Chapter 24

Rukia clenched the silk wrappings of her Zanpukto, hesitant to raise the cold blade, hesitant to speak ever since Yoruichi called for backup. Ichigo had left with that same determination in his face, always protecting. Always strong… when he doesn't fall into a rut at least. And truly, she shouldn't be so worried about him, but Soifon and Yoruichi was a different case. Rukia hadn't heard Yoruichi so panicked since… since ever.

"Rukia Kuchiki," the head captain said. "It is time to demonstrate the skills, and power, that captain Kuchiki had boasted about."

Taking a silent breath, Rukia rose her blade in stutters and prepared to shatter her inner snowflake. "I…" she whispered, glancing at her captain. He hadn't broken his blank, innocent mask once since Ichigo left.

Ukitake blinked, then flashed her a typical smirk. "Don't worry, I'm confident that they're fine. Ichigo just left the area moments earlier, if you felt it."

"But captain, what about Yoruichi and Soifon? What if Ichigo was—"

"Part of a captain's duty is to maintain resolve at all times," the head captain said, thumping his cane against the sekkiseki floor.

"They called for help nearly thirty minutes ago," she countered, unable to stop herself from arguing back. "They could be injured or…" she trailed off, not daring to finish the sentence.

Unohana's face dropped at that, though she steeled herself only a moment later. "Ichigo has the power to heal, if you remember. Though he hasn't mastered his ability, it should be enough to keep people alive long enough."

"Of course," Rukia admitted and grumbled under her breath. Truly, she just wanted to be by his side—just in case of course. That's how it was since it had begun over a year ago since the night they met, and how she'd have it now. Should she flash step away and damn the consequences? What would Byakuya think? Was duty so important over the lives of her friends? Rukia bit her lip and hardened her jaw.

The captains remained patient, examining her with eyes that bored into her mind, as if they could read her thoughts like Ichigo's spirit. "Be logical here," Kyoraku said, his voice monotone as ever. "There's no way you'd get to them in time. We're hours away from even the wealthy districts… even at our speeds."

The head captain and Ukitake nodded along. "Do you doubt Ichigo's power?" Kyoraku asked, looking at her from under his hat.

"N-No…" Rukia whispered, images of their journeys and battles flashing across her eyes. "Though he might do something stupid again…" Something stupid like hurting Soifon and Yoruichi by mistake with his immense power. "And I have to be there to kick him out of trouble," she nearly shouted.

Kyoraku chuckled and the head captain stroked his beard. Ukitake smirked and rose a finger. "There's only one way to learn—we can only guide him so much."

"That doesn't mean he has to go alone!" Rukia hissed, balling a fist at the impossible captains.

"His track record would prove he's most effective when alone," Unohana said.

"She has a point," Kyoraku added.

"We have to be there for them!" Rukia tried again. "Why are you all so complacent! Byakuya said the Hollow attacks have been getting worse and something might be happening again and this is just the start!"

Her outburst shattered the smirking masks of the captains, and even widened the eyes of Ukitake. Swallowing, she composed herself and inwardly cursed for her misstep. Hoping they won't reprimand her, she stared them down, locking eyes with the head captain.

Heart thumping, Rukia steadied her resolve and erected a dome of spiritual pressure to buffer against the head captain's rising heat. Now that she was strong enough to withstand Yamamoto, the texture of his old pressure became clear. The heat was hotter and deeper any flame she had ever felt—ancient and wise, yet tinged with a demonic stench that she couldn't quite identify.

"Calm down Rukia," Ukitake interjected, features stern. "You're letting your emotions get in the way of reason. We wouldn't get there in time even if we wanted to, and it would be the last straw for central forty-six would if we use the teleportation Kido. And do you really think Ichigo can't handle it?"

Balling her fist till her knuckles ached, Rukia broke eye contact and growled at the weathered ground. Sure, they made some good points, but that didn't cure her need to be by his side—by her friends and fighting for their lives… perhaps if she released her Zanpukto, she'd have the speed…

The head captain sighed, though he didn't release the downpour of heat. "In over a thousand years, there hasn't been a single Soul Reaper born stronger than I."

"So?" Rukia said, irritation curling into a tight itch inside her stomach. She had heard that line before whenever someone had foolishly challenged him.

