A little piece of Heaven

by mlickko

The first time Ichigo met a Shinigami, he died. Quickly realizing that Soul Society is no heaven, he aims to make it into one. However, turning a dream into reality is a long and difficult journey, especially if you are Kurosaki Ichigo and you stand in the center of everything. A long story of adventure, drama, conspiracies but also action.(Pairings not a main focus)

4. Chapter 3: Kiss your Judas

Never have I thought that this chapter would turn out to be so long. Thanks for the reviews!

*Cyrus_Dragonhunter : thank you and you'll know after reading this chapter ;)

*sami217 : the sad thing is, fucked up people like that are not just in my story. I'm going with the notion that his hollow powers have been fused with his shinigami powers from the day he was born, like in the canon. Ichigo will be strong, yes, but I'll make him so gradually. I want to slowly increase his power level through the story, not all of a sudden. The main parts of the story will remain but will be vastly different though.

*NIX'S_WARDEN : You'll see in this chapter ;)

I also want to react to the review from Kyo_no_Kitsune : Indeed, the name of the story was taken from the song of the A7x. There will be more references to many songs in the future. (Also, some chapter's titles are and will be songs)

Chapter 3: Kiss your Judas (The Killer within)

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach.

"Normal speech"

'Inner speech/thoughts'

'Inner hollow/Zanpaktou speech'

xxx

The sky was already dark when Kazumi sat down on the ground, near the fire and suppressed the urge to flee from the flames. Instead, she moved her concentration on something else. Specifically, on the person sitting next to her, on her left. That person was an orange haired boy, almost a man.

Kazumi's eyes, which rarely showed concern for anybody, were watching the inner struggle the teen was apparently in. They were filled with worry. The boy had a clenched jaw, his eyes were closed but under the eyelids, she could see their chaotic movements. His mouth was slightly opened, showing the set of his teeth grinding against each other. They were still traveling alone. The boy formed a fist with his right hand and was about to punch the ground, punish it for his problems, only to stop just a few millimeters before the skin on his knuckles could touch the soil.

For an outsider, the scene would have seem quite clear.

The boy was insane and the girl was looking after him, so that he wouldn't hurt himself. Well, he wouldn't have been that far from the truth.

"Did it stop?" Kazumi asked worriedly.

The teen took a deep breath, opened his fist and his eyes at the same moment and nodded with tired expression.

"Yeah, for the moment."

Kazumi didn't know what to say so she just moved closer to him and squeezed his shoulder, to show her support. The teen raised one of his hands unconsciously and placed it on top of hers. He too, didn't know what more to say. They had been discussing his current problem many times in the past few days, but to no avail as neither of the two was able to understand what was going on with him. Since they couldn't reach any conclusion, explanation, they just agreed not to bring the topic up again, unless they found more clues about it.

Ichigo and Kazumi left the third brothel, cleaned from the vermin, trash and other disgusting things, almost four days ago. During that time, the insane laughter that Ichigo started to hear so suddenly inside his head progressed, and now the teen was able to recognize, whether the voice was muttering something or not. However, Ichigo could not understand just what the voice was saying.

It always left him with severe headache, which was at its peak just before he lied down and tried to catch at least an hour or two of sleep. It made him irritated for most of the day and only thanks to Kazumi's constant presence, he managed to stay sane. He was almost one hundred percent sure that if he had been alone, he would have snapped a long time ago.

The voice wouldn't have been the only reason. That was only a bittersweet frosting on the top of the cake that represented all of his issues. Even if it was now almost non-existent, he still found himself vomiting once a few days when his mind wandered to his memories of his past killings. His young body was fighting the feeling of guilt that was building inside of him. It didn't matter that he was telling to himself he was only killing those who really deserved it. In the end, he was just trying to justify the deeds against the teachings being instilled in him from the very day he was born.

Sure, he knew from his messy memories that he used to be a person who often got into fights with others. But those were only battles where only small spits of blood flew around. Broken teeth at best. But never once did he kill anybody before coming to the Afterlife.

Now his barely sixteen-year-old mind and body had to overcome the fact that he had already killed more people than the worst serial killer back in the World of the Living. Kazumi told him it was good that the thought of killing made him sick. It would only confirm that he was still a good person at heart. She also told him that it would get better as the time passed.

And it did. He could now recall his actions with only a slight numb feeling in his stomach. It rarely forced him to actually puke now. He was still afraid of the fact that getting used to killing would make him a psychopath, not better than those he was slaughtering but with Kazumi's support, even that fear was slowly disappearing.

Then there were his memories of his past life. He still didn't remember everything about it, but as more days had passed, the more memories were flowing to his mind, making him recall the scenes from that life. They were more or less not that bad, but it still added to his overall stress. The stress of not knowing who he really was then and who he really was now. What kind of person was he truly before passing on? What kind of person would he become in this place? It was hard enough to find a place in the world for a normal teenager.

It was twice as hard for somebody like Ichigo.

Yes, he had a plan, a general idea what to do. He knew he wanted to purge the dirt from the Afterlife but he was also starting to recognize that for a one person, it was an impossible task. Like fighting the windmills. His mission was the so-called mission: impossible. Aside from that, he didn't know what other purpose he had. Was his quest to strive for the better Afterlife enough? It was a gargantuan task but Ichigo still thought it was not enough. Even if he wasn't sure about who he was, he still knew that he was not the kind of person who would be satisfied with just that much.

He needed another purpose for his life.

Ichigo sighed and blinked. It was already morning.

'Great.' He thought sarcastically. Just after the voice from his head disappeared and he could have had a good night sleep, he chose to think about pointless stuff. In that moment, he heard a chuckle in his head and scowled.

'Speak of the devil.' Ichigo cursed and bit his tongue.

He turned around to find Kazumi lightly leaning on his side, quietly snoring in her sleep. If his mood had been any better, he may have found her slightly opened mouth and a serene expression on her face even cute, but now it just made him jealous. What would he give for a good long sleep?

"Wake up, Kazumi. It's morning." He stated and stood up, letting Kazumi to fall on the ground which woke her up abruptly.

"Ouch... yeah, yeah." She said sleepily and rubbed her head that had hit the ground.

That made Ichigo feel even worse. He knew that Kazumi didn't even have to be with him and here he was, directing his frustration on her, just because she was able to sleep. Before he could apologize, he caught himself and shook his head.

He knew that she knew that he didn't mean it. He knew that she knew that he was just irritated from everything and she knew that he would want to apologize and so he knew that...

Ichigo sighed heavily. Even his thoughts were getting entangled. He really needed a way to relax soon.

He stretched for a while and then joined Kazumi for a small breakfast. She was only having a water though, so it was really only him actually having breakfast, but in his mind, they were having it together.

"This is the last piece of food we have. It seems that we'll have to find some town again." Kazumi said and raised her hand before Ichigo could protest.

"Ye, ye, I know. You don't like to steal but do you see any animal around us? Not even birds are here." She continued and chuckled when Ichigo scowled.

"It'll be fine."

...

Soon, the two of them truly came across a rather big town, considering that it was located somewhere around the 75th District. Surprisingly, quite a number of people was passing them by as they walked through the main street. It was completely different from the last one they visited. Some people were actually showing signs of small smiles, they looked a bit healthier and the stores had a larger offer of food.

Because of the past few weeks spent in a company only of Kazumi, Ichigo got used to being almost alone and seeing the crowd around him made him feel a little uneasy.

"Let's just snatch something and go. I don't like crowds." Ichigo whispered and Kazumi only nodded and pointed towards a shop that offered the basic food they were opting to acquire. Bread, potatoes, some vegetables, meat and with a bit of luck, even a piece of fruit.

However, when they managed to get close enough to the table, a voice called out to them.

"Y-you... don't tell me it's you." Ichigo stiffened and straightened his back to come face to face with a shop clerk who was staring at him in shock.

"Excuse me?" Ichigo asked nervously. He was ready to make a run for it in case the clerk sensed their intentions to steal his food.

To his bewilderment, the clerk came from behind the counter and after looking closely at Ichigo, he quickly grabbed his hand and vigorously shook it.

"It is you!" The clerk was still holding Ichigo's hand that was getting sweaty.

The teen slowly became aware that after the clerk's loud exclamation, he was getting surrounded by a multitude of amazed whispers. He desperately turned to Kazumi, looking for an explanation but she was just as perplexed as he was. Ichigo nervously swallowed his saliva. The amount of the stares aimed at his person was getting too much. It appeared as if the crowd was slowly consuming him and when they started to bump to him from every direction, in a reflex, his hand immediately went for the hilt of his sword.

Before the panic within him managed to gain control of him, Kazumi grabbed his hand and prevented him from doing anything stupid.

"Excuse me but would you care to elaborate?" She asked the clerk. The man enthusiastically nodded.

"Ah, yes. You have to excuse our joy but seeing 'him' practically confirms the rumors."

"What rumors?" Ichigo was able to find his voice and joined the conversation.

The clerk smiled widely at him.

"There has been a rumor of a stranger with orange hair, sword on his waist and a powerful presence going around the worst districts of the Rukongai, destroying the brothels and purging the land from the likes of those who visited those places."

Barely containing his surprise, Ichigo glanced at Kazumi who appeared to be in thought.

"I see." Ichigo replied after turning back to the clerk. The wheels in his mind were turning quickly and he tried to come up with a reason to dismiss those rumors. However, instead of doing so, he suppressed the urge to immediately flee the crowd and asked another question.

"Can I buy something from your store?"

Kazumi's head snapped to the side so fast Ichigo was afraid she must have broken her neck. She stared at him with wide eyes, trying to get his attention but Ichigo ignored her. He knew what she wanted to say to him; that they had no money on them. But Ichigo wasn't that stupid.

He quickly realized that the fact that he was the person of the rumors and that the clerk was seemingly overjoyed just from seeing him in person only worked in his favor. It didn't mean he was completely sure of it, but Ichigo was hoping that the situation would proceed as he thought it would. And it did. When he mentioned he wanted to buy from him, the clerk's smile widened even further and he snatched Ichigo's hand and led him to the selection of his goods.

