Bleach (c) Tite Kubo


Once More To See You Again


Pre-emptive Measures


Rukia Kuchiki spent the majority of the school day locked away in her thoughts.

A Menos Grande had appeared, a hollow monstrosity powerful enough to give even the Captains pause before engaging. Yet somehow Ichigo managed to inflict a wound devastating enough for the Menos to hastily retreat beyond the veil and into the realm of Hueco Mundo.

A feat nothing short of miraculous.

Which presents Rukia with an even greater problem.

The Omnitsukidou would undoubtedly receive reports before too long. A being as powerful as a Menos Grande warrants immediate investigation. Through that same investigation, reports of the unauthorized Shinigami operating in Karakura Town would reach the ears of Central 46.

Since that afternoon, her denreishinki has been exploding with return orders every hour on the hour. More so than they had in these past weeks.

Orders Rukia have summarily ignored.

First, because following them would require use of her Shinigami powers which have stubbornly refused to return in the slightest.

She swears there's something wrong with this gigai. Her control has deteriorated significantly and the powerful synchronization boosters she's been taking had negligible effect.

Rukia has demanded multiple times that Kisuie Urahara examine the shoddy second-hand gigai's control mechanisms since it feels like it takes more energy to simply move, nevermind the prickling feedback. But no matter how many times she asks, that old pervert insists it's functioning perfectly.

This isn't good. To make matters worse, her reflexes grow equally sluggish. At this rate, she'll barely be on par with an average human.

As for combat? Yesterday threw into sharp relief exactly how little Rukia has recovered these past two months. A Byakurai from any half-competent first year Shin'ou Academy student would have sufficient power to defeat a low level hollow if they got a lucky shot.

Rukia is far more skilled than an academic student but a low level hollow batted away her spell with a casual swipe of its tentacle, like swatting a gnat.

The timely intervention of Kon, later Uryuu Ishida and finally Ichigo, prevented Rukia suffering the indignity of becoming its dinner. That amply demonstrated the latest in a long line of mounting frustrations and inconveniences.

Her second reason is the reassociation.

Weeks ago, Rukia finally relented and started acknowledging him after concluding she was already in about as much trouble as she could possibly be in, throwing caution to the wind.

That had been a mistake.

Having avoided engaging Kaien Kurosaki where possible until that moment, Rukia hadn't realized exactly how many physical habits had remained between lifetimes: the bright eyed boundlessly optimistic grin, the identical teasing leer when he's up to mischief, that boisterous enthusiastic way of speaking, deft social charm and unparalleled ferocity when righteously angered.

Rukia had to catch herself from addressing him as Lieutenant or Captain on reflex. The resemblance in appearance and personality is that uncanny.

Sadly Kaien's open hand of friendship ultimately nudged her towards old dangerous habits. The well-meaning gesture ended up with Rukia walking on more eggshells not less. The worst part is he noticed. Evidently he's as keen a student of social behaviors between lifetimes as well.

But there weren't so many similarities that Rukia couldn't appreciate the differences either.

Generally Kaien Kurosaki is a calmer and more analytical individual that sought understanding of the world through logic, concept and proof, and was veracious in his appetite for knowledge. But he had patience to balance out his passions. At one point not long after the Grand Fisher attack, Kaien struck up a casual conversation with her while Ichigo was out tending to household chores. A wandering talk that revealed his interests in science, specifically marine science and applied chemistry and offhandedly mentioned pursuing a career in either field.

Of course, he's still a teenager and teenagers habitually change their minds on a regular basis.

Sadly, those differences wouldn't be enough to convince Soul Society to allow Kaien Kurosaki to remain as he is, a relatively normal albeit spiritually gifted human living a human life with human career goals and aspirations. Not with the issue of his rapidly mounting interest in the spirit world, which could spiral out of control quickly.

