Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or any of its characters. All the credits to Tite Kubo.

Summary: A story about the untold past of Aizen, while he still played the role of vice-captain of the 5th squad. Now, Past and present intersect with a new story unfolding.

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Part III

Chapter 10

–Collateral–

Yue was running on the streets. Her right arm was supported by a sling. She looked back, there was a hollow following her. How did it end like that? She had finally left hospital and was that what awaited her outside? She stumbled on the asphalt and dropped.

"Ouch…"she rubbed her head. "Is it what they call karma? If so, I don't want it…"

The hollow was already close, she stood up frowning, of course it would be inutile, since she didn't have any strength to fight, but… She caught an impressing sigh: above the hollow, a silhouette appeared and cut the monster in half. She stepped back, surprised by the sight.

The Shinigami who cut the hollow in two was someone familiar. A smile sprouted on her lips immediately after seeing the person:

"Akira-kun!" she pulled him and hugged strongly "Thank you!"

"Huh-what-" she pushed her away abashedly "What are you doing?! You should behave like a lady, don't go hugging people like that!" his cheeks were completely red.

"Sorry, I'm only happy to see a familiar face…" she admitted unashamedly.

"T-Then you-" he stuttered after taking a glance at her "What… Did happen?" he looked at her injured arm.

"Ah, this…? I got on a car accident…" she sighed "My bad luck has been striking me hardly recently… I wonder why…"

"Car accident…?" he gulped. What would happen? He was uptight with the idea it might have been a hollow, worsening her condition again…

"It wasn't a hollow, don't worry." She answered and he got startled. Could she read minds?

His mother was very good at reading people's expressions, maybe it was a habit she acquired for spending much time with his despicable father, but that Yue also had the same cunningness? He didn't know if he should feel grateful or if he should be vexed that she was acting just like his mother even without her memories…

"What is this face for? I'm kidding." She chuckled, ruffling his hair "If you keep this serious face, you'll get wrinkles before the stipulated age…" she jested again.

"I don't have time for jokes! And you can't go out late, it's dangerous!" he berated and leaped into the sky disappearing from her sight.

"Oh my…" she put a hand on her cheek, admired with him "They do look like even on their way of doing things… They come and go saying whatever they want to me..." she sighed forlornly "What's wrong with the spirits of this city…?"

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Aizen observed the scene unfolding, when Akira left he watched a bit more as Yue vanished from his sight. His eyes narrowed, he too should start to work on his own plans…

There was a presence near him, he closed his eyes with a deceitful smile, it was inutile trying to hide from him, and called coldly:

"Why don't you come here?" he casted a side glance and turned back.

The person hiding jumped at him and enlaced him in an embrace. It was Chieko, her cheeky and joyful temper never changed.

"Pappy!"

"Chieko…" he landed a hand on the top of her head, but his serene smile wasn't welcoming.

"Your new look is so beautiful pappy!"

"Do you think so?"

"You may be popular with ladies, but don't forget about mom, right?" she chuckled.

"I won't." his frivolous gaze fell upon his daughter as he asked "By the way, what are you doing here, Chieko? I thought you were still on Soul Society… Have you decided to live with your brother?"

"No…" she shook her head "This time, I came to talk to you pappy! I was transferred to the fifth squad, the same as you!" she jumped out of joy "But captain Shinji is a meanie…I guess he doesn't like me…"

"Hirako Shinji… He was a difficult person to deal with…" he ruffled her hair "But, that's not what you wanted to talk, right?"

The eagerness drawn on her expression indicated he got a point for that, but her tone still held some carelessness to avoid being a hard subject to talk about:

"Have you been taking a good care of them?"

"Them…?"

"Yes, I mean, Akira and mom…" Her eyes narrowed playfully.

How did that girl know? He sighed troubled. She was very perceptive and astute, maybe she had inherited more from his personality than he liked. He stared at her for some seconds, pondering about something and pulled her close to embrace.

"I'm sorry Chieko." His seriousness could express his sincerity through his unusual words.

"Pappy?" she asked a bit curious. "What are you apologizing for?"

"You must have felt lonely without your brother or me around. And now, even your mother…"

His sentence came as a startle for her, never that man had apologized to her neither to her brother by any reason. It was uncanny, but it caused her heart to flutter in joy at the same time.

"That's nothing! I can visit Akira-chan whenever I want, and now that pappy is here, I can visit you too!" she chuckled happily, tightening her embrace.

"I see… You've grown a lot…"

"Ah, yes!" she jolted letting him go after remembering her first objective. "I almost forgot, pappy… What I really wanted to talk with you… About mommy…"

Her smile seemed cynical as she looked at him. His eyes become distant and inexpressive as he wondered which tales that little girl had to inform him about…

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Urahara's shop

Yue almost bumped into Urahara when she arrived at the place. It seems he was going out, but he stopped, stunned with her presence. He opened his fan and smiled cheerfully:

"Yue-san! What are you doing here?"

