A/N: Quite a handful to thank for reviews: Nocturna Mae, KitElizaKing, Grimelark, Rabe Addler, Hidden Mask, Dark Inu Fan, Cuelebra del Sol, and AnimeFreakAmanda. And thank you to anyone who put this or its author on their lists. Have I really not updated this since February? It doesn't seem that long. My bad, sorry.
Disclaimer: I do not own the Inuyasha and Bleach characters, mangas, animes, movies, etc. They belong by copyright laws to Rumiko Takahashi et al, and Tite Kubo et al, respectively.
Secrets Abound
It's Test Time
Sesshoumaru sat across from his brother and studied the report in front of him critically. Inuyasha frowned at a similar paper, neither dog demon liking what they were reading. "Someone has been planning treason," the elder growled, the promise of death clear in his tone.
"Shippou said there was something in the wind. Whoever is in charge has really been keeping things close to the vest. Either they're not ready to make their move, or they know that we have kitsune spies in every nook and cranny of our domain."
"It is most likely both. It would not be hard to figure that we use Shippou's associates for our own ends. Kitsunes are the best at disguising themselves." Setting the report down, the youkai lord glanced out the window briefly. "I believe it is time to test those teenagers."
"So soon?"
"They are far more advanced than we gave them credit for. Besides, unless we have a traitor far closer to us than I believe, our interaction with them is still limited to our pack. It would be easy enough to send in someone they're not expecting."
"True. Who is going to think twice about a bunch of teenagers hiking in the woods at this time of year?" Inuyasha would have said more but Kagome poked her head into her brother-in-law's office just then and smiled at them. "So, have you made peace with the pups?"
"Kurosaki-kun and Kuchiki-san were the only ones there at the time but they had other things on their mind. They didn't seem to mind my little slip."
"Indeed. It seems that it was fortuitous that you made that little mistake, imouto."
"Nii-san?" the miko questioned, having a feeling that she wasn't going to like what he said next.
"Yes, I have a job for them."
"Already? I do not think they are entirely ready for a mission."
"Ridiculous. This is not some arch-villain. It is simply a traitor that needs to be dealt with."
Kagome looked at Sesshoumaru and sighed. "Oh, well, if it's only a traitor," she retorted sarcastically. "I guess that's different." She bit her tongue so that she didn't remind them that all of the traitors they'd dealt with in the past had turned into arch-villains. She doubted the daiyoukai would appreciate the reminder.
"It is the logical choice." Sesshoumaru had become well acquainted with the priestess' expressions and inflexions over the centuries. He knew that she wasn't happy. Even after all this time her heart was still soft.
"Logical or not, they've just finished one war and you want to throw them into another."
"Hn."
Kagome knew when to quit. Sesshoumaru had made up his mind and there was no changing it. Sometimes she wondered who was more stubborn-the elder or the younger Taisho brother. "Inuyasha?" she questioned, hoping her mate would back her up.
"Keh, don't drag me into this. You both have valid points but this situation needs to be taken care of before they find out that we know about them."
"I suppose," the dark haired woman relented. "But you are forgetting one thing," she pointed out.
"What's that?"
"They have finals this week. You cannot possibly send them off until they are on vacation." She knew how to pick her battles.
Sesshoumaru was tempted to argue but Kagome was regarding both brothers with her stern maternal glare and he knew it was useless. "Very well."
A blinding smile was their reward. "Good, I'm glad that's settled." She turned to leave.
"One last question, imouto," her brother-in-law said, making the miko pause in the doorway.
"Yes?" she asked, looking over her shoulder.
"Why do I spell charred fox?"
His only answer was hysterical laughter and an indignant yelp.
It was not unusual for groups of friends to get together and study for tests. However, most study groups did not take place in mid air while Hollows tried to kill the members of said group. Textbooks had been set aside in favor of weapons and kido spells. "Watch where you're aiming that, Kurosaki!" Ishida yelled, barely dodging a Getsuga Tenshou in time to avoid an unwanted haircut.
