Pre-Note

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach. I do own this plot.

Reminder: Mature-rating. Mystery-themed. Light sexual content. Crucial to remain attentive to detail. This is for Rukia and her relationships.

The First Interaction

"You know, Kurosaki I've been thinking about Kuchiki-san's relationship with Okasake Jushirmai for awhile now and all my ideas lead to the one thing Captain Kurotsuchi refuses to believe was the premise behind their relationship." Uryū said while leaping aside Ichigo who was leading the group.

"Oh yeah?" Ichigo asked. "And what's that?"

"They could've been in love."

"Wha-Ishida! If you're going to say something about Rukia at least say something that makes sense! There's no way she would've been involved with that bastard, it's impossible." Ichigo said.

"Why not?" Orihime asked.

"B-Because it's Rukia! Rukia would never fall for a guy like that no matter how nice his hair is."

"...you like his hair, Ichigo?" Sado asked.

"T-That's not the point! The point is that -"

"You don't think Kuchiki-san would be involved with Okasake Jushirmai romantically but something tells me that thinking otherwise is wrong. I know we only know a few things about Okasake Jushirmai and for a fact I know there's more people involved however, we can't rule out the possibility completely. They could've been in love."

"Rukia? Being in love with that bastard? I've been here for everything and I still don't see how that connection works, Ishida."

"Kuchiki-san seems to be very secretive about her relationship with the Okasake clan. She doesn't seem to like talking about them at all leading me to believe that perhaps she was more closer with them than I intially thought. It is a possibility that she was perhaps a candidate to be the Lady of the Okasake clan in the near future which is why she has such close relations with the family."

"Lady of the Okasake clan? Rukia? Where'd you get a theory like that from?"

"Inoue-san."

"Inoue?"

"Yes, Kurosaki-kun! I didn't want to tell you because you were so caught up and worried about Kuchiki-san that I didn't want you to bother over me but...when I stayed with Kuchiki-san in the Kuchiki Manor, I noticed that she had her journal open...I assumed that she had been writing something before I came in so I left it open like that without reading it. But...since it was so silent and she was asleep I thought I'd just close it before anyone like her brother saw it and read it but when I touched the book, she flinched and her hand stretched out like she was ready to hit me so I jumped back and her journal...well her journal landed in front of me on a different page and I saw what she wrote...about Okasake Jushirmai."

"What'd she say?"

"She talked about how she would wait for him all the time to meet with her at the Okasake Manor or sometimes in this field, a chrysantellum (AN: I did not misspell the flower name 'chrysanthemum' I purposely spelt it that way for a reason) lily field. Most of the time he came but the times that he didn't meant that he was off doing something awful. Regardless she would wait until he came so she could see his face. She talked about it being her duty to do so."

"Her duty? That sounds more like a job to me." Ganju said.

"Her duty could've been to wed him and become the Lady of the Okasake clan."

"But why would they want Rukia to be the Lady of the Okasake clan? It just doesn't add up. Hisana was from the Rukongai but Byakuya's clan didn't want to accept her because she wasn't a noble. Rukia was a member of the Rukongai, for the Okasake clan to want her to be the Lady of the Okasake clan wouldn't make sense especially if they're all high and mighty as everyone says they are."

"Still. There seems to be some kind of connection that Rukia has with the Okasake clan that is separate from Okasake Jushirmai. I suspect that she's been in their favour for awhile now, Kurosaki which is why she was a candidate to be Jushirmai's wife."

"But my question is, what kind of connection would that be? Kuchiki-san was living in the Rukongai."

"Hey Ganju," Ichigo hollered.

"What?" Ganju groaned.

"Don't 'what' me! I was just tryna ask you something."

"What is it?"

Ichigo didn't reply. "What is it, you dumbass! Answer me!"

"Never mind."

"What is it?!

"You might not be able to answer it so never mind."

"Ask me!"

"I said never mind!"

"Ask me!"

"I said never mind!"

"Ask me!"

"Alright, alright! You're such a pain in the ass you know that? I wanted to ask what are the role of the Okasakes in the noble clans?" Ichigo asked. "You know how Byakuya's clan's specialty is the Soul Society's history and Yoruichi's clan and Captain Suì-Fēng's clan, the stealth force? What's there's?"

"Don't we already know this? It's Judan."

"No. something tells me that's just a cover up for what they really are. If these Okasakes are more powerful than the Head Captain then we might have some serious problems if they end up siding with Jūshirmai and the rest. It's best we know exactly who they are beforehand just in case."

"Wow, Kurosaki you're actually thinking logically for once. Maybe you should be involved in conflicts like these more often." Uryū said.

"Shut up, Ishida!" Ichigo said. "Anyways yeah, Ganju. What's there role? What kind of power do they have over the noble clans and the Soul Society?"

"More importantly, what connection do they have with the Rukongai that no other noble clan has?" Sado mentioned.

"I'm not suppose to say anything..."

"THEN WHY THE HELL DID YOU TELL ME TO ASK?!"

"Let me finish, dimwitt! Anyways, I promised Nee-chan I wouldn't say anything about the Okasakes because we, Shibas got outta contact with their organization awhile ago and it's best we stay outta trouble with them but, you gotta promise you won't say anything to anyone if I tell you about the Okasakes now."

"We won't say anything, right?"

"We swear." Everyone said in unison.

"Why don't we take a little break and I'll make you all some of my soup?" Orihime asked.

"Uh...no thanks, Inoue you really don't need to go through that much tro -"

"That sounds great, Inoue-san! We've been walking for hours and the moon is all nice and bright tonight so we might as well take a rest while it's still calm."

"I agree."

"We do too!" The twins said.

"Hell yes."

"WAIT...that's it? No discussion? You're all just going to sit down and camp out here?"

"We're not going to camp, we still need to find Kuchiki-san we need a break."

"You do too, Kurosaki-kun." Orihime said.

"B-But-"

"Do you wanna hear about the Okasakes or not?"

