Inner Conflict — XIII

Rukia opened her eyes, surprised. It had been quite awhile since Shirayuki had contacted her. She had a feeling her Zanpakatou's manifestation was no happier with her bearer than her bearer was with herself. Rukia couldn't figure out what Shirayuki was contacting her for now, though.

"Please tell me you aren't going to lecture me." Rukia begged. The last thing she needed to hear now was somebody telling her to give up. Things were bad enough for her already; Aizen was starting to lose his patience with both her and Momo, if they weren't careful it was going to be the end of Ichigo and Toushirou. Neither of them were taking that risk. Rukia didn't care what Shirayuki said.

"Look at yourself Rukia." Shirayuki started to say. "I can't believe you let yourself get in this far—"

"You know why I did it." Rukia snapped. "I already said don't lecture me. I don't want to hear it."

"You're impossible." Shirayuki shot back. "I don't know why you think this is going to do you any good anyways. When Aizen gets what he wants from you he'll just kill you and Hinamori and those two you're protecting. What good will all of this have been then? What will it have been for?"

"We're just going to have to hope we stay useful to him, aren't we then?" Rukia retorted. Did Shirayuki think she hadn't already thought of every possible way this screwed up mess could end? Did her Zanpakatou think she was that stupid? "Anyways I already know all this."

"And what do you plan to do about it?"

"I'll figure it out when I get to that point, won't I?"

Shirayuki looked less than satisfied with Rukia's two-bid answer. Rukia wasn't exactly satisfied with it either, but what could she do? Ichigo's life was sitting in the palm of her hands. There was no room for mistakes.

"It's too bad." Shirayuki said after a moment. "You've never been closer to the answer, and yet you still don't see it."

Rukia blinked as Shirayuki began to blur from her sight. "Wait, what do you mean?"

But the manifestation was already gone. "Hey, hey! Get back here!"

"Blackmail?"

Orihime had given up on her "creative" theories, trying to think on the practical line. It wasn't working very well. "What in the world could he possibly blackmail her with?" Ichigo asked, crossing his arms and leaning against a tree. They'd met in the park, like they always did. Uryu was taking care of Aiko and Souken. He had little interest in talking with Ichigo, who's mind was so consumed these days by Rukia. Orihime was still patient enough to help out the orange-haired captain though.

"I don't know." Orihime sighed, then snapped her fingers. "Maybe—"

"Orihime-san?"

"I know, I know." She sighed again. "How's Hitsugaya-kun?" She asked, finally settling on a good change of topic. Ichigo sighed.

"He's worse than I am. He won't talk to anybody, he hates showing emotion you know. So he just lets it bottle up inside him. It's screwing with him though. I feel bad, but it's not like we're exactly close, so I can't really talk to him about it. I've talked to Matsumoto-san though, and she's tried to talking to him. Twice, actually. It hasn't worked out either time. No surprise though."

"I feel so sorry for him." Orihime said quietly. "Hinamori-san told me she and him grew up together, they're really close. She said…"

But whatever Momo said was apparently supposed to stay secret, because Orihime let her voice trail off. That annoyed Ichigo just a little. He wouldn't have minded knowing what his vice-captain had to say about the tenth division captain. But he let the conversation go. "So things have been quiet here, then?'

"Nothing out of the ordinary." Orihime confirmed. "I wonder, though, if we would notice something. Where Aizen has Rukia, and she knows everything about Karakura, it would be easy for her to help him get around us, wouldn't it?"

"That's true." Ichigo sighed and raised his sleeve, examining the scar he would forever have. The reminder of his last encounter with Rukia. Orihime gasped when she saw it, her eyes wide.

"Kurosaki-kun, what happened?' He shook his head.

"I just…underestimated Rukia." Another gasp, this time more pronounced. Orihime stared at Ichigo, her mouth open.

"Kuchiki-san did that?"

"Uh huh." Ichigo nodded, shaking his sleeve down again. "I was stupid though. Rukia's greatest advantage is that she's so short. She's not the greatest at shunpo, but she's short enough it's easier for her to evade people — namely me. She was a real pain in the ass. And to think, I used to laugh at her about her height. I never thought in a fight between her and me it'd be useful for her. Then again I never thought I'd have to fight her."

His voice trailed off into a sigh. Orihime shook her head and looked away. She knew how much Ichigo was hurting. She wished she could do something to take that pain away.

Hinamori stared, wide-eyed, at the army Aizen had presented her with. Rukia just looked them over with disgust. How many foot soldiers did Aizen have, exactly? She shook her head.

"I'm sorry, but what makes you think this attack will go any better than the last one? Nothing's changed except maybe the number of Arrancar you want us to bring along. Do you really think that'll make a difference?"

