Hello again my friends. Hope everyone's week went alright for ya. Just giving you a heads up, but I'll be gone for the weekend for a friendly get-together and won't be back till Tuesday. Rather that have you fellas wait so long and fidgeting in your seats, I'm posting chapter 6 a day early. The normal Saturday posting will resume next week.

So, let's get started with some review responses,

Orokin Rundas: Thanks for the dedication my friend. Happy to see another person enjoying the story. For your inquiry, as of chapter 5, Timothy doesn't have a rank; he's just another member. If you could, P.M. me with the chapter number and where abouts in the chapter this problem happened, and I'll get it fixed. Thanks for pointing it out.

xXSpades231Xx: Bro, it wouldn't be a story if it didn't have all of the key items that 'make' it a story. A pervert is one of those requirements, lol. And if you think that was the only drinking session that Timothy with have, think again; I'll let you roast on that, heh heh.

For your questions; 1: Hinata is relevant to the story in her own ways and is crucial to Timothy's development. 2: As I mentioned in the last chapter, I'll try to find a way to give Albert a little bit of spotlight; just gotta get the timing right. 3: Not telling, lol. 4: …I don't know about his favorite soda, but I will say that his favorite 'adult' soda is whiskey. 5: Honestly, that thought never crossed my mind. All I can say is that it's possible. And 6: I tried to do some research as to how the daily training regimen goes for the individual squads, but didn't have any luck. I would assume that the members would have a day off every now and then, so I'm trying to put it as a day off every month. As always, thanks for the rating.

ItsukiSuzuki: Oh, don't worry my friend; the day of reckoning is coming.

So, again, thanks for the reviews and hope everyone enjoys this week's chapter.

(I DO NOT OWN BLEACH; ITS CHARACTORS, NAMES, LOCATIONS, OR STORY! THAT HONOR BELONGS SOLELY TO TITE KUBO AND HIS TEAM! ONLY THE OC, AND RANDOM NAMES NOT MENTIONED IN THE BOOKS OR ANIME ARE MY OWN!)


Chapter 5

(Loss and Pain)

Squad 7 Training Grounds, Seireitei, Present.

Timothy and Hetoku continued their walk to the training grounds, but they were soon stopped halfway by Tetsuzaemon calling to them. They both turned to see the Lieutenant walking to them, then they bowed once he was a few feet away.

"Good morning Lieutenant." Hetoku greeted as he and Timothy both rose.

"Morning Hetoku, Durn." he replied and stopped.

"How can we help you this morning, sir?" Hetoku asked while Tetsuzaemon looked at Timothy for a moment.

Then Lieutenant turned back to him. "The Captain is sending you on another assignment, starting tomorrow. Plan to be gone for about a week." Tetsuzaemon instructed as he turned back to Timothy.

"As for you, you've had enough one-on-one tutoring. It's time that you started training on your own." he added.

Timothy nodded, and the man turned back to Hetoku. "You can go ahead and train him as planned for today, but be sure to set some time aside to get your paperwork straight." he stated, getting a nod in return. "Also, you'll need some assistance on the assignment, so pick out a few members to go with you. It should be cake walk, so I recommend taking those with little experience in things like this." the man recommended, Hetoku again nodding.

"I'll finish the training early this afternoon and get started Lieutenant. Will that be all, sir?" Hetoku asked and Tetsuzaemon shook his head.

"Yeah, that'll cover it. What are you teaching the fool today?" he asked, followed by a glare from Timothy.

"Shunpo. I believe he's ready for the basics." Hetoku stated with a smile.

Tetsuzaemon looked at Timothy. "Just make sure he doesn't kill himself by running into a tree." he finished in a taunted.

"Of course, sir." Hetoku answered.

"Carry on." The Lieutenant ordered. He gave Timothy one last look, then turned and began walking away.

Timothy turned to the officer with a raised brow. "What did he mean by that?" asked Timothy, causing the officer to turn to him.

"I'll explain in a bit. Let's get down to the field." Hetoku answered, getting a nod back.

A few minutes later, both men were now by the set of trees where they normally study. They both stopped and faced each other.

"Ok, the first thing you should know about Shunpo, or 'flash step', is that it is 'not' teleporting." Hetoku began, then raised a finger. "Instead, it is a simple move that is enormously fast; too fast for the eye to catch. It basically breaks down to simple body science. If an object moves too fast for the eye to register, it basically does not 'see' it. Observe." he finished, then flash stepped to Timothy's far right side.

Timothy quickly turned to him, then a second later the man flash stepped right in front of him, causing Timothy to jump back a few inches.

"See?" Hetoku asked as he held his hands out to his sides.

"So, you're saying that you're not 'teleporting', but you are moving too fast for me to see, right?" Timothy asked, getting a nod from the officer.

"Correct. When you use shunpo, you are just simply moving like normal, but you are using your spirit energy to 'propel' you, causing your movements to become several times faster." he added further, then held his finger up again.

"However, it does have its drawbacks." he started as he dropped his finger. "Shunpo will quickly tire you out if you use it too much. Remember, nothing in regards to your actual movements are changed, you are simply using spirit energy to move 'faster'." Hetoku warned, getting a puzzled look.

"I'm a little confused." Timothy admitted, where Hetoku nodded.

"Alright, you see that tree?" he asked as he pointed to a distant tree.

Timothy turned to it and nodded. "Alright. Let's say you run to that tree and back ten times. What would happen if you did that?"

"I'd get tired." Timothy answered, Hetoku nodded.

"Correct. Now, if you were to do the same thing, but do so using shunpo, your body wouldn't be as tired, but your spirit energy would be a little weaker. That's because by putting your spirit energy behind the movements, you would take far less steps to complete the journey, at the expense of your spirit energy. Understand?" he asked, getting a nod.

"So, it's basically a trade-off? Less step at the cost of spirit energy?" Timothy asked, getting a nod back as well.

"And faster. If you ran there and back ten times, it would probably take you about ten, maybe nine minutes. But if you used shunpo, it would be about nine or ten seconds." Hetoku clarified.

Timothy looked to the tree and back a few times. "That's fast." he remarked, but Hetoku held his finger back up.

"And there's more downsides as well." He put down his finger. "Changing directions during shunpo is difficult to do as you are moving too fast. Even those who have mastered shunpo don't make drastic changes to their direction of travel. Doing so could cause you to trip, and when you are going that fast, it won't feel too good when you do." Hetoku cautioned, getting a nod.

"So, no sudden turns, got it." Timothy remarked.

"And finally, but most important, you must 'always'" Hetoku emphasized with his finger pointed at Timothy.

"…'always' be aware of your surroundings. Know where you are going, and what your path is going to be like. Are there buildings or obstacles in your way? If you move somewhere, does the area have enough room for you to move in? Things like that have to be taken into consideration when you use shunpo." Hetoku warned in a serious tone.

"I'm guessing this goes back to the Lieutenant's warning?" he guessed, and the officer nodded.

"God forbid you shunpo, and something is in your path. When you shunpo, only your 'speed' is increased, nothing else. Here's an example; if I was to gently toss a small rock at you, what would happen?" Hetoku asked.

"It'd bounce of me?" Timothy responded, getting a nod from the officer.

"Now, if I was to throw that same rock with force, what would happen?" Hetoku again asked.

"I would guess that it would hurt." Timothy retorted; another nod.

"Yes. Now, let's say I throw that same rock again, but at the speed of a bullet, what would happen?" he asked, and Timothy's eyes went wide. "I see you realized what I'm getting at. Again, shunpo only increases your speed, but your body is unaffected. So, if you shunpo, and run into a solid object, I'm sure you can imagine the result." Hetoku finished, getting a headshake back.

"Ok, running into a wall…bad idea." he flatly remarked, getting a serious nod back.

"Yes, bad idea. Now, with that out of the way, let's get you started." The officer stated, then pointed out to the open field.

"Your target location is the center of the field. There's plenty of space for you in case you overshoot, which can happen on occasion if the user loses focus. Now, stand and face the area." Hetoku instructed and Timothy complied. "Now, reach inside yourself and feel your spirit energy, just like I taught you the other day."

Timothy closed his eyes and tried to feel inside himself, to feel his energy flowing through his body. After a moment, he started to feel it's flow, then he nodded.

