Breath of Life
Icy Shock~

Toshiro found himself staring right at the Hollow as it's third arm came down across his chest and then across his hip area. He found himself cursing out loud as he looked at the Hollow, knowing full well that he wasn't in a good position to protect her like he wanted to. He could feel his Adam's apple bobbed down just as something moved between him and the hollow.

At first Toshiro thought nothing about it as the sun was setting behind the Hollow at the figure and he at first thought that the person was in fact Kurosaki Ichigo. He felt his jaw drop as he saw the shape of the blade was very different from the substitute shinigami. There was also a slight fluctuation from the person that told him that they were not the same person.

After the Hollow began to disintegrate, the man turned his head slightly and it became very apparent that the man's hair wasn't dark from the lighting but was naturally dark. Toshiro also saw the familiar set of eyes and the boy felt his eyes widen even more as well as the heat leave his cheeks from the shock of seeing that particular person.

"Why? He is supposed to be dead, so why is he here of all places?" These were the first words that came to Toshiro's mind as he felt a pain in his chest that was not related to his injury.

"Uncle Kaien!" Karin spoke up behind the small taicho, causing him to turn to look at her. As he caught the worried look on her face, she caught the look of utter horror on her face. She swallowed just as his legs collapsed from under him, causing him to fall to the ground. "Does he hate oji-san or something? I don't like this vibe I'm picking up from him."

The man was quick to sheath his blade before reaching out to catch the boy. "Karin, shouldn't you be more worried about you're friend here?"

The female opened her mouth to say something before moving so that she could support Toshiro with her own body. One of his arms was over her shoulder as his head hung down. She turned her head to his gigai. "Get back to the clinic." As the figure left, she turned to her uncle. "As for you, you really need to get back into your body uncle. If someone sees you like that you could be in serious trouble."

The man frowned, his spiritual pressure hidden once again as he moved to the body he had left on the ground. He then came back and lifted Toshiro slightly. The boy felt that pain suddenly increase in his chest. "No... wait..."

"You look like you're going to black out. As if I'm going to let you do something as foolish as walking back to the clinic." The man went down low before heaving the boy over his shoulders. "Now just hold on, we can get back quickly."

The man then began to walk fast, Karin hot on his feet. The small taicho bit his tongue as he tried to fight back the urge to lose his composure. "Not in front of him of all people, and not in front of Karin. What the hell is going on?"

"Let him get you back to the clinic child." The dragon hummed in his ear from the back of his mind. Rarely did the dragon refer to him by his actual age and the boy could feel himself suddenly flinching from the rebuttal.

"Just hang in there and don't struggle too much. I know you don't like this, but be patient." Kaien's words caused the boy to flinch again from frustration.

"Why? I feel like such a child and I'm not a little kid anymore!"

The trio arrived at the clinic and Kaien suddenly cursed under his breath. "Why does your father have a sign up that the clinic is closed and that he's out at this point in time?"

Karin glanced away. "It is possibly a good thing dad isn't around as he can't see Toshiro and can't be of any help."

Toshiro found himself lifting his head slightly at the mentioning of the Kurosaki family's father whom he had never seen before. His dragon piped up at the back of his head again. "Or have you?"

"If the Kurosaki family is indeed related to Kaien-dono then that would mean that they're related to the Shiba family. The only other sibling they had was..." The boy found his eyes suddenly closing.

"He..." Karin paused, frowning as if something crossed her mind. "He does work at the hospital as well I think."

The man let out a deep sigh and went to the front door, allowing the girl suddenly open the door. Yuzu glanced up. "Oh... you're both back."

The small taicho felt Kaien suddenly flinch and he opened his eyes and looked carefully at the man's expression of shock. "She can't see me."

"By the way, for some reason Toshiro showed up and he headed to the clinic. I told him that dad wasn't there, but he went anyways."

Karin suddenly tugged on his sleeve. "We'd better see what Toshiro is up to."

The man frowned, the confusion evident on his face. The two headed into the clinic and over to the room Kaien had been using. He lifted the boy off of his shoulders and set him down. "What was up with your sister. She acted as if she couldn't see him."

"That's because she can't see him." The girl crossed her arms as she looked at Toshiro who in turn looked at his lap. "Something is bothering him. The way he's avoiding eye contact with oji-san makes it seem as if he thinks he's a Hollow or a giant bug."

The dark haired male suddenly tugged at the boy's clothing before shaking his head. "Get a hold of your father."

"But..." Karin opened her mouth to protest only to see a very dark look at her uncle's face. Her mind was snapped away so suddenly from her thoughts about Toshiro's behavior that she didn't take time to argue further."All right, I'll call him." There was a sigh that followed. "But dad can't do anything as he can't see Toshiro."

