Author Notes: This chapter reveals some of Kūgo's past with some surprising implications amongst some other twists and turns that will change the story. But, the next chapter will be more focused on Kazui.

This chapter reintroduces the Captains of the 13 Court Guard Squads into the story. Giriko's power gets more elaborated with time manipulation with different conditions than just bulking. And it implies that Kūgo is similar to Kazui in terms of origins. And Aizen gets involved in a three way struggle that will be resolved later on.

Chapter 24: The Blackberry and the Soul Reaper

50 years ago...

Kūgo Ginjo was a young man, current 13 at the time born to a household of four children including himself to a couple in a low-class household, which did scaffolding jobs across town. They didn't earn a lot to live comfortably, but they still managed to avoid starvation or destitution, which would've been the worst outcome. Kūgo's father was a happy man that took any amount of abuse from his supervisors without complaint while his mother always seemed sullen and almost ready to cry, but was a kind person. They had moved to Naruki city some years back prior to Kūgo's birth, but when he asked what they were before. They were oddly silent about that aspect of their life, but Kūgo, being respectful didn't inquire about this.

His younger sisters, were his main concern. His eldest youngest sister was not nearly as pleasant as her parents, being a teasing, lazy, venial and selfish person that often hung up with the wrong crowd at school, did only average to pass along the class, and often took time to torment her younger siblings when she was home. Kūgo tried to be nice to her, but she would often take full advantage of that fact to exploit him for money and other things. The second was overall distant and quiet, preferring to not talk about things unless they were important, went to school on time, did relatively well and didn't join in an extracurricular activities aside from what was necessary to graduate- with even those, she was hardly social. His youngest sister was a different story all together.

She was am independent, friendly, humorous, optimistic, sensitive, caring and kind person, coming across as a naive and clueless girl, which contrasted with her exceptional grades in school. She seemed to be naturally intelligent, something that Kūgo's father joked that she got from her mother. She desired to get a good job when she graduates so that she can share her wealth with her family in order to not have them live in such risky conditions in order to survive. She likes to play imaginary games like kick the dustball or guess the shape of the dustball since the house they lived in was often dusty. She tended to zone out with her mouth open and loses track of what she was thinking or dreaming about. She has an over-active imagination and gets carried away thinking of implausible scenarios like monsters coming out of the bed or ufos coming down from the skies. She's very perceptive about mental and emotional state, especially in regards to Kūgo, as she is able to tell what kind of driving force is pushing them. She is very aware of how people feel anguish, disappointment, or worry, even feeling pain herself when she sees someone she cares about getting hurt. However, Kūgo noticed that she was slowly getting a firmer resolve and more confidence as she got older. Displaying such maturity at the age of 10.

He and his family were different from others and others could tell instinctively due to how they tended to avoid them if they could help it. They could see things that others couldn't see...people with chains connected to their chests, huge .things with holes in their chests, things with white faces and the obscured black humanoids that would kill. Things that no one else could see. His dad would tell them to keep away from those things as involving in their world was dangerous and if they ever got involved, they'd need to run. He didn't explain what they were, but he knew of them. Kūgo's mother was less vague, but still vague- the people were the dead that lingered and the white faced monsters hunted them down for their insolence for staying behind and it was the job of the black figures to slay them for the sake of maintaining order. As to why she knew of this, she didn't elaborate.

She had gotten him a cross pendant necklace for his birthday and said to treasure it always.

So he didn't get involved. Kūgo himself was a calm and collected individual who was very cautious and caring for his family, as he warns them whenever they were in the presence of a great danger, like those white masked creatures, but didn't get involved with others due to his father's warnings about keeping their identities a secret because it would be dangerous if people learned more about them.

One day he saw someone in an alley while walking home from school- a little girl with brown twin tails and a chain linked to her chest was being attacked by an orange spotted, red salamander like creature with a white face.

While his father's lessons got into his head to hold him back mentally, he reactively lunged forward, yelling-

"Wanna pick someone your own size?"