"Good. Now, get yourself ready to take a 'single' step forward." He was sure to emphasize the 'single' part.

Timothy moved his right foot back a few inches and got ready to take a step.

"Now, take the flow of spirit energy, and channel just a little bit directly into your left leg, and only a little."

He could now start to feel Timothy's energy start to fluctuate a little, telling him that he was having a difficult time transferring the flow.

"Take it easy, Tim…take your time and don't force it. Just redirect a little bit at a time to start out." Hetoku instructed, then felt Timothy's energy started to calm down. "Once you can feel the energy begin the focus into your leg, gently push it out of your leg at the same time you take that step. But wait till I tell you. Are you ready?" he asked, getting a little worried.

After a few moments, Timothy took a breath, then nodded.

"Ready." he whispered, then Hetoku took a breath.

"Ok, take the step." he hesitantly instructed.

Timothy stood motionless for a moment more, then took his step.

But only a couple of inches before he stumbled and fell. Hetoku let out the breath he was holding, then chuckled.

"Alright, you took the step, but you didn't let the energy flow out, you let it sink back in. Stand back up and we'll try again. It just takes practice to get the feel of it down, and like I said before, that's half the battle." Hetoku encouraged.

Timothy stood up and dusted himself off, then returned to his stance, ready to try again.

"Alright, try again and reach deep inside. Find the flow of energy, then channel some of the energy to your leg."

Timothy nodded, then took another breath. After a moment, he began to feel the flow again, then started to send some of it to his leg. He could slightly feel the energy building, then nodded.

"Alright…go." Hetoku instructed.

Timothy took a breath, then stepped. But again, he stumbled and fell.

But this time, it felt different. He felt like he had stumbled much faster than before.

"You almost had it. You forced a little bit out, but not quite enough to get the speed needed. Try it again, but this time, try to let more out, and less back in." Hetoku again encouraged.

Timothy stood back up again and got right back into his stance. He again reached inside and started sending energy to his leg.

"Go."

Timothy breathed again, then stepped.

This time, he launched about ten feet forward and tripped, falling down yet again.

"Very close, you had some speed to it, but nowhere near where it should have been." Hetoku stated as he walked over to pick Timothy up.

He stood him up and set his hand on his shoulder.

"You've figured out how to release the energy, now you just have to learn to control it. It feels like you are putting enough energy into your leg, but you're not controlling the release. You're letting most of it go back into its natural flow." he stated, getting a nod back.

"Try this, when you get the right amount of energy into your leg, try to imagine a wall, or gate that now has it locked in place, and it has nowhere to go but where you tell it." Hetoku advised, getting another nod.

"Alright." Timothy responded, then got back into his stance.

He reached inside and began pooling energy into his leg. Once he had what he wanted, he pictured the energy being trapped with nowhere to go.

"Go." Hetoku instructed yet again.

Timothy took his breath, then a second later took the step.

Timothy quickly disappeared, then reappeared just a little farther than where he was supposed to be. But as he appeared, he suddenly tripped and hit the ground hard.

Hetoku quickly flash stepped over to him and knelt down next to him. Timothy got to his knees wiped blood from his nose.

"Ouch." he stated in a sarcastic manner.

"I bet. That was good, but you didn't plan for the sudden drop in speed, so you tripped over yourself. It's common for the first time, even for me. I ended up breaking my arm while I tried to stop the fall." Hetoku comforted.

Timothy chuckled and sat down. "Well, the 'wall' trick worked. Thanks." Timothy stated, getting a smile back.

"Not a problem. Now let's get your nose checked out, it looks like it's broken. We've got a few members trained with medical kidō, so we don't need to go to Squad 4." the officer concluded.

"Squad 4?" Timothy asked.

"Yes, Squad 4 is the medical squad. They can fight if they need to, but their sole purpose is to provide emergency care on the field. But like I said, it's not bad enough to bother them. Let's head inside." Hetoku answered, then began pull Timothy up to his feet.

As he did so, they both heard footsteps approaching. They both turned to see another member, who walked up and bowed.

"Excuse me 5th seat Watashu, sorry for the interruption, but the Captain sent me to find you. He would like you to join him in his office." the man stated as he rose.

Hetoku then turned to Timothy. "Duty calls. Hopefully I will be back soon. You can continue reading or stay out here and train your skills. But do not perform shunpo unless myself, or another officer is here. Understood?" he instructed, getting a nod from Timothy.

"Understood." he answered and Hetoku nodded back.

"Good. If you don't see me again today, just remember what the Lieutenant told you. Train on your own, and don't be stupid." Hetoku continued.

"Alright. Have fun." Timothy retorted, causing the officer to chuckle.

"You too."

Both men bowed, then Hetoku flash stepped away. Meanwhile, Timothy stood there and debated on what he should do. He wanted to continue practicing his endurance, but he knew Tetsuzaemon was busy. He also need to build up his spirit energy, but he was unsure on how to do that.

He began walking towards the training field while he continued to think on what to do. But when he had gotten there, he still hadn't thought of anything. He looked over to the tree near him, then decided that he could meditate for a while. He strolled over to the tree, sat down, and placed his zanpakutō on his lap.

He took a deep breath, then closed his eyes and cleared his mind.

Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, 10 minutes later.

Sajin sat at his desk gathering paperwork and sorting it while he waited for his 5th seat to arrive. There was a lot more paperwork than usual, due to the fact that there were a lot of assignment orders for the world of the living in response to Aizen's treachery.

The new Rukongai assignments also added to the endless supply of paperwork.

He then heard a knock on the door and began setting the papers aside.

"You may enter." he stated as he placed the last bundle of papers to the side.

The door opened and 5th seat Hetoku entered. He closed the door behind him, walked up to the desk, and bowed.

"You wished to see me, Captain?" Hetoku asked as he rose.

Sajin nodded, then gestured for the man to sit, which he did.

"I'll need to send you to the world of the living a little earlier than before. I'll need you to leave as soon as you are ready. Take two squad members with you." the Captain ordered.

"I understand sir. May I ask why the sudden change?" Hetoku inquired.

"It appears that the report on the hollows in the sector was a little underestimated. The outbreak is worse than the assigned team had thought, so they have requested assistance. Nothing too difficult, just go there, give them a hand to get it back under control, then return." Sajin answered, getting a nod.

"Understood sir. I'll pick my team and leave right away." the officer responded, getting ready to get back up.

"Who do you have in mind?" Sajin asked as then man stood up to his feet.

"If the situation is as bad as they say, I would prefer to take members with experience. I'm thinking Ryokō and Murakami." he offered.

Sajin thought about it for a moment, but nodded shortly after.

"Very well. The request is approved. Go ahead and let them know, I'll get the request for the senkaimon issued. Good luck." Sajin offered, and the man bowed.

"I get the job done quickly sir." Hetoku stated as he rose, then turned to walk towards the door.

Once he got to the door, he stopped and turned back.

"Want any souvenirs, sir?" he asked with a smile.

Sajin chuckled and shook his head.

"No, thank you Hetoku. Be safe." Sajin returned.

The man bowed once more, then left the office while Sajin returned to his paperwork.

A moment later, he remembered that he had something else he wanted to discuss with the officer. He debated calling him back, but decided that it could wait until he returned. He turned to his left and retrieved a request form for a senkaimon opening and began filling it out.

After a few moments, he had the form filled out, he then rose from his desk, grabbed a few additional papers, then walked out of his office.

He continued across the hall to the next office and up to the member sitting at the desk. The man turned to him and bowed his head.

"Afternoon, Captain. How can I help?" he politely asked.

"I need you to run these papers and request form to the Squad 1 Headquarters. While you are there, please pick up any additional paperwork for the squad. You can set them on my desk if I am not in." Sajin instructed as he handed the man the papers.

The man nodded in understanding. "I leave immediately, sir." he responded as he stood up.

The man left the office while Sajin stood for a moment thinking. He was contemplating checking in on Timothy to see how he was progressing as a member.

Although Sajin had an attachment with all of his squad members, he felt a little more so with Timothy. The man had a certain atmosphere about him that Sajin liked, although Sajin couldn't quite place it yet.

