Are you ready for this?! Me? I honestly don't know, but too late to turn back... Hueco Mundo here we go!

Shirayuki... regarding the liberties I'm taking... from the moment I began Nakama, one of the things I wanted to go was take all the fillers (or most of them, at least), the ones that don't actually fit into the story, and that they never tried to make fit, and put them together in a logical, comprehensive way. I also take every opportunity I can for character development and to add in background and world-building. I hope you'll enjoy. Also... one of the scenes you've been waiting for is here... I'm sure you know which one I'm referring to...

And on with the chapter!

Chapter 35. Breaching the White Castle

They had been on the road for a whole night and day by the time they finally stopped. They took a bit longer to go around a very small town, before finally reaching their destination, an Estate built in the middle of nowhere, limited on the sides and the back by two rivers joining, and on the front by the forest, through which a very narrow, almost invisible path ran.

It was the secret home of Lord Arashikensei, known as the Honor King by his subjects and allies, and the Swords' Storm by his enemies, some being both at the same time. The man had had the place built many years before, to be a place where he could go to recover, or spend some free time, a secluded, safe place. No one but his most trusted, his second in command, Head of the Samurai Guard and personal guard even knew about the place. And it had been chosen, to be the new home of what the Lord valued above everyone and everything. His youngest child, beloved daughter, his little princess: Amekimi.

It was raining, hard, when the small carriage finally stopped in the empty entrance of the Estate. It had been raining all day. All servants had been sent away during the young princess' arrival. No one was to see her, no one but her personal guard would even know she was there, or who she was. If she was to be safe, she would also have to be invisible, for as long as possible.

"Happy birthday to me…" The child whispered to herself, her whole form hidden by the long, thick cloak she wore.

She was peaking out of her carriage, by a corner of the heavy curtains that covered the side-window. She knew she was not to get out, or even move the curtains, not until her personal guard got her out. However, she wasn't expecting the person who actually got her out…

"Hanshi?" The girl asked, full of confusion.

The man just looked at her as he opened the door a bit more, allowing her to see him. He was standing there in his fighting kimono, but while he was holding the door open with his left hand, his right arm hung from his side, completely immobile, useless.

"Oh Spirits…" The princess gasped as she covered her face with both her hands. "He's dead isn't he? Chichihue is dead?"

The man stepped back, allowing the girl to get off the carriage, with little attention to her moves, or the mud she was getting on both her kimono and cloak. In that moment nothing mattered but the news the man was bearing, the news she had to endure, the same day of her sixth birthday…

Once she was out, the man dropped to his knees, ignoring the mud as well, body completely folded in a penitent position.

"I am very sorry, Hidenka-sama…" He whispered in a low voice.

It took several minutes for the girl to fully control her hysterics, but even when she found the strength to speak again, there was such sadness in her voice, in her aura, that one would believe the skies were crying with her, for her.

"What happened, Kyoshi-hanshi?" She asked quietly.

"We were betrayed, Hidenka-sama."He explained, still not standing again. "By supporters of the first two wives. They acted against your father and his samurai, all but me were slaughtered." He shook his head. "I only held onto life, onto the shame that it is to live when the one I swore to die for is no longer here, so I could give you the news yourself. You deserved no less than the truth Hidenka-sama… Once I am done here, I will be able to salvage what honor I have left, and then ask Heika-sama for forgiveness in the next life."

"I do not think Chichihue would think you have failed him, or us, thus far, but you may yet." The girl said in a suddenly serious voice.

"Hidenka-sama…?" The man was confused.

"There is no shame in living, not when it has allowed you to follow your duty." Amekimi told him softly. "And now I wish you would accept an order from me."

"I live to serve, Hidenka-sama." He assured her immediately.

"I wish for you to finish your son's training." The girl told him. "If he is to be my personal guard I want him to be the best, better even than you, if such a thing is even possible…" she sighed. "While the betrayers may ignore my whereabouts for now, it won't be this way forever. A day will come when they will begin looking for me, and eventually they will find me. I do not wish to live in a golden cage forever…"

The man understood, he had always thought it was unfair to hide the girl away in a secret estate in the middle of nowhere, even if it was for her own good. However, they had never planned for how things had gone. His Lord had expected to be able to keep his child away, unseen, until those who might wish her harm forgot about her, until she could live her life, free of fear. However, with the Lord dead, that was unlikely to happen now. Now, for her to live, she would have to be protected, most likely for the rest of his life. She was right, she needed to have the best to protect her, already that was his son, he was the best of his age, yet he could be better; and why not? He might even end up being better than his own father.

"Very well, I will do as you command." He nodded in a loud voice.

It looked like Amekimi was about to say something else, when Kyoshi's next words caught her completely by surprise:

"I live to serve you, I die to serve you, now and forever, Amekimi-hidenka-sama." He recited in a solemn voice. "My life is yours, my blood is yours, I shall forever do as you command. For you are my princess, and I, your loyal guard…"

"Rise now, my loyal guard." She finished the small ceremony with the smallest smile, the only she could bring herself to give. "Kyoshi-san…"

xXx

Tatsuki was one of the last to arrive to the Urahara Shouten that afternoon, ready to kick some ass if she didn't got some answers, satisfactory ones, and soon.

"Where the hell is Orihime?!" She demanded as soon as she got to the backroom.

She was already rounding on Urahara, when Chad placed a hand on her arm and shook his head.

"We already asked." Uryuu pointed out. "He does not know. Orihime hasn't come here. In fact, as far as he, and everyone else here in the Shouten are concerned, no Senkaimon has opened all day, no one has come."

"Is she still in Seireitei then?" Tatsuki was trying, with all her strength, to hold onto some hope.

"No." Rukia shook her head morosely. "We phoned Kasumi-dono. She says the Nagaken Senkaimon was opened for Orihime on schedule, she went into the Dangai early this morning."

"Went into the Dangai, and then didn't come out, tell me that's not as bad as it sounds." Tatsuki said, about to go into a panic.

"How bad it is depends on your own point of view I guess." Ichigo spoke up as he snapped his phone shut. "That was Kasumi-oba-san on the phone. She said two guards were selected to escort Orihime through the Dangai; about halfway through she convinced them of letting her continue on her own. They didn't like it, but since she was the authority then and there…"

"Are they crazy?!" Tatsuki snapped. "They should have never left her alone."

