Summer has flown by so far. I haven't been writing much in a while, and yesterday when I realised the last update to this story was in May, I was dumbfounded for a hot minute. I can't believe it's been three months already! Adulting sucks.
This chapter is long overdue, so without further ado...
Chapter Twenty
When Mugetsu headed up to the rooftop to meet with Ichigo and his classmates for lunch and saw the three conspicuous characters dressed in their school uniform, disbelief and a long-suffering headache bubbled up within him. These Soul Society denizens, I swear to Kami... They wouldn't know subtle if it hit them in the face.
"Mugetsu!" the princess perked up. "We have not been formally introduced. We are Kasumi-Ouji Rurichiyo. These are Kenryuu and Enryuu."
"Nice to meet you," he returned casually. "Was it really necessary to come to our school? You're sticking out like sore thumbs."
" 'Sore thumbs'...?" Rurichiyo parroted in confusion. "We are partaking in the 'school' experience. We have heard this is something all youths in the World of the Living must attend."
Mugetsu cast his eye around, but thankfully, the spiritually-unaware out of Ichigo's classmates had not been paying attention.
"I'm glad you seem to be enjoying yourself, but you must be careful," he told her quietly, but in a friendly tone. She seemed like a good kid, if sheltered. "Normal humans don't know about Soul Society, and the Shinigami-san would be cross if they found out you told them about it."
"Ah," she gasped, covering her mouth. "Yes, we have been taught about this. We will exercise caution."
Kenryuu and Enryuu's dirty stares itched at his scalp, so Mugetsu carefully directed the princess back to the group without touching her, lest he incur their overprotective rage. "So what have you found new about our city and school so far?"
╭─━━━━━─╯ 無月の空の接触 ╰─━━━━━─╮
Later that night, Ichigo was pretending to sleep, waiting for Mugetsu to fall back asleep. Most of the time he drifted off before his older brother, but the reverse had also been true enough times for Ichigo to become aware of how often he suffered from nightmares. He'd also learned that his deep breathing calmed Mugetsu enough to be able to go back to sleep. It pained Ichigo to think that Mugetsu needed to reassure himself that his loved ones were safe so often.
He didn't mind, however. He'd give up half his sleep to his brother if he could.
As he laid there, he felt a prickle in his awareness and shot up like electrocuted. There was a strange spiritual signature close by. Too close, his hind brain protested instinctively. In his peripheral he saw Mugetsu had stood up as well and was reaching for the Shinigami badge.
Rukia burst into the room, already having left her gigai, just as they were doing the same. Ichigo went to open the window, and they all noticed Kenryuu standing on the rooftop of the house next door. He was looking around.
"Is it his?" Rukia asked.
"I can't tell. But it's not normal for sure," Ichigo replied. The two of them jumped out to confront Kenryuu.
Mugetsu remained behind, trying to get the feel of the situation while having a better view of the entire place. Several flashes of light suddenly appeared, and out of them a shadow flew out, crashing through the rooftop and into the house. Kenryuu, Ichigo and Rukia went after it. A moment later, Enryuu ran out of the house with an unconscious Rurichiyo on his back and Kenryuu followed, the three of them fleeing the scene together.
The shadow jumped back out of the house and made to follow them. Assassin, then? Mugetsu thought. Certain of the princess' location now, he jumped out to cut the assassin off, only to for his body to freeze in mid-air and nearly miss landing on the rooftop.
"Getsu!" he heard Ichigo shout.
"Don't mind me, you idiot!" he shouted back.
Ichigo attacked the assassin, but he dodged skilfully. "Why are you after Rurichiyo and the others?" he asked. The assassin didn't respond. Instead, he shifted his weapon slightly, and Ichigo froze, almost getting cut down. He evaded the strike in time, though it still grazed his arm. "What was that...?"
Rukia went to attack him, but froze as well. Mugetsu stepped in and deflected the assassin's attack with Tensa Zangetsu before he could reach her. "That ability... it made me lose consciousness for half a second," she said, still slightly dazed.
Mugetsu frowned. That thing... it looks like a mirror. He glanced up, and his eyes widened. "It's the light of the moon, Ichigo!"
Ichigo scowled in confusion, but seemed to catch on, because as the assassin tried to blind him again, he shifted Zangetsu's immense blade to reflect the light back, blinding him instead and then disarming him with a well-placed strike.
As the assassin came to, Ichigo placed the tip of his Zanpakutou to his throat. "Who sent you? Why are you after Rurichiyo and her men?"
The assassin scowled and made to run away. "I won't let you!" Ichigo said and launched a Getsuga Tenshou at him.
Instead of dodging, the assassin turned and let himself get swallowed in the strike.
