Next installation! Enjoy!
A few weeks had gone by and Umeko had adapted to life in the Seireitei swimmingly. She would wake up with Shinji and accompany him to his captains' meetings. Since she was not a captain, she would wait outside with Shinji's lieutenant, Sosuke Aizen. After the meetings, she would follow Yoruichi back to her division to train with her and Byakuya Kuchiki.
Today was a special training day for Umeko.
"So, Miss Ishimine, what are you going to do with Captain Shihoin today?" Aizen asked the young girl. The two were sitting against the wall of the meeting room. The brunette lieutenant in a seiza position and the small girl with her knees up to her chest. Aizen was a beautiful man with gentle eyes and a calming voice. Umeko swore she was in love, but she wanted to keep her crush a secret.
Umeko blushed and ran her hand through her loose, curly locks. "Lieutenant Aizen, you can just call me Umeko like everyone else…" She giggled nervously and then mentally shook herself. "But today Miss Yoruichi is gonna teach me and Bya-kun how to use shunpo! I'm gonna be the fastest soul reaper ever!" Umeko jumped up in excitement and then turned to Aizen as he chuckled.
"I have faith that you will be the fastest soul reaper in all of history, Umeko. And you are more than welcome to call me Sosuke as Captain Hirako does as well." He winked at her and then stood up as the door to the meeting room opened. The captains filed out, some of them giving Umeko and Sosuke a wave or a nod before heading to their perspective divisions. Yoruichi Shihoin stopped in front of the two with Shinji behind her.
"Heya Keo," She ruffled Umeko's hair, receiving a giggle in return. "Are you ready for today's lesson?"
Umeko squealed and jumped up and down. "Yes! Yes! Yes! Let's go!" She grabbed Yoruichi's hand and started running towards the second division. The captain laughed and followed her spitfire of an apprentice.
After the short run to the second division training grounds, the two mocha skinned females met young Byakuya Kuchiki who was training with a bokken.
Umeko ran up to the raven-haired boy and jumped on his back.
"HI BYA-KUN!"
Byakuya yelled and ran around trying to remove the red headed menace. He started smacking her with the wooden sword and Yoruichi shook her head.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you…"
There was a scream from Umeko as Byakuya hit her on the head with the bokken and then she dropped to her feet in a huff. The boy stopped and turned around to apologize just as a small flaming fist came into contact with his chest. Byakuya was knocked onto his back and Umeko stood over him, hands ablaze, chest heaving.
"Okay time to train!" Yoruichi snatched Umeko by her waist to allow Byakuya a chance to reach his feet before his training partner tried to set his hair on fire. Umeko still trying to lunge towards the boy so she could get a few more licks in.
"Keo, you better put those away before I get the bucket again." Yoruichi threatened.
Umeko gasped and shook her hands to rid them of flames as Byakuya slowly got up, coughing.
"Let's get started before someone actually gets hurt." Yoruichi winked at Umeko.
Shinji was sitting behind his desk doing paperwork when the door to the office opened revealing a very beaten up Umeko. Her face was bruised and her eye was swollen; Shinji jumped up and knelt down to her.
"What the hell happened?! Did that Kuchiki brat hurt you?!" Shinji grabbed his little girl's face and examined her bruising. Lifting her top lip to see if she had any missing teeth.
Umeko looked down at her feet and handed Shinji a note without making eye contact.
Hey Blondie before you try to storm the sixth,
Keo learned shunpo today and hit a few too many trees...
Have her practice in an open space for a while.
-YS
Shinji chuckled and put a finger under Umeko's chin to make her raise her head and look at him.
"You'll get there, Keo. Sometimes it takes a while." He gave her a cheshire grin and proceeded to tickle her sides until she exploded with childish giggles.
"So did you still have fun today?" The blonde captain picked her up and set her on his desk so he could continue paperwork.
Umeko grinned showing off her unusually sharp canines and nodded before stopping suddenly and holding her head.
"Oww, Shinji my head hurts."
Sosuke's calming voice was heard from the other side of the room.
"Captain, would you like me to take Umeko to the fourth? She might have a concussion."
Shinji looked at his lieutenant skeptically and then to Umeko whose eyes started drooping.
He sighed and rolled his eyes, "Yeah go ahead, I should be done with this mess by the time you two get back."
Aizen nodded and offered his hand to the small girl. Umeko held back a squeal as she jumped off of the desk and tried to shunpo to him. Her world was spinning so she aimed for Aizen's desk instead of him and almost ran head first into it if the lieutenant hadn't blocked her way and picked her up.
"How about we wait to practice another day, okay Umeko?" She blushed a deep shade of crimson before nodding and resting her chin on his shoulder.
"Bye Shinji!" Umeko waved over Aizen's shoulder and blew Shinji a kiss that he pretend to catch and put in his pocket, pulling a giggle from the redhead.