"Oh, come on, Ishida, it's not like it would have done much damage," the orange haired daiko shouted back, putting away his sword in favor of trying a spell.
"That wasn't nice, Kurosaki-kun," Orihime scolded from a nearby roof. "Ishida-kun could have gotten hurt. Or worse, one side of his head would have been shaved off and then he'd have to shave off the other side. He'd end up bald and have no choice but to go into the priesthood…" The Rikka wielder paused long enough to send Tsubaki after a small Hollow attempting to sneak up behind Chad.
"A truly horrifying thought, Inoue-san…" the Quincy said wryly, not for the first time wondering where her imagination came from. "And just why are we all out here? This paltry group would not take any one of us very long to get rid of."
"Personally, I was sick of quadratic equations and historical facts," Ichigo admitted.
"I see… And why are we all gathered at my place?" the archer continued, putting away his bow when Rukia took care of the last blighted soul.
"Your place is bigger, Ishida-kun," Orihime pointed out, re-pinning her hair so that her flowers wouldn't come loose.
"There's that," Ichigo agreed, glaring at Kon so that he didn't decide to take off with his body. "There's also the fact that my crazy father isn't likely to barge into your apartment just to harass us."
"You have a point." As far as the Quincy knew, the elder Kurosaki didn't even know where he lived, although considering he was an ex-Shinigami captain, he probably was able to sense the archer's reiryoku.
"You also do not have random Shinigami asking to bunk down in your room," Rukia added, returning to her gigai. Stretching briefly, the petite woman glanced at her group of friends. "Having my colleagues arrive unannounced is quite distracting. This advanced math is more complicated than I presumed."
"It wouldn't be if you'd done your homework yourself from the beginning," her partner groused, remembering the double amounts of math problems he'd written down over the course of her stay with him.
"Hah! I knew your handwriting looked a little too like Ichigo's," another voice said, Tatsuki coming to join them from where she'd "hidden." Normally she would have studied by herself but Orihime had begged her so she'd agreed to go along with the ginger haired teen. "I always thought it was odd when I collected the homework," the martial artist commented as the group headed back to Ishida's.
"Tch, I told you someone was going to figure it out." The Vizard wasn't fast enough to dodge the elbow that jabbed him in the stomach, making him double over.
"You know, you're going to end up with a ruptured spleen one of these days if she keeps doing that." The Quincy smirked as he unlocked his door. Allowing his friends in first, he almost ran into them when they came to a complete stop in the entryway.
Adjusting his glasses, the archer peered around Chad's broad back in order to see what had disconcerted them. Lieutenant Ise was straightening the mess they'd left, her innate sense of order no doubt driving her to make sense of the disorder that they'd made in their rush to take care of the Hollows.
The bespectacled second-in-command of Squad Eight glanced up and cleared her throat. "Forgive me for intruding. Your father let me in."
"What was he doing here?" Ishida asked, his complexion paling. His sanctuary had been invaded.
"I am unsure. He said a great deal that I took to be nonsense so I disregarded everything that came out of his mouth." Nanao pushed her glasses back up and watched the teens' varied reactions.
"I see." A part of him would have liked to have been a fly on the wall for that encounter but he was still shocked that a Shinigami had dared enter his place without his permission to be amused at the thought of his father being ignored by a lieutenant of the Gotei Thirteen. "May I inquire as to what you are doing here, Lieutenant Ise?"
"I actually came to see Kurosaki-daiko and his father directed me here. However, I see that you are studying for your Living World exams so I will return another time."
"You might as well tell me, since you're here. It'd be a waste of your time for you to come back." Ichigo knew that she was the real person in charge of her division and he shuddered to think about what could happen in her absence. The Gotei was crazy enough without one of its only sane people missing from the helm. "We're just coming back from taking care of Hollows."
