Chapter 9: Farewell

Jonouchi yawned and sat up on the sofa. The light shone brightly through the window, illuminating the room. There was the sound of pots and pans clanging in the kitchen, which reminded him of the events from the night before.

He stood and walked towards the kitchen. "Good morning." came Kalinda's voice. Jonouchi walked in and smiled.

"Good morning." he said, sitting down at the table. He looked up to the clock, it was only 6:30A.M. He watched Kalinda as she moved around the kitchen, fixing them both breakfast.

"I had a really good time yesterday." she said, bringing the dishes to the table.

"So did I." Jonouchi responded, getting to his feet. "Take it easy." he laughed, walking to the stove. "You shouldn't have to do all this." She sat down, and Jonouchi served the food.

They both ate, talking over the events from the night before. After they finished eating, Jonouchi carried the dishes to the sink, and cleaned off the table. He walked back to where Kalinda was sitting. She stood and turned to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. He placed his arms around her waist, and pulled her close. She blushed as he leaned in, kissing her.

They both stuck there for a moment, as if frozen in time. They both jumped when they heard a knock coming from the doorway.

There was a large shadow cast in the room as Captain Zaraki entered the room, followed by the 5th Squad Captain, Aizen Sousuke. "Sorry for intruding." Aizen smiled. Zaraki just smirked.

"Well, would ya look at these two love birds." he laughed. "I knew it wouldnt be long."

Both Kalinda and Jonouchi blushed extremely, and Aizen spoke up. "Now, Zaraki, you shouldn't pick on them. It's none of our business, is it?"

"No, I suppose not..." he smirked.

"If it isn't too much to ask, may we speak with the 3rd Squad Captain privately?" Aizen asked, turning to Kalinda.

"Oh, of course. I need to get to work anyway. Captain Ukitake will be starting his Squad meeting soon." she frowned. "Bye." she said to Jonouchi as she Flash Stepped away.

Jonouchi motioned for Zaraki and Aizen to take a seat. They sat down, waiting for Jonouchi. "Would either of you like anything to drink?" he asked them.

"Nothing for me, no thank you. We won't be long." Aizen said.

"Just some water for me." Zaraki said, still smirking.

"So, what brings you here?" Jonouchi asked, serving Zaraki a glass of water.

"We wanted to hear about what happened in Karakura Town." Aizen started.

"Yamamoto told us about the swarms of Hollow, and the Menos." Zaraki said. "Seems like you got the job done quickly. Just like a Captain should." he laughed.

"What Yamamoto wants to know..." Aizen paused. "... is if you know anything about WHY a Menos appeared in that small town.

Jonouchi's heart sank. Of course he knew, but he wasn't going to tell. If he did, they would execute both Ichigo and Rukia. "No, I couldn't figure that out before my Gigai started to malfunction." he sighed.

"If you want, I can send someone from my Squad?" Aizen asked, but Jonouchi Quickly defended.

"No, don't worry about it!" he laughed. "I plan to send my Vice - Captain in a couple days. He's just been way too busy."

"Guys I gotta get moving." Zaraki said, getting to his feet. "You know how to get here now. right Aizen?" Jonouchi frowned. To him, it looked like Aizen just wanted to question him, and that this had nothing to do with Captain Yamamoto.

"Yes, you were a great help." he replied.

"See ya, Jou." Zaraki said as he walked out of the door. A few moments of silence passed and Aizen spoke up.

"What about your new 5th Seat girl?" he asked. "Why not send her? She hasn't been too busy."

"Ummm..." Jonouchi hesitated. "I'm not quite sure that it's a good idea. I mean, if another Menos was to appear, I'm not sure she could handle herself."

"She should be quite capable." he said. "I mean, for you to place someone straight from the academy into the 5th Seat, they must be good." There was a slight mocking tone to his statement, and Jonouchi was getting irritated.

"She's very good, but I couldn't forgive myself if something were to happen to her."

