Part 1 – Low Tide

A/N: I thought that there should be more stories featuring Kaien. I really liked the character, even if he played a very small role in the storyline. So why not a time-travel fanfiction with him as our time traveler. Hope someone likes this one. My first time-travel story, in fact, and first Bleach fan fiction. Wish me luck. And thanks to all readers.

I updated the first few chapters ~. I hope I can continue to draw inspiration from all the support from my readers, subscribers, voters, and reviewers.

1. Awakening

'-ake up. Wake up. WAKE UP!'

A man with shaggy black hair stirred. He sat up with a start, eyes frantic and a bit dazed. The world around him appeared a mass of black and white.

'Awake now, dead guy? Good. Why don't we get started?'

The black-haired man swiveled his head around but saw nothing but a black horizon and a white floor. He ungracefully scrambled to his feet.

"Dead? What do you-" Flashes of memory. A dark night. Miyako. That hollow... "Oh. I died. By that damn Metastacia's hands – err – tentacles."

'Yes, yes, Shiba Kaien, to state the obvious.'

"But then, where am I? I thought Rukia stopped me."

'Yes, well, there lies the conundrum. Another hollow ended up eating the dying body of Metastacia. And that's on top of Metastacia's damned ability to merge with the souls he collected and his power over zanpakuto. It, to put it lightly, screwed up your reincarnation cycle as a result of the unnaturalness of Metastacia's abilities and his subsequent death by another hollow. While the other souls were released back into the cycle, you were not. Metastacia's soul was still scrambled with your own since he didn't exactly finish eating you. Then the two of you were eaten. Arruruerie Aaroniero, the hollow in question, died and consequently dragged your soul into Hell.'

"WHAT?! This is Hell?"

'Mm. Technically you are in my Negacion. If you were in Hell proper…you'd be doomed already since you've been out for a few days. Lucky you, I happen to notice the odd reiatsu from that Arrancar that arrived here. I more or less separated you from it. But what to do with you? As a caretaker of Hell, I cannot abide a non-sinner's soul here – at least not without some due concern. But, I cannot simply kick you out as you are. Even now the paperwork concerning your presence grows. I could, of course, destroy you.'

Kaien sweat dropped at the casual tone of the voice.

'Buuut, I decided to go and contact a fellow keeper of the balance. He had considered your little problem and decided to fix your soul – kind of. I managed to separate your soul from Aaroniero, but I could not separate the hollows' taint or reiryoku – not completely. If you simply leave this place, you probably will end up losing control and eating some poor souls. Not that I really mind, but my friend did not approve this sentiment. Then again, some altruistic citizen would eventually slay you again and send you straight back to me. Hm. Option two sounds really tempting.' Kaien sweat dropped at the casual tone taken with his planned demise.

'But my friend did say he could help. He could not undo everything, however. We cannot just let you reincarnate as you are since bits and pieces of those hollow are attached to you – again the paperwork involved.'

"Alright then. What the hell are we going to do about this then?"

'Now, now, fukutaicho, no need to raise your voice at the one holding the precious remnant of your life in his metaphorical hands. My friend has decided the best course of action would be to simply adjust your current state of existence.'

"Err, and by that you mean…?"

'We're just going to have to fix the whole reincarnation process for you. Basically, we need to find a way to purge the evil from Metastacia and Aaroniero that clings to your actual soul. But we can't do it all at once. One, the process might actually destroy you. Two, it would take more of my time than I would prefer. So we will reincarnate you into a special body with all of your memories intact. This 'gigai' is actually a genuine living body – but with some modifications to handle your not-so-human soul. Kind of like a homunculus, to borrow a Western term. It will also have a purging spell linked to your karma. Basically, you need to resume your work as a Shinigami. The more evil you help prevent, the faster the process will proceed. Hopefully by the time you die again, you won't return here, and I won't have to just wipe my hands clean of you. Permanently. Understand?'

The air seemed to chill despite the jovial tone of the speaker.

"Uh…I guess so?"

'Ah yes, I forgot to mention. The process purges you of all traces of evil, but it will not wipe clean the hollow reiryoku. So your new spirit body is basically of a Visored. Much better than that of an Arrancar, at least. Hmm. You don't recognize either or those terms do you?

Well, an Arrancar is a hollow that removed its mask and gained the powers of a Shinigami. Their zanpakuto, though, does not have the same releases of a true Shinigami, but rather they repress an Arrancar's hollow powers until one enters Resurreccion. Then they regain most of their original form and powers, albeit stronger.

The Visored are the opposite. They are Shinigami who have crossed into the boundaries of the hollows in the form of a mask and hollow reiryoku. They must struggle against an inner hollow that forms as a result of the process. The past few days should have allowed your soul to reshape Metastacia's reiryoku into your own inner hollow, actually. Err... My friend did mention you might have some, ahem, trouble with that. I'll give you some options. You may begin your new life in the World of the Living as it is. That means, well, entering a rather tense war right now. A few days in my domain means quite a bit of time has passed. I believe two years in the other realms, in fact.'

"WHAT? And what war?"

Kaien could practically see the smirk on the invisible caretaker's face.

'Don't be so dramatic, Shiba boy. The current war is just one that has resulted in a slew of deaths among the high and low of the Soul Society and Hueco Mundo. Not like you can do much as you are, anyways. You will need months of training before you can even think of using your abilities. Unless you do want to choose the second option of what I can do to rid myself of you? No? Good.

Consequently, I do have some control over my part of Hell. I can, how you say, tinker with the dimensions here. In short, I can send you to the World of the Living of another time. I won't be sending you at any time before your first death. And, I can't let you interfere with certain events. However, I can allow a little twisting. The time line can be split, but certain events will play out as it is, not because it can't handle the stress but mostly because my friend would chide me for hours if I mess around too much.

So, Shiba Kaien, I shall drop you off sometime during the early years of a fellow Shinigami. Ehh, your cousin of sorts, if I understand it right. I don't much like paying attention to the events of the other worlds. To be honest, I am first shipping you off to my friend in the other room. He will finish processing your soul and get you started. Bye-bye.'

"Wait! What cous-" The world around Kaien twisted and broke apart in a whirl of light. When he came to again, he seemed to be in some sort of white room with a bunch of empty picture frames hanging on the walls.

'Hello Shiba Kaien.'

"Another bodiless voice? I take it you're the friend."

'Yes. You may know me better as the Soul King.'

"…"

'Mortus really does not like to explain the finer details of things. But he does have a good heart. He cannot allow something like you to remain and continue putting strain on the balance in his domain, though.

Now, as to what we will do with you. I shall be sending you to the World of the Living. Your soul form will not resemble you exactly, but it will do. You will look a few years younger, however. It's for the best, as I wish for you to watch over a Shinigami-to-be; a Shiba, like you, but born in the World of the Living. He is a hybrid of sorts, and the son of one Shiba Isshin. I shall send you some reading materials to help you along, but I do not have much time to spare in explanations. Do not worry so much about your age. Humans do grow so fast.

Also, you will not have the same level of skill you had as a fukutaicho, nor will you have your zanpakuto. You need to develop them since your initial body may not handle the true extent of your powers well. At least not yet. Don't worry, they will come in time as you establish yourself in your new body. As for your zanpakuto, you should procure an asauchi. Otherwise, you will find everything you need available to you. I should warn you to not reveal yourself to too many people as they may or may not respond well to your circumstances. So stick to your notes, and you should be fine.

