Disclaimer: Tite Kubo owns Bleach.

Part 21: Resolutions

Orihime felt she had gotten to know Narahama Sakuya fairly well over the past few hours. Though technically as much of a healer as she, the chocolate-haired Shinigami woman seemed grumpy and easily aggravated by people trying to leave the squad 10 barracks before they were completely in top shape by her reckoning. When that happened, she was scary, even if she was the weakest soul reaper here in terms of power. She had punched out an overeager Renji three times already.

Finally, she looked tired of constantly yelling and running around in a panic patching people up, and plunked herself down on a futon out of exhaustion. Seeing the human girl's concerned gaze, she smirked. "Heh... By all means Inoue, continue. Maybe it's just me they want to annoy by being such pigheaded fools. Bah. Men."

None of them could ignore her own contribution to the cause, the Shun Shun Rikka spirits inhabiting her hair pins coming forth to help undo serious wounds, 'rejecting' that they had ever happened to begin with. Together, Orihime and Narahama had managed to get nearly everyone into a stable condition, most of them ready to run off and fight and get hurt again within a few more hours. Narahama had angrily summarized as much.

"I reject", she repeated, raising the same orange barrier as before to seal a messy gash going up a cadet's sword arm. Seeing a glint of thanks in his handsome eyes, she turned back to the one glaring exception to their success rate- Rutori Igenari.

The raven-haired cadet had not moved since they'd brought him in and slumped him against the wall yesterday, had not even shown the smallest sign of life. His flesh remained persistently dead gray, the gloomy shade of those who had been severely drained by a Spirit Eater's touch, and his eyes stubbornly shut.

Why? She could not help but wonder. Her powers had worked on everything else, including other drained Shinigami, restoring their energy. Even when they'd met, both in captivity, he had been horribly weak. Now, she had to consider the possibility that he'd been put beyond any possible recovery technique in existence. That he would never wake up.

At least it's not Kurosaki-ku- She broke off that thought, horrified at herself. That was a completely selfish idea, something Tsubaki would have slapped her for. Even if she didn't know Igenari personally, he was still someone's son or brother. She owed him his best efforts, just like everyone else here.

One more try, for his sake, she over to the ashen body, she quietly focused, calling upon every bit of the power she'd developed across the years. "Soten Kisshun. I reject!"

The man's flesh was, as usual, icy-cold to touch, so cold it was difficult for her to bear. Nonetheless, the orange glow of the technique covered his arm, for a moment seeming to restore its light. Only after the glow faded did it resume the same dead gray shade, as implacable as ever.

Rising from her seat, Narahama ran over to a dirty bowl and sent it flying out the window with a kick. Seeing confusion and fear that she'd somehow offended her on Orihime's round face, she broke into a sheepish smile and scratched her head. "I thought I'd do that for you miss Inoue, since you seem too uptight to vent your frustrations. That's not healthy for anyone, Shinigami or human. You have to give your feelings room in these situations or you'll go crazy."

"I-I'm sorry, Narahama-san", she stammered, bowing. "I am sad that we can't help him." And that there's no clue as to why my Soten Kisshun isn't working. "All this fighting... my friends are all out there, on both sides. What if one of them is next to be brought in?"

"Then we'll patch them up again", the healer shrugged as if it meant nothing. "That Kurosaki lad seems like the type to push himself to breaking and beyond." She sighed. "No one ever cares about the anguish the healers go through in times such as these. They just keep coming back, expecting I can just snap my fingers and make everything all better so they can go out and do it all again. That's why I got kicked out of squad 4. Too much stress."

"I'm so sorry I couldn't be more help, Narahama-san."

Narahama waved it away. "Hey, enough of that. There's no reason for you to apologize Inoue- with those strange powers of yours, you've cut my workload in half. I should be thanking you on bent knee, but I'm too tired to do it right now."

