Author's Notes:
. . .Which is exactly why this chapter doesn't have any fights.
Anyway - not entirely happy with how this chapter came out, but I do suppose it should still fulfill its purpose quite well. At least I hope so. . .
Ichigo had to wonder about this "Shiba Isshin". He had taken him on a fairly long walk now, frustratingly far away from Rukia, and all along the way he had been… humming. Happily. He was beginning to suspect that he was probably 'special', at least in one way or another.
Finally, after more turns and streets than he cared to count- he was injured, Ichigo kept reminding him, you really shouldn't be up walking- they finally walked right into… Squad Ten. At the front door. Which was littered with shinigami. Something inside Ichigo cringed.
"This is a shinigami barracks!" He hissed, giving Isshin an impressive glare.
"Well, son, it sure isn't a cookery." Isshin said, grinning stupidly. "What would you expect? A bunch of old women doin' laundry?"
As it was, several shinigami did seem to be occupied doing something like laundry, but that was beside the point. "I'm supposed to keep a low profile!" He said, trying to express anger without letting his voice rise.
"Prisoner of war, everybody!" Isshin exclaimed happily. "Comin' through- I just caught me a big bad ryoka!"
Ichigo's palm met his face, as he heard various shinigami cheer for their captain.
"That's our captain, all right!"
"He's not even in chains, and he's still following him. He sure must have done a number on him!"
"Way to go!"
Finally, the two of them got into a private room- it looked like it might have served as an office, but most of it was occupied by an enormous, shamelessly comfortable-looking sofa, directly facing what looked like the most expensive plasma TV Ichigo had ever seen. And a DVD collection. Several, in fact.
"Well, have a seat… son." Isshin said, taking a seat in a chair next to what looked like his work desk.
"…all right." Ichigo said, sitting down on the couch, only to collapse into it entirely. It really was as comfortable as it looked. Quickly Ichigo struggled to sit up properly, managing it, although without much dignity. "Damn- couch!"
Isshin just smiled. "You know… I waited my whole life for this day." He said, sounding almost solemn. "I wanted to meet you sooner, but there are rules- and fuck rules, fuck them all to hell sometimes, but you have to be careful, and- and-"
"What the hell are you talking about?" Ichigo grunted. How had he gone so quickly from cheerful to bumbling, rambling and even weirder?
"Well…" Isshin said, scratching his chin. "I guess I better just say it, or I won't make any sense."
"You're not making any sense to me right now."
"You know when I called you 'son'?"
"Six times, yes."
"Well…" He said, breathing in deeply. "It's literally true! I am actually your long lost father from the soul society! How about a hug, son?" He grinned widely.
"That isn't- what." Ichigo said flatly. "How is that even…" He trailed off.
"Search your feelings, you KNOW it to be TRUE!" Isshin cheered, making a fist.
Ichigo stared at him blankly. Then, without hesitation, he whacked him across the head, as hard as he could. Isshin staggered back in his chair, still grinning like a madman.
"What the hell kinda time is this to make a Star Wars reference, you big idiot?" Ichigo exclaimed. "What is wrong with you, you weirdo?"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Isshin said, rubbing his head. "I just always wanted to say that."
"I didn't come here to listen to idiocies-"
"Your mother's name is Kurosaki Masaki. Your two sisters are named Karin and Yuzu."
"…big deal. Anyone could find that out." Ichigo shot back.
"Whenever you come back home from a long day at work, she will always have something prepared for you, because she cares."
"Like most Japanese mothers."
"When Masaki scolds you, she has this way of making you feel like you're a stupid little boy, even if you're a big man." He continued, his tone serious. "But you always feel like she wants the best for you. Like she wants you to be better than this, and she believes you can."
"What are you talking about?" Ichigo mumbled- but it was true.
"And when she encourages you, you feel like you can do anything. I bet she told you to get educated- be a doctor, or a lawyer, or an engineer, or a scientist- nothing but the best for her boy. Isn't that right?"
"I'm in law school." Ichigo mumbled.
"And when she-"
"That's enough." Ichigo said. "I knew your name, Isshin- I just didn't hope it could be my old man. Actually, I was more concerned with not getting cut to bits by that Kuchiki dickhead, but uh, the soul society is a big place, and…"
"Ichigo, it's really me." Isshin said spiritedly. "Your dad! Your father! Your pa, your old man, your whatever-synonym-there's-left!" He looked him up and down again, and he looked so genuinely happy, Ichigo almost felt convinced. "You grew up to be so strong- you take after your old man, I can tell. Just nineteen, and you're already kicking ass- that's my boy!" He nodded enthusiastically.
"Suppose I accept that maybe, you're my oyajii," Ichigo said, nodding thoughtfully,
"Yes?"
"Then I've got a question: Why is my mom crying about you when she thinks nobody's watching?"
Really, he should be delighted, and part of him was- but there were questions that needed answering, and this alleged father of his was guilty until proven innocent.
"She still does?" Isshin looked touched. "She never remarried?"
"She was too busy supporting three children on one job." Ichigo said dryly. "So, oyajii, why weren't you there for my fifth birthday?"
"I…" Isshin said, and there was a look of genuine regret on his face. "Shit happened. Bullshit, mostly. It's… a long story, and I don't think I can tell you all of it right now."
"You fucking owe me!" Ichigo spat. "If you're really my dad, if you were the one who left us and never kept in touch, that's the least you owe us!"
"I know." Isshin said quietly. "I guess I'll give you the abridged version. It was like a fairy tale, really- boy meets, girl, girl meets boy, girl saves boy from soul-eating abomination, boy gets enchanted by girl but gets rejected, except a couple months later they somehow end up in bed together and fell in love without noticing…"
"A hell of a fairy tale." Ichigo noted dryly, not too pleased with the thought that at some point, his mother would in fact have had to have sexual relations, if only to conceive him.
"Kind of like a reverse fairy tale, I guess." Isshin agreed. "But this is such a post-modern, feminist society that there's no shame in the girl saving the boy, eh?"
"No stupid jokes." Ichigo grumbled.
"Well, to put it simply, your mother and I fell in love. The problem is, I was- am- a captain, and they don't just let you walk out on that. I wanted to, but I couldn't. If they found out I had kids, I was afraid they'd take you away too- they've done some pretty sick stuff down the way, and kidnapping kids for research isn't the worst of it."
Ichigo frowned. "So it was for our own good? Is that what you want me to believe?"
"I'll tell you the full story one day. For now, it's enough that you know that at one point, I didn't really have a choice- so I had to leave you behind. It was the hardest thing I've ever done, and…" his voice broke a little. "I'm so sorry. I really am." He smiled again, looking at Ichigo. "But look at you- you turned out fine! Such a strong shinigami, at such a young age-" He stopped himself. "That had to be Urahara, right?"
"You know him?"
"The Shiba are longtime allies, I guess you could say. He was thick as thieves with Kukaku when they were kids, and it kind of stuck."
"Wait- what about leaving us?" Ichigo wasn't about to let it go. "Why wouldn't you do anything? Send us a message? We were told you were dead, and you sure don't seem like you were trying to disprove that!"
"I really wanted to, but… well, I couldn't do much of anything. They were always watching me after that incident- I was lucky Urahara would help me hide as much of it as I did. When you were old enough, like twenty, then I figured I'd approach you- and then Kukaku tells me that you infiltrated the Soul Society, and I had never felt prouder… I was always watching, whenever I could."
Ichigo paused, trying to take it all in. He had explained, at least in part, and apparently there wasn't much time- and there was still Rukia- bloody hell, Rukia, he had to save Rukia- so what to do?
"This isn't over." Ichigo said. He wasn't sure how much more of this he could take- it was a lot to process all at once. His father, a nobleman, captain, happy-go-lucky proud dad? "Let's move on- but let me get one thing straight: I only met you this day. As far as I'm concerned, I don't have a father. Being a father doesn't mean 'sperm provider', it means 'guy who is there to pick you up after karate and tell you that you did well', or some shit like that."
