Sometimes we laugh and sometimes we cry,

but I guess you know now, baby

"Wait, so you guys don't have Marvel either?" asked Ichigo as he, Trunks, and Orihime strolled down the sidewalk.

Trunks shook his head. "Nope. What's that?"

"They make superhero comic books and now they're turning them all into movies."

"We don't really have superhero movies, but Goten's brother's father-in-law is a super famous martial artist turned action star. All of the movies are trash, though."

"Dude, you're missing out. There's Spider-Man, Iron Man, Thor, and I heard Black Panther's in the works, too."

"Oh, oh!" Orihime bubbled. "We should all go see Dr. Strange!"

"Oh yea," Ichigo replied. It just dropped in America, and since I got the hang of flying now, we should take the trip."

"I'm down," said Trunks. "As long as it's not another musical like the one we watched with Yuzu."

"Ahh, come on. Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory is a classic."

"Well, that one song in there was catchy. You know, the one that goes…" Trunks started humming the tune, as Orihime and Ichigo filled in with the words.

"Come with me," Orihime sang.

Ichigo chimed in. "And you'll be, in a world of pure imagination."

Trunks clapped his hand in applause. "Bravo. Definitely gonna learn to play that on piano."

"Why," Ichigo asked. "So you can serenade-"

"You're funeral. I'm going to play this at your funeral if you finish that sentence."

"Hmm?" Orihime questioned, "You're gonna serenade somebody?"

"No, no," Trunks quickly blurted out. "By the way, Orihime, you guys make a great duet. You'd probably make an even better-"

"Okay, okay, quit it!"

"I can play the game just as well as you can."

Orihime gave Trunks a curious look. "We'd make an even better what?"

Ichigo's heart skipped a beat, as Trunks answered. "Oh, I was just gonna say that you guys would make even better bandmates. We should all start a band."

Ichigo settled as Trunks communicated with him telepathically. You like how I saved that?

That's the best you could do? Ichigo replied. A band?

Orihime's face lit up with excitement. "Oooh, that would be so much fun! Ichigo could play guitar, Trunks can play the piano-"

"And you can sing," Trunks said to her. "Goten can be our drummer and I'll learn bass."

The group turned the corner into the yard of Urahara's store. "Well, what kind of genre are we going for?" Ichigo asked.

Trunks thought for a few seconds. "Umm… how about metal? Or maybe jazz… jazz metal, because I can't imagine Orihime doing screams."

"I can try a growl if you want," Orihime said.

Ichigo cut the conversation. "How about we put a hold on our prog metal dreams and just go see the movie."

The group approached the porch, where Jinta was sitting. Once they arrived, Jinta held up his hand to Trunks, revealing a white envelope.

"Special letter for Ichigo and Trunks," Jinta grumbled.

Both of the boys raised their eyebrows. "For both of us?" Trunks asked. "Who's it from?"

"I dunno, some Soul Reaper dropped it off." After giving Trunks the letter, Jinta put his hands behind his head and laid back.

"Everything alright? Where's Ururu?"

"At some stupid after school club."

"So you're just out here by yourself?"

"Just open the letter already."

Trunks tore the top of the envelope open and pulled out a folded paper. He straightened it out and began to read it aloud.

"Dear Mr. Briefs and Mr. Kurosaki, my name is Shuhei Hisagi, Co-Lieutenant of Squad 9, as well as the Editor-in-Chief of the Seireitei Communication Monthly. We are currently planning for our December issue, and we'd like Son Goten and the both of you to be our feature article for the month, as well as the inaugural episode for our new radio program, SeireiTalk with Shuhei Hisagi."

"I would like to interview the three of you simultaneously on Friday, November 11th at 3 PM, lasting approximately 1-2 hours. If this time works for you, please reach out to me."

Goten stopped reading the letter and looked to Toshiro. "Well if he's inviting Ichigo, then why wouldn't he invite you?"

"Probably because I was the feature of the November issue," Toshiro answered. "And I also write a column for every month."

"Okay, I guess I'll go then. I'm not gonna lie, I'm kind of excited."

Rangiku chimed in. "You should be, nobody's gonna be able to keep their hands off of you after this."

Goten chuckled. "You think so? Maybe I'll find someone just like- ah shit, I forgot!"

"You forgot what?" Toshiro asked.

"I forgot to invite Soifon to the party!"

Toshiro smirked. "Yea, she's a must-have there… a true party animal."

"I'm all the party animal we need there. Besides, it would make Trunks' day if she came."

