AN: Hey everyone, Just another reminder, see the Character Information Page if you would like a more in depth detail on most of the characters powers and abilities.
And as always, thanks for reading and supporting!
SRDI = Shinigami Research and Department Institute
Reading the story:
-Scene change: "888"
-Rated M Scene: "XXX"
-Hello, how are you? (Someone in their own thoughts)
-Hello how are you? (A different person speaking in someone's mind)
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Bleach.
Chapter 60
Kishin and Toshiro secretly hid within the treetops of the nearby forest that surrounded the Kasumioji compound. They watched as a young girl with blond hair and green eyes dressed in an exquisite red noble robe walked next to a young boy with brown messy hair and grey eyes. They were surrounded by several guards who kept a fair but close distance to the two. Kishin and Toshiro immediately recognized the two kids as Kasumioji Rurichiyo and her fiance, Kannogi Shu.
"Are you sure she owes you a debt?" Toshiro questioned.
Kishin just patted his friend on the shoulder. "They owe me more than just a simple debt. I did save their lives after all."
They waited until Rurichiyo and Shu entered a building before deciding to make their move.
"Come on, let's go." Kishin said before stealthily Shunpoing into the distance with Toshiro following close behind him.
They quickly entered a large spacious room befitting that of nobility. The room they were in had red colored walls decorated with plentiful gold all around.
Kishin immediately waved his hand in front of Toshiro and himself as he said, "Bakudo #26: Noren Mekuri."
The light around them instantly twisted and warped making them invisible to the naked eye. They didn't have to wait long before Rurichiyo and Shu entered the room along with their two guards that Kishin was familiar with, the almost bald larger Enryu, and the slimmer Kenryu. Unbeknownst to them all, Kishin and Toshiro stood by the window completely undetected. The two Captains waited for several long minutes before the two guards finally left leaving just the two nobles.
"Huff! Finally I can get off my feet!" Rurichiyo exasperated as she plopped down on the giant bed.
Shu just smiled and started making some tea. "Here Ruri-chan, you must be tired."
The aroma of the sweet tea that he poured in the teacup wafted in the room forcing Rurichiyo back on her feet.
"Mmm, that smells good Shu!" Hopping off the bed, she skipped her way across the room over to him, but just then the light by the window flickered revealing Kishin and Toshiro nearby.
Rurichiyo was just about to shout in fright when Kishin and Toshiro immediately acted. They were simply too fast and quickly covered the two kids' mouths to prevent them from making a noise. Rurichiyo tried to struggle from Kishin's grip but it was obviously impossible.
"Alright alright, quit struggling and I'll let go." His familiar deep sounding voice caused Rurichiyo to somewhat calm down.
Sensing that she wasn't struggling anymore, Kishin let go. Rurichiyo let out a huff and turned around to yell at whoever attacked her, however the moment she saw Kishin she paused in shock.
"E-Ehhh?! It's the handsome guy from the World of the Living!"
Kishin raised an eyebrow and corrected, "It's Captain Chigetsu."
Shu, seeing what the situation was, stopped struggling as well, prompting Toshiro to let him go.
Shu quickly made his way over to Rurichiyo before asking in confusion, "Might I ask, what are two Captains of the Gotei 13 doing here?"
"Actually I'm here to ask for a favor." Kishin replied.
"A favor? Did you really have to sneak in here like that though?" Rurichiyo pouted unhappily.
"It's a secret, so I trust that the both of you won't tell anyone else that we've been here." Kishin said.
Rurichiyo's interest was immediately peaked. "A secret?"
Shu on the other hand was a bit more tactful and knew that it wasn't their place to pry. "Ahem." He gave a slight cough. "Captain Chigetsu, we owe you a lot for what you did for us during the scandal that involved the Kasumioji Clan. What do you need?"
Kishin glanced at Toshiro before continuing, "Actually, we need to borrow the use of your Senkaimon Gate to head to the World of the Living."
Shu immediately nodded in agreement. "Of course, that won't be a problem at all. And naturally we'll keep your trip a secret, Captains. Right Ruri-chan?" Shu gave her a slight nudge which jolted her back to reality.
"Ahem." Rurichiyo cleared her throat. "Right right. What Shu said. You can use our Senkaimon." She walked over to the side of her bed and pushed a secret button on the wall opening up a hidden passage. "Follow me." She motioned.
Kishin and Toshiro walked into the dark corridor behind her following her through a series of twists and turns and ups and downs. When they finally made it to the end they were in a large spacious room resembling some sort of cave with luminescent rocks lighting the way for them. There in the center of the cave was the Kasumioji Clan's Senkaimon Gate which resembled the appearance of a wooden Torii. There were some paper charms that hung across the pillars from one end to the other.
Rurichiyo paused in front of the gate and turned to Kishin and Toshiro. "Here we are. The Kasumioji's Senkaimon Gate."
She then pulled out two hexagonal shaped items and handed them over to them. "Here, take this. It's the seal of the Kasumioji Noble Clan. With it you can enter the gate unhindered and you can also use it to open a Senkaimon gate from the World of the Living to return to this one. That way no one will know when you leave the Soul Society or when you return."
Kishin and Toshiro didn't stand on ceremony and accepted the seal as a white light began to emit from the large gate. Kishin glanced at Rurichiyo and gave her a playful wink.
"Thanks kiddo. Appreciate the help."
Rurichiyo just pouted and placed her hands on her hips. "Alright alright, just go. No need to announce yourselves when you return."
Kishin smirked and disappeared into the gate alongside Toshiro as they followed the two Hell Butterflies leading them to the other side.
888
Within a tall parking garage currently abandoned due to reconstruction stood Kinji, Soi Fon, and Komamura. They were currently on the 7th floor standing in the center of the bleak looking room. Dry blood stained the concrete floor and large stone pillars.
Komamura frowned and commented, "So this is where the report came from? There was definitely a battle here."
Soi Fon did a quick sweep with her eyes and added, "It was a very one-sided fight."
Kinji closed his eyes for a moment, taking everything in before opening them again with a frown of his own. "I sense more than one type of residual reiatsu signature here. Other than those of Shinigamis, I sense traces of Hollows...and something else that feels like a Hollow, but not a Hollow at the same time."