"One of them didn't." Ichigo qualified. "He followed Orihime, discreetly and at a distance. He was about to leave when she had almost reached the end of the path, when things changed. From the description he gave, a garganta was used, a male came out and more-or-less coerced Orihime into the Garganta with him."

"What do you mean more-or-less?" Tatsuki asked, confused.

"The guard says there was no fight, Orihime didn't really try to defend herself, or escape, nothing." Ichigo qualified.

"She might not have been able to." Rukia pointed out. "After what she did for Homura and Shizuku, she might not be back at top shape just yet."

Ichigo nodded, conceding that was also true.

"Who was it that got her from the Dangai?" Uryuu voiced the question he thought was the most important at the time.

"According to the description the guard gave us: Ulquiorra, the Cuarta Espada." Ichigo answered.

The grim tone in his voice reflected what they all knew already: if it had been Ulquiorra, that meant that the move was more than sanctioned by Aizen; it was even possible that the man himself had ordered it. Which meant they would have to be careful how they responded to it, be sure they covered all their bases; though, at the same time, there was one basic, obvious course of action to take.

"We need to rescue Orihime."

xXx

An hour later they are all ready. Either in their spirit forms, or dressed in comfortable clothes they can fight in, the Nakama get together in Urahara's training grounds.

"Why can't we go too?" Homura asked as she watched from the side.

It was something that obviously was making the young-teenager-looking girl very sad. It had been hard enough to get her and Shizuku to let their new 'parents' leave for school that morning. The two were being home-schooled for the time being since they'd never gone to school, and they were beginning to grow again rather fast. Urahara's theory was that they wouldn't get to look as mature as they did during the 'situation' in Soul Society, but they couldn't stay looking like little children since, for all intents and purposes, they weren't really children anymore; the scientist-shopkeeper suspected they would end up looking like teenagers, somewhere between the children they had been a century before and the adults they had grown to be in Hueco Mundo. The plan was to have them home-schooled for the following year and, hopefully, they would be able to begin formal schooling on Spring of the next year. It would also give them time to learn about the Human World, so they wouldn't have it as hard as Rukia back then.

"Where we're going, it would be dangerous for you, my darling." Rukia whispered as she held the blonde tightly to her body.

"What if something happens to you?" Homura whispered brokenly.

"Don't worry, your tou-san will be there." Rukia went to whisper in the girl's ear. "Nothing will ever happen to me when he's by my side."

While seeing Rukia as and calling her oka-san had been as natural as breathing for Homura, doing the same with Ichigo as her otou-san…was another matter entirely. She still had trouble moving past the fact that the orange-head had pretty much tried to take Rukia away from her, her and Shizuku. Though, to be honest, Shizuku seemed to have no problem at all seeing both Rukia and Ichigo as parents, and took great delight in showing it; maybe it was because he was a boy, he was happy to have a dad too, and not just a mom.

Ichigo approached the blonde while Rukia went to finish making her preparations, he didn't try to hug her, knew Homura wouldn't like it, but still stood close enough that she could feel his body heat, and hear his voice clearly even as he whispered.

"I know you still don't trust me Homura." He told her softly. "We got off to a bad start, what with what happened this weekend. But if you're to believe anything, believe that Rukia is the most important person in my life. I will always do anything, and everything needed to protect her, no matter what. Just like I will do my best to protect both you and Shizuku, from now on."

Homura knew he was saying the truth, if she had learnt something of the events of the last few days, it was how important the young human/shinigami considered Rukia to be, and how far he was willing to go for her. She believed her 'mom' to be right, as long as Ichigo was with her, she would be safe.

"Just, keep her safe." Homura stated in a low voice.

"I will." Ichigo promised, he need say nothing more.

After saying that Ichigo ruffled Shizuku's hair a bit, chuckling when the boy slapped his hand away and whined. As strange as it may be, to technically be a father at eighteen, especially of children that were, technically, older than him, and who looked just a few years younger than his own sisters; Ichigo couldn't help but like it. And the way Shizuku looked at him, like he was the greatest hero ever, it made Ichigo feel like the tallest man on Earth, and at the same time he couldn't help but feel the weight, the huge responsibility. He was responsible for another person, for a son…and a daughter. It was staggering.

Ichigo reached the rest of the group right as Rukia was almost ranting at Urahara.

"We're putting our trust in you Urahara, again, you better not fail us this time." Rukia stated in her Kuchiki voice. "If you betray us, it will be for the last time."

The former shinigami captain nodded; he had finally learnt his lesson, apparently. Besides, it wasn't like the teens were asking much from him, only to stay on guard, make sure there would be no problem in Karakura.

"If it's the same to you all, I would have no problem helping." A voice called from a side.

Everyone turned at the same time to see Keeva standing at the foot of the stairs, and she wasn't alone, standing beside her was a woman whose age was impossible to tell due to all the cloth covering her skin, nothing but the her forehead and eyes could be seen.

"Who…" Uryuu began, only to realize it a second later. "Serenity-san?"

"I am." The woman nodded gracefully. "Keeva told me about Orihime-san's kidnapping…"

"That's true, you've met Orihime, haven't you?" Karin remembered that.

"I do." Serenity nodded calmly. "We met several weeks ago. We have some… common interests. Mostly boring stuff that's not really important right now." She didn't give them time to interrogate her. "I'm here to assure you that if any danger comes to Karakura, I'll make sure it's eliminated before anyone gets hurt. The town will be safe while you go get your nakama back."

"How do we know we can trust you?" Uryuu asked, guarded.

"You don't." Serenity replied easily. "I'm giving you an option, for you to have one thing less to worry about, so you can focus completely on getting to Orihime-san and then getting back."

"I thought Keeva-san said you didn't fight." Karin commented, eyes narrowed.

"That I usually don't do it, doesn't mean I don't know how to." Serenity told her, not affected at all by the younger girl's distrust. "I'm quite proficient in the use of my own abilities, just like each and everyone of you is in the use of yours."

Something suddenly seemed to occur to the youngest of the Nakama.

"How did you get down here, in that skirt?" Yuzu asked, curious.

Serenity actually smiled, even if no one could see it beneath her veil, except for Keeva, who knew her lady enough to see the reflection of the smile in the gray eyes.

For a second, there was nothing, until Yuzu and Ururu gasped at the same time. The rest followed their eyes, soon realizing what had made them react like that: the veiled woman's feet, nor her skirt, were touching the ground anymore, she was pretty much standing on thin air.

"You can stand on air?!" Several of them were absolutely shocked.

