Memento Mori

Chapter Ten

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December, 1945

"It's all over."

I nod, "Everything is done. Things can finally be peaceful once again. Ne, Kaien-kun?"

Kaien Shiba, resident dead man walking, winces, "How can you talk so casually about this senpai? I heard they had to send an entire division down to Hiroshima and Nagasaki each."

Sighing, I turn to him, "Foresight is both a gift and a curse. But suffice to say, I've had many years to accommodate myself towards the knowledge that this would happen. Not to mention this was a near fixed point. We started living on Earth far too late to prevent this, so don't let it bother you so much."

"But..."

Sensing the reiatsu signatures in the area, I start walking away, "Shinigami. We should go. Discovery would be bad."

"Why though? Wouldn't it be good if we could go back?"

Running my hand down my face, I state, "Kaien Shiba was possessed by a hollow and declared KIA by Captain Ukitake. Minato Tatsushiro was an enemy combatant who should still be serving time in Muken for the next nine thousand, nine hundred and fifty-six years, not that they know he's out. Our discovery, especially mine, will make Old Man Yama himself come down. So, sure you want to be found out?"

He shuts up real quick.

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August, 1969

Being in exile has been good and bad for us. I don't have as much responsibility, and can finally relax. On the other hand, it was rough at first. Trying to make sure we had proper I.D. and all that other stuff was annoying to figure out. How the hell does Kisuke do it?

But you know, for now I can just kick back and relax. After all, I've always wanted to attend Woodstock.

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January, 1992

We've taken up residence in Karakura Town some months ago. When he asked me why Karakura Town, especially since it's under the jurisdiction of the Thirteenth, I didn't have any response. But oh well.

After all, everyone worth anything (anyone not a active shinigami from Soul Society) has set up shop here, so to speak but sometimes literally. Kisuke has his shop, the Visored their warehouse, Ryūken at the hospital, Isshin and his home practice.

Kaien and I are operating out of a small flat away from everything else spiritual. Unlike Kisuke and his small time candy shop owner gag, I've gone big. I'm the majority shareholder of a multi-billion dollar pharmaceutical company called Mid Bio Informatics, or MBI for short. Kaien is an officer in the local police force.

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June, 1996

The first indication that something is very, very wrong (you know, aside from the usual) is that there's a second source of large reiatsu, instead of one. When there should only be one. Kisuke, Tsukabishi and Yoruichi all have reiatsu suppressing gigai, the Visored hide under special Kidō, the Ishida family and the Kurosaki matriarch don't have this much since as Quincy they take most of it from the atmosphere and Isshin has lost his power for the time being.

The only significant reiatsu should be Ichigo Kurosaki. It's not the nondescript shinigami assigned to Karakura at the moment, the power matches to a white ribbon. So what?

Casually following the ribbon on this rainy day, I stop far enough away to witness the inevitable death that will occur shortly. Masaki Kurosaki is an inevitable casualty. Without her death, Ichigo won't grow up into the tough guy with a drive to protect. And that would mess up everything, and make all my work for naught. Worse actually. With so many chances to kill Aizen, but didn't to maintain the canon, if Ichigo doesn't grow up to be able to beat him, then we're all doomed. Unless Hyōsube pulls through, but I shouldn't rely on him for anything.

I do find the second source of reiatsu. It's a young girl with orange hair. I hide myself with Kidō as I go to investigate. What changed that Orihime is here? And why is she so much more powerful than she should be?

But as I get close enough, my face changes from inquisitive to horrified. Because this is not Orihime. Not at all. It would be far better if it was.

Ichigo turns to the girl and points to the lure of Grand Fisher, "Hey sis, you see that girl?"

Because of course I managed to fuck something up so that Ichigo has a twin sister. I really should have accounted for such a possibility, as a person's genetic makeup is so particularly unique that chances of that particular person being conceived again are highly unlikely. Ughh, I've gotten rusty in exile, it seems.

"Ichigo? Natsumi? What are you two looking at?"

I wince as Grand Fisher jumps their mother, and pulling my large umbrella down so it rests on my left shoulder, I contemplate my options. Surely killing the hollow here won't make things too bad. While it'll deny the family closure, is it worth the people the beast will kill in the next six years before Isshin downs him? I mean, and god I've gotten soft, how critical is he towards Ichigo's development? The answer? Not particularly. In fact, it was probably worse for him, opening up old wounds that hadn't yet totally healed.

Mind decided, I rush over towards them as Grand Fisher decides to devour the children as well. I'll probably only have one opening, so I better make it count.

"Sōren Sōkatsui!"

The torrent of blue flame blasts through the air, searing the sidewalk and generating gouts of steam as the rain evaporates temporarily as the fire passes through. Grand Fisher, caught completely by surprise like I intended, is incinerated on the spot.

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As the emergency workers place the body of Masaki Kurosaki in a bag for transport, I talk with their boss.

"I told you, I'll take the children back to their father."

The man has the nerve to question me, "And I'm going to ask again. What relation do you have to them that allows to claim custody, even temporarily?"

I hate people like this. I understand it's needed, but it's such a pain when it becomes a problem for you as opposed to someone else.

Rolling my eyes, I just say, "I'm their father's former superior officer. But whatever, go ahead and call Isshin. I'm sure he'll either give permission or come here himself, which would make our argument pointless."

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When I arrive at the Kurosaki household with Ichigo and Natsumi, Isshin and Kisuke are sitting the living room, obviously discussing what's happened. Isshin quickly takes his children and puts them to bed before returning to join us.

Kisuke begins, "So... ."

I lower my head solemnly, "Masaki Kurosaki is dead. I wasn't in time to save her, but I was in time to kill the hollow before it took your children as well, Isshin. Assuming no outside interference, you will regain your powers in about six years, when Ichigo and Natsumi are fifteen."

He slams his fist on the table and it looks like he's about to cry, "I don't care when my powers will come back! First my brother, then the rest of my family, now my wife! Why? What did I do to deserve this!"

All Kisuke and I can do is offer him empty platitudes and our sympathy. I leave shortly after. After all, I killed his brother myself, was implicit in his families condemnation and stood by, watching, as his wife died when I could have prevented it quite easily. I have no right to be in the same room as him for the time being.

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Author's Notes: Just a short interlude chapter, thought figuring out what scenes I wanted to include took a while to decide. Canon plot catches up to us next chapter. Despite all my efforts, the Butterfly of Doom still sucker punches me across the jaw. And before someone notes that my foresight comes and goes as is convenient, it works like this. My foresight is not perfectly all knowing, and can't calculate for things I'm not at least vaguely aware of. Thus, I have no problems with things I'm aware of, but don't know the specifics of. But it can't account for things I don't know that I don't know, if that makes sense. Thus, working on knowledge of canon, the existence of another character that shouldn't exist doesn't factor into what I can see till I'm aware of the discrepancy. Think of it like a mathematical sequence where you've gone through a decent chunk of it and then you reach a number that fails to follow the pattern, making you have to rethink everything.