It took a moment for the shock to wear off of Rin. "You've changed your decision, Captain-Commander?" She asked as they came back to Squad One's buildings.

"I'll let you know soon," Shunsui said quietly. "Some things happened yesterday that I need to sort through, so it'll take some time."

"What went on besides the attack on Squad Eleven?"

"Miss Feng just about lost her mind. I've honestly never seen something like what she did, firing almost a fourth of everyone under her command."

"What?!" Kaguya and Rin asked at the same time. "When you say everyone under her command, you mean her squad and the Stealth Force?" Asked Kaguya.

"I meant everyone; and to top it off, the memo the Inner Court Guard brought over suggested that they be prosecuted for treason and not rehired," Said Shunsui, looking over at Rin and Kaguya. "So I have a little bit of paperwork to get done."

"Almost a fourth… so there's a good chance she's part of that group, too. Did Captain Feng piece things together and figure out it was her?" Wondered Rin.

"Say, Captain-Commander, would you mind if I spoke to you about the firings after we're done?" Kaguya asked.

Shunsui chuckled. "Hate to do this to you Miss Shimizu, but between a nap and an interview I choose the nap every time. After I get it sorted out I'll be glad to, though."

"That's perfectly fine, sir. It is pretty late right now." Shunsui held open the door to the main office, and followed Kaguya and Rin inside.

"Sir!" Hanataro Yamada waved to them as they approached the stairs.

"Ah, you're already here! Hope you didn't mind the wait, Mister Yamada."

"I got a nice power nap in, so it was alright," He said sheepishly.

"I'm looking forwards to one myself," Shunsui replied. "All set to go?" Hanataro nodded, and they took the stairs down.

"So he's here again. If he already knows everything, what is there to test?" Rin thought. "It's good to see you again. How have you been, Mister Yamada?"

Clearing his throat and looking away from Kaguya, Hanataro answered, "Oh! Um, I've been well enough, I guess. I'm still running around everywhere, but I've gotten a little better at keeping up."

"Thank you for being available to help. I know these aren't exactly routine jobs for your division."

"There really aren't any textbook jobs for us," Hanataro said with a wry grin.

"You've probably seen just about everything, haven't you?" Kaguya asked.

"I wouldn't say 'everything', but I've seen what the academy prepared me for an a whole bunch of things it didn't."

Rin snuck a glance at Kaguya as they went down another flight of stairs. "I never would've thought she'd be so powerful and feminine looking. She was cute back then, but scrawny, like Shinju is now. But a lot can change in a few hundred years…" Kaguya caught Rin's look, and smiled back. The rest of the walk down was kept in silence. The midnight quiet in the underground was deep, reminding Rin of what she could be looking forwards to. When they reached the bottom of the steps and the dull grey walls slowly lit up, Rin took a slow breath to steady herself. "Same room as last time," Rin thought as Shunsui opened the door to the left of the semicircular room.

The brightness of the flat white expanse of the room took several seconds to adjust to. As Shunsui shut the door, he pulled Mountain Bell from his jacket and tossed it to Rin. "No time constraints today, other than me needing to get some sleep," He said. "Now, the investigation and Miss Shimizu's testimony indicated the testing Fudo conducted was able to help you establish techniques normally only quincy have." Rin nodded, keeping her eyes on the floor. "And until now, there's been one missing piece from the murder scene: Blut Artere."

"Blut Artere?" Kaguya asked. "I'm sure Rin is capable of it, but it's not a directly offensive technique."

"True, but it's what she did with it that counts. Now, if you wouldn't mind, Miss Shimizu, this is something I need to test you for, too."

"Yes, sir." Shunsui gestured for her to go ahead, and Kaguya took a few steps away and closed her eyes. "It's like working with Silver Beam..." Kaguya thought. She inhaled the energy around her, redirecting it through her blood. Her already vascular forearms glowed with ethereal lines of blue light that slowly spread over them.

"Think you can handle this?" Shunsui asked with a smirk, looking over at Rin.

"I think so."

"Alright. Miss Shimizu, whenever you're ready."

