Bleach: Waves and Rapids

Part II: Shinigami Arc

Chapter 13: Formation

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach and its characters, except for the OC's being introduced into the story. These characters (and Zanpakutō if applicable) belong to me, and me only.

It was the following day when I was admitted out of Sōgō Kyugō Tsumesho. After a few checkups on my reiatsu, I was then able to leave. I didn't know where to go at first; so I just went to the Sixth Division barracks. It was the only place where I knew I had something to do. I felt resentment as I approached the barracks steps. He had hit me.

But, then again, I wasn't aware of what I was doing. I called him something I wouldn't normally say. I just wondered how Byakuya felt; probably very disturbed; since he did treat me somewhat more kindly than others. I walked forward, into the Seireitei streets. I walked southward, all the while thinking about what I should say. An apology, of course, but should I also talk about what had occurred when I was gone.

I don't know. There was still the feeling that I didn't understand the things I did. I wondered if there was something to change that; everything seemed so foreign, even the words I chose seemed different, as if another word should replace that word... and another... and another... and yet another. Ahh, that tangent.

I found myself almost walking past the Sixth Division barracks. I entered the gates and looked inside the lobby room, but no one seemed to be inside. I stepped inside, half-expecting Daichi to trip me or something. I cautiously put a foot in and set it on the wooden floor. Nothing. I walked in and flipped the lights. No one was in the lobby; it was as if everyone was gone for some occasion.

"Hello!" I called out. Shionari materialized next to me, his serpent body quickly scanning the premises. They all seemed to have gone for some event or something, he said. Whatever it is, you may have missed out on something big.

"Probably..." My voice trailed off. I headed up the stairs, Shionari trailing behind me, his movements making it appear so that the air seemed to be water rather than air.

I climbed to the second floor of the barracks and again called "hello". No one answered. There was no need to go knocking on the individual doors; everyone was gone already. No one was allowed to stay in their rooms for long periods of time. If someone hadn't been seen for a while, the rules stated a week, a surveillance Jigokuchō was sent to the Shinigami's room. If they were there, they were to face dire consequences.

I briefly entered my room. It was the mess that had been left; a few papers and informational books lay on the ground, the bed wasn't made, and a few clean shihakusho uniforms lay on the floor. I sighed as I picked up the papers and books and neatly placed them back on the desk. I took the fallen uniforms, dusted them off, and hung them back in the closet. I made the bed by snapping the end hems of the covers and draping it on the bed carefully. I watched the cloth fall and smoothed out the pillow. There. That looks less of what a pig may live in.

I absolutely hated rooms with misplaced things. When I was alive, I had a little brother whom absolutely could not, or would not, keep his room tidy. I hated the way his room looked, and I guess imagining it made me tired. I sighed before looking over the room one last time before leaving, closing the door behind me, and locking it behind me.

A Shinigami ran past me, making me nearly lose my balance. "Sorry," he said, "but Yamamoto-sotaichō ordered that all able-bodied Shinigami are to report to Rukongai District 80 West! You should get going... I don't want to let them know that I have been sleeping through the announcement!" He shunpo'ed away, leaving me alone with Shionari.

We should hurry, Shionari merely said before dissipating away, his reiatsu transferring toward the sword. I huffed before preparing a shunpo and sped toward the Hakutōmon. I quickly overtook the Shinigami whom left before me. I looked around, watching the landscape pass under me.

At around District 78 West, I saw the gathering of the Shinigami. It was nearly eight miles away, yet I could still get a good glimpse of the multitude of Shinigami. In the midst, I could make out Byakuya, his white haori standing out among the waves of black. Rainbows reflected off the translucent Dankū barriers. It was a few seconds until I arrived into the blockade area. The area was packed with people, but that meant no one at Soul Society...

"Kuchiki-taichō!" I called, running up to my Captain. He almost immediately turned into my direction, but his face didn't change; still serious. "Kuchiki-taichō, how are you?"

"Instead, we should focus at the task at hand," Byakuya said. "This is unimportant at the moment." I was somewhat appalled at his response, but I guess it was true; since four days ago, the Soul Society and the Realm of the Hollows were officially at war.

"Here they come!" A Kidō Corps member shouted. There was a wind, but the Dankū barriers held strong. "Looks like their forces have gotten weaker!"

"Do not underestimate them!" Yamamoto ordered. "If we even have but a small seed of cockiness, we shall fall in battle." There was a series of howls and the barriers seemed to bend again before shattering.

