It felt weird to have a funeral on a sunny day. Kaede hadn't attended many in Soul Society, but whenever she read about them before, she always imagined a gloomy, gray day, raindrops mixing with the mourners' tears.
Perhaps this was more fitting, as Shinigami company funerals were dry-eyed affairs. They were soldiers after all, and "death" was in their title; it was unseemly to show anything but grim acceptance when a colleague was taken from them.
The very concept of a Shinigami's "death" fascinated Kaede a bit. They were taught that when one's spiritual form was destroyed, one's reishi rejoined the atmosphere, becoming part of a greater whole. Meanwhile, the person's unique essence - their soul, for lack of a better term - would then reenter the cycle of reincarnation, eventually manifesting in another human body. That was the most accepted theory, though in all her reading, Kaede only ever found a diverse selection of anecdotal evidence to support it. Then again, it wasn't like there was a reliable way to track a single soul's journey across time.
She used to wonder if the people destroyed by the Catastrophe had reentered that cycle. The thought was almost a comfort: they'd get another chance at life, perhaps even transcend that cycle and find true peace. Now, having gotten to know her own power a little better, she wondered if there'd been anything left of those Souls to cycle.
A flicker of movement caught her eye - just Soi Fon, signaling that she was going to do another sweep of the perimeter. Kaede refrained from rolling her eyes, but didn't bother trying to protest. The other woman was being overly cautious, but Kaede couldn't blame her for wanting some distance from their assigned charge. She had met some truly frightening people before, but this one…he was probably the purest form of psychopath she'd ever encountered.
The funeral was for his wife, Kakyo - and he was the one who'd killed her.
It wasn't a great secret. In fact, judging by the nervous and fearful side-eyes from the other Shinigami, most of them knew he was the one responsible. The official story was that it had been an accident, something about a drunken brawl gone wrong. Kaede doubted anyone in attendance here actually believed it, but they'd been paid or - more likely - threatened to keep their opinions to themselves.
After all, one did not cross one of the Five Great Noble Clans and expect to live a long, prosperous life.
Tsunayashiro Tokinada had shown absolutely no remorse or grief throughout this time - not at his very secret trial, a farce of a formality that only took place because he'd been brash enough to commit two murders in plain view, and not now during the funeral. The whole time that she'd been part of his guard detail, Kaede hadn't seen anything but mild amusement or boredom on the man's face.
She never had to interact directly with the man, thank goodness - the whole point of the Stealth Corps was to be invisible, and Tokinada himself was supposed to be oblivious to their presence. But there were a couple of times that she was certain they'd made eye contact, whether by accident or not, and in his eyes, she saw…nothing. Not even a void or an emptiness - that would imply depth. No, Tokinada's eyes were like glass mirrors, reflecting exactly what they saw with no indication of anything existing behind them. "Unsettling" was putting it mildly; the man made her stomach churn.
Right now, those glass eyes were focused not on the open casket, where his wife's body was laid out surrounded by white flowers, but on another person in attendance.
This one was…interesting. He wasn't a Shinigami, that much was obvious: he wore the plain clothes of a Rukongai citizen, perhaps from a mid-level district. He was the only one here to openly display his emotions, his cheeks lined with the dried tracks of many tears that had fallen from unseeing, milky white eyes. He seemed to be barely holding himself together, his fists clenched so tightly at his sides that his dark-skinned knuckles were nearly white.
Kaede looked again at Tokinada and saw a slight, sinister upturn of his thin lips as he watched the young man. She had the distinct impression that she was seeing a predator picking out its next target - and that it wasn't mere hunger that motivated him.
Turning her attention back to the young man, she focused her senses on him to check for any possible threat. She wasn't sure how much this guy knew about Kakyo's murder, but if he knew that the killer was seated just a few rows over, that could be a problem. Shinigami were relatively easy for the nobles to influence and control, but a distraught Rukongai citizen had little to lose.
That's when she noticed something curious about him.
Rukongai citizens, she'd noticed over the years, usually didn't have a noticeable reiatsu signature. It was there, but compared to that of a Shinigami or anyone born in the Seireitei, it was barely a speck on the radar. But this guy…he had something. It was unrefined, but his reiatsu pulsed in her senses like a strong, flickering candle.
Kaede made a mental note to let Sousuke know about this person in her next message. Perhaps he could intercept the young man before the latter was ousted back into the Rukongai; he definitely had the potential to be a Shinigami. Might be a worthy "investment."
Tokinada lingered long after the other mourners left, watching the young man with a snake-line grin. Kaede was almost glad the guy couldn't see it.
Her charge left before the young man did, and she had to follow. Once he was alone, the nobleman began talking in a clear, conversational tone.
"Well, that was trite - wouldn't you agree, my shadow?"
He was talking to her - well, to his protection detail. To any onlookers, he might as well have been talking to himself. Kaede didn't react or respond; aside from it going against protocol to do either, she wasn't about to become his twisted entertainment.