"I see. You put your subordinate's life before your own." Aizen said, standing up. "I think Ichimaru would be proud." he smiled, again the sarcastic tone was apparent. "Thank you for sharing your experience in Karakura Town with me. I appreciate it. I was unsure at first about what really went on there." He walked to the door and paused. "Oh, yes." he said, turning his head to face Jonouchi. "Anna says hello. Have a good day." he smiled, walking away.

Jonouchi san on his sofa, thinking of the things that Aizen had said. He definately didn't appreciate his remarks. He knew one thing for sure. Aizen was suspicious. He knew what went on in Karakura Town. To have Zaraki show him the way to Jonouchi's house this early. He could have easily waited until after the Captain's meeting.

Jonouchi threw on his Captain's Robes and raced out of the house. He had to send Kaze Akurei to Karakura Town as soon as possible. Only he knew what truely went on there that day. He would not turn in Rukia or Ichigo. But if Aizen got to them first, he'd have them killed. Not only that, Yamamoto would know Jonouchi lied.

He came to a large field, the 3rd Squad Training Grounds. There were several Shinigami laying on the ground, and several others running towards one of their own. Before they could reach the lone Shinigami, a large wind blew, throwing them aside. Jonouchi continued toward the Shinigami, although the wind slowed him down greatly.

"Hey!" he called. "Kaze! It's urgent!" Kaze Akurei withdrew his Zanpakuto and began walking towards Jonouchi. As he withdrew the sword, the winds died.

"I'm in the middle of training right now. Come back later." he said, with an irritated tone.

"It's important." Jonouchi said. "You have a new mission starting immediately." he said, scooping him up over his shoulders. "It's private, come on." he said.

"What the hell!? Put me down I can walk fine on my own!"

"And risk you ditching me. Yeah, right."

"You're getting to know me too well. It's starting to scare me." Kaze Akurei said, pushing off Jonouchi's back and landing on the ground. "What do you need?" he asked.

"Remember the place I told you about? Karakura Town? It's the place where-"

"Yeah, now get to the point." he replied impatiently.

"Right... Well, I need you to go there for a week. Captain Aizen knows something. I don't know how he found out, but he does. I need you to vouch for me. That everything is fine."

"Ok, I got it." he smirked. "When do I-"

"If Aizen finds out about Ichigo or Rukia, everything I worked for will be done for!"

"OKAY!" Kaze Akurei shouted. "I said I got it! When do you want me to go!?" he asked, obviously pissed off.

"Immediately." Jonouchi responded, patting him on the back. "I knew I could count on you."

Kaze Akurei just pointed at Jonouchi and glared. "Don't EVER do that again..." he growled.

"Jou..." there came a voice from the path to their left. Both turned and stared. "What happened in Karakura town?" It was Kalinda. She was standing there, surprised and hurt. "What about Rukia?" she asked.

"Wait... What?" Jonouchi asked.

"DON'T play stupid with me." she glared at him. "Rukia. Where is she!? She has been missing for 3 months now! You know where she is!?" Kalinda asked, anger exploding.

"Calm down." Jonouchi said, trying to comfort her. "She's fine."

"You lied to me! You said nothing happened there!" she shouted. "What really happened there!?"

Jonouchi sighed and gave her the whole story. It was no use hiding it anymore.

"I can't believe you lied to me about it." she glared. "Why!?"

"Because I didn't want you to worry."

"Yeah right! You were just protecting the dumbass Shinigami Substitute and Rukia! You didn't care about whether I'd worry or not! You wanted to keep them safe!"

"No! I-"

"Do you think you can't trust me!? Do you think I would have went and told it all to Yamamoto!?"

"No. Of course not..." Jonouchi started. "Please, right now I need to deal with Aizen. He's planning something, and I have to stop him. If I don't Rukia and Ichigo could die!"

"Aizen? What do you mean Aizen!? He's one of our most trustworthy Captains! It's you i think needs to be dealt with before you do anymore harm to yourself and anyone else in your path!"

