Epic Eight: Frustrated

Nanao was scowling in the back of her mind. As a lieutenant leaving the First though, she was as level-headed as a stone block. She trailed behind her captain, a little slower than she normally would have. She had started out walking beside him as usual, but her inner whirlwind of thoughts wouldn't leave her alone enough to really concentrate on anything other than her own musings.

True to her captain's word, they had gone to the Fourth immediately after making sure Rangiku was well enough to move. As they somewhat expected, there was already a solid buzz concerning the outskirts of the Tenth as they arrived. Normally she would've have minded, but today she just wasn't in the mood. She had silenced a good number of them that they passed with the type of icy glare that only she could achieve.

She was so very close to removing her glasses.

The whispers had been purely speculative, but she didn't quite care. The majority of them were that Momo and Rangiku had both finally snapped and took out their respective anger on each other. She scoffed in her mind. That may have been a mild concern on her mind at first, but she had discarded the idea after they had fled their office. She knew that they both hadn't seen eye to eye before on the whole betrayal subject, but she believed that both of them knew better than to assault each other where both of them would be severely punished.

Still, she was very grateful that that wasn't the scene they had all converged on.

Now that she thought about it though, their current predicament wasn't much better. In her opinion, this emergency meeting they just had was useless. Nothing was accomplished, and all it did was waste time they could've been using trying to find answers.

It was true that it had been convenient for passing along the report to multiple people, but as soon as the word 'intruder' had come up, everyone immediately stopped paying attention to consider their own thoughts. Even if the room turned into busy hive, she could still hear the name on their tongues.

Aizen.

She supposed that it was natural for everyone to assume that the man was behind this. He had caused countless other problems for them, as well as fooling everyone for who knows how long. Every new scare was connected to him until proven otherwise at this point. She had to agree that it could possibly be him behind this, another way of testing the waters, but for some reason she found it unlikely.

Surely he would have a better method than that? She would like to think so, even if he was a madman.

Now all they knew was that three figures had gotten into the Seireitei undetected and had not been arrested. If she wasn't in such a foul mood, she might've been a little embarrassed that the three were able to escape from two captains and three lieutenants. Today though, she wasn't really worried about that. What they should've been doing instead of standing around bickering with each other was going out to search for them. That should have been established immediately in her opinion.

Thinking logically, it would make sense that perhaps they wouldn't be able to exit as quickly and sneakily as they entered. If the commotion had gotten around like she saw, others would have been more aware of things going on. That could mean that whoever they were weren't gone. They could be hiding out somewhere right under their noses while waiting for an opportune moment to escape. At least, that's what she would do.

They could've even gone out to the Rukongai. That would be a better plan, she thought. Since soul reapers weren't so highly thought of out there in some places, they're a little more reluctant to go out there. That was not including the ones that grew up out there and visited often, of course, as some had no problem navigating the poorer streets without conflict.

Instead of listening to rational thought's however, the only thing the rest at the meeting had focused on were the 'hows' and the 'whys'. Quite impractical in her opinion. While the idea of avoiding conflict was starting to rub off on her from her captain, she still saw the benefits of capturing those in question first. She sighed out loud. At least they had some sort of excuse from everyone being on edge about Aizen. Maybe the whole thing was clouding their judgment.

"Something the matter, Nanao-chan?"

She looked up from her feet, seeing her captain glancing over his shoulder at her, not watching where he was walking. He may have called her by the familiar nickname, but she could hear the light strain in this voice too. It was just one more problem added onto everyone's already busy schedule.

"No, sir. Nothing more than usual."

She didn't really feel like explaining herself any more than that. He nodded at her after their eyes connected for a moment, and he turned back around. She lightly smiled. At least they understood each other for the most part. She was thankful for that. That was one of the benefits of working and knowing each other for so long, she supposed. All it took was one glance and they had complete understanding of each other.

It was nice, she thought. It took a deeper trust that had been tempered over time. She took a bit of pride in that. That was something that a lot of other captains and lieutenants couldn't say about each other.

Trust. It meant she could tell him what was on her mind and know that it wouldn't go farther than the two of them. Someone that wouldn't judge her on what she thought.

She felt comforted by that thought, and she paused in all her musings for a moment to silently thank the man walking in front of her, even if he didn't know she was doing so. With that thought, she made a motion to speak, only to cut herself off at the last second, dispersing any sound she would've made. She frowned in thought again.

"You're thinking too loud, Nanao-chan."

Her head shot up at the noise, and her heart almost stopped in surprise. She didn't know how he did it, but her captain was once again looking at her over his shoulder. It must be a Nanao-sense that only he had. She faintly remembered him calling it that once, when he seemed to know too many things about her, like now. She wanted to smack her forehead at using the same vocabulary.