"That's a big if you're banking on."

"It's a huge if," Rangiku added. "Captain Soifon isn't the type to do things for other people."

Goten smiled. "Don't worry, I won't take no for an answer."

"Also," Toshiro continued. "You're fine with the interview being the day before the party?"

"Yea," Goten replied. "Shouldn't be a big deal, We still have plenty of time. November 11th is only… TOMORROW?!"

"Well, I guess we only have today and tomorrow to clear up all of the paperwork and train."

Rangiku and Goten groaned. "But I just helped with paperwork yesterday," Goten complained.

"Yes, and there's more today, so let's not waste time."

Rangiku and Goten sighed as they mumbled, "Aye, aye, captain."

"So what do you think?" Trunks asked Ichigo.

Ichigo smiled. "I think that Lieutenant just made the biggest mistake putting us all on a podcast together, his first podcast, too. Such a shame."

"Should be fun. I'll tell Kisuke to tell his squad for us." Trunks took a step onto the porch, then stopped and turned to the red-headed child. "Hey, Jinta?"

"Whaaat?" he groaned.

"You doing anything today?"

"Ah you know, just partaking in my favorite hobby: cloud watching."

"Do you like Marvel movies?"

Jinta sat up and looked at Trunks. "I'm listening…"

"You wanna come see Doctor Strange with us?"

Jinta's eyes lit up. "Doctor Strange?! But that's only out in North America right now."

"Yea, well, we can fly, so let's take the trip. You coming or not?"

"You're damn right I'm coming!"

The next day, after completing mounds upon mounds of paperwork, Goten laid back in his chair and put his feet up on the desk he was working at. "Whew," he thought aloud. "All done, and with…" He looked up at the clock on the wall as the time read 2:58. "No time, no time left to spare."

He quickly got up and grabbed a folded up map of the Seireitei and ran towards the door. He exited the room as he put on one shoe and hopped on one foot while trying to slide the other on. Goten finally got it on and took off into the air, unfolding the map and trying to find his destination.

"So Squad 10 is here, and Squad 9 is-" Before he could physically pinpoint his location, he picked up two familiar energy signals. "Well, that makes it easier." Goten flew quickly towards the signals and arrived above the Squad 9 barracks, where Ichigo and Trunks stood outside.

"Hey, you're thirty seconds early," Trunks joked. "I guess you're excited did this."

"Sorry, I've been budgeting and forging signatures for the past two days straight. My hand is all cramped up now."

"Well," Ichigo said. "Now that you're here, you guys ready to hijack this radio show?"

"They're not gonna have a better show than this one," Goten responded as the group began to walk into the first building they saw. Once inside, they observed as a slew of Soul Reapers were moving rapidly from all sides of the room, holding multiple papers and files. The fast-paced environment combined with the constant keyboard keys clicking and speaking that filled the room confirmed with the group that they were in the right place.

"Is this a newspaper press or a stock exchange?" Ichigo asked.

Before Trunks or Goten could reply, a male Soul Reaper approached them. "You three can follow me this way," he said as he turned and began walking away. The group followed as the man led them down a hallway and into a room with a large round table to their left. There were four office chairs at the table, and in front of each chair was a microphone, a pair of headphones, a glass of water. To the right of the door was a separate room with a large plexiglass window. This was the control room, where a man was tinkering with the plethora of sound equipment and monitors that filled the space.

The Soul Reaper opened the door to the separate room and said, "Lieutenant, the guests are here."

"Perfect," Shuhei replied. "I just finished setting up." Shuhei exited the room and greeted his guests. "Thanks for coming on such short notice. We have a big schedule this month and we're trying to get used to the new equipment."

"We're just happy to be here," Goten said. "Thanks for having us."

"So, are guys ready?"

The group nodded and they all sat down at the table as they put their headphones on. The Soul Reaper that guided them entered the control room and sat down. He looked at Shuhei and counted down with his finger starting from 5 before giving a thumbs up, signaling that the broadcast had started.

"Helllooooo all you Soul Reapers and Souls alike," Hisagi began. "You are listening to WSSS, the Soul Society station, and this is SeireiTalk. I am your host, Shuhei Hisagi, and thank you for joining us on our first ever episode. To kick off the program, I have three special guests with me today. The first I'm sure is a familiar name to most: the Substitute Soul Reaper from Karakura Town, Ichigo Kurosaki. The other two come from across the galactic pond, all the way from another universe, we have Trunks Briefs and Son Goten. With the introductions out of the way, I'd like to thank you guys for being here for our first show."

