Chapter Twenty One
An emergency captain's meeting was called at that point when too much pandemonium occurred. "Who called the meeting?" Suì-Fēng asked after arriving the meeting hall and taking her place.
"Me." Everyone was surprised that it was Kuchiki-taichō who spoke. He rarely gave his input for anything... he just followed orders.
"Well, what is it?" Kyōraku-taichō asked.
"We found the guard who was involved in Aizen's direct release... however, we fear we lost him before we could get any viable information." Kuchiki-taichō admitted
"Where is he?" Rose asked
"He committed suicide." Kuchiki-taichō said. "His name was Sugo Kenta."
Everyone looked annoyed. "Well, this is great!" Kensei rolled his eyes.
"I sent him to the 4th for further verification." Kuchiki-taichō said.
"But the 4th is out patroling." Suì-Fēng said, slightly confused at what was happening. "And where is Hitsugaya-taichō?" Kuchiki-taichō sighed before looking to the door and nodded. Kuna Mashiro entered swiftly with three young girls behind her. "Not this nonsense again."
"Kurosaki Karin is currently in Seireitei along the eastern quadrant. She attacked the patroling group there." Mashiro announced. "Hitsugaya swapped patrol units with the 4th and they are under the protection of the 10th because they were directly targeted . He further enlisted six people to ward off the attack and try to capture her."
"What is the meaning of this?" Kurotsuchi-taichō asked.
"You failed to retain her when I could have nipped this in a bud, risk free. You have no room to talk." Mashiro hissed at him, her reiatsu flaring rather uncontrollably. It did not take a genius to realise that she was pissed. She had warned them but obviously, what could they expect now that things were spiralling out of control like she said they would? And Kuchiki was well-aware of how strong she was. He had known her for centuries because they were both nobles. He was well aware that she could not use her zanpakuto so she relied on her limbs.
She turned to the sōtaichō. "Hitsugaya-taichō and I had been planning and monitoring in secret and we discovered that they have plans to weaken the barrier. Hitsugaya is currently at Kido-corps and should he not be here means something happened otherwise we would have been found and notified by now."
"Then let's send out all our troops then." Zaraki smirked. "Have an all out blood fest."
"No." Mashiro said. "Karin is unstable and uses an illusion based zanpakutō. We wouldn't want any other divisions to end up like the 12th. No charging in blindly."
"And who are you to call the shots?" Suì-Fēng asked, tired of her meddling
"I would prefer if you actually listened to people with common sense at this point in time seeing how you haven't." Mashiro was visibly angry now. Kuchiki-taichō could not blame her.
"Dumbass shinigami." Haruki muttered rather loudly. They heard her but she clearly did not care.
"Now, due to your blindness, we have another issue at hand." She looked behind her and Yuzu sheepishly stepped forward.
"He... hello." Yuzu greeted
"Who is this?" Ukitake asked
"... my name is Kurosaki Yuzu, I'm Karin's sister." She announced
"There's more of them?" Suì-Fēng huffed in annoyance
"Does she fight like her brother?" Kenpachi asked in excitement
"She's snuck in through the dangai with the help of her cousins. They are quincies." Mashiro said. "So far, they are the only ones who managed to slip through."
"... I'm sorry. I asked to be sent here but I was denied. It was an emergency." Yuzu said before sheepishly walking towards the sōtaichō who had been suspiciously quiet. The other captains stood on guard but she gave him a folder. "This is a police database list of Tokyo residents who have gone missing. One of Ichigo's friends works there and received a few DNA samples from the victims' families. She was able to match some them to a bucket that was filled with blood in the warehouse where my sister was found. Meaning that this drawing..." She pulled out the drawing Karin made when she first returned home. "... is correct. They were kidnapping humans."
Everyone looked surprised. "Thank you very much for the information, Kurosaki-san." The sōtaichō finally spoke. "But that could have waited until it was safe to return."
"But—"
"Right now, we are in a crisis." Yamamoto said
"I can help." She claimed.
"And you guys are doing a poor job anyways." Haruki spoke up. "There's a huge barrier blocking off reiryoku somewhere nearby and I'm surprised you can't feel it. Up north."
There was a lot of confusion in the room. "Kurosaki Haruki by the way." She announced. "Little sister, Mayaka."
"Haruki is a harbinger quincy so I wouldn't doubt what she is saying." Mashiro said. "And being that it's the direction of kidō corps, I think that explains a lot."
"So... what do you suggest we do?" The sōtaichō asked. "Clearly we failed to listen to you from the beginning but, what do we do now?"
"Have your divisions stationed around the outskirts to help the 10th ward off attacks." Mashiro said. "Kuchiki-taichō already has his marching around the walls of Seireitei. As for Karin, we will deal with her. Kuchiki... look into the guard that died. Everything you can find about him." Kuchiki nodded quietly in compliance.