"But he-"

"Aizen is caring, and wants what's best for us all!"

"Please, I have no time!" Jonouchi shouted.

"Come on, Jono." Kaze Akurei said. "We have to get to the Senkaimon. We've wasted too much time as it is."

"I'm sorry..." Jonouchi apologized giving her a sorry last glance before they ran off towards the gate. She quickly pursued him, trying not to be caught. She wasn't going to just let him walk away.

The gate came into view, but there was quite a large crowd around it. "Shit, at this rate we'll never get through." Jonouchi said, looking around.

"Get serious." Kaze Akurei said, punching the air. As he did so, a strong wind blew between the other shinigami, pushing them aside. As soon as they could see the entrance of the gate, Jonouchi knew why there was such a large crowd. 6th Squad Captain Byakuya Kuchiki walked from the gate, his Vice - Captain Renji Abarai walking close behind. That wasn't what startled him. What got him was who was following them. Not far behind, walked a short, black haired girl. Jonouchi instantly recognized her. It was Rukia.

Kaze Akurei ran behind Jonouchi and paused. "What's wrong?" he asked. He saw Jonouchi's eyes were fixed on the black haired girl. "That's... Her..?" he asked, stunned.

"Yeah. That's her." Jonouchi said, anger rising. He turned to leave, he was going after Aizen. The only way they'd have caught her by now is if Aizen tipped them off this morning. He began walking, when he felt something wrap around his neck and drag him to the ground.

"Hey, Jou - kun." a voice said. He looked up and saw Anna's familiar face. "Long time no see."

"Oh, hey." he said, anger showing in his voice.

"You don't sound too happy. Is something wrong?" she asked him, quite confused.

"No, nothing's wrong." he sighed. He couldn't let his anger get to him.

"How come you never came to visit me?" she asked, pouting.

"I don't even know where you live." Jonouchi replied. He was quickly getting annoyed.

"Well..." she said, scribbling on a notecard. "Here. Now you can't say I didn't tell you!" She placed it in his pocket, and smiled.

"Sorry, I'm a little busy right now." he said. "I really got to get moving."

"What's the rush? Got somewhere you need to be?"

"Yeah, actually." Jonouchi replied, walking away. He tried to move quickly, he didn't want to be stopped again. He felt someone grab ahold of his shoulder.

"Who was that?" another voice came. Jonouchi turned around and again, there stood Kalinda. She was much angrier than before, and it showed.

"Huh?" was all he could say. He was too shocked to see Kalinda had followed him.

"What do you mean 'huh'? That girl you were just talking to! That's who!" she shouted.

"Oh, that's Anna. An acquaintence from Squad 5." he replied.

"You're such a liar." Kalinda growled. " She must mean a lot more to you than that the way you both hang all over each other."

"I barely know her!" he defended. "I-."

"DON'T FUCK WITH ME!" she screamed,storming past him.

"Kalinda! Wait, I-" he said, grabbing her shoulder, but she quickly pulled away.

"Forget everything I said last night." she frowned. "Good bye." She ran, tears rolling down her cheeks.

Jonouchi stood there, speechless. He didn't know how to react. Anna caught up with him, frowning. "What was that all about?" she asked.

"Go away..." he growled. "Keep the hell away from me." She just stared blankly as he walked away.

"I'd advise you to do as you were told and stay away." Kaze Akurei said, leaving.

Jonouchi walked into his house and sat on the sofa. Thoughts of Kalinda raced through his mind, thoughts that he was never going to see her again. "She can't be gone..." he said to himself. "She just can't be..." he began to break down, tears falling to the ground. "No!" he shouted, slamming his hands on his knees. A knock came at the door, waking him from his trance.

"Hey, Jou, it's me." It was the voice of Zaraki.

"Come in." Jonouchi replied, calming himself. Both Captain Zaraki and 10th Squad Captain Hitsugaya Toushiro.

