).(
-Use Bleach When Required-
Shichi: Caught In The Web
You have power over your own mind-not outside events. Realise this, and you will find strength.
- Marcus Aurelius
Sanae changed into her sport gear with the rest of the girls from her class. She rolled her eyes at Chizuru trying her best to let Orihime change her shirt for her but Tatsuki was having none of it. She smacked the red head to the other side of the room with enough force to shake the foundations. Sanae pulled her hair up into a ponytail and followed Orihime and Tatsuki out into the track area. The three girls stood around talking and stretching as they waited for Kagine-sensei to arrive with their lesson plan for the day.
Boisterous laughter from the entrance to the boys changing rooms caught Sanae's attention; she glanced over her shoulder to see the familiar group laughing together. Well it was mainly Keigo. At the back of the group walked Ichigo, his eyes were cast down to his feet as he silently trailed behind the group. Sanae watched as Ichigo raised his head, his tawny eyes searching for something before they finally landed on Sanae. A second later he had turned his head away from her, moving off to the other side of the track with his friends as Sanae frowned in bewilderment. She had noticed over the past few days since the incident at the hospital that Ichigo had been acting strange around her. It wasn't like they were the closest of friends to begin with but they had fought a Hollow together. They had shared a moment of their pasts together and now he was acting like she didn't exist. She couldn't remember doing anything potentially hazardous to their relationship in the last couple of days.
Sanae shrugged it off, as it was more then likely some usual behavior for him. Tatsuki called her over to warm up with her and Orihime around the track. The three girls ran one lap before Kagine-sensei finally appeared and had them splitting off into groups of three for volleyball.
X
Ichigo was trying his hardest not to stare, but it was hard to watch Sanae act like her normal self when he knew that she was hiding something. On the one hand he thought that he had no business prying into whom she knew, it could've just been a creepy coincidence. The handful of meetings he had had with strange storekeeper, being around him would drive even the sanest of people mad. Ichigo had a feeling that if Sanae had wanted him to know that she knew geta-bōshi, she might have informed him…and if she didn't—then she must have a good reason why.
And then on the other hand, he wanted to know what secret she was keeping. If she knew geta-bōshi, that must mean she would know a lot more about Hollows and Shinigami then she was letting on. He wanted to know if Sanae had good intentions. With the few encounters that they had, he guessed that Sanae was a decent human being. She had helped him defeat a Hollow. She had saved a Soul. They weren't really the characteristics of someone with ill intentions.
Ichigo was currently watching Sanae out of the corner of his eye; she was in a group with Orihime and Tatsuki. The three girls were currently versing Keigo, Mizuiro and another classmate called Tetsuo. Tatsuki was currently dominating at the volleyball game over the boys as Sanae and Orihime cheered and joined in when needed. Ichigo watched as Sanae passed the ball to Tatsuki as the plum haired girl smacked the ball. Keigo failed to hit it as it landed on the grass. Tatsuki cheered as her and Sanae high-fived, all three girls laughing together. Ichigo then started to wonder, was it a coincidence that Sanae started at his school a week after he had obtaining Shinigami powers?
Smack!
Ichigo flinched when a ball smacked right into the side of his face painfully, "Oi!" He yelled, directing his glare over at Rukia who was glaring at him with her hands on her hips.
"What are you staring at, baka? Teach me this game we have to play!" Rukia ordered as Ichigo picked up the ball from the ground.
"It's not hard, dumbass." Ichigo grumbled at her as he started going through the basics with her.
Ichigo brought down his sword in one swoop, effectively slicing the Hollow in half as the creature disappeared from the living world. Ichigo sheathed his sword as Rukia walked up to him, examining her phone.
"Looks like it was only that one," she said, flipping it shut and glancing up at Ichigo. She noticed the permanent frown on his face that he had been wearing the past few days. She knew something had been bothering him.
"Hey…Rukia?" Ichigo said softly.
"Mm, what is it?" Rukia asked absentmindedly.
Ichigo rubbed the back of his neck, "You go to the weird storekeepers shop, right?" Rukia nodded. "You ever see anyone else there?" Ichigo asked.
Rukia quirked an eyebrow, "He has his assistant…two children that he watches over, why?" She was curious now.
Ichigo was silent for a moment, mulling over the dilemma he had been faced with for days now. "I think Kagawa knows him."