"And the girls?" The sōtaichō asked.
"Ukitake-taichō will take Mayaka-chan and Yuzu-chan to Rangiku and the others. I will take Haruki to kidō corps." Mashiro said. "Otherwise, declare a state of emergency but do not engage unless necessary."
Tōshirō knew it was better not to engage until he could figure a way out. He had tried using a kidō spell and just as he thought, something was blocking him from doing so. He bounded off a chair as the man used his zanpakutō like a laser. Tōshirō feared he couldn't use his zanpakutō either despite the other man being able to. Possibly because whatever was happening wasn't affecting him. Even if Tōshirō could use his shikai, indoors was a terrible idea considering how destructive it was. Otherwise, Tōshirō was powerless. It seemed the block only worked on kidō but he needed to pinpoint where the block was so he could get out.
Was it outside the building? Hitsugaya wondered as he sped through the room, dodging the rapid fire.
Get closer. Hyōrinmaru instructed
Geez! I'm sorry, can't you see I'm baking a fucking cake right now? Tōshirō sarcastically retorted.
You know what I meant. The dragon snarled
And as you can see, I'm trying. Tōshirō hissed back. Now, any helpful advice would be appreciated.
Release me. He claimed
For the love of God... I can't you braindead worm with scales! Hitsugaya flashstepped before rushing for his legs. Nakamura noticed and tried to fire for him but Hitsugaya threw his sword in the air before disappearing. The sword whirled upwards before spinning back down to earth. Nakamura tried to knock the free roaming projectile but Hitsugaya appeared behind him and kicked him at the back of his neck before grabbing sword.
Nakamura tried to turn around to attack but Hitsugaya already had the upper hand and turned midair, striking the perpetrator along the shoulder blade. The man stumbled backwards, holding his bloodied his shoulder as he looked at the young Captain. "Huh... and we always wondered what was so special about this child that would allow the old fart to let him become a captain."
Tōshirō said nothing. "Not much of a talker, I see." Benjiro laughed
"I just want answers... what are you and Aizen planning?" He asked
"None of your business." Benjiro chuckled
"If you tell us, I'll make sure you get off personally." Hitsugaya insisted.
Benjiro was heavily amused and started laughing. "And be at the mercy of Soul Society? Again? Pleading for mercy in your malicious hands? I'd rather kill myself slowly and painfully."
"Fine... then tell me about yourself." Tōshirō insisted.
"Eager to buy me dinner first?" He wore a shit eating grin. Baked in with the sagging skin and wrinkles from old age, he had a huge blue-purple scar on his face and his right eye was covered with a piece of cloth.
"What happened to your face?" Hitsugaya asked
"Soul Society. Acid then the soul sealing pit." Nakamura laughed. "Wanna come closer to see?"
"Why were you executed?" Hitsugaya asked
"So much meddling." Benjiro sighed comically
"Amuse me."
"Sadistic bastard. Imagine thinking that being executed for going against the Ryōdoji Clan is amusing." Benjiro hissed and Tōshirō frowned.
You remember that story?
Ah... Hitsugaya sighed. The death of a close friend didn't bother him until recently when the sōtaichō was becoming more hostile with him for his entanglements. 'Maybe we killed the wrong one...' Yamamoto had claimed. Hitsugaya went down a deep rabbit hole into the executions held in Soul Society... then suddenly, the story clicked and he realised who this was. It was when the Ryōdoji clan was still held in high regard and this man tried to release information on their real doings on their noble estate.
He was killed but the Ryōdoji clan was only exposed afterwards and sent banished. The news and all the documents painted him as a martyr, sacrificing his life for what was right inspite of the manipulation done by the Ryōdoji clan. But the truth was Soul Society had, once again, fucked up. Hitsugaya noticed a running theme: if they were weak, kill them... if they weren't, banish them or lock them up. The vizards and Urahara almost fell into this trap but managed to escape on the back of Yoruichi—a powerful noble who vouched for them. And it seems that many did.
But Soul Society once again fucked up at making sure they were dead.
"You went quiet." Benjiro snickered. "Oi! I hope you aren't feeling sorry for me! I'm not pathetic, you little brat!"
"How did your survive?" Hitsugaya asked. "It's been years."
"Does it matter?" Benjiro asked
"There are more of you, aren't there?" Hitsugaya asked.
"The conversation is over." Benjiro charged for Hitsugaya, a blade slipping out of the hole he used for lasers before gripping it and swinging at Hitsugaya.
When Hitsugaya-taichō said not to underestimate Karin, he certainly wasn't joking. Now Karin was engulfed into a ball of darkness as doppelgangers exited the ball and attacked the six shinigami remaining.