Oh, our time comes to a close. So, I must ask you again, just as a matter of courtesy. Will you leave behind your past and take up a new life? At least you will be able to help all many of the people you left behind and some new ones. Well?'

Kaien didn't hesitate. "Yes."

The world disappeared one last time.

2. Lessons

Kaien could swear something was poking his face. Irritated, the revived Shinigami swatted at the offender. The protrusion retracted. Then he felt a sudden kick into his side.

"Urk!"

"Serves you right sleepy head. Get up already, it's time for your lessons."

"Wha…" Kaien blinked his eyes open. Then jerked back from the black and white thing that was right in his face. It was some sort of panda bear plushy. Kaien's eyebrows rose.

"Okay. What in the world are you little guy?" The bear narrowed its little button eyes. Che. It kind of looks cu- The bear reared its leg and kicked Kaien in the forehead.

"Ow. Why'd you do that for?" Kaien whined his hands clutching his head. What is with this thing? Oww. Is it made with lead instead of stuffing?

"I know what you're thinking. I am not cute, adorable, or any other synonym. I may be a gikon, but I do have my pride. Mortus-sama decided that you would need me to keep an eye on your body when you need to go and cleanse some hollows. You're basically a human now with a Shinigami's soul. You die, no second chances. Either you clean up your soul or Mortus-sama will wipe his hands of you and probably be disappointed with me. So just try not to die too early, Shinigami."

Kaien regarded the toy with a deadpan expression.

"You do not act like any gikon I've ever used," muttered Kaien, earning another smack by the panda bear.

"I would hope not. I'm not just a gikon, I am a modified soul."

"Aren't those illegal?"

"Tch, I think mod souls are great. We actually have a personality of our own. Mortus-sama thought someone like I could help you cope with the World of the Living a bit better. As a Shinigami, you didn't exactly gain any practical experience in the human world. As I am a, ahem, recalled product, you probably should keep that little tidbit quiet. Now, Mortus-sama happened to liberate me some time ago on one of his rare trips to the Soul Society. I have kept him company for years, acting as his informant here in the World of the Living for the last few decades. Besides this little panda bear, I also have a human gigai of my own."

"So why are you in a panda bear?"

This time Kaien caught the little guy's fist. Ignoring the gikon's protests and curses, the Shinigami just held him in the air as he got up from the bed. Spotting the dresser, Kaien tossed the panda bear back onto the bear and changed out of the sleeping kimono and into some shirts and pants. The panda bear muttered darkly the whole time. Kaien crossed his arms and regarded the odd little toy.

"Maybe we got on the wrong start. I'm Shiba Kaien. Nice to meet you…?"

The panda crossed its legs. "I don't have one. A name that is. Mortus-sama just called me gikon."

"Well, that won't do. If we're going to be stuck together for a while then I'll just give you a name. How about…Kuro?"

"NO. Where'd you come up with that? I'm white, too."

"Okay. Kuma?"

"The lack of imagination from such a high-ranking fukutaicho. Must be a family thing."

"What? Never mind. Hmm. You certainly speak your mind. Why not Kagami?"

"Eh? Mirror? Why mirror?"

"Well, you don't pull your punches, figuratively and literally. Like a mirror, you have no compunctions against telling me what's what."

"Hmm. Okay, Kagami it is. Speaking of mirrors, don't you want to see how you've changed? I was there when you first arrived to Hell, by the way. I got to say, it's an improvement."

Kaien clucked his tongue at his new companion but thought better of chucking the balled up sleepwear at Kagami. He had some maturity. The former fukutaicho walked from the bedroom and into the hallway. Ducking his head through a couple doorways, he found a little office, a sitting room, before finally finding the bathroom.

*Blink. Blink*

The face staring at him was unfamiliar. A teenager stood a few inches short of six feet (5' 9'' or 175 centimeters). His formerly black hair was closer to indigo in color and sported several streaks of scarlet. His blue-green eyes were a nearly colorless grey. He had a tan! Even his face looked different. Some sort of curve of the cheekbones, a certain tilting of the eyes, and a stranger looked back in the mirror. I suppose no one really will guess I'm a Shiba Kaien. Kaien still didn't know exactly how to take this final reminder of his losses.

Losses. Tears began to trail down his face. Miyako. He hardly had a minute to himself during the whole 'not dead' situation. Now that there was no one around, Kaien let reality fold in on him. How could I forget? I lost Miyako that night. How long ago was that? My Miyako…

A touch at his elbow sometime later jolted the grieving Shinigami. A young boy stared up at him, face tense with sympathy and concern.

"Mortus-sama told me a bit about your former life," whispered the gikon.

He looked like a younger version of his gigai minus the red streaks and having nearly black eyes.

"Don't worry. We have some time. Mourn for her. You really didn't have much time to consider everything, did you? Nor did you even spare a day in your original life to mourn her passing."

Kaien grabbed a hand towel next to the sink and wiped his face. "No, no. Miyako…she died honorably and with courage in her heart, I'm sure. She would probably scold me if I procrastinated from my duties. What do I need to do and know?"

The young boy's eyes darkened with a certain knowing that far surpassed his youthful appearance. He simply stood there and stared at Kaien for a full minute.

"…You may want to sit down first. Come with me to the sitting room."

"So, my name is Saishokou Kaien. I'm a 15-year-old human that will be attending Karakura Senior High School in two weeks as a transfer student from Kyoto. And you're my younger brother who is eleven and a home-schooled prodigy. We had a mother and father, a doctor and a police officer, but they died from sickness. I'm taking care of you, but we do have some distant relatives providing for us."

"Yep, that's it in a nutshell. You should be meeting your cousin there, too."

"Okay. What cousin? And why is he attending a school here in the World of the Living?"

"About that…" The young boy's careless smile shuttered. "You are – were – a Shiba. Family means a lot in that clan if I recall. To put it plainly… You're uncle broke a ton of rules. As the story goes, he arrived to the World of the Living on a high risk mission without any backup some fifteen years ago. The hollow White was new one, an enhanced one like Metastacia. The creature had unnaturally high reiatsu, strength, and speed. It overwhelmed the 10th division taicho. He probably would have died if not for the brave actions of a human."

"A human?"

"Yes. One of the 'extinct' Quincies. Despite the danger, despite the bloodied history between their races, she came to the aid of an injured Shinigami. She let the creature come in close and bite her so that she may shoot it at point-blank range. The hollow fell but left its mark. Quincies and Hollow don't mix, did you know that? They are incompatible. Just as a Quincy arrow will destroy a hollow utterly, a hollow's reiatsu will completely destroy a Quincy. This hollow was made to infect its target. For a Quincy, it should have been absolutely fatal. But your uncle refused this. To save her life, Isshin became the opposite of a hollow, a human. A certain shopkeeper facilitated this and provided him the means to connect her life to his until Masaki's death or the banishing of the hollow. From that night on, Isshin would remain bound in his gigai, his Shinigami powers lost in return for the life of his savior."

"I expect nothing less from a Shiba, from Uncle Isshin least of all."

