This chapter marks the end of the short Soul Core Arc... Time for a completely different genre in the next arc, Darkened Memories. Anyone up for attempted angst...?
Chapter Three: "Soul Core Hunt"
"It just feels wrong…"
"What does?"
"We're breaking and entering private property."
"Since when did you care about that?"
"Well, it was in a detective manga I read…" Rukia replied as a matter-of-factly.
Ichigo sighed, "Actually, we're doing them a favor. We're breaking in to relieve them from their reiatsu surges, which saves them from Hollows, and that spares them from an early, unforeseen death."
"Since when did you become profound?" Rukia smirked.
"Che."
"Eaten your spirit pill yet?"
"Yep."
"Let's do this." Rukia took a deep breath as they easily passed through the wall of the victim's house.
"Remember what we agreed on." she reminded him.
"I know, I know. I spray, you remove." Ichigo replied.
The duo walked quietly through the sleeping human's room out of habit... Not like he could hear or see them anyways.
"Is this the one?" Ichigo whispered.
Rukia nodded to Ichigo, who then sprayed a small amount on the Soul Core victim's face. He suddenly went limp and Rukia proceeded to remove the dark violet orb from inside him.
"Let's move on." Ichigo started walking through the wall again.
On everyone's tracker, a yellow dot disappeared when Rukia and Ichigo took care of the first human.
A mile away, Kira and Hirosaki fought two Huge Hollows at a victim's house.
"Augh!" Hirosaki clutched the gaping slash in his right upper arm. If he reacted a split second slower, his arm would have been ripped off.
"Saki-kun! Are you OK?" Kira asked his injured teammate.
"Don't worry yourself over it." Hirosaki shakily stood up and held his zanpakuto with both hands.
"Omote o agero!" Kira released his zanpakuto to shikai.
He sliced the monstrous Hollow with Wabisuke several times, tripling the weight of its arm. It was anchored in place and was vulnerable to Kira's final slash.
"Glide, Yukitori." Hirosaki softly commanded his zanpakuto.
The graceful snowbird swept its long icy wings around the Hollow's legs and slithered its way up to the chest, slicing everything it touched into crystal-like shards.
"Do you have the canister, Izuru?" he turned to his friend after the Hollow shrieked, in pain, vanishing.
"Yes." Hirosaki took the canister from Kira and lightly sprayed the mist onto the already unconscious human who witnessed part of their battle. Kira then reached into the boy's chest and extracted the mass of purple.
"Our work is done here."
"Orihime-san!" Yuki yelled.
"Santen Kesshun, I reject!" Orihime created a triangular shield around herself and Yuki before a Hollow clawed at the two of them.
"Thanks." Yuki pulled out her zanpakuto, sprinted away from the safe haven behind the shield and sliced the medium-sized Hollow twice diagonally. The black monster roared in frustration and pain as it disappeared from this world.
"Have you sprayed them yet?" Yuki asked, walking over to where Orihime was kneeling beside an unconscious 8-year old girl.
"Yep! All that is left is for you to contain the Soul Core reiatsu."
"I'm on it."
"I'll take care of this Hollow. Please go and help the victims." Chad's right arm transformed into the red-and-black armor.
"Oi, Sado-san, that's no fun…" Urahara pouted.
Chad groaned, (inwardly, of course) How could someone like Urahara-san be such a kid?
Urahara suddenly became serious and waved his fan, "Hai, hai."
Well, that's about as serious as Urahara could be.
He sprayed the formula on the human and poked him curiously.
What? This crap actually works? For a second there, I thought it wouldn't, like all the other times my customers received malfunctioning products. I am such a genius… Kisuke nodded away happily.
Chad looked over at Urahara poking the victim after Hollow withered away in a bloody mess and wondered how this man could have been the former 12th Division captain…
"What do you mean by that?" Ichigo gaped.
"I meant exactly what I said. You and Rukia missed out on all the fun. You're the only team that didn't have to fight any Hollows." Yuki smirked.
"Anyways, what do we do with all of this black-ish purple goop?" Ichigo sighed and held up the Soul Core reiatsu floating in the palm of his hand.
