The barracks of Thirteenth Division were in a state of chaos when she arrived. The shinigami no longer frightened her, but she did flatten herself against a nearby wall when twelve passed her at a sprint. There was no-one guarding the main gate and everyone inside seemed to be in a hurry, trying to get somewhere, find someone. They had no time for her questions, so it was sheer luck when she turned a corner and, quite literally, collided with Ukitake. He reached out a hand to steady her:
"Hisana!"
"Sorry!"
"Why are you here?" He was flanked by a guard of six shinigami who halted as soon as he did. Hisana bowed:
"I'm sorry. I meant to ask you" –
"Did you know?"
"Know what?"
He stared at her, then shook his head:
"I apologise, Hisana-san. I thought perhaps you had sensed" –
"Sensed what?"
"We lost all contact with Sixth Division just over an hour ago."
She felt as if an icy spear had passed straight through her, pinning her to the spot. She tried desperately to realign the words to mean anything but what she understood by them. And she didn't even notice when Ukitake laid his hands gently on her shoulders: "It would be best for you if you returned home. I will send a messenger to the house as soon as I have news" –
"No!"
Several of the shinigami bristled to hear their captain addressed so and Ukitake took his hands back as if stung. "I mean, I can't go back," she said desperately: "Kuchiki-sensei told me to leave, you see. I can't go back to Rukongai, but I can't ask Byakuya-sama to choose me over his family and I just meant to ask you – I just meant to ask" – Her words broke apart. She covered her face with her hands and started to cry. Beyond the stinging in her eyes and the sound of her sobbing, the men's silence was a terrible thing. At last, she heard Ukitake ask one of the others to accompany her to his appartments. She felt an arm about her shoulders, guiding her.