Disclaimer- I do not own Bleach.
Chapter Twenty-One - The Cultural Festival
"I think I'll just skip the whole thing," Shiro muttered darkly, more to himself than to his friend, as he and Kasumi made their way toward her house. "It's not like my grades are going to drop if I don't show up. For that matter, it's not like I would care if they did. Plus, even if none of that were an issue, there is the little fact that the festival is on a Saturday so they can't take attendance."
"You can't skip the cultural festival Shiro-chan," Kasumi argued, having already known that she would be forced to have this fight with him at some point. "You're class president, aren't you in charge of something? One of the activities or something like that?"
"We're supposed to decorate the courtyard," Shiro replied, without much enthusiasm, his thoughts going back to the job that his class had been assigned for the cultural festival. "And I'll fulfill my obligation to my classmates, even though I don't really want to, but that doesn't mean that I have to stick around and actually suffer through the festival. I could just show up early in the morning, do my job, and then leave. I really don't have to be there."
"Yes you do," Kasumi said, turning a pleading look in her best friend's direction. "This is one of the few times that we'll actually be able to hang out together while at school so you have to be there. And who knows, you might even have fun."
Shiro scoffed at that last statement from his friend. There wasn't even the slightest chance that he'd have fun at the festival and yet at the same time he knew without a doubt that he would go. Kasumi had asked it of him and he knew that if he didn't go then she would be sad and Shiro couldn't handle the thoughts of that. The boy sighed heavily; he'd been defeated yet again and he knew it.
Kasumi smiled as she heard Shiro's sigh of resignation, knowing that she'd won the argument. "Cheer up," Kasumi said, seizing her best friend's hand and pulling him along. "I'm sure it won't be as bad as you think."
"You're probably right," Shiro said, rolling his eyes in her direction. "It'll probably be worse."
"You're hopeless," Kasumi told him, shaking her head in exasperation. Her gaze shifted ahead to her house, which they were rapidly approaching, and she saw that her mother was waiting for them at the end of the drive way. She smiled as she saw her mom's happy face.
"Hello Kasumi-chan," Orihime called out as the two children approached the spot where she was standing at the end of the driveway.
"Hey Mom," Kasumi said with a smile, releasing her hold on Shiro's hand so that she could run over and give her mother a hug.
Orihime returned her daughter's hug and then turned her appraising gaze over to Shiro, who had stopped walking the moment Kasumi had released her hold on his hand and who now stood a few feet away. "And why is it that you look so unhappy Shiro-kun?"
Shiro shrugged, not really wanting to tell his friend's mom the reason for his unhappiness. It seemed kind of childish even to him and yet at the same time he really couldn't help the way he felt and he really didn't want to go to the festival. People for the most part annoyed him and being around large groups of them was never a pleasant experience.
"We're having a cultural festival at school in a couple of weeks," Kasumi explained when it became obvious that Shiro wasn't going to answer the question posed to him by her mother. She made it a point to avoid eye contact with her best friend as she filled her mother in on the situation and she could tell from the cold air that began to circulate around them that he wasn't particularly happy with her disclosure. "And for some reason Shiro-chan doesn't want to go."
"Why in the world don't you want to go Shiro-kun?" Orihime exclaimed, ignoring the chill wind that was blowing. "It sounds like so much fun."
Shiro was forced to smile slightly at Orihime's reaction and he was now fully aware of where Kasumi's enthusiasm had come from. Apparently it was genetic. "You can go in my place if you'd like Orihime-san."
"That's okay Shiro-kun," Orihime said, noticing the look of displeasure that her daughter was giving the young boy. "So have the two of you given any thoughts as to what you're going to wear to the festival? You're supposed to wear traditional outfits, right?"
Kasumi nodded, a look of excitement on her face. She always enjoyed dressing up and the thoughts of getting a new outfit excited her. "Yea and I was really hoping that Dad would make me a new kimono for the festival."
"I'm sure he will," Orihime said, offering her daughter a smile. "And I'm sure he'll make something for Shiro-kun as well." She offered the young boy a smile at this point and Shiro forced himself to return the smile, not revealing to her the fact that he'd actually been planning to wear his school uniform.
"That would be great!" Kasumi exclaimed, showing enough enthusiasm for the both of them.
"I'll talk to him and see what he says," Orihime said, offering the two kids another smile.