"I'm sure my dear Kakyo would have preferred the company funeral over a more lavish affair," he continued, unphased by the lack of response. "She was such a sweet, simple soul. I couldn't help but be attracted to her, even if she hadn't been thrust upon me by the elders - strong morals, lofty dreams of 'sweeping away the clouds to let the stars shine through.' I thought it would be amusing to break her, bit by bit…but she never even bent. It was truly incredible how forgiving she always was, how willing to believe in the 'better nature' of someone like myself. If I'm honest, it grew dull after a while."
The thin, serpentine smile reappeared on his lips. "Perhaps that's why I killed her."
Everything was said in the same tone one would use to comment on the weather. He was clearly trying to shock and provoke - if not her particularly, then anyone who might be witnessing this nobleman talking to the air. He spoke openly about killing his colleague and his wife, not caring if people overheard; on the contrary, Kaede was certain that he wanted people to hear him. He wanted a reaction, any reaction, even if it put his own life and freedom in danger.
Because he was an aristocrat, he could, and would, get away with it all - a fact that he was proudly, sadistically aware of.
"Well, I suppose I should go pack," Tokinada sighed. "Though I've no idea what I will need. Have you ever been to the Nest of Maggots, shadow? Perhaps you could help me decide what to bring."
Kaede's jaw clenched. Soi Fon sent her a warning signal - don't respond - but it was unnecessary. All week, she hadn't given in to her urge to run the man through with her own blade; she wasn't about to break her streak now that they were almost finished.
"It really is an absurd situation," the noble mused. "I murdered two people, and instead of execution or regular, official imprisonment, I'm simply being shoved under the rug like so much dirt. Not only that, but I'm allowed to attend my dear, dead wife's funeral, if only to keep up appearances, and I get my own personal bodyguards!"
He laughed, a high, tittering sound that set Kaede's teeth on edge.
"I must ask you, shadow," he continued. "How does it feel to be guarding a known murderer against those who would rightfully seek justice? Do you resent being assigned to me? Or are you a good little automaton, carrying out any and all orders that come with the official stamp of Central 46?"
It was almost a little amusing, she thought, how he assumed she was some loyal grunt. But she was already well aware of the absurdity that was Soul Society's "peace" and "order;" none of this was a shock to her anymore.
Nor did it surprise her to sense murderous intent coming from someone waiting just up ahead. They were poorly hidden and not even trying to fully conceal their reiatsu - definitely not a professional. Kaede signaled to Soi Fon and flash-stepped ahead, steeling herself for the unpleasant task.
"Unpleasant" became an understatement when she caught sight of the would-be assassin. He was a young Shinigami, barely more than a kid. Sweat beaded his brow. He was breathing hard, his Zanpakuto rattling against its scabbard from how much he was shaking. Kaede guessed that he'd been close with one of Tokinada's victims and now sought revenge and closure.
She couldn't blame him. In her opinion, death was the least that Tokinada deserved. If he'd been anything less than a noble, he'd have been executed or, at best, sentenced to life in the Central Underground Prison. He had, after all, committed an actual crime, and his behavior and lack of remorse proved him to be dangerous. But Central Underground Prison kept detailed records of its inmates, and the great Tsunayashiro Clan couldn't have such a blemish on their name, even from a lowly branch member like Tokinada. Execution would likewise cause them problems, because Tokinada was apparently strong enough to require the Soukyoku - not exactly a discreet way to go.
Instead, this walking, talking personification of everything that was wrong with Soul Society was sentenced to a couple of centuries in the Nest of Maggots - long enough to let this "incident" blow over and be forgotten. Then he'd be free.
This kid, though…he'd forfeited his life the moment he decided to try his hand at revenge against a Tsunayashiro.
"I'm sorry," Kaede whispered in his ear as the knife slid across his throat. "You didn't deserve this."
Tokinada did, but he was protected by a self-interested system. She'd have gladly killed him herself, but instead, she was under orders to kill people like this poor kid - orders given to her by people who would want her dead if they had any inkling of what she really thought of them.
No…that wasn't quite accurate. They'd wanted her dead from the day she arrived in Soul Society. This was just their latest condition for her continued stay of execution.
I'm sorry, she repeated silently as the Shinigami's body faded from existence. The knives used by the Stealth Corps were infused with a special poison that insured the body's disintegration, except for people with exceptionally strong reiatsu. The first time she'd used one on an actual person, she'd vomited afterward, reminded of what her own power used to do to people back when she couldn't control it.
This time, she had the wherewithal to catch the body, gently lowering him to the ground as whoever this kid was, whatever he could have been, faded into aether. She tried to harden her heart, to separate herself from the moment. After all, even in the most ideal scenarios she and Sousuke had considered, there would come a day when she'd probably have to kill a lot more than one wayward boy.
I'm so sorry…
"You took too long earlier," Soi Fon admonished quietly a little while later when Kaede returned to their small break room in the Tsunayashiro estate. They'd been given this space to rest in shifts while Tokinada slept peacefully in his own quarters below them.
Kaede sighed, pulling down her face mask to breathe some fresh air. "Bastard took his time falling asleep. Couldn't do my sweep of the perimeter until he did."
"I'm not talking about that," Soi Fon spat. "I mean earlier today, when you went to deal with that threat."
That kid, Kaede mentally corrected. She took a breath to steady her fraying nerves and placed a teasing smile on her lips. "What, were you counting the seconds I was away? Did you miss me that much?"
