"Are you sure they're this way?" Artemis asked Luna as they ran through across the divides.

"Absolutely," the black cat replied. "Based on what Usagi's mother said they were staying with a friend of theirs while Minako regained her strength. After that it's just a matter of sensing out their energy."

"That doesn't explain why I can't sense Minako anymore," Artemis said as he stopped to catch his breath. "I just thought that she's been tired from practice lately. If something's happened to her...!" He stopped when Kenshin blasted past them, quick enough that they couldn't see his face but not enough to go unnoticed. "Holy...! Who was that?"

Luna squinted her eyes as she looked at Kenshin's back, trying to place the outfit. "No, it can't be!" she cried as it hit her. "That was a shinigami!"

"What're they doing here?" Artemis asked as he shivered. "And why didn't we know about this?"

Luna hesitated, debating whether to follow Kenshin or to keep to their original destination. "We'll just have to ask later," she said finally, running the opposite direction of Kenshin. "Come on, we're not too far now."

When the cats arrived the girls were all gathered around Minako sound asleep. "You've got to be kidding me," Artemis mumbled as he shook his head. "Of all the times for them to be out of it this is not one of them." A noise in the other room grabbed their attention as Urahara walked out.

"Well, well. Looks like we've got a couple of hungry kitties," he said, kneeling down and stroking their heads. They both responded by purring with the occasional mewl. "I never could say 'no' to cats. Let me get you two some milk." He returned after a few moments with a large bowl of milk and set it down in front of them. Another cat, a large black male, joined them as they cautiously lapped.

"We need to get the girls up," Artemis said quiet enough so Urahara wouldn't overhear him. "This is no time to be drinking milk and sleeping."

"Will you shut up?" Luna replied, motioning to the other cat. "It's not like they can do anything while that man is here, anyway. We need to come up with a plan."

"So...you can talk too." Luna and Artemis stared at each other before slowly turning to the other cat who was still lapping up milk.

"Did you...just talk?" Luna asked.

"The talking cat is asking another talking cat if it talked?" he redundantly asked. "Really now. I would expect others like me to be a little more open-minded." He took a few more laps of milk before raising his head. "The man that owns this store calls me Yoruichi." Luna and Artemis quickly introduced themselves while watching for Urahara. "You're worried about Urahara? I wouldn't be. He's a nice enough guy. He's even helping out your friends."

"We need to wake them up right now," Luna said. "I really wish I could say more but..."

"I get it. Seeing as how we just met we can't be expected to trust each other so quickly." Yoruichi led them over to the girls where they could also see Kenshin's gigai propped against the wall fast asleep. As the girls started to wake Yoruichi disappeared but not before Luna and Artemis could thank him.

"You girls picked a fine time to fall asleep," Luna chastised them quietly. "Now hurry up and transform. We ran into a shinigami on the way here which means that something big is afoot."

"I don't even remember falling asleep," Usagi commented as she looked around, only vaguely hearing Luna's order. "We helped Urahara get Minako settled and then..."

"I know what you mean," Makoto added, rubbing her head. "One minute I'm walking in with Kenshin and then nothing. I know I wasn't that tired."

"Well whatever Urahara tried to do didn't work. Minako's worse than before," Ami said as she put her hand on the blonde's head. She pulled out the glasses the cats had given them and gave Minako a once over. "I can see her energy but it's fading fast." She looked around before running out the door. "Everyone! There's a trail of energy leading we can follow!"

"Shouldn't one of us stay here with Minako?" Rei asked as her transformation into Sailor Mars faded away. "Or better yet, Sailor Moon, why not use Moon Healing?"

Usagi nodded as she struck the pose and called out, "Moon Healing Escalation!" As the light washed over Minako her body began to glow. For a brief moment she looked better but before long she reverted back. "But I don't understand," the bun-headed blonde said as she looked at the Eternal Tiare. "Every other time a youma's drained someone's energy that's worked."

"Maybe it's not a youma. It could be one of those Hollows we encountered," Rei offered as some form of consolation for both of them. "Sorry, Sailor Moon. I really thought that might work."

"It's not your fault, Mars. I was hoping it would too." With another admonition from Luna the girls left as quietly as possible to follow the energy trail Ami had picked up before.

Back in the store Kenshin's gigai ended his feigned sleep as Urahara came out of the back room with Yoruichi perched on his shoulder. "Are you sure that we shouldn't interfere, sir?" the artificial soul asked. "I know that Master won't be pleased if those Guardians interfere in his hunt."

