Ookami no Garasukage

A/N: Thanks to everyone who has reviewed and favorited this story so far. I really appreciate it. Thanks to MnC21 all the help and ideas. And of course to Amore Inmortal for beta-reading. I'm sorry it took me so long to update. I'm not going to make up any excuses as I know was being lazy and procrastinated. And I was reading other fics and watching different anime as well. Another crossover fic that I recommend is Bleach Ultimate Alien volume 1 by High Prince Gasket. It's a Bleach/Ben 10 crossover that is simply amazing! I also recommend iSakura by annee loves sasusaku. It's an AU love story about Sasuke and Sakura in college. Okay now that I've said that, on with the story

Disclaimer: I obviously don't own Bleach or Naruto. That honor belongs to Tite Kubo and Masashi Kishimoto respectively.

Chapter 10

"Hey, Captain, don't you think that we should throw a little welcoming party for Sakura?" The busty strawberry blonde lieutenant asked, looking over at Hitsugaya who was currently up to his elbows in paperwork. She had a half empty bottle of sake in her hands. "She has been here for a week and she's probably confused. I mean she had just died and then we put her in that uncomfortable situation."

"What are you talking about now, Rangiku?" Hitsugaya said as he continued working on his paperwork. He didn't bother looking up. He was used to his lieutenant's ditzy behavior and he didn't want to get mixed up in another of her crazy schemes. "And don't you think it's too early to be drinking. Have you finished the paperwork I assigned you?"

"Aww, don't be such a wet blanket, Toshiro. I already finished the paperwork and left it on your desk." Rangiku said as she knew perfectly well that that was an outright lie. The paperwork was hidden away somewhere in a storage closet where she could get to it later, hopefully after a few bottles of sake. "Come on, don't you think that Sakura needs a proper welcome? I heard from Shiori that she is becoming quite popular with the male Soul Reapers."

"There is no time nonsense like welcoming parties. Besides, you know very well that Sakura is not a Shinigami and that she is still under surveillance until further orders from the Captain Commander." Hitsugaya said.

"So, between us, what do you think about Sakura? She is a really pretty girl, don't you think?" Rangiku said as a playful look on her face. She liked her and thought that the pink-haired girl was a perfect match for Toshiro. Her captain was in dire need of a girl friend and that is where she came in. "She is only 17 years old and from what I've heard, she's single."

"Why are you telling me all this, Rangiku? I don't remember asking to hear the girl's life story." Hitsugaya replied in an irritated tone. It was too early in the morning and already Rangiku was starting to get on his nerves. Why did he have to be stuck with such a lazy, bothersome lieutenant? What did he ever do to deserve this? Sure, he cared about and respected Rangiku. She was like a sister to him, albeit a meddlesome one who was bent on driving him to insanity. He knew what she was trying to do and whatever she was planning in her mind was not going to work.

"I was just trying to lighten the mood a little. You're always so serious that at this rate you'll never find a girlfriend." Rangiku teased as she looked over at him. Teasing him was always so much fun because she could get away with it, besides it was also very interesting to see the face that Toshiro made each time. Toshiro was just so easy to rile up with her schemes.

"And who told you that I'm looking for a girlfriend? I am far too busy running this division to be thinking of such trivial matters." Hitsugaya replied trying his best to control his temper.

"Don't say that, Hitsugaya. Everyone deserves to love, even you of all people. You're still young and need to lose all that hostility. Trust me; you need a girl in your life. Unless...You're playing for the other team." Rangiku said with an inquisitive gaze.

"I'm not gay if that's what you're getting at." Toshiro replied grimly. Kami what was wrong with this woman. She was starting to really get on his nerves.

"Well, you could have fooled me. I mean, I don't mean to offend but I've never seen you with a girl before. Well except that one time with that girl, Ichigo's sister but that was for some game, wasn't it?" She asked. "Really, I think you need someone. And maybe Sakura can be that someone. Her coming here must mean something. She's the only girl who isn't taller than you. It must be a sign!"