It's not like the last two months could be erased either. Even the memory modification technology has its limits. To handle a problem of this scale would be a logistical nightmare and Rukia doubted any memory modification would last. A high enough reiryoku reserve would burn right through any tampering. If Ichigo's monstrous reiatsu output is any indication, Kaien Kurosaki wouldn't be affected for long either.

In all likelihood, Central 46 would declare the contamination irreversible and issue the execution order. A quick, cheap and easy solution would trump every other alternative. Killing three people is easier than manipulating the memories of dozens, if not hundreds on a grand scale.

Regardless of whatever Rukia decided to do with her two roommates, it won't be long before the Seireitei sends someone to collect her.

Showing deference to Rukia's noble status, they might offer a modicum of mercy and leniency, sending enforcers to interrogate her then drag her back by the hair.

Or less optimistically, they might skip the indignity being hauled back in chains and have an execution squad kill her on sight.

Frankly the latter is much more likely.

The Kuchiki Clan would rather dispose of their disgrace and disassociate themselves entirely than allow themselves to be publicly shamed. It's precisely what her elder brother would do. He might kill her outright and by his own hand to be done with this bother.

Rukia silently weighs her options.

Her only conclusion is she would have to run. Run away as far as she can as soon as she can. Quickly and quietly while the twins are distracted. It doesn't matter where she goes, as long as she can prevent the brothers from getting hurt.

Ichigo, the brave and valiant fool, would charge after her if he knew what she was planning. And when, not if, Soul Society finds her, it'll be too late for him to recklessly waste his life defending hers.

As for Kaien Kurosaki? She already murdered his predecessor. She refuses to murder him a second time.

"You okay Rukia? You've been distracted all day." Ichigo prompts frowning, knocking Rukia from her thoughts.

The school bell chimed five minutes ago according to the cloak and the other students already rushed out, eagerly bound for their homes with the Kurosaki twins evidently waiting on her.

"No. It's nothing." Rukia dismisses, absently packing her notebooks into her carry bag.

"Is something wrong?" Ichigo asks.

"Nothing." Rukia lies, because Ichigo (and Kaien behind him) continues to stare at her an unconvinced expression she elaborates, "I'm just a little tired. Yesterday took more out of me than I'd expected. That's all. What about you? How's your body holding up?"

Ichigo stretches his free arm demonstratively, "Yeah I'm fine. See, no problems with me. A little stiff but nothing to complain about. Are you sure you're okay?"

Past Ichigo, Rukia can see Kaien's fingers subtly brushing his own right shoulder with an oddly vacant expression that explodes into a sunbeam grin when Ichigo spares a glance towards him, covering the gesture by readjusting his shoulder bag.

"I see." Rukia says cryptically, climbing to her feet with her bag over her shoulder. "I'll see you both at home."


"Absolutely out of the question."

Kisuke Urahara's expression remains pensive, phone receiver pressed to his ear while exhaling an imperceptible sigh. A glance at the clock reveals it's a little past midnight, and it's courtesy for his sleeping children that prevents Isshin from raising his voice louder than conversational levels.

Kisuke expected this response. And because of that he's not unsympathetic to his friend's attitude towards the situation, "Isshin, I'm afraid there's nothing that can be done about it now."

"Nothing can be done about it?" Isshin cuts him off incredulously, then angrily, he follows up rhetorically, "Tell me, Kisuke. In our entire history, written or otherwise, have you ever found an example of a reassociation that ended well for anyone involved?"

Kisuke hides a pensive frown, tucking his hat down.

The answer is no.

Truthfully they anticipated this day would come, ever since fifteen years ago when Isshin crashed his shop one July afternoon with Masaki in tow and each with a newborn baby swaddled in their arms each, happily introducing the twin to the very few people Isshin Shiba, now Kurosaki, counted among friends in the human world. (Only a fluke of fate and a marvelous streak of luck kept this from becoming a problem sooner.)

