The interaction to get full access and control over Aizen's lab, which occurred two days later, went something like this. She asked for permission to get an audience with the Sou-taicho, and requested it. Kurotsuchi Mayuri, the sniffling voice that she always had hated, heard about it at once - most likely from his hidden cameras and secret spy network (which everyone knew about but never said anything for accepting an admittedly creepy habit of said captain) - and made himself appear during her audience with a clatter of the doors, a long stalk into the room, and his billowing cloak snapping.

She had already anticipated his arrival at the scene since anything scientific always fell into his hands; so Natsu was neither upset or off put when he interrupted. Nor was the sou-taicho surprised, although Natsu reckoned that very little disturbed him most days and he, probably, knew the captains best. The lab hadn't been taken from her jurisdiction in so many words at the beginning, and so she hadn't been forced to disclose the exact location of the lab to any of the captains. However it was presumed that it would happen at some point since as a twentieth seat she would have to step down from the realm of having control over the situation.

However, now that she had brought up control over the space with the Sou-taicho it caused more problems for Kurotsuchi to gets his hands on it. Now only the Sou-taicho could deem who was allowed into the space, particularly if there were too opposing sides who were not likely to work together that both wanted access. It wouldn't be impossible to track her covertly and find the lab, but if Kurotsuchi went behind her back and entered the lab without authorization there'd be worse punishments. Not that Natsu was against him being punished - since he was a creep - but it was such a hassle.

The cosmetically blue man, with his ever unappealing aesthetic, huffed up a fit whilst crossing the room and halted the small discussion that he hadn't heard before he could even stand over her with that ever towering ego of his. By the time he grounded himself, the captain was on his own tirade. He simultaneously demeaned her, made knocks at both her "lowly" position, and her aptitude for both science and strength as a Shinigami. The he praised himself as the best candidate for going through all of the processes that Aizen had taken.

Natsu had sat slouched at the side giving the man side glances every once in a while with her face in a mixture of a grimace and her usual blasé look. Her insides twisted and turned at the shrillness of his voice. Every now and again her finger would have to go up to pick at her ears to make sure that they could register something other than the high pitch. She'd look across the room sometimes and mutter under her breath, which was always miraculously heard and retaliated, and she'd shrug when he made rude comments about her behavior and expertise.

"Do you have anything to say for yourself child?"

Natsu blinked a few times before shrugging one last time with her palms face up to the ceiling. She rested like that for a moment before dropping them back into her lap. "Jus' tha' I wasn't listenin' much ta wha' he was sayin'… I don't plan on anyone else lookin' at tha lab otha than me an' anotha selected person."

"You insolent child." Mayuri flung his hand out at her face with that one large fingernail coming near her nose as she turned her head to watch another explosion simmering along his tone. "You don't understand anything of –"

"I know 'nough."

"How dar—"

Natsu smirked slightly as she matched eyes with the man. "I'mma surprised ya interested in somethin' tha' Kisuke's chewed up and spit out."

His mouth started twitching radically, and his each of his eyes started to roll around in different directions. Natsu made out the clench in the man's jaw and her eyes raised up slightly, which only made his head start to twitch slightly. The little demon flames in her stomach started to make a move and she found herself attempting to stifle the sudden burst of electric excitement that was moving about her. Her lips spread further along her face, the only thing preventing her from laughing at the captain's agitation and, ironically, the thing causing him to devolve more into his fit.

She shrugged again and tilted over towards the Sou-taicho who was watching everything calmly. "If tha cap 'ere wants ta play catch up wit' 'is predecessor than I guess I got no problems." Her gaze flickered over to the man who head was trembling as his off yellow teeth were grinding until she could make out the sound from where she sat. "But ya won't find anythin' Kisuke hasn't."

"I'm going to dissect you nice and slow so that you can feel the pa-"

"I'll han' ova tha remains ta ya, promise." Natsu turned fully back to the Sou-taicho who had remained immovable even at the threats the fellow captain was flinging. "I wanna look ova tha place firs' I don't care fo' tha hollowfication stuff."

The man opened one red eye that peered right at her and she internalized her squirm to a mere clench of her stomach. He gave a soft drop of his head, letting out a small hum, before bringing it back up and directly his gaze at the captain that was envisioning every possible way of dissecting and murdering her slowly. With a small and weighty grunt Kurotsuchi relapsed and turned over to the man like nothing had happened and he hadn't carelessly flung around someone life.

"How much time will you need for your search?" The old man asked.

Natsu shrugged again and twirled up her lips into a half smile. "Three - four days? Any evidence I take from tha' place remains wit' me an' if tha cap 'ere wants it than he gotta ask permission firs'."

"Does that appear reasonable to you Kurotsuchi-taicho?" The old man ducked his head just slightly as he was wording it out to the child to prevent the tantrum.