"Masaki was a brave and courageous lady, wouldn't you agree? I bet you would have liked her."

"Would have?"

"She passed six years ago. She and Isshin did have three children, one boy and two twin girls. You'll be meeting the eldest child, the boy."

"And his name?"

"Nope."

"What?"

"Not telling you. Mortus-sama thought that you of all people will recognize family. You'll be finding it out in two weeks. Speaking of which-" The young boy paused and walked over to a cabinet in the corner. The opened door revealed several intimidating and bulky textbooks. "-You will need to study these books. You need to know enough to pass as a high school student. That means history, writing, mathematics, English, Japanese, et cetera et cetera. Hopefully you won't do absolutely horrid."

"Hey!"

"… How long ago was it that you attended school? How much do you actually know of these subjects? I thought so. Study or look like an idiot for all I care. I know all this stuff, but I will not do your homework, just so you know. But…" emphasized the gikon, "if you do want to succeed in your pseudo human life, then you have no better instructor than the one from hell."

"Okay, okay," chuckled Kaien, a wide smile shining on his face. It faded a second later, replaced by a serious expression. "What did you mean about 'enhanced' hollows?"

"Hmm. Mortus-sama did okay this subject. One of your fellow Shinigami, well, was not the nicest of guys. One hundred years ago several taichos and fukutaichos disappeared, supposedly deceased, correct? They did not die. Some less polite folk would call their current situation a most unpleasant word or words, in fact.

Remember the Visored that Mortus-sama discussed? All but three met that fate and not of their own choice. A fellow Shinigami, a fukutaicho at the time, made them into his lab rats. He had created all sorts of interesting hollows, actually – before and after that time. He had begun research on Hollowfication. His first set of subjects were Rukongai citizens. They died. His next batch, the taichos and fukutaichos, did not die due to the interference of the 12th Division Urahara Kisuke-taicho and Kido Corps Tsukabishi Tessai-taicho. They could not reverse the process, but they could help the eight officers overcome their inner hollows. So they lived. But, Central 46 did not agree to their new status. They misplaced all the blame on those two and then ordered the exile of Urahara-san and Tsukabishi-san and the execution of the eight newly Visored. Luckily, Shihoin-taicho saved those two and the rest were hidden away.

The Visored, the two exiled, and the Shihoin Princess managed to escape with their powers intact. However, Urahara-san and Tsukabishi-san can never return to Soul Society unless someone lifts the spell blocking them from entering.

As for the traitor … He had woven his webs of deceit for the past century since then. One of which ended your past life. Metastacia? He was a prime example of the traitor's continued experiments in erasing the barriers between Shinigami and hollows. Furthermore, I'm 90% confident that he also orchestrated the fall of your clan shortly after your subsequent death."

"What happened to the Shiba Clan?" asked, Kaien, his voice deceptively cool.

"They fell from favor. The once Five Great Noble Houses became four. I do not have all the details, but some indiscretions or some equally ridiculous charges came to light. Whatever it was, the clan was banished from the Seireitei and scattered throughout the Rukongai. Your uncle actually would have followed them if he did not have a squad of his own to protect."

Kaien became paler and tenser as the gikon continued his lecture. At the pause, the Shinigami asked in a hoarse voice, "Who? Who betrayed us?"

Kagami's face became stony. He drew a deep breath. "The traitor… is one Aizen Sosuke. Taicho of the fifth division if I recall."

"No way. Aizen-taicho had always been a kind and gentle man. Everyone in the Seireitei loves him."

"Exactly. Well, not everyone. His former taicho Hirako Shinji never did trust him completely. And that proved his downfall. The nature of Aizen-taicho's zanpakuto is not water-based but one of illusions. Anyone that sees the Shikai release is instantly caught in his Complete Hypnosis technique. All five senses become warped to his designs. Every time after, the victims will fall back under his spell when he releases his zanpakuto. As far as I am aware of, the only way to detect the spell, even marginally, is to possess inherently strong instincts, have strong enough bonds to detect minute differences in his fakes, or to touch the blade of Kyoka Suigetsu before Shikai release. Elsewise, there's no escape. Hirako-taicho made the mistake to not know his fukutaicho well, so he did not realize the differences in his fake-Aizen."

What a terrifying power was the first thought that came to mind. Kaien's mind felt scrambled from the series of revelations. His initial impulse said to deny it all, but the grim expression of Kagami held not a trace of guile or lie. The gikon truly believed in what he was saying. The implications left the former fukutaicho disturbed to put it mildly.

"How could we not know?" he whispered.

"The guy's crazy strong and shrewd. The most dangerous and evil men of this world are the charismatic ones that we never doubt, the ones who give with one hand and hold a poisoned dagger sheathed in the sleeve of the other hand. As a technically 'new' soul, the previous enchantment should no longer apply. So just avoid staring at his sword when you confront him since you have an abnormally high chance of confronting him within the year."

"…"

"Okay, onto lighter topics. Why don't we review the dos and don'ts of your new existence? I hope I don't have to reiterate how bad an idea it is to let the wrong people know your previous history. That new form of yours should keep people from guessing. Keep your head down, and you might make it through the first couple of months without a problem. In addition…try to act like the ignorant human you are imposing as. Shinigami will inevitably meet you in the future, but let us keep them in the dark about how much you know, shall we? We will be working on your training, don't you worry. You're lucky that you retain the soul of a Shinigami. You won't have any of your former finesse or skills, yet, but by the end you will be even better than before."

The smile the boy bared reminded Kaien of a crocodile's grin – mean and full of teeth.

"I do have some added strength, speed, and endurance as a mod soul. I even can cause temporary amnesia with the right motivation. I have a training area below the house so focus on Kido, Hakuda, and Hoho. No zanpakuto, so no Zanjutsu for a while."

Kagami narrowed his eyes dangerously when Kaien tried to protest the last.

"My home, my responsibilities, my rules. One last note. Kaien, try to avoid getting too angry. A tantrum every now and then is okay, but full-blown rages will weaken the barriers keeping that hollow of yours asleep. Once you gain your zanpakuto, though, the countdown begins."

"Countdown?"

"Having an actual zanpakuto probably will put even more stress on those restriction spells since it will naturally strip away more of the seals on your innate potential. Don't give me that pout, Kaien, we will find someone to help you when the time comes. Plus, I don't use swords, so you'll need another teacher anyways. Any questions? Yes? Too bad, I'm tired, so go study. I have some more books in the study for future reference. There should be some detailed history texts on the Soul Society, accurate accounts of important trials and events, and some useful ones about future events. Dinner's already set. I'll continue our lessons tomorrow."

3. Welcome to Karakura High

Kagami can be brutal. Kaien sported some fairly nasty aches and pains. The little boy form looked deceptively weak. It wasn't. Apparently his new guardian took offense at Kaien's sense of humor. The four foot nothing brat slammed him into the ground of the forested training area twice in their first session. Kaien was lucky the brat knew enough kido to heal him else his face would be one big bruise.

Afterwards, the mod soul made the groaning Kaien get up and tour the town. He anticipated each groan of protest with a swift kick to the side even before Kaien intoned the first moan.