"Well I guess I'll head home," Shiro said before mother and daughter had the chance to make any more plans that involved him. Working hard to rein in his reiatsu and put a stop to the icy wind that he had caused earlier the boy turned to leave however he froze in his tracks as Orihime called out to him, "Wait a minute Shiro-kun. I just remembered, your mom called me earlier and asked if you could stay with us for awhile this evening. Apparently she and your dad had something that they needed to do and couldn't find anyone to stay with you."
Shiro groaned under his breath, really wishing that his parents would just let him stay home by himself. It wasn't as though he couldn't take care of himself, he'd been taking on Hollow since the age of seven. He didn't say any of this out loud however but merely turned around and walked back over to the spot where Kasumi was standing.
"Yay!" Kasumi said, grabbing her friend by the arm. "Come on Shiro-chan. We can go make plans for the festival."
Orihime chuckled softly to herself as the young boy reluctantly followed her daughter toward the house. He was going along willingly enough but the expression on his face told her that he'd rather be doing just about anything else.
"I still can't believe you're making me do this," Shiro grumbled as he came out of the guest bedroom dressed in his formal hakama and slowly came to stand in front of Kasumi. There was a frown on his face as he gazed into his friend's blue eyes. "I look ridiculous."
"Aw," Kasumi said as her gaze fell upon Shiro, who wore light blue hakama over a matching light blue kimono. A sleeveless, white haori with a dragon embroidered on the back in a slightly darker shade of blue completed the outfit. "I think you look cute."
"That's what I was afraid of," Shiro muttered, shaking his head.
"It'll be fine," Kasumi told him. "Now just go hang out in the living room while I get dressed. Then we'll go."
"Fine," Shiro said with a sigh and proceeded to make his way downstairs. On his way to the living room the young boy ran into Orihime, who was on her way up to help Kasumi get dressed, and the older woman's eyes widened as her gaze fell upon him. "Oh Shiro-kun you look absolutely adorable!"
Shiro groaned under his breath, wondering how many other people were going to tell him that. He briefly debated sneaking out the back door and going home but he knew that Kasumi had her heart set on the two of them going to the festival together and he also knew that she would be sad if he ran off. So, as much as he hated it, Shiro went into the living room and sat down on the sofa to wait for her. "The things I do for my friend," he thought to himself with a sigh.
"Shouldn't you already be at school?" a voice called out from the doorway, startling Shiro from his thoughts. "I thought you were in charge of the decorations."
Shiro glanced up and saw Uryu standing in the doorway. "We went early this morning, and I mean EARLY as in we watched the sun rise, and put up the decorations for the festival. And I left a couple of my classmates standing guard to make sure that nothing happens to them."
"Oh," Uryu said, then turned and walked away.
Twenty minutes later Kasumi descended the stairs to joined her best friend in the living room and Shiro's eyes widened as his gaze fell upon his best friend. Kasumi was dressed in a pale pink kimono, which was adorned with white flowers that Shiro identified as oleander blossoms, and she had a darker pink obi tied around her waist. Her hair was pulled up on top of her head, with little tendrils left to cascade around her face, and she also had matching flower blossoms in her hair.
"What do you think Shiro-chan?" Kasumi asked as she came over to the spot where her best friend sat. She twirled around a couple of times so that Shiro could see the entire outfit.
"I think you look weird," was Shiro's reply. He stared over at his friend with one eyebrow arched.
Kasumi placed her hands on her hips and glared at her best friend. "Well that's just rude Toushirou."
"I can't help it," Shiro said in his own defense. "You asked me what I thought and I told you. Did you want me to lie or something?"
"YES!"
"Okay then," Shiro said with a shrug, completely confused by the fact that Kasumi had asked him for his opinion and then gotten mad when he'd given it to her. That made absolutely no sense to him. "Next time I'll lie."
"Keep that up Shiro-kun and there won't be a next time," Orihime thought to herself as she listened to the two kids argue.
"Let's just go," Kasumi said, grabbing Shiro by the arm and pulling him to his feet. "The festival's supposed to start in an hour. I'm supposed to help my classmates set up our booth and if we don't hurry then I'm going to be late.
"Wait a minute!" Orihime exclaimed as she hurried over to the two kids holding a camera. "I have to get a picture of the two of you. You both look so adorable."
Shiro groaned under his breath at once again being referred to as adorable but stood beside Kasumi without protest while Orihime took a half dozen photos of the two of them.
"Thank you," Orihime said, waving them off. "Have fun at the festival."