"All of you?" Nanao questioned, confusion wrinkling her brow briefly. "I would have thought one person was enough for that paltry number."
"One person would have been but it seems my classmates here needed a break."
"Ah, yes, that does seem to be the universal excuse for avoiding work." Blue-violet eyes narrowed on the guilty parties. "Perhaps you need some inspiration," she continued, lowering her glasses.
"We're inspired," Rukia rushed to assure her. "Aren't we, Ichigo?" she pressed, not wanting to experience the lieutenant without her glasses. There were rumors about what happened to Shinigami who saw Ise-fukutaicho without her glasses on.
"Sure," the daiko agreed, getting the feeling that he didn't want to find out why one of the oldest captains in the Gotei was afraid of his own subordinate.
"That's encouraging, because while I was straightening up, I noticed quite a few answers in your notes that were wrong. If you would like, to make up for the inconvenience of my intrusion, I would be happy to help you study. I've always been a fan of education."
The group of teens exchanged glances before several pairs of eyes zeroed in on Ishida. He met Nanao's eyes and cleared his throat uncomfortably. "We wouldn't want to keep you from your work."
"It would be no trouble," the older woman assured him. "I made provisions in the event that I would be delayed. My captain should be discovering them right about now." a satisfied smile came over her face and those that knew her captain suddenly felt sorry for him.
"Then by all means, join us," Ishida gave in, his tone gracious despite wanting to order her to leave. "The others would appreciate your help," he told her as he went to make tea. Invited or not, the woman was a guest and needed to be treated as such.
"They are not the only ones," Nanao said, making herself comfortable at the head of the table they had been using. "You seemed to have missed the answer to some very simple questions, Ishida-san."
"That's not like Ishida-kun," Orihime said, a frown forming on her brow. "He must have been distracted."
The others, remembering what had happened before they'd gone to slay Hollows, kept their thoughts to themselves. "Yes, you could say that," Ishida agreed, his voice cracking slightly.
Nanao studied the group in front of her before focusing her senses on the Quincy's energy. It was distinctly flustered and embarrassed. "I see. Such things can happen. Now then, while he is making refreshments, I shall explain my original purpose."
"Please do," Ishida pleaded from the other room, thankful that the lieutenant was discreet. The last thing he needed was for the others to tease him about the reason he'd written down wrong answers.
"I have devised a plan to help Kurosaki-daiko excel in kido. It is rather unusual but I fear that is the only way to ensure that he has a grasp of the subject. Eventually he's going to have to learn it once he dies officially and enters the Academy so he might as well start now."
"Lieutenant Ise…" Ichigo began, his interruption unheard. She probably had plenty of experience ignoring others that tried to derail her instructions.
"To put things succinctly, we are going to take your Zanpakutou away from you and take someone that you hold dear hostage."
"Ise-san, telling us kind of defeats the purpose, doesn't it?" Ichigo finally got out. "I mean, if that person is with one of you, I'd know they were safe."
"Who said we were going to leave that person with one of our own?" Eyes that glittered with purpose studied him while the lieutenant thanked the Quincy for the tea that he put in front of her.
The daiko furrowed his brows for a moment before his scowl deepened. "You couldn't possibly be reckless enough to send that person to Hueco Mundo without guards. I may have a friend or two over there but I couldn't guarantee that they'd help."
"That's precisely what I mean to do."
"Wait a minute, Lieutenant!" Rukia leaned forward, her hands clenched. "The only ones other than those here and his father that Ichigo really cares for don't have powers," she pressed, dread filling her. The twins came to mind too readily. Karin might be able to hold her own for a while but Yuzu would be a sitting duck.
"She's right, Ise-san," Tatsuki agreed. "Like myself, Ichigo's other friends don't have powers and some of them don't even have any spiritual awareness. His sister Karin might be able to put some energy into a soccer ball and go after small fry but she'd be no match for the monsters Orihime told me were in that place. And Yuzu can barely detect ghosts, never mind Shinigami and Hollows."