"We apologize, Head-Captain," the Kidō Corps members said, jumping back from the impact. "But the Hollows' Reiryoku seem to be diminished; it seems they have gotten weaker..."

"Or there's just fewer of them," Anson's voice chimed in.

"Very good observation," said the voice of the Messenger. The white, spiked mask appeared into view, his scythe at his back. The Messenger let out a gloved hand. "However, these invasions shall keep happening, once your faction of 'Visoreds' are eradicated; killed. If there is any resistance, we shall continue this war. I shall be waiting at Rukongai North, and if Aikawa Love, Mashiro Kuna, Sakuragi Hiyori, Ushōda Hachigen, and Yadōmaru Lisa are not at the designated area, Soul Society will only be the next expansion of the Hollow Realm. The time I shall start attacking is already on your desk, Yamamoto-sotaichō." The Messenger stepped back, the Hollows behind him apparently following the figure into retreat.

"We brought everyone out for nothing," Anson said with a sigh. "Yamamoto-sotaichō, I was expecting one of those large-scale war scenes, soldiers being pitted against an enemy army of the same ferocity."

"We won't be having one of those for a while," Yamamoto answered. "The Gotei Thirteen have fewer numbers right now, and so we cannot have, what you call, full-sized battles. And I do not know why he left the proposal on my desk when he could have sent multiple Menos Hollows to destroy our capital..." Yamamoto turned to face the gathering of Shinigami. "Return to Seireitei! We are finished here." The majority of the company turned and started back toward Seireitei. I caught Yamamoto and Anson staying behind, and I listened to their words.

"It's probably a matter of pride. But what are you going to do, Yamamoto-sotaichō?" Anson asked inquiringly. "Are you going to give up the remaining Visoreds? Just like that?"

"We will somehow have to stop the war on Seireitei," Yamamoto said. "Just find some way to prevent the imbalance of Spirits and Hollows... but my judgment seems clouded. I do not know what our action is."

"Either way, the other Visoreds will die; both by our hand."

"Is it better to give up four souls for the sake of thousands, if not millions and billions?" Yamamoto turned and glanced at me before shunpo'ing away.

"Etro," I heard Anson say, "what will the offering of the Visoreds bring? Harmony... or that inevitable chaos? This is one predicament that one wishes to correct, but I need further guidance. Show me, show Seireitei, the path to take. Unless you wish to take matters into your own hands." Anson bowed his head, not moving.

Thinking that he had gone crazy, I began starting the shunpo journey back to Seireitei.

I entered Byakuya's office again, closing the door behind me. I lowered my head as I faced him, although he was staring out a window. "Kuchiki-taichō," I started, "about earlier today... I want to apologize for my actions. Apparently, I wasn't aware, or I had forgotten, of my existence as a Shinigami, and thus I wish to seek your forgiveness."

Byakuya was silent. His head turned a little to the right, as if looking upon Sōkyoku Hill. "You may leave," he said. I exited his office, leaving me to wonder whether I was forgiven or not.

Then, I thought of Brandon. It had surely been a while since I left Shino, and I hadn't contacted him in any way since. He could be waiting at Sōkyoku Hill and Kuchiki-taichō was looking there because of him. I decided that my rounds at Sixty-Eight East started tomorrow, and I will just wait at Sōkyoku Hill for a while. If not, I might as well just walk around Seireitei for a while.

I shunpo'ed over buildings and stopped near the base of Sōkyoku Hill, where I saw Brandon preparing for another Shunpo step. "Brandon!" I called.

"Kai?" he stopped, then jumped over to me. "What are you doing here?"

"Ahh, taking a break from my rounds," I said. There was no need to worry him about my previous problems. "Anyways, what were you going to Sōkyoku Hill for?"

"Doing your little self-training exercise. The class is all into this history stuff right now, about Yamamoto-sotaichō being the one who assembled Shino Academy, all the way to Aizen and his 'Hōgyoku' project." Brandon looked down at his Asauchi. "Thing is, there hasn't been a voice for my Zanpakutō yet."

"I'm sure you'll be able to meet it sooner or later." As I finished saying the words, we turned our heads up as we heard the voice of someone; on top of Sōkyoku Hill:

"Hear me, you worthless souls! All of your lives are meaningless compared to mine! Therefore, you all shall bow before me!"

"What kind of person has that ego?" I asked Brandon. "He seems to be one arrogant person."

"Shut up, Jorden!" yelled a familiar voice, "I'm trying to find some quiet place and you come preaching about your supposed awesomeness!"