Kaguya opened her eyes, and drew her soul cutter from where it was sheathed across her lower back. Smiling apologetically, Kaguya sprang forwards, the glow of Blut Artere leaving faint afterimages. Kaguya's immense speed triggered a surge of adrenaline in Rin, startling her into action. "I know I haven't done this in a while, but I feel like there should be a much larger gap in our speed," Thought Kaguya. Her soul cutter was a wakizashi in its sealed form, and she used her footwork to stay in close quarters and weave together chains of thrusts and cuts. "It's almost like she knows what I'm doing before I can even think of it! Faster..." Energy poured through Kaguya in an exhilarating rush. Her swordwork was aggressive, coming from stances and angles where she would normally have a height or reach advantage. "That was a Flash Step, but with her soul cutter! So that's how she's keeping up…" Kaguya noted.

"Ooh! Very direct. This is such a physical style she's using," Rin thought. "Deflection and evasion…"

Prying his gaze away from the high-speed clash, Shunsui looked over at Hanataro, who seemed faintly annoyed by trying to keep up with the sparring match, but otherwise unmoved. "You don't seem all that surprised. A soul reaper using Blut? Another soul reaper somehow still able to keep up with them?"

"...I was just getting started out in Squad Four when the Visored incident happened. Yeah, the academy told me all about what a soul reaper could and couldn't do, but they didn't say anything about… alternative methods." Hanataro spared a brief glance towards Shunsui. "They were captains and heroes, people you could look up to. Then later I hear about the Bount, and how the Blanks were used. I know we do things this way for a reason, but- ooh, that's a hit!" A thin line of red leapt out from Rin's shoulder, and Shunsui immediately Flash Stepped in to separate her and Kaguya. "I got ya," Hanataro said with a quick smile as he pulled out Gourd. Rin switched Mountain Bell to her other hand, letting her wounded shoulder hang loose as Hanataro inspected it.

"That wasn't too bad, was it?" Asked Kaguya, releasing her control of Blut Artere and sheathing her soul cutter. "I wasn't trying to take your arm off, but I did see and opening."

"It's nice and straight, not too deep," Hanataro answered for Rin. He got set and wound up, swinging Gourd at the wound with a grunt. The first pass began to close up the wound at the deepest levels but not quite all the way, so he chopped at it quickly with wild swings. Kaguya tried to stifle a bemused chuckle, but her eyebrows lifted in surprise as a thin pink mist rose from the wound and as it knitted itself closed. Taking a deep breath, Hanataro nodded, and sheathed Gourd.

"I'm all good now," Rin said with a smile.

"Excellent. I'll recite some poetry while you catch your breath and get ready," Said Shunsui. Rin nodded, and he drew Flower-Heaven Bone of Madness, lifting the blades and crossing them. "When the Flower Wind rages, the Flower God roars; when the Wind of Heaven rages, the God of the Underworld sneers!" The blades flashed, and the light faded to reveal their shikai form. "It's a shame I can't just ask her like with Kaguya," Thought Shunsui. "Blut Artere is buried deep inside her, and comfort can't draw it out." He lunged in, but Rin immediately took a large Flash Step back and recited Mountain Bell's release command. "So, I may have told a slight lie to the others when I contacted them about this," Shunsui lied as he ran in. "You aren't here for testing."

"Echo!" Rin's adrenaline surge into overdrive, rattling her nerves. She saw each of Shunsui's swings with razor sharp clarity. "The resonance is strengthening. I need to pour everything I can into it!" Sensing the rhythm of Shunsui's blade work, Rin used her footwork to press in close to one side, avoiding the onslaught of two blades as much as possible.

"'Capable of miracles with a sword in her hands'..." Shunsui heard Gengoro Onabara's words echo faintly in the back of his mind, and he began to feel Mountain Bell's Echo on the edge of his senses, washing over and around him. A color floated to the forefront of his mind, and he knew it was time. "Blue!"