"I understand that you wish for me to learn but touch my sisters and I'll destroy you," Ichigo promised, dark and angry reiatsu brushing against everyone's senses.
"This entire discussion is pointless," Ishida started, understanding Ichigo's feelings. He had a soft spot for the youngest Kurosaki, mostly because she was completely different from the rest of her family. "You can now perform kido spells, remember," he continued, intent on preventing a battle. It was very difficult to get blood out of furniture fabric.
Nanao looked up from the textbook she had begun perusing, surprise lighting her duel colored eyes. "What do you mean? When I left you the last time, you were blowing yourself up."
"Yes, well, it turns out this fool was using too much power by saying the incantations." Rukia settled back onto her heels, turning her violet orbs to her partner. His reiatsu still rolled over them, the energy agitated.
"That's right, Ise-san!" Orihime shouted, clasping her hands. "Kurosaki-kun even used one just a little while ago to get rid of a Hollow. We all saw it."
"Well, then, I suppose my whole scheme is pointless, isn't it?" she asked, smiling slightly. Nanao had already known that the orange haired Vizard would go on the war path if one of his sisters was taken, so the threat alone should have been enough to spur on his advancement. Since the youngest sibling had no powers to speak of, Karin had always been the only choice. Naturally she would have ensured the girl's safety first and tucked her somewhere that the Arrancars that still held a grudge wouldn't find her.
"Quite," the Quincy said, glad that the discussion was over. Maybe they could get back to what was important.
"Now then, let us see where you are erring in your studies," the lieutenant continued, quite happy to abandon the previous discussion. Most of the teens groaned and she glared at them over the top of her glasses. "Come now, it's not like I'm asking you to fill out paperwork for the Gotei Thirteen. A simple study session should be no trouble for war heroes such as yourselves."
"Frankly, Lieutenant Ise, I would rather be doing paperwork," Rukia admitted. The reports she sent in about Ichigo's activities were far simpler than what she was facing in the next few days.
"I could always arrange that," the adjunct reminded the unseated officer. Considering all of the trouble that the group in front of her caused, she should make them fill out their own damage reports.
"No, thank you," Ichigo said, remembering the mounds of paper that always cluttered Toushiro's desk when he visited.
"I knew you'd see it my way." Nanao smiled and picked up the pen that was closest to her. The writing utensil was an improvement on the brush in terms of expediency. Perhaps she should consider purchasing some for her office. If she used a pen, maybe she'd get done in time to enjoy more of her books. It was something to think about anyway.
Now to make sure this group of teens excelled in their studies.
Rukia groaned and flopped back onto Ichigo's bed, her head hitting the orange haired teen's leg. "Oi, go flop on your own bed," Ichigo growled, his eyes shut in an attempt to forget the last few days. After Lieutenant Ise's Spartan study session, he'd had so much information stuffed in his head, he was surprised it hadn't exploded. The finals themselves hadn't been any easier, asking questions from as far back as the first semester.
"Shut up. Karin is still studying. I'd just disturb her." If she never saw another textbook, it would make her the happiest Shinigami in existence.
"So you're disturbing me instead."
"I figured you'd be in a similar state and wouldn't mind."
"Tch. I'm just glad that's all over with. Oh, and remind me not to join Squad Eight. I have a feeling that Ise-san would gladly give any and all her paperwork away if she could."
Opening one eye, the petite warrior looked at her partner. "Considering the amount of paperwork your shenanigans cause, any sane lieutenant would make it a point to ignore you upon your graduation from the Academy."
"There aren't many sane lieutenants in the Gotei Thirteen. There's Gramps' second, and maybe Unohana-san's, although I don't know her that well. Oh, and Ise-san." Mentally running through the list of adjuncts, Ichigo couldn't come up with another lieutenant that fit his qualifications of "sane."
