The time came. Everyone was at the Senkaimon. The captains and everyone else stood around. They were waiting for Kenji to show up. He was almost 20 minutes late. Hiyori lost her temper, stomping her foot. "Where the hell is this guy!?" She furiously pointed her finger at Shinji, glaring. "You said he was some guy from the future and that he would be bringing us to another world, but he's no where around! Is this a prank!?"

Shinji simply turned his head away from facing her steaming face. He kept his composure calm. "He's going to be here. Calm down, would you?"

Mashiro was tuned out to Hiyori's outburst and didn't catch exactly everything she said. By the time she focused back in on her, she was done speaking her frustration. "What's a few more minutes, Hiyori?"

Hiyori bit her tongue bitterly, still not pleased.

Just in that moment, the Senkaimon lit up. Everyone's attention went fully to it and saw Kenji step out of it. But not alone. Ichigo, Orihime and Kazui were with him. The captains didn't catch on to why Kazui came too. Or maybe there were just hoping that it wasn't the obvious reason why.

Kazui waved with an unwavering confident look. "Hey guys."

Shunsui's eyes widened a bit with a smile, seeing him. "Hey, kid. Wouldn't lie and say it's not great to see you, but the timing isn't."

"What's he doing here, Kurosaki?" Toshiro asked. His eyes were directed to Ichigo when he asked, so Kenji knew not to answer the question.

"He's coming with us." Ichigo didn't beat around the truth.

Most of everyone, actually everyone except for Kenpachi did not like the sound of that. Kenpachi grinned. "Hell yeah, kid. Join the fight like a real man."

"Wait, no," Shinji objected, "real man? No offense but he's still a kid and bringing him would be dangerous."

"I won't make trouble for you guys, I swear!" Kazui was quick to say.

But Shinji just plainly looked at him. "Dangerous for you. Everyone here is responsible for themselves if we get separated. When you're alone, and you will be, no will be around to help you if things get rough, kid."

Kazui's eyes strayed away a moment, thinking about his final training session with Yoruichi earlier. his eyes held a confident glare that they couldn't see, but did sense. "I can handle it."

Flash Back – 6 Hours Earlier

After Ichigo had left the soul society with Kenji and knowing that he had the green light to join the war, Kazui immediately headed to train with Yoruichi. He wanted to train as much as he could before he had to leave with everyone.

At the shop, Kazui raced inside, out of breath and panting. Kisuke wasn't around again and Yoruichi just happened to be laying on the floor in cat form. She was hardly surprised when he showed up. Her voice was deep in cat form when she spoke. "Ready for your next session already?"

He caught his breath for a while longer before answering her. "I'm leaving soon."

Yoruichi rose from her laid-back position at hearing him say that. "To go where?"

Kazui was about to just blurt out where, but then he halted. He didn't know if Yoruichi knew or not. Too bad for him, he didn't hide the inner conflict well on his face. She read him like a book with big bold letters. He was keeping something important from her. But not on purpose. Should he say something, even if she's not supposed to know?

Yoruichi sighed. "Whatever you're thinking of keeping from me right now, don't."

Kazui swallowed his hesitance. She knew he was holding back. No point in trying to fake it. "It's a long story…"

"How soon are you leaving?"

Kazui lightly exhaled out a smile. "Actually I… don't know. Might be in 3 hours. 4? I honestly only know I'm leaving."

"Then—start from the beginning." She told him.

Kazui did as she demanded. He told her everything about Kenji and the other world. By the time he was finished, maybe an hour had passed. Kazui had found his way to sitting beside her while a string of silenced passed between them. It was a lot to take in. It was hard to tell how she felt about all of it, though, since her cat face gave away nothing much. What happened next, Kazui wasn't prepared for and it nearly stopped his heart. Yoruichi had changed back to her human form. She was naked and baring it all to Kazui.

He shot away from her. "Geez, Yoruichi!"

She stood up, expression neutral. "Hm. That's unbelievable. And they're actually letting you go." When she eyed him, Kazui couldn't tell what was going through her mind in that moment. It was cross between concern and… anger?

The blush on his face had faded. "What?"

