Author's Note: Well, it's been a while. I was trying to think of the best way to execute this chapter, but it took a while. So rather than force like I tried to do last week. I stopped writing and went to Salem for Halloween to de-stress myself and wait until inspiration hit. I'm...semi happy with how this chapter turned out, like 74%. The last few paragraphs are probably the worst since I wrote them when I was so tired that I put my cereal in the fridge and the milk in the cupboard, but hopefully the message gets across.
It had been a full two days since Ryuu had entered the Seireitei with Ichigo and the others. Two days of avoiding detection, blending it with the wandering patrols searching for the "invading ryoka", and watching over the kids as the made their ways towards the Senzaikyū where Rukia had been transferred. He would dare get anywhere close to that place so deep with the First Division barracks; he was lucky the old man hadn't sensed him yet, if he in fact had not. The best he could do was make sure Ichigo or the one of the others got there. At least that way he could distract Yamamoto while one of them went after Rukia. It wasn't a foolproof plan, but it was the best he could come up with the resources he had, unless Yoruichi had a trick or two left up her sleeve.
Ichigo and the others had it pretty rough since they entered the Seireitei. Ichigo had already fought and defeated the Third Seat of Squad Eleven, evaded the rest of the Division, and won his rematch against the lieutenant that took Rukia. Last he check, he was traveling towards the Senzaikyū with Ganju, and little scrawny kid from Squad Four.
Uryuu had done a good job of protecting Orihime. They survived an encounter with a seated officer of the Seventh Division and managed to successfully blend in with Soul Reapers by procuring a couple of uniforms. He was certain they were moving through the Ninth Division barracks by now. He just hoped Tosen wasn't aware of them yet.
Chad was the one impressing Ryuu the most. The young man had been alone for the last two days, but he managed to evade capture and defeat all who came his way. And to think he had been worried about the giant travelling alone.
Ryuu himself had taken refuge in a store house within the Sixth Division barracks. He was trying to stay close to the kids in case anything went wrong, but he found it had to move on so quickly when his target was one division over and his life's greatest joy was two divisions over. Apart from those distressing thoughts there was another tidbit of information that had been bothering him. He heard from the few patrols he blended in with that Rukia's execution date kept being moved up. Last he heard it was tomorrow afternoon.
It wasn't there shortening window of time that was bothering him, but the fact that the date kept constantly changing. He didn't recall the Central 46 do anything like this before, it was too messy; they preferred neat and tidy. Changing execution dates wasn't something they did; they always offered the accused a set grace period. Yoruichi had informed him and Kisuke that this had not changed in the last century, so why was it happening now? He had that itching feeling again, that Aizen was somehow involved. Know he was getting worried that he really was paranoid.
Through the window shutters within the storehouse the sun was shining brightly. It was morning. He had rested enough. Now he would get back to looking after the kids and making sure they got to Rukia before tomorrow. He grabbed his zanpakutō, left the storehouse and blended in with the Soul Reapers outside.
Two were approaching him engaged in idle conversation. Ryuu nodded in their direction innocently by way of greeting and they nodded back before returning to their conversation.
"Hey!" he heard a voice call out from behind him. He turned to see another Soul Reaper running in their direction with a distressed look on his face.
"Did you guys hear?" he asked.
"Hear what?" one of the first two asked.
"C-Captain Aizen…was murdered!" he exclaimed in horror.
If Ryuu's eyes widened any further, they might have popped out of his skull.
Those words…he had longed to hear them for so many years. He had always hoped that what would bring about those words would be the result of his own vengeful actions, the traitor that destroyed so many lives having finally fallen to his blade. Now here he stood, back in his home, and he had finally heard those words…and all he could feel was rage.
He made purposeful strides towards the Soul Reaper and to the shock of all who might have been present, fisted the neck of his uniform and slammed him against the nearest wall.
"You lie!" he roared, pure outrage in his gaze.
This wasn't how it was supposed to end. For one hundred years he had dreamed of revenge for himself, for Kisuke and Tessai and Yoruichi, for Shinji and the others. He had dreamed of clearing all their names, seeing Aizen's cold corpse beneath his blade, being welcomed back to the Soul Society a hero, returning to Retsu and finally starting the family he should have started so long ago. And now in the course of just a few hours…that was all taken from him.
