"I am not strong enough," Byakuya's voice was but a whisper, filled with regret and sadness. "I am not strong enough to control it. I can barely move, yet it urges me to keep going. No matter what I do, I can not control it."

The 4th Division Captain kept staring at the unconscious nobleman, increasingly flaring with anger. What had happened? Why had she clashed with Kuchiki, brutalising him in the process? These questions, like insects, flooded her mind, clouding it. A low growl escaped her throat, giving a tangible sign of her rapidly growing frustration. No, it was hardly a time or a place for pettiness, Unohana concluded, shaking her head; there were lives to save. Knowing fully well that she had overreacted, a pang of guilt must have been silenced and borrowed into her mind's depths. There would be time to reconsider what she had done, but she needed to hurry up for now.

Yourichi's POV (two days later):

"Yoruichi, it's so nice to see you," Urahara's voice boomed when his office's ajar door slid, revealing the visitor.

"Yeah," Shihoin said, not paying an ounce of attention towards her friend. "The last few days were busy, I guess," she added, approaching the man's desk.

"What brings you here, then?" Kisuke asked, discarding paper sheets he must have been inspecting prior to the woman's arrival. "You look tired," he commented, a note of worry rang out in his voice.

"I haven't been sleeping well, Kisuke; that's all," the dark-haired woman scoffed, quickly irritated.

"What brings you here, then?" Urahara repeated the question, frowning, concerned.

"Do you remember about the deal with Kuchiki I told you about?" Yoruichi asked, not knowing why avoiding eye contact.

"Hmm," the scientist hummed briefly, thinking. "The one regarding you training him?" he asked, worried at his friend's odd behaviour.

"Precisely," the dark-skinned woman commented. "I thought it would've been trivial to beat him, once and for all, proving my superiority over him. But … he nearly beat me," she whispered, still not sure what to think about that surprising situation.

"He nearly beat you?" the fair-haired man asked with a taint of disbelief.

"Yes," Shihoin let go of a deep sigh. "He told me that something within had awakened, giving him strength, but he had no control over it," she added, finally looking at her friend.

"Oh," Kisuke gasped and stepped away from his desk, intensively thinking. "It would've explained many things," he hummed, pacing back and forth.

"Wait, what would it explain?" Yoruichi asked, simultaneously intrigued and worried.

"Pardon me, Yoruchi," Urahara shook his head, apologising. "I thought you've heard about it already. But … if you didn't, Kuchiki Byakuya was taken into the 4th Division's barracks. As far as I know, his condition isn't critical, but the wounds refuse to mend," he explained, stilling.

"Why was I not informed?" the dark-haired woman whispered, anger flaring inside her. "Why no one told me?"

"I don't know," Kisuke shrugged. "You said it yourself: the past couple of days were wild. That might be the reason."

"I need to go," Shihoin said, turning around instantaneously. "We'll continue this the next time," she added before vanishing into thin air.

What had changed between her and Kuchiki? Questions like this filled the woman's mind, seemingly suffocating her. He was her student back in the day. But what she was doing and acting up could hardly be described as a teacher's reaction. No … whatever it was, it ran deep beneath her skin, slipping into the depths of her consciousness, finding its way into the woman's core. She sped up further, not wanting another minute to elapse till she learned the truth. A mere thought of him, a cold and proud nobleman dying before she would reach him, filled her with grief, hurt, guilt, and anger. It was a potent yet dangerous mixture, one that clouds one's mind.

What had happened? Why did her heart start racing when she thought about him, of all people? Yes, he was intoxicating and handsome, but she had never seen him this way. Apparently, something had changed after this sudden shakeup leading to her and Kisuke's return to Soul Society. He had changed. No longer a boy she had taught years ago, nor a cocky Captain who, if he had honestly tried, would have killed her when she tried saving Ichigo. Undoubtedly, Kuchiki matured, making him challenging to hate or even dislike. Or … perhaps Byakuya only behaved like this when dealing with her? This man was a mystery she could not solve. Each time one of his layers was discarded, a new one was revealed, replacing it. It irritated Yoruchi, but she would never admit it aloud. After all, she was a noble too. She had her pride.

Nonetheless, could she answer a challenging question despite this seemingly newfound pride? Was she infatuated with Byakuya Kuchiki? She would love to know the answer, as it was not trivial to name her feelings. No … who was she lying to? She was interested in him, but was it love already or some twisted primal and carnal desire born of his new darker appearance?

Author's notes section:

[2023-11-23]: Hey, here is a preview of the story's next chapter. Please, bear in mind that it is, as mentioned, a preview. Some parts of it might not be included in the final release. I will try to finish this chapter as soon as possible. I would like to clean up some of the tasks in my schedule, and right now, there are many chapters queued there.

Don't forget to comment. I really appreciate your feedback.

Note that the dialogues written in italic are thoughts.

As always, I would like to thank you for everything. See you soon :)

Changelog:
[2023-11-23]: A preview has been released.

Info: For this chapter I plan on taking a much darker twist. So please, be warned that there will be blood, gore, and more packed here.

Schedule:
- See the world through my eyes (finish the WIP)
- The family tree (finish the WIP)
- The broken heart (finish the WIP)
- Hidden in the mountain's shadow (new chapter)
- The rise of the Blood Moons' servants (new chapter)
- Black Diamond (new chapter)
- When the clock is ticking (Warhammer 40k new story)
- Sometimes it's just better not to know (new chapter)
- My home is where my heart lies (rewrite chapter 4)
- The heart not so cold (rewrite chapter 2)
- The family tree (revisit the previous chapters and apply adjustments)
- The Prisoner of Your Eyes (new chapter)
- Lifetime of war (new chapter)
- Hope is the last one to die (new story in SW universe)
- Sometimes it's just better not to know (finish rewriting the second chapter)
- Life is full of surprises (new chapter)
- Exiled you say? (new chapter)
- Until my last breath (new chapter)
- The story of one lost soul (new chapter)
- My home is where my heart lies (new chapter)
- A new story in JJK universe - focused on Gojo/Geto/Shoko/Utahime
- A new story in Bleach universe (potentially a one shot) - focused on Byakuya and Yoruichi
- A new story in Demon Slayer universe (modern au, school)
- A new story in Demon Slayer universe (moder au, divorce setting)
- The shadows can be deceiving (new chapter)
- Forgotten World (a new story - translation of an old polish text that I wrote years ago)
- The silence of the shackles (new chapter)
- The war call (new chapter)
- Will you look past my mistakes? (new chapter)
- The Breaking Point (new chapter)
- Bury the light (new chapter)

Bonuses' section:
A new story taking place in the Warhammer 40k universe.
Story of one lost soul: The war call: rewrite.
An entirely new story (possibly Akali x [Irelia, Syndra, Katarina]).
A new short story (Vi x Cait).
An entirely original story (possibly even two stories, one taking place in medieval times, the other in the far future)
Bleach story. (Byakuya x Yoruichi / ?)
Naruto story. (Neji x Hinata / Neji x TenTen / Nagato x Konan)
Fairy Tail story. (most likely Erza x Mira)
Maybe some Star Wars?

References:
- Apocalyptica, Brent Smith - Not strong enough
- (alternatively) Cher - Strong enough

*bonuses will be worked on when I don't feel like writing the chapters pointed out in the schedule :D

End of the author's notes section.