"We will," Kasumi called out as she grabbed her messenger bag and proceeded to pull Shiro out the door.
When the two kids arrived at school they walked through an arch that had been set up at the entrance gate. The archway was adorned with a paper lantern on each side and plastic koi fish across the top as though they were swimming over the archway. Kasumi gazed around at the decorations that Shiro and his classmates had set up, slightly impressed by the work they had done. The long line of booths that the kids had assembled the previous day were now decorated with paper lanterns in assorted colors and strings of lights in the shape of cherry blossoms hung from all of the trees.
"This is really cool Shiro-chan," Kasumi said as she quickly pulled Shiro toward the booth that her class had set up under their favorite tree in the courtyard. It was separated from the other booths because their activity required more space. A large pool had been set up beside the booth and as they arrived they saw some of her classmates dumping assorted koi fish into the water.
"Ishida!" a couple of her classmates called out as she and Shiro walked up to the booth.
"Hey guys," Kasumi said as she watched the koi fish swim around in the pool. She quickly pulled the strap of her messenger bag off her shoulders and unzipped it. From it's depths she pulled a light pink folder, which she placed down on the table and flipped open. "Sorry I'm late. Took longer than I thought to get ready."
"That's okay Ishida," one of the other children said.
"What are you doing?" Shiro asked, confused.
"You'll see," Kasumi replied as she pulled several paper cut outs from the folder. She quickly handed the painted koi fish to Shiro with the order, "Hold these."
Shiro wasn't given time to protest as the cut outs were forced into his hands. He watched as Kasumi pulled a chair up to the stand and then climbed on top of it. "She's going to break her neck," Shiro thought to himself, knowing that outside of battle his best friend wasn't exactly the most graceful person on the planet. An image of Kasumi falling off the chair actually flashed into his mind but Shiro quickly banished it. He had enough visions as it was and that wasn't something that he needed to think about.
"Hand me one of the paper koi," Kasumi said, jarring Shiro from his thoughts. She made certain to be very specific with her request because, knowing Shiro, had she not specified the fact that she wanted one of the paper ones then she would most likely have ended up with a live koi in her hand.
Shiro shrugged and handed her one of the cut outs.
"Thank you." Kasumi took the paper koi from him and quickly taped it to the top of their sign, beside the words 'Lucky Koi'. She repeated this process with the half dozen koi that she had painted and then she climbed down from the chair. Unfortunately as she did so her foot became entangled in her kimono and she lost her balance.
Seeing the disaster unfolding before his eyes in slow motion, Shiro stepped over and caught Kasumi as she fell. "You're such a klutz," the boy said with a smirk as he helped Kasumi to stand.
"Shut up," Kasumi snapped, her face flushing crimson. "And thank you."
"Don't mention it," Shiro said, slightly amused by her embarrassment.
"Hey Kurosaki!"
Shiro turned and watched as his classmate, and class vice-president, Heikichi Yamino walked toward him. The older boy was waving like a lunatic and Shiro briefly debated walking in the other direction and pretending that he hadn't heard him.
"Don't even think about pretending like you didn't hear me Toushirou," Heikichi called out, recognizing the look in Shiro's eyes and realizing exactly what the younger boy was planning.
"Guess he told you Shiro-chan," Kasumi said with a smirk.
"You'd better be nicer to me," Shiro said, turning his gaze back to Kasumi. "Or next time I'll let you fall on your butt in front of all your classmates."
"Now that would be mean," Kasumi said, pouting slightly. "But I'm sure you'd do it."
"So Kurosaki," Heikichi said, coming to a stop beside his classmate. "Nice work with the decorations. And thanks again for getting your dad's friends to help us."
"No problem," Shiro said.
"Wait a minute," Kasumi said, gazing over at her best friend through slightly narrowed eyes. "What does he mean your dad's friends? Did you get Squad Five to help with the decorations?"
"A few of them," Shiro replied. "To be quite honest with you I didn't think that it would be wise to let some of my classmates climb trees but they all thought the lights that look like cherry blossoms would be a good idea so I asked Kaiya and some of the others for help."
"Cheater," Kasumi muttered.
"Hey!" Shiro snapped. "No one said that we couldn't get help. In fact most of the teachers actually suggested it. Apparently they didn't want anyone to kill themselves either."
"You still cheated," Kasumi maintained, although there was now a smile on her face.