"No, at least not the way Shinigami, or Quincy, do it." Serenity answered as she got back to the ground. "I can levitate, it's one of my gifts."

"I certainly doubt you can kill hollows, even a worm-like one, by levitating." Karin snorted.

Several of the Nakama were actually taken aback by the raven-haired's attitude regarding the woman offering them help. Ichigo, at least, understood her, how could they trust the welfare of their town to someone they didn't know at all?

"No, I cannot." Serenity gave Karin that. "But levitation is a power I use mostly for my own commodity. Several flights of stairs are made a lot easier when I can pretty much float up and down them." She turned slightly, facing a good-sized boulder in the distance. "No, to fight hollows I use another ability of mine. I use this."

They could all see how she raised both of her hands before clapping rather harshly; what none of them expected was the sound of her clap to be surpassed by the loud rumble of grounding rock. The Nakama as a whole then turned, following her line of sight, to see two thirds of the huge boulder in the distance, turning to nothing more than dust.

"Y…you're the one who destroyed the last Arrancar." Rukia realized suddenly. "And the hamen before that…"

"Yes to both." Serenity nodded again.

"Very well, we'll trust you, at least for the time being. "Ichigo announced. "Right now we need to get going. We have no idea why Aizen may have wanted to kidnap Orihime, but we cannot take any risks. We're getting her back, now."

Everyone agreed. They had no idea what Aizen's plan might be, but it couldn't be good. In any case, they weren't about to leave one of their own in a hostile environment for more than absolutely necessary. They didn't even want to imagine how things would go if Aizen were to discover the true nature of Orihime's powers…

"I was on the phone with Yamamoto-san just now." Ichigo announced. "I informed him about the situation, and our plans. Renji, Hanatarou and Isane-san are on their way from Seireitei, they will be here to act as contact, backup, and to give first aid if we happen to need it upon our return. If we aren't back in three days the official backup team will be sent."

"Does Toushirou-kun know the situation?" Karin couldn't help but ask.

"I don't think he does, not yet." Ichigo answered honestly.

"Good." Karin nodded, satisfied.

She really hoped that he wouldn't be finding out until they were back, the last thing they needed was a panicked captain, and that's what he would turn into if he learnt she was in such a situation. Toushirou didn't deal well with those he cared for being placed in danger, never had, and it had only gotten worse since her 'death'. Not that she could blame him. And even if she downright refused to give a name to what they had, what they were, Karin knew they cared for each other, deeply, she was willing to accept that much; the rest were inconsequential details.

"Ukitake-taichou and Nii-sama have been informed as well." Rukia pointed out. "They say to be careful and wish us well."

"Nakama, are you sure you do not wish to use my machine…?" Urahara signaled to a couple of pillars mounted behind him.

"If your contraption works, we still don't know were it will drop us." Uryuu announced. "We would rather use our own means of transportation."

"I'm afraid a Senkaimon won't get you to Hueco Mundo…" Urahara began, unsure.

"Who says we were talking about a Senkaimon?" Ichigo smirked as he spoke.

Before a single word could be spoken several of those present noticed how Ichigo's brown eyes were flecked with yellow, and then there was the black ring around his irises; both clear signs of the power he was getting ready to call on.

"Kurosaki…kun?" Urahara asked, shocked by the darkness in the reiatsu.

"This is what you've been wanting to see all along, isn't it, Urahara?" Ichigo questioned with a smirk. "It's the real reason why you called the Visored. It wasn't about them helping me control this power, or at least not just that. You yourself had no idea how I had gotten it, how long I'd had it, or if I even needed help. However, not knowing gave you plausible deniability, you could claim you were only calling the Visored for me, and not for yourself, that you were only wanting to help me. The truth is that you were hoping for something more. You were hoping to get to see." He smiled knowingly. "All those years ago, you used the Soukyoku to help the Visored regain themselves, they did, and then they left. You never got to see them after they'd gotten their new abilities under control, never got to see what a hybrid truly was about, what you had been dreaming of ever since you first had the idea of creating the Hougyoku."

Everyone turned to look at Kisuke, not having expected that at all, and they knew it to be true, as crazy as it may sound, because Ichigo wasn't asking, and Kisuke wasn't denying. Kisuke had had other reasons for calling the Visored to Karakura besides helping the boy…his curiosity.

"I'm sorry, I will have to disappoint you." Ichigo went on without missing a beat. "You won't be seeing any masks today. I don't have one, and I never will. If you want to know why…either ask me when we get back or ask one of the Visored, we've talked about this." He shrugged. "In any case, time to open the passage…"

He focused, taking Shiro's memories of the starkly-white exceedingly-big perpetually-night desert of the upper part of Hueco Mundo. Then he made several motions with a hand, finishing with a snap of his fingers; the Garganta opened.

"Road to Hueco Mundo open now." Ichigo called in a theatrical sound as he signaled to the black hole. "Everyone ready? Nakama, lets go!"

Urahara, Yoruichi, Tessai and Isshin could just gape, as Ichigo and Rukia smirked, before all of the Nakama disappeared into the Garganta, with it closing behind them.

xXx

Orihime was sitting in a couch, in the mostly empty room she had been locked in shortly after her arrival several hours early. It was white, like everything else seemed to be in that place, Las Noches, Aizen had called it, one sole window, with thick bars, over her head, and the door was thick, solid metal, impossible for her to force open. There was a chance she might have been able to force her way out with some liberal use of her powers, but that wasn't her intention, not at all.

The door opened right then, Orihime didn't bother turning around, she knew perfectly well who it was, could sense his reiatsu. Ulquiorra entered the room, pushing a small car with a tray of food. It was all very basic, some rice, sushi and a cup of tea.

"It's time for you to eat, Onna." Ulquiorra informed her in a harsh tone.

Orihime looked at the food in silence before shaking her head.

"I'm not really hungry." She said in a low voice.

"It would be in your best interest to obey Onna, eat the food." Ulquiorra insisted.

"I really do not think I can eat right now." She said, still quietly.

Ulquiorra watched her, obviously angered by the fact that the instructions weren't being followed. However, he hadn't been told to force her either so, for this time, he would let it slide.

"You will not be able to get away with this attitude for long, Onna." The Espada declared, aloof. "Here in Las Noches, all of Aizen-sama's orders are to be followed."

"Because if you don't follow orders he will kill you?" Orihime couldn't help but ask.

Ulquiorra just watched her, not saying a thing.

