Special thanks to animelover1993, RuByMoOn17, Orchamus, Grinja, charles123, BeccaBaby, Mel72000, Julian Carax, Takai153, Living in Darkness, TealEyedBeing, LvNa-cHaN, kobisaki, girl (we shall see!), and Appropriate Exclamation for reviewing the last chapter! I very much appreciate your feedback! Plushies for all!
Another special thanks to the awesome Black Sun Upon An Icy Sky for beta-reading this chapter!
Ichigo groaned as he was slammed into the wall with a forceful impact. His hand was still clenching Zangetsu as he got to his feet rapidly to race at the hollow-like creature in front of him. He held his Zanpakutou in front of him in a defensive position and could see Captain Aizen out of the corner of his eyes drinking his tea at the small table of the training room. He narrowed his eyes for a moment at his captain before he set his sights on the creature before him.
The hollow was the same height as him with a white mask in the form of a frog. Its green-clawed hands matched the rest of its body as he began to approach Ichigo once more. The young shinigami narrowed his eyes and charged the hollow with the intention of slicing its mask in half. The stupid creature had gotten the upper hand on him earlier because it formed behind him and he barely had time to unravel Zangetsu before it struck. Luckily, those sharp claws only made contact with his sword and nothing else. However, its tail had swung out and smacked him against the wall that put him in the position he now was in.
The hollow roared and swiped its claws at him, but he took that moment to duck under the claws. He saw his opening and thrust his Zanpakutou through the hollow's head and broke the mask. He smirked at the creature before he pulled his blade back and swung it over his shoulder to look at his instructor.
"That wasn't so hard," Ichigo said cocky, turning his back on the creature that should be disappearing. Captain Aizen's regular smile faded into a frown and he shook his head as he laid his cup on the table.
"You technique was sloppy. Even if it was an easy kill, I counted quite a few mistakes." Captain Aizen revealed and deflated Ichigo's ego slightly. The younger shinigami growled and thrust Zangetsu into the ground and leaned against it slightly.
"I killed it, that's what important!" Ichigo argued before he heard growling behind him. His eyes widened as he turned around to see the hollow that was supposed to be dead.
"You rigid it! Hollows are supposed to die once you slice its mask in half!" Ichigo growled as he raised Zangetsu up in a defensive position as the hollow charged him once more.
Aizen watched the boy fight against the hollow once more. He was able to block attacks that the hollow aimed at him; however, he also took whatever chance he had to swing at the hollow without calculation. A highly skilled shinigami knew when to strike and should only have to use his or her Zanpakutou once to destroy a hollow of this caliber.
"Never assume that you have defeated an enemy unless you are fully aware that it is gone," Aizen stated as he leaned his elbow on the table and rested his chin against his fingers as he watched Ichigo fight the hollow.
"Whatever," Ichigo growled as he sliced the hollow's arm off, but within a few seconds a new one grew back. He cursed under his breath as the hollow flexed its new hand and glared down at him. He had been taking quick glances at the clock every now and then to see the time. It was Saturday and he had to meet his friends.
Ichigo charged at the hollow and sliced through the hollows mask once more and barely missed being hit by its claws. He withdrew Zangetsu from its neck and chopped its head off for good measures. He didn't want to spend all day fighting one pathetic hollow.
He watched as the head disappeared but the body remained and looked down curiously at it. "I thought this was supposed to act like a real hollow?" Ichigo asked as he looked over at Captain Aizen who had finally gotten off his chair and was walking his way. The friendly smile had returned to the older man's face.
Ichigo looked down at the hollow and saw it begin to regenerate and cursed. He held Zangetsu in front of him once more as the hollow regained its head and roared at him. It took one step forward before it froze and stared straight at Ichigo.
The young shinigami blinked once, then twice as blood spurted from the hollow and he saw behind the creature his captain was standing and resealing his Zanpakutou. The hollow cried before it disbursed into tiny particles.
"It's still cheating when you are the one that created it," Ichigo grumbled and rolled his eyes. His captain had showed him a kido technique that would allow him plenty of practice against hollows, however, it didn't matter how many times he sliced it through its mask, the creature would never go down.
