Alright. It took a while, but here is the third chapter. As you will notice, it is again a huge rewrite. I also remember someone saying in a review that they hoped I would add new material. Well, I did! Hope you'll enjoy!

"She attacked Ichigo?!"

"She is a Shinigami. What did you expect?" Uryuu replied derisively.

They had gathered in the Kurosaki home. Once Tatsuki, Orihime and Chad had been filled in on the current situation, saying that Tatsuki was displeased would be an understatement. Chad was quiet mountain of grim resolve while Orihime wavered between angry on the siblings' behalf and feeling sorry for the Shinigami girl.

The twins themselves were conflicted. Yuzu was making dinner, not wanting to be part of the discussion and wishing the Shinigami had been like her predecessor and would have never noticed Ichigo, while Karin was stubbornly remaining among the group, refusing to budge even when Ichigo had gently tried to explain that they might end up having to kill the Shinigami.

"You're my brother, Ichi-nii! If you think, for one moment, that I'll let her get away with hurting you, you're dead wrong!" Karin had yelled, still shaken from the shock of getting abducted by one of her brother's worst enemies, and then being unable to do anything while Ichigo got hurt. It was lucky the Shinigami had such a ridiculously long sword ornament, otherwise there was no way Karin would have been able to do anything. And while she trusted her brother's strength, she had hated how helpless she had felt.

The ice cream had only helped to calm her down a little. Even Yuzu hadn't really been able to enjoy the treat, too worried that the Shinigami would attack again.

Which was why Yuzu was soothing her nerves by cooking Ichigo's favorite meal. Normal food did nothing to still Ichigo's hunger – which was why he rarely ate anything, even when Yuzu cooked – but he could still taste it, so sometimes, whenever Yuzu had made something new or special, Ichigo would get a small bowl for himself so he could enjoy the treat.

But cooking didn't calm Karin. So instead of doing something calming but useless like soccer, she was listening to her brother and his friends as they made plans to curb the Shinigami-threat, so she could tell Yuzu what had been discussed later if her sister decided she wanted to know after all. It was the only thing she could do since Ichigo would never allow her to go with them when they carried out the plan. Without any power of her own she would only be a target. She wasn't as fast as Uryuu or Tatsuki, or as strong as Chad, or able to heal and protect like Orihime.

She hated how little she could do to protect her brother. Really, usually she wasn't this envious of his friends' abilities, but now the jealousy burned.

Tatsuki heaved an aggravated sigh and forced herself to calm down. "Okay. So. Shinigami saw Ichigo, saw him again with Yuzu and Karin, kidnapped Yuzu and Karin, and then tried to kill Ichigo. What are the chances that she'll continue to focus on him?"

"If she got anything like a working brain, it is almost guaranteed," Uryuu judged.

Ichigo agreed. "She looked very surprised the first time I spoke to her, and again when Karin stepped in to help me. She also asked a lot of questions." He sighed. "I don't think that she will let it rest."

"How did she find you the first time around anyway?" Tatsuki asked. "Normally you are way too careful to be spotted."

Karin was sure that beneath his mask, her brother was blushing.

"Ah, well… She was fighting a Hollow less than a block away, and cero can travel very far. Their fight was drawing out for too long and I couldn't risk an attack landing on the house. So I killed the Hollow."

Tatsuki face palmed. "You killed it right in front of her? And you didn't attack her?"

Ichigo avoided her gaze.

"You idiot! No wonder she is chasing you! Any ordinary Hollow would have just tried to eat her! Now she knows you're not normal!"

"Well, what else was I supposed to do? You know I don't kill people,"Ichigo said mulishly.

"Eat the Hollow, fight her a little while, and then run through a garganta," Uryuu stated bluntly. Tatsuki nodded her agreement. "You should have pretended to be an ordinary Hollow. She would have still gone after you, but she wouldn't be focused on you so much."

Ichigo's shoulders drooped. "Sorry," he muttered contritely. "I didn't think it through."

Karin, despite knowing the heap of trouble her brother had landed himself in, felt oddly comforted by that admission. If there was one character flaw her brother possessed, it was his temper. It was kinda nice to know that becoming a Hollow had affected him so little that he didn't even think of persecution when jumping in front of a Shinigami, even though he wasn't that naïve.

Hell, if Ichigo had feared being seen they'd be short four people right now. Situations like these made Karin wonder whether her brother sometimes forgot what he looked like. It certainly appeared that way.

Honestly, Karin was happy Ichigo apparently felt so comfortable despite his appearance, but on the other hand, a bit more apprehension would have saved them a lot of trouble today. In a way, his contentment was a double-edged sword. At least when you added Shinigami into the equation.