"There were ten Arrancar sitting in that room, earlier today, I can guess they were the Espada, because you and Yammy were among them." Orihime explained. "However, Grimmjow wasn't there. Ichigo told us about him, the Sexta Espada. We also deduced that his attack on Karakura hadn't been sanctioned. Was he punished for his actions? Was he killed, or something, which has made it so he's not an Espada anymore?"

For a while, silence reigned, as Ulquiorra just stared at her, as if trying to discover something without saying a single word.

"What is it to you if he has?" Ulquiorra couldn't help but ask eventually. "Why should it matter? Why should Grimmjow matter at all?"

"Maybe it shouldn't, he shouldn't." It seemed as if not even she fully understood why she cared, or she wouldn't admit to it. "I just think it's sad, when a leader resorts to threats and violence to keep control over his subjects… that doesn't promote loyalty or respect, only fear."

"Fear brings obedience, anything else is irrelevant." Ulquiorra declared calmly.

"No." Orihime was, for some reason, very stubborn about it. "That's not how it should be done…that's not how he did it…"

"He?" The Espada couldn't help his slight curiosity.

"Someone I knew a very long time ago…" Was all the answer the girl gave.

"Humans." Ulquiorra looked away from her. "You are all so insignificant you would consider a decade, or even a year to be a long time…"

Orihime had had it with him insulting her. She was having a bad day already, she hated worrying her nakama, and not being there to help when they needed her. She was also tired of Ulquiorra's emotionless attitude, it grated on her nerves, and while usually she was a pretty passive girl, in that moment she was pretty stressed out already and not in the best of moods. Besides, if she was really an 'honored guest' that should give her some leeway with how she acted…

"I may be human, and you may consider me insignificant." She stated in a no-nonsense tone, looking directly at Ulquiorra. "But since Aizen wanted me here, there must be something good about me. It's not like I'm here by choice."

It was obvious that the Espada didn't like having Orihime talking back at him, especially when she had gone against his initial instructions already; and at the same time, he wasn't used to her attitude, and wasn't sure how to proceed, no specific orders had been given about it.

Orihime hummed slightly and straightened up, satisfied by her victory, however small.

"You are way too relaxed for a prisoner…" Ulquiorra couldn't help but comment.

"If you, or Aizen, wanted me dead, you would have tried to kill me in the Dangai." Orihime deadpanned. "Where you could have disposed of my body quite easily. Also, had that been the case, I wouldn't have gone down that easily."

"You believe a piece of trash like yourself could have defeated me?" Ulquiorra said in a cold, yet at the same time emotionless, tone.

"Probably not." Orihime admitted, chewing on her lip a bit. "But I managed to defeat Loly, I might have been able to give you a good fight."

"Trash will never be able to give a fight, less of all a good one." Ulquiorra stated in a cold tone before turning around and leaving the room.

"Not all fights are fought with fists and powers…" Orihime whispered to the closing door.

After being intercepted by Ulquiorra right before getting back to the Living World, Orihime had been sent through a Garganta that opened right outside the huge white building located in the middle of the dessert of Hueco Mundo. There, she had been led to the main room where, sitting on what looked pretty much like a throne, was Aizen Sousuke.

The man had looked at her in such a way, it seemed as if he were trying to see through her, or into her; it was a good thing the girl knew mind-reading was not a shinigami talent.

Orihime hadn't been long with Aizen, just enough for him to look her over and give some speech about her being his 'guest of honor'. Ulquiorra was supposed to be her 'personal guard', just to be sure other hollows wouldn't hurt her. He had expressed curiosity about her, as a Nakama, and a human with powers. Then he'd said something about talking with her again in the future and had sent her to her room.

It had been quite obvious that most of the Arrancars present, especially the Espada, hadn't agreed with the new 'guest', though only two voiced objections, and they were all ignored. Orihime kept her silence all the time, just speaking when a question was directly asked to her, and even those were basic ones: confirmation of her name, the fact that she was a Nakama, she had powers, and how long she'd had them. Surprisingly enough, she hadn't been asked to demonstrate any of her powers, though she'd been prepared to downplay them as much as possible if it became necessary. She didn't know if Aizen had chosen not to bring that up because he already knew enough about her powers to be interested, or he was just trying to play some kind of sick mind game with her, making her think she still had secrets.

In any case, Orihime knew her nakama were coming, there was no way they would let her remain a prisoner for long. She just hoped that when they did go after her, it wouldn't somehow make things worse. The kind of reiatsu she'd felt in that room…the Nakama weren't yet ready for that kind of fight, none of them, not even Ichigo.

xXx

Ichigo, Rukia, Karin, Yuzu, Tatsuki, Chad, Uryuu and Keeva jumped out of the black hole that had appeared on thin air, and onto the white sands of Hueco Mundo. As soon as they landed they were all on high alert, ready to fight at a moment's notice.

"So, we're here, what now?" Uryuu asked.

They had been quite quick on getting to Hueco Mundo, they knew they had to find Orihime, get her back, but they hadn't made much of a plan for how they were going to manage that.

"That building." Karin announced, signaling to the huge white structure.

"Any reason you're so sure?" Tatsuki asked, curious.

"Number one, it's really the only freaking building around here." Karin deadpanned.

"Number two, that's Las Noches." Ichigo put in his two cents. "Nel and the others avoided that place like the plague, just like they wanted to avoid Aizen…one can expect the two to be connected. Which means that's where we need to go."

They all agreed, they also had no better plans, and immediately got on their way.

As they went, Ichigo kept looking around, trying to find some signal of Nel and the others, if only to know they were alright.

"Ichigo…" Rukia called, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You're worried about them aren't you? About Nel and the other hollows?"

"I am." Ichigo admitted. "I know it sounds insane to some. But in the few days I knew…or more like Shiro knew them, I liked them. I hope nothing bad happened to them. That they weren't tracked by some Cazador and taken to Aizen, if that's the case…"

"Have some hope." Rukia whispered with a small smile. "You might see them again yet."

Ichigo nodded and then focused again on the task at hand. They had to find Orihime, find her and save her; he would worry about Nel and her 'brothers' after that was done.

xXx

As soon as the Garganta closed in Urahara's basement, everyone turned to look at Serenity, however, she was already walking in the direction of the stairs.

"For better efficiency we shall divide Karakura in quadrants." She declared even as she walked away from them. "I will take the third one, since my apartment is in that zone."

