Chapter Nine

Dikayumi was greeted at the edge of Karakura Town by Asano Erina, the Fourteenth Division's resident healer. She stood on a lamppost, in Shinigami form, of course, and has obviously been waiting just for him. The moment she saw him, she broke out into a cheerful, vigorous wave.

"Hi, Ishida-kun! I'm glad you made it alright."

Dikayumi smiled, jumping to a rooftop nearby. He tried to keep off the streets, for the most part, as he didn't have the luxury of being invisible to normal people.

"I just wish this were a happier time to reunite," he said, throwing his cloak over one shoulder. "I assume there hasn't been any new news on Kimura-san's whereabouts?"

Erina shook her head sadly. "None at all, though the Second Division lieutenant just arrived with even more distressing news. Apparently some Arrancar has just declared war on Seireitei, not more then three hours ago. Hachiro Fukutaichou was originally going to be able to stay and help hunt down Vance-kun, but... it looks like he will be needed back at Seireitei soon. I'm glad you got here before he has to leave, though, I think you two working together might be able to figure something out you couldn't alone."

"I hope so," Dikayumi replied. "Come on, if the lieutenant is only here for a short time, we'd better get going."

They found the lieutenant standing on the roof of the Fourteenth Division headquarters, talking to Herald. What they were saying, Dikayumi couldn't tell, for they fell silent when he and Erina got close.

Hachiro Fukutaichou inclined his head respectfully when the two joined them. He, at least, seemed to have forgotten they had once been enemies, or at least was determined to pretend he had forgotten.

"Good morning, Ishida-san, Asano-san."

"Good morning, Hachiro Fukutaichou," Dikayumi replied, though it felt weird. He had never heard exactly what sort of drama had left the Second Division lieutenant reluctant to use his surname, but it made the little things, like talking to him, feel very awkward.

"So you haven't gotten started yet?" Erina asked, and the lieutenant shook his head.

"I've done a preliminary check, but I hadn't much hope that would turn anything up after you had all already been over the town. I was arranging things with your lieutenant, and waiting for a Gentei Kaijo."

Erina frowned. "What's that?"

The lieutenant seemed surprised they didn't know the term. "When officers of the Thirteen Divisions are sent to the World of the Living, we automatically have the majority of our power sealed to avoid causing too much unavoidable trouble. With the seal, I don't have enough strength to find such an illusive trace after the trail has grown so cold."

Dikayumi smiled slightly. "In that case, I think I'll give it a try while you wait for your release. Do we have any idea where about he was, last time anyone saw him?" he added, glancing at Herald. Herald sighed.

"As far as we can tell, Ryohime, Edward and I were the last to see him. A fight with a Hollow just to the east of the highschool. We started from there, though, right after he disappeared and nothing came up."

"Then I'll just start here, and see what happens."

The moment he began concentrating on the reiatsu around them, however, a strange, deadly-dark feeling came over him, like a wave of freezing water. He gasped and instinctively summoned his bow to counter the dread that had suddenly come upon him.

The others looked at him in confusion, a reaction that struck him as odd. Surely, they could feel that as well! Why they weren't reacting to it and preparing for battle, Dikayumi couldn't fathom.

"... coming closer, you weakling..."

He could feel eyes on him. A shiver ran down his spine.

"Are you alright, Ishida-kun?"

The question almost sounded far-away, but he latched onto it and shook himself out of his fright. The feeling faded, and when he tried to explain that he had sensed something sinister nearby, he couldn't find it again. Obviously the others couldn't either; they shook their heads immediately when he asked them about it.

"It's just been us," Erina said, but closed her eyes and concentrated anyway. "I don't even feel any Hollows around, except... no, I think that's Nakamura-san practicing somewhere." She looked at Dikayumi in concern. "Are you sure it wasn't... you know who?"

Dikayumi frowned. "If you mean Aaroniero, yes, I'm sure. Father helped me train until I could fully suppress that evil creature. It hasn't troubled me since the Aizen Incident."

Erina still looked concerned, but the lieutenant hmmed thoughtfully.

"Interesting timing. My release just came through. Though I highly doubt you could possibly have mistaken my reiatsu as something as sinister as your reaction would warrant... it is an interesting coincidence."

