AN: so I got mixed reviews about the last chapter and I have to say personally I thought it was horrendous…that always happens when I give myself a deadline…anyways now I have all the way to the ending worked out so updates should start being regular again; I hope.
On with the story!
Chapter 21
It was the type of hole-in-the-wall bar that catered to those whose business was on the wrong side of legal. The bartender was unsurprised to see a cloaked figure in the corner table, his barely touched glass sitting in front of him. It was common enough for under the table deals and conspiracies to be hashed out in his shadowed corner tables.
If the bartender had to guess, the man was of aristocratic birth, simply by the stiff way he was sitting and the way he held his glass. The sword belted at his waist spoke volumes as well. The other patrons were keeping a wide berth.
The door opened and a slight figure, also hooded, blew in with the cool night air. He made a beeline for the corner table and the bartender quickly sent the serving girl to get the drink orders.
The shorter man sat and waved the girl away in the same motion, balancing his sword against his side.
"Is this entirely necessary?" Grey eyes drilled into teal as soon as the girl was out of hearing distance.
A sigh could be heard from under the newcomer's hood. "I didn't want to be overheard. The walls of the Seireitei have ears, as you well know."
Pale fingers drummed the surface of the knotted wood table. "Yes they do indeed. And what have they told you lately?"
"Nothing good. Something is going on…I just don't have enough information yet. I have something else that's a bigger priority. Have you noticed the increased…curiosity…a certain clown faced bastard has for our orange haired friend?" He lifted his head slightly and raised a pale eyebrow to emphasize his meaning.
"It could be troublesome, but what do you suggest?" he eloquently raised the cup to his lips and contemplated his companion over the rim.
"We need to get him somewhere we can keep an eye on him."
"I might have an idea." An uncharacteristic smirk lifted the side of his mouth. "But I doubt he will like it."
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Ichigo woke with a twisted feeling of unease in his gut. He wasn't normally a superstitious man, or one to put much stock in premonitions. However he couldn't quite shake the feeling that something was going to go very wrong, very soon.
He chalked it up to finding out his ex-girlfriend…maybe girlfriend again…was having his baby. That would shake any man's nerve at least a little. He sat on the edge of his bed with his head in his hands and slowly rubbed his temples.
He hadn't lied to her before…he was happy. But then he started to think about all of the complications that would come with it. He already had the 46 breathing down his neck about appearances, Toshiro was breaking, well circumventing rules to help him out of tight spaces and Shunsui wanted his head on a platter.
Add that to the fact that he was nineteen and shared his soul with a hollow…
He groaned as he stood up and started to pull on his student uniform. No wonder he felt uneasy. Luckily he and Nanao decided to keep the pregnancy to themselves for the time being so he had time to figure that out.
As he walked through the cafeteria he noticed a buzz of conversation throughout the room. He ducked into his place beside Sumiko and asked around the piece of bread in his mouth, "What's everyone talking about?"
"There was an announcement a few minutes ago. After our second hour classes, everyone fourth year and up are having an assembly."
Ichigo's gut twisted a little tighter and he suddenly lost his appetite. "What about?"
Akio shrugged as Sumiko was too busy yelling at someone who just lobbed a piece of bread at their neighbor, missed, and narrowly hit her blonde head. "No clue, strange though. I think I saw a few captains outside in the main courtyard earlier…that's what's got everybody talking."
Ichigo fidgeted with the band around his wrist and subtlety, at least for him, felt out for the other spiritual pressure signatures in the area.
The first one was easy enough to place. Byakuya's signature was very unique and one Ichigo was very used to. He recoiled away from the second one. There was just something about Mayuri that unnerved him, and probably with good reason. The third and fourth took him a few minutes but he eventually recognized Soifon and Komamura.
A snap of fingers in front of his face brought him back to the table. Akio was laughing at his dazed expression.
"The bell just rang, you want to go to class or do you just want to sit there and stare at the wall all day?"
Ichigo rolled his eyes. "Let's go."
Class passed slowly and Ichigo tried to push the assembly and the four captains from his mind, with little success.
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Toshiro was perched on the edge of his roof and watched the edge of the sun break the horizon. Sunrise or sunset; it didn't really matter, there was something about the feeling of change that captivated him.
He took a deep breath and contemplated the two problems that seem to circle his head like vultures. He started to lay out the facts in his mind's eye, noting the blank spots as he tried to connect the dots.
At the center of the problem was the Central 46. They were exerting their power more and more lately. A dot labeled 'denied promotions' linked up with the main point while other dots labeled 'increased hostilities in the districts' and 'assistance denied' were added.
He rubbed his temples. There were just too many holes and blanks to make any type of assessment. He needed more information.
His mind changed directions and focused on the other problem. This one was lit up in neon letters labeled 'Kurosaki.' At least this problem had more filled in dots…not that it made the problem any less troublesome.
There was one that he could add… 'Mayuri'. The freakish twelfth division had started dropping little comments about Kurosaki that had the alarm bells ringing in Toshiro's head.
The thing was, Mayuri knew about Ichigo's hollow. Everyone had heard him complaining that not a single arrancar had been captured alive and the few that remained in Las Noches after the fall were not willing to be test subjects. The Vizard were hidden away somewhere and also not willing to be test subjects. Therefore all of Mayuri options at 'half-breed' specimens had been reduced to one – Ichigo Kurosaki.
It wouldn't be such a problem if Toshiro thought the Central 46 would deny Mayuri his request but he wasn't one hundred percent sure they would. The 46 were scared of Ichigo. Not that they knew about his soul's status, but simply because he was powerful and had already shown the tendency to throw the rulebook out the window whenever he saw fit.
He sighed as the last of the sun broke the horizon. Standing up, he left his perch and headed for the office carefully filing away the problems to the back of his mind. His eyes turned in the direction he knew the academy was and sent up a prayer for his friend. He added another for Byakuya when he remembered just what was going on there today.
AN: so that was better than the last chapter…but I think the ending went a little 'spalt'…oh well…review if ya wanna…