3rd chapter is - Constantine Ost, John's Solitude.

Chapter 3

"Who framed the white rabbit?"

Toshiro Hitsugaya was sitting on the wooden floor of a holding cell. Not too long ago, 8 hours to be precise, he was arrested and escorted here under the suspicion of assisting the traitor, rouge Shinigami and Soul Society's number one enemy – Aizen Souske. Right after Toshiro's small encounter with Aizen ended he was accused, immobilized and captured by 4 Captains – which were Soi-Fon, Kuchiki Byakuya, Shunsui Kyouraku and Kira Izuru, who had now become the Captain of the 3rd Division, after Gin joined forces with Aizen. His death was confirmed in the aftermath of the last battle with Aizen. Right now Toshiro was sitting in the center of his cell, his legs crossed and the palms of his hands on his knees, which was in short – a lotus position. His Zanpakuto – Hyorinmaru was on the other side of the bars at the moment, in the safekeeping of the Shinigami warden who had kept the temporary cells, should the Seiretei need them.

The boy's thoughts raced back and forth, while on the outside he seemed to be unfazed, his eyes closed. He could not understand what had made the Captains think that he assisted Aizen in any way? The Captain knew better than to assume that a simple phrase from Aizen's mouth could make them do the things they did. Something had happened and Toshiro was not sure what.

The day before yesterday the white-haired boy was attending to his duties, as always, and had come upon an ordinary scene as he was Matsumoto Rangiku – his Vice-Captain sleeping on the couch instead of doing paperwork. Naturally he had brought to her attention that this was unacceptable and that she reeked of alcohol again, but… he couldn't bring himself to actually issue any punishment. He never once did in these two years. The reason behind this was simple human pity. He pitied her, seeing as after she had witnessed Ichimaru Gin's death she started drinking a lot more. The first month she was almost closed off, like she was never there, but later on she reverted to her usual self, yet something changed… forever. Toshiro could feel the sadness behind her smiles since then.

But he digressed, his thoughts returned to his dilemma. Just that same day, during the evening when he had been trying to gather anything useful from the conversation he had with Aizen, an order arrived – Aizen Souske had escaped and was to be found and stopped immediately. Use of lethal force was authorized, and the Captain-Commander would see no problem with the traitor dead. It was like lightning strck the Captain of the 10th Division. He understood that he had to find Souske, that he finally had the chance to kill the bastard and that he was right when he had assumed the man had a way out of his prison. But why now, of all times? Why not earlier or later? A mere five days had passed since Hitsugaya visited the prisoner and he broke free now… There was no time to think about those things.

Back then Captains and their best men, as well as anyone able, were sent on patrols over all Seiretei, searching for the escaped man, yet no one could find him for the whole day. Toshiro was the one who guarded the Senkai Gate along with his men during the first day, and when absolutely nothing happened the higher-ups decided to spread their forces and check Rukongai.

It was a mistake, now I see it. I should have known better. He waited for us to thin our forces and would try to escape later, as he did. Good thing I was near the Senkai Gate when it happened. But I was too weak to stop him. Damn it!

Toshiro clenched his teeth and his fists. Too weak. Still he was too weak to fight Aizen, that bastard! And to think that Aizen had used Kyouka Suigetsu on him. When – he was not sure, but he knew that he did so, as the traitor dispersed his illusions. Toshiro wasn't sure if he ever fought the real Aizen at all.

The white-haired boy opened his eyes and gazed at the moon, which could be seen through the small window, behind the bars. He did not know why he was arrested, but he would find out sooner or later. He just had to wait, and it was eight hours already – how much more time could he possible lose here?

It was then when he heard the door open and a man came in, followed by two others – a woman and a man. The leader of these three was none other than Kira Izuru. His indifferent, emotionless eyes fixed on Toshiro.

Izuru: "Captain – I'm here to escort you to the Court. I hope you will not try to do anything out of the ordinary." – the man's blue eyes, one slightly covered by his blond hair, stared straight into Toshiro's emerald ones. The silence weighed heavily on the room, as Toshiro did not reply at first.

Toshiro: "Are you implying that I might try and escape, Captain Kira? Is that it?"