His 'little brother' was adamant on Kaien's overall studies. He would usually wake the Shinigami with a plushy kick and a pop quiz on any number of topics. By the end of two weeks, Kagami deemed Kaien fit to at least not shame himself. The gikon allowed Kaien to carry his gikongan in a necklace dispenser, claiming that the usual dispensers were "tacky and suspicious".

"Where the heck is the class- oh, there it is."

Kaien gave one last tug on his tie as he entered the room. He really did not like the suffocating thing, but Kagami nearly strangled him with it when he complained.

Note to self: learn how to tie your own tie. Kaien let his usual smirk grace his face. The Shinigami scanned the classroom. In one corner, he saw a group of three girls, one black-haired and fit, one brown-haired that gave a creepy vibe, and the other a rather sweet-looking (and somewhat busty) girl with bright ginger hair. He walked over to an empty desk.

"I've never seen you before," muttered his neighbor.

Turning his head to his left, Kaien nearly gasped out aloud. The kid was about his height, had bright orange hair, and reddish brown eyes. Otherwise, he could have passed for a double of his old self. "Mortus-sama thought that you of all people will recognize family." Even now, their resemblance was uncanny – the adjustments to his facial shape actually made them more similar if possible. Kaien let a wide cheerful grin spread across his face.

"Nice to meet you. My name's Sh-Saishokou Kaien. I'm actually new to Karakura Town. You can call me Kaien." The orange haired youth grunted in response, a scowl still present on his face.

"…I'm Kurosaki Ichigo."

"Man, are always so scowly in the morning, Strawberry?"

"Shut up! My name means 'one who protects', not a damned fruit."

Kaien held up his hands in surrender, his smile only widening.

"I give, I give. You certainly have a temper."

"Bastard," Ichigo muttered under his breath. Kaien only laughed. He was a Shiba originally, not like he hadn't heard the same or worse. Ichigo may be a bit surly and angry for Shiba, but the small smile pulling at the corner of his mouth made Kaien believe he had at least a bit of the Shiba personality in there. Deep, deep inside.

A month passed. Kaien managed to finally wear down his cousin enough to let him into his small circle of friends. Ichigo didn't have many. His best friend was a big mixed Mexican-Japanese kid named Sado Yasutora, or Chad as Ichigo insisted. His other friends were one Arisawa Tatsuki, Kojima Mizuiro, and Asano Keigo. He also had a more casual friendship with Inoue Orihime and by a stretch, Honsho Chizuru. Chad was a quiet one, gentle and soft-spoken despite his size. He kind of reminded Kaien of one his mentors. He thought Inoue-chan was a really sweet girl, a bit of a klutz and somewhat airy, but a kind-hearted friend. Arisawa-san was tough and loud. She made no bones about warning Kaien off of her large-breasted friend. The girl sure could give some seated officers a run for brute strength.

Today would be definitely a turning point. Kaien was just complaining about his brother's cooking (his sensei could only make the simplest dishes with effort – i.e. almost never) during lunch when Ichigo invited him over to his house. Kaien froze mid-rant. Then he gave his cousin a grin and dramatically applauded his friend for taking an initiative in his social life. To which, Ichigo knocked him off his feet with a muttered "as bad as Goat-Face."

They were just walking to the Kurosaki Clinic when Ichigo abruptly stopped. A bunch of punks were skateboarding and one knocked over a vase of flowers. To the side cried the plus soul of a young girl. Ichigo calmly walked over and smacked the offending skater into the pavement. Kaien hummed in approval. Disrespecting an offering to the dead was definitely uncool. He let his cousin handle the situation. Ichigo soon had the thugs running. Kaien strolled over to his cousin and the plus soul.

"Hey there. Don't you worry Miss. I'm sure you will find a better place really soon," murmured Kaien.

During one of their few walks together from school, Kaien noted that Ichigo could see spirits. The kid was good at hiding it, but Kaien could be observant and could see the occasional discrete gestures Ichigo offered from the corner of his eye. Not exactly a surprise given the guy's overwhelming reiatsu that practically suffocated the classroom. But Kaien had not yet revealed his own spiritual awareness. Until now, that is.

"You can see her?"

"Yep."

"… I guess I'm not the only weird one at least."

"Ha, ha, we can freaks together. Come on, didn't you say your old man had dinner at seven?"

Kaien thought he handled the meeting well. He almost messed up when he saw his Uncle Isshin. Although, to be fair, he wasn't expecting his uncle to greet his own son with a kick to the face. He schooled his shock in time, at least he thought he did. Then he laughed. That led to Ichigo rounding on him after he finished yelling at his father.

"What are you laughing at, you grey-eyed-"

"Ichigo! There are ladies present."

"Yeah, Ichigo," snarked a young raven haired girl. She looked over to Kaien still chuckling in the hallway. "Hi, you must be Saishokou Kaien, Ichigo's friend. I'm Karin and this is my sister Yuzu. She was one who cooked dinner."

Kaien silenced his laughter and greeted his other cousins with his usual jovial tone. "Yeah, your big brother sure is special. I can't believe a lug like him can have such lovely sisters." Kaien ducked his head as a fist flew through the space it just vacated.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kaien only gave an answering laugh. Uncle Isshin did a double take when he saw the blue-haired double of his son. Then:

"Oh Masaki! Our son has a friend!"

"Hey, nii-san, I think you picked up another friend."

Hovering just behind Ichigo was another plus soul.

"When did he get here?! Damn Kaien, why didn't you tell me?"

"I thought you knew already."

"…" Kaien finally noticed the sudden hush. Both of Ichigo's sisters were staring at him. Isshin…well…

"Masaki, Ichigo made a friend as special as he is! He must have great fortune to find friends like this. And he has a sense of humor, too."

That stirred another round of yelling. Kaien just walked over to the girls and grabbed a bowl of curry and watched. Another smile tugged on his face. The Kurosaki family really did remind him of his own clan's quirks and antics.

4. Substitute Soul Reaper

Kaien nearly freaked later that night when he felt the presence of his favorite tiny subordinate. Kagami whacked him over the head when he tried to lunge out the window. The gikon then proceeded to dress him down for trying to fight a hollow without even a proper weapon or an acceptable level of training. He even had the audacity to tie Kaien up when he felt Rukia's reiatsu almost disappear.

"Go to sleep. It's fine. Rukia just gave your cousin there a fighting chance," ordered the mod soul to the still tied up fukutaicho.

"A fighting chance?"

"Your family will do anything to protect their family, would you not agree? Rukia gave him the power to protect them from Fishbone D. She lent him her powers."

"WHAT?! But that means-"

"Don't worry. It'll work out. And remember that you're not 100% Shinigami anymore. Humanity gives you a lot of room for growth, but potential means nothing to experience – experience from this lifetime," added Kagami.

"Damn…I hate being so helpless to protect my friends. Wait. Are the Kurosakis…?"

"Fine. You'll see. You did promise to stop by Ichigo's since it's along your way to school." The gikon at least had the courtesy to untie Kaien. Well, mostly. He suspiciously left his hands tied up.

The next morning proved the gikon right. Kaien walked by the Kurosaki home to be greeted by the sight of a giant hole busted through one of the walls. Putting on an appropriately wide-eyed expression, Kaien mildly asked his confused friend what happened.

