Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Bleach or any related characters or properties.

.:11:.
Passive Action

The atmosphere of the small restaurant was warm and cozy, the perfect feeling for the night's events. It was an up-and-coming joint in district five of West Rukongai, somewhat high-class but still quaint. The blonde lieutenant was trying not to feel nervous, knowing that the special date was important for both of them.

He smiled at the lieutenant across from him, her face petite and grinning back at him. "How's the food?"

"It's amazing," Momo replied, taking another bite of her salad for good measure. Her miso soup was almost completely gone, and he took that as a good sign. "How have we not come here before now?"

He rubbed the back of his neck. "Um, it was a suggestion from a friend. He thought it would be a romantic idea for our anniversary." He silently hoped that she would not press the issue.

No such luck. "Which friend? Shikamaru? Sentaro?"

"It was actually Captain Aizen," he blurted out, hoping that she would not make a huge deal out of it. Naruto was not sure that he liked the guy, but it was a cordial suggestion. This place was definitely something that Momo would appreciate; she liked small, intimate settings. But Uzumaki did not like it simply because he did not want to think that Aizen was butting in.

"Really? I'll have to thank him for the idea," she said amiably, and Naruto relaxed instantly. "He has good tastes, Naruto. You shouldn't get so worked up over him."

"Yeah, I know. But he's important to you, and sometimes I feel like that's all you talk about," he said without thinking. They had argued about this before, and he immediately regretted bringing it up again in that context. "I'm sorr-"

"No, it's okay. I'm not angry with you, I just don't see why you think you have to compete at all." She gripped his hand across the table tighter. "You're important to me, Naruto. The most important man in my life, bar none. Sosu- no, Captain Aizen, is a good friend, but he's my superior first, friend second."

Naruto nodded, but he still couldn't wipe the feeling from his mind. He did not like the first-name basis at all. The fox chimed in, but Naruto didn't give the Kyuubi the time of day. "I know, Momo. But when he suggested this place at the meeting the other day, it was too good of an idea to pass up. I had a couple of other places in mind, but I feel like he was the one who influenced me to pick this, and I don't like it. I don't want him to feel like this stamp over our business."

The restaurant suddenly became quiet, Momo's statement stopped the moment that they noticed. Naruto turned around toward the door and nearly rolled his eyes as the bespectacled captain of Squad Five strolled in like he owned the place. His presence was enough that even the other customers from Rukongai knew of his exploits and that he was a very respected shinigami.

Naruto put on a good face, knowing that this could not have just been a coincidence but not wanting to show any resentment. Captain Aizen was a kind man, not ever giving Naruto a reason to mistrust him, but the respect that Momo had for him sometimes bordered on a crush or even love. Naruto did not like it one bit.

Perhaps you are simply being insecure, his zanpakutou suggested in the back of his mind. He's such a nice man, a good friend to you and to her. Someone you can trust, and that's all it should be. He's not malicious.

You're right to dislike him. He's way too goody-goody. There's reason to believe he may love Momo himself, even if he's old as dirt.

Don't listen to him, Naruto, Kusaritane supplied. He is her superior, a co-worker. You should trust Momo on this.

Naruto frowned inwardly and told them both to be quiet.

"Captain Aizen!" Hinamori said, getting up to greet him with a bow. "Is there squad business to take care of?" Naruto begrudgingly stood and bowed as well, not wanting to show the man disrespect.

"Not tonight, Momo, I promise." The captain kindly bowed back to her and stood over their table. "How are you two doing this evening?"

"Good," Naruto said. "The food here is excellent. Thank you for telling me about it."

"Anytime, Lieutenant Uzumaki," he said with a friendly half-smile. "I've got to go and pick up my order."

The man walked off to the counter, and Naruto looked at her. "Why would he do that? I swear, he's just trying to mess with my head. He's politely screwing with me."

She laughed. "You're being paranoid. He probably just wanted to see how we were doing, and he ordered some food while he was at it. It's not that big of a deal. Can we talk about something else now?"

Naruto laughed. "Yeah, sorry. What did you think about Abarai from Squad Eleven becoming a lieutenant for Squad Six?"

Momo was happy for the change of topic, Naruto could tell. "I think it would be a good fit for him. Tenten speaks highly of him, and Yachiru keeps saying that he's become very good under Madarame's wing."

Naruto remembered the redhead from his very first zanjutsu lesson, and that had been so long ago. He was likely to have become leaps and bounds stronger since then, just like Naruto himself had, although with a different focus of battle skills.

"I'm sure Squad Eleven wouldn't miss the muscle," Naruto said with a chuckle. "They have quite a bit to spare." Immediately, his mind flashed to something that seemed off-putting to him during the meeting, and he had to bring it up. "Momo, something that Lieutenant Kurotsuchi said seemed a little suspicious today. She acted lik-"

"Are you really going on about this again, Naruto?" she asked, cutting him off. "The spy who told the Dark Ones about our movements is going to be more alert than that. And Nemu is creepy, but I can't see it being her."