"Yamamoto has called for an emergency meeting." Hitsugaya stated. "He wants to ask a few questions." Jonouchi got to his feet.

"Very well." he replied, following the two Captains.

They came to the Captain's meeting room and already everyone was there.

"I won't keep you long."Yamamoto spoke "I'm already certain I know why 3rd Squad Captain Jonouchi Uchiki didn't tell us about Rukia or the one who stole her powers. But I want to hear it from him." He stared directly into Jonouchi's eyes. "Why didn'y you tell us?"

Jonouchi was hesitant before he replied. "I knew you would have them captured, and I do not believe they had done anything wrong."

"She gave her powers to a human!" the 12th Squad Captain scoffed. "That isn't wrong!?"

"Mayuri, I will be asking the questions." Yamamoto said. "Speak when I am done. Continue, Jonouchi."

"She had lent her powers to him to save that soul and his family. They would have returned to her in time. And Ichigo was doing her job, slaying the hollows.

"Ichigo?" Squad 2 Captain Soifon asked.

"The orange haired Shinigami.substitute." Squad 6 Captain Byakuya replied. "The one Rukia had given her powers to."

"You should have killed the boy on the spot." 9th Squad Captain Kaname Tosen frowned.

"You need not worry." Byakuya spoke up. "He wasn't anything to worry about. I finished him with only two attacks. He didn't see a thing."

Jonouchi's heart sank when he heard this. Ichigo was dead? He didn't believe it. He promised he wouldn't let it happen.

"Jonouchi Uchiki." Yamamoto said loudly. "You indeed have a kind heart. Soul Society needs you. But you must tell us these things. I will not hold it against you that you tried to protect Rukia. But the court has decided. She will be executed three months from today." he said, his voice lowering. Jonouchi just nodded.

"Very well..." he said. "I apologize for causing so much trouble over this."

"No trouble at all." Yamamoto smiled. "As I said before, we all need you. We need people like you to improve Soul Society, but you must keep working at it. You may return home." he said. "All of you are dismissed."

Jonouchi waited for everyone else to leave before departing. As Aizen passed, he smiled and looked Jonouchi in the eyes. "Keep up the good work, 3rd Squad Captain." he said, and continued walking. Jonouchi felt his anger rising. He turned to leave, but was stopped by the 13th Squad Captain outside of the meeting room.

"Thank you for defending Rukia." he said. "I agree with you. She was just doing her job. But, unfortunately, we can't argue it after the court has already decided." he frowned, coughing repeatedly.

"I just wish I could have helped her." Jonouchi sighed.

"Don't worry about it. There's nothing we can do." he managed a small smile. "I'm gonna go now. Take care." he waved, walking away with Squad 8 Captain Kyoraku Shunsui.

Jonouchi realized that it was already beginning to get dark. He hurried back to his house and entered. Again, the thoughts of Kalinda began to race through his mind. He refused to believe that she was really gone. He stood up and placed his hands into his pockets. He paced a bit, but stopped when he felt something odd. He pulled his hand from his pocket, holding a small note card. It was the card on which Anna had written her address. He sighed and walked to his door. He knew he should at least apologize to her. She hadn't done anything wrong, yet he still snapped at her. Worse, he told her keep away from him for good. She was likely to not even forgive him. He stared at the address, and headed for the 5th Squad dorms.

He arrived about an hour later, checking the addresses to be sure that they matched. He knocked on the door and it opened. There stood Anna, smiling.

"I knew you'd come." she said.

"I just wanted to apologize for earlier." he told her, frowning. She turned and walked to her table, setting down a glass.

"Don't worry." she smiled. "Come in. I was just getting ready to have a drink." she said, pouring him a cup of tea. He entered and took a seat. He picked up the cup and sipped the warm tea.

"I really did miss you..." she said, drinking hers.

"I didn't know how to find you." he replied. Truthfully, he hadn't even thought about her since the night they met.

"I didn't know you had a girlfriend... Sorry about earlier."

