Into the Fire 5 - (Bleach, OC-I)

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June 17. There isn't school today, and I guess I am not really doing much.

It's nothing surprising- the Kurosaki family had just left as they had gone to their annual visit to the graveyard as today was the day Kurosaki Masaki died.

As usual, I declined joining them since it felt genuinely bad to take part to this- and yes, I get it. If they wanted me there, then it would have been fair to go but... I had never known Masaki. I knew her from what the family told me about her, but that was it. She was a 'non-person' to me, and someone I didn't know. So, going there felt like something that wouldn't draw any sensation out of me as it should - I had no connection with this woman, so I knew I wouldn't have felt sad or sorrowful in the needed annual mourning day.

Karin had looked particularly annoyed by this, especially since Rukia had decided to tag along because 'she would get bored at home'. Truth be told, I knew there was another reason for the Shinigami to go and that was my current responsibility, a certain stuffed lion animal.

Kon has been a surprising entry in the 'cast'. I do remember seeing him appearing in some pics related to Bleach in the passing, but I discovered only recently how he ended up in the household: a Mod-Soul had snuck into one of the pills Urahara had given to Rukia for Ichigo. Rather than just pull him out of his body so he could 'go ghost' and fight Hollows, the Mod-Soul would hijack Ichigo's body, cause a ruckus, but ultimately aid Ichigo in killing the Hollow of the day.

Now, anyone would ask... where was I in all of this? And the answer to that is simple: I was in class, doing school stuff. Because, for a long time, I thought everything was under control as Rukia had taken Ichigo out to the courtyard to test out the pills. And I had to keep behind to get notes on the classes they were skipping - not exactly the most glorious job, but it wasn't even like anyone had predicted how things would turn out to go.

And so, as I left school and came back 'home', I found out that we had a new occupant and it was a most outrageous stuffed animals. I usually hold a rather sympathetic view for the 'punching bag' in some shows. But I do have to concede that the early examples of the trope are 'people that deserve it'. Kon deserves to be bullied for being a horrible stuffed thing that can't stop saying some unsavory stuff.

Thus, being stuck with Kon as the Kurosaki family left meant I couldn't enjoy the peace and quiet I would in the previous years.

Tatsuki and Orihime had gone for a trip out of Karakura Town, so they weren't going to be around for a few days, and I ultimately decided to go outside just a hour after being left with Kon.

"H-Hey, I am not that bad!"

I refused to answer that utter lie, more than glad that I could wander off and check around. With Kon on tow, that is. Carrying the stuffed lion around was a double-edged sword. On the one hand, I had him around and he couldn't cause any issue at home, on the other hand I was dealing with a little goblin that wouldn't stop whistling at any woman passing beside us. It got so infuriating with the kind of glares I was getting that the tempting thought of hurling the little shit in the nearest trash bin was difficult to suppress.

Alas, it was during this stroll that I found someone that had stuck around Karakura Town and that, by a strangely coincidental development, had entered the same grocery shop as I had. I hadn't noticed until he called me out.

"Takiji-san?"

I paused and turned to look at-

"Oh, Uryu-san. Good morning."

He nodded, and I took a moment to fully remember who this bespectacled guy was. Ishida Uryu was an acquaintance at best. Where I would usually hang around a lot with people I deemed to be my friends, I have to admit that Uryu didn't stand in that group at the moment. Not because I didn't like him or either, but we hardly spoke with one another, we just knew our respective names, and we had no strong feelings, positive or negative, towards each other.

So yes, Uryu was a bit the 'kind of face you know but you don't know much beyond that'. And I had a feeling this was a mutual understanding as the politeness I used with him was somewhat mirrored by Uryu himself.

"Good morning, I... thought you would have gone with the rest of the family."

I actually found this comment somewhat surprising. And suspicious. After all, how did he know that?

"Hm? How do you-"

"I am related to the Kurosaki family," Uryu interrupted, almost ready for this sort of question, but he appeared too calm for this to be a well-crafted lie. Which was odd considering Ichigo never told me about him having an extended family. Same for the rest of the Kurosaki family. "I have heard of Masaki's passing and... today's the day."

I nodded, and then we got going through the aisles of the shop. I had expected him to find an excuse and leave me be but... Uryu stuck around. And it felt like he was following me too.

"Can I... help you with something, Uryu-san?"

"In a sense, yes. I have a few questions that are important for me," The bespectacled young man stated, his eyes showing an emotionless glint. "Like... are you a shinigami, Takiji-san?"

I paused, and I felt Kon going stiff at the question too. He may be dumb, but he could tell something was up right now.

"...No. I am not."

"What about Ichigo?" Uryu pressed, "Is he a-"

"Not a proper Shinigami. Temporary one."

This time it was Uryu's turn to go quiet as confusion filtered out of his mask. "What?"

"Rukia-san is the shinigami or... was. She lost her powers while trying to give some to Ichigo when we got attacked by an Hollow. Something went wrong and Ichigo can fight hollows now while Rukia-san is without powers."

...

"Really? And do you expect me to accept this?"

"...Why not?" I asked back, frowning at Uryu.

"Well, Shinigami... they aren't good people."

I felt like this was the source of all sorts of flawed forms of hatred in Anime: lack of context and a genuine subjective view of things that was inherently wrong.

"And you say this... why?"

"I am afraid that's not something I wish to bring up," He suddenly said with a rigid tone of voice, and I held back from rolling my eyes at that. "Still, you should understand that I find Shinigami a dreadful group."

"...And maybe you are right," I admitted, causing Uryu to frown at my response. "I mean, Ichigo is Ichigo and Rukia seems genuinely nice, but she told me that they could really punish her for what happened to her so... that doesn't sound fair to me. And if they are planning to hurt them or worse, then they could end up becoming my enemy too."

"So, you plan to... fight them?"

"If push comes to shove, then yes. Which is why I am training as much as I can to..." I sighed, then gave him a serious look. "I get it, you have your own reasons to hate all Shinigami, but I am not putting Ichigo and Rukia in that group considering how they truly are. I wouldn't go as far as to say that all Shinigami are bad, but I can tell their society is backwater in that sort of stuff. So yes, I will go against their governance if that means keeping my friends out of harm's way."

...

Uryu nodded. "I see and, while I am not sure I can trust Rukia-san, I do have to admit that Ichigo-san is not a bad person."

There was nothing else said after that. We bought some stuff (with Uryu paying for his own things), and soon we parted ways. I returned home a bit tired, but I managed to put Kon in a cage while I went to use some of Urahara's pills to resume my training. I wasn't sure what sort of group Uryu was aligned to, but the way he spoke was a bit too ominous for this to be an one-man crusade.

And if there was more than Shinigami and Hollows... then it means I had to train even more than I had planned to.

Especially since I can tell something huge is coming in the next few weeks.

AN

Next time... Karin POV! And let's see what the sisters thinks of their 'second big bro'.