"…I understand." Isshin said. In a way, Ichigo felt like he had kicked a puppy- although he felt liked this puppy had deserved it. A little.
"So anyways, moving on- what will I do next? I'm supposed to be a prisoner of war, as you loudly declared to everyone on the way here."
"I hadn't thought of that." Isshin said, sounding befuddled. "I was uh, too busy. Being happy. 'Cause you're my son and I finally met you." He ended awkwardly, and Ichigo found himself wishing there was more time. How often did dramatic stuff like this happen?
"By the way, how did you find me just before Byakuya was going to dice me into little pieces there? That was one hell of a timing."
"Oh, I have been following the reports that we got on your little exploits, and figured that you might be in the area by now. I stayed around a bit longer to assign the members of my Squad as guards for the senzaikyu, and sure enough, I felt your reiatsu moving close to here, close to Byakuya's- that boy has a stick up his ass the size of the Titanic, by the way-"
"We finally agree." Ichigo mumbled.
"-and then I stopped him just in time."
"You waited till the last moment on purpose, I bet."
"I kinda did." Isshin grinned.
As fate would have it, their first point of agreement was interrupted by a stunning, strawberry blond shinigami with enough chest to make Orihime seem positively flat sliding the door open, walking in without a care. Despite himself, Ichigo let his jaw drop.
"Taicho, you ran out on me again." She complained. "Now I had to do that meeting with Thirteenth on my own- and you know how those two get."
"I had a good reason, though!" Isshin cheered. "Here, son- meet my fukutaicho, Matsumoto Rangiku! Rangiku, meet my son, Kurosaki Ichigo!"
"You can't just tell people who I am!" Ichigo objected.
"Oh, it's all right- she's an ally. Ain't you, Rangiku?"
"Of course." The woman- Rangiku- said, walking up to Ichigo, taking his hand. "Nice to meet you, Ichigo. It's a shame you're a criminal, but we're not all perfect." As she bent down to take his hand, Ichigo caught a glance- however much he tried not to- of her glorious cleavage.
"I can see why he stayed." He mumbled. It was a joke, if not a very good one.
"Oh, you flatter me!" Rangiku said happily. "No, he stayed because he's a lazy, irresponsible good-for-nothing- it was probably best your mother took care of you."
"But Rangikuuuu," Isshin complained, "you're making me look bad in front of my boy!"
"That's the idea." Rangiku said.
Suddenly, Isshin's face changed, turning serious. "We got company. Rangiku, step out on this one. And don't tell a soul."
"You got it, captain." She said, walking out. "Bye, Ichigo." And Ichigo couldn't help glancing at her backside as she left. Whoa.
"If that teenaged brain of yours is quite finished," a voice, changing as it spoke, came from behind, "then perhaps you remember we have a mission."
"Yoruichi." Isshin said, sounding happy. "You still hate clothes, I see."
Ichigo turned around, just to see Yoruichi standing just behind him, naked as usual, giving him a very disapproving look. "It is not exactly hatred, it is more like a pragmatic choice – and right now, the only reason why I am not wearing clothes is because a certain somebody had to rush off like an idiot, without even being entirely healed yet, forcing me to chase after him as quickly as possible so that he doesn't get himself into any more trouble."
Isshin chuckled. "Did you, now? Well, I suppose you're at just the right place then. It's good to see you again, Yoruichi. How long has it been, one hundred years?"
Yoruichi grinned. "You know very well that it has been one hundred years. But the obligatory reunion talk has to wait – right now, I'll need to take your son away from you once more."
"Oh, such inhuman cruelty! I have been betrayed by those that I placed my trust in! Oh, the humanity!" Isshin exclaimed loudly and in acted despair. Ichigo meanwhile just frowned. It wasn't hard to see why those two would be friends...
"Sure you were." Yoruichi said, laughing at Isshin's antics. "But in all seriousness, we will have to leave. I'm kinda surprised that Ichigo is still conscious at this point, given the condition that he is in... his healing process is far from finished, and he'll need to lie back down as soon as possible. Are you ready to go, Ichigo?"
"Oh, so you remember that I'm actually here, after all. How wonderful." Ichigo grunted. "But yeah, I'm ready to go."
"Good then. Isshin, I'll pay you another visit later – there's still some things that we need to talk about."
"Ah, wait!" Isshin said, before Ichigo and Yoruichi could do as much as to leave the room. "Some members of my Squad know that I have "captured" one of the ryoka – if we want to make it believable that Ichigo still escaped me somehow, you'll still need to knock me out or something."
"Oh, don't worry..." Ichigo said, a grin flashing across his face. "That can be arranged."
oOo
Lying on her back, Tatsuki cursed inwardly. It had already been way over an hour since they had left – something had gone wrong, she just knew it. By now, Ichigo was probably captured in the very prison that he wanted to free Rukia from, and why? All just because he had to rush off into danger, without any thoughts about the possible consequences. Tatsuki could only hope that Yoruichi would be able to save him now.
But then again... hadn't Yoruichi said that the captains would cause trouble to even her? What if she came across one of them, fought them, and lost? Given how she had talked about the captains, this didn't even sound like too unlikely an outcome... after all, Tatsuki had never seen her carry a zanpakutou or anything like it around. Whenever Tatsuki had seen Yoruichi get into a fight, she just relied on her – admittedly outstanding – speed, her legs and her fists. Not even once did she witness her using a weapon. When facing people that were below her in terms of strength, this could obviously work... but against a captain? A person equal to Yoruichi in strength, if not above her, way above her?
Against her own will, Tatsuki found herself shuddering (the feeling of which was not exactly made better by her numerous wounds). If Yoruichi was captured, or worse yet, killed... if that actually happened, she might as well turn herself in right now, and hope that the Gotei would let her live. Without Yoruichi, their entire mission was effectively doomed – or at least more doomed than it already was. After all... Yoruichi had led them towards the senzaikyu. Yoruichi had helped them find hiding spots to rest and stay the night. Yoruichi had taken care of them after every fight that they had gotten into... and she had saved their lives after Kenpachi had almost killed them. (Had it really been just earlier today? It felt to her like it had already been ages ago.)
Without her around, they were screwed. And not just Ichigo and Tatsuki, either... Uryu and Orihime would be just about done for, too. Here in the seireitei, she was their only ally – and a damn good one at that, too.
Come to think of it, though – exactly why was she helping them? Just what was in this entire deal for Yoruichi, and, by extension Urahara? While Tatsuki had never entirely trusted the shopkeeper, she hadn't been too overly suspicious of him, either: Sure, he was shady, but... at least he was friendly about it. That had to mean something, right?
But even so, there had to be more in this all for Urahara and Yoruichi than just saving Rukia's life, and getting some research data. They were essentially terrorists, fighting against the government of the afterlife. Why would anybody want to support something as risky as that? And-
"If you are quite done with your pointless ramblings," Raitora's deep voice interrupted Tatsuki's thoughts "I'd suggest you focus a bit more on your senses."
Slightly confused over the sudden interruption, Tatsuki sat up as much as her condition allowed it and looked around. The moment she did as the spirit of her Zanpakutou advised her, she could feel it: Two reiatsus quickly approaching the cave – two familiar reiatsu.
Within the matter of a few minutes, the reiatsus came closer and closer to the cave, until they finally entered, turning out to be both Yoruichi and Ichigo – with the former supporting the latter. Tatsuki let out a quiet sigh of relief.
"Oy, what's been taking you so long? Did you have to break this idiot out of the prison that he was trying to break into?" She shouted at Yoruichi, hoping that neither she nor Ichigo would notice how worried she was about them.
