Rukia and Ichigo were walking back towards his house after roaming around the city for a while to forget what happened at the kakigori shop today. Ichigo's face was crunched in worry and thought.
"Still thinking about Eren?"
Ichigo slowly nodded
"That guy…I don't understand why Toshiro sides with him at all."
"Captain…Hitsugaya."
"Captains don't back up people who commit genocide, Rukia. And neither does the Soul Society. What the hell does he have that makes them take a step like this?"
"Give it time Ichigo. He's only being held like this on a benefit of doubt. His past is still a mystery. That's the sole reason he's being held like this. And even if it does, I doubt it'll change the general verdict. Men like him always have a dirty past. They always do." She said with a scowl
"And what if he comes after this world before that happens?" Ichigo shakily asked
Rukia's head snapped to turn in his direction
"Make no mistake Rukia. He calculatedly destroyed the very world he was born in…he killed innocent people! There's no guarantee that he'll not do the same to the Doitsu world. If it weren't for the people who stopped him…and all the Soul Society's doing now is giving that bastard the power he needs to do it."
Rukia crunched her face in thought as well
"You make a good point. Giving Shinigami Powers to a man like him…it's beyond even dangerous."
She then bent her head down
"But bluntly speaking…we're completely powerless in this issue. We can't even touch Eren because of Lord Enma's orders. It pisses me off too but…all we can do is wait. I'm sure that Lord Enma has some plans with Eren. I don't think Lord Enma's someone who'd forgive someone like him."
"Let's hope that's the case."
Rukia then observed Ichigo's face, still in thought
"But that's not your main concern Ichigo is it?" Rukia slowly asked
Ichigo pursed his lips and nodded
"It's…Karin. Tatsuki too…he's gotten close to both of them. I can't stop worrying about them. W-What if he's planning something? What if…he does something to them…just thinking about it makes my nerves crackle. Forget the old guy's orders, thanks to those two, I can't lay a finger on him."
"He sure knows how to defend himself. Not to mention he has his weird healing abilities and his thick head. I asked Unohana about it, but even she doesn't seem to understand it. He's the worst kind of enemy we can face. He can't be touched, and even if he can be, he'll just get up again and again, healed up and stronger."
Ichigo chuckled in irony
"Puts up a whole new perspective to the 'never give up' attitude."
Rukia grit her teeth
"Unfortunately."
Silence ensued for a few seconds. Rukia then continued
"In these three years, there is nothing I haven't done to break him. I can swear that every damn bone in his body has been broken multiple times during his training. But still… "
Rukia clenched her fist
"Despite EVERYTHING I did, I only made him stronger than ever. He's already the strongest recruit we have in the academy, even including the seniors…and he's only halfway through his training. If this keeps up, it'll only be a matter of time before he comes up to mine or Renji's level of strength."
Ichigo looked at her for a second. He then said
"Ever since that day at his hearing, I've been training, you know. Although I got a slight break in the middle during high school, I always kept training, either with my powers or with my physical ability. All in the thought that in case if he turns an enemy, and he will, then I must be ready on that day to take him down. "
Rukia chuckled
"Like you said, the irony of it all is that is that we're the one creating the enemy in the first place."
"Yeah."
The two then reached home
"We're back."
Yuzu came up wearing an apron as she cooked dinner
"Welcome back Ichi-nii! Rukia-san!"
"Where's Karin?"
"Oh she finished dinner and slept a while back."
She then quickly went up to them and asked in a whisper
"So, Ichi-nii, what can you tell me about this 'Eren Yeager' guy?"
Ichigo went bewildered as his eyebrow twitched
"Why…do you ask me that? And how do you know about him?!"
"Karin has been talking about him non-stop ever since she came back home! Like how out-dated he is, how stupid he is, he also talked about how handsome he is!"
Ichigo growled
"Handsome?!"
Yuzu flinched
"Oops…shouldn't have said that…But you know Ichi-nii, I think…Karin has a thing for him. Can you bring him home once?"
"Not…in any case. Out of the question."
"Ichi-nii…"
"Like I said-"
Ishhin then stepped in
"What's the matter, Ichigo? You don't like the guy?"
"Oyajii…"
"Listen Ichigo, you're worrying too much. I trust my daughter's judgement and I'm sure she'll beat up any guys who try to harm her."
Yuzu supported as well
"Besides, Ichi-nii, this is Karin we're talking about! She rarely shows interest in guys…or even girls for that matter…surely he must be someone interesting. Tell him Rukia!"
"W-Well…I…I..."
Ichigo then muttered
"Oh he's interesting all right…just not in the way you expect."
Isshin then said
"I'm serious Ichigo. I really want to meet him. He interests me."