She masked it away when he asked her that. Hiding it with a chill, small smile. "Nothing. The reason you came here is to train, right? To prepare you for it?" He nodded. "Well don't expect to be 100% prepared. You still haven't mastered shielding your entire body and…"

"And?"

She caught herself from saying something. "You're hand to hand combat is not that great and you could be a bit better on your swordsmanship."

Kazui felt like a ton of bricks had been dropped on him. If she was trying to make all of his confidence go away and put his self-esteem at an all-time low, she was right on the mark. "Anything else?"

"Yes." She smirked. "Even so, I think you'll be fine when you get to 70%."

"Wait. What percent am I now?"

"50%. We have a lot of hard work to do with the amount of time you're giving me, Kazui."

Awesome. There's no way he can do this. Kazui was starting to regret wanting to go. Even Yoruichi was telling him that he wasn't ready for it. Kazui's eyes casted downward.

Shaking her head, Yoruichi gently tilted his head up to look at her. "Do you want to know what percent your Dad was at when he went to rescue Rukia? Go-ahead. Take a guess." She dropped her hand from his chin, smiling.

Kazui really thought about it. All the trouble and hardship that his dad went through on the mission. He almost died so many times. And the final time when he almost died, his hollow took over to save him. If it wasn't for his hollow side, he would have died. But his father was still strong. He had to have been stronger than him when he was his age. "60%, right?"

Yoruichi laughed. "Cute. But no. When he went to save her, he was barely ready to face lieutenant ranked. Which is why he had such a hard time before I entered the picture to help him. Before the training I put him through, he was roughly 30%. After the training, he was 60%." Well, Kazui kind of still had it right, he noted. "I'm telling you this, because your father, even when weaker than you are now, still went against all odds without fear. You're just like him. Fearless. That's why you're going, right?"

Kazui took a deep breath, taking his confidence back in and smiled. His eyes were glaring with determination. "Yeah."

"Good. Let's get started then."

"Ah," Kazui blushed heavily again once he took in her naked appearance again. He covered his eyes. "Please put something on first."

Just like his father. It amused her. "You're right. It wouldn't be best to fight you barefoot."

"Everything on!"

She laughed as she left to clothe herself.

The training was unbelievably taxing for Kazui. Everything he went through the last time, didn't compare. All the kicks to the body he received hurt more and it wasn't because she was hitting harder, it was because he was physically and mentally drained by the one hundredth kick. He felt the pain 100x more. Over and over again he tried shielding himself. 2 Hours in he managed to get it to shield from his arms to his shoulders. It was the best upside of the training yet and it made him smile widely.

"Good job," She told him. "Still far from the main goal, though."

His smile died slightly as he shrugged, turning his back to her. "If you say so—"

The next second he was face planted into the dirt ground after being kicked in the back. She rested her case. "See, if you had reach the goal, that would've have hurt you."

Kazui could feel all the nerves in his back twitch in pain. "Right… Let's take a break."

Yoruichi helped him up, pulling his arm to bring him up to his feet. Though he could barely stand upright on them. "Sure."

Kazui collapsed back down and laid on his back. Yoruichi sat beside him. It was quiet – before she broke it. "What exactly do you think about when you try to shield yourself?" She might as well had been talking to herself, because the only response she got was a light snore from him. Looking at him, she sees that he's asleep. Yoruichi didn't know how much time they really had left to train and contemplated waking him. But stopped herself when better judgement entered her mind. She could at least let him rest an hour. Thinking, she wondered why Kisuke hadn't told her about the war. When he got back from being called to the captains meeting, he acted like everything was fine. Somewhat. Whatever the reason, she's going to knock him over the head next chance he gets. He better not tell her he "forgot" when she confronts him.

Settling that annoyance in her mind, she decided to stay by Kazui's side, and while she sat there, she thought about when Kisuke first started training him when he was younger. She helped him learn a few things on the side too, but this was the first time she was his main trainer. When he was young, the training was a precaution for him. They hoped teaching him to learn and control his abilities would help him suppress his hollow side. And it did. She's sure that ever since that one hollow incident, his hollow hasn't surfaced itself. Maybe it was because Kazui never found himself almost dead since then. Or maybe the hollow is letting Kazui have control for now. At the moment, it didn't matter, did it? He's going to have to take control of it one day. The day they tell him about it, that is. And she wondered…

Should the day be now?

