The Story of Bleach told through the eyes of one Hara Setsuna, Captain of the 14th. As a Captain do not expect her to be all sunshine and roses. Eventual Byakuya/OC although not for a long time, the only other paring is OC/OC. Expect spoilers of all Japanese Manga chapters eventually.

[] = denotes flashback*

*Flashbacks not in Order


Not Mine


Implode 1

Today was the day. Setsuna told herself this as she waited at a cross-way for Byakuya. She had told him that she was going to go with him to the execution. After what she had done, she thought she owed it to Rukia, to Byakuya, and herself, to go. After all, though she didn't see Rukia very much, she felt a kinship to her through Byakuya. A man who, despite what most people thought or could even understand, loved his sister very much, loved the girl that Hisana recognized as the same. Even if no one knew but her. Together they would watch her die, and together they would feel the shared pain of that moment. In this matter both of their resolves were unflinching.

Finally the flash of a silver scarf signaled the arrival of the person she was waiting for. They didn't talk as they walked side by side to Sōkyoku Hill. While they walked she contemplated the letter she had gotten from The Central 46 the day before. The letter had been concise and to the point, but something about it hadn't seemed right. It held none of the flourishes that she was used to from the letters that they normally sent her. It had merely said:

Hara Taichou,

Things here are under control. You need not worry, continue at your leisure. If help is needed, contact will come.

The Central stamp was under the letter. Setsuna had turned it over and over expecting it to say more, as if turning it around in her hands would reveal all it's hidden secrets. But there had been nothing, and it still didn't stop her from knowing that it read incorrectly. After Rukia's death she would have to go to The Central 46 directly. A confrontation was an inevitability now, no matter how much she wanted to postpone it. There could be no more skating around the issue, something was wrong there, and it was her job to discover what. No matter what it was, she would deal with it. Honestly she hoped that it wouldn't come down to yelling or any sort of argument but she strongly sensed that it would at least end in deep conversation. She also hoped that it didn't get her fired. Out of all the Captain's her job depended most on them and their judgement of her.

They took the steps up to Sōkyoku Hill and were greeted by the sight of the large Zanpakutō that would take Rukia's life. She had seen it a few times before only in passing but seeing it up close like this was chilling. It was the largest glave she had ever seen, held back with rope tied to the ground. As she took her place with Byakuya she looked up and saw Rukia's shocked expression. She didn't look away, locking their eyes to let Rukia know that she was there. Then she ducked her head down, and joined Byakuya in line crossing her arms into her sleeves.. The two of them stood side by side as Yamamoto asked Rukia if she had any last requests. When she asked that her friends not be harmed, Setsuna thought it was a noble gesture if one that was a bit misguided. The lie that Yamamoto gave her, about not killing them was also kind in return. To die knowing you had done nothing, well, that would truly be painful.

Then it begun, or perhaps it should have begun. Instead of death, there was a flash of orange as Ichigo appeared on top of the structure. Then, as if his appearance was a rallying call, both Ukitake and Shunsui sprung their own trap and destroyed the Zanpakutō, Ichigo following it up by destroying the polls that held Rukia bound. It all happened so quickly that Setsuna hardly had time to register it all. And yet as she watched them do something so passionately she felt her heart thump a bit. The part of her that had been lost all those years ago, that she had shed off - the part that had come out of the slums reborn - Setsuna felt her heart beat, just once, for that girl. The feeling confused her and she didn't know where it had come from, but it lingered powerfully under her skin. Hadn't she once been like that? Someone who had set out with something to prove, a mission to accomplish. She clutched her scarf and it crumpled almost uselessly under her hand, Byakuya looked down at her, "Stop."

It took all her willpower to collect herself, to return her hand down to her side and let go of her scarf. This could be dealt with after, just like everything else. Although she had to admit that she was getting tired of saying after. That she would deal with everything after. She didn't want too look to a future of after, she wanted to look to a future of now. She was tired of waiting until after. Her whole life had been filled with waiting for things that didn't come or hadn't come. In this time she was a Captain, a leader, just like she had come to want. She had people around her that she cared about, friends even, it was more now that she had ever dared to dream. But she hadn't put her past behind her. It still lurked there in everything she did. Why couldn't she admit that she had moved on, what was holding her back? She didn't know yet but she would find it, and overcome.

It wasn't just her who had been moved by Ichigo though, out of the corner of her eye she realized that Abarai too had also arrived. Then, in a blink things changed again. Ichigo threw Rukia to Abarai, ordered him to protect her, and then took off. As he ran away she looked at the man next to her, "What did you do to upset him so badly?"

"A few things I think." Byakuya answered her in a deadpan.

"Hm" she said, and then nodded,"Do you mind if I show him something before you kill him?"

"Be my guest." he told her.