Ichigo stared. "Alright, but for only five minutes."

"Yay! I can make us some soup."

"Alright, who are the Okasakes?"

"The Okasake clan are the first among the great four noble clans, alright? They're known to everyone within the noble community except the Kuchiki's clan 28th Head."

"Why?" Ichigo asked.

"I'm getting there. Anyways the role of the Okasake clan is the role of being the superiors, they're the ones who rule all of the Soul Society, they can't be overruled like the Head Captain can, so I'm pretty sure you got a good idea of what kind of class they have amongst others." Ganju said. "Everyone knows them unless you're a soul reaper. Soul reapers in higher ranks such as Captain or Lieutenant, on the other hand, are pretty much completely oblivious to the role of the Okasakes or more importantly the role of the assassins. By my guess, there's only about three or four former Captains who are aware of their existence because of their close relation to them before. Besides that, soul reapers are pretty much oblivious except the few who were able to remember their existence to know of them."

"Why would the Rukongai know of them if they're suppose to be a secret to the soul reapers? Most of the soul reapers that make up each division are from the Rukongai anyways unless you count people like Byakuya and Sui Feng."

"The assassins are just like soul reapers. Just like them, they have their own court like the Seireitei that they reside in on the other side of the Soul Society. The Rukongai is what's squished between the middle them and that's a huge portion of land they've got separating them so it's nearly impossible to see it from far."

"Wait a minute, there's another Seireitei that exists in the Soul Society?!"

"Yup. The assassins just like soul reapers reside there and carry out whatever their duties are on a day to day basis. But the reason why the Rukongai is more aware of them is because the assassins own a large amount of underground property in the Rukongai where they train adolescents they find in the districts or use to hold weapons or meetings. The assassins are more involved in the Rukongai than soul reapers but its suppose to be the other way around. Either way, if you're coming from the Rukongai, you know about the assassins and you know about the prestige they carry like royals. But if they choose to become a soul reaper, their knowledge of the assassins is erased to protect their existence from being revealed."

"This is like a whole secret society."

"They're stronger than soul reapers too. That's why people treat them like royalty. The higher in ranks you go, the more immunity you get from the government. In this case, there are four major positions that one could acquire as an assassin." Ganju explained further. "The first one is equivalent to the role of a Lieutenant in our ranks but is considered to be the least position in the assassins ranking system. It's called a Secretary of State. The Secretary of State does whatever the Lieutenant of a Division does but they're fourth place in the assassin ranking meaning they have more power than a Lieutenant of a Division. The second one is called a Major, a Major is equivalent to a Captain our level but again they're more stronger because the ranking system is different. The third one is the Sensei, the Sensei is like the Head Captain, they're extremely powerful but they don't get involved with their division as much as the Major does because the Major is the Captain. Their influence is not that strong in the Major's decision because the Major usually works independent from their Sensei. The Sensei of that division has a stronger role in the government and acts like a representative from that division although, they do have a lot of power within the division if they choose. If they decide, they can run the whole division with their Major acting like what would be a Lieutenant for soul reapers but most of the time they let the Major run the division as they please."

"So if you're fighting a Major, you're fighting - " Ichigo said in disbelief.

"A Captain, three times the extent." Ganju finished.

"That's preposterous. Why is it that the assassins have this much power? And if so, why haven't they taken over back what's rightfully there's?" Uryū inquired.

"To be an assassin requires something beyond reiatsu. It requires a physical energy like no other, that's the birth of a true assassin. It shows as time passes by your strength and your instinct, it isn't something that can so easily be given and used like reiatsu is. Although reiatsu requires training, the mere inch of one's sheatsu is powerful enough to overcome it. Nee-chan has reiatsu and sheatsu, she doesn't use it anymore but she had a pretty high ranking when she used it as often as she did."

"Rankings? They even rank your sheatsu ability too?"

"Your sheatsu ability can be different from your position if you have one. Unlike soul reape's reiatsu, your sheatsu colour defines a certain rank you're in. When your younger, the colour might change around a lot if you're still training but once you mature, whatever sheatsu colour you have is the colour your stuck with moving on forward."

"But what if you grow stronger? Doesn't your sheatsu ability grow stronger too?"

"That I don't know. But sheatsu is hella powerful so really whatever amount you get will sustain you for a very long time against any enemy. The ranking colours differ depending on your position. If you're a Secretary of State, your main colours are white, red, lilac, yellow, aquamarine and a light green colour and if you're a Major, your main colours are orange, yellow, coral red, blue, pink and a dark green, if you're a Sensei, the three colours are white, mint green, and purple. Purple is the highest amount of sheatsu an assassin can have and is pretty much limitless. The only two people who have it in the Soul Society are the Head Commanders, Okasake. Besides that, the rest of the Senseis fall into one other or the less category.

"So where do the quincies fall under all of this? This guy Rukia might be acquainted with seems to be a quincy, but I thought there were none of them left except Ishida and his dad."

"The quincies and assassins are two different people but they get along because they got one common enemy."

"Soul reapers."

"That's right. The surviving quincies joined with the assassins centuries ago but don't ask me how they were able to combine quincy abilities with sheatsu or Judan I only know that much."

"We're in big trouble if the Okasake clan decide to join forces with Okasake Jushirmai." Chad said.

"I have no doubt in my mind that something like that may happen if they know Jushirmai's goal. They hate soul reapers too."

"From what I remember, the Head Captain didn't get along with one of the Okasake twins, however, the other Okasake, Hirosuke was his friend. If the Okasakes truly hated the shinigami enough to destroy them, they could've done so centuries ago. But it seems that they wanted to coexist in peace."

"If they wanted to coexist in peace then why didn't they stop that bastard before he could get this powerful to do this to the Seireitei? Why haven't they helped us yet knowing that he's one of them? Why are they still in hiding?"

"It's because the Seireitei has never been their business to directly deal with. They won't get involved unless it's necessary. Until it becomes necessary, you're on your own."