Soi Fon huffed and crossed her arms. "Your conduct is hardly becoming of a member of the Stealth Corps. How you were even admitted is beyond me."
"I showed excellence in both Hakuda and Hoho, have extensive experience in hand-to-hand combat, and was essentially raised in the Division Two grounds," Kaede supplied smoothly.
"So you cleared the lowest bars for an outside recruit and had some connection going in," Soi Fon drawled. "Congratulations."
"Thank you, Miss Raised-in-an-Assassin-Clan. Now kindly remove the stick from your ass and tell me what your problem with me really is so we can clear the air and get back to our job, senpai."
"My problem," Soi Fon hissed, "is that you have no respect for this position, the Stealth Corps, the Gotei 13, or Yoruichi-sama!"
Kaede almost laughed. Soi Fon happened to be right, but she wasn't about to let her know. "Wow. I mean…no, actually, I'm not even dignifying that one."
"What's that supposed to mean?!"
"It means I'd rather we focus on our mission than argue over why exactly you're so jealous of me," Kaede sighed. "Or would that not be the respectful-" She stopped.
"Wha-"
Kaede held up her hand to silence her, focusing on her spiritual senses. A familiar spark, subtle as a brief flicker of light, hit her internal radar, a signal meant just for her. So it's already time…
"There's activity on the grounds," Kaede told her in a clipped tone. "I count…twenty, at least, making their way in."
Soi Fon, to her credit, snapped to attention, immediately securing her Zanpakuto at her back. They'd needed special permission to carry them into the noble district, but given their mission, an exception had been made.
"I'll confirm those numbers and alert the estate guard," Soi Fon said, already heading for an exit. "You guard Tokinada. Your senses are…better for that role right now," she admitted only a little begrudgingly.
Kaede nodded, pulling her face mask back up. It was all going exactly as planned.
She took her place in Tokinada's room, not worried about the man waking up - she'd slipped a little something into his evening meal to ensure he slept through the night. Best to keep him from interfering in this attempt on his life.
Outside, she felt flickers and sparks of reiatsu as the invaders clashed with the Tsunayashiro's security force. The security guards were hardly able to put up a fight; these assassins had clearly done their homework, targeting the exact locations of every guard in the estate in a well-coordinated ambush.
It helped that they'd been coached on how to do exactly that a few days prior.
A lone, well-cloaked signature broke away from the others, one that would slip by any other sensor's notice - but one that Kaede was intimately familiar with. They sent up another small flare of reiatsu.
Sousuke was inside the estate, and he was beginning his search.
Now came Kaede's next part in the plan: buying him time.
The Tsunayashiro estate was massive, even by the standards of the nobility. The Kuchiki had a grand but understated manor; the Shihoin, an ornate, spread-out complex. The Tsunayashiro mansion towered above them, reaching toward the sky like it was trying to pierce the heavens themselves - and that was just the main building.
Kaede had made a map of the estate days ago, leaving it in a secure drop-off point they'd previously agreed upon. Aizen had memorized it and burned it, creating a crude, less detailed copy for the mercenaries he hired for tonight's job. As far as they were concerned, a small, radical group based in the Rukongai had hired them to kill Tokinada as a statement to the entirety of the elite: "You can't get away with these crimes any longer."
Many might see that as a worthy endeavor. Aizen saw it as idiocy wrapped in naivete, but for this situation, it was useful.
In reality, Aizen had merely posed as a member of that radical group and used his hypnosis to make these mercenaries think they were being paid handsomely for their efforts. If any of the hired hands were captured and made to talk, the radical group would take the fall and there'd be no possible way to trace this incident back to him or Kaede. Not that any of them were realistically leaving this compound alive.
It was all a distraction, of course. By the end of the night, the Tsunayashiro clan would be scrambling to hide the fact that they'd been infiltrated so easily. With the assumption that the target was Tokinada, they'd never even think to check if their most valuable locations had been breached.
Aizen joined the mercenaries for the infiltration, disguised as one of their own. He intercepted Kaede's annoying partner as she rushed to assess the situation, and within seconds, had her under Kanzen Saimin. The young woman would find herself clumsier than usual tonight, her senses skewed just enough to throw off her balance and aim here and there. Ideally, she wouldn't make it through the night alive.
As soon as Aizen was past the first wave of guards, he broke away and headed for the two areas of interest. Subtle signs dotted his route to point him in the right direction: a tilted painting, a smudge above a door, a needle-thin piercing in a paper screen.
He smiled at the signs. Kaede had done her job exceedingly well so far. He almost pitied the mercenaries who would inevitably cross her path tonight - almost. No, actually, he rather enjoyed the thought of her skillfully taking the fools down. Shame he couldn't watch her work.
The Surveillance building was his first stop. He easily cast Kyoka Suigetsu on the workers inside - all of them low-level branch members of the clan - so they'd assume he was one of their own. The technology used by the clan to watch all of Soul Society was quite remarkable, far beyond anything the Human World had and even more advanced than what the Gotei 13 worked with. Aizen familiarized himself with it in minutes, quickly erasing the scant footage of his infiltration and memorizing the angles of certain images. From now on, he would control what the Tsunayashiro clan saw. Once he was confident that he'd avoid further detection, he made his way to his next stop.