"That is not the point. You will tire yourself out if you continue to fight aimlessly. You need to observe your target and watch every move it makes from taking one step forward to its breathing. The fighting you just performed is what the eleventh division performs. And although they are a powerful division, there are many openings that they leave while in battle. If I were to fight you right now, even if I didn't have captain's strength, I could easily defeat you," Captain Aizen stated as he turned to look at Ichigo with his right hand still on the hilt of Kyōka Suigetsu. It was a small test that didn't matter how it went either way. If the boy took the bait and charged him, he'd easily put the boy in his place, if not, then obviously Ichigo wasn't going to argue with him.
Ichigo's eye twitched at the comment about his fighting technique. A part of him called to challenge Aizen, but the other told just to listen. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and chose the latter, for now.
"Now let's move onto a Hakuda session," Aizen stated and was about to conjure another kido spell when Ichigo interrupted him.
"Actually, we can wait till next time. I promised I'd meet my friends," Ichigo replied as he began wrapping up Zangetsu. He turned his back on his captain and missed the small look of annoyance that crossed his face. Even with Abarai gone they were still a distraction to Ichigo. However, it was only one day, and if it kept up, he'd find a way to separate them.
"That is fine. Wish Abarai-san luck from me," Captain Aizen requested and Ichigo nodded. The boy left, leaving Aizen in the small training area. He was beginning to feel as though he was going too easy on the boy, and in this case, he would never learn anything. Sure, he proved to be a fast learner and demonstrate what he learned, however, it was all on his terms. Things would need to change.
For now, he had his lieutenant he needed to deal with.
Ichigo walked into the bar he had promised to meet his friends at and saw the black-haired girl sitting by herself at a table. Her eyes were watching Rangiku and Shūhei chatting while drinking as much sake as they could handle before they passed out.
"Hey, where's Renji?" Ichigo asked his friend as he took a seat next to her and her eyes narrowed at him. Obviously, she didn't know what had happened, and there was no way she could have.
"From what I heard he got transferred to the eleventh division, what happened?" Rukia asked, keeping her voice calm. She settled her hands on the table, though still feeling a bit uneasy like she had been all week since she had heard what happened to her red-headed friend.
"He got into a fight with these assholes that are in our division. At least that's what I heard. I was busy when it happened, but Momo and Izuru were there. They said they tried to break it up, but one of those guys punched Izuru and Renji lost it. By the time everyone found them, they were blaming Renji for starting the whole thing," Ichigo said bitterly. If he had been there, he would have pounded those idiots into the ground for just looking at his friends. The worst part was, he knew something was going on, but wasn't able to stop it.
Rukia remained quiet as she shook her head. It seemed like for all of them, no matter how far they got, childish things such as this would always follow them. Now she had to worry about Renji not being beaten up by someone stronger than him in the eleventh division.
The door opened and a tired looking Renji staggered in. Having spotted his friends in a different spot than normal, he walked over towards them before flopping down in his chair, exhausted. Neither of his friends spoke and instead looked at him as his head hit the table.
"Renji," Rukia poked her friend in the shoulder that only caused him to groan. She looked over at Ichigo who narrowed his eyes at his friend and grabbed a hold of the redhead's ponytail and brought his head up. Renji growled and smacked his hand away before sitting up, though his eyes still told them he looked to be minutes away from sleeping.
"What?" Renji muttered as he rubbed his head and they looked dumbstruck as they stared at him.
"What do you mean 'what'? We've been wondering how you have been since you transferred and that's all you can say?" Rukia scolded him and Renji simply yawned at her.
"It's hell. Every single day is nothing but training, training, and more training. The only time we ever stop is when we're eating or sleeping," Renji murmured before a smirk spread across his face as he looked at Ichigo. "I bet I'll be able to kick your ass in a matter of no time." He grinned and Ichigo wanted to laugh at his friend. From what Aizen told him, the eleventh division only teaches its officers to fight wildly and have a constant need for battle. They may have been the fiercest division but it didn't mean they were the most powerful. Not that he'd ever go head to head with his friend.
"So, how are things there?" Renji asked Ichigo as he waved to the bartender for a drink.
"Eh, same as usual: boring." Ichigo replied casually before he noticed Rukia freeze and her eyes widen. "What's wrong with you?" He asked the black-haired girl just as two figures walked up to their table.
"Hey Kuchiki, I didn't know you come here," Kaien Shiba said cheerfully with his wife, Miyako, next to him smiling at the group. The two boys sitting at the table stared at the stranger and looked suspiciously at him.