He then gave a slight scowl which both Ichigo and Rukia understood
He knows.
Isshin then gestured to come over outside.
"Okay then, I'll be going out for a while. Need to buy some stuff for tomorrow, since I'll need to impress a few nice ladies over at the beach." He said with a thumbs up and a grin
All three of them looked at him with a disappointed look
"Ugh…" Ichigo mumbled
"Well it's not fair that you're the only guy in the family with a girlfriend!" Isshin argued
"You're literally getting jealous over your kid?"
"I'm just asking what I'll do if all of you leave me like this?! Even Karin's staring to find someone!" Isshin cried out
Yuzu then put a few fingers on her head
"Ahh…all of you are going and finding someone for yourselves…maybe even I should try finding someone…maybe I'll see someone near the beach tomorrow!"
"Not a chance. They'll have to face me before that."
Yuzu pouted by bubbling her mouth. She then turned around and said in an annoyed tone
"Dinner's on the table!"
"Yeah, Yeah…I'll go to my room for a minute and come over."
"Okay"
As the two went up the stairs and glanced at Isshin, who gave a glance back
The two went up the stairs and into his room. Ichigo then opened the window to see Isshin standing on the roof.
"So you know."
"I've only heard about him from Urahara, but I suppose I know enough. He's that soul who committed global genocide, right? "
Ichigo looked at his dad, mouth agape. He grit his teeth and argued
"How come you're not reacting to all this?! You know what he's done, and Karin is-"
"Quiet down. Karin or Yuzu might hear you."
Ichigo turned back a little and began asking him softly
"Karin LIKES the guy. And so does Tatsuki. I…I can't help but get worried. Knowing him-"
"You don't."
Ichigo looked up at him.
"What?"
"You don't know him. Or at least, you don't know him enough."
"And you do?"
Isshin closed his eyes for a second
"No."
"W-What the- What are you-"
"Ichigo, Rukia, I can understand where you're coming from. I really do. But I…I've known Lord Enma for a long time, and he's someone with a strong sense of justice. He only exercises his power only when he truly thinks it's necessary. And the fact that he saved a seemingly unforgivable man like him itself says that something's off about him. That's why I want to see him myself."
Ichigo's eyebrow furrowed
"That's what Toshiro said as well."
Rukia then told him
"I-I don't think this has anything to do about his morality what-so-ever, Isshin-san."
Isshin looked at her curiously
"And why do you think that?"
"Eren was able to do what he did only because of what I'm presuming is a massive source of power. Although the source had been extracted from him, I doubt that the Soul Syndicate knows how to operate it. And that's why they need Eren. That's the reason they're keeping him alive."
Isshin looked at her for a second and then answered
"You're right about one thing: Eren had access to a massive source of power. That was how he was able to do the genocide. But you're wrong about the other two. According to the recent intel I got from a source in the Hanten Soul Society, they have a large fraction of this source and were very aware of how to control it. So there was no need to keep Eren alive. Secondly, Eren is not being kept here on a temporary basis. From what I know, Lord Enma intends to give Eren permanent status as Shinigami."
Rukia and Ichigo were bewildered at this
"Permanent…"
"Status?!"
"Yes. I don't know what is going on in the old man's mind, but I don't doubt his judgement. We'll just have to see how things unfold."
Ichigo grit his teeth in frustration. Rukia looked down in thought."
Ishhin then asked
"Rukia, I heard that you're the one in-charge of Eren's training. So how strong is he now?"
Rukia then said slowly as she continued to think
"U-Um…As of now…it's safe to say that he's one of the strongest in the academy, even among the seniors, despite him completing only half of his training. He has some…weird healing abilities that keep him in one piece even after breaking a few bones during training. He's only learnt Zanjutsu and Hakuda at high level at this point.
I think a little bit more and he'll be able to use his Shikai."
"I see. That's a lot of progress in 3 years for anyone. Looks like you put him through quite the regimen."
"She sure did." Ichigo replied
He then asked Ichigo
"So, done packing for tomorrow?"
"All of it."
"Great! So we'll have to just leave in the morning."
"Yup."
He then jumped down and walked down the street after giving them a wave
Ichigo waved back with a slight smile and closed the window
"My old man's getting delusional. Or probably it's Lord Enma."
"I don't understand all this. Permanent Status? To someone like him? Why would Lord Enma do that?" Rukia asked out loud
Ichigo then turned to her
"In any case, Rukia, what we do remains the same. We must make ourselves ready. No matter what happens"
A/N: Here's a new chapter for A Devil's Salvation! And for the next chapter, the Beach trip begins! What else awaits everyone after?