The area where the Tsunayashiro stored the records they made was underground, its entrance sparingly guarded now as the majority of the clan's security force dealt with the more violent intruders. He encountered only two guards near the locked door, both easy enough to put under Kanzen Saimin. The door itself was bound with Kido, but he'd managed to catch a clan elder with his Kyoka Suigetsu the day before and knew the secret to the spell. A minute later, he was inside.
The archive was a cavernous maze of passageways and alcoves cut into the stone, each stuffed with records dating back thousands of years. More recent records were kept in canisters of magnetic tape containing direct recordings of events; farther back, scrolls and books were more prevalent.
Aizen took a moment to breathe in the scent of old paper and bask in the weight of the eon's worth of history all around him. Years he'd waited for an opportunity to be here, to finally see the uncensored accounts of everything that had happened in Soul Society since its inception.
Now he was here at last, and it was thanks to his wife.
Oh, he'd have found a way in eventually, with or without assistance, but Kaede made it so much easier. Aizen had never given much thought to the benefits of having a partner; reliance on another person was, in his view, weakness. One could only rely on oneself in the end, and he prided himself on independence.
However, Kaede allowed him to advance his plans decades, even centuries, faster than he'd expected. Her fear of abandonment and rejection was a potent tool for motivating her and keeping her in line. She worked so much harder when she thought she might disappoint him somehow. He made sure to give her enough praise at just the right times to raise her from despair, a balancing act he'd just about perfected over their time together.
Seeing her let loose whenever they were in Hueco Mundo, though…even now, just the memory of it was enough to stir a deep, primal level of satisfaction and pride. That was Kaede at her most beautiful, and he looked forward to seeing her unleash that exquisite beauty on the whole world - beauty that he had been the first to see and bring out.
That day would come, and he would relish when it did. For now, he had to look into the past. Above his head, his wife was buying him enough time to get familiar with the layout of these archives and secure a method of reentry for later; he would do well to not waste her efforts.
There was more down here than he'd dared hoped: first-hand accounts and descriptions of events both major and minor, known and obscure. It seemed that very little escaped the eyes of the Tsunayashiro, though thankfully they mostly focused on recording substantial happenings throughout the Seireitei itself. There were documents taken directly from the desks of judges and elders, pictures of clandestine meetings…enough to blackmail other clans several times over if need be.
And oh, the things this clan got up to behind closed doors.
Aizen speed-read through a report on the wife of Kaede's charge, his curiosity over that whole situation driving him to seek answers. It was highly unusual for a nobleman to marry a Rukongai citizen, and unheard of to have the clan give its blessing to such a match - yet that seemed the case for Tokinada and Kakyo. Now here, in Aizen's hand, was the reason: Kakyo had been a person of interest to the Tsunayashiro clan long before Tokinada met her. In fact, their very meeting had been set up on purpose.
And when he read why they had such interest in her…
Aizen replaced the document and quickly searched out another, a suspicion forming in his mind. Surely, given what they'd seen in Kakyo, they'd have also looked into…there it was: a thick set of reports, documents, and pictures of Kaede. He'd long figured that the noble clans might have interest in her for reasons both obvious and obscure, but here was the proof in his hands. And one reason - one conjecture - was an unexpected connection Kaede had with the now-deceased wife of Tsunayashiro Tokinada.
Both were Souls that exhibited something special, something beyond strong reiatsu - an essence that the Tsunayashiro seemed to think was contained in the deepest part of their soul. Apparently, the clan had been taking and experimenting on individuals with this "essence" for centuries now, trying to isolate and extract the source of this strange power. In Kakyo, they'd sought instead to breed that essence into their noble line, using Tokinada - a lowly branch member - as the guinea pig. If the experiment came to naught, at least they hadn't wasted the seed of a higher-born clan member on it.
Instead, Tokinada had killed Kakyo without producing any offspring.
As for Kaede…yes, the Tsunayashiro had tried to bargain for her when she was a child. It had come down to a vote, with the Shihoin, Kuchiki, and Shiba clans dominating the 3-to-2 decision to have Kaede be "joint property" of Soul Society. If the Tsunayashiro had their way, she'd have been one of those experiments, or possibly put in the same position as Kakyo when she'd matured.
An unexpected spike of anger shot through Aizen at the thought. They'd planned to use his Kaede as a lab rat and broodmare. What a waste that would have been of such an exquisite creature. He supposed he should thank Urahara for saving Kaede from that fate, and for priming her perfectly for Aizen instead.
That "essence" the documents spoke of, though…that interested Aizen more than anything else. He would need to look into that further the next time he came here; his time was running short for now. Before he replaced Kaede's substantial file, he flipped to its beginning - to the purest record available of the Catastrophe. This was mostly to sate his own curiosity of the event, to see what the Central Underground Library had left out. Most of it was already familiar to him by now: It had happened before the Tsunayashiro had developed its more pervasive surveillance methods, and there'd been no eye-witness accounts of the event itself. Only the aftermath was recorded, which was fine, as there was something he wanted to confirm.
