"Mamori-fukutaicho! Bad news!" Sentaro popped through the window, and I shrieked as I quickly tightened the opening of my kosode* and kicked him back out of the window. "Do you realize that there is a reason for doors and we have a thing called 'knocking,' Sentaro!"

I heard him from under the window, "S-Sorry, fukutaicho."

"There is never a dull morning around here... he's just lucky that I was pretty much done. I think we'd be out one 3rd Seat had he popped in earlier." I muttered under my breath as I tucked in the black kosode and tied it up with my obi belt. There was a knock on the door. I groaned, "Come in."

The door slid open, and this time it was both Sentaro and Kiyone that kneeled before me. "Wow... they multiply by the minute..." I murmured.

"Excuse me, Mamori-fukutaicho, please forgive Sentaro's lapse of judgment. I assure that I would never-" Kiyone began, but Sentaro hit her on the head, "You were all for it, Kiyone! Don't go blamin' it on me!"

"Are you kidding! You never just pop into a girl's window in the morning!" She yelled back, but then turned to me, "Please, Mamori-fukutaicho, I would never ever intrude on your peace in the morning unless in dire circumstances such as-"

"No, no, Mamori-fukutaicho, allow me to punish myself for the ignorance I performed earlier. I shall-"

"Mamori-fukutaicho!"

"Mamori-fukutaicho!"

As they argued back and forth between themselves, I could feel all respect I had for them slowly slipping away... my sanity going with it. I took a deep breath, hit them both on the head to shut them up and shouted, "What did you two want to tell me!"

They both opened their mouth and I knew another argument was coming. Who was going to tell me? "Scratch that. Rewind. Sentaro, this is a chance to redeem yourself. Now, what is so important that you felt the need to announce it by jumping into my window?"

Kiyone looked downtrodden, but Sentaro eagerly reported, "Ukitake-taicho wants to see you! The execution is happening in about an hour."

It took a second for this to sink in, but when it did, I jumped to my feet and let out one more annoyed remark, "Next time tell me the important stuff before you waste my time with your petty arguing!" before grabbing Syugoryuu from my bedside and my lieutenant badge and shoving past them out into the hallway. Leave it to me to sleep in late one of the most critical days of my life.

"Wait! Mamori-fukutaicho! Hitsugaya-taicho wanted me to give you this when you woke up!"

I froze, waiting for whatever it was. Kiyone handed me a piece of paper folded up. I opened it and read the words:

I've decided. I'm going to confront Central 46 head on. Don't do anything rash. Do as Ukitake tells you and leave this to me.

-Toushirou

I crumpled the paper in my hand and sighed, "Fine, take the fun out of it for me." I tossed it through the door to my room and slipped my waraji sandals on. The two 3rd Seats followed me to Ukitake's quarter's, but his house was empty and his bedroom door was still closed and locked. I knocked on the double doors, "Ukitake-taicho, you wanted to see me?"

There was no answer, so I knocked louder, "Ukitake-taicho! Sir, you wished to see me?" Still, no answer. I rolled my eyes and said, "Alright, fine. Kiyone, Sentaro, let me know when he comes out."

"Where are you going?" Kiyone asked.

"I'm just going to sit outside. When he wants to come out, he'll come out." I turned around to leave, but called towards the room one last time, "You know Rukia's execution will be happening in an hour, so I suggest you get a move on with whatever it is you plan on doing!" I walked outside, replaying what I had just said in my head. Sure, it sounded ruder than what I had intended, but it's kind of important that he got his butt out of there.

I sat on his porch for what seemed like an eternity watching his pond of koi fish in boredom. Finally, something exciting happened... well, not so much as exciting as terrifying. A huge blue fire erupted from the Sokyoku Hill, and I could hear Sentaro shout, "This is bad, Kiyone! The execution has begun! Isn't the captain ready yet!"

Brilliant, just brilliant, I thought, anxiously pacing on the porch until I heard the doors open. Ukitake-taicho walked outside carrying a large shield and some sort of thick spear. "Taicho, what exactly is that?"

"The weapon we're going to use to destroy the Sokyoku."

I blinked in disbelief, "Uh... then we should get going."