He was then tail thwacked to the other side, but he got back up, only to be thwacked again when he charged in. His ribs were broken and he cursed his helplessness. He was about to witness the girl being eaten when the creature was slashed by a black figure, but this time Kūgo could see more clearly what the figure was-

A short and petite girl with light skin and purple iris eyes. Her shoulder lenght hair was black, with several strands of hair hanging between her eyes. She turned to see Kūgo with a stern look.

"What are you doing here?," she asked as she placed her pommel on the girl's forehead.

Kūgo gulped before he answered...

Present- Across the Seireitei

Across the Seireitei, several Soul Reapers including Captains saw the golden solar flare and reacted to it in various ways.

"Hey ya, ya seem to be know what this. Mind telling me?," asked a man with brown iris eyes and a facial expressions revealed his upper teeth. His blonde hair was jaw-length with a straight cut, but it was asymmetrical cut in a way that the left side being longer than the right. He wore standard Soul Reaperi robes with a standard, long-sleeved, captain's haori, but he also wore a white robe between his haori and uniform, which was fastened at the front. He also wore a broad cravat that was tucked under his new robe and was clasped using a small, silver slide. His tone sounded irrelevant and laidback.

"That was Kūgo Ginjo's Zanpakuto, Hiyoke, Captain Shinji Hirako. It's not like most Zanpakuto according to the records.,," said a man with a buzzcut hairstyle shaped like a swirl as he bowed to his superior.

"The Fullbringer eh?," Shinji noted as the flare began to dissipate.

If Ichigo had faced that. He'd been in a lot worse shape when I saw him after the 17 months after Aizen's defeat., thought the blonde with a bead of sweat on his brow.

The white painted skinned, honey gold iris eyed and purple scarf wearing 12th Captain smirked as he looked at sight, seeing it as a surprise and a potential subject to study. He had a skeletal look to it with a skull-like visage. He constantly bared his teeth giving the appearance of him constantly smiling. Both his ears were seemingly replaced with stubbed golden cones. His fingernails were blue and, with the exception of the fingernail on his right middle finger, were all short. He currently had black face paint cover much of his face, leaving thin white lines going up his face and a white nose. He wore a long, golden headdress which curves back to his mid back. Underneath his chin were two opposite facing strands from the mask. On the backside of the headdress the Twelfth Division symbol was painted.

Mayuri Kurotsuchi- 12th Squad Captain.

"What the hell? What kinda firepower is that?," asked the 9th Captain as he clenched his fist in frustrated confusion, while the 7th, 3rd and 8th Captains looked in awe. at the sight.

The 9th Captain was a tall, muscular man with sharp features, short light-gray/silver-mussed-up hair and brown iris eyes. He had a tattoo of the number "69" on his chest, exposed slightly through his outfit. His hair had long front bangs, which hung over his face. He wore a sleeveless Soul Reaper uniform that was slightly open on the front, exposing his chest and tattoo, and tied it with a metallic belt. He also wore a sleeveless haori and a pair of fingerless black gloves that covered most of his forearms. He wore series of piercings, with one on his left eyebrow and three on his left ear.

Kensei Muguruma- 9th Squad Captain.

The 3rd Captain was a man with purple iris eyes, short, slicked-back blonde hair with of a single lock falling into his face and a standard Soul Reaper robes with a sleeveless captain's haori, but with a frilled collared shirt under it.

Rōjūrō "Rose" Ōtoribashi- 3rd Squad Captain.

The 7th Captain was a muscular looking, black mustached man with black sunglasses with his standard Soul Reaper uniform with a white, sleeveless haori. He had a a crescent-shaped scar around the outside of his right eye and has a pompadour-like hairstyle.

Tetsuzaemon Iba- 7th Squad Captain.

The 8th Captain was a young adult looking woman with turquoise iris eyes, red oval glasses and long black hair. She wore her hair in a braided ponytail. She also wore a standard captain's haori, with her Shinigami robes altered to show her midriff.

Lisa Yadōmaru- 8th Squad Captain.

