CHAPTER 6

"Mizu-chan, Mizu-chan……………!!!!" Yoruichi came running directly across the academy ignoring the people she knocked over.

Mizuno sighed helplessly at this…how many times did she run like this again? Totally lost count. Being 'bothered' by Yoruichi and Kisuke was a total nightmare in Mizuno's point of view. As much as she likes to go out and party, those two were just on the extreme part.

A rush of wind passed by her then returned within a second. Hmm…Yoruichi's shunpo has improved…let just say A LOT. Mizuno thought.

"Yes……" She drawn out slowly, "Yoruichi?"

"I found something interesting!" without a sweat or sign of tiredness on her face, Yoruichi kept on jumping up and down in front of Mizuno.

"You mean, you have found a toy for you to spare your time with when you cannot find me right?" Mizuno corrected her sentence. She looked at Yoruichi with a slight pride in her eyes; she received the name of Shunshin last semester in her fourth year. So young and able to accept this name without any nobility pride, and also she still haven't graduate from academy as yet. Not to mention the creator of Shunkou, a combination of hand-to-hand combat and kidou; though she didn't tell anyone about this but herself and Urahara who seemed to be the assistant and paring partner for this experiment.

Right now, Yoruichi is faster than any Taichou within Gotei 13, Mizuno some how was proud…no, happy is the word that Yoruichi was her 'friend'. She wondered if those old 'crooks' of Yoruichi's family and also people of soul society find out that this woman in front of her use shunpo in all types of careless manner, what would they think of their 'Shunshin'?

(Shunshin – God of flash – title of fastest person in soul society)

Without knowing that thought in Mizuno's head, Yoruichi started to drag Mizuno away from the roof top. "Come on Mizu-chan, I'll show you!"

Mizuno followed her with another sigh. "Hai hai." She had given up on refusing Yoruichi, because she knew that when Yoruichi is refused, she won't have a moment of peace.

Two months later will be her graduation from the academy. However, all of her classmates have already gotten their zanpakutou which allows them to graduate anytime they wanted now and join Gotei 13. So literally, they have already graduated from the academy, it's just that they were waiting for the ceremony.

On the other hand, she still couldn't neither sense her zanpakutou nor hear the sound of her zanpakutou. As much as she likes the academy because she can slack off from time to time, she wants to get rid of Yoruichi and Urahara's constant stickiness.

Mizuno wondered, will she be happy if she had gotten her wish? Or…lonely?

"We are here." Yoruichi put her hands on her hip with a big smile.

"……….." Mizuno looked everywhere to find….a boy? A boy who reached a little below her shoulder…….? A mannequin boy that can send cold chilly air like air conditioners from the real world? "Since when Urahara decided to make you an air-conditioner mannequin? It's going to be winter, what's the point of him?"

"Eh? What are you talking about Mizu-chan?" Yoruichi slightly puzzled, couldn't catch up with Mizuno's thoughts.

"I mean, is that your new 'toy'?" as soon as she mentioned that word, it got colder.

"Of course, interesting ne?" Yoruichi looked like a cat that wants a good pat on her head. "He was sent to me by Kuchiki family."

"So you mean that's not a mannequin made by Urahara to freeze you when the winter arrive?" Mizuno went up to the boy and poke slightly on the face. For a boy who can vibrate cold airs, his face is surely soft and warm.

"HAHAHAHAHAH, that's a nice idea Mizu-chan." Yoruichi clapped Mizuno's shoulder hard and started to tell her about this boy.

"His name is Kuchiki Byakuya, son of the current head of Kuchiki noble family. He is going to be sent to the academy next year after you graduate so his dad asked Shihouin's old crooks if I can train him ahead of time. I kinda want to refuse at first but when I accidentally saw him, it looks like fun so I accepted hehe."

Mizuno felt slight sorry for this Kuchiki kid and she showed it by slight pat his head while Yoruichi continued her blab.

"Oh well, listen Byaku-yaa, onee-san is going to train you well so…." Yoruichi changed her face from a smiley face to a devil one, "prepare for it."

"Byakuya desu." For the first time he opened his mouth with that calm, emotionless face of his. "Not Byakuyaa" he couldn't copy Yoruichi's accent on his name when he tried to correct her. Therefore, his name didn't sound any different but has a longer 'a'.