He took a deep breath, sighing. "We can't take any chances, Momo. It could be anyone."

"Which is all the more reason why you should tell someone. Tell Lieutenant Sasakibe or even Head-Captain Yamamoto himself." She brought that option up a lot, but Naruto continued to shoot it down. "C'mon, you don't really think it could be either of them, do you?"

"No, but I can't risk tipping the real informant off. If there's anything my past-life taught me, it's that this had to be pulled off by someone high-profile, and getting a private audience with the Head Captain without letting anyone else know is difficult."

She nodded, knowing that was probably true. "Why not try again? It was a fluke that last time that made you too afraid to try. Maybe it's time?"

Naruto remembered the time she was discussing, and the moment that he had tried to request an audience, Captain Kurotsuchi had appeared inside the room and Naruto had had to make up an excuse. The Head Captain had not been the wiser, but it was still difficult to risk the information spreading around to the wrong person.

"I just have to be careful. It's too high-risk. I have always been too direct, too overconfident, too forward. With something like this, it's best to sit back and wait for a slip-up."

She frowned, crossing her arms. "But you're not waiting for a slip-up. We practically have this conversation after every meeting. You're looking to find something every time you speak with someone, and it's not healthy. Maybe it's time to put away the corkboard and actually wait to find something. Let it come to you."

She had a point, to a certain extent. It nearly obsessed his every thought, and he knew it was not a way to live. He nodded to pacify her, but his thoughts were still troubled. He just wasn't sure of anyone around him, too afraid to tell anyone but her. Even Toshiro did not know.

"Back to Renji, Naruto. Do you think it's a good idea to promote him though? The position has been open for a while, after a little bit of shifting around among the squads years back," wondered Momo. "Renji's a good friend of mine, but back when we were in the same squad, I'm not sure if he had a great work ethic back then. Maybe that's changed though."

Naruto wondered, letting his mind drift back to the present. "Yeah, I don't see why it would be a bad idea. I don't know of anyone else who would be a good candidate. Rukia's the only person who comes to mind, but I don't think her brother would want that at all, power level or no. He won't even let her become an officer in Squad Thirteen."

"Yeah, Rukia is an interesting case."

"Rukia? The Kuchiki girl?" asked a voice, Aizen appearing over the blonde's shoulder holding a box of carryout. He had a genuinely interested look on his face. "Sorry for the eavesdropping, but I could not help but overhear."

"It's fine," Momo said first before Naruto could say something derogatory. "We were talking about the potential candidates for Squad Six's open position. At the lieutenants' meeting today, we discussed it and are probably going to submit our votes for Renji Abarai. Ultimately, it's up to Captain Kuchiki himself who he wants to work with, but we thought it would be a good idea to revie-"

Aizen nodded. "I see. Renji, huh? I think he would make an interesting candidate. We probably should fill that gap soon. Someone needs to even out Captain Kuchiki." They laughed.

"The other name that kept coming up was his sister Rukia," explained Naruto. "She's easily lieutenant-level, works hard, and has a relationship to Byakuya so she could possibly work with him."

"But then again, we don't think he could work with her very well," added Hinamori. "He's not exactly been keen on her participating in any potentially dangerous situations. She could handle the paperwork side, but what if a crisis occurred and she was needed on the battlefield?"

The captain looked toward the window thoughtfully. "You bring up interesting points. I wonder as well if she could work with her brother. There's also the pressure from the Kuchiki nobles surrounding her. Hmmm. I think I'll talk to Byakuya myself and see what I can do on that front. I believe he would want her to represent the Kuchiki clan as a high-ranking officer, but I do not know what would be the best option here truthfully." He paused, looking down. "I had better leave you two alone, I'm probably overstaying my welcome if I was ever welcome at all. I wish both of you a happy anniversary."

"Thank you, Sosuke," Momo said, grinning and bringing a slight frown to Naruto's features. He really did not like Momo using his first name.

"Thank you, sir. Have a good night yourself."

The captain left the restaurant soon after that, leaving the two of them a little too silent.

"Do you remember our first date?" asked Momo, a smile stretching across her face as she remembered it herself, the expression reaching her eyes and twinkling in the lamplight.

Naruto thought back to it. "Yeah. Of course I do. You were so beautiful, and I was so nervous and awkward. I had never done anything like it before, and I did not know what to expect really. We had been friends for so long that it eventually went away though and I was able to have a good time."

She nodded. "Yeah, I remember you did seem really nervous. I was too, just so you know, but I think you might have been a bit more than I was. You ended up spilling your soup all over your front and then laughing hysterically."