"He already has a significant head start on those girls," Yoruichi replied for Urahara. "As long as he hasn't been slacking off in his training he should have already tracked it down." He glanced at the gikon who seemed rather anxious before shifting his gaze over to Urahara. "Considering the situation wouldn't it have been easier to just tell them? They'll figure it out eventually anyway."

"Would the Kenshin you know just run off for the sake of some girl he was using to gather information?" he asked simply, staring the cat in the eye. Yoruichi huffed before he started cleaning his paws. "Besides, I think that he genuinely has fun with them, at least when he's not working. I have no intention of taking that from him, not unless we have no choice."

Kenshin landed on the roof of the school and took a moment to take his surroundings in. He'd followed the reiryoku trail all over the ward before winding up at the school. The mix of different reiryoku in the school was slight enough that it was near impossible to pick up unless one was looking for it. In that mix he could sense Minako's but the thief had also dispersed the energy throughout the entire school to mask itself. "I just need to focus on where they all meet," he thought to himself as he strained his senses to filter out the rest of the energy. As he was focusing he picked up on four others that were rapidly approaching the school. He prepared himself to deal with the intruders when he felt a familiar tug. "There!"

He stepped off the ledge, stopping in the air outside the classroom that was closest to Minako's reiryoku. He opened and stepped through the window and walked out into the hall. It took him a short time walking through the school to track the energy to the art studio. Before entering he quickly wrapped his head with the scarf so that while his identity was hidden he could still see. Then with one hand on his zanpakutō he opened the door.

"Who's there?" a young male voice said as the door closed behind Kenshin. There were no lights on in the room and no windows. Even though he couldn't see in the pitch darkness Kenshin could now physically feel the concentration of reiryoku and tell that it was attached to something human…or at least very close. The voice repeated its question and Kenshin ignored it once more, prompting it to attack him. The right hook was significantly weaker than the left and it caused the human to groan in pain.

"I should have known," Kenshin scoffed as he grabbed the boy by his shirt collar. "I don't know how you did it, Kiba, but my suggestion would be to willingly release the energy you've stolen. If not..." His left hand pushed his zanpakutō out of its saya, enough to tell Kiba of the consequences.

"No way I'm doing that!" the boy snarled and Kenshin felt a curtain of reiatsu fall over him. "I don't know who or what you are but there's no way I'm giving up all this power, especially not from that Minako girl. There's so much power there it feels like it'll never end."

"Last warning."

"Screw you."

Kenshin smirked as blue flames gathered around the hand holding Kiba up. "Have it your way. Hadō #33 – Sōkatsui!"

As the Sailor Guardians came upon their school a torrent of blue flame ripped through one of the upper floors. The girls braced themselves as a powerful wind whipped past them and a smoldering figure crashed into the ground.

"That shinigami must have gotten here before us!" Rei said just as Kenshin touched down. "Is that the guy you saw, Luna?"

"We never saw his face but it's a good bet," the cat said. "Can you see who he's fighting?"

"One second," Ami said as her visor appeared over her eyes. After a moment the lights stopped flashing and she gasped. "That's Kiba Ikaragi! He was in our class last year." Her brow furrowed as the other readings came in. "If this is reading him correctly then he's possessed by a youma. Somehow he must have come in contact with Minako and latched his energy onto her; it's the only way he'd be able to absorb her energy from this far."

"Damn you!" Kiba snarled as his burnt flesh started to regenerate. "I don't know who you think you are but you won't live long enough to regret that!"

"Why do all these idiots have to be so damned clichéd?" Kenshin muttered to himself as he pointed two fingers at the charging Kiba. "Bakudō #1 – Sai!" Kiba's arms twisted painfully to his back and he collapsed on the ground as the binding spell pinned him down. "I'd say I'm disappointed but you are, after all, just a weak human. And if there's one thing I can't stand it's weaklings." His pointed fingers turned into an open palm as a sphere of red energy formed. "Ye lord! Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man!"

"GRAHH!" Kiba roared as a hole opened in the middle of his chest. White matter exploded from his mouth and eyes and wrapped around his head as his body twisted and contorted around the binding spell still in effect.

"He Hollowfied? While he was still alive? Just what the hell is going on here?" Kenshin thought to himself as the spell was broken by the newly-formed Hollow's superior strength. A stream of steam escaped its jaws as it flexed all four of its arms. The body had markings all across it and the mask had several small horns around the edge. "Inferno and pandemonium," Kenshin continued, able to feel that - though now much stronger than before - Kiba still didn't stand a chance, "the sea barrier surges, march on to the south! Hadō #31 – Shakkahō!"