Natsu half wondered how the scientific creep was feeling under the pressure of those fire like eyes. She couldn't see any visual disturbance from the captain who was internalizing the words, except for the small narrow in his eyes as he roved through her ultimatum. It was either she got the days and the evidence, meanwhile disrupting his more full understanding of all the science, or the location would forever be in her hands and out of his control. His gritting teeth only made her smirk a bit more which she played off by picking her ear again.

"I'll just have to agree to those terms, I suppose. So long as none of the evidence taken from the place has to do with hollowfication."

Natsu hummed slowly and looked up at the ceiling. "I's jus' a bit o' 'istory I'mma lookin at."

"You listen here, you lowly chil-"

"I'd hate fo' ma cap ta get at cha." Natsu tilted her head a bit further back so that her fringe was cutting away from her eye and twisted a look at the still boiling scientist. "Afta all anythin' I take will also be under 'er protection an' knowledge."

"Since there's been an agreement I believe Kurotsuchi-taicho that you can dismiss yourself." Natsu snorted slightly at the old man's light tone that came out like spitting ash from a slowly rekindling fire. "I'd like to resume my meeting with Kotomi Natsu in private."

Kurotsuchi coughed a few times as he choked on his own words and there was a deep thrum that was visible as he retained himself. Natsu could make out the bulge in his neck veins and the tick that was pumping on his forehead. He thrust his face over towards her with his mouth closed so tightly from sucking away all his threats that his eyes bulged out slightly as he was glaring down at her. She only blinked up at him lazily before he was swiftly turning, with his haori billowing behind him again. There was the bang of the door behind him, while she was blinking up at open air that still held the residual reiatsu that he had been burning.

Natsu let out a sigh from the deep confines of her chest and dumped her head. Her fingers slowly twitched up and ran over her hair, before she settled it on the nape of her head and raked slightly against the skin and hair there. It twirled slightly and then flicked back down with a movement of her wrist, before she was moving back over to the old man who was emitting a small hum after putting down his cup of tea.

His red eyes came over to her and he gave a faint nod. "I'll grant you the four days, and you may only take in those who are apt at understanding the sensitivity of this information. I trust you understand that this is your only allowance on the issue... After that your immediate recall from the area and anything to do with the topic is mandatory."

"Course."

"I have also released Ayake Ichiyuko, who has taken up residence at the fourth division during her recuperation and will then be moved to the second division thereafter." Natsu blinked several times and just as she was about to open her mouth the man continued, "Were you not interested in what was to happen with her?"

"Not really."

The man hummed slightly and his eyes fell down to that closed position. It was much more comfortable when he did that. His eyes were like the flames of his zanpakuto, and they held a lot more pressure than was normally granted to a person. It was like being instantly engulfed into a ring of fire where the smoke slowly clogged up all other sensations, and could only thin out and bring focus onto one thing which was the two blazes just up front. It was only when the eyes were more closed that the smoke opened up air passages again and the air of a clear day could be smelt, other than that of burning skin and the ash of everything around.

"Kotomi Natsu…" Natsu jerked over to the man who was once again placing down his cup. "What is your interest in Aizen Sousuke's lab?"

"Nothin' much. Jus' wanna know wha' exactly is gonna 'appen next."

"I assumed that you are aware of the arrancar situation that most likely will develop." The man moved his hand along his beard and she stuttered out a small nod which he hummed to. She felt the press of his eyes along her face as he spoke next, "Then what is your interest in Aizen Sousuke's personal lab?"

Natsu's smirk fluttered up and down for a moment before finally cementing. She dragged out a sigh and shrugged once more. "I's fo' somethin' else."

"How curious…. If I were to interpret your response I would say you are already certain we will win the war." The man's eyes creaked just a touch and she found her head slowly dropping as she stared up at him through her lashes. "Or I would say that you're thinking foolish, childlike thoughts."

"I ain't knowin' anythin'… Jus' a precaution, 'cause if tha' cap ge's 'is hands on tha lab ain't gonna be nothin' left fo' wha' I'mma gonna wanna do."

"And what is that exactly?"

"Ain't nothin' bad."

The old man let out a small chuckle which had her blinking and her mouth falling slack. There was an instant sweat along her entire form, and her eyes flickered off to the side of the threat of his laugh. She fiddled slightly with the bottom lumps of her top and pressed down on the extra fabric that had pooled there.

"You haven't had your tea." His words brought her back over to him and his small point to the full cup. "Do you not like the flavor?"

"N- Nah i's fine. Jus'…"

Natsu looked down at the bronze liquid and gave a small peak at the man before taking a small sip to appease him. To her mild surprise it was still warm even though it had been sitting out for a bit of time now. As it traveled down her throat, it left behind a small but profuse coating, like honey did when it stuck to the top of the mouth, which took a moment to sink in. It pulsed before it settled down. When the liquid had dried up in her throat fire ants drifted all around her, though it wasn't nearly so terrible and painful, and more like small prickles that were opening up all the cavities and clearing out the toxins.