When he'd unsealed Kaede and her power had changed the very landscape around them, he'd noticed a marked change in the atmosphere - residual energy that hadn't been repurposed or reformed. If his theory was correct, then the same should have happened in the Catastrophe, but on a much larger scale. As a child, Kaede had only been able to deconstruct the matter around her. So many destroyed souls should have left something behind.
A slow grin spread across his face as he skimmed the file. He was right.
There had been a noticeable change in reishi density at the site. Most of the Shinigami who came to the scene couldn't stand to be there for more than a few minutes at most. The Tsunayashiro had sent its people to retrieve as many samples as they could from the area, but by the time they got there…most of that energy had already gone.
It was far too fast for it to have dissipated on its own. No…Aizen suspected that something, or more likely someone, had siphoned most of that energy away. Perhaps that person had theorized, as Aizen was doing now, that such dense reishi could be used, contained…cultivated.
Aizen replaced the file. He'd read enough for the time being, and now he'd secured his passage back inside. There would be time to-
He froze. Something had just happened outside - a spike of familiar reiatsu.
Kaede…what are you doing out there?
The first assassin slipped into Tokinada's room barely two minutes after Soi Fon left to scout the area. Kaede dropped silently behind him and in one swift motion had a hand over his mouth and a blade sliding across his throat. She softened his fall so that he wouldn't make a sound when he met the floor.
More were coming. Several had gotten past the main guard and were now making their way to Tokinada's quarters at varying paces. Others were engaged with the Tsunayashiro forces, and the sounds of their clashes were starting to reach Kaede's ears.
"Well, well," came a voice that made her go stiff. "Seems there's quite a commotion out there, eh, my shadow?"
Tokinada was awake? She was sure that she'd dosed his food properly - he should've been out for hours yet!
Clearly not, though; Tokinada stood from his plush futon and stretched his arms over his head. His snake-like eyes swept down her dark-clad figure and up to her half-masked face.
"Ah…so you're my shadow, then. Looks like you've already been busy," he said, glancing down at the fallen assassin by her feet. He leaned down toward her, a mirthless smile stretching across his lips. "What do you say we have a little fun out there, hm?"
Kaede's eyes narrowed. "That's not advisable, Tokinada-san."
"'San?'" He barked out a short, high laugh. "Do you address all nobles in such an informal manner, shadow? I must admit, you are much more interesting if that's the case. Well, I'm going out there, whether you believe it to be 'advisable' or not. As my guardian, you'll simply have to follow. Who knows what sort of trouble I might get into?"
He sauntered to the door, but Kaede cut him off, one hand rushing to a pressure point near his neck.
He caught her hand in midair.
"Uh-uh-uh," he chided. "I'm sure my esteemed relatives told you to keep me from making a scene by any means necessary, but laying hands on a noble is still quite the offense. Besides, I'm aware of your little attempt to slip something into my food tonight - do you have any idea how often nobles of all ranks are targeted for poisoning? One becomes rather familiar with the scent and texture of various substances over time. I assume you were simply trying to sedate me for some reason, not poison me outright - but who do you think your superiors would believe? Especially for someone in your particular…situation."
He leaned in close so that his grinning face was inches from her own. "Or does the 'Child of the Catastrophe' not care how such an act would look to those who hold her life in their hands?"
Kaede's blood ran cold - less at the implied threat than at the fact that he knew who she was. She suspected that the clan elders who'd made this deal with Yoruichi might know her identity, but Tokinada wasn't even supposed to realize he had a secret detail. Not only that, but he was far more aware than he'd let on, scarily so.
Her hesitation was all the confirmation he needed, it seemed, his eyes shining with delighted satisfaction. "Oh, I know all about you. We have a whole slough of information on you, even on your time in the Nest of Maggots. Your very existence depends on the good opinion of sinners who'd sooner kill thousands than admit to their misdeeds. What would they think when they learned that on your first assignment involving a noble clan member, even a low-born one such as myself, you roughed up your own charge and even tried to drug him?"
Kaede slowly withdrew her hand and took a step back, forcing back her growing anxiety. He couldn't prove that she'd tried to drug him, she rationalized - not that the burden of proof would be on him in this situation. Besides, there was an opportunity here. Tokinada wanted to blow off some steam on a few mercenaries who were going to die anyway? Fine. It would allow Sousuke more time in the archives, if she played her cards right.
She still felt nauseous at his victorious sneer.
"That's a good little automaton," Tokinada gloated. "Now stick close, shadow. You can't allow me to get hurt, after all, and I am completely defenseless."
Somehow, she doubted that was truly the case, even without a Zanpakuto at his side. Kaede allowed him to go ahead of her, senses peeled for incoming assassins. To her annoyance, Tokinada calmly strode out into a courtyard - a completely open position - then cupped his hands over his mouth and called out.
"Hello! If you're looking for the man who murdered his wife and friend, look no further!"
Either this guy had a death wish, he was far stronger than he looked, or he just wanted to pull her strings. Probably the latter. Either way, she couldn't just let him fend for himself, no matter how much she hoped a throwing star would get caught in his jugular. She had to dance along.
A knife flew at Tokinada, who caught it between two fingers with an amused grin - but another came at his back in the next second. With a silent groan, Kaede flash-stepped, and the knife clanged off her own drawn blade. She retreated to the shadows.
