Flashback: Friday evening…

Tatsuki was walking home alone after school. Orihime had run off with Ichigo, Rukia, Chad, and Uryu for some reason but Tatsuki privately suspected it had something to do with Ichigo's strange ability to transform into these strange black robes with a huge sword on his back.

She wanted to know what it was Ichigo had become. They had been friends for years, even before Ichigo's mother had died. Granted they had drifted apart following Masaki's death but that didn't mean she didn't care for him as a friend. She also wanted to help him somehow with whatever he was doing since Orihime was helping him.

She was walking along when she heard a loud howl from out of nowhere. Suddenly a large hideous beast with a hole in its chest and a large white skull shaped mask appeared from around the corner.

"Mmm a tasty smelling young soul. You'll make a nice first victim." The creature said as it glared straight at Tatsuki who started backing away in fear.

Suddenly…

"Dekiagari-SHUI-KASAI!!!"

A thin beam of light shot forward from behind Tatsuki, and struck the beast right between the eyes, causing the creature to split in half right down the center and then dissolve into thin air.

"What the?" Tatsuki said as she turned around to see a woman dressed like a cowgirl with a pair of sunglasses and a bandana over her nose and mouth. She was holding a shotgun with sawn off barrel.

"Who are you?" Tatsuki asked, causing the woman to turn towards her as if startled.

"You can see me?" the woman asked surprised.

"Yes I can see you clear as day. Who are you?" Tatsuki asked as the woman cocked her head to one side.

"They call me the Black Wrangler. I'm what you might call, a Soul Reaper." The woman replied.

"A Soul Reaper? Do you know an orange haired guy named Ichigo Kurosaki?" Tatsuki asked as the Wrangler looked startled again.

"Ichigo? You know him?" the Wrangler asked curiously as Tatsuki nodded.

"Ever since we were little. He's a nice guy and I think he's a Soul Reaper like you. He's got this big sword on his back." Tatsuki explained as the Wrangler looked interested.

"Hmm. You have some pretty strong Spiritual pressure, which would explain how you can see me. But your power is uncontrolled." The Wrangler said as Tatsuki arched an eyebrow.

"What are you talking about?" Tatsuki asked. The Wrangler removed her sunglasses and pulled her bandana down beneath her chin, revealing her face.

"Answer me this young one, if I helped explain to you who and what Ichigo was, would you be willing to stand by his side like his and your mutual friend Orihime Inoue?" the Wrangler asked as Tatsuki blinked surprised that she knew about Orihime.

"Well I guess, depending on what Soul Reapers do and all. But since Orihime runs around with him I guess it can't be too bad." Tatsuki replied as the Wrangler nodded with her hand to her chin in thought.

"So if you would be willing to stand by his side, you would have to be able to be more than moral support. You would need to learn to focus your spiritual pressure and use it to help Ichigo in times of need. I can sense your potential, and your spiritual pressure is quite high for a beginner. Tell me have you had any sort of fighting experience?" the Wrangler asked before she suddenly felt her hat get blown off her head by a karate high kick.

"Does that answer your question?" Tatsuki asked with a grin as the Wrangler smirked and retrieved her hat.

"I let my guard down. I would never hear the end of it from my brother if he found out. Well done, I guess this means you'll accept whatever training I provide." The Wrangler asked as she dusted off her hat and placed it back on her head.

"Sure. Just show me what to do…sensei" Tatsuki said with a respectful bow which the Wrangler reciprocated.

"Okay then but what's your name?" the Wrangler asked.

"Tatsuki Arisawa. The second strongest girl in Japan, as Orihime puts it." Tatsuki replied.

"Very well then, Tatsuki Arisawa, meet me at this address and tell the manager that the Black Wrangler sent you. He'll show you to a secret underground training area that we can use without having to worry about prying eyes." The Wrangler said as she handed Tatsuki a small business card.

The name of the business was…

"Urahara Shop."

"Okay I'll…do that?" Tatsuki said as she noticed the Wrangler had vanished.