They jovially laughed again, remembering the merriment. "I remember saying something like, 'I used to eat fourteen bowls of ramen back in the World of the Living and never have an incident. But as soon as a pretty girl is involved, my whole brain melts.'"

They talked, laughed, and genuinely enjoyed each other's company for several more minutes before Naruto finally realized it was time to leave. He was going to take her on a special route through the Rukongai, back through his original home district Hokutan. He had already spent a lot of time decorating the cabin just for the occasion, and he knew she would absolutely love it. It was better than the barracks for the moment, and they would have time alone.

Later that night, he stood up from the bed, careful not to wake the woman sleeping beside him. He walked out of the small hut, watching the moonlit sky from the top of the small mountain, Hokutan stretched before him, twinkling lightly but nearly devoid of any signs of life at this hour.

The breeze was cold, but he had something that he had to do. He walked around the back of the hut, ensuring that no one was watching, and quietly dispelled the barrier kido that he had set up to hide the secondary building he had erected, an even smaller shed with only one room.

Kido runes sealed the entire shed from any form of notice. He quietly opened the door and slipped inside, performing another quick incantation to reseal it. He only had a few minutes in case she woke up in the night, noticing his absence. She knew about the shed and the necessary spells to get inside, but he didn't want to worry her. Not on this night.

The tiny shed was barely larger than a closet, but nearly every inch of it was covered with potential leads and information that could have been related to the Valley of Screams. Past people involved, any information about what a Shinenju even is, recordings of suspicious conversations he had had. It was all tied together in strange ways, but he could not find the link that lead to whom it could be.

He did not have enough intel to eliminate anyone from the list, anyone who was an officer at the time. Only he, Momo, and Toshiro were unrelated to the incident and any other captain or lieutenant was suspect. The potential for a Third Seat to be involved was slim to none. He wanted to figure this out, wanted to learn who it was and bring them to justice. Too many lives were lost that day, and without an inside man, Ganryu would not have known about the Kido Cannon and staged an attack on the Seireitei fast enough.

He ignited a small Shakkaho, barely the size of a candlewick, and immediately started to gather any paper and burn it all up. He was doing it impulsively, he knew. But after so many years without any potential movement, he wanted to get it out of his mind and focus on his job and his beautiful girlfriend.

Ashes fell to the ground, charred remains of missions reports he had saved, copies of financial documents. All of it falling to the ground, burnt up and removed from the world. The tiny flame on the end of his finger did not waver, continually burning through slips of paper and scrolls that once contained data he thought important.

The actual corkboard that he started with several years ago was the only thing left, and he smiled before setting ablaze as well.

He touched the wall of the shed, watching it begin to catch on fire and slowly spread. He undid the seal, stepping away and controlling the oncoming blaze with another kido, concealing it so that no one would be alarmed by the heat and the smoke and the bright light on the mountaintop.

He watched the space where it once stood, creating another barrier around it just in case. He wasn't giving up on finding the informant, but he was starting over with a new, less active and more passive frame of mind. Perhaps new evidence would come his way with that new method of thinking.

Something caught his eye as he turned away, and Naruto frowned. A group of small boulders sat as a testament for Senna, and Naruto instantly filled with regret. He had created that grave marker for her, to honor her even if she was not actually buried there, and it saddened him immensely. She had not meant him harm, but had been influenced and molded by Ganryu and the other Dark Ones for her nefarious purposes.

She had loved him, or at least the memory of what he once was, and it made him feel more and more guilty to even consider what had happened. What he had done to her for the greater good.

It's all right, Naruto. You did what you had to do. Kusaritane said inside his mind, but he was not sure that was the case at all. Could he have saved her in the end, or was that truly the only option?

Paperwork, paperwork, paperwork.

It never seemed to cease, but he could not help it. Konso reports, mission briefings, documents about equipment shipments, damage reports, Hollow descriptions for the Great Spiritual Library, official updates from each of the stationed shinigami... et cetera. Naruto had been handling the slack from the captain today, as he was not feeling very well.

He stamped his seal of approval before turning over a mission assignment, reading the name on the top and squinting at it. "Rukia Kuchiki?" he whispered aloud, thinking that this was far, far too coincidental. It was among the World of the Living stack, which surprised him more than anything.

He opened the file quickly, the requested assignment for Karakura Town. A large city like that with an abnormally high density of spiritual activity... was that really a suitable situation for Rukia's first solo mission in years, if not longer? She was to stay for a specific amount of time, a relatively short-term assignment compared to other cities of similar sizes across Japan. Did she have enough experience to handle that on her own, strength or not?

