Chapter 6: Return to Inuzuri

"Captain Kuchiki?" says a soft, feminine voice.

My eyes blink open and try to focus. Retsu Unohana's face slowly materializes in the haze around me.

"Thank goodness," she says, relief in both her voice and the pretty blue eyes that meet mine, "You gave us a little fright there…but it looks like you'll be fine."

Something feels very wrong. She sees the expression on my face and her smile fades.

"Ah…I'm sorry, Captain. I had to put a seal on you zanpakuto. It was out of control. It destroyed your office and the two of you clashed with a great deal of force. You are fortunate that you were still strong enough to fend off its attack."

"What happened to Senbonzakura?" I ask, my heart skipping painfully.

"I will be honest with you, Byakuya. Your zanpakuto is experiencing great amounts of stress. The poison is affecting it with greater force than it is affecting you. I fear that your zanpakuto could soon reach a critical juncture. We must find a way to counteract this poison soon…or your zanpakuto will die."

Her words are still sinking in when the door bursts open and Renji charges into the room. There is something about the frantic look in his eyes and on his face, the fact he almost took the door off the hinges, and the way he throws his arms around me so tightly. It gives a sense of strength back to me.

"Kami, Byakuya, I felt your reiatsu and Senbonzakura's clash and decline, and I thought that you two had killed each other!"

"I…I'm fine, Renji, really. I was able to shield myself. I lost consciousness, but I'm fine now, really. It's Senbonzakura that is failing right now. I'm afraid my zanpakuto is dying more quickly than I am. They had to put a seal on it…for everyone's protection."

He's still holding me very tightly and his eyes still look panicked. I sink into the embrace for the warmth and the comfort I was missing before.

"I really missed you, Renji. I know you needed time to process things, but it was…empty here without you."

"I know," he says, putting his hands on my face, "and I shouldn't have gone. I just felt so bad that I'd been used to hurt you. I couldn't stand that feeling. I'm sorry I ever left. It won't happen again, I promise! But…Byakuya…you said you lost consciousness. How did you get here?"

"I don't know, actually," I admit, "I only just woke up."

"It was one of your squad members," Captain Unohana explained, "He's waiting outside. He was very worried about you, Captain Kuchiki."

"Very well," I tell her, "He may come in. I would like to thank him."

She leaves the room and a moment later, the door opens and Takeo comes in. He looks a bit shaken and he still seems intimidated by me.

"Takeo," I say softly, "I understand that I have you to thank for finding me and calling for assistance."

"Sir…I…I'm glad you're okay. But, sir, what happened? It was your zanpakutou, wasn't it?"

I am not ready for this to become common knowledge.

"It…was an accident. It has been taken care of…arigato."

"But, Captain…I saw it. I saw Senbonzakura attack you! Why would your zanpakutou attack you?" he asks, wide-eyed.

"I have been ill…and that affected my zanpakutou somehow. But do not concern yourself with that. Just know that I appreciate your swift response…"

"I do have a question," Renji says, pulling away from me, "What were you doing there in the office so late?"

"Oh, that! I just…had to go back because I…I forgot my zanpakutou. I was embarrassed, because, you know, who the heck forgets something like that, right? So I slipped back in to get it…and I saw Senbonzakura attack the captain," he explains.

"Ah, well, Takeo," I say, "it is very late…and as you see, I am fine now. You should report back to the barracks and get some sleep. I understand that Rikichi is having you work on kido tomorrow."

"Yes sir. I'm glad you're okay, sir." He says, before turning and leaving the room.

I sit quietly for a moment as Renji approaches and slips his arms around me again. I lean against his shoulder, thinking. He looks closely at me.

"Byakuya, what's on your mind? You look like something is troubling you. I mean, besides the obvious."

"Renji…Takeo was lying…about his zanpakutou," I say finally.

"He was lying?" Renji repeats questioningly, "What do you mean? How do you know?"

"I know because I saw him come in. It happened very quickly…but I remember…Renji, he was wearing his zanpakutou when he came in."

"But why lie about that?" Renji asks softly, "Byakuya, you don't think he has anything to do with the poisoning, do you?"

