Ukitake watched the gate close behind the youth and the words he'd flung back still hung in the air, the venom with which they had been spoken very much apparent. He sighed, feeling rather than hearing the arrival of the 2nd Division taichou.
"So much for the gentle approach" came Sui Fong's voice from the shadows behind him. "For all of his actions that you have correctly predicted, another three have been completely wrong." She paced up to stand next to him, as Kyuzo's reiatsu signature got further and further away. "His growth is nothing short of spectacular. He should have been taken out of the academy. Until he can control himself he will always be a danger to those around him."
"Perhaps he knows that in the recesses of his mind? I do not think he will stay away from here for too long. He will improve much from training alone, but I'm sure he will reach a limit and then return here. And he will want to test his strength." Ukitakes voice was as mild as ever, in sharp contrast to the hard tones of the woman standing beside him. He also ignore the reprieve that was implies by her words; he knew it hadn't crossed her mind and she was merely stating the facts as she saw them. "Are you going to keep tabs on him? I think he will spot anyone you send quite easily."
"Whatever he is capable of, he needs to be tracked. The incident at the academy won't stay secret forever. And there's always the 12th Division." Kurotsuchi would no doubt have some machine hidden away in the Technological Development Bureau that would allow him to track reiatsu signatures over large distances. Ukitake and Sui Fong were simultaneously thinking about how they could get the cantankerous taichou to cooperate.
"We'll ask Kurotsuchi-fukutaichou if it comes to that." It was the whiter haired man that spoke first, uttering the conclusion that both had reached. As far as she was concerned the conversation was over so she melted back into the shadows and vanished. Ukitake remained where he was, looking at the night sky and contemplating what the future may hold for Kyuzo, and thinking it should be bright.
Over the next couple of months the two ran into each other on a few occasions, mostly the taichous meetings that were held whenever necessary. While Kyuzo himself was never brought up on any of these occasions, they always found a moment for a quiet word, mostly so Ukitake could find out if the scouts that he knew Sui Fong had out in Rukongai and beyond had found anything. Eventually they did.
Kyuzo was getting good at using his shikai. With his zanpakutou released he could project a spinning circle of images and attack from any point in that circle, usually with one of his fierce sword draws. And the distances he could cover were spectacular. From standing on the top of Everest, his favourite place in his sprawling domain, he could pick up a stone, drop it from shoulder height, jump to every peak in the ridge and get back to the start again in time to catch the stone before it hit the floor. But there was one thing that was missing. He couldn't attack directly from the flash space. If he was projecting, the moment he launched his attack all the other images vanished, since they were maintained by his presence in the flash space. His zanpakutou refused to explain why that was, but Kyuzo had gotten used to things going from unexplainable to crystal clear within a heartbeat, so he relented and accepted that 'all would become clear' eventually.
When the shinigami approached he was furious. Granted they were several miles away, right on the limits of his perception and they were totally unknown to him. But still. Shinigami, this far out in the wilderness, when there were no souls for miles around. They could only conceivably be looking for him, and he most certainly didn't want them stumbling into his mountain range. They were still on the great sweeping plain as far as he could tell. Five of them, moving a kilometre or two, spaced out, then bunching up again, then moving again. The process repeated. He decided to confront them, but didn't want to use his flash jumping, the term he'd given his shikai enhanced movement, in front of them. So he jumped to within a few kilometres of them, sealed his zanpakutou and waited. They had no doubt felt his reiatsu use, if not from the jump then most certainly from his unsealed zanpakutou. Within a few minutes they were close. And then they were all on the hill in front of him, five men dressed the same as the six that came to the living world with Sui Fong just after he was murdered. The 2nd Division, the Secret Mobile Corps. He didn't give them a chance to speak, he just unleashed the full force of his reiatsu, and with his anger pushing it higher none of them managed to stay on their feet.
"What the fuck are you doing here? I told you not to look for me!" One of them managed to get his head up for long enough to whisper a few words; "Orders.. search.. reiatsu.." It was clearly a gargantuan effort to get those few words out, so Kyuzo lessened the amount of pressure he was putting on the five ninjas. Two of them managed to get to their knees. The same one, clearly the strongest of the five spoke again.
"We were ordered to search for any reiatsu signatures in this area, and then report back to our division. We weren't looking for any particular person out here." It was the pre-agreed cover story, with a training exercise to fall back on.
"BULLSHIT!" Kyuzo bawled back, the force of his response causing the shinigami in front of him to flinch. "There's nobody within 20 miles of here, only me. And you're second division. It's either her or that white haired pansy looking for me. FUCK!" The last profanity was more out of exasperation at being found. Now he would have to move. Find somewhere else to be alone and do what needed doing. His immense frustration immediately manifested in an increase in the amount of reiatsu he was pushing out, and all five men were effectively pinned to the floor again. He gave the five men one lance withering glare. It was only when Kyuzo flash stepped away that they could stand. After a short conversation, they agreed that a message should be sent back to the Court of Pure Souls immediately, and they should attempt to follow the shinigami they had encountered, who was undoubtedly the subject of their search. All five were skilled at detecting reiatsu over a distance, an essential skill for an SMC ninja, so trailing the rogue academy student – they all knew about his history having been hand picked and thoroughly briefed by Sui Fong – should not have been hard.
