His eyebrow twitched in annoyance as he stared across the desk at Toshiro. It had been three hours since he was called to meet with the vertically challenged Taicho. Looking around the office he nearly rolled his eyes at the stacks of paperwork not so subtlety hidden under the sofa. To add to his annoyance he could hear Rangiku, Orihime and Uzume trying to whisper to each other and occasionally snickering. It's not that he was against what him and his sekirei were doing, truth be told it was one of the greatest things he had ever experienced. Dealing with everything that happened during their should have been private moment was a real pain in his ass.

"For the hundredth time Kurosaki! Why did you blast a cero through the side of my barracks!?" Hitsugaya demanded, severely at the end of his already short patience.

"For the hundredth, two hundredth and three hundredth time it's none of your fucking business!" Ichigo fired back just as annoyed.

Once again silence fell over the office as the two males simply started their glaring contest once again.

"Rangiku?" Uzume whispered

"Hmm?"

"Why is that little kid yelling at Ichi? Is he the Taicho's son or something?" Uzume innocently asked. In her mind she couldn't comprehend how such a little kid rose to the rank of Taicho.

"Hahahaha! That's priceless!" Matsumoto busted out of her attempts to be quiet. Trying to control herself she looked back to the desk only to find both men glaring at her. While Toshiro was fuming having obviously heard the question asked, Ichigo looked like he wanted to outright throttle her. Long having been accustomed to Toshiro glaring at her couldn't stop her from being a little shaken at Ichigo's death glare. It's not like she didn't feel bad about what she did. In all honesty she thought they would be in there kissing at most, the thought of them doing that definitely never crossed her mind.

A little shiver went down her spine as the image of a red orb growing on the end of Ichigo's index finger crossed her mind. If she had lesser reflexes she probably would have been torn in half by the beam that ripped through the front of her apartment, completely destroying the courtyard before detonating at the front gates of Squad Ten. It's been eight hours since the incident and yet the murderous look in the young hybrids eyes had yet to abate.

"MATSUMOTO!"

"Hehe would you look at the time Taicho! We have an SWA meeting gotta go!" She quickly shot out, while grabbing the wrists of the other girls and disappearing in a whisper of shunpo.

"How the hell do you put up with her?" Ichigo asked rubbing his temples in annoyance.

"If you had better aim I wouldn't have to anymore." Hitsugaya sighed out before continuing. "Now will you please tell me what happened so I can make a report? If it's too personal I will make something up, but I need to know why you tried to kill my FukuTaicho."

"Well she kind of walked in on me, Orihime and Uzume doing something intimate." He answered with a small blush staining his cheeks.

"Huh?" he replied back slightly confused before his mind grasped what he was trying to say. "Holy shit! Why the cero though?"

"Well it wasn't exactly an accident that she barged in. She came in yelling and calling us perverts. I guess I may have overdone it." He sighed out slumping into the chair.

"Don't worry about it. I'll just fill out that she surprised while you were sleeping and you did it out of reflex." Toshiro answered pinching the bridge of his nose. Honestly now that he knew he really couldn't blame Ichigo for overreacting.

"Thanks Toshiro, I really appreciate it." Ichigo stated standing up and making his way towards the door. He was relieved that that was over and he wouldn't have to explain it to anymore people. After Toshiro's report he might have to take another physc test, after all lashing out with deadly force for being surprised wasn't exactly permissible behavior.

"No problem just tell Isshin I said hello the next time you see him." Toshiro responded waiving off his apology. It was the least he could do for the son of his former Taicho and to pay him back for Rangiku's actions.

Walking through the halls of squad ten Ichigo was more than aware of all the stares he was receiving. While it was nothing new for him it was still unsettling on some levels. Seeing three female shinigami giggling and looking at him might have gone unnoticed in past years, now it was painfully obvious what they were talking about. With a small wave to them he just kept on his way hoping to find somewhere more private.