"Thanks for having us on," Trunks replied.

Goten chimed in with a question. "Thanks but um… what's the rating for this?"

Hisagi looked confused. "What do you mean?"

"Like… how PG do we need to keep it? I can keep it PG, but I'm just curious."

Shuhei looked at the man in the control room, who shrugged his shoulders, before answering, "Well, this is probably gonna air on daytime radio, so let's try to keep it at least PG-13."

"Okay, okay, just checking."

"Wooow," Ichigo said. "We've been on the air for 30 seconds and you already asked how wild you can get?"

"I just gotta know how clean I have to keep it, and I can do that for the moms and children. Speaking of moms, if any of you are single out there, I'll be taking appointments after this interview at the Squad 10 barracks."

Trunks and Ichigo burst into laughter. "And here we go," Trunks said.

"Now we know we're definitely not getting invited again," Ichigo chuckled.

Goten turned towards Ichigo. "Ichigo, stop. You know you barely got on here in the first place."

"Woaaaaahh," Trunks jested. "It's about to get hot in here."

"So that's something I wanted to ask you, Shuhei," Ichigo said as he rotated his chair towards Hisagi. "Why is it that I've been busting my ass for the Soul Society and I can't get on the paper, but now these two show up and you break out a bunch of new equipment for them?"

"Sounds like your salty to me," Trunks said.

"I'm not salty!" Ichigo insisted. "I'm just asking."

"Well," Shuhei replied. "We've always wanted to talk to you, but there was always something happening at the time-"

"See Ichigo," Goten said. "They're not making time for you, but they make time for us. You're welcome."

"I didn't know we had official Haterade sponsors in the building," Ichigo replied.

"Who's hating, me? Couldn't be, I could never."

"I dunno, Goten," Trunks said. "Sounds like you're hating to me."

"Trunks, you always do this. You just sit back, instigate, and smile." Goten turned to Ichigo. "Has he done that to you yet?"

"Of course he has," Ichigo replied. "Because he's evil."

"Damn, Trunks," Goten continued. "Stop playing with me before I blow up your spot on the airwaves."

"You wouldn't," Trunks responded.

Goten leaned forward towards the mic. "PFFFFFF! Say I won't."

Trunks turned his seat to the Lieutenant. "Lieutenant, can you get a hold of your show, please?!"

"I've lost all control of this show and it's only been three minutes," Shuhei responded. "But yes, I wanted to get through some questions with you guys. For Trunks and Goten, I wanted to start by asking what life is like in your universe."

"You wanna answer that?" Goten asked Trunks.

"Uhh, sure," Trunks replied. "We're from Universe 7, and Universe 6 and 7 are mirror universes, so they're pretty much the same. Goten and I were about to start college before we came here."

"Were you both excited to come here and train with two of the most elite Soul Reapers the Soul Society has to offer?"

"Well, we were kept in the dark about who we would be training with, so definitely no. We got pulled from the last two weeks of our summer vacation and that really bummed us out, but if I could speak for the both of us, we wouldn't trade this for the world."

Goten nodded as Ichigo spoke. "Wow, that's so sweet of you Trunks. I'm blushing over here."

"I take it all back, he's the worst."

"And Ichigo," Shuhei said. "How did you feel initially when you were told that you and Trunks were going to be training together?"

Ichigo paused before answering. "Well… I was pretty mad, I can't lie. After the things that happened with Ginjo, I felt like it was another plot against me, but then Trunks and I talked and it turned out to be fine. Now we're all pretty close-knit. Even when we don't train, we just hang out, and we share the same kind of humor and interests so it works out."

"What are some of those interests that you all share?" Shuhei questioned.

"Um… well we like the same kind of music for the most part: alternative metal, old school and trap rap, some jazz. We like anime and movies, too, but we're kind of split on those. And then we all like to play sports."

"I'd just like to say that Goten was the nastiest running back in high school," Trunks added.

"And I'd like to warn anyone listening," Goten said. "If Trunks asks you to play ball and he says he's not good, he's lying, he's absolutely filthy at ball, and you need to run."

Ichigo sat forward in his chair. "Oh my god, this man got me so bad. The first time we played, he let me go up 5-0, and then he goes all Carmelo on me and wins 11-8."

"It's a bad habit of mine," Trunks elaborated. "Goten and I used to go to the courts when we were like 14 and fool people that were a lot older than us. It was just kinda fun to see the reactions."