Hence her eternal grumpiness. Taking a look around at the other wounded in their cots as if to remind herself, she studied her fellow healer closely. "Give my feelings room?"

Chuckling, the Shinigami made a, inviting hand gesture. "Go ahead. I'm not too tired to listen yet, so long as you don't spout some macho garbage about going out there and fighting."

"Tatsuki-chan", she forced the word out, feeling as if that alone would encapsulate everything that had been bothering her. "We went to see her uncle Matoba. That's how this all got started, and now she's..."

"With the enemy", Narahama finished, reflecting the girl's pain. "A Spirit Eater from birth."

"No!" She shook her head. She couldn't accept it. Ichigo was completely right. It just wasn't possible. Not with the girl she knew, who had saved her from bullies time and time again. "She's not a bad guy. There has to be a reason, something that made her choose this. There was this time once, when I was forced to betray Kurosaki-kun in order to save his life... everyone believed it, everyone here called me a traitor... except for him. He travelled all the way to the world of the Hollows to save me. Never doubted me at all."

A new firmness had settled on her brow, and Narahama looked very impressed as she stood tall, for once seeming stronger than the Shinigami. "That's why I'll never lose faith in Tatsuki-chan. No matter what I see, no matter what I hear she's done. She's a good person. I'll always believe that. She's our... True Companion."

"Well spoken", the healer commented, surprisingly un-cynical at her little speech. "I heard that Kurosaki Ichigo felt the same way, denying even the possibility. But will he still believe it when confronted by her in battle?"

Doubt flooded her entire being, and she knew she wouldn't be healing anyone else today. It felt like Narahama was deliberately bringing up the worst possible outcome. But now, thinking about it some more, it seemed like the only way it could happen. Ichigo would consider it his personal responsibility to neutralize Tatsuki, and bring her back here unharmed. Even if he had to fight through a hundred other Spirit Eaters before reaching their dear friend.

None of the Captains would be so gentle. Which made it even more important that Ichigo be the one to defeat her. She must have looked very sad, because Narahama walked over and tussled her orange hair up. "Hey now. There's no need for you to worry. When has that boy ever failed in his goals? That's actually something the 13 Captains have lamented- he can't finish off an enemy that isn't a Hollow, even if they order him to. They think him weak because of that."

It was true. Despite the horrifying amount of blood Orihime had seen her dear friend spill and lose in battles, she had never seen him execute a human or Shinigami opponent. Even Ulquiorra...

Sigh. There was another can of anxiety she'd rather not face right now. What exactly was Ulquiorra? A Hollow given human form and mind, or something else? Something more? How had he come to be? Somewhere in that raven-haired creature a true soul had dwelt, a heart so different from any other Hollow.

Looking back, she noticed Igenari actually had a similar hairstyle to the departed Arrancar, though not as dark or long. That reminder must have brought her thoughts back to him. She chuckled blithely, burying her face in her hands. I think I actually preferred it when they were all slavering beasts wearing white masks. Less complicated that way. Better that than people just trying to survive. Better that than having to fight a bunch of humans. Better that than having to fight Tatsuki-chan...

But Narahama was right. It was pointless. Her worrying about it endlessly, replaying the gruesome confrontation between her two best friends in her powerful imagination again and again, would do absolutely nothing to help Ichigo succeed. So she stood up proud again, intently focusing her mind on anything unrelated to Ichigo or Tatsuki.

And nearly fell over. "Looks like I'm not the only one running out of steam here", Narahama commented dryly. "Go ahead, girl. Take a rest in the common room for now. You've earned it."

Her first instinct was to squeak out a protest, trying to avoid going off to the land of dreams where it would be even harder not to dwell on The Confrontation... but her head really did feel heavy along with the rest of her. Her abilities always took their toll, and she hadn't slept since Rukia had woken everyone up with an emergency in the middle of the night.