"I need to ask you something…"

"Hm…?" he realized there were some injuries on her body and his tone switched to a serious mood "Yue-san… What did happen…?"

"I only got hit by a car, but that's not important now…" she gestured leisurely "What I really wanted to talk about is…"

The blonde man gestured for her to stop talking. He adjusted his hat and invited her to enter the place, with a faint smile:

"I'm sorry, but… We should talk inside, I also have many things to tell you…"

"Huh…?" his sudden serious tone caused some apprehension on her gaze "Fine."

"Wait!" Akira surged into the house with a pleading expression "Wait, Urahara-san!"

"Akira-kun…?" he was surprised.

"Wait a moment…" he panted, like he had run a long distance "You can't-" he was interrupted.

"… Tell me about the blue-masked hollow that turned Akira-kun into a vaizard?"

Both Akira and Urahara had petrified expressions in dread as they listened to her sentence. Yue simply smiled cunningly indicating she knew the whole time what they have been hiding from her.

"Yue-san…" the former captain of twelfth squad closed his fan "How do you know about it…?"

"Someone has told me not long ago…"

"Someone…?" Urahara's eyes got sharper.

"Yes, but just like your stories there are many blank spaces in between the lines, Urahara-san… I came here to fill all those blank spaces today… I'm pretty tired of being the one excluded here…"

Akira felt a thump on his heart. It started to beat faster as an insurgent rage heated his veins. That man… Since the beginning it was all that man's fault… It didn't suffice trying to conquer the world, had he need to come back and reveal such important things to his mother? Was he trying to bring her to the spiritual world, what was he planning?

He should've let her alone. She was fine without him, if he wanted so much to rule the world, why didn't he engage with those plans instead of bothering his mother?! The brown-haired Shinigami dashed and almost broke the door when he left the house. Yue was startled for a moment, then she looked at Urahara awaiting some response.

"The person who told you that was probably the same who incited such revolting feelings on that boy…" he adjusted his hat, his eyes were covered in shadows "And also, the same person who created the hollow in your dreams…" his collected icy tone astounded her.

"What… are you saying?" her eyes wavered as an incomprehensible fear spread through her chest.

"Would you like to listen to this story until the end…?"

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Akira leaped furiously searching for any vestige of his father's reiatsu, but of course, he couldn't find, Aizen was good at concealing his powers, differently from him.

He caught a glimpse of someone passing by his side, he halted his steps and looked back.

"Akira-chan!" it was Chieko, she had her usual smile on face.

"Chieko… What are you doing here…?" he was internally afraid of her answer.

"Just paying a visit…" she giggled.

Akira's eyes were filled with confusion when he looked above, to where his father was standing in the middle of the air. His arrogant smile and his eyes of disinterest were the same.

"You…" the boy snarled darting at his father, surprisingly, his sister stood on his way. "Chieko, get out of the way!" his dictatorial and furious tone evoked a chuckled on her.

"Akira-chan…" she sighed "You're really touchy… You should try to understand people's feelings a bit…"

"Which feelings?! That man knows nothing about feelings! He is a ruthless criminal! Haven't you noticed it yet?!" he was completely enraged. "That man was the cause of the whole suffering our mother had to endure! And he is trying to hurt her again now! He knows no limits!"

"That's not very considerate of you talking like that about our father… As an elder sister I should have taken proper care of you…" she unleashed her reiatsu menacingly.

"Chieko…" he couldn't believe his own sister would fight against him.

On that moment, Aizen who had been watching them with his most peaceful smile, put a hand on pocked and turned his back to them, again, as if he had lost all the interest and started walking, in a second he had vanished from their sight.

"Chieko! He's going to run away again!" he yelled at a desperate act.

"Sheesh… How many times do I need to say…? You're not understanding a thing here!" she unsheathed her sword, ready to battle with a casual smile on face.

Akira strengthened the grip on his sword, he didn't want to fight, but he could read on her eyes she wasn't joking. It pained him he had to recur to force.

"I'm sorry Chieko… If I end it fast, I still can catch up to him and impede whatever scheming he is attempting to achieve this time…" he also unleashed his reiatsu.

"See? That's why I'm saying you're too naïve, Akira-chan… You should listen to your sister a bit…"

Her strong reiatsu evoked some drops of sweat on his face, but he wouldn't stay behind, he too had strong powers.