"What about you, Shuhei?" Goten asked. "What are your hobbies?"

"I like being the editor of this newspaper," Shuhei answered. "It's very fulfilling for me to investigate a story and get multiple perspectives on the topic. I'm also saving to get a motorcycle I've been eyeing for years."

"People have motorcycles here?" Ichigo asked.

"No, but someone has to be a trailblazer."

"Speaking of a trailblazer," Goten continued. "Is anyone in the Soul Society going to usher in the Digital Age in this place?"

"Oh boy," Trunks mumbled.

"He couldn't help himself," Ichigo murmured.

"No, I think that's a good point," agreed Shuhei. "I think the Soul Society needs to keep up with the living world and update itself not only in the Research Department but in the rest of this place, too. The problem is that the old guard likes the structure the way it is."

"Okay," Goten said. "But let's backtrack a little bit. I'm not even talking about just a digital renaissance or upgrade or whatever. We don't even have beds: we sleep on the floor. I have dust allergies man, I can't be on the floor. You guys brought us in here to slay your enemies but we can't even get some elevated rest."

Goten and Ichigo started snickering at Goten's rant, but Goten was not having it. "You guys know it's a fact," he said to them. "I bet Ichigo has a bed."

"Of course I do," Ichigo answered.

"What do you mean of course? Sir, you are a minority here." Goten turned his attention back to Shuhei as he sipped his water. "Toshiro's gonna be so embarrassed when he hears this."

"How's that going for you?" Shuhei asked.

"Oh, it's great. We definitely clashed heads a little in the beginning but now we're over that… I think. By the way, Rangiku was talking about you."

Shuhei's body suddenly jolted and his eyes widened. "Wait, what?"

"Uh oh," Trunks chuckled.

Ichigo chimed in as he drank his water. "Got em."

"What did she say, though?" Shuhei inquired.

Goten elaborated. "She was saying that the Women's Association was debating whether or not your tattoo was for show or if you were telling everybody that you're talented."

Ichigo spat his water onto the ground and Trunks fell out of his chair as they both howled with laughter. Goten and Shuhei couldn't contain their laughter, as Goten leaned back in his chair and joined the howling, and the Lieutenant put his head between his hands and shook his head. Even the man in the booth fell victim to a boisterous laughing spell.

"That's it, it's over, take it off the air," Trunks said as he tried to catch his breath. "Goodnight, everybody!"

"You better watch your back," Ichigo told Goten as he continued guffawing. "Kensei's about to start looking for you."

"They're gonna kill me for this one," Shuhei said as he attempted to control himself. "I don't care, though. This is raw, it's hilarious, and it's everything I didn't know this show needed until now."

The interview lasted for another hour before Shuhei had the boys do a short photoshoot for the cover of the magazine. After they were done, they thanked Hisagi for the interview, and the Lieutenant promised he would have them back eventually. They exited the building and now walked down the streets of the Seireitei.

"I can't believe that just happened," Ichigo said. "Please tell me that wasn't live."

"Nah," Goten answered. "I heard him say that they're gonna hold it until December for when the magazine drops."

"Hey, do you guys wanna hit the courts?" asked Trunks.

"Do they even have courts here?" questioned Ichigo.

Trunks shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe we should ask somebody."

"Well, what an unexpected coincidence," Goten answered as he stopped walking. "I know the perfect person you can ask, Trunks." Goten pointed to a large gate next to them. "I checked my map before, and it said that these were the Squad 2 barracks."

"One day I'm going to torture you like this," Trunks told Goten.

"Yea, yea, I'll pencil that in for Nevuary 32nd. You're here so you might as well say hi."

Trunks groaned. "Alright, but please don't fuck this up for me."

"Nope, we're both gonna stand over there and let you do your thing." Goten and Ichigo walked away, as Trunks sighed and looked for a doorbell of some kind.

After a few seconds, he gave up. "It's whatever guys, she's probably busy anyway."

"Ah, come on man," Ichigo encouraged. Just fly over top real quick and find-"

Ichigo was cut off as the gate in front of them began to part. Trunks nearly jumped out of his skin as he heard a pair of voices from behind the door.

Why-why me?

"Wait, so I'm not picking anything up from the bakery?" A man asked.

"No, I've already told you that three times," Soifon scolded. "Now for the fourth and final time, you're going to the bakery and checking if the cake will be ready by-" Soifon stopped herself as she and her Lieutenant walked out to find Trunks standing right in front of them. She froze in place as her mouth dropped open.

