Bleach Fanstory: The New Order

By Michael Xu

Initial Comments:

Bleach is owned by Tite Kubo

This is purely a fan story and I don't own any of the characters that appear that were created by Kubo, apart from original characters that I created myself.

This is the sequel to A Bleached Honeymoon, and the second part of the New Order Trilogy. Parts of it will overlap with Shinigami Academy, the third part of the trilogy.

Story so far: Eight months after Rukia became pregnant and two months after the election of Urahara as President, the peace of Soul Society was disturbed when the former Sexta Espada Grimmjow Jaegajaquez attacked Karakura Cho, openly declaring a challenge to Ichigo. Ichigo responded to Grimmjow's challenge and travelled to Hueco Mundo, where the two of them began their final battle. Initially Grimmjow proved too strong for Ichigo in his Shikai state, but once Ichigo went Bankai, he easily overpowered Grimmjow in both his unreleased and resurrecion states. As Ichigo explained the full extent of his Bankai's abilities, Grimmjow was left with no choice but to reveal his Resurrecion Seguna form. His newfound powers overwhelmed Ichigo but when Ichigo hollowfied the gap between their strength became obvious. After Grimmjow used a final Cero Pantera attack that failed to injure Ichigo, Ichigo finished Grimmjow off with a fully charged Cero Getsuga Hadou. Grimmjow was left broken in body and spirit and only an intervention from Nel prevented Ichigo from delivering the death blow. Ichigo left Grimmjow in Nel's hands and returned to Soul Society, where he discovered that Rukia had entered labour. He barely made it in time to witness the birth of his children, Kaien and Masaki...

Chapter 11: Royal Visitors

After Rukia spent a few days recuperating at the hospital, she and Ichigo carried their newborn babies back to the Shiba Manor house. As soon as Ichigo and Rukia entered the front door Kaien and Masaki both started crying.

"Oh no, I think Kaien-chan and Masaki-chan want their mother's milk," Rukia said happily.

"We'd better give it to them then," Ichigo grinned. He assisted Rukia in carrying the babies upstairs to their third floor bedroom. Rukia sat down on the king size bed, holding Kaien in her arms.

"I'll feed Kaien first, so you're going to have to keep Masaki quiet okay?" Rukia asked.

"Alright then," Ichigo nodded. He carried Masaki over to the cradle that had been specially made for her and placed her inside. When she continued to cry, Ichigo searched around for the baby toys that his sisters had given to him. He waved a few of them over Masaki's head. To his surprise, the method worked. Masaki slowly stopped crying and started to stare at the toys. Eventually she tried to reach out for the toys but her arms were obviously too short.

"You want this don't you?" Ichigo teased his baby daughter, lowering one of the toys just enough so that Masaki could touch it, but then quickly taking it away before she could get her hands on it. Instead of crying, Masaki reacted with a series of baby giggles. Ichigo was delighted at how beautiful her face looked when she smiled.

"Ichigo, I'm done feeding Kaien. You can bring Masaki over now," Rukia called out. Ichigo took a deep breath before lifting Masaki up from the cradle. As soon as he did so she started crying.

"There, there, mummy is here to nurse you," Ichigo said. He lowered Masaki down on Rukia's lap and carried a now fast asleep Kaien over to his cradle. When Rukia finished feeding Masaki and put her to sleep in her cradle, it was already past sundown.

"Man, if this keeps up I won't have any time to take care of my duties," Ichigo said. "And I thought things would become easier once they were born."

"Baka, who do you think has to take the brunt of caring for them?" Rukia asked. "It's going to be a long while yet before I can get back to work."

"Maybe we can get someone to babysit them once they've grown a little older…what about my dad? He'll probably be delighted to take care of them."

"Are you sure about that? I don't really trust your father to handle them properly," Rukia said with skepticism. Besides, it probably would be better if they breast feed for at least the next three months."

"I suppose you're right. I'll find a way to take care of the Academy and the division whilst looking after you at the same time," Ichigo promised. True to his word, he was able to organize a schedule that allowed him to manage the activities of the Academy and his activities but also gave him enough time to spend with Rukia and his children. For three weeks life returned to normal for Ichigo and Rukia. But one day, Ichigo received a summons from the Onimitsukidou's patrol unit.

"Captain Kurosaki, the President has requested your immediate presence," a patrol officer said.

"Urahara wants to speak with me?" Ichigo asked. "Tell him I'll be there right away." The officer Shunpo-ed off, leaving Ichigo and Rukia a little confused.

"Rukia, I need to attend another meeting of the captains," Ichigo said to her. "Take care of yourself and the babies okay?"