He nodded and we all flash-stepped away from the barracks and towards the Sokyoku Hill. Time was running out, and we hurried as fast as we could to the top. It was rather difficult since Ukitake had the huge shield to drag along. We were not even at the steps when the blue flame erupted into a large phoenix. "What's that?" I panted, trying to get a look at it while watching where I was going.

"That's the Sokyoku's real form. We have to hurry, or we'll be too late!" Ukitake explained, and he flash-stepped forward. All three of us followed him closely. My heart was pounding, time was running out. I had a strange notion in the back of my mind that told me we were going to be too late.

We reached the steps and pushed ourselves to our limit. A huge screech sounded from the Hill. I could only imagine what that meant. Tears welled up in my eyes as my feet pounded the earthen stairs. Please don't be over. Please don't let it be over before we get there. I prayed in my head, agonized over the lack of knowledge we had. What was going on up there?

The immense reiatsu the Sokyoku emitted was incredible. It was hard to ignore. It blocked everyone else's presence. I couldn't tell if Rukia was still up there or not. It didn't matter since her reiatsu was probably still locked up anyway.

Just a few more steps to go. A little farther. Just a little farther. I kept chanting that in my head to push me forward, to not give up.

When we ran out of steps, we met a forest in our path. Ukitake disappeared beyond the thicket. Without any hesitation or premise to what I would see beyond, I followed him, leaving the other two a step behind. I had to know. I had to tell my eyes that it wasn't too late.

The great phoenix reared, screeching in anger. It shot forward, ready to destroy whatever was in front of it. But a giant rod with a rope attached wrapped around its neck. It stopped dead in its tracks while the rod shot towards the ground and dug into the earth. Ukitake. I thought, and I flash-stepped to his side. Very few people had shown up, but the person that shocked me the most was Kuchiki-taicho.

Above all of us was the Sokyoku phoenix, and across from it was the execution stand. At the top was Rukia, but in front of her was a man I had never seen before. Is that...?

Kyouraku stepped up and placed his hand on the rod that had dug into the ground with Nanao by his side, "Hey there, Mr. Handsome. You made us wait a while."

"Sorry, breaking the seal took a while. However..." he threw the shield into the ground, "This ought to do it!"

Both of them jammed their zanpakutou into the two slots on the shield and the rope around the Sokyoku's neck began glowing orange. Once the entire rope was consumed, the phoenix erupted into flame and rained on everybody, the shockwave knocking back some of the people who had released the thing. The sky became visible once again, and when I looked back up, the man was standing on the wooden execution stand, his ridiculously huge zanpakutou raised. He began spinning it above him using the cloth on its hilt, and with one fell swoop, the stand was showered in a thick cloud of dust as a huge explosion came from beneath it.

When the dust cleared, there was a huge gap in the horizontal beam, and Rukia was in the man's arms... well, sort of.

"He destroyed it!" Sentaro forced out, all of us in awe at the raw power this man had.

"Is that... is that Kurosaki Ichigo?" I asked Ukitake, and he nodded. I knew it. I knew it from the moment I saw him. The power I felt coming from him now that the overshadowing reiatsu from the Sokyoku had disappeared was insane. There was more to him than he was letting on.

"So now what do we do?"

"Good question. I suppose we wait to see what he does."

Suddenly, Ichigo lifted Rukia into the air and threw her down towards the ground. I glanced in the direction he was throwing her to see Renji. Thank goodness for that. He caught her, but skidded several feet backward from the force. After screaming at Ichigo, he picked Rukia up and took off.

"Don't just stand there, you fools! After them! All lieutenants, go!" Soifon-taicho ordered, but I just stood there idly. Ukitake had more power over me than she did. Kotetsu-san, Oomaeda-san, and Sasakibe-san all chased after him, swords drawn. But before they even had a chance to catch up with Renji, Ichigo flash-stepped in front of them. He stabbed his zanpakutou into the ground and took them out one by one without even so much as looking them in the eye.

Next thing I knew, he was up against Kuchiki-taicho, their blades pressed against each other. Then Kiyone was calling for her sister and running toward the fallen lieutenant. Sentaro chased after her, trying to get her to stop. There was a flash of black and white, and Sentaro was on the ground. Soifon-taicho stood between him and Kiyone, who was frozen with fear.

