Does Man Make The Monster?
Chapter 16
In The Aftermath
(A/N I realized that the one I had written would be better suited for another time. So I had to write another chapter after all. Such is my life. So let's get this ball rolling.)
SOUNDS/sounds
Thoughts
(Last Time)
"What?" Marude snapped, turning to face the man.
"Sir, we may have lucked out. Hayashi's camera was taken with her well before the blackout," the soldier stated as Marude's eyes widened. "It was forgotten on her person when she was rushed to the hospital. It is already being processed at the 20th HQ."
"Her camera…? You mean we…? Hahahaha! So we do have evidence of that beast after all?!" Marude laughed. "Perfect. I want to see just what this thing looks like firsthand! If she's telling us the truth we may very well have a new species walking in this world. A devil as she put it."
Ichigo arrived to the hideout rather late that morning. He was carrying a large silver briefcase in his right hand. He managed to go back to the complex and retrieve Tsume from the tree. However, it would be very convenient to find a case for Tsume instead of toting him around like he was. That was the fun part as the place was still swarming with the CCG. The cleanup after a job like that was not one for the faint of heart. He saw too many body bags in his opinion.
He managed to locate one and quickly snatched it. That could have gone better, honestly, as he was shot at several times. The amount of souls had dropped drastically he noticed. There were quite a few shinigami still hanging around, cleaning up as well. Several hollows tried to enter the area to get to the souls but they were quickly dealt with. He was lucky that they didn't pick up on him. It seemed that being a living hollow had its perks but he would rather not risk it again. Toshiro was enough to know about him and his idiot underling.
He really hated taking the large quinque blade from Akane the way he did but he had grown rather fond of Tsume. He wasn't expecting to see it on the battlefield and he just decided he wanted it. He could have maybe dealt with the situation better. A lot better actually. He didn't want to hurt or fight his partner. He tried talking her out of it but… He should have just knocked her out in hindsight and taken Tsume that way. It would have been less fuss and less damage on her. But it happened and nothing could be done about it.
He walked into their little living area to see everyone gone. He found a note on his cot stating that they were going out to explore the city one last time before they packed up and headed back out early tomorrow morning. If he didn't look the way he did and that he was supposed to dead he would have liked to have gone with them and shown them around.
He sighed, setting down his quinque case by his cot before plopping down in the blue mesh canvas. He was dead tired at this point. He was surprised that Yoruichi, Urahara, and Orihime still had the energy to go out and explore. When they get back they were likely to just crash.
He undid the snaps around his horn and dropped the hood, before taking the cape off altogether. It had taken a beating along with the rest of his clothes. He removed his mask and took in a deep breath. It was a little easier to breath now. He needed to get out of his soiled clothes and put on something else. The blood had long since dried and made the fabric stiff and crusty. He removed the last of his clothes before digging through his bags and found some beige cargo pants and a dark gray tee with the brand logo printed on the front.
He couldn't wait to take a bath when he got home. He had tried to wash up a bit as he put on his fresh clothes but nothing could beat an actually bath. He fell back onto his cot and looked up at the warped, peeling ceiling above him.
"This must have been a nice place once. I would have liked to have seen this house in its heyday," Ichigo muttered. "This is a crying shame really… What a waste."
He grabbed his covers and pulled them up to his shoulders. He needed some sleep. He was totally drained. The cot was not comfy by any means but it could honestly be worse. It creaked a little under his weight as he tried to find a more bearable position. Wishful thinking. He finally settled on his side and looked out towards the door.
His mind drifted back to the fight. The fight itself was normal, nothing new about it. CCG vs ghouls. Same old, same old. What bugged him… What really got to him was Kaneki's 180 change in attitude and personality. All he knew was that he was severely tortured by Yamori. Kaneki never really went into any depth about it. Not what he would with a total stranger. Not only that but things like that weren't really good topics to bring up and relive.
Kaneki just decided to let his ghoul instincts take over as a way to protect himself. There didn't seem to be much of the quiet bookworm left in him. What humanity Kaneki had was ripped from him and Ichigo didn't like that. Kaneki really seemed to embrace his ghoul instincts even well after the danger had past. The young ghoul was now a forced to be reckoned with. Not just because of his newly found physically strength, no. Kaneki was smart, very smart. Those two attributes together could a recipe for disaster. This could turn out poorly if Kaneki doesn't pay close attention to what he does in the future.
That's what bothered Ichigo. Whatever Kaneki had planned do really terrified him. Was he doing this to protect those close to him? Was he planning on taking vengeance on the remaining Aogiri Tree members? Or maybe he was just wanting to become stronger for the sake of becoming stronger? There was no telling at this point. Only time would tell. He even gave those at Anteiku the brush off. That'd what set Ichigo off. They risked everything to come rescue him and then he just leaves them. Ichigo was still sore about the whole 'you're not needed' part. That was a cheap shot as far as Ichigo was concerned.
He thought back to when he helped Irimi and Hinami take Yoshimura back to the café. The elderly ghoul clearly had seen better days. They did what they could to make him more comfortable while he healed up. Irimi made him a fresh cup of coffee while another ghoul named Koma brought him up some "meat" as they called it. It was a slightly better alternative to what they could call it in all honesty. It was clear Yoshimura didn't like the change in Kaneki either. He didn't really voice it too much but that feeling was there. There was certainly a conflict of interest about to happen and that wasn't going to be pleasant. Of course Yoshimura and the others had to play 20 questions with him, each. He should have known that was coming. Ichigo would either answer them the best he could or he would give them a "no comment."