The new parents proudly showed off their young family, allowing everyone present to take turns holding the infants. By sheer coincidence, Shinji Hirako was there too paying a rare visit. He's another Captain-turn-exile with whom Isshin got along swimmingly once the initial rough reintroductions were smoothed over.

An eyebrow had been raised about the second son's name, but dismissed in short order. Masaki laughingly claimed it was her fault, they were so absolutely certain the second baby would've been a girl they never thought to come up with any alternative boy names. Isshin had suggested the first thing that popped into his head and Masaki loved it so that's what they went with.

Shinji only stayed long enough to teasingly mock Isshin as a sap before offering his congratulations and departing to re-join his hollowfied comrades intended for parts unknown.

While Masaki happily chatted away with Tessai and Yoruichi (who elected to remain in her cat form), the new father quietly pulled Kisuke aside and asked him to run a few tests as assurance. Isshin's intentions were entirely pure, to ensure the children were stable from the spiritual side.

Quincy and Shinigami don't typically reproduce together, not normally. The conflicting reiatsu were oil and water and would tear any developing fetus apart in the womb.

Evidently Masaki Kurosaki and Isshin Shiba had become the sole exception to that rule. Kisuke theorized that the Hollow reiatsu inherited from Masaki acted as a binding agent forcing the Quincy and Shinigami powers into equilibrium and was confident if the twins survived to term, then there were sufficient levels of each reiatsu mingling within their systems to prevent the a catastrophic outcome. But as a new father, Isshin fretted and wanted to ensure his boys wouldn't spontaneously implode upon themselves.

Kisuke performed the battery of tests as Isshin requested, and a few extra for his sanity's sake, cheerfully confirming the boys were indeed healthy.

But something tickled at the back of Kisuke's mind. An idle curiosity brought about by the name Isshin gave his second son.

As a man of sentiment, Isshin likely chose to name his second son after the late nephew he'd been so proud of, as a way to honour the late Kaien Shiba and continue that legacy. But Kisuke ran a second series of tests on the infant Kaien's sample anyway, if only to indulge an idle yet fanciful curiosity.

As it turns out, it was fortunate that he had.

To this day Kisuke remembers the flabbergasted slack-jawed expression on Isshin's face when he paid Kisuke a visit three months later.

Wandering into Kisuke's humble abode late one afternoon with dark smudges under his eyes, unannounced but not unwelcome, Isshin explained his second son wouldn't go to sleep unless carried around the town in laps. They struck up a mundane conversation over foul-tasting tea (Kisuke was never much of a cook), and Isshin nostalgically waxed about how much his infant son Kaien reminded him of his nephew at the same age.

That's when Kisuke informed him the name was entirely appropriate, considering what the boy carried; or much more precisely whose soul he carried.

Once the news sunk into Isshin's fatigue-addled brain, a whirlwind of emotions exploded over that tired face in a contradictory dance; the corner of his lips twitching up with joy, followed by a shuddering breath that might've been the beginning of a disbelieving laugh when he glanced down at his sleeping baby, cradling the precious thing just a little closer. And then his face transformed into what could only be described as a look of utter devastation as realization sets in.

Souls cycle between the worlds in a balance, and Shinigami maintain that balance. As a soul dies in Soul Society, they are reborn as a human. When that human dies, they are guided to the Soul Society or decay into a hollow. That was the order of things. But back in the ancient times some would resent and attempt to resist the natural order. Errant fools would seek out the incarnated souls of their recently deceased loved ones with misplaced intentions to restore their previous selves.

Every effort ended in catastrophe.

The soul may harbour memories for a time but the mind does not. It can not. A person can not remember a life they haven't lived.

Any documented attempts to draw out the old life only served to drive a wedge between the union of mind and the soul. Since the mind and soul cannot reconcile the dissonance, the misfortunate incarnation's psyche suffers a sharp deterioration before unraveling completely, leaving them as nothing more than an insensible feral lunatic, irrevocably driven mad and lashing out at anything and everything.