"Hold it, Soifon!" Ukitake yelled, and he ran to his 3rd seat's defense. He was stopped by Yamamoto-soutaicho himself. "Do not move!" He commanded.

"Genryusai-dono!" Ukitake murmured in disbelief.

"It was a lieutenant that took off with the criminal. We can always find a replacement. We can take our time capturing him. However... I cannot forgive you two! As captains, you have done something you must not have done. I'm sure you both understand what that is."

There was a pause as tensions began to rise. He infuriated me. He's talking about Renji as if he's some pawn that could be thrown away and easily replaced with another!

"What are you saying, Soutaicho! I can't believe you would talk about a fellow comrade like he's trash! Renji can't simply be replaced! He is who he is and no one can replace him! No one can be Renji. If anyone's the trash it's you who would just throw away their subordinates because they-"

"That's enough, Nazeka." Ukitake warned.

"But, Taicho, he-"

"I said that's enough!"

"Ukitake-taicho, you're in danger!" Kiyone said, going around Soifon-taicho, but Ukitake ordered her back too, "Stay back, Kiyone!" He shook his head. The tension rose even further, but Kyouraku broke the silence easily, "Well, we've got no choice!" He tipped his hat and grabbed Ukitake's shoulder, "Guess we should make a run for it, Ukitake!"

"Whaa-?" Ukitake managed to say that much before the two of them disappeared, leaving Nanao-san and I behind. We looked at each other before chasing after them over the side of the cliff. We fell silently, speeding toward the ground that rose up with such ferocity that I doubted my ability to land safely.

Before we hit the earth, we flash-stepped off the cliffside and through the streets until we came to an already damaged part of town. It took Nanao-san and I a little longer to catch up with them though, and we obviously arrived a little late.

Kyouraku chuckled, "Nanao-chan... you're last!"

"You two are two fast!" She complained, panting, and I nodded, "You can't expect us to hold our own against two captains, now can you Kyouraku-san?"

I didn't get a response; someone else had already gained their attention, and I knew right away who it was. There was no way to avoid him.

"I must say, you got here fast." Kyouraku applauded the Soutaicho, who just replied bitterly, "No brats have ever been successful escaping from me. Now come, you greenhorns! But just my fists won't do any longer." He stood up, and his surrounding reiatsu became quite clear. It was subtle at first, but as he grew closer, the fiery force swept over me like a windstorm. It was heavy, pushing me down to my knees as it sucked every breath from my lungs. He was everywhere. There was no way to escape.

I could hear Syugoryuu roar inside my head, his temper rising. It was like some intruder had entered my mind and was shutting me down from the inside. There was no simple off switch. I couldn't escape this strange mixture of fear, paranoia, and madness. I couldn't fight it.

"It's okay, Nazeka. You shouldn't be here. I know Toushirou sent you a note. Why don't you go find out what he's up to, okay? Go on. You're strong, I know you can get out of this."

Ukitake's voice cut through the weight, and I nodded slowly, feeling as though my head would fall off at the slightest movement. He helped me to my feet, and I turned around, teetering on my feet. I would shunpo. I would. I would try my hardest. I needed to get out. Focus on the next objective. Get out.

The weight lifted, the madness disappeared, and felt my face hit some grass. I had fallen face first. Where was I? "Nazeka, get your head on straight. You gotta go find Toushirou." Right. I knew that. Wait... who was Toushirou? "Focus, Nazeka." Right, right, I know, I know. So what am I doing? I'm lying in the grass. Why am I in the grass? Oh, that's right, I had collapsed. Why again? I'm tired. That's right, but why? Oh yeah, I was with Ukitake-taicho and Kyouraku-taicho. But why am I here again? Right, I was with them, but Yamamoto-soutaicho's reiatsu was to much and I got out of there. But wait, where's here?

I sat up and looked around. I was in front of my house. Whoops, not where I had intended. At least I hadn't overshot it and landed in Rukongai. I shook my head, hoping that would clear my head. Not really, but I got to my feet anyway.

I couldn't remember what I was supposed to be doing. "Find Toushirou. Ukitake told you to, remember?"

He did? When?

"Before you left. Jeez, do you have brain damage or something?"

Shut up.