He let it slip that despite what he looked like he was capable of eating human food. To his surprise Koma and Irimi brought up some of the café food to him. People had made complaints about certain items made in store but they had no way to figure out what people were talking about. Since he just happened to be there and could eat said "complaint food" they were going to use him. This was rather awkward given what had just happened but free food was free food. He wasn't going to pass it up. They were a little taken aback by him breaking the bottom jaw off his mask. Despite the dried blood on his chin they were surprised to see his skin really was a chalk white and his tongue was a cyan blue. It was even stranger to them when he repaired the mask when he was done. He made sure not to talk without his mask. He made a small list about what he noticed as well. He gave them some ideas on how to change the taste and/or texture of the food items.
He was surprised to see the ghoul from earlier with a dark alternative style come by. He seemed just as surprised to see Ichigo there as well. He was just stopping by to pick up a couple of items. They talked briefly about the wonder that was Yoruichi and her little "stunts." Uta, as he called himself, found Ichigo's cape quite fascinating. He looked it over several times. He studied the seams and the stitching detail. All in all he was quite impressed with the craftsmanship. Ichigo told him that a friend of his made it. He didn't give Uta Uryu's name but said that the Quincy had always had a gift for sewing and fine detail. That was enough to satisfy Uta and he left soon after.
He never had the chance to really talk to Ryoko. She was hanging around but there was just so much going on that she was just sort of cast to the side. He'd find some way to meet up with her before he left town. He had to talk to her. It would be rude not to and he would just like to talk to her, period. She did seem happy to see him and Hinami getting along. She was rather concerned about Kaneki. She would ask Ichigo a few questions and he would give her subtle nods or whispers. Yoshimura had noticed it somewhat but drew no attention to it. Ryoko wasn't quite yet ready to let Hinami know she was still around and this clearly wasn't the time to try. Ichigo stayed for about 2 hours before he left to go fetch Tsume and return to the ramshackle house.
He hated that he could only lay on his back or right side. There was nothing he could do about his horn. He couldn't break as it would just grow back in no time. He tried to nestle down a little more and pulled the covers to just over his nose. He didn't need to worry about all this. He really just needed to sleep. He was going home tomorrow. He did his part and he didn't need to get involved with Kaneki, Yoshimura, and the others. He ran the risk of being caught if he hung around any longer. He did his part as requested. He closed his eyes as he tried to get some well-deserved sleep.
Akane sat in her hospital bed as she was questioned by CCG researchers about what she saw last night. She was covered in a few bandages from her head to foot. Her back with in a brace and her left arm hanging in a light gray sling. She was only getting more and more aggravated with the men questioning her. She already had to share the room with 2 other women. The room was small enough as it was without it having about 5 more people in there asking them all sorts of questions. Her temper was about at its limit. She needed to rest but clearly that wasn't going to happen. The CCG wanted a full account as to what happened between her and the devil.
"I keep telling you idiots that I don't know," she yelled at them. "You have that footage to look at. Stop hounding me for information! I told you all that I know and you're only pissing me off!"
"We do apologize, Investigator Hayashi, really, but we need your own personal firsthand account of this creature you call a devil," the man said, looking down at his small tablet and scribbled something down with stylist. "I know this isn't the greatest time to give your account but we need what we can get before it fades."
"The only thing that's fading is my patience. Look, people, I'm in pain, I'm tired, and at this point I don't give a rat ass about that bastard," she snapped at them, ripping the tablet from the man's hand with her good arm and threatened to throw it across the room. "I will break this damn thing if you don't get your shit and get out. I need rest and the others do to! Have some consideration for the injured!"
"Investigator, please calm down! There is no need for this," another man said, reaching for the tablet but she moved it out of his reach. "Please, don't make any trouble for us!"
"Leave! Get out," she hissed at them. "Let me and the others rest in peace for a while! This is nothing but harassment as far as I am concerned!"
"If you'd just cooperate we will be out of your hair quickly. Now just give that tablet back," the man demanded only to have her tuck the small tablet up under her hospital gown.
"Try getting it now. I dare you," she growled as the three mean looked at each other and then back at her. "I may only have good arm but I warn you now I still have two good legs and I know where to kick!"
"You're making this harder than it needs to be! Hand over that tablet right now!"
"No! This is a hospital not an interrogation room. You need to understand we marched into hell last night. Get that through your thick skulls. Yes, I understand you want information but your bedside-manner is deplorable. I've given you all the information that I can remember. Everything else is on that camera. Get your damn answers from that and leave me alone!"
The three men stood up and looked down at her. Clearly she was not going to cooperate anymore. They straightened their suits and started to gather their belongings. She finally handed them back the small tablet. They snatched it and promptly left. The other two men did the same, finally leaving the other women in peace. All three sighed in relief and leaned back into their beds.
"Thank you," one of the women breathed. "I thought they would never leave."
"They'll be back…" the second one grumbled.
"At least we'll have some peace hopefully for a little while," Akane adjust her sling and closed her eyes. "They were getting on my last nerve."
"Well, you are a hot item right now. You were the only one to truly face down that thing. The others he went after he just sort of knocked them back from what I understand," the first woman said, scratching the bandage on her head. "This thing is annoying. Ow!"
"Don't pick at it, Kaede," the second women ordered. "Tell a nurse to come look at it. You don't want to reopen that wound."
"This better not have latex in it," Kaede picked at the bandage's edge. "I'm allergic to that crap. Am I getting a rash, Sayako? "
"Just tell a damn nurse and stop complaining about it," Sayako woman snapped. "Stop picking at it! They'll fix it for you if you tell them."
