"That was a lot better," Rukia praised. "You just have to remember to hold your zanpakuto this way" - she corrected the trainee's hold on their zanpakuto with her uninjured hand - "and your form will be perfect in no time."

Rukia offered the trainee a smile. Her smile was soon gone though. She would have to be blind in order to miss the way the trainee was looking at her. She could recognize the look in his eyes anywhere. It was pity.

There was nothing more Rukia hated than people feeling bad for her.

Matsumoto and Captain Hitsugaya had left her in charge of overseeing their trainees' extra drills today since the two were in yet another meeting. Captain Hitsugaya had almost canceled the training session all together despite not wanting to. He knew his trainees needed the extra training, but he was worried about Rukia. Not only had she been injured on the night of the attack, but she had been forced to face Aizen. That alone would be enough to send anyone into hiding. Yet Rukia had been more than eager to offer her help. She shouldn't have been surprised when the young captain was reluctant. Everyone had been treating her with kid gloves since that night. Needless to say, Rukia absolutely hated that.

She had been ecstatic when Captain Hitsugaya had eventually agreed to let her run the training session in his and Matsumoto's absence. After Rukia had brought up how their trainees needed the extra training now more than ever, he couldn't refuse.

Rukia had even prepared herself for the looks she knew she'd get from the young trainees.

She should have known better.

Rukia had tried ignoring all the silent stares, but it was starting to irritate her. She knew she shouldn't be upset with them though. The young trainees had questions that they were dying to ask but knew they shouldn't. Not only did they want to ask questions to calm their racing minds, but they were also worried about her. She thought she should at least say something to alleviate some of their worries. But there was something stopping her. It was the fact that the trainees would ask her to talk about that man.

To them, Aizen was practically a fairy tale. And that all changed.

Rukia told herself that answering their questions was not what she was there for. She told herself that she would be wasting precious time that the trainees could be using to improve their skills, the skills they needed to master especially now. She couldn't allow this precious time to go to waste. After all, Captain Hitsugaya had left her in charge. She couldn't disappoint him.

That was what she told herself at least.

The truth was that she was actually scared to talk about Aizen. Deep down she knew this, but she would die before admitting it.

Would it even be possible for her to think back to that night's events - or worse, the events of Aizen's betrayal - without breaking down?

"Um, excuse me, Kuchiki-dono," came a voice.

Rukia blinked and turned to look at the trainee who had just snapped her back to reality. How long had she been spacing out for?

The trainee who was trying to get her attention was Maeko Yoshida.

Rukia's mind drifted to the night of the attack. Her throat felt tight as she remembered how scared Maeko had been. The young girl had done her best to hide her fear, but Rukia could see right through her. There was no hiding that kind of fear.

Rukia's brows furrowed and her mind went back to the recent attack. After barely being able to deflect Aizen's attack, she had been too weak to get back up to lead the trainees away to safety. She clenched her fists as she relived the feelings of pain and hopelessness she had felt knowing she no longer had the strength to lead her trainees away from danger. She became so ashamed when she remembered how, as soon as her trainees were gone, she collapsed onto the ground and couldn't get up. Because she didn't have the strength to lead the trainees in evacuating, she had been forced to ask Maeko to do so. Rukia had placed so much responsibility onto this poor girl that night. If only Rukia had been stronger, she wouldn't have had to do that.

"Yes, what is it, Maeko?" she asked.

"I was wondering-"

Rukia braced herself for whatever she was about to be asked. She had to stay calm and collected no matter what, even if Maeko was about to ask her about that horrible man.

"-if you knew anything about Ran and Aiko? I know they got hurt that night when… You know."

Rukia let out the breath she had been holding in. She was so relieved Maeko hadn't asked her about Aizen. She smiled at the young girl before her. "They're alright. They're at the Fourth Division hospital recovering."

The young girl smiled. "Thank goodness!" she exclaimed.

There was a pause. Rukia didn't miss how the girl's mood shifted back to a wary one.

"Kuchiki-dono, is it true that Division 13 is under investigation right now?"

"What makes you think that, Maeko?"

It had been decided that only the seated officers of the 13th Division would get to know that all of their members were considered suspects and that there was a traitor among them. The rest of the division was told that the investigation was routine. And for that reason Rukia could not give the poor girl the answers she needed.

"W-Well, there are rumors going around. And" - the docile girl brought up the wooden sword she had been using during the training session - "our zanpakutos were confiscated. That's why we're using these while the trainees from the Tenth still have their zanpakutos."