A couple of miles away Kyuzo had summoned his sword into his hands, having let it dematerialize while he had waited, and then immediately spoke; "Sever every last bond, Edge!" Now with his shikai, he covered the distance back to his mountain retreat almost instantly and collected the handful of things he wanted to keep, and then set off in an arbitrary direction away from the five ninjas and everything they represented. The five SMC soldiers rapidly lost track of him, absolutely outclassed by the speed he could muster and maintain.
A lone hell butterfly fluttered down into the 2nd division headquarters, making straight for the window of the taichous' office. Sui Fong noticed it straight away, and the black and purple winged messenger came to rest on her outstretched finger.
"Subject encountered, approx 300 kilometres south of Court of Pure Souls. Appeared within detection radius of standard search pattern. Demonstrated taichou level reiatsu when confronted. Fled after short exchange. Retreated to nearby mountain range. Contact lost shortly afterwards. Evidence of inhabitation found. Request scanning assistance and further orders. Search Squad Three."
The butterfly flapped out, and Sui Fong considered the report. She knew the men she had sent would not lose a reiatsu trace so easily, especially one of taichou level, which was something else worth thinking about. He had grown to taichou level in the sparse few months since she had last seen him; he had easily been equal to her own fukutaichou when he had fought on the academy exhibition day, but to make such a significant jump in such a short time was almost unheard of. She also knew that sneaking up on anyone in her division was virtually impossible, so the sudden appearance was also curious. All in all this was an intriguing matter. She knew it would be best to keep the 13th Division taichou in the loop, so she sent off another hell butterfly, and then set off in the direction of the 12th headquarters. Hopefully she would be able to convince Nemu to do what she needed without having to deal with the undoubtedly insane taichou once she got there.
A couple of days later Ukitake and Sui Fong met at the 13th division headquarters, ostensibly to talk about the new intake from the academy, but once they were behind closed doors the discussion had only one topic. Sui Fong started;
"The 12th Division is tracking him. I get daily reports from Nemu. She seems to have slipped it in under Mayuri's radar." She was stating facts that she knew Ukitake knew, but she wanted his opinions before she started venturing her own.
"Where was he? And where is he now?"
"The mountain range just visible from the Soukyoku hill is apparently where he was, and he is now in a smaller but entirely forested range a bit further away. Some 375 kilometres." Ukitake considered this information. When it became clear she would have to speak first, Sui Fong spoke.
"We cannot keep this a secret for too long. And this level of strength cannot be allowed to exist in Soul Society outside of the Gotei 13."
"I agree. I'm just not sure he will want to come back. But I'm not sure where he would fit in. I doubt he would join either of our divisions, 1, 4 and 12 all seem unlikely as well. And in order to convince him to return he will have to be recruited directly into a division. He most certainly won't return to the academy."
"So basically whichever taichou convinces him to return will have to take him into their division. And you don't think either of us should do it?"
"Maybe Kyouraku-taichou. I can fill him in…"
"I'll go. I want him." She had interrupted, which was not uncommon, but it was what she wanted to do that was so out of character for the diminutive taichou.
"Why do you want a swordsman? Doesn't really fit in with what your division stands for. What use do you have for him?"
"He's a lone wolf. And strong. There's only one thing any Division could use him for. He'll never fit into a squad sized unit – his strength and demeanour will make him an outcast. I can give him work he will want, and conditions he will want." She didn't have to explain any further. The elder taichou knew what she was referring to; the Special Dispatch Officers. Every division had one. A lone shinigami whose responsibility was to scout the living world and deliver reconnaissance reports on hollow activity, human developments and abnormal spirits. In most divisions the position was rotated around, since it was deemed to be irrelevant and didn't cover any of the real tasks of a real world posting; purifying hollows and sending people on to Soul Society. Ukitake had no idea who his own current SDO was. He left all of that to Kiyone and Sentarou, his perennially argumentative but fanatically loyal 3rd seats. But it was different in the 2nd Division. He was one of three people, Sui Fong and the soutaichou being the other two, who knew of the extra responsibilities that position carried. The 2nd Division SDO was the primary weapon of Soul Society in the living world. On top of the standard duties, this office carried the task of purifying pretty much every hollow of above 10th seat standard that appeared. It was not an easy post to fill, due to the above average strength required, the inability to advance in seated rank and the solitary nature of the posting. It had been unoccupied for several decades. A few seconds reflection was all it took for Ukitake to conclude that it was the perfect job for the wayward Kyuzo.
"You will approach him soon?" He asked. The response he got was a cold stare as Sui Fong stood and left the office. Her reiatsu faded quickly; the grey eyed ninja had gone straight to find him.