"Of course I will you baka," Rukia smiled. Ichigo sped off to the inner chambers of the Council of 46. Upon arriving at the President's conference room, he saw the other captains and Urahara himself were already present.

"Ah, Kurosaki-san, you're here at last," Urahara said. "I have an announcement that might hold special interest for you. A messenger from the King's Realm came to my office yesterday to inform me that the King and his Royal Guard will be paying a visit to Soul Society."

"The King is going to come here?" the thirteen captains all asked with stunned reactions.

"Yep, they're here to commemorate the first anniversary of the liberation of Soul Society from Aizen's rule," Urahara explained. "In addition, the King has heard about the births of your two children, Kurosaki-san, and he told me that he'll be coming here to give his blessings to both of them." For a while Ichigo was too shocked to see a word.

"I'm really flattered, Urahara-san. To think the King of Soul Society would bestow such an honour upon my children," Ichigo smiled.

"Why wouldn't he? It's been decades since spirits were born to any of the noble families, especially one as prestigious as the Shiba family. Also, I think an occasion as momentous as the anniversary of our victory deserves a special celebration."

"That's a good idea, Urahara," the Commander General Unohana said. "All of us should organize an event within the departments we manage." The other captains including Ichigo agreed with her proposal. Urahara ended the meeting, allowing the captains to return to their quarters and begin preparations. Ichigo first went back to the Shiba manor to check on Rukia.

"Rukia I'm home!" he called out.

"You're back sooner than I expected," Rukia said. She was holding Kaien in her arms. "How did the meeting go?"

"Well Urahara-san announced a rather special occasion," Ichigo replied. "The King and his Royal Guard are going to visit Seireitei to commemorate the anniversary of Soul Society's liberation."

"The King's going to come here?" Rukia was astonished by Ichigo's announcement.

"What's more, the King's also going to give his blessings to Kaien and Masaki. To top it all off, Urahara wants me to hold an event within the Academy."

"An event that takes place in the Academy? Do you have something in mind?"

"Sort of. I'm thinking of a festival of some kind where the students can demonstrate their talents in areas other than the standard Shinigami skills. You know, stuff like art, music, dancing, etc."

"That sounds like a great idea…I wish could help out," Rukia sighed.

"Don't worry about it. I'll have Minazawa, Mariko and Tanaka take care of most of the work. Our most important priority right now is to ensure our babies are healthy and safe when the King gives them his blessings," Ichigo said.

The next day, Ichigo went to the Academy and asked Minazawa to send a message out to every single class about the planned festival.

"Are you sure this idea will work?" Minazawa asked.

"Trust me, the students are going to love it," Ichigo said. "Also, one of the festival's major attractions is going to be a live performance of various groups in front of the Royal Family. To make sure everything goes smoothly before the actual event, I want you to stage a live dress rehearsal for the acts that are going to take part."

"I've got all that down captain. I'll do everything as you ordered straight away!" As Ichigo predicted, the news about the festival generated an unprecedented amount of activity around the Academy. He was surprised to hear that Karin and Yuzu were going to perform in an act. Ichigo's department wasn't the only that was more active than usual. Over the next week, the other ministries in Seireitei and Rukongai worked more frantically than they normally did to prepare for the King's arrival. The 1st. 2nd, 4th, and 11th divisions fully mobilized on standby as extra precautions in case there were any threats against the Royal Family. The 9th, 10th, 12th divisions started putting in place a series of widescreen television screens and other communications equipment around Seireitei and Rukongai to cope with the anticipated amount of publicity. Isshin and Renji worked hard to organize as many people in Rukongai and special guests from the real world to attend the visit. Finally, Byakuya, Love and Rose maintained the functions of law, transportation and public facilities.

A week after Urahara first broke the news, the day of the Royal Family's visit had arrived. The Kido Corps and the Onimitsukidou had configured the central Seireimon to allow beings from the King's Realm to enter Soul Society without the use of the Ouken. With most of their work finished, the thirteen captains took a break from running their departments and formed a guard of honour on both sides of the Seireimon, with Urahara standing at very end of the courtyard. Surrounding the captains and Urahara were hundreds of Shinigami and special ops personnel.

Several minutes later, the great Seireimon gates started to open. As they opened outward, everyone could see a bright yellow light on the opposite end. The first people to come through were several squads of Akuma soldiers, the basic unit of the Royal Guard's army. They were led by a dozen or so Tengu sargeants, who in turn were commanded by one or two Bakemono generals. After the hundred soldiers passed through the gate, they were followed by the Royal Guards themselves. Hamori, Uzume, Ebisu and Ajisuke formed the first row of guards. Benten, Jurojin, Bishamon and Daikoku formed the second row. The third row consisted of Jurojin, Hikifune, Marisha and Fukurokuju. The final row of guards was made up of the King's three sons, Kagutsuchi, Tsukuyomi and Susanoo. As the fifteen Royal Guards finished passing through the gates, the people everyone had been waiting for appeared.

