Memories of a broken soul

by arelia22

Time is a weird thing; it can sometimes bring relief and hope, but there are times that it only brings dread. For him, time was as much of a curse as it was a blessing; he had time to grow strong and protect, but the memories of those times could become to much of a burden with all the time he had. [Time-travel]

23. Chapter 22: Corpse filled White Sands

I bet no one was expecting this! I'm alive and updating this story, muhahaha! So… maybe you guys should go read previous chapter to get a feel about what's going on because I totally had to do that before typing this. Hop you like it! As an apology for the silence, I left more than one Shiba Life Decree at the end

Guys, I hope you appreciate how close you were to not getting this. I had to word files open and I wanted to not save on and I accidently "deleted" this one. If word didn't do an auto save for a limited amount of time, this would have been lost to the void and I would have NOT typed it again since I need to work and not write fanfiction hahaha.

Really, going out on a mission shouldn't be as hard as it seemed to be for Ichigo. Yoruichi had already known about the mission, she was going too after all, and while Ichigo would not bet money on Kisuke not knowing as well, the blonde had not seemed happy once he was filled in on the new type of hollow. Isshin and Sōsuke had just graduated the academy last spring, and while Isshin was settling in fine in the 10th where there were more than a few Shiba that could keep an eye on him, Sōsuke really knew no one in the 5th division and so it was no surprise that he was having trouble finding his place. Once this mission was over, Ichigo would make sure to rectify the situation. Case in point, this task had been unexpected to Ichigo, and if it wasn't supposed to be beneath him, he might have whined a bit.

Yasahiro on the other hand… had full on panicked.

It had been a while since Ichigo was forced onto the field for more than one day, and since he hadn't had the need to do so in the past, Ichigo had never really delegated Clan duties to him. This time would be different. While his mission could take two days, it could also take a week or even several weeks depending on what and who he found. So really, leaving Yasahiro as proxy in the meantime was the logical decision.

"I-I can't d-do it Ji-sama!" Yasahiro had protested the moment Ichigo had informed him of his temporary job. "I can't be C-clan head! That's your- your job!"

Ichigo snorted and ruffled the brunette's hair. "You're not going to be Clan head unless I kick the bucket in this mission brat."

Now Yasahiro looked even more panicked. "By the Spirit King, you- you can't leave me Ichi-ji!"

The orange head rolled his eyes when more than one of the 'kids' turned to look at him with mildly alarmed eyes. Honestly, he's a Senior Captain of the Gotei 13, a simple reckon to Hueco Mundo isn't going to kill him. Ichigo clapped his hands once to gain everyone's attention before lowering his posture to stare at the scared green eyes of his first godson.

"Yasahiro." He forgoes the endearment this time, and for some reason, this seems to shock the brunette enough to pause and lock his eyes with Ichigo's. "I will come back." He states without a fraction of doubt, the conviction in his tone making others in the room relax.

You would think Ichigo should not be making a promise like that, but in that moment they were certain that Ichigo could and would defy the very Spirit King if need be to keep his word –it was as if he were above petty things like death.

"When I come back, I will return to my loving friends and family and we will throw a proper party over the newest Shiba to be." More than one person snorted as if to say that Ichigo should be focusing on more important things then a party. "And I know, that I will arrive to a crazy and hectic compound because you know that we Shibas are crazy and we would not be Shiba if something didn't explode at least once a day. But even then, I am certain that you will do a great job in keeping this family safe and happy, because that is the important part. Not law books, paperwork or politics. As Clan head, and Clan heir, our duty and heart is to this Clan first, do you understand?"

Yasahiro looked teary eyed but nodded nonetheless. He sniffled a bit before diving to hug Ichigo as if he were still a little kid that could fit in his Ji-sama's lap. Ichigo merely tangled his fingers into the brown locks where Yasahiro rested his head on his shoulder before reluctantly pulling away from the hug.