"Tr-Trunks," she stuttered. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh uh, hey," Trunks stammered. "How's is it going?"

"Hey Captain," Omaeda inquired. "Is this the guy that-" Before he could finish, Soifon turned and stomped on his foot, prompting Marechiyo to pick up his foot and start hopping in place on one leg. "OW! What was that for?!"

Soifon turned to her Lieutenant and whispered to him. "A little less talking and little more walking in the other direction, Omaeda."

Omaeda began hobbling in the other direction. "Well, you didn't have to be so mean," he sniffled.

Soifon turned back to Trunks. "So uh, what are you doing here?"

"Oh," he answered. "I was just uh- Ichigo, Goten, and I were doing an interview for the newspaper, and we just happened to walk down here, so I'd thought I'd just say what's up."

Soifon was listening, but most of her attention was drawn to Ichigo and Goten motioning for her to keep a tight lip.

"Hm?" Trunks said as he noticed her looking away. "Something wrong?" Trunks turned around, but Ichigo and Goten changed their expressions to look normal.

"Hi, nice to see you," Ichigo said.

"Great day we're having," Goten added.

Trunks turned back around. "Anyway-"

"Anyway," Soifon blurted as she began walking away. "I need to leave."

"Huh? Where are you going?"

"It's none of your business. Goodbye."

Soifon disappeared, as Trunks turned to his friends with his head slumped. He sighed, then mumbled to himself, "I'll take one execution on Sokyoku Hill to go, please."

"Ah come on, bro," Goten said as he put his hand on Trunks' shoulder. "Don't sweat it. Maybe she just has a lot going on today."

"Nothing a little ball can't fix. You can't go into your birthday tomorrow feeling down."

Trunks sighed then picked up his head. "Alright, I'll live. So are we playing 21 or are we running twos?"

The group began walking again. "Twos for sure," Goten answered. "But who's our fourth?"

"Let's go ask Renji," Ichigo suggested. "Maybe he knows where the courts are."

"Okay, so it's me and Ichigo versus Trunks and Renji."

"Hey!" Trunks exclaimed. "Who said you get to pick teams, and where we gonna get a ball from?"

The next day, Trunks, Ichigo, and Goten woke up early to all train together. After that, Ichigo revealed that he planned out a day for them: a trip around the world to see the wonders of the Universe 6 Earth. They toured Mt. Fuji, the Great Wall of China, the Pyramids in Egypt, Machu Picchu, the Eiffel Tower, and the Grand Canyon. Finally, they arrive in Los Angeles, where Ichigo surprised the three of them with tickets to a Kendrick Lamar concert. Goten didn't know who he was, but Ichigo had played Trunks his 3 albums, and Trunks fell in love with them and was ecstatic to be seeing him live. During the concert, however, Ichigo left early, saying that he had to finish an assignment online due that night, so Trunks and Goten flew back to Karakura by themselves.

"Man," Trunks awed. "Am I tripping, or was that amazing?"

"You're not," Goten reassured. "That… that was one of the best things I've ever seen live, but I was kinda thrown off by all of the white people in there saying the n-word."

"Yea, that made me extremely uncomfortable." Trunks paused a second before speaking again. "Hey, do you ever miss home?"

"I miss it every day. Why do you ask?"

"I dunno, it's just that this place reminds me so much of it, and all the things we did today, I would've liked to do with my family."

"It's only temporary. Everything's gonna be back to normal soon enough, and then the only thing we'll be worrying about is classes."

"Yea, I guess you're right."

"We're gonna get everybody back, bro, but today's not the day to worry about that. Let's hurry back, though. Kisuke said he's making something special for you tonight."

"Thank god, I'm starving." The two picked up their pace and landed back at Urahara's shop. Trunks walked up to the porch and opened the door.

"SURPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, TRUNKS!"

"Oh, shit!" Trunks shouted as he jolted and glared at the group of people that stood in the room.

Ichigo came up to Trunks as he and Goten put their arms around his neck. "We gotcha good, huh?"

"Yea, just a little bit," Trunks replied. He scanned the room and saw many familiar faces: Orihime, Chad, Uryu, Rukia, Jinta, Ururu, Tessai, Toshiro, Rangiku, Kisuke, Yoruichi, and Soifon were all there. "Wow, thank you guys so much."

"Thank Goten, first," Urahara said. "He's the one that put this whole thing together."