"The transfer?" Rukia asked shocked. She had had even less contact with the strange girl then Ichigo. "Urahara never told me!" Rukia pouted childishly.
Ichigo rolled his eyes at her. "I saw them talking a few days ago. I could be wrong, but just act normal around her. I guess it's time I talked to her about it."
"Of course," Rukia said with a nod of her head.
X
Ichigo adjusted the collar of his school shirt and then made sure that Kon was stuffed safely away in his school bag. After returning from dispatching the Hollow Ichigo had forced Kon into the restroom to change over, much to the chagrin of Kon. Although he was thankful that the Mod Soul hadn't caused a ruckus in the classroom like he had done all those weeks ago.
Ichigo opened up the classroom door and immediately heard something that made him want to throttle the dark haired Shinigami.
"Oh, Kagawa-san, how are you today?" Rukia sung in a pleasant tone. Ichigo watched as Rukia approached Sanae waving and smiling. The brown haired girl turned in her seat. Ichigo saw a flash of apprehension on Sanae's face, it only lasted a split second before Sanae grinned back at her.
"Good morning, Kuchiki-san! I'm wonderful this morning, you?"
Rukia flicked her skirt out. Ichigo desperately wanted to tell Rukia that that trick would only work on men, mainly Keigo.
"I'm great! I was wondering if one day after school you would like to go shopping and get milkshakes?"
Cue Ichigo smacking his forehead. So much for being subtle and waiting until he had spoken to her. This was probably Rukia's way of being subtle, Ichigo thought bitterly. Now that Rukia had approached her, Ichigo waited for her reaction to her offer. He saw Sanae hesitate for a second before she smiled again and nodded her head at Rukia, "That sounds great, Kuchiki-san!"
Sanae walked out of the school gates, she turned around and waved goodbye to Orihime and Tatsuki who were walking the opposite way to her. Sanae fell into the flow of pedestrians as she walked the route to Urahara's shop. It was a lovely afternoon, summer was slowly coming to an end and it would be autumn soon. Sanae had a pleasant smile on her face as she peered into the windows of shops and cafes. It was only when she turned down a small street that she noticed she had a follower. She recognized the reiatsu straight away as she furrowed her brow nervously.
Why is he following me? She wondered to herself.
Sanae quickly moved behind a tree that was next to the pavement as she waited patiently. It wasn't long before Ichigo walked ahead, looking around in confusion and rubbing the back of his head. Sanae could hear him muttering to himself as she stepped out behind him.
"Are you following me?" Sanae asked suddenly.
Ichigo jumped and spun around. He had a guilty look on his face that quickly vanished as he leaned back on his feet and crossed his arms, "No way. This is the way I walk home."
Sanae quirked an eyebrow at him, "You're a bad liar, you know that?"
"Takes one to know one." Ichigo shot back.
Now it was Sanae's turn to stare in confusion. Her arms dropped like stones, "What's that supposed to mean?" She asked.
Ichigo glared at her, "You tell me. I saw you with that Urahara guy." If Sanae's reaction was anything to go by, Ichigo knew that he was right.
Her eyes widened and her mouth parted, "Wh-what?" she stuttered out.
"I saw the footage from the Hospital. You were talking with him. Now I might be wrong, but you showing up around the same time that Rukia transfers her power to me isn't just a coincidence, is it?" Ichigo snapped at her. "So who the hell are you, Kagawa?"
Sanae was rendered speechless. She had tried so hard to keep her identity a secret from everyone around her, but Ichigo had seen her talking with Urahara. She had been caught out in her lie. She knew that there could've been a possibility of her being found out, she just didn't expect it to happen so soon.
"How do you know geta-bōshi?" Ichigo asked firmly, his glare never wavering. Sanae bit her bottom lip, unsure with how to proceed. Above all she was afraid. She could never tell Ichigo the truth about herself, he would never understand.
"He…" Sanae whispered, turning her face away from him. "He saved my life."
It wasn't a total lie, Sanae thought to herself bitterly.
"Oh…" Ichigo whispered somberly. Sanae had the courage to look him in the eye again now that his anger was gone.