"Eh?" Yoruichi began to wonder if she's getting old for not being able to catch up on other people's mind. First Mizuno and now, her new toy. "Of course I know your name is Byaku-yaa"

"Mizuno Ai desu, yoroshiku ne Kuchiki-kun." Mizuno smiled slightly with her right hand raised for a shake ignoring Yoruichi.

(Yoroshiku – nice to meet you – used when first meeting another).

With a puzzled look on Byakuya's face, Mizuno lifted his smaller right hand and showed him what she had meant.

"Hai, Mizuno-senpai, Kuchiki Byakuya desu. Doozo yoroshiku onegaiishimasu." He bowed with a perfect angle. There was nothing Mizuno could find him wrong, everything was done perfectly as if one single bow had been practiced over thousands times.

(Doozo yoroshiku onegaiishimasu – much more polite version of yoroshiku – especially when he is the younger one).

"Yoruichi," Mizuno called out her name.

"Nani Mizu-chan?" Yoruichi blinked quickly at the mention of her name.

"Your…" Mizuno coughed slightly "student is interesting. But, I feel sorry for Shaoling. I hope you give her enough attention because I don't want her to come breaking my bed room door…again."

Fong Shaoling, or should Mizuno say, Soi Fong – named after her grandmother when she joined the Keigun. Her family is a lower class noble family that has some kind of association with Shihouin family but basically her family traditionally and for each generation exits to serve the Shihouin Family.

In the Fong family, strength meant everything. Anyone who could not enter Keigun was immediately banished from the family with no exceptions and that girl was the hardest working girl Mizuno had ever seen. After seven years joining Keigun, Soi Fong became the Head of Keigun's personal escort.

And that head of the Keigun was no one other than the person standing in front of Mizuno right now – Shihouin Yoruichi.

Yoruichi told her about Soi Fon who now has been serving Yoruichi for two years now. Apart from studying in the academy, Yoruichi literally threw all the family works to Soi Fong, in her words: "To train her for the future" but in Mizuno's words "to slack off so she could drag Urahara to the bar or play pranks."

That girl who followed Yoruichi with such blind respect and admiration, Mizuno felt sorry for her from what she had seen when she touched her hands for the first time. That was what she had meant she said to Yoruichi awhile ago that she felt sorry for Shaoling.

Mizuno looked down at Kuchiki Byakuya, she sympathises about his future, but that does not mean she will interfere with their lines of fate unless she got wrapped within it. For each time she tries to change another's fate, it's her price to pay.

"All right, now that the two of you know each other. Let's play a game!" Yoruichi clapped her hands twice for Mizuno's attention. "Mizu-chan, please be our judge. Byaku-yaa, this is the rule: you must use shunpo to catch me before dinner time however; you must stay on the ground so you cannot go on roofs or trees to look for me. Is that clear? The punishment for that is you won't be able to report home on time as your father had said you should."

"Hai."

"Why must I……?" Mizuno frowned, she wanted to go home and finish her readings for tomorrow's class.

"There's sake from Sakuya's place tonight for you." Yoruichi knew Mizuno's favourite sake place is Sakuya which made Mizuno immediately shut up.

"Ready, set, GO!" In a blink of time, Yoruichi disappeared from the spot leaving the slightly astonished Byakuya and Mizuno who sat on top of a tree branch.

Byakuya followed and gone too, but in a much slower shunpo compared to Yoruichi's shunpo. After Byakuya was gone, Mizuno took out her book and began to read.

Time flew as Mizuno saw Byakuya passed her for the sixteenth times, now panting with sweats falling from his forehead as he continued to go off to search again.

"Oi Yoruichi, don't you think it's enough?" after Byakuya shunpo off again, Mizuno said Yoruichi's name without turning around.

"Hehe, I knew I couldn't fool you. But what do you think?" Yoruichi sat beside Mizuno.

"He surely improved quite quickly compared between his current shunpo speed and 6 hours ago." Mizuno put back her book to look at the setting sun. "But don't you think your rule is a bit…too broad?"

"You mean to have him running around all 80alleys without a pin pointer? Or you mean about cannot go on high places to look for me? Hehe…" Yoruichi winked at Mizuno who rolled her eyes.

To have him running around all 80 alleys was to train his endurance and speed, for a noble to be in dangerous alleys like 75 and 80 is dangerous for nobles are disliked immensely in those types of alleys. In another words, he needs to fight or run as quickly as he can when he hit these situations. As for the second one…Mizuno looked at Yoruichi at the corner of her eyes and smirked slightly.