The room fell silent for a moment or two. There was quite a lot of noise coming from the hall. The hospital was packed and people were being shipped to other hospitals and clinics to make room. The hospital was well over capacity. Akane tried to drown out the noise. She really had nothing else left to tell them. She gave them all that she could. But given that he was something new they wanted as much info as they could get. She understood that but they wouldn't give up even after she told them everything. Some questions even started to float over to Incognito as the two had some similarities. She really had enough of those damn devils. She didn't want to hear about them anymore.
"Excuse me. I don't mean to bother you, Investigator Hayashi, but I was wondering if you could explain to me why—"
"Oh, go to hell," Akane snapped, opening her eyes and sat up in a huff. "I'm tired of you damn bastards asking me shit that I've—Oh, dear…"
She turned as white as a sheet as she looked across the room at Arima Kisho standing in the doorway. He didn't look happy given her rather blunt and vulgar response. All three women seemed to be holding their breath as he stepped a little more into the room. Oh, good grief what had she done? Maybe she could blame her temper on the meds. It happened sometimes. She knew she screwed up big time. She was in a little bit of a cold sweat as he moved towards her bed. She was liable to get suspended or possibly fired for that lovely little tirade.
"I think I got the answer to my question. I wanted to know why some of my men were pretty much forced out of your room. I clearly see the issue," he said, putting his hands on the bed's guardrails.
"Special Investigator Arima Kisho, sir," all three women quickly bowed their heads.
He acknowledged them with a small nod before turning his focus solely on Akane.
"Investigator Hayashi, I understand you are tired and not in the best of moods. However, you are the only one to truly face down both Incognito and this new devil from the raid. Your information is highly valuable to us and we can't have you hindering our investigation because you are having a childish temper tantrum."
"I'm s-sorry, sir," she kept her head down. "I'll keep my t-temper in better check from now on."
"You've always been rather ill tempered if I remember correctly," he said flatly. "This isn't the first time you've snapped at your superiors. Sometimes it's been over minor things."
"I really do apologize. I don't always think before I speak," she bowed her head down a little more. I'm so screwed. I don't think I can recover from this. I'm so damn stupid! I didn't even look before I opened my mouth! I am so fired for this!
"Uh, Special Investor Arima, sir, I'm sorry to interrupt but… Hayashi hasn't had much luck here as of late," the Kaede weakly spoke up.
"Yeah, she lost her eye not that long ago to the Rabbit not to mention her partner Kurosaki Ichigo. She's really not doing so well," Sayako added.
He turned to look at her roommates before turning back to look at her. She still had her head down, her body trembling a little.
"You also lost Kurosaki's quinque to that devil as well," Arima said, digging in a little salt as she folded in on herself. "I'm not quite sure if this is a coincidence but only you, Mado, and Amon seemed to be the ones most involved with these creatures. Why is it just you three?"
"I don't know, sir…" she said, almost speaking into her bedsheets.
"I see. Whether you like it or not right now you are a VIP so to speak. I know all this questioning is monotonous and downright irritating but we need to get what we can. If these devils truly are a new species, and just not some anomaly, we need to know more about them in order to combat them," Arima said, pulling his hands from the guardrails. "I know tensions are high right now and I will give you a reprieve from questioning. Just keep in mind not to hinder an investigation like this again. If they start getting on your nerves ask for me or another supervisor to have them leave. Do not force them out of the room."
"I understand, sir…"
There was a small quiet pause after that. Only the sounds from the hall could be heard in the room and the hum of window heating unit. Arima drew in a breath and let it back out.
"Perhaps I got a little hasty myself mentioning Kurosaki's quinque the way I did… I understand that was a hard loss for you and I shouldn't have made that remark so blatantly," he said, pushing up his glasses. "Kurosaki—Hawk—was a strong and skilled investigator, along with being a good man. I give you my condolences and I pray that you make a full recovery, Hayashi."
"Th-thank you…"
He turned and left the room, closing the door behind him. Sayako and Kaede turned to look back at Akane. She was still folded in half with her face buried in the covers and her good arm covering the back of her head, clinching her long red locks. She was trembling something fierce. Kaede cleared her throat.
"H-hey… At least you didn't get punished for that horrible comment," she said only to be shushed by Sayako. "What?"
"Leave her be," Sayako said, quietly. "She got punished."
"Huh? But I didn't notice him say anything about a suspicion or anything."
"Trust me on this, Kaede. Just leave her alone right now."
"Mmm… Okay…"
Amon sat in the hospital room with Mado. Mado like Akane had to share with two other men much to their disliking. The room was far too tight. They were still looking for other hospitals to take in the over follow. There was more damage done than they had predicted. Nothing was ever straight forward with ghouls.
His arm was bandaged neatly and put in a makeshift sling of gauze. He wasn't critical and so they bandaged it until they could actually get to him. All that really needed to be done was to flush and stitch the wound. It was not a top priority and he was tossed to the side for the time being while medical staff dealt with more pressing issues.
Mado looked over the file Amon had made for him. The rifle the girl had been toting around was indeed one of the stolen rifles from the armory. Of course there was no Inoue Kimi employed current or past with the CCG anywhere. They had very little prints and no DNA samples they could find. Mado still felt that the girl might have been a ghoul up to something. He lightly chewed on the tip of his thumb. Amon seemed to be struggling to stay awake.
"Go home," Mado said, thumbing through the small file again.
"Mm, what?" Amon said, sitting up a little straighter.