Sosuke Aizen and Umeko reached the fourth division in a few minutes, the handsome brunette decided against using shunpo so Umeko wouldn't get sick. They were greeted by Lieutenant Seinosuke Yamada who eyed the girl and nodded to Aizen before leading them into an examination room. Aizen sat down on the exam table with Umeko in his lap, her head nodding back and forth as she tried to stay awake.
Lieutenant Yamada shook his head, "You should ask her some questions to keep her awake."
Aizen sighed and turned Umeko towards his body.
"Miss Umeko, what is your favorite color?"
Umeko's eyes lit up, "Oooh pink!"
Aizen chuckled, "What is your favorite food?"
"Udon, like my mama used to make..." She looked down at her lap in sadness. "I miss her…"
The brunette's face fell slightly, "I'm very sorry Miss Umeko. I cannot imagine how you feel." He gave her a gentle hug.
"It's okay Lieutenant Aizen, Shinji says they would be proud of me." She looked up at him. "Do you think so too?"
Aizen smiled, "Of course. You are a very brave girl."
Umeko smiled and giggled. When she opened her eyes, Aizen could tell that her right pupil was significantly larger than her left.
"Oh my...That's not good..."
"Now Lieutenant, I thought you had better bedside manner than that." Captain Unohana walked in with the usual soft smile on her face. Umeko heard her voice and tried to jump out of Aizen's lap but became dizzy and fell back into his chest.
"Oh, my dear Umeko. What happened?" Unohana asked as she picked the young girl up and examined her face and eyes.
"I learned shunpo today! Byakuya-kun says I'm a clutz because I keep running into things…"
Unohana smiled shook her head. "I'm going to let you in on a little secret, Umeko. Captain Hirako also had trouble when he first learned shunpo."
Umeko gasped and then giggled.
"Okay, Lieutenant Aizen, just tell Captain Hirako to keep Umeko awake and alert for the next 24 hours just to make sure nothing gets worse. She's kept consciousness this whole time?" Aizen nodded. "That is a good sign then. You've been a brave girl, Umeko." Unohana reached into her haori and retrieved a sticky bun wrapped in a banana leaf. For a child she would usually gift them with a piece of candy, but Umeko would rather have actual food.
Umeko squealed and unwrapped the bun before popping the whole thing into her tiny mouth. She started doing a little dance and Unohana laughed quietly as she stood up.
"Alright, you two are free to go. Have a wonderful rest of your day."
Aizen and Umeko left the fourth and walked hand in hand back to the fifth.
"Sosuke, what is your favorite color?" Umeko asked Aizen after a bout of silence.
Aizen pondered the question for a moment. "Hmm, purple is my favorite. It is royal."
Umeko giggled and swung their hands, "Pink and purple are like the cousins of the color world!"
"I suppose they are," Aizen chuckled.
When they reached the office, they saw Byakuya Kuchiki sitting on the couch with a pink box in his lap.
"Hi Bya-kun!" Umeko ran up to Byakuya and stopped halfway because of her dizziness. All three of the males in the room moved to steady her, but Byakuya was the closest. The young man guided her to the couch and sat her down before kneeling front of her. He rubbed the back of his neck and looked down at his feet.
"That were-cat said you had a concussion, so I brought you something that always makes me feel better." He gave Umeko the medium sized pink box and sat back on his feet. She lifted the top and inside was a green plush toy.
"His name is Ambassador Seaweed and he- ARE YOU OKAY?!" Umeko had started crying and hugged Ambassador Seaweed.
"Thank you so much Bya-kun! I'll take good care of him!" She pulled him in for a rough hug, the girl didn't know her own strength and was suffocating the Kuchiki heir.
"Okay, brat…let's go home." Shinji picked up the sniffling girl by the waist and held her at his side as she waved goodbye to Byakuya and Aizen.
"Shinji…how old is Sosuke?" Umeko asked after they left the office.
Shinji stopped in his tracks and looked down at his adoptive daughter, "Why do you ask?"
Umeko blushed and hung her head, "Uh…No reason. Just wondering."
Shinji sighed and kept walking. "Umeko, he is a grown man and you are a young girl. If he ever tries to hurt you or act unprofessional with you, I will rip his throat out. As a matter of fact, if any boy touches you, I'll shove Sakanade right up his-"
"Okay I get it! No boys! Yeesh." Umeko covered her ears with one and Ambassador Seaweed since she was still holding him.
"Now how about we work on your studies, I want you to be prepared when you go into the academy." Shinji said as he slid the door to their home open.
Umeko dropped to her feet and walked to her room with her new plush toy in tow.
"Or just ignore me and go to your room. That's cool too…" Shinji toed his shoes off and hung his haori. "Kids these days."