Empire of the Sun

By: Katreju

Chapter Two

Ulquiorra Cifer, General of Lord Sōsuke Aizen of Naitsu, walked through the narrow alleys of the samurai district with one hand embedded in his pocket and the other carrying a pouch he had just replenished with supplies and a new medicinal kit.

He went over his mental checklist to be certain he did not forget any tasks while he was in town, but his train of thought was soon interrupted by a shrill voice calling out to him. His feet halted and slowly he turned around with a straight face to confront the banshee, even though he had already recognized who it was.

A voluptuous woman with long, light-green hair and a discolored scar that stretched from her forehead to the bridge of her nose quickly strolled over to where he stood. Once she was close to him, she displayed a cheerful, toothy smile. "It's been some time since we've last seen each other!"

His face remained akin to that of a stone. "General Odelschwanck."

She let out a laugh. "I'm happy to see you too! Where are you heading right now?"

"To my house."

"Great! I'll join you! I need to walk off some steam anyway!"

Ulquiorra was about to object her self-imposed invitation, but decided that his time and energy would be better spent walking than arguing with a tenacious person like Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck. He remained silent and proceeded down the alley with her following closely behind.

"You know, Japanese women have my respect for being able to wear these every day," Nelliel mused out loud as her fingers tugged on her crimson obi and the neck-collar of her off-white kimono. "They're beautiful and become somewhat comfortable over time. But, I much prefer wearing what you have on for casual clothing."

"If that's how you feel, why have you changed your standard?" Ulquiorra said.

"It's not that I changed my standard," she said, crossing her arms in front of her chest and her eyes narrowing. "All of the hakama and haori I owned were ripped to shreds a week ago by that fool Nnoitra. He also scattered the remains around my house and left a note saying that 'a woman's place is not on the battlefield' and 'that I should get over myself since I won't be in leadership for very long'."

"And that is the reason why you fought with him earlier?"

She looked at him with surprise. "Word gets around fast, doesn't it?"

"If you want to be discreet, do not engage in public fights."

"Good point!" she chuckled heartily. "Well, to answer your question, that was not my reason for fighting. I was supervising over Pesche and Dondochakka training the younger soldiers in our regiment until Nnoitra and his followers showed up. He wanted to take charge of the session and his group started bullying the trainees. Before I could take control of the situation, Pesche and Dondochakka stepped in and tried to reason with him. The turning point was when Nnoitra had unsheathed his sword and advanced on them, but I had managed to intervene and block him.

"It was such a dirty move since neither of them had their weapons on hand and it was quite obvious that the fool had malicious intentions. Because of that alone, he had invoked my anger. At some point, one of the soldiers brought General Louisenbairn onto the scene to quiet us down. That didn't work, of course, but when Lord Aizen arrived, well, we had no choice but to put down our swords. Lord Aizen was displeased with everyone, yet very much so with me."

"That is to be expected," Ulquiorra stated. "As a samurai of higher rank, you should have handled the situation differently and not have allowed your emotions take over."

"You're right! But to be honest with you," her voice becoming serious, "I would do it all over again if it meant protecting Pesche and Dondochakka. They may be my subordinates, but they're also my family and I will never allow anyone to hurt them."

"Then you have chosen to ruin your integrity for your idealism."

Nelliel laughed. "I should've expected that sort of answer from you, Cifer-dono! You don't understand my feelings because there is no one you'll fight for."

Ulquiorra stared at her with contempt. "My sword and abilities are used to defend and serve Lord Aizen."

Nelliel smiled at him. "Yes, but I already took that into consideration. What I meant was that fighting for someone out of respect is vastly different than fighting for someone out of love. Not to say that our loyalty to Lord Aizen isn't commendable, but it doesn't have the same fulfillment as fighting for the people you care about."

Ulquiorra blankly stared ahead as they crossed over a red wooden bridge into the district he lived in. "Then you are correct. There is no person in this world that encourages such a desire in me."

"Well at least Lord Aizen won't penalize you for it," she said, her voice dropping a pitch. "Thanks to today's little incident, my two weeks of leave have been forfeited. I'm being sent out to do reconnaissance in the south. Since Pesche and Dondochakka are unable to come with me, I have to form a new team for the mission. I'd ask you to accompany me but I heard you're still on bodyguard duty, am I right?"

"Unfortunately," he replied monotonously.

Nelliel brought a finger up to her lips and looked as if she was in deep thought. "Hm…it's an easy enough assignment so I wonder why he chose you instead of someone lower ranked to do it. Then again, your dry and cold personality on top of being asexual does make you suited for the job."

"General-"

"I heard she is very lovely!" Nelliel quickly interrupted him. "The soldiers haven't stopped talking about her since you brought her here. I think most of the women are already staking their claims to make sure she doesn't enchant them with her looks."

"All this concern over a child."

"Eh? How old is she?"

"Seventeen."

Nelliel looked at him in disbelief. "That's hardly the age of a child."

"Her defiance and immaturity speak otherwise."