"You're pale," Erina worried, wringing her hands slightly. "Maybe you should sit down? Oh, of course! You just came from a long run, and here we are trying to get you to help us out. You're probably just worn out..."

Herald clapped Dikayumi on the shoulder encouragingly. "I'm sure that's it. Come on, Kitsune's inside, he can let you borrow a room to catch your breath. We'll just be letting the Lieutenant try his toys in the meantime. Can you take him down, Asano-chan?"

Dikayumi piped up before Erina could respond. "No need, I'm just a little fatigued, I think. Besides, I wanted to see what kind of tricks the Lieutenant has up his sleeve."

Hachiro Fukutaichou didn't seem the least bit phased by his techniques being called "toys" and "tricks". He unsheathed one of his twin daggers and knelt to touch it lightly to the ground.

"Track, Seishinkari."

Surprisingly, there didn't seem to be much of a physical change. There was a slight glow of reiatsu, and a winding pattern appeared in thin lines on the blade, but otherwise the release of the lieutenant's Zanpakuto was singularly unimpressive.

"Seishinkari allows me to track reiatsu by other senses then Shinigami usually can," he explained, closing his eyes as if to heighten said 'other senses'. "And it allows me to detect the faintest traces reiatsu leaves on everything it comes in contact with. Of course, with..." He paused, frowning in concentration, then continued after a moment. "With this many Shinigami and... Special Units around, everything in the town is saturated in the remains of your battles. Without knowing personally what Kimaru-san's reiatsu feels like, it'd be an impossible task. Even after visiting his training corner downstairs..." He trailed off, then interrupted his own thought abruptly. "... How many Hollows do you fight?!"

He sounded actually surprised. Herald shrugged noncommittally.

"Oh, you know. Lots."

"Well, I'm afraid I didn't count on this much interference," the lieutenant said in a slightly impressed tone. "I could tell where he had fought that last battle you were talking about, and what I believe to be the sites of battles before then, but nothing strong enough and recent enough to give us any new information."

"That can't be it, though," Erina protested. "You're a tracking expert, aren't you? It's your specialty."

"It is, yes, but having a Zanpakuto that gives me a tracking edge isn't why I am where I am." Despite his previous talk of failure, the lieutenant just sounded more determined then ever. "We've been having disappearances in Soul Society as well, disappearances I've been in charge of researching. There was something in common at every one of those sites, the reiatsu of a particular person. I have no idea who it is, but their reiatsu leaves a very distinct impression. Subtle, to a Shinigami's sixth sense, but to Seishinkari..."

"And you think the same person is responsible for Vance's disappearance?" Herald asked.

"I think it's possible." Even as he spoke, a slight smile crossed the lieutenant's lips. "Ah, I think it's more then possible. Responsible or not, they have been in Karakura Town, there is no mistaking that impression."

"Do you know where it was?" asked Dikayumi, just slightly put off that the Shinigami seemed to be getting results. He had been looking forward to trying to find Vance on his own, do his heritage proud.

Unfortunately, it seemed the lieutenant did know where 'it' was. He rose, pointing the way.

.

Ryohime awoke on Herald's roof, staring into her own eyes.

"Wakey, wakey, Hime-neechan!"

"ARGGHH!" Ryohime bolted upright, and would have bashed into her own body's forehead if she hadn't been in her Shinigami form. She scurried back, panting.

"Konekohime? What are you doing?!"

Her mod-soul pouted. "Kai-niichii was getting worried because you hadn't come back from night patrol, so he told me to go to school for you today. I came this way because Herald-chan is usually here to escort me like the gentleman he is, but he wasn't here and I saw you on the roof. So here I am!"

"Go to school!" Ryohime exclaimed, pointing. "And what have I told you about calling Daddy that?"

Konekohime pouted even more. "But he's not your daddy, not anymore. And he feels very left out about that, you know, you big meany. You get Ichi-chichi back and suddenly Kai-niichi isn't enough for you, and you start spending every weekend with old Shinigami Dad and leave your faithful Daddy Daiko in the lurch. It's disgraceful, I say, and just goes to show how we mod-souls are terribly mis-"

"Go. To. School," Ryohime growled. "Or I'm going to ask Lilynette to..."