"I find it interesting that someone as young as yourself became involved with Urahara Kisuke and the exiled group." Her eyes traveled back from the tea, which she realized she had been staring in shock, back up to the man. "I have to ask what your interest in the release of Ayake Ichiyuko is."

"Nothin' 'cept tha' she was put there unda wrongful circumstances."

"I see." The man cleared out his throat slightly and she watched as he crept over to a mantel at the side of the room and then back to where they were sitting. "I had an interest in Ayake Ichiyuko before she made fukutaicho."

Natsu blinked several more times and then took the hesitantly offered papers. She glanced once to see that the old man was returning to pouring them both out more tea, and then took in the yellow color of the papers. The penmanship was near perfect with a slight trail between all the words and aggressive loops. Most impressively it had stayed so clear and legible even though the papers were yellowed and the corners of all of them were wilted and turned down in a small curve. It had been flipped through a number of times over the years since Natsu could see the impress where the old man's thumbs had pressed up against the crinkling and aged papers.

"That is the woman's first ever proposal of reformation to the training programs in the outer districts." Natsu continued to flip slightly over the words but then handed it back to him where he placed it off to the side with a delicacy normally reserved for cradling a child. She eyed the movement before looking back up to him where he looked nonplussed by everything. "Her growth was very interesting to watch… And I was greatly pleased to see her attention to learning from my two former students."

"Ain't sure why ya tellin' me this." It was a tentative call even with its rough wording to get him from his wandering but she cut off her next sentence when she felt his eyes on her again.

"She was an intuitive one… And sought to fix an area that I had been negligent to." The old man's eyes wandered over her frame before settling down a bit as he was diving into his own memories. "I was deeply hurt by the conspiracy one hundred years ago and I have not treated her well over the past century, I will admit to that."

Natsu cleared her throat as silently as possible and took another sip to soothe out the irritation that she was feeling. She shifted slightly and kept her eyes firmly over to the side, just over his knee. The black hakama took up the lower half of her vision while the rest was on the floorboards which had a perfect shine to them. She had heard once how devoted the entire division was to the man, and it was reflected in the smooth polish in those floorboards that she was staring at.

She shifted again and traveled over to the small tray that they were on before darting up to the man that was looking again at her. Her heart froze slightly because she had been trailing away from what he was saying and it looked as if he were expecting a response from her. Her mouth opened slightly but the man only shook his head with a small chuckle. She moved along to the other side and let out a slow breathe from the corner of her mouth to get rid of the sudden anxiety.

"I suppose this would bore you." Yamamoto stated, and patted softly down on the papers. "An old man's rambles about someone you barely know."

Natsu clicked her tongue slightly, and then gave a slow nod which developed into two quick thrusts of her head up and down. "Jus' not sure wha' i's gotta do wit' me bein' 'ere."

"Nothing really… Only to tell you that you have relieved one burden from an old man and put another in its stead."

"Wha?"

His slowly opened up his eyes and she blocked her voice again with a sudden jerk of her face as stared cautiously at him. His voice rung down along her ears as he spoke out in a gravelly voice that had one foot in deepest parts of the water. "All actions have consequences… Even the ones that are meant to help."

"S—Sir?"

"You should take more responsibilities for your actions Kotomi Natsu." His eyes never strayed from hers as he kept that dark tone along his words. "You're now one of the only Shinigami that has as much information as a captain and as such people will need to rely on you in the future. That is not something you can toss aside."

"I—"

"I reviewed your updated files again as well as spoken with Retsu-san and I will not allow you to slide by with your behavior any longer. I have ordered for you to start up training immediately."

If a beast could have ripped through her chest to tear into the man and consume him for all it was worth than it would have in only a blink of her eye. The blink, however, never fell and she was staring at him with wide eyes that pulled up so harshly she felt the air from the flap. Both heat and moistness hit her eyes at the same time and she wasn't sure which one was more powerful. She just knew that her eyeballs were hurting with the strain of holding themselves together as the two contrasting materials splinted into her and tried to gauge her eyes of all sight.

Her mouth dried out with it remaining open so that people could stare down into her stomach where there was sloshing acid that wanted to burn everything alive. When the acid couldn't make it all the way up her throat, it came back down with a splutter and tore through the stomach lining and infused with her entire body. Blood and water for acid, as her fingers clenched up and dug into the fabrics over her throbbing thighs which were stopping her from moving with them being glued to her calves.

"I'mma healer not—"

There was a blast of his reiatsu and she hunched down with a quick grab for some air. The feeling settled around her body like a brick wall against her back and she forced everything in her body to collapse underneath it. It was only when all the tension left her body that the pressure left her just as suddenly as she realized how slickened with sweat she had become with her own fingers sliding through her clothing as she gripped back onto them.