"Now, I need to get going or we'll be late." He reminded Yoruichi with a raised eyebrow while she merely grinned in response. "If you need anything, I am sure Shu and Ju would be happy to help. If one of the elders is being particularly annoying, get Mei-bachan to whack them with her sandals. I know she's ancient, but they still listen to the crazy old bat."

Everyone laughed at that, and Ichigo took that moment to turn to the other brunette in the room. "Sosuke, same to you, if anyone gives you trouble at the 5th, be sure to let Shu and Ju know, okay?

Sosuke sighed but nodded agreeably. "We'll be fine Ichigo-sama, I'll also help Yasahiro when I can. It would not do to let Isshin get involved and cause a feud or something."

Isshin squawked in protest but no one went to the rescue with his plight. Really, so long as nothing catastrophic happened in his absence, everything would be fine.

With that thought in mind, Ichigo quirked one last smile before signaling Yoruichi to fall into step with him and flashing out the room. Like he said, it would not do to be late.

#22#

"We seriously need an R&D department." Yoruichi commented dryly as she watched a couple first and twelfth division Shinigami scurry to activate the mock Garganta and stabilize it for their trek into Hueco Mundo. "This is ridiculous."

"R&D?" Love asked quizzically from Ichigo's left. He looked a little more put together compared to how he seemed during the meeting. "What is that?"

"Research and Development." Ichigo answered promptly. "It's work directed towards the innovation, introduction, and improvement of products and processes."

Shinji turned to give Ichigo a puzzled and disbelieving look at that. "What did you do, swallow an encyclopedia?"

Ichigo snorted as Yoruichi laughed from her position reclined on the wall and Kotetsu Takashi, their medic and 4th division 3rd seat quirked an amused smile. "Hardly, I've just sat through one to many talks between Ki-chan and So-chan about this very same topic."

Shinji's brow furrowed. "Ki-chan is Urahara Kisuke, 3rd seat of the 2nd right? Who's So-chan?"

"He's in your division." The orange head informed him dutifully. "Aizen Sosuke, 12th seat, recent graduate from the academy."

"Ah." The blonde hummed in understanding. "He's one of your chicks, got it. I'll keep an eye out for him, he's bound to be something if he caught your eye."

Ichigo groaned. "Why does everyone insist on calling the kids mine?"

Shinji rolled his eyes. "Because you have a habit of collecting brats."

Yoruichi instantly flash stepped to drape herself over the blonde with a scary and teasing smirk that would have a weaker man running towards the hills. "Doesn't that include you though? Ichi-ji did teach you some things."

"No." the newly dubbed 5th division captain answered immediately. "I only met him when I was already a 20th seat in the first division. He's my senpai, not my sensei or surrogate uncle like you kiddies. Right Ichigo-senpai?"

The orange head rolled his eyes in exasperation while he kept half an eye on the flickering portal- it would be ready soon. "Don't involve me in your tantrums, there's more than enough of me to go around."

More than one person gave an amused chuckle, but Ichigo's attention was back onto the portal. It had stopped doing the weird static thing, which could only mean that they were ready to depart. He took a deep breath before turning towards the assembled Shinigami and gave them a serious stare that brought them all to heed.

"Alright." He began. "For now our main objective is recon. We will be dropped in point delta of Hueco Mundo, it's the most secure and Hollow free area of the present. Once we arrive we will need to make our way towards the site of the reiatsu disturbance. Make no mistake, we are going into enemy territory and Adjuchas class hollows will be coming at us left and right. It will not be a walk in the park, and until we find the mutated reiatsu, we cannot turn back. Got it?"

"Yes sir." They coursed in tandem, and Ichigo nodded in recognition.

"Remember that until we contact base, a Garganta will not be opened and retreat will not be a quick and easy option. Each of us will carry an enhanced Hell Butterfly to make sure we can all keep in touch, and I have also cleared for back-ups just in case." Ichigo reminded them before turning towards the gate and sharing a quick glance with the Shinigami stabilizing the Garganta to make sure it was cleared for transportation. "Alright, jump in!" he ordered and was happy to see them all fall into their rolls almost instantly. "Let's go!"