He should have been happy. Aizen was dead and all that was left and Ichimaru and Tosen. The Soul Society would finally be safe from whatever scheme had been set into motion all those years ago. But he couldn't feel any relief…because it didn't feel fair. Because it didn't feel…right.
"There is no way Aizen could have been killed!" he seethed at the frightened Soul Reaper who was grasping at Ryuu's arm, desperate to be back on the ground and away from the wall the he was slowly being pushed into.
"Whoa, calm down!" one of the other Soul Reapers urged.
"Just let him go!" the other one shouted.
Ryuu turned his head back towards them and the glare they received was unlike any they had ever seen. It was cooler than Captain Kuchiki's, more intimidating than the captain of the Second Division, and held the same kind of authority that reminded them of the Head Captain. This man's glare was resolute: "Do. Not. Speak."
Having gotten his point across, Ryuu returned his attention to the Soul Reaper held firmly in his grip.
"Who told you he was dead?" he whispered deathly quiet.
"N-No one!" the young man replied. "I-I just heard he was found dead pinned to the Shōheki by Lieutenant Hinamori!"
"Did you see a body?"
"N-No, I just heard a few minutes ago, I swear, b-but they probably already moved it to the morgue in the Fourth Division!"
Ryuu said nothing else. He simply dropped the Soul Reaper, turned on his heel and walked away.
"Hey you! What the hell's the matter with you?" one of the Soul Reapers shouted at Ryuu's retreating back.
"Who are you anyway?" another demanded. "You don't look like a member of this squa-"
"Bakudō #38: Hakufuku," Ryuu muttered as he continued on his way. He didn't even stop to look back as their now unconscious bodies fell limply to the ground. He had to get to the morgue and see with his own eyes.
Retsu looked down at the lifeless body before her lying on a slab in her morgue. It always pained her to have to enter this room, which lacked any cheer or positive energy. How could such things exist when death created only despair? In this miserable room with her were Isane and Captains Sajin Komamura and Kaname Tosen. Normally she wouldn't have allowed anyone to be witness to her examinations, but given the circumstances she would let it slide.
The news had shocked her when she first heard it: Sosuke Aizen, Captain of Squad Five, murdered; such a thing just seemed impossible. It really couldn't have happened to anyone who was less deserving. Sosuke Aizen had a reputation for being kind, respectable, compassionate, and plainly speaking, a good man. For something so horrible to happen to someone so pure, it just seemed unbelievable.
The body had been rushed to her division shortly after it was found and was put at the top of her priority list. Several members of the Eleventh Division were already in her hospital at the moment, along with the unfortunate seated officer of Squad Seven who had had his powers stripped from him by having them forcibly sealed by one of the ryoka. Luckily her best officers were on hand and left her plenty of breathing room to focus on Sosuke Aizen.
"So Captain Aizen was really…" Tosen spoke up in the same hushed tone.
"Yes," Retsu replied. "He was already dead by the time he was removed him from the Shōheki. I also examined the body further for the possibility of faux corpse…but the result proved negative." She let out a long solemn sigh for her fallen colleague before giving her final word. "Sosuke Aizen, Captain of Squad Five, has passed away."
The captains behind her were silent, but she could feel the already forlorn mood dip even further. Isane bowed her head in respect for the dead captain.
"The successor for the captaincy of Squad Five will be determined after the conflict with the ryoka is resolved by the Central Forty-Six," she continued as she stood and took hold of her zanpakutō.
"Captain…?" Isane asked with a raised brow.
"Please, return to your assigned posts," she ordered quietly. "I too…will enter the front lines."
Tosen and Sajin nodded in understanding and left the room to return to their respective divisions. Once they left, Isane addressed her superior.
"What would you like me to do, ma'am?"
"Does anyone of this feel right to you, Isane?" the older woman curiously.
"What do you mean?" the taller of the two replied.
"The ryoka invasion, the charges placed against Captain Ichimaru, and now this…something about unnerves me," Retsu explained.
"Do you think one of the ryoka might have killed Captain Azien?"
"I cannot say for certain," Retsu shook her head. "I have yet to gauge their strengths for myself, but testimonies from the few that have fought them suggest they are formidable, especially for one of them to have bested Lieutenant Abarai…and now one of them is currently holding their own against Captain Zaraki."
"C-Captain Zaraki is fighting one of them?!"