"Kaien…I half-expect you to think I'm crazy."

"Oh?"

"But you might be the only guy who would believe me. Some chick came through my window-"

"Was she pretty?" leered Kaien, humor hiding his concern.

"Knock it off, you pervert! Anyways, she said she was a Shinigami, a death god. She talked about how the spirit world worked with some crappy drawings," to which Kaien more than could attest, "about plus souls – the spirits we usually see – and then about these monsters called hollows."

Kaien raised his eyebrows in a hopefully clueless expression. "Hollow? What's that?"

"They're some sort of evil version of plus souls. Apparently they attack other spirits and humans. She said that as a Shinigami, it is her duty is to guide plus souls to something called Soul Society, or heaven, and to kill hollows. Then, this huge hollow attacked my family. Rukia nearly died, but she gave me her powers so that I could protect my family."

A moment of silence.

"You're all alright?"

"Yeah. I had this huge ass sword almost as tall as I am, and I sliced right through it. But when I woke up this morning, no one seemed to remember what happened last night. They just kept saying a truck crashed through the house. And all our injuries were gone. You think I'm crazy…I mean, I hardly can believe myself."

"Hm. I think that this world is a lot bigger than what we think it is. If good souls exist, why not evil ones? And to protect those good souls, some force must be there to save them. My best friend is an awesome kick-ass superhero!" gushed Kaien good-naturedly. Ichigo gave him a disgusted look and tapped him hard on the back of his head.

"Idiot. I swear that you are channeling my dad sometimes."

Kaien just tossed an arm around the slightly shorter boy and threw back his head with a laugh.

Ichigo stared blankly at their new classmate. Kaien couldn't blame him. He was doing the exact same thing.

"That's her, the Shinigami," he muttered, anger beginning to lace Ichigo's voice. "What is she doing here?"

Kaien could barely detect any reiatsu from Rukia. A sneaking suspicion began to take hold. He nearly laughed outright when he saw the warning Rukia penned on her palm.

At the end of school, Ichigo dragged both Kaien and Rukia off to a deserted street of abandoned warehouses.

"Okay," huffed Ichigo "Spill. What are you doing here?"

Kaien had to say: Rukia could put on a pretty good offended air.

"How dare you. I'm here to learn and participate in the rewarding educational system. And why did you drag…" When she looked at Kaien, she blanched. Then she swiveled her head back and forth between Ichigo and himself before composing herself. "I don't think you have formally introduced yourself, nor I you. I am Kuchiki Rukia."

"Saishokou Kaien. I know everything. I can see ghosts, too, Kuchiki-san."

"…" At his name, Rukia's composure slipped again, a fleeting look of anguish. Then the rest of the statement computed. Rukia skipped over to Ichigo's side with a smile and punched him in the shoulder.

"I told you not to tell anyone!"

"Hey! I told him before you showed up out of the blue."

"Forgive my hot-headed friend. So Kuchiki-san, why are you still around? I understood that Shinigami didn't linger."

"I can't. Only Shinigami can travel to Soul Society. I completely lost my powers, so I cannot return at the moment."

"!?" Ichigo's face paled in apprehension and guilt. "Okay, where did your powers go?"

"Ichigo, I think-"

"You have them. Your soul has become that of a Shinigami's. I only have traces of my powers left, hardly enough to use. I am also forced to use this artificial body, a gigai, so that I may restore my powers."

"What does that have to with me?"

"Since I can no longer perform my duties, I need you to do them. I can trust that Saishokou-kun will not say anything."

"Sure."

"I REFUSE," stated Ichigo, his hands making an X sign.

"What?!" Rukia looked flat out flabbergasted. Kaien was sure he had a similar expression on his face.

"No way am I going to fight monsters ever again. Yesterday, I fought for my family. For total strangers? No. I'm not that nice of a guy," said Ichigo, walking away from Rukia and Kaien.

Kaien sighed. "Sorry Kuchiki-san. I'll try to go talk some sense into him. Eh, why are you staring at me?"

"Hm? Oh. It's nothing, it's just that your name…and your face…I had very dear friend also named Kaien." Kaien's smile faded. Rukia, I'm so sorry. I made you…I'll make it up to you.

"Haha, I bet this other Kaien wasn't as handsome as me. As for my face, I think I do look freakishly like Ichigo. I think we might be distant relatives, but my parents died a few years ago and didn't talk much about our family. Maybe the three of us are related. Or, it's the doppelganger effect. Oh well, either way. See you around Kuchiki-san."

"It's Rukia. You can call me Rukia. As for Kurosaki-kun…" Rukia slipped on a skull emblazoned glove and darted in front of Ichigo. She pushed her gloved hand through his head and forced his soul to separate from his body.

"What?! What did you…my body?!" Ichigo proceeded to freak out.

Kaien shook off his gloom and smiled. Rukia yelled at Ichigo to follow her. Staring down at the unoccupied body, Kaien sighed but smiled, as he hefted his friend's dead weight. Thinking better of just lugging him around (he'd probably just get arrested), Kaien reached for the dispenser.

"?! Who the hell did you put me into? Did you murder someone or something?"

"No doofus. Ichigo became a Shinigami. Rukia just led his soul somewhere else. I thought it would best if we didn't leave his unconscious body here. So, I'll run after them, and you will find a nearby place to stash his body. After you're done, come find us. Here, I even have your panda bear in my backpack."

"*Snicker* Why are you carrying my stuff animal?" Kaien's face flushed.

"Err, well, uhh... It pays to be prepared!"

"Sure, sure. Go on. You'll lose them. Actually, why don't you work on your soul perception and track Rukia's spirit ribbon. You should be able to do that much. See ya!"

Before, Kaien could retaliate, Ichigo's body ran off toward the Kurosaki Clinic. Damn toy. Kaien looked around and grabbed the distinctive red ribbon of his favorite little Shinigami with a pang.

He arrived in the park just in time to see his cousin pierce a hollow through his mask. Hearing his speech, Kaien pushed aside some of his worries. Ichigo really was a nicer guy than he claimed. Kaien knew his friend and cousin would never fail his friends or stand aside when someone was in trouble. That just wasn't in him.

Over the next couple of months, Kaien would be on standby, helping to cover for Ichigo, dragging his unconscious body into the bushes, keeping an eye on Kon when the mod soul tried to get into trouble, and instructing Rukia on the World of the Living. Kaien nearly had a heart attack when Grand Fisher appeared at the cemetery and nearly killed his three cousins. And that damned hollow escaped through a Garganta. Damn his new body's slow progress.

Ichigo was a little out of it for a while, but Rukia knew just what to do. Sometimes Kaien really wished he could help, but then Kagami would knock him on the head and tell him to bide his time. After which, the mod soul would drag Kaien's soul into the training area and make him work on his Hakuda – blindfolded. The gikon had no qualms launching a barrage of Kido spells at the impaired Shinigami.

Walking in the classroom, Kaien raised his eyebrow at Rukia who had her Denreishinki out. Her face was drawn tight with worry.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

"Hm? Oh, Kaien-kun. It's nothing. I'm just checking on the hollow activity."

"I noticed that Ichigo had made quite a few wild goose chases in the past few days."

"Yeah…"

"Oh look, there's our favorite strawberry!"