'Looks like I have some time to kill since once again that harpy has kidnapped my girlfriends.' He thought irritably. He didn't really care where he went as long as it was quiet or he could beat the shit out of something. Absently he wondered if he should go to squad two and practice his Hakuda with Soi-Fon, over the years he actually enjoyed their spars. She didn't ask any personal questions and she was always ready for a good fight. As odd as it was when they were fighting was the only time they truly got along with each other. That idea went out the window when he remembered Rangiku saying something about a SWA meeting and he was pretty sure that Soi-Fon always attended them faithfully.

Changing directions and plans he shunpoed towards the gates of the Seireitei. He knew that the meetings always went long and that they would come up with some hair brained scheme to make money, which would keep them occupied even longer.

Nearing the gate he dropped out of shunpo to have a conversation with the giant that guarded the entrance Jidanbo. He is an extremely large, muscular man, who easily towers above thirty feet. His hair is tied into a pony-tail, which extends down his waist. He has long sideburns, which continue down onto his neck and long enough to be tied up in small pony-tail like tufts. He wears armor on his left shoulder and upper arm, plus a red hat with tassels. The left side of his chest his left exposed by his uniform

"Yo, how ya been big guy?" the hybrid inquired.

"Ahh if it isn't my favorite ryoka Kurosaki Ichigo. How long has it been? A month since you last came through my gates?" The large man questioned.

"Yeah something like that anything new going on with you?"

"No not really just watching the gates. What districts are you going to search today?" He replied there was a note of sadness in his voice as he asked his question. It really broke the big guy's heart every time Ichigo went out into the Rukongai to search for his mother, only to come back several hours later with a disappointed look on his face. It's been years since he started and he hadn't even covered a twentieth of the districts. He just wished that he finally would find who he was searching for so that he no longer had to witness the look of absolute loneliness when he returned.

"The west seventieth district. I have a feeling today is going to be the day." He replied with a little fake enthusiasm. Even though the number of the district changed it was the same line he told himself every time he left.

-Kuchiki Manor-

Uzume was dumbfounded at the size of the mansion they were entering. She has seen enormous buildings in her life, but this was no mere run of the mill modern building. This was a mansion straight out of the old samurai movies she watched growing up. Everything about this place screamed wealth and arrogance. She couldn't believe this was the house of Rukia who for the short time she had known her didn't act like a rich and stuffy noble at all. Following the Rangiku through the halls the trio was stopped in their tracks when a cold voice reached their ears.

"May I ask what you three are doing wandering through my home?" Byakuya inquired with narrowed eyes. It was like clockwork every month he would catch random female shinigami wondering his halls.

"Sorry Kuchiki Taicho, but Rukia asked us to meet her here and we managed to get lost admiring your estate." Rangiku answered with a slight bow, while reciting the same lie they always gave him when they were caught. Honestly everyone knew that Byakuya was aware that they held their SWA meetings in his house, but was still clueless as to where exactly they met. So as a precaution they would tell him they were meeting Rukia, at which time they would be led to her quarters. After that it was a secret passage away to their official meeting room.

"I do not believe you." He replied emotionlessly. He wanted to put an end to these damnable get-togethers, but first he needed to know where they were held and how these insufferable women kept sneaking past his security.

"Well it's the truth and by the way Ichigo is around here looking for you." Rangiku quickly lied she knew if there was one thing Byakuya hated it was being harassed by Ichigo. Ichigo meanwhile remained completely oblivious to how much he aggravated the stoic man. She inwardly grinned when the slight amount of annoyance passed through his eyes before being replaced with an impassive look.

"You know the way to her room correct?" receiving an affirmative nod he continued. "Very well enjoy your stay I have other business to attend to at squad six."

Watching him quickly shunpo away she snickered to herself. "Too easy."

"What does he have against Ichigo?" Uzume asked also seeing his reaction to the mention of her Ashikabi.

"Well they have a rather complicated past. It's all in that book that I loaned you, you probably haven't reached that part yet." Rangiku answered not really in the mood for telling stories.

"Wait he's the one that stabbed Ichigo and removed the powers Rukia gave him!" Uzume exclaimed, that memory was fresh in her mind it was the last thing she read before she fell asleep.