Later…

Tatsuki went to the address on the card with a duffle bag full of her karate practice gear. She saw no one around except for a Great Black Hawk sitting on the edge of the roof over the entrance. She walked up to the front door and saw a sign that read "Closed," dangling on the inside of the door window.

"Oh nice going Tatsuki. You should have known better than to listen to a stranger." Tatsuki grumbled.

"No you were right. I just didn't expect Urahara to be out is all." A deep male voice said from behind her. She turned around to see no one but the hawk behind her.

"Who said that?" Tatsuki asked as the hawk cleared its throat.

"Down here. The cute little bird that's talking right now." The hawk said as Tatsuki blinked in disbelief.

"A talking bird?!" Tatsuki asked.

"Well not exactly. Watch carefully." The Hawk said as it started glowing with blue energy and then morphed into a familiar human woman with raven black hair. She then started glowing with green energy as her familiar cowgirl attire appeared on her.

"Whoa!" Tatsuki said with genuine shock.

"Neat huh? It's called Gigai shaping, and it can be very difficult." The Wrangler said as she started heading to the door but staggered on her first step.

"And a bit exhausting too." The Wrangler added as she regained her balance and unlocked the door.

"You have a key?" Tatsuki asked curiously.

"The manager is a good friend of mine, so he let me have a key." The Wrangler said as she opened the door. Once they were both inside, she locked the door back from the inside and then started leading her into the back of the shop.

"So what's so special about this place?" Tatsuki asked as the Wrangler opened a hatch beneath the floor, revealing a ladder that led down into the ground.

"You'll see. Down we go." The Wrangler said as the descended down the long ladder into the underground training area.

"Whoa! Who would have thought there was a place so big, so far under that store?!" Tatsuki asked after she saw the building.

"Yeah, it's a great place to get some training in. Now then…" the Wrangler said as she removed her hat, boots, jacket, glasses, bandana, and gun belt, "…where do you want to start first? Do you want to know more about Ichigo and the Soul Reapers or do you want to begin training now?"

"I'd like to know more about Ichigo and the Soul Reapers." Tatsuki said as she stepped behind a large rock and started changing into her karate uniform.

"Well…"


Later…

After having received a lengthy explanation of the situation, the Wrangler and Tatsuki had finally started training.

Tatsuki was having difficulty in concentrating her spiritual energy into something usable, but the Wrangler wasn't giving up on her…at least not truthfully.

"Come on is this the second strongest girl in Japan?! You're pathetic!" the Wrangler taunted as she dodged Tatsuki's blows with her flash steps.

"Stop moving and you'll see how strong I really am!" Tatsuki growled as she gave chase after the fleeting Wrangler.

"Ha! A first year Soul Reaper cadet can do better than that!" the Wrangler laughed as Tatsuki growled and clinched her fists before charging at the Wrangler and taking a swing at her. The Wrangler dodged the strike, causing Tatsuki to punch a hole, deep into the rock formation behind her target.

"She's so close. A little more and she's got it." The Wrangler said mentally with a smirk. She then flash stepped to another nearby rock formation.

"Come on. Aren't you afraid that you'll make Orihime cry by being unable to protect her?" the Wrangler taunted. That last taunt was over the line, and Tatsuki was livid as she charged towards the Wrangler with her fist reared back. She didn't notice as her entire right arm burst into red flames. Curiously the flames had no effect on her or her clothes.

"That's it!" the Wrangler said with an excited grin as she dodged the strike and watched with satisfaction as the entire rock formation she was standing in front of shattered into pieces. Tatsuki froze in place after seeing the formation shatter; she then noticed the shrinking flames on her outstretched arm and blinked in surprise.

"What in the-?" Tatsuki asked confused as she gripped her arm. She then heard someone golf clapping from nearby. She turned to see it was the Wrangler with a huge smile on her face.

"Stage one…passed." The Wrangler said as Tatsuki arched an eyebrow.

"Passed?! I never got a single hit on you!" Tatsuki argued as the Wrangler nodded.