Kaien tried to wrap an arm around his surly friend, at which Ichigo ducked around him. Kaien just fell sideways, but Ichigo grabbed his uniform to right him. Then he cuffed Kaien on the back of his head.

"Ow. Rukia-chan, Ichigo's being mean for no good reason."

"Call it instinct; you were mocking my name again, I can tell."

"Whaa?! I never!" The indignantly of Kaien's tone was ruined by the smile turning the corners of his mouth. "So, no hollows?"

Ichigo scowled.

"Ah well. Nothing we can do about that. Oh, look. Maybe Asano-san's theatrics will cheer you two up."

"ICHIGO! KAIEN! Come and share the pain of being morons! Exams are over and the scores are in!"

"I wouldn't say that to quickly Asano-san," interrupted Kojima Mizuiro. "Look here."

On the list of the top fifty scores of midterms, Ichigo scored 18th, Kaien took a place at 15th (told you, Kagami, I'm a lot smarter than I seem).

"Wow, Ichi-chan, you did really well. Not as well as I did but-" Kaien ducked under a fist. Oops. I guess Ichigo didn't appreciate the new nickname.

"How can you be happy about this, Kaien?" lamented the class's goof off. Keigo then proceeded to blubber and throw hysterics over how impossible it would be that someone like Ichigo and Kaien could be this good at school. He then tried foisting some nerdy apparel on Ichigo. Kaien snickered the whole time that Keigo denounced the validity of the two class troublemakers in the top percentile of the class. Although Ichigo's explanation of why he studied so hard brought a frown to Kaien's face. They thought Ichigo was some kind of punk? Granted, his cousin could be brutal, but still… Ah, that would explain why the teachers also looked at him funny. Must be the resemblance.

"Poor misunderstood Ichigo! At least you have us who will always trust- Ow!"

Why could no one let him finish speaking today?

Later that day, they finally discovered why the hollows kept disappearing. Kaien tagged along this run, and they found some guy dressed like a priest who took down a hollow with a single arrow. Then he calmly went on to say he hated Shinigami, including them.

The next day in class, Asano-san went into hysterics about the scores of the final exams for the first term. Apparently placing 11th (Chad), 19th (Kaien), and 23rd (Ichigo) was a clear betrayal of their friendship with Keigo. Glancing at the board, Kaien stopped for a moment. At the very top of the list was one Ishida Uryuu.

Great, the stuck-up Quincy is our classmate…no wonder he knew who we were. Look like Ichigo finally found this out by the way Inoue was pointing to the board for him. Ichigo told Kaien later that day of his planned confrontation with their classmate. Before Kaien could advise him (is it really a good idea to follow a guy who apparently hates your existence? Or alone?) when he felt his phone begin to vibrate.

*Ring!*

Kaien fished his phone out of his pocket with a speculative look. No one besides Ichigo and Rukia called him. The text on the phone read, "Come home. I have something for you. I think you might need it sooner than later."

"Sorry, Ichigo, got to go home. Do not do anything rash, okay? Bye Strawberry."

Kaien barely opened the door when a long silvery object flew straight at his face. He reflexively grabbed at the brown blurred part. In his hand was a perfectly balanced katana that tickled his spiritual perception.

"Is this…?"

"Yep. Finally managed to snatch an asauchi blade from a certain fellow. Oh, if you see a really weird and flamboyant guy, err, keep him away from me, will you? Mortus-sama came and prepared the blade himself, using his own two hands (metaphorically speaking), so all you need to do is send a little of your reiryoku through the blade. This will quicken the imprinting process."

"So I'll finally have Nejibana back?"

"… No."

"What do you mean, 'No'?" whined Kaien.

"You are not the same soul that created Nejibana. You're the same at the core, but also have other things mixed into that. The spirit of the sword will most likely carry characteristics and the memories of your original zanpakuto, but you will have to learn its name, its new name."

"…"

"Think of it this way. You won't necessarily have to wait years and years to learn its name since you already have a connection to it. You just need to realize this first. I'll help- What the hell?!"

Kaien hand unconsciously clamped on the handle of his asauchi, as he felt the presence of dozens of hollows invading Karakura Town. Impossible. Why are so many hollows entering all at once? Ichigo, Rukia!

Kagami's face paled. Then it took on a determined expression. "Go. It's best to learn on the go. I don't think your two friends will be able to handle this alone."

Kaien nodded his head once. Kagami removed his pill, and Kaien caught the falling body, settling the gigai to the floor.

For the first time since he had arrived, his spiritual body bore the trademark shihakusho of a Shinigami rather than the reproduction of his gigai's clothes. He ran some of his reiryoku through the asauchi. The standard katana flashed. It changed only somewhat, the blade lengthening, the cross guard turning sapphire with a silver Celtic knot design, and the hilt curving and turning a gleaming black. Not Shikai, though. Another barrier blocked that next level of power, but the sword would suffice.

"Just holding and connecting to the blade has unlocked your deeper reservoirs of Shinigami power," commented Kagami in Kaien's human body. "Nice outfit. Good luck and try not to die."

With that shining piece of advice, Kaien jumped out the window and took to the sky.

A hollow swept into Ichigo's blind spot. No time for questions. Kaien hadn't practiced with a blade for months, but the old movements came automatically. He shunpoed behind Ichigo and slashed the monster's mask.

You may not be Nejibana, but you are my sword.

"Ichigo, what kind of trouble have you got yourself into, now?"

"Pft. I was wondering when you would show, Shinigami," remarked a certain four-eyed Quincy.

"Kaien? What the hell are you doing with a zanpakuto?"

"Horde of hollows, Ichigo? Not the time for this Ichigo. Let's just try to survive. Damn," another five hollows ripped out of the sky above them, "why are there so many?"

"Blame Ishida there."

"Ishida Uryuu? I guess I'm not surprised to see him here. Wait. He's the one to draw all those hollows here?!"

"Yeah. The dumbass broke something and drew all those hollows here for a challenge. Apparently, he thinks Shinigami are useless and… Wait a minute... Oi Ishida! How did you know Kaien was a Shinigami?"

"Easy. Same way I knew you were one. He has a red spirit ribbon. I noticed it ever since he began at our school."

"Kaien, you'd better have a good explanation after all this," growled Ichigo. Cute.

"Maybe it will be okay to tell you. But later. First," muttered Kaien as he used the momentary lull to round on Ishida, "why don't you explain why you would endanger hundreds of people?"

"Pft. Typical Shinigami. Can't see a thing. I'm doing this to demonstrate exactly how useless Shinigami are. I, a Quincy, can protect this town fine on my own. I'll destroy more hollows than the two of you combined. You two better hurry. Hollows do have a preference for humans of high reiatsu."

"Ichigo, we'd better split up. There are a LOT of hollows. We can't afford to pay any mind to the idiot right now." Ishida sputtered in indignation.

Ichigo didn't lighten his scowl but nodded his acquiescence. Kaien ran off to the north, sensing several hollows ganging up some plus souls.

What in the name of the Soul King is that? I really hope it's not what I think it is.

Kaien just arrived to hear Ishida Uryuu explain his history with the Shinigami, from the genocide of his people to the personal reasons that led to hatred of Shinigami. Kaien scowled at the thought of how some of his fellow Shinigami would let their prejudice prevent them from helping out a brave man like Ishida's grandfather and sensei. But he did agree with Ichigo' point – not the kick - but his point.