"I said: go home. You are exhausted," Mado repeated and looked up at his partner. "You've done your job for today. There is no need for you to hang around this abysmal place. I'm not going anywhere."
"Sir, are you sure you'll be all right?" Amon asked and Mado snorted.
"Stop fretting over me. Arima and the others are questioning the hell out of people right now. Get out of here before they badger you to death like the rest of us," Mado made a shoo gesture. "You saw that devil, too. If they find you here you'll be stuck here for who knows how long."
"But shouldn't I talk to them, too?" Amon asked, rubbing the back of his head.
"Heh… Suit yourself," Mado shrugged, putting the papers up. "I got what I needed to know. I'll give them this when they make another round. I am very serious about you going home and getting some sleep. You look like hell."
"I feel like it, too. I guess I really do need to get some sleep," Amon got to his sore legs and grabbed the few items he came in with. "Call me if you need anything."
"What a mother hen," Mado snorted with a sarcastic grin.
"I hope they patch you up soon," Amon said, turning to leave. "I'll see you later."
"Do take care, Amon," Mado waved as Amon stepped out the door.
Amon hadn't made it far when he bumped into someone. A young blond girl was lightly knocked into the wall. The halls were so packed there was no room to move. People were constantly running into each other or tripping over things.
"I'm so sorry," Amon said, turning to face her. "I didn't mean to knock into you. Are you all right?"
"I'm fine. Thanks for asking," she said, standing up straight and fixed her shirt.
She said nothing more as she ducked into the room he had just left. He scratched his head and went to look but decided against it. If Mado wasn't joking and CCG was being aggressive about their questioning he might want to keep moving. He really did some sleep and God only knows how long the questioning would take.
The whole of the CCG was going absolutely crazy about this devil creature that Hayashi fought and that he and Mado briefly encountered. He navigated his way through the cramped corridors. He remembered the devil's strange gold on black eyes, looking down at him as he grabbed that woman. They were just like the ones he saw back in the waterway with Incognito. They had a very different radiance about them compared to ghoul eyes. Amon never wanted to admit this to anyone but the devil's eyes looked so… Well, despite the startling color they looked human.
He didn't know how else to explain it. They were just human. He rubbed his sore neck as he quickly started down the stairs towards the ground floor. They didn't have that predatory glare of ghoul eyes. There was no malice or aggression found in them. If anything there was a sense of familiarity. That's what really ate at Amon. Not only where they similar to human eyes but that he felt like he knew the creature behind the mask; both Incognito and this new one. This was something he was keeping to himself. He wasn't even going to tell Mado this. There are just some things that people keep to themselves that no one else can understand or that no one else needs to know about.
He opened the door to the ground level and walked down the short hall to the main lobby. Even here it was packed but not with patients, doctors, or nurses. Here stood the reporters, the families, and the police. The police along with some of the CCG had formed a line to keep reporters back and towards the main doors and away from the grieving families. The building was already over packed. This was well over the fire safety regulations.
Amon continued on down to another hall and with a little navigating down a few more finally led him out to a parking deck. It was a much longer walk than going through the lobby but he wasn't about to get caught up in that. He stepped outside as the bright sunlight assaulted his tired eyes for a moment before adjusting. He thought about stopping at the office to pick up a few remaining items but there wasn't enough to worry about. He was already out of his battle gear and just wearing his usually suit and tie.
Amon drew in a breath of fresh city air and started towards the car. Sleep did sound really good. No doubt he'll be questioned sooner or later about what he saw. He crossed the street looking at the crowd around the front of the building. What a mess. The operation was a secret but the aftermath sure was not. He ducked back into the shadow of the parking deck and started toward the car. It was about 3 floors up.
Once at the car he tossed everything into the back seat and got in the driver's seat. It was the company car but as long as he didn't do anything stupid, report mechanical problems, report where he took the car, and kept up with the paperwork, they didn't care if you used it a couple of days for personal use. In town only of course. Not like Amon was going to do much with it. Home. Work. Hospital. Maybe a grocery store. He looked at his reflection in the mirror.
Mado was right. He did look like hell. He pinched the inner corners of his eyes before turning on the ignition to the car. Just what was going on with this world? Ghouls and now devils? It just was becoming more and more twisted, or so it seemed. Was it because he was seeing the world for what it truly was or was the world really becoming more depraved with time? No telling. He didn't need to think about this sort of thing right now. If he started that he would never get anything sleep.
Everyone arrived back at the rundown house around late afternoon. Ichigo was completely passed out on his cot. They kind of tiptoed around him as they congregated in the room. The group had arms full of souvenirs. There was a shopping district no too far where they were and decided to hit that up for their last day in town. They would have dinner and finish packing the rest of belongings. Only issue was all the gear they had stolen. What were they to do with it? They couldn't drop it back up off without really cleaning everything to not leave any trace.
They kept their chatter low as they talked excitingly about what they saw and bought. It would have been great if Ichigo could have gone with them and shown them around the city. This was a hard thought to process that even though he was there he couldn't hang out and go places with them. Ichigo was pretty much a prisoner of his own body. He didn't have any real freedom to do things openly now. Maybe that's why he brought everyone with him to Tokyo. This might be the last time they would ever do anything like this as a group.
That put a damper on their mood. They were enjoying themselves like this a school fieldtrip and it might be the last big event they do together, assuming something doesn't happen in Soul Society again. Hopefully something like that won't happen again. That was a sobering memory of just how far Aizen had gotten to succeeding with his plan. Ichigo risked everything in that gamble and it paid off while also losing everything. Then what little power he gained back years later wasn't the greatest payoff.