"Hanatarō!" Isane called out to the 3rd seat
"Hai!" He waved his blade again, creating a huge wave of light but this time, it didn't work.
"Tch! Why is this getting so hard?" Renji was about to swing his word.
"Careful! We don't want to hurt the real one." Rukia reminded everyone before clashing swords with one.
"Kira! Use your zanpakutō." Matsumoto ordered.
"Omote o agero, Wabisuke!" Kira activated his shikai and moved to quickly to clash swords with a shadow. As soon as he hit it, the doppelganger's sword became heavy and evaporated.
"Brilliant thinking, Rangiku!" Rukia said. Because the doppelgangers were most likely Karin's zanpakutō in a different form and heavily divided, Kira could use his zanpakuto's abilities to hit it directly and make it heavier (or evaporate in this case). This way, they could find who is real and who is the imposter.
"Yosh! Let's go!" Kira flashstepped through the army of doppelgangers.
Mashiro did not miss this... at all. Her and Haruki rushed to Kidō corps and from a distance, Haruki was already commenting on the black seal covering the place. They landed in the courtyard. "I don't see anything." Mashiro admitted.
"Of course you don't, useless shinigami." Haruki hissed.
"I get it, shinigami suck. I know, why do you think I don't live here anymore?" Mashiro rolled her eyes
"I mean, you're a bit of an abomination too with the hollow side." Even as an elementary school teaching assistant, never had Mashiro wanted to yeet a child as much as today.
"How far does the seal extend?" Mashiro asked.
Haruki began to whistle. Mashiro had no idea why until she realised it was an incantation. She could now see the seal for sometime until Haruki stopped. "It's over the entire building, but it has trapping energy. Anyone inside cannot come out but anyone can go inside."
"Any idea why?"
"There's a powerful spell on this place." Haruki said. "And it's coming from the inside. I feel three major bursts of reiryōku."
"Hitsugaya and two people."
"Three separate shinigami. Two are fighting and... one is further away from the two." Haruki said. "So the person who placed the spell must be on the inside. I can find them but I'd have to go in."
"Should I come with?"
"Your reiatsu is incredibly weak. It's obvious you're saving your energy for something else." Haruki said. "Go to Karin. I'll come with this Captain person once you've figured things out."
"... if you insist." Mashiro said as she disappeared while Haruki rushed into the building
The sound of metal clashing against metal filled the air as Haruki walked into the building, masking her own spiritual pressure so as not to be detected. She passed a giant hall where the sounds were most prominent and peeked in. Stupid old shinigami me—wait a minute... She stopped as she peered inside, seeing a young man in a white haori with spiky white hair engaging with another figure in a robe expertly.
THAT'S THE CAPTAIN?! Haruki thought in shock as she stared at him. It was shocking to her that the captain behind this entire shitshow going in a somewhat progressive direction was a young, hot guy around her cousins' age. He dodged his attacks expertly before trying to plant a kick to the perpetrator's chest. The man blocked him but the young captain managed to raise his other leg to entrap him and flip him over before landing on his feet. For someone who was constrained to using just hakuda and his sealed sword, he was incredibly skilled.
Stop that. Haruki reprimanded herself as she caught herself gaping before repeating stupid shinigami, stupid shinigami over and over again before trying to detect where the energy source was coming from and continued to look through the halls.
Hitsugaya noticed that his opponent had gotten distracted as he continuously kept glancing at the door, as if he was expecting someone. Hitsugaya flipped out of the way before striking him but he dodged. "Something is not right..." Benjiro muttered before pulling away from Hitsugaya and rushing it the meeting hall
"What the... oi!" Hitsugaya rushed after him just as fast. What the fuck is going on?
Someone probably entered the building without his knowledge. Hyōrinmaru said
But he's concerned. We're virtually powerless here... Hitsugaya commented
Then it must be someone he did not expect.
Benjiro entered the room where the men were holed up and looked around. "Where is he?" He hissed but when he looked to his left, he got kicked in the face someone outside the room who jumped down from the ceiling.
Hitsugaya stopped at the sight of the young girl who attacked Nakamura. "Who are you?"
"Shh!" The girl held a finger to her lip as she started to whistle.
I can feel her reiatsu here. Hitsugaya noted. But the spell...
It doesn't affect her... because she isn't a shinigami
... A quincy.
"You little bitch..." Nakamura charged for her but she jumped up and flipped off the walls, as if bouncing while still whistling as she emitted an attack spell from her hands and aimed it downwards at him.
"Get out of the way." Haruki told Hitsugaya who flashstepped immediately into a nearby room as a light shined through the whole hallway and broke through the surrounding barrier.
She broke the barrier. Hyōrinmaru pointed out.
Hitsugaya stepped out of the room at see the perpetrator on the floor, struggling to get up after the wave drained his energy. "... Thanks, uh..." He told her.