"Pick anything you want and take it."

Ichigo nodded and reached into his pocket, as if he wanted to take out his money but the clerk put his hand on Ichigo's arm and shook his head.

"No. Don't pay me. This is the least I can do for somebody like you."

On the outside, Ichigo formed a grateful expression but on the inside, he was grinning in satisfaction. This was just what he hoped for. A free food. Even if this made him a bit of a manipulative person, in his mind it was always better than stealing. Prompting Kazumi with a jab to the shoulder, they took what they originally intended to steal and once more thanked the clerk. After a while, when they finally managed to leave the crowd of the overjoyed citizens, Kazumi blew some air through her mouth.

"Commendable, Ichigo... commendable." She said with a proud expression but there was a teasing overtone in her voice.

Ichigo shrugged and looked inside the bag with satisfaction.

"I'm not proud that I manipulated the poor man, but it is better than just outright stealing." Was his reply to which Kazumi just chuckled.

"If you say so Ichigo, if you say so."

He ignored her and closed the bag, doing a simple count in his mind.

'This food should last at least a week and by that time, we should have already come across some animals that I can hunt down.' Knowing that, his mood improved and getting Kazumi's attention he pointed towards the end of the town. There was nothing else they needed and he wanted to get to the last brothel as soon as possible. While the rumors could prove useful in scaring the weak trash, it could also alarm the rotten shinigami and make it really hard for him to destroy the last brothel.

It didn't take long and the two left the town, eager to continue their mission when the road got blocked by a mob of angry men. Unlike the scene with the crowd in the town, Ichigo needed only one close look at them to know what was going on.

'Should have known there wouldn't be just fans of my idea but those against it too. The trash that actually enjoys the brothels.' He thought and narrowed his eyes.

"I suggest you to clear my path, trash. Seeing bastards like you, I'm barely containing myself from cutting you down where you stand." Ichigo stated in a hard voice. Behind him, Kazumi carefully shifted her footing to be able to spring into the action instantly after Ichigo would have given the signal.

The group of man glared at him and collectively spit on the ground.

"You think you are some kind of a 'hero', kid? Get real, you're just pissing off a lot of people and that will come around and bite you in the ass." One of them said.

Ichigo cracked the joints in his neck and slowly took out his sword.

"No, one that has killed so much as I did can't call himself a hero. I'm just a person, who is sick from this place and sick from the vermin like you. Call me whatever you like. I don't care. I'm just here to clean this place." He raised his sword in front of him and unleashed his reiatsu on the men.

"Let me clean you, scum."

...

Kazumi sighed and looked at Ichigo standing in the middle of a circle created with bodies of the men he had cut down. His eyes were closed and he was breathing slowly. The fight didn't even last two minutes. Those men didn't even know what hit them and now they were squirming on the ground, crying in pain from the bleeding wounds. It has been so fast, that she didn't even had the chance to help him.

On one hand, it made her proud of Ichigo. He soaked everything she taught him like a dry sponge and became a proficient fighter that could hold his own against multiple opponents without breaking a sweat.

On the other hand, it scared her. The speed in which he was progressing truly scared her. She knew that he was quite strong even before she met him. He told her bits he remembered from his previous life. But at this point, she was almost completely sure that there wasn't anybody that could beat him in a solo fight. Anything short of a ranked shinigami just wouldn't cut it. She maybe didn't know much, but what she knew made her realize that Ichigo was special even for a shinigami. And he was a shinigami, no matter how much he had tried to deny it. He had passed being a simple soul with spiritual powers long time ago.

Maybe it was because of that that he became interesting for some people...

Her thoughts were interrupted with cries of pain. To her surprise, the men Ichigo had cut down weren't dead. It seemed that he had just incapacitated them, forced them to lie on the ground and writhe in agony. She wanted to ask him why he had let them live but his next actions answered that question for her.

Ichigo opened his eyes and walked to the nearest man. He stood next to him and waited until the man's stare was directed at him. He ignored the curses from the man's mouth and asked him a simple question.

"What will you do? Will you continue being a trash that enjoys brothels and the places similar to that or will you change your ways?" He asked in a cold and harsh tone, which made Kazumi shiver, even if the question wasn't aimed at her.

The man cursed again and tried to spit on Ichigo but he was too weak and his spit barely left his mouth. In response, Ichigo only raised his sword and with a quick thrust pierced the man's chest, killing him instantly. Yanking his sword from the corpse, Ichigo spared the man one last glance and with a sigh, he walked to the next one and repeated the process.

For somebody who didn't know the teen, it would appear that Ichigo was a cold-hearted killer, but Kazumi knew better. She could see the regret of taking another person's life in his eyes. However, it was covered with an amazing amount of resolve. This was what he had decided to do, he couldn't back off now.

After he repeated the process with six more man, the rest of them lost their bravado and tried to crawl away from his reach. The one lying in front of his feet gulped and when asked the question, he rapidly shook his head.

"I will be good. I swear. I'll never visit those places again. Just don't kil-guh..." His words were interrupted when Ichigo's sword pierced his heart, silencing him forever.

This action stunned the rest of the men and they stared at Ichigo in horror, a wet stain appearing on the pants of some of them. Ichigo just calmly wiped his sword with the grass and looked at those still alive.

"He wasn't honest in his answer." He simply stated and slowly walked towards the rest.

The men screamed in terror and desperately tried to run away.

It was futile.

...

"That was a bit brutal... I'd say even disturbing." Kazumi said and put the last stone on the monument.

This one was quite impressive and the note they left on it was even scarier than the previous ones. On the opposite side of the stone-shaped pyramid, Ichigo nodded.

"I know."

She didn't say anything else. It was apparent that Ichigo himself realized what he had done better than she could tell him. He was a bit pale and too much sweat appeared on his forehead. As she learned from her time spent with him, Kazumi waited until they were finished with the monument and then motioned Ichigo to sit next to her. With one hand, she rubbed his back and with the other one, she squeezed his shoulder.

This became a routine that she always did after Ichigo was forced to kill. It seemed to calm him down better than anything. The strength of the human touch, the warmth of another being supporting you was amazing.

Kazumi found the fact that she was able to calm him down like that quite ironic, considering that she was a woman. Ichigo had been, after all, at the beginning raped by one. At first, she thought that it was because the teen didn't see her as a member of the opposite sex, but after they accidentally decided to take a bath in a lake at the same time and Ichigo offered to go after her while trying not to look at her naked body, she knew that it wasn't the case.

He simply found her presence calming.

'This way it'll only hurt more...' She thought sadly.

...

It happened only two days after they received the tons of food from the excited shop clerk that Kazumi had started to behave oddly. At first, Ichigo didn't think anything of it. He was sure that she must have had her own reasons for not feeling well and that if it had been something she would want him to know, she would have confided in him. Moreover, he had his own problems with the voice in his head, which was getting louder and more and more intrusive every day. It had been especially bad the day after Ichigo disposed of that group of men. He felt as if the voice in his head sounded almost proud, which had worsened his mood even more.

There they were, wandering through the land as usual when Kazumi suspiciously started to look around, her eyes darting through the shadows of the trees that surrounded them. At that moment Ichigo couldn't take it anymore and grabbed her shoulder. He watched as Kazumi stiffened and he waited until she turned her face towards him.

"What's going on, Kazumi? You've been kind of weird lately."

Kazumi peeked behind Ichigo and motioned him to get closer. She leaned forward so that she could whisper in his ear.

"I think that we're being followed."

It was all that took for Ichigo to understand and his demeanor drastically changed. His features hardened and he casually put his hand on the hilt of his sword, ready for anything.

"How many?"

He didn't even question her suspicions. It took him some time to let her get close to him, but now Ichigo unconditionally trusted her. If she says that there was somebody following them, it must be the truth.

"I'm not sure. You know I can't sense spiritual energy, it's just a bad feeling... but I'd say that it must be at least one person. The shivers running through my spine tells me that it's definitely a shinigami." Kazumi whispered. Ichigo took the information in silently but his scowl deepened.

He seemed to ponder about the situation and then with a resolute growl, he took out his sword and pointed it towards his surroundings.

"We know you're here. Don't be a coward and come out!" He yelled and waited.

After a minute or two a small person in a black shinigami attire walked from behind the nearby bushes. It was a petite woman with raven hair and a black cat curled on her shoulder. Her arms were raised in front of her, showing that she had no weapon in them. She had a small smile on her lips when she looked at Ichigo.

"It's been a while, Kurosaki Ichigo." She said and tried to walk towards him but Ichigo entered a defensive stance, warily watching her movements. There was a confused expression on his face.

"You... who, who are you? I, do I know you? You look familiar but..." He slowly lowered his sword and the confusion on his face slowly morphed into suspicion.

"I'll repeat myself. Who are you, shinigami and what is your business with me? Are you here to fight me because I destroyed one of your damned brothels?"

The shinigami in front of him widened her eyes and looked completely lost for a minute before the cat touched her neck with its paw, making her shake her head. She took a deep breath and with a slightly pained expression looked at the teen.

"It's me, Kuchiki Rukia, Ichigo. I'm the one who sent you to the Soul Society after you had died. You don't remember?"

Ichigo blinked and lowered his sword completely. He opened his mouth to say something but closed it back soon enough. He was just staring at her, many different emotions playing on his face.

From suspicion back to confusion, back to suspicion then his face went blank and a surprise came along. It didn't stop there and the train of his emotions continued to anger that quickly deflated itself and then ended in an understatement. A bit of anger still rose behind it but it seemed that he was mostly calm.

"I see... you are Kuchiki Rukia... I do remember a face like yours. I also remember telling me some stuff about the Soul Society and the shinigami in it... liar." He growled and Rukia gulped a little.

She glanced at the cat who nodded and jumped from her shoulder to the ground. It looked Ichigo directly in his eyes.

"Sit down, kid. There is much we need to talk about." The cat said and with satisfaction watched as Kazumi's jaw fell down from her surprise. Ichigo only raised one of his eyebrows and decided to ignore the fact that there was a talking cat in front of him. It'd take more than that to truly surprise him anymore. He scowled at the cat.