She stopped to straighten the frames on her face, even though they were perfectly fine moments before. She found the action familiar and stabilizing and a habit, if she had to be completely honest. She watched him stop as well and turn to face her, haori gently flowing around him as usual. She wondered why her attention was caught by it all of a sudden, but mentally shrugged it off. Sometimes it seemed like he had his own personal wind to make him seem more ethereal than he was. A zanpakuto benefit, perhaps.

She frowned again when she noticed that she was actually taking the time to admire the way he looked. She must be more tired than she thought.

"So, what usual wrong thing keeps putting those creases in my Nanao-chan's beautiful forehead?"

He had that lazy smile on his face, she noticed. The one that melted office staff and made other female soul reapers dizzy. If she had been in a better mood about all of this, she might've replied with a snaky retort relating to him not getting his work done. There was too much running through her head at the moment though, so she opted to pass. She took a casual glance around them, finding the streets empty and silent for the most part. The only thing that could be heard was the distant murmurs of those still congregated around the First. She let out a heavy sigh.

"There's just so much going on." She was glancing down the long hall, watching the moon cast shadows on the ground. A memory flashed, and for an instant, she saw Rangiku leaning against the far wall, blood running down her side. Blinking, it was gone, and she was left with lonely shadows once again. "It's almost like…the ryoka all over again."

She paused for a minute, well aware of the weariness that was settling over her when she didn't keep it in check. She was tired. Tired of war, of surprises, of worries, and she was especially tired of wondering when every time they went out to battle if it was going to be their last.

"So many things are happening at once. Just like before." She closed her eyes for a moment and sighed deeply again, all lines of tension disappearing from her face briefly. "I feel as if we're going to miss something. Again."

They had already missed so much last time. A captain's betrayal that had been in motion for longer than any of them realized, resulting in two more defections. The whole of Central 46 wiped out for who knows how long, right under their noses. And now the incoming war due to their obliviousness. She didn't know if others felt some of the same shame she did as all Soul Reapers failing like that, but she didn't know what she would do if they just kept stacking up.

She returned her gaze to him after that, and when their eyes connected, she could almost see the wheels in his head spinning rapidly. She knew he was a deep thinker, all laziness aside. He could plan quite well actually, and she figured that his train of thought on the matter was probably pretty close to hers. That smile had dropped from his face, even if he was only smiling to lighten the mood. She knew then for sure that he was taking her seriously.

She acknowledged that she was also grateful for that. It made missions and running the division in general a lot easier. It was also nice to have someone she could hold an intelligent conversation with at hand, provided it was serious. Then again, she could remember multiple times past when she simply enjoyed conversing with him. That was when he wasn't needlessly and shamelessly flirting with her, of course.

She watched him bring his hand up to rub his face, and for a moment he looked as weary as she felt. She knew that he was probably under a lot more stress than she was, and she tried to look away as it showed. She didn't want anything to chip away at the image she had of him.

"You may be right, Nanao." He said no more for a minute, and Nanao felt the rage she had earlier resurfacing.

"Then why aren't they doing anything?" She brought her arms up to cross them, and she took a second to glare at the ground, not wanting to come off as rude to her captain. "They should've at least sent some of us out. Not just the Corps. What are they waiting for?"

She thought she sounded a little shrill, especially for her, but she wanted to shake with how angry she was. She didn't even really know why she was that angry. Normally that wouldn't have affected her this much. She still wasn't looking at him, and she thought that maybe he thought she was being childish. She didn't care at the moment though, something she was finding to be an unwanted habit. She looked down the hall once more as the breeze picked up. A flash of memory appeared again, and she instantly knew why she was angry.

It had been Rangiku. They had gone after Rangiku, and that's what was making her so upset.

The other woman was her best friend, as unlikely as some others might think. Despite their differences, they had always been there for each other when no one else could fill the spot. Nanao didn't have many friends like that. In fact, she could probably count them all on one hand without even using all her fingers. They had seriously injured her, and she didn't know what would've happened if they hadn't shown up when they did.

Granted that Rangiku was a lieutenant and she could more than take care of herself, Nanao still didn't like the feeling she got when around the mysterious figures. Something didn't feel right about them, and if it was unknown, the first instinct she had was to be cautious. Sadly, it was guilty until proven innocent these days. Still, they proved their malice today already. At least she had a good reason to be angry.

They injured Rangiku, and that was not okay.

"Why would they be letting three figures that had the upper hand against two of our lieutenants run around? It doesn't make any sense."