Death swiftly becomes the only mercy.

Soul Society set harshly enforced laws in place to prevent such travesties from occurring, with sentences swiftly and severely meted out.

"I haven't." Kisuke's confession weighs heavily on his conscience. "We've been extraordinarily lucky so far but we both knew our luck was bound to run out. Regrettably I don't envision this situation ending any other way."

"You have a hell of a way of comforting a distraught parent, you know that?" Isshin grumbles with a biting tone edged by anger.

Kisuke admits at length with no small amount of sorrow, "We both know there's no point in obfuscation. The cruel and unfortunate truth is as much as he may be your son, he was damned from the moment he was born. They both were Isshin. It goes without saying that your sons carry the additional burden of being special enough to draw Aizen's attention. This was always going to happen, whether it was the day Rukia Kuchiki fought the Hollow at your residence or a future day Aizen would simply swoop in and take the boys for himself."

"Over my burnt carcass." He hears Isshin snarl.

Kisuke ignores it.

The reality is this became inevitable the day Fishbone D slipped the net and found itself directed towards Kurosaki Clinic.

Kisuke immediately suspected foul play back then.

While events unfolded in a way advantageous for his aims, Kisuke kept dozens, hundreds of precautions in place He became far more careful monitoring the comings and goings of Hollows, especially after the incident with Masaki Kurosaki.

But their adversary is cunning. It wasn't difficult to draw a connection between Aizen and that incident. No ordinary Hollow could've slipped Kisuke's carefully constructed countermeasures. In all likelihood, it had been directed to Kurosaki clinic by Aizen as a means to test the burgeoning talents of either boy.

It's simply good luck within bad that the twin present that night was Ichigo. Had it been Kaien, this would be a very different and far worse conversation.

"His powers, both offensive and auxiliary, are asserting themselves in increasingly advanced ways. They intervened in a confrontation he had with a hollow and his Zanpakuto spirit is actively trying to communicate with him. I'm certain you've already noticed the changes in his reiatsu. At least under my tutelage, we'll be able to-"

"Don't." Isshin interrupts, suddenly overcome by a tired frustration. "Don't try to placate me. Don't offer empty platitudes. Don't even think about playing this game with me because we both know how it will end. Just... give me the time frame."

"I won't know until I've had a more detailed conversation with him or studied how he reacts to certain stimuli. This is a complex situation and I am just as blind as you." Kisuke explains sombrely.

"He's not a fascinating science experiment. Don't talk about him like that." Isshin warns sharply, then inhales to calm himself down, his tone is measured and controlled when he speaks next, "My children are not losing a brother. And I refuse to lose him again, so I suggest you think of something else and think of it damn fast. Is there nothing you can do?"

Kisuke shakes his head and confesses, "Very little, I'm afraid."

Isshin clicks his tongue.

Kisuke ruminates on it for a long beat of silence before he speaks again, "In the utmost extreme, we could attempt to seal Kaien's memories using a specialized Kido with Tessai's help. A targeted spell that would lock away anything and everything related to the Shinigami and spirit world. However it would be an involved and highly impractical procedure that would take days to complete. Even if we were successful, I theorize that would only function as a stopgap and ultimately exacerbate things in the long term. We must take other factors into consideration as well."

"Even if you sealed away his memories, Kaien would wonder where Ichigo disappeared to every other night wearing a shihakushou and chase after him to discover the truth, and the whole process would start all over again." Isshin summarizes.

"Only much quicker this time." Kisuke agrees, "We'd have to seal portions of Ichigo's memories to sell the deception. And should either boy ever discover the truth, which I fully believe they would, they'd lose faith in their own experiences. That would only accelerate Kaien's rate of deterioration, not suspend it. And…" Kisuke trails off and Isshin finishes for him.

"And they'd never forgive us. Forget about trusting either of us ever again."

Isshin curses under his breath.