"But Rukia -"

"I don't know too much about Lieutenant Kuchiki's involvement with the Okasakes or the assassins, but I know for a fact she isn't one of them so, her involvement is something completely unknown, that's probably why they don't care."

"So when will they care?"

"When Kuchiki-san reveals herself, alone." Uryū finished and the group chatter immediately ended with silence.

"I approve." Suì-Fēng said firmly in the empty room of the 1st Division Hall with Captain Kuchiki, Hitsugaya, and Zaraki staring at her, eyes devoid of any emotion. "the Head Captain's order makes perfect sense, there is no reason for you to question it."

"It may be to you, but ordering another execution without evidence that Kuchiki has committed treason is beyond me." Tōshirō said. "If we're to kill her upon seeing her we'll never know the truth about all of this. Killing Kuchiki would leave us at a bigger disadvantage than we are now."

"The security footage says it all. Lieutenant Kuchiki Rukia committed treason and that is the matter of fact. She is related to the ryoka, why can't you see that?"

"Kuchiki's relation to the ryoka is not of the matter right now. It doesn't mean she committed treason. She seems to be afraid of the ryoka." Tōshirō argued.

"I don't really care who committed treason, my question to you fucktards is when are we going to get out there and kill? If we hide in the Seireitei for any longer, we'll be wimps."

"You must be patient." Captain Unohana suddenly appeared from the shadows. If every Captain leaves the Seireitei, we'll be left defenseless if we are attacked head on and for a fact I think we're all confused about whether Lieutenant Kuchiki is our ally or our enemy."

"There's no confusion. Up until now, Kuchiki has given us all the reasons not to trust her ever since she became a soul reaper. It's my fault for not noticing all those signs and warnings before it got to this extent. We have no reason to trust her, she's our enemy." Suì-Fēng argued in return.

"But do you not think there's a possibility that Lieutenant Kuchiki is our ally in disguise?"

"That's not a possibility, Captain Unohana. Lieutenant Kuchiki has given us all the signs, it's just that neither one of us ever cared enough to take precaution when it came to her. We did the same with Aizen and now we're doing the same with her. Lieutenant Shiba Kaien didn't die on his own, did he?"

"He had no chance of surviving either way." Tōshirō fired back.

"But who took the sword and pierced it through his heart to save themselves? Who, knowing it was against our code, transferred her soul reaper powers to a mere human boy? Who, hid like a human, in the human world to avoid her execution? Who, has defied soul reaper orders multiple times for the sake of the substitute soul reaper, Kurosaki Ichigo? She's given us all the hints, we all just never took it seriously. Now, she has faked her own abduction so we all go after her, why can't you see that?"

"Then how do you explain, Shihōin Yoruichi and Urahara Kisuke's disappearance if that is the case." Byakuya asked. "do you suggest that they have committed treason too?"

If Byakuya could, he would smirk.

"W-Well, I," Suì-Fēng was taken aback. "Yoruichi-sama would never commit treason. There's no reason for her to do so. Urahara Kisuke has always been a nuisance in her life, he's only soiled her name for the most part. Don't group Urahara Kisuke with Yoruichi-sama, I'm sure there's a reason she disappeared on such short notice."

"If you're accusing Kuchiki, you're accusing all of them." Tōshirō said.

"Then we should stop here." Captain Unohana said. "They've given us no reason for us to talk about them when they're not present. Instead of arguing, you should all return back to your divisions until the Head Captains orders you to help Kurosaki Ichigo."

"Kurosaki Ichigo has already left?" Tōshirō asked.

"I'm afraid so. With the help of the Shiba clan, he was able to detect her hidden reiatsu. She's allegedly heading somewhere in the northern mountains with the quincy who abducted her." Captain Unohana informed.

"In the northern mountain? That's a suicide mission." Tōshirō said.

"It is indeed. With all this ice and snow and recurring storms, I'm afraid the moment they get swept up in the storm we will not be able to do much to save them."

"If they act quick, they can get her back in time before the storm closes in. There isn't much I can do, we're surrounded by the ryoka's zanpakutō." Tōshirō said. "Kuchiki, would you be willing to accompany me if I went to help Kurosaki Ichigo?"

"Given the situation, I– "

"No one from the Seireitei will be accompanying Kurosaki Ichigo to find Lieutenant Kuchiki Rukia." A deep, raspy voice belonging to none other than the Head Captain echoed in the Captain's Hall. Truth be told, he had been there all along, hidden in the shadows, waiting for the exact moment that suggestion was made.

"Head Captain!" Tōshirō said in surprise.

"Kurosaki Ichigo left on his own will to save Lieutenant Kuchiki. He did not ask for our assistance therefore there is no need for our interference. Your primary roles as Captains as of now is to remain in your division until I order you to leave. We are in an emergency situation as of this moment therefore no Captain, Lieutenant, or division is allowed to leave the Seireitei without my order."

"Head Captain, I would have to ask Captain Kurotsuchi on this but by my instincts tell me that there will be a storm very soon and Kurosaki-san and his friends may be caught in the middle of it, what will you do then?" Captain Unohana asked.

"There will be no need to do anything if Kurosaki Ichigo is affected by the storm. He left on his own will without saying a word therefore he is not a concern to the thirteen Divisions at this moment and time." The Head Captain said harshly, towering the few Captains in the hall besides Captain Zaraki.

"When are we gonna get to fight somebody? Those shitheads haven't done anything yet, I say we make the first move and show them who really runs the Soul Society if all this stuff people have been saying is true."

"For once Captain Zaraki has a point." Captain Unohana said. "We must make a move soon otherwise the future of the Seireitei could very well be at risk however, I'm afraid we cannot make any bold moves until Kurosaki-san and his friends are out of harms way. Perhaps sending Captain Hitsugaya and Captain Kuchiki would ensure that they are safe while our other Captains stay here and make a move."