She made a frustrated sound, not caring that she was acting a lot unlike her normal self. She realized it had been happening for a while now, this strange feeling she was having. Perhaps the weather had something to do with this change of pace. Then again, it could just be everything that was piling up. She still had paperwork that was due tomorrow, and she was due out for hollow patrol soon. Add that to the mysteries they had encountered lately and it was almost too much.

"I think that the reason they chose a less directive action was because they had the upper hand."

She looked about to speak up, so he held his hand up to silence her and let him continue. "We didn't go after them because we hold taking care of our own more important than pursuing in fights. Because of that, we don't really know their full potential, only that they are probably on lieutenant level at the least."

What he was saying made sense to her, and she stopped trying to speak so she could think longer. She knew that, but it still didn't seem like enough. There must be something that her and the others could do.

"While the Corp isn't everyone's favorite bunch, investigating is still their forte. I don't think they want to risk sending out our officers if these three turn out to be more trouble than everyone thinks."

She nodded silently, a thoughtful look still on her face. That was true also. It was low, but she could see a lesser soldier being sent in before the main pieces, all of them appearing as pawns on a chessboard. She may not like the vibe they sent off, but she didn't think of them as just fodder.

"Although at this rate," He trailed off for a minute, and she looked over at him. He was staring at the moon, a few creases visible in his brow. "At this rate, there might not be many of them left to do any investigating anyway."

She frowned for a minute, and spoke of something she had noticed in the brief moments she caught of their trespassers. "I'm sure you noticed too, sir, what they were wearing. If one didn't pay close attention, they could certainly pass for a member of the punishment force."

He looked down from his sky gazing to look at her, noticing that she was looking down the hall again. He glanced that way himself, but saw nothing at the junction where the pathway split off to the left and right.

"They were a bit similar, true, but I don't think characters like that would've passed under Soi Fon's nose so easily."

He wondered sometimes how the woman led two separate entities, but didn't complain at what he saw. He remembered a time when they weren't ran by the Second Division captain, but it was quite some time ago. He figured that Soi Fon was the person for the job though, as her life had been centered around that style of combat for the majority of her life. Being strong enough to handle division duties as well was a plus.

The Corp acted like it's own group anyway, he mused. For the most part they were allowed to do things themselves, but if needed, they would answer to their superior. Sometimes it was useful to leave them to their own devices too. They were left alone mostly, and he thought that the less they saw of them, the better. Too often they wanted to snatch up those who excelled in the demon arts, sometimes having them disappear from everyone's sight altogether. That made Nanao an ideal candidate.

"Yes, that had occurred to me." Her voice snapped him out of his own thoughts. "It may be acceptable to reason that they are intruders then. What do you think their motives could be?"

It was more of an open question than directed at him, he realized, watching her sink back into her own thoughts. He had been watching her do that a lot lately. Sometimes he wondered what her life would've been like without all this worry and warfare, if she could've been living a happier life somewhere away from all this conflict. He steered himself away from that thought soon after it came up though, as he recognized the dull ache that accompanied it.

His life would definitely not be as joyful without her in it. Not that he would get the chance to say that, as she probably wouldn't take him seriously anyway. Not that he blamed her.

"I don't know. None of them do right now. Another reason to be cautious, I suppose, and not blindly send out units. They're dangerous."

He watched the hold on her arm tighten, and she tensed ever so slightly. Clutching herself like that gave the appearance that she was guarding herself, and he was glad it was not because of him. He knew she was looking away again because she was glaring, and at any other time he might've laughed at the picture she made. Now, however, it was a bit nobler. It was strange seeing this protectiveness flare up in Nanao like this, but he could understand the cause behind it. He would do the same for her or Juu.

"At the best of times, even I don't know what old man Yamamoto is thinking. But, despite all this unease…" He reached out slowly, giving Nanao plenty of time to see that he was coming closer to her. He watched her eyes snap to his nearing arm as his hand touched the one clutching her arm. He gave her plenty of time to move away if she wanted, and he was mildly pleased that she took no such action.

He gently took her hand in his, using his other one to uncurl the fingers that were making dents in her skin. He took his time in his actions, not wanting to scare her away. He knew that she could be quite wary at times, and he also knew that she was prone to get violent. Given her current mood, he didn't really want to provoke anything.

Her eyes flickered up to his, and he didn't look away as he brought her arm down and released it, taking a step back to give her space. "There's no use tying yourself in knots over it." He smiled slightly when he felt her relax a little. It was enough, as she never really seemed to totally relax anyway.

"I think there are quite enough people doing that for the rest of us."

