A/N: Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach, just the next generation kids.

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Chapter 4

The very next morning, Soifon and the Omnitsukidou checked the area one last time. All they found were more blood and broken zanpaktous, and they finally found the Sensei, who fortunately was still alive, but nearly fatally injured.

At the very same time, Abarai Kimiko had woken up at last with a terrible headache. All she could think about was her dear friends, Yuki and Takeo. All she could say was Yuki's name.

Hanatarou was grieving. Who wouldn't? If you had just heard that your child's body was found and that they had been killed, wouldn't you cry as well?

When the Sensei finally woke up, they questioned him. He couldn't give them any answers other than that A) he didn't know about the kidou bombs, so he couldn't have set them off and B) he didn't know where Hitsugaya Yuki was.

At the Captain's meeting later that afternoon, all ten Captains showed up, even Ukitake, who was thought to be sick right at this moment, but he wasn't. When she was called, Captain Soifon stepped forward and gave some more bad news.

"We have found the Sensei, Soutaichou, but he couldn't give us the answers that we were looking for. Based off of his answers when we questioned him in Division Four this morning, the sensei is not a suspect. I'm sorry, but no other students have been found, Sir. Not even Hitsugaya-san. I know it's rude to say this, especially in front of her father," here she gave the Ice Captain a sympathetic look, "but it is possible that she may be dead. She may have died from the kidou blast."

"Isn't that theory wrong, though?" Kurotsuchi asked. All ten pairs of eyes turned to him. Toushirou narrowed his eyes.

"What are you saying?" The Ice Captain growled back.

"I am merely trying to state that Soifon-taichou's theory may be wrong. You've stated that you never found Yuki-san's body, correct?"

Soifon nodded.

Komomura cut in. "So it is possible that she may be still alive."

"But where is she?" Kuchiki announced.

"It is possible that she may have been kidnapped," Unohana suggested.

Toushirou suddenly got a very bad feeling. "Daddy! Help me!" He tensed up. "Please! He's so scary!" Apparently he must've been the only one who could hear this voice, which sounded small, childish, and very scared, because none of the other Captains were looking around for the source of the voice. He stayed silent in hopes of hearing the voice again. "Daddy! Help! This man…he's scary! HELP ME FROM THIS KUSAKA MAN!" That got Toushirou's attention immediately.

Kusaka…he heard that name before…it was his old academy friend…and that voice belonged to a child…but who? Toushirou thought…he gasped.

Yuki!

His own daughter was calling out to him. Wherever she was, she was with Kusaka. And Kusaka was somehow frightening her. Toushirou silently clenched his fists in anger. There was another person he couldn't protect, no matter how hard he tried. First Momo, then both Momo and his other daughter Rei, and now Yuki…

What were Momo's last words to him before she left with Rei? "Take care of Yuki, Shirou-chan…" Why couldn't he keep his promise now?

His was his duty to protect his loved ones, his subordinates, and the innocent. Yuki was all three.

She was a loved one, because she was his daughter. No other comment on that, other than the fact that he loved her to tiny pieces.

She was one of his subordinates in a way, because she lived in the Tenth Division and lived like one of their comrades. She worked with them, she trained with them, and she even talked with them. They liked her because she helped them and took great care of Sammy, the fourth seat's gold retriever, and because she was their Captain's daughter, though they didn't really know that, they respected her. Whenever someone bullied her, they stuck up for her. Toushirou was always glad and proud of that. Sammy always knew when she was in danger, because Yuki hung around Sammy all the time. That dog was smart, Toushirou had to admit. That dog could sense the spiritual pressure of any tenth division member, hollow, or Arrancar. Toushirou was glad he let that dog stay in the Tenth Division barracks.

She was innocent, because she had no reason to be in this problem that was ONLY between him and Kusaka. She had no part in this. He couldn't let her get involved. He never let her get involved with anything that she wasn't a part of. She didn't need to be part of anything like that. "Stay out of this, Yuki! It doesn't involve you!" Whenever she started to butt in, he always said that to her, sometimes louder than he needed to be.

It was his duty to protect his daughter. And God damn to hell anyone who let him neglect his duties and break his promises.

Toushirou knew what he had to do, so after the Soutaichou had dismissed the Captains when the meeting was over and marched over to the Division Four barracks. He had heard that Yuki had been in Abarai Kimiko's group. It was a good thing that black-and-red-ponytail-haired girl had been in Yuki's group. He felt bad for Seventh Seat Hanatarou though. His son Takeo had also been in Yuki's group but did not survive the Kidou Blast. He was just glad that his daughter was still alive.

When he got to the Hospital, he marched past the front desk. He knew where Kimiko's room was by heart. He had been there this morning. He was there when she woke up, in fact. He knocked on the door to the room and opened the door and walked in. Kimiko was awake and attempting to walk with the help of her mother. Her father was trying to encourage her.

No words were needed when he walked in. Kimiko knew what the Captain wanted. However, her parents, Renji and Rukia, were confused, but had some idea.

