Do as you please. Yumichika is pushing the plan forward."

"Understood." Hisagi flashed away.

Back in the locked closet, Renji repeatedly threw himself at the door, hoping to break it. This door was impossibly thick, the wood reinforced. His only option was to use his sword and slash his way out, but it was forgotten back in his room. His only hope of escape was to continue to bash his way through to the other side. But that was doing nothing for him. No matter how many times he heard the wood creak, it simply wouldn't budge. Kicking and throwing his shoulder into the door wasn't working, no matter how many times he did it.

After doing this for several long minutes, and resulting in nothing but a bruised arm and ego, Renji stood back to think. He had no weapons and there was nothing useful in this closet unless he planned to dust his way out.

A sudden thought occurred to him at that moment. Why he hadn't thought of it earlier was beyond him. He had a weapon all along that couldn't be taken away from him. The only downside was that it wasn't his specialty. But he had little choice if he wanted to get out of here.

Taking a couple steps back, Renji held up his hands, pointed at the door. "Hado 31, Shakkaho!"

A red fiery blast hit the door with incredible force, sending it flying down the hall. Renji staggered out coughing and fanning the smoke with his arms. His hair and face were scorched but otherwise that wasn't his worst idea in the world. At least he was free.

"Now for Rukia…" He went right back to his first plan and started running through the halls again calling her name. "Rukia!"

Down the hall and on the main floor was Hanataro, continuing his chores. So far he had mopped every floor in the building by himself and was exhausted. He wished he had help. But everyone else was off doing their own thing. The rest of Squad 4 was either filing medical records of every Soul Reaper they had on file, tending to people in the sickbay or doing cleaning like Hanataro was doing. Sometimes he felt like he had dodged a bullet when he got stuck with cleaning instead of something else, but not anymore. Now he would much rather be filing papers with the other Soul Reapers. At least then he would have someone to talk to. This was so boring, mopping a big empty hall by himself.

He lifted the mop up, dunked it in the bucket of soapy water and slapped it back onto the floor. No matter how many times he did this, he was always surprised with how much heavier the mop became when soaked in water. His muscles and back ached. What he wouldn't do for a nap right about now. He rested his chin on top of the mop for a second, just long enough for him to rest his eyes. Slowly his grip went slack, dozing off.

A Soul Reaper came running down the hallway towards him, going at full speed. "Ruki- Aaaaaahhh!"

Renji slipped on the wet floor, slammed into Hanataro and the two went sliding across the floor going the full length of the hall. Hanataro was the first to recover, taking the now empty bucket of water off his head to look around. Renji got up second, sitting up slowly.

"Ow! Ah, my back..!"

Hanataro gasped. "Ah! I'm so sorry! Are you ok? Let me help you. Are you hurt?"

Renji suddenly stood, "No time! I have to find Rukia!"

"But you're hurt!"

"This is nothing!" He tried to leave but ending up tripping over the mop on the floor. "Damn it!"

"Please, Lieutenant, you're injured. At least let me take a look at it."

"I told you, I don't have time! By now, Rukia might be…"

An alarm sounded in the distance, alerting everyone in the area.

"That cannot be good," Renji moaned, having a feeling what it was about.

"Attention all Soul Reapers. Attention all Soul Reapers. This is an emergency situation. A Hollow is loose in the Seireitei. Repeat: A Hollow is loose in the Seireitei. All Soul Reapers are to report at once and eliminate the Hollow. All Soul Reapers, locate and destroy the Hollow at once."

The message repeated itself two more times and in no time, the halls were bustling with eager and confused Soul Reapers. Everyone was reporting for the task, running outside to find it.

Renji and Hanataro watched from the end of the hall as they all raced passed them. They could pick up on a few of their conversations on their way.

"I didn't sense anything. A Hollow, here?"

"I thought that was impossible. How did it get in?"

"I can't pick up its Spiritual Pressure. It must be too far away."

"Let's hurry and find it!"

Renji gave his head a shake. "That's no good. They can't find the Hollow because it's hiding in someone else. Its Spiritual Pressure can't be felt while its in another person's body. And the thing's too damn weak. They're never going to do this. They're not looking for a Hollow, they're looking for a Soul Reaper. This will just make everybody panic and get all confused…"

That must be the idea! Renji thought to himself. With everyone not knowing who the true enemy is, everyone will panic and not know what to do, allowing Yumichika to make his move. That must be his plan. No one knows what's really going on. He looked at the packed halls. And this makes it a hell of a lot harder to find Rukia.

"Um…" Hanataro was looking at him. "What's going on? What's this about a Hollow in someone's body?"

"Oh, I didn't think that just in my head?"

"No, you said it out loud."

Renji couldn't risk it. Though Hanataro was acting perfectly normal, he might have been on Yumichika's side, too. Ukitake was the same way. He was acting perfectly normal, but he had been infected. So it was true. Getting injected doesn't change the person's personality. It just changes the way they think. It makes them believe that their boss is Yumichika and that Soul Reapers are enemies. It just makes them take the Hollow's side. He couldn't risk opening his big mouth again.

"Lieutenant?"