"How long is vacation?"
"A couple of weeks or so, I'm not sure. I'm just glad that we passed." He could have looked at his calendar to answer her question but that would mean getting up and he didn't feel like moving.
"You know, if I didn't have to supervise your butt, I could go home and never see another test or textbook for the rest of my afterlife."
"If you left, you'd be bored to tears within the week." Ichigo smirked down at her before closing his eyes again.
Knowing that he was right, Rukia scowled but didn't argue. The monotony of her days had certainly disappeared since meeting the orange haired daiko. Allowing a small sigh to escape, the petite Shinigami shifted so that she could look out the window. The setting sun had painted the sky red and orange, reminding her of Ichigo's hair. "I probably should go back to the Soul Society for the length of the vacation. Captain Ukitake could probably use some help."
"Oh, you mean some that doesn't include arguments in stereo? I swear those third seats of yours need to chill out."
"Their hearts are in the right place," Rukia defended while of the same opinion.
"Yeah, I guess. I could go with you, help out too. Practice my kido someplace other than Urahara's basement."
Images of a completely destroyed training ground came immediately to mind. "Or, you could go over to the Eleventh and spar with Zaraki-taicho."
"Are you insane? I don't want to spend most of my vacation in the infirmary." Between his dad and Rukia, he got beat up enough. The last thing he wanted to do was spar with someone who thought fighting to the death was a great way to have fun.
"Oh, I know, since you want to help, you can fill out your own incident reports."
"Thanks, but no thanks." Disgust twisted Ichigo's features at the thought of writing one of the Gotei's lengthy reports.
"It's not hard, here I'll demonstrate." Sitting up, Rukia started to reach for her sketch pad. Ichigo had tossed it onto his pillow earlier when she'd shown him some of her latest creations.
Before she could complete the retrieval, Yuzu barged into the room. The youngest Kurosaki paused, unsure of what to say. Rukia was in a compromising position and her brother seemed to be in some sort of pain. "Onii-chan?" the girl finally asked.
"What do you want, Yuzu?" Ichigo managed, groaning under his breath as Rukia finished grabbing her pad of atrocities. No doubt the others would soon hear about the petite raven haired girl climbing over his lap. His dad would get the wrong idea and they'd have to spend the rest of the night correcting him.
"Mail came for you two. Looks like some sort of invitation." The sandy blonde twin came further into the room, looking around. There was no sign that anything inappropriate had been going on. Mentally shrugging, Yuzu deciding to keep what she'd seen to herself and handed the golden embossed envelopes to the two Shinigami.
Calligraphy danced across ivory paper and Ichigo was almost afraid to open it. Someone had clearly taken a lot of time to write out the letter by hand. The seal was made of wax and he slowly broke it open, reading the contents twice over just to make sure he understood. "Well, I guess we don't have to decide what to do for vacation," he said, watching as plane tickets dropped into his lap.
"Am I reading this right, Ichigo?" Rukia asked, shoving the invitation in his face.
"I think so."
"Was I right?" the younger twin asked, placing her hands behind her back and bouncing on heels.
"Yeah. According to this, we've been given some first class vacation package to an island resort in the Kerama Islands."
"Where's that?" Rukia asked, her geography not what it should be.
"They're in the South China Sea, southwest of Naha in the Okinawa Prefecture. I'd say it's about a five or six hour plane ride." It explained the tickets currently taking up residence in his lap.
"Wow, Onii-chan, I didn't know you'd entered a contest."
"I didn't, Yuzu. If I had to guess, I'd say these were courtesy of our new 'friends.'" Ichigo picked up the envelope again and studied the paper. It was certainly expensive.
Before Rukia could question him further, both of their phones rang. Yuzu watched them answer them in tandem, amazed that even their casual movements were in sync. Backing out of her brother's room, she decided not to tell him about it. He always became as red as a strawberry when he was teased about being close to Rukia.