"I don't deserve you guys," Trunks said to his friends. "This is awesome."

"Well, the surprises don't stop there," Goten said. "We've got plenty of food and Rangiku brought all the alcohol. It's gonna be a real party."

"Uh oh, guess it's gonna be one of those nights."

The party started, and everyone was eating, socializing, and having a good time. While Goten was locked into a tequila duel with Rangiku, Trunks was conversing with Ichigo and Rukia, he saw Soifon exit the shop from his peripheral.

"Hey," Ichigo whispered to Trunks. "Now's your chance."

"You think I should?" Trunks asked.

"Well, you shouldn't feel pressured," Rukia advised. "You might not get a better time than now."

Trunks took a deep inhale and exhale before taking a sip of the drink in his hand. "Alright, can you hold this for me?"

Ichigo took the drink from Trunks and watched as his friend left them. "There he goes, all hopped up on liquid courage. Godspeed, Super Saiyan. Godspeed."

"You know," Rukia said. "You could learn a thing or two from him."

"Rukia, I'm playing something called the long game, so don't give me any of that."

Trunks opened the door and stepped outside to see Soifon sitting on the porch. She quickly turned around and met his gaze.

"Sorry," he rapidly apologized. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"Oh no, it's okay," she responded.

Trunks began to walk over to her. "So, whatcha doing out here?"

"I… needed some air. It was getting hot in there."

He sat down next to her. "The party scene isn't really much of your thing, is it?"

"Shouldn't you be in there with all of your friends?"

"Well, I'm with one of my friends right now, so I think I'm okay."

Soifon averted her eyes as Trunks continued. "Still haven't answered my question, though."

"I'm not much of a person for large gatherings, especially when I don't know that many people there."

"I'd say you know more than a few people in there."

"Sure, but the only person I would talk to would be Lady Yoruichi, but she's talking with Urahara, and I don't want to be a bother."

"Well… what about me?"

"What about you? You can hardly afford to spare time to talk to me with all of your guests in there."

"I'm sparing time now, so I guess I'll spare some more time."

"That's… very kind of you."

Soifon's eyes returned to Trunks, who smiled at her. "By the way," he asked as he looked down at a square box she was holding. "What that in your hands?

"Oh, I almost forgot," she blurted as she put her arms out to him. "It's a birthday gift."

"You got me a gift?" Trunks received the box and opened it up. Inside was a golden, round object with a small chain attached to it. He pushed a button on the side, and it opened up, revealing a clock. Trunks silently studied and marveled at the intricacies of his new pocket watch.

"You're not saying anything. I knew I should've got something else."

"No, I love it! I can't believe you got me something this nice. Thank you so much!"

The two were interrupted by the door sliding open. Toshiro exited with a semi-conscious Rangiku over his shoulder. "Sorry if I'm interrupting you two, but you should probably go inside now. They're putting candles on your cake."

"Oh, thanks," Trunks replied. "Is she gonna be alright?"

"Yea, this is normal."

Rangiku tried to lift her head. "Did I do it, Captain?" she slurred. "Did I win?"

"Oh, you won, alright," Toshiro answered.

"Yaaaaay…" she whispered before passing out.

Toshiro sighed. "Trunks, Captain, have a good night."

They both said their goodbyes as Toshiro walked away. Trunks put the watch in his pocket as he stood up. "Guess we'll talk more later."

Soifon nodded and stood up. They both walked in and were met with a roaring, but offkey happy birthday, as the cake sat on a table in the middle of the room with the 20 candles burning bright.

"Make a wish!" Orihime shouted.

Trunks approached the table and paused for a moment.

I wish… I wish that life would be this good forever.

Trunks blew out the candles, then cut and plated the first slice of cake for himself. He walked back over to Soifon and put his finger in the icing of the cake.

"Don't even think about it," she said. "I'll make that finger another birthday candle."

"Yea, yea, yea," he replied. "Spare me the empty threats." She tried to avoid it, but Trunks smeared her nose with frosting, which drew a laugh out of everyone else but Soifon. She growled, but then controlled herself. While Trunks looked away, she tapped his opposite shoulder. He looked in that direction and was met with the piece of cake. Soifon folded her arms and looked away, but then Trunks started laughing, which infectiously caused her to giggle as well.

Ichigo, who stood in front of them, quickly pulled out his phone, took a picture of them, and showed it to Rukia.

"Now that's a rare sight," Rukia said.

Ichigo smiled. "It's something to hold onto, you know, for the future wedding."