"Hello, Substitute Soul Reaper. It's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Yakon. I am here to kill you."

Wesley was too frightened to move as the masked man reached for the sword sheathed at his side. He pointed it at the trembling child.

"What's the matter? Aren't you going to at least draw your Zanpakto?"

Had he not been in such a panic Wesley would have asked what a Zanpakto was. But all he could do was stare in horror.

"Are you sure this is him, Yakon?" one of the other masked beings asked.

"It has to be. There's no other reiatsu as high in this city."

"I know, but he still looks like a shrimp to me."

"Well, there's only one way to find out."

Yakon's sword began to glow yellow. He swung it down, creating a large explosion which enveloped the orphanage.

Up above, Wesley gaped.

"H-h-how-di-did I g-get up h-here?"

"Me"

"Huh? What did you do?"

In an instant, the masked men had Wesley surrounded on all sides.

"You can all fly?"

"Impressive speed." Yakon said. "There's no doubt anymore. You are the Substitute Soul Reaper."

All of the masked men drew their swords and charged at him. Wesley screamed and covered his eyes with his arms.

He heard yells from the masked men and opened his eyes.

He was falling away from his attackers, who had themselves been blown away by a gust of wind.

"Do not worry I will not let you die"

"Can you keep me from splattering all over the gound?" Wesley asked.

Just before he landed, a small burst of wind blew up from below him cushioning the impact enough to save him, though nor enough to keep him from injuring himself.

"Owww." Wesley moaned and he rose.

"Be careful They are coming"

"Why can I hear you so clearly now?"

"Because we are both desperate"

Above, the masked men had regrouped. All of their swords were glowing.

"Uh oh." Do you have any other tricks?"

"In this state I cannot do more"

"What does that mean?" Wesley yelled. "What state do you have to be in?"

"Call my name"

Five blasts of energy were streaking towards the ground.

"I don't know you're name!"

Five simultaneous explosions shook the ground and deafened the ears of people for miles around.

"Too easy." Yakon said, surveying the carnage with satisfaction.

"Hey, Yakon." another one said

"What is it?"

"I can still feel his reiatsu."

Yakon frowned. "You're right. The brat's still alive. I wonder how."

They lowered themselves to the ground and began searching through the wreckage and the smoke.

"What is that?"

In the center of what had once been a busy street was a small dome, less than five feet in diameter.

"Let's have a look." Yakon said. He hit the dome with his sword, shattering it like glass.

"There you are."

Behind the hastily erected shield was Wesley, shaking like mad and holding a katana that was longer than he was tall. The blade was so heavy that it caused him to hunch over.

"So you finally decided to draw you're Zanpakto." Yakon said. "Now this'll finally get interesting." He raised his sword for a killing blow.

"Yearrrrgggg!" Wesley screamed, swinging the new sword in a wild arc. Ice shot out of the tip, enveloping Yakon.

"Yakon!" one of the masked men screamed. "You killed him!"

Wesley took half a step forward, swinging the sword again, and again, and again, until everything around him was covered in ice.

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Wesley collapsed in an alleyway half a mile away.

"I can't-I can'rt go any farther. My body feels like it's falling apart."

"I expected as much Your body is not able to withstand the pressure of using my power"

Wesley could not stop shaking. He began to cry profusely. "They're all dead. The other kids. Mr. Moto. All those people, just gone."

"Do not let yourself slip into shock There will be more of them"

"More?" Wesley let go od the katana and crawled backwards to the wall of the alley. "No, no. No more, please."

"They can sense your power There is nowhere you can run"

"Why me? I'm just a kid!"

"Do you still believe that"

Wesley buried his face in his hands and screamed. But when he finished he was calmer.

"Who were those guys?"

"I do not know"

"Then who are you?"

"You know my name now"

"That doesn't tell me anything, though."

"I am a Zanpakto spirit, born from your soul"

"My soul?"

"Yes We share the same soul"

Wesley still had to struggle to keep his breathing steady.

"What did they mean, calling me a substitute soul reaper? What is that?"

"I do not know"

"Some help you are, um no offence."

Wesley sat back against the wall. "That seems familiar, somehow.

"Substitute Soul Reaper."