Okay, now where did Toushirou say he was going? Now I couldn't remember that. What the heck was wrong with me! I tried to calm myself down. All I had to do was find the note from this morning I had thrown in my room. Why is it that I could remember I threw it in my room but I couldn't remember what was written on the note? What did Yamamoto-soutaicho do to me!

I threw off my sandals and dove into my room, searching for the crumpled little piece of paper. It was easy to find, thank goodness my room was so clean. Central 46. That's right, he had gone to Central 46.

Putting my sandals back on, I ran out of the barracks and down the street, making a left at the nearest turn, heading for Inner Seireitei. It took me longer than I thought. Someone had been fighting, and there were toppled over buildings and walls that blocked my way at times, but I jumped over them and sometimes even ran on the rooftops. But eventually I reached the gates. They were already open, and I could see down the pathway that the door had collapsed.

I felt a bit awkward, entering the area for Central 46, but I would just have to get over that. I was just hoping no one would blame me for the door as I climbed through it. It was dark, but I could see the stairway. I fought my own hesitation and bolted through the darkness, descending down multi-levels of stairs. There was a doorway at the bottom, but what was beyond that nearly made me scream at the sudden view. Every one of the members of Central 46 were dead, lying there in their own blood that was spattered on the walls, chairs, and desks.

"Woah, wasn't expecting that. As much as I hated these guys, this is... quite unnerving..." I wiped my finger on some of the blood. It was black and hard, crumbling at my touch. "They've been dead for some time. Good riddance." I lifted the head of the nearest guy and stared long and hard at him, "So you're the guys that made Toushirou and Kusaka fight, huh?" I slammed the guys head into the desk, "I should've done that to you a long time ago! To all of you! You made him suffer! Both of them! I'm sick of all of you and I'm glad you're dead! You can't torture anyone else now!"

"Nazeka, you're losing focus!"

I don't care!

"Nazeka, what if something goes wrong? You. Need. To. Focus."

Fine...

I ditched the dead guys and walked down one of the other hallways, but it only lead to a maze of more corridors. After spending an eternity finding my way back, I took the second hallway on the opposite side of the room with the dead members. It lead to a larger hallway, and was once again dark. It grew colder the closer I got to the end, and soon I was walking on small crystals of ice. I quickened my pace and finally came to the opening at the end, slipping on the now ice-covered floor. The entire place was encased in a thin layer of ice and I could see the steam rise from my mouth as the temperature dropped increasingly.

Unohana-taicho and Kotetsu-san were already here, and in front of them was a swirl of cloth that glowed brighter as Kotetsu-san approached it, ready to draw her sword. But in a flash of light, it disappeared.

"Hello, Mamori-fukutaicho," Unohana-taicho greeted me without so much as looking at me.

"Ah, hello, Unohana-taicho. What was...?"

"It seems we were all mistaken. Aizen is not dead. That was him and Ichimaru just now."

"Uh...?" I stared at the back of her head. What? Did I hear that correctly?

"It's true. Isane, please find out where they went."

"Yes ma'am!" Kotetsu-san pulled out a jar of ink and began drawing on the floor in front of her while chanting, "Hearts of the South, Eyes of the North, Fingertips of the West, Heels of the East... Gather holding the winds, scatter sweeping the rains. Bakudo 58! Kakushitsuijaku!" The drawing began to glow, but while she did her thing, I looked around at the room. The ice was no doubt Toushirou's work.

"Unohana-taicho-"

"It's the Sokyoku!" Kotetsu-san interrupted me.

"Understood. Now locate every captain and lieutenant and report to them everything we've learned here about Sosuke Aizen and where he's gone to." Unohana-taicho began heading for the steps that were covered in ice.

"Uh, Unohana-taicho-"

"And... get the message to those ryouka as well." She began climbing the steps.

"Ahem, ah, Unohana-taicho... Where is Hitsugaya-" I was interrupted for the third time. Now I was annoyed. I just wanted to know where Toushirou went, dang it!

"I'm counting on you. I must now try to save the lives of Hitsugaya-taicho and Hinamori-fukutaicho." She drew her sword as a green light appeared.

"Wait, what! Toushirou is...?" I tried to process everything that was going on. I had missed so much. Just what happened here? I raced up the steps and looked to the left. Momo was lying on her side, but Unohana-taicho was already working on her. That meant that to my right was...