"No!" Ichigo shouted, eyes wide with horror.
When it was over, there was nothing left of him.
"He... he killed himself," Rukia whispered.
"This is even more serious than we thought," Mugetsu said grimly.
╭─━━━━━─╯ 無月の空の接触 ╰─━━━━━─╮
After Ichigo'd given Kenryuu a petty but deserved kick, they called Ishida, Inoue and Chad over to be present when they got the truth out of the newcomers.
They then found out that Rurichiyo was the sole true heir left to the Kasumi-Ouji House - one of the most important noble houses of the Seireitei, inferior only to the Four Great Noble Houses - that there had been numerous attempts on her life, and that the two chamberlains who cared for her like a daughter had brought her to the World of the Living in a last-ditch attempt to protect her.
"There is no one else we can trust for this. Kurosaki Ichigo, Kurosaki Mugetsu, please become Rurichiyo-sama's bodyguards," Kenryuu finally said, and he and Enryuu bowed.
"W-wait a second..." Ichigo started to protest.
"Please," Kenryuu insisted. "If news of this internal strife reached the public, it could prove disastrous for the Kasumi-Ouji family. The Gotei 13 is not allowed to interfere with nobility's affairs, so we cannot turn to them for help. The two of you, however, are not officially affiliated with the Soul Society."
"That's true, but-"
"Please! We are not enough to defend the princess against these assassins!" and they bowed even lower.
Ichigo closed his mouth, but his turmoil was apparent in his frown. He turned to look at Mugetsu, gauging his opinion. Mugetsu raised an eyebrow in response.
As if Ichigo could ever refuse to help someone in need.
His little brother made a big show of his annoyance, but he said, " Fine!"
Mugetsu nodded as well. "I'm in too."
By the others' countenances, he guessed they would most certainly lend a hand as well, though they had no obligation to do so.
"I'll help as well," Rukia said.
"We couldn't possibly ask you to-" Kenryuu started, but Rukia shook her head.
"No. I know first-hand of the trials and tribulations of life as a noblewoman. This is the least I could do."
"Protecting the princess is one thing," Ishida pondered, hand lifted to his chin. "But that is only treating the symptom. How could Kumoi be stopped definitively?"
"There would need to be tangible proof and witnesses willing to talk," Kenryuu replied. "Neither of which are easily acquired."
"What if we caught one of the assassins and presented them as proof?" Chad inquired.
Kenryuu shook his head. "Kumoi would deny any involvement. Besides, these assassins are specially-trained. They resist capture at any cost, even if it involves forsaking their own lives."
"The least-destructive way you can change a system is from the inside, Kurosaki Mugetsu."
Mugetsu frowned. "I'll go to the Soul Society."
They all turned to look at him. "What for?" Ichigo asked.
"I'll be able to keep an eye on the situation there, and dig around for proof if there's any to be found."
They turned this over in their minds, obviously worried. "Are you sure about this?" Rukia asked him.
"Trust me," Mugetsu told them all, inwardly trying to bully himself into feeling the confidence he showed his comrades on the outside.
╭─━━━━━─╯ 無月の空の接触 ╰─━━━━━─╮
After the others had left towards their homes and he and Ichigo were about to head out too, Kenryuu was staring at him rather too long to be considered accidental. "Take a picture, it lasts longer," Mugetsu told him pointedly.
The chamberlain startled out of his train of thought and coughed to hide his embarrassment. "Pardon, but I was wondering... Are you perhaps related to the Shiba house of old? Your facial structure and your manner, well... the resemblance is rather striking. I've noticed some of the traits in your younger brother as well."
Enryuu was fervently nodding in agreement.
Mugetsu froze. This was certainly not the first time he had been reminded of his resemblance to the Shibas - most often to one particular, famous and dearly beloved Shiba - but to hear a stranger familiar with the high aristocracy of the Soul Society say it... He had wondered about it before, and though he had preferred not to draw his own conclusions until he heard the full story, there was just no chance in hell it could be mere coincidence, with his father being a Soul Reaper. But what would being a Shiba even mean for him and his siblings? And what consequences would it spell for his father and his family if it were to reach the Soul Society's ears about who they are?
His internal turmoil must have been showing on his face, because Kenryuu hastened to say, "Forgive my prying. Of course, this is a delicate subject, and you would not be partial to dwelling on it, given the history. You need not answer my question. You may rest assured that your identity will not have any bearing on your time in the Princess' employ."
History...? Mugetsu wondered, thrown by the abrupt turn of their conversation. "Uh... okay," he mumbled faintly.
"What was that about?" Ichigo asked him when Mugetsu returned to his side.