The boy stared at the man and watched as the man stared at him, obviously thinking about something. The man wasn't acting like the Kaien he remembered. Indeed, some of his behavior seemed overly on guard. The man then spoke. "This question may seem odd, but do I know you?"

"What?" Toshiro blinked a couple of times while the man folded his arms across his chest.

"Are you perhaps one of the kids I couched soccer for?" The man continued to look at him.

"He doesn't remember anything."

"That would explain why he's acting as strangely as he is."

"I guess you could say that."

"How did you come to be friends with my niece?"

Toshiro felt himself suddenly fidgeting a bit. "It doesn't matter if he has amnesia or not, or if he's not really him. Having him show up..."

Karin suddenly came into the room, a rather irritated look on her face. "Dad's coming, though I don't know how much help he'll be."

Kaien let out a sigh of relief. "No, your father's good at healing. He always has been."

"Yes... if they're both talking about him then he was always good at healing." Toshiro frowned.

"Hey, kid... do you know when I stopped coaching soccer, whether it was a recent thing or not?"

The female child suddenly felt her eyes widening and she looked at her friend, who simply avoided his look. "I don't like this vibe I'm getting off of him. There is this feeling of utter disgust."

The small taicho felt his mouth open slightly. He first looked at the man and then looked at Karin. The girl was giving him a rather nasty look. "Hey... oji-san. Can I talk to Toshiro before my dad gets here?"

"Wait... if she starts asking questions... I don't know what I am or am not allowed to tell her!"

"I'm going to go and look for that doppelganger of his then to make sure he's not getting into any trouble."

"And I can't face her after that!" The boy took a deep breath as the man left.

"Toshiro..."

"No, just leave." The words came out of his mouth without thinking, but the pain in his chest was getting worse in both regards.

"Why did you tell my uncle that he couched you at soccer? You and I both know that you aren't from the living world." The girl folded her arms across her chest as she continued to glare at him.

Toshiro found himself glancing away and letting out a cough. "I think you should know by now that he isn't from the living world either."

"But you lied to him."

"I did not!"

Karin stared at him as she thought about what he said. "So you're telling me that the place you come from has soccer teams."

"No, but..." Toshiro found himself suddenly biting his lip before continuing. "Look, this is none of your business. Could you just leave?"

"Why do you want me to leave?" The comment from Karin caused him to suddenly flinch and his mouth open again. "You're going to contact the other shinigami about Uncle Kaien, aren't you?"

Toshiro blinked a couple of times. "Wait... no..."

"You want me to leave because you don't want me to know that you're ratting on him."

"That's..."

"I already know Rukia knows my uncle Toshiro. She knows full well that he is here."

Toshiro narrowed his eyes. "I told her not to come over here."

"No... you told her she couldn't stay here. There is a difference between the two."

"What is with that look on your face?" Karin continued to glare. "Do you dislike my uncle or something? Why do you keep avoiding the subject, even avoiding his gaze. Toshiro..." The girl then held out her hand. "Your phone."

"What?" Toshiro glanced up. "Could you just..."

"Your phone."

"I can't give it to you! I use it for work!"

"And work involves turning my uncle in." Karin held out her hand. "Give it so I know you can't call the other shinigami on this."

The small taicho reached into his robes and let out a hiss of pain. However, he handed the phone over to the girl. The girl opened it up and then placed pressure on either side. "Hey! What are you doing!"

"Making doubly sure you can't turn oji-san in."

Toshiro moved forward, only to wince in pain. "Kur..." A sudden snapping sound was heard and his eyes went wide. "Kurosaki!"

It was then that a shuffling sound was heard. Kaien opened the door. "What is g..." The look of worry on his face quickly turned to one of irritation. "Karin... what are you doing?"

"I..." The female looked at Toshiro, her lips pushing together.

The boy stared at him for a few minutes before grabbing the phone back. "Nothing happened."

"It is rather obvious your phone is broken."

"I asked her if she could try to fix it..." Toshiro lied. His eyes darted towards the floor.

Kaien opened his mouth to say something, only to look back towards the door. "Your father is here. I'll be right back."

When the man was gone Toshiro found himself suddenly cursing. "Shit."

"You really don't like my uncle do you?"

"Where did you get that idea from?" The boy grumbled. "And please... just go."

"There is a sound of disgust in your voice right then."

The boy felt his hands tighten around the sheets as he pushed his teeth together. "Of course I'm disgusted. I'm disgusted with myself, but I really don't want to tell her that."

It was then that the door slid open. Karin glanced up, but Toshiro continued to look at his lap. The girl frowned at the man. "I really don't understand why we're asking dad for help. He can't see Toshiro either."

It was then that a panicked sound came from the boy's voice. "What do you mean he can't see me!"

Author's note – This chapter took quite a few drafts until I got it right and I find myself cutting it off here as it's gotten very long.