Rukia looked down at the girl before her in shock. The poor girl. She's shaking.

Rukia hadn't fully grasped how overwhelming this all could have been for the trainees, especially those from her own division. Her trainees had been only a few meters away from such a huge and intense battle against the Seireitei's worst enemies. They could have died because of that man.

Rukia's brows furrowed more. It was a battle that had gone on longer than it should have, and her trainees were almost hurt as a result. Why had no one sensed the presence of any of the three traitors? How had those three snuck into the Seireitei so easily, without setting off any alarms, being spotted by any guards, anything? Rukia knew that those traitors had to have received the help of someone from her own division.

Even though there were so many unanswerable questions flocking around in Rukia's mind, there was one question that bothered her more than all the others combined. Why had it taken so long for anyone else to show up to their aid?

Rukia felt a knot in her throat as she remembered her captain's face when he was being bombarded with all these questions and more. How had Aizen slipped through the gate that Division 13 had been in charge of guarding? How had he just wandered practically undetected through the area that Division 13 was in charge of patrolling? And why had two Hell Butterflies from his division been sent out to isolate Aizen's target?

Her hands began to tremble. Her poor captain. In the midst of all of the pressure he was being put under, he had taken the time to come up to her after the division meeting to apologize to her for failing her.

How had he failed her?

It was she who had failed him.

"Kuchiki-dono? Is it true?"

Rukia looked up to see the trainees gathering around her. The rest were just as anxious as Maeko.

She took a deep breath. This was no time for her to be taken over by her fears. She needed to put on a brave face, at least for a few minutes. At least long enough to reassure the poor trainees.

Rukia nodded. "Yes, it's true. Currently, every member of Division 13 is under investigation for conspiring against the Seireitei."

She didn't miss how all of the trainees gasped at her words. The trainees from her division were all the more shocked.

"For those of you from Division 13, don't panic. You may be pulled aside some time soon for an interview. This doesn't mean that you're under investigation. It's your superiors that the investigators want to know about. And don't be afraid of saying the 'wrong thing' or saying something that could make someone look suspicious, even if it is someone you trust. Unfortunately, right now, you can't hold anything back for any reason whatsoever. This investigation is too important."

A trainee from the Tenth Division stepped up. "Kuchiki-dono, is it also true that Lieutenant Matsumoto is also under investigation?"

Rukia's frown deepened. "Yes," she admitted sadly.

The trainees from the Tenth Division were shocked.

"Lieutenant Matusmoto would never do something like that!" one of them cried. The rest of the trainees were quick to agree.

"Yes, you're right. Your lieutenant is as loyal as they come. And she'll be cleared any day now. The investigators are just being thorough. Unfortunately, they can't rule out anyone, no matter how loyal."

"Kuchiki-dono, you were there when Aizen showed up, right?" another trainee asked.

Rukia's mask did not waiver. "Yes, I was."

"And thank goodness she was!" one of her trainees cried. "If Kuchiki-dono hadn't been there, we'd all be toast!"

The trainees from the Tenth Division gasped in awe.

"Really? That's awesome!"

"Yeah, she was so cool!"

Rukia gulped as she suppressed a scowl. She wasn't cool. She wasn't awesome. Her right hand unconsciously crossed her body and gripped her bandaged arm. She was still so weak…

"You should have been there! She used her Sode no Shirayuki to make an avalanche! It totally wiped out Aizen's attack!"

"Yeah, that thing was the size of a meteor! And she just knocked it away like it was nothing!"

"No," she finally said.

The trainees turned to look at her.

"It wasn't easy at all. I barely was able to shift his attack just enough to miss the barracks. If I was as strong as you say I am, I wouldn't have gotten injured." She scoffed. "It's a miracle I left that battle with just some burns."

The group's mood shifted again. Rukia felt bad for scaring the trainees like that. But it was the truth. They needed to know that Aizen was no joke.

"W-Why is he back? Why did he show up here, in the Seireitei?"

"I'm sorry, but I'm not sure."

Rukia hated that she had to lie to the trainees. But everything that happened on that day was to be kept as quiet as possible. Not only that, but Rukia couldn't imagine what would happen if every shinigami in the Seireitei found out that Aizen had come for Rukia. Again.

"Is he here to finish destroying the Seireitei?" one trainee asked in absolute horror. The crowd burst into panicked whispers.

"I'm not sure. But panicking and worrying about Aizen is not going to change anything. That's why we're here. That's why your training is continuing. So that if he does show up again, you will be ready. You'll be mentally and physically prepared to run away from Aizen and survive. And you'll be mentally and physically prepared if, Heaven forbid, you are forced to face him."