Hinamori gave Rukia a strange glance, obviously wondering what the raven-haired Shinigami was up to. The truth was, Rukia just really didn't want to have to go to Karakura Town. She was hoping she could talk Aizen out of it…

No such luck, of course. "This isn't just about attacking Karakura Town, Rukia-san. Though I appreciate your concern about wanting to save some of my soldiers, I assure you, it's not necessary. I know what I'm doing."

Rukia bit down on her lip until she could taste blood, then looked back at Hinamori, who obviously had no argument.

Damn…

Uryu smiled softly as he ran a hand through his daughter's hair. Aiko had, for some reason, refused to go to sleep, and had insisted that Uryu sit with her and read. At least Souken had gone down easy enough. He didn't need two fussy kids.

Now, though, Aiko was asleep. Which left Uryu to focus on the more important things. Like the fact that his wife was still out with a certain orange-haired idiot.

Not that he didn't trust Orihime. It just…bothered him how much she seemed to want to help Ichigo. Because helping Ichigo meant helping a certain raven-haired Shinigami.

Kuchiki Rukia. Now she bothered him. He'd gained a lot of respect for her when she and Renji had gone to Hueco Mundo against orders to help them rescue Orihime. He'd lost most of that respect when she had taken off after what had happened with Ichigo. Now he just didn't care for her at all.

He stiffened suddenly and looked up at the ceiling as he felt a surge in the spiritual pressure. Oh crap. Not now, he groaned inwardly as he darted out of Aiko's room, down the stairs, and out the door. His eyes darted to the sky as soon as he got outside. It looked as if the sky was ripping in half. Something Uryu knew all too well.

"So the attack begins."

Ichigo straightened up, his eyes on the sky, his teeth gritted in anger. "Aw fuck!" He swore loudly, diving to get his Soul Pager. Just his luck that he'd be the only freaking Shinigami in the damn living world.

Orihime jumped up, her eyes wide with fright. "Souken and Aiko!" She whirled around and started running towards her house.

"Please." Ichigo scoffed and grabbed her arm. "Hang on."

It took three shunpos to get to Orihime's house. She stumbled a little when they landed again, looking unbalanced. "I don't think I like shunpo that much." She sounded a little woozy.

Uryu was waiting on the steps for them. His eyes were on the sky, his teeth grinding together. "Get inside Orihime." He said tensely. Ichigo saw him flex his fingers, as if he were ready to throw Orihime into the house. Luckily she listened and darted inside, going right up the stairs. "There's a lot of them coming. I'm guessing you're by yourself here?"

"Won't be for long." Ichigo already knew what number he wanted. If Karakura Town was involved, then Momo and Rukia would be as well. There was only one person he'd call for that.

Toushirou jumped as the phone rang loudly in his ear. Since when did he fall asleep at his desk? It was such a…Matsumoto-like thing to do. "Hello?" He grumbled into the phone, not even sure if he was speaking into the right part of it.

"Toushirou?" He blinked a few times. It was Kurosaki.

"What do you want?" He muttered, suddenly weary. He knew Ichigo had planned to go to the living world to update Uryu and Orihime. No doubt that was where he was calling from. And that could only mean trouble.

"We've got a problem — a big problem." Ichigo just confirmed Toushirou's worries. "How soon do you think you can get over here and how many can you bring?"

Toushirou was alert now. "What's going on?"

"Arrancar coming. Lots of them. I'm willing to bet Momo and Rukia are going to be with them." Toushirou scowled.

"I'll be over. Soon. Wish I could bring the old team, but with Ikkaku and Yumichika dead or captured and Kuchiki on their side, that's not an option."

"Bring Matsumoto-san and Renji then. And whoever else you think will be useful. Just get here soon." And he hung up. Toushirou swore loudly as he slammed the phone down and jumped up. Exactly who was he supposed to bring? Anybody he would have chosen besides Matsumoto and Abarai were all out of the question for one reason or another. He gritted his teeth together as he stormed the halls of the division, is mind racing with different people he could try to ask. He was coming up blank.

"Matsumoto!" He shouted as soon as he got outside.

"Present." She appeared behind him as if she had been waiting for him.

"Good. Send a message to…" He ran over names quickly in his head. "Kira and Abarai," he decided finally. Two captains would be good enough. "Tell them to meet at the First Division. You come too. We're going to the living world."

Ichigo swung his Zanpakatou again and again, slicing the Arrancar apart two and three at a time. Uryu had given him a general direction to go in which he'd find Rukia and Momo, but they were hiding their spiritual pressure, and Ichigo had long since left Uryu behind, so asking him was out of the question. He just jumped from rooftop to rooftop, killing any Arrancar he happened to stumble into. They weren't strong, there were just so many of them. Even Uryu, using as many arrows as he could at once, couldn't make a dent in the amount. They could drown everyone in sheer numbers alone.