"I think Ichigo can tell you that yourself." Yoruichi said, as she brought Ichigo over to his original resting place, and helped him lie down on the ground. It was only when Ichigo was lying down again, that Tatsuki noticed that there was something off with him. He seemed weakened, sure, but that was essentially a given, considering that he had just rushed off before he was fully healed. No, there was something else about him... a general vibe of thoughtfulness, and a... solemn expression?
"Ichigo, what happened?" Tatsuki asked, getting confused over Ichigo's appearance.
"Wounds opened up." Came the mumbled answer – not exactly what Tatsuki had hoped for.
"Oh, come on, you know that's not what I meant!" She shouted... only for Ichigo to turn away from her. "Hey!"
Yoruichi sighed and shook her head. "Just let him be. I can imagine why he would want to keep what happened to himself for now..."
Tatsuki gave Yoruichi a skeptical look. For Ichigo to be this quiet, something big must've happened – and something unexpected at that. "Fine... but I'll still want to hear this later."
oOo
Raising his head slightly, Yamamoto Shigekuni Genryuusai opened his eyes to give the captain of Squad Two, Soifon, a cold and calculating look, as she entered his office. "Soifon-taichou. I have been informed that you have a report to make." The head captain quietly stated more than he asked.
"That is correct, soutaichou. My report concerns the two ryoka that members of my Squad have recently captured, as well as Kurotsuchi Mayuri-taichou, who had engaged them in combat previously." Soifon calmly stated, as she bowed before sitting down in the middle of the room, before the head captain.
Yamamoto grunted. Sasakibe had already relayed the information regarding these events to him hours ago, and what he heard had not exactly pleased Yamamoto... but even so, the formalities had to be followed, and he had to listen to Soifon's view of the events as well. "Very well then. Begin."
"Yes, soutaichou. As might already have come to your attention, earlier this day, my Squad has been able to track down the second group of ryoka, consisting of a male Quincy, and an apparently human girl with unusual powers. By the time that my subordinates were ready to make their move to capture them, though, the ryoka had entered the grounds of Squad Twelve, where they were attacked by Kurotsuchi-taichou – who, as I might add in, turned several of his Squad members into living bombs against their will." For just a moment, Soifon's expression shifted into a scowl. It didn't last long, but it was enough for Yamamoto to catch on.
"By the time that Kurotsuchi Mayuri-taichou attacked the ryoka himself, there were already multiple casualties as a result of a failed bombing. When Kurotsuchi-taichou then finally did fight himself, the Quincy managed to pressure him into releasing his Bankai, at the sight of which both ryoka fled the scene. The members of my Squad were able to secure them shortly thereafter. Kurotsuchi-taichou, meanwhile, did not deactivate his Bankai for several more minutes, despite the ryoka having obviously long since escaped him. As a result of this incompetence, the poison gases released by the Bankai caused the death of forty-two shinigami, members of both my Squad and the Twelfth. Additionally, both the Squad's barracks, and several other structures were damaged. In order to punish him for his crimes, I arrested Kurotsuchi-taichou."
"I assume the ryoka are now being kept in the cells of the Squad Two barracks?"
Soifon nodded. "That is correct, soutaichou."
"Good, good..." Yamamoto said with a sigh, as he slowly stood up. "I hope you do realize that by arresting Kurotsuchi-taichou, you are stretching the limits of your authority, Soifon-taichou?"
Again, Soifon nodded. "I do, soutaichou. However given the severity of his crimes, I-"
"You are to release him." Yamamoto stated, cutting Soifon off before she could justify her actions.
"Release him?!" Soifon shouted, her composure completely broken. "But soutaichou, this man is responsible for more deaths than the ryoka have caused during the entire time that they have already spent in the Seireitei! He doesn't even show the slightest bit of remorse for his actions! Why should we allow a man like this to go unpunished for committing crimes against the Gotei?!"
"Because Kurotsuchi Mayuri is an official captain of the Gotei Thirteen, head of the research division, and approved by the Central Forty-Six themselves. Imprisoning him is an act of disrespect against the order of the Central Forty-Six." The head captain said, calmly but firmly.
Soifon stared at Yamamoto bewilderedly for a moment, before lowering her gaze again. "I am sorry, soutaichou. I should not have objected."
Yamamoto shook his head and walked over to the window in his office, facing away from Soifon. If there was just one thing that could not be said about Soifon, then it was that she was not professional. In all the decades that she had led the onmitsukidou, there had never been a time where her work was unsatisfactory to Yamamoto, or the Gotei in general. Soifon had all that Yamamoto hoped for in a captain: Professionalism, efficiency and seriousness. She might even be the best leader of the onmitsukidou that the Gotei had in centuries... but judging by this current situation, she might have started to forget the limits of her authority.
"Do not misunderstand, Soifon-taichou." Yamamoto said, still looking out of the window. "I myself am not particularly fond of Kurotsuchi-taichou and his general mindset – but what you need to realize is that despite his moral concepts – or rather, the lack thereof – this man is still the leader of the Gotei's research division, and very skilled at that. At the current time, he might just be irreplaceable to the Gotei... which is why we must be a bit more forgiving when dealing with him. The Central Forty-Six have already made it clear to me numerous times that they see no issue with the way that Kurotsuchi-taichou works. Do you understand, Soifon-taichou?" Yamamoto asked, now finally turning his head to look at Soifon again.
Before she answered, the captain of Squad Two hesitated for a moment. "...Yes, soutaichou. I will see to it that Kurotsuchi-taichou will be released as soon as possible."
"Ah, I think there is no hurry with that, Soifon-taichou." Yamamoto said, stroking his beard. "It is already very late for today – I am fairly certain that Kurotsuchi-taichou would not mind staying with your division for just this night."
Hesitantly, Soifon spoke up. "And what if there was... an accident during his stay at our division, soutaichou?" Soifon asked, and though she didn't let her face change at all, there was the hint of eagerness in her voice.
"I think an experienced captain such as him should have a strong resistance to accidents."
Yamamoto knew what would happen- Soifon would not be allowed to exercise law, so she would make sure that the time Kurotsuchi did spend in her division would be as miserable as possible. She was quite innovative with a knife, he had been told. It was nothing Kurotsuchi could not quickly recover from, and a reminder, perhaps, that actions had consequences.
"Understood."
"Good then... now, before you leave, Soifon-taichou, I would like you to take a look at this report..." Yamamoto said, moving over to his desk, from which he took a folder containing a single sheet of paper.
"Soutaichou?" Soifon said quizzically. She would read the reports every night, before going to sleep- it would be nothing she wouldn't have read otherwise.
"It might be of interest to you. Then again, I will not tell you how to do your duties. Dismissed, taicho."
"Sir." She said, turning around, walking away, holding the report Yamamoto had handed her. Once she was out of the massive room where the soutaichou resided, she opened the folder the report was held in, looking at it curiously. It was odd, downright strange, for the venerable Yamamoto to make a suggestion like this- she would get any and all reports, and anything of importance to the commander of the executive militia would be sent right to her desk. Why on earth would the head captain make something as unheard of as a subtle hint- that is, subtle for somebody like him- that she ought to pay special attention to this report?
As she walked slowly down the street, she began to read the report. Fifty or so words in, she froze, as if struck by lightning, stopping dead in her tracks. Her hands began to tremble- this was… amazing. Outrageous. All things combined. In a flash, she slipped into shunpo, running as if to save her life.
She only stopped when she reached her room- her personal room, not her office where she so often ended up sleeping- her own room, neatly cleaned, decorated with a number of cat plushies and a small, comfortable bed- covered with a cat themed blanket, of course.
Forcing her hands to stop shaking, she sat down on the floor cross legged, opening up the folder again, reading carefully through the report. She read it once, then once again. Then, when she had read every word through and through, looked at all the enclosed photographs, she read it a third time.