Seventeenth time Byakuya appeared below her panting, but did not give up. Mizuno called out "If you are tired, why don't you rest a bit?"

Byakuya's eyes were determined, a kid is still a kid, didn't want to loose even if it is a game. This was what Mizuno concluded about Byakuya today so far.

"Yoruichi is right behind me on this tree. Shunpo up here and catch her." Mizuno said ignoring Yoruichi's face and hands behind her.

"Mizu-chan!" she jumped out and yelled at Mizuno.

"See? I didn't lie to you." Mizuno smiled slightly. She wanted to find out about something.

But Byakuya still didn't move from his spot, he just stood there panting lightly under his breath as he looked up to look at the two senpai.

"What's wrong?" Mizuno continued to ask.

"Mizuno-senpai, the rule stated that I cannot go on high places." As if blaming Mizuno for breaking the rule, Byakuya repeated the rule Yoruichi stated before.

"……" Mizuno got her answer.

"Hehehe, muahahaha…you shouldn't have betrayed me Mizu-chan, I'm still the winner." Comparing to Byakuya, Yoruichi is more of a kid than he is when it comes to games, Mizuno sighed her numberless sigh of the day then she smirked.

"Oh really, as far as I remembered what Yoruichi-san said was: 'you must stay on the ground so you cannot go on roofs or trees to look for me', but you didn't say to catch you."

"……"

"……"

Those were the reaction of both Yoruichi and Byakuya.

"Alright then, I'm going to wait for you at Sakuya. See ya!" Mizuno left without another word leaving those two behind staring at each other. "If I don't see you when I'm finished eating then I'll send the bill to Shinouin."

"MIZUNOOOOOOOOO!!!!!" Yoruichi yelled as she ran away forgetting that she could use shunpo.

Byakuya shunpo to run after Yoruichi.

So between rules and what he had wanted as a kid – to win, he chose rules. He will have a hard future, and someone will teach him that sometimes, rules are meant to be broken.

Mizuno smiled, but does that apply to her self too?

On the other side, Yoruichi finally stopped for Byakuya to catch up on her.

"Oi Byaku-yaa, let's go eat before Mizu-chan finishes her food." Without waiting for Byakuya's reply, she grabbed him and shunpo away.

'Why must I go too?' Byakuya frowned. As if sensing that question in his head, Yoruichi said above his head. "If you are not going, then who is gonna pay the bill?"

"……"

"I said that I'll treat her to dinner but not 'pay' for it." When they reached the place, Yoruichi dragged Byakuya in. "Don't worry, we'll have you back home for curfew haha...yo Mizu-chan!"

Mizuno did not say anything when she saw Byakuya for she knew well enough that Yoruichi was trying to get away from paying the bill anyway.

"Sumimasen senpai, but I am still too young to drink sake." Yoruichi burst out in laughter.

"Yoruichi didn't ask you to come and drink with us, but to pay for us." Mizuno answered for Yoruichi. "For the sake of you going home hungry, I suggest you to eat some things here."

"………hai."

The three still academy students sat there for hours to eat and drink apart from Byakuya without realizing the curfew time for Byakuya had passed long ago. Until Mizuno got up to prepare to go home, they finally realized that Byakuya is in trouble.

"Yikes…I thought he could drink but prefer not to because he's underage. Mizu-chan…help?" Yoruichi scratched her hair at the drunken Byakuya.

"Yoruichi, as much as I know you like to drink, don't you think you are over doing it this time?" Mizuno picked up Byakuya's left side and Yoruichi picked up another. "Let's go for a ride."

They reached Byakuya's household searching for his room. They entered Byakuya's room without waking anyone in the hold, placing him on his futon. Before leaving, Mizuno forced Yoruichi to write a letter and she set a bottle of medicine down on top of the letter beside Byakuya.

They both smiled at each other then left.

The next day a maid opened Byakuya's door to find her young master still sleeping on the futon when normally he would be awake by now. She went up to wake up her young master. Byakuya opened his eyes to find his head splitting in pain.

He found a bottle and a letter to his right, when he looked at the letter he looked out to the opened door.

'These two senpai weren't that bad after all. Shunshin Yoruichi, Mizuno senpai ka?'