Disclaimer: i do not own Bleach or Hackers. post 1 of 2 for today.

Chapter Twenty Five

Interrogation

Ganju moved his way through the newly gathered crowd at the subway station. "What's going on?" he thought upon hearing the commotion, a stark contrast to when he worked alone at the other end of the terminal. Ganju had to post "Do Not Use" signs along the line of pay phones, and rewire the frequencies so the hackers could use these lines over at where they worked.

The job worked up a bit of an appetite, and he lazily chewed on his hotdog, wondering what the fuss was about. Suddenly, he saw the large influx of police cruisers. Ganju made his way to the edge of the crowd so he could get a better view of the action, when he saw Captain Tousen pass by, followed by a handcuffed Ichigo. Ganju ducked behind an old woman much too short for him to hide behind.

He locked eyes with Ichigo while avoiding detection from any other officers. Ganju looked for any signs or hints of what he should do next.

"They're trashing our rights, man!" Ichigo yelled, fighting against his escorting officer. He tried to turn around and face his friend. "They're trashing the flow of data. They're trashing, Trashing, TRASHING! Hack the planet! HACK THE PLANET!"

Captain Tousen whipped around and grabbed Ichigo by his shirt front. He glared at the young man who gave him hell for the last few weeks. "Shut up and get in the car!" he growled.

Ganju nodded and watched as the last of his hacking friends got shoved into a police car, which promptly drove away. He raised his fist in the air. "Hack the Planet!" he cheered before running back into the subway station towards the phones where they set up shop.

When he neared the line of phones, Ganju saw a few officers guarding the area while others gathered the abandoned laptops and electronic equipment. He stopped in his run and noticed the first trashcan he came across. Shoving the last of the hot dog into his mouth and throwing the wrapper away, Ganju pretended that he dropped something important and peered into the smelly receptacle. Something silver shined up at him.

"Oh shit," he muttered when he reached in and touched something warm and slimey. "They owe me big for this."

Aizen sat silently in his swivel chair while the employees around him cheered and congratulated each other. Although he defended his territory successfully, Aizen only lamented that he couldn't completely disable Kurosaki's consorts. Silently, he seethed at the thought of the other rogue hackers who appeared in the Gibson to help too.

A phone call brought him out of his funk. "Hello?"

It was Captain Tousen on the line. "We caught them. You won't be having any more trouble from them."

A smile spread across Aizen's face. At least he would still emerge the victorious, and the children would take the fall. He looked over at Gin, who waited for his instructions. "Get your things, Gin. It's time we got out of here."

The Karakura police gave the incoming hackers various kinds of looks when they were paraded through the station. Some sneered at them, glad they could finally put away their technological fears and trust their computers again. Others were amazed at the sheer brilliance and chaos that came from the actions of such young adults. Hanatarou knew the drill, and his feet automatically took him to the familiar interrogation room. This time, to his surprise, Shinji joined him in the room.

He gave Hanatarou an approving nod. "You really proved yourself today, young soul."

The younger hacker smiled meekly. "Thanks. I hope we end up as cell mates, Lord Vizard."

Shinji groaned and slouched in the stiff office chair. "Well you still owe Renji a pack of fries," he muttered.

In the next room, the officers paired Rukia and Ichigo together on one side of a large conference table. Across from them, Captain Tousen badgered them with a series of questions.

"It was me alright? I did it," Ichigo said firmly. He put his cuffed hands on the table to emphasize his point. "Rukia knows shit about computers. She's just...my girlfriend who got caught up in all of this craziness."

"I suggest you modify your attitude," Tousen replied, not bothering to listen to the boy's plea. "Think about your story again because you are floating...and I'm about to flush your ass."

A beep at the table's intercom interrupted his carefully planned insult. A woman's voice followed it. "I have a Kurosaki Masaki here to see you, sir. It's the boy's mother."

Tousen pushed a button to turn the intercom off. He narrowed his eyes as if to threaten Ichigo to try something funny while he left the room. Tousen ran his hands along the front of his suit, which had dried off considerable from his previously sweaty state, and left the couple silent in their seats.

When the door shut behind the police captain, Rukia turned her head to face the person sitting next to her. Ichigo didn't look at her, but seemed to be preoccupied with his own thoughts. As much as she tried, Rukia never figured out how to read him or prepare herself for wahtever surprises Ichigo always had in store for her. "Are you crazy?" she asked him, Rukia's voice coming out barely above a whisper. "What are you doing?"

"I'm trying to help you," Ichigo replied. He stared at the intercom, trying to think of how his latest troubles would affect his mother. His heart broke when he remembered the last time he saw her, his mother exhausted and passed out on their living room couch.

"Ichigo."

"What?" he said, somewhat regretting that his response came out quite harsh. Ichigo turned to Rukia in an effort to apologize her.

The girl, however, didn't look angry at all. A warmth came from her gaze and somewhat strengthened him. "Thank you for your help."

Ichigo nodded and went back to staring at the intercom. He reached out a hand and turned on the machine. Tousen's voice filled their interrogation room.

"Your son is in big trouble. He has violated his probation, and he has engaged in criminal activity."

"My son happens to be a genius," Masaki replied. Although her voice floated with an unmistakable kindness, she conveyed a stern underlaying message that she was standing by her only son. "Ichigo understands something happened today that you won't comprehend if you live to be a hundred, and he would never use what he knows to harm a living soul!"

A third voice entered their conversation. "The news crew you requested is here, Captain Tousen."

"Good, because I have a few things to tell them," Masaki said threateningly.

Tousen's voice returned once more. "Your son is facing thirty felony counts in an ongoing investigation. You face possible arrest if you try to stop us."

"Taichou, I don't care if I face certain death. You are not taking my son."

A fury of voices muddled the intercom speaker, and Ichigo reached out to turn it off. He couldn't help the smile playing at his lips. He knew he inherited his stubbornness from somewhere. Ichigo felt something touch his arm, and he looked over to see Rukia smiling as well. It was like Ichigo had opened a present on Christmas morning, and he basked in the softness and beauty that took over Rukia's face. He felt like the luckiest guy in the world.

"She's great," Rukia said quietly.

Ichigo nodded. "Yeah. I know."