I want to thank everyone that reviewed. I wasn't expecting such positive replies.
Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, or any of its characters.
As they left the training ground, both Ichigo and Soi Fong finally realized how long they had been "having fun." The sun was starting to set, and they both knew that if they wanted to get the entire division in one place, they had to move quickly, and chose to flash step to their destination. He turned to see his temporary lieutenant lagging behind him, obviously not enjoying her predicament. When this occurred to him, the new captain had an idea. He moved next to her, and went through with his plan.
"Hey Soi Fong, since its getting late and we're in a hurry, how about we race to the barracks?"
"What for, Kurosaki? I don't see the point in it at all." Surely he knew that she was leaps and bounds beyond him in speed. She was aware of his bankai, because it boosted his speed beyond that of flash steps, and that his Vizard powers made him even faster, but he was not allowed to use such abilities within the Seireitei in times of peace.
"Well, if it were Yoruichi…" That was all she heard before the senior Shinigami snapped. He saw her scurrying to the third division.
Once she was out of earshot, Ichigo chuckled. He promptly sped after his lieutenant, not quite as fast, but close. 'That should speed up the trip. I just hope she meets the division before I do. I don't want to lose anyone on my first day.' He found her waiting for him, standing outside the grounds. "Okay, you win. I owe you one."
The detained leader of the Onmitsukido wasn't phased one bit. "You knew that I am faster than you. You tricked me into moving faster by taking advantage of my weaknesses. I'm impressed." Before she could say anymore, both Shinigami heard a commotion coming from a dozen third division members.
One of the bolder members stepped forward. She had white hair that stretched down below her shoulders, turquoise eyes, and a startled expression. "Captain Soi Fong, we weren't expecting you. We were waiting anxiously for our new captain and," but before she could finish, Ichigo chose to speak up.
"Waiting for me, were you? Ichigo Kurosaki, recently appointed captain of Squad 3, a pleasure to meet you." He greeted her with the most pleasant expression that he could give.
"Please forgive me, captain. Kiyomi Hitsugaya, third seat of Squad 3. Are you aware of why captain Soi Fong is here?"
The orange-haired captain briefly glanced at said "captain" and sighed. "That's something I plan on explaining to the division. I need you to gather the rest of the division in front of the barracks so I can properly introduce myself."
"Yes, captain." Kiyomi responded. She then turned to the rest of the crowd, stunned by their new captain's sudden arrival, and they spread out to tell the rest of the division.
'I never knew Toshiro had a sister.' He thought. 'Well, this is probably the tip of the iceberg.' While he was taking in the area for what it's worth, Ichigo's tranquility was broken by a certain horse.
"King, it's a good thing you aren't in comedy."
But before he could shoo off his inner hollow, who was laughing manically at the situation, the captain's thoughts were interrupted by his third seat. "Captain Kurosaki, the squad has been assembled. They are waiting for your announcement."
"Thank you, Kiyomi." He then motioned for Soi Fong to follow him, who had a look of contempt on her face that screamed 'don't push it.' He stood in front of the crowd, which appeared to be close to 250 strong. He silenced the murmurs with his voice.
"Hello, I am Ichigo Kurosaki, and from this point on I shall be your captain." The crowd promptly cheered for him, finally having a legitimate captain for the first time in years. "Now, this being my first time in the third division, I will need to adjust to some things, and I would appreciate your cooperation in doing so. You are also probably wondering why "captain" Soi Fong is accompanying me. Due to some of her actions, and the recommendation of another captain, she will be fulfilling the duties as my lieutenant until further notice."
The congregation of Shinigami had then began to murmur until their captain broke the silence. "I fully expect that you, at the very least, treat her with the same respect as you would give me." With nothing more to add, the orange-haired Shinigami walked over to his third seat.
"If you don't mind, I shall lead you and lieutenant Soi Fong to your quarters." When both captain and lieutenant were out of earshot, rumors started to spread.
After taking a tour of the division, Kiyomi had led Ichigo and Soi Fong to the captain's quarters. "This is where you will be sleeping."
Ichigo, tired from "bonding" with his new "subordinate," let out a yawn. "I assume you'll be leading Soi Fong to her room?"
"Actually," Kiyomi's began to grow nervous, "ever since lieutenant Kira had a drinking accident in his quarters, the room has been an uninhabitable mess. F-forgive me captain, lieutenant, but you will need to share a room until it's fixed."
The orange-haired captain's eyes bulged out his sockets and looked terrified, while the raven-haired lieutenant appeared furious at the notion of sharing a room with him. She spoke for the both of them for the most part when she yelled "YOU EXPECT ME TO SHARE A ROOM WITH HIM!?!"