He stepped out of the office and began his walk towards the grounds. As he stepped out of the building, he noticed Timothy sitting next to a tree, but couldn't quite see what it was that he was doing.

He started a slow walk as he continued to watch Timothy sitting motionless in the shade of the tree. As he got closer, he could now see that he had his zanpakutō sitting on his lap, telling Sajin that the man was most likely meditating.

A moment later, he was now a few yards from the man, but he did not notice him yet. It was when he was only a few feet away that Timothy opened his eyes and turned to the Captain.

"Afternoon sir." he greeted with a slight head bow.

Sajin returned the gesture, then stopped in front of him. "Good afternoon. Meditating I see." he stated.

Timothy nodded. "Yes sir. I thought I would relax for a bit and try to communicate with my zanpakutō." Timothy responded.

"Have you had any success?" Sajin inquired, getting a head shake in return.

"No sir. I think my zanpakutō is being stubborn." Timothy joked.

"I see. Just give it time. Your zanpakutō's spirit will answer you when it is ready to. Besides that, how are you adjusting here?" the Captain asked as he sat down in front of Timothy.

"Well, to be honest, I've only really been training and studying for the most part. I've met and talked with a few of the members, but I've been focusing hard on getting myself up to par." Timothy answered as he set his zanpakutō down next to him.

"I understand. And I'm aware you have heard this before, but don't push too hard. Remember, you not only have to take care of the body, but also the mind as well." Sajin advised, earning a nod.

"I'll keep that in mind sir. So, was there something you wanted of me?" Timothy inquired.

"No, not really. I had a few moments to spare, so I came to check on you and make sure you were adjusting well, and to make sure that Tetsuzaemon has not killed you yet." Sajin added with a chuckle.

"No, not yet. Although, I can't say he isn't trying. But I'm thankful for his help. I've noticed that my body has started to move faster, and I can think a little better when on edge. So, it is definitely working, it just hurts a lot." Timothy returned.

"I see. Well, that is good. Tetsuzaemon may be a bit rough, but he is an excellent officer, and I trust him with my life. Just remember, many bad things can easily happen, but you can just as easily turn them into good things. You just need the mind and willpower to do so." Sajin stated as he rose to his feet, Timothy following.

"I understand sir. Thank you for the advice." Timothy responded, then bowed.

Sajin returned the gesture, then set his hand on the man's shoulder.

"You'll fit in nicely, and I look forward to want you can do for the squad." Sajin encouraged, lowering his hand afterwards. "Now, I must return to my duties. You keep on with your training, and if you need help, don't be afraid to ask the officers, or even myself. I'll always try to make time to assist my squad." Sajin stated.

Timothy nodded. "Thank you, sir, I'll be sure to do that." he finished, then bowed.

Sajin returned the gesture, then turned and started walking away.

Meanwhile, Timothy returned to sitting next to the tree, setting his zanpakutō on his lap. He sat there a moment as he watched the Captain walk back to the building and sighed. In the very short time that he had in there, he had developed a large amount of respect for the man. For someone with a beastly appearance, the man was exceedingly kind and caring.

Timothy took a deep breath, then closed his eyes and continued his meditation.


For next several hours, Timothy continued his training, rotating between skills training and meditating. He would practice for about a half hour, then return to the tree to meditate while his body recovered.

But even at the end of the day, he still couldn't get a response from his zanpakutō. He was beginning to think that perhaps he may have been doing something wrong.

The sun was beginning to set, so Timothy decided that it was probably best to call it for the day. At the moment, he was meditating, so he grabbed his zanpakutō off his lap and stood up.

He held his arms out and began stretching his muscles, that were now getting very sore. For the exception of his short meditating sessions and his little talk with the Captain, he hadn't rested.

Once he had finished his stretch, he slipped his zanpakutō into his sash and began walking to the barracks. As he walked, he then remembered that he still had the rest of the book on the laws to go through.

Studying never was one of his strong suits, plus studying by yourself was difficult enough on its own. He could go ask one of the members, like Hinata or Issei, but he still didn't like bothering others if he could help it. But he needed help, so it left him with little choice.

As he walked into the barracks, he decided to swing by the common area and the library to see if any of his friends were there.

He first checked the common area since he had to walk by it to get to the library. He took a look around and saw a few other members, but the not people in question.

He continued on towards the library to find that, for the exception of a studying pair, it was empty. Timothy stood there to think a moment.

He didn't know where their rooms were, and he didn't want to bother anyone just to ask where they lived.

Timothy let out a sigh, then turned and saw towards the back a sign that stated, 'World of the Living Literature'. He then remembered that Hetoku had said that the library kept books from the living world; some of them in English.

Timothy turned and started walking towards the shelf and once there, started browsing the collection. The library had a decent number of books, and even some magazines from many different eras, locations, and genres.

Religious books, a few sports materials, novels, and he stopped and deadpanned when he saw they even had a thick book from America on federal taxes.

"Yeah…it figures that somehow something like that would find its way to even here." he sarcastically remarked.

He shook his head in disgust, then continued looking through the shelf. He stopped again when his eyes fell upon an old, slightly tattered book. He pulled it out and looked at the front.

"Moby-Dick, now there's a classic." he stated.

He had never read it before, but like everyone else, he did know it was about a man trying to kill a whale, or something along those lines.

But he was a bit shocked to see that it was a first edition from 1852. Although it was tattered a little on the edges, the book was in very good condition.

He started looking around him, then saw another member grabbing and replacing books. He then turned and started walking toward him.

"Excuse me." he addressed the man, causing him to look towards him.

"Yes?" the man responded.

Timothy showed him the book. "I was just wondering, when was this book brought here?"

The man took the book and looked at the cover.

"Oh, this one has been here for a while. An old member brought that back from a trip to the world of the living. He thought it would be a nice addition. If I remember right, I believe he brought it back in 18…58, living world time." he answered.

Timothy nodded. "It's in pretty good condition."

"We try to keep our books in good condition. But no one ever reads that one, so it's basically sat on the shelf for most of its life." the man answered.

"Would it be alright if I borrow it?" Timothy inquired, and the man nodded.

"Of course. Just please take care of it." he instructed, getting a nod back.

"Promise. Thank you."

The man nodded and continued his work while Timothy began his walk back to his room. Once he arrived, he walked over to his bed and laid down to begin reading.

An hour had passed and he managed a couple chapters, but now he was starting to get tired. He closed the book and walked over to set it down on his dresser.

He then began taking his over garments off to get ready for bed, when his sword spoke up.

"Hey Tim, I've got a question." it started.

"What is it?" he mentally asked as he walked back to the bed.

"Remember what the officer said earlier about increasing your spirit energy?" the sword asked.

"Yeah, what about it?" Timothy yawned again.

"Well, I was thinking for a while about it…do you think that perhaps I might have spirit energy as well?" it inquired, getting an odd look back from Timothy.

"That's a good question…to be honest, I'm not sure." Timothy admitted.

In truth, he had never thought about that. Afterall, his sword wasn't like a regular zanpakutō, so it could be possible.

"If it is the case, I wonder if there is a way to improve mine as well." the sword wondered out loud.

"Even if there is, I don't think that there is a way for us to increase it without our secret getting out. But, it is something that we should think about." Timothy admitted again as he laid down and covered himself.

He grabbed both swords and placed them on the bed beside him and laid his head down.

"I wonder if constant use of my sealed powers would do it." the sword offered.

"It could, and I guess we could try it one day. But first I've gotta get my body and mind where they need to be." he stated in a yawn.

"True, so I'm assuming what you did today is your plan for tomorrow?" it asked, get a nod.

Timothy yawned again and closed his eyes. "Yup, and every day after that."

"Just don't overdo it, Tim." it warned.

"Yes mother." he retorted, getting a scoff.

"Whatever dummy. Goodnight." it finished, then was silent.

"Night." Timothy finished, then slowly let sleep take him.

Senkaimon Courtyard, Seireitei, Present

5th seat Hetoku, along with his two selected members and the 7th seat, walked along the courtyard where the seireitei's primary senkaimon was located.

Hetoku had intended to leave earlier, but finding the two members took a little longer than he had anticipated.

The four men arrived at the senkaimon and waited while the Kidō Corps began the enchantments to open the gateway. While they waited, Hetoku turned to the other officer.

