A few words from the author: Thank you to all who read my story, and a bigger thank you to all who reviewed it.

Warning: this story contains blood and Lead (a substance known to the state of California to cause cancer, birth defects and other reproductive harm).

Enjoy

March 2, 1969; 0028 local time; East of Cambodia

Ichigo dropped the body and took off his helmet. He then tried to calm Kiyone

"Shhhhhhh, Kiyone, It's me, Ichigo." He said as he put his finger to his lips. Kiyone quieted down and Ichigo cut her bonds. "Kiyone, stay here and wait for me, I'm going to go and get the others." Ichigo whispered, he gave her his pistol, put on his helmet and dissappeared into the night.

Ichigo crept back to the foliage near the clearing and formulated a devious plan. First he would lure the man near the campfire into the jungle, then he would kill him. He would not make it a clean kill like the last time, that would be a job for his knife. He would make sure there was lots of loud screams, and then out of nowhere he would jump out of the bushes and finish the man in the hat.

Ichigo was about to put his plan into motion when he saw the man next to the fire get up, the man in the hat handed the other man his AK-47 and walked over next to the fire. The man laid down near the fire and put his hat over his face.

Ichigo waited for a half hour before creeping through the bushes behind the man guarding the two prisoners. He slipped silently out of the bushes, cupped his hand over the man's mouth and put the blade his knife right on the man's neck. The man froze, dropped his weapon, and started breathing rapidly. Renji and Ishida looked up at the man and saw the black hands and face. They were terrified.

Ichigo slowly cut into the man's neck with his knife, letting the blood slowly flow out of the freshly opened veins and arteries onto his blade. It oozed over the hilt of the knife and onto Ichigo's fingers. Ichigo cut deeper, letting the blood flow down the man's windpipe before dropping him on the ground and leaving him to drown in his own blood.

Ichigo looked at his blood-covered hands. The wetness of fresh blood seemed to give him a feeling of power. He cast a menacing look at the sleeping man in the hat. Ichigo snuck over to the man. He got onto his knees next to the sleeping man, with his left hand he slowly lifted the hat while the point of the knife in his right hand came up against the man's chest.

"Wakey wakey, you commie bastard!" Ichigo shouted.

The man's eyes shot open he saw the black face of Ichigo. He screamed and started to fight back before Ichigo plunged the knife into his chest. Ichigo removed the knife and stabbed him again, and again, and again. Ichigo's brain was saturated with adrenalin as he psychotically stabbed, slashed, and hacked at the man.

Stab. . .

Slash. . .

Kill. . .

Ishida and Renji had managed to free themselves and ran over to Ichigo. They grabbed his arms and pulled him away from the bloody mess the was once a person. Ichigo was breathing irregularly and his eyes were starting to glaze over. Then in one final effort Ichigo wrestled out of Ishida's and Renji's hands, lunged at the man on the ground and plunged his knife into the forehead of the bloody corpse. The blade penetrated skin and skull. Ichigo let out a hoarse laugh before passing out from exhaustion.

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March 2, 1969; 0545 local time; East of Cambodia

Ichigo slowly opened his eyes and felt a prodding sensation in his arm.

"Rise and shine sleeping beauty." Renji said.

"Ungh? eh? Where, Where am I?" Ichigo slowly raised his painted head and looked around. He was sprawled on his stomach in the clearing, he looked to his left and saw Kiyone sleeping with her head on Ishida's lap while the marksman gingerly ran his fingers through her hair. The light of the nearby fire reflected off of his glasses. Ichigo got up onto his hands and knees before sitting up. He took out a bottle of mosquito repellent and a sock. He put the repellent on the sock and started wiping the paint off his face and arms.

"So, Renji what are we going to do now?" Ichigo asked.

"I was sorta' hoping you'd know." Renji said.

"You're the commanding officer, Sergent." Ichigo said.

Renji looked as if a huge burden was just dropped on his shoulders. His head sank into his hands, Ichigo was right.

"Ichigo, I can't command." Renji said. "You know as well as I do that I can't."

"It doesn't matter." Ichigo said with concern in his voice.

"Fine, as commanding officer I relieve myself of command and hand it over to you." Renji said, looking at Ichigo with pleading in his eyes.

"Alright, I'll do it." Ichigo said.

"I'll follow you into the pits of hell, sir." Renji said as he saluted.

"Me too, I'll follow until the bitter end" Ishida said.