Komamura turned to Kinji with a look of confusion on his face. "What do you mean Captain Tsunayashiro?"
Kinji just shook his head. "I don't know either. It's strange. This reiatsu signature...it's difficult to explain."
Komamura furrowed his brow, deep in thought and shook his head after a few moments in silence. "Hmm...I'm afraid I'm not as skilled in this aspect as you, Captain Tsunayashiro. I can sense traces of Hollows and Shinigamis, but nothing of the likes that you are feeling."
Soi Fon circled the room a bit before glancing at Kinji. "I'm impressed that your senses are so keen. Now that you mention it, I do feel a strange reiatsu presence lingering in the vicinity."
Kinji walked over to the edge of the building and glanced off into the direction of the forest near Karakura Town's border. "Say, how long were the students supposed to remain in the World of the Living?"
Komamura walked over to Kinji and answered, "They were here for a week. The trip was supposed to end today, but as you know, we received the report of the tragedy that happened here."
"Right...and who made the report?" Kinji curiously asked.
Komamura wanted to answer, but he frowned as he didn't know either. It was Soi Fon who responded as she too walked over to them.
"It was more of a distress call rather than a report. The one who contacted SRDI was Senna, but during her distress call there was some noise interference and she was cut off. It's unsure if she's still alive or if she died here as well."
This new information made Kinji frown more deeply. "If that's the case, why is Kurosaki Karin the prime suspect?"
Soi Fon simply pulled out a recording device and played the last recorded message that was received by the SRDI during the incident. After Kinji listened to it he felt even more confused. All he could make out from it was that there was a battle happening and the sounds of the Academy students dying could be heard, however, there was one thing that caught his attention. At the very end of the recording was the voice of a man.
Kinji frowned. "Play that last part again."
Soi Fon nodded and played it once more as they listened to the end of the recording.
Beep.
"Well done Karin. Let's go before we're discovered."
Click.
Komamura crossed his arms and huffed out, "That voice seemed to belong to a man."
Kinji nodded in agreement, but he only had more questions than answers. "This still doesn't make sense."
Soi Fon just waved her hand dismissively. She had finally swallowed her pride over the past several months and asked Mayuri to restore her left arm to her. "We know 3 things for sure. This man's voice doesn't belong to any of the students who went on the trip, he and Karin appear to have some sort of relationship, and that the two of them seem to be the only known survivors."
Komamura nodded in agreement. "I see. Since the situation is still unclear the orders are for Kurosaki Karin's capture rather than execution."
Kinji let out a sigh as his assumption that things seem to be a lot more complicated was becoming true. He thought back to what Toshiro and Kishin said and shook his head.
The orders are for her capture, but if this drags out too long then we might really be ordered to execute her. Just what the hell is going on.
Komamura pinched the bridge of his nose. "Any ideas of where to go from here Captains?"
Kinji nodded with seriousness. "Our chances of discovering more clues will increase if we split up. We can cover a wider area this way."
"I agree." Soi Fon stood on the ledge of the building and made a motion to jump. "We can use our denreishinki to contact one another if we find anything significant."
She then disappeared into the distance. Komamura let out a sigh and also dashed off in the opposite direction of Soi Fon. Kinji on the other hand, remained in the same spot and waited a good few minutes before continuing on with his own investigation.
"The two of them should be far enough away now." He said to himself as he walked back towards the blood stains.
Being the leader of the Kido Corps, he definitely had an easier way to search for Karin and the mysterious man than blindly roaming around the World of the Living, but since he promised to try and find Karin first he didn't want to bring Soi Fon and Komamura along. Using his cane he began to draw a circle with various symbols on the ground and chanted, "Heart of the south, eye of the north, finger of the west, foot of the east, arrive with the wind and depart with the rain. Bakudo #58: Kakushitsuijaku."
The circle lit up in a brilliant blue, illuminating the dark garage floor for a good 10 seconds as a stream of numbers flowed into Kinji's head. They were coordinates in longitude and latitude which showed him the current location of where Karin's reiatsu was densely focused.
"So that's where you are."
Without further delay Kinji Shunpo'd and dashed off towards the border of Karakura Town deep into the heart of the forest. It was still midday outside, but the shadows cast by the dense treetops slightly lowered visibility. It wasn't long before Kinji came upon what looked like a cabin, but he stopped just a hundred feet away as the door opened.
Walking outside was a very tall and slender young man. He had to be about 198cm tall with black eyes and black wavy shoulder length hair. He wore a white dress shirt with black suspenders and dark colored pants. There was a notable scar that ran vertically down the side of his left eye.
Kinji immediately felt wary and cautious of the man before him. The reiatsu that he felt coming from this man was the same as the one he felt in the parking garage. Something akin to a Hollow yet not at the same time.
Clearing his throat, he questioned, "And who are you?"
"Heh." The young man smirked, clearly amused, remaining calm about the situation. "Tsukishima Shukuro, but you can refer to me as Tsukishima."
Kinji's fingers made a rhythmic tapping sound on his cane as he felt that this Tsukishima person was being too calm. "So it's Tsukishima-san eh? Exactly what kind of relationship do you have with Kurosaki Karin?"
"Kurosaki Karin? Is that who you're here for?"
Kinji frowned. "She's inside that cabin isn't she? What do you want with her?"
"What do I want? I'm simply protecting my friend from others like you! Every single one of you has been pretending to be on her side when you're really just using her!"
Kinji's frown immediately turned to confusion at the change in tone of Tsukishima's voice. "Alright, I don't know what kind of game you're playing at, but I don't have the kind of time to play it."
Just then a loud shout could be heard from inside the cabin startling both Kinji and Tsukishima.
Clank!
The side window broke and shattered as Soi Fon dashed out whilst tightly holding a struggling Karin by her side. Kinji immediately understood what had happened and frowned.
Leave it to the leader of the Onmitsukido. She figured I had a method to track Karin so she hid herself nearby and followed me here. Crafty fox.
"Shukuro!" Karin shouted in panic.