"Castelo-san…" Yoruichi began.

"Just Serenity, please." She stopped walking and looked over her shoulder.

"Serenity-dono." Yoruichi called.

Her address called some attention, and the other adults turned to look at the noble heiress with different degrees of curiosity on their faces.

"I recognized the kind of deference in Castelo Keeva-san's expression earlier." Yoruichi explained before turning back to the girl. "You're important. A Lady. Am I right?"

Serenity just inclined her head briefly in agreement.

"So, Serenity-dono, will you be alright handling a quarter of Karakura on your own?" Yoruichi finished the question she wanted to ask.

"I will be fine." Serenity assured her easily. "I've dealt with Corrupted Spirits before, even those you call Arrancar. I am powerful enough. Trust me, nothing will be able to get past me."

Yoruichi nodded, not fighting that further.

"I suppose the rest of you can divide the other three sectors among yourselves." The Réalta declared, before turning again and levitating herself out of the basement.

The woman had walked just a few blocks when she suddenly found herself face to face with a man in a white suit, prematurely white hair and blue eyes.

"Lady Serenity…" The man addressed her with a formal European-style bow.

"Master Ishida." She replied in kind, doing an elaborate curtsy.

They each finished the introduction by touching their respective pendants: the Celtic Star of the Réalta and the Star-Cross of the Quincy. It was a very, very little known fact, but Réalta and Quincy had been close allies once, many centuries before. In fact, no few times réalta had married quincy, because quincy women were so rare, and the quincy needed a woman with spiritual power to be able to have offspring, especially ones with power as well. It was for that very reason that neither Souken, Ryuuken or Uryuu had any siblings, and why the men had only had one son each.

"So it is true." Ryuuken said solemnly as he straightened up. "You're one of the Stars. A Réalta Criostal, judging by the psionic powers you've displayed thus far."

"You would be right." Serenity nodded, then added in a proud tone. "It does my heart good to see that such a proud bloodline has held on through these hard times…"

"I could say the same about your lineage." Ryuuken replied. "I really wasn't expecting to ever meet one of the Stars… the lineages were said to have been lost a very long time ago…"

"They nearly were, and even now we only exist on the edge of extinction." Serenity admitted. "We live such complicated times, such dangerous times…"

"Is that why you've chosen to walk such a dangerous, self-destructing path?"

Ryuuken's question seemed to come out of nowhere, it left Serenity frozen in place for a short time as her eyes opened wide, showing a storm of emotions her stiff body wouldn't reveal.

"I'm right, am I not?" Ryuuken pressed on. "Sioraí Serenity…"

xXx

The group kept running in the direction of Las Noches for what seemed like hours, when they were abruptly interrupted by what looked like a sand-hollow. Immediately they all began using some of their basic attacks, they blew off, froze, crystallized, destroyed or even vaporized pieces of the creature, but it was never enough, it always reformed itself with more sand.

"What now?" Tatsuki asked with a growl.

She and Keeva were feeling pretty frustrated. Since their powers manifested in mostly physical things, they did nothing against that particular hollow.

"I have a plan." Yuzu commented unexpectedly. "All we have to do is destroy the mask, right?" She didn't even wait for an answer, already knowing it. "Can you corner him? If you do that I think I can handle the rest."

Not sure what Yuzu may be planning, and not fully comfortable with the idea of his little sister destroying the current enemy, Ichigo still indicated the others to do as the girl asked. It took them almost a full minute but they managed, getting the hollow completely surrounded right as they noticed Yuzu had stopped whispering an incantation.

"Such a long incantation…" Rukia whispered in awe. "She's using a very powerful kidou…"

She didn't even need to finish her thought, as it was confirmed right then, as Yuzu extended both of her hands, palmed opened, bracing her arms against one another before calling:

"Hadou #88. Hiryuu Gekizoku Shinten Raihou!"

The lightning attack that left her hands was such it left everyone gaping; except for the hollow, its mask was totally disintegrated, while a great deal of the sand surrounded it crystallized.

"Wow…" Keeva and Tatsuki could hardly believe what they were seeing.

"Go Yuzu!" Rukia and Karin cheered at the same time. "You're awesome!"

The youngest twin could only blush. It had taken her a very long time to be able to do a kidou of that magnitude, she was happy it had turned out so well. It was the first time she'd managed to defeat a strong enemy all on her own, and it made her very proud.

They were still celebrating, when one of their own interrupted.

"Well, we're here now." Uryuu announced.

It was true, they'd been so focused in fighting the hollow they hadn't even noticed they had made it to the walls of Las Noches.

"Now what?" Keeva asked, knocking on the wall to the test how solid it might be.

"Now it's time for some good old-fashioned breaking and entering." Ichigo declared with a smirk as he raised his zanpakutou.

xXx

Orihime was standing beneath the window, humming softly when suddenly the heaviness of a great reiatsu made the girl stumble just slightly. It was like a great weight, a great power, and yet after the first touch it no longer pressed upon her, in fact, it was almost as if tendrils of that power were reaching for her, trying to connect…

"This power…they're here." Orihime whispered to the empty room. "The Nakama have come."

Less than two seconds after she had said that out-loud, the door to her room opened abruptly, showing Ulquiorra standing there.

"Aizen-sama requests your presence, immediately." He told her in his emotionless voice.

She knew the truth, that it had not been a request, she could do nothing but obey; however, she wasn't about to put up a fight for something so small. In any case, even talking to that sociopath should be better than having to stay between those four walls for much longer, she was bored enough already. And she might just learn something useful…

She spun around sharply to face Ulquiorra, showing no fear, or hesitance, she went to stay by his side, waiting for him to lead.

"Let's go then." She told him.

With disguised curiosity, Ulquiorra did as bid. Guiding Orihime, this time through different hallways, to a different room. This one full of screens, and empty except for Aizen, who sat in a high-backed chair, and motioned for her to take the other one.

"Welcome, Inoue-san." He received her with a too-wide smile. "Sit, sit. It's time for our talk."

As the girl went to take her place, with Ulquiorra remaining suspiciously outside the room, she became aware of something: while most of the screens showed nothing, seemed to be even turned off; some were, in fact, active, one of them showing her nakama as they ran into a wide-room, followed by a huge hollow, only for their path to be cut by another, slimmer one before they could get out the other side.