"Not bad, shadow," Tokinada praised, tossing his own prize aside with little care. "Now, show me how good you are!"
He spread his arms out in a wide, welcoming stance. One assassin took the bait, charging in a blur from the darkness. Kaede was on him instantly, breaking his neck in a quick twist. A flurry of darts flew at them from three sides; shunpo was again her ally, and the darts fell uselessly to the ground. Kaede took one and launched it back to its owner, catching them in the neck with the poisoned point.
One of the other dart-throwers flickered out of her senses at the same time; a second later, Soi Fon was at Tokinada's other side, dark eyes flitting around the courtyard.
"I thought he was asleep!" Soi Fon hissed to Kaede, ignoring the very much awake man between them. "Why'd you let him outside?"
"Oh, don't blame the little shadow, other shadow," Tokinada said in a sweet tone. "I'm a light sleeper, and I was bored. Besides, how else was I to make the acquaintance of my loyal bodyguards?"
"I got five on the way here, including the one on the roof," Soi Fon said, again paying Tokinada no mind. "Three got taken down by the guards."
"Three on my end so far," Kaede confirmed. "That leaves nine, and they're all on their way here."
"See?" Tokinada said conversationally. "I'm helping you, drawing the enemy to a single location so you needn't hunt them down individually."
"I'll take the two on the north roof," Soi Fon told Kaede, flash-stepping away.
"Oh, north roof," Tokinada called out. "She's coming for you!" At Kaede's incredulous glare, he shrugged. "Like I said: I'm bored. If I'm to rely on others to defend my person, I'd like to at least be entertained."
Kaede had no time to respond as another assassin came straight for Tokinada from the opposite side. They whipped a barbed chain at him, which Kaede caught with her sword, planting her feet firmly to resist the ensuing pull. She then let go of her sword, making the attacker lose balance and fall back. Another assassin tried to take advantage of her lack of weapon, but her Zanpakuto wasn't her only blade. They got a short knife in the throat for their efforts. Kaede flash-stepped to the attacker with the chain, retrieving her sword and swiping it across his abdomen before he could fully regain his footing.
Then she heard Soi Fon's stifled cry.
At the other end of the courtyard, two assassins had her pinned to the ground, arms crushed beneath their feet, a blade to her throat.
"Give us the murderer," one of them called out. "Or more blood will be spilled in his name!"
For a brief, disconnected second, Kaede found herself wondering if these mercenaries Sousuke had found knew anything about the Stealth Corps. Their whole mantra was about back-stabbing for the sake of Soul Society and protecting the "five dukes;" did they really think that threatening her partner would make her give in to their demands?
In that same breath, she caught Soi Fon's eyes, saw the mix of desperation, resignation, and resentment in them. Don't do it, she seemed to be saying. Preserve the mission. Yet to go by her eyes, she seemed to expect Kaede to either let her die out of spite, or to let Tokinada die out of disdain.
"What will it be, shadow?" Tokinada asked, completely nonplussed about the fact that now four more assassins were creeping toward them. "Me, a convicted murderer who's protected by wealth and power, or your precious partner?"
Kaede could hear Sousuke's voice in her ear: There's a chance that your partner will get caught in the crossfire. Let her. That's one more obstacle dealt with.
That's all Soi Fon was - an obstacle. Without Soi Fon breathing down her neck, she'd have an easier time relaying information to Sousuke. Without Soi Fon, Kaede could keep gaining Yoruichi's favor, rising in the ranks and eventually finding a safe time to reveal her "underdeveloped" Shikai in a way that would make her appear more loyal and useful to Central 46.
You want this for yourself?
Her Zanpakuto's voice whispered in her mind, and with a jolt of clarity, Kaede knew the answer, at least for this moment.
No.
Kaede slowly lifted her sword, making a show of returning it to its scabbard. She felt the assassins' eyes follow her every movement, tensed and ready to strike should she try anything.
They wouldn't get the chance.
As the hilt met the scabbard with a click, Kaede whispered: "Wither, Mono no Aware."
Soi Fon was annoying, critical, paranoid, and a general pain in the ass, but Kaede couldn't help but think of all the qualities she admired in the other Shinigami in that moment: her tenacity, her drive to be better, her incredible work ethic. Even her adoration of Yoruichi was kind of endearing. She was blindly loyal to a failing system, and Kaede suspected that even if Soi Fon's eyes were opened to its inequities it wouldn't make much of a difference, but somehow…she couldn't bring herself to let all that Soi Fon was die here - especially not for the sake of a piece of shit like Tokinada.
Besides, if she allowed Tokinada to live at the expense of Soi Fon's life, how was she any better than the system that protected him? Nor could she let these would-be assassins take him; not only would that jeopardize her image and life, leaving any of them alive could create problems for her and Sousuke later.
She could do both: preserve the mission, and save the life of someone with so much to live for. It had its own consequences, but they were entirely on her - and that, she could live with.
The blade rang free in a single strike. The two who held Soi Fon captive went down, blood spurting from their necks. Kaede whirled around to deal with a third while Soi Fon got up and drew her own blade. Within seconds, the rest of the assassins lay dead on the ground.