"You think that was the person Ounabara-sensei was talking about last year; the one about causing disruption in Seireitei?"

"They were Academy Students being disruptive. Apparently, I've heard the other voice before; so the one 'preaching' must be a Seated or Unseated Shinigami." I jumped up toward the ledge of Sōkyoku Hill, seeing a person, a guy, with a curled mess of hair, darkened eyes, and a thin build. Behind him sat Rosche, whom had a pencil in hand with a notebook. Pencil and notebook?

"Gah!" cried the guy, jumping back dramatically, "this underling is resisting my power!"

"Shut up Jorden! With you yelling all the time, it's hard for me to come up with plot ideas!" Rosche, whom hadn't looked up yet, huffed in irritation. "Now you just made me forget what I was going to write, stupid idiot... you're starting to be worse than how Anson even annoys me to no end."

"You aren't an Academy Student," I said, pointing at the guy; Jorden, I thought. "Yet you're very distracting."

"Thank you!" Rosche called, finally looking up. "Now tell... oh, it's Socrius Kai." I did a single wave at her and looked back at Jorden.

"Spot's taken," Jorden said haughtily. "You can leave now."

"We'll leave if you can defeat me," I said, holding out my hand. "By the way you're sporting an Asauchi, I doubt you'll last." Jorden's eyes flashed with anger or fear, I couldn't tell.

"Yeah, Mr. Twentieth Seat!" Rosche called out again. "Looks like someone knows you can't even call out your Zanpakutō! Even so, your Japanese sucks so much to the point you probably can only get through three syllables before stumbling!" He's not speaking Japanese?

"Shut up Rosche!" Jorden glared at me, but I pushed past him.

"What are you writing?" I asked, turning my head to see the words. I only caught the title before she shifted so that I couldn't see the text. A Frozen Requiem. I thought about what the plot could have been, but went on a different path: "It's been a while since I've laid eyes on pencil and paper."

"You are the one who remembers living," Rosche said, "apparently, I have to use my Zanpakutō to carve the lead out of it when it snaps." She started writing again, only to have the tip of the pencil snap off and fly off, hitting my foot before it rolled out of sight. "Dammit," she cursed, drawing her Zanpakutō. She lifted the pencil to its head and scraped it against the blade of her Zanpakutō, wood shavings slowly curling off the wooden writing utensil. "And a lot of people told me that Ticonderoga pencils don't break easily..."

"They don't," I said. "Buy mechanical pencils; much less frustrating. The world is all about Pentel now. And I think they may have come out with the latest kind; twist erasers and the like."

Rosche stopped writing. "How much?"

"About two US dollars for one; don't know about Japanese currency. But they last a lifetime, as long as you have the pencil lead and the erasers for it."

"They're getting quite acquainted," Brandon said to Jorden.

"It's almost funny..." Jorden said. Their voices lowered to snickers about something I probably didn't know about, but Brandon burst out laughing.

"We're talking about pencil lead, and they're talking about pairing us," Rosche said with a frown.

"That happened in High School between me and my friends," I said, "one friend was out sick and I brought her the homework she missed. That's kind of how that started for me... World of the Living stuff."

Rosche nodded and started to write again, her pencil sharpened. "Kaminarino Hyōji hates it when I use him to sharpen pencils."

"Huh, I'll bet," I agreed. "What are you writing about in your 'Frozen Requiem'? All I can think of is that there's something with snow or ice."

"It's a short story I'm writing. I'm thinking to write, or finish a chapter every two weeks to submit into the Seireitei Communication. A lot of Shinigami have a little segment based on all of them; advice, crafts, past stories, problems, Q and A's, and all that. Just thought that it would be nice to write something up, probably give it to a publisher in the World of the Living." I looked up into the sky. "I don't know much of my past life... but all I knew was that I was lying on the ground of Rukongai District Sixty-Eight East... with a pencil clutched in my hand. No idea where it came from, but all I wanted to do every day was writing."

I blinked. Rukongai Sixty-Eight East? "That's... my District..." I said softly.

"What?" Rosche asked, confused.

"Have you been writing ever since?" I asked. "Where are your other stories?"

"Scrapped," Rosche said. "I was literate, unlike the other souls. The other literates laughed when they read my work, saying that I was stupid for thinking up all of that crap." Her voice rose at that last word.

"So why writing again...?" I asked, somewhat disturbed.

"I've gotten some positive criticism from someone." She glanced away from the notebook for a while. Anson had appeared in her field of vision, causing her to jump.