Naruto thought back to the other night, his mind focusing in on Aizen. The captain must have talked with her brother and convinced the noble that Rukia was prepared for a mission like this. The lieutenant had never thought that the captain of Squad Six would agree so quickly, but maybe times were changing in their relationship? Maybe Rukia had shown Kuchiki something; she and Naruto did not talk very often on a personal level, so maybe there was something in her life he had missed. Either way, Captain Aizen seemed to have worked his magic and Rukia was to leave that afternoon for one of her first solo missions ever.

That was a little too easy for him to do, don't you think?

"Nah, Aizen's a charming guy, as much as it pains me to admit that sometimes," the blonde answered back within his mind, the Kyuubi stirring at the notion.

Yeah, yeah, but Byakuya's a stubborn prick. I don't think even Aizen is that good.

Naruto pushed the bickering to the back of his mind, realizing that it was probably a good idea to tell Rukia of the assignment. He would find Ukitake later to follow-up, after the lieutenants' meeting to welcome Abarai of Squad Six.

He spotted Kiyone and Sentaro, both the Third Seats working feverishly at their desks across from one another, where they could see each other constantly and know the competition. Naruto thought it was a little bit ridiculous that they were so dead-set on conquering each other in something as simple as deskwork, but as long as they continued to handle a load of the paperwork, he was not going judge.

"Hey, you two, have you seen Kuchiki?"

Sentaro poked his head up from the file he was analyzing, shooting a quick darting glance at Kiyone on the other side of the room. "I think she was in the garden earlier, but she may have left by now. It's been a couple of hours since I last saw her."

He looked toward the blonde girl across from him, but she shrugged like she didn't know, and Naruto could have sworn that Sentaro looked so proud just for knowing something she didn't.

"I swear, one of these days, you two need to figure out a way to work out the tension between you," he said suggestively, walking out of the office before he could hear them argue anymore.

The garden was a very large courtyard adorned with a traditional style. Koi fish swam around in circles in the pond, with lily pads and small trees twisted in a very decorative way. The women, or whomever designed the squad's barracks long ago did a great job giving it a nice, peaceful feel. He enjoyed the feeling of nature, and it reminded him of his inner world.

The lieutenant noticed the petite black-haired shinigami sitting calmly under at the base of a tree, a thoughtful expression stretching across her face. He wondered what she was thinking about.

"Um, Kuchiki," he started, clearing his throat as he approached. He held out the slip of paper, surprising her a bit. "An assignment for you."

She read over it, her eyes widening in shock. "A month? In Karakura Town? By myself?"

He nodded. "Yes. You're supposed to leave this afternoon. Do whatever you need to prepare for it and make sure you let Kiyone know before you leave." He turned away, knowing that she did not exactly appreciate his presence, especially out of the blue interrupting her free time.

"Wait!" she called out, standing and brushing the dust off of her shihakusho frantically. "Are you sure I'm ready? I mean, does my brother know?"

Naruto wondered how he should respond. Should he explain that this mission was given the go ahead by Byakuya, or let her believe that she was going at it by herself? It might be a pride thing to her.

"No, he does not, but the mission should not be something that you can't handle. I mean, what could possibly go wrong?"

Her face brightened at his statement, but she seemed unsure of him. He let her be after an awkward moment of silence, deciding that she would know soon enough whether she was ready.

He returned to the office to get ready for the lieutenant's meeting to appoint Renji Abarai to Squad Six. He wondered if Aizen had convinced Byakuya to accept Renji as well.

With the formal meeting among the captains and lieutenants out of the way, the lieutenants stayed behind for their own meeting inside the Squad One barracks. Naruto always felt a little bit apprehensive in the chamber, especially with the captains around. He felt that way even more so without them around because he was the sole representative of an entire squad. He did not want to look his worst.

His eyes drifted around the room, watching as the others talked amongst those next to them. Most of the attention in the room was on Renji, nearly the entire point of the meeting was devoted to him in the first place. The tattooed redhead was nervous, his fingers fidgeting slightly as Kira, Momo, and Hisagi tried to catch him up to speed.

"How are you feeling about all of this?" Naruto asked as he walked over, thankful that he had a few minutes before he had to return to his position in line. He slipped his arm around Momo's waist, smiling.

Renji smiled uneasily. "Well... I'm fine, I guess. Seems a bit strange after all this time to be wearing a badge around my arm."

"Oh, you shouldn't worry so much," Izuru said with a grin, running a hand through his blonde hair absently. "It's not such a hard job when you really think about it and break it down."

"Just be glad that your captain is a workaholic," suggested Nanao, heading over to congratulate him. "I'm basically handling both the Captain and the Third Seat's work load."

Naruto laughed. "Yeah, Shikamaru is a problem. Captain Kuchiki takes pride in his work, and as long as you do as well, I'm sure you'll be fine." He leaned over the redhead's ear. "Just don't let that pride go to your head like he did."