His hollow may show itself once he's in the war and in serious trouble. A lot of things could go wrong for him and everyone else if that happened. Kisuke told her to wait till he mastered bankai. Till he fully had a grasp on his Zanpakuto and power. If she doesn't say something, would helping him master his shielding be enough?

Kazui stirred slightly as he groaned softly. She looked closer to his face and noticed he was blushing. It made her wonder why as she thoughtfully studied his sleeping reactions. "At least… put some clothes on… before you hit me, Yoru…ichi."

Hearing him say that in his sleep made her pull back with a light laugh. She was honestly caught off guard. Not to mention, she didn't exactly know how to feel about it. "Even in his sleep I'm annoying him."

She had a feeling he'd be fine without knowing then.

An hour later, Yoruichi stayed true to what she told herself and woke him up by dumping water on his face. Kazui rose quickly, very startled. "What in the!?"

"Time to get back to work." She said, holding out a hand to him. His eyes laid on her helping hand. "Are you ready to handle it?"

Could he handle more? He didn't know if he could alone. But… He gripped her hand. He didn't have to worry about that. He had her help. And he would have their help in the war. And they would have his help. He was ready to handle anything with his loved ones. "Yeah. I'm ready."

End of Flash Back

Shinji accepted his answer with a nod. "Okay then."

Kenji surveyed who all was present. All except for…

"We're here!" Rukia outburst after flashing into view, along with Renji and much to everyone's surprise, Ichika.

Shinji pointed her out. "Please tell me she's only here to say her farewells."

Renji's arms folded. "My daughter is going. She'll be fine. She's going to stick by my side—"

Kazui approached her with a smile and held out a fist to pound. "You got my back, right?"

Renji never saw his daughter's eyes light up so much. Ichika nodded, smiling back as she pounded his fist with her own. "Of course, dummy."

Their fist stayed touching… until Renji awkwardly coughed and hand chopped between their fist, breaking them apart. "And I will be right there too, guys." He had a smile of his own, but it was weirdly strained.

Rukia shook her head. She honestly had sympathy for her husband. His daughter didn't find the most safety in him, but in Kazui. He had to accept that one day.

Ichika looked to her father with wonder. "Dad…"

Shinji was pinching the bridge of his nose. "Let's just go already."

"Wait." Toshiro cut in sharply. "I thought you said you could only bring 11 to cross over with you, Kenji."

Kenji was messing with his wrist band and pressing functions. "Um… Yeah. Kazui and Ichika were already set to come with and I could only bring 11 more."

"Right…" Toshiro deadpanned. He saw through his deception, but let it slide. It wasn't his place to say anything. If Ichigo and Rukia trusted their kids to go, it wasn't much of his business. He only hoped they truly would be okay in the fight.

Messing with the last few things on his band, Kenji looked up at everyone. "I have you all in the radius to come with me and the body count won't strain the device. You're all going to feel a heavy shift in your bodies, but that's normal…." Kenji looked away for a split second, "Vomit is also a possibility…." He said lowly. They didn't really catch what he said, he figured, since no questions rose. He faced them again. "Everyone ready?"

Shunsui smiled slightly. "I think we are."

"Okay then." Kenji held his finger above the "transport" button that would send them to his world. This was really happening. He was going to save his world and his family. There was no way they were going to lose the war. He'd make sure of it. His finger pressed it. The next split second that passed by was entirely warped and within a flash, everyone was flung to the ground of a street. Only Kenji stood on his feet, because he was used to the unpredictable rough landing of the device.

Hiyori was furious and was about to yell out in anger, but Shinji lucky enough was dropped next to her and quickly covered her mouth. Even still, it wasn't enough to completely muffle her voice. As everyone was rising to their feet, a swarm of hollows crowded around them. It was night time. The sky was already dark, but with the growing rate of hollows it was an eerie shadow of hell.

