• • •

"Oh! You're finally up!" Ganju exclaimed, bending over from his bunk as he stared down at Ishida. Although, I doubt he could even see the archer; he had bandages wrapped around every inch of exposed flesh, his face included.

Ishida's eyes narrowed, not recognizing the mummy that was hanging in front of his face. "Waaaaah?! Wh…Wh….Who are you?! Are you some kind of a robber?!"

Ganju scoffed, nimbly jumping down from his top bunk so he could face Ishida properly. "No! Plus, what can I possibly rob from a wounded guy in jail?"

Biting my lip, I tried to suppress the snickers that I was sure would come; he could still probably rob something, if he was into that. No wonder Ishida was so jumpy. Maaaan, I needed to stop hanging around Kon so much.

"It's me! It's me!" Ganju hollered, bringing one of his hands up to push back some of the bandages on his face.

"Ganju-Kun?!" Ishida asked, surprised. "I'm glad that you're still alive! You didn't seem strong, so I thought that you would already be…"

Crossing his arms, the mummy glared at the archer. "…I'll pretend you never said that…"

"In any case, why were our injuries treated?" Ishida questioned, still not looking around the small room to notice Chad and me. "We are the attackers… We're their enemies! The officials of Soul Society should have no reason to help us-"

"The situation has changed." I interrupted, angling my head so I could stare down at the two men. I was seated on the top bunk across the room from them, dressed in the traditional kimono of a prisoner.

"Kokawa-San?! Sado-Kun?!" Ishida blinked, his deep blue eyes jumping between Chad and myself. He must have really been injured if he didn't sense our presence before now.

"We overheard the guards…" Chad mumbled, hands twitching a bit as he leaned forward in the chair that he was sitting in. His hands were cuffed as well.

Nodding, I sung my legs up and down as I sat on the edge of the bed. "Chad overheard the guards and told me about it once I woke up, so I was able to piece together the info to figure out what's going on. Apparently, a Taicho has been murdered. They don't know who did it, either. Because of this, us Ryoka are probably the primary source of information. Who else would they suspect?"

"…I see," Ishida sighed, "So that's why we got arrested; for interrogation."

"Makes sense. I can't think of any other reason why they'd treat our wounds and keep us locked up." I shrugged, rotating my wrists a bit; I hated having to wear these cuffs.

Ganju scowled, raising his hands. "If my reiatsu wasn't sealed off by these handcuffs, I could easily break a hole in the wall with Seppa…" {Stone Blast}

I noticed Ishida's mournful gaze as he looked at his bandaged hands. This was out of character for him, so I assumed that something was up. And not just anything; he didn't seem to want to talk about it.

"Anyway!" Ganju exclaimed, getting everyone's attention. "Even though we survived, we're locked up and cuffed up! This is the worst possible scenario! But one thing is for sure… If they enemy doesn't want to kill us, the others are probably still alive!"

"If the four of us were captured… Then that leaves Orihime, Ichigo, and Yoruichi. Orihime probably isn't any good at fighting, so I'm going to assume that she might be captured as well. That just leaves Yoruichi and Ichigo." I sighed, biting my lower lip and messing with my lip ring.

"I'm waiting for Ichigo." Chad announced, lacing his fingers together as he stared at the bars of the cell. "He will definitely come and get us out of here. Until then, the only thing we can do is heal and prepare for the next battle… Let's wait for Ichigo!"

I nodded, my eyes shining in determination as I looked out of the small window that was on my right. From my position, I could see the sky outside. I could mostly see grass, so I realized that we were probably underground somewhere in the Fourth.

Chad was right. Ichigo would come for us.

I didn't want to wait for Ichigo, though. I wanted to prove to him that I'd be able to help; I didn't want him to worry.

"Kokawa Junko?"

Looking up at the sound of my name, I blinked once I saw a couple of guards outside of the cell that we were held in.

"Yes?" I asked, nimbly jumping down from my perch. My bangs brushed against the bandage on my right cheek, so I brought my hand up to push them back. "I am Kokawa Junko. What do you want with me?"

"We have orders to transport Kokawa Junko to a different holding cell." One of the guards informed, holding a staff in his hands. There were three other guards with staffs, plus the two guards who had been stationed outside of the cell since I'd woken.

My brows furrowed, eyes narrowing at the guards. "Why?"

"A higher up requested it." One of our two guards piped up, holding what looked like a red choker in his hands. "Now, if you would please step forward. And only you; the others have to stay back."

I took a step forward, my head held high. If this is what they wanted, then so be it. As long as they didn't do anything to harm Chad, Ishida, or Ganju, then I would willingly go with them.

"Kokawa! Don't do it..!" Ishida exclaimed, eyes wide as he made a motion to stop me.

