Chapter 12

Toshiro sat on the large cushion for a few minutes after he got off the phone with Rangiku. He felt much better now that he knew that Rangiku was going to be the one comforting Momo. After all, his Vice-captain was at least as loyal as she was annoying (if not more). She had solidly proven that to him on many occasion.

He put his cell phone away and walked out the door, completely and expertly masking his reiatsu as he did so. It didn't take long for him to pick up traces of Yoda's reiatsu. He followed it to a large room with several smaller rooms branching off of it. Yoda's reiatsu was in one of the smaller rooms.

The door to the smaller room was open. As Toshiro approached, he could tell that there was a class in session. That's right, he thought as he peered into the doorway at an angle that had him out of sight of Yoda. While Yoda and Yaddle were talking at breakfast today, they mentioned the "youngling" class he taught. This must be it.

Toshiro watched these kids (who were all obviously younger than he was) with great interest. It was weird watching this classroom full of kids, all of them learning what was apparently one of the Jedis' main combat skills. Back when he'd been training at the Shinigami Academy, he'd been by far the youngest one in the class, since everyone had to take an entrance exam to get into the school. The fact that he'd not only gotten into the school at such a remarkably young age, but had also gotten a perfect score on the entrance exam, graduated top of his class, and had eventually become by far the youngest captain in the history of Soul Society, had given him the unofficial title of "boy genius" and/or "child prodigy".

The lesson had apparently just started. Yoda explained to his class that today they were going to learn how to move objects with the Force, a technique that was called telekinesis. Toshiro paid especially close attention now. After all, the key to understanding any kind of power or ability always lay in the basics.

Yoda told them to clear their minds, and "let the Force flow through" them. Then he told them to picture the small object that sat in front of them in their minds. He reminded them to focus, to concentrate, to not let their minds wander or stray from the task at hand. Then, he told them to picture the object rising, slowly, just about a decimeter or so off of the ground.

Toshiro focused all of his attention on picking up every single bit of information he could through all of his senses. What he discovered was rather surprising, in a very simple – and unexpected – way. As he watched a few of the objects rise, he realized that each kid was using his or her own reiatsu to lift the object from the ground. What really stunned him was that he'd actually seen this done in Soul Society before; not as an actual ability and most certainly not in the same way these kids were doing it, but he had seen someone move an object with nothing more than their own reiatsu. The funny thing was, the person who'd done it hadn't even really been trying to move anything (and he most certainly hadn't been focusing on it).

That person had been the eleventh squad's Captain, Kenpachi Zaraki. He was famous for many things, one of them being that he'd become a Captain without ever learning how to release his zanpakuto (which was almost always a requirement). He loved fighting, and would always seek out the strongest opponent in order to get more of a challenge (and to "have more fun"). He also had an enormous reiatsu, so much so that he usually wore a special eye patch that was designed to eat up a good chunk of it. Once, in the midst of a battle, he had somehow gotten underneath a tower, and had lifted the entire thing by merely removing his eye patch and letting his reiatsu poor out of him.

Surely, there had to be a connection.

Toshiro continued to observe the class for another five minutes or so. Then, as Yoda started going around to each student and giving them individual advice, he turned around, and headed back to his room.

l***l

Yoda's ear twitched. His head snapped up just in time to see Toshiro walking away from the open door. Yoda stared after him, surprised that he hadn't sensed the boy's presence. How long had he been standing there, anyway? Hm… pay him a visit after my class, I think I will, he thought as he returned his attention to his students.

l***l

He was just too dang curious.

Toshiro sat on the bed in his temporary room, his curiosity itching furiously.

He just had to try it.

He looked around his room for something small and hardy that he could practice on. He opened the top drawer of the dresser to find a rubber ball nestled in one of the corners. He bounced it on the floor a time or two. This worked.

He set it on the floor, then sat in front of it. He closed his eyes. Clear your mind. He took slow, deep breaths, recalling his experience from earlier that morning. Soon he could feel that peace envelop his soul again, instantly crowding out every thought and care, until his mind was completely clear once more.

Let the Force flow through you. Slowly and carefully, he allowed his reiatsu to seep out and into the peace that surrounded him. It mixed into the peace like a dye would mix with water. He noticed that when he did this, his reiatsu felt different than it normally did. Usually, his reiatsu would just pour out of him like water from a faucet, and he had basically no control over where it "went" or what it "did". But now, he could tell that he had that control.

Picture the object in your mind. Focus. Concentrate. He could see the rubber ball in his mind's eye as it sat on the floor in front of him. He focused on it. Concentrated. He handled it with his mind, feeling its texture, mass, and even temperature.

Imagine the object slowly lifting off the ground. As he held the ball in the hands of his mind, he slowly lifted it up, off the ground, until it was eye level with him. He held it there while he mentally prepared himself to open his eyes. He made up his mind that he was not going to be startled by whatever he saw, whether the ball was in the air, or on the ground.

