Chapter 3:

"Hurry! Lieutenant Abarai needs immediate surgery. Take him to the squad 4 medical center."

"Yes sir!"

It was controlled chaos on top of the Sokyoku Hill as squad 4 members ran hither and thither checking on the three soul reapers that had been injured by Aizen before his departure. A group of four had lifted the unconscious Renji onto a stretcher and two of them were moving him to squad 4 for better treatment.

At the same time, Captain Komamura was directing the squad 4 members to look at the rest of the injured before himself. He believed firmly that his injuries were nowhere near the same urgency that others had sustained. Then...there was the squad 6 captain...

"How is Captain Kuchiki's condition?" Captain Unohana had stopped one of her squad members in order to determine where their attention should be focused. She could see that he'd sustained severe injuries, most of which appeared to have been received by the Ryoka instead of the traitorous captains.

"It seems to be worsening. He's currently being encased in a level 7 healing kido, though he should probably be transported soon for better treatment," the squad member answered.

Unohana looked over at the captain and could see him lying on the ground surrounded by the glow of kido. His injuries would take time to heal, but only if he remained strong.

"Sir, should we send some people to help the ryoka?" the same squad member asked slowly.

She glanced over at the group of four surrounding the young man with orange hair. She could see the glow of some sort of power surrounding him as well. "No, I believe they have everything under control." She could see the power the girl was using was different...but still possessed the properties needed for healing purposes.

As her eyes moved over the group before her, they momentarily settled on the young woman who's head was resting on Youruichi's knee. The familiar dark red hair and powerful reiatsu signaling the legitimacy of the girl's existence. She made a mental note to run a check over the girl later before heading over to the downed captain and assisting him with a request; the chance to speak with his sister.

Once that was instigated, she joined three captains who were conversing in a corner while observing everyone. "Whew, Aizen sure managed to pull the wool over everyone's eyes this time," Shunsui commented taking note of the sheer number of hospitalized soul reapers they had now.

"Yes, it's rather disturbing to see just how far he was thinking ahead," Ukitake agreed. "We may have never figured it out if the Ryoka hadn't come when they did."

"Their presence only served to assist in his plans," Yamamoto cut in. "They were the reason all of the seireitei was in disarray."

"Not necessarily," Shunsui argued. "Remember not everyone was thrilled with the idea of executing Rukia to begin with. Even without them showing up we'd probably have quite a few people trying to stop it. Jushiro and myself for instance."

"You both will still receive punishment for destroying the Sokyoku," Yamamoto declared. "Do not think that I have forgotten your transgression, regardless of the reason behind it."

The two captains sweat a little but didn't argue. They were both very aware of what they'd done and were expecting some sort of punishment in response.

"And what exactly are you three discussing?" The captains glanced outside their little circle to see that Youruichi had approached them.

"It is rather surprising to see you again, Youruichi Shihoin," Shunsui responded. "Not that I'm complaining. The seireitei could always use a few more pretty faces."

"It is good to see you again," Ukitake expressed with a smile. "It's been far too long."

"Yes it has," Youruichi agree. "But seeing how periodic visits weren't a viable option, it's not too surprising, is it?"

"No, I suppose not," Ukitake chuckled knowing exactly what she meant.

Before anything else could be said, the head captain stepped forward and stared at the woman before him. "Youruichi Shihoin, seeing as how you have assisted in the defense of the seireitei against the traitorous entities, I will give you one chance to explain your reasoning for returning before passing judgment."

Shunsui and Ukitake shook their heads, having known he wasn't going to allow the appearance of a previous traitor to go unaddressed. "I suppose you have a point, Head Captain," Youruichi agreed and grinned at him. "I have three reasons actually. First of all, I came to assist Ichigo in rescuing Rukia Kuchiki. Second I planned on finally exposing Aizen for the traitor he's always been. Finally..." She turned and looked over at the still sleeping soul reaper who had curled up into a ball. "I came for her."

"So then, that really is her?" Ukitake asked looking over at said girl as well.

"Yes..." Youruichi's grin faded just a little as she continued to watch her.

"Yoruichi, you said you came for Yukiko. Where exactly was she all this time?" Yamamoto demanded coldly.

Youruichi sighed before looking him right in the eye; or at least she would if his were open. "I don't know all the details," she began easily. "Even if I did I wouldn't give it to you. It's not my tale to tell. Suffice it to say she was imprisoned by Aizen until Ichigo's fight with Zaraki Kenpachi freed her."

"I see," Yamamoto murmured and the other two captains shared a look at the news. "Wake her...she will explain it all herself."

Youruichi glared at him and was about to argue, but someone beat her to the punch. "Head Captain, I believe it would be advisable to move Yukiko to a more relaxing environment before waking her." All of their attention was drawn to the speaker, Captain Retsu Unohana. "I also believe it would be prudent to allow her time to recover before performing any sort of interrogation."

The three younger soul reapers sighed in relief at her interference. Yamamoto, on the other hand, took a moment of silence before responding. "Very well. When she awakens you will assess her mental status and alert me as soon as she is ready to give an explanation. We will then hold a captain's meeting to efficiently allow all captains and lieutenants to know what we're dealing with. Once this information is passed, we will decide what to do with her."