"Until now," he said, voice rising.

"What? Ichigo is stronger than—"

"Don't act so blind. If I, the head captain of the thirteen court squad, isn't required of assistance by captain Kurosaki, then how would a mere lieutenant be of assistance?" He smirked, then looked towards the other captains.

Ukitake perked up. "That's right. Byakuya wasn't very descriptive of your abilities, and he could have been exaggerating your power to make the Kuchiki clan look better for all we know."

"He wouldn't do that," Rukia said, nearly offended by the accusation.

"Of course he wouldn't, but we wouldn't want anyone weak to get in Ichigo's way," Kyoraku added, also smirking. "And be killed accidentally, would we?"

Unohana nodded, appearing to also play along.

"So are you ready to prove yourself, lieutenant Kuchiki?" Yamamoto asked.

Rukia glared at the taunting captains, unable to untangle the charade. For some damned reason, the four captains wanted this test to go through so much. Even if it would risk the lives of their colleagues—their friends. Tradition and duty couldn't possibly be that important. Either they wanted a demonstration of her power that badly or… central forty-six had ordered something again. Though logically, Ukitake did have a point with her emotions—she grudgingly admitted to herself. His innocent eyes only held sincerity, lined with a hint of care like he had always showed her and the squad. But this wouldn't be the first time Soul Society and the court guard squads made a mistake… like with her execution several months ago.

'Stop,' Sode interrupted before the growing splotches of rage overwhelmed Rukia. 'You're not thinking straight… the Hollow influence is tainting your emotions.'

Rukia froze, realising what was happening. Sode had warned of this when she trained for her new Shikai release the other day, though Rukia hadn't expected the effects to be so severe.

'Just do what they say. Ichigo is fine,' Sode said.

'How do you know?'

'Do you really think he's in trouble?' Sode replied, a sliver of disdain in her voice.

With a long sigh, Rukia steadied herself, calming the simmering, Hollow emotions within. 'Fine.'

"Rukia?" Ukitake said, waving at her eye-level. "Are you alright? You've been blank for a few minutes now."

"I'm fine." She wasn't, but she could trust Sode at least. "Let's do this," she declared and flash stepped back to the center of the arena, leaving the captains to exchange looks among themselves. They could think whatever they wanted for all she cared—just a couple of hours to endure and then she'd be on her way to Ichigo.

As the captains murmured among themselves, Rukia took the chance to meditate, preparing for her dangerous release. 'You've got the seal on the Hollow half right?' she thought to Sode just in case.

'Of course, you still have much training ahead of you.'

"Are you sure you're alright, Rukia?" Ukitake asked again, taking a few steps forward. His eyes held genuine concern.

"As I said, I'm fine," Rukia said, keeping a leash on her tone and expression. "I'm ready for this part of the captaincy test!"

A tense moment passed before Ukitake nodded. "Alright then," he said, mood closer to his usual, cheerful self, but still held a tinge of concern. "Let's see what Byakuya was boasting about the other day." He took several steps forward.

Rukia resisted a shrug, unperturbed by the change of plans. Perhaps they had decided the spar would proceed better with her captain partaking. It wouldn't matter in the end either way. Just an hour or two, she repeated to herself. Maybe even less… Yoruichi had said Urahara passed in record time.

"Whenever you're ready," Ukitake said.

Pushing back any more worries, Rukia gathered her spirit energy and straightened her stance. "Brace yourselves," she breathed and raised her Zanpukto.

The expressions of the captains didn't change as she raised her spiritual pressure, preparing to shatter her inner snowflake—they really thought Byakuya was boasting and up-talking her new power. Or they were experts of acting.

"Dance, Sode no Shirayuki," she chanted, letting her frozen power burst from within her soul.

As ice encroached the captains and the temperature dropped unimaginably, Rukia let her full spiritual pressure engulf the arena. The effect was immediate between the four captains, especially Ukitake. He took a half-step back, tensing for a second before her pressure levelled out. She saw it all in enhanced, perfect detail. Surprise. Shock. Fear. Confusion.

She waited without a move, without a breath, watching the strands of her white hair flutter in the mist. Her release form would captivate herself for years to come—even more so right now, as days had passed since she last released, and she had yearned to every hour. The ecstasy of her new power was unlike anything else—not even her original three dances compared to this.