"Yeah, we usually come here to hang out," Rukia blushed slightly and berated herself for it. "Ugh, Ichigo, Renji, this is my lieutenant Kaien Shiba and third seat Miyako." She introduced them and Kaien shook hands with Renji and stopped when he got to Ichigo.
Miyako looked at the two and had to hide a smile as they stared at one another. It was eerie how close the two looked alike. "Are you two related?" She finally asked and broke up the silence.
Kaien scratched his head and stood up straight as he looked down at Ichigo who scowled at the woman. "Not unless we have relatives that I don't know about." He commented and then chuckled goodheartedly. "What's your last name?" He asked.
Ichigo stared at the man for a moment and completely ignored the question. He didn't know too much about his family, only the bits and pieces his mother had told him when he was little. And this man, Rukia's lieutenant, did look very similar to him if it wasn't for the hair difference. "Kurosaki," Ichigo replied and Kaien frowned as he looked like he was searching through his mind if the name sounded familiar.
"Hm, no that name doesn't ring a bell. I don't know, maybe you're some distant long lost cousin." Kaien laughed as he slapped Ichigo across the back and sent the orange-haired shinigami forward, having not expected the move. Ichigo grumbled to himself, but it went ignored by the table.
"Well, I'll see you on Monday, Kuchiki. It was nice meeting you all!" Kaien waved to the group as he and Miyako moved towards the back end of the bar. Both sets of eyes turned towards Ichigo who had crossed his arms over his chest and was scowling.
"What's with you, he is nice." Rukia said to Ichigo and was ready to kick him under the table if he insulted her lieutenant. At least he was nicer than the one in the fifth.
"It's weird how he looks like me," Ichigo grumbled and looked over to where Kaien was sitting with his wife. He noticed the black haired lieutenant was staring at him and turned his head quickly when he realized he was spotted.
"Yeah, I'm sure he saw your face and realized that was the look for him because everyone wants to look like you." Renji rolled his eyes at his friend as he mocked him.
"Don't start," Rukia sighed as she smelled a fight forming right in front of her. She guessed it didn't matter how long they all stayed apart, some thing's would never change and they'd never grow up. "Why don't you tell us about the eleventh division, besides the fact all you do is fight. There has to be something more to it than that," Rukia told her friend who frowned at her.
"Not really, the third and fifth seats are alright. The lieutenant is as creepy as the captain." Renji shuddered seeing the large man walk in the second day he had been there during lunch with the little pink haired girl on his shoulder. He felt like a mere insect compared to him, and it didn't lighten the mood any when the lieutenant called him Red and waved.
"Neither of you would survive in there," Renji said with a small smirk as he leaned back. Both Rukia and Ichigo narrowed their eyes at their friend during one of his cocky moods. First, the red head tells them it is hectic and then says they couldn't handle it…
"Then why did you look so stressed when you first walked in?" Ichigo asked him with a small smirk of his own.
"Because I was training, it's a lot more than what we did at the fifth. Like I said, I'll be able to beat you in no time," Renji stated as he leaned forward to antagonize Ichigo some more. Rukia placed her hand on the side of her face wondering if she should allow this to go on or try to break it up.
"Che, like that will ever happen." Ichigo grinned at Renji who narrowed his eyes. It was just like at the academy, always challenging each other, but Ichigo was usually one-step ahead of him.
"Fine, how about we place a bet. In a few years we'll battle to see who is the strongest one." Renji challenged Ichigo who he knew would not refuse. He stuck his hand out for Ichigo to take and accept.
"You're on, what does the winner get?" Ichigo took Renji's hand and shook it. "Or should I say, what do I get when I kicked your ass and you're crying about it," he corrected himself and saw the twitch in Renji's eye. He knew from this day on, they'd both be practicing non-stop to beat the other.
Rukia sighed as the two idiots beside her made their bet. Though it would be interesting to see how far each of them would have come by then. She inwardly smirked at the thought of watching those two fight, and then bringing them both down herself after her training with Kaien.
"When you lose, you have to spend the day learning how to draw Chappy," Renji replied thinking of something off the top of his head. Unfortunately, Rukia had been sitting right there and gave him the idea.