"And once again the poor kid is a potential threat," Shunsui sighed. "I wish I could say we shouldn't consider her one, but considering the amount of time she was with him I really can't."

"If that's everything, then I'll be going," Youruichi murmured. She walked over to the curled up girl and picked her up in her arms. "I'll let you know when she's recovered enough. Until then, don't approach her; she won't be able to handle it."

With that, she shunpoed away, leaving the group to wonder what exactly she meant by the statement as well as what they'd learn once she was able to explain what became of her. At any rate, they knew that once she was capable of speaking before them, they'd be getting more than they bargained for.

"Shit!" Ichigo cursed as he ran around yet another corner of the squad 4 area trying to lose his tail. Kenpachi Zaraki. Luckily the captain was terrible at sensing reiatsu and ran right past him, swinging his cracked sword all over the place in his excitement. "That guy wants to fight again?" he grumbled to himself. "There's no way I'm ever crossing swords with him again."

He waited until he was sure the captain had moved far enough away before heading back the way he'd come. It'd been three days since the fight with Aizen and he'd healed pretty well, though he hadn't fully recovered just yet. Even if he had he'd still be avoiding the over zealous captain. He had no desire to wind up in recovery a second time after all.

As he walked along the path that would lead back to the rooms that he and his friends had been staying in, he spotted Youruichi exiting one he was about to pass. He realized pretty quickly who's room it had to be and decided he'd visit the poor girl as well. He could still remember her trembling body and fearful tears after she fought Aizen. It'd been really shocking to see someone so powerful, reduced to that pitiful state.

"She's not awake," Youruichi told him the moment he got close enough. "She hasn't moved since the battle with Aizen and still needs her rest. Just wait for now."

"I don't care if she's awake or not," Ichigo responded forcefully. "It's my fault she had to get into that fight in the first place. Had I been stronger I would have beaten Aizen right there." He moved to the door she'd just left and was stopped by the older woman's hand on his shoulder. "I just want to see how she's doing."

She sighed and reluctantly allowed him to open the door to the girl's room. Ichigo stepped inside and looked around, noticing the lack of any sort of decorations in the room before his eyes landed on the redhead lying in the middle of the floor. Or at least she had been lying there. At the moment, she was in a seated position, staring at nothing, with her eyes looking as dead as the day he met her.

"Yukiko, you shouldn't be up," Youruichi called out walking over to the girl and touching her shoulder to push her back down.

At the touch, Yukiko flinched and jerked away, fear filling her dead eyes that were mostly glazed over. She scooted back along the floor until her back hit the wall and clung to her own head, squeezing her eyes shut as if that'd make the bad things go away.

Youruichi sighed at the reaction and looked back at Ichigo. "This might take a little bit," she pointed out. "If you come back later she should be fully cognizant again."

Ichigo frowned but didn't move from where he stood. Instead he lifted his hand in greeting and called out, "How are you feeling, Ume?"

To Youruichi's surprise, the shivering female stopped and slowly uncurled herself from her ball before looking up at the two of them. Her eyes had lost the glazed look and the fear had all but vanished. Relief and mild confusion filled the space left behind as she scanned the two before her.

"Ichigo? Youruichi?" she asked, her voice cracking slightly from days without use. Then she blinked a few times and ran a hand through her hair, rubbing her head as she went. "Where are we?"

"We're in squad 4," Youruichi answered easily. She was pleased to see the girl had regained herself so quickly. "After your fight, I had to knock you unconscious for your own good. You've been out for three days."

"After my fight?" Yukiko mumbled rubbing her head again. She was having troubles piecing together what'd happened that day. "Who'd I fight?"

"Aizen," Ichigo answered. "You took him, Gin, and Tousen on all at the same time. You must be powerful to pull that off."

"Aizen..." Her eyes suddenly shot open and she tried to scramble to her feet. "Bya..."

"He's fine," Youruichi cut her off. She didn't want the girl to stress too much and knew the question would come up fairly quickly.

"Really? That's good." Yukiko sighed and sat back down, leaning her head into her knees. "What happened...after my fight?"

"The three captains escaped to Hueco Mundo," Youruichi explained, shooting a look to Ichigo to keep him from saying anything. She had no idea what would set the girl off.

"Aizen's...in Hueco Mundo? He's probably mad at me," Yukiko mumbled scathingly. As she continued speaking, her voice became more timid and nervous. "I don't want him to be mad at me. Maybe...maybe I should head there too. I don't want to be punished by Sousuke.

"You're not going to be punished, Yukiko," Youruichi cut in quickly. The moment the girl said his first name she knew, she was losing her grip on what was real again. She slowly reached forward in a calming gesture hoping to get through to her. "Just calm down. He can't reach you any longer."

Yukiko jerked away from her friend, leaping to her feet and trying to rush out the door. Before she managed to go anywhere, Youruichi had one arm wrapped around her waist holding her in place while she shouted for release.

"Ume! Just calm down," Youruichi murmured in her ear.