"I honestly feel bad for the guy, ya know?" Jinta said, munching on some fish crackers.
"I think we all do," Chad nodded. "This really isn't fair."
"Such is the cruel hand of fate, I am afraid. Although, Ichigo is persevering through it and taking it better than I thought," Urahara said, working on disassembling the spirit converter to pack away with Yoruichi's help. "He's not happy about it and I'm still having trouble finding something to subdue his hollow appearance. I hate to say it but it's not looking like he's going to be human ever again."
"You don't think he'll be…" Orihime gasped.
"Not at the rate things are going. I have tested several different things out on gigai modeled after him and none of which are satisfactory. It's not looking good," Urahara answered her. "I still don't have true knowledge of just how much of an impact this change will affect him in the long run. I don't know if he'll still age like an average human or if he'll have longevity like Yoruichi and myself. He might even evolve more with age. No doubt he will get stronger as he settles into his body better."
"He's stuck between worlds if you think about it. He's fallen into the cracks," Uryu spoke up, sitting down and examining the bloodied cloak in his hands. "He can't fit into either world. At least back in our teenage years he could switch between what world he wanted to be in to suit his needs. He has a spirit world form while existing in a living world body."
"Yeah, that really does suck since you put that way," Jinta sighed.
"It is indeed regrettable," Ururu nodded, looking solemnly at Ichigo. "I really don't like seeing him like this."
"None of us do," Chad said, leaning back in his seat. "We'll just have to do what we can to help him."
"He can't live vicariously through us either," Orihime sniffed. "That sounds like it would hurt worse."
"Um… Um… Ex-excuse me…"
A woman's voice? They all turned to the door to see a female spirit. She was covered in blood that looked like it came from a bad neck wound. She pulled at her braid hair, looking rather nervous to be there. Urahara stopped what he was doing and walked over to her.
"Ah, Mrs. Fueguchi. It's nice to see you again," Urahara smiled and took her hand. "You can come in. It's all right."
He led her into their little space as she looked around at everyone. She didn't know any of them and felt rather nervous. Of course she recognized Ichigo. He was completely passed out on his cot. He looked like he was sleeping like a rock. Given the night he had that seemed appropriate.
"Everyone this Fueguchi Ryoko. Hinami's mother," Urahara introduced her to the group.
"Shame we never ever got to meet your daughter," Yoruichi said, walking over to her. "I'm Shihoin Yoruichi you could say I'm Urahara's partner is crime."
She lazily hooked her elbow around the back of Urahara's neck. Fueguchi nodded at her.
"Good afternoon, I'm Ishida Uryu."
"Name's Hanakari Jinta."
"Tsumugiya Ururu, nice to meet you."
"Hi, I'm Inoue Orihime."
"I am Yasutora Sado. Most call me Chad."
"Chad?" Ryoko blinked.
"Ichigo misread my name once in school. It stuck," he answered with a shrug.
"He's always been bad with names," Uryu groaned.
"O-oh, I see," she weakly laughed.
"Hey, no doubt you came to see Sleeping Beauty here. I'll wake him for you," Jinta said, standing up and closed the tiny gap between them. "Hey, Carrot—"
"Oh, no! You don't have to! You can just let him sleep," she quickly said as Jinta raise a red eyebrow. "He probably needs it. I'll just come back later."
"Hmm… Hey, Carrot Top, wake up," Jinta gave the cot a good kick. "You got company!"
"You don't have to do that!" Ryoko exclaimed as Ichigo sat up with a start not quite sure what just happened.
"Wh-what happed?" he asked, looking rather alert. "What's wrong?!"
"You got company," Jinta stated, stepping to the side to let Ichigo see her.
He rubbed a sleepy eye as he focused in on Ryoko. He sat up a little more, knocking off his covers. He was still very groggy and he didn't feel like getting to his feet just yet.
"H-hey, Ryoko. Sorry I didn't get to talk to you very much this morning," Ichigo yawned before grabbing his covers again wrapped them around his shoulders. "Cold. So you figured to look here from last time, huh?"
"It was the logical choice. I didn't mean to wake you I was going to let you sleep some more," Ryoko said, looking over at Jinta.
"I'll get some more tonight. We don't leave until tomorrow morning," Ichigo said, rubbing his eye again. "I was going to try contacting to you tonight anyway."
"When everyone left to let Yoshimura get some rest he filled me in on some more news about Kaneki. Has he really changed that much?" she asked and Ichigo let a long sigh and nodded.
"I had the honor of meeting him when I was last here. I can tell you his demeanor has indeed changed and I don't feel for the best," Urahara said, taking his seat with the others.
"Yoshimura said the same pretty much. He fears Kaneki is going to go down a destructive path," Ryoko said, clinching her braid tightly.
"It sounded like that to us as well," Yoruichi said looking disappointed. "I think his heart is the right place but his head is somewhere off in left field."
"It's out of bounds," Ichigo grumbled under his breath.
"Still touchy about that brush off?" Yoruichi asked and Ichigo clicked his tongue and looked away from her. "Yes, you are."
"Well, that was a rather mean thing to say," Orihime almost pouted. "I know the situation wasn't… Great… But that really was mean. You just asked him a question."
"What did he say to you?" Ryoko asked, looking rather worried.
"I got a little snippy about him turning his back on Anteiku. I basically asked him why he was he leaving them when they came to save him. He bluntly told me that what he does was no concern of mine and that my help was no longer needed," Ichigo snorted. "So I left, not wanting to start an argument given his current state of mind. Orihime here noted he wasn't looking so well asked if he needed help. He turned and bit at her, too."