"It's nothing. I'm going after the Hollow, too. You just… Just stay here out of the way and if Yumichika comes along, just run."

"That's what I do anyway," he told Renji. "Everyone on Squad 11 hates me and wants to beat me up. That's normal."

Maybe Yumichika didn't get to him after all if that were the case. He still couldn't risk it. Renji leapt into the crowd of Soul Reapers and wadded his way to the other side.

With all Soul Reapers dispatched and running in all direction, Yumichika gave himself a pat on the back for a job well done. His plan was going quite well, setbacks and all. Having Ukitake and Hitsugaya tip off the Head Captain about a Hollow was a great idea. There was no way Yamamoto would ever dismiss what a couple of captains would have to say about something so dangerous. Now that everyone was in a panic, it was time to make his next move.

"Hold it right there!"

Yumichika turned. "Oh?"

The captain of Squad 6 was standing with his men on the steps leading to the Senkaimon.

"What's this about, Byakuya?"

"Cut the act. I know what's going on."

Yumichika frowned. "I already knew you did. Your lieutenant has a big mouth. But it's too late anyway. I have this all planned out perfectly. There's no way you can stand a chance."

As always, Byakuya was as cool as a cucumber. "Have you overlooked the fact that I am a Captain and you are a 5th seat? Our skills are incomparable. I surpass you in more ways than can be counted."

Yumichika flipped his hair back with a chuckle. "My, aren't we full of our self?"

"It's fact."

"You flatter yourself, Byakuya!" Yumichika gave him an enthusiastic shrug, arms spread high over his shoulders. "You're too proud. You think you're the best there is and try to cover up your own narcissism by claiming that you're merely stating facts. Even a peacock's feathers get ruffled from time to time…"

"You would know."

He frowned. "Oh? Harsh."

Byakuya took out his sword and the members of his squad did the same.

Yumichika frowned again, giving Byakuya a puppy dog look. "You're really going to attack me? Why?"

"I'm not going to kill you. I just want that Hollow you harbor."

Yumichika looked over his shoulder, confused. "What Hollow?"

"The one on your neck."

Yumichika patted his neck with his right hand, feeling the top of his orange customized attire. "What are you talking about? There's nothing there."

As he pulled on the neck of his clothing, Byakuya could see a faint purple web poking out from underneath. It didn't surprise him that Yumichika was unaware of it. Even if he did wear standard Soul Reaper clothing, it was on the back of his neck. He wouldn't even be able to see the marking in a mirror. Yumichika was completely unaware of the Hollow influencing him.

"I see how it is." Byakuya pointed his sword at Yumichika. "I'll just be taking you in. I won't kill you unless you make me. Surrender now."

Yumichika smirked. "If only it were that easy… Captain." He folded his arms and shifted his weight to one foot. "You're going to have to make me."

"Fine." Byakuya ordered his men. "Take him in or take him down."

None of them moved.

He ordered them again. "I gave you an order. Take Yumichika down now."

This time they moved. They all turned and pointed their swords at their own captain.

Byakuya wasn't as shocked as he should have been. He was more angered than anything else. His eyes went to Yumichika.

He was laughing. "I had the great pleasure of meeting your Squad members, one by one. We even… shook hands." Yumichika held up the stinger in his palm.

This was Byakuya's first time seeing it first hand. It was slightly curved, almost like a hook with a sharp end. It was larger than he expected it to be, longer than any or his fingers.

No one in his squad stood a chance. A stinger in the form of a single handshake had made slaves of them all.

"Well, Byakuya…" Yumichika grinned smugly at him. "What to do? What to do?"

"What do you mean?"

He slid the stinger back into his hand. "Why, this situation, of course. I mean, take a look around. You're hopelessly outnumbered. Even you, a captain, couldn't stand up against your own squad. Look around you. They're all against you. You don't stand a chance."

Byakuya looked at the look of hatred on the faces of his squad members coolly. He shut his eyes for a moment as if fighting back a headache. "You misunderstand. Your calculations are incorrect."

"What are you saying?" Yumichika said with a chuckle. "You're outnumbered. What's the miscalculation?"

"You really believe that weight in numbers will be enough to stand a chance against a captain?"

Yumichika rolled his eyes. "You really are full of yourself, you know that, don't you? Either that or you're trying to say, in your own way, that a squad's only as good as its captain."

"I've been captain for years and learned that to be incorrect first hand. If that were the case, there would be no need for a captain at all."

"Then you tell me why they aren't a threat to you."

Byakuya lifted his sword, opening his eyes to look at the light reflecting off the blade. "Power in numbers means nothing if they don't possess the skill to back it up. That is the difference between us. It's a question of skill. I surpass them in skill and power. Even if I were to cut off both arms, I would still possess more power and skill than all of them combined."

Yumichika stood back with a smirk. "Let's test that, shall we?" He snapped his fingers. "Get him."

Byakuya's men got ready to charge in. "Yes, my lord!"

In an instant, Byakuya disappeared behind the black clad Soul Reapers.

This is war, people! And way to tell him off, Byakuya ^^

Please review! ^-^