#22#

Arriving at Hueco Mundo is always so troublesome. Even just landing is irksome what with all the sand instantly invading your footwear and the biting chill reaching your bones until you regulate your reiatsu enough to buffer the cold.

Ichigo's used to doing this almost instantly, but because of how capricious this other dimension is, he can't really make an apt calibration until actual landing. He still deals with it much better than the other members of his party, and he's left on high alert covering all directions while everyone else finds their footing both literal and metaphorical.

"We'll go with standard formation." He informs them all when expectant gazes turn to him. "Shinji, you'll cover the rear. Yoruichi and Love will cover the flanks." Ichigo turns his gaze to the last of his team and gives the man a reassuring smile. "Takashi and I will take point. Questions?"

Ichigo looks around and finds everyone giving him head shakes. He takes this as his queue and releases the inter-dimensional hell butterfly he has been given to fly next to them before speaking to the small thing.

"Hueco Mundo investigation squad reporting in. This is tenth Squad Captain Shiba Ichigo speaking, come in base."

A couple seconds of silence grace them, and Ichigo sees Love and Takashi sharing worried expressions but doesn't let that bother him. It always takes a bit longer for inter-dimensional hell butterflies to kick in, and with how behind they are on R&D at this point in time, they have to make due with what they have.

The patchy static interrupts his train of thought, and the cheery voice of Hikifune Kirio comes through immediately after. "This is twelfth Squad Captain Hikifune Kirio speaking, we at base hear you loud and clear Shiba-Taicho. What is your status?"

"No anomalies to report at present time. We will commence main mission operations shortly." He states, his eyes shifting to follow as the hell butterfly batts it's wings and hovers to his left instead.

"Roger that. Next check in scheduled for twelve hours from now."

Once the static ends, signaling the end of transmission, Ichigo turns towards where the black insect is hovering and signals everyone to fall into step. A quick glance shows everyone has fallen into position like instructed. Before taking off, he glances towards their medic and gives the man what he hopes is a kind smile.

"You're our pace setter Takashi." He tells the other man while he looks for any sign of disagreement from everyone else. "Pick a speed you can maintain for long periods of time and keep to it. We can't have our main healer exhausting himself."

Fortunately for Ichigo, the 3rd seat is not an overly prideful man, and he merely smiles ruefully before nodding. "Of course Shiba-Taicho, I'll do my best to not inconvenience the team in such way."

Ichigo finds himself snorting at this and merely gives the signal to sortie while he turns to the man. "We're counting on you for any injuries Takashi, let me know if we need to stop."

The man laughs softly at this, and he hears what sounds suspiciously like stifled chuckles and a snort from behind but doesn't bother stopping his pace to look back.

"Shiba-Taicho," the healer begins in an almost admonishing tone, though the underlying level of politeness somewhat covers it. "we all know that you're one of the Captains best versed in Kaido. I'm sure if I were to fall, the squad would be in good hands."

This time Ichigo is sure the three in the back are laughing at him. He rolls his eyes even though they can't see and lets out an aggravating sigh. "I'm nowhere near Retsu-senpai's level, and you were trained by her so don't sell yourself short Takashi." The silver haired man nods in agreement, but he still gives Ichigo a side eyed glance that has him raising a brow. "I see you have something to say, out with it."

The man hesitates for a bit, before adding. "With all due respect sir, my Kaido knowledge is certainly superior than yours, and the Kotetsu family has been learning and researching it for at least three generations so it's not odd. But in raw power, you can continue treatment long after I have dropped dead from reiatsu depletion."

Ichigo hums in thought at this, before grudgingly nodding. "True. But let's just be as cautious as possible and hope our worst-case scenario won't be needed."

#22#

"So?" Shunsui quirked an eyebrow towards his white haired best friend from where he sat across the table in his compound's sitting room. "Who do you think Ichi-chan will find?"

Jūshirō hummed thoughtfully while playing with the edges of the table's Kotatsu. "How can we even be sure it will be one of the arrancar he met in the future?"