"Yo, Third Seat!" Anson called clapping his hand on her head. Rosche seemed to redden before she flung his hand off her head, stood up, and socked him in the shoulder. "God-damn!" His teeth were clenched for a few seconds. "I was just gonna tell you that I'm going away for something and that Hinamori is in charge..." Anson sighed and regained his composure, rubbing the place of contact. "Anyway, I'll be leaving." He looked around. "Some new friends you made. Shame you've met Jorden though; he has this loli obsession I have to deal with every day, since he joined a few weeks ago." He turned, waved, then headed to the Kokuryōmon in the North.

"I wonder how the other Visoreds are going to be judged..." I sighed. "It's not going to be war or anything, is it? Because I do not wish to have anything to do with it; that I could finally live how I want. Life shouldn't always be filled with conflicts."

"There's always someone or some group of people who want to destroy Soul Society. It's inescapable, and the Hollow Kingdom actually has a good reason."

I sighed and laid my head back, resting it on my arms. "True. But do you think war is justified? Are having a few Arrancars and Visoreds in the world such a big deal?" I heard a little crumple of paper, and I noticed Rosche's hand was tense. "Is something wrong?"

"No." She looked away, and then tried to flatten the piece of paper. "I just had a little thought."

I took a breath before staring up into the sky. "I wonder how my brother is doing in the World of the Living. He's living by himself, and I don't know what's happening there; I no longer watch my hometown."

"I'm sure the replacement Shinigami will help your brother," Rosche said, the scritch scritch of her pencil periodically sounding as she wrote. "Besides, he won't be hurt by the Hollows; he's probably spiritually deficient, like the other ninety or so percent of the world's population."

"But you never know." There was a Hollow's scream right above us, and Rosche merely took her left hand, unsheathed her Zanpakutō, released its Shikai, and flicked the plasma whip at the Hollow, causing it to fade in the portal it tried to enter through. She then sealed the Zanpakutō and re-sheathed it; all this while her right hand was still writing. I raised an eyebrow in skepticism.

"It was loud, and I dealt with it," Rosche merely stated. I felt my eyes close, and I had no recollection what had happened.

Kai...

Hello? Anyone there?

Kai! Wake up!

There was a sharp rap on my knee, and I bolted awake. "Gah! You didn't have to hit so hard!" I rubbed my knee.

"You've been out since I called you a half-minute ago," Rosche said. Brandon had left, and Jorden was sitting, legs crossed, under a white tree. "Anyways, there's a Jigokuchō with a message for you." I turned to the butterfly.

Kuchiki-taichō has been incapacitated, and is currently at Sōgō Kyugō Tsumesho. Treatment has already administered, but I wanted to inform you of his current status, and that Abarai-fukutaichō will be in charge until Kuchiki-taichō can perform his duties. That is all. The butterfly flew away, toward south.

"That's your captain," Rosche said. "Incapacitated? I doubt anyone could catch Kuchiki-taichō and wound him so badly."

"Something tells me he wasn't hurt by anyone; or at least intentionally," I said. "I'll see you later; I'm going to see how he's doing. I'll talk to you later. I shunpo'ed towards Sōgō Kyugō Tsumesho without awaiting another word from Rosche.

"How's he doing?" Anson asked as he burst through the patient's room. He was surprised that all of the captains were present. A red-haired man stood at Byakuya's right, Abarai Renji, his lieutenant.

"His reiatsu composition seems confused," Unohana said. "I have no idea why, but there is a signature that the archives don't have a record for. All I can vouch is that there is no Hollow reiatsu in his system." She looked over at Byakuya's Zanpakutō. "Apparently, Senbonzakura is being very passive about his master. He's not replying to anyone."

"To lose such a captain would lower our defenses," Ukitake muttered. "How long will it take for him to recover?"

"A few days." Unohana sighed. "And with that, we have lost our superpower; his reach with Senbonzakura would surely turn the tide for us if an invasion were to happen."

Anson stepped forward. "Allow me." Anson drew his Zanpakutō and held it in front of himself. "Unohana-taichō, do whatever you must. Just trust me on this." Anson glanced at Yamamoto, whom cracked open an eye and gave an inconspicuous nod. Anson took a deep breath and stood still for a second. "Bankai."

Suddenly, Unohana started to stumble, only to fall in Ukitake's hands. "What...?" he started to say, only to find no words exit his mouth. The cardiogram spiked to the top of the monitor, only to return to the normal blueprint. Anson took another deep breath as he sheathed his sword.