"Do you pity the individual, Isane?" Retsu asked turning to face her subordinate.
"Is…is that wrong ma'am?" the lieutenant asked averting her gaze.
"Of course not," her captain said with a small smile. "I do not mean to sound so cold, but if and when Captain Zaraki defeats the ryoka, the sooner we can resolve this conflict and things can be peaceful once more."
"To answer your first question: Isane, they is something I'd like for you to do."
"Yes, ma'am?"
"Could you watch after Atsuko and Mari for me while I am working? If one of these ryoka did in fact kill Captain Aizen…I am worried for the safety of my daughters."
Isane understood. Atsuko and Mari, Captain Unohana's twin daughters were her superior's entire world. She may not have been around at the time, but she was aware of Captain Unohana's marriage to former Captain of Squad Ten, Ryuu Hiromasa and of the man's apparent betrayal and exile one hundred years ago. Her captain may not have spoken much about it and she may have hid it exceptionally well from her subordinates…but there were just some nights when she couldn't sleep, she would spot her captain on her deck looking up at the moon…and her eyes were missing that usual radiance that she carried around so effortlessly. Instead they looked…lonely. Whether or not her captain believed in her husband's guilt was irrelevant; she missed him. The twins were the only piece of him she had left. The only proof of the love she had felt for a man that she missed so terribly.
"I will, Captain," Isane answered dutifully.
Retsu nodded appreciatively and together they left the room, but not before Retsu took a second to look back at the corpse of Sosuke Aizen.
There was something about the body that bothered her. She couldn't quite place it and she didn't feel confident in relaying her suspicions to Isane or Komamura and Tosen. She knew what a dead body was supposed to look like, what it was supposed to feel like, but this one felt…different somehow.
Perhaps she was just on edge. Ever since she felt that familiar spiritual pressure on the day of the invasion, she had been having a bit of difficulty focusing. It had been two days, but there had been no sighting of anyone who resembled Ryuu. Had she been wrong? Had she gotten her hopes up for nothing?
Was it not better this way?
She didn't have the answers to any of these questions and as much as she would like to pursue them, her duty as a captain and as a mother would have to come first.
It took an hour for Ryuu to finally reach the Squad Four barracks. Not being able to flash step was wearing on his nerves, especially when he so desperately wanted to get to the bottom of this as fast as possible. Luckily, he didn't have to expel too much spiritual pressure to get within the barracks and into the hospital. He made a mental note to thank Yoruichi for those crash courses in stealth.
He was thankful his wife had kept the layout of the hospital the same; it made it easy to sneak about until he reached the morgue. He made sure the room was empty before quietly entering.
He glanced around the room looking for the body of his enemy. He found nothing. There were no bodies in the morgue, just a lone table covered by a white sheet. Had they not brought the body in yet? No, it had been over an hour since he got the news from those Soul Reapers and barring his wife's expertise dulling in the last century- highly unlikely- Aizen's body should have been examined and cleared for the morgue by now. So where was the body?
Eyeing the lone table in the center of the room for a few more moments, Ryuu noticed a slight disturbance beneath the sheets. Something was underneath it, something thin. Whatever it was it was not a corpse and far too miniscule to remains of some kind.
He approached the table and pulled the sheet back. He was surprised to find that lying on an operating table in the morgue was a zanpakutō.
The weapon looked exceptionally ordinary; standard in design, emerald and green ito wrapped around a golden tsuka. What was it doing here? Did one of the officers leave it behind? Did it belong to a deceased Soul Reaper? Why did it look so familiar? Where was Aizen's body?
Questions plagued his mind and he was no closer to the answers despite taking the incredible risk of coming here. Here reached for the coroner's report hanging from the edge of the table in frustration. He needed a damn answer! He read over the document, eyes roving the paper intently down to the last detail looking for the answer he so furiously sought out. According to the chart, the table was supposed to be holding the body of the deceased Sosuke Aizen.
The answers suddenly hit him with the force of a tsunami.
He remembered that fateful night one hundred years ago. The zanpakutō Aizen carried. Shinji's explanation of just what kind of power his former lieutenant's weapon was capable of. The sudden death of Aizen and now finding his weapon in place of his body.
"Son of a bitch!" Ryuu roared as he threw the chart against the nearest wall with such force that it broke into several pieces.