"I decided now was as good time as any for us to have our conversation, Inoue-san." Aizen pulled her attention back to him. "If you please…"

Yet again, he wasn't asking, and there was no pleasure to be had in the upcoming conversation, she knew that much. That was going to be one stressful conversation…and it was.

It began simple enough, with Aizen asking her about her life, her family, her studies. Orihime tried her best to keep her answers direct and short but couldn't help herself when the topic of her brother came on:

"My brother was an innocent!" She stated in a very emotional voice. "All he wanted was to protect me, like he had since I was born! But he couldn't be left alone, no, hollows had to go after him, turn him into one like them! They turned Sora-nii-san into a hollow!"

"You know, if he's a hollow, you have a second chance to see him, here in Hueco Mundo." Aizen commented in what he probably believed was an empathetic tone. "I wouldn't mind him joining my forces."

"That won't be necessary." Orihime said in a suddenly very stoic voice. "He's gone."

"It really would seem like sometimes all a shinigami is capable of is destroying…" Aizen sighed dramatically. "But that is why I want to change things…"

"Please, don't try to sell me your ridiculous story, because there's no way I'm going to fall for it." Orihime stated in a deadpan tone.

"I could make you believe it." Aizen half-threatened.

"No, you cannot." There was no hesitation in her voice, or her pose.

"Oh, I'm sure you must have heard by now what I can do…" Aizen began.

"I have." Orihime interrupted right out. "And I'm telling you already, regardless what you do, it will never work. My Rikka won't allow it."

"Your Rikka…" Aizen repeated thoughtfully. "I imagine you're talking about your powers."

"My Shun Shun Rikka." Orihime nodded.

"And what are your powers, exactly?" Aizen inquired, very interested.

Orihime didn't answer, she was distracted. She'd kept half of her attention on the screen showing some activity, had seen the two hollows, the gatekeepers, attacking her nakama, only to be confronted by Tatsuki and Keeva straight out. The young Réalta seemed to have become even faster and stronger than before, and Tatsuki was no slouch either, the fight was over before long, certainly before any of the others could interfere…

When the Nakama had left that dome, that screen had deactivated. A different one turned on a short while later, it showed the eight Nakama stepping into a circular room, with a total of half a dozen doors, including the one they'd entered through. One soon enough showed to be caved in, leaving still four possibilities.

"Don't…don't…don't…" Orihime muttered under her breath.

However, in the end they decided to do as the Rikka wielder feared they would. Split, in pairs, each taking a different path: Ichigo would go with Rukia, Karin with Yuzu, Chad with Tatsuki and Uryuu with Keeva. Yuzu used a special kidou to act as a short-distance radio, so they would be able to communicate with each other, probably if one of them found her (Orihime) or there was an emergency.

"Inoue-san…?" Aizen called her.

The girl almost jumped. She'd been stressed enough when knowing her friends were in Hueco Mundo. She also had the feeling that, considering the kind of technology Aizen seemed to have in Las Noches, he must have known the moment they arrived, not just to his 'castle' but to that world itself; which meant everyone in Las Noches must know already the Nakama were there; which mean they had pretty much walked straight into a trap.

"Yes?" She asked in a small voice, turning to look at the psycho.

She knew none of the Nakama could truly defeat at least half of the Espada, not even Ichigo, and they had split…most of them were so powerful, but even all the power in the world was nothing without experience, they weren't ready for the kind of fights coming their way. Just like she wasn't as ready as she hoped she would be for the kind of mental and psychological games Aizen was already beginning to pull on her.

"I would like to know more about your powers." Aizen explained.

Orihime really didn't understand why Aizen kept trying to make it sound like they were having a very pleasant conversation when it was all really more of an interrogation. In any case, when answering that question she focused on telling him the least she could about her abilities, describing them in the way her own Rikka had described them the first time she'd used them: the tri-link shield, which could repel upcoming attacks; the dual-shield, which undid damage and injuries sustained; and the solitary shield, which could cut through anything with less reiatsu than the one she was using. She also made sure to repeat several times that she was still a mortal human and, as such, had limits on how far she could push her abilities.

The 'conversation/interrogation' continued as Aizen asked for a recount of the Nakama's infiltration in Soul Society, which Orihime gave, downplaying not only her powers, but everyone else's as much as possible; except Ichigo's and Karin's, there was no way she could downplay theirs when Aizen himself had fought them.

All the while, as she kept talking, half of Orihime's attention stayed on the screens, as several of them began turning on, showing her nakama and the fights they were involved in. Uryuu, Chad and Karin were fighting some Arrancars, a female and two males, neither of which seemed to be powerful enough to be worried. However, what caught, and suddenly seemed to demand the Rikka wielder's full attention, was when Ichigo and Rukia began fighting a male Arrancar who took off his mask to reveal a face so much like Ichigo's it was scary.

"What is that?" She couldn't help but ask out-loud.

Aizen, wondering what could have caught his conversation-partner's attention so completely, looked over his shoulder, following her eyes to the right screen.

"Who is that?" She asked again.

"That, is Aaroniero Arruruerie, my Novena Espada." Aizen announced, emotionless. "He may only be a Gillian, even as an Arrancar, but he is not to be underestimated, his powers can be quite… interesting sometimes…"

Orihime didn't reply to that comment, she just knew, somehow, that things were about to get really delicate with her nakama…

xXx

Ichigo had known something was wrong, from the very moment he and Rukia had exited the hall they were running through, only to enter a huge space that somehow seemed to have a blue sky, and sunlight; both which were pretty much impossible since there was neither in Hueco Mundo, and they would have known if they had changed worlds at some point.

That same feeling had only gotten worse when the Arrancar had appeared and made them follow him into a completely darkened room. He'd given some strange excuse about light hurting him, and only in the darkness being able to reveal himself, only when he had, it was to reveal a face that shocked Ichigo and Rukia both.

"K-Kaien-dono…?" Rukia asked, her reiatsu lashing out with her stress.

"Rukia…?" Ichigo asked, worried at the way she was reacting to the stranger. "You said Kaien? As in Shiba Kaien?!"

"Kaien-fukutaichou-dono…" Rukia whispered for all answer.

Ichigo cocked his head sideways as he looked the Arrancar up and down, he could see the likeness between him and the other man; even if the hair color and eye color were drastically different, their factions were alike enough. He also knew who the man was, or had been, the Shibas oldest son, the 13th Division lieutenant, Ukitake's former second in command, Rukia's former superior, and mentor, according from what she had told him. Kaien had been Rukia's commanding officer, her mentor, and her friend…still, none of that explained what the hell he was doing there, and as an Espada?!