"Trust me it gets much better later in the story." Rangiku replied she always wished that she was there when Ichigo and Byakuya fought. Looking up ahead she noticed Yachiru pop out of the floor and scamper through a hidden panel in the wall. Shaking her head she smiled she would never figure out how she managed to make all the passages that lay throughout the Kuchiki grounds. Noticing that the pink haired girl was waiting for them so they ended their conversation and picked up their pace.

-Meeting Room-

"All right everyone take your seats this session of the Shinigami's Woman's Association is now under order." The vice Chairwoman Ise Nanao stated banging a gavel on her podium.

"As all of you can tell we have a new person present today, will you please stand up and introduce yourself." The eights Fukutaicho stated pointing her gavel at Uzume.

"Hello everyone, my name is Uzume its's nice to meet you." The busty 10th announced slightly fidgeting with the hem of her shirt while being scrutinized by a room full of other females.

"Can I ask why she is allowed here? As far as I can tell she is not a Shinigami." Soi-Fon inquired the coldness in her voice cutting through the room.

"Well Orihime isn't a Shinigami either and she's been an official member since she was fifteen." Unohana answered in her calm pleasant voice.

"She was made an honorary member for her contributions during the war, this is hardly the same situation." Soi-Fon bit back. She couldn't put her finger on it but something about the girl rubbed her the wrong way.

"She is dating the war hero Kurosaki Ichigo, so that earns her enough credit for it be put to a vote." Nanao stated.

After that statement Uzume seemed to zone out from the conversation. 'Did they just say that Ichigo was a war hero? How is that possible he's so young? Is that where he got those scars from?' Absent mindedly she pulled the book out of her bag and stared down at it. It might as well been a holy grail of Ichigo information, because no matter what she asked the answer was always the same 'It's in the book.' She glanced over at Orihime who seemed to be reading her mind and received a small smile from her busty sister sekirei. She really could care less if she was made a member in whatever kind of club this was, all she wanted to do was find a quiet place and read. Being in this dimension made her feel kind of put out, everyone here knew infinitely more about her lover than she did. Closing her eyes she tried to get a feel for Ichigo, but it was incredibly difficult like he was really far away. What she was able to feel wasn't very encouraging it felt like he was frantically searching for something. Seeing Orihime with her eyes closed she knew the younger girl was doing the same thing.

"Orihime can you tell what's wrong with Ichigo?" she asked completely oblivious to the conversation coming to a halt around her.

"It feels like he's really far away and that he's searching for something." The quicksilver eyed girl answered back. Her brows were furrowed and she had her chin in her hand deep in thought.

"Wait! You two can feel Ichigo's reiatsu, how!?" Rukia exclaimed. No one was able to trace Ichigo anymore for these two to be able to do it was downright bizzare.

"That is very interesting. Mayuri-Sama would be very interested in this." Nemu stated in her monotone voice more to herself than anyone else.

"Nemu-San anything discussed in these meetings is highly confidential." Unohana warned with her signature smile while leveling the black haired woman with a lethal gaze. She seen the way Orihime stiffened at the mention of Kurotsuchi and she knew very well he would want to experiment after learning such information.

"O-Of course Unohana-Taicho." Nemu uncharacteristically stuttered out.

"She's creepier than Miya." Uzume whispered into the young healer's ear who nodded in agreement.

"Well I don't exactly know how, but after our first kiss I was just sort of able to." Orihime answered with a slight blush rising to her cheeks. She was being vague, but it wasn't a lie either.

"And it was the same for you?" Rukia questioned Uzume. Seeing the brunette nod she continued. "That's actually kind of creepy. What'd that pervert do somehow bond his soul to yours?"

"N-No I don't think so." Uzume answered 'Damn that one is really perceptive!'

"I still don't know what he's searching for though." Orihime stated trying to move the conversation away from bonds and anything else that could compromise their true natures.

"He's in the Rukongai." The second division Taicho stated calmly. Noticing all the eyes in the room shifted in her direction she asked "What?!"