"While I'm gone, could I ask you a favor, Minato?" Hetoku asked his fellow officer.

"Of course. What is it?" he responded.

"You know the new guy, Timothy?" Hetoku followed, getting a nod. "Could you keep an eye on him? You don't need to train him or anything, just make sure he doesn't kill himself." he followed in a joking tone, causing the officer to chuckle.

"Yeah, I'll make sure he stays outta trouble." he answered.

Hetoku smiled and nodded. "Thanks."

As he said that. The gateway opened, and three black butterflies appeared next to the men.

"Well, time to go. See ya in a week or so." Hetoku remarked.

The officer nodded and waved. "Take care." he returned as the three men walked into the senkaimon and disappeared.

Milan: Italy, World of the Living, 5 minutes later.

The city of Milan was calm and quiet, with cloudy skies to indicate that it was about to rain. Up in the sky on the western edge of the city, a senkaimon opened and three soul reapers walked out.

Hetoku came to a stop as the senkaimon closed behind him, then disappeared. He started looking around at the slumbering city and smiled.

"Ah, Italy. Never been here before." he stated, then turned to the two members behind him.

"Alright, we've got a job to do. So, let's find the assigned soul reapers and learn more about the situation. Spread out and try to track down their spiritual pressures. Questions?" he asked, getting head shakes. "Alright. Let's begin. You head north," he started by pointing at the man on his left. "And you go south," he stated now pointing at the right man. "I'll head east. One of us should be able to detect them that way. If you find them, flash your spiritual pressure."

They both nodded, then they all disappeared in a flash step.

A short while later, Hetoku was continuing his flash steps across the city until he felt an odd spiritual pressure coming from nearby.

'Could that be them?' he wondered, then picked up his speed towards the pressure.

A few seconds later, he appeared over a large stadium and turned to see a soul reaper in a combat stance facing a hollow. He drew his zanpakutō, then quickly flash stepped over to him. The man turned to him as he appeared.

"About damn time!" he growled and Hetoku turned to him.

Hetoku took a second to look the hollow over. It was smaller than normal, only slightly larger than himself in size. It had a gray body with four arms, and its mask had the appearance of a rodent.

"Where's your partner?" Hetoku inquired, and the man hissed.

"Dead, that hollow got em." the man answered and Hetoku slightly lowered his head.

"I'm sorry. Now let's call in the cavalry." Hetoku stated, then flashed his spiritual pressure.

The man quickly turned to him with shock.

"No! Don't do that!" he warned and Hetoku turned to him.

"What? Why not?" he asked, but quickly turned when the hollow roared.

He suddenly started to feel something pulling on him from the inside. He then felt a little weaker and tired.

"What the…" he started, and the man turned to him.

"That hollow can somehow absorb any spiritual pressure you emit! The more you emit, the stronger it gets! That's how it got Raichi; it took everything he had, then killed him!" he quickly answered and Hetoku turned to him.

"That's impossible!" he responded, then turned back to the hollow.

The hollow roared again, then charge at the pair. Hetoku grabbed his sword in both hands and held it high.

"Flow…Kyūryū no Yari!" Hetoku announced.

His zanpakutō then began to glow blue as it elongated into a 6-foot pole. The ends began to split and harden. His zanpakutō had now become what looked like a double-edged trident.

He spun it around like a windmill over his head, then around his back and planted one side into the empty ground. It was at this time that it started to rain excessively as his zanpakutō pulled the water from the sky.

Meanwhile, the hollow continued it's charge towards the men. Hetoku raised his weapon and held it to his right side. He then swung up and across, and as he did so, a large wave of water shot out and soared towards the hollow.

The wave struck true, and it threw the hollow from the air. The hollow landed on the street and fractured the pavement as it did so.

Hetoku pulled out a small device and held it to his head.

"This is Squad 7, 5th seat, Hetoku Watashu." he spoke into the devise.

"Go ahead 5th seat Watashu." a voice replied.

"I need an area freeze at my location." Hetoku instructed.

"How many units sir?" the voice asked.

"100…actually, 150 units." he responded.

"Yes sir, we'll put it up right away." the voice answered.

Hetoku put the device back in his shihakusho and got back into his stance.

"Ready?" he asked the man next to him.

"Yes sir." he answered.

Just then, the two other members that came with him showed up and drew their zanpakutōs.

"Be careful with this one fellas. And avoid using you spirit energy, this hollow can somehow take it from you." Hetoku instructed.

Both men looked at him with disbelief, but quickly turned back to the hollow.

"What's the plan sir?" one asked.

"Attack it from all sides, try to either kill it outright, or weaken it until we can kill it." Hetoku instructed, getting nods back.

"Let's go." he ordered and the four of them darted across the sky towards the hollow that had now made it back to its feet.

It looked up at the incoming soul reapers and roared. Hetoku and the man next to him landed on the ground and Hetoku jabbed at the hollow.

The hollow roared as the other man ran up and cut it across the chest. The hollow turned and swung at the man with one of its arms with the man jumping away.

Hetoku pulled his weapon from the hollow's body and got ready to swing across. At that time, his two companions appeared behind the hollow and each stabbed the beast in the back.

It roared, then turned and quickly swung it's two right arms at one of the members. The man tried to jump out of the way, but the hollow was faster and struck him in the chest and face.

The power of the hit threw the man across the street and into a building, knocking him out. Hetoku swung at the hollow, but it stepped to the side and his attack missed.

Hetoku held his hand up. "Hadō #33…Sōkatsui!" he announced.

Multiple blue energy bolts flew from his hand and sailed straight towards the hollow. The energy bolts hit the target, but quickly evaporated.

The hollow then roared and Hetoku watched with eyes wide in shock as the cuts on its body started to heal themselves.

'It can absorb kidō as well?!' he quickly thought as he returned to his stance.

His other companion came up behind the hollow and held out two fingers. Hetoku froze when he realized what he was doing.

"No, stop!" he yelled, and the man froze. "No kid !" he added, and the man dropped his hand.

'What the hell is this thing?!' Hetoku thought as the hollow turned to the man next to him.

"Move!" he yelled as the hollow began its charge.

Hetoku leaped away, but the other man wasn't quick enough. The hollow swung, catching the man's back, and forced him in the building next to them, the force of the impact killing him.

"No!" the other man yelled, and the hollow turned to him now.

Hetoku quickly charged at the creature as it turned and slashed across it's back. The hollow roared and swung back at Hetoku.

Hetoku ducked under the swing and swung up with the backside blade, cutting the hollow's lower left arm off.

It again roared in pain and anger as the other man came at it ready with a high swing. The hollow saw the movement, then quickly turned. Hetoku then gasped.

"No! Stop!" he yelled, but too late.

The hollow swung down on the man, forcing him into the pavement and killing him as well.

Anger took hold of Hetoku, and he swung his weapon, emitting a powerful wave that crashed into the hollow, pushing it back.

Hetoku was quick to assault the creature and found himself swinging down on the fallen creature.

The hollow held it's arm up and blocked the weapon with the point only a few inches from its face. Hetoku was steadily winning the reverse tug-o-war as his blade inched closer and closer to the hollow's face.

'I've got it…' he began to think, but his thought was interrupted by a crashing sound behind him.

He quickly side glanced to see an exact copy of the hollow in front of him, with a red body instead. His eyes went wide with shock and surprise.

'Another one?!' he quickly thought.

He then felt an excruciating pain in his chest as the hollow behind him ran its arm through him.

'No…it can't…' he fretted.

His whole world soon began to cloud over as the hollow pulled its arm free of the man's chest and his body collapsed, lifeless, to the ground.

Squad 7 Headquarters, Seireitei, 3 hours later

Sajin sat at his desk, finishing up the day's paperwork before he would turn in for the night. He only had a few more things to go over that he predicted wouldn't be but a few minutes more.

As he set a small handful of papers to the side, he began to hear the rapid sounds of footsteps approaching. He looked up as his office door quickly swung open and his Lieutenant barge in.

"Tetsuzaemon? What's wrong?" he asked as the man ran up to his desk and bowed.

"My apologies for disturbing you Captain, but I just received word about Hetoku and his men!" he very quickly stated with a sad tone.

Sajin's expression then turned serious.