"I'll lead you to her right away, Hitsugaya-taichou," Kimiko simply. "I'll lead you to the place where I last saw her." He nodded and she got up and walked towards the door.

Renji stopped them. "Excuse me, Hitsugaya-taichou." Toushirou paused and turned back towards them to look at them over his shoulder. "But where are you going?"

"Getting my daughter back!" Toushirou replied a little too curtly and a little too harshly.

"Well, if it doesn't bother you, Sir," Rukia cut, "But we'd like to go as well."

"Why?" Toushirou asked simply.

"Sir, that's our daughter. We don't want anything to happen to her," Renji said.

"Alright," Toushirou sighed. "You may come with me. But when we get to the place that your daughter remembers so well, that's where we depart. Understand?"

"Yes, Sir!" All three said.

Kimiko led them to the Senkai Gate, which was opened for them by Ukitake. He wished Toushirou good luck before the group went through the Senkaimon.

Toushirou kept muttering, "I hope I'm not too late. If you hurt her, Kusaka, you'll be dead faster than you can say 'Long time, no see'!"

They finally got the sight where the groups had split up. Kimiko's mind went back to the mission and she ran in the direction Yuki had picked. She told them where they had found each hollow, where the fight with each hollow led them, and where they had killed each hollow, then she stopped in the same area where Yuki had led them rest. She even pointed out the large tree stump on which Yuki had let Kimiko and Takeo rest on. She then visualized their meeting with Kusaka and Kimiko remembered when she told Takeo to go get some help. She trembled and started to cry. It was her fault that he was dead. If she hadn't told him to go call for help, he wouldn't be dead. Rukia put a gentle hand on her daughter's shoulder.

"It's okay. Just try to remember where Kusaka took Yuki," she said. Yeah, Toushirou had filled the other two in.

Kimiko concentrated and she heard a voice. "Kimi-chan! South! South!" She pointed to the direction where Rukia was facing, to the South. "There! She went that way!" Kimi knew that it was Yuki. No one but Yuki called her "Kimi-chan".

Toushirou nodded and said a quick thank you and shunpo'd off to the direction of the South. He kept following Yuki's spirit trail in case Kusaka had changed directions from South to East or something like that.

The temperature in the room was getting colder, as was Yuki's body temperature and the emotions in her heart. She was starting to be convinced that no one was going to come and get her. Her hope and patience were running out. All Yuki was doing was sitting and shivering in a corner, but soon she stopped shivering. She was getting used to the cold now. But deep down, she was scared. She was scared to death. She didn't know what Kusaka wanted with her. At first, she thought that he was a nice guy, but when he asked her all those confusing questions, she started to think that he had brought her here for a reason. Not a good reason, a bad one.

Now she hated him. She hated the vibe he was sending off. She couldn't feel any good in him and she didn't see a light in his path for him anytime soon. Usually she could do this with everyone, but not with this Kusaka man. She was scared of him and he hated his guts.

But most of all, she hated her so called father. If he had adopted her just for the sake of deceiving her, then he could just very well back off. If he didn't care for her at all, then he wouldn't come and save her. She hated every ounce in these two men's beings now. She didn't know who to trust now.

She could trust Rangiku-san, but she was the Lieutenant of her "father", so she was probably in on the plan too.

She could trust Takeo and Kimiko, but she didn't know if they were still alive or not.

She could trust Ukitake-taichou, but she didn't know if he would survive with the tuberculosis that she thought was a deadly virus that hit him every month.

She could trust Yachiru, but the pink-haired teenager (now) was (still) a little too hyper for Yuki's taste.

Kenpachi Zaraki and Mayuri Kurotsuchi were out of the questions, no doubt. She had orders from both her "father" and Rangiku-san not to be caught within ten miles of their barracks. Yuki really didn't mind. She didn't care. She thought Kenpachi was kinda cool, but a little too bloodthirsty, but Kurotsuchi was just plain freaky.

So who could she trust? Unohana? Maybe. Komamura? Maybe. Kyouraku? Eh…we'll see. The Soutaichou? Hell, if you didn't trust Yamamoto, then you couldn't trust anyone. That's why Yuki had a hard time with this right now. She was a firm believer in that phrase. And this whole trust thing scared her even more.

Kusaka was most likely doing something that required a laptop or something, because he was at the desk.

The silence was suddenly interrupted by the door banging open. Yuki jumped out of her skin and looked up in time to see Kusaka falling to the ground, out cold. She looked up to see the person who had knocked him out, the person she didn't want to see right now…

Hitsugaya Toushirou, Captain of the Tenth Division had arrived. Finally. The look he was giving Kusaka freaked Yuki out. Unfortunately for her, she gave a small squeak of surprise and horror. He turned his head immediately in her direction. She was trembling violently now.

He held out his hand, most likely for her to take, but she didn't take it.

Toushirou held out his hand for Yuki to take, to see if she still trusted him. He expected her to take it, but he never expected her to refuse it and back and scoot away from him, like he was some kind of monster.

Which she did…

~4~4~4~4~

A/N: Enjoy!