Tsukishima smirked as if he had hoped for this to happen, but it was only for a moment as he quickly changed his expression to alarm. A green light flashed beneath his feet granting him incredible speed as he appeared behind Soi Fon and pulled out a katana with a bookmark shaped guard. His technique and speed caught Soi Fon off-guard as she hadn't expected him to be able to blitz her. Granted her power was restricted due to the Gentei Reien, it was still an incredible feat. She twisted in an attempt to block his attack, but as she raised her arm to block, her view was just slightly impaired giving Tsukishima the chance he needed to take Karin out of her grasp.
Kinji immediately acted and chanted out Bakudo #63 generating four yellow chains of Kido. Tsukishima immediately dashed backwards and landed on the roof of the cabin. He slashed the roof with his katana, however his katana seemed as if it did no damage to the structure at all.
"I told you Karin. The Shinigami aren't on your side. They just tried to kidnap you." Tsukishima said.
Karin nodded, trying to catch her breath from the adrenaline rush she was feeling. "You're right. But why? Why would they try to kill me and the other students at the Academy?"
Kinji and Soi Fon shared a look of utter confusion at what they just heard and knew that something strange was going on. The two Captains both Shunpo'd on the roof at the same time, one in front and one behind, but that was a mistake. The moment they landed on the roof they felt something clamp down on their feet, trapping them in place.
"What the?!" Soi Fon exclaimed in shock.
Tsukishima didn't bother exchanging more words with them as he immediately dashed off into the distance with Karin in his arms. Kinji was just about to chant a Kido to stop them when the entire cabin exploded into smithereens. The noise and blast wave shook the forest. A large crater was the only thing left where the cabin used to stand with burning scorch marks all around. The smoke cloud rose high into the air as Kinji and Soi Fon coughed, walking out from the center of destruction. Both of them were completely unharmed as an explosion of that level wasn't enough to hurt them in the slightest, but it did catch them off-guard giving Tsukishima the time he needed to escape.
Waving his hand to brush aside the smoke by his face, Kinji grumbled and sighed, "Well, that didn't go well."
Soi Fon scowled with an angry glare. "What's going on? Why does Karin think that the Soul Society tried to kill the students?"
Kinji shook his head just as confused. "This is getting troublesome."
888
Deep within the Dangai walking at a calm and steady pace were Kishin and Toshiro as they somewhat frowned.
"Something seem off to you?" Kishin asked as he felt like something wasn't quite right.
Toshiro immediately nodded in agreement. "I can't place my finger on it...but something about the Dangai just doesn't feel right. It's like...there's something wrong with the space-time axis. Do you think it has anything to do with the Kototsu being gone?"
Kishin shrugged his shoulders. "Can't say for sure. This kind of thing is beyond my level of expertise. Ever since Aizen destroyed the Kototsu no one knows when and how it will come back. But you're right, even when the Kototsu was gone, the flow of space and time here was still relatively stable, until now that is."
Toshiro glanced at the restrictive currents flowing down the side of the walls and scratched his head. Everything seemed pretty normal, but as a Captain, his hunch and sense for danger was more keen than average. It was why both Kishin and himself felt like something was off, but they couldn't say for certain what it was. In the end they pushed it to the back of their minds as they came upon the portal leading to the World of the Living. The SRDI was in charge of monitoring the Dangai anyways so if there really was anything noteworthy of mentioning then they'd be updated about it.
Stepping through the portal they arrived in the sky above Karakura Town.
Toshiro swept the surroundings with his eyes and questioned, "Any idea where to start?"
"Always. Whenever I'm looking for information I head to the place where nothing ever goes unnoticed." Kishin replied.
Toshiro raised an eyebrow. "And where's that?"
"Urahara's shop of course." Kishin smirked, dashing off with Toshiro following close behind.
The two of them soon found the familiar looking shop on a well paved dirt plot of land and opened the door.
"Yo!" Kishin called out announcing their arrival.
A black cat soon walked out from around the corner with a surprised look and jumped on the coffee table in the middle of the room.
"Yoruichi-san." Kishin called out.
Yoruichi waved her tail in a back and forth motion, asking with curiosity, "Kishin? Toshiro? Let me guess, you're here about the incident with the Academy students."
Toshiro immediately stepped forward and nodded. "You know something about it?"
Yoruichi sighed and licked her paw. "Kisuke, you should explain to them."
Just then the sliding door leading to one of the private rooms opened up as Urahara stepped out. With the door wide open Toshiro and Kishin were able to see an unconscious Senna lying on a mattress. Urahara motioned for the two Captains to sit as he took a seat himself.
"Haah...well this is a mess." Urahara said.
"Well it certainly seems like it." Kishin agreed, already feeling like there was a lot more to the situation.
"What exactly do you know?" Toshiro asked.
Urahara thought for a moment, collecting his thoughts before responding with seriousness. "Listen carefully. Kishin, remember what I told you before about Fullbringers? Well, it seems they are involved in this incident."
Kishin's ear slightly twitched. "What do they have to do with it?"
Urahara scratched the underside of his chin and quickly filled in Toshiro on what he knew about Fullbringers. He then continued, "Anyways, it appears that there is a group of Fullbringers living in Naruki City. They call themselves the Xcution and they seem to have been betrayed by one of their own kind. His name is Tsukishima Shukuro. That is the man who somehow convinced Kurosaki Karin that he is her ally."
Toshiro deeply frowned. "What does he want with her?"
Urahara simply shook his head. "I don't know. As of now his objective seems unclear. I just know that the students were attacked by Hollows and Senna managed to send a distress call to Soul Society. She managed to escape the encirclement of Hollows, but was badly injured and her denreishinki was dropped and destroyed in the process. Yoruichi found her and brought her here."
"Do you know where Karin is now?" Kishin asked.
Again Urahara shook his head. "You might want to find Xcution and see if you can get any information from them. They know more about this Tsukishima person than I do, although they aren't very friendly to Shinigami."
"You talked to them already?" Kishin questioned.
"Well, more like eavesdropped rather than talked." Yoruichi chimed in from the side.
"But you'll find some familiar faces amongst them. Maybe they'll be willing to talk to you guys." Urahara added.
Kishin raised a curious brow. "Familiar faces like who?"
"Well, shockingly or maybe unshockingly, Yasutora Sado and Orihime Inoue are members. Oh, and Ichigo is temporarily aligned with them as well."