"That's the color of my jersey!" Rin thought, startled. Her muscles tingled, feeling light and springy as she adjusted to the change of intention from Shunsui: he was distracting and misdirecting with his lead sword, needling in vicious thrusts with the other at the slightest opening. As he sidestepped to reposition Rin took a big risk and Flashed into a spinning side kick under his lead sword. The blow found its way in just under the subtle chop to cut her leg and forced him back. Rin followed right behind with a Flash Step, catching Flower-Heaven Bone of Madness' lead sword between Mountain Bell's blades and twisting it out of Shunsui's grasp in an instant, calling out, "WHITE."

Shunsui used the barest touch of his toe to the ground to slow his momentum and Flash Step away. He barely had any time to take a breath before she Flash Stepped over, placing herself between him and his lost sword. Her speed intensified by several degrees, forcing him to respond in kind. "You're not here to go down to her level, Shunsui." He thought, starting to angle back towards his lost sword. "Your here to bring her up to yours." Shunsui started tightening up his form when he heard Rin call out Slithering Rope. He quickly Flash Stepped out of the way, flipping over Rin towards where his second sword was, only to find she redirected the Way of Binding spell at it, the crackling golden rope wrapping around the hilt before being reeled in. Laughing, moved in and began using the same tactic Rin had used against him, staying close opposite from Mountain Bell.

"Laughing?!" Shouted Rin. "Every laugh, every lie is proof of the evil that kept me silent! If you're here to kill me you're no better than Renji Fudo was!" A low and rumbling roar like the wail of an orchestra tuning up swelled in. Rin saw Shunsui grimace as their blades clashed, and focused the sound through Mountain Bell's Echo. "Black!"

"So this noise is physical as well as released through her spiritual pressure," Shunsui observed. "I feel like she's close to breaking into it, I just need to push her a bit harder." The pace of the battle took a large leap forwards, the two using Flash Steps in their footwork as they shot around the room."I think it's time to take it to the next level and use my bankai," Shunsui lied.

"He wouldn't," Kaguya and Hanataro said at the same time, stunned. They looked towards each other, barely able to process the declaration and battle.

"While I'm holding your soul cutter? You wouldn't dare."

"And that's exactly how I know I should," Shunsui answered Rin. She felt Flower-Heaven Bone of Madness warm and vibrate in her hand, and the sudden sensation reminded her of Kaguya and Hanataro standing nearby.

"No. No. No! NO!" Thought Rin. She loosed a fierce battle cry, releasing her inhibitions and channeling energy through her arteries, the electric blue light then lifting off her skin and wrapping around her limbs until her whole body glowed with the sharp blue light. The rush of energy seemed to slow time for Rin, a series of cuts and slashes happening in the blink of an eye, jumping vast distances across the blank expanse in a heartbeat. Just as fast, Shunsui completely vanished, and she felt a burning pain tear through her side.

"Confirmation," Said Shunsui, lifting Flower-Heaven Bone of Madness from Rin's shadow and beckoning Hanataro over. "After we found out about Fudo's experiments, I was all but certain that Blut would be the way you hurled your soul cutter so far. And as far as silence goes, you don't have to worry about that. I think it's time to let the truth speak for itself." Shunsui sealed and took back his swords, sheathing them as Hanataro and Kaguya arrived. Rin looked up to him, her expression full of pain and anger as tears began to form in her eyes. "This probably won't mean much, but sorry. I knew it wasn't a technique that would come out of you easily."

"How extensive?" Asked Hanataro, Gourd at the ready.

"My right side…" Rin answered, sitting and then lying down on her back. She pulled her kickball jersey up so Hanataro could see the wound, and tried to slow her breathing.

"Goodness, that's a lot of blood." Thought Hanataro. He set Gourd aside for a moment, and kneeled down to use the healing arts. "That's… a surprisingly low amount of her spiritual energy used. Is that how Blut works?" The energy restoration done, Hanataro focused the spell on mending the wound, his palms glowing green. "Simple and clean, but all the way through…"

Kaguya bit her lip as she watched Hanataro heal Rin. "So she can use Blut, which would mean it was definitely her…" She thought. "But if that was Blut, I've not seen even the quincy do something like it… she meant to die, didn't she? One way or another, she wasn't planning on leaving here alive once she committed to using Blut Artere…"

"...Okay. I think a few stabs with Gourd, and you should be good to go." Said Hanataro, standing. He leaned down and offered Rin his arm, and he helped her up. Much less dramatically than when he healed her shoulder he thrust Gourd at her side, the force of the strike evoking a small cloud of pink mist from the wound. With a few more precise thrusts amid pink mist the wound closed up.