"Do tell me, why would I want to talk to you? Every shinigami I came across so far since passing on tried to kill me so I have some... issues trusting her." He muttered darkly.

"If... if it would help, I can put my sword next to you and I'll be defenseless." Rukia quietly stated.

Ichigo scoffed.

"Yeah, defenseless my ass. I know that you shinigami can use some weird magic of some sort. I think I remember even you using one of the spells on me."

"That's Kido." Rukia replied automatically.

"Ki... what?"

The cat seemed to laugh a little.

"See? There are things you'd like to ask us too."

Ichigo pinched the bridge of his nose and he glanced at Kazumi, waiting for her response. She was still trying to shake off her surprise from seeing a cat talk but when she felt Ichigo's stare at her, she turned to him and shrugged as if saying: Whatever.

Sighing, Ichigo made himself comfortable on the ground and leaned back on a tree. Kazumi quickly assumed her place next to him and the two of them waited for the other duo to sit down.

"My first question is: Why are you here?" Ichigo started and stared at Rukia, who shifted uncomfortably.

"I... I felt guilty that I hadn't been able to save your family so few days after I had returned to the Soul Society, I had decided to look for you and help you in any way I can." Hearing a derisive snort coming from Ichigo, Rukia continued in a pressing tone.

"It's the truth! I still feel guilty... I, I thought that with your potential you will be able to become a shinigami and I'd help you train after that. And I was right, you did become a shinigami." That was a wrong thing to say and Ichigo's features darkened.

"I am not a shinigami. I'm just a person with a sword and a bit of power. And I don't need training from you. Kazumi already helped me with it."

This time, the cat was the one who snorted derisively.

"Get real kid. You may have become a bit stronger but you have no idea just how strong a real shinigami is. If there had been a Captain dispatched to kill you, you wouldn't have lasted a second. In fact, you probably wouldn't have been able to even survive the reiatsu pressing on you."

"Want to bet? And what is this Captain? I came across a shinigami who claimed to be a seated officer, so that means that there is some sort of ranking for the shinigami?" Ichigo replied. The cat glanced at Rukia who nodded.

"It seems that you have no idea about the Gotei 13. I did tell you something about it when I first met you but you must have forgotten about it. I see that you don't recognize the name Gotei 13 either. I'll explain." Rukia said and started to explain the system that existed in the Soul Society.

"The Gotei 13 is the primary military branch of Soul Society and the main military organization most shinigami join after leaving the academy. There are others but I'll talk about them later. Let's leave the academy from this too. The Gotei 13 is made up of thirteen divisions, several of them have a certain specialization. The Gotei 13 is led by a Captain Commander." At that point, she was interrupted.

"So he's the strongest shinigami? How strong is he?" Ichigo asked, ignoring the fact that he was being rude.

Rukia had some troubles while thinking of a way to illustrate the power of the Captain Commander to him so she peeked at Yoruichi, who narrowed her eyes.

"Let me put it this way, kid. There hasn't been a shinigami stronger than him born in these past thousand years. That should tell you something." That seemed to silence the teen, allowing Rukia to continue her explanation.

"Right. Now, as an army, the Gotei 13 has ranks. Each Division is made up of just over two hundred shinigami, with the Gotei 13's complete force being around three thousand shinigami in total. In these Divisions, there are twenty ranks for officers, but no ranks for non-officers. The lower the number is, the higher the rank. The ranks are based on abilities so the stronger the shinigami, the higher rank he usually has." She took a pause to look at a slightly confused Ichigo.

"I'm still trying to get over the fact that there are more than three thousand shinigami here. Just how many of them are a trash like those whom I killed?" He said in low voice. Rukia looked saddened by that but had no response. After a moment, Ichigo motioned her to continue.

"As I said, the stronger the shinigami, the higher the rank. The second seat is called a Lieutenant or a Vice-Captain, while the first one is a Captain. You said you are not afraid of a Captain but what kind of shinigami have you fought so far?" Rukia asked and waited for Ichigo to recall his memories.

As they were filled with lots of killing, it took him a while to sort them out.

"Well... this first one said that he was from the 8th Division but he was probably an unseated officer. The second one claimed to be from the 2nd Division and the last one was a 19th seat from the 6th Division. But none of them had a powerful reiatsu." While he listed his encounters, Rukia's face was getting more shocked with every word.

"D-did you just say that the last one was from the 6th Division? Are you absolutely sure that he said that? 6th Division?" She asked in a pleading voice that made Ichigo narrow his eyes.

"I'm sure, why?"

Rukia smiled sadly.

"That's the division my Nii-sama is a Captain of."

The effect of that sentence was instant. Ichigo widened his eyes, surprised for the first time during their talk and almost jumped from the ground.

"Your brother is a Captain?"

Rukia nodded.

"Nii-sama is a very strong shinigami. If what you say is the truth, then he won't let this matter go unpunished. Being a Head of the Noble Clan, he has an important position in the Soul Society so he could do something about it."

Ichigo waved his hand to stop her from talking further. He had to sort this new information in his head. If what he heard was true, he could really have a chance to change things. But there was something else he needed to know.

"What kind of a person is your brother? I need to know if he's trustworthy. What if he's one of those who enjoys these brot-"

*SLAP*

He was interrupted with a sound slap on his cheek, courtesy from an angry Rukia. Her hand that forced his head to snap to the side trembled and her face was red.

"Don't you dare say that about Nii-sama! I know him well. He may be cold sometimes, but he is also generous and he stands for the justice. He would never willingly allow something like that!"

To her surprise, Ichigo chuckled and touched his slightly pink cheek.

"Well, that's one person that thinks he's trustworthy. You can slap me all you like, but my point still stands. I don't know him, therefore I can't trust him. I'm not sure I even trust you. Even if I did, you being his sister practically eliminates the possibility of you saying anything bad about him. For now, let's say I'm willing to give him a chance."

Rukia still glared at the teen, but she lowered her hand and rubbed it a little.

"You fought only a 19th seat and you think you can take on a Captain? You're funny kid, I'll give you that." Yoruichi said and wiggled her tail in amusement.

"I'm sorry, is that a freaking cat trying to ridicule me? Shut up before I'll make a mouse's food from you." Ichigo snapped at her and missed the dangerous look that flashed through Yoruichi's eyes.

He turned to Rukia and after a moment of studying her, he seemingly made up his mind.

"How strong are you? What is your rank?"

Rukia looked surprised for a second before schooling her features. Later Ichigo realized that he also saw a hint of a sadness in it.

"I'm an unranked officer of the 13th Division." Rukia replied. She tried to sound proud, but that hidden sadness made it sound almost sarcastic.

Ichigo wanted to say something but the others saw him cringe and clutch his head in pain. Kazumi , who stayed silent during the conversation, quickly put her hand on his shoulder.

"It's back?"

"Yeah..." Ichigo replied and tried to ignore the muttering in his head.

Carefully choosing the tone of her voice, Rukia scooted a bit closer to the teen but opted not to touch him, as he looked too tense.

"Is something wrong?"

To Rukia's disappointment, Ichigo instantly shook his head. However, that disappointment was short-lived when Kazumi squeezed his shoulder.

"Ichigo... I know how you feel about shinigami, but we have no idea why this keeps happening to you. Maybe she will have the answer. It seems that the two of you met before and you don't seem that wary of her. You know that not every shinigami has to be a scum. She seems to be the other kind of shinigami. The good one. You should tell her." There wasn't any urgency in her voice. She wasn't pressuring him. She just tried to reason with him.

To Rukia's surprise, it worked. Ichigo glanced at Kazumi and stared at her for a full minute, the conversation in their eyes apparent. Admitting a defeat, Ichigo turned to Rukia.

"For a while now, I seem to be hearing some kind of a voice in my mind. He's... it's getting irritating." In the last moment, he decided not to reveal that the voice sounded positively insane.

"I know I'm not crazy, but..." He continued but Rukia quickly interrupted him with an impressed expression.

That confused him. Seeing that, the petite shinigami voiced her thoughts.

"It's your Zanpakuto. He's probably trying to communicate with you and that means you are getting close to achieving an initial release. That is amazing. I was right, your potential of becoming a strong shinigami is true." Ichigo blinked and stopped her.

"Once more and slower. What the hell are you talking about?"

It was Rukia's turn to be baffled. She silently studied his face for a moment, before commenting in a perplexed tone.

"You really don't know anything about shinigami, do you?"

Before she could say more, Ichigo scoffed with a deep scowl.

"Well sorry about that. Let me dump your sorry ass in here and then you try to survive on your own and we'll see how you'll fare."

"Too late, I was dumped in the 78th District when I was a baby."

That sentence marked the second time that Ichigo widened his eyes in surprise. He realized that he was a bit rude but weeks spent in the Soul Society changed him. That's why he didn't hurry and tried to apologize. Instead, he just went silent. Sitting opposite of him, a melancholic expression flew through Rukia's face as she remembered her past.

She was okay with Ichigo not apologizing. In her book, he didn't do anything bad. Forcing her past from her mind, she coughed a little.

"Well, as I was saying, there is more to a shinigami than just a bit of a spiritual power and a sword. We are not barbarians who just swing their blade around. We use precision, swordsmanship, abilities of our Zanpakuto, our proves in Kido, Hakuda and Hoho." She said and waited a little. She was sure that Ichigo had some questions. She was right.

"You keep mentioning a... Zanpakuto... you mean the sword? It has a different name?"

She suppressed the urge to slap her forehead in exasperation. Pointing at hers and then at his sword, she shook her head.

"These are not simple swords. They are called Asauchi. It is a blank sword in which we imprint the essence of our very soul, in the process creating our own Zanpakuto. This happens unconsciously, during the time you keep the sword with you. Every Zanpakuto is a sentient being. The voice you keep hearing is your Zanpakuto spirit."

"...fuck me..." Ichigo muttered under his breath, unable to contain himself. Rukia continued as if nothing happened.