He opened his eyes. The ball was levitating in front of him. Right where he'd pictured it.

He felt wonderful. Never before had he felt so in control. For the first time in a long time, he actually felt as young as he was. He felt like a complete kid. And, even more amazing, he was completely fine with it. He didn't feel like he had to "keep up" with the other Captains. He could just be himself. No one could judge him now.

He decided to take his little experiment a bit further. Gently, he used his reiatsu to "push" the ball away from him. Towards him. To the left. Right. Up. Down. Around in a circle. Around the other way. The ball drew numbers in the air. Spelled out his name. Momo's name. Their names together. Hyorinmaru. Kusaka. Soul Society. In other words, just about anything he could think of.

He was so engulfed in moving the ball with his mind that he barely even noticed when the door opened and a familiar reiatsu walked in. It took his mind a minute or two to recognize who it was. Suddenly, he jumped, lost all concentration, and let the ball fall to the ground and bounce to a stop. "Y-Yoda!" he exclaimed in surprise. He suddenly felt like he'd been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "Uh… what are you doing here?"

Yoda looked just as shocked as Toshiro. His gaze shifted from Toshiro, to the ball, and back. "What doing here, are you?" he asked playfully.

Toshiro had a feeling that Yoda's question was rhetorical. "Uh… well…"

Yoda smiled with mirth. "Do that again," he half-asked-half-ordered.

Toshiro took it as an order, and obediently nodded and returned his attention to the rubber ball. He cleared his mind. Let his reiatsu seep out of him. Then, his eyes open, he gently nudged the rubber ball with his reiatsu. It rolled towards him. He slowly lifted it into the air, then began to move it as he had before.

l***l

Yoda watched Toshiro move the ball in utter astonishment. No way! This was far beyond amazing. Never, ever, in all his years as a Jedi, had he ever seen anyone learn how to use the Force for the very first time so quickly! All Toshiro had done (at least as far as he knew) was eavesdrop on his youngling class probably just long enough to hear the most basic of instructions, and now, here he was, moving this ball with a level of care and exactness that usually only came after weeks, months, and even years of practice.

And then there was the matter of this morning. Toshiro had only been in this dimension for less than three days, and he was already having visions of the future. Plus, he'd meditated for a good long while without even being aware of what he was doing.

The rusty old gears in Yoda's head began turning, having been recently lubricated by this boy's obvious and extreme talent for the Force. "Ever done this before, have you?" he asked quietly, trying to avoid distracting Toshiro.

Toshiro held out his hand, and dropped the ball into it. "No," he replied. "I've… seen a person move an object with their reiatsu before, but, it was basically an accident, and… it wasn't anything like this…"

Yoda's smile broadened. He suddenly remembered that he wanted to ask Toshiro how his talk with his friend had gone, but wisely decided to let that wait for now. "Come," he said merrily as he turned and walked out the door.

His heart smiled with relief when Toshiro didn't hesitate to follow him.

l***l

The Supreme Chancellor sat behind his desk in his office. His fingers were spread and touching at the tips. He was thinking. Not about anything that had to do with the Senate or the Republic, at least, not directly. But instead, his thoughts were once again drawn to the white-haired, human-looking boy that had fallen out of the sky and collided with his speeder the day before yesterday. He hadn't been driving at the time, of course; he had all sorts of assistants to help him with those kinds of everyday tasks. But he had seen the boy.

His driver, on the other hand, hadn't.

That still baffled him. How was it possible that his driver hadn't seen the boy as he collided with and toppled over the top of the speeder? He knew that he hadn't just been seeing things; he had felt the boy's strong, bright presence in the Force. And that worried him. The boy had not been garbed like a Jedi, and yet, his strength in the Force was easily equal to that of a Jedi Master.

Then there were the… unsettling… disturbances in the Force that he'd been sensing over the past two days. Something was terribly wrong. And he sensed that this… boy… had something to do with it.

And if that were indeed the case, then this boy would have to be eliminated. Immediately.

But that was easier said than done. Ever since that first encounter, he hadn't seen or sensed the boy anywhere. He had a sneaking suspicion that the boy was taking up residence in the Jedi Temple, but as he had no real proof of that yet, there was still really nothing he could do. Plus, if this boy were indeed a non-Jedi staying at the Jedi temple, then it would be nearly impossible to get to him.

Nearly impossible.

He pressed a hidden button on his desk. Soon, a hologram of his newest apprentice appeared. "Yes, Master?"

"There's been a slight change of plans, Tyranus. I need that droid army sooner than we anticipated."

Dooku sent his master a quizzical look. "How soon?"

"As soon as you can get them made."

Dooku was taken aback. "Why so soon, Master? The clone army won't be ready for years! Wouldn't it be better to-"

"I did not call you to ask your opinion, Apprentice," Sidious seethed darkly. "I need that droid army. Now."

Dooku swallowed nervously, then respectfully bowed his head in fearful submission. "Yes, Master."