Nelliel sighed and waited before speaking again. "This may be hard for you to do, but you should lighten up on her. She just lost her family, her home and the life she knew. It's quite understandable that she is not going to be exactly cordial or agreeable with any of us for a while…if ever. So in the meantime, you should…well, do your best not to be so rigid and unsociable."

"Are you finished?"

"I have one more thing to say then I'm done!" she said merrily. "In regards to what I said, she might warm up to you and that could make having her around more…tolerable for you."

Ulquiorra kept his eyes focused on the road ahead. "Our time together is temporary. Whatever happens during her stay will become irrelevant once she is no longer under my supervision."

. . .

Lady Orihime Inoue sat leaning against the door frame that connected the General's room to the outdoor hallway. She had remained in a trance-like state for the past few hours, staring at the Japanese-style garden that extended across the back of the house. The lush greenery covering the yard along with the intricate arrangement of stone lanterns and trails next to a quiet pond filled with koi and stepping-stones provided a calm environment for one to seek solace and peace.

Nevertheless, pain and confusion continued to ensnare her mind in what felt like a never-ending spiral.

She closed her eyes and breathed in the soothing, sweet aroma of citrus and cedar lingering in the air until she heard the door from the other side of the room slide open. She slowly looked behind her and saw a beautiful, fair-skinned woman with wavy, black hair loosely tied from her face and wearing a wine-red kimono adorned with a black obi.

Not noticing the young girl's presence until after entering the room, the woman's amber eyes raised slightly and she let out a soft chuckle. "Oh! Pardon me, my lady." She sat down on her knees and bowed. "I thought you had gone out with the Master."

Her voice was mellow yet soothing to hear.

"It's alright," Orihime responded gently. "Do what you have to do, Miss, um…"

Rising up, the woman gave her an endearing smile. "I'm Hisae. Please let me know if you need anything to make your stay here more comfortable."

"Thank you," Orihime frowned, "but I don't think I'll ever be comfortable here."

Hisae's smile faded as she looked at the girl with sympathy. "I can understand what you must be feeling. All the sadness, anger and pain you carry…but I honestly can say to you that after some time has passed and once your wounds have begun to heal, you might find yourself surprised and adapt to the road that is paved for you."

Orihime let a strained sound escape her lips. "Even if I commit myself to a man who had destroyed everything that I hold dear, especially the people that I loved?"

Hisae waited before speaking again. "It will not be easy. It will certainly be frustrating and painful at times. But as one woman who has suffered greatly to another, I can assure you that I found peace again and I know you will as well, my lady." She reassured her with a smile before standing to her feet. "I'll leave now to give you some privacy. But if you like, I can bring you a pot of tea and something to eat."

A faint smile made its way across Orihime's face. "I'm fine at the moment, but thank you."

Hisae nodded then proceeded out the room. When Orihime could no longer hear her steps, she rose to her feet and walked over to where the folded futon was stored. She kneeled down and picked up Lord Inoue's will from where she had left it after returning from her meeting with Lord Aizen.

Now do you realize the power you wield? You are the governing ruler of Tenkū, Lady Orihime.

The memory of those words made her fingers tighten around the scroll. Tenkū, the land and the people her brother had selflessly devoted his life to, was now her responsibility. She had been repeatedly asking the gods why he would take such a huge gamble on naming her his successor when he could have handed his title over to someone else. Someone more deserving and qualified than her. Nevertheless, no matter what his justification was, Lord Inoue had entrusted her with this responsibility.

He believed in her. He had always believed in her. Right now, though, she had needed to believe in herself. She needed to pull herself together and rely on her strength and wit so that his faith would not be in vain.

And there were so many things that needed to be resolved, but before she could do anything, she had to take into regard Sōsuke Aizen.

Deep down, she wanted to fight him so she could avenge her clan, but the lord of Naitsu had made certain she would not have the necessary resources for retaliation. He had taken unwarranted measures to ensure that he would have possession of her homeland and leave her with no military power, but now claimed that he would allow her to have authority as the rightful heir if they united in marriage.

Her heart sank further into her chest. Long ago, she had given up her desire of marrying and raising a family but she did create other dreams for herself – dreams and plans that would have given her a sense of purpose and hope toward the future. All that now greatly conflicted with the direction her life was taking.

Yet, if she did not go through and exercised her rights as Tenkū's heir, the Shogunate would repossess the province or grant it to someone else. And as highly as she respected the Shogun and his administration, she could not stomach the idea of Tenkū being in another clan's jurisdiction when it had been governed by the Inoue for more than ten generations.

Unfortunately, the measures that needed to be executed felt like a contradiction to everything she was fighting for as well as an indirect slap to the faces of those suffering or killed from the siege.

But there were no other options for her to take. Not in order to keep what had now become her most precious possession in the world.

Orihime heard her stomach growl and tapped it with her hand. "Maybe I should have taken up Miss Hisae's offer…" She lightly laughed before hearing footsteps coming from the hallway. Perfect timing! "Miss Hisae, I think I will take some tea and food now!"