Footsteps clamored to the courtyard, but it was just the backup guards on the Tsunayashiro payroll.
"Bravo, bravo!" Tokinada clapped loudly from the center of the courtyard, surveying the bodies staining the formerly pristine garden. "Quite the show, and what a delightful twist to end it with!"
Kaede ignored his pointed stare, her gut already twisting with doubt. In the moment, using her Shikai had felt right. She knew there would be repercussions, and already she mentally ran through the script she and Sousuke had prepared for the eventual revealing of her Shikai. That was always going to be part of the plan, but…not like this.
Had she just made a huge mistake? Should she have chosen to let Soi Fon or Tokinada die? Was there some other option she should've considered? The Tsunayashiro's remaining security force was here now, their numbers not nearly so diminished as Kaede had expected; they could have helped. But no…she'd felt their presence hanging back this whole time, suggesting that they had intentionally stayed out of the fray. Most likely, they'd been told either explicitly or implicitly that if Tokinada did die, it wasn't of much concern to the rest of the family. They'd have been little help.
Still, she wasn't convinced she'd made the right choice.
We cannot go back, she heard Mono no Aware whisper in her mind. We must learn from what we have done and move forward.
Super helpful, Kaede thought sarcastically, but she knew the spirit was right. She couldn't change her actions now, only deal with the consequences as best she could - though the thought did little to quiet her nerves.
Tokinada was remitted to the custody of the Detention Unit the following day, and Kaede and Soi Fon were mercifully relieved of their duties. Tokinada had one final hearing with Central 46 that afternoon, but they wouldn't be needed for that.
Kaede kept glancing at Soi Fon as they entered the Division Two barracks, unsure of what to say. So far, Soi Fon hadn't volunteered anything about the incident the night before, though the pensive scowl on her face suggested she was anything but satisfied with the outcome.
Right now, Soi Fon was the only person from last night who'd witnessed Kaede releasing Shikai - well, her and Tokinada. Kaede had resealed her Zanpakuto as soon as the assassins had been taken out, so the Tsunayashiro guards wouldn't have seen it happen.
She doubted that even if Tokinada did tell Central 46, it would do him any good. They'd already decided on his sentence, and he was too much of a burden to his own clan for them to wish any more leniency for him. Besides, he struck her as the type to relish in watching the chaos he caused, and he wouldn't get the opportunity to see how Central 46 dealt with her.
That left Soi Fon.
The two of them made their report to the head of the Fourth Unit. To Kaede's surprise, Soi Fon made no mention of her Zanpakuto's release being used; perhaps she didn't realize the significance of it? Maybe she was planning to use it for leverage in some way. More likely, she didn't want to admit that Kaede could compete with her on more even ground now that she had Shikai as well. Either way, Soi Fon's refusal to even look at her set her on edge and made her certain that this would get back to Central 46 before too long.
What set her more on edge, though, was the prospect of telling Sousuke that she'd released her Shikai in the presence of other Shinigami.
The house was quiet when she returned, her stomach in knots as she tried not to think too hard about what Sousuke's reaction might be. They could turn this around, she assured herself.
She felt a strange mixture of relief and apprehension to see Sousuke sat at his desk, calmly doing calligraphy by the light of a candle. She hadn't been too worried about him getting out of the Tsunayashiro estate, but part of her had been terrified that he'd have been taken away for questioning about her having achieved Shikai. Maybe she was just overthinking everything; maybe it wasn't as big a deal as she'd assumed.
"You're home," Sousuke stated, not bothering to look up from his work.
Kaede licked her dry lips, unsure of what to say. "Sousuke, I…"
"Don't worry," Sousuke continued. "Your partner was caught under my Kanzen Saimin along with the rest in the estate. However, that doesn't change the fact that she saw your Shikai. Kyoka Suigetsu cannot undo something the target has already experienced."
He set down the brush. "Of course, none of this would be of any concern if she hadn't made it out of that encounter alive in the first place."
Kaede found her voice, though it felt as shaky as her insides. "I couldn't just - if I let her die, it could seem suspicious-"
"Don't try to rationalize what was clearly an irrational act on your part, Kaede," Sousuke interrupted her, his tone calm and cold. "I thought we agreed not to lie to each other."
Kaede felt his words like a punch to her gut, knocking the breath right out of her.
"You asked me to treat you as a partner," he said, and she swore she heard a tinge of disappointment in his voice. "But how can I do that when you stray from the plan we made together? A plan that, had you stuck with it, would have cleared the way for you to more safely unveil your Zanpakuto and climb the ranks in the Stealth Corps. Was that not part of our strategy?"
She couldn't even nod her head in assent, so paralyzed was she with growing shame.
"Not only have you made your own ascent more difficult than it needs to be, you have compromised your standing and possibly your life - all because you used your Shikai to save the life of someone who despises you." He sighed. "I cannot stand up for you in this, Kaede. I cannot be seen to have known about your Shikai before Central 46. You understand that, don't you?"
The world around her seemed to spin. "We can still - I can manage this," she insisted. "I'll tell them that I was afraid to present a power I was only just learning to use, and that's why I kept it to myself. That I wanted to make sure I had control over it and wouldn't hurt anyone I didn't mean to. A-and that you had no idea I was experimenting, only that you knew I was maybe starting to hear my Zanpakuto."