Sitting inside a gigantic golden pavilion with a red tiled roof, which in turn was carried by twenty or so specially assigned Bakemono guards, was the king himself, Izanagi, and his daughter, the Sun Princess Amaterasu. They were accompanied by a dozen musicians that sat in the lower circle of the pavilion. The entire procession ground to a halt in front of Urahara and the thirteen captains. The fifteen Royal Guards greeted their Seireitei counterparts before parting aside to allow Izanagi and Amaterasu to climb down from the pavilion. The king and his daughter walked up to Urahara, who bowed in respect. Ichigo and the other captains also bowed in respect for Izanagi.

"It is a great honour to have you here, your majesty," Urahara said.

"Please, there's no need to be so formal," Izanagi laughed. "I actually intended this to be a holiday for my daughter and myself." The king motioned for Urahara and the captains to get up.

"I'm guessing you want to take a thorough tour around Seireitei, but first let us take you to your old residential quarters. I am sure you would like to see how they've changed."

"Of course," Izanagi smiled. Urahara led the king and his daughter through the streets of central Seireitei. They were closely followed by the captains and the Royal Guards. After about half an hour of walking, the entire procession finally at arrived at the former Royal Palace of Seireitei, now converted into the government buildings for the Council of 46. When the King and his daughter entered Urahara's Presidential suite, they were astounded at the changes that had occurred to the place that had once been their home.

"My goodness, this was supposed to be my private study room," Izanagi said as he peered into Urahara's office. "I hardly recognize it now."

"I hope you're not angry at me for usurping your role as the head of state," Urahara said humbly.

"Ha, ha, ha, of course not!" Izanagi burst out laughing and patted Urahara on the back. "I'm grateful for you to take on such a demanding job. Truth to be told, Soul Society's changed so much that I don't think it would suit me to live here again. I would like to see my old haunts again."

"Is that so? Well then I'm happy to take you to visit them. Your daughter and the Royal Guards can come along if you wish," Urahara offered. Izanagi shook his head.

"There's no need for them to come. They are free to do whatever they like." Izanagi's words surprised Susanoo and Tsukuyomi.

"But father, what if you run into danger?" Susanoo asked in an exasperated voice.

"Now, Susanoo, do you think I'm really that defenceless?" Izanagi asked. "Besides, President Urahara is more than capable of providing me protection."

"Isshin-sama, Kurosaki-kun, can you take me to visit my other self?" Amaterasu asked.

"Uh…of course we can," Ichigo replied hesitantly. "Inoue's studying at the Academy at the moment but I bet she'll be delighted to see you again." Amaterasu and the Royal Guards were all granted leave by Izanagi to go off on their own. Amaterasu promptly followed Ichigo and Isshin to the Academy. The Royal Guards chose to either accompany the captains they had been closest to or the captains of the divisions they had formerly been in. Marisha went with Unohana, Benten went with Soifon, Hamori went with Rose, Fukurokuju went with Tessai, Daikoku went with Byakuya, Ebisu went with Love, Jurojin went with Kensei, Ajisuke went with Hitsugaya, Bishamon went with Kenpachi, and Hikifune went with Mayuri. Susanoo, Tsukuyomi and Kagutsuchi decided to stick with their father. Uzume decided to follow after Isshin.

Ichigo and Isshin led Amaterasu to the front entrance of the Shinigami Academy. The three of them were about to go inside when Uzume suddenly came rushing from behind.

"Wait up Isshin! I want to go with you!" she called out. When Isshin saw her face, he froze up.

"You want me to take you around?" he asked.

"As a former member of the thirteenth division, I deserve to be shown around by its current captain, shouldn't I?" Isshin looked at Ichigo, who shrugged.

"Just go with her Ojii-san. I'll be fine with Amaterasu by myself." Isshin and Uzume waved goodbye to Ichigo and Amaterasu.

"At last, it's just the two of us!" Amaterasu giggled.

"You sound just like Inoue when you laugh," Ichigo said.

"Of course I do. She and I were the same person once, remember?" Amaterasu reminded him.

"Whatever. You want to check on Inoue right? Well I think she and her school mates are about to star in a performance at the Academy's Great Hall of Spirits." As Ichigo and Amaterasu walked through the corridors of the Academy, the students they walked by all fell onto their knees and gasped.