The commons room was empty. Everyone else capable of standing and fighting had gone off with Matsumoto to fight the invasion. A dozen cushions lay strewn around the area, as if waiting eagerly for her arrival. It wasn't hard to fashion together a makeshift bed on the drinking table, and slide snugly beneath the cover.

There was one thing she could do, a thought intruder as her eyes began to force themselves closed. That was be rested and ready to heal any injuries either of her friends got in The Confrontation, whether it happened today or a week from now. Narahama had been rightly impressed by her. Her powers might mean the difference between life and death for one, or both of them.

If that was her destined role, then it was the easiest of the three. Content with that, she allowed herself to slide off into nothingness.

"Dying", the man said helplessly, unwilling to mince words before a superior. "They're dying."

Captain Retsu Unohana took the news without visible reaction. As the leader of squad 4, best known for its powerful healers, her grandmotherly appearance and demeanour were easier than most of her peers for a commoner to approach. Hence why she was often confronted with the concerns of the 'civillian' soul reapers, Shinigami who remained in the Rukongai by virtue of relation to an active or deceased one, such as the Shiba clan. It was the least they could do to honour those heroes, both present and past.

This one and his family of two sons, an older daughter currently in a cadet, and his wife were farmers, content to work the ever-fertile lands outside the city to provide home-grown food for all of their neighbours. An entire field of vegetables was laid out here near a lake, stretching to the border set by their wooden fencing.

But now some of the sprouts were showing odd signs, a departure from the usually perfect conditions provided by the soul reaper's dimension. Even the flowers the man's youngest had made his private gardening project were showing signs of it, several of the tulips wilting with no explanation.

"You are not the only ones", she reassured the man confidently "Trust me that you've done nothing to anger the Spirit King. This is happening everywhere now."

If anything, the man looked even more frightened, his blue eyes wide as he beheld the fields he had spent decades toiling over. "But why, Unohana-sama? Why are our crops suffering? We have done nothing wrong. The agricultural techniques are solid."

Unohana closed her eyes. It wasn't hard for her to figure the answer. She just couldn't say if it would make things worse to tell him. He would certainly spread the news, and that would result in a climate of despair that could affect everyone.

On the other hand... "The entire Gotei 13 is working on this currently", she reminded him confidently. "We were on our way when Isane noticed your distress call." Her loyal lieutenant was out there now, dutifully analyzing the source of the decay not only in the fields, but the wind and the water as well.

"Apologies, taicho", the man bowed. "I did not mean to interrupt your importantly work."

"No apologies are necessary", she replied firmly. "We know the cause and are working to reverse it... This decay of the land and the air is being caused by invaders into the Seritei."

The farmer gaped. "The Ryoka? But why would they do such a thing? How?"

"Not the Ryoka. More recent arrivals. They are called Ingenium Comendent, or Spirit Eaters. Enhanced humans designed to absorb reishi through their skin at a phenomenal rate."

The farmer glanced around frantically. Surely he understood the nature of the problem, the fact that their entire world was largely composed of that spiritual energy. As were they. "How... how long ago was this? No one has said anything."

Unohana nodded. "About a day. Yamamoto-taicho has asked the people of the south district to keep quiet to prevent a panic. Or worse, the Ryoka deciding now is the time to attempt to claim some area of the seritei for their own while we are distracted."

"I understand", the man said after a fearful pause. "Now is a time for solidarity among us, not infighting. But at least tell me; when will this end? If the rate of progression continues, my entire crop will be left fallow in a week."

That, she couldn't answer. She'd certainly felt flashes of some particularly high reishi signatures out at the battle zone, but nothing decisive on either side. Her squad were the healers, not warriors. They could do nothing to remedy this condition until the enemy was properly dealt with. That was their weakness. Though comfortable in that role, her extensive knowledge of reishi properties left her perhaps the one who knew the most of how this would play out.