"I'm a long way from knowing the answer to that, Renji," I admit, "But we should follow any possibilities."

"But, Byakuya, the stealth force determined he had no connection to you. He wasn't considered a danger."

"Yes," I agree, "I was just thinking about that. Renji, what if we were wrong about the central target in all of this? What if it wasn't me that was the target…but you?"

"Me? Why would anyone target me? I don't understand," Renji objects, "And why poison you if I was the target?"

"Again, we are a long way from having those answers, but now we can at least pursue this. Renji, I want you to go personally to Captain Soi Fon and request a complete background on Takeo. I want to know where he grew up, who he is associated with, and if he has any connection, not just to me, but to you."

"Okay…but what do we do with the kid in the mean time? Should we confine him?"

"No…no, I think not. Renji, it is doubtful that one such as he could be working alone in this. How would he come into possession of that substance? How would he even be aware of it? He is connected to someone with a great deal of power. We need to find out who that person is."

"So what are you suggesting?" Renji asks.

"I think that we need to let him get closer to me."

"Uh, Byakuya, don't forget, this kid might be the one who poisoned you. Why would you let him close to you. What if he decides to attack you?"

"I doubt that will happen, Renji. I think that if he was sent to poison me, he may just be watching to be certain I die…but if that is the case, then why would he help me? There is so much we don't know. I think if I let him close to me, he may give something away."

"It sounds dangerous, Byakuya. I don't like the idea of you letting a murderer get that close to you."

"Well," I remind him, "I am already dying…and the ones who poisoned me seem content to wait for it to work."

"That's quite a risky assumption. I mean it's great if you're right, but what if seeing him close to you makes them want to speed things up?"

"I think that's a risk we have to take. Tomorrow I'll send orders that Takeo is to attend me. We will watch his movements and see what we find."

"Captain Unohana, is Byakuya well enough to come home?" Renji asks.

"Yes," she says, nodding, "Just remember to rest and please, do not remove the seal on Senbonzakura."

"I will not," I promise her, but my heart aches thinking of my zanpakutou locked away and dying alone.

I, at least, have Renji.

We leave the Healing Center and start back toward home. As we near the 6th Division office, something occurs to me.

"Renji, I just thought of something. If Takeo wasn't in the office to retrieve his zanpakutou, then why was he there? What was he there to do?"

"That's a good question, Byakuya."

"Should we, perhaps, visit the office to see if he might have decided to return?"

"Good idea," Renji agrees.

We go to the back entrance into the Captain's Quarters and slip quietly into the hallway. Soft sounds issue from the dark office ahead of us.

"Someone's working late," Renji whispers, "and without light."

I nod and move toward the partially open door, carefully peering around it. Sure enough, Takeo is in the office. He appears to be carefully searching Renji's desk. I put a hand on Renji's arm so that he won't give us away, and we watch as Takeo searches the desk, then sighs in frustration. He starts to move toward where we are concealed, so we slip back into the Captain's Quarters and softly close the door. We hear him enter the hall, then we hear a small scraping and some soft clicks.

"Lockpick," I mouth to Renji.

There is a larger click and then the sound of the door into the Vice Captain's Quarters opens and closes. I turn to Renji.

"Renji," I whisper, "obviously, you have something that he wants to obtain. If he does not find it here, I think we should definitely have him come to the manor to attend me. He will undoubtedly attempt to search for whatever it is there. We can trip him up and find out what his mission is. But we must be careful. Assuming there is someone very powerful behind all of this, if we let them know we suspect Takeo, they could take more drastic measures."

"Like trying to kill you sooner…"

"Or killing you."

"Bya…we need to get the kids somewhere safe."

"Yes," I agree, "I am certain Yoruichi will have no problem watching over them in Karakura Town. We shall send them off first thing in the morning."

"Okay," says Renji, "but what do we do now? I think I heard him come out of my quarters. Do we try to follow?"

"Yes, come."

We peek into the hallway and see Takeo's retreating back. We wait until he turns the corner, then silently flash step to the corner and follow at a safe distance. We are cautious because we notice him looking around quite a bit. He walks down several dark streets, then slips into a bar.