Setsuna took that as him giving her the go ahead and side stepped up to Ichigo quickly. As she entered the middle of her step she drew her sword and brought it down on him. Ichigo didn't blink as he blocked her blade. In the moment that her sword met his, he grinned, "I can see you, Baykuya Kuchiki."

She stepped back from his sword gracefully, "I feel that I must disappoint you then." she said.

"Sensei?! So you're one of them then too, go to hell!" There was anger in his voice, and confusion.

Setsuna looked at him with hooded eyes, "I will give you your fight with Byakuya, but before we go, I want you to understand -" There was a pulse of black energy sent directly at her from Ichigo's blade and as it approached Setsuan whispered, "Utau, Hinotori no Honoo."

The pulse of energy stopped a few feet away from her and seemed to shatter and then blow away as if it was leaves on the wind, "What did you -"

"In this world my sword is know as the energy killer. It can at will, emit sound that cancels spiritual based attacks. It's directional of course, but" she sheathed her sword, "even with this," she glanced back at Byakuya, "he is stronger. That's what I wanted you to know."

She moved backwards for a moment afraid that Ichigo would follow her and when he didn't and she heard the sounds of clashing blade, glad Byakuya was there to stay his advance. She could no longer stay here. It had become apparent to her that now was the time for action, she could no longer put off going to headquarters that housed The Central 46. As she left she determined that she and Ichigo, they would talk about whatever he wanted to talk about later. If he survived of course. She knew his power, and understood that it didn't match-up to Byakuya's at all, and yet Ichigo managed to surprise her each time. Whatever the outcome, things would be different when the fight was over, that she was sure of.


[Setsuna sat on the cliff face looking down into an empty abyss. All around her was bright light. Deep down in the dark maw she could hear whispers. Hear people talking, calling her name. The clearest one sounded like Ikeda. Beseeching her to step into the pit with him, to fall into nothingness. Setsuna had hoped, endlessly that Ikeda would have listened to her. Heard her when she told him that his anger was dangerous. But nothing seemed to work. He had told her a few days ago that he was going to call a family meeting, that he was going to ask for her hand in marriage. That had made her smile, maybe things could get better then. Of course not a moment later he had gone and ruined it. He had continued on saying that if they didn't accept her that he would do everything in his power to make sure his family understood the love he had for her, that he would force them into acceptance. She wondered how he would do this, and the abyss whispered back that he had a trump card, something that would force them to see, "It will be okay Setsauna. Do not fear. Tomorrow we will begin to plan our wedding."

"I worry for you, you are angry all the time, let me come with you." she had begged.

"I must do this alone." he said.

He kissed her then and walked away, his back tall and noble, but there was a tension there now. As if he was carrying a great weight, a heavy thing that was pulling him down to the depths of hell. Insanity awaited if it let him pull down, but he seemed to not mind, almost as if he welcomed the added weight. No matter what Setsuna had asked, he had not let her help him carry it. He would carry it alone, and no amount of pleading would change that. It was the one failing of nobility, the inability to let others shoulder the burden. One day, she knew, her back too, would crumble under the weight. Behind her, the light sounded like loud chiming bells. As she turned to the light the bells got louder and louder, drowning out everything else. As the bells got louder the black nothing seemed to crawl forward, looking to engulf her whole. And she couldn't stop the clanging and the nose that seemed to be summoning it forward. Soon it would swallow her up and the bells would chime and chime and chime.

It was Miya who woke her, "There has been an attack."

She blinked up at the ceiling, "An attack?"

Why hadn't anyone alerted 11th Division? That was their job right? To be the soldiers in war time? As she sat up slowly she saw that Miya was already working quickly to prepare her clothes. Why did Miya look so sad? And why could she still hear bells? Miya looked at her strangely, "Hara Fukutaichou, you must hurry."

"Hm?"

"Hara Fukutaichou I don't think you understand, the whole Ikeda family was wiped out tonight. I have not been over yet, but I have heard that it smells of blood and decay over at their manor."

That woke her up. She signaled for her things, dresses herself quickly and put on her badge. That was what the bells were, they went off sometimes in true crisis. For the first time in her life she didn't think of Ikeda-sama she thought of Kenji-san. Was Kenji-san okay? Was the man she loved alive? She grabbed her sword and the proceeded to walk quickly down the hallway, Miya trailing behind her, "Takahashi Taichou has already left for the Ikeda manor. He asked you to meet him there."

"Will you stay here Miya-san? Will you watch over everyone for me?"

"Yes." Miya didn't hesitate to answer.

"And if things get hard Miya you may ask Yori for help. She is good at what she does and I trust her to get the job done, just as I trust you."