"Don't tell me you can feel him too. Wow Ichigo is such a man whore!" Rangiku exclaimed.

"What's a man whore?" Yachiru asked innocently tilting her head to the side concentrating on the word.

"It's nothing Yachiru and no I can't feel his reiatsu bimbo! Unlike you I'm good at my job! He's never made it a secret that he goes into the Rukongai every time he visits!" She replied back through clenched teeth.

"Hey I'm not a bimbo you pintsized bitch! And what do you mean by 'good at your job' is it your job to stalk Ichigo?" The well-endowed woman retorted with narrowed eyes. She could accept being called a bitch and even a tease, but she was far from a bimbo. Behind the carefree attitude was a skilled and competent shinigami. She was prepared to take off as soon as she seen Soi-Fon stand up and get ready to dash across the room at her. Yes she was a competent shinigami, but so was the person she just called a pint sized bitch. She had no shame in admitting Soi-Fon would kick her sweet ass all over the Seireitei.

"Ladies please calm down." Unohana called out placing a hand on Soi-Fon's shoulder to keep her from gutting Rangiku.

"Why is he going into the Rukongai?" Uzume asked trying to hold in her laughter after seeing the cat fight almost break out. 'Maybe joining the SWA wouldn't be so bad. This is actually kind of fun.'

"I don't know, but he returns several hours or even days later depending on how far he travels." The twin braided woman replied reclaiming her seat at the 'U' shaped table.

"Wait! He could be gone for days!? Why the hell didn't he tell us?!" Uzume raged

"Well we did kind of leave without even saying goodbye to him, maybe he forgot to tell us." Always the peacekeeper Orihime tried to calm Uzume. She wasn't exactly thrilled that he left without letting them know 'and he better have a damn good reason when he gets back!' seeing Rukia with a solemn look on her face she had to question it.

"What's wrong Rukia?"

"Nothing it's just that I can think of only one thing that he would be searching for for so long." Rukia answered staring back into Orihime's eyes. She could almost see the gears working in the gentle girls head before the light bulb kicked on.

"His Mother." She said quietly. She mentally kicked herself for not thinking of that 'Of course he would go searching for his mother.'

"Well now that we have solved that mystery we can move on. We need to start planning our next fund raiser. The book we commissioned Urahara to write was a staggering success, but due to the failure of our pool project those funds are dwindling." Nanao announced.

"Aww what happened to the pool? I really thought that was a good idea." Orihime whined dragging herself out of her thoughts about Ichigo's mother.

"Byakuya Senbonzakuraed the shit out of it, he can be such a jerk!" Matsumoto answered playing with the ends of her hair.

"Don't call Nii-Sama a jerk! I told you if you built a pool in his yard that he was going to be pissed!" Rukia roared.

"Anyway back on topic. We have had several requests to raffle off a massage from Ichigo again, but in light of recent developments, that would be disrespectful to you two." Nanao started so she could avoid another argument from breaking out.

"Hehe yeah I think Ichigo-Kun was a little mad at you for making him do that." Orihime replied scratching the back of her head.

"Well that leaves option two he poses for the Shinigami poster he has been refusing to do."

"Wait why do all of your money making schemes revolve around Ichigo?" Uzume questioned slightly irritated by the blatant exploitation of her boyfriend.

"He is a hero in the eyes of many individuals and any merchandise remotely related to him sells out in the blink of an eye." Nanao answered not even slightly caring that they had made a butt load of money off the hybrid without even offering him a cent.

"That's right so Jiggles and ZuZu it's your job to get a really good picture of him!" Yachiru exclaimed jumping up on the table and pointing at the two Sekirei.

"Wait am I ZuZu or Jiggles?" Uzume asked

"I would guess ZuZu she calls me Jiggles no matter how many times I tell her to stop." Orihime answered slightly depressed at the nickname.

