Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or anything associated with it. Title of owner goes to 久保 帯人. :3 Nor do I own anything related to the Hana Yori Dango drama or manga.
AN: See? I told ya I would update soon. Heh, this one is just moving things along. Uhh, I'm at a loss for words right now (blame the rain) but there is a new Bleach character(s) introduced in this one. You'll see. :)
Btw, I'm all for Team IchiRuki! Haha, but I'm glad to see people chose their sides.
Thank you my reviewers for reading and reviewing! I was a bit afraid that the long wait made some people leave. :( I hope you enjoy this one too!
Yosh! Let's begin! よろしくお願いします！
Chapter 15
Ichigo and Toshirou had left a begrudgingly cooperative Renji at Urahara's now super popular candy shop. Luckily for Renji, there were no flamboyant men in line requesting for a kiss along with his purchase. But every so often there was that one less than attractive girl who made Renji cringe at the sight of her. Urahara, who was supervising Renji's job, would smack Renji with his fan when he noticed Renji's grimace.
"Keep a smiling face. These ladies don't want to be kissed by a sour mug." Urahara told him through his toothy grin. He spotted more women coming inside the shop. "Welcome! Welcome! Please buy anything you like! Also please keep in mind that all sales are final!"
"Had enough yet?" Tatsuki asked Renji once Urahara went to assist a customer.
Renji nodded his head quickly and desperately clasped his hands together toward Tatsuki. "Yes, I've had enough. Please help me!" He begged her.
Tatsuki crossed her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow as she looked him over. "…No." She said after a moment. "This is payback for practically scaring the hell out of me last time." She stuck out her tongue at him and went back to work.
Renji would have pouted but Urahara had returned to smack him back into smiling for the customers who just bought a box of candy.
"Do you have any spare photos left with you?" Toshirou asked Ichigo once they were situated in his limousine after they left the shop.
"Yea, but what happened to the ones I left at Rukia's place the other day?" Ichigo questioned.
Toshirou shrugged in response. "I'm not exactly sure but you left them on Rukia's table, correct?"
Ichigo nodded. "I forgot to pick them up before I left. I had other things on my mind…"
"Well earlier today Renji and I went back to retrieve the photos but they were missing. I know Rukia wouldn't keep them for herself but I do have a feeling her brother got a hold of them."
"Oh no. Her brother?" Ichigo gulped heavily, recalling the first time he met Byakuya. "This can't get any worse."
"I assume you've already met him?" Toshirou inquired understanding fully well the effect Byakuya had on people. Toshirou had avoided him at all costs himself when he was in the Kuchiki mansion.
"Yes and it wasn't the most welcoming experience." Ichigo frowned slightly as his backside remembered the pain felt when Byakuya's guards threw him outside on the pavement. Ichigo shook his head to rid of the thought. "But I can't fret about that now. I have all the other spares at my place. We'll go there and get a photo."
Toshirou agreed and directed his limo driver to take them to Ichigo's home. Once they arrived and entered the building, Ichigo stopped Toshirou before he entered the front door of his home.
"Remember that I'm not rich so don't try to act high and mighty. Especially not to my family." Ichigo informed him sternly.
"Yeah, yeah. Just hurry and get that photo." Toshirou said impatiently, waiting for Ichigo to turn the doorknob.
Ichigo opened the door and entered. "Tadaima! I'm home!"
A tumultuous clatter was heard in the living room before a loud voice filled the air.
"Ichigooooo! Welcome home, son!" Isshin tumbled out from the living room and lunged at Ichigo for a bear hug. Ichigo quickly sidestepped to his left, causing Isshin to butt his head right on the door. "Good one!" Isshin managed to say after a muffled yelp.
"Interesting…" Toshirou said to himself as he observed the scene.
"You brought a friend?" Isshin's eyes were filled with happiness after he regained himself from the head collision with the door. "You wouldn't happen to know Ichigo's little girlfriend, Rukia, would you?" He immediately questioned Toshirou.
"Dad, cut it out!" Ichigo yelled in annoyance toward his father.