"Why are they all reacting to us like that?" Amaterasu asked.

"It's not often that these students would get the chance to see the Headmaster of the Academy and the Sun Princess in the flesh at the same time," Ichigo grinned.

"Gosh, I didn't know I was so revered," Amaterasu giggled again. When the two of them arrived at the Great Hall of Spirits and entered, they saw that the first performances of the festival had already started. Though Ichigo tried to make his entrance into the hall as discreet as possible, nearly everyone in the audience turned their attention towards Amaterasu and him as soon as they appeared. Not wanting to be stared at for too long, Ichigo spied some seats near the front rows that had been reserved for him. When he got to the front, he was astonished to see Rukia sitting there with Kaien and Masaki beside her.

"Rukia what are you doing here?" Ichigo asked.

"Isn't it obvious? I came to see the performances," Rukia replied. "Karin and Yuzu made me promise to see them live on stage."

"Oh my, it's Kuchiki-san!" Amaterasu exclaimed as she appeared from behind Ichigo's back.

"Princess Amaterasu..." Rukia stuttered. "It's a pleasure to see you again."

"You two Kuchiki san-wait a minute, are those two babies yours?" Amaterasu asked.

"Yep, their names are Kaien and Masaki," Rukia replied cheerfully. "They were both a month ago." Amaterasu sat down on the seat beside the twins whilst Ichigo sat down beside Rukia.

"Oh my god they're so cute!!" Amaterasu giggled. "Can I hold one of them?"

"Uh… sure you can. Just be careful with them, and don't make them cry."

"I won't." Ichigo and Rukia watched closely as Amaterasu lifted Kaien out of his cradle and carried him gently in her arms. The whole process was done so smoothly Rukia wondered if Amaterasu was a natural at caring for children.

"Hey, what's the next act going to be?" Ichigo whispered.

"Uh, I think it's A wing performing 'the Illiad'," Rukia said. A few minutes later, D wing's act ended and as Rukia predicted the students from A wing came on stage. Ichigo was amused to see that they were all wearing togas, and that Paris from the Laodemon clan was the lead actor.

"Isn't Paris playing his namesake in the play?" he whispered to Rukia, who nodded.

"It's ironic that he's chosen a performance based on his own family's past history."

The play turned out to be less interesting than Ichigo had imagined, as it followed the original legend of Troy very closely. When the play finished and Ichigo's third seat Minazawa announced that the next performance was from B wing, Ichigo, Rukia all paid close attention. The first actors to come on stage were two of Ichigo's former Karakura classmates, Michiru and Ryo. They were soon followed by a brown-haired boy that Ichigo recognized but couldn't quite make out his name.

"Ichigo, isn't he the boy who was trapped in the parakeet?" Rukia whispered.

"You're right, he does look like home. I think I met him when I visited Rukongai the first time," Ichigo replied. They didn't have much time to ponder the boy's identity, for a short while later Mizuiro appeared on stage, dressed up like Don Kanonji. He was followed by Karin, Orihime, Tatsuki, Keigo and Chizuru. The five of them quickly changed into what looked like superhero outfits.

"It's Orihime-chan at last!" Amaterasu exclaimed. "But why is she wearing that cheesy looking outfit?" Ichigo and Rukia knew quite well what the entire play was about.

"I should have known they'd do something like this," Ichigo chuckled and sighed.

"Don Kanonji's act must have been incredibly popular for all of them to copy the Karakura superheroes idea," Rukia smiled. The rest of the play was very enjoyable for Ichigo, Rukia and Amaterasu to watch, as it brought back fond memories of Don Kanonji's infamous visit to Karakura Town. When the play finished with all of the actors dancing around on the stage, Ichigo, Rukia and Amaterasu all gave raucous applause.

After the play, Ichigo, Rukia and Amaterasu immediately went to find Orihime, Karin and the others, with Kaien in Rukia's arms and Amaterasu holding Masaki. They eventually found the B wing students back at their dormitory. As Ichigo entered the door he caused everyone inside to gasp in surprise.

"Onii-san, Rukia-san!" Karin and Yuzu called out and ran towards them.

"Who's the other woman standing beside Rukia holding the baby?" Tatsuki asked.

"I think that's…oh my god it's Amaterasu-hime!" Orihime exclaimed. She got up and ran toward Amaterasu, who gave Masaki back to Ichigo to hold.

"It's good to see you again Orihime-chan," Amaterasu smiled as she hugged her former host body around the waist. "I was worried about your safety.