-Rukongai West District Seventy-

Walking down the dusty path that led into small village the Orange haired man couldn't help but cringe a little at the poverty stricken homes. He absolutely loathed the fact people were forced to live this way in their afterlife. Even with the little they had the people in these areas seemed to make the best of it. There was one fact that was clear to him ever since he made his first trip into the outer districts and that was that most of these people absolutely hated Shinigami. They felt betrayed that the shinigami lived in the Seireitei in comfort, while they struggled everyday just to make sure they had water to drink. Another thing he realized was that it was best to never give out his name, it always started a fight with some cocky asshole wanting to take on a legend. Walking through the middle of the small town he noted the vendors that lined both sides of the streets trying to sell their merchandise. Walking up to a vendor that seemed to be selling clean drinking water he pulled an old worn out picture from inside his Shihakusho.

"Excuse me sir, could you help me I'm looking for this person?" He asked trying to use his most pleasant voice. Years of asking strangers the same question made the tone of his voice and question almost an automatic.

"Buy something or get away from my stall Shingami." The man spat back.

Sighing to himself he kind of expected that kind of reaction, but beating a man senseless in the middle of the street would make the shinigami look worse in these people's eyes. So he used another practiced maneuver he reached into his robes once more and produced a bag of coins. Dropping it on the counter he started again.

"Here, hand out water until the money in this bag runs out, can you answer my question now?" He asked picking up a jug of water and handing it to the person behind him in line. Unlike most vendors who were money grubbing pricks this one actually let an honest smile grace his face at Ichigo's kindness.

"Let me see the picture again young man." The man asked as he reached out a wrinkled hand and took a closer look at the beautiful strawberry blonde haired woman in the picture. "She sure is pretty, but I'm sorry I haven't seen her."

Nodding his head he let a sad smile cross his face as he thanked the man for his time and turned to walk away. After several minutes of walking around he started having people come up to him and ask to see the picture. This was also something that happened commonly after he bought enough water for a hundred people. Much to his dismay they all gave him a version of the same answer and that was that nobody had seen her. He stayed true to his goal and this little bump in the road would never slow him down. He already planned on staying a couple days in the outer districts so he couldn't let his resolve crumble so easily. 'Probably should have told the girls, ah fuck it they'll be fine on their own for a couple days.'

Turning down a side alley his blood started to boil. At the other end was a group of five men kicking what appeared to be a ten year old lying on the ground.

"Give us the food you little shit!" A burly man shouted he appeared to be in his thirties, but with souls it was hard to tell their true age.

"I-I can't I-I need this food I'm so hungry." The boy weakly choked out.

"Bullshit you barely have any reiatsu how much food do you need!"

"B-but you guys don't even need to eat, you don't have any reiatsu." He whimpered as he received another kick to the stomach.

"So fucking what! Do you think you're better than us because you have a speck of reiatsu." The man seethed as he pulled a small knife from inside his tattered kimono. "Why don't we just kill you and you won't have to worry about eating ever again!"

Shunpoing in Ichigo caught the man's wrist before he was able to plunge the blade into the boy's neck. He could feel the bones creaking under the pressure of his iron grip, he wanted nothing more than to rip the arm off and take it as a trophy.

"Now is that any way to treat a small child?" He asked calmly keeping all the attackers in front of him. He stepped a few steps to the left to keep them all in his sights as they tried to circle him.

"What the fucks it to you ya piece of shit Shinigami?"

"I'm the piece of shit?" Ichigo asked pointing a finger at himself.

"What ya fucking deaf too? Look at this boys we got ourselves a deaf hero! That's a nice blade I'm sure we could get a fine price for a sword like that." The man who Ichigo now considered the leader of this little band of idiots.

"That's assuming you could even get this sword away from me." The hybrid yawned out 'Man I am kind of tired damn perverted girls keeping me awake.'

"Don't take us lightly you orange haired bitch!" he stated while the men behind him drew weapons of their own which ranged from a rusty sword to chains to a rather unimpressive stick.

"Please don't do this I really hate hurting people when it can be avoided." He lazily drawled out turning his head to the side and getting a satisfying pop.

