Chapter 12: Rukia Kuchiki

Having a three to four month assignment in the World of the Living from her captain, Rukia Kichiki had found it mostly uneventful. She slept outside, or in a dilapidated building when it stormed at night. She still hadn't mastered any of the packages that humans placed their foods or drinks in yet, but her main concern was the enormous amount of spiritual energy that was in her assigned area of Karakura Town, a small suburb outside the city of Tokyo.

On this evening, her soon to be last night in the World of the Living, she'd been tacking a hollow, but as soon as she entered a community area where a bunch of homes were, she lost it. Jumping from home to home, she was about to give up for the night when she was slammed by a huge amount of reiatsu. Tracking the energy output, she found a small two story home with a clinic next to it. Jumping into the first room she found that the energy was strong there, but it was even stronger on the other side of the wall opposite of her. Passing through the wall she found that there was a single occupant, but surely the energy wasn't coming from a human.

She was wrong.

How can this be? Rukia wondered as she looked between the three humans in the room. Shinigami and Quincies are enemies. We don't get along. So it has to be impossible for children to be born between us, and yet... She looked at the two orange haired teenagers. Undoubtedly both of these two are hybrids, but how?

She then yelled at the raven haired girl as she begun to struggle within the incantation she had upon her. "Stop it. What are you doing!?" she watched in horror as the young girl stood on shaking legs. "If you force it, your soul will-" she froze as she watched the girl break her incantation. How? she thought as the girl ran out of the room. The two orange haired teens smiled at each other. To release a kido form with human power? she questioned as she turned to follow the others. I have never heard of such a ridiculous thing!

She saw the boy suddenly swallow a small pill. As he popped out of his body, Rukia's eyes widened like saucers. He-He has a shihakusho! Her mind went blank for a moment from shock, her jaw slightly ajar. But how? She eyed the young man. His shihakusho was a bit different from hers or any other shinigami she knew of. Yes, he had the standard black garment, but what threw her off was the white garment around his hips that crossed over his chest and was held on by a shoulder pad on his left shoulder. It looks like part of a captain's haori. He also had a ridiculously large sword upon his back, and a second shorter sword upon his hip.

Two zanpakuto's? she questioned, her mind going to her own captain and his two swords. Duel spirits. That's what she'd heard once. That to have a true dueling zanpakuto that it meant you had to have two spirits within your sword. How strong is this boy?

"Kon!" she heard the boy yell out causing his body to jump up. "Protect Mom!" he then took off after the young girl with his sister following close behind him.

"Geesh! Can't I even say hi?" the young man's body looked at her before seeming to get nervous.

"A...mod soul?" she stuttered out loud. How many surprises was she going to witness tonight?

The soul suddenly grinned and rubbed the back of his head nervously. "You've heard of them?" he said before Turning to where the others had gone. "Shouldn't you follow Shinigami?" he pointed towards the door before Turning towards Masaki. "Hey Mom, it's Kon. Can I eat while Ichigo goes to kill some hollows?"

Rukia stared in shock at the mod soul. Just what is going on here?! She turned towards the open door and rushed out. I'll demand answers afterwards. she decided as she exited the home and found herself staring at a huge hollow holding a young child within its hands.

"YUZU!" the raven haired girl screamed, the bat in her hand shaking slightly from her fear.

"Ready Ichigo?" the teenage girl inquired.

Rukia watched the young man smile towards her. "Any time Verena." he answered her.

Verena. Ichigo. Rukia repeated their names in her mind. I must remember them in order to report them to Captain Ukitake. "Idiots!" she yelled. "This is my job!"

Both looked at her, though it was the male who answered. "They're our family." he said with a look of determination in his brown eyes. "We'll protect them, but give you the hollow to kill."

"Karin, stay where you are!" Verena yelled as she ran passed the younger girl. Pulling her bow back she concentrated on where she was aiming her shot. Six arrows formed as she released them, the shots hitting and destroying the arm that held Yuzu as Ichigo jumped into the air and caught his youngest sister as she fell from the monsters grasp.

She didn't destroy it. Rukia saw the arm disintegrating as it fell. The hollow released a yell of pain at having its arm destroyed. It's still alive?

"It's yours Shinigami." Ichigo told her as he sat Yuzu down onto the ground.

"YUZU!" Karin cried out.

"Don't loose focus girl!" Rukia yelled at her. "Your sisters soul is still intact. The hollow didn't eat it."

"So hollows eat the souls-" Karin paused. "Why didn't it eat her soul?" She asked as she looked between her siblings and the shinigami woman.

"Hollows wonder searching for souls with high spiritual pressure." Rukia stated as she raised her sword to fight the hollow. "For that, some weak humans are attacked...I have never seen, nor heard of a human who could see, or defeat lisp on their own..." she eyed Karin. "Its target was most probably...you because of your high spirit pressure." she then looked at the teens. "But why it couldn't sense you two, I don't know. Even I cannot."

"So this...is my fault?" Karin inquired as she looked at her injured and unconscious twin. Her eyes widening in horror. My fault? It's my fault Yuzu is hurt! Tears began to form.

"Hey!" Ichigo yelled angrily.