"Oh I'm perfectly fine," Orihime said. "What about you Amaterasu-hime?"

"Call me Ammy-san," Amaterasu corrected Orihime. "And I'm okay as well. After Aizen was defeated and father got his throne back we made a lot of changes to our palace, so it's a lot more comfortable now."

"That's good to hear," Orihime said. "Hey, do you want me to show you around the dormitory?"

"Of course I would! Let's go Orihime-chan!" Ichigo watched as Orihime led Amaterasu by the hand. He couldn't help but notice how similar the two of them were in personality. It was like seeing two versions of the same person. Just then, the fifth seat Tanaka knocked on the door of the dormitory.

"Captain Kurosaki, I just received a message from the Special ops saying that the King wants to see you," Tanaka said.

"Oh, it's that moment already? I guess we'd better take Kaien and Masaki over there now," Ichigo said. Rukia nodded. The two of them said goodbye to Karin, Yuzu, Tatsuki and the other students before making their way out of the Academy. They then walked slowly towards the Central 46 compounds. Upon reaching the Courtyard of Reflection, they saw that the King was already waiting for them, along with Urahara, Isshin, Byakuya and the King's three sons.

"You've come at last Kurosaki Ichigo, Kuchiki Rukia," Izanagi said. "I was wondering where the two of you where."

"We were showing your daughter around the Shinigami Academy," Ichigo replied.

"The Shinigami Academy eh," Izanagi pondered. "I would like to see it myself but I guess there's not enough time to do so."

"What sort of blessing are you going to give our children?" Rukia asked.

"It's one that I used to bestow on any child who was born to a noble family," Izanagi explained. "The blessing is meant to provide them with a portion of my will and also endow with them good luck." He instructed the Kido corps members and his own personal priests to grab some water from the courtyard's reflection pool. Izanagi then motioned to Ichigo and Rukia to walk to the platform in the middle of the pool and place Kaien and Masaki on the dais. The two of them stood side by side and looked on eagerly as Izanagi walked up to the dais.

Izanagi's priests handed the king a jug of water from the reflect pool. He poured some of the jug's water into a small basin. Then, after dipping his fingers in the basin, he wiped the water onto Kaien and Masaki's foreheads. Izanagi finished by chanting a long and complicated Kidou spell that neither Ichigo nor Rukia could understand. A few seconds later the two of them gasped when their babies started to glow with a bright yellow light.

"May the light of heaven shine upon you from this point forward until they day you become one with the Sea of Souls," Izanagi said. During the whole process, Kaien and Masaki regarded Izanagi with a sense of curiosity and wonder. Kaien even tried to pull Izanagi's beard, causing Izanagi to chuckle slightly. When the blessing was finished, Izanagi handed the children back to Ichigo and Rukia.

"I thank you for bestowing such a gift on our children," Rukia bowed.

"No need to thank me. I should still be thanking the two of you for saving my life and my daughter's," Izanagi said. "Think of this as a token of my appreciation." Shortly afterwards, the King reunited with Amaterasu and the other Royal Guards, who had finished touring Seireitei with their respective captains. As the Kido Corps re-opened the Seireimon, the delegation from the King's Realm received a much larger send off. Urahara and the thirteen captains were present, along with their Lieutenants, the top twenty seats in all thirteen divisions and the majority of the nobles in Seireitei. The King ascended to the top of his golden pavilion and gave a final departure speech.

"I thank all of you for the hospitality you have showed us," Izanagi's voice reverberated throughout Seireitei. "After what I've seen today, I believe that Soul Society has a bright future ahead of it. This certainly won't be the last time I shall visit here again, but it will forever be etched in my memory as the fondest." With that the King and his daughter Amaterasu were carried off through the Seireimon by their servants, followed by the fifteen Royal Guards. When the final Akuma soldier went through and the gate was shut, all of the people who had met the King in person sighed deeply.

"I bet Kaien and Masaki will remember this day for the rest of their lives," Ichigo said.

"Of course they will," Rukia smiled. "As will we."

Notes: This chapter sees the special return of the the Spirit King, Princess Amaterasu and the Royal Guards. For those who have read Bleach: After the War, the names of the Royal Guards will all be familiar, but for those who haven't, I'll give a brief explanation. The Royal Guards, along with Izanagi and Amaterasu, all have their names based on Japanese gods of mythology. In terms of Bleach mythology, most of the Royal Guards used to be captains of the Gotei 13, or part of the King's personal guard when the Royal Family lived in Soul Society.

This is the penultimate chapter of The New Order. The next chapter will be the final chapter, and will feature several surprises for long time readers.