"Depending on your ability to communicate with and control your Zanpakuto's spirit, a Zanpakuto can manifest itself in two additional forms and revert back. These two forms are known as Shikai and Bankai. You can think of them as upgrades for the Zanpakuto that give them abilities far beyond those of the simple sword. To achieve Shikai, you need to learn the name of your Zanpakuto. However, it is not as easy as you'd think it is. Your Zanpakuto's spirit is a sentient being and it has its moods and emotions. You need to be in harmony with it to use it effectively. You understood everything so far?" She asked when Ichigo just stared at a point somewhere behind her.

"...fuck me..." He muttered again and rubbed his head, messing up his hair considerably. He remembered how surprised he had been when the sword of the last shinigami he had fought had changed its shape. Now he knew a reason for that.

Seeing that Rukia was waiting for him to nod, he nodded and listened to the rest of her explanation that covered Kido, Hakuda, Zanjutsu and Hohō. The last one sparked a little interest in him and he jumped on his feet.

"You mean something like this?" He asked and showed her the move that he managed to learn in his battle with a shinigami from the 2nd Division and the one he was slowly perfecting.

After he performed his high-speed movement, he looked at Rukia and waited for her comment.

"Yeah... it's called a Shunpo. Where the hell did you learn this?" She asked. In her mind, she had to hesitantly admit that she was impressed. While Ichigo didn't know almost anything about being an actual shinigami, his skill set was looking more and more notable.

The teen just shrugged.

"Eh, when I fought the bastard from the 2nd Division, I saw him perform it and after a short analysis I was able to somewhat copy it. It was not perfect as it almost tore my tendon but I have been trying to perfect it ever since. Now you tell me that it's called a... Shunpo... that's how you called it, right?" He explained and despite the situation he enjoyed the impressed expression on the shinigami's face. She was trying to hide it, but her eyes betrayed her.

Next to her, Yoruichi had been studying Ichigo's Shunpo with critical eyes.

"I don't want to burst your bubble, kid but this was a sloppy Shunpo so don't get too proud of yourself. I admit, it's really admirable how you learned it but there is still a huge room to improve."

Ichigo's eyebrows twitched and he flashed to the group and stopped in front of the black cat, looking at it with a clear irritation in his eyes.

"You know, cat, ever since you two came here, you've been kind of a pain in the ass. If you have some problem with me, say it. I don't have to listen to the either of you but I had decided to do it so tell me why I shouldn't just stand up and leave?"

Rukia widened her eyes and tried to approach Yoruichi but Kazumi grabbed her shoulder and shook her head. Yoruichi narrowed her eyes.

"I'm just not that soft as Rukia is. I can see that you are quite satisfied with yourself after you have managed to defeat all those opponents. But you fail to see the bigger picture. There are a lot of stronger guys in this place that could tear you apart without even trying to and I'm not underestimating you, nor am I overestimating them. It's just a simple, hard fact. I want you to realize that if you want to fight them, you need to get stronger." Yoruichi stated firmly.

Ichigo continued to stare at the cat, his jaw clenched and the muscles on his face twitching.

"What do you think I am... a child who wants to receive a pat on the head for his accomplishments? I could care less about whether you are impressed with me or not. You think I don't know that there are people stronger than me? I realized it back then when that last shinigami told me about him being a 19th seat. I didn't know about the rankings nor about the Gotei 13 but I'd have to be stupid not to realize what it meant." He said quietly. His tone was even, but there were emotions hidden in it.

"You say you want me to realize that I need to get stronger. Why? I don't know you, you don't know me. Why would you care for me getting stronger? What is your agenda?" He finally asked. He knew that he hit the nail on the head when the cat's pupils widened. It was almost imperceptible but he still saw it.

When Yoruichi remained silent, he turned to Rukia, whose eyes were nervously darting from Yoruichi to him and back to Yoruichi. With a grimace, he glanced at Kazumi.

"I think we're done here. Come on, Kazumi, we're leaving."

Watching the duo pack their things, Yoruichi was heavily cursing in her mind.

'Shit, shit, shit. That damned kid. He's a lot more suspicious that I though he would be. I can't tell him about Kisuke's plan. There's no telling how he would react... damn you Kisuke and your manipulations. What should I tell him? It's obvious that as long as I won't tell him a perfectly good reason he will not listen to us. At least Rukia doesn't know the plan too, so she can't reveal it. Ah, damn it. I can't force him either... shit...' Yoruichi's brain was working at full speed, trying to come up with something clever but without any success. When Ichigo and Kazumi had everything packed and were slowly leaving she was almost sure that she just screwed up as hard as it gets.

Imagine her surprise when at the last moment, before the duo completely left the scene, Rukia called out to the teen.

"Wait!"

Ichigo walked few more steps before he visibly took a deep breath and turned around with an impassive expression.

"I'm waiting."

Rukia hastily nodded but motioned him to come back first, to which Ichigo shook his head.

"I'd rather stay here until I hear something really convincing."

Yoruichi peeked at Rukia with worry. She had no idea what the Kuchiki could have thought of but she really hoped that it was good. They needed Ichigo on their side in the future and since she was out of ideas, Rukia was probably her last chance.

"Okay. You asked if there is some kind of agenda. If there is a reason for us wanting to see you get stronger. Well, it's complicated. I already told you that I wanted to help you in some way after I failed to save you from that hollow at that time. So now that you have clearly awakened your shinigami powers I don't want you to die. You can say whatever you want, deny it as much as you want to, but those powers you have are powers of a shinigami." She stated firmly.

Ichigo ignored the part about his power being the shinigami's. It was clear that no matter what he'd say, the opposing side would claim otherwise. But it was actually something else that caught his attention.

"What do you mean, die? I can take care of myself and I'm slowly getting even stronger. I won't die that easily." He argued, his stare seemingly piercing Rukia's soul. The petite shinigami grimaced and went silent for a minute, trying to collect her thoughts.

"Just a few minutes ago you had said that you realize that there are people stronger than you in Soul Society. How long do you think you'd last against them?"

"Yes, I do realize it. However, I don't plan to fight people like that until I get strong enough. I have no reason to. I still have one brothel to destroy and then I'll hunt the rest of the scum and-" He was cut off by a pressing voice.

"What if you'll get no other choice but to fight them sooner than that? What if there's a Vice-Captain trying to kill you tomorrow?"

"What?"

Ichigo's expression changed. Something in Rukia's voice told him that she wasn't just trying to scare him off. That the possibility of that situation truly happening was incredibly high. His stare intensified and made Rukia squirm. Hesitantly, she opened her mouth again.

"There is one thing you don't know, Ichigo. Once a soul awakens its shinigami potential, you have to become a shinigami. You'll be forced to go to the Academy, where you'll learn the rest of the required skills and after that, you can be scouted into one of the Divisions." She said, a bit of regret profound in her voice.

"What if I refuse?" Ichigo asked with narrowed eyes. He didn't like what he was hearing.

Rukia offered him a sad smile.

"Your powers could get sealed."

Unable to control his emotions after hearing that, Ichigo loudly growled and a curse escaped his mouth.

"Fuck..."

Yoruichi watched Rukia in awe. She had never thought of that. That the existing system in Soul Society could be twisted around to help them convince the teen. She knew, of course, that what Rukia told him wasn't completely true.

Sure, the Gotei 13 would try to recruit somebody with great potential and a lot of power. They could highly encourage people like that for this or that kind of reason to join the ranks of Gotei 13 or to join the Academy. However, that was only in case the shinigami would find this person. The Gotei 13, despite all its scientific advances had no way of tracking every soul in Soul Society or to be precise, they wouldn't waste its resources to do it. If the person wants to join them, good. If not, until he becomes a problem and breaks the shinigami law, they would leave him alone.

Yoruichi knew that they were twisting the truth around, but it was probably the only way to convince Ichigo.

"I don't believe it." Her thoughts were interrupted when Ichigo spoke again.

Rukia just gazed at him. She didn't understand what he meant by that. Ichigo shook his head and put a hand on his forehead.

"You said that the force of the Gotei 13 consists of three thousand shinigami, give or take. These past few weeks, I've been traveling and I think I have a good understanding of how big the Rukongai is. That's why I don't believe it. With just three thousand people there is no way you can monitor an area this large. Furthermore, I'd think that the field work is handled by those who are unranked, that thins the number further. How would they find me, if I could come across only unranked shinigami or those with low rank and I can dispose of them?" He asked.

Yoruichi glanced at Rukia, but the raven haired shinigami had the perfect response already formulated.

"The 12th Division can track those who emit enough reiatsu. How do you think they can locate hollows in the real world?"

Again, a twisted truth.

"I think that right now, my reiatsu is low enough for them not to be able to track it." Ichigo countered. For that, Rukia didn't have a reply and so he sighed.

"Look, Rukia. I can't go to that Academy or what. I have a mission...we have a mission."

"You mean to destroy the brothels and kill anybody who wants to build them again?" Yoruichi asked.

"Well, yeah. I want to make the Soul Society a better place. After what I saw here, lived through here... I saw kids being forced to do unspeakable things. Wasn't there supposed to be a heaven after death? This is nothing like that. I want to change it." He answered truthfully, closing his eyes when he recalled a few painful memories.

"Basically, you want to create a perfect place for the souls, a place without crime, without any evil. Something akin to a promised heaven." Yoruichi summed it up and watched the teen nod.

She hesitated for a moment and contemplated about being silent. What she wanted to say could harm her effort of convincing him. She shook her head; the teen needed to hear this.

"I talked to Rukia and she mentioned that when you were still alive she gave you a lecture about the cycle of souls. Do you still remember it?" She asked.

"...yeah, I remember most of it." Ichigo admitted and stared at the cat with unreadable expression.

"Then you must realize that what you're trying to accomplish here is impossible."

"... I know that it may take me forever but-"

"No. I mean truly impossible." Yoruichi interrupted him and forced him to change his expression to a one of a confusion.

"What do you mean?"

During their conversation, Ichigo and Kazumi slowly returned to the original location next to Rukia and Yoruichi, so the latter sat down.