But this time it came at a cost, for her Hollow side amplified her emotions many fold. And now… every last corner of her soul screamed for her to rush off to help her friends. And Ichigo. Her Ichigo. "Well?" she asked, tilting her head.

Ukitake appeared more composed while the other captains had worn off the initial surprise entirely. "That's incredible," he choked out. "I can't feel a thing…" He looked to Kyoraku, who hinted a smirk and nod. Turning back to Rukia, he raised his palm without warning. "Hado 63: Raikoho," he chanted in under a second, firing a wide beam of lightning.

The spiritual pressure of the attack was minuscule, so Rukia blocked it with her palm, deflecting the lightning into the Sekkiseki walls of the arena.

Again, Ukitake moved without warning or change of expression. So unusual for him, but so typical of a captain—one of the elite and oldest captains.

Every move was clear to Rukia. Every step, every millisecond was discernible from the next. He had drawn his blade while in flash-step, and wordlessly released his Zanpukto—a dual blade like Ichigo's, but far less powerful.

Ukitake lifted his left blade for a frontal slash, apprehension leaking through the texture of his spiritual pressure.

Then at the last moment, his speed increased many-fold as he twisted his stance and struck with his right blade instead.

Pure instinct took over within a split-second of surprise. Rukia parried in an instant with force far too great for Ukitake's blade to match, cleanly slicing through the metal and slashing him across the torso, releasing an explosion of sharp ice.

"Jushiro!" Kyoraku yelled as Ukitake flew backwards, half-frozen, half-shredded from the blast.

"Retsu," Yamamoto said, voice hard.

Stunned, Rukia stuttered towards a dying Ukitake. "Cap-captain."

"Bankai, Minazuki," Unohana whispered, directing her spiritual pressure at… Ukitake of all people.

"What?" Rukia snapped as Unohana's blade dissolved into crimson liquid.

The deluge of her Bankai smothered Ukitake's body, sinking into his skin and blotching out his wounds. The shards of ice evaporated into mist, and Ukitake was healed in a second.

"Y-Your Bankai can—"

"Minazuki. She ends life, and she can save it even at the cliff of death," Unohana said, voice composed and calm. "Once that was not the case, but as my soul changed, so did my blade."

Kyoraku nodded, and dipped back beneath his hat.

Swallowing, Rukia only breathed as Ukitake dipped in and out of consciousness, careful not to let her ice get too close towards Ukitake. She couldn't seal her blade either, else the collapse of her spiritual pressure might hurt him further.

The minutes passed, till Yamamoto walked to her nonchalantly. "And what of your Bankai, Rukia Kuchiki?"

Jaw dropping an inch, she couldn't find the words to answer such an incredulous question. He was acting like nothing just happened-like she hadn't just nearly killed Ukitake. He couldn't be so careless. He had once said Ukitake and Kyoraku were like his own sons… but how could he be so unshaken?

"Don't be so hard on yourself," Kyoraku said, his voice sombre. "Why do you think we had Retsu come along?"

"So you were expecting—"

"Of course not, it was only a precaution in case you or anyone else got hurt. I'm surprised Jushiro pulled that bait and switch to be honest."

Rukia couldn't believe what she was hearing. They should all be blaming her—blaming her for almost killing her mentor and captain. "But captain Kyoraku, I—"

Kyoraku sighed. "You're in the middle of a captaincy test, remember? Are you going to answer Yama's question?"

"I-I'm—" Rukia sniffed. "Head captain! Sode no Shirayuki said my Banka—"

The sky darkened to a blackish-blue, casting a shadow over the arena before the vibrations began. For half a minute, the shaking grew to violent proportions, rattling her bones and loose pieces of sekkiseki. It was an earthquake like those written in the books of the living word, she realised, but those don't happen in the Soul Society…

Taking a last glance at Ukitake, Rukia dashed out of the arena. She'd face whatever reprimand they'd slap on her later. Ichigo was in trouble, and that mattered more than some dangerous, silly captaincy test.