"They're both only sleeping now; they'll be up by tomorrow morning. Yamamoto-sotaichō, I'm going to retire. Using my Bankai to such an extent puts a great toll on me." Yamamoto nodded. Anson walked out of the room, taking small steps. When he closed the door behind him, he returned to his usual stride, a smile on his face. "Well, I didn't plan on that happening. I'm using you too much, aren't I... Jikan no Uranaishi?"

I passed Anson in the streets of Seireitei, just walking around a corner. "Kuchiki-taichō is resting right now. Don't be too loud."

I glanced at him, almost thinking I saw a bit of solemnity in his face. Probably just me seeing things, I concluded. "Wait," he said. I turned to see him walk up to me again. "Socrius, was it?" I nodded. "I saw you with Rosche. Anyway, I want you to pass this message to her; the next few days are going to be busy for me. Except for Yamamoto-sotaichō, Kuchiki-taichō, and Unohana-taichō, all the other captains will be keeping an eye me. Go tell her for me, will you?"

I nodded. He smiled before shunpo'ing away. I shrugged as I continued my run toward Sōgō Kyugō Tsumesho, shielding my eyes as the evening sun glared in my eyes. I continued forward, catching the other eleven captains disperse over the rooftops of Seireitei buildings.

It was a few minutes until I arrived at the infirmary. I traced the Reiatsu signature of Byakuya, weaving in through the halls while tracing the Reiryoku ribbon; something Brandon had taught me when he managed to catch up with me.

I stopped outside the supposed door, hearing a suppressed crying sound. It sounded like a girl's quiet crying, with the repeated message of "I'm not supposed to cry..." and "It's okay to cry right now". Two people; three including Byakuya. I opened the door slowly, seeing a tall orange haired teenager; somewhere towering around six foot or so. However, a much shorter raven-haired girl, a darker sheen than Byakuya's, stood in front of the male teen, her eyes a bit puffy, probably from crying.

Couple? I asked, noticing the hands on the girl's shoulders. And there was something I did not understand... so maybe I should go?

"Do you know what happened?" called the male teen. "You, at the door." I looked up and turned, walking into the room.

"No. The captains went somewhere, in the north, and had to forfeit the remaining four Visoreds. I don't know what happened." I looked at Byakuya and the cardiogram, noticing that his face was calm and the cardiogram was following the predicted heartbeat line. "Anyway, I'm Socrius Kai; Sixth Division, Seventh Seat."

The girl had just stopped crying and had taken a seat next to the bed. The male glanced at a clock; around seven-twenty-five in the evening, and sighed. "Dammit, Dad's probably gonna kick me when I get home. And now I have to explain why his adopted 'third daughter' isn't home with me..." He sighed as he turned to leave. "Kurosaki Ichigo, Substitute Shinigami. As for her... she's the Thirteenth Division Lieutenant, Kuchiki Rukia. Guess you can already tell she's Byakuya's sister. Anyways, good night." And out the door he went.

"Strange guy," I muttered. "He didn't even bother to address Kuchiki-taichō correctly. And what crude language..." I turned to Byakuya again, then at Rukia. Her eyes were concentrated on her brother, her eyes dry of tears. "Wish I knew what happened," I offered. "Ukitake-taichō probably does; he might tell you if you ask."

"I've spent most of my time in the World of the Living," she said softly. "I neglected my duty and my brother."

"I'm sure he'll be fine tomorrow morning. Anyways, where does Kurosaki-san live?"

"Karakura," she said. "Japan."

I softly took a breath. I was about to walk out when I realized something; wasn't that the Kurosaki Ichigo who saved Soul Society multiple times? "Hey..." I said. "Is he the one who defeated Aizen about two years ago?" Rukia bobbed her head once, as if in affirmation. I wasn't sure what to say next. "He'll be fine," I said. "He's probably just sleeping; like it's nighttime. He'll be up in the morning, and tell you all about it."

Rukia dipped her head, no response. It's useless staying here then. I'm getting tired too. "Well, I guess I'll be off." I took one last look at the cardiogram. Stable, release date: tomorrow (updated 1 hour 12 minutes ago).

"Tomorrow... I hope there isn't anything until then," I told myself. "Late night invasion would be horribly wrong right now." I put the thought aside as I exited the building and shunpo'ed toward the Sixth Division Barracks.

One thing surprised me as I entered the building; Tsubasa Daichi was nowhere in sight. Where could he be?