Renji chuckled, grateful for all the reassuring words. "Thank you very much, you guys. I'm sure I'll get used to it."

Sasakibe cleared his throat loudly at the head of the U-shaped line of thirteen lieutenants, and everyone quickly returned to their positions. Renji was visibly nervous, but after a moment seemed to calm down a bit more.

"Let's call this meeting to order." They went over several normal orders of business, and Naruto could not have been more bored. Meetings like this were all talk and no real action. Action in the sense that usually nothing major was discussed; it was all just thirteen people catching up on the day-to-day squad business. Very rarely does a position change, and it becomes very tedious and boring without those events to talk about.

One thing that came up consistently was Central 46, the central governing body of all of the Seireitei. The nobles supposedly had a direct link to the Soul King, but Naruto knew that was bogus. It was all political semantics to maintain their hold over the Soul Society, and through the Thirteen Court Guard Squads, they had a military arm to enact their will.

Normally, that would not be difficult to deal with. The problem was that Central 46 usually meddled in situations that should not have even needed their ruling. They cluttered up the system instead of organizing it, and Naruto wondered what it would take to try to change that system.

He did not dare speak out though. Too much would be at stake if he put himself on the line for that. Central 46 was a body that did not mind eliminating those who challenged the status quo, even if by mistake. He remembered Toshiro's friend Sojiro Kusaka, who had manifested the same zanpakutou as the silver-haired captain-to-be. It made him angry just thinking about it.

The new lieutenant of Squad Six was welcomed formally with open arms, and the thirteen of them celebrated with a toast of sake and a small cake, and then adjourned. Naruto and Momo had to drag Matsumoto away from the bottle, while Omaeda plowed into the leftovers of the cake as gracefully as the nobility could.

The blonde touched down on the ground, having air-ran across the bay to another sliver of the mainland. He was sweating, the sun having beaten down on him for almost an hour without many clouds to block the light, and the air was incredibly humid.

He finally landed, looking at the vast expanse of wooded forests and a large mountain literally dotted with waterfalls, trees that were larger than normal, and a mist that covered the area and nearly obscured it from sight.

He had been here many times over the past several years, but he still managed to enjoy the natural beauty of the place each time he found it. He wandered down the path, heading toward the main area at the base of the mountain.

It did not take long for Naruto to realize he was being followed, and opening his senses did not reveal the culprit. That must mean that whatever was following him was alive, so he did not even register it as a threat.

He turned just in time, side-stepping out of the way of a ten-foot-tall orange and blue creature trying to stomp on him.

"Hey! It's Naruto!" the huge toad said, smiling as Naruto looked up at the large toad.

"Gamakichi! What's happening?"

"Nothing much, I promise," the toad began. "What brings you here to the mountain? More training?"

Naruto shook his head. "No, not quite." He raised up his shirt and channeled his energy, the ink-black seal appearing on his skin. The seal had been ebbing recently, a cyclical decline that happened every few years. Much faster than if he were alive. "I was hoping you guys could tighten this for me."

Gamakichi nodded, his eyes focused on Naruto even though the toad could not see him directly. The toads had explained it once that they were so attuned with natural energy that they could see on the spiritual plane to a certain degree. "Yeah, follow me back to the Chief."

Naruto did as Gamakichi wished, enjoying the sights as he did. He wished that he could stay for a bit and try to train, but he only had so much time available to do what he needed, without the Soul Society finding out all the details.

When he entered the large chamber filled with strange drawings and symbols and odd devices that made no sense no matter who long he looked at them, he found the giant toad Gamabunta, as young as ever, watching him with great interest from a large chair that did not even look like it was made for a toad. "Uzumaki."

Naruto bowed to him. "Chief Toad, it's nice to see you again. I was hoping that you could help me with the seal."

Damn it, kit, why don't you just let me be? The Kyuubi roared within his mind, and Naruto tried to ignore it.

The toad nodded, sure that they could handle it all right. "Yes, I suppose so. It's the least I could do after that hollow attack the last time you were here."

Naruto sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck, wishing that that incident had never happened. "Yeah, sorry about that. The mist only protects you from spiritual radar so well, huh?"

The toad nodded. "We're not worried about it. As long as your visits here are rare and short, we don't mind you coming. Some of the younger toads really enjoy your company, strangely enough."

The mist around the island was one of the reasons why they were able to stay hidden from spiritual detection, one of the reasons why the Soul Society did not have a strong foothold in this corner of the area. It was strongest at Mount Myoboku and other spiritual locations, permeating throughout the Elemental Nations and obscuring them from view on the grand scale. It was actually unsettling to think about... What happens to most of the souls there?