"At least tell me the second time was an accident?" Tatsuki sighed.

Ichigo nodded. "It was. I just came back from hunting a Hollow and wasn't paying attention. It was fairly powerful, so I was still feeling the rush." Absorbing Hollows always led to some measure of disorientation from the new, rioting souls, no matter how many times he did it. Ichigo was never at his best after he had just eaten, and they all knew it. By his own admission, his evolution had done almost nothing to lessen the impact. "I didn't notice her until she came running at Yuzu and Karin, and by then it was already too late. She is far more alert than the previous Shinigami."

"I see," Tatsuki said grudgingly.

Given that Ichigo had been able to run circles around the previous Shinigami without the Shinigami ever being confident enough to try to chase him, it wasn't that surprising that Ichigo had slipped up. Not that it made the situation any better, but they could understand. One memorable time, when the previous Shinigami had been lazing in the grass of the Kurosaki siblings' own garden, Ichigo had literally sneaked behind the Shinigami's back with less than ten feet between them, gotten inside the house and out without being spotted, and when Ichigo had finally gotten fed up with the guy loitering around their house and had taken a swipe at the Shinigami, the guy had screamed and fled. They had all been torn between laughing themselves sick and feeling revolted at the ridiculous incompetence of the guy who was supposed to protect the people of Karakura. But while his replacement being more competent was good news for Karakura, in the light of Ichigo's situation it was rapidly becoming problematic that the new girl wasn't as inept as her predecessor.

"Okay. No changing the past. So what are we gonna do about her?" Tatsuki continued pragmatically.

"Does Urahara know what happened?" Chad inquired, steady and seemingly unperturbed as always.

Uryuu pushed up his glasses. "We tried to give him a call, but no one picked up. I left a voicemail."

"So we can't count on him to help out. Anyone ideas?" Tatsuki asked.

"She can't stay here," Ichigo said, deadly certain. "But I'd rather not kill her. That would just bring more Shinigami here, and we don't need the attention. Any ideas?" Ichigo asked quietly, specifically looking at Uryuu because, admittedly, the Quincy almost always had a plan.

The dark hared teen shifted a little in his seat and remained silent for a few seconds, before answering.

"Are you certain we can't kill her?" Ishida inquired coldly. Orihime winced at the blunt question. Tatsuki soothed her quietly with words of reason while Chad remained as still as a stone statue.

Karin knew Ichigo silently agreed with his friend's frigidity and the ruthlessness. Even when her brother had been alive he had never shied away from violence. After he had learned what he'd have to do to survive as a Hollow, he had only become more willing to lash out with lethal intent. Though whether or not he would kill someone who looked that human was anyone's guess. Karin knew he wouldn't want to, he'd told them that often enough. But Karin suspected that when push came to shove, Ichigo would do anything to remain with them.

It probably said a lot about her own mentality that all she felt at that was warm affection.

Ichigo chuckled, the sound turning gravelly as it filtered through his mask, and flicked his sickle-shaped tail tip in mild amusement. "Unfortunately, no. Got a plan B?"

Uryuu sighed, feigning annoyance. The Quincy didn't like killing, but he did detest Shinigami, so his suggestion had been at least somewhat genuine. "In that case I think the best chance we have is to disable her Shinigami powers and take her to Urahara-san's. He would know better how to deal with the situation."

Orihime piped up, apprehensive and concerned. "Won't that hurt her, Ishida-kun?" she inquired quietly, looking beseechingly at the Quincy. Karin mentally sniggered as she spotted a faint blush blooming to life on Uryuu's face. Poor guy still wasn't used to dealing with someone as sweet as Orihime, especially not when she unknowingly activated the hurt-puppy eyes.

Coughing into his fist, Uryuu regained his previous poise. "Unfortunately, yes, Inoue-san. But remember,-" he fixed the gentle girl with an unwavering look, "-It must be done to keep Ichigo's sisters safe."

Karin snorted, but kept quiet. Orihime was more likely to help Yuzu and her than her brother, so if that was how Uryuu wanted to bring it, she was fine with that. The healer was still afraid of Ichigo, even though the girl knew, intellectually, that she shouldn't be. No matter how much it annoyed her, Karin knew she shouldn't blame the older girl for what was – admittedly – a very understandable reaction.

Orihime looked saddened for a minute, but she gave no sign of faltering in her support. Karin was glad. She liked the older girl, and Tatsuki had revealed a while ago that Orihime saw Yuzu and her as precious younger sisters. Regardless of her reluctance, Orihime was someone Karin knew she could count on. Beneath her timidity the healer had a protective streak almost as wide as Ichigo's, and would use everything in her power to ensure the safety and happiness of the people she cared about.