Aizen's weapon, Kyōka Suigetsu. Complete manipulation over the five senses. Such power couldn't have been put in the hands of a more dangerous man. He used it one hundred years ago to frame Kisuke, Tessai, and himself for treason…and now he used it to fool all of the Soul Society, including his brilliant wife, into believing he was dead. Now he knew the truth: Sosuke Aizen was still alive and no one but him realized it.
"Hello? Is someone in here?" someone called out.
Ryuu snapped out of his rage and rushed to the wall beside the door. Access to the morgue was prohibited to anyone below the rank of Lieutenant unless receiving permission from Retsu. If he got caught, he would no doubt be reported to his wife. He had the information he needed; now he had to get out of the Fourth Division barracks before he was spotted.
The door opened and in stepped one of the nurses, a female wearing a hospital gown rather than a shihakushō. Once she passed the threshold, Ryuu grabbed hold of her placing his right hand over her mouth and wrapped his left arm around her neck just tight enough to cause unconsciousness; he wouldn't dare use Kido here where he could so easily be caught. Once the woman went limp in his hold he gently laid her against the wall and muttered a quick apology before hurrying out the door and down the hallway.
He took the most familiar route through the division on his way to the safest exit he could remember. The best way out was through his wife's personal garden. Everyone respectfully kept away from that spot and his wife has left for the frontlines. Just get to the gardens and he would be home free. He moved past his wife's quarters, resisting the urge to venture inside, and pushed the sliding door aside.
Instead of finding an empty garden, he spotted three people gathering flowers. One was a tall young woman with silver hair wearing a Soul Reaper uniform and a lieutenant's badge. The other two girls were much younger, children in fact looking to be no more- by living human standards anyway- than ten years old. The most distinctive features were the fact that they were identical twins with only minor differences in hair style. Both had long hair that was a beautiful shade of brown. The one on the right had her hair perfectly straightened while her twin on the left had hers a bit messier, more casual. Both girls had soft features that were eerily familiar to Ryuu. They sort of looked like…
"Who are you?" the lieutenant demanded. "I don't recognize you as a member of this squad."
"Oh? And you know all the faces of every member of Squad Four?" Ryuu questioned.
"Then who are you?"
He could have lied, but he doubted it would do him much after having barged into Retsu's private garden. He had to think of a way out of this and quick. She was a lieutenant, so incapacitating her shouldn't be too difficult. He just had to be careful about injuring the little girls who were eyeing him warily.
'Those eyes…' Ryuu thought. He felt like he should know these girls.
"I asked who you were!" the lieutenant snapped when he hadn't responded and Ryuu noticed her hand twitch in the direction of her zanpakutō.
"I am…leaving," Ryuu said before slamming his palm on the ground. "Sekienton!" Red smoke erupted from the ground and engulfed the garden. He didn't want to risk using Kido, but desperate times called for desperate measures.
He heard three sets of coughs as the thick smoke expanded. Now was the time to leave.
"Atsuko! Mari!" he heard the lieutenant shout.
Ryuu suddenly felt horrible at the possibility of traumatizing the children. They shouldn't have been exposed to something like this. What were they doing in his wife's garden anyway?
He leapt for the nearest wall and began running across the rooftops of the barracks as fast as he could. That Kido spell should have alerted anyone close by.
"Stop him!" he heard the familiar voice of the lieutenant shout.
He looked back and spotted the lieutenant from the gardens on the roof. Within a matter of seconds, more Soul Reapers began flash stepping onto the roof chasing after him. He didn't fear their combat abilities; members of Squad Four were not known for being the best fighters. All he had to do was outrun them. That plan hit a wall when a few actually managed to surround him.
"Stop running intruder! We hereby place you under arrest!" one of them stated as he and the rest of them drew their weapons.
"That's a really bad idea," Ryuu said casually.
"Put your weapon on the ground!" the Soul Reaper continued.
"How about you all put yours down on the ground and I don't have to hurt you to get out of here?" Ryuu suggested.
"I will not tell you again!"
"Good than that means you've decided to let me pass!"
Ryuu didn't want to have to hurt them. He couldn't afford to leave a trail behind-even though he was already off to a bad start with that.
"Detain him!" the man ordered.
"Guess we're doing this the hard way," Ryuu muttered as he reached over his shoulder and gripped his zanpakutō.