"Kurosaki Ichigo has done us great service however, that does not mean I can allow two Captains to leave their division while the Seireitei is under an emergency lockdown. As Kurosaki Ichigo has made the decision to leave by himself to find the 13th Division's Lieutenant, he will handle the situation on his own."

"Bu–"

"That is my final decision, you are all dismissed. I will not discuss Kurosaki Ichigo any further."

"Kurosaki."

"Whadya want, Ishida?"

"Look." He urged while looking up. "The sky is starting to get darker."

"Huh?" Ichigo looked up. "Whadaya mean, Ishida? It looks exactly the same way it did when we left,"

"No, it's different. I don't remember it being this dark, it feels like even the aura around us is beginning to feel like a dim light."

"What do you think it is? Jushirmai?"

"No. It doesn't feel like a ominous presence but something to do with the weather."

"Then it is Jushirmai. He can control the weather with his zanpakutō. He's probably doing it because he knows we're getting closer to Rukia."

"I don't know, Kurosaki. If you ask me this seems to be something natural only to this area. Perhaps a snowstorm." Uryū said.

"A snowstorm? We're not in the Human World, Ishida something like a natural snowstorm when it's still autumn isn't possible around here."

"Kukaku-san warned us about this area. She said it was unlike any other part of the Soul Society but I wonder why. There's mountains, an ocean, and a mass amount of land, nothing unusual to be considered unlike the rest of the Soul Society."

"That's probably because we're on those assassin's territory, remember? That border we have to break to enter the mountain is protected by a Major's sheatsu. If that's the case, that means that the assassins probably know a lot about this area and use it for whatever they need too."

"If that's true then why haven't any of them interfered with us yet? We've been here for several hours but we haven't been interfered. If this was their territory, we would've at least have to fight a gatekeeper or several of them but we haven't. Not to mention, there isn't much of anything around here. No matter how high I go I can't seem to see anything but snow. Kukaku-san said this area lead to the northern mountains and that one of the deadliest oceans in the Soul Society resided here but….why wouldn't the Seireitei use that to their advantage? Or…why wouldn't the assassins consider taking it over?"

"I don't know, Ishida. Don't you think you're thinking about this too much? The fact that we haven't been interfered with is a good thing, it means we can find Rukia faster than having to be interrupted every five minutes to get to the mountains. I know I'm happy about that. Last time we tried to save Rukia, I got interfered so much that she could've gotten executed if I hadn't made it to stop that thing in time And besides, there probably were gatekeepers here but they all had to leave because of Jushirmai. He's affecting the assassins too, ya know. If you ask me, they've probably got it worse considering he's one of them and the people following him are too."

"I hate to say this but, even if the ryoka was attacking them, it wouldn't make sense to leave this territory unguarded when he could, if he decided to use it for his own personal benefit. If you ask me, something's odd about all of this. It's almost like the assassins are intentionally doing this to us on purpose."

"You think they're in contact with Rukia?"

"That could be a possibility…"

"No way! Listen, I know Rukia's got some business with the ryoka but the fact that you think that she would intentionally do this is stupid. Why would she intentionally have the assassins not show up here? How would she been in contact with them? And what does that quincy have to do with all of this? You're judging her just like everybody else!"

"Calm down, Kurosaki. All I said was that it could be a possibility. I'm not denying the fact that Kuchiki-san does have some connection with the ryoka that we don't know of neither am I denying the fact that she's innocent. I'm just saying it's a possibility."

"Whatever she and Jushirmai have together is separate from the assassins. I highly doubt that Rukia would be able to convince a whole army of assassins to confuse us for no reason. And either way, whether she wants us to find her or not, we're finding her. I won't ask her to confess anything to me I just want to know that she's safe."

"I think she knows that, Kurosaki. But whatever it is, she couldn't tell you face to face meaning it must be something very big or…."

"Or?" Uryū didn't respond. "Or?" Ichigo repeated again.

"Ishida, I'm talking to you! It wouldn't kill you to answer me!"

"Or…"

She told you before and left clues for you to trace but you never took them seriously.

"Or?! C'mon, Ishida! Say it!"

"Kurosaki-kun, Ishida-kun!" Orihime called from behind them. She ran up to them, panting rapidly. "The soup is ready! You both should eat before we get going. Shiba-kun, Sado-kun, and the others have already started eating."

"She's right." Uryū said before turning half way around with his eyes closed. "It's better we fuel up now, Kurosaki before we actually do get interfered. It isn't good to fight on an empty stomach."

"Wait! Ishida! I want to know what you were gonna say! Get back here, you idiot! I wanna know! Or, what?!"

"Did I interrupt something..?" Orihime asked Uryū who was almost past her.

"No, Inoue-san. We were just talking about the weather and Kurosaki got irritated because I was complaining."

"O-Oh okay. He's fine now right, Ishida-kun?"

"Yeah, he's alright. You should convince him to eat. He needs it more than all of us." Uryū suggested.

"O-Oh, right!" She replied enthusiastically and rushed to Ichigo's side.

"Kurosaki-kun? You really should eat. Don't let the weather disappoint you. Ishida-kun was just looking out for us just in case a snowstorm occurred and all of us got blown away all the way back to the Seireitei and then we could never find Kuchiki-san." Orihime said while dramatizing the idea of the entire gang being blown away by an intense snowstorm but Ichigo wasn't paying attention. In fact, his eyes were too transfixed on what was happening ahead of them.

"Something's down there." Ichigo said.

'Who?" Orihime asked behind him.

"I don't know but it looks like trouble."

Orihime gasped. "Trouble? Let me call Ishida-kun, Shiba-kun, and Sado-kun!" Ichigo stopped her midway.

"It's okay, Inoue. I can handle this one all by myself. Go back with Ishida, Chad, and Ganju and rest for awhile. I'll be back, I just wanna see what's going down there."