"You all are free to go now," Shunsui said quietly.

Kaguya leaned over and gave Rin a shoulder hug, walking with her as they left the cell. "Hey. Want to swing by somewhere for a nightcap?"

"No." Whispered Rin, shaking her head. "I'm tired and I just want to head home."

"Maybe I could come over with you, and just be around if you need someone to talk to tonight."

"That would be nice…" Rin leaned in as she returned Kaguya's hug as they continued to head up the stairs.

C=={======

"I'm just as shocked as the rest of you," Satoshi Hongo said.

"To destabilize two branches of the military like this is unbelievable," Said Juzo. "First she had my trio thrown into jail for absolutely no reason, and now this? What was she even thinking?"

"And to top it off, she only had women fired," Another member of the Stealth Force spoke. "I thought she was- well, you know- more appreciative of what we had to offer."

There was a brief silence before Kazue Sasaki spoke up from her end of the table. "I don't think this is just about gender. Otherwise, me and some of you might have gone out, too. Can any of you think of any other common denominators in the firing?"

"This isn't really anything special, but I do remember Chinatsu and Junko both had fire type soul cutters," One of Kazue's platoon members added.

"And Lady Yoshiko, and Azusa, Haruko…" Kazue trailed off, looking around the meeting room table, realization beginning to dawn on them. "So what's one thing that them and the others who we had watching…"

"Sasaki?" Asked one of Kazue's platoon members.

"...This is a bit of a stretch, but hear me out: Juzo's trio visits Takanade, all three of them wind up in prison. Machi's trio has a surveillance shift at Takanade's house, and she's still in prison. So my guess would be that Takanade knows who the traitor is, and she's giving identifying information to the captain."

"And the captain is kicking out everyone Takanade leads her to," Juzo finished. "But that brings up the issue of her and the captain working together, and possibly the captain offering her some kind of plea bargain." Juzo glanced around the table. "It's starting to look like we can't trust the captains anymore. We may have to take this directly to Central Forty-six."

"No." The Stealth Force members looked over to Satoshi, who had fallen silent. "The Kuchiki assassinations, the firings, they all have a common thread running through them. A female with a fire type soul cutter, and someone that Takanade would know of, an individual who has the assassination knowledge to get away with all this- until now." Satoshi stood. "Yoshiko Shihoin. I'm the one who organized these meetings, so I'll hand this to the Captain-Commander. These meetings never happened. Agreed?"

"Agreed."

C=={======

"-But the rest of us from the group are still

Out here, too- Shinju Ise, and Jin Ueshiba.

I've been thinking we should meet, and get

Caught up. It would be a casual affair, nothing

Formal; just perhaps to say hello. I'd be

Willing to host the meeting at my house, but

If you have any suggestions for a meeting

Place, I'd love to hear them. I'm swamped

With paperwork right now, so-"

Akinari Kubo set the letter down on his bed. He'd lost count of how many times he'd read it since receiving it the other day. The first emotion had been surprise, which was followed by suspicion, and doubt- doubting everything. The sense of brotherhood he had gained with his squad, the trust others had in him, whether he had really been alone the whole time, and above all, the trust he should have in others. While Akinari hadn't known Renji Fudo, there were expectations in place when he arrived that spoke volumes of his character, almost as if he'd already become a ghost and was guiding him from beyond. Akinari had proven his loyalty. Now, he had to prove what he was willing to sacrifice. He was at a crossroads, and there would be no returning from the path he chose.

It may have been a moment of weakness, but Akinari stood from the edge of his bed, the decision made. "I'm not doing this to be called a hero," Akinari thought to himself. "The time of heroes has come and gone. This is about Lady Yoshiko and the Shihoin, and what it means to be family."