It's a morally dubious course of action that could buy time, but ultimately it's a stall tactic. Kisuke knows that. Isshin knows that.

"I don't want it to come to that." Isshin tells him firmly.

"Nor do I." Kisuke pauses to sip the cold tea sitting on the chabudai, it's bitter and he grimaces but it bought him the necessary time to choose his next words, "I've already set up the process that will allow Kaien to awaken his powers. In the meantime I'll explore other methods that could potentially be used to keep him stable, but I should warn you I'm not optimistic about my chances."

"Coming from you, that's as good as admitting defeat." Isshin remarks coldly.

"I'm afraid I simply don't know, Isshin." Kisuke responds frankly, "I've never had the opportunity to examine a reincarnation outside historical records and I don't know what to expect. I don't know what will work unless I make the attempt."

I don't even know if there's anything I can do to help him, the words hang unsaid.

Kisuke shifted uncomfortably, "There's also the matter of the Soul Society. Undoubtedly they've received reports of the Menos Grande incursion upon Karakura town. An investigatory team will likely appear in the next 48 hours. They'll discover what's happened and make moves accordingly."

Neither of them needed to be told how that will end.

"With that in mind, I would like to expedite Kaien's training." Kisuke requests. "He'll be protected. I've woven layers upon layers of concealing barriers into the construction of my underground training facility and the training process will take some days. If he's hidden down there, I can effect a number of contingency plans to ensure Soul Society's investigators wouldn't find him within their operational window. Even if they somehow suspect something untoward and attempt to force the issue, they won't be able to achieve anything within their allotted timetable."

"I'm half-tempted to send Ichigo your way too." Isshin confesses heavily. "With the Gotei 13 sniffing around, Kuchiki might run off in a misguided attempt to protect them both. Ichigo will chase after her to help, because of course he would, and..." Isshin grunts, thoroughly displeased by the whole likely scenario, "Well, it goes without saying what'll happen next. Even if I wanted to, I doubt I'd be able to do anything to stop him. I know those boys of mine, stubborn brats that they are, if they catch a whiff of someone in trouble they'll dive in headfirst."

"It serves as virtue and vice, I'm afraid. But you know you can't protect them forever." Kisuke cautions.

"Won't stop me from trying." He hears Isshin exhale heavily through his nose in frustration. "Do whatever it is you need to do. Just keep me updated, okay?"

"Of course." Kisuke agrees without hesitation.

"Is it worth saying good luck?" Isshin asks with an uncharacteristically cynical tone.

Not in my experience, Kisuke thinks. He doesn't say it out loud, Isshin is distraught enough. "I appreciate the sentiment. We're going to need it."


Isshin hangs up on the call, then the receiver slips from numb fingers, clattering on his paper-strewn desk in the clinic and he leans forward, face buried in his hands.

Once upon a time in a different life, he was a soldier; a leader. Responsible for an entire division of men and women. He led those warriors into battle; less frequently (and by unfortunate necessity) to their deaths. Friends and colleagues he'd know for years fell in the line of duty, and every Shinigami accepted that as a fact of life. He's lost brothers and sisters, uncles and aunts, nieces and nephews.

And now, unless the fates or gods or the Soul King himself intervenes, it seems as though he's about to lose a son.

Damn it.

Damn it all to hell.

When he named his second son Kaien, he wanted his boy to inherit something of his elder cousin's spirit and legacy. But by a cosmic prank, that desire had been taken very literally.

Then again, that sort of joke was his nephew's, his son's, sense of humour down to a T. A prankster, through and through, with his favourite uncle as the punchline.

Though the full magnitude of the situation hadn't become apparent to Isshin until much later in his son's life.

It's one thing to be told a fact; to witness the evidence playing out in front of your eyes is another matter entirely.

As Kaien grew up alongside Ichigo, there were so many similarities between lives that Isshin feared he might have unwittingly sparked the dissociative episodes himself, but there's never been any hints on instability.