…among the nefarious elements so far eluding our operative cells, an individual with a description matching that of the traitor, renegade and ex-captain Shihoin Yoruichi has been sighted. Description originally confirmed by seventh seat Yamada Hanataro. Testimony is considered reliable, although Unohana-taicho refused proper interrogation- further interrogation of the two captured ryoka is recommended…
Shihoin. Yoruichi. Shihoin Yoruichi. THAT Shihoin Yoruichi, the arch-traitor who walked out on her house, her honour, her division, the onmitsukidou and everyone she cared about for reasons unknown. The former commander, to whom she was successor- the one person she loathed more than anything. No wonder the head captain had given her a hint- she felt grateful now, grateful that he had given her this chance to prove, once and for all, what she would do to those who discarded their loyalties. She would hunt her down, capture her, read out all of her crimes to her- oh, and there were many charges- and execute her, then and there. She would make her pay- she would regret ever being born; she'd die screaming with her fingers ripped off one joint at a time, her eyes pierced with white-hot iron pokers-
No. Don't lose control of yourself. She thought. There were so many emotions welling up, emotions she had been sure she was in control of- but this wasn't the time to get carried away. She would capture, sentence and kill this criminal, and she would do so in the due course of the law. No petty torture- even though she could hear, in her mind, her zanpakutou Suzumebachi viciously crying out for vengeance- just justice. She would kill Shihoin Yoruichi, and it would be righteous. This was personal indeed- and she would spare no expenses. She was back in the Gotei after all this time, and Soifon would find her or die trying.
Reaching to a button on her wall, next to her bed, she pressed it down hard. It was an emergency alarm, meant to summon the highest ranking officer available to her in case she was attacked. Within a minute, her third seat barged into the room.
"You could have been ten seconds faster." She said sharply.
"I apologize profusely, captain." Her third seat said, bowing low.
"I have a new order." Soifon said, her voice almost cracking- for once, in she was almost not in complete control of her emotions. "Set the entirety of the onmitsukidou, as well as all of second division, on the highest level of alert. I want full mobilization, now."
"Taicho!" Her third seat snapped, saluting. "I regret to inform you that the fukutaicho will not be available for it-"
"Good." Soifon said.
"May I ask the reason for this command, taicho?"
"We are hunting an S class priority target." Soifon said, forcing herself to sound calm. S class was the highest rank of threat to order in the Soul Society possible, which she knew was an overstatement- but this couldn't be underestimated. She had to do this. "All restrictions are lifted. Search any division you need to, at any point- don't bother with warrants or division courtesies. This takes full priority in every way."
Her third seat nodded. "Yes, taichou." He turned around, ready to walk out, stopping himself at the last moment. "What about the interrogation of the ryoka we caught, Soifon-taicho?"
"The interrogation can wait!" Soifon snapped. "I said full priority, and I meant it- GO!"
"Yes!" Her third seat exclaimed. Within the hour, the entirety of the second division had been mobilized.
oOo
Elsewhere, in the tenth division, Shiba Isshin found himself unable to sleep – which could at least partially be attributed to the headache that Ichigo hitting him on the head with the hilt of his sword had caused. His son was here, in the soul society- his son! Rolling around in bed, he found himself unable to stop grinning. The boy had grown up to be a strong young man, stronger than Isshin had ever thought he would be – it was simply wonderful. Though on the other hand... it did pain Isshin that despite it all, Ichigo did not consider him his father. But on the other hand... Ichigo had last seen him something like fourteen or fifteen years ago. He had a right to be angry, he supposed- he probably couldn't even remember Isshin... which was easily more painful to think about than the fact that Ichigo did not consider him his father.
Isshin sighed. There was no point in getting all depressed over this. Isshin's goofy facade had helped him through the years after his return; it would also help him through this now. And once this all was over, he'd do whatever it takes to finally act as a father was supposed to, whether the Gotei approved of it or not.
"Isshin." Came a deep voice from his window. "I'm here. It's time to talk."
"Yeah, all right." He said, sitting up, putting his musings aside. "So, what's it you wanted to talk about, Yoruichi?"
"Plans, of course." Yoruichi said, hopping down on the floor in front of his bed. "You know Urahara – when he is involved, there is always plenty of planning."
"Plans, huh." Isshin grunted, scratching his head. "Does that mean that you're finally gonna tell me what exactly old bucket hat plans for? The two of you have definitely kept me and Kukaku in the dark for quite some time now..."
In the darkness, Isshin could see the silhouette of Yoruichi's cat form shaking it's head. "I'm afraid not, Isshin. The time for that just hasn't come yet... but it should be there soon enough. By the way, would you mind if I switched to my human form? It'd be a bit earlier to talk about everything this way."
"I actually would mind."
"How unlike you. Do you think that if you're seeing me naked in the dark, you'll be cheating on Masaki?" Yoruichi snorted.
"Not really. It is moreso a matter of somebody potentially walking in on us – I'd have an easier time explaining myself if I were to be found talking to a cat, than if I were to be found talking to a naked woman who bears a striking resemblance to the mysterious person that has been helping the ryoka." Isshin explained nonchalantly.
Despite not being able to see her well in the darkness, Isshin could perfectly imagine the surprised look on Yoruichi's face over his answer – cat or not. "Well, that's a good enough reason." She noted, her tone making it unclear as to whether she was even surprised or not. "So as I was saying... the time for you to learn what Urahara's plans are about is not here yet. All that you need to know for now is that our enemy will reveal himself soon."
"Enemy, huh..." Isshin grunted. "You mean the guy that's responsible for you, Urahara and Tessai getting exiled one hundred years ago? The guy that did these... things to Hirako and the others? This big, mysterious stranger that none of you can tell me or Kukaku about, because reasons? That enemy?"
"That's the one, yeah." Yoruichi said, and Isshin was sure that she was grinning as she did. "Don't worry, though – give it another week or so, and you'll know who it is."
"Whatever, whatever. Just tell me about these plans already." Isshin said, waving his hand dismissively.
Yoruichi chuckled. "Impatient as always... but you're right- enough of the chit chat. I guess I don't have to repeat to you why Ichigo is here?"
"'Course not. Kukaku already explained that to me in detail... not to mention that some Squad Four kid that you kidnapped helped the Gotei figure out the details. He's here to rescue Byakuya's sister before she gets executed."
Yoruichi nodded. "Yes, exactly... and the Gotei knowing about this is our big problem right now. With Byakuya's and your Squad guarding the Senzaikyu, there is absolutely no chance that Ichigo and his friends will be able to get into the prison to get Rukia out. And that isn't even getting to the problem of Byakuya himself..."
"So how exactly do you want to get past that? And how do you even want to ensure that Byakuya's sister lives after you have gotten her out of there?"
"Oh, ensuring her survival after the rescue is the easiest part of this all." Yoruichi remarked in a tone that made it quite clear that she was once again grinning. "To answer your first question, though: Ichigo and his friend, Tatsuki, are going to spend the next couple of days training to achieve Bankai. With that, it should be quite possible to get through the Senzaikyu's defenses."
Isshin stared at Yoruichi blankly. "Bankai?! Are you serious? But they've only had their powers for a couple of months! How could you possibly achieve this?"
"You know that there is a method for them to do it."
"Urahara's method." Isshin growled. "You know, I don't exactly like the thought of my son being put into mortal danger from just his training alone."
"You are not exactly up to date, Isshin." Yoruichi remarked dryly. "It has been over one hundred years since Kisuke used this method to obtain his own Bankai – more than enough to get rid of the little quirks that the method still had when he used it. The only danger that Ichigo and Tatsuki will be facing are the ill wills of their Zanpakutou, and even those will pass with the time."
Isshin sighed with resignation. "I hope that you're right... from what you and Urahara told me about his Bankai, it sounded like this method needed a whole damn lot of fixing."