"I-I'm sorry, but we have no alternatives. Lieutenant Kira never bothered to attempt to clean it out until he was reassigned." The white-haired woman admitted.
'Note to self: kill Kira later' both occupants of the room thought in unison.
After both of her superior officers entered the room, the third seat bid farewell. "You needn't worry about paperwork tonight, it will be sent to you tomorrow morning."
The room wasn't as bad as Ichigo originally thought. It was more spacious than his bedroom in the world of the living, and many of his personal belongings had been moved into it. The bed was modest, but strangely enough, it was rather big for one person. He also noted that Soi Fong's belongings had been moved in as well. Before she could speak, Ichigo clarified what was running through her thoughts.
"You take the bed; I'm sleeping on the couch."
"So you read minds, Kurosaki,"
"Ichigo," he stated.
"Fine, Ichigo, what else can you do that I don't know? You're quite the gentleman." She continued, trying to provoke him.
Ignoring her jab, said man was already on the couch. He wanted to put as much distance between them as possible.
The sound of metal hitting metal filled the fifth division grounds. Both combatants were dead-set on perfecting themselves, and were working on Zanjutsu. After fighting for a good while and getting nowhere, both chose to release their Zanpakuto.
"Sit Upon the Frozen Heavens, Hyorinmaru!" A large dragon of ice spewed forth, engulfing the surroundings of its wielder.
"Howl, Zabimaru!" A long, whip-like sword with teeth on its blade replaced the normal katana it was moments before.
Both fighters proceeded to attack with their Shikai. The wielder of Zabimaru had dodged a particularly vicious strike from the ice dragon, and backed off onto the rooftops. Hyorinmaru gave chase, eventually leaving the fifth division grounds altogether. The battle spread as far as the third division barracks
"Tensu Jurin!" Hyonrinmaru had then caused a snowstorm to engulf the immediate vicinity. An old man with a staff, flanked on his left and right by a tall man with long, white hair, and a flamboyantly dressed man who appeared tired.
"That's enough, you two. Stop now before I have to put you down."
"Yes, Head-Captain." Both Toshiro Hitsugaya and Renji Abarai said in unison, and sealed their Zanpakuto.
Someone must really have it out for him, Ichigo thought, because somehow it was snowing, and he was freezing. Curse his chivalric nature, he thought, because with the only blanket in the room on the bed, mentioning the couch as slightly cool was an understatement.
While he was contemplating his luck, Soi Fong was also having trouble coping with the sudden drop in temperature. She tried everything she could think of to keep warm, but with the limited items in the room, her options were limited. 'I think I've run out of options…' While she was thinking that, her eyes turned to the couch. 'No! I'll never resort to that.'
A strong gust of wind flew in through the window in the raven-haired Shinigami's direction. 'I'll admit its cold, but I'm not that desperate.' Just as she was thinking it couldn't get any worse, snow started falling through the window and into the room. 'Nobody will ever hear of this. Ever.'
"Ichigo," the lieutenant called out, "wake up!" No response. "Ichigo!" she called out, a little louder this time. "ICHIGO!" She yelled into his ear.
"No… get off of me old man… five more minutes…" said captain said in his sleep. Clearly he was dreaming about some 'old man' that he knew, probably from his life in the world of the living.
"Wake up, Ichigo!" Finally losing it, Soi Fong threw a punch aimed for his face. To her horror, he blocked it effortlessly. She tried using her other hand, but it was also blocked. What shocked her even more was that he retaliated with his feet. She had barley dodged his blow and jumped back. He stood up in a combat position.
They engaged in a furious bout of blows. The detained leader of the Onmitsukido failed to land a blow on him, and the orange-haired dreamer just barley missed her. If this kept up, she would be unable to end this without her Zanpakuto, and the thought of needing it sent shivers down her spine.
'I've heard of sleepwalking, but this is ridiculous,' she thought. 'Never has an Onmitsukido head had a target block their blow in their sleep. Am I really that incompetent as a leader?' Curiosity got the better of her. "Ichigo, I never knew you were a Hakuda master."
"Let me sleep you crazy old… wait, you never talked to me… about Hakuda…" Then, as if on cue, Ichigo yawned and woke from his dream. "Huh? Soi Fong? Is it morning already? What are you doing up?"
"I was trying to wake you up, but when you wouldn't wake up, I tried using force. You were sleepwalking, or sleepfighting, or whatever you call it."
"Oh, my father is the cause of that. He attacks me every chance he gets. He says it's to keep my skills sharp." He admitted. "Say, why were you trying to wake me up? Did you need something?"
At that question, the braided lieutenant looked away. "I noticed that you were cold, so I was… concerned for you."