Was that the reason why he did not know of many more people from his era in the Soul Society? People like Kakashi and Jiraiya and Sasuke... What made Naruto and his friends different? Why did Sakura and Shikamaru and all the rest manage to get to the Soul Society, while all the rest did not? Were they in the Soul Society, hidden in the Rukongai? Or did they all become hollows?

He tried not to think about that anymore, pushing those thoughts from his mind. Dwelling on all of that would only lead to confusion.

He enjoyed spending time with the toads though, in the sparse moments that he could. They were a link to his past, somehow having managed to continue to live so long after Naruto's era ended. Some of the other shinobi villages were still around, but they were not thriving as they used to. It saddened Naruto to think that they were a dying breed, and not many of them ever left the Elemental Nations in the first place.

The entire mountain was a strange place, and he remembered travelling there with Jiraiya not too long before his death. He did not know all of the details, but most of the landscape was much the same. The sacred place was apparently long-lasting, helping the toads and other related wildlife to thrive. It made him happy to think about, to think that some part of his former life was still around. Or at least, there was some part of his former life still around that did not hate his guts like the Hyuuga-Sarutobi. It saddened him to think of what happened so many years ago.

Gamakichi lead him through another room, revealing the quarters of the Great Toad Sage, a withering toad with brown skin that was somehow still alive after all this time. It was huge, but not as large as Gamabunta in the other room. The sage toad was wearing a necklace charm with the word for 'oil' in kanji.

Naruto quickly greeted the toad, before explaining that the seal needed to be tightened.

"I see," the sage said, weighing the information. "Have you been using it?"

Naruto nodded. "Yes, but only for training. I've never used it on an enemy or a hollow since the first time that I had it fifteen years ago."

"Has it become difficult? Painful?"

The shinigami considered the question, remembering the slightly burning feeling coming from the seal after the last training session where he had tried to control the physical chakra sealed within him. It was very hard to use, and he only dared to do so sparingly. The duty to the squad was more important than learning to control Kurama, so he did not get a lot of time trying to subdue the fox's abilities.

The Kyuubi scoffed. Yeah, yeah, like you'd ever have a chance.

The toad turned to him and pulled something from the pouch on his stomach. A giant brush and an inkwell. He sat the inkwell on the ground, the thing easily up to Naruto's chest in height, and then dipped the brush into the ink.

The creature made a handsign, channeling energy from around him into the inkwell, and the toad oil inside the well began to become tainted with black. The brush absorbed the liquid instantly, before the sage raised the brush.

Naruto quickly pulled his shihakusho down until the obi was holding up the bottom half, his scarred torso bare for everyone to see. The seal appeared on his abdomen, and the moment that the toad touched the seal with the brush, the Kyuubi screamed obscenities.

The black ink seemed to swirl into the seal, strengthening it while the pain was incredible. Naruto dropped to his knees, his body not used to the stress despite having done this before. He muffled his scream, clawing at the fabric of his uniform while the Kyuubi roared within his mind.

It cursed him, shouted in pain, expressed its desires to bifurcate him and then devour both pieces. He whimpered when the feeling did not cease, the toad oil and natural energy mixture enough to even effect his spiritual body.

After ten minutes of torture, he collapsed and heaved, the toad sage pulling the brush away and putting it back within the pouch at his sides. Gamakichi approached and placed a large webbed hand on his back gingerly.

"I forgot how much that hurt," he muttered under his breath, clearing his throat and trying to stand. He eventually found himself upright, looking at the old toad before him with reverence. "Thank you very much."

He inspected the seal, seeing that the strange markings were gone and that the tattoo looked relatively normal again, despite the subject matter. It faded away from sight as he readjusted his uniform.

"I'd be more careful about using that power of yours," explained the orange and blue toad standing next to him. "You never know when it will have to be fixed if you use it all the time."

The blonde nodded. "Yeah, I know. I don't use the chakra that often, and when I do, it's only for a few minutes at the most. The seal just does not seem to be very good or last a very long time."

The Great Toad Sage gestured for the two of them to leave, and Naruto returned to the large chamber where Gamabunta was waiting. "Thank you so much, you guys."

"No problem, Uzumaki. Visit more often, although on better circumstances. You're still trying to maste-"

"Yeah, I am. It's going relatively well, actually. I just do not really know if it will work in theory yet, but if I can figure it out, I'll let you know. I'll probably need your help if I ever manage to learn the process and make it work for me."

Gamakichi shrugged. "If anyone can figure out how to use that technique as a shinigami, it's Jiraiya's student."

Naruto wished them well before leaving, aiming for the Japanese mainland. He noticed someone's presence following him, but he did not think too much of it. It was likely just Gamakichi or one of the other toads, so he kept pushing forward. After a moment, the signal disappeared and he let it go.