She nodded and brought her hand up to curl her hair behind her ear, even if no strands had fallen out of her clip. It was just another habit thing she did when she didn't know what else to do. It was familiar. It was comfortable. It took her mind off of everything for just one instant of peace.

She knew what he was referring to, of course, and it was another slight reason why she was agitated. Even the brightest of people chose not to think at times, especially in stressful and intense times like this. Still, it didn't really give them an excuse, and it also couldn't take the blame when everything they had assumed turned out to be wrong.

"I don't believe Aizen is behind this."

She spoke firmly and surely, and Shunsui knew that she deeply believed what she said. If anything else, he could always depend on her calculating and plan-formulating mind. He allowed himself to smile to himself at the thought that together they made quite the team.

"Neither do I."

She didn't know why, but she felt a little better that her captain had agreed with her. Perhaps it was the thought that if both of them were thinking of the same thing then they were more than likely right.

They had reached an agreement and a stalemate in the conversation, so with an unspoken word they continued down the path towards their own division, both mulling over the meaning of everything that had been going on.

"I don't think it was A-Aizen."

"Oh, I'm sure you don't."

"It's not like that!"

The recent memory flashed though her mind as they lapsed into silence. She could still picture Captain Hitsugaya and Momo from earlier, and the thought made her frown. It had been just after the meeting ended, and personally Nanao thought that it had taken a lot of guts for Momo to speak what she thought.

It hadn't ended well though, despite what her personal opinion on the matter was. She hadn't even meant to overhear anything as she was passing through the chamber to the exit. It appeared that Momo had decided to wait until others left before leaving herself, wanting to express what she thought about the situation.

She had stayed silent throughout the whole thing, and Nanao thought that was probably wise given her past history. However, she believed that Momo had changed somehow recently, and she didn't approve of the instant defensiveness of Captain Hitsugaya. Weren't they long time friends? One would think that he would be a little more understanding.

Momo had quickly brushed by her after that, accidentally knocking her to the side slightly. The muffled apology she offered while continuing to move was strained. Nanao could recognize that type of voice.

She thought that Captain Hitsugaya would be able to analyze the situation as she had and come to similar conclusions. He was a prodigy after all. It seemed though, that he was thinking along the same lines as most everyone else. She would bet that Rangiku didn't think Aizen was behind it either.

Unfortunately, Rangiku was still in Fourth. According to Isane, who had informed the rest of her condition at the meeting, her wound's weren't as bad as they looked. She would still be sore for a while, even with Unohana's aid, but she would be fine. They had mentioned keeping her overnight to make sure, so that was why she hadn't been present. Captain Hitsugaya had gotten her side of the story before, so he was the one to relay what had happened before Momo arrived.

Coincidently, he had also given Momo's report. She thought that a bit strange, but as the other's seemed fine with it, she didn't question it further.

All in all, it didn't settle her mind any knowing that there were still rifts between people in the divisions when they were supposed to be working together. She wasn't sure how they were going to get many things done very efficiently if everyone was afraid to trust everyone else.

She personally had nothing against Momo. They hadn't been super close before all of this, but they still had some connection because of their shared talent of the demon arts. Reading was also a past time that both of them shared. She remembered bringing in books for her while she was still recovering in the Fourth. During those times, it was like she was her normal self, like she forgot all her troubles just for the short time Nanao was able to stay and chat about whatever they had read lately.

Even if her loyalty had been questionable, Nanao trusted that she would be able to do the right thing if she was faced with the decision. Maybe it was just her that was forgiving though, which was strange, as she was usually merciless when it came to enemies and traitors. Maybe that was just another change going on.

It was a pity, at any rate. She bet that he didn't even notice she only called him Aizen.

-To Be Continued…

So yeah, a long time, I know. I'll not go into it, as I don't really have any good excuses that you haven't heard already. They come as they come I guess.

This is for those readers whom I was disappointing with the lack of Shu/Nao in some of my chapters. There, it's all Shu/Nao this time around, even if nothing really significant happened.

If there is any errors you find, or if there's something that I didn't put very clearly or if I'm just plain wrong, let me know. It annoys me when I do major wrong things. If it's just slightly altered, we can all pretend that's how it is, as I didn't know at the time. Still, if you would point it out, it would prevent me from making the same error again.

I wanted to get this out before they start doing maintenance on the document part, which is in like...an hour. It gave me the motivation to finish up the last bit I had left. Basically, just sit back and relax and enjoy this part of the fic. Drop me a line if you feel a desire to do so. Let me know if it totally sucks too, as that would be helpful.

On a totally random note, don't you get annoyed at people that hold chapters until they get a certain number of reviews? I certainly do.

-KG