Hiromi and Hitsugaya exited Captain Unohana's room and headed for the tenth barracks. Ribbons of light peeled away the darkness from bobbling lamps mounted on the walls. Hiromi smiled her Mona Lisa smile.
"Our mission was a success."
Hitsugaya nodded. After they had defeated the arrancar, Hitsugaya had issued a Hell Butterfly to Captain Yamamoto. All was well. Now all Hitsugaya and Hiromi wanted was a good night's sleep back in the Tenth Squad barracks.
They approached the barracks slowly, and Hitsugaya's keen and alert ears picked up the sound of laughter, clinking bottles, and smashed glass. "Matsumoto!" he spit through his teeth. She was probably holding another sake party.
Hitsugaya raced toward the lieutenant's barracks and threw open the sliding door, Hiromi closely following. His lips curled into a snarl as she saw a dazed-looking Matsumoto clasping a sake bottle. She was sprawled on the tatami mat (which was littered with broken glass and empty sake bottles) with Hisagi and Kira, both looking as sober as she was.
"Taichou," Matsumoto drawled. "Come have some sake with us." She nodded sleepily over to Hisagi and Kira, who drank with half-closed eyes.
"Matsumoto!" Hitsugaya shouted. "Did you do the paperwork?"
Matsumoto waved her hand dismissively. "Tomorrow, tomorrow. But sake can't wait!" She laughed and toasted Hisagi and Kira, who giggled like little girls.
"This is outrageous." Hitsugaya shook his head, as if trying to shake the scene from his head. No such luck.
Hiromi blushed. "I-I-I should b-be g-g-going back to m-my room," she stammered. "G'night." She hastily retreated from her spot in the back of the room. However, as she dashed out, Matsumoto grabbed her foot.
"Come have a drink, Hiromi."
"Th-that's okay. I'm really tired."
"No, I mean it." Matsumoto sleepily fumbled at the canister stocked with bottles of sake. She grabbed one and handed it to Hiromi.
"I can't finish it." Hiromi handed the bottle back to Matsumoto. "Besides, I don't really drink."
"Drink to celebrate for killing that arrancar! And if it's too much, you can always share with Taichou." She grinned smugly at Hitsugaya. "I have an idea. Why don't you take a sip, then Taichou can take a sip, too."
Hiromi turned beet red. "N-n-nooo, that's alright."
Matsumoto promptly ignored her and uncorked the bottle. Sake fumes wafted slowly from the cap. Then she thrust it to Hiromi's open mouth.
Hiromi choked down half of the bottle before Matsumoto yanked it away. Hiromi coughed and sputtered, but Matsumoto crawled over to where Hitsugaya was cleaning up a mess of broken glass sake bottles and shoved the half-empty bottle into his mouth. Hitsugaya was forced to glug down the rest.
"Rangiku, what is this?" Hitsugaya demanded crossly.
Matsumoto blinked innocently. "Sake." Then she grasped another filled bottle from the floor, uncorked it, and stuck it in his mouth. Then she sent it into Hiromi's.
Empty bottles now lay on the tatami mat around Hitsugaya, Hiromi, and Matsumoto. Drunk, Hitsugaya and Hiromi simultaneously snatched a sake bottle from the box and unknowingly, their lips met on the bottle.