Bringing the conversation back around to the subject at hand, Ichigo spoke. "So it's decided? We block her Shinigami powers and dump her on Hat'n Clogs?" Orihime smiled at Ichigo's nickname for the crazy shopkeeper while Tatsuki and Chad merely nodded in agreement. Ichigo looked at Uryuu. "Do you know how to do it?"

"Of course I do," Ishida sniffed superiorly, pushing his glasses higher on the bridge of his nose with one finger. "I wouldn't have suggested it otherwise. Don't underestimate me."

"Do we need to hold her still when you do that?" Tatsuki inquired.

Uryuu shrugged. "Not really. It will probably hurt her less if I can take my time aiming, but that's hardly important. The Shinigami would need Orihime's ability to recover no matter how gentle we are. There's no need to risk yourself."

Orihime's turned pleading eyes towards her friend. Unlike Uryuu, Orihime was too emphatic to be that dismissive about another being's pain.

Tatsuki took one look at her friend's face and sighed. "Well, we'll see if we can get her to hold still for you anyway. We don't want her to die before we reach the shop," she said, addressing Uryuu.

The Quincy nodded. "Alright, but I will shoot when it seems you won't succeed. We don't know how violent the Shinigami will react to being attacked, and I hope you don't mind that I place our wellbeing above that of a Shinigami."

Tatsuki nodded, and looked at Orihime. "Sorry, but that's the best you're gonna get. You okay with that?"

The healer nodded, clearly not happy but sensible enough to know that asking for more would put everyone at risk. She made the effort to smile. "I'll be okay, Tatsuki. Thank you."

Ichigo's golden eyes seemed to glow behind his mask. "Then it's decided," he declared, and everyone expressed their agreement.

Karin dropped her gaze to the floor, feeling worried, anxious, and above all impatient. The night couldn't be over fast enough.

She always hated waiting the most.

XXX(xxxx)XXX(xxxx)XXX(xxxx)XXX

By the time the friends left to carry out their plan, dusk had come and gone. As most Hollows were nocturnal hunters, preferring to chase their prey when it was tired and handicapped by the dark and their own fears, they assumed that the Shinigami would patrol mostly at night as well.

The Humans had all prepared in their own way. Uryuu was wearing his self-made Quincy uniform, cross already in hand. Tatsuki had chosen the outfit she'd assembled together with Urahara's friend, wanting to have as much freedom to move as possible. It was a good thing it was a warm night, otherwise she would have been cold in her thin top and baggy karate pants. Orihime and Chad had chosen to wear their gym clothes, consisting of loose shirts and soft sweatpants, so they could run without being hindered.

Ichigo was grim and silent. His heart felt like carved ice. The Shinigami had come too close, way too close to his little sisters. And she had attacked him right in front of them. He had not mentioned it to anyone, but during their discussion he'd had to fight to keep an enraged snarl silent. If he died his sisters and his friends would be defenseless. Sure, some of them, like Uryuu, Chad, and Tatsuki were skilled enough to deal with mundane Hollows, but what if something stronger came along, or a Hollow with trickster abilities like that Fisher creature a few months back? They simply didn't have the defenses he had. He couldn't die, couldn't bear even the thought of his family's grief if he was forced to leave them once more.

So Ichigo sealed his heart, letting the cold focus of the hunt enter his blood. Letting his Hollow instincts loose was risky, but if the Shinigami tried something he would not allow himself to hesitate. His resolve to never harm a human-like being meant nothing if it meant he could not protect his loved ones.

Ichigo didn't want to kill her. He really didn't. But gods, he would not let that stop him!

He inhaled deeply, drawing on instincts he'd only ever used to locate his friends one time when he was in a tearing hurry to save them from hordes of hungry Hollows one of Uryuu's grandfather's tokens had accidentally summoned. This time, he didn't have any trouble locating spiritually powerful beings, as this time around there were not nearly enough Hollows in the area to cloud the trails.

Pinpointing the Shinigami's location was laughably easy, and would have been even with the handicap he'd faced in the past. Her reiatsu signature blazed like a beacon on a moonless night. She might as well have set a skyscraper on fire to mark her location.

"This way," he said, his words falling in sync with Uryuu's. Ichigo smiled beneath his mask. Trust the Quincy to be as quick as him.

The others smiled as well. "Lead the way then," Tatsuki replied, smirking.

Uryuu nodded acquiescently. In formation, they started walking towards the river.

