A/N: Thank you to War90, Turtle-chan in Blue, The Great Pineapple MEKI, pewternatural, serenity095, and DigiPal for reviewing last chapter! I'm getting my wisdom teeth out tomorrow, so I'm not sure how soon I'll be able to put out the next chapter, but hopefully I'll recover quickly, so please be patient. Read and review, please!

Hinamori's Apprentice

Chapter 38

"Momo, try not to be so tense," Isane Kotetsu said, "It will make healing you more difficult."

"Sorry," Momo said. She was lying in bed at the Fourth Division medical ward. The wound across her stomach had almost entirely healed, but her ankle was still in poor condition. She could walk on it now, but it hurt a lot.

Rangiku watched her while she was being healed, not saying much. As Isane held her hand over her ankle using healing Kido, Momo was reading a book, trying to distract herself from recent memories. Her attempts were failing.

Momo let out a groan and shifted in place, causing Rangiku and Isane to look at her with concern.

"Be careful not to move too much; healing such a sensitive place is difficult. There are several separate muscles and bones around the ankle joint that need to be healed with utmost caution. If they healed in the wrong way, it could impair your ability to walk properly," Isane warned.

"Sorry," Momo said again, sighing and closing her book.

Rangiku looked at her sadly. "Are you okay?"

Momo put on an unconvincing smile. "Oh yeah; I'm fine Rangiku, don't worry about me!"

Rangiku sighed and put a hand on Momo's arm. "It's not your fault, you know," she said quietly. Momo looked up at her and was about to respond, when they both suddenly realized there was somebody else there.

"How's your ankle?" Toushiro asked. All three female Shinigami let out startled cries at his sudden appearance.

"Captain! What have I told you about sneaking up on people?" Matsumoto said.

Toushiro rolled his eyes. "I didn't sneak up, you just weren't paying attention."

"What are you doing here, Toushiro?" Momo asked.

"I just wanted to talk to you; to see how you were doing," Toushiro said, "Matsumoto, Vice-Captain Kotetsu, could you two excuse us for a minute?"

"Well… I suppose I could finish this treatment session later…" Isane reluctantly said.

"If that's what you want, Captain," Matsumoto shrugged. The two female Vice-Captains left, leaving Momo and Toushiro by themselves. Momo and Toushiro spent a few long moments looking at each other before either of them spoke.

"Congratulations on achieving Bankai," Toushiro finally said.

Momo glanced away in shame. "I don't deserve your congratulations," she said sadly, "Bankai wasn't enough to save Karin." Toushiro seemed unsure what to say to this.

"I, erm, heard about its abilities from Matsumoto. They're really unique, and fit you well. Most people's Bankai expand their reiatsu to create an effect, but yours creates a large amount of reiatsu for you to use as you please. It's perfect for someone with your mastery of Kido and reiatsu control," he said, awkwardly trying to compliment her. Upon seeing that she didn't change her expression, he sighed and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Listen Momo, I know how you feel. This was a devastating loss for all of us. But you have to realize, none of us blame you for it," he said insistently. Momo closed her eyes and sighed before turning to look at Toushiro.

"What do you mean by 'a devastating loss'? You said before that you believed in Karin's ability to survive. Did you really mean those words?" she asked.

"Of course I do! Karin is my friend too!" Toushiro said defensively.

"Then why do you sound like it's already over?" Momo asked.

"I… I don't think it's over. It's just… I recognize that it's going to be an uphill battle. We're at a disadvantage, and it will take time before we're able to make an effective counterstrike. But don't worry; Matsumoto, Ichigo, and I are all determined to save Karin. I know you feel the same way. I haven't given up yet, and I promise that I won't any time soon," Toushiro said, "Furthermore, despite the way you're acting, I don't think you've given up either."

"You're right. I'm just… scared. Scared of what will happen to her. She's almost as much my little sister as she is Ichigo's. I feel like she's family to me. She's not just my apprentice, she's my friend! I believe in her, I really do, but I can't help but be afraid for her," Momo said.