It was the argument they'd prepared for her eventual reveal, but in that scenario, she'd have gone to Yoruichi willingly to present her "underdeveloped" Shikai. Even Tessai's visit a while back had been part of the strategy, building a precedent of Kaede cautiously but openly exploring her supposedly sealed power. The long-term plan was designed to gain allies who'd advocate for her loyalty and devotion to Soul Society, softening the blow from Central 46 and ultimately allowing her more freedom within Soul Society.
And she'd just thrown all of that to the wind.
Sousuke was quiet for what felt like an eternity, during which Kaede scarcely dared to breathe. She wasn't afraid of what Central 46 would do when they found out about her Zanpakuto; she was afraid of this, of losing him, be it to an execution squad or her own uselessness.
"It…might work," Sousuke finally said. "But you must say and do exactly what I tell you to. Can you do that, Kaede?"
"Yes," she answered immediately, already light-headed with hope.
"Good." He stood up and, at long last, looked at her again, even coming up and lightly touching her face. "I apologize for being hard on you, but I know that you're better than this - better than any of them know yet. We will have the chance to show them, but for now, you must be more careful."
Kaede leaned gratefully into his touch. "I know. I'm sorry."
"Come here." He welcomed her into his arms and stroked her hair. "I imagine it was freeing, in a way, finally releasing your Zanpakuto in the open."
Kaede nodded into his chest, breathing in his familiar, comforting scent. "It felt…right. And I made sure I only hit a couple of them - I could have taken them all down, but…"
"But you knew to hold back," he supplied, "so that it would seem like you're still new to this power. Good."
"What about their records?" Kaede asked. "Were you able to get to them?"
"That, and more," he assured her, that daring smile gracing his lips once more. "There is much I have to share with you, and more that I will need to look deeper into - something that is possible because of you. You did well with the plan we made, love."
The implication that she'd faltered by acting on her own wasn't lost on her, but Kaede basked in the praise anyway, graciously accepting it as a sort of forgiveness for her rashness.
"You must be exhausted," Sousuke said, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "The rest can wait until morning, but there is one more thing I need you for."
She was beyond tired, but didn't want to disappoint him - not when he needed her. So she followed him out of their house and through the Seireitei, to a place right at the border with the Rukongai. There was no visible wall between the two regions, just the stark contrast between the packed dirt road of the First District and the pristine tiles of the inner court. However, every Rukongai citizen knew better than to test that invisible boundary; being caught inside the Seireitei without the proper documents resulted in a one-way ticket to the furthermost district, ensuring an existence of unrelenting hardship and misery.
Sousuke brought her to an alleyway so encompassed in shadow that her eyes couldn't make out the wall at its end - but her senses told her immediately that someone was there. She recognized that signature, the candle-like flicker of reiatsu that hinted at deeper wells. Even so, she was surprised when the person stepped out into the moonlight, unseeing eyes hard with resolve. In his left hand, he clutched a sheathed katana - a Zanpakuto, Kaede realized, the same that Tsunayashiro Kakyo had been laid out with.
"It seems you've decided," Sousuke greeted the young man.
"I have," he responded. His brow furrowed. "Who is that with you?"
Kaede's own brows rose. She wasn't trying to completely cloak herself, but it was no small feat for a Rukongai citizen with no training to sense her.
"The person who originally brought you to my attention," Sousuke answered. "If not for her, I wouldn't have been at hand to assist you at the courthouse today. She recognized your potential with a simple glance at your friend's funeral."
"The funeral…?" The young man tensed. "Then she's-"
"Also a Shinigami," Sousuke supplied. "But don't hold that against her. She, more than anyone, has experienced the injustices and hypocrisies of the system. Like you, she has known fear and despair at the hands of those in power. She was raised in the murky depths of Soul Society's shame and ineptitude, yet like the lotus that blossoms unblemished out of the mud, she has become more than they could have imagined."
He turned toward her, brushing her cheek with his knuckles, his eyes connecting with hers. "She is my right hand, my partner, and she will help me build a new world from the ashes of this one."
Kaede felt her face and chest grow warm at the praise, but most of all she was surprised at how candid Sousuke was being with this person. It was strange to see him - the real him - interacting with someone else, no pretension, no deception. Even his voice kept its razor-sharp edge that she usually only heard when they were alone together.
It was more than that, though: His entire demeanor rang with quiet, confident power that had little to do with reiatsu and no need of gaudy displays. He wore a mantle of pure, effortless strength, and it suited him so perfectly that she could imagine kings and emperors all across the Human World falling to their knees before him, instinctively recognizing their own inadequacy in his presence.
Feeling that power radiate off of him, and knowing that she alone stood at his side, Kaede fell in love with him all over again in that moment. She also knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she would do everything to be worthy of her place.
"So please," Sousuke continued, addressing the young man again. "Allow me to introduce you to my wife, Kaede. Kaede, this is our newest ally, Tousen Kaname."
Next Time: Kaede faces the consequences of revealing her Shikai…and a request from Sousuke has her facing some old fears.
Comments are ALWAYS welcome and appreciated! So until next time…
Stay Tuned!