"Enough, Rangiku. I need to work. I have to finish going through this paper work and I need peace and quiet if I'm going to do so." He said.

"Fine. Sheesh, Captain, you really need to lighten up." the blonde said with a pout.

"Rangiku, I can't find any of the paperwork you said you left on my desk. I better not find out that you've lost them. Those are important documents that Captain Yamamoto has requested." Hitsugaya asked looking at Rangiku who had her I'm innocent look.

Before he could reprimand her, Izuru Kira and Renji Abarai appeared.

"Hey, we just heard from Captain Ukitake that Sakura asked for permission to train. She's going to go up against Shiori." Renji exclaimed. "They're gonna train in the 9th Division training grounds."

"Really?" Rangiku asked looking excited. This was something she did not want to miss. Plus, it could give her the excuse to throw a party later and to get away from her Captain's questioning. "I wanna go see. Maybe we'll get to see some cool ninja tricks. Coming, Captain?"

"I'm busy at the moment and I don't have time to waste." Hitsugaya replied going back to work on his paperwork.

"Well, I'm going. Come on, guys." Rangiku said as she got off the couch and followed the other two lieutenants leaving her captain alone.

Toshiro was readily annoyed. For one part he was glad that Rangiku had let him alone to work in peace. But on the other, he was irritated because she had left him to finish all this paperwork on his own. Although it wasn't anything out of the ordinary. Rangiku always did everything to get out of doing work. But still, to leave him like this and without telling him where she had left those documents that he needed to look over before sending them off.

Sighing heavily he decided to look for the documents himself. If he wanted work done, he had to do it himself. And he still had to bring some documents to Captain Hisagi. Grabbing a stack of paperwork, Hitsugaya walked out the door and towards the 9th Division offices. Part of him was also curious about Sakura's fighting capabilities but that wasn't something he would admit. After all, he still didn't trust that girl. There was something about her that unsettled him. He just couldn't understand what it was.

As he made his way towards the 9th division barracks, Toshiro sensed Shiori's reiatsu as well as Sakura's strange one. Curiosity got the best of him and he made his way towards the battle. He stood by a place where he could see the two girls training but without getting to close.

From his stand point, Hitsugaya watched as Sakura and Shiori trained, both giving this battle their all. Shiori had her zanpakuto drawn while Sakura fought with star shaped weapons and small knives. He was impressed because he hadn't expected Sakura to be a good fighter. Shiori, too, was impressive but she wasn't using her full strength he thought.

"Those two are extraordinary fighters, don't you agree, Toshiro?" Ukitake asked. Toshiro hadn't seen the Captain standing there. He had been too enthralled by the graceful yet lethal fight.

"They're alright, I guess." Toshiro answered looking as he wasn't really interested.

"Alright? I think that they are amazing. Sakura and Shiori really know how to put on a show. Although, I believe that they haven't noticed the crowd that came to see them spar." Ukitake said as he did not take his eyes off the fight, not wanting to miss a thing. "I think that amazing doesn't even begin to cover their impressive fight skills."

"Did you really come all the way here just to watch them fight, Ukitake?" The younger captain asked.

"Why of course. I wanted to see exactly how powerful Sakura was. I didn't expect her to be this strong or hold her own against Lieutenant Inuzuri. I'm certainly impressed. Sakura is at lieutenant level, possibly even at captain level or above." Ukitake said.

"I seriously doubt that, Ukitake. She may be at Inuzuri's level but she certainly doesn't seem to be at captain level." Hitsugaya countered.

"Appearances can be deceiving, Toshiro. You of all people should know that."

Toshiro remained silent. He knew that Ukitake was right. After all, in the past none of his opponents ever took him seriously because of his stature and appearance. He didn't look like a threat to anyone and that was the biggest mistake his enemies made. But he was not going to admit that Ukitake was right. He had his pride to uphold after all.