The enemy had chosen their battleground well- by merely touching the ground with their bare hands they could regain any energy they had expended in battle, if not heal a wound. Every drain would leech away a bit more of the land's normally-vibrant health. Gradually, painfully slowly the earth would rot, the wind would fade into a breeze then nothing, and the nearby lake would dry up along with its tributaries throughout their world.

Their world would perish.

Their new enemy were walking singularities of spirit energy, black holes devouring all in their path. Harsh as it seemed to Unohana, showing restraint due to their technical status as humans just meant Soul Society would crumble that much quicker. Becoming a desolate wasteland devoid of life, as vacant and gray as Hueco Mundo... NO. We cannot let that happen, even if it means violating the law and slaying a few humans.

She knew there were other Captains and nobles who would oppose that idea to the end; the concept repulsed her as well. But the truth was out here in the farmlands looking her in the eye. And for the first time many years, she felt genuine fear for the future.

It suddenly felt to her like they were taking far too long out here in the fields. As gently as possible, she beckoned to her squad, recalling them back into formation, starting with young Isane. The beleaguered lieutenant looked equally stricken by what she'd seen out there, but wasted no time.

"We must go", she commanded the purple-haired girl, though she hoped kindly enough to blunt her urgency. It wouldn't do to let squad 4 see just how scared their stalwart Captain really was. "Squad 10 is in need of our assistance- I can sense great injuries from here."

Great need of mending. And of stopping the source of the rot.

Sometimes, she noted unhappily, sometimes in order to heal, one must first hurt.

"Reiatsu", the grumbled command came from Ichigo's mouth without any sign. "Get some. Now."

For once it was Reeve\s turn to be shocked. The boy hadn't said a word to him for their entire climb out of the mine. Neither had been fooling themselves about how angry Ichigo still was with him, and how small slip-up would be required for him to change his mind. And now...?

"You're asking me to drain even more energy out of Soul Society to replenish myself", he stared into the Shinigami's eyes, disbelieving. "How hard did I hit you back there, master?"

Ichigo glowered at him. "If you're going to insist on fighting for me bastard, I'd really prefer it if you had enough energy to flash-step or shoot your fire or something, so I don't have to waste my time protecting you. You're down one arm already. You barely had enough strength left to crawl out of that cave. So get on with it. Now."

Obliging, he looked around and picked out a building that hadn't been laid to waste yet; something that looked like an old-fashioned forge. Appropriate, he acknowledged with a grin. Touching his remaining hand to the dark brown wood, he felt the reishi within the building's materials flow into him, for once not accompanied by a rush of memories. Had enough of that, thanks.

Even more surprising than his initial request, Ichigo was actually waiting for him to finish, not even watching the effects he was having on the building, instead scanning the skies and surrounding area for threats. Of course he was- they'd both been out of it for a long time, and it was important to know where to focus their efforts.

"So here you are again", Reeve remarked, going back over the cascade of memories that still dwelled within him. "Once again it's all up to Ichigo Kurosaki to save Soul Society from itself. What would they ever do without you to save the day?"

No answer. His 'master' seemed busy stretching out untrained spiritual senses, trying to figure where the action was by signs of strong spiritual pressure. "Burn and die, I suppose", Reeve finished. Behind him, the forge was showing the first signs of decay, its wood splintering at the seams. "But that's what you do, isn't it? You protect."

Kurosaki snorted in disdain. "You finally get it. Yeah, I protect. That's why I was given this power. To protect as many as I can."

"How come?" Asked seemingly out of the blue, this was actually the thing he'd wanted to hit on since the day they'd met. "For the warm fuzzy feeling you get inside? You could just piss yourself and you'd get the same-"

The teen's arm shot out, throwing Reeve's head hard into the ruined wood in front of him. He felt the beginnings of a blackout but forced himself not to fall. Forced himself to grin right back, teeth clenched. He could take it.

"You saw my memories, bastard. You already know why."

