Disclaimer: I do NOT own Bleach in any way! All copyrights go to Tite Kubo.

Author's Note: Gah, it's just past midnight from where I am and I finally finished typing chapter eight of The Greatest Treasure. Special thanks goes to Mariliisa, MoonLightView, AznInvasionGirl, Amiru-chan, Samantha, Neko-cheung, KnowledgeandImagination, ScienceAngel, WhitePrincessOfHope for your awesome reviews. Without any further delay, here is the next part to this story. Enjoy!

LEGEND

"Talking." "Thinking."

The Greatest Treasure

Chapter Eight: True Nature

General Aizen Sosuke sat behind his desk in his office, drinking a glass of red wine. Since Princess Hinamori's disappearance, things in the palace have been nothing but restless, panicky, and disordered. Not many people got enough shut eye at night, got leisure time to relax, or even enough time to eat their meals properly. It has been that busy. As for Aizen, it's a different story. All he had to do is do his paperwork, order his subordinates around, and look after the affairs with the rich people of Seireitei.

The doors open, revealing his most trusted henchman, Ichimaru Gin of the Royal Guard. "Well look what we have here, General Aizen's on his wine break again," he stated, waltzing into the room.

After taking a sip from his glass, he placed it down on the desk and asked, "Is there a problem with that Gin?"

"Nope, none at all."

"I see. So, what are you here to report?"

"Well, it's not really a report, but a reminder of last week's events. The tax collectors have raised the taxes on the people of Rukongai and a small rebuttal has happened. It appears the ringleader of the rebellious group have defeated him evenhandedly."

During this time around, Renji is on the other side of the door, ready to knock on it when he overheard the conversation. "They must be talking about last week's events..." he thought.

Leaning against the door, he quietly listened further. "I see," Aizen replied.

"According to the report from the Trio Knights, he has fled elsewhere," Ichimaru explained, "and is unable to be caught."

The brown haired man took another sip from his glass of wine. "And I said it's fine we let him go."

"Yes, you did say that."

"What you're trying to ask me is...when I am going to after him, am I right?"

"If you don't mind me asking General Aizen."

Aizen grinned. "Don't mind the minor details; what I care about right now is Hinamori-hime. I want to make sure she doesn't return at all."

"Doesn't return at all?" Renji questioned in thought.

"You mean you don't want the princess to be found?" Gin asked. "Why?"

"Without the princess, Central Chambers 46 has to appoint someone else to be King of Seireitei."

"Oh...I get it now. You want to be King."

"King of Seireitei? I can't let that happen!" Renji exclaimed in thought. "Hinamori is the rightful ruler of Seireitei. I have to go warn Kira, Hisagi, and the princess about this!"

He quietly and carefully left the hallway and ran off to inform the others of the news. Little did he know, Ichimaru and Aizen noticed his presence a long time ago. The General smiled. "Gin, it seems like there are rats in the palace," he stated. "Can you please capture it?"

"Okay General Aizen, whatever you say," he happily replied. "I'll be right back."

With a short nod, he added, "Please do take your time."

He had to get the news to them no matter what. The princess is in immediate danger. Why the office did have to be so far away from their rooms? "Damn it," Renji cursed. "I knew I should have not eaten so much at dinner."

"My my Abarai Renji, what are you doing around here at such a late hour?"

The red headed knight stopped in front of the Royal Guard Captain, who suddenly appeared from the corner of the hall. "Shit, I can't escape..."

Ichimaru took a step forward, he further questioned with his trademark grin, "Well, are you going to tell me or not?"

Renji kissed between his teeth. There's no use resisting anymore. Without any further hesitation, he drew his sword from his sheath and charged right at the man. Gin retaliated by drawing his sword as well. The two blades crossed with one another.

"Now what's with the resistance?"

"Enough with the riddles and ambiguity Ichimaru!" Renji finally said. "Why does Aizen want to become King of Seireitei?"

"Hn, so you did eavesdrop on our conversation," Gin said.

Renji pushed him back and created some space between them. "Tell me!"

He grinned. "Power and total domination; all he wants is to rule the world, not be ruled."

His eyes narrowed. "What about you? What do you gain from serving Aizen?"

"Well, fun and entertainment I suppose..."

The red head is surprised. Why would his captain think that way? For all his years serving under him, Renji never once thought that fighting against his enemies would be fun and entertainment. "What?"

"I'm just kidding. I just want to see people get cut up and drown in their own pools of blood."

"T-That's insane!"

"Sorry, but in this world, dying is a reality."