"I have to deliver some things to Hisagi. I don't have time to waste." He said as he began to walk away.

"Alright, Toshiro. I won't keep you from your duties then." Ukitake said. "I'll see you later at the party. I hope that you are not too busy to come."

Hitsugaya didn't say anything as he walked away. He didn't have time to waste on such frivolities as parties. Or watching spar matches. He was a Captain of the Soul Society and his work came first. Still, he couldn't help but glance over at the fight. He really didn't know what to make of Sakura. He didn't trust the girl. He still thought that she could be a threat and the fact that she was friends with the former Espada didn't sit well with him. He decided that he would watch her and if he saw that she indeed posed a threat, then he would eliminate her if necessary.

Sakura wasn't quite sure what to make of her new life in the Soul Society. Sure, she had a rocky start when she and Ulquiorra had been captured and brought to the Seireitei, but she had managed to make a few friends. Shiori, the girl who she'd met in the forest was nice and had showed her around the 9th Division barracks as well as showed her around the Seireitei. She had introduced her to her friends and helped her get settled in her new life.

But still, Sakura felt well bored. She was itching for a good sparring match. She was a ninja and she didn't want to grow soft even in death. After all she had gone through in life to get strong, she wasn't about to throw all that away. Luck was definitely on her side because a few days later, Shiori told her that the Captain Commander had given her permission to train. That very same day, Sakura found herself going up against Shiori in the 9th division training grounds.

Both girls decided to give it their all in the match and Sakura had been surprised by Shiori's power. Sure, she surmised that Shiori wasn't second in command for nothing but she hadn't expected her to be this strong. Likewise, Shiori hadn't thought that the pink haired girl was strong enough to fight her. She was surprised that she had to use her zanpakuto to fight. Neither girl held back. Sakura was in awe when she saw Shiori release her zanpakuto which turned it from a regular looking sword to a two piece weapon attached together by an ice crystal chain. One was katana and the other was a war fan that reminded her of Temari's except that Shiori's fan launched ice shards and was capable of creating frost. In the end, their battle had ended in a draw.

Both girls were shocked too see that they had drawn quite a crowd who'd been eager to see the newcomer in action fighting against one of their own. Among those that had gathered, Shiori noticed was Rangiku Matsumoto, lieutenant of the 10th division along with the lieutenants of the 3rd and 6th divisions, Izuru Kira and Renji Abarai, respectively.

"Shiori. Sakura. That was an amazing sparring match." the busty strawberry blonde said as she walked towards with a smile on her face.

"I have to say that I'm impressed." the redhead Renji said and Kira nodded in assent. "You've really come a long way, Shiori. And Sakura, you were simply amazing."

"Thanks, Renji, was it?" Sakura said with a grin in her face. "I'm glad that being dead hasn't messed with my strength and stamina. That would have been a real downer if I couldn't use any of my jutsu."

"I was impressed by those attacks. It was like if you were using shikai but without a zanpakuto. Are those some of your ninja moves?" Rangiku asked.

"Yeah. Some of them took me years to master while others were way easier, especially genjutsu." Sakura said explaining the way of the shinobi to the curious shinigami. She answered their questions as best as she could without revealing village secrets. She may be dead but was still loyal to Konoha, her one and only home.

"Wow that sounds so cool. And you say that there are many ninja villages like yours?" Rangiku asked.

"Yeah there are. My village is Konohagkure, the Village Hidden in the leaves. Our closest ally village is Sunagakure, the Villiage Hidden in the sand. Then there is also Amegakure, Otogakure, Kirigakure, Kumogakure, Iwagakure, etc each village specializes in different jutsu and each has their own unique abilities." Sakura answered. "I could go on forever talking about the ninja world but I really don't want to talk about that too much."

"You're still not used to things here are you?" Shiori asked with a look of concern etched on her face for her new friend. "You miss your friends back in your village." It wasn't a question, more like a statement of fact.