Always the river, Ichigo mused. Why do so many important things happen there? You'd almost stop believing in coincidences.

XXX(xxxx)XXX(xxxx)XXX(xxxx)XXX

Rukia was slowly making her way across one of the bridges that spanned the river of the town, staring down at the dark waters. She was still contemplating the mystery that was the elusive, orange-haired Hollow. She was more tempted than ever to ask her Captain for advice.

She called him Onii-chan. What kind of mind control is that Hollow capable of, to get a Human girl to do that? the Kuchiki wondered. Unless, of course, those girls weren't Human at all…

She didn't know which option was more frightening. On one hand, mind control was a terrifying ability, especially if it was powerful. On the other hand, a Hollow with a humanoid-looking lure had killed many, many Shinigami in this city and nearby areas, until it had suddenly dropped off the radar almost a year ago.

Frankly, she hoped that the girls were Humans acting of their free will, as improbable as that was. The Hollow was intelligent. Surely he was capable of sweet-talking a couple of young girls into believing he was harmless?

Now she was thinking about it, that option was pretty upsetting too.

Tomorrow. If I haven't found anything out by tomorrow, I'll give the Captain a call, she decided resolutely. If only to hear his thoughts on the situation. Right now she was scaring herself with phantoms. First she had to figure out whether the Hollow had a special ability in the first place. Just in case he had one, and the Hollow proved too powerful, she had already left a message in the room at the shop – even though she really hadn't wanted to, with how rude the shopkeeper had been – detailing her experiences with the creature and her theories. If she fell… well, she didn't want to think about it, but at least her Captain and her Nii-sama would be aware what had happened.

But that was tomorrow. Tonight she was patrolling the city in the hopes that she'd run into the creature again. Hollows hunted at night so her best chance was now. If things went right, she would solve the problem before sunrise, and there would be no need to concern her superior.

So far she hadn't had much luck, but the night was still young. Maybe the Hollow would come to her.

She rested her hand on the hilt of her Zanpakutou to reassure herself. Her resolve hardened. A tight smile curled her lips. If he did, she would be ready.

When she reached the end of the bridge se stood a moment in indecision. Not that directions really mattered all that much….

She decided to go right. At least that way she would be getting closer to the place she had met the Hollow the second time. She had decided to start wide and slowly circle closer to the places where she had encountered the creature.

Ahead of her, she saw two people coming from the other direction. She froze, for one moment shocked beyond reason. One tall and broad, the other short and lithe, and both carrying the silent air of threat, without having to do anything.

Rukia burst out laughing. Oh, she really was seeing phantoms tonight! It were just two Humans, who had, for a moment, strongly reminded her of the Captain and Lieutenant of the Second. Why, she couldn't even understand herself. Sure, the female was clearly a fighter and was wearing an outfit that vaguely resembled that of Soi Fon-taichou, if you left out the Captain's haori and changed the shoes, but the male was nothing like Omaeda-fukutaichou, no matter how he walked one step behind the female the way the Lieutenant always did. This guy was broad because he was impressively muscular, without an ounce of excess fat, where Lieutenant Omaeda was broad because he was he never seemed to be able to stop snacking.

Still giggling at her own jumpiness even though her muscles were still tense as a bowstring, she wasn't paying much attention to the Humans that were walking past.

Her jittery nerves where all that saved her.

Startled by swift movement in the corner of her eye, Rukia made a clumsy hop backwards, just as a large fist sailed past her abdomen with a whoosh of displaced air. Stumbling, she barely managed to evade the worst of an unexpected barrage of fists and feet coming from the black-haired female.

Why the hell are Humans attacking me?! A fleeting thought she barely had the time for amidst the sudden fight for her life. She'd expected a Hollow, not this!

The female was particularly vicious. Rukia was forced to use shunpo to escape the violent swipes and kicks.

"Why are you doing this?! Cease this foolishness at once!" the Shinigami yelled, hoping the Humans would hear her words. Her entire being urged her to draw her blade, but she didn't want to risk hurting them. They had some spiritual presence and were clearly using their abilities to strengthen their attacks, but who knew what they could withstand? Living bodies were so fragile…

Then an energy blast nearly hit her in the face. An energy blast coming from… the large Human?

She scowled. She had the sneaking suspicion this had to do with the Hollow she'd been looking for. What other creature used blasts like that?

A mind-control ability seemed more and more probable. And it seemed to be a strong ability as well, if the Hollow could indeed control several people, and was likely to be the one responsible for the Human using such a Hollow-like ability. Gods, what a nasty piece of work. The moment she got out of this, she was definitely calling Seireitei. Even if she could exterminate the Hollow on her own, her Captain would want to know about this creature. If only so they could attempt to find all Humans that had been affected and wipe their memories.