Karin's innards burned as the cacophony of spirit energy swirled around her. She hadn't felt such pain since the day Yuzu died—when Ichigo's spirit energy flared and incinerated her body. Karin had been lucky, for she had stayed in the corner of the room along with Yoruichi and had only been singed. But this time, the searing pain was much worse.

And it wasn't just fire… it wasn't natural… A boiling, suffocating fabric wouldn't fully describe it. Nor would a vibration within a fourth dimension that she didn't have a name for. But it burned, and burned till she couldn't even feel her limbs and lower body anymore. The pain only grew, flaring through her heart. She gave in, and let herself burn till Toshiro would finally do something.

Perhaps he'd cool her off with his ice, or use one of those Kidos on her—right after he was done fighting those Hollows in the sky…

When did those Hollows come?

It must had been the spirit energy she was letting off, Karin concluded. Was this supposed to happen? It would explain Toshiro's hesitance, and why he had brought her all the way out to these outskirts instead of Urahara's shop. Though that made no sense at all, she realised a second later. Urahara's underground desert had spirit energy shields. She couldn't even think straight.

The flames shot up her spine, ripping through her skull. She hissed, coughing up blood, then realising it was purple miasma she had coughed up. Her eyes burned, tinting the valley in blue and purple.

"Toshiro…" Her voice came out as a weak, croaky whisper.

He didn't turn. He didn't even spare her one of his ice cubs—and he had many to spare.

"Dammit, why do you have to be so dumb right now," she whispered into the flames.

So she just lay still on the rock, for the fire had melted way the snow long ago. One moment she was in her own snowy wonderland, and then she was in a torturous, slow hell. And it was becoming slower every second. So slow that even Toshiro danced through the skies like a drifting, white kite.

As he sliced through oncoming Hollows, Karin began to get used to the fire, as if it had been part of herself her entire life. Part of her soul. Twisting her seared neck, her limbs came into view through the purple miasma and indigo flames. Charred to a crisp—just as Yuzu's soul had been.

Everything froze, as if her mind had taken enough of the sear and slowed time to a stop.

The world rippled like the surface of a pond, then faded to black.

'Karin…' a voice echoed in the nether. 'Kurosaki… Sister of the one who disrupted my power.'

The voice was unlike any other she had heard—if it could even be called a voice. It was a feeling, an emotion that resonated in her mind that she knew the meaning of. Foreign, primal, and woven into the fabric of the dimension she had felt when drawing Reishi as a Quincy.

"What? Who are you? Are you talking about Yuzu?" she whispered into the void. "This is a part of dying right?"

'I, the one who sees the future…'

"What? Some kind of riddle?" she said, chuckling in a wheeze.

'The sands of time must be chosen…'

"What?"

'Before all is lost, before my seal fails and four becomes one, before you lose one choice…'

"I'm hallucinating aren't I?" She shook her charred head and blocked out the being, though it persisted with a myriad of feelings. She couldn't ignore it, and the fire wouldn't unfreeze. Toshiro was still fighting probably, and she was in crazy land.

"Arrhhhhhh…" she cried, clawing the invisible ground. Her nails passed right through the nether, forming twirling eddies. "ARRHHHH" She couldn't even shed a tear, for her eyes had been burnt to a char.

'You must hurry, two must become one, fate of the fortunate, fate of the powerful'

"What the hell does that mean?!" Her throat cracked, leaking bits of burnt flesh into the void. "My fate?!"

Two still landscapes flooded her mind, side by side. A picture of her adult self to the left—she stood dressed in a Soul Reaper's outfit in a city reminiscent of ancient Japan. She appeared weak, fragile, and tired beyond else. She lingered far behind the group of captains… and Ichigo. He had two ebony blades drawn, about to charge into a spar with one of the brutish looking captains. And gods, his spiritual pressure was like the weight of the ocean.

But the picture on the right… it was a horrid sight. A lone figure stood on a cracked dome, looking up to a crescent moon, looking over an endless, grey dessert. It was a Hollow—the smallest Karin had ever seen, nearly human but still had a demonic, horned mask and a gaping hole in its chest. Though it's long black hair and sleek form suggested it was feminine, and in ways resembled… It was her.

Were these visions of her future?

'Fate of the fortunate, fate of the powerful,' the being repeated. 'One must choose.'