"Don't!" I snapped, turning my head to glare at him. "If this is what keeps the higher ups happy and you guys safe, then I will gladly go with them. It's not in their policy to swiftly execute any prisoner; I'll be fine."

Ishida didn't argue any more, instead he and the others watched with wide eyes as I swiftly walked towards the bars. My gaze didn't falter, even when they placed the red choker around my neck.

It was a little bigger than I had imagined, resting against my collar bones. However, it was lighter than it looked. I had expected it to weigh a bit more.

"Forward."

Obeying, I walked forward and stood in the center of the hallway. Before my eyes, red ropes flew out from the collar, connecting to the staffs that the four guards had been carrying.

This must have been how they transported prisoners.

Even if I wanted to, I wouldn't have been able to do anything. I didn't have my Zanpakuto, my hands were still cuffed, my reiatsu was blocked, and I was now tethered to the guards.

"Don't worry; I'll see you guys soon." I spoke, turning my icy blue eyes towards my friends. All three of them had rushed towards the bars once the door was sealed shut. I could see how white their knuckles were from where they were gripping the bars.

"It's time to go." Another guard ordered, walking over to us. He held my Zanpakuto in his hands; it was strapped down to a silk pillow. Now they were just teasing me, I'm sure.

The guards took off, practically dragging me with them at first. I was able to recover my footing, keeping up with their brisk pace. Somewhere in the back of my mind I registered that I wasn't wearing any shoes; I guess that prisoners didn't get the privilege of wearing them.

I began the long trek to this 'other holding cell.'

• • •

"Ha~" The orange haired Substitute Shinigami heaved a sigh, leaning back on the rocky ledge of the water that surrounded him. "A hot spring… I never would've thought that there's such a thing here. Hm. This is actually my first time in a hot spring!"

Ichigo slid down further in the warm waters, tilting his head so his cinnamon eyes could sweep across the barren landscape. There were still so many swords stuck into the Earth. So many possibilities; any one of them could be the one that he could use to defeat his Zanpakuto…

"Training… She said that day one is over, so is it night time now? Ack, every bone in my body is hurting like hell. There's no way to tell time here. I think I've lost my sense of time." The strawberry complained, leaning forward to splash the warm water on his face. He froze, cinnamon eyes widening once he felt the large gash on his cheek instantly heal. "This, this hot spring…my wounds are healing super-fast! Wow! All the pain is gone and all the wounds are healing! Amazing!"

"Ichigo?"

Said strawberry blinked, his mouth full of the water; he had been trying to heal other wounds by drinking the water. "Wuwurichi-Wan?"

"How's the temperature of the water?" Yoruichi asked, able to interpret his words through his mouth full of water.

Waving a hand in the air, Ichigo continued. "Mmkay, wit's mot wad wa wall."

"Oh? That's good." Yoruichi grinned, beginning to slide out of her clothes. "Then I'll take a bath, too."

Almost choking, Ichigo forcefully spit out all the water in his mouth as his eyes almost budged out of their sockets. Coughing, the Substitute Shinigami turned around for a brief second, only to turn as red as his namesake. "Idiot! What are you saying?! W-Why are you taking your pants off?!"

"Fufufu… Your reaction is just what I expected it would be. You're such an innocent boy."

"Don't play with me!"

"Okay! Stop yelling already!" Yoruichi exclaimed, jumping into the water. She began swimming around. It was odd seeing a cat swimming in water; weren't they supposed to hate it? "There's no problem now, right?"

Ichigo, with one hand on his face as he peeked through that eye, was still flushed as he stared at the cat merrily swimming around.

"So? Are you disappointed?" Yoruichi questioned. "Tell me the truth! Well, pervert?"

"Don't make me drown you!" Ichigo seethed, glaring at the female cat.

It was peaceful for a few moments, until Ichigo brought up the fact that this training area looked much like the one that was hidden under the Urahara Shoten. Yoruichi went on to explain that that one was probably fashioned after the one they were currently in.

Then, she talked a bit about their past; how she joined the Onmitsukido while Urahara had joined the Gotei Thirteen.

"H-Hold on, Yoruichi-San!" Ichigo interrupted, eyes wide at this new piece of information. "You said Gotei Thirteen… That guy is a Shinigami?!"

"You mean Urahara?"

"Yeah!" Ichigo exclaimed. "I've always thought that it was strange. How he knew so much about Soul Society, and how he also had a Zanpakuto… Then, in Soul Society, everyone's face changed once I mentioned his name! Tell me Yoruichi-San: who is he?"

Yoruichi sighed, closing her bright amber eyes for a second while she did so. "…So, he didn't tell you? That's Urahara for you." She paused, meeting Ichigo's gaze before continuing. "Alright, there's no point hiding it from you anymore. He was… The previous Taicho of the Twelfth Division of the Gotei Thirteen, and… the founder of the Research Institute of Technology. He was the first head of that institute."