"It is quite impossible to create a place where there is no crime or death simply because there is a natural need for a certain death rate. When humans die, their souls pass on and come to the Soul Society. They live here after that. When they die again, they join the reincarnation cycle and can be reborn in the World of the Living again. I'm sure you know that humans die every day in great amounts. If the souls in the Soul Society would only die from old age, their amount would only increase here while the amount in the World of the Living would decrease. The balance of the souls between the two worlds would eventually crumble and that could destroy both of them and kill every single soul in existence. "

Ichigo's face grew paler with every word in Yoruichi's explanation and at the end, it was almost ghostly. The energy seemingly disappearing from him, he sat down and aimed his sight at the ground, where he placed his hands. It was obvious that he never thought of something like this and the explanation hit him hard. It was only thanks for Kazumi's hand on his shoulder that he was able to somehow recover from it.

"I... are you telling me that I should stop doing what I'm doing? That I should let perversions like those brothels continue?" He managed to ask Yoruichi.

"No. I think that your intentions are honorable and good. If I was in your shoes, I'd try to destroy them too. I have come to understand and accept that people die every day. Maybe it's their fate and I shouldn't interfere. You can never get rid of the crime in this or in any world. Where there are people, there will always be crime. However, there could be a way to get rid of a certain kind of crime." She said and closed her eyes when Ichigo glanced at her.

"Yes, this is pretentious but like I said, you need to learn to accept that people will die every day. There is no solution for this problem. The act of killing is quite simple. The act of raping, torturing somebody is not. The only thing you can do is to somehow inspire those on the highest step of the ladder to make arrangements that could prevent places like those brothels from ever getting created." Yoruichi continued and opened her eyes after she stopped talking to see Ichigo still looking at her. There was a certain amount of pain in his eyes but also a tiny flame of hope.

"And I can only do that if I join the Gotei 13, is that what you're trying to say?" He inquired with a grimace.

"Well, that would certainly speed things up."

...

After the conversation had ended, Ichigo allowed Rukia and Yoruichi to travel with them. It didn't mean that he started to trust them, no. No matter what, Rukia was still a shinigami and Yoruichi was a suspicious talking cat. He couldn't bring himself not to doubt them. But, as Kazumi had said, not every shinigami had to be a bastard so he gave them a chance.

Not used to a larger company, Ichigo spent most of his time with Kazumi. His co-traveler however, wanted him to get more social, so every day, he was pushed to their new companions so that he could talk to them for a while. He mainly conversed with Rukia, as the thought of talking with a cat was absurd. Not to mention that he saw Yoruichi as somebody who enjoyed teasing and provoking him.

Because of that, the small talks with Rukia spread over the course of a few days into a lengthy conversations. The petite shinigami noticed his reserved attitude towards her so at first, she hadn't tried to force the topic of their conversation to be personal. Instead she had explained the structure of the Gotei 13 more thoroughly to him, spending a certain amount of time to describe the specializations of each Division. She had told him about the 1st Division that was led by the Captain Commander, about the 2nd Division led by Captain Sui-Feng, a specialist in assassinations, about the 3rd Division led by a shady Captain Ichimaru Gin, a person who she could never bring herself to like. She had told him about the 4th Division, led by a kind, almost angelic-like Captain Unohana Retsu, a Division created for the purpose of being the medical department. The 5th Division, as she had admitted, was led by a person that was giving her bad vibes, Captain Aizen Sosuke. In close details, she had described the 6th Division with her brother, Kuchiki Byakuya, as the Captain. The Captain of the 7th Division was Sajin Komamura. He was a person with a strong sense of justice but also a person with an obvious secret as he always wore a helmet which was covering his whole head. She had shaken her head when trying to describe the Captain of the 8th Division, a close friend of her own Captain. The man was called Shunsui Kyoraku and he liked sake. Too much in Rukia's opinion. But Ichigo had mumbled a word 'a drunk', she vehemently protested. Even with his quirks, the man was in her opinion probably the easiest person to get along with and was arguably one of the best Captains, aside from her brother and her own Captain. He was also probably the second strongest shinigami in the Gotei 13, what was something that Ichigo quickly decided to remember. There hadn't been much to tell about the Captain of the 9th Division, though. Kaname Tosen was a quiet man, also a person with a strong sense of justice, a friend of Captain Komamura. It was rather funny; she had chuckled, the two of them were very similar. Both of them were very just, quiet, rather unsocial, had loyal Lieutenants and both of them were... different, for the lack of a better word. Captain Komamura always wore a helmet and Captain Tosen was blind. She had confessed that she met the Captain of the 10th Division only once or twice as he was rather a new one. His name was Toshiro Hitsugaya and he looked like a child. She also told him never to say that in front of that Captain out loud. While he looked like a child, he was hailed as one of the prodigies of the Gotei 13 with a steep learning curve and his power was undeniable. She had visibly shivered when talking about the Captain of the 11th Division, Kenapchi Zaraki. From her words, Ichigo got the impression that the man was a barbarian, a ruthless killer who lived only for the thrill of the battles, craving the bloodlust and the carnage within them. He was also the only person who became a Captain after killing the previous one in a one-on-one battle. She had said that the previous Captain of the 11th Division was even worse but also that the battle between them lasted only for a few minutes, the new Captain being that much stronger. Additionally, the man was using only an unreleased zanpakuto. He had never achieved a Shikai or a Bankai release at least that were her information. She had grimaced when the time for the 12th Division came. Its Captain, Kurotsuchi Mayuri was in her opinion a disgusting man with weird fascinations and interests. Never once she had been happy to visit his office. It looked like more like a laboratory than an office of a Captain. The smells and stench in it was nasty and she couldn't understand how anybody could work in a place like that. But being a Division that was also directly linked to the Shinigami Research and Development Institute, it was to be expected. Lastly, she had talked about her own, 13th Division, led by a Captain Juushiro Ukitake a charismatic man with a long white hair, chronic lung disease and an incredibly soft heart, something that went against the nature of the organization he was in. She had almost sang ballads and odes at his account before she had caught herself and blushed in embarrassment.

These conversations were incredibly insightful and helped Ichigo to form a new opinion on the organization known as the Gotei 13. It came as a no surprise though, when after hours spent debating this topic, Kazumi watched the two with a smile. She had achieved what she wanted to achieve. After those conversations, Ichigo was able to talk to Rukia less reserved. He was still not acting very friendly towards her, but he allowed her to ask some questions about his time spent in the Soul Society. Nothing personal, but he was getting there.

A few days later, when they discovered the last brothel was close, Ichigo had woken up in the morning and watched Kazumi sleep until she felt his gaze and woke up herself. Before she could say anything, an innocent question was directed at her.

"Do you think that I'm naive?" Ichigo mumbled quietly.

Kazumi blinked, the question was too much for her sleepy mind. But the expression on his face forced her to fully wake up and think about it more deeply. Studying his face, she realized what was going on.

"Is this about what Yoruichi-san said? That there isn't a way to achieve a total peace?"

Ichigo scowled at the honorific but nodded nevertheless.

"Yeah... after we do this last brothel, should we stop out mission? Should I join the Gotei 13?"

Kazumi formed a sad smile and casually put a hand on his cheek, earning a raised eyebrow from him.

"Ichigo... I..." For a second, a pained expression flashed through her face but she quickly hid it.

"I know that you hate the shinigami and there is nothing wrong with that. However, what Rukia-san and Yoruichi-san had said makes sense. If you were to join it, with your potential you could become a prominent figure in it. I'm not saying that you should abandon your mission. On the contrary, this chance may make it easier for you to truly change things." She stated and withdrew her hand.

"To answer your questions... you are definitely not naive, just kind-hearted at the core. You should not stop your mission..."

"Our mission." Ichigo interrupted her with a small smile.

Without him seeing it, Kazumi clenched her fists.

"...yeah, our mission. The point is, you should change it into something bigger... should you join the Gotei 13? Well... I'll leave that decision for you to make." She said and chuckled when the teen fumed.

"What if I'll make a bad decision?"

"Then you can start over."

The breakfast was short, only Rukia joining Ichigo in eating. She had her own food supply, so Ichigo was able to stuff his stomach with the rest of his reserves. That provided him with all the energy needed for the day when the last brothel would be destroyed.

It didn't take long for the group to reach their final destination and when the brothel was in their sights, they took another break. They have agreed that for the best course of action they would need d to come up with a plan as Rukia was able to sense multiple opponents with spiritual energy. From the amount of their spiritual energy Rukia determined that there was at least half a dozen shinigami stationed in the vicinity of the brothel. That piece of information greatly unsettled her as she could now see with her own eyes that there truly were despicable people in the ranks of the Gotei 13. Naturally, she already had some proof about it but feeling it with her own senses was more saddening.

Taking the amount of the shinigami into account, Yoruichi nominated herself for scouting the premises. It took some time for her and Rukia to convince Ichigo that this was for the best. Not used to have help, while Yoruichi was covertly gathering information, Ichigo had been nervously scowling and unable to wait patiently. It was almost two hours later that Yoruichi returned with new information.

"It seems that the rumors about you have spread around the most of the Rukongai. I heard guard talking about your previous raids. Until the shinigami help came, they had been really scared." She stated while staring at the teen with an unreadable expression.

"Good." Ichigo whispered.

"What do you know about those shinigami?" Rukia joined the conversation.

Yoruichi swung her tail to flick the flies away from her before answering.

"Not much. I wasn't able to determine what Divisions are they from, but we are quite in luck. All of them are unseated officers. It seems that despite the rumors the shinigami fans of the brothels are, unlike the regular guards, underestimating you. It doesn't make sense but I think that they still haven't caught up on the fact that you have bested even a 19th seat. Or, maybe the seated officers don't want to get their hands dirty. Either way, this shouldn't be difficult. Rukia herself could probably take on most of them." She replied, earning a raised eyebrow from Ichigo.

"I thought that Rukia was an unseated officer too." He glanced at the said shinigami only for her to avert his gaze. Yoruichi answered for her.

"There are some... issues with her brother that have been keeping her from achieving a higher rank but I can assure you that Rukia is strong. She had been personally trained by the previous Lieutenant of her Division." Rukia stiffened at the mentioning of her late Lieutenant but Ichigo haven't noticed it.