I turn to Renji and pull out his hair tie.

"What the…Bya, what are you doing?"

"Shh, I'm going incognito," I say, removing the kenseiken and pulling my hair back, fastening it with Renji's hair tie.

I remove the scarf, wrist guards and haori as well, handing these to Renji.

"I am less recognizable than you without these," I tell him softly.

He nods.

"Just be careful, Byakuya. You don't know who he might be meeting…only that he might work for someone powerful."

I nod briefly, then slip into the bar. It is late, but not too late for revelry and that means that the bar contains a lot of people. It makes it a lot easier to blend in…and the darkness of the interior works in my favor. It seems that I am not recognized.

I move carefully around the room until I spot Takeo sitting quietly at a booth, looking as though he is waiting for someone. I see a booth near him is unoccupied and slip into it. A few minutes later, I hear someone greet Takeo and I turn for a quick glance. I do not recognize the man, but I memorize his features carefully. Then I listen.

"Did you find it, kid?"

"No sir." Takeo says in an intimidated voice, "I searched very carefully. It wasn't in his desk at the division or his quarters."

"We need to get someone into the manor. Can you do that, or do we need to remove you from this?"

"I can do it. I can," Takeo tells him, sounding frightened, "Just…I will do it tomorrow."

"Very well," says the other, "You have until tomorrow night or we will assume you are not capable. Raiden is not a patient man. He wants that information back in our hands."

"I don't know why it matters," comments Takeo in a small voice, "It has been many years and they are in Hueco Mundo, so why worry about who has that information?"

The larger man grabs the younger by the front of his shirt.

"We still have people here who will be exposed. We have to get back the information she stole. We know it never reached the Sereitei and he was the last one she saw. He must have hidden it somewhere. Find it, worm…"

"I…I will!" Takeo gasps, "I promise!"

The man shoves him backwards and turns away, disappearing out the front door. Takeo moves to go out the back door. I move to the front and follow the one who Takeo had spoken to. He walks down to the end of the street and turns. I flash step after him and I feel Renji join me. We follow him down several dark streets, careful to keep our distance, but eventually, he reaches the main gate and heads out into the Rukon District.

"Should we keep going?" Renji asks me.

I signal for him to continue to follow. The one we follow takes a circuitous route that suggests that he is being very cautious. We realize after a time that he is headed toward Inuzuri. We follow until he reaches a dark warehouse. I grab Renji's arm and pull him down behind some bushes, pointing up to a lookout, who just misses spotting us.

"Perhaps this is some sort of illegal group. This may be their headquarters. We have to be careful, Renji. We need to have members of the stealth force monitor this building and we need to see what we can get out of Takeo. We need to know what they think you have."

"Did you find out anything at the bar?" Renji asks.

"A little. He is looking for something that a man named Raiden thinks that you were given by someone who is female. It was supposed to have happened some time ago. I do not know where or under what circumstances. It is information that is somehow connected to Sousuke Aizen, because they made references to those now in Hueco Mundo. This may be some kind of covert group of his operating here. It sounds as though the information includes names of Aizen's operatives who are still in Soul Society. We need to…"

All at once, my head begins to spin and my heart pounds strangely. I feel unconsciousness coming on and I hold on to Renji as his arms surround me and ease me to the ground.

"I'll take you to Michi," he says as things go dark.

When I wake, I find myself tucked warmly into a comfortable bed with Renji at my side.

"You okay now, Byakuya?" he asks, "I told Michi about the poison and he seemed to know what to give you. I guess it worked."

"Yes," I say softly, "I do feel better now."

"Well, we're staying here tonight, so don't get any ideas about running off."

"I have no intention of running off!" I tell him indignantly, "I have every intention of spending this night right here in your arms, Renji."

"What's left of the night…" he comments, pulling me close.

My mouth finds his in the darkness. At first, he seems tentative, but I tease his lips gently until they part. My tongue strokes his gently and I press closer. We both know the truth of things is that I am weakening. At this point, I'm not up to much more than exchanging kisses and gentle touches, so we content ourselves with that until sleep finally overtakes us.