The pop of his neck seemed to be the cue as the hoodlums charged forward. He frowned slightly even though they deserved a good beating it really was a waste of his time. Wasting no time he grabbed the rusted sword and snapped it in half. Looking at his frightened owner he quickly jammed it through his foot pinning the appendage to the ground. 'Well hopefully he doesn't die from tetanus'. Quickly turning he brought up his arm as a chain wound its way around his forearm, looking at the person on the other end he smirked. With a hard yank the man came speeding towards him and received a foot in the teeth.

Two of the men simply dropped their weapons and ran off, not in the mood to take a beating. Now it was just him and the leader who looked half a second away from shitting his pants.

"Go." It was a simple command that left no room for arguments.

Watching the man flee he turned his attention back to the small boy. Reaching down he hauled the boy to his feet, only for the boy to double back over.

"Shit sorry should've asked you if you could stand first."

"It's okay, but I think my ribs are broken." He whimpered out.

"Is there a doctor nearby?"

"Yeah just outside of town that way." He answered back weakly pointing to the north side of town.

"Okay this is going to be uncomfortable, but I'm going to need you to be strong for me okay?" receiving a nod he grimaced at the pained whimpers that escaped the boys mouth as he picked him up.

Slowly making his way across town he started a conversation with the young boy to help keep his mind off his injuries.

"What's your name?" he asked looking down noticing the slice on the side of his face.

"I-Ichigo." He answered back timidly

"That's a pretty odd name for a boy."

"It means one who protects, not strawberry!" the boy huffed out earning a smile from the shinigami.

"Sorry I didn't mean to offend you."

"It's okay a really nice lady gave me the name she said a really strong warrior has the same name. Do you know Kurosaki Ichigo?"

"Y-Yeah I know him. About this lady do you know where she is?" He asked with his heart hammering in his ears. He was sure only his mom would name a boy Ichigo and tell them the same meaning he got when he was a kid.

"I haven't seen her in about a year. Her name was Masaki-San, she said something about going to the lower districts."

"I see." He replied a little disappointedly. 'At least I finally found a clue.'

He was knocked out of his musings as he heard the young boy gasp. Up ahead of them was a small building burning with numerous people trying futility to put it out. Quickening his pace he made it to the crowd.

"What the hell happened here?" he asked the first person he came across.

"Like you don't fucking know!" the man snarled back. Noticing the wounded boy he continued. "Put the fucking boy down, he doesn't need help from a piece of shit like you."

"He needs medical attention is there anyone here that can help him?" He asked ignoring the man's attempts to piss him off.

"I-I can help him." A young blonde woman answered stepping forward. "I helped the doctor as his nurse for several years now."

Nodding his head he carefully laid the boy down. Before standing his full height and staring the man from earlier in the eye.

"Tell me what happened?" His voice was hard.

"Some bastard Shinigami kidnapped the doc and burned down our only hospital!" He roared back looking nearly ready to start throwing punches.

"What!" his voice conveyed his disbelief

"Don't act fucking ignorant of the fact that you Shinigami have been coming to the outer districts demanding protection money, sleeping with young children, and killing those that don't comply!" This time he actual did throw a punch that was easily side stepped, which only added to his rage.

"That's just fucked up!" The hybrid answered back dodging another swipe.

"No shit now stop fucking moving!"

"I'm not here to fight you! I can help if you knock it the fuck off!"

"Why should we fucking believe you?"

"You shouldn't, but I will prove myself to you." Ichigo answered back evenly.

"They took our doctor and said they were going to execute him at sunset. He refused to pay the protection money and urged others to do the same. All he wanted was for this district to prosper and it was slowly. He offered free medical treatment to anyone that needed it." The young nurse told him.

"How many Shinigami are there?" He asked with his eyes closed, he could feel his darkness churning.

"Always the same ten. They come here every three months and do whatever they please." The man gritted out.

"There's about two hours until sunset. That's plenty of time to retrieve the doc."

"By yourself?"

"I've had worse odds. I can feel their reiatsu a few miles away, they won't be a problem."

"Who are you?" the young woman asked.

"Kurosaki Ichigo." And with that he was gone in a whisper of shunpo.