"Fine, I cheated," Shiro said, not wanting the argument to progress any further.
"So Kurosaki," Heikichi said, gazing at his classmate curiously. "What are you doing hanging out here with the little kids?" As soon as the words left his mouth Heikichi realized his mistake and he glanced over at his classmate to find Shiro glaring daggers at him. A chill wind began to blow across the school yard and Heikichi could only guess that it was being caused by Shiro's Shinigami powers.
"Toushirou," Kasumi hissed in a voice that only he could hear as the cold wind swirled around her. "Stop it! You're making a scene."
"He started it," Shiro muttered however he reined in his reiatsu and the cold wind ceased to blow.
"That's a seriously cool trick Kurosaki," Heikichi said, his voice filled with awe.
"Shut up," Shiro said, glaring at the older boy. "If you think I'm forgiving you for that little kid comment so easily then you're crazy."
Heikichi shrugged. "Sorry Kurosaki, didn't think before I spoke."
"Obviously," Shiro said.
"You know," Kasumi said, turning her gaze toward Heikichi. "For your information I'm actually two months older than Shiro-chan."
"I'm sorry about the little kid comment," Heikichi said, holding up his hands in a placating gesture. "I didn't mean to offend either one of you."
"So," Kasumi said, turning to Shiro and Heikichi, all anger apparently forgotten. "My friends and I are taking turns running the koi booth so would you guys like to walk around and enjoy the festival a little bit?"
"Sounds like fun," Heikichi said with a smile, which made Kasumi smile in return. She nodded and then turned to face Shiro, a questioning look in her big, blue eyes. "If I must," the younger boy said with a sigh.
"You must," Kasumi said, seizing her friend by the hand.
With that the three kids began walking around the courtyard, Shiro being pulled along by Kasumi.
"We should play some of the games," Kasumi suggested as she and the boys came to a stop in front of one of the booths. This particular booth contained a corkboard that was filled with multicolored balloons. The kid standing beside the booth smiled at the three friends and held out a couple of darts. "Hit the white balloons with the darts and win a prize."
"I'm game," Heikichi said, taking one of the darts that the boy was offering. He held up the dart, took aim, and then tossed it. A bright red balloon burst as the dart missed it's target.
"So close," the boy running the booth said.
Shiro smirked at the look on his classmate's face.
"Shut up Kurosaki," Heikichi said, even though Shiro hadn't actually uttered a word. "If you think you can do better then feel free."
"Come on Shiro," Kasumi urged.
"Fine," Shiro said, taking one of the darts from the boy. Rolling his eyes he tossed the dart without even bothering to aim and watched as the white balloon in the very center of the board exploded.
"Great shot!" the three bystanders exclaimed. The boy reached down into a box that was sitting beside the stand and pulled out a paper crane which he handed to Shiro. "Wonderful aim."
Shiro shrugged as he accepted the crane that the boy offered him.
"Come on," Kasumi said, grabbing both boys by the hand and pulling them on to the next booth. Shiro and Heikichi had no choice but to follow her and they soon found themselves standing in front of yet another booth, this one containing a bunch of cards that were turned upside down on a table.
"It's a matching game," the girl who seemed to be in charge of this game said as the trio came to a stop in front of her booth. "It tests your memory. Match as many as you can within the span of one minute."
"Your turn," Shiro told Kasumi as he took a step back. "This isn't my kind of game."
Privately Kasumi thought that this would be the perfect game for him since her friend had a near photographic memory but she didn't press the matter. Instead she nodded to the girl and picked up a card. Forty-seven seconds later Kasumi had all the cards divided into pairs.
"Wow," the girl said, her eyes wide. She reached down into the box that was beside her booth and pulled out a lucky cat which she offered to Kasumi. "That was really cool."
"Shiro-chan could have done it faster," Kasumi said with a smile, as she accepted the cat.
"Are you ready yet Ichigo?" Rukia called out impatiently from the bottom of the stairs. "I swear, I thought it was the woman who was supposed to take forever getting ready."
"I'm coming," Ichigo called out, making his way down the stairs. As he descended the stairs his gaze focused on his wife, a questioning look in his eyes. "Now tell me again why we have to go to this little school festival?"
"Because our son is there, as well as your best friend's daughter," Rukia informed him. "Not to mention the fact that Orihime and Uryu are both going and I'm not sure how exactly Orihime will react when she meets the children's new friend."