Both Kishin and Toshiro were somewhat surprised at the news. Yoruichi shook her head. "It's not that surprising if you think about it. They know about Tsukishima and it's only right that Ichigo would team up with them in order to find out more about what Tsukishima wants with Karin."
Toshiro tilted his head to the side in confusion. "The two of you know the Humans better than we do so how come neither of you approached them yet?"
Urahara furrowed his brow in seriousness. "There's something bothering me about the Dangai. Ichigo and I took a look there a few days ago and as I suspected, it's been tampered with. I just don't have time to investigate the matter about the Fullbringers at the same time as doing my other investigations. Besides, Ichigo is already looking into the matter of his sister. I trust that he'll be able to save her."
Toshiro let out a sigh somewhat unhappy about how the situation was developing. "What do you think?" He glanced at Kishin.
Kishin mulled everything over before standing up and headed for the door. "Toshiro, why don't you go take a look at this Xcution. I'm gonna take a look at the incident site where the students were attacked."
"Alright." Toshiro nodded.
Kishin stepped out and dashed towards the incident site landing on the 7th floor parking garage currently being reconstructed. Glancing downwards he took note of a seal on the ground immediately recognizing it as a Kido spell.
"Must've been Kinji. Not a bad idea."
He walked all around the 7th floor and frowned, seeing remnants of some sort of crushed stone scattered along the edges of the building that blended all too well with the debris from the reconstruction. Kishin had to glance several times before he concluded, "Hollow bait? Someone definitely set this up."
He had already picked up on the strange reiatsu signature and concurred that Urahara was telling the truth. The residual reiatsu felt similar to the masked attacker that was after Ran'Tao. Not exactly the same, but it definitely fell in line with a Fullbringer's reiatsu.
"This Fullbringer's reiatsu must belong to the one called Tsukishima."
Just as Kishin was about to leave he was stopped as someone came rushing in and shouting. "Stop right there! Don't move! I've finally found you, culprit!"
Kishin raised an eyebrow and glanced at the newcomer. They were definitely a Shinigami according to the clothing they were wearing. They had a large afro with thick eyebrows and thick sideburns. Kishin immediately recognized who this person was.
"Kurumadani Zennosuke, so you're currently in charge of Karakura Town." He called out amusedly.
Zennosuke grinned with confidence. "So you've heard of m-AH?!"
He caught himself towards the end and blinked in shock as the realization of who Kishin was came to him. The Captain's Haori was unmistakable, but more than that was the crimson red hair and reiatsu signature. Zennosuke immediately shook in place and quickly bowed as low as he could, almost as if prostrating before Kishin. Compared to Kishin, he was a nobody. Even when Kishin served as the Lieutenant of the 13th Division, Zennosuke never had the chance or opportunity to truly interact with him other than saying yes and accepting the orders given to him.
"M-M-My apologies Captain Chigetsu! I didn't realize that it was you! I was only informed that Captain Soi Fon, Captain Tsunayashiro, and Captain Komamura were coming! Please spare me for my ignorance and rude-"
Kishin simply waved his hand, cutting Zennosuke off. "Enough. Just pretend that you never saw me."
"Y-Yes Captain!" Zennosuke replied out of fear for his life.
Kishin shook his head and immediately left the building. He couldn't be bothered dealing with Zennosuke any further and followed the faint traces of Kinji's reiatsu which led him straight into the heart of the Town's border forest, but the second he stepped foot where he found the destroyed cabin a tingling sensation crawled down his neck. He smirked and glanced around at the dense surrounding forest.
"I know you're there. No need to be so shy."
From the center of two trees came a blur as a figure seemed to have melted into view. Kishin raised a curious eyebrow recognizing the same cloak, mask, and reiatsu as the assassin who was sent to kill Ran'Tao.
"You?" He questioned.
The cloaked figure took several steps forward. "Captain Chigetsu Kishin of the 3rd Division. I believe our meeting has been long overdue."
Kishin was somewhat surprised as the figure's voice clearly indicated that they were female, something he didn't expect.
"So you know who I am but I have no idea who you are. What do I call you?" He curiously asked.
"You can just refer to me as Shadow."
"Alright Shadow. You attempted to kill my subordinate before and I assume that you will continue to in the future. Why show yourself to me now?"
"Heh. Are you wary of me, Captain-san? Don't think that just because you keep Ran'Tao within the 3rd Division that she'd be safe."
"Oh, making empty threats now huh? You know who I am and still came out here to confront me...alone. You must be pretty confident in your abilities."
"If there's one thing I am confident in then it'd be my abilities."
Kishin somewhat frowned as he felt Shadow's reiatsu slowly begin to rise.
Impressive...whoever this is, they were hiding their true power the night they tried to kill Ran'Tao.
The amount of reiatsu that Kishin was feeling from Shadow suggested that this person had enough to rival that of Aizen's, albeit before he fused with the Hogyoku. Still, that was at the very least twice as much reiatsu as an ordinary Captain level Shinigami. He'd be more concerned for his safety if a Gentei Reien was placed on his body, but since he took the Kasumioji's secret Senkaimon to get here the seal wasn't applicable. Kishin took a step forward which caused Shadow to take a step back. An amused smile found its way to Kishin's lips as he took notice.
"What's wrong? If you want to kill me you have to come closer, not further." He couldn't read Shadow's expression from behind the mask, but it felt like they were making a frown.
"Captain-san, don't take me for a fool. Regardless of how confident I am in my own skills, I'd still exercise caution against someone on your level of power. After all, the full extent of your abilities are still rather unknown."
Kishin just smirked. "Then why are you here if not to kill me? It couldn't just be for small talk now is it?"
"Heh...no." Shadow curtly responded.
BOOM!
A giant dragon made of earth and soil erupted from the ground and opened its giant maw showing off multiple rows of sharp razor rocks acting as teeth. Kishin wasn't the least bit startled and slashed out with his Zanpakuto.
"Hado #78: Zangerin."
CRASH!
A giant red ring erupted from Kishin's katana and sliced the entire earth dragon in two pieces. The ringing slash then continued forward heading straight towards Shadow who didn't bother moving at all. Just as the slash got near Shadow, it stopped in place and rammed into what seemed to be an invisible wall.
Kishin Shunpo'd right behind Shadow and slashed at her head only to find his katana phasing right through.