"What is it?" he demanded in a low tone.

Tetsuzaemon raised himself and stared at the Captain.

"They were…all killed sir!" he answered with a solemn voice, causing Sajin's eyes to widen.

"What happened?!" he demanded, his voice filled with anger.

Before the Lieutenant could answer, a hell butterfly flew in through the window and hovered by Sajin. He held out his finger to allow it to land.

The butterfly landed on his finger and Sajin could hear a voice coming through it.

"Attention, this is a message for all Captains of the 13 Court Guard Squads!" the voice started in a hurried tone.

"An emergency Captain's meeting has been ordered by the order of Head Captain Yamamoto! All squad Captains are ordered to attend this meeting!" the voice finished, then repeated the message once more.

Once the message ended, the butterfly lifted off Sajin's finger and flew back out the window.

"What was the message, Captain?" Tetsuzaemon asked as Sajin turned back to him.

"The Head Captain has called an emergency meeting." he answered as he stood up.

"We will discuss this when I return." Sajin instructed, then flash stepped away.

Tetsuzaemon stood there looking at the empty space where his Captain was and began reminiscing on the officer's death.

He sat down on the pillow seat in front of Sajin's desk and lowered his head in sadness.

Squad 1 Headquarters, Captain's meeting room, Seireitei, Present

Many of the Captains had yet to arrive as the word was still in the process of being distributed. Sajin flash stepped into the waiting room and turned to see the Captains of Squads 2, and 4.

Sajin began walking up to them, and just as he stopped in front of them, Captains Kyōraku and Ukitake walked in through the doors, Shunsui in mid yawn.

"Evening everyone." Jūshirō greeted, getting a slight bow from the Squad 4 Captain.

"Good evening, Captain Ukitake…although unfortunately it doesn't seem to be good at all I'm afraid." Captain Retsu Unohana unhappily replied.

As the Captain of Squad 4, Captain Unohana was the head of the medical department of the Seireitei.

She was an average height, slender woman, and one of the oldest Captains of the 13 Court Guard Squads, for the exception of the Head Captain himself. She had long, black hair the she wore in a thick braid down the front of her body.

She was a kind hearted individual, but had very little toleration of the nonsense of others, most especially within the confines of her medical center.

Shunsui placed a hand over his mouth and let out another long yawn.

"So, what is this emergency meeting about?" he asked and Unohana turned to him

"Four members and one officer of Squad 7 were killed by a hollow this evening." she answered.

Both Jūshirō and Shunsui's eyes widened, then they turned to Sajin.

"I'm sorry to hear that Captain Komamura. You have my condolences." Shunsui solemnly offered.

"Yes, it's such a tragedy, Sajin." Jūshirō added and Sajin nodded to them both.

"Thank you." he responded.

Shunsui lifted his straw hat slightly. "However, that can't be all the meeting is about. I mean, the death of squad members is terrible, but it shouldn't be enough to warrant an emergency meeting like this." he pointed out.

As he finished, the Captains of Squads 6 and 10 walked into the room.

"Could someone tell me what this is about?" the short, white haired Captain of Squad 10 asked in an annoyed tone.

Shunsui was about to answer him, but he was cut off by a gruff voice.

"You will find out in just a moment, Captain Hitsugaya."

Everyone turned to see the Head Captain of the 13 Court Guard Squads, Head Captain Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, walking in.

An older man of average height, but with a muscular build for his age. Head Captain Yamamoto was currently the oldest living soul reaper in the entire soul society.

Many great things could be said about the man. He was very well respected by all, even the battle thirsty Captain of Squad 11, Kenpachi Zaraki. Even the enemies of the soul society knew of and respected the Head Captain because of his power and strength.

There was not one single soul reaper in the soul society that could even begin to hold a candle to the man in terms of power.

The man walked into the waiting room, and the Captains looked to see the Captain of Squad 12, Mayuri Kurotsuchi, walking behind him.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Get to your positions so we can begin." Yamamoto ordered in his low and demanding voice.

The Captains began walking into the meeting room and continued until they reached their positions in the room. The Head Captain walked through the center of the room to the small platform that had a single, armless chair.

Once he was on the platform, Yamamoto turned around and sat down, now looking at all of his Captains who were on opposite sides of the room and facing each other.

Yamamoto looked over towards Sajin and rose a brow.

"Where is Captain Zaraki?" he asked, and Jūshirō turned to him.

"He hasn't been at his headquarters for a few days now, Head Captain. Though I have heard a few reports of him being in South Rukongai." Jūshirō answered, and this got Sajin's attention.

"Very well, you will have to report this to him later." Yamamoto instructed.

A brief moment later, Yamamoto lifted, then stamped his cane on the floor.

"I hereby call this Captain's meeting to order." he stated, then a moment later turned to Captain Kurotsuchi.

"Captain Kurotsuchi, deliver your report." he instructed, keeping his demanding tone.

Captain Kurotsuchi took one step forward, then turned to Yamamoto.

Mayuri Kurotsuchi was an…odd individual to say the least. Although he naturally had short, blue hair, it was rarely ever seen, as well as his true face. This was because of the makeup that he always wore over his entire head.

As well as being the Captain of Squad 12, Mayuri was also the 2nd generation Head of the Department of Research and Development. The department was the seireitei's source of new technology. The department was also responsible for monitoring the precipice world, the dimension between the soul society and the world of the living.

It was because of the department that the Captains were gathered that evening.

"As I'm sure some of you are aware by now, a few hours ago four members, and a seated officer of Squad 7 were killed in the process of dispatching hollows." Mayuri started and the other Captains turned to him.

"Normally, that wouldn't raise suspicion…however, the hollow that they were fighting was very interesting. Upon reviewing the data, we've concluded that this hollow can somehow absorb spirit energy." he added, causing the other Captains to widen their eyes.

Shunsui turned to him and raised a hand. "Excuse me, but did you say that this hollow absorbs spirit energy?" he asked in disbelief.

Mayuri turned to him. "That is correct. According to the data, the 5th seat of Squad 7 had released a small amount of spiritual pressure just before the fight begun. A moment later, his released spiritual pressure was absorbed by the hollow, healing its wounds and making it stronger." Mayuri clarified.

"How is that possible?" Jūshirō asked in shock, getting Mayuri's attention.

"How this hollow does this, we do not currently know. We do not have enough data at this point to draw a conclusion. However, the situation is worse than that. It turns out that the 5th seat had used kidō against the hollow as well. But this attack was also absorbed by the hollow." he added, making everyone's shock even worse.

Yamamoto turned to the Squad 2 Captain.

"Captain Suí-F ēng, what is your report?" he asked in a low tone.

The Captain, like Mayuri, took a step forward and turned to the Head Captain.

The Captain of Squad 2 was Suí-F ēng, a short and petite woman with a serious demeanor and personality.

Suí-F ēng was not only the Captain of Squad 2, but she was also the Commander of the well feared Stealth Force, as well as the current head of the Fēng Family. Although she was small in size, her speed with the flash step was legendary.

"Sir, my men arrived at the scene we estimated to be twenty minutes after the fight had ended. We found the bodies of the officer and four members, but found no sign of the hollow. My men are currently sweeping the area to find any traces of it. We took the bodies to Squad 4 for emergency medical care." she answered in her serious tone.

Yamamoto then turned to Unohana. "And what was their status, Captain Unohana?"

The woman gave him a solemn look for a moment, then answered. "All five personnel were taken into critical care, but unfortunately it was already too late. The four members were all killed by excessive trauma, while the officer was killed by something that had gone through his body." Unohana answered in a low and sad tone.

Sajin lowered his head and Jūshirō walked over and set his hand on his shoulder.

"Do you think this could be the work of Aizen?" the Captain of Squad 10 asked Mayuri.

The Captain of Squad 10 was Tōshirō Hitsugaya, a short, and young man. He had pure white hair that was moderately unkept, giving it a spiked look. Although he was still young, the youngest of the Captains, he was still considered by many to be somewhat of a child prodigy.

"At this point, there is no way of telling if Aizen was responsible or not. This is indeed an odd situation. A single hollow should not have been able to take down four members and an officer while fighting them all at once, even when if they were as inexperienced as them." he answered.