"Don't worry. You didn't know. Anyway, she's gone now. It's probably for the best." Jonouchi replied, not wanting to believe it. There was a moment of silence, and Anna walked over to the window, gazing up to the sky.

"It's a really nice night tonight. You can even see the moon." she smiled. Jonouchi wasn't paying attention. He was busy observing the interior of her house. It was pretty much one room. She noticed, and spoke up. "It's small, but nice. I mean, I practically have my kitchen in my bedroom." she laughed.

"It's a nice place." Jonouchi said. As he spoke, he felt her arms wrap around his neck.

"I missed you." she said. She kissed the back of his neck. This really surprised him. He turned to face her, and she caught him on the lips. He quickly pushed away, breaking the kiss.

"Stop." he said. "I barely know you."

"Well, we should get to know each other better then." she smiled sweetly.

"STOP." he said, sounding as serious as he could.

"Sorry..." was all she said. The room grew quiet, but Jonouchi broke the silence when he felt a sharp pain in his shoulder. He winced and swatted at his shoulder. A spider hit the ground and hurried away. He watched as the large spider scurried away.

"You ok?" she asked him.

"Yeah, it was just a spider. No big deal." he said, rubbing the spot where it bit him.

He looked out the window, to the moon. It was very bright in the starry sky. Anna walked over to the window and sighed, also staring at the sky. Jonouchi's mind was beginning to wander as he watched her. She seemed to have a pretty great personality, and was good looking, better than average. Of course, Kalinda hated him now, so he had nothing to lose. "No." he told himself. "I barely know her."

A good amount of time passed, he continued to watch her. Now and then, she'd catch him staring, and smile. "What's wrong?" she asked, leaning against the window.

"Nothing." Jonouchi blushed. He sighed, looking around the room. He couldn't take it anymore. He knew Kalinda was gone, and he obviously had a chance with Anna. Eventually, instinct took over.

"The moon looks like a big blue flower." she said, smiling. "It's beautiful." Jonouchi walked to the window, getting a better look. The moon had gotten brighter, now that it was later in the evening. Jonouchi placed his hands on Anna's shoulders, and she pressed her back against his chest, holding herself close to him. She turned her head to him and was surprised when her lips met with his. "Jou-kun." she gasped, returning the kiss. "I thought you said-"

"Forget what I said before." he smiled, embracing her. "I just wasn't thinking straight." He kissed her again, more passionately than before. She took a deep breath, and smiled.

"I knew you'd reconsider." she smirked.

"I did." he said. "Does that make you happy?" he smiled, pulling her close.

"Yes." she said, kissing him. "Very." She placed her hands on his shoulders, and pushed him away. She smirked, and began backing up slowly. She sat on the edge of her bed, and swung her legs up. She laid there, staring at him, waiting for him to follow her lead. And he did.

It was early in the morning before Jonouchi left Anna's house. It had to at least be 2 or 3 in the morning. He thought about the events that just took place, and for the first time in the last couple days, he felt really good about himself. He knew he didn't need Kalinda.

"What brings you out to the 5th Squad dorms?" came a voice. Jonouchi turned around, and saw Aizen Sousuke, the 5th Squad Captain.

"I just came to visit a friend." Jonouchi replied.

"At 3:00 in the morning?" Aizen asked. Jonouchi just frowned, but he kept his cool.

"Yeah." he replied.

"Anna's a good girl, but she can have a nasty temper." Aizen smiled. "We've all learned that the hard way." he laughed. Jonouchi forced a smile. "I take it you two are seeing each other?"

"Yeah, so what if we are?" Jonouchi asked.

"No reason. I just thought you were with that 13th Squad girl. Her name was Kalinda, am I right?" Aizen smiled. Jonouchi's anger began to rise.

"Not anymore." he said.

"Just be careful." Aizen smiled. "I mean, you got Ichigo killed. We don't want anymore of that."