Kaien threw himself into the fray, cutting down hollow after hollow before joining Ichigo and Ishida in their back-to-back fighting. The elder Ishida's wish was for cooperation between Quincy and Shinigami. That would not be until someone made the effort to take the first step. The three held the horde at bay until the sky suddenly cracked open. Then a monstrous white masked face peered out of it and slowly pulled itself through the Garganta. Which brought the defending trio to their current dilemma.

"T-that's a hollow?"

"How could my bait lure something that big? Impossible."

"We can't fight that and all these hollows at the same time!"

*BOOM!*

The surrounding hollows went down in a flurry of explosions. To Kaien's utter surprise, a little girl with a HUGE blaster shot them all. And behind her was a red-headed boy with a club and…Urahara-taicho and Tsukabishi-taicho? Huh, I guess my place in Karakura Town had more than one reason. Why do I think there's a lot more secrets here than these two?

"Geta-boushi? What are you doing here?"

"We've come to the rescue. Didn't you hear before? We'll take on the small fry, Kurosaki-san. You guys better focus on the big one. Look."

"No. That's…a MENOS GRANDE!" gasped Rukia.

Kaien hated when he was right. Without Shikai, Kaien wouldn't even be able to put a scratch on that thing tearing through into reality. And his Kido was only half-decent at best right now.

"What the hell is that?"

"Menos Grande are powerful hollows formed from hundreds of smaller hollows that have combined and mixed to form that thing. Ordinary Shinigami cannot face one alone… To conceive of what could bring one here…"

"Get a grip Rukia," shouted Kaien. "We can't just stand by and let that thing rampage. We'll just have to do the best that we can. Or else everyone that we care about will die."

"How do we fight something that big, Shinigami?!"

"Hehehe, this really can make a guy do nothing but laugh. I really do doubt how something that big can be a hollow…"

The Menos Grande suddenly lashed its tongue out, grabbing several smaller hollows and devouring them whole.

"It's eating its fellow hollows..."

"Hehehe… What a monster…"

"Oi, snap out of it guys. We don't have time for hysterics."

"Kurosaki?"

Ichigo, the idiot, suddenly ran with his Khyber knife swung overhead shouting, "We'll cut and cut and cut it!"

Kaien sweat dropped. Rukia tried to stop him until Urahara-san told her to stay put. Smacking a hand to his face, the older Shinigami ran after his idiotic cousin.

"Oof!" The Menos Grande just kicked Ichigo straight back at him.

"I did try to warn you, Kurosaki," said Ishida who nocked another arrow. "You two alright?"

"Fine."

"Uh huh. We can both keep going."

"What were you thinking, Kurosaki?"

Kaien felt like banging his head against a wall. How can his cousin say such smart things sometimes and then come up with plans like cutting a Menos Grande down to size – literally? Ishida agreed with his sentiment if his groan was any indication.

The Quincy placed a hand on the Ichigo's blade when his own bow suddenly grew in power. Kaien took a minute to consider the implications when Ishida suddenly started yelling at both of them.

"For ideas, this is either brilliant…or completely idiotic. Looks ridiculous either way," muttered Kaien. Ishida had Ichigo's Khyber knife strapped to his head and Kaien's own katana tied to his back. "Why are we like this, again?"

"I think Ishida either lost it or he's an idiot," grumbled Ichigo.

"Quit complaining the two of you! Contact with your zanpakuto, and by extension your ridiculous reiatsu, allows me to create these enormous arrows. So control your powers and max it out!"

"…"

"Ishida, I'm not able to 'max out' my power per se."

"And I don't really have any control over my spiritual powers."

"WHAT? Then how have you been fighting all this time?"

"I guess I max out my power all the time. It's not like I can just turn it on and off on demand."

Great. No wonder Ichigo operated like a big glowing lantern that screamed 'eat me' to any wandering hollow. However…Kaien knew even his old self wouldn't be able to handle pumping out that much reiryoku without some consequences. So what Ichigo said couldn't be right. Rukia's shouting snapped Kaien from his musings.

"Cero! He's going to use cero! Run you guys!"

"Ichigo, we're going to have pull a miracle here. A cero that size will destroy everything in its path…Hey! You crazy strawberry!" shouted Kaien frantically.

Ichigo had pulled his zanpakuto from Ishida's head and ran right at the Menos Grande. Like a heroic idiot. Then:

He blocked the cero with his sword! That level of reiatsu…Could it be that the opposite is true? Could all that reiatsu I constantly sense be only the tip of the iceberg...? A burst of energy spilled from Ichigo's sword as it slashed down, tearing at the Menos Grande.

Finally it's over… Or not. Ichigo collapsed and his zanpakuto began to distort.

"Kurosaki!"

"Ichigo!"

The Quincy and the Shinigami rushed the side of their fallen friend.

"The power, Ichigo is losing control of his zanpakuto and himself! If this continues… Ishida?"

"I have a plan." The Quincy drew on the escaping power and shot arrow after arrow into the sky. Kaien understood. He put a hand on Ichigo's sword and raised a hand to the sky. Kagami would be so proud that Kaien finally pulled off reiatsu manipulation.

"Hado Number 31: Shakkaho!"

Kaien fired off kido spell after kido spell alongside the Quincy, stabilizing the spiritual energy. Finished, Kaien felt his legs fold from exhaustion. His vision blurred and then blackened.

6. Bye-Bye Rukia

"-ien. Kaien? You awake nii-san? Or alive?"

Kaien started and sat up. Ugh, not a good idea.

"Not a good idea," echoed Kagami. "Ah, nii-san, you sure got yourself into big trouble. Rukia-san and Ichigo-san dragged your pathetic self over here. I think they have quite a few questions for you. I believe Tsukabishi-san was kind enough to heal you, so quit whining about your injuries. Those are just phantom pains, memories of what you just did. Or reiatsu exhaustion. Either way, you should be able to go to school tomorrow. I hope you have something cooked up to explain yourself to your friends. I may not have been in my human gigai when I answered the door, too… So good luck. I have to go check on dinner!"

The little boy dashed out of the room before Kaien could attempt to strangle the little idiot. Kaien raised a hand to his forehead. What to say to Rukia and Ichigo?

Rukia seemed really distracted this morning. She didn't even ask him about his secrets – unlike Ichigo.

"When were you going to tell me, us? How do you have those powers? Were you ever going to explain?" berated Ichigo on their way to school. Kaien just did his best to – pathetically – deflect the questions with a weak, "We'll talk later, okay? There's a lot more to talk about than what a walk to school will cover." Ichigo threw him a speculative look but told Kaien that he didn't need to explain everything, just why. Man, his cousin could make a guy feel guilty.

Kaien felt uneasy since dusk. He kept alternating between looking at the clock to pacing around the sitting room.

"Kaien, knock it off or go take a walk. What's wrong, anyway?"

"Hmm." The Shinigami wore a rare pensive expression. "I don't really know, Kagami. Maybe it's all of the unspoken words between Ichigo and I. I still haven't explained myself to him or Rukia. I owe both of them answers. But, Rukia…I can see it sometimes when she says my name. My death haunts her."