"Stand down," a soft yet firm voice ordered. It was a voice that the Soul Reapers obeyed without question…and a voice that shattered Ryuu's world.
The Soul Reapers around him lowered their weapons and stepped back. Ryuu froze in his spot as he heard the soft footsteps approach from behind. He didn't dare turn to face her; he was terrified of what he would see. Would her face show joy, anger, sadness?
Silence permeated the air. Every Fourth Division member was waiting in anticipation for either the Ryoka or their captain to speak.
Ryuu let out a sad sigh before turning around and facing his wife.
"Hello…Retsu," he greeted sullenly.
If she was surprised to see him, she didn't show it.
"Somehow…I knew it was you the moment the invasion began," she stated.
"Hmm…I suppose trying to hide from you was pointless. Maybe…maybe I revealed myself deliberately," he admitted. "I was never good at keeping things from you."
"You always were like a bull in a china shop," she commented, her face remaining expressionless.
He actually let out a light chuckle at that. She was correct after all.
"You haven't changed much though, but it seems your hair's grown longer," he noticed.
"And yours seems to have gotten shorter," she replied.
"You don't like it?" he asked as he ran his hand through his brown tresses.
"It suits you actually," she said, easing his concerns.
He couldn't help, but smile at her. The woman he loved was standing before him after a century of being kept from her. He wouldn't dare allow the realization that she might not have been happy to see him like this, as an enemy, to enter his mind. He was just happy to see her face.
"You still look beautiful," he spoke softly.
The look in her eyes was hard to read. She wasn't giving him any indication that she accepted his comment or that she did not desire it, but one thing was conveyed clearly in her expression: Not here, not now.
"I have to place you under arrest, Ryuu" she said keeping her tone neutral.
He let out a humorless laugh. "Of course you do."
"Will you resist?" she asked.
"Only a fool would oppose you, Retsu," he said before undoing the sash at his torso and holding his weapon out to her. "I surrender."
Retsu stepped forward slowly and took the hold of Ryuu's weapon. For a brief moment he noticed her delicate hands tense as they gripped his zanpakutō.
"Don't let them see," he whispered so only she could hear.
Retsu looked up at him for a moment in surprise, but she understood. She had an image to maintain and she could not allow her personal matters to be seen by her subordinates during such a time of unrest in the Seireitei where she needed to be the veneer of calm everyone beneath her needed her to be.
She took the weapon from him and walked away without another word to him.
"Arrest him," she ordered stoically.
Ryuu didn't fight back as the Fourth Division members used various binding Kido to restrain and incapacitate him. Yoruichi would not be pleased with him for being caught, but hopefully she would focus more on the children rather than him. At best, his arrest would be cause for an investigation into the invasion rather than a simple search and destroy mission. Only time would tell what would become of him. He just hoped some good came of this.
Retsu had alerted Squad Two of Ryuu's arrest and had him brought to the holding cells within the barracks. His zanpakutō had been given to Squad Two as well. Her prison was not sufficient enough to contain him…that was one of the reasons she had turned him over to Captain Soifon anyway. The second was far more personal…and far more heartbreaking.
She couldn't bear to have him so close to her.
She always wondered what she would do if she ever saw Ryuu again. She dreamed he would just appear before her for no reason and there would be no consequences awaiting either of them upon his return.
Reality was much more cruel and unforgiving.
Ryuu was back. Her husband was back and she had to arrest him for mounting an invasion against the Seireitei. It wasn't fair.
Alone in her bedroom, the tears she had been holding back fell freely. She didn't know what to do.
"Mother!" a soft voice called out.
The door to her room opened and in stepped Atsuko and Mari looking rather unnerved.
"Mother, what's happening?" Mari asked nervously. "Who was that man?"
Retsu quickly wiped her tears away and put on a brave face for her daughters. She couldn't let them see her like this.
"Nothing's wrong dear. Everything has been taken care of," she said with a false smile as she knelt down and pulled her twins into a loving embrace.
Atsuko wasn't convinced. "Mother…are you alright?"
"I'm fine," Retsu answered as more tears threatened to spill.
Her daughters had seen their father and didn't even realize it. How on earth could she tell them the truth? How could she tell them that their father was a criminal? And how could she tell them that even after all this time despite what he had done…she still loved him?