Sentaro stared at the date on the calendar, something clicking in his mind. He ran through current mission assignments, realizing that something was amiss. "That's weird. Rukia Kuchiki should have come back from the World of the Living yesterday."

Kiyone, having heard his suggestion, frantically flipped through several papers and realized that he was right. "She's exceeded the time limit of her assignment!"

Sentaro did not really know what to think, but surely it was fine. He tried to the find the record of her last update, but that was over a week ago with the defeat of a hollow named Shrieker and the Konso of a soul named Yuichi Shibata. "She has not reported in for a week."

"It probably doesn't mean anything," Kiyone tried, but Sentaro shook his head.

"It might not, but we cannot take any chances."

"What do we do?" the girl asked, looking at him gravely. Overstaying in the World of the Living was against the rules, but more importantly, it was dangerous. What if something bad had happened to her?

"Standard procedure," Sentaro began, frowning at the notion of what that meant. "We'll call in the Stealth Force to investigate her activity."

Kiyone paled at that, but another glance down at the paper work revealed something else that might be useful. "Lieutenant Uzumaki is in the World of the Living though. Maybe we could send him to look?"

The other co-Third Seat considered the option, wondering if it might be better than getting someone from the Stealth Force involved.

Naruto finally stopped in the skies above Japan, wondering what he should do now. He most likely needed to go directly back to the Soul Society, but his mind drifted to those of the squad currently stationed in Japan, Karakura Town in particular. Rukia Kuchiki was assigned there, and he almost wanted to check on her.

But deciding that it was better to leave it alone, he drew his blade to activate the Senkaimon. But before anything could happen, his Soul Phone started to ring. An update on a hollow nearby?

No, that usually did not happen unless you were on an assignment and they sent you an update. This was different, and it unnerved him.

A message appeared on the screen. "Lieutenant, we may have a problem. Rukia Kuchiki's assignment ended yesterday, but she has not reported to the barracks, nor has she updated her assignment since last week. We decided to explain it to you, knowing that you were already in the World of the Living, so that you could investigate the situation. Kiyone and I wanted to avoid using the Stealth Force just in case."

The blonde looked up from the message, wondering what that could actually mean. The date was right, it was the 17th of June and she should have returned. Had something happened to her?

He sprang into action, flash-stepping through the air as quickly as possible, in case something was amiss. He routinely sent out his spiritual "sonar", trying to find any inclination of where Rukia could be near the city of Karakura Town as he hastened toward it. He knew it was dangerous to do that, most likely a beacon for any hollow within ten kilometers of his location.

The city was a bustle of activity, but it was lacking in spiritual pressure aside from a wandering ghost or two. Knowing that the situation might be dire, he decided to ignore the pluses for now, speeding toward the heart of the city and landing atop a roof that looked to be a hospital.

He tried once more to sense for the familiar reiatsu of Rukia, and after a short moment, he found it on the edge of his radar. But there was something else amiss about the area, two strong pressures nearby nearly overwhelming hers in pure intensity. If he could analyze either source, he would likely find that they were strong in pressure but not necessarily in size. Surely nothing around here could be nearing the size of a high-seated officer other than himself, and he was only at one-fifth the power at the moment.

He sped toward the area, keeping his own reiatsu down as he headed to a small wooded area on the edge of town, a small graveyard atop a hill. Running in the rain was not fun at all, but he tried to ignore the water streaming down and soaking his uniform.

Something changed, a flash of bright blue and white light on the horizon almost like cackling lightning. He sped up in desperation, hoping to find the source and hopefully help Rukia in whatever was attacking her.

"Coward!" a voice shouted into the sky, and a dark shape seemed to disappear into the clouds and through a Garganta.

Naruto emerged from the clearing, watching an orange-haired shinigami bleeding from his shoulder, holding his sword, his blood mixing with water on the ground. "Ichigo, it's over!" The familiar face of Rukia, seemingly wearing modern clothing, approached the figure, holding onto both shoulders. "You did it! You stopped him! Put down your sword and rest! This battle is over!"

The other shinigami looked up suddenly, watching the rainclouds in the sky. "No, it isn't! It won't be over until I've killed him! I have to! I will avenge my mother!"

"Ichigo!" Rukia cried out, and Naruto could not be more confused by the situation. Who was this person and why did he look like Kaien?

Naruto paced back and forth, flipping the top of his Soul Phone open and closed again and again. He half expected to be contacted at any moment by the Captain or by Sentaro and Kiyone, but he did not know what to say or what to do.

Eventually, he noticed the figure of the woman coming down the hill, her garb still that of a modern sundress with a hat fixed on her back. She approached him cautiously, not sure what to think about the situation. Naruto did not know either.

"Um, sorry that I couldn't speak more about this earlier, Lieutenant. I had too much to take care of with Ichigo's family, I had to sneak away to meet you after they went to bed."