Ichigo slapped his forehead with his hand, unable to believe that he hadn't thought about that little detail for himself. "I didn't even think about that. She hasn't met Heikichi has she?"
Rukia shook her head, unable to believe the fact that the man she fell in love with could be so stupid. "No and I can't believe you forgot about the fact that your son's new friend is the reincarnation of Aizen. I mean honestly Ichigo. . ."
"Give me a break," Ichigo snapped.
Rukia rolled her eyes and grabbed her husband by the arm, thinking that she'd like to give him a break all right. Break his arm or maybe his leg. "Let's just go."
"Well," Kasumi said once she'd dragged a reluctant Shiro around to all of the booths. "I suppose I should go work at the stand with my classmates for awhile. It's only fair."
Shiro shrugged and followed his friend back over to the booth that her class was sponsoring. "It's not like I have anything better to do with my time," he thought to himself. His class was in charge of the decorations; they'd put them up before the festival and it was their job to take them down when it was over. The time in between was theirs to do with as they pleased.
Heikichi had similar thoughts and he too followed Kasumi back over to the booth with the miniature koi pond.
"Go ahead and look around guys," Kasumi told her classmates. "We'll watch the booth for awhile so you guys can go and have some fun."
"Thanks Ishida," Ayana said as she and the others walked away.
"So Shiro-chan," Kasumi said once her classmates had left, offering the young boy a smile. "You're having fun aren't you? Come on, admit it."
"It's not as bad as I thought it would be," Shiro admitted with the utmost reluctance. "But it's not exactly what I would call fun either."
"You just like to be difficult," Kasumi told him, placing her hands on her hips and glaring at her best friend.
"You know," Shiro said, a thoughtful expression in his blue-green eyes. "For some reason I hear that a lot."
"That really should tell you something Kurosaki," Heikichi said with a smirk.
"Oh shut up," Shiro snapped, glaring at his classmate and once again causing a chill wind to swirl around them. "What are you even doing here? Don't you have someone else you can go and annoy?"
"Well I could," Heikichi replied in a calm voice, his grin widening as he spoke. "But I'd rather stay here and pick on you. It's more fun."
"Ugh!"
Kasumi rolled her eyes in the direction of the two boys and shook her head. The two of them really were hopeless.
It wasn't long before Kasumi's classmates returned to the booth and for awhile they all hung out together. The peace was short-lived however as the quiet of the early afternoon was shattered by an ear-piercing, other-worldly scream. Without a word to the other students Shiro grabbed Kasumi by the arm and pulled her off to a secluded spot beside the school building, followed closely behind by Heikichi.
"I thought your mother put a barrier around the school?" Shiro whispered once the trio were alone.
"She did," Kasumi said, a confused expression on her face. "I don't understand what's happening."
"We're about to be attacked," Shiro stated in a matter-of-fact way. "That's what's happening."
And, as if on cue, a beast about the size of an average adult male appeared in the air above the three kids. "Arrancar," Shiro whispered as his gaze focused on this evolved version of a Hollow, complete with a broken mask perched lopsidedly on it's head. He turned to his two friends. "We have to lure it away from here or else people could get hurt."
Kasumi and Heikichi nodded and together the three children dashed across the school courtyard and away from the school grounds. The Arrancar gave a mighty roar and then pursued the three kids, whose combined reiatsu made them a very worthwhile target. Shiro led the way to the neighborhood park, which was abandoned due to the festival at the school, and once there he pulled his Gikongan from an inside pocket in his kimono and quickly assumed his Shinigami form. At the same time Kasumi flipped her silver cross up into her palm and the glowing golden bow appeared in her hand and together the two kids faced their opponent.
The Arrancar sneered when he realized the kids intended to fight. "You think you're a match for me?"
"I think we're going to find out," Shiro replied as he pulled Hyourinmaru from the sheath that he wore secured across his back. His thoughts momentarily flashed back to the last time he'd encountered an Arrancar and he really hoped that he faired better this time around. The last encounter had not been pretty.
At that moment Heikichi stepped up beside Shiro, his intense gaze focused on the Arrancar.
"What do you think you're doing you idiot?" Shiro angrily demanded of his classmate, never taking his eyes off of his opponent. "Get over there by that tree and try not to get yourself killed while Kasumi and I take care of this. I don't have time for your stupidity right now!"
"I can help," Heikichi insisted, his gaze also remaining focused on the Arrancar.