A sphere the size of Kenshin's head shot out from his hand fast enough that it was barely visible to the naked eye until the Hollow grabbed it with all four hands. "What incredible energy," it said as the kidō spell was absorbed into its arms. "Why don't you have a taste of it?!" It opened its jaws and the spell shot back at Kenshin who simply adjusted his stance and the blast soared past him. When it hit the ground an explosion of heat and flame washed over the schoolyard. The Guardians were lifted off their feet from the concussion of the impact but Kenshin remained unfazed by it.

"That little trick of yours would be neat if your aim was worth a damn," Kenshin admitted. "So kidō doesn't work. That's fine by me."

"No you don't!" The Hollow opened its jaws once more and a swirl of crimson energy began to form in its mouth. Kenshin's eyes widened, realizing what attack the Hollow was planning to use. His hand dropped to his zankpakutō, tensing at the Cero's signature screech. "DIE!" the Hollow screamed as energy poured from its jaws. As it aimed at the shinigami he vanished for a brief second, ending up behind the Hollow with his sword drawn.

The energy for the Cero vanished as quickly as it had formed, leaving the the Sailor Gaurdians somewhat confused. "Did anyone see him move?" The other girls shook their heads as the Hollow began to separate vertically.

"The fact that I had to bloody my blade on an opponent as weak as you is just shameful," Kenshin said as a spray of blood went up from the Hollow. "Pathetic." He performed a quick chiburui, scattering the blood across the ground, before sheathing it. As the blade locked into the saya the Hollow erupted into a shower of blood and body parts before disintegrating. Once the body was gone a black butterfly floated past Kenshin and into the night sky on its way to Soul Society.

"How...how did he do that?" Makoto asked, her hand across her mouth. "We need to catch this guy before he—" Before she could finish Kenshin vanished, knowing that Minako's reiryoku would make its way back to her naturally now. "He did it again!"

"Shouldn't we do something about the school?" Ami asked but the others were already running back towards Urahara's. "Hey! Don't leave me behind!"

Once outside the shop the girls reverted back to their civilian identities and quietly entered the shop. Kenshin was back in his gigai and feigning sleep like the gikon had been. When Makoto stepped on a creaky floorboard, earning glares from her friends, he stirred to look at them tiredly. "Oh, it's just you girls," he commented as he started to close his eyes again.

"Sorry, we didn't realize we'd dozed off," Usagi apologized. "We really should be going before we become a nuisance."

Kenshin glanced at the clock on the wall and then at Usagi. "It's almost one in the morning," he told her. "Besides, Urahara and I already called your parents to let them know what was going on." The girls' eyes widened in surprise. "The bed in the guest room is free if you want it. We also set out some futons for you to use."

"So where will you sleep?"

"I'm good here," Kenshin replied, shifting his position slightly. "Besides, the only rooms are Urahara's and the guest room." When Usagi started to ask about it he just nodded. "Yeah, the four of you are claiming my room for the night. I'll be out here keeping an eye on Minako in case something happens." Knowing that arguing with him would be futile the girls said their goodnights and headed into Kenshin's room.

It was sparsely decorated but what was there were several pictures and some posters. One of the pictures was of Kenshin with a man and woman in their forties. "He looks happy," Usagi mentioned as she picked the frame up. Next to it was another with him and a red-haired man who had tattoos crawling all the way up his forehead. "And what's with this guy? It's like his eyebrows are trying to take over his face."

"That's interesting and all but what about these pajamas?" Rei asked as she quickly changed. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I like not sleeping in my school clothes but who has this many girls pajamas just laying around?"

"At least they got your sizes right," Makoto complained as she pulled the top on. The pants stopped several inches above her ankles and the top left her midsection bare. "Seriously, if it wouldn't make things weird I'd just be sleeping..." Makoto bit her tongue at the last second but it was too late. The other girls were now staring at her curiously, trying to figure out not only how Makoto was planning on sleeping but why it was causing her to turn bright red. "Umm, uh," she stammered nervously. "Good night!" She dove under the covers of the bed as she tried to hide her embarrassment.

"You always manage to surprise me, Mako," Ami said with a wide smile as she laid down on the futon. Within minutes all the girls were fast asleep; Ami and Rei on the futons, Makoto and Usagi sleeping at opposite ends of the bed. Luna was curled up next to Usagi while Artemis laid on Minako's lap.

And for the first time that day things were quiet and peaceful.