Running through the forest that bordered the southern part of the village, he went through his options of what should be done. The first thing that came to mind was phone it in and let the stealth force deal with them (After he rescued the doctor of course). The second was a lot more primal form of punishment that would not end well for the ten men. Slowing his pace as he came upon a small makeshift campsite his first plan flew out the window. Controlling his breathing was hard and the urge to bathe in their blood was growing. Along with the doctor it seems that they also grabbed a few children to party with. The scream of a young girl had his feet in motion before he even processed what was going on.

"Put her down NOW!" He demanded drawing Tensa from his back.

"Who the fuck are you?" a short balding man questioned also drawing a sword with a red hilt.

"Who I am doesn't matter, who the fuck are you?" He answered back the tears in the little girls eyes had his self-control crumbling.

"We are members of th…"

"It doesn't fuckin matter none of you are walking out of this forest alive."

He charged forward faster than any of them could comprehend. His first victim lost his head before anyone could blink, he drove more fear into their hearts when he cut the falling corpse in half at the waist. Without even realizing his eyes turned an ominous black and gold as he dropped two more in one slash. Pleas of mercy fell on deaf ears as he grabbed a fairly muscular man by the face and fired off a cero point blank. The remaining six coward in fear barely holding up their zanpakuto as they witnessed the cero rip their friend in half and carve a path through the forest. Mustering up a small amount of courage four of them charged forward intent on overwhelming their opponent.

The first one to him succeeded in cutting his shihakusho before the hybrids left hand shot out and latched onto the man's mandible. With three fingers buried under his tongue and his thumb securely under his chin Ichigo gave a hard yank ripping the man's jawbone completely off. He wasted no time in spinning and burying his blade up to the hilt in the next attacker's heart. Ripping viciously to the side instead of straight out, he moved on to the other two. Throwing one to the ground he gave him a brutal stomp to the base of his skull severing the spinal cord. A quick vertical slash and there were only two left. Before he could move one of the last men standing pushed the other one directly in the hybrids bath. Slightly disgusted by the man's act of cowardice he fired a bala through the first man's torso, before it connected with the retreating man's leg severing it at the knee. Seeing that he was down he stabbed Tensa Zangetsu in the ground and slowly stalked the man.

"Please stop!"

"What a thing to say to someone like me. I wonder how many times your victims said the same thing, take a moment and savor the fear in your heart. That's what every one of your victims felt before you ruined their lives."

With his piece said he pounced on the man's chest and began driving his fists repeatedly into the man's face. He was unsure of when the man actual passed on, but the dull squishy thuds didn't stop until Ichigo was out of breath. Looking down made him want to vomit the only recognizable pieces left of the man's head were hair and a few teeth. Looking at the people he saved his heart started to break at the absolute terror etched into the young children's faces. He had lost control again and this time it was nobody's fault but his own. Looking around the small campsite looked like a complete massacre orchestrated by a hollow. Walking over to a pot of water that was heating up over the camp fire he dipped his finger in to gauge the temperature. Finding that it wasn't hot enough to burn him he lifted the pot off and dumped it over his head, hoping to cleanse himself of his recent sin.

"Are you guys okay?" he asked in a soft voice. Not wanting to frighten them more he took a seat about ten feet from them.

"Physically we're fine. I think the girls are pretty shaken up." The white haired doctor responded.

"I'm glad I got here in time. Who knows what they would have done to them."

"I have a good idea, but it makes me sick to think about it." Seeing the orange hair man nod. "Thank you for saving us…"

"Kurosaki Ichigo." The hybrid supplied for him seeing the man's eyes widen in recognition he inwardly groaned.

"So the man actually exceeds the legend. You have my thanks Kurosaki Ichigo."

"No thanks are needed it's not like I could let a doctor die that's trying to improve the afterlife. You're a good man yourself…"

"Asama Takehito."

'You've got to be shitting me!' He screamed in his mind.

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, favs, and follows this story has drawn a lot more interest than I thought it would. Hope you enjoyed the chapter.