"Nothing, don't worry about it," Mugetsu lied.
╭─━━━━━─╯ 無月の空の接触 ╰─━━━━━─╮
The next day, before leaving for school, Mugetsu waited for Ichigo, Rukia and his siblings to leave first, then headed back inside the house. The moment he entered the living room, his father's expression turned serious, reading the tension in his muscles.
"Is 'Kurosaki' your true family name?" Mugetsu asked right away, wasting no time on platitudes or warm-ups.
"So it's that time, is it?" Isshin asked quietly, a resigned note in his voice. "I guess you never got around to this conversation with the other guy."
I'm sorry we didn't take a break from being massacred to have a heart-to-heart, Mugetsu didn't spitefully say, because it was unfair to both of them. He kept quiet.
"My name used to be Shiba Isshin," his father said after a while. "I am not ashamed of it, just like I am not ashamed of having taken Masaki's name. At the time, it was the best choice."
"So then..." Mugetsu said tentatively. "Kuukaku and Ganju are...?"
"My niece and nephew," Isshin said. "Your cousins."
He didn't ask why. There were lots of possible reasons, protecting them being one, and he thought Isshin was likely right about it, given his - and Ichigo's - inevitable clash with the Soul Society.
"What happened to the Shibas?" To our family?
Isshin's eyes crinkled with old hurt. "You must have heard something of it when you met Kuukaku, but our clan used to be one of the Five Great Noble Houses. After Kaien died, however... in the following five years, things got hectic. Various vassals and members of the family got involved in scandals or were accused and tried, and Kuukaku did her best managing it all with our support, but she was young and inexperienced... before we knew it, she got handed a notice to present herself for trial in front of the Central 46 to answer for the clan's treason."
"Evidence had surfaced incriminating two of the minor families serving the Shiba House. They were accused and found guilty of assassinating members of other Noble Houses, supposedly under direct order from the Shiba branch family.
"Those declared directly responsible as well as their families and servants were executed without prior notice. Since no tangible proof was found of the branch family's order or the identity of the particular noble who gave it, it was decided that Kuukaku be forced to assume responsibility for our vassals' crimes and take the House with her in exile, instead of all being put to death as well."
"After that, the family slowly split apart. Since we were now homeless and owning nothing but the clothes on our backs, we struggled to live day by day. Many died of sickness or hunger, while others simply chose to find their own paths in life and took their direct relatives with them. In the end, it was just us three and a handful of loyal servants left. We made a living of the family trade, somehow, though I was never any good at it. Since the Gotei 13 are technically supposed to be independent from the Noble houses and I wasn't directly involved in the crimes, I got to keep my job, so I also helped support them with my Shinigami wage, despite Kuukaku always hounding me about quitting," his lips curled in a small, wistful smile. "And then..."
He trailed off.
His father only ever had that particular complicated expression on his face when it came to his mother. Mugetsu didn't push him. Instead, he sighed heavily and stood.
"Ichigo deserves to know, too."
And I'm not gonna be the one to tell him.
"...you're not going to ask me about the rest?"
A beat. "Not this time," Mugetsu said, against his better judgement. As mercenary as he'd been turned by experience, he still sometimes fell prey to sentimentality like that: sparing his fumbling father's feelings unless absolutely necessary. He headed to the front door. "I'll be leaving for the Soul Society after I tell Karin and Yuzu tonight. I don't know how long I'll be gone, but I'll try to be back soon."
"He made you an offer, didn't he?"
"I don't run from my responsibilities," Mugetsu said, allowing himself just that bit of pettiness.
╭─━━━━━─╯ 無月の空の接触 ╰─━━━━━─╮
Walking home alone at night was nothing new for Inoue Orihime. Living alone, she did her groceries and chores whenever time allowed, which with school, studying and homework, a social life and her supernatural extracurriculars, ended up being at odd hours of the day.
Encountering crying Plus princesses in the middle of the road at night, however, was something of a novelty in comparison.
"Rurichiyo-chan?"
The girl looked up, and her big emerald eyes were puffy and full of shed and unshed tears. She immediately stood up and tried to make herself presentable once again. Orihime's heart twinged.
"Are you alright?" she asked, coming closer and crouching.
"You're..." Rurichiyo thought for a second, then smiled. "Oh, you're Orihime! We remember because you have 'hime' in your name, so you must be a princess as well."
Orihime laughed softly. "Oh no, I'm no princess. That's just my name. But, yes, I'm Inoue Orihime."
Rurichiyo's brows furrowed in confusion. "The World of the Living is a strange place indeed."
"Say, Rurichiyo-chan," Orihime started. "Why are you here all by yourself? What happened to Kenryuu and Enryuu?"