"Wait! Kurosaki-kun!" But before the honorific could leave her lips, Ichigo had jumped down the small cliff to go see the trouble that lied ahead.

Looking back at the gang behind her who were eating her soup, she contemplated twice about telling them that Ichigo had gone off on his own. But her body remained still and stared straight ahead at the tornado of water stirring not too far ahead.

It wasn't a regular tornado of air but rather a tornado of water, a whirlpool generating on the surface of the snowy land. The center of the all chaos remained a mystery but still, Ichigo kept going forward.

The speed kept on increasing at a rapid rate as Ichigo got closer, giving him the impression that the person causing the whirlpool could sense his presence coming. Frankly, it only motivated him to get there faster.

Uryū was right. The sky had gotten darker, it churned along with the tornado but at a slower speed mixed with a few hues of gray and purple. He cursed himself for not recognizing it sooner as he approached the tornado that immediately pushed against his body away with an incredible force he hadn't felt in a long time. He tried to catch a grip on land with the help of his reiatsu and strength but the intensity of the wind only seemed to push him back further and further away, increasing in size as it pushed him away.

He groaned as he tried to pull himself forward.

"It's too strong!" He yelled to himself as the wind pushed him back further, leaving a trail of snow to follow him as he flew back.

His vision wasn't clear. The snow mixed in between made him squint as he tried to move forward.

Unleashing Zangetsu, he plunged the large sword into the ground of snow, hoping that it would be strong enough to hold him into place. Fortunately, the sword managed to slow down his speed but it wasn't enough to stop him from being pushed back. Gripping onto the handle of his sword, he let out a battle cry as he released his reiatsu. An enormous surge of power escaped his body in connection with his sword to push the incoming air back but it was barely having any effect. In fact, it wasn't doing much at all except holding the wind merely a half an inch away from his body.

It had to be quick but Ichigo decided to release the energy he built from his reiatsu by a swing of his sword. He realized it had to be a quick move as his reiatsu was barely pushing the wind away.

"Zangetsu, I'm counting on you…" He said in breathy voice. He let out a battle cry as he extracted a majority of his reiatsu and yanked out his sword from the snow allowing the wind to invade his space. With one sharp swing, his reiatsu followed the swing and the wind and water immediately retracted but as the wind and water pulled back faster, Ichigo realized that it wasn't being pushed away by Zangetsu but by the other person's will.

It vanished in an instant, leaving Ichigo to stare at the spot where the person behind it stood. Ichigo instantly recognized him however, it wasn't because he knew who it was, it was because he recognized his face from when he had met up with Jushirmai and his allies before.

Ichigo didn't wait for another introduction, he took the lead himself.

"Kurosaki Ichigo, substitute soul reaper. But you probably already knew that, didn't you? So how about we cut to the chase and I ask, where the hell is Rukia and what kind of connection do you have with her? It would make things a whole lot easier since I've been going in circles ever since this whole thing began."

"You seem in a hurry. Don't you think you should take time to know me before jumping to conclusions?"

"I don't have time. I need to know where Rukia is, that's all."

"At that rate you'll never figure out anything at all if you're so quick to assume everything that is presented to you. You've already made several mistakes, some I should point out to you, some I should not. Your first mistake was introducing yourself as a substitute soul reaper when we are all aware you much more than a simple soul reaper. Your second mistake was assuming I already knew who you were when in fact I've never heard your name in my entire life up until last night and even then knowing your name didn't mean that I knew you. Your third mistake was asking me where this Rukia person is because your woman and my woman are two different people, which therefore implies that this Rukia that you envision is different from the woman I know with the first name Rukia suggesting that there might be two different people by that first name or it's the same person with a dual personality, either way the implication is wrong. And finally, your fourth mistake was asking me what kind of connecting I had with your 'Rukia' because the woman I know with that name is different from yours."

What the hell is this guy going on about? Ichigo thought to himself.

All that talk had left Ichigo confused, he had never been quick-witted and understanding this guy was giving him more of a headache than Kon. "What the hell are you blabbing about? Rukia is Rukia and that means that you know. So can you just cut the crap and get to the point. You know her but you know a different side of her, thanks I got that but how do you know this side of her?"

Casually he responded, "stories, personal experience, stories, personal experience, all the things you don't know, stories, personal experience, and oh, the Head Commander Okasakes."

"So you knew her before she became a soul reaper huh…."

"A soul reaper? Please, don't use vulgar language here. She's never been a true soul reaper…she was just, in someone's words, 'reliving someone's history', someone very close to her."

"Well I…."

"You….? You what? Disagree? Do you disagree because you've seen her as a soul reaper happily? If you are truly her friend you'd know that she has never found happiness in being binded as a soul reaper."

"No…it's not that a disagree but I, don't believe you. There's more to this I know, and Rukia been through some pretty rough times as a soul reaper, I get that however, that doesn't mean she didn't learn to be happy."

"Learning to be happy implies that she had to teach herself or rather convince herself that she was somehow happy to avoid the pain she felt for leaving a whole other side of her behind. You only know the surface, you don't know the truth."

"Then what's the truth? Tell me then. You and your allies seem to be throwing around that word a lot these days, but the only thing I'm getting out of them is that I don't know something but no one's opening their God damn mouths to tell me what it is."

"Because it is up to you and the reapers to figure it out." He whispered. "Stories like these can't simply be told in words or drawn out images or photographs, these stories need to be seen…felt…you would have to truly immerse yourself into the world of them to comprehend them…you would have to be an eyewitness to them, viewing them as if they were almost a show to comprehend them. A story like hers can't be put into words, that is why no one will tell you even if you draw your sword and threaten to kill them, these stories are real…they can't be heard."

"Then what do you suggest then?"

"Explore, go ahead, leave with your team of humans and go search. I didn't come here to kill you but to inform you, just like the others will do on and on until we can't confront you again."

"Oh really? Well, I'm afraid I can't do that." Ichigo said and suddenly he was leaping off the floor, Zangetsu positioned in his hand to strike.