Nothing outside standard Shiba shenanigans, at any rate.

It seems that endless curiosity and an insatiable inquisitive mind were programmed into him, no matter which life he led. Though Isshin was surprised to see Kaien veer towards science (unpleasant circumstances aside, he and Kisuke would get along like a house on fire).

Then there's that mean pranking streak and chronic teasing, another quirk that seems hard encoded into his soul.

When Isshin witnesses his twin boys starting another bickering match, it summons a wistful nostalgia of days long passed, when his nephew was a child cheerfully pulling at Kukaku's or a younger cousin's pigtails for his own entertainment. In those days, as goodhearted as he was, Kaien was a righteous nightmare when he was bored, and Isshin might - he heavily stresses that might - have encouraged it a little.

That's probably why the issue of reassociation hadn't become a concern much sooner. By Kaien's own will, coincidentally or subconsciously, he chose to live what was practically the human equivalent of the life he led before he joined the Gotei 13.

As a human, Kaien grew up with a sibling close to his age that he'd cheerfully bicker with then cunningly scheme pranks together; he had two younger siblings to dote upon and spoil rotten; and a single living parent. Isshin plays a role in his life but frankly, the only true difference between lives is the job title, Kaien now calls him Dad instead of Uncle.

He chose to pursue his interests (water sports and hiking to the surprise of exactly no one) and forged a close knit circle of friends, spending his days living relatively carefree, loving life to the fullest and not worrying about what happens tomorrow.

But Kisuke is right. This peaceful delusion is rapidly drawing to a close and there's not a damn thing Isshin can do about it.

He closes his eyes and releases a gusty sigh. He needs coffee. There's still a mountain of patient files to get through.

Thankfully the clinic opens late tomorrow so he'll be able to sneak a tiny sleep-in. But his plans to sneak some late night caffeine are interrupted when he senses someone downstairs. The children should be asleep by now but Isshin had been so lost in his head he'd failed to notice one of them downstairs.

Through the adjoining door between the clinic and the main house's living room, he spots Kaien.

Dressed in the loose worn top and well-loved shorts that serve as his pajamas, Kaien is slumped on the lounge, feet leaning on the edge of the coffee table (Isshin scolded him to stop doing that) staring at the blank tv screen.

From this angle, his son can't see him but Isshin watches him quietly. The boy's not moving an inch and Isshin would've sworn he'd sleep walked downstairs if he hadn't spied the pensive expression on his son's face through the screen's reflection. He had his hand on his right shoulder, the wound from the Hollow, and seemed completely lost in thoughts.

Isshin suppresses a snigger when his son jumps in fright a few seconds later when his mobile phone blares some anime theme song as a ringtone, then smirks at the subsequent scramble to turn the sound off before answering, even if its tainted by a dreaded understanding of what's coming next.

"Hello? ... Mr Urahara? How on earth did you get my phone number? And why the heck are you calling at this time of night?" He hears Kaien's confusion mixed with irritation, though it's muffled by the door.

Isshin watches Kaien's expression transform from irritated to a cautious, almost concerned frown. "You mean tomorrow?"

He can see his son hesitating for a half-second then shaking his head. "No, no. I... I guess - no, don't worry. It's nothing. Tomorrow, it is. Can we postpone it to after school...? Ah. Right. Got it. I'll be there."

Kaien ends the call, chewing his lip as a nervous tick.

So it begins. Isshin laments to himself, watching his son quietly.

Isshin draws in a breath, musters his nerves and barges into the room, boisterous as ever and rewarded by Kaien yelping in fright (Isshin has to admit he enjoys watching his boys squirm a bit too much). "You're supposed to be in bed, young man! And if I told you once I've told you a thousand times, keep your feet off the coffee table!"


Author's note:

Kaien is in for a fun time. Wonder how this'll be solved... :)

Edit: 23/05/23 - removed padding.

Regards,

Aurora313