"Oh." She looked back and forward between the two for several second. "This is a dumb question. Of course I'd choose the left—"

In the group of captains stood an adult Yuzu.

"Right one!" she snapped. "There's no way Yuzu's becoming a Soul Reaper captain while I remain useless! I'm not going to be the only useless one!" she blurted as her body cracked from her outburst.

In a flash of light, she was back in the valley, watching Toshiro cut through the tide of Hollows, buzzing through the sky as a blur of white. Everything was back to normal speed—back to the way it was, and would always be in the left image according to that being.

The visage of the humanoid hollow flashed before her eyes. Her heart thumped. What did she just do?

As the fire died out, leaving her as a charred soul, she stood and gathered a breath to call out. She'd get Toshiro to Konso her like they had done to Yuzu, and she'd be fine if what Yuzu said was true. Maybe she didn't have to turn into that Hollow. They'd find her in the Rukongai, like they had found Yuzu, and they'd train her as a Soul Reaper. Perhaps the vision was a metaphor for what she'd become.

"Toshir—"

Her lips crumbled, along with the rest of her body, disintegrating into nothingness. This wasn't supposed to happen.

"TOSH—"

Yet again, it was too late. All she saw was Toshiro freezing another wave of Hollows before fading back into the nether once more.

The darkness finally began dissipating and the ground finally stopped shaking. Soifon didn't dare breath the air that was still laced with Ichigo's spirit energy. She didn't dare move or swallow, or avert her eyes from the Maelstrom swirling around Ichigo's form. Cold beads of sweat ran down her neck and back.

"Ichigo?" Her voice came out as a hoarse whisper, raw from the shrieks she let out just before. "Ichigo," she said again more sternly as the sky returned to a normal shade of blue, revealing the full extent of the fallout from Ichigo's attack.

Gasping, Soifon jerked backwards, pulling Yoruichi along with her. He couldn't be that powerful. He just couldn't. It had to be an illusion of the darkness, because the mountain range was no more. Only a jagged, mile-wide chasm stretched into the horizon, bottomless and void. It couldn't be possible.

"Why are you so surprised?" a different voice chirped.

For half a second, Soifon twisted her neck in confusion, then mentally slapped herself for not recognising the voice of her own Zanpukto spirit.

Suzumebachi giggled and buzzed around in her head. "Did you forget about the ocean and floating rocks that he created?"

Deadpanning, Soifon sighed and brushed her off. 'Right. I'm just a bit shaken, that's all.' A bit shaken was an understatement, and Suzumebachi knew that as well as her.

With the last of Ichigo's spirit energy dispersing, he looked over his shoulder to Soifon, still in his transformed state. His new looks were reminiscent to those of Kaien Shiba's with that black hair, but the similarities ended there, for those deep red eyes shot a needle of panic through Soifon's throat.

Unease. Panic. Fear. Scowling, Soifon swatted away the irrational thoughts and wiped her sweaty palms on her hakama. "So is it dead?" she asked, trying to keep her voice stern and composed.

"Yeah," he said and turned to face her. "Are you alright?"

Soifon stiffened, taken aback by his uncharacteristic tone—calm, controlled, powerful. "Just fine."

He disappeared and landed in front of Yoruichi with a buzz, kneeling down to examine her. Her wound still hadn't fully healed, still deep. It had stopped healing entirely.

"Ichigo, she's not he—"

He had a palm on the ground, breathing heavily as sweat dripped off his chin.

"Do you need a minute?" Soifon asked, careful to not touch his blades or inky spirit energy. Pieces of rock and gravel had disintegrated when he landed, and she doubted she'd be any different.

"Just a bit," he said, voice weak. "I didn't expect that attack to take so much."

"Hadn't you trained with it before?"

He smirked.

Soifon rose any eyebrow, tilting her head. "What?"

"It's what I used to finish off Aizen."

Flinching back, a small flare of alarm rose in her chest. "Urahara's report said the technique you used on him would have—"

"The Final Getsuga Tenshou doesn't exist anymore, according to Tensa Zangetsu at least." His breathing grew louder. "He said I should be able—"

The spirit energy that formed his black hair and Shihakshou shattered, leaving him in an outfit exactly like the Bankai he had during in the war against Aizen. Drifting through the air, the pieces of energy coalesced back into one of his blades, resealing into a Wakizashi. His other blade remained in its release state, sprouting a meter-long chain that whipped through the air once before dropping on the ground.