"Actually I'm a close friend of Rukia." Toshirou answered Isshin anyway.
"Oh, that's great! You two have already made mutual friends!" Isshin gave Ichigo a proud pat on the back.
Ichigo rolled his eyes and pushed Toshirou toward his room. "I just need to get something from my room, Dad. I'll be leaving soon."
"No worries! Have your fun, young lads!" Isshin hollered out after them before Ichigo shut the door of his room.
"Finally. I swear my old man loves to delve into my personal life." Ichigo said as he rummaged through his drawer for the pictures.
"Your father is interesting. He's very affectionate." Toshirou commented.
"He's a little too affectionate if you ask me." Ichigo added. He spotted the glossy stack of photos and swiped them up in his hand. "Ah, here it is! Let's leave quickly before he tries to ask you to stay for dinner."
They quietly left Ichigo's room and made it to the front door without an intrusion from Isshin. Yet as Ichigo opened the door, his sisters who just arrived home minutes before, greeted him from the kitchen before he could get out.
"Hey Ichi-nii!" Yuzu greeted cheerfully. Her eyes brightened when she spotted Toshirou. She waved to him. "Hi! You must be Ichigo's friend!"
Karin, who stood behind her, caught sight of Toshirou and looked at him weirdly as if she never seen such a boy like him. She slightly directed a nod toward him as a sort of silent greeting.
"Uh, yeah. Yuzu. Karin. This is Toshirou." Ichigo pointed him out. "We'll be leaving now. See you later." He ended quickly and proceeded to walk out without another word.
"Your sisters back there…" Toshirou mentioned at once when they were in the limo.
"Yeah, what about them?" Ichigo questioned. He saw the unknown glint in Toshirou's eyes and quickly went on the defensive. "Hey! You better not be thinking about them that way. I swear if you try anything…"
Toshirou chuckled as Ichigo threatened him to not make a move on his sisters. "Heh, brothers."
Afterward, Toshirou ordered his chauffeur to stop at the side of the road while he examined the photos. "I knew it." He said once his eyes caught sight of what he was looking for.
"Knew what?" Ichigo asked curiously.
Toshirou gave him the photo and pointed to a spot. "If you look closely on her arm, there's a small tattoo on her wrist. I'm certain I've seen it before."
"Do you have any idea what it means?" Ichigo questioned with more interest.
Toshirou nodded. "It's a tattoo of a butterfly. It means that she's been branded. I'm sure she's part of one of the yakuza gangs that my father manages."
"That's great then!" Ichigo's hopes rose up instantly. "We just need to figure out where she is now."
"That's the difficult part." Toshirou said. "In order to find her, we'd need my father's help. But with a case like this, my father would probably laugh in your face and then scold me for hanging around with a person of lower status…"
Rich people and their superior complex… Ichigo thought to himself.
"... and since she's been branded, that means she's owned by a gang. Certain yakuza gangs have a lot of 'property' and are therefore highly territorial about these girls."
"Sickening." Ichigo commented. He suddenly felt a bit sorry the girl who was thought of as an object to the yakuza, even if she did trick him into his demise.
Toshirou shrugged. "In the underground world, there are no morals or ethics present. Anyway, since I know we won't be able to get my father's help, there is another person we could try to get help from."
"And that is?" Ichigo asked.
"A friend of my father's. He's also a big syndicate boss who may be able to pinpoint us in the right direction. Plus he used to be pretty poor himself so he may pity you in your current situation." Toshirou joked with a slight smirk.
"Well you know we poor people stick together." Ichigo said sarcastically.
Toshirou ignored his sarcasm and ordered his driver to take them to see his father's friend. Through the tinted windows, Ichigo could see large mansions among sprawling green lawns outside. The neighborhood was of course ridiculously upscale and ritzy. It was in a totally different part of town, separate from the rich neighborhood that Rukia's mansion was located.
They drove through a wrought iron gate and parked in front of a huge white mansion. The entrance had magnificent architecture with great white stone pillars set up in a line one after another. After they made a complete stop, the driver opened the door. Before Toshirou exited, he gave a word of caution to Ichigo.