"You even moved to stand between them because you got worried for Orihime's safety," Urahara sighed. "For you to do that… That's not a good sign. You don't trust him."
"No, I don't and I truly hate to say that. I really do," Ichigo said, looking back over at Ryoko. "He was severely tortured by Yamori for who really knows how long. No telling what sort of tortures either. Yamori shattered his mind in the end. I'm almost positive Kaneki killed the bastard to escape on his own torment. Everything about him has changed. His body language, facial expression, attitude, personality, and even his hair turned as white as Toshiro's."
Ryoko just stared at him with her mouth hanging open a little. She slowly sat down on the floor so she wouldn't just out and out crumpled. This just couldn't be right. Kaneki would never do anything like this. Kaneki was kind and mild mannered. He was always polite and cheerful. She started to feel tears building in her eyes. This was not right. This shouldn't be happening.
"It's best to know now instead of seeing him without any warning at all," Urahara said. "Like Yoruichi said. His heart is in the right place but his mind is not going about it the right way. Given what I heard last night… He plans to fight and he really means to do it. I'm sure one of his targets will be the remnants of Aogiri Tree and there might be a few others as well."
"I would just leave him be," Chad spoke up. "Trying to stop him might make things worse. People could get hurt."
"And if he really does go down this path it's likely he's going to be detected by your friends' radar down at the CCG," Uryu added, pointing at Ichigo. "From the way you're talking… I don't see him being very low-key about any of this. He's going to make a name for himself and it's not going to end well for anyone involved."
"I think that's what has Yoshimura on edge. I'm not overly familiar with how the ghoul law system works here," Ichigo said, turning to look at Fueguchi. "Every district is a little different depending on the ruling party. Ryoko, what are the dos and don'ts here?"
"Yoshimura he… He… Believes that if one ghoul turns that the rest shouldn't aid them," She said, looking a floor. "At least as far as Anteiku is concerned. I think it stretches a little farther than that as well."
"He doesn't want one bad apple ruining the bushel," Yoruichi said and Ryoko nodded. "I can see where he is coming from on that. He's thinking of the greater good for those near him and the community."
"A fuse has been lit and I don't think we're going to enjoy these particular fireworks," Urahara said, hanging his head a little. "Like Chad said it might be best to leave this alone. This really isn't our world so to speak. Ichigo, I know you might feel differently about all this…"
"No… I'm with you. I left the CCG and I fulfilled my promise so this shouldn't concern me anymore," Ichigo pulled his legs to his chest. "I'm supposed to be dead. I don't need to be hanging around here."
"So, you're not going to even try to reason with him?" Orihime asked as Ichigo turned to look at her. "You're just going to leave? I mean, I thought you said he was your friend."
"That's debatable now. I've never see him act like that before. That's not Kaneki," Ichigo grumbled. "This is a whole can of worm we shouldn't open. It's best to leave it be."
"So, you're going to come home with us?" Uryu asked.
"I promised dad I would," Ichigo replied. "There is nothing else here for me to do."
"You're not going to try and reason with him?" Ryoko asked, looking rather hurt and surprised. "Just tell him who you really are. He might listen to you then. You can't just leave with him about to throw his life away!"
"I can't do that. I'm dead, remember? I can't let anything slip. Trust me I thought about it a couple of times but that might cause more issues than fix them," Ichigo quickly answered almost a little snippy, balling his hands into fists. "I know it's not a pleasant choice but this doesn't concern me anymore. I pretty much tossed everything of that life into the river with that gigai. I would like to help but… This just isn't my place anymore."
"Mrs. Fueguchi… I hope you can understand why we aren't getting involved from now on," Urahara said as she ever so slightly nodded. "Kaneki has made his choice and we shouldn't meddle in it. It's a bitter pill to be sure."
"I'm really sorry, Ryoko, but we did our part," Ichigo said, looking away from her. "I just hate that we didn't get here sooner to stop this from happening."
The space grew quiet for a little while as everyone dwelled on their thoughts. Honestly, Ichigo would like to stay and help put Kaneki back on the right track. That, however, was going to take a long time and things might meltdown well before then. Kaneki went through a large mental and physical shock. It might take that same type of force to put him back right or it could drive him deeper into the darkness.
The CCG was no doubt in an uproar about Ichigo's appearance. If he stayed they may start a massive man hunt for him to see what makes him tick. Not something he would like to be a part of. Not only that but it could hurt his family as well. He couldn't let that happen. It was best to leave and hopefully not come back under worse conditions.
"Maybe he'll listen to you," Ichigo broke the silence. "He really looked up to you from what you told me. Perhaps, you can try your hand with him."
"Do you think he will?" she asked, wiping away a tear. "Do you think he'll listen to me?"
"It's an idea. It's up to you if you want to do it," Ichigo said, getting up and walked over to her and knelt down. "I doubt he'll come back to Anteiku so you may just have to go see him on your own through Hetare. Just keep in mind what we said. He might not snap at you like he did at me and Orihime but just be careful around him."
"It is worth a shot," Urahara shrugged.
"I'll just do what I can," she said with a small sniff.
"Who knows…? He might not be as bad as we think," Yoruichi offered. "It could have just been the moment talking. Maybe when things cool off he might start coming around."
"I hope that turns out to be the case," Ryoko said as Ichigo gave her a small hug.
"I highly doubt he'll get mad you," Ichigo said before pulling away and gave her a small wink and a smile. "Like Yoruichi said it could have been the moment talking."
"Right," she nodded as Ichigo stood and held out his hand.