"I know. I feel the same way. I'm sure Matsumoto and Ichigo do too. But we can't focus on that now. We need to concentrate our energy on readying ourselves for the next battle, because only then will we actually be able to do her any good," Toushiro said.

"I guess you're right…" Momo said quietly.

They were silent for a few minutes before Toushiro spoke. "I have to go. They managed to capture a single enemy warrior alive, and we're trying to interrogate him." Momo looked up in surprise.

"They managed to capture one? I heard that they either retreated or killed themselves before they could be captured," she said.

"Apparently the Onmitsukido were holding him for a while before informing the Gotei 13. A few of the other Captains are rather mad about it, but at least we have a direct link to the enemy," Toushiro said.

"Can… Can I see the prisoner?" Momo asked, her voice sounding anxious.

"Sorry, but I don't think so. They're still doing a lot of work on him. He doesn't speak any language we're familiar with, so we're trying to figure out a way to get over that hurdle. We did find some major clues from the equipment he was carrying, but they want to be able to interrogate him properly. With luck, you'll be able to see him in a day or two after you're fully healed, which is just as well since I don't want you walking around while you're injured like that."

"Oh… Okay…" Momo said.

"Don't worry Momo, we'll figure something out," Toushiro said, giving her a small smile before turning to leave.

"Wait, Toushiro!" Momo said before he could leave. He turned to face her again.

"Yeah?"

Momo gulped. "If… If anything else comes up, could you tell me?"

Toushiro hesitated for only a moment before nodding. "I'll inform you of any new developments in the investigation."

Karin tried to stifle a cry of pain, a strangled whimper escaping her lips. Tears of pain made her vision blurry as she blankly stared at the inside of the black hood that had been forced over her head. Her arms had been bound and pulled behind her, then tied to a rope from which she was now suspended. The pain was unlike anything else she had ever experienced. It was as if she were being torn apart. The tendons and ligaments in her arm were being torn by the force of her own weight. In her delirious state, she recalled a bully in her youth twisting her arm behind her back. This was a thousand times worse. She felt as if her arms would be dislocated from her shoulders at any moment.

"So, do you feel like cooperating now?" the sickening voice of Usagi said.

Karin could barely speak from pain and disorientation, but managed to whisper "No."

"I'm sorry, could you repeat that? I couldn't quite hear you," Usagi sniggered.

"I… said… no…" Karin managed to say through clenched teeth. Even subjected to such horrible pain, she refused to give in.

"That so?" Usagi said. He then took hold of Karin's ankle and gave a swift tug, causing her to scream at the strain this added. He laughed at her and without her realizing it cutting Karin loose from the rope suspending her. She groaned as she hit the ground, her arms and shoulders throbbing in pain. She couldn't stand, as her legs had been injected with a drug that paralyzed them. She could only lie on the ground in pain.

"Does it hurt? Does the pain make you want to give in?" Usagi quietly asked, "Does the thought of more pain fill you with dread? You must know that I have methods of inducing even greater agony."

Karin mumbled something incoherent through the hood, causing Usagi to chuckle and pull it off. "Care to say that again?"

"I… I said that I'm never going to give in to you!" she said defiantly. The sudden removal of the hood that had covered her head for hours made her even more disoriented, her still painful arms adding to the effect. Despite this, her resolve to resist was as strong and clear as ever.

"That's a bad attitude. If you don't cooperate, I'll have to force your soul open, and that runs the risk of destroying your mind," Usagi said.

"If you could do that, you'd have done it already," Karin retorted. Usagi let out a particularly harsh laugh at this before abruptly stopping and changing his tone to a dead serious one.

"I want the quality of my prize to be intact, and your stubborn resistance would present the risk of damage to it if I attempted to forcibly retrieve it. It would be best to retrieve it once your mind is either resigned to it happening or so utterly broken that it cannot resist. If worst comes to worst, I'll accept a damaged prize and break your mind in the process, so there's really no point in you continuing to resist. I'll have what I desire from your soul in the end, so why not resign yourself to this and stop resistance? If you don't, you will suffer a fate far worse than death."

"What do you want from me? What's in my soul that's so valuable?" Karin asked, pushing away the nauseous feeling in her stomach, a result of the sudden restoration of sight and the feeling of being on ground after hours of sensory deprivation while hanging by her arms.