"Yeah, I do miss my friends. So much. I guess I haven't gotten really used to knowing that I won't see them anymore, hopefully for a very long time," Sakura said. "But I hope that they can at least live happy long lives. Although in our line of work, it is easy to die."

"We can understand that it is difficult to adjust to life here in the Seireitei but at least you know that your friends will always remember you in their hearts and you can also gain new friends here." Rangiku said in one of her rare moments of wisdom.

Sakura smiled thanking the older woman. Shiori looked over behind Rangiku's shoulder and noticed Hitsugaya looking over in their direction. Once he caught sight of her, he walked away without a backward glance. She just shrugged it off and turned her attention back towards her friends. Although her mind did wander slightly towards the captain of the 10th Division.

"Ah hell." Shiori suddenly yelled as she remembered something important.

"What's wrong, Shiori?" Kira asked.

"I forgot to go take Ulquiorra's breakfast since I was sparring with Sakura." Shiori said.

"Where is the Espada anyways? I haven't heard anything about him since Yamamoto left him in your supervision." Renji asked.

"He's back in the 1st Division barracks, in the holding area. Yamamoto doesn't trust him enough to keep him anywhere else. I am supposed to take his meals there everyday and continue healing him because no one from the 4th Division is willing to go near him and Unohana-taichou can't make them if they don't want to. I'm not an expert healer but I've been doing my best." Shiori answered.

"His wounds haven't healed yet?" Sakura asked sounding concerned about the health of Ulquiorra. He was her friend even if he didn't think that. "His wounds should have been healed by now. I healed most of the worst with my chakra."

Shiori looked down away from Sakura, "There was an incident the first day...some men from the 11th found out about Ulquiorra and well they attacked him. If Yamamoto and I hadn't arrived they would have killed him."

"What? Why didn't he defend himself? He's strong isn't he?" Matsumoto wondered.

He couldn't fight to defend himself because he's too strong. He could have easily killed those men but that would have destroyed the fragile stalemate he's in and Yamamoto would have sentenced him to death." Shiori explained.

"Is he alright, though?" Sakura asked as she kicked into medic mode. "He was still coughing up blood those last few days before we were caught."

"He is fine, mostly. Unohana-taichou did heal most of the worst injuries that day but she left the rest up to me." Shiori said.

"Do you think I can go see him?" Sakura asked looking concerned.

Shiori shook her head, "I'm sorry but you can't. Yamamoto-taichou has forbidden anyone from seeing Ulquiorra. I'm the only one other than Yamamoto-taichou or Sasakibe-sama who can see him for now."

"Meaning that I'm still not quite trusted." Sakura said.

Shiori hung her head in shame. She did trust Sakura even though she hardly knew her. She wished she could do something about the situation but Yamamoto-taichou's orders had been clear and she couldn't go against them.

"I'm sorry, Sakura." Shiori whispered.

"It's alright, Shiori. I understand. I know that I may seem untrustworthy because I healed Ulquiorra who is your enemy but I hope that in time I might earn everyone's trust." Sakura replied.

All through the two girls talk, the three other lieutenants had been whispering amongst themselves. Rangiku was busy planning Sakura's surprise party. She already told Kira and Renji to gather everyone else to help them put everything together. She would make sure that there was plenty of sake to celebrate. It would be fun and hopefully the party would help Sakura get better acquainted with everyone in the Soul Society. Though there was an ulterior motive Rangiku was throwing this party and it wasn't to get out of doing paperwork, well maybe in part it was but not completely. She was also hoping to get her dear captain to loosen up and match make him with Sakura. She could see it now, in her minds eye, Sakura and Toshiro together. The mere thought of it made her shriek in excitement. She couldn't wait for tonight!

A/N: I know that this chapter kinda sucked but what can I do. Hopefully the next chapter will be more interesting. This is just a filler. I am sorry that I took so long to update. Next chapter will be the party, where I am hoping to start with all the Sakura/Hitsugaya drama. There may be some Shiori/Ulquiorra in it too. I will try my best to update soon.