"Right", he nodded. The vision was right there. A beautiful golden-haired woman who had been the center of Ichigo's universe. "Masaki. Powerless to save her. You never want to fail again. " Turning back to the wood so his smile would stop angering his master, he sighed. "Still, I envy you. You had a mom. When your old man beats you up, s'all fun and games. And he waited until you were old enough to take it."

Now the roof was coming apart. Ichigo ignored the creaking, ignored everything except the spiritual signals and the sound of that voice still much like his own, only far more callous. "Don't start with me, bastard. This isn't the time to compare who's had the harsher life. I don't care."

"Point taken. Point dropped." He knew by now how far Ichigo could be pushed before he really would give up on being merciful. "Almost done. Let's... talk about something else then. Your devotchkas. Which one do you like?"

Reeve could easily visualize how he would take that, struggling to make sense of the unfamiliar term and how brusque such a question was. Naturally, he took offence. "Keep going, maybe I'll toss you back down the hole. I don't choose, baka. I like Inoue, Rukia, and Tatsuki equally. They're all my friends."

"A friendly word of advice then", he replied, feeling the last of the energy beginning to give away before him. "Make a choice soon. Because all three of them still believe they have a chance with you. The longer they go on thinking that, the more cruel it would be to dash their hopes."

"Romantic advice from a friendless punk." He dismissed it, but the lack of bite in his words showed how much that had cut him. Almost too easy, when you know almost everything about someone. Including how to push their buttons. "We're too young for stuff like that."

"Rukia isn't."

"Rukia is engaged." Instead of bitter, he sounded happy now, glad to find some memories Reeve hadn't seen. "Engaged to this big-shot noble in the Shihoin clan, Samora. Nothing I can do about it."

"A shame. One less choice for you."

Without any further discussion, the forge fell to pieces entirely, caving in until it was just a pile of debris, the wood's tone changed to dead gray. "Done?"

"Done", Reeve agreed. He wasn't quite up to full yet, but stopping to leech out another building might break what little patience his master had. "I've got enough juice to keep up with you now. Where to boss?"

"Don't call me boss." Taking one last check around the area, Ichigo pointed his sword. "Over there. Kenpachi, Byakuya, and... Ikkaku, it feels like. Anyone who can last this long against those guys has got to be tough."

"Hyn", Reeve guessed. "He had orders to keep the captains occupied for as long as possible, keep them from interfering with Demalza's mission."

"Interfering", Ichigo repeated, frowning. "Oh yeah, Demalza's Ianzamento, 'Wild Drive'... Controlling Komamura because he's an animal soul, right?"

"That's right. He's busy with someone else right now, but he'll be done with them soon enough. Your call, boss."

"Change of plans then", Ichigo decreed merrily, the old spring back in his step. With a single leap, he was up on the rooftops again, ready to sprint back into the battle zone. It felt like it had been long time since the fake cop had appealed to him, to try and get him to sever his ties with the Shinigami. He already knew this encounter wouldn't be so cordial.

"Let's go do some interfering."

In order to perform the procedures demanded of him, Mayuri Kurotsuchi had in turn demanded a complete renovation of the main area of his secret lab, a rearranging of heavy machines that required strong lifters to help with.

Tatsuki refused to take part. She couldn't stand looking at the machinery more. Or perhaps it was the Shinigami himself, disgusting freak that he was.

Or Zatsua. Or Lanis. It didn't matter. The point was, whatever was going on in that chamber made her feel sick to her stomach. No longer permitted to damage the complex machines, she instead wandered out to the 2nd floor balcony, a small square affair with angular bronzed railings above the mountain the rest of the facility lay buried in. There, she could at least try and cure herself with a mere touch of her bare hands to the rail.

It wasn't working. The sight of the rail groaning and coming apart in her hand didn't help at all. I hate this, she recognized, amazed it had taken this long to figure out. I want to protect, not destroy. I can't touch anything here without sucking the life out of it.