The orange-haired Shinigami had a puzzled expression. "Why were you worried about me? I'm fine. You should be more concerned about your own well-being."
"I want to switch places with you. I want to sleep on the couch, so you should sleep in the bed."
"No thanks, i'm not that cold." However, his words betrayed his body, which was shivering. "Anyways, I'm going back to sleep. I can tell that tomorrow is going to be a long day."
He had begun to turn around when he felt a hand on his wrist. He turned to see the woman looking at him with a worried expression. "I was thinking… that since we're both a bit cold… and that neither of us want the bed to ourselves... we could… to conserve warmth…"
Ichigo knew what she was thinking, and before he could react, she pacified him. "Please, Ichigo, meet me halfway on this. Nobody will ever hear of it, ever. Besides that, you owe me."
The captain sighed, knowing that he lost this one, and let his lieutenant guide him to his bed. Praying that it wouldn't have repercussions later, he relaxed while Soi Fong snuggled up to him. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad, but he knew deep down that it would never work out. In hindsight, he didn't know why he felt it so improper, knowing that that woman would never hold any interest in him.
Morning came, and with it, new responsibilities that needed to be adjusted to. Ichigo felt comfortable and didn't want to move, but he knew he had to. Realization struck him when Soi Fong came into view. 'Oh my god,' he thought, 'Did I just do what I think I did?' Noting an arm around her, fear rushed through him when thoughts of what she would do came to mind. He thought that she looked peaceful when she slept, and it must have been rare for her to sleep for so long. Quickly, but not enough to wake her, he retracted his arm and attempted to get up, when a hand grabbed his wrist.
"Lady Yoruichi... don't leave me... please..." She spoke in her sleep.
With a sigh of relief, he gingerly freed himself from her grasp and pulled the blanket over her. He then looked for a change of clothing. Opening the closet, he found more than enough Shihakusho for one person, even Yumichika Ayasegawa. After entering the other room to change and returning, he found that his lieutenant had woken up.
"Rise and shine, Soi Fong. Did you sleep well?" he asked. It was incredibly rare for Soi Fong of all people to sleep in, and when it did happen, there was a good reason for it.
"You let me sleep in, didn't you Ichigo?" she accused, although with not as much venom as the day before.
"Well, it appeared to me that you needed it." After analyzing her attire, the Vizard then proceeded to question her. "Are you really going to wear that uniform? For the time being, you aren't the leader of the Onmitsukido."
"I may be relieved of my duties for the time being, but i'm still its leader. Besides, Flash Cry would blow off a standard Shihakusho." she remarked with a scowl.
"Well, at least wear this over it." The petite Shinigami was thrown a spare uniform. She reluctantly complied and adjusted to the new outfit.
As if on cue, Kiyomi entered the room. "Good morning captain Kurosaki, lieutenant Soi Fong. I have your paperwork." Much to her captain's dismay, she carried two enormous stacks of paper in her arms. She spoke up after placing the sheets on his desk. "I'll be on my way."
After the third seat left, they both sat down and prepared to work. After his introduction to paperwork, which he found annoying, much to his mentor's chagrin, realization hit Ichigo once again, but he figured that some paperwork should be done to save him from the wrath of Soi Fong. After about 10 minutes, he spoke up. "I have to go to the forth division. Finish as much paperwork as you want, i'll do the rest when I come back."
"Not so fast, Ichigo. You wouldn't be happening to chicken out of your duties, would you?" his lieutenant accused, sounding a bit off.
"Actually, it's an obligation that gramps is putting me through. I have to train with captain Unohana until she deems my abilities in Kido to be sufficient of a captain." He waited for confirmation from his lieutenant, however, that he was allowed to go.
"Fine, go have fun with captain Unohana, but I better not find out that you've been piling your duties on me." She threatened, almost daring him to tick her off.
"Thanks, but you should relax every once in a while, it's not healthy being all pent up like that." Having nothing more to say, Ichigo headed for the fourth division.
Once he was gone, Soi Fong sighed and starting pulling up his slack, and muttering something about a "lazy bastard" and "useless piece of trash." Without her realizing, a black cat had climbed up on her desk.
"Good morning, my little bee. How was last night?" Without another word, the raven-haired lieutenant dropped what she was doing and looked at her idol.
"Lady Yoruichi! It was... different." She trailed off, hoping it would be the end of the topic.
"'Different?' It must have been if you slept in. Did you and Ichigo,"
"No, we did not." She cut her off before any wrong ideas entered the goddess of flash's mind.
"Then why don't you tell me what did happen, then." Yoruichi revealed her Cheshire grin.
A/N: I hoped you liked this chapter. Please review, any constructive criticism is welcomed with open arms.