"To do what?" asked Konekohime in an obnoxiously smug voice. "You can't do anything without paying the price later yourself."

"I'll spit you out and ask Lilynette to put you in Herald's new dog's food dish."

Konekohime let out a girlish scream, one Ryohime had never personally used and could hardly believe came from her own throat, and hurled herself off the roof.

"I told myself that would never happen again...!" she yelled as she high-tailed it down the street towards the school.

Ryohime sighed, feeling exhausted all over again. Konekohime had a way of draining the energy right out of Ryohime's brain.

Lilynette strolled up out of the chimney, looking a little irritated.

Starrk's silly human dad has left a pile of dishes in the sink, she said when Ryohime gave her a questioning look. The absurd fellow wanted to try a new recipe and burnt rice and grease all over everything, and then went to bed after eating a sandwich. I'm going to make Starrk take me out for a walk instead of cleaning that mess up.

"I think it's nice Herald takes good care of his dad," Ryohime said, rubbing her face as she tried to wake herself up properly. Being awoken by Konekohime didn't count as anything so positive as actually waking up. "What time is it?"

Morning.

"Very helpful."

Hmm... breakfast time?

Lilynette perked up suddenly, and Ryohime wondered if the word breakfast had made her think about finding some Hollows.

Starrk says that they've got a lead on Vance-kun, and that you might want to be there to check it out yourself.

Ryohime's eyes widened. "He's right! Can you take me to them?" Her response was a simple, self-satisfied wolfish smile.

Lilynette lead her unerringly, as was to be expected. She could get to Herald's side quicker then Ryohime could reach up to grab the hilt of her Zanpakuto, a feat that had made both Ryohime and Muramasa slightly jealous in their turn. Today, however, she went at a gentle pace so as to give Ryohime the chance to follow.

They found Herald (leaning against a wall) and the lieutenant from Second Division (kneeling to inspect the ground) in a slightly rundown alley, one Ryohime couldn't think of any significance for. Herald greeted Lilynette with a distracted scratch behind the ears, but he was clearly listening as the lieutenant explained things to Ryohime.

"We were able to track a person I believe responsible for our disappearances to this spot, and I found a slight trace of your friend's reiatsu in this spot. Nothing more, though, which is a little surprising."

"Why is that?"

"If there has been a fight here, there would be far more residual presence. As it is... I would guess your friend had been prepared to fight, maybe, but nothing more. And I can't pick up any residual reiatsu anywhere else in the alley as I would if he had left in a tense state, with his reiatsu instinctively flared a little. As it is... I'm having trouble reading the scene."

"Were things different in your Seireitei cases?" Ryohime asked, but he shook his head.

"Which is why I was hoping for a different situation here. I'm inclined to believe, however, that it all ties in somehow with the Arrancar Caro, and his declaration of war."

"I would hope so," grunted Herald, crouching down to give Lilynette a more thorough petting. "I hate the idea of more then one enemy at a time."

"But there wasn't a fight," Ryohime added hopefully. "Which means Vance is probably still alive. We don't even know he's in any danger, or that Caro is in fact an enemy." As much as she wanted to believe it was as easy a solution as 'he's not in any danger', she couldn't bring herself to actually believe it. There was something dangerous about Caro. She knew there was something very, very wrong behind her best friend's disappearance.

The lieutenant looked skeptical, but didn't say anything more on the subject. He rose from the ground and sheathed his dagger Zanpakuto.

"I'm sorry I could not have been of greater help, Yamichi Fukutaichou, but I think we've found everything left to find. Now I must be getting back. Seireitei is preparing for an all-out war, but if I hear of anything in Soul Society that might shed some light on your friend's disappearance, I will make sure you find out."

"Thanks, and for your help here, Hachiro Fukutaichou. Do you need any reinforcements sent to Seireitei? I'm sure Nakamura-kun would love to be part of a war, and if he goes, his brother and Fraccion are sure to come too."

"I appreciate the offer, but I don't have any authority over the Fourteenth Division, either to command you or to allow you into a war declared on Seireitei. The call for your Special Units will come from higher up, when and if it comes at all."