"Hmm..." The teen rubbed his chin and made a mental note to later ask Rukia to show him what she could do.

"Now, the group of the shinigami consists of eight personnel. Aside from them, there are around twenty guards, making the offensive power of the brothel to be around thirty people. I think we should..." Yoruichi trailed off when Ichigo resolutely shook his head.

"We'll do this my way. I let you gather Intel but this is my mission. Understood?" His eyes darted from Yoruichi to Rukia, waiting until they nodded in acknowledgement. The former took her time to do it but after a deep sigh, she did it nevertheless. After that, Ichigo explained his plan to them, taking only five minutes to do it. It was obvious that Rukia, but mainly Yoruichi had their doubts about it. However, they respected his wish and kept quiet.

As per Ichigo's orders, Kazumi headed towards the outer entrance to the dungeons and her role was to find any prisoners. Rukia was sent to the main building, to flush the cowards out and to deal with the guards. Ichigo remained outside and prepared to take care of the shinigami. He hadn't specified where should Yoruichi go, but the cat decided it for itself and jumped on Rukia's shoulder when the said shinigami approached the building.

With his sword in his hands, Ichigo slowly walked towards the brothel, his reiatsu slowly starting to leak out in hope to attract the attention of the shinigami. It worked, but only partially. To his surprise he was surrounded by a group of only four shinigami, with a few guards standing behind them as a last resort help.

Seeing the orange haired teen with a scowl, a nervous whisper emanated between the guards who instantly recognized the person from the rumor. The shinigami also quickly understood the situation. Unlike the guards thought, their mouths twisted into sadistic grins.

"I've never thought that you would be that stupid to actually show yourself here, Tora." One of the shinigami said and Ichigo almost had to do a double-take when he heard the name.

'They created a name for me and it's a tiger? I don't know if I should feel honored or offended.' Ichigo thought and gripped the hilt of his zanpakuto tighter.

"Well, somebody has to clean this place from dirt." He stated and stared at his opponents, trying to study them.

The shinigami narrowed their eyes and readied themselves for a fight.

"It seems that you really are like the rumors say, arrogant and too confident."

Ichigo took a deep breath to calm his muscles before he sprang into action.

"Arrogant? Maybe. Too confident? I don't think so."

Releasing his reiatsu on them, Ichigo appeared next to the shinigami on his right in a flash, attempting to slice his torso. His opponent barely reacted in time, but was still knocked out of his feet.

The teen noticed another shinigami coming at him from his left, so he abandoned the idea of following his slice with a quick jab to the heart and spun around. His kick dislocated the jaw of the second shinigami and the force behind it sent him crashing to a tree. Almost feeling the pressure of the wind, Ichigo jumped high, letting the sword of the third shinigami to miss its mark.

Immediately after he landed, he was hit in the back with a red orb of energy that burned away his clothes along with a piece of his skin. He hissed in pain and quickly rolled to the side, dodging another orb. Turning his head to the last shinigami, he saw him standing with one of his hands in front of him, aiming at the place where Ichigo previously stood.

The shinigami made one mistake and that was leaving his sword in his sheath what Ichigo hurried to use to his advantage. Jumping from the ground and flipping himself in mid-air, he landed behind the shinigami, his sword already moving forward even before his feet actually touched the ground. In an instant, the tip of his sword traveled through the short distance and pierced the man through his chest, and was currently sticking out from the front.

The sound of a high-speed movement entered his ears and he hastily yanked his zanpakuto from the falling body and crouched. A blade sliced the air where his head was previously located but instead of cutting down Ichigo, the sword cut off the head of the shinigami he had pierced a moment before.

"Oh fuck..." He heard the man behind his curse and spinning around, Ichigo kicked the man's legs from him.

As the man fell down, Ichigo used the opening and followed through with a stab through the man's heart.

'That's two down...' He counted mentally and turned around to see guards staring at the scene, frozen in fear. The shinigami he had knocked from his feet as the first one meanwhile got up and flashed to Ichigo, aiming to stab him through his stomach. Ichigo countered the strike and pushed the man aside when another strike came from his left. The shinigami with dislocated jaw had also collected himself and tried to sever his left hand.

Ichigo barely side-stepped him and followed with a slice to the back, opening a deep wound on the man's back. It forced the man to cry out in pain and stumble.

Sensing a movement behind him, the teen quickly blocked an attack at his own back but was sent forward when a punch hit him in the area where his kidney was located. He almost reacted and tried to stop himself from falling down which was exactly what was the shinigami waiting for. But when the shinigami tried to follow his attack with a stab to Ichigo's back, he hit nothing but the air.

The teen almost felt the intent of the man and so instead of stopping himself, he let himself fall down on the ground. When the man's stab hit nothing, he quickly rolled on his back and thrusted his sword forward, piercing the man's stomach. Not giving him a chance to retaliate, Ichigo wrenched the sword out and stabbed the man for the second time. It was a fatal strike and the man fell face down, still conscious but very well aware that his end was coming.

Using his zanpakuto as a support, Ichigo stood up and turned around to see the last shinigami struggling to stand up, but the wound on his back was too deep. It had probably severed the muscles as the man was having spasms every time those muscles moved. When Ichigo walked to him, to finish him off, the guards finally snapped out of it and with a battle cry rushed towards him, their weapons in front of them.

Ichigo grimaced and used his Shunpo to appear among them and after a series of quick slashes, too fast for them to follow, he send them falling down, to their deaths. As they moaned and slowly began to lose their consciousness from the pain and the blood loss, Ichigo turned his head to the last shinigami again. With a slow Shunpo, he appeared before the man. He was still struggling to stand up but the amount of blood pouring out of his wound was getting to him.

Ichigo crouched to him and grabbed a fistful of his hair. He yanked his head up, so that he could see the man's eyes.

"Tell me, why did you attempt to defend this place?"

When the man's eyes began to droop, Ichigo shook the man's head and repeated the question once more. Barely conscious, the man used up his last bit of energy to raise his hand and show Ichigo his middle finger.

With a scowl, Ichigo released his grip on the man's hair and watched it hit the ground.

"Was is worth it?" He asked the man, despite knowing that he would receive no answer.

It didn't take long before Ichigo heard footsteps coming from the entrance to the brothel. He stopped gathering the dead bodies on one place and turned around to see Rukia coming out, her sword a bit bloody but definitely less than his own. She had a grim expression on her face but she also looked quite fine, uninjured and certainly not tired as he expected her to be. When she got closer to him and saw the pile of men behind, her expression grew even grimmer.

"Done?" Ichigo asked.

"Done." She answered. Yoruichi jumped from Rukia's shoulder and landed next to the pile.

"Looks like you have left no survivors." She commented. Ichigo raised one of his eyebrows.

"And you did?"

It was Rukia who answered him.

"Yes. I left two shinigami alive. Their movements are sealed though, don't worry."

"That's not my point..." Ichigo started but Rukia cut him off.

"I know. However, you don't get it. If I can take them back to Seiretei and force them to talk, we'll have a solid proof that there is something rotten in the Gotei 13. Even though we have some evidence, having a witnesses is sounder. Without them, this issue would get easily overlooked." She explained and watched Ichigo struggle with his inner self.

He hoped, for those two's sake that Rukia would keep them out of his sight or else...

His eyes widened when he heard another set of footsteps. There should have been only Kazumi left but he was sure he could hear more than just one person walking. That meant there were survivors...

He almost headed towards that sound to greet Kazumi but when she appeared from behind the corner, he was rooted in place, a shock getting the best of him.

It was Kazumi but she wasn't bringing any survivors with her. She was being held under her neck by a tall shinigami, with another two guarding her from sides. Her clothes were ripped and bloody, her face and the visible body covered in bruises; she must have received a vicious beat down. That sight was all it took for Ichigo's anger to rise explosively, forcing his reiatsu to cover the whole area with a heavy blanket of an almost visible energy. It was by far the greatest amount of reiatsu he had ever produced so far.

Next to him, Rukia and Yoruichi stiffened the moment they saw Kazumi being dragged towards them. The reiatsu suddenly exploding from Ichigo shook them from their stupor and for the moment, they ignored the amount of it.

The three shinigami too, felt the reiatsu heavily pressing on them and when beads of sweat quickly formed on their foreheads, they took out their swords. The one holding Kazumi pressed the blade of his zanpakuto against her neck and called out to Ichigo.

"Don't move, Tora, or else this one loses her head."

"I'm... sorry... Ichigo..." Kazumi managed to stutter out, tears flowing from her eyes.

Barely containing his anger, Ichigo's hand shook as he formed fists and stared directly into Kazumi's eyes.

"It'll be okay, Kazumi. I promise."

His travelling partner seemed to whisper something but she was too far away for him to hear it. The one holding her tightened his hand under her neck, completely shutting her ability to speak.

"What will happen now, Tora, is that you'll give up. You and the bitch behind you will throw your swords towards us. No surprises or this one will get it." He said loudly so that Ichigo could hear him clearly.

The distance between them was just barely more than twenty meters and Ichigo was fighting with himself. He was sure he could cover this distance in one Shunpo and was seriously considering doing it. The only thing stopping him was the blade pressing against Kazumi's neck. Despite the distance, his eyes saw everything. He could see the small tears on her skin underneath the blade. It was digging into her neck and one movement, even a small one, could very well sever her skin and the vein in her neck and for that, there was no medicine. The vein in his own neck was throbbing, the blood rapidly pumping through his body, delivering the oxygen into his brain that was working in overdrive. But no matter how hard he tried to think, he could not come up with a better solution to the situation than listening to the orders of the shinigami twenty meters away from him. Slowly, he lowered his hand and put it on the hilt of his sword. His fingers tightly coiled around it and he could feel Rukia doing the same thing.

The anger was hard to control and his hand started to shake from the suppressed rage, creating an irritating sound when the blade of his zanpakuto repeatedly banged against the sheath while he was taking it out.