"That Spiritual Pressure...it felt like Kūgo...who would've thought he was capable of this...," the 10th captain remarked in horrified astonishment. He was a short, young looking Soul Reaper with turquoise iris eyes, short, spiked, white hair, wore standard sleeveless captain's haori with a green sash around his shoulders, held together by a round, star-like clip. The sash held his Zanpakuto sheath in place on his back and was tied to it at either end. He appeared lanky with the fringe of his hair reaching down to his left eye.

Tōshirō Hitsugaya- 10th Squad Captain.

The 11th Captain laughed in anticipation for a potential new rival in the Rukongai. A tall, muscular Soul Reaper with a wild and aggressive appearance, which fitted his personality well. He had a long face with pronounced cheekbones, and pronounced, hairless brow ridges. He had green iris eyes and long, stringy black hair that reached past his shoulders. A noticeable trait in his appearance was a long, thin scar running down the left side of his face and across his left eye. He wore a Sou. Reaper uniform, with white bandages across his midsection and a sleeveless captain's haori, which had a ragged look to it. He wore a a single eyepatch piece over his right eye, the design being black with a grey outline.

Kenpachi Zaraki- 11th Squad Captain.

The 4th Captain fainted from the sight of the solar flare. She was a tall, young looking woman with gray iris eyes and short, silver hair that was straight down and smooth, with two thin braids. She wore a typical white captain haori. Underneath, she wore a large white cloth belt. She wore a thin dangling red earring on each ear.

Isane Kotesu- 4th Squad Captain.

The 13th Captain looked in shocked surprise yet nostalgia for an unknown reason. She was a short, petite woman with light skin, purple iris eyes and waist length black hair with a strand between her face. She wore typical captain haori over her Soul Reaper uniform.

Rukia Kuchiki- 13th Squad Captain.

The 6th Captain closed his eyes after briefly seeing the sight. He was a beautiful looking man with slate gray iris eyes and long black hair, which he kept up in intricate white headpieces called kenseikan (Pull Star Silence), which symbolize his nobility as the head of the Kuchiki Clan, wearing three on top of his head and another two on the right side. He wore fingerless white tekkō which only cover the back of his hands. He also wore a a variation of the captain haori, featuring a high collar with light gold edges and small, light gold tassels attached to the corners. Underneath, he wore a a white scarf over his shoulders.

Byakuya Kuchiki- 6th Squad Captain.

"Shunsui Kyōraku" looked with a scowl as "he" saw the solar flare.

And the 2nd Captain gritted her teeth, using Shunpō to go to Kūgo's location. She was a relatively petite woman with gray eyes and black hair that was shoulder-length and had a softer look to it. She wore a traditional Soul Reaper captain's uniform with a sleeveless haori and a yellow obi tied around her waist. Underneath her standard Shinigami captain's uniform, she wore the uniform of the commander-in-chief of the Stealth Forces which had no sleeves and didn't cover the back, though she did wear long black arm bands. Instead of wearing the standard Soul Reaper sandals with tabi, she wore traditional Chinese shoes with ordinary white socks.

Suì-Fēng/Soifon- 2nd Squad Captain and Commander in Chief of the Stealth Corps.

Shiba Household

Kūgo had recalled this vague memory of meeting a familiar Soul Reaper as Hiyoke dissipated from his grasp.

Still won't forgive me eh?, thought the former Substitute Soul Reaper.

A molten mass of flesh fell from the solar flare onto the ground, much to Rurichiyo's shock upon seeing it. Before the creature could slither away, he was stabbed by Kūgo's Cross of Scaffold, with the owner jutting downwards to impale the creature. Unbeknownst to himself, he was glowing with six flower petal star like stigmata on his wrists and nape of his neck and the energy was seeping into Foras' being.

"It burns...IT BURNS!," Foras' voice shouted from the mass, sounding higher and squeaker in pitch than his deeper voice than before.

"You tried to kill a little girl. Serves you right.," Kūgo said as he twisted the blade to inflict more pain.