Ichimaru started the battle once more by charge at Renji. Raising his sword up to his eye level, he defended against the attack. They both stepped back and forth, exchanging swings as they try to dominate one another. However, their strengths are equally matched.

At one point, Gin swing his sword in an attempt to cut his right arm off, but the red head managed to do a spin feint and attacked from back side. Ichimaru quickly twist his body to the side and blocked the swing with his sword. "At the rate I'm going, I will lose," Renji thought. "It's time to go all out!"

With a fierce yell, Renji began attacking aggressively. He kept swinging, swinging, and swinging, pushing the captain of the Royal Guard back. Eventually, his back met with the wall. He glanced back and resumed his attention to his subordinate. "Yare yare, it seems that I'm cornered," he merely stated, watching Renji strike down on him.

Smiling, Ichimaru dodged to the side and suddenly, with swift movement, cut the sleeve of his kimono. On high alert, Renji jumped back. Looking over on his left arm, the slash mark was deep enough to cause injury. Blood is dripping down his arm. "Shit..." he cursed.

The captain's smile grew wider. Without an amount of time to waste, he went on the offense. Striking him on various places, Ichimaru kept Renji on his toes. "You know of our intentions, I can't afford to let you tell anyone about it."

All of a sudden, Abarai high kicked and knocked his weapon high up into the air. The sword spun a few times before it got stuck between cracks in the wall above.

"Hn, now that's a problem; I need my sword to defend against you."

"You're finished Ichimaru," Renji said. "I'll be the one to stop you. After I tell Kira and Hisagi, we'll go and defeat Aizen."

"General Aizen? I think you sadly misunderstood," Ichimaru replied.

All of a sudden, Renji felt a sharp pain in his gut. By the time he looked down, he realized that he has been stabbed by the captain's hidden dagger. "D-Damn it..."

He kept his eyes on the gray haired man and his wide grin the whole time before losing consciousness and fall on the ground. Standing over his body shed a small pool of blood, Gin further commented, "You have yet to understand the truth strength of Aizen Sosuke."

"Captain Ichimaru, what is going on here?" one of the guards asked as three of them arrived at the scene.

Noticing the elite member of the Royal Guard injured, another exclaimed, "Abarai Renji! He has sustained a serious wound. It needs to get treated fast!"

"After you've done that," Ichimaru said as the guards got down on their knees and flipped the body over. "Be sure to throw him in jail."

"W-What?" The guards looked at their superior, questioning his statement.

"I said throw him in jail. This knight here has suddenly turned against us for some unknown reason. He deserves to be punished."

"Ah y-yes Captain!"

With a grin on his face, Ichimaru turned around, walked up to the wall, and kicked it with his foot. The force was strong enough to cause his sword to wriggle out from the crack and impale itself on the ground below. Putting his grip on the sword's hilt, he removed it from the floor, and put it away in its sheath, where it belongs. He turned to the guards and added, "Oh yes, before I forget, be sure to confiscate his sword."

"Yes sir."

"Have a good night everyone. I need to report this to General Aizen."

"I could have sworn that he ran in this direction," one of the guards stated as he and his partner are looking around the area.

"He couldn't have gotten far," the other guard said. "Besides, with the sacred staff in his possession, there is no way for Aisu no Ryu to get away unnoticed."

"Yeah, let's go in this direction."

"Hai!"

Once the two guards left the scene, Hitsugaya appeared from behind a thick tree trunk and let out a silent sigh of relief. "I managed to lose them somehow," he said.

Looking over his shoulder at the black cloth covered staff is worn together with his long sword in the same fashion. He is fortunate that he is able to carry such weapons considering his stature. Then again, it took him countless months to get into athletic condition. Without it, he would have been serious injured, captured, or even killed while he is completing his mission.

"The coast is clear."

Cautiously, he left the safety of his hiding spot and moved to the next one in the bushes. He has repeated this a few more times until he noticed a few guards approaching in his direction. Aisu no Ryu hid in the bushes and waited. Peeking through the plant's leaves, he watched three of them walking by. For some reason, they're not acting frantically looking for him compared to the other guards until he saw who they're carrying. Abarai Renji is in a stretcher covered in bandages.

"Something happened to Abarai," he thought, "and those guards are taking him to the dungeon tower."

He knew he shouldn't butt into affairs in the palace, but curiosity got the best of him. Hitsugaya ended up following the guards from the shadows all the way to their destination.

Hitsugaya watched from the outer part of lattice prison window. The guards handcuffed Renji by the wrists. "Our job here is done," one of them said.