In an instant, with a flash-step speed similar to that of Shihōin Yoruichi, he appeared in front of him, using his bare feet as a sword which was equally powerful. Ichigo finally got a good look at him as his zanpakutō and his feet clashed like swords and were weighting strength.

The man's eyes were yellow, a cat-like yellow, similar to that woman he had seen the other day with Jushirmai. With hair deep blue and medium-length with drawn on eyebrows similar to that of Renji's, Ichigo didn't know who he was fighting anymore. His shoulders were broad, he almost looked like a samurai if it wasn't for his yellow eyes that just seemed to transition into a deeper and deeper yellow as time passed.

"You don't really like to talk, do you?"

"Well, if all you're saying is useless than there's no point is there now?" Ichigo said.

"You're too impulsive."

"Thinking critically won't keep you alive."

"I beg to differ. Your friend there, the quincy that is surprisingly by your side, is a critical thinker. I can tell. He examines every point, every shape, every predicted move so his attack can be much clever and effective. That's what sustains him time in battle and results in less casualties. The only way he would ever be defeated is if there was a very large gap in power. But you….not you. You are quick, too quick, you haven't even gotten to know me yet or see a fraction of my power but you unnecessarily charged at me just now without reason. I didn't provoke you neither did I get into your way but you still felt the need to attack me, why?"

"Do I need a reason? You're with the enemy. Even if you don't attack me, I'm obligated to–"

"Kill me? Because I side with the enemy and yet I haven't done a single thing to you? In fact, I feel like I've helped you more than I've been a disadvantage. Not to mention, I'm not the enemy here. The enemy is you and the reapers, must I remind you who came first?"

"Soul reapers want to help people here! They're the good guys, the name assassins doesn't really come off as a good title for you people if you do exactly what soul reapers do."

"Oh…and what would you say of the quincies?"

"They're the same thing. They're good people but their arrows aren't good for people. Quincies and soul reapers alike both work to defeat the same thing but one way is more effective and less harming to others, it's a fact."

"Oh? And have you mentioned that to her lately?"

"Rukia would agree."

"I don't know who you're talking about. Because the person I know would wage soul reapers and quincies as equal individuals both who serve the Soul Society both good and bad. The assassins are the only superior kind even though all three of us perform similar tasks in different methods. It's simply because we were first created. Equality, she believes in, but facts is something she cannot deny."

"And that fact is…"

"The assassins deserve to live outside of their shadows."

"And what does that mean?"

"At this rate, you'll never know."

Suddenly, the man's leg dropped and he spun around faster than the speed of light and delivered a kick Ichigo didn't even see or felt or notice because of how fast it occurred.

Next thing Ichigo knew, he was flying metres and metres away, the man's figure looking like a mere ant as he flew further until he hit the ground with a surge of power that made a very deep hole.

The snow coloured red and that's when Ichigo knew that he had been injured. He struggled to get up, groaning as his hand pressed onto his stomach where it bled, he could feel the pain. It was preventing him from sitting up. It had happened so fast, he couldn't even sense it when it occurred.

He tried to use Zangetsu as a walking stick to pull himself up but the amount of blood coming out was painting the snow with a growing pool of red and Ichigo didn't want to aggravate the wound anymore. Still, this had been his first shot at finally getting to fight an associate of Jushirmai's, he wasn't about to give it up so easily.

"C'mon Zangetsu, I need you to help me." Ichigo muttered to his zanpakutō. Standing up, he tried to balance while his other hand touched his wound. "You've got this."

"Actually," Someone was breathing against his neck. The word was whispered into his ears so closely, he could smell his breath. How the hell did he get behind me so fast? "You don't."

Before Ichigo could turn around, a kick so powerful hit his jaw, sending him flying once again in the sky. He could feel the blood dripping down his mouth and the aching pain overcome his neck and jaw. His eyes were barely open at this point. If it weren't for the cold numbing his skin, he wouldn't have been able to bear the pain of that last hit. Colliding with the ground, Ichigo let out a groan as he stared up at the blinding sky.

I couldn't even sense him…Ichigo thought bitterly. Is this what sheatsu is? Is this its power?

"Dammit, I can't go down like this." Ichigo groaned under his breath but his body refused to listen to his wishes. He was aching all over, nothing like a kick was ever enough to put him down unless it belonged to Rukia. Her kicks had always been powerful, he had noticed that for awhile. It was even more painful than Tatsuki's or even his own. Of course he never admitted it to her but her kicks always caused him the most pain and strangely enough, that kick he had just gotten in the jaw felt much like it.

"Do you still want to fight? Or are you finally ready to listen instead of being so wild?" A man asked walking from afar but Ichigo's head hurt too much to look up.

"I'm tired of talking." Ichigo spat.

"You're tired? Already? Then how do you ever expect to understand everything that is occurring around you? How do you ever expect to comprehend what we are and who she is at all? If you are tired now, you must not be that motivated to find her after all. Perhaps touching that orange thing behind me with your human friends would've motivated you more."

"That's not the issue here." Ichigo said as he managed to sit up. "The issue is that all you people keep doing is talking to me. Everything you keep telling me is vague. There's nothing to it. You tell me things I could easily figure out myself, if anything. That's why I'm tired of this. It has nothing to do with who is kidnapped."

"Vagueness is your biggest key here. You don't seem to be understand that what we're telling you is more than you'll ever be able to comprehend without seeing every little detail."

"Then give me something. Right now, tell me something and I'll tell you what it means." Ichigo said.

"We've already given you enough hints. Tell me what those mean and maybe I'll be generous."

"I don't remember any of your hints."

"Well then I guess you're done for. It was a pleasure getting to almost get to talk to you. If only you were more reasonable, I would've stayed longer."

"You're not leaving yet!" Ichigo yelled even though he knew he was in no condition to fight or argue.