"That's true but that wasn't the point of the exercise. The point never was to hit me but to awaken your spiritual abilities. In your case, enhanced strength coupled with a unique connection to fire based abilities." The Wrangler said as she scratched her chin.

"So, what's the next step?" Tatsuki asked as the Wrangler tossed her a water bottle.

"We take a five minute break then we try to see if we can trigger those powers again without violence." The Wrangler said with a smile.

"So. Do you have a name besides the Black Wrangler?" Tatsuki asked as the Wrangler nodded.

"Yep, but you're going to have to prove yourself ready before I reveal it to you. I will tell you a bit about my past however." The Wrangler said as she went about explaining that she was a Captain in the thirteen Court Guard Squads and the cause of her getting exiled.

"That was pretty low of the Central 46 to do that to you. How were you to know it was something they wanted hidden?" Tatsuki asked.

"It wasn't so much as an issue of my constant researching it but more of an issue of my constant threatening to expose it if they didn't confess it. Naturally they couldn't allow that so they exiled me. But I hear that the Seireitei has finally confessed to accidently creating the Bounts. But it doesn't change anything really since I'm still exiled." The Wrangler said as she checked her watch.

"You would think they would let you back in now." Tatsuki said as the Wrangler stood up.

"Well it's all water under the bridge, but break time's over and it's time to continue our training." The Wrangler said as Tatsuki stood up and the training continued.


The following afternoon…

Tatsuki and the Wrangler had been training hard the night before and Tatsuki was now able to control her power at will. She was now able to cause her arms and feet to ignite into flames whenever she wanted to deliver a particularly powerful blow. She still couldn't land a blow on the Wrangler however.

That morning however she received a letter from the Wrangler to meet her at an abandoned warehouse where they would continue their training.

Tatsuki found the Wrangler examining her nails while sitting atop a crate.

"Ah Tatsuki, you're here. And you're early. I like that." The Wrangler said as she hopped off the crate and approached her apprentice.

"I came as soon as I could. Orihime said she was going to be out for a while so I have the whole afternoon free." Tatsuki replied as she quickly changed into her Karate uniform.

"Okay then. Now today's lesson is evasion." The Wrangler said as she drew her pistols and held them close together.

"Kae!" she ordered and her pistols morphed into a single katana. The blade was shaped like any katana blade would be except the bladed edge was a light grey while the other end was a dark grey. The hilt had no guard and was wrapped in a single white cloth that dangled down a bit. It looked like Ichigo's sword only it was a katana.

"This is Hensen Tatsujin…my Zanpakuto in its true form. I'm going to use it to try and attack you, and your job is simply to evade my attacks. Think you can handle it?" the Wrangler asked as Tatsuki smirked and started running.

"Excellent. So the hunt is ON!!!" the Wrangler shouted with a grin as she flash stepped after her.

Tatsuki was not at all prepared for the Wrangler's quick reflexes and skill with the flash step. As a result Tatsuki was quickly getting scratches and small cuts from Hensen Tatsujin. After a while her senses and reflexes were starting to improve, and finally Tatsuki was able to deliver a flaming blow into the Wrangler's rib cage.

"Ooh nice shot." The Wrangler said as she slid to the halt against the ground, "Now let's see you do it again."

The Wrangler quickly vanished in another flash step but Tatsuki quickly whirled around and delivered a flaming kick across the Wrangler's face as she reappeared. The Wrangler had to pause a moment to recover but smiled as she wiped the blood off her cheek.

"Now to increase the danger." The Wrangler said as she held Hensen Tatsujin level.

"Strengthen Hensen Tatsujin." She said as the Zanpakuto was released into its Shikai form. It had taken the appearance of Ichigo's Zanpakuto and Tatsuki noticed.

"Hey that's Ichigo's!" Tatsuki exclaimed as the Wrangler wagged her finger at her.