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Ichigo turned on his monitor. "What have you got for me?"

"Unfortunately, not much." was the reply. "We've determined that no one from the Kido Corps was in Karukara town yesterday."

"So what does that mean? I was just watching the news. Some pretty big drills broke trying to cut through that ice! It didn't come from nowhere!"

"We agree, Ichigo. There must be someone involved who's very good at kido.

"Ichigo, we want you and your friends to investigate this incident on your end."

"I was gonna do that anyway."

"Good. Captain Kurotsutchi has been placed in charge of the onvestigation from our end. If either one of us finds anything out we'll call each other immediately."

"Agreed."

"Be careful, Ichigo. We have no idea how powerful whoever's involved in this is."

"Come on. You know me."

"I do. That's why I'm worried."

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Wesley spent two days sneaking across town. His sword may have told him that running was useless, but a kid with a giant sword was ver conspicouous, and it was at least something to do to keep from thinking about what had happened.

Hunger, however, was not something he could distract himself from, and after two days without food, he was starving.

Peering out from another alleyway, Wesley spotted a fruit store with several items set up outside the shop. Unfortunately, he had no money, but he felt he was so hungry he could die.

Wesley snuck up to the store, hunching so as not to be seen below the fruit stands, and swiped two apples.

"Hey, you!" a voice came from inside the shop. "Those're my apples! Are you going to pay for them?"

"Um..."

The large shopkeeper came out of the store. "And what's a little brat like you doing with such a big sword?"

Wesley turned and ran.

"Stop! Thief!"

One of the people who had been walking by began to run after Wesley. He pulled a badge out of his pocket.

"This is the police! Stop this instant and throw down your weapon!"

"Just what I needed." Wesley muttered. "Now the police are after me too!"

Wesley turned a corner, then stopped.

The policeman found him standing completely still.

"All right, son. Now let's go back to the store. You can give back what you took, and-"

The policeman was unable to see spirits like Wesley, so he had no clue that five masked beings with swords were standing in front of him. One blast shut him up by vaporising him.

Wesley began to back away slowly. "No..."

The leader of this new group stepped foreward. "You're the Substitute Soul Reaper who killed Yakon, huh? I'm surprised he lossed to such a weakling."

Wesley wasted no time, swinging his sword to shoot ice at them. Four of the masked men dodged, while one was caught in the ice.

"Not too bad, kid." Wesley could not tell where the voice was coming from anymore, until a knee struck him in the side of the head.

Wesley flew into a wall, cracking it.

"I was going to make this quick, but you just killed one of my men, so I'm in a sour mood. This is going to be nice and slow."

Wesley tried to stand up, but his legs would not support him. He could barely sit up by the time his assailent was standing over him. He held onto the handle of his sword, unable to lift it off of the ground.

"No more use for those legs, huh? Then I guess you won't mind if I start to chop them off, bit by bit."

In a panic, Wesley managed to lift the sword enough to point it at the masked man, shooting ice at him. The masked man brought his sword to block, catching all of the ice on the blade.

"Is it me, or are you getting stronger?" he said, shaking the ice off of his sword. "I really shouldn't play with you, then." He raised his sword over Wesley's head.

"Good bye, Substiture Soul Reaper."

Wesley closed his eyes as the blade came down.

Clang!

Wesley opened one eye. A gigantic sword had blocked the masked man's a foot above his head. Wesley followed the length of the blade to its wielder: a man in a black kimono with spiky, orange hair.

'He's-' Wesley thought, remembering several pictures he had drawn.

"Who the hell are you?" the masked man asked.

"Ichigo Kurosaki." the orange haired man said. "Substitute Soul Reaper."

"You're the Substitute Soul Reaper?"

"'Fraid so." Ichigo took one swipe and chopped the masked man in half.

"Pui!" the other three masked men screamed.

"Let's get out of here!" one yelled.

"Yes! Yes!"

A giant gate with two skeletons adorning its doors appeared in the sky.

"That's the gate to Hell!" Ichigo exclaimed.

The three remaining masked men leaped through the gate, which disappeared.

Ichigo turned to the boy on the ground. His eyes widened as he switched his gaze from the child, to the sword in his hand, and back to the child again.

"No way..."