Shunsui pouted at his best friend before taking a swing from his sake. Why was Jūshirō ruining his fun? That was usually Ichigo's job. Did they swap duties or something? "But it would make sense, wouldn't it?

The white haired man sighed but agreed nonetheless. "I suppose it would. Wasn't there one that could split into two? I could have sworn Ichigo said that was the oldest one."

Shunsui shook his head at his friend while he not so gently set his sake back on the low table. "No way, you got it all wrong Ju-chan. That one is two people and they could fuse into one." Jūshirō furrowed his brows at this and was about to speak with Shunsui interrupted. "Besides, the oldest one would be the old arrancar Ichi mentioned. You know, the guy who thought himself King of Hueco Mundo or something?"

"That wouldn't add up though." Jushiro bulldozed his way into Shunsui's rambling with a practiced ease only he, Ichigo and Sensei could manage. "We age differently, why would humanoid hollows not follow this pattern?"

This made them both pause as a realization seemed to sink in.

"Wait, so it could be anyone!" Shunsui shrieked, his hands slamming on the table with a flourish Jūshirō thought was entirely unnecessary.

In retaliation he snatched the sake cup and downed it. The howls of horror from the brunet were totally worth it.

#22#

Ichigo shifts his feet softly and glances around at Love and Takashi from his place behind some rocks before quirking his head in the direction Yoruichi and Shinji left almost thirty minutes ago. After nearly an entire day of shunpo, the team had finally pinpointed the source of the burst and stopped at a cluster of rocks about 500 feet from their target. It had been decided that Yoruichi as their infiltration specialist would get closer as stealthily as possible and bring back data while Shinji would accompany her for cover. Ichigo had given the duo 30 min to gather information before they either had to check in via hell butterfly or regroup.

He shifted again, slightly disconcerted with how blind he was to everything but trying his best to not show it. Love and Takashi were already frowning and turning in the direction the two left and had been doing so since ten minutes ago; Ichigo was pretty sure the only reason they weren't panicking was because Ichigo looked as unflappable as always.

"Coming in." a voice spoke through the hell butterfly softly, before two figures descended into their hiding spot.

Ichigo only gave a quick cursory glance to make sure there were no injuries before ordering. "Report?"

The duo straightened to attention, and then Yoruichi began. "We got visual on the target, it looks like a humanoid shaped figure covered in a ragged cloth, no distinguishing features could be discerned. The shapes we saw in the distance are definitely hollows, but their all dead hollows."

Ichigo raised a brow at this, but made a gesture for the report to continue. He could ask questions at the end.

"It looks like a hollow gravesite of an approximate twenty feet radius." Shinji began this time. "The weird thing is, they don't seem to have been killed or eaten as is normal from hollow fighting. It just looks like they… dropped dead I suppose."

The orange head nodded as he took this all in, that was certainly odd and maybe something to look into. "Anything else?"

The scouting pair shared a worried expression before turning back to look at Ichigo with similar grimaces. He was a bit baffled, and he wasn't sure he was going to like what came next.

"The hollow, it's exuding so much reiatsu like some sort of defensive bubble, that I'm not sure how close we can get without our fighting capabilities inhibited." Yoruichi explained grudgingly, she was obviously not happy at having to report such news.

Ichigo reeled back in surprise as the puzzle pieces slotted into place in his head for both who this arrancar was, and what happened with all the hollows surrounding it.

"Oh that makes sense." He says out loud instead. "The high pressure of the reiatsu likely killed all those hollows."

"Wh-what?" Love stuttered, while everyone bar Takashi gave him wide eyed expressions. "I didn't know reiatsu could kill you?"

"It has been studied that souls with low to none reiatsu can have difficulty breathing in the presence of unrestrained reiatsu." Takashi explained calmly. "The weaker the soul and the higher the reiatsu, the faster they will have organ failure and die. Tests haven't really been done since our higher classed re iatsu individuals are busy captains, but we have encountered cases of talented rukongai folk affecting citizens."