"How is this possible?! You can't be a Quincy! You're a Fullbringer...Your name was Ginjo? Ginjo?!...that's the...," Foras, currently a slowly regenerating mass of flesh melted into a lump spoke to himself.

"You're talking nonsense. I wanna know why you tried to kill her off. Answer me.," Kūgo said before he was suddenly grabbed from behind by the 2nd Captain.

"Tch.," he cursed.

"I thought you lost that Zanpakuto when you turned on us. What's the reason for it being back? What were you doing? What is that? And...," Soifon demanded before she turned to see Rurichiyo.

"What are you doing with a member of the Noble Households? Answer me!," she demanded.

"You don't understand. That thing's related to her. I'm not the bad guy in this situation this time.," Kūgo said through forced breaths while being strangled by the 2nd Captain.

Foras removed the sword with extendable, thin limbs and slithered away only for Tsukishima and Ganju to block his path.

"You need to talk.," Tsukishima said before he was grabbed from behind by members of the Stealth Corps.

They wore something similar to a ninja uniform. It had no visible white undergarments and the sash is dark as opposed to white. A headpiece covered the bottom part of the face and the top, but not the eyes; they wore no sandals, but long jika-tabi, and tight bands are on the legs and arms to keep the clothes from moving too much, which both was presumably for silence of movement.

"What're you doing?!," Ganju yelled as he struggled to get free.

"What is that?," asked one of the Stealth Corps upon seeing Foras.

"Shāolíng Fēng...thank you for your aid. You will be repaid with your clan's promotion, to replace the insufferable Shihōin.," said Foras as he crawled away with a smug tone of voice.

"How do you know of that name...and how dare you insult Yoruchi's clan.," Soifon replied coldly.

"Uh...Yoruichi's behind you!," Foras said with false surprise, which made Soifon turn around in hopeful anticipation.

He then slipped beneath the earth.

Kūgo Ginjo...I'll make you pay for this..., thought Foras as he sank deeper into the earth.

Soifon felt dissatisfaction for Yoruichi for not being there. She resented Shōinchi for being born from Yoruichi and Kisuke, the man she hated for taking her former Captain away from her and a large reason why she didn't visit her in the World of the Living. However, there were bigger things to worry about.

She bowed to the little blonde and said respectfully-

"Lady Rurichiyo of the Kasumiōji family, we're sorry for your loss. We will-"

"If you felt anything, you would've done something last night rather than just hesitating. Was it the order of the two houses that actually control the Central 46 or the Central 46 doing their own schemes that you had my clan assassinated for not agreeing with their decision? Was it something completely unrelated? I can't feel safe in this world regardless.," the girl said back to Soifon's surprise.

"Glad you agree!," shouted a loud, feminine voice.

Kukaku and Giriko then appeared out of nowhere, landing in the middle of the Stealth Forces.

"Big sis!," Ganju shouted.

"Now stupid bartender! Show them what you learned!," Kukaku shouted.

"Time Tells No Lies- Still Moment.," the bartender dressed man said as he emitted a green filter over the area. Suddenly, the entire space outside of Enryu, Kenryu, Kūgo, Tsukishima, Ganju, Giriko and Rurichiyo was frozen in a green space.

"I've learned to put a timer with different applications since my time here. This one being time being stopped with the condition that we leave this place and reach our destination in 6 minutes. If not, we will be burnt by the flames of time.," he said calmly as Kukaku summoned a Senkaimon from the ground, a rather mundane, slab of stone that opened down the middle vertically.

"So you're threatening us with death to leave everything behind? That's true friendship, Giriko.," Tsukishima remarked with a sadistic sarcasm.

"WHAAA?!," Ganju yelled as he was kicked into the Dangai by Kukaku.

Enryu and Kenryu nodded as they grabbed Rurichiyo and entered the Senkaimon.

Giriko went next, followed by Tsukishima who looked at Kūgo briefly before entering into the Senkaimon

"It seems like this is a bigger thing than we thought. We need the help of the guys in the World of the Living in order to take out that freaky power I sensed just now. You gotta go just when you were settling in. Sorry.," Kukaku said as she kicked Kūgo into the Senkaimon.