"W-What?" Ichigo questioned, eyes wide. "Taicho?"

"Correct."

"Then why isn't he still in Soul Society?" He questioned, eyebrows furrowed.

Yoruichi's golden gaze narrowed a bit, the liquid amber freezing. "That's not my story to tell. Urahara would have to tell you that himself."

The strawberry was quiet for a moment, mulling everything over. "Then… does Jun know that he was a Taicho? Wasn't he her teacher before she came here?"

"Yes, she knows." Yoruichi simply answered. "Before he was her teacher, he had to get to know her better. He's probably one of the only people she fully trusts. Urahara was there for her when no one else was."

"I know that her parents died, and that she was left alone after that. Did Urahara take her in?"

"Junko was passed around to countless sets of foster parents. All of them eventually died in Hollow attacks. The Jun from that time was very closed off… It was almost like nobody was there." Yoruichi explained. "Urahara contacted me not too long after he took her in. She was just so detached from the world. She was lifeless; it was like she had given up on life."

Ichigo's eyes softened at Yoruichi's words.

"I was shocked when I first saw her a few weeks ago. Jun looked so full of life again. Urahara made the right choice by taking her in. Her Father would have never forgiven Urahara if he knew that Urahara just sat around and watched Jun suffer."

"Her Father?" The strawberry questioned. "He knew Urahara?"

"Of course; Kokawa Hayate was also a Taicho of the Gotei Thirteen. Did Jun not tell you about that?" Yoruichi questioned, wondering if she spilled too much.

Ichigo shook his head, his wet hair still firmly stuck to his forehead. "No, she just told me that he was a Shinigami."

"Well, he was a Taicho as well. He was a bit older than us, but we were still good friends." The cat smiled. "I knew Junko was his the second I sat eyes on her; she has her Father's eyes. And she seemed to have his hairstyle as well. Jun always did keep her hair somewhat short. She never allowed it to touch her shoulders."

"Why is that?" Ichigo asked. "Her hair is a few inches past her shoulders now."

"I know, that's another reason why I was surprised. I had never seen her with longer hair. She looks more mature with it long. I'd never asked her why she kept it short. I guess it was a personal choice."

Ichigo made a mental note to question Junko about that later.

"I can tell that she's changed for the better. Her time in the World of the Living has done her well. Just what did you do to her? I approve, whatever it is you've done."

"I haven't done anything!" He quickly answered, waving his hands about wildly. "D-Don't look at me like that!"

Chuckling, Yoruichi began swimming around once more. "Just have patience with her. She's still got a few walls constructed around her heart. She trusts you, I can tell. You'll be able to break those walls down. She's had a dark past; nobody can change that. But she can have a bright future."

• • •

"Thirteenth Division?" I questioned, eyes wide once I spotted the familiar number printed atop the main division building. I guess I had zoned out while we were walking; I didn't know we had walked this far because I was staring at the sun that was beginning to set.

"Correct," The head guard affirmed, not even looking back at me as he continued to lead us towards the main building. "Ukitake-Taicho requested that you be held here; you are technically a member of the Thirteenth, so they could not deny the request."

My breath left me in a huge sigh; I could feel my shoulders relaxing a bit. It felt good to be around Thirteenth again, but I didn't know how I was going to be able to face Ukitake-Taicho.

I had his trust, but then I went and sided with the Ryoka.

Maybe he might forgive me when he finds out that I did all this to save Rukia. I mean, she was a member of his Division, too. Ukitake-Taicho was always compassionate. Hopefully he wouldn't be too mad at me.

"Thank you very much for transporting the prisoner! We've got it from here, guards! Ukitake-Taicho sends his thanks!" Kotsubaki Sentaro, one of the two Third Seats of the Thirteenth Division, yelled as he opened the door and saw us standing there. "I, Kotsubaki Sentaro, will safely escort Kokawa Junko to one of the holding cells in our Division! This was ordered by none other than Ukitake-Taicho!"

"Very well, Kotsubaki-San-Seki." The head guard spoke, bowing his head as he handed over my Zanpakuto that was still strapped down to the silk pillow.

The other guards all formed the same hand sign, releasing the red ropes from their staffs. The two back ropes flew back into the choker, while the front two intertwined and formed what looked like a leash. The head guard stepped forward, grabbed the leash, and left me in the hands of the Third Seat of the Thirteenth Division.

• • •

"What did…you say?" The petite black haired woman questioned, her violet eyes widening in disbelief. She shakily took a step forward, closer to the guards and messenger that had appeared before her.

The messenger, dressed in dark robes instead of the white ones that the guard wore, narrowed his eyes as he took in the criminal's appearance. "Ah. You didn't hear me? I'll repeat it for you: It has been decided that Kuchiki-Sama's execution date has been changed once again. The execution will take place… tomorrow."