Sajin flinched at the last part and slightly growled.

"Captain Kurotsuchi." Sajin started, getting his attention.

"Hm?" Mayuri breathed as he turned to the furry Captain.

Sajin rose his head to him. "Considering the circumstances, I'll overlook your previous observation. But I must warn you that I won't do so again, should you decide to continue to insult the dead." Sajin hissed through his teeth, getting a look of disrespect from Mayuri.

"See here, it's not my problem that your training has become a bit lax." Mayuri insulted, causing Sajin's blood to boil.

"Shall I show you what it means to respect the dead, Captain Kurotsuchi?" Sajin growled back.

Mayuri simply turned and raised his head. "Tsk…and what could I possibly learn from such a mindless beast such as yourself?" he insulted even further.

Sajin was just about to walk over and put the man in his place, but a sharp and loud thump stopped everything.

"Enough!" Yamamoto yelled, immediately getting everyone's full attention.

"I will not allow any pointless bickering amongst you! Now return to your positions!" he demanded, and everyone did so.

Yamamoto then slammed his cane on the ground again.

"Captain Kurotsuchi, Captain Suí-F ēng, both of you will continue to investigate this matter and report any findings directly to me." Yamamoto stated, then turned to Unohana.

"Captain Unohana, I want you to do a thorough examination of the bodies to determine any irregularities." he added, getting a solemn bow from the Captain.

Yamamoto turned to Sajin. "Captain Komamura, you are to send replacements to the sector. If they encounter this hollow, they are not to engage. They are to call for reinforcements." he ordered Sajin with a little bit calmer voice, showing that he felt for the man.

"This meeting is adjourned." Yamamoto finished, and everyone began leaving the room.

Everyone…except Sajin. Jūshirō and Shunsui both stopped, then turned back to him. "Hey, they did their duty, Sajin." Shunsui comforted.

"Yes, it's sad they are no longer with us, but they died with their honor intact. That is the best death a soul reaper can ask for." Jūshirō added.

Sajin nodded. "Thank you both for your words. I must return to my Squad, please excuse me." Sajin stated in a low voice and walked away.

Jūshirō stood next to his friend. "Do you think he will alright?" he asked.

Shunsui slightly smiled, then lowered his head and tilted his hat. "Yeah, he'll be fine. He just needs some time is all. Give him a few days and he'll be back to his old self." Shunsui confirmed.

Both men turned and watched Sajin as he walked down the hallway to return to his squad.

As Sajin continued his walk down the hallway, his mind filled with anger and sorrow. He knew that Mayuri had little respect for others, but to go and insult those who had given their lives doing their duty was completely unacceptable.

Sajin was also hating himself for letting his anger almost get the better of him. Had it not been for the Head Captain's interjection, Sajin most likely would have attacked the insane scientist.

After a few moments of walking, Sajin found himself at the front doors of the Squad 1 Headquarters, where the meeting room was located. He pushed the door open and walked out, closing the door behind him.

He continued to take a few steps more, then stopped and sighed. He then side glanced over to a pillar to his right.

"I know you are there Tetsuzaemon." he stated in a voice mixed with sadness and annoyance.

A second later, the man in question steeped out from behind the pillar with a sorrowful look. He got down on his knees and bowed.

"Please forgive me, sir. I shouldn't have followed you." he stated, but Sajin continued to look at him.

After a moment, Sajin turned back with closed eyes and sighed.

"It's alright Tetsuzaemon. I know you are eagerly waiting to find out the details. Walk with me, I'll explain on the way back." Sajin instructed in a caring tone.

"Sir." the Lieutenant responded in an unusually low tone.

The man returned to his feet and walked over to join his Captain at his side. Both men began walking slowly back towards their headquarters.

Squad 7 Barracks, Seireitei, The next morning

Timothy let out a yawn as he finished getting dressed to begin his day. As he was tying the sash around his waist, he heard a knock on his door.

"It's open." he replied in a low and sleepy tone.

The door slid open and Hinata and Kenta both walked in. They both waved to him, but he nodded back because his hands were both occupied with finishing the sash.

"Morning Tim. Were you about to head out?" Kenta asked, getting a nod in return as Timothy finished tying his sash.

"Yeah, I'm about to head down to the grounds and get started with my training." he answered as he walked over to his bed.

"Well, you'll have to hold off for a bit." Hinata remarked as Timothy grabbed his first sword.

"Why is that?" he asked as he tucked the sword into the sash.

"The Captain has an announcement or something. Anyone who is available is ordered to be there." Kenta followed as Timothy grabbed his second sword.

He tucked it in as well and straightened his garment. "Any idea what it's about?" Timothy asked as he walked over to them, getting a head shake from Hinata.

"No idea, but if the Captain is ordering it, it's gotta be very important." she pointed out.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Timothy remarked as he gestured to the door.

The three of then stepped out and Timothy slid the door shut as Issei walked up.

"Morning guys." he greeted, causing them to turn.

"Morning Issei." Hinata returned with a smile.

"So, can anyone tell me what this is about?" Issei asked and Timothy chuckled.

"Narumi probably peeked on him." he remarked in a joking tone, causing the men to laugh and Hinata to moan.

"You're never going to let that go, are you?" she asked, and Timothy snorted.

"You would feel the same way if a man did it to you, Hinata." Timothy pointed out and she scoffed.

"I'd kill the man who did that to me." she replied in annoyance, causing Timothy to chuckle.

"That, I don't doubt. Anyway, let's get going." he stated and the rest nodded.

They all turned and began walking down the hallway towards the common area.

A few minutes later, they exited the hallway to find the common area packed with other members, both on the bottom floor and the second floor. Timothy looked to his right and saw an open space next to the wall. He turned back to the others.

"Hey, let's go over there." he stated as he gestured to the area with his thumb.

The men nodded and they all began walking over to the open area as more and more members filled the room.

"I had no idea that there were this many members." Timothy stated, and Kenta placed a hand on his shoulder.

"This is only just shy of half of the squad. A lot of the members are either on duty in Rukongai, or on assignment." he clarified, causing Timothy's eyes to widen a bit.

"Wow." Timothy remarked simply.

The group got to their spot and began waiting, like everyone else, for the Captain to arrive. The squad waited, but a few minutes later the Captain and Lieutenant both walked in.

"Quiet! The Captain wishes to speak!" Tetsuzaemon yelled, causing the entire room to become completely silent.

Members stepped back, creating an opening as the Captain walked towards the center of the room. Once he was there, he lowered his head slightly and thought about how to put his information out.

After a moment, he lifted his head and scanned the room briefly.

"I can see by the looks on all of your faces that you are not aware of what has happened. I am aware that most of you have tasks that must be completed, so I will try to keep this brief." Sajin started, getting looks of confusion from almost every member.

Sajin lowered his head again, then raised it back a moment later.

"Last night, 5th seat Hetoku Watashu, and two fellow members were sent to the world of the living in response to a call for assistance from the two squad members assigned to the sector." he started, then paused to let the information sink in.

Sajin took a deep breath as he prepared to tell the next part. "All five of them were killed." he stated, then lowered his head.

The room was immediately filled with gasps and small chatter. Over near the far wall, Timothy's mind stopped working as he tried to comprehend what he had just heard.

"Captain, sir…what do you mean…killed?" a member on the second-floor balcony asked in disbelief.

Sajin looked up to the member. "They were all killed…fighting a hollow." he repeated.

Gasps turned to sobs and the chatting got louder. Sajin waited for a moment to let everything he said seep in, then held up his hand, causing the room to become silent again.

Sajin lowered his hand and sighed. "There will be a squad funeral held. The date will be determined at a later time, once we receive their bodies from Squad 4. As for now…" he paused and looked around the room again.

"…I will need four volunteers to resume the duties in the sector. If you wish to volunteer, please speak with one of the seated officers. Only those with plenty of experience will be accepted. No exceptions." Sajin instructed.

"Captain…" a member started, and he turned to him.

"How could they have all been killed by a single hollow?" he asked, getting nods from the entire room.

"Those are details I cannot disclose at this time. But know this, if you are selected for the duty, this hollow is 'not' to be taken lightly. You may return to your duties now. That is all." Sajin finished and quickly walked out of the room, Tetsuzaemon following right behind him.