"Hisae is cleaning the meditation room."

Orihime nearly jumped out of her skin and swiftly turned around to see Ulquiorra staring at her impassively from the doorway. "I thought you were in town!"

"I do not need to stay longer than I require."

"Were you afraid that I'd run away?"

"No. You have too much at stake to even consider the idea."

Orihime grumbled under her breath. She hated that he was right and had somehow rubbed it in her face.

"However," Ulquiorra continued, "had you gone through with your foolish plan, I would have tracked you down and arrested you before you could even set your eyes on the main gate, then hold you in contempt at the bugyō's office until your sentence had been decided."

"You take your work very seriously," she replied with widen eyes.

The Samurai General made no effort to respond.

Orihime's expression went from surprise to prim. "Well then…since you are to be my caretaker, I would like for you to go to Lord Aizen and tell him that I request an audience with him. Please be sure to mention that he will get an answer to his proposal."

"Do you have other petitions?"

She looked away from him. "No. You may leave now."

He stepped out of the room leaving her alone in silence.

. . .

The sun was setting when Orihime found herself back in Lord Sōsuke Aizen's audience chamber. She had sat on one of the mats and was waiting patiently for the daimyo to arrive with Ulquiorra standing quietly next to her. She had been surprised to hear so soon from the general that her request had been approved and that his master was willing to see her this evening. She figured he must have been eager to hear her decision whereas she somewhat dreaded the words that were about to come out of her mouth.

The chamber's main door was opened by the dark-skinned guard she saw earlier. She watched him step into the room with Lord Aizen following in from behind.

Orihime straightened her posture and kept her face firm. There was no going back now.

"Good evening, Lady Orihime," Lord Aizen said.

Orihime returned his greeting with a bow. "Good evening to you…my lord." She rose up and sworn that she saw his eyes beam in delight over her address. "I apologize if I've interrupted your schedule."

The daimyo sat across from her. "Not at all. I'm pleased to see you here."

"I'm glad then for I've come to speak with you about my decision."

"You have my undivided attention."

"Well…after much consideration, I believe it would be in the best interest of everyone to accept your proposal."

"You are certain?"

"I am," Orihime assured. "Our marriage will be beneficial not only for us, but for our people. I desire nothing more than to be of help for my clan get back on their feet and move pass this difficult time…which brings me to the request I wish to ask of you."

He cocked an eyebrow. "A request?"

She nodded. "I ask for your permission to let me to return to Tenkū. I would like to give my brother and all the people who died for him their funeral rites and a proper burial."

"You don't believe the peasants are taking care of that matter?"

"I believe they are, but I also want to be there so I can offer my assistance…and for my heart to be at peace."

He rested his chin on his hand. "You seek closure."

"Yes. I do."

Orihime watched him close his eyes and contemplate over her request. It felt like a long period had passed before she decided to speak up again. "If you like, please grant this to me as a wedding gift and I'll never ask of anything again."

Another moment went by before Lord Aizen opened his eyes and smirked at her. "I'm impressed by your devotion to your people, even more so that you are willing to make sacrifices for their sake. How long do you plan to be away?"

"I would like to stay until after the shonanoka. I promise that I will return after the ceremony is finished."

"Very well, Lady Orihime. You have my permission to leave Naitsu."

Orihime hid her joy but quickly bowed at him. "I'm very grateful, my lord."

"However, I cannot allow for you to go alone," Lord Aizen said before looking upward at Ulquiorra. "I am assigning Ulquiorra to be your escort."

Orihime felt her face twitch. "Eh?"

Ulquiorra stood firm. Displeased but firm.

"This arrangement is to ensure for your return to Naitsu as well as your safety," Lord Aizen said, eyes now focused back on Orihime. "I desire to learn more about you, but that will have to wait. The two of you will need at least a day to get there. I suggest you both plan your trip accordingly and get some rest."

"I understand," she replied.

Lord Aizen rose to his feet, prompting Orihime to do the same. "I wish you both a safe journey."

"Thank you, my lord."

Orihime graced him with one more bow and headed toward the corridor. Ulquiorra bowed at his master and was about to make his leave, but immediately stopped his footing when he heard his name beckoned from behind.

"Keep your eye on her," Lord Aizen stated inaudibly low. "Make sure she doesn't do anything to jeopardize our progress."

"You have my word," Ulquiorra answered solidly. He slipped the zōri onto his feet then walked out of the audience chamber to follow after his young red-haired ward.

Glossary:

Bugyō – Literal: "Magistrate, Governor, Commissioner."

Shonanoka – "Seventh day after death". A memorial service is held on this day for those who wish to offer sutras and prayers. The ceremony is part of the final ritual to ensure the souls of the deceased are able to be at peace and join their ancestors.

Disclaimer: I do not make any profit from writing this story. I'm simply borrowing Tite Kubo's characters for my sheer enjoyment. Also, most of the historical context has been researched and taken from various books and the internet. That being said, certain artistic liberties may still apply when seen fit for the story.