Izuru: "Yes. That is precisely what I am implying, Captain Hitsugaya. And you should know that I will not hesitate to act accordingly if you do try and escape."

Toshiro replied with a short "Hmph" and stood up, noting that this man's loyalties to Seiretei were beyond comprehension, which were both a good and bad thing. He had stopped him from attacking Hinamori before… back when Aizen faked his death.

And so under the watchful eye of this man and his subordinates, Toshiro was escorted into the hall of the Captain's meeting. It would seem that everyone were present, except for the 5th Division, who had not yet recovered due to the loss of both their Captain and Lieutenant. Aizen left and Hinamori was undergoing large mental healing procedure, which could take years to take effect. The white-haired Captain looked at everyone present in the room, including Matsumoto and stepped forward into the center of the hall.

In front of him was the Captain-Commander – Yamamoto Genryusai, who held his wooden cane with his single right hand. The old man slammed his staff into the floor and spoke, his voice ever so powerful in the empty hall.

Genryusai: "Captain Hitsugaya Toshiro – you are accused of helping Aizen Souske, the Traitor, in his escape from his well-deserved punishment and the possible murder of five Shinigami on duty. Are you aware of this?"

Toshiro(in a sure voice): "I am aware. But I disagree with any of these claims as they are false!"

Genryusai: "Hmm. Then I shall proceed to present the evidence of your guilt, Captain." – the old man nodded to one of the Shinigami and the door and a few moments later he and another shinigami brought in the chair, on which Aizen had been sitting for these past two years. As they walked back to the door, the Captain-Commander continued. – "Aizen spent two years in near to total isolation from any contact with anyone, with the exception of the guards who fed him. And he had not spoken to them. Five days ago you visited him, Hitsugaya Toshiro, and by doing so became the first one and the only one who had interacted with Aizen Souske. That is the truth?"

Toshiro knew that it was not a question, but a simple statement of the fact that he did visit Aizen, and was the first to do so in a long time. Toshiro confirmed.

Genryusai: "After five days Aizen had escaped. But we would not accuse you of anything if we had not found this." – Yamamoto nodded at Kuchiki Byakuya and the latter stepped forward, showing Hitsugaya a small crack in the chair – a cut, which had also severed the bandages slightly. Byakuya then stepped back into the line, while Yamamoto continued, watching Toshiro, who wore a shocked expression on his face. – "It is a cut made by a sword. A sword Aizen did not have, and could not have obtained by any means. We suspect that you made that cut."

Toshiro(screaming): "But this is preposterous! How? Why would I do this? Everyone here knows that I hate Aizen Souske and I would rather kill him than free him! I did not do this – I did not set him free!"

Genryusai: "You say that, Captain Toshiro – but no one else visited Souske in his cell. To further our suspicion the four Captains that had arrived to the Senkai Gate had heard Aizen mentioning some kind of a deal. They were far away, but could clearly hear this."

Toshiro: "Lies! He had been taunting me, and nothing more! I fought him and I tried to stop him. Why would I ever do that if I worked together with him?"

Genryusai: "I do not know. However, as the Captains arrested you – they had found no wounds on your body. Not even a single scratch. Perhaps Aizen had orchestrated that fight and you were only making it look like you've fought? Tell me."

Toshiro went silent. As much as he wanted to deny all this he knew one thing. He had no proof, and he had no witnesses to prove his innocence. That fucker Aizen Souske somehow did all this and set Toshiro up! That meant that either he had someone else on his side or managed to get out of his cell on his own, after waiting for Hitsugaya to visit him. So that's why he sounded so happy when the Captain came down to meet him – he was waiting just for that! Bastard!

Toshiro tried to think this through. He indeed had no wounds on him, and Aizen did that on purpose. He had visited him, and that was what Aizen was waiting for… he also said that he and the traitor had some kind of deal, which was a lie he had used. And then there was the cut mark…. And that must mean that however he cut the bandages he did that in the five days before his escape, since Toshiro was sure the bandages were alright when he visited the rouge shinigami. Perhaps… he did this during the 5th day, since the guards that fed him would notice this. But that would mean…

Genryusai: "You keep silent. Does that mean you accept your guilt? As complicated as this matter is – the Captains will need some time before making the final decision. For now you will be escorted back to your cell."