The entire room was then filled with voices of multiple emotions. In the back, Timothy stood there leaning against the wall, head down in sorrow.

After a minute, he stood up straight, then turned and began walking out of the room. He entered the hallway and made it a few doors down before a voice called out to him.

"Timothy!" a feminine voice called.

Timothy stopped, but did not turn.

"Tim, hold up." another voice called.

Timothy stood there motionless as his three friends ran up to him. Hinata placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Tim, are you gonna be alright?" she asked, getting no response.

The three of them knew that he and 5th seat Hetoku had become close friends over the past few days, and the man's death must have hit him hard.

"Tim, come on, talk to us." Kenta pleaded, and Timothy slightly turned to him.

"I'll be fine…just let me be for now." Timothy stated, then started walking again.

The three friends stood there with teary eyes as they watched him walk away. A moment later, Timothy arrived at his room and stood outside as thoughts flooded his mind. Hetoku was gone, and he was not coming back.

Timothy slid his door open and slowly walked inside, closing the door behind him. He walked over to his bed and plopped down on it.

Silence followed for a moment, until his sword spoke up.

"Tim…do you wanna talk?" it offered, but Timothy didn't respond.

"Tim?" it tried again, still no response.

The sword wanted to press, but decided against it and kept quiet. Timothy continued to lay there, face down, as he thought back on the times he spent with the man.

He had known him for less than a week, but in that short span of time he had gotten close to him and quickly considered him a close friend.

Timothy sat up, removed both swords from his sash, and set them down next to him before laying back down on his side.

He continued to reminisce on the man and everything he had done for him. Timothy was sad and depressed, as expected, but there was something else that he felt that overwhelmed both of those emotions…anger.

Timothy was furious at the fact that yet another person was taken out of his life. He was mad that, once again, there was nothing he could do.

And that was when he mentally decided that he had had enough.

After a moment more, he sat back up, grabbed his swords, and tucked them back in his sash. He stood there and lowered his head in thought.

'This stops now…I'm done with sitting around while others die.' he mentally concluded.

He raised his head and now had a look of pure anger in his eyes. He took a deep breath, then walked over to his door and left the room.

As he walked down the hallway, he saw his three friends standing where he left them, talking amongst each other. They all turned to see Timothy, now with a very determined look on his face, and they are started to worry.

"Tim?" Issei started, getting no response.

Timothy walked up to them, then stopped.

"I'll be out on the fields, in case someone wants me." he stated, then continued his walk.

The three friends looked at each other with worry, then back towards him.

"Should we…" Hinata started, but Kenta placed a hand on her shoulder.

She turned to him and he slowly shook his head.

"Let him be." he stated.

"Yeah, just let him go blow off some steam, then we'll try to talk to him." Issei added, getting an understanding nod from her.

"Alright, if you say so." she responded as the three of them turned back to Timothy as he left the hallway.

Squad 7 Training Grounds, Seireitei, 5 minutes later

Timothy's anger hadn't subsided in the least by the time he arrived at the training grounds. In fact, his anger had only gotten worse.

The more he thought about his late friend, the more he hated himself. He was starting to view himself as weak, and he intended to fix that, by any means necessary. He drew his top sword and held it to his side as he lowered his head.

"Tease…" he started in a low voice. "Moeru Kitsune." he finished in growl.

His sword began its transformation as its iconic floating flames began appearing in numerous locations. The sword finished its transformation, then spoke up.

"Tim…you need to calm down…" it warned.

"Keep quiet. I am I tired of being weak…that ends now." he snapped back, causing the sword to remain quiet.

He lowered his head as a tear fell from his eye. "No more being weak." he hissed, then raised his head back level.

He then quickly disappeared, re-appearing at a flame on the opposite side of the field. As he appeared, he did two quick swings at an imaginary opponent, then quickly disappeared again.

He re-appeared a few feet away from the last and swung again, then again disappeared. He appeared next to the tree where him and Hetoku would study, swung, and held his stance.

"Faster…" he mumbled, then disappeared again.

He re-appeared a distance away, swung once, turned, and back stabbed before disappearing again. He again re-appeared, now next to a kidō practice target, and raised his hand towards it.

"Hadō #31…Shakkahō!" he announced.

A red ball of energy began to form in his palm, and once it reached a decent size it projected at the target. The energy ball struck the target and destroyed it.

Timothy quickly disappeared again and moved to the next target, raising his index and middle finger towards it.

"Hadō #33…Sōkatsui!" he growled.

Blue flames of energy began to emit from his palm, but to his surprise, the spell failed. The flames exploded just in front of him, the force of the explosion throwing him back.

He landed on his back and slid across the ground. He slid right by a flame of his, so he quickly disappeared and re-appeared right back where he was, scratched up and blood slowly seeping from a cut beside his right eye.

He held up his hand again.

"Hadō #33…Sōkatsui!" he yelled again.

This time, the spell worked, and the flames shot towards the target, hitting and destroying it. He then disappeared and re-appeared near the tree before swinging twice.

After his second swing, he transitioned back over to the targets and held both hands up.

Hadō #4…Byakurai!"

He felt pressure quickly build in his hands then project out in a blue bolt towards the target. But before it got there, he quickly re-appeared to the left and closer to the targets.

Hadō #4…Byakurai!" he repeated, projecting another bolt of spirit energy toward the next target.

Both bolts hit their targets almost simultaneously, destroying them. Timothy stood there holding his stance as he started to breath very heavily, now becoming exhausted.

He regained his senses and quickly disappeared to move over to the backside of the field. He swung twice as fast as he could, then moved over to the tree again.

Over and over, Timothy repeated the process, switching from attacking invisible targets, to kidō targets. Every now and then when he used a kidō spell, one of them would fail and explode.

But like the first time, he would keep getting back up with more cuts and scratches than before and continue the process.


After two hours of non-stop transitioning and attacking, Timothy was just barely keeping on his feet from exhaustion. Finally, he re-appeared at one of his flames and fell over onto the ground.

After a moment, he slowly got to his hands and knees, breathing erratically.

"I cannot…stop…" he stated and began to push himself up. "I will not…stop…" he demanded as he finally made it back to his feet.

He returned to his stance and got ready to continue. But before he could move, his sword interjected.

"Tim, stop…you're going to kill yourself!" it warned.

"I said to keep quiet." he hissed in a low tone.

Timothy was now covered in scratches and slightly bleeding in a few spots, all from the failed kidō spells. But he put it in the back of his head as he disappeared again, returning to his training.

Meanwhile, back the barracks, Hinata, Issei, and Kenta all watched in both shock and awe as Timothy continued his relentless assaults.

"He takes 'blowing off steam' to a whole new level." Issei commented, getting Hinata's attention.

"Shouldn't we stop him? I mean…he's had four kid spells explode on him so far, and it's obvious that he's pushing himself way too hard. He can barely stand." she asked in a worried tone.

Issei scratched the back of his head. "Maybe, but with the mood he's in, he's more likely to kill us before himself." he pointed out, getting a nod from Kenta.

"Agreed." Kenta responded, as Hinata turned to him.

"Well, shouldn't we tell someone?" she half insisted.

"Hinata, with how angry he is right now, I doubt anyone will be able to talk him down, not even Lieutenant Iba or the Captain." Issei warned.

Kenta started rubbing his temples. "Yeah. He'll calm down eventually. Come on, we have to get our 'chores' done." he stated while flexing his two index fingers in a quote.

Issei nodded and the two men began walking away while Hinata watched for a moment more in worry.

"Hinata, come on." Kenta called back, causing her to slowly nod.

"Coming." she responded in a sad tone.

The three friends returned to the barracks to complete their tasks.

2 hours later

At this point, Timothy was on the verge of passing out as he stood there, tilting back and forth trying to keep his balance. His whole world began to turn fuzzy as his body began to shut down.

He stood there for a moment more, then his legs gave out and he collapsed to his knees, supporting himself with his arms.

He was breathing so hard that it drowned out the sound of his heart pounding away in his chest. His sword suddenly began returning to its normal shape and he turned to it.

"What…are…you doing?" he demanded between breaths.

"Stopping you before you kill yourself." it answered flatly. "Besides, you've used my power too much…I'm too exhausted to keep going. You should have known this would happen." the sword pointed out.