"The same trick again?" He questioned aloud.
Shadow dashed to the right and pushed out with her hand. Kishin made a move to dash forwards but found that he was stuck in place as if invisible chains were tying him down.
She manipulated water when she tried to kill Ran'Tao. This time she manipulated earth and can restrain me with invisible chains? Is she manipulating and solidifying the air itself?
One of the trees nearby instantly transformed and became a giant wooden spear rotating at high speeds like a drill. It immediately shot straight for Kishin's heart, but Kishin simply chanted, "Hado #71: Sodai Sho."
WHAM!
A powerful shoving force erupted all around him and broke apart the invisible chains as well as stopping the wooden drill midair. He slashed with his Zanpakuto and destroyed the wooden drill only to be attacked by a huge dragon made of water.
With a simple palm thrust, Kishin shouted, "Hado #89: Hyoga Seiran!"
A giant vortex of ice instantly froze the water dragon in place and rushed straight towards Shadow who dashed into the air at incredible speeds. Kishin immediately followed suit.
"Wash all things in a river of blood, Sekkiken Zansatsu."
No matter how fast Shadow was, Kishin was faster. He had instantly struck 12 times before Shadow could form any sort of barrier, however Kishin frowned when he discovered that every one of his attacks phased right through Shadow's body.
Seems physical attacks won't be very helpful.
Shadow tried to create some distance between them but no matter which way she ran to, Kishin was always by her side.
"What's wrong? Can't keep up?" He taunted and slashed again with his physical attacks phasing through.
Interesting. My physical attacks phase through but when I used Kido earlier she used some sort of technique to block it. Is she weak to Kido?
Kishin was about to strike again but felt an invisible chain clasp around his right arm. It gave Shadow the opportunity she needed to distance herself as thousands of water arrows and stone arrows formed above and below Kishin.
FWISH!
They all shot out at once with each arrow possessing incredible power that caused even Kishin to slightly frown.
"Bakudo #90: Kin No Kyuden!"
A twelve sided golden barrier quickly enveloped Kishin inside blocking off all the arrows as Kishin then chanted, "Hado #90: Kurohitsugi!"
A giant black coffin started forming around Shadow causing her immediate alarm. She attempted to fly out of the range, but the powerful pull of the torrential gravity created beneath her slowed her down considerably. Kishin's skill in Kido was such that Shadow wasn't able to escape the coffin. The barrage of arrows against Kishin's barrier ended at the same time that his black coffin spell ended. He removed the golden barrier and found an exasperated Shadow kneeling on the ground as blood constantly spilled from her.
Her clothes were torn up and her mask was somewhat cracked, but still managed to hide her face. She was quite slender and seemed to have a model-like figure. Her black hair was short reaching down to her chin with the left side being longer. She was taking in heavy breaths with each breath healing her horrible injuries. Kishin was somewhat shocked that Shadow had actually managed to survive and was even able to rapidly heal from such horrible wounds. Her healing actually reminded him of Ichigo's own Vasto Lorde regenerative powers.
He was just about to remove her mask when she simply melted away into the air. Even her blood that had been splashed all around the forest floor melted away like smoke in the wind. It left Kishin somewhat speechless.
"Whoever this Shadow person is, they really didn't want to leave anything behind that would give them away."
Letting out a long drawn out sigh, he stood up and started walking away still confused at why this Shadow person even attacked him.
A test maybe? Whoever is giving Shadow orders was likely trying to scope out the extent of my abilities, though I reckon they didn't expect Shadow to sustain such horrible injuries. Just who the hell is trying to kill Ran'Tao?
888
Far away from the Karakura Town border where Kishin was, deep in the center of Naruki city was Toshiro as he stood atop a somewhat dilapidated looking building.
"So this is where the Xcution members are based at." Toshiro whispered to himself.
His expression and aura were serious as he hoped that he could find some answers here that would help him in finding Karin. Just as he was about to jump down he paused and turned to look behind him, finding a tall and lean built man with fair skin and brown eyes and shoulder length combed back black hair. This man wore dark long pants matched with a white sleeveless shirt and a fur collared black jacket. Around his neck hung an X-shaped silver pendant.
"Who are you?" Toshiro asked indifferently.
"Heh. You Shinigami are always so demanding. Don't you think it's impolite to ask for someone else's name while not introducing yourself first?"
"Hitsugaya Toshiro. 10th Division Captain of the Gotei 13." Toshiro simply responded.
"Kugo." The man replied even simpler.
Toshiro nodded. "So you're a Fullbringer."
Kugo smirked and put his hands in his pockets nonchalantly. "Seeing that you've found your way here, Captain of the Gotei 13, I reckon you came with a purpose."
"Yeah. Are you a member of Xcution?"
"Oh? You even know the name of our organization? You've clearly done your research Captain-san." Kugo said.
He really was actually surprised that Toshiro knew their organization name as well as location. "I'm not only a member, I'm the leader. What do you want?" Kugo curtly replied somewhat disdainfully.
Toshiro didn't care about Kugo's tone, rather he cared whether or not he could find anything useful. "Do you know where I can find Tsukishima?"
Kugo frowned. "So you even know about Tsukishima. Why're you looking for him?"
Toshiro's jaw clenched in anger as he growled out, "He kidnapped someone important to me. I'm going to get her back."
Kugo just scoffed. "Heh. Well good luck with that. Now get lost."
Toshiro frowned. "You know Tsukishima don't you? Are you working together?"
Now Kugo frowned as well. "You're making some wild accusations there Captain-san. I've got nothing to say to you and nor am I going to help, so beat it."
Toshiro gripped the hilt of his Zanpakuto, asking again with slightly more anger. "If you aren't working with him then tell me how to find him. He's a Fullbringer like you right?"
"You've got some nerve making demands out of me." Kugo replied with irritation as he placed his hand around his X-shaped necklace. "We don't work with Shinigami from the Soul Society. I already asked you twice to leave. I won't ask again."
"Then you're going to have to make me." Toshiro said not backing down in the slightest. He didn't consider Kugo a threat to him at all. Sure he sensed that Kugo had reiatsu that rivaled a Captain's, but Toshiro himself wasn't an average Captain. He possessed the most powerful ice type Zanpakuto and was a prodigy that was rarely ever seen in the Soul Society.