"Don't be alarmed by his brash attitude. Zaraki Kenpachi can be a maniac at times but it's normal." From that, Ichigo didn't know whether to stay calm or fear for his life.
After Toshirou, Ichigo got out of the limo. The sound of a roaring deep laugh met his ears in an instant.
"Hah! What brings you here at such a random time without your father, Shiro Junior?" A strikingly large built man with black hair styled in thick spikes stood before them. From Ichigo's standpoint, he could make out the odd adornments that hung at the tip of each spike of hair. They looked and sounded like golden bells when his head moved.
Wait a second. Those are golden bells. Odd. Ichigo thought after his observation.
Toshirou scowled at the name directed toward him but bowed before answering. "Hello, Kenpachi. My father won't be able to join us today since he has been extremely busy the past few days. I've come here alone to ask for a favor." He pointed to Ichigo. "This is Kurosaki Ichigo an… acquaintance of Rukia."
"Ah, the little Kuchiki heir." Kenpachi recalled to himself. He gave Ichigo a sharp toothy grin, taking the term 'acquaintance' to mean more than it should. "You caught a feisty one there, Kurosaki."
Ichigo gave a nervous nod, not bothering to say to a word to the intimidating man that stood like a stone wall before him. He almost fell back from alarm when he noticed a small pink haired girl peek over from behind Kenpachi's legs.
She blinked inquisitively a few times before squealing out in delight, "Ken-chan! There are visitors! Toshi-kun is here with an orange head! Tea party time!"
"Oi, Yachiru! This is business. Toshirou can't play right now." Kenpachi told her sternly.
"Okie dokie!" Without so much as a pout, Yachiru obeyed and practically bounced away into the mansion.
"That's Kenpachi's daughter." Toshirou informed Ichigo in a low voice after she left. "She only calls him by that nickname because he refuses to be labeled as something that makes him sound old. She's also a maniac. Like father, like daughter I guess."
"Ah…" Ichigo said, still in a state of awe.
"Come on inside you two." Kenpachi waved his hand to beckon them to follow him into the mansion.
They were led to a room Ichigo reckoned to be Kenpachi's office. There was something very mafia godfather-like about its extravagant interior. It might have been the huge finely crafted oak desk at the far center of the room or the marble statues placed throughout that rivaled Michelangelo's works. Whatever it was, Ichigo felt like he just stepped into the setting of a movie.
Kenpachi settled himself comfortably in the leather armchair behind his desk. "Take a seat." He nodded toward the two chairs placed before the oak desk.
After Toshirou and Ichigo sat down, Kenpachi opened a box placed on the desktop and took out a cigar from inside. "Tell your father I said thank you for the Cuban cigars he sent me." Kenpachi directed to Toshirou after lighting the cigar and taking a puff. "There's nothing better than finest you can get your hands on. Now, what favor are you asking for?"
"I wanted to know if you could tell me where I might be able to find this girl. Ichigo's in a scandal because of her." Toshirou took out the photo and placed it atop the desk. "By her tattoo, I know she's part of a yakuza clan."
Kenpachi picked up the photo and observed it with a magnifying glass for a moment. A smile spread wide across his face as he looked over at Ichigo. "Got yourself in quite a mess there, did you Kurosaki?"
Ichigo nodded. "I was drugged during that picture so I have no recollection of what happened. I've been framed, sir." He explained quickly.
Kenpachi placed his hand under his chin and rubbed it in thought. "Hmm… judging by the pattern on the butterfly wings, I'd say she's part of that bastard Mayuri's clan."
Toshirou got up from his chair. "Of course! Mayuri!"
"It'd be a pain in the ass to find her though. He's got a lot of them." Kenpachi added.
"Well that's why I was hoping you could tell us where they're likely to congregate." Toshirou inquired hopefully.
"Another favor, eh?" Kenpachi raised an eyebrow. "The first one was free. This one will cost you."