"Kurosaki Haruki, Yuzu's cousin." She greeted him. "You're Hitsugaya Tōshirō I believe." He nodded. Haruki walked into another room nearby and kicked it open before picking up a random man who was there and the book in front of him.
"Please! Please don't hurt me." Haruki dragged him to Hitsugaya in the hallway.
"He's the one responsible for that seal" Haruki ripped the necklace off his neck and gave it to him. Hitsugaya held it and he felt it. The reiatsu felt very similar to the one that was within the halls a few seconds ago. "It's not a shinigami barrier for sure. It has since inklings of hollow energy as well. And he was using it to mask some pretty bad energy in this room too." She showed him the book and the page it was on specifically. It was a sacred book for the members of kidō corps on how to regulate the energy of the soul barrier.
Forbidden kidō.
Hitsugaya grabbed him by the neck. "Name."
"I'm sorry. Please! Please don't—"
"I asked. Name." Hitsugaya was tired of the games.
"Ma... ma... Machida Takemichi." He said. "They... they put me up to this. Please believe me."
Hitsugaya was distracted by a chuckle and he turned as Nakamura Benjiro started to stand on his two again. "I'm not done with you and that little brat. He fixed the glove on his hands before aiming. Hitsugaya quickly formed a binding spell on the man before turning to Nakamura.
"Haruki, get all these people out of here." Hitsugaya yelled before performing bakudō to block the attack. Haruki gathered all the men, leading them out before looking back at him one last time as he finally unsheathed his zanpakutō once more and let out a strong burst of reiatsu that left her stunned, even blowing down the barrier he just made and sweeping his opponent off his feet and out of the building through a wall.
"Hurry up!" One of the men called and Haruki followed them out.
They'll have to forgive me for that one wall... Hitsugaya thought to himself as he flashstepped out the building through the hole in the wall. Nakamura was back on his feet, ready to charge again.
Will you use me now?
"Sōten ni zase, Hyōrinmaru." Hitsugaya activated his shikai and a dragon made of ice flew out and circulated around itself.
Ukitake-taichō was leading Mayaka and Yuzu to where Rukia, Renji and all the other shinigami involved in the plan were fighting Karin. "Ukitake-sama—"
"No need for formalities." Ukitake insisted. "Calling me Ukitake-san is just fine."
"Ano... Ukitake-san." Yuzu asked. "You were quiet the whole time we were there. Did you know something?"
"I know everything, Yuzu-chan." He said. "I'm sorry... I didn't protect your sister. None of us did and we failed."
"No, no... it's not your fault." She said.
Mayaka stopped them for a second to sign. Isn't Karin that way?"What's the matter?" Ukitake asked.
"Mayaka is deaf. She's trying to tell us something." Yuzu turned to her. "Go ahead."
Isn't Karin that way? She signed to her.
"Which way?" Yuzu asked
"I thought she was deaf... She can read lips?" Ukitake asked
"Yes but please wait for her to finish." Yuzu pleaded and Ukitake stopped interrupting. Mayaka pointed in a direction to the east. "No, she's fighting with some shinigami that way."
But her energy is that way... Mayaka insisted.
"Maya-chan, you're confusing us." Yuzu said
"What is she saying?" Ukitake asked.
"She's saying Karin isn't where we are headed." Yuzu said and Ukitake was just as confused.
"I would take what she is saying seriously, Yuzu-chan." Ukitake said. "But, let us go and check what is going on first with Rukia-san and all the others." Yuzu looked at Mayaka who was very much pouting at the fact that no one was taking her seriously but Ukitake smiled at her. "Don't worry, Mayaka-chan. We believe you... we just need to be sure we're not being tricked by your cousin's zanpakuto. It's a very crafty spirit, that one." Mayaka nodded before following Ukitake and Yuzu as the got closer and closer to where they are.
As soon as they got there, Yuzu was perplexed to see them fighting air while someone stood on a roof top, staring down at them. It was a man an under the light of the moon, she could clearly see the red cloth around his eyes... similar to what Karin was wearing at the hospital the day she tried to escape. "What the hell?" Yuzu wondered out loud, confusing Ukitake and Mayaka who could see them taking down clone after clone. Then suddenly, it all clicked.
Mayaka was right.
"We're getting closer." Matsumoto announced as she used Haineko to cut through another imposter using the ash.
"Maybe they are all imposters and she escaped." Rukia noted as they were only facing a few.
"She used an illusion to escape." Kira said
"Wait! Where the fuck is the guy we caught earlier?" They looked to where they left him, tied to a pile but he was gone.
"Guys! Watch out!" They heard a voice call out but it was too late. All the imposters evaporated but when the shadows settled, there were sparkling dots on the floor that turned red before exploding.