"Nah-ah, it only looks like Ichigo's Zanpakuto. Hensen Tatsujin is a shape shifter type Zanpakuto so it can take the shape of any weapon I want it to. It can even mimic the appearance of other Zanpakuto but not their abilities. However it can only take the appearance of certain weapons while in a certain form. For example, those two revolvers can only be created in its sealed form. It can take the form of rifles and other more powerful guns and mimic other Zanpakuto in Shikai. My Bankai is a different story. It can take the form of multiple heavy weapons but even in its basic unaltered form it's deadly." The Wrangler explained.

"Oh. Then let's get on with the training." Tatsuki said as she turned and started to run, and so the hunt was on again. Tatsuki did exceptionally well this time around and soon both women were sporting injuries.

"You've done well Tatsuki. I-." the Wrangler said but suddenly sensed something.

"What? What is it?" Tatsuki asked. The Wrangler didn't say a word but she quickly donned her hat and disguise before flash stepping away.

"I guess that means training is over." Tatsuki said as she shrugged and changed.

Later that night, Tatsuki was at home, about to go to sleep when she heard something tapping at her window. She sat up and saw a certain Great Black Hawk sitting at the window. Tatsuki quickly opened it and allowed the bird in.

"Ah thank you." The Wrangler said as she hopped inside.

"No problem Sensei." Tatsuki said as the Wrangler stretched its wings.

"I know this may seem like an imposition but may I stay with you tonight?" the Wrangler asked as Tatsuki shrugged.

"Sure but I don't have an extra bed available." Tatsuki replied as the Wrangler chuckled.

"Oh no problem there. The back of a chair is fine for me while in this form. You may want to put some newspaper or something underneath. I'll be gone by morning, I've got to meet a friend for breakfast tomorrow and I need to pick something up before I do." The Wrangler said as Tatsuki nodded.

"So are we still on for training tomorrow afternoon?" Tatsuki asked as the Wrangler turned towards her and sighed.

"Actually do you mind if I take a rain check. Something's come up and I'm going to be busy all day tomorrow and probably the day after too." The Wrangler said as Tatsuki shrugged.

"Sure crash here as long as you want." Tatsuki replied.

"I believe I owe you an apology for ending our lesson prematurely. You passed steps two and three by the way. I only regret that we didn't reach step four." The Wrangler said as she hopped up onto a chair that Tatsuki had prepared for her.

"It's no big deal, besides these skills alone should help me protect Orihime and her friends' even better now." Tatsuki said as the Wrangler nodded in agreement.

"Agreed. I also believe that you have earned the right to know my true identity." The Wrangler said as Tatsuki blinked in surprise.

"Really?" she asked as the wrangler nodded.

"Yes. My full name and title is Captain Kaichou Kurosaki, Fourteenth Squad Captain, Alias: the Black Wrangler." The Wrangler explained as Tatsuki blinked.

"Did you say Kurosaki?" Tatsuki asked surprised.

"Yes as in Ichigo Kurosaki. He's my nephew." Kaichou said with a grin.

"No way! Ichigo's aunt is a Soul Reaper Captain?!" Tatsuki asked. Kaichou laughed and started explaining everything about Isshin's past as well.

The next morning Tatsuki didn't find Kaichou anywhere, same with the following day. She did overhear Ichigo talking with his Soul Reaper friends that his aunt had unexpectedly come home to visit the night before while they were at school. She was invited by Orihime to go see a taping of Spirit Hunter. There she unexpectedly encountered Kaichou.

After she saw her Sensei drive off the crowd at the taping, she was confused until she heard the unfamiliar shriek of the strange white creatures. She wanted to fight but Kaichou had given her a stern warning during their first day of training to not reveal her powers until the time was right and Kaichou had reminded her of that through a simple shaking of her head when Tatsuki tried to enter a fighting stance.

However when Tatsuki got home from fleeing the scene, she found a letter slid under her door. It was from Kaichou. The letter read…

"The time has come. Go to the Kurosaki Clinic and wait until I open the door for you." – K. Kurosaki.

Tatsuki realized that she needed to move. She quickly made sure she had a suitcase packed just in case she would have to leave town or even the world of the living, and headed straight for the Kurosaki Clinic.


End Chapter 10.

Next up, the continuation of Chapter 9.