"Oh, but I am. I think you need to re-evaluate everything you've been told before I can actually engage in battle with you. After all, why would I want to make you die in oblivion? Surely, she would never forgive me if I let you die in such a pitiful way. Not to mention that I'm not the one who's suppose to be killing you."

"Then who is?!"

"Wouldn't you like to know? Hmph."

"Is it Jushirmai? What would Jushirmai want to do with me?"

"Oh, he wants nothing to do with you. He wants…."

"Rukia."

"Then if you already know, why would you assume he's out to kill you? The more I talk to you, the more brain cells I feel that I lose."

"I don't know but, Rukia and I are connected. We always have been. If he feels somehow threatened by that he'll come after me too. He'll try to break that bond, just to get to her."

"He isn't threatened by you at all. If you had known the truth than perhaps he would consider it, but feeling threatened by a mere human is the last thing on his list, trust me. There's nothing you would be able to do to change the history they share."

Ichigo paused. "Did he love her?"

"That's too simple."

"I knew it, so it isn't love. He wants something else from her. But what?"

"Goodbye, Kurosaki. I shall grant you this as a goodbye present." And with one last look, Ichigo was sent flying another few kilometres away with another powerful kick before a tornado of wind engulfed Jushirmai's ally and they disappeared with the mist.

And at that very moment, Ichigo's eyes closed.

"Kurosaki-kun! Kurosaki-kun! Kurosaki-kun!" A tearful voice called his name. He opened his eyes very slowly, blinded by all the whiteness surrounding him. "Kurosaki-kun! Kurosaki-kun!"

The image was blurry, but he knew the voice belonged to Orihime. He felt her long hair touch his stomach as she hovered over his body, tears glistening in her eyes. She was calling out to him over and over again but Ichigo couldn't open his eyes because of all the brightness.

"Kurosaki, can you hear us?" He heard Uryū's voice asked.

"I think he's coming too." He heard Chad say in the background.

Finally opening his eyes, he was welcomed by a painful whiteness in the sky and the cold snow beneath him giving him goosebumps as he tried to adjust his vision.

The pain that he had felt all over had disappeared or rather, felt numb. He assumed since Orihime was near him she was the one to heal all his pain but still, his body was overwhelmed and tired. This wasn't something Inoue could heal.

"Thank goodness." Orihime said as Ichigo finally sat up and looked around him to see his concerned friends.

"Dammit." He said under his breath as he sat up with Orihime's help.

"Kurosaki-kun? Are you okay? Do I need to heal anywhere else?"

"No, no, it's okay Inoue."

"Well, Kurosaki, you've proven to be the most dumbest person I know, congratulations." Uryū said.

"Shut up, Ishida. It's just a wound, nothing to get all worked up over."

"You wish it was just a wound, your whole body is covered in black and blue bruises and if you think that's the worst of it, you're glad you weren't awake to see Inoue-san heal your jaw bone." Uryū said.

"I don't think I've ever seen that much blood in my life." Ganju said.

"A minute later and you would've been dead, Kurosaki. You owe Inoue-san for saving your life."

"O-Oh no, Ishida-kun. I was happy to do it just for you Kurosaki-kun. Y-You don't need to owe me at all! Unless you want to of course but you wouldn't or won't have to do it for me. I'm okay!"

Ichigo's expression softened. "Thank you, Inoue."

"O-Oh?" Orihime's cheeks heated up. "You're welcome, Kurosaki-kun. It was my pleasure! I'm your healing girl!"

"Uh, yeah, sure." Ichigo said with a no-teeth smile.

"What exactly happened down here?" Ganju asked.

"What else do you think happened, idiot? I was in a battle with one of Jushirmai's allies." Ichigo said.

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING IDIOT? You should be calling yourself an idiot for losing the battle in the first place!" Ganju yelled.

"OH YEAH?! It's not like you would've won anyways, Ganju so quit complaining!"

"At least I would've last a bit longer than your skinny ass. Inoue-san predicted that you only got about three hits and you were down, that doesn't sound pretty heroic if you ask me! Why the hell does the Head Captain depend on such a wimp?" Ganju said.

"W-WIMP?! Who the hell are you calling a wimp?" Ichigo said.

"Kurosaki-kun, I just healed your wounds an hour ago, please calm down."

"Inoue-san is right, Kurosaki. Relax, we can't move forward if you're injured."

"Yeah, yeah." Ichigo brushed off.

And after a few seconds of silence, he spoke again.

"I'm tired of this always happening. They keep coming to tell me something and then disappearing. It's starting to get annoying if you ask me."

It was annoying. That man, whomever he was, didn't come to fight him at all. He just wanted to tell him stuff, that's what Ichigo didn't want.

"They don't seem to want to engage into battle either. It's strange…" Uryū said. "It's almost like they are trying to help Kuchiki-san tell us something but that itself doesn't make sense."

"You don't think…" Orihime's voice trailed off.

"No, Inoue, I don't." Ichigo said in a quiet voice. "There's no way she's associated with these people. The assassins, maybe but whomever the hell these people are I doubt it."

"The Rukongai District may be under the control of the assassins but that doesn't mean that stuff doesn't happen around there. There's a bunch of gangs in each district, he could've met her through one of them." Ganju said. "I know about a century ago there was a case that blew up around the Soul Society about gangs housing women to serve nobles as maids and well you know, other things. They didn't just take women but young girls on the street too to serve them. Maybe that's how Kuchiki-san must've met that noble bastard."

"She was tough in the Rukongai. There's no way she would let something like that happen to herself no matter what. It isn't that…"

"We don't really have much of an option right now, you realize that Kurosaki. The earlier we figure out, the better it'll be for us."

"I know but, it just doesn't feel right. Everything we keep talking about, it doesn't make sense. We're being too simple."

"So, what do you suggest, Kurosaki?"

"You see that? When I met up with that guy a few minutes ago I noticed something when I was in the air. It was a sea, just like the one Kukaku told us we needed to cross to get the border. It seems far if we walk on feet but if we can start walking now and take a break on the fifth mountain to sleep, we should reach there by late morning." Ichigo said while finally standing up beside Orihime.