Kūgo gave a forced laugh as he said-

"Your building style's crap!"

"Don't need to put it like that.," Kukaku said in irritation as the Senkaimon vanished and the space retuned to normal.

Soifon looked around to see that Rurichiyo was gone.

"What is the meaning of this?," she demanded Kukaku, suspecting her of this disappearance.

"I'd ask the Central 46, the revived Tsunayashiro or the Nārākū clan. They know more about this than me-," she said before she felt several powerful Spiritual Pressures enter the Soul Society in the direction of the Mūken.

What the hell is that?, thought the black haired woman.

Mūken

The Mūken was the eighth level of the Central 46 Underground Prison, with the eight levels sanctioned for criminals to the Soul Society based on the severity of their crimes. Located under the barracks of the 1st Squad.

It is a voided space completely sealed off from the outside world, aside from the main tower that served as the entrance and exit. The realm stretches on infinitely. It is reserved for criminals whose heart cannot be stopped by any means by executioner, being nigh invincible or those who are immortal. It is here that a certain man resides.

On a pillar in the middle of the dark void, a tall man with brown slightly slicked back brown hair, and a menacing left brown iris eye looked on in the abyss. He wore an almost entirely black outfit with white trimming, a large black eyepatch over his right eye and black boots. A tattered white rag was wrapped around his shoulder.

He looked ahead as more then 20 figures appeared before him, including one that was familiar.

"Shunsui Kyōraku. It's odd that you're here while you're also in the 1st barracks above. And what are those fellows behind you?," he asked politely, but also condescendingly.

"Sōsuke Aizen...I'm sorry, but I need to get your Hōgyoku out as part of a bargain I made. It's a desperate time for a desperate measure.," the true Head Captain said as the bandaged covered Dio Hueco walked forward.

"Even if it's no longer working. I'm not just going to let you take it.," the former 5th Captain said as he unleashed his bounds, showing both of his eyes, swept back hair with a single strand hanging over his face. He then summoned his Zanpakuto, the blade emerging from his right hand. It had a hexagon-shaded tsuba. The two sides paralleled to the blade are long, whereas the four side was bove and below the blade were shortened, making it into almost a diamond or prism-like shape. It had a green handle.

"Not these Arrancar mimics or those two behind Genshirō.," he added.

He then emitted a powerful purple Spiritual Pressure to which the Dio Hueco seemed unaffected.

Grys and Eieno peered from behind Genshirō's back.

"Why are you here?," Nanao said.

"Making sure the prisoners are enjoying their parole and taking them back if they cause trouble. And to be honest, seeing a fight taking place between godlike entities...Plus, I'm bored and got permission from the Chief to accompany you guys as long as I oversee these guys as well.," Grys replied.

"I'm tagging along.," Eieno said bubbly.

"I see.,"Nanao noted with scorn.

Suddenly, another Shunsui Kyōraku plus two members of the Central 46 arrived from the entrance, which made Nanao turn around and look in shock.

"Well, hello other me...Or should I say, Katen Kyōkotsu...Enjoying taking on my looks and taking on my responsibilities...," the Head Captain said light-heartedly.

He then narrowed his gaze as he saw the other two members of the Central 46, one plump with a toothbrush like mustache and the other having a gaunt stature with spiky graying red hair jutting in all directions, stubbled chin and a black visor over his eyes.

"Those guys...are like the fellows I saw earlier...Not quite the spectators and more like silencers to what I'm doing right now.," said the Head Captain more seriously than before.

"That's right...You're not getting out alive. You don't have your Zanpakuto. It's against you now. We can seal off the Dio Hueco and Sōsuke Aizen again to our liking. We're not pulling any false pretenses. They're just an eyesore. And we'll definitely have a word with the South Branch on this insolence.," said the red haired man as his form began to bulge and expand upwards.

Sōsuke then chuckled to himself.

"This is getting interesting."

Next Chapter: Lessons from a Saint and Xcutioner