Quickly, she drew her Zanpakutou. If this was indeed the mysterious Hollow's doing, she would need her sword. Against the Humans she would only use the back of her blade, but the moment she could she would end this Hollow. Who knew how much damage he had already done to his unwilling allies?

However, fighting with only the back of her blade was quite a bit harder than it sounded. The balance and grip were a small but very significant bit different from what she was used to, and it showed. She yelped as the Human female ducked beneath her swing with inhuman speed, and managed to land a glancing blow. The Kuchiki immediately launched into another shunpo, ignoring the pain in her shoulder. She barely felt something white-hot grazing her cheek.

Rukia landed, blood dripping down her face. She backed up to put more distance between her and her attackers as she stared wide-eyed in the direction the glowing blue arrow had come from. In distance stood a white-clad Human with a bow made of solidified spirit energy in hand, glasses ominously reflecting the lamplight and an a scornful scowl on his face.

… Exactly how many Humans can this Hollow control? the Kuchiki wondered, dumbfounded and more than a little unnerved. She ran just before another energy blast blew an impressive crater in the pavement, right in the place where she had been standing.

The situation was quickly going from hell to worse, she realized grimly, while arrows whizzed around her head and the female Human was coming at her again with startling speed. Rukia knew she couldn't hope to keep up with three different opponents at once for long. Bruises and cuts already decorated her body.

I need to get away. Screw Kuchiki pride, she wasn't stupid. It was obvious that she was in over her head, and the Hollow hadn't even showed up yet!

Just one way to escape without hurting the Humans. "Bakudou number one, Sai!"

With the large Human with the energy blasts down, the fight became a little easier, especially because his fall distracted the others. The Shinigami felt relieved. The Hollow's control couldn't be all that strong if the Humans were still capable of showing concern for one another. Though Rukia would have preferred to get the fast female. Out of the two close-combat fighters, she was definitely the more dangerous one.

Regardless, now was her chance to run and call her Captain. She turned, feet leaving the ground at her fastest shunpo-

-And ran face-first into a transparent orange barrier.

She bounced back and was forced to let her back slam against a nearby building as her head reeled from the heavy impact. She was too disoriented to avoid the glowing arrows that pierced her uniform a hair-width shy of breaking skin, pinning her against the wall like an insect on display. She just barely managed to hang on to Sode no Shirayuki.

"Good job, Orihime!" the female Human called.

Orihime? Blinking the stars out of her eyes, Rukia managed to spot the fourth Human that had entered the fray while she had been distracted by the other fighters. A generously-endowed girl with long hair that looked orange under the streetlight, three little… things that hummed with reiatsu circling around her.

The girl – Orihime? – looked nervous and hesitant. Clearly the Hollow's control wavered when dealing with four people.

Rukia readied herself to rip through the fabric of her uniform. If she waited for the Hollow to show up, she'd be dead. So she had to act quickly and decisively.

The archer lifted his bow, taking careful aim. Rukia tensed. Was the Hollow really going to kill her this indirectly? But no, the arrow wasn't aimed at her heart, and the archer had already displayed more than enough skill for her to deduce it wasn't by accident. It was aimed somewhere else…

Her eyes widened with fear. Oh gods, he can't seriously be planning to-!

Terror fueled her panicked struggle as she ripped herself off the arrows. To have her hakusui pierced would mean the end of all she had worked for. If that happened she would lose everything. It would be the final straw for her proud brother, who was already so disappointed in her.

She got free just in time. The arrow pierced her side, but missed the origin of her spiritual power. Bleeding, she ran for her life.

A shouted command sounded behind her, followed by three small points that shot past her and formed a triangular barrier right in her path. But this time Rukia was ready. With a quick twist of her reiryoku she slipped past the outer edge.

Please let me get away. I have to call Ukitake-taichou!

There was an odd static buzz and she only spotted something pale in the corner of her eye for a fraction of a second, before something with the same density of a sekkiseki boulder slammed into her. She hit the ground with a teeth-rattling thud.

She looked up and froze in terror. The red-plated Hollow had arrived.

He loomed over her, his gold-on-black eyes pinning her down more effectively than those arrows ever could. None of the four Humans that joined him in front of her looked scared or even uneasy, with the exception of the second Human female. That was as good as an outright confirmation of her suspicions. His control truly was frightening.

The Hollow leaned closer, his jaws opening within a few inches of her face, eyes never leaving her widened violet.

"Hello again, Shinigami."

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