The meeting ended, without Toshiro finding anything to say in his defense aside the claims that he was framed and that he was innocent. He was escorted into the same holding cell he was in by Kira and sat down on the floor, leaning against the wall. He was tired and needed some rest before doing anything. He knew only one thing – he had to act and he had to do it soon. Time was running out and who knew what that madman Aizen was about to do? Toshiro remembered their conversation.

Aizen said that he was going to go resolve some business that he left unfinished before going to Fake Karakura… and that meant he was currently headed to Hueco Mundo. He had to have the ability to use a Garganta though, since the Senkai Gate led only to the Human World, and that meant only one thing – he had someone waiting for him in the real world. And Arrancar who would open a Garganta for him. And that meant that Toshiro had to act fast and beat Aizen to Hueco Mundo to fight him there, no – to stop him there!

The Captain of the 10th Division frowned as he formed a plan of action. But he was a suspect – he was in a cell, and the only way to stop Aizen now would mean one thing – escape, break out of prison. He did not care actually – he was ready to lose his Captain position just to kill Aizen. He was ready for it two years back when he fought with Aizen in the Fake Karakura Town.

The Captain slowly stood up. He knew how to get to the world of Hollows before Aizen did. What the man had not known was how far their technologies and research had went. All thanks to that brilliant madman Kurotsuchi Mayuri and his talent for inventions and such. Toshiro slowly walked up to the bars and looked behind them. It was almost pitch-black, yet he could see the warden sleeping on his chair. Perhaps the man had thought that the small Captain was of no concern of his and did not see him as a threat behind bars… well – today it was not so.

Toshiro simple grabbed two of the bars which were adjacent to one another and broke them one after the other quickly. The warden had heard the sound of breaking metal and jumped up, ready to sound the alarm or try to fend off his opponent, but he never had the chance to do so.

Toshiro: "Hado – Hakufuku." – he had quietly uttered the incantation and the man fell down, his mind falling into an endless black hole.

The white-haired Captain walked up to his zanpakuto and grabbed it, quickly darting off towards the exit. He was ready to do almost anything to take his revenge. As he ran out of the building's entrance he saw two Shinigami standing on both sides of the door. They gasped in surprise, but Toshiro swung his blade, still in its sheath, delivering a blow upon the head of one of the guards. He saw as the latter's eyes went uder his eyelids and he fell down. In the next second Toshiro was already facing the other guard who started drawing out his weapon. Too slow. Hitsugaya's zanpakuto hit the man's temple and the guard slammed against the wall with the other side of his head, and then proceeded to slowly slide down the wall's surface.

Toshiro was surprised a bit at the fact that he felt no guilt or hesitation when he hit the two men. He wondered if it had been different if his blade was unsheathed. Would he still hurt them? Would he actually kill them? He decided not to dwell on that question anymore and rushed towards the 12th Division grounds, where his destination was.

He moved quickly and stealthily, avoiding Shinigami as he could, but sadly he had to render three of them unconscious and hide their bodies before he reached the 12th Division Laboratory. Mayuri would surely get mad about what Toshiro had to do, but the crazy scientist was the least of the Captain's concerns – first he had to find Aizen. He HAD to. With Ichigo Kurosaki out of the picture no one else could stop the traitor…..

Toshiro broke in one of the lab rooms, which activated the alert and must have already woken up all the members of the 12th Division. No time to waste. Finally the small Captain saw what he was looking for – a small device shaped like a pen, which had a round clock-like device attached to it in the middle of the steel rod. He quickly ran up to it and grabbed it, knowing that this was the only working prototype of a Garganta machine that Kurotsuchi Mayuri showed to everyone at a meeting earlier. It was pure luck that it was lumped together with many other inventions and could easily be found – perhaps Kurotsuchi did not think anyone would be brave or suicidal enough to break in here and try to steal this thing.