*CLANG*

He gulped. The tears flowing from Kazumi's eyes were digging into him. Was she crying because she thought she failed him? Was it because she was in pain? Was it because they something to her? Something horrible? His thoughts were getting grimmer with every passing second and he heard a muttering in his mind. Clenching his jaw, he ignored it and the rest of his thoughts. They were too dangerous, pushing his ability to control himself to the upmost limits.

*CLANG*

A bead of sweat formed on his forehead and as if trying to torture him even more, slowly traveled on the skin of his face, all the way down to his cheek. He wasn't nervous. He also wasn't aware that the amount of reiatsu pouring from him was subtly increasing. Another bead of sweat appeared. He was sweating because of his furious battle with himself. He knew that rushing in would kill Kazumi, but the absurdity of the situation was forcing him to forget that fact. The primal instinct within him was screaming at him to kill them. To kill them as brutally as he could. To enjoy seeing their heads roll, their innards explode from them, their limbs fly after getting severed.

*CLANG*

The blade was almost fully out of the sheath. It was still bloody from his previous battle. The sight of that barely dried blood only fueled his instinct further. The bloodlust in his veins becoming almost unbearable. The tip of the sword slipped out. It was now or never. Would he go in for the kill?

"Okay, we're doing it. Just take it easy."

Never in his life had been Ichigo happier to hear Rukia's voice that completely destroyed his concentration. He was sure that if the silence had continued for a while longer, he would have gave in to his instinct and that would inevitably lead to Kazumi's death.

However, after Rukia called out to the shinigami, the one on the right stiffened and his voice, while becoming a whisper to the ear, was too loud for the silence around them.

"Oh shit. Fuck! We're fucked man! That's Kuchiki Rukia!"

The one holding Kazumi visibly paled but his bravado quickly returned.

"It's fine. She's an unseated officer and her brother is not here."

"Fuck that! Can't you feel the reiatsu coming from that punk too?"

It was as if only at that moment the one with his sword pressed against Kazumi's neck truly realized the situation. He paled even more and his hands started to shake, lightly cutting Kazumi's skin and drawing a thin line of blood. While that sight only aggravated Ichigo more, thanks to Rukia's interference, he was able to think more straightly and remained stationary. There was one thing he knew. An animal was at its most dangerous point when cornered, without a way out. He had to tread carefully or something tragic could happen.

However, it was not meant to end happily. The shinigami, realizing there was no way out started to insanely laugh. His psychotic cries scared Ichigo more than anything so far he had seen that day. The shinigami laughed once more and turned his head to stare at the teen.

"Haaa, I'm going to die... ha-ha-ha..." He withdrew the sword from Kazumi's neck and Ichigo almost sighed in relief.

"But, I'm not going to be the only one!" The shinigami yelled and in a swift motion, thrusted his sword into Kazumi's back, forcing the tip of the blade to stick out of her front.

Ichigo's face went blank and he emotionlessly watched the blood gushing from the wound. It was almost like a waterfall; Ichigo thought in a bizarre fascination, his mind refusing the reality.

But the sound of the shinigami's insane laughter forced the reality back into him and when it did, Ichigo felt a myriad of emotions at once.

"NOOO!" He screamed, unable to move an inch.

Behind him, Rukia quickly muttered something and a bright light struck all three shinigami in rapid succession, knocking them away from Kazumi, who without a support began to fall down.

Before she could hit the ground, Ichigo's hands caught her and tightly gripped her arms. He refused to look at the wound, concentrating instead on her eyes.

"It's going to be okay, Kazumi. This is nothing. You're going to be..." He trailed off as warm liquid fell from his eyes.

Despite the blood gushing from her mouth, Kazumi was still alive.

"Don't cry, Ichigo... I'm the last person in this world... to deserve something like that... from you..." She said between the sharp intakes of breath.

"I'm sorry..." She continued, earning a fierce glare from the teen.

"Don't you dare! You're not dying! Not on my watch!"

With the remaining strength, Kazumi raised her hand and put one finger on his mouth.

"This is my fate Ichigo... I was supposed to die on this day..."

A chill ran through Ichigo's spine. Despite her quiet voice and the whole situation, he could hear something in Kazumi's voice that didn't belong there.

Shame.

Shame and guilt.

"What, what are you talking about..."

More tears appeared in Kazumi's eyes.

"I'm truly sorry, Ichigo... I'm... I lied to you..."

He gulped.

"Wha...what do you mean?"

She offered him a tired and pained smile.

"I... I wasn't able to escape... from the flames... by myself... I was rescued... by a shinigami... in a Captain's haori..."

The wheels in Ichigo's mind stopped. He couldn't think anymore. He couldn't listen to Kazumi, she wasn't making any sense. He tried to stop her from talking but she continued.

"I hated my life, Ichigo... this repulsive body... the animosity, hate... all around me. Even after I have died, I memories and my body... were left intact... that day, I was ready to die in the flames... I had hoped to get reborn as a new person..." She trailed off and spit the blood accumulating in her mouth.

"That man... he saved me. He told me... that he could ensure that my new life would be ideal... I didn't trust him... but it was better than nothing... he had only one condition... he wanted me to find you, help you and regularly inform him on your progress."

Ichigo blinked. It wasn't making any sense. None of it. What was she trying to tell him?

"And I did it... until the day you got injured against that officer... I had supplied him with information about you... but that day... I realized I couldn't do it anymore... I couldn't... I just..." She broke down and cried in Ichigo's arms.

He was still tightly holding her.

"I... I don't know why... but he's interested in you, Ichigo... be aware of him... I... I felt his reiatsu... he's strong... ridiculously strong... he told me that he'll make sure that ... after we destroy the last brothel... I still don't know how he knew your plan... he said that after the last one... he'll grant me my wish... "

When Ichigo remained silent and wasn't responding to her, she seemed to give up and continued to cry, the strength slowly disappearing from her body.

"What you did... it... it doesn't matter, Kazumi. You helped... you helped me greatly. Without you, I'd be long dead. You said that you stopped telling him things. You think that you betrayed me... but you have also already redeemed yourself. There is no way I can forget everything you did for me just because of this. You told him information about me? So what?! You did more good than bad! Do you hear me?" In the end, Ichigo was almost yelling, forcing Kazumi to cry harder.

"You think I'd hate you for this?! Fuck that! I'm happy that you did what you did! If you hadn't, I'd be a pile of self-loathing piece of crap! I'd have already succumbed to the guilt I feel whenever I kill! You helped me improve myself, you supported me and you have never judged me despite all the things I did! Why do you think I'm still sane? Only because of you!" Ichigo stopped to take a breath and stared at Kazumi.

"You are still the best person I have met, Kazumi. I'm sure of it."

Kazumi blinked and tried to stop the flow of tears coming from her eyes. She felt that her end was only mere seconds away.

"Ichigo... I don't know that man... I've never saw his face... but he was certainly a man, average height and he didn't sound too old too..."

Ichigo shook his head.

"It's enough Kazumi... I'll find him... I'll find him and kill him." He growled.

He didn't know who that man was but he was sure that he had used Kazumi for his own purposes. Kazumi said it herself; the man told her that he would grant her her wish after the last brothel. That only meant that he somehow staged her death...

"This is... these are the cloaks Kisuke designed for hiding one's reiatsu... that's why I though there were only eight shinigami here..." From the distance, Ichigo heard Yoruichi's shocked voice.

He was right, that man had definitely his fingers in this. Glancing at Kazumi, he noticed her consciousness slipping away and so he shook her, desperately trying to keep her alive.

"Kazumi... KAZUMI! "

The reality hit him again. She would die and there was nothing he could do to prevent it from happening. A lone tear escaped his eye.

"Kazumi... is... is there anything I can do... "

Barely conscious, Kazumi managed to open her eyes again.

"I... I... I have never been... kissed by a boy..." She smiled sadly.

Ichigo could feel the life disappearing from her body. Despite everything, she was still able to smile.

He nodded and brought his face closer to hers. His eyes closed, their lips connected and with her remaining strength, Kazumi squeezed his hand.

When Ichigo opened his eyes again, Kazumi was already dead.

But there was a happy smile on her face.

Seeing that smile, something erupted within Ichigo and he opened his mouth and screamed louder than ever before.

His scream was accompanied with an explosion. The energy within him couldn't have been contained any longer and it rapidly emerged from his body, creating a shockwave with him in the center. It threw everybody else away from him.

The raw power swirling around him became almost visible and formed a shape of a mask. A terrifying mask with two eyes and a mouth full of sharp teeth. The shape itself seemed to scream but then, all of the energy got suddenly sucked back into his body, knocking him unconscious.

...

Ichigo didn't know where he was. His body felt light and he way lying on a hard and cold surface. It was surprisingly smooth, giving the impression of a glass. However, it was also unusually comfortable, as if the current location had been built just for him. All around him was an eerie silence and he enjoyed it with his eyes closed.

But just as everything good has to come to an end, even this perfection didn't last for long. It was interrupted when a creepy and a disturbingly happy voice entered his ears.

"He, who makes a beast out of himself, gets rid of the pain of being a man, yeaaaaaaaah!" The voice exclaimed and almost continued to sing when the person the voice belonged to noticed that Ichigo was awake.

"Caaaught here in a f-oh, I see you're awake, Kingy! That's too bad, you've just crushed my hopes of slowly welcoming you here with my favorite song... well I guess you'll just have to die for that!" When he sensed something approaching him fast, Ichigo acted on instinct and abandoned his comfortable position. He rolled to the side and with wide eyes watched as a huge cleaver landed next to him.

If he hadn't moved away, it would have cut him in half.

"Oh, would you look at that, he's fucking still alive!" The voice insanely laughed and Ichigo turned around to face the owner of it.

And when he did, a greatly shocked expression found its way on his face.

"Don't you know it's impolite to stare, Kingy?"

The person in front of Ichigo was... an almost identical copy of him but not in a good way. In a disturbing way.

He now knew why the voice he kept hearing for some time sounded so crazy. The person standing in front of him was indeed a copy of him, but inverted in color. While Ichigo's hair was orange, the copy had his hair white. And it wasn't the only thing white on him. His skin and the shinigami shihakusho he wore were also white. The more disturbing features of the copy were its eyes and a...smile? Ichigo wasn't sure if the expression on the person's face could have been considered to be a smile. It was more like a smirk, a taunting grin with more than just a bit of insanity behind it. His eyes only completed the sinister aura the copy seemingly possessed. They consisted of black pupils, white irises and black sclera. No matter from what angle Ichigo looked at him, there simply wasn't a way to consider that person normal.