"And what if we can't find her there, Kurosaki? Something tells me that we're being tricked." They kept being talked too and Uryū, out of all of them, found it the most suspicious. He wasn't willing to take the chance.

"What are you tryna say? Are you tryna say my Nee-chan would lie to you?!" Ganju said.

"No, but maybe, someone is lying to her." Uryū predicted.

"We don't have time for this, Ishida. Can we at least get there first before we start making assumptions?"

"If we don't start making assumptions now, we'll be doomed when we get there." Uryū said.

"So what do you suggest, Ishida?" Ichigo asked, staring at the quincy who looked onto the ground in deep thought. And after a long pause with Uryū thinking critically about his next decision, he spoke, "we fight each other."

"What?" The group said in unison with their eyes widened.

Uryū wasn't kidding, they realized that the minute he made eye contact with Ichigo. Uryū realized something. Heading to that border meant that they would encounter Jushirmai's allies as there was no doubt that he would have men there to protect the border from being broken if Rukia was there. But he realized something else. They could potentially encounter assassins who were enemies of soul reapers but were not enemies of him. He figured that if Ichigo and him pretended to have a battle, it would not just attract Jushirmai's allies to come and meet them but the assassins too in which Uryū would appear as one of them.

An electrifying blue light blinded their eyes as Uryū summoned an arrow and pointed it towards Ichigo.

"Ishida, what the hell are you doing? How is fighting each other going to solve our problem?" Ichigo said, staring at the point of the perfectly angled arrow to his face.

"Ishida-kun...please don't do this." Orihime pleaded.

"It's the only way we can get them to come to us." Uryū said before releasing his finger, allowing the arrow to forcefully break free and aim straight towards Ichigo.

Taken aback, Ichigo immediately pulled out Zangetsu as defense, forcefully hitting the arrow to his left as Uryu fired another one. Ichigo didn't want to admit it but his body was already worn out. It had been a short battle with Jushirmai's ally but Ichigo felt like all the bones in his body had suffered a crack because of it. Every touch felt like he had broken a limb, it was terrifying how powerful every kick had felt. Even if Uryū wanted to fake a battle, he wasn't sure he could do with his body hurting like this, that's why he had to resist no matter what Uryū's motive was.

"Why the hell do we need them to come to us for?"

"You're not understanding, Kurosaki." Uryū grunted as he released another collection of arrows at him. "We need to bring them here to get some answers."

Ichigo who was now running and shielding himself yelled in response, "we aren't getting any answers! All they keep doing is talking to us, if we want action we have to go find them ourselves not create are own arena here!"

His legs weren't going to make this. He knew it, his body knew it, but he didn't have enough energy to play on the defense side with Zangetsu, all he could do was run and shield himself to avoid Uryū's arrows.

"Ishida-kun! Please stop!" Orihime begged.

"I'm afraid I can't do that, Inoue-san. We need to get their attention, maybe they'll actually provide us some service."

"SERVICE?!" Ichigo yelled as he dodged another collection of arrows, running around in the snow to avoid it. "Are you out of your mind?! What service can they provide?!"

With Ichigo running in circles and the rest of the gang fixated on the two, none of them noticed that the there was a certain wind encircling them that was much faster than the previous breeze they had felt due to Ichigo and Uryū. This wind was fast, powerful, and engulfing the gang like a tornado however, strangely, none of them noticed that it was occurring. To say that it was just power of Ichigo and Uryū circling around them with Uryū's arrows and Ichigo's speed would be invalid as the two alone would never be able to generate the amount of power this force was accumulating.

Clueless Orihime stared at the two without feeling a thing, Chad stood right behind her doing the same while Ganju and the twins sat down and continued eating the leftovers of Orihime's meal. No one noticed the wind pulling them closer together as they stared at the two.

"I don't think Uryū is talking about Jushirmai's allies." Chad said in his usual deep tone.

"Huh?" Orihime said in perplexity. "Then who is he talking about?"

"Ishida, this isn't going to make them come here! It just makes us look like idiots because WE ARE SUPPOSED TO BE ON THE SAME SIDE!" Ichigo yelled.

"You're not getting it, Kurosaki! I'm suppose to be your enemy, I'm a quincy remember?"

"I thought we were past all of this!"

"The quincies seem to have a tight relationship with the assassins! If we make a scene, they'll be curious and come themselves!"

"Why can't we just go to them instead of going through all of this?!" Ichigo yelled.

"Because I don't trust that area that we're suppose to be going too!"

"Kukaku sent us there, goddammit! STOP SHOOTING!"

"It doesn't matter whether she did or not. I told you we have to think twice about the stuff we're told!" Uryū said. "I don't about you, but I'm not willing to be screwed over so easily by these people."

"It's Kukaku, remember? The woman who helped us get into the Seireitei to save Rukia?! Ishida, don't you remember?"

"Of course, I do! But that doesn't give us any reason to take her word for it! Besides, the enemy isn't who I'm trying to summon here if you haven't already figured it out, Kurosaki!"

"What the-? Then who the fuck is it?" Ichigo asked. "What the– " Ichigo managed to say as an arrow of Uryū's headed straight towards his eye, sending him to the ground. "Hey! That almost hit me!"

"That's the point, Kurosaki." Uryū said as he got rid of his archer and towered over him from the sky.

"What's the point of this all then? Who are you tryna attract then?"

"I thought you would get it but it seems like I had too much faith in your intelligence, Kurosaki. The answer is, the – "

"Kurosaki-kun! Ishida-kun!" Orihime called out in horror, capturing their attention immediately. Both Ichigo and Uryū immediately turned in her direction as she sat knelt down on the snow along with the others and a familiar wind surrounding them as they sank in the snow. "W-What's happening to us?"

He's back.

End Note

byaruki / tumblr.