Toshiro heard the sounds of people running towards him. It was now or never. Toshiro pressed the small button in the center of the round part of the portable Garganta device and saw as the blackness in front of him tore away the laboratory room. He jumped into the black maw without hesitation. With a screeching sound it closed behind him as a dozen of Shinigami ran into the room.

Captain Kurotsuchi Mayuri stood amongst them, his face twisted with rage.

Mayuri: "Shit!"

On the other side of the closed Garganta, Hitsugaya Toshiro had been running into the blackness, a steady road forming beneath his feet as he did. He would beat Aizen to Hueco Mundo, kill anyone who tried to stop him and would bring the fate the traitor deserved upon him, whether the latter liked it or not. He wouldn't give him the chance to use Kyouka Suigetsu this time for sure.

He was going to win.

The Senkai Gate opened, allowing the beams of sunlight to touch the man's face as he walked out of the sliding doors. And as they closed behind him he smirked, with his faint, superior and yet mysterious smile. He had reached his destination – Karakura Town. Aizen Souske began walking forward, stepping upon the air, which held him as normal ground would. He had forgotten the feeling of flight already – the sensation as one could glide through the air like a bird would. He enjoyed the view too, since from here he could see the lower beings – the humans, as they crawled on the ground about their business, without even knowing what the world really was. And from here he could see all of Karakura Town… almost.

The man lowered himself down, closer to the river, which had cut the town in two and softly landed on the lush green grass. He saw a few kids running around and playing a game of tag or something similar while laughing and smirked again. It would be more precise to say he continued to smirk as he watched them, since the expression had not left his face at all.

Aizen decided that now was the time to go towards his destination.

I had purposely told Shiro-kun that I had some business in Hueco Mundo, and while I did not say it so bluntly – he would believe it to be so, if he is even half the man I believe him to be. I certainly hope he would find a way to escape custody, since I doubt they would have Hitsugaya executed right away or at all for that matter. I plan to meet him in Hueco Mundo after I am done here… alone. It would be a bit problematic if he brought someone along, or if the Captains came on their own accord. I do remember that Kurosaki Ichigo had arrived into the Fake Karakura via the Garganta.

All the while he was thinking Souske was walking towards a certain place in Karakura Town he had to visit. He floated up onto a roof and stood there, observing the street before him. The sun was starting to set and he did not have to wait long to see what he came here for.

Kurosaki Ichigo was walking down the street along with Inoue Orihime, holding her by the waist. They were talking and smiling at each other while they moved. Aizen also saw as the boy moved his face closer to the girl and kissed her on the lips. How interesting.

It was such a heartwarming scene, at which Aizen felt nothing. He waited for the right time to come. Finally they stopped at a crossroad and kissed again, longer this time, trying to hold onto the moment so that it could last longer than it would. After their lips parted Ichigo turned around and started walking towards his home, while Orihime ran went towards her own, which was not too far away from here. Aizen saw her smiling and she was possibly humming a tune while skipping as she walked.

He flash-stepped away from the roof, landing in front of Ichigo, some mere two meters between them. Aizen smirked. Kurosaki Ichigo smiled as well… and then passed straight through Souske without even flinching. Aizen looked over his shoulder to see the young man who was now seventeen years of age moving away from him, while placing his hands on the back of his head. So… it was true.

He did not see me, and he did not connect with my spiritual body. He has no reiatsu at all – he has lost his ability to comprehend and see the spiritual world. I… I did not truly expect this. The one man who defeated me, who I always looked down upon – a mere human who had broken my godlike form and crushed all my plans with one swift move is now… helpless. I can kill him where he stands.

Aizen walked after Ichigo, and soon caught up to him. As they both slowly walked Aizen turned his head to his right, watching the ryoka boy. No reaction whatsoever followed from the subject of Aizen's undivided attention. The rogue Shinigami could kill this boy right here and now… but decided not to. There was no more need, nor reason to do so. The boy could never restore his powers again. Somewhat of a… pity actually.

The brown-haired man stopped, watching the orange-haired boy walk away. His face showed no emotion now aside from one – only an expression of great superiority and self-confidence could be seen if someone who could see ghosts would be here. The Shinigami turned away, using a shunpo to disappear into the distance. He had something else to do.