"Shouldn't we fight?" Momo asked Rukia in a quiet voice. The raven-haired Shinigami shook her head.

"They'll find us on their own. Why tempt fate sooner than we have to?"

"Urahara-san!"

Ichigo found the ex-Shinigami, Yoruichi, and Kurosaki Isshin all together. Ichigo's father was in his Shinigami form.

"Hee-eey Ichigo! How come you don't come visit—?"

Ichigo punched his father over the head as he walked past him. "Shut up old man. Urahara-san, I need to help me with something."

"Eh? What do you need Kurosaki-kun?"

"Rukia and Hinamori Momo are here somewhere. I need you to point me towards them."

"Kurosaki!" A new voice joined them. Hitsugaya Toushirou appeared next to him, his face serious. "Where are they?"

"I'm working on finding out. Urahara-san?"

"Head east. I do believe you'll find the two there."

Toushirou didn't wait for Urahara to finish the sentence. Ichigo took off after him. "Who else came?" He asked the white-haired captain as they ran.

"Kira, Abarai, and Matsumoto. They were the best I could think of, considering how little time I had to think about it."

"They'll do." Ichigo agreed as they ran. He only had one focus at the moment; it had little to do with who Hitsugaya had brought along with him.

Momo exhaled loudly. "They're coming."

Rukia closed her eyes, breathing deeply. "Wrong. They're here."

They turned around in sync and found themselves facing Toushirou and Ichigo. Fights raged around them, Arrancar screamed as they were killed by the Shinigami attacks and Quincy arrows alike. And still more came. It was ridiculous. But at that moment, the four Shinigami had eyes for no one but their opposite.

Rukia's hand drifted automatically to her Zanpakatou. Momo, Toushirou, and Ichigo all repeated the movement. They knew where this was going. Rukia reflected briefly on the conversation she'd had with Shirayuki the other day. And she realized how ready she was for this to be over. She sprang forward, drawing her sword as she ran. Ichigo was just barely fast enough to deflect her attack.

Momo watched out of the corner of her eye as Ichigo and Rukia Shunpo-ed away to find their own battle area. Her main focus was Toushirou though. She bit on her lip to keep from saying something. She couldn't let anything slip. It would only get him into trouble. So instead she did the only thing that made sense for the moment. She attacked.

Rukia once again found herself counting her blessings that she was short. It made it so much easier to dodge Ichigo's too-wide attacks. She tried…not too hold back, exactly, but to not hurt him either. She still felt bad over the hit she'd landed last time. She knew Ichigo wasn't trying his hardest either. Neither of them could fight at full strength.

As wrapped up in the fight as Ichigo was, he lost track of what was going on around him. He was too narrow-minded that way. Rukia, fortunately, wasn't. She saw the Arrancar come up behind him, saw it rear to attack. To attack Ichigo.

Instinct took over common sense. Rukia deflected another attack and, much to Ichigo's surprise, sprang past him, putting herself in front of the attack.

Ichigo looked around just in time to see the Arrancar bring one of it's large claws down, slicing into Rukia, spilling blood everywhere. Ichigo's eyes widened.

"Rukia!"

Momo ducked around Toushirou's attack; both heard Ichigo's yell. Momo eyes widened in fear. Had something happened to her?

"Oh…damn." She muttered, Shunpo-ing away from Toushirou. Finding out if Rukia was okay was more important than trying to look like she was fighting Toushirou. Anyways, the white-haired captain was right behind her. They could pick up the fight later, if it became necessary.

Ichigo held Rukia tightly, trying to stop the flow of the blood. A near-impossible task; the wound was too deep.

"Rukia-san!"

Momo was standing over Rukia and Ichigo, Toushirou right behind her. The vice-captain got down on her knees at once, biting her lip. "What happened?"

Ichigo spit the answer out through his teeth. "She put herself in front of an attack that was meant for me."

Momo swallowed hard, narrowing her eyes. "Rukia-san…" She sighed. "I guess I'm not too surprised."

"Well I am!" Ichigo shouted, losing his patience. "What the hell's going on Momo?! You and Rukia were supposed to have betrayed us, why is she trying to save me?!"

Momo flinched. "Calm down Kurosaki." Toushirou snapped, though he was thinking the same thing. He had passed confused awhile ago.

"I'm sorry." Momo muttered. "Put her down, Captain. I'll take care of her. You guys are supposed to be fighting."