"Let me go...let me go back to him. I don't want to be here...I don't want to be here. Sousuke's mad...he's going to be so mad. No more...Please...no more punishments, Sousuke," Yukiko exclaimed while she struggled against her friend's hold.

"Relax, Ume!" Ichigo yelled startling the girl into stopping and staring up at him. "You don't want to go back to that bastard. You've got plenty of people here that are worried about you. Just let them help already."

The redhead stared at him for a while longer before her body went limp and she returned to the floor panting for air. "Y-you're right...Ichigo. Sorry," she mumbled rubbing her head again. She took a few extra moments to fully calm down before returning to the topic they'd been on before her episode. "So, what happened after...after they left?"

"Well, with them gone everyone has been trying to recover from the fights and repair the damage left behind," Youruichi quickly explained. She was on edge now, waiting for any signs that she was going to lose it again.

"Right...clean up," Yukiko nodded, breathing slowly to remain calm. "Have they said anything about me yet?"

"No decisions have been made yet," Youruichi replied, pleased to see the girl was managing to return to a more natural state. It was amazing to her to know that while her own use of the nickname had gone ignored, Ichigo's had helped...instantly almost. "The Head Captain will be putting a captain's meeting together now that you're awake."

"Right...to hear my report," Yukiko mumbled. "He's going to have me report to all the captains?"

"He believes it will allow the new ones to understand who you are while at the same time alerting the ones you knew what happened the day you disappeared," Youruichi explained. "But, this will only happen if you think you can. You don't have to push anything."

"Thanks..." Yukiko fell into a tense silence after that. She was starting to feel a little better, but knew it wasn't going to last. She noted that Ichigo's presence and usage of her old nickname had really helped her to calm down and get a hold of herself. It was good to know someone could. "How many will be there that I know?"

Youruichi took a moment to run through the current lineup before answering. "The Head Captain, Soi Fon, Retsu Unohana, Kyouraku Shunsui, Mayuri Kurotsuchi, and Jushiro Ukitake. The other leaders are all traitors, too injured to attend, or new. All but three of the Lieutenants will be new for you."

"I see...this isn't going to be easy," Yukiko mumbled worriedly. "Do you think it'd be okay if I had someone come with me? To sort of...you know...be my anchor?"

"That should be fine," Youruichi nodded. "Who'd you have in mind?"

Yukiko went from looking at her old friend, to staring at the teen. "Ichigo...would you be willing to go with me?"

"What?" both Ichigo and Youruichi asked in surprise.

"Going where exactly?" Ichigo demanded. He didn't really understand what was going on, but he wasn't about to agree to anything until he knew what all it entailed.

"Don't worry, it's nothing too bad," Yukiko snorted. "I want you to accompany me to the captain's meeting." He raised an eyebrow at this and she knew she'd have to explain more about what she wanted. "You'll be able to hear who I am and how I got here in the first place, and all you have to do, is say my name."

"Yukiko, he's a human," Youruichi pointed out. "I doubt the head captain will allow him to enter. Anyone from the squads would probably be okay, but he's a different matter."

"I don't care," Yukiko grumbled in disdain. "I need someone I know I can trust...I get that with him. And it's not like he'll be there for the whole meeting. It's just while I explain myself...and I don't think there's anyone else right now who's use of my name will have the same impact."

Youruichi sighed, knowing the girl was right on her assessment but still was unsure. "So all you want me to do is say your name? Why?" Ichigo asked, still not getting it.

"Ichigo...right now I'm having issues speaking...to anyone," Yukiko explained. "Especially about...those three. That name is able to help me remember where I am, but it can only come from someone who's never used my other name. Right now...that person is you." Ichigo nodded finally understanding why she needed his help and he agreed to her request. "So, if during my explanation, you see me start shaking, stuttering, or utilizing Aizen's first name...just say mine and I should be able to get a hold of myself."

"Sure thing. I've been curious about you after all," he muttered. "Is there anything else I need to know?"

Yukiko shook her head. "Keep your mouth shut unless you're using my name," she responded harshly. She took a deep breath and eased her voice. "Other than that, just listen and try to enjoy yourself."

Ichigo and Youruichi shared a look at the voice she'd used to reply with first. After her explanation he waited while Yukiko readied herself for the meeting. Youruichi warned him that he might not be allowed in, and he nodded his understanding. Still, he wanted to know about the girl who was able to fight off three captains, then turn around and become a blubbering mass of terror. What was her story? Why did Aizen seem to have it out for her?

When Yukiko came out of her room, she was in a clean shihakusho with her sword strapped to her waist. She was well aware of the fact that most officers weren't allowed to carry their swords on them in the seireitei, but she felt like she deserved a bit of leeway on that. No matter what, she was not leaving her sword anywhere. Soyokaze was the entire reason she was conscious after all.

The redhead greeted Ichigo and Youruichi with a nod which they returned, then all three of them headed for squad 1...and the eventual captain's meeting.

Shippoman: It's finally time for the Gotei to learn exactly what became of Yukiko and Ichigo gets a front row seat. Next chapter, learn what she suffered through and see the outcome the captains decide on. Also, get a glimpse of how the new leaders are dealing with her existence. Remember to R&R.