Shiro opened his mouth to further protest however he stopped short as the Arrancar dashed toward them. He didn't have time to argue with his stubborn classmate and all he could do was fight and hope that Heikichi didn't end up getting himself killed. The young boy pointed the tip of his sword toward the sky and called out, "Reign over the frosted, frozen sky Hyourinmaru!"
The dragon of ice and water burst from the tip of Shiro's zanpaktou and, with a flick of the blade, the young boy sent the dragon soaring toward the Arrancar. The dragon struck the beast's arm and it let out a howl of rage and pain as it's left arm was frozen solid by the attack.
Blinded by rage the Arrancar rushed toward Shiro, momentarily forgetting that there were two other fighters. He was reminded of this fact however when he was struck in the arm by an arrow shot from Kasumi's bow. The Arrancar's frozen arm exploded in a spray of ice as the arrow struck and the beast's howls increased tenfold. Roaring it's displeasure the Arrancar rushed toward Shiro and shot a bolt of reiatsu from it's hand. Shiro was caught slightly off guard by the force of the attack and he watched in horror as Hyourinmaru flew from his hands and went sailing through the air, landing with a dull thud a few yards away.
"This is not good," Shiro exclaimed as the Arrancar raised his remaining hand in preparation for another attack. His gaze shifted from the Arrancar to his zanpaktou as he debated whether or not he could reach the spot where Hyourinmaru lay before the Arrancar used his claws to skewer him.
"Kurosaki!" Heikichi called out, interrupting Shiro's internal debate. "Catch!" And even though Shiro's classmate wasn't anywhere near the sword as Heikichi raised his hands Hyourinmaru rose into the air and then flew toward Shiro.
"Thanks," Shiro said, catching his zanpaktou by the hilt and releasing the ice dragon yet again. He made a mental note to ask Heikichi how he'd managed to make the sword fly to him but now was not the time. Now was the time to destroy the Arrancar.
Now angrier than ever the Arrancar changed targets and dashed toward Heikichi. Shiro and Kasumi both ran toward their friend however they paused as Heikichi raised his hand and a violent wind began to circulate around the Arrancar. The beast was knocked off balance by the ferocious wind that Heikichi had summoned and he stumbled backward a few steps. Seeing this as an opportunity Shiro once again released the ice dragon, which froze the Arrancar's legs to the ground and as the Arrancar fought to free itself Kasumi pulled back her bow and fired an arrow. The arrow flew through the air and struck the Arrancar dead center between the eyes. The beast issued one last scream of rage as he disintegrated.
"That was awesome!" Heikichi exclaimed as he ran over to join Shiro and Kasumi.
"What the heck did you do?" Shiro asked, whirling to face his classmate and glaring at him through narrowed eyes.
"Well apparently you guys aren't the only ones with freakish powers," Heikichi explained. "I was attacked by a Hollow a couple of weeks ago and I kept waiting for one of you guys to show up and save me but no one came and I had to save myself. That's when I learned that I can use telekinesis and control the elements. Or to be more specific I have the capability to control the elements, I'm not exactly great at it yet."
"Weird," Shiro muttered. "And that would make you a freak like the rest of us."
"Toushirou!" Kasumi exclaimed, casting a reproachful gaze in her best friend's direction.
"It's okay," Heikichi said, shrugging off Shiro's words. "I don't take it as an insult. Plus, there's no way I'm as weird as he is."
"That's true," Kasumi said, turning to smile at her best friend. "No one's as weird as Shiro-chan."
Shiro growled under his breath as he walked over to the spot where his body was standing. The young boy resumed his normal form and then turned a glare toward his friends. "Come on. I'd love to further argue this point but we really don't have time for this. We'd better get back to school before someone notices that we're gone."
With a smile Kasumi nodded and together the trio made their way back to the festival. When they arrived back at the koi booth Kasumi and Shiro found that their parents were there waiting for them. Orihime's eyes widened in shock as her gaze fell briefly on the young boy that was walking beside her daughter. Rukia had spoken the truth when she'd described this new friend of their children, he really was the spitting image of Aizen, however much to her surprise she found that it didn't really bother her to look at this boy. After all, he had no control over what his previous incarnation had done. Rukia gazed over at her friend as the children walked up to them, trying to judge Orihime's reaction, and she was happy to find that the boy's appearance didn't seem to be having a negative effect on her.
Ichigo and Uryu focused their gazes on their children and asked, in one voice, "And where exactly have you three been?"