"I already know how to draw the crappy little bunny better than she does. Think of something better," Ichigo replied and he felt a slap to the side of his face the same time Renji did.
"I am sitting right here and can hear every word you idiots were saying. Don't involve me in your little fight." Rukia glared at the two of them that were rubbing their cheek. She turned and pointed at Ichigo. "And you could never draw as well as I do! I'll have you know everyone else in my squad thinks Chappy is adorable." She retorted and felt like slapping Ichigo across the head once more when he gave her a yeah-right look.
"Are they all blind?" Ichigo muttered to himself, but loud enough for Rukia to hear. It was fun teasing the midget and it was distracting them from their other conversation.
"Are you alright?" Miyako asked Kaien as she placed a hand on his arm that caused him to turn around once more. Since they had entered the bar and met with Rukia's friends, he had been staring at the orange-haired shinigami that resembled him.
"Yeah, it's nothing." Kaien smiled at his wife before taking one last glance at Ichigo before returning to their previous conversation.
Karakura Town
A little black-haired girl with dull eyes lifted a box from the storage closet. For any normal little girl, it would be too heavy; however, for her it felt light as a feather. She could hear the grumbling of her companion, a red-haired boy who was digging through some of the other boxes and making a mess.
"Jinta, Tessai-san and Urahara-san will be mad if you make a mess," Ururu whispered, but it did not stop the boy's wreckage through the supplies.
"Yeah, yeah, I don't see why we have to restock the place when nobody ever buys anything from here," Jinta muttered and Ururu sighed as she walked out of the closet with the box. Tessai was in the kitchen preparing lunch before Urahara returned.
Ururu set the box down and started going through it and replacing anything that was outdated and throwing the old stuff in the trash. As soon as she reached the bottom, she found a small black box and stared at it in confusion. Why was this placed here? She was trying to make sure all the older stuff was taken first and took the box from the bottom. This shouldn't be in here.
She picked up the small box and was about to open it when Kisuke Urahara slid the door open and smiled down at Ururu. "Hey, you found it! I've been looking for this for a while," he said happily as he took the small box from the little girl.
"What is inside it?" Ururu asked him politely.
"Oh just a piece of junk that I've been meaning to get rid of for a while," Urahara's smile wavered as he looked down at the box. It was the truth.
"Do you want me to get rid of it for you?" Ururu asked him and he placed a hand on the top of her black hair and ruffled it.
"Nah, that's alright. I can do it," Urahara replied as he walked off leaving Ururu confused, but the little girl only shrugged and went back to doing her chores.
Kisuke opened the door to his room and slid the door closed behind him. He turned to look around his room while still holding the small black box in his hands. There had to be a safer place for it, but for now it would remain in his room where nobody could get by unless he noticed.
He walked over to the closet on the far side of the room, slid it open and crouched. A small safe was in the back of his closet that he had created that would only open to his reiatsu. He placed his hand over the area and the dial turned left, right, and then left once more before popping open. He moved forward to place the small box inside, but hesitated for a moment. He looked down at the thing that had caused more problems than it was worth.
Urahara sighed as he lifted the lid off and revealed a small globe inside: the Hogyoku. He reached down and lifted it until he was eye level with the small orb. Questions had often plagued him since he had been exiled from the Soul Society. One that had been most persistent had come up only two weeks after his exile.
"Ah, new home-sweet-home," Urahara smiled as he opened the doors to his new shop. It was completely bare with the exception of a few shelves that were lined across the wall. Still, it was better than anywhere else, and he would be able to do some work here without any disturbances.
"Shall I start locating some furniture, sir?" Tessai asked as the two entered the small shop. The blond man only grinned as he walked over to a bench that was in the back of the shop and sat down. Yep, this place was perfect, not only because it was in a convent location where many people couldn't grow suspicious of him, but the town had higher spiritual pressure than normal.
"We will, let's just relax for now," Urahara replied as he leaned back relaxing and closed his eyes for a brief moment before he felt familiar reiatsu heading their way. It was another reason why he had chosen this town.
Tessai went to slide the door closed, but before it completely shut, a foot blocked the way and the larger man looked down at the person in the way. The ex-kido corp captain looked a bit surprised to see the visitors, though he knew he shouldn't be. After all, they weren't the only ones that had been exiles from the Soul Society.