"But I don't quite understand why Captain Ichimaru is punishing him, what did he do exactly?" another asked.

"Worrying about others isn't our problem. We just need to complete our task, that's all."

"Hn, you're right. Let's get out of here."

Moments after they left him in the cell, Renji suddenly woke opened his eyes and sat up. Immediately, he grunted and looked over at the bandaged wound. He sat there for a few moments before remembering what happened before. "I have to get out of here and warn the others. Ichimaru and Aizen are plotting to take the throne."

"Hn, really now Abarai Renji?" asked a voice.

The red head turned to the window to see, part of someone's back leaning against the window. Recognizing his trademark sword, Renji slowly walked towards him. "You must be...that thief we've been trying to pursue this whole time."

Looking back, Hitsugaya replied in an impersonated voice, "Yes, I am Aisu no Ryu. It's a pleasure to meet you, Trio Knight of the Royal Guard."

"W-What are you doing here?"

"I was trying to go home after successfully stealing the sacred staff from the Watanabe family when I saw a couple of guards bringing you here. So, I was a bit curious and came here to check it out."

"If you do that, you might get caught."

"Of course, but what's wrong with a little danger?" Hitsugaya asked.

Renji grinned and folded his arms over his chest. "You're one strange person."

"So tell me, are your Captain and General really planning to take the throne?"

The red head looked down on the ground. In his mind, he knew Aisu no Ryu is an enemy, but he doesn't have any choice. Maybe if he could get the thief to do something for him, it would be alright. He raised his head once more. "I will tell you if you promise me one thing," Renji said.

"Promise?"

"Make sure that the Princess of Seireitei is safe."

"The princess? You want me to look after Princess Hinamori Momo?" Hitsugaya asked. "Why should I do that?"

"I will explain to you about the situation after you promise me," Renji said. "I'll even tell you where she is right now."

Hearing the red head say that, the thief knew immediately it's quite a serious issue. He let out a sigh. "Fine, I'll watch her."

"Thanks Aisu no Ryu."

"Whatever...now, spill the beans."

He nodded with agreement. "A few hours ago, I accidentally eavesdropped on a conversation between Ichimaru and Aizen. Apparently, they wanted to get rid of the princess. If she is gone, the members of Central Chambers 46 will have to choose a new person to rule the kingdom. For Aizen to be King is not a hard task. He's favoured by everyone in Seireitei. It is almost guaranteed that he will take the throne."

"I see. You want me to make sure she's safe because they're after her life."

"Yes."

Hitsugaya crossed his arms over his chest. "Fine, I'll get the job done. However, don't get the wrong idea Abarai. I have my own reasons for going along with your request."

"I know, you want to help the less fortunate people in Rukongai," Renji replied. "I heard about it."

"Yes, I also think that if Aizen becomes King, he'll only make them suffer even more."

The two males were silent.

"If you want to warn the rest of your comrades about this, you better rest up and think about a plan to escape from here," Hitsugaya said.

"I don't need you to tell me that."

A smirk formed on Hitsugaya's face. "It's time for me to take my leave."

"Aisu no Ryu, wait! What about the location where the princess is?"

The thief turned around, leaned over towards the window and said in a low tone, "She's currently living in West Rukongai with a boy named Hitsugaya Toshiro and his grandmother."

"W-Wh...Ho--"

"Don't worry too much Abarai, we had our first encounter a few days ago. She's in safe hands."

Before he could say anything else, Aisu no Ryu has already ran off elsewhere, leaving the red head on his own. Leaning against the wall, Renji let out a sigh, content with the result. The young thief has agreed to his condition. Now, he could only hope he will fulfill his side of the bargain. He put up a fist out in front of him and gripped it tightly. "I'll get you Ichimaru and Aizen. You won't get away with this!"

At the same time, as he is traveling home, Hitsugaya thought about his promise to Renji. The hidden events in Seireitei are finally shown in the light. Now, he has one more reason to look after the young princess and protect her from harm. "Don't worry Abarai, I don't intend to let her out of my sights in the first place."

References

Hime - Princess, Yare Yare - Well well, Aisu no Ryu - Ice Dragon; Hitsugaya's codename as the notorious thief, Hai - Yes

Author's Note: Gah, Aizen's and Ichimaru's motives are revealed! Renji's captured! Hitsugaya's left with the duty to protect Hinamori! What is going to happen next?! All I can say is...the conflict in the story is continuing to pick up! How long it will last? Well, stay tuned for the next update. To pass the time, please read the beginning of my newest fan fiction, Hitsugaya's First Love. Anyway, please review! Thanks.