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Chapter Thirteen: The Mission Is…Infiltrate Hueco Mundo

Naruto yawned. "Hey, Sakura, have you seen Sasuke around lately? He's always been disappearing, and he seemed pretty mad last time I saw him."

Sakura shook her head. "No. I wonder what we're gathering for?"

Naruto shrugged. "Hopefully they finally have something for us to do."

Renji's voice rose over the muttering ninja. "All right! Is everyone here?"

"Everyone except for Sasuke," Shikamaru said. "That guy's such a drag."

Renji scowled. "He better come soon, because General Yamamoto has a mission for you all."

The ninja broke into excited whispers. "Finally there's something to do," Gaara said.

"There's Sasuke!" Ino said. Sure enough, Sasuke walked slowly to the group, a silly grin on his face.

"G'morning, everyone. What's the hubbub about?"

The ninja stared at him. Sasuke was never this cheerful, especially in the morning. Renji cleared his throat. "Ah, look, here comes General Yamamoto now. Pay attention."

Yamamoto made his way toward the ninja. "Good morning, Soul Reapers! The other captains and I have decided to give you a mission. It's a dangerous mission that involves the following: going to Hueco Mundo, infiltrating Aizen's fortress, and assassinating Sosuke Aizen, Gin Ichimaru, and Kaname Tosen. Is that clear?"

"Could we have an explanation, please?" Neji asked. "What's Hueco Mundo? Who are these people we are supposed to kill? Where's the fortress?"

Renji answered, "Hueco Mundo is the place between Soul Society and the human world where Hollows are created. Aizen, Ichimaru, and Tozen are all former Soul Reaper captains who have allied with the Hollows."

"So that's what happened to some of the captains," Gaara muttered.

"They are extremely powerful, so you must be careful. Aizen is the leader and mastermind of the trio. His fortress is the only building in Hueco Mundo, so you shouldn't have much of a problem finding it. You must also be careful of the Menos Grande, which are ten times the size of normal Hollows, and the arrancar, Hollow/Soul Reaper hybrids created by Aizen."

"Yeah, whatever," Naruto said. "When do we leave?"

"Tomorrow at dawn. Captain Ukitake will be waiting at the training grounds. He will open the portal for you to enter Hueco Mundo. Oh yeah, and you'll be going with the great Ichigo Kurosaki!"

The name struck a chord in Shikamaru's memory. "Ichigo Kurosaki? That's the Soul Reaper who lives on Earth, right?"

"Correct. Now go prepare yourselves for the mission tomorrow."

Sasuke was dismayed. To be separated from Rukia was too much for him to bear. All of the other ninja, however, were either excited or glad to get away from Soul Society.

Naruto got up early the next morning, for once. He went outside and saw Gaara, sitting on the roof as always. "Morning, Gaara! Ready for the mission?"

Gaara shrugged. "It can't be all that hard."

"There you are!" yelled a voice. Naruto and Gaara froze. "I've been looking all over for you two!" Kenpachi declared. "Prepare to die!"

"Not him again," Gaara sighed, and took off running with Naruto. The two blazed through the streets of Seireitei.

"Wait, Gaara! The sun's rising!"

"So? It rises every day."

"We have to be at that portal, remember?"

Gaara began to sweat. "Why did we run into the city again?"

They leapt onto the roofs and started running back to the training grounds. Temari had just been the last one to go through the portal. A captain with long white hair coughed. "It's almost time for the portal to close…"

Naruto and Gaara burst onto the field. "Wait! Don't close it! Wait for us!" They sprinted through the closing portal. Kenpachi dashed after them, only to run into a tree as the portal had already closed.

"Darn it, Ukitake, why'd you close the portal?!" Kenpachi roared.

Jushiro Ukitake, captain of the Thirteenth Division with tubercular lungs, coughed again. "Maybe another day, Kenpachi."