"Toushirou!" I screamed as I saw him, lying facedown in the very ice he had created. I sprinted to his side, slipping a few times and nearly falling off the platform we were on. A long bloody gash reached around his right shoulder and onto his back. It was already frozen over to keep any more blood from spilling, but the iced over platform was already covered in his blood. He still had a tight grip on his sword; his eyes were a blank stare.

"Toushirou?" I asked hesitantly. No response, not that I was expecting anything. "Hey, c'mon now. Y-You can't just... no, you can't just die on me here," my voice trembled and I could feel tears welling up. I tried hard to fight them, "No. Wake up, Toushirou. Show me you're still alive." I rolled him over so he was on his back and pried his sword from his cold hand. It was like ice too.

"Mamori-fukutaicho." Unohana-taicho's voice startled me. I turned to look at her, "Yes, ma'am?"

"Will you start treating him? All you have to do is remove the ice from his wound and use some of the basic healing kido you learned at the Academy until I get over there.

"Yes, ma'am, of course." I walked around him and kneeled next to his shoulder. The ice was thick and made my fingers numb to the bone when I pulled on it. There was no way to get it off without hurting him even more. Syugoryuu, tell Hyourinmaru to lay off so the ice will melt.

"Fine. Yo, Hyourinmaru!"

A few seconds later, the ice began to defrost and soon disappeared. The only problem was that the blood began running again. I tore off the left sleeve of my kosode and pressed it against the wound to sap up some of the blood before I began to use the healing kido.

Then suddenly, Kotetsu-san's voice rang in my head: "Attention all Gotei 13 Captains, lieutenants, and seated officers... and also the ryouka. This is Squad 4 Lieutenant, Isane Kotetsu. This is an emergency. This is an emergency announcement from Squad 4 Retsu Unohana-taicho and me, Isane Kotetsu. Everything I'm about to tell you is the truth!"

She explained everything she and Unohana-taicho had discovered just before I had arrived and what had happened to Momo and Toushirou. I shook my head in disbelief, "I can't believe it... I mean, I remember thinking it odd when I saw his calm expression... but I guess I couldn't come up with a better explanation, so I really believed it was real. My instincts were right, and now everyone's paying for it..."

I removed the sleeve and held my hands over the wound. It was deep, and the bleeding wouldn't stop. The sleeve was soaked, and my hands were bloody just from holding it there. A green glow enveloped my hands as I began the kido and tried to hold my hands still.

I hated that my hands continued to shake, no matter how hard I tried to hold them still. I didn't really know what I was doing. There was so much blood, all over the ice and his clothes and even some spattered on his face and in his hair. His eyes kept staring up at the ceiling half-closed.

A piece of time from long ago appeared in my mind, wrenched from the confines of my memories from the sight of the blood. So much blood. A limp body. Lifeless eyes. More blood, screaming. Death.

My death.

I tried to shake it from my mind, push it away. I realized that I was crying, so I tried to wipe the tears away with my upper arms.

"Mamori-fukutaicho, I will take it from here." Unohana-taicho had appeared behind me, silently. It made me jump, but it was the jump I needed to change my mindset.

"Yes, ma'am."

I didn't want to watch, but I couldn't bring myself to leave. I sat on the cold steps, and I had the awful realization that I was one of the only higher ranking shinigami that hadn't had to fight a single battle. I didn't have a single scratch on me, and the only blood was Toushirou's.

"Just think of yourself as lucky."

Lucky? You've got to be kidding me. I didn't do anything. I followed Ukitake around like a little dog and ended up coming here to learn that I was too late to do anything anyway.

"It could be worse. You could helpless and lying on the ground like him."

At least that meant I would've done something. I'm not hurt, and everyone else at least got hurt or did something. I know it's weird to think that I'm left out because I didn't get hurt, but I feel guilty over it.

"What's done is done. There's nothing you can do now. Don't hold onto it, because you're not going to change the past."

I know, I know. It's hard though.

"Would a joke help?

No.

"Okay, good, 'cause I can't think of one right now."

"Mamori-fukutaicho, I'm going to transport these two to the 4th Squad Barracks. I've done all that I can for them here. My subordinates will finish up at the barracks, but for now, they are stable. They will live, but it's up to them to wake up."