"Wait. I did not mean..." Rukia turned towards the girl with concern when suddenly a giant hand slapped her away across the street and into the fences.

"Shinigami!" Ichigo and Verena yelled out in shock never seeking Karin run off down the street to get away from everybody.

To neglect defending my back before an enemy. Rukia thought as she slowly stood back up. "I was careless." she muttered more to herself than to anyone else.

"Hey! You! You want my soul?" Everyone turned in horror as they saw Karin standing in the center of the street trying to gain the hollows attention. "Then fight me and leave them out of this!" Too good of an opportunity to waste, the hollow charged her to kill the impudent human and eat it's precious soul.

"Fool!" Rukia cried out as Verena pulled her bow back just as Ichigo flash stepped away. Grasping Karin in his arms, Ichigo held up his larger zanpakuto and blocked the hollows attack. As a second attack came down upon him, Rukia jumped into the fray to cut its head off; instead the hollow threw its fist at her, punching her threw her gut. Blood splattered onto the ground and the fence behind her as she was flung to the side of the road like a rag doll.

"Shinigami!" Karin cried out.

"Fool..." Rukia muttered softly. "It's not...Shinigami." she groaned as the pain became intense. "It is Rukia Kuchiki."

In front of her, Ichigo smirked. "I see. I'm Ichigo Kurosaki."

Rukia felt her eyes widen when he spoke. "Verena Kurosaki." Verena spoke as she held her attack, waiting for Ichigo's signal.

"I'm Karin Kurosaki." Karin said.

Ichigo grinned at them all. "Let's pray this doesn't become our last greeting...for all of us." he told her as he swung his blade and blocked the hollows attack easily. It gave a screech which Rukia heard as she was beginning to loose consciousness from blood loss. She then heard Ichigo yell, "Getsuga Tensho!" An arch of dark power flew out of the giant blade, at the same moment a blinding light exploded from Verena's bow as she shot a single large arrow that penetrated the darkness. The combination of the two attacks destroyed the hollow instantly.

As darkness began to Rukia's senses she had a feeling of something, something powerful coming from the young man shed just felt. That power...that spiritual pressure of his. Could it be so high that I cannot sense it? As Her eyes closed she wondered. This guy, exactly, who is he?

As the dust settled Ichigo looked over towards the unconscious Shinigami. Rukia Kuchiki, huh? he thought before a grin cross his features. She's going to regret meeting us. Suddenly sensing something he turned his head. "Midnight walk Getabushi?" he asked gaining a grin from the ever mysterious shopkeeper.

"Oh, I thought I sensed something going on." was his calm answer as he walked over to the unconscious Shinigami woman. "My, my...what do we have here?" he began examining her wounds. "Her reiatsu is completely diminished."

"Will she live?" Ichigo inquired when he suddenly felt Karin tug the sleeve of his shihakusho. "Uh, Urahara?"

Urahara looked up from the deep wound that the Shinigami soldier had suffered to look at Ichigo only for his eyes to come to rest upon Karin. "Oh dear..." he said softly as he sensed the reiatsu pouring from the young girl. "You should have mentioned this sooner." He then turned his head towards the road behind him just as a vehicle came to a stop and Tessai stepped out of the drivers side of the old truck. "We shall take the Shinigami. Bring Miss Karin by tomorrow after school." he told the teen before looking towards the house. "Tessai will come by to help fix up the damages later tonight." he told Ichigo as Tessai picked the Kuchiki girl up and placed her in the back of the truck.

As they drove off Verena placed her hand upon Karin's head. "Exciting night." she said trying to lighten the mood.

"Were you two ever going to tell me about the Shinigami shit?" she inquired as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Yeah, after you came into your powers." Verena said sincerely.

Ichigo sighed as he stepped in front of Karin. "What we do is very dangerous Karin." he explained. "You could've died tonight because we never properly informed you of anything." he bowed his head in shame. "I'm sorry."

"Yeah, whatever." she mumbled as she turned her head away from looking at Ichigo. "Just next time there's something important that I need to know, tell me!" she yelled at them as they walked back over to where they had left Yuzu only to find their mother, Kon and Verena's soul mod waiting for them by the unconscious girl.

After switching back, the siblings waited for Yuzu to wake up before relaying what exactly had happened that night and gave Yuzu and Karin the story of who their father really was, what a Shinigami was and how them being Quincies fit into all of that. To say it was a long night for all involved would have been an understatement. When all was said and done, the entire family retired for the night; all unaware of the chain of events that was about to take place.

M-Angel: So there's the battle with fish face. I hope I didn't mess this up too badly. ^_^ How'd everyone like Rukia's shock on everything? She's going have questions which Ichigo and Verena will have to answer. School will be interesting.

As to Amethyst Hazel, I've stated this before in an author's note, but I'll say it again. Yes, this is an Ichi/Rukia story. I just haven't decided who I'll pair Verena up with as of yet. It's early still. So you never know who it will end up being. Wan, I like your Bladed Boots idea but I think it'll be too close to the fullbringer Jackie's Muddy Boots; however Tatsuki having the opposite power of what Chad has is a great idea.