"Then go."

"Huh?"

"You were a teenager once, and you are a teenager now. Go and sneak into Ichigo's room via the window. I'll even watch your body. The moon getting higher in the sky, so hurry up before they fall asleep. Go and scat, Shinigami."

Kaien picked up the panda bear and squeezed it into a bear hug.

"I may not breathe, but that still hurts. Let go you great big lummox!"

Kaien dashed across the streets when he felt it. Rukia's reiatsu and two others. Two very strong and oddly familiar reiatsu signatures. Where? Where have I felt these before? Not here but in…the Soul Society. Rukia!

Kaien shunpoed as fast as he could. The sight that greeted him would etch itself into his memories for a very long time. Ishida was downed, and Ichigo had fallen to his knees. In front of him stood Abarai Renji, Rukia's best friend. To the side stood none other than Kuchiki Byakuya, her brother and taicho of squad six. Just as Kaien was about to intercept Abarai's blade, Ichigo surprised both of them when he managed to slash Abarai's face.

"Sorry for interrupting your speech, but I couldn't help my hand from slipping."

Kaien was going to kill his cousin. Seriously, what guy joked like that in the face of death? Although, Kaien could practically hear his little brother's snide remark, / "Shiba's do, moron." /

Kaien missed the exchange between the two combatants and the taicho but stiffened when he saw Abarai release his zanpakuto.

"Roar, Zabimaru!"

Ichigo wasn't ready for this. Before Abarai's zanpakuto came down, Kaien darted between them, his katana raised. The force shoved Kaien back into Ichigo.

"What is this? Another no-good-for-nothing lawbreaker?" sneered Abarai Renji.

"No," huffed Kaien, his arms screaming from trying to hold back Zabimaru. "Just a concerned friend."

Zabimaru suddenly disengaged. Before Kaien could react, the sword snaked back down with even greater strength, shattering his katana blade and ripping a terrible gash across his chest. The blade redrew and caught Ichigo during its retraction. Kaien fell.

"Ichigo, Rukia, run!" cried Kaien hoarsely. The last thing he saw was the stunned form of his cousin, Zabimaru lashing down, and Rukia leaping for Abarai.

"Glutton for punishment, aren't you? Pft, moron."

Kaien swatted the air above him before opening his eyes. He laid on a sleeping mat in an unfamiliar room with the human form of Kagami peering over him, tense and pensive. Beside him, he saw Tsukabishi-san laying on top of Ichigo for some reason, scaring the hell out of the latter.

"What the- Where am I? Who the hell are you? And…Kaien?"

Ah, that was his cousin. Kaien gave him a weak smile. "Yo, Strawberry. Wonder when you would notice little old me. So…I guess we didn't save her, did we?"

Ichigo and Kaien both made a move to stand up when a voice sung " ~You move too much, you may die ~."

"Geta-boushi…"

"Urahara-san?"

"Mmm, I don't recall ever meeting you until yesterday. And I certainly don't remember giving you my name. I don't think Rukia gave it to you, either."

Stupid Kaien. Another slip-up. And will the man quit waving that fan in his face? It kind of made the former 12th taicho more disturbing and secretive than how Kaien remembered him. The bucket hat didn't help, either. Urahara-san gave Kaien a calculating look before dismissing Kaien's slip of the tongue.

"This must be your house," stated Ichigo.

"Correct," sang Urahara-san.

For the next few minutes, Kaien opted to watch the discussion between Urahara and Ichigo. Kaien inwardly agreed with Urahara-san on the suicidal aspect of going to Soul Society as they were, but outwardly, his stubborn Shiba pride had him scowling along with Ichigo. Kaien nearly tried to punch the man when he intimidated his cousin but for the hand of Kagami warning him off. The walking staff of Urahara-san held a familiar feel to it. Benihime… Urahara's proposal had Kaien speculative.

"Ten days to train?! How is that possible?"

"Kaien, you guys don't have much of a choice. You need to train seriously, and your zanpakuto is seriously damaged. Your only hope would be to unlock Shikai to hopefully restore it. Ichigo needs all the help he can get, especially in his condition."

"What an interesting gikon you are," commented Urahara-san. "I don't remember ever seeing one quite like you. And," Urahara-san's smile stretched, "I don't think any ordinary gikon should have this range of personality. Saishokou-san, is he by any chance a modified soul like Kon?"

"…Yes."

"My, my, how did someone like you get your hands on a mod soul outside of my little shop? Or on Shinigami powers?"

"…" Kaien sighed, rubbing a hand down his face. "Alright, you might want to make yourselves comfortable. What I have to say may seem absolutely unbelievable, but it is true."

They moved to Urahara's sitting room. Kaien inelegantly plopped himself down on the floor and the other two followed suit on the floor in front of him.

"First thing," began Kaien, "My name in my last life as a Shinigami, before I got this human body, was Shiba Kaien."

Kaien spilled most the story, from his last night as a Shinigami of the Gotei 13, to his short time in Hell, to his new life and circumstances that had him in the human world. Kaien held back certain details, though. Like his hollow taint or the Soul King's motives to send Kaien to this particular timeline for example. Or the truth of Ichigo's heritage. It was not his place to interfere in his uncle's affairs or responsibilities. Kaien also neglected to reveal any of the unabridged history from Kagami's initial speech and books. His gut feeling and his own common sense told the Shinigami hybrid not to give up the traitor and his less savory doings. Besides, the exile probably knew most of it anyways. As the story came to an end, Kaien waited in silence for the two men to respond. Ichigo and Urahara-san both wore unreadable expressions.

"So, you're the same Kaien I used to know."

"Wait, you kno-knew him?"

"A story for another time," waved off Urahara-san. "I guess you feel just as strongly as Kurosaki-kun to save Rukia-san. Hmm. Where did you get this asauchi, Kagami-san?" asked Urahara-san, withdrawing the remains of Kaien's asauchi. "As broken as it is, I can sense a very strong presence from within it. Very strange for an asauchi Kaien just got a few days ago."

"I guess I can explain," finally piped in Kagami. The little boy had a very defiant look on his face. "I got that blade myself from, ahem, a very reputable swordsmith. Mortus-sama did something to it, though. I think if Kaien here could just learn its name, the resulting release of his confined reiryoku should help mend the blade. I assure you that the blade is genuine. I'm sure someone as intelligent as you can help Kaien recognize the true power of his zanpakuto."

Weird. Kagami didn't seem too thrilled to have Urahara Kisuke aware of their situation, but that the pure hostility of his tone contrasted sharply to his usual sarcastic but light attitude.

"Hmm. I still have not heard any sort of word of agreement from Kurosaki-kun or Kaien-kun."

"Rukia needs me, and no one else will save her. I have no choice, so I will give it a try!"

"Same here. I may not be the same body or even the same soul, but I am still the same Kaien. I failed Rukia, letting my pride put her in danger. She honored my request even when it costed me my life and freed me from Metastacia. I owe her everything."

"Very well."

A/N: Wow. This took me little over 17 hours to write in all. Hope someone will like this story. I wrote this in somewhere around eight days. Probably will update sometime within the next two weeks depending on how well I adapt to college life. A month at worse – I you all for your support.