"Ban-kai… Shigoku, Tsukuru: Time…" his calm demeanor didn't mean he was feeling placid inside, on the contrary, he was hesitant and saddened to use such power against his own family…

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Both Urahara and Yue felt the powers clashing outside, not very far from them. The former Shinigami instantly jumped from his seat with a frown.

"What's happening outside…?"

"That's… Akira-kun's powers, and the other one… It's a power similar to him…" the blue-haired was also perplexed.

"Yue-san, I'm afraid we will have to postpone this conversation, I need to check what is happening. Stay inside, please. You'll be secure with Tessai." He told rushing his steps to the entrance door.

"But… Urahara-san…" she followed him.

He slid the door open and left the house, looking back at her with an earnest tone.

"Yue-san, you must stay inside the barrier around the house, the hollows can't hurt you he-"

His speech was interrupted when he felt a presence near, his eyes flashed to the source of that presence whose powers were being hidden like there was a camouflage on them. His eyes widened and wavered wildly as he finally identified.

"Goodnight." Aizen landed on the ground with a seemingly tranquil smile.

"Hadou 4: Byakurai!"

Urahara's reaction was fast when he used his fingers to launch the burst of energy to hit Aizen who avoided skillfully.

"Aizen Sousuke… I believe my shop cannot offer you what you're searching for. We're closed." He said in a grave tone, unsheathing his sword.

His expression was frozen with serious traits rarely seen on his commonly cheerful face. And he discreetly stood in front of Yue.

"Is that your way of welcoming people?" his eye narrowed "Your shop will end up breaking if you keep this treatment."

"Yue-san, enter the house, please…" the shop owner said in a warned and low tone.

"What, but Sousuke is-" she covered her mouth.

Urahara glanced to her somewhat amused when she mentioned that name, his agility in understanding what was happening was impressive. However, his moment of distraction was enough for his opponent to attack.

Aizen stretched his hand and used a burst of energy with his hands, Urahara could only have a course of reaction when he saw the dazzling light of purple reiatsu drawing near. The ground crumbled and the barrier from the shop was utterly destroyed, surprisingly, the building was intact, albeit it was unprotected now.

Aizen's eyes went to his side and he turned his head to look at the shop owner that was floating in the air with Yue on his arms. The blonde landed away from his opponent, and the woman on his arms was utterly confused.

"I'm sorry, Yue-san, would you step back for a while…?" he asked gently putting her on the ground.

"You did well protecting her, as expected." The brown-haired narrowed his eyes cunningly "But, would you mind taking your hands off her?"

"I didn't know you were so jealous…" the blonde joked, but it was inappropriate at the time.

Aizen's menacing reaitsu extended to Urahara's place, he used a barrier to protect himself and Yue, but it was broken in a second.

She closed her eyes tightly feeling that oppressing and frightening power, putting her arms in front of her face. That was definitely a side of him she didn't know, and it scared her. His reaitsu however, never touched a strand of her hair. When she opened her eyes slowly, Urahara had a cut on arm.

"Yue-san, step back." he ordered in a steady tone

"I…"

She stepped back hesitantly watching them both, trying to peek at Aizen's expression, but she couldn't see a thing beside his usual coldness. Yue wondered if it was due to her nervousness at the moment, but his eyes seemed hazy.

"Aizen, what are you doing here…? Have you come for revenge?" Urahara proceeded wondering what he could be planning this time.

"You all really cannot understand me…" he sighed heavily "Why would I waste my time with a man like you?" there was sarcasm on his voice "There's only one reason for my visit… I came here to take something back…"

Urahara's eyes widened open when his enemy completed that sentence. Aizen's eyes were transfixed behind him, on Yue. What was happening? That could only be a joke. He gulped feeling an urgent uneasiness. He figured out she knew him, but he couldn't swallow the fact Aizen actually went there just for that, he didn't seem the type of person who cared about any other individual beside himself, thus it was very unlikely he would go through many troubles just to take someone with him.

"Are you serious…?" the blonde adjusted his hat giving a darker shadow to his eyes "Even if you are, I cannot allow you to take it…"

"I would really try to establish a civilized dialogue, here, but now I see it's impossible…" he sneered "Shall I take it by force, then?"

His eyes had an ambitious glint that remembered the blonde from their last fight. He didn't like that gaze Aizen had on face now…

Have he really come all the way to take Yue? But, why would he do that? The whole time he had been using her to acquire information about him? No, that didn't seem to be his purpose… Then… Why?

There was some subtle delight on Aizen's expression after seeing the jumbled expression his archenemy was making. His reiatsu leaked threateningly and Urahara stood in front of Yue again, adjusting his hat. Even though he was unprepared, his mind would elaborate something for the occasion.

"Ah… After all the hard work we had last time… Here I go again…"

Chapter 10/END