Ichigo nodded in agreement before adding. "It's why we seal our reiatsu when going to the living world, and why we are taught to control it. If a low level Captain Class Shinigami walked around with their reiatsu out all the time, it's likely the unseated officers would faint, the junior seated officers would have trouble moving, and the senior seated officers would need support to stay upright. Depending on how high class the lieutenant is, they may react like the senior seated officers or set their jaw and try their best to act unaffected."

"That doesn't make sense." Yoruichi deadpanned. "I've seen father release his reiatsu, yes it was awe inspiring, but nothing that I felt stifling."

"True." Ichigo hummed in thought. "But first of all, you instinctively raise your reiatsu to avoid those affects and the difference between yours and the other person's is what is left to impact you, my previous example was with the other Shinigami not doing this. Secondly, I can tell you right here and now, that because we have our reiatsu so tightly wound all the time, it's hard to completely set it out. It's likely what you felt was only a about sixty percent of Tsuki's reiatsu."

"S-sixty?" Yoruichi choked.

"Yes, the older and higher classed you are, the more concentration and preparation you need to release your reiatsu all in one go. Then again, there is hardly ever a need to release it all." Ichigo lectured calmly, his eyes more focused in the direction of their target then the wide-eyed stares he's getting from all sans the blonde. "So Shinji." The man straightens at being addressed. "How close do you think you can get?"

The newest captain purses his lips in thought as he stretches out his senses and gauges his own reiatsu. "I can get to the center, but I will likely start being a liability if we stay longer than ten minutes."

Ichigo chewed his lip gently as he thought about his options. Going alone would be the only one if they chose to make contact, but the option of withdrawing was also there. What to do?

"I'll make contact with the target." He informs them. "If it's hostile, we'll retreat, if not we'll be able to further gather data."

"Wait a second." Love interjects for what feels like the first time. Ichigo finds himself reassured, they don't need meek captains and Love will soon be one. "If it's as powerful as it seems, retreat will be a problem."

Ichigo shakes his head. "It won't. I'll engage and you guys will stand back to cover rogue hollows and guard the gate until it stabilizes."

There's an awkward silence while the four share baffled and concerned expressions before Shinji speaks up. "Senpai… that thing is a monster reiatsu powerhouse."

Ichigo finds his eyes cooling several degrees as he straightens his posture and looks down at the crouched group. It's been a long time since people have seen him truly fight, and because of this, it makes sense that no one really knows how powerful he is -he hasn't had the need. It's not their fault that they don't know, but this will definitely be a learning experience.

"Watch and learn children." He tells them with a finality that leaves the team with no other option. "We'll relocate to a closer rock before I engage."

The four share another glance but Ichigo is not leaving them with an option so Shinji and Yoruichi show them to a strategic location only 35 feet away from the target. Even from here it's obvious the reiatsu is starting to affect them, but now that stealth is out of the picture, they all raise their own and Ichigo leaves the group in a somewhat steady state.

He steps out of the outcropping of rocks and finds his gaze wandering to all the hollow corpses. They are certainly a sight to see, and many would take this as a sign and stay away. Ichigo has always found joy in doing the exact opposite of what people would expect.

He takes a step forward, and his reiatsu bursts out from his tenketsu to fill his veins with power until they can't keep it in and it explodes visibly outwards.

It's been a very long time since he has done this, but it's not something he is likely to forget. Back in the war, when hoards of small fry would attack in mass, he and some others would pull at their reiatsu and crush their enemies with power alone. Ichigo had been the best at doing this, and he had left piles of bodies in his wake after a leisure stroll.

With every step he takes, his output increases until he's certain his own shadows of reiatsu are pushing the arrancar's wall of reiatsu out of his way as he walks. His is a smaller territory compared to the 20 feet radius the figure in the middle has, but Ichigo has made certain his own covers his entire path back to the squad. Once he's five feet away from the figure he stops, his posture straight but relaxed with a hand lazily slung inside his shihakusho and the other resting on the pommel of Zangetsu.