She took it and got back to her feet. Hopefully, it really was the moment that really made Kaneki talk and think that way. She really wanted to see him and see if he really was like Ichigo and Urahara had said. She truly hoped that things would turn out better than what they were predicting.
Morning rolled around and before they left they all decided to get breakfast. Yoruichi and Uryu offered to get pick up the food so everyone else could finished packing. Ichigo gave them directions to a good eatery and pulled the menu up on a phone. Everyone had a look at the menu before Yoruichi wrote down their orders.
This was their last morning in Tokyo and they would go back to their normal lives tomorrow. So was life. Yoruichi and Uryu made the orders and waited. It took them a while given the usually morning rush. One order was wrong and they had to wait to get that fixed. Finally with everything in hand they started back to the old house. They would eat and get the truck loaded.
"I'm going to miss this place somewhat," Yoruichi said, turning a corner. "But it's going to feel good being back in Karakura."
"It was a rather odd vacation but it wasn't too bad," Uryu said, walking beside her. "I just hope everything turns out all right here."
"Yeah, maybe we were really reading too far into everything," Yoruichi shrug. "It might all blow over in a month or so."
"Hello, Ms. Kitty."
The pair stopped and looked to their left to see a man sitting on a bench. Yoruichi gave him a sassy grin and walked over to him. Uryu awkwardly followed her. What was going on? Did she know this guy?
"Morning, Uta," she said as he looked up at her from under his shades.
"Yes, morning," he said, getting to his feet and adjusted his black leather coat. "I thought I caught the scent of particular cat. What is all this?"
"We're just picking up breakfast before all of us before we head back to Karakura Town," Yoruichi said, holding up her bags.
"Karakura? I haven't heard of it. Wow, It looks like you're feeding a small army," he noted looking at her bags and her companion's.
Come to think of it. He never saw this one before.
"Close to it," she laughed. "Half of the group wasn't even utilized."
"One of the unutilized," Uryu grumbled, awkwardly lifting a full hand.
"Oh? Well, don't sound so happy about it," Uta said, turning to look at him. "I'm Uta."
"I'm Ishida Uryu," Uryu half bowed. "Not to be rude but if we want to eat hot food we can't keep standing around."
"Yeah, you're right. You can come with us for a little ways if you don't have something else," she said and Uta shrugged.
"No, I'll come along," he said, falling in beside Uryu as they started moving again.
"So, Ishida? Are you one of these Espers, too?" Uta asked, looking Uryu up and down.
"I guess you can say that," Uryu said, looking at Uta out of the corner of his eye. "I'm a particular type. I'm a Quincey."
"A Quincey? Just what does a Quincey do?" Uta inquired.
"You see that cross on my wrist," Uryu said as Uta looked down at it. "I channel energy into it and I can form a bow and arrows out of it. I can also do quite a few other things."
"Hmm… Well, that is interesting. The girl called Hime had quite an unusual gift, too. A healer like from a video game," Uta mused, thinking back on it. "I was quite amazed with that. Just not as amazed as I was about, you, Ms. Kitty. I will not forget that for quite some time."
"I don't want to know what you did," Uryu sighed as they crossed the street and she playfully stuck out her tongue. "Yeah, I'm not going to ask. So, Uta, I take it you're a…"
Uta slipped down his shades before putting them back on. That answered that.
"So, what do you two do for a living?" Uta asked.
"I'm actually not employed and I haven't been for quite some time," Yoruichi said with a smile.
"With skills like yours?" Uta asked.
"By skills do you mean her woman/cat flash tease or her assassin training?" Uryu asked, getting knocked in the back of head.
"Assassin training?" Uta blinked. "You're an actual…?"
"Well, former. I do still use my abilities from time to time," she stated, giving Uryu an unhappy glare. "The other night being a fine example."
"I can see it now that it's been pointed out," Uta mused. "What about you, Ishida?"
"I'm an apprentice at a men's tailor shop. I'm thinking of going back to school to be an MD," Uryu said, as they cut another corner. The old house now in view at a distance.
"I'm sure that'll impress your father," Yoruichi said and Uryu clicked his tongue.
"I have yet to fully impress that man," Uryu snorted, picking up his pace.
"He doesn't hate you," Yoruichi said.
"I know he doesn't. We just never really got along," Uryu grumbled.
"Ishida…? By chance did you sew that lovely cloak that Shiro wore?" Uta asked as Uryu turned to look at him.
"Yes, I made that," Uryu nodded.
"Shiro never dropped your name but I was very impressed with your seams and stitch work," Uta said, reaching into his pants pocket and pulled out a card and handed it to Uryu. "This is my business card. I'm run a mask shop called HySy ArtMask Studios."
"I think I have a pretty good idea what and who you cater to," Uryu said, looking down at the card.
"I do have some colorful clientele, this is true," Uta nodded. "By chance do you have any other samples of your work on you?"
"Why?" Uryu asked, looking a little suspicious.
"I just want to see what else you can do," Uta said with a shrug. "Artists admire other artists. Like I said I was very impressed."
"I really didn't bring anything with me but a small sewing kit," Uryu said as they stopped just outside of the house.
"Nice place," Uta said, looking up the abandoned house. "Could use some paint, a new roof, a good gardener. Maybe a bulldozer."
"Hmhmhm! It's seen better days," Yoruichi said, looking up at the house as well. "It's not great by any means but it severed its purpose well enough. I'm afraid this is where we leave you, Uta."
"That's fine. It was nice talking to you again and it was nice to meet you, Ishida," Uta bowed lightly to both of them. "I hope your trip back home goes well."