"I have already said that you have to take responsibility for your actions." His voice was like a faraway drum that was slowly marching closer to her ears. "You're healing abilities are more than exceptional according to Retsu… And you're time in the kido corps has proven that you already have combat experience."

"But—"

"You will not be transferred to a different squad. You are still useful under Retsu-san's care and tutelage, particularly with the technique that we were all witness to at Sokyoku Hill." Now that his voice was stable she could push up against her thighs just in the slightest bit to look at the immovable man. "Your training will pertain to enhancing your kido performance as well as making you more than proficient at the other half of your shikai."

"I ain't got no interest in tha'." Natsu garbled out as her head felt heavy from the switches in the pressures around the room.

"I'm also placing you in Hitsugaya's Advanced Force to Karakura Town when the arrancars make their appearance." Natsu breathed out at the man's steadiness to persist even though she was clearly rejecting everything he was saying. "You're under orders now Kotomi Natsu to prepare yourself for this upcoming war as well as assist all the other forces at work."

The ryoka group watched the woman they had come to know as she flung out curses and spat flames over at Yoruichi, who was watching with an actual serious look on her face. As they had come to know Natsu, they had only ever seen her relaxed, childishly sly, and at the same time suspiciously open. She wasn't necessarily a warm person, but she fell somewhere in the range of tepid depending on how she wanted to treat people.

There was a deep anger in her that had them taking a back seat in the whole scene. It was the strong pierce in her eyes and the undeniable intensity of them as they could fling a fifty pound javelin into a target fifty kilometers away. Her reiatsu was well hidden still, although it would pop and fizzle at sudden moments like a pot of boiling water that was still on a stove top that was burning too high. It was also the tension in her body as she overtook the more petite woman and caved over her in the torrents of her words.

Then the whole existence of anger seemed to swell up and start to swirl, before it went down the drain with a slow gurgle as it tried to come back up but ultimately was nothing against gravity. Natsu stomped her leg once and that popped the last pocket of air before all of it washed away from the area. It left her panting slightly and with a more bloodied throat than she had ever had.

While she rubbed at the spot she took in Yoruichi's pert eyebrows and the shimmering eyes that were glancing at all of her. The cat slowly put out, "you done?"

"Yeah." Natsu shrugged then and fixed up her hair before wiping away and a small droplet of sweat that had come along her forehead. She flicked it off her hand with an exaggerated swipe and twist of her wrist. "Tha was tense, no?"

Yoruichi puffed out a small laugh and uncrossed her arms with a shake of her head. "And that was just awkward."

"I couldn't help it…. It was perfectly set up."

"Of course it was." Yoruichi mimicked out as she swerved her hand in a loose wave as she walked back over to the group of worried teens. "Might want to apologize to your friends though."

"Oh." Natsu turned over to them slightly and gave them a grin. "Sorry 'bout tha'… Ol' men an' stuffy air gives me a rash, ya know?"

The group slowly dispersed from their tight cluster and she watched as one by one they moved back over to whatever they had been doing beforehand. It was completely silent as they moved, and they gave her a few glances but they fell back into their rhythm soon after Ichigo made some comment about Uryu. Immediately the quincy retaliated against the orange head, and their bickering made the words from Natsu's rant slowly diminish.

She scratched at the back of her head as Orihime came up to her to make sure she was alright with a few tentative steps. "I's 'kay. Ya too cute ta hurt 'Hime."

"You shouldn't just give people nicknames." Ichigo cried out from his side of the room as he honed in on the two girls with a strict finger.

Natsu blinked a few times and then gathered the girl around the shoulders to drag near her body. Once holding the girl tight, Natsu let slip a smirk. "Hime likes it, righ'? She didn't she'd say so."

"Then why do you still call me by my nickname?" Ichigo growled back not moments later.

"Jus' 'cause." Then she promptly stuck her tongue out at him and brought Orihime just that much closer until she nuzzled down onto her head. "Don't get sacred 'Hime… I'll keep ya 'way from Ichi an' 'is meanie self."

Ichigo let out an aggravated sigh and then proceeded to flop over onto his back. The rest of the group let out either a huff or a snicker, that one being from Yoruichi, before they turned away as if the interaction had never happened in the first place. Orihime was the only one that was watching the situation nervously, with her hand shakily pressed up against Natsu's back in a somewhat return of the weird hug.

"Are you sure you're okay Natsu-chan?" She asked as the older woman was sliding away from her.

Natsu dropped her head back with a small sigh, and then turned back over to the girl with a small pout. "Why ya gotta be so cute Hime? - Tell ya wha' show me tha' ability of yers an' we'll trade secrets. It'll be like one those girly sleepovers."