There was a palpable tension between the two as they started releasing their reiatsu in a show of dominance and intimidation. Just as they were about to clash, Ichigo's loud confused voice broke them from their trance. "What's going on here?"
Toshiro glanced up as he watched Ichigo drop down from the sky onto the roof. He seemed a bit different somehow. For one, he was slightly taller than before and seemed a bit more mature. His hair was slightly longer than before and his reiatsu, while still shaky, was more stable than the last time they met.
"Kurosaki?" Toshiro called out, somewhat surprised to see him.
Ichigo blinked just as surprised and responded, "Toshiro?"
A thick vein popped on Toshiro's head at Ichigo's casual way of calling him. "It's Captain Hitsugaya."
Ichigo just awkwardly scratched the side of his cheek. "Err, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in Soul Society?"
Toshiro turned back to Kugo with a fierce glare and answered, "I'm here to find Karin."
Ichigo immediately became serious after hearing the reason. "Why are you looking for her?" Ichigo asked warily.
It wasn't that he had anything against Toshiro, but whenever the Soul Society involved themselves in matters it was usually strike first and investigate later. He wasn't sure if he should be happy that Toshiro was here looking for Karin.
Toshiro on the other hand understood Ichigo's distrusting tone. "I'm not here on Soul Society's orders. I'm looking for her because I'm worried."
Ichigo gave a doubtful look. "You're worried about my sister?"
Toshiro relaxed his grip on his Zanpakuto. "I don't have time to waste around here and neither do you. Just tell me if you guys know where Tsukishima is or not?"
Ichigo glanced at Kugo who shook his head in response. "If Kugo doesn't know then no one does." Ichigo said.
Toshiro frowned. "Is there a way you guys can find him?"
Once more Ichigo glanced at Kugo who again shook his head.
Kugo sighed and took a step forward, letting go of his X-shaped necklace. "We don't find him. It's usually him who finds us. Or makes trouble for us."
Toshiro felt incredibly disappointed and turned around to leave only to be stopped as Ichigo quickly chimed in, "Wait. Why don't you join us? With your help we might stand a better chance at finding her."
Toshiro glanced over his shoulders at Ichigo, then at Kugo and shook his head. He didn't like the vibe Kugo gave off and their first encounter was less than pleasant. "No thanks. I've got nothing against you Kurosaki, but I don't trust this Xcution or whatever it is. I just wanted to know if they had any leads on Tsukishima. If I find anything noteworthy on the matter, I don't mind letting you know though."
Toshiro flicked a piece of paper at Ichigo who caught it with a confused look.
"You can contact me through that number. You've got a denreishinki right? If you find anything about Tsukishima or Karin then let me know." Toshiro explained.
Ichigo nodded and put the piece of paper away. "Ah, there's one more thing Toshiro."
A thick irritated vein popped on Toshiro's forehead as he gave an annoyed look at Ichigo's informal address of his name. "What is it?"
Ichigo just acted as if he didn't notice Toshiro's dissatisfaction. "Er, it's about my substitute Shinigami badge. See, I lost it in the Dangai a few days ago when I was helping Urahara-san do some sort of investigation. I was wondering if you saw it on your way crossing over?"
Toshiro raised a curious brow, but in the end he shook his head. He didn't recall seeing anything like that when he crossed the Dangai. "Didn't you go back to look for it?"
Ichigo awkwardly scratched the back of his neck, not sure how he was supposed to answer. "I mean, I did, but when I lost it, it got swallowed up by the Kototsu."
Toshiro was somewhat startled at Ichigo's answer. "The Kototsu? Are you sure that it was the Kototsu?"
Ichigo nodded. "Yeah, I mean Urahara-san was there with me too. Anyways, I kinda need it back..."
Toshiro frowned. To his knowledge and the Soul Society's knowledge, the Kototsu hadn't yet revived itself, but here Ichigo was saying with confidence that the Kototsu was responsible for the reason he had lost his Substitute Shinigami Badge.
This doesn't add up. I know there was something wrong with the Dangai, but something as big as this? What's happening to the time axis?
"Toshiro?" Ichigo questioned, seeing the serious look on the Captain's face.
Toshiro just glanced back at Ichigo and shook his head. "Sorry, but you might just have to get another one from Ukitake. Why do you want it so badly anyways?"
"Actually it's cause I was training my Fullbringer powers with Kugo and...well my Badge was sort of how I accessed those powers." Ichigo replied.
Toshiro gave him a confused look. "Overlooking the fact that you can even train as a Fullbringer, why would you need to? You're a Shinigami."
Ichigo turned serious as he answered, "It's because of Tsukishima. His power somehow brainwashes his enemies." Ichigo then turned to Kugo.
Kugo let out a sigh and proceeded to explain, "Tsukishima is a Fullbringer and his power is unique. Only another Fullbringer's power can counter and sever Tsukishima's ability. Even if we did manage to take back Ichigo's sister, she'd still be under his influence."
Toshiro furrowed his brow, he had a hard time believing Kugo's words. Granted he didn't like Kugo's demeanor to begin with, that aside he was doubting the validity of Kugo's claim that only a Fullbringer's power could restore Karin back to normal.
"Sorry, Kurosaki. But regarding your Badge, you'll have to figure that out on your own. As for Karin, I'll look for her my way." Not bothering to say anything more than he had to, Toshiro immediately left and continued his search for Karin.
Figuring that the Xcution base was stationed in Naruki City, Toshiro decided to keep searching in this area instead of Karakura Town. Although the incident that happened with the Academy students was in Karakura Town, there wasn't any guarantee that Tsukishima and Karin remained there. Furthermore the Captains dispatched from the Soul Society were likely searching there already. He'd rather not accidentally bump into them and cause a mishap. Besides, Naruki City was actually under his Division's jurisdiction anyway so he was quite familiar with the area.
It was starting to get dark already which made him frown a bit. He hadn't discovered too much today so he felt like the day was wasted. Every second of not being able to find Karin was another second that this Tsukishima person could use to harm or brainwash her.
"Just where are you…" He whispered to himself.
"Don't look too depressed." Kishins voice slightly startled Toshiro from behind.