Momo didn't really think Ichigo was going to surrender Rukia, did she? He finally had her back—

"Come on Kurosaki, she's right." Toushirou turned his glare on Momo. "Don't go anywhere. I mean it. You'd better both be here when we get back."

Momo winced; Toushirou had never spoken to her like that before. "We will be. I…I promise."

This is going to get them killed. But there's nothing I can do anymore. It's out of my hands.

Momo sighed.

Rukia's eyes snapped open. "Back here already?" She grumbled, looking around the icy landscape of her mind. "Shirayuki must want to yell some more. Couldn't she have picked a better time?"

"Stop complaining." The Zanpakatou's manifestation appeared in front of Rukia; the violet-eyed Shinigami jumped back in surprise. "I don't believe I can sneak up on you that easily."

Rukia was fully prepared to beg. She would if it'd get Shirayuki off her back. "Why did you bring me here now?"

"Now seemed to be as good a time as any."

"I was in the middle of a fight—!"

"And you were just struck down." Shirayuki cut Rukia off. "You have a few minutes before anybody will expect you to wake up, with the wound you received…I'm only requiring ten minutes of your undivided attention Rukia, you can give that to me can't you?"

Rukia knew she didn't have a choice. "What's so important that it couldn't wait until after this, then?"

For the first time in a long time, a small smile played on Shirayuki's lips. Rukia was shocked. That smile couldn't mean anything good. "You finally found your answer."

The words stumped Rukia. "…Huh?"

Shirayuki sighed. "You still don't understand, do you? I guess I'll just have to show you then." She raised her hand, pointing a finger at the area behind Rukia, who looked over her shoulder. Her eyes widened.

Ichigo was there. How he had gotten there, she couldn't even begin to guess. But he was there. Tied to a pole. Unconscious.

Rukia's hand flew to her Zanpakatou's sheath; she had every intention of cutting him down. But her Zanpakatou was gone. She looked down in surprise, then looked over at Shirayuki. Her sword's manifestation was holding her sword, already in it's Shikai. Shirayuki raised the sword and, in a fluid movement, shot past Rukia. Towards Ichigo. Rukia realized in horror what Shirayuki's intentions were.

"No!" She shouted angrily, turning fully. She moved faster than she could ever remember moving before, using Shunpo to fly past Shirayuki, putting herself between Ichigo and the sword. Stupid of her. She had no way to defend herself, no time even to use Kido. But then, what was one more injury in Ichigo's defense? She closed her eyes, waiting for her own sword to rip through her skin…

It never came. After a minute, Rukia opened her eyes again, one a time. She was alone, Shirayuki gone. She looked over her shoulder and saw that Ichigo was gone as well.

"What the hell—?"

"Do you understand now?" She jumped and whirled around. Shirayuki standing behind her, watching her. At the same moment, Rukia felt her sword appear in her hand again.

"No." She said, furious. "What are you trying to tell me, Shirayuki?"

"For the longest time you wondered why you couldn't achieve Bankai, what you were missing. He is the answer."

Rukia blinked. "I need…Ichigo?"

"Close." Shirayuki nodded. "Rukia do you know why Ichigo wanted to achieve Bankai so badly?"

"Yeah, he wanted to be able to fight my brother."

"Wrong answer." Rukia blinked. "He wanted to achieve Bankai for you, Rukia. He was resolved to save you, no matter what the cost."

Rukia still wasn't following. "And this applies to me…how?"

Shirayuki sighed. "Rukia would you die for Ichigo?"

Her immediate answer was, in a heartbeat, but Shirayuki continued before she could answer. "In order for you to achieve Bankai, you had to show that you were willing to protect Ichigo. No matter what the cost. That is your strength."

Shirayuki disappeared. Rukia jumped in surprise. "Now," the manifestation's voice echoed in Rukia's head, "try to strike me, Rukia."

Rukia closed her eyes, remembering all the other times she had stood exactly like this, taken the same actions. But something was different now. Something had…changed.

Her eyes flew open and she whirled around, raising the sword and swinging it down in two fluid motions. It went right through Shirayuki. Rukia blinked, surprised, and took a step back as Shirayuki disappeared.

"You have your answer now Rukia. Just as Ichigo's resolve to save you helped him to become stronger, your will to protect him will help you."

Rukia's mindscape was beginning to disappear. But she had one more question for Shirayuki. "What if I'd never met Ichigo?" She asked loudly.

"There's no 'what-if' in this situation. You two were destined to meet from the day each of you were born."

Rukia considered this for a moment. So her's and Ichigo's meeting had been one of fate? She wasn't sure she minded that too much…

Author's Note: So I have an idea in mind for Rukia's Bankai…and it's pretty creative if I do say so myself…but I don't know. Reviews make me update faster (hint) — Sam