"Don't you worry. It'll work out."
"Yeah, yeah, I believe you... but still, even if those two do get their Bankai, it isn't really going to help them much against Byakuya. The guy had his own Bankai for several decades – with their newly-obtained Bankai, he'd cut the two of them up faster than you can say "stick up the ass". I don't exactly like the idea of that happening to my son when I have just met him for the first time in over ten years."
"Good that you mention that – because this is where you come in. What I will need to you to do is create a diversion: Something which causes an even bigger commotion that Ichigo and his friends have caused so far. Something which throws the entire Gotei into disarray, and forces them to withdraw as much of their forces from the Senzaikyu as possible. Even the captains. Once that is done, it will be an easy thing for Ichigo and the others to move in and rescue Rukia."
"Huh." Isshin managed to get out, quite dumbfounded over the ambitiousness of Yoruichi's plan. "So how exactly did you want to do that? And more importantly, as far as I know, your other little group has already been caught by Squad Two. How do you want to get them out of there?"
"They have been caught?!" Yoruichi exclaimed, her concern apparent in her tone.
"Yeah. Just earlier today. I hear they fought against the captain of Squad Twelve, Kurotsuchi Mayuri for a while, before they managed to escape him. They were captured by Squad Two shortly afterwards."
"Damn... this won't make things easier for you." Yoruichi mumbled.
"Uhh... don't you mean that it will make things less easy for you?" Isshin questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"Actually, no. You see, the thing about my plan for a diversion is... that I don't have one. You will have to improvise – I myself will barely have any time to deal with this. I will need to supervise Ichigo and Tatsuki's Bankai training."
Isshin sighed. "So basically, it's like this: Free these kids from Squad Two, create a big-ass diversion, make sure that I don't get killed for turning against the Gotei. Anything else?"
"That about covers it." Yoruichi said.
"Damn, woman." Isshin mumbled. "All right, I'll do it- but only because you make such an adorable kitty."
"…thanks."
"Oh, and great justice and all that." Isshin said dismissively. "Don't you worry- I ain't about to let any of you down. And put in a good word for me with my boy, will you?"
"That will depend on how you perform." Yoruichi said dryly, slipping out into the night before Isshin could come up with a witty retort.
Isshin lay down again, wide awake. Well, he had his work cut out for him…
oOo
Tatsuki, half asleep, was sitting in what appeared to be a natural Jacuzzi of some kind. It really was amazing- it was warm, soothing, and it was somehow rapidly healing her wounds. She was so comfortable- and it was a damn welcome change from the running, hurting and bleeding she had done the last two days. Ichigo was sitting across from her, a few yards away, seeming only slightly less comfortable than she. Not even once since returning had Ichigo even hinted at what exactly happened to him while he had just ran off – and after some time, Tatsuki had simply stopped bothering to think about it. The question was still on her mind, but she figured that asking Ichigo about it anytime soon was just about pointless.
The two of them were entirely naked- Yoruichi's idea, to nobody's surprise- but neither could care at this point. It was wondrous what a near death experience and some really intense pain could do to kill your sense of modesty.
"Mmm…" she mumbled. "How'd they even build this place? No, screw it- I don't wanna know." She stretched out, feeling a distinct lack of pain. She touched her chest, running her fingers down where Kenpachi had cut her. There was a nasty, red scar running from hip to shoulder, ending just before her crotch- but it didn't really hurt... not anymore.
"I don't even feel sore anymore." Ichigo agreed. "This is… really convenient. I guess it pays off to have an ex-captain on your team."
"All right, you two." It was Yoruichi, who, to their shock, was actually wearing clothes; skin tight black pants, and an orange jacket of some kind. "Get out of the pool- it's time to start training. No time to lose, you two- we have three days to do this, so let's make the most of it."
Obediently, Tatsuki climbed out of the pool, grabbing a nearby towel, beginning to dry herself off. For some reason, Ichigo wasn't right behind her, she noticed.
"What's the holdup?" She said, looking at him. Ichigo, oddly enough, sported a blush, looking everywhere but right at Tatsuki.
"You're- you're uh, uhm-"
"What are you, fourteen?" Tatsuki chuckled. "Get some perspective- we almost died just recently, and we're about to train so we can go almost get ourselves killed again- this is no time to be modest."
"…fine." Ichigo grumbled, crawling out, hastily reaching for a towel, wrapping it around his waist speedily. Tatsuki just chuckled- it was pretty funny how he still found the time to be awkward.
"Alright then." Yoruichi said, pulling out two roughly human-shaped white dolls from under a large cloth, each about as large as Ichigo and Tatsuki respectively. "Do you remember what I said about Bankai?"
"It releases our full potential? Sorta like some Dragonball-ish powerup or something?" Ichigo said.
"Roughly put, yes. But as you guessed before, there is a trade-off." She held up the dolls. "Putting your zanpakutou into one of these will force it to materialize, from which point you have a right to challenge it for its full power. If you fail, however, you could piss your zanpakutou off for years to come- or, in the worst case, end up losing your powers altogether."
"A hell of a tradeoff." Tatsuki commented.
Yoruichi shook her head. "No, that's not the trade-off."
"Oh, delightful." Ichigo grumbled.
"The trade-off is that your Bankai will be weaker. It can eventually become as strong as a normal Bankai, but it will take much longer- fifty years, perhaps. Then again, the both of you could live to be well over five hundred rather easily..."
"…so how many people have this?" Tatsuki asked. "I mean, if it's super rare…"
"Currently, twelve of the thirteen captains have one. Several strong, independent warlords out in the rukongai are said to have it as well, and a few more individuals are known to have one, but it is exceedingly rare to attain it."
"All right, so the odds are impossible." Ichigo nodded. "Obviously, that means we just have to make it possible."
It sounded dumb, Tatsuki thought, but there was something extraordinary about how Ichigo had said it- it was as if their success would be a given, that failure was not an option. It was encouraging.
"They're not as rare as people would have you believe." Yoruichi assured them. "Back in the old days, it used to be only noble families had them- mainly because their families had the best reiatsu, the best genes, the best education and the best food. Things changed since, but they created a myth that only nobles could achieve it- and when this was proven false, the myth that it is ridiculously rare."
"So it's not super rare?" Tatsuki asked.
"It is quite rare." Yoruichi shot back, "but not as rare as some people think. You can achieve it, and technically speaking, every shinigami can- it's only that few manage to achieve it, and even then, actually manage to make it grow to its fullest potential."
"So what do we do to train?"
"It's pretty straightforward- stab your blade into the doll, and fight your zanpakutou into submission."
"This is one of those things that sound really easy in theory, isn't it?" Ichigo said. "So what will you be doing?"
"I'll be making sure that the training goes smooth, and that nobody notices this place. This is between you and your zanpakutou- there is nothing I can do about this."
"Well, let's go, then." Tatsuki said, pulling out her sword.
"No point in wasting time." Ichigo agreed. As one, the two of them stabbed their swords into one doll each. For a second, nothing happened- was this all bogus?- then there was a sudden glow, and before them stood the two zanpakutou, Zangetsu and Raitora.
"Your zanpakutou is an old man who hasn't cut his hair in decades, with sunglasses from the eighties?" Tatsuki sniggered.
"You're one to talk- yours looks like a prop for some old samurai movie of some kind. And what's up with the tiger mask and the orange suit of armor?"
"I take offense to that." Raitora said, its voice deep and grim.
"Man, your zanpakutou looks even more butch than mine- I bet it's secretly a girl behind that mask." Ichigo said, grinning.
"Bet taken, dummy." Tatsuki said.
"Enough chatter." Said Zangetsu. "I have been summoned here before you, Ichigo- but do you dare think you have earned my power yet?"