"Look what you did…" Shinji told her, still covering her mouth.

She snapped back at him. "Wha I Diph?!"

Kazui gripped his hilt. Him and Ichika were side by side. She was doing the same as him. "You ready for this?" He asked her.

"Yeah!"

Before any of them could brace themselves for an all out hollow attack, a vase, blue bubble shield encased them. They were all confused and wondered how it suddenly appeared. The question was soon answered, when into sight out of thin air, Kurotsuchi appeared beside Kenji.

"I just knew you'd attract trouble on your arrival back." He said as a matter of fact. The hollows stopped in their tracks and hovered around a while before scattering away. It was as if they suddenly disappeared to the hollows.

Kenji was grateful to see him. If he didn't show up, they'd all be having a tough time fighting through the thousands of hollows. "Good to see you," Kenji told him. Seeing that Kurotsuchi's attention was on the bunch of people that he brought back with him, Kenji took the liberty to announce it. "As you can see, I brought help."

"I do see that." His eyes scanned through all of them, smiling.

Ichigo was the first to say something to the other world man. "So, you're not…"

Kurotsuchi shook his head, already knowing what he'd ask. "And your surely not the Ichigo I know. The feel about you is very different…" His eyes darted to Kenji. "Honestly that worries me."

Kenji made sure to reassure him. "He still has the same fighting abilities." He hoped…

"Humph. And some lightness in his eyes. But I guess that's to be expected." Ichigo didn't know how to respond that. Kurotsuchi then noticed the two teens with them as well. "I would ask, but I think I already know. I will ask, why did you let them come with you?"

Ichika didn't need him to say her or Kazui's name to know that he was talking about them. She was as fiery as ever when she spoke for herself. "Because I'm not afraid to fight for everyone's sake! And neither is he." Kazui nodded.

Kurotsuchi then looked at her as if he discovered something fascinating. "Rukia and Renji's child?" Kenji nodded. "Little girl, it's not a matter of being afraid, but the ability to make it go away. I hope your words back up your abilities in this war." His eyes then studied Kazui. "Ichigo and…"

"Orihime's." Kenji further cleared up for him.

"My expectations were on that other one… The Tatsuki girl. Or did you not go to that universe?"

Ichigo's eyes almost shot out his head.

"I did, but." Kenji's eyes hardened then. "Yhwach had got there first."

Kurotsuchi folded his arms. "Hmm. I see."

Kensei went ahead to speak on the matter. "Excuse me, but, isn't that the main reason we're here? Stop chit chatting and let's move on to it. Where are we going from here?"

"Right. Of course," Kurotsuchi responded. "I'm taking you all to my lab facility – right now."

After he said that, the area inside the bubble flashed a bright white light. Once all the light cleared and everyone recovered from partial blindness, they all saw that they were no longer on the broken streets of a broken town, but in a lab. The flooring was broken and cracked stone. The walls were rundown as well. The only thing that seems to semi be in well shape were the tech and gadgets around.

Shunsui whistled, impressed. "Even in a crisis you manage to scrape up a lab."

"Funny. That's the same thing this-world-you said. It should be no surprise." Kurotsuchi responded.

Renji was astonished. He hand been since the moment they arrived at that world. "Are we not going to address that fact that all of this is real and we were just teleported here?"

"I don't think anything can surprise me at this point." Kenpachi said honestly.

"I second that…" Hiyori said, gazing around.

Mashiro was in amazement, but was confused as well as she arched a brow. "Shinji? Just what have you gotten us involved in?"

He looked at her simply, arms folded. "I didn't explain? We're fighting a war."

She snapped back at him. "Yeah, but didn't care to explain that his war is in another world!"

His eyes immediately went to Hiyori. "I told you to explain the details to her."

Hiyori laughed sheepishly. "Oh yeah. It's in another world, Mashiro."

Mashiro pouted as she fumed.

Toshiro passed up the idiot trio and approached Kurotsuchi. "What is the plan here?"

Kurotsuchi caught a gleam in his eye as he grinned. "Storm the soul society and take it back. But before all of that, there are a few things we need to get straight. Operation revive, search and dangerous negation."