"It's been a while, you look well, Kuchiki." The Espada commented with a smile.

Ichigo wasn't sure why, but he really didn't like the way the other male was addressing Rukia.

"And what's this?" The Arrancar turned to look at the orange-haired. "Wow! A mirror image, with opposite colors!" he turned to Rukia. "What did you do Kuchiki? Went and found yourself a clone of me, a stand in?"

Ichigo really didn't like the way that man was talking, and calling the younger shinigami a clone, a stand in? What the hell?!

The Espada had gone off to give some twisted story about having vanished from Soul Society after his 'death' in battle against Rukia, only to reappear in Hueco Mundo, somehow gain control of the hollow body and go on to become an Espada, all as part of some plan to defeat Aizen and his followers from the inside. And all through his explanation, he had ignored Ichigo completely, which really only made things worse.

Then the moment had come when the so-called Kaien had called to Rukia, supposedly so they could talk more about the plan, and she had reacted like any subordinate would, following the orders without even stopping to consider anything.

Ichigo barely saw the attack coming in time, in a fraction of second he shunpoed to Rukia, took hold of her, and pulled her behind him. Even with his speed, he ended up with a cut on the back of his hand.

"You're fast." The Espada praised Ichigo. "I suppose it was a bad idea to ignore you…" he turned to Rukia. "What's wrong? Seems like you're making a really mysterious expression there, Kuchiki. It's almost funny even." He chuckled darkly.

He went on to 'praise' Rukia on her abilities, claiming that a while before such an attack would have killed her. Then, when Rukia demanded to know how much of what he'd said was a lie, he claimed everything was, he addressed himself as Kaien, the former 13th Division lieutenant, and Rukia as a shinigami and the woman who killed him, claiming that last as his reason for trying to kill Rukia right then.

Through it all, the petite Shinigami didn't say a thing, didn't move, she was barely breathing. And it was at that point that Ichigo decided he absolutely loathed the 9th Espada.

"Are you, prepared to be killed by me, Kuchiki?" The Espada asked with a smirk.

"If you think I'll let you lay a single hand on Rukia, you've got another thing coming." Ichigo snarled as he got on guard. "I don't care if you're Kaien, a mere hollow, or even the fucking Spirit King. You try to kill her, and I'll end you personally."

"Stop, Ichigo." Rukia said, placing a hand on his arm slowly.

"Yes stop, whoever you are." The Novena said in a dismissive tone. "This doesn't concern you."

"Whatever concerns Rukia, concerns me, that's the way it is." Ichigo deadpanned.

"Interesting." The Espada smirked. "But in any case, Kuchiki knows I am right. Her life belongs to me, because she took mine. It's only fair…"

Ichigo was about to snarl his refusal when Rukia walked around him, for a moment he worried, until he noticed her expression: it was no longer the surprised one of when they had first seen the face behind the mask, the horrified one as the story had been told, nor the absolutely destroyed one of when she'd first been attacked. No, nothing like that, instead, in that moment Rukia looked confident, strong and fierce…Ichigo's Rukia was back.

"Calm down Ichigo." Rukia told him softly. "The Novena's appearance just caught me by surprise, but I'm okay now." She turned to look at the Arrancar. "I have no idea how much of what you told me before was really the truth, but I don't care either, even if you somehow have Kaien-dono's soul, I know you're not him." She didn't let the other one talk. "I don't care about your words anymore. You may have believed me to be nothing but a weak little girl, one who might kill herself if asked by a monster wearing Kaien-dono's face; or maybe you thought I would become your slave to pay for my sins…but you won't have either. Instead, all you will be getting is the taste of my steel, again." She drew Shirayuki. "I have no idea how you survived our last battle, but this time I will make sure you are really destroyed. I will kill you, and free Kaien-dono's soul, that will be my repentance!" She voicelessly activated shikai. "You cannot use my pain or my guilt against me anymore, because they're gone. I've been forgiven by others, and have forgiven myself already. It is true I killed Kaien-dono that night, so many years ago, but what I did was my duty, to the Gotei 13, and to Kaien-dono himself. He didn't blame me then, and he wouldn't now if he were really here." She smiled slightly. "You've lost already, Espada, you lost the moment you decided to use the face of someone dear to me to destroy me. All you've managed is to give me the strongest motivation possible to bring you down!" she turned to Ichigo. "Ichigo, I know what you must be thinking, but please, stay out of this. This is my fight."

"As you wish, midget." Ichigo nodded, his lips smiling but his eyes hard. "Go show what you're made of my Rukia, I believe in you."

With that all talking ended, and the battle began.

xXx

In different areas of Las Noches, Uryuu, Chad and Tatsuki could feel the echo of the reiatsu that revealed that an intense battle had begun between Rukia and a powerful Arrancar. Keeva couldn't sense it but Uryuu's reaction was enough to show her something was going on. At that point she was still feeling quite satisfied with herself after her fight with the gatekeeper, enough that she had allowed Uryuu to fight the Privaron Espada: Cirucci, all by himself. Chad too had fought on his own, another Privaron, having convinced Tatsuki it was his turn to fight. They were done with their battles, having noticed that the Privaron, even when being in their own territory, weren't quite as powerful as the Arrancar they had fought before, back in Karakura.

In any case, the two pairs of Nakama were moving on, after having sent a small message to Yuzu that they'd won their battles, and knowing Karin had just finished her own against the last Privaron. However, it had taken them all by surprise when Rukia's reiatsu had suddenly risen so much somewhere in Las Noches, along with that of a hollow.

"That's not like the one I just fought." Karin commented as she sensed the reiatsu. "It seems like Ichigo and Rukia found a truly powerful Arrancar, possibly even an Espada…"

"I just hope they'll be alright." Yuzu said in a soft voice.

"I'm sure they will." Karin assured her. "Ichi-nii and Ru-nee are very strong. And we must keep going. See if we can find Orihime…"

"I'm afraid you just ran out of luck, little girl…" A cold voice stated from around a corner.

Instantly Karin's guard was up, however, neither she nor Yuzu could have ever expected who they were about to face.

xXx

Back with Ichigo, Rukia and the Novena, Rukia was badly hurt, and there was blood dripping from Ichigo's clenched hands as he forced himself to stay where he stood, to just watch as his beloved was beaten worse than anything he'd seen before. He wanted nothing more than to step in, destroy Aaroniero in the most sadistic way Shiro could think of, and then rush with Rukia to Yuzu so she could be healed. But the orange-haired knew that if he interrupted that fight, Rukia might never forgive him. Besides, he knew just how strong she was, he knew she was capable of winning that fight.

