All characters except for the OCs belong to Tite Kubo.

The Black Cat?

The hollows were still continually appearing. It seemed like someone was always ducking out of class to fight. Unfortunately for Ichigo, Toshiro insisted that he stay in class, because since he was still, in a way, human, he still needed to learn what the teachers were teaching. Actually, it seemed like Toshiro was always the one leaving. Rangiku figured he was probably getting tired of having to listen to teachers, that it was hurting his pride as a captain.

Rukia, however, noticed that sometimes the hollows disappeared before it was even possible that anyone could've gotten to them.

Lunchtime

The group was eating together when unexpectedly, Kyoko wandered over.

"Hey. What's up with you?" asks Ichigo, noting the distraught expression on her face.

"I forgot my lunch." she whined.

"Well, it's too late now."

"I know…"

Toshiro had only eaten about half of his lunch. He puts his chopsticks down and pushes the lunchbox to her.

"Huh?" she looks from the food to him.

"Just take it." he says calmly. "I wasn't that hungry, anyways."

"Uh…Thanks." she says as she begins to eat.

After School

As usual, they warmed up by running the perimeter of the basement.

"Hey!" Toshiro shouted to catch Kyoko's attention. "Catch!" He threw her zanpakuto to her. Still off guard, she caught it rather ungracefully. "Now that you're fast enough, let's see what you can do."

Toshiro took a stance this time, and once again Kyoko attacked. With one swing, he knocks her sword out of her hands, and stops her attack.

"Aw, what did I do wrong this time?"

He hands her sword back to her. "Act like you're about to attack."

"Okay…" she does as she's told.

"…No wonder…you're grip is all wrong."

"Huh?"

"Tessai, could you set up some practice dummies around here?"

"Alright, now watch me closely."

"OK! I'm watching!" she chirps cheerfully.

He flawlessly decapitates the dummy.

She watched in awe. "wow. He really is amazing…"

"Alright. Now you try."

Kyoko tried to imitate what he did, but it never seemed right.

"Here, let me show you" He walks up behind her and adjusts her hands. They both blush. "See?" He walks away from her and she remains in an attacking pose. He then unexpectedly swings his sword at her, and knocks it out of her hands once again. "Ugh, pay attention!"

"Hey! How was I supposed to know you were gonna attack me like that!"

"If you have drawn your zanpakuto, you should be prepared for battle."

She picks up her zanpakuto and regains her stance. Toshiro walks a circle around her, inspecting her. He puts a finger on the tip of her blade and pushes down. "You're too rigid. Loosen up a bit." She does. He tries again, and she nearly drops it. "…Too much."

"Would you make up your mind already?"

He glares at her. "When battling hollows, there is no room for sloppiness. I said I was going to teach you how to fight better, and I don't intend to cut corners. If you're doing something wrong, I'm going to make you work at it until you can do it in your sleep. Do I make myself clear?"

"Y-yes sir!"

"Now try again."

"ok…"

"…place your hands farther apart. That way you have more control…but not too far apart, or you lose power."

He tests her again. "…perfect."

Later

As Toshiro left the shop, he suddenly sensed an unfamiliar spiritual pressure coming from down town. He didn't know who or what it came from, but it definitely gave him an uneasy feeling.

When he arrived, the others are already there. They are greeted by immense spiritual pressure. Five cloaked soul reapers appear.

"Who are you?" shouts Ichigo.

Their leader looks down at them. He has ragged black hair, dark eyes, and stubble adorning his chin. He does not have a zanpakuto. "I am Kamma." he states, glaring at them. "So you are the ones who have been defeating all of my hollows?"

"That's right. Wait, your hollows?"

He ignored Ichigo's question. "I see. That would explain things." He looks a bit annoyed. "Tell me, have you ever heard of one known as 'The Black Cat'?"

"Black cat?" says Ichigo blankly, a dumbfounded expression on his face. "Uh…no…"

"Do you think he means Yoruichi?" asks Rukia to no one in particular.

"We don't know any 'Black Cat'!" shouts Ichigo in response.

The woman with them turns her attention to Toshiro. "Hey, You! With the white hair!"

Toshiro is caught a little off guard from being addressed so rudely.

"You know where it is, don't you?" she says happily. "I can sense its residual spiritual energy all over you!"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Liar. I'm never wrong."

"Well, you're wrong this time. I haven't been around anyone lately." he lied. 'Black Cat?' he thought to himself. *'I'm bad luck.'* The words rang in his head.

Kamma studied him. Toshiro glared back with a hardened teal gaze. "Hmm." Kamma realized that he wasn't going to get anything out of them, whether they knew anything or not. "Until another time, perhaps." he says as he turns away from them.

"But-" said Giza. She did not like to be wrong.

One glare from Kamma was enough to shut her up. She reluctantly followed as they flash-stepped away.

Later that night

Toshiro was sitting on the roof of his apartment. "He said he was looking for a 'Black Cat.'" he thought to himself. Kyoko's words came back to him once again.

'… I'm bad luck. My entire life, I've only ever brought misfortune to myself and those around me…. '

"…could it be that they were looking for her? And if they were, why?"

'I wouldn't be welcome there… No. You don't understand. The soul society…never mind'

"…Could…could they be looking for her?" The thought of Kyoko being connected to the enemy made his stomach turn. "But why? What could people like that possibly want with her?" He paused for a moment to collect his thoughts, running his fingers through his white hair. "Why do I even care?…" He couldn't bring himself to answer this question. "It doesn't matter. I need to stop shirking my responsibilities as captain. I have to ask her." He had made up his mind, even though some small part of him didn't want to know the answer.

The End

-Sorry for the huge delay in uploading new chapters, but my internet kinda went screwy with me...

That, and I was pretty discouraged by this one really nasty review that was nothing but 8+ (I forgot just how many exactly) paragraphs of everything I allegedly did wrong. (However, after back-checking myself, I found that half of the complaints were things that this person misread. Or in some cases was being entirely too picky.)

Anyway, enough of my whining. If I can remember how Fanfiction works again (I'm having some serious difficulty editing right now) I'll try to bring (Hopefully) more frequent updates.

[EDIT]

No, no I won't. Like my profile says, that is a lie told because I was inspired at the time. The truth is, I'm rewriting and reconsidering a lot, starting with chapter 7. Also, I have a few other projects I'm failing at. So, sorry for the inconvenience, but I'm putting this on the back burner for now, until I get some new inspiration. (positive reviews would help some... also, tell me what you'd like to see happen. I'm rather curious, and like I said, it'd really give me some inspiration. [Don't worry, if I do, I won't use your ideas without your permission.])