"My sentiments are similar." Raitora concurred. "Tatsuki, you have progressed- but you are a thousand years too early to even think of laying claim to my power. I will have to discipline you, foolish child."
"Oh, so it's a fight?" Tatsuki said, clacking her knuckles together. "I am okay with that."
"Bring it, old man." Ichigo said, grinning. Despite himself, he found himself enjoying the thought of a good fight.
After a couple of seconds where no words was spoken, both of the spirits nodded simultaneously. Then, at the same time, they both manifested their weapon forms – Ichigo's massive sword, and Tatsuki's daggers – and threw them up in the air. As the weapons reached their highest point, there was a bright flash of white light – and with the flash, an enormous amount of various kinds of swords, daggers, and similar weapons seemed to spread from the originals, which proceeded to cover almost the entire floor of the cave in all kinds of weapons.
"Then let us begin our training." Zangetsu stated.
"Find your blades among all these – find your Bankai. Find it, and defeat us, if you want to achieve it!" Raitora added fiercely, its voice thundering throughout the entire cave.
oOo
It all simply was grating, Byakuya thought, as he headed towards the head captain's office. As if having to work together with this sad excuse for a nobleman and captain Shiba Isshin wasn't already bad enough, the fool had, after he had secured Kurosaki Ichigo, acted careless enough for the ryoka's associates to free him from the barracks of Squad Ten – and now, no trace was to be found of either of them. In many ways, it was still a mystery to Byakuya why Shiba Isshin was still a captain of the Gotei Thirteen. As far as Byakuya knew, Shiba Isshin had never during his entire time as a captain displayed any of the traits that a captain should have – aside from the obligatory Bankai, of course. The man was lazy, irresponsible, unreliable and, above all, completely lacked the dignity that nobility should have (though the same was true for most of the Shiba clan).
In fact, what better proof for Shiba's incompetence was there than what had led to his temporary banishment several decades ago? While Byakuya did not know the details himself, the basic events were well-known amongst the noble clans: A feud between the Shiba clan and another noble house, started for unclear reasons, which ended with Shiba Isshin killing a member of the opposing noble family. With murder between noble families being a major crime, a punishment was inevitable. With Shiba Isshin being a captain, an execution or even prison were easily out of the question, so the Central Forty-Six ultimately decided to banish the nobleman to the world of the living, and seal his shinigami powers. Justice was served, and the law was upheld.
But as the years went on, no replacement for the captain of Squad Ten could be found: None of the shinigami that were considered to be promoted should they achieve Bankai (which to Byakuya's slight surprise had even included his own vice-captain, Abarai Renji) did manage to do so. Even the third-seat of Squad Ten, Hitsugaya Toshiro, a prodigy like the Soul Society only saw once every century, had to this very day not managed to achieve Bankai. As time went on, the Gotei got increasingly more distraught in finding a new captain for Squad Ten, until one day, about fifteen years ago, the inevitable came: As per the Gotei's request, the Central Forty-Six lifted Shiba Isshin's banishment, and the man was retrieved from the world of the living, with his powers restored.
But even so, the trouble concerning this disgrace of a nobleman had not ended. Even though Byakuya had at the time not really paid much attention to the reinstating of the new and old captain of Squad Ten, being a captain himself, he still heard some bits in regards to Shiba Isshin's own opinion in the matter. Apparently, when the representatives of the Gotei had come to retrieve him, he had originally not wanted to leave the world of the living for whatever reason, refusing to do so until he was forced. And even then, back at Soul Society, the nobleman still caused trouble by deciding to go by another name than "Shiba" for a while – a name that Byakuya never bothered to find out, and that most of the Gotei never got to hear. After a while however, the captain of Squad Ten gave in to the pressure put on him by the Central Forty-Six, and went by "Shiba Isshin" again.
Of course, the noble family which the Shiba clan had been in a feud with was beyond enraged by the entire turn of events, but no matter how much they protested, nothing was changed – the word of the Central Forty-Six was law, after all. Shiba Isshin was the captain of Squad Ten once more, and his original punishment was all but forgotten. While Byakuya himself was not happy with this all, either, he never objected, or questioned the decisions that were made. His opinion was irrelevant. It did not matter.
At times like this however, when Shiba Isshin's incompetence became blatantly apparent, he could not help but to wonder if the Gotei's decision to take this course of action to make sure that Squad Ten had a captain... but of course, he would never speak up against the law. After all, the law was the law, and the law was everything.
Pushing aside his unimportant musings, Byakuya focused on reality once more. He now stood at the door to the head captain's office. He had been called here by Yamamoto Shigekuni Genryuusai himself via a note – a note that said little more than that the head captain wanted to talk to him. While Byakuya couldn't possibly fathom what the head captain would want of him, he obviously still followed the order. Authority was authority.
After his knocking got a response in the form of a muffled, but clear "Enter!", Byakuya opened the door, and stepped into the office, where he found the head captain sitting by his desk.
"You called for me, soutaichou?" Byakuya said, bowing in front of Yamamoto.
The head captain looked up from his paperwork, and gave Byakuya a calculating look. "Yes, Kuchiki-taichou... I did call for you. Please, sit down."
Quietly, Byakuya followed the order, and waited for Yamamoto to continue. "I assume that you too are aware of the ryoka's intentions by now, Kuchiki-taichou?"
"I do, soutaichou. The ryoka, one of which has been confirmed to be the former substitute shinigami Kurosaki Ichigo, have been confirmed to have infiltrated the seireitei with the goal to-" Against his will, Byakuya found himself hesitating – hesitating to say the obvious, to voice the one thing that has been tormenting his mind for weeks now. How could something so simple be so hard? Why did he find himself to say something as simple as that which was on his mind?
"-to prevent the execution of Kuchiki Rukia." Byakuya finally finished the sentence, after what had felt to him like an eternity in which his inner feelings were an open book.
Yamamoto nodded. "That is correct... Kuchiki Rukia is the key to this all. For this reason, I have decided to send a request to the Central Forty-Six to push the date of the execution forward as much as possible. As the head of the Kuchiki clan, I thought that you have the right to know of this first."
Byakuya remained silent. It had been predictable. The sooner the execution was over with, the sooner justice was served, the sooner this entire craze would end, and the Gotei could focus all of its forces on capturing Kurosaki Ichigo and the other ryoka. And yet, despite the logic of it all, despite the fact that Byakuya had outright expected this... something inside of him felt as if he had lost his footing, as if he had been plunged into an abyss.
"If I may make a request, soutaichou..." Byakuya said, the words coming out of his mouth before his mind could consider them "I would like to offer my services as well as those of my Squad to carry out the execution. Should it prove itself to be necessary, I could even perform the act myself."
Silence followed his words, as Yamamoto gave Byakuya a silent, calculating look. Byakuya almost felt like adding, 'I am already sending her into her death, so I might as well do it myself' to his words, but decided against it. It would have simply been undignified.
There was no law that would speak against Byakuya doing this – if anything, other members of his clan would even welcome it if he as the leader were to execute the criminal which had brought shame upon the household. Honor would be served, and Byakuya could at last find his comfort in committing seppuku.
"Your request is denied, Kuchiki-taichou." Yamamoto finally said, his tone blunt.
"But-!"
"Denied." The head captain repeated, this time with more emphasis. "Your duties will be to guard the senzaikyu, and nothing else, Kuchiki-taichou. There is no need for you to make this harder for yourself than it already is."