Karin was waiting in their room for her, the textbooks she had been buried under put away in either triumph or defeat. "So, did you give them to Ichi-nii and Rukia-nee?"
"Uh-huh. It seems they've been invited to a new resort in the Kemara Islands. Pretty fancy if the invitation is anything to go by."
"I see. Well, I guess we'll be stuck home alone with Goat Chin for the duration of the vacation. Tell them that if they're going, they have to bring back souvenirs."
"For some reason, Karin-chan, I don't think they're going to be sightseeing." Yuzu straightened a corner of Rukia's blanket before sitting on the edge of the older girl's bed.
"Probably not. Ichi-nii's got his nose stuck in some weird business again."
"At least he's happy, Karin-chan."
"There's that."
Unaware of his sisters' conversation, Ichigo was presently trying to calm his Quincy friend down. Ishida had called him the moment he'd read the invitation, insisting on a strategy meeting immediately. The archer preferred to talk about supernatural business in person, wary of security of cell phones. "Get a grip, Ishida. It's not like we didn't think they'd test us in some of other way. We've passed their expectations so they're stepping things up. And hey, an all expenses paid trip to a tropical island. We can't really beat that, now can we?"
"I think it's a splendid idea, Ishida-kun," Orihime said, her voice coming from Rukia's communicator on speaker. Her voice may have been a little muffled but apparently Ishida heard her because he caved instantly.
"I suppose. Very well, as long as we're all in agreement. And it will give me the opportunity to escape the necessity of working for my father this break. Will you call Sado, Kurosaki?"
"No need," Chad rumbled, his voice adding to the makeshift conference call. He'd rung Ichigo just before Ishida, allowing the daiko to connect their conversations.
"Great, so I guess we'll see each other at the airport tomorrow."
"Right." Ishida hung up without saying goodbye, the others doing so after the appropriate farewells.
"I need to send in a report. I don't think it's a good idea if we go with the Soul Society knowing. At the very least they should know where we are in case we need backup," Rukia declared. She had to admit to being just a tad excited. The closest she'd come to a vacation had been the day at the beach last year.
"Sure. I'll give Urahara a call and see if he can't keep an eye on the town for a while." Ichigo watched her shut herself in his closet, the crack in the door the only indication that she hadn't taken to hibernating in there again. He hadn't missed the excitement in her eyes, nor the bubbling jabber that she and Inoue had exchanged while Ishida was panicking. "Oh, well. We'll see how she deals with planes." Ichigo had visions of trying to explain the concept of flying to a woman nearly tem times his age and groaned.
Sometimes she was just like a little kid.
Orange tinted sunlight brushed the room with the colors of sunset as the Taiyoukai of Japan spoke with his mother. "Did they receive their invitations?" he questioned, never certain she would do what she said she would.
"Of course, do you take me for a fool? I had my personal assistant deliver them personally. We should see them arrive tomorrow evening, if they accept."
"Hn. They'll accept. I leave them in your care then, Mother."
"I will be the perfect hostess," the Lady of the West assured her son, not missing the slight sound of disbelief that came from him. "You're so cold, Sesshoumaru. Have a little faith in me."
We shall see. Oh, and you'll be getting some extra help for the spring vacation. Inuyasha's two youngest pups are being sent to work at the resort as punishment. Do use them as you need."
"Hmm… I do need an extra hand or two. I'll look forward to their arrival."
"They should be arriving at any moment." A loud crash on the lady's end of the phone let her son know his warning had come too late. "Ah, I see they've made it safely. I will speak to you later, Mother. Try not to kill each other."
"Insolent pup," his mother spat and hung up.
"It's always nice working with family," Sesshoumaru murmured and allowed a small smirk to appear. Let his mother put up with adolescent pups, both human and youkai. "She'll have grey hair for sure by the time this is all over."
It would serve her right for not telling him about the treason sooner.