I nodded, but she wasn't done, "However, I do need help carrying them outside."

"Oh, yes, ma'am." I climbed the steps again. Kotetsu-san was already picking up Momo, so I went back to Toushirou's side. It then occurred to me that this was probably going to end up being one of the strangest things I have ever done. I took a deep breath and grimaced as I picked him up, trying to be careful with this shoulder and back.

It was so very... backwards. I tried not to think about it too much, but when Kotetsu-san saw my face and giggled a little, I couldn't help but roll my eyes and groan.

"He will never know of this."

"Of course not, Mamori."

"I'm serious! He cannot find out about this!"

"You're turning red."

"S-Shut up! This is very... awkward for me."

"Hurry up you two," Unohana-taicho called, already in the hallway, "Don't slip down the stairs, now."

I felt overly conscious of the ice on the stairs after she said that, but luckily made it down safely. Syugoryuu, you can't tell him either. Neither can Hyourinmaru. If either of you tell him, I will skin you alive. The only response I got was a malicious chuckle. ...Great.

After about fifteen awkward minutes, we made it outside. Unohana-taicho drew her zanpakutou again, but this time, it morphed into this huge green creature that looked like a combination between a whale, a bird, and a sting ray. The creature ate both Momo and Toushirou, and I couldn't help but feel sorry for the two as they sat in its belly. Apparently, it helps them heal, but I couldn't see what made sitting inside some weird creature's stomach made anything better.

Unohana-taicho, Kotetsu-san, and I rode on its back on the way to the 4th Squad barracks. Once we arrived, the creature spit them right back out again, and some members from the squad carried them into the barracks for treatment.

"Mamori-fukutaicho, Isane will take care of them. I am heading for Sokyoku Hill. Ukitake-taicho should be up there as well. Perhaps you should check in with him. I will give you a ride."

"Thank you, Unohana-taicho."

I hadn't realized at first, but the sun was already almost done setting. It was bright, but it was neat to see it from the weird creature so high up. We reached the top of the hill in no time at all, and I thanked Unohana-taicho one last time before I looked around the top of the hill. I didn't see my captain. Oh well, I would just have to get down myself. But what caught my eye, was the ryouka.

I approached them, hoping they would recognize me as a friend. The tall one, Sado, saw me first. He must have said something, because all heads turned toward me. I gave a small wave, "Hey there. Glad to see you guys are out of that prison." Then I remembered my hands were covered in blood from before, and I stopped waving.

"Nazeka?" Ishida said, sounding surprised that I was there.

"Oh great, you're back." Ganju muttered. Orihime was concentrating on an orange barrier surrounding a man lying on the ground, Ichigo Kurosaki, but she managed a friendly hi. I stood next to her and looked down at the man, who seemed surprised that his friends knew me.

"Who are you?"

"You must be Ichigo. Rukia's told me a lot about you," I folded my arms behind my back and smiled, "Hi, I'm Nazeka Mamori. I wanted to thank you for everything you did for Rukia. You saved one of my closest friends and subordinates, and saved the Soul Society. I don't think there's any way for me to express my eternal gratitude." I bowed, but when I straightened up again, he had the same dumbfounded expression on his face.

"Uh... it's no problem... but I'm still confused. Who are you exactly?"

I sighed, "I'm Nazeka Mamori, lieutenant of the 13th Squad under Ukitake-taicho and therefore, Rukia is my subordinate, like I said."

"So you're on Renji's level?" Of course, compare me to Renji.

"Yeah. You could say that."

"And you were on our side?"

"Yeah."

"Oh. Okay then. Well, thanks for being on our side then. I guess that makes you a friend as well."

"I think we officially ditched the formalities there. Anyway, I also wanted to say that I am highly impressed with your abilities. I think you'll make a great shinigami, even if you are human."

"Ah, Mamori-fukutaicho!"

I was interrupted by a member of my own squad, Daisuke, "Yes?"

"Ukitake-taicho is back at the barracks and wants to see you."

"Alright. I'll be there in a minute," I turned back to the ryouka-now-friends, "Are you going to be staying in Soul Society for a little while?"

"I suppose just until we recuperate," Ishida answered.

"Alright, then I'll talk to you guys later. See ya!"

*kosode= the black shirt they wear.