"Thank you," Yoruichi said as she started to work through warped gate.
"Oh, Ishida, can I talk to you for a moment longer?" Uta said as Uryu turned to look at him.
"I'll take your bags," Yoruichi said, reaching through the bars.
Uryu slipped her the bags and she headed on inside. The Quincey turned to face the ghoul. What did he want? Yoruichi seemed to be comfortable enough with him. Uryu pulled his coat close as a small wind picked up. Uta smiled a bit.
"Ishida, might I offer you a proposition?"
Uryu arrived quite a few minutes later. They had covered his food box with some clothes hoping to keep it somewhat warm. Yoruichi, Ichigo, and the others wanted to know what Uta wanted to talk to him about. Uryu unburied his food and sat down to eat. It was just over lukewarm.
"So, what did Uta want?" Yoruichi asked, closing up her empty box. "You spoke with him for quite a while."
"Well… Apparently he liked that cloak I made for Ichigo so much that he gave me a job offer if I wanted it."
You could hear a pin job in the house. Uryu awkwardly turned to his food.
"You're serious?" Ichigo asked and Uryu nodded. "What did you say?"
"I would think on it. He told me that the offer would remain open for a while should I decided to act on it," Uryu answered, starting to eat. "He runs a specially mask shop which caters mostly to ghouls."
"That might be a little… Ehh?" Urahara hummed.
"I told him the same thing. He said if he got some of his less than pleasant clients that he would ask me to go to the back," Uryu said, poking his food. "However, the pay will be a lot better than what I'm making at the tailor shop and he'll teach me some new techniques on working with leather."
"But that also means if you take the job you'll have to move here," Orihime said, looking hurt.
"I haven't agreed to anything. It might be too much of a hassle to even attempt," Uryu said, looking over at her.
"I'll tell you now, moving from Karakura to Tokyo was actually a little terrifying and a completely different atmosphere. It's different than if you're just visiting," Ichigo said, brushing some crumbs off his lap. "I didn't like it too much at first. It took some real time to adjust."
"Well, shoot it down some more, why don't you?" Uryu snorted.
"I'm just speaking from experience," Ichigo answered quickly.
"Would you actually take it if everything was in order?" Chad asked.
"Maybe… I don't know. I would like to work in at shop like that. It think would be interesting but it's the clients I'm a little on the fence about," Uryu sighed. "Not to mention my would-be employer."
"What's to worry about? You're a Quincey for crying out loud," Jinta snapped. "I'd be more scared of hollows and rogue shinigami than a ghoul."
"You're no average person he is right about that," Chad stated.
"Look, I haven't said yes or no. I'm not going to make that kind of choice on a complete whim," Uryu snapped. "It was an offer, nothing more. I'll think on it but I'm leaning more towards no. I really want to go back to school to become a doctor. I just don't know."
"I think you would be good at it," Ururu spoke up. "Maybe you should try to open your own shop one day."
"I thought about it… I'm not too business savvy and that takes time and money to achieve," Uryu sighed, pushing up his glass before closing the food box. "I'll save the rest of this for later."
"Well, since you're finished eating. I'll go get the truck and bring it around," Urahara said, getting to his feet and dug the keys out of his coat pocket. "Start taking everything towards the exit. We need to make this short and sweet."
Everyone got up and quickly started to gather the last of their things and bring them towards the exit. Ichigo and Urahara had taken care of the remaining CCG gear last night. They dumped the guns, armor, and so on out into the bay. It would be the best place for them. They couldn't return it that was for sure.
A few minutes later Urahara brought the truck around and set up a barrier to hide their movements from the locals. They quickly started to load up and truck and strap everything down. Everything was loaded and secured in less than 20 minutes. They did one last walk through of the house to make sure nothing of theirs was left behind. Finding nothing they got back into the truck.
This was going to be a long trip home but a welcomed one. They could only hope for the best with Kaneki, Yoshimura, Ryoko, and the others. With luck things might work out on their own without much trouble after all. Ichigo could only pray that Kaneki wouldn't do something stupid. He didn't want to learn Kaneki was on the receiving end of an investigator's quinque. That thought alone left a bad taste in his mouth.
(One week later) 000000000000000
The blinds were closed and the lights were turned off in the expansive office. As projector was turned on, hitting a screen with a solid blue light. It had been a week since the Aogiri Tree raid and it was time to discuss a certain issue.
Several different people sat in the darkness all looking up at the screen as the computer attached to projector finished booting up. The research had been done and the information compiled and ready to be presented. Tid bits of this "devil" had been circulating around the CCG all week and now everything was ready.
"Thank you all for coming. I would like to make something very clear before we begin," Marude said, looking at everyone highlighted by the reflected screen light. "This stays here with us and the higher ups only. Don't feed the rumor factor more than it is. This does not need to get out into the public either. I don't have to tell you what we're all here to discuss so let's just cut to the chase, shall we?"
Marude clicked on a folder to open it before clicking on a file. A still frame of the devil was on the screen. He opened a few more still frames and lined up the windows. Those that hadn't seen the pictures yet were a little taken aback by him. Even in the pictures he had a certain presents about him that was chilling to look at.
"Meet our newest enemy. Investigator Hayashi here had the misfortune of fighting that nasty thing one on one. She even coined the name for this monster; a devil. We are calling him the Horned Phoenix. Lovely bastard, isn't he?"
(A/N So tired. I stayed up way too late for this crap. So here you go. I'm still working on my comic book. It's taking me a while to work on. But I will get up sooner or later. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Thanks for reading.)
Millie M. Banshee