"Good day Mister Hollow, my name is Shiba Ichigo, and you?" he tells the figure evenly, his tone showing no inhibition at being amidst the reiatsu and a slight grin curling the edges of his mouth.

The figure looked up, and Ichigo caught his first sight of the unkept shoulder length hair and bland expression set on the man's face slowly morphing into something akin to surprise.

"Coyote… Starrk."

#22#

"Shiba-Taicho's latest report sir." Kirio gives the Captain Commander a bundle of papers before passing a copy to each of the captains. "I'll paraphrase it, but the full details are in there. The squad wondered through Hueco Mundo for twenty-one hours before finding the target. Once it was located, a recon by Fifth Squad Captain Aizen Sosuke and Second Squad Lieutenant Shihōin Yoruichi was carried on. The duo got visual of a humanoid shaped being covered in a ragged sheet surrounded by hollow corpses. Further investigation showed the immense reiatsu signature being put out by the evolved hollow killed all the hollows who approached it. It was further stated, that Fifth Squad Captain Hirako Shinji could not stay within the twenty-foot radius for longer than twelve minutes before starting to feel the effects. Hirako Shinji described it as a monster reiatsu powerhouse."

Murmurs of shock echoed around the room which made Kirio lower the report slightly to stare at her fellow captains. She had been skeptical when this had been reported to her, but she couldn't really deny this when it came directly from the source.

"Quiet!" the Captain Commander roared, and everyone instantly quieted.

It was incredible, made even more shocking by the fact only he could do so -though there were rumors flying about that the Tenth Squad Captain could make the annoying people from Central shut up with a single glare, she wondered if that was true and if he could do the same with the Captains if he tried.

"Hikifune-Taicho, continue." The old man ordered, cutting her musing short.

"Of course!" she happily agreed, her eyes dropping to her notes. "This was tested after Tenth Squad Captain Shiba Ichigo made first contact with the individual. Shiba-Taicho stated that the evolved hollow took on the shape of a male human with only a hollow hole and a bone fragment hanging around his neck. The target was capable of perfectly rational thought and called himself Coyote Starrk -no hostile activity has been reported. Upon further query, a second target which was originally part of the first was identified as Lilynette Gingerbuck. She, like target one, bared the form of a very young girl with only a bone fragment on her head like a helmet and a hollow hole -no other hollow features could be identified."

"Did Shiba-Taicho have adverse effects to the hollow's reiatsu?" Kuchiki Ginrei inquired.

Kirio dropped her report slightly before answering. "None."

The Captain Commander heaved a death worthy sigh as he pinched the bridge of his nose. Everyone turned to look at the man in hopes that he would elaborate and were not disappointed.

"We can't use Ichigo as a measure. Reiatsu wise, I would be almost certain in saying he far out classes every Shinigami including myself." He informed that.

Jūshirō and Shunsui shared a laugh at everyone's slack jawed expression before the white-haired man added. "One monster reiatsu powerhouse is needed to interact with a monster reiatsu powerhouse that doesn't know how to control their power."

Kirio wondered if the thirteenth Squad Captain was saying this to reassure them or as a warning. The gentle man could be very protective of those he cares about, and everyone knew the trio were as close as anyone could ever get -there were even some rumors that the three captains were involved in a more scandalous relationship that-

"Quiet you children!" the Captain Commander roared again, Kirio found her gaze moving to Unohana-Taicho and was not surprised at the frown on her face, she was probably thinking about the old man's blood pressure.

To be continued…

Decree# 9 of Shiba Life: If you have to pick between two stupid ideas, go with the one you haven't done before. (recommended by LadyTeldra AO3)

Decree# 20 of Shiba Life: It's illegal to ride a cow drunk

Decree# 32 of Shiba Life: 'In my defense, i was left unsupervised', is not a valid excuse.

Decree# 61 of Shiba Life: Don't be children and bother the Clan head over who's fireworks are the best.

So in case any of you were wondering, apparently before electrical Kotatsus were a thing, they used to be just a blanket (futon) with a charcoal brazier underneath so Kotatsus can definitely be a thing in this era