Timothy turned back and growled.

"Fine…have it your way." He seethed as he leaned back onto his legs, almost losing his balance. He then returned his sword to its sheath and dropped his hands.

He sat there for a few minutes more, then slowly got back up to his feet. He wobbled a bit as he stood straight, but didn't fall over. He began to slowly walk over towards the tree and sat down next to it when he got there.

"If you won't let me train my body…" he started as he drew his zanpakutō.

"I'll train my mind." he finished as he set the sword down on his lap.

He took a minute a get his breath to slow down a bit, then took a deep a breath as he could and closed his eyes, emptying his mind.

Time passed quickly as he tried to reach out to his zanpakutō's spirit over and over, but it refused to answer. But he kept on, refusing to give up.

An hour passed, yet he still had no success in reaching his zanpakutō's spirit. Finally, Timothy had decided that his body had rested enough. He opened his eyes and was a little surprised that the sun was getting low in the sky, showing that it was late afternoon. He mentally berated himself for letting time slip by like he did.

He slowly stood up and could feel his muscles burning as a result of his relentless training from earlier. Once he was on his feet, he sheathed his zanpakutō, and drew his other sword.

"Tim, you've had enough for today. No more." his sword instructed.

"We are going to continue this, I will get stronger." he demanded, getting a scoff in return.

"All I have to do is refuse to let you use my power." it retorted.

Timothy turned to it and growled. "Are you sure you want to do that? I do have another option that I can use you know." Timothy threatened.

Silence followed for a moment before the sword responded.

"Even I know you're not stupid Tim. You remember what almost happened the last time you tried that." the sword pointed out, but Timothy's expression didn't change.

"I am prepared to do what is necessary. Are you?" he threatened again.

Another moment of silence passed before the sword answered.

"Do what you want." it responded in an angry tone.

"Now tease…Moeru Kitsune." he commanded.

The sword transformed as the flames returned spread out on the grounds.

"You're nothing but a fool, Tim. You're going to kill yourself and fail the mission." the sword warned, but Timothy scoffed.

"If I don't get stronger, I'll die anyway. Even you are aware of that." he retorted.

He heard the sword sigh. "That may be true, but pushing yourself like this is not going to benefit anyone."

"I'm done arguing, now quiet down." he ordered, then got into his stance.

He took one long breath, then quickly disappeared as he began another relentless barrage of mock attacks and kidō strikes.

Unbeknownst to him, another person was watching him from a distance, both amazed and horrified at what he was witnessing. The man continued to watch as Timothy again and again used his transporting technique, slashing the air or using medium level kidōs every time he appeared.

What worried him the most was Timothy's kidō would occasionally fail, hurting him. But even so, he still kept on, never stopping to rest.

Finally, after another kidō exploded in Timothy's face, the man couldn't watch anymore. He stepped out from where he was watching and began walking towards Timothy.

"Hey!" he called out, but Timothy didn't respond.

The man continued to walk closer, but stopped when Timothy re-appeared and prepared to use another kidō.

"Hadō…#63…" Timothy started, breathing heavily trying to get his words out.

This caused the man to flinch and his eyes widen. "Oh no…" he fretted, then quickly flash stepped over to Timothy and grabbed his arm.

Timothy flinched in surprise, then slowly turned to the man in anger.

"What…do you…want?" Timothy demanded between breaths, but the man glared at him.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" he bellowed back.

"What...are you talking…about?" Timothy asked, his breath slowly returning.

"You were about to use a 60s level kidō! In your exhausted state, it would have backfired on you without a doubt! Do you have any idea what would have happened if it did in your state?!" he again bellowed.

"That's…my business…not yours." Timothy retorted.

The man continued to stare at him, but finally sighed and released Timothy's arm.

"Look…I know why you're upset. We're all upset about Hetoku and the other's deaths. If you want to train to get your mind off it, that's fine. But you can't go overboard like this, Timothy." the man stated, causing Timothy to raise a brow.

"I don't recall…meeting you, so how do…you know my name?" Timothy inquired.

"I'm the squad's 7th seat, Minato Fujita. Hetoku asked me to keep an eye on you. But more importantly, he asked me to make sure you don't kill yourself." Minato replied, getting a snort from Timothy.

"Yeah, he would say…something like that. My apologies…for my disrespect sir." Timothy said, getting a wave off.

"I'm an easy-going person. As long as you do what is required of you, I have no issues. Now, it's time to call it a night. And that 'is' an order." Minato instructed.

Timothy nodded, then let his sword return to normal. The officer watched as the numerous flames around them suddenly disappeared.

"I have to say, that ability of your is amazing. I've never seen a zanpakutō like that." he admitted, getting a slight chuckle.

"Thanks. Let's go then." Timothy remarked.

Minato gestured for Timothy to lead the way, then both men began walking back towards the barracks. Minato noticed that Timothy was slightly limping, then he turned to him.

"You alright? You appear to be hurt." Minato inquired, Timothy waved him off.

"Muscles are just sore." he reassured.

"Still, we need to get you cleaned up. And get some bandages for those cuts." Minato stated, but Timothy again waved him off.

"I'll be fine, I'll put something on them when I get back to my room." he assured, Minato nodding in reply.

The men arrived at the barracks and Minato turned to him.

"I have a few things to do before I turn in, so this is where I leave you." he informed.

Timothy nodded, then began walking to his room. As he entered the hallway on the second floor, he saw Hinata walking towards him.

'Great…now I have to listen to her berate me.' he thought as he continued to walk.

When they got a few feet from each other, Hinata huffed at him when she saw the cuts on him.

"You done tearing yourself up?" she asked in a displeased tone, crossing her arms.

"Yeah…for now." Timothy responded, then she raised a brow.

"For now?" she inquired, getting a nod.

"I'll be right back out there tomorrow. And look…I know you're worried, but I can handle it." he returned, making sure to leave out the part about almost killing himself with a 60s level kidō.

She lowered her arms, sighed, and shook her head.

"Look Tim, I'm worried about you, so are Issei and Kenta. Just promise me not to do something stupid., please?" she pleaded.

'Little late for that Hinata.' he thought.

"Alright, I promise. Now, I'm gonna head to my room and get cleaned up. See ya tomorrow." he stated and continued walking.

"Yeah…see ya." she whispered, then continued walking herself.

Timothy finally arrived at his room and walked in towards the mirror. He was a little surprised as he didn't expect his injuries to be that bad.

He took a rag and started wiping off the dried blood from his face, the force of it causing some of the scratches to reopen and seep blood. He grabbed a few bandages from a small, wooden aid box next to the dresser and placed them over the cuts one at a time.

After about a half hour, all of the cuts had small bandages on them, so he then grabbed another set of undergarments and started to change. As he took his old pair off, he looked into the mirror to see numerous scratches all over his body.

He then scoffed and continued to get dressed. He set both of his swords on the bed and sat down. His thoughts then began to turn back to Hetoku and he lowered his head.

He was tired of losing those that he cared about. It seemed to him that every time that he got close to someone, they were taken away.

He then quickly slapped himself, knocking those feelings away, then laid back onto the bed. He pulled the covers over him and turned onto his side.

"Tim…" his sword began, and he sighed.

"What?" he answered, annoyed.

"I'm sorry about earlier…but you know you could have killed yourself…right?" it asked in a worried tone.

"I'm aware, but I can't afford to worry about that right now." Timothy pointed, getting another sigh from his sword.

"You're gonna have to worry about it…or you won't be around to worry at all." the sword returned, earning a growl from Timothy.

"I don't want to argue, and I'm sorry for threatening you. Just let me do what I need to and don't try to stop me." he instructed.

"Fine…whatever." it responded, then went quiet.

Timothy laid there and stared at the wall trying not to think about Hetoku. After a while, he lost all thought as sleep snuck up on him and took him away.

So, a bit of a sad one here, but we all know that the sun doesn't always shine bright. So, as you can now see, even though that Timothy is a bit of a cold person on the outside, on the inside he's a bit emotional.

As I said up top, I'm giving everyone this chapter a day early so you won't have to wait three or four days until I get back from my trip.

Hope everyone enjoyed the chapter and can't wait to see everyone next week. Laters.