"You bastard!" Jonouchi shouted. "I don't know what the hell you want with me, but I'm fed up! It's time you pay for all the trouble you've caused me!" Jonouchi had exploded. All of his rage was suddenly let out. He whipped out his Zanpakuto, shouting. "Bare Your Fangs, O'kamitoku!" Aizen just smiled. Nothing had happened.

"How do you expect to fight me..." he started. "...if your own Zanpakuto has even left you? Fear rushed through Jonouchi's blood. It was true. He hadn't noticed it until now, but O'kamitoku wasn't there. He hesitated, but quickly recovered.

"Then I guess I'll fight you on my own!" he shouted, charging Aizen. There was a crown gathering around. All 5th Squad members. Jonouchi attempted to cut Aizen, but failed. His legs and arms had given out, there was a certain heavyness to them. He looked up, and saw the 9th Squads Captain standing on a nearby structure. "Binding Art #9: Invocation of the Tracking Birds..." he said.

"Darn it!" Jonouchi shouted. "A Binding Art! Two on One, that's no fair!"

"I won't allow you to disturb the peace of the Seireitei. Get out." Tosen said.

"I'll get you!" Jonouchi shouted back. "Just wait!"

"Hey, Jou." Jonouchi couldn't look back, but instantly recognized the voice. It was Zaraki. "Jou, come on. You can't fight Aizen OR Kaname."

"You think I couldn't take them!?" Jonouchi growled.

"It's not that. But what would Yamamoto say?" Zaraki said, making Jonouchi finally come to his senses.

"Fine..." he said. Zaraki picked him up and began to walk away.

"Sorry for the trouble." Zaraki said. Jonouchi pounded on his back, screaming.

"I can walk fine on my own!" he shouted, but it didn't even phase Zaraki. Before long, Jonouchi was home, and fast asleep and everything was once again peaceful. But it didn't last long.

It was about 10:00 that morning. Jonouchi was still fast asleep in bed. He heard a faint shouting and knocking in the distance, but chose to ignore it. He was so tired. After a few minutes, the noise grew louder, it was coming from outside his window. Someone was calling his name, he could faintly hear it. He sat up, still half asleep, trying to figure out where the noise was coming from. Again, the knocking came.

"Captain!" he heard someone shout. "Captain, wake up! It's an emergency!" Jonouchi bolted out of bed and looked out the window. It was Kaze Akurei, floating there, a look of terror on his face. Jonouchi raced to the door, and opened it. His Vice - Captain seemed to be out of breath."Come quick." he panted. "Don't ask, just follow me." he said, flash stepping away. Jonouchi hurried after him, barely keeping up.

"Slow down!" he called to him.

"HURRY!" he shouted back. He was headed towards the East Wall of the Seireitei, and soon, there was a small group of Shinigami gathered. They were the rest of the Vice - Captains. They all had a look of extreme terror on their faces. Jonouchi was puzzled, but quickly learned why. He noticed a large puddle of blood on the ground in front of the group. There was a trail of blood leading across the path and up the wall. Jonouchi followed it with his eyes, and froze. All time seemed to stop. Above them was a man, impaled and stuck to a wall through his chest by his own Zanpakuto. The Captain's robes that he wore flapped helplessly in the wind, tattered and torn. He wore a vacant expression on his face, eyes narrowly open.

It was Aizen Sousuke, 5th Squad Captain.

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Sorry it took so long guys. I thought it would have been a lot sooner, but I had a lot of corrections to make, and with Prom being tomorrow, I had hardly any time to write. I'd like to say the next chapter will be out in a couple weeks or so, but I can't promise anything. Sorry guys, just keep checking, and remember to review.

I've also decided to throw in a small bonus. I got bored in school, and decided to draw a 2 page preview of upcoming chapters, manga style. I'm not saying it's good, cause it's not. Just thought I'd try to keep you interested. If you're familiar with then just search for "Takerukun" and the preview is called "Soul Society Chronicles: Jonouchi vs. Kaze Akurei". Hope you enjoy!