Urahara sat up slowly and stared at the shoe that was flying at his face. He knew he could avoid such a simple attack, but at the same time, he knew his ex-lieutenant would go into a hissy fit and try to beat him up regardless. He sighed as he allowed the foot to connect with his head and fell backwards.
"It's always a pleasure, Hiyori-san," Urahara grinned and the blonde girl who glared down at him before she bent down and grabbed his shirt and held his face close to hers. Obviously, her temper hadn't changed since the last time he saw her.
"Shut up, dumbass! I'm not here to see you, I came to-" Hiyori yelled when another figure entered the shop and stood next to Tessai while scratching the back of his head.
"Annoying as ever," Shinji sighed as Tessai greeted the ex-fifth captain. The young girl glared at the long-haired man as she let go of Urahara's shirt.
"I told you to stay outside!" Hiyori yelled and pointed at the man that annoyed her more than anyone else. Even in the Soul Society, the blond took every chance he got to antagonize her.
"I don't know why you made me come with you, you knew where he was." Shinji yawned before he looked over at the young girl and prepared himself for a slap with her shoe at any moment. Oddly enough, she for once had more self-control than normal, though it would most likely come out later.
Hiyori looked down at Urahara once more and allowed him to sit up as she crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm not here to greet you like old friends; I wanted to know if you grabbed the kid before you left." Hiyori's eyes narrowed at her ex-captain whose usual happy grin slowly disappeared.
"What kid?" Shinji asked as Hiyori backed away from Urahara and sent the long-haired man a 'shut up or I'll kick your face in' glare.
"Unfortunately, Kurosaki-san had disappeared from the fourth division before I could bring him with me," Urahara replied with a bit of disappointment laced in his voice. It had been sudden and he hadn't been expecting to leave the Soul Society so soon. Even still, he knew where the boy had been, but obviously, the news of his supposed crime had startled him into running off somewhere. He hadn't felt any traces of the boy's reiatsu anywhere in the Seireitei and knew he had to have gone into the Rukongai.
Hiyori's eyes narrowed and her hand clenched into a fist before she pointed at Urahara. "You better hope nothing happens to him or-" Hiyori told him, but Urahara cut her off. He already knew the consequences if something happened to Ichigo.
"I know, and luckily Captain Unohana has some idea and will go after him," Urahara replied.
"What is so special about this kid you guys are talking about?" Shinji asked, finally breaking the conversation up and ending his own confusion. The short girl hadn't mentioned anything about this since they arrived in Karakura Town, and had said they were going to see Urahara.
Hiyori yanked Shinji's hair, causing the older man to yelp and was about to retaliate before she whispered something in his ear. His eyes remained passive until they suddenly widened and he stared at Urahara. "Shit, you better get that kid out of there before Aizen finds him!" The ex-captain said as he straightened up and stared at Urahara.
"Unfortunately, they have placed a block so I cannot return there, like you guys. I told Yoruichi about it and she has some contacts that are willing to help. At least, until I find a way to get him out of there. Hopefully he remains out of the spotlight for a while, but knowing Kurosaki-san, that won't be happening." Urahara replied determinedly. The boy's reiatsu was strong, but it shouldn't draw anyone's attention quite yet.
Urahara continued to stare down at the Hogyoku for a moment before he placed the orb in the safe and locked it. The thing had to be destroyed, but unfortunately, every attempt he made ended it failure. There had to be another way around the cursed thing. However, for now he'd keep it locked up until another idea came to him. For now, he'd wait for Yoruichi to return with news from the Soul Society and where Ichigo was currently at.
A/N: I want to make something clear, I am following the manga from the past (or before Rukia met Ichigo in the canon) so whatever is going on in the manga at the moment has nothing to do with this fic, especially since I've already planned this story out and am not going to work the current canon into here. Also, the flashback scene in this chapter was taken right after Urahara and Tessai were exiled, and the none was present time. There has also been some changes done to chapter five, Renji and some of the others don't have their Shikai yet, but I' letting Icihgo keep his since it's always been in a constant state and its name, however anything else to do with Zangetsu he has no idea about, yet
Also, Mr F U, if you are reading this, can you be more specific on why this fic is stupid? Just saying this fic is a piece of garbage doesn't really give me any idea on why you don't like it.
Thank you for reading, hope you all enjoyed and please review!