"Ichigo!" Soifon flashed over to him, supporting him on her arm.

He chuckled. "I think I overdid it." He reached for his still-released blade, closing his eyes. "I didn't want to take any chances. Aizen Kept evolving during our battle."

For half a second, his spiritual pressure dropped back down to Soifon's level of awareness before his blade and Shihakshou sealed back into their regular states. She coughed, not having expected the sudden collapse. His spirit energy levelled out, she sensed, but there was one major difference—his spiritual pressure was much, much weaker than before. He'd barely be able to challenge the elder captains.

"Better?" Soifon asked, trying to make her voice as gentle as possible. She didn't know how to approach the situation, for he had potentially just sacrificed a large chunk of his power to save her life. "Ichigo?" She nudged his ribs.

"Yeah," he whispered.

"Alright, just take five." Feeling awkward, Soifon steadied him on her arm and checked back on Yoruichi. "Yoruichi's still bleeding," she said absentmindedly, then instantly regretting it.

Ichigo jerked his head up to Yoruichi, eyes soft. "Pass my shorter blade," he said, reaching for it.

Hesitating, Soifon picked up his Wakizashi and mentally debated whether or not to let him heal her. At the current rate, Yoruichi would bleed out if backup didn't come within a few hours… and they were in the middle of the Rukongai wilderness, far from any Soul Reaper outposts. She just couldn't risk it, but it might be disastrous for Ichigo…

"Soifon," he said, voice struggling. "Give me my blade." He opened his hand.

She bit her lip and picked up his Wakizashi, then unsheathed it and settled the handle in his grip, helping him aim the tip at Yoruichi. After a few seconds, his indigo spirit energy flared and shot into Yoruichi's abdomen, instantly restarting the healing process.

"See, I'm fine," he said, flashing Soifon one of his rare smiles.

"Right." She returned the smile—as best as she could—then swallowed a lump of guilt, because his spiritual pressure shrunk even more just then. He'd be an easy match for any of the captains now. And it was all her fault for being so weak. She failed Yoruichi, and Ichigo, the war hero, paid the price.

Leaning closer, Ichigo's hand drifted towards her semi-exposed chest.

"Really?" she said, stopping herself from slapping his hand away.

"You and Yoruichi owe me," he whispered into her ear.

Resisting every urge to elbow the perverted fool, Soifon sighed and played along. He deserved this much at least, Soifon mentally repeated to herself. "Looking forward to it," she whispered back and pressed her body against his limp chest, nearly pushing him over. And truthfully, she did look forward to it.

He smiled again and pressed his lips on her neck, sending a shiver of pleasure down her body from the intimate touch. "When we get back to the Seireitei, let's find Rukia and…" he trailed off, collapsing into her support even more.

"Hmmm?" Soifon mumbled, then realised he had lost consciousness.

Swallowing more bubbles of guilt, she pulled him over to Yoruichi and lay him down next to her. "Dammit," she spat, balling a fist. "Utter disgrace," she cursed herself. She punched the gravel once and held out her hand for a hell butterfly, already preparing a verbal report of her failure.

A/N Well I'm back… long story short, I took a long break from writing. Wasn't feeling up to it due to the usual (life and stuff).

Explanations (will probably be taken out during the next large edit like last time, also meaning there will be possible typos/errors in this. Sorry, that's the way I do things. Write a lot then edit properly after.)

Karin—If you're confused about this chapter, then it might be because I changed her plotline back when I did large edit months ago. See chapter 22. The voice in the nether was the soul king (I might make this clearer in a future edit).

Rukia—she's always been super emotional beneath her kuchiki mask. The Hollow influence of her new powers just brings it to the surface, and it's difficult to control. It's also why she asks Sode to seal her Hollow half of her Shikai or she might lose control of her powers.

Ichigo—still has a lot of training to do to master his powers. His old bankai and FGT/Mugetsu form is his new Shikai (but a dual wield version) in this fic if you're forgetting. He'll be weakened for a while.

22/07/2016 - Some proofreading/line-editing done.