On his shoulder was a rather huge cleaver-like sword with a thin, hollowed-out portion running along the back edge of the blade from the base to the middle of the blade. Unlike the wielder's skin, the sword was completely black.

"You're my zanpakuto?" Was the only thing Ichigo was able to get out of himself.

The person standing opposite of him tilted his head to the side and his grin widened.

"Surprise!?" He licked his teeth and in a burst of speed appeared right in front of the teen, the blade of his sword falling down on his head.

Ichigo didn't understand what was going on but his body reacted on instinct and he quickly side-stepped the strike. However, he underestimated the power behind it and was blown away when the surface both of them were standing on exploded. Rolling few times in mid-air and painfully landing on the ground, Ichigo cursed. He got up and glanced at the attacker, who was busy admiring his handiwork.

"Hey! Why are you attacking me? Shouldn't you at least introduce yourself first?" Ichigo yelled.

The person in white slowly turned around and after seeing the half confused, half angry expression on Ichigo's face, loudly laughed.

"I should introduce myself? The fuck? You crazy, man? You think you can just waltz in here and ask the name of your zanpakuto the first time you meet him?"

Ichigo wiped the bit of blood that was flowing from a cut on his cheek and as the copy in front of him didn't appear to be hell-bent on slaying him for the time, he took a good look around. With raised eyebrows, he realized that the both of them were standing on the top of one of the many skyscrapers. They were scattered in every way, as long as his eyes could see.

"Where the hell am I, anyway?" Ichigo muttered under his nose.

"We're in your mindscape." A deep voice stated, scaring the hell out of Ichigo who hasn't noticed an older looking man standing next to him.

"Yo! Old man! Don't fuck with me, I told you to stay away from this." The person in white shihakusho, Ichigo's zanpakuto spirit, exclaimed while slowly walking towards them.

"Don't worry. He's all yours..." The old man stated.

Ichigo was still trying to calm his breathing from the surprise but while doing so, he was also able to study the old man.

Unlike the Zanpakuto spirit, the old man was covered in a long black overcoat with a burgundy highlight that flared out into ragged ends. He wore a semi-transparent wraparound sunglasses. He appeared to be middle-aged but also tall and lean-built.

The Zanpakuto spirit noticed Ichigo studying the old man and before the teen could say anything, he spoke first.

"You don't need to know who he is... for now." He said in a serious tone that changed into a maniacal laughter in a matter of an instant. It served as a warning for Ichigo to dodge another attempt on his life.

"I think I'm jealous that you're not paying enough attention to me, Ichigo!" The Zanpakuto exclaimed and after Ichigo dodged his strike, he spun around and kicked the teen a good distance away, far from the old man who closed his eyes and sadly sighed.

After a painful landing, Ichigo coughed and spit on the ground, his saliva mixed with a bit of blood.

"You're a violent bastard..." He muttered and slowly got up, holding his stomach with one hand. The strength of his Zanpakuto was a no laughing matter. He almost fell his innards move around when he had received the kick.

"And you're not? I've watched you kill all those weaklings, Kingy... and I must say I'm really proud of you! I have wanted to meet you ever since I was able to whisper to you. It took some time to purge the previous host from that sword though." Ichigo's Zanpakuto grimaced as if he was recalling something distasteful.

Ichigo remembered the curiosity he felt when his sword that had used to be a bit curved straightened itself a week or so after he had picked it up.

"So... mindscape, huh? Care to explain to me why is it filled with skyscrapers?"

The Zanpakuto grinned.

"Now we're getting somewhere!"

He lowered his sword and stabbed it into the ground, easily piercing the concrete. Before Ichigo's eyes, an amazing amount of reiatsu started to leak from his Zanpakuto, making even the teen sweat. The Zanpakuto hid his grin and replaced it with a serious expression.

"Ichigo... you've asked me for my name but you don't deserve to know it. Fight me. That's my own way of getting to know somebody. Without that, you'll never find out my name." The reiatsu emerging from him became visible. It was a torrent of a black and red energy.

"Can you feel it? This is but a fraction of my power and with that, your own too. Just like me, you can be tremendously strong. Imagine what we could do together. You don't know it, but this power of yours is being restrained, courtesy of that old man." When he saw Ichigo frown, his stare intensified.

"Do not be bothered as it is for your own good. It prevents you from being crushed by your own power as you need to slowly get used to it. Me and you... our powers are tightly bound together. The more of your power you will be able to unleash, the more of my power you'll receive and believe me when I say it, my power is not easy to handle." The vicious energy slowly calmed down and the serious expression on the Zanapkuto's face changed into a grin again.

"Surprise me, Kingy and tell me that you understood what I have just said."

Ichigo narrowed his eyes and remained quiet for a while. His mind was processing the information, trying to remember everything.

"I think I do understand... there is no easy way to get to know your name. I have to slowly earn it."

The Zanpakuto nodded and threw a simple sword at Ichigo, who hastily caught it.

"For now, this'll be your zanpakuto. Now, let the swords talk, Kingy!" He yelled and in a flash, he was next to Ichigo, bringing his cleaver down on the teen.

Trying to block the attack, Ichigo's legs almost buckled under his Zanpakuto's power and so he let the cleaver slide along his sword's blade and he rolled to the side.

He glanced at his sword and then at his Zanpakuto's cleaver.

'This is impossible. I feel like I have a bamboo stick in my hands while he has a perfect weapon.' He thought and quickly blocked another attack but once again, he was blown back.

He made a few sommer-saults to let the energy of the attack disappear and landed a good distance away from his Zanpakuto.

"I'm happy, Kingy! You're not the scared pansy I had thought you'd be at first." The Zanapkuto said and used a Shunpo to appear in front of the teen again.

After a series of exchanges, the Zanpakuto stopped his attacks and watched Ichigo trying to keep his composure.

"We are all killers on the inside, Kingy. Every human wants to kill something. Those who feel bloodlust want to kill other humans. Those who are hungry want to kill to feed themselves. Those who are thirsty want to kill that thirst. Those who are bored want to kill the boredom. Those who wait for something want to kill time. There is only one thing that prevents humans from killing everything and embracing the animal within them. It's a thing called a reason." He stated and lowered his cleaver, allowing Ichigo to do the same with his sword.

"I want you to throw this reason away when you fight. Even you want to kill, don't try to deny it. You want to clean the Soul Society, to kill the trash. Do it. Don't think about it. Kill the freaking trash. Use your instinct and fucking do it." It seemed that the Zanpakuto was trying to highlight some words but Ichigo had no idea for what reason.

"I've been watching you for a long time but ever since you've come to the Soul Society, I had become satisfied with you. Don't change it now. The only thing you need to do is to start enjoying the killing. You don't want to? No worries, I can enjoy it even for you. But remember that on the inside, in your heart, you are a killer."

Ichigo wanted to protest but found himself unable to do it. While he was sure that his Zanpakuto was partially insane, there was strength, a conviction behind his words that made it hard to refuse them.

"There are some things you need to realize before you can hope to learn my name. What had happened in the real word helped you unlock more of your power. However, along with it, you have unlocked the rest of your memories that had been previously blocked." The Zanpakuto stated and Ichigo widened his eyes.

After that, his sight slowly got blurry and he realized he was losing his consciousness.

"Do not disappoint me, Kingy. Don't become a moping pile of shit after this or my power will consume you, whether you'd like it or not. Remember my words."

That was the last thing Ichigo heard before he blacked out.

...

The next time he awoke, the air around him wasn't peaceful, fresh it wasn't even quiet. And he was feeling completely uncomfortable. His back hurt, his head hurt. He was sticky all over his body, the dried blood irritating his skin. He was momentarily unable to even think. His mind and his heart were hollow. His emotions were all over the place, one moment he felt numb, one moment he felt elated, one moment he felt depressed and one moment he felt murderous.

It was a bittersweet symphony of the reality that coldly welcomed him back from his unconsciousness.

"Ah, Ichigo, you're awake." Rukia's voice entered his ears from somewhere behind him.

The teen blinked a few times in an attempt to clear his eyes from the unpleasant stuff in the corners of them before his muscles tensed and he slowly raised himself to a sitting position. He cracked his neck joints and glanced around him. It seemed they were still somewhere near the brothel as he could see a pile of dead bodies on his far right. Not to mention the stench of the blood that violently attacked his sense of smell almost instantly after he had woken up.

"Where is she?" He asked. While his voice surprised Rukia, it surprised him even more. It was really calm and even.

She pointed forward and his eyes traced the direction to see something in a distance. It was Kazumi's dead body covered with a thick blanket.

"I was sure that you'd want to be the one to bury her so we left her like that…" Rukia started but was stopped when Ichigo raised his hand and then quickly lowered it.

He turned to her and nodded, his face radiating gratitude.

"Yeah, I do. Thanks." He stated and supporting himself with one hand, he got up and headed towards the place where Kazumi lied.

Standing above her covered corpse, Ichigo hesitated for a moment before crouching down and pulling the blanket away.

He felt his calm demeanor breaking. The harsh reality was showing him the proof of its absoluteness.

Kazumi was dead.

However, even after all the time he was unconscious, even after death, she was still smiling. He swallowed all the emotions building up on the tip of his tongue and with a clenched jaw, he put the blanket away.

It took him less than an hour to make a solid grave for her, his swallowed emotions prompting him to work harder and faster. He finished it with a small gravestone that said only two sentences:

Here lies Kazumi.

Even the death couldn't erase her smile,

and even the death will fear her legacy.

Ichigo let his gaze linger on it for a bit longer before turning around to face Rukia with a steel stare.

"Take me to the Academy and to the Gotei 13. I'm going to create a Heaven, whether they'll like it or not."

End of chapter 3.

As always, thanks for reading and leave a review on your way out.

See you later.