She couldn't touch Ichigo, at least not while he remained a substitute soul reaper. Could never kiss him or hug him. The slightest touch of their bare skin and he would go limp, unable to stop the rest of his spiritual energy from flowing into her body, accompanied by a rush of memories... memories she was pretty sure would be mostly repeats of her own.

Because they had been together longer than anyone she'd known. From the moment she'd seen that smiling orange-haired boy in the juniors dojo he'd been different, so different from everyone else. He felt so alive, shining with the same will and desires she held then and now. Back then... I only wanted to help him get through it, he was a weaker fighter than me, but so talented and dedicated...

At what point had she ever entertained notions that they might be something more? She couldn't recall exactly when or where the thought had entered her head, only that it had happened. Now, she could only regret not acting on it sooner.

"Why", she whispered. Self-pity was the province of other, weaker teens, but the words came on regardless. "Why? Why does it have to be this way? Was it God's..." She broke off, nearly shifting into bitter laughter. The impact of the Shinigami's existence was not lost on her, though even Zatsua had admitted she had no idea how far their power as 'Death Gods' extended. But if they're that powerful, it's one more that I owe them for turning Ichigo into one of their own.

The clouds drifting above held no sympathy for her, flat as pancakes and slow as syrup. Okay so maybe we're just a little bit hungry for something other than spiritual energy. She could practically taste Orihime's home cooking, insanely unhealthy but a delight to have, simply because it was made with loving care by a good friend.

Orihime. Tatsuki ached to see her cute face once more. What did she think of this betrayal? How much did she know of the true Shinigami? She was an innocent bystander, Tatsuki decided firmly. There was no kinder girl in all the world, no one more precious. She would never knowingly assist murderers, only sit by and worry for the continued safety of her friends for getting mixed up in all this craziness. I'm sorry, Orihime.

Not that she'd had a choice in the matter. Had Ichigo made that choice? That was one more thing he'd kept a secret from her, though it wasn't hard to figure it had happened shortly before Rukia Kuchiki had been introduced to their class.

Then came the unexplained absences, the obvious cover-ups, the ever-more-frequent appearances of weirdos in their class and around their town whom Ichigo somehow seemed to know already. Increased Hollow attacks that raised questions even in Keigo Asano's excuse for a brain. That time Ichigo had come in acting completely different from his usual self and openly kissed Inoue.

And then of course, the final straw. A heartfelt plea to him to just tell her, his best friend, what the hell was going on, and what his involvement was. The first time she had ever begged him for something as far as she could recall. What had he gone through? What had the Shinigami done to him that he would lie directly to her face?

However it had happened, he had lied. Kurosaki Ichigo was now in the company of a society of ghosts; wraiths every bit as savage and ruthless as the one who had killed his mother.

Remembering how he had been back then, she felt the doubts that had been creeping up in her heart fading, to be replaced by the desire for justice she had thought they both shared, that linked them. His mother, taken away by an invisible spiritual being for no greater crime than existing...

Justice had been served to the sadistic Hollow called 'Grand Fisher', but what about Zatsua? She'd waited twenty years to exact justice against the deadly ghost who had slain her entire family. Who was now locked up downstairs, paralysed and helpless. Would it be justice for us to hold Grand Fisher down and make him watch as we killed all the Hollows he was friends with?

Numbers didn't diminish the tragedy of Masaki Kurosaki. The crimes seemed even, it was just that one had been duly avenged, and the other had not. For that, she could just about forgive Jutani Zatsua for continuing the hideous Spirit Eater program and awakening her latent abilities when needed, an outlook Tatsuki was fairly sure a lot of her new 'friends' shared.

But they would never be her friends like Ichigo and Orihime and Chad. No matter how kind Barton Eishinshi was or how loyal and wise Demalza Sanhas, or even how funny Reeve Pastell's wisecracks could be sometimes, they couldn't replace her True Companions. Not now, not ever. In the end we're all just living weapons, tools to give Zatsua the justice she craves. What happens next? Do I just go back to Karakura Town like none of this ever happened?