Outside she could see smoke curling from a fire in the distance. If the whole residence had been set aflame why hadn't Kenji, he was Kenji now, not helped to put out the flame? His sword was water based, could he not of then have saved everyone? As she got closer she began to smell blood, and it made her want to wretch. When she touched down someone from 11th came to her and bowed, "Whoever it has already escaped to The World of the Living. They used The Senkaimon kept for this noble house about fifteen minutes ago."

All around her were bodies, some were cut in half, and others had less intense wounds. But all of them were dead, it was as if she was standing in a graveyard. No one would ever want to return here. No one ever would. It made her sick. Blood painted the walls and dripped down everything, coloring her vision in a red haze. Whatever had done this had done it with hatred in their hearts. She wanted to ask about Kenji but there wasn't time for that. There was a job to do and a killer to go after, "What happened?"

"Whoever it was, whatever it was, their souls are missing too. I think it ate them. Takahashi Taichou has already followed whatever it was through the gate. "

She sent a butterfly to upper command telling them that she would be following her Captain to The World of the Living, "Show me their Senkaimon. I'll be taking that."

He brought her to the only room that had not yet been touched by the fire. A large white doorway stood there solidly attached to the ground. If this thing had eaten this many souls it would be very strong and very hungry for more. Her Captain would need any help he could get. She stuck her sword into the Senkaimon turning it as if one would turn a key, activating it and then stepped through the portal, running swiftly. So much time had passed since Takahashi had left to go after the killer. Too much time. The door on the other side opened up into light and then plunged into the darkness of night. As her eyes adjusted she found her heart constrict.

The body of her Captain lay on the ground discarded, unmoving. A pool of blood stained the grass around him. Even without a medic there to confirm she could tell that he was dead, that his soul had been drained from his body leaving just a husk in its place. But that wasn't all, in front of her a man stood, his face covered in a continuously morphing skull mask. The mask looked like it was trying to eat his face. It reminded her of a hollow. However that wasn't what hurt the most. No, what hurt the most was the face under it, "No." Setsuna felt her heart shatter, and the world almost suck her down.

Those green eyes she had come to love so long ago turned to look at her, and they looked so hungry.]


She had only made it half way when she heard Kotetsu's voice projected all around her, "Taichou's, Fukutaichou's, temporty Fukutaichou's of the Gotei 14, and.. the drifters, this is Kotetsu Isane Fukutaichou of the 4th Division speaking, can everyone hear me? An Emergency situation has occurred. This emergency transmission is under the authority of Unohana Retsu Taichou of the 4th Division and myself Kotetsu Isane. Please listen carefully, everything I'm about to say is all true."

As she listened she felt her heart drop into her stomach. Once again she had been blinded to problems, once again she had failed. The Central 46 had been slaughtered like pigs, dead for quite sometime already. She had questioned of course, but she hadn't really understood that something truly awful was going on, hadn't done her job well enough. She stopped mid-step and turned back to Sōkyoku Hill. Somehow she knew that was where Aizen, the man who had done all of this and betrayed them all, would return. Thinking of it, what Isane said made sense in the context of her earlier thoughts. Of all the questions she had of Gin early on. Of course it would be Aizen, it could be no one but Aizen. If she could stop the man there, then she could find a small bit of redemption.

She should have checked on The Central 46 earlier she scolded herself, but no one but her had felt like something was off so she hadn't questioned, she hadn't thought to believe in her own power. She hadn't believed in her own mind in quite sometime. She had believed in the law, and her job, and the people around her, but not in herself. How many times had she asked for advice recently, instead of acting, instead of doing. It had to stop.

She flash stepped up the hill and arrived just in time to see Aizen hands deep in Rukia, pulling something out of her body, "Aizen!"

He turned to her and smiled. As he did so she felt the sting of a blade stabbed through her leg. The shock it sent her reeling into a brief moment of confusion, only held back by sheer force of will. The blade was pulled out and as she turned around to look at who had attacked her the blade bit into side, throwing her to the ground. Before she could stand the sword was thrust through her shoulder. Finally she was able to turn her neck and see who attacked her, and once again, like all those years ago, she felt as if she couldn't breathe, "Kenji-san. Why?"

"I never told you, all those years ago, who gave me the power to stand up to my stench of a family." He looked at Aizen, "And, I have been told, he will finally be able to fix this gnawing hunger."

The sword was pulled from her shoulder and she looked as he walked away from her, at least, she thought, dizzily, the attack on her had given Byakuya time to act. Rukia would be safe in his arms. She had been right after all, the fight with Ichigo had changed things.


A/N: Sometimes you just gotta stab up your OC you know? More background to come as we see the final bit of the backstory of Setsuna's history with Ikeda Kenji. But Ikeda Kenji, what a psycho right?

Reviews are helpful but not necessary. I understand that this is an OC. If that is not your cup of tea then do not leave a comment saying all OC's suck, that is not helpful and will not make me delete the story. I too understand that most OC's suck, and yet I write anyway.