Toshiro whipped his head around and sighed. "Kishin, you're back. And I'm not depressed! I'm just...worried. I was supposed to keep Karin safe but-"
Kishin just patted his friend reassuringly, cutting him off. "We'll definitely find her. For now let's continue our search. You keep looking in this area."
"And you?" Toshiro asked.
"I'll head back to Karakura Town and continue my search there."
Toshiro gave Kishin a worried look. "What about the other Captains? We should be careful not to get discovered."
Kishin gave a somewhat awkward look as he scratched the side of his cheek. "Yeah...about that."
Toshiro's jaw dropped as he questioned, "Don't tell me. Y-You already gave away our cover?"
"Haha…" Kishin let out a guilty laugh. "It's not exactly like that. I was attacked by a powerful Fullbringer so I didn't have much of a choice. The commotion and reiatsu made in the chaos definitely didn't go unnoticed. For now you keep your investigation a secret. If I'm exposed then I'm exposed. At most I'll get a scolding. Besides, it's practically known that I'm not a great follower of the rules anyways so it's not like the other Captains would be surprised."
"Are you sure that it'll be fine?" Toshiro questioned.
Kishin just nodded. "Don't think too much about it. Just focus on finding Karin."
"Alright. This Fullbringer who attacked you, it wasn't Tsukishima was it?" Toshiro asked.
"No. It wasn't. She called herself Shadow and was actually an assassin that was sent to kill my subordinate, Ran'Tao." Kishin replied.
Toshiro furrowed his brow but Kishin stopped him before his friend could ask about the matter any further. "It's a long story. Let's just focus on Karin's case. You seem like you have things handled here so I'll head back. Did you find anything useful from this Xcution organization though?"
Toshiro shook his head. "Nothing. I did meet Ichigo though. I don't know what he's been doing up until now but he seemed more mature than before."
Kishin raised an eyebrow but shrugged his shoulders.
Seems like whatever training Isshin put him through is working.
Toshiro glanced at Kishin with hope and then asked, "What about you? Did you find anything at the incident site?"
Kishin scratched the back of his neck and nodded. "Sort of. There's evidence that someone purposefully lured the Hollows to where the Academy students were. It could have been this Tsukishima person, but his motive remains unclear."
Toshiro frowned, somewhat frustrated.
Beep.
Their thoughts were momentarily disrupted as Kishin checked his denreishinki reading the message he just received.
Message:
"Will I see you tomorrow?" -Rukia
He smiled and quickly texted back.
Message:
"Actually, I'm not in the Soul Society, but keep it a secret." -Kishin
Ding!
Message:
"Are you breaking the rules again?! Kishiiiiin!" -Rukia
Message:
"Join me?" -Kishin
Message:
"Did you REALLY just ask me to break the rules with you?" -Rukia
Message:
"It'll be fun! We can solve a murder mystery, save a life, and go sight seeing!" -Kishin
Message:
"You're impossible! ...I'll think about it. Wait! What murder?! Who's life?! Where ARE you?" -Rukia
Message:
"Karakura Town :p" -Kishin
Message:
"Hmpf. You should've told me sooner. But what exactly happened?" -Rukia
As Toshiro stood to the side waiting for Kishin to finish texting he started to feel like a third wheel for some reason so he immediately interjected, "AHEM!"
His loud cough broke Kishin out of his trance who gave his friend an amused look. Putting away his denreishinki he just gave another reassuring pat on Toshiro's shoulder and walked over to the ledge of the building. "Sorry about that. Then I'll be off. I'll let you know if I find anything useful."
With a nonchalant wave, Kishin turned and dashed off into the night.
888
Deep within the Tsunayashiro Great Noble Clan compound in a well hidden room stood Tokinada, the head of the Tsunayashiro Family. He was currently admiring the body of a small child that laid on the bed in the room. The child seemed neither male or female and was dark skinned in color with short dark colored hair. Tokinada opened the child's eyes revealing their red color, but they seemed rather lifeless. It was as if the child was only half alive. No consciousness could be detected from it at all.
Tokinada slightly frowned as he stroked the head of the child as if it were his greatest masterpiece. "I'm sure it won't be long now, Hikone. I'll definitely find a way to bring you to life."
Just then a figure slowly melted into the room with bloody injuries that were in the process of rapidly healing.
Tokinada turned and furrowed his brow. "Aura, you've returned."
Aura, the one who Kishin fought as Shadow, struggled to stand and walked over to Hikone's bed. There was a gentle and calm look in her eyes as she stared at the half-alive child.
"My apologies Tokinada-sama. I wasn't able to defeat Chigetsu Kishin. I thought I had a chance as long as he was in the World of the Living, but for some reason it seemed like his power wasn't being restricted at all." Aura said ashamedly.
Tokinada just waved it off clearly not surprised by her failure. "I hadn't expected you to succeed in the first place, though you ended up more injured than I thought. You were too careless."
Aura nodded and bowed her head. "If we could obtain the soul fragment of someone as powerful as Chigetsu Kishin then perhaps Hikone would be able to truly come alive."
Tokinada simply walked over to the door and eerily smiled to himself. "No rush, no rush. I figured we give it a try, but Captain Chigetsu is indeed as powerful as the rumors make him to be. Forget about him. Tangling with him any further might only expose us. If you find a chance to kill Ran'Tao however, then don't hesitate, but be discreet about it. We don't want to draw any suspicion to us quite yet."
Aura nodded obediently. "Understood."
888
Sitting at a desk in a large and spacious room of the 1st Division was Yamamoto as Byakuya, Mayuri, Kyoraku, and Ukitake stood before the ancient Head Captain.
"Well, what is it that you've come to report, Captain Kuchiki." Yamamoto asked.
Byakuya stepped forward with an indifferent expression on his face as he pulled out a substitute Shinigami badge and placed it on the desk. "This is what we found during our investigations of the Dangai. I do not believe we should jump to conclusions, however I do believe this would be worth investigating thoroughly."
Yamamoto glanced down at the badge and frowned. He immediately recognized it as the substitute Shinigami badge belonging to Ichigo.
"Do you believe that the disappearances of the Shinigami within the Dangai have anything to do with Kurosaki Ichigo?" Yamamoto asked the other Captains in the room.
