Chapter 21 (Kisuke)

"That's it Ichigo!" I laughed as he cursed at me, "Don't be a sourpuss—you're a strong, young man. This should be easy for you."

"Oh yeah? Then if it's so easy why don't you do it!"

"Me?" I considered it for a moment before nodding, "Sure, sure! Why not?"

"What? No! Ah, crap."

I came to stand besides him and took a deep breath. It had been a while since I had gone through the building blocks of Kido. I had set Ichigo on it in hopes that he would get better control of his spiritual pressure. If he succeeded then it should delay the side effects of Hollowfying him.

Holding my hands up, I concentrated on pouring my spiritual pressure into my hands. They warmed up and I lifted them. Little streams of red reiatsu trickled from my fingertips, and I rolled them up into small balls by taking a deep breath. When there was a small bead of reiatsu hovering above each of my fingers, I threw them up into the air and juggled them.

"Hey," I wiggled my brows at Ichigo, "Should've changed my name to Bozo the Clown, right?"

"You're hopeless," He grumbled, staring at me with a dumbfounded expression.

"Impressive."

I looked over my shoulder. Shizuko stood a couple feet away, dressed in an elegant, black dress. In fact, everything she wore was black. Her short heels, her coat, even the brimmed hat that sat on her head. Shadows marked her face, and her eyes were hollow.

Still, she smiled as she approached us, "Mind if I try?"

We both stepped to the side and gave her some room. She stood with her feet in line with her shoulders, back straight. It was incredible how I could see the ghost of Kumiko moving just as my daughter did.

Her reiatsu was amber, and flowed like the smoke of an extinguished candle. She passed it between her hands like she was bending water. Ichigo watched her with wide eyes, unable to look away from the mesmerizing flow she moved with.

Bending her knees, she dipped the reiatsu low and threw it up into the air. It whooshed up higher than the rock formations that surrounded us, and roared towards her with weight and heat. Taking a deep breath, she caught it in her hands and then it disappeared.

I clapped, breaking the silence that had encompassed us all, "Well done, Shizuko—that was very controlled."

She bowed her head with a smile. Ichigo looked around and then back at her.

"Do you ever just let it explode?"

"Like this?" She smirked and lifted her two fingers. A beam of blue light shot from them and straight at Ichigo. He jumped out of the way, and the reiatsu carved a deep scar into the earth.

"What the hell, lady?" Ichigo hollered as he patted the dust off his ass.

She chuckled but grew quiet soon afterwards. She glanced up at me and I could tell she needed to talk. I let Ichigo off for lunch and led Shizuko upstairs to the outside world.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Was the first thing I said as we settled in the kitchen. She sat herself by the table room table, crossing her legs.

"Thank you," she set her hat down, "We just finished the last of the post-funeral rituals."

"What are you doing here?" I passed her a cup and set the teapot in between us, "Not that I mind. But I'm sure your mother does."

"She doesn't know that I'm here," She blew at the tea, "She doesn't even know that I met you. Jirou's death threw us all—it wasn't that we hadn't expected it…but I hadn't expected this to happen while I was on deployment."

"How old was he?"

"Not much older than I am," She responded, "He knew me back when I was a geisha. We were good friends."

"It's never easy losing someone," I murmured. It surprised me when she reached out her hand. I took it and she squeezed mine with a tight smile.

"This must have been very hard for you, Kisuke," She stared at our hands while she spoke, "I'm afraid that I only thought about myself when we first met. But you lost just as much as I have."

"What I've lost has been found again," I smiled, "I'm just sad that I didn't get to see you grow up."

She let go of my hand and took another sip of her tea. She sat in contemplative silence, staring out the window above the sink. I studied her carefully while she was lost in thought. There was a commanding presence to her that not even Kumiko had. Her mother was surprisingly graceful despite how boisterous she was, but Shizuko was elegant. She was what I imagined Kumiko might have been like had she not been disowned by her family.

Then again, Kumiko was a louder person by nature. Shizuko was quiet and soft-spoken. She almost reminded me of Haku or Byakuya.

"I'll bring my childhood photos next time I visit," She announced, glancing at me, "That is, if you don't mind me dropping in every now and then."

"I wouldn't dream of turning down the opportunity to see my daughter," My words made her smile. "Are you on leave from the Seireitei?"

"Yes, but no one knows that I came here," She nodded, "I came to pass on some information you may find useful. It might aid Ichigo in rescuing Rukia."

"Who said anything about Ichigo saving Rukia?"

She raised an eyebrow at me, "You healed him to save his life. You could have sent him back to his life as human, but instead you trained him and helped him become a Soul Reaper again. That, and I felt Tessai setting up a gateway that felt strangely familiar to a Senkaimon."

She definitely was my daughter.

I leaned back in my seat with a chuckle, "Yes, well, he may be going to pay the Seireitei a visit. I'm surprised you're not stopping him. He'll be your enemy in two weeks' time."

"Wrong." She set the cup down and looked up at me, "He'll be my enemy in a week's time. Central Forty-Six ordered an earlier trial date."

I was surprised but I wasn't pleased either. Something didn't feel right about the hastiness of the order. Still, I was grateful that she told me though I wasn't sure why. Kumiko had been loyal to the Seireitei and I imagined that if Shizuko joined the Gotei then she was just as much so.

"I love being a shinigami. Don't mistaken my actions for anything but loyalty," She spoke as if she had read my mind, "But something isn't right. And…I can't lose another family member. I've known Rukia for a long time now—she is a good person and an even better Soul Reaper."

"You were part of the arrest," I pointed out.

She scoffed, "My mother may openly defy the Kuchiki's but I lost that luxury when they proved that they could make my life a living nightmare. I'm not an idiot. I will never openly defy Byakuya or the Elders."

"So you'll do it behind their backs?" I asked with a smirk.

She shrugged with a smirk of her own growing on her face, "You reap what you sow."


That's it for updates! Happy birthday to all my birthday twins out there!

Next on CoS: Kumiko notices something's up with Shizuko; Kisuke prepares to send Yoruichi and Ichigo to the Soul Society!

Stay safe and I'll see you in two weeks!