Toshirou gave him a nod, knowing full well what he had to do. "I know, I know. A tea party with Yachiru."
"And this time stay the whole hour, alright? She won't bother me like last time if you do." Kenpachi proceeded to take out a leather bound book from a desk drawer and flipped through its contents before stopping on a page. "Here it is. Mayuri's areas include Ikebukuro center, the whole Shinagawa district, and Karakura square."
Toshirou furrowed his brow in displeasure. "Those places are all spread out from each other. This will take a while."
"Wait a second." Ichigo spoke up. "I do remember the club I went to that night was located in Karakura square."
"Then that's where we'll start off with. We could be closer to solving this then we thought." Toshirou bowed before Kenpachi, indicating his leave. "Thanks Kenpachi."
"Yes, thank you for your help, sir." Ichigo got up from his seat and also bowed before Kenpachi.
"Yeah, yeah. Just hurry up and win back that little vixen." Kenpachi ordered Ichigo before going back to smoking the cigar he kept between his fingers. "And don't you forget the tea party, Toshirou! One hour!"
Toshirou sighed and waved a hand behind him to Kenpachi before leaving the room.
As expected, Hanatarou was waiting at the entrance to Karakura Square when Rukia arrived. He excitedly ran toward her and bowed before speaking.
"Kuchiki-san! I'm so glad you're able to come. I-"
"Cut the small talk." Rukia interrupted him mid-sentence. "What did you have in mind to start with?"
"I was thinking we could start by investigating the club that Ichigo went to that night. It's-"
"Let's go then." Rukia cut in impatiently and walked ahead of him. Hanatarou quickly ran after her to catch up with her swift strides.
Examining the map on his cell phone, Toshirou found a few places where they would be able to find people from Mayuri's clan. He showed them to Ichigo as they walked through Karakura Square.
"These are mostly host clubs…" Ichigo realized after reading through.
"Yes. It shouldn't be surprising considering these girls are like pieces of property to the clans." Toshirou explained. "Money is money no matter what the job is."
Ichigo shook his head in disgust. They continued walking to their first destination until Ichigo stopped in his tracks abruptly. "What the…"
In Ichigo's view Rukia had turned the corner and was heading straight toward him and Toshirou. What was most shocking to Ichigo was the sight of Hanatarou tagging along behind her. Questions started to form in his mind. Why were they together? Hadn't Hanatarou told him that he wouldn't help him if it were for Rukia's sake? It all didn't make any sense to him.
Once Rukia noticed Ichigo, she slowed down her pace and stopped a few feet away from him and Toshirou. Hanatarou stood behind her, head down as if trying to hide his face from Ichigo.
"Rukia! Are you planning on helping us look for the culprit too?" Toshirou questioned as he stopped beside Ichigo.
Seeing Ichigo speechless and his confused expression, Rukia turned her head away and scoffed, her pride rising. She was still pretty angry with him. "Humph, of course not."
"Then what are you doing with him?" Toshirou looked over at Hanatarou and raised an eyebrow suspiciously.
Rukia hesitated then looked back Ichigo again. She narrowed her eyes then said, "Isn't it obvious what we're doing?" She questioned Toshirou.
Ichigo knew from that look of spite on her face, she meant they were on a date. Instantly he felt the pit of his stomach sinking. Was this how betrayal felt?
"Let's go." Rukia ordered Hanatarou and walked past Ichigo and Toshirou without a word of parting. Hanatarou followed her in step like an obedient dog.
Ichigo watched them as they walked off, feeling something heavy weigh down in his chest.
AN: I am freezing right now since it rained today. What a way to bum my mood... Anywhoosle, I hope you aren't too confused with anything. If so, it might be answered in the next installment. I'm planning on making the conclusion of this whole fiasco end in at least two chapters. But it's not the end of this story! Don't worry about that! Hah, I still have to make it end unanimously IchiRuki so we've got a ways to go.
Thoughts, rants, anything you've got I'd love to read in the reviews! :D Stay warm!
Thank you! ありがとうございます！