Kyoraku sighed and shook his head. "Yaa...that's hard to say. I agree with Captain Kuchiki and think that we shouldn't jump to any conclusions. What if Kurosaki Ichigo just happened to drop it while traveling through the Dangai?"
Ukitake immediately agreed. "Right! I don't believe that Kurosaki Ichigo has anything to do with the disappearances."
Mayuri on the other hand disagreed. "I believe the ones jumping to conclusions are the two of you, Captain Kyoraku, Captain Ukitake. Whether or not the substitute Shinigami, Kurosaki Ichigo has anything to do with the disappearances, we would only know after we thoroughly interrogate him."
Ukitake frowned. "That's going too far! Kurosaki Ichigo and the Soul Society have an amicable relationship. We shouldn't treat him like some sort of criminal."
Byakuya raised his hand and interjected, "I understand your sentiment, Captain Ukitake, however we need to understand the situation better. The only way to do that is if we ask Kurosaki Ichigo about his recent activities. Only then can we be sure to rule him out as a suspect."
Yamamoto nodded in agreement. "Indeed. If Kurosaki Ichigo has done nothing wrong then there is no need for him to fear."
Yamamoto then glanced at one of the guards in the room. "Summon Captain Hirako and Captain Chigetsu here immediately."
"Yes." The guard acknowledged and immediately disappeared.
Yamamoto then turned back to the Captains. "Captain Kurotsuchi, is there anything new to report regarding the matter of the Dangai?"
Mayuri scratched the bottom of his chin and shrugged his shoulders. "Nothing really. Inaba Kageroza, the 7th seat in my Division specializes in the study of the Dangai. I've put him in charge of overseeing the situation there with Akon supervising the scene. For now the time axis has been stabilized. Should anything of significance appear then you can be rest assured that I will let you Captains' know."
Yamamoto seemed deep in thought for a moment before nodding. "Captain Ukitake, Captain Kyoraku, provide assistance to the 12th Division in their ongoing investigation."
"Understood." Ukitake and Kyoraku nodded.
It wasn't long before the guard returned with Kishin and Shinji following behind.
"Yo! Ya called fer us Head Captain?" Shinji said as he and Kishin walked over to Byakuya and the others.
"Indeed." Yamamoto nodded. "Captain Chigetsu, Captain Hirako, and Captain Kuchiki. I order the three of you to arrest Kurosaki Ichigo and bring him in for questioning."
Shinji tilted his head in confusion. "Ehhh? Ichigo huh? What happened?"
"Captain Kuchiki can fill you in on the details." Yamamoto simply replied.
Kishin scratched the back of his head not hiding the fact that he found all of this to be somewhat troublesome, but everyone overlooked his nonchalant behavior.
Seeing that there was nothing else anyone wished to report, Yamamoto dismissed everyone in the room. With the private meeting coming to an end, the old Captain walked over to the balcony that overlooked the Seireitei. A slight frown could be seen on his face as he felt that something was very wrong.
On the other hand, Kishin had just walked out of the 1st Division grounds with a sinister smile on his face. A strange blue light flashed in his eyes for only just a moment before it returned to normal with no one noticing that the real Kishin was already in the World of the Living.
MISC.
FYI, if you guys see Kishin, then that means it is the "Fake" Kishin talking or being referenced.
Anyways, things are starting to kick into gear again. It's been about 10 months since the defeat of Aizen now. Senna is a Shinigami now, but she is currently injured. Karin has been brainwashed by Tuskishima! The Fullbringers finally make their appearance. Even Aura Michibane has appeared and some of Tokinada's plans have been revealed. And the appearance of this Kishin can't be a good sign for the Soul Society.
What will happen next?!
APPROXIMATE TIMELINE: Hope this helps put things into a bit of perspective and hope I fit the timing of things to make sense...there may be slight nuances from this timeline and actual Canon timeline which I adjusted to fit my story.
More Than 2100 Years Ago (Jujin Race sealed away into Beast Realm)
More Than 2100 Years Ago (5 Great Noble Clans Established)
More than or around 2100 Years Ago (Musabori Kuu Hito/Ikomikidomoe sealed away by the Royal Guard)
~2100 Years Ago (Yamamoto establishes Shinigami Academy)
~1000 Years Ago (Gotei 13 established)
~1000 Years Ago (Shinigami war with Quincys)
~870 Years Ago (Athotep Appears/The Great Hollow War/Captain Kasumioji Kanata's death/Tenjiro Kirinji was the 2nd division Captain)
~600 Years Ago (Ran'Tao joins division 4 under Captain Nakayama)
~590 Years Ago (Captain Nakayama dies)
~570 Years Ago (Ran'Tao and other researchers experiment on immortality and creation of the Bounts)
~200 Years Ago (Eradication of most Quincys)
~200-110 Years Ago (Tokinada kills his wife Kakyo)
~110 Years Ago (Assassins kill the main lineage of those in line for the Head of the Tsunayashiro Clan/Kinji's parent's death/Tokinada becomes new Head of the Clan)
~110 Years Ago (Vanishing Souls Incident/Visored creation/Urahara and Yoruichi disappear)
~60-50 Years Ago (Rukia is adopted into the Kuchiki Clan)
~50-40 Years Ago (Kishin reincarnates)
~25-20 Years Ago (Isshin is exiled)
~16-15 Years Ago (Ichigo is born)
~10-9 Years Ago (Kurosaki Masaki and Katagiri Kanae dies/Auswahlen)
July 2001 (Sokyoku Execution and Aizen/Gin/Tosen defects)
~August 2001 (Kishin, Kinji, Amagai become Captains/Bounts Defeated/Ran'Tao and Ichinose Maki join 3rd Division)
~September 2001 (Kasumioji Conspiracy/Amagai's betrayal and truth)
~October 2001 (War against Aizen and his Arrancars begin)
~November 2001 (Aizen's Defeat and sentence to Muken)
~November 2001 (Senna Appears, Fallen House of Ryodoji, Kamunushi Great Noble Clan Appears, Karin becomes a Shinigami, Valley Of Screams Incident Resolved)
~September 2002 (Warrant for Karin's Arrest, Shinigami Disappearances within the Dangai)