"Your feeble mind could not hope to comprehend," Usagi scoffed.

"Try me," Karin said, making it sound like a dare. Usagi shrieked with laughter.

"How bold! You are made of tough stuff to be able to take that attitude after what I've just put you through, I'll give you that," he smirked, "Very well, I'll tell you the importance of your soul in my plans. I suppose to truly give you a bit of an introduction. I am a 'gadgeteer' as I like to refer to myself. The teleportation devices, the technique for the barrier surrounding this fortress, my own weapons, they're all my work. None even approach my level of genius when it comes to building such things! But all these devices require a special sort of power. Soul Society has come up with all sorts of ways to power their devices, but I alone have determined the most effective source of power: living souls."

"Souls? You mean… When you were after Uryu…"

"Ah, so you've figured it out already! Very impressive! That's right, I had plans to use the Quincy as a source of power. I have several Quincy in my possession right now, but they are presently on the verge of death. I needed a new power source, especially since my clients have some big plans to be pulled off soon. Hence, I set my sights upon Uryu Ishida, the only confirmed Quincy in existence! At least, until I found you…"

"Why me? What good am I to you?" Karin asked.

"Let me put it this way. To me, souls are a source of power. Now, an ordinary Shinigami soul is like a lump of coal: you burn it up for energy and it's gone. A Quincy on the other hand can be harvested for energy over a long period of time, sort of like an oil well. You can suck up energy from them until they're dry. You on the other hand are something special. You're like… nuclear fission."

"You're making even less sense than before," Karin said.

Usagi laughed off her insult. "Think back! Back to when you died and were sent to Soul Society! What happened to you?"

"I… I was sent to Soul Society by… Toushiro," Karin said hesitantly.

"But why him? Why not your brother?" Usagi said with a twisted grin, "I'll tell you why: You couldn't wait. Your chain of fate had been damaged in a scuffle with hollows. Had you waited around just a few more moments, you would have turned into a hollow yourself. But you didn't. Even though your soul had just begun to split apart and re-form as a hollow, you emerged in Soul Society with your soul intact. This left its mark however; your soul contains clues about what happens at the moment a soul turns into a hollow. Not only that, you had enough spirit energy as a human to be comparable to a Shinigami in the way it affected you, which just makes it even better! Did you know that the greatest power a Shinigami can obtain is the power of a hollow, and the greatest power a hollow can obtain is the power of a Shinigami? It's not because those two different types of souls are added on top of each other, it's because when a soul splits between Shinigami and hollow, an even greater power than either type of spirit is created! Your soul has the information on how to replicate this! If I can only get a thorough look at the inside of your soul, I could possess unlimited energy!"

A mad grin spread across Usagi's face, making him look like a demon. It took great willpower to speak again while facing such a terrifying sight.

"And what will you do with that power?" Karin asked.

Usagi grinned. "The same thing I'm doing right now, of course," he said, "Use it to spread chaos throughout the world! Do you think I care about this silly 'Fourth Rising'? I just want to see my devices reach their maximum potential in sowing chaos and destruction through the universe! That is all that I want to see! I don't give a damn what happens to my clients as long as they use my devices to make the world scream!"

"You're insane," Karin whispered, "You're completely, utterly, insane!"

"Insane?" Usagi laughed, "You think I'm insane? I suppose it's only natural that one with a mind as inferior as yours would mistake my genius for insanity! Rest assured though, you will realize my greatness in time!"

Usagi suddenly jabbed Karin in the side with a sharp object that gave her a powerful electric shock. Karin didn't even have the chance to react before being rendered unconscious by the intense jolt and falling forward onto the ground.

"Hm, perhaps I should have used a milder shock," Usagi mused to himself. He put his fingers to her forehead but immediately withdrew them. "So even unconscious, you continue to resist me? Very well then, I have much more in store for you. Guards!"

The door opened, and two of the small grey-faced creatures Usagi kept as servants stepped into the room.

"Do a medical check on her," Usagi instructed them, "I want her prepared for another round as soon as her body can handle it."