The air around the crowd had gotten so heavy.

Rukia sighed. "But, I don't see another attack happening anytime soon. We successfully stopped him from accomplishing whatever plan he had, and we'll do it again if we must. He will not destroy our home and he will not shake our morale.

"If there are no more questions, I think today's training session can end early. It's been a long day for you all."

The crowd bowed and thanked Rukia for her help.

As they gathered their things, she said, "Don't forget to travel in groups! Avoid going anywhere by yourself at all cost."

When all the trainees were gone, and Rukia was left alone, she allowed her mask to disappear and she sighed.

The thought of Aizen being back was terrifying. But what was even more terrifying was that there were hundreds of young and inexperienced trainees throughout the Seireitei now. The thought of any of them having to face Aizen… It absolutely horrified her.

"Excuse me, Kuchiki-dono," came a voice.

Rukia yelped and turned around quickly. It was Maeko again.

"I'm sorry, Kuchiki-dono, I didn't mean to startle you!" she squeaked.

Rukia let herself laugh. "It's alright. I guess I'm a little on edge. What can I help you with?"

The young girl's eyes looked down. "Y-You know how you said we might be asked questions by the investigators?"

Rukia began to get worried. "Yes."

"And you know how you said that, even if we trust someone, we can't hold back any information?"

Rukia nodded. "Yes. It's crucial that anything you think may be relevant to the recent attack be reported. Even if that information may involve someone you trust and care for."

The young girl gulped. "When will the investigators be coming to ask us questions? B-Because I think I may have overheard something that may have to do with the attack."

Rukia was shocked. What could have Maeko possibly overheard that had to do with the attack? How much did she know? Did she know who was involved, who the traitor was? Is it possible that the poor, terrified girl before her held the answers they were all looking for?

Rukia placed her uninjured hand on one of Maeko's shaking shoulders. "It's ok. I know this is very scary, but it's all going to be ok."

Rukia turned around to grab a bottle of water. She handed it to the girl, who accepted it with shaky hands.

"As soon as you feel ready, I'm going to walk with you over to the First Division. I'll stay there and wait for you to finish talking with the investigators and then I'll walk you back to the barracks once it's all over."

The young girl took a long sip of water. She took a deep, shaky breath. "Thank you, Kuchiki-dono."

Rukia shook her head. "No. Thank you for, once again, being so brave."

And thank you for reminding me that I need to be brave.

"If it's alright with you, Kuchiki-dono, I have one more question."

"What is it, Maeko?"

"Why did you choose me to lead the evacuation that night of the attack?"

Rukia was surprised. "'Why?'" she repeated.

The young girl frowned. "I-It's because I'm one of the slowest right? That way, no one would get left behind?"

"Huh?" Rukia exclaimed. Maeko could not have been more mistaken. "What are you talking about? I chose you because I knew that you wouldn't leave a single one of your classmates behind. I knew that, if I had left anyone else in charge, they would have just wildly flash-stepped far away, leaving people who couldn't keep up behind. You, on the other hand, would never let that happen. And you're not one of the slowest. Not by a long shot, Maeko."

The girl's eyes widened.

Rukia thought back to the evaluations, when she had witnessed the same girl be defeated within seconds. Back then, all of her skills were nowhere near even the intermediate level. But Rukia had kept an eye on Maeko since that day. Someone that caught the eye of Captain Ukitake must never be underestimated.

Rukia remembered always seeing bandages around the girl's hands and arms. From personal experience, Rukia knew those bandages were a result of vigorous training. On top of all that training, Maeko had also attended every single one of the extra training sessions Rukia hosted with the Tenth Division. Compared to the evaluations, Maeko's skills had at least doubled in strength. On the day they had practiced flash-step, Maeko had not been the fastest nor the slowest. But she was, however, the trainee that displayed the most control.

Rukia smiled. She had met Maeko as the girl so weak that you couldn't sense her spiritual pressure even if you were in the same room as her. Now looking at that same girl today… Well, she was amazing.

"Maeko, I chose you because you've demonstrated such amazing control over your flash-step. You would be able to go fast enough to evacuate in time and slow enough so that everyone could keep up. I don't think anyone else would have been able to display such control or care for their comrades."

Rukia was once again surprised to see tears falling from the girl's eyes. Rukia quickly forced her own tears back.

"Sorry, Maeko! I talk too much! Let's get going."

The girl nodded. "Yes, Ma'am!"