He shrugged. "It's fine. So what's the deal? Why haven't you reported back in? Who is this kid? What did Grand Fisher want with him?"

She looked like she was going to choose her words carefully, as though she had been expecting this visit or a visit from someone all along.

"Grand Fisher apparently killed his mother a few years back, and when Ichigo realized it, he had to fight to avenge her."

After a couple of moments where it seemed she was finished, he gave her an expectant look. "And? Who is he in the first place?"

"I need an extension to my assignment," explained Rukia, almost unintelligibly blurting it out. "There's too much going on here for me to leave now."

"I'll see what I can do, if you'll tell me what's going on in the first place." He was not about to let her get away with not explaining the details.

She sighed. "The night of my arrival here, I immediately was alerted to a large reiatsu signature. That signature was Ichigo Kurosaki."

"A shinigami from another division that was stationed here?" asked Naruto, thinking that to be odd. Usually they don't double-up on assignments, and Karakura has always been part of the Thirteenth Division's jurisdiction.

She shook her head gently, a carefully practiced motion like she was stepping on a minefield. "No. He was a human with a high amount of reiryoku."

Naruto's eyes widened. "Was? What is he now?"

"He was able to see me that night, even touch me, and when a hollow was attracted to him and threatened to attack his family, he broke through a Kido I placed on him and ran out to try to help me protect his sisters. I protected him from a fatal attack, and in order to protect all of us, I... I tried to give him part of my powers so he could save both of us."

The tension in the air was palpable, and Naruto gulped at the implications of that serious crime. "A human with shinigami powers? Like Kugo Ginjo?"

She nodded slowly. "Except it did not happen temporarily. He somehow took too much of it, almost all of it, and this entire month, I've been helping him protect Karakura Town in the meantime while my powers return. Except they haven't been returning, I can barely cast low-level Kido."

Naruto strummed his fingers on his hip, trying to process this. Giving powers to a human was a very serious offense, very serious. The Thirteen Court Guard Squads and Central 46 would not take that well at all.

"Rukia, that's grounds for an execution."

She sat down on the bench, hugging her arms around her knees. She looked scared. Alone. Terrified of what could come. Naruto did not really know what to make of this news.

They were both quiet for what seemed like a long time before Naruto finally asked, "Is it because he looks like Kaien?"

Her eyes bugged out, and she looked at him straight in the eye, shocked. "What? I don't know what you mean."

Naruto sat next to her, giving her a playful look. "Oh, come on. He's practically the spitting image of our old Lieutenant, and you know it. What's the story there?"

"I don't know. I've just... never noticed it before."

The way she said it made Naruto think she was lying, but he didn't press the issue. She seemed a little uncomfortable with that information.

"What do you mean though? Even if he does look like Kaien, what are you asking me?"

"I'm asking why you want to stay so badly," explained Naruto. "I'm asking why you didn't try to come back to the Soul Society, or at least explain the situation for some leniency. If you were to ask me, it seemed like that was the only thing you could do at the time. But the guys in charge are not so reasonable." He remembered the Kido Cannon incident, and his whole body shuddered at the memory.

"I have to stay," explained Rukia. "I have to stay and help him some more. I can't go back and face them all, knowing what I did."

The way she said it was not a beg for help. It was not a beg for understanding, or for him to support her. It was simply her pride as a shinigami, as a member of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads, and as a former student of Kaien Shiba. Naruto knew then what he was going to do.

"I'll talk with Ukitake and see if he'll get you an extension," explained Naruto after a long moment of thought. "I can't make any guarantees though, and if that doesn't change, I don't know what more I can do."

The blonde was not really sure what she wanted to do with her extra time, but maybe if she were to gain her powers back during that time interval, then she could return to the Soul Society and not get into any trouble at all, as long as no one ever knew about Ichigo afterward.

Naruto took a deep breath, realizing that he had to get back very soon. "I've got to get going, and I'll request your extension. You send a request as well and try to act like nothing has changed. If I can send you a message, I'll let you know by noon."

She nodded, suddenly grateful but apparently dubious. "Why are you helping me of all people anyway?"

He smiled. "Eh, you're the one who's held a grudge after all this time, not me." She just laughed.

How's that? I apologize for the lack of true action in the chapter. I wrote another scene where Naruto interacts with Ichigo before the fight even starts, and then helps him defeat Grand Fisher, but I realized that I did not really want to do that because of how interpersonal that fight is with Ichigo and even Rukia herself. I figured that having Naruto interrupt such an important event would be cramping on Ichigo's characterization, so I decided against it. Sorry if that's not what you were expecting, but there's plenty more in store later on, as well as twists to the details. I just did not want to twist this particular detail, if you know what I mean.

Let me know what you think in a review!