"...Yes, soutaichou." Byakuya said quietly, but not without a hint of relief in his voice. In the end, it didn't even matter if Byakuya himself executed Rukia or not, he supposed... the end result would still be the same. His sister would die, and the law would be upheld, as it had to be. After all, the law was the law, and the law was everything...
oOo
Zaraki Kenpachi let out a long, tired yawn. Since the weather in the seireitei had recently been rather warm and sunny, he had taken the liberty of sitting himself down under a tree in the area of the Squad Eleven barracks, and take a good rest together with Yachiru. With half of the ryoka captured, and the other half seemingly having completely vanished, there simply was nothing else left to keep Kenpachi interested in all the chaos that was going on among the Gotei. Of course, he could always just challenge some of his Squad members to a fight, but every single one of those bastards already long since knew that they stood absolutely no chance against Kenpachi – and so did he. No, there was just no point in fighting any of those guys.
It really seemed like all the fun that these ryoka had brought him was already over – and it was just a fucking shame. From what Kenpachi had heard, the other two ryoka – that is, the two that he had not cut up – had been able to defeat some Squad Seven guy, Renji, kill that Squad Five four-eyes Aizen, and even overpower Mayuri... but of course, those two just had to take a completely different route through the seireitei, which didn't even bring them close to the area of Squad Eleven. And now, those two were locked up by those Squad Two ninjas... just his fucking luck. Kenpachi would have given anything to fight the other two ryoka as well, but of course, there was no way that Soifon woman would let them go for that.
While the two ryoka kids that Kenpachi had cut up had been far from boring, they still hadn't lasted long enough to make this fun – it was just like they had fun with denying Kenpachi his own. Maybe if they got ten more years to train, then they'd be able to give him a proper fight, but like this?
It was just annoying. Kenpachi just about never got an opportunity to fight a strong opponent, one who could stand up against his entire strength, and even prove himself to be a challenge... of course, there were the other captains, but those never actually agreed to fight him, for whatever reason. Sometimes, he could not help but to wish that he himself would get a good enough reason to fight any of these guys...
Suddenly, his thoughts were interrupted by a shadow falling onto him – somebody was blocking out the sun for him, which was not exactly an advisable thing. Annoyed, Kenpachi slowly opened his eyes, and sure enough: Some figure was standing in front of him, though it was impossible to make out who it was with the sun behind them.
"I hope ya got a good enough reason for standing there, punk." Kenpachi growled, getting up.
"Oh, I think I do have a good enough reason to talk to you, Kenpachi." The oddly calm response came – in the voice of a person that Kenpachi would always recognize instantly.
"Oh. It's you." The captain of Squad Eleven grumbled, as he now could finally make out the appearance of the person in front of him – who, as to be expected, turned out to be the captain of Squad Four, Unohana Retsu.
Kenpachi only barely acknowledged her presence at first, lazily staring into space with a bored look on his face.
"Whyn't you go play somewhere else, Yachiru?" Kenpachi said firmly, after a small while, stressing the little girl's name with an aside glance to Unohana.
Yachiru opened her mouth to reject, but a look into Kenpachi's face shut her up before she could even say anything. Without another word, the little girl hurried off, leaving the two captains alone. "So what d'ya want, eh?"
"You caused quite a stir recently." Unohana said, smiling, and there was a chiding tone to her speech. No use in being subtle- Zaraki Kenpachi had all the subtlety of a particularly blunt mallet.
"What, cutting down a tower or two?" Kenpachi said. "They should build 'em stronger."
"You let the ryoka escape."
Kenpachi shrugged. "Gimme a break. They was broken down- they weren't going to go anywhere. My job's to fight, not carry weaklings around."
"You really ought to be more careful." Unohana said. "The Gotei will only tolerate disobedience so far."
"Izzat supposed to be a threat?" Kenpachi rumbled.
"Think of it as a friendly warning. It isn't I you should be concerned about- but the central Forty-Six might one day stop looking favourably on your talent for mayhem."
Kenpachi spat. "The central forty-six can go sod themselves. The only way they'd ever fire me was if I made 'em look bad and they couldn't cover it up- they give sick freaks like Kurotsuchi a job, but they can't handle a bit of chaos? Killin' people's what I do- if they want subtle, they got their second division lapdogs for that." He stood up, his haori falling down behind him- it was quite torn- looking at her intently. "But you ain't here to tell me to play nice, now are ya?"
"No, I am here to treat your wounds." Unohana said, still smiling faintly. "You wouldn't come to the hospital yourself, so I figured it was best I find you myself."
"Oh." Kenpachi said. "Oh yeah, right. I kinda forgot- I needed a drink, and I ended up having lots of 'em, and I forgot all about it."
It would have been hard to believe, had it been anyone else- he had a pretty large gash, running down his chest, almost down to the thigh, but Kenpachi was known for his resilience- pain seemed to be more of an inconvenience than anything else to him.
"Sit up, and take that shirt off." Unohana said firmly. Kenpachi complied, and slid his torn shihakusho jacket off. Gently, Unohana began tending to his wounds. She'd done it many times- it was almost a routine by now. Carefully, she applied antiseptics and then bandages. He was probably not going to keep still long enough for it to be effective, but it was better than nothing.
Finally, she had wrapped the last stretch of cloth around Kenpachi's muscular chest, and she had finished.
"There." She said. "Better now?"
"I didn't need no bandages in the first place, woman." He grumbled, but his heart wasn't into it- just complaint for the sake of complaint. She smiled. It was so like him. "You get back to yer hospital."
"I will, Zaraki-taicho." She picked up what medical supplies were left, and put it into a bag, turning around to leave. "Take care, Kenpachi." She said, smiling at him. He didn't smile back- then again, he never did. Quietly, she walked away.
Kenpachi stretched around uncomfortably. He had a hard time telling that woman off- mostly because she was who she was. He wanted her; to fight her day and night until he couldn't stand- but that wasn't an option these days. He grumbled. Her visits always left him feeling half glad, half sour.
"Yo, Kenpachi!"
Kenpachi looked up. Very few people called him just 'Kenpachi'- and one of them was the bearded idiot in front of him.
"Shiba." He said, reaching for his torn shihakusho jacket. "What're you here for?" He was blunt, but he didn't dislike the captain. Sure, he was a nobleman- although Kenpachi had his suspicions that secretly he wasn't, since he didn't seem to have a stick up his ass, or think he was better than everyone else- but though Kenpachi didn't particularly think of most anyone as a 'friend', he wasn't unfriendly with Shiba Isshin. Good lad- he'd started in eleventh, worked himself up to captain, and more importantly, he'd sometimes offer to spar with him. He made for a good workout when he got serious.
"Can't a man visit his best buddy for no reason?" Isshin grinned, holding up a can of saké.
"Don't be gettin' all buddy-buddy with me." Kenpachi grumbled. "I'll take some saké, though."
"I knew you'd see it my way!" Isshin beamed.
A significant number of drinks later, Kenpachi was enjoying an alcohol-induced haze, which rated fairly high on his scale of things which felt good that wasn't fighting. He didn't know why Isshin was here, and he didn't care- if he wanted to give him free booze, let him.
"So Kenpachi, buddy," Isshin said, downing another shot, "I got some… advice for ya."
"Don't need no advice." Kenpachi grumbled, taking another swig.
"You're gonna like this, though."
"Yeah?"
"What if I told you there was a way to really piss off the higher-ups, and probably get you to fight some captains?"
This got his attention. "Keep talkin'."
"There's just this particular barracks I noticed has such poor security." Isshin noted. "Really, anyone could just waltz in and break it."
"Yeah?" Kenpachi said suspiciously. He was up to something.
"It's this little place in one of the holding cells second division operates." Isshin said, downing another drink.
"And why'd I wanna do that?"
"'Cause it holds two ryoka- the ones what you didn't get to fight before."
Really now. That was more like it. "And ain't bustin' them out treason?"
"Two small time ryoka? At a time like this? A body could just say it was by accident- and they could believe you, too."
"And what was that about fighting captains?"
"Well, I happen to know that two days from now, Komamura-taicho will be patrolling quite near that place. Assuming the worst, he might attack a potential, completely innocent, cell-busting captain."