"It's true though…Urahara asked me to attend Karakura High to keep an eye on you, to help you if things got too tough." Sanae mumbled, rubbing her arm. She was blatantly lying to him now, but it was a lot better then Ichigo knowing the actual truth. "I didn't want you or Kuchiki-san to find out about my connection with him as I knew it would raise questions."
Ichigo sighed and scratched his neck, staring down at her, "I guess I understand. I mean it's not really any of my business…" Ichigo muttered. "I just wanted to make sure that—"
"That I wasn't some crazy lunatic?" Sanae finished off with a smirk. Ichigo glanced away sheepishly.
"Something like that." Ichigo met her sapphire stare, "Hey, so does that mean you know about Soul Society?"
Sanae grinned and skipped ahead of him, "I think you've asked me enough questions today, but I guess I'll leave that one to your imagination." Sanae chuckled. Ichigo narrowed his eyes at her playfully. "See you at school, Kurosaki-kun!" Sanae called joyfully with a wave of her hand as Ichigo watched her go.
A few days later Ichigo caught up with Sanae in the hallway, "Hey, Kagawa." Sanae stopped and turned sharply, alarmed at the desperate tone Ichigo had used. In her haste she dropped one of her books. "Sorry." Ichigo said, bending down to pick it up for her.
Sanae took it from his extended hand, "Thanks. What's wrong?" She asked, tucking the book back into her pile.
Ichigo quickly looked around the hallway, seeing it deserted. "Have you been taking out any Hollows?" He asked her.
Sanae furrowed her brows and shook her head, "No. The time I helped you was literally a one off. What's going on?"
Ichigo looked out of the nearby window and into the distance, a pensive look on his face. "I think someone is killing Hollows. Every time Rukia and I go to a call…as soon as we get there it just disappears."
Sanae frowned, that was concerning, "You think there's another Shinigami in Karakura?"
"I don't know what to think, but I do know that Rukia is concerned." Ichigo said. He then looked down at his feet and back up to Sanae. The girl watched him, knowing that he wanted to ask her something. "Hey uh—do you think you could ask…" He trailed off, rubbing his neck.
"If I can ask Urahara if he knows anything?" Sanae suggested.
Ichigo tried to suppress his smirk but failed, "Yeah…if it's not too much trouble. Rukia's been trying to get in touch with him but he's not answering her."
"It's not," Sanae said with a shrug. "I live with the guy…and if I try to avoid him he always has seems to find me." Ichigo stared at her. Sanae realized that Ichigo didn't know she lived with him. "Oh, um I've got to go…Ochita-sensei has a lot of makeup work for me to do." Sanae brushed passed the orange haired teen, "I'll let you know if Urahara says anything," she said over her shoulder.
X
Sanae arrived home later that day. It was almost dark; she had to complete two makeup tests that she had missed from her weeklong absence and a pile of homework to complete.
"Now I understand why kids drop out of school," Sanae muttered darkly as she pulled her shoes off in the entranceway.
Tessai popped his head around the corner, "Welcome home, Sanae-sama. Tenchou has been waiting for you."
Sanae waved him off as she entered the house part of the shop and dropped her bag on the floor and walked into the dining room, spotting Urahara, Jinta and Ururu sitting and eating.
"Ah! You're home," Urahara said happily.
Sanae took the seat next to him, "Why are you ignoring Kuchiki-san's calls?" Sanae asked bluntly.
Urahara chuckled, "I would never do that." Just then his cell phone rang, the only person who had his number was Rukia. Sanae gave him a pointed look. Urahara grinned, "She's fine."
The ringing died off as Sanae helped herself to dinner. "So do you know anything about these Hollow's mysteriously disappearing?" She asked him.
"Nope."
"Lying isn't good for your health, old man," Sanae glared at him.
Urahara smiled sweetly at her, "I would never lie to you."
"You lied to me yesterday." Sanae stated with a blank look.
"New day, new me." Sanae smirked into her rice. It was tough, no matter how hard she tried to be annoyed at Urahara; he always had a way of making her laugh. "Anyway, I would think you would know there's only one group of people that can completely erase a Hollow's existence," Urahara said to her with a pointed look.
Sanae thought about it for a moment, and then her face lit up in alarm. "Quincy? You can't be serious, they were all killed."
"Apparently not," Urahara took a drink from his cup. "Obviously some survived the extermination."