In that very moment Rukia crashed against the floor, hard, barely managing to half roll to a side before Nejibana speared her through; even then, the trident managed to pin her shihakusho down, making it that much harder for her to move, especially with her wounds. Rukia was bruised and bleeding, and while none of her injuries were life threatening, they still hurt and kept distracting her from her fight; even being no stranger to pain, fighting the way she was, was not an easy thing to do. Especially when her opponent knew all her moves already.

"Rukia!" He cried out. "Damn it, get up! I believe in you midget, we all do. All you have to do is believe in yourself!"

Ichigo's words seemed to awaken something in Rukia, a strength she'd been missing just a second before. Aaroniero could see it, even if he didn't understand what it was.

A second later, as the Espada made a move to kill Rukia, he suddenly found himself unable to move, as his feet were freezing over. There was a flash of white light as Rukia's Tsukishiro activated. Aaroniero barely managed to sonido away in the nick of time.

"Idiot, she only managed to kill herself." He cursed, his feet and fingers frostbitten.

"You shouldn't be so sure." Ichigo called from a corner, a small smirk playing on his lips. "My Rukia is anything but stupid…"

Right as Ichigo said that, Rukia appeared with shunpo right in front of Aaroniero, her second dance already on her lips and zanpakutou. What was more, her whole body seemed to be outlined in a white so bright it almost looked blue. Ichigo knew what it meant without a single word being said: Rukia had just synced with Sode no Shirayuki.

"You may look like Kaien-dono." Rukia stated passionately as she held her zanpakutou straight in front of her. "You may have his zanpakutou and his memories, but you will never be Kaien-dono! If you were, you would realize there's no way I would have stayed at that level of power after forty years!" her reiatsu rose like a storm around her. "But you aren't Kaien-dono, you're just holding his soul prisoner, and I'm going to release it! I'll free him, and Miyako-dono, and everyone else you might be holding captive! Now! San no Mai, Shirafune!"

Briefly, Ichigo had no idea what Rukia might be planning, he'd seen her use that dance before, the last time they'd fought dozens of hollows, and in some of their more arduous training sessions; but she had always used it to reform her blade, and it wasn't broken in that moment. It wasn't until it actually began happening that he understood: the technique was meant to detect all the moisture in the air, gather it to the remains of the zanpakutou, and freeze it so the blade could be reformed. With the zanpakutou unbroken, the moisture froze into new blades instead, which Rukia then could use with the union of her will and Shirayuki's to direct straight at her opponent.

Aaroniero didn't even bother trying to evade, while there were quite a number of blades, he figured they wouldn't be enough to do much damage. What he didn't expect was, that once they hit, the blades continued to do as the original technique intended, to freeze any and all moisture in the environment, freezing him in turn, from the inside out.

In the end, all Rukia had to do was walk to the Espada and hit him with the pommel of her zanpakutou, he broke into pieces. Then, a cero coming from Ichigo incinerated the frozen pieces for good measure; there was no way Aaroniero would be surviving that.

"You've been avenged now, Kaien-dono, for real this time." Rukia announced solemnly.

Rukia's triumphant expression held for a couple of seconds, before she collapsed onto her knees, her aura dissipating, the synchronization had taken a lot out of her, perhaps too much.

Right then, the room was invaded, by several Cazadores and their hounds, Ichigo had Zangetsu in shikai in a second, and was killing the first in the next, however, before he could move onto another one, a voice stopped him.

"You move a muscle, and the bitch dies." A cruel voice threatened.

Ichigo turned to see Rukia with a blade to her throat; she was too exhausted, couldn't fight, couldn't even move. The orange-haired began cursing himself, how could he not have felt the new enemy coming? Though he had a good idea of why he hadn't seen him, he'd met the new Espada before, even if it was impossible the other would recognize him.

"Zommari Rureaux…"

xXx

For a few seconds, Orihime had been absolutely delighted, her nakama had won all their battles, and they had even managed to destroy all three Privaron Espada, a couple other Arrancar, and the Novena. Orihime felt almost giddy with happiness; until she witnessed each of her friends meet their next challenge, challenges they couldn't possibly surpass, especially not with the condition some of them seemed to be in after their other fights…

"Wonder what will happen now…" Aizen commented with a gleeful smile. "Will the Nakama live, or will they die?"

For the longest time, Orihime didn't answer, she just watched: as Chad and Tatsuki were beaten to an inch of their lives; as Uryuu lost an arm and Keeva seemed to somehow burn herself as she tried, fruitlessly, to help him; as Yuzu was thrown against a wall violently and Karin began losing control of her bankai, again; as Ichigo allowed himself to be hit, repeatedly, while watching Rukia being held against a blade…

"Ulquiorra, give the order." Aizen instructed.

"As you wish, Aizen-sama…" Ulquiorra replied dutifully, before vanishing with sonido.

For a second, Orihime felt lost, she hadn't even known that Ulquiorra was there, had he been there all along? But then again, that didn't matter, only one thing mattered:

"NO!" Her scream froze Aizen in place, then she stared at him with so much hate, no one could have ever believed her capable of it. "What do you want?"

"Why, my dearest Inoue Orihime, I want you…"

xXx

She…what was she? A Miko? Her mother died long before her training could be finished. A princess? Her father was gone, and her half-siblings all hated her, wanted her gone. She was a miko without training, a princess without a kingdom, a young girl without a family, without a home, and with an uncertain future…

Amekimi was guided to her quarters, a set of room separated from the rest of the Estate, to which only she, her personal guards and a handmaiden would be allowed access. She could finally get her cloak off and a bath was being prepared for her.

"This will be, from today on, your new home, Hidenka-sama…" Kyoshi informed her.

"It's a beautiful place." Amekimi agreed as she looked through a window. "But I don't know if I can ever see it as home. Home is supposed to be more than a building, it's supposed to be a place where the heart resides… I don't know if I have any heart left, I have lost everyone I ever cared about, everyone that mattered to me…"

"You are young still, Hidenka-sama, other people, many people, may come to find a place in your heart with time." Kyoshi told her, worried by the negativity in her voice.

"Maybe…" Amekimi whispered back. "Maybe, someday, I'll find my heart…"