"No word games!" Kenpachi sneered. "I got ya, though…" Pissing off the higher ups was also one of the things that rated fairly high on his scale of things which felt good that wasn't fighting, and the idea of sticking it to one of those holier-than-thou pricks was real tempting. Not as tempting as the idea of fighting a Bankai, but he could have both- so why not?
"I could grab Ikkaku and Yumichika right now, have 'em show me the way." He said. There'd probably be some kind of problems- "breaking the rules" and bullshit like that, but who cared? He'd get a good fight out of it.
"Not so quick." Isshin said. "Two days from now. Not sooner. That's all I ask in exchange for this nice, hot tip between buddies."
"All right." Kenpachi said, emptying the bottle. "Throw in a good spar right now, and I'm game."
"Done." Isshin said.
oOo
The floor was covered with corpses, the air was reeking of blood and the stench of decaying bodies... and Aizen Sosuke found himself oddly bored.
It had only been yesterday that he, Gin and Tosen had together done that which Aizen had wanted to do for many, many years now: Give to the Central Forty-Six the kind of punishment that they deserved, and leave their corpses to rot in their parliament building. Every single one of them was dead by now, and it wouldn't be for another few days before they would be found – or rather, before Aizen let them be found. For the time being, the parliament served as his hideout until his plans could advance to the next stage. After all, what better place was there to hide than the most secure place in all of the seireitei? While admittedly, rotting corpses did not exactly make for the best ambience, the fact that they were the remains of the Central Forty-Six more than made up for it.
But even so, the satisfaction over this execution could only last so long. Aizen's plan was far from being finished, and Gin and Tosen retaining their cover was elemental to it, so the two had to leave him not too long after the killing had ended. Aizen had been alone with his mind ever since – which he probably would have minded a bit less if right now, the only thing he could do was being patient. Of course, he also had to keep up the illusion he had created for the parliament's guards, and everybody who entered the area – but that was an absolutely trivial issue, considering his strength.
Any person that would enter the chamber of the Central Forty-Six would be under the impression of finding them in the middle of a heated debate over various political issues – taxes, relations between noble houses, strength of the various Squads... in short, all sorts of things that had nothing to do with the people living out in the Rukongai, and nothing out of the ordinary for the Central Forty Six. Even if one were to step on a corpse, they would not notice it, all thanks to the illusions cast by Aizen's shikai.
Then again, however, the parliament guards rarely dared to interrupt any of the meetings that were being held, so that the illusions were for the most part little more than a safety measure – which made it all the more surprising to Aizen when he did sense one of the guards approaching the room, walking at a pace which left little doubt as to where he was going. Before long, the guard had reached the room and entered it, of course without even realizing what was in front of him.
His curiosity awakened, Aizen walked over to the seat nearest to the door, and sat down, becoming, as far as the guard was concerned, one of the members of the Central Forty-Six. As expected, the guard quickly approached Aizen, laying down a letter in front of him. "A hell butterfly just delivered this. It is a note from Yamamoto-soutaichou."
Aizen nodded silently, and the guard turned around to leave. When he reached the door, the man turned around once more, as if he had just noticed something odd, something out of the ordinary... but then he just opened the door, and left anyway.
Slightly bemused, Aizen stared after him. For just a moment, it seemed as if the man had gotten a glimpse of reality, of what really was in this room... or at least, part of what was in this room. While the illusions that his Shikai allowed him to cast were without a doubt near-perfect, there were still flaws that occurred with them... such as completely deceiving all five senses. Seeing, hearing, tasting, feeling and smelling: Out of those five senses, the ones that needed to be deceived the most were seeing, hearing and feeling. Tasting and smelling things on the other hand were but a minor detail to an otherwise perfect creation – a detail that Aizen rarely bothered with, and was consequently not too skilled with it, either.
Without a doubt, the stench in the room somehow managed to get through to the guard, letting him smell the blood and decay... not that it mattered, though. A guard having smelled something unusual was far from enough to blow his cover. The man would probably forget about the oddity in just a few more minutes.
Finally averting his gaze from the door, Aizen took the note that the guard delivered, and skimmed over it. The vast majority of the letter consisted of Yamamoto just using fancy words to convey the need to move forward the date of Kuchiki Rukia's execution... well, that could be arranged easily enough. And of course, it would fit in with his plans, too...
But that was not the most interesting part about the note. No, Yamamoto's reasoning as to why the execution date should be moved forward was easily more interesting. Apparently, two of the ryoka had been identified as the former substitute shinigami Kurosaki Ichigo, and former captain Shihoin Yoruichi, the former of which had been able to escape the Squad Ten barracks, despite being looked after by the Squad's captain himself... and then there was the other group of ryoka, which, in addition to being suspected to have murdered him (a part of the letter which caused Aizen to smirk when he read it), managed to overpower the captain of Squad Twelve enough to force him to use Bankai... thought this group was captured now.
While the escape of Kurosaki Ichigo could most likely be attributed to Yoruichi, Aizen could not help but to be impressed by the unexpected competence that Urahara's lackeys had been showing. They were capable, more capable than they should be... capable enough to get Aizen curious.
He might need to pay these ryoka a visit.
Author's Notes:
Well then, no fighting or any kind of violence this chapter - sorry for that (though I do believe that this is not something that one should apologize for. . .). In any case, the next chapter will have all the more violence and fighting to make up for it, so thou may looketh forward to that. . . or something.
And now:
LE OBLIGATORY STAR WARS OMAKE TIEM!
As Matsumoto Rangiku walked out from her office, her workday finally complete- what would her big baby of a captain do without her?- she passed said big baby's office. She could hear a muffled sound.
She sighed. It was happening again, she just knew it. Quietly, she slid the door to his room open.
As she walked in, she could hear voices from the TV.
"If you're not with me… you're my enemy!" An overdramatic voice, which sounded so angsty it might as well have belonged to an Uchiha, exclaimed.
"Only a Sith deals an absolute!" A second voice came, sounding equally as dramatic. Funny- if she wasn't mistaken, that was an absolute statement in itself.
Oh yeah, it was happening again.
"Anakin, no!" Isshin sobbed as he watched the movie, for what Rangiku was sure was the one hundredth and sixty-fourth time. It was kind of sad that she kept count. "You were supposed to be the chosen one, not evil! WHYYYY?!" Isshin cried, sounding as if he was going through a personal tragedy.
"Taicho, you knew this was coming since the moment you watched the first three films." She said flatly. "How can you still be upset?"
"Shut up!" He wailed. "You just don't understand all my feels! Oh, Anakin! WHYYY?!"
"Just ignore those horrible prequels and consider them non-canon. That's what I do."
Isshin gasped. "How dare you!"
"Everyone knows the prequels suck. Get over it."
"NO!" Isshin shouted. "They're masterfully directed, and the acting is so solid, and look how pretty all of those CGI effects are! Those are totally worthy successors to the world's best sci fi franchise!"
"In the same way M. Night Shyamalan is a director of good movies?" Rangiku said, tilting her head sardonically. Few people knew how to tilt their head in a sardonic way, but Rangiku had mastered this art.
"You just don't understand the creative genius of George Lucas!" Isshin protested. "Like not having Han Solo shoot first- that was brilliant editing!"
"…what is wrong with you?" Rangiku groaned. "Besides, everyone knows Star Wars isn't the best sci fi series- that's Doctor Who."
"BLASPHEMY!" Isshin shouted. "THOSE WORDS ARE BLASPHEMY! DO NOT BLASPHEME! DO NOT BLASPHEME!"
"If you calm down, and stop gushing over a crappy, overplayed and overhyped franchise, I'll read some of Leia's lines. You can be Luke."
Instantly, Isshin calmed down. "Yesma'am!"
Rangiku sighed. Why couldn't she have a normal captain, who liked roleplay with actual sex in it?