Sanae stood up from the table, "I need to go warn Ichigo. The Quincy are sworn enemies of Shinigami, he needs to be told." Urahara didn't try to stop her as she tore out of the dining room. He smirked into his cup, noticing that it was the first time Sanae had called Ichigo by his first name.
Sanae could feel Ichigo and Rukia's reiatsu a few miles away. There was also someone else with them, someone she had never felt before. If she had to bet, it was the Quincy. Even though it looked like the two weren't fighting Sanae still needed to tell him about them. They were a threat.
Sanae found them in a deserted street. She stopped a few houses away, keeping her reiatsu hidden as much as she could as she watched the confrontation happen. She couldn't hear what they were saying from her distance but judging by the look on Ichigo's face it couldn't be good.
Sanae watched as Rukia jerked on Ichigo's sleeve, pulling him down the opposite street and away from the Quincy. Sanae glanced over at the tall man who had his back to her. He wore some long white cape and a pair of stark white pants too. In the night she could tell his hair was dark. Sanae knew that she could cut down a street and get to Ichigo and Rukia and inform them about the Quincy. She turned and started running to where she knew she needed to go.
All of a sudden, she felt a flare of reiatsu and sensed a powerful spirit weapon heading right for her. Sanae twisted her upper body, dodging to the left as the arrow went soaring passed her head. She turned fully to face the Quincy, a frown on her face as Sanae watched as he calmly approached her. His spirit weapon disappeared.
"A normal human wouldn't be able to dodge that," he said, stopping ten feet away from her.
"What if I was? You could have killed me." Sanae stated bitterly.
Ishida pushed his glasses up, smirking. "So you just admitted to me that you're not a normal human."
Sanae pursed her lips. Dammit, she thought.
"Your simple tricks may have worked on those two." Ishida said, "But they won't work on a Quincy." He was referring to her masking her reiatsu. It was true that people who had perfect control of their own reiatsu would be able to detect her, but Ichigo and Rukia were new and young. Well in Rukia's case…young-ish.
"It's funny," Ishida started, not in a joking tone. "For someone like you, with reiatsu levels lower than a normal human, to be able to see Souls and Hollows. And not to mention the way you dodged my arrow."
"I'm just special I guess," Sanae stated. In order to go undetected, it was true that Sanae lowered her Reiatsu levels to that of a normal human. Only someone skilled enough would be able to see through her tricks. Ishida suddenly disappeared and reappeared in front of her. Sanae knew the Quincy had their own version of Shunpo. She backed up a step, readying herself in case it came to a fight.
"Or maybe, you're trying to be someone you're not." Ishida glared at her. Ishida called forth her spirit ribbon. Sanae didn't flinch when Ishida gripped onto the stark white spirit thread by her body. Ishida dark eyes glanced over the thread, his thumb and index finger moving the white thread.
"As I suspected." He stated. Ishida smirked and with his both of his hands he ripped the thread right down the middle. He exposed a new spirit thread, a thread that was the colour of blood.
"You're a Shinigami."
A/N:
I know I'm moving pretty fast in the storyline right now but honestly all the good stuff starts to happen once the Soul Society arc starts so I'm trying to get there as quickly as I can but still trying to make everything interesting. And next chapter you'll find pretty interesting as we have some good old fight scenes! As always thank you to the people who are following and to those who are reviewing!
REPLIES
Nixxion Mysterio - Soooo many questions, but most of them will come out with the Soul Society arc. As for her age, that will be revealed too but you can take your guesses ;) I know this chapter had a lot going on with Ishida but I'm trying to get to the good stuff which is the Invasion part, it was pretty rushed in some parts I know but it should slow down after the next chapter. I'm jealous of their relationship too! ahah. I've been trying my hardest to avoid them instantly falling in love which happens in a few fics ive read which annoys me because with Ichigo's personality, he's not the type to fall for a girl a day after knowing her. First they have to become friends and then the rest will come. I hope you enjoyed the way the confrontation played out xD especially with Rukia trying to be subtle!
Maryam Clarus - Thank you so much! I'm trying to add in more original stuff so it's not a side by side of the manga and anime but I'm so happy you're enjoying my work!
Again I'm aware this chapter was super rushed in most places but I'm just trying to get to the Soul Society arc as that's where I'll be taking some time writing the chapters!