"Keep it in a glass jar and stick it on your bedside table."
"You serious?" Ichigo raised his eyebrows.
"Well, it does make a good lava lamp..." she laughed, "We won't need it until we return to Soul Society, anyways. It won't spread even if you leave it lying on the floor because Rukia and I have already sealed it with special kidou as soon as you brought it."
"Oh..." Ichigo was now considering the reiatsu as a lava lamp in his room. He had to admit, a shiny new lava lamp didn't sound like a bad idea...
"Kazama-kun!" Orihime took note of Hirosaki's bleeding arm when she glanced around the group.
"Oh, this? Don't worry about it, it's just a graze." Hirosaki assured her. Actually, it was an inch deep, but he didn't want Orihime-san worrying.
"No matter what you say it is, please let me heal it!" Orihime pressed.
"But...-" he hesitated.
"This is one of those times where you just shut up and accept the favor, aniki." Yuki muttered.
Hirosaki sighed. He couldn't argue with his little sister, regardless of the two-year difference.
Smiling sheepishly, he let Orihime heal the injured shinigami.
After thanking her, Chad, Kira, Orihime and Urahara decided it was time to leave.
"Bye, everyone!" Orihime bowed and left the room.
"I am glad to be of use in this matter. See you, Ichigo." Chad left the room after Orihime.
"Hey, where are you going to sleep, Kira?" Ichigo asked when Chad and Orihime left.
"I'm going to Urahara's place for a night."
"Yes, unlike Abarai-kun, Kira is very helpful, ne, Kira-san?" Urahara beamed. He just got himself a new dish washer and cleaner. Who wouldn't be happy?
"Er..." Kira didn't know what to say.
Ichigo attempted to save the poor blond from Urahara, "Uh, Kira? You can just stay at my house...-"
"No, no, it's quite fine, Kurosaki-san! It's no trouble for me at all!" Urahara wasn't about to lose his newly enslaved employee.
Kira heard a lot about Urahara-san from Renji-kun... He just hoped that Renji was lying about it.
"We're off, Kurosaki-san. We'll inform you if there's anything of importance!" Urahara waved at them, dragging along a helpless Kira. His fate was now sealed.
"So, where are you guys sleeping?" Ichigo directed the attention to Hirosaki and Yuki who were still in his room.
"Isn't it obvious? Your room, of course!" They both grinned simultaneously.
TBC
I send my sympathy to Kira...
OMAKE:
Kira suddenly rushed back into Ichigo's room dragging Kon, Pyon, Sen, and Sai with him.
"I found your Mod Souls wandering the streets! They reek of alcohol, too." Kira cringed his nose.
"I'm as sober as a cow..." Kon slurred.
A vein popped as Ichigo watched Kon waste his body and his system. Pulling out his Shinigami extractor, he slammed it on Kon/Ichigo's forehead. The little green capsule popped out from behind the head and fell on the floor.
"NEVER. DO. THAT. AGAIN..." Ichigo twitched as he spoke every word.
Ichigo could imagine the scene if he were to lose his temper:
"What the $!&# did you do to my $!&# body, you $!&# $!&#!"
Rukia would totally pwn Ichigo if he said that around their new guests...
He tossed the license to Rukia, who removed the Mod Soul from her own gigai and then the others.
"Killlll joyyyyy!" Sai yelled before he was separated from Hirosaki's gigai.
"That's fascinating. I didn't know Modified Souls could get inebriated... Or let alone drink..." Hirosaki stared thoughtfully at the four little pills.
Ichigo cooled down a bit and turned to Kira who was standing at the doorway, "Anyways, thanks for bringing them back."
"No problem." he turned to leave.
"Wanna stay for a while before going back to Urahara's?" Hirosaki sympathetically called after his friend.
"Yes! Thank you!" Kira darted back into the room.
"What did he make you do?" Ichigo questioned.
"He's going to make me clean again! I don't do cleaning!" Kira wailed.
Yuki sighed at the child-like behavior of her friend, the high-ranking 3rd Division Vice Captain. Oh, but if only she knew how monstrously messy the Urahara Shop actually was...