Her thoughts and opinions were in turmoil. She could recognize that easily. It was time to clear her head, refocus priorities. When she was upset or confused, practising martial arts always helped.

Then there was her Ianzamento, potentially far more devastating than her black belt, though that would always be an asset. With these incredible powers, she thought in consolation, I could do some real good. Even armed robbers, even radical terrorist groups would have no chance against me. Wasn't that one of her dreams? To be a superhero?

Her left hand moved up, past her elbow to touch the right shoulder where the tattoo was. The mark of her 'kindred', which she'd always figured to be a weird birthmark until now. "Activate Ianzamento- 'Xuízo de Terra!' "

She hadn't used it since her last sparring session with Frigeld, but the surge of energy came back almost immediately, as if sensing her doubt. Spiritual energy released from within the mark enveloped her, glowing with new intensity before resolving into a full set of form-fitting dark green body armour, only leaving the head and fingers open. Fingerless gloves, just like she'd worn in the dojo to avoid getting her hands all sweaty. Inside though, it was completely cool and not bulky or heavy at all.

Deceptively simple-looking, this armour had withstood storms of razor-edged diamonds from Frigeld, had shattered his own diamond armour with properly aimed karate chops and kicks. Despite everything else she felt at the moment, the feel of the power- and what it could accomplish in both this dimension and her own- was excellent. Power corrupts, she remembered starkly. I won't ever let being practically invincible in this state change who I am.

Right now, though, she was too curious to let the matter of this new dimension lie. Being here in the Shinigami's world was supposed to enhance all the Spirit Eater's powers by a factor of five or more.

Looking out across the empty valley, she swung at the air, entering into a series of high-low strikes as familiar as tying one's shoes. The pantomime did nothing to the balcony, but she had barely finished when the first sounds of rocks cracking reached her ears, and she rushed over to see the result.

There had been a small mountain to the southeast of Mayuri's lab, a solid spire of brown jutting out of the sands, Now it was being taken apart piece by piece, cracking at the base with no sign of what was causing the damage. Almost as if it was being affected by an extremely localized earthquake.

Not an earthquake, Tatsuki positively beamed, her inner troubles forgotten for one blissful moment. No earthquake. It was me. I did that. I'm a natural disaster. With just the air currents from my strikes!

Bad or good, the power in her clenched hands and feet felt undeniably satisfying. And it explained part of the Shinigami's reluctance to let go of theirs. How could you not look down on humans when you were so much more powerful, swifter, more knowledgeable, more long-lived than any of them?

By knowing the trap of power, she thought, bowing her head solemnly before the enormous dust cloud she'd kicked up. I promise that I'll only ever use this great power called 'Xuízo de Terra' for just causes. She'd earned and was proud of the title 'bully hunter' at Karakura High, but this... this could take a person's head right off, something that no one deserved.

Maybe a few, she corrected herself momentarily. Shinigami could take it. To them, powers of this insane magnitude were just another Monday.

"Like it or not.", she said out loud, engaging in another pantomime pummeling, this time aimed into the sky where it could do no harm. "My path is already chosen. If Zatsua's cause is just, then I should help her."

That was the sacrifice you made sometimes, when you chose to fight for justice. Ichigo Kurosaki was her best friend forever. He was her brother, just as much as Karin and Yuzu.

But everyone has to grow up sometime. If that crazy boy showed up at the doors to this lab and tried to destroy everything... then that would just be too bad for him.

So I pray to whatever God of Fate does exist that he doesn't show.

Please.

A/N: A bit of a change of pace here after the craziness of Part 20; a quiet character piece that should hopefully clarify the thoughts and feelings of some of our main characters better, though if it feels like anyone is out of character let me know. Remember that these are point-of-view paragraphs- they don't necessarily reflect my own views. The action will resume next chapter. Happy Easter.