The princess huffed and crossed her arms, turning away angrily. "Who cares about them?"
"What happened?" she asked gently, not letting up.
Rurichiyo's angry facade cracked, and her eyes turned sad.
So the two of them sat down on a bench, and Orihime listened to her tale of finding out the truth behind the vegetables in her food, of the thankless labour of others which she had taken for granted in her ignorance. It would have sounded like a silly story in any other context, and yet Orihime was made aware of the real dilemma between the lines. "...The two of them always hide things from us," she finished sadly.
In sheltering her to this extent, the two chamberlains had both kept her happy and disadvantaged her. But that was not for Orihime to pass judgement on.
"Kenryuu-san and Enryuu-san really care about you, don't they?" Orihime remarked contemplatively. "People who care about you try to keep you happy and safe however they can. This is just their way of making sure you don't have to worry about things."
"We do not see things this way," Rurichiyo argued. "They are just treating us like a child."
Orihime took one of Rurichiyo's trembling hands into hers. "When people show you their affection constantly, you start taking it for granted. If you don't realise how much they care for you in the present, you'll regret it when they're gone."
Rurichiyo turned to look at her. "So try to understand how they're feeling too, okay?" Orihime told her with a sad smile.
"We said something horrible to them," Rurichiyo said, looking away in shame. "Do you think they'll forgive us?"
Rurichiyo has a good heart. And I suppose Kenryuu-san and Enryuu-san are the only family she's ever known, Orihime thought. They've done a good job raising her.
"I'm sure they will. Now let's go back together!"
A gale of wind blew Rurichiyo's hat away at that moment. She ran to recover her hat, and a dark-clothed man suddenly stood there and attacked her.
Orihime jumped and grabbed Rurichiyo with her, dodging the man's sword strike in the nick of time. He tried to attack them again.
"Santen Kesshun!" Orihime's golden shield materialised in front of them, blocking the sword.
He threw the sword aside and uncovered the large weapon on his back, which came alive and connected to his arm like a parasite. He slashed at them, and though the shield didn't give under the strike, the stone that solidified over them threatened to crush them. They jumped to the side and avoided the falling column. Orihime wasted no time, getting to her feet and pulling Rurichiyo with her, and they tried to run away.
Their path was cut off by two stone walls forming. Orihime formed another shield in time to block a direct strike.
"Why is this man doing this to us? Are we being punished for being a burden on so many people?" Rurichiyo wondered tearfully.
"You're not a burden, Rurichiyo-chan," Orihime told her firmly. She focused her spiritual power and widened the shield, pushing back the slightest.
"You can protect, Inoue-san. But sometimes you have to harm in order to protect."
It's alright, she told herself. It doesn't matter if I hurt someone. I can fix it.
"Koten Zanshun! I reject!" Orihime called out, and Tsubaki tore a clean line through stone, on and on, until it hit the assassin's weapon.
The stone crashed to the sides, clearing the path forward. Orihime dismissed her shield and instead carved a way out through the walls behind them with Tsubaki. She couldn't wait to see if the enemy was dead or injured. Rurichiyo's safety was the priority right now.
"Rurichiyo-sama!" Kenryuu and Enryuu came running, falling to their knees before the girl, frantically checking her over for injuries.
"Inoue!" Ichigo called as he and Rukia arrived. "Are you alright?"
"We're alright, but the person who attacked us..." she trailed off in worry.
"You fended him off by yourself?" Rukia asked, looking at the great piles of rubble in amazement.
"Eh-heh..." Orihime laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of her head.
They walked to where Orihime had last seen the man, but he was nowhere to be found. There were only the destroyed remains of his weapon.
"I guess he escaped," Ichigo said, frowning.
"We wouldn't have gotten anything out of him anyway, from what Kenryuu-dono told us," Rukia pointed out.
"You protected the princess. Young lady, we are in your debt," Kenryuu told her as he and Enryuu bowed in gratitude. "Unlike this low-life Substitute Shinigami."
"I dare you to say that to my face-!"
Orihime allowed herself a small smile. I did it, Kurosaki-san! I can protect too!
To be continued...
In retrospective, I wonder what this arc looks like for someone who didn't watch the filler... Is it confusing? Should there be more details? I don't usually like rehashing events word-for-word from the canon (filler) source when they occur the same, but if anyone feels like they can't enjoy the story because of the glossing over, please let me know.
As usual, pretty please leave a review! Even if you hated it, loved it, or are indifferent to it, or just want to whine about your persistent itch, write it down. Reviews are love and love is fuel for writing, because artists are attention whores, lmao.
See you next time!
- Love, Noxi