Shiro briefly debated on lying to their fathers however quickly decided against that course of action. After all their parents had more than likely felt the reiatsu of the Arrancar so they probably already knew what had really happened. "We had an unwanted visitor to the festival so we thought we should probably get rid of it. So that's what we did."
Ichigo and Uryu both rolled their eyes. They already knew about the Arrancar of course, having sensed it's reiatsu as well as that of their children, however in all honesty they hadn't expected such a blunt answer from the boy.
"What?" Shiro asked, seeing the looks of incredulity that Ichigo and Uryu were giving him. "We couldn't let an Arrancar crash the party. People could have been hurt not to mention the fact that my class is in charge of cleanup and that guy would have made a serious mess."
"It's good to see that you have your priorities in order Toushirou," Uryu said.
"Should we be talking about this in front of. . ." Ichigo paused as Heikichi glanced in his direction.
"He saw the whole thing," Shiro said, his gaze shifting from his dad to his new friend. He actually found it kind of funny that his dad was concerned about discussing this in front of Heikichi when the boy had discovered that he possessed the power to fight Hollow on his own. "And he already knows about Shinigami, Soul Society and Hollow."
"Wait," Rukia said, a look of confusion on her face. "How does he know about all of that? I thought we erased his memories?"
"I tried and failed," Shiro said, thinking back to the first time that his classmate had witnessed his Shinigami transformation. "And then you tried, with similar results. Apparently, for some reason, he's just immune to the memory modification. So I told him everything."
"I see," Rukia said, staring at the young boy in an appraising sort of way. The knowledge didn't seem to have brought about any adverse affects in the kid so she supposed that it was no harm, no foul. And it's not like they could really warn Shiro about giving Heikichi too much information about Soul Society since they couldn't tell the kid that he was the reincarnation of their former rival without revealing his own past. "Well it's not like anyone would believe him if he told them."
"That was my observation as well," Shiro said. "Plus there's the fact that he's not exactly normal himself."
"What do you mean Shiro-chan?" Rukia asked.
Shiro glanced over at Heikichi and the older boy spoke up. "Apparently I have the power to control the elements and move things with my thoughts. It's kinda cool actually but really weird."
"Strange," Ichigo said, his gaze focused intently on the young boy who was standing with Shiro and Kasumi. Although it wasn't unheard of for normal humans to have spiritual powers it was in no way a normal occurrence and the fact that there were now three such children attending the same school seemed somewhat odd to Ichigo and reminded him of his own screwed up school days. Not to mention the fact that two of them were reincarnations of former Shinigami captains.
"Well now that that's been taken care of you have to pose for a picture," Rukia said with a smile, holding up a small, digital camera. "You look absolutely adorable!"
Shiro growled low in his throat as Kasumi pulled him aside and wrapped her arm around his.
Rukia held up the camera but then lowered it and turned to Heikichi, who had stepped to the side. "Get over there with them. You have to be in the picture too Heikichi."
The older boy smiled as he walked over to join Shiro and Kasumi. Kasumi quickly wrapped her other arm around Heikichi and the three kids smiled, Shiro's smile slightly forced, as Rukia snapped the picture. "We are so weird," Shiro thought to himself as his gaze shifted back and forth between his family and friends.
"I'm really sorry about the barrier you guys," Orihime said to the group once Rukia had finished with her picture taking and they were all standing off to themselves. "I wasn't thinking about Arrancar when I put up the barrier and I didn't make it strong enough to block them. I'll fix that problem though and this shouldn't happen again."
"It's not your fault Mom," Kasumi said.
"That's right," Shiro said. "It's ours."
"Don't say things like that Shiro-kun," Orihime said, gazing at the young boy with a strange expression in her eyes.
"It's the truth," Shiro said. "It's our reiatsu that draws them here and now with Heikichi exhibiting strange powers of his own they're that much more likely to attack"
"Guess we'll just have to make the barrier that much stronger," Orihime said, a determined look in her eyes.
Kasumi and Shiro both smiled. Their parents went out of their way in an attempt to keep them safe, even though they were more than capable of taking care of almost anything that came up. It just showed how much they were loved.
A/N- Hope you enjoyed this latest installment of Shiro-chan's story. To those of you who have reviewed the story I offer my thanx. You guys are great. Feel free to review this chapter and let me know what you think. Until next time this is Hitsu-taichou signing out.